by Francis Dashwood » Sat Oct 07, 2017 10:51 pm
"Brothers and sisters! It is wonderful to see so many of you here, at this beacon of light and hope in our dark and frightening world.
And it's wonderful to see so many unfamiliar faces; so many of you who have made your way up from the peaceful cities and towns of the area. I welcome you all, and I commend you for your open-mindedness and willingness to listen. I hope to win over your skepticism and bring you into our wonderful family. For that is what it is all about -- Brotherhood.
A great man once said that any dream worth having is a dream worth fighting for. We stand here, today, at one of the realizations of that dream; the dream that one day, mutants would not have to hide in the shadows or blend in with the crowds in order to be respected and admired for who they are. Where all of Earth's children, be they mutant or baseline human, might live together in peace. That time, I'm sad to say, is not yet here. But we are here today to help take the next steps forward. We are here to give a voice to the voiceless, and to make our names heard in the corridors of power and the halls of the elite.
New mutants are appearing every day, and it's accelerating. It is not a genetic aberration nor a freak result of circumstance; it is a fact of life in this country and all over the world. And yet governments view us as a menace. As a threat to be handled. As a plague to be wiped out. There are countries that proclaim that any mutant found must be put to death. Other, more 'civilized' countries, insist simply that our names be registered and recorded and our activites be monitored. I'm sure they'll get around to handing out the badges we must wear shortly enough.
Even here, on this sceptered isle, forces are moving against us. They seem to ostracize and demean us, to force us into the dark corners and off of the front pages. I say no more! I say today is the day we step proudly into the light!
We will tell everyone who will listen. We will tell everyone who won't. Two hands, clasped in fellowship, pledging to build something better -- that's all it takes to build a better tomorrow. The conflict They put against us, pitting mankind against mutants, is designed to consume us both. It's to pit all of us against one another, biting and tearing, while they consolidate their power and run our lives into the ground. They play around with our money and cause the markets to crash. They dither with our safety while our homes burn to the ground. They gut our health care, destroy our pensions, and wage war in far off lands. I say no more! I say that this is about Us versus Them, but not mutants against humans -- but about the oppressed versus the powerful!
They say that we are a party of mutant supremacists. They say that by adopting an old name and old colors that we represent a threat. But when the ranks of the powerful are filled with bad people; people who seek to harm and destroy and dehumanize, you and I have the right to do what is necessary to bring an end to that situation
My brothers and sisters, we must be prepared. Allow me to share my dream for this world -- a world where there is no difference, in thought and action, for all the peoples of this earth. Rich and poor. Men and women. White and Black.
Mutant and Mankind. One and the same, forever and ever. Your place in our society should not be determined by an accident of birth, but by the deeds you do. And, my brothers and sisters, we stand here today to do great deeds, to take our place right among the very top. To once again turn Albion into a shining beacon the rest of the world can turn to and admire.
Remember, this is the birthplace of heroes! Without the men and women here, the Prime Minister would be dead -- or worse, replaced by powers that seek to divide and conquer. We are not here to do harm, we are here to help, in every way we know how.
It has come to my attention that, sadly, that Mr. Bradley, the MP for Maldon, has been diagnosed with an advanced case of Parkinsons, and will have to step down from his position. This is a sad event, and we share our heartfelt gratitude to him for his years of service and to his family. This does, however, mean that there will have to be a by-eleciton to replace him, and we are determined to stand in that election. And we are determined to win.
Which is why I come to you today, to ask you for your time and your service. It may well be one of you, here, learning your skills and perfecting your powers, who is the next Member of Parliament for Maldon, and the first Mutant ever elected to sit in the Palace of Westminster. We are looking for potential candidates. We are looking for volunteers to help support and elect this candidate to Parliament, to help spread and share our message. We are looking to take the first steps towards true equality and justice! I thank you, and may God bless the Brotherhood!"
______________________Speech ends, narration continues____________________________________
Throughout Dashwood's speech, the grumbling and mumbling from the (human) crowd had diminished somewhat. What had started as an extremely skeptical audience had gradually become more rapt with every word, and they stood up and applauded when Dashwood brought his speech to a close. They were joined, of course, by the mutants on hand -- Dashwood's staff, especially, making a show of celebration, with mutant powers flashing through the air like firewooks; gouts of flame and bursts of sparkles going off behind him. The special effects budget for a normal politician would have been huge.
While Dashwood's manner of speech and rhetoric were very good, those sitting in the audience might have noticed a slight tingling in the back of their minds as things went on. Hard to put a finger, precisely, on what was going on there. And the news of Bradley's Parkinsons came as something of a surprise -- he was generally a fit man, as far as the public knew. Curiouser and curiouser.