No Regrets

Tolerant

"This complex is too cold." Raymond quivers, yet still closely follows him walking through the barbed wires fence and walking into a maze of gray walls and darkness just like Kwow Long Wall city

"The cold is supposed to stop people from moving in and live here. As these "city" can sustain itself with geothermal electricity and water pumping, it is preferable to use it, rather than moving in the New Dayton apartments, where you have to pay for all those things." 

Philippe calmly speaks and turn on his watch light. Even with his memory of traversing this maze, the darkness makes all those similar tiny hallways that barely fit two people alongside, and staircases and turns harder to distinguish

"So, why not just demolish this? Isn't it easier to make the problem disappear than wish for the best when the root of the problem still exists?" Raymond raises his voice over the dripping water drop.

"Because I did not let anyone do that. Besides, it did not belong to any zones, so destroy it is not necessary."

"Mr. Weis. Your answer raises at least two questions. One, why did you not let anyone destroy a ghetto complex closed to New Greenwich. No respectable coming from money can stand the sight of the ghetto. Second, how did you have your way and make people not destroy this "city"?  You are, after all, just a man with financial resources."

"I like you, Raymond, you caught up fast."

"When did I let you call me Raymond?"

"Oh yes, since you assure me that you would warrant my arrest if I contact my daughter, Timekeeper. But you're not a Timekeeper anymore, and I am not the shark loaner right now.  Let's go by first name basis." 

"We are getting out of the point. And you have been trying to fish information from me the last hour without actually giving up anything."

"Your questions are on point, Raymond. What do you think would be my answers though?"

Raymond just gave up on him calling his first name. He signed and answers.

"You said that you came from a ghetto, your confident walk shows that this is your neighborhood."

"Yes, it is my home sweet home. This is what my mother can afford after my father was released from his work due to his mental strain."

"I see the attachment. how about not having this demolished? You seem to not have enough power to get Miss Weis out of trouble, the last time we speak. The only thing you do was calling my boss in the Timekeeper department and pester me to finish the case sooner." Raymond waits for him to open the door. "This is bigger in my consideration. Not this apartment, this is so tiny!"

Raymond looks around the living room when Philippe turns on all the lights inside the living room.  Everything was painted in white or beige color to make the room look bigger. Even like that, there is not enough space for the dining room. There are only enough space for a small couch, a table and separated by a bookshelf, a tiny kitchen. 

"The required living space Act was abolished in 2036. I brought that back into consideration in around 2095. A two-bedroom-apartment should be bigger than 80 square meters."

"Well, this is indeed cannot be 60 square meters. It is even smaller than my studio apartment. Anyway, you brought a law back? But..." 

Follow him, Raymond put his shoes on the hanging shelf. Philippe just shakes his head and went to take a cup of water for Raymond. Then sitting on the couch himself, flipping his hand to turn on the screen on the other end of the room, showing a fake-picture of a window. There is no window in most of the house of this complex. He is used to it, but the younger generation ... not so much.

"Are you sure that I don't have enough power to get Sylvia back without a charge? What do you know about the bureaucracy of the 12 zones?" Philippe finally speaks, but in a way, he never likes to speak directly, and trying to see a people who really think about the information they got is just so interesting.

"I mean.. Ok. There is the trias political, or separation of power by the judicial, the executive and the legislative. Everyone has a vote for the heads of each zone, and these heads vote for the colony's council, the council appoints the judge."

Oh, the naive of a normal person. "Does many people turn up for voting?"

"I believe it is a no, after all without a daily job for 8 hours, most people in New Dayton will be dead. So they cannot turn up to the voting booth. You mean, only rich people voted?"

"Yes and no, the election is always rigged. Nobody has enough power to create a check for those votes. It has been the same people in the council every single year since 2110. Do you know the names of those people?"

Raymond has tried to speak for several times but then stop in the middle. 

"I cannot seem to recall. This is really bad, isn't it? I should have been able to tell their names, but all the paper was signed with "by the power of the Council." anyway. And only the head of zones was announced..."

"The Council makes law based on existed law of the country and the Commission of States in 2100. Do you know about the Commission of States?"

"What States? Sometimes I did see different cities names underneath some VIP,  and then there is the airport, so I guess there are different cities outside of the 12 zones. Wait, I am a government's officer for 50 years! I was supposed to know more than you."

"Not necessary." After all, Timekeeper live days by days, they also do not have enough time to ponder all the mystery inside the government. That was what he did, the ones with the guns works for the government would not ask anything, those who know things do not have the guts to go against the government.

After taking a deep breath, Raymond makes a statement, not a question  "You are in the Council."

"Even worse, I am the head of the Council. And as nobody really wants to deal with the ruling jobs,  everything is thrown to me. I can do what I want unless the colony collapsed."

"People die every day." Raymond looks at him, his eyes filled with rage. 

"Average life-expectancy of 75 years old for the whole 12 zones and average life expectancy of 55 years old for New Dayton are the highest number among the whole system. And it is better than all of us died at 26 years old like before the Commission of States." He levels his eyes to look directly at Raymond's eyes." I did my best considering the system. Anything, that will not be the thing that I regret."

"What I regret is I followed the system."