I’ve brought you God!. Eugene Nomak

threw on.

      – Mitsu,» she called to the spider, which appeared out of her ear a moment later, «give me a quick kiss. – The spider touched Tamura’s cheek with its jaws. – Make mommy a nice full-body stocking,» she said, and the spider disappeared behind the collar of her robe. And the black witch put on her hospital slippers and left the room.

      She took the elevator down to the second floor and went from the hospital to Coven through a transitional glass corridor. Here she waited for the elevator, which was already carrying four Special Forces fighters. The young men stretched out along the mirrored walls of the elevator.

      – At ease,» the dark witch wheezed and coughed. – Does anyone have a cigarette? – She raised her head hopefully to look into the faces of the guys two heads taller than her. – I see. Nobody smokes. Weren’t you guys at the assault yesterday? – She looked at the lowest of them, so as not to raise her head too much. He nodded. – Where did they put the old priest? – She asked.

      – He’s in the interrogation room now. He’s waiting for the investigator,» came a nasally voice from behind her.

      – Seven hundred and fourteen?

      – Seven hundred and nineteen! They’ve started renovations in the seven hundred and fourteenth.

      – Grand merci,» Tamura gave a shallow curtsy and looked at the floor indicator. It was moving to the number seven. – Please press seven,» she added. The elevator stopped. The witch got out and headed down the corridor.

      – Hello, Grandpa! – Tamura opened the glass door of the cell, entered to the detained priest. – How are you? Alive?

      The old man sat at the table and mumbled something inaudible under his nose. When he saw her, he jerked toward her, but his hands, chained to the table legs, only rattled his handcuffs, restricting his movement.

      – You hells, you can’t change anything,» the old man said. He sat down again, resting his temple on the fist of his elbowed hand.

      – Change what? – Tamura asked, taking a seat across from him. – I realize you’ll answer «nothing,» and I’ll be unsatisfied with that play on words and ask you, «what do you mean?» And you’ll turn on the religious sacred fool again and repeat the «nothing» answer. But all this verbiage is clearly not going to satisfy me or you. So let’s skip the guesswork and get straight to the clear readings. So, something is clearly threatening something. Right? Now let’s replace pronouns with nouns together, shall we? – she looked to the side and whispered,» Is that how I still remember that?

      The old man looked in horror at Tamura’s knee, which was rather quickly being covered by a black stocking.

      – To a witch, a witch’s witch! – shouted the old man.

      – How hard is it with you? Well, what kind of witch am I, eh? Do I have snakes for hair? Well, look, just an ordinary nurse. There’s your robe. Where do you see a witch? I don’t burn people alive, I don’t pretend to be young. I certainly don’t have spiders coming out of my mouth! Oh, you mean this? – she caught his eye on her ankles. – It’s self-woven liquid tights. Haven’t you seen the commercials on TV? Well, look, grandpa, I’m totally open with you. You should share it with me. I’m not your enemy. I might be your sister. Open up, huh? – she took his hand and pressed it against her chest. – Let me start, okay? «Something» is the first pronoun we’ll replace with a noun. This is the messiah you mentioned in the basement, right?

      – You’ve got a tick crawling all over you. – The old man pointed his finger at the girl’s ankle.

      – This place is long overdue for disinfestation. – Tamura looked around the room defiantly. – But extermination costs money, and Coven spends all its money on witches. Seven Hundred and Fourteen’s gone to shit – they’re already renovating it. Don’t get distracted. What about the messiah?

      – Messiah…,» the old man gave up after some hesitation. – I just wanted him to know about our sacrifice for the slaughter.

      – I understood that. We’d sit on the water for ten days, like the scripture says, praying, draw public attention, and then we’d pass away, right?

      – He would know about us. And that would have strengthened his faith in us. Don’t you understand that?

      – He, who’s he? – There was a familiar voice from behind the commander. – Who are you talking about? Where can I find him?

      – You’re on television, aren’t you? – Tamura was surprised.

      – I thought I’d look here first. I had a bad feeling. I thought I wouldn’t find him here alive.

      The old man lifted his head and smiled, then began to chuckle, and after a moment he laughed genuinely. Eira pulled her pistol from its holster and pointed it at the old man.

      – There’s a through-and-through burst in the striker. You’re going to tell me everything now, or I’ll use your brains to write «Hallowed be thy name» on that wall!

      – Why would you do that? – Tamura took Eira’s hand away from her gun. – I’m just getting into religion. Already starting to feel a spark of faith. The leaven was stirring and the grains were separating from the chaff. Opening my heart to Jesus. Hear and obey Father…» She squinted her eyes, as if remembering something, and snapped her fingers toward the priest, then turned to Eira and whispered. – Don’t. Let me talk to him some more. I’ll shoot him myself later, I promise,» she smiled sarcastically. – Don’t take it out on me.

      – Righteousness is my name! – shouted the old man. – And I’m the first! There are more coming after me.

      At that moment, a young girl in a white robe with a blue folder in her hand knocked on the glass door and gestured for the high witch to leave the room. Eira returned her pistol to its holster and stepped out of the cell.

      – Tell me, Father, where do you get all this stuff from? – Tamura asked, peering through the glass at the girl reporting to the High Witch. At that moment, Ruta joined the women, taking the blue folder from the girl, opening it and beginning to study it.

      – He’s talking to me! – The old man replied pathosily. – He sent me into the world, marking me with the sign of righteousness.

      – Messiah?

      – God! God speaks to me!

      – Uh, uh… Speaks how?

      – In dreams, of course! When we fall asleep, God comes to us in our dreams. That’s how he communicates with us.

      – And I had my hopes up.

      The cell door opened again, and Eira and Ruta entered. The High Witch approached the old man and stared defiantly into his eyes.

      – They’re empty,» she said. – There’s nothing in them. Nothing at all! Not a mind, not what you call a soul. Explain to me how a paranoid schizophrenic could convince sixty mentally healthy people to commit mass suicide? – she turned to Tamura. – Yes, yes! He’s a moron! The test results are back.

      – I’ve already figured it out,» Tamura replied. He communicates with the Almighty in his dreams.

      – Give him to me,» Ruta squeaked.

      – What do you need him for? No! We’ll cure him and let him out. And prove once again that religion is just mass bipolar.

      – Give it back, please,» the light witch folded her palms, brought them to her lips and jumped on the spot. – I’ll practice whispering witches on him.

      – Why him? We have other detainees.

      – He has something no one else has – an alien, powerful stagnum. I’ll break him.

      – No,