Animals We've Become/The Revolution Will Not be Televised

**The Revolution Will Not be Televised** is the fifteen episode in Animals We've Become.

## Plot

Midnight, the time of night where it’s the middle of the night filled with nothing but darkness, horrific monsters and small goblins with gold and plunderous intentions in mind roam the night. A time where creatures large and small roam the streets looking for children to devour. At least that’s what I believed when I was younger. I don't believe in fairy tales anymore.

I sit on the bottom bunk in my cell, Mark’s loud slumbering was almost soothing as I tried to drift off to sleep. My mind wandered off to the plan we were to put into motion tomorrow morning after breakfast, can’t skip the most important meal of the day my grandfather used to say.

“G-G-G-Gl-Glenn.” AJ’s hushed whisper from the other cell awoke me from my attempt at sleeping. “You-you up?”

“Yeah, I have been for a while.” I respond. “Thinking about life and all that fucking shit.”

“I-I know what you m-m-m-mean.” AJ stammers. “A year a-ago we were getting pantsed by Jason in algebra, now we-we’re prisoners of Al-Alcatraz Island.”

“Well, I guess it’s not all that different. We’re told when to eat, when to read, when to exercise. We even have to ask permission to go to the bathroom. We’re constantly bombarded with pointless rules, ridiculous discipline, random searches, metal detectors, security cameras and pharmaceuticals designed to make everyone compliant and docile. We're also surrounded by bullies everywhere. This is a lot like being a student at the Bronx High School of Science… except that Alcatraz has better funding.”

“Y-yeah.” AJ simply responded. “C-Crazy.”

“Listen boys, I love that you’re reminiscing about the good times but I’m trying to get some fucking shut eye.” Sonnie snaps from the cell above us.

“S-Sorry S-Sonnie.” AJ muttered a half serious apology.

“It’s fine boy, get some fucking shut eye. Glenn’s needs it for tomorrow, afterall you’re both soldiers in a revolution.” Sonnie declared, “The Second American Revolution if you will.”

“What about Shays Rebellion?” I ask, “Wouldn’t that count as the second American Revolution?”

“Not really Glenn, that was a brief military conflict that only happened because some farmers were angry with the government, only lasted two days so I’d say that hardly counts. Afterall, it’s in the name. Shays Rebellion not the Second American Revolution.” Mark suddenly corrected.

“Mark, you’re up too?” I ask. “Thought you were asleep.”

“Nah, I was pretending to sleep just in case Lucas comes in for another hosing.” Mark reveals. “With Donnie away, someone’s gotta keep watch.”

I had nearly forgotten about the almost nightly hosing Lucas had given to us. Around the same time every night he’d come in with a fire hose and hose us down with Chris. They’d laugh in our faces and call us horrible insults.

“Now that’s the soldier in ya Mark, you should’ve joined the Army! Hoorah!” Sonnie laughed, I could hear he nearly fell off the bed.

“Well who would’ve stopped all those crimes in New York?” Mark laughs, “It’s always great being a hero but a small time one like a New York cop just suits me better, y’know.”

“I hear ya Mark.” I respond.

“Can you guys keep it down! Trying to get some sleep!” Trace yelled from the cell above us.

“Of course this guy has to get angry at us.” I mutter under my breath. I liked Trace but he had a tendency to act like he was the leader in Donnie’s absence when clearly I was. I mean I was chosen to be the star in this daring mission to seduce Julia Myers, the pure, virgin angelic queen of New Alcatraz.

“Sorry Trace!” Sonnie yelled back, “Back to bed soldiers. Time to get some fucking shut eye.”

“Is anyone else having trouble sleeping?” Trace said. He’d been sharing a cell with Sonnie. Fucking bullshit, I don’t see why I can’t bunk with Sonnie. He is like a Daddy to me, after all. “I mean… with the screaming and everything.”

Ah yes… the screaming. We’d been in Alcatraz for nearly two months now and I’d learned to tune it out. That fucking creep, Lucas laid a boney finger on Katie a few weeks back, forcing her to the point of tears. I wasn’t there to see it myself but I heard down the grapevine that she knocked him the fuck out. Must’ve been a real sight. I love a girl who could kick my ass. Either way, as punishment, Lucas had had Donnie moved to the cell block beside ours. Every night we could hear him screaming. No telling what that lunatic was doing to him. Probably finger stuff. Fucking deplorable.

“Yeah, it’s pretty tough.” I said. “Just try to ignore it.”

I woke up the next morning thankful that I didn’t get hosed. Looks like AJ did though, that or he pissed himself, again. He was curled up in his bed, facing the wall. There was still no sign of his crutches and Day By Day it was becoming more unlikely that they’d ever show up. I just know that son of a gun, Lucas had taken them. Without his crutches, AJ was nothing. Just a piece of cerebral palsied meat, pardon my french... I don’t know french though. Fucking hated Mrs. Bagel in French class. Fucking bitch. Who even cares about french people? All they do is lose wars! Anyway… they were a part of him. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll get them back. And then… I’ll have my revenge.

"Y’all sleepin on me, huh? Had a good SNOOZE?! Wake up my dear friends, wake up! It’s time to earn this paper!" said a guard telling us to wake up. He was the African man that always followed Jeb Ford, who was one of the Elite Four of New Alcatraz.His name was Adam and he was one of the nicer guards. He seemed like he was just following orders.

“Ya’ll have some sweet dreams?!” Jeb laughed, appearing from behind his right-hand man. “I know I did. I was dreaming about beer and waffles.”

“I actually did have a-” Trace began before Jeb fired his gun into the ceiling as a warning.

“OWWW, MY EARS! What the ff-f-f-f-f-ff-f-ff-f-f-f-"

“It was a rhetorical question fuckshit, if you know what that means, that is" Adam said.

“Enough medingly around.” JT’s soothing voice comes from the black man man’s radio. “Bring me Glenn, AJ, Meatloaf, the British chap and Trace Oxford."

“W-w-w-why? I did-did-didn’t peed my pents last night.”

“What the fuck ?” Jeb asks, disgusted.

“Let’s go. Don’t have time for this dumb shit.” Adam says opening the cell door. I held back my fists, I could totally take this guy in a fight. I just didn’t wanna beat him too hard. Especially since Jeb was also here.

When we got there, JT was waiting for us, alongside Steve Blackwell, the Captain of the Guard, and Moyers. Inside JT Myers' office, Katie's decapitated head laid on top of his desk, glazed like a ham.

"This is a certified New Alcatraz classic" Adam said.

“DAAAAAMN!” everyone shouted

“Lads… I have new--” Jeremy stopped dead in his tracks as he saw the crowd of people gathered around. “What’s going on? Let me see!” Everyone turned around and slowly parted like Moses parted the red sea. Jeremy dropped down on his knees. “Oh…. oh no…. My QUEEN! MY queeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen”

"You dramatic fuck. You're so dramatic. It pisses me off. You insecure fucking prick. I honestly can't stand you. Your brain… Your brain doesn't fucking work. You idiot. You're honestly an idiot." JT taunted Jeremy, revealing that he had known about his plans all along.

“How did you know?" Jeremy asked, on tears.

"It was me, Jeremy. I was always there." Lucas says. "I have ears and eyes everywhere in this prison. I know you and your girlfriend planned on overthrowing daddy. You're actually a dumbass for thinking you could do it by yourselves."

I noted that. He doesn't know we're a part of Jeremy's plan. I can still have my way with the Julia. So much for having eyes and ears everywhere, you absolute dolt.

"You're to be executed tonight. Take him away, Blackwell." JT ordered.

"Yes." Blackwell said, as he and Moyers manhandled Jeremy Agner out of the room.

"Now that we're done with it, I turn my attention to you lads." JT says, looking at me and Sonnie and AJ and Trace Oxford.

“We’re not your lads.” I respond, being tough.

“You’re right. You’re my prisoners of war.” JT corrects himself. “You will be witness to Jeremy’s execution later today. Let this be a reminder that you’re never going to leave this place. You’ll be protected at all costs.”

“Protection?! This is what you think protection is like?! Raptor never would’ve stood by this! Neither would Boozer.”

“You know as well as I do that they don’t matter. Raptor is dead and Boozer is AWOL.” JT explains.

“This is un-un-fair.” AJ mutters.

“Life’s unfair, stutterbug!” JT yells. “One day you’re working for a powerful government, the most powerful ever on Earth and then you find out your wife’s fucking her scumbag of a boss while you’re out on a business trip to Thailand. So yeah fucking idiot, life’s unfair. Get used to it.”

Sonnie broke out of his cuffs and jumped at JT. “You can’t talk to my friends like that!!! NOT AGAIN!”

Suddenly Vlad appears as a bookshelf falls down revealing a secret room in which Vlad was standing in, waiting in case something were to go wrong. He swings out his sickle, which cuts through Sonnie's rags, but doesn't cut his skin.

"You are very dumb, puny American fat man." Vlad sternly chuckles. “No comparison to mighty soviet machine like me.”

“We beat you before, we can beat you again!” Sonnie declares, referencing the fact the U.S beat the Soviet Union in the Cold War.

Vlad grabs Sonnie's head and smashes it against the desk, making the girl's head fly with the force of the blow. Lucas smirks as it falls down and rolls unto Jeb's feet, spooking the man.

“Head’s up! L-O-L” Jeb laughs as a defense mechanism. (He’s not ACTUALLY amused, some people just react to traumatic experiences with certain emotions like, sadness, laughter, or anger.)

“Sonnie, it’s not worth it!” I declare. “Not yet. We're surrounded, they'll kill you”

“Listen to your friend, Winster. If you do, you’ll probably live a lot longer.” JT laughs.

“Fuck you!” Sonnie roars before falling unconscious. Defeated. Retired.

The revolution has been cancelled. Just...great.

Later that same day:

“Sock soup again….” Frank mumbles to himself as he takes a spoonful.

“Chin up, geezer! Could be worse! Could be.... poopsicles!” Mark tried to hold in his laughter. Frank looked at him in pure and utter disgust.

“By god, shut the fuck up!”

“I’ll get outta here.” Mark scooted over to his other teammates. “What’s up with that guy?” He points at Frank rather obviously, Frank even looks at him from across the room with a puzzled stare. Mark leans in to whisper “Think someone had a bath in vinegar this morning….”

“Mark, you need to realize he has lived a hard life. He spent his adult life trying to escape this place and now he’s back in here” Amber responded, her short prisoner outfit gave me a quick glance at her milk machines.

“you’re right Amber Rose… damn it, I’m so insensitive. I should apologize” Mark gets up from the table, takes a deep breath and walks back over to Frank Morris.

“Frank. My comment was out of line and.. I… apologize.”

“He’s just a bit grumpy. I guess we’re all a bit grumpy.” I reason, looking over at FrankPoor man, he's had too much.

"Not everything is lost." AJ said. "Katie might be dead, and Jeremy is dying, but did we really need them? He kinda stuck out as a sore thumb. We'll have much better chances of turning JT's daughter against him without a guy like that around."

"Will you forgive me if I don't mourn him? That guy was a creep." Trace Oxford said.

“I don’t blame you. Gave off the casual rapist vibes.” Glenn said.

“Yeah he seemed very strange.” Dutch says, taking a bite out of his vegan sandwich. He was having jalapeno peppers, with lots of onions and lots of pickles.

“You’re right Dutch.” Sonnie responds. “I guess we soldiers think alike.”

“I suppose so.” Dutch responds. “I miss my friends. Thanks for accepting me into your group. I look forward to helping you overthrow John Tassoni.”

“Anyways, what are we gonna do revolution?” Trace asks.

“I already gave you my advice.” Frank mentions. “I doubt I’ll be much help. They upped the security since the last time I escaped in the 1960s.” Frank gets up and walks off with his pants falling down to his ankles. I forgot that as a form of humiliation and to make sure none of us kill ourselves he took all of our belts.

“EVERYONE! STAND UP!” Blackwell’s voice filled the cafeteria. We all turn to see him, Vlad, Moyers and Chris standing next to the cafeteria doors. “The princess of Alcatraz is here!”

"Please don't call me that, it's embarrassing." Julia said, blushing profusely. Behind her, her brother Lucas walked with his usual swagger.

I looked at her, my prey in sight for the first time. She was beautiful, way more beautiful than Sarah Fox and Amber Rose, or any woman I had ever seen, sans my mother. It was love at first sight. Unlike the other women in my group, she was pure. Her silky smooth skin, free of oils, draped by a silky shirt. Her pale, tiny feet just barely being teased by her low cut shoes. Her little piggies hidden by what I can only assume were white socks, representing her purity.

"Damn, she's beautiful." Sonnie said, awestruck by Julia's flawless looks.

"Sonnie she's 16," Mark said, his NYPD career kicking in.

"It's fine brother, we're already in jail, hahaha." Sonnie laughed a hearty laugh. "It was a joke." he added, for once nobody laughed with him.

"LISTEN, DAMN IT!" Blackwell shouted. "We're going to have a special show for you guys today, courtesy of Lt. LT Myers."

“Something tells me this ain’t gonna be one of those normal talking picture shows.” Dutch mumbles.

“Don’t worry geezer. You’re not invited.” Lucas reassured the man. “We have plans for you eventually.”

“Will your father let me out? I know what I saw!" Dutch screamed.

“Shut the fuck up!” Chris yelled, pointing his gun at him.

“Um, excuse me. Glenn?” Julia asks. “Is that your name?”

My heart began to quicken. She was right next to me, I didn't notice her approaching because I was paying attention to Dutch and her stupid brother. My palms got sweaty, my knees weak, my arms were heavy. I felt like I was going to vomit on my sweater from the sheer pressure. Oh boy. I was fine talking with girls my age but not angels my age.

“Glenn’s the name. Don’t wear it out.” I respond. Nice one!

Julia giggled a sweet innocent giggle.

"Bro that's kind of cringe" Mark whispered to Amber. Glenn didn't hear it, though.

“T-t-that’s my b-boy.” AJ smiled.

"I'm Julia, nice to meet all of you. I hope my father isn't being too harsh on you. He's a good man but he goes overboard sometimes."

“We all get a bit overly excited sometimes.” I smile.

“Miss Julia, we need to bring them with us.” Moyers says.

“Damn it Greensleeves, you never really understood the ladies.” Sonnie said. “Just like how you were shit at disguises...Guess Raptor found that out the hard way."

"Don't talk to me about him, prisoner. We're not equals anymore. I am your superior." Moyers said, bluntly.

“Yes, yes. Sorry. But you need to follow us.” Julia said.

“I’d follow you to my death.” I respond following her. As does the rest of my group.

The six of them lead us through the ghostly remains of New Alcatraz. The screams from people being lonely filled our ears. Sending chills down my spine. I wondered if Donnie was one of them. We had our differences, but Donnie didn't deserved to be deprived of human contact like this.

They led us to the rooftop of Alcatraz where Jeremy was kneeling before JT and Jebediah standing beside him. Jeb with a shiteating grin on his face while JT had a cocky smirk as if he won something...and I suppose he did win something. He beat us. For now.

“Welcome Glenn, Meatloaf, Trace Oxford, Frank and the others. This is to show you all what will happen if you dare to defy my orders in any way, shape or form."

“Fuck you JT.” Jeremy spit on the ground in defiance.

“No. Fuck you. Vlad, hand Glenn your sword.”

“Wha-WHAT?!” Vlad nearly snaps. "Little American kid can't handle big Russian sword that you gave me at brother's wedding."

“I want Glenn to punish him. To have Glenn see the horror in Jeremy’s eyes as he’s killed by his closest friend.”

“You bastard!” I yell. “I won’t do it!”

“Then AJ gets hosed. Repeatedly. At least thrice a day, for a fortnight.” Lucas Tassoni Myers smirks with his devilish yet attractive grin.

"This is madness." Frank Morris procclaims. "Madness and stupidity."

“No, this is it, the apocalypse.” JT corrects. “Glenn, it’s your choice. Jeremy dies either way but AJ’s fate is in your hands.”

I look over at my best friend. He's my best friend, and plus his handicapped. Lord knows what that amount of hosing will do to his brain cells. I can’t let him get hurt. “Okay. Fine. I’ll do it.”

Vlad hands me his sword though it’s clear he doesn’t want to. I approach Jeremy who’s crying out in anger.

Julia turns around and covers her nibble worthy little ears. Her brother noticed that, and he didn't like it. Not one bit.

"Julia, make sure to look at it when Glenn swings his sword. Don't avert your eyes, I will know." Lucas said, grabbing her chin with force. "Father means business here, and so do I."

"O-Okay…" Julia said, visibly uncomfortable from all the touching. What the fuck is this guy doing, aren't they siblings?

“Jeremy. Do you have any last words?” JT asks.

My group stands in shock as I stand next to Jeremy with Vlad’s massive sword.

“I do.” Jeremy responds. "You see, I was born in a very impoverished little town. I have always been a fighter, ever since I was little. I had to fight to survive the horrors of the Garden City, a cruel and ruthless place, as I had no father and my mother verbally abused me and sold me to the barman, Peter. I hated Peter. I hated my mom. I eventually escaped from their clutches and raised myself on the streets, taught myself how to steal before I knew how to read. I've seen my fair share of assholes, dickwads and bungholes. Scary chaps, JT. And you're not even close to what I've had to encounter in my shenanigans. I am not a child. You will never understand my reasons, JT. You're nothing. I'm a MAN!"

“Yes. A dead man.” JT responds. “DO IT!”

I lock eyes with Jeremy as I swing Vlad’s giant sword with all my might. It was so heavy that I barely managed to do it. It got stuck in his thick neck, as I couldn't swing it quite properly. Blood gushed everywhere as Jeremy screamed in agony. I tried to remove the sword to swing again but it was too heavy. He agonized for several seconds before he eventually stopped moving.

“Holy cow…!” Mark screams at the top of his lungs, clearly terrified

## Deaths

* Katie Collins \*Offscreen\*
* Jeremy Agner

## Trivia

* First issue of the new decade.
* First post COVID-19 issue.
	+ The series was brought back because of COVID-19.
* This is the first issue after a car crash. (This is not a joke).
* Last appearance of Jeremy Agner.
* Last appearance of Katie Collins.
* First appearance of Adam.
* First appearance of Steve Blackwell.
* First appearance of Julia Myers.