they said it was in the water - kept the families small predictable, and replacement human stock growing to maturity. In the first fifty years most were lost as that was the most rick ridden part of living, after 70 or so years of natural life, but after then the person could now live for up to 1400 years before old age would suddenly hit and their end came quickly. education became a highly sought after profession, and doctors became almost unnecessary.

them soldiers, they leaving?

Down at the village market today, there was a man and he said that the soldiers have been told to pack up and go home soon. No way they are going to stay so we have to act fast, ready for when they are not here. We got keep quiet about the supreme uprising and installation of our rightful leader to the stadiums of power. Now different people want see different rightful leaders. And so be it. Enough of the killing on the streets, the Americans must follow the British and soon. Enough is enough. I think you have made your point, the brutal force wielding maniacs storm into Baghdad after ruthlessly bombarding it until all that is left is scars and suffering. They leave behind them a country broken in two, severed by the sword that will fall upon this Iraq world and give the world two Iraqs. kj

June 18th, 2112

The President said from the White House today that a resurgence of the forbidden book was seen as sedition and that those found guilty of heresy would be confined to the Orb. Already 6% of the population contribute to the Energy Source that replaced prison. The one hit and your energy is ours campaign was cancelled as it was better that nobody knew of the new method of using the real time democracy machines that told the Government what the people of each country felt like today. The software was sponsored by the Other Organisation, a 60 year giant that formed after Microsoft swallowed News Corp and AOL Time Warner on the same day.

The highjacking of people's minds for Government purposes replaced taxation as an effective means of controlling the criminal minds of society. You just hooked them up, plugged them in, and their mental functions were used as raw computer memory, using very little energy. The person went about their lives in their hemetically sealed apartment, permanently supplying their every thought to the Machine.

After the Snalard discovery the Government silently adjudicated that those who wished to fight against it could be put to good use, and completely and forever nullified. Violent offenders, rapists and perverts could now, instead of providing viable targets for prison sadists, could now be employed and at 100% cost to themselves, and 0% effort on behalf of the population. But so could bag thieves and dissenters. So could protestors and those who refused to shave their upper lip. All these rebelious types of people were now easily found and controlled, thanks to the Laws of Personal Intrusion enacted by the Priests of the Seventh Dimension. After the 20th Century cruisades erupted into full scale human conflict the Priests took control and formed the Union of Nations. From these Ashes, we Build the greatest World for humanity. And The President of the good old United States told the Union of Nations that they were offside and he took them to task in every detail.

The leader of the Free World had it in the palm of his hand, the means to bring troups to his aid whereever he may be. He was watched by a structured force of about 300 personnel 24 hours every day and night. He was not afraid of Union anger.

And nor was there any. The Union gave in rather than enter into a fight, and asked President Michael what he wanted for his people. President Michael replied, "you shall serve my will" and that was that.

Six years ago the Orb went on line. Now the Government not only could record every detail of every citizen's existence, but it could now start to analyse them, sift through successive moments, analyse meetings, transmissions over the telephone networks.

The Forbidden Book listed many citizens but at their old address and phone number. It was forbidden so that people would no longer be able to plot with one another. The analysis revealed a tendancy that those that had fixed addresses the longests were in the Orb, so possession of The Forbidden Book was gradually deemed a criminal offence.

in the dark echo room

don't know what it was until you find somewhere to shelter

feeble effort since then to move sitting here, still smell it

passing in and out

what can I remember, my name is Joseph, I am sitting here in the dark, hole in my shoulder

its all to hell out there in the street, whing dang'rs darting about like the air is think with daggers

like flys, big dark ugly blowflys, buzzing, buzzing in my ear,

all of a sudden like there is a great explosion by my leg, everything is all lit up and I see I am not alone.

There is a Guard injured over the other side of, its some kind of basement, unused, abandoned, bombed to hell and yet its still here

heck so am i

what was that? my mumma talking to me like it's way back when and she smiled a lot, but she is not smiling at me this time

you have done terrible things, you bad 'un

I sit here back in the dark, legs splayed, back hard against the wall, I don't if the guard Sawn me or not. I don't know if he alive, awake or jus' preten'in' like me.

There is a hole in me shoulder and now one in me leg, but I remain still, silent like a log or an aligator about to 'trike. Or a constrictor, about to constrict. Pull the vase tight around the vessel. Built it like a can of worms.

I don't know how I got here. I think I am an American.

Now was I from Oaklahoma or somewhere else? I have to wait until I hear myself but the shouts, crys and ammo bouncing off the floor and the ceiling., the walls, the walls, the sides of my head.

My mumma whispers


you're not....

April 2 2003


23:09

The TV Producer

23 June 2005

The soldiers are coming. My instructions were to burn the tapes we played as soon as they were "done". Working with the most famous man in the world was most unpleasant. He lites his cigar and breaths down your neck, get this right, don't get this wrong. Our makeup team had to follow orders like "age me a little for this one" and the subtle change in military uniform ensured that our most gracious leader was "alive" to the world long after he had lost his life on the first day of the war. Worse than Hollywood! We kept him alive for all the world to see, keep the Americans fighting for a full sixteen months after the Leader's death. Hah. What genius! The popularity of the western leaders has fallen, while Saddam is considered immortal, unshakable, and resolute. Rumsfeld shows his dismay on CNN, "we have bombed Bagdhad to ruins, and still, Saddam broadcasts, its as if the death of the majority of his people is of no concern. What a butcher!"

As unpleasant as it was working with Saddam, somehow working with Rumsfeld must have been worse for my compatriats at CNN. 2000 tapes were made, Saddam spent more time in our studios than he did at the war council. In fact he had very little to do with the war planning, happy to leave this to his sons. "That rat Uday will enjoy killing Americans" he said, and we filmed him heading up the miliatary campaign table. As soon as the filming was over, we would return to the studio, with Saddam, to make more "broadcasts".

Yes, the TV station was obliterated in the first week of the war. Our task was to narrow cast our transmission to all the world's media, selling our exclusive footage of the Iraq leader at this finest. The 2000 tapes told a story about the war, how Americans were cowards, and did no good for his great country.

But now the soldiers are coming. I hesistate, they will not find Saddam in this deep bunker that evaded their bombs, they will find how Saddam's final act was to dupe them into destroying Iraq. He succeeded.

But let them all know? It seemed better to me to wipe the tapes and let the Saddam myth remain intact.

The Soldier

We know a soldier, one of the first ones that came with the nights of fire and rain that followed. We know him well, he is not such a bad person. A bomb went off and took away part of his ear, he can not hear on this side, this side is completely deaf. The man, this soldier, for he is a man, but one that dreams alot. He is not married and he holds a gun, we carry the foods back in the bags and they watch, their weapons hanging in a relaxed kind of gait. A friendly gesture. But that I should show my graces to these man that took the lives of so many fathers. Mine was there.

That I should lie here in the warehouse, far from windows or explosion in stone or brick. Far from glass. Lie still or their flying robot drones will detect my body. I lie here and hook into the neural net where we plan, all sixteen of us that attend the 4th class in Room 208 on Tuesday. The soldier will walk past the alley at 15:38 as he does in his routine, the ricene dart has been ordered for his neck.

The group nominated three to carry out the task. A vote was held and my friend was chosen as leader. I was his second and had to kill the third if he failed to carry out the leaders instructions. I am the enforcer and I am prepared to do my duty so that one day we get back our land. My father said I should die like a man. I hope to have taken another 20 americans with me before I turn 12.
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Fiction - Death in the City

The missiles outside hit the building and glass went everywhere. The time is at hand. The clock struck two and then it was it by a flying deluge of steel glass and brick. This could be New York. This could be Bagdhad. It makes no difference, the terror is the same. Localised explosions, fire and death. It's "over there" a few blocks away so life will go on here as normal. The building collapses and hundreds must be dying each second that passes. The clock is broke so you can't hear it tick.

There is dust on all the cars outside, and the air stinks of something vile. The lunch lies half eaten in disbelief on my plate as a shock wave shatters all the windows. I fled to the street. My wife is in the car, it is on fire. Her clothes are burning from her back and the children in the back of the car have stopped struggling. The heat overcame them from the explosion of the petrol tank. Now the car is hit by a missle.

Run down the street, away from the dust but there is no sound. A rush of wind one way and then back the other. Which way is safe? Explosions in both direction, falling bricks and sky. Smoke and dust crowd in the streets and all definition is lost. This is no longer a city, but a silent dream and I hover over my feet no longer touching the ground I look down at my body as it breaks open...

Fictional account by Nicholas Alexander
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