Chapter 26: Might Makes Right, Nicholas POV (Patreon)

Chapter 26

Might Makes Right

Nicholas POV

“Sir, you’ve got a call,” the guard said politely, wanting to be anywhere in the prison but near me. I didn’t blame him. I wasn’t a pleasant or safe person to be around.

The UK government hadn’t backed down, even though they were fighting a legal battle with the courts and several other countries who all thought the new law was outrageous. The EU and USA were threatening them with sanctions, and Ireland and Scotland were once again talking about their independence.

When I hadn’t accepted the government’s plea bargain to work for them, they threw me in maximum security prison, where a gang was waiting to rough me up during my first lunch break. I recognised the look in their eyes and panicked, hurling the entire gang across the room with my Power, breaking half a dozen bones in each of their bodies, crippling three for life. I gained a bit of a reputation after that, and everyone decided to leave me alone.

Since then, Tee had tried hitting the UK government with every legal avenue he could. Morgan was doing the same with social influence. Hundreds of thousands of people had come forward offering themselves up to be arrested to prove how ridiculous the law was. Every police station in the country was filled to capacity.

Tee and Morgan's actions forced a change in policy which meant everyone was being put under house arrest instead of being held in jail. They had got me a court appearance to challenge my imprisonment just before the 27th Cycle started. All I had to do was wait and Tee promised he could get me out legally.

I pressed mute on the remote, cutting off the sound coming from the TV. None of the other prisoners dared complain.

I turned and looked up at the guard. “Did they say who they were?” I’d been getting calls from all sorts of tabloids and papers, offering me a fortune to tell my story. My mother was also trying to get in contact with me, but I didn’t want to talk to her in my current mental state.

The guard unconsciously took a step back. “A man named Pan, sir. He said you might want to know about Nargus.”

I unmuted the TV and tossed the remote to another inmate. “I’d love to talk to him. Do you mind getting me a cup of tea?”

“Not at all, sir. Any preference?”

“I’ll take Earl Grey.” I walked through the well-behaved maximum-security section to the phones.

The Peacekeepers hadn’t killed everyone who was in prison when they took over, just enough so that overcrowding wasn’t an issue. Many of the murderers and rapists that had been spared had suffered from some sort of mental illness that Morgan had removed, making them capable of feeling empath.

The mental health workers had their hands full trying to help them deal with the horrors of their actions now that they could feel guilt. I’d already had to stop two people from killing themselves because they were unable to live with their actions and memories any longer.

It was hard to watch.

I’d tried not using my Domain, but whenever I shut it off completely, I started to feel claustrophobic. I couldn’t keep it closed for long. I couldn’t prevent myself from using my Power either.

As I walked to the phone area, the other prisoners finished their calls and fled, leaving me alone. The phones were the phone booth-style ones with a large receiver and number pad. I could remember when they first came out. They were much simpler times.

I picked up the one that wasn’t hanging on the hook. “Hello, Pan.”

“How’s prison my liege?”

“Not so bad when everyone knows that they can’t keep you locked up and that you’re the biggest baddest mofo in there.”

“I’m surprised you’re still going along with it?”

I sighed, thinking the same thing. “Tee promised to sort this out by the end of the Cycle. If it isn’t, I’ll leave next Cycle.”

“The UK government isn’t known for working fast I’m told.”

“Except when they’re making a law to throw me in prison.” He didn’t have anything to say to that. “How’s Nargus?”

“The Peacekeepers didn’t give him a care package like I hoped they would. Instead, I got a Horde psychology package. I found him while he was flying over Western Australia. He’s been travelling the world trying to find a place that feels like home. He’s just as lost as he was before, but I feel like he’ll be fine given enough time.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m an AI. This sort of change isn’t a big deal to us. I find psychological profiles interesting, so learning about Horde profiles was something I was happy to accept when they offered it to me. Now how are you really holding up and don’t give me the same bullshit answer you gave me before, Nicholas?”

“Not well,” I admitted. “I keep getting the impulse to kill the people that are annoying me.”

Pan sighed. “I was afraid of this.”

***

The courtroom was filled with reporters and cameras as the judge cleared his throat to read out his verdict. Tee and his four lawyers sat beside me, shuffling papers, and making phone calls. Tee was here to show visible support. The world knew Morgan Mars was on my side.

Pan had spent the past few days walking me through my feelings and helping me put in place methods to make it easier to deal with these new emotions. I wasn’t feeling like myself, and I was definitely experiencing a change in personality.

Without his help, I would have already killed the judge.

Tee hung up and leaned over to me, whispering in my ear. “We might have a problem. My sources in parliament just informed me they won’t back down over this. The acting prime minister called the judge during the recess and bribed him to give a verdict that would keep you imprisoned. He offered to make him a minister during the next election. Our case was solid, too solid. Legally, you should be released. But they don’t want that and they’re willing to disregard the law to do so.”

Anger simmered away as I took a slow, deep breath. I’d been listening to the phone call when the judge received it, pushing my Domain through the building, hoping to increase my chances of being allowed to walk out of here a free man. I was giving the judge the benefit of the doubt until he actually broke the law. But I wasn’t sure what would happen if he did.

“I’m aware of what he agreed to,” I whispered back.

“All rise as the judge reads the verdict,” said the guard.

The room stood as the judge read his verdict. Buttons were pressed on every camera as reports documented everything that was happening.

“On the charges of Grand Theft, I find there is grounds to keep Nicolas Thistlebush detained until this matter can go to trial. Due to the extent of his crimes, he is a danger to all those around him, and I can’t in good-”

My anger bubbled over, making it impossible to leave peacefully. The table in front of me shattered, and then the pieces slammed into the ceiling. The court guards charged me. I picked them up with my Power and pinned them to the ceiling, breaking several bones in the process.

I no longer cared as I stalked forward.

“You will be-” the judge shouted, fear in his eyes.

“Silence,” I said, muting the sound waves in his vicinity, causing him to look around in terror as he tried to shout. “Up until now, I have comported myself the way a citizen should despite you having no power to stop me. You, however, have not. The UK government has not. The PM has not.” I lifted my phone and hit play, amplifying the sound with my Domain.

The phone call between the judge and PM played for everyone in the courtroom to hear. No one so much as whispered as the call played out to the end, staring with rapt attention as history unfolded. When the call stopped, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind about what had happened.

“I have been harassed. I have been bullied. And I have been threatened, as this government tried to manipulate me into serving their interests in the Game. And through it all, I expected the law would exonerate me. But when the law is administered by dictators and not civil servants, this is not possible. I no longer recognise the legitimacy of this authoritarian government, and I no longer recognise the legitimacy of this court. Have a good day.”

I flicked my hand toward the judge, flinging him into the wall behind him with almost too much force. I didn’t care anymore. They didn’t deserve my mercy.

I turned around and walked to the door, intent on finding the PM. No one tried to stop me.