Fall Foretold

Prologue 1 St. Manuel Catholic Church "Every single hidden thing will be revealed, some day. Any moment from now," St. Sylvester, the Priest, said. He happened to be the youngest Priest in the church's history. "It will take not long anymore. An angel is about to drop to the Earth and, through him, God will wipe out the Antichrist and it's disciples, in Sterling City... A fierce war is coming. You just need to keep it in mind. Your eyes will stay open but you won't see it coming.... You just can't", he paused for a while, smiled, then he continued. "It will take some time but once it descends upon us, many eyes will see. Countless ears will hear. Several nostrils will sniff in evil; they will inhale the scent of Justice when it drops through the ceilings in mortal flesh and blood. The agents of darkness will be fished out.... Even among the so-called followers of Christ. The Catholists. The Church of Christ!" ★ Prologue 2 Southside Town (Cyrus Martinez's Den) Cyrus Martinez, a drug dealer, Hitman and ex convict, resided in a small apartment, behind a lousy bar, somewhere in the slums, to escape from Sterling's long arms. It's a small place so nobody would suspect that he would ever decide to live there. Many even considered him dead since his name no longer appeared on the news. He was always wanted somewhere. Two men walked into the room and stood before him. "Are you done with it?", Cyrus asked, counting bank notes, with a cigar between his dark lips. "We found a n***o. The people say he sees things", one of them replied. "Well, I gave you an order. Told you to kill every one of them in there. All of 'em!", Cyrus yelled at them. "We thought he may be useful to us", the other man said, with his head, bowed, and his face, looking down. "Okay," Cyrus looked up. "Elvis, you! go fetch the man. Monaco should join Davis and sort the stuff. You both better be done before sunset!". The door opened and the noise from the bar broke in for a second till the door closed behind Elvis. In a few minutes, Elvis returned with a young black lad. "Excuse us, Elvis", Cyrus said and Elvis joined the other two in another room. "What do you have for us, young man?... you a soothsayer or some sort of sightseer?" "You could decide to call me whatever you wish. Sightseer sounded nice, though... till your accent ruined the taste", the n***o replied, nonchalantly. "You look like a teenager. It would be child abuse to put a bullet in your head, right now. I'll control the desire". "You should control it, Mr. Martinez. I know a lot of things. We are both aliens. I know you are French. I am African... Besides, you'll need my help". Cyrus stood up. "Interesting! You know my name... Fantastic!", he turned his back. "Davis! Take him in. He'll be useful". A young teenage-looking man, fairly muscular but timid, emerged from the room. He led the n***o into the room. ★ Prologue 3 Sterlings Hospital "Congratulations, sir! You have a new son," Dr. Steve smiled, as he shook hands with the father of the new baby. Mr. Ryan dared not to wear a frown as he usually did. That would seem like a rejection of the beautiful product he had been gifted by fate. The frown had become a culture for the soldier-turned-blacksmith. "Surely meant to be a boy", he giggled,. happily. "Can I see my wife? And the boy, are they okay?" "That's fine, sir. They are both alright. I will like to have a private discussion with you. It's important. Not today, though." "Uhm.. you said all is fine, righ-?" "No, there's no problem. I just need to tell you some minor things... about the boy. You can go see your family". They parted. ‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡ "The boy is... almost like every other child", Dr. Steve said to the couple. "Actually, not like every other child. He came out in a cocoon." "A cocoon?!", Mr. Ryan exclaimed, puzzled. "Yes. A flesh-like protective structure around his body. There are other things I noticed and I will like to do some further tests on the boy when he's older. You should watch out and inform me if you notice any strange signs in him..."