Potato salad filled tupperware. Utensils had their very own pocket, and slots to fill. Lemonade on ice. Neat and orderly, the picnic basket was ready to go.

Falling short of a puddle, walking hurriedly towards the agreed upon "Spot". The weather set the mood with its dreary portrait. Threatening us all with rain. A beautiful tree, for shade perhaps? It is an Oak? I can not be certain. It will suffice for a picnic happening today.

"What a wonderful day for this!" Harold was the first to arrive. So loveable, but a hopeless alcoholic. An addict with the keenest outlook on his miserable foot hold in the world. A simple drunk.

"Harold, so nice to see you. How have you been?" John Philip spoke.

"Oh John, I have been wonderful! Best ever!" He smiled.

"Is that right? Please, you must explain?" John Philip had no faith in Harold's words. A menagerie of bullshit and lifted lines.

As the conversation was happening a woman approached.

"Here she is now!" Harold smiled and hugged the woman.

"Hello, My name is Angela. So very nice to meet you." The tall red headed woman spoke with a touch of a British accent.

"Harold, you have found love? Why I am just tickled. Congratulations!" John Philip lied through his teeth.

He opened the basket, and imagined himself stabbing Harold repeatedly.

The twins, Noel and Cole arrived. They contributed a very well chosen bottle of red wine. Sam, the newly divorced single mom was next. She dropped off a box of beer she had grabbed for the picnic.

"Sam, since when do you drink beer?" John Philip enquired.

"Since wine became too expensive..." She said reluctantly.

The group had commenced with their picnic and all the food containers were open as people sampled the cornucopia offered.

The wind picked up and something shifted within the atmosphere. A man approached the group.

"Hello there. Would you care to have some food and drinks with us?" Harold extended the offer to the stranger.

"A stranger from out of nowhere, that sounds like a bad addition to a picnic." The man spoke with smooth, deep, perfect English.

He was 6'2. His eyes were no color ever documented previous. His energy was palpable even while he was 10 Feet from anyone.

"You all know me well. I am no stranger. Would anyone care to venture a guess on my identification?" The man smiled with enjoyment.

"I know exactly who you are..." John Philip turned pale with fear.

"JP, I knew it was going to be you! Now, tell your friends... Go ahead!" The man laughed and looked around at the different faces.

"You are Satan." John Philip whispered.

Satan himself immediately took control of the picnic.

People obviously wanted to run with fear, yell or ask for help. However, the devil controls that as well. There is no escape. He controls your mind and body with ease. The dreary day started to vanish and what came forward was a grotesque hell scape and a large stone table divided all the members of the terror.

"Harold, you scum... Do you have anything to even say? I am actually curious." The devil mocked the poor man.

"You do not scare me..." Harold responded.

"That just goes to show your stupidity. Your time is over you parasite!" The devil unleashed a lightning like bolt of energy from his hands. And Harold was vaporized.

The devil had shown up, unannounced at our picnic. He just vaporized a human right in front of our eyes.

"I know a few of you are wondering where the hell god is?" The devil laughed a mighty laugh. "He is not coming folks, sorry to tell you?" He smiled. "Twins, You both understand how lucky you were to be born and be healthy. Don't you?" The devil stared intensely at the two.

"We have been called a miracle birth. And that is proof of God. And we both know he will save us from you..." Noel spoke with a shaky vibration between words.

"NONSENSE!" The devil snapped his fingers and both Noel and Cole began to disappear. And they swirled into oblivion into the ground. Another addition to hell.

A tremendous thunder shook the earth. For a few moments they all thought they had gone deaf. Accompanied by the brightest whitest light ever seen, God had finally arrived.

Angela, Sam and John Philip were all that remained.

"Lucifer, you have no business being here..." God spoke.

"Why do you not just tell these poor souls the truth? Do you really need me to explain it to them?" Satan sat down and poured a glass of wine.

"You mean how these people are all my slaves? They all knew it in some way already. Everything has a price." God exclaimed.

"You deceitful oaf, I am so correct to be the opposite of everything you are. Tell them who you truly are?" Satan spoke in a commanding voice.

"I am GOD! That is all anyone needs to know!" The earth shook with the strength of Gods bellow.

John Philip stood up and started to pace.

"So, he is the devil because he disobeyed your orders?" He spoke

"Correct JP, I am the devil to you but in truth... I am just the one who spoke my mind and did not follow the almighty god."

The devil gazed at John Philip. "I am the only one who could ever free humanity from this slavery they so happily comply with..."

John Philip looked at God.

"God, is Heaven real? Is there anything within scripture that is true?" John Philip asked.

"I am the good in the world. I am the positive force, the light that you have always known... I am your lord JP..." He smiled.

Angela and Sam dropped to their knees and pleaded with this being for salvation and making promises they could never truly keep.

The picnic was just a vehicle designed to get these souls together.

Souls had no substance as far as John Philip could tell. God had let him down for the last time.

"Satan, I give you dominion over my soul. God can have picnics. I need the truth. Can you offer me that?" JP asked.

"Good and Evil, are just a picnic, don't you see now? People will always follow everybody else. Nobody is concerned of the contents of the basket. They just arrogantly assume it will be what they expect. God lifted off and flew gracefully into the "Heavens'.

JP and the Devil sat drinking wine.

"Sometimes a picnic, is no picnic..." John Philip laughed and extended his drink for a toast. As his glass contacted the devils,

he sipped wine as a free man for the first time ever.

The END