Apocalyptic Organ Grinder by William Todd Rose Read Free Book Online

time his small foot struck the ground, a boom resonated so loudly that it seemed as if the very earth were quaking beneath his heels.
    “It is right that our son carries the Blade.” Lila mused.  “Tolek will be avenged and Asham will go into life knowing he has honored his father above all things.”
    The Clear skin no longer looked at the sky.  He glanced over his shoulder at the boy approaching him and Lila wondered if the man had made his peace.  Had he given himself over to the Great Spirit so that he could find rest and respite when freed from this mortal world?
    Again, Lila felt the warmth of embarrassment and she averted her eyes so that her son would not witness the dishonor on his mother’s face.  Let this clear skin walk eternity with feet pricked by thorns and with maggots writhing in his hair;  let him know what it meant to feel his body decay, to know the ravages of Time and never be free from the torment it wrought.  He would wander the caves and mountains, shunned by all things, never to see the faces of his ancestors again.  It was what he deserved, what he’d brought upon himself  by leading a life of disgrace and infamy.   It was just.
    By the time Lila raised her eyes again, the boy had neared the clear skin.  It would be soon.  The time of reckoning was close at hand.  Within moments, the drums would cease as the Elders took the Blade from her son;  they would then walk to the murderous stranger and, with a final blessing, slit open his throat
    Seconds before it happened, Lila tensed.  It was almost as though she sensed the man’s intent, as if the universe had presented her with a split-second glimpse of things to come.
    As Asham passed the prisoner’s side, the Clear skin sprang into a blur of movement.  Within the span of a second, the man had snatched the dagger from her son’s palms and spun around.  The little boy cried out and writhed like a snared animal, but the Sweeper’s strong arm pinned the child against his chest.  With the Blade of Judgment pressed against Asham’s throat, the wild-eyed clear skin whirled in quick circles.
    Lila roared and rushed forward with her spear at the ready as murmurs of panic spread through the congregation like a forest fire.  Her advance, however, quickly ended when the stranger bellowed.
    “ Back!   Stay back or I swear to God, I’ll kill him!”
    As if to demonstrate his seriousness, the man pressed the blade even more tightly against Asham’s throat.
    The child’s eyes pleaded silently to his mother and Lila pictured herself hurling her spear, the shaft sinking into this man’s throat so deeply that it pierced the back of his neck.  But what if she missed?  Rage trembled her hands and tainted her vision and judgment.
    “Let him go!” she commanded.  “He is a child .  Have you no honor at all?”
    “I said back the fuck off! ”
    Lila could see it in the clear skin’s eyes.  The glaze of madness and desperation.  Pupils wide and dark, like two black holes leading directly into the void where a soul should have existed.
    He would really do it.
    Even if it meant his own death, he would kill her child where they stood.

 
    VII.
     
    A long time ago, we were safe from the evil Spewers.  Children like you played in the forests and swam in the streams without worry or fear.  Even way back then, there were still Sweepers, but their job was to journey into the cities to search for food, weapons, and supplies.  Everyone was happy and all of the Settlers lived in one, big kingdom called Hope.
    Just outside of Hope was another, smaller, kingdom that had no name and this is where the Spewers lived.  The Spewers, however, were not as happy as everyone else.  Like piggies, they lived in mud and filth and spent their days yelling bad words at the happy settlers nearby.  In the beginning, the people of Hope tried to be nice to them.  They brought them bits of food that were left over from feasts and gave them old blankets