Them and Us by Paul Schueller - HTML preview

Chapter 4

Two weeks went by quickly as Sam spent as much of his time as possible with Jessica. He had little interaction with his parents as he was still frustrated by their situation and not seeing any progress to resolve the problem. Sam and Jessica sat alone in Sam’s room on the bed holding hands.

Sam spoke first. “I’m shipping out tomorrow. To some compound to the west at the boundary between the growing feels and the open range.”

Jessica responded. “It sounds insane. You’ve never even been out of the city and now you’ll be 100 miles away from here in the middle of nowhere. Do you know what you are going to do?”

“I’m not sure but it will be better than what I’d be doing here. The only thing I’m going to miss about this place is you.” Sam said.

“So now I am a thing?” Jessica said with a smile and continued. “I’ll miss you too and it’s not forever. Who knows you might not even like it. From what I’ve read you’ll probably start out counting deer or fish or something.”

“You’re probably right but hopefully it will lead to something better down the road. Even helping with counts will be something. It’s amazing us can harvest millions of deer and buffalo every year for all these centuries by just letting nature do it’s thing.”

Sam tended to ramble and change subjects mid-sentence and this was just such a case as he continued talking. “I really need this three months away from here. My parents have some issues that they have to deal with while I’m gone.”

Jessica looked confused by that comment but she knew that it was best not to push. She leaned into him and gave him a kiss on the cheek and said goodbye and headed for the door without looking back.

Sam arrived at the complex a few hours before his meeting with Kevin and spent most of that time pacing around the compound. He couldn’t help but wonder what went on in this little peculiar brown building at the end of the road flanked by the neatly placed tan colored buildings that made up the rest of the complex. The tan buildings lined both sides of the 200

yard parking lot that also served as a road that ended at the front door of the little brown building with it’s impenetrable dark tinted windows. The lack of foot traffic to and from the building only further peaked Sam’s interest in what went on inside.

Sam arrived at the designated meeting room ten minutes early, waiting for Kevin and the other trainees to arrive. He sat alone until Kevin entered precisely at the top of the hour.

Sam looked confused and spoke first. “Where is the rest of my class”.

“Just you kid.” Kevin stated.

Although that drew a curious look from Sam and concern, he had a more pressing issue on his mind. “So, what’s with the shack at the end of the road?”

“Well, that’s getting to the point. It’s a super-secret surveillance unit. They’re part of the elite fighting force that goes above and beyond anything that the public generally knows about.”

Sam had remembered hearing stories about relatives of his that had had fought in the unit.

Then he turned his attention back to Kevin and asked, “The creepy dude that interviewed me confirmed that there hasn’t been nomad sightings in decades. Why is this unit still active?

“Lot’s of issues in other cities. Some people revolting over conditions. I think that things are ramping up. Those folks keep to themselves when they’re in camp and usually they aren’t.”

“Well let’s go check it out.” Sam suggested.

“That is about the quickest way to find yourself back in the city. The only way you’ll see the inside of that building is if you’re selected for the unit someday.”

“How do I apply?” Sam asked.

“You don’t apply. You get selected. Man up on your free-range time and you might have a chance.” Kevin stated.

Sam stared at the building out the window for a long time. No one went into or out as he was thinking about the day when he would walk through that door.

The next morning Kevin and Sam met at a picnic table on the hill overlooking most of the facilities. Kevin faced towards the monotone buildings and behind them were untouched trees, prairies and a distant lake that met the horizon. Sam faced the seemingly endless miles of Growing Fields with the barely visible skyline just peeking above the horizon. Sam and Kevin had grown comfortable with each other quickly. Kevin felt and acted more like an older supportive brother than his manager.

Kevin initiated the conversation. “Thought I’d move our daily meeting outside. Usually training program participants are still getting used to all this open space but this will get you comfortable and ahead of the curve.”

“What curve? I’m still a class of one. Sam said.

“Yeah, this is a first for me. They want to accelerate your training and think that you are the only one in this year’s class that can handle the pace.”

“I do like it out here but it seems like you do too.”

“Well, not really at first but I’ve grown to enjoy it. Nothing like taking a dump in the woods to contrast with city life.” Kevin quipped.

Sam chuckled and then continued. “Never thought of it that way but yes I can’t wait for that first time.”

“Well please think of me when you do.” Kevin said and smirked.

“I’ll just be happy to be out there.”

“About that. You might want to keep your level of interest in the open range just between the two of us at this point.” Kevin suggested.

“I get it. I know guys like me don’t usually get into this program.”

“They must have something planned for you but I don’t know what it is. Just be careful. Dr.

Canard is super smart but conniving as hell.”

“I’ll be careful.”

“You sure you want to go through all of this? And be out there all alone?” Kevin asked.

“I really won’t be all that alone. I understand you’ll be hanging over my shoulder via drone every once in a while.”

“Oh you’ll be alone, don’t kid yourself. Two minutes a day is nothing.”

“Why even bother. I have this goddamn chip in my shoulder so you’ll know exactly where I am.”

“It’s really just to check on your sanity out there. We’ve had people lose it.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Protocol dude. Plus that chip is a small price to pay for survival. Us all want our time on the planet. Each get our own, you know. Selfish is good because it’s about self.”

“That’s the problem right there. Everyone looking out for themselves. I think selfish is what they bred.”

“Maybe. I do sound like a talking head when I think about everybody getting theirs.” Kevin admitted.

They both paused and Kevin took the opportunity to shift subjects. “Be careful with Dr. Canard.

That dude is a whack job.”

“That’s two warnings. Heard. So, why do you work for him then?” Sam asked.

“Because I get to be out here and do some interesting stuff but I know there’s more that I don’t know than I do. Plus if I wasn’t here I’d probably be living with my mom. Kidding, sort of.”

“You are certainly a weird mix of concepts and ideas. I think you understand what drives me but you are still bought into the Grand Plan and Life Ledger and all the shit that goes with it.”

“The Life Ledger just makes sense. Selfishly driven capitalism at its best. 100 cities, 60 million people in each city that 6 billion life slots. All the economics of supply and demand at work so you can strive for the future you want.”

“Doesn’t that seem a little bit cold and selfish?” Sam asked.

“You say that like selfish is a bad thing. It’s about self. That is at the center of survival for all of us.”

“I just don’t get it I guess.”

“Well, it’s not something that you shouldn’t worry about now.”

“Good point. What do I need to be ready for when I’m out there?”

“There is so much space that you probably won’t see a soul but if you see a harvesting crew don’t make contact unless it’s an emergency. And if there are poachers they’d be further from the city than you will get. Besides, they’d be way to stealthy for you to find.”

“So, you just find me?”

“Obviously us’ll track your chip but without any satellites left communication can get dicey.

Pretty sad with cities shooting down each other’s satellites that our communication system is worse than it was a thousand years ago.”

“Which means I’ll just see your drone once in a while. Sam stated.

“Yes, I rambled. Sorry. Be really careful out there.”

Sam sensed an urgency in his voice and asked, “Is that a normal warning or is there something more that I need to know?”

Kevin looked away as he was thinking things through and then continued. “Dr. Canard and his creepy sidekick Joe are up to something. They have asked about you more than normal recruits.

Plus, your interview process was anything other than normal. I don’t know what they have in mind but it’s probably not good. Wouldn’t doubt that they might try to keep an eye on you too.”

“With another drone? Wouldn’t I see that coming?”

“Not sure. They are up to some crazy shit over there. I’ve heard they might have drones the size of insects now.”

“How could that be?” Sam asked.

“It’s all experimental and there is no way they can fly far if they did. There is no place for a decent sized power source. I’m getting you paranoid over nothing.”

“You certainly are!”

“You will hear from me once every 12 hours during your test and only for about a minute each time.” Kevin paused and then smiled and continued. “Oh, and I know this has been driving you crazy…yes there are still a few nomads left out there.”

“Ha. I knew it!” Sam responded.

“No you didn’t.”

“Well I thought so very aggressively.”

“Don’t get too excited. They are few and very far between and they are way to crafty for you to find. Hard to track down, but Dr. Canard tries to keep tabs on them with his drone fleet.”

“Are they on to him?”

“They must be aware because occasionally he’ll end up killing one or two of them to send a message that he can reach them. He’s a pretty morbid fuck too because he likes to say he’s culling the heard of the stupid ones. He’s obsessed with their DNA.”

“If he wants me to be part of killing those people that’s not going to be part of my job. No way no how.”

“Relax, I’m sure that’s not what he has in mind for you. Anyone with a drone and a joystick could do that job.”

“I guess there’s no way to know until I get back from my field test, whenever that ends up being. Anything else I need to know?”

“The harvesting crews and potential poachers we covered. The nomads, you’ll never see or hear them unless they want you to. They are part of nature. They come and go without a sound. They move like the wind.”

“So you’re saying they’ll kill me in my sleep if they want.”

“Yes but I doubt it’s their style.”