170

Bjorn woke up right before the alarm on his mobile was about to go off. He had slept like a log and felt superbly well rested despite having had one of his uncomfortable dreams. The medicine must have taken the sting out of the dream. He had been more active in his dream than usual, defending himself as it were, holding the goblins at a distance and refusing to succumb to despair.

There had been the usual episode with him and his ex. But this time he had a ready answer for her. He was where he was because he felt like it, and with that simple answer she was gone. However, she returned later in his dream, this time with a sheet of paper in her hand. It was the official inheritance document which he had sent to the local tax office for them to calculate the inheritance tax. It was the document that had put him hopelessly in debt to the tax office, and when she asked him why he had signed it Bjorn was again lost for words.

But he did not react in despair. He simply observed that his ex had a point, and that he should not have signed it, at least not before checking that the stipulated value of the inheritance was in fact correct. It was a stupid mistake, a ruinous mistake, but nevertheless an understandable one. He had acted in good faith. He had nothing to be ashamed of. If anyone should be ashamed, it was his ex for abandoning him as soon as it was clear that he was bankrupt and in eternal debt to the state.

The thought of his hopeless economic situation did not bother him even as he rose out of bed. The situation was as it was, and he had to deal with it as such. Lamenting the situation was not going to set anything right. And this insight was strangely liberating. There had to be a solution to the problem, he felt, and he could almost hear his children beg him to do it, whatever they meant by that. "Do it for us," they had pleaded in his dream, begging him to take some action, and Bjorn had replied, "yes of course," as if he had understood exactly what they meant and knew exactly what to do.

However, these were but episodes in a larger dream dominated by the citizens of Lundby, but also featuring people like Odd the painter, and Ingunn with her wild and surreal interpretation of the world. Odd had painted a ship for her on a large canvas, and she stepped into it as if it was a real ship. "Let us join Jesus and Mother Earth in holy matrimony," she exclaimed from the stem of the ship. And with those words it sailed out of the canvas on a cloud of frothy water. Then, to everyone's consternation, she vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving a large blank spot on the canvas.

The vanishing act took place in Pedro's apartment. Bjorn was there together with a large group of people. They had come to see the painting, and now it was ruined. Odd was there too, and immediately picked up his pencils to repair the damage, excusing himself for having painted the ship a little too life like.

"This is what happens when you invite people like Ingunn to your house," Frederico commented dryly to Pedro in the back of the room.
Pedro chuckled and shook his head. He did not seem the least bit concerned about what had just happened. "It is a good thing we have Odd here, isn't it?" he commented. Then he pointed to Bjorn, calling out his name and telling him to behave on Tuesday, making it clear that it would be a grave mistake to disappoint him.

Bjorn did not know what to say, but Katinka was suddenly there, right next to him. "It's quite simple, really," she explained. "The whole thing is a network. If you push the red button and then make a quick calculation before pushing the green button, you'll be fine. But whatever you do, do not push the green button before the red."
"Is that so?" Bjorn asked, puzzled.
"Nah, just beat him about the head with a plank," Einar suggested. "That's the quickest and easiest solution."
"You're mad," Bjorn protested.
Then he heard a cold feminine voice asking "who you calling mad?" When Bjorn turned to look, he stared into the ice cold gaze of Jan's two daughters. Behind them stood Ane and Ola, both dressed like villains from an old Western. "You should be a little careful about who you call mad down here in good old Lundby," Ane added, putting her hand on the handle of the large pistol strapped to her thigh.
"Oh my. Here we go again!" said another voice. It was Olga, and she was clearly unimpressed by the other ladies. "It's all show and no substance. Take no notice of them."
Tyrone was there too, chuckling to himself. "If you think Lundby is crazy, you should try Liberia," he said, smiling from ear to ear. "That's crazy, if you know what I mean."

And then there was suddenly music. Elisabeth and Aung started singing, and everybody were praising the Lord and swinging from side to side. "Hallelujah, hallelujah. Praise the Lord. We are the citizens, and we will inherit the Earth."

There was much more to the dream, but Bjorn was getting ready for breakfast, and his memory of the dream was fading rapidly. However, the overall feel of the dream stuck with him. The fact that he had not woken up with a start was a victory to him. He had observed and even enjoyed the challenges in his dream. The medicine had definitely helped calm his nerves, and he felt ready to face the world. Not with apprehension, but with anticipation. He was genuinely looking forward to what the day might bring.

125

Bjorn quite enjoyed his conversation with Frederico. There was nothing pushy or pretentious about the way Frederico explained his theology, and Bjorn found it quite refreshing to be able to ask straight forward questions without feeling a need to watch his language or defend his secular views.

Frederico did not seem the least bit anxious to convert anybody. He was obviously convinced that he had it all figured out, and that people would see things his way once it had been explained properly to them, making it quite counter productive to be pushy in any way.

But the conversation was broken off just as Bjorn was starting to warm up to the idea of the empire and the kingdom. A tall black woman entered the church from the side, shortly followed by an Asian woman who Bjorn immediately recognized as Aung.

"Isn't that just typical?" the black woman said. "You go off ahead of us, saying you will get things ready, and then you just hang around talking to strangers... You haven't done a thing, have you?"

Frederico did not answer, but told Bjorn and Ante that this was his wife, Elisabeth. Then he turned to Aung, introducing her too to Ante and Bjorn. And for a moment they all did their little polite routine, shaking hands while telling Elisabeth and Frederico how they knew Aung from Nora's place, and that Bjorn had even met Aung at Ane's factory on Wednesday.

"It's a small place, this village," Elisabeth commented. "Not exactly São Paulo."
"No, you're right about that," Frederico said with a nod and a smile.
"So you're from São Paulo?" Bjorn asked.
"Yep. That's where we met."
"And you're from Burma, aren't you?" Bjorn asked, turning to Aung.
"Well, how did you know?" Aung asked.
"Didn't you tell me that yourself?"
"Did I? I don't know."
"Well, anyway, with a name like Aung..."

Aung nodded, clearly pleased with Bjorn's attention to details. Then, Elisabeth called off the small talk, noting that people would be coming to the church any moment, and that there was no time to waste.

The two women disappeared into a small room to the side, emerging a little later, each wearing a robe, covering their semi-formal attire.

However, Frederico did not let his wife's playful nagging distract him from continuing his conversation with Bjorn. Frederico lit two candles, one on each side of the alter, and proceeded to turn on some lights in the ceiling, while continuing on his little lecture.

"Any entity trying to interfere in our direct communication with Him is by its very nature evil," Frederico explained. "And the greatest and fiercest entity of this kind today is the state."

"The state tries to deceive us into thinking that there is somehow a need for authority above and beyond Jesus and His law. And the state makes the claim that our belief in God and the Golden Rule is somehow occult and irrational, while in fact, it is the state that is based on an irrational and deeply occult presumption."

"The state assumes authority where no authority has been given, and the state enforces its authority by systematically breaking the Golden Rule."

"The state is in fact a false religion, demanding everyone's loyalty from the moment they are born, claiming a contract exists between it and every person born within it's realm."

"It is perverse to the extreme. Imagine the insanity of such a claim!"

Bjorn looked blankly at Frederico, not quite getting what he was driving at. But once again, Frederico did not mind Bjorn's reluctance or inability to make sense of what he was saying.

"You are Norwegian, I take it," Frederico asked.
"Yes I am," Bjorn confirmed.
"So you have to pay taxes to the Norwegian state, right?"
"Yes, like everyone else in Norway."
"And why exactly do you have to pay these taxes."
"Well... It's the law."
"And you will be put in jail if you try to avoid this, right?"
"Yes."
"Which violates the Golden Rule, does it not?"
"Yeah, I guess so."

Frederico took a short break to let this last point sink in. Then he continued.

"The state claims the right to your hard earned money based on a fiction called the Social Contract. And to believe in this fiction requires such a leap of faith that the resurrection dims in comparison."

"How can anyone really believe that a newly born baby has signed a contract, and that this contract requires it to live a life in bondage to the state?"

"Only the most evil of religions deny a person the right to leave."
"But that's not true," Bjorn protested. "Anyone is free to leave, if they wish."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I can change my citizenship if I please."
"But then you're still the property of some state. Change of citizenship does not free you from the state. It merely moves you from one jurisdiction to another."

Bjorn nodded.

"Okay. So what?"
"Well, don't you see? The state insists we must believe in the so called Social Contract, and that we are tied to it from birth. Yet, no such contract exists. It is as occult as it gets. Believing in it makes you an idol worshipper, and makes you accept laws that are in direct violation with the Golden Rule."

"The state drives a wedge between people and God, obscuring the eternal truth, while seeking to replace it with its own phoney theology."

"The state is also dangerous in other ways," Frederico continued. "By its claim that it holds authority over us, and that its laws are valid despite of being in direct violation with the Golden Rule, it inspires blind obedience in its worshippers, an obedience towards evil, no less. And countless are the people murdered and slaughtered and imprisoned by the followers of the state."

"The state is of Satan, no less. It is pure evil, even in its most moderate form."
"Well, that's a bit rich isn't it?" Bjorn said, a little amused with Frederico's hyperbole.
"You think so?"
"Yes. I think you'd be more convincing if you did not exaggerate so much."
"So why don't you give me an example of a moderate state, and I'll show you how evil it actually is."

Bjorn shook his head.

"How about Norway?" he said.
"Well, that's easy," Frederico said with a smile. "Even I have heard about Odd and how he's being tortured for not paying his taxes."
"But tax evasion is a crime," Bjorn protested.
"Says who?"
"Well, the state."
"Exactly."

Bjorn, seeing how he was trapped in Frederico's logic, gave his defence of the state a final go.

"So, what are you suggesting?" Bjorn asked. "That we stop paying taxes? How will that work out?"
"It will work out just fine," Frederico replied. "I know, because that is what Jesus would have wanted."
"Chaos?"
"No. Order. It is the state that throws innocent people in jail. Jesus never suggested anything like that."
"So we should just abandon the state? Is that what you suggest?"
"That is indeed what I suggest."
"So that is what this whole Fifth Empire thing is about?" Bjorn asked. "You suggest we all join this empire as an alternative to the state. Isn't that the same as just joining nothing, becoming a recluse as it were."
"No. There is a big difference between becoming a recluse and being a citizen of the empire. A citizen is not merely against the state, a citizen is for the Fifth Empire, the community of people living together according to the Golden Rule."

103

After telling Ante that they were feeling fine, apart from a mild hangover, Thomas confronted Ante with the fact that he had completely lost control last night, and got himself terribly drunk.

"And you were supposed to be our designated driver," Thomas said, clearly disappointed.
"Well, I was doing fine right until Bjorn came in, suggesting we all take a taxi home," Ante protested.
"No, you were not. You already had way too much to drink."
"I did not! I was drinking the occasional alcoholic beverage, but I was mainly sticking to soft drinks. I was in total control. It was you guys who suggested we take a taxi."
"Because you already had too much to drink," Thomas said, a little exasperated.
"Well... Anyway... Once we decided to order a taxi, there was no need for me to restrain myself, was there?"

There was a pause as Ante took a sip of water from his glass.

"So you know Igor, do you?" Bjorn asked, changing the subject somewhat.
"Yes, he's a good friend of mine," Ante answered with a smile.
"So why did you blank out completely when I told you there's a taxi service in Lundby?"
"I did?"
"Yeah, you did. But Igor must have told you about his taxi service. He's a pretty talkative guy."
"Sure is... Well... Now that you mention it, I thought you were talking about one of those old fashion services. You know... the type you have down in Oslo."
"And?"
"Well... I couldn't quite see it working up here. Lundby is a tiny village after all... But you're right. Igor told me all about it... He even had me download the app on my smartphone."
"And still you didn't make the connection when I told you about the taxi?"
"You know... You really caught me a little off guard when you came in... And I don't see why you're making such a fuss about this... Here, have a look at this... This is the app."

Ante fished his smartphone out of his pocket and clicked on an icon of a car, holding the smartphone at an angle to let Bjorn watch while he demonstrated it.

"So, if you want a lift, you simply type in your location here, and up comes the list of available cars."
"Looks like Igor is offline," Bjorn commented, seeing Igor's name greyed out.
"Yes, he's probably deep asleep, or just getting up... Anyway, if I set the time that I want to get a car to this evening, he might again be available."

Ante typed in nine PM, and sure enough, Igor's name was no longer greyed out.

"But look what happens if I type in some far off place like Oslo as the destination," Ante continued, typing in an address off the top of his head. "You see how Igor is greyed out again."
"Yeah, why?"
"It's because the trip will take too much time... You see here... It says that Igor cannot take the assignment because it takes too much time, interfering with other assignments... Now, if we push this button we'll get a list of all those available to take this particular job... And... as you can see, there's no cars available for this particular lift."
"Cool... and if you type in a different destination?" Bjorn asked. "What happens?"

Ante typed in Lundby village square, and up came a list with three cars, with Igor's name on top.

"And why is Igor's name on top?" Bjorn asked, curious to learn more.
"Because we used him last night, and I gave him excellent marks for his service," Ante explained.
"Well, that's great," Bjorn exclaimed, genuinely impressed.
"It is, isn't it?" Ante agreed. "You'll find it online too. In case you don't have a smart phone."

Bjorn took a sip of his coffee, thinking back to the recent unrest related to rogue taxi services in Oslo, and how the new government finally clamped down on it with full force after a particularly violent riot.

"So this is the service those anarchists in Oslo were so fiercely against?" Bjorn asked.
"Well... This, and similar services," Ante corrected. "They were pretty fierce, those rioters, weren't they? Imagine tricking all those driver into that square, and then come out and beat them up with bats and rocks and whatnot."
"And what for?" Bjorn asked rhetorically. "The poor drivers were helping people get from A to B."
"Tax evasion, Bjorn. Tax evasion," Ante said earnestly.
"Yeah but still, they almost killed one of the drivers," Bjorn protested.
"And then they locked them all up in jail together with the rioters," Thomas added. "Imagine being locked up with those thugs... I'm pretty sure they put them together intentionally, just to rub it in."

There was a pause while the men contemplated the riots that had taken place right after the elections.

"They are a bunch of perverted sadists," Thomas commented, clearly disgusted by what happened.
"Who? The anarchists?" Ante asked.
"Yeah... But the law enforcers aren't much better, are they? Putting those poor drivers in jail together with those psychopaths."
"True," Ante agreed.
"And it's not like it is the first time they did something like that." Thomas continued.
"No?" Bjorn asked, not able to think of a similar episode.
"You remember what they did to Odd, don't you?" Thomas asked.
"The painter?" Bjorn asked.
"Yeah... Locking him up two years... Also for tax evasion." Thomas explained. "With no access to paint, brushes, canvas, pencils... Did you hear what they did when they found him with some paper and a couple of pencils?"
"No, what happened?"
"They locked him in an isolation cell for a week."
"Really?"
"Yeah, it never got a mention anywhere, except briefly by Odd's lawyer, who promptly got replaced by another guy."
"You're kidding," Bjorn said shocked, but also feeling pretty sure that Thomas was exaggerating, and making things sound worse than they were.
"Look it up! The tweet was promptly removed, but you can still find copies of it on the web. And you'll also learn that Odd's lawyer was replaced due to so called irregularities... And have you seen any recent pictures of Odd, by the way?"
"No... The last ones I saw, he was still in court, fighting for his freedom."
"He looked pretty haggard even then, but you should see him now!"
"Yeah?"
"He's a wreck... They are killing him. That's what they are doing. They are making an example of him. People will think twice before trying to evade taxes again when they see what they did to Odd, and how things went with the drivers."

There was again a pause. Bjorn sent Ante a concerned look, sensing that Thomas was getting a bit too excited.

"But tax evasion is a pretty serious crime," Ante suggested.
"Worse than beating someone almost to death?" Thomas asked.
"No, but..."
"Well, the rioters were let out two months ago. The drivers, on the other hand, are all still locked up. Even Lars, the leader of the rioters is out in the free after having organized this whole episode... And now he's up to no good again, heading the anti-Lundby protests."

And that was it, of course. That was where Bjorn had seen the retro punker before. Bjorn knew there was something familiar about the man, but had completely forgotten that he was the one behind the taxi riots last fall.

"I knew I'd seen that anarchist before," Bjorn exclaimed glibly.
"You know," Thomas said, turning to Bjorn. "It's completely idiotic to call that guy an anarchist. Have you ever heard of a tax collecting anarchist? How is that even possible? Anarchist are supposed to be against the state, not working for it."
"Well... it is kind of anarchist to take the law into your own hand, isn't it?" Ante commented in Bjorn's defence.
"No, it is not?" Thomas protested. "Doing that makes you a vigilante, not an anarchist. Anarchists leave people alone."
"I think people like Lars will disagree," Ante countered. "I'm pretty sure I heard him refer to himself as an anarchist the other day."
"I'm sure he does," Thomas said, nodding wearily. "But he is not an anarchist as long as he insists on other people living by his rules. That only makes him an aspiring ruler, a thug convinced that his rules must be followed by others, no matter what."

There was again a pause. Then, Ante broke the silence by saying that he had a hard time getting the image of rock throwing thugs out of his head whenever the word anarchist was used.

"And that is probably why they call themselves citizens down in Lundby," Thomas commented. "The only true anarchists are the gentle anarchists. Everyone else is just out to dominate their fellow men."