Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 130317 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130317 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
“Brothers and Sisters of the PPP!” a deep voice announced. “The moment you’ve all been waiting for is here—may I introduce…The Prophet!”
There were cheers and roars of approval from all directions. And then, dressed in a pure white robe with dazzling golden trim, The Prophet appeared. Or rather, walked into the spotlight, Sev thought. But most of the people here were Chakiouns, whose eyes were as weak as humans’ eyes were. To them it had probably looked like The Prophet just appeared out of thin air, moving from the darkness into the light.
As he had been in the vid they’d seen in the Induction Ceremony, The Prophet was wearing something sparkly around his neck. Something so brilliant it was impossible not to look at it but so bright it was equally impossible to make out what it was.
I wonder if that’s the source of his power? Sev wondered, frowning. Whatever the hell it is. He always seems to be wearing it.
“MY PEOPLE!” The Prophet thundered. They clearly had some system magnifying his voice because it was much louder than Sev would have expected. He winced and fought the urge to cover his sensitive Kindred ears.
All around them, people cheered and shouted and hooted and whistled. It reminded Sev of a concert back on Earth where thousands of adoring fans would gather in one spot to listen to a favorite musician. The people around them were going crazy—clearly they all loved their Prophet dearly.
The Prophet held up his hands for quiet and, at once, the noise ceased. Sev looked around him—everyone who had been screaming just a half second ago was now completely mute. He frowned. This level of crowd control went beyond strange—it was positively eerie!
“My people—the Peaceful People of the Prophet!” The Prophet went on in a slightly lower tone, much to Sev’s relief. “I am here tonight to impart my wisdom to you…and to talk about a TERRIBLE SIN!”
“A sin! A terrible sin!” the people murmured. They all looked worried as if they were wondering what it could be.
“As you all know,” the Prophet went on, once he had signaled for silence once more. “The husband is the Head of the Household—the H.O.H. He has the right to make the decisions, to lead his family in the direction he sees fit. This is HOLY and JUST.”
“Holy and just…holy and just,” the people murmured, nodding.
Sev frowned as he looked around. What the hell kind of hold did The Prophet have over his followers? They were all swaying forward, their eyes fixed on the figure on the stage, repeating his words.
Then he realized something—Mia was swaying and chanting too!
“Shit! Hey, Mia? Mia are you all right?”
Sev leaned down, staring at her. She looked like someone in a trance, he thought—like all the other followers of The Prophet.
“Holy and Just,” she murmured. “The man must lead—he is Head of the Household, that is holy and just.”
Sev waved his hand in front of her face. Then he put his face right into hers so she couldn’t see the stage.
“Mia,” he said anxiously. “Wake up!”
She blinked several times, like someone coming out of a bad dream.
“What…what’s going on?”
“I don’t know.” Sev shook his head. “It was like you were hypnotized—like everyone else is here.”
“Hypnotized?” She frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“Look around you,” Sev told her. He was glad they were up on the knoll, where they could see everyone but couldn’t be easily seen themselves—well, unless someone looked up, but right now all eyes were glued to The Prophet, who was still preaching. Or, “dispensing his Wisdom” whichever you wanted to call it, Sev thought dryly.
“The sin I want to talk about is women withholding themselves—withholding their bodies from their husbands!” the Prophet continued. “THIS IS A SIN!”
“A sin…a sin…” his followers chanted.
“A man has sexual needs that must be satisfied,” The Prophet went on. “And only his wife can satisfy them. He may not take himself in hand and spill his seed upon the ground—that is also a sin. Therefore, his wife must be available to him AT ALL TIMES to meet his sexual needs, for there is no other way for him to meet them without sinning.”
“At all times,” chanted the crowd. “At all times!”
“A wife must be open and ready for her husband to take his pleasure with her,” the Prophet went on. “She must learn that she is not the one who will decide when and how sex will occur. Her husband must and will take her whenever he wishes—this breaks down her barriers and strips her of her haughty ways. If she will not submit to him, she must be PUNISHED!”
“Punished…punished…she must be punished!” the crowd chanted.
And Mia was chanting along with them again, Sev realized with a start. Damn it—how did she keep falling under The Prophet’s spell?
“Mia?” He leaned down in front of her, cutting off her view of the stage again. And again, she blinked like someone coming out of a dream.