Prophets: Heaven's Adversary



  "The king of the world is king to no man.

  Such false prophecy has led to tyrannical oppression with all hope lost.

  The king of the world is king to his purpose.

  Those who shall follow him can easily see his pure intention, his true divinity."

  -Kenneth Neal

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  Prophets I : Heaven's Adversary

  -Chapter Titles-

  The Great Hall of The Holy Destiny Institution5

  The Human Algorithm7

  Homo-Dragonus Comes Undone11

  Damascus; Now and Forever14

  Grand Design For Grand Domination 17

  Project “STATUS”21

  His Vanguards… His Enforcers... His Prophets…26

  Methods of Madness33

  En Passant Capture36

  Bite The Hand, Chop The Head39

  Prophets I: Heaven's Adversary

 

  The Great Hall of The Holy Destiny Institution

  It is 5:00 as the church bells ring and within the halls of Holy Destiny Institution. The citizens instinctively migrate to the Great Hall for evening prayer. This Government funded facility could be labeled as a home away from home, for many, a shelter or an orphanage to those residing within. It is one of many throughout the United System, provides their service to for all who walks, crawls, morphs or glides into their humble facility.

  This unconventional congregation gathers together, some assisted by cattle tazers, some by unyielding faith seeking fulfillment, come to sit for their daily fill from the words of their ordained Member of the Cloth. With their help and guidance, one's naturally inherited talents and bizarre characteristics maybe honed and perfected with patience and with The Creator's divine Word and scripture. This in turn, would help to create successful contributors to the work force of everyday society.

  An aerial bird’s eye view scrolling from room to room throughout the Holy Destiny Institution can show glimpses of random patients interacting with their instructors. Many displaying occasions of sadness and solitude. The last patient would be Nathaniel Morrison lying on his bed in contemplation with arms folded behind his head.

  He would pull himself out of bed ready to start the day, tapping his foot on solid ground and his tail would plummet to the floor as he rises. Walking down the corridor, he checks the wall-clock meeting up with frail Sister Margret in a small classroom to assist with transferring equipment for a large meeting scheduled in the afternoon. Nathaniel has been extra diligent with making evening's sermon on time like clockwork as usual.

  He has always been on time, assisted in any way possible without question and always loyal. He is all smiles, a fine conversationalist, good-looking and charismatic, displaying some reptilian physical traits as well. His skin, an absurdingly dense exoskeleton lined with subtitle outlines of overlapping scale-like ridges would still convey human features and proportion, not to mention his tail that coils the floor beneath him.

  Nathaniel falls under the Homo-Dragonus classification, a scarce breed that has been documented to take many shapes. All encompassing traits, humanoid in form, to that historians believe was made of lore and legend are very much apparent amongst our working-class society. Variations exhibiting feathers of bird, horn/skin of rhinoceros, and a surprising large percentage, added mental capacities yielding variable atmospheric manipulation. All occurrences such as this are common place, with the exception of select individuals displaying ranges of difficulty accepting their traits.

  The Human Algorithm

  After gathering decades of statistical information, the government funded Holy Destiny Institute was able to construct a compilation of current human evolution. A chart that soon became public knowledge under the codeword “The Human Algorithm”. This level of classification analyzes the involvement of genomic advances that is a sub-section beyond the homo sapien benchmark.

  Throughout human history, distinctive and adaptive attributes have been engrained within our evolving DNA. Attributes that often yield enhanced mental or physical advantages, thus reinforcing the resiliency of our species. Offering a select few inter-species characteristics or mentally manipulate Earth’s atmospheric conditions.

  Heredity, geographic and notoriously artificial conditions are definitive variables allowing our species to manifest this wide array of special attributes.

  Mono Human, Mezzo Mono, Digonic Human, Mezzo Digonic, Trigonic Human, Mezzo Trigonic, Polymorphic Human.

  -Humans with "Mezzo" classification have faint traces of an additional attribute. Usually detected as dormant/non-dominant traits.

  Mono

  -Normal/Baseline Traits.

  -Longest life span.

  -Best immunity system.

  Digonic

  -Able to demonstrate

  a distinctive mental or

  physical attribute based

  from heredity.

  Trigonic

  -Rare combination of above normal mental

  and physical attributes.

  -Polymorphic Humans are

  able to demonstrate a variable

  number of mental & physical

  attributes.

  - Shortest life span.

  -Weakest immunity system.

  Homo-Dragonus Comes Undone

  Nathaniel, a Homo-Dragonus breaching polymorphic levels, enters the room and is greeted by Margret’s welcoming smile and the two exchange small talk. There are a number of chairs, folding tables and presentation stands that will need to be transferred from the front of the room to a specific arrangement in the great hall. Margret continues her aimless rambling about her expectations of this seminar, dragging chairs and tables across the floorboards, with his back turned, Nathaniel’s face expresses his breaking-point.

  Although Nathaniel’s list of telekinetic, pyrokinetic, slight shape shifting advantages has been craftfully restrained, he has shown volatile peaks of mastery with abilities akin to members of his class. So much, in fact that over time, the two abilities have blended into one devastatingly offensive fusion of menacing power.

  He intends to fully demonstrate his inherited pyrokinetic projection, a fearsome and intense mental extension of his body based on a fusion between telekinetic and pyrokinetic abilities which grasp burns to the touch. To match his fury, if he has a sense of oncoming harm, the scales that are woven throughout his body can shift in place. So much that they can form a mesh of nearly impenetrable armor that would baffle those dependent of Teflon & Kevlar.

  The cathedral halls would begin to resonate with the beckoning sound of brass bells calling all members to the main assembly room. Random shots will show the collective gathering themselves from all over the grounds of the Holy Destiny Institution, all prepped and ready to hear both instructional and inspirational encouragement. The announcement bell continues bellowing its call letting all of the inhabitants know that there are 20-minutes until the 5 o’clock sermon. The compounded sounds of Sister Margret’s quaky voice and the hall bells create an overwhelming sense for Nathaniel to create necessary silence, at any and all costs.

  With Sister Margret’s back turned, Nathaniel’s tail slams the ground, creating a small boom within the tight confines of the class
room. His right arm comes into frame, soon having each of his fingers flickering about until the arm is spontaneously ignited into piercing, glowing flame. Sister Margret makes a turn-about and Nathaniel lunges toward her from across the room as if he’s throwing a baseball. However, a flaming clawed extension of his arm stretches across the room, grasping the poor woman with one hellish hand. Nathaniel’s other arm is ignited, reaching out towards the victim’s mouth, muzzling the frantic cries of terror. Margret’s restricted body is lifted from the ground as her two feet dangle in search of comforting ground. Her flesh bleeds to the searing touch of Nathaniel’s grasp, but the intensity of the flame burns the blood before contact of the floor below.

  With a devilish grin smeared across his face, he makes quick work of his exercise in sheer brutality. He sends a sudden surge of flaming power, channeling from his body down his arms making quick contact to Margret’s feeble frame, overtaking her body which incinerates and turns into forms of dust and vapor.

  Her last breath allowed Margret to give off a final shriek for life which was high-pitched and abrupt before total vaporization. A gathering of individuals standing in a nearby room overhear the yelp coming from her muzzled mouth. This group drops the objects in their hands and bolt out the door to investigate the commotion.

  With the view of a shaky POV, they burst in the doorway to hear similar screeching/squeaky sounds coming from the meeting room. Opening the double-doors would reveal Nathaniel pushing a large table, of which its peg legs seem to giving much resistance while being raked the densely tiled flooring. Nathaniel turns his head, noticing he has company, giving an extra demonstrative push for the onlookers to see.

  “What happened to Sister Margret?”

  “Oh, she forgot her crossword puzzles. (Smug grin) You know how she loves sneaking in her puzzles during sermon…”

  The perfect aid, the perfect subordinate, the perfect cover for a sociopath with a brooding, lustful Messiah Complex. With a smile, a dash of comedic humility belies the darkest of hearts devoid of "human" compassion.

  Damascus; Now and Forever

  A loud gong can be heard overhead coming from the exterior cathedral bells as the last of the gatherers form single-file lines inside the entranceway of the Great Hall. The “counseling sermon” will now begin, with Nathaniel sitting near center-front, awkwardly towering over his neighbors adjacent to him.

  As these scenes unfold in the background, multiple counselors for the Holy Destiny engage in a series of conversations on another floor. They watch and review videotape dossiers of the list of “trustees” taking part in facilitating this evening’s sermon. Going down the list, they will discuss the previous disruptions each member has caused starting with a photo of each of the assailants.

  One member, a Digonic, knocked out the entire power grid of the institution by feeding/siphoning electricity which required almost 2-days worth of repairs to the system. He has been known to show drastic cravings with wild outbursts unless strictly monitored. Another trustee who was a professional botanist caused quite a stir while he was communicating with the trees in the yard. With twisted intent and oversight, the Mezzo Trigonic caused the trees to turn against the residents, slamming their sharpened tree branches into an unsuspecting group of rather young attendees. Fortunately only minor injuries were involved and there have been very little signs of relapse 6 months prior.

  But Nathaniel has been exceptional, not a single flare up and very courteous and friendly. Heck, he is even on 2 of the 3 list on “Friend-Book”.

  This sermon has come to an end, the boredom has started to be accompanied to severe waves of churning nausea for Nathaniel. The minutes continue to pass with an ever constant mantra brooding in his head:

  The Creator has not set one holy foot on this planet in a millennium according to relic.

  It has not revealed its face, its awesome power towards Mankind.

  There shall be no other deities before Nathaniel. All should bow before the wave of Nathaniel's hand

  The only face of God that has surfaced on this Earth is mine; that of Nathaniel, that of Damascus

  This, a demonstration of self-discovery while captive within these halls of the Holy Destiny Institution. For over 4 years, one fake friendly ploy after another can be broken within one carefully plotted night. Anything that would prove as an obstruction of his word shall be burned to the ground, as what has been spelled out of legend of his ancestors.

  The mind of Nathaniel has since dissolved; there is only the will of Damascus.

  The rest of the staff are but of sheep, ready to lay to waste, with no comparison, no comprises. There is a false sense of kinship amongst his roommates. Their necks easily bend and break like weak twine with a flurry of pyrokinetic blasts. He would ask which savior you would call onto with your last breath for true salvation. If your answer would happen to be false while clutching a cross of wood and stone, his response would always be the same, “No, for His hands shall not burn thane flesh quite like mine.”

  The halls of Holy Destiny Institution are about to incinerate into heaps of ash and an army of followers shall amass to witness the true power and intimidation amongst them all. The Pastor's words are interrupted by screams of agony, scorched limbs, and the foundation from this house of their Creator being cut to splinters.

  Damascus has proclaimed his will on this Earth and devotion to himself, basking in his glory are additional followers who he believes are truly lost in this world. Other Homo-Dragonus would follow his creed of freedom through destruction, through self-indulgence, only to pray and celebrate the presence of Damascus.

  Indeed, Damascus’ army of fellow Homo-Dragonus within the Institution operated with the speed of underground fervor. While incarnated within the confines of the Holy Destiny, Damascus has been able to reclusively maintain his connections to the outside world. More importantly, his former contacts within various Black Market circles along with collecting favors and debts that are owed to him have now become even more valuable.

  Grand Design For Grand Domination

  Over a relatively short period of time, he was able to assemble an abundance of resources and popularity. For start-up money, Nathaniel retains employment within the construction demolition industry. Using his pyrokinetic slashes to weaken foundations to compromise the buildings’ stability was quite profitable. This, in conjunction with his nearly impregnable exo-armor, Nathaniel was able to move in and out of a collapsing building with ease and stride. Falling pillars would usually call for hardhat protection; such is not the case for Nathaniel’s hard-head.

  He would coordinate a series of bank heists specifically in metro areas, placing a box of street-cones near the location, knowing that the perception is that the public will steer clear of this blocked area, would provide an excellent pick up point for the getaway car.

  A tele-marketing scheme has also been conducted using the guise of an international charity “Grand World Harvest” akin to Feed The Children campaigns. Televised commercials would show children in poverty locals needing a helping hand to get by the day, requesting monetary donations. Of course, the money would end up in Damascus hands and Grand World Harvest soon diversified and dissolved in quick succession.

  This was through the use of a grand collective of cons that grew more elaborate, just as his self-indulgent ego. Instead of the basic white & beige garb issued to him by the Holy Destiny Institution, his new armor closely resembles of what a self-appointed dictator should appear. Two large metal shoulder pads with overlapping multi-layers toward the end, securing a floor sweeping Pope-like cloak/robe keeping his arms & hands draped inside.

  Should either one of his hands ever make an appearance from behind robe could result in personal catastrophe no one would wish upon themselves. All followers are instructed to cheat and steal to pool resources as a mighty wave of anarchy using unparalleled technology and tactful sciences to spread both word and fear with ruthless speed.

  H
is method of recruitment has slashed its mark on society who welcome words of protection and solace, accompanied by striking fear in the most rational walks of life. This including Mono-Human blue collared craftsman to leaders and advancers in science and bio-technology.

  Both he, his Lead Strategist known as Luther, and his Research & Development Counsel act with determination to extend faith onto the word of Damascus. Luther, a Mezzo Digonic, offers his limited precognitive suggestions to his cause. Which are utilized during moments of battle stress giving him and his subordinates the upper hand. He is dependent on a mildly hallucinatory inhalant that he “huffs” to jumpstart his visions. Conducting various web-hosting and live events on an international scale any outsider would perceive as war-hungry madness leaving behind untraceable imprints thanks to former CIA intellects that would follow Luther’s instruction with masterful diligence.

  While under Luther’s guise and technical prowess, crooked Government agents have allowed Damascus and there sprawling clan to take refuge within a CIA underground research bunker. This facility has been low on the CIA retention/maintenance list, which allowed ease of access for reconfiguring this hydro-powered base. It is located within the cliffs of southern Baja California and well within striking distance to American territories.

  On the heels of the now panicked United Systems (the equivalent to our current United Nations) have collectively been keeping a vigilant observation over the sparks of chaos being spread throughout the Americas. Operators within the frantic headquarters gaze upon this new inquisition. The firestorm of activity across their large multi-panel screens, watching their military infrastructure being blasted by the Damascus Dominion and their plasma cannon firepower. They are outmatched by Damascus’ generals of new faith taking command aboard the fleet of advanced flying warships, Hover Battle Cruisers (HBCs) dominating the skies against any feeble aggression.

  The development of The HBC is the collaborative efforts of Soviet & American engineering (ripped from government databases & manufacturing facilities) that advances current theories in Military transport. Modeled after Naval watercraft, this battleship in the sky utilizes technological advances in anti-gravity mechanics & jet propulsion systems. The HBC evokes a more streamlined/aerodynamic design that was meant to cut through the clouds. The offensive weapons are well concealed underneath a series bi-fold hanger bay doors, in addition to the number of steel reinforced hulls that protect the crew members and its cargo.