Chapter 57

Alastair Barton was sat with Nicholas Salter and the other members of the inner cabinet. They were discussing the resignation of Howard Cavendish. They had copies of the incriminating photographs in front of them and the letter which Cavendish had sent when he had given up his position.

"He did a remarkable job. The photo chap I mean. You can hardly see the join where his head was put on the figures."

There was much guffawing as they studied the picture of Cavendish in a dress. They leered at the ones showing sexual activity. Copies were given to each of them to take home. What they chose to do with the images was up to them. Some would surely use them for their own gratification.

The amusement was brought to an end when they turned to the fact that they had been made to hand over money.

"He was trouble right to the bloody end." They all agreed with that statement.

Nicholas cleared his throat and they all fell silent awaiting his comments.

"It was only a small amount of money. He is gone and will not give us anymore problems. We must see this as a job well done."

Another one of their enemies had been smoothly removed. A more suitable replacement had been promoted and calm had been restored. There was an acknowledgement of the strange atmosphere in the meetings after the latest change. It was a good thing because it kept everyone on their toes and in line.

Nicholas did not want any challenge to the One World Government. He had studied history and he had learned key points which would help his government, and therefore him, hold onto power. Over the years his predecessors had followed certain principles. He now copied them.

Information was key. Not only what the OWG knew, but what the people knew, too. He had networks of spies and moles watching his representatives in other parts of the world. Any hint of insurrection could be stamped out. Ministers who were thought to be against him were monitored too.

The one channel on television and the newspaper only released content that was pro OWG. Salter had a trusted employee who would review everything before it was released. If there was any doubt articles or films would be shown to him for his final approval. There was not much negative news reported. If there was, it had been sanctioned by him and invariably attacked an opponent.

Not that the OWG had any true opponents. There was no opposition party or alternative to their rule. There was no need to rig an election if one never held them. Every vote that the cabinet took on important issues was passed. Salter and his inner cabinet made sure of that. Some minor votes were lost, so that they could claim to be democratic.

The ministers and their families were portrayed as pillars of society. There could be no scandal attached to them. They were photographed visiting hospitals and handing out treats to children in the labour zones. Salter was always pictured looking immaculate. His grey hair was slicked back off of his face. He often wore makeup to give him a flawless complexion. The lighting in the pictures highlighted him in an almost godlike way.

Salter wanted to be godlike. He ruled the world, but he wanted everyone to know that he ruled the world. His ultimate goal was to consolidate his position and then declare himself President of The One World Government. Alastair Barton had already started talking to other members of the cabinet about conferring this honour on Nicholas Salter.

The war in South America would be reported. The news of their magnificent victory would put the people in the right mood for his coronation. It would probably help if Salter made the journey to the oil fields to see his troops, but he didn't fancy that. Reports had come back about unbearable heat and the risk of strange tropical diseases. He didn't want to be photographed when he was hot and bothered and his hair awry.

When his generals returned, he would present medals to them. They would be arrayed in their dress uniforms. He would be bathed in light. Maybe he would wear some sort of cloak. What he really wanted was a crown, but that was taking it a bit too far. He thought about the chains which a mayor wore and decided that he would order something like that.

Regal, triumphant and generous. He would declare a public holiday and the people would adore him. Nicholas sat alone in his office and imagined achieving his goal. Once he was president, he would get himself a palace. Maybe a couple of palaces. He might give himself some more titles as time went on too.

He called his private secretary into the room.

"Get me a good architect. I'm going to need a presidential palace. One who can do all the columns and fancy stuff. You know what I mean."

He was smiling at what would be his wonderful future.

~~~

There was a lot of work going into the first edition of The Military Times. Dan had wanted a snappier title for the newspaper, but the others had argued for something dull. The OWG did not like clever and witty. They wanted safe and sober. In the end he had conceded defeat. He had insisted that it be in a tabloid format unlike the official OWG Times which was a broadsheet format.

George had visited and he and Serena were glad to see each other again. He brought drawings with him of Super Sergeant and some of the other characters he had been working on. There was a skinny bespectacled soldier who was protected by the hero and a large buffoonish one to provide comic relief. Dan was very impressed with how he had grasped the idea of the cartoon.

They worked on a number of storylines and George went off with a clear notion of how he would put them onto paper. They had a plan to make one of the strips extra special, but they would reveal that at a later stage. Super Sergeant tied a bandana with eye holes around his head, Dan's idea, when he was about to go into super mode. It was part Rambo part ninja turtle, but no one would know that other than Dan.

The paper would feature a rousing headline and then an article about a current event. Initially this would be about the troops in South America. Photographs showing soldiers doing various types of work would appear. There was a page set aside for messages. Phyllis had helped by contacting people that she knew who had family in the forces. Word had spread and they had their first batch ready to print.

The OWG were given a page to fill with their facts and figures and other waffle. That would keep them happy. It was just a copy of information already printed in the OWG Times, but it gave their paper an endorsement by being included. Eric had done a good job of selling it to the government and they were eager to see the finished product.

The mock-up of the Military Times which was shown to the cabinet was very different from the official newspaper. Nobody really objected to it. The main reaction had been, surprise and confusion. It was not what they were used to seeing and they were having trouble adjusting. The cartoon strip was very well received because George had drawn a, flattering, picture of Nicholas Salter handing out a medal to the hero.

Ryan and the others had been most impressed by the inclusion of the drawing of Salter. It would appeal to his vanity and help to get their project the green light. Dan had imagined people all around the world adding their own graffiti to the picture of the government bigwig. Hopefully they would have a different sort of picture of Salter for a future edition.

The cabinet discussed the new paper. Nicholas Salter had been nervous about the idea, but it had turned out alright. It was not like the OWG Times at all. It was aimed more at the common people and that was a good thing he decided. He was sure that barely anyone in the labour zones read the current newspaper so this would bring the message to a wider audience.

"I like it. Something for the common people, which isn't a bad thing."

Salter had spoken, so his lackeys followed his lead and praised it too.

"This Super Sergeant fellow is good. The drawing of you is rather good eh Nicholas." Dennis Parisi was wondering how he could get his handsome face featured in the cartoon.

"How many copies are they going to issue?" Rutherford was doing a calculation on a piece of paper. "I'll talk to Colonel Anderson directly."

"Do we have a veto of any articles which we do not like?" Alistair was always watching Salter's back.

"Of course."

He would appoint a trusted lackey to check each copy before distribution. Salter accepted that the writing was less pompous and simpler, but it still had to conform to the government's ideals. He had been very flattered by the drawing of him in the cartoon. It was an excellent way for him to appear to the workers. He would never want to be "one of them", but this made him more real to the labour class.

The message page was good too. The, would be, president was aware that the conditions for the troops in South America were unpleasant. The contact with family members would help to raise morale. The generals had been consulted and they were happy for an opportunity to seem benevolent and caring. The complete opposite of what they really were.

Sebastien was one of the soldiers assigned to the printing of the military times. He was intelligent and literate and had relished the chance to write articles. His first attempt had been well written, but not the right tone. He had to refine his style to include a certain amount of propaganda and praise for the OWG. It grated every time he had to add something good about the people he hated.

"Securing Resources for All" read the headline which told the world about the action in South America. Families and friends of soldiers knew that they had been redeployed, but they did not know why. This put the right spin on what was to be a massacre of local people by the army at the direction of the OWG.