More Equal Than You: Part I

A Story for All Ages By Aaron McEmrys

Manny the Mole was a quiet, lazy sort of mole. He did what all moles do – dig for worms – oh and grubs and the sweet juicy beetles he loved most of all. But unlike other moles, Manny didn’t dig only to find food. He dreamed big dreams, impossible dreams. He wasn’t interested in friends, or food, or beauty or love – what Manny wanted was to have the biggest house in the whole world.

And so day after day Manny dug and dug, hollowing out one great underground hall and bedroom after another.

One day, as Manny was digging away with his usual single-mindedness through the soft rooty darkness, he hit his head, hard, with a loud “thump-clank.”

“Ooooow, my goodness me, but that hurts” he exclaimed, rubbing his head.

Tap, tap, tap he tapped in the darkness. It was big, whatever it was, kind of square shaped and very, very hard.

Manny spent the rest of the day digging it out. It was a box, a great mysterious chest – buried right there between his third guest bathroom and his second-biggest worm bin – and it was all his!

A treasure chest!

Who knows who buried it or when, but there it was, a great oaken chest banded with iron. Inside twinkled a heap of gold and precious stones. There was delicate jewelry there too and beautiful carvings, but Manny didn’t care about craftsmanship. He only had one thought, one single perfect thought, “My house is SO going to rock!”

But it wasn’t long before he ran into a big problem.

The topside animals didn’t care how big Manny’s house was as at first, but when he demanded the best shady trees to make wood paneling for his endless hallways, the animals put their collective paw down.

“Sorry Manny, the trees belong to all of us, and nobody can cut them down without permission. We’ll have to vote on it.”

In the Village of the Animals no important decision is ever made without a thorough discussion and a vote. This was an ancient tradition and even Manny, rich as he now was, could break it.

Manny went home and thought long and hard in the darkness.

The leaves were beginning to fall, which meant that it was almost time to elect the new village chief. And one morning the animals woke to see billboards everywhere, “Manny the Mole for Village Chief!”

“You only want to be chief so you can get your hands on our beautiful trees! That’s weak, Manny, really weak. I’m voting for Bear.”

But Manny wasn’t going to give up that easily. The next morning the animals woke to find a new billboard in the village square, and this time Manny was a little less subtle – “Vote for a New Golden Age: Manny for Chief!” the sign said. And there was Manny, surrounded by his new security guards, sitting at a big shiny table heaped with gold, which his henchmen handed out to anyone who promised to vote for him.

Owl was outraged. “How dare you try to buy this election! Never, ever has such a thing been done! This is a democracy! We are all equal here. I’m still voting for Bear.”

“Suit yourself” said Manny, but he was a little worried. Lots of people were lining up to sell their votes, but not everyone – and a lot of people really did respect Bear….hmmmm.

The next day there was yet another billboard, “Vote Manny the Mole: Champion of Democracy!” and beneath it sat a brand new Manny. His team of make-up and hair artists had transformed him completely. He looked like a movie star! He was wearing bright blue contact lenses, his fur was impeccable and he was the only mole in the world with a suntan. His clothes were custom made, but he rolled up his shirtsleeves so people would know he was a common-mole just like them.

He talked about Freedom all day long and he gave away a lot of gold, but he was still nervous.

Election Day came.

Manny was there bright and early, wrapped in the Village flag like a cape, surrounded by his enterougue of hairdressers and bankers. Always a nervous fellow, Manny looked suspiciously confident and well rested.

And Bear, well Bear was nowhere to be found. It was almost time for the vote – where could he be?

Finally, just moments before the vote, a long, black limosiene pulled up. Owl’s eyes opened wide in surprise. “Bear? Is that really you?

“Yes, it’s me”, said Bear defensively. A heavy gold necklace hung from his neck and the sunlight reflecting off of so many diamonds and rubies was almost blinding. He had a stylish new haircut and wore an elegant tuxedo – and believe me you’ve never seen anything quite so…elegant….as a bear in a tuxedo.

“My friends”, said Bear, clearing his throat nervously. “I have decided to take an..err…a vacation, a sabbatical you might say…you know, to get a change of scenery for a while. I’ve come into a…unexpected bit of good fortune, you see, and a friend, a very good and generous friend, has loaned me his yacht you see…and well, hmmm, that being the case, I…I hearby withdraw my candidacy for Village Chief – and furthermore, I cast my vote for Manny the Mole, Champion of Democracy and Defender of Freedom.”

And so it came to pass that Manny the Mole was duly elected Village Chief.

A week later the fine old trees down by the riverside were cut down to panel Manny’s hallways, and a week after that Manny ordered the beaver pond drained dry to fill, at long last, his underground swimming pool.

The animals were furious! “How dare you, Manny?” Beaver shouted. “This is an outrage. A travesty!”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about”, replied Manny calmly, as his bodyguards dragged the outraged Beaver away. “I was duly elected, wasn’t I? And you, you, Beaver, you voted for me as I recall, didn’t you? We’re all equal here, but perhaps I’m just a little more equal than you.”

TO BE CONTINUED!