Yea Though I Walk

There weren't always dragons in the Valley. But then again, there hadn't been a need for them. No need until now...until the new society took over. It had unseemingly crept up from the gutters like a black fog, saturating every crevice and nook, choking all the good out of this place where the only truth left in our world was so cold and bare and ugly that even the strongest among us turned face to it. All the darkness left was a soul-less abode where our children would never be allowed to grow up in freedom. The dragons would make sure of that.

My heart grieved for the innocents. There would be no hope, no sense of wonder, no room for the errors of youthful exuberance. They would be mere Bonsais of humanity, cut, stunted, and purposefully shaped to meet the demands and sick needs of their gardener/puppeteers. They would be molded into mindless minions devoid of the slightest inkling of critical thinking or imagination.

Some of us had felt the inevitability of this new world coming. But we seemingly had been powerless to stop it. It had crept up through all the systems of everyday life and sadly, many had embraced it or at least, tolerated its existence. We had been the minority. And our voices had been squelched by ridicule. Now this evil was boldly upon us. And many of those that had betrayed our pleas beforehand, now knew their folly. But not soon enough.

Early on, the faceless high demons had so greatly and strategically diminished the Book of Law into their own language, thus toppling the order that kept the peace and thereafter completely demolishing any semblance of order altogether. Human value was equalized to that of slugs.

The elderly who were physically unable to yield any profit for the state were institutionalized and chemically euthanized when any signs of contagious infections presented themselves. This inevitably left very few alive to tell the stories of heroes or recant historical events of a different time, tales that would forever be hidden or carry the ability to encourage vision.

The other adults who could work, did so. There were no more private industries. All had been handed over according to the new rules. We had been given a battery of all kinds of tests and placed where we were told. We lined up for staples to live on and sent to live where we were told. We became reliant on the "goodness" of those same faceless demons who had been watching us for years before the takeover.

They had watched us in every twit or message we freely had posted. They categorized us and planned accordingly. The strongest "thought-opposers" had been gathered up and dispersed away from family and friends into work camps. This had been done publicly so as to cause the others to yield in submission. Communication was no longer a commodity or a tool, not only for the outcast, but for all.

Any rebellion was also quickly dealt with both fiercely and publicly. The dragons carried their fire breathing torch guns where all could and would be forced to see the flames engulf any rebels and smell the burning of their flesh. The agonizing cries against humanity never left our ears. And fear never left our souls. There were no churches to run to for comfort. They had been forbidden.

All the children had their heads shaved, regardless of gender and all wore grey uniforms and work boots to school. Very little was taught except for indoctrination. Pupils were also categorized according to skills and intellectual abilities. They were then placed for effectiveness and progression for the cause of the new world. And they were followed by a manager. The manager was given authority to reassign the children to other parents if need be. The "need" was when the parents had any influence greater than that of the manager. Droves of children had been re-placed at the beginning, but the numbers declined as the parents eventually lost their voices, lost their natural affection for their offspring, and just survived.

When a child reached age twenty, they were given a matched partner and a date to marry. Marriage was no option and matches were made according to DNA thus to ensure a better outcome for the "high state." There were some who would never be allowed to marry though, because of DNA defects. They would be promptly sterilized.

This was our new place. And the dragons were real. Fear them now!