"Don't say that," Bo yelled, wincing, "I've still got a sister, somewhere, and I hope to see her again, in a not too far future!"
"Your sister? You'll never see her again."
Mockingly, Johnny did a gesture toward his open mouth with his bandaged hand. Then he closed his mouth and simulated munching something before swallowing and, finally, rubbing his belly.
Bo couldn't avoid chuckling and murmured, "Fucking asshole..."
***
"The situation is really approaching untenable," Adams shouted, banging both of his fists on his desk’s surface, as he too often did, these days."
"I know," answered Larry Lafayette, who was sitting in one of the two chairs in front of his desk. He was wearing dark green working clothes, like all the hydroponics workers of the Community. Sadness apparent on his face, the thin man continued, "But reality can't be avoided: our resources have diminished so much, that we won't be able to avoid food shortages!"
Adams looked at him, clearly bothered, and asked, "Are you sure? I thought that thanks to hydroponics and aeroponics, we could live in autarcy during many years, and ..."
"Yes," the engineer said, interrupting him, "And that's what I told you many years ago. But our resources in clean water are dwindling, despite the fact that hydroponics enable us to reuse between 90% and 95% of the same water." The old Administrator sighed, and the metis continued, «Same thing for our needs in elements necessary for the development of plants. Even if aquaponics, that we're developing, could perhaps save us, one day: the feces of the fish can be used by the roots of plants, which in turn can clean the water for the fish.”
The old metis stopped speaking and looked the old white man in the eyes. After many seconds in a complete silence, the latter had the impression that his interlocutor was waiting for something. Adams understood and murmured, bending over his desk, "Let’s not beat around the bush: why did you come to me?" Visibly ashamed, the engineer lowered his gaze and had a wry smile.
A moment later, after having listened to the engineer’s proposition, Adams said, “I understand how much hard such a proposition must be,” the Administrator looked intensely at the man’s eyes while saying this, continuing, “especially knowing how much involved you are in our social tissue.” The old white man suddenly had new thoughts which made him smile and open wide his eyes, and he added, “By the way, the solution you see could help me to eliminate a few… sources of trouble… definitely!”
***
"It's madness!” Bo exclaimed, who was watching, accompanied by Johnny, the Community's news, on its unique TV channel, while having dinner with the Hiroto family. On the big flat screen, Joshua Adams, wearing as usual his flawless white suit, continued, "... Our nutritionists estimate that, at best, we’ll be able to nourish everyone during one month. After that, stern measures will be taken, and all the Community’s citizens will suffer rationing of their feedstock, ..."
"An additional rationing? It won’t be the first time, but we’re fed up!" Johnny yelled, who swallowed a sushi. This ultra-fast consumption of that bit of food almost made the old Hiroto flinch. Swallowing like that without munching, and especially without letting its taste be appreciated, always shocked him inwardly. Especially this period of food shortage, and after that, the impending famine period.
But appreciating the quietness of this dinner, he didn't bother to raise this. He decided to continue to watch the news. On the screen, there was now the interview of a young woman, who was giving the bottle to a baby all dressed in pink, and she was obviously worried. She told to the reporter, "I wasn't convinced that the goat’s milk, that the Community gives to me for my daughter, was as good as the cow’s milk - it's a shame that we don't have any, here - but now, the authorities are warning that they're going to ration everything," She looked straight at the camera and continued, "What's going to happen to Jessica?"
The image froze, and a voice-over said: "What can we do to avoid this situation?", accompanied by a melodramatic music.
Suddenly Joshua Adams, the Community's Administrator, appeared on the screen, standing behind a wooden pulpit, the same way as American Presidents did, in an era seemingly long past.
"Oh no, the worse of our politicians..." Johnny murmured, grimacing.
"You mean the only one we have," intervened Hiroto, smiling at him.
"If you mean that his sole work is in Politics, you're right," answered the young colored man, snorting. Red looked at him with a mild interest, before reporting her attention on the screen again.
"At least, he's always proven that he’s a good Manager," Mei murmured shyly. Bo thought that he could put his oar in, and he said, "Yeah, people are just numbers, for him, he's the perfect bean counter! And..."
"Let’s listen to what he’s got to say!" yelled the red-haired teen, while scowling at him. Bo glanced at her, but finally didn’t add anything, listening now, like everyone.
Looking at the camera and, so, at the tele viewers in a solemn way, the old man with the white suit said, "Dear Community residents, during many memorable years, we had the great chance to live behind the protection of our tall walls. We were also lucky to have it built by the best Architects and Engineers who could join us. Even if there was an ever-greater concentration of living dead around us, thanks to our hydroponics and aeroponics Engineers, we have been less and less dependent on the outside world. Thanks to them, we were able to produce all of our food, and live entirely self-sufficient... until recently!"
Red bit her lips, hanging on the words of the old man. What she heard made her hairs raise on her head.
"Our so bothering, and ever dwindling resources, have forced the Council to make an important decision…”
"He means that HE has made the decision!" erupted Johnny.
"Shhh..." shushed Red and Bo, silencing him once and for all. The Administrator continued, bearing a serious expression, "A harsh and difficult decision: a group of volunteers - or at least designated as such, depending on their utility for the Community. They will have to quit us all with a vehicle generously given to them, and they will never be allowed to return back, ..."
"The Motherfucker;" the young colored man shouted, this time joined by the sighs of his two young friends. Red was aghast, goggling at the screen, their Asian hosts seemingly shocked too. Nobody could guess if it was because of the announcement, or if they were shocked by Johnny's curse.
Miraculously, the level of noise in the living room lowered enough for everyone to hear what followed,
“... never be allowed to return, unless they come back with new resources, such as not outdated food stock, and clean water."
"Oh, my God, it's not a banishment, it's a suicide mission!", Bo yelled, grimacing, and as all the others looked at him, not one of them dared to contradict him.
"The Council is waiting for the volunteers to contact it via e-mail, designating themselves freely. If an insufficient number of people volunteer, the Council will consider the list of citizens of the Community, and analyze their usefulness, for the benefit of all."
"Switch off that TV, Red," yelled Mei, the harshness of her voice, normally so soft, surprising everyone at the table, "I don't want to see his goddamn face one second more!"
The teen girl obeyed and pressed the ON/OFF button of the remoter controller.
The TV, its screen now black, having become completely silent, she deposited the controller on the table, looking at her adoptive mother, obviously feeling uneasy.
She had never heard Mei speak up, much less being so rude.
She's been really shocked by Adam's last idea for managing the Community's resources. And I understand her very well! Looking at her adoptive mother's father, she observed that, like his daughter, he seemed very somber. The dinner ended soon, under heavy silence, the guests clearly demoralized by what they had heard.
***
Condemned
The next day, Red understood more clearly why her family had been so somber.
"The Co
uncil has actually sentenced you to death, Lin!", Mei exclaimed, clearly horrified.
"I don't know," answered the old Asian woman, smiling shyly at her. "I don't think that they're letting me starve to death. I trust Adams, I voted for him in the previous election, you know."
"I know, but it won't help you!" yelled Red's adoptive mother, looking worried at the old, tired lady, who was sitting with them at her little jolting table, as they were drinking some tea.
"400 kilocalories per day is really insufficient for survival. It remembers me what I read, a few years ago, in a history book. It was about the daily ration, via food ration tickets, that was allowed by the NAZIs for seniors, in France, during the German occupation."
She stopped speaking, looking at the woman. Seeing no reaction coming from the old woman, who remained demoralized and weak, the young woman continued, "That historical fact, and the minimum of 1500-2000 kilocalories advised by the medical community for people like you, all these things that I've read on CommunityNet, make me repeat what I told you: they, I mean Adams, is condemning you to die from starvation, a slow kill!"
Lin shrugged, her small shoulders thin and lean, and answered with a sad tone, "They're right, I'm old, I'm useless, I'm..."
"Don't say that," Mei intervened, taking in her right hand one of the woman's skinny ones. A poor wrinkled hand, covered with age spots. She also had many of these brownish spots on her face, which had been laminated as much by old age, as well as by hardship in her long life. It had been especially hard when she had sought safety in the Community.
"Everyone has the right to live!" Red's adoptive mother yelled, while she rubbed warmly Lin's hand between hers. Red had rarely seen Mei being so "tactile" with someone, she probably had a lot of affection for this old woman. And the sentence that her adoptive mother had emitted made the teen girl remember something similar. Something that her beloved, late mother often said: "Living dead are sick people to whom we owe quietness..."
"Until they try to devour us!" added, as always, her father, having a lot of bitterness in his heart.
She chuckled a second while thinking about his typical dark humor, and then, ceased immediately. Images obscured her mind. Images of her mother shrieking while falling from the table, and of her father, engulfed inside the burning car. These images tortured her so much that she had to close her eyes. She welcomed the darkness behind her closed eyelids, an obscurity encouraged by the low lighting level, inside their host's modest apartment.
"If I could, if I was sufficiently young, I would've gone, looking for resources for the Community, the tired old woman said, in a confident way. Forgetting for a moment her inner demons, Red opened her eyes wide, while looking at the old woman, who was only skin and bones. This strong affirmation surprised the teen, who began to measure, now, the dedication of the woman in her gaze.
Seemingly very serious, Lin looked at them in turn before adding, "My little niece will soon bring into the world her third child, and the announcement about the new rationing and shortage literally scares her!"
Red and Mei looked at her, seeming both empathetic and worried, at the same time.
***
"You just can't go away, just like that!"
Mei's voice was plaintive, but the tone of her father, when he answered, showed that he was clearly resolved. "I must, you've heard him, and we both personally know many people who suffer, not only our old friend Lin. I'm a burden for the Community, while I stay inside it, consuming its resources!"
The harshness of the voice startled Red, who was listening in the corridor, hidden behind the door of the living room.
"The dojo needs its Master, "added her adoptive mother.
"You can take over the dojo, without any problem. I know it, I saw how you educated the youth, you're a born-educationalist!" answered the old man, with a mix of softness and assertiveness in the tone of his voice.
"Please, don't quit me," the young woman said, approaching her father from behind, while, having turned around, he was putting many of his belongings in a big bag - and notably, his in its scabbard.
He turned around and, through a keyhole, Red saw her Sensei put his arms on his daughter's shoulders, pull her kindly toward him, and finally, pressed her against him.
The teen was surprised; she wasn't used to see Hiroto show himself as being so warm, in an occidental way. But after thinking about it, she concluded that, because of the harshness of the reality, even these two Asians, that she loved so much, had the right to show their emotions.
"Go, now," Hiroto said, smiling warmly at Mei, "And please, respect my decision by not trying, again, to change my mind. You know very well how much I abhor the fate that physicians have predicted to me." He stopped speaking, seeing that his daughter remained standing in front of him, tears flowing down her cheeks. He sighed and said, with a harsher tone, "Please leave me alone, I need to arrange a few things before my departure."
Despite her watery eyes, her adoptive mother nodded respectfully, lowering her gaze to avoid his, and turning around, walked back toward the door.
Behind it, Red leapt swiftly toward an ancient samurai armor, and crouched behind it.
The door opened and the teen, hiding behind the armor, saw Mei go through the corridor. Red heard her continuing to cry. The young woman disappeared in her bedroom, a few meters farer, after angrily closing its door behind her.
The ginger teen came out of hiding and, looking again through the keyhole, she watched Hiroto. He was busy while he was striving to finish packing his bags. Finally he stopped, obviously satisfied.
He then drew his sword out of its sheath and lifted it, handling it with a firm hand. He suddenly twirled swiftly with it, training as if he was battling against many opponents. While she was contemplating him, Red knew, since the beginnings of her training at the dojo, that such "fights with the shadows" are an excellent way to train.
Suddenly he stopped, beginning to shudder and shake.
Then he almost collapsed on the ground, narrowly avoiding falling by pressing with a hand on a nearby table.
The teen was going to leap toward her adoptive mother's father when she stopped her movement, seeing that he had finally avoided to fall. But she was actually worried, as she saw him stabilize himself by pressing his free hand against a wall, short of breath. And she wasn't at all surprised...
Despite doing a lot of efforts to hide his health problems, the old man wasn't able to avoid the worried curiosity of his daughter and granddaughter. She had learnt about his Cancer. She knew that, like many of his male ancestors, he wished infinitely being killed while fighting, instead of dying quietly, on his deathbed, while being unable to hold his bowels. She respected his wish...
But at the same time, feeling an immense fondness for him, she couldn't accept the idea of losing him.
***
Expedition
"Red, your breakfast is ready," Mei said, using her softest voice, as usual, to help her marmot-like daughter to awaken.
Not the slightest movement in the bed…
Her heart racing hard in her chest, the young woman looked with more attention at the bed, from the doorway. In the darkness of the bedroom, which was slightly lightened through the frame of the door by the dim lamps of the corridor, she could see the ginger teen, who was sleeping.
"Red, thank goodness, you're still in bed!" Mei almost yelled , sighing with relief.
The girl didn't move, but Mei was used to it, the girl loving to prolong her moments in bed.
"You must quickly have some breakfast, before going to school. I must go outside for a few minutes, and then, I'll be back. Don't force me to have to awaken you twice this morning, please."
The young woman walked into the corridor, opened the door of the apartment that she closed behind her.
Then, after having crossed the hall of the flat, she walked outside, hearing a frenzied crowd. She went past flowered groves and other buildings toward a van, parked in front of the closed, gargantuan d
oors.
Her father, Johnny, and Bo were standing near the vehicle, and they were facing a crowd. And facing them too, in front of the people, was Joshua Adams, standing behind his perennial wooden pulpit.
As Mei approached, she saw that he was smiling at them, the same way as his two bodyguards. One stood on each side of the old politician, standing lower on the grass, like the crowd. And they weren't the only ones smiling; all the people in front of the trio too.
Not because they love them, Mei told herself. Simply because they're relieved to not have to quit the Community in their place!
As she arrived between the friendly trio and the old man in white, who was in the middle of a speech, she read on the front of the pulpit a sentence which disgusted her:
FAREWELL TO OUR HEROES
"... and your sacrifice will remain in all our memories, with the hope that, one day, not too far away, you will come back to us, with what is needed to save the Community!"
He stopped speaking and the crowd gathered behind Adams cheered loudly.
This clearly impressed Bo and Johnny, who looked at them in awe, while Hiroto remained impassive, quietly observing Adams and the people. He had his sabre on the side of his belt, in its scabbard.
Johnny, observing the attitude of his Sensei, took back control of himself, becoming equally impassive.
He then walked toward Adams and, raising his chin to look him in his eyes, he whispered, "Don't think you've got rid of us, Adams. One day, all three of us will come back. And when that day arrives, you'll..."
"Great to hear that, Mister Jackson, you really have the spirit of a warrior," the old man said, slightly mockingly, interrupting him in the process. "But you must be corrected: you won't be three during this journey, but four in fact, as it was the case of very well-known warriors, The Three Musketeers, when d’Artagnan joined them!"
Hungry Series: Tomes 1 & 2 Page 20