Volume 1 Chapter 1: To Kill a Demon: A Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions

Neo 2013

July 6th

United States of Nations (USN)

Class had just started, but as far as the eye could see out the window there was nothing but white. White clouds, white rain, white sky, white ground, white board. The teacher was tapping a number so hard against the digital screen you'd have thought leaving technology with teachers was irresponsible. Leave it to the last 500 years of engineers to figure out how to convert holographic engineering into solid state, as if out of thin air; and then find an educational use for it afterward.

"Anyone know why this year was so instrumental in today's society?" He held up the year 3083-A.D.

"Anyone?" Teach looked around unamused behind his circular rimmed glasses.

"Oh come on now someone has to open their mouths for the rest of you to learn." As a decent student I can only empathetically agonize over keeping everyone's attention.

"Mr.Carver?" he was referring to a student hunched over in a group discussion. The student calmly turned to Teach, apparently with an answer. He looked at his student as one would with high expectation and pride waiting to see if he had truly done his job well.

"Nah Mr. Finny I think you got it." The group around him burst into laughter.

Teach looked down at the list in his right hand, dejected, searching for another name to call on.

"Meg-? Tracy, Kenneth, Keith; Any of you?" No response for fear of disturbing the other social groups.

"Sensei?' I raised my hand slowly breaking the tension in the room if only to save what I consider to be a good teacher from hating his job.

"Yes, Alt." He seemed relieved to have someone to dive into conversation with.

"If I'm not mistaken the year 3083 was when World War III started, or more commonly called the Atomic War."

"Correct!" Teach zipped back to the front of the class changing the engineered number into a 3D video of multiple nukes being dropped.

"Now who knows what two important technological advances we use today that came out of such a tragedy in the U.S.? Ms. Scott?" Oh we have a participant now, I raised an eyebrow at Loralye Scott across the room as she returned a smile in a teasing manner.

"Well Monsieur Finch, out of the two that were invented after the tragedy I have to start with the invention of the human data arsenal or H.D.A. At the conclusion of the biggest war of attrition the world had ever seen. People had begun to question what it meant to be alive when so many loved ones had died; this in turn invoked the creation of the No Human Left Behind Act signed into law by the newly reformed U.N. which gave chase to extending the life of a human being centuries into the future by creating a brain cell with different compression properties than normal; essentially making our brains more like SSD cards rather than built in memory on a computer.

"Very good, and the second." Teach looked like he was getting a kick out of having such a reliable student.

"The second was the practical application of 3D printing through the use of platinum and muscle tissue, thereby creating an antibacterial metal casing for the new cell and a way of implementing such a foriegn object into a human body, even from birth and conception. With these two advancements we've systematically added 5000 years to the lives of those who could afford organically grown clones of themselves or to the poorest man who now has a chance to climb the ranks by having any number of chances so long as a body is provided.

Teach looked like he was about to burst into fantasyland having heard such a beautiful explanation that I would have taken 10 seconds to get through.

"Oh and Mr. Finch there were really three. Due to Earth being inhospitable for the 1000 years after the war Mars was terraformed; but not before finding out that Mars did indeed have life. To that extent Maraquest IV the current King was so disheartened by what mass destruction a projectile could cause that he re-engineered our HDA's to control spatial gravity so that projectile weapons could no longer present the harm they once caused, thereby giving every human on Earth the basic concept of controlling gravity. However, I can see why you would assume only two would suffice." Loralye finished just as she had tapped for another digital textbook on her hologram computer.

Mr. Finch didn't look so good after that, more like the life in him had been dried thanks to how bright and sunny his student's mind was. Either way I could tell he was at a loss for words so I figured I'd throw him a bone.

"So how long could a nuke war last if every country had a few?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

Mr. Finch snapped back to life and smiled darkly at his students before looking me straight in the eye.

"As far as we know, Mr. Airum, it only takes three days"

The class stopped to think about what he just said, ultimately wiping the smiles off of all his darling students.

Ding Dong!

That was the bell for class being dismissed for the day.

Mr. Finch sat down abruptly, slouching in his chair as if to sulk.

"Well since we didn't get to it today, ya'lls homework is to research the reopening of the Star Wars Project.

"Wasn't that just a 20th century movie?" Tristan asked packing his bag.

"10 point for you, while that is true the Star Wars project was much deeper than simply being based on a movie."

Ding Dong!

That was the bell announcing that grades for the class period had been assigned. A 100 point percentage appeared on the holographic white board at the front of the class before the number divided itself into three different percentages. 40% waved in front of my face as the image displayed itself from my desk, I looked at Loralye and then Triston, I rolled my eyes. Loralye had gained 50% (Naturally) with Triston earning 10% himself with his comment. As everyone began to exit the room I turned to grab my stuff only to turn around and discover Mr. Finch had walked up to my desk.

"Thanks again Alt, you've saved me the excruciating task of writing up a report on why no points were awarded this class period."

"No prob. Long as you continue to let me use the Gravity Lab after school for research."

"Oh course!" He smiled at me before turning around and walking back to his desk.

"Oh, and sorry to hear about the basketball thing, I know that must sting…"

"Ah, it's alright turns out they didn't need any extra players after all."

I walked out of class slightly gloomy into a sea of color, where any space without was considered a death sentence in shark infested water. Chains from collars could be heard long before the person of interest ever showed up, the bewitching laughter that followed behind it stroking the flames of cruelty, and the powerlessness everyone felt as these sharks, or rather demons in human flesh paraded their authority throughout the school.Dressed in an all black uniform with crimson red accents were two students known as Bane and Brutus.

What Teach had forgotten to mention about our society is that dogma is always laid down by tyrants, and tyrants are bred from the monsters whose claws have been clipped... Soon after Maraquest IV rendered guns and missiles ineffective, a human by the name of Joshua Eurona struck him down before escaping with his life leaving with the words "Long live the Tyrant King" written in the deceased's blood.

Ever since that tragedy, people of political influence and wealth began molding society by the reintegration of melee weapons and retro military tactics; and the result; a new form of slavery, a bigger division between social class, and more than a millenia for them to abuse power. In a nutshell modern society regressed to it's crueler nature. With even children of these prestigious families understanding the power they wielded and privilege they were allowed to take advantage of.

"Brutus, why is the hallway so crowded? I thought we established that the first five minutes of transition was for the elite."

"I don't know Bane. Maybe they think they're part of the elite."

The two boys spoke loud enough that students around them could hear as they continued with their rhetorical questions. The students in the hall began to scramble for their next class, while the teachers all began to shut their door behind the students that so urgently hurried to them.

"Should we demonstrate what makes us different?"

"I think we should." And with that the two boys raised their hands in the direction of the hall, looked at each other and then toward everyone within the hall, teachers included. Within a matter of seconds the hall became a whirlwind of student bodies, teachers, class papers, backpacks and locker doors. Immediately I made a beeline for the nearest wall before putting my hands up toward the middle of the hallway.

"Damn bastards." I spat as I released what control I had over the space. Almost immediately people stopped flying down the one way road and froze in place as if suspended. Feeling what little force I could exert fade from my body I put everyone on the ground before I started on a brisk pace to my locker.

"Brother, it appears we have an insect with a bit of a rebellious streak within the school ." Brutus looked to Bane with antagonized concern.

"Too bad the rat's out of strength, it'd be a pity if we found him." I put my jacket's hood on only to find Bane staring directly at me rendering my attempt at hiding my identity useless, but I kept walking.

"Psh, Alt, this way." Triston was waving frantically at me his football helmet and visor were on.

"I knew you were ganna do something stupid one of these days, but I never thought it was going to be something as stupid as defying one of the Cardinals.

"Well I never would have thought they'd use gravity at school."

"Touché. You still got that famous footwork?"

"You bet."

Tristan pulled me by the collar out of the now delirious crowd just as Bane and Brutus had started moving.

"Then get going!" He shoved me down the now emptying science wing.

Just don't get caught. I whispered under my breath.

I ran…. first out of the warm school. Then the freezing woods with snow up to my knees; And finally the only place I knew they couldn't find me; a treehouse in the middle of nowhere. I slowed my tiresome, grueling pace down to a walk looking up at a house sixty feet in the air suspended by the strong branches of an atomic oak. As I approached the ladder I sighed realizing what I had just done. I was scared, I was anxious, I was fearful…. But more than any of that I was angry and resentful at the abuse of power they showed even as teenagers... Students, even teachers could have died today if I hadn't stepped in today... But my one time outburst may have just signed the death sentence for me, my family, and even my friends...

I reached the hatch of the treehouse and climbed through before flipping it closed and locking it; better safe than sorry. At the conclusion of securing my escape I sat there on all fours gasping for air. My whole body poured with sweat, and my limbs felt as though someone had hit me with a stun gun. I laid down, and rolled over trying to recover as I started to untuck my shirt and unbuttoned it leavin me in only the t-shirt underneath. When I had taken it off I climbed back to my feet and laid it across the bag that I had stupidly carried with me for miles on end. When I had done that I found a corner of the then empty room to rest in.

"Damn." I said under my breath as I hit the wall with as much force as I could muster hearing the snow outside fall from the roof to the endless white desert below, and with that I fell asleep. I would soon find out that this small desire for rest would set in motion a mountain of trails I would have to overcome.