Ancient History

Welcome to the BBC’s Fair and Balanced production of the secrets of ancient history. Today’s programme covers the end of the dark ages and the early years of the rise of the grand Network as the powerful world leader that we know today. I’m your host, David Attenborogh XVII. Thank you for joining us.

Roughly in the year 157 B.F.A., The former peoples created something they called the Inner Net. There’s no evidence yet of any Outer Net, though there are diligent Journalists searching for it. This Inner Net allowed them to freely exchange ideas, which is what led directly to their downfall. Once the people realized that they had different ideas, they started to disagree. There are records of wars that happened in the Inner Net, most of which culminated in the resurrection of one of their worst war criminals, someone named Hitler. The resurrection of Hitler was usually employed as a means of ending the war, but it backfired as often as not.

Not long after, the wars spilled out of the Inter Nets and into the rest of their lives, affecting television, politics, and something called news papers. News papers were a way for people to shove their opinions on current events into the faces of others. People started reading only the news papers that agreed with their own opinions, and when the Inner Net wars spilled out into the rest of society, neighbour was pitted against neighbour, siblings started fights, husbands and wives had strained marital relations.

It was obvious that someone needed to step in and save things before humanity destroyed itself altogether. At that time there was a television network that was already giving a fair and balanced view of current events, with a small but loyal following. It was one of those followers who realized that the world would be a better place if only everyone agreed with each other. Obviously, he had the only right information, so he set about making everyone agree with him and watch what was then called Fox News. It was slow going at first, but in 12 B.F.A., when a Journalist from Fox News became president of the former United States, he was able to implement several laws that hastened the process of unity.

Other false news networks found their funding cut, while Fox News was broadcast twenty-four hours a day, ensuring that everyone had a chance to see it. Once more people started watching Fox News, disagreements went down sharply. The people who were left still disrupting the unity were suddenly easy to spot as the dissenters and rabble-rousers that they were. The world watched the next presidential election of the former United States very closely. Both candidates were running on a platform of proposing what to do about the dissenters. The more moderate candidate won, and the dissenters were rounded up and left on a series of islands without any means of escaping back to the mainland.

When the leaders of other countries saw that, they gratefully followed that example and rounded up their own dissenters. Some countries were rather more harsh and killed them, but after everything was over, it was generally agreed that it was a much nicer place to live when everyone agreed with everyone else.

Coming up after the break, we’ll take a look at the gruesome fates of some of the people who dared to think for themselves in the years following the unity, and how Fox News became The Network, which runs the world so well today.

Weekly Post: Before the Lights Go Out

"You remember the promise we made? Back. Before." It's more of an order than a question, as he says it.

His voice has grown gruff and harsh since that day. That day that had been so absolutely beautiful and gorgeous and perfect that it had taken all this time of pain and suffering the balance it out. To make things fair.

"Yeah. I remember." But its less than true. I can remember bits and pieces of conversation. "And a deals a deal."

We, neither of us, say anything. We just sit there staring out at the bluest sky we've seen in a very long time. So much smoke and dust and the burning at the back of your throat that can only come from the food provided here in the System.

"Almost noon." I say looking at the wedge of concrete to the side. "You sure they'll be here?"

"Don't be stupid. The intel's good." He looks down before saying, "Did you say good bye to them before you left?"

"No. I couldn't." I want to pound my fist into the concrete until concentric cracks spread from my bleeding hands like permanent spiderwebs. Instead I cough, like there's something in my throat, to hide the sound that just tried to escape.

"I couldn't either." He stares, fixated at twisted metal structure in the distance, debris and bits of bark scattered around it. "Got anything on ya?"

"Just some grape juice." I reluctantly hold up the small, square container with the straw in it.

He just takes a long, noisy slurp from it. Then hands it back to me, the body twisted and contorted like the structure in the distance. His eyes still fixed on it. I know what he's thinking. He's thinking if we could just get there. Beyond it's garbled shadow we would be free. Free from the System and the Enforcers and the never ending cycle.

Then the chime sounds.

There are others in the room with us, but they are not like us. They huddle and whine and whimper as the lights begin to dim. They know what's coming. We all do. But the two of us, hunched up here with only the invisible barrier between us and the outside world, we are left a small pool of cold orange light. Soon the light barrier will come down too and then there will be nothing but darkness.

We do not hear them approach, silent like the predators they are. We are nothing but prey to them. No not even that. We are nothing but numbers to them. These strange things with their long reaching arms and their rows of teeth and the sickly, sweet singing that escape from their drawn lips. We do not hear them until it is too late.

"Rocky-a-bye baby, on the tree top."

"Run!" He yells as he pushed my shocked form over.

"When the wind blows the cradle will rock."

"They're after us! Hurry!" But he knows just as well as I do that there is no escape.

"When the bow breaks the cradle will fall."

And then the long arms have him and lift him up into the darkness above.

"No!" But now its not him I'm worried about.

"And down will come baby..." One has him, the other comes towards me. "Cradle and all."

Weekly Prompt: Hungry for more?

Hi everyone. Sorry about not staying on top of writing prompts but hopefully we can get back into gear here. So this week, we'll be writing something short and sweet and hopefully something that everyone can sink their teeth into.

If you haven't heard yet there is this book series by Suzanne Collins called "The Hunger Games" which has recently been made into a blockbuster movie. But she's not the first person by a long shot to write dystopian novels. There is a rich history of dystopian writing going as far back as the invention of writing itself.

For this week's prompt we will be adding our own voices this this chorus of writing. For the sake of brevity let's keep it to a single page. You can do it in any format you like (story, poem, play, letter, etc) and from any perspective, though traditionally these are told in first person POV.

Common used tropes are police states as the central thematic element (1984, The Handmaiden's Tale, V for Vendetta, Hunger Games) or the loss of civilization (Riddley Walker, I Am Legend, The Last Man). Or if you're feeling up to a challenge, you could try to write one that didn't follow either of these.

Anyway, there it is. Prompt for the week. Have fun with it and bring it to the next meeting! :)

And may the odds be ever in your favor. ;)