The Orphan Master's Son_ A Novel - Adam Johnson [224]
No, better to set the past aside and think only of dancing boys, animated accordion play, and the joys of generosity, for this day was about more than the vim of good-natured cultural exchange: the Dear Leader’s agenda included a humanitarian mission of delivering food aid to the one in six Americans who goes hungry each day.
At first, the visiting Americans pretended to be pleasant enough, but they sure did bring along a lot of dogs! Remember that in America, canines get regular lessons in obedience, while the people, regular citizens like you and your neighbor, receive none. Should it be a surprise then that after the Americans had what they wanted—the return of their homely compatriot, and enough food to feed their poor—they showed their appreciation through cowardly aggression?
Yes, citizens, it was a sneak attack!
At the uttering of a coded word, the dogs all bared their teeth and set upon their Korean hosts. Then hot lead began blazing from American pistols toward their noble Korean counterparts. And that’s when a team of American commandos grabbed Sun Moon, and roughly handling her, dragged her toward their Yankee jet plane! Did the Americans elaborately plan to steal the greatest actress in the world from our humble nation? Or did the sudden sight of her, transcendently beautiful in a red choson-ot, compel them to take her on the spot? But where was Comrade Buc? the astute citizen must be asking. Wasn’t Comrade Buc near Sun Moon’s side to defend her? The answer, citizens, is that Buc is no longer your comrade. He never was.
Steel yourselves for what happens next, citizens, and do not self-combust from your need of vengeance. Channel your outrage into effort, citizens, by doubling your output quotas! Let the fire of your anger stoke the furnaces of productivity!
When the Americans seized our national actress, the despicable Buc, fearing for his own safety, simply handed her over. Then he turned and ran.
“Shoot me,” Sun Moon shouted as she was hauled away. “Shoot me now, comrades, for I do not wish to live without the benevolent guidance of the greatest of all leaders, Kim Jong Il.”
Marshaling his military training, the Dear Leader sprinted into action, chasing the cowards who had stolen our national treasure. Into the onslaught of gunfire, the Dear Leader ran. Dove after dove flew into the path of the bullets, each bursting with the downy glow of patriotic sacrifice!
And here we have the coward Commander Ga—imposter, orphan, practitioner of poor citizenship—standing idly by. But witnessing the Dear Leader fend off dogs and dodge bullets, a spirit rose in this simple man, a revolutionary zeal he had never quite known. By viewing firsthand an act of supreme bravery, Ga, the lowest member of society, was moved to similarly serve the highest of socialist ideals.
When an American GI shouted “Free adoptions!” and scooped up an armload of young gymnasts, Commander Ga sprang into action. Despite lacking the Dear Leader’s powers of dog defense, he did know taekwondo. “Charyeot!” he yelled to the Americans. That got their attention. “Junbi,” he then said. “Sijak!” he shouted. That’s when the kicks and punches began. Fists flying, he raced after the retreating Americans, fighting his way through jet wash, copper-jacket bullets, and ivory incisors to the accelerating aircraft.
Though the jet’s engines screamed with takeoff power, Commander Ga summoned his Korean fortitude, and using Juche strength, he chased the plane down and leaped up to its wing. As the jet rose from the runway, rising over Pyongyang, Ga pulled himself up and fought the