These Honored Dead
The billionaires and aspiring billionaires had gathered on high ground and in watchtowers to get the best view of the latest battle in the American Civil War. Indeed, they had all paid dearly to be present at this twenty-first century spectacle. This was taking place on a huge tract of private land in a state which shall remain nameless. Border security of these thousands of acres was impeccable. Nobody not supposed to be here would get in or out today. Many of the world’s wealthiest had opted to watch the battle remotely on various devices streaming with encryption better than that possessed by any government on earth. But being physically present was a real bragging point among the super-wealthy.
“Wherever do they find these ‘soldiers?’” Billionaire V. queried Billionaire J.
“Oh, mostly illegal immigrants who crossed the border, some ‘missing people,’ former journalists, political dissidents. And the rest, who knows…who cares? Now that we’ve got ‘The Troubles’ on the streets of America every day and the damn media is finally under control, nobody can keep up with these disappearances. Any faction could have taken these dudes out and thrown them in the closest river. Last stats I saw were hundreds of thousands of Americans were missing and presumed dead just for this year alone. So who needs to explain anything?”
Billionaire C chimed in: “I’ve heard they try to place the liberals in the Union Army and the righties and racists in the Confederacy. Some of those skinheads fight like hell. I definitely know they have a slavery plantation program too, but I hear it’s not all Africans this time. Blacks, Whites, they all get the manacles if they draw it in the lottery. Pretty sure they brought back slavery to really toughen up some of the soldiers and spice up the drama on the battlefield. They offer some of the slaves a choice of which army to join. You’d be surprised that more than a few stay on the rebel side. Rumors float around about which side is favored in a particular battle. Least, that’s what I hear.”
Billionaire V. was clearly a newbie. “But how do they keep them from running away, deserting, the soldiers on both sides? And what about other nations reporting on us, even if we’ve got total control and media blackout, this year anyway? It could have international repercussions, no?”
Aspiring billionaire W. fielded these concerns: “Oh, don’t worry, the satellites are all taken care of. One way or another. And these guys are all wired. If they take off before they’re granted a reprieve or total dismissal, the implant is gonna stop their heart dead in its beat, in like thirty seconds. It’s a neat, clean system. A few surgeons slipped through and were trying to remove them for a few guys, but they’re constrained to total nineteenth century realism. They don’t have modern medicine down there on these batttlefields. Only old sawbones. You can watch the medical tents on video. Those get the most views, usually. I mean these guys are Civil War re-enactors in the truest sense of the word.”
He guffawed at his wit. You could hear the Southernness in his laugh.
“But hey, can y’all shut up for a bit?” Billionaire M. childed the group. He had brought two young sons with him. The forces are marshaling on opposite sides of the valley. I’ve got my money on my Georgia boys and I want these kiddos to see how the game is played. Enough chitter-chat, guys. Please.”
“Oh sorry,” smiled Ms. V. and took out her binoculars, which were dainty and rather anachronistic looking, like her antebellum dress, and styled for looking backwards in the most fashionable way.
Far below them, the first horses began racing down the slope of a hillock towards the open meadow of wildflowers. The Confederacy was charging. The cannons began firing (you could feel it in your bones!) and the people high on the hill began laughing and slapping each other on the shoulders and backs as the little men started to fall below. They winced when they saw bayonets entering uniformed bellies, no matter which side it was. And they began ordering drinks from the waitstaff who emerged at just the right moment to really make this the perfect summer outing.
