witches of Coven! They have worshipped the beast that has found a new name for themselves, «Pride,» and the beast has given them strength and power. But they have no meaning in life! They have no faith! And they call our faith by the god-awful scientific term «stagnum.» The Phoenix, the harlot of Babylon on the red dragon, will turn to ashes. The ashes of our revelation. And we will become part of the revelation. Each of us, in our agony, strengthens each other’s faith. And together, through our deaths, we will strengthen the faith of the messiah.
– A loud hissing sounded in the air. – ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff, fffffffffffffffffffe, ffffffffffffffffffffffffffu, ffffffffffffffffffffffffu, fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffar!
It went on like this for a few more minutes until the hissing changed to a whisper.
– Unborn,» the child’s voice and the old woman’s wheeze echoed in unison right out of the walls.
– Uncrucified. – Suddenly it was unbearably cold.
– Unresurrected, – each pulling syllable penetrated the body.
– Unsanctified, – the witch continued to whisper into the public address system, – in the rotten womb… of a dead whore… teeth… worms… the crying of an old woman… the body of a maiden do not disturb yet… in the body of a maiden… a dead god…
It became unbearably frightening. The children clung to their mothers with all their might. And the adults’ faces twisted in horror.
– Dead God…in the roots of the tree…the leaves are black…the angels are drying… on the branches hangs my faith smraaaaaaad… faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Feeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee…
Panic ensued. Some tried to put their hands over their ears. Others just yelled, hoping to drown out the witch’s whispers. One of those present pulled out a gun, and shot himself in the ear.
The voice didn’t stop. The room filled with screaming, which only added to the effectiveness of the whisper’s impact. People were going crazy in front of each other.
Some tried to hide in the sleeping rooms of the bomb shelter, others ran to the restrooms. But the warning system repeaters were whispering there as well.
Ruta couldn’t see or hear what was happening, but she was clearly enjoying herself. A glowing sign in the form of the Ying rune pulsed around her neck, helping her to whisper correctly.
The preacher was less affected by the whispers than the others. It was as if he didn’t hear the whispers at all. He just stood there and looked confused at the horror that began almost instantly.
After several futile attempts to shout to the congregation, he simply closed his eyes and immersed himself in the Lord’s Prayer
The gunshots sounded more and more frequently. Suicide was the only way to get rid of the wild terror and uncontrollable fear.
Several women and men rushed to the electronic lock panel of the central entrance.
– The deadbolts are in motion,» Eira whispered. – Lights! Max, go! Tamura, get into position. Radios to minimum. Meet the fanatics. Everyone move away from the entrance. They’ve got hydrozite. Bomber with a detonator. Finger on the button. Maximum silence. Goggles to night mode.
Tamura put on her goggles, turned on the night vision function, and silently bared her katana.
The heavy door came into motion, and through the widening gap came screams. The first to run out was a young man, whom Tamura stabbed lightning-fast through the throat with her blade. Then came two women who had been cut open in a similar manner.
– Ruta, shut up! – commanded the commander. – We have contact. Get in here.
The shouting outside the door began to subside. No one else emerged from the ajar door. There was a ray of artificial light coming from inside.
– Max? – asked the young witch who had just arrived.
– «Inside,» whispered Eira, turning off the self-contained lights. The old man is in the far right corner on the detonator. Armed fanatics are gathering around him. And the two just outside the entrance. They’re all carrying rifles. None of them have NVRs.
– What’s the old man waiting for?
– The Coven’s Whip, of course,» Eira smiled. – What a swell death that would be. He’s waiting for us,» she looked toward the door. – Max can’t get any closer. The old man has a very strong stagnum. Max is afraid.
– What are we going to do? – Tamura asked. – I take it that as soon as we go in, we’ll all be blown up?
– We can’t wait either,» whispered the commander. – His nerves won’t hold out…
– Do we have cameras? – Ruta interrupted.
– Two on tripods in automatic mode with online broadcasting.
– Ask Max not to touch them. I’ve thought of something. I’ll take the old man. I’ll give him visions. But I have to have backup. I’ll walk slowly toward him, putting his stagnum to sleep. I just have to make sure I don’t lose sight of him. The team is working on armed targets, you’re both protecting me. And don’t kill the civilians, they need to see everything I’m doing, and the cameras need to capture what’s going on and broadcast it online to the internet.
– Too much risk,» Eira objected. – The old man has a powerful stagnum. Maybe we haven’t dealt with that before. Maybe gas?
– Well, what kind of gas? Eira! Think what you’re saying! – objected the white witch. – Listen to me! I’m older than both of you put together, and certainly older than the old man. I started growing my stagnum long before the war. And if I wasn’t sure, I wouldn’t have suggested any of this. Besides, once we throw the gas grenades, that’s the start of the takeover. Is there a guarantee he won’t press the button? – Ruta paused to let the others think about the situation. – I’m going in first. It is at this moment that I have the old man’s full attention. It is at this moment that I need protection, as I will be completely helpless. You do your best. How about a floor plan?
The commander pulled a 3D model generator out of her bag, turned it on, placed it on the floor, and stepped back three steps.
– Max? – she called out.
The device came to life and began to draw a glowing holographic picture that showed the central hall of the bomb shelter and everyone there.
– I’m off,“ the young witch said, and added in the whisper she used to scare fanatics, „let’s work.
Chapter 3
Suddenly the whispering stopped. The old man looked up sharply and saw that the front door was ajar. The wrinkles on his face betrayed an extreme degree of despair and hopelessness.
His finger hovered over the detonator button and twitched. His lips trembled, whispering incessantly. He looked around at those present. They had not yet come to their senses, even after the whispering had subsided. Many
