Episode 5
=== USER 6545198 NOW CONNECTED TO HIDDEN SERVER “Fall” ===
=== ENTER PRIVATE ENCRYPTION KEY FOR MESSAGE OPERATIONS ===
--- Private Encryption Key: ************************* ---
=== PRIVATE ENCRYPTION KEY ACCEPTED ===
=== MESSAGING OPERATIONS INITIATED ===
--- USER 6545198: Reporting in.
---< has the cavern been pumped, reshaping begun >---
---< any issues >---
--- USER 6545198: The cavern is fully dry. The new company has begun to enlarge the cavern. No issues with the current stage. ---
..
..
---< need i remind you your duty to provide me with the COMPLETE details >---
---< no issues with the CURRENT stage???? >---
..
--- USER 6545198: Well… there was some… dissatisfaction among the previous stage workers when they were informed their contract was being terminated. ---
..
---< are you running for guardian? am I the lehen official media? how about you skip the political answer and give me facts. how much are we paying you? clearly too much, its gone straight to your head >---
--- USER 6545198: It’s not an easy conversation to tell fifty lower class workers they are fired, during a time when jobs are hard to find in The Founding. They were quite angry. >---
..
---< well 1 thats a problem we are solving here arent we and 2 the plan would never work if word got out which is why we are using different contractors for each stage. 3 what contingencies do we need to prepare for, what could these workers do to harm the plan >---
..
--- USER 6545198: I can handle that part. Per the hiring agreement, I reiterated this is a matter of national security. I told them we received threats originating from Leinastarag, then swore them to secrecy. I’ll have LOM float a story on the feeds that vaguely corroborates that. At best they’ll come across as conspiracy theorists. ---
---< good work. leinastarag is impossible to verify even if they shouted it from the rooftops >---
--- USER 6545198:Did you just give me a compliment? ---
..
---< dont mistake us as friends. have planetary shadow the workers for a few days just in case any of them start running their mouth. lethal force is authorized
..
--- USER 6545198: Yes Sir. ---
---**---
=== USER 6545198 DISCONNECTED ===
=== AWAITING COMMAND ===
Emson sat, elegantly, one matte black leg folded over the other. She wore a glimmering white tunic with gold inlay. A wide brimmed hat shielded her face from sunlight and onlookers, yet her eyes peered intently into the crowd. It wasn’t hard to pick out those who were from The Founding. Darker, more functional clothes. Worse posture. Didn’t walk with fake, officious, pompousness. They walked as if the destination was more important than the journey. In contrast were opulent outfits parading around mainly just to be seen. The world she knew.
Emson reminded herself to be grateful. The lifestyle she viewed as visual and shallow had, after all, afforded her a great many benefits. Genetically engineered, she suffered no disease or abnormality. She had cyberneural enhancement, and access to augmentation accessories. Her time was spent in educational activities, rather than income earning mandates. She wanted for nothing. And yet, when studying The Founding, when hearing the experiences of those who moved from The Founding, when seeing pain in the eyes of those who crossed the pillars, what she wanted was to help those who were not as fortunate as her.
Emson didn’t understand what made this impossible. Why was it that The Design was so extravagantly wealthy, yet The Founding struggled to make ends meet? Were there not Guardians on both sides working together to better the city? Why didn’t The Design give excess to help those who lived elsewhere?
Emson’s line of questioning had led to her parents. Her parents raised her to be honest and upstanding. Her parents valued truth. Her parents would have the answer. But she was wrong. Her parents told her to stop looking into The Founding. The Design is the future. The Design is the present. The backbone of society is culture, and the backbone of culture is The Design. Are those in The Founding less wealthy? Yes, they are. Do those in The Design not deserve to reap the spoils of their hard work? Of course they do. Besides, The Design funds a great many projects in The Founding. That way, anyone who is of quality in The Founding will eventually make their way to The Design. That is just the natural course of life. This is why it is such a privilege and honor to live in The Design. You are special, Emson. We love you.
Emson was satisfied. For a while, that is. She tried to research Founding projects funded by The Design. She gave up. It was a dizzying array of Guardians, contractors, subcontractors, ownership companies, shareholders. The financials were public, but she was not a specialist in mathematics. Later, she became friends with a girl who had moved into The Design, having lived in The Founding previously for her entire life. They were friends, that is, until Emson’s parents forbade her from seeing the girl. She’s beneath you. It will just hurt more when you have to leave her behind. We are doing this to save you pain, because we love you. Emson trusted her parents. She stopped seeing her friend. But she didn’t stop hearing the friend’s stories echo in her head.
One night, Emson was supposed to be at a party with classmates and young professionals. Held at one of The Design’s sector L estates, the party was a checklist of everyone who was an up-and-comer in The Design. But Emson couldn’t bring herself to walk through the door. These people, her peers… Emson didn’t feel like herself around them. The boys were insufferable. Puffing veneer, facades of confidence, inherited self worth, copied charisma. She wasn’t sure anything was real about them. The girls were worse. Spiteful if you chose career, spiteful if you chose talent, spiteful if you chose love, never comparing themselves to self-set goals, only comparing themselves to others. Was it a game? Why did it feel like no one was ever a winner? Emson hated the competition, so she refused to play. She walked through The Pillars of Creation instead of the estate doors, and didn’t come back until morning.
Her parents were livid. They had gotten a security notification as soon as a family ID card had registered in The Founding. They feared a kidnapping, until they saw the footage in the square of Emson hesitantly walking alone into the dark. How could she be so stupid? So careless? They chided her. They locked her ID chip from Founding access. But Emson was undeterred. What she saw on the streets only made her resolve stronger. People needed help, and she wanted to help. Emson went to The Founding twice more, only for a few hundred pulsars at a time. She offered strangers food and credits. She got caught by her parents both times. She almost made it back the second time, successfully sneaking into The Founding without her ID chip, but a security checkpoint wouldn’t let her back into The Design. Eventually, she had to use her biometrics, which triggered the notification to her parents. Her parents gave her a last warning. She dare not cross again. But that didn’t stop Emson from watching for people who came into The Design. She would follow, observe, try to understand why they were here, what they needed, and help the strangers however she could. That was her mission.
Emson hadn’t noticed him at first. But his figure stood out, immobile against the sea of moving bodies. He was clearly masculine, with medium dark brown hair and a thick beard. He had a piercing in his lip. He was standing next to a pillar, looking back and forth from Design to Founding. An involuntary smile crossed Emson’s lips. He looked so… Lost? Confused? Stupid? She laughed inwardly. He wasn’t stupid, everyone was smart in their own way, but he certainly looked as if he had forgotten where he lived. The man turned one last time, looked resolutely forward into The Design, and started purposefully walking. He had captured Emson’s attention. He wore dark pants, boots, a dark sleeved shirt and had a scarf around his neck. He passed within 15 meteres of the bench Emson sat on, but he did not glance her way. She watched him intently. He clearly had somewhere to be, where was it? What was his task at hand? She stood, brushed her hands down her tunic, and watched the man slow and look around. He spotted a public information terminal, and started that way. If Emson wasn’t sure enough, she knew now the man wasn’t from The Design. Design residents all had wireless connectivity. Only those from Founding would need to connect to a terminal.
“Hello,” a bright voice said behind him. Relcheir didn’t react. The knoll was fairly crowded, and there was no reason for anyone to be talking to him. But one pulsar later, Relcheir still sensed the presence of someone watching him. He turned. A woman stood a few meters behind him, smiling. Relcheir’s eyes briefly darted around. He was back on alert. The woman spoke again. “How are you?”
“I’m fine, you?” Relcheir’s tone was guarded, but kind. She looks… engaging
Relcheir was used to dismissive or condescending expressions from those in Design, if he got one at all. But her… she’s interested in me. Why?
“I’m just fine, thank you,” the woman said. Her face brightened to match her voice. Relcheir found it pleasant to look at.
“Is...there something I can help you with?” Relchier asked. She’s definitely selling something. He glanced around once more.
“Oh, no thank you, I don’t need anything. But it looked like you might need some directions, and I figured I could help!”
Relcheir wasn’t sure he had heard such a happy tone of voice in months. Maybe years. Please keep talking
“That’s very observant of you. I do need directions. I’m looking for this Guardian building…” He trailed off as he showed her his wristpad. She leaned in to see it, and Relcheir couldn’t help but notice the sweet fragrance the woman wore.
If she was from Founding, i’d tell her she smells nice and offer to buy her a drink for helping
Too bad she’s Design…
This also could still definitely be a trick
“So why do you want to help me find where I’m going?”
That came out more bluntly than i wanted it to
The woman stepped back from his wristpad, and looked up at him. Her smile was still there, but it has lost a touch of it’s shine. “Maybe I’m just a helpful person. Is that alright with you?”
Relcheir laughed. Sassy. I like it
“Why of course it is!” Warmth flooded Relcheir’s tone, and he smirked. “You know, just when women usually approach me for something, it’s because they want something from me.”
It was Emson’s turn to laugh. Brightness returned to her smile. “Uh huh I bet. Well, the building is this way, if you would like to follow me I can take you there.” She pointed over her shoulder. “My name is Emson.”
“Relcheir. Nice to meet you.” Emson nodded at him, then whirled around, her tunic spinning in the breeze. Relcheir looked around to see if anyone else found this encounter as unusual as he did. No one seemed to be paying any attention. Relcheir relaxed a bit, and started following.
“So, Emson, what is the usual fee for your tour guide services?”
Emson glanced over her shoulder and saw a small grin on Relcheir’s face. She smiled. Most people from The Founding didn’t talk to her much. They would just accept her help and quietly follow along. “Oh, I don’t know… whatever they think is fair. What are you going there for?”
“I’m trying to get a certification for work.”
“What do you do for work?”
Relcheir hesitated. Manufacturing was not viewed favorably as far as work went. He heard his father’s voice in his head.
If robotics can replace you, you aren’t important enough
If you worked harder, you wouldn’t need to work in manufacturing
He hated his father.
Relcheir looked down at his clothes. They were not very clean.
Do I care about impressing Emson?
He looked up. He must have hesitated longer than he realized. Emson had stopped and was looking at him, expectantly.
“I’m in manufacturing,” Relcheir blurted out, then chided himself.
You don’t tell anyone the truth but the one girl who is most likely to take it poorly? What is wrong with you?
“Oh, okay,” Emson said. She turned back around, and continued on unperturbed. Relcheir’s brow furrowed. This girl is… unusual
“So what do you do? Help people all day?” Relcheir tried to be less blunt this time.
“I’m studying. Haven’t picked a specialty yet… would probably rather be able to just help people, yea.” Emson smiled at Relcheir. He weakly smiled back. He didn’t smile often, and was out of practice. “Well this is your building, Rel.”
Did she just call me ‘Rel’?
He was about to correct her, but stopped himself.
“Well thank you, Em, very kind of you.” He emphasized the shortened version of her name in turn. She just laughed.
“Good luck with your certification! Maybe I’ll see you when you get out.” She smiled again.
Relcheir smiled back, with confidence this time, and walked inside the building. He scanned his ID chip, and went to the room lit by the terminal. He began filling out documentations, inputting biometrics, and taking both cognitive and physical examinations. His thoughts remained on Emson.