Ell and Sill were late for the work. There were no two ways about it - either you made it on time or you were late. No negotiations existed in the corporate. Company's rules were simple - do the work properly and get fed, else join the queue wait for higher management's decision.
Ell locked his quarters and hurriedly moved out of the apartment. Sill was struggling to keep up the pace. Finally they were out of the quarters and large queue of corporate was moving like a silver chord shining in bright sunlight.
"I didn't know today would be working day, after all that happened yesterday.", Sill remarked angrily, adjusting her position in the queue.
"Oh, come on. What do you expect? Her Majesty would declare a day off for such a trivial accident? Remember the disaster in mines a few years back? They didn't even declare it as accident." Ell snapped at her. He was looking rather bored.
"Trivial accident? It was Gods wrath. people who died had made a terrible mistake of leaving our lands and Gods punished them. That's why I say you should always visit the temple ...", Sill muttered in Ell's ears. She had a worrisome look on her face.
"Now don't you start again lady. We're fine. Just let the week unroll and there'll be plenty of food in quarters. We are going to have a rocking time ahead."
The queue was moving rather slowly today. Perhaps there was another accident somewhere ahead in the territory of corporate. Ell and Sill never knew what was outside the boundary of corporate. It was place of Gods and only Gods could stay there. Sometimes Gods did visit the corporate, but the visits were unpredictable and Mostly hostile. Corporate had devised a defensive mechanisms against the Gods, but it was futile to fight against the Gods.
Gods were omnipotent. They could destroy entire corporate if they wanted to. Ell had heard stories of such corporates being destroyed on regular basis. He had once seen an entire corporate being destroyed by a powerful earthquake - definitely an act of Gods. Ell and his companions were lucky to survive in their current settlement for months now. The food was plentiful and temperature was not a problem. Her majesty had declared this as a safe place and corporate was working all time to complete the requirements. Everyone worked 24x7 to complete the assigned tasks. Soon the works would be completed and the corporate would relax for a while, but no one had a respite till then.
"Watch out Ell-----", Sill cried with horror as she saw the one of the Gods approaching the corporate. This had never happened earlier. Gods never left the heavens. But something was wrong- people was committing horrible sins these days. Even the priest in the temple had warned of such an apocalypse in future. This was the day.
The queue suddenly disappeared. Everyone was running for defensive shelter in the main Corporate house. Sill made it to the nearest block, but before Ell could come into the shelter ---
She saw Ell getting lifted high into air. One of the Gods had picked up Ell as a sacrifice. Sill could not control herself, she watched helplessly as Ell soon went high in the air and went out of her sight.
*******
"Henry, put it down.", said an affectionate voice of a mother as she ran to catch her 3 year old son. While running around the front lawn he had moved near the garage. In his tiny little fingers was a black ant struggling to escape.