‘Ah, our rebel leader.’

Two days had passed and Jibrilla smiled when she saw Michael entering Seventh City Ghost Town that afternoon.

‘You can walk again?’ He asked rather uselessly, since she’d been walking on crotches to the bench where he sat.

‘Yes, everything is healing. The technology is primitive but they have good doctors here, I must admit that. And it’s so quiet here, with friendly sisters and nature.’

‘You don’t have quiet places like this in Héva?’

‘Oh, we certainly have, but our hospitals are bigger and much more crowded and filled with technology. This place is smaller, and more human in a way. Less rules too. It’s not what I expected from The Nation…’

Neither did I to be honest. The male side tells stories of dangerous witches and horrible outlaws living in chaos. They can’t even imagine a life without hierarchy, or women organising everything without men.’

‘They shouldn’t come to Héva. Hmm, they can’t. You’ll have noticed that there’s a cultural taboo on Nation men-persons in our culture. Nothing personal to you.’ She said.

In the last week and a half she had adapted herself to the Ghost Town life, and gotten used to the idea that a few men here and there could be good persons, like him. She’d never thought men could be likeable, but even with her upbringing it was hard for her to not like him somehow, and to get a completely different view of men.

He looked at her with innocent curiosity.

‘So, the Sisterhood wouldn’t like me to visit?’

She laughed. How could a man be so naive? Even in Afropea no-one would ask a silly question like that about Héva.

‘I wouldn’t recommend it. We’re always rather closed to visitors, even if we have more contact with the rest of the world than The Nation. I mean, we do have some trade with Lantada and the United Afropean archipelago. But no, stay away. They wouldn’t be better than that male world of yours, at least not for you. If I were you I’d just settle down in this outlaw village. They really are open and friendly beyond everything I’ve ever seen anywhere…’

‘You’re saying that life here is better in Héva? For a woman I mean?’

She nodded her head with an embarrassed move.

‘That’s a wrong way of thinking, Michael. The Sisterhood wouldn’t like me talking like that.’ ‘So the Sisterhood is actually rather controlling?’

‘Compared to this free woman community of sisters you might say that. But it would be wrong to say or even think that. But I’m still glad I didn’t end up in the Male Nation.’

‘You’re alive, isn’t that the most important thing? Hydrogen explosions are very dangerous. Did you know the others in the plane well?’

‘No, they were just colleagues in a big organisation that I hadn’t met before the mission. But I feel terrible about surviving while they died. It wakes me up at night sometimes.’

He put his hand on her shoulder. ‘Don’t. Be grateful for being alive. Be grateful for every moment.’

She looked at him.

‘You’re not like I expected a man-person to be. I only once saw one before you, an important scientist, who came to visit the university from Afropea. He felt distant and seemed almost alien, like another species. You’re much more human. I never thought men would just be sisters, like women are.’

‘I can’t blame him, I would feel like that too in your country without men, and I wouldn’t know how to behave either. You don’t know how much time I needed to get used to girls, and I didn’t even have the they-are-enemies brainwashing like you had with me.’

‘The male world in this country sounds so horrible to me. Why don’t you just live here?’

He looked at her. It was his turn now to be baffled by a question that the other found simple and logical.

‘I’m a man and this is a Ghost Town. It’s only a few months ago that they let me in for the first time. This place is sisters-only as you would say, and man-persons are another species here too, or something like that. It would be asking too much from them, and they’ve been so friendly already to a confused deleted boy like me. I’ve been crossing way too many lines already.’

‘It would be logical for them to treat you like a sister. And these Ghost Town communities will need men in the end. Because of their principles they still are dependent on the male Nation, and ultimately they need men to survive, in or outside of their cosy squat villages. They still depend on them for the future.’

‘What are you talking about?’ Michael asked.

‘I had a long discussion with Ruth and Martha about the lack of babies here. It’s still strange that Ghost Towns normally don’t have any children, unlike we do in Héva. It’s highly unsustainable.’

‘Yes, I’ve wondered about that too. How you do that with only women I mean…’ He said.

‘Ah, well, I better explain some things first then, don’t I? You know how humans naturally procreate I suppose…’

‘Yes, you need male and female gametes.’ He said, keeping it as technical as possible.

‘Not completely true, but usually, yes. And for male gametes, you need men, now or at least in the past… And as you know we don’t have them now in Héva.’

Something clicked in his mind. ‘But you use men from the past? You have a sperm bank? Frozen in the right conditions to last for ages? Is that how you get babies without men?’

‘It’s one possibility, but we don’t really trust the men from the past to provide us with good genes. Our preferred method is the one completely without men, even though it might give problems for the gene pool in the long run. We have eliminated the need for male gametes all together. Ever heard of parthenogenesis?’

‘Wait, that’s when animals procreate without males?’

‘Yes, indeed. It is very common in stick insects and aphids for example, but there’s also reptiles that use it like an all-female species of lizard.’

‘So you have found a way to clone yourself? Which means that the problem for the gene pool you mentioned is that the children are clones of the mother then, and there’s no exchange of genetic material?’ Jibrilla smiled, she was clearly impressed.

‘I see why they call you a brainie. You’re much faster than priestess Ruth in understanding the details and the problems.’

‘And, if I may ask, how does that happen? Some in vitro tricks with the ovum?’

‘No, that’s only needed for sperm bank babies. Just natural conception, but with the help of parthenopills.’

‘Wait, so you just take a pill, and then you get pregnant with a clone of yourself???’ ‘You could say it like that. But they’re not completely effective. You’d take one partheno when you’re ovulating, and then you have a 30% chance to get pregnant. So it can take more cycles before you get pregnant.’

‘Ah…’ He just said, looking at the landgulls flying in the breeze.

He was silent for a while, trying to process this information until it was Jibrilla who broke the silence.

‘Don’t you know that the Ghost Town leaders had a meeting recently. They talked about the baby problem and it seems they rejected both of our solutions for now, and want to leave a third one open, but only if it happens naturally.’

‘What do I know about what Ghost Town leaders say in their meetings? I’m a man, a boy even, and a deleted one at that. But you’re making me curious. I assume that the third option is the natural way with mixed couples without an ancom-chip then?’

‘Yes, indeed, you’re a fast understander. I think it’s you even that made them even consider that by the way, if I understand the situation well.’

He turned red.

‘Don’t tell me they expect me to…’

‘Not you specifically, but it would be a natural consequence of opening up to men in the long run, instead of having a woman-only community.’

‘People expect too much from me, really. Look at me here, talking to an outsider who addresses me as a rebel leader. And then they wonder why I have anxiety problems…’

‘They expect a lot from the change that started with you and your Wife School sisters, especially Eliza. And I must say it’s quite an experience to be here at this exact time, and meet you and her, from all people in The Nation that I could end up with.’

‘See, you’re doing it again. But what did they say about men?’

‘You’d have to ask Sister Martha. But I think they’re getting used to a future possibility of natural babies, since the other two would have very different supply problems.’

‘There’s no parthenogenetic pills in The Nation I suppose?’

‘Hévan parthenopills are expensive and rationed. They’re only available for approved couples that have undergone all kinds of checks and tests. I’m not sure if the Sisterhood would ever export them to other countries, and at least now we certainly don’t.’

‘Ah, I see.’ He said thoughtfully, and she looked him in the eyes.

‘As for the other supply, would you want to be a father?’

He looked away, blushing a bit. ‘Maybe one day, in circumstances in which I could take care for kids or so. And I need a partner first. It’s next-level adulting anyway, and I’m not there at all. Plus there’s the An-Com chip thing.’

She started laughing.

‘No, not like that. That’s just the natural way. Do you want to be a donor of male gametes as you call it, for couples of Ghost Town Life-sharers who cannot have children alone biologically.’

‘Eh? That’s a creepy idea.’

‘But what if the future of your people depended on people like you being donor for a next generation? You’re the first approved quality man they have after all.’

‘Eh…’ ‘You’re cute when you’re prudish. I never expected men to be like that. I’m just saying it’s complicated ethically and practically. Especially with the emphasis on human freedom for all sisters that Ghost Towns have, and how they treat men like you as a full sister here.’

‘You’re scaring me. Do you think they’d ask me stuff like that in Héva?’

‘A Ghost Town approved man? Oh, sure, after some genetic testing. You’re an interesting specimen in many ways. Approved good men are a good addition to the gene pool, and your brains are a plus point. But remember they’d select X-chromosome gametes though for the IVF, you’d never have a son there.’

A shiver went down his spine.

‘Men don’t even have the right to exist you mean? You’re really the opposite of the world I grew up in. At least we had a lot of women, even if they were treated quite badly. I always felt like my mother should have been treated better, from when I was a kid on. And when I became a teenager she became more distant and subservient because I was becoming a man. It was so lonely to be honest.’

‘And your father? I’ve never had one, or even seen one. And I’ve heard only stories of bad fathers from the women here.’

‘Oh, him? Same story. He is a Real Man, an Alpha. Accomplished and respected and whatever. I never was good enough for him and all his Be a Man stuff. They were disappointed when I only came out as a Gamma at the first ranking ceremony when I was twelve. I was always picked on, and my Alpha brother was always praised, even though he became a horrible person. And then everyone was confused when I got my level one rating. A Gamma-1 is rare, and a bit of an anomaly in the male hierarchy. So he sent me to the Wife School to get a fiancée so fast after turning 18. It’s not that usual actually. And me befriending Megan even made it worse in the end it seems…’

‘He isn’t proud of your intellect? Your diplomatic talent? Your technical insights?’

‘All of those are unmanly. Oh… You wouldn’t understand. Brainies are by definition quite low in the pecking order, even if society needs them for some functions. But they’re not actually a Real Man…’

‘Wow, so backwards. But completely in line with our stereotypes I have to admit.’

Suddenly he stood up, and looked at his watch, not for the time but for the date.

‘Speaking of my father, it’s the seventeenth already. Which means that it’s his 50th birthday and it’s a Saturday today. He was planning on bringing in his wider family this year, so I’m probably missing the big party today. I totally forgot about it, and without you I wouldn’t even have realised that before it was over.’

He suddenly looked very down.

‘Hey, are you okay?’ She clearly was concerned from his sudden change of moods.

‘I have been better. Thanks for the talk. I’m going to see if Eliza is here somewhere and if she wants to drink some beer with me tonight.’

To her surprise he gave her a hug and walked off to the robot workshop, leaving her deep in thought again.

*

Like Michael had said, his more extended family had gathered for the fiftieth birthday of David Adams: not just his son Sam and his wife, but also his paternal grandfather and grandmother, and his uncles Max and Linus, who hadn’t brought their wives or children, since they didn’t matter much. This was a men’s occasion anyway.

While the men gathered in the living room of the Alphaville house to talk manly business, four women were assembled in the kitchen that night, three of which were human. And unlike the men who didn’t even speak the name of David’s deleted son once in the whole evening, the women didn’t shy away from mentioning him. The taboos of men and the taboos of women were a completely different world in The Nation, even if there was a big generational gap among the women too.

Maria had just put the maidbot to work while she was drinking coffee with her daughter-in-law Natasha and her mother-in-law Jane.

‘It’s a good machine. My Abe always was against buying one. Women have to do it the natural way and all.’ Jane said.

She was older and came from a harsher time, even compared to Maria. Natasha looked admiringly at the robot too, and agreed that it was a very good one.

‘Sam says that it shows your status to have maidbots. He’s considering buying a third one already. I only wonder what I’m still there for then.’ She said.

‘He’s married to one of those things, you know.’ Maria said suddenly, trying not to show tears.

‘Who? Sam?’ said Jane..

‘No, not him. Michael, who else? Sam has two maidbots plus a Wife but Michael lives alone in a state apartment with a robot for a Wife, unranked and in poverty. Haven’t you heard anything?’

‘I haven’t, to be honest. Sam doesn’t talk about him. It’s as if he never existed.’ Natasha said.

‘He doesn’t exist anymore for David either.’ Maria said bitterly.

‘That’s well-deserved. He’s deleted because he’s broken the man code. ’ Jane said.

‘He was protecting a girl against an assaulter. No-one should be deleted for that.’ Maria said.

‘He attacked an Alpha. It’s shameful.’

‘Not you too, please.’ Maria said, fighting her tears.

‘It is what it is. Don’t sugarcoat it. It’s best to forget him. It was better if he never existed at all.’ Jane said, and Natasha shivered.

‘I would have had another daughter-in-law. She would have been here today with us, little Megan.’ Maria said with a weird voice, looking at the robot.

‘And I would still have a son. And now he’s gone.’

‘It’s better without him. Unworthy men are not worth the oxygen,’ Jane replied coldly.

‘How can you say such horrible things?’ Maria said.

‘What happened to the girl?’ Natasha asked.

No-one had ever bothered to tell her anything about the deletion of her brother-in-law.

Maria shrugged. ‘Same as with him. Both girls were deleted, and kicked out of Wife School. They must be poor unrated non-Wives now, if not worse.’

‘It’s their own fault. They were out too late I heard, long past Wife School curfew, in the wrong neighbourhood. What were they even doing there? Shameful behaviour like that shows that they weren’t wife material. And they were just E-girls anyway. Who cares about low-rated nobodies like that?’

Maria ignored her, and went on in her strange voice again.

‘I keep wondering what would have happened if they hadn’t deleted him, and if that Megan girl had become part of the family. She looked kinda nice. Very young and all, but he was still very young too actually. It was David who rushed the whole Wife thing after his eighteenth birthday, I never even got why. They all deserved better. Even that Eliza girl. I only saw them once or twice you know. He was ashamed to introduce his family to her, have you ever heard such a thing? With an Alpha father I mean. But they were quite close too, like my school friends when I was a young girl myself. I know I was nervous when they were hanging around in his room, but they were just exchanging books. With the chaperone still there, reading books too. He actually followed the rules in his own way. He wasn’t taking advantage of her at all. Have you ever heard something like that?’

‘He’s not like his brother at all, that’s clear.’ Natasha said thoughtfully.

‘I’m really starting to believe he actually meant those things about friendship with girls, my poor boy,’ Maria said.

‘Friendship between boys and girls? That’s impossible, and indecent! It’s good that such things are stopped and deleted.’ Jane suddenly said with a voice like an angry crow.

Natasha looked at Maria, they both knew it wouldn’t do to talk about this today, but at least they seemed to understand each other.

‘So how’s Sam?’ Maria asked, changing the subject.

Natasha’s face changed again, and she wasn’t smiling anymore.

‘He’s so obsessed with his new gun thing that I hardly see him anymore. Plus he’s getting scary with his hobby. He and his mates have killed several ferals already. And he’s so cold about it. How can I be the Wife of a man who shoots other men for a sport?’

‘Oh, they’re not men, they’re ferals. That scum deserves to be shot! It’s safer without them…’ Jane said.

‘How can I feel safe sleeping next to him? He’s a killer!’

‘You’re a B-Wife. You’re his trophy. He won’t damage you, you’re a valuable possession. You shouldn’t worry about a thing.’ Jane said matter-of-factly.

‘Oh, what if Michael joins the feral men, and then gets killed by his own brother?’ Maria lamented. It was hard not to think of him on a day like today.

‘If he does that, he deserves it. The boy has made wrong decisions, and must face the consequences. Plus he doesn’t exist anymore. He’s deleted.’

Maria looked at her mother-in-law as if she’d never really seen her before.

‘I’m going to check those little meat pies in the oven.’ Natasha said as she disappeared subtly to the kitchen.

‘Women today are too soft,’ mumbled Jane.

Maria tried to ignore Jane’s rant about wifely duties, manliness, and how things were better when she was young when Natasha came back with a plate of cupcake-sized little meat pies.

‘The starters are ready. I’ll bring them to the men,’ she said, and disappeared with the food. ‘I was thinking of letting the robot do that, so he can show her off…’ Maria mumbled, unheard by Jane.

That Natasha preferred even the presence of the men over her grandmother-in-law was a surprise, but in a way understandable.

*

Later that night Michael was still hanging around in the Ghost Town bar. Eliza had just stopped him from getting another beer that would be one too much if he had to walk all the way to his Zeroville apartment when he suddenly asked her a question.

‘Can you get me into a Wife School, Eliza?’

She looked at him, not knowing how to react.

‘Into a Wife School? What would you do there? Visit old Greystone? He’d be glad to see your face again I’m sure. A pity we had to miss him on Thursday with the escape.’

‘No, not the SCWF, the other one, where my sister Anne is locked up. I haven’t seen her since she turned twelve.’

She almost dropped her beer.

‘Ah, you want to visit her?’

He nodded.

‘Yes, I haven’t seen her since she went to Wife School. It always felt like a definitive thing, but lately I’ve been realising that it doesn’t have to be like that. The only problem now is that getting the right documents and approvals will not be easy for an unrated man on probation, so I need you to help a bit, otherwise it might take years.’

‘I can do everything for you, dear boy. Give me some time and I’ll have the right papers. Any idea of the date you want to visit?’

‘No preference yet.’

‘These plans call for another drink.’

She signalled to Leya behind the bar.

‘Two three herbs please. We’ve both had enough alcohol for now.’

Michael looked at her.

‘You’re a good friend, Eliza. I don’t know what I would do without you.’

‘Still a Gamma with a bright future probably, instead of a deleted nobody…’ she said darkly.