I was disappointed now. "But for thousands of years," I protested, "people have looked for meaning where there was none, forced themselves to see patterns in randomness, and convinced themselves that they saw things that just weren't there. Sometimes an inkblot is just an inkblot, and not a sign from God."

"Yes, people can find meaning in anything," Tuck cheerfully acknowledged. I had hoped that he'd act a little more disconcerted than he was.

"Tell me, Jack," Tuck asked, "what does 666 mean to you?"

"666? It's the number of the beast, from the Bible."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Of course I'm sure." Was Tuck trying to play a mind game on me? "This isn't some meaning that I'm creating out of thin air. The Bible explicitly says that 666 is the number of the beast. I'm not saying that I believe 666 actually means anything, just that it's written so in the Bible."

"Well you're right," Tuck said. "In the Authorized King James Version of the Bible, Revelation 13:18 says 'Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore and six.' With a score being 20, that's 666. Do you know what they say that 666 refers to?"

"No," I answered. "I never really knew what 666 meant, other than that it was somehow associated with the beast, the Antichrist, who's going to come here to rule the world after the rapture."

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