The Movement

Chapter Eight - Part 10

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Troy changed his Nanolense to view outside The Palace walls. Major White and his men had detained upwards of ten thousand citizens, crammed into The Palace’s courtyard, all wearing white jackets. The sight reminded Troy of the rallies he had attended years earlier-people jammed pack, shoulder-to-shoulder, all shouting and screaming and scrambling about.

Behind the masses of arrested citizens, Troy noticed a small group of people dressed in dark suits near the back of the courtyard. He zoomed his Nanolense in on the group, sticking out from the crowd with their contrasting outfit colors. Dr. Cole, Dr. Hill, Dr. Gallagher, Dr. Snyder, Dr. Brand, Dr. Madison, and Dr. Wu rushed up and halted at the scene.

“Mr. Duckworth has ordered Major White to detain all of these citizens!” explained Dr. Hill as he jumped in front of the group of President Barber’s cabinet members. “President Barber is ill. He’s in surgery as we speak. He won’t be back for another week at least. We need to get Mr. Duckworth out of The Palace. He has President Barber’s Nanolense and everyone is obeying his orders because they think he is the president! We need to get him out of The Palace! Immediately!”

Dr. Cole sunk his head in disgust.

“Mr. Duckworth has done all of this? How could he?” he bellowed.

“President Barber put him in charge while he’s in surgery. I don’t think the president saw this coming,” said Dr. Hill coldly.

Just as the cell had filled with arrested citizens in white jackets, so too did the courtyard. Again, The Authorities were forced to retreat further to the back as the courtyard filled.

Troy stood up from President Barber’s desk. He tuned into The Movement’s universal Nanolense, again acting as President Barber.

“Attention productive citizens of The Movement. I am here today to announce to you that you have been detained by accusations that you have rebelled against The Movement because some of you disagree with The Movement’s Department of Defense’s policies,” he exclaimed.

Troy paused, taking a deep breath.

“The Movement has never,” he continued. “Never intended to become an empire. It was intended to feature progressive, domestic reforms. Certain individuals within The Movement have obstructed the power base and therefore altered the peaceful direction that The Movement initially embraced. Therefore, I hereby announce to all of you that you are now free to rebel as you wish. I collected you here so you can rebel together, for togetherness of the masses will always defeat the order of the elite. Rid the Authorities!”

The masses of detained citizens remained silent. The tens of thousands of chained citizens stared straight ahead, focused and astonished by President Barber’s announcement across their Nanolenses. Suddenly, several citizens turned around, shouting across the crowds of chained citizens. All at once, the masses turned into a synchronous performance, with several of the long lines of citizens turning and marching away from The Palace.

The first line of citizens circled around the cabinet members while the next line followed suit. A large oval perimeter enveloped The Movement’s vanguard members, slowly closing in on them. Mr. Duckworth stepped out onto The Palace’s balcony, overlooking the courtyard filled with white jackets. Near the back he could see the small speck of dark suits quickly change to white.

Suddenly, the dark suits reappeared from the masses. They appeared shorter this time. Troy zoomed his Nanolense in on the situation. The Authorities were tied together by the prisoners’ chains. Dr. Hill’s nose was bloody; Dr. Cole and Dr. Snyder had bruises across their arms and faces. Dr. Madison, Dr. Wu, and Dr. Gallagher appeared unconscious, their heads drooping to their chests. A thin ring of separation formed between The Authorities and the masses. A small man separated himself from the masses and approached the Authorities. He held something up high into the air. Troy zoomed in on the small object. A small flame flickered from the object. The man shouted something. The masses responded together in roaring chants, pumping their fists into the air. The small man bent over and placed the small flame against Dr. Cole’s shirt collar. His shirt quickly caught fire, engulfing him in flames. Dr. Cole writhed in pain, kicking his feet out in front of him and turning his chest back and forth with his arms tied behind his back. A man from behind ran up and kicked the back of his head. Dr. Cole slumped over; the flames now covered him. Troy noticed that the rest of the Authorities were now also engulfed in flames.

Troy sank his head. His stomach twisted and turned in pain. He turned away from the gruesome scene and headed back inside The Palace.