For surely you realize that this is NOT the end, but instead only The Beginning.
From afar I saw a road begin to take shape upon the devastated landscape – a highway of hope, and immediately I knew its name – for it had already been foretold by Isaiah as The Way of Holiness.
The Highway of Hope
All around the road, the earth was still smoldering from where it had been scorched by the Fires of Hell, but the newly forming highway was unblemished and soon the grounds in the immediate vicinity of the roadway began to be transformed as well.
From afar I saw people walking upon The Way — at first I wondered who they could be for I remembered that all of the wicked peoples had already been taken away and I knew they were not meant for The Way.
But then I realized that only the Redeemed would walk upon this highway, and only those ransomed by Christ could return.
Led by the Victorious Angels, the ranks of the pilgrims grew and as they approached New Zion; I could hear them rejoicing. Their white garments were gleaming with splendor; and yet still their numbers swelled. Although too many for me to count, I knew their number regardless: 144,000.
Joy had overtaken them as they returned to the source of Life and stood in front of The Great Altar.
And there stood Pope Benedict too – encouraging his flock to come forward and receive their Salvation.
I wondered how I could have ever doubted my friend Joseph’s loyalty to Christ, for although Lazarus, Mary, and I never did complete our Commission (at least not in the way we always envisioned it), it was Benedict who had emerged as our world’s true champion.
But then the blinding Whiteness washed out that scene and I was instead left with a multitude of hazy images.
Struggling to make sense of it, I caught only a glimpse of a few faces – yet all were smiling and at peace: Lazarus, Mary, Benedict, and yes even myself.
Lazarus
Mary Magdalene
Joseph Ratzinger
Me – John
Indeed, as I gazed upon the beautiful faces of my friends, and as I basked in the wonder that was my own restored visage, there is one more thing that I cannot fail to mention…
For above and around and in each of our faces there was also one other, and it was a face that I have been waiting to see for nearly 2,000 years…
The vision of that face overwhelmed me with Joy!
It was a glorious <presence> that my soul ran to with all its might.
It was He who accepted me completely — in peace – at last.
With the Seven Angels now on the scene, The Chosen tried to scatter, cursing God and running for their lives.
Yet it was too late – for the Angels were on a mission…
The seven angels with seven trumpets, and the angel with a censer, from the Bamberg Apocalypse.
The First Angel pummeled them with a plague of ulcerated sores, and even as they were cowering from the effects of the First Bowl, the Second Angel released his wrath too – causing the earth around The Chosen to become a soul-sucking mud that began engulf them.
After delivering the contents of their Bowls, the first two Angels flew off to the Unknown and as I watched them leave, I was filled with a sense of Hope that perhaps God would act to save our world after all – for it seemed as if the tide was turning to The Good.
However, my faith was quickly shaken when I looked over at The Beast – for rather than be upset with the destruction of some of Its disciples, It apparently enjoyed seeing them suffer – as if their pain was making The Beast even more powerful!
Worse yet, when I looked upon the five remaining Angels, I noticed with chagrin that none of them appeared restored to their glory. Instead each labored on foot towards the Temple Mount – and all the while, The Beast continued looking on in victory.
Could it be that these five Angels were on The Beast’s side? My spirit wondered.
Angel Three, awash in its own blood, raged long and loud as it poured forth its own Bowl – a festering miasma that slammed into The Chosen and tormented them anew. Yet before Bates’ forsaken people had time to feel these new pains, suddenly The Fourth Bowl was poured – yet this Angel’s wrath rose upwards – intensifying the sun’s heat, and boiling the evil doers alive in a cauldron of the earth’s now gore-filled mud.
The Chosen wailed against God!
And the Beast rejoiced anew!
How long it was before the Fifth Angel poured out his Bowl, I could not say, but when he did it was as if the world had ended – for immediately the Sun was blotted out and the world was cast into Darkness – yet this was much to the delight of The Chosen for it appeared to offer them a measure of relief.
The Beast pleasured in this too, and all I could guess was that perhaps this was because The Darkness was Its abode and It sensed that Its Final Victory was closer than ever?
My fears seemed confirmed when the Sixth Angel commanded the scene – for the release of the Wrath of the Sixth Bowl actually caused the restoration of The Chosen to their power and glory – as if they had never suffered any pains to begin with!
Things looked worse than ever and then it was that The Beast rose up to its full power as It surveyed the scene: all seven of Its heads smiled wickedly as It looked with glee upon of Its followers, now regaled anew and cursing against The Christ and his father Yahweh.
7-headed Beast of Revelation
Now while all of this had been happening, Pope Benedict had remained behind The Altar of The One True God – and I could see that he was afraid — very afraid – especially after he’d witness what The Beast had done to Klaus Schwab. However, even as my own immortal soul shivered at the sight of Satan’s Son, I could sense an unseen force was keeping The Pope upright as the man struggled to remain standing at The Altar.
“I cannot falter now.” The Pope whispered to himself. “I am—“
“CROWN ME NOW!” The Beast that was once Bill Bates raged at The Pope, Its voice reverberating down to the very bowels of the earth. The head that showed Bates’ face (the one which also portrayed Arrogant Pride) was that which had spoken and it was this head that the creature now bent down – snaking its dragon-like neck down to hover over the body of Rabbi Metzger upon The Altar. Meanwhile, Satan’s Son also made ready to break the seal of the Scroll of the Illuminated Angels – as soon as It gained the divine power to do so.
The Chosen screamed in delight and began to beat their drums all the louder, now confident that they were again on the winning side.
<Boom. Doom! BOOM! DOOM! DOOM!>
Unable to take a breath, Pope Benedict carefully placed The Crown That Rains Blood upon The Beast.
Immediately even more <POWER> flowed through The Beast’s massive body!
As I left my earthly body, I was granted one final vision, and since you’ve come this far with me, I imagine you’ll want to hear about this too…
Golgotha by Lee Steiner
What I saw next was something that was undoubtedly UNseen by everyone else ,for God gave me a vision inside of Pope Benedict’s battle helmet — there I saw that Benedict’s visage was awash with of horror (not victory!) as he punctured my heart and released my life force. Clearly this was not the face of the Antichrist’s Second Helper – for such a fiend would surely have rejoiced at killing Christ’s Immortals. For a moment I was confused…
Whose side was Benedict on? Was a Pawn of Satan or a Champion of Christ?
I watched as the Pope bowed his head while standing below my body. As he pulled the pike back out of my side he was shaking and it was everything he could do to pull my Nail off of the spear and add it to his belt. Yet he completed the task – and it was significant for this action finally gave him control of all three of The Nails of Jesus.
Pope Benedict was thus the first person in history to possess all three nails since the centurion who used them to crucify our lord over 2,000 years ago. It immediately filled him with power!
Yet here he paused.
Standing below my now-dead body as it hung limply on the cross above, he took a long moment to collect himself, before finally turning around and walking back towards Bill Bates as The Beast Ghaz al’ Ridwan Ma’bus… and towards HIS final destiny.
By now the red-streaked skies were roiling worse than before and a Heavenly Thunder had replaced the booming of the earthly drums.
“I am the Hand of God!” Pope Benedict screamed within the din as he continued his inexorable walk to The Altar of the Most High God.
Had Bates or Schwab heard that proclamation perhaps events might have turned out differently on this day, but fortunately neither the Beast nor his evil henchman heard the Pope’s cry — for Bates had already gone into The Dome of The Rock to pursue his own designs and Schwab was focused on inciting the crowd to acts of debauchery as everyone waited for EA Incarnate in the form of Bates’ self-made persona known as Ghaz al’ Ridwan Ma’bus to re-emerge from The Well of Souls.
As my spirit watched, it seemed that Satan’s Son was well on his way to completing The Armageddon Rite – and thereby gaining control of the world. It was truly a Dark Day from my perspective and Nature seemed to agree with me – for the landscape was buffeted anew with a viscous sand storms, all worse than before.
And yet, as if it was a bright summer’s day in a dewy meadow, The Pope seemed unaffected by the raging weather. I watched as Benedict reached The Altar and began to remove each of The Nails from his belt. Using the care of a master craftsman, he installed The Nails within The Crown That Rains Blood – preparing it for The Beast.
After this he waited. And I with him.
Time passed slowly – yet whether it was thousand years or just a single day, who can say?
During the interim, Schwab has incited the Chosen to in debaucheries galore – committing every sin imaginable and likely inventing new ones, and what they did to the bodies of the murdered innocents that littered the ground around them was unspeakably disturbing.
The Last Judgement
Things got so out of control that had I the power to end my vision, I might well have done so.
At last, Bill Bates, Dr. Ghaz al’ Ridwan Ma’bus, the new EA Incarnate, emerged from The Dome of the Rock.
Gone was any last vestige of his humanity – for this was no longer Bill Bates the would-be world savior, and it was the new Dr. Ghaz al-Ridwan Ma’bus, Director of the Union of Many Allied Nations and de facto World President – instead the creature that emerged from its confrontation at The Well of Souls was but one thing: EA Incarnate – The Beast – Satan’s Son!
<EVIL> in its purest form emanated from the monster that made its way slowly back towards the Altar of the One True God. By now, I knew that It must have successfully broken open The Foundation Stone and then had been able to throw The Book of Life into The Well.
That meant that to complete The Armageddon Rite It only needed to utilize one more item — The Scroll of the Illuminated Angels – which It now carried in Its talons.
With utter confidence, the creature clove its way across the span between the now sundered Foundation Stone and The Altar – clearly intent on destroying the latter as well.
With the scaly-tail of a dragon, its giant body resembled that of a leopard, yet It was poised on humongous bear-like feet that skirted twenty foot wide sections of earth. Yet none of these other features matched the fear-inspiring sight of Its seven heads – each with a different visage: Nero, Attila, Arnulf, Weishaupt, Hitler, Ma’bus, and the last a formless black slate.
Worse yet, each face depicted a different portrayal of the Seven Deadly Sins – it was the Chairs of Woe come to life — as one head showed victorious Pride, another soul-destroying Wrath, a third unquenchable Lust, and so on down the line through Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, and Envy. Yet regardless of which Sin they showcased, all of the heads spewed forth a black waterfall of evil words in the deep, guttural language of The Tongues of The Abyss.
At the horror of the sight that was The Beast even the mood of Klaus Schwab and his Chosen Ones shifted and those wayward souls who were once so confident in their choice to follow their EA Incarnate now appeared to realize that The Beast was not only NOT going to allow them to share in Its glory, but instead was intent on destroying them as well!
Schwab was the first to wail as he held up his hands in terror, backing away as The Beast approached him. The people on the hillsides also cried out in fear as they experienced a wave of emotions…
Sorrow.
Doubt.
Regret.
Horror!
Yet for them, it was too late. (You chose poorly, friends).
Schwab yelled out, “What about our great Agenda, Lord. Didn’t I serve you we–“
But the Beast reached out Its claws and tore Schwab in two, casting The Great Reset architect’s body aside as It neared The Altar.
And all the while the thunder rolled, threatening to bring down the heavens.
The windstorm raged on, now whipping dusts and debris all around. And soon enough, the landscape began to erupt at the feet of The Chosen – sending flames of fire shooting up to devour them.
And then, suddenly, from out of the fires came forth the Seven Angels – those pitiful creatures who had been so mercilessly tortured by Bates.
They had been released (yet by whom I did not know), and each of them held their Golden Bowls of Revelations – the cauldrons now boiling over with the brimstone of retribution.
Despite their previous tortures, I could see that at least two of the Angels had been restored to their former glory, and hovering over the cowering disciples of The Beast, they released the contents of their smoking Bowls – pouring forth horrible judgments upon the evil doers!
With Bill Bates as Ghaz al’ Ridwan Ma’bus and his friend Klaus Schwab looking on approvingly, Pope Benedict had just used two of the sacred nails previously used to crucify Christ to destroy the immortals Lazarus and Mary Magdalene – my friends.
The earth continued to protest, sending raging winds to whip through the disaster site that was once The Temple Mount – yet The Beast and his minions merely took that as a sign of approval, a welcome to the chaos that the Antichrist’s reign was sure to bring.
After receiving the sign from Bates, the Pope again donned his helmet and retrieved the final spear. Then he looked my way.
The Beast sends forth Pope Benedict to complete his mission.
Then it was that my courage faltered and I looked down upon him.
The pope’s battle helmet and the dust storm obscured Benedict’s visage, yet not his intention. He was here to destroy the final immortal – he was going to kill me.
“YAAAAAAAAWWWWWWP!” I wailed – shocked at the unimaginable intensity of the pain!
It was a feeling beyond the limits of endurance, even for an immortal, and as Jesus’ Nail entered into me, I felt…
The nails used to crucify my wrists and feet burned anew.
Fresh blood oozed forth from a myriad of tiny holes that ringed the crown of my head.
My back ripped open against the splintered wood of the cross – tearing from unseen lashes that slashed into me.
My knees swelled up.
My legs ached.
My shoulders protested against the weight of a cross I had never carried but suddenly felt as if I did.
In my mind’s eye, I saw Jesus of Nazareth, and at last, I understood the full extent of all the horrors that my master had suffered nearly two thousand years ago at this very place — and I remembered what I saw as an eye-witness to the horror of it all…
And I wept.
“My Lord, I love you.” I prayed, suddenly no longer afraid, welcoming my fate.
The sands of time dripped slowly, and my Deliverer pushed his spear further into me – up and to the left – towards my heart.
The blood now dripping even from my eyeballs, I could no longer even see Benedict beneath me, yet it mattered not.
Despite the agony of my pain on the cross, I knew that death would not come easy.
With a nod, the man who was Ghaz al’ Ridwan Ma’bus signaled to The Pope to carry out his orders…
To deliver death to the immortals.
I watched as Benedict picked up one of three spears that were lying before the altar. Each of the weapons had one of the Nails of Jesus affixed to its head as a killing blade.
Spear in hand, and in full battle array, Pope Benedict looked like a legendary knight from the fantasy world as he proceeded to walk over towards the cross upon which Lazarus hung.
The Pope was ready for action
Standing beneath my friend’s limp body, Benedict waited only for a moment – as Lazarus’ blood dripped down and stained the pontiff’s white robe – and then the leader of the Church slammed his pike up and into Lazarus’ side.
“YAAAAAAAAAR!” Lazarus suddenly came to life, his arms and legs nearly ripping themselves away from the cross.
Closing my eyes against the gruesome sight, I failed to see that Lazarus’ screams woke Mary from her own snatch of death but my ears soon ached as I heard Miriam begin to wail. I opened my eyes in time to catch a glimpse of Benedict as he stoically twisted his spear up and into Lazarus’ heart – an action that abruptly ended Lazarus’ screams.
The Nail that killed Lazarus
My God, he’s dead! I panicked. It’s finally going to happen? But alas, Lord, I am NOT ready yet!
Believe it or not, I was suddenly afraid at the unknown of Death – a specter that hadn’t threatened me in nearly two thousand years.
In the silence that followed, I looked upon our unexpected Deliverer – after killing Lazarus Pope Benedict had removed his blood spattered helmet and I saw that face was as hard as stone. He appeared to study the Nail that was now dripping with Lazarus’s blood at the end of his lance.
<BOOOM! DOOM!> <BOOM! BOOM!> <DOOM!>
The drums started up again at a signal from Bates.
I watched as Benedict looked over at The Beast.
And then, I saw the Pope take a deep breath before doing something that I have never seen anyone other than myself or my two friends do…
Benedict reached up and took hold of The Nail.
“You Fool! Don’t touch it!” I roared, even as Mary screamed a similar warning.
Yet, Benedict did not die.
In fact, if nothing else, he seemed suddenly more alive!
Bates and Klaus Schwab began dancing around triumphantly at the sight – surely reading this as a sign of Bates’ coming victory – now confident that The Pope was indeed The Second Helper.
For his part, Benedict’s face remained hardset while he proceeded to tear the Nail off of the spear. Discarding the staff, he affixed the dripping Nail to his belt. Next I watched him proceed to confidently walk back towards the Altar and pick up another pike, before heading over towards his next victim.
Mary’s screams bespoke of sheer terror. Unable to look away this time, I watched Benedict prepare to deliver a deathblow to her as well.
“Oh, Babylon,” I roared out, suddenly finding new strength. “You will be destroyed!”
Hearing me quote from Psalm 137, for a moment Benedict paused, and I watched a strange shadow pass over his face.
“Happy is the one who pays you back for what you have done.” I tried to goad him away from Mary. “You shall be smashed against the rocks upon this very day.” Then, looking up to heaven, I cried, “Father, do not forsake us now!”
Yet, The Lord did not come to save the day.
And with Lazarus already dead and Mary soon to follow the skies only roiled blacker than before.
For The Moment had not yet arrived, and I knew that the Prophecies — my own prophecies – were still waiting to be fulfilled.
Pope Benedict knew this as well, and therefore he took only a moment to prepare himself to forge on – after which he pushed his spear into Mary’s heart, killing her as well.
Unable to control myself, I vomited up the last of the bile from my stomach – its acidity scorching my throat and mouth. Tears streamed down my face as I wailed in regret, “Their torture is because of me. My friends are paying the price of my sins!”
Yet Fate no longer cared about my feelings and in truth I knew that what was happening went far beyond my small part in this Divine Event.
And so, with two bloody Nails hanging from his corded belt and his robe now blotched red, Pope Benedict began to approach me with the final Nail – and his face was Death.
And so, the Dome at al-Aqsa remained, even unto this day, waiting, ever waiting. Waiting for The Beast.
My head jerked up as I suddenly remembered…
The Well of Souls — it lies beneath The Dome. If Ma’bus moves The Foundation Stone, The Well shall be opened – for the first time since Solomon hid the ark there. For the first time since…
Yet my strength failed me again, and that which I was trying to recall was lost.
<BOOOM! DOOM!> <BOOM! BOOM!> <DOOM!>
After a time, my unconscious mind remembered — a natural cave, The Well of Souls was originally accessible only by a narrow hole in the rock of this plateau.
It was I who inspired The Templar’s to hack open an entrance to the cave – yet in spite of my recommendations they would go no further. And so, the foundation stone of The Dome – The Sakhrah – remained untouched.
“If you open it, you’ll unleash The Abyss of Chaos!” I wailed, not realizing that I was suddenly screaming aloud — my voice somehow carrying even above The Drums.
<BOOOM! DOOM!> <BO–> The drums stopped.
The Masked Chosen looked up at me.
Pope Benedict and Klaus Schwab also present but unmasked like Bates, both looked up at me.
And Bates himself, standing at the Altar Of the One True God – upon which lay the gored body of Rabbi Yona Metzger – yes, Bill Bates as Ghaz al’ Ridwan Ma’bus, The Beast, also looked up at me.
The Beast wasn’t happy that I interrupted him.
There was Silence – and I felt as if all of creation was waiting for me to die.
Yet as I looked over to my left and saw Lazarus and Mary languishing on their own crosses, I knew that my friends were not yet dead either.
Then looking down at Bill Bates, I saw that The Beast also realized this fact… and smiled.
Bill Bates looked to my friends and I – trying to gauge the effect of his threat to destroy us.
Meanwhile I noticed another pair of eyes practically boring a hole into me – Pope Benedict’s.
Glancing over at him, I caught him watching me, but he refused to look me in the eyes and before I could learn more Bates was talking again, “Yes, yes, if these are your final wishes, far be it from me to keep you from your desires.”
His demeanor changing, The Beast then detailed how he would be the Instrument of Fate that would destroy us, “Al-haram al-qudsī ash-sharīf – The Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa, there on The Temple Mount – this is the site of your destiny. December 21 – this is the day of your destiny. The Armageddon Ritual – this will be the revelation of your destiny. Do I need to explain the horrors you will endure?”
It was Miriam who spoke now – calmly and without emotion. “We will be crucified. You’ll use duplicates of the nails to crucify us and then pierce each of us with one of Jesus’s Nails that will be attached to a spear. This will deliver the deathblow – through our sides and up into our hearts. Then we will experience… The End.”
The fate that awaited us
Eyebrows raised just slightly, Bates let his teeth show. “I’m impressed… as always. You are correct again, Mary. The very nails that the Jews used to kill The Nazarene, and the ones you’ve been protecting for lo these many centuries, will in fact be the instruments of your deaths too. Jesus Christ’s power will destroy you – rather ironic, huh?”
“But why do you bother to tell us all this?” Alan asked. “We already told you, we WANT to die. You can’t scare us with these threats.”
“Ah, but I am not trying to scare you. I merely want you to fully understand how you will serve me.”
Seeing Alan perplexed by this statement, Bates explained, “Oh, don’t worry, you shall all get your wish — you WILL die. But what I’m not sure that any of you realize is that, all along, I needed more than just your Nails – I needed each of you.”
And The Beast took a moment to let that sink in. “Recall that, on every world, the victory of my father and I cannot be complete without the participation of the people. In the case of this Earth, the Nails that killed Jesus Christ are imbibed with much power – but even that power is not enough to bring about my victory. YOUR crucifixion and death – this is the real key. For when Christ’s Nails destroy the immortality that flows through your veins, the Nails will be imparted with more <power> than ever before!”
“It can’t be.” Miriam protested
“Oh it be, sister, it be.” The Beast laughed as he rose again, once more full of pride. “And after you three die, I shall proceed to enter The Dome. There I will destroy your preciousThe Book of Life – thanks for protecting that for me by the way. And after that I’ll open The Sakhrah – as you recall, my servant Muhammad descended to his Eternity through The Sakhrah Stone and I think it’s high time to–
“If you move the Foundation Stone,” I interrupted, “if you dare to set foot onto the Holiest of Holies, it is YOU who will be the fool! Open it, Bates, and God will smite you down!”
“I think not.” Bill Bates waved my warning aside. “And when I DO move the Foundation Stone, the souls of the dead who are gathered in the Well of Souls beneath shall emerge to pray for The Last Judgment. And with their help, when I return from The Dome, I shall be filled with enough <power> to break the Angels’ Seals – and thereby will I destroy the work of your Christ once and for all!”
“After The Beast opens The Sakhrah Stone within The Dome of The Rock, and when he emerges back to The Altar of The Most High God as EA Incarnate, the Fallen Angels will be unleashed to bring their doom upon the world. By then you three will already have passed.” The voice was Benedict’s and it came so unexpectedly that even Bates jerked his head to look, yet pope stood up and continued unabated, “It’s my job to make sure that The Scroll of the Illuminated Angels will be waiting for EA Ma’bus upon The Altar. By that time, I will have gathered The Nails together and installed them into the Crown That Rains Blood. The Crown will be imparted with your blood, and when I place it upon EA Ma’bus’ head, that is the moment when the destiny of this world will be determined. For that is the Moment of Truth when The Beast shall open The Angels’ Seals and… and our Savior shall be revealed at last!”
Bill Bates looked Benedict up and down with a critical eye, yet the Pope merely bowed his head, spent, and fell back to his seat.
Satisfied, The Beast nodded, “Indeed, Benedict speaks the truth. For when the Armageddon Ritual is completed and the Angels’ Seals lay bare, I will release all of the Sin back into the world that Jesus Christ took away with his death. Every offense, every malice, all the Evil this world has ever known will return…to Me! It will be a glorious day indeed! And that, my friends, is the destiny that YOU will experience.” Then, flashing his best smile, Bates laughed, “So how ya like me now?”
I got a chance to breath again and gather myself together.
That’s when I realized that Bill Bates was still speaking, “…and in exchange, I offer you my hand, and the chance at a new beginning. Therefore, if you want to LIVE, join me.”
And that, my friends, was where Bill Bates made his fatal error!
Suddenly I was the one smiling – for in that moment, I had been granted the briefest of visions – a new revelation if you will – a gracious prophecy from my Lord that assured me that all would be well in the end.
(I wish I could tell you what I saw, but that would rather ruin the suspense. Sorry…)
Mistaking the grin he saw on my face, Bates nodded encouragingly, “Well it seems that one of you at least has some sense. I knew it would be you who came over to me first, John. You are a wise man.”
“But YOU are not.” I replied calmly. “And you never were.”
Taken aback at the affront, Bill Bates’ visage quickly changed into a scowl and he jumped up to confront me. “What are you talking about, fool? Enough of these games! Are you going to join me and live… or keep your misguided trust and die?”
“Don’t you see?” I stood up to the challenge — my back now tall and my shoulders straight — while my confused friends raised their heads to look upon their suddenly confident friend. “What you call ‘living’ is naught but an illusion. A fantasy world where all who remain are either forsaken in The Fiery Pits or are lackeys serving your every whim in a world without hope. But that’s not ‘living’ at all, is it? And don’t try to tell me that one of these options is better than the other – for we both know that you will eventually destroy all those who remain – for that is your nature, it is the essence of who YOU are.”
“Fool!” The Beast snarled, “If you fail to chose, then you will be smote back into the dust! Is that what you want?”
Now it was my turn to smile – for Bill Bates had just walked into my trap.
Bates was confused. “But that makes no sense. How could you be content to simply rot away into Nothingness?”
“What’s done is done – all men must learn to stand by their deeds.” I was speaking not just to Bates but also to my friends – trying to inspire them take heart. “We three are no exception. And yet, while every man throughout history has carried within him the seeds of his own death – it hasn’t been the same for us. In spite of our successes, yea, and our failures, we have been forced to live on – it’s unnatural. We want only what all other men have been granted – no more, no less: we want a term to our lives. After all, every light has a shadow and every life a death. We have lived in the light of life for too long and now we merely want the shadow of death to finally fall where it should.”
My destiny
“But what about being reunited with your master?” Bates baited, trying a new tactic. “What if he rejects you?”
“I am not worthy.” I replied without batting an eye. “I never have been. None of us are. And yet I still stand by my deeds, for there is nothing left for us to do. All we want is for all of this to finally be over.”
Clearly not expecting this turn of events, The Beast looked towards Alan and Miriam; when he saw that they agreed, he was again confused – but only for a moment.
Grand Master that he was, he quickly displayed a smile and countered again, “My word. You’re just full of surprises, aren’t you? Talk about making my job easy. Well, if that’s what you want, Joe and I will happily accommodate you.”
When none of us responded, Bill Bates tried again, “I realize it’s a lot to take in – the whole switching sides thing, but hear me out, for amazing as it may sound, you three still have a chance to save yourselves. Now please, for your sakes, don’t choose poorly again.”
Perplexed looks covered our faces, yet this time Bates did not explain further. Instead, it was now Benedict who stood up to speak.
The pope appeared to be using a great effort to control himself, as if tasting a long-awaited victory. “What The Beast is trying to say is that you can either accept the failure of your present fate, curse God, and join the rest of the Lost Souls who will be sent to eternal torture in The Fiery Pits… or you can join me and side with the winning team – all you must do is…” And here Benedict took a moment to make deep eye contact with all three of us in turn before advising…
“Worship… The One True God… upon the Day of Deliverance. Do that and you WILL be Saved.”
For the briefest of moments I got the sense that The Pope had just played a daring gambit on us all, yet before I could consider further he continued, “Oh, perhaps not the kind of saving that you’ve always envisioned, but it will be the opportunity for a new life nonetheless. Yes, my friends, choose to side with my team and you three will have a place in the next life!”
I noticed that even Bates was impressed with the passion in Benedict’s voice and he sat back for a moment to apprise his second in command. “My god, man, you inspire even me. How did I get so lucky to have you?”
“Preposterous!” I shouted, breaking the mood. “Even if we did believe you, Joe, we know you don’t care about us, and we’d be the ultimate fools if we trusted you now after all you did to interfere with our plans.”
It was Bates who replied, “Trust is overrated. You should know that best of all, John.” And with his eyes boring a hole into me, he added, “Did your trust in Jesus ever bring you anything but sorrow?”
Although I tried to call upon my newfound courage, truth be told, Bates’ low blow battered my fortitude. I was forced to lower my eyes and bow my head. I knew that I should have offered up a prayer in this time of need, but I was just too ashamed to do so – after all, none of this would be happening if not for MY blunders.
With that damn half-cocked grin, Bates then turned his attention back to Alan. “Regret. It’s written all over your face, Lazarus. Regret that you didn’t tell the truth long ago. You wonder how much different your life could have been.” Then leaning in close he said in conspiratorial tones, “You wonder if you had told the truth to the one person who mattered most, would SHE have loved you, neh? Had you—“
“Enough!” Miriam rose from her seat again. “Stop berating him. You have no—“ But her words were cut short when two of the dictator’s ever-present guards forcibly silenced her, ramming her back into her seat. Meanwhile another group ran up behind Alan and I to ensure we didn’t interfere.
“Don’t worry, dear, I’ll get to you in good time.” Bates laughed, before turning back to Alan, “The answer to the question you have always wanted to know is… YES! Mary of Magdala would have loved you, and you would have enjoyed a happy, NORMAL life with her, raising a family of your own together… had it not been for the interference of your so-called friend Jesus.”
This time it was everything the guards could do to contain Miriam as she struggled mightily to get free, while Alan’s visage bespoke his horror and, of course, his terrible regret.
And still The Beast toyed with us. “Trust. It’s a funny thing — sometimes we don’t understand why we give away our trust so easily… or why others never seem to give theirs to us. So you trusted The Nazarene. Yet, Miriam never really trusted you because of the secret you kept from her. And yet, the ironic thing is that what you were guarding was never a secret at all, because Jesus had already told Miriam all about it – therefore, don’t you see, Jesus betrayed YOUR trust, Alan. And all the while you have tried to protect him, but for what? For what? Oh man, this is too rich. You can’t make this stuff up, you know?”
Biting on one of her captive’s hands, Miriam managed to break free enough to call out, “Don’t listen to him, Alan. You know the tru-“ But her words were cut off as the guard regained control of her.
Whether Alan ever heard Miriam was a moot point, since it was evident to all that he believed Bates’ every word – after all, The Beast was only telling of secrets locked deep inside Alan’s own mind.
Bill Bates thus succeeded in cracking Alan’s faith – just like he’d done to mine.
In fact, the guards barely had to put forth any effort to hold him, for he was awash with tears as his body slumped into his chair.
There was only one nut left to crack and I watched helplessly as The Beast turned his attention to Miriam. “And now to my little harlot. Please don’t try to pretend to be the innocent virgin to me.”
Anger and embarrassment flushed Miriam as she continued her struggle to break free and two more men had to come over to help contain her.
“I know the game you’ve been playing in front of Lazarus,” Bates goaded her. “You told him you were saving yourself for Him, right? Yet we both know the truth, Sister– you’ve seen more action than a group of navy men who’ve been at sea for a year!”
Pointing at Miriam as if she wore a scarlet letter, The Beast admonished, “Why the things you’ve done, Miriam, would have made Caligula blush! Oh, sure, you pretend to be the good girl, but all along, you’ve never told your friends about your true nature – about how you have defiled yourself in every conceivable way – all because you’ve blamed yourself for Jesus’ failure to return to you – because you believe in your heart that he could never love you and that’s why he is staying away! And so, you’ve rejected Alan… making him think that you’re saving yourself for a higher purpose, when in reality, it’s YOU who are the most despicable of all!”
Even before Bates finished, Miriam had already stopped struggling.
And when the evil one had made the crack about the lecherous roman emperor, I saw Miriam catch Alan’s eye – it was obvious that Alan believed The Beast.
Thus, by the time that Bates further stung her with his words about Jesus choosing to stay away from her, it was obvious to me that Miriam too was ready for The End.
Seeing that he had succeeded in crushing his enemies, Bates kept his smile to himself this time and added slyly, “So it seems we can all finally agree on something — you three have all been betrayed by The Nazarene. There can be no denying that. And yet, while I admire your trust in him, it doesn’t matter now, does it? Instead, what matters is ‘what have you done for me lately,’ or more importantly, ‘what can you do for me NOW?’ As I said, only through me can you have a place in this world going forward. And despite your previous attempts to destroy me, it is I who am the gracious one – for I don’t hold your tenacity against you, instead I give you credit for it. In fact…”
Although Bill Bates kept talking, I have no idea what he said next.
By now I was at the lowest point of my life – totally ashamed of my sins and ready to give up.
Alan and Miriam were still struggling to process what Bill Bates had just said about ‘possessing our souls for all time,’ but it was what The Beast said next that got to me.
“As you chew on the fact that you’ll soon be mine,” Bates smiled, “Consider this as well — it doesn’t really matter to me whether I eventually get EVERY world in creation or not. What I enjoy is the game itself. Don’t you see, my father and I, we simply don’t want the War to end!”
The Last Judgement c 1435 Stefan Lochner
I knew it was bait, but I took it anyway and played along. “You’ve got it all figured out, huh, big shot?”
“So…so this is all just… some kind of game to you?” Alan’s face was aghast.
Bates was all too happy to explain. “My friend. Let me let you in on a little secret – and outside of this circle not many people know this – but it seems our little Sef de Catadre here is right. Bravo, Lazarus, you’ve got me pegged.” And he made a show of patting Alan on the back before continuing his rant. “It’s true. I don’t want to win every war. Where would the fun be in that? Tut. Tut. Don’t you see? Can’t you understand? It’s the Quest for Souls that my father and I live for. If we had All and Everything, the challenge would be over, and then what?
An endless smorgasbord of souls
“Oh, you might think that we could rejoice in being able to torture all of the souls that your god created,” The Beast was on a roll now, “but in truth, there is very little enjoyment to be had there – once we win a soul and send it to the Fiery Pits – to use your metaphor – well really, there’s not much more to do. The soul is lost. And there’s not much fun in torturing a forsaken soul. We leave that to the lesser demons – let them get their jollies, right? It’s a bit like The Great Reset and Agenda 2030 – surely you realize those are just playthings for me right? I mean, it’s not like those were very hard projects to complete, although I do have to give you some credit here, John, since you helped Tony finally get his plandemic right by turning him on to that Covid scam – that was pure gold, man, and it allowed Klaus the time he needed to advance his plans. Plus it gave me something to do for a while as I waited for events to fulfill themselves, so that was a nice bonus. But regardless of that all…fluff…don’t you see, the Real Pleasure for me is in the Temptation.”
Here, kitty, kitty
“You’re sick. You’re deluded.” Miriam spat.
Bates merely smiled at her patronizingly. Then leaning in close, he said in conspiratorial tones, “Here’s another secret – I enjoy it most of all when there is a chance that I might lose!” Seeing our disbelief, he averred, “It’s true. When I know I might lose a world, it gets me all giddy inside. It makes me excited about the mystery of it all. It actually makes me work all the harder. And… and… it makes me HOPE!” By now Bates’ eyes were literally glowing with the Fires of Hell and he’d gotten so worked up, he had to pause for breath. “Whew! So that my friends, wow, yes THAT is what I call Living!”
Alan, ever the professor, and now in more control of himself, tried to find a way to counter. “Hmm. If what you say is true, then why would you ever want to win? Why wouldn’t you let the temptation continue indefinitely upon each world? Why not enjoy your Great Reset society for awhile instead of moving towards a Doomsday like you are doing here on Earth?”
“An excellent question.” The Beast replied. “Thanks for asking. You see, every world eventually reaches its… what did you call it before… Moment of Truth? Think of it as if the world was like a nuclear reactor reaching a critical mass. After so many years of Temptation, countered by so many futile attempts to be Saved, why eventually the world can’t take it anymore and reaches a point of no return – this is when one side must step up and claim victory. As I said, it’s really just a formality in most cases – as it is now with your Earth. After all, surely you’ll agree that your world has become so full of debauchery that my victory has been certain for centuries. I’ve just been drawing it out a bit in order to squeeze out every last ounce of enjoyment and yes it’s true, I could let the United Nations finally have their way and rule the world but what would that accomplish? There’s no fun in the aftermath of the win, as I said, it’s the game itself that matters. And the time has come to finally end this game too, for as you know, tomorrow is the Day of Deliverance.”
“What does that mean?” I barked, knowing full well what he was driving at, but not wanting to believe it.
“Oh. I thought you knew?” Bates pretended surprise, humoring me. “John, you of all people should recognize what I’m talking about. Why, it’s the end of the world as you know it, but I’ll be fine.”
“Now before you three get all worked up,” The Beast smiled, “I don’t want you to worry. Don’t you understand. I’ll be fine after the Armageddon, and so will anyone who sides with me. So what do you say – wanna change teams? Eh?”
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t at least think about it…
The Last Temptation of John 