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The New Order -- Chapter
16
1. Kor's "brighter and better" Vejhon
commenced without any opposition whatsoever. Many believed that
The One had purged Vejhon of its criminal infestation so that
those who truly loved Vejhon could live forever in peace. Kor
tolerated any view that eclipsed the truth and deified him. He
was the savior of Vejhon and had proven his claim with
miracles.
2.
Without political adversity of any kind, the promises of Kor and his
hedonistic ogliarchy unfolded in the most uncompromising way.
3.
After a generous revue of shell-wide victory celebrations and award
ceremonies concluded, Kor
gave
his most gallant leaders governorships over large areas of Vejhon to
rule as
sovereign
lords. As long as their loyalty to Kor was unquestioned -- they
could dispose of their lands and subjects as they wished.
4. Kor
had no desire to micromanage civilian affairs,
so he limited his direct involvement to issues that could not be
resolved
without him.
5. His chief administrative adjutant and Vice-Elite Dal
El, provided him with a daily
digest of shell activities and the most newsworthy events. Kor
vested Dal as proctor of Vejhon and relegated most chief executive
functions to him. As the shell's celebrated sovereign, Kor
attended events designed to bolster Elite achievements or to grace
State affairs. Making himself scarce added to his allure and kept
the population hungry.
6. The need to vandalize natural artifacts and important
Vejhonian
structures no longer existed, so Kor ordered that all monuments and
State preserves
remain undisturbed. Every last sheet of paper and every last
device at the Big Ball was left exactly as it was when it was
abandoned. Everything that had once been touched or used by the
exiled
government was considered contaminated. The Big Ball was an
unoccupied monument to their Victory.
7. The
State archives had been discretely removed to the interior
of Vaprous 3, an extremely deadly moon in orbit around
Vejhon.
8.
For a brief period, Vejhon basked in a glorious utopia that altruists
only dream about. There had been a handful of brigands who
used Kor's cause to perpetuate needless acts of
destruction; Kor had those brigands quietly put down because their
services were no
longer
required. Without an enemy to fight, psionically or otherwise,
combat forces began to get restless. Fighters will pick fights to
keep busy if
necessary. "Keep them quiet," Kor ordered his commanders, "the
time will come..."
9.
Within a few short months of the "Dawn of the New Dan" some of
those who chose to stay behind wished that they had
evacuated instead. Others became angry. The discontent was
manageable at first, but treated with neglect, became a problem for
Elite landlords who required constant childlike praise for their
administrative
incompetence. "The government is unresponsive," one brave editor
accused. When shellans get uncomfortable, who is to blame?
New scapegoats had to be created since the exiled
government was unavailable for comment, and the 'new' landlords showed
increasing contempt for public opinion.
10.
Kor was utterly appalled that so many citizens would so quickly condemn
their new landlords over trite and trivial inconveniences. How
ungrateful! Attitudes like that could spread into anarchy and
disrupt the new found peace of the entire shell. Kor took it as a
personal
affront to his leadership, and avoided comparing his insurrectionist
campaign etiquette to the increasing dissent against him. His
regime was different and better.
11. "You had your chance to leave. Now you
must
live with your choice."
12. Kor
did not want
anyone to think that his government was any less caring that the
previous
regime. He had hoped to convey an even more caring image,
since those who remained had shown a great deal of faith in him.
He did not want them to feel neglected or
unappreciated.
13.
“There will always be the dissatisfied no matter what you do,” Dal El
consoled him. But the lack of psionic opposition seemed
to stagnate the social climate, instead of uplift it. There had
been no way to predict this stagnation without the actual
experience. Theoretically: How could the absence of
imperfection and
weakness
create so much bitterness? Do the people need to suffer in
order to appreciate 'not' suffering?
14. The beauty of 'this' regime is to not mirror the
previous one. Fresh ideas and a novel approach invigorates the
support of everyone. The mission was to unify politics with
spirituality so that society become a whole being. The public was
given hedonistic trimmings ruled by a religious ogliarchy -- what could
possibly be wrong with that? The best of all worlds?
15. Citizens who had previously converted were not completely
lost because they knew what to expect. Others who had no
religious inclinations were still content with
the way things were running. There were infrastructure issues
that could not be ignored for one minute. Community organizing
had nothing in common with shell management. Flowing rhetoric did
not produce a single quantifiable good. Everyone wanted to run
their mouthes and nobody wanted to do any real work.
16. "What was all the campaign rhetoric about?"
"We can do better," yet, "what" was never defined. It was obvious
that volumes of
complexity surrounded social issues that nobody comprehended. Who
is the elusive "they" that everyone keeps alluding to? It's
always "they" when it used to be "us." Too many shellans bought
the catchy buzzwords without researching a single fact. Fact
#1:
17. Government is work. Government is not some
mysterious quantity that stops for a few days to reorganize when things
aren't going well. Government creates the dimension in
which society functions, no matter how invisible that dimension may
seem. Dal El was up to the task and quite deft at it. When
the Sons of the Morning realized that Dal could accommodate the
mesmerizing complexity of
an insatiable people, he curried their favor quickly, like a
godsend. It became obvious why Kor chose him!
18. As Dal El began to stabilize critical
infrastructure, it was discovered that most of the educated citizens
and those who possessed extremely rare specialties had left. The
new
State had to scurry for engineers, mathematicians, doctors, chemists
and most of the advanced technical trades. Astonishingly, some
such
individuals had remained, believing that their scarcity would magnify
their social and financial status. Their gamble paid off
handsomely.
19.
Although the immediate intellectual vacuum was a resolvable crisis, Kor
became incensed when a group of dissenters picketed in a public square
with signs that read, "Kor had no real plan."
"Kor's campaign was fluff." One brave journalist used the words
"con-artist..."
and was never heard from again. Within nine months of the
"Dawn of the New Dan," the Sons of the Morning were facing their very
own uprising. We want the "Old Dan," shellans wailed. Kor
felt that his generosity was being ignored and his anger
sanctimoniously provoked.
20. If the property and assets abandoned by 66% of the population
had been
redistributed among the remaining 34% equally, the uprising might
have been delayed for at least two years. Instead, the
rank-and-file oligarchy lavished those at the very top with unearned
wealth and
undeserved prestige, until the trickle-down effect left nothing for the
common shellan. Status relied upon society laurels or currying
favor with the Lord Governor than upon meaningful talent.
21. The lack of talent led to in-fighting which gave the tabloids
everything
they needed to stay in business and to occupy public interest.
The same magazines that curried support for Kor were now questioning
his leaders. Freedom-of-speech was great when it worked for him, but not now. As long
as the papers avoided defaming Kor, Dal El or the 200 Sons --
everyone else was free game. Most of the progressive ideas
were Dal's, which insulated him from most criticism. The Elite
propaganda office made everyone believe that Kor too, was victimized by
private agendas... "If The Master only knew about that!" Of
course he knew, but as long as the public sympathized, he didn't mind
selling ice cubes to D'luthians.
22. The
very last straw occurred when Kor's internal security discovered a
plot to depose him!
He, who had given them everything; the Glorious New Dan and social
programming... clearly, more permanent measures were needed to suppress
the rebellion: If
the disenfranchised were
unwilling
to participate, then they would have to be destroyed. They had
their chance to leave: "If you missed the bus -- you're
with us!" The time for patronizing the imbalance was over.
23. Kor
convened The Sons of the Morning to address the erosion of law and
order. The first order of business was the treasury report, "We
have no money," the treasurer reported succinctly, "the reserves are
empty... we haven't been able to locate a single unit of
currency except for what's in circulation." "The plates have been
removed from the mint," his assistant injected. "We'll create a
new system," Dal El replied, "Blue
Funnel has been clawing at the gate, and they've got more money than
Azoth
-- look into it." The treasurer and his assistant made eye
contact with Kor, who nodded gently.
24. Internal Affairs was next, "We discovered a vault containing
cosmic top secret documents, and none of them contain
anything of any value." "Does that surprise you?" Kor asked,
"It's probably disinformation left behind on
purpose." The Elite Minister of Culture reported, "The entire
archives is missing -- probably taken, rather than relocated."
Nobody knew anything about an archives and unknowns were easy to
dismiss. Since nobody expressed an interest: Next
minister...
25.
The Minister of Economics: "All trade with Vejhon has
stopped. Even the quarter is deserted. Commerce is said to
have relocated to the Outlands." "We need to get that revenue
back here," Dal
El said, "Get the word out that the quarter is still unmonitored and
duty-free -- make it sound more attractive than before."
26. "Trade will normalize in due time," Kor
consoled, "We just need to reassure everyone that the quarter is still
the quarter." He alluded to Dal, "As the Vice-Elite has said."
27. "The commerce quarter is not entirely
deserted," injected one Son, "There's a variety of pirates and
brigands brokering contraband and unlicensed
commodities." Everyone laughed, "What's a 'licensed' commodity?"
came one reply. "About half the shellans there are fugitives in
hiding," added another. "They scatter as soon as they see us,"
one Son injected. "Off-shellers," corrected another.
"Off-shellers looking for safe passage to somewhere else," the first
amended.
28. Kor invited Dal El to comment further. "The
brigands pay their taxes," Dal clarified, "so I leave them
alone -- it's the only positive cash flow
on Vejhon. That why I didn't mention them." "You mean our
GNP has a positive indicator?" The Economics Minister quipped.
Dal ignored the minister's joke and continued, "I
would like to get the high profile customers back in residency
as soon as possible... and yes," Dal smirked, "that's our only
gain." Kor seemed satisfied with Dal's answer
and motioned that the meeting move forward.
29. The
last report was about psionic collateral: There was a
disorganized faction of shellans who
refused to evacuate because, "Nobody's going to force me off MY damn
shell and I don't care WHO the hell he
thinks
he is!" "They want a more active role in government,
My
Lord," the official said.
30. Kor
and Dal El shared a mutual moment of private irony. "Then by all
means," Kor gestured cordially, "offer them
more active roles in the administration. I'm sure you can think
of
something." The issue had been polarized: Perhaps
recognizing such individuals would annex them into the solution
process. Kor had a
soft spot for shellans who knew what they wanted -- at least they
weren't declared enemies.
31. Kor
raised his arms to focus their attention upon him. It was the
same
gathering
that had witnessed his rise to power. These were the Sons of the
Morning. With more than half of the planet's population gone
-- it was easy to award his loyal followers with abandoned
estates and wealth. Demographically, the upper crust had shown
the most resistance to leaving, so many stayed behind.
32.
"Friends and Lords," Kor began politely, "I have given much thought to
the many dilemmas and burdens that
we
share, as the rightful rulers and stewards of Vejhon. We have
taken no action that was not prescribed by the scrolls in Dans
past. The same scrolls that I have vowed to preserve." It
always felt better when Kor invoked the scrolls. It seemed to
legitimize everything he did.
33. Kor
stood up to emphasize his next point, "As I review our plight
with improved eyes, I realized that there is no dilemma at
all. We... The
Elite... and those who stand with us, do not have a problem. We
are not obliged to patronize the disenfranchised. They made a
choice. We did not force anyone to stay. We have offered
everyone who remained, much more than the exiled regime ever
could." After a modest pause, Kor reiterated, "The
problem is not with
us."
34.
Sighs of relief spread among the novice shell managers. The
task had proven overwhelming and frustration levels were high.
Kor converted their collective relief into a re-energyzed new mood; so
that a
giant weight was lifted. The 'old Kor' had them in his palm once
again, so he continued in the style he was famous for:
35.
"Should we, The Elite Counsel," Kor
emphasized, "bare the full burden of everyone's bad decisions?"
The question was meant rhetorically, so an answer was not
required. "Of
course not!" Kor answered. Everyone nodded their
heads in agreement. All traces of guilt evaporated. The
light in their eyes returned.
36.
"You remember the old fable of A'Zoth?" Kor prodded them in his
charming way. "What did he do when the shell
got
too heavy?" "You've got to be shitting me?" came a psionic chorus
line. The smiles on their faces were genuine now; renewed and
fresh. At least one Son asked, "Why didn't I think of
that?"
37.
Quite cheerfully, Kor continued, "Yes! He threw it off.
Only we're not going to throw Vejhon into the 2nd Sun." Everyone
understood the fable's metaphor. Kor did not intend to
destroy the shell. He assumed a more pragmatic tone, "Did we
not deliver what we promised?" Kor nodded his head for them, "Do
understand me
when
I say, we don't owe those petulant, ungrateful shitheads, one frackin'
thing!" The room erupted into cheers! They were floating on
air.
38. Kor had done it
again -- the Sons were jubilant. "Life through
light
and death, beauty and savagery," Kor reminded them calmly. "This
is one of those times."
39. Kor
motioned for Dal El to take over while the
lights dimmed on cue. Huge monitors had been retrieved from
storage for
Dal El's presentation:
40.
The hologram revealed a massive areana inset with lasers on an x and y
grid, at 5-inch intervals around the field's perimeter .
The image was then superimposed over a professional league
sports stadium to add perspective.
41.
The camera zoomed in and rotated
throughout the holographic image at different levels. The playing
field looked like a solid
ocean of light energy.
42. In the animation, prisoners were dropped through the
grid and diced into 5" x 5" chunks. The procedure was not
survivable no matter
how one fell through. The imagry had it's morbid appeal that this
crowd found fascinating. "Very creative," one Elder
thought. "Quite sporting," quipped
another. Kor sensed no objection.
43.
"This form of demise," Kor acknowledged the Elder's quip, "will be
called 'dissension' to honor
the many... loud... dissenters." Mantra didn't miss a beat, "In a
rather unique
interpretation of the word." Kor politely nodded as
though the intention was no more fatalistic than a high school pep
ralley.
44. As
horrific as it looked, it solved a serious problem in an
entertaining way. Some even chuckled at crudely drawn
animated
figures
that were
pushed off of ledges to their demise. Capitol offenders were
lowered
more slowly to maximize the death
experience. The animator took creative license to illustrate
all plausible scenarios.
45.
"For all of its show," Dal El injected, "this actually kills
the condemned faster, and more certainly, than anything else
would. They fall through at the speed of gravity, and the pain
lasts for less than one second. It just looks worse than it
really
is." Dal made the process sound sanitary. Kor's sanction
was the only sanction he needed.
46.
"The visual message though;" Dal El nonchalantly added,
"The Master believes will greatly reduce the
ungrateful
among us." Nobody could argue that point. If the Elders
were
amused by it, perhaps a stadium full of spectators would be too?
Like when Jolvians ate their food while it was still alive.
47. Kor had not previewed the animator's
presentation, but forgave the comic interpretation since it helped to
lighten the mood. Real prisoners would not respond like the
animated figures did. By holding these events in a sports
stadium, loyal
shellans could witness the eradication of Vejhon's last remaining
plague. Dal El finished with, "Prisoners are too expensive to
maintain. It would be more humane to put them through this, then
to turn them into a public burden." The Elite had shared
this philosophy throughout time.
48.
In the animation, beneath the lasers on the arena floor was a
biologically-assisted layer of metallurgical acid that accelerated the
decomposition of cauterized
5"
x 5" chunks of flesh. The chunks were of different lengths and
bloodless. The acid left no trace of biological matter, and there
were no bodies to
bury. It was a perfect crime with faultless
efficiency.
49. "Have you given this contraption a name?" one Elder
asked. The name had been too obvious to guess.
"Yes," Dal El answered, "Grid Boards." Kor was amused at how
proud Dal sounded when he said the word. And thus it was, that
the word "Grid Board" became a noun, an adjective and political
means to
an end. It's better to be an orchestrator than a victim, one Son
thought.
50. As
the presentation concluded and the lights
went back up, Kor permitted the room to settle. "Elite Engineer,"
Dal El said, "your office has the plans -- you have The Master's
blessing." The
engineer acknowledged psionically, and excused himself from the
assembly. Dal El was not psionic, but his intuition was
accurate. Sometimes, not knowing what everyone was thinking, was
a blessing.
51.
"Those of you concerned with mental health issues -- start taking
names," Kor injected.
52.
The Sons of the New Dan were sanctioned by Kor to condemn any non-Elite
misfit they chose. The power to indiscriminately select who would
live and who would die became their highest badge of office. Only
Kor could restore life, but those extinguished on the Grid Boards were
hopelessly beyond any form of mortal repair.
53.
Having taken Kor at his word, hundreds of thousands of
uncommitted, unworthwhile and antagonistic 'problem children' were
slated for extermination but were not immediately taken into
custody. Those most deserving of death were Grid Boarded in a
shellwide televised spectacle. It was hoped that some 'diamonds
in
the rough' would repent of their pessimism and agree to
serve the State, rather than die senselessly. It worked.
Many repented.
54. Some of the least liked media figures were also
invited to cover the dissension story. Precisely what happened to
them afterward is unclear, but the prevailing conspiracy theory is
accurate. It was not in the State's best interest to exterminate
a
citizen with talent, so anyone who 'came to their senses' was forgiven
and put back to work.
55. Interestingly, some spectators jumped into the
grid on their own, perhaps unable to deal with the new State
paradigm. Suicide was a personal matter and not a State
concern. Within days, Kor's "Attitude Rehabilitation
Program"
was praised for being 100% effective: Throughout Vejhon, talk
of dissent and discord completely stopped; a testament of Kor's
passion for justice and of his devotion to his loyal followers.
56. Kor attended the first
Gridboard event and never watched another one. Hovering above the
stadium in plain sight was the uninvited cylindrical observer, that
evidently, only Kor could see. The "vexing little bastard"
gambled that Kor would keep his cool in public, which proved
true. Kor covertly queried the minds
of several spectators to determine if anyone else could see it --
nobody could. He psionically asked a camera operator to pan the
sky
above. There was nothing. The camera operator
smartly refrained from asking why.
57.
In spite of his overpowering urge to capture the 'obnoxious
vexation,' he restrained himself to maintain his public image.
There were as many cameras on the Presidential Box as there were on the
Gridboards. That level of
artificial intelligence did not exist, and would not exist for some
time. "You're psionic," Kor directed toward the object, which the
object confirmed by ignoring him.
"Cancel," was a Vejhonian symbol. "Ahhhhhhh," Kor said, catching
the unintended slip, "You messed up, didn't you?." Onimex sealed
his alpha band emitter; Kor was seeming less and less biological to him
too.
58.
One speculation led to others: The object is Vejhonian, but not
from Vejhon. It came from the future, but from what time and
place?
59. Those were the right questions; the dots were connecting and
Kor was figuring it out:
"You're
recording my life, aren't
you?" Kor asked.
60. Onimex heard it, and he wasn't talking.
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