NEW STORY BETCHES! haha well i got this random ass idea and i told my friend about it and she was like ohemgee do it! so i did. This is a story on the struggles of freedom, suppression, and love that will make and break hearts. The world has been taken over by a cruel tyrant and organized so all people who arent like the others are to be executed or exiled, but what happens when in the journey from Stan's crude wakeup call about his own differences, he finds true friends and even truer love? Will he be able to let go of the long built trust and fight with his new home or will his head, drilled from the beliefs of the government, be unable to rebel against the old life that once gave him so much comfort. Everyone seems to be certain of their sides and the storm might be coming too soon for one young man to make a choice. What'll happen? only one way to find out! Look down :)
I was sitting at my wooden table in my portion in my housing unit, thinking, when the door knocked, and everything in my life changed forever. I got up and went to check on who it was and the sight made my eyes widen.
A circular formation of white uniformed officers was standing on my porch. They had no expressions on their face, it's almost like they had been scrubbed free of any emotion, and I couldn't help but stare rudely at them. The four in the front parted to make a walled passage to my door for the man standing in the middle, and when I saw him, my shock only increased.
The man had a thick, brown, side swept hairstyle, not a strand out of place. His face was flawless and smooth from products and his chocolate brown eyes are locked specifically on my blue ones. His large gut jutted out and his broad shoulders could only just be seen through the doorframe. "Hello Stanley, may we come in?" without waiting for a response from me, he and the rest of his crew walked through the door, the officers making quick work to stand in front of every window and door. My stomach drops as I realize their blocking any ways of escape. That is not a good sign.
"King Cartman, what are you doing here?" Relief slams into my body when my parents walk into the room. They both work for the government, so they know King Cartman better than most people.
I was a spitting image of my father, the same black hair, the same color skin, the same exact build; in fact, the only thing we didn't have in common was my eyes, which I shared with my mother. They were an abnormal color for eyes, they weren't bright blue like everyone else's, they were a deeper blue. If everyone else's was like a blue topaz, mine and my mothers were more like a sapphire. Everything else was my father. I was like a younger version of him, while his black hair stopped halfway down his forehead, mine often brushed against my thick eyebrows. My mother's hair was short as well, a brown similar to King Cartman's. My father was an officer, just like the men in the white suits, while my mother was more like an advisor to the King.
"Ahh, the whole Marsh clan is here, except for Shelley, but I'm not here for her," The King explained. Shelley had turned 21 a few months ago and had been assigned her mate and housing unit and permanent job. I'm still only 17.
If he's not here for her, who's he here for?
King Cartman begins to pace slowly in front of my family, who have ended up in a straight line "Well well well, that just leaves three Marshes. Which one could it be?" We all stand still as a post as he inspected us closely. He turned away and walked from the door back. My neck was starting to hurt from standing so straight.
Suddenly he spins around and says "STANLEY!"
I jumped, nearly shitting myself. "Yes sir?"
King Cartman sneered at me "No dumbass, I'm here about you!"
My parents look at me in shock and I look at our ruler in shock. Me? What did I do?
King Cartman gets right in my face, glaring strongly into my eyes "You are the reason I'm here. We know your secret. We know you are not attracted to girls; rather you are attracted to guys. And that is wrong. It's WRONG!" he shouts.
My jaw drops. How the hell did he find that out? Fuck!
"I-I-" but he's not finished.
"Stanley Marsh, you are what we call a homosexual. There has never been another of what you are, everyone else is normal, you are a freak and you are breaking the law." He spits at me.
That hurts, a freak? "But if there's never been anyone like me, then why is it against the law?" I ask, a little pointedly.
He hears it too "you are different than the regular population, that makes you a law breaker, which means you can either leave the shelter of our territory of Nirvana and go into Limbo or you can be executed. Choose now,"
Both choices sound pretty terrible. We live in a place that used to be called the United States, but after the fourth World War, which I don't even know how many years ago that was, everything changed and now, all of the old region is called Nirvana and King Cartman keeps it strictly regulated.
Almost all of the old United States, there is one portion of the land that isn't. It's never been given a real name, but everyone just calls it Limbo, which used to mean 'place of lost souls.' Limbo is in a place that once was called 'The Rockies'. People who break laws go there, no longer under the protection of the government. Most people choose the execution, because there are stories its very quick and painless, plus most people are both too scared to go to Limbo or too ashamed of themselves for breaking the law to live any longer.
But I can't see what I did wrong, and I'm not ready to die so I tell him "I'll go to Limbo,"
This doesn't seem to surprise him. In fact, he smiles "Good, let's get you ready, brand him,"
Before I can move or even ask what that means, my face is slammed into the table in the dining room as two officers hold me down, one on my back and head and the other one stretching out my left arm and pinning it down so it doesn't move. Something sizzles and cackles in the background and before I can wonder what it is, I feel an immense pain on my arm as hot metals are pressed against my skin, burning, or what they called 'Branding' it. I howl in pain, beg for mercy, and finally they pull the metal brand away and unpin me. I look on my arm.
On my shoulder, an arrow pointing downward surrounded in a circle is blackened permanently on my arm. Except the line of the arrow stretches much farther than the two diagonal ones it connects to and there's a second arrow connecting the long side horizontal arrow to the larger one. Underneath it, stretching in large capital letters all the way down my arm is written "HOMOSEXUALITY" vertically in permanent black.
My mom whimpers and tucks her head into my father's chest. He pats her back and just looks at me expressionless as they cuff me tightly and push me out the door.
Neither one says goodbye, I don't know whether to love them or hate them for that.
The shove me into the carrier that they came here in. There are no windows, so I can't look outside for my long journey. I wonder if they did that on purpose. Then I shake my head, of course they did, the government makes no mistakes.
After what feels like forever, the carrier jerks to a halt and I'm shoved into blinding daylight. I'm already shivering as I get shoved forward toward a large, square shaped building. Everyone who is around look at me, but not with scorn like King Cartman had, but with sympathy, maybe even invitingly. I can't help but feel grateful for that.
The officers enclose the king, but not me, probably to protect him and to humiliate me. It doesn't work; I feel an openness already to these people. They've been through what I'm going through now, they understand me.
I'm shoved into the building and a man stands before me when the doors behind all of us close. The man is very tall and very thin. His nose is beak-like and slightly too big for his face. His thin lips frown not at me, but at the officers behind him as he glares a dark brown fire at them, as though trying to burn through the barrier. His red hair is afro-like and his skin is extremely pale. On his arm is stamped the same symbol except under it says "REBELLING"
Finally the officers repeat what they did at my house and separate so King Cartman can step forward.
"Hello Cartman, what are you doing here in Southern Pariah Unkept?" The thin man asks, his voice seeming to contain sharp pricks of ice.
"KING Cartman if you don't mind, and as you can see, you have a new citizen. And we don't know this place by that name, we know it by Limbo, the name I gave it" The king snaps.
Southern Pariah Unkept? The name is a very strong one, very meaningful. Southern was obvious, we were somewhere down south, but Pariah Unkept? Those were some strong words. Pariah: A person who is rejected from society.
Unkept: Having been violated or disregarded
When I think about it though, isn't that the exact definition of these people? They had been cast away, forgotten about, and sent off to a dangerous place. No wonder that's what they called this place, it's what I call it now, I can't even think of it as Limbo now. It's too inaccurate. Limbo shows a sadness, a despondency of their actions, but looking at the man in front of me, they weren't. They were furious at being cast aside just for being different. Just by the looks of their leader, they had a fire that wouldn't be quenched without the revenge against the government.
The man squints his eyes "Not here. Here it's called by the name me, their leader, gave it, and this is my territory, so it must be respected. It was in the agreement,"
King Cartman looks furious, but still speaks in a calm voice "Fine, Tenorman, Southern Pariah Unkept. Whatever. You have a new resident. He is sickening and we want nothing more to do with him,"
Usually I felt a pang of hurt when the king had said stuff like that earlier, but now, probably from the infectious rage from their leader, I glared up at the man, hoping he saw all my betrayal I felt toward him and his precious Nirvana.
Tenorman looks down at me and for the first time, a smile forms his lips "We'll be sure to welcome him. You may leave" no thank you's, no polite words exchanged, just a tense meeting and a dismissal.
The king doesn't argue, just leaves with his men surrounding him. I hear the carrier rise in the hair and quickly fly off, and then I'm sitting in silence with Tenorman.
"Come here," he pulls out a device shaped like an infinity symbol. Unsure, I just stare at it, wondering if I can trust this man. He gives me an annoyed look "if you want the cuffs off, get your damn hands in the machine,
The cuffs had been so tight they dug into my skin and made it raw, so I did what he said. I heard two snaps, and when I pulled my hands back, boom, no cuffs.
"Um, King Tenorman?" I ask.
He rounds on me "Don't call me King, it's just Tenorman, technically Scott Tenorman, but you may call me Tenorman,"
"Sorry, Tenorman, its really cold here, can I get some clothes?" I ask as respectively as possible.
Scott smiles "I'll call my friend to get those for you," He pulls out a small, square device and pushes a button and says into it "Come to the Entrance Building, bring a pair of clothes," he shoves it into his pocket, and turns to me. "Do you have any questions?" he asks.
The question that's been bubbling in my mind spilled over my clumsy lips "Why do you hate King Cartman so much?"
Tenorman just stands there and I get scared he's going to hurt me, I'm about to apologize when he gets a faraway look in his eyes and starts to explain "I lived in Cardinal my entire life, until I was 15. I started seeing the government as an unfair, unjust ruling system, so I tried to begin a rebellion against it. People started to listen at first, but then he branded this on my arm," he says, pointing at the black letters down his arm "people didn't listen to me quite as much, they were scared of Cartman. I still preached though, by the time I was 18, I had started a whole alliance for me. Cartman needed a way to stop me, so he killed my parents, chopped them up into little pieces, and without my knowing, fed them to me in chili."
I gasped. That was completely terrible. He was forced to eat his own parents!
He continues "Cartman came on the announcements and said 'Scott Tenorman has been punished for his rebellious ways, he is now consuming his own parents, if anyone else does any other rebellious act, you fate will be like his,' I tried to throw it back up but the damage was done. Then he went to my house and was about to execute me but I tricked him into us having an agreement that I could get a portion of the unwanted land and live there, which started this." He waves around "I will get back at Cartman, if it ends my life I swear he will feel the pain I feel," he looks down at me. I don't know what to say.
To my relief, a male voice calls out "Tenorman! Here's those clothes! Is this our new resident?" I turn and have to suppress a gasp.
The boy in front of my looks to be about my age. His skin is a flawless marble with a few cinnamon sprinkles across the bridge of his button nose. His full lips seem to be stuck in a smile as he looks back at me. His hair reminds me of Tenorman's except it looks to be more tame than his, spiraling in silky ringlets around his high cheekbones and caressing his slim shoulders. He's a little thicker than Tenorman, but not too much, and not near as tall. He looks to be about 5'8, while I'm a solid 6 foot. But the most incredible part about this boy is his wonderful eyes. They were a striking green color, like a shimmering emerald that held a fire behind them, but any kind. The kind of fire that could be warming on a cold winter night or could be deadly and burn people in the scorching glare. His eyes were like an emerald sea, and I could drown in them if I lost my focus.
He was absolutely beautiful.
"Here you go!" he says. He looks down my arm, where my punishment has been burned into my skin. I think I see a small smile but before I'm sure, his face is composed and regular again.
Did I really see the small grin, or had I just hoped I had?
I considered asking him what his punishment was but a) I didn't even know his name, so that'd be weird and b) it was a punishment, he probably didn't want to flaunt It off.
Tenorman shows me where I can change and I strip myself of my summery clothes into my more cold weather appropriate ones. In the end, I have a pair of blue jeans, a long sleeved plain black t-shirt, and a brown button up jacket with a red collar. I was also provided with a blue knit hat with a red poofball and rim, and a pair of red gloves to match. I pulled on a pair of ankle socks and a comfy pair of plain black sneakers.
The outfit was perfect, comfy and casual, sort of like me.
I left the dressing room and Tenorman and the unknown beauty examined me. Finally they looked at each other, then me and nodded.
"Alright, perfect! Oh let me introduce you two, Stanley this is Kyle Broflovski, he's a doctor apprentice. Kyle this is our new resident, Stanley Marsh. Pull up his files on the computer will you?" Tenorman requests.
Kyle smiles, and I notice a small dimple on his left cheek "Sure," he walks over to a very high tech looking computer and starts pushing buttons and tapping the screen.
"Uh, are you two related?" I ask.
He shakes his head "But I wouldn't mind if I was, that boy is an asset let me tell you. Sharp as a tack, cunning, passionate, and very charming, but I can tell you already know that," He winks at me and I feel my face flush.
Kyle, who had been tapping furiously on the computer system suddenly stops "Oh. Uh, Tenorman, maybe you should see this,"
The leader walks over and even though I can't see their faces, I know they found something bad.
Is it my homosexuality? It can't be! They both saw my punishment on my arm and Kyle might have even smiled! But if it's not that then what?
"Hey Marsh, it says here both of your parents work for the government," Tenorman tells me.
I realize how terrible that must look in the eyes of the person who is the complete and sworn enemy of the government "Uh, yeah ones an advisor and the others an officer."
Tenorman whispers a few things in Kyle's ear and with a few clicks, my picture is being printed out and a slip of paper with my name on it. They pull out a folder and stick them to it and print the rest of the files. Then in a big red marker, Tenorman scribbles something on it and makes Kyle put it in a filing cabinet.
"Ok Stanley, you need a housing unit and we never let people off alone. So is there anyone you want to be paired with," I can't help but think of the boy standing next to him.
Hell yeah I want a house with him.
But before I can say anything, Kyle pipes up "Excuse me sir, what about my housing unit? I'm alone in it now since Clyde got married," I didn't know this term 'married' and it made me curious "I'm sure I'll be able to find some room for him somewhere." He actually winks laughingly. How can my heart already be fluttering?
Tenorman smiles knowing at me "Of course. Kyle's only been here for three weeks and this could be good for him. We're going to observe you and decide where you belong for work but for now, you will work on agriculture, just like all new people. You have your clothes and everything so you are both dismissed, Kyle show him around town when you get the chance."
We both thank him and leave, that's when we finally talk "Hey Kyle, what's is like here?" I ask, hating how nervous I sound.
Kyle gives me a reassuring glance "Don't worry, it's a lot better here than in Nirvana honestly. I always hated it, everyone there was just Cartman's lapdog and I fucking hated that. He's not even smart, he's dumb as spit and can only lead a country through fear and manipulations and those are no qualities of a ruler. Make no mistake Stan, the government is despicable and would toss you in a meat mincer without a second thought." It's almost mesmerizing how Kyle's musical voice went from a pleasant harmony to a symphony of anger and despise and disgust. But then I realized something else.
"Did you call me Stan?" I asked.
He bashfully smiled "Yeah, sort of a shortened version of Stanley. Is it alright if I call you that?"
I felt my own lips curving upward "Yeah, I like it," In the grin we shared, I felt a mixture of butterflies in my stomach, fire in my face, and a lightness in my chest. Just being around Kyle made everything seem to bright and cheery, and I was extremely glad that we would be living together as friends, maybe even best friends.
I was outcast from my life, exiled from my country, and sent off to a place deemed so terrible that mothers scared their children into obedience with threats of being sent here, and yet I already felt better here than I ever had at home. I don't know how i feel about the government anymore, my feelings aren't the hatred like Tenorman and Kyle, but more like a resentment, and yet my parents, not waving, which I knew was the belief that I would be alright and safe and wouldn't die, was a constant reminder that I might possibly have trust forever with the government.
Suddenly my mind went back to the folder with the marker on it, when I recalled the memory and thought real hard, I remember what it said.
"Possible threat to plans, strong hearted but still trusts government, monitor closely"
What plans? I had been deemed a freak, burned to the skin, exiled from my country, having to leave my parents behind, shipped off to some place people considered the living Hell, and still there were more plans? What more was in store for me?
Alright alright alrighttt! Lmao sorry im energetic cuz i actually like this story, but whether i continue isn't really up to me, its up to YOU! The more reviews i get, the more likely this story will continue, i mean i wouldn't want to keep writing a story no one likes. So please review and tell me your thoughts NICELY please :)