The commentator, most probably a member of the Party, ended his report with the words, ‘All members of the Federation should bear in mind that the Sparta Solstice celebration is entirely self-funded.’
Berlin-Warsaw-Kiev
The planetrain came to a halt in the underground station in Berlin. Time – and the stops in Paris, Brussels and Frankfurt – had passed unnoticed by Dimitri. During each acceleration and deceleration he had mechanically fastened and unfastened his belt.
A flock of screaming, playful children swarmed into the compartment. From their uniforms one could tell this was a group of ‘Eaglet’ scouts, the youngest division of the federal youth organization. They were over-excited at the prospect of boarding a bullet-train for the first time. They were no doubt going to attend a camp in some forest in the Urals or Siberia. These camps were very popular.
One of the kids accidentally hit Dimitri in the face with his backpack. The leader of the group – a Valkyrie with an exquisite body – apologised profusely (seeing Dimitri’s prestigious Plenipotentiary Councillor’s uniform). She shouted in German at the kids, who suddenly became silent and took their seats.
Following the Renaissance of 2030, the demographic winter and the depopulation caused by the Great Catastrophe, demographic levels had risen again, as if the collective biological unconscious had been awakened. Now children were everywhere. Losses needed to be made up for, although 18% of the births among members of the elite were assisted by genetic engineering: pregnancies in incubators – saving women the trouble – ensuring a ‘planned genome improvement’. Use of this technology, however, was strictly banned in the neo-traditional communities and in any case subject to the approval of the Imperial Eugenics Committee. Children born through artificial procreation were often consecrated as ‘wards of the Empire’ and assigned to educational centres where they were trained to become ultra-performing cadres. China, the Federation’s great rival, had also adopted this policy; in the field of eugenics, it even held a certain advantage.
The train decelerated again. It was now reaching Warsaw. A dark-skinned and very beautiful girl with long, jet-black hair down to her shoulders and dressed in a violet sari stopped in front of the empty seat next to Dimitri.
‘I haven’t made a reservation, but can I sit here?’ she asked in English, pointing to the empty seat.
‘Please do, Miss...’
Dimitri’s heart rate increased slightly. The foreign girl gave off a sweet scent. As was customary, she introduced herself with an enticing smile.
‘My name is Nafissa Godjab. I am the daughter of the Maharaja[6] of Gopal, the Indian Minister of Foreign Affairs. I have just completed a two months’ study programme in the Eurosiberian Federation.’
Dimitri in turn introduced himself, specifying his rank. ‘I’m the Plenipotentiary Councillor of the Inter-State Court of St. Petersburg, to which I answer. My role is to resolve conflicts within the Federation. I am also responsible to the Imperial Government in Brussels, where my offices are located. I am now returning from a meeting that took place in one of our states, Brittany, and will be joining my family for a ten days’ holiday in my native town, Dorbisk, in eastern Siberia, on the shores of the Bering Strait.’
The Indian girl gazed at Dimitri’s uniform with a silent smile.
‘So you’re an important man, then? And no doubt a very cultured one, too?’
Dimitri wasn’t sure what to answer. The young aristocrat was making a strong impression on him and he could feel himself blush. He said, ‘I have a daughter your age. Her name is Lizia. She looks like you, although she’s blonde; she’s as charming as you are. She’s studying history... As for whether I’m an “important man”, this is a different matter. I serve the Great Homeland and travel across it, far and wide, to ensure its unity...’
The girl didn’t answer. She lowered her eyes and took a small recorder out of her tiger-skin bag.
‘Mr. Councillor, in the Indian Empire they don’t teach world history very well. It is as if they wish to hide what happened. Not even my own father will speak a word about it. What happened after the end of the Twentieth century? In my country people speak of a “Great Rapture”.’
Nafissa was speaking in a low voice, staring at Dimitri with her wide, black eyes. The Councillor couldn’t refuse any request from a daughter of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Indian Empire on a study exchange in the Federation. It was a diplomatic requirement that he answer. And besides, she was so pretty... So Dimitri decided to hold a short history course.
Acceleration pinned them to their seats. The screen in front of them displayed the speed of the train: ‘7,800 kilometres per hour. Next stop Kiev, in 15 minutes.’ A list of airship connections for a dozen Ukrainian cities followed.
‘The world you know today,’ Dimitri started explaining to the girl, ‘has little to do with that of the Twentieth century. The civilisation that had developed between the Sixteenth and Twentieth centuries and had progressively spread globally – the period which reactionary, backward-looking idiots continue to refer to as the Golden Age or “500 years of glory”, and which they would like to restore – was founded on utopia and ended with a deadlock and monstrous collapse. In line with the scientific predictions made in the late Twentieth century, and which governments ignored, this global civilisation and politico-economic system brutally plunged into chaos because of a dramatic convergence of disasters of all sorts that multiplied, according to the “chaos theory” or “catastrophe theory” developed by Twentieth century mathematicians René Thom and Ilya Progogine.’
‘How did this happen? Have you got any memories of it?’
‘I was ten when it all happened. The explosion hit suddenly, without any warning, in 2014. But of course you are so young...’
Dimitri gazed intently into the eyes of this 20-year-old Indian beauty. His gaze then lingered, almost involuntarily, on the girl’s breast, which was protruding from under her sari.
‘Please answer my question, Mr. Councillor, and stop giving me the eye – it’s not proper. I should remind you that in the Indian Empire, interracial love affairs are strictly punished, even when they take place abroad.’
Nafissa was speaking calmly, with a smile on her face. Dimitri blushed and cleared his throat.
‘But that wasn’t at all my intention. Now, let me answer your question. First off, “chaos theory”: any system, be it a civilisation, moving vehicle, drop of water on the wing of a plane, climate condition, human relationship or living being, is a form of balance deriving from complex interrelations. It is enough for a single parameter to change for the whole system to suddenly fall out of balance: the civilisation will crumble, the drop of water will fall off the wing of the plane, a storm will break out, a couple will divorce, symptoms of illness will appear, and so on. The system, in other words, will disappear – this is the “catastrophe”. Then, after a period of latency and resetting – the “chaos” – a new system will come to light, one based on different relationships. This is precisely what happened to the global civilisation of the Twentieth century. It was too big a bubble not to burst.’
‘I think I understand. But how did it all happen? I’m interested in this because I also study traditional theatre and would like to write a piece about this mysterious “Great Catastrophe”.’
‘What?’ Dimitri said with surprise. ‘Don’t they teach you anything in Indian schools? Have you never studied history?’
‘No. In my country, the people in charge have decided to remain silent on this matter. They pretend nothing happened – that the “old world” never existed. No doubt, because they fear people may want to restore this ancient civilisation and return to the Western model. Besides, we don’t have any “history courses”. The word itself doesn’t exist. History for us doesn’t exist: what we are taught about are our ancestral traditions and the lives of our gods. Of course, I belong to the caste of those who have preserved a technological lifestyle and have a passport to travel abr
oad, but still...’
‘But what?’ said Dimitri, who was impressed by the intellectual brightness of the Indian girl.
‘Your “theory of catastrophe” is simply what our poets call the mechanism of tragedy. As I told you, I’m studying theatre. The ancient Greeks, too, used to say the same thing.’
Kiev-Moscow
A beep was followed by a blinking red light. The screen announced, ‘Fasten your seatbelt. Deceleration level G2.[7] We are arriving in Kiev.’
Dimitri went on, ‘It was the year 2014 and my parents were working as Russian diplomats in Paris. I was ten years old at the time and was attending an international school in the 16th arrondissement, near the embassy. I can remember it as if it had happened yesterday. I was very mature for my age. That year, 2014, really was a black one. It took us by storm: tragedy, as you say, occurred all too suddenly.’
The Russian councillor was speaking in a low voice, broken by emotion. Clearly, he was reliving a traumatic moment in his life. Only the charm of beautiful Nafissa persuaded him to continue his narrative.
‘Were there any signs of warning?’
‘Yes. Symptoms of the tragedy were already becoming clearly visible, according to historians, in the late 1970s and then became even clearer in the 1990s. According to the chaos or catastrophe theory outlined by Thom and Prigogine, the changing of a single parameter is enough to make a system collapse. This is the so-called “butterfly effect”. In this case, a dozen changed parameters were converging!’
The girl was hanging on Dimitri’s every word.
‘So, how did it all start?’ she whispered.
The train came to a halt in the underground station of the capital of Ukraine. Some people got off, while others filled what seats still remained vacant. Dimitri noticed the presence of several imperial and military officials, wearing a dark-violet uniform with a golden shark on its collar badge. These were officers from the H.L. – the ‘Hoplite[8] Legion’: the elite troops of the Federation.
As the planetrain set off, they were again pinned to their seats. On the screen a sign in various languages read, ‘We are currently travelling at a speed of 14,000 kilometres per hour and will be reaching Moscow in 10 minutes.’
Dimitri went on, ‘Ethnic revolts had been breaking out in Paris and other big European cities for a number of years. No government had managed to curb unemployment. A year of slight improvement was followed by an even more serious decline. Poverty spread and it became practically impossible to leave one’s house after sunset. The ageing of the population had destroyed the social security and pensions system, and the flight of intellectuals and unchecked immigrations made things even worse. Gangs of thugs and descendants of immigrant families led to a climate of unbearable insecurity in the cities, including in neighbourhoods that had previously been spared this plight. A sort of rampant and endemic civil war had broken out, which the police could hardly control. Starting in 1998, particularly in France, ethnic gangs from the banlieues made a habit of regularly pillaging and looting town centres.’
‘But why didn’t people and governments react?’
‘They were paralysed by a jumble of old humanitarian ideologies. And besides, after the Amsterdam Treaty of 1999,[9] not only did individual European governments have hardly any real power, but even the embryonic European federal government still didn’t have any. This interregnum was a time of paralysis. To cut a long story short, between 1999 and 2014, the year of the global explosion, France dragged Western Europe into the abyss. Everything came together and added up with increasing effect: the economic crisis, impoverishment, latent ethnic conflict... Starting in 2002, the gross domestic product of Europe dwindled and then hit rock bottom.’
Nafissa continued focusing on the Councillor’s words.
‘You are contributing to my thesis with some extremely interesting facts. We know nothing about these things in India.’
The girl drank a glass of ‘Regenerator’ served by the hostess. This was a vitamin-rich drink with slightly euphoric effects which was perfectly harmless but was completely unavailable to ordinary people. Dimitri continued staring longingly at Nafissa.
‘In fifteen days I’ll be back in Brussels. Come visit my office: I can give you many documents on this historical period in support of your thesis... I would also like to take the chance to invite you for dinner in an excellent tavern run by some monks.’
‘Does “Vitalist Constructivism” authorise you to do so?’
Vitalist constructivism was the official ideology of the Federation.
‘Considering your rank, I don’t think this will be a problem. You must have an international alpha level certificate, right?’
‘Yes, thanks to my father. I have the right to come and go wherever I like in your Empire.’
With a smile, she took out a plastic-coated gold card adorned by a white dove with a red key in its mouth: the pass the Federation issued for foreigners. Nafissa burst out laughing. She then stopped and asked:
‘Did no one resist? Why did the state give in? Why didn’t people react? I’m talking about France, the place where you say it all started...’
‘Well, yes: some people did react. There was a political party, the Front National. They had been seeking to prevent the catastrophe since the 1980s. But theirs was an impossible task. The party was demonised by the elites – deeply masochistic elites, which collaborated with the enemy. A dying folk is always fascinated by the abyss. The Front National tried to react, but in vain. In 2014, it received 30% of the votes in France despite the increasing number of descendants of immigrants and newly arrived immigrants from the southern countries.’
‘In India there is a saying that goes: “It is never men who do things, only Shiva.”’[10]
Moscow Station
The car started shaking slightly. It slowed and entered the underground station in Moscow. Dimitri explained, ‘The atmospheric pressure is normalising. The bullet-train is shaking because air molecules are hitting its cockpit. Don’t be afraid.’
‘I’m not afraid. In India they also teach us some physics....’
‘Your Indian proverb is most apt. Humans have no wisdom: they always do things at the very last moment. People only react when a cataclysm hits them – which usually means when it’s too late, as was the case here. Instead of carrying out reasonable reforms before the tragedy occurs, they prefer to carry out brutal, terrible revolutions later. This is exactly what happened. It is God who forced us to reset out clocks. It is He who governs our destiny.’
‘No. It’s the gods,’ Nafissa said in a low voice.
‘The sinister year 2014 witnessed the convergence of four events: in France, revolts of an unprecedented level of violence broke out; the police were overwhelmed and the powerless government did not dare call in the army. That year, the endemic uprisings caused by the (usually armed) ethnic gangs that moved from their lawless enclaves to attack city centres turned into a real insurrection, which ravaged France between 2014 and 2016. The political elections of February 2014 only brought things to a head. An increasing number of voters were of immigrant origin, and so what had been predicted in the 1980s finally happened: the Parti Populaire Musulman (Popular Muslim Party or PPM) received 26% of the votes and the Front National 30%. Things quickly escalated from there. The “secular and Republican” centre-Left coalition was no longer able to govern. The demands of the PPM became increasingly unacceptable. Some people accused them of wanting to turn France into an “Islamic Republic”. One of the party’s extremist leaders replied: “Yes, for within ten years we well be in the majority. By then, France will be an Islamic land. This is our revenge for the Crusades and colonisation!” The Front National then issued a call for “Resistance, Reconquest and Liberation”. It is in this context that the extremist Muslim leader of the PPM group in the National Assembly was murdered.’
‘By a member of the National Front, I guess?’ Nafissa asked.
‘No. Probably by the Algerian secret service
s, in order to spark a revolt among Muslims in France. Bear in mind that since 2004, North African countries had turned into fundamentalist Islamic Republics that were extremely hostile to France. In other words, this murder signalled the beginning of a widespread revolt of an unprecedented level of violence.’
The girl gave Dimitri a wide-eyed look of astonishment.
He went on, ‘In a short time, the plague spread to England and then Belgium and Holland – countries which also hosted large immigrant communities and where Islamic parties similar to the PPM had many voters and an ambition to seize power. The European government in Brussels was utterly at a loss. That’s when the first wide-scale strikes took place. The economy was gradually paralysed and then shortages of basic goods like water and food began. My family stayed in the embassy with other diplomats. We didn’t dare go out. The rioters were setting fire to buildings in the town centre and the streets echoed with gunshots. Still, no order was given to the army to intervene! The police were overwhelmed. The Front National set up “patriotic self-defence militias” and a “National Resistance Council”. But it was too late: the French Republic, civil order and the economic system were all collapsing. Gradually, people fled the cities. A terrible economic crisis followed the civil war.’
‘Did no one manage to re-establish order?’ the Indian girl asked in amazement.
‘No. Ours was a society that was growing old and was undermined by the viruses of pacifism and humanitarianism. It was incapable of defending itself. Consider that between 2014 and 2016, part of Western Europe – France, Great Britain, Belgium and Holland – quite simply returned to the Middle Ages. Even international aid could not reach us because of the civil war. It is now believed that 40% of the population in this area died as a result of war, famines and epidemics! In only three years, part of Western Europe plunged into anarchy. States simply disappeared. The government in Brussels was no longer of any use. Armed gangs scoured the countryside in search of food. Trains and cars stopped running. The French fled to refugee camps in Germany, Italy and Spain. And there were no longer any television broadcasts...’
Archeofuturism Page 26
