Two years into the reign of the King of Earth [WRC]

King Breztok walked into the throne room. The palace construction was proceeding nicely, most of the spaces he inhabited from day to day were finished, and he hadn’t been disturbed by the sight, sound or smell of the construction workers in weeks. Having razed the entirety of Vatican City, his new digs consumed, in one way or another, nearly the whole territory.

The King wore an immaculately tailored gray silk suit with a red silk shirt. The shirt was unbuttoned at the top, as it was early in the morning and a time when the King was in a rather casual mood.

“My lord,” Kindet said, kneeling and lowering his head. The first assistant remained motionless as the king walked over to the throne and sat down. “You may rise,” Breztok said. Kindet did so. “What is it you wish for today?” The aid asked, voicing the only question Breztok allowed to be asked first thing in the morning.

“I wish to address my people, Kindet. I feel there is still some unrest even today. I must have peace,” the king said softly, a contemplative look on his face. “My lord, there is peace everywhere, as you know. There has been such for nearly two years since you brokered the deal between…” Kindet began to explain unnecessarily.

“Yes, yes, bother me not with yet another rehash of recent history. I know that my peace deal was the only option after… well, all the unpleasantness and death. As I was saying, all nations have me as their selfless ruler but I sense in my spirit that some resist my lovingkindness and do not embrace my wisdom. We must seek out the unbelievers,” the king said decidedly. “Prepare my people to hear me, Kindet!” “At once, my lord,” Kindet said, bowing, and then he pulled out a tablet computer from a pocket in the back of his unitard.

Kindet’s slender fingers danced across the tablet as he sent word to embassies and media centers around the world, informing them of the pending address from the King. Breztok stood from his throne and walked over to a side room. In stark contrast to the opulent décor that swathed every square meter of the castle, this chamber was swathed in circuitry and sensors. The King removed his crown and placed it on a small shelf near the door and it retracted into the wall. Instantly another piece of headgear slid out from the wall on a different shelf. This new item appeared as nothing more than a large gold colored ring.

He put it on and at once the man saw an interactive display in his field of vision. Walking to the center of the room he initiated some commands and his view was that of the National Mall in Washington DC. He mentally shifted again and again and he was looking at the most prominent public monuments in every nation all over the world, one by one. He settled on the Tower of Hercules in Spain. The device created a virtual real-time telepresence to that location. As far as the King could see, hear or smell, he was there.

Simultaneously, at every other prominent monument around the world, flawless holographic systems were being activated. Thunder boomed, lightning struck, the earth shook and static filled the air. People who were present ran in terror. Permanently emplaced television cameras switched on to instantly capture the event that was about to take place. Across all of the lands whatever televised stream was playing was pre-empted for King Breztok, the king of the world, supreme ruler and author of peace.

At each monument in every country a swirling fog appeared and out from it stepped an enormous holographic image of Breztok. Instead of his normal 1.7 meters of height, the holographic Breztok was a full 2.25 meters and not a millimeter less. He wore impeccably regal clothing suitable for the respective region and when he spoke it was in a perfect rendition of the local language and dialect.

Before he began to speak, a low thrumming sound began to emanate from the surrounding areas at the perfect frequency to elicit a calming effect on those nearby. The people who had run away screaming and were cowering behind things slowly walked back to the monument, grinning widely with eyes slightly glazed. “I’m so excited!” One teenage girl in Kyoto Japan squealed to her friend as they both ran towards the apparition. “The King is HERE! He’s actually HERE!”

“My children, hear my voice!” Breztok said in a booming voice. “My heart cries for you this day and I must tell you how much I love you all. It saddens me to no end that there is still unrest and discord among you. We are at a time of unprecedented world peace, not two years old yet, and like a small child of that same age, we must protect this peace with our whole being. That is why I have created a new class of global citizens. I have created … The Sons of Light!”

“We must begin recruiting for this group at once, and with it we will be able to deal swiftly with anyone who would be so bold as to threaten our precious, precious peace. Members of the Sons of Light will receive Wealthy Class benefits and compensation. They, their families and their fathers’ families will also be exempt from all global taxes and will receive double rations of energy, food and medical care.”

Around the globe, the crowds erupted with cheers and shouts of glee. The video cameras picked all of it up and rebroadcast it across the airwaves and the internet, all electronic devices dutifully interrupting whatever content was being shown at the time. For those in parts of the world where it was night, alarms sounded to wake all individuals so that they could also experience the glorious privilege of hearing their king speak live. And, of course, the speech would be replayed hourly for the next two days.

Breztok continued speaking for a few more minutes and then ended the broadcast. His holograms stepped back into swirls of smoke and everything became quieter. The thrumming sound gradually faded away with the smoke, leaving all witnesses in a state of serene afterglow not unlike that experienced after copulation.
Replacing his crown he went back to his throne. “A masterful discourse, my lord!” Kindet said, gushingly.

“Indeed. Please summon my chief territory ministers, I must outline my divine vision for the actual duties of the Sons of Light.” “Yes, my lord, at once,” Kindet replied and again reached for his tablet.

“Scenery!” The King barked. Instantly, nude teenage girls wearing body paint scampered in and stepped up onto plinths strategically placed in all corners of the throne room. “Food!” The King barked, and two butlers came in carrying plates of food and stood at either side of him, holding them on outstretched arms within reach. A third butler came in holding a glass of beverage in each hand. As he began to eat a dazzling array of the finest breakfast foods from around the world he barked “Report!”

Continued Below

Continued from Above

In front of the King appeared a holographic display. As he motioned with his fork and grunted voice commands, he was able to instantly see the heartbeat of his global empire represented on screen after screen of graphs, charts and vids all carefully summarized by thousands of people all around the world employed by his empire.

As he analyzed and squinted at his birds-eye view of the world, he first poured over mundane things like commodity production and scientific research. He then quickly moved on to juicier items like the latest thought crime trends, important discussion board topics and tone, his favorite “surveillance” cameras, daily public opinion polls regarding his favorability and also his daily tax revenues from each of the world nation states.

“Mmmm, yes, yes, very good. Indeed, yes, oh my, that’s interesting. Mmm hmm, yes, that’s a good amount. My, my, yes, this is tasty fruit, bring me more of this tomorrow morning,” the King muttered on and on as he ate and surveyed his domain electronically.

An hour and a half later Kindet entered the throne room as requested. “Are you refreshed now, my lord?” he asked. “Why yes, Kindet, I am quite refreshed. Are my ministers ready?” “Yes, shall I send them in?” Kindet asked, noticing that two of the so-called scenery girls looked rather disheveled, if it were possible to be disheveled while nude standing on a plinth. Kindet was not unsettled or distracted by the scenery, as he himself was a eunuch, a requirement of the position. “Yes, send them in at once!” The king said jubilantly.

Secretly, at night, Kindet dared to sneak a thought or two of the early days of his master’s reign and longed for the way things were. As they say, “absolute power” and all that.

The nine territory ministers filed into the throne room and over to a long table complete with cylindrical seats that was silently lifting out of the floor as they entered. Not waiting for any formalities Breztok began outlining his plans for the Sons of Light.

“What we are going to do with the Sons of Light program is thus. At every locality, meaning every town, community or neighborhood, you are going to recruit five people per every five hundred citizens. These people are going to be no younger than 18 and no older than 25. The numbers are to be male by three quarters and one quarter female. All female recruits must be of average attractiveness at best, not overly feminine and must exhibit aggressive and masculine tendencies.”

“All recruits must have IQ tests conducted per my global standardized testing and must have results between the 68 and 78 point level. None may be a part of, or have a history in, any religious organization of any kind and all must come from a family where the parents are divorced or unmarried and the children were raised by the mother. After you filter them to this point you will perform a personality profile. All recruits must have narcissistic tendencies yet no real courage and be easily indoctrinated into a group-think order.”

“Understood?” The King asked. All of the ministers nodded silently. “I am explaining this to you explicitly because I don’t want you to mess it up,” he intoned condescendingly.

“One recruit per five thousand citizens will be an investigator. These particular recruits will be over a territory and will be all male, with IQ between 85 and 95 and must be proficient or trainable with weapons and techniques of various sadistic utility.”

“This organization has but one purpose. They must identify and report dissent in any form. Anyone identified as a dissenter will be taken by force to the investigators. The investigators will interrogate the prisoners by any means they see fit and upon completion, if the prisoners confess, they will be incarcerated in these locations.”

Breztok gestured to a holograph of a rotating globe floating above the table with specks of light indicating locations scattered across all nations and territories around the world.

“Understood?” The King asked again. The ministers all nodded. “Very well. Kindet has supplemental information and guidelines on holo disk for your use, please gather them as you leave, immediately. I tire of your presence,” the King said dismissively.

He stood up and strolled over to a table where various powders were arranged neatly. He scooped a small amount of powder onto a tiny gold spoon. As he bent over and snorted noisily, the conference table and seats began to lower back into the floor. Slightly confused yet not daring to express an opinion on the matter, the ministers made their way to the exit.

Wonderful! You create very palatable tension, and don't give away the hook too soon. I like your writing style too -- nicely crafted.

reply to post by argentus


Thanks!

I appreciate your kind compliments!

Impressive. Descriptive.

Humbling, since I'm in the contest as well.

S&F for a well told tale!

reply to post by djmarcone


You do have writing talent, and I appreciate the attention to the details you've supplied. SnF. Your piece was very grammatically pleasing and well thought out.

None may be a part of, or have a history in, any religious organization of any kind

Best part, IMO, for a ruler to utilize in shaping their minds.

This contest gets tougher and tougher with each new entry. Thanks for raising the bar another notch!

I'm thinking about making another entry, I had an amusing idea this morning while brushing my teeth.

2nd entry is here in case you're curious.