The Hunt (4 page)

At nine-thirty, Mara changed into the uniform and headed towards her local church. Although British citizens could follow whatever religion they pleased, they were also required to spend at least two hours every month 'worshipping' in a Christian house of prayer. Mara usually chose Monday mornings, since they were quieter than other times. As she walked through the large doors of St. Pancras Parish Church, she placed her thumb on the scanner, which registered her attendance and collected an obligatory 'donation'. A nun standing by one of the pillars near the entrance gave her a friendly smile. Nuns were exempted from wearing the uniform, and much as Mara despised the ideology she represented, she found this woman striking in her long black habit. Something about her suggested she might be one of those rare professional Christians who actually followed Christ's teachings, and wished to make everyone feel welcome. By contrast, the priest who conducted Monday morning services seemed to have modelled himself on the God of the Old Testament. He had a long white beard, and addressed his flock in a booming voice. As Mara took a seat in the back row, he was declaiming a passage from Deuteronomy. A Bible lay
open on the stand before him, but this section was one of his favourites - Mara had heard him recite it half-a-dozen times - and at no point did he refer to the text. “If the charge is true and no proof of the young woman’s virginity can be found,” he roared, staring at his captive audience as he did so, “she shall be brought to the door of her father’s house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death. She has done an outrageous thing in Israel by being promiscuous while still in her father’s house. You must purge the evil from among you. If a man is found sleeping with another man’s wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel. If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death—the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man’s wife. You must purge the evil from among you.”

If Mara hadn't already been a militant atheist, these mandatory church visits would have turned her into one. She sat in the back row, listening to the priest drone on, glancing at her watch every few minutes. She'd have brought a book, but reading secular texts here was a criminal offence. She noticed a pair of orthodox Jewish men sitting a few rows in front of her, looking uncomfortable and out of place. Eventually, the priest closed his Bible without so much as looking at it, cleared his throat, and delivered the day's sermon.
“Many years ago,” he began, “there lived a woman who thought of nothing but the joys of this world. She drank to excess, gorged herself on food, and copulated frequently, even with those of her own sex. Worse, she loudly proclaimed her defiance of God, denying His very existence. When death came to her, as it must to all of us, she was cast directly into Hell. There, she was hung naked in flames, her tongue removed with pincers, her eyes gouged out, her ears cut off, the flesh torn from her body, a hot poker inserted into the place from which she had derived such pleasure during her lifetime of sin. When this process had been completed, her body instantly regenerated, and the torture started anew, as it would continue to do forever. But still she defied God. She now admitted His existence, but declared this existence to be an abomination. Was it not God who had sentenced her to an eternity of suffering? God, she decided, was an immensely powerful sadist from whom there could be no escape. And for the first time, she knew the fear of God. She feared not the unending torments to which she was subjected, but rather that even in this place, where sinners were cast out of God's sight, He might reach down and pluck her out, like a rock buried in the ground, and thus bring her face to face with Him. Hell is so arranged that those condemned to a lower circle may never ascend to a higher, but there is nothing to prevent those on the higher circles descending to the lower. And so it was that this woman, acting on her demented beliefs, made a deliberate choice to sink further into the Pit. As she passed from one circle to the next, her agony increased, but the pain bothered her less than the idea that she was being pursued by God. Finally, she came to rest in the last of the nine circles, in the middle of which Satan himself squatted like a toad. Here, in addition to everything she had previously endured, cackling demons forced her to consume her own intestines, then her limbs, then the rest of her body. In the final seconds before regeneration occurred, her mouth turned inside out and consumed itself. But although she had now sunk as far as possible, the woman's greatest fear was that she had not sunk far enough, could never sink far enough. Even in the deepest pit of Hell, she was still not safe from God.”

Mara wasn't sure whether to be more alarmed by the content of this vile lecture, or the priest's conduct while delivering it, for although she'd positioned herself at the rear of the church, she had no trouble seeing that he was vigorously masturbating under his cassock. Finally seeming to remember where he was, the man staggered out of his pulpit and disappeared through a door located behind the altar while the choir broke into
He Who Would Valiant Be
. As the congregation rose to its feet and made a desultory attempt to join in with the singing, Mara noticed that two hours had passed since her arrival. She walked back to the entrance and once more placed her thumb on the scanner, confirming she'd stayed the required length of time. For some reason, the sermon echoed in her head. She didn't believe in Hell or Heaven, but try as she might, she couldn't shake the feeling that this dreadful tale contained an element of prophecy.

After changing into jeans and an old
, but extremely comfortable jumper, Mara settled down in her office chair and resumed work on
French Kill
. She decided to put the masturbating priest into the book, hoping her American readers wouldn't find him far-fetched. She wrote for an hour with an ease that only came when she was completely focused, and felt mildly annoyed when her doorbell rang. She briefly considered ignoring it, determined to at least finish the current sentence, but a second ring suggested her caller was growing impatient. As she strode into the hall, her face displayed a 'this better be good' expression. The bell rang a third time just before she yanked the door open and discovered a postman standing outside. Not the one who usually brought her mail, but rather an unfamiliar and strikingly dishevelled individual who, judging by the smell, hadn't washed in several months. Mumbling something that sounded like “Banooseferoo,” he held out a scanner.

“
Excuse me?” said Mara.

“
Special delivery!” said the man emphatically. Mara pressed her thumb onto the screen, and was handed a small package. The postman chuckled as she took it. “Banooseferoo,” he mumbled again.

Mara looked at him in bewilderment.
“I don't understand.”

The man chuckled once more, sniffed loudly, and said,
“Bad...news...for...you.”

Mara watched as he strolled off down the street, wagging an admonishing finger in her direction while chanting,
“Banooseferoo! Banooseferoo!” Disturbed by this bizarre behaviour, she shut the door and carried the package into her living room. Unsealing the flap, she noticed an official stamp just above the address. The stamp had been smudged, but the words ‘Selective Service Board’ were still clearly visible. Mara felt her knees buckle, and heard herself say, “Oh no,” as she dropped into the nearest chair. Hands trembling, she turned the package upside down. A pamphlet, a railcard, and a letter fell onto the floor. Her whole body shook as she picked up the letter, unfolded it, and began to read.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To Mara Gorki.

Greetings.

You are hereby ordered to report for induction into the Hunt commencing Friday March

23rd and ending Friday March 30th.

Please find enclosed a pamphlet containing information about the role you will be

expected to play in the Hunt, and a railcard which can be used on any branch of the U.K.

overland rail and London underground on the days of your arrival and departure.

The Hunt Stadium is located immediately opposite Hunt tube station (formerly Kilburn

station) on the Jubilee Line. You are required to check in at reception no earlier than

two-thirty p.m. and no later than three p.m. on the 23rd. Failure to do so will result in a

warrant being issued for your arrest. If you believe you may be exempt from the Hunt on

health grounds, it is your responsibility to obtain a medical certificate and deliver it to

Hunt Administration no later than March 21st.

You must wear full uniform, including a jacket. Apart from the uniform, no personal

belongings may be taken beyond the reception area. Belongings should be deposited with

the receptionist when you arrive and collected as you depart.

David Wainwright

Head of Hunt Administration.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mara felt sick to her stomach as she read this. Just a few minutes ago, everything had been fine. Now, the bottom had fallen out of her world. Today was the 12th. That meant she only had until the end of next week. She looked at the pamphlet: the words ‘A Female Participant's Guide to the Hunt’ appeared in large type on the front cover. She knew she'd have to read it eventually, and decided to get the unpleasant task over with immediately.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You are reading this pamphlet because you have been chosen by the Selective Service

Board to participate in a forthcoming Hunt.

The Hunt was created in 2059 as a response to the February 16th bombing, a terrorist

attack, perpetrated by a militant feminist group, which so appalled the people of Great

Britain that drastic measures became necessary to make the country's female population

realise such atrocities were not acceptable. You were almost certainly not directly

connected with this attack, but it was carried out in the name of your gender, and you

must accept the collectively imposed penalty. The Hunt is that penalty.

The Hunt Stadium, the bulk of which consists of the Hunt Arena, is located within the

derelict London district of Kilburn. A wall was erected to seal off the stadium, an

administration annex built, and a block containing ten Hunters' apartments constructed in

the middle of the arena. Vending machines containing food and drink are located at

irregular intervals throughout the arena. Apart from this, the area remains exactly the

same as when as it was abandoned in the 2040s, and consists of several streets full of

disused buildings.

Each Hunt involves ten male Hunters who have paid for the right to participate, and ten

women between the ages of twenty-one and thirty, chosen by a process of random

selection. Each Hunter has been assigned an apartment in the specially constructed

block.

Once you arrive at the Hunt stadium, you will be taken to a meeting area in which you

will spend thirty minutes being viewed by the Hunters, who may also engage you in

conversation. After this, you will enter the arena. One hour later, the Hunters will be

permitted to enter the arena and begin searching for you.

You may attempt to conceal yourself in any part of the arena, and take whatever evasive

action you feel is necessary to avoid capture. However, assaults on Hunters are not

permitted. Food and drink can be obtained from the vending machines, which are

thumbprint operated. You may only take one food item and one drink item within a

single six-hour period. The end of the Hunt will be signalled by a ten-second alarm,

repeated at thirty-second intervals for a period of five minutes. If you have remained free

for all seven days, you may proceed to the exit when you hear this alarm.

If you are captured by a Hunter, you will be taken back to his apartment in the middle of

the arena. Each apartment contains a fully equipped playroom, and it is here that the

Hunter will subject you to a variety of practices designed to cause pain and humiliation

for as many days as remain in the Hunt.

The practices you may be required to endure are as follows:

- Striking of the buttocks, thighs, breasts, palms or soles with hand, cane, whip, paddle

or strap.

- Striking of the arms, back or stomach with whip or strap.