What Rough Beast?

In my short hiatus from Hubpages, I have been sporadically working on my novel. While I rarely show first draft to anyone, this just felt right. Warning - In spite of the fact that I cut 2,000 words from this, it is still long. Might want to make sure the kiddies are in bed and you have a refreshment handy. Enjoy - John Z.

 

The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

                                                         *******************

The cell phone stuck in Joshua’s rope belt vibrated. He slid it out and hit “speaker”.

“We are here.”

“We know.” said Joshua to the device.

“You must come outside. It was the agreement.” said the device.

“This we also know.” said Matthew to the device and with a flick of his wrist Joshua sent the phone skittering across the tile floor where it bounced off the wall and came to rest near the Rock.

“Time to go”, said Josh.

“I’m betting he’s shorter than he looks on TV.” said Matt and they began the walk toward the entrance.

                                                       ******************

The sun glassed man in the Hum-Vee yanked the cell away from his ear with a yelp of pain and stared at the device in his hand.

“Damn!” he exclaimed and stabbed the send button to end the call. He then activated the push to talk channel in his earpiece.

“All squads: mark the time to intercept in your FILOPS HUD and stay sharp until the signal is given. Anything happens to these guys and your asses are grass and I’m a lawnmower.”

“Roger.” The voices came back 4 times in his earpiece. FILOPS was the techie name for the filtered optical sunglasses they were all wearing. Among other things, these glasses carried a real time heads up display of the current trajectory of the Titan satellite. It was the first of a series of satellites that were to be placed in orbit for social order. The GPS guided laser could incinerate anything in a 100 square foot radius in less than three seconds. The glasses allowed for incredible night vision while still protecting against the high end spectrum burst of the laser.

“This better work boss or we’re all toast.” said Johnson from the back of the vehicle.

“It’ll work.” said the man from the front passenger seat. “You were briefed. You’ve seen the video of this thing. It’s accurate to 3 ft.”

“That’s not what I’m talkin’ about.” responded the other man. “No one’s been able to touch these guys in over three years.”

“Stow that bullshit right now soldier. This is for all the marbles today. POTUS knows what he is doin’. He ain’t been wrong yet.”

POTUS (President of the United States) was a title for the masses anymore. As the economic crises of 2008 had deepened over the following 2 years, the world economies had turned more and more to the central banks of their nations. Major industries had one after the other come under the protection of their governments until little was left in the world that could be recognized as free enterprise. Only China and the EC had weathered the economic storm and so POTUS had set up the American Economic Block. The World Bank had sat up and taken notice when the Americas Block began to turn around almost immediately through lucrative trade policies with China and the EC. POTUS laid his blue print for success out to the United Nations and the world’s representatives had responded by dividing the remainder of the planet into 7 more economic blocks. All the nations of the world had signed the agreement giving the UN its first real teeth in its short history.

The Hummer rolled to an abrupt stop and the Force Leader jumped out and looked back along the other six vehicles. Five Hummers and a stretch limo now occupied the Temple Mount. He grabbed his hat against the wind as men in black and grey camouflage spilled from the vehicles, each carrying a side arm and some sporting a scoped rifle. The first team dispatched to the newshounds to keep them back from the negotiation area. This team also passed out a dumbed down version of the FILOPS to the reporters and their crews. No HUD for them. They were told the glasses would allow them to better see the negotiations. The second team went to the front of the Dome of the Rock and set up portable tables and chairs. The other three teams surrounded the armor plated limo.

The Force Leader looked up and around at the churning sky and then looked past the Dome to the new temple of the Jews. He knew from the tactical maps he had seen that he was technically standing in what was known as the Court of the Gentiles. But the court had not been included in the temple plans so it could share the mount with the Muslim temple. Even without the outer court, the temple was huge. Though it was Hanukkah, no activity could be seen because the UN had demanded the mount be cleared for this meeting between POTUS, the Pope and the terrorists now occupying the Dome of the Rock.

They were a smart couple of guys; the force leader had to hand them that. No one had been able to hurt them in the three years they had wreaked havoc on the planet through their terrorist cells. Only one way into the temple and some ungodly weapon had incinerated anyone that had come near the entrance to try and take them out. Of course, missiles and other mass weapons were out of the question by reason of possible damage to the Dome of the Rock. No one knew who they really were; or for that matter what they wanted. What they did know was that their terrorist’s cells had ruined waterways and lakes all over the planet with some kind of poison that killed most of the fish and somehow had altered weather patterns. Severe drought was now the norm for a lot of places around the planet. Disease followed swiftly for most.

“Well, that was gonna end right here, right now.” thought the man.

                                                         **********************

Joshua and Matthew opened the doors at the entrance and the Holy Spirit urged them to stop and stand “right here”. The flurry of activity beyond them was a blur in the bright lights of the news agencies. As their eyes adjusted they could see two tables set up about 25 feet from where they stood. Men in black camouflage were attempting to stack papers on the tables without much success against the wind. Eventually these men settled on just standing over the stacks of paper and holding them in place.

Looking past these soldiers, Josh and Matt saw two men emerge from the limo. The first was dressed in a blue pinstripe suit and sported a huge smile for the news hounds that were shouting his name. The second wore a simple white robe with a white skullcap. He also had a shawl of many colors on his shoulders. Woven into the shawl were various symbols of the world’s religions. This man ignored the reporters and with hands clasped behind him headed toward the tables. POTUS answered a few questions and then, waving off the rest, followed the white robed man.

The Pope just stood at the table staring at the two men in the entrance. When the President arrived he looked at them and then at his men attempting to prevent a paper storm. He grinned at their efforts and then turned his grin on Joshua and Matthew. The rest of the soldiers formed a semi-circle behind him.

“Think you could call off the wind long enough for us to finish this?” chuckled POTUS.

Matthew waved his hand and the wind immediately stilled. The men stood with their hands over the stacks of papers for a minute and then began to look around in disbelief.

“Neat trick.” said POTUS, first looking around and then back at the men.

“’It’s no trick – as you well know, beast.” said Matt.

“Ah, the gloves are off and we haven’t even dispensed with the niceties.” sighed POTUS.

“Watch your mouth heretic.” growled the Pope.

“Your false religion is the glue this beast is using to cement his authority. You are the lesser of the two and your end will come sooner.” said Matthew.

“You speak in riddles.” barked the Pope.

“The only riddle you need to solve is how you’re going to escape the lake of fire.” said Joshua.

“Come, come gentlemen. We have no time for a religious debate. Simply step over here and sign these documents and you will have safe passage to Australia and we will have back a peaceful planet.”

“We have asked for no safe passage to Australia or anywhere else. And peace is something no man will have until they say ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord’.” said Matthew. “Though soon you will show yourself as god in the temple, you are already bound over for destruction. And your god will be chained by Michael himself and thrown back into the pit for a thousand years. You serve a liar and the very Father of Lies.”

“And you serve a bully for a god, boy.” spat POTUS. He began to pace behind the tables as he eyed the two witnesses.

“The people of the world have come together under one religion that incorporates all mankind. We all know that God can be called by many names and worshipped in many ways. But your God is intractable and merciless. He demands, demands, demands and never delivers! Where is He now boy? HMM? Where!? Nowhere is where! And here you two stand, sorry excuses for humanity, filthy, hungry, and exhausted; for what? What point have you made except that you and your God are terrorists?”

“The terrorist is defined by those in power.” said Joshua. “Even now your armies surround the Holy City.”

“They are there to keep the peace. It is diplomacy on a world level, something you would not understand.” said POTUS and he smiled at them with a smile that did not reach his eyes. Just then a voice in his ear said “Four minutes to intercept point.”

“Peace, peace.” sighed Matthew. “There will be no peace.”

“There is already peace heretic.” said the Pope. “My religion has brought the world’s religions under one umbrella. It is what the fighting has been all about, is it not?”

“Your religion is no longer recognizable to the Lord!” spat Matthew. “You have thrown away the power of God and embraced adultery. You worship idols of stone and lay heavy burdens on the people, but do nothing to help them remove their loads. Then you deny them the one true way into heaven, Jesus.”

“And here is the religious debate I was loathe to have.” sighed POTUS. “Gentlemen, we are here to solve this crisis. Please tell me what you want and I will make it so. The World Congress has authorized me to end this by any and all means.”

“Two minutes to intercept point.” said the voice in his ear.

The President knew without looking around that his boys were probably nervous. But he was not afraid. This was to be his day. His way.

“Step over here gentlemen and sign these papers so we can tell the world that all is forgiven.”

Matthew and Joshua said nothing, nor did they move a muscle, but stood as though they were waiting for something in the entrance to the Dome of the Rock. The sky overhead continued to churn. The men behind POTUS started to fidget in very small ways. Even the Pope began to show signs of agitation. The Force Leader watched his men carefully now. It was crunch time.

“90 seconds to intercept point.”

“Even if you don’t know what it is you want, if you would just sign the papers you can show the world your promise of peace and that you will cease your terrorist actions. Then, I will be able to take these documents to the world body and guarantee your safe passage.” said POTUS.

The two witnesses remained motionless. The Force Leader began to wonder if they had even heard POTUS. The President had balls of steel, for sure. But he saw that Johnson, now standing on the end of the line, did not. Instead of keeping his eye on the situation, Johnson was now beginning to shuffle in place; moving his head around as though his tie was too tight. Problem was, Johnson wasn’t wearing a tie. The Force Leader began to edge sideways toward the soldier. He was easily 50 feet away with a lot of people in between.

“Gentlemen! What is your response to the world? They are watching – and waiting!” Joshua and Matthew were in fact, surrounded by the peace of God. They would say or do nothing not given them by the Spirit. They kept their eyes fixed on a point over the shoulder of the beast.

“70 seconds to intercept point.”

The Force Leader kept edging toward Johnson. They weren’t supposed to put on the FILOPS until 20 seconds before the burst so as to not give away the game. He was going to make damn sure that didn’t happen.

“60 seconds to intercept point.”

“What is your decision? I need you to come out here and sign these documents, now. Surely you see the futility of your cause.” said POTUS in a calm voice. The Pope was now getting less calm as he looked a glance at POTUS that spoke volumes. The President did not return the look.

“50 seconds to intercept point.”

They would only get one shot at this as the satellite passed over. “They might get them in the doorway but to get them out in the open was a sure thing.” thought The Force Leader as he made his way toward Johnson. Maybe ten feet to go. That was when he felt the air around him turn heavy and still. He stopped his movement for a second and looked around. He thought his ears were going to pop, but they wouldn’t. He looked over at POTUS and was awestruck.

“40 seconds to intercept point.”

“Boys,” said POTUS and Josh and Matt finally focused on him. They saw the air around him shimmer with power, an unearthly power that shot fear up every spine and was reflected in the eyes of the men behind him. POTUS curled both hands into fists and placed them on the table in front of him.

“I am not the man you want to fuck with and this is not the day to fuck with me. Now, get your asses over here and sign these documents!” His face was glowing now and the smile that did not reach his eyes was terrifying to behold; a death rictus on wheels. The Pope took a step sideways and POTUS reached out one hand without looking and grabbed his arm. The Pope froze in place like a bomb pop.

“30 seconds to intercept point.”

Most of the men were still pretty tight but not Johnson. The Force Leader saw he was loose as a goose and fidgeting like a fart on a griddle. Maybe five feet and then he could grab his arm and settle him for the ten seconds or so necessary. He ceased to be surreptitious and bolted for the man.

“20 seconds to intercept point.”

Everyone reached for their FILOPS – everyone except Johnson that is. The Force Leader saw Johnson’s hand go past the glasses on his vest and settle on his side arm.

“No!” shouted the Force Leader as he dove for Johnson’s arm. All eyes on the Mount turned toward the shout except POTUS. His eyes remained fixed on the two witnesses. Johnson deftly sidestepped the Force Leader and raised his sidearm. Joshua and Matthew turned their heads as one toward Johnson and their long hair began to blow in a wind that did not touch anyone else on the mount. In the millisecond Johnson fired, Joshua opened his mouth and spoke a word in a language that no one else on the Mount would ever understand. A sound like a one second blast of a thousand trumpets issued from his mouth and the force wave roared away from him and towards Johnson. The wave incinerated the bullet and vaporized Johnson where he stood, leaving nothing but a pile of ash. As the Force Leader tried to get up from the ground, he saw a gaggle of people run for the Hummers and away from the scene. No one was supposed to break for the vehicles until the 5 second mark but it was too late now. They had lost the advantage of surprise. These two guys were gonna beat feet back into the Dome for sure now.

“10 seconds to intercept point.”

Joshua and Matthew looked at the beast; still standing at the table. The Pope had abandoned him during the melee.

“Now!” said the Holy Spirit and they began to walk out into the open towards the anti-christ.

“Seven, six….”

“Now is the Kingdom of God come!” said Matthew to the beast.

“Now is your judgment fixed!” echoed Joshua.

“Three, two….”

The three men stood nose to nose over the table.

“And now you will die!” shouted the beast into their faces and a blinding white light engulfed them all. The three second blast from the satellite incinerated everything, sending out a rolling cloud of thick grey smoke in all directions. People fell back from the intensity and some without their glasses went instantly blind. The only sounds were that of the people screaming and the whumpf of the paving stones disintegrating in the intense heat. The smoke and dust continued to roll out from ground zero until it engulfed everything on the Mount. People choked on it and some dove into the vehicles hoping to get away from it.

Then the wind began to blow. A light breeze at first, it steadily picked up speed. The smoke swirled and eddied until people began to be able to make each other out in the fog. The news teams started to grab equipment and sort through what was working and what wasn’t. They were picking up cameras and microphones when a voice shouted, “Look!”

All heads turned and through the smoke came the beast, looking like he had just stepped out of GQ magazine. He was smiling as he walked in a relaxed way toward the cameras. His hair was perfect. The Force Leader was leaning against the side of a Hummer holding a momentarily forgotten broken shoulder. He looked in disbelief as the President made his way to the edge of the crowd.

“Balls of steel.” He thought.

The Pope, having re-discovered his courage, joined him from his hiding place behind a Hummer. His robes were dirty and his shawl was crooked. He straightened his shawl and wiped off his robes to the best of his ability; but he could do nothing about the fact that his face was whiter than his clothes.

“Today, the terrorists have been silenced.” said POTUS to the crowd. “With the death of their leaders, the remaining cells will be rudderless and easily mopped up, ending the last obstacle to world peace.” The beast smiled at the cameras with a smile that looked nothing like the one he gave the two men who were now dead.

“Today, I will fly back to New York and deliver the good news to the World Congress.” And, with a small wave, the President turned toward the line of vehicles.

Questions erupted from the reporter’s mouths.

“Sir, are you alright?”

“How did…..?”

“What was….?”

But the President ignored them all and went over to his Force Leader.

“How are you old friend?” he asked.

“Fine, sir.”

“Sure you are.” said the beast and he laid a hand on the man’s injured shoulder. The Force Leader felt a deep pull in his arm and suddenly realized he was pain free. He started to move his shoulder around and looked at the anti-christ with awe.

“Clean this mess up. But leave the bodies.”

“Bodies, Sir?” and the Force Leader looked at the entrance. To his surprise there were the bodies of the two terrorists lying in the area vaporized by the beam.

“They should have been incinerated.” he thought. He looked back at his boss.

“It’s okay.” said the beast. “At least they are dead.” And with that he and the Pope entered the Limo. It and three of the Hummers pulled out of the line and, making a circle, headed back down the mount and out of sight.

The Force Leader dispatched a squad to begin cleaning the area of any sign of the meeting with the exception of the bodies. These they roped off. The news agencies trained their lights on the bodies and began to broadcast the aftermath of the extraordinary event to the world. He looked up at the clouds in time to see a hole closing in the otherwise solid mess of black and grey.

“Balls of steel.” He thought again and climbed into the Hummer to leave.