Island of the Unemployed

OPIATE OF THE MASSES

The virtual replica of the ancient Roman Coliseum was a mad house. The moment its doors opened to the public, a mob crammed in, frantically searching for their seats, anxious for the carnage and mayhem that was to come from the most popular sport of the day. Everyone was anxious for it to begin. Everyone, with one notable exception.

"I shouldn't have let Jayla talk me into this," Mila mumbled to herself. Her best friend Jayla had begged her to come. She knew Jayla didn't have many friends and she didn't want her to have to come alone. So, she felt compelled to come along. But doing a friend a favor was one thing. Coming to an event that so fundamentally conflicted with her own innate sense of right and wrong was quite another. "How could you possibly enjoy this?" Mila raised her voice in an effort to be heard over the boisterous crowd. "Someone could get killed!"

"Only if we're lucky!" Jayla smiled. The two were best of friends, but could not have been more different from one other.

"Don't you get it? A precious life is about to end! Someone is about to die and all these people are here to cheer it on! It's disgusting!"

"Precious? Have you seen these gladiators? They're hideous!" Jayla gave an incredulous laugh. She knew Mila would react like this. It was part of the fun of having her along.

"You're pathetic!"

"Exactly! That's exactly it! Our lives are pathetic!" Jayla tried to suppress her anger, but it came spewing out of her, nonetheless. It was a frequent problem of hers. She knew she should close her mouth, but she lacked the self-control to do so. "One of these two may die today, but..."

For the next few moments, the correlation to what Mila heard and the movements of Jayla's lips ceased to exist.

"Why would you say such a hurtful thing? I'm quite surprised at..." is what Mila heard as Jayla carried on with an expression too angry to match her words. She knew the words didn't come from Jayla. She knew there were few things she could say that would actually hurt Jayla's feelings. She had experienced this disconnect before and assumed it was some sort of glitch in the social network. Probably cross-talk between their conversation and someone else's.

Jayla continued the rant only to have it swallowed and replaced by the technology built into the communications system that monitored and controlled all human interaction. "...they will still have more significance than our meaningless existence. We all live in a tiny little room that we never leave. Never! One of these people may die today, but...," She caught herself in mid-rant, realizing no one heard it anyway.

Jayla paid a high price for her lack of self-control. It showed in her avatar. Her nose was crooked and her eyebrows thick, almost forming a unibrow. Her mouth was so wide it looked like plastic surgery gone horribly wrong. Over time, as the rants continued, her appearance became so problematic that she became shunned by some of her own friends.

Mila, by contrast, had one of the most attractive avatars, undoubtedly due to her naïve affection for the company. She had no complaints. In fact, she enjoyed the security and predictability the company provided her.

Mila waited for the 'glitch' to end before responding. "Really! You really think our lives are pathetic?"

"Sadly, yes," Jayla replied. One last expression of defiance wouldn't matter. The damage was done. Her "yes" was received as a "no."

Trumpets erupted into an anthem. An elaborate, prominently displayed throne was about to receive its emperor. A man wearing a laurel crown emerged. His face was expressionless as he approached the seat of power.