Cocapoly

The date was approaching duly and many preparations were made to ensure that things would go over smoothly. Ricardo sat in his office and looked at the numbers and they all added up nicely. The higher-ups in the hierarchy had cascaded the plans for the big reveal and he prepared them accordingly. The hardest thing he had to do was deal with the cartel that was shipping the produce to the warehouses. At first they were suspicious about him and his request. Why would the Coca-Cola Company want to buy such copious amounts of cocaine? They were reluctant to give it to him but once they realized that Ricardo was serious, they gave it to him and overpriced him. Ricardo had no idea they charged him double but how would he? He was just a simple manager whom someone told to get some cocaine.

He remembered vividly the handover of the cocaine from the dealers to him. It was a clear and sunny day and they had met in a very public space, a hotel lobby. The air was fresh and it was humid - a warm day to be sure but not one that was too hot. Just perfect for a light shirt, loose pants, sandals, and sunglasses. He had entered the lobby and within it was a large tree acacia tree. The lobby was pompous as it could be, with marble floors and marble columns, and in the middle of a grand foyer with two receptions and forty times as many floors, stood proud and tall the acacia tree. Wide and with it's light brown bark, it was a stark contrast to the dark colored marble that was entwined with folds of browns and yellows. He had sat at a table with the men and they had small talk and simply exchanged a briefcase. That was all that was to be in the batch of cans. The men wore dark suits, and all around the lobby there were insects - dragonflies, flies, moths, butterflies and of course no mosquitos. One of the butterflies perched atop of his suitcase and gently flapped it's wings before it sped away once again. The transaction was done.

Ricardo didn't believe his boss at first and thought they would just do a funny marketing campaign, but his boss loved cocaine. He was on it way too often and the bridge of his nose was already long gone to the annals of time. He did not question the authority of his manager. Surely he was working on orders from higher-ups as well, and so on. There was surely some accountability along the chain of command and someone would stop his boss. Perhaps his boss believed that he would be stopped as well, and whoever Ricardo ordered to prepare the cocaine for the next batches would also have hoped that someone would tell him to stop, but this was not the case. The wheels of the corporation moved onward and the cocaine was delivered to the factory.

Not only one, but fourteen batches managed to then contain traces of cocaine in it and the marketing department was told to start promoting it, as an April Fool's gag. It was clearly a joke, as no one believed that Ricardo had actually gone and acquired cocaine. So the marketing department sent some mock-up designs of cans, and some posters, ad screenplays, social media marketing. It was all supposed to launch on the first of April as a big joke and everyone assumed it was a joke as well. So things kept going along and before he knew it, Ricardo had got word that they were actually putting the cocaine into the cans.

It was beginning to spiral out of control. He hadn't thought they'd get this far. He was in the factory when things were happening and he was watching it as they put it in. The others laughed and joked about it, they were still convinced it was a prank but Ricardo knew better. "Shut it down," he told the manager of the plant as he rushed into his office.

"What?" The manager asked, perplexed as he was stooped over a monitor with others around him. The others blended into the background as Ricardo's focus remained on the manager.

"You have to shut it down. Out there, that's real cocaine."

The manager laughed "I also saw the marketing ad. I can't believe they're doing it. Look, we can't shut it down. It would stop production for the rest of the day. I'd get in a lot of trouble. You have orders from higher up?" The manager was cocky, but his confidence shut Ricardo down.

"W-well no. But I have it on good auth-"

"Look, authority is authority, and I need the best authority, not good authority." He has risen a hand to Ricardo and smiled "Have someone higher up come here, or call me, and I will shut it down. Until then, things are going along. It's just a joke man. Don't worry about it!"

Ricardo began to sweat as he went out of the office and looked down to the plant as it put the cocaine into the cans. Mechanically and buzzing with sounds of the robots filling the cans and the assembly line marched onward, ever onward. He panicked and tried to get to the floor and someone stopped him, as he did not have the clearance to go. He screamed they had to do something to stop it but they dragged him away. Kicked out of the plant he stood outside and wondered what to do next. It was all his fault. He had to escape, before things would get worse.

The day came and the product was unveiled. Social media loved it. "Coke + Coke" was a great hit or C+C as everyone called it. Everyone laughed at the joke and the cans were sold out the first day everywhere they were available. People put them away as memorabilia, politicians - who were heavily bribed - tried it and advocated looser laws on cocaine. Soon legislation was passed in various countries, thanks to the heavy influence of Coca-Cola, that legalized the usage of cocaine in beverages. The way was paved for an industrial scale processing of coca and it's leaves as well as the most important part for the politicians: being able to tax all of it. The company had paid large amounts to politicians on all levels to ensure that the legislation would get passed. Members of parliaments across the world suddenly owned a little bit more real estate, had a newer car, and went on an even fancier safari in Tanzania. Some of the wealth was laundered and went into other channels where it would get into seedier businesses so that the greedy could get greedier and make more money off of the sweat and blood of those less fortunate to be born into the privileged class.

Ricardo had seen it all unfold before his eyes. He ended up not running away and was willing to face the consequences. He rose up in the ranks of the company and had been seen as a entrepreneur, a savant that had foreseen the profitability and the steps ahead of him perfectly laid out. He saw nothing. Numbed by the success he became more reclusive and ended up retiring early with a great severance package. He had decided to go on a safari in the outback and only then did he see the butterfly's wings. What he had done and was enabled as a joke turned out to enable companies even more. The plane he flew in on was solar-powered and red and part of Coca Airlines. It appeared more and more as the electric truck he was in was powered by solar power as he was on the safari, or the produce he wore which was part of the Coca Clothes. It was everywhere. He had helped make one of the first steps in what had become the biggest corporation in the world. Some say it was even more powerful than some nation-states on every account, when in 2086 the Coca-Cola Colony had been founded on the Moon, the 2nd colony on the moon ever. The Coca-Dystopia awaited him and it was clearly before his eyes and a rage rose within him. This could not be the way. The people had lost themselves. He had to find a way to fix it... and he would...