The Legend of Dark City

Chapter 14

Simon was informed that a group of armed soldiers were heading towards their settlement. He made the necessary arrangements to keep the secrets of the cult hidden from prying eyes and strode out to meet the platoon. His followers looked to him for the answers to all their troubles and he needed to be seen to be in charge of the situation despite being terrified of what may be about to happen.

That was the problem with being at the head of a new religion. His people wanted guidance from him all of the time and it was exhausting. At first, he had involved himself in all aspects of his sect but it had been too much. Simon had decreed that he needed more time to meditate and commune with God and had thereby given himself some much needed time off.

Armed troops heading for his settlement was not the type of thing a messiah could ask someone else to deal with. He was now striding down the road to encounter men who could be dangerous. He was ruing the day that he had decided to take this particular course. He hoped that the way he was dressed would stop any immediate aggression and give him a chance to talk his way out of this predicament.

Dr Sharma was the spokesperson for the group which included mostly male but a couple of female soldiers. He was not in uniform and was relatively short, about five foot seven, and it was felt that he was less threatening as a result. The man who stood in front of Sam was about fifty years of age and was quite fat. Anyone who was overweight in this post apocalyptic world was definitely taking more than their fair share of the food. For everyone, supplies were thin on the ground.

The man was dressed in a long hooded white robe and carried a staff. He was the epitome of a cult leader as depicted on television and in films. This was Simon and Sam instantly didn't like him. He was there in the role of diplomat so he fixed a smile to his face and said how delighted he was to make his acquaintance.

"I am Dr. Sharma. I'm travelling with a group of soldiers. We are touring the region, finding settlements and checking whether they need any assistance. We are not here to try to take over, or interfere. This is about offering help." It was a story that had been agreed upon back at Dark city.

"Please come into our village and share a meal with us." The last thing that Simon wanted was for troops to be wandering amongst his people but turning them away would only raise suspicions.

The people the soldiers saw as they walked into the settlement were generally covered in hoods and were working at various jobs.

"Those out working will return in time for the evening meal. We have a good life here with almost everything we need. If you want to spend the night here Captain Armitage, you are welcome. I think it would be best if you moved on tomorrow. I don't want the routine interrupted too much. There is a lot of work to do feeding all of my people."

That meant that Captain Armitage and his platoon had only a short time to talk to the people of the cult and establish if there was anything there for them to discover. They were primarily looking for immunes but if they saw injustice or oppression they would try to intervene. He sent a man and a woman from his troops out to the fields, without their weapons, to talk to the workers. If they were away from Simon's influence they may be more inclined to reveal some of the secrets of the cult.

In the centre of the camp the Captain and the Doctor were being shown the perfection of the society Simon had built. The people were happy and well fed. They were devoted to him because he met their physical and spiritual needs. They prayed together every day and gave thanks that God had spared them from his reaping and brought them to Simon who would save their souls. Sam was not sure of the etiquette when addressing a redeemer so he threw caution to the wind and enquired how his flock were going to be saved.