Zion

Chapter 1

 TOGETHER WE ARE ONE. A7173 glances up at the sign gilded above the entrance to The House of Governance – oos' place of work. It is among many other such buildings, which all contribute to the collective running and control of Zion. They stand proudly upon The Elevation, an impressive structure spanning roughly one kilometer in diameter, which hangs in the sky; held in place by nuclear reactor stabilizer engines. The only way of reaching it is through the use of A/biotic Transmitters. Each block on the ground, a few kilometers below, is equipped with one.

A7173 walks through the central arch and enters the building. Oos is scanned by the Core Card Reader upon entrance and is permitted to move on through the lobby of the grand, fifty storey establishment. The House of Governance, which is uniform in style to all other buildings in Zion, has a curvaceous chrome and glass exterior. The skeletal framework is made up of an organic concrete with a light grey and green hue. The greenish tint derives from the photosynthesizing nature of the substance, which generates oxygen and allows the synthetic forest to act as the ancient trees and plankton would have. The atmosphere of the New World has satisfactory amounts of breathable air, but in order to maintain a comfortable lifestyle, the Betas (inventors, teachers, and scientists) choose to maintain an optimum level of oxygen within Zion's atmosphere.

A7173 passes a cluster of Deltas, responsible for maintenance throughout the city; all engaged in routine maintenance of the central lift shafts. The majority of Zion is self-repairing, but on occasion there is a need for Deltas to handle more complex tasks. With the lift out of order, A7173 will need to utilize the stairwell for the time being. However, due to the ingenious Core Card, which is installed into each and every Perfect upon their Hatchment Day, oos already knew this.

The Core Card is the omnipotent reason behind the order and collective workings of Zion's residents. It is what connects each Perfect to the Communal Cognitive Processing Web (or Web for short). It enhances the brain capacity and processing power of each Perfect and links the minds of all. No single Perfect has an individual thought or life experience, as everything is shared with the rest of the population. What A7173 sees through oos' eyes, is transmitted to each and every other Perfect. The same is the case for the other senses, not merely sight alone. It is much like the internet of years gone by, but now in a biological state; with lightening speed bandwidth and without the inconvenience of needing to log in.

A7173 ascends to the tenth floor in minimal time, with no evidence of an elevated heart rate or need to pause to inhale, and enters oos' cubical of work. Around A7173, the office floor stretches out with one hundred identical desks, with one hundred identical Perfects seated at them. Each works in silence on their individually prescribed sector of vocation. Information is shared between occupants of each desk and consequently each floor, by the Web; therefore alleviating any need to leave one's desk throughout the assigned working period. Oos sits, swipes oos' hand over the desk and an array of interactive holographic displays are projected in front of oos.  A7173 begins logging this week's quota for Perfect embryos within each class.

A7173 pulls up the statistical numbers for each group. Alphas (responsible for governance and decision making) is the first group to be analyzed.

Number of remaining operational Alpha type Perfects: 956 643 – Maximum Capacity: 1 000 000.

This is the number of Alphas which are fully matured and working, as well as the number which Zion is currently able to accommodate.

Number of Decommissions this past week: 0.

A Decommissioning is likely the worst sentence for a Perfect. If this sentence is passed, it means that the individual in question is no longer fit to be part of the Perfect race and therefore must be euthanized. This usually happens due to an unwarranted mutation within one's genetic makeup or because they have engaged in Self-Thinking. Self-Thinking is the only crime within Zion, as it is the gateway to all other crimes. The Core Card of a Self-Thinking Perfect is immediately severed from the Web, to ensure the infection does not spread to the rest of the population. They are then captured and decommissioned on the spot.

Number of Deceased this past week: 10.

Although genetically gifted with immortality, eventually all Perfects will die. Sometimes this may occur due to an accident or such like unforeseen demise, but most go owing to a decision that lengthy life spans of one hundred and fifty years, is sufficient. Thereafter, they are eradicated when a chemical is released from their Core Card, on their Death Day. The allotted time is put in place as a precautionary measure, as living any longer is thought to provide too much time for experience and ultimately Self-Thinking.

Number in Growth Phase: 1 000.

This is the incubation state, from the day of conception until the day of hatching.

Number in Rearing Phase: 1 200.

The time of education and growth; before the Central Card is activated within their cerebral cortex. Each juvenile Perfect is instilled with knowledge of their destined field of work as well as given an understanding of the intricate workings of Zion.

Number in Preparation Phase: 900.

In order for Perfects to take up their roles in society, they need to be trained in their class, to the extent whereby once they enter the Operational Phase, they are fully equipped to live out their lives, providing Zion with all that is required of them.

Recommendation: 900 additional units.

Recommendations are generally made by Artificially Intelligent analytical computers, which assess the data and then offer up their findings to the Perfect in question. Perfects are not governed by AI, but instead, use it as a guide to making calculated decisions.

A7173 reviews the available resources required to create a batch of 900 additional units and finds it best to allocate another 700 and wait before processing any further.

Oos continues through the inventory log. Following the same process for Betas; Charlies (the police force, responsible for maintaining order and capturing any Self-Thinkers); Deltas; Echoes (responsible for any dirty jobs and cleaning of Zion); Foxtrots...

Foxtrots are Homo sapiens hunters. There are resistance pockets of Homo sapiens, or as they refer to themselves: 'humans', who hide in undisclosed areas around what is left of the Old World. But how can you create a world of Perfection, when there are still imperfections running free? That is why the need for Foxtrots is so great.

A7173 notes the alarming number of deceased Foxtrots over the past week alone.

Number of Deceased this past week: 140.

With such a high mortality rate, something must have gone dreadfully wrong. A7173 dials in the need for a higher number of new units than recommended and continues to the Golfers (the explorers). After the destruction of all satellites during the Wars of Old, things such as Global Positioning Satellites are a luxury of the past. Therefore the need for Golfers arose – in order to map out the land of the New World. Again, however, A7173 discovers an alarming number of deceased Perfects.

Number of Deceased this past week: 53.

Something is dreadfully wrong. Somehow a mass of Perfects are dying, but the citizens of Zion are unaware of it. How could this be? There have been incidents within the past, whereby humans managed to overpower the Perfects who had left the sanctuary of Zion... but never like this. In those cases, every citizen was aware of the hostile, due to the Web, why not this time? How could so many Perfects have disappeared without Zion's knowledge?

A7173 immediately puts through a request to the oldest Alpha in Zion, A1821. Immediately A1821 responds via the Web and it is agreed that they shall travel to the Central Hub, which houses the Web, to investigate the missing data. Ordinarily, A7173 would simply utilize one of the A/biotic Transporters, but following the realization of this news oos opts to walk over to the Central Hub instead.

A7173 heads along the lit, white corridor until reaching the transparent, glass lift – now operational. That is one key characteristic of all Zion residents – efficiency. Nothing may be delayed or slackened upon and all Perfects strive to ensure this constant conveyer belt of excellence. A7173 enters the glass box and begins the speedy descent to the ground floor. Each floor has a balcony, which stretches its circumference. Thankfully this has never been an issue, as no Perfect has ever taken to being suicidal (except perhaps the odd Self-Thinker).

Very few other Perfects are seen about at this point in the day and for A7173 this is hardly a problem. Oos allows oos to soak in the sun's rays which greet oos outside the building. Oos marches down the stairs, leading from the entrance, notes an increase in wind velocity and closes oos' protective layer eyelid, to prohibit any passing dust particles from entering oos' eyes.

The walkways are four meters wide and spotless; the Echoes constantly ensuring city-wide cleanliness. The other buildings lining the walkways stretch nearly as high as the Central Governance building and all have the same, neat, shimmer to them.

Opposite A7173's workplace, is the Command Tower for all Foxtrot activities. Why had they not noted the discrepancy? And out of all other analysts, why is A7173 the first to pick up on this?

The Central Hub is short four blocks from The House of Governance and is a large, geodesic dome structure; seemingly protruding from the ground (a synthetic hillock); its pale white exterior emitting a glare in the harsh sun.

Two Charlies guard the entrance, with Neuro-Stunners draped across their grey bodies. A Neuro-Stunner is a highly unpleasant rifle to be shot by. It emits a rapid-fire pulse which attacks the nervous system and instantly renders an assailant unconscious for up to an entire hour, dependant on the power setting used.

A7173 is permitted to pass. Oos walks through the first biometric access pane and meets A1821, who stands waiting for A7173 at the secondary access pane. This second pane is the most important as it scans for social rank, clearance level and any signs of Self-Thinking. Upon failure of acquiring clearance, the Perfect attempting to enter receives a Neuro-Stun and is taken in for analysis and possible decommissioning.

A1821 enters the pane and it immediately illuminates green. A7173 steps forward, waits to be scanned and has a momentary sense of hesitation before the pane turns green.