Chapter 4 -- The Arraignment Committee
Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna was determined to escort her client downtown as quickly as possible, so Maria Elena was spared the hassle of having to take the older couple's suitcases off the trolley. Kim enlisted a male criminal and ordered him to help out instead. Ordinarily he would have knelt while receiving her command, but in the crowded trolley kneeling was impractical and she excused him from doing so. He bowed his head and replied "Doc-doc, AdvodkΓ‘tna" as he positioned himself to take Maria Elena's place.
Apart from her two lovers, of whom she had only caught fleeting glimpses in a darkened room, Maria Elena had never seen a naked man, and certainly had never seen a naked man in broad daylight in a public location. She stared at his body with fascination. When he tried to return her glance, Kim snapped at him in Danubian and he immediately turned away. Maria Elena studied his backside, which was covered with the fading marks of a whipping that he must have endured about a week before. She shuddered, wondering about those marks and what the young man had done to be so severely punished.
The trolley was an express trolley, only stopping at transfer stations and bypassing everything else as it made its way downtown. There were only four transfer stations along the route, and as airport passengers got off, they were replaced by other commuters going to the government district in the center of the city. As the trolley approached the third transfer station, the older couple got off, along with Maria Elena's fellow criminal and their oversized luggage. She was very grateful she did not have to do anything more with those suitcases, because she was starting to feel sick again.
The trolley passed through an opening in an enormous ancient stone wall and entered into a district of elaborate Baroque-style buildings. A few blocks later it stopped behind a large Gothic cathedral. Cecilia tapped Maria Elena on the shoulder to let her know that was where they needed to get off. She explained in Spanish:
"The Spokeswoman needs to take you to her office to finish your in-processing, and then we need to figure out what we're gonna do with you."
"Do with me?"
"Yes. Under Danubian law you're supposed to be locked up until you go on trial, but I think Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna is gonna try to get a medical waiver for you so you don't have to go to court tomorrow. If that happens, you won't have to be locked up and you won't go before the judge until next week."
Cecilia pointed at a large compound-style building that was partly visible up the street in front of the cathedral.
"That's the Central Police Station, where Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna has her office. That's where we're going right now."
The three women walked alongside the church as they approached the police station. Maria Elena instinctively crossed herself when they passed the entrance. Cecilia commented:
"Stop that. They don't do that here. Their church is different from what you're used to."
Maria Elena looked at the front door of the cathedral and noticed a Priest wearing a simple black robe and a tall black hat. Alongside him were two women wearing black dresses. However, what shocked her was the sight of a group of naked men and women kneeling in front of the three Clergy members. The naked worshippers knelt forward in unison, touching their foreheads to the ground.
"Public Penance. They're big on that here. That's what those people are doing."
"And...they...they do it naked?"
"Yes. I'll explain later, but in this country if you're doing Public Penance, you do it naked."
Maria Elena shuddered at the idea of appearing naked in front of a Priest because, of course, in the Western Hemisphere something like that was unheard of.
The prisoner and her escort walked along a large plaza as they approached the main entrance of the Central Police Station. Although it was late afternoon, the doorway was full of people going in and out: cops, lawyers, civilians, and a few naked criminals.
As they ascended the steps, Maria Elena was greeted by a terrifying sight. Three naked criminals were descending, two very young men and a woman who looked about 30. The youngest male in the group looked barely 18. He was walking supported by his two companions, his face contorted with agony and tears flowing down his face. When Maria Elena and her escort passed the naked trio she saw why. The young man's bottom and upper thighs were covered with welts; dark painful-looking lines that criss-crossed his backside and extended to his shoulders. The Colombian was horrified. Then she noticed something that frightened her even more; that her two companions seemed not to think there was anything unusual about what had happened to that young criminal. Was that normal?
"Cecilia...I...that young guy...what...?"
"Probably he just received one of his scheduled switchings."
"Scheduled switchings?"
"Yes...I'd imagine it was part of his sentence."
A very sick feeling swept over Maria Elena. Scheduled switchings...part of his sentence... She turned back to look again at the punished criminal and his two companions. Then she noticed the unchanged expressions of Kim and Cecilia. She had one more question to ask, but couldn't bring herself to voice it. She didn't dare, because she feared that she already knew the answer...
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The three women passed through the main door of the Central Police Station into a huge entryway topped by a dome. Elegant but very weathered marble staircases led off the ground floor to offices on the second and third stories. Spokeswoman Kimberly Lee-Dolkivna's office was located on the third floor; one of 20 such offices on a back wall opposite the main entrance. The hallway outside was full of people: naked criminals moving about alone or in pairs, Spokespersons walking with their assistants, mail couriers delivering legal documents, and cops escorting a couple of recently-arrested prisoners. However strange and frightening the scene may have been to Maria Elena, it was obvious there was nothing unusual going on as far as the Danubians were concerned.
As soon as Kim, Cecilia, and Maria Elena entered the Spokeswoman's office, a tall, attractive, naked pregnant woman immediately got up out of her chair and sank to her knees. She knelt forward, touching her forehead to the ground, and addressed her mentor in English:
"Good Afternoon, Spokeswoman Lee-Dolkivna. I am pleased you have returned safely."
"Good Afternoon, Criminal # 98946. Please rise, so we may fulfill our paths in life."
Criminal # 98946 immediately stood up. Cecilia introduced her to Maria Elena, explaining that she was yet another fellow US Citizen and the Spokeswoman's legal assistant. The pregnant criminal quietly opened a door leading into a back office.