The Onward Journey

It was long ago that humanity fled their dying Earth, taking with them what possessions and knowledge they could but, more importantly for some, their God.

The infinite blackness of space, as observed so far away from your home star, could do strange things to a soul. Many refused to even entertain the idea of clambering up the ladders of the great Ship, Etiam, to gaze out across the rocky surface and to the stars beyond. Those that did quickly found themselves seeking refuge in one of the chapels contained within this vast, hollowed out asteroid.

Saint Christopher's was one such chapel, buried deep within the bowels of the ship, far from the cold of the void and close to the comforting hum of the engine. It was here that the congregation gathered for a sermon by Father Green, a giant man with a zealot's fire in his eyes. He preached of the sin of man and the destruction of their home, gifted to them by God. He preached of the redemption offered by the Almighty in the form of their rocky carriage in the stars and drew on the obvious parallels between it and Noah's Ark.

His parishioners           sat spellbound, soaking up the words of their impassioned preacher, their very own shepherd spreading the truth of the Lord. Among those so enthralled were the Winstons, Michael and Laura, new to this chapel but seeking the protection of the Travellers saint. Long forgotten was Saint Matthews, up near the crust, with its rather dreary and soft Father Hubert. Here was there church they needed, so full of truth and vision.

Weeks turned to months as Etiam drifted toward salvation, a new Earth where humanity could start a simpler, more pious life. This was as told by Father Green in his modest little chapel, cosy and warm, lit by candle light and full of family. These were the words of the future, a prophets vision.

After a satisfying sermon, Father Green took Laura aside and whispered long and low into her ear, his face shrouded by shadow, his intent unknown but of no concern to the trusting Michael.

She was to be part of a new initiative tending to the flock. If the trail were successful, Michael was sure to be asked too. Laura was overjoyed at the honour of being asked to help tend the flock, she could barely contain herself and nor could Michael. For so long they had wanted to be drawn closer into the bosom of Saint Christopher's, had felt an inexplicable need to be more involved. Now they were doing just that.

Time passed as only it can when you are confined to a rock drifting through space, slowly and with little change. Yet, in the Winston's household, there were changes. Laura become distanced, less affectionate and spent increasing amounts of time apart from her husband and more time with Father Green and his select few. Michael never received his invitation to the inner circle and had no idea of where his wife would disappear to for hours, sometimes days, on end. A suspicion began to grow that all was not well so he tasked himself to follow Laura; to see what was absorbing his wife, what was stealing her from him.

Down through the cave like corridors of Etiam he went, down and down and deeper down. Down past the chapel and down past the engine rooms to places he never knew existed. The passageways narrowed and closed, the light became dim and eerie. Corridors began to turn back on themselves, giving the entire place a labyrinthine quality that only helped to heighten an already intense feeling of claustrophobia and panic.

Everything here took on a distorted skew, like looking at the world through a lens whilst deep underwater, at once both frighteningly real and so obviously false.
A heartbeat and a blink later he was on his knees, disoriented and straining to listen to a cacophony of garbled voices in his ear. He tried to work out the source of the noise as he crawled forward, feeling like the world was pushing him back, urging him to flee this place but flee he would not until he found his wife.

When he did find her it was as he awoke, clawing at consciousness, fighting to stay awake, wondering how long he had been out and who, or what, the figures around him were.

"You should not have come here. You were not chosen." the familiar voice of his wife said.

"What? Where am I?" he replied, feeble voiced.

"This is the home of The Many" said the cold voice of Father Green "They are those that came long before the Earth was made, long before you found your old god in the dark. They are Space and Time and they will see humanity safely to its new home"

Michael became aware of formless shapes around him at the edge of the cavern, each of them haloed by a strange luminescence. They chattered their nonsense to each other in the shadows, watching him with a sense of judgement and hunger, filling him with cold dread.

"We followers are the Children of the Stars now" said Laura, once more the spokesmen for these strange deities. "Father Green has been recruiting here on Etiam, recruiting the worthy to join him in the new world. Those who are chosen will journey on and those who are not will perish here, in this rock. You, Michael, were not chosen. You must die here today."

Those words, devoid of the love they once felt, sent the newfound gods into a raucous, frenzied approach, their bloodlust obvious even in foreign tongue.

"It's not that we dislike you, it's just that you do not fit the plan." The once Father told me, smiling a predators smile.

"We do, however" he said, his form shifting monstrously, a horrid maw poised ready to engulf me whole "wish you luck in your onward journey"