by T. J. Mines
The train crawls to a stop but the doors won't open. Wondering if Abdul should push a button or something the other passengers start filing in. Most seem like seasoned travelers, some even carrying goods on their back for trading. None of them seems to be worried about the train stopping.
"We have to wait for the barrier to be lowered," an old lady standing close to Abdul says, "if we don't we'd crash into it."
With Abdul looking puzzled the lady elaborates.
"Most independent towns with rail access installed a barrier into the tracks. It's made of concrete and steel and is strong enough to stop this armored beast in its tracks, quite literally," she chuckles, "If we'd drive into it at speed the sudden impact would crush the locomotive at the back into all the carriages before it. We'd be dead within the minute. Along the way to Du Bois, they installed a few of these. Most are lowered as we approach and we don't have to stop."
Abdul, not sure if the lady is serious nods and looks out the window. The lady chuckles again but otherwise keeps silent. The train starts moving again and rolls into the station at a slow pace.
The doors open and the passengers get off the train. They all move in the same direction, towards the main entrance into Du Bois. Abdul walks along the platform. Behind him the box cars open and forklifts take out the crates stored there. A few people stay there to supervise offloading. Every fifty meters a raised dais holds two guards, carrying machine guns. They are on the lookout for anything suspicious. Making eye contact with one of the guards Abdul lowers his head.
One side of the platform is lined with a tall fence. Signs indicate it's electrified. Behind it Abdul can make out the tall walls made out of corrugated and rusted steel plates. It looks like a fortress. On top of towers set at intervals along the wall are more guards. This far away he can't make out if they are armed, but he assumes they are. He can make out the cannons and large caliber automated guns along the wall. He agrees with himself he doesn't want to lay siege to this little town.
The mass of people slows down. Abdul, looking over the people in front of him, can just make out the security funnel they're entering. Shuffling forward a few meters at a time he comes nearer to the checkpoint. The travelers in front of him part into straight lines and Abdul is presented with a choice of queues. He picks one at random and moves behind a blond lady. Every few minutes the line moves forward. Behind him the old lady is standing. When he looks at her she shows him a big grin. Her teeth, decayed beyond repair, look like they've never been brushed.
An alarm sounds. Abdul, not knowing what is happening jumps at the sound. The old lady behind him laughs out loud and points at the train. Looking across the platform Abdul sees the train doors closing. A few moments later the whole train starts shaking and smoke is pouring out of the sides of the carriages. The armored side slowly turns a dull red and the air around the train starts to shimmer. Before Abdul comprehends what's going on the smoke dissipates and the train returns to it's normal metal gray. A mechanic in coveralls walks up to the front of the train and attaches a large hose. Indicating the seal is secure another man opens a valve and the whole train starts to smoke again. Tons of water rushes through the train cooling it down again.
The old lady pokes him in the back.
"Get moving, you simpleton," she says. The blond woman in front of him has walked on and is now being questioned by the guard at the security station. Then it's Abdul's turn.
"Scan your arm at the indicated sign," the guard says. He is a large man with a mustache. Small black eyes look down from the desk his is standing at. He is behind blast proof glass and the stall is armored with steel.
"I'm not chipped," Abdul answers while moving his wrist over the sign.
"Then why are you in this line?" the guard asks. He presses a button and starts speaking into a microphone.
"I've got an chipless one here. Come and get him." The man gives Abdul a small smile.
"What did I do wrong?" Abdul asks. The man doesn't respond as within seconds two other guards step from behind the security stall and open the fence lining the queue.
"Come with us," one of them says as he takes Abdul by the arm. The other one keeps his hand on his sidearm and falls in behind Abdul as he is taken away.
Moving at a quick pace the guards take him to a small building with no windows. The stone walls look like they've been assaulted with guns. The guard holding him pushes Abdul through the doorway and follows, blocking the way out. Adjusting to the darkness inside Abdul is first guided without seeing where he's walking. After a moment he regains his sight and sees small rooms at either side of the hallway. He is shoved into one on the left. There he is asked to sit down, which he does gladly.
The guard who held him sits down on the other side of the room. Between them is a rough metal table. Dents and scratches indicate it's seen a fair share of use.
"Why weren't you in the chipless line?" the man opposite him asks. Abdul looks behind him. The second guard is standing in the doorway, his hand still on the gun at his belt.
"Uh," Abdul starts, "I didn't know I had to."
"What? Can't you read?" The guard leans forward.
"Yes I can." Abdul hesitates. "I wasn't paying attention to signs. It's my first time here."
"What's your name?"
"Abdul Hamid Mikhail. I'm from Al Bari," Abdul answers. He is starting to sweat.
"Papers?"
As Abdul starts opening his backpack the guard at the door slides his gun out of the holster. Slowly Abdul reaches inside and grabs his identity papers. Taking them out shows no thread and the gun is put back where it belongs. Abdul hands the papers to the guard across the table. The man looks through them and takes a scanner from his belt. Taking scans of all papers he holds his wrist next to his mouth.
"Check these against the database." He looks Abdul in the eye who looks away as the contact is made.
"So what is your purpose here?" the guard asks.
"I'm here to visit the town. I've got two weeks off of work and wanted to travel," Abdul answers.
"Who are you traveling with?"
"No one. I came alone. I hope that's allowed?" Abdul looks at the man in doubt.
Not reacting to the questioning look on Abdul's face the guard continues the interrogation.
"How long do you plan to stay?"
"As I said, I've got two weeks off. I took the train on my first day and will leave on my last."
Nodding at the answer the guard checks his scanner.
"Do you mind if I look in your bag?" the guard asks.
Shaking his head Abdul hands over his bag. The guard leaves it on the table and holds his scanner over it. It beeps twice, then once. The man moves the device from the top to the bottom of the bag, then puts it in the open end where Abdul took his papers from. Another beep from the scanner makes the guard remove it again. Looking at the display on the scanner he nods again. He slides the bag over to Abdul who takes it back onto his lap.
A few moments pass in silence. Abdul, scared he is going to be put back on the train, back to Al Bari, shifts in his chair. He is holding his bag as a shield in front of him. Feeling vulnerable isn't something he likes. The guard at the table puts his finger against his ear. He nods twice and looks at Abdul again.
"You're clear. Next time be chipped or pick the right entrance." The man stands up. "Come with me. I'll get you a wristband."
Abdul gets up and follows the man outside. The sunlight is bright after the dark room. Together they walk across the field towards another building. This one is open to all side. Inside, in the center of the building, are stalls. Each stall contains a computer terminal. At the terminals people are inserting their papers. After a moment a green light flashes and a wristband rolls out.
At one stall the terminal flashes a red light. Guards along the sides of the building start towards the man inside. The guard guiding Abdul takes out his sidearm.
"Stay behind me," he says and moves to block Abdul.
The man in
side the stall first tries to insert his papers again but the computer doesn't react. Then he turns around and puts up his hands. Just as the first guard reaches him he moves to punch the guard in the throat. Taking the punch in full force the guards goes down, blood foaming at his lips. The next guard shoots the man in the knee as a third guard tries to grab the man's arm. Refusing to surrender the man swings at the guards trying to restrain him. He seems to ignore the gunshot wound. Two more guards come running at the scene and jump over their colleagues onto the man. The sudden weight brings the bunch down and a brawl starts on the ground. The travelers waiting for their turn and the ones just cleared for entrance move out of the way. The fight lasts a few moments. Then it stops and the guards get up, dragging an unconscious man with them. In total the one man brought down three guards. They are taken care of by the medics who came rushing in at the sound of the gunshot.
"That's what you get if you try to enter on false papers," says the guard with Abdul.
Not new to violence Abdul isn't impressed by the actions in front of him. What he isn't used to is the caring nature of the guard with him. Never before has he met a man in a position of power, no matter how small, this protective of someone he just met. Of course, during the interrogation he was harsh, but he was expecting Abdul to be breaking laws or worse. By establishing Abdul's identity and apparent peaceful intentions the guard turned into a nice man.
"Thank you, uh," Abdul tries to thank the guard.
"It's Hank," the guard introduces himself and shakes Abdul's hand.
"Thank you, Hank." Abdul smiles at the man. "So, now what?"
"Now we go and get you a bracelet," Hank answers.
Together they walk towards the open building and enter a stall. The terminal shows a screen with two options: Arabic or English. Pressing the Arabic button the screen is updated to show instructions. Abdul must first put his papers into the slot beneath the screen. Taking his papers out again he feeds them to the machine. A whirring sound indicate the papers are being scanned and the screen changes again. Now it shows the outline of a face and the instructions to look into the camera on top of the screen. Doing so Abdul can see his picture being taken. It replaces the outline on the screen. A loader image is shown, indicating it is verifying Abdul's facial characteristics to what is on his identification papers.
A green light lights up and a bracelet falls into the basket under the terminal. Abdul's papers file out of the machine and the screen welcomes Abdul into Du Bois. Below the welcome message are instructions on how to fasten the bracelet. First Abdul needs to put it around his wrist. Then he needs to push a small button. Part of the bracelet starts to spin, tightening the bracelet. Just as Abdul fears the bracelet will keep on spinning it stops.
"Welcome, Abdul," Hank says with a smile. With a more serious look he continues, "Keep in mind that you can't remove the bracelet without breaking it. Should you accidentally break go to any guard and show it to him. He will help you get a new one. Walking around without a bracelet will get you in serious trouble."
"Thanks Hank, I'll be careful." Abdul fingers the bracelet. It is now perfectly surrounding his wrist. Nothing can get between it and his skin. "I guess that's goodbye."
"Here we say 'see you around'. It's a small town. We'll meet again." Hank smiles and turns around. Walking back to the windowless building he looks over his shoulder and gives Abdul a wave.
Abdul, now free to enter the town and enjoy a well earned vacation starts moving to the city gates.
Abdul looks around to see where he should go next. Most people with a fresh bracelet walk towards the wall so he follows them along a brick path. The path is lined on both sides with high fences, either to keep them on the path, or to keep whatever is out there off. As he comes nearer the walls seem to stretch even higher than he though possible from the station platform. Compared to Al Bari this is a small town, even if it looks much fiercer than the mega city. No suburbs and not even slums surround the city. Here all the ground around the walls is frozen solid with permafrost. A digger, let alone a human with a shovel, can break these grounds and secure a building on it. That said, Abdul can see remnants of buildings there. It seems like they've been leveled and only the outlines of ancient foundations can be seen.
Together with the last of the arriving travelers Abdul walks up to the gates. There the path beneath the arching doorway, big enough for a truck to pass under, divides into two. At the beginning of the divide is a sign with an arrow, indication the arriving people should keep right. The left side of the entrance is used by people leaving the city. There aren't many leaving now. The train is about to depart again and most, if not all, people wanting to leave would've been aboard now. Walking under the arch Abdul can't help to duck. Inside he can see the thickness of the walls surrounding the city. He guesses it's almost ten meters before he emerges into the sunlight.
Stopping to take in the spectacle in front of him he looks around. The path through the tunnel opens up into an open space lined with stalls and buildings. Most stalls sell wares ranging from food to clothes and everything else a traveler could need after the long ride. The smells are delicious. What also strikes Abdul is the clean smell of the air. No smog, no smell of excrement or piss. Only the food prepared at the stalls enter his nose. Following his senses Abdul is drawn to a stall selling crickets on a stick. Deep fried where you stand the tasty insects are as fresh as you can get. Salivating at the smells and sight he gets the attention of the merchant.
"Can I have one please?" Abdul asks.
"Sure, that's 5 credits," the man answers, holding a scanner at Abdul's wrist. The scanner beeps and a red light is shown.
"You should get some credits, we do pay for food and stuff here," the man says as he sees Abdul staring in wonder at his bracelet.
Abdul, wondering how he could put credits on the armband digs into his backpack and gets his wallet out.
"Oh no, no cash," the merchant starts at seeing the purse, "you can change your money at the exchange booth next to the gate. At Du Bois we only use credits."
"But it's legal tender!" Abdul declares.
"Not in this town. Just go to the exchange booth. They have fair rates and when you leave you can convert the credits you have left into whatever currency you like."
Wondering if he brought enough cash to pay for his lodging and food here Abdul walks up to the booth. There is no line, which is nice for a change. Inside is a girl of about 15 years old. Abdul looks at the girl then looks around to find her parents.
"Yes, I do work here." The girl sounds annoyed.
"I'm sorry, I'm not really used to young girls working with money," Abdul says.
"Most of you aren't. Get used to it." Reminding herself to be polite to her new customer the girl changes her tone. "What can I do for you?"
"I'd like to exchange my money for credits please."
"What currency do you carry?" the girl asks.
"I have Dinars with me," Abdul answers.
"Which ones? Tunisian or Iraqi?"
"Tunisian, I'm from Al Bari," Abdul says.
The girl rolls her eyes.
"How much do you want to change?" she asks.
"All of it I guess." Abdul takes all his money from his wallet and gives it to the girl.
She puts the paper into a counting machine and uses quick hands to count the coins.
"That's four-hundred fifty three Dinar," she says, "At this weeks rate that's two hundred and twenty five credits. Minus the fixed ten credit exchange fee you'll get 215 credits."
She checks the calculation on a terminal which confirms her calculation.
"Place your chip over the scanner please," she says.
Abdul holds his bracelet close to the scanner. It beeps and the terminal display indicates the transaction is complete.
"Thank you for your business," the girl says and looks away.
Still wondering whether he has enough to last two weeks Abdul walks back to the stall with the crickets. Now equip
ped with credits he buys one and starts munching on it. Walking around to look at everything the market has to offer, he also looks at the prices to see if he can make out whether it is cheaper or more expensive here. Looking at wares he knows from home he soon determines that it is more expensive than he thought.
Finishing the walk around the square Abdul is back at the gate. There he notices a sign titled 'City rules'. He seems to be the only one taking notice. He reads the list painted on the sign.
1. Everyone in Du Bois is equal
2. You have the right to practice your believe
3. All payments are in Du Bois credits
4. No Du Bois credits may be exported
5. Visitors can stay for no more than THREE weeks
6. There's a curfew from sundown until sunup, make sure you're inside or underground during the night
6. You shall not:
a. Harm anyone
b. Steal from anyone
c. Scam anyone
7. Failure to follow these rules are punished with eviction
8. Serious crimes are punished by death, after a fair trial
Abdul, after reading the rules, makes a mental note: don't mess around in Du Bois.
It's getting late and Abdul needs to find a place to spend the night. He doesn't know the place, but he assumes there's a curfew at night, making sure everyone is inside. Should he be found without a place to stay, he's going to be kicked out for sure.
