Chapter Eight: United

 ~~/*\~~ Ryder ~~/*\~~

Karla and Ryder were released from prison, and Julian walked them out to his waiting car. Julian had a driver, and took them to his penthouse apartment, so they could clean up a bit, and get a good meal.

“I’d take you both out to lunch, but my usual bistro is closed. Apparently they had a delivery problem, and had to close the kitchen for a day or two while they sorted it out.” Julian drawled, enjoying the chance to play hero to his son. “Still, my kitchen is fully stocked. Gotta be better than prison chow. Help yourself. Karla, my building has a dry cleaning service, and my bathroom has a six jet whirlpool if-”

To Karla, looking rumpled and sleep deprived, this was a life preserver. “Please.”

“I’ll cook us something resembling food.” Ryder agreed, heading for the kitchen.

~~/*\~~

Julian could only stay for a short while, having to take a call and finalize details on his final exit from the lifelong career he’d spent so long in.

Karla looked around the penthouse, feeling much better. “Is this where you lived?”

“This? No. Dad got this place when he made partner. We grew up in the suburbs.” Ryder told her, heaping some pasta onto a plate for her. “Mom got the house when they separated, and then when dad met my ex-stepmom, she kept it in the divorce.” He shook his head. “Then the medical bills stacked up, and the house went to the bank; but by then my brother and I were all grown up. She ended up living with Nate for most of the last few years of her life.”

Karla rubbed his arm sympathetically. “Sounds rough.”

“Would have gone a lot smoother if she’d just divorced him right away.” Ryder admitted. “But she kept trying to make it work, right up until the end.” He sipped his drink. “But why don’t we talk about what’s really on our minds?”

Karla shivered. “I never got to talk to a lawyer. I never got to contact a family member. If Dion hadn’t worked out what happened, I would have vanished off the face of the earth.”

“We both would have.”

Karla ate mechanically. “I-I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. We’ve both covered cases where people use their authority for personal gain, or… I mean, I’ve seen people ripping abusively into servers at McDonalds because their coffee was too hot, or because the price went up ten cents.”

“It’s the adult equivalent of schoolyard bullying. Someone has a bad day, and takes it out on someone who can’t fight back.” Ryder agreed.

“Ryder, part of the reason I became a reporter was because I knew that if the courts or the public couldn’t respond to that? The Press could. For me, Public Opinion was the ‘higher court’ that people could appeal to when they couldn’t afford lawyers.” She stared into her coffee. “The FRA says that the whole human race has to keep their opinions of ‘higher powers’ to themselves. We’re journalists. We know that ideas die in isolation. It’s why we publish.”

“...yeah.” Ryder admitted.

Karla looked at her plate, troubled. “The human race has declared that humans are the highest court in existence. And the ‘forces of justice’ have just been given authority to do whatever they like to anyone they want.”

“You think we made a mistake, declaring that there were no gods to punish us for our sins, or reward us for our righteousness?” He guessed. “Take my word for it, Karla. One way or another, God’s been on every side of every debate and every war for the last thousand years, and the result is… Well, you saw the results. It’s what tripped off the creation of the Coalition in the first place. They were created with a mandate of never letting the world get that crazy again. They’ve picked the causes, and they’re not wrong.”

“Secure in Peace.” Karla repeated the battle cry with a sigh. “You’re right, of course. It was messy, but the world’s getting better every day now.”

They finished their meal in silence. When she was done, she stepped over and hugged him tightly. The hug went on for a long, long time. “Were you scared?”

“Yeah.” He admitted.

“Me too.” She blinked it back, and went to her dry cleaned outfit, pressed and hung up for her. “Back to work?”

Ryder was about to answer when Julian came back in and went straight to the television. “You should probably see this.”

~~/*\~~

“...the final appeal being overruled by the United Nations directly, again by unanimous vote. All legal challenges to the Coalition Operations in support of their charter, or the FRA are now summarily dismissed by all courts. The ruling was considered the final roadblock, giving the Coalition legal authority to override all local governments and laws at every level. The ruling has resulted in summary seizure of all monetary holdings of every religious organization, from every nation. Warrants are being issued for all lobbyists, political figures, and legal counsel who sought to support the personal or institutional actions of religious figures.”

“Take a second to imagine that, Gordon. Every lawyer who argued their case, every politician who sought an endorsement, or posed for a photograph with a holy man; every law that was backed by a Church; every TV or Radio show that had any religious content; every charity backed by a religion… All of it is being dismantled now. All across the world.”

“The real question is, what becomes of the people involved? The wording of the U.N. order was specific; and allowed for those challenged to sign the Renouncement early, and publicly. Certainly, all the business and political interests have been quick to accept the ruling. Some of the Church’s strongest supporters are vowing to sign. They’re even making hay out of it, hosting ‘Renouncement Parties’ for their fundraisers…”

~~/*\~~

Watching from home, Alvin felt a shudder as he looked at his Bible. “They will stand at a distance because of their fear of her torment and say: ‘Too bad, too bad, you great city, Babylon you strong city, because in one hour your judgment has arrived!’”

He bowed his head in prayer automatically. “Father, thank you for the warning to get out of Babylon The Great. Any Witness who’s involved with them now is surely feeling the sting of not heeding Your command; even if only in business. Your commandments are always a protection and blessing. Without wanting to presume, we’re going to need a lot of those before this is over.”

~~/*\~~

“The changes were felt first in the Capitol, where the protest marches, demanding freedom to worship for all, were suddenly declared ‘enemy actions’, and the protestors were told to submit to immediate arrest. Upon their refusal to comply, the police deployed tear gas and water cannons to subdue the crowd while arrests were made. The violence is ongoing, and the police are warning all to avoid the midtown area-”

Watching the broadcast, Julian nodded to his son, as though this was expected. “Protesting the FRA is marching in support of criminals now. Nobody marches to show support for the mafia.” Julian turned to his son, and Karla; all of them watching the same broadcast. “You’ll be expected to make a statement about your arrest. Choose your words carefully, because if you’re not careful…”

Ryder’s phone buzzed. He checked the screen. “It’s Dion.” He told Karla. “I guess he has the same thought.”

“I’ll let you talk to him.” Julian rose, leaving the room.

Ryder handed his phone to Karla, and went after him. “Dad!” He called once they had privacy. “What… what would mom say about this?”

Julian’s face changed. “Don’t get superstitious on me now, son. Today, of all days.”

“I know. I know.” Ryder pulled his head in. “But it fits what she talked about, right?”

“Son, you’re too young to remember most of the biggest social movements that got written into law, and so am I. But I studied them at length in Law School. Take my word for it: The world makes changes in the same way an avalanche works. First there’s only a few small pebbles, then it grows to a landslide. Everything like the FRA is impossible, until it’s inevitable. I’ve been the Church’s lawyer for most of your life. The respect, the support, the interest? It’s been drying up for decades. Same as Gay Marriage, Civil Rights, Clean Energy… Most people scream without knowing what they’re screaming about, then the next generation grows up different, until finally there’s nobody left who wants to keep things the same.”

Ryder couldn’t help but agree with that. He’d looked up all the same numbers for their commentary on the FRA.

“Trust me on this.” Julian told him, unconcerned. “You’re living a major historical event right now. Be on the right side of it.”

Ryder nodded and went back to his phonecall. But inwardly he couldn’t help the thought: Mom would have said the same thing.

~~/*\~~

Karla and Ryder were given a round of applause when they returned to the newsroom. Reporting a story important enough to be arrested for it was usually a point of pride; but Ryder could tell there was an undercurrent of fear this time. The world had changed dramatically, and nobody was sure of the new rules yet.

Karla was on television within hours, sitting at the desk with Gordon. The ‘conversation’ they were having was carefully written; breaking down what happened, but making an effort to give nobody the blame.

“The FRA is changing some of the most basic parts of human society.” Karla said, as though just chatting with Gordon, though the whole thing was being broadcast. “Obviously, such a thing is not a simple undertaking. There are going to be misunderstandings. Even violent ones, though most of the world is eager to embrace the change.”

Gordon nodded. “The FRA is a staged rollout, which is still in progress. There hasn’t been an enforceable call for all citizens of this planet to make their public position clear; though we all know that will happen in a few more weeks. But before we get to the end of that ‘grace period’, some organizations have asked their own members to make a public declaration right away. Law Enforcement is one of them, education another.”

“It’s to be expected.” Karla said, ever so reasonable. “Religion has been a major influence on most of the world’s industries. Charities, government, and yes, even the law. Since Stage Two of the FRA also includes the stripping of all influence from institutions that exist to serve the public, it’s only to be expected that some of them will be a little too enthusiastic.”

~~/*\~~

Watching from the control room, as Dion ran the show, Ryder translated in his head: We know the people who arrested us were just using the laws as an excuse to take stuff they want, and we know they arrested us because we dared film them doing it. But we’re willing to let them get away with it, because it’s easier than hoping common sense will prevail.

That’s been true of law and justice for longer than you’ve been alive. A little voice said in his head. Is the world getting better, or is it just getting easier for them to do what they want?

~~/*\~~

On set, Gordon dropped the ‘conversation’ format and turned to face the camera directly. “We here at KPXQ consider ourselves to be servants of the public trust, as much as any other institution. This regrettable incident came due to a conflict that the FRA was designed to put behind us; for people of faith, and for the world in general.”

Karla read the ‘official’ statement aloud, while the text was put on screen. “Faith is a force that unites people, but religion is undeniably a source of division. While we’re proud to say we have always practiced respect and personal liberty of all our employees to believe as they wish; we cannot deny that we agree wholeheartedly with the position of the United Nations, the Coalition, and the spirit of the FRA.”

As the text went off screen and returned to Gordon, he spoke boldly. “We intend to make this declaration clear to anyone who has questions, which is why all staff here at KPXQ will be signing the Renouncement as soon as we can get enough forms here for everyone. And to encourage all to take the same action; we’ll be doing so live on the air.” He smiled. “And just so you know, I’ll be first. In fact, it’s due. With the legal challenges thrown out, Stage Two of the FRA is all but done. The individual Renouncement is the only step left.”

Karla nodded, unable to help herself. “And if those policemen who mistakenly thought I was trying to obstruct justice the other day are watching? You should know that I’ll be the second in line to sign, right behind him.”

~~/*\~~

There was a chuckle in the control room at her tone of voice. Dion covered his headset mic and turned to Ryder. “You won.” He said with a grin. “Your father was right. You made the arrest look like an idiotic gesture.”

“Yeah. Yeah, we did.” Still watching the announcement play on the screen, as Gordon told the audience when they could tune in to watch, Ryder started counting down in his head. Five. Four. Three. Two…

Right on cue, his phone started buzzing, and he nodded to EP, slipping out into the hallway to answer it privately. “Nate, I know what you’re going to say-”

“Don’t sign it. Please.”

“Aaaaand I was right.” Ryder sighed. “I guess it wouldn’t do any good to ask you to be smart and sign the damn thing yourself?”

“You haven’t been away from the meetings that long, have you?” His brother scorned. “It’s all coming true, just like Mom said-”

“Leave her out of this.” Ryder shook his head. “She never mentioned anything like the Renouncement, neither did the Meetings. They never said anything about-”

“About the world’s leadership getting on the same side to declare war on false religion?”

“There’s no such thing as a real one anymore. If God did have a favorite, He could make sure they were left off the list.” Ryder told him firmly. “And even if there was one ‘good’ faith, and even if only one in a thousand people happened to get it, and even if it happened to be yours, and even if you were somehow going to be exempt from the Law… Nate, I’ve been away from the meetings far longer than I was ever a part of them. Does it really make a difference if I sign or not?”

“...I don’t know for sure.” His brother’s voice hitched. “Maybe it won’t. But I do know for sure what happens if you sign.”

“So do I. I get to keep my job, my home, and my whole life.”

Nate’s voice hardened. “You’re saying you have no doubts? You’re saying there isn’t any part of you that remembers the time we spent talking about this? Preparing for this?” His voice wilted a bit. “Or did you ever care? Were you just humoring mom all that time?”

Ryder set his jaw. “It’s not right that they made us choose. It’s not fair.”

“Neither of them wanted us at odds with each other. Or with God, come to that. Everyone did what they thought was a smart move.” Nate felt an odd need to defend both their parents. “I guess we’re doing the same now.”

“That’s my point. Does refusing seem like a smart move?” Ryder demanded, voice hard, when he noticed the monitors. “I have to go.”

He disconnected the call without another word, and put his phone away before Karla came out of the newsroom, buzzing with adrenaline. “That’s two lead stories in the same week!”

“You’re fast becoming a famous face.” Ryder agreed.

“Millions of people saw me just now.” She was bubbling with glee. “So. Where are we going next?” She asked him.

“The eternal question.” Ryder mused to himself, and started preparing her for the next story.

~~/*\~~ Takarut ~~/*\~~

The two men returned to Goshen and Tzioni left Takarut with Leahe, heading off to tell the other Elders what had happened. It was an act that demonstrated growing trust. Tzioni never would have let the Egyptian spend time with Leahe without him there before.

Leahe’s duties had changed since her injury. She had more to do around Goshen. The elderly were discarded once they couldn’t work hard labor any further; and Leahe supported them. She had just enough left of her arm to rock a fussing baby while their parents worked, or carry a load for an elderly one, broken down by a life of hard labor. The Hebrews took care of their elders; but there were quotas to meet to avoid reprisals. Takarut wasn’t a slave, even if he’d given up his position at the Palace. In an effort to make connections to his new neighbors beyond anger and suspicion, he helped out wherever he could.

As the two of them walked through the narrow streets, they heard a familiar voice. Without discussing it, they walked to follow it. Ohad-Ittai was standing on one of the wagons again, addressing a group of people as they transferred loads, ready to be hauled to one end of Egypt or another.

“What do these Plagues have in common?” Ohad-Ittai declared to everyone who was listening. “The Nile, economic hub of all Egyptian trade! The frogs, getting into every store, crippling transportation, and ruining food production at the local level. The gnats, polluting household water and fruits. Foodstuffs that the other Plagues had left alone. Do you not see the combination? These are economic attacks, wiping out Egypt's luxury! All the things we’ve never had here? Suddenly the wealthiest in Egypt are living like us; reduced to eating whatever’s edible, instead of what they like. Here in Goshen, the crop that grows in small places, or underground? The leeks, the garlic… All intact.”

Leahe paused, listening. Ohad-Ittai was getting some attention, but if it was because he was right, or because of his fervor, it was hard to be sure.

“Jehovah is systematically taking away their comfort, making them live like us!” Ohad-Ittai insisted. “The whole point of our slavery is that they don’t have to treat us like they would their own people. Take away their superiority, and they’ll break. Jehovah God is protecting us from reprisals by doing the fighting, but He’s fighting the way anyone would conquer a world power: Cutting off supply lines. Egypt lives on its luxury, provided by its slaves. Take away that luxury, and all you have is a nation of people who don’t know how to be hungry; and don’t know how to work…” A dangerous glint entered his eye. “But they’ll learn, soon enough.”

There was a rumble of agreement from the crowd.

Takarut glanced over at Leahe. “I’m starting to get a bad feeling about him.”

“He’s mostly talk.” Leahe assured him as they headed off. “Every slave has a fairly active fantasy life. Plenty of those fantasies involve overthrowing our masters. When this is over, we’ll be free; and he’ll glady go with us.”

“You say he’s all talk, because he’s only ever been able to talk.” Takarut warned. “What about now? He could only ever dream before. Recent events have surely emboldened the talk of revolution.”

Leahe looked at him sideways. “This getting too personal for you, Egyptian? Worried about your loved ones? Wondering if armed men are going to kick your father’s door in any second? Wondering if Ohad-Ittai will take your arm off just because he can?”

“The hypocrisy is not lost on me.” Takarut said patiently. “I’m just saying, whatever Jehovah’s doing, I hope He finishes it quickly. But why is Jehovah doing it this way at all?!” Takarut returned. “I can’t deny it’s all true. I can’t deny it’s real. I cannot deny your God, but-”

“My God?” Leahe returned. “I haven’t heard you pray to Thoth since you got here. You told the Acolyte that you were a resident of Goshen for keeps. You were proclaiming Jehovah’s next Plague in the city this morning. How can you be a believer, and not a follower?”

“What I did, I did in the name of telling the truth, and in the service of saving lives and livelihoods.” Takarut said plainly. “A lot of the animal tenders in Egypt feed their families off those livestock. If I can tip the scales in any direction that makes this stop faster, I’m saving lives.”

Leahe looked at him oddly. “You’re still trying to live on both sides of the border between Egypt and Goshen.”

“Most of me is back in Egypt. My family, my education, the temples… The High Priests have recognized Jehovah as a real God, exerting His influence over Egypt. Why is my service in Jehovah’s name unacceptable now?”

“Because you’re still recognizing Egyptian Gods too!” Leahe snapped. “You can’t have it both ways.”

“Why not? Even Pharaoh accepts Jehovah is real. There are hundreds of patron gods in the world.” He lowered his voice. “And only one of them is smiting my homeland with Plagues right now.”

Leahe stared at him. “You think so?” She returned with flat heat. “Then please remember that all Moses is asking for is our freedom. If he demanded justice, let alone revenge, Egypt would be ashes by the time we got done. This stops the minute Pharaoh decides it does. After what your people have put us through, why is Jehovah still leaving it up to your King? He’s being kinder and fairer with Pharaoh than He needs to be. Certainly more than your King has ever been with us.”

“...Probably true. And technically, he’s your King too; until he lets you go.” Takarut admitted. He was silent for a long moment, trying to put it into words. “Egypt… doesn’t change. The traditions are set, and have been done for centuries. Even the weather doesn’t change. The Nile has three seasons that we set our whole civilization by, and they are unwavering. The walls that are built of the stone you haul were there before any of us were born. The ones you put up before Moses got here will be there when our great-great-grandchildren are still following the path of the Nile. Egypt is eternal. Everything about it is as certain as the sun in the sky.”

Leahe nodded. “And when Moses came, the Nile was the first thing to turn on you.”

“And it’s going to get worse before it gets better.” Takarut agreed.

Leahe wasn’t overly sympathetic. “Egypt may have certainty of themselves, but please remember why the stone walls are so solid: It’s because you used our sweat and blood as mortar. My people are stoic. We have to be because any time we showed any feeling at the whip, we got whipped again. Our faith has kept us on our feet over generations of abuse. We are harder than the stone we hauled. Because any time the stone was too much for us to carry, we got the whip until we found it in us to make the stone move. Hebrews are harder than stone. We have to be. We always have to be.”

Takarut set his jaw. “I understand why you won’t weep for my people, Leahe. An Eternal Empire means eternal oppression for your people. But I cannot deny Jehovah is stomping down Egypt like a little kid squishing ants. There’s a cruelty about it that I can’t-”

“Cruelty to who?” A voice challenged.

Leahe and Takarut turned to see a small Boy in Hebrew rags, with a damaged harp over his shoulder. “To Egypt, or to His enemies? It’s not the same thing. Which are you?”

“I am an enemy to nobody’s god.” Takarut assured the Boy, oddly compelled to speak plainly.

“And your King? Are you an enemy to him? Because it’s the same question, especially in Egypt. If a hundred people claimed to be ruler of Egypt, but assured Pharaoh that they were not really his enemy, would he accept that? Would he agree that there were a hundred different rulers over Egypt, and it was fine to serve them all, even when they were in opposition to him?”

Takarut almost chuckled. “No. No he wouldn’t.”

“Of course he wouldn’t. Because the Throne comes with authority, honor, duty, responsibility, and above all: Sovereignty. So if Egypt can only have one King, why should the whole universe, the earth, the sky, the waters, the heavens themselves accept that they have hundreds of rulers contradicting each other?”

Takarut blinked. “Well… if Satau was here, he would say that each of the gods have a dominion over part of the whole, and-”

“And all of them are clearly helpless against Jehovah. So either they take no responsibility for their only dominion and responsibility, or they were never there.” The Boy reasoned. “Why should one God, responsible for the whole universe, be more involved than a hundred gods who only have to concern themselves about one single thing?”

Leahe nodded, amused by this. “The Nile, the Frogs, the insects… Your gods only have one job each, and none of them seem capable of doing it.”

“Now consider the other way.” The Boy said gamely, rubbing the scuffs on his harp with the corner of his ragged tunic, tightening up the strings. “If there is only one God, imagine His reaction when His own creations tell their children that there are hundreds of others. What would the King do, if the Prince told everyone that the regional leaders are equal in authority to Pharaoh, each one responsible for only a small part of Egypt? What if the people agreed, and started putting kingly thrones everywhere?”

Takarut blinked. “Pharaoh would tear every other throne down, and drag any usurpers who dared claim equal authority over his own Kingdom before him on their knees.”

The Boy nodded. “Yes. And he’d be right to do it; because he is the sovereign of Egypt; and there is no other who can claim that.”

Leahe nodded, no longer amused, now very sincere. “And that is exactly what Jehovah is doing now, isn’t it? Tearing down the empty challengers.”

The Boy was apparently done fiddling with his harp, and plucked a few strings, making a sweet note. “He’s done it before, and He will do so again.” Without even looking back at them, he turned to go, playing his harp softly as he walked.

Leahe smiled, and then went after him. “Hey, kid? You have a place to stay tonight? I don’t recognize you from the-”

The Boy had turned a corner, now out of sight. Leahe hurried to follow, but he had apparently vanished before she could catch up. Frowning, she returned to Takarut. “Guess he lives in one of those places around the corner.”

“What did he mean? That Jehovah has ‘done it before’?” Takarut asked.

~~/*\~~ Nate ~~/*\~~

“The Hebrews in Egypt weren’t the first to see Jehovah act in defense of his Sovereignty.” The Speaker said over the screen. “Egypt was affected once before, when Abraham was passing through with his wife, and they were put in danger. Sodom and Gomorrah fell once Jehovah had removed His servants from among them, to say nothing of the flood of Noah’s Day.”

Nate watched the television where the meeting was displayed. The public meetings were stopped all over the world now. With the Renouncement in full swing, there had been a huge increase in violent attacks on religious buildings and individuals. The Witnesses had moved to online meetings for their new updates, which had been coming more and more often as the world got steadily worse.

“In all of these cases, nothing that humans had built had been saved. Consider for a moment, the Altars that Abraham had made to offer sacrifices to Jehovah. Or the one that Noah had made when his family came out of the Ark. Or, for that matter, the Ark itself. Even buildings and structures made in Service to Jehovah are still just buildings. Most religions had forgotten that, believing the buildings, or the paper in the pages of the holy books themselves were somehow imbued with holiness. But what does the Bible actually say?”

Alvin stopped the talk playing. It took a few seconds for Nate to even notice. “Something wrong?”

“You. You’re a million miles away.” Alvin observed.

“It’s…” Nate sighed. “It’s time. It’s happening right now.”

“You want to tune in?” Alvin asked sympathetically.

“I honestly have no idea.” Nate admitted. “...yeah. Show me.”

As Alvin picked up the remote, Nate prayed. Jehovah God, I can’t ask you to change someone’s mind. If You were going to force obedience in people’s hearts, You wouldn’t need us to tell You where to start. But please, do something to bring my brother back to You. I know it’s probably too late, but-

Alvin had turned his television to the news. Several familiar faces were lined up, each one filling out and signing a form for their audience. Karla signed her name to the Renouncement and held it up to the camera. Everyone else in the room applauded her passionately.

Smiling, Karla took up a microphone in her other hand. “It’s not just us. All the producers, all the staff, everyone in the KPXQ family is lining up here. The entire newsroom, the support staff, right down to the night janitors. Everyone’s turned out to show solidarity with each other, and with the world.”

She was still talking, but Nate wasn’t listening. In the queue of people was Ryder, filling out the form, and signing his name to it. He turned and held up his Paper to the camera, receiving his round of applause, just like all the others.

For a moment, Nate met his brother’s eyes on-screen, as if they could both see each other. The moment passed, and Ryder went over to stand beside his father, also with a white paper in one hand. Nate felt himself grow cold, seeing what was left of his family united without him.

In the foreground of the shot, Karla was all smiles. “The world is getting better and more united every day!” She enthused. “Who wouldn’t want to be part of it?”

~/*\~~/*\~~/*\~

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