Pearseus: Schism

Joe

“I didn’t know,” Joe whimpered. It had been two days since Lucas’ death, but tears welled up in his eyes whenever he brought him to his mind. “I worried about our food. Our security. Lucas knew that without freedom, you lose both. I should have listened.”

Azam held him in her arms, saying nothing. She stole a look at Cyrus, brooding next to them. Except for a broken arm, now mending under a brace, he had only suffered minor injuries.

“I’m sorry, Dad,” he said, raising his good hand to Joe’s shoulder. “Perhaps you should stay.”

Joe shook his head. “And miss the trial? No, I want to be there. I know they all hate me, but I have to be there.”

“No-one hates you,” Cyrus said with a soothing voice. “They understand.”

Joe wished that were true. Even if it were, it mattered little. He would never forgive himself, even if everyone else could. His son, always eager to fight, had been right all along. He glanced at his son with pride, reaching a sudden conclusion: he would raise him a warrior, not a farmer. The boy, a born fighter, had never shared Joe’s love for farming anyway.

“What’s on your mind?” he asked his wife, realising she had not said a word.

She avoided his eyes, her pretty face scarred by the terrible events. “I think it’s the end,” she whispered. “We’ve seen the last of our little village, the last of civilization. We are all barbarians now.”

Her sadness stung him. He wished he could contradict her, but could not find the words.

“We should go,” Cyrus said after a moment, breaking the awkward silence. “It’s time.”

They approached the plaza. Barrett looked on the crowd from the same balcony where Croix had murdered Lucas, dressed in her official purple cloak with black trimmings. From a distance, Joe could barely make out a recording device in the form of a glowing crystal around her neck.

The entire city had gathered in the square, waiting for the verdict. Boys dressed in white and red surrounded the Justice; her new guards, hasty replacements of Croix’s disbanded Armbands.

She had already started reading the verdict and frowned towards a group of boys standing separate from the rest of the crowd as she read from her e-lib.

“…For the crime of treason, we find the defendants guilty as charged. For the separate crime of murder one, we find the defendant Ensign Tang Wu Wei not guilty. For the crime of assault against the Chairman of the City Council, Richard Walker, we find the defendants guilty as charged. For the crime of grand larceny regarding the theft of e-libs, we find the defendants guilty as charged.”

Every pronouncement was greeted with murmurs from the restless crowd. A few jeered at first, then stayed silent.

She paused for a moment to put her e-lib away, and an expectant hush draped over the plaza. Drawing a deep breath, she stared at the crowd. “It’s now been eighteen years on the planet we called Pearseus. We’ve tried to live our new lives in freedom, and I promise to do my best to ensure that all men and women are free to pursue happiness without fear of persecution. We must, however, also live in accordance to the laws of our forefathers. Croix didn’t just murder one of our most prominent citizens, but also took our e-libs. Our past. Our future. I assure you, we’ll do our best to find them and return them to their rightful owners.”

They had only found a couple dozen e-libs stacked in a cabinet in Croix’s office; no-one knew what had happened to the rest.

“Even Pearseus’ destruction cannot be compared to the darkness we’ve recently witnessed. It’s only by sticking together that we managed to survive then. And that’s why this pains me so much.”

The crowd hung on her every word. Joe’s breath caught, his heart racing with anticipation.

“The penalty is permanent exile,” she continued. “The condemned have twenty-four hours to gather their belongings. Anyone wishing to follow them is free to do so. We will supply you with three e-libs to ensure your survival, but be warned that any information on weapons will be removed from them.”

Some of the crowd cheered, others wept as they realised they might never see friends and family again. Joe spotted Richard Walker in the crowd and approached him, noticing the bruises on his face and a slight limp. What alarmed him, though, was Richard’s expression: his clenched jaw and determined look.

“Hi, Joe,” Richard said.

“Hey, Richard. Listen, I’m really sorry about what happened.”

“I know. Katie told me.” He looked away. “You should avoid her for a while. She’s not in a good place.”

Tears welled up in Joe’s eyes and he swept them away with an angry gesture. If Richard noticed this, he said nothing.

Joe cleared his throat. “You’re looking better.”

“Yes, the doctors said I’ll be able to walk again properly in no time. As for the bruises, they’ll go away.” He licked his teeth, pushing his tongue into a still unfamiliar gap. “They broke a couple of teeth, but I should probably consider myself lucky. Who knew how far gone Croix was…”

“What are you going to do now?” Joe asked after a brief silence. “Rumour has it you’re leaving?”

Richard chuckled. “No secrets around here. Yes, I think I’ll go west, spend my final days at the sea. I’ll have the carpenter make me a surf board before I go. I’ve so missed the sea…” His voice trailed for a moment, his thoughts lost in distant memories. “Back on Earth, I surfed all the time. Man, it’s the greatest feeling. I had all the details for making a killer board in my e-lib, but that idiot took it away. I hope we find them before I leave.”

“The Capital’s just a village. How hard can it be? Even if we find it after you’ve left, I’ll bring it to you. I promise.”

“Sounds good,” Richard said, letting out a tired chuckle.

Just saying the words felt important for some reason, although both men knew Joe would never make such a trip.

“So, what d’ you think is gonna happen to our little world?” said Joe, nodding towards the crowd.

“I don’t know, man. It’s like half are exiled now, and the rest just want to come with me… It’s not gonna be the same.”

“Azam said the same thing. I wonder what our children will think of all this. How we were one, then we were torn. Will they understand?”

Richard pursed his lips. “We just passed our judgment on Croix’s stupid kids.  History will do the same with us, I guess.”

Cyrus approached them, gesturing excitedly as he discussed the unexpected verdict with his friends. “Who knows,” Joe said, glancing at his son. “Maybe future generations will be wiser than us.”

Richard shook his head, doubt clouding his eyes.