1-9-21 - Zarathustra

 Zarathustra

IDEA - 1-9-21

by

Patrick Ryan

In this alternate history, humans have lived without moral guidance which enables evil to thrive without any means of eliminating it. Humans exist without a sense of security knowing that pain could come to them or anyone they love, at any time. Then one day, Zarathustra came out of the sky. Some say he is an extraterrestrial, some say he is a god, while the majority consider him a superhero. He has the powers and abilities of Superman; being bulletproof, fireproof, being able to move faster than sound and shoot laser beams out of his eyes. He also has no discernible weakness —  not even the fake Kryptonite. He is additionally gifted with the ability to read people's minds.  If he is close by, he will be able to pick up on your brain waves, read your memories, and see all of the evil deeds you've ever been part of, past and present.  The human race had their prayers answered. In the first few years after Zarathustra had been on this Earth, all wars had ended, the human race flourished, and nearly all manifestations of evil had been eradicated or concealed. Gone were the days of forced labor, mass murder, and cruelty to others. Zarathustra had a top ten; like a bounty hunter, he roams the Earth looking to arrest evil humans in which he encounters. Yet, good and bad are mostly found in the grey area. That's why as a code of ethics, Zarathustra feels something questionable should be up for the courts to rule. But, for the most part, Zarathustra's testimony is enough to convict so it ends up being a death sentence anyway. Politics, money, and ethnicity still provide leniency to people who most likely don't deserve it. It is most certainly a good thing that Zarathustra was not the executioner, that is way too much power for one being. Years had gone by, and this system seemed to be working pretty well for everyone. But all it took was arresting the wrong man and Zarathustra's role on Earth began to be questioned. Mark Sampson, the fourth richest man in America, was arrested on allegations that he intentionally used his website to produce favorable propaganda for a military unit that had killed 1,000 members of a competing ethnicity living within its borders. Although this happened 20 years ago, Zarathustra read his mind when he encountered him at a technology conference in Silicon Valley. Keeping with his code, he let human juries decide his fate. Mark Sampson was arrested at the conference. The arrest of this powerful figure was the beginning of the end. Mark Sampson, CEO of the largest social media firm on this planet, managed to weaken Zarathustra's credibility sufficiently to create skepticism among the public. Political comments turned humans against Zarathustra. "If he can do this to me, he can do this to any of you!" Most humans decided that they did not like the fact that God lived on their planet and told him to leave and not come back. Not even a superhero God could control the infectious thoughts of the evil man. All it takes is a little fear for humans to revert to their old uncertain ways.