Spineofdogma ( first chapter only) 1632 words- Not for the squimish.

Spineofdogma
Ch1: Monkeybeater

"Religion is a insult to human dignity. Without it you have good people doing good things and you have evil people doing evil things but, for good people to do evil things, it takes religion."

Richard Dawkins

***

“ You first have to realize when man wrote the bible, the ability to destroy one another was limited. The act of desecrating a small town, for example , was considered to be an amazing feat by any organized army at the time.”

The old man who spoke sat in the row in front of Seth. The theater screen showing images of hate, war, gore and the pains of strife. They were the only two in any of the rows that filled the dilapidated building. As the elder spoke, both souls sat there as if hated by the mouths of man.

“ Now, man can destroy not just any one city, not just one province, state or nation but the entire planet at the push of a button. Would you accept the end of the world knowing the finger who pressed that button believed his god wanted it so?”

The dark, dank smell of the theater matched the thick smack of blood running down the face of a small boy on the screen. Seth thought the old man asked a good question. A question that had an answer.

“ Isn’t it more likely a war of that magnitude would be started over resources or terrorism or some shit like that?”

Seth thought of his remarks as clever. His eyes actively avoiding the images on the screen of woman being raped.

“ Ignorant boy…..”

The old man turned to face Seth. The senior’s face unseen by his white hood.

“ Without religion, how would one control the fanatics?”

The hand of the white cloaked man reached across towards Seth’s throat. The tips of the elder’s finger’s were then blades, slashing the undefended throat of Seth. Blood erupted immediately from Seth’s wound. When the victim slumped over, all he could see was white fog and he felt to weak to really care. Seth’s hearing however was impeccable. The tingling was like when one feels the moment of just knowing where you are at that exact moment in life. Every word said from Seth’s advisory penetrated his mind.

“ Money alone can not win every mind, luckily faith can get the rest.”

***

“ Fuck me.”

Seth awoke, rubbing his head, remembering his dream and reaching for a smoke. Talking to himself surprised no one who met Seth, especially to those who happened to be around when Seth lost his cool. He was prone to mutter to himself as he beat his opponents down, down, down. Few knew he had a kill count. Three.

“ I always give in to shrooms.”

Still rubbing, now both heads, Seth laid back and tried to remember the night before, but the dream was still to fresh, to real. Then his dropped smoke burnt his chest.

“ Fuck! Damn it! Jesus Christ!”

Burnt chest hair was then the new scent of Seth’s closet of a room. Immediately after swearing in pain and taking the Lord’s name in vain, he not only expected but mocked and acted as if he directed the voice that was sure to thunder from above.

“ Pay up! Pay Up!”

Dust fell from Seth’s ceiling as thumping commenced above him.

“ You did it again Seth! I am sure this is a way to stop you from cursing the Lord’s name. I heard ya. Pay up! Pay Up! These walls an floors are thin to hear all of ya hoodlums who come an’ go. I need to install cameras for ya bastards, fortunately, many of the walls have holes, so I can see you anyways! Works well fer curfews and probation's. Cheap too.”

Sister Judith was the most devoted person Seth ever had experienced thus far. He was dropped off from juvenile detention two weeks earlier and was close to being released from Sister Judith’s House because of his age. So instead of protesting, rejecting and questioning his court appointed and holy anointed caregiver, he just listened and obeyed unlike many of the other teenagers stuck within the system. Seth figured sneaking out and getting high was the worst he would do while placed in Sister Judith’s care . So, there was no point in picking a fight with her or her beliefs. Regardless how he felt, Seth knew there would be many, many, more faithful he would meet, blindly obeying , while unfortunately in direct control of his life. She was just one more bible thumper he had to deal with for only six more weeks. Then he would relish the sweet feeling of freedom with an expunged record and the right to live as an adult. All he had to do was get in then out.

Seth laid in bed taking his hand off his member and placing it in his pocket to get the five dollar bill he had to pay Sister Judith. She could be easily heard coming down the stairs to collect for the Lord. All swearing proceeds went to the church. The month after Sister Judith’s House made the most money for Father Ted’s clergy , the nun thought the new practice sufficed long-term implementation.

“ You better have your pants on boy!”

The other detainee’s all roared in to laughter at her remark.

Seth rolled his eyes, annoyed and not enjoyed about the topic of his pants. Understandably because Sister Judith neglected to tell Seth about immediate payment as redemption and caught Seth with not only a load in his right hand, but with one also on his shirt the last time she came to collect. All six other kids crowded his doorway behind Sister Judith. What followed was the chant that gave Seth his nickname while staying in Sister Judith’s House.

“Monkeybeater! Monkeybeater!”

Sister Judith could be heard coming faster towards Seth’s door s as the others threw the masturbation cheer yet again, allowing Seth his first smile of the morning.

“ Don’t egg him on! It’s a sin ya know! A sin you are all guilty of. Oh I hear ya, in the morn’ or late at night. I hear ya!”

Of course they all laughed at the nun at that moment. By then, Sister Judith had Seth’s door open, hand extended and ready while tapping her foot. Seth could see Riley giggling at the moment the door opened. Across the hall, in her room, she watched the scene unfold.

“Knock it off Riley, yer one of the worst. I never in my day thought a lady could behave as you”

Sister Judith just had to turn her head slightly and speak to affect the girl‘s behaviour. Riley stopped laughing then raised her middle finger behind the nun in full view of Seth just to prove Sister Judith’s words correct. The lady of the cloth, however, never took an eye off the heathen monkey beater.

“Sister Judith…”

Riley spoke as Seth got up from bed and handed his guardian the money.

“ Why does it feel so good to sin? Ya think God would let us play with ourselves…no one else is involved. Unless I let Monkeybeater come and watch.”

Cheers and chants challenged the Sister’s views. A gang of kids now gathered in the narrow, rundown hallway, endlessly repeating Seth’s nickname and mocking the old woman as if she were to blame for the lack of answers about god.

Not really paying attention, Seth decided to instead think of all the times he already spied on Riley. Each time after her shower. He watched her rub herself wildly, in all sorts of positions. Watching made Seth sure he knew he was not peeping on an amateur. He swore she purposely left the door to her room open a crack a few times before. It was then obvious to him that she had indeed did. Seth smiled even larger now when Sister Judith decided to argue.

“ A disgusting thing to say dearie. Truly gross. Only tramps and whores do such things for money and drugs.”

The nun was visibly upset. She quickly folded Seth’s money and placed it in her pocket when she turned to enter Riley’s room and continued to be determined to verbally attack the inhabitant. The most notorious girl on campus.

“ You should know such things girlie. Up all night, skipping class and getting high on pot and roofies! One thing leads to another!”

Sister Judith had hoped to prove a point to all that were listening, however the result was not what she envisioned.

“ Shrooms Sister, shrooms…”

Riley had to yell over the laughter that had sprung from the nuns lack of knowledge on illegal street drugs.

“ Same thing, you little tramp. All drugs are the making of the Devil. Best you remember that.”

Beat red, the nun spilled her words with venom towards Riley, looking at her straight in the eye. The young girl smiled. Stared right back.

“ Trust me Sister, there is a huge difference between roofies and shrooms. For example, one drug you take to get fucked up. The other is given to get you fucked.”

Applause now accompanied the laughter which encompassed Sister Judith’s House. The nun grabbed a twenty dollar bill from the top of Riley’s dresser, gave a deathly stare to the young girl, and huffed back upstairs. Exasperated and desperate, Sister Judith pulled the weight of the laughter coming from the disobedient young thugs. Even though Sister Judith’s House was the smallest on the campus, it was known to be the roughest for good reason. Sister Judith was too stubborn to quit and too old to keep up.