Carbon Man

By M.C. Shorter

Martin faces death for doing his job well and professionally. His friends, society, and justice have all betrayed him as he waits in his blood for his fate.  When a voice enters his mind, he assents to help that will save the Universe. Take a seat beneath your favorite tree and wait for the door up top to open.

• Language: English
• Publisher: M.C. Shorter
• Release date: Mar 25, 2019
• ISBN: 9781386495246

M.C. Shorter

Writer & creator M.C. Shorter shares humor, satire, and screeds while surviving millennialism, recovering from a near-miss astrophysics undergraduate education, an English degree, and a J.D., plus living with chronic pain, schizophrenia, and two very energetic dogs. They are the product of an Olympic double medalist and several generations of librarians. M.C. loves animals, swimming, and people who are kind to other people.

Book preview

My third Pulitzer was never publicized and had been dubbed the, Ceremony No One Watched as I looked at the CNOW graffiti on my window.  The buzzing drone of the morning’s media played loudly, as there was no escapable news at this point, so I let the usual rabble volley cackles bordering on despondency and inevitability. A chorus of what would become the norm lead the way across the bottom of the screen as the reporting of the dissolution of the Parliamentary Ethics Council turned into an announcement that the Universal Court vacancies had been filled.  With these cogs in place, they  tumbled in reverse gaining momentum as the progress that had cost billions of lives was given up for a preconceived notion of what once was.

In a verdict tipped only by a single vote, it has been decreed that all individuals of impure blood will be marked for the greater good of the Universe and of Society. Throughout the campaign, the unabashedly autocratic and newly elected president of Europa, Demitrius, has put his Attorney General in charge of overseeing the operations as he continues his vacation on the pleasure planet, Wakai Musume. The administration explains that they are tying up a number of loose ends after reopening commercial activity with the dictatorship, which has been under intense Universal scrutiny for trafficking of all species and rampant corruption. In other news, Demitrius has filed the first lawsuit enacted under the Journalistic Criminality act, where all articles set to be published must be first submitted for pre-approval and editing ....

The inscription was smoothly cast on the medallion, and I let the words dance around my eyes elusively. Sacrifice for public good, huh? Lot of good that did .... I took the medal off my mantlepiece, where it had scarcely had time to accrue any degree of dust, let alone the chance for spiderwebs. My fingers instinctively wove around the molded face and intrinsic design holding the most sacred words of my craft. With a solemn shake of my head, I wrapped it in a silk cloth before placing it in a chest with the rest of my now-illicit belongings.

A crash sounded from my upstairs window, a mere follow-up from the barrage I had endured since the inauguration. I’d given up painting over the graffiti that appeared on my door and walkway, and I learned to appreciate the poisoned oak tree and ravaged rose bush that I wondered if I would get around to replacing in the spring.

... Presented to the floor of the Europa senate today was legislation seeking to declare that all rights invested in that of a living person shall be vested upon the creation of life and under no circumstances will this be controverted. Detractors of the newly introduced legislation say that the language is far too ambiguous to be enforced; however, it remains to be determined if this law is even necessary, since Demitrius has placed his elected successor in charge of enforcing the ‘Genesis’ decree which protects all life up until birth ....

A ticker ran across the bottom of the screen with a name I recognized. The letters slowed down and froze in time as I centered on them. I grabbed the phone and hastily dial the familiar number. The rapid beats of my active chest made the phone receiver's tone last for a ridiculous amount of time.

Hello? slurred a hungover voice.

Brad! You have to turn on the news!

MMMmmm .... Who is this?

It’s Martin! Turn on the TV right now! It’s on all the channels!

His lack of urgency only amplified the effect of the assault on my residence.

Martin? HA! Of course it’s on all the channels, you moron! He won! Despite your best efforts, I must say. Hell of a story you ran. I hope you’re not still angry about that—

I took no more of this. You gotta believe me. Right now, bad things are happening—

Of course bad things are happening! Bad things always happen! But it’s never as bad as you think and it will never be as good as you think! Besides, that’s what Parliament is for—

You know that he stacked the court, right? My hands shook with disgust.

Yeah? So? His stupor was slowly sliding away from him.

He’s bypassing Parliament, came flowing out of my mouth.

The silence from the headset was broken by the tinkle of more window glass, He can’t do that.

Who’s going to stop him?

You have to understand, it’s an act! He’s not going to do anything that he says he’s going to do! A noticeable hurry came to this sentence.

... In other news, the funeral for Presidential Candidate Winston Hana Dawson, who was finally laid to rest after the lawsuit barring his burial was courageously dropped by the lenient and generous Demetrius Years of journalistic training had not prepared the reporter to read those words, and her only possible reaction was a slight mouth tick, which was recorded on camera. The investigation into his assassination has been put on hold due to other pressing matters such as the economy and creating jobs, which Demetrius has promised to every natural-born citizen of Europa .... We interrupt this broadcast to bring you our ace reporter from the floor of the stock exchange, where we have some very good news!

The image onscreen flipped to a single angle, the camera pointed directly into a group of people.

That’s right, Connie! Here we have the newly appointed President of the Board of Intergalactic Services! This new appointee has come fresh out of college, where he was an avid supporter of Demitrius, and he has a new set of economic initiatives planned for us.

You’re very right, these plans are amazing. They’re so good that when you see them you’ll just be dumbfounded at how amazingly well-crafted and fantastic they are! The young man seemed to gaze straight through the screen, expecting an impact of some sort but filled with youthful optimism that he could take the hit.

What do you have to say to the people criticizing the administration for the trade wars? The youth failed to hide his disgust at the question, 

All I have to say is we are the greatest planet in the Universe, and everyone has to come crawling back to us when they need anything, he said, lacing his words with venom.

Um ... yes .... Well, you have to admit, the global economic meltdown is in full effect now that the countries have flipped their currency to Planatia—

Look, Planatia couldn’t find its ass in a hole in the ground, and soon enough we will make them pay.

With the interview clearly finished, a hand closed over the lens of the camera and the screen went black, as the television flipped to the image of a man sitting in a chair.

I bid you welcome to the new DTV News hour with your host, Fran Vasquez!

A quick glance at my clock revealed the true oddity of the change in shows. Hard to understand how a show could end after only ten minutes, Today, Fran will talk about how the citizens of Planatia rape their children every day and are descended from the most poisonous of blooded creatures, the deer! Their warmongering ways have detracted from the potential glory of the Europan empire for thousands of generations! It is time that we deal with this problem. Here today, we have a panel of the greatest advisers from around the galaxy. With us are Morgan Feldman, Arthur Cobble, and Bracken Swamp, who I hear comes from a long line of mercenaries who fought for the genetic purity of our race, haven’t you? Morgan’s sour face argued with a stiff burp as it traveled up his airways, while Arthur hurriedly combed his hair to correspond with the most recently dictated fashion trend. Bracken Swamp carved a place on the chair, his expression showing a face-slitting grin and predatory eyes.

I killed a lot of mongrels, that is true. He chuckled with delight as he twirled his revolvers. I gotta confess, though, only some of ‘em were armed!, the slim man in oversized clothes slapped Morgan on the stomach causing a

burp to erupt.  Moran’s complexion soured as he swallowed the contents to make appear normal.

For all of our new viewers, I am pleased to introduce the new head of the network! The Court’s recent Journalistic Integrity Act has enabled Lord Demitrius to grace us with his emissary’s presence. I thank you, Sir Feldman The host ingratiated himself closely to the pear-shaped man still choking back a bit of his lunch.

No need for such formalities, Fran, you know I haven’t been knighted yet. The quartet chuckled. I intend to get this network back on its feet. The ratings have been sinking for years and it’s about time that someone stepped in with a firm hand and grasped the situation by the horns, heeling them to your yoke. A projectile of sputum erupted from the man’s mouth