Paper Bag Princess
"Hey guys, gals, and non-binary pals, especially those who can't be here today..." The young heiress smiled at the holocam, then motioned the hovering eyebot to pan around the podium she was speaking at. It turned slowly, pulling back to encompass the impromptu stage which was little more than a flat area cleared of most of the debris. It was littered again with wires and speakers, with a few musical instruments left unattended behind the speaking teenager. As the floating holocam droid turned from the stage, the view finally began to sweep over the crowd assembled for the rally; the source of the cheers that had punctuated the background since she had paused her speech.
"And to those of you who are here, thank you!" She had to shout into the microphone to be heard now. Unseen by the eyebot, the Belazuran girl raised her hands for quiet. The crowd settled back into a buzzing hum, low enough that she could speak over them again. "You are all fantastic company. But we didn't just come here for the company, did we?"
"No!" The crowd shouted back eagerly, stepping quickly into their unrehearsed role. Finishing its sweep over the crowd, the eyebot started its way back to the speaking girl, slowly zooming in on her as it approached.
"Or the music..."
"NO!"
"So why are we here?" Zenitha Chuma asked the crowd, a knowing smile tugging at the corners of her somber mouth. The answer came as she pointed the eyebot up above her, prompting the holocam to look past the rally stage. It obliged, rising up until the holocam could broaden to take in the scene behind the makeshift stage, overlooking one of the latest scars upon the formerly-award-winning, beautiful, tourist planet of Belazura.
"THE VIEW!"
And what a view it was. The open, strip-mined pit behind her bared the full, brutal ugliness of its enterprise. Precious zersium had once nestled close to the planet's bedrock, found here in high concentrations. Belazura had always prided itself on maintaining these hidden gems as they were, part of the natural wonders and sights on a world that built so much of its reputation as a beautiful destination for tourists. Now it was gone, ripped away with layer upon layer of the land, just a cheap, easy source of profits for the Mining Guild. The mining equipment was pulling out, crews working to decommission what could be moved, and leaving the rest to rot. Soon the pit would fill with water, murky and sediment-laden, leeching the fallow minerals and heavy metals into the groundwater and poisoning the land around it.
Zenitha beckoned the eyebot back to her, letting the reflection of her pain-stricken face fill the lens. She wasn't smiling now, nor would she cry. It was her job to focus the issue, not the emotion around it. There was time for tears and rage in the background, in the quiet moments, when no one but her trusted allies were around to hear her. Here, in front of the crowds and in front of the cameras, the teen heiress had to be a tour guide for those on Belazura and beyond. "Isn't it awful?" She asked the question, but the eyebot couldn't answer. The crowd behind her did, muttering and shouting those words she couldn't say herself. Zenitha shook her head. "No, it's horrible!"
"This is what happens when we let the Mining Guild act without any regard to our planet. Governor Manfloon is supposed to be safeguarding our world, leading us to prosperity, and what does he do?" Zenith didn't wait for an answer this time, gesturing back to the mining pit behind her. "He invites this instead! Every person there reports back to him, every credit made from our land finds its way into his pocket!"
Someone in the crowd shouted. "It's not right!"
"No, it's not." The interjection threw the young heiress off her script, forcing her to improvise. Her eyes scanned out among the crowd, finding an ally in every face. Zenitha knew some among them were part of ZINO, and that one among them was her best friend from Denon. She brimmed with the strength of those here to help her. The young heiress found her smile again, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. There was a light at the end of this tunnel, all they had to do was find the switch. "It's not right at all."
The crowd chanted. "It's not right!"
"So what are we going do about it, huh?" Now Zenitha had a way back to her speech, designed to enlist the crowd in her cause today. They were primed and ready, it was even better now than the way she had rehearsed it with Maylon. The people at the rally had found their own voice, all they needed was for her to tell them how to use it. "Well, it's simple, you see? Look where we're standing."
Zenitha paused to let them do just that, pointing her face toward the road into the mine. She held up her hand, a little trick Maylon had suggested to guide them, as if it was hard to see under the soft, blue skies of her homeworld. Their overlook sat on a high point of the road, laden with the debris kicked up by the heavy repulsorlifts needed to bring all the heavy equipment into the mines. To bring them out again, they would need to use the same road.
Eventually the crowd began to see the same thing Zenitha knew, and a murmur of laughter went up.
"That's right, this is their only way out of the mine. So me," the teen heiress pointed at the eyebot's unblinking holocam, "and you," she swept her hand across the crowd, "and all of us," they made enough noise that Zenitha had to raise her voice again, "are going to stay here to keep the road blocked until the Mining Guild agrees to shut this down the right way."
The noise was loud now, and it was almost as if the crowd was goading her on.
"That means tearing down all their equipment...
That means filling in the mining pit...
That means replanting what they dug up...
And that means leaving it better than they found it!"
Zenitha grinned broadly now, awash in the crowd's response. She nodded off the stage to the musicians, who began to file back in to their places, much to the approval of the rally crowd. "We're going to stay here to block their road and keep the music going until the Mining Guild runs out of patience and agrees to our terms." She looked back at the holocam with a wink, "Or until we run out of credits. We're going to keep streaming as long as the donations are coming in, so let's do it, ZINO!"
The last thing the Rightful Heir of Belazura, and current environmental activist, Zenitha Chuma said to rile up her crowd was the best thing she could say to carry the momentum on for as long as needed.
"Occupy the mine!"
"And to those of you who are here, thank you!" She had to shout into the microphone to be heard now. Unseen by the eyebot, the Belazuran girl raised her hands for quiet. The crowd settled back into a buzzing hum, low enough that she could speak over them again. "You are all fantastic company. But we didn't just come here for the company, did we?"
"No!" The crowd shouted back eagerly, stepping quickly into their unrehearsed role. Finishing its sweep over the crowd, the eyebot started its way back to the speaking girl, slowly zooming in on her as it approached.
"Or the music..."
"NO!"
"So why are we here?" Zenitha Chuma asked the crowd, a knowing smile tugging at the corners of her somber mouth. The answer came as she pointed the eyebot up above her, prompting the holocam to look past the rally stage. It obliged, rising up until the holocam could broaden to take in the scene behind the makeshift stage, overlooking one of the latest scars upon the formerly-award-winning, beautiful, tourist planet of Belazura.
"THE VIEW!"
Zenitha beckoned the eyebot back to her, letting the reflection of her pain-stricken face fill the lens. She wasn't smiling now, nor would she cry. It was her job to focus the issue, not the emotion around it. There was time for tears and rage in the background, in the quiet moments, when no one but her trusted allies were around to hear her. Here, in front of the crowds and in front of the cameras, the teen heiress had to be a tour guide for those on Belazura and beyond. "Isn't it awful?" She asked the question, but the eyebot couldn't answer. The crowd behind her did, muttering and shouting those words she couldn't say herself. Zenitha shook her head. "No, it's horrible!"
"This is what happens when we let the Mining Guild act without any regard to our planet. Governor Manfloon is supposed to be safeguarding our world, leading us to prosperity, and what does he do?" Zenith didn't wait for an answer this time, gesturing back to the mining pit behind her. "He invites this instead! Every person there reports back to him, every credit made from our land finds its way into his pocket!"
Someone in the crowd shouted. "It's not right!"
"No, it's not." The interjection threw the young heiress off her script, forcing her to improvise. Her eyes scanned out among the crowd, finding an ally in every face. Zenitha knew some among them were part of ZINO, and that one among them was her best friend from Denon. She brimmed with the strength of those here to help her. The young heiress found her smile again, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. There was a light at the end of this tunnel, all they had to do was find the switch. "It's not right at all."
The crowd chanted. "It's not right!"
"It's not right!"
"It's not right!"
"It's not right!"
"It's not right!"
"It's not right!"
"It's not right!""So what are we going do about it, huh?" Now Zenitha had a way back to her speech, designed to enlist the crowd in her cause today. They were primed and ready, it was even better now than the way she had rehearsed it with Maylon. The people at the rally had found their own voice, all they needed was for her to tell them how to use it. "Well, it's simple, you see? Look where we're standing."
Zenitha paused to let them do just that, pointing her face toward the road into the mine. She held up her hand, a little trick Maylon had suggested to guide them, as if it was hard to see under the soft, blue skies of her homeworld. Their overlook sat on a high point of the road, laden with the debris kicked up by the heavy repulsorlifts needed to bring all the heavy equipment into the mines. To bring them out again, they would need to use the same road.
Eventually the crowd began to see the same thing Zenitha knew, and a murmur of laughter went up.
"That's right, this is their only way out of the mine. So me," the teen heiress pointed at the eyebot's unblinking holocam, "and you," she swept her hand across the crowd, "and all of us," they made enough noise that Zenitha had to raise her voice again, "are going to stay here to keep the road blocked until the Mining Guild agrees to shut this down the right way."
The noise was loud now, and it was almost as if the crowd was goading her on.
"That means tearing down all their equipment...
That means filling in the mining pit...
That means replanting what they dug up...
And that means leaving it better than they found it!"
Zenitha grinned broadly now, awash in the crowd's response. She nodded off the stage to the musicians, who began to file back in to their places, much to the approval of the rally crowd. "We're going to stay here to block their road and keep the music going until the Mining Guild runs out of patience and agrees to our terms." She looked back at the holocam with a wink, "Or until we run out of credits. We're going to keep streaming as long as the donations are coming in, so let's do it, ZINO!"
The last thing the Rightful Heir of Belazura, and current environmental activist, Zenitha Chuma said to rile up her crowd was the best thing she could say to carry the momentum on for as long as needed.
"Occupy the mine!"
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