And the Senator from

And the senator from.........

by

Norris A Burrell

Most people thought that in the end they would be banding together to fight flesh eating zombies or holding up in their bunker with a lifetime supply of food and water. Only to exit from the ground when the air is free from nuclear fallout. No one ever thought the end would come with a blink of a eye and from a meek but power hungry U.S Senator. Its been ten years since this man turned the entire world on its ear. Now this meek and now power welding Senator sits in his newly built city in what was once called Manhattan. He calls this place New Jerusalem, its massive and well protected by a military force hand chosen by him.

You would think that the old Jerusalem would take offense to being replaced by this glass and gold city but it wasn't. The legend is they encouraged our new leader to take the name with their blessings. I don't believe that but the guys PR is second to none. It all started in a small computer chip manufactory that was close to discover A.I technology that would change the world. Well it did and now there ain't a person today who isn't sporting the new fashion statement of the millennium, a heart shaped chip inserted in their necks. I ought to know since I am the one who made that discovery, and now I carry the prototype with me wherever I go. You can't go nowhere without the chip, the whole world has a scanners that if it doesn't read your chip you're arrested. Only there is no jails or prisons to speak of, no one knows where they take those who are arrested. Some say there's some modern day Devil's Island out there somewhere and they take them there to live out the rest of their lives. What do I say? I say they are dead and buried in a place where no one would look.

I guess you're wondering about my chip. Oh, I once had it implanted in my neck but being I invented the damn thing I know how to remove it without setting off its self-destruct mechanism. The tiny explosive inside chip is its defense. Tamper with it or try to remove it and it pops your internal jugular vein, you bleed out in a minute or two. If you do manage to survive the “Pop” any doctor or nurse would know what happened, what you tried to do and report you. They have to otherwise they might disappear to that mystical, magical island that's not the grand prize on a game show. Yes we still have television and game shows and the grand prize on them all is a visit to New Jerusalem to meet the Senator himself. Every movie and television show the Senator has to have a cameo, his likeness must be present or else it won't get the seal of approval.

When I saw the plans to insert the “Pop” into my design I knew then I had to do something, so I played along with the plan and developed a go around. Fearful of being found went with me everywhere I went. In the lab was when I was really afraid, I couldn't trust a soul. Even my girlfriend couldn't be trusted which hurt the most but I had to be safe. The go around has to be one of the most expensive go around ever though. Red diamonds, only 40 exist in the entire world most weigh less than a half a carat and the lab has 5 of these rare gems. I love to admit that I worked long and hard to find a way to remove the chip without killing myself or others but it was an accident. I can't get into the details right now time is short and I'm on the run. People are looking for me, his people. If they find me I guess I'll find out myself about the island of no return.

Now as I enter the state of Texas in the middle of the night, you can only travel at night. The drones that litter the skies can see a man walking during the day but at night my heat signature could be seen as a night predator. I stay away from the roads and highways when I traveled, its scary out here because the predators are real, Not just the wolves, coyotes, and mountain lions I have to fear but lasers from the drones would and could slice me into pieces.

I stole one of the diamonds and replaced it with a clone I made, it took time to find the right fake diamond and shape it exactly like one I took, its shape and color had to be right. Once that was done I had to find a way to get it out of the lab. That's where my gold heart shaped locket came in. I always wore it, it contained a picture of my mother and father in it. It had been placed in all the security logs as my article of clothing so it was easy to put the diamond inside. They never checked it so I was in the clear once I swapped the diamond.

So now I'm trying to get to the Port of Texas City to catch a freighter to Old Jerusalem. From there a hidden valley where I can hide and no one find me. Mostly I would be there to help, help others remove the A.I chip without killing themselves. I was told about this place on the dark web, it still exist too. At first I didn't believe it was real, they referenced the Bible, I have read many books but never the Bible. I read the scripture about a hidden valley and knew then it was the best place for me. It was said to be a haven with one way in so it could be easily protected. Will their God protect a skeptic like myself? I don't know but I am starting to believe in Him, it's coming slowly like dragging a heavy stone uphill. I figure by the time I reach the top the hill I would believe. In the meantime I have a long journey ahead of me and soon daylight will be here and I must find a place to hide.

THE END