A Story
~~~
The parade stopped. Dear Jennings, they actually stopped. The crowd gaped at me. I was paralyzed, my hand still extended in the follow-through. Forty-nine soldiers turned and glared, menaced. One recovered his senses and pulled himself off the street. I should have found a much smaller rock.
So quickly they surrounded me, subdued me. Poked at me with their mismatched rifles. The masses booed me and threw trash, some calling for swift discipline.
***
And so it is. Tools, technology we used to make the world global wasn't really forgotten, but very … unavailable. The breakdown of communication meant splitting, shattering, and dividing. Without transport, people left the cities. They were hungry. So what is a government really? They’re the people that gave us food, promised us safety. And so we accepted. In droves, we accepted. Like sheep we accepted so that maybe for today we wouldn’t starve.
“You repping whore.”
So power became local. Rep everything federal. What could they do anyway? They didn’t feed us. They didn’t clothe us. They didn’t power our homes.
I felt my nose break.
In some ways, I can understand why they have to be the way they are.
…My gut…
Authority to punish, if need be, was given to every soldier of the army.
My head throbbed hard.
I just hate them for it is all.
***
I woke up in my blood and drool. O Jennings, my nose. My wrists sore, lump on the back of my head. Breathing made my gut sore, and I coughed a few times.
“Morning, sunshine. Have a nice nap?”
Startled, I half-crawled, half-staggered to the far corner and leaned my weight on it. The pain in my head was blinding at every pulse, and I struggled to see, dark edging my vision.
I felt faint.
It was a man in a chair, close to a small table, but pulled away, facing me. Details came slower.
The man wore a dark uniform, some sort of faded black-green. Two of the buttons on the right of his chest were missing, though that spoke more of the army in general than of the man himself. Long, dark hair, military style, dark eyes… and a smile somewhere between mockery and sheer boastful pride. A very clean face, though, with not a trace of stubble. A nametag that said “Degg.”
“Eat feds.”
“No thanks, my dear, but help yourself to the ones in the corner.” He wasn’t kidding. Each of the room’s corners had sizeable piles of feces. My shoes and skirt were covered.
“Now missy, let me explain something.” With that, the man rose from his chair and walked very steadily in my direction. “We cannot tolerate such insolence. There’s no need for it - there’s no excuse for it. Our soldiers are proud and true, and models for any citizen or denizen to live up to.” He was standing over me now, blocking my escape, yet his tone was very calm, exact. I found myself gritting teeth from fear, tears welling. My eyes were shut, but I could feel him there.
Tense moments passed.
“Do you understand me?” I sobbed a little and nodded sharply, eyes still pressed shut. “Now. Be a good girl and hold still.”
I didn’t open my eyes, but I just knew… I felt the vomit lapping inside of me. I felt the cold from the metal and the stone that met behind me. I felt his hand spread sickness over me. I sobbed and sank down to the feds.
***
He let me go. So great and noble, never to be excessive in their punishments, they would say. The army for the people.
I lost my scarf sometime between being knocked out and waking up in that fed-hole. And my clothes still smelled of the place.
~~~
The parade stopped. Dear Jennings, they actually stopped. The crowd gaped at me. I was paralyzed, my hand still extended in the follow-through. Forty-nine soldiers turned and glared, menaced. One recovered his senses and pulled himself off the street. I should have found a much smaller rock.
So quickly they surrounded me, subdued me. Poked at me with their mismatched rifles. The masses booed me and threw trash, some calling for swift discipline.
***
And so it is. Tools, technology we used to make the world global wasn't really forgotten, but very … unavailable. The breakdown of communication meant splitting, shattering, and dividing. Without transport, people left the cities. They were hungry. So what is a government really? They’re the people that gave us food, promised us safety. And so we accepted. In droves, we accepted. Like sheep we accepted so that maybe for today we wouldn’t starve.
“You repping whore.”
So power became local. Rep everything federal. What could they do anyway? They didn’t feed us. They didn’t clothe us. They didn’t power our homes.
I felt my nose break.
In some ways, I can understand why they have to be the way they are.
…My gut…
Authority to punish, if need be, was given to every soldier of the army.
My head throbbed hard.
I just hate them for it is all.
***
I woke up in my blood and drool. O Jennings, my nose. My wrists sore, lump on the back of my head. Breathing made my gut sore, and I coughed a few times.
“Morning, sunshine. Have a nice nap?”
Startled, I half-crawled, half-staggered to the far corner and leaned my weight on it. The pain in my head was blinding at every pulse, and I struggled to see, dark edging my vision.
I felt faint.
It was a man in a chair, close to a small table, but pulled away, facing me. Details came slower.
The man wore a dark uniform, some sort of faded black-green. Two of the buttons on the right of his chest were missing, though that spoke more of the army in general than of the man himself. Long, dark hair, military style, dark eyes… and a smile somewhere between mockery and sheer boastful pride. A very clean face, though, with not a trace of stubble. A nametag that said “Degg.”
“Eat feds.”
“No thanks, my dear, but help yourself to the ones in the corner.” He wasn’t kidding. Each of the room’s corners had sizeable piles of feces. My shoes and skirt were covered.
“Now missy, let me explain something.” With that, the man rose from his chair and walked very steadily in my direction. “We cannot tolerate such insolence. There’s no need for it - there’s no excuse for it. Our soldiers are proud and true, and models for any citizen or denizen to live up to.” He was standing over me now, blocking my escape, yet his tone was very calm, exact. I found myself gritting teeth from fear, tears welling. My eyes were shut, but I could feel him there.
Tense moments passed.
“Do you understand me?” I sobbed a little and nodded sharply, eyes still pressed shut. “Now. Be a good girl and hold still.”
I didn’t open my eyes, but I just knew… I felt the vomit lapping inside of me. I felt the cold from the metal and the stone that met behind me. I felt his hand spread sickness over me. I sobbed and sank down to the feds.
***
He let me go. So great and noble, never to be excessive in their punishments, they would say. The army for the people.
I lost my scarf sometime between being knocked out and waking up in that fed-hole. And my clothes still smelled of the place.
~~~