Philip Simpson - Tribulation

“What name did he give?” asked Sam.

“Mr. Sazaimes was the only name he went by,” said Adam

Sam almost laughed out loud which would have been highly uncharacteristic of him. He restrained the impulse with an effort. Mr. Sazaimes? So his brother was alive after all? He should’ve known. During their last battle, he had run him through with his sword, a blow that would’ve killed anyone else outright. It appeared, however, that his family was rather difficult to kill. His twin had some cheek though. Hadn’t even bothered to disguise his name very much.

The Colonel was eyeing him sharply. “What’s so funny?”

Sam sobered quickly. “It’s not that funny. It’s just that my brother — the Antichrist — his name is Semiazas. Mr. Sazaimes is simply Semiazas spelled backwards.”

Adam looked grim. “That’s what the people of Europe eventually figured out but by then it was too late.”

“So what happened next?” asked Sam, although he already knew. So far, all of this was part of scripture in the Bible. These events had been mapped out for thousands of years.

“Jerusalem was declared an international city,” continued Adam. “Within it, all religions had equal rights which was hailed as a progressive move. Given that the world was in turmoil, it was a popular decision.”

“Makes sense,” agreed Sam. “It’s all part of my father’s and brother’s plan to bring people gradually onto the side of Satan. Ease them into it, if you like.”

“Do we have any idea of the sort of numbers we are talking about here?” asked Colonel Wheat.

“If you mean how many demon worshippers we are potentially looking at, then according to what my master Hikari taught me, probably a billion people got taken up in the Rapture. That means that there were roughly six billion people left on the planet. That was three and a half years ago though. Judging from what I’ve seen here in the States, lots more have died or been taken since. There’s no way there’ll be anything like those numbers left now. Not only that, but the outbreak of disease seems to be taking its toll.”

According to scripture, in the last half of the Tribulation, disease would become more rife. Sam could attest to that, having seen it first-hand. He’d also seen the base’s hospital. It was almost full, mostly with cases of the bubonic plague which had run riot especially during the last few months. It didn’t surprise Sam given the amount of rats he’d seen. Rats that were often the only source of food the survivors had. Any bodies that Sam had encountered outside the base usually had signs of the disease — swelling, gangrene in the extremities and bleeding from the ears.

When the disease had first emerged in the fourteen century, it had killed an estimated twenty five million people — almost fifty per cent of the European population at the time. They had no cure. Even now, in the modern age, without access to antibiotics, humans were just as susceptible as they had been back then. Probably more so given the weakened state of most survivors. Outside the bastions of survival that were mostly military bases, things were grim for what remained of the human race.

Luckily, the base was well stocked with antibiotics which easily countered the disease. Those supplies were not limitless, but so far the base was managing with the influx of survivors. Probably about half of the survivors he’d just brought in had signs of the disease. Every single new arrival was checked for the disease, which thankfully, seemed to be keeping it in check.

Adam was nodding. “My intel is about two months old now but I heard the same report from Europe. Roughly ten percent of the population was taken in the Rapture. Then, lots more either died from disease or starvation or got taken by demons. Then things seemed to get better with this Mr. Sazaimes. He even let the Jews demolish a mosque and rebuild their temple on the same spot at Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem. That’s when it all gets a bit odd. It seems the Jews then revived their ancient practice of animal sacrifice.”

“This is all in the Bible,” said Sam. “I may not be able to touch one, but I’ve still read it many times. It’s all part of the final terms of the Covenant.”

“News to me,” said the Colonel. “Probably why I didn’t get taken in the Rapture. Never read it.”

“Maybe you should,” said Adam. “I have. Look on it as forward planning.”

“Perhaps,” said Colonel Wheat, plainly not convinced. “But old habits die hard. Tell Sam what happened next.”

“Then,” continued Adam, “just when everyone thought that he was the best thing since sliced bread, he goes and invades Israel from the north. Of course, Israel wasn’t expecting this and his forces completely overran them. He had help from demons though, revealing his hand for the first time.”

Sam winced. He knew what was coming next: what the Antichrist had tried to do years ago in LA/Vegas but failed. His timing, predicted by the Bible, had been all wrong in that instance.

“He then made Jerusalem his world capital and outlawed all religions other than those worshipping himself or his image,” Adam was saying. “He moved the seat of his power into the Jewish Temple, called himself God and killed or sacrificed anyone who said otherwise.”

“The Abomination of Desolation,” interrupted Sam. That was all in the scriptures too.

“Indeed,” said Adam. “That was when all his followers began to emerge, recognized by the mark of the beast tattooed on their wrists. You both know what I’m talking about.”

“Yeah,” said Sam. “I saw them in L. A and they’re starting to crop up in other places too. The nest I found up north all had the mark.”

“It seems,” mused the Colonel, “that all those who bear the mark are able to carry on their lives unmolested by demons. In fact, we’ve heard rumors that the mark allows them to trade amongst themselves.”

“You heard right,” said Sam. “They had the full system operating in L.A.”

“Bear with me, gentlemen. Almost finished,” said Adam. “After the

… Abomination and the mark of the beast revelation, the Jews fled Jerusalem. Israel as a force to be reckoned with or an ally is no more. If we had hoped for some help from that quarter, we’re sorely mistaken.”

“And how long ago did this happen again?” asked Sam. If this event followed what was foretold in the Bible, it was meant to have been half-way through the Tribulation. Exactly three and a half years.

“The sub appeared roughly two months ago. I left Florida about a month ago to spread the warning.”

“Sam, you know more about this biblical stuff than any of us,” said Colonel Wheat. “What are your thoughts? What can we expect now?”

Sam collected his thoughts that were currently racing with the implications of all that he had heard. Even though he expected this news, it still came as a shock. “The Abomination marks the beginning of the end. The beginning of God’s final judgments. We are in the end times now. The end of this world. You thought things were bad now. They’re going to get a whole lot worse. More natural disasters, more disease, more famine — you name it.”

“How long have we got?” asked Colonel Wheat.

“We’ve got just under three and a half years until the final judgment. In that time, probably eighty per cent of what’s left of the world’s population will perish. The rest will have to fend off demons.”

“Actually,” said Adam, “we’ve got less time than that.”

In a synchronized move, both the Colonel and Sam snapped their heads Adam’s direction.

“What do you mean?” demanded the Colonel.

“I’m sorry, Colonel,” said Adam, sounding like he genuinely was. “But I wanted to wait until Sam was here so I could tell you both at the same time. Foolish, I know, but I figured another few days wouldn’t matter. I had to deliver the message in person, too — communications being as bad as they are these days.” He paused and took a long breath. “The British submarine crew gave us other news too. They only just escaped with their lives but before they did, they witnessed a massive ship-building effort along the west coast of Europe. The Antichrist is also collecting whatever armed vessels he can find. It’s an invasion fleet.”