The Afterlife of Alice Watkins 1

by Matilda Scotney

  “I still don’t understand Calamities and Loyalties, Amelia. You are all so used to the idea, it seems I should just accept it as normal.”

  “We don’t have a complicated society, Alice. Its basis is respect…”

  “I would have thought if your society respected other people, you wouldn’t need the Calamities.”

  “I was about to say respect for the laws and tenets. Our laws and respect for them form the building blocks of the social order we enjoy. Earth’s society is peaceful and its laws, fair.”

  “Tell me about disabled children.”

  Amelia had never had to justify her society to anyone. She couldn’t remember a time when she had not been filled with gratitude for her world and all it offered. Her childhood had been idyllic, free from care and her aptitude years, inspired by tutors who nurtured and instilled in her a love of teaching. Her days at university were happy, full of laughter and friendship, mingled with the certainty she would receive every support she required to achieve her goals and live a happy, productive life. A far cry, she was sure, from the uncertainties of life lived by the youth of four centuries earlier.

  “We haven’t any. None born with defects, anyway. Naturally, disabilities can happen through illness or accident but that’s a different matter altogether. Doctors monitor a pregnancy for any sign of problems so if an abnormality is detected, one that can’t be rectified either before or shortly after birth, the doctor will terminate the pregnancy. It seldom happens.”

  Alice had seen children and adults, strapped in wheelchairs, not knowing what was going on around them, never being able to feed themselves, unable to speak. Would it have been better for them if they hadn’t been born? Marie, the butcher’s daughter had Down syndrome and Alice knew the little girl from birth, about 14 now but a happier, friendlier child you couldn’t wish to meet. She helped Dan in the shop, attended the local school and her presence made the world a better place, even if Alice had trouble understanding anything she said.

  “You’re lost in thought,” Amelia took Alice’s hand, fearful she had upset her friend.

  “I knew some disabled people,’ Alice said. “They never hurt anyone.”

  Amelia smiled and inclined her head to say she understood, soon Alice would see society for herself and it would fall into place, but she couldn’t deny a sense of relief when Alice moved away from the subject of terminations.

  “Tell me more about why people are sent to the Calamities?”

  “I’ll tell you about the scale, it leads on to the answer to your question. We have a scale for marriage. For example, a man from Principality 14, with a different ethnic origin, perhaps a scientist and most likely with cultural habits, may be assigned to a starship where, for example, he meets me, even though educators aren’t assigned to starships. If we want to marry, the Tabernacle would apply the scale.”

  “What would happen?”

  “Rejection. 14 and 49 where I’m from, can’t marry.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because our ethnic origins are too dissimilar. It would be the first order of rejection.”

  “We had heaps of mixed marriages in my time. What happened to their descendants?”

  “The plague diminished every race, Alice. By the fourth decade of the 22nd century, around the time the A’khet started to help us rebuild, many people, as their DNA identified them with a specific racial group, trickled back to their original homelands. For many, the historical reasons their ancestors left no longer existed and the desire to restore their culture and heritage became paramount. With the assistance of the A’khet and the provision of Substance, which Statesman Patrick told you about, shuttles were built which travelled at greater speeds than conventional means and connections were established between the expanding civilisations.

  “At speed of light?”

  “No, that came later. In a short time, the trickle became a full-on flow and marriages between races were a far less common occurrence. The world never became the all-encompassing, loving, multicultural melting pot early social analysts dreamed about and society came to appreciate that joining two races or cultures was self-defeating and only gave rise to division. People of that time, with the memory of plague and its devastation still raw, became keen to preserve their individual cultures and purity of race, lest they lose it for all time. The government implemented the scale, not to restrict interracial marriage but to preserve cultural dignity and diversity.”

  Amelia’s explanation stunned Alice.

  “What are these other orders?”

  “Skin colour is an absolute. The Tabernacle has criteria of the ethnic or racial origin applied to each principality.”

  “I took a class on phylogeny at university, based on cultural phenomena,” Alice said suddenly, “I should have paid more attention.”

  “Pardon?” Amelia’s voice was shocked to a squeak.

  “I didn’t say anything,” but in truth, Alice felt the moment of absence.

  “You said you took a class at university…”

  “I don’t think so, Amelia. I didn’t go to university.”

  “I thought—I’m sorry Alice, I’m sure you said something…unexpected.”

  Amelia was her friend, this might happen again, so it was only fair to tell her.

  “I do from time to time Amelia. I never remember what I say, I’m sorry.”

  “Ok, we’ll just carry on.” But Amelia was rocked to the core. Now she had come to know Alice as a friend as well as a student, what she said was indeed, unexpected. She took a deep breath and took up the lesson again.

  “These criteria are used in assessing an application for marriage. But even choosing someone from your own principality is no guarantee of approval. Even then, the scale is applied. For example, an artist can’t marry a scientist. In fact, an artist can only marry another artist or someone in an Earth-based occupation.”

  “Why?”

  “Why artist and a scientist or artist and artist?”

  “Both.”

  “Because they’re polar opposites. He’s at home, painting, composing, cooking or whatever branch of art he’s expert in and she’s on a starship or an installation and even if she isn’t military, it’s almost certain she will be off-world part of the time. Artists can hang out together wherever they are.”

  “What if you fall in love and marry regardless of the law? Can ‘they’, and I don’t know who ‘they’ are, stop you?”

  “ ‘They’ are the Tabernacle and no, they won’t stop you, but if you choose not to live loyally to society, then you go to the Calamities. And you can’t have children. As a married couple, you still get accommodation assigned according to your requirements.”

  “They give you a house, but they don’t turn off your chip, so you can have a family?”

  “That’s right. But if it is a male to male relationship or female to female why does it matter? A same-sex couple can’t procreate.”

  “It sounds harsh.”

  “You need to live in our society to understand it, Alice. I’ve only given you an overview. You’ll find it simpler once you understand the workings of government. My view is, it gives us a solid foundation. If two people choose not to conform, the Calamities are a way they can live their lives away from normal people.”

  Alice found this difficult. Normal people? Everyone here was so genuine and kind. She remembered a word Ted liked to use. Bigots. Were they bigots? She thought of Patrick’s kindness and Amelia, so gentle and caring, how could either of them have such calm acceptance of these distinctions?

  “Are the Calamities like prison? Dr Grossmith said the people there had rights and privileges.”

  “They do Alice, we’re not barbarians! But where a loyal couple will often, though not always, be assigned together until they start a family, people who live in the Calamities are not assigned alongside their partner. They can travel on permit outside the Calamities, but it must be alone. They can go anywhere inside the Calamities they like wit
h their partner and can visit other Calamities but must travel singly and meet up at their destination.”

  “Why not travel together? What could happen?”

  “How they’ve chosen to live is not acceptable in society, Alice, if they commit to those choices, they must accept the consequences. Didn’t you have laws?”

  “Yes, but not about loving each other. Mainly about criminals, you know, murdering and stealing and things like that.”

  Amelia knew Alice found these ideas complex.

  “Consider your body Alice. Your anatomy is designed for sexual congress with a male. Do you agree?”

  “Yes.”

  “How would two women achieve this congress?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “What about two males?”

  Alice had no comment. She didn’t even want to think about what men did with each other.

  “Heterosexual sex is both recreational and an expression of love, Alice, but at least once, the expected outcome of married intercourse is conception. Can two females achieve this?”

  “Not on their own.”

  “What do you mean, not on their own?”

  “They could get a man to, you know, do what he has to do, so one of the women has a baby and the two men could get a woman, I suppose.” Alice was out of her depth.

  “So, two women in a relationship would still need a man to procreate?”

  “Yes.”

  “Does that sound tidy? Does it make their relationship normal?”

  Amelia smiled and patted Alice’s arm.

  “You might not see it now, but the world is very tolerant. The conflict of your time is a thing of the distant past.”

  The link distracted them, and Amelia answered. It was Patrick.

  “Educator Sebel.”

  “Statesman Patrick.”

  “Is Dr Langley with you?”

  “She is.”

  Alice peered over Amelia’s shoulder and smiled. Amelia moved to the side, winking at Alice as soon as she had her back to Patrick.

  “We arrive at space dock early tomorrow. You’ll be delivered to Principal Katya at the Tabernacle. Alice, I know Principal Katya well and she is looking forward to receiving you.”

  “Delivered? Receiving?” Alice echoed, not sure about his choice of words.

  “Yes, and as you will be in the Tabernacle, I’ll see you within the week.”

  Arrangements neatly made it would seem.

  “Thank you, Statesman. I’ll look forward to seeing you.”

  When he’d gone, Alice turned to Amelia.

  “I’m pleased about this aren’t I, Amelia? This Principal Katya and the Tabernacle?”

  “You should be. I’ve never met Principal Katya, but I hear she is a delight.”

  “That’s what Patrick says but being delivered and received, like a parcel. He might have chosen his words a little better.”

  Amelia gave Alice a hug. So far, today’s lessons had proven to be a little disquieting and Amelia wanted to reassure Alice she could ask her anything she wished.

  “They’re trying to do the right thing by you, Alice. Don’t read anything into what Patrick said. They really do know best.”

  Alice didn’t reply. In this society where protocols and manners were so important, it wouldn’t have hurt them to include her in the discussion.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  It ended up as the longest day of tuition Alice ever had, far longer than any she remembered from her schooldays. Alice listened and questioned and doubted and re-examined and hoped she’d remember it all.

  “Can we go for a walk, Amelia?” she begged eventually, her bottom numb from sitting.

  “No, get up and make coffee, that’ll get your circulation going. Drake will be here in a moment with food.”

  “We always seem to be eating. Doesn’t Tyro Drake have a job,” Alice stood and rubbed the base of her spine, “other than to obey your every command?”

  “I can distract him from time to time,” Amelia gave a vague wave. “He’s going back to Earth to university to study cosmology.”

  Alice sat the coffees in front of them as Tyro Drake arrived and she watched with amusement at a little secret giggling between him and Amelia and, she noted as he left, he neither bowed nor addressed Amelia by title. She ignored Alice’s sideways grin as she turned her attention to the registry, making it clear that today was not the day to discuss her relationship with Tyro Drake.

  “Back to work. Eat if you want but we’ve still got a few hours to go.”

  Alice believed she learned more in that one day than in 10 years of formal education. Amelia’s knowledge and energy turned school into a lot of fun.

  Eventually, the subject of music came up, Alice had waited all day for the right moment to tell Amelia about the events of the previous night.

  “Amelia, can I tell you something—something strange that happened?”

  “There’s a lot about you that’s strange, sweetie, I doubt it’ll surprise me.”

  “Remember Patrick took me to the concert last night?”

  “Yes, was it wonderful? I forgot to ask about that. I was more interested in the Patrick kissy bits part.”

  “Yes, amazing! But after I got ready for bed, a tune kept going around in my head. I don’t know many tunes, but this one was played at the concert.”

  “What happened?”

  “Somehow, and I wasn’t even aware of it happening, after showering, I got dressed again and went back to the auditorium and played the piano. I didn’t even put my shoes on. Apparently, I played well, but I don’t remember any of it.”

  “None of it?”

  Alice shook her head. “No, well, kind of but it’s out of reach. A shadow. More an echo. I keep trying to glimpse it but—it’s gone.”

  “If you can’t remember, how do you know you played and played well?”

  “Principal Ryan came into the auditorium. He told me.”

  “Principal Ryan?”

  Alice nodded, reminded of her fear at being caught out, doing something she didn’t recall.

  “He said he heard me playing, but I only remember being startled and seeing him standing there and thinking he was cross.”

  “Cross?”

  “Yes, angry, but he wasn’t angry, at least I don’t think so, but I didn’t know what to say. I got nervous and embarrassed and made as polite a getaway as possible.”

  “Where’s that music now?” Amelia asked.

  “Gone mostly, just a feeling, a sense. Sometimes, I can’t decide if I am Alice Watkins pretending to be Alexis Langley or Alexis Langley hiding somewhere inside Alice Watkins.”

  “Perhaps, for now, you need to be both until you recover your true memories. One day, the real you will emerge.”

  “What if I emerge as Alice Watkins?”

  “Can Alice Watkins play the piano?”

  “No.”

  “Then I doubt that ultimately it will be Alice Watkins.” Amelia made a legitimate point.

  “Anyway, no matter, I like whoever you are!”

  Later, when Amelia left for whatever tryst she’d set up with Tyro Drake, Alice flopped face down on the bed, consumed by lack of sleep from the night before and the workout her brain received that day. Closing her eyes, she planned only on dozing, but sleep overwhelmed her. She woke with a start a considerable time later. Night mode was running, and Alice shifted her position to look at the viewport without moving from the bed, watching the grey rock passing underneath. The rock displayed none of the glory it did when viewed from Earth, it didn’t shine yellow, just looked like a chunk of bright clay. The moon, she figured, but didn’t get up to look.

  Principal Ryan was in his quarters, still deliberating on the incident involving Dr Langley in the auditorium. He put in a link to Principal Hardy.

  “Hardy.”

  “Ryan. How are things with our Dr Langley? No problems I hope. Are you keeping her entertained?”

  “Patrick seems adequate for the task
. Were you aware she plays the piano?”

  Principal Hardy’s surprise was genuine.

  “No, I wasn’t aware.”

  “Well, she does, she plays well.”

  “Alice isn’t one to make a display. How did you find out?”

  “Patrick brought her up to one of the ‘sleep-inducing’ crew recitals, then later, I observed her playing the piano in the auditorium.”

  “And you say she played well?”

  “Yes, very well.”

  “Thank you for telling me, Ryan. She arrives at the Tabernacle tomorrow, it’ll be interesting to see what transpires there.”

  “It wasn’t the playing that struck me as the extraordinary part, Hardy, it was her confusion as to why she was there. She didn’t believe me when I told her. Apparently, she told Patrick earlier she knew nothing about music but then made an observation during the recital which, he claims, refuted that.”

  “Is it only Patrick who escorts Alice?”

  “Alice? That’s what Patrick calls Dr Langley.”

  “Is that so?” Hardy wasn’t pleased to learn of Patrick straying from protocol. “We call her Alice, Alexis without the ‘x’. She dislikes being referred to as Dr Langley and though it’s possible she asked Patrick to use her preferred name, I have concerns about him not addressing her formally in company. His conduct is professional, I trust?”

  “I assume so, you were the one who suggested him as the best person to put her at ease.”

  “I’m thinking about his reputation.”

  “Which reputation? Outstanding officer? Gifted engineer?”

  “The other reputation.”

  “It’s not my business, Hardy.”

  “I’m not suggesting it is, but he is under your command and she is fragile. Take notes and step in if need be.”

  Principal Hardy took the slight movement of Ryan’s shoulders as a non-committal shrug.