Operation Dark Angel: The Rise of Nicolaitanes (Apocalypse Series Book 1) Read online

  General Ludlow regained his composure. “Yes, Grant the targets are correct. Now launch the missiles as ordered!”

  Reluctantly Grant pushed the execution key. As they watched the screen, sixteen missiles launched and headed for their perspective targets.

  “What have we done?” Grant asked. “I cannot watch this.” He pushed back from his desk and stood to leave. He started to leave the room but changed his mind. He walked up to General Ludlow instead.

  “You knew about this all along, didn’t you? No more lies, General! How could you lie to us and trick us like this? Do you know what we’ve done? Do you!” Grant said angrily.

  General Ludlow said nothing as Grant stormed out of the room; who could blame him. Now, what? General Ludlow sat down quietly, staring at the television monitors; he wasn’t so sure that he could watch this time either, but he did.

  CHAPTER one hundred and thirty-eight

  Rosalind, Adolph, Victor, Annamaya, Richard, Sampson and Caitlin gathered around the table to watch the latest missile launch.

  This is the one that is the beginning of all things. Richard was very nervous; he could not believe that he was still here. Why do I have to sit quietly and watch this….this.…this slaughter of so many and I can do nothing about it? What do you want from me, Lord?

  As they watched the missiles pulled away from each other and turned toward their individual targets. Richard said a special prayer for his wife and friends. He hoped Halle had gone somewhere, anywhere except home; but he had not called her in a couple of weeks now—he felt really bad about that. Richard hoped he would get a chance to tell her how sorry he was. Besides, he still wanted to tell her about his newfound relationship with God.

  Missile one’s screen changed, showing the lights of New York City coming in clearer. They watched quietly as the first missile passed over the Statue of Liberty and struck around Central Park. Missile two just missed the top of the Statue of Liberty and struck the 9/11 Tribute Memorial where the twin towers once stood. There wasn’t much left New York City.

  CHAPTER one hundred and thirty-nine

  Upstairs in General Ludlow’s office, the red phone started to ring. Maya turned away from her desk wondering if she should answer it. That was the one phone she had never been allowed to touch. However, it was ringing now and she knew General Ludlow was currently working on the project with those people. Plus she knew that the red phone was extremely important. She got up and walked over to the phone. Her hand hesitated for a moment before she picked it up.

  “General Ludlow’s office, Maya Gillespie speaking. How may I help you sir or ma’am?” she asked.

  “Where’s General Ludlow? This is Michael Wade, Secretary of Defense. It is urgent that I speak with the General.”

  “I’m sorry Mr. Wade, but General Ludlow is not in the office at the moment, sir. May I take a message?”

  The Secretary of Defense seemed to get a little angry at this. “When do you expect him back, Ms. Gillespie?”

  “I am not exactly sure sir, as he is working on a top secret project at the moment.”

  “I see. Tell the General we are now at DEFCON 1 and to follow proper procedures.”

  “May I ask why? What has happened?”

  Michael Wade thought about it. He knew that he should not answer her question and to follow proper protocol, but he was still human. She is the general’s secretary and she’s bound to find out as soon as she turns on a television or radio anyway.

  “Okay, Maya. Our country has been attacked; New York City is no more. I am sorry,” Michael replied then hung up.

  Maya stood there completely shocked. The phone dropped out of her hand and crashed to the floor.

  “This can’t be. He must be mistaken. He has to be,” Maya said.

  She turned and ran to the front office and turned on the television. The breaking news story was on every channel. Maya fell to her knees and wept—her entire family was gone. She never got the chance to tell them that she was sorry. They had never made up; now they never would.

  CHAPTER one hundred and forty

  Missile three’s screen came into focus. They could see the National Monument in the distance amongst all the city’s lights. It looks so beautiful. Caitlin had always wanted to see the nation’s capital, but now she would not get that chance.

  Missile three flew over the massive yard near the Washington Monument, passed the Jefferson Memorial towards the White House. There was complete silence in the situation room and the lab as the third missile struck the White House. They watched as the lights on the Pentagon building got closer and closer as missile four flew closer and closer; within minutes, the pentagon building was also gone. The nation’s capital was no more.

  Missile five and six soared over the Panama Canal toward their targets. The room was filled with anticipation. Minutes later, Bogotá was no more.

  Richard was appalled as he continued to stare at the television screens. He could not believe all of this was happening. It was not some Hollywood movie and all very real. When will it all be over?

  Richard’s heart was extremely heavy. He felt as though it were breaking and wanted to flee the room, but he knew he must not. In what seemed like hours, it was all finally over. Beijing, Moscow, Tripoli, London along with Washington DC, New York City, and Bogotá were all destroyed. The world was in utter chaos.

  Rosalind smiled, “Nicolaitanes will be extremely pleased,” she mumbled. “Now we wait for the news stories to confirm what we have just seen.” Everyone nodded and talked amongst themselves.

  CHAPTER one hundred and forty-one

  Grant returned to the lab knowing he should not have mouthed off to the General like that, but he was furious. Grant never agreed to do something like this. They attacked their own country and there was nothing that he could do about it. If he told anyone, he would be arrested for treason for sure. He was going to have to do one of two things—either disappear and hope that they didn’t come looking for him or stick around and pretend like none of this was bothering him. He wasn’t sure if he could do the latter, but for today, he was going to have to give it a try. He just hoped he was still alive at the end of the day.

  General Ludlow watched Grant return back to his seat without a word. He decided to let it go for now. He did understand how Grant felt, but he wished the man had kept his thoughts and feelings to himself. Now the general was going to have to discuss it with the voice and he really did not want to do that.

  CHAPTER one hundred and forty-two

  Nicolaitanes waited patiently, he knew he was a little early for the meeting. He kept looking at his watch, if all had gone accordingly then Phase Two should have begun 30 minutes ago. He smiled to himself and turned the television on to the local news channel and sure enough, it was plastered all over the television. Nicolaitanes smiled even more. Rosalind had not let him down; he would have to reward her somehow. He watched the various news reports. He was very pleased.

  There was a knock at the door, Nicolaitanes turned the television off and answered the door. Chasiel and Obadiah stood in the doorway. Nicolaitanes smiled warmly and extended his hand.

  “Good evening gentlemen. You must be Rabbi Chasiel Ben-Guryon and you are?” Nicolaitanes said.

  “I am Obadiah, a friend of Chasiel. Who might you be?”

  “I am President Nicolaitanes Balac,” Nicolaitanes said extending his hand.

  Obadiah ignored the gesture. His gut feeling was that he did not like nor trust this man. He was going to keep his eyes open for Chasiel.

  “Won’t you come in?” Nicolaitanes invited.

  Chasiel greeted Nicolaitanes warmly. “Thank you for the kind invitation,” Chasiel said. What is wrong with Obadiah?

  He walked over to the sofa and sat down. Obadiah followed him quietly. Nicolaitanes was a little annoyed, he had intended on talking to Chasiel alone. Well, this will have to do. Obadiah spotted the coffee and crumb cake on the side table.

  “Do you mind?” he asked ges
turing to the table.

  “Help yourself, my friend,” Nicolaitanes replied.

  Nicolaitanes turned and sat down on the chair across from Chasiel. “So, how can I help you, Rabbi?” Nicolaitanes asked.

  Chasiel was a little confused. “Umm, how may I help you Mr. Balac? You contacted me wanting to meet with me. Remember?”

  “Tell me about your scientific discovery. What is it exactly? What does it do?” Nicolaitanes asked.

  Obadiah looked at Nicolaitanes and then Chasiel and he shook his head slightly from side to side. Now he knew what that man wanted. He wanted to control Chasiel’s discovery. Chasiel would have to be extremely careful.

  Chasiel thought for a moment. He couldn’t see the harm in telling Nicolaitanes about his discovery.

  “I have discovered a way to grow food in any kind of climate, in any soil, and in which the food grows twenty times as fast. The food is rich and full of nutrients from the sun. There are no harmful chemicals used in the growth of this food and no fertilizer is used,” Chasiel beamed.

  Nicolaitanes stared at him disbelievingly, “Chasiel, I am an intelligent man. I did not come here to listen to fairy tales.”

  “It’s true, Mr. Balac. Perhaps you need to see with your own eyes,” Chasiel replied.

  “You better not be wasting my time.”

  “Come, I will show you my Garden of Eden.”

  Chasiel stood up and headed for the door. He motioned for Obadiah to join him. Obadiah and Chasiel left the room, Nicolaitanes wasn’t far behind them.

  “Are you sure about this, Chasiel?” Obadiah whispered.

  “You worry too much my friend.”

  Chasiel led the way to a barren lot next to a garden. Obadiah remained silent but steadily watched Nicolaitanes. Chasiel placed some of his secret formulae in the soil, and then he added a seed and some water.

  As they watched, a new seedling sprung up out of the earth. Nicolaitanes was very impressed. This was something that he could definitely use—he had to have it. It would have to wait until the time was right, but he would use this to his advantage. This is even more incredible that I thought. I must have it! Nicolaitanes shook Chasiel’s hand.

  Chasiel smiled proudly, “In one and a half months you can grow a whole garden. The trees, bushes and vines will start producing fruit one week later.”

  “Thank you for sharing your wonderful miracle with me. It is most impressive. I am completely at a loss for words. It amazes me the incredible knowledge that you have to create such a thing in the first place. Thank you so much for showing me. You have a wonderful day. It was nice seeing you again, Rabbi,” Nicolaitanes said. He shook Chasiel’s hand then turned and walked away.

  “See my friend. There was nothing to worry about. He was merely interested in seeing my invention,” Chasiel said to Obadiah.

  “I hope that you are right,” Obadiah replied. I still don’t trust that man. Why the interest in Chasiel’s invention? How did he find out about it in the first place?

  Nicolaitanes was deep in thought as he walked back to his hotel. The discovery was even more magnificent than he’d thought. Rabbi Ben-Guryon was an absolute genius. That serum would become more useful than Ben-Guryon could even begin to imagine. With the beginning of Phase three, Nicolaitanes would bring Ben-Guryon over to his side so that he could control the serum. Ah yes, everything is being set into place. Everything is going my way. He would enjoy the night here and return to Georgia in the morning.

  CHAPTER one hundred and forty-three

  Ever since various states had begun fining and jailing many groups for worshiping God, mass groups of Christians were going underground into hiding all across the United States. In many places, whole churches were going underground. The funny thing was that no one seemed to even notice.

  Mary was leading Karin to a safe house 50 miles outside of New York City. I wonder where we are going. Karin was a little skeptical about her decision to follow the stranger. They had been driving for what seemed like hours down one street after another then seeming to back track and drive a different way. Karin was sure she would get lost if she had tried to drive this by herself. She looked into her rear view mirror to check on the twins—both were sound asleep. Karin hoped they would be there soon; she was getting a little sleepy herself. Suddenly, Mary’s car seemed to disappear through a large hedge. Karin stopped the car looking around her environment. Should she follow her? She had no clue where they were and she wasn’t really sure about the neighborhood. A wino started staggering towards her car. Karin was unsure of what his intentions were and she had no intention of finding out. A few minutes later, she drove her car through the same place in the hedge.

  The road angled downward and twisted and turned. A few minutes later, the road seemed to dead end at what looked like the side of a mountain. Mary was standing beside her car waiting. As she saw Karin’s SUV approach, she got back into her own car. She honked twice and an opening appeared. She slowly drove her car into the opening. She waved for Karin to follow. As Karin’s SUV cleared the opening, the door closed behind them. Karin stared back at where they had just come from, you could not tell that there had been a doorway there a moment ago. They drove another ten minutes before coming to a large parking area. Mary parked her car and got out with her children. They waited until Karin was parked then walked over to help her.

  “What is this place?” Karin asked.

  “It’s my church’s safe house,” Mary replied.

  That seemed really odd to Karin. Why would a church need a safe house? Well, at least, they were safe, although she still did not know what they were hiding from.

  “Can I help you with anything?” Mary asked.

  “No thank you. I’ve got it,” Karin replied putting the twins into their stroller.

  “Okay, well let’s go meet the others then.”

  She took each of her children by the hand and walked toward a door. “By the way, Karin, leave your door unlocked. The others will put your things away in your room. Don’t worry they will lock it back up when they are done,” Mary called over her shoulder. Karin shrugged and did as Mary said before following her to a door.

  Mary knocked twice on the door. “Jesus is the way and the life,” Mary said.

  “None can come to the Father except through Him,” the man replied. He opened the door all the way.

  “Hello, Mary. Who’s this that you’ve brought with you?” he asked suspiciously pointing towards Karin.

  “It’s okay Caleb. They’re trustworthy.”

  “If you say so Mary. Everyone is in the common room.”

  “Thanks,” Mary replied smiling.

  Mary and Karin walked to the common room. It was unlike anything Karin had ever seen. It was absolutely beautiful. It looked like a replica of a beautiful church. There was a magnificent altar up front with flowers, a cross, and a pulpit. There were pews everywhere and a few tables near the back. There were what appeared to be tunnels or hallways off the south end of the room.

  “Interesting place,” Karin said quietly.

  Mary chose a pew near the middle and sat down with her children. Karin chose a pew near the back so she could keep the twins in the stroller. The congregation was singing hymns. Next, a man wheeled a large television to the front of the room and turned it on. He looked really sad.

  “It has come to my attention that there have been massive missile attacks around the world the past few weeks. The latest attacks happened only moments ago and in our own backyard,” he said before sitting down quietly.

  “What on earth is he talking about?” Karin whispered.

  The commercial on the television went off and the news came on.

  “Please join me in a moment of silence for all the lives lost today.

  For those of you just joining us, I am sorry to say that at approximately 2130 hours this evening the United States was attacked not just once, but twice. New York City and Washington DC have been completely destroyed without warning. The Presi
dent of the United States, the Vice President, and the entire presidential cabinet have all been declared dead. There are no known survivors in either area. This attack has many similarities to the attacks on Israel earlier this week. Over 500,000 people have lost their lives today. There is still no word as to who is responsible for this.

  In other parts of the world, more missile attacks have been reported. It seems that Bogotá, Tripoli, Moscow, Beijing, and London have been completely demolished. The death toll is still rising. Almost a quarter of the world’s population has been killed in a matter of days. I am truly at a loss for words. How can this be happening? How can someone do this? No one at all is taking responsibility for any of these acts of terrorism. The world is in utter chaos. People are terrified. How do we comfort people when we do not know if there are any other missiles out there? They do not show up on radar. What are we to do? Surely the United States will retaliate and protect our great nation.

  Be careful out there people and stay away from the New York City and Washington DC areas. If these are indeed identical to the attacks on Israel then people who go into those areas will also die from some strange new disease. I will keep you updated as I know more. This is James Callahan, ICNN news.”

  Karin’s jaw dropped. She could not believe what she just saw. They had just left New York City. This had to be a horrible nightmare; this couldn’t be happening.

  “Wake up, wake up, please wake up Karin!” she muttered to herself before pinching her arm. “Ouch,” Karin said realizing that she was very much awake.

  Karin looked around the room. People were weeping everywhere she looked. She felt so empty inside. She was terrified. If Byron had not called her, she and the twins would still have been at home. They would have died along with everyone else. She shuddered to think about that. She looked at her beautiful boys and burst into tears. She then fell on her knees and prayed. She was thankful to God for sparing her family’s lives. She prayed for everyone here and for those who lost their lives. She then prayed for Byron and Gage. Speaking of her husband, she had never gotten that phone call he had promised. And now she probably never would. She hoped he was okay. Karin left the room quietly with her twins—she really wanted to be alone for a while. She asked someone if they could show her to her room.