Dull Revolution

It was the summer of 2050. Alexandria sat inside her kitchen slowly eating her tasteless oatmeal and washed it down with some black coffee. She put the dirty dishes in her dishwasher, and walked to her job in the sunglasses factory in Paris. It had originally been a sunglasses factory in the old days to block harmful UV rays, but in the last few years had morphed into something more sinister. The glasses they made now dulled color vision because seeing color was "dangerous." That's what people were told anyway, when they were forced to use them. "It's to keep the peace," said the Grays.

The Grays had started the Dull World Order. They called themselves the Grays because that was the color of the Revolution. The senses needed to be "dulled." Stimulating the senses was against the law. Art was forbidden. Music was forbidden, unless it was white noise or elevator music. Music is the downfall of civilization, the Grays reasoned. So it was forbidden. Food could not be seasoned. It was not healthy. People subsisted on oatmeal, flavorless gelatin, vegetable broth, and flavorless meat. Perfume was not allowed either. It was considered provocative and immoral. Only scent-free soaps and deodorants were allowed.

Alexandria had lost her parents at the start of the Revolution. Her father was an artist and her mother was a writer. Alexandria and her parents had left the United States to live in Paris because this was one of the last bastions where creativity was still welcomed. Paris was one of the last places to fall to the Dull Revolution. Her parents were considered the Enemy by the Grays. They disappeared in the middle of a cold night in 2045, shortly after her birthday. Alexandria woke up to find them gone. Alexandria knew of other people who had lost family members in the middle of the night too. All of these people were the Creatives and they were dangerous to society, so the Dulls took them away.

Despite being young, Alexandria remembered what her parents had taught her. They had taught her to enjoy the resplendent beauty of sunrises and sunsets, the flowery scents of roses and lavender, the deliciousness of biting into an apple with the sweet juice dribbling down your chin, the buttery taste of a warm croissant melting in your mouth, and the coziness of a soft, fluffy blanket. They spoke to her of famous artists like Michelangelo, Monet, and Picasso. They listened to classical music, jazz, rock, pop, salsa, and hip hop. They knew that all of these things could be taken away at without warning, so they taught Alexandria to enjoy "being in the present moment."

They told her how they had read about the burning of the great ancient library of Alexandria in Egypt, in 48 B.C., which destroyed forty thousand scrolls. Her parents named her after this library because they considered it a great treasure that had been lost. "When we had you, we knew you were our greatest treasure, our Alexandria," her father had said.

On her last birthday with her parents, Alexandria woke up to them singing Happy Birthday and her mother held a little box in her hand. "Open it," she said. Alexandria opened the box, and inside it was a gold heart locket with a picture of each of her parents.

"It's beautiful! Thank you!" exclaimed Alexandria with tears in her eyes. She looked at her parents and saw the worry in her eyes. They all knew what could happen.

"Let's go to the Louvre Museum. We got tickets," he father said.

"I'll get ready. Thanks Mom and Dad."

This was the last time that any of them would go to the Louvre. After spending a lovely day there staring in wonder at all of the masterpieces, her parents disappeared a month later.

Alexandria wiped away her tears as she had these thoughts. She quickly put her dulling sunglasses back on. They helped a little in muting the memories, she thought.

When she got to work, she sat down at her desk and began answering work emails. She worked robotically until noon, when she heated up her bland meal in the microwave. She then walked to the restroom and messaged one of her friends, a Creative, from one of the stalls. She couldn't be seen messaging anyone during work because she could sent to do time in the sensory deprivation chamber.

Her phone emitted a soft ding and the message read "We're on at 7." Alexandria hid her phone in her jacket pocket and washed her hands. As she looked in the mirror, she noticed how gray and lifeless her complexion looked. Her eyes had lost the sparkle that used to be there. Now, only a lingering sadness remained. The only thing that motivated her to keep on living was knowing that she was keeping her parents' legacy alive.

Before the Revolution began, the Creatives saw the writing on the wall. They knew that the world's greatest masterpieces in art and music were in grave danger. One of the Creatives had friends who knew the tunnels in the Paris Catacombs well. This was the perfect place to store these great artworks and recordings. Little by little, they took what they could and hid it there. Tonight, Alexandria and her little group of Creatives would meet and tour the artwork exhibit in one of the secret chambers. The group would be sworn to secrecy and led out through another exit so they wouldn't be able to guide anyone to the exhibit.

It was a cool night. The group's leader, Leonardo, walked quietly and slowly through the catacombs, holding a flashlight. Alexandria made sure that everyone was following so they wouldn't get lost in the twists and turns. Down here, it smelled of mildew and dust. It took a little time to get used to the darkness, but some lighting had been set up in the catacombs. The skulls were piled high and seemed to welcome the visitors with their grotesque smiles. They walked through the labyrinth, and spent several hours inside the exhibit. The visitors let out oohs and ahs as they gazed upon the brilliant masterpieces and listened to a few selections of music. Some of them had tears in their eyes.

Then it was time to leave. As they walked out silently, they suddenly heard voices. It was the Grays!

"Run! Now!" ordered Leonardo in a loud whisper.

They ran down the street, and Alexandria heard her phone drop on the pavement. She tried to retrieve it, but the Grays were too close behind. She hid in an alleyway and ran home as fast as she could when she saw that everyone had gone. Her heart was beating loud and fast in her chest. She showered, put on her nightgown, and climbed into bed. She sighed with relief, but then thought of her phone. I'll get it in the morning, she thought as she drifted off to sleep.

Alexandria opened her eyes. It was dark inside the chamber. Alexandria opened her eyes in terror and found herself floating. "Where am I? Help!" she screamed helplessly. "Help me! Help me! Help me!" she shrieked over and over. Her voice echoed inside the chamber. Nobody heard. Nobody cared.