Conscription (Ch5) : A Short Story
Five Miles Downrange :
Warning. The following is rated M for Mature. As I said before, unlike Blue Summer or Gruff Ending, this is not the result of a Monster of the Week campaign or story. The contents of our campaign work could be considered mature in content (drugs, death, violence, etc.) , even though I try to leave out profanity and gloss over the details - Conscription is definitely on the mature side in action and language. Some of the following may disturb readers, so I am putting this out there for the more sensitive crowd. Contents may be considered NSFW in some locales.
Comments are welcome. Likes are appreciated. Hate, as always, is ignored…unless it’s constructive.
Without further ado…
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Conscription
JES Campbell
V
Isma spoke to the Wagner. “Your honor, the Prosecution objects to this line of reason, the Fair Witness cannot produce a line of investigation based on conjecture.”
The screen turned a slight degree of orange. “Objection noted Prosecutor. Note that the query made by the Defense enabled the Fair Witness to provide a conjecture based on the evidence cited.” The screen turned red. “Overruled. Do wish to cross examine ?”
“No, your honor.”
The screen returned to its yellow-green color. Veronica’s hospital bed was removed from view, to the apparent disappointment of the jury and their respective on-lookers.
“Mr. Hackett, what other evidence do you have of your client’s innocence ?”
“The defense rests your honor. No other evidence exists to my client exhibiting bias against the victim. The defense stands that Mr. Martin was acting in self defense while conducting a legal arrest.“
Theo looked up at Hackett, “What do you mean the defense rests ?
Hackett hissed back, “Look , the charges are that you were biased in the way you carried out your duties. There is no evidence aside from your query of the network why this was.”
“But, what about the CPU? What about the stop before I got there?”
The Wagner interrupted them, orange screen pulsing. “Does the Defense wish to share with the Court something else ?”
Theo went to stand, but felt the baton of the escort at the base of his spine as he did so.
“Remain seated.” Was the only response from behind him.
Hackett addressed the Wagner. “Your Honor, may I have a 2 minute recess to confer with my client?”
A countdown timer appeared in the center of the screen. “So be it.”
Hackett turned back to Theo. “Listen, both Isma and I checked your story as you told it. There is no listed stop for your car. There is no listed stop of a CPU bringing you any materials pertinent to your arrest.”
“But it happened.”
“It doesn’t matter, Theo. There is no evidence that it occurred. Right now we have the attention of the jury, and they may lean to your side given Veronica’s testimony. There is a probability of someone else being in the house prior to you being there, that is the best we can logically hope for. Look at the jury, all they are seeing is some guy who was high on narcotics that conducted an overreach of their authority that resulted in a fellow Citizen’s death. Not only a fellow Citizen, but one in protected status.”
“I am not on narcotics. I never took anything. “ Theo thought for a moment. “Wait, what if someone had introduced it into the atmosphere of the house ?”
Hackett shook his head. “No good. Veronica would have shown the same narcotic in her bloodstream. She was clean, I checked her vitals before she came online.”
Theo looked over at Isma, who stood smiling back. She had won. Even if the jury believed Veronica’s theory, or drew conclusions from her words, Theo was looking at jail time no matter what.
“Time.” The Wagner called, “Do you have anything to add, Mr. Hackett ?”
“No, your Honor.”
“The Prosecution ?”
“The Prosecution rests, your Honor.”
“Esteemed members of the jury,” the Wagner’s green screen addressed the panel, “you are now in recess. Note that the average time for adjudication for the last six months has not exceeded five minutes. Members are reminded to address the charges that have been drawn not upon hypotheticals.”
As the Wagner droned on with its instructions, Theo sank deeper into thought. Clearly, the perimeter had been breached prior to their arrival. How long ? Impossible to tell, but their absence down the hall into thick of the viscera into the dampness of which they would be attracted showed little time. Still, there was the evidence of narcotics in his system, and the lack of evidence of his meeting with the CPU enroute to the scene.
It was a set up.
To what end ?
Isma was now speaking with the Wagner, and in his darkest thoughts Theo had tuned her out until he heard the last of her sentence.
“... and , Your Honor, for these reasons Citizen Erica Martin is asking for a divorce proceedings in parallel with the defendant’s trial outcome. The Prosecution wishes to enact Article 12B of the family code by protecting the offspring of the accused from civil unrest, et cetera, et cetera...”
The kids. Of course, protect the kids. Theo watched as Isma projected onto the screen several demonstrations across the Nation. Citizens performing their Constitutional right. Citizens tossing trash cans into storefront windows. Looters dashing into them, in the name of protected citizenship.
The Wagner acquiesced, pending jury outcome, the screen turning a pale yellow in doing so.
The verdict took two minutes. Of a single charge of manslaughter due to negligence, Theodore J. Martin was found guilty. He was a citizen no more.
“Subject has been found guilty.” the Wagner announced. “It is the judgement of the court that re-education is necessary. Only then can the condemned be a functioning member of society.” Here, the Wagner paused as some logic field connected.
“Judgement for divorce is also finalized with the spouse and offspring of Theodore J. Martin erased from societal ties to Theodore J. Martin. State sponsored protection protocols are now in effect for their identities.”
****
Theo was led down the hall by the escorts, hands cuffed before him, to an elevator to lower levels of the hall he had just been tried in. He passed Charles, who tried to give him a Dixie cup full of light-blue pills, but the female escort waved him off. All the while, the male escort continued to film him via his mask’s camera for later showing and profit. With the trial being over, and his citizenship revoked, no law prevented it in this media driven society.
No doubt, Theo thought, those on the jury would enjoy it. Even as they receive their pittance of pay for their duty today and think of the possibility of media interviews. Something to tell the grandkids.
He was led to a small chamber, with a chair in the center. There, Theo was strapped in - legs, feet, arms, head all immobile. A screen off to his right was swung into position, the yellow-green of the Wagner taking up the whole of his vision. The bisecting line of the screen quivered, but no sound came forth. The escorts said nothing, and from behind the screen Theo heard the door to the chamber slide shut. He was left in the silence of the room, with only the sound of the air handler to keep him company.
Minutes passed before the Wagner spoke up, the bisecting line pulsing with each syllable.
“Comfortable ?”
“As much as I can be, given the situation.”
“Let’s see what we can do to make you more acclimated.”
There was a hiss off to Theo’s right and a silvery tube extended to his forearm, just out of the periphery of his vision. There was another hiss of compressed gas and he felt an impact of sorts. The tube retracted from his arm with a motorized sound. Theo found himself relaxing, almost in a drowsy state of being.
“Better ?”
“Uh, yes, thank you.”
“Do you have any questions before we begin ?”
Theo’s mind was beginning to feel mushy. He slurred “Why does the Federal Regulation Commission feel it necessary to make me a patsy ?”
Uncharacteristically, if not creepily, the machine laughed. The bisecting line quivered with each passing vocal note. Then, the vision on the screen pulled backwards with a screeching sound, the pulsating lines becoming lost in a giant iris looking into Theo’s room. Soon, it became two eyes and a familiar face shown within Theo’s vision. The old man from the FRC stared back in amusement.
“How long did you know ?”
“I think it was once I heard that there was no record of the CPU. Since the CPU’s were State owned, I guessed that any records regarding them would be expunged from the Federal level, and that included the records from the car. Let me guess, the Feds supplied it ?”
“Yes, and it was easy to retrieve the folder we prepared for you regarding Stratton. We fed Citizen Holman the information pertaining to your searches from the vehicle. From there, it was easy to purport your bias to the trial participants, and of course the population.”
“I repeat. To what end ? What does this accomplish by putting me away and taking away my family when this is over ?”
“To be honest, why do you assume it has anything to do with you ?”
The lower half of the screen showed media footage, some professional and some amateur. On a few, he saw footage of his trial as the manslaughter charge was stated. On others, he was seen being led down the hallways to the room clearly taken from the viewpoint of the escorts.
At least it is evident that someone got paid out of this, Theo thought dryly.
“You see, it does not take much to sow chaos in society. Just demonstrate some form of preferential treatment, whether or not it really exists, society will react to the negative. We see it time and time again across all societies throughout history. From the times of the Incas, to the revolutions of France, to even the “troubles” in this great Nation. Whenever the rationalization for violent behavior exists, one will always side with the underdog.”
“There is no underdog here. Protected classes ensure that we are all treated fairly and without bias. Our society is based on the fact we all get a share of the National income, with education, medicine are the basic rights given to the people.”
“And who pays ?” he asked, “There is only so much economic freedom in this model. The State needs a means to sell its production to create income, and when all else fails, the State needs to minimize the pool of its Citizenry to ensure continued equal share across all.”
“Wait ? Are you telling me that the State sanctions genocide ?”
“Well, not exactly. The people take care of that themselves. Irrespective of class, the crime ridden streets and the few executions we have yearly generally control the population. That, and of course the licensing of the Citizenry for children. We have to control some of the State output through less direct means.”
“So, again , you dodge the question. Why was I sent to arrest Stratton ? Why the set up ?”
“It all comes down to what is good for the State. You see, it is us that provide to the people. Stratton worked for the Feds, and it was we who helped him along in his scientific endeavors. Much like you see in the development of the Fair Witnesses and, as you undoubtedly noted on your way to the reservation the technology to clean up the Bay, Stratton was on the way to use our technology to help forward the State.”
“Unfortunately, his developments had a side effect, and that was the curing of the plague which limits your environmental interactions. He was willing to take his invention public. Something we couldn’t allow.”
“Why ? Would it not benefit the State ? The world ?”
“Of course. But it is our philosophy to build upon the world as it is. Our State has thrived because of the industry built around the plague. A change, a development which would cease the inhibitions of the populace would be detrimental to our needs. For this, Stratton had to be eliminated.”
“The CPU, as you knew him, had entered the Stratton home disguised as a repairman a number of days ago. He introduced into the ventilation system a narcotic, harmless to our vegetative brethren like Veronica, but with added exposure would render a human with psychotic response. With the trap in place, it was only a matter of time before the occupants of the home would be affected. Through his passage outside the residence, undoubtedly, the insects seeking harbor in the vestibule found their way into the house. From that point on, it was merely a small matter of finding a suitable person to make the arrest and have it observed. We had not anticipated Stratton would go the extra mile in safeguarding the house after the trap was sprung.”
“The shotgun ?”
“Yes, Veronica’s wounding put an unfortunate spin on things since she was not able to observe the situation and provide the facts. Fortunately, we anticipated that things would not transpire perfectly, and having another human involved would cast a plausible doubt on the sanctity of the arrest. You see, we knew if Stratton survived at least the initial exposure to the narcotic, he would not be of sound mind at the point of your arrival and the rest would be fait accompli. Now, the outrage will be higher towards law enforcement, which will only drive the populace more to the politicians to provide a solution to protect them. “
“And you will stand ready to welcome them with open arms.”
“Indeed. Didn’t you pay attention to what Stratton was saying ?” The Fed grinned, his teeth uneven.
“It was all gibberish. We heard it in the trial. He was chanting, something, probably Latin...”
“Not quite. It is a language quite older. He was asking forgiveness from us.” The images of news broadcasts had begun to darken, replaced one by one by images of riots breaking out in major cities. As the scenes changed one by one, an underlying rhythm could be distinguished. Theo knew it married up even before the man on the screen overplayed it with the footage captured by his vid cam with Stratton murmuring his strange chant, “Aa-shanta 'nygh.....‘Nyah...’nygh...”. The man grinned wider.
“You see, even the people of this fine State look to us for salvation. Driven by the need of the ego, the rationalization that what they are doing is for the good, the protection of their own; for in their eyes they are all Protected Citizens whether they are 2A or any other category. They relish in self-identification as being special and none of them understand the simple truth.”
“Which is ?”
“They are all just simply cattle, and in that light they are all equal.”
Theo looked down at the images and saw that dark forms moved in the night, just out of sight from the vid cams broadcasting. In some, the cameras would pan back and both amorphous shadow and a person previously there were gone. He looked back to the man and had he not been shackled to the seat he would of jumped from his seat.
The elderly man that sat there milliseconds before had transformed. The pale white skin was now a darker olive, making him appear of almost of Middle-Eastern descent. The grey har was longer now, and of a black sheen. Only the yellow-green and crooked smile showed Theo that it was the same man. He howled in laughter at the apprehension showing in Theo’s face.
“I must apologize, that must have been disconcerting for you.”
“Who...who are you ? What are you ?”
The man tittered. “Forgive me, I am simply known as Nyarlathotep, and I am your humble servant. Humanity’s humble servant as it were. Since we are laying the cards on the table, I thought it best to lay them all out. Since, after we are done here you will not be remembering them anyway.”
“When all this is , “ he gestured to the images below the screen,” is completed, the State will simply be a more peaceful place to live under our leadership. Let’s just say that it will be more compliant to our needs for when my family once again comes to its shores. You are to be honored to bring in this new way of thinking. You will live to see it, albeit you may not fully grasp your role in it.”
From beside him, Theo heard the hydraulic hissing had begun, but this time the tubes came in to touch his temples. He felt sleepy from the earlier injection, and as his mind drifted he wondered giddily what the smiling man was going to tell him next.
****
It was several years after the death of Eric Joseph Stratton, and the millions within the state did not even remember the name or its significance. The State had manufactured a new vaccine against the plague, which was welcomed by many, and was administered free of charge to the populace. It would be several months until the next mutation would begin, but by that time the State promised that it would have developed a new means of administering a solution to that crisis.
Social media continued to eke out an existence for the many who continued to invest their time in rationalizing their decisions or beliefs to soothe their egos, as if their existence and word were the only defining factor within the cosmos. Profit, either through self-actualization or monetary wealth, was its reward for the selling of the soul.
Theodore Martin sat on the edge of a dock in the Chesapeake calmly watching sea birds gathering on the shore, running to and fro from the tide.
There was a time when he could name them.
If he could only remember.
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© 2020 JES Campbell
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Cover by JES Campbell
