site 05: MMG

The room was deep in the back of a long, long hallway in a sub-basement, a place where even people with the right clearance rarely went.

It lacked the disinfectant smell unique to hospitals only because the place was almost entirely isolated from the outside. The bare concrete walls would have felt appropriate in a fallout shelter.

There was not a single window, nor a single ray of sunlight. The only light was a pale blue, and came from the tablets held by several men who were sitting in a half-circle in the center of the room.

In the dim half-light, it seemed as if the room itself might continue off into endless darkness. Perhaps there was no furniture or other decoration in this room to help create this very illusion.

“A prophecy in the Old Testament tells us that in the end of days, the people will be branded with the mark of the Devil, ‘666,’ and without that brand, they will be unable to survive.” Standing opposite from the men in the circle was a man in a dark crimson suit, who began to speak in a loud, haughty tone.

All of the men in the circle were older than he was. But the man showed no signs of attempting to hide his arrogant attitude as he continued speaking. That meant he was the one in charge of this meeting.

“Of course, this is just a myth. But in reality, from the moment a human is born, you could say they’re destined to be either one of the rulers, or one of the ruled.” One of the men, Hatoyama, a member of the Diet’s lower house and a former prime minister, interrupted him.

“That’s quite the statement, Mr. Takasu.” There was a wry smile on his face. “Have we become some sort of dark religious cult, or perhaps a shady secret society?”

“I take offense to that.” The man in the crimson suit, who’d been called Takasu, turned towards Hatoyama. He didn’t appear to be terribly upset. “I am neither drunk on my own words, nor am I pretending to be part of the Illuminati.”

“But isn’t Mr. Hatoyama correct, in that now’s not the time to be discussing legends and myths?” The next man to speak was a serious-looking sort in a while lab coat. Underneath the coat he wore a shirt and necktie.

“Professor Matoba, I’m afraid the subject of my discussion is reality. I’ve taken this opportunity to make our position clear to everyone.” Takasu looked around at the other men sitting in the half-circle, as if seeking agreement. “Our position as the rulers, you see.”

A single image suddenly appeared on all the men’s tablets. It consisted of several photographs of birds and dolphins.

But the animals weren’t in their natural habitats. They were locked in outdoor pools or huge cages, being managed and controlled by human hands.

“These birds and dolphins have been implanted with microchips that allow them to be controlled remotely. We’re already past the prototype stage. By applying a simple electrical signal to the parts of the brain that control neurotransmission, we can make them feel pain, joy, anger, or sorrow in a very natural manner. You’re already aware of this technology, of course.”

The sitting men nodded silently.

“Being controlled without realizing it is not necessarily a sad fate. And of course, it’s not always wrong to control someone. It’s possible for the rulers to give great happiness and satisfaction to the ruled. A look through the history books will show you that order has been destroyed by a handful of rioters several times. Humans are fundamentally stupid creatures, and without proper rule, their society will collapse from the inside. Strictly speaking, we’re on a slow path to destruction right now. A haphazard response to this threat is meaningless, and thus, order must be brought about by a power that goes beyond normal conceptions of such. Thus—” Takasu paused, dramatically.

“What this world needs isn’t a hero. It’s a god.”

The men seated in the half-circle began to whisper at the mention of such a fanciful being in a place like this. Takasu curled up his lips into a smile, as if enjoying their reaction.