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‘We’ll figure it out,’ he consoled her. His expression said otherwise,
however, as his brow was deeply furrowed and his stature was tense.
The two sat in yet another silence that day, as they watched the city
pass by in a blur beneath them.
As the shuttle neared to The Association, Genine knew. She
knew that she would not succumb to the control of the government.
She was going to have her baby. She was going to raise it to be happy
and healthy. She was going to grow old as a proud mother. She was
not going to let them win.
‘
The revolving glass doors swung open as Genine and Mendello
stepped into the familiar atmosphere of The Association. As always
the air seemed to reek of staleness, the building was stifling.
Screams of desperation sliced through the air like knives. A
woman in her early twenties desperately clawed at the officer who
had her in his grasp.
‘My baby!’ She wailed, over and over again, gasping for air.
Genine felt dread as she watched the mother’s feeble attempts at
escape. There, being played out right in front of her as if it were a
warning, were the consequences of defying society. She gripped
Mendello’s sturdy arm and clenched her eyes shut as he gently
guided her away, trying to block the doubts clouding her mind.
‘
Sitting in front of her desk, Genine thumbed through the research
files in her digital notebook. The Association believed in the
possibility of immortality. Its sole function was to achieve the
impossible. Genine was one of the rare genetically damaged who had
the privilege of working for the organization, because of her high
intelligence.
Technology in 2068 was at its peak. No more paper, pens, brooms,
hammers. No, everything now functioned purely with highly
advancedmachinery. And Genine hated it. She hated the mechanical
feel of the world, lost without its human touch. She longed for the
simple aspects of life that had been abolished. Most of all, she longed
for the freedom of having a child. Instead, her days were filled with
constant experiments, aimed to find the key to prolonging life. Life
expectancy had already spiralled to one hundred and thirty years.
But it was never enough.
She double-clicked on a hidden file in her notebook, enlarging it
Negative
11