Through the Looking Glass: Finding the Red Queen of Mars
Part three of a four part VICE special
By César Ortiz, VICE Mars
"Anarchy wears two faces, both Creator and Destroyer. Thus Destroyers topple empires; make a canvas of clean rubble where creators can then build a better world."
-Alan Moore, V for Vendetta
This isn't what I expected.
Granted, I'm not really sure what I expected. The Nightingales didn't seem particularly impressed by me the last time we talked, if the whole 'blindfolds and sedatives' shindig was anything to go on. I sure as hell wasn't thinking I'd meet up with them again, but hey, journalism's a bit of a masochistic profession. But here I am, in one of the so-called "Illegal" settlements, with my old friend Mukhtar and his Commando showing me around on the top of one of their
tachankas. God only knows who let this merry band of revolutionaries get their hands on jeeps and machine guns, or who the bright asshole was that gave them the idea to combine them, but anything that's described as part of a "roving deathsquad" gives me the creeps. The fact that I might get out alive if one of the Society's many enemies showed up is only a small consolation.
Oh, right. Did I mention they were the ones who invited me here? And that I'm going to be the first journalist to have an actual interview with al-Malika ever?
Eat your heart out, Pulitzer committee.
'From Gorchakov with Love'- a local 'Illegal' artist's rendition and commentary on life in the settlement of Nazran
I'm reflecting on how strange the settlements have become lately when I'm taken to the modest house (more of an upscale shack, if we're splitting hairs) the Society's Director is supposedly residing in. Over the course of a few years, they've been swayed over to friendship with the revolutionaries who claim to lead a "Greater Movement". Perhaps it's because here, of all places, the Nightingale roots as a left-leaning humanitarian group are still the most evident. While the group's armed operatives -several of which are rumored to be new arrivals, fresh out of Earth's New Weathermen, Irish People's Liberation Army, and the Russian Insurrectionist Brigades- are present, I can count more doctors, technicians, and activists than I can people who would probably kill me without a second thought.
Now, the moment of truth. I've gone from Mahd adh Dhahab, where I tried to gauge public opinion on the group before meeting Mukhtar, to the Illegals, only stopping to make sure we weren't followed. Inside the house, I light a cigarette and wait. Al-Malika's presumably a busy woman, I figure, but the Russian operative who greets me explains that she's doing her prayers, like any Muslim. More waiting, go figure.
When she finally enters the room, I have to admit my curiosity. Neither exceptionally young or old, gorgeous or plain, the main thing that stands out is the weird juxtaposition of intensity and modesty. She's wearing a long, loose-fitting shirt over old denim, with a headscarf that's easily recognizable from Greater Movement propaganda posters. But she frowns slightly upon noticing I'm smoking, and the scrutinizing look in her eyes makes me feel like I'm back in Catholic school with Sister Esperanza making sure I didn't forget to tuck my shirt in. Taking a seat, she gestures for the operative to leave and offers me a cup of coffee.
Al-Malika:
Salaam, Mr. Ortiz. Would you mind terribly if I asked you to stop smoking?
César Ortiz: Er, yeah. Sure. (
I hastily put my cigarette out on a nearby ashtray)
AM: I've never enjoyed the smell, even if this isn't my house. (
looking away for a moment) Isn't it strange? We've got the power to change entire worlds to our liking, but haven't cured cancer yet.
CO: Maybe it's one of those things we'll never be able to change?
AM: (
smiling slightly, for the first time) I don't believe that. There are very few things humanity can't change with enough willpower...did you know we've cut infectious disease rates here in half?
CO: I didn't, but I guess that's not surprising. You were a doctor once, right?
AM: A physician, and I still am. I never quit my day job.
CO: But obviously you're...you know...
AM: Wanted by several governments?
CO: Well, yes.
AM: (
sternly) Mukhtar tells me you're a smart man, Mr. Ortiz. You've heard our broadcasts. I don't think any of what I'm doing is mutually exclusive.
CO: With all due respect, it could be argued you've caused a lot of suffering. What about the Hippocratic Oath?
AM: To whom? The Russians? Jordan Jericho? Alfred Pleath? (
she sounds like she's trying to restrain herself) I didn't create class warfare or tyranny. I didn't ask for fascism, racism, and oligarchy.
CO: (
I pause, and I'm fairly sure she notes my discomfort) So what you're saying is that violence is an acceptable recourse.
AM: We've tried peace, Mr. Ortiz. We tried making a better world within the confines of the state and capitalism. It didn't work. Sometimes you have to cut out an infection instead of treating the symptoms.
CO: Right. (
taking a sip of coffee) So. They call you the Director of the Society. How does that work with the whole...anarchist thing?
AM: It's a common mistake to think that being opposed to political hierarchy means we lack a command structure. We're organized democratically, but I don't hold any more privileges than anybody else. I just make sure we don't get off track. That's what a director does. I don't mind leading...but asking others to follow without question doesn't sit well with me. (chuckling) Catiline says I'm a little shy that way. He doesn't talk to Arkady [the 'Delegate' in charge of the Bogdanovist Movement] much.
CO: They also call you 'the Queen'.
AM: Somebody's been learning Arabic. (
finishing her own coffee) Back in the old United States, there was a politician that said he wanted to make 'every man a king'. I disagree with that. We don't need policies to make that a reality. Every man and woman is a king and queen in their own right, masters of our own worlds. That's why I've taken my name. I am a Queen, just like the rest of us. Recognizing that is the first step.
CO: And what's the second?
AM: Revolution. Replacing our false leaders and idols with what's really sacred.
CO: Revolution and the salvation of Mars?
AM: First Mars, and then the rest. As you pointed out in your last article, I love all my comrades, including the Secretary-General and Citizen Guan Yu, but the Front is only a stepping stone. We'll make our way across the bridge soon enough.
CO: I see. And you really think you can win?
AM: We can. (
almost fervently) Even if everybody in the Society and Bogdanovists gets thrown in prison and executed, if Zakharov drags all of New Cumaná back to his hellhole and Jericho buys the whole planet. The Greater Movement will prevail. Sooner or later, everybody will open their eyes to the illusion of slavery. And we'll bury the oppressors under the sands of history. (
another long pause, and she looks out the window)
CO: Is there anything else you'd like to say? To your followers or enemies?
AM: I think I've said more than enough. If my enemies want to hear me out, they can try to find me. (
solemnly) There's something you should see. Will you stay for dinner? (
suddenly chuckling) If you don't mind eating vegetarian, that is.
Al-Malika, terrorist, practicing doctor, vegetarian
I say yes, because what the hell else can I do? I can't help but think to myself how much I'll probably regret this.
César Ortiz is a VICE Mars correspondent, currently known for his role as unwitting publicist to the Nightingale Society-Bogdanovist Movement. Through the Looking Glass
will conclude on Monday.