Our Price: Of Shifters and Rebels

Chapter 14: Corruption

Gray sat silently, chewing his food. He wondered at all the tension Arthur had displayed and knew deep down that this was just the tip of the iceberg. More comments will come tonight, he thought. He watched as Layla, Bec, and the others stood up with their plates and followed Hannah into the kitchen to place them in the sink.

Before he knew it, they had all assembled in the living room. Arthur sat in his rocking chair, silently reading a rather large and heavy-looking book. Caza sat on the floor next to Milo and they talked quietly. Layla stood near the fire, looking at the photographs, and Bec sat on the couch, lost in thought. A mottley crew for sure. Hannah and Rachel came in and served the tea, although why they were serving tea at this hour, was beyond him.

Finally, Arthur cleared his throat. It was obvious by the look on his face that much of his anger at dinner had subsided, but his thoughts remained guarded.

“The rebellion, you asked,” he paused, “is a touchy topic. Yes, Mr. Ahearn, I am for the rebellion. Now Rachel and Hannah, and perhaps even Gray, will be confused as they haven’t seen it yet. In fact, I am quite curious as to how far it has progressed.” He looked expectantly at Bec.

Bec answered him, his voice steady, “The rebellion - we haven’t seen it yet either. For Hannah, Rachel, and Gray, the rebellion is a group of people devoted to taking down the Government.”

No duh, Gray thought.

“Then why the sudden interest?” Arthur asked.

“I don’t-” Layla began, but Bec answered for her.

“More guardians have been sent to New Chicago this year for obscure jobs.”

“And the nomads are losing people and becoming violent,” Layla continued, shooting a look at Bec.

Caza sat up straighter, “Today...at the market, after … after they grabbed me away, they kept demanding to know who my employer was. Where I was taking the children? Like I was the kidnapper.”

“A kidnapper? What does this have to do with the rebellion?” Arthur asked, slightly annoyed.

“It probably has nothing to do with it, but things are changing. People are changing. The guards are increasing, and policy is growing stricter.” Bec’s voice grew louder.

“Policy?” Rachel asked.

“The laws from Nenre,” Milo said quietly.

“Nenre? I apologize, but we don’t understand,” Rachel said, nodding to Hannah simply.

Arthur sighed, “Nenre is the first moon, the post of the high government. It is said that the expansive campus of the Government dominates most of the small moon. Then there is Sudare, the high military. Those infants tested and chosen in the first days of their lives for military service are raised and trained as ‘guards’ or ‘guardians’ in service to the people of New Earth. Or more specifically, to uphold the policy of the Government. And lastly, there is Eyre - the hospital. Eyre is perhaps the most mysterious of the three. I will tell you. You may go to Nenre on invitation and return safely. No one enters Sudare unless you are of the government or military. But Eyre - Eyre is publicly open for the most part. You are encouraged to go there.”

“Why, sir?”

He let out his breath. “This is touchy subject for many, I have told you. But I will explain anyways. Why did we have to move from Earth, really?”

“Overpopulation.” Milo answered.

Arthur nodded, “Yes, that is correct. Overpopulation. Yes, the garbage and pollution did the planet in, but these were results of the overpopulation. This is something the new government has decided to control with the utmost rigidity. They have also taken many other problems from the last Earth and sought to fix them. For example, birth defects and diseases in children due to inbreeding of bloodlines had become a serious problem towards the end of our time on Earth. Everywhere one looked, poverty and disease riddled the streets. Sexually transmitted diseases were also very dangerous at this time. The new government wanted to control that with Eyre.”