The Unruled

His hair was silver, his stature slight, his voice quiet and self assured. He moved about the room, and the people in it, as though navigation itself was his mission there and all else secondary. His distant manner was not unfriendly, quite on the contrary, it just seemed like he never stopped long enough for the seeds of conversation to take root before smiling and moving on to the next, more attractive, moment.
“What does he do here?” said one of the guests; the question in her voice spoke for all those around her.
“We think he’s the pilot dear,” another answered,” he is either that, or a very well dressed butler.”
The covered smiles and suppressed giggles were interrupted by a quiet “wow – what is this?” by one of the ladies. She had taken off her gloves in order to brush her naked fingers across the curving, invisible barrier that was the ships hull. She traced the outline of the trees and buildings that could be seen outside.
“Are these still where they were when we came on board? I don`t remember this one being there at all.”
“Don`t worry Honey, it will still be there when we get back,” said the gray haired gentleman suddenly standing by her side,” please come back over with rest of the guests.” He led her over to the group in the center of the room and then moved on.
“He`s a little spooky,” she said to no one in particular.
The murmur of conversation continued, the silver hair gentleman continued to tend his gathering, and in the background the litany of the 2% Amendment droned on as it always had. The Amendment was ten years old now, and unlike the early years when it was heralded as the final solution to the worlds social problems and its financial crisis, it was now simply accepted as the way of the world.
“If you would have your rights raise yourselves, if you would leave them to others remain as you are. To regain your rights you must earn 721 dollars this week, and remain above the 2% level, as calculated by the Amendment Committee, for the next 8 weeks. Go below that level for more than 8 weeks and your rights as a citizen and protection under the law from the unlawful will once more be rescinded. Raise Yourselves!”
“I’ve heard that killing amongst the unruled has become common these days.” said a voice from the group, “ its good that they are not allowed weapons.”
“Nor are they disallowed them dear,” said another,“no laws obeyed, no laws enforced – remember. They are simply not allowed to have them around citizens.”
“I’ve heard that its been three years or more since any of them regained citizenship, you would think to earn so little would not be too much trouble for them,” another voice murmured from the fringe of the group.
“Will you pay one to work for you?” the voice was the gray haired gentleman’s, “will you give a wage to one of them to work for you when, for the roof you put over their head and the food you stand the expense of manufacturing, you can require their service for nothing else.”
“There must be work somewhere for them,” she responded.
“Why?” he said in return.
His response had been quick and sure, and just as surely he moved on to the next center of conversation. The silence that followed was thoughtful and broken only by the question placed again – to no one in particular.
“There must be work for them somewhere!”
“More than three hundred are in my care and I wont pay them for what they do, what they do gets me nothing that I can sell,” a stronger voice said.
“Do you charge your guests for the meals you serve?” the gray haired gentleman was back, and the amusement in his eyes was unmistakable. She did not answer and the gentleman moved on about his rounds with a curt nod of his head.
“I’ve heard that some of the larger groups have tried to make laws for themselves,” said the same voice from the fringe.
“That is why we are having this meeting of the Amendment Committee,” the stronger voice responded; she spoke with strength and authority as she stepped to the center of the group,“that and other things. I may as well tell you now that we are considering another amendment to deny such choices; remember, the 2% Amendment was intended to motivate the bottom 2% of the population to become productive.”
“What else would you deny?”
“We would deny internals rules, we would deny internal self defense initiatives, we would deny safe houses, we would deny Law amongst the unruled!”
“You also deny work with this new initiative!” said the gray haired man.
“There is no need to continue the fallacy,” she said as she whirled toward him, just to find that he had moved once again into the crowd.
“We are moving! said a voice at the edge of the group, some had moved to feel the hull and watch as the scenery outside began to slide by more quickly, “where are we going?”
“Probably to a launch pad, the committee meeting is on the space platform, you know,“said one.
“These ships are magnetic, they don’t use a launch pad,” said another.
“Where are we going” the obvious leader of the group said as she looked around, “where is our oh so gracious host?”
A slight lurch as the ship picked up speed discomfited nearly all of the three thousand guests; all now had noticed the ships movement and wondered at it; some began to ask after the absence of food or drink, others why there was no place to sit. The ships design confused them and now it moved very quickly indeed.
The gray haired man continued to move amongst his guests; he smiled at all but answered questions only with question. He seemed amused at the spreading panic and made no effort to quell it.
“We will be there soon,” he said,“oh so very soon,” and the mocking tone in his voice set a greater edge to the panic.
The din of voices in the ship had become unbearable, but as the ship began to slow, silence slowly spread over the passengers at the sight outside the ship. Around the edge on an old radio dish nearly a mile across sat ships like there own; some just arriving, others disembarking passengers, but all showed the odd appearance of floating people as the occupants stood about the transparent hulls.
The ship stopped and the lights around its doors came on as those doors opened with a clank and a resounding thud as the gangways, now visible, thudded to the ground.
“Please Exit,” came over the sound system in the place of the 2% Litany and was repeated with a seven minute countdown. The ship itself had begun to tilt toward the doors as many began to scream as they lost their footing and started to slide toward the doors and into any others that were in their way. The scene was being repeated all around the radio dish as nearly one hundred ships disgorged their unwilling occupants into its bowl. The whole action had taken only a matter of minutes to unfold, and those in the bowl not stunned or killed already who began to crawl back toward the dishes edge were met with lethal laser fire that left their smoldering corpses tumbling back upon the rest.
As silence began to settle over the gruesome scene a voice resounded around the dish simultaneously from all the ships at once.
“You may be wondering why we asked you all here today!” the words came deafeningly upon the prisoners in the bowl and the silence that followed was complete.
“There was enacted ten years ago today an Amendment.” It began, “The 2% Amendment it was called, and it took from the poorest of our countries citizens their rights under the law; and in return for those rights they were given the privilege, as it was called, to have no responsibilities under that law; and this was was done without their agreement; and this was made law without their say.”
The sounds of crying began to rise from the crowded dish as the buzz of lasers stopped those few still ready to challenge them. “Their choice,” it continued,” was to improve themselves, to raise above that bottom 2% and be provided the protection of law in their homes; and responsibility under the law in their lives. Those whose earnings were not enough would be left to fend for themselves. A committee was created to set this number and enforce this amendment, and enforce it they did, with brutality. Lawlessness reigned amongst the unruled, and it continued to reign until the lawless were gone, and all seemed well for a time. Within a year of the Amendment the Committee began to offer amnesty for the 2% in the form of shelter and food, and in return they required service, and in time they became the lawless. By the third year the number itself began to skew, and what was called 2% was indeed much more and our numbers began to increase because much more service was needed. By the fifth year the precious number was nearly 20% rather than the 2% it was said to be, and still more service was needed. By the seventh year nearly half our citizens had been stripped of their rights and given their freedom to serve, as it were.
By year nine the number took the rights of nearly all, and most of those still free knew nothing of it; they only knew that their lives were good and supported by much service. But life had continued amongst the unruled and many times life was good their too, until goodness was discovered and destroyed. And discovered it has been again, and many here came with intention to destroy it once again; however, this time it will not be so. The only citizens left free in our country now are those few that we have brought here today – did you know that? We do not wish to change the laws, we are the unruled, we have no need of them. We wish to be rid of you.”
The laser rifles had begun to buzz, first around the edges of the crowded bowl, then into its center. Panic spread as the intended victims realized their plight and began surging for the bowl’s edge, only to be cut down by the ever increasing laser fire.
“You may be amused to know that the percentage of people in our country that are citizens now is 2%, almost exactly, and in a matter of hours there will be no citizens at all.”
The gray haired host took careful aim with his laser rifle at the women with whom he had conversed; she was still shaking her fist at him indignantly when he knocked a smoldering hole in her chest with it. The killing would go on well into the night and the stench would last for months, and the bones would be left as a monument forever.