NationStates Jolt Archive

University of the Xean Tsahn, 5:32 am

A form was slowly creeping along the edge of wall. The figure hugged it like death itself were attempting to pry it away, but could not. Death was only secondary at the moment. The more concise problem arose in living. At least to this being. It crept as close as humanly possible to the concrete side, and finally reached the building corner. Peering around the edge, a wise perciever would have judged the figure to be a young female in her mid-twenties. Beautiful too. And anxious.

The girl pulled her head back quickly and looked down at her wrist. A small plastic Minnie Mouse watch was loose around her arm, and the time spoke that it was early morning, and nearly time. She hastely glanced around the corner once more, and turned back to her watch. It was time. She spun on her heels to go back...

Wham! She slammed into another body and the two fell to the wet grass. The thunder crashed and the rain began swirl through between the college dorm structures. The wind bit the faces of the two as they struggled to their feet. Only a small cry had errupted from the girl's mouth as they had made contact, after that she had been unable.

The other figure was a man in his later forties. Tall, dark, and menacing. He had clamped his hands on her mouth as they went down, in order to reduce any verbal reference to her shock. As they stood, he released his hand from her mouth and stepped back to stare her down, placing the finger to his lips to indicate quiet.

"Why so late?" the girl spoke first and softly.

"Keep it down..." the reply, "do you want to get caught here?"

"I've been waiting for you for a while now. I can't unders-"

He cut off her sentence "Why wait? I told you 5:35, and I meant 5:35. Here I am. Here..." The man took a small bookbag from his shoulders and threw it about hers. "This is waht you will need. You understand what must be done. We will have no further contact until that day. After. Understood?"

She adjusted the bookbag on her shoulders and stepped back into the shadows of the walls. "Agreed."

The man turned to leave, and looked back once more to finish with, "Good luck Florence."

She smiled wrily. "I'm going to need it... now go before we are discovered."

The man was gone before her sentence finished. She spun back to the wall and crept silently to the Johnson dorm. She snuck inside, careful to stay in the shadows, and crawled her way to her room on the third floor. As she passed the room three doors down from her own, she could hear the muffled cries of adults inside. Fools... Here on campus students pleasured themselves too much, instead of focusing on more important issues. Like what Florence focused on.

She took a key from her heavy gray jacket and slid it into its slot, opening the door and closing it quickly behind her. She stepped into the small room and dropped the bookbag under her bed. Locking her door, she slipped into bed and decided to get some rest.

Four days later, University of Xean Tsahn, 2:45 pm

The inner walls of the labratory glistened as a short figure walked among the rows of tables. Florence smiled as she strolled the room, and laughed lowly as she realized that this was a moment that had been long prepared for. At this moment she would gain the hearts of her fellow classmates, and set the plan in motion. A large group of students were huddled into the lab, and they all had one thing in common. They were all females. Of course, here at the UXT this was frequent, for among the University's 1800 students, only about 50 were male. The rest were young women intent on becoming practicing nurses or doctors.

The UXT was known as one of the finest medical universities in all of Geneticon. It's reputation even extended to other nations, and in the recent graduating class, 7 graduates had been citizens of a nation other than Geneticon.

But it was not the reputation of UXT that Florence intended to take advantage of. It was the students. Here in this class she could easily deliver the speech that would win them over in moments. And now she would. The teacher had left the lab only moments ago, headed to go collect some lab equipment which strangely enough was missing. Florence smiled as she thought of this morning when she had taken the equipment and hidden it in the freezing chamber. It would take the teacher nearly 40 minutes to find it, at least that long, and Florence knew the teacher well enough to know that he would never return without it. He was a man of persistance.

Then again, Florence was a woman of persistance.

"Fellow students. I want to take this time to speak to you on a few matters of importance." As the Vice-President of the college board of students, Florence's voice demanded authority and she recieved respect. "This may very well be information that could change your lives."

Gasps went up accross the room. The students knew Florence to be pro-feminist and extremely active. There minds could only expect what was coming next.

"Friends, I have uncovered documents which reveal that in these past three years of isolation, President Johnson and his fellow male cohorts have been ensuring that the power of the man will be extended through the next 30 years. I assure you this is top secret information. Law Enactment 42.80 was kept from the public, but inside sources have reported that this enactment disallows any female participation within the government."

This time the gasps were far more frequent and loud.

"Friends, we cannot sit idly by while the men of this government force women out of the circle. It is imperative that we make our move now." Florence took out the bookbag as she spoke, and removed documents from them, slamming them down onto the lab table. She had poured over these every night for the past three nights, and she was sure they would be relevant and persuasive enough. "I say that we no longer sit idly by... but we make our own move, to overthrow the power of the man and establish a new precedent. This nation has long endured the conservative ideas of men. I say it is time for a change!"

A loud cheer went up from the students. Several rushed up to view the papers, while others sat by and waited for those who had seen the documents to report what they found.

Florence just smiled. She removed a cell phone from her purse and dialed the number she had been instructed to. As she heard the reciever pick up, she spoke, "It is done, do what you have to do." She hit the red END button and joined the other students in chanting, "Restore the female dominance. Remove men from power!"

The House, Geneticon City, 2:57 pm

Secretary of State Carrie Jones smiled as she put down the reciever. It had been a long day in this breifing room, but that phone call had been worth it all. She had simply replied, "Ok... goodbye" and hung up. She looked accross the table at President Keith Johnson. Chosen specifically by this man almost six years ago, Carrie now felt a slight pain at what she had to do. I can't do this! A familiar voice replied. Yes you can Carrie. You were born for this...

And so she was. She knew it. She had taken the position she now held with one hope in mind: A female led Geneticon. Today she would see the country turn upside down. Within two hours, Carrie expected Florence to have not only UXT under the wave of revolution, but also every other female dominant college in the country. And that was a large ammount. From the colleges, the news would spread to the streets, and women all over, 52% of the population to be more precise, would rise up and declare they wanted a new leader. And Carrie would oblige.

Not as the new leader. No, the Secretary of State did not feel like she was equipped for the position. But Josephine was. Yes, the current First Lady was an excellent choice for a new leader...

Carrie smiled at Keith and nodded her head. He had been speaking for several hours without stop. No one had dared interrupt him. He was boring at times, but interesting at other moments. All the time, he was a man. Oh... how I hate the idea of the male ruling our beloved Geneticon...

Today that would change. Carried reached down and slipped her hand into her purse. She zipped it open and felt the cold, hard steel that she found there. She could picture in her mind the Berreta 92 lying there in the purse, waiting to be used. And so it would be.

Carrie just smiled at Keith. Just smiled. If only he knew... I'm sorry Mr. President...

Fairweather Circle, Geneticon City, 4:26 pm

A woman in her late twenties checked her hair and brushed it down with her hands, while the rain continued to pound around her. She stood in the large open circle, filled with thousands of people, and prepared to do a television report. Pulling her heavy raincoat closer around her, she finally gave the camera man a nod.

"On... in five, four, three, two, one..." The man thrust his finger towards the woman to indicate they were on the air.

"This is Terri Jones reporting live from Fairweather Circle. If you'll look behind me," She stepped back and the camera zoomed out to reveal thousands of people in uproar. "You will see that thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of women are gathered in this circle, to protest the leadership of President Keith Johnson. With the recent unveiling of the Goran documents, it seems that an epidemic has swept our nation. Women all over in every major city have risen up and are protesting male leadership. It is only a matter of time until we see a governmental change I believe."

Terri clutched her right ear with the right hand. Her earpiece was going wild with several voices on the other end, but she was able to pick up on the important news. "Yes, I understand." She whispered. "It seems that President Johnson himself will be appearing here in the circle within the next hour. He wishes to make a speech and somehow appease the crowd. I don't know how that will work for him, but we will see. He will be accompanied by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State. That's all we know right now... back to you Jim."

The red light on the camera blinked off, and Terri let out a sigh of relief. This story is not going to be an easy one to follow.

Enroute to Fairweather Circle, Geneticon City, 5:01 pm

This was ridiculous. Never in Keith's time had he ever seen such an uprising. It was a revolution feeling that he was certainly unfamiliar with. And he didn't like it. How the heck did they get a hold of such documents? In the past fifteen minutes President Johnson had seen the papers and carefully looked them over. Fabircations. Every word was false. But once this epidemic took over the society, there was no going back without heavy detailed planning. It would take weeks to get the public bqack under control; right now they took to the streets in riot.

Keith decided on the only logical plan: a speech and enactment that would grant females power for at least six months, with extensions to come. The power would be additional voting ability, a greater number of women on the next election's ballot, the allowance of a female running for President in the upcoming election, further power to the female Presidential cabinet members, etc. Keith supposed that this would appease the masses atleast for the time being. We should be ok...

However, as he sat in the back of his black limo, headed for the large circle where he would make his speech, he felt uneasy. Something just didn't seem right. The documents that had been released took careful writing and knowledge of Geneticon's upper government and specifically Johnson's cabinet. It seemed that the women had someone working on the inside. Even more disturbing was the fact that tracking down the original whistle blower would be nearly impossible at this stage.

Ah... the frustrations of being a leader. This will work itself out though...

As the long vehicle pulled up to the stage that had been hastily constructed for the President's speech, Keith smiled at the two advisors beside him. The Secretaries of State and Defense. They would be his greatest assistants in this upcoming moment in time. He would rely on both of them to help the case he made to the people in the next few minutes. "Well, here we go..." The door opened and Keith stepped out of the vehicle, covered by dozens of security guards. Keith made his way up the platform amidst the screams of the angry citizens.

Fairweather Circle, Geneticon City, 5:09 pm

The rain continued to pound down in the circle. It seemed like an angry beast whcih had just been released, and was enjoying its work of devastation. Though not violent, the rain was a huge irritation. Especially to the poiticians; and to Terri Jones.

"Once again, this is Terri Jones reporting live from Fairweather Circle. It seems that President Johnson has just pulled up in his vehicle. Yes... he's stepping out now." Terri turned her head and craned her neck to see over the huge crowd. The camera zoomed in to get a glimpse of the President. "It looks like he's going up the platform that was prepared about an hour ago. I assume he's going to make a speech of some sort. Let's listen..."

The camera focused on the President as he stood in the open, chilling air and cleared his throat. Water-proof speakers had been strategically placed throughout the circle to allow everyone to hear exactly waht Keith said. He took a sip of the water bottle he carried, cleared his throat again, and then began.

"Men and women of Geneticon. I come before you today in the gravest of circumstances. It see--"

Screams went up from the crowd interrupting the President's speech. The crowd was simply going beserk now that Keith was here. It was everything the secret service could do to keep them off the platform where Keith stood. They were yelling everything from chants to profanities. Keith had never experienced the public like this before.

He regained his composure and resumed his speech, "It seems that several documents were just uncovered, and have been brought to my attention by several members of my cabinet." He motioned to the two Secretaries seated behind him. The wind calmed down a bit now. "I will not discuss the accuracy of these documents, but rather make strides to create a better Geneticon. Adversity breeds positive change, and I will make sure that it will in this instance." At these words the crowd quieted a little.

"I assure you women of Geneticon, that power will be attributed to you as soon as possible. Along with female cabinet members recieving more benefits, you will have more oppurtunities to have your voice heard, as well as more female canidates when elections begin. This is just the first small step in a long road that will lead us to ultimate freedom and equality."

Someone in the crowd (who strangely enough had a megaphone) screamed out, "We don't want equality! Down with the male rule! Up with a female leader!" The rest of the crowd caught the chant easily, and Keith was interrupted once more. His speech would not continue any further.

In the midst of the chaos, a woman in the middle of the crowd stood on a metal chair that she had brought with her. She held a sniper rifle in her hand, and as the chant rose, she drew her weapon onto her shoulder. The lack of security, because of the rapid decision to make this speech, worked in her advantage. She aimed down the barrel, specifically just above President Johnson's head. She saw the nod in the background, and instantly she pulled the trigger.

The crack of the unsilenced sniper was unmistakable, and in a matter of miliseconds the the President went down. A wound in his head pooled blood onto the stage.

In an instant, several security guards rushed after the sniper. But it was far too late. She was gone long before they could get there.

The two Secretaries jumped to their feet, and security rushed in. Several paramedics ran to the President's side, and they picked him up, then lowered him into an ambulance. The driver drove away quickly, left the two Secretaries standing there, on the stage and beside the blood. They stared dumbfounded at each other. Someone had just assasinated their leader.

Meanwhile, everyone in the crowd seemed to panic. Hands were thrown in the air, people were running every direction, security was pushing everyone back to find the sniper. It was utter chaos. And the news reporter was caught in the middle of it.

"What you..." someone shoved Terri to the ground in an attempt to flee the circle. She pulled herself up. "just saw was an attempted assasination attempt on President Johnson himself. He has been taken away to an undesignated location, probably the local hospital, for treatment. This is ridiculous." Terri placed her right hand against her ear, holding the microphone with her left. "The crowd here is going beserk. A few moments ago they were chanting, now they are panicking. This is a nightmare. I will report more on this story as it develops..." The camera flashed once and went out.

Deserted Street, Geneticon City, 5:25 pm

Florence smiled as she peeked her head out from behind a large door corner that protected her from being seen by any members of the stray mob that seemed to be running around. Everything had went perfect. Just as we had planned. Johnson had been dealt with, and if Carrie had done her job correctly, the President was already dead, it just hadn't been admitted to the public yet. But Florence would soon know. More than six minutes had passed since Keith had been taken to the hospital, and Florence knew that Carrie would have recieved the call by now.

In a moment, her cell phone vibrated. She grabbed it to keep the low humming noise to a minimum, and flipped it open, placing it to her ear. "Yes?"

A voice on the other line was very familiar, "I'm on my way... I'll be there in moments."

Florence snapped the flip-phone shut and turned her head down the street once more. She saw the man's form creeping along the wall, trying to stay out of sight. He slowly made his way towards her. She could hear his heavy breath from about 20 feet away, and she could tell he had been running before he entered the long deserted street. As the man in the black trench coat came closer, Florence noted the pistol hanging out of his right pocket.

He greeted her first. "Well done today..."

"It's all in a day's work. What did she have to say?"

The man grinned widely, and Florence could tell this news was going to be good. "We were successful. According to the phone call that Carrie recieved a few minutes ago, President Keith Johnson died instantly from the bullet wound, and the impact was so powerful it actually passed through his head. It went in one side and came out the other. This works perfectly because they will never be able to tell that Carrie had any part in it. They believe you, with that sniper," The man motioned to the gun that Florence held. "was the actual assasin. In any case... we have suceeded."

Florence wanted to yell out a cheer. But she knew that keeping noise down was vital to their ability to get away with this high crime. So she kept control of herself. "Excellent! I suppose I am to get the reward I was promised?"

The man stared evily at Florence. "Yes, you will get your reward."

Florence stared back. She didn't like that look on his face. She could tell there was something going on in that mind of his that she didn't know about. "When?"

He lowered his voice and spoke, "Come around Carrie's villa tonight at 7, and she will meet you there with your prize. Give the password, 'victory', to the guard at the gate, and he will let you pass."

"Very well."

The man reached for and yanked the gun out of Florence's hands. "I'll take this back if you don't mind."

"Of course." Florence scowled at the man.

He turned to leave with the sniper clutched between his fingers. As he started to walk away, he felt a tug at his coat. He went to turn back, but heard the chilling voice of Florence, very cold, come to his ears.

"I've been waiting a long time for this, John."

He turned to face her, and was met by Florence, clutching a pistol, only a few feet away from his face. A fear crept into his body. He had never been held at gunpoint before, and today he didn't feel like that record being broken. It didn't matter though, Florence had other ideas.

"I don't know what you were planning John, but I do know that it will go no farther than this street." Her voice elevated an octave. "Your time is up." Faster than lightning, her hand flew to the trigger and a bullet was thrown from the barrel. It slammed hard into John's face, and he plunged towards the ground.

Florence stood over his body and dropped the gun onto the corpse. It was time to get to Carrie's villa...

Faulkland Memorial Hospital, Geneticon City Outskirts, 5:29 pm

To avoid further detection, the President had been taken to a hospital further than everyone else in Geneticon would expect. It was found only minutes after entering the ambulance, that the bullet had lodged in President Johnson's neck, and his spinal cord was believed to be severed. Even so, the Secret Service weren't taking any chances. Attorney General Thomas Watts sat beside the President's immovable body as it was transported. In order to avoid all chances of future attack, Thomas let the Secret Service know to release to the press information that Keith had been killed. It was a lie, but it would protect what was left of President Keith Johnson. They forwarded the information to Carrie Jones, who would release the information to the press.

Now, 20 minutes later, Thomas stood beside the President's body, which was laid on a stretcher in the corner of the ICU. Security was at maximum, and all other patients and their visitors had been moved to a different section of the hospital. They were told that a high ranking military commander had a severe heart attack and was being brought there. The lie had worked. For now.

The guess was indeed true. President Johnson's spinal cord had been cut by the bullet, and it was sure that he would never be able to move anything beneath his neck again; without extensive operation. The operation would completely replace his nervous system, something that had never been tried in Geneticon. Thomas made the call to attempt the operation, but they couldn't do it here in Geneticon City. They had to get Keith out of the province.

The call was made within moments of the report of the spinal cord. Thomas and several Secret Service would sneak Keith out of the hospital and down to the helicopter which was now waiting. The copter would use stealth to take Keith to the Gal province, and away from trouble in the capital for the time being. Meanwhile, the government would be under the direct control of Keith's wife, Josephine. This is what the feminists had called for, and this is what they would get.

Slowly, they dragged Keith's stretcher down to the chopper and placed him inside. Thomas jumped in with two Secret Service, while the others stayed back in the hospital. In order to deter detection of the President's survival, they would borrow a corpse from the hospital mourge and claim it was the President. In a body bag no one would know the difference. It would be burried in the morning. Every precaution would be taken.

By morning, everyone in Geneticon and the world would assume that Keith Johnson was dead. However, a very alive Keith Johnson was at this very moment enroute to the Gal province to recieve a ground breaking operation. If Keith survived the surgery, they would decide what to do from there.

The 'House', Geneticon City, 5:37 pm

Guards massed around the huge mansion to provide ultimate safety for its inhabitants. Inside, every department leader from the government was there except two: The President of Geneticon and the Attorney General. Starngely enough, there were stories for both. In the laregst conference room, typically called 'Gregory's Throne-Room', the leaders met. At the head of the table was Carrie Jones, the Secretary of State, and to her right was Josephine Rush Johnson, sometimes referred to as 'Jo'.

The cabinet members sat around the long rectangular table and waited for Carrie to begin the meeting. They all hoped for the best, but they also feared the worst. Carrie sat there irresolute, without a trace of emotion on her face except the notion of deep thought. No one could tell what news she had learned over the last few minutes, and everyone was anxious to know. Especially the President's wife. After all, she wanted to know whether her husband was alive or not.

Finally, Carrie began the meeting. She spoke in a loud voice and in a tone that didn't alter while she spoke. It was soft and touching yet firm, "I'd like to thank you all for assembling here on such a short notice. A lot has happened to day I am sure you are all aware of, but if not, let me bring you up to speed on the events."

Carrie breathed in slowly and then continued, "It seems that sometime early this afternoon, someone produced documents we now consider to be called the 'Goran documents'. No one quite knows where they came from yet or who actually produced the documents to the public in the first place. What we do know is that the documents claim that male dominance has swept our government, and that females are not and will not get any attention in Geneticon positions of power. Now, you and I know this claim to be false, but the public does not. In a matter of only a few hours, the epidemic caprtured the heart of every woman citizen in Geneticon, and by late this afternoon there were riots and calls for a female led government."

Again, another breath slowed down the talk, "Now, I must agree that women have not recieved a lot of attention within the walls of the government, but I do not believe they have been altogether excluded. However, this is besides the point. The people of Geneticon by 5 pm Geneticon time this evening were calling for President Johnson's dismissal and the rising of a new leader: a female leader. Shortly after, the President made a speech in Fairweather Circle to try and calm the people down. It didn't work, in a moment there was an assasination attempt. It seems that a member of the riot stood upon some sort of object and fired a sniper shot at the President. The shot hit the President in the head, and cleared through to the other side. He was rushed to the hospital, we're not sure what hospital yet, but it was a few minutes later confirmed by the Secret Service that President Keith Johnson is dead."

At this interval several gasps went up from the room. Everybody at the table was shocked, and many had put their hands to their open jaws in unbelief. No one had expected Johnson to die so soon and sudden. Josephine was crying softly, and trying to fathom that her husband was dead. Carrie put a hand around the First Lady's shoulder and comforted her with a few words, then once again the Secretary of State began to speak.

"This is an outrage. Our leader is dead as a result of this revolution, and if we place another male leader in the position of President who can say this will not happen again? Geneticon is fast growing, and as we speak the nation is left without a leader. We have never once had to deal with the question of what to do when our President's life suddenly ends. Therefore, we must do what is called for under the law. Each cabinet member must decide who they think fit to rule this nation, and the Secretary of State and Attorney General are to nominate canidates for the position. This is what the law demands."

The assorted leaders looked around the room, but no one could seem to find Thomas Watts, the Attorney General. Several began talking among themselves, wondering where he was. Carrie sat idly a little while, letting what she had said sink in. After a little while she began again.

As she spoke, her voice overruled the quiet humming noise of whispers among the cabinet members, "Friends, I must tell you the truth of what has transpired today. As you probably have already realized, the Attorney General is not with us. I have an explination. The Goran documents clearly state that an insider was working within the cabinet to assist in the topple of the male government. However, the documents also clearly state that a high ranking official in the revolution would be a male. This male, my friends, is Thomas Watts, our Attorney General. Indeed, he has fled the city. I have been trying to track him down for the past twenty minutes, and I have found nothing. He is responsible for all that had taken place today, and he is therefore a traitor and conspirator against our late President. Is this the man that you want nominating your next leader?"

Murmers went up in the room that ranged from quiet whispers to loud outbursts. The words had had the desired effect, and Carrie continued to explain, "Because of this, only I am able to make a nomination. I hereby nominate Josephine Rush Johnson to take the place of Keith Johnson. Jo has experience with government and great wisdom. She is young and worthy of this post. In addition, the choice would quell the masses that have been angered today, and put to rest the claims of the Goran documents."

The room was shocked. Never did they expect this nomination, yet as they thought more about it, they realized that Carrie Jones was right. Josephine Johnson as the new leader would solve everything. In a few moments, all had concured that Jo was the best choice for the recently unoccupied position of President. The new leader of Geneticon was the former leader's wife.

Of course, Jo was as surprised as the rest of them. But she accepted this new position with humility and thankfulness. Although still mourning she believed her late husband, she would do her best to carry out her new duties as the leader of Geneticon.

Carrie smiled. Everything had gone just as she had planned, even better. The absence of Thomas had given her perfect reasoning and greater power to sway the cabinet, and the plan had worked. Now the final touches were all that were left. "My friends, as you know, it will take time to calm the people. Even with the new leader, the multitudes will still be in uproar because of what they claim as past woes. Because of the current restrictions on our government, Josephine here will have her hands tied while trying to deal with the people. I have spoken with the Senate, and they have already agreed. What is needed now is a leader with more authority and power. A leader whose words will not be questioned under any circumstances. This is not possible under the current government structure. Although the Senate and cabinet will remain intact, it is important for Josephine to recieve more ability to lead. Therefore, I believe that we must make Jospehine an ultimate ruler. It is what Geneticon has been seeking for a long time. Josephine must be the Empress!"

The saying was true. The Senate had agreed that Josephine could recieve the new title and authority if their lawmaking power remained intact. The deal had been struck by Carrie several minutes ago.

Carrie said her final words loudly, the only escalation in her voice since the start of the meeting. The effect was like wildfire. The entire cabinet agreed by clapping their hands and cheering. The only thing that the new Empress Josephine Rush could do was smile.

The Next Morning, The 'House', Geneticon City, 9:40 am

In the press room of the Geneticon "House" of leadership, the cabinet members of the new government gathered on the stage and waited. They were waiting for their new leader, the Empress herself. Somewhere in the building she was either preparing her speech or working up the courage to deliver it. Each of the cabinet members sat in their designated seats on stage and talked quietly among themselves. It was still unknown how the people of Geneticon would take this news, but it was hoped that it would go well. After all, all night the riots in the streets had continued to rage, but with the new system the Empress should be able to bring order to the country within a few days, rather than months.

Secretary of State Carrie Jones sat directly beside the Empress' vacant seat and noted that a few things in this building would have to be changed. They had to make it look more like a palace and less like the democratic structure. As the self-appointed chief advisor to Empress Josephine Rush, Carrie's position was powerful and dangerous. Carrie just prayed that Jo would never figure out what had truly transpired within the past few days.

Suddenly, the Empress walked into room. Several cameras flashes while other zoomed in on the new leader. Although the press had not been given the news yet, they all figured that something signifigant had happened. And they were about to find out what that was. Josephine glanced back at her cabinet and then took a sip of water that sat beside the podium. She took a deep breath and then began her speech.

"Men and women of Geneticon, I come to you with incredible news. With the recent death of my husband, which you have likley heard of by now, and with the continual rioting in the streets of nearly every civilized city in our beloved nation, we have come to the conclusion that only a united Geneticon will be able to defeat this threat of disorder. Leadership is needed for a country whose leader has just been killed."

Josephine paused and seemed deep in thought, after a second or two, she continued, "The members of the cabinet believed that I," she motioned to herself with both hands, "should be the one to lead this nation. Although I feel altogether unworthy, they unanimously agreed yesterday to make me the sole leader of Geneticon. They also believe that my leadership should be indefinite. With the recent disruption of our nation, a simple President would not be able to control the people. This was seen in the example of my husband yesterday. No, a new form of leadership was needed, and yesterday, with the consent of the cabinet and Senate, I was name the Empress of Geneticon, with absolute power and authority."

She paused once more, as several gasps exploded in the press room. Appearently, the journalists had not been expecting this. "A new forem of government has already been decided upon, drafted, reviewed, reformed, and finally agreed upon. Geneticon has now been redeveloped as a great United Democratic Empire!" She raised her hands as she spoke these last words, for emphasis.

"Under this plan, we will bring peace and harmony to our beloved nation. Women will once again be given prominent positions in our nation, and the first example will be me... your Empress. The 'House' here will be renamed the 'Rush Palace', and will be remodeled as any Palace should be. Together, all of you, and I, can reach the rest of the world with Geneticon's power, authority, and aide. I invite to join me in this noble adventure, to seek peace!"

Applause errupted from the press room as the Empress stepped back and took a seat behind her. Carrie leaned over and whispered, "Well done, you have them in your grip. They listen to you Empress." Then Carrie stood and walked to the microphones and podium.

"I will now take questions that need answering..."

Rush Palace, Geneticon City, 7:39 pm

The dark corners of the palace showed that it looked more like a political building than one designed for luxorious living of the Empress. Indeed, luxury was not a part of the 'House's design when it was first built. But now, under the new government a better structure was needed. In a few days the 'House' would be bulldozed and a new and more creative building established. It would be the true Rush Palace.

The Empress stood in her room, staring out the window at the darkened sky. The rain of the past few days continued to pour outside, and the blackness of the sky showed no signs of letting up anytime soon. It was inconvinient and unsettling, but not really a huge problem. Josephine hated the rain though. She hated it because it reminded her of Keith. Rain was one of his few pleasures, he loved it, and Jo simply couldn't get Keith off her mind. If he had lived through the assasination attempt than she would have gladly seen him continue to lead, but he had not. He had died. And they had buried his unopened coffin this morning. She had been unable to look inside, as everyone else was unable. No one could bear to look at the dead corpse of a murdered leader. Not Keith.

The events of the last few days weighed heavily on her mind. She stared out the window and pondered the suddeness of it all. In a flash she had lost her husband and had been thrown into leadership, under a new government. She rather liked the idea of being Empress, and now that she was she couldn't dream of losing the power. It reminded her of a quote from one of her favorite movies: "All who have power are afraid to lose it." And so was she. With the coming of her new position this morning, she had quickly learned how important it was to protect herself from any uprising against her rule. She needed absolute control, and she was taking it. The rebellion against Keith had been supressed within four hours after the Empress' ascension. It had been short and sweet. Now Josephine Rush led Geneticon.

She turned from the window and walked slowly accross the room. Reaching the bed, she threw herself in and buried her face in her hands. It was moments like this that she realized how much she truly missed Keith's company. She missed his smile, his laugh, his warmth, his love. But that was all gone, forever. Now she put the past behind her. Wiping a tear from her eye, she picked herself up and walked to the door. She stood motionless at this crossroad, unsure as whether she should open and step out or not. She decided not. She didn't really feel like entering the hustle and bustle of politics once again today. No, she would turn and keep thinking.

Suddenly, a buzz from her cell phone echoed through the room. The all familiar tune of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" sounded in her ears and informed her that someone was trying to talk with her. She walked towards a desk in the corner and drew her phone from one of the drawers. Flipping it open, she spoke into the reciever, "Yes?"

"Moma..." The voice of her daughter was a breathe of relief. The Empress hadn't spoken with her for three weeks.

"Karrie darling, what is it?" the Empress said to her junior daughter.

"Moma, I heard that something happened to Dad..."

"Yes dear," Jo sighed, "Your father was killed last night. Assasinated."

The other end of the phone fell silent. On her vacation, Josephine Karrie Johnson had no expected her father to die.

"I'm sorry dear." The Empress' voice was comforting.

As Karrie spoke, Josephine could hear the tears, "I can't believe it! And what of the government? What are they going to do?"

"Karrie, I've taken over as leader. Through a unanimous cabinet vote, I was elected, and Geneticon has been reformed under a new government, I am now the Empress, and you are the Empress' daughter."

Again silence. The Empress was the one to break it. "Come back to me as soon as you can. I want you here quickly."

"Yes, Moma. I'll take the next flight out."

"Thank you dear," Josephine was starting to tear up again too. "I love you."

"I love you Moma."