United States of Japan

by Peter Tieryas

“No.”

  “What languages are you fluent in?”

  “German, Italian, Japanese, and English,” Akiko informed them. “Though I have problems writing in German.”

  “What’s your primary language?”

  “English.”

  “Not Japanese?”

  Akiko hesitated before answering truthfully, “Not Japanese.”

  The two agents glanced at each other.

  “Why didn’t you join the diplomatic corps?” #2 asked.

  “I was willing to go wherever the Empire needed me and I felt Tokko was the best way I could serve.”

  “One of the first reports you made in Tokko encouraged the Ministry of Education to teach the ‘real’ history of the Empire to key officers so they know what actually happened. Were you implying there’s a false history?”

  “I was. A lot of it is propaganda and exaggerated bravado that makes Japan seem like a reluctant savior during the Holy War. The actual history is much more interesting and useful for us. We wanted to take charge and shape our own destiny. It’s deplorable that countless millions died during the war and those numbers shouldn’t be hidden so everyone can know how futile their resistance was,” Akiko affirmed, recalling the criticism she’d received for the implications of her paper. “People are much happier now than when they were being exploited under the old western forces.”

  “And what was life like under the old Americans?” Agent #1 inquired.

  “Their ‘freedom’ was a joke. People were controlled by a plutocracy and the poor were suppressed by the wealthy with the promise of the ‘American dream.’ Slavery drove their economy and most had miserable working conditions. Racial inequality makes a joke of the ideas of equality proposed by their old Constitution. In the Empire, everyone is a child of the Emperor and, as long as you are loyal, you will be treated with respect and honor. That’s also what distinguishes us from the Nazis.”

  “What’s that?”

  “They’ll kill anyone who doesn’t match their view of the ideal Aryan. Even after Hitler tried to redefine Aryanism, it wasn’t that much more inclusive,” she said, recalling the report about a group of German officers who attempted a coup, accusing the Fuhrer himself of not fitting the Aryan mold.

  “You’re aware that the Nazis are our allies?”

  “Of course I am. I’m also aware we need to be well-informed about who they really are and stay vigilant in our defenses.”

  “Vigilance is an interesting word for you to use,” #2 said. “You said last night the George Washingtons cut your hands off. Why did they let you live?”

  “I don’t know. Captain Ishimura suggested that the GWs felt it’d be more of a punishment to leave me alive than to kill me.”

  “Do you agree?”

  “You should ask them, not me.”

  “Where is Captain Ishimura?” #1 inquired.

  “I don’t know.”

  Both twins squinted skeptically. “How could you lose him?”

  “Because I was in surgery,” Akiko replied.

  “We’ve received a disturbing report that you killed a man in Portical Valley.”

  “I did,” Akiko affirmed.

  “Were you aware that man was a war hero? Colonel Nishino, known as Koushou, was one of the most important technical investigators during San Diego.”

  “Captain Ishimura alerted me to that fact.”

  “Did he also tell you that he was a valuable asset to the military and provided important information as well as essential technology that we otherwise could not get hold of?”

  “Captain Ishimura informed me that he was an important figure.”

  “You knew this and yet you still killed him?” Agent #2 asked angrily.

  “I did,” Akiko said, without blinking.

  “Why?”

  “Because of his inhuman behavior. He had a zoo of people that–”

  “That’s his personal life. All of those people were contractually bound to him. The Empire respects the lifestyle choices its servants make. Was there another reason why you killed him?”

  Why did she even need to explain herself to them? “He questioned the divinity of the Emperor,” she said, assuming that would end any further inquiry.

  “Do you have proof of this?”

  “Is my word not sufficient?”

  “Not when you’re under suspicion.”

  “Suspicion of what?”

  “Whether you’re a traitor, or just incompetent.”

  “Incompetent?” Akiko flared. “I’m a loyal servant of the Emperor.” Her mind suddenly went back to the interactions she’d had with many of those she’d interrogated.

  “Neither of us understands how an agent of Tokko could allow herself to be captured,” #2 said.

  “It’s a disgrace.”

  “An ignoble disgrace.”

  “Why are you still alive?”

  “I told you, they let me live,” Akiko replied.

  “I don’t think she understands the question,” #1 said to #2 in a condescending tone.

  “Maybe she was so scared, she lost her wits and forgot her sense of honor.”

  “Why am I being interrogated?” Akiko asked, still not sure what was going on.

  “Because your story doesn’t add up.”

  “What doesn’t add up? I was attacked by the George Washingtons.”

  “But you’re still alive and Captain Ishimura is conveniently missing,” #1 said.

  “Perhaps they’ve been conspiring together,” #2 proposed.

  “Where is General Wakana?” Akiko asked, agitated by their suggestion. “He’ll explain everything.”

  “General Wakana is not available at the moment,” #2 said.

  “Don’t try to hide behind him,” #1 snapped.

  “I’m not trying to hide. I–” Akiko began to explain herself.

  “You are not being very cooperative.”

  #2 held up a gun. “I know you’re inoculated against most of our diseases, but there are a few even you’re not protected against.”

  “Are you threatening me?” Akiko asked, furious at the insinuation.

  “We’re urging you to be more cooperative.”

  “This would all go much easier for you if you confessed,” Agent #2 suggested.

  “We could go back to the station, but then we’d have to hand you over to the Inquisitors.”

  “You don’t want to think about what they’d to you.”

  “She knows what Inquisitors do.”

  “They’ll flay off your face to start with.”

  “You don’t want that, do you?” Agent #1 asked.

  “I didn’t do anything wrong,” Akiko defended herself, hiding a shudder. She’d worked closely with Inquisitors in the past and knew the way they treated human bodies as though they were chunks of meat. “I want an advocate here.”

  “Why would you want an advocate if you’re not guilty?”

  “She’s acting like she’s guilty, isn’t she?” Agent #2 posited.

  “Why am I under suspicion? Look what they did to me. They sent me back to taunt me,” Akiko stated, glancing at her prosthetics, then back at the two agents.

  Two indifferent faces confronted her.

  “The GWs are tricky. They’ll send their own back under the plight of having been tortured to get us to trust them.”

  “It’s an ancient Chinese ploy,” #1 added.

  Akiko snorted, but #2 didn’t let her speak and said, “We see through those.”

  “Who are you working for?”

  “I already told you. The Empire,” Akiko repeated. “I’m an agent of the Tokko.”

  “An agent who kills one of our most important resources, loses Captain Ishimura, gets captured by the GWs but inexplicably returns, and demands an advocate when we ask a few simple questions,” Agent #1 charged.

  Akiko snorted again. “Circumstantial evidence. None of that is conclusive.”

  “But the only person who could either support, or convict you, is
missing. Did you kill Captain Beniko Ishimura?”

  “What? Are you out of your mind?” Akiko flared back.

  “Then where is he? The last person he was seen with was you.”

  “I told you, I don’t know,” Akiko said. “Isn’t there portical footage of the hospital?”

  “All of it has been scrambled,” #1 said.

  “The tech told us there were irregular portical disruptions that ruined the recorded material for the past three days,” #2 explained.

  “Weren’t you investigating him earlier this week?”

  “Yes,” Akiko answered.

  “Why?”

  “Ishimura is known as one of the most loyal soldiers in the Empire,” #2 said.

  “He reported his own parents when they were about to commit an act of perfidy.”

  “Why were you investigating him?”

  “Those were my orders,” Akiko replied.

  “And now, a key censor of portical games in the USJ is missing on the eve of the anniversary, right when the Washingtons are trying to spread their insidious game.”

  “Are you plotting something for the celebration tomorrow?” #2 inquired point blank.

  “I’m not plotting anything!” she yelled, remembering how many times others had said the same to her.

  “Why do we keep on hearing unusual rumors about your work habits?”

  “Someone must be spreading lies,” Akiko replied. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”

  “The only person lying in this room is you.”

  She knew better than to get frustrated. They wanted to flummox her, make her lose her temper as part of their routine. But she couldn’t fathom how she was under suspicion. She’d been the one meting out justice before. She was one of the top agents in Tokubetsu Koto Keisatsu.

  “Are you listening to us?” Agent #1 demanded.

  “If you don’t start cooperating quickly, we’ll take you to one of the Inquisitors.”

  She couldn’t believe, just two days before, she’d been on the other side.

  4:02AM

  The questions from the twin Kempeitai agents kept on coming. The speed of their verbal assault was confusing her and she was flustered by their word games. They were trying to trap her in contradictions, implicating without directly accusing, trying to get her to hang herself verbally.

  “There are reports you had a confrontation with one of our officers, Tiffany Kaneko,” Agent #1 said.

  “Not a confrontation. She was angry she’d had her cover blown and we talked for a short time.”

  “That’s not what we heard.”

  “Then you heard wrong.”

  “What do you think of the George Washingtons?” Agent #2 asked.

  “I think they’re traitors that should be crushed.”

  “Was General Wakana a GW sympathizer?” Agent #1 demanded.

  “He’s one of the most loyal officers I know.”

  “You said you were following his orders.”

  “Yes.”

  “Did he order you to execute Koushou?”

  “General Wakana gave no orders to execute Koushou. That was my decision,” Akiko said.

  “Why?”

  “I told you. What he was doing was inhuman.”

  “Did you know General Wakana has had his fair share of run-ins with Tokyo Command?”

  “And USJ Command too,” #1 confirmed.

  “Stop lying to us and tell us what Wakana really ordered!”

  “I’m not lying!” Akiko shouted back.

  “The relationship the military has with its veterans is very important. Why would you endanger that?” #2 asked.

  “You’re a member of Tokko and we know your reputation for ruthlessness,” #1 stated. “You want us to believe you cared about Koushou’s personal habits enough to endanger the interests of the Empire?”

  “Why would you kill a war hero?” #2 barked angrily.

  “At least he kept his pets alive.”

  “How many have you tortured to death?”

  “Perhaps she’s having doubts,” #1 suggested.

  “Doubts about her position?”

  “Doubt about her loyalty to the Emperor.”

  “There are no doubts,” Akiko stated, and repeated it internally to herself.

  “Why is it your boyfriend said you were obsessed with the Americans?” #1 asked.

  Akiko did her best to hide her shock. “Hideyoshi?”

  “He has all sorts of problems with the Yakuza.”

  “Got himself into a huge debt with his gaming addiction.”

  The Yakuza? He’d never told her anything about being involved with any gangsters.

  #1 consulted his portical. “He called you an authoritarian and a lousy lover.”

  “He said that?” she asked, immediately regretting the pain in her voice. Of course they would try to use that against her, make up lies to strike at her vulnerabilities.

  “Which part bothers you the most?” #1 asked, with a sadistic smirk.

  “Why are you so concerned with what the Americans do?”

  Her heartbeat accelerated. “They killed my brother,” she replied.

  “According to Hideyoshi, you were worried because your brother deserted his post and went into enemy territory.”

  “Hideyoshi was lying. My brother did no such thing.”

  “He did. An internal investigation confirms that.”

  “My brother was a patriot who went to investigate a fire, not realizing it was an ambush!” Akiko yelled, recalling all the nights she’d spent privately looking into the case.

  “How do you know that?”

  “There’s nothing about an ambush in the official report.”

  “There seems to be a similar trend in the family, doesn’t there?”

  “Was it incompetence, or traitorous behavior?”

  “You can attack me all you want,” Akiko stated, seething. “But leave my brother out of this.”

  “How can we? You’d do the same in our shoes,” #1 stated, with a no-nonsense inflection.

  “We need to look more into your brother’s portical records. Find out if there’s anything treasonous there.”

  “Or are you trying to protect him?”

  “Maybe siblings conspiring together?”

  “Shut up,” Akiko said.

  “Excuse me?”

  “I said, SHUT UP!”

  #1 slapped Akiko’s face. #2 poked her prosthetic hand. Akiko’s face turned pale and the indignity hurt more than the actual pain. Her fingers tried to clutch at weapons she didn’t have. “What are you going to do if we don’t?”

  “I don’t think she takes us seriously.”

  “Maybe she’ll take the Inquisitor seriously.”

  Agent #1 grabbed her shoulder while #2 removed the intravenous needles. She knew if she struck either, there would be further charges and they’d have free rein to strike back. She didn’t resist, despite knowing that a meeting with the Inquisitor meant her life was over. These agents were still servants of the Emperor. Her primary concern went to the safety of her own parents. If she was falsely convicted, both of their lives would be in danger. For all she knew, her parents were already under arrest for the typical charge under these circumstances: “Parental malfeasance for raising a traitor.”

  They forced her up from the bed and dragged her out. She wondered where General Wakana was.

  4:59AM

  It was cold inside their car and the city lights seemed foreign, auroras of despondency rotting in the leprous night. They tied her to the backseat and jumped in front. She wondered where Hideyoshi was, if he’d really betrayed her to these agents. She thought of her brother, the reports that he had actually left his post. No one knew why, but it had eventually been explained as him investigating an anomaly. The uncertainty of the situation left much open to misinterpretation, which had troubled her back then and bothered her even more now.

  Agent #1 said, “I hate the night shift.”

  “I love it,
” Agent #2 replied. “I hate the sun.”

  “The sun is good for your skin.”

  “Forget your skin. You hear the real story about Barstow?”

  “With what?”

  “Ear Wax Brothers.”

  “I don’t even know who they are.”

  “The Teruos.”

  “Golden boys.”

  “About two years ago, they went to arrest a guy, but the portical screwed up the charges so they didn’t know what they were arresting him for.”

  “Why didn’t they call Command?”

  “They didn’t want to let Command know their porticals had been corrupted. So when they arrested him, they refused to tell him the charge. Turns out later, their porticals hadn’t been corrupted. They’d just arrested the wrong guy.”

  “What happened?”

  “They couldn’t let the guy walk ’cause that’d mean they’d be in trouble and it’d be a bureaucratic mess. So they let him stew, beat the crap out of him, and three days later, the guy confessed to a crime he wasn’t wanted for.”

  “Sedition?”

  “Murder of three USJ citizens. Was executed on the spot. Both Ear Waxes got commendations. Now, they just go around accusing random people of crimes without telling them what they did.”

  “Brilliant.”

  “The best part was those three USJ citizens the guy confessed to killing didn’t exist. Their names were from a cancelled portical show the Germans made.”

  “What happened to the brothers?”

  “They both got promotions ’cause if they got in trouble, so would their superiors.”

  “Atrocious.”

  Both agents chortled gleefully. Akiko recognized their flippancy as an attempt to inject an air of levity to confound her expectations. They wanted her to feel at ease, give her a false sense of hope, as if they were just oddballs making funny quips that could be reasoned with. When they returned to the station, they would humor her, tell her they were on her side if she would just be agreeable. If she refused, they’d inflict physical violence, a measure saved for the Inquisitor who was usually an excellent physiologist with a supreme understanding of anatomy. The whole act abhorred her because she knew it so well, and they knew she knew too.

  “Our duty is to eliminate superstitions,” #1 said.

  “You’re afraid of ghosts.”

  “Ghosts aren’t a superstition. They’re real.”