“It is Nona, our goddess, who have shaped the earth as it is. Who has laid out every food, animal, monster and plant for our needs. And the Word of the Goddess states – ‘I have created everything on this planet for the enjoyment of the human race. Who dares claim that humans shall not consume what I have created’.”
“YEA, YEA!” The throng of people gathered on the streets, cheering a person standing onto of an arctech wagon that slowly chugged forward, forming a parade.
“Yet the Sanctum of Yual claims that consumption of such sacred goods is a sin and beyond what we, the common folk can handle.” The person donned a blinding red robe, his head adorned with what seemed to be an ornamental oriental piece. He held an upright posture, his speech passionate through the arctech loud hailer as the crowd roared back in response.
“YEA!”
“The audacity, folks! The audacity of the religion to demean you. To put you lower than those who serve the ‘living god’, the Emperor of the Yual Dominion. Are you not sapient? Are you not capable of self-control? Are you not HUMAN!”
“WE ARE HUMAN!” The crowd was riled up, a loud wave of fanfare exploding across the street.
“Then let us show our displeasure! Show our anger, our wrath. Only by marching out in solidarity can the rulers of these city truly understand what they have created – injustice among the common folk. Rise, brothers. Rise!”
“YEAAAAAAA!”
A few cries from the front of the parade was heard, as people began to spot a blockade at the front. Fifty enforcers that were armed along with their wagons parked sideways to block the streets.
The enthusiasm of the crowd noticeably fell, with the cheering and shouting being toned down a good amount. “Brothers, we are here simply to show our presence. We are not violent – for our Goddess Nona has proclaim the divine worth of every human soul. Despite their misguided views, it is our duty to peacefully convert them.”
A wave of murmurs spread through the crowd, many agreeing. No one wanted to get into a conflict with the enforcers - as much as they hated the idea of the prohibition bans on alcohol, they did not want to be imprisoned or lose their jobs.
“We are peaceful protestors, we shall show our stance here and now by camping in the stre-“
Suddenly, a loud shattering of glass was heard as a shop’s window was smashed into by a few protesters, with many scrambling in to grab the goods and rakels from the shop. The shopowner did not dare fight against the mob, immediately running away.
The red-robed person’s face baulked immediately. “Brothers, we are not here to raid nor pillage but to change the laws! Why are we – “
“HEY, YOU STUPID CUNTS! GET OFF THE STREETS!”
He turned to face the source of the voice, noticing it was a group of masked thugs. “YOU’RE FUCKING UP OUR TERRITORY HERE, BREAK IT UP!”
The thugs shoved their way through the crowd, trying to forcibly disperse them while the enforcers did not make a single move, simply watching.
“Hey, we’re just doing a peaceful protest here!” One of the protestors tried to square up against the thugs.
“Oh yea? Take a piece of this!” The thug immediately swung the metal pipe in his hand on the protestor’s head, knocking him out cold immediately.
Immediately the protestors began to scream and panic. “You fucking bitches!” Another protestor yelled as he charged with a group towards the thugs, forming a massive melee brawl that soon spread throughout the entire crowd.
The red-robed person was shocked and confused. “Stop fighting! Stop fighting!”
However, the protestors were not listening any longer, fully caught up in the heat of the battle. They were not about to just simply let the thugs hit them and get away with it, they had to enact revenge and defend themselves.”
The protestors began to spread out over the street, the chaos and conflict spreading even further. Many of the protestors were not there because they believed in Nona, the goddess, but rather was there just to take part in the movement.
Some used the chaos to raid and pillage some of the shops, and when the fighting spilled out into the residential blocks as protestors and thugs chased each other, the local residents too got caught up in the fighting.
[PROTESTORS, THIS IS YOUR FINAL WARNING. VIOLENCE AGAINST RESIDENTS WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. STAND DOWN IN THREE MINUTES OR WE WILL BE FORCED TO TAKE ACTION.] A loud hailer echoed across the streets.
The warning was not heeded by anyone in the protesting crowd, each person fighting for a multitude of reasons. Those that tried to run from the fight were chased down by the thugs, forcing them to fight back to defend themselves.
[TIME IS UP. MOVE IN!]
The enforcers marched forward in a row, with protestors lashing out at them in the heat of the battle. They were immediately pinned down and arrested by the better-equipped enforcers, before being hauled off to a detention centre.
At the top of a building, Gordon peered through the lens of the lightcapturer machine. “Magnification lenses seems to be doing pretty well. We’re getting a lot of good images here.”
“Why are we filming the protest?” Reese asked Kyle, who was staring intently at the leader of the protest.
“The enforcers are our very first customer. This is not the first time this protest has happened.” Kyle explained slowly, turning to face Reese to observe his reaction. He was originally a university professor, so he may have some issues…
Reese wasn’t dumb, immediately getting the gist of it. “We’re selling them a film showing how violent the protestors are.”
“Yes, the revenue and the recognition of our film company will spread even faster with the support of the enforcers. This will help us offset the cost of the building.”
“Monetizing influence, I understand.” Reese nodded his head.
“I would have expected you to be more displeased.”
“Before I was kidnapped – I would have thrown a tantrum at this. But after… I can clearly tell some corners have to be cut if I want to live and see my invention through.” Reese explained, though a hint of wariness could be seen in his eyes. Kyle may very well try to kill me or have me removed if I ever go against his plans…
“That’s good then.” Kyle smiled as though nothing was wrong, patting Reese on the back. “Gordon, I think that’s should be enough footage for now.”
Gordon nodded. “Right. But what do we do about the audio recordings?”
“The thugs will bring them back to our base. Let’s wrap it up.”
The red-robed person was tossed into the holding cell along with a group of protestors. He was beaten badly by the enforcers during an interrogation, his skin raw and his robe nearly ripped to shreds. “Brother Long Hua, are you okay?” One of the protestors quickly moved over to check his wounds.
“Thank you for your concern brother. This is part of the tribulations the Goddess has given us, so I will bear the pain.” Long Hua struggled to get up.
“Damn these enforcers!” Another protestor chimed in as he slammed the wall.
“Fret not, my brothers. I have been to many other countries – it takes time, effort and most importantly, persistence.”
The other protestors’ eyes lit up, quickly clamouring around Long Hua. “So it is true! You have visited other countries!”
“Indeed I have, and the number of our brothers have stretched far and wide across countless sovereignties.”
“Even in Versia?”
“Oh, far more than Versia and the Yual Dominion. Hwayul, Irimeo and Kharaku, those are the major countries that I have visited thus far, not to mention the innumerable towns and cities that fall in between jurisdictions.”
“That’s strange.” A protestor interrupted. “My mom is from Hwayul and I never heard anything about this religion before.”
“Of course – our brotherhood is repressed across the entire continent, so it is no wonder that the news regarding us is heavily controlled! The governments do not want such a religion to become dominant.”
“Ah, that makes sense.” The protestors all murmured in agreement.
“But this also means that the movement is suffering heavily. We need money for the cause, to further support our fight against unilateral oppression.”
“How would the money be used?”
“As our missionaries are ostracized and shunned widely, the money would be used on smuggling us into various cities, as well as daily necessities.”
The protestors and Long Hua talked a bit longer for an hour or two, with Long Hua continuously preaching to them, increasing their zealousness.
Soon, an enforcer opened the holding cell’s gate, releasing them. “Don’t you idiots think about trying to raise another riot anytime soon. Especially you, Long Hua. This is the second time – go against the Sanctum of Yual one more time, and you’ll be sentenced to slavery in the mines.”
“The law of your countries do not bind me as much as the Word of the Goddess.”
“Whatever, fuck off.” The enforcer shooed them off, the protestors walking off together towards their previous gathering point, where some of the more persistent protestors were already waiting.
“Brother Long Hua, I will donate a few hundred rakels to the cause.” One of the protestors quickly offered, clearly enticed by the prospect of social change.
“Me too, anything to change the prohibition!”
The protestors all stood in solidarity, handing over rakels to Long Hua. “My brothers, your stay in heaven next to our Goddess will be glorious. Your graciousness will be remembered for centuries, unlike those who rest on their laurels, lording over us!”
“Yea!”
“Our compassion far surpasses them. However, it is not the right time to push for the cause immediately now. We must bid our time, slowly building our strength. I will contact all of you soon. For now, focus your eyes on the final goal, and persist!”
“Yes, Brother Long Hua!”
Long Hua left the area, holding on tightly to the bag of rakels he had just collected from the protestors. He glanced behind him a couple of times, and as soon as he was a few urban blocks away, he quickly made a sharp turn into an alleyway.
Reaching into a hidden bag lodged behind a trash pile, he patted the grime off of it before pulling out a new set of clothes. He stuffed the red robe and headset into the bag and placed it back. A grin appeared on his face as he double checked the amount of rakels he had managed to get. Looks like I’ve exhausted this Sector – perhaps its time to move onto the next one.
As he strolled out of the alleyway, he was suddenly approached by a well-dressed gentleman, who was clearly muscular under the impeccable formal suit. “Brother Long Hua, I have finally found you! But why are you not dressed in your red robe.”
Long Hua was caught off-guard, quickly coughing and clearing his throat. “Ahem, I need to lay low for a while in order to avoid being arrested by the enforcers once more.” He quickly hid the bag of rakels behind his back, smiling genially at the gentleman. “Are you one of the followers of Nona as well?”
“Yes, I was very inspired by your passionate speech during the protest yesterday!” The gentleman nodded his head.
“Good, but however this is not a good time for us to discuss such things out in the open. I’m sure you understand how the enforcers are.”
“But of course! I have a wagon ready nearby if you need me to ferry you anywhere. Perhaps I can offer a tithe of my own as well at my very own restaurant…”
Long Hua’s eyes glinted with greed as he stood further upright, enhancing his ‘holy posture’. “The Goddess will bless you for your offering, my brother. Lead the way.”
They entered a simple arctech wagon, though Long Hua noticed a lingering smell that he could not quite put his finger on. Potions? A bit suspicious for a restaurant owner… but it is good to have a wealthy supporter. Long Hua wouldn’t say no to being treated like a king.
The gentleman motioned for the driver to carry on, while smiling widely at Long Hua. “I am thoroughly impressed with how well you riled up the crowd. You have an elegant way with words.”
“All thanks to the Goddess Nona, who has blessed me to be her mouthpiece. To be able to have my words heard by the masses is my only goal.”
“Hmm, but your skills seems to be underutilized. Such a shame. Also, judging from the bag of rakels, that doesn’t seem to be your only goal.”
Long Hua immediately squinted, his expression souring. “You’re not a follower. Let me out immediately.”
“Long Hua – or should I call you Salos? Born and raised in Versia, joined the military at the age of 13. Dishonorably discharged under General Javel for selling and trading contraband goods, as well as selling classified information to other militaries. Also publicly charged for leading an insurrection against the ruling government.”
Long Hua brandished a knife from his clothes, aiming it at the gentleman. “I don’t know how you got that information, but know that you are now dead to me.”
Before Long Hua could do anything even more, the gentleman lunged forward, with the knife striking against a hidden vambrace under the formal suit, clanging against the armour. In a rapid combo, the gentleman grappled Long Hua and twisted his wrist, forcing him to drop the knife as he screamed in agony.
“ARGGHHH! W-who…WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU!”
“Your new owner. I have a better use for your… oratorial skills.”
