Читать книгу Keep Your Doors Open - Ryan Vuckovich - Страница 2

Getting to work every day was no easy task for anyone; a person’s eyes and ears had to be open like the doors and windows of their home. Many people who had to walk to work would often walk together in one giant “walk pool” moving toward their job site, but Paris had no desire to wake up earlier than he had to in order to walk with co-workers who had pointless dialogues about pigs keeping them up all night or lizards in their bathtubs. Plus, Paris wanted to spend as little time with people as possible, so he would walk alone to work even though the risk of an animal attack was greater.

In the past, many animals would just scatter when they saw a human approaching. But after many years of exposure to one another, many animals no longer have a fear of humans whatsoever. It was very evident that something like this would happen when examining certain past events. There was the thousand deer takeover in Nora, Japan where stags, hinds, and their young flooded the city streets of Nora. The Sika deer, who were never legally allowed to be caged or penned, roamed anywhere they wished and would often come into the city during the summertime; they had no fear of humans and would often walk or lie down in the streets blocking traffic. A vehicle of considerable size could have easily driven through the beast, but such an act was frowned upon by the residents of Nora.

Today, driving a land vehicle is obsolete. The only vehicles that were in constant use were hover cars; a technology which had been around for several years but was never mass produced due to the economic feasibility of its time. However, with the passing of the animal laws, the demand for such technology was pushed to the fore front along with inventions that led to hover saucers, food spheres, and more wireless electronics.

As Paris began walking, the first thing he watched out for was anything above him. He would check every tree, every neighbor’s house, and every lamppost as he passed making sure there was no animal ready for an aerial attack. After taking a few steps forward, Paris would listen trying to identify the animal noises that were entering his ears. Something he had trained himself to do after watching several survivor videos that had been offered to the public for free. Each video was available for access through the normal media channels. If somehow a person did not have any wireless electronics in their home, they were able to receive a pamphlet in the mail, after paying a surprisingly large fee of course, that would include audio cards with the different animal sounds. Of course in this time, it was very hard to receive anything physical in the mail due to the budget cuts in the post office. Since a majority of mail was now sent electronically, the only things that came in the mail nowadays were food spheres, new wireless electronics, and supplies to ward off animals. Paper could not be massed produced like it had been in the past; trees and vegetation are mainly grown for food or oxygen now. Due to the amount of damage in the past and the continuing damage of this new animal and human equality, plant life was becoming scarce. Companies had to jump through a lot of hoops in order to obtain a tag to cut down trees for paper. First, they had to plead their case to the Justice for Environmental Concerns, or JEC, and state their specific use for the tree. Then, when and if JEC approves the plea, the company must enter a down payment into a lottery which contains several other companies looking to get their hands on a tree for paper. After several weeks of taking in money orders, JEC eventually announces the winner of the lottery and allows the winning company to chop down a tree, so long as it does not contain the home of any animal. The rest of the money from the other companies who entered the lottery stays in the hands of JEC, who uses the money to finance more tree and vegetation growth. In fact, while Paris was walking by a small tree that was no bigger than him (Paris stood at about 5’8”), there was a little sign under the tree that said, “This plant was made possible by the Justice for Environmental Concerns.”

“Waste of time,” Paris said under his breath, seeing that the tree looked more like a long stick with a few leaf-less branches growing on it. The leaves of the tree had all been plucked off by some herbivore, he assumed, further adding to his disgust toward humans and animals; animals eating away at the world’s source of oxygen, and humans for not stopping them the way they should. Paris saw many clones of the leaf-less tree as he continued walking, plus many more sights to be held.

To his right, Paris saw a pack of dogs fighting over a cat they had killed. To his left, Paris saw a rat with wings get picked off by a hawk in a matter of seconds. Further down the street, he saw in the Northwest rabbits eating away at some poor sap’s garden.

“Why bother human?” Paris said referencing the gardener.

To the Northeast, there was a common sight that had emerged in the cities over the years, giraffes. How were these African natives able to flourish so well in a foreign land? The answer is quite simple. When the Pacheco Captivity Laws were passed, regardless of where an animal was held, people had to immediately release the prisoners from their confines. Pigs, cows, and chickens were let loose from the slaughter houses, so they would no longer shower in their own kind’s blood. Dogs and cats no longer had to wait for their slave masters to get home with their food and drink. And, all the poor souls who were taken away from their homelands and put in zoos were now able to explore the brave new world to make a life of their own. Sure, not all former prisoners were able to adapt to life outside of prison. In fact, many of them were unable to survive in the wild. After leaving their protected utopias, many did not know how to hunt for food nor could they cope with the changes in temperature. It was like the animals committed a mass suicide when they left their old homes. How they were not able to go extinct was sheer luck. However, those who were able to survive made homes for themselves, bred young ones, and kept their species alive. So now, the human race has to deal with crocodiles swimming in sewer tunnels, apes living in two story homes, panthers hiding in bushes, and so on. All of which Paris and the rest of the struggling human race has bared witness to while surviving in the “African Occupied America.”

After walking past these many normalities along the way to work, the day became very odd for Paris; he had arrived earlier than usual. Normally, even with the three hour time gap, it would take Paris about two hours to arrive at his destination because of all the stops he had to make: letting animals move out of the streets, waiting for them to finish their meals, finding different routes to avoid them, and so on. Paris checked his watch; the time was 7:32 AM. He had left his house at 7:02 AM. It took him exactly 30 minutes to get to work.

“How is this possible?” Paris thought, “Today just felt like a normal walk to work. Did I just not care about the animals around me? Even though they could have killed me? What happened?”

Without thinking about it any longer, Paris shook off the thought and went to the platform base of his job site, Chloro Foods Inc. CFI, one of the biggest industries in the world, thrived during The Transition Period because the company was several steps ahead of everyone. They anticipated that there would be a high demand for green foods now that society had banned the selling and distribution of meat and meat products. Of course, there was a lot of competition in the business, with rival companies fighting for the same cause, feeding the population. But still, CFI crushed their competitors by using cut-throat, risky and unfair tactics. Taking away the knife that used to cut pigs' throats will never destroy the invisible blade under people’s necks; and oh how CFI let the knife carve a second smile. They were also one of the few companies that purchased a hover saucer to use as a work space. Cylon Tech, the company who makes the saucers, was reluctant to make such a deal because they wanted their technology to be used for housing complexes. But with governmental pressure and knowing that people in the food industry would need a safe and secure place to conduct business, CT reluctantly worked out a deal with CFI. A hover saucer would be leased out to CFI under the condition that the company, along with all other companies that use saucers as work spaces, must financially support CT to help them construct newer hover saucers.

Once CFI began accepting applications for a new department within the company, Paris was one of the first to apply. His decision to start working for CFI came out of logic instead of desire. For, it was very important to find a company that would not shut down due to an inability to survive the Transition Period. However, in order to fill a position at such a company, one would need to have a strong education. An education that could only be obtained from an online university,since physically being on a campus was a risk. After obtaining his degree in business, he knew that the best job to obtain was one that involved the necessities: food, water, electricity, health, and so on. His concern at the time was not the highest paying job, but one that would give him security, so long as he did his job and the company stayed afloat. So, he got a position working in the distribution department and has been working for CFI ever since.

Standing near the landing strip lines, Paris pulled out his electronic device. He pulled up a code page that was only accessible by employees and entered his complex employee number. Once Paris pushed send on his device, a message was transmitted to the platform manager who reviewed the code and then lowered an electromagnetic platform toward Paris. The platform was lowered close enough to Paris’s level where he could climb aboard but not low enough to touch the ground; this was done to make sure the platform did not accidentally crush any small animals underneath. Once secured on the platform, Paris began his accession up to the saucer which was the size of an obsolete America Football Stadium. The 20 story climb up to the 7 story high saucer was not something that bothered Paris much, for he never possessed a fear of heights. After waiting about 5 minutes for the platform to dock at the saucer, Paris finally arrived.

“Hey Franklin,” said the security officer working the platform console, “You’re here early today.”

“Yes, I am.”

“You take a different route to…?”

Paris was already out of the platform room and climbing up the stairs.

“Although I am here early, I don’t want to waste my time talking to him,” Paris thought.

After climbing four flights of stairs, Paris arrived at his floor. Several people were already at their work stations getting an early start before their actual shift at 9:00 AM. Paris had no desire to talk to any of his fellow employees, so Paris tried to stealthily move toward his desk without being noticed. His desk, along with everyone else’s, was near a window clos to the outer rim of the saucer. In the middle of the saucer were separate rooms. Depending on level of importance, each room was blocked off by a wall made of curved metal panels covered in stucco or see-through plastic. Once he completed his avoidance mission, he opened up his briefcase, pulled out his electronic pad, and plugged it into the saucer’s internet port. A folder appeared titled “CFI Seminar,” and Paris clicked on the icon. A video appeared on his screen; it began with a slideshow of animals and humans running in an open field while somber music played in the background. A woman appeared on the screen walking next to a tree with small birds perched on top.

“Hello citizens,” the woman spoke, “I am Senator Rachel Argent here to help remind you all about the wonderful accomplishments we have made over the years to lead us toward a better future. There is still more work needed to be done during the Transition Period, but let’s review some of the wondrous technologies that have helped us get through this challenging point in time. For starters, let’s begin with your work space and how the hover saucer technology has aided animals and humans.” The video switched to a screen showing a blue print layout of a hover saucer. Argent’s voice continued.

“Your hover saucer, like all hover saucers, contains a center room on the first floor. This room contains all the power generators which run entirely on electricity. Electricity obtained from many different ‘eco-friendly’ solutions under the Pacheco Laws. For example, solar panels may be used but only on certain areas of the saucer, so no animal could land on top of the panels and burn to death. Solar panels are, therefore, commonly placed on the sides of each saucer building.

“Another way your saucer generates power is through the means of biopower. With advancements made over the years, the world is now able to take a very large amount of waste and convert it into renewable energy. Occupants of each saucer help provide fuel when needing to—” She gave a little chuckle, “excuse me, ‘use the facilities.’ When you flush, your waste is sent to the machinery room where several processors convert the waste into energy. The processors also separate out the water to be sent back to the sinks and toilets to be reused. Of course, the water has to be changed out every once in a while because the liquid can only be recycled up to 90% each time, but it does help make each saucer self-sustaining.

“Wind power has also been helpful. However, each fan has to be placed in an area that will not harm any animals of course. Now, the most important power generators are the stationary bikes; they insure that there is enough energy to power your hover saucer. For example, let’s say one of your power maintenance attendants notices that the power levels start to drop. The attendant can get on one of the bikes and start pedaling to help maintain the levels, which allows enough time for the other energy generators, such as wind, bio, and solar, to gain back power. The bikes also ensure that, if anything goes wrong, there will always be back up power.” The video continued until Paris was interrupted.

“Hey Frankie!” came a voice standing next to Paris’s desk. It was Jake Edwards; a heavy set man in his early 40’s, “How’s it going buddy? You’re here early.”

“So I’ve been told,” said Paris hoping the tone in his voice would deter Edwards. Unfortunately, the big man was never good at reading hints and rambled on.

“Having one of those days, eh pal? I had one of those last week. I went into my garage to grab a few things when a shelf nearly collapsed on me. Thank God I moved out of the way cause’ I could have been knocked out cold.”

“Or damn Satan for missing,” Paris said under his breath.

“But also,” Edwards continued, “Thank God there wasn’t an animal underneath the shelf; otherwise I would have had to explain to the police that I did not purposely drop the box on the poor creature to kill it.”

“Again, damn Satan,” Paris thought.

“Apparently, I was having a terrible termite problem in my garage. Thank God none of them were in the house, but I had a real problem on my hands. How do I get rid of these bugs? Can’t just spray poison in my garage to kill the critters; animals could die from the gas. So then I thought, ‘Hey, what if I use animals, legally of course, to solve my problem?’ I’ll just look for a couple of animals that eat those pests and get them to do the job.”

“Wow Jake, you’re so clever,” Paris said sarcastically.

“I know right? So, I did some research and found that there were a couple of aardvarks living in my area. God was really smiling down on me.”

“Or Satan was lazy.”

“What’s that?”

“Oh man that’s crazy.”

“Indeed, so, I found where they were and lured them to my house with some bread crumbs. It took about two hours just to get the critters near my house, but, once they were there, they started eating away at those termites.”

“And now you have aardvarks in your garage.”

“Yes, but I figured I will let them stay in there as insurance to make sure the termites don’t return. I’ll feed them some bread crumbs and water to keep them from wandering off. Sure it’s going to smell like aardvark poo, but—”

“Better a garage that smells like poo than being poopy for having no garage!” jumped in James Bell.

“Right!” Edwards answered back while they both laughed out loud.

“Damn it,” Paris thought, “Now I have two quacking ducks hovering over me.”

“You know Jake,” Bell began, “I know some people who had the same problem in their homes but with cats. You see, the wife was terribly allergic to felines, so they lured a couple of dogs to their home to get rid of the cats. But then, it was discovered that the husband was allergic to dogs.”

“So how did they solve their dog problem?” asked Edwards.

“His mother-in-law moved in.”

Both Edwards and Bell laughed even harder at this joke than the one before.

Paris sat at his desk hoping the two hyenas would move their cackling someplace else and stop eating away at his soul.

“And speaking of termites, Frank,” Bell said to Paris, “Did you hear about last night’s debate?”

“Yes,” Paris said somberly, “They were showing a rerun this morning.”

“Man, what a great debate that was. Even though I strongly disagree with what Anthony was talking about wanting to include bugs as sentient beings, I just don’t think it would be economically feasible.”

“And I agree,” Edwards responded, “I mean we had so many problems develop after the Pacheco Laws were passed, because people never really thought about what would happen with these kinds of laws. It would just be ridiculous to have bugs protected under those same laws.”

“Yes, but, one thing that Anthony did in his debate that I loved, was that he showed everyone the technological advances that we developed after the laws were passed. I mean, I still remember as a kid dreaming about hover cars and now it's a reality.”

“Well, it was a reality back then James. It just was not, and to quote you, economically feasible. The only reason we started pushing the technology was out of necessity.”

“Which is the mother of invention. But, it does make me wonder, what kind of technology mankind would have to create, if bugs were viewed as sentient beings. What do you think Frank?” Bell said trying to include Paris in the conversation.

Paris was very annoyed at this point. He did not want to talk about animals, technology, or the future. He just wanted to be alone with his thoughts, “Guys, I need to get some stuff done before my shift. I really can’t talk right now.”

“Oh sure,” Edwards said, “No problem champ. We’ll talk later.”

“Yeah Frankie,” Bell jumped in, “We’re going to my place after work to watch some vid-game football, if you want to join us. I know it’s a little far from where you live, but I can buy your hover cab fare for—”

“Thanks, but I already made plans after work,” Paris interrupted.

“Come on man, it’s a big game tonight and should be—”

“I’m sorry, but I cannot back out of my plans,” Paris said sternly.

After a pause, Bell continued, “Okay Frank, well if you change your mind, just let us know,” and the two employees walked off to their work station.

Although Paris finally got what he wanted, which was to be alone, he felt terrible afterwards. This was not the first time Bell and Edwards have tried to invite him out somewhere. Many attempts were made toward the loner to get him to socialize, but all attempts had failed. This recent attempt, differed from previous ones because Paris almost thought about saying yes, but why? Why did he say no when he felt like saying yes? What would drive someone to do that? For although he had developed a strong dislike for his fellow man, due to all the stupid decisions they had made over the years, Paris still had this urge to be with his own kind.

One can only pretend that being a lone wolf does not bother them before realizing that the very idea of a wolf freely leaving a pack is a myth. No human or animal would ever freely choose to be exiled from their pack; social creatures need each other on a conscious and sub-conscious level. All this ran through Frank’s head as he started to see his co-workers around him morph into Lycans, sprouting fur all over their bodies, and their faces transforming into long dog like snouts. Frank looked at his own hands and saw that they were now paws. His hallucination was amplified. His work station became a cage separating him from the pack. Yes, now it was all becoming very clear to the wolf named Paris. The reason for his inability to join his own kind was because the Earth was a very large prison; its clouds formed steel bars, its dirt the cold unforgiving concrete, and its atmosphere was the execution gas. And, the ones who were holding the keys were, strangely enough, fellow Lycans; half animal, half human hybrids. They were the ones who created this strange world of contradictions. Liberating a dog but locking up a human for locking up a dog. Treating humans like dogs, and dogs like humans. The only explanation in Frank’s mind was that man became confused as to which form they truly were.

After a while, the hallucination wore off, and Paris continued with his video seminar. He thought of Martian, and the sad puppy face his friend gave him today.

“I guess I’m the one who gets to play that part now,” Paris thought to himself while working, wishing he had said yes to joining the pack.