The End Shall Come

CW: Mass suicide, Gun violence, Physical abuse

The Children of the Firstborn are gathered in the Cavern awaiting the Second Coming. There is a large digital clock mounted on a wall of the cave and it reads 10:30:49 and counting. A stage has been constructed near the clock and there is a podium on the stage.

14 year old Dougie Starnes sits on a rock near the clock. He is uncomfortable and, deep down, he really doesn’t want to be there. Like everybody else, he is dressed in a long, white robe and he is barefoot. Like most boys his age, he is very self conscious about anything that might make him appear less masculine and this robe fits into that category. He’s never enjoyed going barefoot-he always seems to step on something painful or stub a toe.

Dougie has questions. He gets up and walks over to the one constant truth teller in his life, his sister, 18 year old Claire. While he looks silly and awkward in this getup, Claire is angelic with her long, flowing blonde hair, her sweet face, and her willowy figure. She’s sitting on a rock nearby, staring down at her hot pink toenails. When she stares, sweet Claire is usually deep in thought.

“Hey, sis,” Dougie says. “I’m wondering about some stuff.”

“Hey, Doug, what’s up” she replies. If maple syrup pouring onto a pancake made a noise, it one sound like her voice. She’s the only person who doesn’t call him “Dougie” and he loves her for it. Dougie’s friend Patrick has always said that when some girls call a guy by his name, it makes the guy feel six inches taller. Claire is that kind of girl.

“Why do we have to wear these goofy outfits?” Dougie blurts out.

She smiles. “I though Elder had explained that. When the Lord returns, he expects our robes to be white. We must stand out from the unbelievers.”

“OK, but He is also all knowing, doesn’t Elder teach that?”

“Of course!” Claire responds.

“So, He wouldn’t need us to dress differently, would he? Wouldn’t He just know us?”

“Oh, Doug, so many questions!”

“And doesn’t the Bible say that nobody knows the day or hour when the Lord will return. How does Elder know?”

“Why, Doug, Elder is God’s elect messenger for the hour! You know that!” Claire shakes her head. “Doug, I’m going to pray for you. It seems that your faith isn’t strong.”

That’s when the kids see their parents padding toward them. Pop looks especially ridiculous in the robe with his crew cut and scgraggly, grey beard. Mom, who basically resembles and older, plumper Claire, looks angelic, too. Pop hugs Dougie and Mon sits by Claire and puts her arm around her shoulders.

“Almost time, kiddos!” Mom says. “Isn’t it exciting?”

Claire shakes her head. “I’m worried about Dougie, Mom. He seems to have doubts.”

Dougie’s father grabs him by the shoulder and stares into his yes.

“Boy, you are a believer, ain’t you? Don’t tell me that you’ve turned your back on what we believe!”

Dad looks furious. Dougie can’t help but feel intimidated.

It’s his mother who stands and come to his defense.

“Warren,” she says in the voice she used when Dougie was sick or scared as a younger child, “This boy has proved his faith time and time again! Look at the bruises he still has on his face when them boys at school attacked him!”

She’s right. Dan Cooley and Joe Bivens had taken turns beating him in the boy’s bathroom. One would hold his arms back while the other would punch him in the face. They kept calling him “one of Elder Brannon’s loonies”.If Coach Applegate hadn’t walked into the bathroom, Dougie would have probably ended up in the hospital.

“Yeah, son, I’m sorry that I overreacted! It’s just too late in the day for doubting!”

“What brought all this on, Douglas Lee?” Mom only uses his first and middle name when she’s worried about him.

Dougie thinks hard. It all goes back six years ago. It was before they had joined the Children of the Firstborn. He had stomach flu and Mom had decided he should stay home from school. She took him over to Grandma Betty’s house. She had made him a nest on the couch in her living room. As always, she watched the “Noon Matinee” on Channel 19. That day, the movie was called Guyana Tragedy and it had creeped eight year old Dougie out. After it was over, Grandma had switched off the TV and said “That was plumb weird, wasn’t it?”

Dougie agreed. He also had nightmares about the last few scenes of the film for the next few weeks. Something about this situation reminded him of that day at Grandma Betty’s house and the resulting bad dreams.

Somebody hollers “There he is!” and there’s an outburst of applause. Dougie and his family look back toward the cavern entrance. Their leader, Elder Cephas Brannon, God’s Elect Messenger For the Hour has arrived!

His entrance does little to allay Dougie’s cynicism. For starters, Elder isn’t exactly keeping the dress code. He’s wearing a suit and tie, custom tailored no doubt, under his robe, not to mention, a pair of black Florsheims. It is likely that he has come from a TV appearance. Since he predicted the Second Coming a few months back, it seems Elder has been on TV constantly, doing interviews to explain his prediction. Elder is tall and slender and there’s a certain elegance about him. His wife, who he calls “Madam Brannon” and insists that all of the other Children do the same, walks beside him. She is barefoot and carrying a bulky bag of some sort. While most women in the congregation whisper about how handsome and elegant, even sexy, Elder is, madam is a striking contrast. She is short, morbidly obese with unkempt, curly red hair and a pockmarked face that remains in a perpetual scowl.

Elder, his long, white hair flowing down to his shoulders, waves and smiles to his followers. He point to the stage. He and Madam make their way there and they climb the steps onto the platform. Denny and Marie, two children from China who the Brannons have adopted, aged five and six, scamper onto the stage with their adopted parents.

The clock reads 10:44:56. Two more people join the Brannons on the stage. The Deacon, that’s the only name he goes by, is a large black man who wears his hair in dreadlocks. He is also wearing shoes under his robe, combat boots. He always has a fierce expression on his face, like he’s ready for a fight. When he arrived about a year ago, Elder introduced the Deacon as his “second in command” and a man “ordained by God”. Deacon had preached one sermon since arriving, a long, rambling diatribe that warned the congregation that the Federal government would soon declare war on the Children of the Firstborn and how they should arm and be prepared. For a few weeks afterward, Deacon had held classes on firearms for the men and boys in the basement of the church. When he saw that most of the guys were gun owners and alread quite proficient, the classes stopped. Deacon’s wife, the Deaconess, stood by his side. She was what Mom called “one classy lady”, beautiful and always stylishly dressed. She is looking around the cave and shifting from one bare foot to the other. She seems nervous. Dougie guesses that this is the first time she has been barefoot in a long time.

Elder stands behind the podium. He raises his hands above his head, his smile disappears and is replaced with a somber look. Madam begins fiddling with her bag.

“Let’s get as close as we can,” Dad says. We make our way toward the stage and when we stop, we are about fifty feet away and there are very few people who are closer than we are.

Then, Elder begins to speak. His voice is high pitched, nasally, and has a definite Georgia twang.

“My brothers and sisters, for years, I have told you that the end shall come! And now, the hour is truly nigh,” he says, speaking slowly and carefully enunciating each word. “The bridegroom cometh and we, in our pure white robes, stand ready to meet Him. However, as we have always told you, righteousness will always have its enemies, the forces of evil. As Madam, Deacon, Deaconess, and I were coming here, we passed the Armory on Highway 50. There we saw troops preparing as if for battle! Tanks, guns, you name it!”

There is murmuring from the audience. A woman begins to sob.

“ I am reminded of King Saul, first King of Israel, when his last battle went sore against him, he spake unto his armour bearer and said unto him ‘Thrust me through with thy sword, lest these uncircumcised abuse me!’ Now, children, we have no sword, but before the hour arrives, let us drink from the cup of blessing which I have blessed for you!”

With that, Madam reaches into her bag and pulls out a green bottle and what appeared to be a large goblet. It was gold or, at least gold plated. She gives the wine bottle to Elder and holds the goblet as Elder uncorks the bottle and pours the contents into the goblet. When he is done, he takes the goblet from Madam and holds it above his head.

“We must all drink of this cup!” he bellows.

Elder takes a long drink and hands it to Madam. Madam nods and takes a long drink herself. Then, she takes the cup and gives Denny and Marie a drink. Madam kisses each of the children on the forehead. Then, she gives the goblet to the Deacon. Deacon takes a deep, cleansing breath and takes a gulp from the goblet. He hands the cup to Deaconess, who is still shifting from foot to foot. She frown , shakes her head, and hands the cup back to Deacon. He glare and whispers into her ear. Her face softens, there are tears, she kisses him gently, takes the cup, and drinks.

Deacon smiles, retakes the cup, and walks down the steps to the floor of the cave. He is met by Brother Wilbur, a slight man in his early 60’s with a shaved head and a white goatee. Brother Wilbur was a homeless drug addict when he came to the Chirldren of the Firstborn. Elder gave him a job as church custodian and allowed him to live in a room in the basement. Wilbur more of less worships Elder. Wilbur takes the cup and drinks eagerly with a broad smile on his face. He then takes the cup to the family behind him, Rich and Rita Scanlon. Rich was my Little League coach before Elder forbid “worldly entanglements”. Rich and Rita have always seemed too normal for our group, for lack of a better world. Rich hesitates briefly before taking a drink, but Rita gulps eagerly when it’s her turn.

Then, Rich hands the goblet back to Wilbur. Wilbur, smiling and nodding, brings the cup to Dad.

Suddenly, in his mind, Dougie can clearly see the scene from the movie he watched with his grandmother. He sees Powers Boothe,playing Jim Jones, microphone in hand, urging his followers to drink the Kool-Aid.

Dougie grabs the goblet from Brother Wilbur’s grimy hand and he throws it as hard as he can. Douige sees Rich looking at himwith a bemused expression. Beside him, Rita’s face is a mask of rage. He sees his wife’s reaction and his facial expression becomes angry and he shakes his fist at Dougie! Wilbur looks shocked. Pop swings at Dougie and the back of his beefy hand hits Dougie’s nose and he feels blood streaming down his face as he falls to the floor!

“ We have a traitor, a regular Judas Iscariot, in our midst! We must purge ourselves of such uncleanesss before our redemption can come! Don’t be afraid, children, the end shall come! The end shall come!” I can hear Elder screaming. All around me, people are screaming and wailing!

The last thing Dougie sees when he looks up is Deacon standing over him pointing a Ruger at his face. Behind him, Pop is holding Dougie’s weeping mother and sister in his arms. Deacon pulls the trigger.

Indeed, the end shall come.

And it has….