The Curse

The outside world was unknown to her, but she could see a glimpse through the window of his room. A large oak tree stood proudly in the center of a luscious meadow covered in little purple flowers. The sun radiated through the tree’s emerald leaves, a light breeze gently brushing the branches to and fro.

“Uhmmm,” River was overcome by a violent wave of nausea. Contrary to her mother’s warnings, she was feeling more nauseous in her third trimester. As River tried not to be sick in his room, a room she had never entered before, she held onto the edges of the windowsill, digging her nails into her palms. She inhaled deeply and held her breath for a few seconds, then slowly released it. She tried to imagine the breeze from the meadow on her face; what the fresh air would feel like if she was out there; but all she could imagine was the musty cross ventilation when walking from the wives’ quarters to the dining hall. Everything inside her wanted to crawl through that window, stand in the meadow and feel the grass on her feet; but she knew that was impossible.

~~~

The world is inhabitable, and it has been for the last 50 years. As River had learned in school, a deadly lab-generated virus had decimated the majority of the world’s population. Her grandmother Linda had been one of the lucky ones chosen for the Healed World – a subset of individuals deemed genetically “fit” for survival. Only 10 million people had been selected to help mend the dying planet. They had been immunized against their will and left to save and repopulate a planet, one without their friends and family. Shortly after the initial pandemic – P-day they called it – the virus mutated and the remaining population started dying.

What was left of humanity was desperate for some sort of salvation. One man stood up to the challenge. Our Saviour, as he called himself, had been an engineer in the old world, but in the Healed World he brought hope and unity among his followers.

One day, Linda had turned on her radio and heard his message, “Are you in search of salvation? Have you been struggling with finding meaning in your life after P-day? Join me and my followers and help build a better future.”

And just like that, Linda joined the cause. Together they started building a bunker; one that could sustain life for an extended period. Our Saviour reassured his followers that the bunker would be temporary; until the virus inevitably died out. Unfortunately, it persisted. In the process of mutating, a virus that was initially designed to solely infect humans, started infecting all living organisms, plants and animals alike. In humans, the virus would infect the host and within minutes the first symptoms would appear. First your capillaries would burst one by one causing excruciating pain. Over the next few hours, the pain would intensify as you slowly bled internally. It took around 24h from infection to death. It was a terrifying way to go. At school, when taught about P-day, River’s peers would shriek in horror and delight from the safety of the bunker, similar to children being told a scary story.

~~~

When River was born on December 25, 2052, in the Rank 3 hospital, her parents wept tears of joy when the doctors announced that they had been blessed with a complete and beautiful baby girl. Complete children were those born with no mental or physical disability, and River was the first complete child born in almost 20 years among the Rank 3 population. Sufficient nutrients were hard to come by in the bunker, especially for lower rank individuals. River’s father and grandmother had decreased their food intake to a meal every 48 hours to allow River’s mother to have all she needed for a successful pregnancy. In the bunker, having a complete child was a blessing, even more so a girl. It immediately qualified her to become a potential future wife of Our Saviour II – the successor to Our Saviour – and qualified the family for extra portions of food each week.

When River was still a little girl, her mother had started planting the seed of the future they were destined to have as a family.

“River, one day we will live the life we were always meant to have,” would say her mother. “Yes, mummy!” River would respond excitedly, knowing that it made her mother smile and that she would receive extra cuddles that night.

~~~

When River was 16, her parents sat her down on their dusty floral couch from the 1970’s. It was close to 100 years old, and the layer of dust enveloping it felt like an integral part of its fabric. The dust from the couch echoed the layer that covered the bunker and the outside world, or what she imagined of it.

Both her parents were smiling ear to ear. She had never seen them this happy; as if they couldn’t contain their excitement. As River sat there, a knot in her stomach, she hoped this announcement wasn’t what she thought it was.

“Honey, we have some exciting news to share. As you know, 16 years ago we were blessed with you – a complete and beautiful little girl. What a miracle that was! Well, it has finally caught the attention of Our Saviour II and he has graciously asked us for your hand in marriage.” Her parents looked at her eagerly waiting for the only response they knew she could give.

“Okay,” River responded while staring at her feet. She had just accepted to marry a man more than three times her age.

River was going to be the 7th wife of Our Saviour II. His first 6 wives had only been able to give him 2 incomplete daughters and he was hoping for a complete son to take on the role of Our Saviour III. For that, he needed a wife that was fertile, young, complete, and obviously beautiful.

Although River had been prepared for the possibility of marrying Our Saviour II since her childhood, she always hoped she’d marry for love, like her parents had. She knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity for herself and her family. Almost the equivalent of winning the lottery in the old world. It meant that she would be taken care of; would never go hungry or cold; she’d be tended to and regarded as royalty. It also meant that her parents, who were from the lowest rank of society, would be propelled to the highest rank almost instantly. They would be upgraded to quarters where they had 2 bunks and a private toilet and shower, they would also be given lab grown meat once a month, a delicacy very few ever got to experience in their lifetime.

~~~

River had never truly fit in with children her age or with anyone in the bunker for that matter, apart from her grandmother Linda, who she called Mamam. River had spent most of her time with Mamam until she passed away two years ago. It was she who had insisted on naming River something to remember the old world by, something that represented freedom; the flow of life; something that wasn’t dull; something that wasn’t reminiscent of the bunker. As far as River could remember, Mamam would tuck her into bed at night and tell her stories – forbidden stories – of the seemingly infinite marvelous landscapes she had seen during her time in the old world. River would retreat to these beautiful places deep in her mind when she wanted to escape the bunker, her life, or Our Saviour II.

River and her grandmother had a secret, the one of knowing what had been. Since they first inhabited the bunker, all images, illustrations, and media had been removed to help humanity heal from what had been and help focus on what was. Individuals who were caught sharing drawings, photos, or even memories of the old world were instantly jailed. Mamam had never told her stories to River’s mother, but she believed River was different; she believed these stories should not die with her and needed to be told.

All these beautiful images that Mamam had shared with River all those years ago served as the perfect wedding gift. It allowed River to retreat deep within, laying on an imaginary beach surrounded by turquoise water, instead of experiencing the trauma of her wedding night.

3 weeks later, she was pregnant.

~~~

Why is everything spinning?

River had awakened that day in the women’s quarters feeling as if she was on a ship in the midst of a violent storm. She had immediately emptied the contents of her stomach into the bucket she had strategically placed at the base of her bunk.

“Hello, is anyone there?” she said aloud.

It was quite late, and all the wives had already left the room to fulfill their wifely duties. Since River was 8 months pregnant and carrying the first son and heir of Our Saviour II, she had some advantages the other wives didn’t.

As River laid in bed scanning the room for something to distract her from the nausea, she noticed that the door at the end of the room was unlocked. It was her husband’s sleeping quarters– the thought of husband worsened the nausea. She had always been curious what was behind the door that kept Our Saviour II so occupied most days. She knew that today he had an important announcement about food rationing in the Rank 3 community center, and therefore, the coast should be clear.

What was behind that door was the source of constant gossiping late at night in the wives’ quarters. They would share theories of hidden laboratories where vaccines were being developed, secret hallways to forbidden areas of the bunker, or River’s personal favorite, a lab grown woman keeping him company.

It was now a one in a lifetime chance for her to not only see what was behind that door, but to metaphorically invite herself into his space, take something from him for once.

As she slowly got up and tiptoed to the back of the room, she called out one last time.When no one answered, she slowly opened the door, walked in, and gently closed the door behind her.

“What in the world...”

As River turned around, she saw a window, directly across from his bed. She had never seen a window in the bunker before, but what truly astonished her was what lay behind that window.

The meadow was unlike anything she had ever seen before; it was just like how her Mamam would describe the old world, but the colors were more vibrant than she would have imagined. It had more life and beauty than her own secret place deep within her mind. She had always imagined the Healed World covered in a hue of dust, like the bunker was; like her parents’ couch was. The scene was breathtaking, so much so that River didn’t immediately hear the crackling sound beside her. A voice came onto the intercom.

“I see you have found the curse. I have been leaving my room unlocked for weeks now, hoping you would make your way in,” said a familiar voice.

River stood in silence, afraid that if she blinked or looked away, the scene behind the window would be replaced by what truly was outside.

“As you can see, the Healed World is not as you imagined.” It was her husband’s voice coming from the intercom. “Now that you are carrying my son, I want you to know what is out there. This is the curse that burdened my father, that burdens me, and will burden my son and his son after that.”

River’s mind was racing trying to understand the words being spoken.

“Why have you kept this from us?” she asked.

“As my father revealed to me on my 18th birthday, the Healed World is still very much inhabitable, but only for us. When the virus mutated and started infecting all life, it incorporated into their genome and gave animals, plants, and all living organisms an elaborate defense mechanism against their one common predator. One that annihilates us while they remain healthy carriers. It has forced humanity to cage itself, while life moves on. I want you to raise our child with the knowledge of what he will have to undertake,” said Our Saviour II with a deep sadness in his voice.

“Then why bother staying alive at all? Why not go outside, enjoy the Healed World’s beauty even for a couple of hours?” questioned River, astonished at the lengths he and his father had gone in order to save humanity by confining it to purgatory.

“Like every adaptive mechanism, when the threat is removed for a long enough period, it disappears. That may take 50 years, 100 years, even 200 years. Just know that your life, my life, and unfortunately our son’s life, will be devoted to helping humanity survive and eventually thrive in the Healed World,” he said with a sigh.

The voice cut off leaving River alone to process this information. As she stood staring deep into the Healed World’s innocent beauty, she couldn’t help but feel like Our Savior II was missing a crucial point.

Should they even exist? The beauty that emanates from this window is in stark comparison with the dullness, death, and misery they had created within the bunker. The world is finally healed, because they have been exiled. The Healed World has been vaccinated against the virus destroying it.

River placed her hand on her stomach. As her son kicked – the symbol of a new life beginning – she couldn’t help but feel disgust at herself, the child growing inside her, and humanity as a whole.