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The Incessant




“I’m positive I’m dead.”
That was the first thought that popped into Johnathan’s head when he woke to the sound of chirping somewhere in the distance. He found himself on the floor, and pushed himself off of the ground, and sat on what seemed to be damp earth, almost as if it had rained recently. It felt good under his palm. He looked around to find himself on a road, a rural, earthen road. It seemed that there was nothing and no one around for miles. He could only see acres and acres of land, seeming never to end.
The last thing Johnathan remembered was the filthy cop bullet striking him straight in the middle of his chest. The heist hadn’t gone as planned and the quick arrival of the police put a swift end to Johnny’s 12 years of crime. He looked at his clothes. They were the only constant in this absurd reality as he still wore his faded blue jeans and his staple black tee-shirt. The ski mask seems to have disappeared though, as had his numerous tattoos.
As he looked around, he noticed people in the distance walking towards him. Almost all, except two, were dressed completely in white.
“Oh, I’m definitely dead!”
As they moved closer, he noticed that these men and women seemed perfectly at ease in the conditions. Their serene faces showed no signs of worry. The two not dressed in white seemed just as confused as Johnny. When they neared him, he stood up and something almost unearthly willed him to follow these men and women. He gradually gravitated towards the confused looking lads with an inquisitive look in his eyes, mirroring theirs.
“What even is this place?”, one of the lads asked.
“No clue, mate. Looks kind of weird though. Almost like everything is … still somehow.” The other's Australian descent became very apparent through the accent.
“Did both of you…die?” asked Johnny tentatively.
“Oh yes! I remember feeling the rope tighten around my neck! Goddamn judge didn’t give me a fighting chance!” said the first one.
“I guess chasing that bear for its fur was what got me killed...”, sighed the Australian fellow.
“So, this is heaven, huh? Kind of shabby, don’t you think?” stated Johnny.
“So, we really are dead.”
“Guess so”
They walked on, quiet because it felt sinful to break the silence created by the white-clothed figures. After about twenty minutes of walking through the dirt road bordered by pine and fir trees, Johnny worked up the courage to approach one of the men and asked him where they were heading.
“Why, the Promised Land, of course! The land flowing with milk and honey where peace forever dwells!” His voice conveyed genuine excitement but the impassivity of his sullen face gave him a tired, dejected look, almost as if hope had been snatched away.
“Ah” sighed Johnny, as he strutted along. He noticed that there was a hooded figure who seemed to be leading the pack along. His muscular build gave him a dignified look. After another half an hour, Johnny decided to talk to this leader. He quickened his pace and walked up to the front of the group.
“Hi there, Sir. I was wondering when we would arrive?”
The hooded figure kept his gaze straight ahead.
“Arrive?”
“Yes, arrive. You know…to the promised land?”
At this point, Johnny began to notice details he seemed to have missed somehow. His once coloured cloths were fast losing their shade and fading into white. The muscular leader seemed to be larger than any man he had seen, and his skin seemed to glow red somehow. Under the white hood, Johnny noticed something protruding…horns?
“Just tell me when we will arrive at the gates of Heaven?!”
The journey went on as the reply came, “Naïve child, what makes you think you’re in heaven?”
It hit him.
He wasn’t in heaven. How could a robber, a poacher and a convict end up in heaven? He now realized the reason for the look of hopelessness in the old man’s eyes.
There was no destination.
They just walk.
Walk through the endless path of promised salvation.
The journey never ends.
It is incessant.
They are Incessant.


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