Chapter 4   Isaac's Lament   author: Veyanne - yellow , Henos - red  
Isaac was walking on air. God was going to be so proud of him.

He had captured the overlord's twins, a son and a daughter. "How strange.", he thought of the twins sexes, "No matter. The heathens will convert or they shall die. Either way we shall succeed. God shall be glorified, my father shall be avenged, righteousness will flow across the land, and evil will be banished forever."

His mind whirled with excitement. He felt so holy, so pious, so pure. He felt like God was smiling down upon him, filling him with joy. He closed his eyes and reveled in the moment. He clasped his hands together in prayer.

"Oh God.", the boy preacher spoke aloud, "I am forever in your debt. I am your servant. I shall do as you wish forever my Lord."

"Your holiness," the priest spoke as he bowed before the boy, "the twins are awakening."

"The blessed moment has arrived.", Isaac smiled broadly, "bring them to the hall of worship. We shall fill them with the holy spirit. They shall know the love of God."

Isaac knew the love of God. He felt it so strongly. He knew God would convert the two atheist children. He knew if they felt what he was feeling that they would believe. God was all powerful. Of that he was certain.

The children were brought before the altar and were made to kneel. They squirmed and kicked and screamed. Each time they did so they were treated harsher. When they saw Isaac's smiling face they stopped squirming and stared at him. He looked angelic.

"Who is he," Thenna whispered.

"Children. We are all brothers and sisters in the eyes of God." began the boy preacher, "There is no need to fight. There is no need to cause pain. We are all of the same family, the family of God."

Henos winked at his sister and smiled.

"You see. I am a child of God too.", Isaac spread his arms wide and looked upward, "I am a child just like you.", he looked down at the twins with a contented grin.

Henos grinned back.

"You may be a child, but you're not like us.", Thenna said with disgust.

The man holding her down slapped her hard across her face. "Do not disrespect God.", he reprimanded.

"She has more respect for him than you," said Henos bravely.

Thenna began to cry. She was slapped again, harder this time.

"Hush!", the man said.

She sobbed silently to herself. Her brother felt the anger within him grow. He fought back with rage. It took two men to control him. They slapped him and when that didn't work they hit him with their fists. Henos fought fiercely but the two men wore him down. They set him down forcefully on his knees. His face was flushed. His eyes were full of tears. His mind was full of evil thoughts. But he had no choice. He knelt by his sister and listened to the boy preacher.

The ordeal seemed to go on for hours. The preacher talked and talked and talked. He was so nice and gentle. He told them all about God and glory and salvation. He told them about rejoicing in heaven. He told them about the sacrifice on the cross. But most of all he told them about love, God's love. The greatest love in the world. A love that was going to make the world pure again.

Isaac's gentleness only sickened Thenna and Henos. The children wouldn't accept God.

Then the preacher started to talk about hell and damnation.

The twins looked at each other with raised eyebrows.

Isaac didn't want to scare them into worship but he couldn't make them feel God's love. It's was their parents fault he thought. They didn't show the twins any love. He felt he had no choice. He terrified them with visions of hellfire. He told them of eternal punishment. He told them they were going to be tortured forever.

The children knew it was all a lie. They still wouldn't accept God.

Isaac lowered his head. The children were beyond his help. He gave them one final choice. Belief or death.

The children turned and looked at each other. New tears welled in their bloodshot eyes.

They realized that it wasn't an empty threat.

"I don't want to die.", Henos said with a lump in his throat.

"I don't want to be like them.", Thenna replied shaking her head.

The world began to turn very cold.

"Know the truth," said the boy preacher, "and the truth shall set you free."

The doors at the front of the hall slowly opened. Isaac lifted his head to see who it was. His eyes locked on the gaze of a woman with firey red eyes. Her skin was dark. Her hair was white. She wore more jewelry than clothing and very little of either. Isaac watched her walk up the aisle toward them. Her hips swayed seductively back and forth. Her eyes locked on every man in the hall one by one.

One of Isaac's men walked up the aisle toward her and held out his palm. "Stop." he said. The woman drew her sword and kept walking toward him. She stared right through him. He fumbled and drew his weapon. The children turned to see what was happening. For a moment there was silence.

The twins gazed on her with fascination. The woman had something familiar, somehow.

The woman lunged forward. Her stroke was a blur. Isaac watched as his servant spun around to face him. His shirt was stained with blood. He began to fall but the woman grabbed his collar and held him up. The man groaned. The dark woman leaned his head back, parted her lips, and kissed him as he died.

She took in his last breath and let him fall to the floor. She turned her head and looked deep into Isaac's eyes. She pursed her lips and blew his servant's last breath towards him, mocking him.

The children looked at it with their mouths wide open, awe on their
faces....

Isaac stared at her. He couldn't believe his eyes. Finally he uttered to his men, "Get her!". They had already jumped into action.

Kendra was a blaze of action. She leaped into the air and began running atop the pews. Her agility was catlike. She moved with the speed of a gazelle. Three men were approaching her from the left side of the hall. Isaac watched in awe as the dark woman flew past his men. Her red blade flashed. His men fell like dominos.

Henos jumped up and cheered....

She stopped at the left side of the pulpit. She slowly turned and looked back. Isaac and three others stood in front of the altar. The twins were kneeling between them. Isaac scrambled out of the way. His voice quivered as he told his men to kill the woman. Two simply turned and ran away.

Thenna joined her brother and cheered as well....

The Witch Queen slowly walked toward to third, taunting him with her hips. Her gaze never moved from his eyes. He drew his sword and stood his ground. Isaac could see his last man trembling as the woman approached. He said a quick prayer to God for help.

The twins looked at the scene with excitement on their faces.

Kendra slashed at the man three times. Each stroke was blindingly fast but clanged off the man's sword. Each time the man fell back. Kendra stopped, turned her back, and closed her eyes. The man stood still in disbelief. Isaac looked down at her. He felt a ray of hope. He thought to himself, "God has heard me. God has answered my prayer. God has turned back the beast."

"Shut up," yells Thenna, "the evil witch has come for you!"

"And she will eat you alive," shouts Henos. Then the twins do some
sort of childlike imitation of the woman's gestures....

His remaining servant lunged to strike. The blow never landed. Isaac watched the man's head fall to the ground. He turned to look at the dark woman. His eyes met her gaze once again.

The joy Isaac felt earlier in the day was now far away. Now fear utterly consumed him. His heart was racing. He stood there paralyzed. He watched the woman jump up onto the pulpit. She grasped his arm and dragged him over to the cross.

"Who are you?", he asked staring into her red eyes. Then he felt a more powerful rush of fear, "Dear God, you're the devil incarnate! You're the daughter of Satan!"

Kendra said nothing. Isaac felt himself lifted up off the ground. He saw her draw a knife. "Oh God no!", he thought. His eyes bulged. His heart pounded. Kendra pulled back her arm. Then she thrust the knife straight though his wrist and into the cross. Isaac shrieked with pain. Kendra grabbed his other arm. Isaac watched her draw another knife. "God have mercy on me. Please, have mercy!". He screamed in pain once again as the knife pierced his other wrist. He hung limply from the cross. The blades dug into his flesh. His agony was excruciating.

The twins have knelt back, Thenna in the arms of her brother, silent
but watching closely. They almost pity the preacher-boy....

Then it all began to seem like a dream. Isaac was floating above the pulpit. He looked down at the dark woman who stared back at him. Her expression never changed. Isaac pleaded to God to save him. He begged His forgiveness. He repented. He knew he had done something to anger God. He knew that was why God had forsaken him. But he did not know what he did to deserve it. "Why God? Why?" he pleaded.

Kendra watched Isaac writhing on the cross. Then she went down to check on the children. They shyed away from her. They'd never seen anyone who looked like her before. She pulled out another knife and cut the cord which bound Thenna's hands. She gave the knife to Thenna. Thenna cut her brother loose as Kendra stood up and pointed her finger at Isaac. His robes began to burn.

Isaac felt the heat of the flame. It pulled him out of the dream. Pain was shooting through his body. He screamed. From the very depths of his soul he screamed. He knew he had disappointed His God. His God was going to send him to hell.

"Please God, please!", the screams echoed through the hall.

The children took one last look at Isaac. He was a horrifying sight. They turned around and ran out the door.

The Witch Queen basked the pain and suffering that she had wrought.