Everything is Preordained - Part 2

The being's face was expressionless; it showed no sense of emotion or feeling after having uttered a phrase so grave and grim. "People need to die, of course that happens on a daily basis. Natural deaths, diseases, hunger, murders, suicides; men, women and children. Everybody has to die eventually but once every few hundred years we need death and destruction on a much larger scale; a kind of reset button that has to be pushed. We had the plagues before but with man exploring, discovering and developing the sciences to advance the methods of warfare, I figured why not?"

The man tried to listen patiently trying to quell his now throbbing heart that beat like a drum. "Humans are the most developed animals on this Earth and yet your categorizations - things that you've come to perceive by your own - causes conflicts among yourselves. Race, religion, gender, political ideology - all things that you have created to distinguish yourselves from one another. Your need to be different, to stand out and be special drives you into conflicts, into WAR. Of course, you cannot expect them to be perfect beings. If everyone was perfect, there wouldn't be a God. A figure to look up to in times of need, times when you feel a divine intervention is necessary. Someone who is perfect and can guide you; that's when you look up and pray do you not? Despite countless opportunities that have been presented before the human race to turn from this behavior and to unite as one and live peacefully; you have failed repeatedly. Sin has become the norm. War is the solution to peace. Conflict after conflict that has no absolute resolution. I cannot send a 'Jesus' every time to die for your sins. I've given the choice to you and can merely guide you to the righteous path, what you choose at the end of the day is entirely your choice." the figure's voice was no longer calm and soothing. Anger and rage seemed to be physically manifested into the words that spat out from its mouth

"So your intentions just happened to align with my vision and goal for the human race? What if I had chosen differently? What if I never became the most feared tyrant in the world, then what?" asked the man, his curiosity aroused and his anger building. "If not you then someone else. Someone somewhere will have surely carried out mass killings, not your choice of people in particular but surely people would have died. What is the death of millions if it means I can save billions? It becomes an example, a sign that humans need to unite and stand together. Put their differences apart and come together. Death surprisingly does that - always brings people closer than life ever has and will. They'll learn what not to do and build a new world from these ashes. But of course some other sort of conflict will soon occur in a matter of decades because they will lose sight of where to go once again, the process repeats over and over like a circle." explained the being, now calmer and more conserved.

"So I ended up doing all the dirty work for you... A mere pawn in your elaborate chess game. But why me? Why not use some divine intervention?" questioned the man. "Divine intervention would mean something akin to God or God himself. If it wasn't God and God didn't stop it then what good is he? If it was God and he did it then is God truly good? People will question the power of God and then the existence. That cannot happen. People cannot know God is both good and evil... God has to be pure, God has to be all things good because if he possessed both opposing qualities then in the minds of the people, he is no different than themselves. He loses his power and divine status among them. He will no longer be pure in their eyes and that is when the blind sheep become blinder and stray from the herd heading straight for the cliff. One by one they will follow each other throwing themselves over until the whole herd is dead. The moment the belief in God no longer exists is when the destruction of the human race begins. The devil himself is merely an agent to God's will. 'I am the Alpha and the Omega' - the beginning and the end. 'The Lord gives and the Lord taketh away." Likewise, you were just an agent despite your thinking that this was all your will. Your rising to power, the death and destruction of millions of people, your wrong move to attack in winter, your loss in the war and now your death. I have seen everything, I know what is going to happen, I just choose not to change the outcome for that is how it needs to be. Everything is Preordained." the figure rose from the bed and walked over to the man.

"They're at the door..." it said.

"So tell me, how do I die?" said the man nodding and smirking having accepted his fate, whatever was preordained for him.

The figure smiled back. "Of course..." it said as its extremities began to fade until it vanished completely.

Metallic clanking came from the door as the enemy soldiers tried to crack it open. The man pulled out his revolver from its holster and checked the cylinder; six bullets was all that he had to stop whoever, whatever was behind the door. The man cocked the gun with his right hand and rested it on the arms of the chair aiming directly at the door. A small sudden blast blew through the metal lock on the door flinging it open. Smoke and dust erupted from the entrance blinding the soldiers momentarily. "I'm going to hell anyway right?" muttered the man as he looked up and raised the pistol. The click of the hammer and another short bang rang throughout the room. The soldiers took cover expecting a rain of bullets. But no other sound followed. They moved into the room cautiously with their rifles raised. The revolver fell from the man's hands. His mouth ajar and eyes looking up such that the soldiers could only see the whites of his eyes. A splatter of blood on the velvet cushion behind his head told everything the soldiers needed to know. It was over. It was preordained...

Everything is Preordained - Part 1

The pipes bellowed like a large monster waking from its slumber as the people stood up with heavy books in their hands, their faces in expressionless unison. The air was thick with smog and the walls of the church seemed like they could crumble at the slightest touch. The congregation started to sing as the words that came out of their mouths sounded more like chanting than singing. The choral voices and the bellowing of the organ metamorphosed into an angrier, larger monster. Voices of different pitches and loudness fighting one another to stand out.

Suddenly, the earth began to shake with the intensity increasing with every note of the organ. The voices were drowned by the sound of concrete crashing down. The sirens began to sound like a wailing child. The congregation turned into a stampede of animals rushing to the only exit as they trampled over the holy books and each other. The man in the robes at the alter was shouting, trying to get everyone to calm down for God was with them. "Do not be afraid my brothers and sister, we are in the house of the Lord. He will protect us." But this too was drowned by the blasts and the screaming of women and children. As the priest stretched out his arms to show that there was no safer place than inside the church itself, the roof came crashing down on him. His arms still outstretched but not moving. "Mama! Papa!" children cried in despair. The raging inferno engulfed everything in and around it. People ran in every direction, hurt and in pain - sometimes in flames. Bomb after bomb rained down from the sky as the earth shook in horror. The streets were covered in dust and dead bodies.

High in the fortified tower, a lone room was locked and heavily guarded by men with rifles in uniform. Men willing to protect and die for the man inside the room. The man of the year. The room had a large king sized bed with birch frames beside which stood a drawer with a table lamp on it. On the far right corner of the room a man was sitting on a chair covered in velvet cushions and gold. His worn-out brown uniform decorated with numerous medals and patches. His eyes were dark, his face worn and expressionless as he put the tips of his fingers together resting his elbows on the arms of the chair. He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly and slowly closed his eyes, listening to the thudding of the bombs and the screams of innocent lives. No natural light entered the room save a tiny opening the size of a brick to his left from which he could see the world perish - if he wanted to. Bright flashes of crimson filled his closed eye lids as sirens wailed and structures crumbled.

"What are you thinking?" asked a voice. The voice of a man, so soothing, so familiar - like how he had imagined it his whole life. The man opened his eyes slowly and looked up. A strange figure stood before him, it seemed to glow and shimmer despite the lack of light. The being was dressed in some kind of white robe, the whitest he had seen. The man squinted his eyes to get a clearer look at the face but could not quite see it. The figure crossed its hands together and leaned in as if to urge the man to give him an answer. The man's furrows brows widened as intrigue gave way to recognition and relief. "You?! I was expecting the other guy..." he said in a tone of surprise with a tinge of disappointment.

"I just wanted to talk to you, you know before"

"Before I'm shot to death..." said the man completing the sentence. "Why though? How does it matter? Is my fate not already sealed? What could you possibly want to talk about?" questioned the man. The figure stood silent, hands still clasped together. "I know that you want to say and ask a few things, so go on..." urged the figure. The sirens and screaming seemed to have stopped. Silence filled the room. The world seemed to stand still.

"What I have done are all justified in my eyes. They're what I wanted, what I desired for this world. Absolute destruction." said the man after a lot of thought, playing the conversation in his head. "That is correct, you're considered history's greatest tyrant. What you've done will forever be remembered, studied, analysed. People will write stories, books even about you and your actions. Your legacy." said the figure.

"My question is, if all of it is wrong then why did you stand by and watch? Why didn't you stop it? You could've stopped it right from the beginning. Nipped it in the bud. But you didn't! You stood and watched. So tell me why? Why me?!" said the man filled with rage as he sunk his nails deep into the arms of the chair. The figure slowly walked over to the bed and sat down, all the while silent and staring at the man, almost as if it could see into his soul. It brought its hands together and put the tips to its lips. The room was cloaked in silence.

Finally it spoke "Kill a few to save the many."

Crimson Sky

Helicopters flew across the sky covered with black clouds that hung like a disease over the city. Police and ambulance sirens blaring as they rushed past the emptied apartments. Rats, cockroaches, humans running haphazardly down the streets; all fleeing, fleeing from doom, from death. Many took the moment to hastily take whatever they could from the nearby shops; thieves, employees all the same. Thick black smoke emanated from the buildings as they crumbled under the heat. Nobody was trying to be a hero, nobody could. When basic primal instincts take over, the scared and frightened animal runs. And they all ran together, blindly not knowing where they were going or what they were fleeing from. 

"Honey get in the car! We don't have time to take anything. Just get in."

"Okay seat belt Abbey... and you too Nate" 

"Daddy, I'm scared. I don't wanna go!" 

"Shhh sweetheart it's gonna be fine okay. I promise. Just let Daddy drive" 

The skies became angry and the red smog crept in blanketing the city; inch by inch. Screams of men and women echoed through the streets as they were engulfed by whatever was behind the smog. 

"The day has come! This is the beginning of the End! Confess, confess now dear children!" shouted the old man as he walked along the pavement waving the bell in his hand. Ash rained down from the buildings all around as flocks of birds covered the sky. 

He switched gears and pressed down on the accelerator. 

"Just hold on okay. We don't have full gas but it should be enough to get us out of the city" 

She grabbed his arm while clutching the baby's head with the other. He looked at her and she at him, they knew. They knew just getting out of the city wasn't going to be enough to get away from it all. 

Explosions now shook the ground as the car swerved to avoid them. The underground pipes burst and the road ahead started to collapse. The frightened screams of the children filled the car. Tears broke from the eyes of the mother as she held her baby close to her chest. 

Finally they had reached the bridge. There was a glimmer of hope, maybe they would make it out alive. A great ball of fire hurtled down from the sky, the wings of the plane were still visible through the flames. 

"Peter! Watch out!" 

"Daddy!" 

The plane came crashing down on to the bridge and went straight through it. A loud hiss went through the air as the burning plane sunk down into the river. The bridge was torn right through. Peter knew there was no way they would be able to make that jump, the car was too heavy and the hole was too large. The car rolled to a stop to the edge of the hole. 

Peter repeatedly punched the steering wheel, shouting. Mary grabbed his arm again trying to calm him down. "Peter stop..." her voice was low and soft. Tears rolled down her cheek, she had accepted it was over. They removed the seat belt and got out. The crimson smog was now at the bridge creeping closer and closer. They looked up to see Death inching towards them. Nate held Peter's hand, Abbey held Peter's and Mary's and Mary clutched little Martin...

W.A.R

We Are Responsible

Come hear and see what is in store for you,
The land is green and the water is sky blue,
Yet the world is at war, we cannot find peace,
Crime clings to humanity like a disease.

Be born, live then struggle and die,
Here! Have another lie,
We draw our borders based on religion,
Up in arms with weapons of destruction.

The calls of Nature are drowned,
There is no life to be found,
Families spend the night in fear,
Come tomorrow will we be here?

Women and children hide yourselves,
For this is the sound of hell's bells,
This to ourselves, we have done,
Fear it child, you better run!