10 Minute Tales

Jul 14 - Divine Judgement

Never had I imagined a simple phrase would cause such a problem. When my friend told one of his many tales over the years, I would always question them, and he would insist they were true, "Else God hang me." For years, he had said this without consequence, and I just brushed it off. That day, though, changed everything. I was at home when I heard a hammering on my door, a desperate, erratic pounding. I checked through the peephole. It was the friend, a panicked look in his eyes. He was holding something that glowed, but I couldn't see what. I opened the door.
"Reg?" I asked, looking him over. He was his normal self, lanky, awkward... but there was a glowing rope in his hand, a brilliant golden sheen. I couldn't bear to look at it for too long, and shielded my eyes with a hand. "What the hell is that?"
"It... I don't know what it is..." he muttered, clearly panicked. I looked at the rope again, squinting to protect them from the light. It was immaculate, but tied into the shape of a noose. "It... I woke up and it was dangling above my bed... just... it was just floating there!"
"Floating?" I frowned, uncertain. "I don't get it, you think it's...?"
"It's a sign! I-I swear, this came from God himself!"
"... wait, you mean... he answered?" I paled a little. I had never believed in deities of any description, but if he was right...
"N-no, I don't think this would be the big guy... probably an angel..."
"Well, what do we do about this? If we leave it, they're gonna get angry, right?"
"I-I'd imagine so, yeah, but... I don't want to die, either...!"
"Yeah, no, I get that..." I looked at the noose again, frowning slightly. "Hopefully, this is just a warning..."
"A warning? I... yeah, it could be, I-I mean..." he looked at the noose, gripping it so tightly that his hands shook. "It's not like it appeared around my neck..."
"Just... don't push it, yeah?" I advised. "I'd say be careful..."
"Y-yeah, I... I will be." He swallowed nervously and walked away slowly, staring at the noose as if it would come to life and do its job.
———
For the rest of his life, I never saw him without that noose. He grew into religion, fervently singing His praises, and eventually joined the church. They praised his noose as a miracle and treated it as a holy artefact, though it would reappear in his room every night. He swore it moved a little closer to him every time. I think the news of a bonafide miracle is still spreading; every religion has something to say about it, and every one's getting increasingly terse about the whole deal. I try to just keep my head down and live the rest of my days in peace, but the ordeal has me asking one vital question. Who really sent it?