Teraphobia (ONC 2024)

Two

The years pass, five of them in total. It is difficult to keep track of them when the concept of dates and times is no longer relevant. Humanity now follows the will of the Mother Eve. My bodyguards, their names given to me in hushed whispers, Scout and Sparrow took me down into the underground bunker that had been constructed within the sewage tunnels of the city of Madison, Wisconsin. There were others amongst us, they were always strangers to me, but they knew them.

We were given updates from a single radio in the center of the common room. Mother Eve bringing peace to the fractured nations. Mother Eve restored life to the land to fertility ending the famines of the world. Mother Eve created a single vaccine to eliminate the pestilence from the world. There was only one thing she could not rid our planet of. She gave her gift to those she deemed worthy, they were called her Elite, and their only objective was to serve Mother Eve.

The humans above ground moved as if they were nothing more than cogs in a machine. Technology was still a part of our lives; our civilization had advanced far beyond expectation in the time we had retreated underground. My father addressed the nation with Mother Eve. I had not seen him since I was five. My mother always changed the channel any time she heard his campaign commercials. She could never forgive him for his actions. She could never forget the disgusted look in his eyes when they rested on my trembling frame. She could never forgive him for the scars that marked her flesh and the bruises that colored her skin. She once told me there were Monsters everywhere. Some, she said, lived within our souls.

Otis Raine's voice came through the speakers. My arms went around my torso. My breath came out in shallow gasps. Tears begin to fall down my face I free-fall back into my memories. I beg myself to stay grounded in the present. I need to hear the words he has to say. Scout places a firm hand on my shoulder. His smile is kind. His smile is reassuring. His smile reminds me of the one I lost.

"Today we are gathered in celebration. The Day of Rebirth is upon us. On this day, five years ago Mother Eve saved us all. She ushered in an age of peace, an age of prosperity, our utopia is close at hand. Some harbor ill-intent toward our Mother Eve. They do not believe in her ideals of peace and prosperity. They hold onto the hope the Virtuoso exists."

I bring my knees to my chest. Mother Eve spoke of the Virtuoso with disgust laced into each syllable. She stated the Virtuoso was a human with the power to bring forth her downfall. Her swirling purple eyes held humanity in their thrall. The masses soon spoke the word Virtuoso with disgust and contempt. I could hear this in my father's tone when he spoke.

"We are not worried. We have placed our trust in Mother Eve. We have placed our devotion in her hands. Today, I announce our Mother has chosen her mate."

The room falls into an eerie silence. We did not know what kind of monster Mother Eve was. There were those amongst us who did not believe in such things. I watched them now making the sign of the cross. I watched them clinging to their talismans whispering prayers to their gods underneath their breath. Mother Eve was not the only monster to emerge from the shadows. There were others and they too followed her command without question. My instinct is to run. My instinct is to retire to my room, burrow underneath the blankets, and wait out this nightmare.

"Mother Eve has selected my daughter, Aislinn Raine. She is amongst the Vanished. I ask for your aid brothers and sisters. Help me bring my daughter to our Mother's embrace. We are of one mind. We are of one heart. We are of one soul. We are one in the Mother's name."

The transmission ends. I stare at the speaker. I can feel eyes coming to rest on me. It has been a long time since I heard my father speak my name without hearing resentment. My father had not been a good man. His heart was black. Nathaniel took after him, a chip off the old block. My mother had tried to save him. I can still hear her cries coming from the master bedroom as he reminded her of her place. It was not her job to teach Nathaniel, it was his. Nathaniel needed to be strong. Nathaniel needed to learn how to be a man from his father. Nathaniel did not need a mother's touch. He did not need to learn kindness or compassion. Those elements made him weak. Those elements made him spineless.