Michelle Muckley - The Dawn - The Bombs Fall

“Take it,” Zack said, and without a second thought Leonard pulled the plate towards him and finished it off in four gigantic mouthfuls. Leonard held up the small water ration out of courtesy to enquire if Zack wanted it or not. Zack waved his hand to surrender it and Leonard knocked it back like a Russian would vodka. Zack could see that Leonard kept checking his wrist, rubbing at the number with his left hand, clearing any debris or dust that might somehow impair his chances. Zack was sure that his number was worthless, nothing more than an out of date ticket. He guessed that sometimes in ignorance, hope could live on as brightly as a rainbow after the early spring rains.

There were people still filing in, some just realising that the lottery was starting. The queue for food had become madness because even the servers were distracted. Zack turned around in time to see somebody land a fist in the cheek of another citizen. It took only a second for two Guardians to step in, and with the help of their Assisters they brought the situation under control for the benefit of all citizens. The Second Creed. All citizens of New Omega have the right to live safely without fear or threat. Threats from the Guardians didn’t count.

“That’s his chances shot,” said Leonard as both he and Zack turned away just as the Guardians dragged away the assailant. Zack wondered if he could really be held responsible for his crime. Surely the crime was attributable to Omega. For a moment he felt the hatred rise up and push the butterflies of excitement aside as he remembered how much he despised Omega for being everything he craved and everything he didn’t have. But being on their team was better than being their opponent, and the hopes soon resurfaced along with the same tingling in his fingers as his heart started to gallop.

The television screens went black as the final advert was cut short. There was no time left. Within minutes there would be another New Omega Lottery Winner. Zack tucked his hands into his lap, pushing up his right sleeve with the stained thumb of his left hand. Eight. Six. Five. Two.

In the final moments before the programme began he imagined the smell of ice cream as it melted on a summer’s day, the sensation of grass crumpled beneath the bare sole of his foot. The warmth of a bed, the embrace of a partner, of Samantha, and of the child that they should have been raising. He would have done it. He wouldn’t have failed her. He would have put things right, right? In the vision of his mind he saw his son, somewhere between six and ten years old blowing out the candles on an oversized birthday cake. There were presents at his feet and Samantha was crying happy tears with her forehead nuzzled into his jaw line, her lips kissing him and whispering thank you for a wonderful life.

Just before he heard the music begin, he allowed himself to dream that he deserved another chance.

Hello and good evening to each and every one of you out there. We are only moments away from revealing the lucky winner of tonight’s New Omega Lottery. Tonight, one of you will trade your life and become the future of our world. Tonight, you will be sleeping in Omega. Yes, that’s right people, tonight it could be you!

The crowds of Omega citizens sat in organised rows watching Daley Cartwell. He was wearing a green suit, his hair shinier than a black diamond. His smile was wider and whiter than a Himalayan crevasse. There were no Guardians that Zack could see, although it could be hard to spot them because everybody was wearing white. Only the children were wearing colour, the bright dresses and shirts interwoven through the crowds like a ribbon in a braid of hair. An audience waiting to see the latest recruit. Each time Daley Cartwell stopped talking, they began applauding. Rows and rows of clean white uniforms, freshly laundered and pressed, like the smell of grass after rain.

We have been preparing all week and the whole community is waiting to welcome you. The machine is ready. The numbers are ready. Your room is ready. We, your fellow citizens, are ready.

Daley Cartwell cast his eyes down, the microphone pressed against his chin underneath his lip.

We are ready to welcome you, he said as the cameras zoomed in for a close up . Together we will help you become a citizen of Omega Tower, to live once again with freedom, to play your part in rebuilding our world so that all, and each, and every one of you will once again live as free men and women!

Daley Cartwell flung a triumphant hand in the air which initiated rapturous applause from the crowd. The cameras panned across the rows of spectators who were nodding and celebrating the arrival of a stranger as if their own freedoms would somehow be that much sweeter by welcoming a new resident into Omega Tower. Zack could see the important faces sitting high up above the crowds. The camera zoomed in for a close up of President Grayson dressed in his official uniform, issued by The Republic. He was a president for which nobody Zack knew had voted. He nodded his head as if to confirm the value of this moment, the months and years of work that had gone into opening this one place in Omega. It seemed that in Omega they too might be watching the large screens, because when the president’s face came into view the cheering intensified in Omega Tower. A few people in Delta also applauded. A couple cheered. Leonard reached over and squeezed Zack’s arm and they both felt the tension. A woman close to the largest television jumped up from the crowd and threw a chunk of unleavened bread at the screen. The Guardians inched in but another two Delta residents wrestled her down into the crowd. People tutted at the inconvenience and the Guardians were kept back. Outbursts would not be tolerated tonight. Not by anybody.

Daley Cartwell was standing at the side of another large screen towards the back of his stage. The stage was lit by concentric rings of lights on the floor as if he was literally walking across the stars. The screen was playing images of Omega citizens walking with a purpose but without a destination. Next they were sitting in libraries reading books as if they had cause to learn. Images of thinking and working and hardship that were nothing more than a pathetic facade of real life. Zack knew this because he knew that every other tower was responsible for providing what they needed. Omega didn’t work for anything. Zack could imagine the next generations of Omega citizens born into a life of privilege. It would be even worse then.

Here in Omega we are rebuilding. Every day is a challenge to reconstruct our society as we once knew it. To build a life again for us all to enjoy. Here in Omega we do not seek exclusivity. We are not working for ourselves. We do not sit here in an ivory tower on our laurels whilst you toil in less than perfect conditions.

Daley Cartwell said this with one eyebrow raised and with his tongue sticking into his cheek as if he was in on the joke of what the other towers thought about Omega residents. As if he was saying, we know what you think about us, but it doesn’t matter. We understand. We forgive you. The camera cut to the crowd and some of them were laughing. We are working, as one, for you, he continued .

More applause. Cheering on Delta level twenty five.

We are here tonight not to celebrate what we have achieved to date. We are here, one and all, to celebrate our ability to welcome another citizen, to open our doors and say that this place is your new home. Tonight we celebrate our opportunity to grow in strength, to accept another member into our arms and build our team so that we can fight even harder to rebuild the world for us all. So let’s not delay, let us begin. Let us begin the search for a new citizen of Omega Tower. Let us grow in strength. Let us build a better future. Your future.