“‘Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord…’ This passage from the First Epistle of the Thesselonians has opened many of your sermons. The Beanmeister found this passage fitting; a passage about leaving behind the limits of the flesh, being accepted by God; this was the first thing many of you heard about our Church, your first introduction to the Beanmeister.

“The Beanmeister was sent by the Lord to deliver us, the true believers of His word, from our mortal flesh and blood. Just as Christ delivered Himself unto us, allowing Himself to be placed upon the cross as penance for our sins, so too shall we allow ourselves to repent so that we may find everlasting peace and be accepted into Heaven.

“The Great Tribulation began when the Beanmeister introduced Himself to the rest of the world on November 8th, a day the unbelievers saw as an attack on their livelihoods. We have been living through the Great Tribulation, a time that has been prophesied to precede the end of the world, for the past four months. However, the End of Days has yet to pass, which means that there is still hope for the Beanmeister to save His followers.

“You know all of this. The doctrine of the Church of the Beanmeister covers these topics exhaustively. I am not here to preach to you about the Beanmeister or His values; your presence here today shows that you can be trusted to uphold what He wishes you to. What I am here to tell you is this:

“Today marks an important day for this Church and those who believe in the Beanmeister. Though I am not here to talk about myself, a preface is necessary before I continue. As I have already said, my name is Aaron Krüger. I am a general in the Holy Roman Army. The reason today is an important day for us in the Church is because today is the day the Holy Roman Empire, an Empire of heretics, has launched an attack on the Beanmeister’s borders.

“Do not fear.” Father Aaron, General Krüger, smiled softly. Krause knew that expression well; it was the same look her husband had when he looked at their daughter. “The Beanmeister anticipated this attack.

“The Beanmeister, though He is God, does not hold unlimited power in His Earthly form. During this harsh winter, he slept in Paris, gathering His power, so that He may begin accepting His followers into Heaven. Many of you, I am sure, have had thoughts swaying you away from His word; perhaps you thought that He had abandoned us, or that the Church has slowly but surely been dying. He understands why you may have had these thoughts, and He has forgiven you. But now, He is ready to wake up. He is ready to spread His word with His own mouth.

“You have each been assigned a task, specifically catered to your strengths, that has been instrumental in setting up the pieces for the Beanmeister’s awakening. You may not know exactly what the purpose of these tasks were, or how they have helped the Beanmeister, but be assured that they have been vital in His preparations.

“You, everyone in this church tonight, everyone that has been a follower of the Beanmeister, you have one final task set out in front of you. This task is given to you by the Beanmeister Himself, and I am sure that you already know what this task is.”

And Krause knew.

“Tonight is your final test. Tonight is when you are to show your devotion to the Beanmeister, to God. That is all I have to say. There are many more branches within this city that I have yet to visit, I hope you understand. Thank you all for your devotion. He will see you all soon.

“Do not disappoint Him.”

With that, Father Aaron got out from behind the altar, made his way through the center of the nave, smiling and waving at the congregation as he passed, and exited through the church’s double doors.

There was silence for a few moments as the congregation thought about what Father Aaron had said, about the task the Beanmeister had given them. Slowly, conversations began among the congregation, excited whispers about what was to come.

Leon glanced at Sam, whose eyes were wide with a mix of fear and awe. “Am I the only one here that has no idea what any of that meant?” Leon asked.

Sam was silent.

“The next step of the Great Tribulation is upon us,” Krause said, “and this time, we have a more active role to play.”

“But what does that mean?”

“The first step of the Great Tribulation were the events of November 8th.”

Leon masked his emotions well, but Krause could see the slightest bit of fear in his eyes. “Yeah, I get that, but what is our active role in all of this?”

“You will find out soon enough,” Gloria said.

“Oh,” Leon said. “Alright. Well, it has gotten pretty late... I should be heading out, before my researcher friends wonder where I am.”

“That’s a good idea,” Krause said.

Leon stood up quickly. “Have a good night.” He didn’t wait for a response.

Krause and Gloria looked at each other, then both turned to Sam. Krause spoke. “Sam, do you understand what you have to do?”

Sam looked at Krause, but his eyes were foggy. “Why do I have to… Leon hasn’t done anythin’…”

“He has not done anything yet,” Gloria said. “If he explains what he just saw to Captain Bösch or the other Empire researchers, there is no telling how the Beanmeister’s plan may be affected.”

“But… kill him?” Sam sounded close to tears. “It’s my fault he’s caught up in all of this in the first place, I can’t kill him because of that. He hasn’t done anythin’ wron’ yet, and we don’t know that he will do anythin’ wron’.”

“Are you putting Leon’s life above the plans of the Beanmeister?” Krause asked. “You have pledged your loyalty to the Church, Sam. Are you going to allow your personal feelings to bring about the End of Days?”

“I’ll… I can follow him, make sure he doesn’t do anythin’ that will get in the way of the Beanmeister’s plan.”

“And how can we know that you’ll kill him if you have to?”

“I will go with him,” Gloria said. “I will make sure to kill Leon Schubert if he tells anyone about what he saw tonight, and those he spoke to.”

Sam looked between Krause and Gloria with wide eyes. “You can’t be serious about this.”

Gloria replied. “The Great Tribulation is upon us, Sam. If the Beanmeister’s plan fails, the world as we know it will come to an end. The Beanmeister is the only thing between us and the destruction of all that we know. Sacrifices must be made to ensure that everything goes according to plan.”

“But he did nothin’ wron’! Even if he tells a few people, the Beanmeister’s plan will still work out! We can’t just kill him because we think he’s goin’ to do something bad!”

“The only reason Leon was in the Church was to give us information about the Bean research that he was conducting. He never believed in the word of the Beanmeister, the Great Tribulation, or the End of Days. Leon is an unbeliever, and unbelievers are no better than the Devil himself. If Leon speaks to the wrong people about what he has learned here tonight, and those people believe him, there is a significant chance that the Beanmeister’s plan will fail, and the End of Days will be brought about. Are you willing to risk that chance, Sam? Are you willing to cause the end of the world for Leon Schubert?”

Tears fell down Sam’s cheeks. Out of frustration or sadness, Krause could not tell. “Leon is a member of this Church, we should treat him like one!”

“Leon never joined the Church.” Krause said.

“What do you mean? He attended meetin’s like—”

“Leon never drank the blood of the Beanmeister, he never ate His flesh. If he wanted to officially join the Church, he would have had to show his willingness to devote his body to the cause. Leon never did that.”

“And because of that, you must be prepared to kill him.” Gloria added.

“It doesn’t matter if—”

Gloria stood up. “This is not for you to argue, Sam. It has already been decided. We must get going before we lose track of him, though I am sure I know where he is going.” She began walking to the door.

Sam looked at Krause, who nodded solemnly in response. “Be careful not to get caught, both of you. That would… complicate matters.”

Sam only shook his head, following Gloria out of the church.

Krause rocked Annemarie in her arms, looking down at her daughter with a smile. She knew what she had to do, and she knew her husband wouldn’t like it.

But despite everything, she smiled.

She would meet her daughter at the gates of Heaven.