Phillip Simpson - Rapture

Sam swallowed heavily as visions filled his head. He could vividly picture the suffering of those poor people, many of whom had done nothing wrong other than lack belief. It didn’t seem fair somehow. “How am I to protect the innocent?” he managed to croak.

Father Rainey nodded. “Do what you have been trained to do. The Archangel Gabriel sent me a vision showing you with others. You will not be alone. You will have guidance.”

“And then I go and kill the Antichrist?” Sam would have laughed if he could. It just sounded so preposterous. “How am I supposed to do that exactly?”

“That’s the idea, but I’m afraid Gabriel hasn’t furnished me with a lot of details on this yet.”The priest scratched his beard and looked away, unable to meet

Sam’s eye. “You’ll just have to make do somehow.”

“Great,” said Sam sarcastically.

“There’s more, Sam,” said Hikari quietly. Sam looked at him with surprise; he hadn’t expected his master to speak at all. “Not only will you have to protect the innocent from those humans who have fallen into darkness, but you will have to fight … others.”

“What others?” said Sam, trying not to sound too alarmed. Beside him, Aimi’s eyes were wide with fright.

“The Bible tells us that the Tribulation is the time of the rise of the Antichrist. I had always believed that the Antichrist would be human. It seems that this won’t be so. Like you, he will be a demon and be accompanied by many of his followers from the deepest parts of Hell. That is who you will have to contend with.”

Sam felt like jumping up, smashing things, venting his frustration and anger on anything and everything around him. Instead, he took a few deep breaths and pushed down the anger until it was a hot coal buried deep within himself. Finally though, the swords made sense. The swords that had been specifically crafted to kill demons. If he’d thought it through, he would’ve realized some time ago. Why hadn’t Hikari told him?

“I’m sorry, Sam,”said Hikari, as if reading his thoughts, “I wanted to tell you, but we didn’t want to scare you. You had enough to dwell on at the time. Father Rainey and I have planned this for some time and we believed — rightly or wrongly — that it would be unfair to burden you with so much knowledge so quickly. But now we believe that you are ready, that you have the emotional stability and maturity to deal with this.”

Sam wasn’t so sure that he did. He was barely in control of himself.

“Yes,” said Father Rainey, meeting Sam’s eye again. “And now, all we have to know is: can you kill demons? Can you kill your own kind?”

They went to the church gates that marked the border between Father Rainey’s house and the church grounds. It was after midnight; Father Rainey wanted to make sure no-one was around to witness this particular test. Providence Street was deserted. Moonlight illuminated the church ground in cold light. Outside the gate, Sam could feel that Hikari, Aimi, Joshua and the priest were watching his slow, painful process. So far, he hadn’t got that far.

“It’s hurting him!” Aimi cried.

“It’s for the best, child,” said Father Rainey, in an irritatingly calm voice.

Sam gritted his teeth and took one more step. The anguish in Aimi’s voice almost made him turn around just so he could reassure her, comfort her. But he couldn’t. He had to do this. A part of him had wanted to do this for years but he had just lacked the courage. Now that it was forced upon him, he was not about to back out.

Intense pain flooded every part of his being. Like the tests years earlier involving the Bible and cross, Sam did not cry out. He wouldn’t give the priest the satisfaction. Resolutely, he carried on, determined to get to the church doors. Hikari and Father Rainey had told him it was important that he reach them for some reason. They were only a handful of steps away, but the distance seemed to grow with every second Sam spent in the grounds.

His feet, which were the only physical contact point with the hallowed ground, felt like they were on fire — despite his trainers. He made himself concentrate, the way Hikari had taught him, channelling and focusing his thoughts. It was extremely difficult though. The fire had spread to his thighs and was steadily heading further up his body. His mind kept telling him he was actually on fire and he had to deliberately stop himself from hurling his body on the ground and rolling around to put it out.

Something — someone? — seemed to be whispering inside his head. Dark, insidious thoughts. Give up, they said. It’s not worth it. There is an easier way. He recognized the tone; he’d heard it before in his dreams.

He shook his head like a dog, trying to shake the dark thoughts away, then peered both ways. Perhaps it was the pain playing tricks with him … but there seemed to be a darker patch of shadow just outside the church grounds. Something — he couldn’t quite make out what it was — seemed to be watching him from within. He caught a flash of something within the darkness. Something white. Teeth. The thing that was in his head was smiling at him. Laughing at him.

You don’t have to do this. Join us and there will be no more pain, the voice inside his head whispered again. We can make it go away.

He suddenly knew what it was that was watching him. A demon. One of his own kind. He took another step, focusing on how it would feel to kill it. The thought filled him with strength. It would feel good, he decided. That was how he had answered Father Rainey’s question. It would feel good. The thought of plunging his blades through a demon’s body would bring a great deal of satisfaction. It wouldn’t bring his mother back — nothing would — but revenge would certainly make him feel better.

Two more steps. For a brief second, the demon’s thoughts filled him with temptation. He knew that they could take away the pain, but at what cost? His soul? He was already half demon; would this take away the goodness of his human side? Other thoughts flashed through his brain — thoughts of Aimi, Hikari, his mother. They gave him strength. The whispered thoughts in his head were suddenly gone, as if acknowledging his resolution.

The pain had reached his abdomen now, mingling with the churning sensation in his stomach. He ignored it. The steps to the church were in front of him. As soon as he laid a foot on the first one, the pain intensified so much that his lips could not contain the cry of pain that shot from him. Shame suddenly overrode every other consideration — shame at his weakness.

Especially in front of Aimi.

Before he could think, he hurtled the last two steps and stood tall before the open doors. For the first time in his life, he saw the inside of a church. The pain was so incredible now that it had become an abstract thing — too terrible and intense to even begin to describe. He locked it away at the back of his mind, lost in the vision before him. At the far end was the altar. Stained-glass windows glowed faintly in the moonlight streaming through, illuminating the sculpture of Christ on the cross that hung above the altar. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

Then the sculpture seemed to move, and Christ’s body twisted on the cross to look directly at him.

The pain suddenly grew even more intense, so great that Sam’s mind had no recourse but to retreat into unconsciousness. Before his body hit the ground, he remembered one thing. Jesus, the son of God and his saviour, seemed be smiling at him.

Sam had often thought that the front porch was a good place to sit at night. With the lights out, he could watch people going past without being seen himself. A pleasantly cool breeze was coming down from the Rockies. Autumn was definitely on its way, Sam reflected.