Lessons of the Amelia

“Come on Oliver! Is that all you have today?!” Kazu provoked Oliver as he feinted inside the wrestling circle.

After one hour of intense practice, Oliver was drenched in sweat under the training lights. Oliver got pissed after Kazu’s comment, he had been giving his one hundred percent the entire training. He saw an opportunity and went for Kazu’s waist. However, he instantly regretted it when he encountered Kazu’s unwavering stance. In less than a second, Oliver was flying through the air and hit the floor outside the circle.

Oliver stayed lying on the floor, looking at the ceiling empty-headed.

“Great training,” Kazu said, sitting next to Oliver. “That was a good try.”

“I couldn’t throw you!” Oliver lamented. “I’ve come here every day for the last nine years and you beat me every time.”

Kazu burst out laughing.

“Do I need to remind you that I’m your coach for a reason? I’ve been fighting since before you were even born. You’re fifteen! You still have plenty to learn and you’ll grow stronger,” Kazu assured Oliver. “But I’m not going to lie. If you had had a more solid stance when you tried to throw me back there, you might have succeeded.”

Oliver was deep in thought and didn't hear his teacher's compliment.

“What if I’m not good enough for the competition?” Oliver said exasperatedly. “My friends are counting on me. This is my specialty. I don't know if I’m strong enough!”

“Don’t worry kid,” Kazu said as he helped Oliver stand up. “You’re going to smash them! And remember your technique, it’s all that matters when you’re handling.”

That final comment liven Oliver up.

“You better go now, you promised your sister to spend the whole day with her, and if you're not there when she wakes up she’s gonna get mad,” Kazu said, patting Oliver on the back.

Oliver nodded and went to the dressing rooms where he quickly changed as the first attendees of the morning arrived at the gym. He ran through the passageways as the first rays of dawn light filtered through the portholes. Despite the hour, the Amelia was already bustling in activity, the change of shift, the stores opening, and robots cleaning the floors were a few of the most common activities to witness that morning.

"Aaah!!!" A woman screamed at the entrance of the jewelry shop. "Thief! Thief! Someone stop him right now!"

A pair of enforcers nearby, who were enjoying Sherbakova’s bittersweet beetles-skewers for breakfast, jumped at the sudden notice of work.

A crowd started growing around the shop's entry as a thin man lay on the floor.

"That's not true!" He shouted. "I didn't steal anything."

The shop's alarms said otherwise. Oliver sneaked into the crowd to have a better look.

"What's going on?!" Shouted enforcer number one as the pair arrived at the scene.

"Move! Move!" Commanded enforcer number two as they made their way through the crowd. "Let's us pass people!"

Once the law got to the shop, the crowd had grown bigger, attracted by the complaints of the shop's clerk. There hasn't been a single crime on the Amelia for almost four months.

"What happened here?" Asked enforcer number one to the lady.

"That man stole something from my shop!" She said pointing at the man who was still on the floor.

The enforcers looked skeptical at the woman as they sneaked inside the almost empty store. Who would be so stupid to steal from the jewelry shop since everyone on the ship knew that the only place where you could exchange jewelry for ppoints was that place?

After giving a round to the shop and unable to find a single broken glass, the enforcers approached the empty-handed man.

"We will have to register you, Sir," said enforcer number two.

"I'm telling you I didn't steal a thing," said the quavering man as they helped him to stand up.

"Then you have nothing to worry about Sir," said enforcer number one. "It's protocol."

The man finally calmed down and allowed the enforcers to research him.

"He's clean," said enforcer number one after finishing. "It must have been an error on the alarm Ma'am."

"Did you graduate enforcer school yesterday or what?!?" Claimed mockingly the woman. "Check his pockets."

Enforcer number two reluctantly checked the man's jersey pockets. The right pocket was empty but he frowned when he checked the left pocket and withdrew a thin silver string from it.

"No! No! That's not mine!" Said the man, trying to stay calm. "You have to believe me, Sir. There’s not a single piece of metal in the showcases there's no way I could have stolen that!”

"Thief!" Said the clerk, crossing her arms in clear satisfaction. "Now arrest him! Or do I have to call your supervisor?"

Enforcer one exchanged a worried glance with enforcer number two before typing a code in his GoMindfull.

A hologram materialized a chubby woman in the middle of the scene. Some people gasped at the sign of it, others started mumbling but everyone stood frozen when she began to talk.

"727842 with the registered name of Roger Karimov. You have infringed your compliance agreement with Pi Corp. For the case of stealing from our facilities "Pi Corp jewels and trinkets" we have found you in full responsibility for the accusation. Hence you no longer align with our Values Policy. Furthermore, I, honorable HR subsecretary Francesca Conti in representation of our honorable CEO Dionysus Norrington, order your immediate dismissal from Pi Corporation and further exile from the Amelia or any installation of the grid." Conti declared.

“Is that Professor Karimov?” whispered a woman behind Oliver.

“Impossible. What happened to him?!” Responded another whisperer.

“I heard that after his wife’s passing, he began showcasing erratic behavior,” a third whisperer stated. “Poor man!”

A robot approached and printed a piece of paper. It extended it and shredded it in tiny pieces in front of the wailing man.

“Let’s not make this any harder, Sir,” said enforcer number one as he grabbed Karimov’s arm to help him stand.

“No. No! You cannot do this to me!” Karimov shouted to the ceiling, rambled for a moment, and turned to the enforcer. “Please! Have mercy!”

Kneeling, the man's wails turned into screams of despair. The crowd stood there like statues, incapable of uttering a sound, until four more soldiers arrived to carry away the resisting professor.

Oliver had never seen an exile process. He had heard about them at school and on the news, but witnessing one in person made his hair stand on end.

After a minute or two the crowd dispersed and Oliver returned home with Alin. When he arrived, she was still sleeping. Oliver changed and tucked into his bed again.

…

Oliver spent the following two days spoiling Alin, or at least as much as his monthly support allowed him. He let her watch all her favorite films, they strolled along the promenade deck, and on Saturday night they went to the local theatre. Oliver really needed that time to rest. He only got up early Sunday morning to train and spent the rest of the day with his sister, watching more films cuddled in bed until 6:00 p.m.

Oliver took his already-packed bag and climbed up the stairs with Alin to the landing deck.

“They’re just five days, sis,” He comforted his sister who was walking with her head down. “And I promise that I’m going to bring you a gift from Columbus!”

“It better be good,” Alin said.

They met with the Hsu and Gonzalez families at the landing deck, as the sun set.

“Don’t get in trouble while I’m out” Oliver joked as he crouched to meet her eyes.

“You know I won’t,” said Alin with teary eyes, and gave her brother a big hug.

This wasn’t easy for Oliver either, they haven’t been apart since never. But he had to do it, he had to break his mother’s promise for five days in order to keep it in the future.

“Attention all crew members!” The ship´s sirens wailed. “A Shimazaki tide is coming! Everybody must go to their assigned position!”