The Shock of the New

Chapter 10: Fun at the Festival

The month of April was always a special time for the citizens of the W.E.R.. The week containing the 20th was celebrated as W.E.R. week,  one of the biggest events in the whole of the W.E.R. state and in which the values and beliefs that had lead to the founding of the utopian state were celebrated and commemorated. This year was especially noteworthy as it marked the 50th anniversary of the founding of the W.E.R. state. Everybody was expected to take part and everybody in the W.E.R. did so.

This of course, included Sam Hopkins. His parents had booked tickets to Wednesday's festival several months in advance and had been up early to make sure they got there as soon as possible.

The festival for Sam's section of the W.E.R. was held in Nick Fuetes park which was a local area that Sam rarely visited although he occasionally went down there if he needed to get out of the house for a little while.

As his family arrived, Sam saw that the gate leading to the park had been decorated in the traditional red, black and blue colours of the W.E.R. Inside, the park was crowded with visitors. Sam often suspected that the festival of the W.E.R. was the busiest day for the park and seeing the crowds practically confirmed his suspicions.

Walking up to the man at the gate, Sam's father handed him the family tickets. The man looked them over before scanning them and handing each of the family a trio of wristbands. After they'd fastened them onto their arms, the family stepped into the park. It was then that it became clear just how big this festival really could get.

Everywhere Sam looked, stalls, sellers and activities for all ages ran up and down the entire length of the park.

As he wondered where he'd look first, Sam's father turned to him

"Now listen son" he said "We've got a real treat for you. At one o'clock, they're gonna be doing a live execution of captured P.R.E. troops and I've booked us right in to see it."
Sam smiled "Thanks dad"
"Your father and I are going to look around for a bit" his mother said "So meet us at the tent in a couple of hours and don't get yourself into trouble"
"I will mom" Sam nodded

One thing Sam liked about the festivals was the chance to look around on his own. Normally when he went anywhere, Sam was given strict instructions to follow, so the festival gave him a kind of freedom he didn't really get anywhere else.

After purchasing a soda, Sam walked up to a small display where a group of small children were gathered around a military veteran who was speaking. Sam moved in closer to get a listen.

"And so surrounded by those vile soldiers that serve the P.R.E., I realised it was a do or die scenario" The soldier told the kids, whose faces were wide eyed with wonder
"So, I grabbed my standard issue machine gun and we all faced them head on!"

While the kids were all amazed by the soldier's tales of bravery, Sam was less than impressed. He'd heard these kind of stories over and over again all through his life and to be honest, he was getting somewhat fed up with them. Why couldn't the W.E.R. and the P.R.E work out their differences once and for all?

Sam shook his head

"Don't think like that!" he angrily told himself "The P.R.E. are evil incarnate! All they want is to destroy everything we've ever held dear and-!"
At that, Sam stopped. It then dawned on him that he'd never actually spoken to, or even met a member of the P.R.E.. All he'd ever heard was what everyone else had told him constantly. Sam angrily dismissed these thoughts. All the adults of the world wanted was to make sure he grew up to be a fine young man who would help advance the causes of the W.E.R. and the holy white race.

Sam spent the rest of the next few hours roaming the festival and looking at the various stands. Among the things were the usual religious stalls promoting True Christianity or various places selling W.E.R. themed memorabilia. Eventually though, One o clock rolled round and by that time Sam had made his way to the tent where the executions were taking place.

His father had found the two of them a good seat near the front and pretty soon the whole tent was full with people waiting to see the dreaded P.R.E. traitors.

After a while, the lights dimmed and a man in a brown suit stepped out.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen!" he said with the tones of a showman trying to hype up a crowd "It's time for the main event! The moment you've all been waiting for!"

At that, a trio of young men barely older than Sam were brought out onto the stage in chains. Immediately the crowd starting booing, hissing and hurling insults
"Yes yes" the man in the suit said "These men represent the greatest enemy of the holy W.E.R. and the great white race. They are enemy soldiers from the P.R.E., the evil nation guided by Satan himself in order to destroy gods on people! So what do you say we show them just how we treat wicked villains such as these!"
The response from the crowd was deafening. While the P.R.E. soldiers remained stone faced, the man in the brown suit smiled. He nodded to his assistants who brought out huge metal tubs filled with a bubbling liquid

"You all know what this is I presume?" the man in the suit asked "It's an extremely corrosive acid that can melt the skin off the bones of anyone it touches. So without further ado..."

At that, the assistants grabbed one of the P.R.E. soldiers and shoved his head right into the tub. When she lifted it back up, the man screamed in agony. Sam watched as his skin blistered and melted off his face while his eyeballs dissolved into puddles of goo.

As the P.R.E. soldier's face dissolved into a hideous bloody mess, Sam felt a wave of horror wash over him. Staring at the horrific death of a man he'd never even met seemed to make him fill with revulsion. Sam gagged and managed to stop himself from vomiting profusely.

Then it was all too much. Sam turned and walked out of the tent much to his parent's surprise and confusion.

When Sam's parents got out of the tent, they soon found their son standing against a wall. He vomited onto the ground before bursting into tears completely. Sam's father walked up to his son and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder

"What's wrong little guy?" he asked. Sam simply looked up at his father.

"I...I don't know" he sobbed "I just can't watch anymore"
His parents looked at each other

"I think we'd better get Sam home" his mother said

Sam and his parents headed home in silence. When they got back, Sam went straight up to his bedroom and flopped onto his bed. As he lay there, Sam thought over what had happened. What was wrong with him? He'd seen death and destruction of the P.R.E. on TV hundreds of times and it had never bothered him. Besides, the P.R.E. were evil bastards who wanted to destroy Sam and everything he held dear, so they deserved to have their faces melted off with acid.

Sam hesitated for a second. Did they really deserve that though? Surely none of their crimes justified dying as horribly as that?
Before Sam could contemplate this further, a knock at the door sounded out

"Sam?" Mr Scanlon's voice called out "Can I come in?"

Before Sam had a chance to answer, the door opened and Mr Scanlon stepped into the room looking very concerned. He tut tutted

"Dear oh dear, you've gotten yourself in a real mess"
Sam looked at him, but said nothing
"Listen" he sighed "I've been talking to your parents. In light of the last few days, we've decided that the best thing to do is send you off to a little summer camp"
This definitely got Sam's attention

"Why?" he asked

"Because we're all concerned about your mental health" Mr Scanlon told him. Sensing his fear he added "Oh don't worry. It's not a punishment or anything like that. We just think you need a bit more support and help than most young men."
Sam sniffed "But what if I don't want to go?"
Mr Scanlon smiled a very false looking smile "Oh you don't really have a choice. If you don't go, it could be extremely catastrophic for your mental health and there's a good chance you'll end up on the streets"
Sam blinked "Really?"
"Oh yes" Mr Scanlon ruffled Sam's head reassuringly "Don't worry. It's not too far from here. You'll be spending time with many others who are all in the same boat as you. And when you leave, you'll have left as a true W.E.R. patriot!"
Sam tried to smile "Thanks sir"
"Oh don't mention it" Mr Scanlon turned to leave. Before he did, he turned to face Sam one more time

"Now get a good night's sleep. In two days time, you'll be leaving to start a new chapter of your life!"