Chapter 5

     The following week after the comet had appeared Sam and his two eldest sons and some others were down town at a business meeting. As it was a warm evening they decided to go for a beer at Brent's Uncle Jack's tavern with some of their friends. The tavern was situated along the river walk a favorite place for an evening out. It had many small restaurants and beer places and was usually a nice and exciting place to be.

     The town seemed normal and the events of the past weeks appeared to have been forgotten but Sam and his pastor buddy Steve Tyier, were both discerning that something was in the air.

     To get to the river walk district they had to walk through the town's main street this took them past the park entrance, which was the usual haunt of Old, Ron the street evangelist. When he saw the boys coming he stopped what he was doing and started to address Steve.

     "There's a illumination of souls coming Pastor. It will separate the sheep from the goats and after it everyone will have to decide for either Jesus or the man of perdition. They will have no doubt where this illumination is coming from and it will shock people who have either put God aside or have rejected belief in Him." Ron announced.

     "Yes Ron. God's power and might will be seen." Pastor Steve agreed.

     "Yes but... 'He', the anti-Christ will try to say that it was from him. He will try to tell people that the purification was from his hand, this foul son of perdition who will lead many to death and destruction. Look at this building where they queue and jostle to take his mark." Shouted Ron pointing to the chip implementation building that had become operational.

     "In the park his supporters are luring many to his clutches and distribute and promote his poisonous teachings. They have set up a permanent stall in this public place to entice the young and the vulnerable. They will be sorry. This night the Lord's wrath will be seen." He shouted shaking his finger and pointing at the guru paraphernalia stall in the park.

     "Pastor beware they will come and take you to their interment camps when the great persecution begins. They will brand all you religious as criminals and will say all sorts of bad things about you and other Christians. They will subtly whip up public anger against you. Your friends, neighbors and relatives will turn you in and betray you. You must get ready to go soon. Pray for protection that you don't fall into their clutches." Ron told Steve, and then he turned to Sam.

     "Sister Mary Jo the Catholic sister. Go to her and she will help you when the bad times begin. She will know what to do and where you are to go. There will be many refuges and you will know that you are safe when you see the luminous crosses. Only trust people with the mark of the Lord's cohorts." Ron told him.

     Sam was baffled by all this stuff that Ron was telling him and could not really understand.

     "The mark of the cohorts?" He asked.

     "Yes it is spoken of in holy scriptures in quite a few places." Ron said.

     "Then I saw another angel come up from the East, holding the seal of the living God. He cried out in a loud voice to the four angels who were given power to damage the land and the sea, Do not damage the land or the sea or the trees until we put the seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God." Shouted Ron.

     "Do not trust anyone with the mark of the beast even your own family members relatives or neighbors. You will all have to flee to the hills and ask the Lord to lead you to refuges. There are places prepared for you but times will be tough. Some will take the martyr's crown and some will live to see the beast and the false prophet being defeated when the Lord Jesus returns!" Ron avowed.

     "Sam you will be required to play a major role and many will look to you for guidance and direction. The Lord has chosen you for a specific task and you must be ready to do the Lord's bidding when the time comes. Charley stay with Sam. He will need you especially." Ron continued.

     "Now go you men and don't waste any time. You have a lot to do. It would be better if you didn't hang around here tonight. Stay close to your vehicles and one of you at least shouldn't drink alcohol. You Pastor keep watch. Tonight the Lord will show that He is Lord."

     The guys said nothing but Ron's words hyped them. They believed him prophetic.

     "Listen for a minute. What are you hearing tonight?" Ron asked them.

     "Well there's a heck of a lot of shrill sounding cries and shouting in the air tonight. I noticed it straight away." Said Charley.

     "That's right." Said Sam Junior.

     "There does seem to be a lot of shouting."

     "Louder than usual and definitely unpleasant." Brent observed.

     "You are a good reporter Brent." Ron said.

     "The noises you are hearing are the yells of those who have taken the mark. They now have unrest and disquiet in them. As well as that the anti-Spirit has descended on this town and surrounding areas. You must be careful. I urge you brothers to head home soon." Warned the old man.

     "This is not a good place to be tonight."

     "Thank you Ron. We ain't going to be long. Thanks for your words and God Bless." Said Pastor Steve.

     The boys went on through the town towards the river walk. They felt distinctly uneasy by now and were not really in the mood for drinking. Ron's words had disturbed them. They also started to become aware of the unpleasant feeling in the town. Groups of guru supporters ran through the town chanting his name. They saw at least six fistfights in the street and many people were drunker than usual and many were out of their skulls on drugs. A young woman tried to embrace Brent and got nasty when he pushed her away and started screaming at him. A group of youths threw a bottle at Will narrowly missing his head. Luckily Will had ducked. Some guys passed Charley knocking bodily into him. The big guy was ready to react and it was a well-known fact would have easily have thumped each and every one of them without much effort but Sam stayed his actions. The feeling of aggression was overwhelming and was everywhere.

     "Let's get out of here." Sam said. The others agreed.

     Just at that they noticed that something was happening up ahead. The crowd was watching something and applauding spontaneously.

     "Oh it might be another laser display." Brent said.

     "They did a real good Snow White and the Seven Dwarves a few weeks ago."

     As they rounded a corner they got a clear view of the goings on and were stopped in their tracks. The guys were all stunned into silence.

     Guru logos emblems and pictures of him were lighting up the sky in brilliant array. The crowd was becoming more and more wowed and excited by each display.

     When the words 'new messiah' and 'creator of the universe' lit up the sky above a huge hologram of the entity in question, most people applauded and shouted in approval. Sam and his group remained completely shocked into silence at the idolatry that was being purported.

     Suddenly they heard a commotion in the crowd as four people came pushing their way through the multitude of guru supporters disrupting their attention and concentration.

     The guys looked up to see police lieutenant Mike Douglas and his buddies Bobby MacDonald, Mark Chan and Joe McNally coming towards them.

     They had been for a night out and had been traumatized with all the guru worship, as they were all committed Christians.

     "Guys!" Shouted Mike Douglas.

     "Don't look on this exhibition of blasphemy and idolatry." He thundered.

     He and the other three came storming over to Sam's group.

     "Guys look away from these icons of idolatry. This exhibition is clearly from Satan and is only promoting the anti-Christ." Continued Mike.

     Steve took up the lead from Mike.

     "Mike's right." Steve shouted.

     "According to Holy Scriptures we are not supposed to even look on the beast or his image." He added loudly.

     Some people in the crowd started to look around angrily, mutter threats and complain to each other. They said that the guys were insulting the guru.

     "Hey you guys we don't like what you are saying!" One of them said.

     "Too bad!" Shouted Sam Junior.

     "Are you denying that the guru is the 'Ultimate Being'?" Asked another guru supporter in disbelief.

     "You bet we are!" Shouted Brent defiantly.

     "Your guru is a fraud and a charlatan!"

     "He is the new messiah." Declared another guru supporter.

     "When the real messiah comes back you will have no doubt who He is! He won't need to stage any phony laser demonstrations to prove who He is and everyone will recognize Jesus Christ as Lord!" Yelled Steve.

     "We like the guru and we believe what he is telling us." A woman yelled indignantly.

     "Jesus has had his day. The days of Jesus worship are over mister!" She continued mockingly.

     She then turned on Charley and Joe McNally.

     "You cop and you big boy! We know about your wives. They run baby and mother rescue cells along with that Catholic nun. They better watch their backs. We will soon stop their activities! Death to the unborn!" She shrieked.

     "Death to the unborn!"

     Charley and Joe were taken aback at this statement from the woman, as both their wives were involved in pro-life activities. Steve then turned to them all his face like thunder.

     "Woe to you who reject Jesus! He alone is the master of the universe and He alone deserves our praise. Woe to you who worship false prophets the beast and his image." Shouted Steve his voice ringing out clearly and concisely in the night air.

     "The guru said he would provide all our needs spiritual and temporal and that we can have a paradise here on earth with all the food and drink that we want." A male supporter told Steve.

     "We have been promised paradises here on earth before!" Continued Steve.

     "Lenin and Hitler both promised us paradises here on earth. Their paradises on earth never materialized. These were dictatorships but wait till you see what the beast has in store for you all!" Warned Steve.

     "The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth. Festering and ugly sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast or worshipped its image!" Steve shouted confidently and without fear.

     "When the real King of Kings comes back He will wipe away your guru with the light of His brightness." Shouted Mark Chan.

     "Hey! You go back to where you belong Mister." Shouted a guru supporter.

     "I belong here! I am American!" Mark replied.

     Mike Douglas had listened to all of this in growing ire. He had had a bad shift at the precinct arguing against new policies and changes that were coming to the police department and to the whole town. Mike had been told that he was to help put some of these changes into practice and things had been tough for him. The present chief of police had been in dispute with government officials who had suddenly appeared in his precinct and seemed to be running the whole thing.

     "C'mon guys! We are wasting our time. They deserve the guru and the consequences that will come from worshipping him." Mike roared in anger.

     The hostile crowd was now silent and stared malignantly at the guys.

     "You want us to beat the hell out of you?" Asked one of them in a threatening voice.

     "C'mon guy! Start with me!" Shouted Charley pushing himself to the front.

     "I sure love fighting!" He yelled grinning and pushing up his sleeves.

     "C'mon! I am waiting."

     Nobody wanted to fight Charley but the hostile crowd stared malevolently.

     There was a deeper silence after that and nobody said anymore but continued to stare at the group in a sinister manner.

     "Oh let's get out of here!" Said Bobby MacDonald, Mike's buddy.

     Mike and his three companions joined Sam's group and they walked away in the opposite direction from the laser show.

     "Guess we're in those times." Said Mike.

     "You better believe it!" Agreed Steve.

     The group all walked off together back down the riverside walk and decided to go and get their vehicles and go home. Sam offered to take the four guys home and they accepted.

     They walked to where Sam and Charley's vans were parked.

     As they entered the car lot they looked away from the laser show that was still going on and gazed over the public park to where some guru supporters were holding an outdoor meeting. They could hear his name being shouted and chanted throughout the night air.

     They listened in silence to Old Ron who was still going strong and berating the guru supporters. Ron's words of warning seemed to hang in the air.

     Just as they were about to go forward to their vehicles there was a flash in the sky.

     "What was that?" Steve asked.

     "The laser show no doubt." Answered Mark.

     "No. It came from the north."

     There was another almighty flash and the sky seemed to change. People, who had been milling around, stopped in their tracks and looked up to the sky. Sam's group looked up, their eyes riveted in fascination at the darkening sky as it changed and churned in a whirlpool of black, gray and dark blue.

     "Gee it looks as if there is going to be one humdinger of a storm." Commented Pastor Steve.

     "A storm ain't predicted." Sam, ever the informed rancher told him.

     "It ain't no tornado either." Will whispered.

     As he said this there was another almighty flash in the sky. Everyone looked up as the glow from it was overwhelming and dimmed the on-going laser show somewhat that was still taking place at the river walk area.

     Suddenly, the dark blue, gray colors in the night sky changed to a light blue and then purple. Next the colors seemed to explode into a brilliant reddish orange then pink with flashes of beautiful stunning golden light. Everyone shielded his or her eyes. The whole sky looked as if it was a giant kaleidoscope. Everyone in the immediate vicinity started in awe up at the sky. Sam's guys were speechless.

     "What is dad?" Will asked his father apprehensively.

     Nobody answered, as the night sky grew lighter and became as day and the colors glowed and changed again from pink and gold to deep red. For a minute it seemed as if the sun had turned to a glowing red. It was only then that they realized that it wasn't the sun but a huge celestial fireball. The sight was spectacularly breathtaking.

     "It's a comet!" Shouted Pastor Steve.

     "It's the comet of the tribulation!" He added.

     The mighty comet arced its way across the evening sky, its magnificent tail shining like a luminous streak of shimmering light. The guys watched astounded! Naturally, its dazzling appearance out shone the laser display, which suddenly stopped.

     The comet streaked through the heavens and was overwhelmingly beautiful and reverberated the Lord God's might,

     The whole of Fort Wayne appeared to be frozen in time, as everyone stood riveted looking up in total awe and fear at this mighty portent in the firmament.

     "Praise the Lord!" Yelled Mike Douglas.

     "Gee Lord! When y'all do things you don't do them in half measures!" Charley shouted.

     Then something happened that was unprecedented in comet behavior. The mighty fireball appeared to change direction and it seemed as it was going to strike the earth. It appeared to all watching that it was spiraling downwards and was on a collision course with the town. The brightness was unbearable and the guys shielded their eyes again. Suddenly, screams and shrieks went up from everywhere. There was hysterical wailing and frenzied shrieking and crying from the terrified crowds. Sam and his group remained calm and immediately started praying.

     Sam was sure that the comet was going to hit them and he pulled Will and Will's buddy Brent close to him and closed his eyes. Screams of absolute terror rent the now cool night air.

     "Lord Jesus cover us with your precious blood. Into Your hands we commend ourselves." Sam whispered.

     The others also prayed and held each other. Steve along with Mark, Mike and Joe McNally prayed out aloud and unafraid. Mark Chan and Joe McNally now had their rosaries in their hands and had started to say the Chaplet Of Divine Mercy. Sam had never heard this prayer before. These boys showed no fear and confidently prayed this set of prayers together. They were ready to meet their God.

     They could all hear Old Ron the elderly street evangelist who had been warning everyone about the Lord's 'Warnings' and the demonstration of His wrath. He prayed and praised the Lord aloud and unfaltering his arms raised upwards. Nobody laughed at the old man now.

     Mike, Bobby and Steve also prayed and praised aloud. The whole episode could only have lasted a few minutes but it seemed like hours.

     Then it seemed as if the comet changed its path again, made another elliptical arc and headed off into space. They watched in silent awe as it hurtled off and away from them this time.

     They all breathed a sigh of relief as they watched it head off into the infinity of the cosmos. The guys knew it would be back.

     "Praise the Lord!" shouted Sam. The others repeated this.

     By now a sinister darkness descended on Fort Wayne. There was an unmistakable silence throughout the town. The laser show wasn't resumed and the chanting had also stopped.

     The guys could see many people sobbing and crying and stumbling all over the place. Some people were sitting on the sidewalks in shock and others had left their cars in the middle of the street and were wandering about in dazed distress, traumatized by the threat of the comet striking the town. Sam hugged his sons and his friends and thanked God.

     Carl Harris was silent and very shaken indeed. He hadn't said a word through all of the evening's happenings. He was always loyal to Sam but hadn't yet accepted Jesus. He was deeply traumatized and very hyped. Sam had rescued Carl from a life of violence and had tried to lead him away from his neo-nazi beliefs and keep him on the right paths. He hugged the shaken Carl like a son.

     The boys went over to see if Old Ron was ok. Joe and Mark finished the Chaplet Of Divine Mercy that they had been saying and went with Sam and the others. Both men were radiant, calm and obviously filled with the Holy Spirit. Carl remained silent but thought deeply. Charley was shaken but was soon back to his usual.

     "Hey! Lord! Y'all showed them tonight. Y'all sure disrupted their meetings and their laser show. Scared them half to death. Good on you Lord. Hey Lord! Next time just let them have it. They don't deserve a warning after the way they've treated Your Son. Lord they've had two thousand years to change and heck have they not gone and got darned well worse. If I were You, I wouldn't put up with any more. Never mine no ark, I'd sure drown them this time and I'd let the gators get them also."

     "C'mon Charley!" Said Mike fondly slipping his arm around Charley's shoulders.

     "Let's go see if Old Ron is ok."

     Ron was standing in apparent ecstasy his arms raised. He looked up as Sam touched his arm.

     "Ron?"

     "It's my boys." Ron said.

     "Thank you Lord for this display of your might, majesty and infinite power. And we know from prophecy and Holy Scriptures that we ain't see nothing yet. Thank you Father."

     Then Ron turned to the boys.

     "Go home now. It isn't finished. You need to be out of here." He told them.

     "Can we give you a lift home Ron?" Sam asked.

     "Here is my son now. Now go home and look to your families. Don't worry as your children and wives will all be safe this night. Because you have openly declared for Jesus you and yours will be safe this night. Now get off home."

     Without any more words of explanation Ron went into his son's car and they drove off and up the street to the Hill district of Fort Wayne where Old Ron lived.

     Suddenly there was another flash of lightning and immediately another, followed by yet another. Next there was an almighty crack of thunder that almost sent them reeling.

     Without warning the heavens opened and the rain came down in torrents.

     The boys were taken aback. They ran for their vehicles and Sam and Charley fumbled for their keys. They were all out in their t-shirts and were wearing casual trousers or jeans.

     Nobody had expected a rainstorm, as it had not been predicted. A wind had got up also and it was unusually cold.

     Sam, Steve and the others had been in ranching and farming all of their lives and knew all the signs and symptoms of storms and other bad weather. They usually kept up to date with all the current weather situations and this storm had definitely not been predicted. The group of friends clamored into the vehicles dripping wet and shivering.

     They could see some of the guru posters that had been in the process of being put up in various places. These posters disintegrated into mush and were washed away in the unusually heavy rain. The guru supporters had left everything lying around and had ran for cover. The intense unrelenting rain downpour continued.

     All around people were scurrying to get under cover as the intensity of the storm increased. The lightning crackled and flashed all around and the thunder was deafening and almost seemed angry. A huge lightning bolt struck a giant billboard in the main street that displayed a portrait of the guru with the logo 'Fount of all wisdom the messiah of the new dawn.' This also disintegrated and crumbled to pieces. A few trees in the park were hit in the fury of the storm and they fell in disarray through out the public park. A tree that had stood near the entrance to the park for as long as Sam and the others could remember was struck by lightning and toppled across the new chip implementation building. Then as if to make sure that the building was damaged a huge bolt of lightning hit the building almost disintegrating it to match wood. Another bolt of lightning struck the town hall damaging a tower that had stood since before the Civil War and had lasted through the turbulent history of the southern town. The building had recently become the seat of the new regime and the mayor's office was in the tower area.

     Charley grinned and muttered under his breath.

     "Bet that scared the heck out of the mayor and put his fancy 'biomark' out of action!" He chortled.

     Sam and the others watched as this scene unfolded before their eyes.

     "Wow!" Said Brent and Will at the same time.

     "Hey! Let's get on our way fellas. We should not look on the wrath of the Lord. C'mon!" Mike urged.

     "He's right." Steve said. Let's get going and get out of here."

     "The Lord's hand is at work here." He added.

     As they made their way out of the car park they could see that the approach roads were all turning into rivers and it was difficult to make out the lane markings and to make matters worse mud was mixing with the rain water and causing vehicles to skid and slip. Very quickly Main Street was turning into a river and the public park into a quagmire. Drivers were having difficulty negotiating their vehicles due to the sudden and unexpected flood.

     "Gee!" Sam said.

     He could see Charley in front of him and knew that if anyone could lead them out of this it was Charley. He looked around at Sam and indicated for him to stay close. Charley proceeded to another exit and led Sam away from the main street to a slip road.

     As they traveled through the streets they could see that the storm was increasing in its ferocity and intensity. Charley rang Sam on his cell phone.

     "I'm taking a shortcut to Third Street so as we can avoid going up Main Street. Stick close beside me and go where I go." He ordered.

     "You got it."

     "And let's keep our cell phones on." Charley added. Sam thought he was seeing things as the lightning was coming thick and fast but appeared to be going through buildings. Was he seeing things he wondered?

     "Gee dad! Look that lightning is going straight through the buildings!" Yelled Sam Junior.

     "It sure is." Agreed Brent and Will.

     "Normal lightning doesn't behave like that!" Sam Junior said in hushed tones.

     "But this isn't normal lightning son." His father remarked.

     As they watched a flash of pink lightning traveled right through the town hall.

     Charley was immediately on the cell phone again and gave one of his famous rebel yells.

     "Shucks and that doggone mayor sure is going to be frazzled before the night is out. Bet he's cowering in the basement right now.

     Let's move guys!" He urged.

     "You got it!" Sam answered.

     "Wow! Hope everyone at home is ok." Sam Junior said.

     "You heard Old Ron but let us concentrate in getting out of here." His father Sam said.

     They could hear the noise of emergency vehicles and knew that the storm was fast reaching disaster proportions. As if the rain wasn't bad enough the heavens opened again and a deluge of hail descended on them. It was so fierce that most drivers could not see and had to pull their vehicles over to the side.

     Windows and windshields were shattered to pieces by the hail. Sam and Charley's vehicles weren't touched. Charley beckoned them on fiercely.

     Sam complied and soon they were heading into Third Street.

     A violent wind had got up by now and Sam was sure that there was going to be a tornado. Everywhere they could see more storm damage and vehicles damaged by hail. Sam knew that Charley was trying to head for higher ground and followed him. As they turned the corner to get onto a side street that would take them to higher ground they were met by a torrent of fast moving water coming down the street in front of them. The river had burst its banks and the storm was becoming an unparalleled disaster.

     Charley did a quick u-turn and Sam copied this and they drove up another street that could possibly take them onto higher ground. As they did this they spotted the huge funnel. It was indeed as Sam suspected a tornado and it was making its touchdown near the town center. Charley drove up and ahead and away from its path with Sam following close behind.

     Charley was back on the cell phone.

     The noise of the tornado was unmistakable and they knew it by experience. They didn't need to look around to know that it was there.

     "Gee Sam it is a monster. At least F4." Said a very shaken Charley.

     "I know bro." Answered Sam.

     "Head for the suspension bridge as the road bridge is no good to us with the river bursting its banks. It won't be stable either."

     "Got it!"

     Mike Douglas got out his communicator and called the precinct. He reported his position and the state of things at his end.

     They advised him to stay where he was but to continue to call in. 'Things' he was told were crazy and the whole town was in chaos.

     Brent called his newspaper and told them where he was and what he was seeing.

     When Sam and Charley got to the high suspension bridge high above the river they saw an awesome sight. The road bridge had been damaged in the storm and further down they could see that the tornado has smashed the other bridge away. Charley led them across the swaying suspension bridge and away from the town and from the tornado. They could hear helicopters in the air and everyone prayed silently. They soon reached more stable ground and followed Charley to safety. They were now on the access road to Sam's ranch and Sam told Charley to head there. Everyone would need to go to Sam's for the night.

     Just as they came to the back road towards the ranch they saw a vehicle broken down at the side of the road. Sam saw Charley pull up in front of the vehicle and Sam pulled over also. Neither he nor Charley could refuse anyone help in this weather. There were four men in the car.

     One was a young man and the other two were older, one was about Sam and Charley's age. Charley went forward to talk to them. He had a quick look at their vehicle and shook his head. He came running over to Sam. Joe and Mark seemed to know one of the men the young man.

     "Sam these poor guys are stuck here and their car can't be fixed here. They've been here for over an hour in worsening weather. I would need to get the car towed to the garage, as I can't do nothing here. I told them just to lock it up and come with us. We can't leave them here." Charley shouted.

     "Yeah that's ok. Poor guys look really traumatized." Sam observed.

     "Tell the guys to hop in and bring them up to the ranch. We'll get the car in the morning."

     "Ok. Will do Sam." Charley shouted.

     The four men got into Charley's van and the journey continued.

     From the access road it was plain to see that the interstate and the freeways were awash as were the back roads to Sam's ranch. They could see trees down on the freeway and all along their route.

     The storm continued and Sam and Charley drove in silence concentrating on getting there safely. They had to drive around and sometimes across felled trees and their task was difficult. Sam called home to make sure his sons and nephews; grandkids and daughters in law were down in the basement. His daughter in law Jenny assured him that they were already there ok and safe. The girls had been sick to death with worry about the men.

     Charley knew his wife and kids were out of town at his in-laws but gave Sue a call anyway as to reassure her that they were all ok and on the way to Sam's. The other guys called home to check on relatives and see how things were.

     On doing this they were all relieved and surprised to find that all was well with their families, their pets and their houses and all other property. Even Sam and Carl's livestock were all safe. They were well and truly spooked by the storm but safe. Old Ron's predictions had come true.

     Sam gave thanks to God as he entered his ranch and drove up the road toward the house. He was taken aback to see that there was hardly any storm damage anywhere on the ranch apart from a few older trees that had come down. His barns and ranching buildings were all intact as were Carl's farm buildings.

     As both vehicles arrived at the ranch house carport the storm was still raging and Sam urged the occupants to exit quickly and get inside. Within minutes they were safely inside and Sam secured the doors.

     "Get the wet stuff off you guys and make yourself at home. Get the coffee on someone. I need to go check on my kids." Yelled Sam.

     At this his two daughters in law Jenny and Melissa appeared. They both embraced their husbands and hugged Sam also.

     "We were so worried sick about you guys." Melissa told them.

     "We watched the local news on television and could not believe the things that were happening." Said Jenny.

     "And then the news footage and the picture disappeared so I guess the television studio was hit in some way also. When we put on the radio all we could get was a tornado alert. The tornado appeared so suddenly that there was no time to warn the public in the usual way the news said."

     "Yes it came out of no where." Said Young Sam.

     "I'll bet the tornado has wrecked the town." Melissa added.

     "I'll bet it has!" Said Sam as he walked towards the basement stairs, drying off his face and hair with a towel.

     "Make yourselves at home everyone."

     As Sam went down to the basement his two nephews came running up to him from their room in the basement.

     "Uncle Sam did you see the comet?" Yelled Nathaniel excitedly.

     "Yes I did son. It was something wasn't it?"

     "Gee we thought it was going to hit us." Said Chad.

     "No the Lord is angry with those people who have turned their back on Him. We are trying to live in His light and by His commandments. We don't need to worry about anything." He reassured them both as he hugged them.

     Just then his sons Zack, Aaron and Nathan came running out of their room yelling excitedly.

     "Dad were you near the tornado? Did you see the comet? Did you see it?" They asked in excited voices.

     "Yes to both questions." Sam said laughing.

     "We saw the tornado but we were driving in the opposite direction as it made its touchdown somewhere near the town." Sam explained.

     "We saw the comet as we were standing in the car lot."

     "Gee Dad! We all thought that it was going to hit the town. Do you think it will come back?" Aaron asked.

     "It may do so. We need to trust in Jesus and hope and pray." Sam told them.

     "Hey dad. When we thought that the comet was going to hit us, well we all just joined hands and said the Lord's Prayer." Zack told them.

     "I'm proud of y'all!" Sam said hugging each in turn.

     "Now I hope you guys have all done your homework, brushed your teeth and are ready for tomorrow?"

     "Yes dad."

     "Sure Uncle Sam."

     "Yes Sir!"

     "Ok time you were all in bed and asleep. We have guests tonight and you guys may need to double up."

     "Sure." They all answered.

     There was no complaining or groaning. Sam hugged each child again and they all went off to bed. He went off to see his older sons the twins Wes and Jeffery. They had been preparing for their final exams as this was graduating year at high school and they had been working hard.

     "Hey dad! Wow! Were y'all out in that right enough? Jenny said that she thought you were all down town." Jeffrey said.

     "You bet we were." Answered Sam.

     "Sure glad to get home in one piece." He told them.

     "Gee thank God y'all got home safely. Uncle Zack phoned and said it was like a war zone down town?" Wes said.

     "Yup!"

     Sam and his two sons went to the window of the den and looked out. The storm was still raging.

     "Guess there are a lot of folks tonight that will know that the Lord Our God is displeased with them." Sam stated.

     "Dad will the rapture come now?" Asked Wesley.

     "I don't know rightly son. I'm not so sure about the rapture anymore. We need to trust in Jesus and hope, pray and watch but I think we may experience the tribulation and the persecution. It kind of looks as if we ain't going to miss anything after all."

     "Dad I was telling Kathleen McNally about the rapture and she said that there won't be no rapture. That the Blessed Mother, Jesus' mother told some kids somewhere that everyone living would experience the tribulation." Jeffrey told him.

     "Kathleen said that everyone living would endure the tribulation and the great persecution."

     "Huh?" Who?" Sam asked taken aback.

     "It's his girl friend dad." Laughed Wes.

     "He is in love with Kathleen McNally."

     "Get lost." Shouted Jeffrey in embarrassment as he threw a pillar at his brother.

     "What about you and Louisa Vincelli?" Jeffrey came back at his twin brother.

     "Hey! Hey boys! Everyone is entitled to his or her own religious beliefs. We come from the Baptist tradition and we hold to that."

     "Dad did you know that the Catholics believe that in their Eucharistic service that the bread and wine becomes the body and Blood of Jesus? It is called transubstantiation and dad the service is real cool. There was a real particular feeling at the service that I have never experienced before." Continued Jeffrey.

     "Hey dad Jeff is going to turn Catholic!" Wesley said with a laugh.

     "When were you at a Catholic service?" Sam asked a bit perturbed.

     "Oh I went with Kathleen before our disco."

     "Dad! Marissa O'Grady says that many people are saying that the properly elected new Pope is going to disappear and an imposter or false pope will soon ascend the 'Throne of Peter'. Pope Peter is too outspoken and very much against the guru and the new regime and the chip. She also said and that the church will have to go underground so as to practice the true faith. Her dad said and that it says in the Book of Daniel that the Catholic Mass will be abolished during the three and a half years of the tribulation and they will all have to practice their faith in secret."

     Sam stared at his son in disbelief. He had never heard this kind of talk before and didn't rightly know how to handle it or what to say.

     He had never had any Catholic connections until the commitment to Jesus course and had not known the first thing about the Catholic Church. He had never had the opportunity to investigate Catholic beliefs nor did he know what to say of think at that moment.

     "I'll speak to you in the morning son. Now get some sleep."

     "Ok dad. Good night."

     He hugged each boy in turn and went out of the room.

     Sam was a little bit perplexed at what his son Jeffrey had just told him but he needed to see to his guests and so went back up stairs to the living room where they all were sitting sipping hot drinks. Will handed him a mug of hot coffee.

     The four men that they had picked up were sitting there. One of them came over to Sam.

     "Thank you for your hospitality. I am Dan O'Connell." He said in an Irish accent.

     "Sam Elliott and these are all friends and family." Sam answered.

     "Y'all wouldn't be anything to Sister Mary Jo?" He asked.

     "She is my sister." Dan answered.

     "Oh I know her." Sam told him.

     "She is one nice lady."

     "This is my friend Jim Richards. He is from the UK and is only over here on an exchange visit."

     "Howdy!" Sam said shaking his hand.

     "I appreciate you stopping." Jim said in an English accent.

     "You're welcome. Make yourselves at home."

     The younger man came forward.

     "Hi Mr. Elliott I am Brendan Shaunessy. Thanks for helping us."

     "Hi Brendan. Y'all make yourselves at home."

     The fourth guy came forward.

     "Hello Mr. Elliott I am Ilya Shevchenko. These very kind gentlemen picked me up from a stranded car and unfortunately then became stranded themselves." The man said in a strange foreign accent.

     Sam looked at him.

     "You ain't from around here."

     "No I am not. I too am over here on a study tour."

     "Where y'all from?" Sam asked him.

     "I am from a small town outside of Moscow." Ilya announced.

     Sam stared at him.

     "Really? Gee that is something. You are all very welcome. Make yourselves at home." Sam told them.

     "We, my sons and I are going to check on the livestock and the ladies are going to organize some food for us all so sit back and rest up and help yourself to coffee and we'll be back soon. See if y'all can get any television at all and we'll see what is going on in the world. Anyone that needs to phone home to relatives be my guest. There is a phone in the hall and my cell phone is on the table." Sam informed everyone.

     Steve helped the guests and soon became allied with the young man called Brendan. Mark and Joe seemed to know the young man and went over to him. Everyone got talking about the comet and the storm the guru and the state of the world. It emerged that none of them were guru supporters and in fact all were all religious except Ilya.

     The two men Dan and Jim turned out to be doctors at Mercy hospital.

     Sam and his two eldest sons Will and Sam Junior came back and got talking to everyone. They had found spare clothes for everyone and there were extra sleeping bags.

     The supper was served and as they were sitting Sam asked the guests if one of them would like to give the blessing. All eyes were on the young man Brendan and he duly did the honors.

     Sam's son Jeffrey came upstairs to get something and spotted Ilya. He quietly took his dad aside and whispered to him.

     "Dad! That guy is the cosmonaut that has been talking to us all. We were all taken to hear him talk about his experiences in space." Jeffery told him.

     "Y'all sure?" Sam asked.

     "Yeah that's him and the young guy is Father Brendan from Kathleen's church."

     "He is a Roman Catholic priest?" Sam asked.

     "Yep. He is real nice."

     "Gee we sure have a variety here tonight."

     Sam went over to where Ilya was.

     "Uh Ilya my son here thinks you may be a cosmonaut on tour over here. Is that correct?"

     Ilya smiled and stood up.

     "Yes I am."

     "Wow!" Said Jeffrey.

     "Gee!"

     "We are honored to have you. I ain't ever met a Russian before let alone a Russian cosmonaut. So welcome and make yourself at home."

     "Thank you." Ilya said.

     Sam turned to Mike the young man.

     "Oh and my son also tells me that you Brendan are a Catholic priest?"

     "Yes that is so. I am a deacon at the church in town."

     "You are very welcome. We are Baptist but we have just all been at the commitment to Jesus course and as I say, you are all welcome. I would ask my older sons and some of my friends to watch their language."

     Brendan and the others laughed at this.

     "I hear from Father Ben that he's a good hand at Poker!" Charley said.

     Again everyone laughed.

     "What do we call you?" Sam asked.

     "Father Brendan will do."

     "Father Brendan this is our pastor Steve Taylor. You guys have more or less the same boss so you should have plenty to talk about."

     Steve and Father Brendan seemed to hit it off.

     "And if we get anymore stuff happening to us tonight we'll be ok and in good hands as our other two guests Dan and Jim are doctors at Mercy Hospital. You are also both welcome."

     Sam and his sons fixed out the sleeping arrangements and as there was plenty of room at the ranch there was a bed for everyone. Sam turned around to see all of his sons and his two nephews peeking over the banister.

     "What are you guys still doing up?" Yelled Sam.

     "Dad can we see the cosmonaut?" They all pleaded.

     "Oh come on up the lot of you."

     Ilya gladly spoke to Sam's family and signed their books and answered their questions. The boys were so excited that Sam let them speak to Ilya a few more minutes and then called a halt.

     "Ok boys. Ilya is tired and so are all of us. Off to bed and we'll see y'all in the morning." He ordered.

     The boys were as excited as hares and went off to bed elated and thrilled.

     Sam made himself a stiff drink and then fixed drinks for everyone else. They settled back to see if they could get a news program. Eventually they did and it was full of the night's events. The storm and the tornado and the comet were well documented.

     They watched in disbelief as the storm damage was shown. There were fatalities and a whole lot of storm damage.

     Mike got a call from the precinct and went outside to take it.

     He was told to be on the look out for a missing visiting Russian dignitary, a cosmonaut the watch commander told Mike.

     "It is ok. Search over. He is here at Sam Elliott's and is staying here for the night." Mike told them.

     Mike went back and informed llya about the message.

     Just as the news was finishing there was a news flash. The election of the African Pope Peter had been declared null and void and according to the report he had accepted this ruling and had resigned. There was utter silence from everyone. There was no explanation given and the Catholics present all looked at each other in disbelief.

     "Popes don't resign!" Exclaimed Mark Chan.

     "What evil is this?" He added.

     "We knew that they were trying to remove him." Father Brendan told everyone.

     Before anyone could answer another news flash came up on the screen. There had been more developments over the Papal election and now there was yet another new Pope. According to the news from Vatican City he had been elected at a special, extraordinary convened sitting of the College of Cardinals. He had accepted the 'Throne of Peter' and was already getting ready to make his first broadcast. Nothing more was said at that point and the news channel did not know his name or anything about him.

     To heighten the tension it was also announced that the guru was to make a special proclamation to the world the following week.

     When you see the desolating abomination spoken of through Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains, a person on the housetop must not go down to get things out of his house, a person in the field must not return to get his cloak. Woe to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days. Pray that your flight not be in winter or on the Sabbath, for at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will be. And if those days had not been shortened, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect they will be shortened.