Upon the night of the First Burn
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There I was, in my hidden presidential suite overlooking the city. It glanced at my watch — 8:08 PM. That seemed to portend ill (I am a bit superstitious about palindromes.) Loud drums boomed and rattled the windows of the skyscraper. On either side of me secret service members stood alert and silent, waiting for the chaos which was likely to ensue below.
"Sir, please step into the booth," my aid Inri directed, while my War General, Leo, frowned intensely at some schematic on the table beside the virtuabooth. "Certainly, Inri, just one moment. I would like to get some fresh air before the broadcast," I declared as I moved swiftly past my unhappy-looking general and pressed my thumb into a sensor that changed the molecular state of the window such that I could walk straight through it.
I emerged from the apartment onto the patio as a swimmer from the depths to the surface. The din outside was excruciating — between the ceremonial drums, the military brass units, amplified guitars dripping with distortion, and the scream-laughing populace — one had little space in which to think. I could tell the sanity of the mob was eroding and that all hell was bound to break loose before too long.
I sat down on a wireframe chair with invisible cushion and sighed. My campaign for peace, so well-meaning, had been an absolute failure... now I felt childish, naive, and exhausted. At least I took some solace from the leafy cataclysm of plants that formed the bars and curtains of my balcony. I picked a ripe blackberry and chewed it thoughtfully.
I had planned to lead my people to the subtle glories of calm cooperation. I would exhort them of the brilliant efficiency of one human race united! We would not be confined upon this prison planet any longer, in quarantine from the rest of the solar system, but spread amongst the stars under the banner of a United Earth! My brief reverie was interrupted by a new kind of cacophony below.
I stood up quickly as I saw officiants below wheeling mobile homes of all description, dilapidated restaurants, garbage dumps and weed dispensaries, broken banks and crumbling circuses to the city center in preparation for the pyrotechnical orgy which was soon to follow. The cybersteampunk cavalcade had begun its mad march to the molten middle of our motherland. I hardened my face then into a mask of steely professionalism and turned my back on my plants and my people below.
Back inside, I entered the virtuabooth to broadcast my presidential remarks across the nation a full sixty seconds before I was due. As I stepped in, I felt sinister eyes upon my back and heard a deranged chuckle, followed by a quiet click.
* * *
Noble DCitizens,
This is President 
Speaking of the time being, it is that wonderful moment — 
(Transmission interrupted)
You cannot stop our war.
Peace is temporary.
War is eternal.
Burn report
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Apartment — (2)
Bank — (2)
Basic Home — (24)
Circus — (2)
Garbage Dump — (5)
Gym — (15)
Hive Sign — (1)
Homeless — (2)
Immigrants — (1)
Luxury Home — (125)
Police Station — (3)
Restaurant — (45)
Weed Dispensary — (28)
.
Estimated SIM Value burned:
132,708 SIM
.
Link to burn transaction
.
Note — all SIM received from burn will be used
to buy more 1st edition cards for the next round!
.
Shout out to
for contributing several cards!(If you also donated SIM or cards, let me know so I can thank you!)
Thanks also to
for contributing police stations..
To contribute to the second round of burn, simply send any cards or SIM
to
and kindly tag me in a post or comment on HIVE or Discord :-)
Policy for my 2nd term
______________________
.
War tax ON (10%)
Basic tax ON (1 to 15%)
.
all other taxes OFF
Writing and images by
created for the Proof of Brain Community
on HIVE on September 16, 2021.
.
Images created by processing
public domain images and official
art using Deep Dream Generator.
