Morning all. As I am taking the day off to celebrate I will just be jumping right into the morning prompt. And then I am driving out to a fun filled fourth complete with barbeque and fireworks display. Not that I haven’t had plenty of those this week, but today is the day for them. So timers set and lets get this prompt going.
I like this. Not sure of the details, but I like this. I just have to create a world around it. Which is probably what I will be thinking about should I get trapped in a burning conversation. And also why I don’t ever tell anyone what I am thinking when they ask. This isn’t the kind of group that would appreciate the details.
Thursday, July 4th: The rhythmic song set the pace for the work.
The rhythmic song set the pace for the work. Everyone moved in unison to the beat of the drum. he didn’t know the words to the song and wondered if they contained some instructions or if they told a story. It didn’t really matter, he supposed, but he still wondered. He knew he should shut off the wondering and simply concentrate on the work. It was what the others did. All around him, he could see the glassy eyes of those who simply retreated into themselves while their body worked on the mindless task set them for the day.
When he first came here he asked a few what they were thinking about when they disappeared into themselves. He had been told by each he asked that they thought about nothing. As they worked they retreated into a place of nothingness. He was told he would soon develop the habit.
Somehow he found that thought terrifying.
He didn’t think he consciously fought succumbing to the nothingness, he simply couldn’t be still inside his mind. He had to constantly wonder about all the things around him. Even when he had no active question in his mind, which was rare, he found himself studying the details around him. He learned to hide the study from those around him. He knew their over seers did not care for anything that seemed remotely out of place.
While he was here to work of the family debt, as were most people here, they were treated as barely human by those in charge. They were woken with light and a scant meal, worked until noon when they were allowed a brief break and another scant meal. Then they went back to work until dinner. As they finished their third meager meal of the day, the lights went out and they slept. In the morning the routine started again. Their work throughout the day was regulated by the drums and the song. Even though he didn’t recognize the words, he memorized them.
This too was not done with conscious thought but by the sheer repetition they had imprinted themselves on his brain. The drumming stopped and everyone in the room stopped moving.
‘Lunchtime,’ he thought. The overseers had them rise in rows, lining up and filing out towards the dining hall.
“342,” the overseer said. Lucas looked down at his number, his only identification while he was here. “You will come with me.”
Lucas stepped cautiously out of line. The gap he left remained, no one else moving. He walked over to the overseer who led him away a the others filed in for lunch. His stomach felt hollow but it had long since learned not to rumble. Protesting the lack of food was of now help.
He followed the overseer to the main office. He was shown inside and the overseer left. Lucas was left with the administrator. He sat at a desk piled high with documents. Lucas could see a number of wax seals and scrolls and a bowl of fresh cherries sitting next to them. He had a hard time looking away.
”Lucas North,” the administrator said. “You have completed your sentence and are being released.” He handed Lucas a scroll. Lucas took it automatically. “Take this to the bursar down the hall and you will be given a fresh suit of clothing and transportation home.”
Ten til Midnight 