WELCOME TO THE YEAR 3417. YOU
HAVE BEEN SELECTED FOR THE LIVING HISTORY PROGRAMME SO YOUR CRYOGENIC SLEEP HAS
BEEN SUSPENDED. YOU MIGHT EXPERIENCE SOME DIZZINESS AS YOUR BODY ADJUSTS TO THE
TEMPERATURE BUT IT IS COMPLETELY NORMAL. TEMPORARY LOSS OF MEMORY IS ALSO
POSSIBLE BUT SOMEONE WILL BE WITH YOU SHORTLY TO GUIDE YOU THOUGH YOUR
PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORY ARCHIVE. PLEASE RELAX AND ENJOY YOUR NEW LIFE.
“White.”
“Excuse me?”, asked the man in
the green uniform who rushed into the room. I was lying in a bed, like the ones
doctors had in their surgery, and everything around me looked extremelly
sanitized.
“The future. It was supposed to
be white. Or silver. Or maybe blue. By the way, I seem to have forgotten my
name.”
I don’t think he was paying
attention to what I was saying. I guess he was used to patients mumbling when
they wake up. He held a flashlight up my eyes, checked my heartbeat and my
temperature and then smiled.
But it shouldn’t be green. I
never liked that colour. Always reminded me of the grass and the trees. My
mother used to say when she was young there were real trees in the street. I
saw one once in a glass chamber at the zoo when I was 11. I felt sorry for it.
It looked alone and trapped in a strange world it did not belong.
“2085 huh? You’re one of the
first ones aren’t you. In the programme I mean.”
“Yes, I guess I am.” He led me to
a different room. It was round and all lit up but as soon as we got inside it
grew dark and images started appearing on the wall. It was my mother with my
father on their wedding photo, my first time riding a bike, our old house
before we sold it and moved to an apartment downtown. I saw my highschool
reports, my degree and my first day at work. My whole life in photos. Part of
the programme to remind me things I might have forgotten, the man said.
In the hours following my
awakening I had to shower, get dressed and purchase, with the help of the
computer, things that I wanted to have in my room so that they would be shipped
to the house I was going to live. Apparently I was assigned to a PHD student,
Celina, who was researching the psychology of people of my century and their
emotional stability towards drastic change. Bringing one to her own time seemed
like the perfect experiment.
I asked for a phone. I remember
loving touch screen phones when I was a kid. My father had kept one of the
early iphone models. It was practically an antique but as a child I loved
touching everything. Of course when I grew up I learnt to appreciate proper 3D
technology. Everything appeared in the air in front of you to give maximum
control. Very practical for old people who couldn’t see the small screen. I had
my contacts in there, my music, photos, maps, emails, grocery shopping and all
the important dates. Apparently phones were integrated now. I was not entirely
sure what that meant. Something told me there was a lot of things I would have
to learn.
By the way, my name is Michael.
The doctor told me. He also suggested I keep a diary to keep my thoughts
organized. So here it is.
…
What I can say for sure of this
world is that I’m not in Kansas anymore. Not that I had ever been in Kansas but
I expect it looked nothing like this. At
least the future was not all green. It had all the colours. All the shades.
Only I noticed that everyone was only wearing a single colour, apart from
children who somehow managed to have every colour of the rainbow somewhere
about them. I never understood fashion but that did seem a bit odd.
Anyway, I was not left to think
about it for long because the car, and I say car just because this strange
glass capsule seemed to be the vehicle of choice now, had arrived.
“Who’s driving this thing?” I
asked.
“Driving?” said the receptionist.
“You know, who controls the
capsule?”
“Transport pods are directly
linked to the city mainframes. Your destination has already been programmed and
the pod will take you there at once.”
“Do you mean there is no driver
at all?”
“Human interference is not
required.”
I decided against arguing more
and boarded the ‘pod’. Indeed in a few minutes I was in front of a house and a
girl in her twenties that I would come to know as my supervisor, Celina, was
outside waiting for me. She was dressed all in a soft cream colour and her
whole house was the exact same shade.
“Hello. Do you mind if I go live
in the house next door?”
“Excuse me?”
“I always liked purple and this
house looks cool! I’m Mike by the way.”
“I know. My name is Celina. And
I’m afraid I can not live in a purple
house. It’s against the law.”
“Against the law? Then how do
they live in it?”
I think it was probably my
puzzled look that made her reconsider her answer because frankly I had no idea
what she was talking about.
“Our society is colour
coordinated. Your job defines the colour you are going to have in your life.
Children can wear and have things of every colour because they have not chosen
an occupation yet. University students are considered part of the education
category and the colour that represents us is cream. Same goes for teachers.
When you graduate you get the new colour for your job and when you retire you
move to the grey category. I will remain in education and teach history so I
will remain cream. The people next door are both artists so their colour is
purple and, as you probably noticed in the hospital, health is represented by
green.”
“Why?”
“Well, I believe you used to have
the phrase in your era “to show one’s true colours”?”
“Yes.”
“That’s what we’re doing! You
need a doctor? Go to the nearest green house.”
“So what colour is there for
defrosted men?”
“You don’t need to worry about
that. I have ordered custom made clothes recreated from the pictures of your
era. You’ll feel exactly like home!”
Somehow I doubted that but I
decided to nod and follow Celina inside the house. Every single thing was cream
and it was a bit unsettling but I found that she had tried to put together bits
and pieces to make my room more 21st century inspired. It would not
be too much to say that compared to the rest of the house my room felt like a
museum. Literally. My desk had a golden tag with the date and the name person
who donated it to “Neopolis City Museum”. I felt old. But at least I looked 35
like I was the day I was frozen.”
I decided to take a nap and I
woke up several hours later with a naked woman standing over me.
“My name is Amanda.” she said
while she got into my bed and started kissing my torso.
My hands reached for her back as
I started remembering how it felt to hold a woman. My fingers travelled up her
spine to the bottom of her hair when I suddenly felt something that was not
supposed to be there.
“What are you?” I said jumping
out of bed.
“I am designed to satisfy your
needs” she replied while I rushed out to find Celina. She was downstairs having
dinner.
“There’s a naked woman in my
room! And she’s got a plug in her head!”
“I know. I thought I’d get you a
little gift.”
“A gift?”
“She is the latest model of
Household Partners. Much more flexible than the previous ones.”
“You mean like a sex doll?”
“She is a very advanced piece of
technology. HPs are a very common household item and I figured that even in the
past men must have had sexual needs so I got you one.”
I considered myself to be a very
progressive person but I have to admit it made me uncomfortable talking about
my sexual needs with a young girl. But she seemed to talk about it as it was a
new tv or something.
“Celina, I’m sorry, but if I have
any ‘needs’ I will take care of it on my own.”
“Oh, I see. It’s ok. Nothing to be
ashamed of. Many men do it.”
“What? No! I meant I’ll find a
real woman!”
“Intercourse outside marriage is
against the law. No woman would want to die for you.”
“Die? I’m perfectly healthy!”
“This does not have to do with
anything. If you break the law, you go to prison and if someone else breaks the
law after you, you get the injection and they get your place.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Our legal system is very clear.
There is only one cell in each city. When someone breaks the law they are put
in that cell. If someone else breaks the law in this city while the prisoner is
still alive the law says the first prisoner must die and the new one gets his
cell. And every crime is equally punished.”
“But what if someone dies in an
accident?”
“Then the camera footage will
prove the other person’s innocence.”
“What footage?”
“There is no place in the entire
city that a camera is not watching. In addition you have the microchips in
everyone’s brain that show exactly where everyone is. No crime can go
unpunished.”
“I don’t want any chips in my
brain!”
“It’s not an option. Safety and
peace must be ensured. Besides, the chips allow us to interface with the
mainframe just by voice control. I saw you asked for a phone in the notes from
the hospital. Well, when I want to make a call I just have to ask the computer
to call that person and their chip will be connected to mine instantly and we’ll
hear each other in our heads. Technology has made life simple so we can enjoy
it and be happy. But, just to make you relax, you don’t have a chip.
Technically you are not a citizen yet. If you choose to stay in this time at
the end of the programme you will get a chip, otherwise you will return to your
cryogenic sleep.”
“But what if someone steals food
because he is starving?”
“No one is starving. Society
provides a home and a job for every citizen.”
“What if they’re poor?”
“Poverty was eliminated 300 years
ago.”
“How?”
“Look, Mike. I know you have a
lot of questions but right now I think you should have something to eat. We
have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.”
“Ok.” I said reluctantly. I
wanted to find out more about this society. “What do you have for dinner?”
“Whatever you want. The computer
will reconstruct any food you want. ”
“How about a cheeseburger and
some chips?”
“Computer, start food process.
Make cheeseburger and chips. Mike, your food will appear over there” she said
pointing at a machine with a stack of plates and a device that looked like a
laser above them.
The machine flashed a couple of
lights and the laser lit up hitting the top plate. Suddenly small pieces of
chips and meat started appearing and they grew and became a proper meal. I
think my jaw dropped because Celina laughed.
“It’s molecular reconstruction.
That’s how almost everything is made these days. Even the air we breathe. Now
please enjoy your dinner and I will see you in the morning. We have to start
our tour of the city and the recap of the last 1300 years.” She got up and was
ready to leave.
“Celina? One more thing.”
“Yes?”
“Can you do something about the
robot?”
“I will keep her with my HP until
you change your mind.”
“I won’t! Wait, you have one
too?”
“Good night Michael.”
“Good night.”
…
When I got up the next day,
Celina was already dressed and waiting for me. She presented me with a bowl of
what I chose to perceive as porridge because any other ideas would stop me from
eating it. It was apparently full of energy for the rest of the day. The custom
made clothes had arrived so I just accepted the fact that I’d get some weird
looks in the street and decided I’d give some back just to be fair. They would
be as strange to me as I would to them.
“I think we should start from the
library” Celina said “Computer, request a pod from this address and destination
the Central Library.”
“Are those ‘pods’ safe?”
“Of course they are!”
“Do you have one?”
“No need to. Pod transportation
is free.”
“Who pays for their creation and
maintenance?”
“The government. Our pod is here”
she said as a light at the door flashed.
The public library was a big
cream coloured building with a large double door and no windows. The directory
on the wall showed each floor and as far as I could see each floor was full of
smaller or bigger rooms with only an indication of the amount of people that
fitted in them. Celina went to the receptionist, which I found out was a robot
because the profession has stopped being a human one, and asked for a two
person room. We were given direction to a room on the third floor where we
found a glass table, two chairs and one of those food making machines Celina
had at home. As we walked through the door the computer scanned us both and
identified “Celina Williams and History Subject of Celina Williams”. Not very
polite but I guess true.
“Is this what you call a library?
Where are the books?”
Celina laughed.
“Computer, show me some books in
early 21st century depiction.”
The walls changed at once and
simulated a 3D image of a library with wooden shelves and normal, for me at
least, paperback books. I knew they were still holograms though.
“Impressive, but how do you read
them?”
“Pick one” she said.
I went closer to a shelf saying
poetry and found a copy of S.T. Coleridge’s poetry.
“This one. I used to teach it.”
The pages suddenly appeared on
the glass table like it was a computer screen.
“I see.”
“This way everyone has access to
all the books and there is no need for big spaces to store them. Besides, there
are not enough hard copies in the world any more so the few remaining ones are
kept safe in storage. Don’t look at me like that. You will understand
everything in a minute. Computer, show us the world history from the 21st
century onwards by significant events. Medium version.”
A voice that reminded me of
flight safety guidelines started narrating while the wall around us started
projecting images and holograms to match the narration.
Second millennium started with economic crises all over the globe.
Markets collapsed and people lost everything to large corporations that rose
out of nowhere. The extinction of forests in 2040 due to global warming led
people to turn to those corporations for food and jobs. Those corporations
managed to create a certain amount of stability for the next 50 years. By then
governments’ power diminished significantly while violence rates rose and in
the end several revolutions occurred in every continent. The large corporations
had almost lost their power until the Great Mars Exploration of 2110 and the
establishment of the First Moon Colony in 2120. Scientists created artificial
atmosphere in the moon and almost the entire surface of it served as land to
cultivate genetically modified crops to send over to Earth. Experiments to
establish a new colony in Mars were giving hope for a new home to the human
race. By the end of 2250 Earth seemed to have become a peaceful planet, thanks
to the First Global Government that established equality for every human being
on the planet. The year 2295 arrived with humanity having lost faith in
colonizing Mars as scientists were still unable to establish the much promised
colony while the Moon Colony had become overpopulated and the food produced
once again was not enough to sustain the people. The Moon Colony declared
itself independent and refused to send any food back to Earth. Negotiations
lasted for 10 years before Planetary War was declared and on 2326 missiles with
chemicals were fired to the moon. Half the Moon population perished and they
declared their surrender. The Moon population grew once more and in the first
years of 2400 the Moon sent crops modified in a way that they cause a peculiar
genetic reactions to earth population that wiped out 1/3 of the planets
population. This was the answer to the previous century’s war and it meant the
end of the Moon Colony. Global Government fired nuclear weapons that completely
destroyed the colony and destroyed a significant amount of the Moon’s mass.
However nuclear remnants managed to enter the Earth’s atmosphere and by 2500
the atmosphere was contaminated beyond repair. The Last War broke out and the
enemy was everyone else. People killed each other out of hate and despair. It
was then that a secret group of scientists located in various areas of the world
decided to create underground bases and secure all the knowledge and progress
that was made up to that point and selected a few people who refused to kill
anyone to hide with them. Salvation virus was released and everything on the
surface of the earth was destroyed. In the year 2600 people emerged from the
underground bases and with the help of the scientists built the Domes and
created the society of New Earth. Ever since, peace has been the major concern
of our Government and their greatest success. Neopolis is the first and largest
city in New Earth and the most brilliant example of what mankind can achieve
when it does not overstep its boundaries.
The presentation ended with some
very cheesy images of Neopolis and me in a shock. Celina was sipping a cold drink and looked
perfectly normal.
“Well? What do you think?”
I had thought many times what the
future might be like but I never thought of this. It was too much. I kept
staring at the blank cream wall unable to utter a word. I sat down and thought about
what had happened to the world. We managed to destroy everything we had
created. But at least afterwards we started all over. I didn’t know if I should
lose faith in humanity or regain it. There was one more question that I had to
ask.
“How?”
“Excuse me?”
“How is this all possible?”
“I’m glad you asked. This is our
next stop.”
We boarded a pod again which took
us to an area very close to the dome’s edge. A large marble sign on the ground
in the shape of a circle had the following writing on it: IN MEMORY OF THE
FIRST SCIENTISTS WHO EMERGED FROM THE UNDERGROUND REFUGE AND BUILT OUR GREAT
CITY.
“This is where it all started
again. A group of brave scientists decided to test their theory about the
rehabilitation of the surface and built a small laboratory under the first
dome. It was only big enough to cover one house but they proved that artificial
air could be held within the domes without being affected by the outside
radiation. After that it was only a matter of time until a larger dome was
built and people started leaving the tunnels. Neopolis was the first dome city
and many more followed. Nowadays all cities are linked by overground tunnels
and the underground is abandoned apart from certain areas that serve as
museums.”
I was trying to imagine what it
would be like to live underground for all those years and finally be able to
come out. The domes were seen as freedom from those people but to me they
started looking like a huge glass prison. I remembered the tree in the zoo
again. I used to think I would wake up in a completely different planet with
space as an endless limit, always somewhere new to go. I tried to see outside the glass like surface
of the dome but I was not able to make out anything. It was like a huge grey
cloud was surrounding us.
“What’s out there?”
“Radiation. Poisoned air. Death.
And a lot of ruins I guess. Whatever is left from the past.”
“What about religion?”
“That can also be found in the
museum. Now let’s go to see the Main Science Building.”
The pod took us to the centre of the
Neopolis. The exact centre. The Main Science Building was the tallest building
in the city reaching up to the very top of the dome as I was going to find out.
Several levels of it were open to the public for sightseeing and some others
were administration and control floors open only to those who worked there. The
highest floors were not in the directory on the wall and remained a mystery
although everyone knew that was where all the important decisions were made.
Celina took me to one of the higher open floors so we could see over the rest
of the city.
“This is where everything
happens” she said in awe. “Molecular reconstruction was the greatest invention
and the only reason that humanity survived until now. Our scientists managed to
break down the molecules that all elements have and then put them back together
in any order to construct other elements. As long as something had been
analysed once by the mainframe it can be constructed from ‘thin air’ so to
speak. Air itself is made by the de- and reconstruction of polluted elements
from outside the domes. The same goes for furniture, clothes, food,
everything.”
“What about the people who worked
at those places? What happened to them?”
“Michael, I think you didn’t
quite understand what the presentation before was all about. All these people
you mean died centuries ago. The only ones who survived were scientists. They
did not know how to make all these things. They only knew what they were made
of. And all they could do was deconstruct the objects, duplicate and
reconstruct them from their basic molecules. They finally found a way to apply
the E=mc2 theory. And they built a new world. Now come on, I want to
show you how kids are made.”
Celina took me to a different
floor of that building. The place looked like a giant lab with test tubes and
charts and 3D depictions of DNA.
“Computer, match my voice with
appropriate images and highlighted spaces within the room.”
“Neopolis has 300.000 citizens,
150.000 men and 150.000 women.” A chart with these statistics flashed on a
wall. “Equality needed to be practical. Everyone has been genetically modified
to live until they are eighty years old. This way every year the same number of
people that die are born and population number is controlled. For this reason
sexual intercourse outside marriage is illegal to avoid accidental pregnancies
and unnecessary abortions. All sexual needs are covered by the household
partners. When two people decide to get married it is a commitment for life. Sperm
and egg cells are stored here in case they decide they want children and the
woman’s ovaries are removed to avoid pregnancy. When the couple decides they
want children they have to come back here and apply for a child. Priority is
given to couples who got married earlier and as many children are created as
the deaths of the year. Parents come here and with the help of the computer
customize their child.” The DNA panel flashed and a 3D head appeared that would
change to show all the options. “Parents get to choose skin colour, hair, eyes,
height, everything that has to do with the child’s appearance or they can
choose between random combinations of their own DNA if they want it to look
like them. The computer adjusts personality traits to make sure the child will
be eager to learn, smart, obedient and will develop skills needed for its
future career which is also programmed into its DNA according to what
professions will have gaps due to pensions in the year they will get to choose
their job. Of course, if you lived in Eugenia the computer would decide
everything on its own, but we are lucky. Nine months later you get your child.”
“That is horrible!” I said in
horror.
“What do you mean?”
“No one should have the right to
control people like that! Who controls the computer and who are they to decide
what a man will become?”
“The scientists. They control the
computer and they get to decide because without them we would all die. They
gave us a new world. A perfect world!”
“Where they control your life and
your death!”
“The other option is only death!
They gave us a chance to be equal in a society where everyone has its place,
everyone is needed and no one harms the other. Your people almost destroyed the
human race. Don’t you even think of acting like you know better!”
“I know that whatever I think is
my own thoughts and not programmed by someone else!”
For a while we were both silent,
looking at opposite directions and acting deeply absorbed by some random chart
on the wall.
“Michael, I have to apologise. I
should have thought that your limited knowledge of our society would make you
react badly to it. After all, it’s what I study.”
For some reason that apology
sounded slightly insulting but I decided not to continue the argument. I
suppose each person knows what he has been taught and in this case I should
have kept in mind I was not in my time any more. I nodded ok.
“So, I am done with what I wanted
to show you. Is there anything you would like to see in Neopolis?”
I thought about it for a moment.
“Is there a prisoner currently?”
“Computer, is there a person in
the Cell?”
A hologram of a woman in purple
appeared. EVE ADAMS. 26. SEXUAL INTERCOURSE OUTSIDE MARRIAGE. PARTNER ALREADY
INJECTED.
“I want to visit her” I said.
“Why?”
“Call it curiosity.”
…
The Cell was on the edge of the
dome. A room within a room, within a bigger room. Completely soundproof but
accessible to anyone who might want to visit. The first room was just for
security so that the outer door would be sealed before the next one opened. The
second room had a couple of machines that made food and clothes and as Celina
told me the prisoner was allowed to come in three times a day to eat and then
had to go back to the third one because the air was sucked out so that if the
prisoner attempted to stay there and try to escape he would suffocate. The
final room was where the prisoner stayed. It had a bed, an office so that the
prisoner could read books and an en suite toilet and shower. What I found the
strangest was that there was a small door that said exit on the other end of
the wall.
“Hello Eve. I am Celina and this
is Michael from the History Programme. He wanted to meet you.”
Eve ignored Celina but looked at
me intensely.
“You can call me Mike”, I said
with a smile.
“Why did you want to meet me?”
“Why did you commit a crime?”
“I thought you’re supposed to be
the lab rat here.”
“If that’s how you’re going to be
then we are going to leave” Celina cut in.
“You can go any time you want
sweetie. But I think he wants to stay.”
I looked at Celina.
“Fine. I’ll be right outside.
When you want to go tap the window when you’re ready to go”.
Once Celina was out of the room
Eve relaxed.
“You are a lab rat. So am I. So
is everyone. See my clothes? I am an artist. Free to express myself. As long as
I express it in a way that pleases our leaders of course. That’s art now. You
make what people will buy. Otherwise you’re useless. And if you’re useless
there’s no place for you here. Not all deaths are from old age, you know. They
program you at birth but sometimes things go wrong and you become a thinking
person. You know what I did?”
“I saw the record.”
“For me art is passion and
passion takes all forms. I don’t regret it. Neither did he. They think they
will choose when I live and when I die. See this door? It says exit. I will
open it the day of my injection.”
“Where does it lead?”
“Outside the dome. Where the
poison air and the radiation is. A door to freedom. A door to death. The only
dome exit mind you. And I will open it. In the end it will be my choice.”
…
THE END
Ok, so I had applied for a Creative Writing MA and I sent them this story with my application but unfortunately they said it was not good enough to offer me a place. However, I happen to like this story a lot so I thought I'd share it with you anyway. As always, comments and suggestions on how to improve my writing are welcome. I do not intend to lose faith in myself and I will continue writing because it's something that makes me happy.
Love,
Kristine
