The Greatest Lie

Flip of a Coin

Life always came with a choice, and the two sides of its coin had turned into M Corp and everyone else. As long as you did not interfere with M Corps agenda, they would leave you alone to live life as you saw fit. There were no handouts for the needy and the less fortunate had nothing to turn to except for luck. Your neighbor was no longer there to offer you a helping hand, and no matter how much you begged for M Corp to come save you, their help was not free. The only other alternative that had begun to gain traction was latching on to the mission of the group known as X. It was easier than expected to unite the leftovers that M Corp had abandoned, but getting people to work together for the greater good had turned into an obstacle that its members were becoming more aware of as time went on. Most people would agree on a certain issue, but that left some disappointed. The power struggle was real as people fought over who was in charge, completely invalidating whatever they were trying to accomplish in the first place. The group of X was the first group that Victor had heard of that seemed to actually be organized and doing more than fighting amongst themselves.

Victor did his best to keep up with the man in the hood as he sped down the sidewalk. The way he walked was calculated and it made him seem like he was a ghost. Intentionally dancing in and out of the shadows, Victor could easily have been left behind if he was not vigilant. He did not want to scare the man off with more questions and decided that silently following was going to allow him the greatest chance of success. The man was equally as concerned with Victor's motives, even though he was not voicing them all to Victor. He knew that M Corp was on the hunt for the supporters of X, because they were the leading suspects for the rising fears of a revolution. It was hard for non supporters to believe, but M Corp believed they had the best interests of humanity in play, while the group known as X believed that the only way to save humanity was to stop M Corp. It was a coin flip as to which side you wanted to devote your faith to, but the only commonality between the two was that they both agreed that change was the only way forward. M Corp wanted the lottery implemented as soon as possible, as they saw it as solidifying their control for generations to come.

There were only two reasons why anyone would willingly join the group of X, or look for their help, and the local section of the group X had developed the motto of "You are either with us or against us." This New York chapter of X had heard the stories that had spread across the world about what the original members were trying to accomplish. The only proof that they held that the founding members were even real was one of their handmade pamphlets that had somehow made it from China all the way back to New York. It was one of the first pieces of literature they put out in opposition to the lottery and it was now relished as the gospel its followers worshiped. Spelling out on this document was how the plan for the lottery was stolen from the group of X and was now being used against the people by M corp in the form of furthering their agenda. This crinkled and weathered folded piece of paper was the only proof they had that any of the rumors they heard were even real. It was a unifying document that convinced the outcasts of this society to band together against the segregation and violence that M Corp had brought to the city. The message of hope was easy to accept as some people had been looking for any glimpse of it over the last twenty years. The idea of something other than M Corp was enticing enough for some of the people left forgotten about to join together in their own form of the group of X. The one thing that they could easily join together in solidarity behind was taking back the world from M Corp.

The man's hesitation for trusting Victor was justified, it only took a few bad apples claiming their allegiance to the group of X and then turning sour for the group to be more cautious about attendees. Victor had been following the man for much longer than he intended and he was beginning to get concerned about where they were going. They had ventured further into the outskirts of New York than he could ever remember going and he began to worry that he might be being led into a trap. The only other time he may have traveled this far around the city was when he was a child and his parents were still around. Nothing was familiar to Victor and the state of the buildings looked like they could fall over in the next gust of wind and land on top of him. The man finally stopped in front of what looked to be a walled off alleyway between two of the buildings. He looked back at Victor who was still a couple dozen feet behind, and then the man knocked in a rhythmic fashion onto the wall and waited. A few seconds later there was some clanging behind the wall and it opened up just like a door. A couple men with large wooden clubs held open the door as they greeted the man and then looked at Victor. Stopping in his tracks, Victor let them take a second to assess the situation before the man in the hood motioned for him to follow him inside. Victor hurried to catch up as he was led into the dark alleyway. The door was abruptly shut behind him as the man used his memory to lead Victor through darkness.