Emil Zarg
The "Beast" of Downshaft. Emil
Zarg is the chief of the Security Enforcement Unit in charge of Downshaft
and Kommander of the five hundred Enforcerz
who carve order out of "darkness" in this hellhole. A bully as
a child, and Recon who
made one mistake and will never make another, Zarg is a large, burly, ape-like
man with the desire to hurt people. He brutally rules the underworld of
the Q with an iron fist, often personally "Zapping" poor Anteeks
and other Disconz at will, taking true delight in permanently reconnecting
"trouble makers" to The
System at maximum stimulation (has executed hundreds in this way). He
tolerates no "back-talk" from his men, and can be ruthless, even
with those who try to get on his good side.
Zarg's nemesis is "Drakmar
The Blind," (the so-called prophet of Downshaft), a leader of "wildmen"
and feral children who live from hand to mouth in the Bogz. Tortured by
Zarg in the late 80's for refusing to work any longer in the Pitz, Drakmar
had his eyes torn out. He vowed revenge, and disappeared from Dunztown,
only to resurface later in The Bogz as a kind of wise man/revolutionary,
calling for the humanization of Downshaft, the death of Zarg, and the dismantling
of The System itself. For his part, Zarg promises that Drakmar will be hunted
down, caught, prosecuted, and terminated for his blasphemies.
As Zarg launches a "manhunt" for
the elusive Drakmar, increasing numbers of Disconz and Anteeks "cross
over"(flee Dunztown for the Bogz) to escape the terror of the Dezu
-- Zarg's juggernaut of punishment and repression. To capture Drakmar and
keep order, Zarg requests 500 more Enforcerz from KorpOps,
but KorpOps will do nothing until after the Telelection.
Axon Kronstadt, quick to see an opportunity, publicly promises that if he
is elected, he will give the Dezu and Zarg a thousand more Enforcerz
to "clean up the mess in Downshaft."