Chapter 256: The election

The Constitution officially entered into force one day after unification. As promised, the government provided Jocelyne with all the necessary means to transport food across the nation, and they opened the new homes made from the old family properties to the common people. The change was almost instantaneous. Within a day, hunger disappeared from the country and in three days everyone had a roof over their heads. The Great Republic of Beleriard had set a record: no nation on the planet could boast of truly having a zero homelessness rate. Unemployment still existed, but it had finally become less onerous: with the security of a roof over their heads and food on the table, people no longer had to fear so much about losing their jobs. And as Jocelyne had predicted, this did not lead to a decrease in employment in the least. After all, the television license had to be paid, the car installments had to be paid, the furniture had to be paid, a lot of things still had to be paid: and to get money you still had to work. Thus the industrial machine of the nation did not stop, but continued to produce at full speed. It was very likely that some lazy people would be born in the future who would refuse to work and live off the state, but Jocelyne would make sure they were a minority. Once she became president, she would value working employment in schools, so that future generations would be convinced that working was the best choice. Besides, humans were hardworking creatures - they weren't good at standing still, so Jocelyne was sure they would keep looking for work, if only to keep busy. Within a week of unification, the first parties to enter the nation had begun to appear. Clearly on such short notice there could not be very many parties: apart from Jocelyne's, there were only two others. The election would therefore have been a dispute between the three of them. Jocelyne had decided to name her party FPU, an anagram of Free People Union. The name was clearly propaganda, but after all, the elections were based on propaganda and therefore there was no reason not to use every means to carry it out. Of course, the party already enjoyed a great deal of popular support given Jocelyne Jersey's popularity. The main argument of all the parties, given the situation, was obviously the attitude to have towards dinosaurs; after all, elections always used the hottest arguments as blunt weapons. The FPU claimed to be able to give life to a real coexistence, not only the mutual acceptance of the existence of the other party, and thus cancel any possible cause of future war. Such arguments would almost certainly have sounded utopian if said by someone else, but since it was Jocelyne Jersey, who had already demonstrated several times that she could do the impossible, people were very inclined to believe that such a world where dinosaurs and humans coexisted could be real. The other two parties had different lines of thinking. The first was called BDP, Beleriard Democratic Party. It supported almost the same arguments as the FPU in the internal field, but in the external field it envisaged a more distant coexistence with the dinosaurs. From the point of view of party members, the nation should have maintained a wall between dinosaurs and humans, both to maintain national security and to calm the NMWA. Their arguments made sense, and indeed the party wasn't without supporters; however, Jocelyne Jersey enjoyed much more popularity and this, coupled with the limited time other parties had to prepare, still put the FPU head and shoulders above the rest. The second opposing party, on the other hand, was called DH, Defense Humanity, and planned to support the Commission in the war against dinosaurs, also actively and not only passively. It was founded by a certain J. Wesley McCullough, a former army officer discharged for his too brutal methods, who even got himself nicknamed Colonel among party members. McCullough hated dinosaurs deeply and believed that it was essential to exterminate them so that humans could return to reign on the planet. His motto "We are the beginning and the end!" expressed very clearly the extremist intentions of the party. Clearly, the DH was the party with the least support. The waters remained calm for several weeks. The advertising campaigns of the three parties followed one another periodically on all the screens of the nation, to convince as many people as possible awaiting the final verdict. While running the election campaign, Jocelyne had begun to pass a lot of money to old politicians on the sly, so that when their term expired they could disappear from circulation and go live the good life he had promised them. Initially the girl had thought of eliminating even the last witnesses of the purge of the heads of the families, but then she had changed her mind. The old politicians were too cowardly to speak. Their deaths would only have attracted attention and raised doubts. Besides, she wasn't going to do her any good. Jocelyne she despised those men for their patheticity, but she did not want to see them dead, unlike the heads of families. Jocelyne was not a person who liked to shed blood and wanted to avoid becoming one; after all, if she wanted to avoid turning into someone who took pleasure in the carnage, then she only had to use murder when there were no other possibilities. So she had decided to keep her word and give those cowardly men enough money to make a living for the rest of their lives. After all, she could give up a little bit of change. Rather, Jocelyne had far more urgent matters to worry about: the NMWA, in fact, had overcome her initial surprise and was starting to take action against her. They could not say anything about unification, since it was a voluntary act of the people demonstrated by the plebiscite; however, the same could not be said about the firm decision not to support the war against the dinosaurs. Most of the foreign propaganda was pointing to the inhabitants of the Great Republic of Beleriard as traitors. Several large companies had revoked their business in the region and even attempted hacking of the country's computer systems, fortunately thwarted. In addition, the NMWA had begun to sanction the nation, threatening to get an embargo if it did not give in. For the moment, the population of the Great Republic of Beleriard was not too affected by the situation thanks to the principles of the Constitution: food and shelter were always guaranteed, so even if some had lost their jobs they were not desperate at all. Furthermore, the nation could already produce all the energy it needed to run the country on its own. What about foreign propaganda pointing to them as traitors? Who cares. The inhabitants of the Great Republic of Beleriard ignored all the insults that were directed at them. What could those idiots who lived overseas, safe in their homes, know about what war really was? After the inhabitants of the Great Republic of Beleriard had felt that evil on their skin, no one thought it was despicable to keep the peace, and indeed they looked with disgust at the comments of people overseas. Jocelyne obviously had seized the ball, using Sobek's words as a new slogan: "Heroes are not those who win wars, but who manage to stop them before they start." However, the situation was only momentary. Jocelyne knew that sooner or later the Great Republic of Beleriard would begin to suffer from the effects of the sanctions. He had to get to power as soon as possible so as to fix the finishing touches. Fortunately, the elections were close. It was essential that the Great Republic of Beleriard emerged victorious from that "war of words": if everything went as Jocelyne and Sobek hoped, that nation would be proof that dinosaurs and humans could coexist. Once that fact was clear to everyone, many other nations would start moving in that way. There were many ways to end a conflict without bloodshed. The first was diplomacy. Sobek knew that even though very little use was made of diplomacy on Earth, it could resolve at least 90% of conflicts between nations without wasting a single human life. The second way was to take the nations by the throat, for example by creating a single market: an example on Earth was the European Union, even if it had ruined everything by accepting the countries of the former Soviet Union prematurely. Creating a single market was tempting to many, consequently if the nations that had created that market imposed requirements on others to adhere to it (for example, certain rules on their Constitution), they would obey and change spontaneously, favoring peace. . Not surprisingly, the European Union had guaranteed the continent almost one hundred years of peace, a record never achieved in the human history of the Earth. Still, it was possible to resort to sanctions, up to and including the embargo. An example on Earth had been the conflict between Russia and Ukraine: with light sanctions Russia had lost more than half of its economy. If the other nations had gone down hard, the war would have lasted only a day, but obviously to safeguard the profits of the private agencies the nations had taken a step back (especially the United States). And there were still many other possibilities to stop a war and come out victorious, which unfortunately were still very little practiced on Earth. Sobek wanted at all costs to avoid war with humans. Of all evils, nothing was worse than war. That's why he had chosen to go step by step. First, thanks to Jocelyne, he would have diplomatically created agreements with the only nation left on the continent, thus avoiding the implementation of the warlike plans of humans, and through those agreements he would have shown the whole world that coexistence was possible. The rest of the world would obviously have tried to stop the change by imposing sanctions on the Great Republic of Beleriard, but thanks to the support of the dinosaurs, the nation would have emerged more prosperous than ever. On the contrary, foreign countries would only have damaged themselves, because the resources from Maakanar would no longer arrive. Furthermore, through the marine reptiles, Sobek could effectively besiege the two continents on which humans lived (obviously as soon as he had enough: his army was constantly growing after all) and prevent naval trade. These acts would do nothing but damage other nations more and more, and eventually someone, seeing how the Great Republic of Beleriard was thriving, would decide to surrender to change and would go down to negotiations. Here Sobek would have played the card of the single market, forcing the nations to change their systems as they pleased. Slowly, the prosperity obtained by the nations that had come to terms with him would have convinced even the most reluctant. Furthermore, with the help of John Hammond, Sobek was already spreading the ideology of coexistence, which would slowly bring the people to his side. If everything had gone smoothly as oil, Sobek could have created a utopia for all the living creatures of Eden without shedding a single drop of blood. Unfortunately he knew that his was just a ridiculous fantasy. Humans were extraordinary and brilliant creatures, but they also knew how to be exceptionally stupid and arrogant. Sobek knew that a direct attack by the NMWA was inevitable, but by forcing humans to fight away from population centers he would at least avoid causing civilian casualties. Sobek would never mind slaughtering soldiers, but he didn't want to do the same with civilians: a visionary's greatest enemy was bad publicity, and the NMWA would certainly use any opportunity to put dinosaurs in a bad light; he wasn't about to make it easier for him. Soldiers came to fight and therefore deserved their end, but no one liked watching civilians being killed; regardless of the reason, such an act would have been labeled barbarism. The less blood was shed, the better it was for everyone. Only fools and those who profited from it would ever claim that war was a good thing. Sobek would have avoided the outbreak of an all-out war at all costs, not least because he was pretty sure that very soon the atomic bomb would have entered Eden. And even if the dinosaurs had been able to fight back, an atomic war would have literally destroyed the planet. It was imperative to limit armed conflicts as much as possible. Yes, Sobek knew exactly how things were supposed to go. And soon, the first major act of his plan would be accomplished: the first attempt at coexistence between humans and dinosaurs. He just had to wait for Jocelyne to get elected. ********** "Did you come all the way here to tell me this?" Malcolm sighed as he watched his old friend gulp down a bottle of wine as if it were water. He did not remember ever having seen Dreyfus in such a state: his calm and composed appearance had vanished, giving way to glassy eyes, unkempt hair and alcohol-stained clothes. Ever since he was released, Dreyfus had really let himself go. From his looks and the aroma of his breath, Malcolm was pretty sure he drank at least three bottles of alcohol every day. "Do you really want me to go back to politics?" the man murmured running a hand over his forehead, as if he had a headache. "After what I've done?" Malcolm knew what he was referring to. For a year Dreyfus had been blaming himself for what had happened in Cartago. Sure, there had been no civilian casualties, but thousands of people had been sent to die against the dinosaurs and he felt responsible. And seeing how he was living, it was clear that he was punishing himself. "You've done all you can" Malcolm tried to soothe him. "It was bigger than you, no one would..." "No, on the other hand, I didn't do everything I could. You were right". Dreyfus was not one to run away from responsibility and could not bear that his sins were denied. "We just had to leave. Or give up immediately. Or, hell, maybe we should have followed your advice and tried to talk to that dinosaur..." "Dreyfus, we were in a situation that no one could foresee. You acted in the most... human way"Malcolm said. "We didn't have time to leave and we didn't know what would happen if we gave up or tried to talk to Sobek. I was in that office, I saw you: you considered every possibility before choosing to attack. It was a dead end situation, you can't blame yourself for what happened" Dreyfus took another sip of wine. "So, you will become interior minister, huh?" he asked him changing the subject. But Malcolm was certainly not the type to be duped like this: "Yeah, and I have my faults too. Do you think you don't hate me thinking about what happened in Cartago? I was also in that office, Dreyfus, and I could have done more to avoid bloodshed. I could convince you, I could prove that we were making a mistake... but I didn't do anything, I just stammered proposals without any foundation. I'm also to blame. Yet, instead of feeling sorry for myself, I chose to accept this role, even though I haven't communicated it to Abe yet. Do you want to know why I accepted? Because I want to do something to redeem myself. By blaming myself I would not change anything, my tears would not compensate the dead. On the contrary, helping the living is a great way to honor their memory. Only cowards cry and take refuge in bottles!" "Do you think I'm a coward?" Dreyfus asked in an offended tone. "If you behave like this, you are! I don't know anyone who can hold the position of Supreme Judge better than you, yet you back away! You're too afraid of failing again to get your ass off that chair and try to do something concrete for this nation!" snapped Malcolm furiously. "You know jurisprudence by heart, you have even studied in other countries, you are loyal to duty, and I don't think I've ever met a person more incorruptible than you. Tell me, where do I find another like this? In this period of crisis, you should be the first to rush to enter the competition to enter the judiciary, yet you are here! Now drop that bottle and get your balls out!" Malcolm grabbed the bottle of wine and threw it against a wall; shards of glass leapt from all sides and a red stain painted itself on the wall. However, neither Dreyfus nor Malcolm paid any attention to it: neither of them looked away from each other in the slightest. "We founded Cartago together, Dreyfus. You and me, remember? Those were the words you said to me long ago to cheer me up" Malcolm said hoarsely. "We failed miserably with Cartago, but we can try again with something bigger. Our nation could not only become a world power, but it could also become proof that peace between dinosaurs and humans is possible. We could prevent tensions from escalating into a new war that will not benefit anyone, and that will only reduce this planet to a pile of rubble. We can prevent the innocent from becoming victims, do you realize that? Do you really want to stay here and pretend nothing has happened, or do you want to take part in this enterprise in person?" Dreyfus bit his chapped lips and was silent for a few seconds. But just as Malcolm was about to open his mouth again he spoke, "Okay. I'll do it" The answer came so unexpectedly that for a moment Malcolm didn't know what to say. "Seriously?" "Yes, Malcolm, I will. Because you can say anything about me, but not that I'm a coward" Dreyfus said calmly, scratching his chin. Malcolm was over the moon: he hadn't expected Dreyfus to accept, instead his friend had chosen to please him! He couldn't ask for anything better. Beyond Abe's request, he was sincere when he said he didn't know anyone better than him to hold the position of Supreme Judge. "Take away a curiosity, though" Dreyfus said. "Why did the Jersey scion want you as home minister? I don't deny you'd be perfect for that role, but wouldn't it have been better father than him? Markus Jersey certainly knows more about this nation than you and me put together" Malcolm shook his head. "I asked myself that too, and I think I understand it. Jocelyne wants to prove to the nation that she doesn't favoritism. Her father would certainly be the best candidate for that role, but that girl doesn't want to give people the wrong idea" "Basically, you really want the message to get across that this must be a righteous, proud, and incorruptible nation" Dreyfus said. "Right. And I also know from experience that children often don't want to have their parents around when they work, especially around that age" Malcolm laughed. Dreyfus couldn't help but smile. "So... when do we start?" Two weeks later both parliamentary elections and competitions for the judiciary began. Dreyfus joined the circle of judges effortlessly and was elected Supreme Judge just three days later. Four days later the presidential elections also began and the FPU won with 62% of the vote. The day after the results were published, Jocelyne Jersey officially became the first president of the Great Republic of Beleriard.