Jacob had just arrived home after six days at the dock warehouse. Demarcus had prepared a meal for the family. All five family members took their places at the family table to eat. The meal consisted of sliced Sape meat and grilled mixed vegetables.
‘Glad to see you are using the “rights” ingredients to make this very presentable meal,’ exclaimed Jacob.
‘It is the Noink sauce that gives it its satisfying colouring,’ responded Demarcus.
‘Ha, the only Sapien I know who could be excited about a “rights” dinner combo,’ joked Darius.
‘Darius, show some gratitude,’ remarked Janice. ‘The “rights” keep us all well fed. The less fortunate depend on them.’
‘The “rights” also keep us locked away in this poxy little region,’ responded Darius.
‘So you would rather be surrounded by toxic gases than live in our little contained paradise,’ barked Jacob. ‘I travel through the wastelands every week. It is a hell you want to keep away from. You know it; you see it every time we go on holiday. Yes, we have four holidays a year. This is far from a prison.’
‘The window from the train is so informative,’ rebuked Darius.
‘Demarcus worked hard on this meal; let’s not argue,’ interrupted Janice.
‘No problem,’ responded Darius as he dropped his cutlery. He promptly left the table and headed to his bedroom. Jacob frowned disapprovingly. The rest of the family continued eating the meal in silence.
After dinner, Demarcus joined his brother in his bedroom. ‘Is everything okay, bro?’ asked Demarcus.
‘It’s all wrong; this world is like a prison. They are keeping us away from something,’ replied Darius.
‘We have everything we need; life is good,’ said Demarcus. ‘I don’t understand what else you are after.’
‘Everything in my life is planned out for me,’ said Darius. ‘I want control over my own life. I’m not going to get that here.’
‘There are so many career options. If you work hard, you can do whatever you want,’ replied Demarcus.
‘Oh little brother, this is just a script for a play,’ sighed Darius. ‘All they let you do is pick which extra you want to play. The storyline is fixed.’
There was a short pause in the conversation. Darius looked out the window. Then he turned back to Demarcus. ‘Beyond the wall are the wastelands, but what is it really?’ inquired Darius.
‘You know what it is. It’s off-limits because it’s toxic,’ responded Demarcus.
‘That’s what they say. How do we know it’s true?” snapped Darius.
‘We have seen it from the train when we travel to other regions,’ sighed Demarcus. ‘Just three months ago, we had a front-row seat for eight hours when we went on holiday to the east coast.’
‘We saw it through a window. How do we know it’s real?’ probed Darius. ‘We need to see it directly through our own eyes and smell it with our own noses.’
‘Okay,’ responded Demarcus nervously.
‘We can climb the wall. I know a place where we can reach the top. It’s in the Industrial Zone.’ said Darius in an intrepid tone.
‘Seriously, we can’t do that,’ responded Demarcus.
‘We need to see what is out there with our own eyes. This is our best chance. Mum and Dad are in bed now. The workers have all left for the night,’ urged Darius.
‘No, no, no,’ said Demarcus.
‘I’m going with or without you, brother,’ snapped Darius.
‘Fine, I’ll go with you, but I’m not climbing the wall. I’ll keep watch,’ replied Demarcus in a hesitant voice.
‘No problem,’ responded Darius.
Both boys sneaked out of the apartment and stealthily headed towards the Industrial Zone. They moved between the apartment blocks in an attempt to avoid detection by the street cameras. It was not long before they reached the inner wall of the Industrial Zone.
‘Looks closed. There is no way in. We better head back,’ remarked Demarcus.
‘I know a way in,’ replied Darius. He pointed towards a flap that the circle line, RollerSphere passed through.
The flap was rigid and stiff. They both pushed as hard as they could. The flap moved back a little. It was big enough for them to squeeze under without being trapped.
A few metres further along, they encountered a second flap. They pushed this back and crawled underneath; they had now entered the Industrial Zone. Not knowing where the cameras might be, they stayed close to the buildings as they moved towards the outer wall.
They finally reached the outer wall. It towered above them.
‘Okay, now what?’ asked Demarcus.
‘Follow me. There is a building just this way that connects to the wall,’ replied Darius. Demarcus followed Darius. They soon saw a large building connecting to the wall, as Darius had described.
‘You seem familiar with this area,’ inquired Demarcus.
‘I have inside intel,’ remarked Darius. ‘I’ll tell you more about it later.’
Darius climbed the front steps as Demarcus stood guard. Darius climbed up on the railing. He stepped up to a ridge that ran along the side of the building towards the wall. Demarcus watched nervously as Darius slowly made his way to the wall. He needed to climb one more level before he would be at the same level as the top of the wall. There was very little to hold onto. Darius grabbed what he could, but he felt himself slipping.
Suddenly, a loud horn blasted. Lights flashed from the building as well as from the nearby buildings. Darius struggled to hold on. One hand slipped. He attempted to position himself back on the ledge, but he began to panic. He slipped off the ledge. He hit his head and scraped his left arm as he slipped down the side of the building until he hit the ground hard.
Demarcus ran to his brother. He appeared badly hurt. He was no longer conscious. His head was bleeding badly. His clothes were torn. His right arm was bleeding and was bent backwards.
Within minutes, enforcers arrived on the scene.
‘Help him; he needs help,’ screamed Demarcus.
‘Cool your pipes, kid,’ shouted one enforcer.
Another enforcer looked down at Darius. ‘He needs urgent medical attention. I’ll radio the Emergency Department,’ said the enforcer as he grimaced.
A few minutes later, the emergency team and vehicles arrived. The emergency team lifted him onto a gurney and then rolled him into the back of the emergency vehicle. They placed a device over his face to pump air into his body. An emergency team member attached devices to monitor his vital organs. He appeared lifeless. The emergency team member began zapping him with a defibrillator.
First nothing. Then they zapped him again and again. Demarcus tried to enter the emergency vehicle to be with his brother. An enforcer named Rednik pulled him back firmly. ‘Let them do their job,’ said Rednik sternly.
The emergency team shut the doors to the emergency vehicle. It then sped off towards the medical centre. Rednik prompted Demarcus to get into his vehicle.
‘These guys can work wonders. Your brother is going to be fine,’ reassured Rednik. Demarcus climbed into the passenger side of the vehicle. Rednik took Demarcus to the medical centre and then walked him to the waiting room.
Rednik stayed with Demarcus while he waited for his parents to arrive. Once they arrived, Rednik approached Jacob and Janice. He recalled the events of the night to them. A few minutes later, a medical expert approached Jacob and Janice. They talked for a couple of minutes. Demarcus remained in his seat with his head bowed low.
After talking with the medical expert, Jacob and Janice sat on either side of Demarcus. They placed their arms around his shoulders. They sat in silence while they waited for news about Darius.
A little while later, a medical expert approached them. ‘He’s going to live,’ she told them. All three sighed in relief.
‘It is going to be difficult for him. He has a long recovery period ahead of him,’ said the medical expert. ‘His right leg is broken in two places, and his left arm is fractured with serious tissue damage. He has a serious concussion and may have partial loss of eyesight in his left eye.’
’How well will he recover?’ asked Jacob.
‘He will be able to function quite normally in everyday life, but he is not likely to be able to compete in sports at the same level he did before,’ responded the medical expert. ‘He is awake now; you can briefly see him tonight.’
Jacob, Janice, and Demarcus entered Darius’ room. Darius was lying flat but was awake and responsive.
‘Why do you do these crazy things?’ asked Jacob as he shook his head.
‘I have an adventurous nature,’ responded Darius.
‘I’m sorry I didn’t go up with you. I could have stopped you from falling,’ said Demarcus sheepishly.
‘I’m the one who should be sorry. I forced you to come with me. I put you at risk. Please forgive me?’ asked Darius as he looked straight into his brother’s sad eyes.
‘Of course,’ responded Demarcus.
The family continued chatting for about another half hour before the medical expert came in to tell them that Darius needed his rest for the night. Jacob, Janice, and Demarcus left the medical centre and headed home for the night.
This seemed like the end of a frightening ordeal, but it was actually the trigger for something far bigger.
