by Chris Hawley
CHAPTER TEN
A MEETING OF THE COUNCIL OF ELDERS
I learnt that the Council of Elders of the Similaria clan met twice every surama, about every eighteen days, in the Grand Hall. It was an important occasion, as it was the only time when all the ninety-nine members of the clan got together. Everyone who could was expected to be there. It was the meeting where they discussed important things that affected them and anyone, whatever their position in the clan, was free to speak their mind. No agenda was prepared in advance and nothing was written down. I got to know that, in fact, Similarians didn’t record anything in written or printed form. Normally, no-one outside the clan was allowed to attend so I was excited when Michu told me that I was to be invited to the next meeting, to be held that evening. I was curious to know why I was so honoured.
‘Is there anything special I need to wear?’ I asked.
‘Everyone here wears the same,’ she replied. ‘Simple, isn’t it?’
‘Not even the elders wear special clothes?’
‘No person is considered more important than any others. The elders show their importance in the clan only by their dignity.’
‘Our teacher told us it was the ideal of Communism,’ I said, ‘a society where everyone is equal.’
Michu laughed. ‘But in the end some became more equal than others, didn’t they? The problem was greed. Leaders were not prepared to serve the people: they only wanted to serve themselves, to amass power.’
‘And the people suffered terribly, didn’t they?’
‘Yes, the ordinary people were downtrodden and stripped of their dignity. Even now the majority of the world’s people live in inhuman conditions. Similaria, like most clans on Mars, runs on the hard work of all members. No-one gets paid for what they do; they do it for the good of all. We all eat enough and we are all fully occupied. If we as a clan are lacking something, there is always a neighbouring clan that would help out, just as we would help another clan if it needed it. We are a very close community but we never forget the needs of others around us.’
I shook my head. ‘If only we could live like that on Earth.’
‘Perhaps you will one day,’ said Michu. ‘You will be one of those who will bring about change on your planet.’
What she had said occupied my mind as we made our way to the Grand Hall for the meeting that evening. Was my visit to Mars planned by others for the sake of the future of our world? What part was I destined to play in the rescue of our environment? I was excited and at the same time scared.
The Grand Hall was reached by a series of ascending pathways and stairs, leading upwards to the end of the cavern furthest from the entrance. As Michu and I climbed higher and higher, turning first this way and then that, at times a winding stairway appearing to be suspended in midair, at other times a narrow ledge that seemed to be hollowed out from the rock face, I looked down from time to time. I could make out figures coming up behind us, shadowy in their grey suits in the dim light. As we climbed, the roof of the cavern rose before us and then suddenly opened out, revealing an enormous dome, which towered above us. At the same time the final stretch of path levelled out and we entered the magnificent hall, several times larger than the largest cathedral I had ever seen. It certainly deserves its name, I thought, and I wondered how many Martians could fit in such a place, many more than ninety-nine, I was sure.
‘It is used for many purposes,’ explained Michu, as we began to cross the hall, our footsteps echoing on the stone floor, ‘As well as clan meetings, we hold regional get-togethers, where many other clans from hundreds of kilometres around meet to discuss matters of mutual interest. We also hold indoor sports meetings here.’
‘Which sports do you have here?’ I asked.
‘Our favourite sport is the game of Sombrillo.’ Michu stopped to greet a group of Similarians, who were chatting together. I was introduced as an Earth friend. ‘Will I get a chance to see a game?’ I asked, as we continued on past the group towards the middle of the hall.
‘I hope so, Bill,’ said Michu. ‘I will explain the rules of the game later. It is very exciting to watch. Players can jump many metres into the air to head the sombro and the skill is in judging its course and making contact with it without touching another player. The pitch is very large, at least twice as big as your football pitch.’
‘Wow!’ I could image why it is so popular on Mars.
‘We have other games. There is no reward for the winners of any of the games. We play for the enjoyment and the exercise, not for competition.’
I thought of how much our top sportsmen earn and because of the rewards how much importance is placed on winning. Our sports on Earth have become so commercialised the enjoyment of the game is often spoilt. I couldn’t wait to see my first game of Sombrillo. Would I get the chance to play?
‘You could attend a practice session and if you like it you might get a chance,’ Michu said encouragingly.
By now we had crossed the hall and were heading in the direction of a smaller area on the right hand side, enclosed by natural rough stone walls, where there were already about thirty people standing in groups. They must be preparing themselves to speak at the meeting, I thought. Or perhaps those who went on the expedition were telling the others about it. No more was said about the game but the excitement of the idea was to stay with me.
When everyone had assembled and had sat down on the cushions provided, the hall went quiet. Michu and I sat down in the third row from the front. Before us, against the wall of the cavern, there was a raised platform, a kind of stage. It was empty and I realised that it was where the elders would sit. I studied the ceiling of the enclosure. It was lit by the same soft light and the crystals reflected the light to all parts of the chamber. I counted the seated figures. There were ninety-two, and some of them were children. I saw Sofu, Anamaru and Manu and we exchanged greetings across the room. I did my arithmetic and decided, if there were ninety-nine Similarians, there must be seven elders. We waited in silence for the elders to appear.
During that time my mind wandered off. It went back to the morning, (I suppose it was the morning), and my landing on the Red Planet. Such a long time ago, it seems to me. Yet it could only be a few hours. I wonder how many hours there are in a Martian day and in a Martian night. But maybe they don’t have days and nights like we do. But now I remember seeing some of Mars in shadow as we landed, so there must be some darkness. I will have to ask Michu. And another strange thing; living under the ground like they do, how do they tell if it is day or night? I haven’t seen a clock since I arrived and yet everyone seems to know what time to come to the meeting. How do they know when it is time to eat and time to go to bed?
After what seemed like hours, but was probably only twenty minutes, all heads turned towards the right and I craned my neck to see what was the cause of this. Out of an opening in the wall on the right of the platform appeared a man dressed in the standard Martian tunic. He had long white hair and a long white beard. Behind him walked a woman, similarly dressed, who I guessed was younger because her hair was just beginning to go grey. She was followed by three other small figures of varying heights, one woman and two men. What struck me most was that not one was fat and they all walked very straight. I then understood what Michu had said about their dignity.
The five elders look their positions on the cushions provided. Why only five? I said to myself. That means two Similarians are not here. A prayer was said, after which a short silence followed. Then the white-haired man got to his feet, bowed and spoke in a clear booming voice, in a language I could not understand. After speaking for five or six minutes he paused and then continued in perfect English.
‘For the benefit of our special guest, who does not speak our tongue, Kisoro, I will repeat what I have already said to you, dear brothers and sisters.’
He looked straight at me and smiled. No-one else looked round at me, and that surprised me. They all knew who I was, where I came from and my reason for being ther
e. I was touched by the friendliness of my welcome and the politeness shown by not staring at me.
‘Welcome all of you to our first meeting of the year 7445. This is an important occasion and I an extremely grateful for your one hundred percent attendance. Our sister you will meet later. We thank the Almighty for allowing us to be together and for its blessing for the continued health of our dear community.’
The white-haired elder went on to give, in English, a short summary of the main events of the year 7444, with its successes and difficulties. He then spoke again in their language for another ten minutes, before continuing in English.
‘Similaria faces challenges in the year ahead. All of these are surmountable with the cooperation and ingenuity of our people, save one.’ Here he paused and looked round at the audience.
I turned and looked at Michu, who gave me a quick glance and a nervous smile. My mind went back to earlier in the day, when I had asked her if their clan had any enemies and she had not wanted to tell me.
‘You all know, with the exception of our visitor, to what I am referring. It is so important that we elders have decided to dedicate a special meeting to this one issue that threatens the very existence of Similaria and indeed the existence of life on our planet. The meeting will take place tomorrow at this time. All of you are urged to attend.’