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"#57" By: Cailean Darkwater
Site: www.caileandarkwater.com
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I leave this chronicle as a warning to the future, if
there is a future. The infection spreads across the
world, corrupting all that it touches. I do not have
the power or courage to stop it, I do not know if
anyone does. I have seen it claim my friends and
family. I shall not let it claim me. Death shall
claim me: unsullied, strong, pure. The poison that I
have administered is quick and painless - death
before dishonour, you could say.
I have seen what the scourge has done to the world
and I do not wish to become a part of it. It is no
longer my world, but a mockery of all we held dear.
It started so very innocuously, as such world-
altering events often do. A routine arrest in a
little place you've probably never heard of.
OFFICER'S REPORT: August 17th.
"Vagrant; male, black. No ID at time of arrest, no
name given or forthcoming from questioning. Ragged
clothes, no shoes, no money at time of arrest.
Vagrant was very happy, however, and very
co-operative in nature. Believed to be intoxicated;
perhaps deranged? (refer to psych report) When
questioned about his incongruously happy state,
vagrant laughed; stated 'I got the TRUTH! You want
some, man?' Vagrant was subsequently searched again
for drugs; none found. Tests inconclusive, seemed to
be clean."
How wrong they were. They just couldn't detect it,
that's all. If they had got rid of that vagrant then,
they would have saved the world.
OFFICIAL MEMO, August 21st, from the desk of Sergeant
Murtagh.
"Re: Prisoner #57. No officer is allowed within 3
feet of Prisoner #57. After the severe attitude
change of Officers Santos, Willoughby and Carter, we
believe that #57 still has a quantity of TRUTH and
is disseminating it - his continued state of
happiness testifies he has enough to feed his own
addiction as well as spreading it to others. If you
are exposed to TRUTH, you will be dismissed as have
Santos, Willoughby and Carter. This is a message for
your OWN PROTECTION. Prisoner #57 is dangerous and
TRUTH is dangerous."
You see, it started to spread, like some inexorable
cancer. Just as hard to stop - no cure; a
suppression; a remission. But it still lay there,
like a silent serpent, to lunge whenever defences
were lowered. They tried to eliminate it, as I
tried, but they failed, as I failed.
OFFICIAL MEMO, August 25th, from the desk of
Sergeant Murtagh.
"I have interviewed Prisoner #57 and after careful
deliberation I violated my own orders. Prisoner #57
has shared his TRUTH with me, it has made me so
happy, it has made my life complete. All the
officers I have dismissed I welcome back with open
arms; I apologize, please forgive me. All of you,
please visit Prisoner #57 yourselves but be quick;
he will be released on the 28th. Join me in
happiness!"
Thankfully, Sergeant Murtagh was quickly relieved
of command by Internal Security. Some noble
individual obviously reported his treasonous
activities to the proper authorities. Prisoner #57
was not released as promised. When Internal
Security stepped in and saw the threat to our great
nation, they locked down the precinct and had their
top scientists work on the nature of TRUTH.
Believing TRUTH to be some viral or bacterial
agent, Prisoner #57 was declared a biohazard and
was sequestered away in a hermetically sealed cell.
None of this took his euphoria away. This proved
how dangerous TRUTH was.
PROGRESS REPORT: Special Agent Wynn.
"We have been compromised. The hermetic seals have
been sabotaged, we have infiltrators within our
ranks. Too many of our agents have gone rogue;
colleagues whom I have depended on for years
suddenly have changed their ways. A break-out by
key infiltrators was attempted last night and
almost succeeded. TRUTH-afflicted rogue agents seem
to be particularly peaceful and non-
confrontational. If they weren't I believe we would
all be dead by now."
(This, however, was Special Agent Wynn's last
report. He is believed to have gone rogue also.
Within the month all agents at the facility were
TRUTH-afflicted. A new squad of Internal Security
was deployed to secure Prisoner #57.)
Something had to be done. TRUTH was spreading all
over the country; no one could stop its relentless
advance. Entire groups of people, everywhere,
without any definable connection with one another
were being addicted; calling themselves "Seekers of
TRUTH". They networked; they grew in strength, an
insidious infection upon our country. Fortunately
wiser, rational people held the reins of power and
sought to behead the viper before it could strike.
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: September 16th.
"Due to his treasonous activities threatening the
social fabric of our fine nation, Prisoner #57 is
sentenced for execution by lethal injection on
October 3rd. TRUTH has been a scourge upon our
streets - everywhere can be seen the happy,
smiling face of the Seeker. Removing the leader of
this corruptive, criminal syndicate that promotes
widespread and frequent use of TRUTH should halt
this terrible plague which he has unleashed upon
us. Ladies and gentlemen; I promise I shall stop
the spread of TRUTH by any means necessary. My
government and I shall save you, loyal patriotic
citizens that you are, from exposure to TRUTH. And
I say to you; TRUTH has no place in this great
country of ours or anywhere else in the world."
A voice of sanity against the tide of madness.
The frequency of break-out attempts by the Seekers
intensified a hundredfold. They did not succeed in
Prisoner #57's release. Political groups argued in
court long and hard for his sentence to be revoked,
but a presidential decree has too much weight for
such insignificant attacks to make any difference.
Prisoner #57 was executed at his appointed time.
However the Seekers of TRUTH had gained in #57's
sacrifice the very model of a modern martyr - he
went to his death with joy suffusing his features -
we couldn't take that away from him, no matter how
hard we tried. I'm afraid that his rapture did make
me somewhat wistful, I hoped someday I would
experience such bliss, even for just a moment. But
that would mean accepting TRUTH - and I did not
want such taint upon my soul. I could not relate it
to anything I already knew, it was so different to
the established order. Perhaps I was just content
with what I had, unwilling to risk my worldview by
exposing myself to this TRUTH.
THE TIMES, October 27th
"Although the President expected the death of
Prisoner #57 to paralyze the Seekers of TRUTH it
seems that membership of this strange group is
steadily increasing. Whole towns have joined this
seemingly tranquil movement. Peaceful
demonstrations have been held; BRING 'TRUTH' TO THE
PEOPLE, one of their more popular slogans. It seems
the death of Prisoner #57, which was intended to
stop the Seekers of TRUTH has actually accelerated
their cause."
It was true. We cut the head off the snake, not
knowing it was the Hydra of legend. A multitude of
heads appeared; too many cells of resistance to be
put down. It raced across the country like raging
wildfire; it spread to all nations. We were the
best hope of the world, but we could not stop the
power of TRUTH.
What is TRUTH? It must be very addictive, beyond
the siren's call of heroin or cocaine, luring away
even these addicts to itself. However, some have
resisted its enticing seduction, they speak of
such terror and agony that TRUTH has brought them,
haunted night after night by tortured dreams.
TRUTH seems to be a paradox, pleasure and pain
hopelessly combined together.
My children, my spouse, my friends. All joined the
burgeoning tide - all Seekers of TRUTH. TRUTH has
taken all I held dear away from me by their
willing surrender to what has possessed their
souls.
I know they feel pity and sorrow for me because I
have not joined them; I feel pity and sorrow for
them because they have been warped and twisted to
unrecognizability by TRUTH. They are no longer what
they were before.
I can no longer live in a world ravaged by TRUTH.
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(c)opyright 2000 by Cailean Darkwater
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