The Birds of Augur

Chapter 2

The sound of banging rang out from the door to a fortified entrance of a half-ruined stadium where four men stood. In near anticipation of the dawn all was dark and though the storm was in recession it was still wet and windy. One of the men wore a short skirt, rugged leggings underneath, high boots and a tight long armed top. His costume was red along the left-side and blue along the right. He was athletic in build. The power in the group clearly belonged to him and the guns and bulk of the other three men were a testament to their strength.

"Come on! Let me in!" he shouted.

"Who is it??" replied the doorman from the other side.

"It's Seth - open up" he answered.

A viewing slot opened, almost immediately followed by the sound of lots of locks being opened and the door slid open. He strode into a concrete hallway. Whilst keeping his eyes on him the whole time the doorman bowed low.

He continued with a swagger, through into the interior of the stadium. The entire building had been converted into a small town with farms covering the pitch. Along the roof a drainage network collected the water into tanks. Makeshift buildings were crammed together all around the sides of the stadium where the seating would have been. A solitary light source beamed out from the old executive boxes on the other side of the stadium.

"Seth!" A young woman called out as she ran forward to greet him with a large smile upon her lips. She was dressed in a patchwork of turn of the millennium clothes. She wore a black head scarf upon her head that was patterned with a traditional design from her ancestors in the east of Africa.

"Shannon" Seth whispered whilst holding her close.

"Sorry I'm late. We've had a little trouble tonight"

"That's alright, they eventually let me in"

Seth dismissed two of the men and kept one with him and Shannon. He walked behind with Seth in the middle and Shannon leading the way. The local inhabitants were beginning to wake, and some stared at them as they walked and talked through the narrow alleys.

"So, how are things in this backwater orifice?" asked Seth.

"Not... Too... Bad. I mean, well we're struggling for food but at least we're safe"

"Ya know you could always leave with me"

Shannon blushed.

"I could never leave my family"

"And how is your layabout of a husband?"

"Umm... Well that trouble I mentioned... You see... Bobby's been accused of stealing from the stores."

Seth chuckled.

"It's not funny- he's in the control room now! They could do anything to him!" exhorted Shannon.

"I'm sorry. I understand. Old Bisogno 'ain't got a sense of humour about discipline. Let's go see what's happening"

"We can't - we're not allowed!"

"Don't be so wet - let's go!"

They climbed the stadium towards the old executive boxes. Silhouettes of a crowded group of people rippled across the windows. As they reached the stairwell leading to them Seth paused. He was looking at a poster left there from the old times. It was a picture of him eighteen years ago, advertising his latest and last album.

They walked up the stairs to the entrance of the executive box where the meeting was taking place. There was an armed guard waiting for them at the door. He eyed Seth's bodyguard with suspicion.

"Hand over your weapon" he demanded.

Seth nodded, so he did.

"Ya don't mind if we take a little peek at proceedings do ya now?" Seth slurred as he opened the door a little and peeked through into the room. Shannon joined him.

The room was full of large men all wearing various styles of body armour and helmets. At the front of the room a man was making a presentation. On his left two men were holding a man in civilian clothing. Shannon's pupils expanded when she saw him. On his right was a tall powerful looking middle-aged man. He had cragged olive skin and was wearing a large bearskin cape.

The man making the presentation was short, slim with spiky dirty blonde hair. He had a boyish face but was probably in his late thirties.

"They have extended their operational range to within five miles of here. It's now imperative that we strike at their relay stations. However, if we strike only those nearest to us we will be giving them a clue as to our location. With this in mind we are going to strike at three different relays that have been selected by their position and strategic importance."

A man in the crowd raised his hand and the presenter gestured to him.

"There is a rumour going 'round suggesting that they may be ready to launch their first satellite. Wouldn't this render all our efforts to keep hidden useless?" he asked.

"Well, you're correct. There are plans in place to prevent this from happening. Do you have any more questions?"

There was a splattering of mutterings but no questions from the crowd.

The big man with the bearskin cape, Bisogno, stood forward.

"Thank you, James. There is one more matter on the agenda this morning." he said.

Bobby was thrown forward. He lay on the floor looking upwards in fear at Bisogno.

"Have some pride man - stand up!" Bisogno boomed.

He stood up shakily.

"There is one thing that without which our community would cease to function. Can you tell me what that is?" queried Bisogno.

"Uh uh uh... The supplies"

"Wrong!" Bisogno shouted as he punched him in the guts. Shannon winced. "It's trust! Even the scavenging hordes have some trust for each other. They don't steal from their own. They can sleep at night without fearing betrayal. Without trust there is only survival of the fittest. Well, do you think you're fit enough?"

Bisogno held his head with one hand and punched him around the face with the other.

"Well do you?" followed by another punch.

Shannon could contain herself no longer. She moved as if to enter the room but was prevented by a staff thrust across her chest. She turned to see the man from the encounter with the robots. He was clutching his ribs.

"Jun Zi" she whispered.

"Stay calm. He won't kill him." replied Jun Zi gently. He entered the room.

The crowd stirred on his entry. They spread to let him though and created a clear path to Bisogno who looked up and wiped Shannon's husband's blood off his face and dropped him to the floor. Jun Zi paused and slouched with his staff as support.

"So the great Jun Zi has returned" Bisogno said sarcastically. "You can report the result of your wanderings to me as soon as I've finished with this runt."

He looked down at Bobby. Jun Zi moved to the front of the crowd.

"Since I can't appeal to your better nature then I'll have to have faith in your fear. If you break the rules again I'll kill you. Second thoughts - fuck it"

He took a pistol from his belt and aimed it towards Shannon's husbands head. Jun Zi didn't move. Bobby screamed in terror. A shot rang out and echoed around the room. Shannon burst in and shouted.

"You said he wouldn't kill him!"

"And I said to stay calm" replied Jun Zi.

Shannon looked down to see her husband shivering in fear next to a bullet hole in the floor.

"What the hell is the door man doing??" shouted Bisogno.