Meridian

Year 2088.

In the ink of its page wade waves of century old information. Written by the puppet masters of society outlining the intricate maneuvers that have been used to lace textbooks and media with false information. Whether it be wealth, power, manipulation, or knowledge; everything stems from one source. A guide that has kept all of this information secret for generations. Centuries of powerful elites have used its delicate pages to tighten their grip on the world at large. No matter how much its pages are filled, there always seems to be space for more. The be all end all for chaos and order in society. The truth uncensored. The Little Black Book: The Meridian.

Chaos and order. Is there really any difference? There has to be right? Can one exist without the other? Growing up with nothing makes you really wonder about these kind of things. For Geo, he pondered these ideas daily before he logged into his school terminal. Geo would turn 18 by the end of the month; which means he only had about 4 months of 2nd tier schooling before he moved on to work or 3rd tier higher education. Geo had his mind set on 3rd tier higher education after he lost his brother to the “working” world. Truth be told he didn’t want to take the 3rd tier route either but his options were limited.

It was the very balance between chaos and order that swallowed his brother's life before his very eyes. It made him understand one thing; society’s order is nothing but the organization of chaos. Still, that left him with more questions than answers and very little time to figure out how he’d find them. He had a burning desire to correct everything he couldn’t then. Ethan never should have died that way. All he knew was that he still had a promise to keep to him and truthfully he wasn’t interested in school or work anymore.

“Geo! Is there a reason why you’re sitting in front of your terminal but still not logged in? You’re almost done now don’t start slacking off!”

“My bad Mom. I spaced out”, Geo really hates these conversations. Times like this he really wishes he wasn’t at the top of his class. Maybe then his mom wouldn’t hope for so much.

“Well space in! Chip chop! I need you to become important and go make me some money”, the optimism in her voice was encouraging but Geo was annoyed nonetheless. Life is more realistic and more unrealistic than she cares to make it. He logged into his terminal for class and found himself spaced out for most of the day until his first class after lunch. That is, until the announcement of a lifetime would hit. His teacher would announce that some prestigious man from city side was looking to give one student an opportunity at a $20,000 scholarship. He’d already chosen 7 students and Geo’s name was first on the list. What was even crazier to Geo was that this benefactor would host all of them at his estate for 5 days to help him come to a decision. He was taken back. Everyone in city side scoffs at the thought of the district let alone helping some kid who grew up in it. Why would they be interested in helping anyone from the district of all places?

Doubt pulsing in the back of his mind, Geo continued forward to the end of the day. Time seemed to come and go as it pleased in the week leading to his departure to the city side estate. No matter how anxious it all made him, he thought about his brother’s unavoidable fate and pushed on. Finally, the day arrived along with his ever growing anxiety. The group of students arrived to the estate one by one in black cars sent specifically for them. Geo couldn’t help but feel disdain as he saw the abundant wealth and prosperity of city side as compared to the district. So many district people were treated as lesser doing jobs that machines were for. To these people, they’re nothing more than entertainment. It just made his despair sit even further in his gut, welling into words of disgust that sat on the tip of his tongue but never escaped his mouth. They were all greeted upon arrival by a servant who took them to the main corridor of the giant estate. Waiting for them on the corridor steps holding a deck of silver playing cards with a bright white accent along the outer edge, sat a tall, athletic looking man with his hair slicked back wearing a 3 piece royal blue suit. His smile was one that resembled a parent who already knew good news he would be getting from his kids.

“Well hello young people,” his accent wasn’t fully American; Australian maybe? “Welcome to my humble abode. My name is Eugene, the benefactor of this initiative. I hope I’m not inconveniencing you all but so much with this little trip of mine. Please, try to consider it a home away from home. A vacation really if you will. I have an entire schedule of activities and interviews put together to get to know you all better”, he only made eye contact with Geo as he made the remark. “I can’t wait to select a winner. I believe you all are incredibly gifted,” he paused and intently looked over to Geo, “The world might need a leader who understands life in the district after all.” With a smirk, he explained living and eating arrangements. As Geo began to follow servers to the living quarters Eugene stopped him.

“Geo, is it?”

“Yes Sir.”

“Your resume is very impressive. You perform better than many top students of city side. You have quite a mind there. You and I will be interviewing in a few days, I hope you can help me achieve my goal of this arrangement.”

“Thank you, sir. But, um, what exactly are your intentions? I don’t want to come off as rude; but, don’t you have any issues associating yourself with the district?”

“Geo, patience. We have an entire week. All your questions will be answered at the interview,” he smiled and patted Geo on the shoulder. With that he walked up the stairs as servants led Geo to his lodging.

The next few days Geo noticed a lot of strange things that didn’t add up about this arrangement. First, his room was in a completely separate wing than everyone else’s. Second, of the 7 total students present, he was the only one who had notes taken down from every activity they did. Third, he always was the last to be evaluated but would receive completely different exercises and questions than others. His mind was running through all the possibilities but nothing added up. He got chills thinking of his brother and hoping that he hadn’t miscalculated. He got a feeling that rivaled the anxiousness he had prior to arriving. The day had finally come for his one on one interview that would decide ultimately if he’d receive the scholarship. This would also confirm or reject his fears of what was happening and Eugene’s true intentions. For the second time in his life, Geo shook with fear.

The air in the corridor was cool. Their steps echoed in a symphony as if belching songs that harrowed warnings of evils to come. They approached two giant doors that opened with a billowing creak as if making their presence known to everyone in and outside the room. Geo followed the nameless, obedient servants in front of him into what was arranged in a sort of auditorium. He found himself surrounded by a room full of what he guessed to be about 60 people; all of which, were entrenched in the most expensive suits and high fashion that designers could produce.

“Geo! Its always a pleasure! How have you enjoyed your time here so far? Not too uncomfortable I hope,” he had the same confident smirk he always did. The perfect smile for a host.

“I’m doing fine, Eugene sir,” his eyes wandered around the room never meeting Eugene’s gaze.

“Geo, you seem nervous. Relax. We all are interested in learning as much as we can from you. And, there’s good news on top of that! We’re gonna give you the $20,000 scholarship. Congratulations young man! Why, that’s enough money to just live off of if you wanted to forego education I’d say. So what do you think, huh? Good deal right?!”

Geo was puzzled. Cold sweat dripped into the palms of his hands and the hairs on his neck stood to attention. Something wasn’t right. Aside from a clock that Geo couldn’t find in a quick scan, the room was dead silent. He gulped down his anxiousness and let his ambitious spirit speak for him.

“Thank you for everything. This is definitely the opportunity of a lifetime.” He continued on carefully thinking through his sentences to be impeccable with his word choice, “Something here just doesn’t seem right. You all seem like you’re important enough in city side that you would hate anything having to do with the district. Why are you helping me? This type of money would give me a net worth that’s well…-“

“Comparable with the top elites of city side, yes we are all completely aware. There’s no point in beating around the bush anymore, Geo. You’ve been aware of things since this started. Your brother Evan…he worked for ME when he came to city side for employment.” Eugene’s voice presided strong and calm over the auditorium. “He wasn’t like the rest of the district dwellers. He was smart, cunning, and he came to know too much. He stole the most powerful piece of literature in the world from us. We had no choice but to kill your brother.”

His words echoed. Geo looked on with a blank stare. “We can’t run this country the same way anymore. So, who better to usher this in than someone who can be controlled by us to lead the district. What happens next is your choice; take what we offer and do as you're told, or your family and all those who share genius similar to you will be killed off in the district. Much like those who were brought along this trip with you.” Smiles filled the faces of those seated around the room. The silence was one of arrogance and mischief.

Geo walked over to the podium in the center of the room and stared at it. A smile suddenly crossed his face. The raspiness in his voice suddenly disappeared. He stood up a little straighter and taller than he previously had. He spoke to the room, “Chaos and order. Is there really any difference? No, of course not, it’s all really the same thing. One can’t exist without the other. Who should decide what’s right or what’s wrong? The only answer to anything is pain. How else can we understand each other than to feel pain? By the way, before you kill someone you should be sure you know what they look like. Geo is my brother’s name. He’s the one you killed, I’m the one who allowed it.” Evan pulled out something from his jacket pocket. It was a book; one where no matter how much gets written in it, there always seems to be space for more. The be all end all for chaos and order in society. The truth uncensored. The Little Black Book: The Meridian.

The room went cold and a foreboding silence sent shivers down the spines of each individual seated, their faces white with disbelief. His next words would change the country forever and shock everyone who heard them. “Now, you’ll do as I say. Burn the district to the ground and everyone in it. No survivors. After all, peace only comes at another’s expense.”