Keeping Your Word
Two teens and an elderly man are sent on a journey in post-Apocopic America to deliver a Bible to the President.
The sun inched its way over the nearby hill, piercing through holes in the dilapidated barn’s roof. Kaden greeted the sun warmly, appreciating the light’s appearance after sitting in the dark for most of the night. He shifted carefully atop his sleeping bag to see if the others stirred at the sudden presence of the sun’s bright rays.
Neither Candace nor Rin stirred in their cloth sacks. The elderly Kaden chose to give the teens a few more moments of rest before they arose to journey yet another day. With the new light, he could see once again the golden letters depressed into the hard leather cover of the book: HOLY BIBLE.
Careful not to rattle the chain that wrapped around the thick volume vertically and horizontally, Kaden flicked strands of straw that had clung to the cover.
More light flooded in, so Kaden cleared his throat. “It’s morning. This is the day the Lord has made.”
Rin woke up with his typical exaggerated moan. “Already morning? How?” he mumbled. Realizing that his sleeping bag inadvertently crept closer to the edge of the barn’s loft, he flipped onto his stomach and army crawled--still inside the bag--away from the side.
Candace stirred next, not from Kaden’s morning declaration, but from Rin’s obnoxious noisemaking. Candace gathered herself and sat up in her bag. “Kaden, you didn’t wake me up for the last watch.”
“I did not,” he replied without making eye contact, still brushing hay from the book.
“I’ve told you before, I’m perfectly capable of keeping watch. I want to be included.”
“This I know, my Sister. But I found the quiet whispers of darkness, the hooting of owls, the song of crickets, to be soothing music for my time of prayer.”
“But you have to sleep sometime!” she insisted.
“Your concern is noted, Sister.”
“Respect your elders, Candace,” Rin asserted to his Sister while rolling up his sleeping bag. While they weren’t blood-related siblings, the two teenagers certainly acted like it sometimes.
Candace answered him with a self-righteous smile, then glanced at the thick text Kaden held by his side. “May I carry it for this leg of the journey, Elder Kaden?”
The oldest member of the party didn’t immediately answer but focused on rolling his sleeping bag into the tightest bundle the fraying straps could hold. “We are entering the city. It will be more dangerous than ever. We have come so far from Virginia; it would be a shame to lose the object of the journey so close.”
Once again, Candace had not been given a firm “no”, but the message was received clearly. She still offered a brief scowl as a subtle protest.
“I have the food,” Rin said as he stood, swinging the canvas pack over his shoulder. He had to slouch because the wooden roof sloped low on his side of the loft. The straps had broken on his sleeping bag, so he was forced to carry it in a bundle under his arm.
“Are we ready? Candace?” the Elder inquired.
“Almost.” Candace pulled on the strap tight around the cloth bundle. She picked it up and poked her arms through the straps, wearing it like a backpack.
Gazing around the barn’s loft, perhaps to check if they left something, perhaps to pray for the previous owners, perhaps to acknowledge the safety the location provided, Kaden took in the surroundings. “Good. We’ll take a stop for breakfast once we reach the edge of the city.”
The three of them lined up to crawl down the rickety ladder to the dirt floor of the barn. Rin scurried down first, followed by Kaden who took his time to not lose footing. Candace was last down the ladder. When her boots hit the ground, Kaden nodded, and they headed out into the bright sunshine.
“Do you think we’ll arrive by today?” Rin asked, always uncomfortable with silence, always with questions.
“Only the Lord knows,” Kaden replied.
“I just hope he has some decent food. I mean, you’d think he would, right? After all, he’s the President.”
The elderly leader didn’t respond. He started across the overgrown field, flattening a path for the two teens to follow. Recently, one of the community doctors recommended that Kaden use a cane to stabilize his walking, but he resisted. After journeying for three days, especially with two energetic teenagers, he began to realize the benefits of a cane. But the needs of the world were greater than Kaden’s own needs.
Soon, the three exited the field and came upon a paved road. They followed alongside it, occasionally running into abandoned cars on the side--or even in the middle--of the road. Many showed signs of a struggle, but Candace tried hard not to imagine the events that lead to the automotive graveyard. She tried hard to pretend the stains of dark crimson on the seats were just paint spills.
“I am STARVING,” Rin declared, breaking the silence.
“We haven’t reached the city,” Kaden reminded. “Soon, Brother Rin. Soon.”
“How about a snack? I could just grab a handful of nuts.”
Candace shook her head. “You finished off the nuts yesterday. And the apple.”
Kaden stopped walking and the other two immediately halted as well. Kaden, who always led them, turned, looking Rin in the eye. “The Word speaks of the sin of overindulging. In much of the early days of the church, people took vows of poverty, they fasted, they overcame the desires of the flesh.”
“Wait, so that thing--” he pointed at the large book that Kaden held close to his chest,
“Tells me how much I can eat?”
“Gluttony is one of the seven deadly sins,” Kaden noted. “The Lord is concerned with all aspects of our life. Christ Jesus came in flesh and spirit, to transform our flesh and spirit.”
Since they were stopped, Rin took the opportunity to slouch against a car door and rest. “I’m all on board with Jesus. You know that. You saw my life before the Family found me, and then after you mentored me. But that book--that book mystifies me.”
“Indeed, it mystifies even me.” Kaden smirked as he turned to lead the crew silently down the road. Even when his step faltered, he made no fuss. He looked forward, as Rin and Candace followed closely behind.
Rin, new to this religion, couldn’t stop thinking about that book. One little book was supposed to change the world. Pastor Jeffries had given them this important mission because the very fate of the world depends on that mysterious ancient text. This book was specially replicated by Pastor Jeffries to serve God’s will on this particular mission.
The three journeyed on down the road, now under a canopy of trees to keep them shaded from the harsh July sun. Kaden finally agreed to Rin’s constant complaints, and they all sat down in the shade of a large oak several feet from the road. Breakfast didn’t consist of much, but they gobbled the measly rations of dried deer jerky, dried fruit, and a wheat cake. If they forgot for a moment the cruel, devastated world that existed outside the forest, and imagined a widely different set of food before them, it almost seemed like they were having a peaceful picnic in the days before the Collapse.
While they had heard of great things about the past, on the few occasions that Pastor Jeffries spoke of the old days, he always spoke negatively of the era. He claimed the days of old were filled with unequivocal lusts for sex, violence, and money. God, he insisted, was stripped from all aspects of life. Comparing the former world to the Israelites, Pastor Jeffries preached that all people did what they saw fit in their own eyes. Every man, woman, and child looked after themselves, never caring about the sanctity of anything. While the Pastor never said it directly, he always made the Collapse out as the savior of the story, as the wake-up call to repent.
“Let us save some for later,” Kaden said while making eye contact with Rin. Embarrassed, Rin slowly lowered the slice of jerky back into the bag.
Candace silently gathered all the food and put it in the pack. She stood up and walked over to Kaden to give him a hand up, but Kaden shook his head.
“I am capable.”
With heels digging hard into the soft ground, Kaden did manage to stand. Though with the weight of the book, he fumbled forward. Instinctively, Candace shot out an arm to steady him. In response to the gesture, Kaden acknowledged her with a glance but said nothing. The two teens jogged to the roadway, waiting for Kaden to catch up and take the lead, as he always did.
This time, after a few minutes of silence, Candace broke the spell. “Kaden, what is your favorite passage of Scripture? Do you have one?”
“Ah!” Kaden said with glee. One issue with talking on their journey is that Kaden would slow down when he spoke. Perhaps, at his age, he could only have so much processing power and had to share between his physical and cognitive abilities. “Now this is a difficult question.
As you know, I haven’t read the Bible in years since we only had one copy that the Pastor keeps in his study. So this is a hard question.”
He continued after a few more moments of thought, “I think my favorite passage is from the Old Testament.”
“And what’s a testament, again?” Rin asked, interrupting his elder’s thought.
“A testament is a section of literature. My passage is from a book of the Bible called the Psalms, which is in the older part of the Bible.”
“I’ve heard of the Psalms. It’s like a bunch of songs, right?”
“Very good, Rin. You are learning well.”
Candace quickened her pace to match Kaden’s ahead of her. “So what is your favorite passage?”
“My dear, my favorite passage is the 23rd Psalm. The 23rd song in this book. It’s a short one, one that I memorized from my youth. I think my parents taught me--it’s been so long. Yet I never forgot.” The few fading memories of the days before the Collapse flashed through his mind, bringing a few small tears to his eyes.
“Please, share with us,” Candace said softly, recognizing the sentimental moment.
Kaden stopped in his tracks and turned to the children behind him. It seemed to stand up straighter, like he had walked up to an imaginary podium. He cleared his throat and clutched the Book tight. Kaden spoke loudly and clearly when he recalled the words of Psalm 23:
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”
The melodic recitation took the wind out of Kaden and he hunched over slightly, placing his hands on his knees. Candace stepped forward in case he needed help. Rin clapped madly at the performance.
Pride stretched across his face, even though Kaden tried hard to look humble. He waved a hand generally in the direction of Rin. “There is no need for that.”
“Man, and you even recited that passage in a different language,” Rin said after he stopped clapping.
Kaden replied, “It is an ancient version of our language now.”
“Well done,” Candace added. “That is an inspiring passage. I felt God in the words.”
Rin was still processing the Scripture. “I didn’t know the Bible sounded like that. Pastor Jeffries--he doesn’t usually make the Bible sound beautiful .”
Looking down at the ground, while leaning slightly on Candace for support, Kaden breathed out before he spoke. “I suppose in such a godless time that we live in, there is no time for beauty. There is only time for harsh truths. The truth of how to attain righteousness is hardly palatable, it’s hardly easy or nice-looking.”
“I would think there is more of a need for beauty now than at any other time in history,” Rin wondered out loud.
More forceful than usual, Kaden responded, “Pastor Jeffries is sent by God. He surely knows what he is doing. To shape the world, the world must know the truth and the consequences if they do not listen.” Kaden apparently decided the conversation was finished, since he turned around and continued walking.
Candace exchanged a frustrated glance with Rin, who walked in step with her a few paces behind Kaden. Rin just shrugged his shoulders.
For years, Pastor Jeffries had been almost like a father to Candace, ever since her own father was killed in an accident on the farm. The Pastor had taught her zeal for the Lord and zeal for others. She had been one of his fiercest allies when groups in the Family started to question his role as Pastor of their church and as elected community leader. To have Kaden suggest she doubted Pastor Jeffries insulted her to the core.
While walking along, Rin muttered to himself what he could remember of the Psalm that Kaden recited. “The Lord is my shepherd... I shall not want... through the valley of the shadow of death...”
Meanwhile, Candace couldn’t stop wishing for the journey’s end. They had been traveling from their community in Virginia Territory for weeks, and she longed to sleep on a real bed with the full knowledge that the Lord’s mission was complete. While they thankfully hadn’t run into any major trouble besides a few slips and falls and an intense bartering session in a pop-up village along the way, the journey had been hard. Soon, the first leg would be done. Then someone would need to send word to Pastor Jeffries.
The group finally exited the shadows of the forest and came out into the open air. Once again, they saw overgrown fields, pastures left to nature’s whims, and a few signs that life once thrived here. In the far distance, way at the end of the road, small grey and white and black objects sprouted from the landscape. There, a thin billow of smoke rose upward until it disappeared into the clouds.
“We are nearing the city,” Kaden stated. “Our long journey will soon come to an end.” Candace and Rin sighed with great relief.
Kaden suddenly stopped in his tracks. He closed his eyes and looked toward the open sky.
“Children, something is coming,” he sternly warned. “Get behind me.”
The two teens were already behind Kaden, but they followed his instructions and huddled closer.
“What is--” Rin started to ask. But then they heard it. A low rumbling, a mechanical hum, a few excited human cries.
Then Candace spotted it. Roving through the grass in the pasture to their left was an open-topped jeep. A few humanly shapes clad in brown and green stood up in the vehicle, waving rifles over their heads and shouting a nonsensical battle cry. The jeep rolled closer and closer while the three of them huddled together. “Back to the trees?” Candace suggested.
“No. The Spirit will overcome the flesh.” He held the Bible tighter to his chest.
Navigating through an opening in a wooden fence--a structure that hardly stood enough to be called a fence--the jeep rolled to a stop in front of Kaden, Rin, and Candace.
A tall, bear-like bearded man jumped off the back of the jeep. Not shy about presenting his rifle, he sauntered cockily over to the group. “Hey-yo.” He smiled as he circled the three of them. Meanwhile, four other men stayed in the jeep, three of them with rifles trained on them.
“Welcome to Dalzell. Our humble nation.”
“We have no quarrel with you or your nation,” Kaden replied briskly. He remained firm, not breaking his stern gaze with the man.
“Well, that’s good to hear. Ben up there--” he pointed to one of the men in the jeep, clad head to toe in forest camouflage. “--would shoot your brains out in an instant if you did. I’ve seen it before, ya see.”
Rin piped up with a question. “I thought this was U.S. territory?” Candace nudged him with her elbow.
The man cut him off by putting up his empty hand. “Tsk, tsk. What are schools teaching these days? Ain’t got the geography right. Oh wait! There are no schools!” He laughed dryly at his own joke, his men chuckling softly out of solidarity. “You see, this is our territory. We are an independent nation. That whole United States business went to bust years ago. And now we have forged a new nation of our own from the ashes. Manifest destiny, ya see.”
Kaden continued to speak firmly with the man. “We are on a journey to the capital city. We are merely passing through and mean no harm.”
“Merely passing, eh? What’s with the--what’s with the book you got there, old man?”
“This is merely a text of great religious significance.”
The commander beamed brightly and turned to his buddies. “Religious significance? Why I ain’t hear anything about religion for quite some time! Thought it died out after the Collapse because people stopped looking to the stars for advice when their babies were dying.” Kaden didn’t answer, but he didn’t break eye contact either.
“Well, ya see, I guess I should tell ya why we stopped you like this. In Dalzell, we have something called traveler’s tax. You use our fine infrastructure--” he waved to the road around him, filled with potholes, discarded cars and trash “--and you gotta pay the taxes.” He spun his rifle over his head. “It’s the law.”
Kaden nodded. “I understand your laws. But we have no payment. We have no currency that would be valid here.”
“I see, I see. Quite the problem, then.” He tapped his foot and stroked his beard. “It seems to me that you might not have the currency, but you do have something of significance. Might do well to take that off your hand and give it to a museum. That is, if we can find a museum still operatin’, ya see.”
Kaden held it closer and tried to stand taller. “That is not possible.”
The two younger ones exchanged looks of fear. Whether they gave away the book or did not and suffered death--either way, they could not complete their mission. But all that was in Kaden’s hands now.
“That’s a bummer, old man,” the bearded commander replied, shaking his head. “For you, I mean. Not me, ya see. And definitely not Ben. He’s been wanting some action for a while now.”
“All I can offer you is rations. But this text is holy and cannot fall into the hands of the unclean.”
“Unclean?” the commander chuckled. “Ya hear that boys? Oldie here is makin’ fun of our rustic appearance.” He stepped closer and narrowed his eyes. Kaden didn’t move.
Rin clenched his fist, preparing to fight if needed.
“I’m a fair man though, ya see. Might surprise you. If the book isn’t up for grabs then I’m afraid only one more prize will pay your debt. Her.” He pointed a coarse and calloused finger at Candace and gave the most revolting smile.
Stifling a scream with all her strength, Candace instinctively lurched backward a few steps. Rin slid in front of her with his hands out to either side. Kaden stood still, never breaking eye contact with the commander.
“No! That is not an option!” Rin yelled.
“What you say?” the man asked Kaden, shifting his finger to point at him now.
“The book I hold within my hands holds the truth of the Living God. Truths of history and morality. These Words restore life, bring justice, and lift mankind from our pitiful state. This is sacred and I require it to complete the task ordained by God. I am prepared to die rather than cast these pearls among the swine.”
The commander clapped in response. He whistled. “Whata speech, whata speech. Didn’t understand any of it. Didn’t change my mind either. What’s your choice?”
Kaden whispered softly under his breath. Only Rin and a tear-stained Candace could make out what he was saying. “Psalm 23. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me--”
A shot rang out through the open pasture. Kaden slowly slumped to his knees, still clenching the book tightly, and fell to his side on the road. Blood poured from his forehead, seeping into the cracks in the asphalt and returning to the earth.
The commander lowered his rifle. “The jibber-jabber was killin’ me. So I killed him.”
Sobbing, Candace immediately turned to embrace Rin. Rin put his arms around her and she leaned into him. Tears fell down her face onto his shoulder; tears fell down his face onto her head.
“Ben, I’ll let you do the honors for the boy. The rest of ya, let’s get this girl ready to transport back to Dalzell.”
Barely had the crew moved to follow the orders when another low rumble echoed through the open area. The vagabonds looked in the direction of the sound and Rin could tell it was trouble for them. But he didn’t know if that meant trouble for him and Candace.
“Defense positions!” the commander yelled.
His men jumped out of the jeep and hunkered low against its flank, their weapons pointed at the oncoming vehicle.
“Fire!” the commander screeched as he fired a few shots at the rapidly approaching forest green armored vehicle. The bullets bounced off with sparks and didn’t appear to do much damage. “Aim for the mounted gun!”
In the commotion, Rin hurried Candace into the trees. She didn’t have the mental strength to push on too far, but they hid behind a fallen tree. Cautiously, Rin made her comfortable by placing his sleeping bag over her and then peaked over the tree at the raging battle.
He saw the armored vehicle stop. Its large gun on top was firing destructive bullets at the meager jeep. Some of the men of Dalzell fell to the ground wounded. The commander, seeing the tide turn against him, crouched low and ran away from his group toward the forest. He jogged down the natural path the road made, but then abruptly turned further into the trees, in the general direction where Rin and Candace hid.
At first, he didn’t seem to see them, so Rin peered out from their spot to track his movement. Yet the commander caught sight of Rin’s rusty blonde hair and light skin contrasting with the browns and deep greens of the Appalachian forest.
“You!” he yelled and quicken his pace toward the helpless teens.
“Candace, Candace! We have to go.” Rin prodded her and tried to push her up, the sleeping bag falling to the group.
“Yes--I’m coming.” She said softly as she pulled her body up from the ground.
Lowering their bodies as much as could, they linked arms and made their way deeper into the woods. They could hear the commander shouting and shooting. He fired his gun and a bullet crashed into a tree a few feet away. They kept running, attempting a zig-zag pattern to give him a tough time with the shot.
They heard another shot, but this time couldn't tell where the bullet landed, so they kept running aimlessly in the woods.
Then a new voice rang out from the forest. A female voice. “He’s dead!”
Rin pulled Candace behind a tree and they stopped to rest. They listened. Candace wiped tears from her face and focused on lowering her heartbeat.
“It’s okay,” the voice now said. “You can now come out. It’s safe.”
“Who--who are you?” Rin asked, his voice shaking.
“Lieutenant Amanda Pierce, United States Army.”
Cautiously, Rin peaked out from behind the tree. He placed out a hand to keep Candace from following suit, but Candace followed him out too.
“And who might you two be?”
“I’m Rin. And this is my Sister--err, my friend--Candace. We have no problems with the United States! We support it!”
“Rare to hear that, these days. Where are you from?”
“Virginia Territory,” Candace responded. “We were headed to the capital.”
“You have come far then. Come, we can take you where you need to be. You are in our care now.”
She motioned with her hands and the teens followed her. Amanda strategically led them on a path through the woods that avoided the dead body of the commander. When they arrived back out of the forest, the army was taking weapons off the bodies of dead soldiers of Dalzell and putting them in the back of the jeep.
When Candace spotted the body of Kaden, she turned away. She looked at Rin and said, “The book.” Rin understood and solemnly went to retrieve the large Bible from Kaden’s hands. It took some strength, but he was finally able to break it free. Small drops of deep red blood now dotted the cover of the Bible.
“So you two are going to the Capital?” Amanda asked them.
“Yes,” Rin replied. “We’d like to see the President. We’d like to take him this gift.”
“Her, you mean. I suppose we’ll have to see if she’s in a good mood. C’mon. We’ll give you a ride--in our new jeep.” She slapped the jeep they had confiscated from the men.
Candace and Rin rode mostly in silence, contemplating their experience, during the short trip. At one point, Candace spoke her mind to Rin. “Do you think Kaden was going to let them take me?”
“I don’t know, Candace. I just know he really thought this book was important.”
“More important than--than whatever they were going to do to me?” She asked, receiving only a disheartened shrug from Rin.
Finally, they reached the precipice of a city, where they were escorted through a heavily secured gate. The kids craned their necks to see the active city as they moved in--more life and activity than they had ever seen before.
“Welcome to the Capital. Welcome to Baltimore.”
Soon, they were led to a tall brick building with multiple stories. It looked like it had only recently been converted to the capital building of the U.S. because painters and others worked hard at making it look fresh and new.
Amanda hopped out of the jeep. “Wait here, kids.”
Sitting in the jeep with the driver, Rin and Candace waited for close to an hour. Finally, Amanda emerged from the building, and they followed her back in. After getting patted down and scanned with strange devices, they were invited into a large assembly room. Standing on the stage was a sharp-dressed, sour-looking woman with large spectacles. Men flanked her on all sides except the front. She looked down on the two kids and narrowed her eyes.
“Virginia Territory, I hear. Tell me. Tell me what society is like there.”
“Uh--ma’am--” Candace started. “We aren’t here to report. We are here to bring a gift.”
“A gift? Is this on behalf of the Virginian sector? Did Governor Boris send this? That buffoon! We all know he wants a better territory to govern.”
“This is on behalf of our small community. We have no name, other than The Family, but we are united in service to the Lord, And we support the United States.” Candace continued. “We bring a gift from Pastor Jeffries.”
The President looked up over her glasses. “A religious group?”
Rin responded, “Yes, we want what’s best for the nation. We think that if God--”
“Religion? Interesting strategy. We’ve tried that with mixed results before.”
“We have a gift. This Bible.” Candace pointed to the Bible that Rin held tight to his chest. Rin lifted it up. One of the men next to her took it.
“Get that chain off it, Ron,” the President barked.
A while later, the two chains holding the volume together were cut. For the first time, Rin and Candace got to see it open. The President placed it open on the podium and immediately lifted up an envelope. She opened it and unfolded the paper inside, reading it carefully.
Finally, she got to the end of it. “Bill, Prash, Finnley get a load of this.” Three people hurried up closer to her. She read the letter aloud.
“Mr. President --” she scoffed. “ You will find that the words herein are true and powerful. The Christian faith has for centuries been a formidable aid to Emperors, Kings, Presidents, and Prime Ministers in overseeing a nation. In unifying people and in making change. It is for this reason that I, Pastor Welson Jeffries, have penned this Bible as an aid to you in unifying this country. I lead a growing flock in Virginia Territory of a great number of people, all dedicated to my cause. As you can see, I can get the young and old to do my bidding. It is all because of the power of the Lord. If you want to unify the nation, you cannot do it just by military force. We are past that. You must unify this nation not with fear of machines but with fear of God. But changing hearts and motivating people toward our God might just take those machines to work effectively for some. I will come to Baltimore soon, and I hope by then you will see my value as a serviceman to this country, one who can use the weight of the Christian religion to change the world--as you and I see fit. Sincerely, Your Servant, Pastor Welson Jeffries.”
“Rin... did you know?” Candace asked. Rin shook his head fervently, unable to form words.
The President looked up after reading the letter. “It’s bold, isn’t it? Gusty. Not wrong though. Something to think about.” She mindlessly opened up the Bible on the podium. “All with this one book. I’m familiar with it myself and it says some unpleasant things that are not constructive to building an empire... Unless...” She thumbed through the pages until she found a passage that looked familiar to her.
She read aloud:
“Blessed are the strong: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that war: for they shall be comforted with spoils. Blessed are the powerful: for they shall inherit the earth.”
She flipped backwards almost to the middle of the Bible. “Ah. Yes. I have a vague memory of the Psalms from my childhood. I had a nanny who loved the 23rd one....”
Rin and Candace’s waited to hear the words that inspired Kaden, the words that inspired them now. Perhaps there would be the hope and comfort they were looking for.
The President read:
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall want what he wants. He maketh me obey; he punishes me when I do not. He restoreth my wicked soul through pain and punishment. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear evil: for thou rod and thy staff they warn me. Thou preparest a victory over thine unrighteous enemies; the battlefield overflows with their blood. Surely health and prosperity shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the chosen land forever.”
Both Rin and Candace wept. They didn’t know quite all that this meant, but they wept.
Meanwhile, the President ignored them. She looked pensively at the text and nodded slowly.
“I just hope that this version has fixed all the flaws with that Jesus. I can’t build a mighty nation off turning the other cheek. Bill, Prash, Finnley. Get a team to explore this. This might be our ticket back.” The President finally realized the kids were still there and were crying.
“There’s more to the letter.” She looked up at them until they met her eyes. “Your Pastor has strict instructions that you two--though he says three--are not to return to your community. He says though you embarked on this great journey, it does not atone for the sins of your past. He recommends harsh punishment, but as I consider myself somewhat just, I can’t in good conscience punish you for whatever religious sins you committed. As it is, I can have someone drop you off at the edge of the city. We are at capacity here in Baltimore and it doesn’t seem like you have any useful skills. Do you have somewhere to go besides this Family?”
Candace shook her head. Rin wiped tears from his face but could not respond. After weeks of exclusively thinking about protecting and preserving the Bible--a book their friend and mentor died for--that book had betrayed them. They now saw things in a new light, but that light only showed how much darkness was in the world.
They continued weeping while guards escorted them out. Rin peered over his shoulder one more time at the Book.
Author’s note: The plot shares some passing similarities with The Book of Eli, in that they both involve a Bible and post-Apolocyptic America. I’ve never actually seen that movie and when I wrote this short story originally I had no clue as to its plot. So any similarities are completely coincidental!