Chapter 6: Sydney, February 2021

I ran for the tennis ball, missed it, and collapsed to the ground, completely exhausted. It wasn't unexpected. I had busted my lungs from the fast ascent when I was diving in Lake Titicaca, and it was a miracle that I was still alive. I knew that I shouldn't push myself physically with my lung condition, but I didn't worry too much. It wouldn't kill me anyway.

I had survived severe brain damage in Nepal, a shootout in New York, a drug overdose in Lima and a diving accident in Lake Titicaca. The divine plan wanted to keep me alive and save humankind from the oncoming apocalypse in the form of a gamma-ray-burst. If the divine plan intended for me to survive all this to die during a tennis match, then so be it. I smiled at the thought, it would indeed be an ironic end to me.

My tennis partner, Sebastian Santiago, ran up to. "Are you okay?" Sebastian asked and lent me a hand to get up. I grabbed his hand and got up to standing, still feeling exhausted.

"I have been better. I guess I'll have to give you this match. I'll beat you next time." I replied.

"That will have to be in Colombia. I am moving back home tomorrow. Remember?" Sebastian replied.

I had forgotten about it. My mind was continually wandering all over the place, and it didn't help being technically braindead. But I didn't want to share this, so instead, I replied. "Oh yeah, I had hoped that I wouldn't have to go all the way to Colombia to set things right. But I'll find a proper coach, and I will swing by and beat you."

"Ha-ha. I'll take that as a promise. Are you still coming by next year?" Sebastian asked.

"Yes, there is a cultural event celebrating the Guane people next February. I have a keen interest in attending that event." I replied.

"Ha-ha. Your main concern is probably acquiring high-grade marching powder. But all good, tell Elaine the Guane story." Sebastian replied and laughed.

"I definitely will. See you next year. Say hi to La Patrona from me." I said.

"Sure thing. See you next year." Sebastian replied.

As Sebastian walked off, I made a mental note to find myself a tennis coach so that I could keep playing. It wouldn't be the same, but I would rather have a friend I paid to play with than having no friend to play with. And in the grand scheme of things what better use did I have for my wealth?

***

"So how was tennis today?" Elaine asked.

"It was alright until my lungs gave in. A pity I couldn't send Sebastian back home as a loser!" I replied.

Elaine gave me a worried look and spoke: "How are you feeling? You shouldn't push yourself too hard?"

Elaine's concern annoyed me. I should be dead, but I wasn't. So why should I let my impending death affect my everyday life? "I'll do what I want. Playing tennis and writing books are among the things that take my mind off what has happened in the last few years." I lashed out.

"Don't be angry at me. I am concerned about you." Elaine replied.

"Yeah, whatever. I am going for a walk. I'll see you later" I said and took off.

***

An hour later, my walk had taken me to Bondi Junction when some familiar faces approached me. It was the Yehuda Brothers, Ben & Szymon Yehuda. They were participating in a funeral procession when they broke out from the group to speak to me.

"Martin Orchard, we meet again," Ben Yehuda said.

"Yes. What brings you to Sydney?" I asked.

"You would have known if you had worn the monocle. Such ingratitude refusing to wear the God-given artefact that allows the great Yahweh to communicate directly with us!" Szymon Yehuda stated.

Szymon's statement confused me. It wasn't Yahweh who communicated via the monocle. Or was it? How could I tell for sure whether it was them or I that was being duped? I didn't want to discuss the matter with the Yehuda Brothers, so instead, I replied: "I hope Yahweh forgives me. I am too weak to carry out his divine will."

Ben studied me for a while and spoke: "Yes, you are weak. But you were the one who showed us our purpose: To make sure that our Master Race will rule the planet for our great God. If you are ever looking for a purpose, you are welcome to join us."

"But, I am not Jewish. Are you sure that I am good enough to join?" I asked sarcastically.

Szymon ignored my sarcastic tone and replied: "Yes. You are not Jewish, Mr Orchard. But you can still serve our great lord. My brother and I are planning to reignite an ancient order tasked with enforcing the divine will upon the world."

"Which order would that be?" I asked.

"The Knights Templar" Szymon replied.

"They are Christian, not Jewish," I remarked.

"Yes. But Christians are merely inferior races serving the same Master." Szymon replied.

"Is that what you're doing here? Setting up the Knights Templar cell?" I asked

Ben shook his head and gave me a disapproving look. "No. We are here for the funeral procession of the Josef Silverstein. A local Rabbi who advocated for peace and tolerance. He might or might not have been killed by a radical Muslim." Ben said, smirked and twirled his moustache.

I nodded and didn't say anything. Szymon tapped my shoulder and spoke. "I am sorry, but we have to get back to our funeral procession now. It was a pleasure seeing you. Please consider our offer."

"Yes, don't squander your gift on nothing. Yahweh would punish you for that in the afterlife." Ben added in.

"I'll consider it," I replied.

As I watched Ben and Szymon Yehuda re-join with the procession, I felt perplexed. Had Rangda told us all different things or were Rangda and Yahweh both aliases for someone else? I was sure about one thing, though. I would not get myself involved in the age-old conflict between Judaism and Islam. Life was too short for that!

***

I was lying in bed, drenched in sweat and unable to move. The afterlife was approaching me, and in a way, I felt relieved. Soon my headaches, my guilt, and my physical ailments would be gone. Yes, the end could be a clean start. I smiled at the thought, and I closed my eyes, waiting for the inevitable.

I felt a powerful surge of energy striking through my body, bringing me back to life. As I opened my eyes, I saw Elaine and Pierre Beaumont looking at me. I was in a hospital room. How long had I been gone?

"Welcome back, Martin!" Pierre said and smiled slyly.

"What are you doing here, Pierre?" I asked.

"Just helping an old friend out. When Elaine asked me to come to Australia and bring a special type of blue sapphire, I felt perplexed. But we came to a mutually beneficial deal, your wife and I." Pierre replied.

"Let me hear it!" I sighed.

Pierre licked his lips and tasted the words for a few seconds before he replied. "I would like to become the CEO of the World Bank. And I would like the two of you to help me."

"Why do you want us to help you?" I asked.

"Well, Mr Orchard. I am not a man of violence. I am a man of finance." Pierre replied.

"That doesn't reveal what you want us to do." I snarled back

"Correct. You asked me why, and I answered that question. Cause and effect, Martin. Don't ask a question if you want to know something else." Pierre remarked arrogantly.

"So, what do you want us to do?" I asked and sighed.

Pierre took out a photo from his wallet and handed it to me. I studied the picture. It was of a South-East Asian man in business attire who I had never seen before. "Who is this?" I asked.

"That is Chakri Apinya. The current CEO of the World Bank. A useless idealist who is risking the future of the bank and in extension, the future of humankind. I want to take his place. I want him dead."

I shook my head and looked at Pierre in disgust. "I am not a contract killer. There is nothing that you can offer me, which would change my mind." I said.

Pierre smirked at me and replied. "Yes, there is. Actually, there are two things."

Having said this, Pierre handed me another photograph. It was a photo of me leaving Fay Zhed's hotel room.

"So, you are blackmailing me into committing another murder, so I can cover up my first murder? Why would I accept? It'd make more sense to kill you." I hissed.

"Such ingratitude after saving your life," Pierre said mockingly, paused and then changed his tone. "I wasn't going to blackmail you. I believe in the whip and the carrot, and I haven't shown you the carrot yet."

"So what's the carrot?" I sighed.

"The sapphire crystal that saved your life. If you help me become the CEO of the World Bank, I'll direct some of the bank's vast resources to find more crystals for you." Pierre stated.

I sighed, and inner conflict-filled my mind. I didn't want to murder people for Pierre, but on the other hand, I knew that Pierre could benefit our future. Humanity needed greed and industry if we were to develop as a space-faring species. Creating colonies on other planets was the only way to ensure the future survival of our species. Empress Rangda had shown me as much. "One moment, Pierre," I said and zoned out. A few seconds later, I had established a connection with Rangda.

"Pierre is correct. Humanity is better off with Chakri resting 6 feet below the ground, with Pierre running the World Bank." Rangda revealed and then disconnected from my mind, unwilling to answer any questions.

"Okay. I will help you, Pierre." I whispered in shame.

"I knew you would. It's for a great cause. Chakri Apinya will be in Geneva for the World Economic Forum in a couple of weeks. The famous Buddhist leader Arhat Somchai will also attend. This is the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone." Pierre said and rubbed his hands.

"How many are on that hit list exactly?" I asked in resignation.

"There is only Chakri. But someone must take the blame for the murder, and Arhat is the perfect candidate." Pierre replied.

"So, we are not blaming everything on the Muslims anymore?" I asked sarcastically.

"I never was. Religion is just opium for the masses. The real god is money." Pierre said.

I didn't reply, and Pierre spoke again. "I need to leave now, Martin. I will give you all the instructions on my private jet back to Switzerland."

***

'Klink!'

The glass with red wine shattered against the wall.

"What is wrong with you!" Elaine exclaimed.

"Why did you ask Pierre to come over?" I yelled.

"I had to. You were in a coma, and I didn't know how to find those alien crystals that saved you. Pierre had a theory, and he found us a suitable stone." Elaine replied.

I calmed down. I couldn't blame Elaine for my decisions. Although she was the one who had brought Pierre over, I was the one who had agreed to his terms. If anyone was at fault, it was me. "I am sorry, babe. What was Pierre's hypothesis?"

"He guessed that the crystal you needed would be radioactive and detectable in other wavelengths than visible light. He was correct, and here you are." Elaine revealed.

"Okay. So, what do we do now?" I asked

"You'd better clean up this mess right now!" Elaine stated and handed me a mop.

Fair call, Elaine!