The Last Utopia

  Michael M. Finch

  The Last Utopia

  Once, life had been bliss. Now those days had long gone, together with her ignorance. Under labored breath, Eileen's head spun around, in search for a way out of her nightmare. Still in full sprint, her magic power exploded from her heels and slung her haggard body around the corner.

  As she rushed past the black machinery along the walls, Eileen's feet carried ever further away from her prison. Beyond the bubbling pipes and churning pistons she would find her freedom, that was her desperate hope. Although her bare feet slapped on the hard steel floor, all she could hear was her own erratic breath and the rush of blood in her ears.

  How long had it been since she could let loose and just run? Eileen knew the answer, but forced her brain to ignore it. Before she reached the next crossroad, her hazy thoughts refocused.

  Stay sharp, Eileen.

  Any mistake could spell her doom, and she only had this one chance. So when she saw an intersection come up, her strides slowed. Careful to silence her breathing, she spied out the right intersection and saw two more of her pursuers, those alien creatures who dared call themselves human. Slick red robes made from plastics and a hood to match hid their grotesque features, but she had seen their faces just minutes ago. Though she still understood little of the tower's real, hideous truth, she knew that whatever these things were. They weren't guardians of the peace, despite their self-proclaimed title.

  Although she had been ever so careful in her approach, one of the beasts still spotted her. The thing froze up only for a second, before it raised its cylindrical weapon to take aim.

  Get away!

  Once again, Eileen wasted some of her inherent magic force to propel herself up and past the crossroads, and past the alerted monsters. Behind her, the gun's magic burst ripped a fist-sized hole out of the steel floor, but her body had left the ground behind already. When her legs touched down again, they quivered under the excessive force. Stumbling forward, she tried to convert her momentum into a roll and fire back up, but her body wouldn't follow her will.

  Too weak. Too hungry.

  She forced another blast of precious mana out of her hands and propelled herself back up, onto unsteady feet. Her happiness lasted less than a second, only until she saw the end of the hallway. All the pipes along the walls led into a small room full of servers. The cables snaked all across the floor and formed dens along the walls. There was no way out. She was trapped.

  With the realization, despair set in. As Eileen sank to her knees, barely conscious, a silent scream escaped her muted throat. Not even tears of relief would escape from her withered eyes. With the monster's steps on the floor behind her, Eileen stared at her reflection in the artificial, shiny surface of the floor. Somewhere inside those two pitch-black holes hid her dim, sunken eyes. Her dried skin stretched over her face like paper. After its continuous retreat, her skin had developed red cracks all across her face and her mouth had turned into a wide, skeletal grin, to make a mockery of her misery.

  The vibrant young girls had turned into a monster to fit her captors over no more than two years. Once she had realized the tower's goals, learned of her true duty, she had started to count. Through anger, anguish and resignation she had counted the days. Seven hundred and twelve times, two years on the dot. Her brother was two years younger than her. Today would be the day of his own aptitude test, the day he might retread her path. If there was one thing she would do in her desecrated life, she would spare him of her own fate. It had been all she could do to retain her sanity. Without purpose, she would have gone insane, like all the others.

  She had taught herself to use her gifts beyond the lies the beasts had fed her, in secret so they wouldn't know. When the monsters had come to take her from the numbing comfort of her hamster wheel and into the unspeakable terror of the slaughter house, she had taken them by surprise and escaped, reached here.

  “Target has been cornered. Proceed with caution until the threat is neutralized.”

  The words of the monsters mattered little, for the cables to her left called out to her. They would lead all over the city, all the way down the towers, into the Aether which spanned across Astralis like a net. Through them, she might reach her brother, reach out one last time. She had never had any proper training in magic, but a faint hope was better than a worthless death. Determined to die with purpose, Eileen grasped her last straw and forced her shaped mana down the line.

  Before she lost consciousness, one final thought broke way.

  Good luck, little brat.

  Utopia

  - One

  With cramped fingers, I held onto the cold, smooth plastic handles of the magic analyzer. After all, I wanted nothing more than a successful assessment. As a mysterious force spread throughout my body, a buzz formed under my skin. This was magic, I knew.

  Terrified of the results, I peeked at the analyzer’s small, digital window. This lifeless collection of circuits and plastics would pass judgement on my body's magic resistance. Even though my sister had become a mage two years ago, there was no guarantee I would be one as well.

  As the numbers on the screen ticked up, my eyes widened in anticipation. Higher and higher the figure rose. With it rose my pulse, to force sweat through the skin of my hands. Soon those numbers reached the magic threshold which would prove my talents. This was it! I would be a true mage! I would finally meet big sis again!

  Right in the middle of my fantasies, the lights in the room flickered. My eyes shot up to the sterile halogen lamps of the community hall, but a short beep from the machine reclaimed my attention. Reminded of my important moment, my view swung back onto the display. For the fraction of a second the machine's screen went blank, before it flashed zeroes.

  Impossible!

  I had been so sure of my grand moment! Something must have gone wrong.

  My mouth dried up, I looked to the red-hooded Guardian of Peace sat across. Of course, I couldn't see any of my shock mirrored in the masked face, or any other emotions for that matter.

  After a second beep from the machine had signaled the end of the test, the guardian checked his own screen. His verdict let my heart sink into the floor.

  “Brayden Rovis, number LR-018447. No magic levels detected. Take your assigned social registration number from the desk at the entrance. You will receive your recommended employment offer within the next three work days. Good luck and have a pleasant day.”

  “But... I...”

  Frozen stiff, I stared at the guardian in disbelief. This must have been a mistake. Had no one else seen the lamps flicker? The stalwart figure of the guardian stared back at me in silence. Their eyeless masks had always intimidated me. Some light repositioning on his chair was enough to show his impatience. He wasn't interested in my opinion, not after a long day of work with no quick end in sight. I understood: For him, there were still many candidates to get through. I couldn't defy the Guardians of Peace, could I?

  From behind, I could hear the grumbles of the other hopeful teens crescendo into audible complaints. I looked over my shoulder and past the long line formed behind me, made up of my fellow graduates. There was no excuse for standing in the way of everyone's dreams, just because I had considered myself special.

  Of course I wasn't special. Even if I wasn't like big sis, there was no reason to make a scene. And yet, as mechanical steps led me past the queue and towards the clerk's desk, I couldn't help but sink into my own thoughts. I had failed.

  Now I wouldn't be able to meet big sis, not for a long time. We would have to wait until she finished her training, and returned home a proper mage. I caught myself with a dark thought. Please don't let Amy be a mage as well. I was afraid of being alone. Of dying alone. We had always stuck
together, the three of us. I didn't know if I could handle an empty house.

  Out of nowhere, Eileen's voice popped into my head.

  Good luck, little brat, she whispered.

  I couldn't quite remember when she had said that to me. In my hypnotic state, it felt like she stood right beside me. Even now big sis still stood behind me, supported me. A deep breath drove away the gloom in my chest.

  Maybe this isn't so bad, I thought. After all, I wasn't the youngest in the family. I was still responsible for our little sister. One more year for her to become an adult and have her own assessment.

  No need to worry, at least for another year. Like the coward I was, I pushed my grim thoughts into the back of my mind, where I hoped they would rot into nothingness. Buried deep into my thoughts, I didn't even realize when I walked up to the clerk. I took my new ID on autopilot and carried it out of the community hall. As rays of light warmed my skin, I regained my presence of mind and looked up to greet the world around me.

  Astralis was the marvel of the modern world. The pinnacle of human ingenuity. At least that was what my teachers always said. I strolled through the archway of the plaza and onto the wide street, surrounded by greenery. I had always liked the willow trees around the main plaza. Funneled by the long corridors of buildings around the square, the wind caught their branches and made them sway to show off their liveliness.

  To me, the lush nature was a perfect foil for the clean streets and discreetly opulent five-story houses. Built in a classical style with pillars and grand arches, they exuded both the elegance and sophistication of the city's inhabitants. In contrast, the toned windows and synthetic building blocks spoke of their propriety and advanced nature, as did the glossy transport vehicle of the guardians parked next to the community hall.

  With the city's ever-present birds chirping overhead, I walked down the street and toward the bus stop. Already this place was crammed with teens, all of them muted from the disappointment of the community hall. Their misery wasn’t something enjoyable, nor was it something I wanted to see. Thus I picked a quiet corner for myself and looked to the ground, towards the magic conveyor system.

  In the past, the old conveyors had transported everyone everywhere. Back then, no one had to walk. Unfortunately, even the wise Grand Mages of the City Council would make mistakes sometimes. The excessive convenience of paradise had caused a plague of obesity, and with it severe health problems. In reaction, the Council had decided to shut down the conveyors for the benefits of the common people. At least that was what our history books had to say on the matter.

  I stared at the defunct conveyor and tried my hardest to ignore the dreary around. To my great fortune, no one else felt chatty either. So we stood there by ourselves, lost in our own gloom as we each pondered over our future. Our dreams had been crushed under the weight of reality.

  Of course, there would always be some who couldn't handle their own frustrations and looked for unlucky targets to make themselves feel better. As usual, I would play the unlucky target.

  At first I could only feel the changes in the crowd. Though it was subtle, there was something in the way they moved that alerted me to the danger. As if I had just declared myself an enemy to the City Council, everyone shuffled away to safety and turned their body so they could claim ignorance.

  I knew the source of their distress couldn't be me. Throughout my time in school, I had gained far too much experience becoming invisible. With trepidation, I looked over my shoulder. My worry manifested into the figure of a stout, tall boy my age. In truth, 'stout' wasn't the right description. I would have rather called him fat, though never to his face. Rude as ever, the fatty walked into me and bulldozed away my shoulder.

  “Hey, sorry. Didn't see you with how thin you are, Coaty,” he said with his usual smirk. That one I knew well. It meant he was ready to make trouble.

  “Hi Les,” I squeaked, my eyes focused on Lester's cheap boots. As ever, I couldn't be myself with his intimidating figure around, even when he used that ridiculous nickname. Me knowing what he thought in that brutish head of his only made things worse.

  “So, Coaty, you gonna tell us your results?” The big boy grinned from ear to ear and looked at his companions for validation. So he just wanted to humiliate me a bit, did he? That much I could do.

  “Just normal,” I said, “like everyone.”

  Nervous as I was, I had picked my words without thought, more focused on a brighter tomorrow away from my abusive classmate. It wouldn't be long, just wait for the bus and get back home to Amelia. Unfortunately, I hadn't expected fatty Lester to explode from my throw-away statement.

  “What's that supposed to mean, huh, you scrawny brat?” His massive frame closed in to tower over my tiny body like a mountain..

  “I didn't mean anything by it. Sorry,” I mumbled. Being meek usually worked for Lester. If I just said the right things and played along with his games, he would go away and look for a juicier target.

  “You trying to say that I'm only ‘normal’ like the rest of you losers?” Again and again Lester poked at my chest. I tried to back up, but was soon stopped by the wall of the bus stop. “How would you know, you little bastard? Huh?”

  This was ridiculous. To everyone at the stop, it would've been obvious that the fatty had failed his assessment. We were all from the same district and Lester was well known for his loud mouth. If he had been picked to join the ranks of the mages, he wouldn’t have even been here and we would still have heard his bragging. And yet, I knew what the right and wrong answers were. I chose wisely.

  “Sorry Les. I'm sure you'll be a great mage. It's you after all.”

  I raised my head a bit, just enough to read the fatty's face. If I wanted any chance to get out of this unbruised, I needed to gauge his reactions. From his nasty grin, it seemed my cheap compliment had been enough to satisfy Lester's vanity. They usually were.

  “Well, yeah, of course you'd think that. Okay, you're off the hook.” After he was finished with me, the fatty looked around for more victims. That was how the world looked to Lester: Minions and victims, nothing else. Back in school, he had started fights out of sheer boredom, so now that he had an actual reason, how could he let the chance slip by?

  “What are you all looking at?” he barked while his narrowed eyes scanned the crowd. In the end, he focused in on another of our classmates. Though I had seen him before, I couldn’t remember his name. As Lester’s look moved to his classmate’s feet, an ugly smile spread on his face.

  “Aren’t those my boots?” he asked, and stared at the shoes of his victim. “Are you tryin’ to copy my style?” Lester’s minions were in position around the unfortunate student already, while the fatty moved closer.

  “No, Les, I didn’t know-”

  “Oh, you knew alright. All of you knew and just let him be. Don’t you think that’s a crime?” He looked at the victim’s group of friends, who had begun to sneak to the side. Now the center of attention, all of them shook their hands, heads and whatever else they could to prove they weren’t involved. Of course, I knew better. Lester wasn’t interested in an apology or a friendly resolution, he only wanted to blow off steam. Earlier, I had denied him his satisfaction once. No one would deny him a second time.

  “All of you need to be punished. Here, I’ll make it quick.”

  Worried, I looked over the faces of my classmates, as sweat formed on their faces and resignation dimmed their eyes one by one. This wasn’t right, and it wasn’t fair. What had these people done wrong? Just like me, they had gone through the rejection of the system, the crushing confirmation that they were nothing more than ordinary. Yet now, they would have to suffer further, only because Lester felt like it. They didn’t deserve this. None of them did. Against my better judgment, I stepped up.

  “What are you talking about, Lester?” Although my back shrank when all eyes at the bus stop focused on me, I didn’t step down. “I’ve seen those boots before when I was browsing the Aether. Tho
se things are all synth, just three credits for a pair.”

  “Coaty, you best shut up now if you know what’s good for you.” Lester growled as he turned towards me, but I didn’t care. I was ready to do the honorable, stupid thing.

  “Those shitty boots are too cheap even for me, why would anyone want to copy that kind of ‘style’? Aren’t you just being a cheap bastard?”

  “Oh, that sounds like you’re ready to buy me some new ones, doesn’t it? Okay, pay up then.”

  A single twisted thought and the fatty's nasty grin turned sinister around his hanging cheeks. In the corner of my eye, the other members of Lester's gang moved in on me. I knew what would be next. The same scene had played out countless times in the past few years.

  “You best pay up, Coaty. Or we'll have to go with corporal punishment,” the fatty continued.

  Being ordinary and poor must have stung Lester's pride like nothing else could. From the very start, all he had wanted was a convenient punching bag to release some stress. Lester knew that I didn't have any money to pay him off with. Still, I played my part and reached into my empty pockets.

  Once the fatty had stretched out his hand, sweaty palm up, I ducked under his flabby arms. No way would I play along with his crap. Once again, I had provoked the school bully for no good reason, so I would have to trust my legs. Before Lester's gang could close their circle around me, I slipped through the biggest gap in their formation. A tug on my right sleeve held me back, but with a violent pull, I freed myself from the last restraint and ran.

  “Get him!”

  “Don't let the little bastard get away!”

  I could hear Lester and his gang scream behind me, but I didn't care. Focused on the road ahead, I only ran as fast as my legs allowed. Across the street and onto the other sidewalk, I rushed past the wind. Further and further.

  This always happened. I’d get myself out of trouble, only to jump right back in when I saw someone else bear the brunt for me. It wasn’t as if any of them were ever grateful for it either. As a skinny orphan in a fancy, upper-class school I was already a target, and my actions only made things worse. After repeating the same pattern for years, I had grown used to running. Still, my scrawny legs had made me a crap sprinter, or marathon runner, for that matter.