Part 1
You should know that I had spent most of my childhood with my father’s parents, who lived far from the big city where my father and mother were. Although, I did not see much of my parents till I was 25, I don’t want you to think that they didn’t love me, but I was too ill and they were too busy in the City with my father making money to keep us all going and my mother having to spend it. By now you understand how the system works, so they couldn’t have done it otherwise, once pulled into the circle of the Perfect Equilibrium they were unable to escape, and even if they had known how, they would be too frightened to try.
Your grandparents did love me deeply, at least in the sense of how parents’ love is perceived in our society, especially my father, but they had to keep me away from the buzzing, crowded city as it seemed that being amongst people there was bad for me, by making me nauseated and exhausted.
The Health Adviser had explained to them that my immune system wasn’t strong enough to cope with the Virus, ergo I had to be sent, at the first stage, “Monitoring and Rehabilitation", to a village for a few years. In the event that they weren’t able or willing to do so, the second stage, “Utilisation”, would be applied straight away. Whereupon I would be locked in the Hospital to devote my life and my body to the Project “The Search and Achievement of the Perfect Life in the Divine Indifference through reducing inefficiencies, imperfections and destructive diversity in the Patriots”, which is a part of the Core Programme “Creation, Procreation and Sustenance of the Divinely Indifferent Perfect Patriots”.
This programme had been in implementation for the last 250 years, after the Final Collapse of the Diverse World and the Victorious Exposure of the Invisible Alien Invasion (IAI). At first phase, it accelerated the Cleansing through the compulsory mass vaccinations, revealing that practically eighty percent of the whole adult population aged 50 and above was already bearers of the Virus and continuously became infected during the first five decades after the Final Collapse and IAI.
They were gradually but systematically weeded out after being tested upon. Then, out of the sorrow, the great but necessary sacrifices, a new kind of enhanced, healthier human began to rise. The Perfect Patriots who were selected and programmed through the appropriate set of life expectancies, cultural and educational levels, to fit perfectly into the four Castes –the Path Definers, the Protectors, the Imposers and the Executors – established 248 years ago.
There in the Hospital, as you’re aware, I would be studied and experimented upon, so that as a Perfect Patriot, I would fulfil my obligations to society and maximise my contribution to the enhancement of the Divine Indifference of its Perfect Patriots. After they were done with me, I would be gracefully put into the Mercy Sleep and at the melodious monotony of the Hymn of the Limitless Dedication to the Divine Indifference my name would be forever carved in the grey marble of the Board of Honour.
Fortunately for me my grandfather - your great grandfather - had obviously contributed something exceptional. He was not only allowed to buy any property he wanted and fit it with non-self-expiring goods, but more importantly they allowed him to retire at the age of 109, whereas as you know in our Caste for the Level 2 it is 111.They even agreed to wait for him to die from old age (there are not many amidst any caste apart from the Path Definers, who will have this privilege) and he would not be put into the Merciful Sleep unless of course he lived beyond 119, or my father lost his ability to earn, or our spending became below the average required for the income my father had.
Once my grandfather had been set free, forthwith he bought an ancient white cottage with a red tile roof. He insisted on it being placed dangerously close to the boundary separating the village from the wild unsanitized valleys, which back then surrounded a major part of the City.
Regrettably, I have few vague memories of your great grandmother as your great grandfather’s privilege was not extended to her; just two weeks after I moved to live with them, she was put into the Mercy Sleep on her 113th birthday, surrounded by her family and closest from our Caste, at the end of the standard Depart with Dignity Celebration.
Throughout the time I spent with my grandfather, my parents would come to visit me, not only when they were required, but as often they possibly could without being fined.
During their earlier visits in the summer, in the cosy safety of our unified garden, to cheer me up, my father would put me on his back letting me ride him like a horse and my grandfather pretended to be a grey wolf that chased us through the wilderness of long since vanished primeval prairies of North Continent A. We would play around, followed by my worried-sick mother begging us to stop in the fear of being penalised for Eccentricity and Undignified Behaviour.
Then later, after having unpacked the countless gifts my mother had bought for me, we would have a quiz on how the Perfect Patriot of each Caste, Sub Caste and Level should conduct their lives to preserve the Blessedness of Indifferent and Recognisable Behaviour. From the display embedded into the wall, the Health Adviser would watch us and monitor my answers to ensure the progress of my rehabilitation. Once the theory part had been finished, my parents would take me for a tour to and around the City so that gradually I would become accustomed to living there once again.
That prime official education, heavily structured towards a basic explanation of the Joy of Liberating Servitude to the Needs of our Equal in its Divine Indifference Society and to its Protection from the Invisible Alien Invasion of the Destructive Diversity, was meant to stabilise my health and be the first imprint in my mind of the duties I must do after the training appropriate for the Caste of Defence Protectors E would be complete.
My grandfather’s approach was at odds with this system. Instead of making me watch 24/7 Advertising or the Best Patriots news, at his risk he would take me for long walks through the contaminated, unwatched valleys up to the top of the distant hills. Whilst we walked, he would tell me the strange stories called fairy-tales, legends and myths, about some mysterious creatures named elves and angels, and gods and goddesses, who all possessed supernatural powers and visited or lived on the Earth a long, long time ago and who watch us even now.
There is in hills, invisible to anyone, I was encouraged by my grandfather to take my protective suit and boots off as he did, so I could feel the grass tickling my feet, the warmth of the sunlight on my cheeks and arms, the powerful wind full of foreign exotic scents, blowing through my hair, calling for me.
Then, in a cave, carefully concealed in the slope of the remotest hill, that he called his Lair, he would show me the ancient books made of paper with pictures and symbols called letters inside, and other things which I never knew existed. There, in the novel tranquillity of his Lair, he edified me to all these different words, their meanings and how to write them using the plastic or metal sticks with the dark liquid inside and how to mix colours and paint with soft brushes; those skills and tools, thought to be obsolete and hence long forgotten, since the Voice to Image Standardisers became widely available centuries ago.
It was he who told me about the history before the Final Collapse and of strange different languages that were before the Convenient in its Unified Simplicity Language was invented to unite us all, yet he said that some of the Path Definers still have this relic knowledge as a part of their Caste education. During his lessons, unlike the Health Adviser, my grandfather would engage me in all sorts of discussions of what seemed important to me, teaching me not to rely utterly on the Ultimate and Rational Answer Provider, but rather on the natural scibility and intuition he said I had.
Almost every time we were there, the rainbow would stretch its magnificent arch down from the sky and once again I would listen to my grandfather’s enchanting stories about the old good magic that lives in Rainbows. In the early days of our walks, I would skip and run towards the rainbow, chanting spell words in the hope that it would kindly reveal its powers to me. Needless to say, soon I felt bitterly disappointed at the elusiveness of this chase. I lost my faith and confronted my grandfather; he calmly said that only on the day that I am ready, would the rainbow come to me. I laughed at him, showing my disbelief, yet secretly wishing him to be right. Then like lightning She burst into my life.
The first time it was only a brief acquaintance. I’m still puzzled at how, despite all our precautions, she managed to follow us unnoticed on a few occasions. In fact, only after she noisily slipped along the footpath trying to avoid being seen, my grandfather spotted her and invited her to join our walks.
Naively in the beginning, I felt superior as she seemed younger than I. Albeit, her father reached External Level 1, he was from the Caste of Health Imposers only. As I saw her at the time, she was just a female, thus her duty would never rise above giving birth; her purpose was to keep spending if one would choose to marry her or make her his official mistress. If she could not perform any of these before the Active Age Limit - 30 for her caste - she would be sent to the Hospital in order to enable her to contribute at least something to our society.
I must admit to having been annoyed with my grandfather for breaking the Caste Interaction Code by talking with her as if she was an equal. However, once she overcame her shyness and the words flowed out of her, I was smitten - the more passionate she became, the brighter her eyes shone and I saw that her face was enlightened as she told us of how she longed to be able to fly unrestricted and free like a bird in the immense sky, to explore what was beyond the safe Cities.
I also couldn’t help feeling envious, virtually hateful, of how quickly she absorbed the knowledge my grandfather was passing to her and of how instant and unmistaken her conclusions were. The way she described things, the words she used, were away beyond the Permitted Vocabulary for her Caste and some of them were unknown even to me. In two months, she knew almost as much as I had learned within my first year with my grandfather.
She was lively, vibrant and bright, like the sunlight that she loved so much and somehow everything seemed to be brighter in her presence and more meaningful with her touch. Soon I fully shared the fondness my grandfather had for her.
Like me, she was sent to the village and was supervised by her Health Adviser. The house her father rented was not far from ours. However, when we saw each other, bound by the rules of Code of the Recognisable Unified Behaviour, we would exchange short greetings at best, being aware that any informal chat wasn’t permitted to us.
Although she was very straightforward and open, I only learned what her name was just before that dreadful night. Everything on that day was unusual: her already waiting for us before the lair instead of walking with us along hills, her absentmindedness and lack of will.
To uplift her spirit, my grandfather let her read exquisitely illustrated history books; phlegmatically without looking at she turned a couple of pages, casually mentioning that her Health Adviser had expressed his concern. Troubled, I asked about what would happen; she laughed saying that the decision wasn’t final and that she still had another day to live. Reassured, I returned to my reading when she briefly leaned against my shoulder, the heat of her body made my heart flutter, and whispered: “I’m Vivien. Don’t forget me Paul, as I’ll always remember you.” Then as if she wanted to add to my confusion, she pecked me on my cheek and hurried out saying she must remain in the house at all the times, to comply with her Supervisor’s instructions.
After her ominously rushed departure, I couldn’t enjoy my grandfather’s company and urged him to return home.
Night fell on the village without bringing the relief of sleep. Vexing thoughts kept me restless; I peered and peered through the darkness until my eyes ached. Then, just after midnight, I saw them coming. The lights in the house which she lived in instantly went on then off again. I heard her subdued cries and suddenly felt my grandfather’s hand pressing heavily upon my shoulder to keep me still. I looked at him, inquiring: “They took her to the Hospital, shouldn’t she be fine?” He shook his head, saying quietly: “Yes, of course, eventually she will be. You mustn’t think of her any longer, boy, as she’s not your concern anymore.” I stared into his eyes. They were glittering with what he later said were tears.
So then, together, we stood there, watching them came back in the wan light of autumn’s dawn to erase the house. By the morning, the place looked as if nothing had ever been there. A lonely sign informed that it was sanitised from the Virus and could be used again in three weeks’ time.
On the third day after Vivien was taken, my grandfather had told me that he must go. I asked him why and where. Placidly, he reminded me that his 119th birthday was approaching and he would be required to die. A misplaced comment, that I made out of a refusal to accept that his life rushed to its conclusion rather than out of callousness, was: “Oh, Granddad, you still have more than 6 months before it happens; we don’t need to worry about it now”. He didn’t reply.
Shortly after, we went for the usual walk, crossing the valley in an eerie silence. We were almost at the foot of the hills when he stopped, put his large hands on my shoulders and said that from this point on he would go alone, ordering me to return home at once. I demanded an explanation, but he just asked of me not to worry and when the time comes to bring you to his lair to teach you everything that he once taught me. Then before going forth, out of turn he kissed me on my forehead. The awkwardness of this unfamiliar sentiment left me in dismay.
I watched him walking away, seeing the distance altering, ameliorating his figure, making it slimmer and more upright. Curious, I hailed him. He slowed down to look at me and waved before resuming his journey.
At that very moment when he looked back at me I knew that something had changed in him.
I broke my promise not to follow and shadowed him, hiding behind old crooked trees and gigantic granite boulders, up to the cliff where once together we watched rains and rainbows. I saw him staying too close to the edge despite struggling to keep his balance. His head and arms were raised up as if he was praying. Suddenly before him, passing through his outspread arms the rainbow descended from the cloudless sky. Frightened for him, I rushed forward crying out to him to come back. He turned around - he was a young man again. With a blissful smile, he said: “Don’t be scared, we’ll meet again.” Then looking at me he fell back into the rainbow and down to the bottom of the hills. My last fractured recollection was watching his rapid fall. About the rest, all I know is what my father told me. He said that at nightfall I was discovered lying unconscious with almost half of my body hanging over the edge of the cliff in an apparent attempt to stop my grandfather. Although both Internal and External Defence Executors Level 1 were involved scanning high and low, through and around the cliff and hills for several days, neither his body nor any sign of his lair which I told them about were ever found.
The official Image to Voice Tablet reported the matter, showing us the reconstruction of what happened there: hypnotised by the Mind Control Mighty Rays my grandfather and I without our protective suits, were lured to the cliff by Aliens so that we would be infected by the Virus. There on the cliff, my grandfather briefly regained his will and bravely sacrificed his life to save mine. As consequence, he was brutally murdered. His body was abducted by the Invisible Aliens to cover up the dreadful disfigurement the Virus and the Human Mutilator inflicted upon him and to allow them to conduct further dissection experiments.
We received a Certified Official Commemorative Tablet with a message recorded by the Defence Path Definer Level 2 and the Defence Protectors External and Internal Level 1, in which we could see them in person expressing their condolences and informing us that in recognition of my grandfather’s untimely but heroic death, they allowed us to retain all his possessions indefinitely.
To ensure I didn’t contract the Virus, I had to spend the following week with the Health Adviser, going through countless tests and numerous social exercises, which I passed. Following this, for my excellent results and my stoic behaviour during the hardship that my family suffered at the hands of the vicious Aliens, the recommendation was that I be admitted to the 3rd year of the Academy directly so unlike everyone else I bypassed the basic level 8 and started at the Level 6.
There within the Academy’s walls, I was proving to be a Perfect Patriot. In my achievements and studies, I was ahead of other students, hence to their envy and admiration I was the first to get the Defence Protector Caste mark inked on my left palm –the light-emitting, black-silver-red tattoo of the Defence Protector in his uniform with the old-fashioned jetpack, standing over the defeated faceless Alien, pressing the foul creature firmly to the ground; his right hand holding the Alien’s Annihilator pointed to the enemy’s head and his left hand raised proudly to show his palm as the sign of the Glorious Victory.
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