The Grasshopper (27 page)

“Of course I am. I watched it many
times.”

“Really?”

“Of course… Nevertheless, I’m
watching events in different cities. Everywhere… across the Earth.
I’m zooming in the images from our satellites…”

“Why?”

“Because such things interest me. I
zoom in on people’s faces. It’s a pity I don’t have
audio.”

“You are a strange one,
Grasshopper.”

“I’ve been thinking.”

“What? You have a
proposal?”

“No, no… I see… in one city
Consumers and Non-Consumers are mixed together.”

“Yes, that’s the case in most
cities.”

“They’ve set up barricades in the
middle of some street.”

“Yes, they’re doing that
everywhere. The city is split into the Consumer and Non-Consumer
part, and each flees to their own.”

“I see. But not everyone makes it
across. In this street, the one I mentioned, they fell a man behind
the barricades, and they’re kicking him. And he hasn’t moved in a
while. He’s probably dead.”

“What does that have to do with me
on the news?” Erivan was curious.

“And behind the other barricades,
on the same street, in the same city, the same picture. They are
kicking another man. The only difference is the clothes. Ones have
t-shirts with vertical stripes, and the others have t-shirts with
horizontal stripes. Then I thought how lucky these people are today
that they can clearly differentiate between themselves. The seasons
have provided people with uniforms, already in this initial phase
of the war. For all of them. There will be no civilians in this
war, Mr. President.”

“Excuse me?” Erivan asked without
any interest, stopping the recording at the moment when he banged
his fist on the map and looked at the camera.

“All those wretches in past wars…”
the Grasshopper spoke contemplatively, “… went into the street and
had no idea who was on their side and who was the enemy. They
differed only in the invisible. In what was in their
heads.”

“What heads, Grasshopper? Man, do
you see this gaze of mine? Do you see it?”

“But that’s man. That’s how he was
created. Experience doesn’t play a role… only instinct. Here, look
at this generation of ours. There were other such generations in
history, when the lulls lasted several decades. I mean… periods
without wars. These children think that wars serve only to torment
them in history class. There were other such generations that
thought that wars were the thing of their past, stupid, primitive
and undeveloped ancestors. And that they were developed, civilized,
humane… and then a war would break out, like this one… after an
entire century… and people immediately, instinctively start
kicking.”

“Ah, they’re funny,” said Erivan,
watching the generals push and shove on their side of the
table.

“I’m thinking about our season
clothes. What’s wrong with that? Nothing. People have found all
kinds of excuses to kill each other throughout history. So why
should this one, with the t-shirts and different stripes, be any
less worthy than the previous ones? Perhaps it isn’t as dignified
as the pervious ones? It’s really a pity that I don’t have audio so
that I can hear one of the heroes, bare-chested, carrying a staff
with the t-shirt hanging on it, charging the enemy barricades,
shouting ‘Horizontal stripes!’ or ‘Vertical stripes!’, just before
being cut down by a hail of gunfire.”

“Are you
still running a fever, Grasshopper?” Erivan asked, going back to
the story from the evening news.

“No. I’m just very content. I would
sometimes wonder… doubt myself… for a moment…”

“Did you notice at all how I
approached the table, Grasshopper?! Did you see that
stride!”

“I’d think about whether the
Balance has actually been achieved. Is that the final answer? Has
the killing come to an end? Although, Kaella did kill the old and
the sick to keep the Balance…”

“Yes, he did. What a scoundrel he
was. Here, I’m slowly making a fist…”

“…
in those
hospital of his, Euthanasias.”

“Yes, the hospitals are full.
They’re constantly pestering me with that, Grasshopper! They say,
‘what should we do, Mr. President? There are many wounded, then
there are these epidemics… we don’t have drugs…’ I’m sick of them…
Look, look! Are you watching my footage at all, Grasshopper? I’m
placing the fist on the table, leaning on it…”

“But that was systemic, regime
killing. That is why I wondered what happened to the basic human
urge… and now I’m at peace, content. That is… always the same, just
with a new excuse. And those striped t-shirts of ours, that is
probably the cutest excuse in history.”

“Cute? You think that they’re cute?
I think they’re really funny!” Erivan laughed loudly, watching the
generals stretch their necks.

“And now I’m certain. Now I know…
Now that I’m finally here, in this room, I know that I was right
all along, that my effort wasn’t in vain… that my life has a
purpose…”

“Grasshopper, that’s…” Erivan was
laughing so hard that he struggled for air.

“To serve you, Mr. President,”
Grasshopper jolted back from his thoughts.

“I’m going to die laughing, to die…
Hmm? What did you say?”

“I say, to serve you, Mr.
President.”

“And you’re lucky to have me,
Grasshopper,” said Erivan, watching himself wisely nod his head
over the map of the world.

Chapter 100

“Move it! Move it!” shouted the
commander of the firing squad while his men were taking their
positions. “Come on!” he continued. “Don’t disgrace yourself! You
see the large audience we have today!” he pointed to the group of
Consumers from the nearby city, who stood on the side and watched
their fellow-citizens, the Non-Consumers, lined up in front of the
firing squad.

“Lucky, what is this horrible
movie?” Sayash asked Lucky, while holding him in his arms. “I’m
getting the creeps. You’re not afraid of anything, are you, Lucky?”
Sayash bowed his head and looked at Lucky. “You don’t even blink,
do you? How are you going to fall asleep tonight?”

“Get the bum back in line!” shouted
the commander, when he saw Sayash and Lucky in front of his firing
squad.

“What’s that, Lucky? It’s started
to rain, is it?” Sayash asked, looking up at the sky, when Lucky’s
first tear fell on his arm. “It isn’t rain, Lucky,” Sayash
concluded. “Everything is dry,” he turned Lucky towards him.
“There, I knew it! You’re crying! This isn’t the movie for you,
Lucky! Let’s go to another one.”

Lucky turned in Sayash’s arms away
from the Non-Consumers, lined up to be shot, and looked towards the
gathered Consumers.

“Mommy, look! The dog is
crying!”

“What dog? I don’t see
it.”

“In that man’s arms!”

“Give your other hand to your
father,” said the Consumer, when she saw Lucky’s tears. “Let’s go,”
She took a step towards the Non-Consumers and took her son and
husband with her.

All the Consumers followed them and
mixed with their fellow-citizens, the Non-Consumers.

“Let’s go home, neighbor, for a
chess match. What do you say?”

“I’m white.”

“Today dinner is at our
place.”

“That’s out of the question,
neighbor. It’s our turn.”

“So, when are you going to pay back
that money?”

“I knew that was going to be the
first thing you ask.”

“So, you put on last season’s
clothes because of your daughter-in-law?”

“Don’t mention it. We barely found
them. Can’t you see that I have on this season’s shoes?” the father
answered his colleague.

“She still isn’t our
daughter-in-law,” said the mother, “but she will be. What else
could we do? Our son doesn’t want to live without her. Isn’t that
right, son?”

The son didn’t answer. He just
hugged his girlfriend.

“Mommy, where are that man and the
dog?”

“I don’t know. They’re around here
somewhere.”

“People! People! It was
them!”

“Them who? Why are you
shouting?!”

“The Saint and the Dog! They bring
good luck and then disappear!”

“What Saint? That plaid bum? You’ve
already started drinking, but you’re not sharing, are
you?”

“Dad! Dad!”

“Wait a moment. Don’t you see that
I’m talking to our neighbor?”

“Dad, we will all be playing in
front of the building! All of us, dad! Do you know how long it’s
been since we all played together?!”

“Alright, alright, but only until
dark.”

“Get in the vehicles! Let’s go!
These people have completely lost it!” the firing squad commander
said with a terribly annoyed tone.

“People! How long are we going to
keep standing here in this wasteland?! Let’s go back to our city!
To hide it! So that one will ever find it!”

Chapter 101

“What’s wrong with you, Mr.
President? Why are you so pale?” the Grasshopper asked
Erivan.

“I haven’t been sleeping enough…
problems…”

“What problems? The war is going
well, as far as I see. And I’m looking at these snipers in the
cities. Are those our boys?”

“Both ours and the others. Everyone
has a sniper these days. And I released from prison all the
killers, rapists, pedophiles… let them terrorize the Non-Consumers
a little.”

“There, there. But I’m curious
about these snipers. I wonder, how do they choose who to
kill?”

“Well you’ve killed people so many
time with a sniper, Grasshopper. What’s strange about
it?”

“That’s different. Those were
targets that you identified for me, Mr. President. And I wonder,
how do they…? Sitting in a window, watching the people in the
street through their scopes… I can’t grasp, what is their criteria?
I see them kill both men and women, young and old, children… I
really don’t get it. I guess depending on whose face they don’t
like. I couldn’t do that. All faces are the same to me.”

“You wouldn’t kill anyone until I
gave you a target?”

“No, no… I’d kill them
all.”

“You can’t do that with one sniper,
Grasshopper. You kill one, and the others run from the street. Then
you have to move to a different skyscraper. It isn’t easy for them.
Its hard work. Especially if the elevators don’t work. By the way,
do you know that Consumers have started to protest?”

“Why?” the Grasshopper was
surprised.

“Because I said that we would seize
the Non-Consumers’ shares…”

“I know.”

“And the Non-Consumers immediately
started selling them on the stock exchange. And the prices dropped,
so the Consumers started to panic. And they too started selling.
Within a few days the Company lost ninety percent of its value. And
everyone is blaming me.”

“Well that is a great opportunity,
Mr. President.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, buy now, when the price is
so low.”

“What can I buy it with? My
salary?”

“Who said anything about your
salary? Do you know how much money Prince Kaella has in the vaults
beneath his palace?”

“That’s right! Why didn’t I think
of that?”

“But, I was thinking about
something else.”

“About what? Tell me.”

“Kaella’s family is still in the
palace?”

“Yes.”

“Throw them out, and move in. Those
presidential quarters aren’t really that nice.”

“Well, they aren’t… I too was
thinking about moving, but after the war. Here I have
communications and logistics.”

“You’re right. But then don’t move
into their palace.”

“Why?”

“Because the colonnades are too
low. For them they were even too high, but for you, Mr. President,
they have to be at least a meter higher. To make it clear to
everyone who is the new ruler of the world.”

“A meter? Five meters!”

“I agree. First get the money from
the vault, then tear down Kaella’s palace, the whole thing, not
only the colonnades. And build yourself the most lavishing edifice
that has ever existed on Earth.”

“
I will! The most
lavishing!”

Chapter 102

“When will we start the blackouts,
Mr. President?”

“Well we could gradually,
Grasshopper. Are you sure you know how to control that?”

“I trained for that for five
months. Do you doubt me?”

“I don’t doubt you. OK, start
switching if off.”

“I will, but I don’t know which
cities to turn off the power to.”