The cargo train arrived in the wee hours of the morning, and the townsfolk were there to greet it with eagerness and uneasy excitement. They welcomed the Vaqueros with hugs, handshakes, and heroes. For it was their risk that brought the weapons to them through Mexico. The Faction failed to notice that artillery was being transported instead of cattle on the train. Made in Guam but to be used in America.
Darius woke to the sound of the train. His mind was tired from heavy dreaming. As he stretched, the bible nearly fell off the bed, but he caught it in time. He sat in bed for a few minutes recalling the strange dream and wondered if it directly resulted from all his reading. Then he dressed and made his way towards the white building to see Lydia.
“This is going out today.” Lydia said when Darius entered the printing room of the white building. He eyed the latest circular of The Maverick - a declaration of war. “We’re dropping them by plane this time to as many major cities as we can.”
“It’s not premature, is it? I mean, to declare war while we’re still unloading the train?” Darius asked as he put the circular down on top of the stack. He wondered if a stealth ambush would be a better route to victory, but what did he know about war? He never served. People hauled away boxes full of the circulars.
“We have no choice. We have to act now while we can.” Lydia said.
She wore a long braid down her back and light colored denim overalls with a yellow collared shirt. “They killed Nikolai Kuzmin last night. Assassinated. So, the North American territory is without a leader now. We need to act before the Faction sends a replacement. Word hasn’t hit the airways yet, but it’s only a matter of time before people know about it.”
“Assassinated? By the Uprising?” Darius asked, surprised at the turn of events.
She nodded. “We are going to win the support and trust of the people while we take down the establishment. This is our only shot and we have to take it.”
“Says who?”
She crossed her arms, “so says the Nationalist. That’s who.”
“We’re ready to go.” A man called out as he poked his head into the room.
“Take it away.” Lydia responded. The man nodded and disappeared again. “Plane’s leaving.”
“This is absurd. What is the plan, then? Are we just playing this by ear now?”
“Darius, we’re a lot more organized than it seems. Besides, we have some of the smartest people on our side who know exactly what needs to be done and when.” She said as she removed a stack from the printer and reloaded it with fresh paper. “We could use your help here. You could write for us. I’ve read some of the Independent Nation and I think it’s brilliant.”
Darius looked around the room and thought of the storage room he worked out of for a year. He thought of the dusty floor, the dim lighting, and the smell of old cardboard. He thought of the voices and noise of people coming and going, moving things out, moving things in. Then there was the quiet, when all he had were his thoughts and the four corners of storage room to work in.
“Thanks, but I think I’ll continue my own writings when I can.”
“Suite yourself, but do you mind giving us a hand?” She said, pointing at the stacks of paper. Darius followed her with a large stack of his own and helped them load the last boxes onto the plane. Then he went back to the inn to contemplate what to do next.
He sat outside the bed-and-breakfast with the bible, reading out the book of Psalms and still confused as ever. The world was changing before his eyes, and he wondered what his place would be in it now. He was eager to go back home and reunite with Nora and Lily. Not a day went by that his heart didn’t ache for them. But the war. The war was starting and his family could be in danger.
He turned the page and wondered how the book in his hands was going to help him. Surely the dream had some meaning, and it involved the Bible somehow. Or maybe there was no method to the madness, and it was just a dream of subconscious fury. His eyes drifted over the words in front of him as he rubbed his forehead.
“The world is turning upside down, yet you are reading.” Came a voice.
Darius looked up to see a man he hadn’t seen there before. The little town was full of people coming and going, add the train that just arrived and there was always a new face around.
“Kind of.” Darius said, looking over at the man who stood just off the sidewalk in the street. “Well, I’m trying to understand it, but it’s a very long book with lots of short stories.”
The man took a step closer and Darius held it up so he could read the gold-lettered title. The man’s eyes lit up, and he smiled. “Ah yes, the Holy Bible. That’s a superb choice. What book are you reading?”
“You’ve read this?” Darius asked.
“Yup. Know it well.” the man replied. “Mind if I take this seat?” he asked.
“Sure. Go right ahead.”
The man sat in the white iron chair opposite him. Little space separated them between the small iron table. Darius put the book down, opened to the page in Psalms where he left off.
“My name is Kelvin, by the way. Kelvin Richardson. I’m from Nebraska.”
“Darius Reem, from New York.”
Kelvin looked down at the passages. “Ah, Psalms.” He smiled. “There’s lots to learn from the book of Psalms; Love, marriage, the sorrow of sin, and the worship of God. There are 150 psalms in this book, collected over many years by the people of ancient Israel, most of which are credited to king David. Did you read the books of Samuel yet?”
“No, I’m having a hard time following what I’ve read so far. In fact, I’m having a hard time believing that God made the world in 7 days too. Who creates a planet and everything in it in 7 days? And there are also way too many characters. It’s like a bunch of minor stories wrapped up in one book. Whole pages dedicated to the names of people, do I really need to know all these names?”
Kelvin smiled. “my friend, you sound like you have more questions than answers. I think it’s easier to remember that God is eternal and days mean nothing to Him. In fact, one could say He doesn’t even have days, but seasons may be a more appropriate relevance. The lineage thing, well, it comes into play if you’re studying the timeline of the bible and the family trees.”
“Sounds like you know more than me.” He chuckled.
“If I can make a suggestion, maybe try reading the New Testament first and then go back to the Old Testament.”
Darius squinted his eyes at him. “So you're telling me I should start in the middle of the book? That’s strange.”
“More like the third quarter, but don’t think of it like that. Think of it as the beginning.”
Darius blinked. “ok wait, I am really confused now. Why is this book not in order, then? Who put this thing together this way if they meant it to be read from the middle? That makes no sense.”
“Look, don’t let the order of it discourage you. Read the New Testament first. It depicts the life of Jesus Christ as told through the eyes of several of his disciples. If you want to know why the Holy Bible is so dangerous and why the Falconal Faction ordered them all destroyed and religion to be outlawed, then you need to start there.” Kelvin skillfully used the notches to turn to the title page of the New Testament. “Here, God’s redemption for all of humanity. He reveals here His promise to the world through His Son.”
“How do you know so much about the bible if they are so scarce? Do you have one?”
“Well, I have about 3 of them. One just for reading, another for Sunday school teachings, and the third is more of a devotional for personal spiritual growth.”
Stunned, Darius looked at him wide-eyed. “How did-”
“Well, to answer your question,” Kelvin interrupted, “I’m not from here. I’m from the past, you see.”
“You’re a time traveler?”
He nodded. “I grew up in a Christian household in the 1980s and attended a Christian university in California. After I graduated, I still wanted to serve in my faith, so I became a missionary and went to places like Bolivia and Thailand, bringing the message of God and the unconditional love of Jesus Christ to people. I loved every moment. Sometimes it was tough, but man was it worth it.”
Kelvin leaned back comfortably in his chair. “Then one day after a church service, I noticed a stranger I had never seen before. The village was a small Guatemalan village, and everyone knew everyone else, so strangers stood out like sore thumbs. But the man stood out even more because he wore a suit like a businessman out of the 1920s and even wore one of those bowl-type hats. Thick mustache, round glasses, and he smoked cigars too. He had a southern accent, but I couldn’t place where exactly from.”
He looked out at the empty street and went on. “Anyway, he asked me if I was up for adventure and said there was a great need for me. Churches will need to be erected, the people will need to find God again. I asked him where was this place he spoke of and he said, the United States of the future. He told me what would happen, about the Faction, the purges, and the Uprising. That night I prayed on it and in the morning I packed my bags and now I’m here.”
“So, what’s your goal here?”
“To plant churches and bring the people back to God.” Kelvin smiled as he got up, “oh and another suggestion for you, if I may.” He propped his foot up on the curb and leaned on it thoughtfully, “there’s something else you’re questioning, something you haven’t said but I think you’ll find your answer in the first book of Samuel chapter 30. Another reason the Faction had these books destroyed isn’t just because it’s the ultimate love story between the creator and the created. God often uses as a channel it to speak to us when we seek him.” He smiled with a quick nod and walked away towards the train depot.
CP7 Broadcast No 47: middle of March 2144, unknown recording.
“Good evening to all you cool cats out there ready to jam. I’m your host, once again Dr. Jeckal along with the badass Mr. Hyde who has a slew of delectables for your listening pleasure and late-night kicks. But first, as always, we have a brief announcement to make. Pretty heavy stuff, if you know what I mean.”
A soft beat started in the background on a loop of several guitar chords, but it didn’t overtake Dr. Jeckal’s silky deep voice, nor did it lead into a song.
“Fellow prisoners, I need you to dig this; the war has started on the wings of birds. You may have seen the pamphlets fall, the declaration of our freedom and there’s no getting off this ride, my friends. So, get ready for that thang they call liberty because you gonna feel what it feels like to be free.”
Then Mr. Hyde added, “let’s show the Faction what time it is. Oh, wait, you haven’t made that part of the announcement yet, have you? Why don’t you tell them what happened?”
Dr. Jeckal took over.” The most interesting turn of events took place yesterday. Our beloved North American leader, Nikolai Kuzmin, was assassinated. It hasn’t been announced by the mainstream yet because, to be frank,” He chuckled, “they don’t know how to handle it. So you’re hearing the news first, right here on the Jeckal Hour before the rest of the world gets their heads out of their asses.”
Mr. Hyde chimed in as the background song came to a stop. “So now that you know, here’s a little rock-and-roll to spark the flame, ignite the beast. Something from the great Jimi Hendrix although Jimi didn’t write this song. No, this song came out 155 years before Jimi’s Woodstock performance in 1969.”
“You remember that?” Dr. Jeckal asked.
“I sure do. When he took the stage that day at Woodstock, I couldn’t believe my ears. So here it is, the anthem of the Old World America, performed by the great Jimi Hendrix.”
Static and then the sounds of a single guitar ripped through with raw current. The drums beat in the background as the cymbals crashed like lighting in harmony with the riff of the guitar. The drums faded in and out, allowing the punchy, soulful guitar to take center stage. Cheers from a crowd, recorded centuries ago broke through momentarily and went silent as the guitar continued its journey towards climax, lifting and falling, allowed to linger on notes here, and play through there, scream and cry and then finally a triumphant wail as if saying, America has arrived.