1 Apotheosis

The cries of a baby fill up a neat, comfortable house and shatter the tranquility of the home's peace. Calloused hands lift a delicate baby from its cradle. The wails slowly but surely began to subside as Ranulph hummed a lullaby. He slowly walked to the window and looked out at the night sky busy with flying ships and drones in space flying high above the neighborhood. A dome shields the people from the man-made ships and the eternal vacuum.

He stopped humming and focused on the baby's face. Its eyes had the same hazelnut brown as his, same as for the skin as well though its button nose and curly hair were that of its mother's who was getting some much-needed sleep upstairs.

"We crawled out of the oceans on all fours and stood on two limbs to get closer to the heavens. We prayed to the stars until we discovered a language to describe reality that we call mathematics. Then we realized the gods that we sought above were all within.'' He held out his finger and the baby grabbed it with its whole tiny hand against the silver moonlight.

''Once we were shown that truth, we threw away the shackles of dogmatism and wore the wings of rationalism. We became one. One soul. One living entity." The baby slowly loosened the grip on Ranulph's finger. Its eyelids slowly closed shut but Ranulph continued. "We became the masters of Paradise. We built 5 layers, each supporting humanity in its own way. Agriculture, Military, Industry, Nature, Administrative and Research. Each of these six pillars prop us and have created heaven on earth for us and 750 billion souls"

He moved to the cradle and gently put it down and took out his medallion that was tucked underneath his shirt. ''Here on the first layer, we're getting ready to trek to the heart of existence. We've found something. I don't know what but for the first time in a long time were venturing into the unknown"

He carefully placed it next to the baby and admired it for a while. "I'm as excited as I am afraid, but I don't mind taking a leap of faith. If I don't return, use this to find me. It is a key to any answers you'll ask."

He walked to the door and took one final look at it.

"Farewell Mwene, hope to see again in this plane of existence or the next.'' He quietly shut the door. Mwene, still sleeping, turned his head slightly to the medallion none the wiser.

A young man looked at the medallion in the palm of his soft hands. It's slightly worn with a chip here and there but was intact. He closed his hand into a fist and took a deep breath. He swiftly put it back around his neck and wore a motorcycle that was slightly too big for his head. He effortlessly hoisted himself onto the seat of a tractor that had a giant protruding engine at the back with a metallic cone in the middle. He pressed a button, and the tractor's engine began to roar. He gripped the joystick between his legs and his thumb hovered over a red button. He pressed it and nothing happened.

"Hey!"

The man looked up and saw a farmer with a pitchfork in his hand standing at the end of the barn. His face was red and was looking dead into the soul of the young man. "You better explain yourself. I leave you alone for an hour and this is what I get" shouted the farmer who stomped his feet as he moved towards him. The young man hastily put on a dirty series of seat belts and pressed the button again but nothing.

The farmer threw the pitchfork and barely scraped the young man's helmet as he swiftly dropped his head to his ear to avoid it. The man began to run at him.

The young man pressed the button again and the engine at the back spurted to life and burnt a fine circular hole the size of a basketball through the barn's damp, wooden walls. He stamped on the accelerator and the tractor flew to the other end of the barn. The shocked farmer barely just managed to jump out of the way as the young man sped past like a bat out of hell. He crashed through a wooden fence at the other side of the field with ease.

'I did it!' shouted the young man with joy

Then on the horizon he noticed a myriad number of cattle grazing. He slammed on the car horn, but they didn't move. It quickly dawned on him that there were thousands of cattle, and they wouldn't move in time. He yanked back on the joystick, but the engine died. The sea of cattle was fast approaching. He pressed the ignition button. Nothing. The cattle were mere metres away. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, with the joystick still yanked back as far as possible he lightly pressed on the ignition. Hoping. Praying. The engine came back into life and the tractor sharply turned upwards and drove the young man into his seat.

His helmet fell off and we see Mwene, aged 20, smiling despite the heavy G forces he was experiencing. His athletic arms gripped the joystick. He's heading straight up, straight to the Zuva light. It's a giant artificial light, the size of a small village that are spread evenly on the ceiling of "Terra '', the agricultural layer of Paradise. They provide heat and lighting for the people, animals and crops of the bottom layer. Mwene was determined to get as close as possible to one of the ten thousand Zuva lights that were evenly spread across its ceiling. As far as he knew no Terrain had been more than a kilometre above the surface, he was aiming to get five kilometers above.

"Time to be stupid" thought Mwene with an even bigger smile.

With one hand he put on his goggles which were on the top of his head and braced himself. He then placed his hand on the valve of a gas canister under his seat. He turned it and the engine thundered like a thundercloud. The entire tractor started to break apart as it edges closer to the blinding light. Panels slowly started to peel away, and he gained even more speed and climbed even higher. His G force starts to take its toll. He begins to black out. His eyes become heavier and heavier. Just as it seemed like he was to faint, the engine died for the final time.

The tractor, still falling apart, slowly lost speed as it rose. He began to sweat profusely. The light's heat was absolutely overbearing but he hung on until the tractor completely fell apart into a thousand pieces. All that remained was Mwene and the tractor seat that still rose until it hung suspended in the air as if lifted by an invisible hand. He took in the beautiful vista. It was all green with the odd farm peppered across the landscape.

"It truly is Eden" he said to himself.

He flicked a switch at the right side of his seat and a parachute deployed. He gracefully began to float gracefully to the ground where a small group of farmers weren't too pleased to see him. He landed in front of them and took off the harnesses and stood with an awkward smile in front of the mob. "I'm guessing this comes out of my pay huh?" he asked nervously. His smile slowly gets bigger and sillier with each passing second. The same old man from the barn stepped out in front of him. His eyes were the coldest Mwene had ever seen them.

"A month's pay. The repairs for my tractor are coming out of ya pocket. If I don't see it fixed by the end of day, I'm calling the state police ya understand? He said sternly. "Yes....yes sir." replied Mwene quickly. The mob started to disperse, some of them muttering to each other just how irresponsible Mwene was. An old woman with bronze skin and grey hair approached Mwene with a disapproving look etched on her face.

"Sweetie, you've got your fathers brains, but this isn't how someone as smart as you is supposed to behave. You need to grow up and be responsible. Maybe not for your sake but for your mother, she would be heartbroken had you been killed or arrested for such nonsense."

"Yes Ma." she said while looking at the ground. The old woman shook her head while she waddled away to join the rest of the mob as they left the field. Mwene turned around and saw pieces of the tractor scattered across the field he was in and in two fields either side of him

"Wherever you are dad, I hope you saw me soar" he said to himself softly.

As the Zuva lights began to dim, Mwene rode home on the dust road with an ugly but functional motorcycle with his helmet on. Its various welding joints all over its chassis was something he was proud to show off to others, a sign of his talents as a grease monkey, much to the dismay of his mother who always referred to it as an 'eye sore'. His phone rung and he tapped the side of his helmet to answer

"Yo yo." Mwene answered.

"Fam, what are you doing?"

"Hey cous, how's life in the cubicle?

"More secure than riding a tractor slash rocket into a bloody Zuva light. You're lucky I was on duty with surveillance today otherwise the police would have been knocking on Tete's door"

"Thanks. Always knew you had my back, Pablo"

"Whatever Icarus." said Pablo sarcastically.

He cut the call and Mwene smiled to himself as he thought

"Where would I be without family?"

Suddenly as Mwene turned around a blind corner, a priest muttering to himself holding a sign written "The end is nigh" randomly appeared. Mwene swerved around him as quickly as possible but lost control and fell off. He rolled until he stopped with the motorcycle crashing into a tree off the road a couple of metres ahead of him. Mwene inspected his body, but his helmet, elbow and knee pads took most of the damage. His leather jacket and combat boots were scuffed badly but still wearable.

"You're all living a lie. Judgement will come. God will return to this land and age of godlessness and restart everything. Repent! Repent! Repent!" hysterically screamed the old priest. Mwene lifted the visor of his helmet and approached him ready to give him a piece of his mind and noticed the saliva frothing around his lips. Mwene and most locals knew the old priest wasn't senile but to Mwene he looked absolutely possessed by his message. Mwene's anger quickly began to subside when he realized that the man's madness couldn't be helped.

"In another lifetime, I could have been you." Mwene whispered to himself. He reached into his pocket and whipped out a flask and offered it to the priest. "It's only water," he said sympathetically. The priest stopped everything and slowly reached out and gently grabbed the flask. He drank all of it in three loud gulps to Mwene's amazement and slight annoyance. The old man finished drinking and looked Mwene dead in the eye. He walked up slowly and told him flatly, with unblinking eyes, "I can see your soul in your eyes. Your apotheosis is upon you. You are both savior and Satan."

A car honked behind Mwene who swiftly jumped out of the way. He looked back and watched it drive by but when he looked for the priest he simply vanished. Confused, Mwene headed back to his motorcycle and drove back to the village whilst trying not to think of what the man said. He arrived at a busy wooden tavern with people standing outside drinking and smoking and being jolly. He parked his motorcycle and took off his helmet and was greeted by a familiar face. "What's up?" said the pretty face with pink eyes and grey hair. "I know, I know I'm late.'' Mwene said apologetically as he one arm hugged Nike, his oldest friend.

"We're all inside, come on." Nike said cheerfully as he led Mwene through the crowded tavern with people of all races and all shapes and sizes enjoying themselves and living in the moment whilst being shoulder to shoulder to one another. Mwene followed Nike to the back of the earthy, sweaty tavern where three people are sitting next to each other on one side of a picnic table with their backs against the wall. A huge man sat in between two women and stood up when he noticed Mwene coming.

"Mwwweeeeeeennnnnnnnnnneeeeee!" shouted the man with a sharp jawline, a buzzcut and electric blue hair.

"IIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNYYYYAAAAAANNNNNNGGGGGGAAAAAA" shouted Mwene even louder.

The shouting match continued until eventually they were inches apart from one another at the table. They shook hands, their muscles tense. They didn't even blink notice until they both burst into laughter.

'Good to have you back Inyanga'

'Great to be back on our soil."

Mwene and Nike sat on the other side of the table where beer glasses filled to the brim with brown beer awaited them. Inyanga sat down and his side of the table abruptly sunk into the ground a bit, much to the surprise of Mwene but not to anyone else at the table.

"Before your tardy appearance, Inyanga was filling us in with how his training went" said Ayla flatly just before taking a sip. Her lime green bowl cut, and banana yellow eyes belied her subdued demeanor. "T'was bull. Mostly 'em telling ya that we're tools for Ardians. Nothing bout servin' the greater good or touching the stars and all that polony'' Inyanga grunted before downing his glass in a single gulp.

"Welcome to the club." Ayla said dismissively. "So, what happened?" Mwene leaned in. "Nothin much. Kept me head down and impressed the right folk. Now I'm a junior engineer. Just another cog in the machine I suppose" he said while looking away disappointed in himself for a moment. "Enuff bout me though. It's been two years since I shipped. Surely one of ya is working on a mixtape that will make us quit our silly jobs." The light in Inyanga's eyes returned as he and everyone else turned their attention to Anan, who's slender hand shielded her face from the group while using her other hand to take a sip of her beer. Her pale skin made it easy for everyone to notice that she was blushing.

"Come on Anan, tell them what you told me last time." encouraged Nike. Anan slowly moved her golden hair behind her ear and turned around to reveal her striking violet eyes. "Um... I've written songs but work and reading has robbed me of any free time I've had." she said softly.

"Well when you have free time me and Mwene will help you record." Offered Nike.

"I'll be ya bouncer." burped Inyanga.

'I'll be your stylist because you'll definitely need one, ' smirked Ayla.

A smile gradually grew wider on Anan's face. It felt like the first smile she's worn in weeks. Her face glowed and some other men from nearby tables began to turn and stare. Inyanga and Ayla noticed and gave the men death stares and they promptly turned around. Nike then took out an illustration of a larger than life being seemingly holding up a universe with both of its arms. Its body was toned and very athletic. It had long white hair, but its face was female. It was both masculine but feminine, both beautiful but assertive. It was naked though there were no genitalia.

"The old priest gave me this today. God or so he claimed it was." said Nike curiously.

"Good to put a face to a name I suppose." Ayla flatly said as she grabbed the picture.

"Yeah, I nearly hit him while on my way here. He had a look in his eye. He definitely saw something that shook him to his very core" Mwene said sternly

"Bollocks. He's a mad man. Simples." Dismissed Inyanga.

"I believe Mwene, something was off about him. Some folks even mentioned that as well' added Nike.

"I wish he's right about doomsday and all that. It'll break the monotony of our lives." said Ayla dryly.

"Amen to that" blurted Inyanga.

"Mwene, I heard you annoyed some farmers today, what happened now?" Inquired Ayla.

He took a long sip of his beer and a deep breath afterwards.

"Alright, Inyanga. Remember that ship we found, the one we've been rebuilding?"

"Yup."

"Well, when you left, I found some blueprints about the engine it used. Highly experimental and virtually never ever mentioned in official scientific texts except for in my dad's journals?

The group's faces lit up when they realized just what he hinted at accomplished. Their facial expressions didn't go unnoticed by Mwene, who hit the table with both hands imitating a drum roll.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the stars are just a bit closer" he said triumphantly

"Ya a mad man, I love it!" bellowed Inyanga.

"Great, I can quit my day job" sighed Anan.

Anan and Nike both smiled at Mwene who smiled back for a while, but his smile gradually died down. They all shared the same sentiment, their smiles slowly died down as well. Mwene suddenly gets an idea and his face lit up with a newfound optimism. He raised his half empty glass of beer and proudly proclaimed

"If the opportunity comes, let's drop everything and find a new place amongst the heavens. Let's go on an adventure and live our lives to the fullest."

Nike stood up with his glass still full, Inyanga with his glass nearly empty, Ayla with her glass two thirds full and lastly Anan with almost full glass. They all shouted, "Aye!" and drank. Mwene looked around and smiled. All seemed right in his world.

Suddenly a loud crash boomed through the tavern and all its patrons went silent. For a moment nothing happened until a powerful shockwave rocked the entire area. Windows shattered, people flew backwards, the lights went off. Mwene blacked out but only briefly. He woke up to his heart pumping in a dark room filled with smoke and dust. A large figure formed from all the dust and lifted a couple of wooden panels that had Mwene pinned down. Another hand emerged and offered to help him up, which Mwene graciously accepted. He inspected everyone else. They were dusty, shaken but okay. A man rushed into the bar bleeding profusely from his head, "The sky has fallen!"

The crowd rushed and the gang rushed out and looked up about 10 km away. There was a giant gaping hole is in the ceiling with small pieces hanging off around it here and there. Then Mwene realised that the hole is directly over his mother's home. He rushed to his motorcycle and started it. Nike jumped in front of the bike. "I'm coming with you," Nike insisted. "No, go to your clinic and get your first aid kit and anything else that will help then head to my home." instructed Mwene. Nike nodded and ran the opposite direction into the darkness of the town.

Mwene raced home. He tried not to think although it was impossible not to. The landscape was a blur all around him. He tried not to cry. As he got closer to home, he noticed the orange glow of fire. He tried to be focused. Trees were uprooted and scattered across the ground like twigs after a storm. He was almost home and all he could smell was smoke and burning flesh. He tried to keep himself together. He arrived at a hill where his village was at the bottom of and saw something as haunting as it was extraordinary.

A headless being had crashed on his village, completely crushing it underneath its scarred body. He estimated the body was at least 500m in length and must have weighed several hundred tons. He stood there frozen, he recognized the being. Flashes of the picture of God that Nike had shown him early that night. It's tanned skin tone and musculature was identical to the picture. Mwene's head was racing with questions, but one stood out more than others

"Is God dead?" continued to race through his mind.

Then he remembered his mother was home, probably sleeping. He jumped off his motorcycle and raced down the hill. He ran along the leg of the being calling out to his mom and being greeted by silence. He kept running, ignoring the pain in his feet from stepping on broken glass and random bits of bone littered around God's corpse. Eventually he came across something that confirmed his worst fears. He finds his mother's arm sticking out from under the being, completely lifeless. He rushed to it and noticed a wedding ring on the fourth finger of the hand. He went down on his knees and with shaky hands delicately grabbed the arm and stared closely at the ring and saw a name inscribed on it," Ranulph".

Mwene completely broke down and hugged his mom's hand and cried softly. He's broken. His mind isn't racing anymore. Nothing mattered except for his mother. He felt helpless. Nothing could have prevented this. Who has the power to stop the death of God? He certainly couldn't. No man could. As the tears flowed from his eyes Mwene felt something push against his shirt from the inside. He opened his eyes and his medallion started to float, his tears as well floated before he did. He tried to grab his mother's hand to keep him grounded but he couldn't get a proper grip and she slipped out of his hands. He noticed a black aura with a subtle white outline surround him. He looked to God's body and it's on fire. A black smokeless flame consumed it. His medallion is also on fire. Mwene started to panic. Then he caught fire. His eyes turned completely white. He is completely consumed by the black fire. His screams rang out into the quiet, indifferent night.