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"As foretold, we shall all go to the fields in the morning, every man, woman and child of us," preached Brother Martin to his congregation. “There we shall bear witness as God smites evil.”
"Amen," chanted his congregation in response. The entire church was filled with all the Brethren of Aves.
"We shall ALL wear black, so that ALL who look upon us may know that we are of the Brethren of God, each and every one of us."
"Amen."
"And HE shall send forth his avenging angels, the birds that wear the black of our order, and they shall wipe away all that is unclean from the face of this new Earth," he shouted, "sparing only the true believers."
"AMEN," they shouted.
"And the children of our Lord, man and bird, shall inhabit all of this new Earth, our new Eden. Shout hallelujah!"
"Hallelujah!"
"Shout hallelujah!"
"Hallelujah!"
"Shout hallelujah!"
"Hallelujah!"
"Go now, my brethren, and prepare yourself for a new day, and the New Order.”
Brother Martin smiled. Only he among the Brethren knew exactly what was coming. The bird called Black Heart had told him that the Brethren’s prophesy of the new Eden was coming to pass. Come unarmed and dressed in black, he had said, and the Brethren would be saved from all evil.
“What of the other humans?” he had asked.
“We cannot save all. We can save only the pure, only the Brethren,” Black Heart replied. “It is God’s judgment day for the others.”
Brother Martin nodded in understanding. He had expected something like this all of his life, and now it was finally happening. Armageddon!
Brother Martin made his way to a church back room where a rope-bound prisoner was being closely guarded by two of his most trusted deacons. The man has dressed in red and green; he had been forced to surrender the black garments of the Order.
Tied firmly to a chair, the man didn't look very threatening, but looks could be deceiving, Brother Martin knew. Josh had been discovered spying on several people, using electronic tools of Satan. It had taken a dozen strong men to overpower him. He was someone's highly trained operative; the Corporation probably, or the Government. Worse, he was a blasphemer. "I give you one last chance to save your body and soul, Josh Whitcomb. Who do you work for and why are you here?"
"I can tell you this much," replied Whitcomb. "The Brethren are not my mission. Your betrayal of the other colonists is not really my concern. Destruction of the colony would be a set-back, but not a game-changer in the larger scheme of things. Your communications with the birds is what I was sent here to exploit."
Martin picked up the COM unit that sat on the table next to the prisoner. "You were using this to spy on people, including me."
And it hadn't been easy, Whitcomb reflected. He was spying on Deborg and several key Corporation people, in addition to bugging Martin and several other Brethren. None of them knew much. He had spied on Deborg during the flight to Aves and found her to be totally ignorant. The key, if there was one, was the birds. "Of course. We've been through all of this before. My mission is simple. I'm looking for alien technology. The birds you communicate with can help me find it. The survival of humanity may depend on our ability to assimilate alien technology hidden somewhere on this planet."
Brother Martin shook his head. "Technology is never the answer, my son. Aves is a gift from God to humanity. God made Aves what it is, not alien technology. You seek false idols, and you lie to us and yourself. Look deep into your soul to see past the petty scheming of mankind and find the truth."
"The truth is, if you help me work with your bird friends, I can see that you are well rewarded. In the meantime take over the planet with the crows, if you wish; that is of little consequence. Afterwards I can make you all rich, if you help me."
"You are a non-believer sent by the Devil to tempt and betray us. Confess and seek God's forgiveness and perhaps you will be spared His wrath."
Whitcomb sighed and shook his head. These people couldn't be reasoned with rationally. His bosses on Earth were right, Aves was a screwed up disaster. The damned Star Corporation was almost as incompetent as the Directorate, to let these cultist screwballs run rampant on Aves. He resumed his steady rubbing of the ropes that bound him. He felt another strand of rope fray and break. He was making progress. He was determined to escape before the blackbirds came for him.
Brother Martin said a short prayer for the man's soul and left with him still tied to the chair. He had done what he could. God's avenging blackbirds would soon have his body. God would decide what to do with his soul.