The Incubus, Succubus and Son of Perdition Box Set: The Len du Randt Bundle (59 page)

‘Maybe,’ Timothy said and wrapped his arm
around his father’s shoulder. ‘Let’s go see if mom is okay.’

Malcolm took one last look over his
shoulder as they left the school
grounds.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

‘Malcolm!’ Mary shouted and
embraced her husband. She then hugged her son and kissed him repeatedly on his
face. ‘I saw terrible things on GMN. I’m so glad that you’re okay.’

Malcolm swallowed hard. ‘Is Angie here?’ he asked.

Mary’s face dropped. ‘She… She’s not with you?’

Malcolm shook his head.
‘We
searched
everywhere
for her, but couldn’t find her.’

Timothy saw that his father was overcome with emotion
and that he couldn’t finish. ‘We thought that she might have walked back home
during the confusion and commotion,’ Timothy said. ‘That’s why we came.’

‘What happened?’ Mary asked hysterically. ‘Where’s my
baby girl?’

‘We’ll find her,’ Malcolm tried to reassure his wife.
‘I will contact the police station and we
will
find her. I promise.’

- - -*  *  *- -
-

The cool water refreshed Trevor
almost immediately as it splashed against his face. He rubbed off most of the
dirt and then looked at his pale reflection in the mirror.

‘What’s happening?’ Trevor asked his reflection.

The mirror didn’t answer him, but someone
did
whisper his name.

‘Hello?’ Trevor asked and scanned the restroom. ‘Is
anybody in here?’

Trevor
, a voice whispered.
Open your mind
.

‘What?’

I want you to focus on my voice
.

The voice was coming from within his head. It was a
soft voice. Relaxed, yet firm. Trevor closed his eyes and saw the image of a
stern-faced, olive-skinned man seated behind a desk. He had never seen the man
before in his life, but Trevor felt calmer by just focusing on him. The man
spoke:

I want you to pay attention to every word I say and to
feel the energy; the energy that emerges from deep within yourself that enables
you to break free from any fear that you may be holding inside of you
.

Trevor breathed deeply and tried to open his mind as
much as he could.

As you listen to my voice, allow it to be a way; a
method to your understanding. There is no doubt that you will feel frightened
about what has happened. Focus on my voice to drive that fear from yourself and
to embrace that which I am about to share with you. My name is Victor Yoshe,
and I am about to tell you what really happened today. Breathe deeply and allow
my voice to fill your mind. Let the energy flow through you as you reach a new
level of understanding and enlightenment
.

Trevor opened his eyes and the image was gone, but the
voice in his mind still spoke.

Allow your mind to slow down as you absorb the energy
coming from my voice
.

All around the world people had stopped what they were
doing. Frantic mothers and fathers stopped searching for loved ones; looters
stopped looting, and tribe members of deep African countries knelt down on the
ground as they all listened and focused their minds on Victor’s words.

Trevor walked from the bathroom to the office where
René was watching GMN. ‘René,’ he said. ‘You won’t believe what I’m seeing...’

René held up her hand to indicate that he had to stop
speaking. She pointed to the television screen, and on it, Trevor saw the same
olive-skinned man that he saw every time he closed his eyes.

‘How on Earth...?’ Trevor asked, but René shushed him
again.

‘Wait,’ she said. ‘He is about to tell us what’s going
on.’

.III.

 ‘The
coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan
displayed in
all
kinds of counterfeit miracles. Signs and
wonders, and in
every
sort of evil that
deceives
those who
are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be
saved. For this reason God sends them a
powerful delusion
so that they
will
believe
the lie’

- 2
Thessalonians 2:9-12

‘If
you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it
will
be
believed.’

-
Adolf Hitler

Trevor rubbed his finger over the
wound on his forehead. It had been quite an intense morning for him thus far.
Random people all across the city seemed to have disappeared without a trace,
and those who remained were subjected to the law of cause and effect as power
grids failed, taking down traffic lights, ATMs, computer servers and almost
everything else required to sustain everyday living. But none of those
incidents held a candle to the strangeness of someone managing to infiltrate
his mind and seemingly every television station available at the very same
time. To top it off, this complete stranger now claimed to have the answer to
the one question on everyone’s lips:
what happened, and who is responsible?

Trevor was physically exhausted and mentally unstable.
His stomach twisted and turned, almost as if nature accused him, telling him
that this terrible mess had somehow been
his
fault, and the police would
soon come knocking on his door and drag him away.

‘Let me begin by saying that the chaos you are
experiencing is on a global scale,’ Victor continued his speech. ‘Worldwide,
millions of people have disappeared from the face of the Earth; eradicated in
the blink of an eye. The cause of the senseless death and destruction that we
have experienced today,’ Victor said with unquestionable authority, ‘is the
result of an all out alien attack.’

Trevor sat up straight in his chair.
Now
this
is
interesting
, he thought.
Why didn’t I think of that?
He had thought
of numerous possibilities of what the cause might have been, but he didn’t for
one moment think that it could have been an alien invasion. It all started
making sense to him, and the more he thought about it, the more he realized
that it
had
to be the truth.

He could see that René was going through the exact same
enlightenment as he was. He had watched many movies about aliens as a teenager,
but
no
amount of Hollywood conditioning could ever have prepared him for
the reality that he now faced. He stared intently at the television. He didn’t
want to miss a word that
this
man had to say.

‘We do not know anything about the alien race or their
capabilities, but we do know that they are not indestructible. An Israeli Air
Force fighter plane managed to shoot down one of their craft soon after the
attack began. If we stand up and unite against this threat, if we hold hands
and join forces across the world, we
will
overcome them. We must melt
into a unity, a Federation Earth, and eliminate those that have invaded our
lovely planet.’

‘Yeah!’ Trevor agreed enthusiastically. René softly
squeezed his hand and forced a faint smile.

Although badly shaken up with no idea of what the
immediate future may hold, she felt strangely confident that this stranger on
television would save the day and make things better.
He
would be able
to protect her from those nasty alien beings. She studied Victor’s demeanour and
decided that he was the well-structured and self-composed type; the perfect
person to get them out of this terrible mess.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

Andrew stared out his window as
Victor spoke, hoping to see one of the alien craft flying overhead. He never
saw any, but did hear what he thought could have been their ships whizzing by.
The sun’s rays struggled to pierce the blanket of thick smoke that was hovering
over Earth like a huge alien mother ship from some blockbuster Hollywood movie.

‘Today has been a sad and tragic day for all,’ Victor
spoke from the television, ‘and I am sure that almost everyone has lost someone
dear today: a family member, a parent, a child, a friend. It has been
emotionally tough for every person on Earth, but we cannot allow our emotions
to overwhelm us.

‘I urge all people, the depressed, the frightened, the
angry, and the confused, to not do something irrational. Do not harm others
and, most importantly, do not harm yourself.

‘We have lost too many dear lives already. Please do
not add to the hurt and tears of today’s tragedy. Now is not the time to mourn,
but the time to stand up and stand together. Now is the time to unite and fight
back, to show those responsible that, as one global nation speaking one global
language, we can overcome
any
obstacle thrown at us as human beings. We
declare war on the alien intruders, and as Federation Earth, we will be
one
nation with
one
single goal:
to survive
.’

- - -*  *  *- -
-

‘We need to stay focused and
organized,’ the calm and self-assured Victor Yoshe continued, ‘as there will
doubtless be—for the next few days at least—food shortages. I ask that everyone
able to do so, return to their homes using back roads and avoiding the highways
at all cost.’

Trevor
wondered how bad the carnage was. An image of the highway he was on earlier
flashed through his mind and he wondered how bad the damage had been on a
global scale.

‘
If you are unable to
return home, go to the nearest community shelter and stay there until the war
is over. Those injured should try to reach the nearest clinic or hospital as
soon as possible.’ Victor paused for a moment as if to place emphasis on what
he wanted to say next.

‘People,’ he said, and then paused again. ‘
United
people of Earth, I urge you to help out where you can. We can only defeat our
enemies and survive through this ordeal if we let go of our own selfish
motives. Should someone knock on your door for food and shelter, offer it to
that person without question. We must share what we have, or what we have will
be meaningless in only a matter of days. Let go of prejudice and racial hatred,
and look at your fellow human beings as family. Family should stick together.’

‘I can live with that,’ René thought out loud, not
taking her eyes off the television.

‘Yeah,’ Trevor said. ‘I guess we all can.’

Victor remained silent and for a few seconds merely
stared into the camera. It felt to Trevor as if he looked right at him,
penetrating his very soul. It was almost as if he could see through the
television and into his mind: all his secrets, all his hopes and dreams lay
bare; exposed to this man.

René shifted around uncomfortably, and then Victor
broke his hypnotic gaze and continued. ‘The world leaders who have survived and
are accounted for had already given me their full cooperation, and will be
deploying their soldiers and fighter craft for full scale tactical warfare
against the alien invaders. People are asked not to approach any soldiers,
military vehicles, or wreckages of the alien craft.

‘You are asked to stay indoors until everything has
been cleared out. Until this war is over, all world issues will be addressed
and resolved by the European Empire. I thank you for your understanding and
assistance. We are all experiencing a terrible trauma; but we are going through
it
together
, and together we
shall
prevail.’ He gave a firm nod
as he finished. ‘Thank you.’

- - -*  *  *- -
-

Tears stung Malcolm’s eyes as he
held Mary tightly in his arms. He wanted to be in control of his emotions. He
wanted to be a pillar for his wife to lean against in a time like this, so he
cried silently, without her knowing it.

‘It’s going to be all right,’ he said as the knot in
his throat pulled tighter. He struggled to find the right words. ‘It...it’s
going to be okay.’

His words had comfort, but lacked believability and
reason. He just wanted his daughter to be with them so badly that he was
willing to say anything to give them just that one glimmer of hope.

Timothy just sat there, staring at the wall with a
blank expression on his face. He was still in shock and didn’t know how to
express his feelings. His heart felt heavy, weighed down by tears, but his mind
forced him to maintain control. He felt sick to his stomach, and turned around
expectantly when he thought he heard something behind him. It wasn’t his
sister, but instead, only some old furniture creaking. Inner conflict raged
inside him as his heart waged war against his mind. He wanted to mourn the loss
of his sister so badly, but at the same time, couldn’t help but be intrigued
about this Victor person that had gained unauthorized access to his mind. He
wanted to find out more about the man.

Malcolm wrapped his free arm around Timothy’s shoulder
and pulled him closer. Together the three of them just sat there, Mary’s occasional
sobs being the only sound breaking the overwhelming silence.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

‘Trev,’ René said, biting her lower
lip softly.

‘Yeah?’

‘Um...would you mind if I stayed over at your place?’

Trevor looked up. ‘I’m sorry. You want to what...?’

She saw the hesitation in his eyes then quickly added,
‘Just until all this is over. I just don’t want to be alone right now.’

Trevor thought about the answer, weighing all the
options while wondering how much of his personal space this woman might take up.

‘I promise that I won’t...get in your way.’ The last
words were choked as she broke down and cried again.

‘Okay,’ he said and took her in his arms. ‘You can stay
with me until all this is sorted out.’

He would never admit it, but he too didn’t feel like being
alone right now. ‘I’m quickly going to my brother’s flat from here. Go get your
things and come over to my place as soon as you’re ready. Bring enough food
with you, though. I don’t know how long it will be until we are allowed to go
shopping again.’

‘Oh, thank you,’ she sobbed and hugged him tightly.

‘Don’t mention it,’ he said, wondering how long he
would really have to share his apartment with this woman that he only knew from
some casual tea time chit chat. He secretly hoped that this Victor character
knew what he was doing.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

Getting to Norman’s apartment was
no easy task, but after careful manoeuvring and using desolate back roads,
Trevor eventually made it. He knocked, and when no one answered a minute later,
he used his spare key that Norman had given him a year ago to get into the
apartment.

‘Norm...?’ Trevor asked as he pushed open the door.

No reply.

Trevor walked slowly through the apartment and called
out to Norman each time he entered a new room. There was no one in the
apartment, yet all the signs pointed to the fact that Norman had not left.
There was the unmade bed—very unlike Norman—the full bathtub, the unused
toothbrush. What finally convinced him that something was amiss were Norman’s
car keys on the table.

Trevor switched on the television. GMN was covering the
worldwide mass hysteria. He headed to the spare bedroom that Norman had rigged
as his ‘home office.’

On the table were bills and letters, but the only thing
that really caught his attention was a book. He picked it up and lightly ran
his fingers over the embossed title:
The Great Third War and the Rise of the
Antichrist

Trevor opened the book and saw that Norman had written
a message inside the cover. It was addressed to him:

Dear Trev,

Happy Birthday! I know that it’s
not much, but the eternal value of this book could mean a lot more to you than
anything else on this planet. I sincerely hope that you enjoy it and find it as
informative as I have. It’s only a matter of time before the things in this book
will come to pass. I wouldn’t want you to be unprepared.

Hope you have a good one!

Love,

Norm

Trevor looked at the date that the
message was written. It was a week before his twenty-fifth birthday; a day
before he told Norman that he was an atheist. No wonder Norman didn’t give him
the book. He most probably reasoned that Trevor would see it as a personal
attack against his newfound beliefs.

‘Wise choice,’ Trevor said as he flipped through it. He
tried reading bits and pieces as he paged through the book, but the Dragons and
Beasts lingo only added to his pounding headache. He couldn’t understand a word
of what the book was trying to tell him.

‘I’ll just keep this for later then,’ Trevor said and
placed the book in his jacket pocket. He switched off the television and
scribbled a note to Norman. He was about to leave when the telephone rang.

- - -*  *  *- -
-

‘Norm?’ Trevor said but frowned
when he realized that Norman wouldn’t be calling himself.

‘Uh, no,’ a voice said on the other end of the line.
‘Who is this?’