A Twofold Tale

On Al’bassita, Aziz Elbaz is released from prison on preventive custody. The maximum of 10 days’ imprisonment for accused suspects has passed and even if Nizam Mafoud doesn’t like it, it’s the law. Ali returns to his brother’s villa, to his brother’s wives, and to his paramour Asra. The atmosphere is effervescent; with Asra’s squad training every day in the back yard, Aziz’s band practicing for the upcoming concert, and resistance meetings about planning and communicating for the next big people’s protest against both the article 480 and the new censorship law.

The same day that Aziz (Ali) is released, Nizam Mahfoud goes to Yasser Tabet’s villa again to rant and rave. Once again deprived of his cigar at the door by Mounir Jafari, his allure is one of a madman. Yasser greets him calmly. “Al Salam Alaykoum Si Nizam, what brings you to my office?”

Nizam doesn’t bother with the salutations “First, the secretary goes. You should have gotten her outta here already!”

Kabira dashes out like a mouse running from an alley cat.

“Now, I have some news. We’re building a new hidden prison in the desert for political dissidents.”

“Interesting, and how does that concern me?”

“Well firstly, you might just find yourself there if you keep playing me for a fool.”

“I have no idea what you’re alluding to Mr. Mahfoud.”

“Sure. Well here’s the rest of the news; the construction of the prison is being sabotaged daily, and we know that it’s those Berbers that are doing it. But you know what? Asra Hanadi is one of them, and she and Aziz Elbaz went to visit them just before the sabotage started. That’s when we caught them for having sex outside of marriage. No one can tell me that they’re not behind this. Elbaz certainly paid the Berbers. You know how they are; they’ll work for anyone who pays them. That prison was top-secret. I don’t know how Elbaz learned of it, but he did. Another thing, do you know what Elbaz and Hanadi dared to do? They’ve brought a court action against the police for unnecessary aggression!”

“Was the violence necessary? They’d announced that they were handing themselves in. I’d take court action too if was in their place.”

“In any case it was merited. They’ve stolen top secrets from the Department of the Interior! From my office! They couldn’t have got the information anywhere else! I’ll see them both tried for treason, for plotting to overthrow the government, and they’ll end up in front of a firing squad, I swear it!”

“You don’t have any proof though, do, you?”

“Has that ever stopped me from getting my way with the law? They’ve hired one of the best attorneys in the kingdom, but it’s just money wasted! They might have just as well hired the worst! I’m not going to sit here and let those two fucking agitators interfere with my plans. The new censorship law will be passed, the prison will be built, and with the new stunner drones we’ll start filling that prison up with anyone who’s a danger to my government!”

“What’s this about stunner drones? Another secret of the Department of the Interior?”

Nizam bites his lip until it bleeds. “Yes, Mr. Tabet, I had them manufactured in Al Naqab, because they’re highly advanced in military drones. The first ones have already been delivered. I was just waiting for the prison to start putting them to use, but maybe we’ll have to start using them before the prison is built. If I have to, I’ll use the old 18th century prison of the Christian slaves. It’s been closed down for 300 years, but I’ll open it back up! Ha! That’d be something! Just holes in the ground without any windows or doors! Just met them try and stop me! No one can get in my way!”

Yasser has begun to realize that Nizam Mahfoud has crossed over into another world, one of insanity, where he’s the ruler of the country. But he’s learned a lot today, and he’ll make sure to use it against this hideous creature.

Mahfoud storms out, and as soon as he’s gone Yasser calls Mounir Jafari, his majordomo, and Kabira into his office and relates everything that Mahfoud said.

“In all my years of service at the Royal Palace, I never heard anything so terrible. What has this country come to?” The old man can’t fathom how Mahfoud has managed to become so powerful.

“Can I go for the day Mr. Tabet? I’ll take the news to Aziz and all the others. They should be warned.” Kabira is in tears.

“Go ahead my dear. There’s no work to be done here that can’t wait.”

As she’s leaving she takes Mahfoud’s cigar butt from the brass ashtray outside the front door thinking “Maybe Chimere can use this.” Back at Aziz’s villa, she finds her and gives it to her telling her where it came from.

“You’re right, maybe I can pick up something from it.” Chimere holds the butt and concentrates hard. A look of disgust comes over her face and she heaves everything that was in her stomach.

“What’s wrong? What did you see?”

“Nothing that could help us. The man is a sadist, and he gets his thrills working over adolescents, both girls and boys. He likes to burn their private parts with his cigar.”

Kabira can’t keep quiet, and everything that Mahfoud said spreads, becoming worse with each telling. Where the air was full of enthusiasm, now it’s thick with anxiety. At the next resistance meeting, everyone is present, with all of Asra’s team, and everyone in the band.

Scheherazade leads the meeting. “I think that everyone has heard the latest news about Nizam Mahfoud, perhaps even a bit exaggerated. So, let’s focus on the essentials: first, He’s already charged Aziz and Asra with transgression of the article 480 for having slept together, and they’ve admitted to the crime. It’s a minor one, so Aziz doesn’t risk a lot, perhaps 2 months in prison max. Their attorney has filed a suit for unnecessary use of aggression, call it police brutality, and they’re likely to win. Next, it’s true that Asra broke into Mahfoud’s office and stole plans for a hidden political prison, along with plans for drones to fire stunners at people like us so they can take us to the prison. It’s true that we paid Asra’s tribe to sabotage the construction of the prison, which they’ve been doing. Mahfoud put two and two together and it made four. He knows all of this, but he doesn’t have any proof. The end result is that he’s enraged and that he wants Aziz and Asra’s heads. He wants to charge them with treason and have them executed. Lastly, drones have already been delivered, we knew that but we don’t know where they are, and Mahfoud wants to start using them. He’s threatened to reopen the terrible old Kara prison and use it instead of the one he was building. I think that about sums up the whole situation. The question now is if we change our plans or continue along the same lines that we’ve been preparing for.”

Ali speaks up, “Because this concerns Asra and me more than anyone else, if she agrees I say we continue. In fact, it’s even more important that we do. If we could locate the drones maybe we could put them out of order. Does anyone here know any tech geeks, someone who might know something about electronic warfare?”

Asra is determined, “I agree with Aziz, Mahfoud wants our necks, not yours, and it’s a risk we we’ve been prepared to take since we started this. Can you imagine what it will be like in this country if he succeeds with his plans?”

Everyone is silent, seeming to have nothing to add, so Ali continues, “I guess no one knows any tech geeks. Everyone agrees that the concert and the protest will go on as planned? How about our song to lift our spirits? You all seem completely devastated!”

They sing “We Gotta Move” and spirits start to come back. After a few days everything is back to normal and everyone is impatient to act. The concert is for the first Saturday night in September, and the protest march is for the next day, so that Aziz Elbaz can participate in both. Also, they want to rally as many people as they can with the concert. It’s a big one, outside in the city’s biggest stadium.

The concert is a huge success, with a turnout of around 70,000 fans, and Ali makes a speech like he did when he stood in for Aziz at the last concert,

“I’d like to take a minute between songs to speak to you all from the heart. At our last concert I spoke about the new censorship law and the need to stop it. I had just been beaten by the police at the demonstration the night before and almost had to cancel the concert. That was almost three months ago, and things have gotten a lot worse since. You all know how Asra Hanadi and I were beaten when we were arrested for having consensual sex outside of marriage. We’re still facing that charge, and we’ve filed a suit for police brutality. What you don’t know is that Nizam Mahfoud tried to pin the rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl on me on my wedding night with Kabira. When he didn’t succeed he covered the whole affair up because he controls the media. So, you might ask yourselves, ‘What good does it do to protest against a censorship law when the government already controls all of the media?’ And you’re completely right to ask that question. The problem goes a lot deeper than just a censorship law. How many of you agree that it should be a criminal offence for consenting adults to make love without being married? I’m sure you agree with me that our laws are outdated and hypocritical. What’s worse, Nizam Mahfoud has so much power that he can have anyone arrested and even found guilty when they’re innocent. We need a change of government. You all love our king, but he’s been manipulated and now it’s time for the people to put the power back into his hands. Tomorrow there’s another demonstration, both against the censorship law and the article 480. I want you all to be there, and demonstrate not only for these things, but for a change in government. In every city let us all stand up for our king, for our country, and for our rights. Let me tell you something, there have been enormous protests before in the world that have changed the course of history, but if there ae only a couple thousand protestors, Nizam Mahfoud will just smash the demonstration with riot police and the military. You can be sure that both will be there to meet us tomorrow, but in numbers we will hold the power. Any efforts to repress millions of people will fail, and we will be victorious. The fascists are already in power, let’s do away with them. Let’s take this country back. I want you all to sing with me now. Scheherazade, I, and our band will sing through the song once, then I want everyone to stand and sing it with us the second time. And we’ll see you on the front lines of the protest tomorrow! Are you ready? Let’s go! Everyone on your feet!” They sing the revolutionary song.

“You may be high, you may be low,

you may be rich child, you may be poor.

Come along, get ready, you gotta move.

In the sky above and down here below,

Somethin’s a happenin’ and you oughta know.

Come along, get ready, we gotta move.

They say the word is stronger than the sword.

Make yourself heard. Come on, climb aboard.

Get on this train, come on now, we gotta move.

The time has come to take a stand.

Get off your ass now and lend a hand.

Come along, get ready, you gotta move.

They say the calm comes after the storm.

Storm clouds are gatherin’. We won’t take it no more.

It’s gonna rain hard before the sun comes shinin’ through.”

As the song ends the whole concert hall is alive and the cheers go up, “Aziz! Aziz! Aziz! Aziz Elbaz!” Like the first time, Scheherazade is visibly moved. Her Aziz is the incredibly talented leader of a famous band, but Ali is a leader of men, and the crowd is enkindled. After the concert celebration is everywhere in the streets. The people want change. Just as Ali, Scheherazade, Kabira, and Asra are about to climb into a Limousine which has come to pick them up the stadium, police cars arrive sirens blaring and surround them. Ali and Asra look at each other, thinking the same thing… “Not again!” An officer’s voice sounds out from a loudspeaker “Everyone stay where you are, hands on your heads.” The police get out of their cars pointing their pistols. One of them walks up to Ali, “Aziz Elbaz?”

“Yes, officer, what can I do for you?”

“You’re under arrest for inciting terrorism and violence and for plotting to overthrow the government. Put your hands behind your back.”

The others watch as Ali is arrested and taken away. After they leave fans are all around the three women, asking what’s going on. They get in the limo and go. Scheherazade calls Yasser to tell him what’s just happened.