<\/p>\n
Jacob stared blankly at Death, then he asked for more wine.<\/p>\n
Death leapt up and grabbed the wine bottle.\u00a0 He refilled Jacob\u2019s glass and watched worriedly as he drank.\u00a0 \u201cYou okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
Jacob coughed on his wine, \u201cJesus!\u00a0 No!\u201d<\/p>\n
Death squatted down beside Jacob\u2019s chair, \u201cYou see, I don\u2019t want to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jacob rolled his eyes, \u201cOh, that\u2019s nice.\u00a0 Thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it kind of goes over the edge, you know?\u00a0 The word comes down that it\u2019s time to do the big snuffaroo, right?\u00a0 Enough of this bullshit, Death, just knock them all down.\u00a0 Bam!\u201d\u00a0 Death slapped his hands together.\u00a0 \u201cJust like that.\u00a0 Six billion.\u00a0 Bam!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJesus,\u201d<\/p>\n
Death stood up and refilled Jacob\u2019s glass.\u00a0 Jacob hadn\u2019t even realized that he\u2019d drunk it all.\u00a0 \u201cSo I despise the plan.\u00a0 I don\u2019t approve of it in the least.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut isn\u2019t it your job?\u201d<\/p>\n
Death shrugged, \u201cWell, yes.\u00a0 I\u2019ve seen war, genocide, plague, everything horrible that you can imagine.\u00a0 That doesn\u2019t bug me.\u00a0 I mean, you know, whatever.\u00a0 Like I said, death is death.\u00a0 But all those are sins of mortality, like you and that little girl you brutalized.\u00a0 You bring it on yourselves, or someone else does it to you.\u00a0 Despite what your various religious texts claim, an order from my superiors to wipe out a mass quantity of people for no reason has never happened before.\u00a0 The Flood has a perfectly natural explanation, you know? That wasn\u2019t any god, that was about half a million years of erosion and unfortunate urban planning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWait, so that really happened?\u00a0 The world flooded?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot the world, no.\u00a0 A small area flooded.\u00a0 Look, in super long ago BC you were in a different world if you walked 15 miles to the west.\u00a0 Anyway, my point is that this has never happened.\u00a0 It\u2019s because of deviant rapists like you that the supreme powers that be have decided to end everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jacob put his face in his hands, \u201cOh my God, I have earned death.\u201d<\/p>\n
Death wagged a finger and refilled Jacob\u2019s glass, \u201cNo, no, no.\u00a0 Listen, death is death.\u00a0 It\u2019s a fact of life.\u00a0 It just happens on its own.\u00a0 There\u2019s no God involved, no devils.\u00a0 Hell, I\u2019m just a bureaucrat.\u00a0 I make sure that it does happen.\u00a0 I don\u2019t make the bus hit you, but I make sure that you go away after you get creamed.\u00a0 See?\u00a0 Mr. X is going to get his head chopped off by an out of control toy helicopter, and I go and grab him when it happens.\u00a0 If it wasn\u2019t for me you\u2019d have a world full of decapitated heads complaining about the weather.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo what\u2019s all this\u2026\u201d Jacob shook his head, then closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
Death sat down on the table again and put his hand out, palm outwards.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, I don\u2019t approve of mass extermination.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut\u2026you\u2019re Death.\u201d<\/p>\n
Death narrowed his eyes and sighed, \u201cWhy the not listening thing?\u00a0 Look, everyone always dies for a reason.\u00a0 But I don\u2019t like being told that an entire species is about to get wiped out on a whim.\u00a0 That\u2019s just vicious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you killed the dinosaurs.\u201d<\/p>\n
He gave Jacob a strange look, \u201cUh\u2026 They were animals, Jacob.\u00a0 Besides, it took them a hundred million years to die.\u00a0 That\u2019s no problem.\u00a0 I\u2019m saying that at 10:15pm on Tuesday night, Eastern Standard Time, everyone dies.\u00a0 Bang.\u00a0 No reason.\u00a0 From the hardest killer to the purest girl.\u00a0 Got it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a big job,\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs it?\u00a0 No, it\u2019s actually quite easy.\u00a0 That\u2019s not the point.\u00a0 The point is that I think it\u2019s crude and reactionary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo why don\u2019t you say so?\u201d<\/p>\n
Death laughed \u2013 deep, cold, frightening.\u00a0 \u201cI think you call him Lucifer.\u00a0 That poor bastard.\u00a0 That was the last one to disagree and just look.\u00a0 Oh man, I\u2019m not gonna say squat.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo how can this plan possibly \u2013 \u201c<\/p>\n
\u201cIf people reject the notion of God, then the supreme powers that be will hesitate.\u00a0 They\u2019ll call off Armageddon.\u00a0 It\u2019ll scare them away, so to speak.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI would think the opposite would be true\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Death raised his eyebrows and smiled, \u201cYou\u2019d think!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut rejection works?\u201d<\/p>\n
Death shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s a mystery.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI certainly don\u2019t get it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re not God!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about the Hindus?\u00a0 The Moslems?\u00a0 The Jews?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAll gone.\u00a0 Everyone dies.\u00a0 That\u2019s the order.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo those religions are wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are they going to die, then?\u00a0 They reject the Christian God, yes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey believe in a supreme power.\u00a0 It\u2019s all the same, goo goo goo joob. If they believe, they die.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo how are we going to convince everyone to doubt God with a news story and my interview?\u00a0 Religion is life for most people\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have to convince everyone and they\u2019ll only have to doubt for the tiniest fraction of a second.\u00a0 It\u2019s strategy, Jacob.\u00a0 If a whole bunch of people are doubting the truth at the exact moment of the grand finale, then that derails the train.\u00a0 It\u2019s not about convincing the world to reject God, it\u2019s about making a group of people unexpectedly question their faith at the same instant the final moment hits.\u00a0 What they believe or don\u2019t believe at 10:16 doesn\u2019t matter.\u00a0 Subversion, Jacob!\u00a0 I\u2019m going to throw off the polling.\u00a0 See?\u00a0 This is a rigid order.\u00a0 10:15, don\u2019t be late.\u00a0 But if there\u2019s a spike in the fuck yous, then the powers that be will be inclined to hesitate.\u00a0 They can then look foolish and try again a few minutes later or they can pretend to be generous and forgiving and drop the whole idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jacob nodded.\u00a0 \u201cOkay, so what do I do?\u201d<\/p>\n
Death touched Jacob\u2019s forehead, \u201cIt\u2019s all in there.\u00a0 Just start talking.\u00a0 Everything will fall into place.\u00a0 Try the lemon broccoli.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019s so beautiful.\u00a0 His hair.\u00a0 The way he talks.\u00a0 Dr. Webb is very pretty, too.\u00a0 She can understand why people would want to vote for him.\u00a0 She can\u2019t vote, though.\u00a0 Not yet.\u00a0 If she could vote, it would be for Dr. Webb.\u00a0 He\u2019s talking about Mr. Mariner\u2019s passion \u2013 the Bible.\u00a0 They\u2019re both very smart, but it\u2019s Mr. Mariner who started the research.\u00a0 He\u2019s so smart.\u00a0 She likes that so much \u2013 that he\u2019s smart and stuff.\u00a0 Jacob, call him Jacob.\u00a0 That\u2019s what he said when he leaned forward in the car and unbuttoned her shirt.\u00a0 He said she was pretty.\u00a0 He said she was nice.\u00a0 He said he liked her hair and her breasts.\u00a0 It was so nice to feel his mouth on her.\u00a0 It was cool, you know?\u00a0 It was amazing.\u00a0 He\u2019s such a great guy.<\/em><\/p>\n She moved forward, out of the shadows.\u00a0 That stupid jerk with the headset wasn\u2019t looking.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t care.\u00a0 The scary men with the sunglasses that followed Dr. Webb around didn\u2019t notice, either.\u00a0 They were watching the audience.\u00a0 Had been ever since Dr. Webb brought up the Bible.\u00a0 The audience was murmuring, talking.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t supposed to do that.\u00a0 Not on TV.\u00a0 Nobody did that on TV.\u00a0 The audience was always well behaved.\u00a0 Now they were talking a lot and the people making the show seemed pissed.<\/em><\/p>\n She got up to the stage.\u00a0 Just run for it.\u00a0 What the hell?\u00a0 She charged and threw her arms around Jacob.\u00a0 He looked surprised to see her, but she saw the love.\u00a0 She said so:<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI love you, Mr. Mariner!\u00a0 I have your baby!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n There was a shocked silence.\u00a0 The place had been all about noise but, now, everyone had frozen.\u00a0 Webb looked terrified.\u00a0 Jacob knew what he was thinking: \u2018Is this part of Death\u2019s plan?\u2019\u00a0 Jesus, Webb, it\u2019s not.<\/p>\n Suzanne Phipps was trying to kiss him, screaming about the goddamned baby and eternal love.\u00a0 God, she looked fucking 14.\u00a0 He pushed her away, hard.\u00a0 She fell down without any sort of grace and stared up at him, the hurt in her eyes probably crystal clear on camera three.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know you!\u201d Jacob screamed.\u00a0 His voice sounded shrill in his ears and Webb flinched.<\/p>\n Suzanne\u2019s eyes teared up.\u00a0 She pushed herself up and ran off the stage.\u00a0 Everyone was still staring, all attention focused on Jacob.\u00a0 Then Suzanne came back to the edge of the stage and screamed,\u00a0 \u201cYou raped me!\u00a0 You raped me!\u201d<\/p>\n Jacob closed his eyes.\u00a0 When he opened them again, he looked at Webb.\u00a0 Surely the message got through.\u00a0 It was all about doubt, and Dr. Ruiz Santiago was the man who had uncovered the lost gospel.\u00a0 That was the contingency plan.\u00a0 Everything was fine.\u00a0 Who believed in God, anyway?\u00a0 This was a modern, educated society.\u00a0 Come on.<\/p>\n He checked his watch.\u00a0 10:14.<\/p>\n Come on\u2026 Come on!\u00a0 He didn\u2019t believe.\u00a0 Half the country didn\u2019t believe.\u00a0 Good enough, right?<\/p>\n When he looked up, everyone was gone.\u00a0 Even Webb.\u00a0 Just like that.\u00a0 Like they were removed from the film. The blink of an eye.\u00a0 The world was still alive, the cameras still filming.\u00a0 Jacob\u2019s shocked face was still on the monitor, he was still alive.\u00a0 So was Suzanne Phipps.\u00a0 Her eyes opened and she turned towards Jacob, then she pulled herself up straight and put her face in her hands.<\/p>\n So it had failed.\u00a0 Just cause doubt for a moment in countless television viewers.\u00a0 That\u2019s all he had to do.\u00a0 Maybe Death had had second thoughts.\u00a0 Maybe he\u2019d been strong-armed at the last minute.\u00a0 Maybe the plan just didn\u2019t hold water.<\/p>\n It seemed absurd, anyway.\u00a0 Maybe it was just a game.\u00a0 He looked at Suzanne, and it took several moments to realize that she had a gun pointed at him.\u00a0 That poor, pathetic girl.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere\u2019d you get that?\u201d He sneered.<\/p>\n She smiled, her tear stained face glowing in the lights.<\/p>\n \u201cOh my God,\u201d he whispered, closing his eyes.<\/p>\n He wasn\u2019t sure when the bullet hit.\u00a0 The noise from the gun shocked his body, tore through him, shut him down.\u00a0 It was a terrible noise.\u00a0 It brought back that horrible knocking, just like in a dream, just like when he listened to his heart before Death\u2019s door opened, thought now it was beginning to fade.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[53],"tags":[137,76],"class_list":["post-352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sunday-archive","tag-archives","tag-fiction"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=352"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":925,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352\/revisions\/925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}