Hikari led Sam and Aimi up to the front entrance.
Just being this close to the church grounds made Sam feel distinctly nauseous. If it wasn’t for his already pallid complexion, he would have looked more anaemic than usual. Aimi was watching Sam with concern spelt out all over her face. She knew something was wrong. Slipping one hand through his arm, she guided him up the stairs. He smiled at her queasily in thanks.
Father Rainey opened the door before Hikari could knock. The big, bear-like priest looked grimmer than usual. With a curt gesture, he beckoned them inside. The lounge was sparsely furnished with two tattered couches and two rather well-worn armchairs. Clearly, Father Rainey was not an ostentatious man.
“Take a seat,” said Father Rainey gruffly. “I’ll make us coffee.”
As they sat, the priest disappeared down the hallway. Soon, the three of them could hear the clattering of dishes. Sam felt like he had just eaten something decidedly off, but despite this, he glanced up when he heard the soft tread of feet on the carpet.
A teenage boy, probably about Sam’s own age, was standing in front of them. He was tall — almost as tall as his uncle — and solidly built. His handsome face was framed by short, curly blond hair, and his resemblance to Father Rainey was obvious.
“Hi,” he said, smiling welcomingly. “I’m Josh.”
All three of them stood, Hikari and Aimi shaking the offered hand. When he came to Sam, Josh paused ever so slightly as he looked Sam in the eye. At that moment, Sam knew without a doubt that Josh’s uncle had shared the truth of his heritage with him.
The knowledge didn’t appear to affect Josh, other than the brief pause as Josh took his hand. It was a strong, dry grip, much like his uncle’s. Josh smiled at him and was about to say something when Father Rainey reentered the room.
“Ah, I see you’ve met my nephew, Josh. Good.” When everyone was served, the priest sat back with a satisfied sigh.
“One of my few indulgences,” he said, taking a sip. “I do enjoy a good coffee.”
The others drank too — all except Sam. His stomach told him that he would not keep it down.
After a moment, the priest sat forward suddenly. “Before we begin, I want to reassure you that what is said in this room will stay in this room. Josh, as you might have guessed, is already privy to a few of my ecclesiastical secrets. In other words, he knows about you, Sam, and about my visions of the coming Rapture and Tribulation.”
Father Rainey watched Sam’s face carefully as he said this. If he thought that this would upset Sam, then the reaction he got disappointed him. Sam kept his face carefully neutral.
“Josh will never tell anyone about your true nature, Sam,” continued the priest. As if to back this up, Josh nodded. “He knows, as I do, how important your coming role will be. Trust him as you trust me.”
Despite the rumbling coming from his stomach, Sam felt like smiling. He certainly wouldn’t say that he trusted Father Rainey. In fact, he didn’t like the man much, especially after what he’d put him through years earlier. The only people Sam trusted were Aimi and Hikari. Everyone else had yet to prove themselves.
“I brought you here today for two reasons. But first I must tell you about the Tribulation and what you should expect.”
Sam sat forward expectantly. Hikari had told him about the Tribulation but for some reason, he was a bit light on details. Almost as if he wanted to spare Sam the horrific truth.
“The Tribulation, as you know,” Father Rainey went on, “is a seven year period after the Rapture. The other humans who remain will be those who do not believe — truly believe — in God. It will be a period of great suffering for the remnants of humanity. There will be earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other natural disasters; famine, and war. Up to seventy five percent of the world’s remaining population will perish. The survivors will no doubt turn on each other for what little remains. This is the world that you must survive to protect the innocent who remain.”
Sam swallowed heavily as visions filled his head. He could vividly picture the suffering of those poor people, many of whom had done nothing wrong other than lack belief. It didn’t seem fair somehow. “How am I to protect the innocent?” he managed to croak.
Father Rainey nodded. “Do what you have been trained to do. The Archangel Gabriel sent me a vision showing you with others. You will not be alone. You will have guidance.”
“And then I go and kill the Antichrist?” Sam would have laughed if he could. It just sounded so preposterous. “How am I supposed to do that exactly?”
“That’s the idea, but I’m afraid Gabriel hasn’t furnished me with a lot of details on this yet.”The priest scratched his beard and looked away, unable to meet
Sam’s eye. “You’ll just have to make do somehow.”
“Great,” said Sam sarcastically.
“There’s more, Sam,” said Hikari quietly. Sam looked at him with surprise; he hadn’t expected his master to speak at all. “Not only will you have to protect the innocent from those humans who have fallen into darkness, but you will have to fight … others.”
“What others?” said Sam, trying not to sound too alarmed. Beside him, Aimi’s eyes were wide with fright.
“The Bible tells us that the Tribulation is the time of the rise of the Antichrist. I had always believed that the Antichrist would be human. It seems that this won’t be so. Like you, he will be a demon and be accompanied by many of his followers from the deepest parts of Hell. That is who you will have to contend with.”
Sam felt like jumping up, smashing things, venting his frustration and anger on anything and everything around him. Instead, he took a few deep breaths and pushed down the anger until it was a hot coal buried deep within himself. Finally though, the swords made sense. The swords that had been specifically crafted to kill demons. If he’d thought it through, he would’ve realized some time ago. Why hadn’t Hikari told him?
“I’m sorry, Sam,”said Hikari, as if reading his thoughts, “I wanted to tell you, but we didn’t want to scare you. You had enough to dwell on at the time. Father Rainey and I have planned this for some time and we believed — rightly or wrongly — that it would be unfair to burden you with so much knowledge so quickly. But now we believe that you are ready, that you have the emotional stability and maturity to deal with this.”
Sam wasn’t so sure that he did. He was barely in control of himself.
“Yes,” said Father Rainey, meeting Sam’s eye again. “And now, all we have to know is: can you kill demons? Can you kill your own kind?”
They went to the church gates that marked the border between Father Rainey’s house and the church grounds. It was after midnight; Father Rainey wanted to make sure no-one was around to witness this particular test. Providence Street was deserted. Moonlight illuminated the church ground in cold light. Outside the gate, Sam could feel that Hikari, Aimi, Joshua and the priest were watching his slow, painful process. So far, he hadn’t got that far.
“It’s hurting him!” Aimi cried.
“It’s for the best, child,” said Father Rainey, in an irritatingly calm voice.
Sam gritted his teeth and took one more step. The anguish in Aimi’s voice almost made him turn around just so he could reassure her, comfort her. But he couldn’t. He had to do this. A part of him had wanted to do this for years but he had just lacked the courage. Now that it was forced upon him, he was not about to back out.
Intense pain flooded every part of his being. Like the tests years earlier involving the Bible and cross, Sam did not cry out. He wouldn’t give the priest the satisfaction. Resolutely, he carried on, determined to get to the church doors. Hikari and Father Rainey had told him it was important that he reach them for some reason. They were only a handful of steps away, but the distance seemed to grow with every second Sam spent in the grounds.
His feet, which were the only physical contact point with the hallowed ground, felt like they were on fire — despite his trainers. He made himself concentrate, the way Hikari had taught him, channelling and focusing his thoughts. It was extremely difficult though. The fire had spread to his thighs and was steadily heading further up his body. His mind kept telling him he was actually on fire and he had to deliberately stop himself from hurling his body on the ground and rolling around to put it out.
Something — someone? — seemed to be whispering inside his head. Dark, insidious thoughts. Give up, they said. It’s not worth it. There is an easier way. He recognized the tone; he’d heard it before in his dreams.
