halo - daniel seavey

Pilot

Five years ago, everything looked completely different. It's amazing what time can do, how it can morph and change things into different volumes of memories. Memories that you'll look over one day and feel yourself go back to that time, feel the way the time has shifted your life. Change is constant, a contradictory theme that gives us the ups and downs of our years. It's beautiful all in all, but that certainly doesn't mean that every part of the process was pretty.

Five years ago, the lights went off. The government shutdown for reasons only vaguely explained to the public, causing mass chaos and panic within days. The uncertainty of it all scared each and every person, even the ones that were in the dangerous bliss of total denial. People began preparing for the long haul, unsure of the length of this process. No one had a plan, an idea, or a solid word to say about when things would go back to normal again. After a few weeks with little to no movement, the wave of fear began to fade away and acceptance of the unknown settled in. It was numb and dim. Two months into the shutdown, there was a voice. It came forward with offers, the possibility of answers—it struck the attention of people. Skepticism didn't fail despite this glimmer of hope; once it was revealed that this route would have no involvement with the current government, nerves were struck. After all this time? A nation, without the government it's always had? People had dreamed of it of course, let it run through their minds more often than not, but the potential of it becoming reality? That was eye-opening to the ones who were willing to go beyond just an idea.

These people were the rebellion, so to speak. The ones that the traditional folks truly and utterly doubted, and even rejected. This open arm towards a freedom from everyone who held them back got them hooked. After at least one hundred people came forward, the new group had solidified. They were led by a man that went by Ace, his actual name and identity unknown but blindly trusted. He divided these volunteers into four separate groups, all responsible for a part in getting the nation back on its feet in some way. Spades, Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs, collectively known as The Suits. Soon after they began their work, they gained popularity like a new media trend. More people became members and slowly they built things back up again. The economy, the market, the law—they brought back some alignment to society. Even to those who weren't a part of the group, it was comforting. It felt like a road to healing for everyone. For the next four months, The Suits would run the nation, supported and led by those who truly believed and were promised a place in this world, a way to survive this national catastrophe. Worried minds and heavy hearts were soothed and the world was starting to feel the effects. Six months total the government was shut down. When that six months came to an end, the government announced their return like nothing had changed since they vanished. The public refused to accept it, outraged by the complete lack of transparency in the nationwide system they were supposed to hand their lives over to. Some felt that way about The Suits and were relieved when the shutdown ended. The Suits held their ground; Ace wasn't one to lose a fight. His group brought the nation back together, and he wasn't going to hand it over so easily.

This instantly created direct conflict between the government and The Suits, it was everything short of a war within the nation. It was divided across the board, people unsure of what the right side to trust was. During this time, Attorney General Ray Dominick represented the government in multiple different lawsuits and charges brought on by The Suits. He was a sharp man, well respected by many people; he had a wife and a daughter, and was a huge part of the post-shutdown whirlwind. In the midst of one of the trials, the government suffered an unknown security breach and sensitive information about The Suits was exposed to the public, putting them under the white hot spotlight to the entire nation. This gave the government an immediate leg up and it forced The Suits to go underground, Ace insisting it was best that they fight this fight from the shadows. From that point forward, the government took its nation back and people tried their best to resume their daily life, accepting that The Suits had surrendered. But that's the thing about Ace, he has the ability to hide right in plain sight. Right under your nose, where you'd never see him coming. This was the public's first mistake—letting their avenging angel go without a fight. What came after though, made them wonder if they'd mistaken horns for a halo.