The Chronicle of Belthaeous

by John W. Steele

Chapter 53: Divine Right

Adrian and Falkenhorst shared the sign of the fist and then shook hands. Nacroanus stepped up to the microphone. His eyes measured the delegates like a monarch surveys the subjects in his kingdom. One by one, the dignitaries rose to their feet and offered applause to the living demigod who had extended the boundary of life.

Nacroanus held high his head and a long silence ensued. His frock hung from his emaciated body like a sheet over a scarecrow. But the man beneath it appeared indomitable, and he stood like one who had no equal. When he spoke, his tenor reverberated in the hall.

“Lords and Ladies of the Matrix, Illumined ones, sons and daughters of Mammon. Rare indeed is a man who would not be willing to sacrifice the welfare of all for his own personal gain. This is well understood among those who adore the design of this creation, and the power Mammon has granted to us.

“We are the chosen, and as the chosen, we have learned to lay aside altruistic hypocrisies and fraudulent virtues that are superficial and impure. We are the illumined ones, who are evil, and it is evil we adore. Our credo is and always shall be: wealth and power is the foundation of justice.

“To accomplish our objective of complete dominance over the dwindling number of theomorphs on this earth, a plan had to be devised. The programming we had instilled within them for generations had begun to weaken. Far too many beings of Light were beginning to awaken to their essence. Without faith in our authority, we were at the brink of losing their permission to control the foundations of reason that secure our dominion in virtual reality.

“If a Light being arouses from the slumber of ignorance, we can no longer cycle it on the wheel of becoming. The age of endless rebirth so effective in the dark ages had come to a close. With the birth of the information age came the curse of hidden knowledge.

“Although we were aware of the downside that would occur when we released this alien technology, it was necessary for us to establish our telescreens in every private and secret place within the confines of their personal space.

“Because rebirth no longer served as an effective system by which we could sustain the magic of the virtual reality, we needed a more perfected technology to smolder the flame of deepening awareness. A new science was required to imprison the theomorph in the physical dimension for a much greater period of time, thus eliminating the vast amount of effort needed to guide them through the tedious process of rebirth.

“Mankind had entered the Fifth Stage of Theocracy where organized religion had been eclipsed by electronic mind control. The churches that had served as our citadel for millennia had lost their supernatural charisma, and were no longer effective as the means by which we could indenture the Light in Astral hierarchies. Our time was short, and bold maneuver to completely dominate the Light was necessary to sustain and expand our universe.

“Ladies and gentlemen of darkness, never underestimate the power of the True Light. It is important to remember that awakening is all that separates us from our authority in this dimension. Those that oppose the gods must always be interpreted as devils.”

* * *

“My God!” Timmy cried. “The man’s a bloody nutter. That’s not what the church teaches. The plank’s a flippin’ atheist.”

Max stared at the telescreen, his mouth agape and his eyes drawn to slits. “Well, Timmy, I reckon there are things we aren’t supposed to know. It’s all Chinese whispers, y’know? That’s why the Church has to explain the truth to us. I’ve always held to the Rapture meself.”

He folded his arms and rested them on the crown of his belly. “But nobody can cack me about the ways of the world. The heathen bastards are out to get us. Everybody knows that!”

* * *

“The Archons on the ethereal plane were the first to sense the increase in knowledge flowing into the material realm. Light beings reborn in the Astral were no longer responsive to the programming that occurs there. Efforts to indoctrinate theomorphic consciousness became less and less effective, and the theocrats grew weary of the heretical nature of the Light warriors returning to the etheric dimensions.

“Ahriman, the warlord commander of the underworld, petitioned the Vulpeculan Council of Five to seek an elixir of youth that would endow our slaves with a form of biochemical immortality. He argued that fear and faith were no longer effective to trap and control the Light. Conditions on the planet had become so deplorable that the struggle to survive was their only objective.

“In the year nineteen hundred and five, I was selected by the Vulpeculan Council to carry out research necessary to develop a formula that would extend life at the quantum level in the Third Density bipedal animal. I was assigned the task to discover and perfect a pharmaceutical agent that would delay the aging process in the carbon-based molecular machine that houses theomorphic awareness. For decades, I struggled to discover the code that would unravel this impossible genetic riddle.

“In the year nineteen hundred and seventy-five, my efforts were rewarded when I uncovered the magic hidden in the cyclohexane and glucose configuration of the DNA molecule, thereby establishing its link to the preservation of peptide hormones. With the birth of this knowledge, my vision grew keen and my research expanded. The total dominance of the Light in mankind shone like a beacon from a crack in the door of immortality.

“With the assistance of my son and colleague, Dr. Rodney Neumann, I developed the formula known as Eternulum, the most potent longevity agent ever known. But the power of Eternulum cannot be measured by its delay on the aging process alone. Its atomic structure is far more miraculous.”

Nacroanus raised his arm before him and clenched tight his fist. “Through the miracle of Eternulum, I have captured the Light in my hand. I can squeeze the heart of man until every particle of Divine Light energy has been extracted from its chambers. When at last the Light monkey is forced to surrender his will, we shall harness its essence and use this inexhaustible energy to expand our universe.

“Lords of the Matrix, can you grasp the significance of what this means to you as the heirs of Mammon’s estate? You will reign in glory for a millennium here on Earth before you must return to the Astral. We can now exploit a theomorph until its mind and body are emaciated to the point we can steal the Light from even the most powerful warrior. Rulers of darkness, through the wonder of Eternulum, ye shall be as gods.”

Like a rampaging stampede, the members of the assembly rose to their feet and offered rousing applause to the man who had altered the future of humanity. Nacroanus raised his hands and motioned them to be silent.

* * *

“Crikey Moses, Maxie, do you gather what this bloody lunatic is hawking? ’E’s got a lot of bottle talking like that, he does. ’E can’t diddle me. Who the hell’s ’e thinks he’s talking to, a cluster of gormless twits?”

Max stared at the telescreen, his face a doleful portrait of intellectual apathy. He poured a shot of Jack and slammed it down his throat. His Adam’s apple jerked and his eyes watered. “Whatever it takes to rid the earth of the heathen scourge is what needs doing, Timmy. The commie rug-munchers don’t deserve the breath God gave Adam. Kill ’em all and let Mohammed sort em’ out!”

* * *

“Lords of the Earth, in the year nineteen hundred forty-five, I was summoned to the Himalayas to meet with Chinese astrologers who would select the Karmapa destined to rise in the future. While stationed in these glorious mountains, the seers revealed to me an ancient manuscript known as the Chronicle of Belthaeous. The scrolls proclaimed that the Son of Mammon would rise from the dead and return to the earth incarnate in the body of a Light Entity of great authority.

“This prophecy was destined to occur in the end time, when the age of corruption and treachery had reached global proportions. That time has arrived, and we stand at the rim of anarchy. The world demands a messiah and we shall provide one for them in the instrument known as Belthaeous.

“In the year nineteen hundred and eighty-five, at the invitation of the Chinese Karmapa, we were escorted to a land that time had forgotten. We journeyed to the Cave of the Ancients and recovered the frozen body of the Son of Mammon destined to serve as the lord of the physical dimension.

“Sons and daughters of royal birth, tonight you will witness a miracle. Who among you has the power to bring the dead to life? What science or magic on this plane can equal or compare to that of a man who can open the gate of oblivion and summon the dead to cross the threshold of oblivion?

“Through the power of Eternulum, I, Dr. Adrian Nacroanus, will resurrect Belthaeous from the nether world of the formless Bardo. And, as the chosen one, I will reign as the right hand of Mammon in our Matrix of eternal damnation.

“No one is more worthy than my son to bring forth the messiah of the new age. Elite of the world rejoice, your prayers have been answered. Mammon will bless you with endless treasures garnered through the suffering and exploitation of the Light beings. Children of darkness your desires shall be as fruitful as your imagination in a perfect world where divine right is the only authority.

“Kings and Queens of the Matrix, behold the Messiah that shall deliver to you the power to establish a new order, one that will forever secure the riches of your godly inheritance!”

Adrian raised his arm and, like a dream come to life, the burgundy curtain opened to reveal the new destiny of man.

To be continued...