The Post-Apocalyptic Society:
A Nelson and Hyde Revolution
By Stephanie Kato
Copyright © 2016 Stephanie Kato
All rights reserved.
DISCLAIMER
All characters and events in this book are completely fictional. Any resemblance to real people, living or deceased, is entirely coincidental.
DEDICATION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I’m dedicating this book to my family, friends, and everyone who believed in me.
A special thanks to the professionals who helped me turn this manuscript into a legitimate work of literature:
Kate Stewart and Ebook Editing Services for their great attention to detail ~ www.ebookeditingservices.com
Digital Donna also deserves recognition for my book’s beautiful cover design~ www.digitaldonna.com
The steampunk subculture also deserves a shout-out because their enthusiasm for science fiction, history, aesthetics, and creativity is major fuel for writers like me.
It’s easy to take family and friends for granted, but truthfully, they’re the driving force behind our success and we need to remember that.
Table of Contents
DISCLAIMER
DEDICATION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Steam Is Power
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
The Iron Age of Piracy
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Haunted By the Wild West
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Steam Is Power
Prologue
Once upon a time, there was an era called the 21st Century. During that time period, a land called the United States of America was one of the most powerful nations in the world. America was a prosperous and economically-sound nation with plenty of entertainment, career opportunities, education, fashion, and equality.
Even though the United States was a democracy, some of its citizens were unsatisfied. A man named Boris Vladimir became an activist and the leader of an underground rebellion. Boris thought America’s government was a corrupt organization that was controlled by the wealthiest members of society. He believed that the nation was overwhelmed by capitalism, greed, and monopolization. Boris voiced his discontent at rallies, television conferences, and other political events. As expected, the mainstream public was uninterested in his opinions.
Boris found a target audience in young adults who were lazy underachievers. Those individuals had an erroneous sense of entitlement to desire remarkable wealth, successful careers, fame, and popularity without earning such rewards. Many of these young people wallowed in self-pity, enjoying a lifestyle of substance abuse and hedonism. Boris preyed on their vulnerability and shaped many of them into his followers. He attracted misguided youths through social networking, blogs, and other forms of communication to join his cause. Boris said his followers were gifted and intelligent youths who had a destiny to reshape the nation. Through his ravings, the delinquents believed they were America’s true aristocracy who had been stifled by a government conspiracy to maintain order, conformity, the status quo, and comfort for the nation’s wealthiest citizens.
Boris believed that his cause would create a perfect nation without corruption or corporate greed. He labeled this perfect land Utopia. During the course of several years, Boris trained his followers to create false identities as a means to infiltrate America’s military and many important corporations. His minions gained the trust of many corporate executives who were influential to the American economy.
Boris and his fellow Utopians collected explosives and weaponry that would be useful in a revolt. They learned how to use these materials through online resources. Over time, Boris recruited hundreds of followers across the nation, and he soon felt confident with his secret militia.
He created a master plan to blow up the nation’s most important corporate headquarters, hopefully throwing America into massive chaos and economic uncertainty. Ideally, the chaos would give the Utopians a chance to overthrow the government and take command as America’s ruling class. The Utopians believed they could live a very decadent and privileged lifestyle with unlimited resources, publicity, and power if their rebellion was successful. They also believed their conquest would help them find achievement and self-worth.
Eventually, Boris and his Utopians launched their master plan. He sent a digital signal to his followers, prompting them to set off explosives that were cleverly planted in many corporate headquarters. The results were devastating and killed countless people. To make matters worse, several Utopians hijacked military jets and flew over America’s largest cities to destroy more buildings. They also took command of tanks, along with other deadly resources, to create a huge number of civilian causalities. The Utopians planted explosives on important bridges and detonated them, trapping many civilians from potential escape routes. Boris also launched foot soldiers in the streets. They were armed with automatic rifles, rocket launchers, flamethrowers, and other deadly weapons. Although thousands of people fled from the attackers, fatalities increased alarmingly with each minute.
However, the remainder of America’s military and law enforcement fought back against the rebellion. Civilians also fought for their own survival with anything they could use as weapons. Soon, the Utopians also suffered causalities. Hours passed and the Utopians became increasingly outnumbered and overwhelmed.
The upheaval continued, and Boris recognized a young socialite, Reb Nelson, who fought for survival. He attacked the young woman and severely wounded her leg. Boris dragged Reb into the street and planned to record her death. He wanted to send the footage across the web to frighten America’s survivors. The Utopian leader took a grenade and planned to strap it around her neck. While arming the grenade, Boris foolishly recited his grand manifesto, but the grenade exploded and immediately killed him. Boris’ dismembered body splattered on Reb, and as a result, she became extremely angry and emotionally rattled.
Reb promptly tossed the severed head into the young man’s lap. The sight traumatized him, but the young Utopian managed to start the vehicle and he sped away.
Before nightfall, the uprising was squashed and contained by America’s armed forces. Many of Boris’ followers were killed during the battle, and most of the surviving Utopians were arrested. Survivors believed the entire Utopian culture was eradicated, but Reb knew that at least one individual had escaped with his life.
Even though America survived the cataclysm, it suffered massive causalities and the destruction of several corporate empires. Within twenty-four hours, half of the American population had been killed. The public honored their dead by moving forward and rebuilding their metropolitan cities. Surviving corporate executives, and other wealthy elites, helped the economy when they gave financial aid to nationwide construction. The government, and America’s allied countries, provided industrial equipment to rebuild the cities. Many civilians labeled this cataclysm as the Apocalypse. It was a traumatic end for the 21st Century.
Reb and her family survived the chaos, but the Nelsons lost their corporate headquarters. Despite that loss, they still maintained their immense wealth and status as one of America’s wealthiest families. Luckily for the public, the Nelsons gladly spent much of their money to rebuild the nation. They quickly rebuilt their companies and decided to make the world a better place. The Nelsons chose to sell affordable and quality products to the mainstream public during an unsteady time period. They also became active philanthropists who gave financial aid to Americans who remained devastated from the revolt. The Nelsons became well-known advocates for human rights, individuality, freedom, equality, and brotherhood.
Ten years passed and the nation was in much better condition. Some cities were still under construction, but the nation became much more prosperous, and the mainstream public began to feel somewhat normal again. The government upheld democracy and capitalism to fuel America. Important resources remained available to the public, such as phone lines, healthcare, food services, public education, online services, gasoline, and other daily needs. In fact, many Americans lived in a lucrative environment because they now only shared resources with a reduced population. The government also needed massive amounts of metal to rebuild the nation’s cities.
Americans wanted a new name for their modern era. They noticed the current time period was heavily industrialized and rebuilt with mechanical equipment. The nation also had a plethora of working-class jobs in construction. Overall, the new cities appeared unpolished and archaic. The industrial environment reminded many individuals of a science fiction genre called Steampunk. Most individuals interpreted Steampunk as a genre that emphasized Victorian styles or elements from the Wild West. It blended those elements together with industrial and dystopian themes, along with steam power. As a result, the public chose to adapt the Steampunk genre as an important theme in their current time period.
Fashion and artwork also emulated Steampunk elements. New buildings were given an industrial appearance with layers of bronze, iron, copper, or brass, and had an overall battered design. Modern vehicles emulated transportation from earlier decades, but were given additional gears, propellers, springs, rods, and other cosmetic elements. Ironically, most Americans appeared as if they had traveled back to the 19th Century. People wanted to find influences from the past that could help them build a better future.
Despite the changes, the United States retained many modern elements. The nation still had metropolitan cities, colossal buildings, computers, electricity, gasoline, and other modern essentials. Overall, the newly-constructed America grew rapidly, and Steampunk became an important part of the public’s identity.
The Nelson family thrived well in the Post-Apocalyptic era. They embraced the new Steampunk style, and adopted cosmetic metal on their clothing. Average Americans viewed the Nelsons as a wealthy family who helped the public and promoted modern changes. Many people dubbed the Nelsons as America’s royal family.
However, some individuals rejected the Steampunk movement. Even though Boris and the Utopians were gone, there was still a minority of sympathizers who thought the Steampunks were a primitive subculture who went backward with their values, instead of moving forward. Those sympathizers believed the Steampunks might eventually devolve into a less-intelligent species of human beings in the future. Also, some Americans did not want to abandon the 21st Century ideals. Those individuals maintained their style, work ethic, and values from the pre-Apocalyptic era. The non-Steampunk subcultures struggled to fit in with this old-fashioned display during a modern era. Even though the Apocalypse ultimately created a time of great prosperity, it also placed many subcultures at odds with each other.
The Apocalypse amplified human vulnerability. As a result, scientists, innovators, and government leaders wanted to make the nation and its citizens stronger. In a short period of time, scientists made a major breakthrough with advanced human and metal grafting. Scientists discovered a method that could manipulate metal on a molecular level. The Steampunks became fascinated with metal grafting. Soon, individuals volunteered for human experimentation. Scientists injected a liquid form of the metal into people’s bones. Grafting allowed human bones to become stronger and almost impossible to break. Scientists also modified the metal to have a resistance against electricity, extreme heat or cold, and rust.
It was unclear if human and metal grafting was a form of gene splicing. The Steampunks developed physical anomalies, such as enhanced strength, a faster pace, greater agility, stronger endurance, and other improvements. Despite the scientific mystery, grafted humans appreciated their newly-enhanced bodies.
Steampunks also included metal grafting into other parts of their culture. It became a significant part of their fashion. Designers grafted metallic mesh into clothing, boots, and accessories. Scientists helped fashion designers find a modified metal that was flexible enough to wear. As expected, clothing became much heavier. Steampunks also grafted those metals in their vehicles, buildings, and bridges. Most explosions and attacks would have minimal effect on their newly-improved structures. Grafting also became a cosmetic statement. Women had the option to graft earrings permanently on their ears. If men had poor vision, they could graft a monocle on their face.
Many individuals had lost limbs during the Apocalypse, but now they had the option of grafting metal limbs on their bodies. Some people grafted weapons on their bodies instead of limbs, such as rotary guns, drills, or rivet guns. Steampunks favored iron, bronze, brass, or copper for the grafting process. Human and metal grafting became an unspoken rite of passage into Steampunk culture. Many individuals also carried weapons on their belts or clothing, including guns, knives, whips, brass knuckles, and more. Overall, the Steampunks believed they would never be helpless again.
Chapter 1
On the outskirts of Oklahoma City, Reb sat on the front porch with her husband Giles Hyde. They felt relaxed and enjoyed high tea on a weekend afternoon.
Reb and Giles were successful and well-known entertainment attorneys who helped clean up the public images of delinquent celebrities. After the Apocalypse ended, they finished law school and opened an agency that could serve clients across the nation. Many Americans also viewed them as a classically beautiful couple who combined Victorian elegance with the Steampunk style.
“Welcome to Post-Apocalyptic America. It’s a surprisingly quiet place,” Reb said as she admired the peaceful landscape of their ranch.
Giles took a sip of tea, then replied, “You wouldn’t be saying that if we lived in the big city. It’s a noisy mess, with massive amounts of construction. The traffic is awful when we drive int
o town for work.”
Reb straightened a few strands of hair on her immaculate hairdo. “I agree. The commotion is part of the reason why we built our property in an unincorporated section next to the city. It’s also easier for us to find privacy out here.”
The couple owned a large house instead of a mansion. They had plenty of money to build a large and elaborate property, but they did not think it was necessary. As a hobby and part-time job, Reb and Giles bred a variety of ponies to bring new life into the world. It was a refreshing change of pace after experiencing the Apocalypse’s huge death toll. The ponies galloped freely within the perimeters of their pens. Naturally, Reb and Giles paid professional staff to take care of their ponies.
Reb was a thin, petite woman with hair that was nearly black. Her current hairstyle was a semi-bobbed cut that could fit underneath her elaborate Steampunk hats. On the porch, she wore a sleek blue dress that was somewhat conservative. She had on black hosiery and grafted boots that were still feminine, but they also had elements from the Wild West. Her gloves were made out of thick leather that would be good for industrial work. Reb’s earrings were shaped like metal gears to fit the Steampunk theme. She suffered from a permanent limp that was courtesy of the deceased Boris. As a result, Reb used a sturdy brass cane that she preferred to call a baton. It remained by her side at all times. Overall, she was a classy and elegant woman who took her career and values quite seriously.
Giles was a good match for Reb. He was the youngest child of a British business owner who had run a successful construction company in Indianapolis. Giles and his siblings inherited the company after their father died. When the Apocalypse ended, they sold the rights of their father’s company to other business owners. Construction was a major industry in the Post-Apocalyptic era, and the Hyde family earned an immense profit when they sold the company.
Giles had a short haircut, and a beard that was neatly trimmed. He was thin with an athletic body structure. While they sat on the porch, he wore a Victorian style suit with several Steampunk influences. His belt was laced with bullets and his coachman hat was decorated with small chains and gears. Giles also wore industrial gloves and his grafted boots were very sturdy. He was a very serious man who had a professional and strict approach to business matters. In fact, he was very serious about nearly every aspect of his life. The Apocalypse gave him a different perspective on the world and people in general.
The Post-Apocalyptic Society: A Nelson and Hyde Revolution Page 1
