Fantastic artwork by @marty-art on Steemit... With many thanks!
Christianity had become, out of necessity, what had it originally been intended- decentralized. It was a mode of behavior more that a religious movement. Gone were churches, replaced by small groups gathering in homes as Jesus and his disciples had done. This way they remained virtually undetectable to the UN soldiers... necessity may be the mother of invention, but it was the stepmother of deception. The meetings consisted more of strategy sessions than religious services- although they inevitably ended with a prayer. Prayer was fine, for what it was, but if the new order was to be defeated- it was not the most efficacious means.
Another advantage the patriots had was the lack of a national leader- it's difficult to kill a snake, if you can't cut off its head... there was, however, a common purpose- freedom... Political, social and economic. The UN Ministry of Finance had begun printing Globodollars shortly after peace had been declared. Patriots the world over used them only for purchases of absolute necessities- food (what they didn't grow themselves), housing, etc.. For anything else, they prefered the anonymity of cryptocurrency- something the Ministry was trying desperately to do away with. However, because of the decentralized nature of blockchain and the ever-growing popularity of the darknet it was virtually impossible. Crowdfunding had become a popular means of support for patriot groups around the world... When one group needed help, others would step up with contributions. The resistance may be decentralized- but it had cohesion... not to mention funding.
When the UN imposed economic sanctions on the US after the war, many people began hiding whatever little wealth they may have left in crypto wallets under assumed identities. Cryptocurrencies were also the preferred means of exchange for the black-market, particularly for munitions... Using the darknet plus small transaction amounts, patriots were able to escape detection. Baron Rothschild hadn't reckoned on cryptocurrency when he quipped: "Give me control of a nation's money supply..."
The political landscape worldwide may not have changed a lot where the leadership was concerned, at least as far as ideology was concerned- it was still a Statist oligarchy. However, among the rank and file- particularly in America- the change was profound... There were no more political parties- they had been outlawed. The illusion of "liberal" and "conservative" or the "left/right paradigm" was a thing of the past. Rhetoric and slogans as a form of political expression were replaced by action... or inaction as the case might be.
Now it was patriots vs. parasites... The individuals active in the struggle for liberty and those who served the oppressors by acting as spies. The latter were rewarded with free housing, food vouchers and a stipend. These were the remnants of the pre-war activists from ANTIFA, Black Lives Matter and the panoply of left-wing organizations. Their newfound occupation for the most part, proved to be short-lived, however... they were soon detected and dealt with harshly. Before the war they had been protected by police and their mobs- attacking individuals- but lacking the courage and conviction, as well as the protection of police, they fared poorly when the tables were turned and they were in the minority... They were quickly made examples of- as a reminder for others of their ilk. There was also a bounty on the traitors- paid in crypto. It wasn't unusual in the urban areas to find as many as 20 of these unfortunates at a time hanging when the sun came up.
In the media, these acts of patriotism were framed as crimes against the State- the traitors always referred to in news reports as: "government employees." The New Hollywood churned out propaganda films featuring them as heroes and martyrs for the cause of world peace. Very few other than the elites themselves attended these films, but the purpose was less about attendance than an attempt to control the narrative... "If you tell the same lie long enough..."
One of the faces of the New Hollywood was Myles Brent who specialized in these biopics. In addition to being an actor, he was also an official in the Ministry of Information- a polite euphemism for the propaganda ministry. All mass communications be it film, television, radio or other transmission was heavily monitored- especially the internet- where most turned for unbiased news. Interest in the darknet and blockchain technology had skyrocketed and although the majority of software manufacturers had long ago sold out to the powers that be, the patriots were not without similar resources of their own. If the war for the hearts and minds of the world citizenry was to be won- it would be on this front.
Groups such as Anonymous and Wikileaks, along with several new ones, had become the preferred mode of gathering news... They and several new internet news services broadcasting from undisclosed locations throughout the world using cloaking devices that changed IP addresses every few seconds. One of this new breed of newsman was Bret Shoemaker, broadcasting the news nationwide from Dick Donato's mountain retreat in Arkansas.
Bret's popularity had vastly risen since his days as a hard-nosed investigative journalist in Washington DC, working first for Victor Lockhart's media conglomerate and then Leo Rosen's independent cable news outlet. he was becoming a household name among American patriots and with this newfound popularity came escalating danger... He was a threat to the State and among the oppressors he was a hunted man. There was a reward of $100,000 Globodollars for information leading to his arrest- his conviction was all but assured.
Bret had offered to leave rather than draw unwanted attention to Dick's compound. Dick wouldn't hear of it, of course- Bret and Lena were like family. He gathered the best hackers and software developers from among patriots in the country to aid in keeping their location untraceable. Dick was in his 70's now and unable physically to perform many of the tasks he used to do... But his mind was as keen as ever.
Przybysz was there in charge of security. Lena had given birth to a son who they named Richard, out of deference to Dick. He was almost 3 now and a handful... His antics kept Dick amused for hours on end- they were inseparable. The mountaintop in the Ozarks had not only become home for Dick and his crew... It had become a center of the opposition.
https://steemit.com/fiction/@richq11/the-night-gods-iii-the-triumph-of-evil-forward-and-prologue
https://steemit.com/fiction/@richq11/the-night-gods-iii-the-triumph-of-evil-i-and-malice-toward-all-1
https://steemit.com/fiction/@richq11/the-night-gods-iii-the-triumph-of-evil-i-and-malice-toward-all-2
GIF by @papa-pepper
