The All Seeing Eye

The All Seeing Eye by Dean Carroll

It was the year 2154 and the world was beginning to rebuild itself after twenty three years of war. Dubbed the Armageddon conflict, whole continents fought against each other, for control of food and water, primarily on religious divisions.

With global warming at critical mass and the population density at astronomic proportions, the governments in Asia demanded access to the developed nation’s food supplies.

A few conciliatory measures were made by the American president Simon Freeman to help feed the third world nations, promising to send supplies to the poorest countries which were suffering the worst. The touch paper was finally lit when the Japanese who greatly suffered from being unable to feed its bloated population, attacked the isolated state of Alaska in order to secure its abundant fishstocks and oilfields, taking control of the vast state after a short battle fought against a small overrun American army.

After a quick vote by congress the Americans declared war on Japan for the second time in its history.

The United Nations attempted to resolve the crisis but the Japanese occupation drew support from the poorer nations like Iran and Pakistan who supported the attack on the ‘Great Satan’ and encouraged other Islamic nations to declare war on the American ‘infidels’ and their allies in western Europe. This wave of support from the middle east states resulted in the president declaring war on the Islamic world who in turn declared war on the western powers.

After twenty three years of bitter war. The whole of the world was left in ruins. Every major city in the world was left in rubble.

The war had caused the death of three quarters of the world’s population, through nuclear and conventional warfare.

The whole business finally began to be seen as an act of extreme folly. With most of the world leader’s dead, prominent people from the Earth population assembled in the devastated city of Geneva agreeing to universally cease the bloodshed and discuss solutions to all the world’s problems. The west promised the third world countries a greater share of the wealth and to rebuild their shattered economies, agreeing to supply them irrigation equipment and the access to grain that could grow in arid climes.

The main breakthrough to the meeting was the agreement to open all borders to people so they could settle whenever they liked in any part of the world. This led to an influx of migrants to the United States resulting in a sharp demand for houses and resources.

With the war battered economy of the Americans barely able to cope. There was civil unrest between the native population and the immigrants. To combat this, a new technology was introduced in America developed secretly by a computer corporation called Newhope International. In association with N.A.S.A, a security system was developed by Newhope, in the form of a flying ship that could scan for known troublemakers that wouldn’t conform to the laws of the ‘new world constitution,’

This hi-tech surveillance system could scan over large areas even picking vibrations from peoples thought waves, realistically able to read minds. Supplied with the new technology, a team of pilots on the ships and wardens on the ground ensured the American population conformed. This new technology became known as the All Seeing Eye.

Trevos left his apartment at 7:30 in the morning a heavy mist encircling the city cooling the temperature. Crossing through the rubble strewn streets to the tram stop, he looked to the skies and observed the All Seeing Eye patrolling over the San Francisco limits.

An orphan of war, having lost all of his immediate family in the conflict, Trevos was brought up in an institution with all the other casualties of war until he turned sixteen and was allocated an apartment and offered an engineering apprenticeship to repair the war ravaged city.

Waiting at the tram stop, he took out his electric cigarette from his pocket and vaped while he waited for the tram. A small crowd had congregated all dressed in overalls a barcode emblazoned on their backs. He identified a group of secretaries by the colour of their navy blue boiler suits, and an elderly gentleman by his brown overalls, signifying him as one of the journalists at the San Francisco Enquirer.

After a ten minute wait the tram trundled up to the stop, and the passengers poured on, anxious to get to their workplace on time.

Onboard, Trevos stood clinging on for dear life on the overhead pole as the tram trundled through the decimated city towards the outskirts to take him to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Disembarking at a stop at the foot of the structure, Trevos waited with all the other apprentice foremen and civil engineers at the bridge limits waiting for the facilitator to arrive. Trevos identified his fellow apprentices by their orange boiler suits and the foremen by their gold overalls.

While the crowd waited quietly, Trevos stared at the decimated bridge, the structure completely destroyed, and a new structure had to be designed to replace it.

After waiting a battered black limousine pulled up and a facilitator emerged, a party official joining him. The workers knew the drill and the fifteen hundred strong workers assembled, waiting for the daily anthem music to play.

While the crowd waited, the party warden looked meticulously at each worker for any subversive behaviour amongst the crowd. Finally the music played and the crowd sang the daily anthem.

Amongst the gracious light of the sun so high

Glows the phosphoric beauty of the All Seeing Eye

To watch over all to save mankind

Guiding with love man, woman and child

Saving our minds from religious thought

Releasing us all from the lies that have been taught

Around the world we live in peace

Unified jointly in the logical aims we seek

So raise our arms to the world up high

And rejoice in our love for the All Seeing Eye

The workers then raised their hands above their heads and broke into a chorus of clapping, beating their hands repeatedly until the party official told them to cease.

With the assembly over the civil engineers retreated into the office with the facilitator, while the foremen supervised the apprentices. Trevos followed his boss Byron into an elevator to transport them to the top of the bridge.

While the pair travelled upwards, Byron unearthed a small book from the band in his safety helmet and proceeded to read from it, quietly whispering passages from it.

Intrigued Trevos asked him what he was reading. Byron turned to him and smiled.

“Have you never read the good book?” said Byron to the curious Trevos.

Trevos was puzzled “What good book?” he asked.

“You know the good book, the bible” said Byron.

The mere mention of the word bible sent Trevos shuddering, he looked uneasily at the smiling foremen.

“You can’t carry material like that around with you. If the authorities found out you’ll be done for” said Trevos.

Byron looked calmly at Trevos.

“This book has stayed strong through war and conflict Trevos, since the ancient times, when the Romans sent Christians to be slain by lions. You cannot suppress the word of the gospel, it’s the building block of humanity” said Byron.

The elevator was nearing the summit, and Byron replaced the pocket bible back in his work helmet and stared at the mystified looking Trevos. “You can report me to the authorities” said Byron. “But you can’t dissuade me from the truth. Jesus died for us.” he said dragging open the elevator door.

With the work area empty, Trevos asked him how he had kept it secret from the authorities. Byron smiled and took off his helmet showing a lead lined interior. Trevos knew of the All Seeing Eyes Achilles heel -it could not detect mind waves through lead. It was knowledge commonplace, such so that there was a crackdown on people wearing lead lined hats. With dire consequences for whoever was caught wearing one.

Trevos felt extremely exposed to Byrons revelation, such that he didn’t know whether to confide in someone. Preferring to keep it secret, he set to work with Byron on the summit of the bridge, keeping silent all morning.

At half past twelve a hooter sounded and the workers stopped what they were doing and made their way down to the eating area. Like drones they dropped their tools and walked in single file assembling into a queue to receive their soup and bread, donated specially by the zone authorities.

Picking a bowl from a pile, Trevos sat at a small table with Byron cautious but curious to learn more from Byron about the bible. Talking quietly in the canteen, looking cautiously for passing wardens Byron explained about Jesus and his disciples who talked to the masses about gods love for humanity and to help those less fortunate than ourselves. Byron felt trustful enough in Trevos to donate his bible to him. Trevos felt nervous receiving such a subversive book, quickly placing it into his pocket.

Trevos hated the All Seeing Eye as much as the next man, seeing the lives it had ruined, people commiting suicide when their minds had been probed.

Sipping his watery soup Trevos asked if there was anybody else who supported the bibles preachings.

Byron picked up his bread and broke it. “This piece of bread represents the body of Christ while wine the represents his blood” Byron explained smiling to Trevos. “My flock assemble at my apartment tonight, and partake in communion” he explained, dipping his bread into the watery gruel. Trevos liked to hear more.

“Would you like to attend mass?” Byron asked.

Trevos looked nervously back at Byron, too dumbstruck to say anything.

“Don’t worry son there are others in this room who’ll be attending” Byron smiled.

Tentatively Trevos agreed and they changed the subject, no more was said about the matter before the hooter sounded for the afternoon shift. The workers stood up, plonking their bowls in a large basin of lukewarm water.

Trevos worked with his fellow workers all afternoon, keeping quiet about the bible in his pocket. The All Seeing Eye was quiet all throughout the day in the city, and he felt relieved when the hooter sounded for the end of the working day.

The workers stored away their tools and made their way home. Some stopped off at the state drinking house on the way.

Walking beside Trevos, Byron placed a folded piece of paper in his hand, telling him not to open it until he got back home. Placing the paper in his pocket the two parted. Trevos waited at the tram stop.

Trevos knew he was taking risks and felt increasingly paranoid in case he was accosted by a warden taking his authority too seriously and demanding to search him. Finding the time for a smoke he took out his electric cigarette, taking a long drag of it feeling the warm vapour hit the back of his throat. Feeling calmer, he acted indifferently when he passed a couple of wardens who were stood at his disembarkation point. Looking ahead he crossed the road to his block.

Back in his apartment, he could hear his neighbour below him playing the radio, old R’n’B music playing loudly. Taking off his overalls and placing them in the sprayer to clean, a hot steamy jet cleansed the sweat and grime from them. He then showered -a whole days sweat sluiced off his body straight down the plughole.

Feeling refreshed he turned his flatscreen television on and checked his electronic mails from the day. With no significant news other than spam, he sat down and relaxed for an hour. While the television played some old film. Trevos picked up the bible and skimmed through it. The bible was called the New Testament and mainly dealt with the birth and death of Jesus who was considered the chosen one or the messiah. Jesus was according to the bible the son of god and was immaculately conceived. Shaking his head Trevos read further of the life of Jesus not willing to believe everything but still intrigued enough to read further.

After an hour of reading, Trevos placed the book down, and retrieved the post it note from his overall pocket. An address was scrawled on it, and a time.

Leaving the bible and note aside, he went to the kitchen and microwaved a meal, eating the food on a notched crumbling table

While watching television, Trevos picked up the note and decided to check the meeting out. The address was in Haight a district on the other side of San Francisco, a well-known haunt for the hippies he had discovered about from an old history book he had retrieved from a store room at the orphanage.

At seven O’clock in the evening Trevos dressed in an old pair of baggy jeans and an old black t-shirt. Picking an old leather jacket off the coat hook, the bible snuck in his jeans pocket, he left the apartment and out into the night.

At the tram stop Trevos waited nervously for the tram, smoking on his electric cigarette. He had to catch the tram into the city and circumnavigate to Haight and find the address from there. When the tram arrived he swiped his fare card on the barcode reader and sat down.

After a twenty minute journey Trevos arrived in the centre of San Francisco where he was dwarfed by the multitude of tower blocks that had sprouted up in the city. The All Seeing Eye couldn’t manoeuvre around the city centre limits so the authorities relied on video cameras that were installed at every place needed to scrutinise the population.

At the tram station he checked the timetable and waited with a group of workers for the tram to Haight.

As he waited a group of three wardens joined the commuters, Trevos felt his body envelop in a cold sweat. He stared at them self conciously, one of them was armed with a taser while one of them had a German shepherd on a leash, sensing his fear, the dog barked incessantly at Trevos. Trying to keep calm he smiled nervously at the dog trying to allay its suspicion, The third warden had a barcode reader in his possession. Turning with a look of suspicion to the other two wardens, the man walked up to Trevos, a cold stare bearing on him.

“A bit nervous aren’t we?” said the warden suspiciously. Trevos smiled whimsically at the warden.

“Let’s have an identification check lad” said the warden sternly.

Trevos took off his jacket straight away for the warden to swipe the barcode on the back. While he did so the man asked him where he was headed. Trevos nervously said he was seeing a friend. The warden looked at him coldly, the bible digging into Trevos leg like a blade. The warden checked the details on the barcode reader, the dog in the background tearing at its leash, smelling Trevos fear.

Staring suspiciously for a moment at Trevos, who tried to remain as calm as possible, Trevos senses picked up the smell of spearmint gum on the wardens breath. The warden eventually broke off his stare and handed the jacket back to Trevos before joining his patrol.

Just as the wardens left the vicinity of the station, the tram pulled up. Feeling relieved he jumped on and made the short journey to Haight.

The journey was short and uneventful, and he hopped off the tram and walked around the dark streets. The streets were barely lit some of the houses abandoned and falling into decay. Trevos was soon lost and entered a small second hand goods shop for directions. An old woman sat beside the counter surrounded by all kinds of bric a brac, she was on a wooden chair knitting contentedly.

Smiling calmly at her he asked her politely for directions to Byron’s house. Disappointed he wasn’t attracting a paying customer she stared at the address on the piece of paper and directed Trevos to a house a couple of streets away. Before he turned to leave, the old woman asked him if he wasn’t buying anything, to kindly donate something to the shop.

Grinning kindly, Trevos took out the bible from his pocket and handed the old woman a five dollar note. But it wasn’t the sight of the money that attracted the woman’s attention. Thanking her for her help he left the shop.

With Trevos safely gone, the woman eagerly picked up her phone.

Trevos followed the woman’s directions and stood outside a large gothic style house on an abandoned estate. The house stood out like a diamond amongst a pile of shit, such was its grandiosity, the rest of the houses were bombed out shells. Walking up a steep driveway he rung the bell on a rope, and waited patiently for an answer.

Just as he was about to ring again, he could hear someone approach. With the unlatching of the door, a middle aged woman dressed rather elegantly, opened up, a candle clutched in her hand.

“Can I help you?” said the woman rather nervously. Trevos cleared his throat and asked to see Byron.

Retiring back into the house, she called his name, only for him to approach the door. Trevos could see his face amongst the candlelight, his portly face glowing.

“I’m glad you’ve come my child.” He smiled, Trevos was allowed into the house. Inside the hallway the walls were covered in portraits that wouldn’t go unnoticed in a gallery. Some looked like modern masterpieces.

In the living room area, Trevos was welcomed by a multitude of guests, some of whom he recognised from work. Turning to Byron, he found him dressed in a cassock, and a clerical collar dug tightly into his neck. He could barely recognise him from his gold overalls and builders helmet at work.

From the kitchen alighted the woman who answered the door, who Trevos presumed to be Byron’s partner. She entered the living room carrying a loaf of bread and a decanter of wine, which she placed on a table. Byron then performed a sermon, slating the new world order that was enslaving the world and proclaimed Christ as the only saviour from the oppressor.

Byron compared the All Seeing Eye as the dark evil that was turning man against man. The congregation murmured agreement about what he was saying. Byron then proceeded to break the loaf of bread into pieces which he placed on the tongues of the flock, while Byron’s wife emptied wine into a goblet and poured the wine into their mouths blessing each person.

Byron claimed it as representing the body and blood of Christ, who he said gave up his life, for man’s benefit, so we could learn from our sins and be better people.

With communion over, the congregation then chanted a small prayer that was dedicated to the lord, their hands steepled in quiet contemplation whilst doing so.

It was that moment that a blinding light shone through the window, Byron looked through the curtains and an airship shone a light through the curtains, and loud banging could be heard on the front door.

The congregation panicked, married couples huddled to one another, while others slumped to their seats resigned to their fate. Before Byron could answer the door, it was blasted open, Byron was blown into the hallway, and a team of armed wardens rushed in trampling over the wounded Byron, aiming automatic rifles at the terrified flock, demanding the congregation to raise their hands and not move.

Fearful stares were aimed at Trevos from the congregation. He soon realised, he’d alerted the authorities to the location of the meeting by alerting the old woman at the second hand shop.

The congregation were all handcuffed, while the wardens waited for the chief warden to arrive. After an anxious wait, whilst Byron lay concussed in the hallway, a party official arrived. On seeing the injured Byron, he roughly grasped him the collar and dragged him into the living room.

With the wardens checking all the rooms in the house, helping themselves to whatever they could find, the official ordered the remaining wardens to take away the prisoners, including Byron whose head bled profusely on the carpet.

With Byron’s wife pleading to allow her husband to have his wound treated in hospital, the officer steadfastly refused her request, throwing the woman an old tissue, telling her to clean it with that.

With the prisoners securely manacled, they were led out in a line into the back of a waiting van, where they were accompanied by an armed warden, who ensured the prisoners didn’t communicate.

Trevos could still feel the bible in his pocket digging into his leg, but was unable to relieve himself of it, feeling the hard corner of it cutting his thigh, attempting to resist the discomfort it created.

While the congregation looked pale and subdued, Byron looked defiant, giving Trevos a look of reassurance.

“I don’t blame you son” said Byron calmly, Trevos smiled back. The brutish looking warden wielding a taser warned him to keep quiet.

“How about singing Onward Christian soldiers” Byron said defiantly to his flock.

The flock began to sing the hymn while the warden threatened to taser Byron if he didn’t keep quiet. Instead the group continued singing, Byron was given a taser shot that sent him sprawling to the floor of the van completely paralysed, but everyone continued. The warden frustrated at their defiance, left them to sing until they reached the warden station.

The believers were manhandled out of the back of the van, and dragged into the reception of the warden station, where the wardens ordered the congregation to strip themselves of their clothes, much to the amusement of the other prisoners. All the time the Christians sang hymns, much to the chagrin of the custody sergeant. They were each processed and frogmarched naked into a large cell where they continued singing, meanwhile Byron still paralysed from the tasering was stripped of his clothes which they cut from his body and dragged him by the arms throwing him into a single cell like a sack of rubbish.

The congregation sang constantly while one by one they were dragged from the freezing cell down a corridor where they disappeared.

The numbers of prisoners dwindled until finally Trevos was the last one remaining. Feeling cold and shivery the warden dragged him from the cell. The warden and his assistant each grabbed an arm and frogmarched him towards a room at the end of the corridor, the way to it dark and gloomy, the lightbulb above giving insufficient light, flickering incessantly.

Knocking loudly on the door the chief warden dragged the prisoner inside, where Trevos surveyed the soundproofing around the walls, a concrete slab was in the centre of the room where an obese looking warden smiled menacingly at the naked prisoner, wearing a boiler suit covered from head to toe in blood.

At the sight of the warden Trevos realised he was in the presence of the conforming troupe, a specially selected group of wardens who took part in carrying out torture, both physical and mental.

“Welcome to hell.” Smiled the warden sadistically, Trevos felt his legs go but he was held up by the custody wardens, who dragged him to the concrete slab, where he was secured with leather bindings.

Strapped securely Trevos eyes widened in terror at the conformer warden, who smiled back.

“What’s going to be first Trevos?” asked the grinning warden. Trevos stared back at him, too fearful to reply.

“We could offer a bit of free surgery, before we do the mindscan.” said the warden, holding a pair of pliers menacingly in his hand.

The warden studied Trevoses body, like a specimen to be played around with.

Opening and closing the pliers menacingly like they were jaws of a snapping crocodile, he playfully placed the pliers towards Trevoses groin, putting slight pressure on Trevoses left testicle. Trevos stared at the torturer with horror feeling the pain increase as he placed more pressure on the pliers handle.

“Where did you get the bible from son?” he whispered into Trevoses ear, halitosis of rotting food filling Trevoses nostrils from the torturers breath. Feeling the pain increase, Trevoses eyes tightened shut, the pain shooting excruciatingly through his body.

“Don’t make it hard on yourself lad. The rest of your friends are now on the way to prison. Just tell me or we can get the information through other ways.” The torturer put more pressure on the pliers, and Trevos started whimpereing, but was still able to contain the pain.

Frustrated the torturer was growing tired, and told his assistant to set up the mind extractor, releasing Trevos from his grip, leaving him to catch his breath.

The torturer looked discerned at Trevos. “It’s a bit late in the day for fun, so we’ll get what we need the boring way.” The assistant wheeled up a large machine attached to a graphene powered computer keyboard connected to a screen. Attached to the machine was a rubber mask that the assistant attached to Trevos head.

The mask contained electrodes that attached to Trevoses skull, connected directly to the machine. Wheras the All Seeing Eye could pick up slight waves from the public, the wardens technology extracted every detail from a person’s memory.

Trevos felt himself hyperventilating with the mask over his head, waiting for the machine to probe his brain. Trevos waited ten tortuous minutes until the switch was activated.

“Are you ready for the biggest mind fucking of your life” giggled the warden, Trevoses heart beat to a crescendo. Before Trevos prepared himself for his fate, the machine was activated.

Trevos spine arched as a bolt of electricity shot through his brain. Feeling his brain being squeezed like an orange, he attempted to resist the electrical waves, trying in vain to hang onto his memories, but the pain was too great, and he relented feeling his brain being filtered of all memory. The machine extracted all the information the authorities required of how Trevos acquired the bible as well as all other knowledge of family and friends and events in his life, all draining from his long term memory. Unable to contain this brain drain any longer, he blacked out.

Trevos woke to a small cell, brightly lit and antiseptically clean, the walls and floor white devoid of any furniture. He looked around his surrounding blankly his mind was devoid of thought, he couldn’t even remember his own name. His brain was extracted of all memory and knowledge like a vegetable. Trevos docilely looked to the ceiling, where a small video camera filmed him.

Hearing the sound of keys a door opened, and a couple of men in uniforms picked up Trevos and escorted him from the cell. Trevos couldn’t walk because his mind was extracted of all pre-existing knowledge of how to do so. Instead the men dragged him along the corridor, to a small room with a bed, a machine beside it, with a team of doctors waiting. The docile Trevos was dropped onto the bed salivating onto his chin, while the doctors strapped him up.

“Time for us to make you better” Smiled the chief doctor as he placed a mask over Trevoses face. Trevos could feel the pain of a pinprick in his arm, then all consciousness fade.

Two weeks later

Markus flew over San Francisco Bay in his ship, surveying the populace, with the chief pilot Henrik aiming the thought processor over the population, randomly probing thought waves for traces of any corrupting influences.

Markus had worked for the All Seeing Eye for six years, but somehow this seemed untrue. He felt like he’d only worked a couple of weeks but common knowledge was telling him differently. With this niggling uncertainty, he flew over the Golden Gate Bridge which was being re-built, thinking somehow he’d worked there. Shrugging off these thoughts, Markus circled the bridge, in the heavy summer light, the transmitter poised to eke out the criminals at large.

THE END

16