Chapter 5

Opportunity

- For unto he who possesses knowledge, is given the world -

The mysterious black-cloaked figure departed his dwelling without speaking a word to him. His mother and father had explained that everything was all right but Thonavar sensed that something was amiss. Yet, though he did not know what had taken place in the room between mother, father and the cloaked stranger, he trusted his parents and knew there was a reason they had chosen not to speak any further on the matter.

Having been told that there was little cause for concern, Thonavar got up the next day and walked to college. He looked up into the sky and saw bright and white fluffy clouds hanging just beyond the curtain which stretched encompassing the entire city. The curtain ensures our survival, he thought to himself. We are safe from the terrors that rage outside.

A nearby billboard screen showed a black-clad group of individuals marching in formation upon a long red carpet as people threw and sprinkled flowers from surrounding rooftops. The moving images fizzed and blanked continuously, indicating the billboard’s long-awaited need for immediate repair. A broadcast echoed in the streets as clear as day.

“Wish for a better life? A better future. Behold, the old is past and the new has come! Do not miss the opportunity to serve our glorious city in protecting our communities and homes. Training, equipment and state of the art technology at your fingertips. Join a patrol today!”

I wish for a better life, thought Thonavar, trying to blot out the sound of the repeating broadcast. And I shall ascend on my own terms.

The sun did little to brighten Thonavar's mood as he walked to college. It was always with a deep sense of dread and anxiety that he went to college each morning. It was not the being picked on by some of the bigger boys and Alexis' gang that filled him with unease, but the standards that the college upheld and lived up to. Newton's college was one of the best in the sector, and the college officials enforced a very high standard upon those that went there to pursue an education. There was much emphasis on getting good reports, and high expectations were set for students. Most of the college students came from affluence and wealth, as most were from city middle and city above, where the more established social classes came from.

As he approached the college gates, Thonavar saw a group of boys and girls that had gathered there. One of them, a tall boy, saw Thonavar and quickly gestured to the others.

“There he is!”, Thonavar heard the boy say to the others. “I heard that his father had to beg the college to allow the likes of him to enter.”

“His father?”

“Yes, his father is but a labourer. You know? Those that operate those large machines used to lift heavy things.”

Shut your mouth, thought Thonavar, anger welling up within him. Or I shall shut it for you.

He had wanted to punch the tall boy but held his temper in check, walking past the group who observed him with cool disdain before dispersing from the gate. He knew he did not fit in and he was used to these taunts and insults from the boys at the college. For his clothes were old and used and his appearance was ruddy and sometimes disheveled. Besides, he knew that there was some truth in the matter. His father had helped to build the college and as a result a government official had rewarded his father with the opportunity for a member of his household to study there. Only one labourer out of the group of fifty had been made such an offer and Jesse could scarcely believe his good fortune. Thonavar remembered how happy his mother had been when she had heard the news.

I must always be grateful, thought Thonavar. Father and mother strive so that I might live.

Pausing to return a smile from a nearby college official dressed in dark green robes, Thonavar entered the college main building. As he walked through clean halls framed with archways of white and gold, Thonavar’s thoughts fell on the dark-robed figure of Felix Vanyaga and the events that had transpired yesterday. He ignored the darting looks of disdain and condescending whispers of fellow pupils as he passed them. Some averted their eyes, not wishing to look at him. But Thonavar’s thoughts were some where else.

No matter. Time will reveal all things, thought Thonavar to himself. I am certain that all will be well. But for now, I must not be late for the lecture again.

Golden statues of men in different postures depicting strength, wisdom and resilience and each holding a pair of bronze and iron scales, lined the passageway to the lecture hall. Thonavar saw a digital image playing on a virtual screen showing three learned men, standing tall and proud, with arms folded, rising up from a pit of swirling darkness before emerging victorious in a blinding display of light and colour. A digital playback device sounded out in accompaniment. “In a time of chaos and ruin, the Unity rose to meet our desperate need. Wise and strong, they emerged triumphant and helped to build our new world. Who will join them in their quest for peace?”

But the lecture was starting and there was little time to listen to the rest of the screen playback or to watch the entirety of the digital image. Thonavar entered the lecture hall just in time as the doors sealed shut behind him in systematic bolts clicking one after the other, locking out those who failed to enter on time. The lecture hall was semi-circular and carved into rows of equidistant seats. Hundreds of boys and girls occupied them, keepers in their hands and on their tables, fingers dancing on digital keyboards, eagerly awaiting the lecture to begin.

Thonavar quickly selected a seat near the front of the hall. Looking down the end of the row, he saw Alexis and some of the boys from his gang came seated near the extremes. They saw him too and shot him dark, glowering and glaring looks. One made a rude gesture. Alexis scowled at him but said nothing.

As Thonavar moved to take his seat, a hologram flickered to life at the front of the hall. The giant face of a woman, dressed in white uniform, with hands behind her back, began to speak animatedly, gesturing with her arms.

“Today, we shall continue to learn about the histories of the old world.”

She paused as pictures and videos appeared in the background while she explained their meaning and significance. Thonavar watched her giant lips move and her eyes sparkle, with mock enthusiasm. But he sat back and enjoyed the lecture for he found history an interesting field of study. His ears drank in the woman’s words.

“Towards the end of the twentieth century, less than half a century before the Great Flare, the world had many systems of government. However, the advent of genometric technologies and the ensuing civil wars that erupted all across the world all but proved these systems of governance to be wholly ineffective. Furthermore, unable to develop a sustainable solution to the rising threat of solar radiation storms and its highly damaging effect upon the world’s surface, the first prototype weatherstorm machine was patented to regulate the earth’s environment and control weather patterns. Civil wars were just the beginning and not before long, devastating wars erupted across the globe as countries and continents fought to obtain blueprints for building such technologies – technologies deemed to be essential to sustaining human life. The issue was framed as a matter of survival…”.

Hundreds of pairs of fingers tapped away on keyboards but Thonavar took no notes, his eyes taking in the visual feast before him, and his ears listening attentively.

Finally, the woman concluded.

“And this is why we are privileged to be sitting here. For we have come a long way from what has been. Truly, we owe much to the Unity. Indeed, they have brought much desired peace to our kind. Today, we enjoy an era of peace from war. The weatherstorm machines work overtime to ensure that our great city never experiences drought, famine or other disaster caused by dangerous changes in weather or atmosphere. Further, curtain technologies protect us while we sleep from destructive night, ion and solar storms which were common before the Great Flare.”

Thonavar shook his head slightly and stifled a yawn. Now he was bored. He looked at a nearby window and saw that the day outside was good. He wished for time to pass quicker so that he could go out to enjoy the sun.

The hour passed quickly and not long the doors unbolted in systematic fashion, clicking and unclicking, Thonavar was the first to spring out its doors. He ran down the hallway and into the open. It would be another hour before the next lecture began. As soon as he stepped from the doors of the college, sunlight bathed in a warm glow and his spirit soared.

“So, this is what it means to receive a modern education”, said a deep voice.

Thonavar’s exultation disappeared and he spun around and was surprised to see a man in dark and flowing robes. Thonavar blinked and squinted for the sun was bright. His body tensed, ready to spring into action.

“Education”, continued the dark-robed man, as he walked toward Thonavar, “a process involving exploring, thinking, feeling, connecting and collecting experiences, is sadly now no more.”

The man stopped and looked around the beautiful college grounds of sweeping automaton-cut green pastures and artificial fountain streams surrounded by tall walls of white.

“Stripped of its curious, creative and interactive nature, and bereft of the magical dynamism of self-discovery”, he continued, “the system is a shell of its former self, enforcing homogeneity and rigidity of thought and idea.”

Thonavar did not fully understand the man’s words but he recognised the deep and booming voice as the man approached him. It was the man from yesterday!

“Felix?”

“Very good”, Felix replied, removing his hood. “It is I.”

He gestured to the doors of the college from which Thonavar came. “You left in a hurry but your fellow pupils will be out soon.”

“Most of them do not step foot outside the college while the sun is out like this”, said Thonavar.

“And what is wrong with the sun?”

“They say the sun is bad for the skin. Turns it red and sore.”

“My, my, they have my sympathies indeed. And what about you?”

“I enjoy the sun. It feels warm. It is bright. It makes me glad.”

“I too feel the same.”

“What brings you to the college?”

“My business is my own”, said Felix with a smile. “Come, walk with me. Let us leave this place for a little while and talk somewhere else.”

Intrigued, Thonavar followed Felix from the college gates but he remained cautious and alert, keeping safe distance between him and the man.

“You do not trust me”, noted Felix wrily.

“And why should I”, countered Thonavar.

“A fair point”, observed Felix, before turning corner and leaping smoothly onto a nearby ledge before making another similar leap onto the roofbeams of a nearby building. Thonavar recognised the implicit challenge and followed suit. Not long, he found himself on the rooftop of a high building. The area was shaded by another roof covering above and he found Felix leaning against the wall, cooling off in the shade. Thonavar assessed the man as though he were a potential opponent. But he was careful to be discreet for Felix did not miss much and had noticed Thonavar keeping a distance from him earlier. With short dark hair and his eyes of steely blue, Felix had an aura of fierce determination about him.

“Tell me boy”, said Felix, suddenly speaking, “do you enjoy your time at the college?”

“Sometimes.”

“What do you enjoy?”

“The classics, war history and geography.”

“And, let me guess. The sciences do not suit you well?”

Thonavar nodded in reply.

“Well”, began Felix. “In this day and age, and more so than ever before I might add, the sciences have begun to dominate the spheres of education, especially with the Unity prizing the development of new technologies for energy, infrastructure and research. As such, one might find it…useful to pay closer attention to these topics. But what else do you like?”

“Languages”, replied Thonavar quickly.

“Languages?” Felix chuckled, his incredulity obvious.

“I find them fascinating”, said Thonavar, annoyance flashing across his face. “I like learning of the old world, its peoples and its beliefs.”

“I too share your fascination for the old world, its cultures and its languages. It is unfortunate but I must tell you that our society has little room for the arts. Those that were previously taught have all been but quickly shelved, or at the very least, deemed as of lesser importance. As for languages, what good is it to study languages that no one uses anymore? Languages are now seen as archaic - a thing of the old world, and an unpractical romance. After all, as was in the times of Babel, the whole world now speaks the same language. So, tell me boy, do you enjoy the lectures?”

“Sometimes, though I find them saying the same things”, answered Thonavar, considering the question. “There is a lot of emphasis on how we should be grateful to those who built this city.”

“Indeed”, said Felix. “You are observant. There are many who do not see this. They follow blindly.”

“What do you mean?”

“The system is broken”, said Felix, a crease appearing on his forehead. “These lectures you attend are nothing more than propaganda. Indeed, shaped and created by its human sculptors, the education system has become a highly effective tool for control of the robotic masses, ensuring the continued perpetuation of the elite and suppression of the poor”, said Felix darkly. “Automation further ensures its doom. And just like the holographic woman without an existence beyond the projection, education is now, rightly so, dead, in my view.”

“Do you always speak in complicated riddles?”

Felix smiled and shook his head. But Thonavar continued to press.

“You are one of them, are you not?”

“Them?”

“The government”, replied Thonavar.

“Use the proper name, boy. Do not be afraid to speak it. The Unity?”

“Yes”, replied Thonavar. “And I am not afraid of anything.”

“Indeed”, said Felix, “and to answer your question, no, I do not serve them or their purposes.”

There was an awkward pause before Felix spoke again.

“Well, what do they tell you about the Unity?”

Thonavar was finding Felix’s line of questioning bordering on interrogation and he did not like it. However, he continued to entertain Felix for he was certain that the Felix had a purpose in coming to see him and was determined to discover what that was.

“As the lectures have taught, the Unity are the reason for our great and glorious city”, said Thonavar, all too aware that he was merely repeating words he had heard time and again during the many lectures. “They have ushered in an era of peace.”

Felix raised an eyebrow.

“You must forgive me for asking you many questions boy. The point I am trying to make is for you to think for yourself. Do not always accept what you are told or information you are given. Test it. See if it is true. Even you do not sound convinced at your own answer. Tell me what you truly think.”

“You make a good point. But I do not know much”, admitted Thonavar. “I know that life is difficult. It is not easy like those at the college make it out to be. As for the Unity, I think they have done much for our kind. The Unity were able to build this great and glorious city and to protect us from the world outside.”

Felix sighed heavily and looked up into the sky. Thonavar followed his gaze toward the pink hue of the curtain overhead.

“It appears that your generation is lost”, murmered Felix, shaking his head. “For few remember and fewer dare to speak the truth.”

“What truth?”

Felix shook his head again before turning to look at Thonavar, his eyes becoming momentarily sad. “Now it is my turn to give you a lesson in history boy. Tell me about the Great Flare”, said Felix suddenly.

“The day of the Great Flare is marked by chaos”, began Thonavar but Felix interrupted, with a slight hint of impatience.

“Yes, but what happened?”

“The old world was gone and the new world was born”, said Thonavar but Felix raised an eyebrow again.

“Your answers lack depth. You are merely repeating what has been taught to you in the lectures. But how much do you truly know? Do you even wish to know?”

“I wish to know! But that is what I have been taught”, said Thonavar, angered by the insult but nonetheless intrigued. “Teach me what you know then!”

“I shall”, said Felix softly, his eyes lost in the past. “On the day of the Great Flare, tectonic movements deep below the earth's surface and dangerously close to its molten core, subjected the earth above to a relentless series of seismic shocks. Earthquakes rocked the surface of the planet as ensuing waves that ate the sun slammed onto shores all across the known world. Ion and electric storms, brought about by changes in the earth’s atmosphere, followed later, and of such scale and magnitude, altogether wreaking such a destruction upon civilisation unlike anything the world had ever seen.”

“They told us that the cause was a solaris flare”, said Thonavar, his eyes bright with newfound knowledge. “A solar radiation storm capable of destroying-”.

“By itself, a solaris flare cannot be capable of causing the destruction on the scale I described”, said Felix quickly. “It was much more than that. Much more.”

“How did this come to be? What could be the cause for such widespread destruction?”

“Ask the ones to which gratitude must be owed in present times”, said Felix, a dark look passing his face as he turned to look heavenward. Thonavar followed his gaze past the shade of the flimsy roof and up to the glinting spires of city above.

“You are dissatisfied boy”, said Felix softly, still gazing heavenward, his blue eyes squinting in the light. “I can see that. You are unhappy about your current circumstances. You wish for change. I see that in you.”

At this, Thonavar tore his gaze away from the roof and turned to look at Felix.

“Am I wrong? Tell me. What do you wish?”

Thonavar fell silent. He had no clue as to how the man had seen through him. But Felix was right.

“Gratitude? There is little to be grateful for down here”, said Thonavar fiercely. “I wish that father would not have to work and mother would not always be so anxious. One day, I shall take father and mother up to city above and we will be happy.”

“Ah, so you think that by ascending to city above, all your problems will go away? A fool’s dream, boy.”

Felix’s words struck a chord and pierced like an arrow into the heart. Thonavar anger rose in his chest. How dare he despise my dreams!

But Felix continued, his gaze once more to the shining monuments reaching toward the sky in the distance. “Up there, in city above, dwell dark things. Things that will consume you.”

Upon hearing this, Thonavar’s anger smouldered and he became curious once more.

“What do you mean?”

“Up there, a man has to face his own demons in the form of all-consuming lusts. Do you understand boy?”

Thonavar shook his head and Felix sighed in disappointment.

“Power, sex and wealth. These are amongs the many things that enslave a man and ultimately destroy him. I have seen many a good man become ensnared in the twisted vices and pleasures of city above. Make no mistake boy, stay away from these things.”

“I will rise above such things”, said Thonavar. “I will enter the gates of city above. Such things shall not concern or affect me.”

“That is because you have not experienced these things. Down here in city below, life is simple. You are probably, in a way, better off here than being up ther-”.

“I must ascend” said Thonavar, his eyes bright with determination and his tone urgent, interrupted Felix in mid-speech. “I must. And I will.”

Felix was quiet and there was a moment of silence.

“Indeed, you will. And you shall. You seem convinced then,” observed Felix. “Strongly convinced, I dare say. Well, if that is to be your path, allow me to offer you…a gift.”

Alas, we come to the reason why Felix had decided to visit today.

“A gift?” repeated Thonavar, his eyes wary. But he detected no dishonest intention in the man and so he relaxed slightly. I will hear him out but should he try anything, I will hit him in the groin and run.

“What if you were given the opportunity to make a change”, said Felix suddenly. “Would you take it?”

“A change?”

“Yes, a chance to change your circumstances and to achieve your dream. Would you take it?”

“To ascend to city above? I would take any chance to do so in a heartbeat”, said Thonavar firmly. “Tell me what this gift is then.”

“This gift will be a gift of opportunity.”

“If you try any tricks on me, I shall knock you to the ground”, said Thonavar.

“You will try”, said Felix, with a nod and a chuckle. “Very well then. I shall aid you in your quest.”

Suddenly, Thonavar saw Felix’s eyes snap alert.

“I must go”, he said suddenly, rising swiftly to his feet. “I am being summoned. I have a prior appointment.”

Felix’s actions were abrupt and Thonavar found himself becoming more curious. He wanted to know more. So many questions, he thought to himself.

“Wait! A final question.”

“What is it boy?”

“Why did you intervene in my fight with Alexis?”

“Why, that is an easy one. If not for me, you would have killed him.”

Thonavar blinked in surprise. He had not expected that answer.

“Now be ready when I call”, said Felix. “For I shall call again. Fare thee well.”

With that, Felix leapt from the roof in a flurry of black robes, disappearing from sight. Thonavar rushed to peer from the ledge into the streets below, but Felix was gone.