TJ Relk

Many decades ago, I was a soldier. My unit was slated for war zone deployment. I studied the causes of the conflict and our proposed involvement. I found both wanting. It weighed on me. It seeped into my dreams. Those dreams became this story.

In recent years, I happened upon my original handwritten novel. Its dark prognostications of forever wars, resource scarcity, democracy, and technology became more prescient and urgent with time. I updated it with contemporary manifestations of these anxieties, including AI, social media, and polarization.

The story begins with the election of 2028, based on trends established much earlier. This is speculative science fiction of the near future. Could it become our present?