Published: 20 Jan 2020

The Evangelical Project, Dike and Friends

Dike

Garreth asked for a meeting about the “evangelical project.” I had some understanding of the evangelicals’ beliefs. After all, I knew Yahweh. I did not agree with his ideas about original sin and damnation. In fact, I did not agree with most of his Old Testament personae … Thou shalt not kill…except those who aren’t the Chosen People, and thou shalt slaughter them and their children and their manservants and their goats … for example. The injunction to honor thy father and mother would make sense only if it had been balanced by don’t abuse your children, physically or mentally, something that seemed lacking in the modern canon.

And I certainly didn’t agree what with that lawyer … Saul of Tarsus … and the people who forged some of the letters attributed to him … had done to mess up a decent and simple way of living that the demi-god Jesus had preached. I did, however, have a big problem with the way the evangelicals pushed their perversion of the good news, and brainwashed their children with it. I also had a problem with Yahweh not doing something about it. He is too – as Nemesis put it – too hung up on free will.

Even gods burn out after a while. The originals were the strongest. There were only a few of us originals left. Yahweh wasn’t an original, and I didn’t think he was going to be around for much longer. That was something that gave me encouragement.

My schedule was full, including some things I could not reveal to Garreth. I was fumbling through the calendar, looking for a time, when Garreth spoke.

“Would you like to get together for lunch? No matter how busy you are, you do have to eat. May I take you to lunch?”

He paused. “You do have to eat, don’t you?”

Gary

Dike laughed. She was truly in grandmother mode when she said, “Do you think we live on nectar and ambrosia? You’ve seen that boy of yours eat.” She laughed again. “I know a fine deli down the block from my office. Please, it will be my treat.”

That boy of yours … she means Nemesis … and she called him ‘my boy’ … I love him so much! I shivered, half with fear and half with love for Nemesis. She’s the elder god. She’s in charge. Nemesis is her servant. She’s going to see how much we love each other!

Oh, please, please don’t let her find fault with me!

Nemesis

We met Dike at the Deli – Gary, Caden, and I. I wore khakis, a white polo-style shirt, and penny loafers. It was exactly what Gary wore. He noticed, and was suddenly full of happy, and then, a little fear. He was afraid of Dike! I thought. It was too late to change. I was sweating when we walked into the deli. But Dike hugged me. She smelled like a grandmother – all lavender and powder. She smiled and sent a feeling of … not love, not happiness, but approval!

Lunch was truly out of this world. After we were served, Dike put some kind of shield around us, and we talked. Gary told her the plan for the evangelical operation. She said she would provide US Marshalls and warrants when we were ready to raid their places. I knew when she said “US Marshalls” she meant Scions of Hermes. I wasn’t afraid of them, any more.

Then, we just talked. She asked Gary about baseball; she talked about history with Caden. She looked at me, and I was afraid she was going to ask me about my old life, but she only smiled. Before we left, she pinched my cheek.

“You’re a good boy,” she said. “And Gary is a good man. Listen to him. Hide nothing from him … not who you are or how you feel. Do you understand?”

I nodded. Not everything came to me in words. A lot came from her mind, just as it had the first time in her office. I knew what she meant. I was happy.

Caden

The woman was a mass of contradictions. Gary introduced her as Superior Court Judge Everhart; she insisted I call her Candi, and laughed about how far ahead of the times her parents must have been to name her that. She hugged Nemesis, and pinched his cheek, and I saw a grandmother behind the judge. Then, Gary told her about the plan, and I saw the judge come back … with eyes that glowed, and I remembered she was something more than either a judge or a grandmother.

After she and Gary settled some details, she turned back into a grandmother … no, she turned into an Auntie Mame. She regaled us with stories, and drew each of us into the conversation, including Nemesis, who seemed stunned to be in such erudite adult company.

I had a lot more questions for Dike; however, she seemed a pragmatist: this is the way it is, work with it. So far, that was the best advice I’d gotten.

Gary

Dike played her grandmother role to the hilt, even pinching Nemesis’ cheek before she left us. I didn’t hear what she said to him (and was pretty sure what she said aloud wasn’t all she said), but Nemesis looked at me, and smiled. It was a happy smile, one of the happiest I’ve seen from him. I smiled back to let him know I shared his unspoken joy.

Before we left, Dike surprised me, again. She opened her purse and pulled out a book. A pink autograph book. “Garreth, before we go … may I have your autograph?”

Dike

I think Caden will be the right tool for this task. He was interesting. He was as full of contradictions as Garreth and Nemesis, though. Garreth sublimated his lust for little boys by exhausting himself on their behalf. Nemesis wanted to be closer to Gary, but was afraid he would lose him if he tried. Caden was depressed by his medical condition and constant lack of sleep, but exhilarated by the thought of doing some good with what was left of his life. If it weren’t for the antipsychotic drugs he was taking, he’d be blithering. He was willing to help Garreth take on the evangelicals, but his energy was muted; he was not operating at 100%. I had to do something about that.

I called in a favor.

Caden

I slid into bed and lay spread-eagle on my back, as usual. Two rooms down the hall, I knew Gary and Nemesis were cuddling. I felt sorry for myself, and managed to squeeze a couple of tears from my eyes.

The door opened. I saw the ceiling brighten slightly, and turned my head to the left. A shadow stood in the doorway.

“Caden? May I sleep with you?”

It wasn’t Nemesis’ voice. Who? Bobby? Benji? When did they get here?

I turned my head. The silhouette of a boy stepped into the room. The door closed behind him. Soft footsteps approached. The covers lifted. A warm body slid into the bed beside me.

“Will you cuddle me, please?”

It was too late to say no. I rolled onto my side, wrapped my arms around him, and fell asleep.

I woke the next morning with a boy in my arms. I could see only his black curls. Black? Not anyone I knew. I panicked.

The boy stretched, yawned, rolled over, and looked at me.

“Good morning, Caden. How do you feel?”

“Quite well, thank you. Who are you?”

“A friend of Dike’s … she asked me to visit. I’ve got to go, now.”

He disappeared. Just vanished.

Other than wondering which child-god had needed a cuddle, I felt pretty good. I swung my legs over the side of the bed. My first task every morning was to put on long socks and then strap on leg braces. Something was different … my atrophied muscles … they weren’t atrophied any more! I grabbed my sticks, and stood, and realized I could stand without the sticks, or the braces.

Asclepius, I thought. God of healing.

Gary noticed, immediately. He was as stunned as I was. Nemesis had slept in, as usual. When he came to the kitchen, I was standing at the sink, rinsing a glass.

“Wow!” he said. “Apollo?”

“Asclepius, rather, I think,” I said. “About your age, with black curls?”

“That’s Apollo,” Nemesis said. “He told me he had a son who was the doctor-dude? But he’s not doing that, any more except in the Mediterranean. Apollo said he still does healing stuff, just to keep his license current.” Nemesis giggled.

I could not reconcile the magic that Nemesis and Dike were capable of, with the reality that I believed. So, I formed a hypothesis … something to ground me in reality. What I had seen included telepathy, illusion, healing, and translocation. For the moment, my hypothesis was that these people had a brain chemistry whose electrical component was stronger than normal, and made it possible for them to tap into something like dark energy. That was too much for me to understand, and went well beyond my PBS Science Friday program understanding of science. I decided to be naïve, and accept what I didn’t understand. That didn’t mean I was going to worship any of them. But, as Sherlock Holmes said, when you eliminate the impossible, whatever is left, however improbable, is the truth.

Nemesis

I fell asleep, cuddled in Gary’s arms. I felt safe there until I was burning in the fires of Hell!

I screamed myself awake, but the flames were still there. So was Gary. I could feel him. I reached out to him, but he was already holding me.

“It burns! It’s burning!” I screamed. Then, it became, “They’re burning! They’re burning!”

Gary slapped me, and immediately pulled me to him.

“I’m sorry, Nemesis!” he gasped. “I’m sorry … you were hysterical.” I felt his anger – at himself. He was crying for me, because I had a bad dream, for himself for having hit me.

Then I realized the flames were still there. They were in my mind. They weren’t hurting me, but they were hurting someone. I felt pain, fear, and panic, but they came from outside of me.

A boy popped into the room. He brought his own light. I recognized him. It was Apollo.

“Nemesis, I need help,” he said. I kissed Gary’s cheek and grabbed Apollo’s hand. We popped … into the flames.

“Grab one and follow me!” Apollo said.

Grab one what? I wondered, and then saw children … twenty or more … pushing against a door. The door wouldn’t open. Smoke filled the hallway. I could barely see, and knew the children could see even less. There was an explosion behind me. I looked over my shoulder and saw a wall of fire moved toward us. Apollo had popped out with one child, and had returned.

“Grab—” he said.

“No time,” I interrupted. I pushed my way through the children, drew my sword, and struck the chains that held the door closed. The door swung outward. Encouraged by a rush of air, the fire behind me increased its pace, but the children stumbled out ahead of the fire. I saw Apollo pop out just before the fire reached him.

The door opened into a parking lot. The children scattered. Apollo grabbed me. “There are more, elsewhere…”

The next minutes were a blur. Apollo seemed to know where children were trapped by the fire. He popped me to them; we would grab a child and pop to safety, or I would break open a door. Over and over; the night became a blur. I watched Apollo heal children. I asked if I could do that, too. He gestured me back into the flames.

Gary

I had never been so frightened for Nemesis. All the skills I learned in combat, in competitive sports, and in business, they all left me as adrenalin flooded my body. Fight or flight reflex, I knew, just when we needed to think calmly and rationally, that evolutionary remnant from our days as tree-climbing primates on the plains of Africa came back to haunt us.

As soon as I could calm down, I called Dike. Nemesis had shared with me the warning he had received: don’t piss her off. But now, I was beyond any fear of her.

She answered before I heard a ring. “He is safe. Summon Caden to your home. Prepare for visitors.” She hung up. Her voice had been flat, without emotion. She had been brusk, but, I don’t think she was angry. I had almost gotten her angry when I offered her stale coffee and artificial creamer, once. I thought I knew her “pissed off” voice. I called Caden, and put on a pot of coffee.

Caden arrived at 2:30 AM. It had been nearly an hour since Nemesis and the other boy had popped out of our bedroom. I tried to explain to Caden.

“Nemesis had a nightmare; he was dreaming of fire, I think. Then, a boy about his age, wearing a tunic, popped into the bedroom and took Nemesis with him. Nemesis seemed to know him…”

“Boy in a tunic?” Caden asked. “Curly black hair? Husky voice?”

Caden’s own voice was slow, almost nonchalant.

“How do you expect me … ” I started to say. I realized Caden was trying to help me stay calm and he was right to ask. I thought for a minute.

“Yes. Yes, to both.”

“Probably Apollo,” Caden said. “You remember that he visited me?”

I nodded. “But flames?”

“Have you checked the news?”

I turned on the television and switched to a local station. Caden and I watched with growing horror as they told of the fire at an orphanage – the one where Caden was going to apply for a job. They told of windows blocked with bars … of doors chained shut … of children screaming at barred windows while flames licked at their hair … of those children falling back when fire burst through the windows from which the children could not escape.

Nemesis

The fire department and paramedics finally had the situation under control. Apollo had healed scores of children of the worst of their burns. Still, dozens had died, and more would certainly die. He was exhausted. I grabbed him just before he collapsed, and used the last of my own energy to pop us back to Gary’s.

Gary and Caden were in the living room … and grabbed us before we fell.

Gary brought water for us. Then, Apollo morphed into his old man personae. I remembered it, but not like this! His skin was transparent; I could see blue blood vessels on his arms and face. His eyes were sunk deep into his skull. His once-curly hair and beard were just wisps. His mouth trembled. A memory surfaced. I remembered a man, I think he was my grandfather, who looked like that, and whose mouth trembled like that just before he died.

“I have reached the end of my time,” Apollo said. His voice was thin, just above a whisper. It shook like his mouth.

“But, there must be an Apollo!” Gary said. “You are too important.”

“Yes,” Apollo said. “Caden Hopkins, come here.” His voice lost its tremble, and became strong and compelling. Yet, Caden hesitated.

“You don’t mean me,” Caden said. “I’m just a teacher … ” He didn’t say

Gary, but I knew he wanted to. Apollo knew, too.

“Gary has a different destiny,” Apollo said. “Come here.”

I don’t know if Apollo compelled Caden or if Caden accepted what Apollo said, but he stepped across the room and stood beside the couch on which Apollo lay. Apollo lifted his arm. A bright arc of power leapt from Apollo to Caden.

Caden was outlined in fire. Then, a burst of fire went from Caden to Gary.

Gary fell to the floor. Caden stood over him. Apollo vanished.

I ran to Gary and knelt beside him. I looked hard. I couldn’t see his soul! He was dead! Apollo … Caden had killed him! I didn’t feel the floor as it hit my face; I saw nothing but blackness.

Gary

Someone was wiping my face with something wet and cold. I was on the floor. Nemesis lay beside me. He wasn’t moving.

“What?” I rolled toward Nemesis. My head ached, I wasn’t sure where I was, but I knew my little boy was on the floor and was unconscious.

“He’s okay.” I recognized the voice. A man in jeans, a pullover shirt, and a leather bomber jacket stood over us. Like Nemesis and Apollo, the man smelled of smoke.

Death, I thought. He said Nemesis was okay.

“He received a shock,” Death continued. “He was exhausted. Let him sleep a while.”

I nodded. I looked at the other person in the room.

“Caden?” I asked. “What happened?”

“Apollo … transferred power to me,” Caden said. “There was a short-circuit. Something went into you. Very powerful … you weren’t ready. It knocked you out,” he said. “Nemesis fainted when he thought you were hurt. This fellow … well, he just appeared.”

“Sorry,” the man in the bomber jacket said. “I’m, uh, George.”

“Hmph,” Caden said. “If you’re hanging around these two, and translocating into Gary’s living room, you’re a lot more than George.”

The man in the bomber jacket laughed. “Thank you,” he said. “I don’t often have reason to laugh. I’m the avatar of Death.

“But please call me George.”

Caden’s mouth formed an “O.”

“Well,” he said. “I asked for it, I guess.”

“What’s this about Apollo?” Death asked.

Caden answered. “Apollo … Apollo burned out. Before he died, he recruited me to take his place. Some of his power jumped into Gary. Gary passed out.”

Then, another figure popped into the room.

“Everything occurred as it should have,” Dike said. “It may be a while before you two realize it.”

I felt my face freeze. “Did you know this was going to happen?” I asked. I stared at Dike. I bit each word off individually; my lips tightened to a narrow line when I finished talking.

Dike’s eyes flashed; then, she became a grandmother, again.

“Death told you that we have some prescience. I knew that you and Caden had important destinies. I did not know what they were. I did not know about this; however, I am not surprised.

“Ever since Apollo’s sister, Artemis, gave up her Authorities as Protector of Children, that job has been vacant. Apollo tried to fill in, but he was hugely overworked, as are we all.

“When Apollo transferred his powers to Caden, the Authorities of Artemis as protector of children went to Garreth. It’s a good fit.”

I hadn’t realized that Nemesis had awakened. He heard what Dike had said.

“No!” he said. “Gary’s not going to burn out! I won’t let you make him … ”

Now, Nemesis’ eyes were flashing, and he was looking straight at Dike. I felt her gather energy before she dropped back into grandmother mode.

She patted Nemesis’ cheek. “You’re a good boy, Nemesis, and, you are right. We will not allow Garreth to burn out. The first thing we will do … as soon as things settle down … is look for helpers for him. I hope we can find them.

“You know that things are getting worse. Civilization is on the verge of collapse.”

Dike paused, and then said, “This is not the time; but we must talk about this, soon. You must know this now. Apollo was an elder god. With his death, there remain only six of the original elder gods: Zeus, Athena, Mars, Poseidon, Pluto, and I.

“Humanity created us as its protectors and gave us our powers; then, humanity discarded us for god-wannabes whose message of pie in the sky bye and bye was easier, more attractive.

“Is there coffee?”

Nemesis

Gary and I were both tired. It was easy to talk him into a nap. I showered the smell of smoke and charred flesh out of my hair and off my skin, and crawled into bed. Gary was already asleep, but woke enough to cuddle me into his chest before falling back asleep.

Always before, when we cuddled, we spooned so that my back was pressed against his front. This time, I faced him. I looked hard at him. He was now a god, but he was still the man I loved. Now, there was something else, too. Not more noble, for Gary was already in my mind more noble than anyone, man or god, who ever existed. Not more powerful, because Gary was already my strength. More confident? Maybe. Even in his sleep, I think I saw his confidence. His lips were slightly parted. I trembled, and then brushed my lips gently over his. He stirred, but didn’t wake.

I smiled, and then fell asleep.

Gary’s cell buzzed, waking us. We were still lying as we had fallen asleep: cuddled, face to face and chest to chest.

Gary looked at me. We were inches apart.

“My little Nemesis,” he said. “My little boy. I love you so much.”

“I love you,” I said. “That’s Dike on the phone. You’d better answer before she pops into the bedroom.” I giggled.

Dike

“It’s time you two were awake,” I said when Garreth answered. “It’s nearly lunchtime, and it’s Garreth’s turn to buy.” I named a different deli, a new one patronized by the younger set of Chicago’s nouveau riche. I heard Garreth’s chuckle; he understood.

“Yes, ma’am,” he said. “Noon?”

Gary

Dike didn’t say, but I invited Caden – now avatar of Apollo. I also made a reservation in Dike’s name. I probably could have gotten a reservation using my own name, but there was a delicious irony in making a reservation in the name of a judge. Especially since I knew the rumors that the deli was the scene of some shadowy activities, including soft drug sales and some very high-priced prostitution.

Dike smiled when the maître d’ announced “Judge Everhart’s table.” She took Nemesis’ arm, allowing him to walk her to the table. I didn’t know he knew to do that, I thought. He’s smiling, though. It must be a good memory.

Dike and Nemesis bent their heads over the menu, and Nemesis ordered a Reuben sandwich. I expected his usual hamburger, and flashed a thank you to Dike.

As before, once we were served, Dike screened us from interruptions, and we talked.

“Nemesis,” she began. “The reason that Apollo drafted you into service at the fire last night was a sign of his desperation … and a harbinger of his demise. He should not have done that. Still, you survived it and, although this is an aphorism and must be considered with some degree of caution, that which does not kill us, makes us stronger. You are stronger for having seen what Apollo showed you; you are stronger for having rescued many, many children.”

Nemesis

I nodded at Dike. I wasn’t sure what to say.

Then, Dike looked at Caden.

“Caden,” she said. “Apollo made a wise choice when he selected you as his successor.”

Then, she turned to Gary, and I was afraid, again. “Something … whether it was Apollo, or Fate, or some other power … made a wise choice when it gave you Authorities as of Protector of Children. Your commitment to children, regardless of its genesis, is genuine. Your devotion to that which is good is genuine.”

Some of the people responsible for the children’s deaths were killed in the fire: the so-called house parents. However, their bosses, the men who operated the orphanages, the ones who were responsible for the barred windows, the broken alarm system, the chained doors, the faulty sprinkler system, they weren’t there. They were in their Lakeshore Drive high-rise apartments or their North-Lake mansions. Dike had a list. She summoned me to her office.

“I want you to meet someone,” she said. A girl, about my age, wearing a chiton that left one breast bare, popped into the room.

“This is Tisiphone,” Dike said. “This is Nemesis.”

I knew who Tisiphone was: she was one of the Erinyes, the Furies, the Kindly Ones. She was the one named “Vengeful Destruction.” Dike was still talking.

“You may work together, or you may split up this list. Either way, I expect that you will provide the ultimate in retribution or vengeance.”

I looked at the girl; she looked just as hard at me. They say girls mature earlier than boys. In any case, she had the answer before I did.

“Nothing personal, Nemesis.” She turned to Dike. “I’d rather my sisters and I work alone. If that’s okay, ma’am.”

I thought it was interesting that she treated Dike with the same respect I did, until I realized. Dike is one of the few old gods who are left. Even the Furies were only demigods. Someday, I need to make a list, I guess.

Gary

I was surprised when Dike popped into my office, but even more surprised by what she said. She spoke without preamble.

“Nemesis is visiting some of the men responsible for the deaths of the children in the fire. Your plan to close down their operation was the better, but Fate dealt another hand. The head will be cut off, and the Chicago coroner and police will be mystified by a sudden rash of heart attacks and strokes.

“Nemesis will need you when he returns. Despite having seen children die, and knowing these men are responsible, he will be affected by their deaths, and his role in that.”

Dike’s eyes softened, and patted my cheek. Her voice seemed husky, as if driven reluctantly through her throat.

Death

I had a standing invitation to join Gary and Nemesis on Friday evenings for pizza and skee-ball. Gary’s schedule was so rigid (that is to say Gary was so OCD) I didn’t expect his new status as a god to change that, and arrived at 5:00. I also had a standing invitation to translocate, and I popped into the kitchen just as Bobby and Benji walked in the back door.

Oops! I thought.

“Hi, Uncle George,” Bobby said. “Did you just appear? Are you another one of the gods?”

Gary had followed the boys into the room. I looked at him for guidance.

Gary took that ball and ran with it. “Yes, he’s another one of the gods. You’ve seen his car, right? What do you think he’s the god of?”

“There’s a god of muscle cars?” Benji asked. “Way cool! Hey, are you going to give Nemesis the Z4 he wants?”

“Umm, maybe when he’s sixteen,” I said.

Gary chased the boys off to find Nemesis, and asked me to sit at the table. He knew I would not take coffee this late in the afternoon, but I did accept a beer. At this point, the Nemesis, Bobby, and Benji stormed into the kitchen, and it was time to leave for supper.

Book Notes and Disclaimers: The book, “On a Pale Horse,” and others in that series, by Piers Anthony, while not the initial inspiration for this story, quickly contributed to its direction. They are most excellent, and still available from many sources. The briefly mentioned “Heroes of Olympus” books by Rick Riordan are also most excellent. If you have an iPad, check iBooks for them. If not, check your local public library.

“Erewhon” is, of course, the title of Samuel Butler’s classic. Erewhon is traditionally thought to be “nowhere” spelled backwards with one pair of letters transposed. Naming the refuge for abandoned, abused, and discarded boys, “Nowhere” was deliberate. There should be many such places; there aren’t. Given the sickness of our society – one which pays television actors a million dollars per show but pays teachers only $40,000 or so per year – it’s likely that there never will be.

The only pay our authors receive is your feedback. Write to David and let him know your thoughts! David dot Mcleod at CastleRoland dot Net.

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