Zachary Robinson

The Pursuit of Knowledge

Veronica always wanted to know everything; to explore every possible detail of almost anything. Because of this, she loved to explore her neighborhood. Most people were deterred by the cold, dark, and lifeless streets of the last city in the world, but Veronica loved every bit of the colorless gloom. She loved walking down the winding streets as they wrapped around the central hover-rail station. She never was able to walk the same route twice, always getting lost no matter what method of tracking she used. She once took a piece of chalk and marked cross-sections as she traveled, pushing further and further into the unknown, but she somehow wound up back on the main street, contradicting the layout on the neighborhood map. 

Veronica knew there was more to explore, though. She had been drawing her own map of the neighborhood, which looked nothing like the Architect’s map, with streets without a clear end and entire chunks unmapped even after 5 months. Rumor among the teenagers was that anyone who tried to venture too far inwards onto these unmapped streets never returned. Veronica wanted desperately to disprove their theory, but her plans always failed one way or another. 

Instead, after several weeks of attempts, Veronica turned her attention towards the outer ring of the neighborhood, hoping to find exactly where the neighborhood ended. She theorized she could travel around the outskirts of the city and work her way back inside to the unmapped sections.

~ ~ ~

One day, as Veronica was returning home from her much-too-boring work, Veronica noticed Architects blocking one of the rumor-riddled streets. She stopped her hover–a marvelous technology: a floating plate with an autopilot that balanced perfectly, avoided other riders, and followed a route perfectly–and approached the Architects.

The Architects are an elite group of people: the builders and government of Melanchonge. Everyone loves the Architects. They are who made Melanchonge: the last stronghold in a wasteland. The Architects protect the citizens of Melanchonge, but recently, citizens have been disappearing. They vanish from everywhere, their houses, their work, the trains. Veronica had gotten used to the disappearances, it felt like every other day someone was taken. But this time, something was different.

A large iron fence had appeared, with large floodlights pointed down the blocked street. Two Architects stood in front of the gate, with their hands tucked behind them in the perfect stance of the Architects. The taller of the two wore a plain suit with a lustrous ‘A’ pin where a pocket would be. The other wore a striped shirt and suspenders, a more dull pin on his collar. They both wore silk gloves and an Architect’s mask–a hollow white mask with a smile permanently carved into it–although the suited Architect’s mask was more recently shined and had the same lustrous trim around the eyes. Veronica assumed the lustrous material was gold, although outside it was only a shiny gray. She approached the suspender-wearing Architect.

“What happened? Why are you blocking this street?”

“A Deliverer has vanished. He was last sent to an address on this street,” a silky sweet– almost fabricated–voice answered

“If you live on this street, provide your ID and you may pass,” the other answered in the same silky sweet voice. 

Veronica was caught off guard. Were the Architect’s voices now hidden as well as their faces? Veronica always hated the corporate and self-important demeanor of the Architects, but this was too far. There was no humanity left in them. Are they even human? She tried to dismiss the thought, but as she mulled it over, she realized it was a possibility. 

“What are you doing about the disappearance?”

“We are working hard to fix the problem so that you can resume normal operations,” the short one responded.

Even their response wasn’t human. What are they?

“Do not worry citizen, a replacement Deliverer will start their operations soon”

Veronica had completely forgotten about the Deliverer. No wonder they’re being so secretive, she thought. Deliverers are Architects-in-training, tasked with delivering mail, news, announcements, anything in order to prepare their social skills. They also work closely with Architects in building aspects, although that information isn’t released to the public. 

But the presence of Architects, the blocking of streets. Clearly, the matter is suddenly much more serious for the Architects. What if they start closing every unmapped street? Veronica thought. She had to know the truth. What was causing the disappearances? What was out there deep in the neighborhood? Veronica couldn’t let the Architects stop her. She had to execute her new plan today. Veronica walked away, her mind swirling with doubt and exhilaration.

~ ~ ~

After finishing her duties at home, Veronica took her hover and set off down the wrong direction of the spiral. She whisked down the lifeless and monochrome streets. Even though owners could change their house’s appearance, they could do nothing about the dead atmosphere outside. Instead, homeowners opted to create fantastic or unique houses, transforming each street into a heap of mis-matched houses. Mansions wouldn’t fit, but chateaus, longhouses, bungalows, and cottages dotted the streets alongside the more rare domusi, cabins, and Queen Anne’s.

Veronica glanced at one house that was a miniature dome made of bricks, a singular room with a roof too low for anyone to comfortably stand in. How can anyone live like that, she thought. How could they cook? How could they sleep? It’s much too low for a bedframe; maybe it lowers into the ground. Distracted with her musings, Veronica failed to notice a sudden decrease in house concentration. Her hoverboard slowed down, its display flashing “END OF ROAD. TURN AROUND” Veronica gave it an annoyed look and tapped a button that turned off the autopilot. Veronica grumbled as she changed her stance to balance on the now-wobbly plate. As long as power still ran through the street, the hoverboard would stay afloat. 

Veronica continued on, now aware of the lack of houses. “Who lives back here?” she wondered aloud. She then saw a humanoid figure in a lit window of a very bland house, as if the city answered her. Veronica chuckled at the thought, and then thought about the lifeless Architects. Wait. Are they listening? she thought. Veronica looked up to see the perimeter lights. She couldn’t see the perimeter fence, but she was close. Too close. Veronica started to question why she could approach the edge so easily. She realized there hadn’t been a crossroads for several minutes. She was annoyed that her plan could be foiled so easily, but she pressed on, hoping there would be a street encircling the neighborhood. As she continued, the road straightened out, almost guiding her to the edge of the neighborhood. At that point, the houses had completely vanished, leaving only a stretch of concrete sidewalks and empty lots. 

After several more minutes that passed all-too-quickly, Veronica’s hoverboard let out a horrible static sound. The power line had ended. So had the road. Veronica slowed down and braced for the hover to fail, but it never did. She looked at the monitor to see text saying, “SOURCE SWITCHED TO BATTERY.” She was bewildered. “It’s had a battery this whole time?” she nearly yelled, cursing the object for the several times it had complained about the power lines. Veronica switched the hover off, partly in spite and partly to save its no-doubt weak battery. 

As she regained her bearings, she realized she stood a few yards away from a decrepit–but functional–concrete and steel wall. She saw a large reinforced door with a valve on it, and a rusty metal ladder. The entire structure was so old it looked almost foreign. Veronica began to climb the precarious ladder. As she climbed, she saw several instruments on top of the wall. First, she noticed lights nearly identical to the ones she saw in front of the blocked-off street. Additionally, a strange reflective orb reminiscent of a camera lens floated on a rod far above the spotlights. Finally, Veronica noticed a large barrel that looked vaguely like a weapon. Each of the instruments were more modern than the wall they were installed on. They keep the instruments in shape…  What are the Architects afraid of? Veronica reached the top of the ladder. She was dumbfounded. The wall was nearly 10 feet thick, with reinforcements scattered across the far edge. She ran across to see the outside world. Questions raced through her mind. What’s outside? Who’s outside? Is there life? What will I see?

Veronica clutched the concrete so tight her knuckles turned white. She saw nothing. The spotlights reflected on endless fields of gravel and rock. She had heard the Architects describe the outside as barren wastelands, but she was still surprised. She had expected some ruins, or polluted water, some kind of landmark. But instead, Veronica gazed on pure emptiness. But there was something. Veronica spotted a lone tree husk. Proof life had once existed outside. Proof there was something more than Melanchonge. She wanted to study it, the species, the lifespan, the area around it. She had to know more.

Filled with excitement, and anticipation, and hope, Veronica rushed down the ladder, nearly cutting herself on one of the rungs on the way. She heaved on the giant door with all her might, and pushed it open, revealing a pitch-black hall with no discernable end. After one final deep breath, Veronica stepped forward and entered the darkness.