I just started writing this one day and I want to know if I should keep writing. The Holy War Prologue Theodore Sanders awoke on a frigid December morning. He hadn’t been able to sleep well, knowing that at any minute, he could be shoved out of bed, handcuffed and then sent in a truck to one of the dozens of federal prisons. He hadn’t done anything wrong, from his standpoint. He had refused to fight for the government, so he ran. Theodore didn’t believe that he should support a government he didn’t choose and one that murdered innocents. He remembered a time, before the war, when people got a right to choose what they believed, instead of being forced to be the same. The war had started when religious radicals from the South and Midwest banded together and started terrorizing secular organizations. The non- believers fought back, and soon the states started picking sides. The West coast had split from the South/Midwest coalition, which called themselves the Nation of God. The West coast formed itself into its own nation, the Western States of America. The East coast, Michigan and Alaska allowed themselves to be annexed by Canada, as to avoid the conflict altogether. Theodore lived in Atlanta, one of the two capitals of the Nation of God. The Army of God hadn’t allowed him to leave when the war broke out. In the other capital, Salt Lake City, resided the leader of the Mormon half of the Nation of God. No one knew his real name, but he called himself Brigham Smith, in honor of the two most prominent leaders of original Mormonism. Little was known about the Southern Baptist leader that ruled from Atlanta, as the information was classified. The capital of the Western States of America was San Francisco. The leader of the WSA was a woman named Beth McVarlan, an outspoken atheist. Theodore had dreamed many times of escaping to the west, where he could be free. Chapter 1 Theodore walked over to the window and opened it. Everyone had been stressed since the war escalated a week ago. Cuba had allied itself with the WSA and had invaded Florida. WSA forces had attacked the border of Arizona. All of the NOG troops on the western border were dug in for defense. This encouraged Theodore, as he could slightly hear the explosions of the Cuban shells. The Cuban soldiers had reportedly fought their way to Orlando. Someone knocked on his door. He squinted through the small peephole. It was man wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants. Cautiously, Theodore opened the door, and asked the man what he wanted. The man handed him a small, crumpled note and slowly walked away. He unfolded the scrap of paper. It read: Dear Mr. Sanders, you have probably heard that the Cuban National Army is trying to capture the former state of Florida. Our mission is to aid their soldiers in anyway possible. You most likely hate the Nation of God as much as we do, so we would be honored if you were to join us. You are not alone. If you are interested in joining our cause meet one of our representatives in Carter Alley. Good Luck, A.A.R. Theodore , as well as many others in Atlanta, knew Carter Alley well. It was the unofficial gathering place for non-believers and atheists in the NOG capital. He snuck out through the window and walked to the place known as Carter Alley. A man walked up to him and asked him if he was Mr. Sanders. Theodore told him he was and followed the man to a bench. “ Are you interested?”, the man asked plainly. “I’m in.”, Theodore replied.” Excellent”, the man replied.” “Follow me.” Theodore followed the man into a small building. There were twenty or thirty men in the room, all armed with ancient AK-47s. A large man walked towards him and handed him one of the assault rifles.” Welcome to the Allied Atheist Resistance headquarters in Atlanta.”, the man said warmly. The man walked up to him and attached a pin to Theodore’s shirt imprinted with “A.A.R”. “We need you to infiltrate the Army of God.” ,the man said. Theodore was shocked. “M-Me?”, he stammered. “Yes, you.” the man replied. He handed Theodore a small handset and a set of fake I.D’s. “You will report to the recruiting center at 6am tomorrow morning. You will relay troop positions to us, so we can send them to the Cubans.” the man told him. “Yes, sir.”, Theodore replied respectfully. As he left H.Q, he wondered what the future had in store for him.
