The Perfect World (The Perfect World Series Book 1) (14 page)

His door had been forced open by a pair of black armored guards.  That would have been frightening enough, except that one of them was clearly carrying one of the black objects from the video. It was much larger than the ones he’d seen the masked men carry, but the design was similar.

One of the armored guards quickly walked over to his computer and forcibly yanked the equipment from its place. The sound of wires snapping filled the room as the screen went black.

“Hey!” Cyrus said as he tried to get to his feet, but both guards turned their attention on him, and he stopped in place.

“There has been an unprecedented malfunction in our computer system. We have been authorized to remove all of the malfunctioning units in this building for the sake of all of its inhabitants. You will receive a new one tomorrow morning.”

“But—”

The circular barrel of the black object was suddenly pointed in his direction. “You are not allowed to speak when you are not within the presence of others. To do so is a sign of sickness.”

The ten-year-old boy promptly closed his mouth, images of red bloodstained clothes and still bodies fresh in his mind.

“Tomorrow afternoon, after your new computer has been installed, you will receive an emergency video explaining to you the false images you have been shown. The entire building will remain in quarantine for the evening as the images you have been shown might cause severe sickness.”

Cyrus nodded at the words, and the armored guards quickly exited his room, their heavy footfalls echoing as they marched into the next room. He waited until his lock clicked shut before he got off the floor. His body was covered in a cold sweat, and it was all he could do to keep from shaking. He jumped a moment later when his lights went out far earlier than they normally should.

With nothing else to do, Cyrus changed into his nightwear and crawled under his covers. He clutched the sheets and tried to sleep, even though part of him knew it would be impossible. Every so often, he heard the sound of heavy footfalls coming from the hallway. Clutching his blanket tightly, he shut his eyes tightly and willed the morning to come.

Cyrus woke with a start the next morning as his breakfast landed in his food slot with a solid thud. He sat up quickly, wondering briefly why he was so high-strung. Then it all came back to him. The strange computer malfunction. The strange black weapons and the still bodies. The video of Jack Bertrand and the threats from the armored guards.

Shivering at the memory, he pulled his breakfast out and uncovered the container to reveal some soggy scrambled eggs with flecks of bacon. He shoveled the jiggling eggs into his mouth, not really tasting the food at all. 

Cyrus placed the food container on top of his dresser and started to get dressed. He waited a while for his door to unlock so that Ms. Linda could come in with her garbage bag, like she did every morning. His lock clicked open, but still Ms. Linda did not arrive. Frowning, Cyrus walked to the bathroom to take care of his business and came back. There was still no sign of his caretaker.

Where is she? he wondered as worry began to twist in his stomach. No, it’s nothing. She’s probably just busy after what happened yesterday. She’s fine.

He repeated that last thought to himself again and again. No matter how many times he tried, he still didn’t entirely believe it.

The next time the lock clicked open, Cyrus knew it was time for him to go to school. He went outside to get into line only to find that they were being flanked by armored guards. Every student hastily got into line when they saw the guards, and everyone kept their eyes straight ahead. One of the guards made their way to the front of the line and then they were all off to school.

It wasn’t any typical school day, however. They spent the entire morning with Ms. Neva, who was adamant that every single thing they saw was false information. She never once explained how the information appeared in the first place. She simply reiterated what they had been told for as long as he could remember. They lived in an Enlightened Society. Positive emotions were the most important thing. Every person was special and equal. Every person had a destiny. After an hour or so of this, Cyrus wanted to bash his head against his desk.

Then, after two hours of Ms. Neva’s lecture, the armored guards returned, and they were whisked back to their rooms. When Cyrus entered the room, he noticed he had a new computer on his desk. It looked exactly the same as the last one, and if he hadn’t seen the other one being taken, he never would have noticed a difference.

Sighing, he laid down on his bed and waited for whatever was supposed to happen next. As he turned his head toward his dresser, he noticed that his breakfast trash was still in his room. The realization made him sit up to make sure he was seeing it correctly. Once he was sure he wasn’t seeing things, the knots in his stomach grew even worse.

The young man got up and started pacing his room. His eyes darted from the locked door to the glowing Quarantine Dome outside. He wanted to talk to Scott and ask him if he had seen Ms. Linda. His green eyes kept going back to the Quarantine Dome, wondering if she was there. He tried to calm down by telling himself he was being ridiculous, but it didn’t seem to help.

Cyrus jumped when his computer snapped on and started buzzing. He was startled for a moment until he remembered that the guards had told him there would be some kind of emergency video that he was supposed to see. He sat down on his stool and waited for the video in question to start.

After a few moments, the screen finally switched to a video of a woman in a green and brown uniform. She was standing on a podium in the middle of a green, grassy field surrounded by rows of chairs.

Cyrus recognized the place in question. There was a building they were forced to go to every year to make their Allegiance Pledge. On January 1
st
, all the students from his building were sent to this building with its rows upon rows of uncomfortable chairs to be lectured about the greatness of the Enlightened Society. Before they could leave, everyone was forced to stand up, place their hands over their hearts and swear their unquestioning faith and loyalty to their leaders and their society.

The young boy also recognized the woman who was standing on the podium. Her name was General Millicent, and she was the leader of the area he lived in. Ms. Linda explained to him that the Generals were chosen by their Enlightened leaders to act in their place since they couldn’t be everywhere at one time. She also mentioned that these Generals were in charge of the black armored guards.

General Millicent had the largest frame of any woman he’d ever seen, making her look quite powerful. She wore a green and brown uniform with black laced-up boots. Her dark hair was thin and tied back behind her neck. Her eyebrows were thin, her eyes were dark, and her mouth was set in a permanent hard line across her face.

“Good afternoon to you all,” General Millicent’s voice was rough and grating. “Yesterday evening, a serious incident occurred in our area through a malfunction of our computer system. I am here to reassure all of you that the information you have seen is completely false.

“In Uncivilized Times, there were people who put together words, images and videos that were simply not true. This disinformation, known as propaganda, was used to make people believe that our Enlightened Leaders were bad people. The result of this propaganda was terrible, unnecessary violence caused by those who simply could not accept the truth.”

What truth is that?
Cyrus wondered as he stared at his screen.

“Once again, I would like to reassure you all that those who caused this unrest and violence are gone. There is no place for such people in our Enlightened Society, and we are all better off for it. The way we live now is the highest achievement of mankind, and we have the Enlightened leaders and Experts of the past to thank for it all.”

Cyrus’s mind flashed back to the images of men, women and children running, screaming and the red stains that appeared after a short, loud bang. He couldn’t imagine how he was supposed to be thankful for something like that.

“It is also worth noting that this incident may bring up a higher level of sickness among students than is normal. The dedicated teachers and caretakers of your buildings will be doing everything they can to ensure the wellbeing of every student.”

Suddenly, the video began focusing on General Millicent’s face as she paused during her speech. Cyrus noticed how hard and cold her eyes were.

“After today, everything will return to the normal schedule. There will be no more questions about this incident from this day forward. I trust you have all understood me.”

The words were spoken in such a way that Cyrus knew the words, “I trust,” should really be, “You’d better.”

“That is all. You are dismissed.”

Those last sharp words were followed by the screen going blank and the power on his computer turning off. The young boy sat on his stool for a moment, absorbing all that he’d seen in the past two days. His reminiscence was broken when he heard a familiar thud from the direction of his food slot. Slowly, he got off his stool so he could get his lunch for the day.

As he munched on its contents, a piece of hard bread and a bowl of vegetable soup, his green eyes wandered over to where his breakfast trash was. Once he finished his lunch, he added the contents to the pile. He wondered, once again, where Ms. Linda was.

She’ll be here soon. Cyrus thought, trying to reassure himself. She’ll come in with her garbage bag and clean up the trash. I’ll ask her lots of questions, and she’ll tell me she has a schedule to keep. Just like always.

The moment the lock clicked on his door, he expected to see his small, bustling caretaker enter the room and tell him he’d been overreacting for worrying about her. He waited a moment before it became clear to him that the door had opened so that he could use the bathroom. Despondently, Cyrus left his room, took care of his business and hurried back. When he came back in, his trash was still exactly where it was when he had left.

Frowning, he sat down on his bed and decided he would just have to wait. So, he waited and waited and waited. He tossed and turned on his bed until he heard another thud from his food slot. His dinner had arrived. He pulled the food out and ate it listlessly. When he was finished, he was filled with anticipation.

She has to come this time. There’s no way that she wouldn’t.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, his lock clicked open. Cyrus waited and a big grin lit up his face as the door opened on its own.

“Ms. Linda!” Cyrus called out to her in a big, exuberant voice. The smile faded as soon as it had appeared as a stranger walked through his door.

This woman was much taller than Ms. Linda was. She was reed thin, with very long, slender legs. Her black hair went down to her knees, and she had matching dark eyes that looked at him with a vacant expression. Her face was quite wan, she had a long neck and no striking features. She was dressed in the garb that Ms. Linda always used to wear. Feeling very anxious now, Cyrus blurted out the first questions that came to his mind.

“Who are you? Where’s Ms. Linda? Why isn’t she here?” he asked in a frightened, high-pitched voice.

The woman regarded him coldly. “I do not remember granting you the permission to speak.”

“But—”

“Enough!” the dark-haired woman snapped at him. He jumped a little on his bed and immediately shut his mouth. When she was sure he would no longer interrupt, she spoke again.

“The incident that occurred yesterday had a dire impact on your previous caretaker. The sickness incurred to her was deemed incurable. She has been registered as a threat to herself and others. She has been quarantined for the good of us all.”

Cyrus’s mouth opened and closed, shock spreading through his whole being. He couldn’t believe that he would never see her again. Tears started coming to his eyes. He tried to speak, but this new caretaker silenced him with a wave of her hand.

“My name is Ms. Mary. I will be taking care of your floor from now on. The schedule which was kept by your previous caretaker will remain the same under my watch. Do you understand?”

Cyrus swallowed to try and get rid of the lump in his throat. “Yes, Ms. Mary,” he finally replied.

“Good.” She entered his room and placed his garbage into her bag. She took out the key ring that used to belong to Ms. Linda and opened the cabinet that held his toothbrush in it. He went through the motions of brushing his teeth, not really aware of what he was doing.

As she locked his cabinet up again, Cyrus couldn’t hold back anymore. He had to ask one more desperate question.

“Isn’t there anything that can be done for her?” Cyrus’s question came out as a plea. He was feeling close to tears again.  “There has to be something! Maybe if I talked to her-”

“Quiet!” Ms. Mary snapped at him in a harsh voice. He took an involuntary step back at the sound. “Individual questions are not to be answered unless they are completely necessary. I was only instructed to tell you what had become of your former caretaker. Any more discussion on the matter is considered unhealthy and, therefore, banned from this day forward. Is that clear?”

“Yes …” Cyrus replied in quiet despair.

“I think it is in your best interest to know that asking such questions of your caretakers is not allowed. This is for our own safety since asking us these things is something that can cause us to become sick. Perhaps that is one of the reasons Ms. Linda is no longer allowed among us.”

If Ms. Mary knew that her cold words ripped through Cyrus like a knife, she didn’t show it. In fact, it seemed to Cyrus that her expression was wavering between fear and annoyance. He wondered if she was afraid of him. He had an idea of why she would be and that perhaps she had a very good reason to be.

His new caretaker picked up her trash bag and left without another word. The lock clicked shut, and he knew he was alone again. Unable to hold back anymore, he laid down on his bed and buried his face in his pillow. Tears poured from his eyes at the words that Ms. Mary had told him. Ms. Linda had been quarantined. She was never to be spoken of again. Ms. Linda, his caretaker for as long as he could remember, was gone.

Like so many other things, he didn’t understand it. He didn’t know why she was gone, the same way he hadn’t understood why Mr. Vale or the golden puppy had disappeared. He wondered if it was all his fault.

For a moment, that thought turned his sadness into anger, and he balled his hands into fists.
How?
he thought as he pounded his fists into his bed.
How is someone okay one day and just gone the next? It’s not fair! It’s stupid, it’s unfair and no one will tell me why! Was it me? Is it my fault? Why won’t anyone tell me? I don’t want people to go away anymore …

Cyrus didn’t know how long he had lain on his bed and cried. He finally stopped when his eyes had become sore and his nose was completely runny. He sat up and took a few deep breaths, rubbing his eyes and trying to wipe off his face. He figured he must have looked like a big mess. Then, when his eyes finally cleared, he glanced up and saw the glowing wall of the Quarantine Dome.

The wall was glowing with a golden white light that swirled outside its surface. He found the sight to be strangely comforting as he always did. The Quarantine Dome was a constant, unmovable presence in his life. It was perhaps the only thing that was.