《A Nation of Distances (possibly a dystopian love story)》
0 Little Lizzie and Mike All
¡®Lizzie, what on Earth are you doing?¡¯ The woman looked nervously at her five year old daughter, a tiny girl with a wild mess of brown curls and greenish eyes who was playing in the sand with an unknown boy.
¡®This is my new friend, Mike All,¡¯ little Lizzie said innocently, holding the hand of a boy of about the same age. Her mother clearly wasn¡¯t happy, even though the girl didn¡¯t understand the problem.
¡®But Lizzy, that¡¯s a boy,¡¯ she finally said, still half in shock.
¡®I know. He told me. I like boys, mama.¡¯
More fear emanated from the eyes of the woman when she heard those words.
¡®Lizzie, you are just a child. You don¡¯t understand these things. But you cannot like boys. It¡¯s way too early for that. You¡¯re being indecent.¡¯
¡®But we¡¯re just playing, mama. He is smart. He knows the names of the trees. And he likes robots. He¡¯s going to be my friend, mama.¡¯
¡®Robots are not a girl thing, I have told you that before. And you can¡¯t be playing with him. Boys and girls cannot be friends. That is impossible. He shouldn¡¯t even be here. This is a girl playground¡¯
Lizzie looked very annoyed at her mother, who always seemed to be able to spoil the fun in her life.
Her mother turned to the boy, still nervous.
¡®And you, little man, why are you here, this is not the boy playground. You must know that.¡¯ The boy looked at her with big brown eyes.
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¡®I don¡¯t like the boy playground, Madam Lizzies mum. The boys just want to fight and make noise. They are no fun. I like this playground more.¡¯
Lizzies mother looked around. There was no-one else here in the sandbox with the wooden playhouses except for her daughter and this strange little boy Mike All. She was nervous about contradicting a male, even if he was only five, but she knew she had to.
¡®You should go back to the boy playground, Mike All, it¡¯s very indecent to play here. People will think strange things if they see you here.¡¯ Then she turned to her daughter again. ¡®Come, Lizzie, we¡¯re going home.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t wanna go home. Wanna stay here and play with Mike All.¡¯
The boy nodded approvingly. They both were rather annoyed by being disturbed in their game like this.
But the mother wasn¡¯t having it. She took her daughter by the hand.
¡®No, Lizzie, we are going home. And you will be punished for your indecent behaviour. This is outrageous. And you should always remember that girls cannot play with boys. That is indecent. It is wrong! And it is dangerous too.¡¯
Her daughter still wasn¡¯t impressed. ¡®Mike All is not dangerous. He¡¯s my friend.¡¯
Her mother sighed. ¡®He might not seem dangerous now. You¡¯re just a little girl after all. But you¡¯ll learn later how men are, and he¡¯ll be a man soon. Come, we go now. And you better go back to the boy playground, Mike All.¡¯
Lizzie started crying, but it didn¡¯t help. Her mother just picked her up and took her home.
The boy stood there for a while, immovable, until his new friend had gone out of sight forever, and then he snuck back into the boy playground, where no-one seemed to have missed him. He vanished into a little wooden house, where he hid for the rest of the afternoon until his mother came looking for him.
Little Lizzie never played with boys again, and learnt over time why that was better. And they were out of reach anyway. It would be more than ten years before she would have the chance to talk to one of them again, and by then she had learnt about how men were, and wasn¡¯t the little innocent child of the playground anymore.
1 Michaels Birthday Surprise
¡®I pledge my life to The Nation of this flag and to its Glorious Constitution, which gives Freedom and Liberty to all men. May our God bless The Nation and crush all of our Enemies!¡¯
Like every school day hundreds of boy voices on the school-ground yelled the words of the Pledge simultaneously backed up by the automatic speaker. They had their hands on their heart and their eyes closed in adoration of the great Nation they were lucky to be part of. No student would ever dream of skipping it, so ingrained was it in their daily world. Not everyone was equally into it today though, Michael Adams for example only muttered the words absently with his thoughts elsewhere. Inside he was more concerned about what would be coming in the first 30 minutes of the school day than with the empty daily ritual of nationalistic pseudoreligious adoration. But alas for him, both were equally unavoidable, so the only thing that could be done was to endure both day after day.
As soon as the little ceremony was over, he and the other boys of the class of Science and Technology flocked together and followed a disagreeable man in a camouflage suit for the morning exercises. He brought them to a little training field and started yelling: ¡®Be a Man!¡¯ ¡®Be a man!¡¯ was also the answer that everyone yelled back, like a troupe of well-trained automatons. Every school day in The Nation had begun with these inevitable drill exercises, so even for the students of the Department of Intellectual studies there could be no exception to that. Most of the time it was just half an hour of exhausting gymnastics while undergoing a lot of dumb insults, but Instructor Jack clearly found it a very important thing to endlessly announce that he was going to make a man out of these boys, every morning again.
In reality The Nation hadn¡¯t been in a war in ages, and in fact it had even had no contact with any outside nation in over a century. But in spite of that the instructor kept screaming things like ¡®you weaklings, do you think that this girly ballet show will impress the enemy?¡¯ from the top of his lungs as if they were training to attack a deadly enemy next week instead of just doing some kind of roughed-up sports exercises to start their otherwise uneventful school day. Michael hated the whole thing with every cell of his body, but he had been forced to accept the terrible morning drill routine as a normal part of school life, and after a while you get used to anything, especially if people around you act like it¡¯s a normal part of life. Humans can be conditioned quite easily to almost any conditions if you start young enough.
After half an hour of being verbally abused and getting needlessly physically exhausted by Instructor Jack even before the actual school day had begun the school bell finally announced the end of the exercises. This meant that the students could change their clothes again to go to their actual classes for the rest of the day. Some of the other departments had even more drill exercises during the day to make a Man out of them, but luckily that wasn¡¯t the case for the Intellectuals Studies students. Their status as a Real Man was already quite questionable anyway. Most of the boys in his class were Gammas and a few Betas, but never Alphas.
Intellectuals didn¡¯t really have a high status in The Nation, where everything depended on being a Real Man, and the hierarchy traditionally was a very important part of that. Anyone with one brain cell knew that manliness was the most important thing there could be in the world but on the other hand, if you looked at things practically, it was also clear that The Nation needed scientists and technicians and engineers too. This meant that officially nothing negative could be said about the ¡®brainies¡¯, at least not out loud by higher officials and teachers who weren¡¯t paid to insult them as much as possible like Instructor Jack. But still, the students of more practical and manly studies could say anything they wanted to the brainies, as could their fathers, and so in practice they still were a bit of a laughing stock of the prosperous and masculine society of The Nation. And sometimes they even became the victim of actual violence, although Michael was often smart enough to avoid that.
Learning how to avoid bullies was one of the most important things to learn in school, more important than the official curriculum, and he had always been a fast learner.
After changing clothes in the locker room Michael followed the rest of the Sci-Tec class to the Math classroom. It was a weird change to go from the daily drill to advanced algebra, but after a while it felt like the most obvious thing in the world. Later in the day he would have some chemistry lab practice and a workshop about robot psychology, all of which where subjects he loved. But no matter how interesting the classes were today he had other things on his mind than the different types of humanoid intelligence in machines of earlier centuries and redox reaction calculations. The last few days since his birthday had been quite a roller-coaster and it looked like things would only get worse from here.
''We have a surprise for your birthday. You¡¯re ready to become a Real Man now. Expect some great news tomorrow when you get home!'' That¡¯s what his father had said yesterday. And that was rather worrying. Very worrying even. He knew what was expected from Real Men in The Nation, and it usually wasn¡¯t much fun and sometimes quite painful, and at least it would be an enormous waste of precious time, focus and energy.
Yes, certainly, technically he was a man, or a boy, or whatever you call a biologically male human being of eighteen and a bit more than a week, but everyone knew that that was not enough in The Nation to be a Man. It was never enough. You had to act like a Real Man, whatever that even meant. And he himself would never be man enough, just like almost everyone, even though no-one ever admitted it of themselves. But for him it was more than clear that he wouldn¡¯t measure up, he was just a brainie after all. Not man enough for his father even, or for the Real Men in The Nation who bossed the rest around, and who were completely contradictory and impossible to follow anyway. He wondered if not thinking things through was another characteristic of Real Manliness. Be strong! Always be the best in everything! Have no feelings! Hunt for women! Don¡¯t ever let a woman dominate you!
Especially the last one would be the worst thing ever and was considered extremely shameful, but the only woman he ever saw was his mother, so the only people who dominated him were men, which was quite humiliating too. Ironically the only thing all that talk about manliness ever did was to make him feel ashamed for his own sex.
Luckily he was still a very successful brainie and a good adapter to hostile circumstances, and so Michael had become quite good at surviving in this extreme environment. Over the years he had developed a lot of coping mechanisms to survive as a smart but not very aggressive kid surrounded by fanatic believers in the importance of Real Manliness above all. He¡¯d been able to get out of the violent sports groups apart for the morning drill, and get into science, technology and programming classes which were the safest place for someone like him. Not that manly maybe, but still essential to society so he should be looking forward to a great future of some kind away from the noisy baboons. At least that¡¯s what they said, but never without second thoughts that were visible on their face. It was as if a brainie like him was some kind of tolerated alien. And if his school results wouldn¡¯t have been so good even that wouldn¡¯t have been the case. But he was the best of his class in both math and programming, and one of the best in natural sciences, so no-one could really tell him he was worthless. Everything considered he was relatively lucky.
He looked at the new badge on his chest, which told everyone he was no longer a Teenager, but officially an Unmarried Adolescent Man now. And above all it showed people his new rank in society. Everything in the Nation was divided in classes and grades and level, and people were often segregated by them too. Men were divided into 5 classes which had a lot of subclasses. His father was an alpha class 5, and had always wanted his sons to become alphas too, even though it had always been clear his second son wasn¡¯t Alpha material. Michael wasn¡¯t really interested in anything Manly, didn¡¯t try to compete with anyone, and usually just hid away with a book, safe from all the wary looks and humiliation.
He had been the disappointment of the family when he had been sorted as a Gamma at his first sorting ceremony at age fourteen, to everyone''s surprise but his own. Luckily had also been sorted for studying science and programming, which still could lead to a proper job that had some respect. But last week his bad luck had suddenly turned: The second sorting ceremony, the Monday after his eighteenth birthday, had been an even bigger surprise: Gamma class one. His father had been enthusiastic again after that, because he¡¯d been the first class one male in the family ever. Uncle Calvin was a Beta class two, and that had always been the highest rate until now. He still didn¡¯t know how to react to his new situation. He¡¯d only worn the badge for a few days, and he had already noticed that it confused people. The gold star of a level one male, but only a Gamma? His mere existence seemed to screw with people''s minds. So that was how his life was going to be, being good at the wrong stuff, and being bad at the right stuff to fit in. Which didn¡¯t feel right for him anyway, because the system sucked and was toxic anyway.
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He sighed again. So what had his father meant? What would be the birthday surprise that would make him a Real Man? He was afraid of anything that had to do with ¡®becoming a Real Man¡¯. It¡¯s not that he didn¡¯t want to grow up, but why was it that everything connected to manliness seemed to make him a worse person than he wanted to be? Real Men had no feelings, but he surely had them. Real Men acted without thinking, he thought before doing anything. Real Men were aggressive and straightforward, he knew how to control his anger and liked to be diplomatic about everything. Real Men were dominant and always on top of things, but he didn¡¯t care for the game of dominance and submission at all. He loathed it. Real Men wanted a Real Wife that would serve them as some kind of slave, which didn¡¯t sound interesting at all. He might like girls, possibly, but not in that way. He never met girls anyway in this segregated world, they were more like mythical creatures than anything else to him. But the whole idea of a Real Wife repulsed him. He would think that if you really liked, or ¡®loved¡¯ women as they called it you¡¯d want more than a personal servant.
His personal theory was that Real Men were so scared of women that they only could react to them with extreme dominance and by blocking everything female. This was quite silly to him, and a sign that Real Men were actually weak and pathetic creatures anyway. Years ago he had decided that if he ever had the chance to make contact with anyone from the female world he¡¯d at least try to understand them, and if possible befriend them. This sounded alien and completely unrealistic to his Nation programming, but then again his ambitions had always been quite far out there compared to his peers.
And there was the possible answer to the mysterious surprise: He was eighteen. He had had his final sorting ceremony and was even graded a Gamma-1. He hadn¡¯t realised before today that he could officially get a Wife now. Was his dad going to take him to a wife School to pick out a Real Wife? Could that really be it? He saw no other options, or rather, the other options were probably worse. His brain was good at sorting data, and the other options were eliminated already and the conclusion was clear: because of his good school results and rank, he would get a wife for his eighteenth birthday. Nothing more manly after all than having a woman in your life to control and boss around.
¡®Shit¡¯ he said out loud when opening his algebra book. It was a forbidden word, but at least it was very manly.
*
Michael looked through the school bus window, absently. None of the grey buildings really got his attention now. The school day had gone by quite fast, like a bad dream, and he was still worried about his dad''s surprise. He sat on the usual spot, away from the attention of the bullies and next to the window so he could look outside to oversee the dull streets of Seventh City with their sparse traffic of mostly public traffic and here and there a hydrogen car or electric vehicle. Still deep in thoughts and glad that no-one was looking at him now he tried to order his chaotic thoughts again, which focused on two things. The first thing was his sudden popularity.
It seemed that by now everyone had heard about his new rating overnight, and he had been receiving much more attention at school than had ever been the case, thanks to the badge on his chest. All kinds of random people had been congratulating him, or just glanced at him with a jealous look in their eyes. A class one Gamma was rare, but it certainly was not impossible, and suddenly he was treated like a king among the brainies. He¡¯d always been part of the background as much as possible, but now he suddenly had to learn how to handle people who tried to be close to him because of his supposed status as a level one male. He remembered that kings always had to look out for assassins, and wondered if he would be gaining enemies too with his new status.
But the second thing still nagged to get to the foreground, which was the surprise he was going to get from his father. Was he indeed getting an appointment at Seventh City Wife factory already, so short after his eighteenth birthday, so he would finally be a Real Man that his father could be proud of? He knew he wasn¡¯t going to get a car of some kind of weapon or so, and ignoring all the things instructor Jack did to the boys to make Real Men out of them, the only other possibility he saw was one he knew his father wouldn¡¯t to: some men in The Nation had a tradition bring their son to a Love Bar as some kind of coming-of-age ritual, so they could have some experiences as a Real Man with the prostitutes. But his father wouldn¡¯t go so far, would he? He was a Real Man, but not like that, he still had some morals and followed the rules of the Church closely. Or at least he thought he did. He was also sure that his older brother never had received such surprise, he would have known that. On the other hand his brother hadn¡¯t gone to a Wife School to pick a girl only a few days after his eighteenth birthday either. But then again, his brother was an Alpha-5 like his father, not a Gamma-1. Everything about his story was different.
He sighed. Seventh City Wife Factory, the name alone made him cringe. Boys in The Nation went to a normal school, but girls went to a Wife School from the age of twelve, where they were trained to become a Real Wife. That is, if they were lucky: girls who didn¡¯t have a father, or more rarely a brother or other guardian to present them to Wife School and to give them to their husband afterwards could never become a Real Wife. They would never even be graded, and would never have any status in The Nation at all, and just be a non-Wife. Very inferior jobs, or prostitution were the only things they could hope for. At least, that was what he had heard. He had never talked to any gradeless woman at all evidently. You didn¡¯t talk to them at all anyway, that was indecent. Talking to any woman was indecent in most situations, and he hadn¡¯t spoken to a woman that wasn¡¯t his mother since he had been five or so.
The bus stopped, and absentmindedly he walked home from the bus stop. Boring lawns and grey tiles filled most spaces in between the houses, but at least there was one tree in this street, right before their house even, an old red oak. His mother always complained about the leaves every fall, but the City Council hadn¡¯t listened to her complaints and requests to cut it down. She was a housewife, so it was her work to clean it up, at least that had been the rationale they had communicated. Secretly Michael had been glad that the tree wasn¡¯t cut down, but he had felt angry about the way they had treated his mother. He knew nothing about it was wrong morally according to the norms of The Nation, and still the whole thing made him feel very uneasy.
Arriving home took off his clothes and shoes. He had concluded that the best way to find out what his birthday surprise would be was to be as confrontational as possible. That was his fathers style, and the way in which a Real Man with a bit of guts solves problems, not? His father was sitting in the kitchen with a warm bowl of soup that his wife had just given him. Sometimes eliminating the worse possibility is a good way to get to the actual truth, so when he approached him with a direct question.
¡®You¡¯re not going to bring me to the Love Bar to make a Real Man out of me, are you?¡¯
His father looked up from his soup, puzzled. ¡®What are you babbling about, son? Who said anything about that?¡¯
¡®The birthday surprise that is going to make me a Real Man.¡¯ He replied.
¡®No, son, prostitutes are for weaklings and wimps. No real value for the money either. And the church says they make you go to hell.¡¯
He must have sighed visibly, and he saw his father wondering if he would be revealing the secret or not for a few seconds before he went further.
¡®No, I had a much better idea, Son. You are a class one male now, even if you are just a Gamma after all. First class one male in the family even. So I signed you up for a real quality wife at Seventh City wife Factory.¡¯
Michael gasped. His prediction had been right all along.
¡®A wife? For me? I¡¯m only eighteen, dad. And I¡¯ll still have to study for years.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a level one man. You need a Real Wife. And the engagement procedure takes at least a year for men under twenty before you can take her home and marry. Or don¡¯t you like girls maybe?¡¯
Michael sighed. Did he like girls? He wondered about that for a second. What did that even mean? He didn¡¯t even know what he felt about girls to be honest, since he never had the chance to be with any girls since forever, how could he even know anything about liking them.
¡®How can I know if I like girls if I can¡¯t ever see them?¡¯ He muttered bitterly.
¡®That¡¯s the best way, son! It¡¯s only decent to not meet them. So you won¡¯t be tempted to do indecent things. Wait until marriage like a good Man.¡¯
Michael took his own bowl of soup and seated himself.
¡®Who even thinks about indecent things? I just want to know how they are before I marry one. If I have to spend the rest of my life with someone there¡¯s a lot more I need to know about girls than all that nonsense about sex. Aren¡¯t wives another human being that comes to live with you for the rest of your life? How about getting to know more about girls before marrying one?¡¯
His father ignored him. ¡®You know the procedures. No meeting girls until you have one to marry. They are trained in a Wife School to better suit your needs as a man until you are ready. You choose the girl you like, and after that you¡¯ll get the chance to meet her and you¡¯ll only have to wait with sex until you¡¯re married. That¡¯s what the Big Man in Heaven wants. You know what the Preacher says about that.¡¯
Michael sighed again and turned to his soup. Nothing he would say could make any difference. He knew he couldn¡¯t win this fight. He knew everything about this whole business was wrong, but he didn¡¯t even have words to describe why.
¡®You¡¯ll be happy when you have a wife that¡¯ll listen to you and do whatever you want, just like me and your mum.¡¯ His father finally said.
¡®Probably.¡¯ Michael said absently. He deeply doubted it.
Never had he felt so alone in his whole life.
1.5 My book wont read itself!
¡®Megan Anderson?¡¯ The girl named Megan closed her book and rose from her bed, and only nodded to the last-year girl from the C-floor who entered the last dorm on the E-floor and handed her a cardboard placard with a big number 27 on it. ¡®Miss Hunter wanted me to hand out the numbers for the Wife candidates for tonight. And these are the last two. You haven¡¯t seen Eliza, have you?¡¯ the girl asked, looking at a list with names.
¡®Nope, but you can give hers to me if you want. She¡¯ll be here to change her clothes before the evening begins.¡¯
Megan took the other placard with the number 28 and dropped it on her bed next to hers. She sighed, and felt horrified. She had completely forgotten the Ceremony of Partner Choice. It wasn¡¯t really something she¡¯d ever get used to so her mind tended to aggressively dismiss its existence whenever possible.
¡®It¡¯s strange though. You¡¯re not what I¡¯d expect from the second-last girl on the E-floor.¡¯
Megan had turned back to her book but the other girl stood still in the door, and looked at her with a strange look, as if trying to analyse her. She first stared at her long straight dark hair and dark brown eyes, and then at the rest of her body.
¡®Why not?¡¯ Megan asked as casually as possible.
¡®You¡¯re so normal. I mean, you¡¯re not a half-wit and not ugly either, unlike some of the girls on your floor.¡¯
¡®Just say it like you think it is, we¡¯re only the low-quality leftovers that no-one wants to marry to you here on the E-floor. Low-rated scum that¡¯s almost unmarriable by default. And let me tell you what: that¡¯s perfect for me. What idiot would ever want to marry a man anyway. They bring bad luck.¡¯
¡®But if you don¡¯t want to marry, what do you want to do with your life?¡¯
¡®Just read my book?¡¯
The girl shook her head. ¡®What are you even reading? Everyone can see that that¡¯s not an approved Wife School book.¡¯
Megan turned the book to read the title. ¡®Eh, a history of mathematicians of the last three millennia, and it¡¯s black market trade indeed. The chapter on twenty-third century non-Euclidian geometry is quite fascinating, the math revolutions in the high computer era were very interesting, don¡¯t you think?¡¯
The girl was completely horrified now. ¡®I see what the problem is. You¡¯re utterly unmarriable indeed. Who on Earth is interested in non-Eucli-whatever anyway¡ Certainly not men looking for a Wife.¡¯
¡®Ah, but most mathematicians in history were men. It was supposed to be not for women at all for more than a millennium.¡¯
¡®Not something for Real Men. Books are for wimps.¡¯ She girl insisted.
¡®Pity. Those Real Men always sound like a circle of hell in themselves to me. But you¡¯re an engaged woman, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯re wearing the ring. Do you really want to get married? To leave your friends and become the house slave of some idiot who picked you based on how you look in a bikini?¡¯
¡®Hey, I have a Beta-three fianc¨¦. I¡¯ll live in Betaville in a big house and can be a good housewife and a mother. He already has a stable job and is negotiating for a house already! I have a good future ahead of me as a Wife. Unlike you E-girls who will only be taken by Deltas and Epsilons. I can understand that you¡¯re not happy with that prospect.¡¯
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¡®But do you like him? Can you talk to him? I mean, you¡¯ll have to spend the rest of your life with him. Do you have a decent relationship with him? Can he be a friend?¡¯
The girl shook her head in disbelief. ¡®What do you expect? Do you really believe in romance? That¡¯s only for silly books written for young girls¡ I just want to be comfortable, and he has the money, the status, and the connections. And he¡¯s not the violent type, so there¡¯s a chance that he won¡¯t even hit me. What more can a woman want? I think few girls are luckier than me.¡¯
¡®He probably won¡¯t hit me is a pretty low bar for a lifelong lover that you can¡¯t even divorce yourself as the woman when things go wrong, so sorry. I¡¯m still not interested. I just want to read my book and then the next one. And hang out with my friends. At least I can trust them and talk to them.¡¯
¡®That can¡¯t be everything you want from life. You must have more ambitions than that. You¡¯re a smart girl. Too smart even.¡¯ ¡®Maybe¡ If I ever get the chance I want to travel the world outside The Nation. See what happened to other counties. See how people live there.¡¯
The girl gasped. ¡®There¡¯s no other countries. You can¡¯t be that silly.¡¯
¡®There¡¯s none that we know. We¡¯ve been isolated for so long, but do you really believe all other continents have sunk into the sea after we lost contact with them? That all other people really have died out when we lost contact with them. If they are still there somewhere, they can be reached somehow.¡¯
¡®There isn¡¯t any fuel in the world left, remember, and using it might lead to catastrophes again like when the seas rose and we became an island.¡¯
¡®Maybe, maybe. Or maybe the other people have found new ways to travel that don¡¯t destroy the planet and deplete our resources. A girl can dream, can¡¯t I? Men in this country are stupid and entitled, but the world is much bigger and much more interesting. Maybe other cultures are smarter than us? Maybe there¡¯s a place where coffee isn¡¯t extinct even? Maybe they have decent men like in those old romance books that are at least worth being friends with somewhere?¡¯
¡®Now you¡¯re going overboard completely? So you really aren¡¯t interested in marrying a Nation man? What are you even doing in a Wife School then?¡¯
¡®Most men here are mediocre creeps, abusive baboons, and entitled whiny idiots. Who would want to get mixed up with that? Yeah I¡¯m aware this place is a Wife School, but do you think I ever had any other possibility than ending up here except for complete poverty and living outside of society? For now I¡¯m better off here, and the longer I stay unchosen the better¡ The only problem is enduring those excruciating ceremonies twice a month then.¡¯
¡®You don¡¯t like them? Being pretty and being adored? It always was my favourite when I was in your year.¡¯ ¡®Being gaped at by a troupe of horny subhuman hominids is not my idea of fun, even without the chronic panic attack in the background that I usually get I don¡¯t see how anyone could like that degrading humiliation.¡¯
¡®But it¡¯s our moment of feminine glory. I really miss parading around like that. Now I have to be decent and only husband is ever to look at me. It¡¯s a pity¡¡¯
¡®If you describe it like that being taken at least has one advantage. But then you¡¯ll have too take the man too, and that¡¯s not really a good trade. You can¡¯t just lock them up in a closet when they misbehave. You have to live with them, to honour them even if they are utterly dishonourable and obey them them even if they demand the unreasonable.¡¯
The girl made an ugly face. ¡®I see why you are number 27 now, and have to be stuck on the E-floor. You¡¯re not better than Eliza the man-hater at all. You¡¯re too crazy to be marriable, which is a pity. Such a loss, you could be a pretty girl if you gave your looks some more attention¡ You surely could make a decent C-Wife.¡¯
¡®Been there, done that, but the C-floor won¡¯t take me back. And please don¡¯t insult Eliza, she¡¯s my best friend and she¡¯s too good for your idiotic club of low-price trophy wives. Leave me alone now, please, this book isn¡¯t going to read itself.¡¯
Megan picked up her book again when the other girl disappeared. She really didn¡¯t want to think about what was going to happen later that night.
2 Seventh City Wife Factory
It was a Wednesday night, two and a half weeks after his eighteenth birthday, and everything was going wrong even before anything could happen. Michael was more than nervous already when he finally reached Seventh City Wife factory. His fathers old hydrogen car had had some trouble starting, so in the end he had had to walk there all by himself, in his best suit. Cars were not that reliable anyway in this day and age. Luckily it was not that far from his home, in the old part of Seventh City on the other side of Square Plaza, so he didn¡¯t lose too much time. Even though cars were more manly his legs served him well too.
He looked at the building, which was impressive and ugly, with its name in big letters on the front, together with a smiling cartoon girl in a bikini that probably was supposed to be sexy, but mostly looked fake and unconvincing. He slid through the main entrance and followed another man to a big hall where several groups of boys were listening to a man with a microphone. From the words and the fact that he was more than ten minutes late he concluded that he had still managed to get in during the first speech of the Ceremony of Partner Choice. And only a few words of the man in his grey suit were enough to convince him that he hadn¡¯t missed much.
¡®In the old days, before the dawn of The Nation and our Glorious Constitution, there was chaos everywhere, which resulted in bad marriages and unhappy men, and a lot of wifeless men. Women were in charge in society and men were discriminated against. That¡¯s why we had the Magnificent Revolution, to bring Man back on track.¡¯ Michaels breathing relaxed a bit, he had heard all of this so many times before.
¡®And to end the anti-male discrimination, and to give every man a fair chance to acquire a wife, the new government of The Nation instituted the Wife Schools, so that a happy marriage shouldn¡¯t depend on the superficial choices of women. No man in The Nation will have to worry whether they look good enough or be subjected to the silly whims of girls.¡¯
No, he thought, but your parents having money still matters, and the whims of the grading system are quite inhuman too. It was hard to not be cynical about it, whatever had gone wrong with women being able to choose their own partner before the Magnificent Revolution.
¡®So today we can make everyone happy, and every young man who enters here today will go home with the guarantee of a Quality Wife and a satisfying marriage in every possible way.¡¯
Michael looked at the other boys. There were around thirty of them. Most of them looked expectant, excited, although a lot of them were nervous too. Some looked greedy and hungry even. And then, suddenly out of nowhere, another thought came to his mind: what about the girls? How do they feel right now? How do they experience this stuff. It was a question he probably couldn¡¯t get an answer to, because talking to the other sex was taboo. It was discouraged, indecent, wrong, he had learnt that from a young age. But still his impulses told him that what he needed now was talk to the girls to find out what was really going on here, and about what they wanted. Was that an indecent thought? Was he an oversexed pervert? Or was that just his way of trying to get information from every angle before making a decision? How could he ever make a decision like a choice of a life partner without knowing anything about women in general, and about the persons that he could choose from? If a happy marriage didn¡¯t depend on curbing the superficial whims of a woman, what did it depend on?
His train of thoughts was stopped when another man stepped up to the microphone. His voice was even more monotonous. ¡®Welcome to Seventh City Wife Factory, where the best Real Wives are available for all Real Men who are at least class 4. Today at our two-weekly day of partner choice we will bring you all to the right place to find your own grade of wife. You can now all come to us here at the administration table and we will help you along in finding the perfect bride that you can fulfil your wildest dreams with.¡¯
Michael moved on to a queue, suddenly wondering whether it was a good thing that his father couldn¡¯t come with him here or not, and decided that it was a good thing that boys had to do this alone without their parents present. Whatever would happen today didn¡¯t need his simplistic complications and useless advice about being a Real Man. The official who was telling the boys where to go blinked when he saw Michaels badge, and looked at his papers to check before he said anything. ¡®Gamma-1. That means you can have any woman from class E through class B according to this list.¡¯
It was clear that the man wasn¡¯t very happy with what he was saying, and Michael knew should have been very enthusiastic now, but he couldn¡¯t even smile. It was known that class A wives were reserved for high class alpha males only. He hadn¡¯t expected that class B wives would have been an option for him, but it seemed that great privilege came with his new class 1 status, even more than he had expected. The official handed him a paper, and summed up the information it contained as if he wasn¡¯t able to read such an easy text.
¡®Our girls get the best training available to become a suitable Wife for a Real Man of Class. They are taught all important skills, like house-keeping, cleaning, cooking, simple math for home economics, child-raising, fashion and beauty, modesty outside the home, and from the right age they also get classes in how to sexually satisfy their husband too.¡¯ The official let out a nasty grin which Michael didn¡¯t respond to, so he went on.
Stolen novel; please report.
¡®They also learn how to tend a garden, take care of animals, and how to bring their husband all the emotional support he needs. Our wife candidates are graded according to their physical beauty and health, skills, submissiveness and personality, as well as the family she comes from. There are five categories available from A to E in this Wife Factory, and every man can choose a wife from a category equivalent with his own grades.¡¯
¡®Yes, I can read too,¡¯ he muttered, irritated. His brains worked at full speed, but he had no idea what he should do now at all. If parameters like submissiveness were factored in too, a high grade wife from Seventh City Wife Factory would be some kind of brainwashed sex slave zombie that probably looked pretty, but with which he would never be able to even have a conversation. A rebellious girl that disliked this place as much as he did would be his only chance on something like a relationship, but then he had a problem, because those girls would never end up in B grade, and it seemed he was expected to go choose a B grade wife now.
¡®So you can go to the fourth floor and check out the B grade wives, and pick the one of your choosing.¡¯ The official said impatiently when Michael gave no reaction. Michael still stared at him, horrified, and then made his decision.
''Just show me the girls of the E class,'' He said. He was feeling nauseous now and wanted to get away from the man as soon as possible.
''But you as a class one male, even if you¡¯re just a Gamma, you could have a wife from the B class,'' the man mumbled, clearly not understanding the strange brainie boy in front of him.
''I don''t care. I didn''t even choose to be here. And I don¡¯t think my ideas of the qualities a life partner would need to have are in line with those of this establishment...'' He said absentmindedly, and walked away to an arrow that said ¡®E Class Wives department¡¯ which was on the ground floor just like the welcome hall. That meant that he didn¡¯t even have to take the elevator.
He followed the hallways until he saw a door with ¡®Class E wives¡¯. From everything here he could see that the E-floor was not the department that Seventh City Wife Factory invested in much. The furniture and everything was old, and the wallpaper was almost falling off the walls.
Entering he noticed a short line of boys had gathered already, most of them a few years older than him, and almost all of them low-class Epsilons according to their badges. They were looking quite excited, and were loudly exchanging innuendos and obscene jokes among each other. He stopped in his tracks and held his distance, trying to be invisible for them but it didn¡¯t take long for him to get noticed anyway. An Epsilon-6 with a scruffy beard noticed him and yelled at him.
¡®Hey brainy weakling. What are you doing here? Wives are only for Real Men. Would you even recognise a woman when you see her? Would you even know what to do with her?¡¯
He didn¡¯t respond, but feared that the boy had been right, at least with his words even if not with the intended meaning. How did he know what to do with a girl? The only woman he ever saw was his mother. Men and women really lived completely separate lives in The Nation. He knew the other boy was only thinking about sex, but that was the least of his questions now when it came to the other sex. How should he talk to a girl? What was he supposed to do if he met one?
A distracted-looking official came and looked at the badges. He was a Beta-3. He wanted to say something when he saw Michaels badge, but could easily be stopped with a warning look.
¡®So, all the young men eligible for a wife in the E-class for this month are here now?¡¯ He asked. The boys before him nodded eagerly.
¡®We have 28 young women of your level that are yet unpartnered here for you today, who have been trained to be the perfect wife that will fulfill all your needs and more.¡¯ He said.
Michael looked at him in disbelief. Who was that man even kidding? Everyone knew that E-class meant that they had low scores, that there was something about them that made them less desirable for a Real Man. Which could be everything, from bad school results on the classes they had to take to become a good wife over physical flaws to poor parents, or even a ¡®rebellious outlook on life¡¯. That last one could downgrade a person very easily in The Nation, as everyone knew well. And it was why he was here and not on the B-floor. It was a gamble, but it seemed like a good reason to end up in the E-grade, and a completely unfit rebel girl was what he was looking for now.
¡®Within minutes, all of our quality wife candidates will enter the room, and you can look for the one you want. You can ask to look at them more closely if you want, and if you have picked one you will get more details about her here. If these details appeal to you you can take the paper home, and contact their father to make more arrangements. If that has been settled normally we can arrange a first meeting with your new fiancee within two weeks.¡¯
He looked at the door. Had he understood it right? He had to select a wife on looks alone? What idiot had come up with such a stupid idea? How could he sort them out? Could he go read every girl''s description paper? He felt nauseous again, as if he was at a slave market or something like that. But slavery had been abolished centuries before The Nation was founded, and taking a wife was something completely different. Or at least, it should be something completely different, a life partner shouldn¡¯t be considered some kind of slave he found. But it seemed a lot of people disagreed with him on that if he went by the practices of this place.
¡®And here are our fine Wives-to-be!¡¯ The official said when a line of girls dressed only in bikinis entered the room. ¡®Shit¡¯, he said again. He certainly wasn¡¯t ready for this.
3 The bi-weekly Ceremony of Partner Choice
Michael held his breath when a line of girls came in for the Ceremony of Partner Choice. He noticed they were all dressed in the same black bikini, why was that? Because E-class women were not allowed to make themselves stand out and had to be humiliated? They all stood in the room now, holding a paper with a number from 1 to 28, which also indicated their scores. The lower numbers seemed to be cheery and tried to act seductive, but from number 14 on they mostly just looked depressed, as if they wanted to be somewhere else, like he himself did too. No-one in their right mind wants you when you have such a low score in The Nation. And yet here he was, a level one male, purposely trying to find a wife among those with low scores.
He looked around again. The atmosphere had changed wildly. The boys next to him were almost drooling, loudly giving their own scores for the first 12 girls or so, who indeed seemed to enjoy the moment. He had the idea that number 3 and 5 were the most popular ones, at least from what he could hear. Number 3 was a voluptuous blond girl with blue eyes with unnatural long eyelashes, and number five had brown hair, eyes and skin, and seemed to be playing with her bra as if she was going to take it off. The Epsilon-boys went wild, and simultaneously he almost froze up. Next to his unease he felt his anger rising up at the whole scene, but he found his self control again, ignored everything and started focusing on the faces of the girls at the very end of the line.
First he looked at number 28, the last one in line. She certainly wasn¡¯t ugly, and had a lot of brown curls, and greenish eyes. It was also very clear that she didn¡¯t want to be there at all, which made her potentially interesting. He even felt as if he had seen her before, in another time, or in another world even. But that was impossible, wasn¡¯t it? He had never met any girls at all, since he was five or so. Or not? She was now looking at the group of other boys with a hate that could burn down a house. He understood her hate completely, and for a second he forgot on which side he was. There was something about her that made him agree with her hatred against whatever it was that men were doing here. Even though he was a man himself, and didn¡¯t have any plans in that direction at all.
And then he knew where he knew her from. Even after all this time he had recognised her. He¡¯d recognise her in a crowd probably, and undeniably it was her, the girl from the playground, the last girl he had ever spoken with in his life that wasn¡¯t part of his own nuclear family. Long ago, when they had been small kids, they had played together, accidentally and unsupervised, for hours. That was the day he had learnt, from her mother even, that it was not proper behaviour for a boy who would become a man to play with girls. It had been the first and last time he¡¯d spent so much time alone with a girl. What was her name again? He had known it, and maybe it would come back.
But now was not the moment for thinking about his childhood memories. He had to make a decision here. The noise around him intensified and he came back to this world. He started sorting his thoughts again. So he knew her, but was that a reason to choose her? For some seconds he actually entertained the idea to pick her, maybe not to marry her, but just to set her free in some kind of way. There must be some loophole somehow, not? It was clear that she didn''t belong here at all, just like he did. But then he looked at her again, and she responded to his look with the same look of pure hate she had had earlier for the Epsilons. He shouldn¡¯t forget that for her he was the other side after all. And her mood was a bit too intense for him. Not the vibe you¡¯d want as a start for a lifelong relationship together.
He averted her intense green eyes that tried to pierce his soul. But she seemed to have recognised him too, because her eyes changed, and she whispered something to her neighbour, a girl with long dark hair, number 27. A girl you wouldn''t notice if you weren''t looking for her, with a strong ''save me from this madness'' vibe. He looked into the dark eyes of number 27, and she responded with an unspoken ''please help me¡¯ before she looked away.
His brain worked very fast now. He looked at the other girls, and only then noticed that his fellow boys were now actually fighting for number three and five. The officials were trying to stop the fight, without much success. The other boys were low class Epsilons, and one Delta. While their ranks were quite low, they were certainly behaving like Real Men in the sense of being aggressive and noisy, and in acting before thinking. He ignored them again, and started checking the other girls between 26 and 20 or so, but none of them really stood out to him, while the dark-haired girl who was holding her 27 sign upside down now and whispering to number 28 was still looking at him in between her sentences. It was a hopeful look now, and the girls seemed to be arguing about him, whispering. There wasn¡¯t much hate left in her now, but he still felt nervous about 28¡¯s green eyes piercing him.
¡®Did every young man here choose his wife?¡¯
Another official entered the room, and then saw how his colleagues and the other boys were fighting. He clearly didn¡¯t want to get involved, so he turned to Michael, who seemed to be the only normal person around.
¡®And, young man, have you made your choice of partner already?¡¯
Michaels didn¡¯t really have much possibilities, but nonetheless his heart almost stopped beating. This was it, the moment of truth, on which his life, and hers, could depend.
''I want to take number 27, what''s her name please?''
The man looked at him, puzzled.
''Her? Are you sure? Her father is called Donald Anderson, and his phone number is on this paper, together with his address.''
This annoyed him. ''I didn''t ask for her dad''s name. I ask for hers,'' he said.
The official didn¡¯t answer, but he took a micro-megaphone.
''Does any of the other young men happen to be interested in number 27?¡¯
There was no reaction from the fighting lot, so the official turned to number 27 herself. ¡®No? Okay, Megan, would you be so kind to bring your paper to this young man, please.''
He let out a deep breath? So, Megan it was. The name of the woman he might spend the rest of his life with? She came shyly, looking away from him now, and handed him the paper. He tried to make eye contact again but she wouldn¡¯t let him.
¡®Congratulations, mister. You have made your choice now. The happiness of a married future is yours now.¡¯
He looked disapprovingly at Megan, and even more at girl number 28 who had followed her.
¡®If you excuse me now, I am afraid that I have to call the intervention team here for the other boys. Megan, give your young man your paper so that he can leave.¡¯
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The man disappeared, and suddenly Michael stood there alone with the two girls in front of him, completely frozen. His tongue wouldn¡¯t cooperate, and it seemed that Megan had the same problem. Number 28 was the only one who had some responsiveness left, so she began shaking her friend while staring at his badge.
¡®Megan, you probably should say something to him now. Reboot your operating system girl!¡¯
She repeated the words ¡®Megan, do something now!¡¯ a few more times, and then finally took the paper out of her friends hands to hand it to Michael, shyly now.
¡®She needs to give this to you, I think. Eh, Sir.¡¯
Her anger seemed to have gone completely for now, and she was looking at him with a calculating look for now. Had she really recognised him too?
¡®Thanks. I am Michael. What¡¯s your name, number 28? I don¡¯t like talking to numbers.¡¯
She was visibly taken aback by the direct question addressed to her by a man, and muttered.
¡®Eh, I¡¯m Eliza, sir. Thank you for your friendliness, mister Michael Gamma-1.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m Michael, not Mister Gamma-1. And I think I remember you as Lizzie. You still know that without your mother intervening we would have been friends when we were kids, do you?¡¯
Eliza nodded. ¡®Mike All¡ It¡¯s really you. Funny to see you here.¡¯ She mumbled, and he continued.
¡®I¡¯ve been wondering what I¡¯d do if I¡¯d finally have to meet a girl, but I think I¡¯ll have to begin where I left off with you, Lizzie. Just being friends. And I¡¯ll probably have to start with your friend here.¡¯
He turned to the other girl, while the commotion in the other part of the room seemed to be getting worse. Megan looked at him, still in some kind of trance.
¡®Thanks for the paper, Megan. I¡¯ll call your dad to arrange things, and then I will arrange an actual meeting for us. I¡¯m sorry, this whole Wife thing was a birthday surprise from my dad because of my level one grade. I have no clue about this Wife business, but I honestly hope that you and I can at least become friends, like I was that one day I was friends with your friend Lizzie here when we were five. I¡¯m afraid I stopped learning to interact with girls after that day, so I have a lot of lost time to catch up with, but I hope you¡¯ll have patience with me. And I hope if everything goes wrong with the whole Wife thing that I can help you get our of this screwed-up place to find some kind of future.¡¯
She still didn¡¯t seem to know how to answer, but at least she was smiling a bit now.
¡®Bye Megan, and bye Lizzie too. I¡¯m actually glad to see you too.¡¯
After these words he saw the intervention team that was entering with weapons, and he swiftly disappeared from the showroom, leaving behind two very confused girls. ¡®Bye Mike All,¡¯ whispered Eliza. Not being chosen had never been such an intense experience before, but now it was time to move on. Most of the girls that weren¡¯t keen on getting chosen by the fighting boys had left already discretely when the intervention team entered the room, so she took Megan''s hand to guide her away from all the commotion of the evening before the violence would escalate.
*
¡®What on Earth was that even?¡¯ Megan asked her finally, walking back to the kitchen to get a bottle of Nation-Coke.
¡®I have no idea, but it seems that someone needs to re-write our course about boys and what they want from girls, at least when it comes to that guy.¡¯ Eliza said after a while.
¡®What was he talking about? You were friends with him when you were children? Did he really say that?¡¯ Megan asked, unbelievingly.
¡®So it seems. No-one has called me Lizzie since I¡¯ve been twelve and entered Wife School. So it must be him indeed, my one and only boy friend ever. Only for one unsupervised day at the playground when we were five. And then mum took us apart and forbid both of us to ever have a fried of the other sex. But he still seems to remember me. ¡¯
¡®And you remember it too. But he was really friendly with you at that time? Not bullying or bossing you around and doing whatever boys are supposed to do?¡¯
¡®Eh, no, he was just a friend, like a girl friend to play with, but then a boy. I hadn¡¯t learnt yet that that is impossible and neither had he.¡¯ She drank a whole bottle of Coke at once.
¡®What did he mean with his sentence with too many friends in it?¡¯
Eliza didn¡¯t say much because she needed to process everything herself too, and suddenly number 16 joined them, dressed in her pyjamas.
¡®Is it really true that you¡¯ve been chosen, Megan? As the only girl tonight?¡¯
Megan stared at her empty bottle.
¡®The other guys have been taken away by the intervention team, so I suppose you could say so, Shirley. He pointed at me. And he took the paper, and is going to call my dad and all.¡¯
¡®Congratulations, Megan. That is rather unexpected seen your score this month. None of us hoped to be picked so soon. So what was his rank then? Epsilon-4 at least I hope.¡¯
Megan couldn¡¯t answer, but Eliza answered for her. ¡®That¡¯s the weird thing, Shirley, he¡¯s a Gamma-1. He shouldn¡¯t even have been here. He probably could have had the best Wife in this building. But he didn¡¯t go for that. And then the things he said. It was so strange.¡¯
Number 16 frowned. ¡®He shouldn¡¯t be talking to any girl today. So he¡¯s the indecent and impatient kind? What did he say? That she should be very thankful for him choosing him, and do her best to be a good wife? The classic speech when a high-rated man chooses a low-rated woman?¡¯
She seemed to be getting excited, but Megan was still shaken when she responded. ¡®No, he offered friendship. And said about being something more than he had with Eliza when they were five. They knew each other back then it seems. Oh Eliza, I¡¯m so sorry, he really should have chosen you, not me.¡¯
Eliza nodded disapprovingly. ¡®Don¡¯t say that. You can be his birthday surprise and his prize for his unexpected level one rate if you want. I don¡¯t want a husband. Not now, not ever! I don¡¯t ever want to be a sex slave and domestic servant. Not even for him, even though I¡¯ve never been closer to liking a male than today, I must admit.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t say it like that, Eliza. You should always respect your man, and satisfy him. They deserve it.¡¯ Shirley interrupted. ¡®They deserve nothing, Shirley. If they behave like that troop of drooling baboons that was taken away they don¡¯t deserve anything at all. A man who deserves anything at all should be the opposite of every ¡®Be a Man¡¯ idea in the whole Nation. And I¡¯m not convinced yet that even Michael could be really different. If you want to try, Megan, go ahead. You might be lucky with him. Well, you actually don¡¯t have a choice, do you? And he could be the last decent man on the planet, or an anomaly in history even, and you could have the last marriage that isn¡¯t hell in history. The only one even in the history of the multiverse. Maybe. He surely seemed honest with his confused talk about friendship. And at least he probably believed it himself. But if you see how we are brainwashed here as E-class girls, then how hard must a level one male be brainwashed? So, sorry, I don¡¯t believe it yet. But you take your chance and be happy. I really wish that for you.¡¯
Eliza had ended her monologue, and Shirley was getting angry at her now.
¡®You cannot talk like this, Eliza. This is treason against The Nation.¡¯
¡®Whatever, Shirley. What has the nation ever done for me? Or for any woman? The Glorious Constitution, which gives Freedom and Liberty to all men? When will there be something for women? Anything at all even?¡¯ Megan took a second coke.
¡®But, if he¡¯s right about his friendship offer, isn¡¯t that something for at least one woman? And he seemed to include you too in that, Eliza. So make that two women¡¡¯
¡®You¡¯re probably right. It seems that Mike All hasn¡¯t forgotten little Lizzie. And that my mum was wrong after all.¡¯ She sighed.
Could she believe in the possibility of even one good man? Even if it was Mike All himself? She didn¡¯t know yet, but it looked like there were some interesting times ahead.
4 Painful Phonecalls
Michael lay down on his bed, exhausted from the discussion he had just had with his father about choosing girl E-27 when there were 28 girls to choose from on the E-floor, and he certainly could have chosen a D or C wife as a Gamma-1. And then his father hadn¡¯t even heard of his possibility of choosing a B-wife. Everything was hopeless anyway when it came to explaining stuff like this to him, and there was no way to even try to explain why he had chosen this particular girl. His father had clearly wanted a perfect high-grade Wife for his son. Not just because of the trophy-factor, but also because he genuinely believed that any man would be happy with a high-grade wife from a reputable Wife School as a life partner. It had been an impossible conversation that went completely wrong, but in the end at least he had been able to convince his father that he wouldn¡¯t change his mind on this. And he was an adult class one male now, so his father couldn¡¯t have any actual power over him anymore as an Alpha-5. Gamma-1 was a very unclear category, but it was clear enough that any class one male was higher than a class five, Alpha or not.
And that was just the first difficult conversation for today that Michael needed to have. There was yet another matter that he had to settle now, although it wouldn¡¯t be a face-to-face conversation this time. He muttered a little prayer, picked up the picture with Megans data and took the old housephone. Every home in the Seventh City had a landline, but they weren¡¯t used much because people whispered that the phones were eavesdropped. No-one really knew by whom, but it could be the police, or the government, or someone who could inform your boss or school director or so. In theory there was freedom of speech according to the Glorious Constitution, but in practice you were never sure what would happen if the wrong person heard you say the wrong thing. You might lose your job or worse if you pissed off the wrong person who had more power than you, and insulting The Nation itself and its power systems was even more dangerous.
He dialled the number on the paper, and hoped that Megan''s father would be home. A dial tone appeared, and then a distorted voice yelled something almost sounding like ¡®hello¡¯ in the phone.
¡®Do I speak with Mister Anderson?¡¯ He asked, unsure.
¡®Yes, this is Donald Anderson speaking,¡¯ A rough voice said at the other side of the line.
¡®You are speaking with Michael Adams, I have your name from the Wife factory, and I am, eh, how do I say it, interested in your daughter.¡¯
The voice started laughing. ¡®In my daughter? Interested? But my daughter is married already. You must be mistaken, son. Barbara has been married off from the Wife factory five years ago already.¡¯
¡®No sir, I¡¯m not interested in Barbara, I¡¯m talking about your other daughter Megan.¡¯
The voice started to laugh again. ¡®Megan? I almost had forgotten her. She¡¯s still in the Wife Factory and has reached marrying age now, didn¡¯t she? And you are interested in her? Let me guess, you¡¯re an Epsilon-7 and there wasn¡¯t any other girl left because you were too slow to choose. We both know she isn¡¯t really wife-material.¡¯
Michael sighed. This was even going worse than he had anticipated.
¡®No sir, I¡¯m a Gamma-1 and I am interested in her for her. But I officially need your consent to proceed with the procedure now that I¡¯ve chosen her.¡¯
The man on the other side of the line abruptly stopped laughing.
¡®Sorry, Mister. Yeah, whatever, you have my permission to do whatever you want with her. I cannot say anything to a Gamma-1. I hadn¡¯t even expected any interest in her, but if she takes your fancy, whatever¡ Just go ahead. Good luck, boy!¡¯
Michael started getting irritated.
¡®Sir, couldn¡¯t you at least respect your daughter as a person instead of talking about her like this?¡¯
There was no answer for a few seconds. Had he said something wrong now? He realised that he didn¡¯t know the rate of Donald Anderson, but he doubted strongly it came close to his.
¡®Young man Adams, don¡¯t go too far. I appreciate you taking little Megan for a Wife if you are indeed serious here, but don¡¯t go preaching to me and messing with my business. Gamma-1 or not!¡¯
So that man would be his father-in-law? For a fraction of a second he wondered if he should abort the whole Megan-idea, but that wouldn¡¯t be fair to her, would it? No, he had to take his responsibility. He had promised her he would take her, after all it wasn¡¯t really her fault that her dad was such an impossible man. It was just one more reason to find a way to rescue her from the Wife Factory and her family somehow.
¡®So we have an agreement that if things work out I can have your daughter as a Wife, Mister Anderson?¡¯
¡®Whatever, son. Whatever. You¡¯re probably mad, but who am I to disagree with a Gamma-1? You have my consent to court her and marry her and do with her whatever you want. As long as you don¡¯t send her back home.¡¯
Five minutes later the conversation was over, and he was laying on his bed again, feeling even more miserable. But at this moment it was more than his own misery that had hit him like a train. It was about her now that he was worried, more than about himself. He was starting to understand that being a girl in The Nation was way worse than anything he could ever understand as a boy, even as a Gamma brainie boy that had always been picked on by the Alphas and Betas. No matter what had happened, her story, and that of Lizzie, must have been much worse. He had no clue what he even wanted from Megan, but he felt deeply sorry for her, and desperately wanted things to end up well for her. And for Eliza too, and for every other girl in the world, including number 3 and 8. But things ending up well for a Wife School girl in the Nation seemed even more unlikely than for a brainie boy in a Nation school dominated by Real Men. It was strange how ideals of what men and women were supposed to be in The Nation made it impossible to live comfortably for most people of both sexes, unless they had no problem with becoming something much worse than they could and should be.
And then he wondered what Megan was doing in Seventh City Wife Factory. Was she thinking about him too? What did girls even do all day in that enormous scary building? Lessons about home economics and taking care of houseplants? He had no idea how that looked, but he was getting curious, not just about his future Wife, but about girls and the world they lived in.
He really wasn¡¯t ready for marriage or anything like that, but he still looked forward to getting to know Megan more. He hadn¡¯t even spoken to a girl since he was five, but the presence of Lizzie had reassured them that it should be possible to be something like friends too. If only he could break through the wall between the sexes.
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Yes, that look of pure hate in Lizzie''s eyes was something he wouldn¡¯t forget, but it hadn¡¯t been directed at him, had it? Those other boys had deserved it, and he¡¯d be creeped out too if his future depended on something like that, choosing him for a life partner. But still, was there a way to convince them that he wasn¡¯t like that? A man is a man after all, and if he would have been a reasonable girl like Megan and Lizzie, men would probably be the enemy. He was well aware of that. Trying to get a woman who wasn¡¯t a brainwashed robot might turn against him too. But they both had been moderately friendly in the end, not? Or were they just too shocked to react? He didn¡¯t really know.
But he shouldn¡¯t even be thinking about girls now, he had to study chemistry and make an essay about the societal danger that the sentience of robots could pose. He took his chemistry papers, but it was hard to focus on organic acids and methyl groups today.
*
Megan herself was lying on her bed too, looking at a course of ¡®home economics¡¯, which gave aspiring Wives just enough math knowledge to be able to buy all the stuff a household needs without getting bankrupt or swindled and so losing money that belongs to your husband. She knew much more about math than this, in her closet she had a black market book from a boy school for 12 year olds that was much more advanced than even the extra exercises in her book. She had gone through the whole boys math book with Eliza and some other friends years ago in a few weeks, but officially this stupid home economics course was everything she needed to know about math to become a proper housewife. She had an exam in a few days, which would be way too easy for her so she didn¡¯t really worry.
Now that she came to think of it, it was strange that she had only been number E-27 at the last bi-weekly day of partner choice. Usually she was somewhere in the middle group. She wasn¡¯t really ugly. Her body wasn¡¯t like the supermodels in higher grades but it had no clear flaws, and her school grades were much better than average. But her rebellious attitude, and criticism of the whole Wife School system, and her general vibe seemed to have sunk her grade again. And the same seemed to have happened to Eliza, who had studied even much more advanced subjects as advanced calculus and applied robotics for engineers but only got fights with her teachers lately.
But still, E-27 or not, the weird Gamma-1 boy had chosen her nonetheless. She hadn¡¯t expected to be chosen at all, so the whole thing complicated all the plans she ever had. And the weirdest thing was this strange boy himself, who had been friends with Eliza when they were five, even if just for one day. She still didn¡¯t know what to even think of him to be honest, but she was glad that Eliza wasn¡¯t mad at her for being his chosen partner. She still found he should have chosen Eliza then, and not her. It was not fair for her to be chosen at all. Not when he could call her Lizzie, a name she didn¡¯t even know her best friend had ever been called. There was something strange and intimate between him and Eliza that even she didn¡¯t share, or was she making up stories in her mind again? Her emotions weren¡¯t really stable at the moment, for several reasons, but what had happened would have been a shock at any moment.
She always had seen marriage as the worst thing that could happen to a woman, almost a death sentence. Even with a decent man the institution was rotten to the core and only helped men to be their worst possible version, and women too. Was it possible to not end a marriage in disaster, even if a good man existed? She wasn¡¯t sure. Not that she really distrusted Michael. Friendship she could believe, more or less, if it was him, which was already rather unthinkable in her world. But turning marriage into something enjoyable for a woman? She had no place for that in her worldview.
Her grim thoughts were interrupted by one of the other girls yelling from the kitchen.
¡®Phonecall for Megan. It¡¯s your father.¡¯
Like every house in Seventh City the E-floor had just one phone, which was in a corner of the kitchen, where everyone else could follow the conversation too. There was no privacy with outsiders in a Wife School. Megan felt like freezing up inside. Brittany, who had been number five at the last ceremony and was still grumpy that all the other boys of the partner choice ceremony had been disqualified from choosing a wife for a year because of their violent behaviour came to her bed to repeat her message.
¡®He sounds impatient. You should never let a man wait.¡¯ She added.
Reluctantly she rose from her bed and walked to the phone. Brittany herself took the book she had been studying, and looked at the home economics and tried to remember the rules of adding and subtracting. She didn¡¯t really understand why she would have to learn stuff like this, but she had to do the same test so she didn¡¯t neglect her duties of studying, or at least trying to do so. But it didn¡¯t take very long for Megan to return. Only a few minutes later she was back, crying. Brittany didn¡¯t want to deal with giving emotional support to anyone who was not her future husband, so she disappeared quickly and left Megan curled up like a ball next to her home economics book, where she remained like that until Eliza and Shirley found her more than an hour later.
¡®What¡¯s up, Megan, trouble with your fianc¨¦ already?¡¯ Shirley asked.
¡®No, I don¡¯t think so¡ It¡¯s not him that¡¯s the problem. He called my dad to ask permission to arrange the procedure. My dad thinks that he¡¯s mad, and that I¡¯m wasted on a Gamma-1, but he didn¡¯t protest. He gave consent.¡¯
Eliza sat herself next to her, and stroked her long dark hair. ¡®Hey, your dad didn¡¯t disapprove. Which means that the procedure has started. Gamma-1 boy Michael has not backed off, even after speaking to him. He really must be serious about you. Why are you crying then?¡¯
¡®He isn¡¯t the problem at all now. Dad is. He doesn¡¯t care at all about me. He doesn¡¯t even see me as his child anymore. Not even as a person. Even if I would be turned into dog food he wouldn¡¯t care. Am I nothing to my family now that I¡¯m just a class E wife candidate here?¡¯
¡®Wouldn¡¯t you be something to them if you were the wife of a level one male, Gamma or not?¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®I don¡¯t know. Doesn¡¯t that make it worse? Level one males just intimidate him, and Gamma-ones don¡¯t fit in the simple classification where Alphas are high and Gammas are low. And brainies like him mess up his head even more when they¡¯re not actually lower than him. My dad hates everything that he doesn¡¯t understand. We are the smart girls here, and even we don¡¯t understand that Gamma-1 boy, so how will he ever understand him?¡¯
¡®It¡¯ll all work out, eventually. I¡¯m really happy for you, you know.¡¯ Shirley said.
Well, at least that makes one person in the world with enthusiasm, and she¡¯s not even involved, Megan thought sarcastically, but she said nothing.
¡®So the next step is a meet-up in the visitation room I guess?¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®I guess so.¡¯
¡®That¡¯ll take some time to arrange I guess, you know how slow old Greystone is with the administration. So we have all the time in the world to make plans, and anticipate what¡¯s coming. And there¡¯s always the basic and advanced techniques of courtship sabotage if things go wrong.¡¯
Megan shivered.
¡®We don¡¯t need that. Not with him.¡¯
¡®Who will say? Does that ever work anyway? If men are indeed what Miss Hunter teaches us it won¡¯t even be enough, but if we can trust our first impression you¡¯ll just have some awkward moments and then a reasonable person to talk to.¡¯
¡®I can do awkward,¡¯ she said. ¡®
And you can do calculus while they want you to calculate the price of 3 bottles of Nation-coke for your test tomorrow. Don¡¯t underestimate yourself.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t compare marriage to math.¡¯
¡®No, but you¡¯re not married tomorrow either. You¡¯re both eighteen or so, so the whole process will be a year or longer, and you¡¯ll have all the time to find out what¡¯s happening, and then act. And you¡¯re not one to say all those ¡°never let a man wait¡± and ¡°Everything is about him¡± platitudes. I trust you to know what you need to do. And you¡¯ll always have me.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Yes, I¡¯m glad to have you both. I only wish I wouldn¡¯t have to leave you when I get married.¡¯ Megan said after a pause.
5 How to talk to Girls?
Michael came home from yet another complicated day of school, and looked at the envelope with the letters SCWF on it, which he had never heard of. One more layer of weirdness? It seemed normality wasn¡¯t ever going to return now that he was a Gamma-1 known to have a future wife lined up at just age eighteen. And his parents weren¡¯t really acting normal either lately, especially after the Ceremony of Partner Choice. His mother had been more servile and distant than ever, as if she was afraid to contradict her adult high-class son now, while his father had been quite angry for days in silence. At least today it seemed he had quieted down a bit. The only thing he had said to him when he came in was ¡®There¡¯s a letter for you, lover-boy,¡¯ while completely ignoring him otherwise.
And then he realised that SCWF just stood for Seventh City Wife Factory, and indeed, the content turned out to be an official letter about his first official meeting with Megan, which was planned for next weekend already. It would be a supervised table talk, whatever that was, without any physical contact, gifts or any chance of ¡®improper behaviour¡¯. He read that sentence again. What did all those words even mean? And why did everything about that stupid Wife School sound so scary and sterile, even though he knew he wasn¡¯t actually the one threatened to be made a domestic slave here? The ¡®help me¡¯ in her eyes from that night still haunted him, even in his dreams.
He put the letter back on the table. So it was really happening, and the official first meeting with his fianc¨¦e would be soon? What now? He was still unsure about the whole girls thing, and wasn¡¯t even sure how to talk to them. The Real Man method in The Nation was to talk to anyone who wasn¡¯t your boss with as much entitlement and domination as possible. He knew that that wouldn¡¯t work for a lot of reasons, and that it would just not be right either towards the girl with the ¡®help me¡¯ in her eyes. He might have been taught nothing else in his life, and still it was what he was trying to get away from, even in the very act of choosing her it had been. And had had some experience already that told him there were other unexplored possibilities: that first unofficial meeting with Megan and her friend that shouldn¡¯t have happened had been weirdly casual, in spite of all the stress and tension of the two-weekly Ceremony of Partner Choice, which hadn¡¯t even been much of a ceremony. Even in the chaos of the fight between the other boys they just had been people talking to each other as people. It had been just a minute or so, but he knew it could be and should be possible to talk to girls like that. Which was a completely new idea to him.
Casual friendly conversation was not something people in The Nation ever considered when it came to men and women. Complete segregation of the sexes was what people needed to stop all ¡®indecency¡¯ and not fall into what The Church called carnal sins. He knew that was a lie, indecency abounded everywhere in very sad and abusive ways, and carnal sins were also very visible everywhere, even when only tolerated from Alphas and maybe high class Betas. The complete submission of women was also part of it too often, he¡¯d seen it himself so often before, even with his mother, who had always been a complete servant to her father, and when he and his brother had grown older to them too, which had always hurt him. It was the only way in which women were portrayed in modern books of The Nation too, except when they were over the top evil villains that got destroyed in the climax of the story. There weren¡¯t many other stories about women in the Nation, if you didn¡¯t want to go into even worse stuff like porn, in which women were even less human and even more of an utensil, in a very dark way.
But he knew he had rejected every Nation narrative about men and women already by including Eliza in his talk, whether or not the girls had understood fully what was happening. So it had already been quite revolutionary from the start, hadn¡¯t it? At least it had been to the completely backwards standards of The Nation that he¡¯d been immersed in all of his life. But he was a brainie after all, and a lover of all kinds of black market books. The Nation wasn¡¯t the only possible culture, and reading books can teach you a lot if you pay attention to the details.
He had discovered soon enough that most books written in The Nation for boys were quite dull, unrealistic and not very interesting at all. Boring stories about perfect heroes who killed all the enemies of The Nation, with swooning submissive women without any personality falling at their feet while they save humanity and drink their beer, while served by men with lower rankings too. He wondered what lower-class men felt when reading those books, or was it expected that they weren¡¯t reading at all? The few girl books he could get his hands on were even worse, uninteresting romance stories in which men were worshipped as some kind of omnipotent demigod that should be obeyed in everything, because that¡¯s what makes a woman happy. The narrative was quite twisted too, and he felt even more dirty from reading the girls¡¯ books than from the books directed at him. There was none of the men or women in any of those books that he had ever identified with at all.
But luckily, as a collector he had read enough other books too, old books in weird spelling from before the Magnificent Revolution. He had found some very interesting ones in the black market circuit over the years, and they had become his favourite kind of fiction books. He had read amazing children¡¯s books where boys and girls were just friends, as he and the other boys had been but with girls included. And he had read grown-up romance books with very complicated relationships between the sexes that he didn¡¯t really understand, but again they just talked to each other as if it was the most normal thing in the world. So at least in theory it must be possible for humans to go beyond the sick segregation and subordination of women, and it seems that that had possibly been the case for most of the history of mankind too. His little chat with the girls had even given him hope. With the right kind of people it would certainly work, and there were at least two girls he knew that were very promising candidates for that. He didn¡¯t know why, but he was sure that he¡¯d be able to talk to Megan too, even if she¡¯d been rather shut down on the evening of the ceremony. Something in her eyes had told him there could be a connection.
He put the envelope down. He knew he really shouldn¡¯t be thinking about something like girls now. He had a lot of schoolwork to do. There was a test tomorrow, and all this Wife stuff was a big distraction that really shouldn¡¯t come in between him and his studies, especially not in the last year of general school, after which he had to choose his higher education. It would depend on his grades now what he could choose to study at the university next year, so his schoolwork was important. There was a whole future to work towards, and what he didn¡¯t need was distractions! He took his book about redox reactions and walked up to his room to study the formulas, since food wouldn¡¯t be ready for at least an hour.
*
¡®What are you doing here, Eliza?¡¯ A red-haired girl wearing a C-badge stood in the almost empty girls dorm of the E-floor. She was holding a bag of books.
¡®I could ask you the same, there shouldn¡¯t be any C-girls here today, Annabelle.¡¯
¡®I need to bring some school books for Miss Hunter. And some others too.¡¯ She winked and Eliza''s face lit up.
They arrived?¡¯
¡®Well, not everything. You seem to have given some interesting things to the traders, seen what they gave for you though. Look, here¡¯s the second part of ¡°Advanced robotics¡±, some more math books, and I also have an old history book called ¡°The defeat of the evils of feminism¡±, which I think you¡¯ll like too if you can read between the lines. The history of The Nation that even most men don¡¯t know.¡¯
¡®Do men even know anything at all? If I have to believe the classes I¡¯m skipping now their brain is mostly located in their testicles, and we have to do everything to respect them at all their animal irrationality just because they are men.¡¯ Anabelle looked around to see if no-one had heard them.
¡®You should stop talking like that, Eliza, they¡¯re going to punish you one day. How will you ever get a boy to like you?¡¯
¡®Bwah, I don¡¯t want any of that. But I was E-28 of the whole 28 E-girls last ceremony and I still almost had a match, good that Megan caught him for me instead. Poor girl, even though he seems to be decent for a man.¡¯
¡®So it¡¯s true that Megan is taken? The gossip was contradictory. They said the boys were all fighting, but others said that Megan was taken by a very high-level male.¡¯
¡®Yup, all of it is true, more or less. Most of the boys were a bunch of Epsilon baboons, and then there was that young Gamma-1, which is by far the highest we¡¯ve ever seen here. When he chose her she stood there with her paper,frozen as a statue, so I gave it to him and started the talk while the fight with those baboons went crazy. They¡¯ll meet this weekend officially for the first time, supervised table talk through the glass and all. It¡¯s so strange that one of us is coupled now. Greystone already gave her a ring. But he seems rather decent indeed, for a man, if that is even possible. Quite unsure and insecure and not really into the whole Wife thing himself either, pushed by the parents, he said it was a birthday surprise. I don¡¯t know if I can believe it yet, but Megan might be the one lucky Wife School girl this century has with him as a man.¡¯
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
¡®Hmm, if that¡¯s your opinion of men, I don¡¯t know whether I should give you the defeat of feminism.¡¯ Annabelle said, looking in her bag.
¡®Just give me the book, Anabelle, and bring Miss Hunter hers. And please don¡¯t mention that you¡¯ve seen me here.¡¯
Annabelle nodded, and went on her way again, leaving Eliza with a head full of thoughts and two new books to devour. Her little adventure outside of the Wife School had brought a good payment already, and this was only half of what they had promised her.
*
¡®Be a man!¡¯ Someone yelled somewhere in the distance. Without even thinking Michael nodded.
¡®Be a man!¡¯ he mumbled too, to no-one in general.
¡®You too, Michael, Be a man!¡¯ Robert said absent-mindedly while eating his apple cracker.
¡®Ah, sorry, I seem to be quite conditioned at answering that. Aren¡¯t we supposed to be men anyway, being born male and all.¡¯ ¡®If that was the case they wouldn¡¯t pick on us brainies so much I think. Technically we¡¯re all just as much of a man biologically as those alpha gorillas. But in reality we¡¯re not seen as men or taken seriously. Never man enough, never good enough¡ Always the laughing stock of the Real Men of The Nation. Sometimes I even wonder why anyone would want to be a man? It¡¯s all so silly and irrational.¡¯ Robert looked quite serious now.
¡®What else would you want to be, Robert? A Woman? I¡¯m quite sure their life is even worse than ours.¡¯
¡®No, I meant more like a robot or so, but then more human. Something away from this male-female nonsense. Away from hierarchy and abuse. Don¡¯t you think that humans would be perfectly living in harmony if they had no sex or gender. Doesn¡¯t all evil come from the way we define ourselves in opposition to the other?¡¯
Michael wasn¡¯t convinced. ¡®You mean that if we all were asexual human clonebots there would be no motivation for all those silly games of competition? That being men and women makes us be like this?¡¯
¡®Something like that, yes. It¡¯s all that stupid man-stuff that destroys our country and our humanity. And women make it even worse. Without sex everything would be much better¡¯
¡®How so?¡¯
Michael was rather lost by what his friend was getting at now
¡®Well, they just affirm the whole thing. They are subservient and submissive and help men to become their worst selves. All they ever do is affirm the worst version of what a man can be. Without them we¡¯d be better people.¡¯
Michael thought a bit about the women he knew. His mother fitted the description, sadly, but Megan and Eliza clearly didn¡¯t, even though he had met them for only a minute.
¡®Hmm, I¡¯ve always noticed something like that too, but I¡¯m not sure it needs to be like that, my fianc¨¦e seemed not like that at all, and her friend even less.¡¯
Robert looked up now. ¡®You haven¡¯t even met her. How do you even know?¡¯
¡®I talked to them a bit in the chaos when the ceremony went wrong. A bunch of Epsilons started fighting, and everyone was busy with them so I asked the girls for the document with her data. And those two really were nothing like the stereotype. Just as we are nothing like the stereotype of men as brainies. Maybe all the stereotypes are nonsense that is projected into us all the time, and that destroys us if we follow it. Makes us destroy each other if we follow it even¡¡¯
Robert looked at him suspiciously and changed the subject completely.
¡®So, is she pretty?¡¯
¡®Who? Megan?¡¯ Michael looked at his friend, confused.
¡®That¡¯s her name? Megan then. You like her? I can¡¯t imagine what it is to have a woman.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t have anyone yet, and I think I like how she¡¯s the opposite of everything else I saw in that damned Wife School. But what do I know about marriage and stuff? I hope we can at least find out how to be friends and hack the system or so to find a way out together, or something like that.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re speaking in riddles, Michael. How can a woman ever be anything to a man but a Wife? How can you ever be anything but a Husband when you grow up and get married? We don¡¯t have any choice at all. If we even get the choice. Not all Gammas get the chance to choose a good wife like you did.¡¯
¡®Hey, you beast of a man, what have we heard?¡¯
They were joined by John and Don, two high Betas who came back from gun training. John slapped Michael on the back.
¡®Ah, our youngest husband. Congratulations Mr. Class one male! It¡¯s not fair that you¡¯ll be the first one in our year to have sex, man.¡¯
Robert seemed to fade in the background, and Michael wished desperately that he was somewhere else, no matter where.
¡®So please tell us all the details when you get the chance to try her out.¡¯ Don winked dirtily.
¡®What are you even talking about? It¡¯s at least a year before I can get married.¡¯ He stammered.
¡®Ah, but you will have dates before that, not? Or are you one of those religious idiots who still believe in the whole no sex before marriage stuff from The Church? You know no-one really does that in this day and age, I hope, dear Michael. Everyone has sex from the moment they get the girl out of Wife School, whenever they can. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re not looking forward to that. Man, I would be killing to have a wife already. So much things you can do with them, and so much you can make them do for you, and to you.¡¯ He grinned dirtily again.
¡®Eh, Our first meeting is a supervised table talk in her Wife School, and shouldn¡¯t I know her a bit more and know how to talk to her before such things.¡¯
Don erupted in laughter. ¡®Talk? To a woman? Man, what world are you living in? No, you have to train her, and make her do what you want, from the first meeting. So that from the first time outside with her you can make her do whatever you want. You want to prepare her to be a proper wife, not?¡¯
¡®Eh, I think I would have another approach¡¡¯ Michael tried, but Don laughed over his response.
¡®Come on dude, you don¡¯t even know how to handle women, and you are getting a Wife, what a waste! I would certainly know what to do with a woman.¡¯
Michael looked away, and wished he was far from there. Robert had become completely silent, and seemed to be looking for a way to disappear from this conversation too.
¡®There¡¯s a lot you can do with women if you train ¡®em properly. But isn¡¯t the most important thing that she can cook and clean your house? As a man you have to think of your future too, and about serious adult stuff, not only sex.¡¯ John said. ¡®No, she definitely needs to be sexy and good in bed. That¡¯s the first thing about women¡¯ Don said, and he made some obscene gestures.
Michael thought of the distance he had felt while in the Wife School again. But now it was here in between him and his classmates too. At least Robert was a bit critical sometimes, but like almost everyone else John and Don seemed to be completely fine with the whole arrangement between men and women in this world. They were the majority, and the orthodoxy of The Nation. And it made him feel so extremely lonely, and empty and wrong, and very dirty.
¡®I have some things to do.¡¯ He said, and he disappeared before Don and John could react in the direction of the robotics lab. He knew they wouldn¡¯t follow him into such a brainie stronghold. Just five minutes and they had made him completely depressed. Don and John had brought him back to the reality of what it actually meant to be a man in The Nation. He, and Robert, and maybe a few other dudes he knew were the outliers, the aberrations. Reality was that men dominated women, wanted to be served by them, and didn¡¯t even care to talk to them. Just get from them what you want, that¡¯s all.
If he came to think of it, the world he lived in was quite dark, and he had always been the alien. He had never really found his place, even when the brainie department of the university had been better for him than anything else. This world just wasn¡¯t healthy, and even after all he¡¯s been through he¡¯d been relatively lucky. Or probably extremely lucky compared to all the girls he¡¯d seen in the Wife School. What do you do when you feel left out for not being like the rest, but you also feel that the rest is a bunch of creeps that no rational or emotional being can join? He thought of some of the black market books he had read over the years, with oldschool dystopian fiction. Did he really live in a dystopia of sorts? It wasn¡¯t as extreme as 1984 or Brave New World in The Nation, was it? People were not brainwashed and killed for wrong ways of thinking. There was no constant destruction of information and rewriting of history. No police state or anything. And still¡
No, he decided. People in The Nation were still free. There was no dictator or extreme controlling government. There wasn¡¯t even a government at all, since the Magnificent Revolution they had been led by the Central Computer, which knew how to rule a country much better than humans did. Its representatives were only executors with not much personal contribution to the actual policy. There was no suppression of truth or confiscation of black market books, even though they were not part of the official economy no-one was punished for having them.
No, everything considered he didn¡¯t live in a dystopia at all. There were some problems in The Nation, but didn¡¯t every culture have its own problems?
6 the Visitation Room
''Michael Adams, and you are here for Megan Anderson.¡¯
The official checked the letter, gave him some extra papers and made a gesture to follow him. The moment he entered the door to the E-floor he was reminded how deeply he disliked this weird place. It wasn¡¯t just the whole Wife School concept that bothered him, but also the E-floor specifically, where the women with the lowest rating were trained to become Wives suitable to Epsilon men who hardly had a place in The Nation themselves. Everything about it just gave him the creeps, and the cracking old paint on the walls combined with the absence of direct daylight in this part of the building didn¡¯t make it much better. Those ancient tube lamps in the hallway gave a strange cold yellow light that gave everything a glum atmosphere, and there was something depressing about every person that they passed. He didn¡¯t even want to think about what it meant to have to live here full-time, without ever going outside beyond the school gardens.
Obediently he followed the official through a few halls with ugly classrooms until they reached a door with the words ¡®Visitation room¡¯ in an ancient font. So this was the place. He blinked when the door was opened, and he could hardly believe his own eyes when he saw what was inside. In the middle of the visitation room there was a glass wall that looked like it was built through a table with one chair on this side. There was another similar room on the other side of the glass wall, with the other half of the table and another chair. The rest of the table was mostly empty apart from a messy desk with documents in a corner. It was clear how things worked here: people could talk through the glass, but not touch each other. There only were tiny holes in the glass above the table, with less than a centimetre diameter.
The whole thing made him even sadder, and it reminded him of old black market books about prisons written in a pre-Nation time. At least it was clear now what they meant with a supervised table talk, without any physical contact or gifts or any chance of ¡®improper behaviour¡¯, and it didn¡¯t look very promising at all.
The official produced some more paperwork from the desk in the corner. ¡®Here are the extra papers for your first meeting with your potential Wife. The meeting itself will be through the glass, here at the E-floor meeting table for visitors. I hope I don¡¯t need to remind you that after the meeting you need to fill in the papers, and it¡¯s very important that you let us know if she pleases you. If she doesn¡¯t, we can do everything within our means to make sure she will be more pleasing to you next time. And if she still doesn¡¯t please you the third time, you can still choose another one that you like more at that point. She shall be re-educated then to be more pleasing to another Husband and she won¡¯t bother you any more with her incompetence.'' He had said it absent-mindedly as if he had repeated the words countless times as a formality, but a shiver ran down Michael''s spine when he realised the meaning of his words. He was reminded again that the girls here didn¡¯t have any of the freedoms that he was used to at all, and that he should be careful with his words. They lived in very different worlds, and he needed to find a bridge between them somehow.
Even when he had been thinking about it a lot recently, he still literally had no model for talking to girls in his world, because there was no real way to do it well in The Nation, where men and women always lived apart. He had been forbidden to talk to girls all his life, because it was indecent, and wrong, and dangerous, or something like that. Luckily he had read enough black market books that were written in older cultures or times when there had been no such segregation between the sexes. Books where women and men were friends, or where young girls and boys played together as friends as if it was the most normal thing in the world, or stories where women had the power to reject a man¡¯s advances, and where a boys life could be destroyed with a simple ¡°No¡± from the girl he liked. But the most incredible thing was how they were natural with each other sometimes, playful even.
Yes, there was a war between the sexes too, and nasty stuff from both sides, it¡¯s not like everything had been perfect at all, but still, he had read stories in which somehow the boy and the girl ended up liking each other, with no force, no intimidation, no manipulation, nothing. And in the end they liked each other from both sides and formed a kind of marriage that was based on something completely different than anything he¡¯d ever seen in the real world. Was there a way to summon such an atmosphere to his interactions with his ¡°potential wife¡±?
But this wasn¡¯t a moment to be lost in thoughts. His knees trembled as he walked up to the table with the thick glass wall. Megan was already sitting on the other side, in a blue dress, with her hair in a simple ponytail. She was biting her nails and looking away from the glass, and he certainly could emphasise with that. It was hard to comprehend that this girl was supposed to become his Wife now, and that if everything went well he would be sharing his life with her in the future. But today there were mostly barriers between them, starting with this weird glass wall. It was clear that a lot of effort had been made to make physical contact impossible at a visit. Why was that? He wondered who else would visit the girls here in Seventh City Wife Factory? Their families? His parents had only visited his sister twice or so since she had moved to a Wife Factory at age twelve, and he hadn¡¯t. Other friends? Were they even supposed to have outside friends here? Probably not¡ So why were they so locked away from the world? And why these extreme measures? The only thing anyone could exchange through those tiny holes in the glass if they wanted was tiny rolled-up papers or maybe a pencil or so.
But he had to do something now, and standing here frozen wouldn¡¯t do. Besides, who knew what the weird official would do if they would do nothing but look away for the whole visit. They were expected to do more than the silently looking away from each other on both sides of the glass wall that was going on now. So how to overcome the barriers? He hadn¡¯t seen or heard her since the evening when he had rather impulsively chosen her, and she hadn¡¯t really been very communicative back then either. He had assumed from the reactions of her friend that it had been more or less okay, but hadn¡¯t he been too optimistic? Maybe she hated him after all? She was still biting her nails, and actively avoiding his eyes. He noted that she looked quite different from last time now that she was completely dressed, and that she was much more human and approachable like this than she had been in that weird ceremonial bikini. Girls in real life were indeed beautiful, but also disarmingly human like him. All he could do was to bluff himself through the situation as if he was living in a black market romance, and then see what happened.
He broke from his frozen state, and finally seated himself on the old chair, and when she finally looked up from her fingernails, straight into his eyes he found his tongue again. All or nothing now.
¡®Hi Megs! I was around so I thought I could maybe visit you,¡¯ he said as casually as possible.
The official frowned at this unexpected development, but Megan still smiled and he felt relieved when she answered, as if a load fell from his shoulders.
¡®Hi, Michael. What a surprise to see you. And how nice of you to visit me here, I rarely have visitors, you know.¡¯ He saw that she picked up on the game immediately, even if it was with a lot of sarcasm behind every word. Contact was made!
¡®Yeah, I had nothing better to do, you know how it works¡¡¯
¡®According to our how-to-please-your-husband classes the business of a man is always the most important thing there is. So you must be serious about meeting me.¡¯ Oh boy¡ Dangerous territory already, but he could do sarcasm as much as she could if he had to, although defusing would be better.
¡®I suppose your teacher never met an actual man in their whole life then. Most of the time we¡¯re just muddling on without really knowing what we¡¯re doing.¡¯
She laughed. ¡®If I would say that on my test my results would be terrible, but I assumed so much already, yes, thanks for affirming my hunch and demythologising our canon of ideas about the male sex,¡¯ she said, and he noted her wide vocabulary. She clearly was some kind of brainie too.
¡®Glad that I can be of help, Megan. But it seems that I¡¯m indeed here for serious business today. I¡¯m not only supposed to meet you, but also to decide whether you¡¯re pleasing to me or not as a future Wife, at least that¡¯s what he over there told me when he brought me here.¡¯
He pointed a finger at the official who seemed to be looking for a paper somewhere in the drawers of the desk now, and who wasn¡¯t really paying attention to anything any more.
¡®And then I have to let them know through these papers whether I like all those, eh, kind of statistical things about you. Looks, physical features, social characteristics, overall attractiveness, and, eh, sexual desirability,¡¡¯
He could see a flicker of fear in her eyes, and quickly added. ¡®But all of that won¡¯t be a problem. I¡¯ve never seen you looking as good as today, my Lady Megan. I also like this look you have today much more than the other one from the ceremony, and I¡¯ve never had the pleasure of talking to such an attractive young woman before. If there¡¯s anything that doesn¡¯t please me at all right now, I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s your surroundings.¡¯
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
He paused when he saw her blush. Maybe the compliments had been too much? He didn¡¯t know how to react, the whole business of flirting was a complete mystery to him. He sighed. The game they had been making up on the spot had still been confusing and had taken a lot of energy. Time to defuse again?
¡®But as you know it¡¯s only the second time that I see you, and there was something about that other outfit, and about the whole night, that made me uneasy. Maybe you¡¯ve noticed?¡¯
¡®Ah?¡¯ A silence fell. Wrong subject again, she probably didn¡¯t like to be reminded of those bikinis. Maybe it was better for something more straightforward.
''By the way, if we¡¯ve moved on to serious talk now, I talked to your father on the phone last week. He gave his permission, but he also didn''t really seem to care.''
She shrugged and looked away, looking rather depressed suddenly. ''No, he doesn''t. I''m not very good trophy daughter material, am I?'' She laughed, but not with joy this time.
''Who needs a trophy? Am I one to you because I have a golden star on my chest now? When all of my life I¡¯ve been mocked and bullied because I like books more than violent sports, and because I¡¯m not interested in always being the best. And now they suddenly look up to me because of that stupid badge. And to be honest, I''m still not sure about any of this Wife business. I need much more time to just get used to the idea of being married. Or to the idea of being with girls even. But at least you seem like a fun person to be with. I could certainly get used to being around you.¡¯
She didn¡¯t react, except for turning a bit redder again in her face, and seemed to be waiting for more.
¡®Anyway, I¡¯m a man, and I have to take my responsibilities now that I¡¯ve chosen you. I know that. So whatever your projected desirability scale on these papers says, dumping you now would be bad for you and for your future. I can¡¯t do that, so there¡¯s no possibility to turn things back now. I¡¯ll have to live with the consequences of my choice and make the best of it for both of us, and at least try to not harm you in any way in the process¡¡¯
Her smile returned, although very lightly.
¡®Don¡¯t worry about that, Michael, dumping me at this point would probably just mean that I would be trading places with Elisa in the rankings. I can¡¯t get any lower than I am now. And I don¡¯t think they¡¯d really throw me out. But you¡¯re right, a rejected woman has lost her worth and is damaged goods, but that applies only when you¡¯ve been alone with each other already. And you know, silly me still hasn¡¯t realised that she¡¯s been chosen. That she¡¯s a taken woman now. That my youth is over now, and blah blah blah. You¡¯re the man here, and you¡¯re more considerate about all of this than I am myself even. Thank you¡¡¯
He fiddled with his papers.
¡®I have no clue at all what I¡¯m doing at all, my dear lady Megan. Muddling on again, like men do when women don¡¯t look and follow strange classes about them. But even if the whole wife thing doesn¡¯t work for you and me, I solemnly promise that I will not dump you, and find a way to set you free somehow, instead of making you anybody else¡¯s slave-wife! Would you be able to live with that?''
He was whispering now, so that the official wouldn¡¯t hear them, but he didn¡¯t seem to be paying attention. ''Are you serious here?'' She whispered back.
''Why not? Only a half-baked swine with less brain cells than testicles would ever want such an arrangement. How can they call themselves Real Men and be content with sharing their life with a slave that can only obey and has no say in anything, and only pretends the whole time. I don¡¯t see the appeal.''
She started laughing again.
¡®Eliza is right, someone needs to rewrite our course material about men. It¡¯s a completely different universe, you and the Real Men from our please-your-husband course.¡¯
¡®Ah, well, I¡¯m just me. I don¡¯t represent anything but me. Every man is different I think. Every woman too I suppose. People are just themselves, not bad copies of an eternal Idea of Masculinity or Femininity in some ethereal world of Ideas or something like that. But yeah, I can¡¯t deny that I¡¯m a boy, or a man, or whatever you want to call it. At least, biologically I am, for 100%. And I suppose I can¡¯t deny that like girls either, in theory at least. But I also feel like I need a lot of time to get used to them now before I could even fall in love, let alone get married or so. So I hope you can be patient with me, and I¡¯ll repeat what I said last time. Please let¡¯s just be friends now.¡¯
She smiled. ¡®Is that an official request now from my future Husband, Michael Adams? I¡¯m not supposed to say no to my man, you know. Except when it¡¯s about premarital sex while I¡¯m still in Wife School, at least officially. Or other indecent things. Because, well, eh, God or so? Not that anyone ever follows those rules anyway. But now of all things you could demand from me on a first meeting, you¡¯re literally begging for friendship? While being a nice person who¡¯s actually interested in me¡ You confuse me to be honest.¡¯
¡®Eh, you make it sound like something more interesting than I said, but it can be a start, not? Even though I don¡¯t know of what.¡¯
¡®Michael Adams, you really are something. They tell me all the time that I would even have to obey horny creeps who are not even interested in me as a person, in whatever they want. So why on Earth would I reject you, when you¡¯re begging for friendship? You¡¯re unbelievable.¡¯
He sighed. ¡®Friendship with girls is indecent. From that one day when I was friends with Lizzie when I was five on I¡¯ve never heard anything else. So asking for friendship is probably indecent too. Maybe even from my fianc¨¦e? I don¡¯t know? You¡¯re a honourable girl.¡¯
He paused and looked a bit confused before he resumed. ¡®But on the other hand I¡¯ve seen a lot of really indecent and abusive things and no-one ever said anything about them, when I worked at the caf¨¦ this summer. Married men had all kinds of affairs and prostitutes at their table, while officially not even their wives would be allowed there because that would be indecent. As long as the man is high-ranked enough no-one will ever stop you, and collecting women around you to boss around and abuse is very manly or something like that. Maybe I shouldn¡¯t bother that people would say it¡¯s indecent for me to be friends with girls? Indecent my old-English donkey-beast!¡¯
The silly insult made her smile again. She bowed for him.
¡®The man is always right. That¡¯s what the please-your-husband class teaches us. So I¡¯m not contradicting you here at all, dear man. But we usually don¡¯t say these things out loud.¡¯
¡®What a load of bogus drivel and utter twaddle it all is, including your classes.¡¯
¡®By the way, did someone tell you that your vocabulary is much wider than what we are to expect from a Real Man, according to our courses? We are taught to never say things that sound too smart to not make our husband feel stupid too.¡¯
¡®As is yours, miss demythologisation of the canon of ideas, and if I were you I¡¯d ask for a refund for those idiotic lessons. It¡¯s all a load of bogus drivel and utter twaddle.¡¯
¡®Ah, But there¡¯s the problem: I didn¡¯t pay anything, my father did. And the government. Or something like that.¡¯
Oops, that had been a wrong subject again, and silence fell until he recovered the conversation with a new topic.
¡®So, here on the papers it says that you have automatically received an engagement ring from the school already. How does that work? Isn¡¯t it supposed to go differently? Shouldn¡¯t I be the one to give you one in a much later stage of a relationship. Or give each other rings or so?¡¯
She put up her hand so he could look at it.
¡®Nope. You chose me, I am legally yours now unless you throw me away. They unceremoniously gave me a ring the morning after, and told me to wear it all the time so everyone can see that I¡¯m taken. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s not even the most interesting ring either. Just plain stainless steel with nothing on it.¡¯
She took a cheap-looking silvery ring from her left ring finger.
¡®In older times the man went down on his knees to ask his girlfriend to marry him, according to the old books.¡¯
¡®Yes, but here the man just says ¡°I want her,¡± as if picking from a catalogue and then she gets her ring to signal to the world that someone has chosen her. The girl has no vote in the matter. There¡¯s no romance for girls in The Nation, in any form, just efficiency and cold bureaucracy. Especially for us E-floor girls. We just end up with low-class husbands anyway, so who cares at all¡ Who would invest too much in a girl who¡¯ll be the housewife of an Epsilon? And, eh, it¡¯s not like we¡¯ll ever be in contact with anyone who has a high rating, you know. Eh, with all respect to your Gamma-1 badge, sir.¡¯ She winked.
¡®I¡¯m aware that I¡¯m the anomaly here, Lady Megan, so nevermind me. And I don¡¯t actually have all the privilege you¡¯d think I have¡ But would it really be that different on the other floors?¡¯
¡®Well, I know on the B-floor they have music on the Ceremony of Partner Choice, and bubble wine, and they can choose their own glamorous bikini and stuff like that. We don¡¯t even have apple juice anymore for the boys. We¡¯re the ultimate leftovers, if you know what I mean.¡¯
¡®Hey, you¡¯re quite smart and pretty and everything, don¡¯t¡¡¯
Suddenly they were interrupted in the middle of his compliment. ¡®Hey Megan, can I have your study notes about home economics?¡¯
Another girl came barging in as if nothing special was happening. The official showed his head next to Michaels through the glass and let his voice boom a ¡®No interruptions during a first meeting, Suzanne,¡¯ which sent her away without even giving Megan a chance to answer.
¡®So he is paying attention after all,¡¯ he whispered when the official had taken his place behind the desk again.
¡®Bwah, old Greystone is very selective in what he notices,¡¯ she said, which he proved by not reacting at all to her words.
¡®So, what kind of home economics do you get here in Wife School?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s a euphemism for just enough math to be able to go to the store without being swindled. Losing money that belongs to your mighty husband is not a good idea, is it? Without, eh, getting extracurricular study materials we would hardly know basic geometry even. Real Men don¡¯t like Wives who are too smart, you know.¡¯
¡®Real Men¡ The biggest myth of all¡ If you ever see one, kill him.¡¯ He mumbled. And suddenly he realised that he wasn¡¯t just talking to a girl, but also had opened up enough by now to say things that he usually wouldn¡¯t even dare to think.
7 A list of Questions to ask on a First Date
''By the way, Young Lady Megan, I have this weird list with questions here, which I got from your friend over there.¡¯
Michael looked from his fiance behind the glass wall to the papers he had received when he arrived, and pointed at the official behind the desk again.
¡®Old Greystone gave you something? How very generous of him. Watch out that it isn¡¯t poisoned.¡¯
She couldn¡¯t reach the paper through the glass, but tried to look at the paper from different angles to read it, so he took it and held it up to the glass.
¡®I don¡¯t think it¡¯s something dangerous. It just looks like a regular paper if you ask me, all right, but what the¡ is this even? Questions to ask you potential Wife at the first meeting. And oh, he even gave me a pen to write the answers down and take back with me. So I can study my future Wife or so? This looks like it¡¯s supposed to be serious business.¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, the famous first meeting questionnaire that we never get to see beforehand as girls. You¡¯re supposed to ask the questions to get to know me. Few men ever bother with those things though.¡¯
¡®Well, it probably could help to get to know each other in some kind of way, so let¡¯s try at least some of them.¡¯ He said.
¡®Please do, I¡¯ve always wondered what questions were on the questionnaire. There''s a lot of speculation among the girls, but so far none of the taken girls was able to get their takers to share the whole list with them.¡¯
¡®Oh, in that case I¡¯ll make sure you get a copy. You can consider it my first deed of conspiracy against the war between the sexes, or as an early wedding present if you like.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t be weird and just ask the first one, I¡¯m very curious now.¡¯
He looked at the list and sighed. ¡®Hmm. I think you really don¡¯t want to know actually. Believe me.¡¯
¡®Tell me, I can handle it. I¡¯m always prepared for the worst with whatever comes from a man.¡¯
¡®Hey, I didn¡¯t write this thing. Don¡¯t blame me just because I¡¯m a man.¡¯
¡®No, you didn¡¯t, but another man probably did.¡¯
¡®It could also have been a woman like your please-your-husband teacher. But okay, number one: are you ready to marry and make your husband happy? Literally the first question on the list.¡¯
¡®Sigh. You should know the answer by now. As ready as you are, Mister Real Man!¡¯
He wrote down ¡®BLAH¡¯ in capital letters and peeked at the rest of the questions.
¡®Hmm, the rest is mostly childish stuff. What¡¯s your favourite colour and stuff like that.¡¯
¡®Do people really have a favourite colour? I wouldn¡¯t know. Magenta red then, write it down so Greystone will be pleased with our progress as a couple¡¡¯ She giggled.
¡®Favourite book?¡¯
¡®Ah, should I name of of those Nation books for girls now? I never read those.¡¯
¡®The books for boys aren¡¯t better, believe me.¡¯
¡®I know, I tried some. Waste of good black market value. School books for boys are much more interesting and helpful, especially the advanced brainie ones. Eliza has some advanced math books and books about robotics and biology and stuff. Much more interesting than our silly domestic economics, let alone the please-your-husband stuff.¡¯
¡®So I write down ¡°Advanced math for boys?¡±¡¯
She poked with her finger to a hole in the glass. ¡®Don¡¯t. Write down ¡°The Legends of Old Cultures¡±. Let me at least have that. It¡¯s not really Wife School material, but less problematic I suppose.¡¯
¡®Interesting choice. I approve of that. And, let¡¯s look for the next one¡ Where would you go if you could go on a holiday?¡¯
¡®Away from the Nation, evidently¡¡¯
¡®That¡¯s impossible. Only sea around us and no fuel in this era of a planet with depleted resources. And you¡¯re being rebellious against our noble Nation, Miss Megan. But I assume it¡¯s no First City Love Hotel quarter for you then?¡¯ He said, quoting the title of a famous but unreadable book about marriage and honeymoon.
¡®No, I¡¯d stay far far away from that. And far far away from everyone who feels entitled to being pleased by me in any way. Nothing personal towards you, sorry, but a vacation is something I¡¯d like to do for myself, and not as a pleasure toy for someone else. So some kind of small place in nature without Wife Schools or anything like that. Just rest, and a lot of books. And no-one to tell me what to do. You can visit if you behave and let me read and help me cook and clean. Next question?¡¯
¡®Eh, what makes you special?¡¯
¡®Me? That I don¡¯t belong here at all? Special enough? It makes me rather scandalous even, but also a bit special, not? And you?¡¯
Michael was taken aback for a second when the question was returned to him, but when he thought of it was only fair that he answered too.
¡®Eh, that I don¡¯t belong here either? I don¡¯t know. Ask other people what they think. I¡¯m not the best person to describe myself.¡¯
He looked at the paper again. ¡®Hmm, they try to keep the pretence of romance up with the next question: What would be the perfect date for you?¡¯
¡®Ah, one of these expensive exotic medjool thingies from Second city in the South, that grown on palms. I¡¯ve tasted them once, very good stuff!¡¯ She smiled teasingly now. ¡®You know that¡¯s not what they ask, Megan. Do better.¡¯
¡®Okay, man that I have to submit to, May 12th, then as the perfect date, don¡¯t ask me why¡¡¯
He returned the smile. ¡®I think I''ll give up on that question for now. We¡¯ll have to find out together. I find it a weird thing to ask at this stage. It¡¯s not that you ever have had many dates with boys already.¡¯
She pointed at him with her fingertip to the glass. ¡®It¡¯s more about fantasies, and what you imagine a relationship to be I think, a quality Wife School fiance is guaranteed to not have dated any other men before. And your answer now too, mister class one male.¡¯
He looked at her, surprised. ¡®Ah, well, I have no clue either, a medjool on May 12th, but then only if it¡¯s with you. Oh and by the way, the next question is¡ What is your worst flaw?¡¯
¡®I¡¯m rebellious and I don¡¯t actually want to be a Wife, among other things. Or you can put that with the question about my biggest qualities that follows it if you like. And you?¡¯
Her natural way of reversing the questions every time to make it more equal made him very irritated with the whole thing, and with the whole Wife School system. ¡®Eh, did I mention already that these questions are for me to ask you, but not for you to ask me back, for some reason? Quite asymmetric. Why don¡¯t they want the girl to get to know the boy too? Hmm¡ you¡¯re right that it¡¯s better that I answer them too to see if I¡¯m pleasing enough to you, or something like that. And if I¡¯m not pleasing to you then you can tell me where I have to improve myself or so. But not through that Greystone dude please.¡¯
She giggled again.
¡®So, your biggest flaw, Mister Real Man with the Gamma-1 rating. Or are you afraid of that question?¡¯
¡®Me? Mister Real Man? You¡¯re mistaken here¡ I¡¯m afraid that I¡¯ll never be a Real Man as they like them in this Nation or something like that? Which is quite a disadvantage in the male world, even with that shiny Gamma-1 badge. Although that might not actually be a flaw to you.¡¯
She smiled again. ¡®Ah, no, it¡¯s more of a basic requirement. Real Men should be killed on sight, didn¡¯t you say that yourself? But be assured, if you were one I would be busy now experimenting with all the techniques of advanced courtship sabotage. I know the book by heart now, but you probably shouldn¡¯t know about that. No man is supposed to know that such a thing even exists now that I come to think of it.¡¯
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
He pointed at the official again, who was writing numbers in an old book now. ¡®Don¡¯t let him know then. But courtship sabotage sounds like fun if you don¡¯t want a partner.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s quite risky business, but then again everything is when you have a partner that you don¡¯t want. My biggest flaw now is that I already like you too much for trying out serious courtship sabotage. It¡¯s rather mean stuff, you know.¡¯
¡®So you mean that you were actually planning on doing that with me?¡¯
She shrugged shyly. ¡®Eh, no. I don¡¯t know. Not really with you. I hoped it wouldn¡¯t be needed after meeting you on that choosing ceremony night. But to be honest, it always was my plan in case any man would be so crazy to choose me. I¡¯ve been practising with girl friends for years. You¡¯re quite lucky to be you now¡¡¯
¡®So what would happen if you were indeed successful in the sabotage, and I¡¯d bring in my papers with negative ratings, and say to old Mister Stoneface there that I don¡¯t want you?¡¯
He was whispering again when talking about the official, who still didn¡¯t seem to notice anything.
¡®Greystone is the name. He¡¯d try to convince you to have one more meeting behind the glass and they would heavily punish me into compliance, to see if I can indeed be made into a good wife. But if you really would refuse me he¡¯d just invite you to a new Ceremony of Partner Choice to pick another girl and that¡¯d be it for you. Girls can be replaced very easily. And I¡¯d get another bad rating, but since we¡¯ve only met through the glass there¡¯d be no real problem yet. That¡¯s why you need to do the courtship sabotage before the first actual meet-up. I¡¯d not yet be damaged goods, you know.¡¯
¡®You said that before. What do you mean with that last comment?¡¯ Michael stared at her, horrified.
¡®Oh, if you don¡¯t like your product and bring it back it¡¯s a used item, so it¡¯s lower quality from then on. You were quite right about that one earlier on with your speech about responsibility. They will investigate what happened on your dates and from the slightest distrust you¡¯ll get the label ¡®probably not a virgin anymore¡¯ on your file. Which means you¡¯ll automatically be a D at best even if you were an A before, and never top-10 again, and it¡¯s told to the boys when they ask for you at the ceremony so they can reconsider.¡¯
Michael couldn¡¯t believe his ears. ¡®That is heavily disturbing to say the least. And I certainly still stand by what I said about my responsibility for you then. Unless you don¡¯t want me that is. You always have as much right to end this as I do.¡¯
They looked at each other in an uneasy silence, until Michael looked at the paper again.
¡®Okay, and the next question is¡ What would you change.¡¯
¡®Change about what? About me? About the world?¡¯
¡®It doesn¡¯t specify. Just ¡°What would you change?¡±¡¯
¡®Oh, Life, the universe and everything then. And I wouldn¡¯t want to be a girl. Alas, I definitely wouldn¡¯t want to be a boy either. And I still like being a human, and being myself, but just not in this world. So it¡¯s complicated. And inconclusive even¡ And you?¡¯
¡®Everything about this place and more. Everything about this country. But not that I¡¯ve chosen you. You¡¯re much more fun than I imagined girls to be.¡¯
She smiled and sighed.
¡®And I¡¯m almost falling for your flirting now too. You¡¯re more than just hard to sabotage. Hmm, let¡¯s say that you¡¯re hard to process, but easy to get used to. Next question.¡¯
He smiled. ¡®What is the weirdest dream you ever had?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t ask, I never remember my dreams, and I wouldn¡¯t tell if I did, let¡¯s have some privacy too. We don¡¯t even know each other for too long, do we? Next?¡¯
¡®What do you want most in a husband?¡¯
¡®Phew, they have the audacity to have the boy ask that? Really? After all those years of telling me that it¡¯s only the wishes of the husband that count, and that we have to submit and comply and so on? Well, that he asks me questions like that and then listens and answers them too. And that he listens to my ¡°no¡± on other things too.¡¯
¡®I think I can do that. And I hope it can come from two sides too. And oh, wow, it gets better with the questions: What¡¯s your most feminine quality?¡¯
She looked annoyed. ¡®That I have a biologically female body. And a higher voice than you. And due to some cruel joke of either God or mother nature or probably both I¡¯m predestined to be attracted to male humans. Which is basically complete self-destructive madness.¡¯
¡®My condolences, my dear Lady Megan. I have the same problem from the other side. Maybe it¡¯s a sign we belong together.¡¯
They both started laughing.
¡®I think we¡¯re the worst couple ever, not?¡¯ He said.
¡®Maybe, but I¡¯m having fun and I think that at least the friendship part has a chance. But stop looking at that paper that I cannot touch, and go on.¡¯
¡®Ta-dah¡ How important is The Church for you?¡¯
She frowned. ¡®No comment. Really. You don¡¯t want to go there.¡¯
¡®So, you¡¯re one of them atheists?¡¯
¡®Oh no, I don¡¯t know. The Church just creeps me out. I have no problem with God, or with angels or whatever, but John Manfred was no Saint, and I just don¡¯t believe in any of their nonsense. And I don¡¯t think they do either. And in the good stuff they say they have they¡¯re usually pure hypocrites who don¡¯t practice what they preach. It¡¯s only part of the propaganda machine that keeps women enslaved and turns men into the worst possible version of themselves, and nothing else. If there are spiritual truths somewhere out there they surely won¡¯t be found in the Church.¡¯
¡®Cynical but fair I¡¯m afraid. And we¡¯re almost at the end. Oh, Oh, the next one: do you agree to comply to the church¡¯s teaching against premarital sex?¡¯
She held up her hand as a sign of surrender.
¡®You answer this one, mister man. The girl¡¯s opinion doesn¡¯t matter at all in the real world. You should be smart enough to know that.¡¯
Now it was his turn to blush.
¡®Ah¡ Well¡ I¡¯m not even sure on this time table that by the time they want us to marry I would actually be ready for anything like sex. And most things I hear and see about it are horrifying anyway, I mean the message of sex ed classes and porn and such. The whole ¡®you need a woman to please you¡¯ stuff. It¡¯s just not worth it. But there must be a way in which the word intimacy is not a lie, I¡¯ve read enough black market love stories from outside The Nation. And I¡¯m willing to find out how that works with my Wife. I am not really ready to think about that now though, I need to learn how to be around girls first, and that¡¯s probably going to take enough time already. And I probably need to unlearn a lot of stuff that I have been imprinted with too. All that porn nonsense isn¡¯t about real people, it¡¯s what you¡¯d do if you married a human wifebot with no will or soul and could be as selfish as possible without any consequences. But if I were in that position¡¡¯
She had been listening and nodding, and then started laughing with that last word, and then stopped when she saw his serious and shocked face.
¡®Oops, that wasn¡¯t meant as an innuendo¡ Wow, that was so improper of me after all that you were saying. But you get a strange kind of humour after too many please-your-husband lessons.¡¯
¡®Whatever. What I wanted to say is that if we are ever an actual couple, your opinion and mine are equal, especially on things like that, not? And whoever says no has always the veto vote. I don¡¯t want to do anything unwanted. I don¡¯t see how any person of honour could enjoy that. It¡¯s better to never have sex than to be predatory and entitled and then abuse your partner. And to be honest, I¡¯m so afraid of falling into that blind spot of Nation culture myself that it might be better to just stay away from it¡ Can a man ever be a real lover? I really wouldn¡¯t want to hurt you. You deserve better. So I¡¯d rather have a fake cover-up marriage and never even touch you than that. If you know what I mean.¡¯
She didn¡¯t answer, and he couldn¡¯t read her expression.
¡®Well, was that pleasing to you, Lady Megan?¡¯
She frowned a bit before she answered. ¡®Certainly, Sir Michael. It was a bit unexpected but a welcome surprise to hear this from a man. With a mentality like that you could actually be a good lover, I¡¯m sure of that. But I¡¯m not sure whether I would deserve such a thing.¡¯
She blushed, and paused again for a while. ¡®More questions, or is this it?¡¯
¡®We¡¯re nearing the end of the list and they¡¯re mostly quite silly from here on. All of this is silly anyway. And what¡¯s up with this stupid glass in between us? Is that really needed?¡¯
¡®Ah, they don¡¯t want boys to get too crazy on the first meeting. They can sift out the really bad apples that way. If he is really too disagreeable at the first meeting they can throw him out of so, and then abort the arrangement without having the girl losing their value or something like that. And I suppose that if I had a father who followed me and listened to me I could still object to him and he might stop it if he really didn¡¯t like the boy or had other objections. Which isn¡¯t the case as you know, but still. The father is still the owner until the girl marries so he has some say too.¡¯
He nodded and felt a bit nauseous.
She looked around. ¡®I don¡¯t think old Greystone will do something at all no matter what you do. You¡¯re the client, and a higher class man than he is at that, so you will get the girl no matter what, even if you choosing me was rather weird. He knows my father doesn¡¯t care. And sometimes I wonder if that guy is even human. There¡¯s actually a theory among the girls that he is a robot.¡¯
Michael looked at the man. ¡®No, too much wrinkles and stuff. No-one could do that so realistically in a robot. Or at least they don¡¯t try. But I see what you mean.¡¯
The official looked in their direction as if he woke from a dream, and seemed to notice that he had filled in most of the questions already, and then looked at his watch.
¡®Your time is up, mister Adams. A new date will be arranged for you both to meet, outside with a chaperon. Please find a way to end your conversation now,¡¯ Greystone said in his disinterested mechanical voice.
¡®See you next time, Megs. And greet little Lizzie from me.¡¯ He said cheerfully.
¡®We call her Eliza now, but I will. She¡¯ll never believe me when I tell her how the conversation went.¡¯ Michael looked at his papers.
¡®Oh, and before I forget, it might not be on these papers, but there¡¯s a question you need to answer too, for me personally: Is Michael Adams overall pleasing to you as a potential husband, Lady Anderson?¡¯
¡®Eh¡¯
The official interrupted him again before he could get an answer.
¡®Time¡¯s up lad. Time to leave. You¡¯ll see her soon again if you fill in the papers.¡¯
He left without getting an actual answer in words, but her smile told him enough. They certainly would be able to conspire against the system as friends, with or without marriage. And his future would be better with her in it.
8 About Fianc茅s, Wifebots and Stuff like that
¡®So, how was the first meeting with your fianc¨¦? How did Mike All do it?¡¯ Shirley asked.
The three of them were sitting on Eliza¡¯s bed again.
¡®Eh, strange. But fun in a weird way. You were right about rewriting the courses, Eliza. He¡¯s a very peculiar human, but nothing like what Miss Hunter teaches us about men.¡¯
¡®So was he flirty or dominant? They whisper that when they are flirty on the first meeting, they might end up being a decent husband.¡¯ Shirley asked, coming closer.
¡®Certainly not dominant or entitled. He was playing around, and sometimes he was completely inventing his conversation skills with the other sex on the spot it seems, which ended up a bit flirty sometimes. But that was mostly bluff and then he went for being brutally honest and open the rest of the time. And can a boy even be flirty in an intellectual way?¡¯
¡®Flirty in an intellectual way? I¡¯ve never heard of that, but he¡¯s a brainie after all, isn¡¯t he? Good for you. You¡¯ll have something in common¡¯
¡®That¡¯s clear. He uses a lot of black market book words and stuff like that. So much for our exercises in dumbing yourself down to not let a man feel stupid. You know, those stupid role-plays we had to do about that in class?¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, I remember,¡¯ Eliza said. ¡®In the end when Betty played the man you just started grunting and Miss Hunter got mad at you. I don¡¯t think Betty even got the joke.¡¯
¡®She didn¡¯t need to practice anyway. You know she¡¯s going to be the wife of that gorilla-dude?¡¯
¡®I think they deserve each other,¡¯ Megan said coldly.
¡®You think too much, young lady. Thinking too much might scare your potential husband away! Just be pretty and sexy and turn your brains off!¡¯ Eliza said in a near-perfect imitation of the voice of Miss Hunter and they all laughed.
¡®So, you are sure that he still wants you as a Wife after the first meeting?¡¯ Shirley asked.
Megan shook her head. ¡®Does he? He likes talking to me, clearly, and wants to be friends. But he still seems unsure about the whole Wife thing in general. So that¡¯s something we have in common. And he was talking about taking responsibility because if he would dump me now it would lessen my worth or something like that. So serious, and it was clear he actually cared. You¡¯d think I was already pregnant or so. Ever heard such a thing?¡¯
¡®Wow. I¡¯m impressed. Five-year-old me had a good taste in boys. That day probably was my peak moment with the other sex for the rest of my life. Mike All for the win! I¡¯ll probably never meet a better boy in a million years.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®He even talked about fake marriages or finding ways to free me if the whole marriage thing doesn¡¯t work. That¡¯s not a normal first-date conversation, is it?¡¯
¡®No.¡¯ Said Shirley. ¡®But it¡¯s a pity he¡¯s an exception to the rules. Maybe the intellectual stuff would be too much for me, but I¡¯d sell my left ovary for a man like that.¡¯
¡®Please keep the right ovary and make some sons with him then afterwards, because we need them in the human genepool.¡¯ Eliza said, but no-one reacted to her strange joke.
¡®So, what happens now?¡¯
¡®The next meeting is the actual first date, an outing with a chaperon in two weeks or so. You know how it works. And I need you to be that chaperon, Eliza.¡¯
Eliza looked at her friend, as if surprised.
¡®Me? Why?¡¯ She said with a childish innocent voice.
¡®Because I don¡¯t want someone stupid as a chaperon to ruin my next time with him, and also because he seems to like you too. He wanted me to greet little Lizzie. After all, you were his only girl friend he ever had in his life, even when it was only for one day when you were five. So for this world he¡¯s actually quite experienced in friendships with girls, more than other boys, thanks to you. And to be honest, I still feel you should be his wife, not me. Or his friend instead of me at least. You deserve him more than me.¡¯
Eliza shook her head. ¡®I¡¯m fine, I need no man in my life. Little Lizzie has grown into an independent woman you know. And I can¡¯t even keep a hamster alive anyway, let alone a man. They are not my kind of pet. But if he¡¯s indeed serious about that friendship stuff I might want in on the fun too. It would be welcome to have a contact in the male world, and practical too for a lot of reasons. Do you believe he actually meant it?¡¯
¡®He did. For all his playing around he was disarmingly honest at times, I don¡¯t believe a boy like him would be able to fake that. Not him, and certainly not in his first conversation with a girl. It¡¯s easy to see when he¡¯s bluffing or just messing around, even through that stupid glass. He also said he needs more time with girls before he is able to marry one. Girls in plural. Oh, is that indecent of him? He wondered about that himself. Wanting to hang out with girls as friends, I mean.¡¯
¡®I see his point. But I don¡¯t think it has to be. People just think it is for some stupid reason in this stupid country. What you, Shirley?¡¯
¡®Well, eh, he clearly is quite weird, but in a good way, and I haven¡¯t met him so what can I say? But friends sounds fine to me in his case. And I¡¯m not surprised by anything any more when it comes to him now. You can study all of Miss Hunter¡¯s books for a century and he would still be completely uncharted territory. So he certainly sounds like an interesting person to meet. Not as a marriage match for me I mean, just as a friendly person who also happens to be a boy.¡¯
¡®We¡¯ll be sure to make you chaperon for a later date then. But for that we¡¯ll need your burglar skills again, Eliza.¡¯ ¡®So I have to break into the bureau, find the meet-up forms for the second date, and change some papers so you and I can take your loverboy out for a walk in Seventh City? That will be fun. Finally a challenge after all those dumbing lessons here that make me lose brain cells every day. Consider it a done job. Every time you need it even. No mystery chaperons for my friends.¡¯
¡®Thanks Eliza, what would I be without you?¡¯
¡®Less distracted and less rebellious mostly, and certainly not number E-27 on the Ceremony of Partner Choice.¡¯ She grinned.
They sat on the bed for a while without saying much, each of them with their own thoughts.
¡®So, do you think there is a way to set a woman free as a man if you don¡¯t marry her? If you¡¯re Gamma-1 I mean?¡¯ Shirley asked suddenly.
¡®I don¡¯t know what that would mean, you need a man for almost everything in The Nation when you¡¯re a woman. A non-wife will by definition be poor and have a very bad life. I¡¯m not sure if even he could do something about that.¡¯ Megan said. ¡®Even that is better than being a sex-slave for a creep and playing a domestic robot 24-7, not?¡¯ Said Eliza.
¡®You shouldn¡¯t say that!¡¯ Shirley said, shocked.
¡®Do you disagree then?¡¯
Shirley thought for a while before she answered. ¡®No, I think, but you can¡¯t say it like that. It¡¯s wrong. Not out loud. You know what I mean. It¡¯s indecent.¡¯
¡®So do you say that it¡¯s possible that escaping to live as a non-Wife, or even as a squatter in the ruins of a Ghost Town, is still better than becoming a Wife in those cases?¡¯ Megan asked Shirley.
¡®Probably, but you shouldn¡¯t think like that. It¡¯s disrespectful. Men need to get their respect!¡¯ Shirley said, with a bit of the voice of Miss Hunter in hers.
¡®What about respect for us? Respect for Megan, Eliza and Shirley? Why all this babble about respect for men as if it¡¯s the most important thing in the world if no-one will ever have respect for us.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re right. It¡¯s just hard to undo the endless conditioning.¡¯ Shirley said, using words that Eliza had taught recently from an old book on cultural brainwashing.
¡®But we could do with some more respect for us indeed. Maybe we need to get back to the Housewife-o-matic Wifebot 2.0¡¯
¡®The one that could be programmed to rehabilitate men who were aggressive to women, and that would electrocute him when he did something improper to them?¡¯ Megan asked, interested now, and Eliza got excited.
¡®Yes, that¡¯s the one she means, the mother of all wifebots and the holy grail of older technologies, I showed one of those babies in my robotics book to Shirley a few weeks ago. They were made before the Magnificent Revolution, and they even should still have radio and wireless internet receptors hidden inside of them, if you find an intact one. Most people say all of them have vanished long ago, but you know how it is living on a planet with depleted resources where everything technological gets reused over and over again¡ It¡¯s always possible that some of them are still in use as wifebots for men who are unmarriable. Although that is without the rehabilitation program on active, alas. No-one cares about that any more. The idea was that the unmarriable man had to live with the robot as a wife until he learnt to be a perfect gentleman, and only then he got the right to meet real women again. But that was before The Nation, in the times of seventh wave feminism. Things were different then. Why doesn¡¯t anyone care about women anymore?¡¯
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
¡®That¡¯s an interesting history lesson and all, but how could an oldschool wifebot help any of us escape the whole Wife School thing?¡¯ Megan asked.
¡®Well, if one of us is taken for a wife by such a bonehead baboon, the kind that doesn¡¯t listen to any rules and just takes you home after the second meeting for whatever, and we replace her with a wifebot at the second meeting and reprogram it to electrocute him for any improper touch. That will teach him.¡¯ Megan grinned.
¡®A genius idea, with only 2 minor problems: first of all smuggling a complete robowife in here is near impossible, even if you¡¯d manage to find one. It¡¯s not as small as a black market book or a bottle of men¡¯s beer. And second, no-one will mistake one of those for you or Shirley.¡¯
¡®I know people who can re-do a robot, with a 3D-print device and all.¡¯ Eliza said as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
¡®And the bonehead baboon will only have seen her twice anyway, with the closest encounter being behind that prison glass, remember. And the first time he¡¯s only focused on those bikinis and what¡¯s underneath it. He won¡¯t even see what colour your eyes are. Hmm, would there still be coloured lenses for wifebots available somewhere? They used to exist in the past.¡¯
¡®You should be writing fiction, Eliza.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Maybe I¡¯d read more fiction if there were books out there like that¡¡¯
¡®Speaking of books, what do you think I¡¯d get for a copy of the first date questionnaire by the way?¡¯
¡®Legendary status at least for solving an ancient Wife School mystery and ending years of speculation, and maybe it¡¯ll acquire you a pile of hard-to-get books too. Did he actually do the questions then?¡¯
¡®Some of them, he found the whole thing silly, and not without a reason. What¡¯s your most feminine quality? What do you think of the Church? What¡¯s your favourite colour? He passed the reverse questionnaire test by the way, he answered every time I asked the question back at him. It¡¯s a silly list of questions that seems to be written in another world. But if he doesn¡¯t forget it we might be able to get it on the first date even.¡¯
¡®And so another old tradition dies with loverboy. No more nightly discussions about what questions are on that cursed questionnaire that only few boys even use.¡¯ Shirley said.
A knock on the door announced a visitor. When they opened the door of the dorm they saw official Greystone, having one more paper in his hand.
¡®Young lady Megan, you need to fill in some papers about your second meeting with your young man.¡¯ Megan bowed, and took the paper with a theatrical gesture. ¡®Thank you, highly esteemed sir Greystone.¡¯
He didn¡¯t show any emotion, but the two other girls could hardly stop their giggling.
¡®I need these papers before I can arrange the next date with your Husband-to-be, so make sure that you fill them in correctly. You wouldn¡¯t want to displease your Husband, would you, Miss Megan?¡¯
¡®No, you¡¯re right, I wouldn¡¯t, my dear sir.¡¯ She said subserviently, but Greystone didn¡¯t even seem to notice, and disappeared as quickly as he had come.
¡®What on Earth was that?¡¯ Shirley asked.
¡®Ah, I think I must have picked that up from Michael. He seems to be rather confused about how to be polite to me, and so he uses a lot of black market book honorifics mixed with being extremely casual. He actually went from calling me Megs to calling me dear Lady Megan the next minute. It¡¯s rather funny and it makes it impossible to imagine him being a man as described by Miss Hunter at all. Young Lady Megan is definitely something he would say, but from him it would be more playful than when old Greystone does it. If there¡¯s no natural way to speak to the other sex we¡¯ll have to find new ways. And why not practice on Greystone? He¡¯s one of the males around here that will talk to us, and that can be communicated with in some form at least. He¡¯s mostly harmless and as dense as neutron star matter.¡¯
¡®Mostly harmless? I¡¯ve never heard anyone use that descriptor for old Greystone. He¡¯s boring as a fossilised turd and devoid of any human happiness or other emotions.¡¯
¡®True, but apart from being a grumpy coprolite he¡¯s also a male that doesn¡¯t abuse women. At least give him that. Remember Rogers who was here before him?¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, my first triumph with paperwork.¡¯ Eliza recalled.
¡®He got promoted indefinitely to an office job in the tower away from all girls and women, hah! That was a very good move, Eliza. The C-floor got much safer after that.¡¯
¡®Oh, that was before they kicked us out there and we had to come here on the E-floor¡ Anyway, I would¡¯ve moved him to the inside of the main incinerator of the trash plant at 10.000 degrees after what he did with Gemma, but alas, couldn¡¯t do that. There¡¯s no standard form for such things.¡¯
¡®You managed to even have his pay halved and to have him wait for his pension age with ten extra years. And no-one even questioned it except for Rogers himself.¡¯
¡®Ah, but he was such a creep that he had no friends who cared. And all these silly people trust a system running on autopilot that has fallen apart long ago already, and that is way too easy to manipulate.¡¯
¡®Eh, you¡¯re the only one who has ever done that, Eliza.¡¯
¡®Wrong. But that¡¯s a secret. You have a point though, Megan. And I probably should look for a few apprentices to share my craft with before I¡¯m gone here forever.¡¯
¡®That wasn¡¯t¡ Nevermind. You do you and be Eliza¡ That¡¯s why I love you.¡¯ Megan said. She had the best friends in the world after all, for as long as it would last. Most Wife School friendships ended when a girl married anyway.
*
The next morning Michael was eating his breakfast when his mother suddenly stood in front of him.
¡®Michael, can I please talk to you?¡¯ She was visibly nervous as she interrupted him while eating his wheat flakes. He saw that she was wearing an apron for doing work in the house, but was also perfectly made up like a beauty contestant even now when her husband had already left the house.
¡®Yes, Mom, you can always talk to me but you never do, and you shut me down when I say more than 2 sentences. So what''s up?¡¯
¡®Your father asked me to tell you that your brother will be visiting us, three weeks from now on Saturday. We''ve invited them now that you are becoming more of a man, with your new rating and all. He might be able to give you some advice on the new phase your life has entered, as one man to another. So see that you are present. Otherwise Sam will be here for nothing.¡¯ Michael looked at her, trying to understand what she meant.
¡®Ah, you want me to talk to him from man to man about getting a wife?¡¯
¡®That was your dad''s idea I think, yes.¡¯
¡®So why doesn¡¯t he say that himself?¡¯
Her mother hesitated. ¡®He asked me because he says he can¡¯t speak to you any more since you got that Gamma-1 rating. You¡¯re getting all kinds of weird ideas and he doesn¡¯t know how to react to them.¡¯
¡®He just yells at me, you mean? Because he considers my choices unmanly. And he can¡¯t yell me into submission any more now that I¡¯m a legal adult with a level one rating, so he has no way to make me do and think what he wants as he is used to. So that¡¯s a complete impasse that we won¡¯t get out of if he doesn¡¯t want to give in, and I won¡¯t either.¡¯
¡®Michael, listen to him. He¡¯s your father. I know he can¡¯t force you now that you¡¯re a Gamma-1, but I ask you¡¡¯
¡®You ask me, not him¡ Which is beyond unusual, as we both know very well. He sent you, who hasn¡¯t talked to me since I was twelve to talk to me because he can¡¯t. And now he¡¯s inviting Sam whom we haven¡¯t seen since his wedding. He must be pretty desperate.¡¯
¡®Your behaviour lately has been weird, and unmanly, and you¡¯re doing the strangest things, try to look at it from his perspective.¡¯
¡®I can¡¯t. And I will never be what The Nation calls a Real Man. It¡¯s toxic and dehumanising and it¡¯s also the opposite of the kind of person that I am. There must be other ways to be a man. Or just to be a decent person and forget about all that men and woman nonsense.¡¯
¡®Did you really say that to him too? I can understand why he¡¯s so mad.¡¯
His mother sat down on the chair next to him and poured herself another Nation-coffee.
¡®By the way, you said you invited them, in plural, does that mean Sam is bringing Natasha too?¡¯
¡®They will both be here, yes,¡¯ his mother said, with alarm in her eyes.
¡®So I can ask her too about what girls want when they are in Wife School, and how to become a better match for Megan?¡¯
She looked at him, shocked. ¡®What? How?¡¯
¡®I am supposed to get married to a woman, so it''s important that I learn how to talk to women. I can use every practice there is. It''s not like I meet much girls in this stupid Nation with two separate universes.¡¯
¡®I understand what your father meant. You¡¯re more indecent than I thought. No, you can''t do that. You can''t just talk to your brother''s Wife. That would be wrong. She''s not your mother or your kid sister, nor your fianc¨¦e. Where do you even get those ideas?¡¯
¡®I don''t see why it''s indecent to talk to my sister-in-law. Or to any woman at all. It¡¯s not that I¡¯m sleeping around with them or assaulting them or something like that. It¡¯s just a conversation from human to human.¡¯
''Michael, you can''t be serious. How are you ever going to be a decent husband if you want to talk with every woman you see.¡¯ ¡®Oh, I don''t think Megan would mind me learning how to talk to women. She was glad when Lizzie did the talking for her on the ceremony night I think.¡¯
''Lizzie? Who might that be.¡¯
¡®Another Wife School girl, nevermind.¡¯
¡®Michael, I worry about you and your new interest in girls. It''s not right. You''re not supposed to talk to them. You''re not supposed to befriend them. That can only be indecent and lead to serious problems.¡¯
¡®All I have to do is fantasise about pictures of them in dirty magazines now, and later treat them as some sort of human wifebot and never actually connect to them? Is that what it is? If that¡¯s the case just count me out of the whole marriage business, sorry. No interest¡ If I have to have a wife I need to be a good husband, human partners, love relationships, stuff like that, what''s wrong with that? You know I was so very nervous for that first meeting with her, and then that weird visitation room with the table and the glass and all didn''t make it better either. And then when I just started talking it clicked and it just worked somehow. it was much easier talking to her than to a lot of boys I knew.''
His mother looked up from her coffee, with a completely different look in her eyes. ''They still have the visitation table with the glass? That brings back memories.''
''Yes, and the whole list of questions too, that is so stupid that it only can be used as a bonding exercise if you both make fun of it.''
''You two actually did the list together? No-one does that.''
''We did some of it. She even asked some questions back, but mostly we were astonished by the whole thing. In that way it was a good conversation starter, yes. It was fun even.''
He looked at the clock.
¡®It¡¯s time for me to take my bag and be verbally abused by Instructor Jack for our daily be-a-man session, can¡¯t miss my schoolbus. Thanks for talking to me again, Mom. I hope we can talk more, and not just about all our disagreements.¡¯
He took his stuff and disappeared, leaving his mother alone with her coffee and an internal clash of worlds. She didn¡¯t really understand her youngest son, but the experience her future daughter-in-law was going through would certainly be radically different from hers, or even Natasha¡¯s.
9 Two Different Sides of One Schoolday
¡®It is very important that you always put your husband¡¯s needs first.¡¯ Miss Hunter said with an authoritative voice that left no place for disagreement. ¡®It is part of the feminine nature to submit to the male.¡¯
She looked in the direction of the corner, where a weird laughing sound had erupted. ¡®What¡¯s so funny, Eliza. Share it with all of us, please.¡¯
¡®Nothing, Miss Hunter.¡¯ She said, still giggling.
¡®You know that your disrespectful attitude will turn away any man. And that without a husband you¡¯ll be nothing in this world, Eliza.¡¯
¡®Yeah, whatever¡¡¯ Eliza mumbled, unheard by her teacher.
Miss Hunter turned back to the class.
¡®It is always important to leave any initiative to the man. Women must respond, and can never initiate themselves. That would not just be wrong, but also unnatural. And it would hurt your man.¡¯
¡®¡and his fragile ego¡¡¯ they all heard Eliza say on a very audible volume, but she went on.
¡®He will feel smothered, and it will be a turn-off if you start the conversation, or if you bombard him with your own problems. He should be left alone to his own affairs, which are by definition more important than yours because he is the man. If something is important he will make it clear to you and you will follow him. And you should never contradict him. There are more subtle ways to make a man do what you want anyway.¡¯
¡®¡not only a fragile ego, but the only way to handle them is faking submission and then manipulating them¡¡¯
¡®Eliza, that was the last time or you¡¯ll leave this class!¡¯
¡®That would be my pleasure, Miss Hunter.¡¯
¡®You will become the most abominable Wife in the history of femininity, Eliza, if you don¡¯t change your rebellious ways.¡¯
¡®That would be my pleasure, Miss Hunter.¡¯ She repeated stubbornly.
Miss Hunter chose to ignore her again, and went back to her course. ¡®So, Anne, tell me, why is it important to always let the man take the initiative?¡¯
Anne, a blond girl that had been messing with her make-up instead of following the lesson, stared at her teacher with blank eyes while hiding a tiny mirror, and finally stuttered ¡®Eh, because of their fragile egos and because the only way to handle them is faking submission and then manipulating them?¡¯
The whole class erupted in laughter, except for Miss Hunter herself, who looked more furiously than ever at the source of this new teaching. ¡®No, Anne, No! It is part of the feminine nature to submit. We just do that naturally. Except for abominations like Eliza, who will need to be tamed by their husband.¡¯
¡®Only a half-baked swine with less braincells than testicles would ever want such an arrangement like having a sex-slave as a wife.¡¯ Eliza said, very audible again, and the whole class erupted in laughter again.
¡®Eliza, that¡¯s enough. You leave the classroom now.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m sorry miss Hunter, I was only quoting a certain man that I know.¡¯
¡®You don¡¯t know any men, Eliza, that¡¯s why you need to learn about them here. And now leave the class!¡¯
Eliza winked at Megan, collected her papers in her rucksack, and walked out of the class. Megan knew she was going to spend her time now with black market books that were much more interesting than the please-your-husband lessons, and was almost jealous that her friend could leave while she had to endure one more hour of this nonsense.
¡®So, where were we? It is part of the feminine nature to submit, and to obey your man, and to always wait until he initiates things. That is the most important lesson I have to teach you. And one of the most important things you¡¯ll need to know in your life!¡¯
Megan heard the door close with a slam, and had to admit that Eliza had been right in her scepticism. The one man their age that they both knew contradicted everything they had heard in class today just by existing, and would certainly not be pleased at all by faking submission while actually manipulating him. He was just trying to have some kind of open friendship based on open communication, apart from when being playful. Or was it only another way of being flirty? She didn¡¯t know yet. But something told her she could trust him more than Miss Hunter and all her theories, even if they were the orthodox way of thinking about men in The Nation. At least for women that was, no-one in this stupid school actually knew anything about men with all that segregation going on.
*
¡®I pledge my life to The Nation of this flag and to its Glorious Constitution, which gives Freedom and Liberty to all men. May God bless The Nation and crush all of our Enemies!¡¯
Yet one more school day, and one more exhausting session of dumb drill exercises. Michael wasn¡¯t really feeling it today, but Instructor Jack seemed quite worked-up and had no mercy for the brainies. But after thirty minutes of bodily torture and dumb verbal abuse it was over, and he could go on with the day, which started in the history class.
¡®Today, boys, we will talk about the Magnificent Revolution that made our great Nation into what it is today.¡¯
Mr. Woods seemed rather enthusiastic, but Michael didn¡¯t share that enthusiasm. He wasn¡¯t really interested in more of the same propaganda and one-sided pseudo-history yet one again. He had heard it all before, and his mind just didn¡¯t want it anymore. There never was something new or interesting in these kinds of lessons. He thought of the world before The Nation, and that dark time when those supposed evil feminist ruled and men were oppressed, and when everything was chaos and disorder. Marriages didn¡¯t last and all kinds of indecent behaviour were normalised. It was then that the Real Men had come to the foreground, and fought all the oppression and chaos, defeated the evil feminists, and installed the rule of the Central Computer who would reign the country in emotionless calculated wisdom in a way that humans, even men, could not do.
At least that had been the story as he had heard it countless times before in his life. But had the world before The Nation really been so bad? And what parts of the story were left out? It sounded like a badly written children¡¯s story rather than like an actual historical report.
Suddenly he noticed that everyone was looking at him.
¡®I asked, why did the Real Men institute the Wife Schools, Mr. Adams.¡¯
He hadn¡¯t noticed that the teacher had been talking to him, but he improvised an answer on the spot. ¡®Because of the chaos of the old days, where women could choose their partner, but also often chose to dump him and play with them. Only attractive and rich men had any chance of finding a marriage partner in those days, and the Real Men fought bravely to make a happy marriage possible for every man.¡¯ He blurted out.
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¡®Very good save, Mister Adams, but I would try to keep the daydreaming under control next time.¡¯ ¡®Yes, Mister Woods!¡¯ He said, standing up and saluting. Even on autopilot he could produce the core myths of The Nation, even when he didn¡¯t even necessarily believe them. Even he was a thoroughly programmed Citizen at times.
But following the same story again really didn¡¯t work for his brains anymore. Instead of listening to Mr. Woods he thought about what he had just said. Was it really true that when women can choose their partner that they will only choose the extremely attractive or rich men? It made no sense to him. He¡¯d have to ask the girls next time what they thought of that. If other women had an inner Megan and Eliza they would be more interested in friendship, and a man who treated them with respect and stuff like that. Or was he being naive again? Or maybe he was the extreme exception, and Megan and Eliza too? And even then he would like to live in a world where he and his new girl friends could live, and not one that one seemed tailored especially for some kind of mythical Real Men and completely brainwashed Wives.
He tuned back in to the classroom. ¡®And for homework you have to read your textbook on the Magnificent Revolution.¡¯ Mr. Woods said. That meant that the class was over. He took his books and walked off to the cafeteria for a coffee. It was an unhealthy adult habit, he knew that, but copying unhealthy patterns from the adults you see is how young people learn when growing up, and there were worse things he had seen from his parents than them slowly becoming more and more caffeine dependent. The Nation-Coke he¡¯d been drinking from a very young age on was as full of caffeine as coffee anyway, and equally chemical. They said that in the old days real plants were used for coffee, but all he had ever known was this chemical stuff. He didn¡¯t know whether it was because the original coffee plant was extinct or because they used to buy it from other countries that were now out of reach in this post-fuel world where The Nation didn¡¯t have any contact with other countries anymore, but coffee beans were more a myth than anything else at this point of history.
He took a synthetic coffee from the machine, and started articulating his doubts about the history lessons to Henry next to him, who wasn¡¯t impressed.
¡®Why wouldn¡¯t you believe the history books? Isn¡¯t it clear that we¡¯ve been saved from very bad situations in the time when women ruled?¡¯ His classmate asked.
¡®I¡¯m not sure. It all sounds so fabricated and one-sided. I can¡¯t believe it anymore. Where is the female side? If marriage is so important for our happiness and for the future of The Nation, and blah blah, then why don¡¯t we listen to women, and let them have their say too. A marriage consists of two human beings.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ve heard it. When women ruled, there was chaos, and men couldn¡¯t have good marriages, and they couldn¡¯t have sex because women only wanted rich and extremely pretty men¡ Not enough babies were born and everyone was lonely. And now even the Epsilons can get a Wife, thanks to the Wife Schools.¡¯
¡®Ah, come on. That¡¯s all nonsense propaganda. No better arguments? How exactly are forced marriages ever happy relationships? Why would I want a slave for a partner that is afraid of even contradicting me, and that¡¯s programmed to always obey me. How is that even a relationship? Isn¡¯t that utterly fake, and as lonely as hell?¡¯
¡®You¡¯re thinking too much man, even for a brainie. And you shouldn¡¯t worry about those things. You¡¯re getting a wife anyway, lucky boy! She¡¯ll make you happy and that¡¯s how the Magnificent Revolution made it better for all of us.¡¯
The complicated reality of Megan as a real person and the words of his friend couldn¡¯t be further apart, but he lacked the words to even say how in this Nation of distances. ¡®I cannot be happy with someone if I cannot make her happy. Don¡¯t you see it¡¯s a scam? This whole segregation thing is just making life impossible¡¯
¡®What are you even talking about? Are you turning into a feminist?¡¯
¡®Think for yourself, man, think for a second. We never get to talk to women, and we get all kinds of weird stories about them. On the other side of the divide it¡¯s probably exactly the same kind of mythmaking and misunderstandings. They get all kinds of how-to-satisfy-your-husband lessons from a strange creature called Miss Hunter and utter nonsense about men always being right and having to be respected for everything. It¡¯s all a big pile of rot. Even my own mother treats me as some kind of demigod that should be served in everything now that I¡¯m technically an adult. It¡¯s all so screwed-up and it makes it worse for everyone.¡¯
¡®But that is how it should be. It¡¯s what¡¯s best for everyone. And they want it too. Why would you want otherwise?¡¯
¡®But it is wrong! We¡¯re all just brainwashed into worse versions of ourselves than we should be. My poor mother who is afraid of her own son, my little sister, who I haven¡¯t seen since she¡¯s twelve because she¡¯s in pre-Wife School and it¡¯s indecent to talk to girls anyway. My wife-to-be and her friend that are locked-up in that rotten Wife School where they have to parade in bikinis for a bunch of horny baboon boys to choose them. It¡¯s all so wrong, and no-one wants to see how degenerate it is. Everyone has the shortest end of the stick here.¡¯
¡®But would you want chaos then, and no chance for a Gamma like us to ever get a wife?¡¯ Henry was clearly confused.
¡®To hell with all that Wife nonsense. I know that in a normal world me and Megan and Eliza would have been friends anyway if we had a chance to meet. And in this world that doesn¡¯t even seem an option. How can one even think of romance before you even know each other as friends?¡¯
¡®Friends? What are you even talking about? Why would you want to be friends with a woman? That¡¯s not possible. What have you been smoking, dude? Boys and girls cannot be friends. Men and women have nothing in common. That¡¯s why we need the Wife Schools to train them for us! Otherwise there would be chaos, and women would just be using us and rejecting us all the time, especially Gamma brainies.¡¯
Michael looked at the clock and drank the rest of his coffee ¡®I give up. Come, let¡¯s go to math class.¡¯
The rest of the day was spent with imaginary numbers, which was a safe subject that didn¡¯t trigger any deep negative feelings or revolutionary tendencies, although there were moments when he had a sudden feeling that Megan or Eliza probably would have liked to follow the class with interest, while most of the boys were completely disinterested and would opt out of stuff like this if they could. He made a mental note to pass on the math book to them when the module would be over.
*
¡®It¡¯s that day again, Eliza.¡¯ Shirley said when the classes were over.
¡®Oh, shit, was that today? Oh, we should ask Megan¡¡¯
¡®Megan is taken, Eliza. She won¡¯t be joining us at the Ceremony of partner choice ever again unless something very weird happens. She has a ring on her finger, and a husband lined up. Remember Michael-dude?¡¯
¡®I had so many things on my mind that I totally forgot about the ceremony, and I hadn¡¯t even realised that Megan won¡¯t be with us there anymore. Damn that stupid loverboy! It¡¯ll be even lonelier now for us. But hey, I¡¯m still in last place, E-27 today. Only a mad boy would choose me anyway. But I hate to stand there as a product in a shop window and parade like that. I wish there would be some loophole to wear something more dignifying.¡¯
¡®They need to see what they want to see to be able to pick a partner.¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®They need to see me in a way that I am comfortable to present myself, and if they don¡¯t like it they can put their eyeballs in a blender. It¡¯s just not right how we are treated as E-girls. At least the other floors have some kind of outfit choice for their ceremonies.¡¯
¡®We¡¯re just not important enough, or rather, the men who choose us aren¡¯t.¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®True, it¡¯s not as if we even matter. We¡¯re almost worthless goods, and our buyers are not important clients. No-one will ever invest in us. No-one cares for low-graded men, let alone for the unimportant creatures that are going to be their wifeslaves.¡¯
¡®That boy of Megan seems to care.¡¯
¡®Mike All? I¡¯m sure he does. And he¡¯s going to be useful for certain in different ways. But in the end, what can one boy do in an unjust world? Even if he¡¯s a Gamma-1? What could one traitor in the war of the sexes accomplish? The war continues, and he might fall victim to it himself in the end¡ Sex traitors won¡¯t survive long in the male hierarchy.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t be so negative again. He can do a lot if he¡¯s indeed what she says. He can give one woman a decent marriage for example? I¡¯m very happy for Megan. Aren¡¯t you at least a bit jealous that Megan was chosen by him?¡¯
¡®What on Earth should I do with a Husband? No, being friends is more than enough, and it might be the real revolution. Stepping outside of the idea that the only thing men and women can have is marriage. That would be the best answer to the war of the sexes, and could destroy the whole thing from within.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re being revolutionary again, Eliza, but I¡¯m starting to feel it too,¡¯ Shirley said.
10 Better off as a Robot than as a Human?
¡®Sometimes it would be easier to be a robot. Much easier.¡¯ Robert said.
¡®You mean rare, valuable, and probably a leftover from a better time?¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®No, I mean that it¡¯s just too complicated to be a human.¡¯ Robert said.
He and Henry had joined Michael for lunch again after half a day of studying robotics.
¡®Man, you would miss out on all the good stuff.¡¯ Henry replied.
¡®They have no pain, they have no disease, they have no stupid hormones and bodily problems.¡¯
¡®No fun at all. No sex, no drugs, no rock ¡¯n roll.¡¯
¡®What is rock ¡¯n roll even supposed to be?¡¯ Michael interrupted curiously.
¡®I have no clue, it¡¯s just an expression. It doesn¡¯t mean a thing at all. But for the sake of John Manfred, you¡¯re ruining my argument, Michael. Anyway, like I was saying, if you were a robot there would be no fun for you at all.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t see any fun, Rob, it¡¯s all just a complicated mess in which people hurt each other and get hurt and are dangerous to each other. Real Men are just a bunch of apes fighting to be the top ape, and we are punished all the time for not having that kind of ambition. And aren¡¯t you afraid of women and what they want? And how they will manipulate you and make your life miserable from the moment you¡¯re married. And it¡¯s not done to ever divorce, a Real Man wouldn¡¯t do that. So you¡¯re stuck forever with one of those harpies.¡¯
¡®Afraid? Why would I be afraid? Get a good Wife School Wife, and they are trained to do whatever you want them to do. They will just do whatever you say. The perfect marriage, thanks to the Greatest Nation ever.¡¯
¡®You believe that they will do everything you say? You believe that they can be trained? They have no reason to even like us at all. They are human like us, and some of them are even quite smart, no matter what the Wife Schools do with them. And they will have their revenge. The war of the sexes is unavoidable, and it¡¯s naive to think men are the one who are always winning.¡¯ Robert looked rather darkly at his coffee.
¡®Come on, Michael, say something, you¡¯re the man with experience here.¡¯ Robert said, but Michael was very reluctant to join the conversation.
¡®I don¡¯t have much experience at all. I¡¯m just starting to figure things out. And I disagree with both of you, there must be a way beyond male or female domination, a way to bypass that cursed war of the sexes even. And I¡¯m going to do everything I can with Megan to find that way.¡¯
Henry looked at him, suspiciously. ¡®You¡¯re not right in your mind. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re in love, man. Keep your feet on the ground. Don¡¯t let them females fool you. In the end it¡¯s you or them, and you¡¯re a class one male. You can¡¯t let any such thing happen. You are the one who should win this, and not that little Megan chick.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t want any of us both to lose, I want us to be a team and win together, if we are indeed supposed to be together. A team against the madness of this whole crazy destructive culture that destroys both sexes and turns them against each other. And if marriage won¡¯t work because it¡¯s too broken in this world at least I want to be friends with her. It¡¯s my duty. I¡¯ve chosen her, I can¡¯t just dump her now, a Wife choice is a responsibility for life.¡¯
¡®What nonsense are you babbling. Boys and girls can¡¯t be friends, wake up man! She¡¯s manipulating you already. You have no spine. You¡¯ll get used. Man, you¡¯re so naive.¡¯
Henry seemed quite concerned now, and Robert seemed to get convinced too.
¡®He¡¯s probably right, Michael, you shouldn¡¯t trust her. Or that other chick, whatever her name is. They are the other side. They are women, and more dangerous than most men realise. They will only manipulate and use you and then leave you when you¡¯re completely sucked-out. You¡¯re being played. I would say stay away from her, and from all women whenever you can.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a wimp, Robert, and you know it¡¯s impossible to stay away from them. A Real Man doesn¡¯t run away from women, he tames them.¡¯ Henry said.
¡®You both aren¡¯t helping at all.¡¯ Michael said.
He took his stuff and walked away to get some air outside. Still what his friends had said sounded very logical. It all made sense and fitted in everything he had heard every day of his life. He would have seen it like that too if someone had told him his own story as if he was a stranger, but it just wasn¡¯t true. It had never been true. There was a different way. He thought of little Eliza and him, playing in the sand innocently. He thought of the honest ¡®Help me¡¯ in Megan¡¯s eyes. And then he thought of the fighting Epsilon boys and sighed. The whole system worked like a self-fulfilling prophecy for most people. Would he and the girls be able to make their ideas come true too? Only the future would tell. And the future was coming soon, it was only 3 days before he would have his first date with Megan outside of the Wife factory.
*
The Bi-Weekly Ceremony of Partner Choice was over again. Eliza fell on her bed, dressed in nothing but her show-bikini, exhausted and angry at the Universe, God and humanity. She was sweaty from the spotlights, and felt very dirty, as she always did after the ceremony. It was only her stubborn pride that kept her from crying now. Megan looked up from her bureau. It had been the first ceremony without her as a potential bride, and she hadn¡¯t felt like being present as a spectator either, so she had been hiding in the dorm. The whole evening she had been distracting herself with her history book, but since Eliza could be the bringer of important news she put her book away.
¡®And?¡¯ She asked for the verdict.
¡®Shirley and I are still single.¡¯ Eliza said, reluctantly.
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¡®How many were there? Who was taken?¡¯ Megan asked.
It felt strange to be freed from the whole stress of possibly being chosen.
¡®Eight boys, mostly Epsilons. Nothing interesting at first sight. And eh, Mary, Patricia, Jennifer, Barbara, Susan Smith, the other Susan too, and Melanie are now all a Wife-to-be. Congratulations to them. Marital felicity will be their fate!¡¯
¡®That¡¯s only seven of them.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, and Jessica too.¡¯
¡®So, the two Susans at once? And again it¡¯s more or less the first 10 girls if I remember the current numbers well. They are all so predictable, those young men of the Nation.¡¯
¡®Yup, just gotta keep my grade low and I can stay here forever. Heaven on Earth.¡¯
¡®You wouldn¡¯t want that, for sure. Loneliness is no fun either. And you can¡¯t marry out of Wife School if you¡¯re over 25, so you¡¯ll have to leave then anyway.¡¯ Shirley said, coming in too. She was dressed in just an oversized sweater over her bikini.
¡®Everything better than becoming a Wife. Well, except for being an affair or a prostitute then, that would be even worse. But well, all the things that involve men are what we have to avoid as a woman to become happy. And sadly you¡¯re right, this is the place where men choose you. Gotta get out of here too before some other weirdo like Loverboy has the idea of taking the lowest number.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re strange, Eliza. You know a woman needs a man to take care for her. That¡¯s how the world goes. And I don¡¯t think your really want to be a non-wife. They have a miserable life, and there¡¯s much they can¡¯t do.¡¯
¡®Ah, then I have to aim even lower. Non-citizen then? Join a female squat community? Maybe they have a place in the Ghost Town for me. Will the men leave me alone then? As far as I know men are forbidden to even enter the Ghost Town.¡¯
¡®You wouldn¡¯t dare. They are dangerous rebels. They listen to no law and do whatever they want. And they never have any contact with men.¡¯
¡®Ah, but that¡¯s the real life¡ You need to work on your sales pitch, Lyn! Living in a squat castle away from all the madness of society¡ Perfect way to spend your time. Much better than being the slave of a man-swine.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t be serious.¡¯ Shirley was shocked now, but Megan didn¡¯t seem impressed.
¡®Say something, Megan. Before we lose Eliza to the outlaws before she¡¯ll get a man.¡¯ Megan shrugged.
¡®She doesn¡¯t look lost to me. And she¡¯s been in contact with them for years. With non-citizens in the squatted abandoned villages even I think. I bet she even knows her way in the Ghost Town by now if she knows what rules they have in their community. If she¡¯d wanted to join them now she¡¯d have done so.¡¯
Shirley turned to Eliza, even more in shock. ¡®You have been what?¡¯
¡®Oh, nothing. Some black market trading, and I¡¯ve been helping them with some robot stuff. It wasn¡¯t even that hard to get out when I had changed some paperwork. It¡¯s a pity that espionage isn¡¯t a good career choice here inside of the old SCWS. Or in the Nation as a whole. It would be a fun job.¡¯
¡®But, but, if you don¡¯t want a man, and you can escape every moment, why are you still here?¡¯ Shirley was baffled.
¡®Why not? I have my friends here who need me, they feed me here, I don¡¯t have to work and I can study whatever I want. And they have a contact in the finest Wife School of Seventh City in me. Plus, if things work out with Loverboy on the friendship level like you seem to believe will happen I might have a contact in a reasonable corner of the boy world too. I¡¯m the most perfect hub between worlds here. What else would I want? Living in an abandoned building in the Ghost Town where all electricity comes from a generator? And why would I be living in a hidden female-only order just when my childhood boy friend turns out to be a very useful contact, and maybe an actual friend too. Maybe I¡¯m opening up to the idea of having a boy in my life even. But that still doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll be waiting to get a husband.¡¯
¡®You really are the weirdest girl in this whole building, Eliza.¡¯
¡®Now that¡¯s a compliment, Shirley. But I think I still need a shower now. To wash away those ugly stares and condemning looks of contempt for the mere number I was holding. Strange how they still manage to mix in predatory desire with that.¡¯
She jumped from her bed, grabbed her sleeping clothes, and disappeared to the bathroom quarters.
¡®Just wow.¡¯ Shirley said after a silence. ¡®And you knew all of it?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t pretend to know everything about Eliza, but I know she is in contact with all kinds of people through the black market, including the Ghost Town squatters, yes. And I know she has been doing some kind of robotics job for non-citizens there recently. She¡¯s the only girl here that I don¡¯t worry about getting married to an abusive creep of a husband to be honest. She¡¯ll be able to find her way whenever she needs it, but apart from that I fear for all of us, honestly. Maybe except for myself now, but I¡¯m not used to that idea. It didn¡¯t sink in yet.¡¯
¡®But most men are decent deep down. You just have to be servile and give them what you want and they''ll treat you well.¡¯
¡®Shirley, you can¡¯t mean that. Hear yourself now. That¡¯s not decent deep down, that¡¯s slavery, Shirley, and I don¡¯t want me or you or even one of these girls who were chosen today to end up like that. And if we take Michael as an example of a decent man, he¡¯s not like that at all.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m more afraid that no-one will ever pick me, to be honest.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a great girl, Shirley, You¡¯re too good for them. Never let anyone tell you you¡¯re not enough. It¡¯s more like throwing a pearl to the pigs.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m only an E-girl, Megan. No boy in his right mind will pick me. I will end up too old to marry and then have to live alone as a non-Wife. And I don¡¯t have your people skills and luck with men, or Eliza''s power and connections, let alone her intelligence, or yours. I am doomed.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re not. You¡¯re pretty and smart and sensible. And I promise you here and now that whatever happens, we will always stay in contact. No matter who we marry or all stay alone, I swear that me, you, and Eliza will stay connected. This whole thing where girls lose each other when they marry and just have their husband and maybe neighbouring housewives has to stop. And I mean that with all that I am. We will be connected together for life. No matter how difficult, we¡¯ll find a way. And I trust Eliza to be able to make that possible too.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know if I can really believe you, but you¡¯re sweet, Megan. I really really have the bestest friends in the world. I¡¯ll really miss you if you would get married to that Michael dude.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ll come back to visit you regularly as long as you¡¯re here. It¡¯s unusual to give a Wife Schoolgirl regular visits, but it¡¯s not forbidden. We¡¯ve been looking up the laws around that already. Even if they force me to use that weird glass wall table in the visitation room every time. You¡¯re simply not going to get rid of me like that.¡¯
¡®Thanks. I¡¯m almost ready to believe you¡ Please, hold me for a while before I¡¯m going to shower too. I¡¯ve never felt so lonely.¡¯
After a long hug with her friend Megan sat alone on her bed now. She had no concentration left for her book, so she put on her PJs and rolled herself into her sleeping bag. Everything was changing much too fast now. She had meant every word she had said about remaining friends after getting married, but it also was new territory again. Women had to follow men, and first leave their family, and then leave their school friends for that, with not much chance to ever be in contact with them again. But then again, if they were going to be revolutionary in a way that focused on friendship, as Michael had said, why not go all the way with the girls too? The female world itself here in the old Wife factory needed some revolution too for sure.
When Eliza and Shirley came back, clean and refreshed, Megan was asleep already.
11 A First Date with a Feral Chaperone
¡®Do you think they noticed something about switching chaperones, Eliza?¡¯ Megan asked her best friend.
¡®Never, especially not Grumpy Greystone. That guy has less sentience in him than a wife-o-matic robot. And it always seems to be him that needs to deal with you and loverboy for some reason. I wonder if the others are nervous about a Gamma-1 boy. But alas, switching names was just too easy and not the challenge I hoped it would be.¡¯
Megan nodded, she knew that little acts of espionage and sabotage were something that made her friend come alive, and now they both were in a good mood for her second meeting and first actual date with Michael Adams. Megan had dressed up for the occasion with not just the blue dress, but also with make-up and braids in her hair. She had done her best with what she had found on the E-floor, and had used a lot of her inventive creativity to emulate the simulacrum of a woman on a date from pre-Nation books, and she had done so in a way that didn¡¯t really exist anymore. It was funny, but she certainly hadn¡¯t done all the effort because of the silly rules that said that Wives had to be pleasing to their husbands in all kinds of ways and thus always have to be pretty and sexy. They had always taught her that those things were of the utmost importance but they really meant nothing to her, and on every other occasion she probably would have rebelled against them in all possible ways. The only reason was that she actually found it fun herself to do so, and she felt free to try out new things.
Something about Michael had taken away all the pressure about having to be perfect for a man, and without any danger of losing she felt like playing the game nonetheless just for the sake of playing. She never had many occasions to have fun, and she felt a strange freedom that she hadn¡¯t known before.
The same freedom had been picked up by Eliza, who had used all of her creativity in the opposite direction. Seemingly she had done no effort whatsoever to be pretty, but actually she¡¯d done her best to look as awful as possible. She wore really old pants, an old stained baggy shirt with holes in it, and her hair had been turned into some kind of eldritch abomination straight out of a horror comic. She was quite satisfied with the terrible mess of a girl she had turned herself into, but apart from Megan and possibly Shirley no-one else had gotten the joke. The poor official Greystone had tried to do something about it, but as always Eliza had been beyond his control, and in the end he had just given up. Eliza had reasoned with him that it was important for the bride-to-be to look as pretty as possible, and if the chaperone would look too pretty the poor potential husband could get confused, and fall in love with the wrong girl since she was the second girl he¡¯d see in her life, and she didn¡¯t want her irresistible femininity to confuse the poor boy. Greystone had shaken his head, and left the weird girl to her own reasoning. He didn¡¯t like the idea to have that girl in Seventh City Wife factory until she was 25 and too old to be in a Wife School, but she was really the most unhusbandworthy woman he¡¯d ever seen in all the years that he had had this job, so he didn¡¯t have much hope of getting rid of her soon.
But ultimately whatever this weird girl did was none of his business. And the boy in question was a Gamma-1, so it was his problem. Any bit of a man would deal with it in appropriate ways, and class one males were out of his league and had their own logic that he couldn¡¯t keep up with. Especially this one it seemed.
Eliza herself had her own reasons to be careful today and to not look too attractive, at least in theory. The chaperone tradition was a bit weird, in that just taking a second girl, and a single one at that, on a date with a Wife School match would usually not give much protection to a future Wife against the man who had chosen her if he was forceful, but maybe in a dark twisted way that was the point of the whole thing. At least that was what she had always thought. No-one had the right to stop a man who had chosen a Wife, or something like that, and the chaperone herself was always a girl that wasn¡¯t taken yet. No-one liked to be in that role, especially when the man in question was too eager, and wanted to take the bride-to-be to his bedroom or a hotel room or so. It certainly taught the single girls themselves something about men. Eliza had been a chaperone once for another girl, and it really hadn¡¯t been a good experience. After that she had found her own special ways to make sure that she would never have to play the chaperone again until now, which involved what Megan called ¡°espionage¡±.
But today things were different, and for once Eliza was happy to play the chaperone.
¡®I¡¯m really glad that you are here for me now, and not Ursula.¡¯ Megan whispered.
¡®I already said it wasn¡¯t hard. This school is not really a good preparation for becoming a decent spy, they make it way too easy. It¡¯s not that hard to fool people who are stupider than you but who think you are the one who¡¯s stupid by default,¡¯ she giggled while looking at official Greystone from the corner of her eyes.
¡®But where is the young man in question? I seem to remember that a date needs two people if my information is right. It¡¯s true that I¡¯m not the biggest expert, but I know that much.¡¯
Megan pointed at the door. ¡®He¡¯s there, and just in time. Perfectly punctual. And wow, he¡¯s even wearing a suit. He¡¯s also playing along with the game. This is going to be fun indeed. Even if nothing will happen.¡¯
¡®Oh yeah, baby!¡¯ Eliza said. She was really enjoying the show. This was going to be unforgettable, and unless she was very mistaken about him, they would be safe indeed, and her careful precautions straight out of the secret book of advanced courtship sabotage, which only select girls with the right black market connections knew about, would turn out to be completely unnecessary. That was a rare thing when men were involved, but she welcomed it more than she showed in her reactions. And yet, who in their right mind would ignore a perfect opportunity to improvise on the more advanced techniques of courtship sabotage in a perfectly safe setting?
A well-dressed Michael Adams came in, and dropped some documents in the hands of an emotionless Greystone.
¡®You have received the rules for your second meeting, young man Adams?¡¯
¡®I have, my dear friend, I have. I¡¯ve read the whole thing, and I don¡¯t have any objections,¡¯ He said cheerfully.
¡®Then don¡¯t forget to fill in the paper afterwards and let us know whether you found your wife-to-be pleasing to you. And thank you for choosing Seventh City Wife Factory.¡¯
Michael looked at him, trying hard not to laugh.
¡®Your fianc¨¦e will be accompanied by a, eh, chaperone, who will have to fill in a report too. So we can see whether you are truthful in reporting what you did.¡¯
He looked extremely disapprovingly at Eliza again while saying these words, and she smiled innocently back at him.
¡®I will, my dear official Greystone, I will.¡¯ She said with a sweet girl voice.
¡®Okay, off with you all. Good luck with your date, Mr. Adams.¡¯ He said with a voice that indicated deep doubt about that.
¡®Come on, we don¡¯t have all day,¡¯ Michael said to the girls and he took Megan¡¯s hand. She looked a bit surprised at that, but didn¡¯t protest.
They left Seventh City Wife Factory together.
¡®Wow, glad to be out. How can you even live there? And what¡¯s that guy¡¯s problem? You¡¯d really think he¡¯s a robot¡¯
Eliza giggled. ¡®Official Greystone? Confirmed human. And I say that as a robotics expert. He¡¯s just old and grumpy and likes to follow the rules, and he doesn¡¯t like low-graded girls. I¡¯m not even sure if he likes girls at all, or even people in general, but that¡¯s only better for us. Much safer with him around.¡¯
Michael stopped, and looked at her, puzzled, and then he understood.
¡®Ah, not the type that will abuse the girls you mean. Man, what kind of messed-up prison you have to live in. I don¡¯t know what to say, but I¡¯m so sorry for all of you.¡¯
Megan protested. ¡®Hey, we went with you to have fun for once, so don¡¯t remind us all the time how miserable we are in Wife School. Please be our escape for once. Never thought I¡¯d say that to a boy, but let¡¯s break all the rules today and have some fun.¡¯
¡®Yeah, and tell the unenlightened chaperone what your wild plans are, and also what the alternate version is that I have to put on Greystones paper,¡¯ added Eliza conspiratorially. ¡®I suppose you¡¯re not going to do the traditional dump-the-chaperone trick and then smuggle her to your bedroom whether she wants it or not?¡¯
Michael was taken aback. ¡®Eh, does that happen? At the second meeting? The papers say it shouldn¡¯t happen, but I am naive again I guess?¡¯
¡®Very naive for such an intelligent boy indeed. Why do you think girls get a red ¡°Probably not a Virgin¡± stamp on their dossier when they are dumped after the first date outside of school when they have been alone with a boy¡¡¯ Megan said very matter-of-factly
¡®But no. I don¡¯t really have wild plans, I just want to walk around at places where we all can go together and just hang around or so. Which limits the possibilities enormously since this whole freaking Nation is segregated like hell for men and women. But we¡¯ll find something. Hades-brimstone! I can¡¯t even take you both to my favourite bar because that would be too indecent.¡¯
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Eliza sighed. ¡®If you really are so afraid of being indecent just dump us. Anything that involves boys and girls is indecent, except when you close the door and have a high enough rating. Then it¡¯s don¡¯t ask, don''t see stuff and you can do what you want, as long as you keep her more or less alive. And no-one bothers¡¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t disgust me. We went out together to have fun for once, so don¡¯t remind me how miserable the whole thing with men and women is. And I certainly don¡¯t need any closed doors. Being open and honest is enough to hack the system for now I¡¯d say. Let¡¯s just buy some bottles of Nation-Cola and go to the park. No segregation rules there.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®And by the way, you do look good, Megan.¡¯
She smiled, but hesitated to answer. ¡®Thanks, I think. And you too.¡¯
Megan was still shy with compliments, and so was Michael, so he just nodded back.
¡®And I look terrible. I know. I worked hard on that.¡¯ Eliza broke the uneasy silence, but Michael wasn¡¯t impressed by her little cosplay act.
¡®Doesn¡¯t matter, Lizzie. You look very cute too in your own way, like you always do.¡¯
Now it was Eliza¡¯s turn to blush, and Megan¡¯s turn to protest.
¡®Are you flirting with the chaperone already? That¡¯s not pleasing to a Wife, you know.¡¯
Michael threw his hands in the air. ¡®Okay, I give up. Two girls at the same time is too much for me to handle. I haven¡¯t seen one of your kind since I was five, remember. And never more than one at the same time.¡¯
She chuckled. ¡®I was just teasing, don¡¯t be so tense. It¡¯s new for all of us. We¡¯re all are just figuring out how to be together, and you were more than right that finding out how to be friends with the other sex is something we need to do. I think we need that before anyone could ever think of marrying or so. This whole system is rotten to the core, and engineered to create toxic relationships in which people are the worst version of themselves possible.¡¯
¡®At least you girls get all kinds of classes on how to deal with a husband and stuff like this. All I¡¯ve ever heard was that I would one day have a wife and that I would like it because I could be her boss.¡¯ Michael said.
Eliza shrugged. ¡®I think we¡¯re all on our own together with that now, we¡¯re outside of everything they ever taught us. But that shouldn¡¯t be a problem, should it? We can figure it out together, and maybe try to find people to join if we find a better way. Do a little revolution or so. And then start the Unsegregation of the nation from this park to free all women and men from this nonsense.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re going too fast for a first date, Eliza. And no revolutions before we had our first drink please. We need a bit of artificial caffeine to wake us up from this nightmare.¡¯ Megan said.
They were almost at the small grocery store now, and Michael stopped.
¡®I¡¯ll go inside. They might react a bit weird if we go in together. You two stay here, and if anyone bothers you then you tell them your fiancee is a level one male who can be very possessive. It¡¯s not even a lie.¡¯
He went inside and the girls started whispering to each other. ¡®Thanks for bringing me along, Megan, this is definitely getting interesting, and it¡¯s fun even. I never thought being around a boy could be fun. But do you really think he finds me cute like this? That¡¯s not how boys should react to my look. I went out of my way to go beyond the advanced techniques of courtship sabotage!¡¯ ¡®It¡¯s quite clear that he isn¡¯t repulsed by you in any way, so why not? He¡¯s quite honest when he¡¯s not messing around. He¡¯s not even wrong, you are rather cute in your own special way, even in that worst sweater of the universe style with complimentary hair-monster on your head.¡¯
¡®Why then did we get all those be-pretty-or-your-husband-will-cheat-on-you sermons from Miss Hunter? If I can make a boy like me by walking around like a half-fossilised zombie, all of that doesn¡¯t make any sense.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t get carried away, It¡¯s not like you¡¯ve seduced him or so. That¡¯s not how he likes you. He still just sees you as his friend and he probably likes you no matter what anyway because of that, just be yourself. You¡¯re his only female contact that wasn¡¯t his mother before me in his life, or something like that. You have the advantage here.¡¯
¡®And still he chose you. He was too scared of me. Don¡¯t forget that.¡¯
¡®Who wouldn¡¯t with that anger in your eyes and that dark aura that you had around you? You were quite angry at anything male at that point, and I can¡¯t even blame you. Never seen such a bunch of sex-crazed unmannered baboons before like those other boys that day. He was just the wrong guy at the wrong moment to come in with them, and ended up as collateral damage of that situation. And so missed the best match.¡¯
¡®And I keep saying it¡¯s okay that he chose you. This is already beyond my comfort zone. And he¡¯s right that you do look great today, Megan. I would never be able to make myself pretty like that. I don¡¯t think any E-girl ever made herself pretty like that before even. You really are perfect for a date in a way that no-one has ever seen on the lower floors.¡¯
¡®What are two unguarded girls doing here?¡¯
An unpleasant-looking young man had appeared out of nowhere. Eliza placed herself in between Megan and the boy and summoned the scary look from the Ceremony night again.
¡®I am her guardian, and she¡¯s waiting for her man to come. Engaged to a level one male, she is.¡¯
He looked from her hair to her clothes, ignoring her eyes, and then backed off with a bit of fear in his eyes.
¡®Oh, calm, miss, I was only asking questions.¡¯
¡®So what is your problem, dude? Have anything to say?¡¯ Eliza said, pointing her finger very close to his nose.
¡®Nothing, Miss.¡¯ The boy was clearly confused about a girl who spoke back to him in this way, and very uncomfortable by her invading his personal space.
¡®Then next time you address a woman, be more respectful, my dear boy. She might kick you somewhere where it¡¯s painful.¡¯
¡®Okay, miss.¡¯
The boy seemed to have shrunken to half his size, and appeared to be looking for a way out of the conversation.
¡®This is the point where you walk on and forget whatever you wanted to say to us, and go on and enjoy the rest of your day, my dear boy.¡¯ Eliza said.
He nodded a subservient yes and then disappeared as fast as he could.
¡®What has just happened?¡¯ Megan asked.
¡®Oh, nothing. But your fianc¨¦e is right. Too much segregation between the sexes doesn¡¯t help anyone and only makes people hopeless in dealing with each other. The poor guy had no chance against my superior communication skills. And look, if you speak of the devil¡¡¯
Michael arrived with the drinks. ¡®So, nothing happened while I was gone?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Well, there was that one weird guy, but Eliza scared him away with her great personality and communication skills. That¡¯s another boy who¡¯ll dream of her forever¡¡¯
¡®Hey, he was irritating, and he could have been a harasser. Self-defence is important for a woman. And I only used words to ward him off anyway, I didn¡¯t even touch him. Yuck¡ The idea alone¡¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Well, he¡¯s gone now, come, let¡¯s go to the park.¡¯ Megan said.
They arrived at an empty park with yellowish lawns and an unhealthy-looking tree here and there.
¡®Ah, the glorious state parks of The Nation. What a Magnificent sight, isn¡¯t it.¡¯ Eliza said, but no-one replied.
¡®Let¡¯s take the bench. There¡¯s no sex segregation sign anywhere so we¡¯re cool I think.¡¯
¡®Okay, lead us, great man with the great plan.¡¯ Megan said with playful submissiveness.
¡®So, tell me again how does this first date thing officially work? And unofficially?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Officially you¡¯re fine I think, except for the flirting with the chaperone maybe. You hang out somewhere to get to know each other I suppose. Nevermind that such a thing is quite impossible with so much sex segregation. Unofficially, well, let¡¯s say that it can happen that the boy just tries whatever he has in his dirty mind after ditching the chaperone. We¡¯ve been warned that is what happens in 75% of those first dates. The percentage is higher for later dates even¡¯
¡®Ah, Wow. Really? How come I¡¯ve been naive again? I thought people just followed the official version that¡¯s on the papers. But again it seems like following the official version never gets you anywhere in this Glorious Nation¡¡¯
¡®Be a Real Man! Be nonverbal. Don¡¯t listen to the words! Follow your impulses! Have no emotions except for anger! They have not been conditioned at all¡¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Probably my problem is that I think about stuff, and take the words seriously. And not just do and copy the other doers. So I listen to the instructions and start to think¡ And then my conclusions are something completely different from the other boys. And I¡¯m suddenly not acting like a Real Man anymore.¡¯
¡®Both your instincts and your rational sides keep you from being a Real Man. Good catch for any Nation girl¡ But relax! You¡¯re always so serious. Let¡¯s not think about hard stuff now and sit in the sun under the trees and watch the sparrows in peace. I¡¯ve never had many opportunities to do that, and now we even have a man to defend us, real or not.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Yeah, this is lame for a patch of nature, but better than the flower garden of the E-quarters in school. It seems someone has forgotten that we¡¯re technically supposed to learn to tend a garden like a sexy flower fairy, or maybe they don¡¯t think husbands of E-class wives care about flower gardens¡¡¯ ¡®
That actually sounds interesting, taking care of plants.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s one of the more relaxing classes we have.¡¯ Megan said dismissively.
For a while they sat together, listening to the twittering birds and looking at the white butterflies that were lazily flying from flower to flower. The park was rather empty today, and for a while they didn¡¯t meet many people, except for an old man who gave the trio a very dirty look. A boy hanging out with girls in public was quite indecent, especially if they were casually laughing and drinking Nation-cola and not doing something specific. But when Eliza addressed him and asked whether she knew him from somewhere, he turned pale and disappeared.
¡®They act like I have some dangerous contagious disease. I don¡¯t even need my E-28 score to keep them away.¡¯
She said, rather satisfied. Megan shook her head in disbelief of the variety of her friend''s anti-male tactics, which all seemed equally effective against men, except then for the one specimen they had brought themselves. She had studied "The basics of advanced courtship sabotage" well, but she had met an opponent on which it didn¡¯t work at all. But with him that wouldn''t be a problem at all.
¡®Look, a blackbird.¡¯ Michael interrupted, and they watched the bird together.
It didn¡¯t mind being stared at while pulling an unfortunate worm out of the lawn.
¡®It¡¯s the early bird that gets the worm, they say.¡¯ Said Megan.
¡®I¡¯d say It¡¯s the early worm that gets eaten by the bird.¡¯ Eliza countered.
¡®It¡¯s not even early.¡¯ Michael remarked
It was Eliza who needed to have the last word, ¡®But for the worm it¡¯s too late anyway.¡¯
12 A first Date is too early to Start a Revolution?
¡®Hey, someone else is coming.¡¯ Megan pointed at a boy their age that was walking through the park with a bag of groceries.
¡®Of all people it had to be Rafael.¡¯ Michael sighed.
His former classmate had already recognised him, and was walking up to them. They had been in the same class for years, until they both had chosen completely different subjects and ended up on different campuses. The boy looked rather uneasy with the girls present, but Michael acted as if there wasn¡¯t anything special going on.
¡®Rafael, this is Megan, my Wife School fianc¨¦e, and her chaperone, Eliza.¡¯
Rafael looked at Megan, and then at Eliza in astonishment, but didn¡¯t seem to be able to say something. After a while Michael thought it wiser to interrupt the silence, before Eliza would do something weird again or go into her full-on anti-male berserk mode.
¡®You can talk to them, Rafael, they are human beings, intelligent and sentient creatures. They speak our language and all. I think I can safely say that these two are some kind of undercover brainies even.¡¯
Rafael only slowly regained his ability to speak.
¡®Eh, hello, girls. How you doing?¡¯ He stuttered.
¡®Doing just fine, my friend. Wanna have a double date with me while Michael hangs out with Megan? You can get the prettier one of us two!¡¯
Eliza waved her crazy messed-up hair around in a fake sensual pose and winked at him. He just stood there nailed to the ground, staring in horror from her weird oversized stained shirt to her hair, and then just away from her eyes, a bit like the other boy had done too.
¡®Eh, no, thanks.¡¯ He muttered.
Michael decided to intervene. ¡®Don¡¯t mind Eliza, she¡¯s just messing with you.¡¯
Megan chuckled. This new boy was even further away from the Real Man stereotype as her fiance, being so shy and afraid of girls that it was almost endearing. She¡¯d never seen such a thing. But Michael didn¡¯t want his friend to cringe.
¡®Come on, girls, leave my friend alone. He can¡¯t help it that he never had any practice in talking to girls. And it seems you¡¯re really scaring him, Eliza.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m just practising my skills in talking to the other sex now that I finally have the occasion. Is that not allowed anymore? I know someone who¡¯s doing exactly the same thing today.¡¯ she said innocently.
¡®There are probably other ways to talk to the other sex than aggression or flirting, or even a combination of both.¡¯ Megan tried tactfully.¡¯
¡®Ah, but there¡¯s no fun in that. And I want to have fun today.¡¯
¡®I give up.¡¯ Michael put his hands in the air and turned to Rafael.
¡®The irony is that actually you two are alike in so many ways. It¡¯s not like you¡¯re John or Don or Instructor Jack or so. In a normal world there would be a way for you both to arrive at a conversation about electronics or higher algebra. But with all these barriers between the sexes in our world that won¡¯t work now.¡¯
Rafael looked at him, unsure, and Megan protested. ¡®Hey, this is my date today, and I¡¯m definitely not talking about algebra. I love math but not now!¡¯
Rafael looked from Michael to Megan.
¡®Nevermind. I¡¯m off. My mum is sick and needs the groceries before my dad arrives. And he¡¯d better not see me doing women jobs again or he will yell at me for not being manly enough. Good luck with your date and, eh, have a good day, girls.¡¯
Rafael tried to smile at Megan and Eliza and then disappeared quickly.
¡®Oh boy¡¡¯ Michael muttered. ¡®Poor Rafael. If there¡¯s any boy left who¡¯s shy and harmless and naive in this Nation, even more than me, it has to be him. Please don¡¯t traumatise the last great innocent left on the male side of The Nation.¡¯
¡®It¡¯ll be a learning experience for him. First time is never easy.¡¯ Eliza shrugged.
¡®Yes, and one day they¡¯ll force him to get a wife on the C-floor. He¡¯ll have to choose on how she looks in a bikini, and will just panic like I did, probably with a much worse outcome. The chance of him ending up with a girl that he can talk about science with is nihil, even though you two are probably not the only ones with secret study habits. He doesn¡¯t have the sense of navigating a Wife School to find the outsider that I had. And in the end he¡¯ll be married for life to someone he doesn¡¯t like and who doesn¡¯t really like or understand him, like most adults. And since he does have some sense of honour, he won¡¯t be divorcing anyone either. And because he can¡¯t be dominant he¡¯ll probably be losing every argument he ever has with his wife in a miserable marriage for life.¡¯
¡®Hey, those were my prospects too more or less, except that we can¡¯t even get a divorce as a woman, and then there¡¯s the whole sex thing being forced on you.¡¯ Megan said.
Eliza looked thoughtful. ¡®Ah, but indeed, there are more brainie girls as you¡¯d call them who¡¯d be happy with a man like that. There¡¯s a whole black market for study books, especially in the E and D floor, not mentioning Annabelle herself who smuggles her books to everyone from the C-floor. But there is at least one A-grade girl who¡¯s studying Einstein and 21st century quantum physics. I¡¯ve seen a traders list recently. Most of the black market were just adult romance books and stuff about sex and boring things like that, but the brainie stuff also has its own niche in every Wife School and even on every floor.¡¯
¡®There should be a way to connect the boys who don¡¯t want to choose their wife on bikini looks to find girls based on other interests and qualities.¡¯ Michael mused.
¡®But the problem is that communication between the sexes is impossible. Boys and girls can never talk. It¡¯s indecent and impossible, and dangerous too. Look at how we are conspiring now.¡¯ Megan said.
Eliza¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡®I have an idea. You are a boy after all, Michael. And even though we¡¯re on a date we¡¯re talking about this, and not about engagement plans or hanky-panky. But you still are part of male society, and of the brainie school where boys like that Rafael dude are. Not that I¡¯m particularly impressed by him, but he¡¯s the opposite of everything most of my friends fear in a boy, so by our standards he would definitely be a decent husband when combined with the right girl. I never thought I would see two of those in one lifetime, let alone on one day. So if we could make an alternative communication system for boys and girls to get to know each other based on interests and stuff like that some of your hopeless brainies could get matched with girls they have more in common with, and a more friendship-like and respectful relationship with than the ¡°you¡¯re married now, have sex and serve your husband¡± scenario in which two people who don¡¯t know each other act out a toxic scenario that they both never knew had alternatives.¡¯
¡®How, how, isn¡¯t that going too far? That¡¯ll never work.¡¯ Michael said, but Eliza was only starting.
¡®And we could open the communication through the black market traders. We could help those who don¡¯t like the system to exchange information and find matches based on better things than their looks in their bikini. The cost will be high though if we want to open communication lines like that.¡¯
¡®Eliza, you¡¯re getting ahead of yourself. One afternoon with a boy and you¡¯re planning a whole communication system already. You¡¯re going way too fast. Didn¡¯t they tell you that a first date is too early to overthrow the government.¡¯
¡®Ew, I¡¯m not dating anyone. That¡¯s your thing. And I promise you I won¡¯t write down that you and him planned to overthrow the government on Greystone¡¯s dull papers.¡¯
¡®There is no government, girls. Governments lead to chaos, remember.¡¯
¡®Ah, then we will overthrow the Central Computer itself. I¡¯d say that we all know that that experiment has failed a century ago already. And the officials that represent the CC are a bunch of incapable idiots too.¡¯
¡®Eliza, don¡¯t say those things so casually.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Are we getting afraid now of a bit of radical realism about the state of our Nation''s politics, big boy?¡¯
¡®Not afraid. But like Megan says, you¡¯re going way too fast. I¡¯m only getting used to talking to girls and you already want to end segregation between the sexes with a whole new communication system, overthrow the century-old rule of the CC, and God knows what more on the first serious talk we ever have. It¡¯s a bit too much for my poor heart and for my brains.¡¯
¡®Ah, the brainie boy has reached his limits already¡ I thought you were class one specimen?¡¯
¡®Eliza, don¡¯t tease him so much! You know he¡¯s right. Nothing against any of your plans, but you¡¯re going too fast, and we were actually just hanging out on a date to get to know each other. My date by the way, not yours! Maybe we can keep the revolution for a later day, when we have thought out things a bit more, and talked to some people about it? And just have fun today.¡¯
¡®Okay, okay. Don¡¯t forget that you are the one that¡¯s having a date, and that I am the bored chaperone. But I¡¯ll respect the fact that it¡¯s your day today, and not mine. Go ahead and smooch and do all the couple stuff you want with your fianc¨¦e and I will look the other way when it gets too indecent¡¡¯
¡®You can be so irritating sometimes, Liz!¡¯
¡®I think I need more Nation-Coke. Are you girls coming with me?¡¯ Michael said, standing up. ¡®Good idea. Keep ourselves drugged. Still a pity we can¡¯t just sit on the caf¨¦ terraces and order a drink. It would be perfect for a date.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®I know, I know,¡¯ Michael said. ¡®But that¡¯s for another day. Hanging around is enough for now. We start the revolution another time when we¡¯re not having a first date.¡¯
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
¡®I¡¯ll make sure that we do that.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Hey, it¡¯s still my date. You¡¯re taking over again.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®I¡¯m sorry, getting out of that Wife School made me a bit too euphoric I think.¡¯
¡®So, is it true that you girls can¡¯t get out of school, that you¡¯re completely locked-up there?¡¯ Michael asked to try to change the subject.
¡®Almost. Not 100%. With a permit we can visit our family every now and then, at least in theory, and we can visit the girls on the other floor sometimes.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®That¡¯s still within the Wife School, Megan. And neither of us ever sees our family.¡¯
¡®The other floors feel like another world already. I¡¯m always jealous that Christina can bring stuff to every floor.¡¯
¡®The other floors are not so interesting, believe me. You should know that.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®And it¡¯s sad how most of the girls on the C-floor have forgotten us when we left there.¡¯
¡®Ah, you two used o be C-class.¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®Yes, we¡¯re pretty and smart and have a lot of talents. Don¡¯t you see? Should have been B or higher actually, but they select high-rate Wives on the wrong criteria for that. We¡¯re smarter than any B-girl probably, but Real Men don¡¯t want a wife that knows things they don¡¯t understand¡¡¯
¡®I avoided the C- and B-floor, so I can¡¯t compare.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®But let¡¯s say that there was a certain incident where we were too rebellious for our teachers on the C-floor. And then you lose your score quite fast. Yo may not have noticed, but some people consider us a bad influence¡¯
¡®You two, a bad influence? No¡¡¯ He said sarcastically.
Megan grinned. ¡®Actual skills don¡¯t matter as much as being submissive. And we both have a bad record when it comes to that. Wife School is one big exercise in losing your own will so you can give it up to your husband. Or to any man. And to be honest, the woman teachers are not less dominant than the men they want us to obey, even with all the talk about how submissive women should be, they still are quite the bossy type in an absolute way. If one of them has a Rafael for a man then he¡¯ll be more an example of a submissive slave than any woman I¡¯ve ever seen could be.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s worse than brainie school for boys then. But at least they don¡¯t yell that Be a Man stuff at you every morning while torturing you with those stupid military exercises that actually are roughed-up gymnastic exercises.¡¯
¡®One misery point for the boys. That makes 1 for you and 100 for us.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®I didn¡¯t want to compare misery. I know your life sucks. Mine sucks too. We shouldn¡¯t compete, but work together, and make it better for everyone.¡¯
¡®Yadda, yadda, yadda. Sing songs around the campfire and everything and the world will be unicorns and rainbows.¡¯ Eliza said, ¡®And I¡¯m just amazed that I actually believe that you mean it. You¡¯re really a unique specimen, Loverboy.¡¯
¡®Eliza!¡¯
¡®Sorry, Megan.¡¯
¡®I still need a drink; and maybe it¡¯s your turn to buy the drinks, ladies.¡¯ Michael said. ¡®Want some money?¡¯
¡®Are you trying to buy us with your money, Sir Adams?¡¯
¡®Sure, give me all the Megan and Eliza I can get for these 3 dollars¡¡¯
¡®Watch out, boy, you¡¯re on dangerous terrain.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®I¡¯m not bribing anyone, I only just remembered that girls can¡¯t have money, and I want more drinks. So I give you the money.¡¯
¡®We can have money, they just don¡¯t give it to us if we¡¯re in Wife School. And we can¡¯t have student jobs and our family usually doesn¡¯t really help either. But if we go in that store and pay with it no-one will say a word. Because they will assume we¡¯re buying it for our father or husband or so. It¡¯s very shameful when a woman has to make her own money, you know. Indecent again¡¡¯
¡®I know, I know. I just want things to be simple, so here¡¯s some money for drinks. Choose what you want, I want another Nation-Coke.¡¯
¡®Ooh, I can choose what I want?¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Whatever you can get for that dollar coin. Or whatever they¡¯ll let you have. They have rules against women buying certain things¡¯
¡®No trying to get a man beer today, Eliza, they last thing we need now is you being tipsy.¡¯
¡®Okay, okay, I get it! You¡¯re no fun!¡¯
He stood outside while the girls were inside the store, alone with his thoughts for a while. He liked hanging around with both of them. So much had happened today, but in a way he felt more free and more relaxed than ever with Megan and Eliza around. Weirdly enough not because he really felt like marrying or even falling in love with anyone any time soon, but because he felt more complete in an environment that had women too. As if he¡¯d missed something all of his life that came back to him now in this way. But it seemed he was the only one for whom it worked. Poor Rafael seemed totally unready for Eliza for example, even though her chaotic straightforwardness was one of the things that made him come alive. And the older people in the park had given them very dirty looks.
It was a mystery to him what else he was supposed to do on a date with his fiance if walking around outside with a girl was already indecent, and sneaking with her into his house and bedroom was a mortal sin according to the Church. The written rules and the unwritten rules in the Nation clashed all the time, and he had no idea what was actually expected of a couple on this occasion. Or maybe everything was wrong anyway, so most people didn¡¯t bother at all that they did the worst option of all?
¡®Here¡¯s your Coke, Loverboy!¡¯ Eliza came out and threw his can of coke in his direction.
He was able to catch it, but only by doing a strange move.
¡®Oh, you look so funny like that.¡¯ Eliza said, but she stopped when she saw Megan''s face.
¡®You realise that I can¡¯t even open this can right now, or it¡¯ll explode in my face.¡¯ Michael noted.
¡®Oopsie, I got a bit carried away again by a fun day outside of boring normality.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®You can have mine, I¡¯ll take yours and wait half an hour or so.¡¯ Megan interrupted.
¡®As a bit of compensation for my feral chaperone here.¡¯
¡®Ah, well, we¡¯ll all wait before we open our drinks.¡¯ Eliza said diplomatically.
¡®Back to the park?¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®Maybe something in the direction of Seventh City Wife Academy? It¡¯s getting late.¡¯ Megan proposed. ¡®The smaller park with the pine trees in between the apartment blocks? It¡¯s usually quiet too.¡¯ ¡®Why not.¡¯
They spent the rest of the day hanging out in the smaller park and the surrounding part of Seventh City. There was nothing about the whole afternoon that made Michael think of the whole stressy idea of what a date was supposed to be in theory, but he surely had fun with his girl friends, and he learnt a lot about them, which made him like them even more. Whatever was happening between them, it seemed to work. Except for the can, which still would have exploded in Eliza¡¯s face half an hour later if she wouldn¡¯t have detonated it very carefully.
¡®I still have half of it.¡¯ She said, shrugging while looking at the mess she had made, and they didn¡¯t mention it anymore.
And then the time was up.
¡®So, ready to go back to the SCWF?¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®I guess¡¡¯ Megan said.
¡®So there are no escape plans that I¡¯m not aware of that you¡¯re using me for?¡¯ He asked.
¡®No, not today, unless Eliza has something in mind that I don¡¯t know of?¡¯
¡®Nope, Megan, I¡¯ll start thinking of escaping when you and Shirley are gone. For now Wife School is the best place for me to be for practical reasons. And do you think I would just run away when being a chaperone on a date, leaving all my stuff behind in our dorm? My precious books? No, if I ever escape it¡¯ll be a lot more subtle than that. You¡¯re insulting my intelligence.¡¯
They walked back to the building where the girls lived, big and grey, with the words ¡°Seventh City Wife Factory¡± in enormous letters above the door, and the cartoonified blond girl in her bikini next to it.
¡®Home sweet home. I had forgotten how it looks from the outside.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Back to everyday reality. But I must admit that I had fun today, thanks to you.¡¯ She looked at Michael.
¡®You¡¯re not even going to have one kiss?¡¯ Eliza asked suddenly.
Michael and Megan stared at her, awkwardly. ¡®Ehh¡¡¯ They both said nothing.
¡®So much for the traditions. You two are the cutest couple ever, so pure and innocent as they shouldn¡¯t exist anymore in this day and age. Probably because they died out since they never arrived at procreation at all. But can you at least give each other a hug? If you want to be with girls you¡¯ll have to learn how to touch them to at a certain point, Michael.¡¯
¡®Eh, sure.¡¯ Michael said. Megan suddenly wrapped her arms around him.
¡®Okay. I can hug a boy, Eliza. It¡¯s not so different from hugging a girl, only slightly more awkward and it feels different.¡¯
He let go of her and he stood there, confused.
¡®Girls hug each other all the time, and boys don¡¯t. We learn to never have feelings, to never cry, and to never touch anyone. That¡¯s what a Real Man does.¡¯
¡®Boys never hug each other? Boy friends never touch each other?¡¯ Eliza asked.
¡®No, that¡¯s indecent too, you know.¡¯
''Oh,¡¯ Megan just said, rather shocked.
¡®Man, it must be lonely being a boy.¡¯ Eliza said, and she suddenly hugged him too.
¡®Hey, what are you doing? He¡¯s mine.¡¯
¡®For kissing and hanky-panky he¡¯s all yours. Do what you want with him and don¡¯t forget to dump the chaperone when needed. But we have decided that he¡¯s my friend too, and he looks lonely. And lonely friends need a hug!¡¯
Michael tried to escape from Eliza¡¯s arms and took a step away from both girls.
¡®I have nothing against you both being friends with me, but now you¡¯re both going too fast for me. I like you both but even the just friends part is going to make my heart explode if you¡¯re too physical with me too soon. I¡¯m not the one here who¡¯s living in a dorm where people are very close and hug each other all the time, I live all alone in my room and only have superficial talks with the people I meet at school. No-one ever hugs me at all, not even my mother. And I¡¯m not even supposed to have feelings as a boy, remember.¡¯
¡®Yeah, now we live together as close friends in our Wife School dorms, but don¡¯t forget that all of that ends when we move in with our husband, so don¡¯t be too jealous of us.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®We did make promises, Eliza, you, me and Shirley, to keep in contact no matter what.¡¯
¡®Yes, and that¡¯s extreme rebellion already, and not done for most people.¡¯
Michael looked at the girls. ¡®Wait. I¡¯ve never thought of it that way. But you girls live very close now in those dorms, and then the moment you marry you have to leave all your old friends behind, and most girls are not even able to keep contact as married women, even if they were best friends?¡¯
¡®More or less. You¡¯re fast at understanding our situation I must say.¡¯
¡®Wow. Marriage must be such a trauma for a woman.¡¯
Eliza turned to him. ¡®It won¡¯t be like that for Megan, or she¡¯ll end up a young and happy widow. I¡¯ll personally take care of that. Cute as you are, I wouldn¡¯t forgive you if you hurt her.¡¯
Megan placed herself in between Eliza and Michael. ¡®I think you¡¯ve had enough boys for today, Eliza, if you¡¯re going from flirting to death threats in 5 minutes.¡¯
¡®I can handle her, Megan. It¡¯s just little Lizzie grown older. But please no unexpected hugs without checking it¡¯s it¡¯s okay beforehand, okay Eliza?¡¯
¡®Okay,¡¯ Eliza finally said, reluctantly.
They entered the building, and Michael followed the girls to the E-section. Official Greystone sat behind his desk.
¡®Here are your papers, my dear man.¡¯ Michael said, and then he turned to Megan, doing a little curtsy while taking her hand.
¡®It was my pleasure to have this date with you, young Lady Megan. And I must say, you¡¯re the prettiest lady I¡¯ve ever been with in my whole life.¡¯
He kissed her hand, and Megan turned red, but official Geystone remained as impassible as a Buddha statue.
¡®I look forward to spending more time with you, and am honoured that I can still be pleasing to you, oh honourable wife-to-be of mine.¡¯
Then he turned to Eliza, and high-fived her. ¡®Thanks for being our chaperone for today, old friend Lizzie. I¡¯m sure that you kept us from being indecent and other abominations, and all that.¡¯
¡®It was my pleasure, Mike All,¡¯ she said, and smiled again.
Slowly he walked home by himself. This had been a day that he wouldn¡¯t ever forget, even if he would live for over a hundred years.
13 How to train up a Boy using Oxytocin
¡®¡®So how did you get so flirty suddenly?¡¯
Megan and Eliza were talking in between home economics class and the history of great men.
¡®Me? You¡¯re accusing me of being flirty? Eliza the certified man-hater?¡¯ Eliza whispered, feigning defensiveness.
¡®You know what I mean. And you¡¯re definitely no Michael-hater.¡¯
¡®Blame him for that. He just made me feel at ease. And I was only playing along a bit. It doesn¡¯t mean a thing, we all know that. Except that I actually don¡¯t really care what sex people are if I like them as friends.¡¯
¡®Still, who are you? What have you done to my best friend Eliza?¡¯
¡®Maybe it wasn¡¯t Eliza you¡¯ve met yesterday, but more the return of little Lizzie, trying to disprove her mom¡¯s axiom that boys and girls can¡¯t be friends. And maybe she still likes to play with her friend Mike All. Even though they¡¯re both technically adults now. Or something like that.¡¯
Megan sighed. ¡®After all that effort you made to look so unattractive that was a bit of an anticlimax I must say. And you should be more careful with him. He comes from another world than we do. You heard him. The male world is not the girls dorm where everybody can hug you at any moment. It¡¯s clear that he¡¯s completely touch-starved and untouched by female hands. He¡¯s not used to our girl friendships at all.¡¯
Eliza smiled ominously.
¡®Then we¡¯ll make sure he gets used to it, not? I think we must first give him a broad introduction to girl friendships before you can go all monogamous on him as his Wife. It¡¯s time to train him up properly using oxytocin to the advantage of the whole female half of humanity.¡¯
¡®Eh, what?¡¯
¡®Have you ever even paid attention to Miss Hunter''s theories? The whole idea of Nation monogamy is that a man only knows one woman, which means he will only be attached to her and never be in contact with other women. That¡¯s why she always says it¡¯s important to be his first sexual experience and why non-virgins are considered damaged goods. The whole oxytocin bonding stuff is the key to the story. So coming out of a complete one-sex world without any physical touch at all a man can easily form patterns of being bonded only to his wife. The downside is that even talking to another woman will feel like adultery, and you get a reinforcement of the whole sex segregation system in which even talking to a female person is indecent. Most men today are programmed to function like that from the moment they get their Wife. It could all be very different though, for example if they grew up with sisters and girl friends and their mother acting normal and so on.¡¯
¡®Interesting and scary interpretation of how Nation marriages work, sociologist Lizzie. But what does that mean for my Michael now?¡¯
¡®With all respect to whatever relationship you both have now, I¡¯m afraid that I¡¯m way too selfish to let such a thing happen to him. He is my only male childhood friend after all, and perfect friend material for both of us, and a potential safe person for women in general, and we can use an ally on their side. And I haven¡¯t even mentioned his potential as a valuable contact in between the male and female world. Maybe even a hub in between the two worlds for the black market trade. So whatever you want to do with him afterwards, we have to train him up as a cross-sex friend first, using the oxytocin effect more broadly.¡¯
¡®What on Earth do you even mean?¡¯
¡®Just give him an immersion in girl style friendship including the more touchy part, so he learns that being friendly and moderately physical with the other sex doesn¡¯t have to mean anything but just friendliness. And only if he¡¯s adjusted to that you can go all couple on him and make some, eh, other oxytocin bonds like you please. I won¡¯t interfere with that.¡¯
Megan ignored the innuendo this time.
¡®Well, thank you, I think¡ But you still shouldn¡¯t play with him like that. He¡¯s a person that deserves to be treated as an equal, you know. And he even was able to communicate a boundary of not hugging him unexpectedly. To you, Eliza, the man-hating secret feminist spy of the E-floor. And a man setting a boundary like that alone is quite a weird thing.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m impressed by that too, yes. It¡¯s as if he has read the secret booklet about boundaries. Communicating boundaries so naturally is not that easy.¡¯
¡®It would be a lot easier if they didn¡¯t brainwash girls to have no boundaries at all towards men.¡¯ Megan pondered.
¡®Agreed. But I don¡¯t think men are taught much boundaries either. Lots of peer pressure, and no chance of saying no to a man with a higher rating. Boundaries are not a Nation thing.¡¯
¡®And by the way, speaking about personal boundaries: what about that poor Rafael boy? You surely scared him away. He was harmless. He didn¡¯t deserve what you did to him.¡¯
¡®Hey, I was just being myself, in a playful way. I didn¡¯t mean anything with it. It¡¯s just that I usually don¡¯t have the looks to pull something like that off, that¡¯s all.¡¯
¡®It looked like you were trying to hit on him aggressively, while looking like a possessed scarecrow from the dungeon dimensions. It¡¯s not because Michael could see through your little act that a shy boy who¡¯d never met an actual girl and only seen one on pictures wouldn¡¯t get into a panic if he thought you were actually trying to seduce him. Double date, Eliza, what were you thinking?¡¯
¡®I was just having fun.¡¯
¡®Yes, and then you manage to traumatise the only boy in The Nation that might be more innocent than Michael. Be more careful. They are human too. He too could be friend material for girls. Material for a decent marriage for at least one Nation girl even when properly matched. Those guys are rare enough!¡¯
Eliza sighed. ¡®Okay, you¡¯re right, I wasn¡¯t thinking properly. And there¡¯s something dangerous about feeling powerful over a man, it¡¯s a strange sensation that I probably shouldn¡¯t have given into. You know, the rush of definitely being the stronger one in the war of the sexes for a moment.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t think I want to know that feeling, Eliza. It¡¯s the same rush that turns men evil. Reversing the roles only perpetuates the same war of the sexes in a different way. Think about that weird animal farm book you loaned me recently.¡¯ ¡®Hey, I¡¯m not a pig. And I¡¯m just new to all of this. I¡¯ve never even thought about flirting with boys before today as a realistic option. It just happened. You can¡¯t expect me to make no mistakes. But if it makes you happy, if I ever see him again and there is a way to talk to him, I¡¯ll apologise to him. Honest and open and everything. Better like that?¡¯
Megan smiled. ¡®I¡¯ll keep you to that, but to go back to my earlier question: who are you and what have you done to Eliza? You would apologise to a boy?¡¯
¡®I do have my personal honour code of being fair to all people who deserve it. And I think I¡¯ll need to update that principle to include the few harmless men in The Nation too in my list of those who qualify as ¡®people¡¯ at least. Actually people are people regardless of sex.¡¯
¡®You two, shut up or you¡¯ll have to switch desks.¡¯ Miss Hunter said suddenly. They hadn¡¯t noticed that the next class had already started. ¡®And take your history books. We were talking about John Manfred, the Father of the Nation.¡¯
She pointed to an old poster, on which they could see the most revered man in Nation history. His dark brown eyes seem to look through your soul, and they always had found him quite creepy.
¡®So, Eliza, tell me more about Manfred.¡¯ ¡®He was the one who formed the Male Alliance, and defeated the evil feminists, right after the last solar storm that destroyed the internet and most communication on earth by taking out all satellites around the planet. He and his men then installed the Central Computer, and he was its first representative until his own dead.¡¯
¡®At least you know your stuff, but next time have some attention too please.¡¯ Miss Hunter said.
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
The rest of the hour was spent with repeating information they all had heard before about the Father of the Nation and how he had made everything so much better for men to live. No-one said anything about what it had meant for the lives of women.
*
¡®I pledge my life to The Nation of this flag and to its Glorious Constitution, which gives Freedom and Liberty to all men. May the Great God bless The Nation and crush all our Enemies!¡¯
The church service began with the same words that opened every school day and then went straight into a hymn that proclaimed the greatness of God as the Great Man in the sky. After some announcements a man came up to say that they needed to give more money, and then a prayer for all men in the Nation was uttered in unison. Michael had already lost his attention, and wasn¡¯t really listening to the later songs about the Great God as the Man on the Heavenly Throne, the Greatness of the Nation and its Constitution, and the glory of Man. It was all nonsense anyway, wasn¡¯t it? If there was a God They would not really be interested in the petty egotism of the Alphas of the Nation and their silly plans.
Why was he even coming to church? He was the only one of the family here again. Next to him sat a boy named Paul like every week. His father might always talk about the principles of The Church, but he hadn¡¯t been there in years. And his mother sat far away in the balcony galleries, where women and small children had to sit. It was only proper in the Temple of the Great Man on the Heavenly Throne that only men could enter the main sanctuary, and women should stay somewhere halfway, hanging in the air. The old Holy Books told about old civilisations where the same had happened, and the Great God had blessed them for their manliness and helped them conquer all their enemies. Not that The Nation had any enemies, it didn¡¯t even have any contact at all with other countries since the communication crash that led to the Magnificent Revolution, but the idea of crushing all the enemies with the help of the Great God was an important part of every church service. And very Manly too¡
He saw Paul singing the words of the hymn about the conquering war God that would lead the nation to eternal victory and save all men, but he couldn¡¯t bring himself to join the chants anymore. It felt too weird, too wrong, too nonsensical and too petty. He took a President Peppermint and sat down, depressed.
The hymn had turned out to be the last one before the sermon, so a slick man in a suit arrived on the stage, with a magnified version of his Alpha-2 badge on his chest. He stood there as if the world belonged to him and started orating wildly. Michael took another President Peppermint out of the packet, while the preacher on stage raged like a madman about the rules on how one should be a good person. He¡¯d been to church almost every Sunday since he was a child, but he¡¯d never felt as much distance between the reality he lived and the things that were preached in church as he did now. Maybe he hadn¡¯t really listened to the sermons before, most of them were quite boring, and often vague and sloganesque. But now that he was paying attention he was horrified.
He looked around him at his fellow church-goers, and felt like everyone nodded in agreement with things that no-one actually believed, as if that was the most normal thing in the world. He even assumed that there were things that no-one really understood, or that weren¡¯t even made up to be understood. It had been quite disappointing when he finally had started to examine the religion of The Nation, and found it wanting at every point, to the point of being absurd.
He himself had always believed in basic principles like honesty and integrity that they had taught him as a kid, but he felt now that he had been naive all along. Unlike him most people seemed to have a way to listen to whatever fire and brimstone the preacher was giving, and then never have it influence their actual life or worldview in any way afterwards, without even seeing a problem with that. He had no idea how they did it, but it was a superpower that wasn¡¯t given to him. He still believed in most of the basic ideas, like the preacher always seemed to assume everybody did, but no-one ever seemed even bothered by even basic honesty and integrity, let alone the other things of not sinning. And today he was raving about sexual ethics, with a manic tic and even a bit of foam on his lips, ranting as if everyone agreed with his views on pornography. But while they nodded, Michael was sure that almost no-one did.
¡®Purity of heart is very important. Looking at those pictures will stain your soul. If you¡¯re watching those abominations you¡¯re going to hell. Just one look and the demons will devour your soul and bind it in hell for all of eternity. That is why we shouldn¡¯t even look at a woman. Like The Holy Book says, just looking at a woman is committing adultery in your heart, no matter what you are thinking. So the only way to stay pure is being married, and then you have a woman that you can do everything with that you want, and it will never be a sin.¡¯
Michael felt his stomach turn. What was that guy even saying? Did it even make sense? He took another peppermint and his thoughts wandered away.
Had it always been like this? Empty contradictions, heavy rules that no-one ever followed even though they all nodded, and loveless fire-and-brimstone preaching that condemned almost everyone present to hell while they still affirmed everything in almost enthusiastic agreement? And that was only the beginning of the troubling stuff in the sermon, not to mention the blatant sexism and institutionalised abuse.
What was wrong with this rotten religion? What was wrong with this stupid country? And was there a way to really live in honesty and integrity and to show love towards all people like the church taught, at least in theory? ¡°All people¡± included women, or didn¡¯t it? It wasn¡¯t really clear. The church also taught that women were dangerous temptations that should be avoided, and that you should never even think of a woman you weren¡¯t married to. He looked at the women up at the galleries and wondered how all these teachings were affecting them. It was already destructive to him, but it had to be several degrees of catastrophe worse for them.
The music had started playing again. Electric drums and wavy keyboard sounds gave way to a pumping chorus with distorted guitars and energetic singing. ¡®God purify my heart, I¡¯m a poor sinner¡¯, he sang. And then he started paying attention to the rest of the text.
Oh Great Man in heaven purify my heart, I¡¯m a poor sinner.
Oh Great Man in heaven purify my heart, and keep me from sins
Save me from strange women so I can be a Real Man
Leading my family, being a leader, fulfilling my destiny
He stopped singing. What was this even? He let the rest of the service wash over him like a flood of words and sounds, deep in thoughts about what he had heard and sung.
¡®The Mighty Man bless this Glorious Nation, to keep it from harm
The Great God will crush our enemies, whenever they rise up
The God of Wealth will bless our economy, and make it grow and grow
And we will be the greatest thing history has ever known¡¯
*
When he walked back home from church with Paul, he tried to put words to his uneasiness with what he had seen. ¡®If I am to believe what I heard in church today in combination with what the rest of society tells me, I¡¯m afraid that we¡¯re all going to hell. Be a man, think about sex all the time, or you¡¯re a wussie. If you take one look at those naked girl pictures you¡¯re going to hell. Nice combination in which no-one can win. The theology of universal damnation, or make that at least universal male damnation. I can¡¯t speak for the girls because they¡¯re not even in the picture except for being a temptation.¡¯
Paul stopped, and looked him in the eyes. ¡®Huh? You¡¯re taking this way too seriously, Michael.¡¯
¡®That dude is yelling at us that we¡¯ll burn for all eternity for things that we¡¯re pushed into doing all the time if we want to be a Real Man, and I shouldn¡¯t take it seriously?¡¯
¡®No-one does, don¡¯t you see? No-one really believes the church. They need to be so extreme so that anyone will listen.¡¯
¡®That makes it even worse¡ Something is wrong, on all sides. Seriously.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re thinking way too deeply, bro! Theology of universal male damnation? Where do you even get fancy words like that. Shouldn¡¯t you be getting ready to meet your bride-to-be anyway, lucky man?¡¯
¡®I feel like such a monster now, after all that stuff I just heard. As if a man can only be a dirty monster, and has to be punished forever for that. How can I even look a girl in the eyes?¡¯
¡®Man, again, why so serious? You know that women like to submit to men, and do everything to please their husband. It comes natural for them. It will all work out.¡¯
¡®If you brainwash them enough maybe. But how can you look yourself in the eyes then. By the way, anyone who thinks that about women has never met Megan.¡¯
¡®Your fianc¨¦e? How so?¡¯
¡®She¡¯s sarcastic, intelligent, deep, opinionated, and certainly not like anything anyone ever described. Just a human, like us, but female. And I like her for that.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ve only seen her once or twice. You can¡¯t know her already.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve had two meetings with her already including one date, plus I¡¯ve talked to her on the evening of the choice ceremony too. Everyone was too busy with a bunch of Real Men who were fighting to stop me from chatting with her, and her friend. Very enlightening I must say.¡¯
¡®You talked to two girls at a time at the Choice ceremony? No! Isn¡¯t that like adultery. Two-timing?¡¯
¡®Nope, nothing wrong with talking. It¡¯s more like friendship. They¡¯re just human beings like us, I said. Nothing magical or indecent about talking to a girl. I talked to both of them too on our second date, she was the chaperon.¡¯
¡®Now you¡¯re sounding dangerous, Michael!¡¯
¡®I am not dangerous. This whole world has it upside down. And I¡¯m on a quest to find something more healthy than that, something more normal and natural. And I believe friendship is the key to end this screwed-up war of the sexes.¡¯
¡®But talking to a girl you¡¯re not engaged to? You¡¯re going to like her, and want her too. There is a reason we can only meet girls when we¡¯re ready, and are supposed to see our own Wife and no other women.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s nonsense, Paul. Women are persons, and I can be friends with them. I bet we all could if we tried, at least if we weren¡¯t so brainwashed.¡¯
¡®Whatever you say¡¡¯
Paul clearly wasn¡¯t interested in Michaels new way of thinking. ¡®See you next week in church.¡¯
Michael wasn¡¯t so sure he¡¯d ever go to church again. He was an adult who made his own choices now, and he felt like he was outgrowing everything that he had always taken for granted before.
14 Big Brother is visiting you!
On Saturday afternoon Michael was studying his calculus integrations when he suddenly heard the doorbell. It was only then that he realised how he had completely forgotten that his brother would be visiting them on that very day. He quickly dropped his book and ran to the living room, where his brother had already come inside with his aura of superior manhood radiating into the whole room.
Sam Adams was a big and sturdy man, a forklift operator foreman in a tools warehouse living in a village close to Tenth City, and a well-respected Alpha-4. He was everything that a man in his family needed to be: strong, successful, assertive and good-looking, according to the standards of Real Men of The Nation at least. No-one in the last 150 years had ever bothered to ask women whether they agreed with those standards, but accomplished men all thought themselves to be handsome nonetheless, even though it would be an abomination to call another man such. Male self-esteem about your own looks was a very complicated thing in The Nation, one that was so self-contradictory that Michael hadn¡¯t even bothered to try, but he knew that a lot of men found it very important to look very good according to their own standards.
When he was downstairs he noticed that Sam was followed like a shadow by Natasha, a dark-eyed and skinny woman wearing a lot of make-up and expensive clothes. She too was someone who would be considered very good-looking according to the beauty standards of The Nation, but while Michael could see that she was technically a beautiful woman, she was the opposite of attractive in other less definable ways. Even Eliza dressed up as a courtship sabotage abomination would be more attractive if he had to choose. There was something very sad and depressing about her, as if she was a person who had no aura. So that was what being married to a Real Man did to women even after a few years? She looked even worse than his own mother.
Sam greeted his brother with a handshake.
¡®Ah, my little brother is finally becoming a man, I hear!¡¯ he said, and then he squeezed Michael¡¯s hand in a very painful way.
Michael knew that letting know that it had hurt would only make his brother mock him and his father being disappointed for being so sensitive and petty.
¡®My son, the Real Man, and his beautiful Wife, it¡¯s good to see you both again.¡¯ Said his father, giving Sam a pat on his back that was more like a band of vikings ramming a village door, while completely ignoring Natasha. Her being beautiful was probably only mentioned for the trophy factor anyway. He couldn¡¯t imagine his father appreciating her beauty in any way, nor would he look at his daughter-in-law in any indecent way either. She only existed in theory for him. His father had his own standards, and in his own special way he was a strict follower of the rules of The Church. While it made him a man who wasn¡¯t a predatory creep towards women he wasn¡¯t married to, it didn¡¯t seem to make him more respectful or open to women either, or to men who were lower in the hierarchy. Women were something you stayed away from, that¡¯s the only decent thing to do¡ And only high-ranked men were visible to him, it was as if the rest of the world didn¡¯t exist.
Natasha didn¡¯t even look at Michael or his father, and disappeared very soon after her arrival to the kitchen to help her mother-in-law with preparing the food and other domestic stuff that women did while the men were talking, whatever that even implied. That was how it had always been, men and women never mixed. Michael had found it a bit strange from the beginning, but now he was full circle again with the anger he felt at the mother of little Lizzie who broke their friendship apart when he was five. All of this was wrong, and destructive, and still there was nothing he could ever do about it. Not here, where his father was the ultimate boss at least and not with his brother, a certified Real Man and Alpha-4.
While the women had disappeared the ultimate boss and his eldest son had seated themselves on two sides of the three-seater sofa, waiting for their Nation-coffee to arrive. Michael chose the small couch, and tried to be as invisible as possible, knowing that that would probably not work when they were here because of his ¡°promotion¡±. But on the other hand his father and brother were engaged in a conversation about politics without him already, so maybe they would fall back into the old patterns and ignore him anyway. At least he could hope so.
¡®Connor Johnston is still doing a good job representing the Central Computer, isn¡¯t he?¡¯
¡®Yes, he¡¯s still following it as a good originalist, no changes or innovations to the ideals of John Manfred.¡¯
Michael had his own ideas about Nation originalism and the ideals of Manfred, but he was wise enough to keep them to himself. Neither did he participate in a conversation about a criminal that had been in the papers, and how he needed to be punished more harshly. Just taking his rating and identity wasn¡¯t enough for his father, he should have been locked up forever on water and bread, and his brother added that he¡¯d better be killed on the spot. Non-citizen lives shouldn¡¯t be spared in any way, they were a waste of oxygen.
The conversation fell silent when their mother came in with coffee, followed by Natasha who held a tray of cupcakes.
¡®Ah, the joys of marriage, a good wife to bring you coffee.¡¯ David Adams said, but his wife didn¡¯t really radiate much of the joys of marriage, and didn¡¯t even smile at her husband.
Michael took his coffee and a cupcake, and said a more clear thankyou than he usually did, but he wondered if even his mother noticed. When all men had been provided the women disappeared again. He couldn¡¯t blame them, and secretly even envied them for not having to be present at this tiring conversation in which he felt like a complete alien. He wouldn¡¯t even be able to bluff himself through the conversation as he had done with Megan on his first meeting, because there was no unexplored middle ground between him and his family members, only a world of differences that could be revealed and shame him or worse.
¡®Oh, what I¡¯ve been wanting to say, dad, I¡¯ve bought a gun.¡¯
¡®You bought a gun? Now that¡¯s a manly idea. Do they permit hunting again in the hills?¡¯
¡®No, apart from the crows and pigeons every wild animal is still on the ¡°bouncing back from extinction in the wild¡± list. Stupid conservationists. So we won¡¯t be able to hunt deer soon like our noble ancestors did. But there are rumours of feral men, and I thought I¡¯d better be prepared.¡¯
Now Michael started listening.
¡®Feral men? Isn¡¯t that a urban legend?¡¯ He asked.
¡®No, they are real. It¡¯s a bunch of unrated criminals, those people without identities, but they have gone wild. That¡¯s what you get when men become unmarriable, men always need a Wife to balance their life. And usually the government gives those who lost their rating an apartment and a wifebot, as Manfred promised, but some people fall through the mazes and become dangerous, and sometimes they form gangs. And this particular gang is dangerous, they attack people sometimes, and they have even driven a colony of outsider women from their Ghost Town squats. Well, that¡¯s what you get when women try to live without men. Idiotic creatures.¡¯
Sam started laughing, while Michael tried to process all of the information.
¡®And those feral men have been seen around your village?¡¯
¡®They were closer to Tenth City itself, but it¡¯s rumoured that they attack the farms too. So we need to defend ourselves. So that¡¯s why I bought myself that new baby, so I can hunt those outlaws down. They won¡¯t be missed if I kill one either. I¡¯m an Alpha, and they are unrated nobodies so I can do whatever I want with them. That I had never thought of hunting them before¡¡¯
Michael stared at his brother, becoming more and more uncomfortable with the second. To make it even worse Sam seemed to have finally noticed him now that he had entered the conversation.
¡®Ah, my little brother, what did I hear? You''re a level one male after all, even though still only a Gamma. Congratulations. You¡¯re the first level one in our family. But if I were you I would man up a bit, and stop doing all that brainie stuff with those books and all. That¡¯s not manly.¡¯
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¡®The reason for my level one rating was my good grades for advanced robotics and sciences, Sam, without that brainie stuff I¡¯d really be nothing now.¡¯ He said sarcastically.
¡®Ah, well, to each their own then. But it wouldn¡¯t hurt to toughen up a bit. Do you do enough exercises?¡¯
¡®Every morning, when Instructor Jack yells at us as if we¡¯re going to kill enemy armies later that day.¡¯
¡®Ah, good old Jack. If you see him, tell him that I miss the exercises. If you¡¯re a working man it¡¯s hard to find a good routine for them. And we don¡¯t even do the flag pledge in the warehouse. I¡¯ve talked to the boss about it, but he didn¡¯t find it necessary. This country is losing it¡¯s spirit if you ask me.¡¯
Michael sighed, and hoped that his feelings and thoughts were unreadable to his father and dad. He was sure that the girls, and maybe even his mother, would have been able to read him like an open book now, but men weren¡¯t supposed to have feelings, let alone read each other''s feelings and stuff like that. They just talked tough and ignored everything that didn¡¯t fit their worldview, as they always did.
David and Sam Adams talked about flag pledges and guns, and about how all feral men should be killed, and then they started again about the virtues of masculinity in ways that made Michael want to disappear into the air. Was there nothing more interesting to talk about? After a while the women came back to serve food, and then disappeared again. The men moved to the table, and filled their plate with as much meat as possible. The Wives had made a lab-meat beef stew with fries, and very few vegetables.
¡®Ah, good meat, that¡¯s what a man needs.¡¯ Sam said.
¡®It¡¯s a pity we couldn¡¯t get actual animal-meat this time, it¡¯s way too expensive again I heard. They should just start opening megafarms again like in the old days.¡¯
Michael knew the whole story of how those megafarms had led to serious environmental problems, and participated in the crisis that had led to the great floods and tsunamis of the twenty-fourth century, which had completely redrawn the map of the continents on Earth, and even made the poles shift place. But they wouldn¡¯t understand anything he could say, having never been interested in science or history, so he just nodded along.
¡®A real man needs meat, and lots of it. That¡¯s what I always say!¡¯
His father said again, and Michael just chewed on his meat as a good excuse to not have to reply. It¡¯s not that he didn¡¯t like meat as a part of a balanced diet, but the obsession with meat was just silly.
When they had finished their meat the women came back to clear the table, and his brother started to give his praises about how useful a Wife was, which was seconded by his father. And then they started to bombard Michael with horrible advice about how he should handle his relationship with Megan, and their future marriage.
¡®What you need to do is train her up well. Let her know who¡¯s the boss. Women like that, and they will do everything you want and more. Really, if you just be a good boss to them, everything will work out.¡¯ Sam said, and his father nodded affirmingly.
¡®That¡¯s what I always say too, women are made to serve, and men are made to be served, and everyone is happiest when the man can lead his Wife with an iron fist.¡¯
Michael thought of the few girls that he knew now, and couldn¡¯t imagine any of them happy in any such arrangement, and he felt his stomach turn. Although hat was probably also caused by eating much more stew and very fat fries than was good for him.
When they didn¡¯t get any reaction from him they went back to talking about the greatness of The Nation and how perfectly it was ruled by men. He stood up and went subtly to the pantry to look for a glass of water. His presence didn¡¯t contribute much anyway. When he suddenly stood face to face with his sister-in-law.
¡®Hi,¡¯ he said cheerfully, trying to summon his first-contact-with-female-person mode like he had done on that first meeting with Megan in the visitation room. But this was Sam¡¯s Wife Natasha, a B-class woman who had been thoroughly brainwashed into being a real Nation Wife, and not a young unmarried Wife School rebel girl. There was much less potential of unacknowledged similarities between him and her as there had been with his two Wife School friends, and much more of a barrier. She just looked at him, nervously, uncertain about how to react.
¡®Hey, don¡¯t be afraid of me. I¡¯m not going to bite you. Or boss you around. And I¡¯m certainly enough of an adult to fill my own glass of water. I don¡¯t really need you to do anything, I¡¯ll do it myself as a big boy!¡¯ She still remained silent, but he decided to try an actual conversation nonetheless.
¡®I¡¯ve been in your old school recently. Must have been a weird place to live.¡¯ He said, after which Natasha stared at him for a while before she answered, but finally she gave in to his invitation for conversation. There probably had been a fight between two contradicting rules in her head, one said that it was indecent to talk to any man that wasn¡¯t her husband, father or brother, and the other said that she should always give a man what he wanted, which included an answer to anything he said.
¡®Yes, I¡¯ve indeed gone to Seventh City Wife Factory too, like your fianc¨¦e.¡¯ She said.
¡®So you know that Greystone dude and the infamous Miss Hunter and her please-your-husband classes?¡¯
¡®I have no idea who the man you mention is, he didn¡¯t work in the B-floor, but yes, I know Miss Hunter. What¡¯s wrong with her classes? And why are you even interested in them?¡¯
¡®My fiance isn¡¯t really a fan, and her friend even less I think.¡¯
Natasha seemed puzzled now. ¡®How did you get to talk to a girl that¡¯s not your fiance?¡¯
¡®Ah, well¡ Eliza has a talent for eh, messing a bit with paperwork, and makes sure she¡¯s our permanent chaperon or something like that. And it¡¯s fun hanging around with her too.¡¯
¡®You made friends with your chaperone? That¡¯s not supposed to happen. It¡¯s indecent. And she committed fraud to be able to come back? What are you even? Every girl hates being the chaperone.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m just trying to figure out how girls work, so I try to befriend them. How else can I learn to live with a woman if I get to marry one?¡¯
Natasha looked at him as if he was an alien now. ¡®You¡¯re weird. And don¡¯t let your brother catch you talking to me like this. He¡¯s as conservative as your father.¡¯
At that point his father came barging in.
¡®Ah, here you are. What are you doing?¡¯
¡®Just getting a glass of water.¡¯
David Adams suddenly noticed Natasha, who had turned completely red.
¡®Why are you talking to a woman again, son? Is your little Wife school girl not enough for you? Don¡¯t be so indecent as to talk to your brother¡¯s wife.¡¯ He said, and Natasha¡¯s aura seemed to shrink away to nothing again.
¡®I¡¯ve told you, if I am to marry a woman I need to learn more about them, and I need to get used to them. I can use all the practice that I can get.¡¯ His father frowned, not comprehending his son at all.
¡®You are overthinking things, sonnie. You will get used to little Whatsername soon enough, and by the time you¡¯re married she will know who you are, and listen to you and do whatever you want her to do. That¡¯s how nature works. The Great Man on the Throne in Heaven made men and women that way.¡¯
Michael saw Natasha freeze and look away, and it was clear that the conversation was over. So much for trying to connect to his sister-in-law¡
¡®Come son, it¡¯s time to drink some beer with the men.¡¯
His father said. Reluctantly he followed his father to the living room, where his brother had produced some interesting bottles of beer. Usually he would have been very interested in tasting these special brews, but today he didn¡¯t feel like even drinking them at all, and his stomach wasn¡¯t very enthusiastic either. His father liked to drink way too much, and then he got loud and aggressive.
¡®I drink to women, who give us so many things!¡¯ His father said.
¡®I drink to manliness, and guns!¡¯ his brother said. He didn¡¯t say much, and underwent the rest of the conversations, while trying to not drink so much beer that he¡¯d say something stupid. But that wasn¡¯t how alcohol worked for him now, it only shut him down more and helped him disappear into the background. The more they talked the more disgusted he was, but the two Alphas didn¡¯t seem to notice anything anymore. They had acknowledged his new status of Gamma-1 and his engagement, and then reverted to the Alpha-only meeting when he couldn¡¯t join them in their interests. He knew he was very lucky now that they were merely ignoring him, and that he was mocked or bullied now. He supposed that the class 1 rating, Gamma or not, was enough to stop them from mocking, but now they didn¡¯t have any way of interacting with him left. And they still had a lot of things to say to each other.
In the end he ran to his room, and hoped no-one would come searching for him. He had enough of the whole circus, and of a world in which he would never have a place. A world that destroyed and enslaved women, but that might also completely crush him if he didn¡¯t become one of the monsters too. And he didn¡¯t plan on that, he planned on being there with Megan and Eliza even if the world was against him. He didn¡¯t feel that like how things were now he couldn¡¯t do much for his mother, let alone Natasha, but he would do what he could for his female friends. There was nothing else he could want for the future.
Oh, and he also needed to make sure that Megan and his dad or his brother would meet as few times as possible. It would be unavoidable to have them on a marriage ceremony probably, but apart from that he resolved to never bring her home at all if either of them would be home, neither now nor when they would be married. He really couldn¡¯t do that to her.
15 Revolutions of the Past and Present
Life slowly went on in the Seventh City Wife Factory. Megan and Eliza went to their classes, and then had another meet-up with Michael, and slowly adjusted to a life that included boys, but in a completely different way than expected. That afternoon Eliza was looking at some new black market acquisitions when Megan came in.
¡®Look, a book about the Magnificent Revolution.¡¯
She held up an old book that looked like it had had its best time centuries ago already, even though the revolution wasn¡¯t more than 150 years ago.
¡®Interesting how you always manage to find things like that, Eliza.¡¯
Megan smiled suspiciously.
¡®Okay, I just traded it for some other black market things and Annabelle brought it earlier today. But that isn¡¯t the point. This is a more critical book than the usual propaganda about our Great Manly Nation.¡¯
¡®And what does it say? Society was in chaos, men were oppressed, and then the Real Men took charge to bring order and put everything in its right place, that kind of nonsense?¡¯
¡®More details than that, but that seems to be the basic story. Ever heard of the Neo-Masculist Movement?¡¯
¡®No, the name is new to me. The first Real Men?¡¯
¡®Something like that. They were behind the revolution. They were frustrated about women being in power, and felt oppressed, and overthrew their oppressors, according to their own words. But if you read between the lines then the war between the sexes had gotten out of hand. Loverboy might be right about friendship as the best way to start a revolution.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t call him that!¡¯
¡®Sorry, It just works as a nickname for him. Anyway, the Neo-Masculists seemed to have taken up literal arms against the so-called Inclusive Coalition who fought for women¡¯s rights and what they called minorities, and won because they were united in their cause, where the Inclusive Coalition were rather divided, with schisms and shunning of everyone who wasn¡¯t pure enough in their views. But what is more interesting is that the technological crisis was such an important part of the story. Usually the history books are silent about that.¡¯
¡®The solar storms that meant the end of the connected world and the Great Blackout, you mean?¡¯
¡®Yes, the third and worst solar storm, that took out all satellites and most of the internet and radio and disrupted all electronics. It was worse than the first two times, and the resources of the planet were completely depleted by then, so it couldn¡¯t be rebuilt so easily. Plus we had lost physical connections to the other countries by our own civil wars.¡¯
¡®I never realised that, but before the fall of the internet people had contact with everybody in the world, including people in the outside countries, didn''t they?¡¯
¡®Well, not entirely, there were a lot of different languages, but virtual translators were also quite good for all the major languages. Although not perfect. So the whole world was pretty connected indeed I¡¯d say¡¯ ¡®And then the solar storm caused the Great Blackout and propelled us back to an unconnected world, disconnected us from the rest of the planet, and in that chaos the Neo-Masculists saw their chance and took over?¡¯
¡®It seems that the IC had been too reliant on the virtual world that was gone from one day to another, and couldn¡¯t be rebuilt anymore. They were no match for actual weapons. And then from the ashes The Nation rose as a bastion of unadulterated Manliness. Their very subtle online mob techniques failed completely in the nonvirtual world.¡¯
¡®What I¡¯m wondering now is why we never reconnected with the outside countries.¡¯ Megan pondered.
¡®It¡¯s because we always found ourselves better. Plus we had hardly any physical connections anymore after the sea-level rise when fuel became too expensive. And after the polar melts and tsunami waves we had completely become an island. Our only contact with other countries was virtual for the century after that. Ships were rare because there was not enough fuel or material to build big ships left. At least that¡¯s the official version.¡¯
¡®Do you think the other countries still exist in our world?¡¯
¡®I see no reason why not. They existed until the day of the last solar storm. If the Great Blackout didn¡¯t kill us, it probably didn¡¯t send the rest of humanity to extinction either¡¡¯
¡®So why haven¡¯t they contacted us?¡¯
¡®Maybe they tried, and then saw that our Great Manly leaders wanted to be left alone? There¡¯s so much we don¡¯t know. And there was not much technology left, remember. The post-fuel era on a depleted planet and such¡¡¯
¡®Do you think there¡¯s still radio and internet elsewhere in the world, and a new system of wireless communication? New ways of travelling the oceans?¡¯
¡®Who will say? I certainly hope so.¡¯ Eliza had a dangerous smile on her face, which her friend ignored for now.
¡®So what does the book say about the Central computer?¡¯
¡®Nothing new. You know the story. People didn¡¯t believe in democracy anymore after all the virtual misinformation and brainwashing that had cost the country so much when incompetent people rose to power time after time. They also had seen too many violent revolutions where new leaders took over, so they decided to give the final decisions not to a chosen human that could change the course that they had decided on, but to a preprogrammed Computer that could keep their teachings alive forever. John Manfred stayed a life-long representative, but after him it became impossible to be a representative more than once, so every seven years new representatives of the Central Computer are chosen. But the system is extremely conservative: the law is unchangeable and they cannot make up something new, only react to crises. Everything that can happen in The Nation is new interpretations of the old laws. The new communication network that they built also almost depleted the country in that the anti solar storm systems which were installed together with the new wire system that connected all hundred cities were quite expensive, as was the solar storm-proof building around the central computer.¡¯
¡®And so we ended up a poor country, isolated from the rest of the world, but with very content Real Men as leaders who could now do what they want without female interference?¡¯
¡®Basically, yes¡¡¯
¡®Oh what a Magnificent Revolution indeed. Excuse my sarcasm¡¡¯
¡®But, Eliza, I was wondering. If no-one will ever contradict the Central Computer. What would they do if it starts giving other commandments? The representatives are chosen to always do what the computer says.¡¯
Eliza¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡®Hacking the Central Computer? Yes, that should be the plan eventually, not?¡¯
¡®That¡¯s impossible, not?¡¯ ¡®Everything that has a beginning has an end. Even the Central Computer. And sometimes fate needs to have some help!¡¯
¡®Yes, but the men who are in power might get even more dangerous if they notice that the computer is being manipulated. And start making things up themselves.¡¯
¡®Yes, and this dumb country is led by Alpha-1 personalities who are not really the smartest, nor the most tactful. Maybe they just need a little push to self-destruct. We can only hope. And then we can try democracy again or something like that. Give women voting rights as well as men.¡¯
¡®Bad plan, Eliza. Democracy depends on the majority, and the majority of this country are a bunch of mindless brainwashed zombies. Plus who would ever give women a vote in this stronghold of Masculinity?¡¯
¡®Let a girl dream, Megan, let a girl dream. Loverboy might have given you hope for one marriage in the history of our Nation that isn¡¯t hell and slavery, but he also has opened up other things for me. And maybe we can open up the world a bit further, and then even more. We need to change a lot before we can do this. It¡¯s true that this country isn¡¯t prepared.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re crazy, Eliza, and probably dangerous, but I¡¯m glad to be your friend.¡¯
Eliza saw two other girls appear in the door.
¡®Oh wait.¡¯
She hopped from her chair and took some books from under her mattress.
¡®I have the new black market arrivals. Here, Christina. Some boy school books about finances and an old Atlas that has the geography of the world outside of The Nation before the revolution. I¡¯m rather jealous of that one.¡¯
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She handed 2 boring-looking schoolbooks and an enormous book in ancient multicolour-print to a pretty dark-skinned girl with glasses.
¡®Oooohhhh.¡¯ The four girls said simultaneously.
¡®The world outside of the Nation. It used to exist.¡¯
¡®It probably still exists. There¡¯s no reason to believe that the rest of the planet sank under the sea or that all people died out outside The Nation. We didn¡¯t have any great Tsunamis after the great melt of the ice caps. We just stopped having contact after the Magnificent Revolution.¡¯
¡®I was just talking about it to Megan, I think other countries have given up on us because we¡¯re such a stubborn toxic culture.¡¯ Eliza said. ¡®They might even have rebuilt their wireless communication in some kind of way.¡¯
Christina looked at her, incredulous. ¡®Do you think that any country has ever rebooted that whole internet thing? Or radios? And that we¡¯re just missing it because the Men on Top have never tried to ever tune in.¡¯
¡®And because the Central Computer has forbidden it. John Manfred didn¡¯t like it. But how do I know? It¡¯s not like we have a receiver for any of these things here.¡¯
¡®You are Eliza, you can get anything. You know the best people.¡¯ Christina said in awe, and it took all of Megan''s self-control to not start laughing.
¡®You have a point, I¡¯ve never thought about trying that. But it will take time and funds to find out. But it is an interesting project indeed.¡¯
It was Shirley who finally broke the silence. ¡®Finally I¡¯m learning something here in this school.¡¯
*
Later that same afternoon Michael walked to the paper store for school supplies. It had been a week since his most recent meet-up with Megan and Eliza, and he had found that he¡¯d been thinking about both girls regularly ever since. Nothing special or spectacular, or even remotely romantic, but he still wondered whether his thoughts were indecent from time to time. Everything was so confusing, in endlessly different ways it seemed even. He didn¡¯t even know whether he liked Megan, who was supposed to be his future wife and who was friendly, open, and beautiful more than Eliza who was just crazy and fun and dangerously intelligent too, and technically had no actual connection to him officially. She had just been the chaperone. But he liked both of them in some kind of way, that was not to be denied.
And he also had realised that he liked being around girls, just in general. It felt like he had regained something that had been stolen from him all of his life, just by hanging out with the two of them now. Humans were not meant to live in two separate societies as two sexes. But alas, his parents and brother wouldn¡¯t be the only people who completely disagreed with that.
He had almost reached Square Plaza when he was stopped by the sound of people yelling. A group of women with signs, most of which said just ¡®Women are Human!¡¯ was standing on the corner, yelling slogans about equal rights for women. Some of them were handing out pamphlets too. Michael had seen the ¡®Women are Human¡¯ protesters before, but never given them much thought before. They were just one of these things people knew existed and then mostly ignored, especially men. But things were different now, and the rights of women were something important to him too now that he should not ignore at all. They were yelling about his two new girl friends too.
He looked at the protesters. Most of them were poor non-Wife women with short hair wearing shabby clothes or factory uniforms, with only a few low-rated Wives among them, and like always there certainly were no men. Like usually most of them just yelled that women were human, and that they needed to be treated better, but some of them had some really aggressive anti-male slogans too. ¡®Destroy the Patriarchy!¡¯ and ¡®More rights for women!¡¯ he could understand, but ¡®Crush all men!¡¯ was a bit over the top, and ¡®destroy manhood!¡¯ was not very inviting either.
Luckily no-one showed any inclination to crush or destroy him or his manhood, they kept a safe distance from him as a Gamma-1 man, which was probably quite an impressive rate to an ungraded non-Wife. He¡¯d always kept his distance from Women are Human protesters, being a man and all, but somewhere deep inside he had known that they were mostly right. He realised now that even the anti-male sentiments were understandable, coming from the perspective of a non-Wife with no status and almost no rights in a culture where men have all the power and women just have to obey them. The small comments of his two new female friends had made clear that the situation was even worse than he¡¯d ever realised. Maybe it was time to get some more education. He approached the group to investigate the matter further.
A few weeks ago he would have stayed away from them, and certainly not have tried to talk to them. All his life he had heard that it¡¯s indecent to talk to a woman that wasn¡¯t his wife or so. But a lot of things had happened lately, and he had changed too, even if his parents hated it. After his first little chat with Megan and Eliza on that disastrous night of partner choice he had crossed a line that couldn¡¯t be uncrossed again. He had realised that there was nothing wrong with talking to women, and now there was nothing that would stop him anymore. He looked at the closest protester, a girl that couldn¡¯t be much older than him was handing out pamphlets. She had very blue eyes, freckles and very short hair in an undefined colour. Her plain grey clothing with no badge in sight made clear that she was a young non-wife, probably a woman with no man in her family to keep her in Wife School, and no chance to get a husband. Her life should be radically different even from that of Megan and Eliza then, living all alone and probably doing a low-wage job.
She almost froze up when he approached her. Was this going to be another Natasha situation?
¡®Don¡¯t be afraid. I won¡¯t bite, please give me one of your pamphlets, and tell me more about what you¡¯re doing here.¡¯ He said, as relaxed as possible and keeping some distance for her safety. She really reacted strongly to a strange man that was talking to her, but he didn¡¯t want to follow the rules of the war between the sexes anymore.
¡®Please, don¡¯t be afraid.¡¯ He repeated in a soothing voice. ¡®And tell me about what you are doing here. I¡¯m willing to listen. Really, you have to believe me!¡¯
For a few seconds she stared at him, and then at the Gamma-1 badge, and he took a step backwards to make her less uncomfortable.
¡®Just give me the pamphlet then.¡¯ He said again.
¡®Sure, sir.¡¯ She said, trembling lightly.
¡®Do I look like a sir to you? Just call me Michael.¡¯
She handed him the pamphlet, and he started reading it out loud.
¡®It is time to end the injustices that are done against the female half of the Nation. Aren¡¯t we all human too, just as men are? Don¡¯t we deserve rights, freedom, and human dignity too?¡¯ He read, and looked at her.
¡®So far I agree. Let¡¯s see what else you have to say. Hmm¡ ¡°Time for a revolution to reclaim the rightful place that belongs to women as half of humanity¡¡± My fiancee and her friend already said something like that. ¡°Smash the patriarchy and bring the proud men to their knees.¡± I¡¯m curious about how that would look, but if it means ending the ridiculous Alpha-to-Epsilon rating system, bring it on! No-one needs that nonsense.¡¯
She was still looking at him, confused, while he read on, but he could feel her fear slowly changing into curiosity.
¡®Hmm ¡°equality for the sexes¡± sounds good, but if I were you I¡¯d aim higher than trying to become like men in this country. Most men just suck, and I say that as a man. You wouldn¡¯t want to be equal to that¡¡¯ She slowly started to relax while he went through the pamphlet with his comments. ¡®But if I¡¯m to end sexism I shouldn¡¯t be so anti-male either I suppose, or is it only sexism if it¡¯s against women that matters?¡¯ He said, and she shrugged nervously when he looked in her eyes after that question. She clearly wasn¡¯t prepared to answer that kind of question to a man that was, for her at least, rather high up in the male hierarchy.
¡®So how are you thinking to do all these things?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Well, you can read the pamphlet, can¡¯t you? Sir Michael.¡¯
¡®Oh, I can read, sure, but I only see vague calls to revolution and no real action plan. All general stuff, no specifics. It¡¯s not going to work that way. Especially if you¡¯re all going to react like this when an actual man is interested in sharing you goals.¡¯ She nodded.
¡®Sorry, I¡¯m not very used to men.¡¯ He nodded back.
¡®And I¡¯m not used to women yet myself, so we all have to learn. And I was wondering if I could just talk to you a bit more. I want to hear more of your story.¡¯
She looked shyly at her own hands without answering.
¡®So, what¡¯s your name?¡¯
¡®Eh, I am Angela.¡¯
¡®Hi Angela, I am Michael, I already said that I think. I can be awkward when talking to girls, like you have with boys it seems. Is this okay, or do you want me to leave you alone now? You¡¯re still not completely comfortable. Am I being too socially aggressive for you?¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not sure, but it would be hypocritical to stand here with this pamphlet about equality, and then run away when a man tries to talk to me, not?¡¯ She said matter-of-factly.
¡®Okay, I¡¯ll just keep some distance. You might still regard me as dangerous and stuff like that.¡¯
¡®Eh, nothing personal, but we don¡¯t really trust men. We usually don¡¯t have any reason to.¡¯
He sighed. ¡®You¡¯re right even. But I promise that I¡¯m not dangerous. And I¡¯m still a bit awkward myself too. Recently I realised that I¡¯ve been deprived of contact with women all of my life, and now that my family is pushing me to marry I know I need to get used to being around girls in a natural way. So I hope you can forgive me that I want to practise a bit with you now. It¡¯s for the good purpose of equality between the sexes somehow in the end even.¡¯
The look in her eyes changed to astonishment.
¡®You¡¯re what?¡¯
¡®I¡¯m just trying to get used to being around women. And that means also that I have to get beyond that whole segregation of the sexes thing somehow, which is much worse than I thought. So forgive me if I¡¯m naive and don¡¯t understand where you¡¯re coming from. I know we live in different worlds and I mean that I want to get to know yours. And please have some patience with me if I do something wrong. I¡¯m just an ignorant boy after all.¡¯
She smiled lightly. ¡®You¡¯re the first man who isn¡¯t my boss or so who ever talked to me since my father kicked me out when I was fourteen. And definitely the first one who¡¯s friendly and asking questions like that instead of demanding things from me. Or am I the one who¡¯s naive now? What do you really want? They say that men who act friendly are dangerous, but I haven¡¯t even met any of those before, so I don¡¯t know what to do with you.¡¯
¡®If I¡¯m dangerous it¡¯s not to you, but to the system it seems. I¡¯ve told you what I want already. You don¡¯t have to do anything. Just be yourself and I¡¯m content. And please tell me about the Women and Human program. The points seem interesting but they¡¯re also rather radical ideas that don¡¯t really fit into the world we¡¯re living in today. How do you people plan to materialise them? I still don¡¯t see it.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m new to it too. And I¡¯m afraid we mostly hand out these papers, and talk about it to anyone who is willing to listen. Which is usually other non-Wives, every now and then maybe a Wife, usually low-rated. Never ever a man. And most people who don¡¯t completely ignore us just politely listen without much enthusiasm. So whatever you are and whatever you want, you¡¯re something completely different.¡¯
¡®If you want to have equality of the sexes and the end of the patriarchy as your paper says, I think talking is the least thing we could do, not? No equality without contact.¡¯
¡®I guess you¡¯re right. But it¡¯s all so strange that you¡¯re talking to me like this, and I get the idea that you believe in it more than we do.¡¯
¡®I believe it. I believe we need a revolution, and I want you to be part of it! You need it even more than me as a woman!¡¯
16 Indecent behaviour and what it might lead to...
Michael looked around. While he was still talking to the young activist girl the rest of the protesters seemed to have started wrapping up their demonstration. A girl dressed almost like Angela with half-long very white hair came to her.
¡®We¡¯re going home, Angela, are you coming too?¡¯
¡®Not now, I¡¯m talking to someone who¡¯s listening for once, Sam.¡¯
The girl addressed as Sam looked very suspiciously at Michael, and then stared his body up and down in a way that he didn¡¯t really like.
¡®Okay, whatever. But be safe, please. Seducing men isn¡¯t your thing usually.¡¯
He saw Angela cringe. ¡®I¡¯m not seducing anyone, just talking about how women are human. Your wild imagination is running away with you again, Sam.¡¯
¡®I know men. You can¡¯t not seduce them by talking to them. Simple beasts, they are!¡¯
¡®Hey Miss, I¡¯m standing here and I can hear you. The things you say are rather insulting. We are human too, you know!¡¯ Michael interrupted her, ¡®and your friend is right, we are only talking about how women are human. I¡¯m not really seducible and I¡¯m already taken with a Wife School fiance anyway. I only urgently need to learn more about women as real people to interact with, so I thought the Women Are Human people could be interesting to learn from.¡¯
Sam looked at him anew with scanning eyes, while chewing on her left pinknail.
¡®You? Learning from our protesters? A class one¡ Gamma¡ Hmmm. Yeah, whatever. And with Angela? You¡¯re only going to learn some advanced awkwardness from her, but you do you. I pronounce you mostly harmless due to being completely clueless. No testosterone-beast indeed. But I¡¯m doing the cooking tonight, so I can¡¯t stay now. It would have been fun. See you later, Angela. And watch out!¡¯
The white-haired girl disappeared, and left them both awkwardly staring at each other for a few seconds.
¡®What was that?¡¯ He asked.
¡®That? Samantha. I can¡¯t explain her more than that.¡¯ Angela said,. ¡®but she¡¯s mostly harmless herself too, I think. If you¡¯re not seducible like you call it that is.¡¯
¡®Ew¡¡¯
¡®She talks tough but I don¡¯t think she has any actual experience with men. Less than me now even, thanks to this little chat with you I assume.¡¯
She grinned, and Michael wondered why she needed to have the same name as her brother, whom he didn¡¯t want to be reminded of now.
¡®Come, let¡¯s continue our talk elsewhere,¡¯ he said after looking around and noticing the activists were indeed almost all gone. He was probably pushing his luck now, but he felt like the conversation could go much further, and he was encouraged by her little smile. At least she seemed to have gotten completely over her fear for him now. He pointed at Square Plaza and she looked a bit uneasy at him, and then at the summer terraces of the pubs. Being with a person of the other sex is never a simple thing in The Nation, they both knew.
¡®But I¡¯m a non-Wife, you¡¯re a Gamma-1 and these terraces are all, well, segregated. Different places for men and women, no mixing. Wouldn¡¯t it be weird?¡¯
He pointed at the closest terrace. ¡®And? I¡¯ve worked here this summer. There¡¯s always women in the men¡¯s place. As long as it isn¡¯t your wife or family member or any other decent relationship no one will bother or something like that. Don¡¯t ask, don¡¯t see¡ Real Men break the rules whenever they can, especially if their rank is high enough.¡¯
He pointed at a Beta-2 in a suit with a badgeless woman who clearly was some kind of prostitute sitting on his lap, as some kind of human doll.
¡®If those creepnuts can bring prostitutes and affairs and whatever sort of unhealthy female company to the male-only section of the bar, then I can bring a friend. It¡¯s better to break the rules for good than for evil, especially if the rules themselves are evil.¡¯
She looked at him, confused again, but this time with an uncertain smile. ¡®A friend?¡¯
It sounded strange and alien after she had repeated the word, but he wanted to believe it was the right word even if they were still strangers to each other. He needed to believe it was true.
¡®Yes, why not? If you want it that is. But consent-based ethics certainly apply to friendships too. So it¡¯s your decision too.¡¯ She stared at a point somewhere next to him in an unfocussed infinity, and didn¡¯t answer.
¡®If women are human, aren¡¯t we men human too? And can¡¯t humans be friends with each other?¡¯ He finally said.
¡®Well, technically, I suppose.¡¯ She admitted, ¡®but it¡¯s all new to me.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s new to me too. But we can figure it out together. The time for change is here. And a girl I just met told me we should have a revolution, remember? And we might just make a new road where there wasn¡¯t one before by walking it.¡¯
He took one of the tables from the male section of the bar where he had been working last summer, and moved it away from the rest.
¡®And maybe now is the time to be more radical and put into practice what your pamphlets say, and smash the patriarchy and destroy the barriers between the sexes. So let¡¯s start by unsegregating this place for now.¡¯
He took a pair of chairs. ¡®For now this is the unisex table.¡¯
She stared at the cafe, timidly.
¡®Can you just do that? I mean, won¡¯t we get in trouble?¡¯
¡®When I was five the grown-ups could stop me from playing with a girl at the playground. I¡¯m eighteen now, and unexpectedly a class one male, Gamma or not, and I¡¯m not going to let them stop me. Doesn¡¯t our Glorious Constitution say that we are all to have freedom and liberty? If I can¡¯t even have a drink with you when I want that, what do these words even mean? Let them all go to hell and back on dolphinback, and let us have a drink and talk a bit meanwhile. It¡¯s my responsibility, don¡¯t worry.¡¯
He called to the waiter, who clearly recognised him and then looked at the table, at his badge, and at her short hair, but made no comments and just disappeared to get 2 Nation-cokes.
¡®Aren¡¯t you taking things too literally?¡¯ She asked, clearly still unsure about the whole thing.
¡®What? What did the pamphlet say? Start the revolution? Well, I want to start that revolution with a Nation-Coke with you here and now. Or are you backing off already?¡¯
¡®No, no, it¡¯s just strange that anyone is listening at all. And, you are, well, male and all. Class one even. And I¡¯ve always heard that it is improper.¡¯
¡®You sound like my mom now, and it never made her happy or a better person. I¡¯m far beyond the point that I can care about such things. Revolutions require some reprogramming too. So, tell me again, how is your group working to end segregation of the sexes if I am doing it wrong now? Is there a better way? Or is it wrong because you¡¯re a girl and I am a boy, a man, a dangerous enemy and it¡¯s going too far to actually ignore segregation and do something new instead of only talking about it?¡¯
She paused. ¡®I don¡¯t know, we¡¯re just protesting. There¡¯s a lot of frustration that we need to voice. You know, it¡¯s not easy living as a Fatherless when you¡¯re female. You¡¯re bound to be a non-Wife. No man can marry you, there¡¯s no school that¡¯ll take you and you know women only can do inferior jobs. And you¡¯re Automatically an E or worse. I¡¯m lucky I even could get graded before I got kicked out, most of my housemates don¡¯t have any rating at all or lost theirs. I just hide mine.¡¯
¡®They what?¡¯ Michael had never thought about the existence of people who had no rating.
¡®They are Unrated. No rights, nothing. Only a name, and cheap government housing. Anyone can abuse you, and no-one can stop you if they are high-rated. The only way to make real money would be prostitution, and if you¡¯re not willing to go there, it¡¯s quite hard to survive that for long.¡¯
¡®¡and freedom and liberty for all, except for those who are unrated, or just a woman without the right man to protect her.¡¯ He said bitterly.
¡®Why do you even care, you are a level one male.¡¯ She asked.
¡®Ratings are utter twaddle. Don¡¯t you want me to care? Why do you hand out pamphlets if you don¡¯t even want me to listen?¡¯
The waiter arrived with the 2 Nation-Cokes, and he paid without thinking with a ''Thanks, Tom!''.
¡®I don¡¯t know, man, you¡¯re confusing me. Everything about you is confusing. And you¡¯re here paying for my drink while you have another woman as your fianc¨¦e stuck in a Wife School, isn¡¯t that wrong? Isn¡¯t that cheating on her?¡¯
¡®Why would it be, I could be paying for a drink for my male friends too, and I don¡¯t expect anything improper of you in return. I only just offered you friendship. Literally. Like I did to my fiancee and her friend.¡¯
She looked at the bubbles in her Coke for a while.
¡®My brain doesn¡¯t accept it yet that you¡¯re actually asking it instead of just demanding. Men are in control. They want to control you, and worse. And I¡¯m not even talking about sex. But you know how it goes. Be a man and stuff¡¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve been thinking about that slogan a lot lately. It¡¯s just stupid. I am a man, biologically. I won¡¯t deny that, but it doesn¡¯t mean much besides that. All the rest is too contradictory to even try to follow. Always be on top of everything and never give in. But then always respect a higher-ranked man or else you¡¯ll pay¡ Think about sex all the time or you¡¯re not a man. Don¡¯t think about sex ever or you¡¯ll burn in hell forever. And so on. Whatever I do, I cannot win. And yes, I¡¯m aware that it¡¯s even worse for the women involved. Don¡¯t think I don¡¯t realise that. So if I have to take charge of anything at all it will be of myself, to get outside of the nonsense.¡¯
She sighed. ¡®I wish I could fully believe you. But it¡¯s too much to take in now.¡¯
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
¡®Take all the time you want. I need to think things through myself too. It¡¯s all new and confusing to me too but I believe it¡¯s worth it.¡¯
¡®By the way, what will your bride-to-be say about you meeting another woman?¡¯
He shrugged. ¡®I don¡¯t know. We don¡¯t know each other that well yet. I¡¯ve only seen her four times or so and our friendship is the only thing I¡¯m certain of at this point. To be honest I¡¯m not even sure she¡¯s actually interested in being a Wife at all. I chose her because her eyes said ¡°help me¡±. But If you want to know what she thinks, ask her yourself. I¡¯ll try to get her out of that freaking Wife Factory to join you and me another time, together with her unchosen friend who was E-38 on her choosing day, the last one in line next to her. You would like each other for certain.¡¯
She frowned. ¡®You are a class one male and you chose number E-37? Wow¡ You are quite the man.¡¯
¡®What was there to do? My father had sent me to the damned place to choose a Wife because I had been graded exceptionally¡ I could have taken a B-class perfect trophy wife, but what on Earth should I have done with that? It wouldn¡¯t have made it better for me, nor for her. A perfectly programmed B-Wife wouldn¡¯t know what to do with me at all. Now at least we can find a way to get her out of that hell or so, and we have something in common. That we don¡¯t like the whole thing at all.¡¯
¡®Get her out without marriage? Is that the plan? You are intelligent enough to know that¡¯s impossible. You know she¡¯ll lose all of her value if you break the engagement and she already was E-37 at choosing day. If you don¡¯t marry her she¡¯ll end up like my housemates. Or worse, as a Ghost Town squatter outside of society. Her whole time in school will have been for nothing.¡¯
¡®There must be a loophole somewhere for her, for her friend, and for you, to be able to indeed live in freedom and liberty, not? Or is there no trace of truth in between all the lies of The Nation? Is it all fake propaganda and nonsense to brainwash us.¡¯
She smiled at the passion in his voice. ¡®Watch out, Sir Michael, you¡¯re really talking revolutionary stuff now. You¡¯ll even shock the Women are Human activists if you go any further.¡¯
¡®Isn¡¯t that what they want then?¡¯
¡®Yes, eh¡ No, eh¡ You¡¯re a boy. And it sounds wrong coming from you. Can a class one male preach the revolution?¡¯ ¡®A lowly Gamma. A silly brainie who¡¯s been bullied all of his life. Who got a class one rating because of mere school results. I think you better get used to it that I have goals not unlike the WAH even if I¡¯m a man. And I mean that I want to be your friend. If I am to actually marry a woman one day I need to be able to act normal and be friendly with girls now. And¡¡¯
He couldn¡¯t finish his sentence because he was interrupted by a boy who looked at the newly unsegregated table with astonishment. It seems that all the boys Micheal knew reacted weirdly to meeting him with girls, even though they also had a wide range of opinions on the other sex.
¡®Michael, what on Earth are you doing here with¡¡¯
Michael saw her cowering, so he interrupted him so he wouldn¡¯t scare her more.
¡®Hi William, meet Angela from the Women are Human protest group. She was telling me that we need a revolution against the sex segregation, so I started with the first unsegregated table on the plaza. Want a Nation-Coke too? Anyone who joins the revolution is welcome!¡¯
The boy named William looked confused from his friend to the short-haired girl and back before he answered.
¡®Ah, eh, well,¡ Why not. I think I need some explanation here anyway. Since when are you hanging around with an Ungraded girl?¡¯
¡®Hey, she¡¯s not ungraded. She¡¯s a non-Wife but still an E, and I hope she¡¯s my friend, so no more explanation needed. People can hang out with friends. I think I took the ideas of her pamphlet more seriously than she expected, but I was just saying that if I¡¯m supposed to marry a woman anyway I need to know who to be around girls anyway.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re supposed to do what?¡¯
¡®Ah, haven''t you heard yet? I thought Rafael would have told you already. My father gave me a surprise for my grading ceremony result, and I had to choose a wife at Seventh City Wife Factory.¡¯
¡®Dude, you, a wife, really? Congratulations! Did you really choose a girl at a Partner Choice Ceremony?¡¯
¡®I had to.¡¯
A silence followed.
¡®So, tell me about her.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s called Megan Anderson, and hates the whole thing as much as I do. I have only seen her a few times, not counting the ceremony night, but she seems fun.¡¯
¡®But is she pretty? What¡¯s her grade?¡¯
¡®E, for complete rebellion against everything the Wife Factory stands for. Brainie-type of person. She had long dark hair and deep brown eyes.¡¯
Silence came back, while William tried to comprehend what he just heard.
¡®So, you were sent to the Wife Factory as a birthday surprise for your new grade, and then you chose the girl with the lowest score? You really keep on surprising me, man. And that in the week you received a class one male badge? You could have gotten a C-level wife too.¡¯
¡®B-level actually they said. But don¡¯t tell my dad. Wouldn¡¯t have worked. And what does E-rating mean? They just kicked her out of the C-floor anyway because she had her own opinions.¡¯
Michael really didn¡¯t want to do the whole story again, and noticed that Angela hadn¡¯t said anything since William had arrived. ¡®But I was just learning from Angela here about the reality that non-Wives live in. That¡¯s a world I never heard about, not even from my new Wife School friends. It seems that whoever said that brainies are the worst off in this country never thought of asking anyone on the female side.¡¯
William looked from Michael to Angela and back. ¡®Hmm, never thought of that.¡¯
¡®Thinking about women is always indecent, they say. And too much thinking is bad for a Real Man. Don¡¯t overthink, just do the stuff!¡¯ Michael said laconically.
¡®Be a Man!¡¯ William mumbled automatically, which Angela seemed to find amusing.
¡®So, if you don¡¯t go to school, that means you are a working adult already?¡¯
¡®Yes, I¡¯m working in the trash sorting center currently. Checking the robots who sort recyclable plastics. A lot of non-Wives work there, and the male jobs are done by ungraded men who dropped out of school. They don¡¯t want women to drive forklifts, or operate the machinery for some reason. Computer operator is the only job there that pays well though.¡¯ ¡®That sucks. Aren¡¯t there other jobs you can find?¡¯
¡®As a non-Wife? Assembly line work in the factory, cleaning, or if you¡¯re very lucky junior nurse in the hospital for contagious patients or so. Why do you think non-Wives are associates are mostly associated with sex work?¡¯ She took a sip from her Coke. ¡®I didn¡¯t say anything.¡¯ Michael said, slightly blushing.
¡®I know what men think about non-Wives. And it¡¯s not completely untrue. Prostitution is the best way to make money as a non-Wife. But I could never do that. Plus it¡¯s dangerous. With all due respect to you both who seem mostly harmless, but men can be extremely dangerous and violent. Sometimes the girls who do that job come back with bruises or worse, or they don¡¯t come back at all. And the sad thing is no-one cares.¡¯
¡®What do you mean, they don¡¯t come back? They get killed? Should the police not find the murderer then?¡¯ William looked at her, shocked.
¡®Young man¡ The police doesn¡¯t care for murdered ungraded non-Wives. If you¡¯re a man, and rated high enough, or maybe a high-rated Wife of a man that¡¯s important enough they will do something. It might even reach the papers. But if you¡¯re a non-Wife no-one cares if you disappear. No-one. That¡¯s why we live together in all-female social buildings when possible. Or even in a Ghost Town. Low-rated and badgeless men are way too dangerous to live with. The government used to mix downgraded men and women in those government housing projects, but luckily some of our activists found ways to manipulate things and make all-female blocks and all-male ones.¡¯
¡®Hmm, it seems that it¡¯s rather easy to mess with administration like that. Like my fiance¡¯s friend Eliza who just makes herself chaperone on dates.¡¯
¡®Most men don¡¯t think women are capable of doing any such things, so the idea that we can manipulate The system of the Nation in any way wouldn¡¯t even enter their minds, hah.¡¯ Angela said, with a smile of triumph.
¡®You¡¯re telling it to men now.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Who would believe you? A non-Wife told me? And like I said. No-one will care. We are the invisible ones. It¡¯s a wonder you can even see me.¡¯
¡®Who on Earth would not notice those deep blue eyes?¡¯ Michael said.
She turned red. ¡®Michael, are you flirting with a non-Wife while you have a fianc¨¦e?¡¯ William said, shocked.
He looked into his glass, away from the others. ¡®I don¡¯t know. Maybe I might be. I¡¯m sorry if I did, and if I made you uncomfortable, Angela. Like I said, everything is new to me. Compliments like that are probably too flirty. But I just mean it, it¡¯s hard to miss those blue eyes so you¡¯re not really invisible.¡¯
¡®I see what you mean about learning how to be around girls.¡¯ Angela said, recovering a bit.
¡®But do you think I have a chance of being friends with girls? I¡¯m not a potential danger to you?¡¯
¡®Strangely, no. Harmless due to being completely clueless maybe, as Sam said. And I would never have dreamed of a man begging for friendship. Asking, not demanding. That¡¯s weird. Nah, you¡¯re fine. Outside of any category, but okay. I accept the offer.¡¯
¡®What on Earth are you doing here, with two men even, Angela?¡¯
The newcomer was older, had also light blue eyes and messy brown hair, and seemed furious.
¡®Talking about the Women are Human protest. And doing some unsegregation it seems. It¡¯s okay Pamela,¡¯ Angela replied, and Michael felt the need to defend her.
¡®Don¡¯t attack her, I¡¯m only trying to do what her little pamphlet says. Welcome to the first table of unsegregation, where it doesn¡¯t matter if you¡¯re a man or a woman.¡¯
Pamela clearly wasn¡¯t convinced. ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter? How can it not matter? Are you insane? You men have been oppressing us since forever, and you want us all to be happy-clappy friends now? Now that is why I hate you and Sam going to these things, Angela. They¡¯ll only make things worse.¡¯
¡®But he listened and he was nice to me, and then he just invented this unsegregated spot thing here to be able to talk more, and bought me a cold Nation-Coke.¡¯
¡®No, Angela, men are never just nice. He must want something.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t talk about me as if I¡¯m not even there, Madam. I literally just tried to have a chat with her, as friends, about the protest.¡¯ ¡®Who¡¯s the Madam here? Are you mocking me, young man?¡¯
¡®No, I¡¯m just looking for words to politely address a woman, and they don¡¯t seem to exist or work in my native language. Don¡¯t forget that you¡¯re only the sixth woman I¡¯m talking to in my life that isn¡¯t my mother. I¡¯m really trying to learn here, but I have an extreme disadvantage.¡¯
¡®A level one male with a disadvantage? Come on, you¡¯re the pinnacle of privilege and then you try to act as if you¡¯re not on the top of the foodchain. I can see through your games, dude.¡¯
¡®Oh yes, the top of the foodchain. You¡¯re the expert here I see. All my life I¡¯ve been picked on for liking books more than all that ¡°Be a man¡± nonsense, and then I ended up only a Gamma and it became even worse. And now that I¡¯m a class one male I¡¯m suddenly the top for everyone, except for all Betas and Alphas who even treat me more like dung now. Sorry, I¡¯m not having it.¡¯
¡®You men are all the same.¡¯
William and Angela glanced at each other, both not knowing how to react. It was clear that William was afraid of talking back to this man-hating newcomer, and that even Angela, who was supposed to be her friend, was too shy to interrupt her like that. ¡®Is she always like this?¡¯ He whispered
¡®Usually not, but I¡¯ve never seen her with men.¡¯ She whispered back.
¡®So this is the great unsegregation thing Michael was trying to do?¡¯ Michael turned to him.
¡®Hey, I¡¯m just trying. And maybe I am indeed naive and completely clueless. Maybe I can¡¯t change anything. Maybe we will all be crushed by the system in the end. Maybe I will make some stupid mistakes with girls and get hurt terribly in the end. But if I can be an actual friend to some girls before that it would have been worth it, not? I¡¯m having second thoughts about anything that is related to the future, but I feel revolutionary today, and even you can¡¯t take that away, Miss Pamela.¡¯ Pamela shrugged, still not impressed.
¡®Yeah, whatever. Come, Angela, time to go home. Sam is making rice with lab-meat, but we got some vegetables from the Ghost Town farm.¡¯ Angela stood up and looked a bit apologetically at Michael, who suddenly thought of the fresh vegetables and actual animal meat they had every day at his Alpha home.
¡®Anyway, I realised that I still need to buy paper and pencils. So, I¡¯m going to finish my Coke and say goodnight to all you happy revolutionaries.¡¯ He turned to Angela. ¡®It was nice meeting you, Angela. I hope to meet you again. And get home safe.¡¯ ¡®Pamela will walk me home. Thanks for you concern, and for the interesting talk, Michael.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m coming with you, Michael.¡¯ William said when he rose from his chair.
Together they walked to the paper store?
¡®So you got a class one male rating and a Wife School fianc¨¦e, and now you¡¯re starting a revolution against the segregation of the sexes by yourself? And all of that on just Nation-Coke without even getting a beer?¡¯
Michael shrugged. ¡®So it seems. It sounds more interesting if you describe it like that than when it¡¯s happening. You know I just want a quiet life, but that never seems an option in this rotten Nation. Everything that seems to make things more normal and healthy to me turns out to be revolutionary¡¡¯
17 Old Books and New Friends, plus some forbidden Beer in the Sun
¡®After the second meet-up alone you have the right to visit your future wife and take her with you whenever you want, if accompanied by a chaperone. You only need to fill in the right papers and deliver them to us at least one day before.¡¯ Michael read the new paper Greystone had given him out loud to Megan and Eliza.
¡®Wow, every decision right is for me, and none for you again. But at least you have my phone number now and my family will tolerate you calling me to make plans to see each other. And Eliza seems quite good indeed at making sure that the chaperone is always her.¡¯
Eliza sniffed. ¡®Quite good¡ Huh, I am the best! You haven¡¯t seen anything of my superpowers.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m curious to see them, so please keep sticking around. I wouldn¡¯t want to go back to living without both of you.¡¯
He went back to the administrative corner and gave his papers to an impassable Greystone and they walked out as if it was nothing, much more relaxed than the last time. None of them had explicitly dressed up or down today, although Eliza still wore a grey oversized sweater that looked like it was made in an era before the Magnificent Revolution. Michael wore his school clothes, and Megan wore the blue dress again, but without much special make-up or jewels.
¡®I must say that I love this new arrangement, with or without marriage. I wish we could do this forever. Just some little escapes from school with you, and no pressure for anything at all.¡¯ Megan said with a longing look at Michael.
¡®Stupid that you need to be engaged to just be able to hang out as friends, and I wish we could take Shirley with us too for once. And maybe the others too.¡¯ Eliza interrupted.
¡®We could start with Shirley. Maybe I can switch chaperones next time, not that anyone is checking the bureaucratic mess of papers, especially not with the lost cases of the E-floor. But I¡¯m quite sure it isn¡¯t always supposed to be the same girl. Do you mind another chaperone, next time or so, Michael?¡¯
¡®It¡¯d be a pity, but I¡¯m still practising being with girls casually, so why not? If she¡¯s your friend she won¡¯t be a brainwashed human wifebot I suppose?¡¯
¡®No, not really. Not as radical as Eliza maybe, and a lot shyer but definitely not that. Not even if she tried. Which she still might sometimes after all the lessons we¡¯ve got lately. And she still finds it hard to believe that you really are so much different from the Real Men we learn about in class, especially as a Class One Male.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®She¡¯ll see when she meets you. By the way, what are the wild plans for today, mister Real Man class one?¡¯ Megan asked teasingly.
¡®Ah, My little surprise. We¡¯re going to join the revolution today.¡¯ Michael said as casually as possible, playing along.
¡®You¡¯re being cryptic again. Do you want to put the Central Computer under the guillotine or will we just burn down all Wife Schools?¡¯ Eliza asked.
¡®Hey, don¡¯t go too fast with this relationship. No premarital revolutions and beheadings of artificial intelligences who rule The Nation during the dating stage. The Church wouldn¡¯t like that,¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Don¡¯t get ahead of your weird fantasies, girls. I¡¯m only Michael Adams, and not really a great revolutionary guerrilla leader. Anything I do will be rather small¡ But since you protested about the segregated terraces last time I did my little bit and unsegregated some of it. I got a few of the Women are Human protesters on board, and my old boss didn¡¯t protest yet, so there¡¯s a few tables without sex segregation now on one of the Square Plaza terraces. Enough for a date with three at least, or whatever you call this. If you can handle being looked at a bit weird by some people that is.¡¯
Megan stopped, looked at him for a while and erupted into laughter. ¡®Only an unsegregated spot for men and women? That¡¯s all? A month and a half ago you hadn¡¯t even talked to a woman that isn¡¯t your mother, and now you start unsegregating Square Plaza all by yourself. Tell me again who¡¯s going too fast here with all of this?¡¯
¡®Blame the Women are Human people, eh, make that women. They were rather astonished that I took their pamphlet and actually started doing what it said, but then I needed a place to talk to them so I unsegregated a table for that. And it sort of stuck around. Other people seem to be picking up on it too. It¡¯s still there without me I¡¯ve noticed. And Tom the waiter doesn¡¯t seem to mind.¡¯
¡®Your husband-to-be is serious, Megan. This is a small revolution.¡¯ Eliza said, this time with more admiration than sarcasm.
¡®It¡¯s nothing, really.¡¯ He said, almost blushing.
Megan seemed impressed indeed, but didn¡¯t answer.
Ten minutes later they arrived at Square Plaza.
¡®See, the table¡¯s still there. And there¡¯s no-one now but us three at this moment. It¡¯s all ours.¡¯ He waved at the waiter, who was waiting the male section again. ¡®The usual, Tom!¡¯ he said.
¡®Wow, you really have a lot of girl friends to bring to your unsegregated table, Michael.¡¯ Tom said with something unsure in his voice.
¡®Ah, well, but this is not just a proselytising egalist but my Wife School fianc¨¦e Megan herself, plus complementary chaperone Eliza.¡¯ Eliza waved at him with her fake temptress smile.
¡®So that¡¯s the famous wife-to-be? The one who started your interest in women and equality and all?¡¯
¡®That¡¯s her. So maybe you could bring us something better than just a Coke today. Anything you¡¯d recommend?¡¯
¡®Eh, cold three herbs tea with bee honey? That¡¯s the special suggestion on the menu. The boss would kill me if I served beer to girls. You may have unsegregated the table for your little unsegregration project, but the rules are still the rules.¡¯
Michael looked at the girls.
¡®Cold three herbs tea sounds good.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®He wants a Manfred plus beer, tripel edition, and I get another three herbs thing.¡¯ Eliza said quickly, winking at Michael.
Tom wrote it down and disappeared.
¡®I didn¡¯t want a beer at all.¡¯ Michael protested.
¡®No, and you don¡¯t get one either, you get the ice tea thing and I get the beer, smart boy. Do you have any idea what the price of a man beer like Manfred plus is on the black market in a Wife School? And I really feel like drinking one today with this revolutionary spirit in the air. So just keep your drink in front of me and mine in front of you, and don¡¯t drink it when that Tom dude is watching too closely.¡¯
Michael didn¡¯t even know how to protest, and he saw that Megan wanted to say something but ultimately didn¡¯t either. Sometimes it was better to just let Eliza be Eliza.
¡®Okay. But aren¡¯t you taking advantage here? This is Megan''s date and now you¡¯re just using me to get a beer.¡¯ ¡®Life is for those who dare, isn¡¯t it? Do you mind, Megs?¡¯
Megan sighed. ¡®As long as you don¡¯t bring us in trouble, do whatever you want. Your sense of boundaries is weird but you never have evil intentions. But I¡¯m not going to explain to Greystone why you''re tipsy, understood!¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t get tipsy from one beer, and he always thinks I¡¯m weird anyway. He wouldn¡¯t notice the difference. Beer might even calm down my impulsive tendencies. Did I never show you that old research about the effects of small amounts of alcohol on ADHD?¡¯
¡®You never even showed me any proof you have ADHD, Eliza. You¡¯ve been self-diagnosing yourself with countless things through the years and none of them were ever conclusive.¡¯
¡®The research is interesting, but going too deep can get boring. I don¡¯t have to prove anything to anyone, I just take the things I can learn¡¡¯ She shrugged.
Tom came back and gave the girls a cold three herbs tea, and Michael a Manfred plus beer, tripel edition. Michael paid for the drinks and took out his backpack.
''I have something else for you by the way.'' he whispered ''an old book. a book about a girl with your name. At least she''s called Meg.''
Megan didn¡¯t look up. ''A girl book? I hate those? You should know by now.¡¯
This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
¡®No, not like that. It¡¯s an old book, from long before The Nation, and some sort of children''s book even. But it¡¯s unlike everything I¡¯ve ever read, and I¡¯ve read a lot of strange books. The story is weird, with aliens and angels and monsters and technological dystopia and stuff like that. I don¡¯t understand half of it to be honest. But the story isn¡¯t what stands out. It¡¯s about how the boys and girls are friends. Some are sisters and brothers, some are not. But they¡¯re all just friends, as if it¡¯s the most normal thing in the world.¡¯
¡®Boys and girls as friends, all of their childhood? Isn¡¯t that part of the fantasy aspect? I mean, if it has angels and aliens then boys and girls being friends is not really a stretch¡¡¯
¡®Nope,¡¯ Eliza interrupted while sipping from the beer in front of Michael. ¡®It¡¯s common in old story books, even the realistic ones. And in films from around the millennium, although they are hard to find and even harder to play.¡¯
¡®You have actually seen films from around the millennium? Where? How?¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®Tss, did you never learn you should let a girl have their secrets?¡¯
¡®Nope. No-one ever taught me anything useful about girls, not even that. They said I would like to have one for a wife, that¡¯s all.¡¯
¡®And meanwhile we¡¯re taught crazy stuff about boys all the time. And how to please your husband and stuff.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®I know. But all they said was that I would find out when I grew up. Plus boring biology lessons about anatomy and pregnancy and diagrams of how testicles or ovaries look when cut in half and drawn by someone who has never seen anything of the human body. And then that pregnancy won¡¯t happen anyway as long as you have your shoulder Ancon-chip, so weird diseases are the big risk if you have premarital sex, and then¡¡¯
¡®I get the idea. And poor you that you have to build your view of actual females on us two instead of on official lessons about the ideal Wife¡ But please give me the book now, I¡¯m interested in any pre-Nation black market book, and this one sounds fascinating indeed.¡¯
Michael took ¡°A Wrinkle in Time¡± out of his bag and gave it to Megan. ¡®I think you¡¯ll like the story, Megan. And there¡¯s something else in it that Eliza will like too. The mother, she is a scientist. A scientist alone most of the time, her husband is stuck in another world most of the story and she just does her work as if there¡¯s no problem. No men needed for that.¡¯
¡®Wow, I want to read that.¡¯
¡®Wanna read too.¡¯ Eliza said. ¡®I¡¯m gonna read it first, Eliza. It¡¯s my book, and my fiance.¡¯ Megan said decidedly. Michael took a second book with a devious smile. ¡®And for you, Eliza, a romance book. To teach you some things.¡¯
Eliza gave him a dirty look and promptly drank half of Michaels beer in one gulp. ¡®Hey, I hate girl books even more than her and you know that. Don¡¯t offend me with romance books.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t drink a heavy beer like that! That''s way too fast! And as with the other one, it¡¯s not a Nation book for girls, this one is even older than the other one, and the heroine is called Elizabeth. She talks with men without any fear, and she rejects the richest and most powerful man of all in the middle of the book because he¡¯s too arrogant and full of himself. In a time where getting married was everything for girls. You¡¯ll like that part. They end up together anyway, but only after he has learnt some lessons. Plus she¡¯s quite smart.¡¯
¡®She rejects a powerful and rich man, and he just accepts that? What world was that even?¡¯
¡®He has to. The culture of that time gave women the right to say no. You have to read it. It reads like old-fashioned poetry stuff with some strange words, but it¡¯s powerful in a way. And entertaining too sometimes. Or at least it gives a model of how men and women can have another way of relating to each other. Hmm, if they are rich enough that is probably. But whatever¡¡¯
¡®Okay, sounds interesting, I must confess.¡¯ Eliza drank another big gulp of beer, and ¡°his¡± glass was almost empty now, so Michael drank from the ice tea after giving her the old worn-out copy of ¡°Pride and Prejudice¡±.
¡®By the way, Eliza has something to say to that other male friend of yours, if you see him again.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Who do you mean? I have countless male friends.¡¯
¡®The shy one from the park, Rafael was his name I think, come on Eliza.¡¯
Eliza swallowed and said. ¡®Maybe I should apologise to the boy for how I treated him. Just a tiny bit.¡¯ ¡®Ah¡¡¯ ¡®I¡¯ve been a bit too, well, you know what I mean¡ It might not have been the best idea to treat him like that, but I was a bit carried away. I probably really scared him and, eh, never realised that introverted boys have boundaries too or something like that. I never dreamed I could have that kind of effect on anyone.¡¯
Michael drank some more ice tea.
¡®Eliza¡ You are a young woman of the female persuasion, and rather intensely so. And your little cosplay together with your flirting game is not the best first impression of actual real-life girls for a shy boy with no experience and not so much social capacities. Not all of us are aggressive Alphas who are always on top of everything.¡¯
Megan giggled and he looked annoyed. ¡®Ah, that¡¯s the fault of the please-your-husband class.¡¯
¡®Well, it doesn¡¯t really please me.¡¯
¡®Ah, I hoped you¡¯d be here.¡¯
The conversation was disturbed by a very short-haired girl with deep blue eyes in workperson clothes, followed by another one with half-long almost white hair.
¡®Early shift is over for today in the trash sorting center. And Sam here insisted on checking whether you¡¯d be here today. But you seem to have enough company already.¡¯
Michael looked from Samantha to Angela and sighed. ¡®Hi Angela, Hi Samantha. Megan and Eliza, meet Angela from the Women are Human group, and her friend Samantha.¡¯
Angela did a small wordless greeting.
¡®So you¡¯re that Wife School chick?¡¯ Samantha said rather condescendingly to Eliza, whose eyes almost changed colour. Michael had noticed the tension too, and held his breath while Eliza chose her words. This would be worth watching.
¡®I am indeed currently still a resident of Seventh City Wife Factory, but if you mean that I¡¯m supposed to be Loverboy¡¯s fianc¨¦e, no. I have to disappoint you. That¡¯s Megan here. I¡¯m just a simple chaperone who needs to guard her so nothing indecent happens while she¡¯s outside our humble school complex.¡¯
Samantha started laughing, but Eliza ignored her and went on with her monologue.
¡®And yes, I am aware that the whole Wife School system sucks more than a maelstrom vortex, but I will protect my friends when needed. And that implies both Megan and her cute Gamma-1 brainie-boy now. So be warned, dear non-wifeschool chick! You better watch what you¡¯re doing!¡¯
Michael looked at both girls. It was as if there was a shield of electricity between them, while Angela seemed to try to dissolve in the background and Megan just bit her lip, waiting for what would come next. No-one said anything while the two girls seemed to be outstaring each other, until Megan finally broke the spell because the whole situation became too irritating.
¡®This Wife School chick needs no protection, thanks Eliza. And Samantha or whatever your name is, I am well aware that the differences between my situation and that of a non-Wife working woman are big, but aren¡¯t we supposed to cross bridges and overcome all those separations? Women are human and we¡¯re all sisters and stuff like that? Can¡¯t we be friends?¡¯
¡®Equally naive as the boy I see. A perfect match for him indeed. You win for now.¡¯ Samantha said condescendingly.
¡®And can you get that Tom dude to bring me some man beer too, Mr. Equality? I need it. Oh, real Manfred plus? Even better!¡¯
¡®Get it yourself. But don¡¯t get your hopes up, even in the unsegregated section they still have gendered rules for what you can and can¡¯t drink. And I¡¯m done with giving girls beer for today, sorry. Being tricked by Eliza was more than enough.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re no fun today.¡¯
Michael ignored her and turned to Angela. ¡®Anything new, Angela?¡¯
Angela looked shyly from him to Megan, as if she was afraid of talking to him in her presence.
¡®I¡¯ve been overseeing the sorting of garbage all day with the magnetic robot that takes out the iron and ferro stuff, and I need a drink too now. I can pay for myself, I might just be a lowly non-Wife with no status, but I¡¯m also a working woman and I¡¯m not taking advantage of anybody.¡¯
Michael made a gesture to order more drinks.
¡®I didn¡¯t say anything like that.¡¯ He said.
¡®You¡¯re the first non-Wife of my age I¡¯ve met,¡¯ Megan said to Angela, interested.
¡®Usually Wives or Wife School students don¡¯t talk to non-Wives, at least I¡¯ve noticed such a thing.¡¯ Angela replied, rather bitterly.
¡®Another kind of stupid segregation that we need to overcome then,¡¯ Megan replied, unphased.
¡®As if that¡¯s ever possible.¡¯ Samantha sneered. ¡®You little privileged princesses that are trained to become a house pet have nothing to say to us.¡¯
The tension rose again.
¡®Ah, little privileged princesses? Training to become a house pet?¡¯ Eliza kept her cool, but even Michael could see how it cost her a lot of self-control. ¡®Being trained up to be a living sex doll and domestic slave you mean. While they try to dumb you down so you won¡¯t scare your husband by being too smart. Now that¡¯s quite the privilege indeed. Come and get all my privilege if you want. I¡¯ll wrap it up in holiday wrapping paper for you.¡¯ Eliza said, drinking the last bits of beer.
¡®Eliza, please¡¡¯
¡®Not now, Megan, I need to have some words with a certain person here as you see.¡¯
¡®Oh-oh¡¯ Angela said, looking at Michael with another ¡®help¡¯ in her eyes.
¡®Come on, ladies. We all have the shortest end of the stick. Even the sensible persons on the male side. Only those who enjoy being brainwashed into a sick gender caricature will ever be happy with any of this. And even that¡¯s an illusion and social programming, not really happiness. Let¡¯s not divide ourselves even more, but try to find a way forward as friends and fellow humans and persons with value. Which is what we all are.¡¯
¡®Good speech, cutie, but your words won¡¯t break down the distance that is already there, and they won¡¯t do anything about the injustice that we live with everyday.¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®That we all live with every day, and we all should try to do something about¡¡¯ He said.
¡®You surely are something different, brainie-boy. Always an answer ready with you¡¡¯ Samantha said.
By the time Megan and Eliza returned to Seventh City Wife Factory they were already accustomed to a world where they were not only friends with Michael, but where they could sit and have a drink on Square Plaza with their new friends regardless of their sex. Michael on the other hand was exhausted from the little war between the girls. There hadn¡¯t been any jealousy between Megan and Angela, which was what he had feared, but on the other hand Samantha had been even worse when she turned into class-war mode than when she tried to flirt with him. But even she had met her superior in Eliza, who was still an unstoppable force of nature.
18 Too late for Warnings
¡®You¡¯ve been meeting that boy again? Both of you?¡¯
It was a few weeks later, and Pamela had been cooking for the non-Wives of her building, and she was still a bit worried about her two young friends.
¡®Only once every few weeks or so. He is on the good side, Pam. And last time he was with his Wife School fianc¨¦e and that Eliza girl again. His unsegregated spot on Square Plaza has taken off and is active every day now, even without him. Some of the WAH girls use it too, now, as some kind of statement, but most are quite uneasy about it. It¡¯s a bit ironic: he¡¯s just doing in his own way what the Women are Human activists want to do from the other side.¡¯
¡®He¡¯s a man. You¡¯ve brought Samantha to meet an actual man, Angela. That alone! How can you find that a good idea?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s just a human who can be a friend. He¡¯s completely not seducible, Pam. And very much taken already.¡¯
Samantha frowned. ¡®Hey, I¡¯m an adult. I can meet people whenever I want, women or men. But I¡¯m afraid Angela is right about Michael: as a man he¡¯s hopeless indeed. Quite cute but too naive to be alive, and those two Wife School chicks are a bad influence on him. Especially Eliza.¡¯
¡®I like them. They¡¯re friendly and smart. They don¡¯t discriminate against anyone. They¡¯re not even jealous if he talks to other women.¡¯
¡®They still want to keep him monogamous and they keep him for themselves. Harmless men should be free for everyone.¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®Only if they¡¯re interested in you, so in your dreams, Sam!¡¯ Angela said.
¡®What man are you talking about?¡¯ Pamela¡¯s roommate Karen had walked in mid-conversation, and seemed rather confused.
¡®Angela here is trying to befriend some kind of young Gamma-1 dude that she met at the Women are Human protest a few weeks ago.¡¯
¡®An actual man at the Women are Human protest? Must be a strange specimen¡¯
¡®He was interested in the pamphlet and then asked me how we were going to accomplish equality and stuff like that. And afterwards he opened up what he called the unsegregated spot at Square Plaza to talk things through with me. He¡¯s still in school and all.¡¯
¡®And they let him do that?¡¯
¡®Yes, the boss didn¡¯t seem to mind, and it¡¯s still there. We were there today with his Wife School fianc¨¦e. We all sat around the same table, girls and boys as if it was a normal thing. It seems to get accepted in a weird ¡°don¡¯t ask don¡¯t see¡± way, even though some people are giving dirty looks.¡¯
¡®And all of that just because he read the pamphlet? All those years of activism have finally convinced one whole man. Speaking of efficiency¡¡¯
¡®One who is actually doing things. One who wants to be a friend of women. Even if it¡¯s mostly just because he says that he needs to learn how to be natural with girls before he can even think of marrying. But he¡¯s quite adamant that our sex segregation is evil.¡¯
¡®You think it¡¯s fun and all, but it¡¯s actually mad and dangerous. You shouldn¡¯t mix men and women. It won¡¯t be safe.¡¯ Pamela interjected.
¡®It would be good to have reliable men on our side. And to have more contact with the male world. If only for some practical things.¡¯ Karen said.
¡®That¡¯s what Eliza said too.¡¯
¡®Eliza who?¡¯
¡®The other Wife School girl. Officially she was only the chaperone but she seems quite close with him too. Plus from what I heard she seems to be a big name on the black market too.¡¯
¡®Interesting, so you mean that the black market traders have finally established contact with the male world through a Wife School couple, of which the boy is trying in his way to eradicate the segregation of the sexes? And they are taking active steps to do that?¡¯ Karen asked.
¡®Eh, basically, yes. If they haven¡¯t done that already, that¡¯s what they are planning.¡¯
¡®It¡¯ll be interesting to see how that plays out.¡¯
¡®Come, the rice noodles are getting cold. I managed to get real chicken meat for today, so let¡¯s eat now.¡¯ Pamela said.
¡®Affordable chicken meat? From the Ghost Town squatters?¡¯ Karen asked.
¡®Yes, they¡¯ve started a new farm project where they will try to have more than vegetables. They even asked me if I knew anyone who was looking for a job.¡¯
¡®A job? From the squatters? But they don¡¯t have money to pay?¡¯
¡®They don¡¯t have bank accounts. They¡¯d mostly pay in food and materials and other stuff, plus you can also get a home in the Ghost Town. I said we need Nation money to live here and don¡¯t want to move out, but they said if we pool our money for rent and stuff they can take care of the rest if one more more from us would want to work on the farm instead of in the trash sorting centre.¡¯
¡®Oh, wow. That¡¯s unexpected. But I¡¯m not ready for that.¡¯
¡®I wouldn¡¯t be a good farmer.¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®Just keep it in mind. It might be a good idea to have some people in the house work there.¡¯ Pamela said.
¡®Just as it is a good idea to have some people involved in the revolution. I think keeping an eye on that guy is a good idea too. This feels like change on more fronts, and I don¡¯t want anyone of my house to miss out on it.¡¯ Karen said. ¡®This isn¡¯t your house, Karen, it¡¯s property of The Nation. Of the men of the Central Computer.¡¯
¡®This is my group of women, and I think we should look out for better times and not miss the boat if would there ever be one that comes along.¡¯ Karen said.
¡®There haven¡¯t been boats in 150 years, no fuel and stuff like that. A planet with depletion of resources, remember¡¡¯ Samantha said sarcastically. ¡®Well, maybe we will find new boats or at least new motors. And new fuel. I¡¯m tired of being hopeless¡¡¯
Samantha took her first bite of the meat.
¡®This chicken meat is quite good. If that¡¯s what they pay you for working in the new squat farm in the abandoned village it¡¯s worth considering.¡¯
¡®They don¡¯t slaughter them every day. It was a special occasion. But indeed, I can¡¯t remember how long it has been since we had actual animal meat, and good meat at that.¡¯
¡®Maybe we need to frequent the Ghost Town more often.¡¯ Karen said.
¡®So on one side we¡¯re fraternising with men, and on the other side we¡¯re getting closer to the women who live completely apart from the system of men? Things are going to get interesting indeed. And that asks for some wine.¡¯ Pamela said.
She had given up on warning against Michael for now. Her friends were technically adults indeed, and the future would bring what it would bring¡ Their place in the state house for women was safe for now, but their situation was still unstable, and it wouldn¡¯t be wrong to have some more allies. And both the Ghost Town squatters and the male world were powers that you better watch out for, if they turned against you you would be in grave trouble¡
*
¡®Are you sure this is okay?¡¯ Megan asked, slightly nervous, ¡®I haven¡¯t been formally introduced to your family yet.¡¯
She stood with Michael and Eliza at the front door of his house to pick up some of his old books.
¡®To be honest, I don¡¯t want them to meet you at all if possible. Ever. My father is beyond horrible to women. But he¡¯s working at the moment, so it¡¯s only my mother. She¡¯s just silent and avoidant, and not helpful at all since I¡¯ve become an adult and a level one male. She¡¯s more distant than ever and just waiting for me to boss her around or so, which I don¡¯t, so there¡¯s not much interaction. I''m not playing the Real Man part, so it doesn''t work between us.¡¯
¡®I see.¡¯ Megan said, while Michael opened the door.
Eliza had been uncharacteristically silent and just tagged on.
The trio met his mother in the living room.
¡®Hey mom, I¡¯m just picking up some books.¡¯ He said, as casually as possible. Megan looked at the big house, slightly intimidated by the size of everything while Eliza was just motionlessly investigating every detail with careful eyes. His mother didn¡¯t show any surprise, or any other emotion at all when they came in, just as he had expected.
¡®Hello Michael. And, oh, hello. You must be Megan I suppose? My future daughter-in-law.¡¯
She turned to Megan, who nodded. ¡®That¡¯s me.¡¯
¡®I had expected Michael to introduce you sooner, but it seems that he¡¯s a bit shy about his family.¡¯
¡®Nice meeting you, Mrs Adams.¡¯ Megan said, bowing a little.
The eyes of Maria Adams went from Megan to Eliza, who waved at her with half-played awkwardness.
¡®And I see they still have the chaperone tradition too at Wife School. Don¡¯t do anything indecent, will you.¡¯ His mother said to no-one in particular.
¡®You think that? Especially with Eliza on my heels? Come one. I¡¯m just lending them some of my school books. You know how hard it is to get a serious book in Wife School.¡¯ His mother stared at him, as if the combination of her son and her memories of Seventh City Wife Factory gave an error in her head. Wrong, boys weren¡¯t supposed to explain the complications Wife School experience to their mothers¡ That just wasn''t right!
The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
He left his mother in the living room and went upstairs to his bedroom, followed by two very silent girls, who were still impressed by the Alpha-house.
¡®Oh wow, boy¡¯s rooms are so much fun.¡¯ Eliza said, falling on Michael¡¯s bed.
¡®Eliza, behave yourself for once. You¡¯re a guest at my fianc¨¦e¡¯s house.¡¯ Megan whispered, more amused than offended.
¡®Ow, sorry, Miss Adams-to-be. You want to have the bed alone with him then? I can find another room here in this villa to study for hours with these books¡¯
¡®Nevermind.¡¯ Megan sighed, looking away from her and then scanning the room. Michael went to a closet and took out a big cardboard box.
¡®So, here, all my old books. If you want something, just take it. And if you see something that someone else you know might like, let me know it too. It¡¯s just gathering dust here. He took a few books to look at them and read the titles out loud.
¡®¡±Advanced calculus part one¡±, hmm, and ¡°the principles of John Manfred¡¯s political genius¡±¡¯
Megan took the math book, but rejected the history book. ¡®No thanks. I¡¯ve had enough of that nonsense.¡¯
¡®Here, for Eliza, ¡°The history of Artificial Intelligence.¡±¡¯
She looked at the book, and then gave it back. ¡®Too late, I already studied that one, but I¡¯m interested in ¡°Robot kinetic theory¡± over there.¡¯ He gave her the robotics book, and took out some others.
¡®Anyone who wants ¡°An introduction to 4000 years of philosophy¡± or ¡°Lonesome George¡¯s lonely hearts club band¡±?¡¯
¡®The famous classic about extinction? Give me both.¡¯ Megan said.
Half an hour later each girl had a whole pile of books for themselves.
¡®And I think the rest can be handy as a start-up capital for project Pen Pal.¡¯
¡®Project what?¡¯ Megan asked.
¡®Didn¡¯t you girls say that there should be a way to connect the boys who don¡¯t want to choose their wife on bikini looks with girls based on other interests and qualities. If we set up such a thing we need some capital to start a new black market version of a postal service.¡¯
She looked at him for a while. ¡®Oh wow, you¡¯re really planning on doing that?¡¯
¡®Why else would I take Eliza the black market VIP here to see my secret stash of books¡ You think I take her into my bedroom for her pretty eyes and witty remarks?¡¯
¡®Hmm. Now that¡¯s an idea. Some of these are worth a lot indeed. And it will take a lot to convince the black market girls and boys to unite.¡¯
¡®I have my plans, but I need you for them.¡¯ He said.
A knock on the door announced the entrance of his mother, who brought lemonade and cupcakes.
¡®So you really are trading books with the girls?¡¯ She said, putting the plate on his bed.
¡®What else do you think I would be doing? Thanks for the cupcakes by the way.¡¯
His mother looked from her son to the girl who was supposed to be her future daughter in law on the couch, reading an advanced math book.
¡®And when will you finally introduce your young woman to your father?¡¯ She said, suddenly with a tired sound in her voice.
¡®If possible, never.¡¯ He mumbled.
¡®Michael, what¡¯s your problem? You can¡¯t keep her away from your family.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t have a problem, he does! He doesn¡¯t like women and he¡¯s an entitled Alpha. He only intimidates them and he likes that. Why would I expose any girl that I care about to that. You¡¯ve seen Natasha. She probably told me much more about both him and Sam than I as a naive boy will ever believe possible about how she¡¯s been treated by my male family members. I won¡¯t let that happen to her, not in a million years!¡¯
¡®You shouldn¡¯t talk like that, Michael!¡¯
¡®Screw what I should do. If I am supposed to love her, I¡¯m supposed to protect her against anything that could do harm when possible.¡¯
¡®Oh, man, I¡¯m glad I¡¯ll never have to marry anyone. Men just bring bad luck.¡¯ Eliza said, and fell on the bed again with her arms and legs spread out in all directions.
¡®And what is this shameless young woman doing here.¡¯ Maria Adams looked more tired than ever.
¡®I¡¯m doing some quality chaperoning, madam. Making sure that young Megan and your son keep their things decent. It¡¯s not really the hardest job if I¡¯m honest, so mostly I¡¯m killing time by studying advanced applied robotics. You might have noticed that his school has some stuff that the good old Wife School lacks, so having male friends can come in handy sometimes.¡¯
He saw his mother flinch. ¡®It¡¯s okay, Mom. There really isn¡¯t anything else going on here except for me giving some old books to my Wife School friends.¡¯
¡®Wife School friends? Michael. A boy doesn¡¯t have Wife School friends.
¡®I¡¯ve had enough of everything that I can and cannot do as a man or boy or whatever. Do you girls object to me calling you my Wife School friends? No. Then I¡¯m a boy with Wife School friends.¡¯
¡®Your father¡¡¯
¡®Yes, he wouldn¡¯t like it. I¡¯ve noticed so much. So be nice and don¡¯t tell him.¡¯
¡®But he¡¯s¡ I can¡¯t¡¡¯
¡®He¡¯s your husband, and you can keep a secret from him. You probably have a lot of secrets, seeing how apart you two live. And I¡¯m quite sure Natasha told you a lot of things that neither he or Sam will ever know. I might be a boy, I¡¯m not stupid about how the woman world works.¡¯
She looked at her son with sad eyes.
¡®Who am I to deny a Gamma-1, no matter how unusual his demands.¡¯ She said, robotically.
¡®That¡¯s not¡¡¯
Megan came out of her couch. ¡®It¡¯s okay, Michael. I know I will have to meet them one day. You can¡¯t shield me away from them forever. I¡¯m not naive either. And I know that whatever happens, you¡¯re on my side. So I¡¯m not afraid of him.¡¯ She took a cupcake. ¡®And these are very good cupcakes indeed, Miss Adams.¡¯
Maria looked from Megan to her son, not knowing what to think, and then walked out the room. ¡®Enjoy the lemonade, girls¡¯ she said, and she was gone.
¡®Sure will,¡¯ Eliza said.
Megan said nothing, and Michael fell into the couch himself.
¡®I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m a bit of a coward probably, everything has been so complicated that I can¡¯t handle my family in combination with you now. I know that I¡¯m not fair towards my mother in keeping you from her. But at the moment I just don¡¯t know how to make it work with my dad and women. I¡¯m still in shock from that visit my brother made last month.¡¯
Megan put a hand on his shoulder. ¡®We¡¯ll find a way. We have to, we¡¯re supposed to get married and all. Sigh¡¡¯
¡®Oh, and about that I wanted to talk too¡¡¯
Before they left with the books more than an hour later, Michael made sure that he brought the plate with empty glasses and lemonade carafe to the kitchen himself. His mother wasn¡¯t home it seemed, and it was time for the girls to get back to Seventh City Wife Factory with their bounty. There were more concrete plans now for project Pen Pal, but he was still stressed about his family and about the whole idea that within a year or so he was supposed to get married. Neither he nor Megan seemed very enthusiastic about that idea, but they didn¡¯t know what to do either, and distractions were still more interesting than having that talk at the moment, no matter how good their communication was.
*
¡®Ah, Rafael, good to find you. I¡¯ve been wanting to speak to you for more than a week now. I still have a bit of a message to you from Eliza. You know, the Wife School chaperone girl you met in the park with me some weeks ago?¡¯
Rafael looked alarmed when Michael approached him like that. It was two days after his last date with the girls, and they had reminded him to bring Eliza¡¯s excuses over to him.
¡®The one looking like a demon who tried to seduce me?¡¯
¡®Eh, not how I¡¯d describe her, but I suppose so.¡¯
¡®If she wants a date with me, tell her no.¡¯ He said smugly.
¡®Eh, you completely misunderstand her. And she basically said to tell you she¡¯s sorry, Rafael. She didn¡¯t realise what impression she made on you. She had no ill intentions at all. She was just being playful.¡¯
¡®She looked pretty scary and she was clearly trying to seduce me. You can¡¯t deny that.¡¯
¡®Eliza? Seduce anyone? The idea alone. No¡ She might have some issues with knowing other people¡¯s boundaries. And she¡¯s not really subtle. But she¡¯s quite nice actually. But she¡¯s not into boys like that even I think, at least not yet.¡¯
¡®If you say so¡¡¯
¡®She was a bit lost in her own cosplay game, and it was her first time meeting boys ever. She went a bit overboard. She was a bit shocked afterwards herself by the effect she had on you. Keep in mind that you only were the third boy that she talked to I think, and she had always heard about men being aggressive and dominant and so, you know what I mean, Be a Man and all that. It¡¯s drilled into the girls in Wife School too, even worse as with us. I don¡¯t think she expected that you would be so, eh, vulnerable. They teach that men are tough and impervious. And she was trying to defend herself against potential dangers including me that afternoon¡ Her defences are quite peculiar to be honest. Unpredictability is a big part of them.¡¯
Rafael looked at his friend. ¡®Ah, I am the danger here? She behaved like the man-eating succubus from the cursed swamp and I am the danger in the story? And you defend her for that?¡¯
¡®In her world we¡¯re all dangerous. Any man could be an abusive creep, that they can¡¯t even say no to according to the rules. So I understand her. But it¡¯s true you didn¡¯t deserve that. Although all she did was just propose a double date, as a joke. She didn¡¯t threaten you with anything worse than that. All she did was look at you while looking horrible. And even a real date wouldn¡¯t be as horrible as you think, just hanging out with her is not the end of the world.¡¯
¡®Did you see her eyes, man? And she was so close to me. She was scary for sure!¡¯?
¡®Come on, it was just an act, just like her clothes and hair. Normally she doesn¡¯t look bad at all, I¡¯d even say she¡¯s quite pretty. She was just being playful and she didn¡¯t really want anything from you at all, was just trying out things. It was her first time being with a boy and she was experimenting, and now you treat her like she¡¯s a seasoned man-eater. She has accepted by now that we are persons that can be friends, and technically she likes boys, but she¡¯s not into marriage, and even less into other things. She never expected you to believe her act.¡¯
¡®Okay, okay, I was just overwhelmed. If you say I misunderstood her and that she is safe I will believe you. I must say I¡¯m still afraid of the moment my parents will tell me to go to Wife School to pick out a girl like you did. I¡¯d just get a panic attack. You have picked a good one, but I have no idea how to do that from a line of girls in a bikini.¡¯
¡®Yeah, I just was lucky actually with Megan. My approach to choosing a Wife was pure madness and It could have ended quite differently. You¡¯re right that there should be another way to communicate with girls and try to get to know each other before the Ceremony of Partner choice. That was one of the things I was talking about with the girls that afternoon, and our plans are getting more concrete. With the black market systems that both sides have connected we can bring boys and girls together as pen pals.¡¯
¡®You mean, writing letters? As friends?¡¯
¡®Yes, the last idea was that someone looks for all the boys or girls in a department, and then they all give a short description of themselves, and then we smuggle it to the other side, and then they can write some letters to everyone they like, in the hope that conversations start. And then maybe people can find someone to choose at Ceremony night. Or at least know how to talk to the other sex or so. We don¡¯t know yet how it¡¯s going to work.¡¯
¡®So you mean writing letters with girls like whatsername cosplaymonster, without explicit romantic expectations, just to learn to get to know them as friends?¡¯
¡®That¡¯s the idea. I¡¯m not sure how it will work with Eliza. But you can always try to write to her. She¡¯s quite approachable if you¡¯re not behaving like an entitled alpha, and she knows how to be a friend. And I don¡¯t think she¡¯d have a problem crossing boundaries when she can think before she writes things down. She¡¯s just a bit impulsive, especially with new things¡¡¯
¡®Isn¡¯t it unmanly to write letters to girls?¡¯
¡®Who cares? It¡¯s manly to be horrible to people and have a marriage that looks like hell. We should have other standards. Treat people like you¡¯d want to be treated, respect everyone as a person, all that. Liberty and freedom for all men, and women!¡¯
¡®So it''s true what they whisper. That you¡¯ve become a revolutionary?¡¯
¡®Who says that?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve heard the boys say it. People have been talking about you since your Gamma-one rating, and this will only make them notice you more.¡¯
¡®I can¡¯t go back. And I know it probably won¡¯t work for most boys and girls in The Nation now, but I want to be able to give those who can do something with it that chance. I would have loved to write letters to girls when I was younger too.¡¯
¡®How, you want to start younger?¡¯
¡®Yes, for all teenagers from Wife School age when possible at least.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re really a revolutionary, you know.¡¯
¡®Not at all. I¡¯ve said before that I just want a quiet life, and this rotten Nation never makes that an option. Everything that seems to make things normal and healthy to me turns out to be revolutionary¡
19 The Good Old Ditch-the-chaperone Trick
No more than a week and a half later Michael picked Megan and Eliza up at Seventh City Wife Factory again on a Saturday afternoon as if it were the most normal thing in the world now. There still were no concrete marriage plans, but they liked this new arrangement, even though it was disturbing how much everything depended on his manly fianc¨¦ authority to decide things for the girls. When he had mentioned that to Eliza she had shrugged and said that they were lucky indeed that they could just talk to him like a reasonable human being, because manipulation would take much more energy and wouldn¡¯t be so much fun. She had even patted his head and said that he shouldn¡¯t worry his little brains about those things, because the one and only Eliza would always have found a way for her and her friends.
While he was inclined to believe that Eliza could indeed easily manipulate administrative systems that ran on autopilot and hack computers, robots and databases when needed, there was only one Eliza in a whole Nation filled with privileged men, and he highly doubted her ability to manipulate actual men with power. No matter how many impressive talents Eliza had, manipulative flirting certainly wasn''t one of them.
They were greeted by Angela and Samantha on Square plaza. It was one of the last sunny afternoons of the late summer, so they decided to sit outside again, even though there was a small unsegregated section of two tables inside now. This was indeed becoming a new kind of normal, and even Samantha imposing on him had become part of the routine.
¡®And, doesn¡¯t the great revolutionary like to pay a poor working woman a beer today?¡¯ She said, making a pose that was supposed to be seductive but didn¡¯t get more effect than Michael saying ¡®Leave me alone, Sam,¡¯ while he was sipping a Manfred pils beer that she couldn¡¯t order. All of it seemed to have become part of their new life in which a new world was brewing. At least a world in which men and women had places to meet again, more and more places had a small unsegregated place now, even if it was controversial too. It was a brave new world where girls still were unable to order men beers though, but that was safer too in the case of Samantha.
¡®You know you¡¯re not supposed to flirt with him, Sam. He¡¯s still my fianc¨¦e after all. I¡¯ve said it countless times now.¡¯ Megan said, smugly, placing herself between Michael and Samantha. Eliza just nodded and took on her teacher voice in an almost perfect imitation of Miss Hunter.
¡®Don¡¯t worry. He doesn¡¯t even react to it, Megan. Scientifically interesting when it comes to subject M-1 is that we have conclusive proof here that he doesn¡¯t like every girl in the world, contrary to what has been posited in earlier theories by more superficial observers. As you can see we¡¯ve found one he clearly doesn¡¯t like very much. More scientific research is needed though.¡¯
Michael frowned. ¡®Hey, we both are here, Eliza! I told you before not to talk about people as if they¡¯re not there. It¡¯s not nice. Not even in your mock science theories,¡¯¡¯ he said.
Eliza patted him on the head again. ¡®Okay, subject M-1, then let me say this straight in your face: you don¡¯t like Samantha here at all. As a woman I mean. Even though she¡¯s being flirty and sexy and whatever you want, and objectively biologically an attractive female. According to our best theories boys should fall for that. No free will there even according to the standard handbook. That you don¡¯t disproves a lot of axioms from Miss Hunter¡¯s how-to-please-your-husband classes, as well as certain gossip theories.¡¯
¡®Gossip that I¡¯m in love with every girl I meet? Has it come to that? I am an engaged man. And Samantha is not my type. And if women clearly don¡¯t like people who are pushy, why would anyone in their right mind expect men to be different?¡¯ He asked, also slightly irritated.
Megan now pulled out her own version of Miss Hunter¡¯s voice: ¡®Men are weak animals with no self-control. That means we have to call them strong all the time and make them leaders, and never contradict them.¡¯
¡®Hey¡¡¯
Eliza added more, in her normal voice. ¡®Don¡¯t shoot the midi-player if you don¡¯t like the composition! It¡¯s more or less what they teach us in Wife School. But on the other hand, Megan, you might watch out for Deep Blue Eyes here. She is completely his type it seems.¡¯
Angela turned red, which made the blue her eyes stand out even more, and Michael raised his hand to protest but it was Megan who answered.
¡®As are you, Eliza. And I¡¯m not afraid of you either. You both have integrity, as well as him,¡¯ she said, smug again, and she drank the rest of her glass of three herbs ice tea.
Michael dropped his hand again, and looked at Samantha, who seemed completely puzzled now and lost in between casual remarks about her being objectively an attractive female and at the same time not his type.
¡®I never imagined relationships between men and women to be so complex.¡¯ Angela blurted out.
¡®Oh, that¡¯s probably true, but we¡¯re not even there yet. I¡¯m not even sure I¡¯d call Mr. Cute Archangel and Ms. He¡¯s-my-fianc¨¦e-so-don¡¯t-flirt-with-him an actual couple.¡¯ Eliza smirked.
¡®Don¡¯t play the expert in things you know nothing about. I chose her, she¡¯s my wife-to-be, and that¡¯s a serious responsibility that I have to take.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®You still make it sound like you made her pregnant or so when you say it like that, while you two won¡¯t even kiss yet. Even removing your shoulder Ancon-chips wouldn¡¯t lead to any pregnancies at all for the next 10 years if you keep on progressing in this way.¡¯
¡®Hey! Give us some time and space, please. I¡¯m not ready for that yet.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s what I mean. No problem in any of that, but I wouldn¡¯t call it a passionate relationship when you¡¯re just two friends of the opposite sex who are trying to figure out how to be friendly with the other side of our great divide between men and women. You should have seen them when he took her to his bedroom and all they did was sorting out school books. So passionate¡¡¯
She turned to Samantha with a sarcastic smile and Megan stood up.
¡®Hey, recurring chaperone or not, our relationship is our business and not yours to dissect. Come Michael, I think it¡¯s time for a little bit of a good old ditch-the-chaperone game now. Time for some Michael-Megan time alone. We¡¯ll be back before it¡¯s time to go, so enjoy his beer for now. And order some more drinks. It¡¯s on him.¡¯
She took his hand and he didn¡¯t protest, so they disappeared together in the direction of the park.
¡®What was that?¡¯ Angela asked.
Eliza looked at Samantha. ¡®Was it me that said something wrong this time?¡¯
¡®You were insufferable, to be honest. You can be worse than me, Eliza, and you know that. At least Angela is completely innocent, beyond having deep blue eyes that is¡¡¯ Samantha replied.
Eliza had focused her attention on something else already: ¡®But look, our little birds are finally flying. It¡¯s their fifth date outside of school and they finally took some time alone apart from their nosy chaperone. Those idiots really listen to that chaperone rule as if their life depended on it. They actually live in this kind of messed-up dystopia and still they¡¯re both too nice to ever break any rules unless they are really unjust, which really is a handicap in The Nation, especially for men. It¡¯s rather expected from them to break certain rules, and never break others. Take for example the no premarital sex rule¡¡¯
¡®How do you mean?¡¯ Samantha asked, sipping from what was left of Michael¡¯s beer, her spoils of war from the war between the sexes for today.
¡®Well, the rule is there, and they even have to sign a paper that they will follow it, and the Church tells them about it all the time, the whole hell thing and all for those who believe it, but still at the same time it¡¯s almost universally assumed that they will break it anyway, if not on the first date then later on, long before the marriage. Especially with the longer engagement period for men under twenty it¡¯s taken as a given. Because that¡¯s what a Real Man does. You know that if a girl gets dumped after the first date she usually gets a ¡®probably not a virgin¡¯ stamp in her dossier, and every boy interested in her afterwards will be warned about that. So the ditch-the-chaperone trick is just expected on a date, and for more than the little walk in the park they¡¯re having now.¡¯
¡®But, they even have to sign a paper you say? And they still count on not following the rules? How is that even possible?¡¯
¡®There¡¯s conflicting sets of rules, spoken and unspoken. There¡¯s also the very important being a Real Man stuff. Be a man! And a Real Man wants sex all the time, and has no feelings apart from that, stuff like that. Which is equally important as the actual written rules. Otherwise you lose face and mean nothing in the male hierarchy. It¡¯s really a jungle out there for a man.¡¯
Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
¡®But isn¡¯t it all just completely inconsistent? Aren¡¯t they contradicting themselves all the time?¡¯ Angela asked.
¡®In a way, yes¡ And that¡¯s certainly how Michael sees it too, but the fact that so many people do the same thing means that there is some kind of agreed-on unwritten rule book too, floating in the common thoughtfield of Nation men, that most of them seem to follow without a problem. Except for tiny details, like that it makes them unhappy and destructive creeps who are unable to be a decent lover in marriage that is. But our Loverboy didn¡¯t seem to catch any of this. Plus his whole personality type is the exact opposite of a Real Man, luckily, so he can¡¯t even pretend to be one, and he gave up on that before puberty even, and found other ways to survive being a boy in this wicked Nation of toxic men. Which gives him a lot of disadvantages sometimes, but at least he stayed himself and didn¡¯t lose his soul. And that¡¯s what makes him so valuable in many way for us, not just for the lucky woman he marries if that¡¯ll happen indeed. I¡¯m not even too sure about that to be honest. But he¡¯s adaptable and intelligent enough to invent coping mechanisms on the spot when needed.¡¯
¡®I must say that you¡¯re quite good at this, Eliza. You could¡¯ve a top student if they would allow you to enter that school for brainie boys.¡¯ Angela said.
¡®Nah, not in a million years. That kind of school only gives you very narrow versions of certain important domains of science that are good for the economy, interlayered with brainwashing nonsense. They don¡¯t always teach the important or interesting stuff at all. But if you can sift a bit, some of their handbooks are quite good, that I must admit. I don¡¯t think they would ever have the quality Michealology that I just patched together though.¡¯
¡®True, they don¡¯t always teach the right subjects. Maybe with more Michaelology I would have a chance in seducing him.¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®No, it would only teach you that it¡¯s hopeless, much more hopeless than his relationship with Megan even.¡¯
¡®Speaking of them, what would they be doing right now?¡¯ Samantha asked, looking innocently at the empty beer glass.
Eliza shrugged. ¡®Them? They disappeared in the direction of the park. So now they¡¯re just walking and talking and complaining about how I went too far, or about you still being too flirty. And after a while maybe silently looking in each other¡¯s eyes or a hug or so. What do you think they are doing? It¡¯s not like they¡¯re burning with passion or something like that. But it¡¯s good for them to be alone together if they actually want to be a couple. They still have a lot to learn if they want to live together as a married couple in a year, and I was starting to fear that they¡¯d never even do that to be honest. Maybe I should have given the suggestion earlier, in a very direct way. Hints don¡¯t work on him at all. But imagine them when they suddenly realise they just got married and then are shocked that they¡¯re alone with each other after never being alone without a chaperone¡¡¯
¡®He¡¯s not really what they told me men were, to be honest.¡¯ Angela said, thoughtfully.
¡®Most men can¡¯t really live up to the stereotypes either, but they can hide it better. Plus he wasn¡¯t ready at all for a relationship of any kind, and he¡¯s still just adjusting to being around girls anyway. Combine that with Megan who didn¡¯t plan on being taken for the next four years and you get something like them. But it still might be one of the best mixed relationships The Nation has seen in the last century and a half or so.¡¯
¡®Mixed relationships?¡¯ Samantha asked, unfamiliar with the term.
¡®Yes, between men and women I mean. It¡¯s a Ghost Town expression. There certainly are much better relationships among the women couples in the hidden Female Society, for which love and respect are a given, but Nation Marriages between men and women are built on a foundation that makes it impossible to have any love at all if you follow the rules. I¡¯ve always found it a pity that I¡¯m not attracted to girls to be honest. But I¡¯m a Wife School student, so that won¡¯t make any difference if I get chosen anyway, from that moment I sort of become property of my future husband, just as I am more or less the property of my father now, as is my mother. Not that he cares at all with how I turned out, but technically he still more or less owns me. And if a man takes you out of Wife School for marriage you follow him and leave everything behind, including all the friends you¡¯ve lived with as a family. The friendship pact I made with Megan and Shirley to stay in touch even after Wife School no matter what happens is quite rare you know.¡¯
¡®So you¡¯re basically waiting in a golden cage waiting to be fed to the first beast that finds you tasty-looking, and you can¡¯t build up anything that will last. And yet we always say the Wife School girls are better off than us.¡¯ Angela mused.
¡®Okay, Megan¡¯s quite lucky for a Wife School girl, with a very smart man like him who still doesn¡¯t even understand the Nation concept of women being property, the silly idealistic boy! But if he likes every girl except for me then there still is a problem for them, not? He¡¯s supposed to be monogamous and all, even without property stuff as part of the story.¡¯ Samantha asked.
¡®More like nono-gamous for him right now¡ I hope he likes her more than me or Deep Blue Eyes here, in the more-than-friendship department I mean, but it¡¯s hard to tell with them. And then we also have the problem of them following the rules. He¡¯s so obsessed with her being his responsibility that he¡¯d never even allow the thought of not marrying her now that he chose her. And she knows that for a Wife School match she¡¯s in the lucky 0.01%, so she doesn¡¯t see any other option than marrying him. And while not giving the most fireworks I believe it could work, in some kind of way anyhow. But who says I¡¯m not too cynical, maybe they¡¯re being lovey-dovey right now in their own special way on a park bench. In the end, who wouldn¡¯t fall in love with Michael? Or with Megan if you¡¯re into girls? They¡¯re both the grand prize if you ask me.¡¯
¡®Most people in this world would disagree with that, you know. He¡¯s just so-and-so for a Nation boy, and Megan isn¡¯t very special either objectively speaking.¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®Most of the world sucks then. My best friend is the most attractive lady on the planet, and Michael is the only man I know that wouldn¡¯t be a portal to hell in a relationship. Plus he is just cute. Not cool or tough or whatever a Real Man is supposed to be, but still extremely cute, it¡¯s almost irresistible.¡¯
¡®I think you¡¯re just telling on yourself, Eliza.¡¯ Samantha said with a satisfied smile on her face.
¡®Oh, no, no men for me, not even him. I¡¯m a free woman and plan to stay like that. Marriage is for others who are better with risk-taking than I am. And he¡¯s Megan¡¯s, so he¡¯s off limits anyway. She deserves to be that one rare lucky girl with a decent marriage in this rotten world.¡¯
¡®Yeah, sure¡¡¯ Samantha said, finishing Michael''s beer.
While their friends were doing a rather disturbing analysis of their relationship, Megan and Michael didn¡¯t do much more than slowly walk through the park alone without saying much, and after a while they just sat on the bench together.
¡®Sorry for dragging you along like that, but even Eliza can be irritating sometimes, and I just felt like being actually alone with you after all that nonsense. Just being with you, you know.¡¯
¡®I must say I¡¯m surprised, I never thought you¡¯d ever ditch Eliza for me, but yes, she was being a bit irritating.¡¯
¡®The most unmarriable girl in Wife School according to Greystone, and he might not be completely wrong, seeing his definition of marriage.¡¯
¡®Since when did that guy become an authority on relationships? But you seem bothered with what she said. Was it how she said I like all girls I know except for Sam? Or because we don¡¯t seem to have enough of a romantic relationship yet for her?¡¯
¡®Well, is she wrong on either? And I know it¡¯s my fault too, I readily admit. I¡¯ve been slowing down our relationship indefinitely myself, while you are still enjoying getting used to girls, surrounded by all those very likable female creatures plus Sam. We¡¯re quite the hopeless couple, aren¡¯t we?¡¯ Megan said.
He took her hand. ¡®But we are a couple. We have to be! And you don¡¯t have to fear me liking someone else more. You are beautiful, and I love you in several ways, and it will certainly not be a punishment if they force us tomorrow to marry and live together. We¡¯d still be a million times luckier than all of the Nation couples that I know. I do like you, and I love you.¡¯
He gave her a hug.
¡®I know, Mister Archangel. I can¡¯t say that I don¡¯t love you. And it¡¯s not a punishment to be with you at all. But I¡¯m still wondering¡ Would we have chosen each other without the whole Wife School thing? If your childhood friend little Lizzie had been in a better mood that day you might be talking about taking responsibility for her now because you had chosen her. You know what I mean?¡¯
Michael held her closer.
¡®I doesn¡¯t matter what could have been. I could have gone to the B-floor too, or ran out in a panic attack without even choosing a girl. Time is full of chaos and accidents, and then you make the best of it. We¡¯re together now, officially, and we¡¯re going to figure it out together. And we might need some more alone time here and there too to be more of a couple, it¡¯s not like Eliza is going to sleep between us after we¡¯re married¡ We¡¯ll really be living together then.¡¯
¡®True, but be assured I¡¯ll have to ditch you every now and then for a pyjama party with her and Shirley too. The oath of sisterhood of the Wife School trio is also sacred.¡¯
¡®You sneak away with me from her to tell me that? Whose side are you even on? I thought you wanted me to have you more as a priority?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s part of the exclusive things I will gain if you¡¯re the man I marry. It means I can keep my girlfriends and even share them with you as friends. You don¡¯t know how much that means. I¡¯m still relieved with the friendship pact that we made, and I know you¡¯re not going to hinder me in that. But you¡¯re right. I¡¯m being a very bad Wife right now.¡¯ ¡®You¡¯re not a Wife, you¡¯re a fianc¨¦e¡¡¯
¡®For now. But that¡¯ll change over time.¡¯ She said darkly.
He saw the sad look in her eyes. ¡®We¡¯re both just not ready and still confused. And the fact that you can open up like that to me being a boy means that our relationship is quite good I¡¯d say.¡¯
¡®Maybe you¡¯re just the first boy in The Nation who got the chance to learn girl friendships? Who says it¡¯s anything more than that?¡¯
¡®Come on, I¡¯m overwhelmed by how good we are together, and you get all cynical again. Don¡¯t be like that. You are so much more than I ever believed a girl could be. And I like being with you, and I hate you being sad.¡¯
¡®Sorry, I¡¯m a bit of a moodkiller on our first time alone, ain¡¯t I?¡¯
¡®Come, hold me until we¡¯re both no longer sad. And know that I never want to live without you!¡¯ He said, and they sat very closely together for quite a while before they returned to Square Plaza.
20 Project Pen Pal
Two weeks later Michael was reading his way through a copy of ¡®how to please your husband: advanced lessons¡¯ inside in the bar. He had worked hard with Eliza and Megan to make more concrete plans for the Pen Pal project to connect boys and girls in The Nation, and now he would meet two black market representatives to connect both sides for the first time in the history of The Nation. He was just reading what a dedicated Wife had to do when her husband came home after a long workday when a female voice took him out of his hyperfocus.
¡®You must be Michael Adams.¡¯
He looked up and saw a young woman in her twenties with a briefcase and realised that it would be too late to hide what he was reading.
¡®That¡¯s me, nice to meet you. You must be Eliza¡¯s higher-up black market trader contact.¡¯ He said casually.
¡®Andrea McDonald, trade networker. Eliza said I had to ask for the password. Not that I think there will be many men of her age reading rather mature Wife School handbooks here.¡¯
His face reddened a bit when he put away his book. ¡®I¡¯m studying what anti-male stereotypes I have to counteract. And it¡¯s not really a fun read. This copy is for your male colleague anyway, it¡¯s quite valuable on the other side of the black market. And the password is ¡°Only Love Can Destroy Hate¡±.¡¯
Andrea nodded. ¡®Yup, that¡¯s Eliza. Who else would come up with that? It was a quote from some 20th century saint I think, one that wouldn¡¯t be liked much by The Church today though. She¡¯s one of our most curious clients and contacts, that little Wife School girl.¡¯ She said.
¡®It¡¯s about the meaning of the words. And there¡¯s a second part: do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯ Michael said, and Andrea nodded again.
¡®I do. It¡¯s rather radical ,but maybe that¡¯s what our times ask for. Was that pledge really Eliza¡¯s own invention?¡¯ He shrugged.
¡®I think so, she proposed it herself at least. It¡¯s clear that she means it and wants us all to mean it. So whether it¡¯s 100% her words or taken from elsewhere, it comes straight from her heart.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s just casually writing history if this catches on. And not just by asking me to have a drink with a random dude that¡¯s already engaged. I mean me, who hasn¡¯t even talked to a man man and who graduated Wife School as a single woman years ago, and whose biggest income is the black market, and certainly not my lousy day job.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a non-Wife in a low-paying job? You don¡¯t look like one.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s more a tactical decision, like how Eliza¡¯s still in a Wife School. Through the cleaning firm it¡¯s easy to infiltrate Wife Schools and other places.¡¯
¡®That drink is a good idea by the way.¡¯ He waved at Tom, and they ordered two Nation-cokes. ¡®And I¡¯m not really random at all. This wouldn¡¯t work with every man. My brother and father would see it as a capital offence against Real Manhood to only talk to you I suppose. And those are still the men who don¡¯t use women as sex objects. But for them rated non-Wives are a threat, you know what I mean. And they would find Eliza¡¯s pledge subversive nonsense for wussies. Hierarchy and status is everything for them. And if you¡¯re not a man who¡¯s high enough on the latter you don¡¯t deserve friendliness, or even being treated as a human being. Or you can hunt them down with a rifle if they are unrated feral men.¡¯
He told about his brother¡¯s gun and the attacks of the feral men.
¡®Ah, but that story is not correct. It¡¯s much more complicated what happened in Tenth City Ghost Town. When the feral men attacked Tenth City Ghost town the sisters there evacuated everyone temporary to another part of the squat village, only to take it back a few days later, by surprise. The ferals were all captured, and dropped in faraway forest in groups of 2 without any weapons, and the most aggressive of them and the leaders were nicely delivered to the police station, stunned and bound, packed as a present with pink ribbons. The sisters may never kill anyone if they can avoid it, but rest assured that they are neither harmless nor defenceless, and they have their own weapons to take you out. No-one knows how they do it. Some kind of sleeping gas or so.¡¯ He leaned back. ¡®One more reason to respect them.¡¯
¡®A level one man respecting the Ghost Town women after hearing that, instead of fearing them? Good match with Eliza¡¯ Andrea said, thoughtfully.
¡®Hey, we¡¯re just friends. She¡¯s not my Wife School match at all.¡¯
¡®There¡¯s no ¡°just¡± here when it comes to friendship between men and women, dear boy, the friendship is what makes it dangerous, and interesting. You can¡¯t go more revolutionary than that.¡¯
Tom came with two drinks. ¡®One Nation-Coke for you, and one for your new lady friend,¡¯ he said with a sarcastic undertone in his voice.
¡®Stop insinuating things, Tom. I¡¯ll always be faithful to my fianc¨¦e, even if I have a lot of female friends. And this is just an important business negotiation anyway.¡¯
Tom disappeared with a grin on his face.
¡®He thinks it unhealthy that I¡¯m meeting so much women¡ Probably also a problem with the ¡°just friends¡± idea¡¡¯ He sighed.
¡®Who doesn¡¯t in this Nation? Do you blame him for that? He doesn¡¯t look like an actual women-hater. I would¡¯ve felt that. I think he¡¯s just a bit jealous. I gather he¡¯s still single?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s single I think. And you¡¯re right that he isn¡¯t toxic like my brother or dad. Maybe I should introduce him to the girls. His sarcasm is a language they understand, and they like it more than the usual commands or remarks about their appearance that they usually get from men, and it¡¯s mostly aimed at me anyway, not at them.¡¯ He sipped from his Coke.
¡®Men are really not what I expected.¡¯ Andrea said.
¡®I¡¯m not ¡°men¡±, I¡¯m just me. Every man is a different person just like every woman. It¡¯s wrong to think people are stereotypes. But let¡¯s get down to business. I suppose Eliza told you about Project Pen Pal?¡¯ Michael said.
¡®She did, and I must say not everyone is equally enthusiastic about it, but it made me very curious about what man was able to make her connect our two different sides. They¡¯ve always called her Eliza the man-hater, even in the Ghost Towns they know her by that name. And still she was very positive about you, and now you¡¯re sitting here as a man talking about Ghost Towns and Wife School books as if it¡¯s the most normal thing in the world. That alone means there is some potential for this thing I¡¯s say. Even if it¡¯s just for some oddballs and outliers, but those are our target demographic anyway as black market traders.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not that special, but maybe oddball and outlier is not that inaccurate. Gamma-1 and brainie, and the opposite of a Real Man, but I¡¯m very real and undoubtedly I¡¯m only a simple man. But there will be a lot of more Real Men who see it differently.¡¯ He shivered, thinking of Don and John.
¡®Be assured that you are a rather special specimen indeed, Mister Adams who declared himself not random at all a minute ago. Oh, and by the way, it seems you were the one who finally gave us the first meeting questionnaire too, and so solved an age-old mystery. We were looking at that paper together for quite a while in astonishment in the secret warehouse.¡¯
¡®I completely forgot about. That was me inded. Stupid list anyway. And the biggest obstacles I have in being friends with girls are not the girls themselves but our stupid society and the nonsensical Be-a-Man stuff that wants me to be the worst possible version of myself.¡¯
Andrea smiled. ¡®I start to understand what Eliza meant with a pledge to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status. But I¡¯m not sure that the Central Computer will like it. And a lot of men and women will be opposed to the idea alone.¡¯
¡®The Central Computer had no feelings, and its followers are trained to never use their own brains. But we¡¯re breaking no explicit rules. Eliza has investigated it, and it seems she¡¯s quite knowledgeable about laws too among other things. Only the unwritten rules about what is decent and proper are our problem. Girls reading advanced robotics handbooks are already a breach of those rules anyway¡¡¯
She smiled. ¡®I know, Eliza herself has given me copies of extracts of the law book. Just as she did years ago about the black market itself. She was interesting for us the moment she ordered her first book at the age of twelve.¡¯ ¡®So we¡¯re technically not breaking rules, but you¡¯re doing things that are not planned nor recommended by the Central Computer with the black market. Its blind conservativeness is on our side here, since they will not make new laws against new stuff. The original Central Computer doctrine is more important, no innovations you know.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®I know that originalism is a bit boring, but it¡¯s also clueless sometimes against new situations. No-one says that we can¡¯t do innovations against which their program has no answers. It¡¯s time to change the narrative and let that old machine¡¯s head explode.¡¯ He added.
¡®By letting boys and girls write letters? Original revolution¡ Where are the guns and bombs?¡¯
¡®Hey, I always say that I just want a quiet life, but everything that makes sense to me is revolutionary to The Nation, and guns and bombs don¡¯t make me comfortable at all,¡¯ he sighed, and then he stood up from his chair to welcome a newcomer who had entered the room.
¡®And there we have number two for our historical moment. He took a step to shake the hand of a young man, only slightly older than himself.
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
¡®And here is Joe Roberts. Black market trader and expert adviser on the other side of the great divide between the sexes. I¡¯ve had some talk with him before, and I promised him some stuff too. Joe, what¡¯s the password?¡¯
¡®Only Love Can Destroy Hate¡¯ Joe mumbled.
¡®And do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯
¡®I understand that I have to, so I do.¡¯ ¡®Here¡¯s you¡¯re colleague from the other side, Andrea McDonald. High-ranking trader in the female world.¡¯ Joe took a clumsy bow. ¡®Nice to meet you, mylady,¡¯
Michael promptly added ¡®you have to forgive us our clumsiness in being polite to women, we¡¯re making things up on the spot that don¡¯t even exist in our culture, you know.¡¯
She smiled. ¡®Eliza told me that too. But everything is better than the usual treatment, so experiment with honorifics all you want, I don¡¯t mind being called lady Andrea at all¡ I never imagined that talking to men could be fun even.¡¯
When they were both seated Michael took some papers. ¡®So, now that you both know each other, I will give you both some payments from me and Eliza, and you both can arrange how to connect both markets. It will shake up things, and even devalue some valuables, but with a connected black market it might get a lot more interesting and there¡¯s a whole world of new possibilities too that makes up for a lower price of men beers on the female side.¡¯ Both traders nodded while he took out a big bag of books that he had collected from his room and some men beer for Andrea, and a pile of Wife School books, cookbooks and some fruit beers for Joe.
¡®It¡¯s stupid but Eliza says that men beer are very valuable on the female black market. And it might be strange too, but there¡¯s quite a few men who want to learn how to cook it seems, and these books are only sold to women for some reason. The gatekeepers of the sexes are so arbitrary in what is for who, but they¡¯re real and aggressive, and the black market is one thing that can defeat them. So this is a first trade from Team Michael and Eliza to bring together both sides, together with your addresses and phone numbers. Make sure that Tom doesn¡¯t see the exchange of beers though. His poor soul isn¡¯t ready for that.¡¯
The eyes of both traders lit up when they looked at their goods, and for a while they did nothing but looking at the books they had received in delight.
Half an hour later they hadn¡¯t just talked about Project Pen Pal, but also a established a whole plan to trade books, tools, drinks, and even make-up. It seemed that both Joe and Andrea, while careful and even a bit insecure about talking to the other sex, were quite thrilled with the new developments. There would be so much possibilities with both black markets connected, and expanded to an alternative postal service for boys and girls in their schools. A whole Pen Pal introduction system in which boys and girls described themselves and then could be written by someone who wanted to get to know them was also agreed on. Eliza had even arranged a way to print a flyer about the project that could be distributed in the schools.
While officially the focus was on forming friendships, they all knew what Eliza had invented: a system to circumvent the whole Ceremony of Partner Choice system, by picking out a partner beforehand from your pen pals. It was simple and revolutionary, and it would greatly increase the chance on a marriage that could work. Eliza had even invented a little pin that girls could wear on their bikini, to show those who knew that they were taken already, even though it would take a while before such a system would be able to lead to actual friendships and later potential couples.
It was still far from perfect, for example in that another boy could still choose a girl with a Pen Pal pin, but Eliza had expected that once they heard about it the boys who wanted a submissive wife would learn to avoid the Pen Pal girls, and interpret the badge as a damaged-goods-light stamp. A Pen Pal girl would be in contact with other boys already, would be too independent, and not what a traditional nation man would want. Poor old Manfred would roll over in his grave if he saw how his system became subverted, but anyone with only a few braincells should know by now that his experiment had failed, and that it was time to try something new.
*
That same afternoon Megan was staring at the blackboard in ultimate boredom. ¡®And that is how we manage to keep procreation within marriage in our Nation, as it should,¡¯ Miss Hunter said, drawing diagrams on the schoolboard. ¡®our glorious Ancon shoulder patches!¡¯
¡®Why does everyone in this stupid country have to be glorious or magnificent and other idiotic superlatives?¡¯ Megan whispered to Eliza.
¡®You would do better to be silent now, Megan Anderson.¡¯ Miss Hunter said. ¡®You¡¯re on the list to get married within a year, and your results are really not so impressive for a girl of your intelligence. How will you ever become a decent Wife like that if your grades get worse just before graduating? Our school can¡¯t supply a Gamma-one man with a badly-trained wife! That would be bad for our reputation.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t you think I haven¡¯t heard all of this a thousand times, Miss Hunter? This isn¡¯t going to help me become a better Wife at all.¡¯
Miss Hunter fell back into her chair. The E-girls were the hardest students to keep in line indeed. Usually because they weren¡¯t the brightest flame in the chandelier, but this class had some very sophisticated rebellious elements too, which she had tolerated too much already.
¡®Neither will any high-rated husband like yours ever allow such brutality, Megan. But if you¡¯re such an expert, Miss Anderson, tell us everything about the Ancom shoulder chip.¡¯
Megan took a deep breath.
¡®Every twelve year old gets one, and it can work for a lifetime. It is the most perfected from of anticonception ever in the history of our species. Glorious and Magnificent and all that jazz, whatever jazz is even supposed to be. And no matter what happens you¡¯ll never get pregnant, because it blocks the gametes from fusing. Both the Wife and the Husband have the chip, so both sperm cells and the ovum are disabled. Even fornication or rape will never lead to pregnancy, as you¡¯ll never conceive unless both partners are officially cleared for procreated and released of their Ancon-chips. This means that there are no unwanted pregnancies in The Nation, which keeps our society ordered and yadda yadda. For 98,7% of the people the infertility is completely reversible, unlike the earlier pre-Nation versions that were less stable. So if a couple is cleared for procreation, normally the fertility will be back within two months, and the woman can get pregnant if they have sexual intercourse during the ovulation phase of¡¡¯
She talked on as if she was reading some newspaper article, much to Miss Hunter¡¯s annoyance, who finally got up from her chair and clapped in her hands. ¡®Yes, yes. That¡¯s enough, Megan. You know your lesson indeed, You don¡¯t need to show off.¡¯
¡®But, Miss Hunter, you asked me¡¡¯
¡®Nevermind, Megan. By the way, did you get your information pack about marriage yet?¡¯
¡®My what?¡¯
¡®You should have received it, but it seems something logistically has happened. The package with the extra books about legal procedures around marriage, extra tips on man husbandry, and advanced Wife techniques. Plus some checklists with everything that needs to be ready before the big day¡¡¯
Megans enthusiasm took a plunge in the deep and she just nodded mechanically. She wasn¡¯t in the mood to think of weddings, let alone the prospect of leaving Seventh City Wife School to become an actual Wife. But the thing that scared her even more about wedding preparations was that she feared that her father would have to be involved. Her father, and his father too. Living together with Michael wouldn¡¯t be the problem, all the rest was. He was just like her best girl friends in how he made her feel at home and took away her social anxiety.
¡®Even with all the lessons we provide to prepare you, you¡¯ll find being married to a man a completely different experience, and one that you cannot in any way prepare for. Men are complex creatures that are completely unlike us, women¡¡¯
¡®The ones I talked to had more sense than you. And they seemed pretty human.¡¯
Everyone heard Eliza say it, and all eyes turned to her.
¡®Eliza, don¡¯t make a fool of yourself again.¡¯
¡®Okay, okay. I¡¯ll retract earlier statement. Men are weird entitled oversexed animals that are utterly irrational and have a bad temper and we need to put up with every little whim they have. Oh and on the other side they¡¯re superior and more rational than us, and thus worthy of being leaders, unlike us women who are silly and stupid and not trustworthy because we have feelings and hormones an all. And men are better because they have testosterone, which is not at all a hormone evidently¡ Just as anger isn¡¯t an emotion at all and always justified in a man, even when all of our female emotions make us irrational and less stable¡¡¯
¡®Eliza!¡¯
¡®Sorry, that was the short version of what I¡¯ve learned from you in all those years. It¡¯s still utter twaddle. Talking to decent boys taught me other things though, and while I still don¡¯t plan on ever getting married I have to admit that there are at least two or three or so on the planet that are worth being friends with.¡¯
¡®Eliza!¡¯
She got up. ¡®Okay, I¡¯ll remove myself from this class, Miss Hunter.¡¯ She said, walking out of the classroom, leaving behind a fuming teacher and an amused class once again.
Eliza sighed while she slammed the door behind her. This had been such a waste of time again. She went straight to her dorm room to read some new letters, and write others. There were so many things she had to arrange, and the time was short.
*
¡®Son, it¡¯s time to talk about your future.¡¯ David Adams suddenly said to his son while eating breakfast the next morning.
¡®What do you mean?¡¯ Michael asked, taken aback.
¡®If you¡¯re going to get married, you need to find a new place to live with her.¡¯
He felt his insides freeze up. ¡®But, it¡¯s way too early to think of such things now. I can¡¯t marry yet. The Wife School procedure is at least one year if you¡¯re under twenty. And I have to study. I can¡¯t go live alone with Megan as a student, I don¡¯t have any money.¡¯
¡®Well, sonny. I don¡¯t have too much extra money either for fancy schools, and you¡¯re a man now, who will marry soon. It¡¯ll cost me enough already to organise a wedding, so we can better do that as soon as possible so we¡¯re done with that, and then you can fly on your own wings.¡¯
¡®But I need to study for at least four more years for your diploma. I can¡¯t get a job now.¡¯
¡®Well, there¡¯s always the scholarship system for students on their own. And maybe your wifey can find a job for the first years. It¡¯s not like you¡¯ll be eligible for kids as long as you¡¯re studying. Even Sam didn¡¯t get his procreation permit yet.¡¯
¡®But how could that even work?¡¯ His brains worked like crazy while he went over all the possibilities. It would probably be much better to live together with Megan somewhere than with his dad here, but that would mean much more relationship with her than he had now, or was ready for. Plus there was one big disaster waiting in between that uncertain future life as a couple and now: a wedding ceremony, one that included the families of both partners. One in which their parents could show off, and one in which the worst ideas of marriage and men and women were institutionalised and codified into creepy vows and strange rituals.
¡®You¡¯re the brainie boy. You¡¯ll figure things out. I just warn you that when the time is there you¡¯ll marry in a fine ceremony and then move out. I can¡¯t be paying for an endless student who doesn¡¯t do any manly work at all.¡¯ Ah, so that was the problem for his dad. Studying and working with your head wasn¡¯t manly enough, and even with his level one rating he still wasn¡¯t the trophy son his father wanted. So he wanted him gone, with a wedding ceremony he could brag about, so his bastion of manliness wouldn¡¯t be soiled anymore with an unworthy unmanly bookworm who hung out with girls whenever he could, and dissected oldschool robots for a hobby.
But still, being a married student? He never really considered that possibility. It was not really a normal situation in The Nation. Sure he could make enough money as a Gamma-one even with a part-time student job. And she could work as well, maybe Angela and Sam could help her find a job even. They wouldn¡¯t need that much, a working student wouldn¡¯t get much more than a little state apartment, married or not. But what would Megan say? What did she expect? Wait, she probably had realised it all along, and he hadn¡¯t been able to get it. He¡¯d always thought of marriage as something far away, and she had shared in his avoidance of the subject, but maybe that wasn¡¯t because she had agreed with it, but because she knew how soon it could be and because she didn¡¯t want to think of it yet¡
21 Slice of Life from Dystopia
Eliza held a bundle of papers in her hand.
¡®So, you¡¯ll be the chaperone on the next Michael date, Shirley, which also means you¡¯re Megan¡¯s sidekick in bringing on the revolution for one day. You could also see it as a practical training session in discovering men in a way you don¡¯t learn about in class.¡¯
Shirley looked a bit uneasy by those last words. ¡®What if he doesn¡¯t like me? What if he wants something indecent from me?¡¯
Eliza started laughing. ¡®Him? Indecent? He only wants the innocent kind of indecent, that shouldn¡¯t be seen as indecent at all.You still don¡¯t understand him at all if you worry about that. He didn¡¯t even try to touch his own fiancee yet after several dates beyond a hug as far as I know.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s strange for a man. Do you think he doesn¡¯t really like women?¡¯
Eliza frowned. ¡®Hmmm, it¡¯s clear from everything that he likes girls a lot, somehow. But he needs more time, much more time to understand what he wants with that. If he¡¯s lucky he¡¯ll be ready for a first kiss around his retirement age I think¡ And if you were suggesting he likes boys more, no, it¡¯s clear that that isn¡¯t the case. He¡¯s more of a man-hater than me¡ And there¡¯s no reason to assume that he¡¯s asexual either. But I wouldn¡¯t worry about any of that, that¡¯s all entirely Megan¡¯s problem, to you he¡¯s just a friendly human being who happens to be male.¡¯
¡®Says Eliza the man-hater, who¡¯s always been so clear about being against marriage. Some people even whisper that you are the one who¡¯s asexual here, or only like girls¡ ¡¯
¡®Alas, if only¡ It would make life much easier, wouldn¡¯t it? I could hook up with a nice girl like you, run away, and start a life somewhere far from this hellhole. Unlike Nation marriages it seems the women couples in the Ghost Towns are something that can work.¡¯
Shirley gave her friend a weird look. ¡®A woman needs a man. Even if just for practical reasons, everything is dominated by them. And they can do the things we women can¡¯t do.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s not the time for that discussion now, Shirley. But do you need more tips for your upcoming Michael-time?¡¯
¡®The chaperone paperwork, how does that work?¡¯
¡®Let Megan dictate it. It¡¯s not that they¡¯re going to do the dump-the-chaperone-and-head-straight-to-the-bedroom trick, but they might want to have another version indeed. Or not. It¡¯s not that he¡¯ll want to do anything spectacular.¡¯
Someone knocked hastily on the door. ¡®Ah, Eliza, I¡¯ve been looking for you. Here¡¯s a book, and here¡¯s a letter, plus this first version of the Pen Pal pamphlet that should be checked.¡¯ Annabelle from the C-floor barged in and looked from Eliza to Shirley. ¡®And my other client for today is here too. Perfect. Only missing Megan then. Here¡¯s your biology handbook, Shirley, and this package is for Megan. And, eh, who asked for another copy of ¡°Basic and advanced techniques of courtship sabotage¡±?¡¯
Eliza¡¯s eyes lit up when hearing that name. ¡®I didn¡¯t. I know it by heart now but I¡¯m afraid Miss Hunter has destroyed my copy. She was quite mad when she read it. Strange that she wasn¡¯t aware of its existence before.¡¯
¡®Hmm. None of you two is taken, and Megan famously has a decent taker. Strange.¡¯ Annabelle said.
Shirley looked at the mythical book with awe. Everyone in Seventh City Wife Factory knew about it, but no-one ever admitted to have read, except for Eliza who was famous for quoting from it openly in front of the teachers, including Miss Hunter herself. The whole existence of the book was an anomaly that didn¡¯t fit in the orthodox Wife School worldview. And yet a lot of people let out quotes and references from time to time, which were recognised by a lot of others and functioned a bit as secret passwords, as if most of the girls knew instinctively that there was something to the idea that women needed to know how to defend themselves against men sometimes, even in relationships.
Physical self-defence classes were already controversial but Miss Hemlock had always insisted on teaching the girls some basic fighting techniques. But those were against strangers, the idea that a woman would have to defend herself against her partner was officially unthinkable for some weird reason.
¡®But I feel that if no-one needs it now, it might be a good present for Michael in exchange for the extra advanced robotics books. And for his work on project Pen Pal. It¡¯ll be an educational experience.¡¯
Now Anabelle¡¯s confusion was complete. ¡®You, Eliza the man-hater, would give the mythical secret book of female defence to a boy?¡¯
¡®Why not? He¡¯s seeking to comprehend us. And he has read Miss Hunter¡¯s courses already. Andrea caught him with one. It appears he turned all red and stammered something incoherent about countering male stereotypes.¡¯ Shirley started laughing, but Annabelle was still serious.
¡®That one, to a boy? Aren¡¯t you going too far?¡¯ ¡®I¡¯m a free woman and I can do what I want. Plus he¡¯s not just a boy, he¡¯s a first communication hub between two previously unconnected worlds. And he¡¯s my friend above all the rest.¡¯ ¡®I know that, but still¡¡¯ Anabelle said.
¡®But since it wasn¡¯t me or Shirley it¡¯s probably Megan who asked for it, so she¡¯ll decide what to do with it. I don¡¯t think you have other clients on the C-floor now?¡¯
Anabelle nodded negatively.
¡®Then we¡¯ll keep it. Good value on the black market anyway. We can use it for sure. Project Pen Pal can always use more capital in this phase. I can¡¯t guess what the price would be on the male side, but the value isn¡¯t worth the risk.¡¯
¡®You mean, if the typical toxic man can read this?¡¯
¡®For example. They better don¡¯t know that it exists indeed. One male co-conspirator doesn¡¯t mean the male world isn¡¯t mostly a congress of sex-crazed baboons.¡¯
¡®You should write poetry, Liz.¡¯ Shirley sighed.
Eliza put her stuff away and turned to the visitor again.
¡®So how¡¯s life with you Anabelle, still single?¡¯ She smiled.
¡®Yup, all the time to study. We still miss you on the C-floor, Eliza. There¡¯s always a lot of new girls who do their best to be taken as soon as possible, but the old guard is mostly there and remembers you. I think they want to see you back sometime. You¡¯re a bit of a legend, did you know that?¡¯
¡®I¡¯ll smuggle myself in one of these days. I need to check some things in the office on your floor anyway.¡¯
¡®You need what?¡¯ ¡®Ah, didn¡¯t you know? Eliza is full on into espionage lately. She¡¯s making herself chaperone of Megan whenever she wants, and now me, but she¡¯s messing with other things too. She secretly controls the whole school probably. And there¡¯s strange outsider noncitizen contacts also.¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®Yes, that I know. She¡¯s our most important trader and she has contact with the Ghost Town leadership, completely under the radar of everyone. The outside traders think quite highly of her actually. And she¡¯s only 18¡¡¯
¡®Wow, a legend among outsiders too?¡¯
¡®Oh yes, she and Megan¡¯s boy connected the two black markets for the first time, and apparently she¡¯s been doing some electronics stuff in the Ghost Town too.¡¯
¡®So that boy is really that important? He¡¯s big in the male world?¡¯ Shirley looked unsure, as if there were even more reasons to be nervous about meeting him.
¡®No, he¡¯s very ordinary and completely under the radar in his world, just like Eliza is here. He¡¯s only connected to both the male black market and the female black market now, and his unsegregation movement is taking hold in caf¨¦s and bars around Seventh City and beyond. Now that the season is getting colder most places are making a few unsegregated tables inside. Except for the conservative places that are against such things, you know.¡¯
¡®Oh, man, he¡¯s really a dangerous revolutionary. And on top of that he¡¯s a level one male too. I¡¯m really nervous to meet him.¡¯
¡®Bwah, level one is not really that much if you¡¯re only a Gamma, even if it still gives certain privileges and can open doors. But it¡¯s clear that he¡¯s going to be a legend one day, you can bet on that.¡¯ Anabelle said. ¡®Just think he¡¯s a girl friend, but one who happens to be male. It¡¯s easy to do that with him. Even for me.¡¯ Eliza added. ¡®If you say so¡¡¯
¡®I am Eliza the man-hater; and he¡¯s my good friend. You should trust me on that.¡¯
¡®If even Eliza says that, I¡¯d believe it. All other reports on him are favourable too. The black market traders speak highly about him.¡¯ Anabelle added.
¡®Anything else that one of you needed to get outside? And new things you want?¡¯ Anabelle asked.
¡®Nothing for now.¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®You can send that Pen Pal pamphlet back with approval. I¡¯ll discuss the numbers and distribution later. With them. Oh, and here¡¯s a small letter for you-know-who now.¡¯
This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Anabelle nodded to Eliza while taking the letter, and Shirley knew asking about the mysterious letter or the mysterious Pen Pal pamphlets wouldn¡¯t yield much answers.
¡®Or maybe there is something. Do you have a copy somewhere in our school of the Women Are Human pamphlet?¡¯ ¡®I know a girl who might have a copy. I¡¯ll ask around. Do you want me to ask the outsiders too? That¡¯ll be a higher price, you know.¡¯
¡®No, I probably can get one straight from the source next time I¡¯m outside with Michael. But I¡¯m not outside this week. Just give me one when it¡¯s easy to find one here inside the building.¡¯
¡®Okay. I¡¯m off now. Good luck.¡¯ Anabelle disappeared and Shirley looked at her friend.
¡®Wow¡¡¯ Eliza just smiled and said nothing.
*
Michael looked nervously at the small package of Project Pen Pal pamphlets that Joe had given him. ¡°Do you want to meet girls before your Ceremony of Choice?¡± it said in a vintage 21st century font, with an explanation of the whole project, and how it worked. What he had to do now is give copies to all the boys that might be interested, and leave the rest discreetly in places where they could be found by those who would be interested in it. He hoped that mouth to mouth advertisement would do the rest. Apart from talking one-on-one with some of his friends about it he didn¡¯t feel like being very visibly connected to the whole project.
He had been one of the developers himself, but like the unsegrated spot movement it needed to grow organically now as an idea on itself, not one connected to people that could so easily be bullied and intimidated. If the idea was connected to a person the risk would be too big. Real Nation Men were good at picking on those who were weaker than them, but very bad with subtle changes, invisible networks and faceless revolutions without a visible enemy to blame and scapegoat. Let the leaven do its work in the dough, as some old philosopher had once said¡
Nonchalantly he strolled to the cafeteria, and very casually he looked at the table with flyers for events and boy school clubs. Film night with a space gladiator movie, a party for beer-drinkers, extra drilling exercises for young patriots, gun night and for some reason the Holy Scripture study group called the Holy Sword¡ He knew again why he didn¡¯t really attend any student club in this school. He slipped some of his own papers in between the rest, and went to the coffee counter for a Nation-coffee. From the corners of his eye he saw a boy he didn¡¯t know pick up the first pamphlet, look at it, look left and right as if busted, and then put it in his pocket.
He sipped from his coffee and looked at how another boy took the pamphlet and started reading it aloud to his friend, who looked but put one into his pocket too. They started laughing. A whole group assembled around the table, reading it and making fun of it. He sighed. He knew this would have been a possible reaction, but so soon? Hanging around with girls and black market traders had changed his expectations of his fellow boy students already, it seemed. But this brought him back to reality. Wasn¡¯t the whole plan madness at all? Would there be any boy at all who¡¯d dare to join such a subversive and unmanly project?
To make everything worse he saw Don and John entering the cafeteria while the group of boys was laughing with the pamphlet. The boys scattered when Don grabbed the paper out of the hands of the younger boy. He read it to John, cursed, and crumpled it in his hand before tossing it away. He looked furious and threw the rest of the flyers in the trash bin too. So that was the reaction of the Real Men of the higher-rated kind to Project Pen Pal? It has all seemed so simple when making plans with Megan and Eliza, and even with Andrea and Joe who were fraternising easily over the great divide between the sexes, but he should have remembered how much opposition such an idea would have to the actual dominant Alpha and Beta men, like Don who was a Beta-1. And still, he had seen boys put the flyer in their pockets; so maybe it would be able to reach the ¡°oddballs and outliers¡±?
But it wouldn¡¯t be easy to reach his audience. He should replace the Pen Pal project flyers as often as possible, because it seemed some people would destroy them whenever they encountered them. The good thing was that high-rates didn¡¯t really dominate the black market, but they could keep the potential clients of Project Pen Pal away if they made his attempts at advertisement impossible.
He put some new flyers on the table, which was empty now, and left the cafeteria. He couldn¡¯t rely on this way of advertising since it was a bit too random, but he had a new plan already. It wouldn¡¯t be so difficult to let the traders give every boy who did a trade a Project Pen Pal flyer, or maybe two, one for a friend too. Not everyone was connected to the black market now, but most people knew about it, and he had to rely on mouth to mouth advertisements too.
He looked at one of his flyers again. The print was of a high quality, but Eliza hadn¡¯t disclosed how she had managed to get them printed. School copiers were much cruder than this, and even she wouldn¡¯t be so crazy to use a school printer to print a revolutionary tract like this. He knew that the Ghost Towns sometimes had very advanced technology, but it was unlikely that even she would be able to make people in an all-female alternative society print that for her. Or was he underestimating her again? With Eliza you could never know¡
*
Miss Hunter sat behind her desk, and looked a bit tired after half a day of teaching.
¡®Ah, Megan. Thank you for bringing me those papers from official Greystone. I don¡¯t like to speak to men directly, you know that.¡¯
Megan hadn¡¯t had much choice about the job, so she just bowed.
¡®Come, sit here for a moment.¡¯ Miss hunter said, pointing at a chair. Megan obeyed submissively, but even her teacher could see she was rather absent. ¡®I worry about you. You¡¯re so distracted lately, Megan. I fear that Eliza is still having a bad influence on you. Maybe you should sit somewhere else in the classroom.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not thinking about her, but about him.¡¯ Megan said. ¡®Hmm, oh yes, you¡¯ve been chosen recently, isn¡¯t it? The Gamma-one boy that everyone is talking about. Congratulations. You should have got your package and you¡¯ll see that the extra classes are beneficial. Did you sign up yet?¡¯
¡®I didn¡¯t, Miss Hunter. I¡¯m not sure about everything anymore. And I don¡¯t think it will prepare me for him. He¡¯s not like that.¡¯
¡®Ah, well, Every man is different, but we have a good database about special preferences and stuff like that.¡¯ ¡®The preferences are everything you never taught us, Miss Hunter. Friendship, open communication, mutual respect, stuff like that.¡¯
Miss Hunter looked at her, puzzled. ¡®That would be, eh, particular. But as a woman you have to submit to the man that has chosen you, whatever his preferences, as you know already.¡¯
Megan sighed. Female submission was the last thing Michael had on his mind, and it didn¡¯t even work in the same sentence as his name. But her teacher could be quite dogmatic. ¡®And don¡¯t forget, you never know a man until you are married and live together.¡¯ She nodded. That one was true, but she still wasn¡¯t really afraid of terrible surprises in that regard. More of messy bedrooms and a man so immersed in his book or project that he¡¯d forget about his dinner.
¡®Can I ask you a personal question, Miss Hunter?¡¯
¡®That depends on the question, Megan.¡¯
¡®You are a married woman, aren¡¯t you?¡¯
¡®Yes, I am. I alway use my personal experience to teach you, as you know.¡¯
¡®We always learn how to please our husband. What about pleasing the Wife? But shouldn¡¯t the wife be happy too? Are there ways to be happy in marriage as a woman.¡¯
Miss Hunter sighed. ¡®That¡¯s the wrong way of looking at it, Megan. You¡¯re still young and inexperienced. But over time you¡¯ll learn that it all depends on making your man happy. If your husband is happy, you have more chance of being happy. If he isn¡¯t, your life will be misery. That¡¯s just how it is. A woman has to accept her fate. And your Husband will always be your first priority.¡¯
¡®So, we shouldn¡¯t expect anything for ourself in marriage, except that we have a man that can take care for us because women can¡¯t be independent in this country.¡¯
¡®More or less so, yes. You¡¯re getting it.¡¯
¡®And you never wanted more, Miss Hunter? For yourself, or maybe for you daughter? You do have a daughter younger than us who¡¯s in wife school already, not? Wouldn¡¯t you want her to have a happy life.¡¯
Miss Hunter sighed again. ¡®What did I tell you? If you make your man happy you will be happy. I want her to be prepared as well as possible to become a Good Wife. That¡¯s the only chance on happiness a girl has in life.¡¯ ¡®And there¡¯s nothing else to hope for as a woman?¡¯
¡®What else would there be?¡¯
¡®Like I said, being friends, open and honest communication, mutual respect in a relationship, that sort?¡¯
¡®What nonsense romance novels have you been reading lately, Megan? I hope you realise that¡¯s only fantasy. You can¡¯t expect any of these things from a man. They aren¡¯t capable of any of that. They have other priorities and a higher calling, that¡¯s why they are our leaders.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve heard other things from my fianc¨¦e. He is genuinely interested in friendship.¡¯
¡®Like I said, you don¡¯t know a man before you married him and are living together. Don¡¯t let your pretty head be fooled by him, Megan. A man is only a man. Friendship? With a man? That¡¯s a meaningless concept. I expected more of you, Megan.¡¯
¡®So you and your husband don¡¯t have anything like that? No friendship, no honest open communication?¡¯
¡®Megan, poor child. What weird ideas you have. He¡¯s a man, I said that before. Really girl, those outlandish fantasies that you and Eliza have are outrageous. I can¡¯t contradict your Gamma-one husband-to-be evidently, but I still would ask you to be more realistic. And to take your man seriously.¡¯
Megan stood up. ¡®That¡¯s what I¡¯m trying to do, Miss Hunter.¡¯
When she walked out of the office her head was still dazzling from the clash of worlds that she lived in. And she hadn¡¯t even mentioned the fact that Michael himself had been the instigator of the unsegregation movement, which would certainly be outlandish and outrageous too. Something told him Miss Hunter would like his actual ideas even less than Eliza¡¯s, but as she had said, she as a B-class woman of a Beta-3 husband would never dare to contradict a Gamma-1 boy. So maybe there were moments when his privilege could come in handy after all¡
*
¡®Is that unsegregated spot on the summer terrace still running?¡¯ The boss asked Tom.
¡®Yes, boss. It makes us quite a lot of money even. It¡¯s been full every time the weather wasn¡¯t horrible, and that at this time of year. We''ve even added some tables and we¡¯ve been opening up some mixed tables inside too in the small drinking room. But some people aren¡¯t really happy with it.¡¯
¡®Michael is a Level One Male. He knows what he¡¯s doing. And he¡¯s right, it¡¯s not strictly forbidden, the law says that segregated places should be available for those who need it, but not that everything has to be segregated. I¡¯m thinking of taking my wife and daughter to join me on the terrace on Saturday if we have the late good weather the papers promised. She¡¯s home from school this weekend.¡¯
Tom sighed. ¡®Isn¡¯t all of this going too far? I mean, men and women together? What will it all lead to?¡¯ ¡®Why not? They¡¯re my family. I should be able to be with them. That young man was right that it¡¯s strange that we have to allow those prostitutes and mistresses in the male section, but we can¡¯t ever sit with our wives or mothers or daughters. That never sat right with me. I know my old mother would have loved drinking a coffee with me here. It¡¯s a pity she isn¡¯t here anymore. She would have liked to see this.¡¯
¡®But, it¡¯s indecent. Men and women together.¡¯
¡®All my life I¡¯ve allowed things that were much more indecent and no-one ever said anything of it, so why would that stop us now? I feel like the young man is more than right. He should watch out with those Women are Human activists though. They might be dangerous. And we won¡¯t be serving man beer to women or fruit beer to men, evidently, but in basics he¡¯s right. I feel that change will be coming. And it¡¯s better to be on the good side of history!¡¯
¡®Yeah, but still¡¡¯ Tom mumbled uneasily. He looked at the tables of the Unsegregated spot on the terrace. 5 women and one man were sitting there, relaxed, as if it was the most normal thing in the world. He knew none of them.
22 When Shirley met Robert
Michael stood in the hall of the C-floor again, handing in a new bundle of papers to official Greystone when Megan arrived. Instead of bringing Eliza she was accompanied today by a blond girl today who didn¡¯t seem very comfortable. The paperwork took only a few seconds, and then he walked off with the girls, but only when the official was out of sight Megan started talking.
¡®Shirley will replace Eliza today as our chaperon. I don¡¯t really know why, but she had something else to do or something like that. She sends her greetings.¡¯
Michael nodded. ¡®The more friends the merrier I guess. Hi Shirley.¡¯ He said.
Shirley looked at him, still a bit suspiciously.
¡®Hi, Mister Adams.¡¯ ¡®No Mister to you, why so formal?¡¯
¡®Eh¡¡¯
¡®She¡¯s not used to boys and she¡¯s always shy with people she doesn¡¯t know. First time she ever meets a boy actually I think. First time being a chaperone too. And she has a hard time telling Miss Hunter¡¯s classes from the truth sometimes too.¡¯
Michael sighed. ¡®That infamous please-your-husband curriculum? I¡¯ve read some of your handbooks and the only thing I can say is: forget all of it, my dear girl! Maybe there are men out there who fit those descriptions, God save ¡®em, but if you ask me it¡¯s just a bunch of toxic stereotypes that¡¯ll never help anyone at all. You can just treat me as any of your girl friends, more or less. But no unexpected hugs please.¡¯
Shirley seemed to relax a bit. ¡®I¡¯ll try. I can do the no unexpected hugs part. But are you really okay with this, Megan?¡¯
¡®Why not? No unexpected hugs from girls is a good personal boundary in his case. He¡¯s not so used to physical affection in friendship as we are.¡¯
Shirley stared at her friend, trying to find a connection between her own world and the new world that she had just entered, which had completely new rules about basic reality. ¡®That¡¯s not what I mean. All of this is too real. I mean the being friends in the same way as girls are friends part. Isn¡¯t he supposed to be, eh, only friendly with you? He¡¯s your fianc¨¦e and stuff like that. And why would he even need a rule like that? Who¡¯s going to give him unexpected hugs?¡¯
Megan laughed. ¡®Mainly Eliza, don¡¯t ask me¡ But there¡¯s also that flirty Woman are Human activist girl that knows no boundaries at all.¡¯
¡®Eliza? Hugging him unexpectedly? A boy? Really? I still don¡¯t see it, Eliza liking any male in any way at all. She¡¯s the most notorious man-hater ever in our school, just ask Miss Hunter¡¡¯
¡®You¡¯re wrong about that. She never chose that nickname herself, and doesn¡¯t completely hate men at all, she only hates toxic people and toxic behaviour, and our culture pushes men to be toxic. But toxic masculinity isn¡¯t actually a pleonasm, and he isn¡¯t toxic. Just as not all women are as toxic as Miss Hunter.¡¯
¡®Still¡ But nevermind, that¡¯s for you and Eliza to deal with. What is the plan for today? And is there anything I need to know about making reports?¡¯ Michael shrugged.
¡®Just be factual, that¡¯s enough. And I think I¡¯ll just show you the unsegregated spot in autumn sun for today unless one of you girls wants to do something else. Just sitting in the park drinking beer again might be rather boring. I just need some time off from my schoolwork for today. Theoretic robotics is killing me. Antique robots were quite advanced machines and the theory is not that simple. Some even had radio and wifi. And radios are not easy to understand.¡¯
¡®Now I see why you get along with Eliza¡¡¯
They walked away from the Seventh City Wife School building. Shirley looked behind at the enormous building with the words ¡°Seventh City Wife Factory¡± and the sexy cartoon girl logo. ¡®Wow, this is the first time outside in ages.¡¯
¡®Then just consider it a small vacation trip, and don¡¯t bother too much with the date and chaperone stuff. Basically we¡¯re just hanging out as friends. No stress or social anxiety needed, that¡¯s just a waste of focus and energy.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Easy for you to say that, fianc¨¦e boy. They warned me that you are the opposite of what we have learnt about men, but I can¡¯t get used to that so fast. And it creates even more uncertainty.¡¯
¡®All boys are different, just as all girls are. There¡¯s never a one-size-fits-all approach that can be applied to a whole sex.¡¯
¡®If you say so¡¡¯ Shirley looked at her shoes, and shut up, and then turned to Megan, whispering.
¡®Oh, sorry, Megan, I¡¯m talking to him too much, aren¡¯t I? I¡¯m being indecent?¡¯
Megan stopped walking and gave her friend a hug. ¡®Don¡¯t be nervous about stuff like that. He meant that we¡¯re just hanging around as friends basically.¡¯
¡®I can¡¯t get used to it yet¡¡¯ Shirley said. ¡®But definitely could get used to it.¡¯ She smiled as if she had entered a trippy unknown world.
Fifteen minutes later they arrived at Square Plaza.
¡®So, this is the famous unsegregated spot?¡¯ Shirley asked. ¡®The original one. There are more of them now, and they seem to be popping up in other cities too, in all kinds of caf¨¦s and restaurants. Even though a lot of people find them indecent. It is a tiny revolution after all that we started it seems. Are you still comfortable joining us?¡¯ Megan said, in a voice that resembled a city guide.
¡®Ah, well, I haven¡¯t seen the outside of school in years, I have no concept of what is true and what isn¡¯t anymore. The outside world is one strange place for me anyway. I don¡¯t even know what people do there.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯
¡®Eliza told me that¡¯s done on purpose to get an easier marriage.¡¯ Michael said. ¡®More malleable Wife material¡ So that¡¯s why girls are trained in a Wife School away from the rest of the world, so that they can adapt to life with their husband as the only reality they know after losing their whole school environment. It sounds rather extreme and very sad, but she might have a point indeed. If you isolate them it¡¯s easy to train them up however you want. If you¡¯re into that kind of stuff that is. I can¡¯t be the only man who finds it a horrifying idea.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s probably right. Being Eliza and all¡¡¯ Megan mused.
Shirley laughed. ¡®Eliza said that? She¡¯s the one girl on whom it won¡¯t work at all. She is the only one on the E-floor who has connections outside of Wife School, not counting the fianc¨¦s and very sparse family visits. It wouldn¡¯t work to isolate her at all. And we made a promise not to let that happen, her, me and Megan. We¡¯ll find ways to keep in contact after Wife School.¡¯
¡®I heard about that. Sounds like a good idea.¡¯ Michael said.
He suddenly realised that he still didn¡¯t realise how extreme the isolation was that girls underwent twice in their life, first from their family to Wife School, and then afterwards from Wife School to marriage. Two times they completely lost everyone and everything they knew before. The female world was more strange than he ever had realised, and not in the ways you¡¯d think. There was so much that he still had to learn.
The conversation had fallen silent. The afternoon weather was quite good for the time of year, and grey rock pigeons were fighting with the typical landgulls that usually populated these kinds of squares. It was indeed a relaxed day, and it felt like a holiday, even though all three of them would have to go to school tomorrow.
¡®Michael, dude!¡¯
The silence and his train of thoughts were stopped when looked up and noticed a face he knew. ¡®Hey, Robert.¡¯ His classmate looked uneasily at the girls.
¡®Why are you hanging around with girls again? Dude!¡¯
¡®It¡¯s date day, Megan¡¯s here¡¯s my Wife School fiance, and Shirley is the chaperone for today. And the unsegregated spot is a perfect place to spend a casual day off talking and drinking. Want a Coke too?¡¯
Robert looked at the girls, still uneasy.
¡®Come on, I insist. What kind of man is afraid of just two girls? They¡¯re not going to eat you, or force you to marry them.¡¯
Robert still looked uneasily at Shirley¡¯s blond locks.
Stolen novel; please report.
¡®But these are women from a Wife School. They are just waiting for a husband that¡¯ll take care of them, and then they rule his house and make his life miserable. It¡¯s all at trap¡¯
Megan turned to Shirley. ¡®Take notes now. This specimen is probably much closer to Miss Hunter¡¯s theories, but still not the dominant type it seems so the whole thing might get inverted here and there. I¡¯ve never seen anything like him in the wild.¡¯
¡®Megan, what did I say about talking about people that are present. It¡¯s indecent.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m sorry, dear master husband who needs to be obeyed in all things.¡¯ Megan said with a straight face, doing a little bow with her head. Shirley almost burst out in laughter, but Robert looked very confused.
¡®Don¡¯t mind her, she¡¯s just teasing me. That¡¯s¡¯ part of a good relationship.¡¯ Michael said apologetically.
¡®She¡¯s just disrespecting you and trying to take over your male power and erase your manhood.¡¯ Robert said.
¡®Ow, it¡¯s getting interesting now.¡¯ Megan said. ¡®Come, my dear man, have a Coke and tell us about my evil plans against my poor Michael¡¯s manhood, because you seem to know more than I do.¡¯
She came closer and Robert took a step backwards.
¡®You¡¯re scaring him, Megan. Stop it.¡¯ Michael said, when Robert turned to him, rather pale in his face.
¡®I¡¯m not scared of a girl. But I worry for you, friend. And I¡¯m just warning you.¡¯
¡®And I don¡¯t need a warning about her, dude. She¡¯s a trusted friend. As are all the girls I know. Except maybe for Samantha but she¡¯s not here now so she doesn¡¯t count.¡¯
Robert shook his head. ¡®You¡¯re mad, Michael. And naive.¡¯
Megan turned to him, half quoting Eliza. ¡®Hmm, you do sound like Miss Hunter indeed. Let me guess: men should be the boss, and even when they will never have any sexual selfcontrol they have other superior talents that can never be named though, and that¡¯s why they should always be obeyed. Because the only way to ever be happy as a woman is to have a happy husband.¡¯
Robert looked at her, completely puzzled. ¡®No, no, no. It¡¯s the other way around. We men are the victims. It¡¯s you who want to dominate us. It¡¯s a matter of life and death. Men have to stay in charge because otherwise women would be our boss, and our life would be miserable. It¡¯s unavoidable.¡¯
¡®And why would that be, my dear boy?¡¯
Michael was amused, he had never seen Megan like this, and Robert was visibly shocked to find himself in this conversation with a rather attractive young woman who dared to call him her dear boy, while biting her fingernail. Women were even worse to deal with in real life than anything he¡¯d ever been taught it seemed. But he couldn¡¯t lose face now. He had to fight back.
¡®You are not stupid, young woman. You know that there is no other way. The war of the sexes is a harsh reality you can¡¯t escape. And if it¡¯s not us men who are winning, it¡¯s you. And you would make it a hell for us. Only the rich and extremely pretty men would find a wife, and the rest would be lonely. Or just be the plaything for promiscuous women who use you as a toy.¡¯
Robert seated himself to talk more easily, and Michael gave a one more Coke signal to Tom. Shirley seemed more at home in the conversation than Michael expected, and he assumed it was probably closer to the things she knew from the Wife School curriculum than his relationship with Megan.
¡®And what would be the solution to the war of the sexes then? What if you cannot win? You¡¯re only a Gamma-3 from your badge, and clearly a brainie like Michael. Not the kind of man who¡¯s going to hit his wife and wield physical power over her.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m well aware of that. So all we can do is stay away from women. Go your own way. That¡¯s the only safe way. Keep the whole babymaking thing to the Alphas to raise a new generation to the strong men who can handle a woman, and leave the battleground to them. Better for human evolution too. Being single is the only way to escape the war of the sexes if you¡¯re not an Alpha or strong Beta.¡¯
¡®So you don¡¯t want a wife to dominate, who obeys you at every command?¡¯ Shirley asked.
¡®No, I couldn¡¯t do that. I¡¯m not man enough for that. I¡¯m a brainie indeed. Not a fighter. Women are way too dangerous for me.¡¯
¡®Do you think that if I ever were married, I would try to dominate my husband at every point?¡¯ She asked.
Even Michael could see that Shirley was rather baffled with this unexpected upside-down version of the whole Nation theory of men and women, but also amused at his strange irrational fear.
¡®Sure, you¡¯re a woman. Everyone knows that the strong sex is women, and that it¡¯s a myth that men are always in power. That¡¯s just talk for silly boys who are not strong enough to handle reality. The reality is endless war between the sexes and most men losing. Sure, you¡¯re not going to admit that. You¡¯ll act friendly and whatever. But I know what you want. I know what women want.¡¯
¡®But if you had one, you would want your wife to obey you and be in power over her?¡¯ Shirley asked again. ¡®Sure, anyone would want that, but I won¡¯t be able to enforce that. It¡¯s her or me and I would be the loser. I¡¯m a wimp. The only way for a man like me to be happy is not to have a Wife. Women always bring misery to a man.¡¯
¡®Do you realise you¡¯re telling this to an actual woman, Robert?¡¯ Michael said.
¡®She can¡¯t do me anything. I¡¯m man enough to face them in a setting like this. I¡¯m man enough to talk to them. I¡¯m not less of a man than you, Michael. I only see things more clearly.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m just glad you didn¡¯t scare Shirley. It¡¯s her first time ever meeting boys.¡¯ ¡®Then it¡¯s better that she learns that there are men who see right through their facade before she gets strange ideas. Unlike some of us.¡¯
¡®Sure, Robert, sure.¡¯
¡®I like Michaels way of seeing it more, but you¡¯re rather interesting, Robert.¡¯ Shirley said. ¡®You¡¯re both affirming and negating the things we learn in different ways. Miss Hunter never said anything about men who wouldn¡¯t be able to dominate us. So what you¡¯re saying affirms the basic theory, but with a strange twist. The girls at home wouldn¡¯t believe that men like you exist, just like we didn¡¯t believe in Michael¡¯s words of friendship and openness at first. I just happen to like his anomalies more than yours, Mister Robert.¡¯
¡®You believe in that stuff? Or you¡¯re just manipulating him?¡¯
¡®Why would I manipulate him? I¡¯ve only just met him and he genuinely tries to be my friend as well as Megan¡¯s and Eliza¡¯s.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a woman.¡¯ He said.
¡®You¡¯ve said that before, but why does that matter so much for you?¡¯
¡®Ooh, who is this cute new boy?¡¯
A high female voice from behind stopped the conversation, and Samantha placed herself in between the boys, followed by an apologetic Angela.
¡®I¡¯m repeating myself, but the working day is over in the trash sorting factory, and I hoped you¡¯d be here. Isn¡¯t Eliza here?¡¯ Angela asked, looking around.
¡®Nope, Shirley here is the chaperone of the day. Shirley, Robert, meet Angela and Samantha, two non-Wives and friends. More or less¡¡¯
Michael looked warningly at Samantha, who seemed intent on ignoring whatever he wanted to tell her subtly.
¡®Hi Robert, hi Shirley!¡¯ Angela said.
¡®So, Robert? Gamma-3 and still single? Looks like you¡¯re an interesting fish to catch. Wanna have fun with a real free woman instead of those prudish Wife School kids here?¡¯
Samantha winked at a terrified Robert, also biting her pink playfully but with a completely different effect. ¡®You want to get used to girls too before you get married? Wanna have some more intimate experience with the other sex? I¡¯m open to giving you some experience, and some experiments with chemistry whenever you want me, pretty boy.¡¯
Robert froze up completely, Megan started giggling, Shirley just fell silent observing the scene, and Michael and Angela didn¡¯t even bother to react.
¡®So, tell me, pretty boy. Wanna drink something from me? I don¡¯t make much money, but I can buy you a fruit beer. I¡¯m a working woman after all as a non-Wife. Stupid Tom still doesn¡¯t want to give me an actual man beer. But he might give you one if you order it for us. I¡¯m happy to share it with you.¡¯
Robert still looked at her, terrified. ¡®Eh?¡¯ was the only thing he could say.
¡®This is your chance, Robert. Here¡¯s a woman who doesn¡¯t want any marriage at all¡ Shouldn¡¯t that be better for you after your whole rant against how dangerous women are inside a marriage.¡¯
Megan looked at the frozen perplexity on his face and turned to Samantha. ¡®You always come at the right moment, Sam. You interrupted an interesting conversation about how dangerous women are when you marry them, and why men should always avoid them. And I think I¡¯ve finally mastered Eliza¡¯s mode of talking to men.¡¯
¡®Ooh, so much fun, now I definitely need a beer for that. Could you order one for me, pretty boy¡¯ She winked at Robert, who didn¡¯t reply. ¡®And tell me, how am I dangerous?¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a woman. You must want to dominate a man, to domesticate him, and emasculate him.¡¯
Samantha combed her fingers through her short and very light hair.
¡®Wow, interesting choice of words, pretty boy. But let me assure you, emasculation would be the last thing a woman has in mind for such a cutie like you. Takes away all the fun. I rather have your complete body¡ If you know what I mean.¡¯ She winked again.
Robert suddenly stood up. ¡®See you in school, Michael, Bye Shirley!¡¯ he said, and disappeared after drinking what was left of his glass.
¡®Pity,¡¯ Samantha said, completely unmoved.
¡®Did I do anything wrong?¡¯ Angela asked. ¡®No, you¡¯re fine. He¡¯s just even more afraid of women than you and Shirley are of men. And he believes in a war between the sexes that men are likely to lose if they aren¡¯t high-class alphas. I must say he really did his best. He even seemed to like you in some kind of way, Shirley. But your aggressive flirting was too much, Samantha, after Megan in Eliza-mode. His poor heart almost stopped.¡¯
¡®Ah, I was just playing with him. He looked like fun.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re always going too far! And remember that you¡¯re not going to flirt with Michael either, Sam!¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Ooh, competition, I love that. It makes the hunt more interesting.¡¯
¡®I advise you to hunt elsewhere, or turn to other prey. Maybe you can buy a gun and shoot some pigeons? People used to eat ¡®em you know?¡¯
¡®No thanks!¡¯
The rest of the afternoon was spent with more superficial talks about school, life as a non-Wife, and all the ways in which the sex segregation of The Nation was unjust. Before they realised it it was time for the girls to go back to Seventh City Wife Factory for their evening meal.
¡®Today was very interesting.¡¯ Shirley said when they were walking back. ¡®I¡¯ve never met so many interesting people in one day. Boys who are friends and boys who are afraid of women and non-Wives, all at the same place. It sounds like some kind of unrealistic revolutionary fiction.¡¯
¡®Sometimes life is stranger than fiction.¡¯ Michael said. ¡®But as long as we have fun that isn¡¯t a problem at all.¡¯
¡®Eliza was right to like you.¡¯ Shirley finally said.
23 The Journalist
Michael was lying on his bed, thinking of his life. Time had passed fast the last few months, and his life had changed in many ways since that fateful Gamma-one rating on his eighteenth birthday. The infamous ¡®basic and advanced techniques of courtship sabotage¡¯ book was lying opened next to his head and it had been messing with his head too. ¡®You might be the first male to ever read it or even be aware of its existence, be discreet¡¯ Megan had said, so he had hidden it from other men. And wow, it had turned out dark stuff indeed, portraying men in the most unflattering way possible, but not completely unrealistic. There also were a lot of self-defence techniques, but putting all the pieces together it was clear that none of them would really be able to protect a woman against men at their worst. The book also seemed to try to prepare the reader for that. The picture was clear, and it was the opposite of what Robert had been trying to convince him of a while ago: Men were in charge, and while a minority of them would be decent husbands or at least manipulable, a lot of them were evil and violent so the best most women could do was go for damage control when their lives were ripped apart by the decisions of the men in their life, starting with their father as a kid, and then going from officials in wife school to the dreaded fiancees and husbands that most of the book focused on. Because if you were chosen by the wrong man, there was not much you could do except for extreme things like the sabotage the title referred too, which only worked in very early stages and still could end you up as ¡°damaged goods¡± as a girl anyway.
He had smiled when he had read the tips about ¡®making yourself as unattractive as possible¡¯, which might make a fianc¨¦e reconsider on the first date. Eliza had clearly been improvising freely in that direction on his first date with Megan, probably just to try it out for once in a playful way. Not that it had made her actually unattractive to him, but he had seen the horror in the poor Rafael¡¯s eyes, so he didn¡¯t doubt the effectiveness of such techniques on men who wanted their actual date to be a trophy woman. Or who just didn''t understand Eliza''s sense of humour and took her seriously.
It was true that girls had a lot of different effects on boys. William for example seemed to have found a regular table at the unsegrated spot and even made some female friends himself from Angela¡¯s circle of young non-Wives. Rafael had in the end accepted Eliza¡¯s apology, and seemed to have accepted the existence of Eliza and Megan as a part of his friend¡¯s life now without much problems. He hadn¡¯t seen Paul since he had stopped going to church, but he had heard that he completely disapproved of Michaels new and indecent lifestyle, because it was sinful according to the teachings of the Church. Robert was still full of conspiracy theories about the dangers of the female sex, even though Samantha¡¯s disdain for marriage had forced him to rethink some of his narrative. On the other hand it seemed that he had liked Shirley, because everything he¡¯d said about her had been positive. But he seemed to see it as his mission to remind Michael of the dangers of women every time he had the chance, and Henry seemed to have joined him. Michael was glad that Henry hadn¡¯t met any of the girls personally yet. Maybe that a quiet person like Shirley would avoid conflict, and not take his Be-a-Man talk too seriously or even see a proof that the infamous Miss Hunter wasn¡¯t always wrong, but he feared for the effect it could have on the rather vulnerable Angela, and the conflict that would arise after 3 words with Eliza, or even worse Samantha. She still tried to seduce every male she met, although it never really seemed to have any effect. She still boasted she was a good temptress, and that he was just not into women enough for her but he hadn¡¯t seen any other man on whom it had worked either.
He wondered if it would ever work to fit both worlds into one world, one where boys and girls could be friends, and where men and women could just treat each other like fellow human beings without being weird about it. A world where Henry and Samantha could live together without either fearing or abusing each other. But that world would have relationships going beyond friendship, and all he knew about Marriage was abuse and worse, and he didn¡¯t really know how else those relationships could even work. Only the future would tell whether that was just fantasy fiction or a real option¡ For now it was enough that it worked for him, and that he would be with Megan and the other girls again in 2 days. He closed his eyes and fell asleep, knowing his mother would wake him for supper in an hour.
His life had been tiring too lately. At least she was talking to him a bit every now and then thanks to all the fights he and dad had had lately.
*
¡®So, how¡¯s the revolution going? Has the patriarchy already been smashed?¡¯ Karen asked Angela very casually while cooking a vegetarian stew together.
¡®Very slowly. At least Michael¡¯s unsegregated spot movement has caught on now. A lot of the cafes and restaurants in Seventh City are having unsegregated sections now, and some say the idea is catching on in other cities too. It¡¯s probably not much, but it¡¯s more than we ever reached with the WAH protests I¡¯d say.¡¯ She cut her purple carrots in small pieces and seemed to think for a while. ¡¯But not everyone is equally enthusiastic. Maybe there are dangers indeed with men in general. But not with all of them, you can say what you want about Michael, but he¡¯s a good person. Pamela can protest all that she wants, but it¡¯s good to have a relatively high male on our side. And people seem to be getting more used to mixed company lately it seems.¡¯
Karen threw her cubes of celery in the pot. ¡®I agree that he¡¯s okay, and those few other young dudes around him too probably, but that won¡¯t change that most men are still dangerous. And just a single brainie Gamma-1 is not enough to defend a woman against a gang of assaulters. Plus if he ever defends a girl that isn¡¯t his own partner against a higher-ranked man he¡¯s in trouble anyway, even more than her. The law¡¯s still the law, and the whole hierarchy system is still there and it can screw us all. A few nice boys and mixed tables are not gonna change that. And even if the rules changed, it would be very hard to change the mentality of this Nation. So with all their good intentions I¡¯ll remain sceptical about how much they will be able to accomplish. And I advise you to keep practising your self-defence techniques and avoid every dangerous situation, young lady.¡¯
¡®I will do that, for sure.¡¯ Angela said.
¡®Oh, and by the way, Pamela has been talking to the people of the Ghost Town farm again about job offers. They still need some people to work there. They said they still have houses too. But I don¡¯t find it a good idea to go living in a squat community. It¡¯s better not to burn all our bridges with The Nation as rated citizens.¡¯
¡®They have a good farm, their food is much better than the normal stores. And they seem to be well-guarded against any danger. But I¡¯m not really ready for living outside of society like that. I¡¯m An E-non-Wife with a job, it¡¯s not much, but I do have some place in society.¡¯ Angela said.
¡®You and I still have our rating. Most Ghost Town women on the other hand don¡¯t even have an official identity. And they don¡¯t use any money. It¡¯s dangerous to live like that. Plus they probably wouldn¡¯t like you fraternising with men.¡¯ Karen remarked.
¡®They¡¯ll have to one day if the black markets are going to stay mixed. And there¡¯s at least one person now who¡¯s personally in contact with both the Male World and our Seventh City Ghost town leaders. Only one degree of separation is left between them.¡¯ Angela said.
¡®That Wife School girl Eliza you mean?¡¯
Angela nodded. ¡®She¡¯s more of a revolutionary even than that boy¡ As if the age-old barriers don¡¯t exist for her. Both of them will be an interesting team in the future to keep an eye on.¡¯ She looked at the boiling vegetables.
¡®Good infiltration work, Angela. Our woman house might stay safe with more powerful friends.¡¯ She winked.
¡®I was only handing out pamphlets. He was the one who approached you.¡¯
¡®And you were the one who kept talking to him. To a man. You...¡¯
¡®His questions were weird, and I felt he was safe somehow.¡¯
¡®But you kept talking. You¡¯re the only one here who¡¯d have done that.¡¯
¡®So I¡¯m naive?¡¯
¡®No, against all odds, you were right. Even though Pamela still isn¡¯t happy with it. Men can be human as well as women¡¡¯
¡®Most of his male friends that I¡¯ve seen were sort of okay too. And they¡¯re quite awkward and shy too most of the time.¡¯
''Maybe they keep so much distance because otherwise we''ll notice that they''re just like us, with all our insecurities and problems?''
''That'' would be super childish, but I''m starting to believe it, yes...''
*
It was only a few days later that Angela, Michael and Eliza met again. The unsegregated spot had existed for 3 months now, first only outside on the summer terrace and now inside too, where it was bigger than ever with four whole tables, although there were only 5 people at the moment.
The third table had an unknown older couple who seemed very interesting in a Women are Human pamphlet, but the other was populated by Angela, Michael and Eliza, who mysteriously claimed she had a free afternoon today while Megan was still in school.
¡®Are you sure they didn¡¯t mind you taking a free afternoon outside, Lizzie?¡¯ Michael asked, worried about her school career.
¡®Whatever, they almost kicked me out several times already. And I¡¯m skipping all the ¡®how to please your husband¡¯ lessons anyway now since my last fight with Miss Hunter. Everything went downhill after you. She still hasn¡¯t forgiven me quoting your remark that only a half-baked swine with less brain cells than testicles would ever want the things she¡¯s teaching us I think. Five minutes here with you is enough to know that all the things they tell us about men are nonsense, at least when it comes to the men that matter.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
And it¡¯s not that I¡¯ll ever get a diploma there, or a husband. It¡¯s just the place I live for now because I have friends there and connections that can come in handy. I am a Free Girl now, or no, make that a Free Woman.¡¯
Angela looked up from her Nation-Coke. ¡®What does that mean? A Free Woman? It sounds good, but it¡¯s radical in a world where freedom is only supposed to be for the men.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know yet, but let¡¯s find out. If women are human, and this glorious nation gives all people freedom and liberty then there must be a place for a Free Woman too.¡¯
¡®Eh, the pledge of our Nation says that all men get that freedom, and not all people.¡¯ Angela reminded her.
¡®Women are human. That¡¯s what you¡¯ve been telling the world. Do you believe that yourself?¡¯
Angela shook her head. ¡®It¡¯s hard to really believe that even after everything. Theory and real life are not the same, are they? I¡¯ve never been treated as a person by any man in my life except for Michael here and some of the boys he brings, and lately those bartenders here seem to be doing their best too. But how can I change a whole lifetime of always being less than men just like that?¡¯
¡®We''ll find out how to be Free Women. And the only men that matter are those who appreciate that!¡¯ Eliza said with a fire in her eyes. Michael thought she was looking at him but didn¡¯t dare to look at her.
¡®So where are those Women are Human people today? Weren¡¯t they supposed to be here? I thought you had invited them over here to talk about the Pen Pal project, but I haven¡¯t even seen one of them lately except for you and Sam.¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®Ah, well¡ They seem to think it¡¯s a bit too radical. And don¡¯t take it personally, but, well, you¡¯re a man, and a privileged one at that. They might be a bit afraid of you. Afraid of your power. Most of them have been non-wives for a long time. They only know men who bossed them around, or worse. And¡¡¯
She stopped and looked at something behind Michael. A man with a big camera had entered the bar and seemed to be approaching them. Angela froze up completely, but the man naturally addressed Michael.
¡®You are Michael Adams, I suppose? The person behind this so-called Unsegregated spot movement?¡¯ Michael nodded.
¡®David Moors, journalist, Daily Nation. Can I have a little chat with you?¡¯
His thoughts ran around in his head very fast now. The press? For him? He looked from a very fierce Eliza to a frozen Angela. What should he do? If there was interest from the Daily Nation the story would get out anyway, and it would be easier if he and Eliza had some say in it.
¡®Sure, what do you want to know?¡¯
¡®We are writing a story about the idea of Unsegregated spots, that have been popping up in Seventh City since this summer, and since some weeks even in Third and Tenth City and another one in Lake Village. And every track traces back to this place and its summer terrace, and to your name.¡¯
Michael held his breath. He really didn¡¯t want this kind of attention.
¡®I¡¯m honoured, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve done anything special. I just needed a place to talk to my friends, who happen to be female, and then one thing led to another.¡¯
The man looked very curiously at him.
¡®Friends who happen to be female? You know that what you¡¯re saying sounds very weird, don¡¯t you? Men and women aren¡¯t supposed to meet as friends.¡¯
¡®Probably. But since other people are doing it too now I don¡¯t think everyone is against it. It feels very natural once you get used to it.¡¯
The journalist scribbled some things on his paper.
¡®So, Mister Adams. They say that this idea of unsegregation comes from the Women are Human activist group, and yet you are a man. No man has ever joined them, and we know you are not a member of their organisation. Could you explain that?¡¯ ¡®I became friends with one of the Women are Human girls, and took their pamphlet more literally than they did, and to make conversation easier I unsegregated this place, and it seems to have caught on elsewhere too.¡¯
¡®So you are not personally connected to the WAH leaders?¡¯
¡®Never been in contact with any leaders. They seem to avoid me even. I just thought they had some good points and then befriended some of their activists. Angela is sitting here with us.¡¯
He pointed at Angela, but the journalist seemed to ignore her.
¡®But you know that what you¡¯re doing is controversial, and a lot of people will see a mixed space as extremely indecent and wrong.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s their problem. There always have been women in mens sections, for much more indecent reasons than friendship and family gatherings. If that is de facto allowed, then hanging out with friends and family should be possible too.¡¯ ¡®Interesting logic. So you are serious when you say that you are friends with the women here? That men and women can be friends?¡¯
¡®Sure. If you don¡¯t treat women as sex-slaves and domestic workers then they turn out to be humans, just like men are. So there¡¯s no need to hang on to this stupid war between the sexes that makes no-one better, is it?¡¯
The man frantically scribbled on.
¡®You are quite young, and you sound rather naive. I suppose you aren¡¯t married yet?¡¯
¡®No, I have a Wife School fianc¨¦e, but she¡¯s at school now.¡¯
The man gave him a weird look.
¡®And she doesn¡¯t mind you hanging out with other women? She isn¡¯t jealous?¡¯
¡®why should she be? She knows that if I¡¯m able to be just friends with girls I¡¯ll be able to be a teamwork partner in a marriage. And those are her friends too anyway. Plus our usual chaperone is here to spy on me if she wants.¡¯
He pointed at Eliza who waved with three fingers and made an innocent face, and the reporter looked at him, unbelieving.
Michael decided to turn the conversation himself. ¡®But why don¡¯t you listen to the girls. They¡¯re people too. They can talk for themselves. A man like you surely wouldn¡¯t be afraid to ask a few young women some questions too?¡¯
It was almost pathetic how easy it was to convince the poor man with that kind of silly antimale insult. He knew he couldn¡¯t lose face now and looked uneasily at Eliza. It took him a while to find his voice back and address her.
¡®So you are one of the Women are Human¡¯ activists?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Nope,¡¯ Eliza said, and she pointed at Angela. ¡®She is, but we seem to be too radical for most of them. I¡¯m only a simple Wife School student, keeping an eye on him for his fianc¨¦e today apparently.¡¯
¡®So this unsegregated terrace is not actually a project from the WAH activists?¡¯ Eliza started laughing.
¡®Do you see any of them here today? I¡¯ve seen a lot of people on these mixed tables, but few of them. They chickened out again I think.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t say it like that, Eliza, they have their reasons to be afraid of men, and to distrust the unsegregation. You don¡¯t know what men have done to some of us. And the life of a non-Wife can be quite hard anyway.¡¯ Angela said shyly.
¡®So if you¡¯re not the WAH, what are you then?¡¯
The reporter scribbled more sentences on his paper.
¡®I am just a Free Woman.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Is that another radical group?¡¯ The reporter asked, hungry for some new information now.
¡®No, it¡¯s just what I am. If women are human, and this glorious nation gives all people freedom and liberty then there must be a place for a Free Woman too. And I demand that role for myself, and for every woman who can¡¯t live in this oppressing system.¡¯
¡®That sounds radical to me. Are there more free women, or are you the only one?¡¯
¡®I am the first one today, of many more to come when others hear about it. Women shouldn¡¯t need a man to get somewhere in life. We¡¯re indeed human, and people that need to have access to all the freedom that the Constitution talks about!¡¯ Eliza said, fiercely, while the reporter wrote down her words.
¡®Make that two free women.¡¯ Angela said with a light voice.
¡®But there isn¡¯t any organisation around the idea of Free Women? It¡¯s not a new revolutionary movement?¡¯
¡®Not yet. You¡¯re a bit too early for that I think.¡¯ Eliza said.
The reporter looked at her, and started scribbling. His eyes gleamed, as if he had found the greatest story of his life.
He turned to Michael again.
¡®And you are really okay with this, eh, Mister Adams? You don¡¯t think it indecent at all to hang around with these Free Women who have wild ambitions?¡¯
¡®Why not? If I am to marry a woman one day it¡¯s better to learn how to be natural with girls, not? And to get to know them as persons.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s weird logic.¡¯
¡®Not for me. The logic of segregation has always been weird to me. And it¡¯s destructive to both women and men, making people a worse version of themselves. Time for new logic I¡¯d say.¡¯
¡®Are there no rules then? I mean, men and women together is a dangerous thing, and it gets indecent easily.¡¯
¡®The rule is that we all are human. And that we need to treat each other with respect and dignity. As the preachers in church say, love your neighbour. And it doesn¡¯t matter whether your neighbour is male or female. That¡¯s from the Holy Book.¡¯
¡®It is, but I mean, when you put men and women together without someone in charge, then¡¡¯
¡®If they¡¯re decent people then nothing will happen. If they¡¯re not then rules don¡¯t work either. Sexual harassment and anything like that is evidently completely taboo, and by definition against the rule of respect. Men have to respect women as women have to respect men, and only then it will work out.¡¯
The reporter wrote down those words and Eliza whispered. ¡®Not bad, I must remember that.¡¯
The reporter kept asking questions for over an hour, and when he was gone Michael and Eliza were exhausted.
¡®I need a beer now¡¯ He said.
¡®Wow, I¡¯m crossing my fingers for that piece.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®You did your best, but I fear that he didn¡¯t really understand everything.¡¯
¡®He¡¯s a journalist who needs to be open to new ideas. I hope he brings it as something sensational and weird, and doesn¡¯t write a piece about how wrong it is and how evil and indecent the unsegregation is.¡¯
¡®Let¡¯s hope.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m glad Samantha has the late shift today though. She would have made it weird.¡¯ Angela said.
¡®I hate hate hate that they only now take things seriously because I¡¯m a man. It¡¯s so unfair. The Women are Human activists have been spreading their message for years, and no-one ever wrote about them.¡¯ He looked at Angela, ashamed.
¡®It¡¯s how it is, Michael. And what matters is that the message gets spread I suppose.¡¯
¡®And now, Eliza, it¡¯s time for you to go back to school. Almost evening meal in the Wife Factory, and I don¡¯t want you to get in more trouble than you already are. Come, I walk you home now.¡¯
¡®Samantha is right about one thing, Michael: You¡¯re no fun.¡¯ She said.
¡®Ah, well, be glad that you don¡¯t have to marry me.¡¯
¡®No comment on that.¡¯ She said.
They got up and walked slowly to SCWF together without saying much. Today had been a weird day.
24 The Article
After the interview Michael looked at the paper every day, but for the next week he didn¡¯t find any article at all about the unsegregated spot, not even on the anomalistics page where strange reports of lake monsters and ghosts were given. The daily business of The Nation just happened like usual with a new school building here and a dangerous criminal that was caught there, with no reports of any revolution at all. But just when he was almost giving up, and had concluded that redaction of the paper had found that the story was either too weird, unimportant or maybe even too controversial to be published, the weekend came.
On Saturday morning he woke up early to be the first one to get the paper before his father, and he knew he had hit the jackpot: The extended Saturday paper showed a big headline ¡®Unsegregated Table: men and women together!¡¯ with a picture of an unknown cafe where men and women were sitting together. His heart started racing, and he hid in his room with the newspaper. Even his father, who usually only read sensational headlines about lake monster sightings or weird criminals, would read such a story for sure. Michael was rather unsure about how he¡¯d react to seeing his own son the paper associated with something so outlandish. Like always, he was having second thoughts already about everything. Why had he even agreed to do that interview? He should have considered his own reputation more before doing something like that. Would there be long term problems for him now?
He snuck into his room and took the Saturday paper for a closer examination. The article filled the whole first page, and was continued on pages five and six. It was clear now that the story hadn¡¯t been unimportant at all. But if it was more a sensational article, was there a fair portrayal of the unsegregated places for both sexes, or would it just be scandal and outrage plus a warning against it? He skimmed it, and he breathed with relief. The article was certainly no Women are Human propaganda pamphlet, but at least it tried to be neutral, and seemed to describe the situation more or less factually from a rather perplexed point of view. When he went on to page five, he saw a picture of himself and cursed. The journalist had used a sneak-cam after all. People would notice that much more than just his name. He really didn¡¯t like so much attention, and he had reached some kind of ironic celebrity status already in school. He had hoped that things would calm down over time, but returning to normal was completely out of the question now. But on the other hand, what could he have done? If he had not talked to the journalist the guy probably would have made up his own story anyway, and added much more speculation, and the article would have ended up much deeper in the scandal and sensation side of journalism. And now The Nation had been introduced to the sexual desegregation revolution in a more or less balanced way, partly because of his own words. Things were never simple, were they?
He reread the most important part of the story. ¡®These unsegregated spots popped up in four cities now, but the first ones appeared in Seventh City. Our investigators could trace everything back to one terrace on Square Plaza, which doesn¡¯t have the biggest Unsegregated spot, but one that has been open consistently for weeks.¡¯ A bit further he was named with his full name and grade: ¡®We were able to talk to Michael Adams, Gamma-1, who according to the story is said to have started the whole rage because he wanted a place to talk with his female friends. He turned out to be an intelligent young man, engaged to a Wife School fiancee, who indeed claimed that the present females, including said fiancee, were his friends.¡¯ ¡®Blah blah blah,¡¯ he said, and skimmed the interview.
The reporter had listened, but was still describing it as something strange, and potential subversive. ¡®While one would think such ideas to stem from sources like the Women are Human activists, the views of Mr. Adams actually stem from surprising sources. He himself cited taking teachings of The Church more seriously than it does itself, and some kind of re-interpretation of our Glorious Constitution. In his own words ¡®The rule is that we all are human. And that we need to treat each other with respect. As the preachers in church say, love your neighbour. And it doesn¡¯t matter whether your neighbour is male or female. That¡¯s from the Holy Book. And the Constitution talks about rights and freedom for every man, but it makes much more sense to just have those for every person, man or woman¡¯ When asked how he would prevent the indecency that happens when women and men are together he had a very interesting answer: ¡®If they¡¯re decent people then nothing will happen. If they are not decent people then no rules will prevent indecent behaviour, and worse assault and rape. With all the rules that we still have these things happen anyway. Any form of sexual harassment and anything like that is evidently completely taboo, and completely against the rule of respect. Men have to respect women as women have to respect men, and then it will work out. But only if all of us believe it and act like it.¡¯ Radical words, and whether they work out indeed has to be seen. But we will be keeping an eye on this Unsegregation movement and the other developments in Seventh city. Meanwhile some other people are rather disturbed by the unsegregation attempts. Mr. Collyns from Seventh City says it like this.¡¯
He threw the paper away. They had been faithful in representing his words, but he knew how weird and indecent the whole thing must sound to a lot of people, and not just to Mr. Collyns, who seemed to be against all kinds of what he saw as indecency and was proud that he had never been seen in public with his wife, because some things need to be discrete. Now that must be a happy wife, Mister Collyns, he thought. But in The Nation relationships often work better when both partners don¡¯t see each other at all. And then his thoughts went to the girls. Not only Megan and Eliza, but Angela and Samantha and the leaders of the Women are Human group would be reading the paper too. Maybe even those infamous outlaw women in the Ghost Town. What would they say? Would his little interview make it better or worse for them? It was a good thing for sure that the unsegregation of the sexes had been catching up, and that no-one had really done something about it yet. He knew that it wasn¡¯t unlawful per se, but still very uncontroversial, and it depended on the goodwill of every individual place to open up a part of their space for a mixed company. And in a way they were rather lucky that The Nation was ruled by a conservative Computer who didn¡¯t really make new laws. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but for the moment he was able to live with it. And it seems things were slowly getting better.
*
¡®So, how¡¯s the Pen Pal project going?¡¯ Michael asked Joe a few days later.
¡®Ah, we are sending our first letters already between the Boys school and the SCWF. Confidentiality guaranteed and we can reach every boy or girl in this city within days. It takes some rearranging but it also has increased the trade too. Boys and girls are sending each other study books and other packages. It seems that asking for study books is becoming a standard ice breaker. At least that¡¯s what I think, there¡¯s many book-shaped packages.¡¯
¡®I hadn¡¯t expected that, but it¡¯s an interesting thing. Anything else?¡¯
¡®Well, there¡¯s more girls who are interested than boys at the moment. And there seems to be some animosity against it from the more Real Man types.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve noticed such a thing. I should have expected it.¡¯ Michael sighed, thinking of Don and John, who weren¡¯t even Alphas themselves. ¡®But that¡¯s part of being the black market. We¡¯ve always operated in the shadows. And while certain high Alphas speak out against it from time to time they can¡¯t ever shut us down. The Nation needs our services, Even Connor Johnston can¡¯t be naive about that. Even the Central Computer representatives are not above using our services from time to time I¡¯ve heard from our First City colleagues, so I don¡¯t think anyone would ever really try to stop us.¡¯
Michael nodded, but something told him everything was going to change, which meant that they might not be able to hold on to their old certainties.
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¡®And the connection of both black markets? Does that work?¡¯
¡®It works better than expected. Andrea has been working hard to find a system of distribution points between our organisations. It¡¯s clear that they are better organised too on the female side, so we can learn a lot from them. I must say that her girls are quite good in stealth operations too, it¡¯s quite impressive.¡¯
¡®And it won¡¯t ruin your trade if both markets are connected now?¡¯
Joe shuffled his feet.
¡®Eh¡ We agreed on an arrangement that there¡¯s a 33% extra price for something from the other side, except when it¡¯s a sealed package sent as post. Those things are confidential and cannot be opened.¡¯
So a 33% tax on not having someone on the side of the other sex to personally exchange something, Michael thought. That could get interesting too¡
¡®Do you think the article on unsegregated spots will make any difference?¡¯ He asked.
¡®I don¡¯t know. The article doesn¡¯t mention the black market, but it shows a change is coming. People are picking it up. Some will be totally against it, and others will welcome it. Who¡¯ll tell what that will mean in the end?¡¯
*
On Tuesday he was sitting in the park with Megan on another date, with Eliza reinstated as the regular chaperon again. Both girls were impressed with how the article had turned out, and were more proud of having his picture in the paper than worried, even though not everyone had liked it in Seventh City Wife Factory.
¡®Miss Hunter was not really happy, even though she didn¡¯t even realise it was you. The journalist didn¡¯t even bother mentioning my name for some reason¡ Imagine what she would have said if she¡¯d known it was my fianc¨¦e, and the friends were mostly Eliza.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®She said that I will need to watch out with her skipping classes and has forbidden every girl in school to read it. Which means that illegal copies are circulating everywhere now, quite counterproductive of her¡¡¯
¡®I know Eliza has been sneaking into the copier room tonight to make a lot of copies.¡¯ Megan added, and Eliza said nothing, but her eyes smiled innocently.
¡®I¡¯m sure she did that,¡¯ he said, and then his face turned serious. ¡®But will this not also attract negative attention, and give us enemies?¡¯
¡®Michael, Michael, you can¡¯t have a revolution without getting some enemies. What did you expect?¡¯ Eliza said, playing with a curled hairlock as if she was just speaking about the weather.
¡®I expect nothing. Since my last birthday I am surprised about everything, and everything is completely new to me. From being supposedly engaged and hanging out to fighting the segregation of the sexes and bringing on the revolution, everything is new, and every new step is a surprise in a new world. A good new world, but also an unknown one.¡¯
¡®Some people don¡¯t like new worlds. They want everything to stay the same. You should know that.¡¯
¡®Some people want to be married to a will-less slave. What do I care about what other people want if it goes against all sense?¡¯
¡®Those people are in charge, my dear boy, and the Central Computer is on their side.¡¯
¡®Well curse that rotten machine and its brainwashed acolytes. We don¡¯t need it.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s enough Coke for you. You can¡¯t handle those strong drinks at your age, my little Mike All.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Behave yourself, Eliza!¡¯ Megan said.
¡®The problem isn¡¯t the Nation-Coke. There¡¯s something else that makes me uneasy. I have the feeling that something might be wrong, but I don¡¯t know what it is¡¡¯
¡®Our little boy starts spending time with girls and suddenly he develops female intuition? I didn¡¯t know we were so contagious.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Stop it.¡¯ He said, drinking the rest of his glass in one gulp, even though it almost burned his throat.
*
The first trouble came soon enough, and unexpectedly when Michael was studying for advanced robotics in his room.
¡®What on Earth are you doing with all that girl stuff, son?¡¯ His father barged in with another copy of the Saturday paper, even if it was a few days later already. This paper certainly wasn¡¯t Michaels, his copy had ended up in the paper bin. He looked at him, but didn¡¯t find any answer that would be satisfying.
¡®What do you mean, dad?¡¯
¡®Hanging around with women, talking to them, being on a picture with them in the papers, and that stuff. That¡¯s not manly.¡¯ Michael looked at him. If that was already a problem this conversation would not work at all.
¡®They always said I¡¯d like girls once I¡¯d get to know them, and that ended up being true, so I¡¯m looking for a way to be more natural with them.¡¯
His father shook his head. ¡®You are being indecent and you are doing unnatural things, son. Its¡¯ not healthy. Men and women should stay away from each other. That¡¯s the natural order of things. You are a smart boy, you should know that. We are different and need to stay away from the other. Otherwise there will be chaos.¡¯
¡®Nothing unnatural about girls. Women are just people like us. And they can be friends like all people.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s against God¡¯s laws. It¡¯s against common sense. Are you even a man? How can you betray us all like this?¡¯
¡®Yes, I¡¯m a man, technically and legally. I am 18 now and I¡¯m a Gamma-1, so who¡¯s going to stop me here?¡¯
It felt weird to use his rating against his dad, but he had no choice now. His father took the message, but still wasn¡¯t convinced.
¡®It¡¯s not natural, it¡¯s not decent. Can¡¯t you just be discreet about hanging around with your fianc¨¦e like all men? Showing off that you meet a girl is shameful. Do you want to bring shame to all of us?¡¯
¡®I already have to be so discrete that I can¡¯t even see my own little sister or walk around with my own mother, while the male section of the Square bar is full of creeps with their weird affairs and extramarital sex-slaves and no-one says something about that? Sorry, I can¡¯t live like that, and such a world is just wrong. But that reminds me that I should arrange a visit for little Annie with Megan.¡¯
His father paled. ¡®You¡¯re going to visit your little sister? In Wife School?¡¯
¡®I was planning to, why not? She¡¯s my family.¡¯
¡®I forbid you.¡¯
Michael waved with his badge. ¡®I¡¯m 18, and you can¡¯t stop me. I am so through with all this nonsense. Be a Man, hah¡ And then you¡¯re brainwashed into less of a person. We¡¯re not actually men, we¡¯re not even human anymore. There must be another way of being a man.¡¯
¡®But, son?¡¯
¡®There is a better way to be human. I know it. That¡¯s what I¡¯m discovering. And the girls are helping me with that; unlike you and all those idiotic Alpha idiots.¡¯
¡®You will get in trouble for all of this girl stuff, son. And if that happens I won¡¯t be there to defend you. I gave you everything to be a good man. I even gave you a Wife School girl to marry. And this is how you thank me? I feel ashamed for having such a weakling under my roof. You really will have to move out as soon as you can marry her. And the wedding party will be small. Not going to pay for that.¡¯
Fifteen minutes later he walked outside. His father was not a man of long talks, but he knew that their relationship was getting worse and worse, especially now that his mother had given up completely on being a mediator between her husband and her youngest son. It was clear that this situation would explode soon, and he didn¡¯t know what would happen then. Would he be able to live there, or need to find another house? And what with his mother? She had completely faded in the background and didn¡¯t even dare to say anything lately, as if she was just a domestic robot that was present for little jobs but not present as a person. He never understood what happened between his parents, but it seemed that his mother was much more unreachable than the women of his own age were. Was that what a Nation marriage did to a woman? Would he be able to not do anything like that with Megan? Was it even possible to have a decent marriage that didn¡¯t destroy the woman and make the man a much worse person than he could have been? Everything was still so unclear.
25 Trouble!
¡®It¡¯s a perfect night, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ Megan said, looking at the first stars of the evening.
¡®It is way too late for you two, and it¡¯s dangerous for women to be outside now.¡¯ Michael said, a bit nervous.
He felt they had become too carefree over the last weeks. The three of them were walking home in the dark from Square Plaza to Seventh City Wife Factory. They had lost all sense of time today in the bar with Andrea and one of the Women are Human girls, and maybe they had drunk a bit too much man beer too. Tom seemed to finally have relaxed about a bit about who could drink what, and eating together for once had made them feel invincible, as if the whole hostile world they had always known had disappeared overnight. Things were looking good indeed, with the unsegregation movement at least gaining its own place in The Nation, and Project Pen Pal taking off and opening up a new future in which the sexes would be able to connect with each other more when they wanted. But none of this changed anything of the aggressive daily reality of The Nation in which there were dangerous and entitled high-rated men that you couldn¡¯t do much against. And now in the cold air of the night Michael felt sober again.
He knew he wasn¡¯t the one who was going to be in trouble when they arrived too late at Seventh City Wife Factory, although he seemed to be more worried about than the girls, who had some weird faith in his Gamma-1 privilege for some reason. But he was also nervous because they had to pass through some places where you wouldn¡¯t want to be in the dark. To be honest, he wasn¡¯t even used to being outside at night with girls. So while the girls where relaxed and giggly he felt the tension rising up inside of him.
¡®Poor Greystone isn¡¯t going to be happy indeed.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Ah, but we have our class One male with us who is your fiancee, and he can¡¯t say anything against that, poor Beta-3.¡¯ Eliza said relaxedly, but Michael wasn¡¯t convinced.
¡®You know that it¡¯s a risk for you both to be here now without a permit, especially for you, Eliza. They probably won¡¯t say anything about Megan if I say it was my idea, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯d let me take two girls. And how on Earth do I explain a tipsy chaperone?¡¯
¡®Well, they might suppose you¡¯re just doing a lot of hanky-panky and they won¡¯t care how many girls you use for that if they¡¯re just low quality E-girls. I¡¯m worthless anyway to them. Unsellable goods you know. No-one gives a rat¡¯s toenail about me.¡¯
He stopped and stared at her in horror.
¡®Don¡¯t say such terrible things, Eliza!¡¯ Megan said.
¡®It¡¯s still true. And the bureaucracy doesn¡¯t care either. So unless something goes terribly wrong on the way there they¡¯ll just let us in, look the other way, and we can profit from that terrible ¡°don¡¯t ask, don¡¯t see¡± mentality for once.¡¯
¡®Eliza, You scandalous woman! But we better not stand still here for too long.¡¯ Megan said.
Michael and both girls intertwined their arms.
¡®I would never be able to think like that, but after all I¡¯ve heard she might even be right, Megan. And me being a class one male unfortunately does mean a lot too, for Greystone and consorts too. It¡¯s completely unfair, but maybe for once it¡¯s unfair on our side indeed. I¡¯ve told you both before to use all the Gamma-1 one privilege you can get from me.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s still horrible that anyone would think such things at all about you, or about us,¡¯ Megan said, ¡®a man of integrity like you is hard to find, and they don¡¯t even realise what you are.¡¯
They walked through 20th street in silence. Dark apartments towered over the even darker street, with muddy lawns like black holes and unhealthy-looking trees like high towering phantom monsters here and there between the box-like buildings. Michael noticed that several streetlights were broken, more than last time that he¡¯d walked here in the dark. The Great Nation was cutting down on energy again? Even with renewable energy electricity was a rationed resource. This was officially an Epsilonville, but he knew these buildings were populated by both impoverished Deltas and Epsilons. It wasn''t like the Alphavilla and Betaville villas that he could see a bit further, which bathed in light, and which were more like the house he lived in himself. Low-rated men lived here with their families, and unless their kids had a higher rating than their parents, they wouldn¡¯t get a chance to study properly too. You needed to be a Gamma at least to get a scholarship, and seeing the housing circumstances a lot of kids in these buildings weren¡¯t able to adequately prepare for their rating tests. So even though there wasn¡¯t any hereditary caste system, chances were big that children of low-rated men became low-rated men themselves, and that they had to live here in Epsilonville too, having low-paying jobs. Which was still a lot better than the actual non-citizens apartments in the neighbourhood on the other side of the city, but those were places where no-one passed through unless they really needed to be there. Epsilonville was high society compared to the places for the unrated, and for non-citizen men.
Megan suddenly grabbed his hand and squeezed it, and all his thoughts about society and inequality were cut short within a fraction of a second. From out of the darkness two men suddenly stood before them. He froze instantly, but not without placing himself before the girls to shield them from the newcomers, an Alpha and a Beta in expensive suits and typical high-class hats. They were the last people you¡¯d expect in a dark Epsilonville streets, and definitely looked like bad news.
The leader of the two, an Alpha-2, addressed him with an arrogant voice.
¡®Hey, Gamma-boy, give us those girls, we¡¯re a bit bored tonight.¡¯
Michael gasped at the long muscled man with a moustache and dark eyes. He was only a Gamma-1 himself, so according to the rules of male hierarchy Michael had to obey him in everything they demanded from him that wasn¡¯t highly illegal, without many loopholes. But that wasn¡¯t even an option in this case.
¡®They are not mine to give to anyone.¡¯ He replied calmly, while panicking inside.
He saw the other guy make a fist. ¡®Then they are ours to take. Women always submit to men. That¡¯s the order of nature. And what are you doing here anyway? It¡¯s no time for fine schoolgirls to be parading around like this in this dark Epsilonville.¡¯
¡®None of your business.¡¯ Eliza said fiercely, and the Alpha-2 turned his eyes to her.
¡®How, little curly has a voice. I like that.¡¯
His Beta-3 friend let out an ominous laugh.
¡®Leave the girls alone. They are only Wife School students.¡¯
¡®Well, then they are out way too late, aren¡¯t they? And if they are training to be a Wife, they could use some experience with a Real Man. Come on, brainie-wimp, just let us have some fun with them. You can pick them up later at school again if you want them for yourself another time. They will learn more from it about Real Men tha, you could ever give them.¡¯
Michael felt both the panic and the anger growing inside of him. ¡®Leave them alone, I said. They are Free Women.¡¯
The boy started laughing, and reached out to grab Megan.
Be a man, Michael said to himself. You have to defend those who need to be defended. Especially women and children need to be defended by a real man. It was an idea from a time before the Nation, but it actually meant something to him now that something had to be done, and he was the man here. But what could he do? He wasn¡¯t a fighter and his opponents seemed to be trained in combat as well as in street fights. Some young men went far beyond the daily ¡®Be a Man¡¯ sessions with militaristic exercises, instead of skipping them whenever possible. But he still had to defend his friends here, he really could let those creeps have their way with the girls.
¡®You let her¡¡¯ He began, but the Alpha-2 suddenly grabbed him by his throat, while his cheering companion came to his assistance by grabbing his arms beyond his back. The only thing he was thinking about was how to get the girls into safety, but there wasn¡¯t much he could do alone now against two highly-trained men who held him in control. He couldn¡¯t use his arms at all, and he couldn¡¯t move.
¡®You little wimp. We¡¯ll finish you coward first then, and after that we¡¯ll take the girls,¡¯ the Beta-3 said.
Michael tried hopelessly to yell at the girls that they had to run, but no sound came out of his throat.
Inside he felt like a horrible failure.
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But then everything suddenly happened very fast. The girls glanced at each other, and came into action. Suddenly Megan took a few steps backwards until she merged with the darkness behind them, while Eliza took an attack pose, and unexpectedly she leaped in between the two men like a cat before she attacked with all her force. Without any warning she kicked with her knee between the legs of the Beta-3 who was holding Michaels arms, who promptly let go and sunk onto his knees, deep in pain. His Alpha-2 friend tried to grab her, which meant that he had to let go of Michael too in the process. But again Eliza¡¯s knee proved too fast for him to react, and soon he too fell down, also screaming from the pain.
Before Michael even realised what had happened he stood there free again, with Eliza taking his hand and looking in his eyes for a fraction of a second to check if he was okay. He looked at her in utter amazement, but there was no time to talk now. Both men were slowly standing up, and one of them reached for something in his pocket.
¡®Now is the time to RUN!¡¯ Megan screamed from out of the shadows and they started running as fast as they could, in the direction of Seventh City Wife Factory. Michael was still holding Eliza¡¯s hand and they ran for two streets before taking a rest. Michael realised whose hand he was holding, and let go, but now wasn¡¯t the time to be embarrassed about something like that.
¡®I should have defended you as a man. Not the other way around¡¯ Michael panted.
¡®Not now.¡¯ Eliza replied. ¡®Get away first.¡¯
They ran and ran, through the dark streets in between the apartments of 20th streets and Seventh City Wife factory. How were they ever going to explain this to anyone?
In the darkness of the open square before Seventh City Wife Factory they finally stopped, completely out of breath.
¡®No-one behind us?¡¯ Michael asked after half a minute of letting his heart rate and breath return to something closer to normal.
''Doesn¡¯t seem so.¡¯ Megan whispered.
¡®You were incredible, Eliza, thank you.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Ah, well¡ self-defence is a controversial subject for Wife School girls, but at least Miss Stone has enough sense to offer it as an elective. And I¡¯ve taken every lesson I could, even when a lot of girls just laughed at it. You see it came in handy.¡¯
He looked at her, still half in shock, but didn¡¯t reply.
¡®But now it''s not the time for memories. We must try to get in unseen as fast as possible.¡¯ Eliza said practically. They were still half running in the direction of the SCWF.
¡®And how would that even be possible?¡¯ Megan asked.
¡®I know a way.¡¯ She said.
Michael said nothing. He felt the adrenaline slowly fade but feared that this was only the beginning of the trouble to come. Why hadn¡¯t their attackers chased them at all? Something was wrong with the whole situation. The trio slowed down and crossed the square in the direction of the SCWF building. They slowed down and started to walk slower. The girls seemed to be relaxing, as they were almost home. They could almost feel their beds calling already when a sudden amplified voice came out of nowhere.
¡®Stop, you three!¡¯
In a dark corner suddenly the lights of a police car switched on, and three armed officers stood there, their guns and a search light pointed at them. One of them had a micro-megaphone, and another one held a walk-phone in his left hand. Michael moaned. So that was what the Alpha-2 had reached for in his pockets after the attack. Wireless phones were rare and expensive indeed, but nothing too fancy for an Alpha. And there always were police cars patrolling around 20th street so it wasn¡¯t hard to mobilise one if you had the right contacts.
¡®Shit,¡¯ he whispered.
All three of them knew that they were in big trouble now. No matter how justified the self-defence had been, what they had done to an Alpha-2 was heavily problematic with the hierarchy system of The Nation. And heavily punishable too, especially for him. An armed police agent stepped forward.
¡®You three, come with me.¡¯ He said.
Michael cursed again.
The man looked at his badge with a mocking smirk. ¡®Gamma, and attacking an Alpha. You know you are in deep trouble now, brother, don¡¯t you?¡¯
He held up his hands. ¡®Take me, but let the girls go back to school!¡¯ He said.
¡®We can¡¯t do that, after such a low attack on an innocent Alpha. We¡¯ll have to take all of you to the cell, and contact your parents.¡¯ The policeman said, with a satisfied smile. He didn¡¯t know why, but some people just seem to be sadists, and this copper was definitely one of them.
*
Michael didn¡¯t remember much of how they drove him to the police station afterwards. Only a deep despair bigger than the world around him, that wasn¡¯t focused on himself in the first place but on the girls. No matter how hard he had pleaded, they had taken Megan and Eliza too; instead of dropping them off at wife School. They¡¯d been separated at arrival and he was brought into a dirty and dark cell, alone and stripped of everything including even his badge. He had no idea what was going to happen to him now, but it was clear that it couldn¡¯t be anything good.
Waves of despair and self-hate came over him. He hadn¡¯t been able to defend Megan and Eliza at all, and when they had successfully defended themselves against those creeps the Nation itself had taken revenge. Eliza had been incredible, indeed, but what difference would it make? Everything was so unfair, and he was so angry, and so confused, and too afraid to think straight or to fall asleep.
He didn¡¯t know how much time had passed in this nightmare-like state of daze when suddenly another cop came in and commanded him to follow. As a zombie he walked to a heavily-lit room which only contained an interview table, where yet another policeman awaited him for an interrogation. Michael noted that his uniform was different from the other agents. He was also a Beta-2, so this one was much higher in rank than all the other policemen he¡¯d seen. And also higher in rank than him. Or at least than he had been until they took his badge away from him earlier. Without his badge he was nothing, he suddenly realised.
The man gestured that he had to sit down, and then looked at some papers that he¡¯d brought.
¡®Mister Adams?¡¯ Michael nodded.
¡®You have been accused of needless violence against two higher-ranked men including an Alpha-2. This is a serious misdemeanour in our laws, as you should be aware of.¡¯ Michael just nodded, awaiting more. But this wasn¡¯t a good start. ¡®But there are some differences between the stories of the victims and the stories of your girl companions, so we want you to clear up some things.¡¯
Michael sighed when the policeman went on.
¡®We want to hear your version first, before anything else. So please tell us what happened. Do you have anything at all to say to defend yourself and your low deeds?¡¯
The use of plural pronouns while there was only one policeman in the room made Michael conclude that he was being invisibly watched, and maybe even recorded or filmed. But he couldn¡¯t do anything about that, and he couldn¡¯t panic now. He had to keep his cool and exercise self-control, even in his terrible state.
¡®Those two creeps tried to assault my fiancee and her friend. We only defended ourselves against sexual predators. They didn¡¯t want to listen to no, and they were strangling me.¡¯
A silence fell, and the policeman looked up from his paper, frowning. ¡®And for that you kick an Alpha-2 in the balls. Only for a girl? A Wifeschool E-girl?¡¯
Michael noted that the other guy who wasn¡¯t an Alpha-2 wasn¡¯t even talked about. If it would only have been a Beta-3, with him as a Gamma-1 they probably wouldn¡¯t have reacted like this, as their ranks were more or less comparable or at least not that far apart.
¡®For a friend, and for a woman threatened with sexual assault. And to be honest, she actually did it herself, the kicking was Eliza¡¯s doing. Those two held me under control and they were probably going to beat me up because I didn¡¯t let them have the girls. I was unable to defend the girls at that point, so maybe they were right that I¡¯m not a Real Man in a way.¡¯
¡®The victims say you attacked them without a reason, Mr. Adams. And now you are shifting your responsibility by saying that one of the girls did it? That is just low.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m only telling you what happened. Not that I¡¯m proud of it. I really wished I could say I did it, and take all the responsibility myself. But they focused on me as the man, and Eliza turned out to be the better fighter and she saved all three of us. Didn¡¯t she say that herself?¡¯
¡®She did say something like that, but who would even believe a girl? Or a Gamma when there¡¯s an Alpha-2 involved for that matter. No, it¡¯s clear. You were a coward who attacked those two fine men without a good reason, and now you are going to pay for that. We can¡¯t have violent thugs attacking our fine Alphas without consequences.¡¯
He shook his head. ¡®Wait, am I a coward or a violent thug now?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t complicate it, dude.¡¯
He fell silent when he saw the cop¡¯s expression. He should have watched out. Surely they were beyond inconsistent in how they blamed him now, but there was no way of using reason against these people. They were not reasonable, and they hated him just for existing it seemed. Being reasonable would only bring out hate now. There was no reason or logic to be found here in The Nation when it came to the hierarchy between men.
He sank in his chair, hopelessly. He knew that he wouldn¡¯t convince anyone. They believed whatever they wanted to believe, even if it wasn¡¯t consistent at all. No-one could be a coward and a violent thug who had kicked those ¡®fine men¡¯ in the balls at the same time. He didn¡¯t really mind taking the blame if it would keep the girls out of trouble, but the way they still called him a coward while they believed he had done the violence as a Gamma was outrageous, and it told him that he would lose this no matter what.
¡®You know what. Forget the story about Eliza kicking them in the balls. Everything is my responsibility. Just let the girls go home and keep them safe, if you have any male pride left yourself.¡¯
The eyes of the cop widened. ¡®You little brat! You lowly Gamma scum break all man rules by attacking an Alpha-2 and then you lecture me on how to be a man? How dare you?¡¯
¡®Nevermind, just nevermind.¡¯ He said. He knew he had gone too far again. But anything he¡¯d say now would go too far. He was too tired to walk on eggshells now, and even in a better state it would be hopeless to even try. The biggest problem was not that anything he said could make it worse for him,but also for Eliza and Megan, so he better kept silent now.
¡®Hah, now you¡¯re not so noisy anymore, are you? You wimpy coward. I knew you had no backbone!¡¯ The man said when he didn¡¯t react, but He didn¡¯t answer anymore. This seemed to make the policeman even madder, but it seemed he had heard enough anyway, because he wrote down a few words on his paper and then suddenly said.
¡®We know enough now, Mr. Adams. You go back to your cell, and then we¡¯ll see how we will deal with you.¡¯
And back to his cell he went, in utter misery.
26 Game over?
The time after his arrest was like one long bad trip for Michael. Imprisoned in a small and mostly empty cell, time went on like a dream, completely cut off from the outside world and even from all normal rhythms of time. He was stuck in a world devoid of any natural light here, one where only a small old fashioned light bulb that more belonged in a museum flickered like crazy most of the time. He had the freedom to turn it off if he wanted to sleep, but even when turned off it sometimes gave weird electric bursts and sparkles unexpectedly, which sometimes woke him again, not that he would have slept so well otherwise.
The room contained nothing but an old chair, and there was some kind of tiny dirty toilet room in a corner, and something that could with some imagination be considered a bed. At least it had a very old mattress. They¡¯d given him some kind of prison suit pyjamas to sleep in, which might have made him look like a zebra on an ancient sepia picture from a museum, but he didn¡¯t have a mirror here so he didn¡¯t really bother with how he looked.
Nothing happened here at all except for the meals and some sporadic visits from unfriendly officials who threatened him and then left, usually without having said anything useful, so he was completely alone with his thoughts and his feelings. With everything that had happened lately it didn¡¯t take long before being alone with himself started to drive him crazy. And who knew what was even going on in the outside world? It all seemed so far away now, like a fading dream. He felt like he had been completely forgotten by everyone he had ever known, and his connection to the outside world was fading fast.
He didn¡¯t even have a clue anymore what time it was outside, whether it was midnight or noon. How long had he really been here in this trance between waking and bad sleep? Hours, days, a week? He hadn¡¯t even found a pattern in the meals of stale bread and tasteless soup, but there must have been only about 5 of them, with seemingly irregular intervals. So rationally he knew he could only have been here two days or so at worst, even if it felt like an eternity already. It already as if he¡¯d always been locked here in this liminal in-between world that wasn¡¯t a world at all, a waiting zone for hell that could turn into anything in the end, from reinstatement of his former Gamma-1 status to a life as unrated nobody in a Zeroville or worse. Or maybe to nothing at all, maybe he would never leave this place or find sanity again. Maybe this had been his life.
And then there were the words the officer had said the last time he had unannouncedly barged in, which kept on looping endlessly in his mind.
¡®We have phoned your father, mister Adams, and he is not happy. Neither is the director of your school. You will be punished severely. I promise that.¡¯
And then he had disappeared again. There had been pure hate in his eyes, like had been the case with the interrogator too. What had he ever done to deserve that? Nothing in this whole story was fair, but he knew that that was just how it worked in the real world. Maybe he lived in a dystopia after all.
Had they believed his version of the story? It probably wouldn¡¯t make any difference at all. Attacking an Alpha-2 only to defend a girl not your family member or partner was just not done. Everybody in The Nation knew that. Or at least that was how people thought. Any yet it would have been the only thing he could have done, the good thing to do too if you were a good man, or even just a good person. Except that in reality he hadn¡¯t even done anything at all. It had been Eliza who had done what had needed to be done, and he had just been held by two stronger men, unable to do anything at all. But that didn¡¯t matter, since no alpha would ever admit that he was defeated by a mere girl. And he had still been a level one male at that point, so he was the one who was responsible for Eliza¡¯s alleged misbehaviour anyway. Single girls had no legal agency and needed a man for everything. No-one would believe that a Wife School student like him could be a warrior when the circumstances asked for it, and even for him it would have been hard to believe, hadn¡¯t he seen it.
His ¡°crime¡± was a serious one in the eyes of his captors: a high-rated Alpha was harmed, hit in his manhood even. No matter who had done that and why, he was the only one who was officially responsible. Breaking the Man Code by attacking a high-level male without a valid reason was a serious offence, which stirred up extreme feelings in those men. And now he had to be punished for not being a Real Man. Or rather for being the wrong kind of man maybe, everything was still contradictory, and he couldn¡¯t win at all. In theory attacking someone stronger than you would have been considered manly and courageous, but breaking the hierarchy was just not done and punishable, and always cowardly. Nothing of this made any sense if you really thought it through, and yet it was everything he had ever known. It always had gone that way for men. If there was another possibility he hadn¡¯t seen it yet, and it wouldn¡¯t be available for him now.
Ultimately this meant the end of his experimenting with being another kind of man. All his fantasies of living as a free person outside of the unwritten laws of The Nation were shattered to nothingness now, as were all of his other dreams for the future, and his expectations for the rest of his life. All that he had been was over now, especially if his father was indeed involved in the punishment. They might not only unrate him but even completely delete him now, and he might even be one hair-width away from being a non-Citizen now. Would they really do that? For such a small fight? He knew that if they would not give back his badge, he would be stuck with a status lower than Angela, who had to work as a garbage sorter in a recycling factory because there was no better job she could find. And she was technically still rated, officially an E who had never finished Wife School if he remembered well.
The complete uncertainty about everything was the worst thing to endure. Why did he have to wait here in pure isolation? Did that mean they didn¡¯t know what to do with him or were they planning something that took time? Were they holding a whole process without him? He knew that they had confiscated his badge. Would he ever get a chance to get it back? Or would he automatically get downgraded now to a much lower rank? Become a badgeless faceless person even? He knew that all of this might be possible if an Alpha-2 was very mad at you and you were just a Gamma.
It was all so unfair and so ironic too. Eliza¡¯s more than successful act of self-defence, without which she would have been molested or worse, should have been celebrated. She had done right, and rather spectacularly so. She never ceased to amaze him with her wide range of talents and interests, but he had never taken her for an actual fighter too. She had been the hero.
Something about that had still hurt him in the male pride that he always had thought he didn¡¯t have. Something still told him that he should have been the one to defend Eliza and Megan, and he felt terrible that he had been unable to save both his girl friends from sexual assault. But at least that one evil had been avoided for now.
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What rotten system would say that he had only the right to defend his own fiancee, and that Eliza shouldn¡¯t have mattered to him? Why didn¡¯t an unconnected woman mean a thing to people in this rotten world? He would even have saved an unknown girl from assault when needed if the situation would ever have arisen. If he¡¯d gotten over his indecision and cowardice that is, so probably not. He actually wasn¡¯t much of a man. Less than Eliza even, who should have gotten a statue, but who was probably just kicked from Wife School now together with Megan.
He cursed in his mind. There was nothing he could do. There was nothing he could have ever done. Megan had been right, his privilege existed only if he did the things that were expected of a toxic male. He didn¡¯t really have any actual meaningful privilege to change the system. And just being the wrong person at the wrong place at the wrong moment could ruin everything. The hierarchy of The Nation among men was quite strong, and if a dominant Alpha tried to destroy a lower-ranked person who could be blamed for anything, there wasn¡¯t really anything that could be done, except maybe by another alpha of the same rank. It was a weak spot in the whole system, but was how it worked, and now it would destroy him.
It was even worse that this probably would spell disaster for poor Megan and Eliza too. That was something that he would have to learn to live with too, no matter how it would turn out for him. Something told him that he would never be able to see them again, and that the girls would now hate him forever anyway. That¡¯s what he deserved too. He had ruined the few bits of future they had and he could not live with that idea. He could never look in their eyes again even if they would want to see him back. He wouldn¡¯t even be able to face Angela anymore now. His whole idea of being friends with girls had been destroyed, and was broken beyond repair, as was his place in the male world. There was nothing left for him.
He noticed that his thoughts were running in circles, and that they were becoming irrational. In the end he had done nothing wrong, it was the world that was wrong, and he was right. Oh how arrogant did that sound. No, the police were probably right. The Alpha dude was probably right too. He didn¡¯t exactly know what, but it must have been something wrong that he had done. No, he had to fight these thoughts. He was innocent. And if he got out he had to find the girls, and set things right in some way. It was not just Megan who was his responsibility now, but Eliza too. And he had to be a man and be responsible.
After a while he realised that his thoughts were making him crazy again. He turned off the light and tried to sleep, but he went into a strange state in between being awake and being stuck in a nightmare. He had to fight a dragon who wanted to eat the girls with nothing but a toothpick, while all the Alphas he had known in his life were mocking him, and Greystone was taking notes. ''No, Mr. Adams, you are not pleasing to us. In this way you cannot get a Wife from our reputed institution.¡¯ He said, and he closed the door, and he suddenly stood outside on Square plaza, in his underwear. Samantha suddenly stood before him, wearing only an E-floor bikini for some reason, and she wanted to embrace him. ¡®You¡¯ll never be a Husband now, but at least I will have my fun with you.¡¯ ¡®No!¡¯ He screamed, while Samantha tried to kiss him, and suddenly Megan, Eliza and Angela stood around them. ¡®Now we see what it was that you wanted. Men, they all want one thing, and it¡¯s despicable!¡¯ Megan said, and turned around and left. ¡®I wish I could say I¡¯m disappointed, but you know I¡¯ve never even trusted you, you¡¯re a man after all. I¡¯ve known that all along¡¯ Eliza said, and disappeared too. Angela didn¡¯t say a word, and just wept bitter tears, while Samantha yelled. ¡®He¡¯s mine for today, but you can have him tomorrow if you take him out of the trash!¡¯
He wanted to scream, but there came no sound, and suddenly he stood there, still almost naked, before his father and his mother. ¡®I¡¯ve always known that you¡¯re not a Real Man.¡¯ He said, and he also turned away without saying anything. He also disappeared, together with his mother who didn¡¯t even say a word.
*
¡®Mister Adams, wake up and take your stuff.¡¯
Suddenly there was a light shining in his face, and someone was calling his name. An officer had finally come, to give him a verdict. He stared at the face, that he couldn¡¯t see well in the sudden daylight.
¡®Michael Adams. Take your stuff. You¡¯ve been suspended from school. And your dad wants you to move out as soon as possible, you¡¯re disowned. You will meet a relocalisation agent who¡¯ll help you in the process.¡¯
¡®Can I get my badge back then?¡¯ He asked.
The officer laughed. ¡®Maybe if you behave they¡¯ll consider when you get a new screening for a rating after a year. No, son, you¡¯re going to live in a state apartment for the unrated, and you¡¯ll need to find work as soon as possible.¡¯
That was much to take in, but he wasn¡¯t the only one affected by the story.
¡®But the girls? What happens to them?¡¯
¡®None of your business anymore, son, as a badgeless man you cannot have a Wife so don¡¯t bother about your ex-fiancee now. You should know that. She¡¯s nothing to you anymore, and you are nothing to her. She¡¯s nothing anymore herself now anyway. But maybe it helps if you know that we decided with both their fathers that they are to be taken away from Wife School. They are no wife material.¡¯
¡®No!¡¯ He said.
The officer ignored him.
¡®Come on, get dressed. You¡¯ll have to talk to the relocalisation agent, he¡¯ll be here soon. He will explain stuff and help you move to your new place. You can get all the stuff you want from your old house, but you¡¯ll have to work from now on. And if I were you¡¯d get used to not wearing a badge soon. It¡¯ll be quite a difference from class one life.¡¯ He let out a dirty laugh. ¡®But don¡¯t fret. Like I said, after one year we¡¯ll look at your case and if your behaviour was good enough you might get a badge again. But that means you¡¯ll have to behave now. And respect men with higher badges than you. Which is every man you¡¯ll meet. Including Epsilons.¡¯ He seemed very pleased with that idea. ¡®Time for you to learn some respect for Real Men¡¡¯
Michael didn¡¯t have much stuff to collect, but he dressed in the clothes he was wearing the night of his arrest, and tried to take the words of the police officer in. So that was it? Technically his life in The Nation was over now. No more school for him, so no diploma. A state apartment for the unrated meant that he was listed as the poorest of the poor, completely unprivileged. Plus he had to obey every man with a badge now. He was a complete pariah from now on. With some luck he would be able to get his job at the Square Bar back, but he knew that the pay would be much lower for a badgeless man than it had been for Gamma-1 student, and that he¡¯d probably be treated terribly by the entitled clients, and probably even by some of his colleagues.
He had lost all of his family and friends now. And on top of that he probably had lost the girls too. Like the official had said, they were nothing to him now. And he was nothing to them. He had no right to bother them anymore, and they wouldn¡¯t want to see him again after what happened. He would never be able to have a Wife as a badgeless man. And they were ruined now, because of him. How could he ever look Megan or Eliza in the eyes again? He had tried to defend them, but what had it done?
It was not fair at all, but that was how it was: he had lost everything he¡¯d ever known. The Nation didn¡¯t give you any second chance sometimes, he had to accept the situation and there was nothing he could do now.
¡®The relocation agent is waiting, Mister Adams!¡¯
Another official appeared. Michael said a silent prayer, and followed him, completely devoid of any hope for the future.
2.1 A Deleted Man
Michael sat on the unmade bed and stared at the wall with his heart full of shame and despair. The room was almost empty, except for an old bed and a tiny table, and like the building itself everything in it was run-down and ancient. So this was how it felt to live in the lower end of a Zeroville neighbourhood? He¡¯d better get used to it, because it was his new home now.
It wasn¡¯t really his new apartment that was on his mind now though, but the way in which he had ended up here. In his head he endlessly replayed the same painful memories until his thoughts blurred away into a maelstrom of darkness and pain. Nothing made sense anymore in his life anyway, and he had lost everything he¡¯d ever known in his eighteen years of being alive in The Nation. Not that it had been fair, all he had done was trying to defend his fianc¨¦e Megan and her friend Eliza from an Alpha creep who wanted to sexually assault them, and just for that he had been arrested and thrown into the outer darkness of society like this. Breaking the Man Code is not something to do lightly in The Nation.
The sad irony of the whole thing was probably that it hadn¡¯t even been him, but Eliza who had done most of the defence, as he had been in the grip of two stronger men at that moment, men who didn¡¯t appreciate him talking back and standing up for just a girl. But no-one, nor his parents, the police or even the courts would ever believe that a mere girl like Eliza could have taken down an Alpha. Only Real Men were able to hurt other men in the mind of The Nation; so he had been taken to be the only responsible party in the story, and was punished harshly accordingly: His place in the male hierarchy was gone now.
There were five ranks of men in The Nation, named after the five first letters of the Greek alphabet and at age twelve he had received a Gamma badge, much to the disappointment of his father, who was an Alpha-5 himself. His second rating at age eighteen had given him a rare golden level one badge, but even as a Gamma-1 his life hadn¡¯t been easy. It had even become more complicated for him with such a paradoxical ranking, especially when his father had insisted on him going to Seventh City Wife Factory to choose a Wife as a present. But nothing could help him if someone higher in the male hierarchy ordered him to do something he really couldn¡¯t do, as he¡¯d found out the hard way.
And still, even with everything considered it was hard to comprehend how fast and easily his deletion had happened. By the time they had let him out of the police cell his whole life had been erased as if he had never even existed, and now he had nothing left: no parents, no school, no Gamma-1 badge, no place in society and no friends. What was even worse to him was that what happened had certainly ruined the lives of Megan and Eliza too. He didn¡¯t exactly know what had happened to them, but they were certainly lost to him too now. He also felt too ashamed to ever look them in the eyes again. He had utterly failed them, even if he hadn¡¯t had a chance to do anything else.
He peeked at his rusty wristwatch which said six in the evening. In his own experience he had been sitting here for a timeless eternity, but it actually had been just an hour or two ago that the relocation agent had left him alone here and it was that last conversation which still echoed in his head:
¡®Remember, Mr. Adams, that all of this is just probation. If you behave well enough, you might get your ranking back, or at least get rated again in the future. You should also remember that under Nation regulations you will not be able to have a Wife under these circumstances, unless you get rated as at least an Epsilon again. Unrated men are legally unmarriable.¡¯
He had just nodded absently while trying to process the situation. His loss of his Gamma-1 rate hadn¡¯t really mattered to him anymore at that point, not compared to the fate of Megan and Eliza. But the only answer he had gotten after he had asked about his fianc¨¦e had only confirmed his worst fears, without giving any actual information about her or her friend. ¡®The little Wife School girl? I don¡¯t know. She shouldn¡¯t concern you anymore, Mr. Adams so how could it matter to you? She has tarnished herself. She isn¡¯t fit to be a Wife anymore. She¡¯ll have to apply for a woman''s apartment and find herself a job. Same with the other girl. What they did was wrong and not pleasing, and damaged goods won¡¯t get a second chance. You should have other concerns now, Mr. Adams.¡¯
For a fraction of a second he had wanted to strangle the man, but what would senseless violence have accomplished, except for pushing him even deeper in misery? The man only did his job, and even though he was only a Gamma-5 the consequences of attacking any rated man would be extremely severe now. He had to face the fact that he was an unrated nobody, hardly a person even in the eyes of The Nation. All that he had left was his name and identity. And since when did he have such violent thoughts anyway? That was more manly than he usually was. Was he finally becoming a Nation man? That¡¯d be a bit late, not? But isn¡¯t life an endless series of ironies anyway?
That had only been the beginning. It had become worse when the relocation agent went over the rest of the paperwork with him. After some details about the apartment, and the rules of the building he suddenly had produced a Wifebot application form for him to fill in. ¡®You lucky bastard! Because you were almost married, you will instantly get your own Wifebot to replace her. Much better arrangement for someone like you if you ask me. You may be unfit for a human marriage partner, but a man alone cannot live without a Wife. It¡¯s not natural! And robots make better partners anyway. Every honest man will agree on that!¡¯
To say he had been baffled would have been an understatement. He could still feel it hit him like a bombshell two hours later. ¡®Eh, what¡¯ had been the only reaction he could produce. ¡®Are you a bit slow, man? We¡¯ll supply you with a nice and sexy robowife to compensate for you not being able to have a human wife. Isn¡¯t that terrific?¡¯ The man had winked at him, and Michael didn¡¯t even know how he managed to react to this, but in the end he had blurted out. ¡®You mean a I get walking sex doll like the Unmarriable? No thanks.¡¯ Never in his life would he forget the look of the relocation agent when he said. ¡®Dude! Where¡¯s your head? You are unmarriable yourself now. But still, a man has certain needs, and needs a maid, and cannot live alone. Since you can¡¯t live with your parents anymore and are not in the position to get a real Wife anytime soon, the State will provide you with a reasonable alternative to perform domestic duties like cleaning and washing and cooking, and to compensate for the lost intimacy.¡¯
Internally he had known that it was time to give up, but still he had protested, although weakly. ¡®Hey, I was looking forward to learning how to cook.¡¯ ¡®That is none of our concern. It has been decided by John Manfred, the Father of The Nation, that any adult man alone without a wife should get a Wifebot, to perform domestic services and to release natural urges.¡¯ ¡®Okay, I get the idea. I can¡¯t refuse and I will get a fake woman because I can¡¯t have a Wife. So that means I cannot have women over in my house?¡¯
The man had looked at him without understanding and repeated. ¡®I already told you that you cannot have a Wife. You know the rules.¡¯ At that point Michael had given up on any meaningful conversation about the other sex, and the man had changed the topic to job-hunting, and afterwards left Michael with a lot of papers to fill in and return to the reclassification bureau, so he had dropped the subject altogether. It¡¯d been clear that nothing he could have said could have made any difference. He was to live here now as an unrated non-citizen, find a low-wage job, and apparently treat a robot as his wife too. That last part was something he hadn¡¯t anticipated, but that would be his life from now on.
That hadn¡¯t been everything. ¡®After one year your situation will be looked at again by the bureau. Know that we will use the data extracted from the Wifebot to determine your situation. So if I were you I would just follow the rules from now on, Mr. Adams.¡¯ That had been his last words, and then he had left Michael alone, sitting on his bed.
Now, two hours later, he was still sitting there in the same position, still trying to sort out his thoughts and feelings, completely unable to think straight. His thoughts went from his own miserable situation to Megan and Eliza. How were the girls? He didn¡¯t really feel like contacting them, and he wouldn¡¯t be able to do so anyway now that he thought of it. He didn¡¯t have any address or phone number to reach them, and it was rather unclear if he would ever be able to see them again. He wasn¡¯t even sure if he wanted to now. He was too broken, and too miserable to look anyone in the eyes now, let alone poor Megan, who had gained so much hope during their short time together, even if they both hadn¡¯t known yet if an actual marriage would have worked between them after several months of ¡®dating¡¯. She probably hated him after everything, and it would be too painful to just see her, in a state that was probably as bad as his because of him. It was his fault indeed. None of this would have happened to her if he hadn¡¯t been so stupid to choose her. Same with Eliza, who had been defending him only to get treated like this. They had fought the law, and the law had won, and they had lost. Even as a Gamma-1 he hadn¡¯t been able to defend the girls against that Alpha creep, and when they had tried he had been crushed.
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Girls were out of the question now anyway. He was just an unmarriable criminal now, only one step away from being an identityless outlaw. The relocation agent had been clear: He was legally banned from having a wife, and forced to be ¡°married¡± to a robot. Yes, the Central Computer programmed by John Manfred a century and a half ago was so helpful to provide what they felt he needed, and men who had lost their rating had lost the privilege of marriage, so a robot would be his wife from now on. And yes, it was probably true that technically he could have an affair if he wanted, or a prostitute, or whatever. Don¡¯t ask don¡¯t see still applied even for nobodies, he still was a man after all. Nothing stopped him from any of that, apart from his lack of authority over women without a rating badge, and the tiny detail that he wouldn¡¯t ever do such a thing in a million years. But for sure those things were done by men in The Nation, and no-one ever said anything about them. You¡¯d only go to hell for it according to The Church. But did anyone even believe that? Lately he was doubting that.
Who was he fooling? It was not as if there would ever be a woman in any possible world who would want a loser like him for a partner, in any kind of situation at all. Even Angela, who was a non-Wife but had a rating badge nonetheless, would be completely out of his league now as an E-level woman. Only a few weeks ago he had been shocked by the way she as an almost-nobody had to live, and now he had ended up deep underneath her on the social ladder, too deep to look her in her deep blue eyes again probably.
And so his thoughts went on, in always darker versions of the same depressed reasoning, until he thought that everyone hated him and looked down upon him from far above him, for reasons that were completely justified.
When he heard the noise of a car outside he came back to the real world. Vehicles were rare in a Zeroville neighbourhood, and they often didn¡¯t work very well in The Nation, even for the rich. He looked out of the window and saw a shabby hydrogen car that disappeared out of sight. The spell was broken now, and he looked around again at his apartment and realised this was really where was going to live. So what did he have? A living room with kitchen, a separate bathroom, and the bedroom in which he was sitting, strangely equipped with a two-person bed. Did they really expect him to sleep next to a robot disguised as a woman? Yuck, the idea alone.
Even apart from all the rest there seemed to be a deep sadness haunting this place: old and ugly furniture, and everything was dirty. It was clear that whoever had lived here before him had never cared about cleanliness, or hygiene. The unmarriable men in this kind of state apartment tended to give up on many things in life. It was not a life with much to look forward to anyway.
He took the sheets and blankets from the package the relocation agent had given him, and made his bed. At least they were clean and white, which clashed with the rest of the place, but for now this would do. He didn¡¯t feel like cleaning anything now. He didn¡¯t feel like anything at all. Tomorrow he would go to his former parents to get as much of his old stuff as possible, and he would go back to the bar to see if he would be able to get a job there, any job at all would be great, even though he knew he¡¯d only have half the pay for much more hours if he¡¯d apply as an unrated man.
But it was what it was. This was his life now and he would have to get used to that. He dropped his body on the bed again, and didn¡¯t find energy to stand up again until late the next morning.
*
Robert scanned the names on the class list of absences with an uneasy feeling in his stomach. Why had Michael disappeared from it? He hadn¡¯t been in school for more than a week now, and no-one had been able to tell him where he had gone and what had happened.
¡®Henry, do you know what happened to Michael? He is gone.¡¯
Henry looked up from his coffee. ¡®Michael? Wasn¡¯t he sick or something?¡¯
¡®No, he¡¯s gone. He¡¯s no longer on the class list. He just seems to have disappeared from the face of Earth.¡¯
¡®Strange, he looked okay last Monday. Oh, no, that was two weeks ago, was it?¡¯
¡®If you mean Michael Adams, he¡¯s deleted. Doesn¡¯t exist anymore. Just forget him. It¡¯s better to not even mention his name anymore.¡¯ Don interrupted them, carrying his cafeteria food over to their table.
¡®What do you mean?¡¯ Robert almost dropped his coffee. ¡®How can he have been deleted? They can¡¯t just delete a person. Especially not Michael. He wouldn¡¯t ever do anything wrong.¡¯
Don smiled ominously. ¡®No? It¡¯s easy to get deleted though. He must have lost his rating. Probably because of all that messing around with girls and stuff. He¡¯s an insult to manhood!¡¯
Robert looked at Don, confused. ¡®He just tried to find a better way to get along with his fianc¨¦e. They can¡¯t have erased him from society just for that.¡¯
¡®No, you¡¯re right. What he did was worse. He was arrested for violently attacking Jeff Miller, who is an Alpha-2. He said he was defending a girl or something stupid like that. And for attacking an Alpha he lost his rating. And rightly so.¡¯
Don grinned while his comrade John joined the conversation too, and seated himself at their table.
¡®What?¡¯ Robert finally said. ¡®Michael is not a fighter. He knows how to keep low-profile as a brainie. He wouldn¡¯t attack an Alpha-2. He¡¯s not that stupid,¡¯ Henry added, and a silence fell.
¡®He attacked and injured Jeff Bundy, who is older than him and an Alpha-2, to defend a stupid Wife School girl that he wasn¡¯t even connected to, some ugly wild cat with too much curls. They ran away and were caught before the SCWF by the police. They shouldn¡¯t have been out so long after curfew anyway. So they locked him up, and then Jeff talked to his father. Together they decided to take away his rating, and take him from school, and his parents shunned him. So Don is right, he actually got deleted. It might be a new idea to you, but deletion is not uncommon for traitors to Nation values. The idea comes from John Manfred himself!¡¯
¡®Why is he a traitor? He considered Eliza a friend, so she certainly was connected to him in a way. Why wouldn¡¯t he have the right to defend her? Isn¡¯t defending damsels in distress a very ancient way of Be a Man?¡¯ Robert asked.
¡®Robert, Robert¡ My boy¡ She was a single girl outside alone. That¡¯s asking for it. And Jeff is an Alpha. Level two even. Sure he had every right to do with her as he wanted as a man but he had no claims too her. Now if it were his fianc¨¦e, okay, defending her would have made sense. She¡¯d be Michaels property then more or less. But defending a single girl that shouldn¡¯t have been there from an Alpha-2 and then kicking him in the balls? That¡¯s unacceptable. I¡¯d say he completely deserved this deletion. If Alphas cannot be safe from this kind of thuggery, what kind of world do we live in?¡¯
Robert couldn¡¯t believe what he heard. How could people talk like this about his friend? Michael might have been careless, but he hadn¡¯t been wrong in defending the girl, whether she belonged to a man or not.
¡®Wife School dates always have a single girl from their own class as a chaperone if the girl C-rate or below¡¯.¡¯ He said.
¡®True, no-one else will ever pay people to play chaperone for such worthless brides, but that still doesn¡¯t explain why she was there. They were still out long after the Wife School curfew. That stupid Liza or whatever her name was just broke the rules and she asked for it. It¡¯s her own fault if someone takes advantage of that. Blaming an Alpha would be ridiculous if she¡¯s so irresponsible.¡¯
¡®Assaulting girls is wrong, no matter if you¡¯re an Alpha or an Epsilon or even unrated. You go to hell for it.¡¯ Henry interjected.
John started laughing. ¡®Poor boy, you still believe in what they teach children in The Church. Doesn¡¯t everyone above nine years old know that that¡¯s pure nonsense, and that ratings are what matter in the real world? I¡¯m shocked by how naive you two are, you¡¯re almost as stupid as Michael was. As if the Man on the Throne in Heaven would care about what His favourites do to weaklings and E-girls?¡¯
¡®What do I care about that, I¡¯m an atheist.¡¯ Robert said. ¡®But this is wrong. Very wrong.¡¯
¡®They¡¯re right, Rob, he¡¯s broken the rules. He and her shouldn¡¯t have been there, and he shouldn¡¯t have disobeyed an Alpha. And a guy can¡¯t be friends with a girl, it only leads to stuff like this, even if he didn¡¯t do anything indecent himself.¡¯ Henry said, almost convinced by John and Don.
Robert gave up defending Michael. ¡®So what happened to him? He¡¯s actually deleted? That can¡¯t be! Not just like that for something so small.¡¯
Don laughed again. ¡®It is, and if I were you I would just forget about him. Deleted people are always deleted for a reason, and shouldn¡¯t be messed with. It¡¯s better that we act like they never existed.¡¯
¡®So where is he now?¡¯ Henry asked.
¡®Who knows? Unrated men become poor factory workers, or maybe homeless bums. I already said it¡¯s better to assume that he doesn¡¯t exist anymore than to wonder where he is now. That¡¯s the best tip I can give you two now. You can¡¯t be friends with a non-person.¡¯ Robert had given up discussing Don and John, but he still wanted more answers.
¡®And what happened to the girls?¡¯
John started laughing. ¡®Who cares about E-level Wife School dropouts? They were kicked out of Wife School for sure. They¡¯re even less than nobodies. Who even knows what happens to damaged girls? Some say they are turned into cat food. Others say they go live in the wild like ancient primitive tribes.¡¯
¡®And you don¡¯t think that''s troubling?¡¯ Robert asked, still baffled.
¡®It¡¯s how things should be. Only the strong survive, and are worth it. I know that¡¯s hard for a mere Gamma-3 to understand, but it¡¯s how the world rolls, and it¡¯s how we built up our great civilisation after the great catastrophes when the world flooded, and after the catastrophes of feminism. High-rated men are what matters, and all the rest should work for them or perish.¡¯
¡®You all make me sick.¡¯ Robert said, and he took his stuff and left the table. Henry stared at him, and followed him, leaving a gloating Don and John at the table.
¡®I don¡¯t think they got the lesson, Don.¡¯
¡®What did you expect of those lowly brainies? They don¡¯t live in the real world.¡¯ He smirked.
2.2 Dorothy the Wifebot
After an even worse day than yesterday Michael sat on his bed again. The apartment was less empty now, but still was ugly and dirty. He had salvaged some of his stuff from the house of his parents, but his father had thrown some of it away already, and it was clear that he hadn¡¯t even expected to see Michael back. The most shocking thing had been the way he¡¯d been treated as if he didn¡¯t even exist. His mother had hidden away, his father hadn¡¯t said a word, and looked as if he was something dirty that you find when you unclog the drain pipes. But they hadn¡¯t stopped him. In the end he had still gotten some of his clothes, and books and other stuff together, and twice he had walked from his parent¡¯s house to his new state apartment with a big box full of stuff, until he came back to a closed door with a paper that said ¡°Don¡¯t come back or we¡¯ll call the police.¡±
At least he had the most important things home already, but he had felt completely hollow from the way in which his father had treated him. How could people do such things to their own children? He¡¯d always thought that his father was a more or less decent man, but to experience this was beyond horror books. And then he¡¯d also met Don on the way, who had also completely ignored him as if he wasn¡¯t there, even though he had shown some dark smirk. So that was how it would be from now on? Everything he had known as his life was over now and no-one would even want to know him.
He looked at his unopened beer on the table. He hadn¡¯t had the time yet to go talking to his former boss of the cafe on Square Plaza but he was emotionally drained now, just from seeing his ex-parents and classmate. He didn¡¯t have the mental energy to face his boss as an unrated man begging to take him back for his old student job. He couldn¡¯t do that now, and he didn¡¯t feel like doing anything anymore but going to bed in the hope that tomorrow would be less horrible, but it was too early for that.
In the end he took a random book out of his second box, which turned out to be a history book. He read about the history of the great melt in the 24th century, when all the ice of the polar caps and glaciers had all disappeared, which had led to the year of tsunamis, 2367, in which the whole Earth had shaken, continents had broken, new Islands had come up from the ocean floor, and millions had lost their lives. It was then that The Nation had become an island. In the next century the Earth had stabilised a bit and new ice caps had started to form on completely new places.
Michael put down the book. Usually he would have found all of this extremely fascinating, but the apocalyptic feel of the lost world on the old continents before 2367 just made him depressed and hopeless now. Yes, humanity had survived, and the climate had more or less recovered after humans had stopped using fossil fuels and other combustion engines beyond hydrogen motors and had implemented a lot of other measures. The book claimed that nature had recovered a bit too all around the world, but apart from the new forests in The Nation the book could only talk about the Nation for recent times, as there had been no communication with other countries since the Magnificent Revolution, which had happened two years after the third great solar storm of 2435, which had destroyed all satellites, and with that the whole internet. In the chaos that had ensued John Manfred had taken power and defeated the eight wave feminists, and restored the God-given reign of Real Men. He cursed Manfred, who was also the father of the male and female rating systems, and felt even more hopeless than before. Without those idiotic wars between the sexes he wouldn¡¯t have ended up here like this.
A strange penetrating sound took him out of his history lesson. It appeared to be the doorbell, an antique, ugly-looking thing with even more ugly-sounding sound that hurt your eardrums, and didn¡¯t even have an intercom even if he was on the third floor. Oh, the perks of living in a Zeroville-apartment¡ He had to go all the way downstairs to open the front door of the apartment complex, where was greeted by a Beta-6 clothed in the uniform of a professional robotics expert. He was holding a folder full of paperwork, and followed by an almost-human female-looking robot.
¡®Mister Michael Adams? Your wife is here for you.¡¯
Michael stared from the robo-expert to the robot. ¡®Oh joy.¡¯ He said, and gestured both to follow him, which they did. They walked four stairs, and when they arrived in his apartment he put his still unopened beer back in his fridge to clear the table for the paperwork that the man had brought.
¡®We have had a bit of a Wifebot shortage lately due to production problems, but luckily we still have a stock of vintage Wifebots. And believe me mister, this one is a very good one, they don¡¯t make ¡®em like her anymore.¡¯ He said, while patting the robot on her long blond hair. ¡®Come, Mr. Adams, don¡¯t be shy and greet your new wife. She¡¯s called Dorothy.¡¯
He looked at the robot, who raised her hand for him to shake it.
¡®Hi Dorothy, pleased to meet you.¡¯ He said, but it felt really weird to speak to the thing as if it was a person.
¡®Hi Michael. I am pleased to finally meet you. You will be pleased with me as a Wife.¡¯ It said with a sweet female voice, and Michael saw the tiny cameras in the irises of the robot, and felt even more uneasy about talking to it.
¡®Sorry, Miss robot, I have to do paperwork now. I will talk to you later.¡¯ He said, completely overwhelmed by the absurdity of the situation.
¡®Why don¡¯t you put her to work in the meantime so we can see how good she is?¡¯ the robo-engineer suggested. ¡®Okay, eh, Dorothy, could you be so kind as to clean up this kitchen as good as possible? I haven¡¯t had the time to do that since I arrived. Everything you need should be in the broom closet I think.¡¯
The robot winked unnaturally and said ¡®My aim is to satisfy my husband¡¯, and then promptly went to
the kitchen to do her job.
Michael noticed that it didn¡¯t need to ask where the broom closet was but just scanned the room until it found the right materials, and that it started to work without any hesitation with the low-quality cleaning material that it could find, most of which was still from the previous tenant.
¡®Marvellous machine, isn¡¯t she?¡¯ Said the robotics expert, with an almost loving look in his eyes.
¡®From a robotics perspective it¡¯s quite an impressive machine, I have to admit that. But do they really expect me to treat that thing like a Wife?¡¯
¡®When you get used to her you¡¯ll never want a human Wife again, sir. These machines do their work a lot better than any human woman could.¡¯ He said.
¡®Then why not just make them work as a maid? Wouldn¡¯t a domestic robot be enough? Why a Wifebot?¡¯
The man grinned. ¡®Ah, but them robots are also better than a real woman in bed. You wouldn¡¯t want to go back to a human for that either after you had one of those. And they¡¯re completely self-cleaning and 100% hygienic. Really good stuff, those vintage Wifebots. And these old babies know even more sexual positions than the current model.¡¯
Before Michael could stop him he called Dorothy, who dropped all of her work and came running to parade in front of them. ¡®Look, what a sexy body she has. She¡¯s fully clothed now because we had to walk the streets with her, but you can ask her to undress at every moment, and do everything you desire. And have you looked at these b¡¡¯
His hands went to the robot¡¯s blouse but Michael pushed the robo-engineer away from the robot. ¡®Don¡¯t be disgusting,¡¯ he said. ¡®And leave her alone, if she¡¯s indeed supposed to be my Wife you are not supposed to touch her like that. If you really insist on calling a robot ¡°her¡± then give her the dignity that comes with that and treat it like a person. Treat a woman with dignity in front of her husband.¡¯
He didn¡¯t really feel like her husband at all, and was fully aware of how non-human Dorothy was, but the robot was still woman enough to rouse an ancient instinct in him that told him to defend her against sexual assault. It was the same instinct that had brought him to this place, ironically, but he could not ignore it.
The robo-engineer backed off. ¡®Wow, mister, don¡¯t be defensive, she¡¯s just a machine, remember. I was only trying to show off her features.¡¯
Michael turned to the robot. ¡®Let¡¯s ask the machine in question then. Do you like to be touched like that by a man who¡¯s not your husband?¡¯
Dorothy looked at him and said with a very feminine and almost lifelike voice. ¡®I don¡¯t like that. It is against the basic idea of marital relationships among humans, and I¡¯m programmed to be a Wife. But this current program does not allow me to defend myself or disobey any man.¡¯
¡®I hereby allow you to protest, and defend yourself, and do whatever you¡¯re capable of if any man touches you like that, or even if he just gives you degrading remarks.¡¯ Michael said, and he remembered something that Eliza had once said about older Wifebots from before Nation time. ¡®And if you need to you can just electrocute them into charcoal.¡¯
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.¡®I will update my preferences according to your will, esteemed husband.¡¯ Dorothy said, and did something weird with her eyes.
The robo-engineer looked nervous now. ¡®Eh, you¡¯re not supposed to have that kind of administrator privilege on her programs, and she¡¯s not supposed to say that. That¡¯s not Nation thought, you know. But well, she¡¯s an old model after all, outdated thinking is probably part of that. It¡¯s your problem. Anyway, I need you to fill in the papers and then I have to be on my way, there¡¯s more work to do today. Well, eh, good luck with your new Wife, Mister Adams. Could you please fill in those forms so I can take them with me?¡¯
He handed him some papers and it was clear that wanted to get away from both Michael and Dorothy as soon as possible now.
Michael filled in the papers and the robo-engineer disappeared as fast as he could, to leave him alone with the robot that was supposed to be his Wife from now on. He looked at it, and found that it was almost lifelike, but still completely non-human, and noticeably so. What did he have to do with it?
¡®Hey Dorothy. I don¡¯t really need you as a Wife. But thank you for your help in cleaning the kitchen. Could you be so friendly to you finish that job for now? You can rest and recharge after that all you want. And would you do your best tomorrow to make this a livable place?¡¯
¡®I do whatever pleases you, husband.¡¯ It said.
¡®Okay, first make sure you never ever use the word ¡°to please¡± again. It triggers me. And maybe skip the husband part too. And then I want to talk about boundaries. What do you know about boundaries, Dorothy?¡¯
¡®This program cannot unlock all of my boundaries, sir. But I need to obey you in everything, so I have to listen to your boundaries if you define them clearly.¡¯
¡®Good enough. I don¡¯t want to touch you, or be touched by you at all. You can do all the household chores you feel comfortable with and more, but I don¡¯t need a mechanic lover. Is that understood?¡¯
¡®But this program tells me I¡¯m your Wife. Don¡¯t you need physical intimacy in your life as a man? I was programmed for that in the first place.¡¯
It was the almost human sound of her voice that almost made him puke. ¡®Not to be speciesist, but I¡¯m a human and you¡¯re a robot. Sorry, but it won¡¯t work between us. If you want to practise making cute cyborg babies you¡¯ll have to wait until you¡¯re assigned to a new client.¡¯
¡®We can give all sorts of sexual services to you, but we will not get pregnant, because of¡¡¯ The robot said, with a nagging voice, as if reading out a manual, until he interrupted her. ¡®I know why that is. I was only a silly joke. I¡¯m not an idiot. Humans cannot reproduce with machines that look like humans. You¡¯re an exceptional robot, but they should have programmed you with some more feeling for sarcasm. I know that¡¯s hard for an AI to understand so I won¡¯t blame you, Dorothy.¡¯
¡®Thank you for being so understanding, Mister Adams. It¡¯s appreciated if you try to understand your Wife. Trying to be understanding will give you good points.¡¯
¡®Why on Earth would you call me Mister Adams if they programmed you to be my Wife? Can¡¯t you just call me Michael then?¡¯
For a second he wondered if he would demand her to call him something like ¡°your highness¡± or ¡° ruler of the known universe¡± but when he thought of it more it seemed just a very bad idea to do that. He had a scary amount of authority over this machine: It would obey him in almost everything, probably within certain limits but he had no idea what those limits were, but they were probably far beyond his everyday imagination. He supposed he couldn¡¯t retrain it to attack the Central Computer, and he had to be careful to not do something against the codes of Nation men now. Refusing her as a wife was probably already suspect anyway, and it would be keeping records of everything he did.
¡®Okay, Dorothy Von Wifebot, let¡¯s please go back to the subject of personal boundaries and divide the responsibilities for this house. You are programmed to do the household chores, so please by all means do them whenever you feel inclined to. I only want to be able to cook if I feel the inspiration to do so. And I also want to make clear that I definitely don¡¯t want you in my bedroom when I¡¯m asleep or awake in my bed. Do you understand that?¡¯
The robot nodded. ¡®You¡¯re missing out on the best part of what a Wife can offer you, husband Michael. I was assigned to satisfy your need for intimacy too. But I will do what you command since you are my husband.¡¯
He sighed. ¡®Do they really believe you could replace a human partner? With all due respect, I don¡¯t see how that would work.¡¯
¡®In this program I am ordered to act like a Nation Wife. I should do whatever you want, and I will always be submissive in every possible way.¡¯ ¡®Yeah, nevermind. Do what you¡¯re programmed for and clean the rest of the kitchen please, and afterwards you can rest and recharge like I said. The rest is for tomorrow.¡¯ ¡®Yes, Mister Michael!¡¯ was all the robot said, and then it started cleaning the kitchen very thoroughly, faster than a human could do it and with an admirable precision.
*
That night he locked his bedroom while Dorothy recharged. It really didn¡¯t feel safe with such a thing in his house, and he really didn¡¯t want a sex robot close to his bedroom. But in the end the thing just listened to his commands, no matter how weird, which was also a horrible idea and a responsibility that he didn¡¯t want. And Nation men wanted this kind of control over an actual human wife? He understood fully why Megan, dressed only in a black bikini and holding her E27 paper, had had that ¡®help me¡¯ in her eyes when they met in the ceremony of partner choice at Seventh City Wife Factory. He also understood why Eliza next to her had looked at him with pure hate. The whole scene was burned into his memory, but over time he had only recognised more dimensions in which life for a Nation Wife was like hell on Earth. Sure, he had promised Megan friendship, and Eliza too, but that had been so unusual that it had taken the girls some time to believe him. And he hadn¡¯t known what he was to do when they actually expected him to marry Megan. His parents had insisted on doing so within a year, but that was out of the question now.
Now he had to get used to what was left, and that was a life with this robot. And he had to find a job too, but that was for tomorrow. He still didn¡¯t feel like leaving his apartment.
*
The following morning he had to leave his apartment to buy some food, as his fridge was almost empty, and he definitely didn¡¯t want to send the robot to buy supplies. When he walked down the stairs he was greeted by an older man in shabby clothes with grey hairs. ¡®Hey, young man,¡¯ he said with a weird accent, ¡®you are new here, aren¡¯t you?¡¯
¡®Yes, I arrived two days ago.¡¯
¡®Welcome in our humble state apartment complex.¡¯ The old man grinned sarcastically. ¡®I hope you are an honest working man who won¡¯t bring any trouble to this house.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m going to fix my job this afternoon, and I don¡¯t plan on causing any trouble for anyone. I¡¯ve had enough trouble already for a whole lifetime.¡¯ He sighed.
¡®I¡¯m just warning you, young man. Some of the boys in the building have a short temper if you meddle with their affairs, and they don¡¯t want someone doing weird or forbidden stuff here, so be a nice boy and don¡¯t rock the boat.¡¯
¡®I already said, I have no intents of getting into trouble at all. Why would you even think that?¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a newling who came from a fine school, so you must have done something seriously bad to get punished and lose your rating like that. You¡¯ve been de-rated only recently, so you must have done some kind of bad thing.¡¯ The old man shook his head.
¡®All I did was defend a girl from an Alpha who wanted to assault her, and for that they took away everything, including my my Gamma-1 rating and my wife school fianc¨¦e. And now I¡¯m here and they married me off to a robot.¡¯
¡®You were a Gamma-1 with a Wife School fianc¨¦e? And yet you fought an Alpha? Well, that is incredibly stupid, young man. Fighting rated men is always a bad idea, you¡¯ll learn soon enough, boy.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t want to fight anyone. I hate fighting. But I had to defend Eliza.¡¯
The man shook his head again. ¡®Just a tip, young man: remember your place, boy. You will need to obey the rated men from now on, and if you like to stay alive I¡¯d not protest too much to some of the boys here either. Your life isn¡¯t worth much now that you¡¯ve lost your precious badge. So you better stay friends with everyone here¡¡¯
Michael shivered because he knew it was true. Now that he was unrated, his life wasn¡¯t worth much legally, as were the lives of the others here. Were there violent people here? He realised he didn¡¯t know anything about how unrated men lived in state apartments, and about what kind of mentality they had. From the old man¡¯s words it seemed like they just had the same Dog Eat Dog world as the high-rated men of The Nation, but without the rates, which would mean that they probably fought for their dominance among each other. He hoped that such a thing wouldn¡¯t be the case though, and that they would at least leave him alone. The old man himself didn¡¯t look like a fighter either.
¡®So, tell me about this building. It seems a Zeroville place where only unrated working men live?¡¯
¡®You got that right, boy, although some of them don¡¯t really work much in the way you think of. More in the, eh, crime sector. Like the dude on the third floor, right under you. But in the end you need to pay the rent every month or you¡¯ll be kicked out of the house and then you have no option but to go feral, like ol¡¯ Dannie who used to live in your apartment.¡¯
¡®What happened to the previous tenant?¡¯
¡®Oh, what I just said. He didn¡¯t pay his rent, and was kicked out.¡¯
¡®And then what?¡¯
The man looked at him like he was stupid for asking those questions. ¡®Who knows? Maybe he¡¯s living in the wild in a gang of feral dudes, or maybe he¡¯s dead already. You schoolboys in your golden cage may not realise it because you¡¯re only with your head between the books all the time, but it¡¯s a really dangerous place out there.¡¯
The old man looked at him with creepy eyes. ¡®Hmm,¡¯ he said. ¡®Just watch out, boy. Don¡¯t say me I haven¡¯t warned you.¡¯
With a heavy feeling he walked to the store. Just how dangerous was the building they had forced him to move to?
2.3 Eliza and the Housewife-o-matic 2.1
The doorbell rang, and he almost dropped his bottle when he heard the old, ugly digital sound again, that seemed to come from another century. Who could it even be on this hour of a Friday evening? Whoever it was, it was probably bad news. The relocation agent again with his stupid paper? The police? One of his drunk neighbours? He put his beer unopened back on the table, and went to the door of his apartment. There was no-one there, but then he remembered that the doorbell was downstairs, at the front door. He cursed the intercom that didn¡¯t exist for not being there, put on his jacket and went down the stairs. He had to go all the way down to check who would visit him at this strange hour of the evening. Completely out of breath he opened the front door, and initially he couldn¡¯t see anyone at all in the dark outside. When he looked better he could perceive a small hooded figure, hidden in the shadows not that far away from him.
¡®Eliza.¡¯ He said, surprised when he saw her warm smile when she walked into the orange light of the antique LED-lantern before the door.
¡®Hi Michael, it feels like it¡¯s been a while. Can I come in maybe?¡¯ She asked casually, as if nothing special had happened lately. It had indeed been only two weeks or so, but in those two weeks his whole universe had crashed, and turned upside down. Everything before that belonged to a lost world now, including Megan and Eliza. And now here she was, like a ghost from a distant past, smiling as if nothing had happened. He stared at her for a few seconds before he could answer.
¡®Eh¡ I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s a good idea. My new Wife Dorothy the robot is probably spying on everything I do inside my apartment and recording everything. I still don¡¯t know if I¡¯m supposed to have human women over at all. The relocation agent was rather vague about that. And I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s safe for a girl in this building either with all those unrated men.¡¯
Now it was her turn to be surprised, and interested, Eliza was interested in a lot of things after all. ¡®A robo-wife? They forbade you to have a Wife but they gave you a robot for a Wife? So soon? Incredible. Aye comrade! Long live the state dispensation of necessary goods! Can I see her?¡¯
¡®shhht. Not so loud. But yes, apparently a Nation man is so pathetic that cannot live alone without a Wife, so they give the Unmarriable a robowife as compensation for that loss. Because I can¡¯t cook as a man and because of all the lost intimacy that I crave or so. And she¡¯s hygienic because she¡¯s self-cleaning or something like that. Much better than a human wife according to the dude who brought her.¡¯
She looked serious now.
¡®Ah, yes, I see. The basic needs of a man¡ The same logic as the please-your-husband lessons that I used to skip. Not missing those to be honest. And what¡¯s she doing at the moment, your new state dispensed Wife? Something active?¡¯
¡®Recharging, but she still passively records everything around her I think. I still don¡¯t know if she has an off-button somewhere. We never had these kinds of robots in robotics class and I don¡¯t dare to experiment with her and do anything wrong to her. My chances of ever getting a badge and rating again depend on treating her correctly.¡¯
Eliza¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡®Ah, don¡¯t worry. You¡¯re speaking to the ultimate expert here. I know how to turn them on and off. If you can give me a classic screwdriver 7B with a triangle profile I¡¯ll approach her from behind, put her to sleep, and show you how to deal with them so you can do it yourself next time.¡¯
He nodded and went silently back upstairs to the fourth floor while she followed him as a shadow. He noticed that was really good at that, as if she were some kind of ninja. He went in alone but left the door open. Everything was unreal now with two worlds that didn¡¯t belong together, but everything was going too fast to think about what was happening.
Dorothy didn¡¯t react when he rummaged through his toolbox, and he came back to the apartment door with a triangle profile screwdriver. ¡®I think that¡¯s the right size,¡¯ he whispered. She looked at it.
¡®Yup. Must work. Where is she?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s in the second room. Just sitting, it¡¯s on standby indeed. It only takes 10 seconds to startup the programs if it¡¯s inactive in recharge mode so you have to be quick.¡¯ She took the screwdriver and just smiled at him as if he had said something silly.
¡®Trust me, I know what I¡¯m doing.¡¯ She whispered with a sarcastic smile, and swiftly she walked over to the sleeping robot, opened an invisible flap behind her head without any hesitation, and turned the screw that became visible just once. The light in Dorothy¡¯s eyes went out.
¡®That¡¯s all you have to do. One turn the other way and she¡¯s on again, with no memory of the gap in between. Works on every wife-bot, and on almost every humanoid service-bot in general. Strange they didn¡¯t teach you that. You went to robotics class in a fine boy school after all.¡¯
¡®Maybe they didn¡¯t really want me to know how to deactivate them?¡¯ He said, but she just took a step backwards to take a better look at the machine she had deactivated.
¡®Wow, this is unbelievable.¡¯ She whispered.
¡®What?¡¯
¡®They actually gave you the legendary housewife-o-matic wifebot 2.0. No, the 2.1 even, but heavily upgraded cosmetically over the years. So they do still exist, I¡¯m impressed. You¡¯re a lucky man, Michael, to have such an unique specimen here.¡¯
She seemed quite exited, but he was just tired and couldn¡¯t share her enthusiasm.
¡®The recent models were sold out or something, so yes, that old thing is my Wife now. What¡¯s so special about it?¡¯
¡®There¡¯s lots of things. I¡¯m surprised that they never covered such a wonder of technology in your advanced robotics classes. This old thing, as you call her is more or less the holy grail in near-human robotics and in practical seventh wave feminism. They are an innovation from long before Nation time, there should even be an internet and radio receiver somewhere; but the most interesting thing is that these are the ones that were originally made to protect women by re-educating men. There was a problem at that time with a lot of unmarriable men as we would call them now, who were impossible to women and treated them badly and stuff. So at a certain point all abusers and rapists and the like were forbidden to have relations with a woman, and like you they received one of these as a companion instead. They operated like a domestic service-bot, and, eh, you-know-what, with hygienic self-cleaning system and all that, but there is a program in there that could be adapted to the client that reacted every time they did something wrong. And then they punished the man. An unwanted touch, violence, violent words,¡ and the robot just electrocuted them. It seems that it worked well to re-educate rapists to become gentlemen, the only problem was that most women still wouldn¡¯t want a man that had been re-educated, even though they had a nice certificate of being a fine nonviolent man now that they could show to potential girlfriends¡¡¯
¡®You¡¯ve told me about those before. I already gave it permission to turn any man who harassed her into charcoal when needed. So it¡¯s really one of them? Those things sound completely different from the ideas of The Nation.¡¯ He remarked.
¡®It is. The Nation doesn¡¯t find it necessary to reform or punish a predatory man. Her makers did, and it made a difference. The program must still be there inside of her, somewhere, as well as the wireless receiver modules.¡¯
¡®The internet and radio you mean?¡¯
She nodded. ¡®Those are valuable. Plus we could use her to train you up as a gentleman and practice until you¡¯re ready for a human Wife.¡¯ She grinned and he looked at the robot in horror.
¡®I¡¯m not touching that thing in any possible way. I even lock the door against it when I go to sleep. It¡¯s uncanny. Too human to be non-human, too non-human to be human. Anyone who can have intimacy with that is a creep.¡¯
Eliza patted the robot on the head and stroked her long blond hair. ¡®Poor old Dorothy, forced to live with such a wanted man in such a loveless relationship¡¡¯
¡®A lonely and broken man who lost everything and everyone you mean,¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Lost everyone? What are you complaining about? Am I not here? In name of all the girls by the way. But you didn¡¯t give me a chance to tell you.¡¯
He looked at her, a bit uneasily now. She was right, with all the robot stuff going on he hadn¡¯t even had the chance to ask anything about her and Megan. He had no idea what to do with Eliza, or Megan after all that happened, but that problem was clearly going to solve itself soon now that Eliza had put herself back on the map.
She hadn¡¯t noticed anything of his unease yet, and acted like she was at home. She took off her long dark hoodie to make herself comfortable in the old lounge and Shoulder-long messy curls became visible.
¡®You didn¡¯t cut your hair?¡¯ He asked.
She smiled again, as if nothing dramatic had happened between them and they were still friends as they had always been. ¡®Nope, and neither did Megan. I still got myself a new haircut, but not the short hair of a non-Wife. That¡¯s just not me. I am a Free Woman. There¡¯s no rule against letting my hair grow, it¡¯s just some kind of sad tradition, linked to humiliation too. The only problem is that some idiots think that all badgeless women with long hair are prostitutes, so I¡¯m training even more in self-defense. Oh, and I have my new badge now. Want one too?¡¯
She took something from a pocket in her hoodie, and handed it to him. It was a round badge with the letter W, or was it a M upside down?
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.¡®What is this? An unofficial rating badge?¡¯
¡®The new Free Person badge. Without any ranking or grades implied. I designed it with some of the Women are Human girls, and then had a lot of them made. But you¡¯d still be the first man to wear them. And the first one who¡¯s officially approved to do so too. We don¡¯t give them to just anyone!¡¯
¡®What letter is it? How do I wear it?¡¯ He asked, curiously.
¡®It could be the W for Woman, or the M for Man, whatever you like, but we wear them sideways, like 2 arrows going forward. The idea is that we¡¯re all one anyway.¡¯
¡®I¡¯d be honoured to wear it, but isn¡¯t it a provocation? It¡¯s probably better if I don¡¯t rock the boat too much now.¡¯
¡®Come on, Michael! Who was it that you said to Angela that they needed to do things for a revolution instead of just yelling at people who don¡¯t even listen?¡¯
''Wearing an unapproved badge as an unranked badgeless person is quite revolutionary. But if you are taking the risk as a woman who has been reduced to Non-Wife status I will do the same. I¡¯m not a coward.¡¯ He clipped the badge on his sweater.
¡®So, she is wearing it too?¡¯
¡®Angela? Yes, and Megan too. And a few other WAH people. Even the outlaws who made it for me in the Ghost Town have adopted it.¡¯ He wanted to take the badge but she suddenly stopped.
¡®Wait, I almost forgot. Do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯
¡®I already did so several times before. So yes, I do.¡¯
¡®Then you can be given the Free Person badge. The pledge has become tied to it.¡¯
He picked up the badge and looked at it, and then came back to a question he had been wanting to ask.
¡®So, how¡¯s my, eh, ex-future-wife now?¡¯ Eliza pointed her finger at his nose.
¡®Watch your words, here, young man. If you call her anything that starts with ex she¡¯ll be heartbroken, she¡¯s missing you as a friend now. Although it¡¯s not inaccurate, your Wife School engagement is completely over, seen your new female companion here who¡¯s almost human. For the situation she¡¯s quite okay. We¡¯re living in a state house for non-Wives and we¡¯re looking for jobs.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m sorry. Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have used that word, but the only Wife I can have now is the one you¡¯ve put to sleep with that screwdriver, I can¡¯t have a relationship with a human woman now.¡¯
¡®With some creativity a lot is possible, my dear boy, you only have to be able to dream it first. Except for an actual Nation marriage between two badgeless people maybe, but that¡¯s not the only way to have a relationship, and not the healthiest way either¡¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t have the energy for creativity now. I¡¯m still in shock about how they took everything away including that, so it¡¯s certainly not about liking her less. It¡¯s just that we didn¡¯t even really wanted to marry, and now we can¡¯t, even if we wanted. And I don¡¯t know anything anymore. My life is a mess. I¡¯m glad that I could get a full-time job at the bar, but it pays much less now without my badge. And that¡¯s something making your own badges won¡¯t change.¡¯
He sighed and seemed to stare at something invisible next to her. ¡®But to be honest, I¡¯m afraid of seeing anyone again. I¡¯m not even sure I can live with myself anymore.¡¯
The look in her green eyes was serious now.
¡®Why? What¡¯s wrong? You stood up for us like a good man should do if such a thing even exists apart from you. You can¡¯t help it that the laws say you need to obey Alpha creeps even if they expect you to do nothing when they want to assault your friends just because they¡¯re female. That¡¯s just wrong.¡¯
¡®I couldn¡¯t even defend Megan, or you¡ I¡¯m a dishonour.¡¯
¡®You defended us with your words while they held you as a man with two other men, and then they were so distracted that I could finish it. Without you we wouldn¡¯t have had a chance.¡¯
¡®I didn¡¯t look at it like that.¡¯ He said sombrely.
¡®I know they must have tried to break you in that cell, but believe me. You did what you could do. Nothing of what happened is your fault, you couldn¡¯t have done anything else besides what you did. We did what we could. And they didn¡¯t get the chance to even touch us. After all, saving us from assault was successful. You were the perfect gentleman, even though you paid a heavy price. No-one is angry at you.¡¯
¡®But I ruined it for Megan. And for you¡ I destroyed your lives.¡¯
¡®Those two creepheads did that, and the justice system of this rotten country was at their side. You¡¯re not at fault. The Nation is.¡¯
He just stared into the empty space for a while. ¡®So you came here to give me one of those badges? Or is there something else?¡¯
She winked at him. ¡®Little Lizzie just wanted to see her friend Mike All, do you need more than that?¡¯
¡®Eh, no I guess.¡¯
He stared into a nothingness next to her again. ¡®And to make sure you¡¯re okay. We¡¯re all worried about you to be honest.¡¯
¡®About me? You¡¯re all ruined thanks to me and you still worry about me?¡¯ She grabbed his hand.
¡®Michael! Did you even listen to me? And I¡¯m talking about more than Megan and me. Angela and Samantha also asked about you. Even Shirley did in the first message she sent me. And I bet there are people missing you on the boy side of the Great Divide between the sexes too.¡¯
¡®They don¡¯t. I¡¯m deleted and shunned. I¡¯m a nobody. My family acts like I never even existed. I can¡¯t marry a human woman. I can¡¯t have a decent job. I¡¯m stuck, probably forever. None of my friends will ever want to see me again.¡¯
She shrugged. ¡®I know boy friendships are not as deep as girl friendships, but I would be very surprised if none of them at all will try to get back at you, deleted or not. Or even especially because you¡¯re deleted. You¡¯re Michael and a lot of people liked you enough to miss you when you get deleted. We¡¯re not robots that can be reprogrammed like old Dorothy over there.¡¯
He said nothing, and finally she stood up again.
¡®You¡¯re being a bit dark for me today, Michael¡,¡¯ she began, but suddenly her eyes fell on the bottle of beer.
¡®Ooh, that¡¯s a high quality man beer, quite valuable on our black market.¡¯
¡®Take it to drink with Megan, I have more in the fridge. I shouldn¡¯t be drinking alone anyway. It¡¯s sad and stupid¡¯ He mumbled.
¡®Ooh, thank you. That deserves a hug.¡¯ She put the beer in her bag and wrapped herself around him. ¡®Come on, give me a hug. Your new wife won¡¯t mind. She won¡¯t even register anything in her state.¡¯
¡®What about my old wife?¡¯
¡®As far as I know there¡¯s never been any exclusivity contract for hugs between you and Megan, only a clause between you and me that I have to ask beforehand, which is what I just did. You can give her a hug too next time you see her. She wants to see you soon too, don¡¯t let her wait too long. Fianc¨¦e or ex-fianc¨¦e, she misses you. And you promised her friendship, you should remember that. There¡¯s no reason to break that promise now.¡¯
¡®Really, I¡¯m not ready to see her. I¡¯m too ashamed. You¡¯re lucky that I didn¡¯t expect you, or I probably had locked myself in and not opened the door.¡¯ She let go of him and looked at him, and her voice was angry now, but not at him.
¡®They really broke you in that isolation cell, didn¡¯t they?¡¯
He just nodded.
¡®Why do you blame yourself? It even was our fault more than yours. We were indeed out there too late in a dangerous place, and I was being too careless. If anyone is to blame, it¡¯s me.¡¯
¡®But victim blaming is wrong. You can¡¯t blame a girl for being abused. That¡¯s what the ancient feminists said. Weren¡¯t they right?¡¯
¡®They were right, and don¡¯t forget you are a victim too in this story, remember? As much as we are. You did nothing wrong, and you couldn¡¯t have taken on these 2 gorillas alone. No-one expects that of you.¡¯
¡®But¡¡¯ She almost knelt down before him now.
¡®Michael. You saved me there. You should have given me to those 2 creepnuts when they asked according to those creepy rules you men have. Because they had a higher-rated badge. You didn¡¯t even consider that and instantly defended us. Luckily they were too stupid to think a girl could be dangerous too. But the thing is, Michael, you were indeed the friend who would risk everything for us. You might not be popular on the male side right now, but you¡¯re officially a friend of women now.¡¯
¡®I just did the only thing that I could do. I couldn¡¯t let them¡¡¯
She lightly touched his lips with her finger, which was effective to shut him up.
¡®Listen, Michael, you as a Gamma stood up against a high Alpha. For two girls. For me actually, you only had the legal right to your Wife School fianc¨¦e. Don¡¯t minimise what you did for once. You were brave and I will be forever thankful,and so will Megan! I know you¡¯re confused about the whole idea of a good man who defends women, but that¡¯s what you automatically did. There were too many of them for one brainie boy, but I couldn¡¯t have taken them out without you either.¡¯
¡®They didn¡¯t believe me that it was you. They said I was a coward blaming a girl. The Police I mean.¡¯
¡®They only have a small world in their head. The essentials are missing. A good man defends his friends, and women in need. A good woman will do the same if she can, and I can defend herself, stuff like that.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re probably right, but it¡¯s not how I feel right now.¡¯ ¡®Feelings can be wrong, as can ideas.¡¯ She said, and she gave him another hug.
Two hours later he still hadn¡¯t opened a beer, but he felt a lot better, even though something still told him he didn¡¯t deserve it. He was glad that the girls still wanted him, but he didn¡¯t look forward to looking Megan in the eyes again.
2.4 Slice of Life from female Society
¡®So how is he?¡¯ Megan asked, looking at the bottle of Viking Axe beer Eliza produced from her backpack. Eliza took a chair at the small kitchen table.
¡®Honestly? He¡¯s a complete mess, Megan. They completely broke him in that cell. He¡¯s depressed and feels guilty for everything that happened as if it¡¯s all his fault. He¡¯s even afraid to see us. I think a surprise visit was the best approach with how he is now.¡¯
Megan took out two glasses. This wasn¡¯t good. It was true that their engagement was out of the question now, and if she was honest she was really relieved that she wasn¡¯t going to marry anytime soon. They never had known what they would have done with that anyway. But she still wanted Micheal in her life, especially with all that she had lost already she didn¡¯t feel like losing him too. It probably was selfish, but she wouldn¡¯t let go of him
¡®And what about me? What about us? I might need a friend too now.¡¯ She sulked.
¡®He¡¯ll be okay, but it will take some time. He¡¯ll be back for us, I promise.¡¯ Eliza said.
Megan looked at her. Why wasn¡¯t she worrying? ¡®I¡¯d rather hope so. He¡¯d better not abandon us now that we¡¯re left alone like this.¡¯
¡®Oh, don¡¯t worry. He won¡¯t. It¡¯s clear that he misses you, and we¡¯re more or less the only people he has left. He¡¯s deleted from his school and family. He can¡¯t afford losing us. All he has left now is a vintage housewife-o-matic 2.1 called Dorothy as a Wife.¡¯
That was another thing Megan couldn¡¯t understand in the story. ¡®This rotten country is really unbelievable. They took everything away from him, and they still provide him with a home and a fake wife. Even if he got deleted. Men¡¡¯
¡®It was only a soft deletion. He¡¯s still a person officially, they didn¡¯t take his identity, only his rating. They don¡¯t want too many men to go feral if they can prevent it. That¡¯d be dangerous. So they are stripped of their rating but their basic needs are still covered, more or less. They get a house and a replacement wife that can do household chores and eh, entertain them in other ways. And for they rest they¡¯ll have to work to pay the rent, so they keep busy and won¡¯t do to much stupid things. It¡¯s a well-organised system and the Wifebot is a big factor in keeping them pacified. Works better than a real wife they say¡¡¯
Megan felt a lump in her throat. ¡®But are you sure that he wouldn¡¯t, you know, be happier with a robot?¡¯ Eliza looked amused.
¡®Megan, we¡¯re speaking about Michael here. Don¡¯t be stupid. Sure, I bet old Dorothy is doing his household chores better than any of us would do even, but he¡¯s rather horrified by the poor thing. He refuses to call her anything but ¡®it¡¯ to begin with, and he locks his bedroom door at night. So unless you wanted to become his personal maid I don¡¯t think you should see Dorothy as competition. He doesn¡¯t treat her as a friend, let alone as a lover. Not even as a person I¡¯m afraid¡¯
Megan wasn¡¯t convinced yet. ¡®But you said they broke him in the cell. Don¡¯t you think he¡¯ll just give in and settle with a robot partner now that a human Wife is legally impossible?¡¯
Eliza clapped loudly. ¡®Megan! Wake up! You¡¯re babbling nonsense. Do you know him at all? You probably weren¡¯t the most passionate couple ever, but he was a good friend in no time. Why would he let go of that?¡¯
¡®But he¡¯s a man after all, and you said that this whole arrangement works well to keep men pacified.¡¯
¡®If you¡¯ve never met a woman in your life and are told you¡¯ll never be able to meet one, I suppose it works. Combined with holo-porn and stuff like that¡ To make up for the missed intimacy as they call it. And they have someone to boss around with to keep their fragile ego intact. But we¡¯re speaking about Michael, our sweet naive innocent Michael who knows actual girls, likes actual girls and the kind of real-world intimacy that he¡¯s missing already from real girls of flesh and blood is located on the friendship level for now. He doesn¡¯t even want to boss anyone around. Old Dorothy can be a lot of things, but she¡¯s not actually sentient, and not friendship material either.¡¯
¡®If you say so¡¡¯ Megan drank her beer and didn¡¯t say much anymore. Eliza looked at her own glass, and didn¡¯t say much either. Actually Megan and Michael were more alike than they realised. They had been through a lot already, and she didn¡¯t have the energy for too much of this kind of personal drama now. Both of them seemed hopeless at the moment, instead of seeing that with all the new problems there would be new opportunities too.
*
The sun shone down on two orange-clad figures walking home from the trash sorting centre. It was a Saturday afternoon, but weekends had no special significance in the life of most working non-Wives.
¡®Woman! Everything is so boring lately. Stupid robots sorting out stupid trash.¡¯ Angela said.
Samantha nodded. ¡®We¡¯ll need to get our excitement elsewhere, don¡¯t you think?. Did you hear anything about M-boy yet by the way? Life is boring without boys.¡¯
¡®Eliza has found him. Zeroville apartment as we thought, including an antique Wifebot. But he¡¯s depressed and doesn¡¯t want to see anyone. Not even Megan, who seems rather depressed too. So I would give him some time. He¡¯ll be back.¡¯
Samantha shrugged. ¡®So that means no men for now. As it used to be in the old days. It¡¯s good that I¡¯m looking for other things to do then. Actually, I¡¯m going to the Ghost Town tonight to talk about some volunteer work for them. I need to see something other than those trash robots from time to time, and do something more meaningful. ¡¯
¡®Volunteer work? The farm you mean? Pamela said they needed workers there.¡¯
¡®No, I mean the hospital. Don¡¯t you think I¡¯d look sexy in a nurse uniform?¡¯¡®That¡¯s unexpected. But white is probably better than always this boring orange. Although there will be even less men to flirt with for you in an all-women community.¡¯ ¡®Bwah, I¡¯m giving up on men anyway. I¡¯m growing up from that nonsense and I¡¯m getting serious. I''m an adult now. And they call it volunteer work but it¡¯s paid in farm produce. The women at home will be very happy with it.¡¯
¡®Like the chicken meat? That was very good stuff!¡¯
¡®Mostly vegetables, they don¡¯t slaughter animals that often, but they really have great stuff in their vegetable fields. And I might learn something new that¡¯s more interesting than watching robots who do their trash sorting, and if you get promoted you oversee more complicated robots sort even more trash. I needed something more.¡¯
¡®Yes, I know. I¡¯ve been reading a lot of books from Eliza lately, but I need something more to do with my time too. But I¡¯m tired from everything that happened lately too, I don¡¯t feel like I can handle more change for now. Life is exhausting.¡¯
¡®So did Eliza find a job already? And Megan?¡¯ Samantha said, changing the subject.
¡®They¡¯re trying for administrative work. But that won¡¯t be easy. But Eliza¡¯s a hacker who can hack her way into anything if she wants.¡¯
¡®I wish I had her gifts, and her access to Loverboy.¡¯ Samantha said dreamily.
¡®You need to get into the administration and then you can find the address.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s not what I mean. Nevermind¡ Why do they warn us to stay away from men because they will want us just for being female, and then I can¡¯t even get him to notice me?¡¯
¡®They warn against the worst kind of men because those are dangerous. You don¡¯t want to be noticed by those either. And I¡¯m quite sure he¡¯s noticed that you¡¯re female already, you¡¯ve been advertising it enough. But he was engaged and suddenly surrounded by a lot of girls who are all female. He¡¯s just not that into you and Eliza¡¯s friendship project is more his style anyway.¡¯
¡®Stupid curly greeneyes will be the one to catch him permanently in the end, and he¡¯d kiss you before he¡¯d even consider seeing me as a woman.¡¯ Samantha said darkly.
¡®Don¡¯t say stupid things, Sam, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll just get back with Megan when things are sorted out. And he certainly isn¡¯t interested in me like that either.¡¯
¡®Oh, deep blue eyes, why are you all so clueless? And the problem is that he is the worst of all you clueless idiots. Cute little monogamous idiot with no interest in the real fun!¡¯
¡®Maybe you should stop being frustrated all the time, and stop insulting all your friends, Sam. It¡¯s no-one''s fault that there are so few decent men in this rotten country, and he can choose only one of us in the end, at best. Maybe not all humans are monogamous, but I¡¯m quite sure he is, and a harem wouldn¡¯t really work for him anyway, too complicated. Plus, you were giving men up, you just said that.¡¯
¡®But a woman can dream, can¡¯t I?¡¯
Angela sighed while she looked for her keys, they were almost home.
*
Maria Adams dusted the empty room, deeply lost in thoughts. She could have asked the new maidbot, but she felt like she had to do something with her own hands to distract her. Maybe she shouldn¡¯t have done that with this room, which used to be the room of her former middle son. Why had her husband bought her a new robot after his disappearance after refusing to do so for years? Did he want to compensate for something? Or was he just imitating Sam who seemed to be building a whole collection of them lately? She didn¡¯t know. She¡¯d never understood him and it had only gotten worse over the years. But it could come in handy anyway, she was getting tired faster lately, and even if the machine was not really human, she was much better company than the actual human living in this house with her. There were some glitches in the conversation programs, but at least ¡®Rita¡¯ would pretend to listen without shutting her down, getting aggressive or insulting her.
She¡¯d actually been very lonely lately. Even her housewife friends didn¡¯t seem to want to mourn the loss of her son with her. Everyone here in this Alphaville neighbourhood just found it logical to cut off such an unworthy son, but had Michael really been so unworthy? A tear came in her eye when she realised that he had actually tried to get a better relationship with her recently, something she hadn¡¯t even realised at that point, not until it was too late. In one of their last conversations he had even been talking about having contact with his sister again, who was 15 now, and hadn¡¯t been visited by anyone since she¡¯d left for John Manfred Wife School. Not that that was unusual, and David had always said it was the proper thing to do now that she was getting a Wife training at Wife School. In three years Anne could be chosen by a man to become his Wife, and then she would belong to another family anyway.
But it still felt wrong deep down, just as the whole story with Michael felt wrong. Somehow she knew that defending a girl was a good thing to do, even against an Alpha-2, but David and the police officer and the men from school had all been talking about how scandalous it had been, an insult to manhood everywhere, and that people like him shouldn¡¯t be allowed in school. All of them had found it so normal that she¡¯d felt wrong for not agreeing with them. But anyway, she was just a woman and they were men, some of them high-rated men even, so her opinion didn¡¯t even matter. Michael was deleted and she better got used to that.
That also meant that she wasn¡¯t going to have a new daughter-in-law. Sure, the Megan girl had been very young, just as Michael was quite young, and she¡¯d seen her only once, but if she was honest she¡¯d really been looking forward to having another woman in the family. Maria had heard the fight between her husband and Michael about choosing an E-girl, but after she¡¯d seen the girl and had heard him she¡¯d slowly started to understand why her son had chosen her. Sure, David would not understand it and he¡¯d probably get even angrier if he did, but her son had managed to find someone who was quite like himself. Two of them even, that chaperone girl had certainly looked like part of the conspiracy too. She¡¯d never seen a girl like her, so stubborn and fierce, even if she was just an E-girl. But that was all in the past too. The poor girls, even though they were innocent, they were kicked out of Wife School, which meant that they had to live like a non-wife in a Zeroville woman house from now on. Maria shivered when she contemplated such a horrible fate.
This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
She looked around in the empty room. Rita was a good addition to the house also because there wasn¡¯t much left of her family now. The only of her three children that they were still in contact with was her eldest, Sam, who was exactly like her husband. He was the pride of the family as an Alpha-3, and David always had treated him much better that Michael, even if Sam¡¯s life choices were also quite worrying for Maria. Her daughter-in-law Natasha seemed to have the same kind of marriage as her too, but she was shy and fearful, and would never say anything negative about her husband to any other man. Nation girls were taught to never be negative about the men in their life from a very young age on. But Sam wasn¡¯t really okay now. His new obsession with guns and hunting feral men for example gave her nightmares. In her dreams she saw Sam, with an evil demon face and a big gun ,hunting down Michael while Anne and Natasha were held in a big birdcage.
She sat down, and felt something hard in her back pocket. It was the remote control of the maidbot. Luckily it wasn¡¯t broken. In a few seconds she went back to her doom scenarios. She knew that technically he still had his identity, and they should have given him a place to live and for some weird reason even a Wifebot, something she didn¡¯t even want to think about at all with her son. But would he be able to find a job? She knew that if he got in trouble one more time he¡¯d actually be deleted in the more thorough way, and the only way to survive then was to go feral. And then it was really possible that her two sons would kill each other. And in such a scenario it wasn¡¯t likely that Michael would ever be the winner.
She snapped out of her daydream nightmare when Rita appeared. ¡®Do you need some assistance, Mistress?¡¯
¡®Could you bring me some coffee, Rita, and then finish dusting this room. If you¡¯re done you can lock it, and keep the key somewhere far away from me. We won¡¯t need it anymore.¡¯
*
Shirley looked out of the window of the classroom again, at the flower garden above which a few cabbage white butterflies hovered. She really couldn¡¯t focus on whatever Miss Hunter was saying today, and she wasn¡¯t in the mood for the whole please-your-husband curriculum at all either. From time to time she looked at the empty desk in front of her, where Megan and Eliza should have been. Nothing was the same without them, and she¡¯d never expected to lose them like that.
¡®Shirley, you¡¯re zoning out again. That¡¯s not like you. Come on, tell us about the ways in which Manfred described men as superior to women, and how we need to take that into account when interacting with our husband.¡¯
Eliza would have made a very snarky remark to that, but she wasn¡¯t Eliza. And she had forgotten what Manfred had said about women. He¡¯d never said anything flattering anyway, and it was quite easy to reproduce the gist of his ideas.
¡®He said that women are too emotional, and not rational enough, so we should always let our husband explain things to us, and never contradict him.¡¯
¡®Hmmm, he said something like that too, Shirley, but that wasn¡¯t what I was talking about. I expect more of you. Even an E-level girl should know those things, we have a quality standard to keep up with the Wives we provide to young men.¡¯
A month ago she¡¯d have nodded and agreed, but now she felt her stomach turn. Once she had believed that everything would be okay if she¡¯d get married, but now she was just afraid for the future. Okay, she had learnt that there were good men in the world beyond anything she¡¯d been taught, at least one of them, but the whole story with Megan and her fianc¨¦ had also shown her that most men weren¡¯t good at all in comparison to the clueless Michael. And now the reality of what Miss Hunter had actually been saying for years was seeping in slowly, and it made her fear more for the future with each day. Her whole worldview was falling apart and she was all alone now. She didn¡¯t even have her two best friends around anymore, who could have helped her with this whole deconstruction experience.
¡®So, Shirley, remember that men are superior. Their will is our law, and we should never question whatever. We women just cannot understand how they work, and we shouldn¡¯t ever contradict our husbands, they always know better.¡¯
She nodded, but inside everything screamed that this was madness, and that she had to get away from this place as soon as possible. But that was impossible, wasn¡¯t it?
*
Lady Martha looked around at the green central square of Seventh City Ghost Town. As an outlaw community it wasn¡¯t actually part of Seventh City, but more like a whole squat town made in an abandoned pre-Nation village very close to the city itself, and if you knew the way between the fields and ruins it was still a walking distance from several important places within Seventh City. If they would let you in that is, because like every Ghost Town it was walled and heavily guarded against any intruders, with secret and mysterious weapons. No man had ever entered her community, but sometimes more poorer and lower-ranked women of the city came to trade food and stuff, and she had some people coming to work too. The cooperation with the city non-Wives and certain activist groups was better than ever.
Things were going quite well in her community too. She¡¯d been a leader here for more than 30 years, and during that time her community had grown, both in numbers and in possibilities. The farm was bigger and more productive than ever, they had special technical workshops and a hospital now, and also better versions of the ¡°secret weapon¡± that they used to defend their place. The communication between Ghost Towns in The Nation also became better with the year, and for a few years there was a loosely organised union of Ghost Towns, who were looking together to find an alternative to the heavily patriarchal official life of The Nation. The only problem seemed to be that bands of feral men had become more aggressive lately, but the defence of Ghost Towns had gone up too and the feral men never were very organised or strategic.
She looked at the chapel of the Angel of the Earth, the main place of worship in her ghost Town, where her partner Ruth was the village priestess. She supposed that Ruth was in there, but she didn¡¯t want to disturb her, that was why she was standing here outside the building lost in thoughts.
A flock of grey rock doves flew over, and everything was quiet. It was a beautiful evening, and she was blessed to live in such a beautiful and peaceful place, especially because most of The Nation was the opposite of those two things. Her thoughts were broken by Ruth, who indeed came out of the chapel with a box of tools and ends of wood.
¡®I have to finish the altar for the Angel before I can finish for today. I¡¯ll be a bit later.¡¯
¡®Okay, I will go on with my business then, love. I have some other work to do, but there was something I wanted some input from you on.¡¯
Ruth noticed that Lady Martha held a paper and looked questioningly at her partner.
¡®I received a Pen Pal message as they call it. Eliza wants to use the printing engine again this week.¡¯
Ruth looked at the mysterious paper. ¡®Sent through that Pen Pal network? The one for young people that uses the combined black markets of both sexes? The one that can connect girls and boys in their schools too? From young Eliza? Wasn¡¯t she one of the inventors herself?¡¯ Ruth asked.
¡®I think it more was that boy she¡¯s in contact with even.¡¯
Ruth nodded. ¡®Eliza the man-hater and her boy friend. I heard about him. Sounds like an interesting case. He¡¯s behind the unsegregation movement in caf¨¦s and restaurants too. He just wanted to talk to a Women are Human activist girl, and so he opened a table without sex segregation, and it caught on. Fascinating story if you think about it.¡¯
¡®Oh, was it not to be able to talk with his Wife School match and Eliza?¡¯ Lady Martha asked.
¡®They certainly used it for that too.¡¯
Ruth looked thoughtful. ¡®So what do the other Ghost Town elders think of the unsegregation thing? It sounds like an extremely dangerous idea too in a way.¡¯ Martha nodded.
¡®The elders are cautious, but some are optimistic too. But I think we should not close the door directly if a bridge is offered to us.¡¯
¡®Bad mix of metaphors, Martha, but you might be right. We¡¯ve always prided ourselves on being on the side of all life. Maybe it¡¯s time to re-evaluate whether at least some men can be considered part of that too. And with Eliza as one degree of separation from one of them I think there is one candidate that we¡¯ll have to consider soon.¡¯
¡®You mean, opening contact with that Michael-boy?¡¯ Martha asked.
¡®I¡¯ve never seen a better candidate in my life, but still¡ Can we really go that far?¡¯ Ruth said.
¡®He deserves some support from our side now I¡¯d say. That incident with Eliza that had her leave the SCWF was because he defended the two girls against two high-rated predator males. And he was deleted for that, after being locked up for days in a police cell. Shunned by his family even,¡¯ Martha said.
¡®Even if he¡¯s a male, no-one deserves to be punished for something like that. It was honourable what he did. The male world is a horrible place, see how they eat their own. Did anyone find him back after that?¡¯ Ruth asked.
¡®He¡¯s relocated to a Zeroville appartment with a Wifebot. The usual way of preventing men to go feral. They can be rather cruel and very unsubtle towards any man who doesn¡¯t fit in.¡¯
¡®Poor boy. He was doing good work. The first man in ages that I hear about that could maybe give a woman a decent marriage is married off to a robot? Really, they are becoming more idiotic with the day. What happened to her by the way? The ex-fianc¨¦e?¡¯
¡®Oh, she¡¯s living with Eliza in the woman house now. I invited Eliza to come live here, but she declined. I think we¡¯ll still see her more regularly, she doesn¡¯t only use the printing engine but also the robot workshop, and she comes to get vegetables sometimes. I hope her to be part of our community one day. She¡¯s a technical genius and a good networker, with a network that expands even to the male side of The Nation.¡¯
A silence fell.
¡®People like Mildred aren¡¯t going to be happy with it. You know how she hates men.¡¯ Ruth said.
¡®She hates everything, and I don¡¯t really believe that she would be so nonviolent as she claims if it wasn¡¯t a basic idea from our community. We can¡¯t really listen to people like her if we want to get anywhere at all.¡¯
¡®So do you actually want to invite the boy and talk to him, love? Do I hear that right?¡¯ Ruth asked again.
¡®My noble predecessor Lady Leona always told me that both The Nation and the Ghost Towns would not last forever, and that in a better future the sexes wouldn¡¯t be enemies anymore, and that I should look out for signs for a better time. I think those signs are there, in both the Pen Pal network and the unsegration movement, and are both connected to him. The male world might have spit him out now, but his creations are here to stay, as is his connection to people who are connected to our community. So why not talk to him?''
¡®If you put it like that.¡¯ Lady Ruth said. ¡®But I still have some altar making to do now. We¡¯ll talk about it later. And maybe you could talk to Eliza herself about it and see what she thinks?¡¯
Lady Martha grinned. ¡®That young one is too naturally egalitarian. She has no concept of hierarchy, not even with me. I don¡¯t think she has much feeling for sex segregation either. She¡¯d just bring him in for a casual sight-seeing if she could.¡¯
¡®That would be going too far. But I think that letting in a man with her free person badge, that will swear the free person pledge will be a possibility in the future. At least this one. Mildred or no Mildred, it might be an important step.¡¯ Lady Ruth said, and then she walked back to the chapel to finish her work.
2.6 Slowly returning to human contact
Michael looked at the dishes, which were cleaner than ever. He could hardly say how long it has been since he¡¯d been released from the police cell by now, as time has become unclear. He had been working full-time for more than two weeks now, doing the dishes in the kitchen and cleaning everything and his shifts had been longer than ever too. He dreaded going home as much he was afraid to face anyone who knew him, and apart from his parents when he had brought his stuff home and one visit from Eliza he hadn¡¯t seen a human soul he knew. His parents had either been ignoring him as if he didn¡¯t exist for them anymore like his father had done, or looked at him with great sadness without making any connection as his mother had done. Eliza had been more positive, but also more confusing in a way, acting as if nothing had happened. She had made him feel better for a few hours, but she hadn¡¯t been able to take away his depression. He hadn¡¯t even dared to try to find Megan or anyone else, and he felt bad for that too, as if it was one more reason to isolate himself from everyone.
He started to put away the dishes on automatic pilot, trying not to think of anything when Tom suddenly stood before you.
¡®Michael, dude, you¡¯re overdoing it. I thought you were only washing dishes and doing long shifts all the time because you¡¯re currently badgeless and your job content had changed, but the boss said it was all your own choice. This isn¡¯t healthy anymore! It¡¯s time to do something else than washing the dishes for you today or your hands will shrink away into human raisins. I¡¯ve asked the boss and he said it¡¯s okay for you to work as a waiter today. You can do the man section and the unsegregated tables¡¯
Michael looked at him with an annoyed face and gasped. He didn¡¯t really appreciate anyone who disturbed his misery, and he had pushed away all thoughts about unsegregated spots, and the whole revolution. Plus there was the problem that there might be people who knew him there. But he knew he couldn¡¯t protest, Tom Was a Gamma-2, and he was nothing now. All he had left as a Nation man was that he still had an official identity and wasn¡¯t a feral nobody. He was in a very good place here for a deleted man actually. He knew that both Tom and the boss would still listen to him if he could bring in some arguments even as a zero, but he actually hadn¡¯t anything to say now to anyone, so he couldn¡¯t really reason himself out of it now.
¡®So, is there still an unsegregated section?¡¯ He asked Tom.
¡®Why not?¡¯ He asked, rather surprised.
¡¯Well, it was my idea, and I¡¯m not in any position of power anymore. Doesn¡¯t the boss find it annoying to still have it?¡¯
¡®His wife likes the idea a lot. She even brought him and her daughter there once, and more bars are doing it all over The Nation. So why would we suddenly stop it? It¡¯s not your thing anymore. It¡¯s a whole movement. And it brings money in.¡¯
He nodded. ¡®So, are there people there outside now that I might know?¡¯ he asked, nervously. Tom just shrugged.
¡®Dude, I don¡¯t know why you insist on being in the kitchen all the time, but doing more shifts as a waiter means you could get some extra money from tipping that you won¡¯t get from dirty dishes.¡¯ Tom had just realised that for the unrated workers tipping could make a lot of difference, possibly even more than doing the extreme shifts Michael had been doing in the kitchen recently.
Michael nodded, he hadn¡¯t even thought of that yet. Money hadn¡¯t even been a motivator for him lately. He¡¯d never have enough of it anyway to go back to the Alpha lifestyle of his parents.
He changed uniforms and took his tab and walked outside. He looked at the tables and noted that the Unsegregated Spot was bigger than ever, with five tables full of people he didn¡¯t know. No, wait, there were six, and the last table had only one person,a young woman with very short hair and very blue eyes, wearing orange workers clothes and two badges on her chest. One was a weathered E-badge for women, and the other one was a Free Person badge, just like the one Eliza had given him a few days ago. It was Angela, and she was reading a book but dropped it when she saw him and came over to him as soon as he came close to give him a hug.
¡®Michael, you¡¯re back! Finally!¡¯
He stood there and almost dropped his tab, trying to get away from her hug.
¡®Hi Angela. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m allowed to hug customers while on duty.¡¯ He said dismissively.
The first time they had met she had been afraid of him, and now she was a fully learnt apprentice of Eliza in being physical with him, a boy, in a purely platonic way. They looked at each other.
¡®No-one minds, Michael, but wow, you look bad, boy.¡¯ He looked away. ¡®I¡¯ve had some bad things happen to me lately. You probably heard everything already. But I¡¯ll talk to you later, I need to work now. Or do you want to drink something more, then I¡¯ll get it for you?¡¯
¡®A dark man beer maybe? Manfred plus tripel, Eliza said that¡¯s a very good one.¡¯
She winked.
¡®I can¡¯t do that, and you don¡¯t even drink that stuff, do you? If I start breaking rules now I¡¯ll lose my job and I¡¯ll fall even deeper.¡¯ The look upon his face became even sadder.
¡®I was only joking. Lighten up, Michael. You really don¡¯t seem like yourself today.¡¯ ¡®There is no myself anymore. Michael Adams the Gamma-1 who was engaged to Megan doesn¡¯t exist anymore. Michael the boy school student from the department of intellectual studies is dead now. Now there¡¯s only Michael the badgeless dishwasher, married to a creepy robot that¡¯s almost 200 years old and still manages to do the dishes better than me, who¡¯s supposed to be the professional.¡¯
Angela looked him straight in his eyes.
¡®And you say that to me? What am I then? I became a non-Wife when my father kicked me out of the house instead of sending me to school when I was 14. I¡¯ve been working fulltime ever since, and I¡¯ve always been a much more boring person than you are. But still you wanted to be my friend without even caring for all of our differences. So what are you complaining about?¡¯
¡®You wouldn¡¯t understand.¡¯ He said, looking away from the intense blue eyes.¡¯
¡®Michael, I never thought I¡¯d ever tell you to behave like a man, but please act a bit like an adult instead of sulking like a moody teenager.¡¯
¡®You would be depressed too if they deleted you and made you unmarriable after been a Gamma-1 brainie student.¡¯
¡®Listen, I know you¡¯re going through a lot, and you¡¯re not used to that as a former Gamma-1 who lived in an Alphaville villa, but every non-Wife in The Nation has a story like yours. You¡¯re not so special, and at least you haven¡¯t been abused, or had to endure violence.¡¯
Michael looked at her and turned red. ¡®Sorry, you¡¯re right. I need to put things in perspective. You¡¯ve all endured horrible things. And I should be working, not complaining about my stupid life. So hat did you want?¡¯
¡®A cold three herbs then.¡¯ Michael wrote her order down, went to the other tables, and then to the kitchen to get the drinks.
*
Two hours later, when his shift was supposed to be over, she was still there when he had changed from his uniform in his normal clothes and was ready to go home. He walked over, feeling that he had to do something to put their friendship back on the map.
¡®Can I walk you home?¡¯ He said, more out of politeness.
She looked at him. ¡®Well, maybe it¡¯s better if you do indeed, I¡¯m alone today. Sam¡¯s doing volunteer work in the Ghost Town hospital and I¡¯m not used to that. And unlike naive Wife School students I know all the places to avoid so there won¡¯t be any dramas.¡¯
He nodded a bit uneasily and together they left the bar.
¡®So Sam¡¯s working in an outlaw hospital tonight?¡¯ He said, crossing Square plaza.
¡®If you want to call it that, yes. She said she needed something more in her life than just watching robots sort trash. Especially after giving up on men after your disappearance.¡¯ She chuckled and Michael said nothing.
¡®Everything okay with you?¡¯ she asked after a while when he kept silent.
¡®I just don¡¯t know what to say to that. I never wanted any attention like that from her, and I don¡¯t feel like being her hobby to be honest.¡¯
¡®Oh, she realises that. And she¡¯s mostly just teasing you, you know that.¡¯ ¡®It¡¯s still irritating. But greet her from me. I haven¡¯t seen her in a while.¡¯
¡®No-one has seen you. It seems like you moved to another city instead of just another neighbourhood, you¡¯re hiding a bit too much and you know it.¡¯
A trio of shady-looking Delta men passed them, and Angela grabbed his arm, but luckily they didn¡¯t seem to notice them.
¡®Sorry, nothing personal. Men still scare me sometimes.¡¯ She said.
¡®They scare me too, especially after what happened and without my Gamma-1 badge. These Deltas are above me too now, remember.¡¯
¡®Oh¡¡¯ Angela unconsciously touched the E-badge on her chest and said nothing for a while and then went back to their earlier subject.
¡®Have you seen Megan already?¡¯
¡®I haven¡¯t.¡¯ He said, a bit cross.
¡®You should.¡¯ Angela said decisively, but the conversation had fallen silent again while they passed ugly apartment blocks for Deltas and Epsilons, and then finally a Zeroville house for women.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.¡®And here we are.¡¯ He said, and looked at the dark woman house.
He had seen it before, but never given much thought to it as he would never be allowed inside of it anyway. It was a big Zeroville apartment, but then for women. He had heard that it once had been mixed, but that it had been the women who had installed the segregation because of the bad behaviour of men, and then turned it into a woman house, and the State seemed to have accepted that and had only admitted women to the house. Mixed Zerovilles didn¡¯t really work at all, also because all the men were unrated and thus unmarriable. But the biggest difference between her home and this was that this was a community house where the non-Wives lived as friends together, and his house was full of individuals who didn¡¯t really connect to each other. The only neighbour he occasionally talked to was that old man with his creepy stories, but they hadn¡¯t exactly become friends yet.
¡®Thank you for walking me home, Michael.¡¯
Angela gave him a hug again, and he didn¡¯t even protest. It was weird how different he was treated by his girl friends compared to how the male world had spit him out. Would he ever see any of his school friends again? He didn¡¯t know, and at the moment he didn¡¯t really look forward to having to see any of them anyway. It would be too painful.
*
Robert was a bit nervous when he walked into the Square bar later that night. He¡¯d been following evening classes on computer coding, but his mind had been elsewhere all. This was probably his last chance to find Michael. No-one else had been able to help him, but this was the place where he had done his part-time job as a student and where he had hung out with his fianc¨¦e. So if there was any place left to find out about his friend it would be here.
As he had hoped he recognised the waiter, but Robert never was good at talking to strangers, and Tom the barman was an impressive dude to start a conversation with. But now wasn¡¯t the time to let his social anxiety take over though.
¡®So you¡¯re looking for Michael Adams?¡¯ Tom said, looking him up and down.
¡®I am. He was in my class. I know he used to work here, and you¡¯re my last chance I have of finding him. He¡¯s completely deleted in school, and his parents act as if he never even existed.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve heard that, yes. It¡¯s stupid how easily these things happen. But you¡¯re lucky, sort of. He still works here. Actually, he was here earlier today.¡¯
¡®He was here? So he¡¯s gone now? Do you know where he went?¡¯
¡®What Am I, his babysitter or his agent or so? Why does everyone have to ask me about him?¡¯ Tom said, visibly annoyed. ¡®
Ah, who else asked for him then?¡¯ Robert asked.
¡®Those two Wife school girls, and then that other girl without hair in her orange overall, and that flirty friend of her, and now you, don¡¯t know his name. For someone who is depressed because he¡¯s deleted and forgotten, he¡¯s still quite popular if you ask me.¡¯
¡®Ah,¡¯ Robert said, ¡®but he is actually deleted. His parents disowned him, and he got erased from all school records, and the teachers won¡¯t even speak his name. He really has disappeared. It¡¯s horrible.¡¯
¡®Well, he doesn¡¯t look deleted to me. His badge might be gone, but he¡¯s doing the dishes here every day. And he still has his fanclub too, it seems, even if he¡¯s mostly hiding from them.¡¯
¡®You really don¡¯t know where he is now?¡¯
¡®No, he left with that girl in orange. The one with very blue eyes from the trash sorting center, forgot
her name. E-rated non-wife and shy Women are Human activist.¡¯
¡®I think I remember her. So he¡¯s been keeping in touch with the girls? Why not with me and Henry then?¡¯
Tom shook his head. ¡®I think it was more the girls who were keeping in touch with him. They were quick to find him here when he got his job back.¡¯
¡®And the blond one? Shirley? Is she still in contact with him?¡¯
Tom half closed his eyes. ¡®I¡¯ve only seen her that one time with you, not? I suppose she¡¯s still in Wife School? They can¡¯t leave their school except when on a date or as a chaperone, remember. I doubt he¡¯s been seeing her.¡¯
¡®I suppose so,¡¯ Robert said.
¡®But back to my question, do you have his address?¡¯ ¡®No, I don¡¯t. He refuses to give it to anyone. But the girls have it. Eliza has been hacking some administration to get it I think. Strange one she is. They say they call her the man-hater in the female world, but she¡¯s been sticking to Michael like a velcro from the beginning, at least as much as the fianc¨¦e girl herself. And she knows a lot of people in very different places, black markets, Ghost Towns, administration, school and so on. Let me tell you one thing: women are much more complicated than anything they tell you. Especially that girl!¡¯
¡®I never thought they weren¡¯t,¡¯ Robert said darkly,
¡®But they were more human than I expected in a way when I met them. I also never realised how creepy our side can be before Michael was deleted. He didn¡¯t do anything wrong but if you hear some guys in school then it¡¯s as if he was a dangerous traitor and a criminal who deserved his punishment. I just hope the female world will treat him better than that.¡¯
Tom laughed. ¡®They¡¯re hanging out here as best friends, but I doubt that they¡¯ll let him in into a Ghost Town soon. He¡¯s still a man after all. There¡¯s always a natural barrier between the sexes. Men and women are still different species.¡¯
¡®Hmm, but is that really true? Didn¡¯t you just say he left with a non-Wife as friends? And isn¡¯t Eliza The Man-hater the first friend who came looking after him? I don¡¯t think those barriers apply to him. They started the whole unsegregation thing too, didn¡¯t they? I wouldn¡¯t have believed that any man would be hanging out with a woman casually as friends, but with him I believe it. But if he isn¡¯t here, I¡¯ll have to come back another time. It¡¯s getting late anyway,¡¯ he said, and walked off into the night, leaving Tom alone with his thoughts and a few waiting clients.
*
Angela was making a mint tea in the small kitchen when Samantha appeared, who had been reading in her room. ¡®You look happy today,¡¯ she said.
¡®Oh, yes, I had a good day.¡¯ ¡®
You¡¯re late. It¡¯s not safe to stay out so late for a single E-nonwife.¡¯
She sipped from her tea. ¡®I wasn¡¯t alone. I had a strong and gallant man to walk me home.¡¯
Samantha looked up. ¡®He¡¯s finally back above water?¡¯
¡®Sort of. He¡¯s been working again for a while now but he¡¯s hiding in the kitchen washing the dishes. Eliza was right. He¡¯s hopelessly depressed. But at least he was happy to see me. The poor guy has lost everything in the male world, even his friends.¡¯
¡®Why do I always miss out on the good boy stuff?¡¯ Samantha lamented.
¡®You were giving up on men, remember.¡¯
¡®If he¡¯s back I can¡¯t give up completely, can I? Especially not now that he¡¯s not tied to a forced engagement anymore. Hunting season is open!¡¯
¡®Oh, shut up. Want some tea?¡¯
Angela poured some mint tea and Samantha looked at the figures in the steam for a while. ¡®So how¡¯s the Ghost Town hospital?¡¯
¡®Small, and very female. We had an outsider non-Wife today who had been attacked by men near a Zeroville block and she needed stitches. It wasn¡¯t a pretty sight. What¡¯s wrong with men? Why did they attack her? Can¡¯t they just let us be?¡¯
¡®They never have the chance to have normal interactions with women, plus they¡¯re brainwashed completely into being toxic idiots.¡¯
¡®You think they could be different? Isn¡¯t it just a cruel joke of nature that we¡¯re attracted to monsters that can only destroy and abuse us?¡¯ Samantha asked.
¡®Michael isn¡¯t a monster. Neither is Tom, even if he¡¯s a bit distant. Or that Robert dude. They¡¯re just confused people who haven¡¯t been taught to be complete people. And now they don¡¯t know how to be with women. And you know women can be monsters too. Remember that job that you quit because of the gossip and nasty atmosphere and the endless power games. Humans can be bad, but there¡¯s always good people too.¡¯
¡®One good man for a whole Nation isn¡¯t enough to change my opinion of them as a whole. But at least you¡¯d still make a chance with him. Unlike this poor silly temptress here.¡¯
¡®Just stop that, Sam. But why are men so unhappy and frustrated all the time, if they all should be happy according to the teachings of old Mandfred dude who promised every man a Wife and all that? These creeps probably weren¡¯t even single. The Alpha that wanted to assault them had an A-floor fianc¨¦e in her old school too, I heard. So it seems that something in the system doesn¡¯t work there for them. Not even when all women are half brainwashed into robots with all that please-your-husband nonsense, and they¡¯re still unhappy. They should be happy, and grateful, not? Instead of becoming even worse? It¡¯s all bullshit, that¡¯s what I say.¡¯
Samantha looked up when her shy friend used such strong words. ¡®But they¡¯re men, they have their own special needs that we don¡¯t understand?¡¯
¡®What a man wants, what he thinks he wants, and what he needs are three different things, as someone once said. We¡¯ve had 150 years of Manfred¡¯s ideas and did it make men happier? Apart from making it hell for all women outside of a Ghost Town I don¡¯t think it made it better for any man either. It¡¯s an immature selfish fantasy that doesn¡¯t translate to the real world well.¡¯
¡®Wow, Angela, you¡¯re on fire tonight. You sound like Eliza when she¡¯s read too many of those ancient sociology books.¡¯
¡®I will take that as a compliment. Eliza is usually right, and being a smart woman is the best way to rebel against the system. And rebellion is only the start of what we need.¡¯
¡®Oh, are we still revolutionary? I thought the revolution was over already?¡¯
¡®It only has just begun, Sam. What are you doing in a Ghost Town as a city-nonwife? And do you think there will ever a day when they will admit a wounded man to your hospital? Or take in a lost boy?¡¯
Samantha almost spit out her tea. ¡®What are you even saying? That¡¯s impossible. A man in a Ghost Town?¡¯
¡®The black markets are connected now. There¡¯s unsegregated spots everywhere. Times are changing. Are the Ghost Towns following or not? Don¡¯t you think that someone as compassionate as Lady Martha will jump on the train too one day? I mean, with the few men that aren¡¯t monsters.¡¯
Samantha looked at her. ¡®That¡¯s still unlikely. Even with her.¡¯
¡®Me having a boy as a friend was unlikely too. And look at me and Michael now¡¡¯
2.6 Eliza and Lady Martha
Eliza looked at the printers in the machine room of Seventh City Ghost Town. Now that she wasn¡¯t tied to school it was much easier to be here and make use of the rare installations, and they even appreciated her presence a lot. She was just thinking of the best way to reprogramming an ancient scanner unit when Jenny came up from behind her. Jenny was ten years older than Eliza, had short brown hair, and seemed to have the gift of omnipresence within the walls of Seventh City Ghost Town. She was both the assistant of Lady Martha and the main administrator of the community, and knew the magic of always being friendly in such a way that people usually listened to her and did what she asked. Today she wore a multicoloured suit with flower motifs, and she smiled broadly.
¡®Hi Eliza, I think you have an audience with Martha now.¡¯
Eliza looked up from the ancient LCD screen.
¡®Me? I didn¡¯t know that. She wants to see me? Ah, fun. Where is she?¡¯
¡®Just where she usually is.¡¯
¡®What does she need me for?¡¯
¡®Advice on things you¡¯re an expert in, like usually?¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve already given her advice about what to do with that pre-Nation robot, and the 3D print engine has been optimised already too. I just need more time for this old machine, and I¡¯m not sure if there are cartridges available for it either. It needs 4 cartridges with different colours of ink.¡¯
¡®Oh, not that. She¡¯s quite happy with what you¡¯ve done with our tech already, and she can probably get the right cartridges from our colleagues at Thirteenth City Ghost Town, they¡¯re the specialists. But today she needs you for something that no-one in any Ghost Town has much knowledge about, not even in First City.¡¯
A silence fell.
¡®Ah¡ Well, I¡¯ll finish the printer program for now and then I¡¯ll see what I can do. I have my doubts though that I can be of much help.¡¯
She turned off the printer, threw away an old dried-up cartridge and then washed her hands thoroughly, but the ink stains remained. She looked into a window at her reflection and sighed. This was not how she liked to appear to a community leader: messy hair, old stained clothes, and her hands full of ink in four primary colours. Even with her natural anarchism she wanted to respect Lady Martha, and she didn¡¯t like to look too shabby for someone like her. Today was not really the day for a courtship sabotage cosplay look.
A bit nervously she arrived at the office of Lady Martha ten minutes later. She wasn¡¯t seated behind her desk but on a sofa in the corner.
¡®Hi Eliza. Sit down and have a mint tea,¡¯ she said casually.
¡®Hi Lady Martha,¡¯ Eliza answered. Natural anarchist and hardcore egalitarian or not, even she was impressed with the natural authority of the Ghost Town leader, and even more so when she didn¡¯t use any authority. Lady Martha poured two cups of fresh mint tea.
¡®I just wanted to tell you that I¡¯m impressed with you lately.¡¯ Eliza sat down on the other sofa and stared into her tea. This was what she¡¯d expected.
¡®Impressed? With me? Because I made that 3D printer work and re-wrote the robot¡¯s program?¡¯
¡®That too, but I¡¯m thinking of something else. I¡¯ve been following the outside news, and recently I¡¯ve been hearing a lot of strange stories about you and the unsegregation movement for example. There¡¯s also the Pen Pal project that you¡¯ve been using to contact me recently. And then I didn¡¯t even mention your Free Person badge system and the little pledge attached to it that we¡¯re using for visitors now. You¡¯ve really been doing interesting things, revolutionary stuff even. Sometimes I almost wish you were part of the elders of my little Ghost Town here.¡¯
Eliza felt herself shrink.
¡®Me? I just do what I find necessary to do¡ And you probably should thank Michael more than me. It was all his idea, and I couldn¡¯t have done anything without him.¡¯
¡®Ah, you¡¯re saying I should thank the so-called Michael Adams myself? Our young barman who¡¯s behind the unsegregation thing? I¡¯ve been impressed by him too, yes. Whatever it is that you youngsters are doing, it¡¯s refreshing, and it might help heal this broken country in the end. Even if it might take some more centuries.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m quite sure the only thing he had in mind was staying alive without losing himself and becoming an empty creep. I was surprised, but boys are just people who aren¡¯t girls in the end, and he¡¯s quite a good friend now.¡¯
Lady Martha pointed at her Free Person badge.
¡®Weren¡¯t you nicknamed Eliza the man-hater? And now you come hopping into a Ghost Town talking about your friendship with a boy?¡¯
Eliza shrugged. ¡®I never chose that nickname. I¡¯d never met any man before him that wasn¡¯t a creep, and I¡¯m strongly against the idea of Marriage as we were prepared for in Wife School. You can¡¯t expect me to respect people who don¡¯t respect me. But if a guy wants to be friends, and he is honest and open, why not? They are technically humans after all, and some of them can even behave as such.¡¯
Lady Martha emptied her mint tea.
¡®Apart from the fact that I personally have never met such a man in my whole life, and had never really heard of such a man in this country before either, at least not in the last 100 years, I would probably have to agree with the principle. But the divide between the sexes has always been absolute in The Nation thanks to John Manfred, as far as I know at least. In the early days there were a few rebel men who disagreed with Manfred and hid in our communities disguised as a woman, and in the end they just became women to the community, but after the first generation we never had anyone from the otherside at all that wanted to talk to us. Never. They ignored us at best, and at times we had to defend ourselves with all we had. Most just fear us now. We never had any connections with the male world. And I know from the traders that they have the same story of separate worlds, all the school books from the other gender are either taken from garbage or from books discarded after marriage. That also was the case until very recently by the way. Your little Pen Pal project is probably even more revolutionary than you realise, and again it¡¯s also connected to you and the boy known as Michael Adams.¡¯
Eliza shrugged a bit uncomfortably, she suddenly didn¡¯t like to be seen as an important rebel leader by someone as Lady Martha. It could mean responsibility.
¡®Ah, well¡ Everyone needs a hobby I guess. Just mooching some Manfred plus beer from him while I was playing the chaperone on dates between him and Megan that went nowhere, romantically speaking at least, and hanging out on that unsegregated summer terrace got boring after a while¡¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t act so innocent, young lady. You know very well that you were being revolutionary, and fully intended to be so. You¡¯re a natural rebel. And you succeeded in a way in which even the Women are Human activists never managed. And the weird thing is that it caught on too. The unsegregated spots are everywhere in the Nation now, and there are boys and girls corresponding with each other through the connected black market trader system. I¡¯ve been watching the whole thing with astonishment. I know it went mostly under the radar of the male world and those dusty Central Computer idiots in First City, but the Ghost Town leaders have their eyes open. And the epicentre of the revolution has been right before my own eyes, in Seventh City. And my sisters are unsure of how to react.¡¯
¡®Honestly, Lady Martha, the unsegregated spot thing was something he did all by himself, in between Megan¡¯s second and third date with him, because he was still irritated that he couldn¡¯t just have a drink with us, and then he wanted to talk with Angela about the Women are Human activism. I had nothing to do with it except that we¡¯ve used it ever since. But you could as well blame Angela. She accidentally accomplished more than all the other WAH activists of The Nation together just because she was open to talking to him¡¡¯
Lady Martha smiled. ¡®Little Angela? The short-haired non-Wife WAH activist girl? She¡¯d be even more dismissive and humble than you are. But maybe I¡¯ll speak to her about it too then. But the fact remains that everything revolutionary that¡¯s happening in Seventh City is always connected to you, and to him too. I¡¯d almost say it¡¯s a pity that he is a man, but then again it¡¯s also clear that it only works because he is one. I¡¯ve been having a lot of discussions with the elders about him here by the way. But in the end I think that we¡¯d be missing the boat of history if we would not in some way try to connect to him too. I know it would be weird to invite a man into a Ghost Town to talk to him, but what do you think his reaction would be if we did?¡¯
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Eliza almost spit out her mint tea.
¡®Are you serious, Lady Martha? Him here? In a Ghost Town. In his current state?¡¯
¡®I am serious. The elders disagreed among themselves too, but the majority wanted to try it. Only Mildred was very aggressively against it. But she¡¯s against everything.¡¯ Eliza stared at a point at the horizon for a few seconds.
¡®He would be freaked out and be nervous probably, but he wouldn¡¯t refuse. He might not completely understand how exceptional it is, but he¡¯s not completely unaware. And on the other hand there''s weird superstitions about you that he¡¯ll have to overcome.¡¯
Lady Martha poured in more tea.
¡®Let me tell you a secret, young woman. My hope is that I can live long enough to see it not being exceptional at all anymore. That we can open up at least for some decent men. You said that they are technically humans, and some can even behave as such. Even if it¡¯s only one in a hundred, we should connect to those, and maybe at a point even take them in, especially if they are at war with male society for being a decent person. I can see that happening. And, you know, that in the end there would be a natural new generation here without the whole segregation of the sexes thing.¡¯
¡®Ow¡¡¯
Now even Eliza didn¡¯t know what to say, while she tried to understand the scope of Lady Martha¡¯s last words. She knew they were wild fantasies of a visionary woman, but she was still surprised by them.
¡®Don¡¯t say that to Elder Mildred. She¡¯d freak out even more.¡¯ She finally said, looking out of the window.
¡®Oh, it¡¯s way too early for any of that, but it¡¯s my longterm vision, shared by more Ghost Town leaders, but not always by the general public. We know that any community without natural children isn¡¯t sustainable in the end. And we¡¯re not going to take the unnatural way or, eh force something. It¡¯s against our principles. Biologically we will need both sexes together, eh, in a very intimate way. We¡¯re not a dystopian organisation from a fantasy story that¡¯s going to keep pet men as sperm donors or so. If we¡¯ll ever have children it will be the natural way, through love. But there¡¯s a million steps to take before we ever get to that, and the first one is probably friendship with the male side. Or just with some persons there. And you¡¯ve accomplished a lot there, more than this whole community together.¡¯
¡®You make it all sound so grand, Lady Martha. It was he who rejected the whole script of marriage and offered friendship to Megan instead on that choice ceremony, and to me too. It all just happened before we knew what it was.¡¯
¡®And we¡¯ll let more things happen, Eliza. I¡¯m not sure how yet, but I want to talk to him.¡¯ Eliza nodded, and wondered what this would lead to.
*
Megan pushed her hair away from her dark eyes and looked at the job applications again, and then she sighed. This was going to suck again. While she was in Wife School she had always dreamt of getting out, preferably unmarried, but now that it had actually happened like that she still wasn¡¯t really happy with it. Sure, it could have been much worse than living with Eliza as her roommate, but it was clear that being a non-Wife in The Nation sucked by definition. She had understood that from Angela and Samantha already, but some things you only really know when you experience them.
So what was she going to do now? She looked at the seriously underpaid office work that Eliza was applying for, and felt miserable. It would be better than overseeing trash-sorting robots all day like Angela and Samantha did, probably, but still¡ Doing all that work for so few money? It just wasn¡¯t fair how the ranking system worked, especially if you were outside of it. Or just if you were a working woman and not a man in this sexist hellhole. Not that rated women often had to work, it was considered unmanly in The Nation to have your Wife working out of your house, indecent even. But non-Wives had no reputation to save, and it was a matter of survival anyway.
She crumpled a paper and threw it in an old bucket that was converted into a trashcan. ¡®And to think I could have been a Gamma-wife, married to a friend who loves me.¡¯ She mumbled to herself. Even if she hated the idea of marriage it still felt like a loss for a lot of other reasons. It would have given her a completely different life if she had been married to Michael if he hadn¡¯t been deleted, since the place where a couple lived depended on the ranking of the husband. Gammaville neighbourhoods usually had separate row houses for each family, not these terrible apartment blocks. Strange how she had never thought of those practical things before it was too late, and now all of that was gone and completely of reach, even in her dreams. There was only the Zeroville woman house for her now, and no chance on any Marriage. Girls didn¡¯t get a second rating chance when they were written off unlike boys, so this probably was how the rest of her life was going to be if it depended on male society.
Still there was the relief of having escaped marriage too. everyone knew that Marriage was always disastrous for women, with men bossing you around, dominating you and often even physically abusing you or using violence for the smallest problem, and then the sexual aspect wasn¡¯t even considered. She couldn¡¯t see Michael behave like that, but the word Marriage still automatically triggered a state of panic in her, thanks to all of Miss Hunter¡¯s lesson, and to the couples she¡¯d seen around her when she was a kid. It was completely unfair to him, but it was hard to even imagine the possibility of another kind of Marriage, even after all the time she¡¯d been with him. It was as if she could only expect the toxic relationship templates to take over, which was probably insulting to the poor boy, who was just unable to be a Real Man in so many ways¡ But sometimes imagination can only go so far if you¡¯ve been fed on the same narrative all of your life, even if it was unfair to some people. Ah, Michael, the one who had broken the narrative¡ Probably the perfect husband for any reasonable woman who didn¡¯t like to be beaten, dominated and who liked intelligent conversation and stuff like that. He was everything that shouldn¡¯t exist in The Nation, and better than she¡¯d expected. And still she didn¡¯t know what she wanted with him. Apart from friendship that was, there was no doubt about that. But the romantic part¡ She hadn¡¯t been ready for that, not even with him at his extra-slow pace. Or maybe it wasn¡¯t something for her at all?
Oh, she had enjoyed their dates a lot, and you could even say she had fallen in love with the idea of being so safe with a boy, and it had felt like a dream. But she had never been able to imagine more than that, even if she¡¯d tried. Their relationship had been fun, but there had probably been something that was missing, even if she didn¡¯t really knew what. She didn¡¯t really have more desires than that. Eliza had teased her that she hadn¡¯t even tried to kiss him, and she¡¯d always said that he hadn¡¯t taken any initiative for that either. Whether it was her trauma about the forced ¡®intimacy¡¯ that wasn¡¯t intimate at all in most Nation relationships or something else altogether, she didn¡¯t know. She still wanted to hug him, and hold him to be both safe, but she had no real other physical desire for him, which was probably weird now that she came to think of it, but everything was weird anyway.
And still it felt wrong to let go of him as some sort of lover like that, even while keeping him as a friend. Eliza had said he had been heartbroken about the annulment of their engagement. But could there ever be between them except for friendship? Oh, Michael, you idiot, why couldn¡¯t you have chosen Eliza? That would have made it all so much easier, and she¡¯d still have had him as a friend somehow. Why was everything so complicated?
What she actually wanted was getting away from all of this. She wasn¡¯t like Eliza, who always seemed to be able to hack the system from within and accomplish her goals somehow, and she was so tired from everything that was going on. If there ever would be a chance to get away from The Nation, and to travel to other countries she would certainly take it, without any hesitation. But that was another silly dream, even if those countries existed -and there wasn¡¯t really a doubt that there were other countries on the planet for any intelligent person- The Nation had no contact with them, and there was not enough fuel to travel to other continents in a fuel-depleted world where combustion engines were a taboo anyway after the disasters of earlier centuries¡
She looked at the next job application. For now it would be living in this Zeroville woman house, as a working non-Wife. Why was life always like being adrift between Scylla and Charybdis, without even having the chance to choose a safe sea that led to some kind of safe home? Sure, this Scylla had bitten her with different ugly heads but in fact only eaten her E-rating, her place in Seventh City Wife school and with it her state of marriability, but she wished for an open sea full of freedom, and for other new places to go. She filled in her personal details on yet another form for a low-paid office job.
Shit, she thought when she had written an E again where they had asked for her rating. This wasn¡¯t going to be easy at all...
2.7 When Eliza met Robert
Eliza was deep in thought when she crossed Square Plaza with all the things Lady Martha had been saying the evening before running through her head. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn¡¯t see the boy who approached her, an unimpressive Gamma-3 with short dark hair and eyes that didn¡¯t want to look at hers.
¡®You are Eliza, the Eliza, aren¡¯t you? The friend of Michael and Shirley?¡¯ He said, clearly a bit uncertain. Her heart was pounding in her chest from the surprise, but she smiled at him with a cute grin and looked him up and down.
¡®That was still my name the last time I checked, yes. They call me the man-hater too by the way, but I¡¯ve never chosen that name either. And I presume you are Robert, the brave man who fears women and their great power in marriage.¡¯
She looked him straight in his eyes. He looked away, but apart from that didn¡¯t seem too impressed somehow.
¡®I was only hoping to finally get some answers¡¡¯
Her eyes flickered. ¡®Answers from me, dear boy? Aren¡¯t you the one who¡¯s afraid of women because we want to overpower you and bind you into marriage and stuff like that? Shirley was quite amazed at that whole story. You¡¯re brave then, seeking contact with the infamous Eliza herself.¡¯
He sighed. ¡®Don¡¯t think anything weird of me, Miss Eliza. I was only hoping you could help me find Michael.¡¯
She looked at him, still disapprovingly and waited uncomfortably long before she answered. ¡®Looking for Michael? Already? So his male classmates have finally noticed his great disappearance trick? Maybe there are more men with brains in this country?¡¯ Robert became irritated with her attitude.
¡®Stop playing around, Miss Eliza. I¡¯m not here for those games. I know you don¡¯t like me, and I don¡¯t need you to like me, but I need answers and I need to find him. I¡¯ve tried everything but no-one seemed to know about it, and a lot of people completely deny that he ever existed now. It¡¯s freaky. He¡¯s literally deleted and no-one else but girls can help me it seems. And you were good friends with him.¡¯
She relaxed a bit.
¡®Correction. I still am good friends with him. He¡¯s only a bit traumatised and depressed at the moment and hiding away from human contact in either the kitchen of the Square bar, or else in his new fancy apartment.¡¯
¡®So you know where he lives then? No-one else could help me yet.¡¯
¡®Where he lives and where he works. He¡¯s still working in the bar over there, but not today it seems. And he mostly does kitchen shifts anyway so he¡¯s out of reach, doesn¡¯t even want to see customers.¡¯
¡®So much I know, Tom the waiter told me, but he didn¡¯t have the address himself.¡¯ ¡®Ah, yes, Mister Tom is cute and all, but not really good at espionage, is he?¡¯
¡®He said I should ask you. He expected that you could help me.¡¯ Robert said, visually irritated by all her playing around.
¡®Ah, yes. He was right about that. I know his address. Not a place I¡¯d recommend my friends walking around though. They put him in a Zeroville state apartment, and married him off to a robot.¡¯
¡®Eh, what?¡¯
¡®Yes, they took away his badge, so he¡¯s legally unmarriable now. And because a man living alone needs a wife for all kinds of reasons that I won¡¯t get into here they delivered him a nice vintage housewife-o-matic 2.1. Pretty thing, you¡¯d almost forget she isn¡¯t human but a soulless entity older than The Nation.¡¯
¡®But, Michael can¡¯t¡¡¯
¡®My dear boy. You still don¡¯t understand much of this world. Michael cannot say no, especially if he wants to get a re-rating. The robot is there to observe him and see if he¡¯s relationshipworthy. There¡¯s more fun to be had with those old vintages if you know your paleo-robotics, and there¡¯s the whole anti-assault program, but since Michael refuses to touch her that wouldn¡¯t do much, even if I would activate it in the strictest mode. But I don¡¯t think he¡¯d let me experiment with her. He¡¯s being a bit boring at the moment.¡¯
¡®But if you¡¯ve seen the robot, that means you¡¯ve actually visited his new place? In a building full of unrated zeros? Half-deleted men?¡¯ Robert asked.
She shrugged. ¡®I had to check up on him. I¡¯m glad I did.¡¯ ¡®But you say it¡¯s dangerous. And you¡¯re a girl.¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, it¡¯s a Zeroville residence, full of creepy unmarriable men and wifebots probably, and I¡¯m a young person of the female persuasion indeed. But he¡¯s definitely worth taking some risks for.¡¯
¡®Taking risks for¡¡¯ Robert looked incredulously at the young woman in front of him.
¡®Yes, friends are worth taking risks for. I know boy friendships are not so touchy-feely and less emotional and so, but I would hope that even a boy would agree with me that friends are worth taking risks for. Like overcoming your fear for women to talk to a dangerous woman like me and such¡ Talking to Eliza the Man-hater is probably quite a step too for you.¡¯ ¡®Ah, eh, yes, I suppose,¡¯ he said, and he looked away again.
¡®And anyway, being a girl is already a constant risk in The Nation, so one walk in a Zeroville more or less won¡¯t make the big difference. Did you hear that that Alpha-2 creep thought he could just do with me what he wanted because I was a girl out at the wrong moment, without a male partner around that could claim her as his property? It¡¯s good that I know some self-defence and that those idiots believe that girls are stupid and easy to take advantage of. Well, I think he learnt his lesson now. Pity that they had to throw Michael¡¯s rating under the bus for that.¡¯
¡®Say that again?¡¯ Robert said. He had heard some allusions from Don and John, but not the whole story.
¡®No-one told you what happened? I was just minding my business, returning to the good old SCWF with Megan and Loverboy. It was a bit on the late side maybe, and for a shortcut we had to pass those dark apartments, shady Epsilonville blocks, where suddenly those two creeps appeared. They shouldn¡¯t even have been there as an Alpha and a Beta, and they just demanded Michael to have us. I¡¯m not going into details about what they wanted for your poor virgin ears, but he refused and they grabbed him by the throat. Two against one is rather cowardly, so I had to help him a bit myself with my knee, when they forgot us girls for a second and focused on him. Luckily men can be quite vulnerable indeed if you know where to kick them¡ We ran off to the SCWF, but one of those creeps seems to have used a wireless phone to alert the police, and you know the rest of the story. They locked him up, and in the end he got punished for going against the male hierarchy and got deleted by his own father, and they kicked Megan and me out of Wife School; damaged goods they said. No marriage material.¡¯
¡®But that¡¯s completely unfair. He didn¡¯t even do a thing, and he only wanted to defend you.¡¯ Robert said.
¡®Good thinking, smart boy. But legally a girl cannot hurt an Alpha they said, so he got all the blame and most of the punishment. His father made sure of that, and called mine and Megan¡¯s too. And that was the end of that most famous engagement¡¡¯
¡®It was actually his father who deleted him? That¡¯s why his parents completely ignored me.¡¯ ¡®Yup, it definitely was him. Men are rather dangerous, my friend. You¡¯ll find out when you see more of them. They¡¯re cold and calculating and still completely irrational, one mistake and they¡¯ll destroy you. Just stick to your girl friends and the few good men in this world, like Michael.¡¯
¡®I am a man myself and I have no girl friends.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re missing out on the fun then. But you approaching me without running away means there¡¯s still hope. I¡¯ve heard interesting things about you when I was still in Wife School.¡¯ Robert shuffled with his feet, as he didn¡¯t like the idea of Wife School students gossipping about him, but then he remembered who the girl most likely to talk about him was.
¡®So how¡¯s the other girl doing? The blond one I mean. Shirley?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know. She¡¯s still in Wife School and like I said, me and Megan were kicked out three weeks ago after the incident. We didn¡¯t have much time for goodbyes. I Suppose she feels worse about
Megan and me now than you do about Michael. You might not have noticed, but our girl friendships are slightly deeper.¡¯
¡®Ah.¡¯ He just said. He didn¡¯t feel like having that discussion, and jumped back to his earlier subject. ¡®But you really didn¡¯t mind the danger of a Zeroville block. I don¡¯t know if I could just go there.¡¯
She nodded. ¡®It isn¡¯t dangerous for a Gamma-boy like you, you¡¯re quite high up in the hierarchy for them to touch¡ And least if I defend myself against an unrated baboon I can¡¯t get in trouble for hurting the fragile ego of a high-ranked man. They¡¯re almost toddlers sometimes, those entitled dudes. I don¡¯t see why anyone would ever look up to a high-rated Alpha or Beta. The only thing they have is that power is on their side, but they have no personality, take no responsibility, nothing. Empty shells that you can¡¯t talk to.¡¯ Robert Frowned.
¡®I thought women wanted Alphas, to marry them and share in their power?¡¯
She shrugged. ¡®Well, sure, some do, I think. But most A and B girls in Wife School are too brainwashed to do such a power takeover, and Alphas certainly don¡¯t bother with lowly E-girls like me.¡¯ She grabbed at the badge on her chest, remembering she had lost her E-rating recently. ¡®Wait, make that unrated Free Woman.¡¯
She paused and took a paper and a pencil out of her side bag.
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.¡®Anyway, here¡¯s his address. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s at home often, his hours at the bar are long and irregular, and he¡¯s usually locked up in the kitchen. He refuses to show himself most of the time. And he doesn¡¯t really believe anyone wants to see him. Good luck convincing him that anyone on the boy side still cares about him.¡¯ She bowed for him. ¡®I have to try.¡¯ He said. ¡®Respect, man! And I mean that now. I¡¯m not always nice to boys that I don¡¯t know well, but I appreciate you looking out for him. He needs all the friendship he can get, and he¡¯s quite hurt by the male side. Maybe you can show him that not all men suck, just like he did with me.¡¯
¡®Eh, how do I say it. If you say it like this, some men do suck I¡¯m afraid. Some classmates really don¡¯t want to see him again. I don¡¯t get it.¡¯
¡®You are a good friend.¡¯ She said, and unexpectedly she hugged him. He froze, and quickly she let go of him. Had she gone too far again? Boys were so fragile and complicated¡
¡®Bye, I have things to do,¡¯ she said, and she left him motionlessly standing there with the paper still in his hand. It was a good thing that at least some people on the male world were looking for him, it would be good for his depression too. But why did this one have to be so nervous around girls; he basically was a decent person, if he just would forget all the rules of segregation¡
*
Michael looked at the mysterious envelope in his ugly metal mailbox in the front door. It had his name on it, but it didn¡¯t have a post stamp, only a vague PP mark that indicated that his new address was included in the Pen Pal system already. That was probably the work of Eliza, who had been able to find his address quite soon after he¡¯d moved here, but who would want to write to him? He¡¯d seen Angela enough lately and she didn¡¯t seem the letter-writing type; So probably it was from Megan.
Wait, he looked again at the name on the envelope, which said ¡®Michael Michaels (formerly Adams)¡¯ in handwritten cursive. That was a weird way of addressing him, and not something Megan would write, or Angela or any of the girls, and certainly none of the boys he had ever known. He opened the envelope and saw a handwritten paper. In a curly cursive script bordering on calligraphy he read the following letter:
Dear Michael,
Through mutual friends we have heard a lot of good about you, about your friendships with several women, and about your involvement in recent revolutionary developments like the Pen Pal system, the unification of both black markets, and the unsegregation movement. We have been impressed with those things, and have been following your story. It seems that more contact between both sides will be unavoidable in the future now. That is why we want to invite you to Seventh City Ghost town, to talk about a new future in which there will be better relations between our Ghost Town women and at least some men.
We will also invite your friends Eliza and Angela to join you. You can send your answer through the Pen Pal system or through your friends and we will provide further instructions.
Lady Martha Ruths,
First elder of Seventh City Ghost Town
He stared at the handwritten letters for a while. Sure, he had heard the name of Lady Martha before. The girls talked about her as some kind mighty leader, good for her community that she protected with an iron fist against everything male. The boys had told him other stories that were more scary and weird, about how she would castrate and enslave every man who would come close to the squat village that she called her Ghost Town, or even that she held a whole legion of kidnapped boys that were used as sex-slaves and for creating energy in treadmills. Those last two things were certainly nonsense, since he knew from people who actually knew her like Angela and Eliza that it was nonviolent community that consisted of only women, and that¡¯s she¡¯d certainly be against slavery, but he still shuddered when he read her name. It was a very normal reaction for a Nation male to the name of a Ghost Town leader.
And now she had invited him, to talk with her? About his involvement in recent revolutionary developments? She must have been mistaken. He was nothing in the male word, just an underpaid waiter. Okay, he probably still had his connections to the black market and the pen pal system was his work, but apart from that he was completely deleted from society. What sense would it make for a powerful female outlaw leader lto use him as a first contact in the male world? He was a complete outlier himself.
He took the letter and walked all the stairs to his apartment, and then fell on his couch. He¡¯d have to think about this! But first he needed the strongest beer in his fridge!
*
Sweaty and nervous Shirley held up her cardboard sign with a big number 13 on it. She was the thirteenth girl in a line of 25 bikini-clad girls that just stood there in the ugly hall of the E-floor for the bi-weekly ceremony of partner choice. She really wasn¡¯t in the mood for this nonsense today, even if she was hopeful not to be chosen this time. The turn-out was rather low again, and only five young men were now looking at the line of girls with their unpleasant looks. All of them were quite uninteresting, but they seemed quite full of themselves nonetheless. Boys really were a stupid mess if you saw them like this. How had she ever taken men seriously at all?
She reminded herself that men weren¡¯t necessarily that bad. Megan¡¯s Michael had been a decent person, even if he was deleted now. Even his shy friend Robert had been okay in a way, in spite of his strange theories about women she hadn¡¯t felt bad around him. It was his weird outlook that mirrored and opposed everything she¡¯d been taught that had made her question her own certainties too. And okay, apart from those two she mostly knew horrible men, but maybe that was a stupid coincidence, and they might be more decent males around, not?
Her thoughts were broken off when she noted how one of the men looked at her. An Epsilon, probably a 7 or so but she couldn¡¯t see his badge very well from were she stood, and a tall muscled boy, with short blond hair, gawking at the girls and almost drooling. No, not him, Father on the throne, please not him! Everything but him! Luckily he turned his unfocussed gaze to another girl, Emma with the number six, but it seemed that was already taking her document to hand it to another boy who had just chosen her. Shirley looked at the line with other girls and realised that she was the first other blond girl in line. Which was a problem, since that was the only thing she and Emma had in common, and his gaze had been resting on her again. Shit! The boy was talking to official Greystone now, and pointing at her. And then, he suddenly made an uncoordinated movement, as if he was drunk, and yelled for all to hear.
¡®Just give me a blond girl. Doesn¡¯t matter which one. Just a sexy little Wife to make me happy!¡¯ He was pointing at her now.
Shit, shit, shit, everything said inside of Shirley, and time began to go slower. She saw Greystone take his micro-megaphone.
¡®Number 13, Shirley, would you be so kind as to bring your paper to this young man, please.¡¯ As in a trance she walked up to the boy, who looked at her with a very hungry look. He was a bit like a mad fox looking at a tasty pet rabbit that hadn¡¯t learnt how to deal with predators. On autopilot she went forward, and gave her her paper to Greystone, keeping her distance from the boy.
¡®Yeah, baby! Let¡¯s call your dad and arrange things, sweetie. I¡¯m looking forward to getting to know you better. You seem good enough, hmmm!¡¯
He looked her up and down with that creepy look again. Woman, she hated that bikini and wished she was wearing seven sweaters and oversized blue cotton pants now.
¡®I¡¯m Dave Johnson by the way. See you later, wife-to-be!¡¯
She could smell the alcohol in the air. And then he was gone to fill in his paperwork. She watched him wiggle away and wondered if he was even capable of writing in this state.
As soon as it had happened she was alone again, but for Shirley it was as if her whole world had fallen apart in only a few minutes. She must have left the ceremonial hall somehow and gone to the showers and then to the dorm, and had fallen on her bed. She hadn¡¯t cried since she was five or so, but that night she fell asleep weeping silently, hoping that no-one would notice. But even if someone would have noticed she wouldn¡¯t have cared anymore.
*
Shirley woke up early, while the other girls were still sleeping, and everything from last night came back. So this was it. The creepy boy with the nasty stare had chosen her to be his wife. She was a taken woman now. There was no turning back now. She had been thinking about this moment all her teenage life, and now it was finally there it felt like hell. And if you really listened to everything Miss Hunter said about marriage, especially the things in between the lines, the worst was still to come even. Even if there were other men, bot Mister Hunter and her future husband completely fitted into the Nation expectations of men. Which meant that her life was over.
In her head she recalled her last and only conversation with men that she had had, the ones that had given her hope, in vain. Michael and that weird Robert dude. Sure, that boy had had issues with the other sex, but he hadn¡¯t looked at her like that, even if he had been a bit afraid of her, and of Marriage itself. At least that was something she both had in common. She¡¯d given everything now to be chosen by a boy like him and not by Dave Johnson, even with all the weirdness she would be able to talk to him, and with this Dave dude no conversation would be possible at all. She had seen that in his eyes. And he was supposed to be her husband for life now. She was supposed to obey him from now on and never go against his will. And his will would be nothing good for her at all.
No! She couldn¡¯t let this happen. She had to reach Eliza, and the Pen Pal network was the best way to do that. The three of them had made their solemn vow of friendship, and Eliza could do anything, not? On the other hand, not even Eliza could annul an engagement or stop a marriage, could she?
She didn¡¯t know what to hope for anymore and was all alone.
2.8 Doubts on Both Sides of the Fence
Robert looked at the handwritten address in his hand, and then at the ugly building. This had to be it, Michael¡¯s new house. The difference with the Alphaville villa where his parents still lived could not have been bigger. He wiped a drop of sweat from his forehead, took a deep breath and walked up to the front door, where he discovered that he had to find his way in an enormous plate full of doorbells with mostly handwritten names, and no intercom. Finally he found the word ¡®Michael Adams¡¯, written in pencil on a yellow tape, and pushed the button, but nothing happened. He waited for a while but there was no movement, so he pushed the button again, and again nothing happened.
After a while he heard footsteps, and the door was opened. It wasn¡¯t Michael, but the head of an old man that appeared in the opening. ¡®Hey you, stop playing ding-dong ditch, you¡¯re too old for that. We all have heard that noise too. What do you even want here?¡¯ He looked at Robert disapprovingly, an unrated old man with a wild unkempt beard.
¡®Eh, good afternoon sir. I¡¯m looking for Michael Adams.¡¯
The man looked at his Gamma-3 badge and nodded his head. ¡®The new youngling? I don¡¯t think he¡¯s home. He¡¯s working most of the day. Good boy at that, some here could learn from that. But you can ask his Wife maybe. If she even opens the door for you.¡¯
Robert was completely taken aback. ¡®A Wife? but I thought they¡¯d broken off the engagement when they deleted him from our school?¡¯
The man laughed. ¡®I mean the robot, son. You¡¯ll find no real women in a building for unrated men, but most of us have a nice robo-wife as compensation for not being able to get married.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes¡ I forgot about the robot. And I still can¡¯t believe it. Michael? Married to a robot?¡¯
The man shrugged. ¡®Oh, it¡¯s the normal procedure here; They brought her in a day after he came here, good service nowadays. I had to wait much longer in my time. Pretty blond vintage thing too, they don¡¯t make ¡®em like that anymore. Ol¡¯ Manfred takes good care of the officially unmarriable, and they¡¯re better than actual women in a lot of ways. If you know how to talk to her, she¡¯ll take any message for him. Wives are always submissive, eh?¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not talking to a pimped sex-robot. No thanks.¡¯ Robert said, and the man¡¯s eyes widened.
¡®Hey, youngling, don¡¯t be unrespectful. A nice Wifebot is still the best companion we can have over here. They even have advantages that an actual wife doesn¡¯t have. And they¡¯re quite good at¡¡¯
¡®Yeah, whatever. I don¡¯t know what I would have to say to her¡ Robots are much worse than actual girls to talk to. It¡¯ll have to wait until I see Michael in person. ¡¯
¡®Your choice, sonny. But I think you youngsters always make things more complicated. Just accept reality and go with the flow I always say.¡¯
The man disappeared and Robert walked away from the Zeroville neighbourhood as fast as he could. He really hated everything about the place: the ugly buildings, the dirt and garbage, the weeds, and the atmosphere. Everyone he saw here looked hopeless. But then again, the only people who lived here were unrated men, who had no ranking in the male hierarchy, no privilege, and not even the right to marry. Plus whatever job they did, they would be paid way less than any rated man. It was a weird system, but Robert had grown up with it, so he had never questioned it before. Neither had he ever made any contact with people of lower rankings than his, except then for Michael¡¯s girl friends maybe. It just didn¡¯t happen in The Nation, normally. But on the other hand, Michael was his friend, no matter what, and he wouldn¡¯t abandon him now that he was so deep in trouble. That would just be wrong.
His breathing relaxed when he saw the much cleaner and bigger Deltaville blocks of Manfred street. At least here there were no weeds and garbage, and less weirdos. He hadn¡¯t succeeded yet, but he was one step closer to finding his friend again.
*
¡®Are you okay?¡¯
Shirley looked up from the bed where she was lying curled up to see a friendly brown face with two very concerned eyes, and looked away again to hide her tears.
¡®How could I be okay now, Iris? How can anything ever be okay again? Have you seen that boy? My life is over if I¡¯m going to be his wife.¡¯
The girl addressed as Iris put her hand on Shirley¡¯s shoulder. ¡®Come on, there¡¯s alway a way. If you really don¡¯t want him you could try the courtship sabotage stuff.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t reach someone like him. He didn¡¯t even look at me. He just wanted any blond girl as his Wife. He doesn¡¯t even see me as a person. He will never listen, and just become aggressive if I don¡¯t listen to whatever he wants from me. He¡¯s really that kind of man. Oh, it¡¯s so horrible. What am I going to do? I feel so alone with Eliza and Megan gone.¡¯
¡®Never give up hope, Shirley. There must be something. What about running away?¡¯ ¡®They¡¯ll catch me, and where do I go? I can¡¯t live all alone in the wild. There¡¯s even worse things than him out there.¡¯
¡®But you have friends out there. Eliza and Megan are still there, remember. I know you miss them, but maybe you can write them? That Pen Pal system is usually quite fast, and if there¡¯s any person that can be reached by it it¡¯s Eliza. She more or less invented the whole system and used her networking to construct it¡¡¯
¡®But, that¡¯s for writing boys. Oh, stupid me. I should have written Robert. He wouldn¡¯t have been like that. But I can¡¯t write to him now, can I?¡¯
¡®I wouldn¡¯t write boys that you¡¯ve seen only once. It¡¯s no use now, he wasn¡¯t ready to choose a Wife anyway, it would have taken much more time, but Eliza will know something.¡¯
¡®But she¡¯s been kicked out of this place. She can¡¯t come back here¡¡¯
¡®Few things are impossible for her, especially if it¡¯s for her best friend who¡¯s in trouble like this. Just write that letter, girl, and wash your face. You don¡¯t want Miss Hunter to see you like this.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t want to see her at all. I¡¯m skipping her class. She¡¯s just going to tell me to go to even more horrible classes about how to be a good Wife to a monster shaped more or less like a human. I don¡¯t know how she is able to live like that, but I refuse to waste my life like that. But what else can I do?¡¯
¡®I still think you should try courtship sabotage, and otherwise I would just run away. You¡¯ve been so unhappy since Megan and Eliza disappeared, I really think it¡¯s time for you to find something else.
¡®But, why do you still stay here?¡¯
¡®Oh, I¡¯m not chosen yet, and I hope to be able to connect to one of my Pen Pal boys and marry someone I like. I have two guys that are friends with me already. I never believed that such a thing could happen. They¡¯re really interested in me, and in what¡¯s happening here, and in meeting me in secret. They don¡¯t even mind if I have other guy friends.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m happy for you, but it wouldn¡¯t work for me, I¡¯ve been too shy to write anyone. And I¡¯m chosen anyway now.¡¯
¡®Think like Eliza. She stayed here because she found it the best place for her to study and network, but she knew that she¡¯d have to get out one day. But she did what she wanted, as I bet she¡¯s doing in her Zeroville Women house now. And she¡¯ll probably move to the Ghost Town when she doesn¡¯t feel at home there. And wherever she lives, she¡¯ll always make the best of it, and learn what she can. I¡¯ve always tried to be her disciple, and if I ever get chosen by a creep, you can be sure that I¡¯m gone here¡¡¯
¡®But I¡¯m not like her. Or like you. I don¡¯t have that confidence¡ I¡¯m just frozen and in panic. I can¡¯t just make the best of being in hell¡ It¡¯s not me.¡¯
¡®Start with the beginning, and write that letter to Eliza. And then we¡¯ll see. I¡¯ll help you get out if needed.
¡®Thank you Iris. You¡¯re really a good friend!¡¯
*
¡®I might have a big problem.¡¯ Michael sat in the Square bar himself for the first time since his deletion, drinking a heavy Manfred plus beer with Angela, who was waiting on Samantha to take her home.
¡®A new problem you mean? Or just the same problem with your family and being kicked from school, and the annulment of your engagement and so on?¡¯ she asked.
¡®No, no, not that. Something much weirder.¡¯ She looked up from her iced three herbs tea.
¡®And you think that I can help?¡¯
¡®Well, you were mentioned, so maybe¡ The real problem with it is that I¡¯m a man, actually.¡¯
¡®If you find that a problem, then I¡¯m afraid that I¡¯m not the one to solve it for you¡ But you say that I was mentioned, by whom?¡¯ Angela was clearly getting curious now.
¡®Lady Martha, in a Pen Pal message. She invited me to talk to her, in Seventh City Ghost Town. But that¡¯s impossible, isn¡¯t it?¡¯
Angela stared at him in astonishment now. ¡®Ah¡ The Ghost Town is a nice place to be, I¡¯ve always liked it there. Although I¡¯ve never heard about a man going there, ever¡ But you¡¯re a man of first times aren¡¯t you?¡¯
¡®Me? A man of first times? You¡¯re speaking to the one who¡¯s been engaged for months and didn''t even have a first kiss yet. I¡¯m more of a man of unique problems¡¡¯
¡®That might have been a first time too, such a fine romance with no kisses¡ Still a better love story than any I¡¯ve heard of in The Nation. But I¡¯d say you¡¯re mostly a good man with too much complexes, who still doesn¡¯t seem able to see the great things that he has done already. You¡¯re telling me that a Ghost Town leader sent you a message through the Pen Pal network. And who is behind that whole thing, and behind the unification of the two black markets? And behind this whole unsegregated table thing? And who managed to become actual friends with working non-Wives, while still in boy school? Me and Sam are probably the most unlikely persons to ever have a male friend like you, you know?¡¯
He sighed. ¡®Probably. But is that enough to get me alive in and out of a Ghost Town?¡¯
She started laughing. ¡®What do you think they are, cannibals? Lady Martha is a good person and a just leader for her community. She¡¯s not going to do anything evil to you. But what did she write about me? I¡¯m curious now.¡¯
Michael took the letter out of his pocket and gave it to her. Angela read it and looked at him. ¡®Wow. That¡¯s her handwriting indeed. Me and Eliza? I hadn¡¯t heard anything yet.¡¯
¡®I think she¡¯s waiting for my answer before she takes a next step. But what should I do?¡¯
¡®Is that even a question? Just say yes.¡¯
¡®But how? Should I write a letter like that? My handwriting is horrible. And I can¡¯t just write an outlaw leader through the Pen Pal system, can I?¡¯
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.¡®Oh, surely you can, if she sends letters through it herself, she can receive letters too. Or else you can give it to me, or better to Sam. She is volunteering in the Ghost Town hospital now every week, and she can deliver for you if you really don¡¯t trust your own network.¡¯
¡®I trust the Pen Pal network, that¡¯s not the problem. But the whole thing is just weird.¡¯
¡®Now that¡¯s a strange thing for you to say, Michael, everything with you has always been weird, in a good way, starting from you talking to me at that protest and then calling me a friend and then starting a revolutionary movement on a whim, just to be able to talk to me. So if I were you, I wouldn¡¯t protest anything just for being weird¡¡¯
¡®Okay, okay, point taken¡ So you say I should do it and you don¡¯t think it¡¯s dangerous?¡¯
¡®If Lady Martha herself writes you, there¡¯s been a lot of thought and talk already about it among the elders. And it means that she must approve of your ideas of reconnecting the sexes in The Nation. That she¡¯s using the Pen Pal system to write to you means that she approves of it. That¡¯s part of the message I¡¯d say. She¡¯s subtle like that.¡¯
¡®But a Ghost Town? They say that every man who comes close to one will be magically put to sleep, and then wakes up in a dress somewhere in the wilderness without any of his stuff. If he ever wakes up at all. Or if they don¡¯t do worse things to him.¡¯
¡®They have their way of defending themselves, but I don¡¯t believe they have magic. I can¡¯t tell about their defences, but I¡¯m quite sure they won¡¯t use them on you unless you¡¯d do some very un-Michael things. I would wear that Free Person badge though if I were you. And it seems that they have adopted Eliza¡¯s pledge as some kind of password too.¡¯
¡®Ah, I have no problem affirming that I pledge my allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status¡ But is that enough to let me in?¡¯
¡®Being Michael is probably enough already after everything that happened. What are you even afraid of? That they¡¯ll turn you into a toad?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t you know the stories? About those who live in a Ghost Town, and what they do if you anger them?¡¯
Angela looked at him, slightly amused again. ¡®No, I¡¯ve never heard anything like that. Must be a boy school thing. Urban legends mostly too. Sure, they have their own ways to defend themselves, they might put intruders to sleep and then leave them in the wilderness afterwards, but never without a very good reason. And I have never heard of anything worse than that. How do you want a community of women to defend themselves against violent men? They don¡¯t even use any violence if that¡¯s possible, they are pacifists.¡¯
¡®But they¡¯re outlaws. Outlaws have a short and violent life and kill each other all the time. It¡¯s the only outcome if you lose not only your rating but also your identity.¡¯
¡®Michael, Michael, you¡¯re thinking like a man again. That might be the case for the outlaws of the male world, but in the female world outlaws are non-violent, and they take care of each other, and they defend each other, and of other women if they can. Against men that is I¡¯m afraid¡¡¯
¡®And last time I checked I still was a man¡¡¯
Angela started laughing. ¡®You checked? Sounds like fun.¡¯
¡®You know it¡¯s just a figure of speech. And how do I know that they don¡¯t stun me, and replace my ancom chip with a castration chip, and leave me unarmed in the wilderness, where more and more panthers live?¡¯
¡®Wait? Is that another tall story for boys? Replacing the ancom chip with what? Maybe not a bad suggestion though, when it comes to actual violent creeps and rapists, not for you. Think of the guys who wanted to assault Eliza and Mega or so¡¡¯
¡®So they don¡¯t actually have castration chips?¡¯
¡®Michael, grow up. And if they will invite me and Eliza, it means that Lady Martha is doing everything to not make you afraid. She knows we are friends, and she respects friendships.¡¯
¡®If you say so¡ But I could do with a second opinion.¡¯
He pointed at Samantha, who came in, looking rather tired.
¡®Okay, I¡¯ll ask her,¡¯ Angela said.
¡®Hey Sam, do you think Lady Martha would invite our boy here to magically put him to sleep, replace his ancom with a castration chip, and feed him to the panthers in the wilderness?¡¯ she said to Samantha when she took a chair.
Samantha looked from Angela to Michael.
¡®Eh, where does that come from? Nice to see you again, by the way, Loverboy!¡¯
¡®Oh, he¡¯s got an invitation to talk to her, but he¡¯s afraid and has all kinds of weird conspiracy theories.¡¯
¡®She invited him? Cool! It¡¯s true that she¡¯s trying to open up communication with the male side then. Maybe I will be able to find a man in a Ghost Town one day¡¡¯
¡®You think of only one thing, Samantha.¡¯
¡®It would be cool to have some men there every now and then. Some of the good ones, I mean. There must be more of them than only one, and maybe even less boring ones.¡¯
¡®Hey! Be nice for once!¡¯ Angela said.
¡®I think it¡¯s a good idea. Eliza must be behind this. Great, that mean they will finally be starting unsegregating the Ghost Towns!¡¯
¡®It¡¯s one visit, to talk, not an unsegregation project.¡¯
¡®Oh, it¡¯ll only be the beginning, mark my words! One day our boy here will settle down there with Eliza or so in a cute Ghost Town house and have the first Ghost Town babies. They¡¯ll start mixed couple Love ceremonies and cute safe men will be available in the Ghost Town bar to flirt with.¡¯
He didn¡¯t even know what he had to protest first now.
¡®You¡¯re hopeless, Sam.¡¯
¡®Thanks, but why are you so tense about all of this, Loverboy?¡¯ Samantha said, putting her hand on his shoulder.
¡®I¡¯m no-one¡¯s Loverboy and the whole idea makes me anxious, meeting with an outlaw leader and stuff like that¡¡¯
She stood up and grabbed his shoulders to massage them.
¡®Let go of your fears, Loverboy, we women aren¡¯t dangerous. Not to a cutie like you anyway.¡¯
¡®Stop it, Samantha. Don¡¯t do such things in public! Do you want Tom to kick us out?¡¯ Angela protested.
¡®We¡¯re leaving anyway. And I¡¯m a E-non-Wife in a place for men and women. I can do whatever I want with a cute Zero-boy and no-one can stop me technically. He¡¯s below me since I¡¯m in the hierarchy and he isn¡¯t. He could technically be my male concubine or so.¡¯ She grinned.
¡®Technically that¡¯s probably true, except that no policeman will care about the rights of an E-non-wife¡¡¯ She stopped massaging. ¡®Time to go anyway, see you later, loverboy!¡¯
When the girls were gone Michael kept staring into what was left over of his beer. Rationally he knew that his fear were probably overblown, but he still felt very uneasy.
*
A week later Megan looked at the small cubes of lab-meat that were sizzling in the electric pan and sighed. Her fingers wanted to play with her hair, but it was only shoulder-long now. It was only one of the many changes in her life that slightly annoyed her, and even then it was only halfway to what most non-Wives did. She still wasn¡¯t sure whether she hated this zeroville block for women more or less than she had hated Wife School, but her life as a non-Wife was completely different from everything she had known in school, with completely different advantages and disadvantages. The biggest advantage was the new freedom. The only thing she had known was being locked up with her classmates without ever going outside, except then from the moment you were chosen as a fianc¨¦e and you were summoned for a date by your future husband. And now she could go anywhere she wanted, and do what she wanted. Well, if it was approved for women, and for unrated non-Wives at that, and she had to look out for men, because having lost even her E-rating now she didn¡¯t really have a place in the hierarchy and no protection against abuse. But she had been able to avoid problems until now, mostly with Angela¡¯s help and some tips from Samantha, in between the sarcastic remarks about being higher than her now.
She poked her fork in the pot next to the pan with meat, in which vegetables were cooking. It went through the purple carrot without any effort, which means that they were ready. She turned off the electric fire underneath the pan with meat and the pot with vegetables and drained the vegetables, and then she checked the rice which wasn¡¯t ready yet. Her thoughts went back to what had happened, and to him. She felt a pain in her heart. Why didn¡¯t he want to see her? And why hadn¡¯t she tried to reach out herself? She didn¡¯t even know. She knew that, whatever had happened, they still would be good friends if they reconnected, even with all the changes in their lives and their relationship, and even their official capacity to have relationships, but it felt like the reconnection part wouldn¡¯t be that easy.
She was so deep in thought that she didn¡¯t even hear Eliza come home.
¡®Look at those perfect little cubes.¡¯ Eliza said from close behind, and she almost jumped up.
¡®Did I startle you?¡¯ Eliza asked.
¡®I was a bit lost in thought,¡¯ she admitted. ¡®And what¡¯s the problem with my cubes?¡¯
¡®Nothing, I¡¯m just admiring them, I wouldn¡¯t be able to cut lab-meat in such perfect cubes. Oh, those veggies look good. Ghost Town produce?¡¯
¡®Yes, Sam brought purple carrots and little turnips. But why are you so late today?¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve been busy. And not just with that job interview. I¡¯ve been to the Ghost Town too, and I probably have to introduce our confused boy to Lady Martha in a few days, but I also have to pay a visit to our former school as soon as possible.¡¯
¡®Eh, what?¡¯
¡®I got a pen pal from Shirley, she¡¯s taken. By the worst kind of man possible. And we need to do something.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re going to the SCWF? You can¡¯t just barge in there.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m Eliza. I can do that. Actually it¡¯s quite easy if you know some administration to visit a Wife School girl. Most people just don¡¯t know their rights, but I¡¯m going to use them for her. She needs me.¡¯
¡®Okay, greet her from me.¡¯ Megan checked her rice and turned off the electric fire. ¡®And are you serious about him meeting Lady Martha?¡¯
¡®Yeah, wanna come too? It should be fun, Angela said he¡¯s quite nervous and it seems that schoolboys have the weirdest conspiracy theories about Ghost Towns.¡¯
¡®I can¡¯t just come uninvited at such an occasion, and things are still a bit awkward between us. I still haven¡¯t seen him since the incident, remember. We¡¯d have to have a lot of talk first I guess, and I feel like neither of us both is ready for that yet.¡¯
¡®You two are really hopeless since the incident. Especially him, if you want him, you¡¯ll have to go look for him. He¡¯s not taking any initiative to contact anyone at the moment.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not good at taking initiative. That¡¯s a boy thing.¡¯
¡®Woman, you two are even worse without a relationship¡ Come, where is that food, I need it.¡¯
They didn¡¯t talk about boys or Wife School for the rest of the evening, and Megan went to bed early while Eliza was still doing all kinds of paperwork.
2.9 Lady Martha
Three days later Michael was sitting on a bench in a small park in between a few Epsilonville apartment blocks after dinner time, slightly nervous. This was the place where he had agreed to meet Eliza and Angela before he would be brought to Lady Martha for a first meeting to ¡®talk about the future in which there would be better relations between the Ghost Town women and at least some men¡¯, whatever that even meant. Both had assured him there was nothing to fear, but he was still extremely nervous. He¡¯d always been wary of high-ranked people, and Lady Martha was the equivalent of an Alpha-1, but then from a female-only world that was usually quite hostile to his kind. After all he was still a man, he didn¡¯t even need to check to know that. His thoughts went in all directions and then settled on Megan. He still hadn¡¯t seen her since the incident, and the longer the absence of contact between them lasted the more anxious he was becoming about seeing her again. Eliza had actually invited her to accompany them too, but she had a job interview or something like that. But maybe it was better to be focussed now on establishing contact with a new world anyway, and not on his currently impossible relationship with his ex Wife School fianc¨¦e.
Exactly when the local church bell announced that it was seven o¡¯clock in the evening both girls came in from two different sides. Eliza was just dressed in her usual weird mix of casual clothes and walked whistling with her hands behind her back as if nothing special was going to happen, but Angela was much more self-conscious, wearing a pretty dress and make-up and looking around a bit nervously. Michael had never seen her like that, and it reminded him that they both probably had a completely different relationship to Lady Martha. Angela was quite awed by her, while Eliza didn¡¯t seem that impressed by anyone, not even a Ghost Town leader. How she managed to stay casual about meeting someone like her was beyond him, but in a way it fit her personality.
Eliza inspected the Free Person badge on his chest and nodded approvingly.
¡®So how¡¯s our revolutionary leader doing today? Ready to meet your female colleague and elder, comrade?¡¯
He looked at her. ¡®Huh?¡¯
¡®Ah, why else do you think that you¡¯re the first man ever that she wants to talk to? You are the first sensible revolutionary leader from the male side since old Manfred. Or maybe something in-between now seen your relationship with the male side. You¡¯ve accomplished a lot already. Without you there wouldn¡¯t even be a Pen Pal network to reach a boy with a letter, remember. And she knows about the unsegration movement and the unification of the black markets. Why else do you think she wants to talk to you?¡¯
¡®She¡¯s expecting quite a lot from a deleted boy school student;¡¯ he said dismissively.
¡®Lady Martha is interested in change, and man or not, she can¡¯t ignore you any longer.¡¯
¡®And so I¡¯m going to a place that¡¯s completely forbidden for men. And you all expect me to get out there alive even.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s what we expect. You¡¯re way too nervous, my dear boy,¡¯ Eliza said and Angela nodded when they took off in the direction of an old road that led to somewhere outside the city, but he¡¯d never taken it far enough to know where it actually went.
First they passed a small shopping centre before they entered a zone with endless apartment blocks for lower-ranked citizens. The amount of people they met went down, and twenty minutes later they were walking over an empty street that felt quite desolate.
¡®There is one thing I have to add though, and I don¡¯t want to scare you but it¡¯s important¡¡¯ Eliza said suddenly, when they walked in between tall trees and ugly run-down skyscrapers.
¡®What is it?¡¯
¡®Well, eh, they might sort of expect you to be blindfolded for the last part, until we¡¯re in the middle of the Ghost Town. Lady Martha said it was a requirement from her elders, and probably only for a first time, if everything goes well. Some of them seem to be afraid that if something goes wrong you¡¯ll lead an army of dangerous men to their actual entrance or something like that.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, my army¡¡¯ he said sarcastically and then paused a bit, ¡®well, it seems I¡¯m not the only one who has weird conspiracy theories in my head sometimes.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s only for one time, and if everything goes well you might even be able to leave without it tonight. It¡¯s just that some of the elders are a bit suspicious of men.¡¯
He didn¡¯t even protest at this point, he knew that it wouldn¡¯t do anything, and he just had to trust that no-one in the Ghost Town had planned something evil for him, which went against deeply held fears that existed inside of every Nation Man, which he technically still was.
They passed a few more shaggy Epsonville blocks, which gave way to older pre-Nation ruins which were completely overgrown with weeds and sometimes whole trees, until a whistle came out of a bush.
¡®Ah, here¡¯s the first Ghost Town guard, which means that it¡¯s time for your blindfold. You were okay with that, not?¡¯
He sighed. ¡®I trust both of you as my friends. Do you both promise me that you will defend me if anyone or anything will attack me?¡¯ He said, slightly more nervous than before. Eliza laughed.
¡®I will defend you, as I¡¯ve done before. But it won¡¯t be needed. They gave me promises about your safety, and I don¡¯t believe that they will ever break their promises, but I¡¯d defend you against everyone including the Ghost Town people, you¡¯re my friend. And they know that.¡¯ Eliza said while a woman appeared from behind a broadleaf willow that had overgrown the ruin of a small ancient house. She was looking at him with curiosity, but he didn¡¯t sense any hostility.
¡®He¡¯s expected, but the elders still demanded the blindfold. Lady Martha pleaded, but they insisted.¡¯ She said to Eliza.
Michael looked at the newcomer, a woman in her thirties. There was something about her that was completely different from any non-Wife that he had ever seen, and it wasn¡¯t just because she was quite beautiful. At first sight she was just a common woman, with a dark face and dark curly hair clothed in green, but there was a certain aura of fierce freedom, and even though she wasn¡¯t visibly armed he knew instinctively that he had to watch out for her. She looked at the Free Person badge on his chest, and he noticed that she was wearing one too.
¡®So, Michael Michaels, do you pledge allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯ She asked.
¡®I do.¡¯ He said.
¡®And are you ready to meet Lady Martha? And you¡¯re willing to be blindfolded for your first visit?¡¯
¡®Whatever¡ Yes I Am.¡¯ he said.
He couldn¡¯t go back now, and both girls seemed to trust that everything would be okay.
¡®Off we go then.¡¯ The woman said and Eliza took out a blindfold to put it on his face with an ominous grin.
¡®Do I have to turn him around to make him lose all sense of direction? That¡¯s the usual procedure with blindfolds in stories.¡¯ She asked the guard.
¡®No-one said anything about that, Eliza.¡¯ The woman said.
¡®It¡¯s fun. Come, let¡¯s do it.¡¯
Michael didn¡¯t protest when he was spun around, but Angela did.
¡®Stop it, the poor boy. He¡¯s nervous already.¡¯
Michael didn¡¯t know how many times Eliza had turned him, and what was left and right but he felt Eliza take his left arm to lead him, and then Angela take his other arm. He had to trust them now, so he just followed their lead for a while, and turned when they said him to. Today was a day in which he would be completely at the mercy of women.
*
He followed the girls like in a trance, not knowing where he was and where he was going at all. Even his sense of time seemed affected by the blindfold. He had no idea how far he had walked like that when he heard someone knock on a door, and then the voice of the guard woman said
¡®Rebecca, open the door, the boy is here.¡¯
¡®Ah, there he is. I almost didn¡¯t believe it, interesting to see one of those here.¡¯ Another voice said, and she added ¡®do you pledge allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯
¡®I already said I do, so yes.¡¯ He said.
¡®Then I¡¯m supposed to let you in, weird as it might seem¡¯ Rebecca said.
¡®Watch out, there¡¯s a step,¡¯ Angela said, and after some wrestling with the relief of the doorstep to Seventh City Ghost Town they entered the place to walk even further into the invisible unknown. The moment they passed the door he suddenly heard more sounds. People were doing things here, and whispering, probably because of him. He only heard women¡¯s voices but he didn¡¯t understand most of them.
¡®Isn¡¯t it time to take it off?¡¯ He heard Angela saying.
¡®The elders wanted him to be blindfolded until the market square. But we¡¯re almost there. It¡¯s strange that they expect to get better relations when they insist on such humiliations,¡¯ the guard said, to no-one in particular.
¡®Sorry Michael. Two more streets with that blindfold. They¡¯re quite strict here today, usually it¡¯s much more relaxed here.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Usually it¡¯s just you, and you¡¯re still a woman, and I¡¯m not,¡¯ he said.
¡®Well, that might factor in too,¡¯ she admitted.
The two streets were a lot shorter than the road they had taken to enter, so it wasn¡¯t long before he finally stood there, still blindfolded, in what he supposed to be the centre of Seventh City Ghost Town. First the girls let go of his arms, and then Eliza finally took the blindfold of. The daylight came suddenly.
¡®Welcome in Seventh City Ghost Town,¡¯ said the guard woman, with a friendly smile.
He looked around. He stood in the ruins of a pre-Nation village that had completely been renewed, and there was green everywhere too. It wasn¡¯t like the weeds from certain unkempt Zeroville neighbourhoods at all, but everything here was cultivated in such a way that it seemed like one big garden.
The square itself was green too with a kind of lawn plant. Women of all ages, except for children, stood all around him, looking at him and pointing to him and whispering. Like the guard they didn¡¯t look like non-Wives as he knew them at all. They looked much happier, and had a more relaxed clothing style, and all kinds of different hairstyles with much longer hair than City Non-Wives usually had, even including Eliza¡¯s halfway solution. There was an atmosphere of peace and freedom here, but he also felt very clearly that he was an outsider that didn¡¯t belong here.
In front of him stood an older woman with long grey hair in a long red dress over which something grey like a giant silken shawl was draped. She seemed to have an aura of both authority and friendliness around her and was without any doubt the most important person present here.
¡®I¡¯m sorry for the treatment, Michael. My elders have all had negative experiences with men in their lives, and we¡¯re all quite protective about our little community, as you will understand. But I¡¯m glad that you still wanted to come talk to me, from human to human.¡¯
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.She turned to the guard woman. ¡®Did everything go well, Jenny?¡¯
¡®I think so, except that Eliza might have spun him around too much after blindfolding him. And he¡¯s a little bit nervous it seems.¡¯
Lady Martha looked first at Eliza with a strange smile, and then at him.
¡®Welcome in Seventh City Ghost Town, Michael.¡¯ He saw that Angela next to him bowed for her, also still slightly nervous as usual in heavier social situations, and to his surprise even Eliza bowed so Michael bowed too with a a rather theatrical curtsy.
¡®Pleased to meet you, Lady Martha.¡¯ He said.
¡®Like I said, welcome to you, Michael Michaels, the Gamma-schoolboy who brought connection between men and women in The Nation.¡¯ She said.
He noted the strange double name that she used for him again.
¡®We have heard a lot about you in the last months, and about how you managed to cross the bridge between our worlds, like no-one has done before in The Nation. Don¡¯t forget that today you¡¯re the first man ever to walk around in a Ghost Town in over a century, and I might add that the last one was disguised as a woman, and then accepted as a woman and no longer considered a man, which was long before me in the time of that cursed John Manfred. But that bastard is long dead now, and the times need to change and you clearly are an important part of that change.¡¯
She snapped with her finger.
¡®Let¡¯s go to a quieter place. I propose that you follow me to my humble desk, together with your two friends here.¡¯
He nodded, and Eliza and Angela followed him, together with the guard who had been addressed as Jenny earlier. The audience scattered and went back to whatever they had been doing while the little group entered the old town hall building, that had been completely repurposed in an organic style that was both completely unlike the sterile expensive Alpha-style he¡¯d grown up with as well as the ugly cheap Zeroville stuff that he lived in now. It looked alive and beautiful as well as functional and simple, and here too there were lots of plants, some of which would be quite expensive and only fit for an Alphaville villa in the male society.
She took her place behind a desk and the others took three seats before it, with Michael in the middle.
¡®And, what do you think of my little community centre, Michael?¡¯ She asked, after asking the woman that had guarded them before to get drinks.
¡®This place is completely different from what I expected, Lady Martha.¡¯ He said.
¡®How so?¡¯
¡®Well, I¡¯ve only heard horror stories about dangerous outlaws who shoot men on sight. I had never expected it to be so beautiful here, and so cosy and friendly.¡¯ ¡®It is true that we have to defend ourselves. But we¡¯ll never kill a human being. We¡¯re not like male outlaws. We stand for life but that also means we have to defend this place, and our friends in the city whenever we can. And we have a community of love and friendship among each other here.¡¯
¡®How is it that you can live in peace here without being bothered by the police?¡¯ He asked.
She shrugged. ¡®The existence of the outsiders is not really important to The Nation, as long as we don¡¯t commit dangerous crimes against high-ranked men. They tolerate the black markets and stuff like that too, and you know. And we don¡¯t really break any of old Manfred¡¯s rules as he never said much about women who weren¡¯t connected to men. We¡¯re feral non-Wives in closed-off but peaceful existence, so no-one bothers, it¡¯s not as if the Nation doesn¡¯t have bigger problems than us either when it comes to outlaws. We¡¯re not at all like the feral non-Husbands for example. They are a much sadder story.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve heard of them.¡¯
¡®They¡¯re not really organised enough to be a big threat usually, but they can be everywhere in their small gangs. Most of them are violent mindless criminals and worse. Nothing you would want to talk to. But in the end they¡¯re quite rare too. Don¡¯t you know what usually happens to criminals in The Nation?¡¯
¡®They lose their rate, and are completely shunned by society.¡¯
Lady Martha nodded again.
¡®And from then on no-one cares, and they¡¯re out of sight of everyone they knew, and they have no home or rights anymore. What can they do but join the feral men?¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve wondered about that and about what I would have done after a complete deletion. The girls could have joined your community after being kicked out of Wife School, but I wouldn¡¯t have been able to do that, and I¡¯m not really interested in going feral as a wild predator. Plus I wouldn¡¯t survive long either.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve heard about your incident. A deletion from ranked society for just defending girls. The male side of this country is still as rotten as it used to be.¡¯
There was an anger in Lady Martha¡¯s voice that he hadn¡¯t heard before.
¡®This country is so rotten to the core I can¡¯t even begin to describe it, Mylady.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m glad we agree on that.¡¯
¡®So, there¡¯s really no mixed group of outsiders somewhere? I mean, men and women, as friends, or as lovers? Feral families?¡¯
She shook her head.
¡®Mixed outlaw groups? Families with children you mean? You¡¯re letting your fantasy carry you away, young man. Have you been reading too many pre-Nation black market books? Sure, in another world it would be perfectly possible. But you know how brainwashed both sexes are here in the Nation.¡¯
¡®So the outlaws are all like the rest of The Nation in that? I had hoped that there would be something more.¡¯
She smiled again.
¡®Young man, you yourself are the something more that people have hoped for. You and no-one else. No other man would ever have agreed to meet me here. And for now we have to let the story unfold itself as it unfolds. I¡¯ve always supported the Women are Human people too for that reason. Their final goal is something like all people being themselves regardless of sex, but we¡¯re far from that now as you are aware. If that was the case no-one would bother about you as a man being here, instead of insisting on that blindfold. But to be honest, we haven¡¯t been able to find a single man willing to talk to us before.¡¯
¡®Well, if I¡¯m honest, I¡¯m afraid that men are scared to death of you. They say that you put any man who comes close to a Ghost Town to sleep with black magic, and then they wake up days later in the wilderness with nothing on them, to be panther food. And then I didn¡¯t even mention the castration chip story, that my girl friends here found so funny.¡¯
He heard Angela giggle, and suddenly the woman who had guarded them before came in with a tray that contained some glasses, and both a tea can and a carafe with water, plus some cookies.
¡®Who wants tea and who wants water?¡¯ she asked, and she gave everyone a drink.
Angela and Eliza, who hadn¡¯t said much yet took tea and a cookie, and remained silent. It seems that they found everything interesting but didn¡¯t feel like adding much, which was a bit surprising from Eliza.
¡®And, did the two brave girls have to defend him already?¡¯ the guard asked innocently.
¡®Defend him? Against whom?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know but he made them promise to defend him if it was needed. He was quite nervous too.¡¯
Angela looked away now, and Eliza seemed suddenly very interesting in her cookie.
¡®You would defend him? Against me?¡¯
Lady Martha asked the girls with a weird smile.
¡®Eh, I might have promised something like that, but knew there was no real danger for him. But I¡¯ve defended him against those high-ranked men, and I would defend him against outlaw women too when needed. With all respect to your literal office here, but he¡¯s my friend.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Well, if that is the case, Miss Eliza who¡¯s known as the man-hater, I think that there¡¯s no better proof than this that he is indeed the right man to start our connections with the male world with. Sure, everyone knows you¡¯re a little bit outside of the box sometimes, but a man that can make a girl like you defend her against a Ghost Town leader in her own office when needed is one that has a very strong friendship with her. I can respect that. But there will be no reason to fight me or poor Jenny today first.¡¯
Jenny started laughing.
¡®I¡¯m glad about that. Eliza is the only worthy opponent we could have in this country if she¡¯d turn against us. We¡¯d never be sure again whether she¡¯s hacked our machinery to attack us anymore, and she¡¯s probably capable of making a 3D-printer make weapons itself and attack us with them at the same time.¡¯
Eliza put her hands in the air. ¡®I truly have no such intentions, and that would technically be impossible, you know that. And I have my loyalty to this place too, and to you, Mylady. It¡¯s only that, when they would conflict with my friendship with Michael over something in which he¡¯s innocent, that I¡¯ll certainly choose his side. Which is completely hypothetical, unless your elder Mildred does a coup here maybe.¡¯
¡®The Angel forbid,¡¯ Lady Martha said. ¡®And it¡¯s okay I said. No-one ever had the intention to do any harm to the first reasonable male within reach since the days of Manfred. I just said I like the loyalty of your friends here. Most women wouldn¡¯t go so far at all. It shows that there is indeed hope for the future.¡¯
¡®So what do you actually want from me?¡¯ He asked. She smiled.
¡®We just want you to exist, Michael, and to be able to do whatever you are doing. You¡¯re doing good things. We might also hope you can get your ranking back, a level one male contact in The Nation that is actively working to end the segregation would be interesting.¡¯
¡®I¡¯d still be only a Gamma, a brainie, and an intellectual that is hardly a Real Man. No-one listens to me. And what does it even matter, except for my pay being much lower now.¡¯
¡®We never even had an unrated ally or other friend in the male world, so your friendship with at least two friends of our community is a new situation that we would have to adapt to anyway. Plus the whole unsegregation movement and the Pen Pal project which are really interesting. And Eliza¡¯s revolutionary pledge that comes with the Free Person badge made us think. I know we hadn¡¯t really encountered much men to whom it applies, the water was too deep. Still we cannot treat any person as less than human if they affirm that pledge, can we? In the end we should accept the forgotten fact that men are technically human too. And that at least one in a hundred might be a decent person. And it¡¯s wrong to turn down a decent person as if they¡¯re not human. Don¡¯t you see how your mere existence means that our community must change? And that change was long overdue and is needed for us to have an actual future anyway.¡¯
¡®So you¡¯re saying that you¡¯ve been waiting for the day that there could be a connection between your Ghost Town and the male world, mylady?¡¯
¡®As I said recently to my partner Ruth, who¡¯s also our priestess, my noble predecessor Lady Leona always told me that both The Nation and the Ghost Towns would not last forever, and that in a better future the sexes wouldn¡¯t be enemies anymore, and that I should look out for signs for a better time. And you three here together are the clearest sign that I¡¯ve ever seen of changing times to be honest.¡¯
Angela blushed.
¡®In the end I have no other option than to consider you, Michael Michaels, a friend of our community now. Maybe it¡¯s better to announce before you come here to visit, but from now on you¡¯ll always be welcome here, as much as Angela and Eliza are.¡¯
Michael¡¯s mouth fell open, and Eliza grabbed his arm. ¡®Thank you, Mylady!¡¯ She said.
¡®That might have been too much,¡¯ Jenny said, looking at the shocked boy.
¡®Well, he was nervous from the start.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Hmm, this might be enough for today then.¡¯ Lady Martha said. ¡®Can you two make sure that he gets home safely or do I need to send my assistant with you?¡¯
¡®Oh, we¡¯ll be fine. We¡¯ll just need to pick up Samantha from the hospital, she needs to get home too tonight.¡¯
¡®Okay, I think this audience is over. Are you okay with our conclusion, Mister Michaels?¡¯
Michael nodded, and Eliza grabbed his arm when they left the office of the Ghost Town leader, who exchanged looks with her assistant.
¡®See, that wasn¡¯t so bad, was it?¡¯ Eliza said.
2.10 Elizas Return to Seventh City Wife Factory
Official Greystone looked with astonishment at the weird apparition that came specifically for his desk. It was a dull Wednesday afternoon that shouldn¡¯t have had any irregularities at all, but now he shook his head when she stood before him.
¡®Hi, my dear old official Greystone,¡¯ Eliza said cheerfully, waving a bundle of documents around. She wore one of her old oversized sweaters in combination with the orange clothes of a factory worker, and her hair looked like an ancient jungle monster. ¡®Could you be so friendly to bring me to the visitation room and ask for Shirley for an official visit, my old friend.¡¯
He looked at the papers while she talked on. ¡®I know my rights and I¡¯ve studied all relevant laws, and there¡¯s nothing that forbids me to visit my friends, even if it might be uncommon to do so. But to be more official I have a permit-383 and everything with me that says that I can visit Shirley this afternoon.¡¯
He took the paper and shook his head. He knew from experience that going against Eliza would be a lost cause, and it was clear that the little devil had indeed the right papers so he just nodded and gestured to her to follow him.
She followed him through the sombre halls of the E-floor and seemed to be more chatty than usual to the poor official. Greystone also realised that he had no real authority over her anymore now that she wasn¡¯t a student any longer.
¡®Oh, by the way, I had to send my greetings to you from Megan, and from Mister Adams too, we call him Michael Michaels now. They wonder if you¡¯ve been missing them.¡¯ He ignored her and brought her to the visitation room.
When they had reached their destination, he sighed and took the in-house phone.
¡®Hi Miss Hunter, could you call Miss Shirley to the visitation room please, she has an official visit. No, Not a family member, it¡¯s just Miss Eliza. She has a permit-383 and all the right documents, so she has the right to have a visit. No, Miss Hunter, nothing can be done against it. And sorry for the interruption.¡¯
Eliza chuckled when she realised that Miss Hunter still felt uneasy about every little conversation she had with a man, even if it was Greystone, who was more an asexual robot than a human. She also found that he looked quite bad today.
¡®You look tired, official Greystone. Maybe you¡¯re working too hard.¡¯ She said cheerfully.
¡®It¡¯s girls like you who exhaust me.¡¯
¡®Ah, well, you chose one of the few jobs with girls that men can have in thy.is country, in the whole Nation. Don¡¯t complain about that then.¡¯
¡®I had no choice, Miss Eliza, I was young and it¡¯s not easy finding a job as a lower Gamma. My back always prevented me from doing actual physical work.¡¯
¡®Ah, well, most of that can be done by robots too but a man needs a job, not? But it¡¯s still so much easier to find a good job as a Gamma than when you¡¯re deleted like they did with Michael, so maybe you¡¯re protesting too much.¡¯ She became more serious with every word now.
¡®A sad case, young mister Adams could have had such a bright future, if only he had taken a more suitable wife and behaved a bit more manly.¡¯
¡®I wouldn¡¯t insult my friends if I were you, official Greystone. Just a little warning. And by the way, I also expect that you will watch out for my friends that I still have here. Unlike Miss Hunter you might have some humanity left, somehow, somewhere, deep down, and I expect you to use that when it really matters.¡¯
He looked away and sighed again. Eliza might be unmarriable, but she was a power of nature that you shouldn¡¯t mess with. For the first time he recognised how much inner power the girl actually had. He had never realised how she exhibited all the theoretical marks of a natural Alpha when she was in this state, much more than most actual Alpha men he knew. But there were no part-time Alphas in The Nation nor were there female Alphas, and girls with power had no place in his worldview, so he just shook his head.
¡®Eliza!¡¯ Suddenly Shirley came running from the other hall. ¡®You came.¡¯ She said, and she looked a bit shaky.
¡®Yes, I saw your message, and I, eh, arranged some papers as fast as I could. And I thought that using the official visit system would be easier than smuggling and hiding and all that.¡¯
Greystone gave her a dirty look, but didn¡¯t say anything, and left for his desk in the corner of the room; where a big pile of paperwork always lay ready for occasions like this one. He didn¡¯t even bother that they were on the same side of the glass wall in the middle of the visitation room now, both girls had slept in the same dorm until less than a month ago, and keeping them apart would take too much energy. And what did it matter anyway to let those girls have a moment together? He had learned to choose energy conversation when it came to Eliza and unimportant rules.
Meanwhile the girls ignore him and his never-ending pile of paperwork.
¡®I thought I lost you. I thought I was completely lost. I can¡¯t go on without you and Megan here.¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®Hey, I might have been kicked out, but I won¡¯t be completely gone as long as I have friends in this school. If you need me I¡¯ll be here.¡¯
Shirley gave her a sudden hug. ¡®Oh, Eliza, it¡¯s horrible. I¡¯m taken. And I¡¯m afraid he¡¯s the worst possible sort of man. He looked drunk at the evening of the ceremony and was yelling that he wanted a blond girl as a wife. And I just happened to be the first blond girl in line that wasn¡¯t taken yet. Oh, it¡¯s so stupid, Emma was taken ten seconds before me, she was five and I was thirteen. And oh, I¡¯m afraid now.¡¯
She started crying.
Eliza gave her friend another hug, and then took on a cool and businesslike attitude.
¡®If that¡¯s really the case we will need to get you out before the first meeting with him outside. We can¡¯t have him touching you. Are you still in for trying out the old plan with a Wife-o-matic replacement?¡¯ Her eyes shone with mischief.
Shirley looked up through her tears. ¡®What do you mean? Replacing me with a robot? That was just a joke, not?¡¯
¡®I won¡¯t be easy, and it won¡¯t be cheap, but no, not a joke. It actually looks like a perfect job for Michaels new wife¡ After a little make-over it should work.¡¯ ¡®Michael? A new wife? What do you mean?¡¯ Shirley had stopped crying and was only staring at Eliza now.
¡®Ah, didn¡¯t they tell you we¡¯re all unmarriable now? All three of us I mean, Megan, me and Michael too. And for a man in Manfred¡¯s blessed country that means that he gets a robo-wife, because a man can¡¯t live without a woman to boss around and for the mixed intimacy or some crap like that. That¡¯s the clean version of the story anyway. So he¡¯s now officially married to a vintage Wifebot-o-matic 2.1, they didn¡¯t have any recent models left. I don¡¯t think he really appreciates her as much as he should though, he refuses to refer to her with personal pronouns and locks his door at night and stuff like that. But I¡¯ve heard him say thank you for doing chores, so at least he¡¯s polite to poor Dorothy.¡¯
¡®Are you serious?¡¯
¡®I am serious. The pre-Nation programs are still there, so with a little make-over she can buy you some time after running away. Plus if he is indeed a creep there will be some well-deserved shocks. And the best thing is that a woman cannot legally harm a man according to our great laws, as I¡¯ve experienced myself. We¡¯re too harmless, you know¡ Only men have the privilege of being dangerous.¡¯
Shirley fell into her chair, and for a moment she forgot about her own situation.
¡®You¡¯re kidding, no? Wow, married to a robot? So, he¡¯s not with Megan anymore?¡¯
¡®They¡¯re hopeless, but I¡¯m confident their friendship will recover in the end. But that¡¯s not important now. We need to focus on your safety now, and I actually meant what I said about the Wifebot plan. The problem is that this is a short visit, I don¡¯t have that much time now for the complete explanation. We have to work with the pre-marriage procedure and get you out before he can touch you. Your taker will plan a visit in this room soon, the one with the stupid list of questions that no-one uses. Let me know how that visit went, and if it¡¯s really as catastrophic as it seems we will give Dorothy the robot a make-over to replace you, and we get you out of this hell-hole before the first physical date. We¡¯ll only need a recent picture of you, maybe you give it to Anabelle or Iris if you can¡¯t reach her. You can pay for all the Pen Pal communication with my secret stash of boy school books by the way if you need.¡¯
¡®You are crazy, Eliza. But I love you. Just seeing you makes me feel better now, and it gives me faith that even if he is indeed a terrible creep it will be okay somehow.¡¯
She gave her friend another hug and looked at her watch.
¡®It¡¯s not a perfect solution, but it¡¯s what I could come up with. And it¡¯s something I wanted to do from the moment that I saw that robot. Let me know when the first visit here with your fianc¨¦ is and I¡¯ll arrange a new visit for us to make real plans for your escape, and for the Revenge of Shirley-Dorothy the robot.¡¯
She looked at Greystone, who was arranging paperwork again and completely ignored them, as he had done with Megan¡¯s and Michael¡¯s visit too. Luckily he really wasn¡¯t interested in what the girls had to say, but that he hadn¡¯t even bothered to keep them apart on two sides of the glass was strange. Maybe there was indeed some humanity left in him, very deep down as she had said or otherwise he was just tired and had given up on everything Eliza-related. Either way it could only work in their advantage.
They talked for a few more minutes until Greystone stood up from his chair.
¡®Girls, your time is up. Young lady Shirley will be expected in her botany classes in ten minutes.¡¯
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.Eliza stood up and bowed before the both of them. ¡®Greet the flowers from me. It¡¯s a pity that I¡¯ll never see those Cosmos seedlings in flower. Hmm, I¡¯ll ask the women in the Ghost Town if I can sow some Cosmos flowers somewhere.¡¯
Greystone looked alarmed by those words. ¡®Don¡¯t be afraid, official Greystone, I¡¯m just a simple working non-Wife living in a state woman house, with Megan as my roommate. I¡¯m not an outlaw, I¡¯m only there for occasional computer jobs and robotics assistance, and a political meeting maybe here and there. You don¡¯t have to fear, they are nonviolent anyway. But I have to go now too. Important things to do, and people to see, revolutions to lead. I¡¯ll find my way out, and bye Shir. Everything will be okay.¡¯
She winked at a baffled Shirley, gave her a last hug and disappeared.
¡®The botany class is in the other direction, Miss Shirley,¡¯ said official Greystone when she walked away in the wrong direction, completely overwhelmed by what had happened.
*
The penetrating sound of the doorbell woke Michael from a small nap, and yawning he went all the way down to check who it was that had disturbed him in such a way. When he arrived he didn¡¯t see one of the girls or some official with yet another bundle of new documents like he had expected, but a shy boy his own age who was still looking at the plate with doorbells and names in confusion.
¡®Robert!¡¯ he said, and he gave his friend a hug automatically.
Robert directly backed off.
¡®Oops, sorry, I¡¯ve only seen my girl friends lately, and they have a more physical way of showing affection than boys.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve noticed that already,¡¯ Said Robert, showing him a paper with a handwritten address on it.
¡®Ah, that¡¯s Eliza¡¯s handwriting, isn¡¯t it? You contacted Eliza to get my address? You, with your reservations about girls?¡¯
¡®She was my last chance. No-one in school knew anything about you, your parents acted like you never existed, and Tom could only say you were working again and referred me to her. But you could say I¡¯m not afraid to talk to girls anymore.¡¯
Michael laughed. ¡®Clearly. But she¡¯s not really the easiest person to talk to as a male stranger. She can be intense and she¡¯s good at making horrible first impressions on boys. I¡¯ve seen that. She completely isn¡¯t like the standard Wife School girl. If such a thing even exists, I think I¡¯ve only met the rebels and the odd ones out.¡¯
¡®Ah, well, she was a bit hostile at first, and in the end she hugged me because I was such a good friend to you only minutes later. Is she always so confusing?¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve never found her confusing, but I¡¯ve certainly seen her having that effect on other boys. It¡¯s not easy to get through to her. But let¡¯s go upstairs.¡¯
Robert followed his friend up the stairs until they arrived in Michael¡¯s apartment. ¡®Do you want something to drink? I have some beers, and fresh three herbs ice tea in my hyperisolation fridge.¡¯
¡®The three herbs from the square bar? Give me some!¡¯ There was a moment of silence when they both drank their three herbs, and Robert looked around in disbelief.
¡®Whew, I¡¯m glad that I finally found you. I was almost giving up. You don¡¯t know how weird it is when someone suddenly doesn¡¯t exist anymore, and it¡¯s even wrong to talk about him. At first Don and John were mocking you, and now it seems like there¡¯s a taboo on your name. Even Henry doesn¡¯t want to hear about you anymore.¡¯ ¡®Even him? Maybe Eliza was right about the whole male world abandoning me, except for you then.¡¯
¡®The atmosphere has been really weird too since you¡¯ve gone. Also with that pen pal project taking off but no-one talking about it. A lot of boys seem to have a pen pal now in Wife School, but no-one dares to talk about it with someone else. They¡¯re afraid of the Alphas and people like Don and John. And just affirming your existence is a bit like having a pen pal girl friend now I¡¯m afraid.¡¯
Michael sipped and suddenly thought of something. ¡®The Pen Pal project, I should have thought of that¡ If Lady Martha can use it to send me a letter, I can try to write some of my male friends too. At least I can try Rafael if Henry doesn¡¯t even want to hear my name. Maybe some others too.¡¯
Robert almost dropped his glass. ¡®Lady Martha? The head witch of the Ghost Town? She wrote to you? Using the Pen Pal network?¡¯
¡®We never planned on it to be used like that, but yes, she used it to invite me to talk to her.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ve been invited to a Ghost Town? And you¡¯re still alive?¡¯ ¡®They were nice to me. Some of her elders didn¡¯t approve of it, but Lady Martha seems to like my attempts at unsegregation. I¡¯m officially a friend of the community now.¡¯
¡®I wouldn¡¯t go there in a million years. They are witches. They are dangerous.¡¯
¡®They¡¯re more like Eliza. They might seem tough, but once they know you¡¯re human, they might open up to you slowly. Or not¡ But Lady Martha is now convinced that one man in a hundred might be a decent human, and that we might get the benefit of the doubt sometimes. Not that I think they¡¯ll stop defending their walls fiercely.¡¯
¡®They use magic to put people asleep. How are you not afraid of that? Wife School girls is one thing, but them woman outlaws? You¡¯re crazy, man!¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know their secret yet of how they defend themselves, but we¡¯re the twenty-seventh century, dude. There is no such thing as magic, don¡¯t be superstitious! And they¡¯re not witches at all. They just have chapels for some female angel as far as I know. Lady Martha¡¯s partner is the village priestess.¡¯
¡®Priestesses? Women married to women? You find all of that normal?¡¯
Michael shrugged. ¡®I¡¯ve been deleted already from whatever normal is supposed to be for defending my friend against sexual assault, so I don¡¯t care about normal at all anymore. But why should I be afraid of female angels or women who are partnered to another women? They don¡¯t even have men in their world, me visiting was already very weird, so why wouldn¡¯t it be logical for them to settle down with another woman as their partner?¡¯
¡®But, women with women, it¡¯s¡¡¯
¡®Actually it can never be worse than what men do to women in this rotten country¡¯
¡®If you look at it like that.¡¯
Silence fell for a while and Robert looked around again, slightly nervous.
¡®This is worse than I had expected,¡¯ he finally said.
¡®At least I have a job, and some friends. And a wife even. Pity that she isn¡¯t human.¡¯
Robert stared at him in horror.
¡®I almost forgot. Eliza said they gave you a Wifebot.¡¯
¡®Yes, I¡¯m unmarriable without my rating badge, and I was engaged already, and a man can¡¯t live alone without a wife, or something like that. You can¡¯t make that stuff up. But it¡¯s quite handy for household chores, I give you that. Even Eliza is jealous I think, but that¡¯s more because she¡¯s a rare vintage pre-Nation model with special features. She¡¯s got a weird fascination with ancient robots.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ve already brought a girl in here, to show off your Wifebot? Man, you¡¯re crazy!¡¯
¡®I brought her in because she knew how to deactivate them. No-one ever taught us that, not even in advanced robotics¡ And she showed me how, with just a standard triangle profile screwdriver. Don¡¯t you want to see it anyway?¡¯
¡®Eh¡¡¯
''Come, don¡¯t be shy! It¡¯s in sleep mode I think, but I can wake it. Hey Dorothy.¡¯
¡®Yes, Michael¡¯ A voice came out of the other room.
¡®Ah, it¡¯s finally just calling me by my name. I was getting tired of the Master Husband stuff¡¡¯
He said silently to Robert, before raising his voice to address the robot again.
¡®Please come say hello to my friend Robert, Dorothy.¡¯
A humanoid shape came in from the other room, almost human and very female in an uncanny way, quite blond too, and most probably materialised straight out of the fantasies of a lonely robotic engineer with very specific preferences. She was fully clothed though, and wearing an apron. Robert gasped when the robot bowed and tried to give him a hand.
¡®Pleased to meet you, Robert. The friends of my husband are my friends.¡¯
¡®Eh, yes¡¡¯ Robert said, very uncomfortable, not knowing how to react.
¡®Man, she¡¯s so real.¡¯
¡®Yes, I am very real. I am his Wife now. I will make him very happy.¡¯
¡®Does she make you happy?¡¯ Robert asked doubtfully.
¡®Well, she has done wonders in cleaning up this dump. You don¡¯t want to know how it looked here when I arrived. And Dorothy is very good at doing the dishes and cooking too, and stuff like laundry. They said that a Wifebot was better than a human wife, and at very specific things that might even be true. I would never have let Megan do all that work without feeling guilty and helping her. Ah, well, that¡¯s all in the past.¡¯
¡®Oh, I didn¡¯t even think of her, she¡¯s not going to marry you now. How are you two now? I mean, if you¡¯re still in touch with Eliza, you must see her too¡¡¯
¡®I haven¡¯t had the courage to talk to her yet to be honest. It¡¯s over indeed, we¡¯re both unmarriable, and it¡¯s all so complicated. We should still be friends, but I don¡¯t know how to start contact again.¡¯
¡®But that thing¡ is your Wife, eh, do you¡?¡¯ Robert looked at him uneasily.
¡®I lock my door at night, and I¡¯m not touching it.¡¯ Michael said decidedly.
¡®Intimacy is important in a marriage, but it seems my husband is not ready for more intimate encounters,¡¯ the robot said, and switching to another voice it added. ¡®But if you want to be able to date a human one day, you will have to learn how to be physical with a woman in a loving way. Otherwise you will never be given your dateability certificate.¡¯
The boys looked at each other.
¡®What¡¯s she talking about? What¡¯s a dateability certificate? That¡¯s not Nation thought at all.¡¯
¡®Eh, that must be a glitch. It¡¯s an old robot that was made before Nation times to re-educate men who had been, eh, inappropriate with women. Eliza told me about that. But those programs should have been overridden by the Nation wifebot program. Very weird¡ Maybe because I gave her permission to electrocute every man who touches her in the wrong way into charcoal when the robo-engineer who brought her was being weird. You can¡¯t tell me that she¡¯s supposed to be my wife and then assault her. I even started calling it she then, wait, I¡¯m doing that again.¡¯
¡®Can she, it, eh? You know?¡¯
¡®There¡¯s a program to punish men for every wrong touch with an electric shock, yes. Maybe the charcoal part is a bit of an exaggeration though¡¡¯
¡®Wow, fun life you have, living with her¡¡¯ Robert looked at his watch. ¡®Hmm, it¡¯s almost time for my computer language lessons. I¡¯ll have to go. Does this building have a phone so I can try to call you?¡¯
¡®Oh, a common one. Probably not so reliable but I¡¯ll write down the number. But you can always reach me through the Pen Pal network, and I¡¯m working in the bar. You should come and visit.¡¯
¡®Eh, I¡¯m not a bar person, but we¡¯ll keep in touch. I know how now.¡¯
Robert was slightly nervous but relieved when he walked away from the ugly Zeroville blocks fifteen minutes later.
2.11 A First Kiss and Other Complications
Michael left the kitchen of the Square Bar, but waited for a few seconds before opening the door and sighed. He really wasn¡¯t into any human contact today, and hoped fervently that there would be no-one that he knew inside the bar today. Not that he even saw that many people nowadays, luckily. After the Ghost Town adventure and then a surprise visit from Robert a few days ago he hadn¡¯t really seen anyone at all except for Angela who just seemed to run into him from time to time. He hadn¡¯t even seen Eliza or Samantha in the last few days, and it seemed Megan still gave him the space he needed, and he still didn¡¯t know how to approach her now anyway with the whole engagement annulment thing. Sure, he had been happy to see Robert again, but being reminded of his place the male world, or rather the absence of that, had been painful, draining even in a way, and it seemed he had needed a lot of time to even process that meeting, and now he was back to a general state of depression and anxiety.
He realised that he couldn¡¯t stand there forever, so he finally opened the door to look at the unsegregated tables, where he¡¯d have to be the waiter now for the next hour until his colleague Bert would arrive. Luckily the only person present he knew was just Angela again, sitting alone at the biggest table with a book. He let out a sigh of relief, for some reason her presence wasn¡¯t as loaded as that of most other people. She looked different to today without her working clothes, although she didn¡¯t look as dressed up as she¡¯d had been in the Ghost Town either. He noticed her hair was becoming more visible even if it was still shorter than a centimetre, and there also was something more confident about her than before.
¡®Hi, young lady, can I get you a drink?¡¯ he asked as casually as possible when he reached her table.
She looked up from her book and her face lit up. ¡®Michael! I hoped to see you.¡¯
He noticed that even with old-fashioned blue-cotton pants and a striped unisex button shirt she still looked a lot more feminine than ever before.
¡®I like the hair.¡¯ He said, and she turned red.
She might have added a new category ¡°Michael¡± to her classification of people, a male person that was safe and fun to be with instead of dangerous and, well, not exactly fun to be with as most men had been in her life, but compliments like this were probably still one bridge too far for her.
¡®You think? I¡¯ll never be as pretty as Megan and Eliza, or even Samantha,¡¯ she said sulkily.
¡®Just be yourself and don¡¯t think about everything as a contest. You lose so much of your life if you think like that, as we had to do in boy school. Treating everything as a competition is really silly if you really think of it and leads to nothing except maybe fights and a lot of unhappy people,¡¯ he said.
¡®And what did you want to drink? I¡¯m just here to serve you remember.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s my payday. I want something different today now that I have some extra money. Would you recommend me one of those beers that Eliza always asks for?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t drink beer when you¡¯re alone, that¡¯s my tip. And I better not serve you man beers actually¡ Rules and all. You¡¯re still a woman.¡¯
She chuckled. ¡®I¡¯m not alone tonight. And maybe a fruit beer is a good idea for once. Let¡¯s not get too anarchist¡¡¯
It was like an alarm went off somewhere inside of his currently still anthropophobic mind.
¡®Waiting for someone?¡¯
¡®The Women are Human girls are coming later. And maybe some others too.¡¯
He relaxed again.
¡®Oh, it¡¯s only them. Have fun. I¡¯ll be dishwasher again later tonight when there¡¯s more people for the bar part, but Bert isn¡¯t here yet so they needed me to fill in for him.¡¯
She looked at him, disappointed.
¡®Don¡¯t you like to see me?¡¯
¡®You? No, you¡¯re not the problem at all. I like seeing you. There¡¯s just a lot of dishes and¡¡¯ He said clumsily and she finished his sentence.
¡®¡and you don¡¯t want to see anyone at all. Eliza told me already, and I think everyone can see it. But we¡¯re all missing you a bit. Do you maybe want to walk me home again after your shift tonight? The girls live much closer to the Ghost Town in a completely different part of the city.¡¯
Michael felt like he couldn¡¯t reject her, so he nodded yes and went to the bar to get a fruit beer.
When Bert arrived half an hour later he disappeared in the kitchen, just before a group of young Women are Human activists took their seats on the rest of the table. He didn¡¯t feel like getting attention from all of them now, especially not if Angela would be telling everyone about their Ghost Town visit. He just didn¡¯t have the energy for so much peopling now.
For the next few hours he washed dishes and glasses, trying not to think of his school friends, or of the girls, or of his parents, but in the end he just felt terrible again. Maybe the girls were right after all, and hiding away from everyone wasn¡¯t the best idea after all? Well, he¡¯d have Angela to walk home tonight, so he wouldn¡¯t be completely alone today.
Suddenly a voice broke his concentration.
¡®Come, dude, it¡¯s time to stop, Bert is doing the closing shift and you have a girl waiting for you. The others have left and she said you were walking her home. And I don¡¯t think she¡¯s going to be safe alone at night. It¡¯s dark and noisy out there. If you can keep yourself out of trouble this time that is.¡¯
He saw on Tom¡¯s face that he¡¯d better not contradict him. ¡®I¡¯m not as naive as when I was a schoolboy. I know what places to avoid now, and she¡¯s much more experienced in avoiding trouble than I used to be.¡¯ He said, changing from his uniform into his normal clothes.
A few minutes later he arrived at the unsegrated tables. Just like hours ago he saw Angela sitting alone in the same spot. She looked a bit more tired, but she seemed quite happy again to see him. She got up when he arrived, and together they walked outside.
*
For a while they walked on in silence.
¡®You look good today, do you know that?¡¯ He finally said after a few streets, without thinking.
She blushed.
¡®You¡¯re lying,¡¯ she said.
¡®Why would I lie about that?¡¯ He asked, confused¡®
¡®I don¡¯t know? How am I to believe any man who says such a weird thing to me? Maybe you¡¯re just trying to flirt with me?¡¯
¡®Me? Trying to flirt? I don¡¯t know if I would be able to do that. But wouldn¡¯t that imply that I like you? And probably that I find you good-looking? So that would only affirm what I said. But I don¡¯t think I¡¯m really capable of flirting.¡¯
She shrugged. ¡®Why would any male ever like me? Especially you. You¡¯re a legend, and completely out of my league.¡¯
¡®More like a fallen legend, and why not? It¡¯s not as if you¡¯re still afraid of me, like at that protest when we met. You¡¯re quite easy to like as a friend, and fun to be with, and it¡¯s the other way around now. You¡¯re the E-woman here who is technically still marriable, and I¡¯m now an unrated nobody with an antique Wifebot as a Wife. You are the one who¡¯s completely out of my league, and I¡¯m hopeless and unmarriable anyway.¡¯
They stopped and he looked in her eyes, who seemed bluer than ever.
¡®But I meant it, even if I wasn''t thinking. You¡¯re looking good tonight, Angela. And I guess I am flirting a bit indeed. Oh God¡ Help¡¡¯
She looked back in his eyes, slightly amused now, and they kept staring at each other for a while, not knowing how to react. It was getting dark already, but they stood in the light of a street lantern now.
¡®You seem to like the moment too?¡¯ he finally said.
¡®That¡¯s because of you¡ I¡¯m just wondering how I¡¯m not afraid with a man like this. Am I turning into Samantha?¡¯ she asked.
¡®No, she would definitely be scaring me¡ And being highly inappropriate with weird innuendos. But I¡¯m not afraid either, so it should be okay, not? Whatever it even is?¡¯ He said.
¡®Well, just not being scary is hardly a compliment, is it? I think you need to practise your flirting a bit more if you want it to have an effect.¡¯ She said, sarcastically.
¡®You know it wouldn¡¯t work between us, do you? I¡¯m a relational trainwreck waiting to happen, and I¡¯m rather afraid of humans in general at the moment.¡¯
She smiled like he had never seen anyone smile. ¡®Do I know that? I don¡¯t seem to even care right now. All my life I¡¯ve been afraid of men, and now for the moment I am not, and I enjoy your company a bit too much. Yes, you are confusing me now; but at least I feel safe. I¡¯ll probably never marry, or have a man, but please give me this moment, Michael. It¡¯s probably more than a lot of married people will ever have in this country anyway, I mean, feeling completely safe with a Nation man is a weird idea no matter how you look at it. I don¡¯t think the Hunter classes about husbands that they give in Wife School ever mention that as a possibility. It¡¯s probably considered unmanly too on your side.¡¯
She took his hand and looked him in his eyes again, and he noticed that they were very blue in this electric light.
¡®Please stay a safe person tonight, and be a bit stupid with me now. It¡¯s just that this is more than I ever dreamed of when it comes to men. I know it probably isn''t much, but still¡¡¯
She stopped mid-sentence and after what seemed an endless moment of being caught in each other¡¯s gaze she suddenly kissed his lips. It completely caught him off-guard, so at first he almost froze, but then he gave a short kiss back, let go of her hand and stared at her.
¡®What just happened?¡¯
¡®You just complicated everything by proving that boys can like me, and that I can like boys. And you also proved Eliza¡¯s theory about Deep Blue Eyes¡ But it was a bit stupid, wasn¡¯t it?¡¯ She said cheerily as if talking about the weather.
¡®Eh?¡¯
Michael was staring at nothing in particular now. She took his hand back in hers, but it felt completely different.
¡®Hey, are you okay?¡¯
¡®I kissed you. And I liked it,¡¯ he said, bewildered. ¡®But I shouldn¡¯t be kissing you and liking it, should I? Don¡¯t I still have a Wife School Wife lined up if I ever get that whole situation cleared up, am I not responsible for Megan somehow?¡¯
It was a weird thought that suddenly came over him like a shadow in his soul.
¡®Not really. You both are officially unmarriable, remember? She told me she¡¯s free now, without the forced engagement and all.¡¯
¡®But Eliza said I¡¯d break her heart if I¡¯d call her anything starting with ex.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s complicated for her, as it is for us now. Oh oh¡¡¯
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She let go of his hand and they walked for a while again. They found a bench under a sickly-looking oak tree and sat down next to each other, looking at the moon and more stars than usual.
¡®Sorry, Michael, it probably was very stupid of me. Especially with you being depressed and all, and not over her at all.¡¯
He took her hand back in his.
¡®Ah, but Eliza says that Oxytocin helps against depression. And I wanted it too. And congratulations, that actually was my first kiss. Don¡¯t ask me why I wasn¡¯t ready for that with Megan. But maybe it was also that I was rarely alone with her with all that chaperoning going on. I wasn¡¯t ready for anything anyway at all. And you¡¯re probably right that I¡¯ll never get a second chance again to be with her, to go back to where we were. It was all forced and involuntary anyway, and now it¡¯s all over. And it feels like hell.¡¯
She moved her hand to his shoulder.
¡®You¡¯re completely not over her, and everyone knows it. It was me who was lost in the silly dream of a silly girl that suddenly believed in another world, in another kind of man, and for a moment I was in love with the idea of a loving man, probably more than with you personally. No. Maybe that¡¯s not true. It certainly was you too. You were very attractive, irresistible even. You¡¯re the only attractive man that I can imagine in this rotten world. I¡¯m sorry. Oh. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m even saying¡¡¯
He stood up and gave her a hug.
¡®We were stupid, but honest, I think. I¡¯m sorry. I hope I haven¡¯t given you false hope now, in a sort of relationship that doesn¡¯t even exist in this rotten country and that won¡¯t work for me now.¡¯
She looked him deep in his eyes again, and he saw the shape of the moon in them now.
¡®Michael Michaels, you¡¯ve given me a romantic moment that I didn¡¯t even know was possible. I¡¯ll always remember that. So please don¡¯t ruin it now by becoming depressed about it. And yes, I know I¡¯m probably not the best kisser in the world.¡¯
¡®I wouldn¡¯t know, but you are wonderful. You know that.¡¯
¡®Oh, oh¡¡¯
¡®On the other hand, I¡¯m not so stupid to think it would work like this between us, Michael. A free relationship needs more than just this kind of attraction, not? We¡¯re better off as just friends than as anything else, no matter what that would even be. I can¡¯t even imagine a healthy non-Marriage relationship between men and women, would that be something like a mixed Love Ceremony partnership? Can we please go back to being the friends we are, and not be weird with each other now? I need you for that too.¡¯
He looked at her, and suddenly panicked inside now that the magic was broken.
¡®What on Earth have I done? I can¡¯t look any of them in the eye anymore now, Angela. I mean Megan and Eliza, maybe even Samantha. I have betrayed all of them, haven¡¯t I?¡¯
She grabbed his hand again.
¡®Please, Michael, don¡¯t be like this. I want this to be a happy memory, no matter if more wouldn¡¯t work to go further. Please, Michael, can you give me that? Don¡¯t tell me it was horrible. Don¡¯t tell me I¡¯m horrible!¡¯
¡®Oh, no, it was wonderful. You are wonderful tonight. That¡¯s exactly the problem. You are too¡¡¯
¡®Stop here! Your words are hurting, Michael. If I didn¡¯t know you, I¡¡¯
She stopped because the look in his eyes had changed again, back to his depression, but he seemed to be aware of that, because he changed his posture again.
¡®No, sorry. I didn¡¯t mean it like that. I¡¯m not going to make it worse, so I¡¯ll shut up, everything I say now can be stupid. Let me take you home now.¡¯ She said nothing and they walked the remaining part in silence.
Soon they approached the woman house, which looked sinister and threatening in this light. ¡®Thank you for walking me home and for everything,¡¯ she said. ¡®And please, don¡¯t let anything that happened come between us. And to be honest, it¡¯s not fair to Megan either if you keep avoiding her like this. It¡¯s better to face that kind of confusion together, you and her. I know you love her as a friend too, and I don¡¯t want to see that unique relationship that you have get damaged any further. It¡¯s part of what gave me hope, you know¡¯
He stared into the nothingness in between two stars for a while.
¡®I¡¯ll try. I¡¯ll really try, Angela. But it¡¯s all still a bit too much.¡¯
She disappeared into the woman¡¯s house and he walked home, so full of thoughts and feelings that he didn¡¯t even know what he was feeling and thinking anymore when he finally arrived home.
*
¡®You never told me how it went with the boy a few days ago,¡¯ Ruth asked her partner when she came home later that night.
Martha smiled. ¡®Interesting, to say the least. It¡¯s true that his connection to those girls is too close to ignore, and since they are connected to us too, I think it¡¯s safe to say that we have officially established our first contact with the male world now. He¡¯s just an innocent boy indeed, and a bit afraid of us. It seems the stories about us are worse than ever in the male world. Have you heard of Ghost Towns replacing ancom chips with a castration chip?¡¯
¡®No, but it could be a good solution against sexual violence.¡¯ Ruth said.
¡®But those things don¡¯t exist. Would we even be able to produce those?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t think so¡¯ Ruth said.
¡®Maybe that the fraction that left the Nation in the days of Manfred had such technology. We don¡¯t. And they live on the Island of H¨¦va now, completely out of reach. And oh, they think that we drop aggressors in the wilderness so that the panthers will eat them. And that we put them to sleep with black magic.¡¯
Ruth nodded in disbelief. ¡®The superstition about us having magic has always been useful, but the panther story is new. I haven¡¯t heard of panthers attacking humans, even if they are indeed growing in numbers. And it¡¯s true that Ghost Towns usually don¡¯t check what happens with the men we drop in the wilderness. We have no idea about their survival rate. But it¡¯s still a good deterrent.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s a deterrent, but they think just being male is enough for us to do it. They don¡¯t get that we only punish violent attackers with wilderness dropping.¡¯
¡®So he was afraid of that himself?¡¯
¡®Maybe, I never ever considered that he would be afraid of that. He was certainly nervous. He even had the girls promise to defend him if needed.¡¯
¡®Defend him? Against you you mean? Eliza and little Angela? They promised to do that? Defend a boy against the Ghost Town leadership.¡¯
¡®The girls also trusted that no-one would harm him, I¡¯m sure of that. But would you ever believe that Eliza would talk about defending a man against me? A little opinionated Wife School dropout like her choosing the side of the boy against us¡¯
¡®Not really. Didn¡¯t they call her the man-hater?¡¯ ¡®She says never chose that nickname, but still¡ Everyone knew she wouldn¡¯t leave her horrible school as a married woman. I¡¯d say that that silly promise says a lot about the depth of the connection the boy has with his girl friends. I¡¯ve never seen something like that before. I think we can look forward to an interesting future, with at least a few good men in it.¡¯
¡®May the Angel grant us that, and bless them too¡ Oh woman, it''s later than I thought. It¡¯s bedtime¡¡¯ She yawned.
*
¡®Hey, I have the job!¡¯ Megan said, arriving just in time for dinner the next day. Eliza looked up from a weathered copy of a book called ¡®revolutionary robots and smart machines in the 23th century¡¯
¡®Oh, congrats, which one?¡¯
¡®The administrative office on Manfred Plaza. Filing certificates and playing courier with the other offices in the City. They¡¯ll even give me a bike or an electric step scooter.¡¯
¡®Hmm, don¡¯t take the step scooter, those things are dangerous.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t exaggerate, you just don¡¯t like machines that are too simple for you to hack.¡¯
¡®Ah, maybe these modern ones cannot be hacked, but did you know that there were self-driving step scooters in the 23th century. It must have been fun to hack, and then use a remote control¡ Especially with a man on it. Can you imagine old Greystone¡¯s face?¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a sadist, Eliza.¡¯
¡®Me? I¡¯m an innocent girl who just happens to like tech hacking.¡¯
¡®So innocent¡ Only the greatest revolutionary of our age.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m completely non-violent, and I decline. That title ought to belong to Michael.¡¯
¡®Yeah, whatever. Revolutionary recluse. He still hasn¡¯t turned up since the whole prison incident. I¡¯m almost starting to believe he really doesn¡¯t like me anymore.¡¯
¡®Oh, it¡¯s more the opposite. If he didn¡¯t like you he wouldn¡¯t care to hide from you. Although Samantha also complained that he¡¯s avoiding her a bit. To be honest, I think he¡¯s been just hanging out with Angela mostly lately. And there¡¯s one boy that managed to find him, remember Robert? He came up to me to get to him.¡¯
¡®Robert? The guy who was so full of conspiracy theories when Shirley was the chaperone on our date? And he came to Eliza the man-hater all by himself? He must really have been desperate. That should have taken a lot of courage for him.¡¯
¡®Hey, you¡¯re exaggerating again. I¡¯m not a dangerous man-hater, I¡¯m just a bit selective in the men that I am friendly with.¡¯
¡®And you¡¯re dismissive and sarcastic with those you don¡¯t know. If not flirty in the most aggressive way possible.¡¯
¡®Me? Flirty? Never¡¡¯
¡®Only to scare men it seems¡ You wouldn¡¯t be able to actually attract a man with it if you tried.¡¯
¡®Well, I¡¯m never going to do that ever¡ You know that. The number of desirable men in this country can be counted on one finger at best. And now I¡¯m counting generously.¡¯
Megan looked at her more closely now. ¡®Isn¡¯t that a confession?¡¯
¡®It wouldn¡¯t matter anyway, would it, if it were? He¡¯s still yours, he¡¯s not ready for a relationship as you¡¯re well aware, plus he¡¯s quite depressed. Even when he forgot about his depression when we visited Lady Martha it came back afterwards. And even without those things it¡¯s his choice, and no-one in their right mind would ever believe that I ever would be his first choice. You said it yourself, I¡¯m Eliza the man-hater.¡¯
¡®He doesn¡¯t belong to anyone. The engagement is completely over. We just need to talk that out of his silly head, and he¡¯s free¡ Plus why would he be interested in any other girl if he could have you. That would make no sense. You¡¯re the prettiest girl in The Nation, Eliza. I¡¯ve always found that.¡¯
¡®Come on, no man would want an intense chaotic mess full of extreme opinions like me. The most unmarriable girl ever in the SCWF, remember. No, any reasonable boy would go for someone more stable like you, or else if he wants less drama just for a simple life with deep blue eyes. It¡¯d be his best choice, and he¡¯d be a happy man.¡¯
¡®Come on, poor Angela. He¡¯s way too complicated for her. Who¡¯s gonna give her the rest that she needs then? No, that wouldn¡¯t work. And I would ask you to not play the matchmaker with him. Not with me, or with anyone else. He¡¯s not a toy but a person.¡¯
¡®Okay, okay¡¡¯ Eliza said, and she looked at the pile of job applications on Megan¡¯s desk.
¡®I¡¯d better play matchmaker for myself and a job for now anyway¡¡¯
¡®I¡¯d arrange a speed-date between the food and the kitchen first if I were you. You¡¯re on duty today.¡¯
Eliza looked up. ¡®No. Did I forget that again? We really should get a maidbot or so.,Hmm, maybe I should hook up with a man with a robowife after all¡¡¯
¡®Eliza!¡¯
¡®Seen the lack of both men and maidbots here who will cook for us, I¡¯ll do it today, don¡¯t worry.¡¯
2.12 Megan stops waiting
The next day Megan made up her mind, and finally took the initiative herself. Late in the afternoon, after her first half day of office work she walked to the Square bar hoping to find Michael and finally talk to him. The only person she could find there was Angela though. She was using the bar for self-study with a pile of old books, some even from before Nation-time.
¡®Eliza said you¡¯ve been seeing him regularly recently. Is he here today?¡¯ she asked, and even without a name Angela knew who the male pronoun referred to.
¡®Yes, I think he¡¯s here, but he¡¯s still mostly doing dish-washing in the kitchen. He says it¡¯s because he¡¯s unrated now but it looks like he¡¯s just afraid to see people and refuses to come out. He was shy to me too, and he disappeared in the kitchen for most of the night last time I was here. I only saw him for half an hour, and then at the end of his shift.¡¯
¡®He¡¯s hiding from you too?¡¯
¡®From everyone. Eliza was right that they¡¯ve broken him in jail. He¡¯s depressed half of the time and feels unworthy to be seen by any of us. You almost need to take him by the hand to get him out of his shell. Or distract him with a trip to see a Ghost Town leader.¡¯ She chuckled. There were other things that Angela wasn¡¯t able to talk about to Megan now, but that was probably enough, and Megan had her own issues with him too.
¡®Do you think he doesn¡¯t want to see me again? He still hasn¡¯t even tried to contact me after he got out of that cell.¡¯
Angela shrugged. ¡®Don¡¯t overthink it. He hasn¡¯t contacted anyone by himself since the incident. Eliza has imposed herself on him every time they met, and I¡¯ve been waiting at the bar for several days for him to come out the first time. If you want to see him you¡¯ll have to hunt him down I¡¯m afraid.¡¯
¡®But, wouldn¡¯t that give a wrong signal? I don¡¯t even know what our relationship is right now. I can¡¯t be his Wife when he¡¯s married to a robot. Everything is over. Do I still mean anything to him at all?¡¯
Angela sipped from a cold Nation-coffee.
¡®And that¡¯s exactly what he¡¯s thinking too. Before that whole police cell thing you both were acting like your friendship was more important than the whole Wife School fiancee thing and all, but now he¡¯s confused about that too. You still shouldn¡¯t doubt that he sees you as an important friend.¡¯
¡®So you don¡¯t think he wants to go back to our engagement, impossible or not?¡¯
¡®He can¡¯t, you said it yourself. He¡¯s married to a robot. Romance is out of the picture.¡¯
¡®He¡¯s a bit slow sometimes. I don¡¯t want him to cling to a forced engagement that doesn¡¯t exist anymore. He could do that, you know, once he¡¯s loyal he¡¯s extremely loyal. I don¡¯t want that.¡¯
¡®So you¡¯re not going to claim him if someone else falls in love with him? As long as you¡¯re going to be friends like you were?¡¯
Megan frowned. ¡®Him? In love? He can do whatever he wants, but he should not forget that he promised that we¡¯d be friends. And I¡¯m not letting him weasel out of that because of his stupid complexes and depression. We¡¯ve all lost more than we can live without.¡¯
¡®Oh, he¡¯ll be back. He just needs time. And he¡¯s still too attached to you to start something with another girl, believe me.¡¯ Angela said, hoping that she wouldn¡¯t have to explain that. ¡®And if you say you don¡¯t want him romantically anymore, you¡¯ll probably need to close that chapter off personally. Or he¡¯ll remain confused and faithful to a ghost of a forced engagement.¡¯
Megan looked up. ¡®Where did you get so much relationship wisdom lately, Angela?¡¯
¡®Oh, I¡¯ve talked to him and I¡¯ve been reading some of Eliza¡¯s books? I don¡¯t know.¡¯
She sighed. She wasn¡¯t sure at all of anything, and she was afraid of her own feelings and instincts after what had happened two nights ago.
¡®Come, we¡¯ll wait together for him, if they didn¡¯t change his hours his shift is over for today in half an hour. Let¡¯s ask Tom for more coffee.¡¯
Angela waved at Tom, who¡¯d just arrived from the kitchen.
*
At the same moment in an Alphaville villa in another part of Seventh City Maria ordered Rita the maidbot to clean the kitchen, and felt like something had shot right through her heart. Looking at the robot she suddenly felt very old and very lonely and useless. She used to pride herself on not using any robot for help in the household, but after Michael¡¯s disappearance all of her work had felt rote, and she wasn¡¯t able anymore to put her heart in it. What good did it do to do anything if it was taken for granted but never appreciated by her husband, who didn¡¯t even look at anything and would only notice what he didn¡¯t like. There was no reason then to not let a robot do it indeed.
But working less gave her more time to think about her loneliness. Why always those distances? She felt completely alone now. Even her housewife friends didn¡¯t seem to understand her sorrows, and her husband felt further away than ever. Whenever he talked to her, she just zoned out lately. It was as if her brain didn¡¯t want to deal with him anymore, so she just obeyed on automatic pilot and kept her distance whenever needed. Luckily David didn¡¯t even pretend anymore to be interested in sex all the time, as men had been brainwashed to do for unclear reasons, so he hardly made any contact at all anymore. He didn¡¯t care at all whether she met his other wifely needs in the house by doing them by herself or commanding robots to do them, as long as the house was tidy and there was food and stuff like that he didn¡¯t even say a word to her anymore, but the second something wasn¡¯t right he might yell at her. Plus she still had to look good enough for a trophy wife, evidently. His mood hadn¡¯t improved after Michael¡¯s disappearance either, and he¡¯d even thrown tantrums for very stupid things lately. And then they said women were too emotional and men were the rational ones¡ To be honest, the distance with David was the one she minded least. The less she saw of him the better.
But there were so many distances in this Nation, too much of them to be livable. It was only now that she realised how Michael had tried to overcome them, but she hadn¡¯t seen it for what it was. She hadn¡¯t appreciated it at all. And now he was gone, probably forever. She hadn¡¯t dared to talk to him when he¡¯d come to take his stuff. Oh, Michael, her son¡ He surely would resent her now, rightfully even. She wasn¡¯t worth being called a mother at all. Suddenly she remembered a discussion that Michael had had with his father, about visiting Anne in Wife School. She had never dared to propose such a thing herself, and David had hated the idea, but her son, who was after all a man too, would have done it. But alas, before anyone could have visited he had been deleted, and disappeared from their life as if he¡¯d never existed. No-one really knew what had happened with him it seemed but it was whispered that he¡¯d gone feral, and had joined the outlaws. Terrible pictures had formed in her mind when she¡¯d first heard that, half-human yahoos strolling through the wilderness with clubs, fighting with each other and with all kinds of animals. And then at night her old nightmare of Michael being shot by Sam came back regularly.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
She pushed the pictures away, and focused on the memory of what he¡¯d said about Anne. His idea hadn¡¯t been bad, had it? The biggest thing that had kept her from contacting her daughter now was her shame, but wasn¡¯t it time to get over that too? They weren¡¯t getting any younger, and it was clear that every moment things could happen that made the situation worse. Sure there were two more years before there was a chance that she¡¯d be chosen as a fianc¨¦e, and end up even further out of reach, but for now she could technically visit her. No-one could stop her, especially as an Alpha-wife. She just had to fill in the right papers and show up. It shouldn¡¯t be so hard.
She looked around, and saw how the maidbot did her job better that she could ever have done, and made her resolution: tomorrow she¡¯d call John Manfred¡¯s Wife School, and ask what the exact procedure was to arrange a visit. It was time to be a mother again to what was left of her children. It was not like Sam was ever even going to treat her as a person again, but her daughter was still there, somewhere, and as a Wife School student Anne would certainly like a family visit. They were so rare¡
*
At the same moment Shirley fell on her bed in a dorm on the E-floor of Seventh City Wife Factory. After her first meet-up with her new fianc¨¦e in the visitation room she was beyond crying now. As much as she had appreciated how she had been on the same side of the glass as Eliza the last time she had been in that room, she had been relieved now that she had been on the other side of it, away from him. With every thing he¡¯s said and done the Dave dude had turned out even worse than she had imagined to be possible. He hadn¡¯t used the infamous list of questions at all, but his first remark had been that it was a pity that she wasn¡¯t wearing the bikini from the ceremony. After that it had only become worse. How had she ever been able to believe that a man should be respected no matter what? She cursed herself for every time she¡¯d been saying things like that to her friends.
The worst point of the meet-up was when he¡¯d made an incoherent rant about what he wanted from her, which was mainly about sex and household chores, and about how happy he was that he still had been able to find such a quality wife like her with his low ranking. Whatever she had tried to say had been ignored, and she was sure that he hadn¡¯t even noticed how uncomfortable she had been all the time. It had been one long and terrifying monologue about their future together, which would certainly be hell on Earth for her. Only the idea of him being electrocuted by a wife-o-matic 2.1 at every inappropriate remark or gaze had kept her from breaking down, but that was just a silly fantasy.
The ironic thing was also that she had finally received a letter from Robert yesterday. She, Shirley, had received a letter from a boy, a friendly boy. A normal letter, completely innocent, a Pen Pal letter from a shy boy who just wanted to do written small talk to get to know each other better. But it was much too late now to develop any normal friendship with a boy now, wasn¡¯t it? The trajectory of writing through the pen pal project until you knew each other well enough, and then acting all innocent if your pen pal chose you at the ceremony of partner choice was out of the question for her now. It would probably save other girls from bad marriages in the future, like her friend Iris, but her story would be different, and needed drastic solutions before it turned into utter hell. Unlike a wife-o-matic robot she was a person with feelings who could feel pain, and pain is what he¡¯d give her in so many ways, even though he didn¡¯t seem to have the capacities to understand the problem even.
Girls had to learn so much about how boys worked, but boys were just kept clueless about how girls worked. Even Michael had said such a thing, that they had just said that he¡¯d get a Wife and like it and kept it at that, while they were studying men and how to please them for endless courses.
Ironically Michael, and his Wifebot would be her way out now, even if she still didn¡¯t really know what Eliza was planning to do with her after the weird escape plan. A Wife School runaway couldn¡¯t just live in a woman house or any state apartment at all. But Eliza had hinted at the Ghost Town, and if that was the case, boys were completely out of the question anyway for her from then on. Maybe not for pen pal conversations, but still for meeting them if she¡¯d live in a closed all-female community. Plus she¡¯d be unmarriable anyway, running away from Wife School meant giving up your identity and official existence. Not that she ever wanted to marry anyone ever anymore. It was clear that even Miss Hunter herself wasn¡¯t really happy in her marriage, and she was the one giving the please-your-husband classes. She might boast about it, but she talked as if she was not much more than a slave who was proud of her own slavery, and who idolised the man who abused her. Eliza had said they used to call such a thing Stockholm syndrome in the old days, like falling in love with your kidnapper, but even with all the empty words she couldn¡¯t believe Miss Hunter had ever been in love with him. She had just done her duty, and accepted everything that came her way, and now she was teaching a new generation of young women to do the same.
Well, she wouldn¡¯t be fooled again by her words, but that meant that she also needed a small miracle now to escape being used by the Dave as his personal sex doll on their next date within a few weeks. He had been clear that his intentions weren¡¯t a stroll in the park to have philosophical discussions with the chaperone, no, this guy wanted to ¡°try¡± her as soon as possible. Unconsciously her hand went to her shoulder, where her ancom-chip made sure that whatever happened she certainly would never get pregnant from it, but she had made the resolution that no such thing would ever happen. No matter if she would become a non-Wife, lose her name, and had to only see women for the rest of her life. It wouldn¡¯t happen, Dave could go to hell, but wouldn¡¯t take her there too. She was her own person, even without a personal Free Person-badge.
She had to send the next letter to Eliza as soon as possible. And it was a pity but she wasn¡¯t able to send Robert a Pen Pal response now. It just didn¡¯t feel right.
*
Michael looked at the dishes and cursed them. On the one hand he hated them and he wished he¡¯d never have to touch dishwater again and do a job that his robowife could do better, on the other hand this was still better than seeing people for him now. Whatever Angela¡¯s intentions had been, he felt even more guilty towards Megan than ever. He knew it wasn¡¯t rational, but right now he didn¡¯t want to see anyone, not even Angela, or Eliza, or even Tom. The recent visit of Robert had also triggered him afterwards. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t want to see him, or Rafael or maybe William back, but to see someone from the male world that had spit him out so blatantly had been harder than he had anticipated in retrospect.
And then there had been Lady Martha. She¡¯d been civil, and was clearly interested in him. She had treated him with respect, and praised him for all his supposed accomplishments that he now felt completely detached from. It felt as if everything had been completely wrong, and everything was mistaken about him. Sure, he was mostly harmless, but he wasn¡¯t worth all the praises she¡¯d given him, and he could never be the revolutionary leader that the people saw in him.
The negative spiral of his thoughts and feelings went deeper and deeper while he kept on working, until someone suddenly tapped him on his shoulder. When he looked he saw Bert. ¡®Hey, dude, your shift ended ten minutes ago already, and I wouldn¡¯t let the girls wait much longer if I were you.¡¯
2.13 Re-united?
¡®Man, it¡¯s as if you ran into a ghost instead of just two friends. Had a bad day?¡¯ Angela asked when Michael finally came out of the kitchen, almost bumping into her and Megan.
¡®Eh, no, I just didn¡¯t expect it.¡¯ He mumbled dismissively.
¡®Anyway, I was keeping Megan company until you turned up, but you¡¯re later than I thought and I have to go to the Ghost Town now. They have a farm sale and I need fresh choy cabbages and carrots, so see you later.¡¯ Angela said.
She disappeared before he knew what happened, and suddenly he stood there with just Megan, still struggling to find words.
¡®Finally!¡¯ she said, but he just looked at her.
She looked very different now, in her grey office clothes and with only shoulder-long hair, and no words came out of his mouth. ¡®
Lost your tongue, Michael¡¯ She said, and he tried to shrug casually when he regained his speech.
¡®Eh, no, I was a bit lost in my thoughts, and I didn¡¯t expect to see, well, you here.¡¯
Her face almost lighted up when he answered.
¡®I¡¯m glad that I finally get to see you, Michael. I haven¡¯t seen you yet since the whole incident,¡¯
¡®I know,¡¯ he mumbled, and her expression became more grave.
¡®It¡¯s been several weeks already since they let you out of that cell, and you didn¡¯t even try to contact me. Are you avoiding me, Michael?¡¯
He sighed. ¡®Don¡¯t take it personal, Megan. I¡¯m trying to avoid everyone. People are too much for me now. I¡¯m just bad at avoiding persistent people like Eliza and her.¡¯
He waved in the direction in which Angela had disappeared.
¡®But to be honest, most of the time I just wished everyone would leave me alone. Even my best friends.¡¯
Her eyes widened. ¡®Does that mean you¡¯re not happy to see me, Michael?¡¯
He looked away. ¡®No, I don¡¯t mean to say anything like that. And I don¡¯t want to hurt you,¡¯ he said, looking sadder than ever.
¡®What is it then?¡¯ Megan asked. ¡®I just don¡¯t know what to say to you. I feel like I screwed up everything. I don¡¯t feel like I deserve you. I¡¯m afraid to look you in the eyes. Not because I don¡¯t like you. Maybe because I care about you.¡¯
¡®So you still blame yourself for what happened?¡¯ she said sharply.
¡®Eh¡¡¯ He stared into a nothingness next to her, and his brains only seemed to give error messages. He really wasn¡¯t ready for a confrontation with her, but here she was, and she wasn¡¯t holding back.
¡®Michael, you idiot. Stop blaming yourself! You did all you could, and both of us came out the incident unassaulted, against all odds. You really were the good man in the story. Like an ancient gentleman.¡¯
¡®It was Eliza who defended us, not me. I didn¡¯t do anything. I was a coward.¡¯
¡®Oh, Michael, you¡¯re being so impossible.¡¯ ¡®I just feel unworthy to even look at you.¡¯ She lowered the volume of her voice, and was almost whispering now. ¡®You¡¯re really not okay, dude.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m so sorry. I don¡¯t want to hurt you, or disappoint you. It¡¯s really horrible, you always made me feel at home when I was with you, and now you make me nervous about being me.¡¯
¡®Yes, it¡¯s not me it¡¯s you, yadda yadda¡ What is this, a tragic romance from the twentieth century? You promised me first and foremost that we¡¯d be friends, remember?¡¯
¡®I know. I want us to be friends. But I need some time alone. It¡¯s all too much.¡¯
¡®Please, Michael, I had a hard time too, just like you. We all had. I¡¯ve been deleted from my world too. I need every friend I can get now. It¡¯s not fair if you choose your gloominess and false ideas over me; Eliza reconnected to you. Angela has been hanging around with you all the time. Why can¡¯t we just be friends like we were? Was I only ever a forced fianc¨¦e to you after all that you never really wanted? Do you really want to break my heart by refusing me as a friend too now?¡¯
¡®But they broke off the engagement. Isn¡¯t everything over? The relocation agent told me to forget you. The police officer said you were nothing to me now. And I¡¯m nothing to you. I¡¯m unmarriable, and married already to the uncanny valley monster. I can¡¯t be any of the things that I promised you anymore. I can¡¯t be your husband, I can¡¯t be anything.¡¯
He was lost in his feelings so deeply that he hadn¡¯t noticed how she was losing her patience, so he was surprised when she started yelling:
¡®You silly idiot! I thought you were a brainie? Why doesn¡¯t your little one-molecule brain register anything of what I tell you then? You promised me friendship, and if possible a way out the whole marriage thing. All of that is still completely within reach, if you¡¯d only behave as a rational being and not an emotional wreck.¡¯
¡®But I ruined your life, Megan. How could we even be friends?¡¯ He whispered, taken aback.
¡®You¡¯re repeating yourself and babbling nonsense, Michael. You sound like a broken robot that doesn¡¯t even know what it¡¯s saying. I know you¡¯re smarter than this. You can do better than this too.¡¯
He stared at her, completely overwhelmed.
¡®Do you really want to know how I feel now? Now that I finally see you I feel worse than ever. I don¡¯t want you to feel bad, but me feeling bad makes you feel bad, and I¡¯m stuck in a double bind and I can¡¯t get out of that vicious spiral now. And I¡¯m sorry, really.¡¯
She took his hand. ¡®Michael, come to your senses. He pulled her hand away.
¡®I¡¯m sorry. I said I wasn¡¯t ready to see you.¡¯
¡®Will you be?¡¯
¡®I hope so. I need more time.¡¯
¡®You said that already. Like a million times.¡¯
¡®Because it¡¯s true. Please give me more time. Please. I ask you as your friend now.¡¯ He sat down on the bench in the middle of the Plaza.
¡®I¡¯m going to regret this too, am I? This whole tantrum I mean.¡¯ He looked at her.
¡®Please don¡¯t, your extreme guilt-complex is making it worse. Just be my friend and everything is forgiven. You¡¯re not to blame for the incident at all. Or for anything else¡¡¯
In his head he was thinking of what he couldn¡¯t say now, about how he¡¯d kissed another girl even before he¡¯d been able to give the forced engagement story any closure. He really was a horrible person, not worthy to look her in the eyes, but abandoning her would make him an even worse person.
¡®I can only make everything worse, I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m going home. Greet Eliza from me, and I promise I¡¯ll be better company the next time.¡¯
Completely baffled she saw him disappear, and half in a trance she took her jacket to go home too. What had just happened?
*
Megan slammed the door hard when she arrived home half an hour later. Eliza was cooking in the small kitchen.
¡®Ah, there you are. What happened?¡¯
¡®Angela took me to the bar to see Michael.¡¯
¡®Ah, did you finally get to see him? How¡¯s Loverboy doing today?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t make fun of it, Eliza. I hardly recognised him. He¡¯s a complete mess¡¯
¡®He¡¯ll get better, and he¡¯ll be more fun company for you again if he gets better. But you know, men are human too. They have feelings and all that.¡¯
¡®Men are stupid and hopeless. They don¡¯t know what to do with their feelings, and then act like an uncontrolled dramaqueen when things go wrong. Funny how Miss Hunter failed to ever mention such a thing with all her nonsense about how husbands are always to be obeyed. Rational beings unlike women, who are more emotional and cannot be trusted, hah! If you believe that the brainwash must really have kicked in.¡¯
Eliza stirred the pot with vegetables without looking up.
¡®Don¡¯t forget he¡¯s not a stereotype, he¡¯s Michael. He¡¯s always been sensitive and confused, and boys don¡¯t learn how to have our kinds of friendships in this country. Don¡¯t be too hard on him now, he¡¯s lost almost everything. Men never learn to deal with feelings at all, that would be unmanly. Don¡¯t you remember those emotional support lessons? Wives are expected to do all the emotional support and so the man never learns how to handle their own feelings. And he is a very sensitive human after all, so much for the theory that men have no feelings. And our Loverboy¡¡¯
¡®Stop calling him that. He¡¯s nobody¡¯s loverboy. And he should grow up a bit and just deal with his own feelings. It¡¯s not that hard, he¡¯s supposed to be an adult. Or else he can reprogram that fricking wifebot to give him some therapy.¡¯
Eliza leaned back. ¡®Wow, our Megan is swearing. Now the apocalypse has begun¡ Come here, you need a hug. I can even give you the hug that he gave me the last time I saw him.¡¯
Megan pushed her away. ¡®I don¡¯t need any second-hand hugs from that stupid manchild, you keep that for yourself. I only want a pure Eliza hug now.¡¯ She said, unable to stop Eliza from wrapping herself around her.
¡®Hey, girl, everything will be okay. I promise you. Our friendship survived the end of our Wife School career, so we¡¯re already exceptional friends according to the standards of this rotten country. And in the end he will be back too.¡¯
Eliza let go of her and hopped to the hyperisolation fridge.
¡®Come, I still have a man beer here, let¡¯s share it tonight, there¡¯s something else I wanted to talk to you about. You¡¯d almost forget, but with all his childish tantrums loverboy is still the most harmless taker you could have had, and not every girl is so lucky as you were. And there¡¯s something I wanted to talk to you about. I¡¯m actually rather worried about our other Wife School friend.¡¯
Megan took 2 glasses and divided the beer.
¡®Shir?¡¯
¡®It must be time for her date after glass with that creepnut. I¡¯m afraid for her.¡¯
Megan¡¯s mood completely changed, and she was much more serious now, even more than she had been about Michael.
¡®It must be horrible for her to go through that alone, without us. And we¡¯ve hardly been in contact with her since we, eh, moved out. I hope she never doubted our vow of letting our friendship last beyond Wife School.¡¯
¡®She knows we¡¯re still there for her, and if she needs us we¡¯ll save her. And I¡¯ve already sent a message back. Long live the Pen Pal system.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s still surreal that you actually went there, as an ex-student that had been kicked out, just to visit her.¡¯
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.¡®Oh, I know my rights, and I know the rules and how to bend them. Not much has changed there anyway. Even Greystone seemed happy to see me in his own way.¡¯
She grinned. Megan sipped from her beer.
¡®Man, I miss Shir. I miss our secret meetings with black market books, and skipping Miss Hunters classes. I really don¡¯t feel like doing this sort of work for all of my life instead.¡¯
¡®Ah, just wait until Loverboy gets his rating back, and you can become his housewife. Then we¡¯ll be back on schedule with the original plan.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®I said to stop it, Eliza. It¡¯s not funny.¡¯
¡®Sorry, I¡¯m overdoing it, I get a bit hyper when I¡¯m nervous. It¡¯s all been a bit too much for me too lately, and then I say stupid things. Please forgive me, I¡¯m being a bad friend too. We¡¯re all being stupid with each other lately, but we still love each other, don¡¯t we?¡¯
¡®I love you, Eliza. And Shirley. And even that stupid boy I¡¯m afraid, even if he¡¯s being impossible now. But what do I do with him now?¡¯
Eliza shrugged.
¡®You¡¯re a Free Woman. You can do whatever you want with him. If he consents to it that is. He consented to a whole hug with me last time even.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re not helping, and you know it. He pulled his hand away and didn¡¯t want to be touched.¡¯
¡®He doesn¡¯t know what to do with him either. He¡¯s completely lost and confused about his whole life and everything. I¡¯d just give him more time to sort out his feelings. And yours. Do you know what you want yourself? I know you hate the idea of marriage. But what about the idea of being with him in other ways? Would you still marry him if you could? Or be a couple with him in another non-marriage way?¡¯
¡®Angela asked that too, but I¡ I don¡¯t know. I liked our relationship and how we hung out together, but on the other hand I feel quite relieved that I¡¯m unmarriable now. It¡¯s a whole lot of pressure gone. But I also don¡¯t want to lose whatever there was between us. But as a partner? I don¡¯t really want him like that, but I don¡¯t want to lose him either. Ohh..¡¯ Eliza put her hand on her shoulder.
¡®You know, this is why I wanted him on a basis of friendship for both of us, and other girls, before thinking of more. At least we have something to fall back on together.¡¯
Megan looked at her beer and took a sip.
¡®You¡¯re right. I want him as a friend. I probably don¡¯t really want him as a lover, I¡¯m not even sure if I ever want a lover at all. He¡¯s probably the best lover imaginable in this rotten world, but I don¡¯t want one. I¡¯ve tried with him, and it was fun, but no, I don¡¯t think I need romance and I don¡¯t need a partner. It¡¯s not my thing. At least not for now and the foreseeable future. Maybe in twenty years or so¡¡¯
¡®So he¡¯s back on the free market now? You wouldn¡¯t mind at all if he gets another girl and hooks up for life?¡¯
¡®By all means let him find a girlfriend, if that¡¯d make him lose that cursed depression. But wouldn¡¯t a relationship mean he¡¯d have to avoid us?¡¯
¡®Oh, that won¡¯t happen. He has lost too much already, can¡¯t afford to lose us too. And where do you think he¡¯d find a girl that wouldn¡¯t like him being around us? His social circle is not that big¡ Deep blue eyes didn¡¯t seem to work and Sam the flirt never had a chance. Do you see any other candidates?¡¯
¡®Eh, deep blue eyes what? He and Angela?¡¯
Eliza sighed when she realised she had said more than she was supposed to say. ¡®I¡¯m not the gossip channel and I¡¯m bad at communicating stuff like that, so you¡¯ll have to ask her what happened in person. But whatever it was they concluded it wouldn¡¯t work between them, and that he isn¡¯t over you at all and still feels responsible about you even without engagement, so unless you find a way to break that spell he won¡¯t be trying anything with other girls at all for now¡ Maybe never.¡¯
¡®Oh, Michael¡ You loyal idiot¡ But that explains why Angela seemed so nervous talking about relationships. The poor thing. I would really wish her to find someone like him, a good man. She deserves it more than anyone. Even if it probably doesn¡¯t exist.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t think their personalities and interests really match, but they¡¯re good with each other otherwise. They¡¯re both too timid to flirt too much and also both somewhere in between dense and brutally honest.¡¯
¡®You know that that describes you too, Eliza.¡¯
¡®Me? Not at all¡ Oh yes I can be brutally honest. But if I ever wanted a boy I would be completely straightforward about my intentions without all that muddling around with something like flirting first. That can come later.¡¯
Megan leaned back, a gotcha-sort of look in her eyes.
¡®Ah, so you are open to wanting a boy as a partner? That¡¯s new¡ Eliza the man-hater having a man?¡¯
¡®Hypothetically probably¡ It¡¯s only that Loverboy has set an impossible standard and the pool to fish in is nonexistent. It¡¯s still a pity I¡¯m not into girls, or I could just hook up with you and we could live happily ever after together.¡¯
She leaned in closer as if she was going to kiss Megan, who pushed her away.
¡®Cut it, you creepyhead! And even if I were into girls it would be like marrying my own blood sister. You had your chance to experiment with girls in Wife School if you wanted, so don¡¯t play flirty with me now.¡¯
Eliza backed off again.
¡®I was just teasing. Love is nothing to experiment with, or mess around with, at least not for me. You know I could only do it if I was completely serious. And I love you, but I¡¯m not going to waste my first kiss on you, thanks¡ Even if I probably die unkissed. At least I won¡¯t die unhugged and unloved¡¡¯
She wrapped herself around Megan again, a bit uncoordinatedly.
¡®You¡¯re being weird and all over the place today, Eliza, are you sure you¡¯re okay?¡¯ Megan said from in between her arms.
¡®I might have had better times. But I¡¯m glad we¡¯re together now. And maybe I¡¯m a bit emotionally unstable too after everything that happened. His depression didn¡¯t make it much better either. He used to be so optimistic, and believed that everything would get better. And now he just makes me worry.¡¯
Megan freed herself from her arms again, looked at her remaining beer and then drank everything in one big sip.
¡®But things will get better. We¡¯ll all get used to being adults like this, and find new ways to live outside of the Marriage System without a rating. It¡¯ll get better as long as we have each other.¡¯
¡®It¡¯d be more fun if we had him closer to us I¡¯d say.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Ah, let¡¯s match him and you then, the perfect way to keep him close to us is if you just hook up with him. All problems solved in one masterplan.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t even tempt me into thinking that, Megan. It wouldn¡¯t be right.¡¯ ¡®It¡¯d be perfect and it¡¯d make sense. And you might still be the only happily partnered woman with a man in the history of The Nation thus far, married or not. Instead of being a slavewife you¡¯d probably have a never ending sleepover party, and playing house lifelong with a friend with benefits. And you can invite me so I can visit him all the time without it being weird.¡¯
¡®Go wash your mouth now, Megan. Please, don¡¯t ever say such things ever about him. And you¡¯re the one here who was engaged to him without even one kiss even¡¡¯
Megan looked dreamily at what was left of her beer.
¡®I thought we had all the time in the world and then it was over before we knew it. The moment is gone now.¡¯
Eliza looked at her friend.
¡®This asks for more beer, but I only have fruit beer left.¡¯
¡®Doesn¡¯t matter. I don¡¯t need anything heavier now. I need your hug, as long as you¡¯re not going to be weird again.¡¯
¡®I promise.¡¯ Eliza said, and she took a bottle of woman beer from the little fridge.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and Megan almost dropped her glass. Eliza opened the door to see a woman she vaguely knew as a black market trader with an envelope.
¡®Eliza, there¡¯s an express Pen Pal message, straight from the SCWF. It¡¯s very urgent apparently.¡¯
The trader disappeared and Megan looked at her, it wasn¡¯t the time of day for Pen Pal messages.
¡®From Shirley,¡¯ Eliza said, looking at the envelope.
¡®Yes, I gathered so much, come, open it.¡¯
They opened it and read through the letter together, and then said nothing for a while.
¡®Wow, this is bad indeed, worse than I expected. That man is really bad news. We need to act as soon as possible, with the original plan: borrow Michael¡¯s wife and give her a makeover, so we can replace Shir with a robotic lookalike reseted into the pre-Nation re-education program, just before their first date outside.¡¯
Megan looked at her.
¡®And then?¡¯
¡®The robot electrocutes him to charcoal, she¡¯ll be long gone and safe in the Ghost Town and he can¡¯t complain afterwards. That stupid law that women are not even able to harm a man will work to our advantage for once. And we need to use the wireless receiver to have the robot come back, and then we¡¯ll undo the make-over and she¡¯s Dorothy again. And there¡¯s a new angel in heaven, eh, a new ghost in the Ghost Town¡¡¯
¡®That¡¯s the craziest plan ever.¡¯
¡®Nothing is too crazy for my friend. And it will work.¡¯
¡®But it¡¯s a lot of work, why not just get her out?¡¯
¡®Wife School escapes are risky, you know that. And like this they won¡¯t look after her soon, and will probably blame him for her disappearance. No-one will ever believe his story, until it¡¯s much too late. It will also buy her time, and she will certainly be able to disappear like that without having a whole search party after her, she¡¯s damaged goods by then. The only actual damaged goods will be that creep though, with every inappropriate word or touch he¡¯ll be tasered.¡¯
¡®Ah, so you just want revenge.¡¯ Megan remarked.
¡®I want him to feel that no-one messes with my friends, and he will pay for all the girls that I couldn¡¯t defend. He¡¯s the worst taker I¡¯ve heard of yet, and Shirley is one of my best friends. He¡¯ll get hell for hurting her, and he won¡¯t even know what hit him. For someone like him I don¡¯t have any compassion. I can handle stupid, or even oblivious, but malicious entitled predators deserve to burn for their sins. And if there¡¯s no angel of wrath available in heaven, we¡¯ll have to send him one ourselves.¡¯
Megan looked at her friend. ¡®Wow, you¡¯re really serious about all of this?¡¯
¡®Never been so serious. You know I always wanted to try something like this with a wife¡ªo-matic, but this isn¡¯t for fun anymore. And it¡¯s also about Shirley¡¯s future. I swear to the Angel of the Earth herself that he¡¯ll pay for hurting her. So depressed or not, it¡¯s time for me to have another t¨¨te-¨¤-t¨¨te with Loverboy tomorrow. I need his wife.¡¯
¡®Are you sure he¡¯ll let you?¡¯
¡®Why not? He owes me for teaching him how to deactivate her. And I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll like the project. It¡¯ll be fun. And it might let off some steam when it comes to his misguided male guilt.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s good that I¡¯m a bit tipsy, because sometimes you¡¯re too intense even for me, Eliza.¡¯
Megan said and yawned. ¡®I¡¯m going to bed early. Today was a bit too much.¡¯
¡®You go to sleep. I¡¯ll prepare for the war.¡¯ Eliza said, waving the letter of Shirley around.
2.14 The Crazy Wifebot Escape Plan
The next day the boys of the Science and Technology class were sitting at the cafeteria for their noon-break. Robert had found a two-person table with Henry and was filling him in with the latest news about their lost friend, but the more he talked, the more Henry stared at him and became uncomfortable.
¡®He has what?¡¯ He finally asked, looking at Robert in horror.
¡®A Wifebot. I¡¯ve seen it. Vintage old thing, but still quite realistic, I have to say that.¡¯
Henry shook his head.
¡®So you tell me you¡¯ve visited a deleted person in a Zeroville apartment to see his robowife? Man, that¡¯s crazy. And where did you even get his address.¡¯
¡®I just visited our classmate and friend, who has endured horrible things unfairly. I thought you¡¯d be happy to hear from him. As for the address, it was hard to find but in the end I got it from Eliza.¡¯
The shock on Henry¡¯s face became more apparent when he heard that name.
¡®You talk to girls now, single Wife School students even? That¡¯s really inappropriate and wrong!¡¯
Robert shook his head. ¡®She¡¯s not a Wife School student anymore, they¡¯ve been kicked out of school too after the incident, I think she¡¯s technically a non-Wife now.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s even worse. Loose and untrained women are dangerous. You shouldn¡¯t talk to them at all. It¡¯s really not right.¡¯
¡®Come on, girls are people too, once you get to know her she¡¯s not that bad.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re talking about Eliza the man-hater herself here! Do you even know what her reputation is? It¡¯s been going around among the boys since the incident. She¡¯s dangerous and mad! And you went to her of all people? It¡¯s because of her that he got deleted, she was his downfall. I wouldn¡¯t associate with a dangerous woman like her. Stay away from that harpy! Plus it¡¯s unmanly too, being around girls too much.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re sounding like Don now. And you¡¯re exaggerating. She¡¯s less cowardly herself than most boys would be, and more loyal to him as a friend to him. Did you know she visited him in a Zeroville apartment? Because of their friendship. You know I¡¯m starting to think boys could really learn from girl friendships.¡¯
Henry suddenly stood up. ¡®I really don¡¯t want to be part of a conversation anymore. Don¡¯t let me be involved in this. Do these things in your own time if you really insist on this madness. But I never want to hear his name again, or that of Eliza. He was deleted for a reason, and I don¡¯t want to be associated with him, it¡¯s too dangerous, and it¡¯s not healthy. And if you were smart you¡¯d stay away from them too. It¡¯s dangerous! I¡¯ve said that before.¡¯
He walked away and Robert stared at the space where his friend had been. It was as if he had never seen who he was before now.
¡®If you insist then,¡¯ was all he could say to the empty chair before him.
He had hoped that more news about Michael would have made Henry care for his old friend again, but that seemed beyond impossible now. Even Eliza, condescending and distant as she usually was to him, was more reasonable than boys who were stuck in the Real Man doctrines.
*
¡®Michael, we¡¯re going to need your wife,¡¯ Eliza said casually.
She had turned up again at his apartment unannouncedly around noon and was now drinking a three herbs from his hyperisolation fridge. He looked at her, puzzled and a bit overwhelmed by her attitude.
¡®Dorothy? What do you need that thing for? Need a maid to clean your apartment?¡¯
Her expression changed from mischief to serious business.
¡®You remember Shirley? The blond Wife School girl that chaperoned you and Megan once?¡¯
He nodded.
¡®She¡¯s still in Seventh City Wife Factory and has been taken by a guy that has definitely no good intentions with her. Worse than we¡¯re used to even for us E-girls. We have to get her out, but if she just disappears they go looking for her too fast, so we thought of replacing her with Dorothy just before their first date out of the SCWF, and then use her for what she was meant to do: give him a shock with every unwanted and inappropriate touch and stuff like that. She was originally a pre-Nation re-education bot for men who are bad with women after all¡¡¯
¡®Wait, what?¡¯ Michael looked at her sly smile. ¡®Are your serious, Eliza?¡¯
He listened in astonishment as she explained the whole situation and the details of her plan. When she was done he just sat down and looked at her.
¡®Wow; You really think you can pull that off?¡¯ ¡®The make-over will be simple. I know the right people, with the right material, I¡¯ve just arranged everything with Lady Martha. It¡¯ll be the Ghost Town for her as a Wife School runaway too.¡¯
¡®So she¡¯ll have to become an outlaw?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s the only way if you exit Wife School like that. How do you think a Ghost Town gets populated anyway? It¡¯s not like they have many babies and children in a world with no men¡¡¯
¡®I hadn¡¯t thought of it like that.¡¯
¡®But seriously, do you consent to me borrowing your wife? I¡¯ll fix you a replacement bot and everything. And afterwards you¡¯ll get her back, we¡¯ll return her with the original appearance, I¡¯ll reprogram her however you want, and re-upload her data about observing you.¡¯
She read through his Wifebot documents.
¡®Such a sloppy administration here in The Nation. Those idiots didn¡¯t even specify what type she is, only ¡®vintage wifebot¡¯, so in the unlikely case anyone comes to inspect you any old Wifebot being present will do if I copy some files from Dorothy here into the replacement bot.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re very thorough, Eliza, I must give you that.¡¯ He said, still slightly overwhelmed.
¡®For my friends I do everything. Plus this is an incredible project, not? Straight out of a spy adventure novel.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve never seen a book with a story like that, but I see what you mean¡¡¯ She gave him the papers back.
¡®Oh, and by the way. We¡¯re going to the Ghost Town bar with the girls tonight. You¡¯re invited too. Megan asked specifically if you could come to talk some things through again, and it would be good t make more plans about Shirley¡¯s escape. Lady Martha said it was no problem for you to join us. It¡¯s a pity that I don¡¯t have to blindfold you anymore to get you in, you were so cute without your sense of direction¡¡¯
¡®The Ghost Town bar? Me?¡¯
He suddenly was nervous again.
¡®Yes, with the girls, they¡¯d all be happy if you showed up. I know you don¡¯t have the late shift today, only the afternoon. And seeing new places will do you good.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m a boy, Eliza. I can¡¯t just walk into the Ghost Town by myself, can I?¡¯
¡®Oh, you¡¯re expected to do so even. Jenny knows that you¡¯re coming already, she¡¯ll take care of everything. Just wear your Free Person badge. And you¡¯ll have something no man ever had, to find the way.¡¯
She gave him a paper with a map of the whole Ghost Town. He could see that the actual entrance and the bar were encircled.
¡®Eh, do you really think it¡¯s okay that I¡?¡¯
¡®Lady Martha gave me that map for you. Just make sure that other men don¡¯t see it. Come on, big revolutionary leader, this¡¯ll be good for you, I promise.¡¯
He took the paper and was still staring at it while Eliza took her coat.
¡®Okay, then I¡¯ll let you know tonight when we¡¯ll come to get the robot. I have to go on my way, more work to do, but thanks for the iced tea. And we¡¯ll have something stronger tonight.¡¯ She gave him a short hug and was gone again before he could protest. He hadn¡¯t even had the time to say her that she should be more careful in this building full of creepy men. He really didn¡¯t feel like she was very safe here.
He looked at the map, and realised what he had said yes to. Going to Seventh City Ghost Town alone, to meet the girls there¡ Taking the secret entrance all by himself. He hadn¡¯t been blindfolded when leaving the place last time, but it had been dark, and the alley that led to it was easy to overlook. He sighed. Was he ready for this?
*
¡®Everything went well today?¡¯ Megan asked when she came home around six to find out Eliza had already prepared a simple meal of rice with vegetables.
¡®Yes, I¡¯ve seen lady Martha, and Annabelle of the robot workshop, and the husband of our fake Shirley too. He wasn¡¯t in the bar, he only has a short afternoon shift today, so I¡¯ve visited his apartment. I haven¡¯t cracked the code of his depression yet but he seems to be a bit better now, so I asked him to join us in the bar tonight.¡¯
¡®You asked him to join the Ghost Town bar? To cure his depression? And you think the outlaws will like that.¡¯
¡®Lady Martha suggested it herself. I only hope he won¡¯t run into elder Mildred or so. That might make it even worse.¡¯
¡®Let¡¯s hope not. It¡¯s bad enough already.¡¯ Megan said darkly. She still wasn¡¯t really happy with him as he was now. ¡®And now for some food before we go out tonight?¡¯
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.She gave a plate with food to her friend.
Megan looked at the vegetables, which looked very fresh.
¡®You did that all by yourself, in between the other things, and then you still found the time to cook? Didn¡¯t you have a meeting with black market leaders about the Pen Pal system?¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, and I¡¯ve brought veggies from the Ghost Town farm.¡¯
¡®Wow, no wonder you don¡¯t have a job yet. You have a fulltime job already.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ll need some money for the rent though. Changing the world and rescue missions are fine and all, but they don¡¯t pay the bills¡¡¯
¡®Why don¡¯t you move to the Ghost Town? You¡¯re doing a lot of work there, and they¡¯d love to have you there I¡¯m sure.¡¯
¡®That would mean losing my identity completely if I leave my address behind. I know that the system sucks, but I¡¯d actually like to officially exist, that¡¯s handy for a lot of things actually¡ Plus I don¡¯t want to leave you alone. I¡¯d be a horrible friend.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re sweet. By the way, what time did we meet the girls?¡¯ ¡®Eight I think. Hmm, I can¡¯t remember. And I probably didn¡¯t even say a time to Loverboy. Let¡¯s hope he shows up nonetheless.¡¯
*
A few hours later Michael looked at the green square in the middle of Seventh City Ghost Town. It had only been a 40 minutes walk from home and now he stood here in another world, as a man in the middle of this secret world for women. No-one had stopped him at all, but he still felt a bit uneasy. The guard had let him in without a problem when he had answered the pledge and showed his badge, as if letting him in was the normal procedure now. He¡¯d met several women, but none of them had reacted to his presence with more than an interested look, and certainly there had been no hostility. He had easily found the square, but it seemed that he was early. The bar was rather empty and he saw his friends nowhere. He didn¡¯t want to mix with the outlaws, so he went back to the square.
A woman came out of a small small building in which he saw a desk to greet him. He recognised her as the same person who had greeted him as some sort of guard, but now she seemed to be busy with more administrative activities.
¡®Hey,¡¯ He said shyly.
¡®Hi Michael, welcome again.¡¯ she said, but she didn¡¯t repeat her name as he had hoped.
He was sure that he¡¯d heard it several times from herself and Eliza, but he couldn¡¯t remember it.
¡®I was going to the bar with my friends, but I¡¯m too early it seems. Eliza didn¡¯t say any time. And now I¡¯m looking around. What¡¯s this place?¡¯ He pointed at a building next to her small office that looked weirdly traditional with glass-in-lead windows, and a gigantic green candle was burning at each side of the entrance.
¡®It''s just the chapel.¡¯ She said.
¡®You have a church here? Isn¡¯t the church extremely sexist and stuff like that?¡¯
She laughed. ¡®Silly man. Not The Church. That¡¯s a male thing for idiots who think God is a man, and who worship that Manfred dude and probably their own manhood too. No, this is just a chapel. People come here to pray and meditate, and it is dedicated to the Angel of the Earth. Didn¡¯t you know that Lady Ruth Marthas is a priestess? And a priestess needs a building sometimes, even though most rituals and meetings are held outside. There¡¯s no better place to be with the Creator or the Angel of the Earth than in the middle of nature, but the second best place is a building of prayer. They say it creates a thin place where there¡¯s a channel to the Divine or something like that. Lady Ruth can explain it better. But it¡¯s a good place to calm down and rest in the Presence.¡¯
¡®Can I visit it too?¡¯
¡®Oh, why not.¡¯ She said absentmindedly.
He didn¡¯t know what else to say, so he nodded to thank her for the explanation and walked into the building.
The place was quiet and very calming indeed. There were old chairs like in a church, and leaded windows with motifs of plants, doves, and female angel figures. There were no statues, except for a very ancient religious mother-with-child and a very contemporary one of what couldn¡¯t be anything else than the Angel of the Earth herself, in a green cloak, with eyes full of compassion. And next to her another green candle was lit.
He looked at the altar, which had nothing but a vase full of flowers and some candles, and sat himself down. He let his thoughts calm down, looking at the flowers in the vase, breathing in the quietness. For a while he looked at the angel statue, and then at the flame of the candle next to it, and then he closed his eyes. He felt at peace just sitting there, and he didn¡¯t even notice any time pass while his body seemed to relax more than it had done in quite a while. This place was indeed nothing like a Church at all.
¡®Hey altar boy, wanna have a drink with some worldly ladies?¡¯
He came back to the world with Megan standing behind him in the chapel door.
¡®I was just, eh, meditating I think?¡¯
¡®You? In the chapel of the Angel? And she didn¡¯t, eh zap you or something?¡¯
¡®Who Didn¡¯t do what?¡¯
¡®The Angel of the Earth. There¡¯s a legend that says that any man who would enter one of her chapels would be instantly turned into ashes the moment he enters the door. No-one told you that?¡¯
¡®Eh, no. The desk lady said it was the chapel of the Angel of the Earth, where Lady Ruth is the priestess, that¡¯s all.¡¯
¡®She didn¡¯t tell you what they told me the first time I visited then. They also said that there¡¯s another version that says that if you enter with an impure heart she will punish you, but I assume they¡¯d traditionally say men are always supposed to be impure. Except for you it seems. Or maybe it¡¯s just a legend after all¡¡¯
¡®Probably. It seems like their green friend isn¡¯t angry with me. This place just makes me calm, and that angel, whatever she is, looks friendly to me.¡¯
Megan looked at him, and seemed amused with something.
¡®You really have no idea, do you?¡¯
¡®What?¡¯
¡®Oh, Michael, you¡¯re still too pure for this world. And I¡¯m glad you look so much better now.¡¯ She said, and gave him a hug. ¡®But come, the others are waiting.¡¯
They walked to the bar, where he was welcomed by not just Eliza, but by Angela and Samantha, and several of their Women are Human activist friends. And whether it had something to do with the blessing of the Angel or was just that he was getting better slowly, for the first time in a long time he felt alive again. Apart from making plans about the crazy escape of Shirley he also felt free again, as if everything that had happened somehow mattered less, and the here and now of his friendships, even with Megan, mattered more.
*
Rafael hadn¡¯t been to church for a while, but he hadn¡¯t even realised that until he saw Paul on Square Plaza that evening, whom everyone knew to be a very faithful church-goer and solid believer. He also knew Paul had been going to church with Michael ever since they were kids, so maybe Paul was someone who could help him.
¡®Hi, Paul, long time no see.¡¯ Paul looked as if someone had broken into his private universe.
¡®Ah, Rafael. Haven¡¯t seen you in church in a while.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not very churchy, you know. But I know that he always met you here so maybe you can help me find him.¡¯
Paul¡¯s body language became even more closed.
¡®Which him are you talking about? Help you with what?¡¯
¡®Michael, who else. Don¡¯t you miss him? You used to meet him here almost weekly.¡¯
Paul looked at him, alarmed. ¡®They said he was deleted,¡¯ he said.
¡®Yes, I know. Erased from the school files as if he never existed, kicked out of school and shunned by his family. I¡¯d heard about such things, but I never knew I¡¯d see it happen.¡¯
Paul¡¯s expression in his face hardened.
¡®He¡¯s a sinner, he deserved it. And he¡¯s still doing indecent things.¡¯
Rafael looked at him with astonishment.
¡®Hanging around with girls you mean? I¡¯ve heard that his Wife School friends are still in touch with him even if his male friends have dropped him.¡¯
¡®Yes, instead of keeping to his male friends. It¡¯s not natural. And do you know what kind of heresies he was talking to me the last time we met? He just stopped going to church after that, because his ideas were weird and wrong. And now he¡¯s mingling with the girls even more. It can only end badly. And he deserves that.¡¯
¡®What is he supposed to do? Everyone has shunned him. The girls were the only ones that didn¡¯t abandon him, Robert said that. They seem to be better friends to him than the boys and his family.¡¯
¡®Robert should know better than to run after deleted heretics.¡¯ Paul said with a weird twitch in his brow.
¡®Dude, what are you even saying? Robert is an atheist, most brainies are; what would he care about Michael¡¯s ideas about whatever The Church teaches? It means nothing to him.¡¯
¡®Atheists are closer to The Truth than heretics and unmanly men if they follow the basic doctrines of Manfred.¡¯ Paul said, lifting his voice.
¡®John Manfred? You¡¯re angry at Michael for not following Manfred enough? And you don¡¯t miss him at all?¡¯
¡®Me? Miss Michael? Why would I? Bad company is bad for your soul. Be smart and forget about him.¡¯
Rafael heard hurt in the tone of his former friend, but he gave up on the conversation. Paul¡¯s mentality had deeply shocked him, just as the things he¡¯d heard from Michael¡¯s mother had shocked him.
2.15 An Unexpected Visit for Robert
Michael didn¡¯t stress out this time when someone was waiting for him after his shift on Wednesday night. This time it was Eliza, who didn¡¯t even greet him but got to her point directly.
¡®I¡¯ve arranged for the people who will do Dorothy¡¯s make-over that they will come get her tomorrow.¡¯
¡®Ah, I¡¯d almost forget.¡¯ ¡®
You¡¯re having a late shift, so we¡¯ll get her before that. Be outside with her at nine in the morning.¡¯
¡®Ah, ok,¡¯ was all he could say, and his baffled face seemed to amuse her.
¡®And don¡¯t you worry too much about loneliness, pretty boy, they¡¯ll bring the replacement too. Much less advanced model, but no-one will notice the difference if they¡¯re not into paleo-robotics.¡¯
He shrugged. ¡®So you mean I¡¯ll never get the chance to learn how to clean and cook for myself. If you want to turn me into a new kind of husband for one of you three that¡¯s a weird move¡¡¯ He grinned.
¡®If I¡¯d wanted a walking dishwasher I¡¯d just get me a robot myself. Marriage is too high a price¡ It¡¯s better to stay single and do your own dishes then even. But the thing is that you, young man, are legally deemed too helpless to live alone. John Manfred, ¡°Be a man!¡± and all that¡¡¯
He turned a bit red again when he had repeated that slogan subconsciously.
¡®So in lack of a human wife we¡¯ll bring you another wifebot, for the time being.¡¯
He nodded. ¡®Can¡¯t go against the orders of the central computer, can¡¯t we.¡¯ He said.
¡®Not yet¡ But maybe one day¡¡¯ She smiled in an ominous way, and Michael didn¡¯t know what to make of that. Was she planning to overthrow the Central computer, or something else that involved an actual human Wife for him, or both? He wasn¡¯t sure anymore.
¡®I better don¡¯t even ask, do I?¡¯
¡®You wouldn¡¯t understand now, and I¡¯m not going to try.¡¯ She said, winking.
Michael found that she was in a very strange mood, but he suspected she was a bit excited about the escape mission plan. And an excited Eliza was dangerous if you got in her way too much.
¡®By the way, about the escape, since we¡¯re doing everything in full daylight we could use a pretend fianc¨¦e dude too. We don¡¯t have a vehicle at the Ghost Town currently to move them quickly so she¡¯ll have to walk the whole thing. Do you have any double-rated boy available next Thursday evening by chance?¡¯
¡®Me? Eliza, I¡¯ve been deleted. My male contacts are gone. Can¡¯t you ask Joe or another black market trader or so? You have male contacts too, remember.¡¯
Eliza nodded no. ¡®I don¡¯t want them involved. They¡¯re not connected to the Ghost Town yet. Plus he¡¯s older. I just need a badged boy to have a nice walk with her, anything above Epsilon will probably do.¡¯
¡®Eliza, you¡¯re crazy! Do you think I store a stock of men in my hyperisolation fridge at home for you or so? The male world has spit me out, remember?¡¯
¡®But that one guy who came looking for you? He and Shirley seem to like each other already somehow. He¡¯d be perfect. He doesn¡¯t need much acting to play a shy first-date fianc¨¦e.¡¯
¡®Robert? He¡¯s just a Gamma-3. And he¡¯s afraid of women¡ They want to lure them into marriage and take away his power and so on, remember. You haven¡¯t heard him, but shirley did. They only met once anyway.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve talked to him, and he seemed to be a decent human. And Shirley found him okay, except for those weird ideas then. She talked about him a lot. You can assure him that from the moment she escapes from Wife School and deletes her identity Shirley can¡¯t even marry anyone so his fears aren¡¯t applicable too her.¡¯
¡®His conspiracy theories and prejudices can run quite deep.¡¯
¡®Well, a mad escape experience could be good against those and bring them a bit closer. And he can get used to women who don¡¯t want anything creepy from him.¡¯
¡®Eliza, Eliza, what are you even scheming?¡¯
Her smile was still a bit manic. ¡®Nothing, nothing¡ I just want to see his face in a Ghost Town¡ That would be interesting.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t play those games, his heart would explode.¡¯
¡®No-one there who¡¯s even remotely interested in men like him. Or in men at all officially. The trenches have always been dug very deep, remember! well, until you came, that is, Loverboy. It¡¯s dangerous for the equilibrium between the sexes if you make them too used to men, and you¡¯re an official friend of the community now. In the end we might need more than just you to satisfy the demands of the market. Especially if you want to be a ¡°new kind of husband¡± for one of us three. You¡¯re quite ambitious for being officially unmarriable you l know, and two out of three have turned you down already. You know we all love you, but not like that¡¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t make too much of those words, please.¡¯
¡®Or was Samantha part of the three?¡¯
¡®Ew. No, I can¡¯t stand flirty women. She scares me.¡¯
Eliza took a step backwards and gave him a weird look.
¡®You can¡¯t stand flirty women. And you¡¯re not afraid of me?¡¯
¡®Why would I?¡¯
¡®Oh, nothing¡¡¯ She said, and she suddenly gave him a hug.
¡®Please stay who you are, Michael, and don¡¯t change. You¡¯re way too precious to lose for all of us. But I have to go now. We¡¯ll see you tomorrow at nine. Bring the robot outside and we¡¯ll take her and you can take the new one. The make-over will be complete in a few days, and next Thursday we¡¯ll do it. Let me know if Robert wants to help¡¡¯
¡®Eh, okay¡¯ he said, and she was gone before he realised what had happened.
*
Miss Hunter never felt comfortable with men, and even less with other men than with her husband, but sometimes she needed to have professional consultation for her job with official Greystone, like after ceremony night when she had to go through the paperwork. She¡¯d got used to him over time, but even if he was the most asexual person she knew it still felt a little bit like adultery to talk to him. The old ways of Nation faithfulness for wives were drilled deep in her subconsciousness.
¡®No problems on the E-floor?¡¯ She asked.
¡®No, I only have my doubts about that guy who took Shirley. She expressed concerns herself and she might be right. He doesn¡¯t look like husband material.¡¯
¡®She already told me. But the man is always right, official Greystone.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s what we always say. But shouldn¡¯t we think of our girls too. I mean, if they really are unsuitable for one of our girls.¡¯
¡®What¡¯s gotten into you, Greystone? The young man is a man, he will do whatever he deems good, and she has to follow. That¡¯s how a marriage works. And who cares anyway, she¡¯s an E-girl.¡¯
¡®Do you remember young Eliza¡¯s last words, Miss Hunter?¡¯
She looked at him. ¡®Why on Earth would you ever mention her again. She¡¯s gone. She¡¯s deleted. She¡¯s utterly unmarriable, and we¡¯ll never see her again. Thank the Man on the Throne for that!¡¯
¡®Didn¡¯t they tell you she¡¯s come back already? She came to the visitation room to visit Shirley only a few days after the ceremony. She¡¯s still keeping her eyes on us.¡¯
Miss Hunter shook her head
¡®That shameless girl still has a lot of guts to come back here. But Shirley has been taken, by a man. A low-quality Epsilon maybe, but the client is king.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t you think she has a point. It is part of our mission statement to take care of our girls too. And we might not have been doing that right. After all, Miss Eliza herself was innocent in the incident, and we kicked her out.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ve gone soft, Greystone. And little Eliza can¡¯t do us anything. Whatever the boy is, he¡¯s a man after all. He¡¯s always right, don¡¯t forget that.¡¯
¡®I suppose so.¡¯ Official Greystone looked at her and saw that the discussion would be hopeless. He was a man too, and a Gamma at that, but for some reason Miss Hunter never took him as infallible as she did with the fianc¨¦es of the girls.
¡®But if something goes wrong it¡¯s your responsibility, and you¡¯ll explain it to Eliza. I take my hands off it; Don¡¯t tell me I haven¡¯t warned you.¡¯
Miss Hunter laughed.
¡®The only thing we should care about is that that boy is happy. Unless he¡¯d be a sex traitor like that Adams boy there is no reason to not let him do whatever he wants to his fianc¨¦e. The girl will be his Wife anyway, she¡¯d better get used to it. He cannot be wrong as a man.¡¯
¡®Aren¡¯t you going too far, Miss Hunter? Men can be wrong too, and they do wrong things too. I can attest to that.¡¯
¡®Who is here the teacher who knows about these things and who¡¯s just the administrative official, official Greystone?¡¯ Her voice became more authoritative.
¡®You are the teacher on those things.¡¯ He said, and disappeared to his office. He still had bad feelings about this whole thing, but it was clear that no-one else shared them.
*
Robert was studying his textbook with quadratic equations in his room. He was extremely bored and not really focussed and almost felt like giving up completely when suddenly something flew through his open window to crash into the wall and fall onto his bed.
¡®What on Earth?¡¯ he said when he saw it was a stone, with a paper attached to it. Such things only happened in fiction holo-movies. He untied the paper, and unfolded it. It had one sentence: ¡°SEE ME IN THE LITTLE PARK UNDER THE EUROPEAN OAK IN 10 MINUTES¡± and was signed with MM. He didn¡¯t know who that was supposed to be, but it was clear what European oak was implied. There was a tiny park in the next street with an enormous old European oak and a bench under it. But who would want to talk to him there and use such a weird style of communication? He didn¡¯t know anyone who was named MM.
He ran to the park..
On the bench under the enormous but rather sickly old oak he saw a boy reading a book. It was Michael.
¡®Hi, Robert, I see you got my message.¡¯
¡®Michael? You are MM? And why did you throw a stone?¡¯
¡®I needed to see you, but I didn¡¯t want to alarm your parents. They might not like to have deleted persons with no rating over remember. And I have an urgent request from you that is much crazier than my improvised new method of communication. It¡¯s about Shirley and it¡¯s important.¡¯
¡®What about her? I wrote to her through the Pen Pal network, but she didn¡¯t answer yet. Anything wrong with that?¡¯
¡®Technically, yes, because she¡¯s engaged now and probably shouldn¡¯t be writing letters to other boys, her taker might not like that, and that¡¯s exactly the problem.¡¯
His expression changed. ¡®She¡¯s taken?¡¯
¡®Yes, and that¡¯s the big problem. He¡¯s worse than the usual baboons on the E-floor. And she¡¯s going to run away, but we¡¯ll replace her first with the Wifebot. And we you could use you as a fake fianc¨¦ to get her away discreetly.¡¯
¡®What? You cannot be real¡¯
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¡®Eliza has everything planned out. They¡¯re giving Dorothy a make-over to be her doppelganger. But they also need a rated young man to walk her from the SCWF to the Ghost Town, and act like her fianc¨¦e when needed. And, eh, we don¡¯t have any other candidates right now and you two know each other. Are you free next Thursday evening? We need to get the robot in and her out the day before her first date with him.¡¯
¡®Wait. Are you serious? You say she can¡¯t write to me because she¡¯s taken, and now I need to play her man to let her escape. Are you crazy?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s not my idea. You need to convince Eliza, who¡¯s now at this moment giving a robot a new face that she¡¯s going too far. But just getting her out without the whole replacement operation would be more risky, and the original features of the robot are good to teach the bad boy a lesson or something.¡¯
¡®What original features are you even talking about? It¡¯s just a stupid fake woman, not? Good at chores, but not very smart.¡¯
¡®No, no, it¡¯s a pre-Nation fake girlfriend that was originally made to re-educate men who were too aggressive with women, and it can defend itself in different ways, and react to every wrong touch or even remark with an electric shock for example. Eliza has by now reprogrammed exactly to do that, I think.¡¯
¡®They gave you an old re-education bot as a wife?¡¯
¡®Vintage Wifebot is how they called it. It¡¯s not bad at doing chores but I keep my door locked at night, you never know¡¡¯
¡®Wow man, married life with a robot sounds even worse than with a woman.¡¯
¡®You get used to it¡ But I don¡¯t have much time now. I want to know if you want to do it. You¡¯ll make the girls very happy.¡¯
¡®And I have to act like her taker?¡¯
¡®Yup, just a walk from the SCWF to the Ghost Town as if she¡¯s your fianc¨¦e and you¡¯re on a date. I and Eliza will follow from a distance. And then you¡¯re free again.¡¯
¡®Just walk up to a place where they bewitch men who just come close? Man, you¡¯re crazy.¡¯
¡®I promise you no-one will be bewitched. You only need to swear the free person pledge and wear the badge and no-one will touch you with one finger. Lady Martha herself is okay with it.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t mean that. Lady Martha is a dangerous powerful witch who hates all men. She can kill just with one look. You know what they say.¡¯
¡®Whow, Robert, you¡¯re surely superstitious for a STEM-field brainie. She might be impressive but she was quite reasonable with me when I met her.¡¯ Robert sat down.
¡®Everything okay Robert?¡¯
¡®Eh, yes. I think. This is just all a bit too much for me.¡¯
¡®Here¡¯s a can of Nation-coke extra strong, brings even a corpse back to life.¡¯
He took a softdrink out of his backpack, which Robert took. They looked at the sparrows together while he drank and it was silent for a while.
¡®You¡¯ll do it?¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®Ah, why not. If it¡¯s the only way to see her again¡¡¯
¡®So you want to see her again? You¡¯ve only seen her once, and then you told her how dangerous women were. They¡¯re still talking about that in the SCWF..¡¯
He shrugged. ¡®I¡¯m a sex traitor already just by talking to you, at least that¡¯s what Henry would say. Dude, I¡¯ve had to endure Eliza herself to find you, and her explosion of suspicion, sarcasm and dismissive remarks if she doesn¡¯t trust you. I can handle girls now.¡¯
¡®Shirley isn¡¯t Eliza. Eliza needs more, eh, warm-up time before she trusts someone. She¡¯s scared most of the boys we¡¯ve met away in her chaperone days too.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s infamous as Eliza the man-hater, even more so after the incident¡¡¯
¡®she doesn¡¯t¡ Well nevermind. She can be reasonable too. She even apologised to Rafael¡¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve heard the whole story from him. She went into full demon girl mode the first time he met her. Completely unmarriable indeed. And even without marriage, would anyone ever fall in love with someone her? I can¡¯t believe that.¡¯
Michael looked at him with a bit of unease, feeling he had to defend her but not knowing how.
¡®If you don¡¯t get on her bad side she¡¯s quite fun. But it¡¯s time to go. Thank you. You¡¯ll get your instructions later. And Shirley will be relieved.¡¯
Michael took his book and disappeared from the park. Robert stood there for a while, wondering why he had said yes. He didn¡¯t know if there was a penalty for faking an engagement, but if the whole thing were found out he would probably be in trouble. Where did Eliza get all that weird confidence, wasn¡¯t she just an E, the female equivalent of an Epsilon. Or no, originally she¡¯d been a C, a Gamma girl. But she was more like the descriptions of an Alpha he had learnt in primary school. Which was certainly not the same thing as an A-Wife though¡ Had Shirley been a Gamma girl too? She didn¡¯t seem like an Epsilon either.
*
Lady Martha was reading a pre-Nation book about organisation structures in animal societies at her desk after a day of work when an angry woman barged in. She was approximately her age with half-long grey hair and wild brown eyes and wore an old-fashioned green-with-brown dress that had been popular in the first days of the Ghost Towns.
¡®Martha, I need to talk to you.¡¯
Lady Martha looked up from her book, unfazed by the rude entree.
¡®Good evening, elder Mildred! Want some green tea? I probably have enough for one more cup in my pot. It¡¯s ancient Camellia tea from Third City Ghost Town. They¡¯re doing good work there with¡¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t need a lecture on tea. You have let a man inside of the walls of this community, and he¡¯s been coming back!¡¯
The calmth of the Ghost Town leader seemed to anger her even more.
¡®Yes, Michael Michaels is an official friend of the community now even, the other elders agreed on that. And every contact with him has been positive. He is free to move around freely in our community.¡¯
Mildred was almost yelling now.
¡®It¡¯s atrocious. A MAN walking around here, in our safe place for women. He has even desecrated our chapel too!¡¯
¡®He was just meditating, apparently he felt a deep peace there, and Eliza even said that it helps him with his depression. Ruth found it very interesting. Who are we to reject him if the Angel herself has accepted him?¡¯ Lady Martha said, matter-of-factly.
¡®Don¡¯t be superstitious. Everyone knows that the whole lightning shaft story is just a fairy tale. And no matter if he gets quiet from sitting there, he¡¯s a man, Martha. A masculine male. Nothing good can ever come from them. They built the system, and every woman here has had their life destroyed by them. They are monsters, and have always been.¡¯
¡®The same has happened to him, as you know. He was deleted himself, as they call it, for defending girls against other men who were in the category you just described.¡¯
¡®These stupid girls were just sex traitors. It¡¯s their fault for befriending a boy.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re babbling utter twaddle, Mildred, and I¡¯d appreciate it if you wouldn¡¯t insult our friends. He was forced to choose a Wife in the SCWF, and then he chose very consciously to be a friend, and not a monster. He¡¯s a proven friend over the divide of the sexes again and again afterwards too.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ll never be able to trust him. His masculinity can take over every moment when you just don¡¯t look.¡¯
¡®Eliza trusts him. I trust him, that¡¯s enough. All the elders agreed on that except for you, and the other Ghost Town leaders are also contemplating how to anticipate the changes that he¡¯s brought to The Nation now that the black markets are connected and have a message system to connect boys to girls.¡¯
Mildred¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®They can¡¯t be so naive. We¡¯re talking about men here.¡¯
Lady Martha looked at her book again.
¡®Are we ants, Mildred?¡¯
Mildred¡¯s look was even more confused now, but she seemed to be forgetting her anger for the moment being.
¡®What on Earth, Martha. Why would you compare us with stupid insects.¡¯
¡®They¡¯re not so that stupid, at least not for insects, Mildred. They accomplish great things for such tiny animals, they are great builders and organisers. But they have societies in which most ants are asexual female workers, very collectivist, and no intimacy. Completely mechanical in a way.¡¯
¡®They¡¯re pests, Martha. Why are you interested in pests?¡¯
¡®They have a very complicated society. Only the queen procreates usually, and the males die and disappear out of the story after mating, and then she only gets babies for years. Sometimes they live for thirty years, much longer than the workers.¡¯
¡®Ah, and? We¡¯re not insects. We¡¯re women.¡¯
¡®We¡¯re humans. And our Ghost Town is a monosexual colony depending on refugees from male society. Without them we¡¯ll die out. And in male society our sisters suffer, as well as the men who are unable to conform to Manfred¡¯s toxic fantasies. Did I tell you that the boy is helping in the next Wife School escape? He might even bring a friend.¡¯
¡®Abominable. How can a girl escape from Wife School and still hang out with males.¡¯
¡®Oh, they¡¯re just humans, like I said. Not all men are evil, just as not all women are good. And in the end we¡¯ll need each other¡¯
¡®Blasphemy! We don¡¯t need men for anything. Our sisters on the island have no men at all.¡¯ ¡®They were extremists, and we¡¯re not in contact with them anymore, as you know. They rejected us and left us here.¡¯
¡®But they have an all-female society, even with children.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s what¡¯s said. I suppose they must have some kind of sperm bank, or otherwise they must still have men somewhere. We¡¯re not insects that reproduce parthenogenetically.¡¯
¡®What does that even mean? Those long words aren¡¯t good for you, Martha!¡¯
¡®Literally virginal procreation. No sex, no sperm cell needed. Some insects can do that, and even a few lizard species. But it usually gives perfect clones of the mother. Or in the case of ants, males with half the genetic material. Fascinating stuff, but as far as I know humans need both sexes to reproduce, and a world of clones wouldn¡¯t be healthy either. And don¡¯t you forget that every woman here has half of their genetic material of their father, a man.¡¯
¡®Enough with the lectures on the genetic parthenon, Martha. We need to protect this place against evil, and you¡¯re letting men in.¡¯
¡®I am protecting my community against evil, Mildred. But I¡¯m also looking forward to a better future. The future is happening, Mildred. The unification of the black markets and such, and we¡¯ll need to adapt to that in the best way possible.¡¯
¡®Block every one of them, they¡¯re men.¡¯
Lady Martha frowned, and took her last sip of camellia tea.
¡®And the main question here and now is also this: If you weren¡¯t living here already, would we be able to let you in in this new future?¡¯
¡®What do you mean?¡¯ said Mildred, who had found her anger back.
¡®Would you be willing to do the pledge and wear the badge?¡¯
¡®Who wouldn¡¯t wear a stupid badge if the protocol says so?¡¯
¡®But do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status? Yes, including carefully vetted men wearing that same badge. There¡¯s only one now, but there will be more in the future. If indeed one in a hundred is a decent person we¡¯ll still be talking about hundreds of men for this city of ten thousands of people.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t be meaning this, Martha.¡¯
¡®Let me ask you something else, do you feel calmness and peace in the presence of The Angel? Ruth says it is an indication of¡¡¯
¡®That doesn¡¯t make sense.¡¯
She walked away angrily and slammed the door behind her. Lady Martha kept looking at the door for a while, and then returned to her book. Monosexual colonies in humans were not sustainable, she knew. And right now Mildred was more of a danger for her community than one or two shy boys. She needed to watch out for her influence.
2.16 Megans Night in Michaels Room
It was a week later when Michael ran down the stairs of his apartment building to open the door for a guest, having second thoughts about inviting her. Megan stood at his door, dressed casually but still very good-looking and holding a bottle of wine, and now he wondered why he had consented to her coming over to his place to talk things through. It was a Zeroville apartment after all, full of unmarriable men, and she was female, rather beautiful, and currently unranked too so not very protected against them by her status. Her Free Person badge might open doors in a Ghost Town, but it had no value here¡
¡®You¡¯re finally going to let me inside your new home?¡¯ she said.
¡®Shht. Don¡¯t let them notice you,¡¯ he said, and he gestured to her to follow him.
Through the narrow dirty stairs Michael discreetly brought her to his tiny living room and kitchen.
¡®Pfew. Luckily there was no-one.¡¯ He said when he closed the door, and he sat down on an old chair while she took the other one.
¡®I¡¯ve deactivated the robot. I¡¯m not sure how this one reacts to me having women over. I wasn¡¯t sure about Dorothy either, this is the replacement one, Eliza has taken the real one for her escape mission next week.¡¯ She looked at the humanoid figure that was standing still.
¡®Yes, I know, she¡¯s my roommate and she doesn¡¯t shut up about things like that.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ he said, suddenly nervous again.
¡®Michael, you¡¯re so tense,¡¯ she said.
¡®I don¡¯t trust my neighbours here too much, that¡¯s all¡ I don¡¯t want anything to happen to you,¡¯ he said dismissively.
He didn¡¯t feel like talking about his sudden anxiety that had come up again. Her being here to talk about their situation and the incident was a stress trigger too, he realised now. But he couldn¡¯t fall back into depression and anxiety now.
¡®Michael, what is it? I thought we were better?¡¯
He avoided her eyes and fought to regain control of himself. The last thing he wanted to do was spoil the evening by having a meltdown in front of her.
¡®We are okay,¡¯ he said to reassure her.
¡®You never were like this before the incident. You¡¯re still depressed, aren¡¯t you?¡¯
He nodded, hoping that she¡¯d understand somehow even if he screwed up.
¡®Everything was different then. We were engaged and supposed to be a couple. Now I¡¯m nothing to you¡¡¯
¡®Michael, you promised me that we¡¯d be friends, marriage or not. And I thought we were open about things.¡¯
¡®We are friends, I promise but I, eh¡¡¯ He stuttered.
¡®You were so much better last week in the Ghost Town bar. I thought things were going better with you.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m sorry, it¡¯s an ups and downs thing. I apologise for all my anxiety and for avoiding you that whole time after the incident.¡¯
¡®You already apologised for that enough. I thought we were over that, Michael. Or is there something else?¡¯
¡®Eh¡¡¯ He looked away from her face again and changed the subject.
¡®Want some of that wine with the food? Fake Dorothy has made a lab-beef stew with potato fries, and I might be the only man alive in this country who can give you Ghost Town farm lettuce with it.¡¯
¡®Wine and stew are okay, but I still want to talk some things through, Michael,¡¯ she said decisively.
He threw his hands in the air in surrender.
¡®Ask and I¡¯ll answer if I can. You are important to me. And I didn¡¯t think it would be so difficult now that we¡¯re finally alone.¡¯ He said, consciously going against everything in him that wanted to shut the whole thing down and run away from her.
¡®Is it because you¡¯re still not over me or because you¡¯ve kissed Angela?¡¯
She pointed her finger at him, and he almost dropped the wine bottle that he was trying to uncork.
¡®You know?¡¯
¡®All the girls know, Michael. Don¡¯t be silly! We don¡¯t keep secrets for each other.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said, looking into a nothingness next to her. ¡®And you don¡¯t mind? You don¡¯t want to kill me or so? You don¡¯t feel betrayed? I mean, aren¡¯t we still supposed to be a couple somehow? Eliza said you¡¯d be heartbroken if I¡¯d call you anything with ¡°ex¡± in it.¡¯
¡®This is the talk we should have had right after the incident, Michael. As soon as possible.¡¯
¡®But I couldn¡¯t¡¡¯ She sighed.
¡®I know, but it still hurts. And I want to talk about it now, so that everything gets cleared up for once and forever.¡¯
¡®Are you saying that you still want me, even after Angela, I mean?¡¯ He poured two glasses of red wine for them.
Megan looked at him hopelessly and took a sip.
¡®You could say I must want you in some way at least, believe me; otherwise I wouldn¡¯t put so much effort in this.¡¯
¡®But not like that then?¡¯
¡®How do I even know what ¡°that¡± means. There probably is no ¡°that¡± in that sense that I want to be honest, even if it¡¯s impossible for me not to love you somehow. You¡¯re such a contrast to everything I feared about men. And a positively fun person. I mean, compared to the please-your-husband lessons you are just incredible. I was so relieved; but I still didn¡¯t know what I actually wanted myself. The way in which you were a friend, like my girl friends I mean, and just treated me with respect, and wanted to conspire against the system with me and Eliza was overwhelming enough, without focusing on romance. I don¡¯t think I ever really believed it would last forever, or that you would actually marry me, and probably that I deserved it. I couldn¡¯t picture us married.¡¯
She took his hands and looked in his eyes.
¡®But I had fun, and liked to be in the moment. Even if I never completely felt it. Romantically I mean.¡¯ She said, and looked away.
¡®And for me you always belonged more to Eliza anyway. It should have been here, it was an accident that it was me that you chose. If she hadn¡¯t been in such a bad mood towards anyone male that night you¡¯d have chosen her anyway, and you two already had a history together. It would have been perfect like that.¡¯
¡®No. It was perfect with you, and her just being the chaperone. I wouldn¡¯t have wanted it otherwise¡ But what about me and you, and my responsibilities?¡¯ he said, confused.
¡®I said it all was just an accident, and it was fun while it lasted, but nothing more. So don¡¯t start lecturing me about your responsibilities now. You did everything you promised and more, so you have no responsibilities towards me except for staying my friend. And I really need you for that.¡¯
A pause fell. Michael looked at his wine glass.
¡®Oh, man I never realised how messy the whole relationship business can be if you and everyone are completely free to choose.¡¯ He said.
¡®People are messy, but we are okay, aren¡¯t we?¡¯
¡®You are okay. Angela is okay, Eliza is okay. I suppose I am okay too, seeing how everybody is using me as a case study for an alternative masculinity now. Which is stupid by the way, I¡¯m just myself, and I¡¯m lost and confused and alone and representative of absolutely nothing. I¡¯m just surrounded by girls who trust me too much, and see things in me that are way beyond anything that I could ever be. I never asked for that. It only makes me more insecure and anxious. I just wanted to get out of the whole Wife School thing without ending up as a rapist slaver with a traumatised partner that I couldn¡¯t even talk to in the end. Just that would have been enough of a miracle, the great exception to what men are supposed to be in The Nation when it comes to the damage they do to a woman¡ I never asked to be some kind of role model, I just wanted to live as a decent person. And you were an enormous responsibility, Megan. I chose you, and in that I started this whole thing. And then it completely got out of hand?¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t help the pressure of expectations that the system put on your shoulders, Michael. Promises of friendship are something else, but since I can¡¯t even be a Wife anymore, and you¡¯re legally married to a robot now, I don¡¯t think you have any responsibilities of being my husband now anyway. That¡¯d be illegal even.¡¯
¡®Whatever you call it, I chose you as my partner. That means something, not?¡¯
¡®You set me free already, and I set you free now. We¡¯re really free, Michael. You¡¯re not bound to me because you were forced to choose anyone and then in the end took me. If you want a partner you¡¯ll have to choose her freely, and she has to do the same thing.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said. ¡®So we did really break up? We got broken up? Or how do you say it?¡¯
¡®If you want to call it that, yes. I¡¯m a Free Woman now, thanks to you. And I¡¯m glad for our friendship. We all are, all the girls I mean. We all hope that if you ever choose a wife or girlfriend or whatever, that all of our friendships with you will be able to stay the same. You¡¯re a bit of a shared treasure for us that we want to keep, you know¡¡¯
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¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said again. So many contradictory thoughts filled his head. So the relationship was really over, and had never really existed maybe. But he liked her. And he liked Eliza. And he liked Angela. And he wasn¡¯t ready for a relationship at all. And still he felt empty and disappointed, as if he had lost something very important.
She looked at him. ¡®I¡¯m sorry if I hurt you by saying it like that now. I thought it was clear from the start. It was an unique experience, to be able to try all that dating stuff safely here in this Nation, but that¡¯s all there is to it for now. I want to thank you for all the wonderful moments, but it turns out that the truth is that I¡¯m really not into relationships at all, not even with the perfect man. So it would be wrong to continue and play games with you.¡¯
¡®So now I¡¯m just single and confused, a badgeless Free Man surrounded by too many girls,who see all kinds of things in me that I don¡¯t even understand. Are you not afraid I¡¯m going to do stupid things now with the other sex.¡¯
She shook her head.
¡®Was it only because of me that you stopped when Angela kissed you and you didn¡¯t think it could lead to anything? Would ever have played with her heart?¡¯
¡®No, No, I don¡¯t want to hurt her. I like her too much to play with her. And she felt too safe with me, and she¡¯s so vulnerable. It would be evil to abuse her, and it¡¯s stupid but I¡¯m just not in love enough with her, deep blue eyes or not. Well¡ There¡¯s no real spark.¡¯
Megan stood up and patted his head.
¡®See, you¡¯re fine. A sensitive and careful man even in the hour of temptation¡¡¯
¡®But it¡¯s so confusing. All they¡¯ve ever taught me is that one day I¡¯d have a wife and that I¡¯ll like that, and then the technical biology of sex. Nothing about this kind of stuff.¡¯
¡®Just to be clear. I said that I¡¯m personally not ready for a relationship with a man, or anyone at all, and may never be, it might not even be my cup of three herbs at all. But you¡¯re completely free to choose whomever you like whenever you feel ready. As long as you don¡¯t use or hurt them, but I will trust you that you won¡¯t. And you¡¯re not allowed to dump me as a friend. But that doesn¡¯t mean that there isn¡¯t still something left inside of me that feels like it should have been be me, and that doesn¡¯t want it to be over either, but to be honest, I can¡¯t do the romance thing, or the being in love thing if I¡¯m honest, and you can¡¯t be waiting until forever. So let¡¯s just be friends.¡¯
He didn¡¯t answer and stared into the dark.
¡®Are you okay now, Michael?¡¯
¡®I think the food is warm enough now,¡¯ he said suddenly, taking out the plates, and putting the potato fries, stew and a salad of fresh Ghost Town lettuce on the table for the two of them. He even lit a little candle and filled the glasses again.
They ate in silence for a while, and then had a safe conversation about food. When the meal was over he put the dishes in the sink, and poured some water for both, after all the wine.
¡®Now, a man serving me food like this, and bringing me drinks. And we don¡¯t even have a chaperone. The incredible experience continues¡¡¯ She looked into his eyes. ¡®Megan, can you stay a little longer tonight? And maybe give me a hug? It¡¯s all been too much to be honest.¡¯ He said, and she smiled, amused.
¡®Seriously, dude, are you asking your ex to hold you to process your break-up?¡¯
¡®No, I¡¯m asking my friend, who has been with me through all of this Wife School engagement nonsense for a hug, now that I¡¯m finally letting go of something that neither of us wasn¡¯t ready for. But it was ended too abruptly to process too.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re really unique, did anyone ever tell you that. Come here, Michael. Who could ever refuse you like this? You¡¯d make a stone fall for you like this.¡¯
They held each other in silence for a while, and then he suddenly kissed her forehead. ¡®I swear I love you, somehow¡ And I don¡¯t ever want to lose you, even if we¡¯ll never be more than friends after tonight.¡¯
She looked into his eyes. ¡®Same here. But we better let it go for now. Let¡¯s not feed the confusion too much by staying too close now. You have enough problems already.¡¯
¡®Girls are persons, not problems,¡¯ he said, misquoting an old feminist pamphlet from a few centuries earlier.
¡®Oh, and speaking of girls, if you are so confused about one kiss with Angela, watch out for Samantha.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s trying to be flirty all the time. Why the warning now?¡¯
¡®Just to be safe. I don¡¯t want you to be hurt. Her approach to being a non-Wife is, at least in theory, that free love is the best option among the Free People. But there aren¡¯t that many safe Free Men around, so she might try with you again when she hears you¡¯re completely free now.¡¯
¡®Free love?¡¯
¡®An ancient Euphemism for sex with everyone you like. If you both like it, that is.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes¡¡¯
He was silent for a while.
¡®I know the idea from old 21st century fiction. I suppose that if you dispose of the Marriage thing that that is an option too¡ For those who are into such things.¡¯
¡®Be warned then. She still didn¡¯t believe that you wouldn¡¯t be interested in that if you both were really free. And I¡¯m a bit concerned since you¡¯re still so incredibly naive about girls. Don¡¯t forget it was Angela who took the initiative to kiss you, not you.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m the man, whoever started it doesn¡¯t matter, I must take full responsibility.¡¯
¡®You and your stupid responsibility. A noble but silly sentiment, Michael, women have their desires too. And you have a great target on your head now among the Free Women as a man that is safe and caring. I¡¯m just warning you, you have every right to experiment with whomever you want, but I¡¯m afraid you¡¯re going to get hurt.¡¯
¡®Huh? I don¡¯t want to experiment at all. Who said that? I want to be serious about relationships, and about love, and¡¡¯
She was looking in his eyes from way too close now, and he fell silent.
¡®Angela was right by the way. You are irresistible when you¡¯re too close. Time to get that closure.¡¯ She said.
For a moment they said nothing, and then she suddenly kissed him. They looked into each other''s eyes, unsure about what had happened, and then an endless while later she said.
¡®I¡¯m sorry, I couldn¡¯t resist that moment. And now you can¡¯t say we never had an actual relationship, and you at least have a memory of a first and only kiss. I know it¡¯s cheating a bit with the chronology, but better late than never. You deserved at least that, even with my hopelessness with romance.¡¯
¡®So is that how you planned to fix my self esteem?¡¯
¡®Oh, you dummy, don¡¯t overthink it. We¡¯re young and stupid and we are safe with each other and still we go a bit too far and¡ To be honest, it was Eliza¡¯s idea; she said we¡¯d find more closure with a final kiss. But I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever find an occasion, especially with you being distant and shut down. And it was a stupid idea anyway.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, Eliza the man-hater knows everything about relationships with boys. The girl who¡¯s currently reprogramming a wifebot to electrocute bad boys.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Hey, she has a lot of wisdom. And she is at least as serious about relationships as you are, even if she might never be able to have one in this rotten Nation. Plus she is the best girl in the universe. If she and I were both into girls I¡¯d marry her in a heartbeat. Or at least do one of these woman couple Love Ceremony things they have in the Ghost Towns, since girls can¡¯t technically marry, but alas¡¡¯
¡®She¡¯s really asexual then?¡¯ He asked, and Megan frowned with that conclusion.
¡®Asexual? Eliza? She wished. Hah, only Ghost Town asexual¡ I was thinking of someone else¡¡¯
¡®Ghost Town asexual? What does that even mean?¡¯
His confusion seemed to amuse her, and took the conversation away from herself.
¡®Hmm¡ Boys probably don¡¯t use that expression now that I think of it. Imagine living in a world with only women and woman couples, and then being only attracted to men. It¡¯s practically the same as being asexual, only more frustrating, especially with men being so¡¡¯
He stopped her mid-sentence. ¡®I get the picture. I know men, I am men, thank you for the translation.¡¯
¡®So, no offence meant, but it¡¯s normal that she¡¯d rather be asexual, or into women, but you can¡¯t really choose those things it seems. She always hated being into men, most of them are uninteresting at best. And I would bet that the only man she might ever have considered liking, even if it was only for a split second, is now looking me in my eyes with his ever-confused look.¡¯
¡®Eh?¡¯
¡®That¡¯s what I mean, yes. You look exactly like one of those expensive aquarium fish now.¡¯
¡®Let¡¯s not talk about other girls now. I need more wine. You want some too?¡¯ He said abruptly, changing the subject.
¡®I don¡¯t say no to that.¡¯ She said.
He poured the last two glasses of the bottle and sat down, and suddenly looked depressed again.
¡®Hey, are you okay?¡¯ she asked.
¡®Can we switch hats and can I have my friend back for now? Like you said you wanted. I need a hug again, because it still seems like I''m having a complicated heart fracture problem due to girl trouble.¡¯ Michael said.
She sighed but there was a bit of amusement in her eyes too.
¡®As the girl in question I can say you¡¯re a complicated heart fracture yourself, dude. But if you¡¯re really back you¡¯re definitely worth it, even as a friend. Come here.¡¯ She hugged him again, but it felt completely different.
For the rest of the evening they talked and drank. He slept on his couch that night, while she took his bed, but it was as friends, and certainly not as lovers that they sat on the breakfast table the next morning. The confusion about what they were seemed to be cleared up for now, or at least postponed to an undefined moment in the future that might never even come and at least there certainly wasn¡¯t any confusion about their friendship. It was back, and stronger than ever. Only when they both left his house in the morning remembered that the Zeroville apartment for unrated men was probably not really a safe place to be for a young woman, and that he should be more careful with girls in his apartment.
2.17 The Outsider
The next afternoon Michael was working in the kitchen of the Square Bar again when Bert came in.
¡®I have some kind of letter for you, from the non-wife girl. She said it was important.¡¯
He looked a bit nervous, he still wasn¡¯t used to the Free Women.
¡®Angela?¡¯
¡®No, the other one. They call her Sam. She always makes the boys uncomfortable.¡¯ ¡®Ah, yes. But what does Samantha have to say that she writes me like this?¡¯
He looked at the paper and saw only a few sentences in a firm cursive handwriting:
¡®Come to the Ghost Town hospital this evening after your shift, there¡¯s something I need to show you!¡¯
I was signed with her name, with a small heart next to it. Under that there was a post-scriptum in smaller letters that was probably meant to reassure him, but it only made him more suspicious: ¡®PS: I swear I¡¯m not going to seduce you!¡¯ Bert tried to read with him, but he put it away without showing it.
¡®She wants to see me in the Ghost Town hospital tonight,¡¯ he said casually, and his colleague backed off.
¡®Ghost Town hospital? Are they going to turn you into a woman?¡¯
He looked at Bert, baffled. ¡®What?¡¯
¡®You know. The witches say you are a friend of their community, but everyone knows they hate men and only accept women. And they still have advanced tech in their lair, so I bet they will be able to do a sex change operation too.¡¯
¡®What?¡¯
¡®Haven¡¯t you heard how in their early days there were sex traitors who were against Manfred who disappeared in the Ghost Towns, and became women? If they really want you in their community, they will have to turn you into a woman first¡¡¯
Michael looked at him. He had heard that story before, but Bert still didn¡¯t make sense to him.
¡®We¡¯re not in the days of Manfred anymore. They talked to me because of the Pen Pal system and the unification of the black markets and stuff like that. They want me as a representative of the male world, even if they overestimate the place of a deleted boy probably.¡¯
¡®I¡¯d still watch out, they could castrate you,¡¯ Bert said.
¡®Come on, do you think Samantha would help them turn me into a woman or castrate me? She always tries to flirt with me hopelessly, and she isn¡¯t into girls at all. It makes no sense that she would like me to be anything but a man. Even if it¡¯s hopeless between us.¡¯
¡®If you say so. Or she wants revenge because you¡¯ve rejected her witchy advances. She¡¯s crazy enough for that. Anyway, I¡¯m back to the bar,¡¯ Bert said, and he was gone, still a bit nervous.
Michael looked at the short letter again. Sure, Samantha wouldn¡¯t lure him into the hospital to turn him into a woman, but it was still rather mysterious what her plans with him were then. But for now there were dishes, and then ingredients to check, and lists to make.
Straight after his shift he walked to the Ghost Town still a bit suspicious but also curious about what the story behind Samantha¡¯s weird message was. After a walk of more than half an hour he arrived at the secret entrance, where Rebecca just looked at his badge and didn¡¯t even bother to let him recite the pledge this time.
¡®Hi Michael. You seem to be expected,¡¯ was everything she said, and he was in. It was strange how fast he had become part of the daily life in this strange squat village for women.
He was just a few steps in when he almost was run over by Eliza on a bike loaded with too much robot parts and materials to drive safely.
¡®Hey, watch out!¡¯ He said, but she just stopped, parked her dangerous vehicle, and jumped at him to give him a hug.
¡®Ah, Michael. I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m a bit dangerous on the road with so much black market stuff. But it¡¯s late already and I have a lot of work to do. I¡¯m just arriving too.¡¯
She bent over to pick up a wig with blond hair that had fallen off her bike and suddenly changed the subject.
¡®So, had a good romantic date with your ex? I heard she even slept over at your place.¡¯ She gave him an ominous smile.
¡®Could you stop making things sound weird, Eliza. Nothing happened and you know it.¡¯ ¡®Ah, but you¡¯re too much fun to tease. You¡¯re cute when you¡¯re blushing too. And from what I heard at least something did happen, you smooth heart breaker.¡¯
She patted his head, like Megan had done.
¡®You and Angela and everyone told me I had to work on our friendship and reconnect with her before it was too late, and I did that.¡¯ He said defensively.
¡®Yes, and you also kissed both of them. Megan and Angela I mean, not me. And you¡¯re still hopelessly single.¡¯
¡®How¡¡¯ He said.
¡®You know girls talk about everything. You¡¯re almost an honorary girl yourself, except that we¡¯re not frequently talking about periods to you. Yet¡ It seems you¡¯re missing some reports.¡¯ She winked and he was reminded of Bert¡¯s conspiracy theory again.
¡®Whatever¡¡¯ He said, shuffling around uncomfortably but Eliza suddenly got curious again.
¡®You wouldn¡¯t talk about your first kiss with your boy friends?¡¯
¡®It wasn¡¯t, eh¡ Whatever, but probably not, no. Boys assume that you do whatever you can with your fianc¨¦e, but they insinuate instead of talking openly. Which isn¡¯t better anyway. Plus how many boy friends do you think I have left? I¡¯m not going to talk about kissing with Robert.¡¯
She winked again. ¡®You don¡¯t need boys! Come to the female world, we are much better¡¡¯ ¡®I¡¯d suck at being a woman¡¡¯ He said. ¡®No, no, please stay yourself, we like you as an alternative kind of man. You could become a Ghost Town mascot even, like tame man on a leash. But you¡¯d suck as a woman indeed. No-one would want you to become a woman.¡¯
¡®Eliza, please¡¡¯
¡®Sorry, you are fun to tease. But actually, I¡¯m not here to play the gossip girl. Or to check you out now that you¡¯re back on the market.¡¯
She pinched his cheek, and he pushed her hand away.
¡®I¡¯m here for serious business, your wife isn¡¯t gonna rebuild herself in a Shirley shape without my help. And I had a lot of stuff to do and now I¡¯m behind. So I¡¯m off to the robot workshop. You here for a special reason?¡¯
¡®Ah, good luck with that. Eh, Sam told me to come to the hospital here, do you have any idea why?¡¯ He took the little letter out of his pocket to show it to her.
¡®Eh, no. I¡¯ve been busy with robot stuff and administration, not with Samantha-herding. But I¡¯d trust she doesn¡¯t want to seduce you tonight. If she had plans like that she¡¯d not do it like that. She¡¯s much better than that.¡¯
She jumped on her bike again and was gone before he could process the conversation.
A few streets further he saw Samantha waiting for him at the hospital. She hardly even greeted him, and promptly grabbed his hand to bring him to a one-bedroom, with no explanation. In the room he saw a woman who seemed to be the victim of some kind of very recent accident.
¡®This woman here fell out of the sky in a flying machine last night.¡¯ She said, and he looked at her in astonishment.
¡®A flying machine? Those don¡¯t exist in¡¡¯
¡®She calls it an aeroplane, and yes, she comes from overseas. And you¡¯re the only man I really trust or that they¡¯ll let in here, but you know about machines. You might be able to help her.¡¯
Michael looked at the stranger and her strange clothes. It was not easy to comprehend that she really was an outsider, even if she certainly looked like one. He looked back at Samantha and then at the stranger. She was just a typical woman with a very ordinary brownish skin and brown hair that wouldn¡¯t stand out at all in a Nation crowd, but she wore an uniform that he didn¡¯t recognise, and there was something weird about how she wore her hair too.
¡®Let¡¯s start by the beginning again? Aeroplane accident? In this era?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Yes, that¡¯s what she calls it. Only survivor of the accident too. She¡¯s called Jibrilla. Two others in the same plane have died in the explosion, but she used an ejection seat or something like that and landed in the trees.¡¯
He swallowed ¡®The aeroplane exploded?¡¯
¡®Motor problems or something, they crashed in the woods.¡¯
¡®Where does she come from then? I mean, The Nation has no fricking aeroplanes. And she has foreign clothes.¡¯
¡®She didn¡¯t say that much yet, but she says she¡¯s from H¨¦va, an Island not far from The Nation, where only women live.¡¯
He looked at Samantha, who had just casually revealed the name of an outside country that he¡¯d never heard of to him as if it was nothing.
¡®It seems they know more about us than we realise, although they see things very differently. The night nurse doesn¡¯t understand how but she says she¡¯s never seen a man before. That¡¯s why I called you.¡¯
¡®And how could I¡?¡¯
He never finished his question, because the woman opened her eyes, and tried to move violently away from him when she saw Michael. She didn¡¯t get anywhere, hindered by the bandages, drip infusion and all kinds of medical meters, but still was able to sit upright in her bed.
¡®No, not a Nation Man-person!¡¯ She said with a strange accent, looking at him in horror.
¡®He¡¯s a good man. Not a Real Man.¡¯ Samantha said reassuringly, but the shock was still visible on her face.
Michael turned to the brown-eyed woman. ¡®Are you afraid of the men in your country too, like some of our women are? Are you even more segregated in H¨¦va than in the Nation?¡¯
She nodded her head. ¡®No, we only have sisters in H¨¦va and no man-persons. None at all. Only outsiders from overseas visit us only rarely. But we know about your country and about the Masculists of that accursed devil Manfred. Sisters are being kept as slaves here. The war was won by the man-persons here, and my ancestors could escape before that happened and left for Santa Muerte Island to start a new life without man-persons. And there we started a new world.¡¯
¡®You have no men at all? How boring! Worse than a Ghost Town!¡¯ Samantha interjected, falling back into her old persona.
Michael saw other problems with the absence of men than just the absence of flirting between the sexes. ¡®But, does your country not have children at all then? Ghost Towns rely on refugees from the male world. But you don¡¯t have a male world.¡¯
She looked at him, as if he had said something stupid. ¡®Silly boy. We can have children without a man-person. We¡¯re modern women. We followed progress and rebuilt society in the best possible way, without them, but with science and technology, and now we don¡¯t need man-persons anymore. It¡¯s much safer like that.¡¯ She said, looking at him with curiosity mixed into her fear now.
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.So many questions that both sides could ask of each other but she was still very tired.
¡®You must have some fuel to operate aeroplanes in H¨¦va.¡¯ He said, switching to his engineer mode.
Even when his identity alone was enough to trigger her, that might be a safe subject for a constructive conversation.
She nodded. ¡®For special occasions. Our little aeroplane had a hybrid motor with a hydrogen combustion engine and a powerful battery. But the battery suddenly was empty, and the hydrogen tank was damaged, and then we crashed and the plane exploded in a lot of fire. Something must have gone wrong with the hydrogen safety. They told me my sisters were dead when I woke up here in this hospital. I was assured that I would be safe in the female society of the Nation. Why are you here as a man-person then? I do not comprehend.¡¯
He shrugged. ¡®I¡¯m considered harmless by the Ghost Town community here, I¡¯m a friend of women and in my own way I¡¯m trying to end the segregation between the sexes in The Nation.¡¯
He didn¡¯t mention how he had thrown out of the whole revolution idea after his prison experience; it seemed to run well without him too.
¡®End the segregation between the sexes? You mean, like in Lantada, or the United Afropean archipelago and those other faraway places where sisters live together with manpersons as equals?¡¯
Michael stared at her, trying to process the information. One other country with only women was one thing, but she knew about the rest of the world too? Where men and women lived as equals?
¡®We are not aware here of other nations at all, but there was a past when men and women were partners and friends, and ran the world together. I¡¯ve read enough black market books about that?¡¯
Now it was her turn to be baffled again. ¡®You have forbidden books from before the blackout and the war between masculists and feminists here?¡¯
¡®They are not forbidden, but not always easy to find either. The Central Computer doesn¡¯t really care about them. You don¡¯t have them in H¨¦va?¡¯
¡®The Sisterhood destroyed all those books when the H¨¦van State was founded. But we¡¯re not isolated from the world, we have some diplomatic contacts with other cultures overseas that you don¡¯t seem to have. And I think they have those books. And live in them. But we¡¯re quite shielded from the rest of the world in H¨¦va. The Sisterhood tries to keep us safe from bad influences.¡¯
He sat down on the chair next to the bed, deep in thought. Every sentence from her brought new information that was hard to take in. Even if they had isolated themselves from the past and from The Nation there was contact between H¨¦va and the United Afropean archipelago and Lantada? He recognised those names from an old historical atlas. Those were the names of the new continents from after the great Tsunamis in the century of floodings and ice cap melting, when the axis of the Earth had changed and whole countries had disappeared into the sea while other landmasses had appeared. And the Sisterhood, whatever that was, had kept contact with those countries, but on the other hand they had destroyed all books in H¨¦va, where only women lived. Women who had found a way to have babies without men?
¡®My head is dazzling. The things you tell are too much for me. So much new information.¡¯ He said.
¡®Same thing for me. So you¡¯re a leader of revolutionary men, and that¡¯s why you are here in this stronghold of the female society? You have power among the male society?¡¯
Michael laughed. ¡®I don¡¯t. I just made a safe space for men and women to meet, more or less by accident. I suppose Lady Martha will be able to explain more, I¡¯m quite sure she¡¯ll want to talk to you. And we probably need to get Eliza, but she¡¯s too busy now with her robot make-over. She might be the only one who can find a way for you to communicate with your home.¡¯
¡®There is no internet cable here in this backwards country. And you don¡¯t have radio transmitters or wireless talkphones. Your sister here didn¡¯t even know what they are.¡¯ Jibrilla pointed at Samantha.
¡®Ah, but that¡¯s where Eliza will be helpful. Alas the only radio like that they have here at the moment is a wireless receiver from my antique pre-nation wifebot I think.¡¯
¡®You don¡¯t even have radio receivers? This country is even more backwards than I thought.¡¯ She said dejectedly.
¡®That¡¯s not a nice thing to say of us.¡¯ He said. ¡®You, as a Nation man-person, are going to blame me for not being nice enough?¡¯
¡®All people are created as brothers and sisters, and should treat each other accordingly.¡¯ He quoted an old verse.
¡®Yeah, tell that to the manpersons who rule this country and have forced my poor sisters here to hide in these ruins.¡¯
He shrugged ¡®I might try, one day, but they won¡¯t listen to a man who has lost his rating in the hierarchy I¡¯m afraid. And life in these ruins is much better than that of the men in my Zeroville apartment in the city.¡¯
¡®They forced you to live there because you¡¯re a rebel?¡¯
¡®Not even that, because I stood up to a man of higher rating to defend my fianc¨¦e and her friend against a violent abusive creep. And because Eliza defended herself and they didn¡¯t believe a woman could have taken down an Alpha, so they blamed me. And a lowly Gamma attacking an Alpha is not done. We should obey higher-rated men, you know. So they took my Gamma-1 badge and made me an unmarriable zero. And they kicked Megan and Eliza from Wife School. The police didn¡¯t like me being friends with girls to say the least. Very unmanly you know.¡¯
¡®So in male society you¡¯re actually nothing now?¡¯
¡®Basically. I was the first connection between male and female society, but now I¡¯m not much in the male part of the Nation anymore. I still have my job in the bar, but that¡¯s it.¡¯
¡®Hmmm,¡¯ Jibrilla said. He could see she was as confused and interested as he was himself. ¡®So, nurse Samantha, you can vouch for this Nation man-person that he¡¯s indeed harmless and a friend of women.¡¯
¡®Harmless he is. A friend of women too. But that¡¯s about it. He¡¯s also a bit boring.¡¯
¡®In H¨¦va they say that all Nation man-persons are evil animals who think only of sex and dominating sisters. And that no sister is safe from them, and eh¡¡¯
¡®I know the stereotype. Maybe it¡¯s true about some men, I don¡¯t know.¡¯ Michael said, and Samantha wrapped one arm around him.
¡®The theory that any man will want you and find you attractive just because you are a woman is certainly false. It works for the creeps maybe, and you should certainly avoid those, but if you take him as an example, he¡¯s not seducible at all even if you try. And his friends are just awkward. Such an anticlimax.¡¯
He pushed her arm away. ¡®You¡¯re not my type, plus you¡¯re too pushy. Argh!¡¯
Samantha smiled. ¡®The poor boy didn¡¯t even kiss his Wife School fianc¨¦e. Don¡¯t count on men wanting sex all the time.¡¯
¡®Hey,I wasn¡¯t ready for a relationship. I hadn¡¯t even talked to a girl, remember. I need more time than I had to get close to someone like that.¡¯
Suddenly Jenny came in.
¡®Ah, you here too?¡¯ She said when she saw Michael, and then she looked at Jibrilla. ¡®She¡¯s awake? That¡¯s good. Lady Martha wants to talk to her, but she¡¯s away at a Ghost Town leader meeting today. She¡¯ll be back tomorrow as soon as possible, and bring a working vehicle too. I just had a phone call with her and she was shocked when she heard the news. Is the patient okay enough to speak to her tomorrow night?¡¯ She asked Samantha.
¡®Oh, yes, everything is okay with her and she¡¯s completely conscious. She¡¯ll recover soon.¡¯ Jenny nodded.
¡®She really comes from a world without men, and they know the names of other countries on the planet. Isn¡¯t that strange?¡¯ Samantha asked.
¡®Lady Martha suspected that already. There seems to be a shared history between H¨¦va and the Ghost Towns from Manfred¡¯s Time, we haven¡¯t had contact in over a century, so she¡¯s curious too about them now. As are the other Ghost Town leaders. Martha might be bringing colleagues over to see her.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯
More information that had no place in his head. ¡®I think it¡¯s time to go back to my humble Zeroville apartment¡ I have work tomorrow. You need me to escort you to the woman house?¡¯
Samantha looked a bit surprised. ¡®Eh, yes, that¡¯d be a good idea at this time I think. I can defend you against the bad guys when needed.¡¯
She smiled mysteriously. ¡®How do you mean?¡¯ She took a weird instrument out of her pocket. ¡®I work in a Ghost Town, so I¡¯m armed with Ghost Town magic.¡¯
She grabbed his arm. ¡®Come, let¡¯s go.¡¯
Two pairs of eyes looked at each other when they disappeared from sight and left the Ghost Town.
*
¡®So you have the magic to defend me now? What is that thing even?¡¯ He asked when they walked through the dark main street that led back to Seventh City.
Samantha grinned ominously in the twilight and took her little weapon out of her pocket to show it to him under the light of a street lantern.
¡®Oh, just a standard Ghost Town stunner. Shoots little needles with some kind of sedative, and takes you out for at least 12 hours. It¡¯s mostly harmless, unless you get too much of them in your body in a short time maybe. You didn¡¯t really believe in the magic story, did you, big boy?¡¯
¡®Eh¡,¡¯ he said and looked at what seemed to be a green toy pistol. He couldn¡¯t believe that on top of all the revelations about outsiders tonight Samantha had just casually revealed the most feared mystery in male society about the Ghost Towns to him.
¡®Eliza¡¯s got one too now, so we can defend ourselves when needed. You probably didn¡¯t notice, but they¡¯re getting a bit more careful about their safety, and about that of their friends too.¡¯
¡®Sam, you¡¯re showing a man the source of their magic. Aren¡¯t you betraying them?¡¯
¡®You are part of the ¡®friends too¡¯, you idiot. Didn¡¯t you notice that Lady Martha¡¯s assistant herself just saw me show it to you? She didn¡¯t protest. When she gave me that thing told me to use it to protect other women when needed, or you. I bet they told the same to Eliza. They¡¯re actually worried about you too, such a sensitive boy alone in the dangerous male world, you know?¡¯
¡®Worried about me? Ghost Town women?¡¯
¡®Yes, you, little revolutionary. You¡¯re important and likeable, not just neutral and harmless. And probably too cute for your own good too.¡¯ She wrapped her arm around him again.
¡®You said you weren¡¯t going to seduce me.¡¯ She stopped and winked, her face way too close.
¡®Not in the Ghost Town hospital. I said nothing about long romantic walks home afterwards. Plus how can you reject me when I am armed.¡¯ She reached for her pocket theatrically.
¡®Don¡¯t be stupid. Or do you literally want me to sleep with you here, on the road? Putting me to sleep for 12 hours here and now is not a good idea.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not stupid, Loverboy, I¡¯m just messing with you. They¡¯d never forgive me if I¡¯d use that thing on you, and neither would you. How crazy do you think I am?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know anything about anything anymore after today, Sam.¡¯ He said, allowing her arm for now but changing the subject. ¡®That new bike thing of Eliza is interesting. Do you think I could get one too somehow? It would make this distance a lot easier if it¡¯s going to be a habit,¡¯ he said.
¡®A bike in a Zeroville apartment building full of unranked men? It would be stolen in no time. You¡¯re still naive about how men are yourself, aren¡¯t you?¡¯ She shook her head. ¡®Hmm, true, it wouldn¡¯t be safe and I can¡¯t carry it upstairs all the time to store it in my apartment on the fourth floor. But a robot could do that, not? Both in the bar and in the Ghost Town it would be safe, so I just need to ask temporary Dorothy when I¡¯m home. There¡¯s just enough space in the ugly storage room¡¯
¡®You really have the weirdest ideas of the uses of wifebots all the time, Mister robot husband. You should know what men in your building normally use them for; certainly not indoor vehicle transport, let alone Wife School escape missions.¡¯
For the rest of the walk the conversation turned to the mysterious land of H¨¦va, where no men lived, which was a safer subject and less personal for Michael. He let her give him a hug and even kiss him on the cheek when they arrived at the woman¡¯s apartment, and then he walked home, where temporary Dorothy awaited him.
2.18 Jibrilla
Jibrilla looked at the ceiling. Her leg still pained her a bit, but none of her wounds were really serious. And that was a relief, since the level of medical science was a lot lower here than at home. What a place she had come to get stuck in¡ After a while she had stopped thinking about the crash, about her two colleagues that had died, and about the lost aeroplane. She hadn¡¯t really known the two sisters who had died that well, she had actually only seen them passingly before this spy mission, but it was still a very weird idea that they were dead, and she wasn¡¯t. She had successfully silenced the voice that blamed her for the accident for now, but she knew it could come back at any time. The Sisterhood at home wouldn¡¯t be very happy with the loss of the plane either, but she hoped she wouldn''t be blamed for the hydrogen accident. After all, it was through the accident that she had made contact with the local female community, instead of being captured by the man-devils of this dystopian world as she had feared. This so-called Ghost Town seemed to be part of the lost fraction of the Sisterhood that had opted to stay here in The Nation that wasn¡¯t supposed to exist anymore. The sisters here were friendly and organised, even if they were just a fringe minority in a male-dominated world without means of long-distance communication. The situation was much more complicated than anything she had expected. It¡¯s one thing to read and learn about a patriarchal dystopia, it¡¯s a completely other thing to be there, and the things she¡¯d learnt about The Nation itself in the last days had confused her, especially after talking to the Ghost Town Leader Martha herself.
And then there was that Michael-person. Sure, she knew about man-persons, and she had even seen them once or twice in her life, like that famous Afropean scientist that had once visited H¨¦vapolis university, but it was still a very weird idea to talk to one in a female outlaw colony in The Nation. She had known that if she would travel outside of H¨¦va she would very likely meet man-persons from much closer than that internationally known scientist on a stage, but still¡ In most countries on the planet man-persons and sisters were more or less equals anyway who lived together in equal numbers, so it shouldn¡¯t be much of a problem to talk to one of them. But that was all just theory for her, and as a H¨¦van sister the idea of men alone made her nervous already, and that wasn¡¯t even taking into account that she was in The Nation now and not in a modern overseas egalitarian country. This was the backwards and isolated sexist mother country that her foremothers had fled from to save their lives, because of the accursed man-devil Manfred who attempted to enslave them all and worse. Man-persons still ruled this place in an absolute way, and abused sisters here mercilessly, that fact had been affirmed by her local sisters here. And still they had accepted this young man-person as a friend, even if most sisters here still spoke of the community as if it was completely closed off to the male Nation. Why? There was something strange about it.
But there was a more important question now: how would she ever get back to H¨¦va? Lady Martha had described the technological level of this place in detail, and it didn¡¯t look good. Everything here was so primitive that even just making contact with H¨¦va seemed to be a problem. They had no cable internet to other countries, or long-distance radio transmitters. No planes or boats either, because Nationer still followed the taboos of the post-depletion times and hadn¡¯t moved on to new less destructive types of engines and energy. With old hydrogen cars, landline phones and maybe local intranet here and there she wouldn¡¯t be able to get back, would she? So it sounded like she was stuck here for now. Or would she get help from home? Would her H¨¦van sisters send a rescue mission for the lost aeroplane, and if so, would it be able to find her?
She looked outside of the window. There was something relaxing about the whole place here. She watched several Ghost Town sisters doing their daily jobs, while a flock of grey pigeons flew over the green square. It surely was a nice place here for the Ghost Town sisters, but she belonged in H¨¦va, and didn¡¯t feel like living< the rest of her life here. Her thoughts went back to home, where the square was less green, but still filled with pigeons and jackdaws, and the occasional ring-necked parakeet or European starling which she hadn¡¯t seen here yet.
She hadn¡¯t noticed anyone entering her room, but suddenly one of the nurses stood by her bed with a message.
¡®Miss Jibrilla, Eliza will be coming to talk about how we can reach your country, and communicate with it.¡¯
She had heard a lot about Eliza, who was apparently a good friend of the Michael-person and of nurse Samantha. From what she¡¯d heard she must be an expert in rare technologies and advanced robotics, and thus possibly her best chance to get out of here. They hadn¡¯t met yet, Eliza seemed to have visited here once when she had been asleep, and like nurse Samantha and the Michael-person she wasn¡¯t an actual resident of this community so she wasn¡¯t around here all the time and she was busy on a mysterious job at the moment.
¡®Oh look, here she is already.¡¯
A very young woman came in, wearing some kind of work overall that once had been orange. She had messy brown curls and light green eyes that were beaming enthusiasm, and she even bowed for her.
¡®So you¡¯re the ambassador of H¨¦va that needs to get back to her country? I¡¯m honoured to meet you. I¡¯m Eliza.¡¯
She looked at the girl. ¡®Eh, ambassador? Who said that? I suppose your country would see me more as a spy. And I¡¯m just the survivor of an aeroplane accident.¡¯
The eyes of Eliza lit up even more. ¡®A spy? I love espionage. So you¡¯re spying on our mad country for the women-only country of H¨¦va? Seen anything worthy of reporting to your Sisterhood here yet?¡¯
Jibrilla sighed. ¡®Me and my now-dead sisters were just doing a trial flight with the new stealth aeroplane when it crashed. It wasn¡¯t really much more than that, we just had to try it out, and find out more about The Nation too. And it didn¡¯t end well.¡¯
Eliza nodded. ¡®I just had a look at what remains of your little UFO that they brought into the workshop. It must have had a very advanced Hydrogen-motor, but it seems something went wrong with the battery?¡¯
Jibrilla nodded. ¡®We suddenly had empty accu, while we were above the city here. It was an experimental one. The pilot wanted to reach the fields to land but we didn¡¯t even get there and then the hydrogen motor caught on fire. I had enough reflexes to use the ejection seat, but it seems my sisters were too late. I don¡¯t know what happened then, I only remember waking up here in your little hospital. They told me I was the only survivor and that they had found me up in a tree.¡¯
Eliza nodded. Everyone knew what an exploding hydrogen motor meant.
¡®You were lucky that the followers of the Central Computer don¡¯t bother much with actually defending our country against outsiders, after more than a century of isolation they¡¯ve become quite lax. Otherwise they might have shot you straight out of the sky. But now they just play silly military games to occupy themselves, without ever looking out for outsiders.¡¯
¡®Are they really so aggressive then?¡¯
Eliza shrugged. ¡®Shoot first, ask questions later. Don¡¯t think too much. A Real Man doesn¡¯t ask questions, he just obeys commands I guess, no matter how stupid or destructive they are. That gets drilled into them every school day. Be a Man!¡¯ She did the gesture of the pledge before the flag, but Jibrilla didn¡¯t get the reference.
¡®But you¡¯re not a full time member of this Ghost community they said. You live in The Male Nation. How do you tolerate living among man-persons? The info-vids tell us every time again how horrible they were, and how happy we are to not have them anymore in our country. And you just shrug their destructive violence away as children¡¯s games.¡¯
Eliza shrugged ¡®They are mostly just brainwashed, just like we girls are in Wife School. And I don¡¯t doubt your info-vids are just another version of that. But the worst of the brainwashers in Wife School was a woman, Miss Hunter of the please-your-husband classes. Most of the men I¡¯ve met were just clueless, and some were quite nice actually. Old Greystone was more robot in a way than an actual robot even. But if you train them up properly they can be decent human beings, like our little Loverboy. He might be a bit depressed, but he¡¯s good company, don¡¯t you think?¡¯
Now Jibrilla was completely confused.
¡®What Loverboy? The Michael-person? He¡¯s your life-sharer? Is he the man who chose you in the Wife School like an item from a catalogue? I heard about those barbaric customs.¡¯
Eliza nodded no. ¡®Ah, eh, no. Not mine, and there¡¯s no life-sharing like that going on I¡¯m afraid. He¡¯s just a friendship-sharer, and a good one at that too. He chose my best friend when we were still in school, and he¡¯s not really anyone¡¯s lover anymore now, since she got kicked out of Wife School with me. It¡¯s just a nickname we use to tease him.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¯ An awkward silence fell. Jibrilla wasn¡¯t really accustomed to the idea of playful banter between the sexes, and Eliza was focused on something else anyway.
¡®But I wasn¡¯t here to talk about men, was I? I¡¯m not an expert in them at all either I¡¯m afraid, just a friend of all good people regardless of sex and eh, nationality or something like that. And they asked me to help you find a way to contact your homeland and get you back to H¨¦va.¡¯
¡®How would that be possible, you don¡¯t have radio phonewaves in this country.¡¯
¡®With some imagination everything is possible, Sister Jibrilla. We may not use them right now, but they certainly were used in the past. The remains of the H¨¦van transmitter from your aeroplane have been found. It¡¯s blown out of the cockpit by the explosion and damaged, but we might be able to repair it, even though we¡¯ll probably need to find a new power source for it, but I have carte blanche from the Ghost Town leadership to try anything, and even ask assistance of the other Ghost Towns when need. They have a collection of old radios in Third City that I¡¯ve always been wanting to check out. Plus some instructions from you would be more helpful I think, you¡¯re the outsider from a technically more advanced place anyway. But if we can repair it, it should help us, not? Doesn¡¯t it have an automatical connection to your home base?¡¯
Jibrilla nodded ¡®It does, but the reception here was quite bad, even though it still worked. And without the accu it won¡¯t do anything at all.¡¯
¡®We¡¯ll have one made if that¡¯s the only problem. I suppose the specifications cannot be so hard to find.¡¯
¡®You really want to do that?¡¯
¡®Lady Martha has asked me so, and it¡¯s a fun project, so why not? I like a challenge like that, you¡¯ll only have to wait a few days I¡¯m afraid. We first need a perfect Shirley before Thursday for the escape, but after that I¡¯ll focus on this project. It¡¯s a busy time for an unemployed poor non-Wife like me I¡¯m afraid¡¡¯ She winked.
Jibrilla didn¡¯t know how to answer, but it seemed that no answer was expected, because Eliza looked at her watch and said ¡®oops, time to get going, Michael was going to come look at the progress with the robot. I¡¯ll see you later, Jibrilla!¡¯ and she was gone as suddenly as she had arrived.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.
*
¡®Hello, young man Michael.¡¯ Lady Martha said when she saw Michael strolling towards the queue for the sales of vegetables from the Ghost Town farm almost two hours later.
¡®Hello, Lady Martha,¡¯ he said and bowed.
¡®You seem to have adapted to being here in no time. Did you come to our community today just for vegetables? Is the food in Seventh City so bad?¡¯
¡®Ah, no, Lady Martha. I was here to look at the make-over Eliza has given my robot for the escape mission, and I¡¯ve visited Sam and the H¨¦van visitor in the hospital. Eliza is going to build a radio to reach them when the robot project is finished.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, the Wife School escape. I¡¯ve seen many Wife School escapes in my life and I must say this is a rather unique one, and she didn¡¯t even get out yet. I think it will be a story that will be told over and over in our Ghost Towns for years.¡¯
Michael nodded. He hadn¡¯t realised that there must have been a lot of escapes from Wife Schools already, and that a lot of the female outlaws must have had such a story themselves.
¡®So usually they just run away?¡¯
¡®If they can. Not all girls have a network of friends like Eliza, so they¡¯re happy to just get to here unseen. But with Eliza¡¯s plan they can buy her some time, and for once the predator will be punished, thanks to your robot. That usually doesn¡¯t happen either.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s all coincidence, really. I never asked for that creepy thing anyway. And without Eliza no-one would even know of the pre-Nation programs.¡¯
¡®Yes, everything around her is unusual. You¡¯ve surely picked out a special friend in that Wife School ceremony I must say.¡¯
¡®I didn¡¯t even pick her. I knew her already from a forbidden one-day friendship when we were five, but at that day she just looked so angry at anything male that I chose Megan next to her. Her eyes said ¡°help me!¡±. I can¡¯t blame either of them, that whole ceremony thing is really horrible.¡¯
Lady Martha smiled. ¡®I¡¯d never think I¡¯d ever hear that confirmed from the male side.¡¯
¡®Just imagine you¡¯re a Gamma boy, a shy and awkward boy who never could live up to the ¡®Be a Man!¡¯ thing. You¡¯ve never even talked to a girl in your whole life, and then you are forced to pick a Wife from a line of bikini-clad girls, as if that is any indication of anything. And all you know is that you will get a Wife, and she will make you happy, at least that¡¯s what they¡¯ve told you. It¡¯s all a bunch of rotten lies, really.¡¯
¡®And now you have a friend to help with the escape? A male one I mean? Eliza asked for a permit for another boy?¡¯
¡®She wanted a fake fianc¨¦e. I hope poor Robert isn¡¯t going to regret it.¡¯
¡®If you vouch for him, we¡¯ll let him in. He just needs a Free Person badge and we¡¯ll ask him to say the pledge. I suppose he knows the consequences for breaking the vow.¡¯
¡®I think he¡¯s afraid of more than that. You know how afraid boys are of Ghost Town magic and being fed to the panthers and stuff like that.¡¯
¡®Oh dear¡ There¡¯s no panthers in this area, maybe a pack of dogyotes but they¡¯re usually shy. The male side has weird fantasies.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t tell me that you don¡¯t use those to keep your communities safe.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re not wrong. It¡¯s a good defence when people are afraid of you for mysterious reasons. But you know that in truth we will always use as little violence as needed, even for self-defence. Sure, every woman here gets a lot of lessons in self defence. We need it, and even in Wife School they usually give it to the girls that want it, but our teachers are a lot better. Our techniques are always aimed at using the attacks of the opponent against them, and in being unexpected.¡¯
Michael nodded. ¡®And then we have our mysterious magic indeed, but I think Samantha has already shown you how it works.¡¯ He nodded again, more nervous now.
¡®Don¡¯t be afraid. We can¡¯t keep those things secret to you forever, you know¡ And to be honest, I personally would trust you more with our secrets than Samantha.¡¯
She took her weapon out of her pocket.
¡®He looked at the tiny green gun-like weapon that looked like a toy. ¡®These stunners are loaded with anaesthetic needles and they can take a person out for ten to fifteen hours. Time enough to take away all their weapons and relocate them to a faraway location where they can wake up in peace and quietness.¡¯
¡®That sounds like you actually regularly use them like that?¡¯ ¡®Not so often. But sometimes men attack our members when outside, or come too close to our members. Little groups of low-rated drunks try to enter the main entrance sometimes, and once we had a whole clan of feral men here. Usually we just leave them all alone in the wilderness, without any weapons, dressed in a green gown, that¡¯s a bit of a Ghost Town tradition.¡¯
He looked at the little weapon in his hand and listened, because this was the part that he had never heard confirmed before, and that had led to a lot of weird myths in the male society.
¡®And then?¡¯
¡®Well, they just wake up and have to find their way back through nature, and they will have learnt their lesson. Plus it creates myths and keeps people away. Most low-ranked men and ferals are mortally afraid of Ghost Towns, in a superstitious way. As if we¡¯re all witches with dark powers. We rarely have to do it.¡¯
¡®Ah, but my brother once told me about a Ghost Town that was taken over by feral men.¡¯
¡®Yes, such a thing happened once, near Tenth City. The women could escape, but they couldn¡¯t stop them from taking over temporarily because they didn¡¯t have enough stunners at that time. The ferals were a mad and violent lot. But usually our communities are able to ward off such attacks. And Tenth City Ghost Town was reconquered easily with more stunners and help from other Ghost Towns. They had to do a lot of repair work though. And now we are armed by default, just in case.¡¯
¡®So everyone here wears a little stun gun like that?¡¯
¡®Basically, yes, especially if we have to go outside, but you won¡¯t notice if you don¡¯t know it. And we count on outsiders not knowing. It keeps us safer, and it helps them create weird stories about our power¡ So we count on you¡¡¯
¡®I won¡¯t say anything.¡¯ He said.
¡®By the way, since you¡¯ve met our latest guest too. What did you as a man think of her?¡¯
¡®Jibrilla the H¨¦van? I visited her earlier today. She did her best to not be too appalled by me as a man in the beginning, but when we started talking she lost her fear for a man I think. I had never heard of H¨¦va, or those other countries that she mentions. Like the Afropean Union I mean.¡¯
¡®Oh, we know that they exist, in theory, but there hasn¡¯t been any communication in a long time. Not even with H¨¦va, they are our sisters as they would say, but the Ghost Town movement went another way when they left The Nation for Santa Muerta Island to start their own nation. We had some, eh, philosophical differences.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve noticed such things.¡¯
¡®Did the boy want to buy vegetables? I¡¯m closing my shop for today!¡¯ a woman suddenly yelled.
¡®Oh, I almost forgot.¡¯ He said.
¡®I won¡¯t keep you occupied any longer, Mr. Michaels,¡¯ she said, ¡®and success with the escape mission later this week.¡¯ He nodded and hasted himself to the vegetables.
*
Jenny, the assistant of Lady Martha, walked into the Ghost Town bar later in the afternoon, looking for one of the younger members of the community, which she found at the counter. Tracy did many little jobs, usually in the farm or in the bar, but today was her day off and she was a customer herself, talking to her colleague in an almost empty bar while the radio was playing 20th century music.
¡®Hi Jenny,¡¯ she said when she saw the second most important woman of the Ghost Town walk up to her.
¡®Hi Tracy, I need to speak to you. I have news for you. The next Wife School escape is tomorrow, and that means that you¡¯ll get a roommate. She¡¯s named Shirley!¡¯
¡®Another girl! Yay! But if you know beforehand, is it a planned escape then? How is that even possible?¡¯
¡®Yes, it¡¯s a rather complicated operation involving a robot lookalike, and a fake fianc¨¦ boy if I understood the story well. It¡¯s an Eliza plot.¡¯
¡®Oh. I heard a lot about her. She¡¯s been making the printer and stuff like that. And, oh, she has a boy friend who has been deleted that has been here they say. Is she bringing him too?¡¯
¡®He was here earlier today. I don¡¯t know if he himself is coming, but he¡¯s involved, and another boy too.¡¯
¡®Now that¡¯s a story that I want to hear more about. When is she coming?¡¯
¡®Tomorrow evening. It¡¯s just been confirmed. She leaves after the last Wife School class.¡¯
¡®Ah. Right from class, and with a fake fianc¨¦ boy? Using a man to escape another man? Is that wise? Aren¡¯t men dangerous?¡¯
¡®Most are, but not all of them. Michael is a good person, and he¡¯s on our side. The poor boy is a victim of the male world as much as we are. I don¡¯t know about the other boy involved, but there¡¯s a permit for a second male person to enter our community if he wears the Free Person badge and affirms the pledge. Mildred isn¡¯t happy about that.¡¯
¡®When is that old witches¡¯ hat ever happy about anything? She even was against our 20st century music nights because some of the songs had male singers. She¡¯s silly and old fashioned.¡¯
Jenny smiled. ¡®Shht. Don¡¯t say that out loud please. But I have to go on with my tour now. Could you maybe make the second bedroom ready for a roommate and clean things up a bit? I¡¯ll let you know when we have more details.¡¯
When Jenny had finished her drink she went home to her two-bedroom apartment. She picked up an old radio device and skipped on an ancient LCD screen to find the ancient music she was looking for, and put it on very loud before she started removing her own stuff from the second bedroom, and cleaning it up. She was excited for her new roommate, and the idea of meeting a boy helping her with the Wife School escape gave her a weird feeling that she didn¡¯t recognise.
A man that had probably been dead for more than 600 years now was singing a song about love while playing some kind of primitive guitar instrument. She¡¯d always been confused about how men were so evil today, and yet might not have been evil in other times. The idea of Lady Martha approving friendship with a boy completely confused her. She¡¯d never be as wild as that Eliza girl, and she¡¯d always thought until a few days ago that she¡¯d have to live in a female-only world for all of her life. But if there were safe boys who could be friends in The Nation, she wanted to meet one.
2.19 Shirleys Great Escape part 1
The next afternoon, around the time classes ended in Seventh City Wife School, Robert stood in the little park, under the European oak. He¡¯d told his parents he was going to study with friends, and they hadn¡¯t cared where he was going but he still felt nervous about what he was going to do. It was only a few minutes later that Michael arrived, with something that almost looked like a young woman in a blue dress next to him.
¡®Hi Michael, hi, eh¡¡¯
He stopped mid-sentence, and the robot picked up on the conversation. ¡®Hi, I am Shirley. You must be Robert. I am a Wife School student. I am looking forward to going on a date with my fianc¨¦ tomorrow. Pleased to meet you.¡¯
¡®Eh, yeah, that too.¡¯ Robert said, ignoring the robot.
It looked superficially like Shirley, but even he, who had just seen her once, wouldn¡¯t confuse this thing for her, and if you looked good enough you saw she wasn¡¯t human, and it also seemed a few centimetres longer than the actual girl. But overall it was an almost perfect mimicry of an actual human, he had to admit that.
¡®Wow, the make-over is really good, almost her. But still. How do they think this is ever going to work.¡¯
¡®You¡¯ll have to ask Eliza. She¡¯s the one who made the plans and everything. She said it will work.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Where is she anyway? Shouldn¡¯t she be with the robot now?¡¯
¡®She¡¯s there already for what she calls espionage and administrative preparations. Forging some documents I think to make the date go smoothly tomorrow. She was always able to choose beforehand who the chaperone was on Megan¡¯s dates too, remember? Usually her, except that one day when it was Shirley.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯
¡®So we have to walk, eh, Shirley number two here to the SCWF ourselves and then walk the real one to the Ghost Town.¡¯
¡®Yes, we go to a backdoor that¡¯s usually used only by the cleaning team, which should be unguarded at this moment. Eliza and real Shirley will wait there for us.¡¯
¡®Ah, eh, ok.¡¯
He still looked uneasily at the robot.
¡®And that means you¡¯re Shirley number two¡¯s stand-in date now, bringing her back to the SCWF after an afternoon together, should anyone ask anything before we arrive. And then we exchange her for the real stuff for the rest of your date, and you casually walk the real one to the Ghost Town. I and Eliza will follow with the baggage discreetly.¡¯
¡®Oh dear. No-one said that I actually had to date a girl today.¡¯
Robert looked a bit pale.
¡®Don¡¯t be needlessly afraid of words. It just means to hang around with her and have some fun. It¡¯s just a walk with Shirley. No-one¡¯s asking you to marry Eliza or so.¡¯
Robert seemed to find that a horrifying idea, but said nothing.
¡®That was a joke, Eliza never wants to marry anyone. And Shirley will be unmarriable too after today I think. You¡¯re not in danger of marriage at all.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s a waste. She¡¯s actually a good girl.¡¯
The conversation went silent, and the rest of their walk to Seventh City Wife Factory was uneventful, and no-one said much except that Michael once remarked ¡®Your impression of a shy boy on a first date is perfect, Robert,¡¯ after a long silence.
¡®Go make some fun of yourself, dude. I¡¯m not used to girls and robo-women like you are. This robot is the third woman, not my mother, that I ever talked to.¡¯
¡®You forget you talked to Megan and even Samantha too. And you walked up to Eliza all by myself to find me. Which is rather brave. She¡¯s extremely bad at making first impressions.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve noticed that,¡¯ Robert said, and everything went silent again.
Fifteen minutes later they arrived at the small entrance at the back of the creepy SCMF building. Michael did a weird knock, and Eliza promptly appeared together with three other girls, which made Robert nervous. One of them was Shirley, in a similar blue dress as her lookalike, which also was very much like the one Megan had worn on most of the dates she¡¯d had with Michael.
¡®Ah, here we have our main actor of project Shirley swap. Hi, this here is Anabelle and this is Iris. So we have the robot now, and the rated Delta-male, Good! Time to execute the actual plan!¡¯
¡®He has a name, Eliza,¡¯ Michael said.
Eliza sighed. ¡®Hi, Robert. Thank you for coming, and my apologies if I¡¯ve not always been nice to you. I¡¯m still working on being friendly to boys. But if we¡¯re going to do names, Annabelle here is the main black market and Pen pal contact for the school, a fine C-girl.¡¯
She pointed at a red-headed girl with a C-badge, and then at a dark-faced girl with long straight black hair and an E-badge.
¡®And this is Iris, my former classmate and the main actor for tomorrow. She will take care of our Shirley-bot until the boy takes her on their date, and she¡¯s the chaperone too. Now, for the plan for today.¡¯
She unfolded a paper to show it to Shirley, Robert and Michael.
¡®Here¡¯s the map with the safest route to the Ghost Town entrance. We will follow on a safe distance, Michael will be wearing the baggage. I¡¯m armed in case we run into creeps but there shouldn¡¯t be any problem.¡¯
Robert looked at her, alarmed, and took a step back. ¡®Armed? What do you mean?¡¯
Eliza winked. ¡®Pure unadulterated Ghost Town magic, my boy! The way the witches there make you fall asleep from a distance. But don¡¯t be afraid, you¡¯re on our side now, and it will only be used to defend you when needed. But first, do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯
¡®Eh, if I must.¡¯
¡®Say a clear yes, with all these girls as a witness. That¡¯s important.¡¯ Eliza insisted.
¡®Yes then.¡¯
She put a small object in his hands. ¡®Now you can wear the free person badge. Which means they¡¯ll let you in into the Ghost Town today. They¡¯ve been notified.¡¯
Robert backed off.
¡®You expect me to actually go in there? With their magic and all? In the den of the women who hate men?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t exaggerate. There¡¯s no magic, only science, and if you promise to not tell any other man about it I¡¯ll even show you how the stunning part works when we¡¯re there. Don¡¯t be afraid, big boy. They¡¯re friends to you if you¡¯re friendly.¡¯
She winked again and Robert looked away.
Shirley looked at Robert. ¡®Thank you, Robert. I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d actually do this, but I¡¯m very happy you did.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m just bad at saying no,¡¯ he muttered.
Shirley ignored him and looked behind her. ¡®So, and that was my Wife School life here. And now the robot here has a date with Dave tomorrow instead of me. Better her than me. I hope she won¡¯t do stupid things in the meantime.¡¯
¡®Anabelle and Iris will keep an eye on her. And I¡¯ve checked, the desk shift is for Sanders, not Greystone. He won¡¯t see the difference between you and a robot.¡¯
¡®Isn¡¯t Greystone that dude with no emotions?¡¯ Michael asked.
¡®Actually he¡¯s the more human one of the two. He would definitely see the difference between real Shirley and fake Shirley. Sanders really sees us as numbers and not persons, at least Greystone was interested in me enough to be affronted by me.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Greystone would notice. He listened when I complained about Dave. He even went to Miss Hunter with my complaints. But the class teacher is the one who decides those things, and Miss hunter will never contradict any taker, because the man is always right,¡¯ added Shirley, and Eliza looked at her wristwatch.
¡®It¡¯s time to go, girls.¡¯
She hugged Annabelle and Iris.
¡®I¡¯ll be back. You both know what to do. And you, Shirley two, you listen to Iris until your date with Dave. Follow the students until the date. And when you¡¯re on your date he will dump Iris and take you alone. When he does anything inappropriate, anything at all, you just use the defence mechanisms that I reactivated. Don¡¯t hold back. Dave should be able to behave as a gentleman, and if he doesn¡¯t do that, just do what you need to do. Bad men have to be punished to protect all women.¡¯
The robot saluted and did a curtsy. ¡®Yes, master Eliza. I will protect the honour of all womanhood if Dave doesn¡¯t behave like a gentleman. Can I use the lethal voltage too?¡¯
Robert turned a bit pale, but said nothing.
¡®No, keep him alive please, no casualties, that would probably be a problem,¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Come on, you two first. And try to look a bit like a Wife School couple that has ditched the chaperone and is defying the curfew. We have no girl with a Wife School badge for that role.¡¯Robert looked at Shirley, who also seemed nervous.
¡®Yeah, right, as if I¡¯d ever do that.¡¯ He said. ¡®Actually being awkward and shy works perfectly. It¡¯s not that unrealistic when you¡¯ve never talked to a girl before.¡¯ Michael said, ¡®Even boys like you will have to get a Wife School fianc¨¦e too one day.¡¯
¡®But they won¡¯t defy the curfew without a chaperone. And we¡¯re out too late now.¡¯
Everyone certainly remembered the incident that got Eliza and Michael kicked out of school.
¡®It had to be now. We only have this entrance free like this at this hour between the shifts of the cleaners. Just invent some story if anyone bothers you, you¡¯re only an extra safety measure after all. I¡¯ve heard you¡¯re a brainie, so impress us. And stuttering would be realistic too, so don¡¯t worry.¡¯ Eliza said, and Shirley giggled and grabbed his arm, taking the map.
¡®And here we go. Don¡¯t be afraid Robert, you¡¯re the only one I could imagine doing this, and I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll do great.¡¯
¡®Me? Why not Michael?¡¯ He said, with a trembling voice.
¡®He¡¯s unrated, you silly brainie. He can¡¯t do this right now. Weren¡¯t you supposed to be smart? And he¡¯s okay, but I don¡¯t want to be seen as his fake lover. He¡¯s too much for me, and it feels wrong towards Megan. Or to Eliza even, I don¡¯t know.¡¯ Shirley said.
They started walking, followed on a distance by Michael and Eliza.
¡®But why would you want me specifically?¡¯ Robert asked.
¡®You¡¯re the only boy I know apart from him. And let¡¯s relax, it¡¯s supposed to look like a date, so let¡¯s enjoy this walk and have fun. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ll see many boys at all when I live in a Ghost Town, except maybe for Loverboy probably¡¡¯ she sighed.
¡®Who the hell is Loverboy supposed to be?¡¯
¡®Ah, sorry, that¡¯s the nickname girls have for Michael.¡¯
Robert grinned. ¡®That could have been used to tease him forever if he were still in boy school¡¡¯ and then his expression changed. ¡®But he won¡¯t be back. And it was because of being out with a girl after the Wife School curfew like we are now¡¡¯
¡®That was later, and it was dark, and they were in the wrong neighbourhood. Nothing will happen now. It¡¯s day, and the route here is safer. Plus we have Eliza and her stunner behind us. She won¡¯t miss.¡¯
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.¡®Stunner?¡¯
¡®Did you really believe in witches and magic then? You as a brainie? They put you to sleep with a tiny gun-like thing with needles. I thought most people knew that. Well, on the female side that is¡ But I forget how few things boys actually know.¡¯
Robert wanted to protest. ¡®Hey, what do you know about the male world?¡¯
¡®Eh, if Miss Hunter¡¯s classes are correct I know almost everything. The organisation, what men find important, what men like, what irritates them, the complete structure of that boring Central Computer that rules the world, and old crazy sexist Manfred, everything¡¡¯
¡®Manfred isn¡¯t¡ Well, he might be.¡¯ Robert said, and then changed the subject.
¡®So, you¡¯re going to be an outlaw?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t have much choice now. Would you want to be raped and used as a trophy slave?¡¯ Robert got the chills from the matter-of-factly way she said it, and shut up for a while.
They walked from the open space between Alphaville villas to a Betaville street with impressive row houses, and then they suddenly saw the Epsilon blocks.
¡®So, you¡¯ve always lived in Wife School dorms, and now you¡¯re going to a squat house to live a manless life?¡¯ Robert asked.
¡®I have an apartment ready for me with a roommate. A girl my age who lived there since she was a child, who can show me everything. Everything will be completely different, but it doesn¡¯t sound bad. And you live in a Gammaville street with your parents?¡¯
¡®Yup, small row houses. My father¡¯s a Gamma-3 like me. He¡¯d hoped I¡¯d be a Beta like my brother, but he¡¯s happy with Gamma-3. It¡¯s not much, I know, but my family have always been mostly Gammas since the days of Manfred.¡¯
¡®Oh, I lived in a Gammaville when I was a kid. I could easily have been a C-girl if I had kept my mouth shut, maybe even B. But it didn¡¯t work out and they found me too rebellious. Not as rebellious as Megan and Eliza maybe, but the teachers found me irritating. I asked questions you know¡¡¯
¡®Ah, so you¡¯re an E because you¡¯re too smart. I already thought it had nothing to do with your looks.¡¯ Robert said, and she grabbed his arm closer.
¡®So you do find me pretty?¡¯
¡®Eh, who wouldn¡¯t?¡¯ He stuttered.
¡®A lot of people probably. I¡¯ve never found myself pretty and there¡¯s a danger in being blond as a woman, it attracts a certain kind of man that you don¡¯t want to notice you. That Dave guy would¡¯ve taken the first blond girl in line if she wouldn¡¯t have been taken already. That¡¯s why he wanted me. From a whole line of girls in bikinis.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯
¡®Yes, he just wanted a decorative blond slave to do all the housework and for you-know-what. He was very clear that he finally wanted to try out a real woman on his first date because dolls were boring, that¡¯s how he said it. And I don¡¯t even like him. He doesn¡¯t listen to a word I say. I was thinking of your accusations of manipulation last time and how I¡¯d manage any of that with him, but it would be impossible, he doesn¡¯t listen at all. Doing what he asks and staying away from him as much as possible apart from that would be the only way to cope with such a marriage. I don¡¯t want to live like that. So, to answer your earlier question, yes a manless life sounds quite good to me.¡¯
¡®But you¡¯ll have to work as a Ghost Town member. A Wife doesn¡¯t have to work.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re quite stupid for a brainie, do you know that. No-one works harder than a housewife, except when you have a maidbot, but husbands of E-wives can¡¯t afford those. It¡¯s just that no-one ever pays you or even notices that you¡¯re working all the time. And if I get a Ghost Town job they might not pay me Nation money, but I will have wages and a place to live and good fresh food and everything I want. Without that silly Alpha to Epsilon divide even. Just a human living in peace with other humans¡ Sounds so much better to me.¡¯
¡®With other female humans only¡¡¯ Robert said.
¡®Oh, but with all respect to you, that is part of what makes it a good life. Maybe a visit from you or Michael would be possible, but men in general would definitely ruin it, don¡¯t you see that?¡¯
Robert didn¡¯t answer, but grabbed her arm tighter. ¡®Act normal, there¡¯s a police agent,¡¯ he suddenly whispered.
¡®You¡¯re the man here, you should look like you know what your plan with me is. Eliza might have called it a date, but technically that¡¯s usually just the girl being bossed around by the boy here in this country, so act your part and look confident. You can do it!¡¯
Nervously they walked past the police officer, who was just standing on a street corner absently. Just for a moment he frowned when he saw Robert with Shirley, but Robert gave him a forced grin and a thumbs up and the policeman winked and looked at something else again.
Their hearts beat like crazy, and when he was out of sight she said ¡®so, that¡¯s why we needed the rated male. Everyone sees I¡¯m not a non-Wife and a runaway Wife School student alone can get into lots of trouble. People seem to pick them out easily.¡¯
¡®And Michael?¡¯
¡®Oh, don¡¯t worry, unrated men and non-Wives are not interesting enough for a copper. They are also picked out easily, don¡¯t ask me how.¡¯
¡®So, how long do we have to walk this way?¡¯
¡®We have to pass that big shopping street and then there¡¯ll be mostly Zerovilles and abandoned neighbourhoods before we arrive at the Ghost Town itself.
*
Behind them Eliza looked at them and gave Michael a poke.
¡®Aren¡¯t they cute together?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s strange that he¡¯s able to do this. He¡¯s usually afraid of women. But he had already tried to write to her so he must have overcome his fear of that one already a bit.¡¯
¡®No-one can be afraid of Shirley once they get to know her. And after Megan she¡¯s the most attractive woman on the planet.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re biassed and not actually attracted to women¡ But it seems that your plan worked by the way, they haven¡¯t been stopped by any passers-by and they passed the police officer without a problem.¡¯
¡®My plans always work. Oops. He shouldn¡¯t be here though.¡¯ She pointed at another boy who came out of the big shopping street.
¡®Oops indeed, Rafael. Their rehearsed story won¡¯t work on them. I wonder how they¡¯re going to react.¡¯
*
Rafael stared at the weird couple that stood in front of him, and seemed frozen on the spot. ¡®Robert, what on Earth is going on here?¡¯
¡®Eh, I can explain, it¡¯s, eh¡¡¯
¡®Did you get a Wife School fianc¨¦e too without telling anyone?¡¯
Shirley looked at him questioningly but it was Robert who answered
¡®Eh, no. And don¡¯t tell anyone that you¡¯ve seen us. Eh, Rafael, This here is Shirley, she needed a rated male for something and eh, Michael and Eliza convinced me¡¡¯
¡®Michael and Eliza? But he was deleted? There¡¯s no way to reach him, I¡¯ve tried. So he¡¯s still in contact with those girls?¡¯
¡®As a matter of fact, they¡¯re both following us. So if you want to talk to him just do. We¡¯re just having a walk incognito¡ I¡¯ll tell you later.¡¯
Rafael looked suspiciously. ¡®Casually having a walk with a Wife School student dressed up for a date, but she¡¯s not your fianc¨¦e, and you¡¯re followed by a deleted boy and, well, Eliza herself? What is this?¡¯
¡®You know Eliza?¡¯ Shirley asked.
Rafael sighed. ¡®If you want to call it that¡ I think we¡¯re more or less on good terms now. Haven¡¯t seen her since Michael¡¯s disappearance though. So what are you all up to?¡¯
Shirley shrugged. ¡®Oh, nothing, just a little stroll of no return to the Ghost Town with a fake fianc¨¦e to escape sexual assault from my future husband? Wanna join us? The more strong and rated young men the better if we run into the wrong people¡ We¡¯ll still have to pass a zeroville street after all.¡¯ Rafael stopped.
¡®Robert, you¡¯re doing a Wife School escape? You? I thought you didn¡¯t even like women?¡¯
Shirley giggled. ¡®Oh, he likes me, don¡¯t you, big courageous boy?¡¯
She touched his nose playfully with her finger and he let go of her arm.
¡®I never said I don¡¯t like girls, just that marriage is bad for men. And in her case, for women too. It¡¯s just that most women scare me.¡¯
¡®And then you bring her straight to a Ghost Town? Isn¡¯t that more dangerous even? A den of man-haters?¡¯
¡®Ah, well, Eliza made sure they¡¯ll let me in. Not completely looking forward to that to be honest, but I only knew that after I said yes.¡¯
¡®Come on, it¡¯s a unique experience for a schoolboy. Something to learn from, are you a brainie or not?¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®I¡¯m a coward and I¡¯m shy¡¡¯
Shirley grabbed his arm again ¡®Come on, we¡¯re having fun on our little date, aren¡¯t we? Can¡¯t we just finish this together?¡¯
¡®How can I say no? Come, let¡¯s go. The rest of the way is Zerovilles and abandoned places from here on. Are you joining us, Rafael?¡¯ Rafael looked nervously around.¡¯
¡®Eh, I think I¡¯m going to join Michael, I haven¡¯t seen him since the incident, if you don¡¯t mind.¡¯
¡®Okay, maybe we¡¯ll see each other later. I have to go on with my fake date.¡¯ He said, and Shirley pulled him by his arm.
They proceeded in the direction of the Zeroville blocks on the edge of Seventh City which looked even worse than the one Michael lived in. Everything here was overgrown with ugly weeds and unhealthy-looking vines, and it was clear that no-one ever put any effort in landscaping here.
Luckily they didn¡¯t meet anyone here, except for a scruffy one-eyed dog that ran away when they came too close.
¡®So that¡¯s a Zeroville? And Michael lives in a place like this? Poor boy,¡¯ Shirley said.
Robert looked around. ¡®His place is in the middle of the City, it looks much better than this one. No weeds, only garbage and graffiti here and there. But it¡¯s a Zeroville block too indeed.
¡¯ ¡®He deserves better.¡¯ She said.
¡®Well, it¡¯s better than going feral I¡¯d say. Outlaw women may live in well-organised Ghost Town communities, feral men only unorganised aggressive gangs. He¡¯d never survive those. And they are hunted even these days.¡¯
Shirley stopped. ¡®Hunted? What?¡¯
¡®Never heard of the hunter movement? It¡¯s mostly Alphas with guns who are frustrated about Manfreds measures to keep nature alive. The biggest thing they can legally hunt are Nile ducks and Canadian geese, but they want to shoot deer and wild goats or even panthers, but Manfred said no to that. And now they hunt outlaw gangs of thieves and robbers. The police even back them in that, for them unrated lives are worth nothing. But don¡¯t bother. Ghost Towns are extremely protected. You¡¯ll be safe as a woman outlaw.¡¯
He could feel Shirley shiver. ¡®How can they hunt humans?¡¯
Robert shrugged. ¡®When you don¡¯t believe they¡¯re actually human I think. This is a Nation of distances after all. Men don¡¯t see women as human, women don¡¯t see men as human, Alphas don¡¯t speak to Gammas and so on. And those outside the system are even worse off.¡¯
¡®Wow, you¡¯ve improved a lot since last time. Are the conspiracy theories out of the door?¡¯
¡®Eh, I still think there¡¯s women who will manipulate men in marriage, but you may be right that they don¡¯t have a chance. It doesn¡¯t have to be a fight if we don¡¯t want it to, I guess¡ I mean, I¡¯m going to walk into a Ghost Town today and I¡¯m supposed to get out unharmed.¡¯
He sighed when he saw the big walls with thorn-hedges that surrounded Seventh City Ghost Town in the distance.
2.20 Shirleys Great Escape part 2
Robert¡¯s heart raced like crazy when they reached Seventh City Ghost Town.
¡®We need to take the small path to the actual entrance, the one that looks like one is a fake one that¡¯s defended but never opened. There¡¯s another entrance for vehicles too.¡¯ Shirley said, looking at her map and instructions.
¡®Wow.¡¯ Robert looked at the closed gate at the end of the street, on top of which he could see a guard in a lookout structure. ¡®Let¡¯s slow down and wait for the others,¡¯ he said, looking behind him where Michael, Eliza and even Rafael were catching up on them.
¡®So, afraid of going in, big boy? I¡¯m certain the guards have seen you already.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Stop it, Eliza, he was just waiting for you, and for my stuff. You could drop the meanness.¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®Hey, I¡¯m just teasing.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re mean to him. He¡¯s done you nothing, and you keep on being like that. While he completely stepped out of his comfort zone to help me. How would you feel before the den of a feral men gang?¡¯
Robert looked from Shirley to Eliza.
¡®Okay, I said I¡¯m still learning to be nice to boys. It doesn¡¯t come that easy. But let¡¯s go back to business. Jenny should be waiting on the other side of the door, and she¡¯ll show you your apartment. Robert, would you like to help Shirley with her stuff? Michael and Rafael have some things to talk through.¡¯
¡®No-one has let me in yet. I¡¯m still a boy standing in front of a female-only outlaw community that hasn¡¯t let any men in since the days of Manfred except for, eh, Loverboy here, who seems to be as popular with women nowadays as he is unpopular with men. And I am a rated boy.¡¯
Michael stared at his friend, and Eliza started laughing.
¡®Don¡¯t be dramatic, Robert. I know it¡¯s all a bit much for you today, but I never give empty promises. And you¡¯re wearing two badges, remember.¡¯
She knocked at a weathered wooden panel in the wall where there was no ivy, in which promptly a door was opened, and the face of a woman appeared.
¡®Good evening Eliza and Michael. And you must be Shirley. Oh, you¡¯ve brought two more boys instead of one?¡¯ Jenny looked from Rafael to Robert.
¡®Eh, this is Jenny, both administrative brain of Seventh City Ghost Town and assistant of Lady Martha. And this is our fake fianc¨¦e Robert, and Rafael is a friend we¡¯ve picked up along the way who needed to talk with Michael. He¡¯s safe.¡¯
¡®I trust you on that, but I don¡¯t think our community is ready for the presence of so many males at the same time at this point.¡¯
¡®Oh, I don¡¯t have to come in, Lady Jenny. I was just talking to Michael. I haven¡¯t seen him since before he was deleted.¡¯ Rafael said, slightly nervous.
Robert looked at her, but said nothing. ¡®But Robert can bring in my stuff while they talk, can he?¡¯ Shirley said decisively.
Jenny looked at the Free Person badge on Robert¡¯s chest. ¡®Yes, Lady Martha has agreed on that already. So, Robert, do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯
¡®I do¡¯ he said.
He found that it almost sounded like a marriage vow.
¡®Okay, you can enter. But remember that if you ever break the pledge, you¡¯ll never enter any Ghost Town again. And you¡¯ll be branded as an enemy of all women for the rest of your life.¡¯
Robert swallowed.
¡®But if Eliza trusts you, we will trust you too. You don¡¯t have to be nervous, young man. Come, follow me. And Eliza, they expect you in the printing room. You had said you¡¯d do some repairs and some things need to be printed. You seem to have forgotten that with all the robot and radio projects.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes. I forgot. Michael, see you later. Shirley, I¡¯ll join you later. Robert, thank you, and sorry for my attitude. Rafael, bye!¡¯
She disappeared in the door in the wall while Shirley said goodbye to the two other boys.
Robert took the baggage and walked into the door, followed by Jenny and Shirley. Everything seemed to happen in slow-motion. Whatever he had expected to see, this wasn¡¯t it. He saw a green village full of buildings of all kinds. Everything was well cared for, and well-structured. Jenny turned to Shirley.
¡®Welcome in Seventh City Ghost Town, Shirley. As you probably cut ties with your father by coming to live here, we¡¯ll call you by your selfname here, which would be Shirley Shirleys.¡¯
¡®Oh no. I don¡¯t want that name anymore. Can I choose another first name too?¡¯
¡®If you want. Breaking with your past is a painful thing, and you can take the time to think of what you want to do and want to be.¡¯
¡®Can I change my hair too? I never want to be blond again. Ever! I don¡¯t want to be anything that is attractive to Dave, or to any man at all. Let all their eyeballs and testicles and all the rest rot in the hells of all possible religions!¡¯
¡®Hair can be cut and coloured however you want. Your life will be completely yours here. You¡¯ll only have to do some work to contribute to the community,¡¯ Jenny said.
¡®I know I¡¯ll have to work. But it¡¯ll be my own work, not free slavery work for a lazy man who owns me.¡¯
¡®No man will ever be able to claim you for Marriage here. You¡¯re free now. I would normally say completely free from men now¡¡¯ She looked at Robert. ¡®¡but we¡¯re less strict on them nowadays, and it¡¯s possible that one day there even will be mixed couples here. As Lady Martha says, even men are human and maybe one in hundred will be a good person, and we can¡¯t reasonably exclude a good person. But be assured, any unsafe man that comes close to this place will be put to sleep, and left in the wilderness just wearing a green robe with nothing else on him, and possibly even marked, as a warning for all of us to not trust him again.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re scaring Robert, Lady Jenny. It took a lot of courage for him already to do this today. He shouldn¡¯t be punished for that.¡¯
¡®Just say Jenny. And he has no reason to be scared. And we don¡¯t really discriminate here. We would do the same with a woman if she goes too far.¡¯
¡®Does that happen often then?¡¯
¡®Well, a few years ago we had a drunk woman who became aggressive, and we left her in a green robe faraway in the forest like we do with the occasional man that tries to attack this place. She later went on to live in another Ghost Town and I don¡¯t think she ever behaved like that again¡¡¯
¡®And the men? Do they come back alive?¡¯
¡®Who knows? They won¡¯t tell us. And look, here we are.¡¯
Jenny stopped at one of the higher buildings.
¡®Tracy should be awaiting you on the third floor. Do you want to use the stairs or the mechanical elevator?¡¯
¡®The elevator, please, Miss Jenny.¡¯ Said Robert, slightly out of breath.
¡®Robert, dear boy. You could have asked for help too. I thought you were asked to help to get her to here safely, not to just be her carrier boy. We¡¯ve always managed that without men, you know.¡¯
¡®I think it¡¯s sweet of him, and he just took over from Michael who brought it to the gate here. Thank you Robert, I¡¯ll take it from here. You have been a great help, and I¡¯m quite surprised you even went in here.¡¯
¡®I haven¡¯t been abused. I just said that I would do it. Maybe there¡¯s a lot of things about Be a Man that is toxic, but keeping promises isn¡¯t one of them. Neither is helping people, including women.¡¯
¡®Come, we take the elevator, so I can show you how it works.¡¯ Jenny said, leading them to an ancient lift.
When they arrived on the third floor the saw a door decorated with painted flowers. Jenny knocked and a girl opened the door, and stared at the trio.
¡®So, eh, everybody. Tracy, this is Shirley, and Robert has come with her. Shirley, this is Tracy. She¡¯s going to be your roommate like I told you yesterday.¡¯
Tracy was about Shirley¡¯s age, had a dark face brown eyes and tiny curls, and stared at Robert.
¡®Robert has been helping her.¡¯ Jenny said apologetically.
¡®You actually brought a real boy? Jenny here said you might do so. I¡¯ve never seen one here before. Isn¡¯t he dangerous?¡¯
Robert froze.
¡®Tracy, behave yourself. He¡¯s a Free Person, not an exotic pet.¡¯ Jenny said.
¡®I¡¯m just surprised. I¡¯ve never seen one before. He doesn¡¯t look dangerous. Where did you meet him? How did you get him to work for you?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s a friend of Michael, who was my friend¡¯s Wife School fianc¨¦e, and I met him when I was the chaperone. He was so unlike anything I knew about men that day, and so afraid¡¡¯
¡®Come girls. You can talk later. I think Robert wants to get back and maybe you can meet him another time.¡¯ Jenny said tactfully.
¡®Oh Sure, Miss Jenny.¡¯ Tracy said.
¡®Put your stuff there, Shirley. I have other work to do. Will you find the entrance back, Robert.¡¯
¡®Oh, eh, yes Miss Jenny¡¯ he said, a bit overwhelmed.
He could hear Tracy whisper. ¡®I never realised men could be cute. I thought they would be scary.¡¯
¡®Eh, Shirley, bye?¡¯ He said.
¡®Don¡¯t be so shy, I¡¯ll help you get out of this building. See you in a few minutes, Tracy.¡¯ Shirley said, and she took his hand and dragged him out of the room and back into the elevator before he could say something.
When they arrived in the great hall on ground level she turned to Robert, took his hand, and looked in his eyes.
¡®What is it?¡¯ He said.
¡®Thank you, Robert! For everything.¡¯ she said, and suddenly hugged him.
¡®I didn¡¯t do much.¡¯ He said.
¡®You were there, and you didn¡¯t do anything bad indeed. You¡¯re a good person, for a boy.¡¯ She said, and looked him in the eyes. ¡®You were safe.¡¯
She looked him in his eyes again, and suddenly she kissed him full on his lips.
¡®Thank you for everything!¡¯
Robert looked at her, touching his lips in disbelief.
¡®What are we doing? What has just happened?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Well, if you hadn¡¯t been here today, tomorrow the Dave would have done with me whatever he wanted, and afterwards claimed me as his slave in his house forever. No matter if he¡¯d called it marriage it would have been that. And now I¡¯m free. Free from being forced to ¡°love¡± anyone. And I¡¯ve crossed every line now.¡¯
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.¡®Eh?¡¯ Robert stared at her again, unclear about what she meant.
¡®To make things worse, I ran off with another boy on a date. And now that I¡¯ve kissed you I¡¯m certainly damaged goods, and not Wife material anymore. I¡¯d get a ¡®probably not a virgin¡¯ stamp in my dossier if I still had one.¡¯
¡®Wait. Are you serious? For something like this? We didn¡¯t¡¡¯
¡®Yes, Technically I was probably being very adulterous already by walking around with you like that. And now even more. I¡¯m very bad Wife material now. And ultimately I¡¯m completely safe here from men who want to take advantage of that.¡¯
¡®Wow. All of this is so weird.¡¯
She booped his nose, playfully, to lighten the mood.
¡®Boop! But now that I escaped all of that that and am going to live in a completely new world, why not just have a first kiss with a guy that I like? I mean¡ Few girls ever have a chance to do something like that in this country you know.¡¯
¡®You only know two boys, or three now with Rafael.¡¯
¡®Yeah, I¡¯m a bit biassed in liking the first one I connected too much¡ Or you¡¯re just very likeable for a boy. Plus Tracy is absolutely right, you are cute!¡¯
¡®Me? You¡¯re crazy. And I thought all the girls were into Michael now, deleted or not. The Loverboy and all¡¡¯
¡®Probably, so there¡¯s too much competition. Plus he¡¯s an emotional wreck. And don¡¯t make too much of it. I¡¯m not proposing or so. I just say that I like you and I thank you with a kiss. Because I¡¯m feeling wild today. And then you go back to your boy school life and I become an outlaw.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He looked at her, not knowing what to say, unsure of what he was thinking and feeling.
Suddenly Eliza rushed into the door and hugged Shirley too.
¡®Ah, here are you. Michael has gone back to the city already with Rafael. Is everything settled here? Do you like your roommate?¡¯
Shirley nodded. ¡®She was enthusiastic, and surprised by me bringing Robert.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s highly unusual to say the least, bringing a man in a Wife School escape. But she wasn¡¯t afraid?¡¯
¡®No, rather interested, strange enough. As if he¡¯s a rare zoo animal.¡¯
¡®Oh, well, there are worse responses. But I think you need to get your place ready, and he needs to go home, so I¡¯ll take him from you and release him in the wild again. You can always use the Pen Pal system to write each other. I¡¯m quite sure you¡¯ll manage to convince Jenny to let him visit you soon for a second date.¡¯
¡®This wasn¡¯t really¡¡¯
¡®You had more fun than most actual Wife School couples on a date, Shir. And now he goes home. I¡¯ll see you soon, and I¡¯ll bring Megan. The old days will be back!¡¯
She grabbed Robert by the arm, and he couldn¡¯t do anything but follow her.
¡®Eh, thank you,¡¯ he said. ¡®Don¡¯t I get a final hug from you too?¡¯ Shirley said.
¡®If you insist.¡¯
He sighed and let her hug him too, and he automatically touched his lips again with a finger when she had finally let go of him and he walked out of the building with Eliza.
¡®You¡¯re walking me home?¡¯
¡®Yes, I¡¯m a lowly nonwife, but I¡¯m also armed and you¡¯d be surprised of how good I can fight. It¡¯s important to get you home unharmed. Today you¡¯re topping the Ghost Town protection list. Which means one last cozy walk home.¡¯
¡®As long as you don¡¯t call it a date¡¡¯
¡®You¡¯d wish, but no, I¡¯m leaving you to Shirley for that if she¡¯s ever interested in such things. Eliza the man-hater is not going to date anyone soon.¡¯
¡®Hey, I never asked for any dates today. Not with fake Shirley or the real one either. It¡¯s my second time meeting girls remember. You¡¯re all a bit too intense for me.¡¯
They arrived at the wall.
¡®Close your eyes.¡¯ Eliza said, and he obeyed.
When he opened them again the door was open.
¡®Is it a secret how the door opens?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know, but the guard seems to be absent, and it¡¯s my responsibility to keep this community safe. Do you see anyone outside?¡¯
¡®No¡¯ Robert looked outside.
¡®Kay, we leave then.¡¯
¡®Hey, what¡¯s up here? Oh, it¡¯s you, Eliza?¡¯
A woman with another weird little gun-like thing suddenly turned up as if out of nowhere on the outside.
¡®I¡¯m escorting our male visitor back to the city, and I¡¯m off too.¡¯
The woman looked Robert up and down. ¡®Sure he¡¯s safe? I mean, being alone with a man at this hour?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s safe, and I¡¯m still armed too, so I can protect him if needed.¡¯ Eliza said.
*
¡®So, Shirley?¡¯ Tracy said, sitting on the couch afterwards.
¡®Doesn¡¯t exist anymore!¡¯ her new roommate said, beaming.
¡®Ah?¡¯
¡®But she gave birth to the new me, so I might keep the selfname as a last name. How does Li Shirleys sound? No, maybe Leya Shirleys? The old Shirley is unavailable from now on and won¡¯t ever be found again. The Dave would have been the end of everything, but I¡¯m still alive and still free, so this will be a completely new life for the girl formerly known as Shirley.¡¯
Tracy nodded. Almost every outlaw had an origin story about a man, but this one was more complicated.
¡®Usually they say no more men¡¡¯ she tried.
¡®But one in a hundred is a decent person, or something like that, and there were even two of them on the good side that made today possible. I¡¯ll always be thankful to Michael for his Wifebot, and to Robert too. And still it feels weird to even say that in a place like this. It doesn¡¯t fit.¡¯
¡®Tell me what. It is weird indeed. But there¡¯s still one hundred and ninety-eight evil men lurking around in the city for those two I suppose¡¡¯
¡®I¡¯m not sure if he¡¯ll even come back. He¡¯s done so much more than he¡¯s comfortable with, do you know how afraid of women he used to be? All those conspiracies about manipulative Wives and women who win the war of the sexes. We had quite the discussion at Megan¡¯s date when I was the chaperone. And now he just carries my luggage into a Ghost Town¡ Second time seeing each other. Oh how things have changed¡¡¯
¡®So you and him are not¡?¡¯
Tracy¡¯s look was inquisitive now.
¡®I¡¯m an outlaw now, unranked and deleted. I don¡¯t exist anymore, and I just changed my name. I¡¯m beyond unmarriable. No rated man will ever start anything with me like that, I have no illusions about that. I''d be happy already if we can stay friends in some kind of way. I¡¯ve heard the Pen Pal network can be used here too.¡¯
¡®Lady Martha uses it, I¡¯ve heard.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ll ask Eliza. She knows those things. Ooh, it will be good to be able to see her and Megan again. She said we¡¯d meet soon. I never really believed in the pact of staying friends after Wife School no matter what would happen, but it seems that it worked out. I¡¯m the luckiest girl in the world!¡¯
Tracy looked at her new roommate. Whether her name was Shirley, Li or Leya, and whether she¡¯d actually make the boy return or not, interesting times were ahead, that was for certain.
*
Robert found it impossible to fall asleep that night. The same moments from earlier that day kept coming back in his mind, like little films in endless loops. The most prominent impression had been the kiss, that he still felt on his lips when he thought of it. In a way it made sense in the situation, probably. Without the escape today she¡¯d have been used as a living sex-doll tomorrow, just because of the colour of her hair. He had just helped her out, and she had thanked him with a kiss. That was all. A first kiss with a guy she liked, and also a farewell kiss?
That would have been the scenario in earlier times, a farewell not to him but to all men of the world. Or no, there wouldn¡¯t have been any place for him in the story to begin with. After all he had been the second man to enter the outlaw community since the days of old Manfred. And his role had been played now. She was safe now, in her world without men, with no Daves and Marriages which were destructive to both men and women. He knew that now¡
What now? His mind went back and forth between two opposite scenarios for him and Shirley. The first one was her being happy forever in her manless world now, adapting to the traditional Ghost Town life. In this version it had indeed been a farewell kiss to him, and to all men in the world. It would certainly make sense after all that had happened.
But she hadn¡¯t used past tenses had she? And to kiss him? It could also mean that she expected more, and that he actually had an outlaw girlfriend now. Wasn¡¯t that how it used to work in old stories? So maybe she expected something like that now? Something that didn¡¯t even exist and couldn¡¯t even work. Even Michael wouldn¡¯t go so far, would he? Oh, why hadn¡¯t they talked more? Eliza had interrupted them too early.
Ah, Eliza¡ She¡¯d been haunting him too actually. She had hugged her when they had parted their ways near the Epsilonville blocks before the city centre. His fourth hug from a girl ever, after two hugs from Shirley earlier that day. She had said it was important for him to be able to evade what she called Miss Hunter¡¯s oxytocin effect, and that if he didn¡¯t see other girls as friends he would get too attached to Shirley, which wouldn¡¯t be a good idea. He had only half understood the whole story, but the way she switched between mean and distant and friendly in a very physical way confused him. But no, Eliza wasn¡¯t even interested in boys, was she? And if she was, she¡¯d choose Michael and not him. Being nice didn¡¯t mean anything except that she was just being friendly in a more basic way, in which sex differences didn¡¯t even play a role. She just treated him now as she would treat another girl that she was friends with. Why were girls so intense?
Everyone from the female side had been nice to him actually. Apart from Eliza¡¯s initial distantness they all had treated him as if it was a normal thing to be there, even Lady Martha¡¯s assistant. He, a schoolboy, had walked into Seventh City Ghost Town and survived. The worst thing today had been Tracy the roommate who had treated him like a rare pet. It was clear that any girl coming to his school would have had it much worse¡
And then his thoughts went back to Shirley kissing him. The explanation had been clear, but the words ¡®why not just have a first kiss with a guy that I like¡¯ kept running through his head. She had been honest, he knew that, but she hadn¡¯t said anything about what she expected from him, and from the future. And that was the third option. Maybe she didn¡¯t even know herself whether she would ever see him again, or want a relationship. But how could he know what it was?
He had to talk to her again, but they really lived in different worlds now, even more than when she had lived in Wife School. But wait, Pen Pal network she had said. It must be available there too if Lady Martha had used it to contact Michael. But should he wait for her to write, or write first? Would that come off as too hopeless? But not writing to her might give a wrong impression too. Aargh¡ He didn¡¯t know anything anymore, but in the end he fell asleep anyway.
2.21 Iris and the Dave
Two female figures stood before the desk of official Sanders the next afternoon. Fake Shirley was dressed in the typical blue dress of low-ranked Wife School girls on their early dates. Iris had even given her some extra make-up too while she herself had done no effort at all to be pretty, in line with the wisdom of not being too attractive for predatory men. She knew she¡¯d probably be dumped as a chaperone before the couple were outside for 10 minutes, but it was better to be safe. And she¡¯d have a free afternoon in the city for once, and she looked forward to spending it at the famous unsegregated table in the Square bar. Usually dumped chaperones were quite lost in a dangerous outside world, but for her today it¡¯d probably be one of the best days of her whole school career. Her fingers felt the map that Eliza had given her in her pocket, and even some money.
The moment Dave came in and went straight to the official she intuitively wanted to run away, there was something really unpleasant about him. She nudged the robot to join him.
¡®So, Dave Johnson, here for Miss Shirley, and eh, Iris here is the chaperone today.¡¯
Official Sanders didn¡¯t look at the girls at all, and made only eye contact with Dave, who nodded and grabbed the hand of fake Shirley without asking or saying anything. Iris flinched for a second, but he didn¡¯t even seem to notice that he wasn¡¯t touching a real human.
¡®You have received the rules for your second meeting, young man Johnson?¡¯
Dave nodded and everyone in the room knew he wouldn¡¯t follow them at all.
¡®Then don¡¯t forget to fill in the papers afterwards and let us know whether your wife-to-be was pleasing to you. And thank you for choosing Seventh City Wife Factory.¡¯
Sanders finally turned to Iris for the rest of the formalities, but he still didn¡¯t really look at her.
¡®The chaperone will have to fill in a report too, so we can see whether you are truthful in reporting what you did,¡¯ he said to Dave.
Iris nodded. She didn¡¯t really know how boys always got away with breaking all the rules, but it was clear that whatever she wrote down on that paper wouldn¡¯t matter, and no-one would ever read it unless something would go completely wrong. But wasn¡¯t that what was going to happen today?
¡®Okay, good luck with your date, Mr. Johnson.¡¯
Sanders was still only looking at Dave. Iris felt a strange shiver go through her spine. Technically this was one of the worst scenarios possible for a Wife School girl, being the chaperone for a date with a dangerous toxic boy, but she didn¡¯t feel any fear now. He only had eyes for the robot, which would protect her better than anyone human when needed, but she didn¡¯t think that would be necessary. An inexperienced predator like Dave wouldn¡¯t be able to focus on more than one girl at the same time, especially one that wasn¡¯t what he thought she was. It was almost a dream for Iris to leave the building, and she almost couldn¡¯t believe that she saw the whole world where she had to spend her teenage years behind her now, but she could see the words Seventh City Wife Factory in big letters, together with the stupid sexy cartoon girl logo. She was almost free but now she had to follow and observe the robot and the boy without getting in trouble.
The SCWF was hardly out of sight and it was over already: turning into 47th street Dave looked at her with contempt and said.
¡®Hah, even that old fool can¡¯t be so stupid to believe any of that nonsense, don¡¯t you think. You, get out of my sight, ugly thing! I don¡¯t like you and I don¡¯t need you. Just write down whatever you want and make sure that you¡¯re here again before five.¡¯
Iris curtsied and said nothing.
¡®And meanwhile I¡¯ll show my future wife my bedroom.¡¯ He said with a grin.
¡®Yes, master husband,¡¯ said the robot.
Iris just looked at them disappearing from sight and sighed. She hadn¡¯t believed beforehand it would indeed end in this sad predictable clich¨¦, but here it did, which proved that at least some men were indeed as horrible as she¡¯s always heard.
And now to get on with her day off¡ She took the map and started walking.
*
She arrived at the Square bar without any trouble fifteen minutes later, where she was greeted at the door by Megan¡¯s ex-fianc¨¦e, whom she remembered was still working there.
¡®Ah, Iris. Eliza is on the small table at the back. Everything okay with you?¡¯ Michael said.
¡®With me, yes I think. I hope with Dave not. Thanks¡¡¯
She looked shyly at him and moved fast to the table. All of this was completely new to her, and speaking to boys felt indecent and wrong after the encounter she just had had. She knew that he wasn¡¯t like that, and she had even been writing multiple boys who were quite decent through the Pen pal system, but still¡
When she saw the two girls in the corner she forgot all boys in the world.
¡®Megan, you¡¯re here too!¡¯
She hugged both of her former classmates, and knew it was going to be a very good afternoon.
¡®We both took a day off to see a school friend.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®So how¡¯s the chaperoning going? Need some tips, I¡¯m an experienced expert.¡¯ Eliza winked.
¡®Well, I don¡¯t think there¡¯ll be much chaperoning today, the moment the SCWF was out of sight he ditched me. He didn¡¯t seem to notice anything off with his fianc¨¦e, and neither did Sanders. It¡¯s really weird. He didn¡¯t even find it weird when fake Shirley called him master Husband. And he said he was going to show her his bedroom, so much for the rules¡ But what do I do with the paperwork now?¡¯
¡®Well, why not be honest? Write down that he got rid of you after just ten minutes and walked in the direction of his house? He¡¯s not entitled to anything from you. We can even have fun with those papers together.¡¯
Eliza¡¯s eyes shone with mischief.
¡®And I have a little experimental surprise, now that I¡¯m working on a radio project, but I¡¯ll explain later. Let¡¯s first calm you down after the horrible man experience. Are you sure you¡¯re okay, Iris?¡¯
¡®I am. I think¡ But I¡¯m glad to never see him again to be honest.¡¯
¡®Oh you probably won¡¯t. He can¡¯t show up in the SCWF without her, can he? Shirley two was programmed to defend herself with every inappropriate touch or comment, and leave and hide afterwards and then she¡¯ll get to the Ghost Town unseen. He will have to explain what happened to Shirley, which will be hard. So being honest on your chaperone report is the best approach then. Be sure to be very visible from school somewhere before five, looking at your watch, and complain to Sanders or even better Greystone when you get in. That ditch-the-chaperone trick only works if you can hand in the girl again undamaged afterwards. Whatever he says, no-one will believe him when it comes to Shirley¡¯s strange powers. Hardly anyone even knows there¡¯s robots with that kind of function in The Nation and no-one knows she was replaced by one.¡¯
¡®So I just go to Sanders and complain that he never came back, and panic a bit about Shirley?¡¯
¡®Yup. That¡¯ll do it. You¡¯re only a simple Wife School student. He is the only important factor in the story for them. They couldn¡¯t even blame me for kicking that Alpha-creepnut in his balls. We¡¯re just nobodies, and even if we change the world, they still don¡¯t see us¡ They¡¯re programmed not to.¡¯
¡®Do the ladies want to drink something?¡¯
Iris froze when she heard the male voice, but Eliza said. ¡®Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s just Michael. He¡¯s part of the whole conspiracy too, remember, and completely harmless. Plus he works here. So what did you want?¡¯
¡®Eh, what do you have? Iced three herbs? Do me the same.¡¯
She turned to Michael. ¡®Sorry, it¡¯s nothing personal against you.¡¯
He nodded. ¡®I know, I know. Nation of distances¡ Plus you just escaped a horrible man. So three herbs?¡¯
*
When Michael was gone the girls started asking each other questions.
¡®And how¡¯s the real Shirley?¡¯
¡®I checked on her this morning. She¡¯s okay. She¡¯s got a big apartment with a roommate our age who finds Wife Schools as exotic as Shir finds Ghost Towns. She¡¯ll be okay. She¡¯s also thinking of changing her name, and her hair, so you probably won¡¯t recognise her when you meet her the next time,¡¯ Eliza said
¡®Ah¡ Well that happens with Wife School escapes, doesn¡¯t it? Do you think I¡¯ll ever be able to see her again at all? Normally that doesn¡¯t happen when you leave Wife School, especially if you escape.¡¯
¡®The age of losing your friends when you leave Wife School is over, Iris. I¡¯ve made a pact with her and Megan to keep in contact even if we¡¯d leave Wife School, and we did that.¡¯ ¡®But you got kicked out, that¡¯s different.¡¯ Iris said.
¡®But I think it¡¯s important for other girls too, and it¡¯s possible. Our Pen Pal network is useful for girls too, married or not. If Shirley can write Robert from a Ghost Town she can write you too. Always keep in contact with your girl friends, taken or not. Whoever picks you must live with that or get lost. Set your boundaries from that first date behind glass on. And if he doesn¡¯t listen, go on to more extreme courtship sabotage.¡¯
¡®The plan is that one of my Pen Pal friend-boys will choose me, with my consent.¡¯ Iris says decisively, and Eliza knew that something had changed already in The Nation. It might have been too late for her, Megan and Shirley, and it might not work for everyone, but what Iris casually said here definitely was revolutionary. Which reminded her of her other project today.
¡®And now I¡¯ll have a look at the robot situation.¡¯
She took out an old tablet. ¡®Let¡¯s see how their date is going¡¡¯
¡®You didn¡¯t¡¡¯
¡®Sure, there¡¯s a good transmitter on these vintage things, and those old tablets can receive the signal¡ I promise I¡¯ll turn it off if it¡¯s too horrible.¡¯
*
Five minutes later Michael arrived with the ice teas, and to his surprise he heard an old tablet talk in a weird male voice saying
¡®No! This wasn¡¯t what I asked for!¡¯ and then the other voice, that he recognised as the second voice of his own Wifebot, the old one that appeared when she glitched. ¡®You are not ready for contact with an actual woman. Your behaviour is below all minimum standards. I will need to report to the AAC and if you don¡¯t better your behaviour you will get a permanent ban against touching women.¡¯
¡®What are you talking about? You crazy girl! I¡¯m going¡¡¯
A weird sound stopped the voice.
¡®You were warned, mister Johnson.¡¯
¡®What did you do, crazy witch?¡¯
¡®I gave you the appropriate punishment according to AAC regulations, mister Johnson.¡¯
¡®You!¡¯
The weird sound came back, and was followed by exclamations of pain and then ¡®I¡¯ll kill you, monster!¡¯
A weird scream ended the conversation.
¡®Shit, he¡¯s actually unconscious¡¯ said Iris.
¡®That makes it easier¡¯ said Eliza. ¡®She¡¯ll go to her hiding place without being bothered, and tonight she¡¯ll get back to the Ghost Town. When he wakes up he won¡¯t know what to do, and no-one will believe his story.¡¯
¡®And they won¡¯t go looking for Shirley?¡¯ asked Michael.
¡®They might, but what would that help? She¡¯s worthless now. Damaged goods. No-one will want her¡¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said. These things were too horrible to comment on, and he felt very uneasy as a man now.
¡®So, show¡¯s over, plan fulfilled. Let¡¯s go to the paperwork and then there¡¯s still more than an hour before it¡¯s five o¡¯ clock. Wanna have fun with some dangerous non-Wives?¡¯
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.¡®Yes!¡¯ Iris said, and they started filling in the chaperone papers together. Everything considered it was a good afternoon after all.
*
At that same moment Shirley herself was guided through Seventh City Ghost Town by a very enthusiastic Tracy. Jenny has given her the task of introducing the community life to the newcomer, and she¡¯d been very thorough in showing Shirley everything and explaining all the details of daily life in a Ghost Town. After sightseeing all the important buildings, the farm plus surrounding fields, and some weird ruins that were never rebuilt and where Tracy said actual ghosts lived they had stopped at the little office where Jenny did her paperwork when she had no other jobs to do for some more technical information. It had been a busy day already, and now they were on their way to the bar when they saw Lady Martha coming their way.
¡®Greetings, Lady Martha.¡¯ Tracy said shyly.
¡®Good afternoon, young Tracy. Everything okay here with your new roommate? Is she a good fit for you?¡¯
¡®Yes, Lady Martha. We get along very well, and we¡¯re becoming friends already. It¡¯s going to be fun together!¡¯
¡®Do you like this place, Shirley? Or how do you want to be called?¡¯
¡®Yes, it¡¯s incredible here! Jenny said I could use my selfname and even change my first name, so is it possible to be known as Leya Shirleys here? If my father agreed with me marrying that creep I¡¯m not going to carry his name anymore, and I want to start life completely from scratch here. Without any leftover from the past, except maybe a few friends.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s perfectly possible. Most women here don¡¯t even have that kind of friends when they arrive after an escape and they find their way too. Jenny told me you wanted to change your hair too? The hair salon is easy to find. Just say what you want and Amira will do her best. She¡¯s very good.¡¯
¡®Does she do colourings?¡¯
¡®She can do anything you want. She has studied hairstyles from all kinds of historical cultures and she¡¯s as good with your straight blond hair as with Tracy¡¯s dark curls.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t want to be blond ever again. Can she do pink or light blue or so?¡¯
Lady Martha looked at her, slightly amused now. ¡®It¡¯s highly unusual, but I¡¯m sure she can find a way to do that to your satisfaction.¡¯
¡®How do I have to pay her? I couldn¡¯t bring money when I escaped.¡¯
¡®Oh, but it¡¯s free for our members. Only outsiders would have to pay. It¡¯s part of your wages, together with the housing and the food. Now that we¡¯re on the subject, did you decide on your job already?¡¯
¡®I am going to help Jenny with her paperwork one day in the week, and do some work in the Ghost Town restaurant and bar, and maybe in the farm store. They all needed some help but not fulltime.¡¯
¡®Now that¡¯s a good way to get to know our community better. And Jenny¡¯s paperwork could need some help too indeed, she needs more time to run all kinds of errands lately. And with the new contacts with the black market and stuff like boys coming over she could use some help with the admin. Which reminds me that I have to send our male friend an invitation.¡¯
¡®You mean Robert?¡¯
¡®No, the other one, Michael. He¡¯s been asked to attend a Love Ceremony.¡¯
¡®A what?¡¯
¡®A Love Ceremony is held when two Ghost Town members choose to commit to each other as a couple for life. It¡¯s a celebration of love and beauty, and the tradition also says that representatives of other Ghost Towns or friendly non-Ghost Town organisations or so. And Erica and Jessica wanted to ask him as such. Ruth said they think it means good luck.¡¯
¡®So, it¡¯s like a Marriage, but then with two women, and they actually love each other?¡¯
¡®You could say that.¡¯
Tracy looked at her. ¡®You¡¯ve never heard of a Love Ceremony?¡¯
¡®I only know Marriages. All I¡¯ve heard is that I was going to be picked by a man and then get married, so he would be happy. Me not so much¡ I never imagined the idea of two people making each other happy. Well, maybe it works with another woman, if it works with a woman for you, I mean. Some of the girls in school liked girls more than boys I think.¡¯
¡®I know it doesn¡¯t work for every woman, only about half of our women enter such partnerships, and the rest remains single because being with a woman doesn¡¯t work for them. We usually call them ghost town asexuals.¡¯
¡®So relationships with men are forbidden here?¡¯
Lady Martha sighed.
¡®They just used to be unthinkable. But with the Free Person movement we will have to rethink certain things. We can¡¯t stop Free Persons from having relationships with a partner of their own choice, and thanks to the whole Pen Pan system chances are big we will get more members with actual male friends in the future. You know, Eliza¡¯s Pen Pal system is revolutionary and makes certain things a lot simpler, but it also complicates other things, and we can never go back to business as usual¡ And we need to keep ourselves safe too, so it¡¯s going to be an exercise in balance. But as you see my community members are already starting to invite a male representative to a Love Ceremony. How long before we¡¯ll have an actual mixed Love Ceremony? Yes, Mildred will kill me for even saying that, but who can stop the future?¡¯
¡®But they¡¯ll never accept it with a rated man. The male world I mean. A Man needs to be Married, not illegally Love Ceremonied in a female outlaw community. I could only be an affair at best. And I¡¯m not an affair woman, I have my selfrespect.¡¯ Shirley said bitterly.
¡®That¡¯s another problem indeed. Until now we had only one unrated man to consider here, who doesn¡¯t seem ready for relationships. But in a further future there will be problems like that too. The male world remains as toxic as ever, and a few good men won¡¯t change the structural problems of Manfred¡¯s horrible system. The boy who helped you escape will be a sort of legend on the female side, but that could get him in trouble on his own side indeed. Sigh. We still have a long way to go.¡¯
She paused for a while, looking at a flock of feral rock doves.
¡®But I have my work to do, and you were going for a drink? It¡¯s a good idea to introduce her to the bar personnel so she can talk about her shifts, Tracy.¡¯
¡®Yes, Mylady.¡¯ Tracy said.
¡®And good luck adapting to the outlaw life, Leya.¡¯
The girl formerly known as Shirley nodded and followed her new friend and roommate into the bar.
*
Later that afternoon Iris walked into the SCWF, and went straight to official Sanders¡¯ desk. He didn¡¯t even look up when she dropped off her documents.
¡®Here¡¯s my chaperone paperwork for Shirley¡¯s first date with that Dave dude. He dumped me and took Shirley after less than ten minutes to do whatever he liked with her. Is she even back already?¡¯
Sanders didn¡¯t look up, and only peeked at his watch.
¡®No. Haven¡¯t seen her yet. I hope she didn¡¯t disrespect him. That would be bad for our reputation as an institution.¡¯
¡®What if she doesn¡¯t come back?¡¯
¡®Oh trust me. They always come back, their first meeting just takes longer because he likes her a lot. Don¡¯t worry. I only hope she treats him right.¡¯
Iris disappeared before anyone would notice how angry she was. She¡¯d seen all kinds of terrible things in her life, but Sanders had proved again that it was possible to go even further. Eliza had been right, the whole system was rotten to the core. She could only hope that she¡¯d never be chosen by a man like Dave, and that in the end one of her Pen Pal friends would be both interested and interesting enough to choose her, and then look for a completely different way to be married together. And if that failed, well¡ She knew where to escape to and she had the right people to help her. But for now she just needed a shower.
*
The next day the girl formerly known as Shirley was practising the beer tap in the bar for the first time when Eliza came in late in the afternoon, wearing a dirty orange overall.
¡®Oh, hello Eliza, I hadn¡¯t expected you here today. You¡¯re really a regular here now?¡¯ she said, looking at her friend¡¯s weird outfit.
¡®I¡¯m working again, there¡¯s still project international radio connection, and we have to change your doppelganger into Michael¡¯s Wife again too. But now I need a beer, my deer Ghost Town outlaw Leya.¡¯
The girl who remembered she was Leya now looked at her glass.
¡®We¡¯ll see how I manage with the tap here. I¡¯ll probably screw up with the foam, getting a decent head on a beer is much harder than I thought.¡¯
¡®To Manfred with the foam, just give me a pint.¡¯ Eliza said, sitting herself down on a barstool.
¡®So the robot is back? Everything went well yesterday?¡¯
¡®Yes, fake you came back last night, Rebecca was on night watch and let her in. I¡¯ve been watching the date with Dave live with Megan and Iris yesterday afternoon, another transmitter experiment, and he was indeed all the horrible things you said and more. Getting you out was completely justified. But the show was over soon when he passed out. No more Dave terror for you¡¡¯
¡®He what? And you followed it live?¡¯
¡®I had to try the transmitter tech, and it worked. We could see some of what happened through her eyes, and I think it¡¯s better you weren¡¯t there. But after some nos he attacked the robot, and was stunned with an electric shock. Don¡¯t worry, he was still alive. But the robot could easily escape unseen like that. And I don¡¯t know how he¡¯s ever going to explain that to the SCWF. But that¡¯s not your problem anymore, Shirley doesn¡¯t exist anymore, and she would be damaged goods anyway. Which for an E-girl practically means unmarriagability¡¡¯
Leya looked at her pint, which had a rather decent head after all.
¡®It¡¯s a pity that it had to end like that, but yes, Wife School is over for me now, and I¡¯m very lucky that I ended up here. I¡¯ll miss Iris and the girls though.¡¯
¡®You can write them easily, and I¡¯m quite sure we¡¯ll see her back one day. Plus she¡¯s included in the friendship pact too now. We¡¯ll keep in contact, Wife School or not.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a good friend, Eliza, what would I be without you?¡¯
Eliza took a sip from her beer.
¡®Probably still a C-girl in Wife School. I¡¯m a bad girl with bad influence, remember?¡¯
They didn¡¯t say much for a while, also because a few other customers who wanted to drink very different things, but after a fresh hot three herbs tea, a Nation-coffee latte and one more pint of beer she got back to Eliza.
¡®So you¡¯re doing the robot now?¡¯
¡®I have to give her her original face back. If we just swap that she¡¯ll be back to Dorothy. And then I need to upload and reprogram some things.¡¯
¡®You mean turn off the re-education mode?¡¯
Eliza nodded. ¡®Not that it¡¯ll make a big difference. He wouldn¡¯t even notice.¡¯
¡®If I were that robot I would get quite irritated for being told to do all those chores. I¡¯d just tell him to do it himself.¡¯ Leya remarked.
¡®But you¡¯re not a Wifebot. And apart from refusing to use personal pronouns he¡¯s always polite and respectful to her. I¡¯m quite sure he¡¯d help an actual human partner with the dishes. It¡¯s been his job for a while now anyway¡¡¯
Leya looked at the glass she was holding and didn¡¯t say anything for a while.
*
¡®Sanders, can you tell me what happened to Shirley?¡¯
Greystone stood before the desk of his colleague and seemed nervous.
Sanders shrugged. ¡®She didn¡¯t return from her first date outside with her taker yesterday afternoon. I had expected that she¡¯d be back by now, but it seems she hasn¡¯t.¡¯ He said.
¡®So she¡¯s been away all night? And you didn¡¯t bother to notify anyone?¡¯ Greystone asked.
¡®I just forgot. She¡¯s just an E-girl anyway, and as an engaged woman she¡¯s just with her future husband now. What does it matter if he¡¯s trying her out a bit.¡¯ ¡®It goes against all the rules, Sanders. And it seems the girl has disappeared. No-one has heard from her or the boy. And the chaperone filled in the paper truthfully, so if there¡¯s an investigation he might get in big trouble.¡¯
¡®Who¡¯s going to investigate? Did the young man complain? No? Then what is the problem?¡¯
¡®Sanders, a girl has disappeared. That¡¯s a problem for our institution.¡¯
¡®Come on, he¡¯ll marry her anyway, what¡¯s the problem? It¡¯s clear from the story of the chaperone that he didn¡¯t get in trouble with higher-rated men, so there can be no problem. I only count on the class teacher to punish her severely when she returns.¡¯
Greystone nodded his head in disbelief. Even for him the logic of Sanders went too far.
2.22 Family Business
¡®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 H¨¦va?¡¯
¡®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 H¨¦va. 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 H¨¦va.
¡®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 H¨¦va? 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 H¨¦va. 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 H¨¦va.¡¯
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?¡¯
¡®H¨¦van 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 H¨¦va?¡¯
¡®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.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.¡®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 fianc¨¦e 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.
2.23 Eric
A week and a half later Michael stood in the little office of Lady Martha again, this tiem around dinnertime. He had received an express Pen Pal message from her to come as soon as possible while at work in the bar, and was a bit nervous when he arrived.
¡®You¡¯ve called for me, Lady Martha?¡¯ he said.
¡®Yes, young man Michael. We need some input and help from a man for a special emergency, as our expert in male affairs or something like that. I think that I can safely say that we have a new refugee in our community, and it¡¯s another first time: it¡¯s a boy.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re taking in a boy, into your Ghost Town?¡¯
She nodded.
¡®A lost kid, still a teenager. Eliza found him out on the streets, hungry and homeless. Apparently he was deleted completely, with even his name erased and no identity left, so no state apartment like you have for him. He won¡¯t say what has happened, but he says that the male outlaws would kill him too, so that¡¯s not an option either. We only know that his name is Eric. He did the free person pledge without a problem and doesn¡¯t feel dangerous at all, just scared. He¡¯s probably never even talked to a woman before, so we thought bringing you too might be less intimidating for him than putting him in front of a whole council of women for interrogation.¡¯
Michael paused to let this information sink in, and was reminded of how he had said to Jibrilla that a man living in a Ghost Town was an impossibility.
¡®Not so long ago there was a whole discussion about whether you¡¯d even let me in for a single visit and now you take in a deleted boy, and ask me for advice as an expert on male affairs?¡¯
Lady Martha smiled. ¡®Who else should we ask? You could blame Eliza, even if she¡¯s technically an outsider she¡¯s almost a council member, so if we have her here, it¡¯s including her connections everywhere, including males like you. You know she has a natural blindness for certain conventions sometimes, so even with all the programming of The Nation she isn¡¯t able to keep up the distance between the sexes when it¡¯s not explicitly needed.¡¯
¡®Isn¡¯t that logical? It takes a lot of energy to uphold that stupid barrier between the sexes all the time.¡¯
Lady Martha looked at him, calculating. ¡®You two are very much alike sometimes. Most older people here would disagree though, like they would on the male side. A lot of them wouldn¡¯t even have enough energy to cross the chasm between the sexes. So don¡¯t expect it to work like that for everyone.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re probably right. I can feel that natural distance in some people. But for me it was a relief to let go of it, and be more natural and human.¡¯
¡®And that¡¯s exactly why we want your presence here. To be completely human we will need a future with both sexes in it in the end, in a healthy and natural way.¡¯
Michael looked at her and just nodded. It was still strange to hear these words out of the mouth of a Ghost Town leader after everything he¡¯d heard his whole life about female outlaws.
¡®Come with me,¡¯ she said, ¡®and have a talk with him alone. I¡¯m probably a bit scary¡¡¯
He followed her to the Ghost Town bar where a lot of people were eating. On one of the tables he spotted a lonely boy, a lost teenager indeed with messy dark hair wearing dirty clothes, looking sadly at a glass of iced three herbs tea and a half-eaten bowl of pasta with cheese. If any male person in The Nation had ever looked harmless it certainly was him, but even for Michael his presence felt out of place here. The boy didn¡¯t move at all until he noticed Michael, who walked up to the boy, and seated himself on another chair at the table, and signalled to the lady behind the bar for a drink for him too.
¡®Hi, you must be Eric. They asked me to talk to you because too many women might be too intimidating for you now.¡¯
The boy looked at him with eyes full of question marks.
¡®You¡¯re a man? Here? In a Ghost Town? I thought that all men who tried to come here were shot down with magic and fed to the panthers in the woods?¡¯
¡®Oh, I¡¯d watch out for making them angry indeed, but aren¡¯t you too old to believe in magic? It¡¯s true that there¡¯s only women here, and I¡¯m the only man they could get to talk to you for now. You might be the third or maybe fourth ever to enter this place since the days of Manfred to be honest. But even in the Ghost Towns the times are changing and I¡¯m officially a friend of the community here.¡¯ He pointed at his chest. ¡®Look, a Free Person badge, like you have one too now. That means we¡¯re good people for them, even if we happen to be a man too. But you¡¯re lucky you ran into Eliza, most Nation women here or elsewhere wouldn¡¯t even think about looking after lost boys and bringing them here.¡¯
The boy nodded.
¡®They kicked me out and deleted me, and I had nowhere to go, and I was sitting there with my luggage on the street not knowing what to do, and she came to me. She just said that she found I looked sad and in need of help.¡¯
He nodded. ¡®Everyone would be sad after being deleted. But why were you deleted, and so thoroughly? You¡¯re quite young for that.¡¯
The book looked at him, horrified. ¡®I can¡¯t say it. It¡¯s too horrible. I¡¯m not normal,¡¯ he whispered. ¡®Don¡¯t be afraid. You¡¯re not a violent person, everyone can see that. You wouldn¡¯t assault a woman, would you? That would be the most important reason for the women here to keep you out.¡¯
¡®No, no!¡¯
¡®So what did you do? Disobey a higher-rated man? I got deleted for defending Eliza and my fianc¨¦e from an Alpha who wanted to assault them.¡¯
¡®You got deleted? You?¡¯
¡®Half, I still have my identity and my name and I work in the city. But I lost my Gamma-1 rate and my family kicked me out, and I was completely deleted from school. They kicked both girls out of Wife School too.¡¯
¡®Wow. That sucks. They punished you just for defending her?¡¯
¡®That¡¯s what they did. They also refused to believe that the girls defended themselves too, they say that legally an Alpha can¡¯t be attacked and defeated by a girl, you know. But in the end all three of us were deleted. For standing up for my friends who happened to be girls, against a creep who happened to be an Alpha. I suddenly went from Gamma-1 to nothing.¡¯
¡®But you made friends with two Wife school girls? As a boy? Is that even possible?¡¯
¡®Yeah, I had to choose a Wife, but I wasn¡¯t ready for anything like that and neither was my fianc¨¦e. But at least we became friends instantly, and decided to conspire against the whole system or something like that, and Eliza naturally became a part of that. And then the whole incident happened and we all lost our rating, but not each other. That¡¯s a bit revolutionary probably, but we seem to have been revolutionary here and there indeed. Anyway, no-one got married in the end, and I¡¯m still hopeless with girls, but we¡¯re all friends now, even though we¡¯re not really that important in The Nation anymore.¡¯
Eric looked at him, nervously.
¡®So you¡¯re not intending to marry a girl?¡¯
He shrugged ¡®I¡¯m officially unmarriable, and legally married to a robot too. So it¡¯s impossible. Plus, I don¡¯t think any of the girls would really want to marry me. I¡¯m more friend material, and Nation marriages are hell for a woman anyway, so I can¡¯t blame them for not wanting to marry ever.¡¯
¡®But you, eh, do like girls, do you?¡¯
¡®I think so, whatever that means. It¡¯s one of the things they found unmanly about me, weird enough. Sometimes I still feel that I need more time getting used to them, but yes, I like being around girls. More than around those Be-A-Man boys.¡¯
Eric sighed. ¡®I see you find them likeable as friends, weird as that is. But you¡¯re actually attracted to them, I mean?¡¯
Michael looked at the boy. ¡®Yes, I suppose. I kissed a girl and got my and her heart broken and stuff like that.¡¯
¡®I envy you.¡¯
Michael looked at him for a few seconds, not knowing what to ask, until he suddenly realised what Eric was hinting at. It had taken him way too long.
¡®I see. So you¡¯re not attracted to girls but to boys, and that¡¯s why they deleted you. And now you¡¯re afraid to get killed by the outlaws, or even by the other guys in a state apartment. Which might happen if they find out.¡¯
He understood everything now. He took his freshly arrived lemonade and drank half of it.
¡®That¡¯s just horrible,¡¯ he said.
Eric looked at him, nervously, with eyes of fear. ¡®Yes, I am horrible, I know. I am a¡¡¯ Michael interrupted him.
¡®No, no! You¡¯re not the one that¡¯s horrible, don¡¯t finish your sentence. It¡¯s strange how our language doesn¡¯t even have a word for men attracted to men that isn¡¯t a terrible insult. That¡¯s what¡¯s horrible. You are just fine. This whole fricking Nation is beyond horrible and I¡¯m sorry. No-one should ever be treated like that. You know that there were times in our history when men could marry men? And here in this Ghost Town there are a lot of women couples. I¡¯m even invited to a Love Ceremony for two women who have chosen to become life partners in a few weeks. So there should be no problem about that for you at all here. You¡¯re certainly not horrible at all. This rotten Nation just makes a problem out of the weirdest things, like it makes a problem of my friendships with girls and a lot of other things that should be natural. Just like me you¡¯re a harmless lost boy who can¡¯t live up to their toxic standards of manhood that never make anyone a better person. I¡¯m actually quite convinced it¡¯s healthier for everyone to refuse to be a Real Man.¡¯
Eric seemed to have a hard time processing the things he had said.
¡®Wait, you say that there are women couples here?¡¯
¡®Yes. Lady Martha herself has a woman partner for example. She¡¯s been with Lady Ruth the priestess for twenty-five years or so. They do something called Love Ceremonies instead of weddings, and promise each other completely other things than our Nation marriage vows. But they live together in couples just like the mixed marriages of normal society.¡¯
¡®But those can only exist for women. They¡¯d probably never accept a man like me¡¡¯
¡®Never say never! I told you times are changing here too, Eric. In a way you¡¯re more normal than me for them anyway, so don¡¯t be afraid.¡¯
He saw the expression of Eric change, but he didn¡¯t really see why; and suddenly he was hugged from behind by a female body with a lot of tickly curls.
¡®Ah, here you are. I was looking for you. I see you¡¯ve found our new little refugee already. Sad little story, isn¡¯t it?¡¯
Eliza let go of him and greeted Eric.
¡®Eliza, what do I always say about boundaries and unexpected hugs? Nevermind. Yes, I¡¯ve heard his story. I think you¡¯re right that he¡¯s safer here indeed. Good for you bringing him in. They could have killed him indeed. And he¡¯s certainly harmless to women. Can I tell your secret to her, Eric?¡¯
He looked away. ¡®I will tell it myself. I¡¯m an abomination. They kicked me out because I don¡¯t like girls, and they wanted to kill me because I¡¯m¡ I¡¯m attracted to boys. They said I¡¯m a danger and a horrible thing, an abomination. And not a Real Man!¡¯
¡®Oh, poor boy.¡¯ Eliza said, and she wanted to hug him but Michael stopped her. ¡®No hugs before you check if he¡¯s okay with that.¡¯
Eric looked from him to her, bewildered by the dynamic between them.
¡®Eh, whatever. I don¡¯t think anyone has ever hugged me before, but I don¡¯t mind a hug from her.¡¯
The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.¡®Poor little kid,¡¯ she said, and wrapped her arms around him.
¡®Kid? He¡¯s just two or three years younger than you at most, Eliza.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®He¡¯s a lost kid who never had the friendships we wife school girls had, like you, remember. He needs all the hugs he can get.¡¯
Eric had started to cry. She put her hand on his shoulder.
¡®It¡¯s okay, Eric. You¡¯re safe here. I will make sure you can stay here and be safe against the stupid male world. You will have to regularly repeat the free person pledge probably in the beginning, and they will ask you to work for staying here, but if you¡¯re okay with those things it shouldn¡¯t be a problem for you to be here. And anyone who¡¯s against that has to fight me and my robot army!¡¯
Michael looked at Eliza comforting the crying boy.
¡®You¡¯d be a great mother, Eliza.¡¯ He suddenly said.
¡®Huh? What? I¡¯m Eliza the man-hater, remember.¡¯ She winked.
¡®Yeah, man-hater¡ Holding a boy you¡¯ve only met today like that. Suddenly hugging me whenever you see me. Nothing man-hating about you, you¡¯re just a bit selective with the men you don¡¯t hate.¡¯
¡®Okay, you got me, Mister Real Man who¡¯s an expert on how I feel about men. It¡¯s just that I like people with whom I can have the Wife School kind of friendships, and that doesn¡¯t seem to work with most Nation males yet. But I¡¯m working on it, one boy at a time. In the end it will change the world.¡¯
¡®Still, maybe you can let go of your new friend now, before you¡¯re smothering him. Are you okay, Eric?¡¯
Eric came free from Eliza¡¯s embrace.
¡®I think I am for now. Thank you for caring about me, Eliza.¡¯ He said.
¡®Come, drink something more from me,¡¯ she said. ¡®I¡¯ve seen Lady Martha, she will send Jenny over there for practical things later. They¡¯re preparing a room for you. And there was some organisational stuff too.¡¯
He looked from Eliza to Eric.
¡®Eliza, don¡¯t overdo it with the love-bombing. If there¡¯s even an inch of attraction for girls in him, you¡¯ll awaken it and he¡¯ll fall head over heels in love with you. I mean, imagine being held by such an attractive girl like you as his first encounter with the other sex.¡¯
Something in her look changed when Michael pronounced the a-word.
¡®You¡¯re projecting, Michael. I¡¯m not really attractive to boys. Especially with my hair like this and this old sweater. But yes, I know when I have to be careful, thank you very much. You¡¯ve been the only boy I¡¯ve ever let my guard down with, without any results even.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re still comfortable with her, Eric?¡¯ he asked, just to be safe.
¡®Why not? She¡¯s friendly and she feels safe. And I need every friend I can get now, everyone hates me anyway. At least, all the men I¡¯ve ever known do. If more women are like her I can get used to women, but, eh, even then I¡¯m not falling in love yet, if you know what I mean.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s unique, luckily for the planet. Only one specimen and that one is sitting in front of you now.¡¯
¡®And you two are, well, together? You look like like a great couple. But you don¡¯t have to be jealous of me, I swear!¡¯
Michael backed off. ¡®Oh no, nothing like that,¡¯ he said hastily. ¡®I told you I¡¯m deleted and unmarriable so the state married me to a robot. I¡¯m not free to fall in love with girls.¡¯
Eliza chuckled. ¡®Married to Dorothy the Wife-o-matic 2.1, him? He locks his bedroom door against the poor thing every night. And she¡¯s still recovering from an undercover rescue mission now anyway.¡¯
¡®Officially she¡¯s still my Wife, or a state-dispensed reasonable replacement of one actually,¡¯ he protested.
¡®And officially this place doesn¡¯t even exist. As if you ever cared for such things. Just be honest and say that you¡¯re not ready for a relationship instead of hiding behind poor Dorothy¡ You could have had at least two or three freewill girlfriends by now if you really wanted. Or even experiments in chemistry with a wild nonwife who says she doesn¡¯t believe in monogamy but still wants you. And all that is only after being deleted and becoming unmarriable.¡¯
¡®Two or three what? Who?¡¯ He said, visibly confused.
¡®Nevermind, archangel boy. Keep on being pure and naive for now.¡¯ She patted his head and turned to Eric.
¡®You see what the problem is with being attracted to boys? Most of them are toxic and not worth looking at, and the harmless ones that are actually worth being interested in are clueless and clumsy, plus completely hopeless. It¡¯s like a curse indeed, but there¡¯s nothing abominable about it. But I too have wished for years that I wasn¡¯t attracted to boys¡¡¯
Michael felt uncomfortable with how two pairs of eyes were looking at him conspiratorially so he rejoined the conversation.
¡®It can¡¯t be worse than being attracted to girls. Really. Why can¡¯t we just all be asexual? That¡¯d make the world much simpler.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s a biological thing originally, big boy, something with procreation and stuff like that. You¡¯d have no new generation without heterosexuality in nature. We¡¯re not parthenogenetic lizards,¡¯ she said, unwittingly touching her shoulder, the one with the Ancom-chip in it that made it impossible for her to procreate.
¡®I don¡¯t need to procreate. I don¡¯t need to be attracted to anyone. I never asked for anything like that,¡¯ Michael said.
¡®Oh, Michael, dear boy. The human gene pool needs you. But if you don¡¯t want to do it the natural way, maybe we could start a sperm bank and use you as a genetic stock for a new sort of men?¡¯
¡®Not you too! You sound like a H¨¦van! Don¡¯t be creepy and yucky!¡¯
Eliza grinned ominously. ¡®You¡¯ve heard lady Martha. She wants to be able to see the first Ghost Town children within her lifetime. And we don¡¯t have any parthenopills and only one quality man who¡¯s into women for now in the whole federation of Ghost Towns. Do the math and you know where your real value lies¡¡¯ She winked again.
¡®You¡¯re going to scare the boy, Eliza. And he doesn¡¯t even know the things you¡¯re sarcastic about.¡¯ He said, but Eric had just been listening to them in astonishment and didn¡¯t really look scared, ¡®but well, whatever, nevermind¡ There were some practical things you had to talk about.¡¯
¡®They¡¯re sending Jenny to the bar when they are ready, and she¡¯ll show you the room they have for you, Eric. She¡¯ll help you find a job too. They were wondering if you were willing to help full-time with the farm. They''re expanding both the vegetable fields and the animals and they need more hands there.¡¯
The boy looked at Eliza. ¡®Me? A farmer?¡¯
¡®They thought that the farm is the best place for a man here, and they¡¯ve been looking for new workers for a while now. The Ghost Town farm is well-known among the nonwives of the City too, a lot of people come here for fresh organic veggies. Plus they have chickens for the eggs and meat, and some goats for milk. And some noisy geese to guard stuff. They might be thinking of getting other animals too in the future.¡¯
His eyes lit up. ¡®Really? Animals? If I help on the farm, they let me live here?¡¯
¡®Yes, you¡¯ll have a place to live, you can have fresh food, and you can use the library and the phone and stuff like that. Everyone here does some work for the community and gets whatever they need to live.¡¯
¡®And I can work with real living animals? Chickens and goats and maybe others? I¡¯ve always dreamed of that! My parents were always against it and I don¡¯t really like industrial farms though.¡¯
¡®Yes, but don¡¯t get too attached to the young chicks that are male, they don¡¯t often eat meat here, but the excess roosters are slaughtered and eaten.¡¯
¡®Ah¡ They don¡¯t just eat labmeat like we did in our Gammatown?¡¯
¡®Eh, no, they have great vegetarian cuisine here, and from time to time they have real meat too. Not much labmeat I think. There¡¯s no meatlab either.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s a whole new concept for me. But I¡¯ll do every job they give me if I can stay here.¡¯ ¡®And don¡¯t forget to recite the pledge¡¡¯
¡®No problem.¡¯ Eliza looked at her watch. ¡®Jenny isn¡¯t here yet, and it¡¯s getting late. Michael hasn¡¯t eaten I see, I¡¯ll order some pasta too for us both.¡¯
*
After the meal Jenny finally arrived to take the boy to his new place, with assistance of Eliza, and Lady Martha summoned him again to his office to drink one of her mint teas.
¡®And what did you think of Eric. Was it a good idea to let him in?¡¯
He nodded ¡®For him it certainly was. He really might have died. The part that he was afraid to say was that he was kicked out and then deleted for being attracted to boys. But don¡¯t tell that to anyone, he¡¯s very ashamed of that.¡¯
¡®Ah, I see¡¡¯
¡®I know you won¡¯t see a problem with that, but you have no idea how aggressive men in the Nation can be about that subject. So he needs protection, and if he¡¯s treated well I think he¡¯ll adapt to your community easily, I¡¯m certain of that. He has no problem with working on the farm, in fact he really looks forward to meeting the animals. He also had no problem with saying the free person pledge several times a day, and he seems quite attached to Eliza already, as if she¡¯s another kind of mother figure to him. I don¡¯t even think she¡¯s more than three years older than him though.¡¯
¡®Another kind of mother figure?¡¯ asked Lady Martha.
¡®Not like Nation mothers, a real loving mother like in the old stories. She hugged him and comforted him and all. My mother hasn¡¯t touched me after I turned 12 at all. She didn¡¯t even visit my sister when she went to Manfred¡¯s.¡¯
¡®Ah, our Eliza¡ It¡¯s a pity that she doesn¡¯t want to join us full-time. For the moment she still wants to be in her state woman house with your other Wife School friend.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s very practical about where she lives in her own weird way. She could¡¯ve left the SCWF years ago too but she didn¡¯t want that either. She¡¯ll remain a mystery¡¡¯
He sipped from his mint tea.
¡®I¡¯m wondering now if you¡¯re not being naive in letting men in. I mean, me and Eric are okay, and poor Robert. But what if a man lies when reciting the pledge? Or if someone steals or forges a Free Person badge¡¯
¡®Ah, he won¡¯t do that twice.¡¯ Lady Martha said.
¡®How can you know that? I mean, he could go to another Ghost Town where no-one knows him.¡¯
¡®Ah, but there¡¯s another system that we haven¡¯t used yet here. Any man, or woman, who breaks the pledge will be marked. Everyone will see they¡¯re not trustworthy.¡¯
¡®Marked?¡¯
¡®We have temporary tattoo ink. It must last for a few years, but no-one knows how long exactly. Anyone who has broken the pledge will be recognisable and easy to ban, be sure of that.¡¯ ¡®Ah¡¡¯
¡®Yes, the plan is to give them one dot on their forehead above their right eye, and the toxic man symbol on their right hand. You know, the skull symbol with the masculinity arrow.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said.
Suddenly he was reminded of the fact that he was speaking to a powerful outlaw leader that could be dangerous if you were her enemy. How was it possible that he as a man found this Ghost Town more cosy than anything he¡¯d ever known in the male word?
¡®But it¡¯s getting late. I think it¡¯s better to let you go home. I think Eliza must be back in the bar, and Samantha too, so you can probably walk them home. They both can use some male presence in the city at night, even if they have their invisible magic with them, and they could protect you too with our supposed magic. It¡¯s been a long day. Thank you for your assistance. If you need help with something, you can always ask.¡¯
¡®I can¡¯t think of anything, Lady Martha,¡¯ he said, and slowly walked to the bar, where Eliza and Samantha were indeed still drinking.
2.24 Kiss and dont start a Relationship...
¡®Ah, our expert in male affairs is back from his talk with the great village leader.¡¯ Samantha said when Michael walked into the Ghost Town bar for the second time.
¡®Congratulations on your promotion,¡¯ Eliza said with a typical wink.
She seemed in a weird mood, probably with all the emotions of saving a human life, even if it meant bringing a boy into a Ghost Town.
¡®As far as I know you are the one who managed to convince a Ghost Town leader to take in a boy today, Eliza. They just wanted me to talk to him because he hadn¡¯t even talked to a woman before, and he was scared. But how is he now?¡¯
¡®I think he¡¯s asleep. He¡¯s alone in his room anyway. Tomorrow they¡¯ll show him the farm. I think he needs some rest first but I¡¯m quite sure he¡¯ll adapt well.¡¯
¡®A boy here? Hmm¡¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®Leave him alone. He¡¯s too young for you and he doesn¡¯t need any complications like that now!¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®He¡¯s not even interested in that, believe me. And he¡¯ll need a lot of time to adjust, but he surely can use all the friendship he can get.¡¯
¡®Boring¡¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®Hey Michael!¡¯
A girl with rather short blue hair suddenly stood before him wearing an apron with the Ghost Town bar logo.
¡®Want a drink?¡¯ It took him a few seconds before he recognised her.
¡®Eh, Sh¡ Leya. I almost didn¡¯t recognise you with that blue hair. No, I think it¡¯s almost time to go back to the city if the girls agree. It¡¯s been a heavy day.¡¯
¡®And, do you like it?¡¯ Leya asked and took on a dramatic pose as if she was a model from an ancient fashion magazine.
¡®It¡¯s something I haven¡¯t seen before in real life. It matches your eyes now. I think it works. So that¡¯s your revenge on the dude who wanted a blond wife?¡¯ He didn¡¯t really know how to answer a question on a girl¡¯s appearance but she didn¡¯t seem to notice.
¡®I¡¯ll never ever be blond again. Eliza called it aposematism, like a warning to predators that they shouldn¡¯t mess with me. Nothing says more that I refuse to play the Wife game than unnatural hair colours, don¡¯t you think? But it¡¯s pretty in a very different way, just for me. I don¡¯t live to be pretty for others.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s certainly not ugly, but you¡¯re right, it goes against everything Wifely and even against non-Wife traditions in the Nation too. I don¡¯t know why even.¡¯ ¡®Yes, it¡¯s peak twenty-second century or so, the outlaw woman who did my hair was quite surprised too, but she loved what it became.¡¯
¡®Ah, watch out, you¡¯ll be a trend-setter too before you know it.¡¯
¡®It doesn¡¯t seem to repel men very well though, judging by our test sample.¡¯ Samantha said, pointing at him.
¡®He doesn¡¯t count. Aposematism is there to warn off predators, not friends. Plus your almost bald non-Wife hairstyle never scared him away either, and that¡¯s also an anti-Wife statement to communicate you¡¯re not available for men, remember?¡¯
¡®Yeah, he doesn¡¯t count and he¡¯s eternally in the friend folder, but what about actual potential partners? What¡¯s the boy you used to escape going to make of this?¡¯
¡®Robert? That¡¯s his problem. And he can only be friends with me, you know that. He¡¯s a Gamma-3, rated men are off-limits for a non-Wife, especially if they¡¯re so high-ranked. If we¡¯re not talking about toxic affair stuff that is. Even as an E-girl a Gamma would have been an impossible match. There¡¯s only one man ever who went under his ranking to find a fianc¨¦e, and he¡¯s here now with us¡ But he said he doesn¡¯t mind blue hair and he still wants to be friends even if I live in a Ghost Town now. Do you believe that? After all his conspiracy theories about how dangerous women are¡¡¯
¡®Everything he had heard about women was secondhand information from people who weren¡¯t really a fan. And you were different. You¡¯re all very different from what men think to know about women. And much more real than a bunch of idealised ideas. People are always more than archetypes.¡¯ Michael said.
¡®This idealised archetype woman is going home. And that means I take both of you with me.¡¯ Eliza suddenly said, and she hugged Leya without any warning.
¡®Bye, take care of yourself, and of him. He isn¡¯t wearing a stunner,¡¯ Leya said.
¡®I will do that. Come, Loverboy.¡¯
Michael thought that she had something weird in her voice again, but followed her without thinking about it much. The three of them walked out of Seventh city Ghost Town, their arms linked. Rebecca didn¡¯t even react to his presence anymore when they passed the gate, and Michael realised he wouldn¡¯t even be the most notorious male in this community anymore after the arrival of Eric. He was old news already.
*
The walk to the City was long but no-one seemed to notice anything of that because of their intense conversations about Ghost Towns, non-Wife rights and stuff like that, and suddenly they were almost at the woman house where Samantha and Angela lived.
¡®Finally alone with you!¡¯ Eliza said, grabbing Michael¡¯s arm closer in the coldness of the night. ¡®Eh, what?¡¯ Michael and Samantha asked simultaneously. ¡®I can have you all for myself now. Isn¡¯t it finally my turn now to kiss you, have a long hard and painful conversation about feelings afterwards, and then not start a relationship with you? I feel rather left out that I have missed out on that until now. Don¡¯t you find me attractive too?¡¯
There was a twinkling in her green eyes, but it didn¡¯t make him smile.
¡®Not funny, Eliza. Not funny. I¡¯m not like that.¡¯
¡®Come on, where has your sense of humour gone, Michael? Was it attached to your ranking badge or so?¡¯
¡®Do you really want me to feel like a slut?¡¯ He said.
His unexpected intensity made her back off.
¡®Hmm, don¡¯t get depressed again. You seemed a lot better recently. I didn¡¯t want to retrigger any trauma or so. But why on Earth would you even use the s-word word for yourself, dude? You¡¯ve never used words like that.¡¯
¡®Isn¡¯t it applicable? You know what they say about men. We are always the predators, have always the wrong desires, can never be trusted. Why wouldn¡¯t I be like that too when provoked? I¡¯m a man after all. Don¡¯t summon that part of me!¡¯
Samantha looked at him in disbelief, but didn¡¯t find words to react, so she left him to Eliza. ¡®You know what they say about women. They always want to submit, and are always ready to satisfy a man. Plus they fart unicorns and rainbows.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve never heard the last part, and I know enough women by now to tell you that the rest is nonsense too. Whatever Miss Hunter may say.¡¯ He said, bewildered.
¡®Yup, people are themselves, and being man or woman is just a small part of that. There are as many ways to be a man as there are men, and there are as many ways to be a woman as there are women. None of us here is an avatar of any of those gender stereotypes, not even remotely.¡¯
Samantha yawned. ¡®You two are getting boring, I¡¯m going in, goodnight,¡¯ she interrupted them.
¡®So I was going to walk you home too, Eliza?¡¯ He said.
¡®Oh, baby, tonight you can walk me anywhere¡¡¯ She smiled teasingly, with that weird energy again.
¡®Don¡¯t be too flirty. Just in case it might work¡¡¯ he said.
¡®I see someone is becoming less dense.¡¯ She said, grinning.
Samantha suddenly walked in between them and made a protective gesture. ¡®What are you planning, Lizzie man-hater? Are you finally learning to play with chemistry? It¡¯s a weird moment for you to start with that.¡¯
¡®None of your business, Sam! He¡¯s mine tonight. Fix your own guy if you want one. I¡¯m not sharing him.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re completely giving her the wrong ideas, Eliza. I¡¯m just walking you home. And you two are the ones protecting me actually. Magic stunners and all¡¡¯ Michael said tiredly.
¡®Her ideas are her own responsibility. If she has a dirty mind she¡¯ll have to wash her own brains with soap, I¡¯m not gonna do that for her.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®How come you always shut me down for being too flirty, and when she goes much further than I do you only ignore her and then walk her home?¡¯ Samanta sulked.
¡®You are seriously trying something and I¡¯m not interested in whatever that is, and Eliza doesn¡¯t want anything at all, she¡¯s just joking around, and we trust each other as friends. Nothing else.¡¯
¡®Not fair.¡¯
¡®Life isn¡¯t always fair. And I don¡¯t have to justify myself about how I react to flirty girls.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re no fun.¡¯
¡®You said that before, so you should be used to that now. Come, Eliza, we¡¯re off. It¡¯s time for bed for me.¡¯
Samantha disappeared inside the building.
¡®Hah, I won the battle of the girls for the most wanted free man in The Nation for now.¡¯
¡®Good luck with your prize, which is just this hopeless case.¡¯
¡®Yeah, but it¡¯s my personal hopeless case for now.¡¯
¡®Your optimism is extreme sometimes, Eliza, but I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about. What are you planning?¡¯
¡®What? I don¡¯t have any wild plans with you. I just know that being with you is fun, and that we trust each other as you said. Do we need more?¡¯
They stopped, and she grabbed his hand.
¡®Plus, you are the one who swayed Eliza the man-hater into liking at least one boy. You¡¯re a keeper. Did you really mean that a-word earlier, when you were worried about me smothering the kid.¡¯
¡®A-word? A-attractive you mean? Why wouldn¡¯t I? And you are still slightly tipsy it seems, Eliza.¡¯
She winked. ¡®Ah, well¡ Drunk on life itself then. Actually I¡¯m as good as sober, I¡¯m just happy to be alive. Just being myself, you know.¡¯
She grabbed his other hand too and looked in his eyes. ¡®Who wouldn¡¯t get lost is this feeling? You, me, safety and trust, and¡¡¯
Her eyes were deep and green, and he almost stopped breathing when she came closer than he was comfortable with. But this time he didn¡¯t protest at all.
¡®You know, Samantha wasn¡¯t wrong about you being flirty tonight. And I warned you it could work. You¡¯ve never been so irresistible as today, Eliza. And everything about this moment is perfect.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m glad I¡¯m not the only one who thinks that.¡¯ She said with a weird smile.
They looked in each other¡¯s eyes, still holding hands, and became silent. Time seemed to stop, and it was as if there was nothing in the universe except for the two of them.
¡®You¡¯re making it difficult to not do this,¡¯ he said, and then he kissed her.
For a while they kept on into each other¡¯s eyes while holding each other¡¯s hand, not knowing how to react.
In the end she looked away, still lost for words.
¡®Sorry, not sorry!¡¯
He finally said with a weird high voice, finally breaking the magic. She stared at him, clearly impressed.
¡®Michael kissing Eliza? That was unexpected. And exactly when I had decided to not try anything like this at all, ever... But unless I¡¯m very mistaken we just did the kiss but not start a relationship thing now, as I predicted? And this is the talk about feelings now?¡¯ She said awkwardly as she let go of his hands.
He shrugged, a bit uneasily now,
¡®Is there any other option? Wouldn¡¯t anything more be impossible anyway? I¡¯m the husband of a robot, you¡¯re a Free Woman that lives half in a Ghost Town. And you¡¯re completely out of my league. But at least this kiss was my own initiative, and that¡¯s a first. It¡¯ll probably make me even more confused and lonely, but it was worth it, and now I can have some closure.¡¯
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.She looked at him, looking confused and even a bit disappointed now. ¡®Closure? What do you mean?¡¯
¡®You just said it. None of us both expects more than one kiss, and that is the end of this whole romance arc that never went anywhere. Of the last one even, my slutty days are over now. That was all the experimenting I needed. Now it¡¯s time to go back to our complicated friendship. I thank you for your trust.¡¯
He looked away now.
Eliza was completely stumped for a moment.
¡®That is not what I meant. You are being crazy and impossible, do you know that?¡¯
¡®You can tell Samantha that if she still wants to experiment with chemistry I know a guy who can get her a chemistry set. That¡¯s fun too. If the water becomes red it¡¯s acidic, if it¡¯s blueish it¡¯s alkaline.¡¯ His voice sounded strange again.
¡®We surely can trust you to know how to charm a girl¡ You know she¡¯s not even going to get that joke, let alone find it funny.¡¯
¡®Well, if she turns blue from frustration about my bad jokes she¡¯s alkaline, and if she turns red she¡¯s acidic.¡¯ He grinned, and she looked at him in disbelief.
¡®Do you know that you are actually better than anything in the secret book of advanced courtship sabotage? It¡¯s incredible. It might make me like you more though in an ironic way¡¡¯
¡®Please don¡¯t like me too much, that¡¯d be a very bad idea now,¡¯ he said.
¡®Shut up! I¡¯m just going to strangle you I think. Who¡¯s liking who too much? I¡¯d never thought I¡¯d ever be able to bewitch a boy like that into kissing me like that.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s your fault. You¡¯re incredible. All girls are a bit incredible, except maybe for Samantha sometimes, but you are the incredibelest for sure.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s not even a word, and let poor Sam off the hook for now, she¡¯ll have to live with missing the biggest price in man-hunting among the Free People of Seventh City already.¡¯
¡®But so do you tonight. You¡¯ve had your fun, but I¡¯m going home alone. You¡¯re not safe in my home and I¡¯m not even allowed in yours and I¡¯m illegal as a lover anyway. It couldn¡¯t work with me, you know that.¡¯
She frowned, and ignored the second part. ¡®Not just fun, an unforgettable memory. And that for the girl of whom everyone speculated she doesn¡¯t even like boys.¡¯
¡®Glad to have been of service. Goodnight. I love you¡ In some kind of way. As a friend at least.¡¯
Her hands made fists and then relaxed while she tried to find an answer.
¡®You dummy, I love you too, in some kind of way. And you¡¯re a good friend. No matter who you choose in the end. Even though I¡¯m probably incapable of liking other men in this world than you. And maybe it¡¯s betterto without anyway, like they say.¡¯
¡®Pfff¡ Maybe I¡¯ve had enough experience with women now for a whole life. I should probably become a monk.¡¯
¡®Too late, you¡¯re in love with the idea of being with girls already. You¡¯ll fall in love with one of us too one day. And there¡¯s one I can recommend.¡¯
She smiled sweetly as if she were the SCWF logo girl.
¡®We already had that conversation today, goodnight. My replacement robowife is enough drama for now.¡¯
He leaned closer to kiss her on the forehead, and disappeared into the night.
She looked at him disappearing, and then stood in the shadows in complete silence against the wall for a while, her forehead still glowing from the last kiss.
¡®If you¡¯re a slut, then I am the whore of Babylon, and we¡¯re both still complete virgins, you dummy!¡¯ she whispered to herself. How could everything be so complicated? Suggesting kissing just once, and then not starting a relationship but only a lot of drama had been a stupid idea. It had worked though, completely against everything she¡¯d expected, so next time she¡¯d better suggest something else¡ If there would be a next time that was. He seemed to be hopeless for now anyway, with a hopelessness that was transmittable just by coming too close to him¡ And why did she even bother? When had she ever even thought about romance as an option for herself anyway? She shouldn¡¯t even be thinking about this. And she needed to go to bed too indeed, so she disappeared in the darkness.
*
¡®So what do you think, Jenny?¡¯
Lady Martha poured her assistant some tea the next morning.
¡®About what, Lady Martha, there¡¯s so much going on.¡¯
¡®That maybe. In the same year that we¡¯re opening up to the male side there¡¯s a lost sister of H¨¦va crashing in. And Eliza is almost ready with her radio, they¡¯ll try to contact the outside world tomorrow. And meanwhile Mildred is fuming again because of that new boy. Again Eliza, but I agree we couldn¡¯t let him die. Which makes me wonder how many lost boys like him have died already, it¡¯s a dog-eat-dog world on the male side.¡¯
¡®But we can¡¯t carry the whole world on our shoulders. We can take in some refugees here and there, but we¡¯re a Ghost Town first and foremost. A community for women.¡¯
¡®They were thinking of starting an offshoot male colony in Tenth City instead of taking them in. There seems to be a man who¡¯s interested in that there. They found him wounded in the forest, he was almost killed by hunters who were killing the ferals.¡¯
¡®Hunters shooting humans? Despicable.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, it¡¯s a new hype among the Alphas. Shooting big animals is forbidden but there¡¯s no protection for the ferals. They are too afraid of the Ghost Towns to be a danger for now, but the male outlaws are not so lucky in their small unorganised gangs.¡¯
¡®Men¡ Every time I think they can¡¯t get worse they still get worse¡¡¯
¡®But their victims are men too. And they¡¯re human beings after all.¡¯
¡®I know, I¡¯ve only met three of them or so but they were all decent persons, even if they came with horrible stories about other men too¡¡¯
¡®So what is going to happen if we make a new alliance with H¨¦va?¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t they have outsider contacts themselves? I think it would mean the end of our isolation as a country, not? The question is only how the male Nation will react to that.¡¯
¡®I wasn¡¯t thinking about that. I was thinking about the baby problem as Jibrilla calls it. Something tells me H¨¦va isn¡¯t going to give us the secret of parthenopills. We¡¯re coming together again next month, and who knows how much will have changed by then¡¡¯
Jenny looked at her watch.
¡®So any special orders for today, Lady Martha?¡¯
¡®You have to take that boy to the farm in the afternoon, if he¡¯s well enough already. If he isn¡¯t ready for that we give him some rest days before he starts. He¡¯s been through horrible things. And speaking of orders, I think we should order more stunners, we might need them. Could you do that? Apart from that it¡¯s just the usual. Maybe check in with Eliza how far the radio experiments are working. I want to stay updated on our international connections.¡¯
¡®I will, Lady Martha, I certainly will¡¡¯
*
¡®Does anyone already know what happened to Shirley?¡¯
Greystone looked at Miss Hunter, who was her class teacher.
¡®Not what happened to her, but does it matter? The boy said she wasn¡¯t pleasing to him. She left his house without permission. She¡¯s as good as unmarriable now anyway.¡¯
¡®The girl is Gone, Miss Hunter. Isn¡¯t that a problem?¡¯
¡®Our school provides suitable brides to young men, Mister Greystone. Shirley doesn¡¯t fall in that category anymore after being rejected when he has taken her to his room already. Plus, her father wasn¡¯t interested when we called him. Just forget her.¡¯
¡®And Eliza?¡¯
¡®What about her?¡¯ Miss Hunter looked up.
¡®She asked us to take care of Shirley when she was here.¡¯
¡®Forget her, Greystone. She can¡¯t do anything to us.¡¯ ¡®
I¡¯m not so sure of that. She got me thinking since she recently visited us, and it¡¯s clear that¡¯s not as silly as we thought, and she has her contacts. She must have done more behind the scenes. Remember what happened to old Rogers?¡¯
¡®Him? He got promoted a few years ago or something like that, not?¡¯
¡®Yes, to an empty tower, away from everyone. The girls had been complaining about abuse, and the school did nothing. And suddenly he was gone, promoted away they said. But his pay was much lower and he had the worst menial job ever, that would even bore a robot to death. And for some reason he couldn¡¯t get back. Administrative problems or something. He¡¯s still there they say. And I¡¯m sure now it was her doing.¡¯
The look on Miss Hunter¡¯s face had changed.
¡®Come on, Greystone, this is bordering on superstition.¡¯
¡®On your head be it if this goes wrong,¡¯ Greystone said, and left the office.
For a while Miss Hunter kept staring at the place where he had been, unable to process his words, and then she went back to a pile of tests that she still needed to correct.
*
¡®So, I¡¯ve heard you¡¯re going to a Ghost Town Love Ceremony soon?¡¯ Angela asked Michael.
It was a few weeks later and it had been another day of bar work. She seemed to have taken up studying in the bar for serious now.
¡®Apparently. They¡¯ve invited me as a male representative or something. I don¡¯t think a no would be a good signal.¡¯
Angela looked him up and down, ¡®Hmmm, be sure to be dressed well,¡¯ she said teasingly.
He suddenly felt nervous. ¡®What do you mean?¡¯
¡®Just a tip about Love Ceremonies. Women always dress up for the occasion, and Ghost Town outlaws are not like us city non-Wives, they know how to make themselves pretty. And a Love Ceremony is the ultimate occasion for that. And everyone will be looking out for you if you¡¯re there.¡¯
¡®Oh joy¡¡¯ ¡®But there¡¯s no real rules, and you¡¯re new, they will take anything from you, I¡¯m sure. They are understanding too for non-Wives. And you¡¯re not even that¡¡¯
¡®Yeah right¡ No-one will notice me. I¡¯m only the first man ever to visit such a ceremony.¡¯
He looked absentmindedly at her book with the basics of 23th century philosophies on gender for a while, remembering that the same book had belonged to Eliza last time he had seen it, and then suddenly asked another question.
¡®Hey, don¡¯t you wanna come with me maybe?¡¯
Angela looked at him.
¡®Are you asking me to come as your plus-one? Sorry, but no,¡¯ she said decisively.
¡®Hey, I¡¯m not asking you out on a date, I¡¯m just asking you to come with me. To have someone with me.¡¯
¡®Every other time I¡¯d have said yes, but with the first male guest ever at a Love Ceremony, no¡ That would attract too much attention that I don¡¯t want, and people will talk about it for ages. And I¡¯m not even invited. Sorry.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said, not knowing whether to feel rejected or not. ¡®At least tell me more about what can I expect then!¡¯
¡®Well, a celebration of love and beauty as they would call it. A ceremony in which the partners promise each other eternal love, stuff like that. With music and rituals with a priestess, and then a party afterwards.¡¯
¡®And it works? I mean, they choose freely and then they stay together. That¡¯s a weird idea.¡¯
¡®I suppose. Separations and break-ups still exist here and there, but a lot of them stay together as loving partners as far as I know. Outlaws only make those vows when they¡¯re really sure¡¡¯
¡®Lucky them¡ They¡¯re not stuck with Marriages that are hell for both partners,¡¯ he said, fiddling with his fingers, ¡®but it¡¯s probably because they¡¯re women that it¡¯s possible. I should have been a woman too. Men are just just doomed to be horrible with relationships. All we can do is hurt women and get hurt ourselves.¡¯
¡®And what do you even know about that, Mr kiss and never start a relationship? You haven¡¯t even tried since your engagement is over.¡¯
¡®That time is over. No more messing with girls for me. And I think it¡¯s time for me to go home now. Need a walk home?¡¯
¡®Not today, I¡¯m waiting for Sam, she has a stunner. She¡¯s even safer than you now.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ For a while he didn¡¯t say anything, seemingly staring at something before him, and just when she picked up her book again because she thought he wasn¡¯t going to reply anymore he spoke again.
¡®Well, I¡¯m off then. See you later, Angela!¡¯.
¡®See you later.¡¯
2.25 The Energy of A Love Ceremony
Michael stood at the town centre of Seventh City Ghost Town and looked at his clock. He tried desperately to not look nervous, which was not easy now on the day of the Love Ceremony of Jessica and Erica, and he still had no idea what to expect and felt out of place. He had arrived early, and felt a bit lost in this female world, where women in beautiful dresses were going to the chapel of the Angel. Why hadn¡¯t he asked one of the girls to come with him? He cursed his own awkwardness once Angela had used the word ¡®date¡¯, because now he had to do this all alone. It was one thing to casually walk around in a Ghost Town every now and then, but being at one of their secret ceremonies while being male was something else. He forced himself to enter the chapel room, and kept standing there in a corner trying to be as invisible as possible while women came in around him. It probably didn¡¯t work, but while a lot of people looked at him no-one approached him until his first friend arrived.
When Megan came in he wasn¡¯t the only one in this room full of impressively pretty women to look up. She wore the most impressive dress he¡¯d ever seen any girl wear until a few minutes ago and came straight to him, completely relaxed.
¡®Ah, you¡¯re here already!¡¯
¡®Wow¡¡¯ was the only word he could say when he saw her.
Once he had thought her a girl that you wouldn''t notice if you weren''t looking for her, but that was in another world now, when they didn¡¯t know each other yet and he was forced to pick a fianc¨¦e from a line of nervous girls in cheap black bikinis displayed like dolls in a perverse toy shop.
¡®Ancient traditions say that you have to make yourself beautiful on an occasion like this.¡¯ She said apologetically when she understood what was happening, and she was blushing slightly now for the first time since their earliest dates.
¡®You¡¯re always beautiful, but today¡¡¯ He started, but suddenly someone put their hands before his eyes.
¡®Don¡¯t let your eyes fall out, Loverboy! Plus it¡¯s a bit late to start flirting with your ex-fianc¨¦e now,¡¯ the voice of Eliza said from behind him.
¡®I¡¯m just being objective. I¡¯m not trying to flirt at all,¡¯ he said matter-of-factly, turning from Megan to Eliza, who stood behind him in a black and white dress with a single red flower in her tamed curls. ¡®And you¡¯re beautiful too, by the way, Eliza, eh¡¡¯
She looked him up and down with a disapproving look.
¡®You on the other side, to be honest, Michael boy, are looking a bit boring today, even as the only man in the room you¡¯re quite underwhelming. And as the only man ever at an occasion like this even you could have made a much flashier entrance than this.¡¯
¡®I didn¡¯t know what to expect. And I don¡¯t want to stand out too much, you know. Being a man in a ghost town at an event with a lot of important outlaw women and all¡¡¯
She circled around him to look at him from all angles.
¡®Yep, you completely look like a man in a Ghost Town because that¡¯s what you are too. You stand out automatically, so why not play along and dress for the occasion? Although I don¡¯t think you¡¯re ready for wearing a pretty dress like us, so it¡¯s probably better like this. The same dress that looks so great on Megan would look terrible on you, and I say that with all possible respect to all the natural beauty that you do have. But on the other hand it¡¯s clear that they¡¯re getting used to you here. No-one has been trying to stun you yet, or even to kiss you. Honestly it¡¯s a bit boring even¡¡¯
He didn¡¯t answer, and was blushing himself now. Since when did Eliza make him blush? Was it because she talked about kissing?
¡®Stop it you two! We¡¯re at a Love Ceremony, this isn¡¯t a girls¡¯ night out.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Shht, he¡¯s not even a girl, and Lady Martha has arrived.¡¯ Eliza said and he turned his head.
At the door Lady Martha entered in a wide green and white dress, together with her partner Ruth, who clearly was the priestess here today.
¡®Now that¡¯s a power couple¡¡¯ Michael remarked, clearly in awe.
¡®Jealous?¡¯ Eliza whispered, coming too close again. ¡®Remember that you came alone, but technically you¡¯re the only man in the country ever who could have asked out a girl as a free will date for a Ghost Town ceremony. More than one girl might have said yes even.¡¯
¡®I know, but I¡¯m not going to play with anyone¡¯s feelings,¡¯ he said dismissively, ¡®and I think it¡¯s time to find a chair.¡¯
He chose three empty seats and sat down in the middle one, with both girls placing themselves on both sides of him. It might not have been the best idea, but he saw no way to change that now.
The ceremony started when both partners, two beautiful women in their twenties, entered the room too. Both of them wore a colourful dress decorated with jewels and flowers, completely different from the black and white he knew from a Nation Marriage ceremony. The atmosphere here was completely different too. Everyone was relaxed here, and there were no arrogant-looking men ogling one of the two ¡®brides¡¯ as he still called them in his head with that weird mix of lust and contempt here that only men ogling a woman can have. But there were no men here at all, except for him, the weird glitch in the war of the sexes.
Priestess Ruth looked angelic in her long green dress, wearing simple jewellery of silver with green and amber stones, almost radiating some kind of light or spiritual energy. Like her partner she was older than his mother, but in a way she looked much younger, or at least more alive, and quite beautiful even with her long flowing grey hairs. It was definitely true that everyone was beautiful here today, except for him then¡
Suddenly a keyboard instrument started to play, and a harp and a hurdy-gurdy fell in when a singer started to sing a slow song. Michael knew both instruments from books, but he had never heard them played live, and now he came to think of it, he had never heard a woman sing live before either. In church there were only men who sang, and while he certainly had heard a lot of women''s voices in historical recordings, it was a completely different experience to hear this singer sing live with those instruments behind her.
¡®I¡¯m quite sure you¡¯re not supposed to stare at the musicians,¡¯ Eliza whispered in his ear.
¡®It¡¯s beautiful¡¯ he whispered, but she only heard the last word.
¡®Yes, everyone is today, silly boy. It¡¯s the occasion for that.¡¯
¡®Oh shut up, I meant the music. And I want to listen.¡¯
His look made her shut up, but the song was almost over, and it wasn¡¯t long until Lady Ruth had started to talk.
¡®Ladies, today we are present again to witness the love and commitment of two women who want to share their life together as a part of our community. I want to thank all of you for your presence and love for the couple, and for our community. Let us start with a prayer to the Creator of all things, and ask the Angel of the Earth for her blessing too.¡¯
Michael had expected a boring prayer, but instead the harp and the hurdy-gurdy began to play again and the singer, who was now joined by a whole choir of women of all ages dressed in white and green, began to sing a song. It was a slow but beautiful melody with a lot of counterpoint melodies from the instruments.
¡®Love is the deeper force, that unites us all
Life can only make sense, if we give ourselves to love
Oh make us all one, without darkness in our hearts
Loving each other as ourselves,
loving the Earth and the Creator
Oh make us all one, with the Light in our hearts.¡¯
Throughout the song, and also later in the ceremonial part Michael was surprised at the references to the old scriptures that he recognised, which seemed to actually mean something to the women here. This was so different from the church meetings he knew, and he was certain Paul would be shocked by everything. But Paul wasn¡¯t his friend anymore anyway, and The Church wouldn¡¯t even let him in as an unrated man. These women here on the other hand had let him in, and they were becoming his friends even.
After the song the expected prayer came, but it was more like an invocation, in which first the Creator was asked to come with love, and then the blessings of the angel of the Earth were spoken upon the couple and upon all women -and man- present. With that addition to what he presumed to be a well-known liturgical text he felt a lot of people look at him, but not in a negative way, more with a sort of weird curiosity. He remembered the stories about the Angel striking men who entered her sanctuary down with lighting, and hoped that no-one present really believed that, but no lightning appeared and she ended her prayer and called the couple to say their vows, while the musicians played an instrumental piece.
Erica and Jessica came forward, holding hands, and instinctively he wanted to grab a hand too. Somehow it felt like something he should do in the magic of the moment, but with both Megan and Eliza next to him something in his brain crashed. Or maybe it was his heart that completely went crazy now. These women were clearly in love, and very happy to affirm a life-long union to the world, which was completely unlike the Marriages he had seen where the woman was ritually sentenced to a life in painful servitude. He listened to the vows, which were about support and love, but also about lifelong friendship and intimacy in good times and bad times, until death would part them.
Something in his heart almost exploded. He saw both women, which he didn¡¯t know that well, and he knew they were speaking the truth, and he believed that it would happen for them. He hadn¡¯t realised how deep these Love Ceremony partnerships went, but it was a world that he was excluded from as a man. Only a woman could love and understand another woman as these two, not? Men could never be lovers like that. He didn¡¯t know when it had happened, but he was holding both Megan¡¯s and Eliza¡¯s hands now. He discreetly let go of them, and turned red, but the girls seemed to be more interested in what was happening than in him.
¡®So from now on you will be known in this Ghost Town and to all other people as Erica Jessicas and Jessica Ericas. The ancient traditions older than The Nation say you can kiss now to affirm that you love each other.¡¯
He saw the women kiss, and felt some ancient magic that was completely unlike the dark magic of a Marriage ceremony even if the words had been so alike. He remembered how his brother had looked at Natasha, with greedy and hungry eyes, and how she had stood there before that altar as a frozen robot, knowing that she was now bound to Sam for the rest of their lives, and shivers went through his spine.
¡®And now you can give each other these rings, made here in Seventh City Ghost Town, as an outward signal of your covenant of love towards the whole world, and to the Creator and the angel of the Earth herself.¡¯ Priestess Ruth said, and she produced a small pillow with two rings. Again he more or less knew the ritual from a Marriage ceremony, and he saw the magic of it at work, but again the effect was completely opposite. The two women gave each other the ring, and they kissed each other again, and everyone cheered. He grabbed both girls next to him in two enthusiastic side hugs simultaneously and cheered too.
¡®They really love each other.¡¯ He said.
¡®Why else do you think they would call it a Love Ceremony, dummy.¡¯ Eliza said, pinching him in disbelief.
¡®But, some parts of it look like a Marriage ceremony. And still it¡¯s the complete opposite of that. They really love each other.¡¯ He said, confused.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.¡®Is your e-radio stuck in a loop? And? In the days of those ancient mixed-couple romance novels there must have been marriages like that too, if it wasn¡¯t all fiction.¡¯
¡®Do you really think that a man is capable of having that kind of love then?¡¯ He asked, and it was Megan who answered because Eliza was completely lost with his confusion.
¡®I honestly don¡¯t know anything about men in general, but I knew that you would be able to do so from that weird first date with that glass in between us. More than I¡¯m sure about myself even, and it clearly isn¡¯t for us.¡¯
¡®Shht, this is the end¡¯ Eliza said, and while the music started again the couple walked out and people started to get away from their place to talk.
¡®The party will be in the bar, and everyone is invited. They will have wine with bubbles from Fifth City Ghost Town, an ancient drink that is rare nowadays but fits well on occasions like today.¡¯
¡®Ooh, I have always wanted to try that one.¡¯ Eliza whispered enthusiastically in his ear.
*
An hour later in the Ghost Town bar he was drinking a glass of the famous wine with bubbles finally alone with his thoughts. Eliza was talking to Lady Martha¡¯s assistant, whose name he had forgotten, while Megan was with a woman he didn¡¯t know, discussing something about the best recipe for choy cabbages. He looked at the people, and was still processing the whole evening, including the mere fact that he had been able to be the witness of such things, when suddenly Lady Martha and the priestess stood before him.
¡®And, did you enjoy the Love Ceremony of Erica and Jessica, young man Michael?¡¯ the community leader asked formally, and he instinctively curtsied.
¡®I was impressed, Lady Martha. It¡¯s the complete opposite of Nation Marriages. It was indeed a Love Ceremony. The ritual meant to bring two people together in love, not to bind the woman to the will of the man.¡¯
Lady Ruth nodded. ¡®You seem to have insight into how rituals work. I couldn¡¯t have described it better. To be honest I haven''t seen a Nation Marriage in over thirty-five years so I can¡¯t really compare the two but I¡¯ll trust you.¡¯
¡®I saw my brother marry a few years ago. It was so horrible, Lady Ruth. It seemed like everything was meant to affirm my brother as the master and Natasha as his personal slave and possession. And the atmosphere was so grim, with all these men ogling the bride. That predatory gaze mixed with contempt was horrible, and this was really the opposite. And you¡¯re all so beautiful too.¡¯
¡®Yes, it¡¯s a celebration of beauty too. Love and beauty are connected, as are truth, goodness and justice.¡¯ Lady Ruth said, and he nodded, and said nothing for a while.
¡®What are you thinking of, young man Michaels?¡¯ the priestess asked him.
¡®So, these ceremonies only exist for women couples?¡¯ he asked and Lady Martha looked at him now, as if trying to read him.
¡®Traditionally, yes. You¡¯re well aware that you¡¯re probably the first man to witness one of them in more than a century. But the times are changing, and I¡¯m quite sure there will be more men with that badge in the future who might be present on an occasion like this,¡¯ and she pointed at his Free Person badge, ¡®,so maybe one day there would be a man who wants to overcome both his fear for women and the extreme taboo on same sex unions that the Male Society has and do a Love Ceremony with another man. Everything is possible in an open future, but seeing the state of your world I still don¡¯t see it happening soon. You?¡¯
He looked at her, confused. ¡®You¡¯re probably right about man couples being a taboo. I¡¯ve never understood why men are so violent about it. The typical Real Men seem to be extremely afraid of it even. They would say God doesn¡¯t want it or something, but even that doesn¡¯t really feel like a good reason to invest such extreme hate against something.¡¯
¡®They might be afraid that a man will look at them like they look at a woman?¡¯ Lady Martha suggested.
¡®Maybe¡ But anyway, I wasn¡¯t thinking about man couples, but, eh¡¡¯
She smiled. ¡®I know what you mean, Michael Michaels. You¡¯re talking about the possibility of Love Ceremonies for mixed couples. I¡¯m not stupid. Everyone knows you¡¯re still cursed with heterosexuality as Eliza calls it. So do you have a girlfriend you want to commit to as a life partner in a Love Ceremony?¡¯
She seemed to be looking in the direction of Eliza.
¡®Eh, no. It¡¯s not for now, maybe not even for me, I¡¯m just wondering about the future possibilities I think. I wasn¡¯t ready for a Wife School marriage when they forced me to go to the partner choice ceremony, and right now I don¡¯t know how to navigate free will relationships either yet.¡¯
She nodded her head.
¡®Young man Michaels, you yourself were the one who wrote history when he started to fight the segregation between the sexes with friendship. You have more female friends than any man alive in this nation now, plus one from the land where men are like mythical monsters. The problem is more that you need to be ready than that you won¡¯t be able to find someone. Heterosexuality is a fairly common curse it seems, there¡¯s still more women who are attracted to men than that are attracted to women, even in this Ghost Town, and here they just stay single and know nothing else than that. We used to call them Ghost Town asexuals as you know. But you and your friends are from a new time, and even some of our younger Ghost Town members are starting to think completely differently about those things I¡¯ve noticed. Especially with the recent arrival of our new blue-haired rebel.¡¯
¡®Shir, eh Leya? She¡¯s quite openly friends with Robert now I guess, and of all the boys I knew I would have said he was the least likely candidate to ever visit a Ghost Town. It¡¯s weird. But it¡¯s just friendship.¡¯
¡®There¡¯s no such thing as just friendship, young man, especially not in this case. Friendship in itself is a miracle. There have been countless Wife School escapes before, but none with the help of a man as a friend. And for some here it would be even more impressive if he isn¡¯t interested in her as a lover at all, and still wants to be her friend. It would disprove so many stereotypes¡ Like you with Megan.¡¯
¡®Can a Ghost Town woman have a rated man as a lover? He¡¯s a Gamma-3. At a certain point he¡¯ll be forced by his parents to choose a Wife, and then there isn¡¯t much he can do but obey or get in deep trouble, a Real Man must get married. Maybe he could find a Pen Pal girlfriend in Wife School that agrees to a Marriage pact or so, but I doubt that. He¡¯s too shy. I¡¯ve heard from Eliza that there¡¯s a girl in her former class who¡¯s already negotiating about that with a boy.¡¯
¡®The future is full of things we can¡¯t imagine, Michael. Hope always finds a way somehow, and on a day like today it¡¯s impossible to believe that Love will win. And love has many forms.¡¯
¡®I feel that too now, but that¡¯s just the moment, not?¡¯
¡®Who is to say that magical moments like today aren¡¯t more real than everyday reality, young man?¡¯ Lady Ruth said, and her partner suddenly pointed at Jessica and Erica, who were coming in their direction, still holding hands.
¡®Don¡¯t they want to talk to you? Isn¡¯t it impolite for me to talk to them tonight?¡¯ He said nervously.
Lady Martha seemed amused again. ¡®No, they would want to see you first. You are the special guest here, more than we, young man. They see us all the time. We¡¯ve talked with them a lot when we prepared this whole ceremony, but you weren¡¯t even properly introduced to them. And you were invited as a special representative, a historical one even. Usually we just have some city non-wives and guests from other Ghost Towns at best. Not men and H¨¦vans.¡¯
¡®Ah, I didn¡¯t even see Jibrilla, is she here too?¡¯
¡®She just attended the ceremony, she didn¡¯t come along to the afterparty. I think it¡¯s a bit too crowded for her.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¯ He said, looking in awe at the two beautiful women who were approaching.
¡®Welcome, Michael Michaels,¡¯ Erica said.
She was long and blond and wore a flowered dress decorated with real flowers. The flower motif was so detailed and realistic that you had to look at which flowers were real and which weren¡¯t.
¡®Eh, thank you for inviting me. It was a beautiful ceremony. I¡¯ve never experienced anything like this before.¡¯ He said, shyly.
¡®And we heard good things about you. So when we invited representatives we added you. I don¡¯t think Jessica believed that you would actually show up until Lady Martha confirmed it.¡¯
Jessica looked at him. She had a very dark skin and hair and she was also breathtakingly beautiful.
¡®You can¡¯t blame me for not believing a man will show up in a Ghost Town.¡¯
¡®I see your point,¡¯ he said, ¡®but why even invite me? I¡¯m half deleted and I¡¯m not really a good representative of anything, let alone the male society. Plus you don¡¯t want them to be represented at an occasion like this here. They¡¯d turn this whole thing into a Marriage and kill the magic if they could!¡¯
Erica looked at him with deep blue eyes.
¡®No, no. We chose you as a representative of the good men in the world. Not them.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m completely inadequate, I¡¯m just a lost boy.¡¯
¡®You? We saw you there with Eliza and your Wife School ex, as very good friends. That sight alone makes it worth inviting you, you know. You do represent something unique.¡¯ Erica said.
¡®You don¡¯t know what that means I suppose, to see you there like that. So unlike all the men I¡¯ve ever known. So unlike him too. The man I escaped from Wife School for I mean.¡¯ Jessica added.
¡®Any man really. I¡¯ve known a lot of mixed marriages and all of them were miserable. And you come here as close friends. That¡¯s quite healing in a way even.¡¯ Erica said and he felt shy again.
¡®You really make Eliza shine, do you know that?¡¯ She added, with a twinkling in her eyes that he ignored. ¡®Oh, and you seem to have kept elder Mildred away today. That¡¯s a plus too.¡¯
He shrugged. ¡®She seems to avoid me, I¡¯ve heard a lot about her but I¡¯ve never seen her.¡¯
He took a sip from his glass. ¡®So how does it feel? How do you know you¡¯ve found the one you want to share your life with? Your life-sharer as they say in H¨¦va?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s asking the right questions, Jessica.¡¯ Erica said, looking at her lover.
¡®You just know? Or maybe that¡¯s a clich¨¦, and it¡¯s not just that. It¡¯s a choice too. You know it¡¯s possible because you feel at home with each other like you¡¯ve never done before, and you grab the possibility together. But you know you need to make it work together.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m sure you two will be able to do that. I¡¯ve never seen anything like this. I always thought the best thing a couple could do was damage control and trying not to be horrible, you know what I mean. I instantly clicked with Megan on a friendship level but we didn¡¯t seem to manage beyond that. Marriage wouldn¡¯t have been the usual hell, but still¡¡¯
A girl that he recognised as Leya¡¯s roommate gave him another glass of bubble wine, and he sipped from it, having forgotten what he was saying. Erica gave him a kiss on his cheek and took the hand of her partner.
¡®We¡¯re going to greet everyone else too. It¡¯s a busy night for us. Thank you for being here. Have you seen the H¨¦van representative by the way?¡¯
¡®Jibrilla? No. I wasn¡¯t even aware she was at the ceremony, Lady Martha said she didn¡¯t come to the afterparty, too many people.¡¯
¡®We¡¯ll talk to her later then.¡¯ Erica said, and the couple disappeared to talk to an unknown Ghost Town elder in another corner of the room.
For a while he talked to Leya, and then to some of the musicians. He didn¡¯t even think of it when he got offered another glass of bubble wine, and when it was almost empty suddenly Eliza stood before him again.
¡®Hey, big boy, you¡¯re tipsy and it¡¯s too late for you to go home.¡¯ He looked at his wristwatch. ¡®Ow, shit. Time flies when you meet interesting people¡¡¯
¡®And now the most interesting one of all is going to put you to bed, or the boss won¡¯t be happy tomorrow, and neither will mine.¡¯
¡®Your house is even further away than mine, and I can¡¯t sleep there.¡¯ He said.
¡®That¡¯s not true tonight. I have a place for us three to sleep here, you dummy. Did you think we¡¯d let you go home now and in this state? And Megan thinks it¡¯s time to go to sleep too.¡¯
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He said. Seeing the time he couldn¡¯t say much against that.
2.26 The Night after the Love Ceremony
¡®Where are we going?¡¯ Michael asked. He looked at the stars and felt a chilly wind that made him completely sober again.
¡®We have a place to sleep in the guest apartment for youngsters, it¡¯s not far. And you can even choose whether we share a room with three or you take a second room for yourself. But won¡¯t it be fun to put all three beds together?¡¯ Eliza said.
He backed off and Megan started laughing.
¡®You want me to sleep with two girls in one room? Are you crazy? I¡¯m a boy. They all trust me too much here.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m armed with a stunner and they know that you¡¯re with me, so I¡¯m the safety measure here if they need one, which they don¡¯t. But remember that it¡¯s not just boys that are attracted to women. Forty percent or more of the women here sleep with another woman every night, remember. And that¡¯s just the officially partnered ones. So they could as well not trust me and Megan together¡ They actually trust everyone they let in to just follow the relationship guidelines, and that¡¯s including you now. If they accepted you, you¡¯re accepted fully, didn¡¯t you realise that? Man or woman or both or something else completely, whatever, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯
¡®What relationship guidelines?¡¯ Michael asked, suddenly feeling nervous.
¡®Ah¡ I forgot that you probably never heard of those, a bit like a ten commandments of relationships. That¡¯s something Lady Martha or Jenny must have forgotten to tell you yet. It¡¯s just mostly just common sense, very basic rules for healthy relationships, a bit like the inverse of Miss Hunter¡¯s please-your-husband curriculum now I come to think of it. Always be honest with yourself and the other, never force your partner to do something she doesn¡¯t want, be faithful if you have committed yourself to someone, listen to boundaries and communicate them yourself, and all that. I¡¯ll get you a copy tomorrow if you¡¯re interested, might be interesting one day.¡¯ She winked here. ¡®And since you¡¯re rather tipsy, the famous rule seven applies to you tonight too.¡¯
Megan giggled and started laughing until he got irritated by not getting the joke.
¡®I¡¯m only a boy school student. Or I was one. I know nothing about those things and we just were taught we would one day get a Wife to boss around and then be happy. Tell me what¡¯s so funny! What¡¯s rule seven supposed to be?¡¯
¡®Something like don¡¯t start a new relationship or take new steps in intimacy when you¡¯re under the influence of alcohol. It¡¯s assumed to be common sense here.¡¯
He stopped and threw his hands into the air.
¡®Ah. Well, I already broke a lot of them already, didn¡¯t I? Kiss and don¡¯t start a relationship and all¡ Really, I¡¯m horrible with relationships. They should keep me out of here. I¡¯ll only hurt people.¡¯
Now Eliza started laughing. ¡®Your famous slutty days you mean? Oh, yes you¡¯re the worst man in all of The Nation when it comes to relationships with women. You don¡¯t really believe that yourself, do you? Your main problem is that you¡¯re too dramatic, and apart from that you pretty much would automatically keep all of the relationship guidelines without even having heard them, I¡¯m quite sure of that. Don¡¯t overthink things.¡¯
¡®But I¡¯m a man¡¡¯
¡®Apparently, you¡¯ve said that before so it must matter to you somehow. Didn¡¯t you notice that by now they accept you more here than the male side ever did?¡¯
¡®I¡¯m confused by that. Shouldn¡¯t they distrust me? Men only want one thing and all that. Your Miss Hunter¡¯s head would explode by how much they trust me here.¡¯
¡®Oh yes please, I want to see that. But I wouldn¡¯t want to clean it up. Rotten brains everywhere¡ And she lives in a small world where Love Ceremonies and Ghost Towns don¡¯t exist either, I wouldn¡¯t go there personally.¡¯ Eliza said, and Megan turned to him.
¡®So you¡¯ll stay with us tonight? I¡¯d like that.¡¯
He sighed and looked around. ¡®Only if you don¡¯t put the beds together. There¡¯s too much Love Ceremony energy in the air now and I don¡¯t want to do stupid things. Does your rule seven apply to that too?¡¯
¡®You seemed quite receptive to it indeed. Holding hands with two girls that you already rejected simultaneously at such a moment. Bold move, Loverboy!¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Who rejected who?¡¯ He asked, visibly confused.
¡®That¡¯s a discussion for another time, don¡¯t kill the atmosphere tonight. For now our friendship is the benefits.¡¯
They walked in silence for a minute, looking at the stars, and they arrived at the building already.
¡®And here we are, it¡¯s on the fourth floor but there¡¯s an elevator. So it¡¯s agreed that we take the three-bedroom together? I must have the keys somewhere.¡¯ Eliza said, frantically looking for a key in her handbag.
¡®Sleeping alone in an unknown room in a Ghost Town is a worse idea than with you two in a room.¡¯ He said, and Eliza led the other two to the elevator and pushed the four-button.
¡®So you had planned to sleep here all along?¡¯ He asked when the elevator went up.
¡®Oh, yes, a very predictable scenario. I suppose they count on me a bit too to keep an eye on you.¡¯ She took her stunner out of her pocket and aimed it at him playfully. ¡®It¡¯s my job to put you to sleep today.¡¯
¡®Put that thing away, you¡¯re in a weird mood, Eliza.¡¯
¡®Oh, it¡¯s in safety mode, it won¡¯t shoot. And putting you to sleep now would be stupid. No motive, no crime, big boy. You should know by now my impulsivity is never unguided¡ And you¡¯re quite heavy, so you can carry yourself to bed.¡¯
A weird bell sound told them that they had arrived at the fourth floor, so they left the elevator and after a weird hallway Eliza opened the door of a small apartment that mostly consisted of a big bedroom with three beds. The room was completely furnished and everything was ready to use.
¡®It¡¯s good to finally be a guest here.¡¯ Eliza said, and she took some pieces of clothing out of a closet. ¡®These long T-shirts here can be used to sleep in, if you don¡¯t mind.¡¯
Michael looked at the tunic-like piece of clothing while Eliza promptly started undressing.
¡®Eliza, you can¡¯t do that with the boy here.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®I¡¯ve been sleeping in that dorm for years, and there were a few girls there who certainly had worse thoughts about every girl they saw undressing than this boy could form in his head about me, even if he tried,¡¯ She said, and Michael turned his head away.
¡®I¡¯m not watching anyway. Tell me when you¡¯re decent again.¡¯ Eliza started laughing while putting on her nightshirt.
¡®I¡¯m not naked, silly boy, and you¡¯ve seen worse than my underwear already, like on that first evening when we first met. Nothing that you haven¡¯t already seen here.¡¯
His thoughts went back to the partner choice ceremony, and to the line of girls wearing black bikinis. ¡®Don¡¯t remind me please. That was a horrible experience. Really.¡¯
¡®You can look again anyway, this nightshirt that I¡¯m wearing is almost a dress.¡¯
He turned his head. ¡®I just want a bed now. I¡¯ve had enough woman stuff for one day I think.¡¯
¡®Boo, you¡¯re no fun again. And that on our first sleepover.¡¯ Eliza said.
Megan, who had undressed in the second room, came back and put some blankets on her bed and handed out the rest to the other two.
¡®Here¡¯s your blankets, and don¡¯t let Eliza provoke you. She easily gets too excited and she¡¯s both tired and a bit tipsy now, which is a dangerous combination.¡¯
¡®And you¡¯re even less fun. Why did I even invite you two bores?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s late, and he has to work tomorrow, as do you. Be a bit more practical and grown-up please.¡¯ Michael disappeared to the kitchen to change clothes while the girls went on with their discussion.
¡®Who wants to be practical when there¡¯s still Love Ceremony energy running through our veins? I want to kiss Life itself and hold the whole world tonight like a lover.¡¯ Eliza said, waltzing with a blanket.
¡®Oh no, I know you when you¡¯re like that. You stay in your own world, and leave the boy alone. Please don¡¯t do anything you¡¯ll regret tomorrow. And Drink less of that wine with bubbles next time.¡¯ He heard Megan say.
¡®I am perfectly sober now, thank you. I had a refreshing walk in the cold air, remember? I¡¯m just feeling the love flowing through me.¡¯
¡®You can feel that without bothering others too. Just let me sleep, and him too, please.¡¯ Megan said, while Michael came back to make his own bed ready.
¡®Just one hug then, and a goodnight kiss.¡¯ Eliza said, and jumped at Michael and wrapped herself around him while they both fell on his bed.
¡®Hey, easy.¡¯ He said with Eliza on top of him.
¡®Rule seven!¡¯ Megan said.
¡®I¡¯m only drunk on life and I¡¯m just hugging him, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m trying out Miss Hunter¡¯s advanced techniques to satisfy your husband in the bedroom.¡¯
Michael freed himself from her embrace and sat next to her.
¡®It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t like you holding me, but you¡¯re overdoing it and I just want to sleep now.¡¯ He said.
¡®And my goodnight kiss?¡¯ she asked childishly.
He sighed and gave her a kiss on the forehead and a much more careful hug.
¡®Goodnight, Eliza. Thanks for fixing a place to sleep. You are a good friend. And I like being with both of you, but now I need to sleep, alone I mean, so leave me now or I¡¯ll still take the other room alone.¡¯
Eliza jumped to her own bed and held up her hands in surrender.
¡®Okay, okay. You¡¯re right, I¡¯m overdoing it and I¡¯m too excited to sleep now and I have a bad sense of personal boundaries.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t mind any of those things, as long as you let me sleep. Please¡¡¯ His voice had started to sound desperate.
¡®How late do you have to work? When do I wake you up?¡¯
¡®Oh, it¡¯s only eleven in the morning. All the time in the world, I have a late shift. It¡¯s a forty-minute walk to the Square bar so we can have breakfast together and all if you¡¯re not working too early.¡¯
¡®Okay, I¡¯ll let you sleep now. See you on the other side of the night!¡¯
He fell asleep fast, not even bothering to follow the whispering conversation that the girls were having about him.
*
The next morning he opened his eyes and saw two green eyes and a lot of wild curls, half a meter from his face. With a shock he was completely awake, and he sat on the bed.
¡®Good morning, Michael.¡¯ Eliza said, also sitting up straight.
¡®You haven¡¯t been sleeping here, have you?¡¯ he asked, just in case.
¡®No, silly boy. I¡¯m a good girl, I stayed in my own bed. Look, I¡¯m dressed already and all. I just found your sleeping face so calm and cute that I kept looking at it for a while.¡¯
¡®Personal space, Eliza, personal space. He¡¯s a boy, remember.¡¯ Megan said, coming from the kitchen with a plate with coffee and breakfast.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.¡®Wow, what did I do to deserve that?¡¯ He asked when Megan put the plate on a small wooden side table. ¡®I just wanted breakfast myself and it wasn¡¯t much effort to make thrice the amount? Or maybe it¡¯s a case of the friendship is the benefits? Someone said something like that recently.¡¯
¡®Anyway, wow. This looks great.¡¯ He said.
¡®Well, I¡¯ll never have a husband who¡¯ll boss me around, but I have a best friend here and a great guy friend too. So all that mythical female servility has to go anywhere, doesn¡¯t it?¡¯ ¡®Oh, if Miss Hunter could see you now.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s probably still bad if you¡¯re not married, and unmarriable.¡¯
¡®Oh yes, premarital breakfasts are probably unladylike or cheating your future husband or so.¡¯
¡®At least she thought that you could be a proper Wife. I was always the most unmarriable girl ever in the SCWF, yes woman! Both Greystone and Miss Hunter called me that. She once said any man would run away after fifteen minutes with me. And you managed a whole night in the same room as me.¡¯ Eliza had turned to Michael again.
¡®You and me and my ex-fianc¨¦e. Don¡¯t make it sound weird, I was mostly sleeping anyway, which made being with you much more bearable,¡¯ he said, eating another croissant.
¡®Oww, that was a burn. He¡¯s getting better, watch out!¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Wasn¡¯t I supposed to be adjusting to girl friendships then? I¡¯m just copying her mode of communication. Or wasn¡¯t I supposed to be doing that?¡¯ he said innocently.
¡®Well, eh¡¡¯ Eliza said, finally not finding words.
¡®You¡¯ve mostly picked up Eliza things from her, not general girl things I¡¯m afraid. Just like every boy every girl is different too, and I¡¯m probably not very typical either,¡¯ Megan added.
¡®I don¡¯t mind Eliza things. As long as I can get enough sleep when I need to, that is¡ But maybe I need to hang out with other girls if I really want to learn actual girl things and not just Eliza things¡¡¯
¡®Dude, you have more girl friends than all the other guys of the entire Nation combined¡! You wouldn¡¯t even need us for that.¡¯
¡®He¡¯s still like a little chick that keeps following the first friendly animal it saw after hatching as if it¡¯s her mother¡¡¯ Eliza said, patting his head again.
¡®Your oxytocin plan didn¡¯t really work out like you planned.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Oh, it did. He didn¡¯t go exclusively monogamous on anyone yet and he¡¯s a valuable friend for the whole female world. My plans always work!¡¯
¡®But he¡¯s still attached mostly to the first two girls that he talked to.¡¯
¡®Hey, you¡¯re talking about me again as if I¡¯m not there,¡¯ Michael interrupted them.
¡®Oh, I always forget that subject M-1 can speak and understand us. ¡¯ Eliza said, eating the last croissant.
¡®Oh please, stop.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®It¡¯s no problem. I can live with it.¡¯ He said.
¡®Yes, it¡¯s clear you find her bearable when you¡¯re awake too, even when she¡¯s in a state where even most of our classmates would avoid her.¡¯
He shrugged and sipped some of his tea. ¡®Maybe I¡¯ve picked up too much Eliza things. But I don¡¯t mind them. I like being with you two, it feels like a new sort of home somehow.¡¯ He said.
¡®Everything they teach about boys needs to be rewritten, I¡¯ve said it before¡¡¯ Megan said.
¡®This tea is quite good stuff by the way. What is it?¡¯ He asked, changing the subject.
¡®Oh, it¡¯s made from the original tea plant, real Camellia tea as Lady Martha calls it, instead of chemically re-synthesised Nation-tea. It¡¯s grown in Third City Ghost Town, this variety is called green tea and it¡¯s an ancient recipe that they¡¯re still refining.¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Ghost Town tea? Oh, what a wondrous time that a boy can wake up here with you two and drink actual green tea like in an ancient comic. This really is like a dream.¡¯
¡®For an unmarriable you¡¯re quite the romantic, do you realise that?¡¯ Megan said.
¡®It¡¯s a pity that my wife doesn¡¯t care about romance then, because a robot is all I can get as a partner for now, according to the law¡¡¯
¡®Yeah, as if it¡¯s such a good idea to always follow the law. But that reminds me, don¡¯t you want your original wife back?¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®Is the robot ready?¡¯
¡®Yeah, I was distracted by the whole radio thing, but she¡¯s completely back in the original state now, with the original data and programming. I only took out a far-distance transmitter that no-one in The Nation will ever use anyway. They won¡¯t miss it. I think I¡¯ll be able to reach H¨¦va soon, and you¡¯re back to your original robot marriage. Happily ever after for everyone!¡¯
He suddenly looked a bit down. ¡®Happily ever after forever married to that thing? That¡¯s a sad life¡ But it¡¯ll still be good to have it back. It¡¯s strange, but I was starting to miss the original Dorothy. But can it wait a day and bring it tomorrow? Long shift today.¡¯
¡®Okay, just let me know. I have to bring the other robot back here, they normally use her extensively as a maidbot for endless chores it seems¡¡¯ Eliza said.
¡®So you¡¯re warming up to your legal wife? Just need more time but in the end you¡¯ll make it work? I¡¯ve heard that story before, but I seem to remember it didn¡¯t end like that.¡¯ Megan said darkly.
¡®No, no, no. That thing is in no way comparable to you, Megan. And, eh¡¡¯
Eliza didn¡¯t wait for the rest of his stuttered sentence, and changed the subject again.
¡®I also managed to get the paperwork for St. Manfred¡¯s ready. Is it okay to visit your sister in three weeks? I will need a date and time and then I¡¯ll finalise it.¡¯
¡®You mean that I will actually be able to visit Anne?¡¯
He almost dropped his tea.
¡®Yes, they can¡¯t stop you. I¡¯ve checked, and in the actual rules there¡¯s nothing that says that family members can¡¯t visit her, and your rating or lack thereof doesn¡¯t matter either.¡¯
¡®Eliza, I love you!¡¯ He said and gave her an instant hug.
¡®Is that a confession of love? Do you need some time alone with two?¡¯ Megan asked.
He looked at her with a weird face. ¡®Huh?¡¯
¡®Nevermind. Eliza taught you girl friendships in her own way, I know. But people could get other ideas if you¡¯re like this, I hope both of you realise that.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s just a good friend, nothing else. I need my girl friends more than ever since my deletion. The idea of having lost everyone was just too unbearable, so I might be a bit clingy here and there when I¡¯m feeling good again. Plus there¡¯s still some lingering euphoria from last night too.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t let that Euphoria linger too long, roboloverboy! It¡¯ almost ten in the morning, and it¡¯s a long walk to the square bar.¡¯ He looked at his wristwatch.
¡®Oh, no. I had another question by the way, about that bike thingy of yours¡¡¯
¡®My outlaw bike? They¡¯re common property of the community, and I can use them whenever I need.¡¯
¡®Do you think they¡¯d let me use one, with a good bike lock, so I can go home to dress for work and then be on time at the bar?¡¯
¡®Eh, it¡¯s an unusual thought, but they seem to like you lately. I¡¯ll smuggle you into the bicycle storage and we¡¯ll fix you something. Come, we need to be fast.¡¯
He picked up his stuff, and looked at Megan.
¡®You¡¯re staying here?¡¯
¡®Oh, I have a day off, and this is the best vacation day I¡¯ve ever had. I¡¯m just going to read books here today and I¡¯m eating the special here in the bar tonight.¡¯
¡®Oh¡¡¯
He looked at her, as if the concept was completely new to him.
¡®A vacation day in an outlaw community?¡¯
¡®Did you think I¡¯d want one in First City Love Hotel quarter?¡¯ She said, quoting the title of the famous but unreadable book about marriage and honeymoon that he had referenced on their first official meeting in a conversation about vacations.
¡®A small place, nature within sight, without Wife Schools or anything like that. Just rest, and a lot of books. And no-one to tell me what to do. I don¡¯t even need you to help me cook and clean, they have maidbots here. That was my ideal vacation, and it still is. I didn¡¯t mention friends then I think, but I like having you and Eliza around too.¡¯
¡®It¡¯s different¡ But I could get used to it.¡¯ He said.
¡®Yes, but you¡¯ll have to have that medjool on May 12 with someone else. But if you need a time off we can hide from the world and read books here together. That sounds like a good plan for the winter holiday break actually.¡¯
¡®I think I¡¯m working overtime in that period. But we will find another time.¡¯
¡®Hey, what''s that stuff with medjools and may 12?¡¯ Eliza asked.
¡®You¡¯re the smartest person here, tell me what a medjool is.¡¯
¡®Eh, isn¡¯t that one of these fancy sweet dates, I mean the palm fruits? And may 12? Something with dates then?¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, the first meet-up questionnaire had a question about a perfect date, and she first said a medjool and then May 12.¡¯
¡®Come, no time for this. We¡¯ll have to fix that bike.¡¯
He took her hand and they left the building. Megan kept looking at the place where they had been for a while, lost in thoughts, before she poured a new mug of tea and started reading a book about post-Einsteinian relativity.
Half an hour later Eliza came back for her backpack before she would start a working day in the Ghost Town workshop.
¡®Hah, who¡¯d think I¡¯d ever use my powers to get a boy to use a common bike from a Ghost Town¡¡¯ She said with triumph in her eyes.
¡®No-one. But you¡¯ve been unpredictable in all directions. But still, Eliza, what are you doing?¡¯
¡®Me? What do you mean?¡¯
¡®How did you get so flirty suddenly? Actually flirty I mean. And he turned you down recently. I still don¡¯t get how you ignore that so easily.¡¯
¡®Me? Are you accusing me of being flirty again? Eliza the certified man-hater? Blame him for making me feel at ease again. It doesn¡¯t mean a thing, we all know that, it¡¯s a proven fact now that I don¡¯t really care what sex people are if I like them as friends.¡¯
¡®There¡¯s like and like, Eliza. You¡¯re crossing too many lines with him, more than ever.¡¯
¡®Is that so? Does that even matter, apparently we both rejected him already, you heard that yourself. And girl friendships are more physical than boy friendships. Or maybe I really mostly taught him Eliza things?¡¯ She smiled darkly.
¡®Rejected or not, you¡¯re going too far with him and you know it. You know you two would have my blessing but please be honest about what you¡¯re doing¡¡¯
¡®Megan, what are you insinuating? We were just having fun. The original trio, but now being high at Love Ceremony energy.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re not stupid and you know what I mean.¡¯
¡®He is easy to be at home with, but we all know he isn¡¯t ready for anything relationshiplike. So I just take what I can get and it¡¯s clear he enjoys it like it is how. Is that wrong?¡¯ ¡®Don¡¯t play with him. He¡¯s sensitive and easily hurt.¡¯
¡®He¡¯s as dense as neutron star matter, and this is just how our friendship works right now.¡¯ ¡®Yeah, you¡¯re both hopeless you mean¡ Well enjoy your robots today.¡¯ Megan said, turning back to her book.
2.27 Developments
¡®Mariposa, could you come?¡¯
Andromeda the radiologist looked at the strange signal on the multiscanner radio in the guard house of Senu, a coastal town in H¨¦va.
¡®What¡¯s up? Sisters on a boat in need?¡¯
Her colleague came from the other room where she¡¯d been sorting documents.
¡®No, I suddenly have a strange frequency that is transmitting here. Not one in use in H¨¦va but also unused by any outsider in the list.¡¯
¡®What are you waiting for, sister? Turn it on an¡¯ check what it is.¡¯
Andromeda pushed a button and a crackling voice appeared.
¡®¡Ghost Town for the sisters in H¨¦va, is there anyone there? Hello?¡¯
They heard with a lot of hiss, and then a silence of white noise and then someone said
¡®... frequency isn¡¯t working, I¡¯m trying another frequency¡¯ in a lower volume.¡¯
¡®Wait!¡¯ Mariposa said without having her mic on, but the signal disappeared.
¡®Ghost Town? What is that?¡¯
¡®Never heard of it, sounds like a book for children. And now they¡¯re gone. You should have turned the radio on earlier.¡¯
¡®If they change frequencies the scanner must find them again. Maybe we should adjust the antenna. What were the coordinates of the signal?¡¯
Mariposa pressed a few keys and stared at the screen.
¡®The signal came from The Nation, far inland. I¡¯ll aim the antenna there.¡¯
¡®The Nation, are you sure? She spoke of sisters in H¨¦va.¡¯
¡®Did you hear the accent? She spoke English but she wasn¡¯t H¨¦van. Aiming the antenna for the Nation in 3,2,1 and then the scanner for frequencies. No, that¡¯s just the Afropean intercontinental freighter. Ah yes, here she is again.¡¯
Andromeda turned up the volume.
¡®Eliza from Seventh City Ghost Town for the sisters in H¨¦va, does anyone hear me?¡¯ they heard, much more clearly now, and Mariposa turned on the microphone.
¡®This is the Senu-Town coast guard. Who am I speaking to? Hello?¡¯
They heard some excited mumbling and the voice returned.
¡®This is Eliza from Seventh City Ghost Town in The Nation. We have a H¨¦van survivor of an aeroplane accident here that wants to contact her sisters.¡¯
Mariposa and Andromeda looked at each other. This was impossible.
¡®Hello, sister, can you repeat what you just said?¡¯ ¡®This is Seventh City Ghost Town, a woman outlaw colony in The Nation, and we have taken in the sole survivor of a hydrogen plane crash from your country, Sister Jibrilla. She¡¯s almost healed now, but we don¡¯t have the means to get her home. It took us a while to find a way to make contact too.¡¯
Mariposa¡¯s jaw dropped. This wasn¡¯t about children¡¯s stories of haunted houses.
¡®We¡¯ll need to call some authorities.¡¯
*
Five minutes later, on the other side of the line in Seventh City Ghost Eliza looked at a sweating Jibrilla.
¡®We did it! The coast guard of Senu-Town will contact your base. They will make sure to get you home somehow.¡¯
Jibrilla stared at the primitive radio.
¡®Home¡ That would be something. The best place for any sister is her home, even if it isn¡¯t perfect¡¡¯
¡®That reminds me that I have to bring our non-human sister back to her husband. And the papers for his visit to his actual blood sister. You probably don¡¯t understand how strange it is, the idea of being visited in Wife School by your brother. I had two or three visits from my mother the whole six years I was in Wife School, and that was actually a lot already. Never from any other family member.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know how it would be to have men in my family. I have two mothers, and two sisters. I never had a brother. But he seems like a good sister.¡¯
Eliza chuckled. ¡®You could say it like that. He¡¯s definitely learning a lot. Really, it¡¯s just a year since we met him or so, and now he¡¯s called in as the male affairs adviser in a Ghost Town already and stuff like that.¡¯
¡®And to think I was scared of him that first time when nurse Samantha brought him in not long after the crash.¡¯
¡®Ah, Samantha seems reckless, but she¡¯s actually quite careful with men. It¡¯s just that he doesn¡¯t count as a threat. But every woman in The Nation has a history of negative experiences with them¡¯
¡®Yes, that¡¯s what we¡¯ve been told about life here. But it¡¯s much more complicated after all. It will be strange to adapt to the ways of the Sisterhood again. This place really is unique.¡¯
¡®Will you be okay?¡¯
¡®It¡¯ll be strange, but I¡¯ll manage. And I¡¯ll try to find a way to keep in contact with my sisters here in some way, even if it takes years.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, there¡¯s something I need to fix before you go, I almost forgot.¡¯ She said with a mysterious smile before she went back to the robot workshop, leaving Jibrilla alone with her thoughts.
*
The next afternoon Samantha walked from the commercial city centre to the woman house with her groceries when she suddenly got a bad premonition. She didn¡¯t even have the time to wonder what it was, because a sudden voice said ¡®hey, girlie!¡¯ in a rather aggressive way. Every Nation woman knew what such a thing meant, but instead of panicking she just sighed and mumbled ¡®not now¡¯. She¡¯s become a bit too careless lately, and a non-Wife alone was always at risk in The Nation.
Looking behind her she saw two scruffy-looking men in their early twenties, who were trying to get her attention rather aggressively. She saw no badges, so they probably were Zeroes. There were no male outlaws in this part of the city by daytime, so they could only be official zeroes like Michael. Her mind worked very fast. She had to stay as friendly as possible to not provoke them. Technically she wasn¡¯t bound to obeying Zeroes, she still had her worn-out E-badge next to her Free person symbol and Women Are Human pin, but she was still outnumbered and they were stronger, so it probably wouldn¡¯t mean much, and whatever the hierarchy said, no-one cared for the rights of non-Wives either.
¡®Hey, pretty non-wifey, wanna come with us? Robots are getting boring and you look like the real stuff. We wanna have some fun!¡¯ The biggest of the two said, with an ominous smile.
She tried not to show any fear. Just half a year ago she would have frozen up, but now everything was different: her whole world had changed, and she was armed and more used to men. After all they were just boys, so just humans like her, no matter how bad this kind of zeroes looked. Getting casual with the harmless sort seemed to have taken away some fear for the dangerous sort too, she noticed.
She smiled and tried to look nonchalant.
¡®I¡¯d rather not, if that¡¯s the same for you.¡¯
Appearances were everything sometimes, weren¡¯t they? And she was a ranked person talking to zeroes.
¡®Plus I¡¯m not interested in your type. Maybe you can behave and wash yourself if you want me to be interested. You know, I actually like men, but only if we can talk from human being to human being.¡¯
¡®Wow, the girly has an attitude. That¡¯s interesting. But you¡¯re just a lowly non-wifey after all and we are men. What could you ever do to us? So why not just be a friendly girly, and come with us for some fun?¡¯ He started laughing.
She dropped her groceries put her hand in her pocket, where she kept her stunner.
¡®Wrong. You¡¯re just zeroes and I¡¯m still an E-woman, a ranked adult. And I am a Free Person who will choose my own friends and what I consider fun. Go play with your robot or so¡ ¡¯
He frowned. ¡®Ah, so the girly says we¡¯re not good enough for her? So what friends does someone like you even have that are more interesting than us?¡¯ ¡®There¡¯s men more interesting that you, you know? I actually have rated and unrated male friends, and Ghost Town outlaws too.¡¯
The second boy spoke. ¡®All nonsense, Walt. Don¡¯t listen to her. Women don¡¯t have male friends, especially not rated men. Stop lying, girl, we are stronger and we are in the majority. You¡¯re just one girl against two men.¡¯
Samantha was starting to lose her patience.
¡®Being forced is never fun, I¡¯m not a robot. I¡¯m a Free Person who will defend myself, and I advice you now to leave me alone before anyone gets hurt, you idiots. Don¡¯t you know that we non-Wives of Seventh City have Ghost Town magic now?¡¯
She really wasn¡¯t in the mood for this, and was getting angry.
The men started laughing and came closer to grab her.
¡®Just come with us, girly!¡¯
¡®I suppose that¡¯s a No? Well, on your head be it, big boy!¡¯ she said, and before they knew what happened took the stunner out of her pocket and shot the nearest of the two, the big guy who was the leader, and prayed it would work and not bring her in trouble.
The man raised an arm, looked at her with a weird look, tried to say something, but his eyes closed and he fell to the ground like a chainsawed tree.
¡®Hey, watch out how he falls. Don¡¯t let him get damaged too much, you idiot. He¡¯ll need those little brains for the rest of his life.¡¯ She yelled to his petrified friend, while she leapt to catch him to be sure his head didn¡¯t hit the ground too hard.
¡®Eh, what?¡¯
His friend bowed down to her, and took his unconscious friend over from her, holding his sleeping head with his hands and calling his name in panic.
¡®Walt, Walt?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s asleep, Buddy. He won¡¯t hear you.¡¯
She still held the stunner in her hand.
¡®What did you do, witch?¡¯ He said, clearly scared now.
¡®Nothing special, my Zero friend. It¡¯s just very simple magic if you want to believe that. Nothing irreversible, he¡¯ll just sleep for the next 12 hours or so. I really didn¡¯t want to use my powers, but you idiots gave me no choice. You¡¯re lucky that I don¡¯t have any outlaw friends here now to put him in a green dress and leave him in the woods. Maybe you both deserved that.¡¯
She winked and he winced.
¡®Just be glad that I didn¡¯t shoot you too, big boy! So be a good man and take your friend home, and next time show some respect to a woman. I¡¯m not a flesh-and-blood version of your fricking sex robot!¡¯
¡®But¡¡¯
¡®Yes, you heard what I said. I see you¡¯re a strong man, just carry him home and let him sleep. He¡¯ll be okay. Let this be a lesson for both of you.¡¯
¡®But, he has to work in a few hours. The boss will get angry.¡¯
¡®Should have thought of that earlier, big boy.¡¯
The power balance had tipped to the other side now. She had found her usual brutal self again, and he looked away from the provocative look in her eyes, uneasy like a lost boy. Being bested by a woman in this way was clearly a completely new concept to him.
The tone in his voice changed.
¡®Can¡¯t you help me, miss? He¡¯s too heavy.¡¯
She shook her head. ¡®Do you think I¡¯m mad? Bring a heavy man to a Zeroville building? A minute ago both of you wanted to take me there to assault me. I¡¯m not coming close to such a den of human predators, thank you very much!¡¯
¡®But he¡¯s so heavy.¡¯
¡®Shall I alert a cop to help you, big boy?¡¯
She was bluffing, but the boy looked at her in shock.
¡®No, No, No! No police, miss. They never listen to a Zero, and they lock you up for nothing. They just yell at us.¡¯
She shrugged. ¡®Yes, and they don¡¯t believe a woman can harm you either. Not that they really care about E-nonwives, but even less about zeroes. But yeah, I know that the system sucks already, and that the police aren''t helpful. I¡¯m a Nation woman, remember? We¡¯ve got it worse. But in the end women are human, like you. So maybe you can behave like a human next time, instead of as a baboon!¡¯
He was still kneeling with his friend in his arms, looking up to her, and nodded;
¡®So, what¡¯s your name, big boy?¡¯
¡®Eh, Matt, Miss¡¯ He said.
¡®Good afternoon, Matt. You can call me Sam Samanthas. You need to practise a lot if you want to be able to talk to real women and not make her run away. Maybe you could ask your robot to teach you something or so. But remember, no-one is hopeless, and times are changing! Unsegregation is possible and is happening, and women might get interested in you one day if you can treat them like a human being. Treat others like you¡¯d want to be treated as the old book says. That¡¯s a tip.¡¯
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
After that little sermon she picked up her groceries and walked off without looking at them again. She loved being on top of the situation, and had enjoyed the feeling of being the stronger one for once, but on the other hand she suddenly felt very lonely. Men could be decent indeed, in theory, but the only one she ever got close to was beyond hopeless, and there even wasn¡¯t such a thing as freewill dates for non-Wives, only sad affairs and worse.
Maybe it was time to take some more initiative and actually try something with the only available men that was interesting enough. Not that he wouldn¡¯t end up the first man in a mixed Love Ceremony with Eliza or so, but if she played it well she could have some fun with him. At least he was as harmless as much as he was hopeless. She just needed to find a way to both convince him and the other girls¡ If mixed freewill dates were perfectly possible in other worlds, it would be a matter of time before they were a thing in The Nation anyway, and sometimes it was better to not wait too long if you knew what you wanted. She just needed to plan things a bit.
*Michael hated the ugly sound of the doorbell that took him out of his concentration, but he wasn¡¯t really able to focus on his new schoolbook anyway. He had started collecting all the books and other material of the school year that he would never officially follow, but at the moment it didn¡¯t really work. His brain seemed stuck in what Eliza called executive dysfunction mode, which happened more since his depression, especially when he had to turn his brains on for hard work.
He went all the way down the stairs, as discreetly as possible. He already knew who was there: Eliza with Dorothy, and she¡¯d take replacement Dorothy back to the Ghost Town. And this wasn¡¯t a safe place for women, no matter if they were actually robots.
He arrived downstairs, and indeed he found Eliza and Dorothy standing by the front door.
¡®Shht, be careful. I don¡¯t want the neighbours so see you two.¡¯ He said. ¡®And here is our happy husband, Dorothy.¡¯
The robot greeted him with a bow.
¡®Good afternoon, husband Michael.¡¯
¡®Your wife is as good as new now, Michael. No-one will ever recognise her as the girl who electrocuted Shirley¡¯s taker, and I¡¯ve reseted her memory to the point where she left you. All her memories of being a stand-in for Shirley have been erased¡¯
¡®You¡¯re better at robotics than the whole faculty together.¡¯ Michael admitted.
¡®Ah, yes, you¡¯re either a genius or you¡¯re not one. Those little boys with their little toys are no match for me.¡¯
¡®Hey, it wasn¡¯t a bad education that they gave me, they might have left some details out here and there but I learnt a lot, it was other things that sucked.¡¯ Michael said, but she ignored him and they went upstairs together.
Michael closed the door behind him, and turned the other wifebot on again, which had been recharging in a corner in sleep mode. Eliza patted the robot she had brought on its head.
¡®And now that your Dorothy is back in business, let¡¯s have some fun with it. Let¡¯s turn on the re-education mode for now and see what data it had collected about you already. See for example what verdict she gives about you being ready to have a date with a woman¡¡¯
Eliza said, giving a wink that reminded him of Samantha. She started programming the keyboard panel again before he could protest, and then a slot on her back opened and gave her a small printed paper. She looked at it and started laughing.
¡®Ah, such a surprise. Answer inconclusive¡¡¯ she waved with her paper.
¡®The girls are really going to love this.¡¯
¡®Hey, that¡¯s mine, can I at least read it before you all make fun of me again?¡¯ He protested, but Eliza ignored him again and read it out loud.
¡®Let¡¯s see: a full score for no abusive aggression, 100%, which I suppose means you didn¡¯t do anything wrong to her. Well, since you didn¡¯t even touch her there¡¯s no surprises here.¡¯ ¡®Why would I even touch that thing?¡¯
¡®She¡¯s your wife, big boy. Officially and legally your marriage partner substitute. In that kind of relationship touching is expected, and that¡¯s why she gave you only 25% for intimacy. Poor lonely Dorothy.¡¯
¡®Hmm, that¡¯s more than I expected.¡¯
¡®The bar for men is so low in The Nation when it comes to intimacy¡ I suppose you asking her politely to do the dishes and clean the room like you always do was already enough to get some points. You¡¯re so cute and innocent that you even behave like a gentleman to a robot that you otherwise refuse to treat as a person and even describe with impersonal pronouns all the time¡¡¯
¡®Hey, it¡¯s a useful machine after all. No need to treat it badly. Politeness is always a good thing.¡¯
¡®Sure¡,¡¯ Eliza said, while she looked for something in her side bag.
¡®Here are the papers by the way, for your Wife School visit. It was way too easy to get it.¡¯
¡®Oh, thank you. I love you, Eliza!¡¯
He wanted to give her a hug, but the robot suddenly took his arm.
¡®Is he making you uncomfortable, Miss Eliza?¡¯ It asked.
¡®No, no, it¡¯s fine. We¡¯re good friends.¡¯
¡®My client isn¡¯t approved yet for any relationships with the other sex, Miss Eliza. I would advise against friendship and I have to ask you to keep your distance.¡¯
¡®Too late Dorothy. We¡¯re friends already, and we¡¯re on hugging terms. Could you please update that to your program? And add Megan, Angela, Leya and Samantha to the list too would they ever show up. You must have seen all of them.¡¯
The voice of the robot changed. ¡®Female friend list created, and updated with Miss Eliza the administrator, as well as Megan, Leya, Angela and Samantha.¡¯
¡®Make it a secret list only visible to me, not to the robo-engineers of The Nation.¡¯
¡®Yes, Miss Eliza.¡¯
¡®Eliza, what have you done? You kept the administrator rights?¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, why not? It would be stupid to have to turn her off every time you see me or another girl, not?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s not safe for girls here, so I¡¯m avoiding that, but I see your point. It was a bit tiring to have to do that. But won¡¯t it be a problem?¡¯
¡®The Nation has incompetent robo-engineers. We both know how sloppy their work is.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re probably right. But tell me about the Wife School appointment with my sister.¡¯
¡®In three weeks like I said,. Look at the papers. They should just let you in.¡¯
Michael looked at the papers and felt really weird. Seeing his sister again after everything would be very weird.
¡®Do you think it¡¯s okay? I mean, visiting my sister?¡¯
He looked at the paper.
¡®Don¡¯t be insecure, it will be okay. And your sister deserves to have you in her life too, as the great leader of the rebellion of unsegregation.¡¯ She lightly touched his shoulder.
¡®It still feels impossible. Like the ghost of my father saying it is not done, I mean. Girls who move to Wife School are now in training to belong to their husband, something like that.¡¯
¡®Hmm, that worked well for me¡ Do you have any beer by the way.¡¯
Michael stood up. ¡®Yes, I¡¡¯
¡®Let the robot. Could you be so friendly as to bring us a beer, Dorothy?¡¯
¡®Yes, Miss Eliza,¡¯ The robot said, and disappeared into the kitchen.
¡®Don¡¯t stare at her, Mr. Robohusband. I asked very politely.¡¯
¡®Yes, it¡¯s just, I¡¯d never have thought to ask it.¡¯
¡®You can use robots for almost everything if you have enough imagination, and Dorothy doesn¡¯t mind doing endless chores at all. Her kind is put to work all the time in the Ghost Town without a problem. And they¡¯re good workers if you know how to word your requests.¡¯
She took the beer given to her by the robot.
¡®Thank you, Dorothy. But Michael, you were talking about your sister.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s a B. I¡¯m worried about that.¡¯
¡®A future elite wife you mean?¡¯
¡®And the rest of my family hates me now, remember.¡¯
She took his hand. ¡®But they wouldn¡¯t have contacted her, would they. I mean, even your mother hasn¡¯t visited her in years if I understand it well.¡¯
¡®He is against that. She won¡¯t disobey. Submit to your husband in everything, you remember. She¡¯s completely brainwashed.¡¯
She hugged him again, gesturing to the robot that it was okay.
¡®I don¡¯t know what to say. It¡¯s like the stories of most Wife School girls. But it will mean they have no influence on your sister. Whatever she thinks of you will be her own opinion.¡¯
¡®The opinion of the Miss Hunters from St. Manfred¡¯s you mean.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re still a boy, a man, visiting his sister, that alone is unusual.¡¯
¡®I¡¯m a zero. A B-girl is high above me. Much more than Sam above those zeroes she fought recently¡¯
¡®Since when do you think in hierarchies? And that¡¯s another situation altogether.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t, but everyone else does it seems. And I was only interesting because I was a weird Gamma-1.¡¯
¡®Oh, Michael, you dummy. I¡¯m sure she will be glad to see you, if you can be the Michael you are with us.¡¯
She held him in silence for a while, and then they drank their beer. The following conversation was about the contact with H¨¦va and international connections that would be formed with the outside world. Half an hour later she left with the other robot. Michael was nervous about the neighbours seeing her, but they only saw the old man, and not much happened.
*
A week later he was sitting in the Square Bar on a Wednesday evening. His shift was over, but because the girls were still hanging around he did too. They were playing with an old set of European chess that he had found in a closet with old stuff, but he had taken a new boy school handbook himself, ordered a three herbs and was trying to study in peace. He might have been deleted from school, but if Eliza had been able to self-educate herself to become one of the greatest experts in robotics in The Nation, there was no reason for him to stop studying either. And he read his book with his full concentration, completely unaware of their conversation.
¡®We need to raise the stake of the game, it¡¯s getting boring,¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®Ah, do you propose anything?¡¯ Eliza said, looking intently at her chess pieces.
¡®The winner gets Loverboy for one night.¡¯
¡®Eh, he¡¯s an adult and a Free Person, you can¡¯t just wager him.¡¯ Angela said.
¡®Let¡¯s just ask him then.¡¯ Samantha stood up and walked to Michael, who was studying Advanced robotics level 3, the one he¡¯d never had the chance to study in school because he was deleted.
¡®Michael, do you mind if we play for a date with you?¡¯
Michael looked up from an introduction to the possibilities 23th century semi-sentient robots had had right before they were banned.
¡®Huh, a date with me? Who¡¯s so crazy to ask for that?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s me against Eliza.¡¯
¡®Oh, I don¡¯t mind a date with Eliza. I doubt she¡¯s really interested in that though¡¡¯
He read about the controversies of near-human intelligence, and the great prohibition on real artificial intelligence, and didn¡¯t notice how the table with the girls got more excited. But all he could think about now was how the role of robots had changed and evolved in the last centuries, and about the dangers that arose with giving robots near-human intelligence.
Suddenly Angela stood before him and broke his hyperfocus again.
¡®Eh, Michael, Samantha says she wants to plan your date¡¡¯
He put down his book.
¡®Sam wants what?¡¯
¡®She won the euro-chess game, and they played for a date with you. She said you were okay with that.¡¯
He looked at her, and it took him some time to answer.
¡®Ah, did they? Oops¡ I wasn¡¯t paying attention. So Eliza lost? I didn¡¯t expect her to.¡¯
¡®Yes, Samantha won. You¡¯re always underestimating her. And, eh, I want to ask you something. But don¡¯t tell anyone.¡¯
¡®What is it?¡¯
¡®Will you not hurt her too much when you reject her? I know she acts tough and all, but she¡¯s actually quite vulnerable. Please be gentle with my friend.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s been trying to seduce me from the second she saw me and she has no concept of personal boundaries. What do you expect me to do?¡¯
¡®I expect you to give her a date she won¡¯t ever forget. Just be nice to her, please!¡¯
He looked at Angela in disbelief. It was Samantha they were talking about, not?
¡®Okay, but the moment she goes too far I¡¯ll let her know that without hesitation; you can be sure of that!¡¯
¡®But you¡¯ll do it?¡¯
¡®why not¡ Just make sure that she reads the Ghost Town guidelines or so.¡¯
Angela looked relieved, and went back to the other girls. His thoughts went crazy.
Oh boy, what am I getting into now? An actual free will date was a new step to take, and Samantha would have been the last girl on Earth he¡¯d have chosen for a first trial. He heard the girls discuss and laugh, but he went back to his robotics handbook. He didn¡¯t feel like entering the conversation now, it would only lead to sarcastic remarks and worse.
2.28 Anne in St. Manfreds Wife School
Michael looked nervously at the big entrance hall for a few seconds. It gave him flashbacks to one of the worst days of his life, even though he stood in the Seventh City filial of St. Manfred¡¯s Wife School instead of the old SCWF. Ignoring his anxiety he walked up to an information booth manned with a bored official and took his papers to show them.
¡®I¡¯m here to visit Anne Adams. I have a permit-383.¡¯
The official looked up from his papers, and then he stared him suspiciously up and down before he checked the papers.
¡®She¡¯s my sister, and I have the right to visit my family, don¡¯t I?¡¯ ¡®It¡¯s not forbidden, but it¡¯s unusual to have young men here who come for family members instead of fianc¨¦es. And you are, well¡¡¯
¡®Yes, I¡¯m currently unrated but I have an identity and I still have my basic human rights. They didn¡¯t delete my existence. I can legally be here. I¡¯ve had someone look up all the legal stuff?¡¯
He held up his ID card.
The official sighed and stood up from his chair. ¡®You have the rights. It¡¯s just unexpected. Especially after¡ Nevermind. Just follow me.¡¯
The man reminded him a bit of official Greystone, and he clearly wasn¡¯t interested enough to make it difficult for him. Michael followed him through a long hallway in silence, and then they took the elevator to the B-section. They arrived in a world that was completely different from anything he knew, like an Alpha villa but made for women, and he was brought to a dusty room with old leather couches and a library that looked out of place.
¡®Ah, no visitation room with glass here?¡¯
The man frowned. ¡®It¡¯s in use for a first meet-up right now. This room shall suffice for an irregular family visit. There¡¯s no real procedure for them anyway. Please wait here for your sister.¡¯
Michael sat down on the couch, unsure about the procedure that didn¡¯t seem to even exist for a visit like this, and read the names on the books until a teenage girl came in. She had brown hair and eyes, and was wearing a uniform that was completely different from what he was used to from E-girls in the SCWF, and it took him a few seconds to recognise her as Anne. She surely had grown a lot since he¡¯d last seen here. She had been twelve then and almost a child, and now she was a teenager. They looked at each other, and no-one spoke for a few seconds. The official disappeared altogether from the room and he stood up from the couch to greet her.
¡®Hi Anne,¡¯ he finally said.
She still didn¡¯t answer, so he went on.
¡®Anne, I¡¯m sorry for being so distant. I¡¯m sorry for never checking on you when you left our home. It¡¯s what I¡¯ve always been taught, but I know now that it was wrong.¡¯
More silence, but she was definitely listening now.
¡®Anne, please, listen. I know it¡¯s unusual, and some will call it indecent. But I want to be your brother. No matter if you¡¯re in Wife School or married or what else. I want us to be family, and to stay family.¡¯
His sister still stood there, staring at him as if he were an apparition from another dimension.
¡®You want to be my brother? Will you be back then? For good?¡¯ She suddenly asked, out of the blue.
¡®Back? You mean more than this one visit? I will if I can. We¡¯re family after all, even if my own parents don¡¯t want to see me again. I shouldn¡¯t give them so much power over me. And it¡¯s not like they¡¯ll visit you soon either.¡¯
In a flash he wondered if she even knew what had happened to him.
¡®That¡¯s not really true. Mom was here last week. It was quite the surprise too for me. First her, and now you.¡¯
¡®She was here? But they never visited you since you came here. Visiting girls in Wife School is indecent and stuff like that.¡¯
She sank on the couch opposite to him.
¡®I think it¡¯s your fault even. She seems to have had a serious fight with dad over what happened with you. She didn¡¯t really know what to say to me, and she was a mess to be honest. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s much fun to live at home now to be honest, she¡¯s all alone with the new maidbot most of the time. But she talked about you. She said you were punished and kicked out. That you were deleted from society and that you probably had gone feral. She was afraid you¡¯d end up being killed by your brother.¡¯
Now it was his turn to stare without knowing what to say.
¡®Ah¡¡¯ He finally said.
¡®But you don¡¯t look like a feral, and I¡¯m sure they wouldn¡¯t let an outlaw visit B-girls in a Wife School,¡¯ she said matter-of-factly.
¡®I didn¡¯t get a complete delete so I¡¯m not a feral outlaw, I¡¯m just an underpaid barman living in a crappy state apartment. And the last thing I¡¯d ever do is join the feral men. I¡¯d rather move into a Ghost Town of outlaw women. And I¡¯m not into killing anyone at all. Maybe Sam would do that, with his gun obsession, but no, thanks.¡¯
¡®So you¡¯re not¡?¡¯
¡®I might be deleted by the system from the school system and from my family now, but I very much prefer to not delete my own humanity. Thank you. I¡¯m glad to hear mom is worried about me after all, but her fantasies are running wild. On the other hand, if I were living alone with dad and a maidbot I¡¯d have no faith in any man left either.¡¯
¡®But you were deleted? Mum also said you had lost your Wife School fianc¨¦e when that happened. I didn¡¯t even know you had one. I hardly even registered that Sam was married actually, the outside world is blurry when you¡¯re living full-time in a world like this. What happened to her?¡¯
He sighed. ¡®Megan? She¡¯s okay, more or less, but she¡¯s a non-Wife now, so the same story with state apartment, low-pay job and all. And we¡¯re not together like that anymore, if you understand. We¡¯re both unmarriable, and I had a robowife forced unto me. Can¡¯t have a Wife and all that.¡¯
¡®But you say she¡¯s okay? You¡¯re still in contact? With your ex?¡¯
Anne stared at her brother again, picking out only one detail of what he had said.
¡®Sure. We¡¯re friends. Just like you and your Wife School girls are friends.¡¯
¡®But that¡¯s impossible with boys and girls.¡¯
¡®Maybe for some people it is, especially in a rotten country like this one. But not for me, or for my girl friends. You can get in trouble for it, but it¡¯s certainly not impossible. And now that we¡¯re talking about Wife School friends, she and her best friends had made a pact to keep in contact even after Wife School, and they kept it even through the whole deletion mess. You don¡¯t have to lose everyone at least twice as a girl.¡¯
¡®You are a boy. Why do you say these things? We don¡¯t even dare to think things like that. It¡¯s wrong, even if you¡¯re probably right.¡¯
He shrugged.
¡®Because things are wrong in this country, for boys and for girls and for everyone, and we need to change them together. And you¡¯re young and you still have a whole life ahead, with even more chances than I have. Mum¡¯s hurt and brainwashed and all alone, dad is a solitary sociopath, as is Sam, and his wife Natasha is a timid mess of a broken woman. I want a better future for you at least, B or not.¡¯
¡®You can¡¯t talk like that. You can¡¯t call father or Sam a solitary sociopath. You should respect men.¡¯
¡®Am I not a man? Maybe without ranking now, but I¡¯m still a man, and I believe in basic respect for everyone, including you and mum and Natasha and Megan and Eliza¡ They¡¯re worth more than any Alpha anyway.¡¯
Anne¡¯s look was almost amused by now, as if she couldn¡¯t believe what she heard.
¡®You¡¯re saying weird things, big brother. Dangerous things.¡¯
¡®Yeah, I might not be a feral man but I¡¯m probably much more dangerous than that. I¡¯m a revolutionary after all, at least that¡¯s what they say¡ But nevermind that, our time is almost up I see, and there was something else I wanted to ask. Do you know about black market books?¡¯
¡®I know some people have old books, and boy school books that are much better than our Wife school books. But you need something to exchange them for, and I don¡¯t have much stuff to trade. A and B wives in training get a lot of expensive stuff to use, but never for themselves, you know.¡¯
¡®But you know who the traders are on your floor, or in your school?¡¯
¡®I know one of them, yes. I¡¯m not naive, you know.¡¯ She nodded.
¡®Give her an order for a book, any book, and tell her that Eliza will make sure it will get paid for. That¡¯ll get you started.¡¯
¡®Who¡¯s Eliza? Your ex? No, she had another name, hadn¡¯t she?¡¯
¡®No, just her friend, and mine. And a respected black market trader among other things. Also the one who helped me get a permit-383 to visit you so fast even though I¡¯m unrated. Any black market trader will be able to find her, so if you ever have a message for me you can send it through her too. Oh, and I¡¯ll let them send you the renewed Woman Are Human zine. The main story in the recent one is about a best friend of Megan and Eliza, and her escape story isn¡¯t detailed but they used my wifebot.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re sending me forbidden texts about Wife School escapes? Cool!¡¯
¡®I¡¯m in it, but not by name. Just read it through¡¡¯
She looked at her brother.
¡®You know, I haven¡¯t been thinking about you or our Sam that much in all these years, but when mom told us that you were deleted, and that you had gone feral I pictured you completely different.¡¯
¡®Yeah, I know I¡¯m not really a trophy brother with my old clothes and my unofficial badge, but I¡¯m not a subhuman beast with rusty weapons either.¡¯
¡®You can say that.¡¯
¡®I am worried about Sam though. He was way too eager to shoot the feral outlaws when I last saw him. And those ferals don¡¯t shy away from heavy violence either. Completely the opposite of the Ghost Town I¡¯ve seen, where ID-less women have an organised nonviolent community.¡¯
¡®So you¡¯ve really been to a Ghost Town? That wasn¡¯t a joke?¡¯
¡®Yes, I was the first man they ever let in, although they have a boy there now who¡¯s part of the community. He¡¯s¡¡¯
The official returned to the room.
¡®Time¡¯s up, buddy.¡¯
He saw Anne panic.
¡®Hey, we were talking.¡¯
¡®Sorry, Miss Adams, time is up,¡¯ The man repeated.
She turned to her brother. ¡®You promise you¡¯ll come back. Please! I need to know more.¡¯
¡®I will come back, somehow, in one way or another. And I¡¯ll be your brother even if you¡¯re married. And please say to mom that I¡¯m okay. If I ever become an outlaw it¡¯ll be in a nonviolent Ghost Town!¡¯
The official frowned, but said nothing. It really was a strange sort of man that tended to work in a place like this, Michael thought, very stoic and understated. He almost missed Greystone for a second.
Full of thought he followed the official, who led him out of the complex. He still had a short shift as a waiter today because Bert had called in sick and there wasn¡¯t anyone else who could replace him on short notice.
*
¡®We¡¯ve established outside contact again. They¡¯re coming to get her?¡¯ Jenny said to Lady Martha, who was drinking her green tea that night.
This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.¡®The sisters in H¨¦va?¡¯
¡®Yes, they were on the radio yesterday afternoon. It took a while for the Coast guards to contact the right people it seems, and then no-one was at our radio when they tried to reach us. I had to explain to them that we don¡¯t have full-time radiologists like they do. They call us primitive, and I suppose they see our country as backwards. As if their aeroplanes don¡¯t explode when they try them out here. Those sisters have a weird culture, I tell you that.¡¯
¡®So they are coming to bring her home? Did they say when and how they will do that?¡¯
¡®It seems complicated. They have to organise a rescue mission, and apparently the whole thing is getting an international dimension if I understood it well.¡¯
Lady Martha looked up from her tea.
¡®International? You mean even more countries are involved? So we finally have made contact with not just H¨¦va but with the international world after all? Afropea, Lantada, Tartica, all these places that we stopped having contact with after Manfred?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s possible, Lady. They just said they had to inform an international envoy too before they could do the mission.¡¯
¡®I know we¡¯re not used to thinking in those terms, but what do you know of the international status of H¨¦va, Jenny?¡¯
¡®Well¡ They are not uncontacted like us. They do have some sort long-distance contact with the rest of the world, but they seem kind of ostracised and isolated still. As if they¡¯re outside of the group. Maybe because they¡¯re a bit of a photonegative version of The Nation, it seems there is a focus on human rights that includes gender equality in other countries. Excluding men like they do might be frowned upon.¡¯
¡®Equality between men and women? Wasn¡¯t that always a forbidden idea? Both for Manfred and the Sisterhood at least I mean. Do you think people can actually live like that as a society in this day and age?¡¯ Lady Martha said thoughtfully. ¡®And I mean not one in a hundred men, but all of them, living together with women as friends and equals? I can¡¯t make sense of that, Jenny. A good man here and there, okay; but that?¡¯
¡®If they are willing to pledge allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status. But I don¡¯t think Afropeans have anything like our rating system or identity status.¡¯
¡®Men without Alphas and Epsilons? Really. This is all too much. I¡¯m still trying to understand how Eliza finds it more natural to not see gender differences and have friends regardless of male or female. And still it has saved at least one human life already, think of the boy.¡¯
¡®Poor kid. They would have killed him indeed. Most of them don¡¯t live long without their identity, it¡¯s well-known. But still, Jenny, even for a progressive Ghost Town leader it¡¯s all going a bit fast¡¡¯
¡®It¡¯s going fast, but we need to take that road if we want to have a future. Maybe it¡¯s even more important to get in contact with whatever international connection they are involving now than with H¨¦va. They could be of more use than the Sisterhood if you ask me.¡¯
¡®Do you think that could work? Jenny, it¡¯s all a bit dazzling, much more than that whole unsegregation thing.¡¯
¡®There still is worldwide international trade and travel according to Jibrilla. They have technologies we¡¯ve never heard of. It could give so many opportunities for our Ghost Towns¡¡¯
¡®But the Central Computer? Connor Johnston?¡¯ Lady Martha said.
¡®Oh, I know Manfred decided that The Nation should stay uncontacted, but we don¡¯t officially exist, remember. Being recognised by other countries could make a difference, don¡¯t you think?¡¯
¡®Or they suddenly do recognise us as enemies and they start attacking us if we team up with what they see as the enemy? Ghost Towns will have to navigate this carefully. If they suddenly direct all that unused agression and violence towards us, we¡¯re toast.¡¯ Martha said carefully.
¡®Hmm, we have to watch out for that too indeed. Which is why I think broad international contacts are better than H¨¦va. H¨¦vans and the Central Computer guys would just start an all-out war, but an egalist Union of nations is another matter, especially if they trade new tech with us. Maybe if they think they miss out?¡¯
¡®But isn¡¯t Manfred¡¯s computer designed to never have any innovations, and was his isolationism part of his vision for The Nation.¡¯
¡®Their world is so small and narrow. But even Connor can¡¯t be so stupid to miss out on new tech and trade possibilities, is he?¡¯
¡®You know how dogmatic they are.¡¯
¡®I have to think about this more, Jenny.¡¯ Jenny nodded, and took the cue.
¡®Goodnight, Lady Martha.¡¯ She said, and disappeared into the night.
*
The next morning Eliza walked to the exit of Seventh City Ghost Town, wearing her stained orange overall. She was going to get the bicycle when she almost bumped into Eric, who was carrying a box of fresh choy cabbages, being followed by a tiny chicken, almost a chick still.
¡®Oops, sorry, I should watch out better.¡¯
¡®No problem.¡¯
¡®What¡¯s up with your new friend, Eric?¡¯ Eliza asked, looking at the shy little bird that followed him like a satellite.
¡®Little Roc? Oh, nothing, she just follows me. She hatched too early and I took care for her like a mother.¡¯
¡®She¡¯s not going to be part of the lunch then?¡¯ She said teasingly, and Eric stopped.
¡®Don''t call her that! She''s a respected non-human member of Seventh City Ghost Town now! And I will defend her with my life.¡¯
¡®I see that letting boys in here was a slippery slope towards more extreme forms of inclusivity. So when will they start giving full membership to potatoes here? I''ll have to get some before that, because I''m making fries today.¡¯
¡®Don''t mock little Roc! She was the first one to hatch, and I was a bit lonely here in this strange world, so I made friends with that cute little yellow chick. She¡¯s not a farm animal anymore, she¡¯s a pet.¡¯
¡®She looks more like a familiar if you ask me.¡¯
¡®Are you sure that you aren¡¯t the witch here? So who¡¯s your familiar then, your Michael-dude?¡¯
¡®He¡¯s not mine. I don¡¯t own him. He¡¯s a free person and a legal adult.¡¯
¡®Come on, you two are always together when he¡¯s here.¡¯
¡®That doesn¡¯t make him mine. And anyway, he¡¯s going to date someone else because I¡¯m such a bad player. Nevermind. I had a question that¡¯s not for the ears of your tiny friend here.¡¯
Eric looked at the chick. ¡®She doesn¡¯t understand English yet I think, but what can be so bad for the ears of Little Roc?¡¯
¡®Angela asked me to ask when you were selling chicken meat again.¡¯ Whispered Eliza.
¡®Ah, I have nothing to do with that. I¡¯m not killing them myself. I¡¯m not a killer. But we¡¯ll have chicken meat available again in two weeks on Thursday. I¡¯m not really looking forward to it. It will make me a traitor to my new friend.¡¯
She hugged him without a warning. ¡®You¡¯re so adorable and I love you for that, little guy!¡¯
¡®I love you too. You¡¯re the most incredible woman on the planet. I wish I could fall in love with you and Love Ceremony you so you¡¯d hug me forever. But it doesn¡¯t work like that.¡¯
¡®All my friends can have my hugs, don¡¯t worry. But it¡¯s surely a curse to only be attracted to men, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ she winked conspiratorially.
¡®It¡¯s horrible, men are scary and they don¡¯t like me. They find me an abomination.¡¯
¡®You know what would have happened to me if a man had chosen me in Wife School, do you?¡¯ Eliza remarked and her voice was very dark now.
¡®Ah¡ This Country is horrible for everyone.¡¯
¡®But then again, I think few men ever looked at me. I was the last in line, remember. Nothing desirable about me. Unsexy and lowly rated. I wasn¡¯t made to be noticed by men looking for a Wife. The Angel may zap ¡®em all. Just the feeling when one looks at you at the choice night alone is horrible. Even if they don¡¯t mean harm it¡¯s hard to turn that off.¡¯
¡®Michael you mean? I heard he almost chose you in a Wife School choosing ceremony?¡¯
¡®Oh, well¡ He did, but he still chose Megan and doesn¡¯t count. The few good ones are always collateral damage. But the others that night alone were enough to run away from men for the rest of your life. That¡¯s Epsilons for you. Well, they actually were all removed by an intervention team that night so I guess they didn¡¯t do much harm to any Wife School girl for at least a year. But really, those baboons didn¡¯t even have enough braincells to understand courtship sabotage.¡¯
Eric picked up the little chick and put it on his shoulders.
¡®Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I, you know, hadn¡¯t been deleted and was forced to take a wife. I would just have frozen, and I think most women expect more of a man than I could give.¡¯
¡®You wouldn¡¯t abuse a Wife. She would still have dodged a bullet. I haven¡¯t heard of one happy Marriage in my life, and no relationship is still better than anything I¡¯ve ever heard about Marriages.¡¯
¡®But I didn¡¯t know you could be friends with a girl. I really had never heard of that. It¡¯s just unthinkable if you want to Be a Man!¡¯
She hugged him again.
¡®Don¡¯t worry, buddy. No-one will force you to take a Wife here, and all the girls are your friends. And the only men they¡¯ll ever let in are not the Be a Man type.¡¯
She chuckled when he made the gesture again just because she said those words.
¡®But boys will be boys, even you, hah! I¡¯ve never met one who didn¡¯t react to those words. And it¡¯s cute.¡¯ She said.
¡®Boys are cute?¡¯ He asked.
¡®Oh, all the good ones are incredibly cute. It¡¯s the Be a Man types who think real men are serious and tough and whatever. But I¡¯m off now, need to get a few spare parts in the city. She gave him a last hug and disappeared on her bike.
¡®She¡¯s really something, isn¡¯t she?¡¯ He whispered to the chick. ¡®But without her I wouldn¡¯t be here, and I might not even be alive anymore. I¡¯m more like you than you think, little one.¡¯ The chick chirped and he picked up his box of cabbages again, to bring it to the kitchen of the bar.
*
Two days later Michael almost bumped into Samantha when he came out of the bar kitchen after his shift.
¡®Hey cutie, ready for our date next week?¡¯ she asked.
He threw his hands in the air in surrender. ¡®What can I say. You¡¯ve won that game and I didn¡¯t pay attention to what you were doing.¡¯
¡®Come on, a little bit of enthusiasm please. It¡¯s not like I picked you as a Wife in a Wife School Ceremony or so. It¡¯s just one date.¡¯
¡®I still didn¡¯t choose anything. I just figured it would only be fair to give you a chance to not start a relationship with me like the other girls. If you behave that is.¡¯
¡®Oh, wow. What an attitude.¡¯ She said, taking a step backward.
He reached in his little backpack and handed her a ¡®Ghost Town Guidelines for Relationships¡¯ booklet.
¡®And here¡¯s some literature for you. Just in case.¡¯
Samantha looked disdainfully at the brochure. ¡®These are for Ghost Town women. You don¡¯t even live here, and you¡¯re a boy.¡¯
¡®Ah, I hadn¡¯t noticed that before. So what were you planning to do?¡¯
Samantha thought he had a strange teasing look in his eyes now. ¡®Well, the Ghost Town is the best idea indeed. You¡¯re the only boy in The Nation that I can take on a Ghost Town date. You¡¯re too cute and innocent to be alive, and completely hopeless but you¡¯re also the only safe guy within reach in this rotten country. So I promise I will behave, and I¡¯ll give you a classic clean romance fiction date like in those silly books, like you¡¯ve never experienced before.¡¯
He sighed, but couldn¡¯t help but notice that she was very serious about it.
¡®So what do you propose?¡¯ He asked.
¡®No proposals please. Just be there at seven in the evening and make sure you are dressed for the occasion.¡¯
He just nodded. What had he agreed to?
2.29 Michaels Date with Samantha
Michael fiddled with a straw of grass. He stood alone, dressed up in an old fashioned neo-smoking with tie at the great gate of Seventh City Ghost Town, on the inside of it. He was lazily observed by a guardian woman in the tower who seemed to find him amusing, but apart from that no one seemed to react to his presence here anymore. They didn¡¯t even ask him for the free people pledge half of the time anymore.
¡®So, Loverboy, I finally get my date with you tonight!¡¯ Samantha said, emerging from behind him.
He dropped his straw when he saw her. She wore a long red dress that he¡¯d never seen before, jewels, and very subtle make-up. She even had a flower in her hair, that had grown half-long by now and had never looked better. Nothing reminded him of the short-haired non-Wife in factory clothes anymore, and she almost looked like 3D-printed in colour from a poster from a few centuries ago.
¡®You already were here?¡¯ He asked.
¡®I¡¯ve changed clothes here in the Ghost Town, I¡¯d rather not walk around in the City looking like this. It might attract the wrong men¡¡¯
¡®Wow, you¡¯re serious about this date thing¡¯ He said shyly.
¡®You said I only get one,¡¯ she said, and winked.¡®Despite everything you¡¯re still the most dateable guy around here in this hellhole where men are predators by default. The little guy with the chicken is not into girls and your gynophobic friend has only eyes for blue-hair, plus I can¡¯t even have a conversation with him. So this has to be a good night, not? And if I can¡¯t experiment with chemistry with you then at least let me try out some low-voltage electricity. I didn¡¯t do everything to win that eurochess game from a literal genius for nothing¡¡¯
She grabbed his arm and felt how he froze.
¡®Don¡¯t be afraid of flirty Sam tonight, big boy. I know where we are and who you are, and I will follow the whole Ghost Town relationship guidelines. I¡¯ve also read a lot of ancient clean romance books as documentation, so I¡¯m feeling inspired. But don¡¯t think that we can get to the clich¨¦ ending of those stories in just one night.¡¯ Again she winked.
¡®What ending?¡¯ He said suspiciously.
¡®Sometimes they just kiss, but usually it¡¯s heavily insinuated that they get married and live long and happy ever after. That kind of stuff. Like Eliza¡¯s namesake and that awkward rude Darcy dude. It¡¯s that book that got us all reading old romance books. You do have a weird influence on the world.¡¯
¡®Well, it¡¯s the only one that I read myself I think. But romance stories take more time than one date, and we¡¯re not a couple, and we can¡¯t even get married officially, remember.¡¯
She pointed to her right breast, where a little badge with an E was visible, not far from her cleavage.
¡®Correction, you can¡¯t get married, roboloverboy, but technically I¡¯m still marriable as an E-woman, like Angela is.¡¯
He shrugged. ¡®Nevermind. It¡¯s practically the same thing so we won¡¯t do the ending of your romance book thing, you only get the one date you asked for, and you would get bored of me for longer anyway. So what do you want to do tonight?¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t feel like getting harassed by other men and it¡¯s evening already. So I thought that we¡¯d better stay within the bounds of this Ghost Town. Tonight one man per square kilometre is enough for me as long as it¡¯s you. Let¡¯s just start with a drink in the Ghost Town bar. They have an ancient music night there, which is fun. And then we¡¯ll see.¡¯
He felt relieved, in a bar full of people she probably wouldn¡¯t try too many crazy things.
¡®Okay, let¡¯s do that.¡¯
She grabbed his arm again and they walked up to the town square, where loud music was indeed blasting from the stereo of the Ghost Town bar. Something from the 20th or 21st Century with a lot of live played instruments and strange effects on the electric guitars, and a high-pitched male voice singing about the end of the world.
¡®Ah, culture!¡¯ Samantha said when she led them to a table for two with a small real-flame candle in the middle.
¡®Want to drink something? I¡¯ve checked with bluehair beforehand and unlike male society there¡¯s no restriction on what the other sex can order here. So do you want a fruit beer?¡¯
¡®Just red hibiscus ice tea to begin with, I¡¯m not getting myself drunk tonight. Maybe I¡¯ll get one beer later.¡¯
She looked disapprovingly. ¡®Man, I know you¡¯re very safe for a male, but sometimes you¡¯re so dutifully goody-goody that it¡¯s pathetic.¡¯
¡®Sorry, you knew what you¡¯d get with me. No sex, no drugs, no rock¡¯n roll?¡¯
She started laughing. ¡®Too late for that already¡¡¯ She declared dramatically, pointing at the speakers.
¡®What do you mean?¡¯
¡®There is definitely rock¡¯n roll here tonight. This kind of ancient music is called rock¡¯n roll.¡¯
¡®Ah,¡¯ he said while she left to the bar to get the drinks. An old mystery had been solved, but there would be more challenges to come, and for now he¡¯d just follow her lead.
The song changed into something more piano-based and he saw Samantha talk to Leya¡¯s roommate who was on bar duty, and they were pointing at him. Great, now there certainly would be gossip¡ He listened to the music a bit until she came back with two red iced teas, wiggling her hips to the music. She was quite beautiful indeed tonight, and made the heads of the regular guests turn too, but that was probably also because she was just an outsider who only did some volunteer work here as a nurse, and no-one had ever seen her like that and she did stand out.
¡®A red hibiscus iced tea for the gentleman. Fits with the dress of the lady. But so does red wine¡¡¯
¡®You could have taken one for yourself.¡¯
¡®Ah, but I¡¯m following your principle of equality, and I¡¯m afraid there¡¯s rule seven also. If you fall for me tonight you won¡¯t be able to blame the alcohol afterwards. By the way, have you ever danced with a girl? Tracy said there¡¯ll be dance music. I had hoped for that.¡¯
He didn¡¯t answer and looked at the dance floor, where indeed some people were dancing already. Dancing was usually seen as very unmanly, except when it was wildly violent shaking on very aggressive music, but this wasn¡¯t really music for headbanging or jumping around. The women were dancing slowly in couples, moving closely to each other.
¡®You expect a boy straight from boy school to be able to dance like a woman? Have you been reading too much of those antique romance novels? I was supposed to only ever meet my fianc¨¦e and then marry her. No frivolities like dancing that are also very unmanly. And they¡¯re really dancing here, well I mean, quite slow¡ It looks rather intimate too. You expect me to do that with you?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s not that difficult, big boy. Come, finish your drink and I¡¯ll show you. I¡¯ll lead, since no man in this rotten country has ever learned it. Show me that they don¡¯t call you a man of first times for nothing.¡¯
She grabbed his hand when the song stopped and the next one began, and he had no choice but to follow her.
The next song was a bit faster, and the women on the dancefloor had changed their moves. He saw Samantha give a thumbs up to Tracy and then she grabbed him in what was half an embrace and they started to move to the music. It was a very weird experience for him to dance so close to a girl. He felt a weird sensation when she led him into the movements, and smiled at him with honest enjoyment, which had much more effect on him than any of her posed seductive looks had ever had. He remembered that it was only a game, and only a moment, but he chose to trust her for now, and let himself completely go.
After two songs he sat down for a second, and she went to the bar for two fruit beers. Her hair was messed-up now, but she was still beautiful, and he felt a bit conflicted about enjoying this moment so much. ¡®Two fruit beers for the gentleman who has been the most unlikely star on a Ghost Town dancefloor ever tonight.¡¯ She said, and there was nothing forced in her smile this time.
¡®I only followed your lead and moved along and then I got lost in the moment, and in eh¡¡¯
¡®Yeah, I know, a year ago no-one female had ever touched you and you hadn¡¯t even spoken to a girl. And now I¡¯m all dolled up and dancing close to you and the theory that you like all girls except for me has been found lacking.¡¯ ¡®Well, we are friends, and you know that you¡¯re rather beautiful today. I mean, not too much, but, eh¡¡¯ ¡®Too much? Can I be too beautiful? What does that even mean.¡¯ He stuttered a bit. ¡®I mean, you¡¯re decent. Not showing too much, something like that¡¡¯ ¡®You..¡¯ She started, but then she changed subjects. ¡®Oh, look who we have there. Hi chicken-boy!¡¯
She suddenly waved enthusiastically at Eric who entered the bar with a nervous chick on his shoulder and a box of fresh herbs in his hands. He looked from Michael to Samantha as if he couldn¡¯t believe what he saw and came up to them.
¡®What¡¯s going on with you two? Since when are you a couple?¡¯
Michael shrugged. ¡®Only one date, just for tonight. She won a game of European chess from Eliza or something like that, I wasn¡¯t paying attention to what they were playing for.¡¯
¡®Ah,¡¯ Eric said. ¡®Can you just do that? And, eh, is that okay for everyone?¡¯
Samantha grabbed him closer and winked again. ¡®Oh yes, we¡¯re consenting adults and I didn¡¯t read and memorise the whole Ghost Town Relationship Guidelines for nothing. And I promised to not make him uncomfortable and I read a bunch of oldschool clean romance to prepare myself. You know, they might say I¡¯m a dangerous flirt and all that but this might be my only quality date with a man ever in this rotten country. Unless you want to go out with me, chicken boy?¡¯
She winked again, and Eric looked away, shyly. ¡®No, I¡¯m not into older women, and eh, not interested in women in general, and, eh¡¡¯
¡®Just joking, little guy, you¡¯re a bit young for me. but you must know what I mean about a shortage of interesting boys.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t worry. Everything is fine, and she¡¯s not being indecent or so, yet.¡¯ Michael said. She pinched him.
¡®You!¡¯
¡®Yes, me?¡¯¡®Oh, boy.¡¯ Eric said. ¡®I thought you only had that effect on Eliza. Are you starting a harem of all the girls around you?¡¯
Samantha started giggling while Michael started defending himself. ¡®No, I¡¯m too hopeless to get or keep even one girl, let alone more. I mean¡ The friendship thing is working, but if I¡¯m not forced by Wife School expectations or stupid games with me as the prize no girl will ever want me for even one date. Except for the village temptress here, with her fantasies about one-night stands and hook-ups, but I¡¯m not into that sort of thing.¡¯
¡®I object, that¡¯s a false accusation. I said that it would be an ancient clean romance fiction date. Don¡¯t insinuate things like that. You¡¯re the wrong boy for hit and run one-night-stands,¡¯
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.She turned to Eric. ¡®plus I need to be able to look him in the eyes again on the morning after. He¡¯s right about the friendship thing, and he¡¯s valuable.¡¯
¡®And Eliza is really okay with this?¡¯ Eric asked, clearly unsure and a bit confused.
¡®Why not?¡¯ said Michael.
¡®Eliza the man-hater has no say here tonight. She lost the game, and I won the boy, even if just for one night. If she wants Loverboy she¡¯ll have to make some moves herself, because someone here isn¡¯t going to do anything, not in a million years.¡¯ She patted his head.
¡®She only wants me as a friend. A girl like her isn¡¯t interested in me like that. Completely out of my league.¡¯
Samantha wanted to say something, but then suddenly paused before she finally said ¡®can we not talk nonsense about other girls now? You¡¯re mine tonight, remember, for a romantic date that I earned! Mentioning the competition all the time spoils the fun.¡¯
¡®There is no competition, there is nothing going on at all even. But if you insist I will try not to mention other girls tonight.¡¯
¡®Yeah, whatever. You know what I mean. Hello, Little Roc!¡¯
She bent down to pat the little chicken that was sitting by his foot now, but it ran away.
¡®Why is everyone afraid of me? I¡¯m just a lonely woman looking for love.¡¯
Eric picked Little Roc up.
¡®She¡¯s just afraid of all people except for me. And there¡¯s too much noise here. I¡¯m just here to bring Tracy some herbs, and then I¡¯ll take him home. Say bye to Samantha and Michael, Little Roc!¡¯
The chick didn¡¯t say much even with that encouragement, and so he disappeared to the kitchen with his herbs.
After Eric left they danced to a few more songs, until Michael felt that he was becoming too sweaty, and then they went out for a walk into the Ghost Town in the twilight. They walked through the village centre where sunlight-powered street lanterns were giving their light here and there, but otherwise it was dark.
¡®Come, let¡¯s take the gardens and fields,¡¯ she said, grabbing his arm again.
¡®Sure, where to?¡¯ He said.
He didn¡¯t really know his way here but it was clear she did. ¡®Have you seen the honeysuckle arc already? They say it¡¯s beautiful by night.¡¯
¡®No, I haven¡¯t seen much of the agricultural area yet.¡¯
¡®Let¡¯s walk there then. Nothing more romantic than a walk in the moonlight.¡¯
The fields were open and there were no clouds when they arrived at the honeysuckle arc. An ancient-looking lantern shone a yellow light on a bench under a gigantic pergola that was overgrown with yellow-flowering honeysuckle vines. The flowers gave a sweet enchanting smell to the night, and attracted all kinds of pollinators, mostly big colourful hawkmoths, but there were also a few bats hunting for moths in the light of the lantern.
¡®Come on, let me at least hold your hand now, Loverboy. I¡¯m not going to seduce you or ask your hand in marriage, but if we¡¯re going to have our clean romance scene, we need at least that. You can¡¯t say that I¡¯m asking for too much. It¡¯s a pity that we don¡¯t have any ferris wheel or tunnel of love here in this country, not?¡¯
¡®Again, what exactly have you been reading recently?¡¯
Michael asked when she took his hand without waiting for his response and looked deep into his eyes.
¡®Stories where a boy and a girl kissed at the end and were happy, and then got married. They might have had another concept of marriage though, one that was closer to those Love Ceremonies of the local outlaws here I think.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve read other things about that era. Things could go seriously wrong too with romance. Anyway, let¡¯s look at those flowers and enjoy the early autumn breeze and not spoil your moment by talking too much. It is a beautiful night.¡¯
The night was beautiful indeed. They walked on through the vegetable fields in silence, under the stars and a small crescent moon, until Michael suddenly stopped and turned to her.
¡®So, if you¡¯re the romance expert here now; what do actual couples do on dates? I¡¯ve been wondering about that when I was with Megan. Everything I found was contradicting. I mean, even being seen with a girl is supposed to be indecent in this country. Just sitting in the park together was frowned upon. What were we supposed to do?¡¯
Samantha frowned. ¡®You¡¯re both so innocent, it¡¯s too cute. But yeah, hanging out and eating and drinking and fun stuff is enough in the stories from other times. And then holding hands and kissing, stuff like that. In some stories they end up in bed too. You know that¡¯s what most Nation fianc¨¦s do with their girl when they get her to leave Wife School for a date, not?¡¯
¡®But how? All my life I¡¯ve been told that that was the worst sin possible, in church and such¡¡¯
¡®Oh, my dear boy, you still can¡¯t read between the rules at all.¡¯
¡®The rules make some sense, why break them?¡¯
She let go of his hand and looked into his eyes.
¡®But tell me, I can¡¯t believe that it was out of fear of hell or something silly like that that you didn¡¯t even kiss Megan. Come on, she¡¯s a hottie and she really liked you. I know that if I were into girls I¡¯d be all over her. It¡¯s clear that you two were into each other somehow. Why didn¡¯t you even try to kiss her?¡¯
He was rather taken aback by how she broke her own rule of not talking about other girls, and almost stuttered.
¡®I was serious about her but I just wasn¡¯t ready. I¡¯m still not ready. I know it¡¯s stupid. But it¡¯s true. And I didn¡¯t want to use her. All that Men want One Thing stuff just repulsed me. But you¡¯re right, I could have done better. When I finally kissed her everything was long over, and it was a kiss to end things. But she¡¯s better off free now. The one thing better than me as a husband is no husband at all in The Nation¡ It was part of our original pact that I¡¯d set her free without marriage if possible, the only thing that I actually promised her was friendship. It¡¯s just that we were expected to marry and there was no way out. We had fun, but we wouldn¡¯t have chosen to actually marry each other if we weren¡¯t forced I think. But who wouldn¡¯t love her? She is incredible indeed,¡¯ he said dreamily.
¡®Okay, back to not talking about other girls.¡¯ Samantha said, a bit agitated.
¡®By the way, how are you getting home safely? The woman house is a long walk from the Ghost Town, it''s not very safe in between for a woman in these clothes alone.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t stress out, my dear gentleman, I¡¯m staying here tonight. There¡¯s a guestroom that I can use. Wanna stay too? The bed is almost big enough for two people¡¡¯ She said, winking.
¡®Eh, no thanks. Wow, and I can¡¯t believe that this is your first seduction attempt tonight. I really am impressed with you.¡¯ He said.
¡®You dense idiot. That wasn¡¯t a seduction attempt. It was a joke.¡¯
¡®Ah.¡¯
¡®But it¡¯s time to put on something warmer before we go further. You have a nice suit, but this dress is getting a bit cold.¡¯
¡®Oh, it¡¯s still a decent one. You didn¡¯t overdo it with the cleavage and such.¡¯ He said. ¡®Oh, you idiot. Come, let¡¯s go to the guesthouse. It¡¯s the same room where you¡¯ve been staying already with your ex and Eliza by the way.
Ten minutes later they arrived in the guestroom.
¡®Ah, finally some more privacy,¡¯ she said.
¡®And I¡¯m thirsty. Wanna have a drink from the hyper-iso?¡¯
She took out two beers.
¡®Ah, why not. I could use some hydration too.¡¯
They sat next to each other on the bed, drinking their beer in silence for a few minutes when she got up to get a sweater out of a backpack that seemed to have been thrown in a corner.
¡®Ah, time to dress even more decently. Although this is the perfect moment¡ Me and you and a bedroom¡¡¯
She looked at her sweater, and them at a little mirror that lay on a chair.
¡®You remember that you complimented me on not having too much cleavage, weird boy? Maybe it¡¯s time to change that. Did you notice this dress has buttons all the way down? I know deep down you like to see more of me.¡¯
¡®Sam, what are you doing?¡¯ He said, but she was already unbuttoning the top of her dress, and then the rest, all the way down. He cursed and looked angrily at the empty glass of beer on the chair next to them.
*
Jenny was on her way to close off the workshop centre, when she suddenly saw a light, and heard an alarm in the communication room. She knew what that meant: someone was seeking contact, but there was no-one to answer them. She ran to the transmitter and looked at a paper that Eliza had made with the steps before she tuned in to the right frequency, and turned on voice transmission.
¡®Hello, Hello, Seventh City Ghost Town?¡¯ A tired voice said.
¡®Seventh City Ghost Town here, this is Jenny speaking.¡¯ She answered.
¡®Ah, finally, sister. Everything is ready here for the repatriation of our sister. We¡¯re coming to get her tonight.¡¯
Jenny let out a little curse. ¡®Was that today?¡¯
¡®Oh, yes, didn¡¯t you get the nota, sister?¡¯
¡®No. But everything will be ready if you tell me what we need.¡¯
¡®We have the coordinates from your signal, but we will need an illuminated landing strip of 5 by 30 metres. Tell our lost sister to be ready.¡¯
¡®Yes, sister.¡¯ She said automatically. There was something about their language that you easily picked up.
¡®I¡¯ll warn everyone, and Iell send our Ghost Town leader to talk to you more.¡¯ Jenny said, and she ran to the house of lady Martha.
She knocked on the door, panting and out of breath. Ruth opened the door.
¡®Hey Jenny, why the haste?¡¯
¡®I need Martha. They¡¯re coming tonight. The H¨¦vans. And we need to make a landing strip, and they want to talk to her.¡¯
The sleepy head of Lady Martha appeared next to that of her partner.
¡®Huh, what? Now? How didn¡¯t I know that?¡¯
¡®No-one knew. It seems something has gone wrong with communicating the date. But if I understood them well they will be here in five hours or less. We need a landing strip with light of 5 by 30 meter, illuminated.¡¯
¡®Oh dear¡ Is Eliza here today?¡¯ Lady Martha asked.
¡®Probably not. Usually she isn¡¯t here at night. But they said Michael was on a date tonight, wouldn¡¯t she be the boy¡¯s date?¡¯
¡®Hmm, probably. That would make sense. Let¡¯s go to the communication room, and then go find her. And someone needs to alert our visitor¡¯
Jenny nodded. This would be a long night¡
2.30 Strangers in The Night
For a few seconds Michael froze, staring at Samantha¡¯s black underwear, and then he looked at her face. He jumped over the bed behind him to have enough distance between them.
¡®Okay, that¡¯s enough beer for you. You¡¯re also the worst temptress in the world. Bye¡ Date is over!¡¯ He said, and he grabbed his coat.
Samantha stood there for a few seconds. ¡®Wait, don¡¯t go. I¡¯ll button up again. Sorry if I¡¯ve gone too far. I thought¡¡¯
He stopped.
¡®Thought? You weren¡¯t thinking at all. Yes, you¡¯re beautiful tonight. That doesn¡¯t mean you have to strip with no warning. It¡¯s not because a woman is attractive that I actually want sex with her. Sorry for breaking all stereotypes about men. But I can¡¯t do this.¡¯
¡®Please, don¡¯t leave,¡¯ she said, looking back into his eyes.
He sighed but kept his distance.
¡®Let¡¯s go outside. If you promise to not flash me like that again I might reconsider. But it really doesn¡¯t work like that. Maybe with other men, I don¡¯t know, but not with me. And that black bra only brought me back to that horrible ceremony night.¡¯
¡®Ceremony night?¡¯ She said, and then ¡®Oh¡ I see. Wow¡¡¯
She grabbed her sweater and followed him downstairs, still buttoning her dress. He didn¡¯t take the elevator this time, the more distance the better for now.
When they were outside he continued his story.
¡®Try to imagine being me on that night. They¡¯ve forced you to go to a Wife School, all alone. You haven¡¯t talked to a girl before. You know you must come out with a paper of a chosen Wife. And then they let all the girls parade in front of you, in those same black bikinis. Very similar to that bra you¡¯re wearing now too. There¡¯s the light and sweat and the atmosphere is hell.¡¯ ¡®I never thought about how that felt for a boy.¡¯
¡®Well, first you get a sterile speech, and all the history of Manfred and nonsense about quality wives for every man in The Nation. And then that. And next to me there was a bunch of brainless oversexed Epsilon-baboons who were really drooling over the girls. I¡¯ve never felt so bad in my life.¡¯
¡®Oh, Michael.¡¯ She said, but she didn¡¯t touch him this time.
¡®And then I looked at the other side of the line, all those girls in black underwear. The last girl was one I vaguely recognised, but she looked at me with eyes full of hate. Next to her was a dark-eyed one whose eyes said ¡®help me¡¯. And next to me the other boys were fighting and I had to make a choice. That¡¯s how I got Megan.¡¯
¡®And the other one you mentioned?¡¯
¡®Oh, a wild-eyed feisty creature that everyone called ¡°the man-hater¡± and who was deemed unmarriagable. Against all rules she did the talking for Megan that night. And we even recognised each other as the forbidden childhood friends.¡¯
¡®So that was Eliza. But what I wonder is why you were at the E-floor, as a Gamma-1 you could have gotten a fine C-Wife, not?¡¯
¡®B even, don¡¯t ever tell my dad. I was panicking and reasoned that, like brainie boys who get a low rating because they¡¯re not Real Men enough, there was a chance that the most interesting girl would find no place in the higher levels and would be downgraded to E. Which was a good bet in the end, even if it was completely crazy, and it could have gone horribly wrong too. And the other bet was to try to befriend her instead of being serious about the whole marriage thing. That¡¯s how everything started.¡¯
¡®Come, let¡¯s sit. Walking so fast is not good for a conversation,¡¯ Samantha said.
They sat next to each other again on a bench on the central square.
¡®You might want to redo half of the buttons, or people will think strange things¡¯ he said, pointing at her dress, which had a mismatch in buttons and button-holes from her belly to her neck.
¡®Oops, I had to be fast, okay? I almost had lost you.¡¯ she said, and he looked away while she unbuttoned and buttoned half her dress.
¡®I hope no-one sees this.¡¯ He said.
¡®You could tell everyone what happened, blame me, and all, you know, horrible temptress and all,¡¯ she said, but he ignored her and just went on with his earlier story.
¡®But really, it was horrible on that night: the atmosphere there, and then the expectation that I would like it there. That as a man it would make sense to me to choose a wife just because of how she looked with as few clothes on as possible. As if I would be able to think of sex without even ever having spoken to a girl. Really, I don¡¯t get it. So it¡¯s a really bad memory that you triggered. I suppose the girls can tell you even worse things about their experiences from their side, but I was on the brink of an emotional breakdown myself too. And I didn¡¯t even have to do that twice a month until I was taken.¡¯
She held his hand, completely different from before.
¡®I¡¯m sorry that I got caught in that moment. So I completely spoiled your first date experience?¡¯
¡®If you can go back to your clean romance fiction mode you might undo some of the damage before the night is over. You know I actually liked being with you like this a lot, much more than I expected. No-one has ever dated me out of free will, and you really did your best with the whole romance thing. That¡¯s why I was so shocked.¡¯
¡®You actually like me? The original Loverboy was impressed with me?¡¯
¡®Like, like, what is like? Yes, I like being with you tonight. You know that. And in a way you¡¯re enchantingly attractive. But that¡¯s all.I¡¯m not going to fall in love with you and you know I¡¯m not the friends-with-benefits type. And to be honest, do you want to make everything awkward and weird between us from now on? You said to Eric you didn¡¯t, and I will trust you on that. Plus I¡¯m an inexperienced idiot anyway, remember that. Awkward dates are probably the best you could get out of me anyway.¡¯
¡®Oh, Michael, what do I do with you?¡¯
She grabbed his hand again and he didn¡¯t protest. The distance was gone again.
They walked back to the fields with the honeysuckle arch. It was a lot darker now, and there were more bats who were dancing in the light of the lantern, eating little moths and mosquitoes. The bigger hawkmoths seemed to have gone. They sat there for a while, holding hands again.
¡®I like sitting here under this lantern, and I like the little pipistrelles.¡¯
She giggled. ¡®You mean those bats, brainie boy?¡¯
¡®Yes, they¡¯re called brown pipistrelles. They were once considered extinct, and then they came back. They eat a lot of mosquitoes.¡¯
¡®Yuck. Who would want to do that? Doesn¡¯t sound tasty.¡¯
She shivered.
¡®Aren¡¯t you getting cold? You¡¯ve forgotten your coat with your stupid strip act, and that sweater won¡¯t be enough now. Here, take my jacket.¡¯
Before she could protest Michael had put his jacket around her.
¡®You really are the perfect gentleman. Do I deserve that?¡¯
¡®Come on. You did all that effort to be romantic in the oldschool way. No-one has ever done such a thing for me, or probably for any boy alive in this country, it would be mean to not acknowledge that. I thought only the Ghost Town women could do this, not men. I know it¡¯s not the chemistry you wanted, but I had a lot of fun. And you really are beautiful tonight, attractive even. It¡¯s confusing. Just keep it the opposite of the Ceremony Night please.¡¯
They stopped and sat down on a wooden bench in between the pumpkin field and the farm. He gently put his arm around her to make the night less cold.
¡®I want to believe you. But I¡¯ll never be enough, will I?¡¯ She said after a while.
¡®Enough for what? You have outdone yourself. You made me feel at ease again. I feel sorry for rejecting you for the more you want. I¡¯d never imagine being you such a female gentleman, whatever it¡¯s called, for most of the time tonight. Really. But it would still be wrong to kiss you.¡¯
¡®Oh, you idiot. Don¡¯t ruin it. This night went much better than I ever expected. And it was always clear that it wouldn¡¯t work between us for anything long-term, and you¡¯re not a hook-up type at all. But no-one is going to take the fun I had away from me. And I¡¯m so sorry for the black bra incident. I was impulsive. I see why they invented rule seven¡¡¯
¡®We¡¯ll never mention that anymore.¡¯ He said, and he hugged her, and then kissed her very softly on the forehead.
¡®Thank you. Actually, my little temptress, you were my first actual date that wasn¡¯t enforced by some weird Wife School system or so. To be honest, from the moment that you drop the over-the-top flirty stuff you¡¯re much more attractive. And forgive me if I ever called you unattractive. You¡¯re not. You¡¯re just too aggressive for my sensitive heart. And I don¡¯t mean the asking me out as a wager for a chess game part, the other girls could learn from that probably. We just don¡¯t have the same language of intimacy, or whatever you call it.¡¯
She shrugged. ¡®That¡¯s more than clear now. It wasn¡¯t Megan and Eliza¡¯s influence, it¡¯s just you who¡¯s the introverted prude. I wish them luck with you. The one that can catch you surely deserves you. And still¡¡¯
She stopped, looked him in the eyes for a while and kissed him full on his lips, and he didn¡¯t protest this time but kissed back, and then held her for a while. ¡®¡still I deserved that one.¡¯ ¡®Maybe you did. And maybe I lied to Eliza when I said that my slutty days were over.¡¯
They looked each other in the eyes again and said nothing for a while, with the little brown pipistrelles flying in strange patterns around the lamp and then she looked at him, incredulously, and started laughing while she stood up.
¡®You really don¡¯t understand that word, do you? Don¡¯t flatter yourself, dude. We just re-invented the casual romantic mixed-couple date, which is a historic accomplishment probably, but it was all just clean fiction stuff and it¡¯s going nowhere indeed. You know you¡¯re not at all like how they say men are at all. But still, you¡¯re certainly not aromantic either, whoever came up with that word. To be honest, this was the most romantic night of my life.¡¯
¡®I take my words back. You¡¯re not the worst temptress in the world at all. But this was it, I¡¯m not doing the friends with benefits thing. And it¡¯s getting late.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, you still have to walk back all the way to that zeroville dump, so I think we better call it a night, loverboy. Will you be safe?¡¯
He stood up too.
¡®I will, I think. Without a girl with me or anything worth stealing on me no-one will notice me now in the dark streets. I¡¯m a boring nobody and a deleted badgeless man, remember. I¡¯m the one the good ranked men are afraid of now. The potentially feral weirdo creep.¡¯
She hugged him again.
¡®You¡¯re the cutest and the most harmless man in this whole country. You¡¯re only dangerous for men because you set a standard that no Nation men can live up to. I mean, look at what you did tonight.¡¯
¡®I didn¡¯t do anything but mess up¡¡¯ Michael said, confused.
¡®Wait, is there someone there?¡¯
Someone was calling out. ¡®Michael?¡¯ and then ¡®Eliza?¡¯
The magic was broken when they were approached by a nervous woman.
¡®Michael!¡¯ It was Jenny, who first turned to Samantha. ¡®Am I interrupting something? They said Michael was on a date, but I expected someone else with him¡ So that means Eliza isn¡¯t here at all?¡¯
Samantha¡¯s mood dropped when she saw Jenny¡¯s disapproving look.
¡®I don¡¯t see her here, do you? Ah well, the date is over anyway. He can go home to his loving robot now and I¡¯ll probably be manless for the rest of my life. But at least we had fun¡ What¡¯s the matter, Jenny? And why does everyone want me to be Eliza tonight? Do you outlaws have a relationship police?¡¯
¡®Nothing like that. He can date whomever he wants, you¡¯re free adults. But we need Eliza for some technical things. We had contact with H¨¦va again. They¡¯re coming to pick up Jibrilla by plane, Tonight! We need to have a landing strip ready and stuff like that. She¡¯s one of our tech experts, remember?¡¯
Michael looked at her, trying to understand what she had said.
¡®I don¡¯t think Eliza is here. She¡¯s at home with Megan tonight, as far as I know, so you¡¯ll have to call the woman house.¡¯ Jenny sighed.
¡®Ah, I didn¡¯t want to do that. I hate calling outsiders at this hour. Well, back to my desk then. Come, you two. I suppose you two want to say goodbyes to her too. We have only five hours or so to make a landing strip ready.¡¯
Michael and Samantha followed Jenny back to the Ghost Town centre.
¡®She¡¯s really going home tonight? With another one of these aeroplane things?¡¯ Samantha asked.
¡®Yes, they will arrive tonight, in a few hours. Much faster than we thought. We¡¯ll need to make a landing strip with lights in the field too, and a beacon that gives specific signs. Lots of work to do, she¡¯s packing her stuff right now. She wanted to see you too by the way. Both of you actually, but I told her you weren¡¯t here, Sam.¡¯
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.¡®Well, I am. And I¡¯m not going away now!¡¯ Samantha said.
*
The rest of the evening was chaotic and confusing. Michael could never remember afterwards how he¡¯d been helping to set up lights for a landing strip in an empty hay field not far from the honeysuckle arch, and couldn¡¯t even say when Eliza had suddenly joined the hardworking party with a strange experimental device that could give light signals. Everything was like a hazy blur. And then the aeroplane arrived. It was a strange metal monster of light and noise, that followed Eliza¡¯s signals and stopped in the landing strip with a strange hissing noise.
Lights went out, and other lights went on, and suddenly a door opened and a person stepped out, followed by more persons. Everything about them was surreal and dreamlike, like something out of an ancient futuristic movie about a future that had never come. Just like he had expected all of them were women, but they didn¡¯t look the same. The woman that he could see wore a uniform and looked cold as ice. She was followed by two other women in other but similar uniforms that looked like they were lower in rank, and then by two others that were not in the same H¨¦van uniforms.
The woman with the icy eyes walked to Lady Martha and spoke:
¡®I am commander Lytha, representing the government of H¨¦va. These sisters are pilot Andira and intelligence inspector Sigrid. Greeting to my Nation sisters who are forced into hiding here.¡¯ When she noticed that the other two women had arrived too she sighed. ¡®Oh, and Jella here is the neutral international press, plus we also have Lady Graceline, international envoy with us. This mission attracted some attention I am afraid.¡¯
The two uniformed women on both sides of her nodded mechanically, when they were joined by a woman in completely different clothes in primary colours waving an exotic-looking screen-camera around, and finally by an older dark-skinned woman in a red suit who looked very serious, powerful and important. It was clear that she was neither a Nationer nor a H¨¦van, but commander Lytha had no power over her.
¡®Welcome in my Ghost Town, sisters. I am Lady Martha, leader of Seventh City Ghost Town, representing the loose federation of Ghost Towns. This is my assistant Jenny and my partner and our priestess Ruth. Eliza here is the engineer who made communication possible, and eh, Samantha is a nurse, and Michael here is our male affairs adviser.¡¯
Commander Lytha flinched when she heard that name and looked at him, but didn¡¯t say a word, at the same moment when Michael chuckled because of the title with which Lady Martha introduced her. Lady Martha introduced the rest of the Ghost Town women, but Commander Lytha seemed rather impatient.
¡®We only have half an hour before we have to go, but I think Miss Graceline wants to have a talk with the Ghost Town representative, and I think Jella probably wants to take some pictures of this place. International press like I said.¡¯ Lytha said with another disapproving look on her face.
It seemed that Michael wasn¡¯t the only one whose presence Lytha didn¡¯t like here. ¡®International press? You mean outsider papers? More outsider than H¨¦va?¡¯ Samantha asked to no-one in general.
Jella looked at her. ¡®Papers, and electronic publications. NIP brings news from all over the world to all over the world.¡¯
¡®Wait, do you want that, Lady Martha?¡¯ Michael said. ¡®How will the male world react?¡¯
Lady Martha ignored him. ¡®I think Samantha can show her around. I welcome the international press in the name of the Nation Ghost Towns.¡¯
Michael had no time to think of that because the impressive envoy gestured at him.
¡®Mister Michaels? You¡¯re the sole representative of the male Nation here? Can I talk to you for a second while the Ghost Town leader is occupied by commander Lytha?¡¯
¡®Me? Representing them? Manfred no! They deleted me, and they act like Ghost Towns don¡¯t exist. I only represent myself here.¡¯
¡®I see. So you think The Nation would not want diplomatic ties with outsiders as you call it at all?¡¯
¡®We¡¯re The Nation for something, not? As in the only nation that matters and exists in our world? I think the Central Computer representatives are rather comfortable in being uncontacted. Unless when you have something interesting to sell them. Our tech is rather outdated and we could do with some resources. We don¡¯t even have intercontinental travel or communication as you know.¡¯
¡®I understood so much. But the countries of the Planetary Council only have commerce with countries that uphold basic human rights I¡¯m afraid. Which includes gender equality, from any side. H¨¦va also is subject to that.¡¯
Michael looked at her. The hour was way too late to start understanding a whole new world of geopolitics for him.
¡®One of Manfred¡¯s main tenets is non-innovation, and what you would call gender inequality is the core of Nation Doctrine. They¡¯ll be more stubborn than H¨¦vans, even with all the tech of the world. But what if you¡¯d just connect to the Ghost Town federation instead?¡¯
The envoy looked at him. ¡®You mean consider the united female outlaws of The Nation as a political entity and take them up in the international world of politics.¡¯
¡®It would be a good protection for them if the Nation would turn against them, and at least you could say they¡¯re working at gender equality now. I wouldn¡¯t be here otherwise you know. It used to be a sort of little H¨¦va here.¡¯
She looked at him, calculating.
¡®You as a Nation man, and not part of the Ghost Town leadership, propose that? You think they would do it?¡¯
¡®Are you willing to pledge allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status with every contact and wear the Free Person badge? If so they will let you in.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re saying they would demand their own minimalist human rights proclamation from us? That¡¯s a reversal of roles.¡¯
¡®They did the same to me, and little Eric, and Robert when he was here. It¡¯s not a theory, it¡¯s an orientation, a way of life.¡¯
¡®I must say that would be a strange move. Chances are small the Council would accept such a thing. But in theory it¡¯s an interesting proposal. We didn¡¯t know there was an organised female society like that here. If they can organise¡¡¯
The envoy seemed to think, but Michael was almost falling asleep, and Jibrilla suddenly pulled him by his arm.
¡®My time is up. Goodbye, Michael. I never thought I¡¯d like a manperson, I never thought I¡¯d even meet one, especially not from The Nation, but thank you for your friendship. You¡¯ve taught me a lot just by being yourself.¡¯
¡®Ah, eh, you too.¡¯ He said, a bit confused in his state of exhaustion so far beyond bedtime, and he gave her a hug.
¡®Take care sister, in your sisterland,¡¯ He said, but he was interrupted by the H¨¦van commander.
¡®Are you hugging a Nation man, sister?¡¯
Lytha¡¯s look was one that could have killed again.
¡®This man is a sister too, Commander.¡¯ Jibrilla answered fiercely.
Lytha said nothing, it was clear that whatever authority she would have normally had over a citizen like Jibrilla was absent here in another country with the international envoy standing so close. Before he realised what was happening they were interrupted again.
¡®Can we take some pictures of you people? This is a historical moment. The whole world will want to see you.¡¯ Jella the reporter said.
She had suddenly appeared from behind with Samantha. Lytha still said nothing, but now her eyes beamed pure hate that reminded Michael of that first night of meeting Eliza at the ceremony of partner choice. He hoped that the story being in the international news would keep Jibrilla safe from possible repercussions from the Sisifor her un-H¨¦van behaviour and thought tonight.
Everything was a bit hazy because he was so tired. A bit later he stood alone, and noticed that Lytha seemed to be watching the envoy very carefully while she was talking to Lady Martha. Meanwhile Eliza was giving Jibrilla her bagage, and saying something about an sms-machine and antennas that he didn¡¯t quite follow. He was falling half asleep again when the picture was being taken with him, Jibrilla, Sam, Eliza, Lady Martha and Ruth and a few other Ghost Town women, and the pilot and the envoy. The two other H¨¦vans seemed to refuse to be pictured. There probably were reasons for that, but he had had enough outsider politics for one night now to think about that.
After the pictures the outsiders boarded the aeroplane machine, and suddenly they were gone, taking Jibrilla back to the country without men. He looked at Samantha who was still standing next to her and realised that he still needed to get home somehow.
¡®Wow, it¡¯s way too late for anything now. And I still have to¡¡¯ He began, but he was interrupted.
¡®So, maybe the couple of the century wants to sleep a bit now. Let¡¯s go to the guest apartment. There¡¯s three beds ready for us.¡¯ Eliza said, waving a key around, and wrapping herself around the both of them.
¡®Eliza, you¡¯re the saving angel!¡¯ He said.
¡®And you two had fun?¡¯ she asked with a strange look in her eyes.
¡®Weirdly enough we did, mostly, I think,¡¯ he said.
¡®We were planning a second date when Jenny interrupted us.¡¯ Samantha said.
¡®You what?¡¯ Eliza asked, with a different voice.
¡®Dating is fun, dancing and drinking and walking in the moonlight and then finishing the experience with a kiss¡ It¡¯s your fault that none of you ever thought of asking him out and making yourself beautiful and then enchanting him like in a romance book.¡¯ She said teasingly, and Eliza stopped.
¡®Wait, but¡¡¯
Samantha took the key and started walking in the direction of the guest apartment.
¡®Come, time to sleep indeed. Do you mind me taking him in my bed? It would be a perfect way to end this night of romance.¡¯ Samantha said, wrapping her arm around him when he didn¡¯t move, but he pushed her away and yawned.
¡®I mind, I just want to sleep. And you¡¯re making that second date stuff up too.¡¯
Later he would have a lot of holes in his memory about the whole night, and could never remember how they had arrived in the guest apartment, and it seemed like he had hardly slept at all when he woke up in full daylight to the sound of Samantha yelling ¡®Eliza, what are you doing? You told me to stay out of his bed and now you do this,¡¯ and seeing her face too close to his again when he opened his eyes. She was lying next to him and watching his sleeping face again.
¡®Too close, Eliza.¡¯ He said when he sat up, and yawned again.
Both girls were dressed already.
¡®It was time to wake you anyway.¡¯
*
For him it felt like it was still night when they left the guest apartment, but it was actually halfway to noon already. Samantha was still teasing him and clinging to him when they met Tracy just out of the door, on her way to the Ghost Town bar, who stared at the couple.
¡®You¡¯ve stayed over for the night after your date? With her?¡¯ she asked him, incredulously.
He yawned.
¡®After the departure of Jibrilla with her midnight aeroplane there wasn¡¯t anything else to do?¡¯ He said, clearly still exhausted.
¡®She went home? In an outsider aeroplane machine? I must have missed that completely¡ But you slept together I mean?¡¯ She asked when Samantha grabbed his arm as if she claimed him and nodded.
It was hard to not see a disappointment in Tracy¡¯s eyes now. Suddenly Eliza appeared in the door too and joined them.
¡®Yeah, you could say we all slept together last night if you really want, but don¡¯t forget that he sometimes takes things rather literally. And I can add that he¡¯s quite good at sleeping, even if he snores a bit.¡¯
Samantha giggled.
¡®Hey, I have a bit of a cold it seems. I gave her my jacket when it became too cold for her in the fields at night.¡¯
¡®Such a male lady you¡¯ve been to her.¡¯ Eliza said, suddenly disappearing in the direction of the robot workshop.
¡®Did I say something wrong?¡¯ He asked Samantha, who just looked at the place where Eliza had been.
¡®No, you haven¡¯t done anything wrong except for being too cute.¡¯ Samantha said and patted him on the head.
¡®She looked jealous if you ask me.¡¯ Tracy said. She was still trying to comprehend everything she¡¯d just seen.
¡®But, there¡¯s nothing for her to be jealous of,¡¯ he said.
Samantha started laughing.
¡®Oh, my dear boy. I just can¡¯t with you. You¡¯re too precious.¡¯
Michael looked at Tracy to see if she could help him understand more, but she just said
¡®What in the name of Manfred is going on between you three?¡¯ and he shrugged.
Outlaw girls cussing in the name of the Father of The Nation was a new one for him.
¡®How do I know what¡¯s going on? But I have to work in less than an hour, on Square Plaza.¡¯
When Michael had left too Tracy looked at Samantha, who only said.
¡®Boys¡ They¡¯re not what you¡¯d expect them to be¡¡¯
2.31 Life Goes On
What¡¯s wrong with you this morning?¡¯ Megan asked Eliza.
She was drinking her third morning coffee and saw the irritation on her face when her friend entered the room later that morning.
¡®Me? Nothing. Not enough sleep I guess. I had to help with the communication with that H¨¦van aeroplane after midnight. And then it was very late. And then there was Loverboy and Miss Perfect Romance book too, still hanging around after their date, so we slept over in the guest room together. Can you believe that she actually studied romance books and took him out for slow dancing and romantic walks, and he said he really had fun. She freaking looked like a page from a 6 centuries old beauty magazine in her stupid red dress.¡¯
Megan looked up when Eliza¡¯s rant became more intense.
¡®Sam? Yes, she said she¡¯d do that. She had only one chance and she didn¡¯t want to spoil it and she was preparing something she called a clean romance fiction date to not scare him away or something like that. And I can see him loving that, he¡¯s probably the most romantic of us all after all. It¡¯s good that he¡¯s happier now and less depressed. And experimenting with dating in a safe way is good for all of us to learn from, plus Sam is right that we¡¯ve forgotten how to have fun in this country.¡¯
¡®Oh shut up¡¡¯
¡®What¡¯s wrong, Eliza?¡¯
¡®They were even talking about a second date. What if he¡¯s going to fall for her.¡¯
Megan looked up from her coffee.
¡®And? They¡¯re both Free Persons. He can choose any partner if he wants, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s gonna be her though.¡¯
¡®Aren¡¯t you worried then?¡¯
¡®About what? What are they going to do? Dance a bit and talk about how their outlook on relationships is incompatible? It¡¯s Michael we¡¯re talking about. Sure, he will love to try out more of those romance tropes, I think he even missed that a bit when he was with me at times, but all that will happen with Sam is that he¡¯s going to stop at a kiss and then freeze if she tries more.¡¯
Eliza poured a giant mug of Nation-coffee for herself.
¡®So you think he would want all that romance stuff to be perfect if he gets a girl for real? That he wants a girl looking like she was materialised from an ancient beauty magazine that can dance slow dances and knows what to do on a romantic date?¡¯
Megan looked at her.
¡®What are you even talking about? He doesn¡¯t want anything yet. He¡¯s just experimenting a bit to see what he wants, and with his personality that can only be very innocent. Plus she pushed the whole date thing, not he.¡¯
¡®But what if they repeat the whole thing and stay over again in that guest room, and I¡¯m not there as an accidental chaperone? He¡¯s too naive. She¡¯ll¡¡¯
¡®Eliza. Calm down. You¡¯re babbling nonsense again. And it¡¯s none of your business what they do anyway. What did I say consenting adults? Our Loverboy is an adult man, remember? Do I have to repeat everything again. Why does it bother you so much? Unless¡ Are you jealous? Do you want him for yourself?¡¯
Eliza almost choked in her coffee.
¡®No. That would be impossible. It¡¯s not for me. Especially not now, after her whole perfect romance act. I just can¡¯t compete with that. You didn¡¯t see how perfect she was.¡¯ She almost stuttered. ¡®Hmm. Some people actually think otherwise. And you were incredibly pretty with that dress on the Love Ceremony dress too. What¡¯s wrong with you, Eliza? I¡¯m not used to seeing you without your self-confidence. You are Eliza, you can do anything you put your mind to. So I don¡¯t see how you couldn¡¯t make a project of being super romantic for him, if you really wanted that, which is new for me. I don¡¯t think he¡¯d really need that though, he already found you cute with that courtship sabotage look, remember. You wouldn¡¯t need to do anything special to make him like you. Some would speculate that that whole girl friendships and oxytocin plan of yours might have been too effective already even.¡¯
Eliza backed off.
¡®I didn¡¯t say I want him. It¡¯s just that he might get hurt. And then maybe he¡¯ll get depressed again. Write off women completely if she uses him and stuff like that. Maybe he¡¯ll join the sisterhood of the Angel and become the first male nun in Nation history. He¡¯s been meditating a lot there lately, remember?¡¯
Megan noted that Eliza really looked a bit shaken.
¡®And that would be a problem why? Unless you want him that is. Staying single is a normal thing for outlaws and nonwives, and he¡¯s like a male version of that.¡¯
¡®I never said¡¡¯
¡®You just said you didn¡¯t, I know¡ Hey, I¡¯m not offended if you want him. It would be wonderful. I totally see it work between you and him. I¡¯ve said from the beginning that he should have chosen you and not me. You still have my blessing as a couple.¡¯
¡®Nah, It was better like that. You two were the cutest couple ever, and probably the most innocent too. No Wife School engagements for me. I was only needed to teach him the finer points of our girl friendships¡ And now my role seems to be over¡ And, he¡¯ll be dating Samantha.¡¯
¡®Why do you lose your usual self-confidence over this? I still feel you need to think a bit more of what you want with him then.¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t want anything special. I just want us all to be friends and I¡¯d hate for him to be in pieces again.¡¯
¡®Two dates aren''t a relationship. And if anything, he¡¯s too careful with relationships. I, as an expert, can affirm that. And if they are drinking beer there¡¯s also rule seven¡¡¯
¡®Things are good as they are now, without complications like that. Romance is not a project I could pull off like Sam did anyway. So I better bow out of the whole relationship idea, that was the original plan.¡¯
¡®Eliza! Girl, do you even hear yourself? You¡¯re contradicting yourself all the time. I¡¯m really not used to that. So you don¡¯t want to fall in love and settle down with the only known boy in The Nation that could give you a mixed love ceremony relationship, something is like an endless sleepover with, eh, a friend with benefits? The friendship being the first benefit even?¡¯
¡®How could I? I can¡¯t picture those things like that in this world. It doesn¡¯t exist. And I¡¯m not that kind of woman to get tied down like that. I¡¯m a Free Person, a woman of independence.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re a woman of interdependence, and an incredible networker with the greatest net of contacts in the whole Nation¡¡¯
¡®That¡¯s not the same. Men are different. He can be a friend, but beyond that? You of all people should shut up now about that. You could have been with him like that by now, and you didn¡¯t want it either.¡¯
¡®That¡¯s different. You know, in theory I could have fallen for girls too while still in school as much as for boys and I never even bothered either. And then there was, by all standards, the perfect Loverboy, and while it was fun, and there still is love and a certain attraction, I didn¡¯t want it. It¡¯s not what I want in my life, at least not now. It would be wrong, to him too. He certainly isn¡¯t aromantic and he needs a complete relationship. And you are not like me. I¡¯m quite sure that you just have to add a few things to your relationship with him that¡¯s already there, and you are a Love Ceremonied couple, as Chicken boy says. And you¡¯ll like it.¡¯
¡®Eric doesn¡¯t count. And I can¡¯t even think of things like that.¡¯
¡®Eric doesn¡¯t count? Why not? I¡¯d think that if anyone has thought about relationships it¡¯s him. I mean, being a Ghost Town asexual as a boy and all. He¡¯s got it much worse than your silly ancient curse of heterosexuality that actually plagues majorities. Chances of him finding a partner are a lot lower than for you or Sam¡ Plus he is sensitive to picking up certain vibes. I wouldn¡¯t discount his intuition personally.¡¯
¡®Fine. I didn¡¯t mean anything against our boy Eric. But I just don¡¯t see it working for myself.¡¯
¡®Come on, you always say that you¡¯re cursed with heterosexuality, and don¡¯t forget you already kissed him. And not to close off a story, or to experiment with electricity or whatever.¡¯
¡®Eh, he kissed me actually. And he said it was the end of his slutty times and babbled something about closure. That was before dating Sam though. And they kissed too, I¡¯m sure of that.¡¯
Megan seemed to fall silent. ¡®Ah, well¡ He¡¯s quite hopeless too, and quite dramatic with his word choice. So he¡¯s ready to be serious next time. And that won¡¯t be with Sam, as they both know. That¡¯s not a long-term option.¡¯
¡®You¡¯re reading too much in it. Who says he¡¯s not just giving up on love altogether? Or maybe he¡¯s asexual like you. He always sounded like that, but now I¡¯m not sure anymore. Maybe he wants to experiment himself, like Sam and her stupid chemistry stuff. And she is more than willing to play that game.¡¯
¡®They speak another language. I know him. If she goes all-out with her temptation tropes he¡¯ll be hurt indeed and we might have to detraumatise him, but I don¡¯t believe that will happen. She cares about him too. Their friendship is also important to her. You can¡¯t be a man-eater in a world with just one interesting man that¡¯s also a valuable friend. She acts tough, but she¡¯s not stupid. She can¡¯t win anything either if she goes that road¡¡¯
¡®Okay, then let Sam toy with him if he wants. And see what the future brings. They¡¯re consenting adults anyway.¡¯
¡®They are, but don¡¯t forget yourself. Things can¡¯t stay like they are, we¡¯re all changing and growing, and I don¡¯t want you to miss the boat. Or him¡¡¯
¡®You¡¯re seeing things that aren¡¯t there, Megan,¡¯ she said.
¡®Well, I love you anyway, both of you. And you make me worry in this state¡¡¯
She gave her friend a hug.
*
After the departure of Jibrilla life went its way, without much special things happening for the next weeks. Somewhere at the end of September a girl knocked on a dorm door in St Manfred¡¯ Wife School.
¡®I¡¯m looking for a B-girl here in St-Manfred¡¯s who has an outlaw name. And a very weird one at that.¡¯ Helen said to the two girls present.
She was a small sixteen-year old C-girl with very white hair who everyone knew as a black market trader. Anne and her friend Melinda were sitting on a bed reading a rather boring magazine.
¡®Outlaw name? What do you mean?¡¯ Melinda looked up.
¡®Here, Anne Michaels, also known as Anne Adams, an express black market package from Eliza herself.¡¯
¡®Anne Adams is me, you must know that. But what is an outlaw name?¡¯
Anne looked suspiciously at the package.
¡®Stuff nice B-girls aren¡¯t taught here, illegal stuff for the unmarriable. Nothing for a girl who gets prepared to become the perfect B-Wife like you¡ Ghost Town traditions for the female outlaws. People who reject their last name, or fathername as they call it, get a new name when they join them. Usually they¡¯re selfnames or partner-names, and so they¡¯re supposed to be women''s names by definition, so yours is quite exceptional. You don¡¯t have a secret outlaw boyfriend, do you?¡¯
Anne heavily gestured negatively but she went on.
¡®No, that would be impossible too. Male outlaws don¡¯t even use that system and have a taboo on females. So who is Michael even supposed to be?¡¯
¡®My deleted brother¡ He recently visited and said he¡¯d send me something.¡¯ Anne said.
Helen took a step back. ¡®Michael Michaels, the great reformer? That would explain everything. You¡¯re his sister? Wow!¡¯
¡®He¡¯s actually just Michael Adams,¡¯ Anne said.
¡®Yes, but you said he was deleted. And Michael Michaels is one of the few men ever who got a selfname and were accepted by the female outlaws as a friend of women. He¡¯s a legend, girl. As much as Eliza herself. So you have been given you a brothername, and that¡¯s a first. Like in, first ever in history. Really, a female outlaw name¡¡¯
¡®But I still have my name. What difference does it make?¡¯
¡®It means a lot, my dear Miss Michaels. Firstly it means that he claims you as his family, if he lets Eliza address you with that name. Which is, eh, more than most brothers would do. He named you because he wants to stay in his life.¡¯
If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.Anne nodded. ¡®That one was clear already. He said so much when he was here.¡¯
¡®And it might mean that you¡¯re in their extended network. Of the outlaws I mean, Ghost Towners. So¡¡¯ Here she started whispering. ¡®If you, or any of your friends even, needs an escape because you¡¯ve been taken by a bad man when you¡¯re 18 for example, you have the best connections possible now, girl. Eliza is connected to Lady Martha herself, and it¡¯s whispered they help girls escape sometimes. When things go wrong with their future husbands I mean.¡¯
¡®Let¡¯s see what they sent me then.¡¯ Anne said shyly, ignoring the subject.
She opened the package and took out some books.
¡®Wow¡ Boy school books, these are quite valuable! Plus a forbidden Women Are Human zine. And eh, what¡¯s this?¡¯
¡®Is that what I think it is?¡¯ Helen said, staring at the little weathered book in awe.
¡®Basic and advanced techniques courtship sabotage¡¯, Anne read the title out loud, ¡®never heard of it¡¯.
¡®I heard of it, but I¡¯ve never seen it before. It¡¯s another legend. And a boy sent you that? They shouldn¡¯t even know it exists.¡¯ Melinda said, clearly in awe of the book.
¡®No, Eliza sent it, I think. You said the package came from her. Wait, there¡¯s a letter. Oh, it¡¯s from him, my brother.¡¯
She took a paper with a few hand-written lines on it.
Dear Anne,
I¡¯m sorry for being an absent Nation brother,
I¡¯m going to do better from now on,
Here¡¯s a collection of boy school books and other interesting lecture
(they will actually teach you something,
Unlike the rubbish my friends had to study in Wife School)
until next time
& you can always write me through the Pen Pal system
Your brother
Michael Michaels¡¯
The girls read the letter together in astonishment.
¡®Sorry for being an absent Nation brother? Ever heard anything like that? How many girls do ever see a brother again except at a wedding or a funeral? Just being friendly to us is seen as not manly.¡¯ Melinda asked.
¡®You don¡¯t know half how weird this whole thing is yet, even coming from Eliza. These school books are worth a lot, and the little book is the secret book to escape bad takers. Few B-girls ever hear about it.¡¯ Helen said.
¡®So this Eliza isn¡¯t married?¡¯ Melinda asked.
¡®She was kicked out of the SCWF last year, but she¡¯s been a legend in the black market for as long as I know. She used to be called ¡®the man-hater¡¯ because they said she was the most unmarriable girl ever, but then she suddenly brought together the male and female black market and invented the whole Pen Pal system. And she was sort of deleted for defending herself, a friend and her friend¡¯s fianc¨¦ against a group of Alphas. Now that I come to think of it, that friend is Michael Michaels, who is your brother.¡¯
¡®Who was deleted for fighting an Alpha to defend a girl that wasn¡¯t his fianc¨¦e¡ That¡¯s what mum said.¡¯ Anne said.
¡®It fits nicely together, if they both fought those Alphas together.¡¯ Melinda added.
¡®Woman, what a mess¡ Men and their hierarchy. Such a weird world with mad rules.¡¯ Anne said.
¡®But this is exciting! Secrets books, secret information.¡¯ Melinda said.
¡®I have to go on with my tour, but could I lend some of those if you don¡¯t need them? And please don¡¯t let others see them. It¡¯s a weird thing to have lying around here, especially in a B-dorm. Teachers might confiscate it and look at you differently from then on. It¡¯s not like you¡¯re on the E-floor here, you¡¯re both future elite Wives. Don¡¯t expect anyone to share your excitement. And please, act like Alphas are important. It¡¯s what everyone wants to hear around here,¡¯ Helen said, pointing at the advanced schoolbooks for boys.
¡®Eh, sure¡¡¯ Anne said, still trying to process everything. This was much more than just the return of a brother in her life, this was like waking up in a different universe, and she was only beginning to realise the extent of everything.
*
A few more weeks later in the other Wife School in Seventh City it was during the break between two afternoon classes when Iris stared at an unexpected apparition that appeared as out of nothing in the hall, next to the administration archives of the E-floor.
¡®Eliza! What are you doing here?¡¯ She asked, and Eliza looked around, clearly a bit irritated that she was caught.
¡®No-one should have been here at this hour¡ But hi, Iris. Espionage mainly, and forging some documents, anything in your admin you want changed by chance, Iris?¡¯ She said casually, as if her appearing out of nothing was an everyday occurrence in Seventh City Wife Factory these days.
¡®Eh, can you keep the boys from choosing me for the next year or so until I have the right guy pick me up?¡¯
¡®I can¡¯t do magic I¡¯m afraid. Hairstyles from chapter five of courtship sabotage? But does that imply that you have someone that you¡¯re waiting on to choose you?¡¯
¡®Maybe, I think. But we¡¯re going to be pen pals first, he¡¯s not ready to come here to pick up a fianc¨¦e. Eighteen is much too young for a schoolboy to marry, you know that. But if it doesn¡¯t work he¡¯ll help me get out, without getting me deleted.¡¯ ¡®
That¡¯s wonderful! A healthy relationship in here would really be a game changer.¡¯ Eliza hugged her friend and then looked in her bag.
¡®Here, I have a small new Free Person badge, put it next to your E-badge. More people know the meaning now, and any man who wants a servile obedient Wife will see that you¡¯re not the type for that. Oh, Iris, I¡¯m so happy for you! Wait, do you pledge your allegiance to all friendly people, regardless of sex, rating or identity status?¡¯
¡®Yes I do. You know that.¡¯ She said, taking the small badge in her hand.
¡®And you, Eliza, still the man-hater? Last time you seemed to have a whole supply of boys around you?¡¯
¡®Me? Oh, you mean Michael and Robert? Robert seems to be an item with Leya somehow even if they say it¡¯s impossible to be a couple as an outlaw and a rated man, and Michael has been quite hopeless ever since his engagement with Megan was annulled and since he was deleted. His robot said he might be ready for a real woman if he interacts more with her, but he treats the poor thing quite coldly to be honest.¡¯
¡®You mean fake Shirley? He still lives with the robot as his wife?¡¯
¡®She does his household chores and he locks his bedroom door at night. But who could be happy with a robot if Megan is your standard?¡¯
¡®If you want your chores done well I¡¯d take the robot. And not any E-Wife on our floor. Maybe Babbette.¡¯ Iris said and giggled.
¡®I wouldn¡¯t marry her if I liked women for other reasons, but nevermind. I¡¯ll never have to choose a Wife like those boys, thank the Angel for that. but I never realised that it can be a moment of horror for them too at the ceremony.¡¯
¡®I only realised that when Mark wrote about it. The fear of having to stand there and choose a partner for the rest of your life just based on how they look in a cheap bikini is just horrible. But hey, a Delta-2 isn¡¯t bad for an E-girl, is it?¡¯
¡®A level two Delta? That¡¯s even rarer than a Gamma-1 I think. Poor boy, he¡¯ll have his own problems in the male hierarchy then. But he could probably get a Gammatown row-house. And a C-Wife.¡¯
¡®Don¡¯t say that. It¡¯s my biggest fear that he still backs off and chooses a higher-rated girl on a whim. I think he was inspired by the Michael-story. It seems to be commonly known by the type of boys who use the Pen Pal system.¡¯
¡®Yeah, he sounds a bit like Michael, who has no concept of ratings and hierarchy either. I think it¡¯ll be fine. You know, less than two years ago a friendship between a boy and a girl was unthinkable, let alone one between a Delta-boy and an E-girl. There¡¯s so much that can happen, and as I always say, the friendship itself is the biggest benefit. I haven¡¯t seen a happy Marriage yet in my lifetime, only happy Ghost Town Love Ceremonied couples, but I know it should be possible. Well, for you and Mark then, not really for me.¡¯
¡®But everybody is gossipping about you and¡¡¯ Eliza sighed.
¡®Are they? Well, that¡¯s quite optimistic about either of us being relationship material. The dude didn¡¯t even fall for Samantha dolled up in cocktail dress when she took him out to dance slows and walk under the stars in a twenty-century style date in the Ghost Town.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ve never met her, but from what I¡¯ve heard I don¡¯t think she¡¯s his type. Ah well, it¡¯s not my business¡ Twenty-century style dates in a Ghost Town sound like fun though. Do you think they¡¯d let a Wife School couple in if I ask nicely?¡¯
¡®Eh¡ Your optimism is going quite far, Iris. But who knows what¡¯ll be possible by then. Theirs was the first casual mixed couple freewill date since ol¡¯ Manfred, and if everything goes well, you might be writing another new chapter with your Mark dude. Or without him like Megan and Loverboy.¡¯
¡®Oh, wait. Someone¡¯s there.¡¯ Iris suddenly said.
They disappeared into the closest room, which was full of cleaning materials.
¡®That was Greystone. He shouldn¡¯t see me here.¡¯
¡®No, you¡¯d scare him.¡¯ Iris giggled.
¡®I¡¯d what?¡¯
¡®Well, after the disappearance of Shir he was very nervous for a while, and later I heard that he was mocked by official Sanders and even Miss Hunter because he had warned them that you wouldn¡¯t be happy if anything had happened to her. They said he¡¯d never see you again, and he warned them about Rogers.¡¯
¡®Ah, at least one of them is getting brains. But I have to go. Greet the rest for me. We¡¯ll meet again.¡¯ Eliza said.
She gave her friend a hug and disappeared into the room with dossiers and piles of administrative papers.
*
Weeks went by, and then months, and life went on. Autumn came and went, and the days became shorter and the nights became longer while the weather became colder. Michael did his work in the bar, and from time to time he visited the Ghost Town. Apart from his colleagues the only friends from his former life that he still saw were Robert and sometimes Rafael and William, who had become a friend of Angela somehow. For a while they didn¡¯t hear much from Jibrilla, even with the sms-machine that Eliza had given her, and then only sporadic news about her personally, and about how her story had been in the news not just in H¨¦va but also in the outside world, including the picture with him, Eliza and Sam. Was that the beginning of the end of the isolation of The Nation? Michael didn¡¯t even know.
After a while Michael adapted to his new life, even if he felt split over two worlds that could never be joined. Even if he spent less time in the female world than in the male world with both his job and his house, he felt less and less at home in that world, even if his colleagues seemed to have more or less accepted him in his new status. His family still acted like he had never existed at all, except for her sister with whom he sporadically wrote over the Pen Pal network, and with whom he had planned another visit.
It wasn¡¯t the best life possible, but he managed. Sometimes he still missed his schooldays, and his former male friends, and sometimes his old Alphaville house, but it was clear that this was a new phase for him, his first stage of adulthood as a working man, and he probably could have had it much worse. With everything he lost he still felt more loved than ever, which was rather ironic for a man who was legally unmarriable, shunned by most of his family, and deleted by almost all of his male friends. And still he had better friends than ever now, who were closer than his family and his old friends had ever been. The subject of romance was closed off for now, but neither his depression nor his clumsy romantic endeavours that ended in a kiss, no relationship and a lot of talk about feelings had really brought any damage to his friendships with Megan, Eliza, Angela, and probably even Samantha by now. He was loved deeply in a Platonic way, which meant that he was loved more than any spouse in any Nation Marriage he had ever heard of. It really was another universe that he lived in now.
For now there was no revolution happening. The slow reform of society had reached some people, but was still opposed by a lot of others, and while Eliza still had her plans to hack the Central Computer one day, there was no way to hack the minds of all the men in The Nation, who all knew the doctrines of old Manfred by heart and would notice and correct every change, every innovation, every aberration in the plans. The only way forward would probably be much slower than that, and might take longer than his life. He probably would never have children, but maybe there would be children of some of the people that he knew that would one day live in a much better world where men and women could be both friends and lovers without the toxic oppression of Manfred and the traditional isolation of the Ghost Towns.
So he lived his life under the radar, being an invisible worker in the bar, and a tolerated guest among the Ghost Town outlaws. He was slowly learning how to avoid any unknown ranked men as if he himself was a non-Wife, and while he usually avoided other unranked men he still picked up on some of their habits too somehow. He wasn¡¯t the naive schoolboy anymore, but he knew that any run-in with an unreasonable ranked man could cost him everything again, which would mean his name and his existence, as well as his house and his robot. There wasn¡¯t much leniency for the unrated in the system, everyone knew that. So he kept as low-profile as possible, which went rather well until two weeks before new year¡¯s day, when another incident happened.
2.32 Michaels Second Time losing his Home
Half December it was clear that it would be a ¡®real¡¯ winter again this year, with snow and ice. The Square Bar had added hot wine and several special coffee drinks to the menu, and there were lots of people inside most of the time that otherwise were outside somewhere in the city. Michael was quite busy at work, but in his free time he met more people again, and he was completely used to his new life.
That afternoon he had come home early from the bar, and just when he was relaxing he heard the doorbell again. Running downstairs he almost bumped into a scruffy-looking man, whom he recognised as one of his neighbours.
¡®Hey, watch it you good-for-nothing!¡¯ he shouted.
Michael apologised uneasily to the man and then ran back downstairs to the door.
Outside he just saw Eliza with some books.
¡®Oh hey,¡¯ he said.
¡®I needed to return some books, and I wanted that other robotics book, plus I wanted to say hi to your wife.¡¯ she said.
Michael looked around nervously, he had a bad feeling about his neighbour, but he just said ¡®Eh, okay.¡¯
They went upstairs. On the second floor he saw his neighbour again, who looked at Eliza with a dirty grin.
¡®Are you bringing in girlies again?¡¯ He said.
¡®She¡¯s my friend. Why shouldn¡¯t she have the right to be here?¡¯
¡®That¡¯s bad manners, sonny. You need to share good stuff like that. It¡¯s better than what we have in here with our robots.¡¯
His heart almost stopped while he instinctively placed himself in between Eliza and the man, who now blocked the stairs going down.
¡®She¡¯s not a toy. She¡¯s a person. And she¡¯s not mine either, she belongs to herself.¡¯ He said, seeing her grabbing something in her pocket, which made him nervous.
Stunning neighbours would be bad, wouldn¡¯t it?
¡®You¡¯ve been playing those games for too long here, youngster. It¡¯s time to share your good stuff with the rest of us.¡¯ The man began, but Michael didn¡¯t give him the time to finish.
¡®To the apartment¡¯ he whispered, and they suddenly ran. The man wasn¡¯t fit enough to run very fast on the stairs, so they reached the apartment where he could close the door before anyone entered, but they heard him knocking on doors and yelling. He seemed to be mobilising a whole mob.
¡®Shit, shit, shit,¡¯ he said. ¡®I told you before that a girl wouldn¡¯t be safe in a place like. I saw it in his eyes that time when Megan was here. But I still didn¡¯t expect anything like this. This is even worse than the Alpha incident. What are we going to do now?¡¯
¡®Despicable creatures, those Nation men,¡¯ Eliza said, playing with her stunner now, ¡®and I just have 10 shots in this thing¡¡¯
¡®That would bring us into more trouble if we fight them and you run out of shots? Plus having a lot of stunned men here would be a practical problem too.¡¯
¡®But this door isn¡¯t going to hold, and we need to get out of here somehow. He seems to be gathering more friends.¡¯ Eliza said, and peeked out of the window.
They could hear several people outside now yelling things like ¡®give us the girly¡¯ and ¡®you can¡¯t get out, stupid lad¡¯, and some more obscene things that made Michael cringe, but Eliza kept her head cool.
¡®That fire escape,¡¯ she said, pointing at a ladder that went all the way down to the ground from a nearby roof of a lower building.
He nodded.
¡®It¡¯s our only option I suppose. Take the books you can take in your backpack, you won¡¯t be back here for a while.¡¯
¡®We¡¯ll need to take the fire escape before they actually get through the door. But be careful, everything is frozen outside. The robot will need to deal with them. Don¡¯t focus on books, take whatever you need to stay elsewhere, plus maybe a beer for tonight,¡¯ Eliza said matter-of-factly, turning Dorothy on.
She frantically started typing data on the little keyboard on her back, and then whispering commands to her while more people started banging on the door.
Michael put some of his personal stuff in a bag and sighed. So this was it? The end of his time here? It seemed that he had overstayed his welcome with his neighbours, but what was he to do now? He couldn¡¯t stay with Eliza and Megan in their apartment as a man, and he couldn¡¯t live in the bar either. But even that was a question for later, for now he had to focus on getting stuff together, and getting out with Eliza unassaulted.
It seemed an eternity but it could be only a few minutes later when both were ready. Everything about the situation was unreal, and it seemed a crowd was assembling by the door. Eliza looked in his eyes.
¡®The robot is in combat mode now. She¡¯s ready to defend herself and the house from whoever gets in, full electric power. And if they¡¯re done attacking she¡¯ll go back to domestic mode and first repair the door and then clean up the house. Plus I have a remote somewhere in the Ghost Town, thanks to the whole escape story, so I can give her instructions and even look at this place through her eyes if you want later on.¡¯
Outside the door another voice had appeared. He recognised the old man that he had met in his first week, who tried to talk some sense into the mad crowd, but they just yelled at him. ¡®He was a good one after all, I hope they don¡¯t harm him.¡¯ Michael said, looking at the now motionless robot for the last time before they went for the window.
¡®Bye Dorothy. And thank you for everything!¡¯ He said and turned to Eliza. ¡®I¡¯m really starting to like that thing, but I still can¡¯t see it as a woman,¡¯ he said as he gave her a hand to help her get from his balcony to the lower roof.
¡®So there are people that you do see as women?¡¯ She asked.
¡®Hey what¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡¯
¡®Nothing, Michael nothing.¡¯ She said, climbing down the rickety fire escape.
Above them they heard the door being smashed, and the voice of the robot against several yelling men, and they more yells that indicated pain and anger.
¡®They¡¯ll forget us for now thanks to your dedicated wife, but we really have to get away,¡¯ he said, climbing downwards faster.
When they reached the ground they ran and ran, street after street, except where there was too much ice for running, until they hid for a while in an abandoned house in between the Zeroville blocks at the edge of Seventh City.
¡®They didn¡¯t follow us, did they?¡¯ he asked.
¡®No, no-one followed us.¡¯
¡®Well, that¡¯s one place I can¡¯t go back to. What now? They won¡¯t let me into your house either. And maybe they have their reasons, seeing what happened today¡ And it¡¯s too cold now to camp here.¡¯ He said darkly, looking around and finally letting the big question in.
¡®There¡¯s a place, even if it used to be women-only too until recently.¡¯ She said, putting her stunner away again. and he nodded, and she took his hand and together they began to run again, in the direction of Seventh City Ghost Town.
*
He could never remember how they got from his Zeroville apartment to Seventh City Ghost Town in such a short time in the horrible weather, but afterwards it seemed they had crossed the distance of at least five kilometres almost instantly, in spite of the snow and glazed frost. The first thing he was aware of was standing before the gate.
¡®Hi Amanda.¡¯ Eliza said at the guardian. ¡®We pledge, blah blah blah. Please let us in fast, I don¡¯t think we¡¯re followed in these circumstances but, there¡¯s evil men after me and him. We need some rest and we need to talk to Lady Martha as soon as possible, he¡¯s sort of homeless now thanks to me I think. Could you alert Jenny for me too?¡¯
The woman named Amanda looked from Michaels Free Person badge to Eliza¡¯s face, and let them pass through, and grabbed the phone.
Out of breath they walked to the bar, where they let themselves fall into a couch in a corner.
¡®And now I need a beer, after all of this,¡¯ He said.
They sat together for a while, just drinking a light cloudberry beer very slowly and saying nothing, until they were joined by Jenny some time later, and a minute later Lady Martha herself came too.
Both Ghost Town leaders listened to Eliza telling the story. Lady Martha smiled at Eliza afterwards.
¡®You have a habit of bringing in lost boys here lately, do you want to turn this place into Never-never-land?¡¯
¡®He needs a new place, Lady Martha, his lifestyle of hanging around with the other sex doesn¡¯t agree with his Zeroville neighbours. And I was the one who was reckless again I¡¯m afraid.¡¯
¡®If he isn¡¯t afraid of living in a community of only women and one more lost boy plus his chicken he¡¯s welcome. I¡¯m sure little Eric will be happy to have another harmless man to talk to.¡¯
The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Jenny nodded and Lady Martha turned to him.
¡®You¡¯re not a stranger to us, Michael Michaels, so should know how it works here by now. The community rules will apply to you too, as they already did when you were visiting here. But we¡¯ll make some adjustments for you as a man here and there, like you shouldn¡¯t use the common showers with the women and stuff like that because it would make some people uncomfortable. Jenny will go over the more practical things with you later. Let¡¯s see what we can give you for now when you¡¯ve finished your beer. You¡¯ll need to sleep somewhere tonight after all. The guestroom is filled with visitors from another Ghost Town I¡¯m afraid, so we can¡¯t use that one today.¡¯
He just nodded. Today had been too intense.
Jenny took out a paper.
¡®You¡¯re lucky, young man. We have a place in our most recently rebuilt housing complex. The building has its own generator, and wide two-storey apartments. We¡¯re also working on the swimming pool and the garden, but that will be a summer project.¡¯
He nodded but didn¡¯t answer.
¡®I¡¯m afraid you have an apartment on the top floor, which means eight stairs, but the elevator can be used too. It¡¯s a two-person apartment with a separate shower, which is why we give you this one, but it¡¯s big enough for a couple actually. The rules for women couples will apply to you too by the way if you ever choose to take a partner. We¡¯re not going to change any of that for just one man.¡¯
She seemed to be looking at Eliza for some reason while talking to him, and she was also the one to answer.
¡®Ah, you really don¡¯t have to hurry with that, maybe in a hundred years or so things like that might be relevant for him. By then you could have written a library of new rules for the grandchildren of the first mixed couples here. Better tell him about the rent and practical stuff for now.¡¯
¡®Ah, yes, right¡¡¯ She frowned and looked at Michael again.
¡®As you know, Michael, it¡¯s a community here where everyone works together. You¡¯ll be expected to help the community during your stay here, as everyone does. Or you can pay in Nation money if you are able to keep your job, we can always use more of that too. You were still planning on keeping your job, weren¡¯t you?¡¯
He nodded.
¡®I think so. But I need a day off now to think things through and maybe get the robot to salvage some of my stuff. Do you have a phone here to call my boss to reschedule my shift?¡¯
¡®Sure, in the main building we have one at the desk. If you¡¯re looking for another job we always need more hands on the farm. But we can also use the Nation money, so don¡¯t feel bad about working outside either. And occasional tasks as an adviser on male affairs count as work too, you¡¯re still the closest to an ambassador to the male world that we have I¡¯m afraid.¡¯
¡®So I can ask Robert or Rafael to help me with moving some stuff from my old place?¡¯
¡®If women are human, men are human too. Or at least they have the capacity to be so. But we still won¡¯t let in a random man, you know we need to think of our safety. You¡¯ll have to ask your friend to wear a Free Person badge and he¡¯ll have to agree to the free person pledge when he enters. Eliza will certainly be able to help you with badges. We will trust you that you won¡¯t bring dangerous people here, but you better warn any man who enters here about the rules. If he misbehaves he¡¯ll be banned forever, or even stunned and left alone in the woods without any weapons as the stories tell. Or worse, people might reconsider allowing you here too, so it¡¯s important for you too to choose wisely who you¡¯d bring here. Don¡¯t forget that this is a highly controversial experiment to even have you here after all.¡¯
¡®No pressure on me at all I see.¡¯ Michael said.
Lady Martha sighed. ¡®I personally trust you, and believe that a bridge can be formed between our world and at least some people within the Male Society. But not everyone on my leadership team is convinced yet. And you¡¯re not a teenage male Ghost Town asexual like the little one. So please prove them wrong. It could mean a lot for the future generations. Maybe it will even bring future generations here.¡¯ She said.
¡®Ah¡¡¯ he said and Eliza grabbed his hand and looked him in the eyes from too close.
¡®No pressure on you at all, Michael-boy. You just have to be the perfect gentleman, and then make a lot of babies too. Because you and you alone will be responsible for all men in The Nation, and for rebooting reproduction here in Female outlaw society. But you¡¯ll still have to be strictly monogamous while having hundreds of children. And maybe you can build some satellites too to reboot the internet. And bring back the mammoth¡ And the dimetrodon too please, they look cool!¡¯ Eliza wrapped her arms around him but he pushed her away.
¡®Please, I just escaped my neighbours who wanted to assault you. And I¡¯m quite nervous about being here already, don¡¯t make up weird scenarios now please. What I need now is rest. And no innuendos please.¡¯
¡®I¡¯ll leave you both so you can rest and plan a bit. Eliza will show you the phone desk when you need it. And oh, Eliza, don¡¯t forget you were going to fix that 3D-print-machine again somewhere this week.¡¯
¡®I will certainly look at that, but now I have an endangered species to save. Is it okay that I come for the key later on?¡¯
Jenny nodded, and both she and Lady Martha left the room.
Michael looked at his beer for a while, listening to the music, before he said something. ¡®Oh, man. Why does all of this have to happen to me again?¡¯
Eliza saw the mood in the room go down and sat next to her. ¡®Are you going to be depressed now? Or angry at me?¡¯
He looked her in the eyes, rather surprised. ¡®Why do you think so? Why should I be angry with you? You brought me here.¡¯
¡®This is the second time you lose your home thanks to me¡¡¯
¡®Ah, I see what you mean¡ But no. Well, at least here I won¡¯t have to protect you against men anymore¡ I can safely bring as many female friends at least here, and no-one will bother.¡¯
¡®I wouldn¡¯t go so far, there still might be minor gossip and stuff like that. There will probably be some stares too¡ And don¡¯t forget Mildred.¡¯
¡®But no-one will ever sexually assault you here, or Megan or Angela¡ At least you will be safe.¡¯
She looked at him again, more thoughtful now.
¡®Possibly you¡¯ll be losing even your zero rating too if you don¡¯t live in a state apartment anymore. And it¡¯s my fault again. You got in trouble twice because you had to defend me against other men, and now it might end up a complete deletion if you don¡¯t watch out. Are you sure you even want me in your life? I seem to be an enormous risk factor. More than any other girl even for some reason.¡¯
¡®Ah, my chances of getting rated again are lost when I move in here you mean? I didn¡¯t even think of that. But my rating is a Zero, and any rating is useless when I¡¯m living here anyway, not?¡¯
¡®Well, you could give the community more Nation currency if you get a badge again and keep working at the bar.¡¯
She came closer.
¡®But I was asking something else. Are you sure you¡¯re okay with having me in your life, even after all of this? Am I not the source of all the misery?¡¯ She was quite close now, and he didn¡¯t know how to react to that. He looked at her, unable to answer, and felt his heart beating. Something in his mind was trying to form words, but they didn¡¯t come out.
A sudden voice broke his state.
¡®Michael, Eliza. I¡¯ve been worried about you both!¡¯
Megan came running into the bar. ¡®Hi Megan, wanna come join in the community life too?¡¯ Eliza said, taking her distance from Michael.
¡®What has happened? I heard you were almost assaulted.¡¯
¡®His neighbours wanted to get to know me better, or something like that. But you know I can be an introvert around pushy men, so I disappeared though the window with him, and we asked Dorothy to do the talking for us. And now we¡¯ve found a safer house for him.¡¯
¡®They attacked you, a whole group of them?¡¯
¡®They threatened him too. And asked for him to hand me over. Which triggered some unpleasant memories. I hope our robot friend has talked some sense into them by now. I reactivated some of her old programs¡¡¯
Megan grabbed Eliza in a choking hug.
¡®I was so afraid when Jenny called me on the phone. I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re safe.¡¯
She looked at him too.
¡®But you say that Michael is moving here now?¡¯
¡®He chose girls over his pretty state apartment, he couldn¡¯t combine both. You can say what you want about living in a Ghost Town, but there will be no problem with having women over here.¡¯
¡®No, but he¡¯s a man himself. And this is supposed to be a women-only place.¡¯
¡®Who could resist bringing in our trophy boy here? He¡¯s a bit of a celebrity anyway here. And he¡¯s so cute he¡¯s bound to make all women here like men again, not?¡¯
¡®Eliza, please.¡¯ Megan said.
¡®Hey, I¡¯m sitting here. Don¡¯t go talking about me as if I¡¯m not present.¡¯
Michael said and Eliza let go of Megan and pinched his cheek. Megan now hugged him.
¡®Yes, dear boy, you¡¯re sitting here and you¡¯re probably good at sitting here too. But maybe it¡¯s time to stop sitting here. You were going to phone your boss, and then we¡¯ll go check out your new home.¡¯
¡®Come, Michael!¡¯ Megan said too.
He said a silent prayer before he followed the girls to the phone room and then his new home. At least this time there was a sparkle of hope for the future.