Prisoners of Paradise

by Brandon Lars Erikson

“About what?”

  Audrey put her hand on his forearm and said, “I miss you, Jack…I really miss what we once had.”

  Location: The Kane Loa Club…The Go-Go District…Downtown Polynea.

  Ailanian Standard Time: 1830 Hours.

  Awa Pilikoa’s head burned with a combination of rage and Cutz as he walked up the stairs to one of his father’s many downtown offices. Makula Pilikoa was a man who didn’t like to keep doing his business in one specific location, and it caused his oldest son all kinds of inconveniences.

  “I always thought he was a tad bit paranoid,” Awa thought glumly as he hoped his father would keep this meeting brief since there was a young lady at the bar who he wished to give some of his undivided attention to. “And he’s always all about taking care of one’s business before giving into one’s need for pleasure…what could he possibly need now? This meeting better be good and it better be short.”

  Awa opened the door and walked into the dimly lit, smoky room where his father sat behind a desk, reading something from a ReadyFile. Awa tried to act sober and respectful as he said, “you wanted to see me, father?”

  “We’re living in dangerous, uncertain times, my son,” Makula said without even looking up. “There is something wrong with our Makani shipments…the people we are sending to the Sacred House Reservation don’t seem to be coming back with the Makani I ordered them to retrieve…I fear, this is the work of our enemies.”

  “Father, with all due respect,” Awa sensed opportunity as he said. “I’ve been trying to tell you…for a long time now…that there are people in our organization, who you shouldn’t trust. I think there are people within your own gang who want to take you out of this business…we not only have enemies out there, but enemies within our own gang.”

  “And that’s why I am ordering you to do what it takes to make sure that they do not succeed…you shall be my successor someday, Awa…and you need to start finding out who we can trust…and then, you need to do something very bad and very painful to those who we cannot trust.”

  Awa’s own paranoia washed his mind with all kinds of angry emotions as he said, “I know of several people who you cannot trust, father…and I have been waiting a long time for you to ask me to start getting rid of them for you.”

  “This inevitable action is regrettable. For years now, I’ve been able to run an organization that was respected, as well as respectable. But now, our gang has been accepting hoodlums and losers who don’t want to work in a respectable fashion. They are more interested in killing someone simply because they don’t wear the same color handkerchief or sport the same T-shirt as they do. We’ve got people, in our ranks, who are only motivated by hate and racism. Greed was fine for a while, I could handle the greedy…but it’s these assholes, who just want to shoot another Ailanian just because he lives in a different neighborhood, who are causing me concern. That unprofessional kind of shit needs to go first…and second…we need to track down and kill that bastard from Earth, Marco Giraudoux…I think there is a strong possibility that he is the one behind the disappearances of our family members, who we sent to the reservation to retrieve Makani plants for us from the villages.”

  Awa looked even angrier as he said, “The bastard thinks he can play both sides of the field and still walk away with a trophy. He’s supplied our rivals with even more guns and ammunition with this last trip he apparently made here. Lately, the downtown area and the Go-Go District have become battle grounds because of his meddling…I’ve lost family to his ambitions…and that is unforgivable.”

  Makula said, “As I understand it, some Kukane gang members took shots at him a while back after he tried to rip them off. I’ve heard a rumor that he has at least two, maybe three warehouses were he keeps the guns and ammunition he smuggles here from Earth. We need to find these warehouses…maybe that’s where he’ll be at. If we find his merchandise, we’ll find him…and when we do…I want you to personally take him out for me. Don’t let any of these other assholes do it and get us a murder rap on our hands…this has to be done cleanly…but in a way that upholds our honor and avenges the deaths of those loved ones we’ve lost due to all this gang violence that I am sure he’s helping to orchestrate.”

  Awa’s bipolar nature erupted as he fought back tears while he thought of those close to him who were now gone as he said, “Yes, father…I will honor this family.”

  “These are desperate times, my son…and desperate times call for desperate measures, but we still gotta keep our heads, don’t go doing something irrational just because you think it might help us out. There are people out to get us…we have a lot of enemies on this planet, but we can’t afford to get sloppy. The last thing we need is the cops or the CIA walking through our front door just as we’re about to finish up this deal that’s gonna make us the richest gangsters on this planet. When it’s all said and done, a lot of people are gonna die and we want to be the last men standing…do you understand?”

  Awa’s mind burned with ambition as he said, “Yes, father.”

  “Good…now let’s start killing our enemies before they get a chance to take us out.”

  CHAPTER 14

  Location: Moke’s House…Mahina Suburbs…Polynea.

  Ailanian Standard Time: 1800 Hours.

  Moke laid back into the pillows on his bed, and watched the monitor. Mele Entertainment had dedicated most of its airtime to political debates and speeches. Moke sighed as he saw High Senator Rammy Klunka, a tired-looking Bontune man with sagging skin and thinning, gray hair. Klunka was driving his point home in front of a large crowd of Conservative Moralist supporters who wore shirts and buttons bearing his name.

  Klunka seemed intense and convincing as he loudly said, “We cannot fool ourselves anymore my fellow Ailanians…we NEED new investment in our planet and our government! The only way for us to get prosperity on Ailana again is to say yes to the Economic Revampment Program the Aurorians are proposing! We need unity! We need to be selfless and put our own ambitions aside for the sake of our fellow man!”

  Moke changed the channel and saw Klunka’s political rival, Keiki Karatau, a Hokupi businessman with radical new ideas, as he said, “For too long, big government and big business have conspired to keep the Ailanian people underemployed, underpaid, and under the foot of economic tyranny! It is time to allow Ailanians to work for themselves again! It is time to allow the good people of Ailana, to have a government that works for them, instead of having a government that makes its people work for its own interests, and the interests of those offworlders who have more of a voice in what the Ailanian government does, than its own people do!”

  Moke changed the channel again, his eyes burned as he saw his Aunt, High Senator Ulu Jinkua addressing a crowd of Moralist women, “Ailanians, like Keiki Karatau, are misguided and do not follow the Moralist principles that make this planet’s government great. We need good moral values to guides us…”

  “Ah Christ…” Moke thought as he felt an ache in his temples.

  The matriarchal-looking woman raised her fist and said, “We in the Moralist party know the truth, the reason why our society is heading in the wrong direction is because we have allowed immorality to infiltrate it!”

  Disgust. “No…it’s because you have been allowed to run it…”

  “Many Ailanian people are without jobs because of immoral decisions and without money because of immoral behavior. Just as a fool and his money are soon parted because of the desires for the pleasures of drugs, alcohol or sexual deviancy…a society, and its chances at redemption, could be lost, if we do not take action to eliminate the temptations that make people poor of mind, body and soul! We in the government once gave out loans to Immorals so that they could fund business ventures and buy homes…and what did they do? They squandered such investments by opening liquor stores and tattoo parlors. They opened up bars, strip clubs and other dens of iniquity. They started
independent record companies for Scompus Bands and spent money on their dreams and fruitless, selfish ambitions…and when these immoral enterprises did not make any money they defaulted on those loans which caused this current recession that now threatens this planet! We must reign in this immorality!”

  Disgust followed by a deep sense of betrayal, “Or we could stop giving tax cuts to the rich and invest in the common men and women of this world, who used to make ammunition so we could win a war…Jacob and his friends were right about you…”

  Her voice sounded as if she were belittling unruly students who had not studied for a test, “Our government must enforce the laws that put people on the correct path so that our planet can start heading in the right direction again! Now are we going to allow men such, as Keiki Karatau and Chief Tipsy take over our society, or are we going to let a righteous government directed by morals and values dictate how we live our lives?”

  The amount of cheering from the sheer number of supporters she had at the rally was staggering.

  “Oh my gods…are you KIDDING ME?” Moke thought as he peered at what seemed to be tens of thousands of people all cheering for his Aunt’s beliefs. Moke felt a knot forming in his stomach as he looked at the clock. It was late, and she would be home. He picked up his com and dialed his sister’s number. He just wanted one more chance to say what was on his mind.

  A few tense moments past before a young, female voice charged at him saying, “What do you want, Moke?”

  “Kara,” Moke said into his com as he lay in bed, watching the monitor with tired eyes. “As your brother, I can’t condone you associating yourself with that radical activist, Chief Tipsy. Let me warn you, he is not in the highest of standing with the Ailanian government right now.”

  “Moke!” His sister screamed at him, “He is doing a good thing! He is bringing together groups of people who used to kill each other in the city streets and on the back roads of the reservations, and he is making them realize that they can become a unified people again! He is teaching peace! He is teaching all of us about our roots, and where we came from! He’s revitalizing an interest in traditional Ailanian culture.”

  “He’s causing our citizens to lose faith in the Ailanian economic system…”

  “So what if he wants people to grow organic fruits and worms, or do things like make their own brands of clothing to sell at the vacant shopping malls! Who cares? Why do you think it is so necessary to kiss the ass of every Moralist you meet?”

  “Kara, I don’t agree with every Moralist sentiment, it’s just that Chief Tipsy has been known to associate himself with some dangerous people,” Moke said. “His music and the politics he conveys might have detrimental effects on unstable people…Ailana has a lot of unstable, angry people right now. And for all we know, Chief Tipsy might be conspiring with the members of The Evil…they are a dangerous group that you don’t want to get tangled up in by accident.”

  She refuted him sharply, “Chief Tipsy is just a musician, Moke! He is doing nothing wrong! And everyone knows that The Evil has disbanded themselves after their weirdo leader killed himself. You of all people should know that by now.”

  He rebuked her sternly, “Kara, you don’t know if you can trust him.”

  Her voice became more defensive. “Chief Tipsy is harmless Moke…the government’s media coverage has just made him look bad! The Moralists are scared of his philosophy. His new way of thinking about Capitalism is making our people believe in themselves! No one wants to settle for the scraps The Alliance wishes to GIVE us. We want to be able to build up our planet again ourselves. We want independence, we want our traditional form of commerce back…we don’t want to be employees in a government run tourist trap! Just like we never wanted to be workers on Hydroplantations or in weapons factories…”

  He tried interrupting her, “But Kara…”

  She screamed at him, “And don’t start about how my views make me look unpatriotic! The Alliance does not have all the answers! They only want our servitude for their war-mongering and the profits of their rich pseudo-capitalists! The desire to be independent of your government is patriotic!”

  Moke wished to yell like a medieval patriarch at his sister, “Goddamn it, Kara! There is nothing wrong with being dependent!” The Ailanian male used to be able to yell as loud as he wished while he disciplined a female relative who was younger than he was, but these were different times. Moke had to suppress his urge to explode at her. Instead, his voice was deep, and sounded sympathetic as he said, “Kara, can’t you do something else for an occupation besides be a trouble maker? Look, I’ll support any decision you make, just stop advising Chief Tipsy.”

  “Are you telling me to give up my work?” She said firmly, “My work that I love?”

  “Kara, all I’m saying is that you spend all your time working…for such little reward. A smart lawyer like you can do well in government service right now. I can help you get a job that you don’t have to spend so much time at.”

  “Put me on comcam, Moke…we are going to have this conversation face to face.”

  Moke sighed as he pushed a few buttons on his hand held com. The monitor screen on his bedroom wall flashed for a few moments. A picture of her beautiful Kupano face soon appeared on the screen. She looked like a snarling animal striking back at an attacker as she said, “Screw you big brother! You’re talking about getting me a job? I spent two years of my life collecting data on street gang violence and their social structure for your CIA and what happened to it? It got ignored! It became trivia! Why didn’t you use that data to help these poor kids before they were able to get their hands on those guns and start blowing each other away? Why didn’t you help me do my job when I was doing it?”

  “Kara, please…” Moke said as he felt a wave of guilt wash over him.

  “No Moke! I am not finished!” Kara yelled even louder, causing Moke to swallow his fear as he saw how emotional she became as she shouted, “You are the head of the goddamned CIA! Why couldn’t you convince the Moralists to help those poor kids Moke?! Why was my information not used to create social change? You’ve spent your whole career making this planet a place where the Moralists can convince the masses that it is O.K. to slave for rich Earthlings, who profit from the war machine of The Alliance, and what did all this war get us Moke? A chance to serve these rich assholes breakfast in bed while we live in the slums our leaders built with our tax money while our young kids deal drugs and kill each other because there is nothing else for them to do?”

  “Kara please, I don’t want to argue politics or the past, I just want you to quit that job as Chief Tipsy’s legal advisor and do something else more worthy of your time. Why don’t you just move back home and help mom for a while? You have spent so much time away from her, and she is becoming a burden to me, that I believe you should start sharing…”

  “You do not have the right to tell me how to live my life!” Kara cried out, “I love mom and you know that! But I am not going to submit to your archaic and arrogant disillusionment of authority! Dad never believed a woman’s place was in the home! He let mom achieve her dreams of helping others!”

  Suddenly, Moke completely lost it as he shouted, “And that is why she went crazy! Those ungrateful people she was trying to help drove her to insanity!”

  There was an awkward and very uncomfortable silence on the other end of the com.

  “Bullshit!” She cried out, “Mom probably went nuts because deep down she knew that our father died for nothing! That so called…WAR…that he signed up for was a bunch of bullshit…and she went crazy because she knew she was living a patriotic lie! And now you get to continue that lie with your job! Maybe I’d quit mine if I could work for you again and actually change a few things about our existence on this planet! But with the Moralists in charge that won’t happen, and you’re letting them use you just like they used Mom and Dad!”

  “Damn it
, that’s enough about Mom and Dad!” Moke caught his breath and said, “Kara, my job is not as rewarding as you think, and I know it’s what our family is supposed to do because of our heritage. You are a great court appointed defense lawyer, but you are just not cut out for a CIA job. Believe me, you have no idea how our government really works. You have no idea! Believe me; you do not want to experience how it swallows up those who think they can save the world! That report you gave Malia, it would have caused you to have nothing but stress…it could have ruined your life in ways that you could never imagine. Believe me, Kara! I did you a favor by deleting your data!”

  Moke felt his mind freeze as he realized that he had just crossed a line with his sister.

  “You bastard! Don’t you ever tell me what to do with my life!”

  “I was only trying to protect you!”

  “Fuck you! Oh and by the way Moke, since you have failed to make a difference with your line of work, don’t try to stop me from helping those people on Ailana who are actually trying to make a difference. There are good people on Ailana who want to change things, Moke! And I am going to do everything in my power to help them do just that! Your ability to charm people with your good looks is only gonna get you so far in this life, Moke! Remember that! I am done listening to your sweet talking, Moke! You’re nothing but a manipulator and a puppet for The Moralists…and you know it!”

  The monitor clicked of and the screen went black. The room became silent.

  Moke stared off into space. “Oh well,” he thought in a sarcastic tone of voice as he tried to cover up his feelings of guilt. “She’ll get over it…I hope.”

  Moke pressed a few buttons on his com, which allowed him to change the channels. He felt himself drifting in and out of consciousness as he watched the monitor.

  “And look at these idiots!” The obnoxious voice bellowing from the monitor belonged to Jalapo, Ailana’s ugliest and most popular talk show host. “This is a picture of what Ailanians used to look like when we were in touch with our ROOTS! Look at these idiots! These traditional Ailanian people are wearing necklaces made up of the hair from their ancestors! Why in the hell would you want to wear that?! And that thing hanging from the hair is a piece of an ancestor’s jawbone! What the hell is this all about? All I can say is thank the gods that we made contact with Earth! Or else we’d still be wearing accessories made from dead people! And speaking of dead people…”