An Unholy Redemption Chapter 10

Chapter ten

The sun was rising across the eastern horizon. Its golden glow started to emerge from behind a landscape of golden sand. A flock of birds flew across the sky, casting their shadows below while an authoritative looking man sat on a balcony, reclining in his chair, watching the sun as it slowly ascended into a clear blue sky. A glass of whisky rested in his hand that he occasionally brought to his lips for a sip. His big black moustache dipped into the drink, giving him a chance to lick it as the glass left his lips. His face was dark from years in the sun, and his eyes were as black and domineering as the night sky. In an ashtray next to him a cigar slowly smouldered, releasing its smoke into the atmosphere. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath to smell the beauty of a new morning and give praise to God for another day in power. The latest government polls showed that his popularity was growing and he was getting even closer to ultimate power. Opening his eyes again, he lifted the glass towards the sky and proposed a toast to God and their continued relationship. After consuming the last of the whisky, he rose from his chair and made his way into the bed chambers, his silk dressing gown swaying in the warm morning breeze as he swiftly walked towards a headless mannequin standing in the corner of the room, adorned with a neatly ironed military blazer. On its chest were pinned medals for bravery and years of service and its lapels were covered in stars denoting the rank of general. He slowly and cautiously scanned every inch of his prized piece of uniform. Satisfied it was perfect he released it from his cold icy stare and made his way to the bedroom sideboard where he rested the glass. He picked up the candles from its surface and made his way to the centre of the floor where a large rug lay. He placed the candles on the floor next to the rug and in one swift movement he gripped the rug, removed it from the floor and placed it on his bed. On the wooden floor, hidden under the rug, was a drawing in black. It depicted a five-pointed star surrounded by a perfect circle around its circumference. In three points of the star were the letters N, E and W, denoting north, east and west. At the top point of the star pointing east was a picture of the sun; at the bottom, the moon. The general picked up the candles and placed one on top of the sun and the other on top of the moon. He reached for a match. “As the sun gives light today, I give light to you in the east.” He lit the candle on picture of the sun. “Never fear moon of the west, I remember you when it is night, and therefore I will only light you when it is so.” When he was sure everything was correct, he removed his dressing gown and threw it on the bed. He was now totally naked and the sun shone brightly on his body. “I came into this world unclothed almighty God from above. I now kneel and present myself in the same way.” He stepped into the circle and knelt at the exact centre of the entwining star, then looking to the sun, he closed his eyes. “Father of the day sky in your presence and in the absence of mother of the night sky I give you praise.” He bowed forward till his head and hands touched the floor. “I bow to you in obedience and give thanks for your blessings and the power you have bestowed upon me. Father, I have been patient, but how long do I have to wait? I am tired of seeing the greed of man and the effect it has on this beautiful planet, the home you created for us. I am sick and tired of the different religious factions struggling for supremacy. Day by day, sickness and disease get worse. Man is becoming a mental and physical plague on your creation.” A tear rolled down his cheek and he found it hard to speak. “Most High, make me your redeemer and punisher on earth; I will not fail you. Make me the lightning that strikes down the unfaithful. Make me the weapon that puts fear into the hearts of the arrogant and false. Make me the light to show the way for the obedient and act as comfort to the sick.” The flame on the candle swayed briskly side to side, dancing his reflection on the wall. “I know I am the one for your great work.

 

 I implore you, Most High, make me your power on earth to demonstrate your will, the will that must be done. Give me a sign I am still in good faith with you. All this I ask for in the light of day from the east and in absence of darkness in the west.” He closed his eyes and bowed again. There was a brief silence which was broken by loud knock on his bedroom door followed by a muffled voice. “General Silas, I have important intelligence to relay to you.” The general didn’t reply; he wanted to finish his prayers. Again a loud knock sounded.

“How dare you disturb my prayers Captain!”

“Forgive me General, but this matter requires your urgent attention.”

“Very well, give me five minutes,” he replied unwillingly. He blew out the candles, removed them from the floor and replaced them in their position on the sideboard. Picking up his dressing gown, he quietly laid the rug back on the floor, making sure that none of the picture was visible. He tied the belt of his dressing gown and turned to open the door.

“This had better be good, Captain. I am most displeased at being disturbed during my prayers.”

“My most humble apologies, General, but I have excellent news which I feel warranted such an intrusion.”

“Very well, speak it out.”

“Governor Rasheed has suffered a suspected heart attack and is presently in a critical condition in hospital.”

“What! When did this happen?”

“About an hour ago. He had just finished his breakfast when he fainted in front of his wife. It’s all over the news. They are saying that with your main rival out of action, nothing can stop you from a victory. You will have total control and power over our beloved country. With the military behind you, you will be a very powerful leader indeed.”

“This is great news, thank you Captain.”

“Please will you arrange a big bouquet of flowers to be sent to Rasheed’s wife for me expressing my deepest sympathy?” The captain looked a little concerned as the general let out a sinister laugh. “What! Do you have a problem with that Captain?” The captain knew very well that when he got that cold icy stare, it was time to appease his leader. “No General, not at all, right away. May I inform you that a news conference and a speech is being organised. The press of the world is gathering in the great hallway where they will wait for you to address the nation.”

“Certainly, Captain. I’ll be there in about half an hour.”

“Excellent, General. May I be excused?”

“Of course. Captain, you do know your loyalty and hard work has not gone unnoticed. When this is all over, you can expect promotion and take control over our army as my second in command.” The captain’s eyes lit up at the thought of being promoted.

“Thank you General, you are too kind, please excuse me, I must go.” With a click of his heels and a salute, the captain ran down the corridor towards the great hall. As he closed the door, a wry smile made its way across the General’s face. He was amazed at how quickly his prayers had been answered. With Rasheed indisposed, he would surely have victory and absolute power. Nothing could stop him fulfilling God’s work on earth.

 

Back at the house, David was sitting slumped in his favourite chair, his untied bowtie hanging around his neck.

“Well, that went extremely well, didn’t it?” Ruth said as she entered the room still dressed in her evening gown. “No Ruth, it didn’t,” David snapped. “Luther totally ruined what I thought was going to be a very special evening. Instead my credibility with the brotherhood is now at an all-time low. What on earth happened anyway? Why did he flip and storm out?”

“I don’t know. Maybe he’d drunk too much and the attention he got overwhelmed him. We still don’t know a lot about him, do we?”

“That still doesn’t excuse his totally irresponsible behaviour. Where is he anyway?”

“I’ve just left him sleeping it off on top of his bed.”

“His bed!” David exclaimed with anguish. “Tomorrow he’s gone. I don’t care if he’s a sign or not. I want him out of my house in the morning.”

“Your house? I thought it was our house. Don’t I get a say in the matter?”

“No my decision is final. When I return from work tomorrow night, I expect him to be gone. Is that clear?”

“Very clear, dear! Anyway, I’m going to bed, are you coming?”

“No, I doubt I’ll be able to sleep for a while. I’ll just watch television and think about the apology I can make to the brethren for tonight’s fiasco.”

“Well you can sit there and worry if you like. I’m off to bed,”

“Switch the television on, love, before you go.” Ruth bent down in front of the television and extended her bottom towards David moving slowly side to side. Then with a sexy look she turned towards David. “Are you sure you don’t want to go to bed?”

“I’m quite sure. Can you pass the control on the way out?” Ruth picked up the remote and threw it at him. “I wish the remote control could turn you on as well, dear.”

She flounced out of the room. David flicked thorough the channels. He glimpsed an array of late night movies and the odd chat show. He switched on the news channel and his eyes widened as he read the headline being flashed across the bottom of the screen: “Breaking news: a country is in mourning as Governor Rasheed is pronounced dead after a fatal heart attack.” David listened as the newsreader reiterated the news in full.

“Yes we can confirm that Governor Rasheed is dead.” The picture on the television screen switched to people lying on the ground and crying in mourning outside Governor Rasheed’s house. “Many of his loyal followers are in shock and distraught. General Silas will now surely gain full control. We will shortly hear from General Silas who is going to address the nation about his country’s future. After his speech, we will be speaking to some of the supporters of both General Silas and the late Governor Rasheed to find out what this means to them, and more importantly what this means for world peace.”

“I have to stop you there Ed,” the main news presenter interrupted, “we can now go to General Silas’ speech.” David watched, absorbed, as General Silas began to address the gathering.

 “People of my beloved country, and fellow people from around the world.” General Silas was standing on a wooden pedestal, cameras flashes lighting up the room as he began to speak. His faithful captain was standing on his right with a look of excitement mixed with trepidation on his face as he scanned the room for any signs of an assassination attempt. From all the security being displayed on the screen in the General’s presence. It was evident that the Captain was still worried. “I speak to you on a day of great contrast. For today, we are a nation deep in grief at the loss of a great friend and leader. But we should now be united in happiness of having a new leader. Myself. I think you all know that although we were rivals in politics and ideas, we remained friends throughout our years in the leadership battle. I sincerely send my deepest sympathy to Mrs Rasheed and all her family members in their time of grief.” He bowed his head and placed his right hand on his chest for a moment of silence. Once it was over, he raised his head and continued.

“I believe that from death comes life. Although General Rasheed’s death is saddening and untimely, it marks the end of his legacy and the beginning of a new era for this country and my people.

 

 

For too long now, we have watched our beloved country torn apart by liberal reformists and dictatorships from outside controlling how we should live. I say to you my people, who are they in the West to tell us what to do when they are breaking all of God’s commandments every day? I ask you, does a pig tell a cat how to wash? My people, a new era is on the horizon, a time when we can look to the east and the morning sun and be proud of who we are. We can take back our power as our own. We can once again be a nation at one with ourselves and the Most High in the heavens. We can be an example to the rest of the world.”

He paused to look around the room and took a sip of water. “I stand before you as your new leader and the only suitable person to lead you into this new era. Therefore I am placing our beloved country under my rule.”

David could hear a few gasps in the room at General Silas proclaiming himself leader without any democratic process. He knew he didn’t have any opposition and he had the mighty fist of the military backing him.

“I am implementing a five point rule which starts with effect from today. I will briefly explain this five point rule to our countrymen. The first rule of our new state is to honour and love the one and only God and obey the commandments. Anybody found to be following any other gods or idols will be judged and punished accordingly. The second rule is that my word is final,” at this, a few worried looks were exchanged amongst the reporters. “I will endeavour to bring this country forward to prosper and in doing so I will eradicate sickness, both mentally and physically, and relieve poverty. All these things I will do to try and establish a strong country once again. Under the second rule you will acknowledge me as your leader in good faith and you will pledge to strictly obey my every judgment. The third rule is a rule of independence. By the end of the month there will be no further contact with or interference from the West.” This was met with cheers and applause from Silas’ fellow countrymen. “All laws previously imposed by the West will be abolished and new laws of our own will be established. We will no longer bow and succumb to Western pressure and dictatorship. Under the fourth point of law we will become a pure nation again. For too long now we have had impure blood running through our veins. I have decided that all foreigners in our country are to be expelled. This includes those people married to the native people of our nation and the children they have borne. This will enable us to once again reunite that strong pure blood link, making a healthier and more stable society. Once the four points of order are established I will impose the fifth point. This point will be for you as a nation to swear allegiance to me to protect and uphold the whole of its several parts, even to war and the glorious prize of all death in battle. Anyone who does not swear allegiance will be expelled from our beloved country. My people and the people of the world, I want you to know that what I am doing now or what I might do in the future is for the benefit of my people and to the glory of God. Believe me, I will do anything to protect this new ideal even to death itself. Thank you.” The General finished his speech and the Captain put his hand over the microphone in front of the General and whispered in his ear. The General gave a nod and then the Captain stepped forward to the microphone.

“The General is available to answer a few brief questions.” A flurry of hands shot up in the air and the General scanned the room with his dark eyes.

“Yes, you in the blue shirt.”

“Susan Bridges, Channel 6. General, can you tell the rest of the world why you think you are in a position to take power and impose this five point rule?”

“I have not taken power, but circumstances have put me in a position of power. If I am doing God’s work, how can it be wrong in the eyes of man?  You next, your question?”

“Tom Knight, Channel 8. General Silas, before we are all expelled from your country, can you reassure a concerned world about your nuclear capability? We know you have an extensive arsenal, we need to know that they won’t be used.”

“I can simply say this. We as a nation in the East have nuclear capability as protection as you do in the West. I can safely say that they will not be used unless you in the West attack our beloved country. So it is up to your governments to concern themselves with governing your own countries and stay out of ours. One more question.” The general looked around the room and his eyes made contact with a man sitting calmly in a front row. “You sir, do you not have a question for me?” The man looked up with his crystal blue eyes and smiled.

“My name is Michael. How much do you love your God and would you really do whatever was commanded of you?” It took a while for the general to speak. He was spellbound by the blue-eyed angelic-faced man in front of him.

“General, General, are you okay?” The Captain had stepped forward and whispered in his ear to prompt a reaction. Ignoring him, the General answered Michael.

“Without question, I would obey God even to death itself if that was what God wanted.”

“Good, I think you most probably will. Thank you, and God bless you.”