The Four Kings (10 page)

“Woo hoo!” Regi pumped his fist, clearly delighted.

“Fifty-six percent of bitcoin users reported satisfaction with its ease and convenience with twenty-five percent reporting confusion over how to use it and another almost nineteen percent reporting refusal to use it due to political circumstances.”

“Not bad,” Indie said. “There’s always bound to be resistance to a brand new paradigm.”

“Resistance is futile,” Demus joked.

“Remember,” Amanda said, continuing. “Economic data always lags the real economy by about a month. What we’re seeing is still the effects of the old economy, before the Liberators arrived. For macroeconomic variables such as unemployment, these always have been more difficult to manage, and it may be a few more months before we can see the result of a new initiative.”

“Thank you, Amanda,” Indie said.

“I’m not done yet. I’ve received reports that there are new resistance group, composed of associations of citizens within every country in North America. They’re named Patriots Everywhere United, and they’re calling for the removal of the Liberators and a restoration of the status quo.”

“P.E.U.” Indie remarked, wrinkling her nose. “It fits.”

“And there’s a support group, called Partners with Liberators, or P.W.L. They’re advocating for cooperation with the Liberators and support for their economic and political reforms.”

“Do we know how organized both groups are?” asked Demus.

“Patriots Everywhere United has gathered over a million and a half signatures electronically through an online petition. Meanwhile, Partners with Liberators has gathered, to date, over half a million signatures. These petitions are growing by a quarter of a million people a day, with the Patriots gathering supporters faster.” Amanda studied the reactions of the Liberators to the news. “Also, Patriots are calling for armed resistance and revolution. They’re calling upon citizens to boycott the bitcoins and to stock up on guns. The Partners, meanwhile, are asking for support, by submitting ideas for greater social progress to the Liberators and asking for appearances and tours by the Liberators in the major cities of North America.”

“A good idea,” Justica said. “We need to be visible, not just from the heavens, but also on the ground with them, showing solidarity.”

Amanda pressed on. “But as mentioned, bitcoins are gaining in popularity. The usage is very low in Central America, as they’re not as used to technology as the other larger countries. Bitcoins are very popular in Canada and the United States. I’ve received several reports praising the Liberators for this economic revolution.”

“What about the former national governments?” Justica asked worriedly.

Amanda nodded as she sat tall. “The governments of Canada, the United States of America, Mexico, El Salvador, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica all insist they’re still the only authorities to govern their own respective countries and they’re all still are on record as recognizing each other as such. They claim the Liberators have no legitimacy whatsoever and they urge citizens to resist the Liberators and not to watch any of our proceedings.”

“Naturally,” Demus said, “
Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.
Albert Einstein.”

“One thing we’ve received a lot of positive feedback upon,” said Amanda softly, “is ridding the world of the nuclear missiles. An astounding eighty-three percent of those polled, in all of North America, have supported the Liberators in this regard.”

“Whoo!” Demus raised one arm high.

“Fourteen percent opposed getting rid of the missiles. And two percent had no opinion.”

“I should make a quick report on the status of nuclear missiles,” Demus said earnestly, “In the days after the destruction of these agents of death, our fellow wizards have followed up based upon intelligence collected during their deployment. In almost all cases, we were able to find the launchers, and we’ve destroyed almost all of them.” He paused for effect. “We haven’t been able to find all the nuclear stockpiles. But with the active missiles destroyed, and their launchers as well, it’s very unlikely any nation has any actual nuclear capacity.”

Amanda patiently waited for her turn. “I must warn the Liberators that the Patriots are calling for demonstrations in the major cities of each country. They say they’re networking with colleagues in AJI, AFRI, EURO, and SUDA, to have worldwide parades and marches. They’re warning they may not be able to control their members, and any torching, looting, and damages resulting will be squarely at the blame of the Liberators. They’re calling upon the Liberators to vacate office immediately, and if the demands are not complied with, they’ll coordinate ‘Liberation Hour’ to occur at the same time, all around the world, to institute major riots.”

“When?” asked Indie, horrified.

“Three days from now, at nine a.m. Eastern Time,” Amanda reported with a glum face. “It seems designed to take advantage of the most likely time citizens would be awake in all the major industrialized countries.”

Indie sneered. “Mortals, listen to me carefully. We Liberators are here to work with you. Working against us will only worsen your living standards. We’re here to advance your civilization. We’ve no intention of failing our responsibilities. In fact, since there are none of us on the ground, you can’t harm us. You’re only harming your fellow citizens. Please re-think this, and join us in overthrowing the plague that has been stalking the major economies of the world in the last three years.” She took a long, deep breath, and then continued. “Remember, it wasn’t long ago that unemployment reached record levels, causing a phenomenon which you now call the
Great Blight
, to spread to the entire world. Countries such as Japan and Russia haven’t been able to feed all of their people. It’s the only time in history where the generation aged fifty to sixty-five has more jobs collectively, than the younger generation aged twenty to fifty. You all had riots, where Washington, D.C. burned for three straight days, causing the temporary emergency evacuation of the President of the United States and his Cabinet, which constituted the most incompetent administration the former nation of the United States of America has ever faced.”

Amanda held her breath as Indie continued to speak into the screens.

“Remember, in China, the government was overthrown and replaced with another Republic, one even more draconian than the previous one. All major cities in China were subject to a curfew every night. As a result of the arrival of the Liberators, in the past six days, all citizens of China have been free to go out at will.”

There was applause from the three other Liberators. Demus stood up and clapped the loudest. Amanda impulsively wanted to cheer them on, but decided to stay neutral.

Indie wasn’t through, though. “Remember, India and Pakistan were on the brink of nuclear war, and the Americans and Russians both sent in fighter planes invading these two nations’ air space in order to dissuade them from launching. Had we not acted when we did, there could’ve been multiple apocalypses on Earth. Not only would millions have died from the immediate nuclear attacks, but hundreds of thousands more could’ve died slow, agonizing deaths from the radioactive fallout.”

All the three Liberators were now on their feet, applauding and cheering what would go down in history as Indie’s ‘
Remember
‘ speech. All this time, the camera had slavishly zoomed in on her at opportune moments, highlighting her emotional resonances.

Indie’s face remained resolute as she stood up and said, “Remember this.
Where there is discord, may we bring harmony. Where there is error, may we bring truth. Where there is doubt, may we bring faith. And where there is despair, may we bring hope.”
She paused. “As attributed to former Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, paraphrasing St. Francis of Assisi.”

She then sat down, grim.

Amanda wanted to stand up and join in the adulation, but she settled for a barely restrained grin, knowing fully-well that her visage would be captured on millions of screens.

The applause went on for about thirty more seconds, as the three remaining Liberators sat down one by one. Demus was grinning directly at Regi, as if they were sharing a sinister secret.

For a short while, Indie appeared to be alone, pondering off in space. Then she said, “Justica, your report.”

Justica zapped up her papers in front of her and leaned forward. “Right. Thank you, Indie. I’m pleased to report that in the short two Progress Days we’ve had, along with our accomplices on the ground, to whom we’re grateful, we’ve established twenty new hospitals, thirty-four new community centers, sixty-one outdoor basketball courts, and one hundred and five new football fields…” She caught her breath. “I mean soccer fields.”

She gazed directly at the cameras. “Amanda has been receiving thousands of requests. We will track them in the order they are received. We’ll establish priority depending on need. Remember, we can supply the facilities – in one minute – but we can’t supply the people. For every new large hospital you receive, generally you’ll need about twelve hundred doctors, eleven thousand staff members and one thousand volunteers. We also can’t duplicate every medical device or supply you need – our magic isn’t sophisticated to that degree. But, your community will have acquired that significant boon in facility space, and it’s up to each community to use the bitcoin revolution to fund all these staff and supplies.”

Justica glanced around, hoping the Mortals were listening and seeing that they were doing well by them. “Community centers are far easier to run. They all have swimming pools, indoor gyms, weightlifting facilities, and facility rooms. Each community’s to decide how they wish to administer them – but they’re all yours, courtesy of the Liberators.” She beamed. “I’ve had the personal pleasure of seeing thousands of children play, especially in impoverished areas, on the new basketball outdoor courts and soccer fields. Each community’s responsible for maintenance, which is quite low. We’re of the philosophy that more problems in our society can be avoided if we direct provide children with the means to play to their hearts’ content.”

She shuffled her papers some, and then read on. “Next, we’ll focus on schools and colleges. Further down the road we’ll work on municipal administration buildings. Amanda, and her incredible staff, has been extremely busy organizing your requests and we ask your patience. Even with our magic, where construction is shortened from several months to just one minute each – not even one minute – it takes a lot of planning to figure out where the need’s the greatest.”

Justica then placed her papers down, looking expectantly at Indie.

Amanda took the cue. “We’ll take a fifteen minute break and continue the debates. Next up, Demus will talk about our relations with our colleagues from the four other continents, and summarize international affairs.”

Regi hammed it up for the cameras. “You call this tea party a debate? But seriously, once real choices confront us, you’ll see fireworks here!”

Amanda sighed and pressed the button. The screen went blank. She needed a strong coffee to soothe her nerves for the next round.

Chapter Fourteen

As promised, three days after Debate Day, on all five continents around the world, the Patriots struck back, along with “motley crews” of assorted counter-revolution bands and anarchists.

Throngs of chanting supporters, in every country, converged upon their capitals, holding giant placards bearing the words in the home language of their country, “Liberators Out!” A few signs blared, “Liberators ≠ Freedom!”

In Beijing, China, Wei hovered into the air with his fellow Chinese wizards, looking worried. He, along with three other Liberators (one Russian, one Indian, and one Australian), governed the AJI continent. The national police force, now facing desertions and an uncertain funding future due to the two-week old seizure of the national money supply, could only put up feeble resistance to the angry crowds. Bonfires raged around the capital.

“Look at the Presidential Palace!” one fellow wizard yelled to Wei in Mandarin.

Wei saw a huge ball of fire about ten kilometres away, eating away at the south wing of the Presidential Palace. He quickly zapped himself about two hundred metres above the raging fire, and instantly felt the overbearing heat. Moving his hands around, he brought several tons of water cascading down from the heavens, snuffing the inferno out.

“Keep an eye out!” he yelled in Mandarin to his companions, all of who could clearly hear him kilometres away.

In Paris, France, hundreds of anarchists chanting “Révolution, maintenant!” and “Liberté, égalité, et fraternité!” surrounded the Louvre. Throwing cobblestones, bricks, pipe bombs, and whatever they could get their hands on, they started breaking the windows of the famed art institution. Sounds of shattering and cries emanated from inside as the stunned national police force, equipped with riot shields, helmets, batons, tear gas canisters, and stun grenades, looked on helplessly.

“Le Louvre!” Martine, one of the four Liberators governing the EURO region, cried out. “Nous ne pouvons pas leur permettre d’endommager!” [We can’t let them damage it!]

With a flick of her wrist, she conjured up a formidable, Plexiglas-coated enclosure around the entire art institution. The fire bombs, rocks, and other scraps bounced harmlessly off the barrier, greatly frustrating the raucous crowd.

“C’est fait!” Martine roared, as she sped through the air, looking around for more signs of unrest.

Half a world away, in Washington, D.C., Indie and Demus lingered about in the air, monitoring the defiant crowds below. Suddenly, they heard a loud boom, and, acting upon instinct, they disappeared, and then materialized hundreds of feet elsewhere. Indie gasped with horror as a projectile whistled right by where she had last been seen.

“They’ve found some land-based missiles!” Demus yelled to her, full of rage.

“How did they get hold of them?” Indie spat out. She was vastly infuriated, and ready for revenge. But she’d resolve to minimize her response. Spotting the crude missile launchers, Indie pointed her fingers, causing the projectiles to blow up one at a time.