YEAR 2030 - ENROUTE TO REBEL BASE
They had been travelling down a stream of dark roads since the debugging some miles back. Max lay glum and thoroughly depressed in the corner behind Ed the driver, Lexi was in the passenger seat checking over her shoulder very occasionally and Jake was getting to know his fellow males in the back.
Jake learned that Mike was actually in his early forties and had been with Isaac's rebels for over ten years. He had spent time in one of the educational facilities but had been sent to be imprisoned after it was discovered that he had tried to strike up a relationship with a fellow teacher. She had reported him to the authorities fearing that she may end up imprisoned herself. Isaac had raided the convoy and broke him free.
Sam was a little younger and had served under Isaac in the Middle Eastern war that had broken out in 2015. He had been a teenager back then and was a cousin of Mike's. Their families had been very close but became separated during the war. He and Isaac had formed the rebel group during the mass immunisation campaign conducted by the Empire in 2022. They had grown suspicious of the chain of command and the orders to imprison large populations of people in public sites such as schools, community centres, army barracks and airports. It was said to be in response to the mysterious virus that had broken out during the war which wiped out the majority of what had once been called Africa and also the states that had formed the Russian federation many years before. It was clear that this was the key step in a series that the Empire had undertaken to gain control over the world and was the start of the indoctrination phase within the secure compounds.
Tank was aptly named given his enormous size. He was not the most talkative, though. His story was less complex than his two compatriots, whilst he was a huge mammoth of a man he was very young, just twenty or so and was Isaac's nephew, born into the old world. He had lived in the ghettos his entire life, trained with the sole purpose of fighting against the tyranny of the Empire.
Jake was learning a lot about how the Empire had come to power, infiltrating government offices across the globe and securing senior positions in big corporations. They had been responsible for much government policy, economic and military decisions and the manipulation of the public through entertainment and media outlets. He listened intently as the cousins filled him in on the conspiracies of the Empire's past. It appeared that every major war since the 1970s had been orchestrated to secure oil and to raise the threat of non-existent terrorist threats that would see the civil liberties of the population handed over freely in the name of protection. Economic collapses like the dot.com bubble in the 1990s, the debt crisis in 2007 from which there was no recovery and eventually ended in disaster after the stock market bottomed out in 2013, were the work of the Empire. This had enabled them to claim the wealth of all nations and to impose their new regime on the rest of the world.
It all was beyond comprehension and sounded like a fantasy tale recited by madmen. Mike then went on to say that there had been warnings by a minority of people but that these people had been discredited by an all-powerful media and celebrity puppets who without knowing it were walking-talking propaganda machines for the Empire. There were riots and demonstrations, but these had been anticipated and were used to justify more aggressive policies, with many countries resorting to police state mentality and the implementation of martial law.
'It seemed that the final piece of the puzzle was in Syria' said Mike matter-of-factly. 'Whatever was so important was there. Despite the constant refusal of the western public to intervene, the propaganda and so called evidence wouldn't wash'.
'That's why they had to kill the economy' interrupted Sam, 'with everyone shitting themselves about whether they would have jobs or be able to pay the bills, that's when they swept in created a false flag attack and then it was curtains'.
Jake felt entirely bombarded with details and alleged facts that he had no idea whether this was what had really happened or whether they were just pulling his leg as some elaborate initiation. 'What is a false flag attack?' he interrupted.
'In its simplest terms' explained Sam, 'it's when a powerful organisation conducts an attack and then places blame on its enemy. Nothing changes public opinion more than when the bogeyman you have heard so much about actually does something that harms the people you care about, even if he didn't actually do it' he sneered.
'Been doing it to us for years' interjected Tank before falling silent again.
'The dream walkers in those concentration camps, think we are the enemy and that they have to be kept safe from us' sneered Sam. 'Truth is they are just like work horses on the farm, doing their duties for fear that they'll be sent to the slaughterhouse'.
It fell sombre and silent for a moment, the three men all appearing pensive and lost is their thoughts. Jake could feel the gloom and pain of their experiences hanging in the air and his eyes were now drawn to the front of the truck where Lexi's emerald eyes were locked on him. Neither said anything, but she just nodded with a sombre expression before looking away again confirming that what they were saying was true.
'Wow guys, that's a lot of heavy stuff you're hitting me with there,' said Jack, trying to inject some energy into the ailing conversation, 'if you're not careful I'm going to want to kill myself'.
If he had hoped that this pronouncement might lighten the tone, he was wrong. Mike and Sam now looked at him with expressions as serious as cancer. 'If you think this some goddamn game, then hit the road' snapped Sam pointing to the dark, vacuous road trailing behind them one of misery and despair. 'This is how we have been living for the past decade or more, probably long before you were even born. This is no laughing matter, this is a war, a battle to reclaim our freedom and the freedom of those people who need to wake the hell up already'.
Clearly very upset, Sam rose to his feet and moved towards the front of the truck.
'Sam, I'm sorry, I was out of line' said Jake glowing with embarrassment and apologetic. He tried to go after him but was blocked from doing so by Mike. He knew his cousin could be a bit of a sensitive hot-head and ushered Jake to take a seat.
'Don't worry about it' replied Sam not looking back. 'You'll see soon enough when you're living it out here in the real world'.
Jake took his own time out for reflection. Were these stories so inconceivable given the people he had lost along the way? His mother was taken from him when he was just a child, being sent away to Shengani away from the love of his family, his father's murder just a couple of years later and then old Shengani's killed whilst protecting him. He would not have seen any of these changes in the world, he was just an orphaned child, a freak of nature whom many people had suffered terribly just to protect him. After a brief moment, he decided he wanted to learn more.
'So this false flag attack you were telling me about, what was that?' he enquired finally.
Sam turned back to him having taken some time to calm down. 'They blew loads people up at the World Cup' he said with a hint of disbelief in his voice. 'You really didn't know that?'
Jake was a picture of total bemusement. 'What's the World Cup?'
'The one in Russia in 2018, the last ever' interjected Mike incredulously.
It was clear that Jake still had no clue as to what they were talking about.
'You know, football,' said Tank offering him a hint. It still was not registering.
'Soccer?' came Ed's voice from the front of the truck.
'I have no idea what any of you are talking about' admitted Jake to their utter bemusement. 'What the hell is football?'
The guys were now all gawping at one another trying to work out what planet the kid was from. Everybody knew what football was.
'It's an utterly shit game, that boys like to play, it’s totally boring and to be honest, you haven't been missing much' interjected Lexi from the front of the car sparked some raucous banter from her male compatriots.
'You'll learn all about football in time my friend don't you worry about that' said Sam amidst the high-spirited exchange. 'But that can wait until later, welcome to our home'.
Jake had been so enthralled by the discussion that he had barely realised that they had been travelling for some time. The truck had pulled off of the main road and was now headed along a dirt track surrounded by trees and woodland animals. It was an image far removed from anything seen in the concrete compounds and worthy of a description far more flattering than 'the ghetto'.
REBEL BASE - WILTSHIRE
The rural hideout was far from what Jake had been expecting and whilst the night sky concealed much of the land with its cloak of darkness, it was evident that the set up here was both homely and well-organised. Armed men and women were on guard at the gates to the grounds and whilst these were by no means in the same league as the heavy fortifications of the Empire's compounds, they would certainly make getting in a far from simple task.
The truck was now waved through the gates into the grounds of what was a disused mansion from many moons ago. It was clear from the way the inhabitants were dressed that none of them had ever been in the position to live in such a place when society was stratified according to wealth and privilege. They looked more like a well-drilled battalion of soldiers.
Jake took in the surroundings as the truck made its way towards the enormous square facade of the stately home that the rebels had claimed as their own. The contrast to the compounds he had been breaking in and out of the past couple of years was stark. There were very young children chasing each other, amid playful laughter, while adult couples embraced one another watching on and the joyous scene. Such freedoms that would have led to harsh punishment in the compounds was clearly embraced and celebrated here. Jake looked on in amazement at such simple and normal activities taking place all around the site, this was definitely worth fighting for.
As the truck pulled into the rear of the enormous house, the rear gardens were full of men and women tending to crops, allotments, and makeshift greenhouses. On the other side of the vast space, animals and livestock were grazing in the fields. As the truck came to halt alongside a few other vehicles that the rebels had clearly acquired, a young boy no older than ten or eleven, clearly born since the laws were passed, pulled a long cable to the car and plugged it into charge.
Mike could see the dazzled expression on Jake's face. 'Welcome to our home' he said before jumping out of the truck to greet the boy and some other children who had now gathered in the courtyard.
'How many of you are there here?' asked Jake still trying to take it all in.
'We have a couple of hundred here' replied Sam, 'but there are many places just like this one scattered around the country and we keep in contact with our brothers and sisters elsewhere. You know to look out for each other'.
He jumped down into the courtyard and was literally swamped by a herd of screaming children demanding his attention. He took a toy from one of them and tossed it up into the back of the truck at Jake. Taken a bit by surprise Jake caught the spherical object and looked back at Sam with a bemused expression.
'That my friend is a football' he quipped. 'At some point in your stay here I'll show you what to do with it, now come on, Isaac will be waiting'.
He trailed off into the mansion with Mike and the squawking kids. Tank and Ed following them in. Lexi was now looking up at him, her face more welcoming than it had been at any point during their brief encounter at the compound or the journey here.
'So, you need a girl to help you down' she joked offering her hand to him. 'Come on there's food waiting inside'.
Jake looked back into the rear corner of the truck where Max was laid, back turned and seemingly asleep. 'I really should get Max' he said.
'Trust me, one whiff of what they have cooking up in there and he'll come running. Now come on' she asserted not prepared to take no for an answer.
He took her hand and jumped down from the back of the truck. On landing he lost his balance slightly, stumbling towards her. Lexi's free hand pressed firmly on his chest to steady him and prevent him falling and now they were incredibly close, eyes meeting properly for the first time.
Jake mumbled an apology, his cheeks burning with embarrassment. He willed himself to move away, but their eyes were locked like magnets and neither was able to pull away. Jake was not really sure what was happening, but he was pretty certain that the disgusted look that now spread across Lexi's pale porcelain face was not a good sign. It didn’t take long before his olfactory senses kicked in and provided a clue.
Unbeknown to him, Max had arisen and had been watching the uncomfortable situation unravel from the truck just a breath away from them. He had just yawned and then inadvertently burped in their faces. Perhaps it was time to teach this old dog some new tricks.
'What the hell have you been feeding him?' Lexi complained, turning to the now panting Max and breaking the magnetic field that had gripped them both just moments before.
Jake too now smelled the rotten fish smell emanating from his less than helpful wingman's smiling and mischievous face.
I heard there was food. Max's voice now echoed in Jake's befuddled brain before he jumped down and headed into the house without the slightest whimper or whine following the removal of the microchip. That was for the microchip, butthead.
Jake scowled disapprovingly at his faithful companion as he sauntered away. Jake and Lexi were now alone, though, entirely unsure of how to proceed, but both clearly a little embarrassed by the situation. No words were uttered, just a silent nod of acknowledgement that this had been an awkward situation that now needed to end and they strolled heads down deep in thought into the mansion. Jake, in particular, was scheming an appropriate payback for Max.
After the late supper, the majority of the rebels had tucked the children in for the night having only allowed them to stay awake until the safe return of Lexi and the others. The children had been excited to learn that a new member would be joining their extended family and Jake was made to feel far more welcome here than he had ever experienced. While he had been extended a very warm welcome, it was Max who had been spoiled the most with many of the kids feeding him their leftovers under the table. The handsome brute had managed to finish every last morsel but was now worse for wear, tucked up under the table snoring loudly with Rosie a large grey and black Alsatian bitch. He had never really been exposed to other dogs and Jake was happy that he had made a friend and could behave like a normal dog for a while. He sometimes forgot that his companion was not human, such was their unique bond and ability to communicate, but the truth was that if it was not for Jake's unexplained abilities they would be like any other dog and his master. Jake gave him a gentle stroke and removed his mini backpack which contained the package that Frank had given him at Mack's.
With the vast majority settling down for the night, Jake was now ushered to the top floor with the group who had come to rescue him. It was time for him to finally meet Isaac.
The group entered what had once been the master bedroom, one that had seen much better days. The expensive gold and magnolia wallpaper was peeling off the walls and tinged with fingerprints and dirt; the red carpet looked worn and in places was threadbare and the furnishings were totally out of character with the lavish building. It was clear that the chairs and beanbags scattered about the room and the mixture of table and shelving styles were a collection of useful finds rather than the antique collections one would expect to decorate such an ostentatious place.
Tank, Lexi, and the others from the truck took a seat whilst Jake now found himself the only one standing. He was stood before an antique rosewood desk, the only appropriate feature of the otherwise thrifty surroundings, faced by a pale-faced petite young woman with luxurious shoulder-length brunette hair. She sat to the left of the dark skinned man in the centre whom Jake had assumed to be Isaac and another woman who flanked his left side. She was caramel skinned and very beautiful and from her body language, Jake had surmised that she was Isaac's lover.
'Welcome to our home Jake' said Isaac his voice steady and calm. 'Please let me introduce you to Phoenix' he gestured to the young woman with brunette hair, 'and to my wife Serena'.
Jake had seen pictures of Isaac on the state broadcasts where he was portrayed as an evil madman intent on murder. The man Jake was now looking at was much softer in real life, his deep brown eyes were kindly and the measured tone of his voice would make anyone feel at ease. He did not really seem capable of the atrocities laid at his door. He was a very handsome, edgy looking man with model features and a day or two unshaven stubble beard forming on his square jaw. In fact, the most menacing aspect of him was his afro hair that seemed to form a giant star upon his head. It had been just moments since they met, but Jake was already awestruck and sucked in.
'It seems as though you have friends in high places' Isaac continued. 'Frank contacted me earlier today, he suspected that you might encounter some difficulties getting out of London given the meeting of our esteemed world leaders tomorrow'.
The realisation dawned now on Jake about the fortuitous escape from the compound.
'Frank put himself at great risk for you, and given how incredibly cautious and careful Director McQuaid normally is, that tells me that you are someone of great importance' continued Isaac his natural authority and measured tone starting to make Jake feel less easy now. 'I too am a cautious man, and whilst you have been welcomed here, I need a little convincing that you are in fact who we think you are'.
Phoenix leaned across the desk and whispered something in his ear. He nodded, never once looking away from Jake who was now starting to quake a little in his boots.
'It would seem that you are one of the very rare cases who never got plugged into the raging authoritarian machinery of the Empire' continued Isaac in reference to the fact that no tracking device was found lurking hidden within his body. 'Only the bastard children born illegally out here in the ghetto have that privilege' he said now catching the sight of Lexi, 'although this unusual occurrence is not necessarily entirely without president'.
'I have no idea' explained Jake with a hint of anxiety in his voice, 'I have never lived within a compound, for many years I lived overseas with my-' his sentence stopped in its tracks as he wrestled with the best description of Shengani. 'I was sent by Frank to live with an old man called Shengani, old, but very capable and clever who looked after me from the age of about six until sixteen' he blurted unconvincingly.
The expression on Isaac’s face suggested that a family history lesson was less preferred to a response with greater brevity. The bored sigh and slight clenching of the great man’s jaw suggested that Jake should get to point.
Jake then remembered the package given to him by Frank and decided to moves things along. He now approached the antique desk and placed a small container with a clear solution in it. It was no bigger than the kind that had been used for prescription contact lenses in the past.
'Frank said to give you this as a sign of good faith' Jake said, now stepping back to his original spot.
The rest of the room were all now craning their necks to get a look at this token of faith that the mysterious newcomer had presented to their leader. Puzzled expressions and quizzical looks bounced around the room. Isaac had taken a brief glance at the small flask of clear liquid before resuming his steady stare at Jake.
'What is it?' said Serena to her husband.
Isaac continued to maintain eye contact with his new young guest before announcing, 'why it is proof my dear that the boy is exactly who he says he is'.
Isaac's fixed stare now relaxed, his eyes softening and a wry smile now took shape on his face. He took up the tiny bottle and gave it a gentle shake. A tiny little black dot barely a couple of millimetres in diameter now floated from the bottom of the flask into sight still immersed in the solution.
Murmurs of collective understanding of what the flask contained were now filtering through the room. It was a disabled tracking device used by the Empire, administered during the mass immunisation campaign before they imposed their rule. Jake it seemed was still in the dark.
'That's why we couldn't find his tracker' said Mike to Sam.
Isaac shook his head and holding the small flask for everyone to see. 'No Mike, this tracker was mine'.
It had been over a decade or more when Frank had removed this device from Isaac and to whom he and the rebels owed their lives. While he and his fellow soldiers had not been subject to the mass fake immunisation campaign, they had been injected with the trackers under the guise of a immunisations they received to safeguard against alleged biological weapons that their enemy was using during the war that had broken out in 2019. Isaac and the others had been entirely unaware, but it had led to huge reductions in the numbers of rebels whom the Empire had been able to detect, capture, execute and torture over the years.
'So tell me Jake' said Isaac, now placing the flask into his pocket, 'what exactly are you looking to do here?'
'I want to bring the Empire crashing down and I want to clear my father's name' replied Jake, the emotion in his voice palpable.
'Well, you have come to the right place then' smiled Isaac in reply. 'Defeating them though is not going to be easy, they have support across the globe, have more people under their spell than we have in our ranks and their arsenal is far superior to ours'.
Isaac now ushered him and the others to a map he had on the wall. It showed the world as it once was with hundreds of countries all independently run. There were now many coloured pins within the map and an array of coloured drawn boundaries over the old demarcations.
Isaac then outlined how the areas marked in green were the territory known as Europa, a collection of the old European states excluding those in the former USSR but including some countries from the middle east and of course the United Kingdom. These he explained were under the control of President Van Duyn and the territory had responsibility for managing the entire surveillance system mainframe for all residential compounds across the globe and it was this that he chose to focus upon.
'If we can take out the headquarters in London and put a virus in their system, it would give us a chance to take over the media outlets that they have' he explained. 'If we are able to show the people in there that the rebellion is working for them and not against them then we could create uprisings like no one has ever seen all across the globe. Whilst this wouldn't bring an end to the Empire, it would severely weaken them'.
Jake was not entirely convinced so far. 'I've seen some of these people up close and to be honest, I don't think they really see themselves as prisoners or indeed you people as their allies'.
Isaac smiled. 'Everyone in those places has either lost a loved one, been separated from them for a number of years and has basically been fending for themselves. They may look like they are functioning, but without the constant glare of Empire over them or the fear that they will be cast out to certain death, if they knew the truth, it could set them free'.
Jake pondered his statement for a while. It was true, he was wanting to stand up to Numen and all the others who had sought to take over. He was just a young man, still ignorant of many of the atrocities that had led to the authoritarian regime, looking around him there were people here who seemed equally if not more motivated than him to stand up and fight. They all had their own idiosyncratic justifications to rise up and Isaac may be on to something with the dream walkers within harbouring pent up, latent feelings and experiences that if given an outlet could ignite like napalm.
'Okay, so if, and it's a big if. If you can override their security system, what makes you think that these people are just going to suddenly wake up, get angry and then take out that anger on the forces who have repressed them all this time?' he challenged.
'It's the right question' reasoned Isaac. 'However, we haven't been sat idle all these years. Admittedly early on various groups formed and we began to fight amongst ourselves. In fact, Numen and his men made sure we did. They realised we were growing in number and were beyond their control so they started to campaign their propaganda in the ghettos and rebel groups fought one another for a few years. Eventually, we all realised that their tactics of divide and rule were merely aiding their agenda' he explained.
'That's when we formed alliances across the rebellion' interjected Lexi. 'We realised that we were stronger together fighting against a common enemy. We shared resources and intelligence to ensure that all of us thrived, that we were equipped, fed and well organised'.
Phoenix who had been silent up until this point now spoke up. 'In order to control the people in the compounds, the Empire closed ranks and fortified their interests. Controlling these cities of people is not their end game and to be honest we don't yet know what it is' she said. 'When they built their compounds though they left everything that was outside free to be used and exploited'.
Isaac now took back control of the discussion. 'Between us and all the neighbouring groups like us, we replicated what they were doing inside those compounds, we gathered intelligence that shows that their strategy goes back decades, we took control of places like this to sustain us and provide the life that they had been so desperate to take from us. We gathered arms, machinery everything we could and set about freeing the loved ones we could with what little we had'.
Isaac now pointed at his son Tank. 'I had a responsibility to ensure that he lived in a world where he was free and that rifle he has come at a cost. We have lost people over the years, attacking the Empire's convoys of food and equipment, but it was all in the name of reclaiming our right to live free and to make our own minds up, not the indoctrinated bullshit they are feeding people in those prisons'.
Isaac paused briefly, gathering himself. 'To answer the question you asked Jake, we do have eyes in there and people who are ready to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. We have troops out here waiting for the green light to go in and blaze a trail of utter devastation. Now, with you, we have been granted the key to the kingdom'.
The excitement was now pumping through the room, the energy and desire to get started was in clear evidence. Even Jake was ready to go into bat, but Isaac's words had given him pause for thought.
'What do you mean I'm the key to the kingdom?' He asked incredulously. 'I'm just some stupid kid with a vendetta'.
Isaac flashed him a beaming grin. 'Oh, on the contrary Jake. You see, Frank has gone to great lengths to hide you from the eyes of Numen and his forces, you are one of the few whom the Empire was not able to get it's sinister grip upon and there is a good reason for that, but most importantly we have seen just a glimpse of your capability'.
He turned and waved Phoenix over. She brought over a laptop and showed him the screen. On it, he and everyone else in the room could see his escape from the foot soldiers on his opening night in the London compound. Jake suddenly felt very vulnerable indeed.
'Calm yourself. You have no enemies here, and your secret, whatever it is will not be uttered outside of this group' assured Isaac seeking nods of reassurance from the rest of the group. 'I don't care who or what you are, but you can help us defeat these people and if you are against them then you are with us'.
'Look, I know what it looks like' stuttered Jake, 'but I have no idea how I'm able to do that' he said pointing to the screen.
'It was no fluke, though, was it?' Isaac replied with a fatherly wink. 'I've seen other examples of your work'.
Jake was starting to feel a sensation he was not particularly used to, the pressure of hope and expectation. He started to feel a little flustered.
'I bleed just like you do, a few magic tricks aren't going to stop some foot soldier wiping me off the face of the planet like the rest of you. Besides they have thousands, if not, hundreds of thousands or more of them' he protested.
'You aren't on your own though' chimed Lexi.
'Exactly!' Isaac interrupted. 'We are all here to fight, maximising whatever skills and abilities we possess, but that's enough for tonight. It's late and everyone needs their rest'.
The group began to disperse, the meeting now adjourned. Jake remained, though, he had more questions. He was a little perturbed at the high expectations that this new acquaintance of his was bestowing upon him. Sure, he fully intended to fight the Empire, but the way that everyone had reacted, it seemed that they viewed him as some kind of demigod. He was a just a teenager with some uncontrollable and unrefined tricks.
After Serena had kissed Isaac goodnight, the two of them were now left alone in the room. Lexi loitered just outside the door desperate to eavesdrop on their conversation.
'I don't understand how I can help you' said Jake more comfortable in letting down his guard now that the others were gone.
Isaac placed his hand on Jake's shoulder and gripped him tightly, pulling him close. 'Tomorrow you, Phoenix and I, have a date. Things will become much clearer to you then. I know you have many questions, some of which I probably can't