by Divya Singh
With a voice in my headphone-
“ b) Ship Information
The ship ‘Asclepia’ was built by SNS Magnifique Inc. in April of the year 2281. The ship building contractor Quinny Parable and associates handed it over to Viva La Vida LMN international cruise liner who fleeted it in Los Angeles Shipyard at 8:00 am on 22nd November 2281.”
“Gross Tonnage 261581, Weight Displacement 131000 tons, Length 1381 feet, Hull weight 59000 tons, 3 open decks, open porch, Retractable Roof covering, 6600 rooms with adjustable boundaries and dimensions…..”
But this information was also pretty technical for me to understand so I decided to go to the ship interior option-
“c) Ship Interior
The ship is built with almost identical room structures with expandable or retractable dimensions. We have 3 decks with circular structure similar to inverted dome, as opening, with balconies of rooms opening over each other. While the centre of the first deck is kept open though coverable by retracting opaque roof when the need be. The circular opening is provided till the five first floors, representing an inverted dome structure.”
“The inverted dome is meant for plantation, vegetable and fruit bearing trees, basically we have had been self dependent ever since embarking on the voyage. To cultivate fresh water we have a Desalinization plant, employing a technique called Electrochemically Mediated Seawater Desalinization. From various sources of energy e.g. from Salinity Gradient, Tidal Power and Solar Energy, we have succeeded in living this far given the most energy efficient equipments and machineries’ low energy consumption.”
“With present capacity we can harness almost 3000 KW a day, which is about for the full capacity of the ship’s needs. But especially when we are not deploying even 15% of our capacity our needs have been sufficient just by the solar power we generate from plants stretched across the roof and other open spaces of the ship. We are producing soil at an impressive pace, by recycling wastes, by chemically curing sewage, growing healthy bacteria…………..”
Okay, so in a nutshell, we are living off pretty well on this ship, it is what I thought and touched ‘The Ship Amenities, icon-
“d) Ship Amenities
The ship holds 6 restaurants, 5 markets, 6 gymnasiums, 2 playing grounds for basketball, skating or football, 6 schools, 1 medical college, a hospital, 11 security cells, 8 prison cells, 5 engineering colleges, 8 research facilities, about twice latest and most efficient medical and research equipments, 3 pools, 3 orchards and 8 small vegetable gardens. All drainage and sewage is mostly brought back into recycling to produce dirt and soil often after treating in refinery plants and subsequent to incineration of harmful and useless components……”
I murmured: “Okay! Everything appears exceptionally well here too.” I dragged my index finger to the next title-
“e) Ship Reconstructible-
We can redesign the ship without having to abandon our places because it has been designed by an excellent engineering acumen and is one of the finest examples of modern day advanced engineering. Our civil engineering department is able to move walls, cabins, fixtures and even research facilities remotely, so as to be able to alter the dimensions of inner cabins, rooms or enclosures. We have two retractable roofs, one which produces enough glass house effect so as to allow ample light and heat to our flora to flourish and solar plant to work at full capacity. While the other retractable roof is opaque, water and air proof, so that when the need be the whole ship transforms into a watercraft submersible for a longer duration as a week or so……..””
I had expected it to be better in the future, which the computer was telling and showing me in fine and carefully made animations. But now I was concerned only about the ‘worse’ part of this future and find ways to make my contributions in rendering it better off.
So, eventually my fingers moved ahead in the main menu pushing for the ship biology head-
“f) Ship Biology
The ship contains, 85% of the species of plant seeds and fruit bearing trees. But we have till now succeeded in planting only 57% of them on our ship. But keeping drawbacks behind, we have an ecosystem of flora on the ship. But for animal kingdom, we only have a few apart from human beings; we have, all dairy and fishery animals, fish, cows, horses, rats, pigs, snakes, birds etc. for research and petting.”
It was all, this subtitle contained. The voice stopped and the main menu showed up again, for the rest of which I only selected Ship Safety, which I decided as the being the last information in this cabin. The voice read again-
“g) Ship Safety
The ship complied with all the safety regulations set by the International Maritime Safety Agency by a 100%. We have had enough life boats with all the basic life support system, as to support all the persons of the ship’s fully expanded capacity. We have back up engines and propeller systems in case we lost our main systems. We have had an advanced Z-rated Iceberg Alert System and Post Collision redressal System based on the extent of damage. The ship had always followed the hitherto set regulations for combustible compounds and machineries on the ship. We have ……….”
…………..and I pushed back to reach the Main Menu, rechecked if there was anything worth paying my attention to, before I took off my headphones. When I thought there wasn’t any, I thanked Gayle with a smile and bid adieu until the next time.
I left The Navigation chambers and walked out to the main corridor, I suddenly I realized that, by adjoining room Albert didn’t mean the cabins in the Navigation Hall, rather the adjoining hall to it which lay extreme right to me right now as I was stepping outside on the corridor.
I then decided to take the first right door towards the first hall with transparent glass walls, I spotted a little glass cabin, where a young tall woman sat on her black seat. As I entered, she looked a bit alarmed but calmed herself down soon. I made the first move and introduced myself-
I introduced: “Hi! I am Danielle Spearhead. Is this the Personnel Department? I seek some information, all categorized as general type. Can you please help me madam?”
She said: “Oh! Hello Danielle! I am Larissa, Personnel Coordinator of the ship. I will feel glad to share any kind of information with you, if you have proper authorization with you now.”
I replied: “Yes, I am duly authorized to access information freely, as The Navigator said my Passkey is DS Reborn 01……”
She cut my sentence midway saying: “Oh then tell me how to help you exactly and excuse me for excessive formality procedures, you know how it is these days? So what information exactly do you need?”
I replied: “Any information which I may find useful and relevant to me and my situation, starting with general information about the people on the ship.”
Larissa: “We have 353 people alive onboard, excluding 27 clones and 7 successfully resurrected people, including you, Danielle. But I am sorry I couldn’t recognize you because I have not seen you before and what is the story with blue skin?”
I almost giggled in disbelief and said: “You are telling me, 353 people live in this Super Gigantic, Super Specialty and Technologically Hi-tech ship? Tell me, you are joking! But I must let you know that it is not the right time for the frivolous stuff. I need serious data!”
Larissa looked a little surprised in disbelief, as if she had held her ground firm and wasn’t kidding me. I still could not trust the reflection of truth on her plain slender face. I was meant to say something but it went like I was unable to as I was struck with a lightening jolt. I sat on the seat next to her left with the impact-
I cried: “Come on Larissa! There was this ship, occupied by more than half of its relaxed capacity, 4002 people passengers Larissa! Where did they all go?”
Larissa: “From the history of the ship, we know that they were lost to fatal chronic genetic diseases and deformities, formally known as Contamination. Those people with such diseases were incurable by the level of medical advancement we have ever had on the ship. We have had one soluti
on that we quarantined the affected and got rid of the deceased to the bottom floors.”
I said: What do you mean by ‘Quarantine the affected’? Deprive them of the necessary medical attention? Isolate them to solitary confinement? And how horrid is it about ‘Getting rid of the deceased’? Throw them in the ocean without proper and appropriate final crematory rituals? Deny them the respect they deserve post death? Is that what you mean by the last statement you just made? Is it the building block of the society of today?” I was furious with the detailed explanation of inhumanity being manifested before me.
Larissa: “Yeah! Almost the same as what you just figured out by yourself!” She was getting annoyed now, I could smell that.
I said interrupting her voice, to annoy her more: “It is inhuman. In fact it is beastly animalistic. Is this what civilization is like today?”
Larissa: “But that was an indispensable solution, otherwise every human on this ship would have got his/her life risked, or for worse suffered himself/herself from the wretched diseases.”
I reclined against the counter sitting on my seat and said: “This does not get any less than disgusting.”
Larissa: “But human lives are much more valuable now, than they were in your era. We get humans created with a lot of effort and difficulty. We make in-vitro embryos of human from rarely available original human beings and others by cloning. Very rarely do we have them unaffected genetically. Minimizing risks is our top priority.”
I said: “Really? Then how are you actually creating humans on the ship? When they were already dying how and where did you get the basic raw material from?”
Larissa: “Well Dani! It is actually meant to be asked of a technical person. But as much as I know we have had 75000 viable embryos initially, almost equal number of them have been used to fabricate humans as the new ones made. So we still be having a storage of about 70000 embryos intact as my roll on the computer says. We have a safe future!” said Larissa looking towards the computer screen through her glasses.
I asked: “Where are the embryos stored?”
Larissa: “The last level.”
Chapter 20: revisit to Despondra
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I just rushed out anguished. The severity of the risk of extinction of the human race was now completely unveiled across my eyes and it was devastating. I had seen the last level and did not wish to frequent it over again, not at least for now. As I was treading back to my room, I remembered about Despondra. My eyebrows got raised up in nervousness and I could not stop my feet which rushed themselves towards her emergency room. As I headed towards that room I found nobody around, but heavy steps from behind made me turn back to take a look at who it was. It was ZA-vi-
ZA-vi: “Hello madam! Despondra has been shifted to a private ward and is out of danger now. Here! Follow me!”
We returned to the corridor before Despondra’s office and turned right towards the second room. There lay Despondra. But I was surprised to find that she seemed a little bit blue as if she had borrowed a little of my own hue. The door was closed and our conversations could not be heard by people inside the room. ZA-vi smiled and looked at me; he obviously had read my thought.
ZA-vi: “She had lost more than half of her blood and was transfused with the same blue blood substitute, as yours.” I had smiled back then, sorry but it was a little amusing!
Suddenly, the door opened and two male doctors who did not care to look at us, ‘Visitors’ walked out of the ward. This was our time to go in and see her. We stepped in almost instantly.
She was pinned to the patient’s bed like I was sometime before. She was conscious and in her senses, but still weakness spoke for her body as she turned her face to look at us. She gasped, to find us in her sight’s range. The woman who had debased and degraded my very existence was nothing like her own original self today.
The element of surprise in her eyes gave way to a guilt, like pain, soon enough. She was finding it difficult to look into my eyes as she knew that this was her turn to be in the Blues. Anticipating her incapacity to start a conversation I decided to lead it my way.
I said: “Hey Doctor! How are you feeling now? It was really hard to imagine you this way!” Soon enough my words froze, as I knew how important was it for me to have her recover back to normal. I was weak, filled with guilt, fear and confusion; so I had to control my tongue from playing a role more widespread than it should.
The sight of blue version of Despondra was not as amusing as relieving was her being alive and safe.
After a moment of calm at both the ends, dampened with guilt and shame, the feeble voice of Despondra rose. It was an exact contrast of what it was like earlier, which was identical to fangs of a poison spitting serpent which gave rise to civil war between us-
Despondra: “I am sorry Danielle, for having spewed hatred twards you. Can I ask for forgiveness? Can I beg you for pardoning me? I swear to Lord that I will never hate you like that or people like you. I no longer hold on to any of the views I shared with you that day. Please forgive me!”
I said: “No doctor! I don’t have bitterness towards you. I have forgiven you. But I wish that you don’t hold hatred towards any kind of human life. I think being a doctor, no; doctor of all the doctors here, deprives you of having any such right to hatred towards mankind.”
Despondra: “I absolutely realize how wrong I have been. Mark my words; you will never see me like that again, ever. It is a promise to my Almighty with you as a witness.”
I was relieved: “That will be really good! Although yet have to be seen, still your medical credentials are a reflection of how great a doctor you are! With a good heart which sees all human lives equally and a doctor who treats all equitably I can’t fathom what the limits are!”
After a moment’s silence sealed with her now pleasant smile, she chuckled-
Despondra: “I am a little blue and you are a little red now. We are pretty alike! Thanks to the blood donor you presumably met.”
It was hard for me to return a smile at my turn but I managed, somehow-
I said: “Yeah! I am actually very grateful to her. May she have an absolute fulfilling life.” I tried to look deep into her green eyes, with guilt of having harmed her to death. The little hue of red I wore on my skin now was brutally snatched away from her, by me.
It made her a little blue, and our complexions were approaching towards an identical tone. As I looked into her eyes and she looked back into mine, I had began sensing a slight bond between us two women, which could in future promise to expand into more, a friendship, a sisterhood or something the present would not reveal.
The eyes had held a glare of repentance, like a hailstorm which had potential to batter and flush the guilt away. In revenge I confess that I had indeed gone, a few miles far away, been berserk and uncontrollable, but it did hit the aim it was intended to, without having to tag myself as a murderer and making Despondra realize the significance of a human life, be it of any kind.
It was akin to walking on the edge of a sharp sword but still managing to avoid slipping. It was about time to end my day with a sigh of relief, with the pleasant knowledge of Despondra being safe. I decided to make a move and bid farewell to her and shatter the still comfortable silence.
I said: “Okay doctor! You must have some rest now and I must be returning to my cabin. I will keep paying visits to you often, that is a promise. Bye for now, until next time!” I jumped out of the chair.
Despondra: “Bye!” with a little befriending pure smile and soon the day was over for me.
Chapter 21: A brunch with Devon; Love You Are Not Welcome
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As I woke up and prepared myself up for the new day to begin, I remembered KEAH told me one day, that the best place on this ship was the ‘Green Resto’, the restaurant on the level 3, whi
ch was a mesmerizing place, where she loved to spend her time with nature. It was made marvelously in The Orchard on the ship. The 3rd floor was the first basic floor, on which the largest fruit bearing trees grew.
The other 5 floors above it are retractable floors with glass floorings, which produced glass house effect or the green house effect which trap sunlight and heat enough for the trees to carry out photosynthesis which grew on the last floor alongside plants. It was the most beautiful place to take your meal by the nature’s side.
The description of the restaurant was hypnotizing which made me feel like I cannot subject myself to further torture of patience and I could not wait anymore to see it by myself. So I decided to have my first meal for today there itself, although, I might have to stay hungry for longer than normal to have my breakfast at The Green Resto.
I hurriedly fled my room and reached the 3rd floor, the corridor was short and the whole ambience was overwhelming. The walls were colored glasses in fine modern patterns of green and blue. There were moving glittery little lights on the glass. It presented a sight as if I had reached a distant planet with colorful glittering deep oceanic life forms which shone here and there like they were moving.
I felt as if I was in heaven. I stopped and admired every bit of what my senses were perceiving then right there. I could now understand what KEAH must have meant by the breathtaking place. Why did not come here before? I started moving out now towards the pale light beaming from the end of the corridor.
It must actually be the sunlight, I told myself, because the great Green Resto was in the open Orchard. Then suddenly the charming mirage of color and light before me gave way to the real natural beautiful sight awaiting me outside.
I hastily moved towards the light. Soon I approached an open circular space full of trees. The trees were shorter than the normal, but abnormally laden with oversized fruits. If I could correctly identify, there were guavas, mangoes, peaches, apples, pomegranates, bananas and some were unidentifiable.
