NationStates Jolt Archive

CARMINA GADALICA-The streets have been filled with the normal buzz of the city but lately an intresting character has been cropping up. Christian Preacher, Tucker Carlson has been continously stating that the end of the world is near. Unlike most doom and gloom preachers, Carlson is well educated, well respected and doesn't proclaim to have had visions. His base are all from the book of Revalations in the Holy Bible, and the current events of both Kanami and the world. "The scriptures proclaim that the entire world will be engulfed in war and suffering, the Anti-Christ is surely upon us soon. It's only a matter of time before the rapture occurs and the 10 years of darkness!" Carlson shouted to passerbuys. "Wake up and see the entire world is at war right now! Bombings, battles, fighitng and suffering it's all comming to pass, come unto Christ and you can be saved!"

"I think he's just crazy," Says High School Student Kaori Ioda who is actually an LDS (or Mormon) Church Memeber and goer. "I know their is a lot of war and fighting but if something as serious as the Rapture were upon us, more signs would have to be fufilled. Our Prophet would warn us or at least hint at us of the second comming of Christ." Still non the less, recent surveys has shown that in the last several Months Church Attendance in Kanami has trippled. "I am concerned," Says Christao Preistess Miyuki Ito "It does seem that war has doubled recently, but I'm not sure that the end is near."

"I'm sure the end is upon us," Says Catholic Preist Romen Polenski "With all the suffering now, Christ will no longer wait, it's his time."

"I will try to convert as many as possible," Says Carlson "I want everyone to be saved, I know that is what God wants."

The Country of SilentScope001 would like to inform the preacher that according to several of our very respected New Age religious scholars...

Christ has already arrived and got drafted into the army as a child soilder, and died for the sake of humanity on the battlefield, massacred in one of the countless wars. The world, actually, has already ended last Thursday, and we are merely dreaming while God is preparing to wake us all up.

Sorry, Romen Polenski and Tucker Carlson. You're too late.

(OOC: :) )

"What, what is it?" K'iuth Gaelin mumbled irately as one of his innumerable Obsequious Sycophants knocked on the door of his Sleeping Room, in which the Grand Potentate slept. Or ordinarily slept; he was, in fact, awake at the present time, entirely due to the arrival of the aforementioned Obseqious Sycophant.

The door swung open as the Sycophant entered and immediately prostrated himself on the ground. "A thousand pardons, O Most Noble and Glorious Eternal One, Thou Who Rulest All The Fishes of the Sea, Beasts of the Ground, and Birds of the Air as well as Magister over All Things Visible and Invisible, for disturbing Thy most honoured and hallowed sleep."

"Thank you. Now get to the point!" Gaelin yawned and rolled over in the massive ornate bed, constructed from gold and precious minerals. He turned to face the Sycophant, who was still kneeling with head to the ground.

"O Master of the Iron House, we have received a message from a lesser being, known as Tucker Carlson of the state of... Kanami. The world is apparently coming to an end."

"Well, of course it is," snapped Gaelin. "Everyone knows that the end of the world lies just over the sea, and if you're not careful you can fall over the edge and be eaten by monsters. So what does he want? A sharp stick to fight the monsters? We have a surplus...."

"Not quite, O Lord Inquisitor of the Trillion Stars. Among other things he claims that the world will now be engulfed in war, the Ant-eh-kreyes is coming, and there will be ten years of darkness." The Obsequious Sycophant somehow managed to make his words audible despite kneeling on the floor with his forehead on the ground; it was one of the features the Obseqious Sycophants were trained for. Gaelin was standing now, pacing back and forth, his fingers steepled.

"War? The Immortal Legions can handle that... especially armed with our new superweapon, the grey powder that causes fire without tinder or flint. Strange ants? We can devise traps to clean our houses from ants, or when that fails, simply stamp them under our feet. Darkness? We have plenty of torches, ten years of darkness should be no problem. What does all this have to do with the end of the world?"

"Neither I, nor any other Dzanjiru, knows that, O Destroyer of Worlds," the Obsequious Sycophant said. "It is our great hope that perhaps you, O most enlightened one, could educate us."

"Ah... perhaps that's what's to be found at the end of the world," Gaelin mused. "Eternal war, darkness, ants. Perhaps the ants are giant ants, hence the monsters that reside where the world ends. Fortunately even giant ants can be destroyed easily; you know how we use, in our traps, a white powder that causes the ants to die?"

"The.... ant poison, O Great One? Yes, I know of that."

"Good. Send this Carlson man a hundred hundredweights of the ant poison. Even only a small handful can kill a colony of small ants, so a hundred hundredweights should be quite enough to kill large ones. I will also draft a suitable missive to him, who in his understanding broadcast his message towards my own eyes and ears. Have a messenger send them both at daybreak tomorrow."

"Yes, O Glorious and Most Noble Sovereign."

* * *

Several weeks later, Tucker Carlson opens his front door to see a long convoy of camels, each one carrying a hundredweight (about 45 kg) of a boric acid-like substance. The messenger who leads them hands Carlson a lit torch and an ornate scroll, handwritten in what appears to be blood; the script is flowing and assured, despite the ludicrosity of the contents. Carlson may set aside the torch as he begins to read; or he may hand it back to the messenger for a moment.
Greetings to the most noble and glorious Tucker Carlson! We understand that you are engaged in a valiant struggle against the giant ants in the great darkness at the end of the world. In your assistance we have sent you enough ant poison to destroy the monsters and prevent them from devouring you, along with a torch to light your way through the great darkness and find your way back up to the edge of the world.

We would be greatly interested in hearing more of the end of the world. Who resides there? What of all the other souls who fell off the edge of the world, were they slain by the horrible ants or do they lead an existence like you, fighting for their lives? What other wonders and terrors might one behold there? Contact me at your earliest convenience; you may send a message back with the messenger who delivers this.

[signed]
K'iuth Gaelin
Grand Potentate of the United Commonwealth of Dzanjiru City-states
[Official Seal of the Potentate]
Carlson looks at the messenger, who shrugs. It's all part of everyday life for the Dzanjiru.

Carmina Gadalica, Kanami

Father Elijah Tybalt paced through the conservatory of the St.Peter's Catholic Church. It was filled with texts, deep under the gothic-style facade. It was late at night and was empty, except for Father Tybalt. He was a man of the cloth through and through, a beloved preacher and carer for the poor and disheartened. He was in his late fifties with thick white hair and a kind smile. His demeanor was wordly and welcoming, often spending late hours at the church, helping those who needed and ear so that they may pour their stories out before him and the lord. It was a life that he accepted and found great joy in doing. Hundreds would flock every Sunday to his sermons which he led for over thirty years.

Recently;however, he seemed unattached and occupied. He met with fewer people and his candor at Sunday surmons were less...heart filled. No one knew why but no one questioned him. On days off he'd come in and bolt himself into the library beneath the church, staying till late hours and sleeping little. Tonight he sat at a desk, the lamp at the old oak desk was dim, a bulb he failed to replace. Copies of ancient texts lay strune across several other tables as the ominous presence of a cross loomed overhead. His gray eyes ran across the pages again and again, occasionaly jotting down notes and muttering to himself. There was a chalkboard with several pictures and writing chalked on, almost scribbled. The bulb began to flicker which he ignored as best he could until it finally died. Frustrated, he fumbled for a match and lit a candle which stood by incase this should happen. The light was dull and illuminated only the immidiate vicinity. His ran a thumb across the page and turned to a fresh one. All of a sudden, the third line stopped him dead in his tracks. The dots were finally connected and his heart pounded. At last! He found what he so long searched and quested for. He lept from the chair and moved over to the board when a chill ran up his spin, someone was inside the room with him, a sickening presence that illed him. The light blew out and darkness filled the void, a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead as he fumbled for his rosary beads.
"Father" a whisper came from the dark "We meet at last", the voice was unlike anything he heard before. It was calm but underlined a sinister tone.
"I-I have seen you before, we have all seen you" the aging priest quipped back, voice unsteady.
"You have not seen me and so you shall never" the voice sneered, it seemed to come from all around. "Soon, we shall be truly known!" Father Tybalt began to mutter a small prayer as the phantom loomed around, circling. Father Tybalt, the champion of the poor and destitute breathed his last breath. In the darkness he did not scream but only prayed for all of humanity.