The Incubus, Succubus and Son of Perdition Box Set: The Len du Randt Bundle (57 page)

‘Do we know who are responsible for the blasts?’ the
news anchor asked.

‘Not yet, Connie,’ the reporter replied. ‘The Jews are
claiming that it was an act of God, punishing the Muslims for their relentless
suicide bombings over the past few years. A spokesperson for the Jews said that
it’s the fulfilment of Obadiah 18 where God destroys the house of Esau which
is, according to them, the Muslims.’

‘And the Muslims? What are their views?’

‘They believe that the Jews have used a ‘secret weapon’
called a ‘Scalar Electro Blaster’ that can, supposedly, wipe out an entire
section between two specified points with scalpel precision. The results,
according to the experts, are similar to what we have experienced here. Either
way, these are the worst terror attacks since the nine eleven World Trade
Centre attacks.’

‘This is bad,’ Trevor said and whistled softly through
his teeth.

‘Thank you for the update, Hank,’ the news anchor said
and GMN focused on her again as she read the news headlines for the day. ‘The
European Union confirmed today that the incidents in Jerusalem and Mecca have
not thrown them off their current course to re-divide the United Europe into
ten, equal provinces. Three years ago, European Union negotiators successfully
managed to persuade Egypt, Iran, and Britain to switch their currency to the
Euro. The ten provinces, together known as the
European Empire,
will
officially be a recognized nation from the third of January next year, working
under the proposed structure of the Club of Rome and the League of Nations—’

Trevor switched off the television on his way to the
bathroom. He stared into the medicine cabinet’s mirror at his own reflection.
He was getting older, and he didn’t find the thought of being old and alone
very appealing. The thought of spending most of the evening at Norman’s place
was even less appealing.

Let’s get this over with
, he thought as he opened the
shower’s hot water tap.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

Trevor liked being on time. He rang
Norman’s doorbell at 19:02 and was greeted by a face he hadn’t seen in quite
some time.

‘Trev!’ Norman greeted his brother excitedly, almost
losing his glasses as he wrapped his arms around his reluctant brother’s
shoulders.

‘Hey, Norm.’ Trevor didn’t feel as enthusiastic as his
brother. He just wanted to get the evening over and done with. He loved his
brother dearly, but hated the direction that he
knew
the conversation
was going to take.

‘It’s been a while, eh!’ Norman said as he escorted
Trevor to the living room.

‘Yeah,’ was all reply Trevor bothered with. Since
Norman converted a little over three years ago, he had become very passionate
about his faith. All he could talk about was religion and God and Jesus. Each
conversation pushed Trevor further away from his brother. He didn’t like to constantly
talk, debate, or even hear about things he didn’t believe in, and sometimes
wondered if Norman was still able to talk about the
normal
things in
life: Technology, Business, Fashion, Food, even Women.

But no matter how hard Trevor tried, Norman always
found a way to change
any
topic to a religious discussion. In time, it
drove Trevor further and further away from his brother. Trevor wondered if he
was really there to discuss the bombings, or if he only bothered going to see
if his brother had managed to grow up.

They entered the living room and Trevor looked around,
scanning for any signs of ‘unexpected’ company that would, during the course of
the evening, feel the need to talk to Trevor about ‘God’s love,’ and then
develop the urgent need to pray for him. The only person in the living room was
Andrew, who stood up as they entered the room.

‘Trevor,’ Andrew said and extended his hand. He was
slightly taller than Trevor; and somewhat skinnier too. ‘It’s so nice to see
you again.’

‘You too, Andy.’

The three of them had been good friends once. When
Trevor drifted away from his brother, Andrew stuck with Norman. He was a
Christian too, but not in the same sense as Norman. He was a good guy with good
moral values, but the main difference between him and Norman was that he didn’t
feel the need to shove his beliefs down everyone’s throat. Andrew was still
able to lead a relatively normal life. He still went to clubs, still partied
until the early morning hours, still preferred Sunday morning Football to Church,
and still liked talking about women. Most Christians were like Andrew. Trevor
liked those. They stayed out of his way. It was the ones that didn’t respect
other people’s feelings—or the fact that they can have other beliefs—that
really annoyed him. It was an unfortunate case of ‘Murphy’s Law’ that Norman
became one of
those
. After some small talk, Norman gestured in the
direction of the dining room.

‘Let’s eat, shall we?’

- - -*  *  *- -
-

Dinner was mostly quiet. Trevor was
thankful for that blessing. The little talk they did manage between bites was
mostly catch up talk. Norman still worked as a graphic designer for a
small-brand advertising company. Andrew still had his own clothing business,
and had no financial complaints.

Trevor, of course, still worked as a telephonic support
consultant for an Internet Service Provider. He had been for the past five
years and didn’t intend on doing anything else for the next five.

‘The food was delicious, Norm,’ Andrew said when they
had finally finished their meal.

‘Yeah,’ Trevor agreed. ‘Thanks.’ If there was one thing
that Norman was good at, it was making a roast chicken with baked potatoes and
gravy. There were other things that he could whip up as well, but he was famous
for his ‘secret’ roast chicken recipe. Norman insisted that Trevor and Andrew
make themselves comfortable in the living room while he took the dishes to the
kitchen. They reluctantly obliged.

‘So, aside from the obvious, Trev,’ Andrew said as they
sat down, ‘how has life been treating you? Got a promotion yet? A girlfriend?
New car?’

‘Life’s been okay,’ Trevor answered his interrogator.
‘No promotion yet, no girlfriend, and still driving the same old jalopy since
we first met.’ He tried to avoid further conversation about him by shifting the
spotlight to Andrew. ‘And you? Are you and...what was her name? Kate? Are you
two still together?’

‘We split up about a month ago,’ Andrew said, trying
his best to show no emotion.

‘I’m sorry,’ Trevor said.

‘It’s okay. It was a one-way relationship, anyway. You
know, the self-destructive kind destined to be doomed. Things just didn’t work
out.’

Trevor shifted uncomfortably. He didn’t know what to
say. No words of wisdom or motivation entered his head, and he was the last
person on the planet qualified to hand out ‘love advice.’

Norman entered the room carrying a tray with mugs and
various containers. Trevor smiled at his brother’s ability to get him out of
sticky situations, even if unintentionally.  He missed the Norman he knew
from childhood. God not only took his parents but, in a way, He took his
brother too, and he resented Him for it.

‘How do you like it?’ Norman asked, looking at Trevor.

‘Still two sugars, with milk, thanks.’

‘Me too,’ Andrew said.

Once they were all comfortably settled, Trevor decided
to break the ice. ‘So,’ he said with a smile. ‘What’s cooking in Jerusalem?’

Andrew chuckled, and Norman pretended not to be
offended by Trevor’s joke. He breathed deeply and collected his thoughts before
just blurting out any answer. He had learned the hard way that proselytising
only caused Trevor to bring up his defences and block out whatever seeds could
be planted. It was the main reason that Trevor alienated himself from them to
begin with.

Since his conversion, Norman had learned a lot about
reaching out to people. In the beginning he was a naïve, newborn Christian,
ready to blast the unsaved with as many clever scriptures as possible. As he
matured, he realized that action does indeed speak louder than words, and had
come to realize that people didn’t care about how much you knew until they knew
how much you cared. He cared for Trevor.
A lot
. Norman just had a
problem of relaying his feelings properly. He would think to himself,
Right,
just act normal and
whatever
you do,
don’t
talk about religion
,
but every time he would open his mouth, religious lingo would just pour out.

‘I’m not sure,’ Norman said, readjusting his glasses.
‘I have heard that there might be some truth behind the fact that the Jews have
a device called the ‘Scalar Electro Blaster’ that can wipe out anything between
any two preselected points.’

‘And you think they used this on the Muslims?’

‘It is a possibility, although no one could really know
for sure. The main question would be
why
they would do such a thing.’

‘Wouldn’t you also take drastic action if you had
people blowing themselves up in your back yard almost daily for years on end?’

‘This is slightly more than just drastic. It’s
genocide. I cannot imagine how one human being could do that to another, never
mind
thousands
of others.’

‘Do what? Kill someone in the name of God?’ Trevor
said, not hiding the anger in his voice. His words cut deep into Norman. They
were both just children when rebel Muslim fighters slaughtered their missionary
parents in Istanbul. The Muslims only received a small fine, as they were
‘doing the work of God.’

Trevor initially blamed God for their deaths, and as he
grew up, started blaming everything on Him.

‘People do bad things,’ Norman said softly. ‘Some
people do terrible things in the name of God. Those minority zealots then
tarnish the reputation of an entire religion.’

‘Innocent people were killed for God.
Our parents
were killed doing
His
work, and what for? For a ‘God’ that wouldn’t even
lift a finger to help them?’

‘You have to look at the bigger picture,’ Norman said,
trying to calm his brother. Andrew sat perfectly still, wide-eyed and not
daring to say a single word lest he be caught in the crossfire.

‘The bigger picture?’ Trevor asked. ‘
What
bigger
picture?’

Norman controlled his breathing. He couldn’t afford to
become emotional with his brother. Even the slightest chance of losing him
again would be unbearable. ‘We see a group of people die and wonder,
Why
God?
And yet, it is what we do not see that matters most.’

‘Like what?’

‘Like people finding God because of it.’

‘Or hatred for God,’ Trevor sneered.

Norman didn’t say anything. He felt that remaining
quiet would be the best way to defuse the tension.

‘You know,’ Trevor said, ‘it’s actually quite sick how
God would have innocent people killed just so that others would follow Him. Do
you view mom and dad’s deaths like that? Do you know of
anyone
that
converted because of their deaths?’

‘I have.’

‘You converted three years ago. They died almost
eighteen years ago. I fail to see the connection.’

‘They planted seeds in us that needed time to grow,’
Norman explained as best as he could, trying to plant some seeds of his own.

‘Justify it as you wish,’ Trevor said and stood up.
‘I’m out of here.’ His memories were waging war against his emotions. He didn’t
want to cut Norman from his life again, but if he stayed any longer, it would
come to that.

‘Trev...’ Norman protested.

‘It’s getting late. I have to go.’ He glanced at
Andrew, who looked as if he had just seen a person get hit by a truck. ‘Goodbye,
Andrew.’

‘Bye, Trev,’ Andrew managed, his throat dry and his
voice coarse.

Norman leaned against the door after Trevor had left.
This didn’t go as he had hoped it would.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

South Africa:
One Month Later

The Muslims had declared a Jihad on
the Jews in Jerusalem. Norman rubbed his hand thoughtfully across the cover of
a book as GMN blared in the background, informing the viewers that the United
States had doubled its efforts to bring peace between the two groups. It would
be days before the first bombs would explode. Norman contemplated what would
happen then. America would side with Israel. Russia would probably join sides
with the Muslims, as would North Korea and China. It would only be a matter of
time before the whole world would be divided into two equally destructive
forces, and then the Third World War would break out.

Please forgive Trevor, Lord
, Norman prayed.
Please show him
the truth and take him back. I beg You
.