Read Rising: Parables From The Apocalypse - Dystopian Fiction for Free Online

sorry, Regent, but you have a call from King William.”
    “King William … of England?”
    “Yes, Regent.  That King William.”
    “Well, what the hell does he want with me?”
    “I don’t know, Regent.  He wouldn’t say.”
    “Very well.  Put him on the video screen in my office.  I’ll be right in.”
     
    After a quick change of clothes, the regent sat herself at her desk chair and faced a smiling King William of England. 
    “Good morning, Your Majesty.  It’s a pleasure to meet you.  You’ll have to excuse my somewhat ruffled appearance.  It’s a bit early here.”
    “No need to apologize, Regent.  I’m that one that should apologize for the timing of the call, but it was suggested to me that sooner would be better than later.  I would also like to say that this is not an official government call from England.  It’s meant more to be a sharing of information between two influential persons.”
    “I see, Your Majesty.  Although, I must admit to being more than a little confused.  We’ve never had a sharing of information opportunity before, so I’m not really sure how to respond at the moment.”
    “Allow me to explain.  I am not the prime minister of England.  You will have to take what I say as simply advice from the king.  It’s not official government policy of England.”
    “You have my attention so far.”
    “There have been some concerns amongst the prime minister’s advisers that there is little support for the proposed zombie export agreement amongst your people.”
    “I’m sorry, but I can’t really comment on that at the moment.  The workings of our inner government are privy only to myself and my advisers.”
    “Yes, Regent, I understand how your computer government works.  We have inner workings of our own that are also private.  Let me phrase my comments this way however.  The prime minister believes that there will be considerable resistance from your people to the zombie trade.  I just wanted you to be aware of our views on that matter.  As you know, even though our country was not directly affected during your wars with the zombie population, we still suffered.  The years preceding your wars the US and England were strong allies.  While that was mutually beneficial at the time, it didn’t make England very popular on this side of the pond.  However, as long as the US was active on the world stage, there was little the rest of Europe could do about our relationship.  During the wars and your country’s absence from the world stage, our economy has suffered greatly.  As a result we’ve had to more carefully consider the will of Europe and to some degree the Asian countries.”
    “I do sympathize with you, King William, and appreciate you sharing that information.  But you must understand, the government here is now very different from what existed in the past.  This current government assumes no responsibility for what took place prior to the wars.  As difficult as they may have been for your country’s political and financial standing, I assure you having citizens dying in the streets was far more alarming.”
    “Of course, Regent.  I did not mean to minimize your country’s hardships.  I was simply trying to preface the current situation with some context.”
    “I understand, and what exactly is the current situation in your country?”
    “The current situation is one of cautious optimism.  We do have a pulse on what the people want, although not as sophisticated as yours.  The people are tired of an economic spiral that has been prevalent for the past twenty plus years.  They are tired, but also optimistic when they see what your country has been able to achieve in a very short time.  To be honest, they want that same recovery, and our prime minister wants it for them.  There is a growing consensus that this zombie trade is the best opportunity for an upturn we have.  Possibly the last one many will see in their lifetimes.”
    “I