Page 1 of Deliverance
CHAPTER ONE
The four powerful gods sat around the table devouring the succulent food the servants had lain out at the most extravagant restaurant in Fago. The place was bright with electric, crystal chandeliers sparkling overhead. Its hardwood floors shined with the finest polish, so much so, one could see their own reflection. The seats themselves were cushioned to give the greatest amount of comfort and the décor was dedicated to the gods themselves with ivory carvings of their images throughout. A true homage. Green vines and leaves crawled up the walls, giving the place the feel of being outside as well as inside at the same time.
Only the richest could afford to dine here, and that was what made it most worthy to serve the gods. Four servants stood in the background behind each god as they dined, waiting to serve them should a god need their assistance. The servants were not allowed to dine at the restaurant themselves, and one of their stomachs growled in protest of the hunger he felt, but he dared not say a word. He was beneath the gods and could not interrupt their meal to search for his own.
Simeon eyed the servant whose stomach was audible and sighed. He knew the rules the restaurant had set up and it was the elitist standard that he’d grown to despise that made him call this meeting in the first place. He turned his attention back to his fellow gods to address his concerns.
“Things must change,” Simeon said.
Kijani swallowed the tender, seasoned chicken he’d been enjoying. “Is this about the Games again?” he asked with a groan. “We get it, you do not favor them. Perhaps, it’d be best if you just no longer attended.”
“The Games are but a small part of the problem,” Simeon said. He took a sip of his wine, then looked at the glass in his hand. “Before we came here over two hundred years ago, a glass such as this could be found in most homes.” He gestured to the lights above. “Electricity was not something so hard to come by where only the wealthiest of people could afford it.”
“Humans took it all for granted, they did,” Odessa said as she sipped from her own wine glass.
“Perhaps,” Simeon said. “But we have done no better. The wealthiest still take things for granted as they look down on those they deem lesser than them. This must end.”
Kijani snarled. “Oh, it isthisdiscussion again.”
“This time, he has me to agree with him,” Eloy said, then sat back, tapping his finger on the cloth-covered tabletop. “We have failed in our quest to make this world a better place. We have created a system where the rich still rule, they do not share, and they do not help those in need. They are selfish and greedy and we have rewarded them for it.” He shook his head and frowned. “This cannot continue.”
“These humans behind us, their stomachs growl because they are hungry. They are not even allowed to eat the scraps we leave behind. They are paid next to nothing in one of the most luxurious restaurants in the world.” Simeon sighed. “This is not progress, this is regression.”
“Shall we create another calamity and start over? This one could not care less,” Odessa said, then she finished off her meal by scooping the last of her buttered potatoes into her mouth.
“That is not the answer. We have to set a new standard, one that will level what is unbalanced,” Eloy stated.
“Things will always be unbalanced. There will always be poor, and there will always be rich, and those in between. Nothing has changed in that regard. We have eliminated wars, diseases, and yes, these servants hunger, but they will and can find food. They will not starve to death, because we have made it so that all can live full lives,” Kijani said, then threw a chicken bone onto his empty plate.
“This is hubris you speak of. Yes, it is good that we have eliminated wars, famine, and disease. But food should be for all, why can they not dine with us?” Simeon asked.
Kijani threw up his hands. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, you know why. No god shall allow any human to get close to them, yet you want us to dine with them?” He shook his head in disgust. “That has been your flaw from the beginning. Your weakness. It is a miracle that it has not been you who would send us back.”
Eloy stiffened ever so slightly with the mention of their own rule, the one they had all agreed upon when they decided not to return to the heavens. The one he was so dangerously close to violating with Mateo.
“You can fuck them, but won’t eat with them?” Simeon asked them.
“I have never fucked one of these humans,” Kijani retorted with as much venom and contempt as he could muster.
“Perhaps you should, it would surely help you unwind,” Eloy stated.
“I will not lie with those who are beneath me, and you should not either. They are filth,” Kijani said.
“This one thinks this conversation is unsettling. What does that one ask of us?” she asked Simeon.
“Well, for starters…” He turned to the servant who was standing behind him. “You, come and take this food to that table and eat. I will not see it go to waste.”
The servant froze, fear stilling his movements as his eyes darted from one god to the other. He then looked around the empty restaurant, cleared for the night to cater to the gods. He took one step forward, then a step back. “We… we.”
“Are you trying to get these servants punished?” Kijani asked, cutting off the servant.
Simeon turned to him. “Do you not see the problem here? We are gods, we are supposed to be benevolent, and yet he fears to even eat the food I have offered.” He placed his hand on his chest. “These human bodies have corrupted us.”
“What are you asking of us, if only so we can be done with this discussion?” Kijani asked.
“I’ve already said what I want us to do.”
“Very well, let us send out a decree that all servants in all restaurants shall have the opportunity to eat the food for free while on duty. Is that benevolent enough for you?” Kijani asked with a flamboyant twirl of his hand.
