2124/0001

2121

Hope is something of the past, something that humanity does not know.

The last time I had felt it was before the Halamortem Illness. Before more than four billion people were dead. But, that time is long and gone and now there is nothing. Determination is rare and perseverance is extinct.

Only one thing has kept me here, in this desolate and unforgiving world. The boy whom I had loved for so many years. His name is Ezra and he is everything to me. Fate was kind enough to spare him for me.

Fate was, in fact, kind enough to spare many things for me. Ezra and I live surrounded by other survivors. We still have homes and food and water. Still, I think of him as the only thing I have left. Perhaps it is a cynical thought, but it is my only thread to grasp, nonetheless.

I observe as Ezra helps an older woman down a set of stairs. She smiles warmly at him and pats his shoulder. When he returns, he kisses my cheek and runs a hand through my hair.

That evening we lay outside, beneath the glistening array of stars. We do not speak, we never do. We simply stare into the void above, enjoying each other’s company. This time is something we took for granted even before the end.

“I love you,” I say simply.

“I love you, too,” He replies.

We are silent again.

2122

Ezra is a kind soul, he always was. Even when we entered this post-apocalyptic world, he remained true to himself and shared his care with others. It is one of the many reasons I love him so dearly.

This kindness sprouted a community of survivors. We work together, eat together, smile and laugh together. It’s the happiest any of us have been in a long time.

And Ezra leads it all. He organizes us and encourages us and helps us to grow. We call him our leader, for he is helpful and trustworthy as a great leader should be. No one thinks of him otherwise.

Of course, there is always a negative side to everything. Ezra’s position has led him away from me. He is always busy, and each day I see less and less of him. But who would I be to blame him? He must be under great stress.

“Do you think we should expand?” Ezra asks one night as we lay in our usual spot under the night sky.

I ponder the unusual question for a moment. Though I understand his desire to unite more people, I believe that our community is perfect the way it is. Why would we need to change it? “No,” I tell him. “I don’t think so.”

He sighs. “There are all those lone groups out there. I hear they fight each other over territory. If we get them to join, we’ll have a bigger population, more land, and there won’t be any more vicious fighting.”

“I suppose you could invite them to join us. But you can’t force them to.”

He mumbles something under his breath.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, love.” Ezra’s hand grips mine and squeezes hard. I squeeze back.

2123

Two years ago, society was a mess. One year ago, Ezra took control and became our great leader. And now he has built up our country. He took what used to be the wretched United States of America and converted it into an empire. One beautiful and connected empire. He has done a wonderful service for all of us.

I sit cross-legged on the soft rug of my bedroom. The window is open, allowing a tender summer breeze to blow in. The sun emerges from behind the clouds to soak me in her welcoming golden rays.

It seems that I have everything I could desire. I have a respectable and loving partner. I have an elegant and expensive home. I, myself, am treated with adoration and generosity. It is a dream.

And yet, I’m not exactly happy. I’m content, yes. With all the privileges I have, who wouldn’t be? But I barely see Ezra anymore. He’s always busy and usually spends time in other sectors of the country. When he is home, he’s usually in a bad mood. He is irritable and curt with me.

It’s nothing, though. He’s simply stressed.

While it is true that he’s become more controlling, blunter, perhaps even rude, we all believe that Ezra is still the best leader our country could have. We all trust in him.

Tonight, he will be coming home. I will see him, our great leader and my lover, for two days. Two precious days. They must be perfect.

I have prepared his favorite meal for him and have cleaned the entire house. I hand-washed each of the rugs and towels to perfection.

When Ezra walks through the door, I greet him by throwing myself into his arms and embracing him. He hugs me back for a moment, then releases me rather quickly. I want to frown, but I do not. Instead, I take his coat and hang it up. I set his place at the table and serve him mounds of food. Like many of our past dinners, it is silent.

When he finishes, he stands and says, “Thank you, love. I’m very tired, I think I’ll turn in now.” And then he leaves.

I sigh and clean the kitchen, trying to focus on the two hours we had together before climbing onto the couch, feeling too awkward to sleep next to my own partner.

The next morning, Ezra is much happier. He comes down and kisses my cheek as I cook our breakfast. The light has returned to his eyes and I can catch glances of the boy I fell for seven years ago.

“Let’s go for a walk after breakfast," he suggests. I smile to myself and whisper an agreement.

The capital square is always lovely to walk through, but with Ezra by my side, it is heaven. Bypassers smile and nod at us but none speak, and I can finally enjoy the limited time I have with him. With each merchant stand we pass, Ezra’s smile grows wider. Every stand bears a flag of our country, the symbol of government approval.

After a few precious minutes, he stops walking. I lightly tug his arm but to no avail. My gaze follows his.

There is a stand, hidden just behind another, with an elderly lady selling baked goods.

Her stand does not have a flag.

Her stand was not approved by the government.

Her stand was not approved by Ezra.

Immediately, he begins to storm towards her and I grab his wrist begging him to stop. All I wish is to keep walking, I don’t want my time with him to end so soon “Ezra, please, she’s just an old lady. She’s doing nothing wrong. Please," I plead, but he is not paying attention. “Please.”

He shakes my hand off his wrist and I fall onto the cold cobblestone path. I look up and see my dear lover yelling at the poor woman. She looks terrified. My chest aches.

And then he hit her.

He slapped her right across the face as she cried out, helpless.

I feel the need to throw up.

Eventually, the guards come. They take her away. One of them helps me up as Ezra storms off. My mind is racing and a small voice inside my head is telling me to leave. I push away the thoughts. Ezra is just having a bad day, that’s all. He’s just stressed, as always. It won’t happen again.

2124

It is early in the year 2124. At least, I think so. According to Ezra, it’s been four years since the end. It’s interesting, the way Ezra speaks of it. “The end of the world," he calls it. “The end of a cruel society.”

Ezra rushes into my bedroom and I jump. He wasn’t supposed to be home today. Still, I smile and greet him with a tentative kiss on his cheek.

The scene from last year has been playing on repeat in my head. I can’t seem to forget it, no matter how hard I try to. Whenever I look at him, all I see is the inhumanity in his eyes as he screamed at the defenseless woman. How could this be the same person from so many years ago?

The small voice in my head has grown louder. Sometimes it yells at me as I lay next to him at night. It screeched in my ear as Ezra got down on one knee just two months ago. It wailed and cried as I walked down the aisle in the most extraordinary white gown. And it hasn’t stopped. I’ve just gotten good at ignoring it. I’m living the most extraordinary life right now, and I will not lose it.

Despite how much he’s changed, I know Ezra still loves me. He must. He’s never hurt me, never tried to hit me. I take that fact and hold it tightly. It binds me closer to him.

I glance back at him. His cheeks are red and he is panting. In his hand is a bunch of papers crumpling under his grip. “I’ve done it”, he whispers.

I bite my lip. “You’ve done what?”

“I figured out how to make a perfect society.”

“What?”

“Here, I’ll show you.” Ezra sits and spreads out the papers. There are five total, each labeled with big letters: RESPONSIBILITY, MANNERS, INTELLIGENCE, ETHICS, PERSONALITY, LIFE HUMANITY, respectively. In the lines are nearly illegible scribbles and drawings.

“I don’t understand...”

He smiles. “I call it the Humanity Test. Students shall take it and it will examine them and their abilities. And then, based on the results, it’ll help to choose the correct career path for them.”

“So, it’s basically a career quiz.” I look at Ezra with a smile, but he is not amused.

“No, love, it’s not a career quiz. It’s so much more. It doesn’t just look at your personality. It looks at everything about your human nature. It figures out how helpful you are to society. It helps to put you where you belong.”

I inhale deeply. “And, what if it doesn’t find a place you belong?” I ask.

“That won’t happen. It’s so precise. The top scores get sorted into top jobs. Average scores get average jobs, and low get low. I haven’t worked out everything yet, but trust me. It’ll work.”

“But what if someone fails so miserably that the test can’t find a place for them? Or, what if they do terrible on one portion but incredible on another?” I grab Ezra’s arm and shake, trying to bring back his sense. There is a fire in his eyes that scares me.

“I’ll figure it out. And, anyway, if someone is so utterly useless that they fail the Humanity Test, then there is no role for them in society. Of course, they could probably be used for simple labor. Farming or factory work, most likely.”

I am revolted. The way he has created this test to label people… Organize them and throw away the ones not of use to him. What is he possibly thinking? “Ezra," I plead as my hand reaches for his. “Just because someone isn’t helpful doesn’t make them useless. They could still be loved by family and friends.”

He breaks away and deadpans, “Humanity’s only reason for existence is to work. It is to fit into society and make it grow.” Ezra’s dark gray eyes meet mine and I stare into them. His gaze is intense and I wish to break away, but I cannot.

“What about love?” I question, not breaking eye contact.

His gaze softens and he wraps his arms around me. “Love is important too”, he mumbles. I cringe at the apathy in his voice and grab his arms.

Ezra breaks away. “So," he begins. “Will you be one of my testers?”

“I don’t really want to," I mutter. I’d hate to reject him, but I can’t stand the idea of Ezra finding something that would make him love me less.

“Come on, love. Please?”

I sigh. After a moment’s silence, I reply, “Fine.”

0001

Since his announcement of the Humanity Test, Ezra has decided that we will no longer keep track of the old years. He said that we will start anew.

I enter the testing room along with eleven others. The room is an old elementary classroom that Ezra had renovated. It is dull and gray, contrasting with the faded colors of the rest of the school. I take a deep breath and sit down as papers begin being handed out.

It had been months since I took the test. Ezra has assured me that I most likely did incredibly. But today, he is different. He sits on the chair opposite me at the table. I set down the book I was reading. “Are you alright?” I ask him.

He folds his hands together and looks me in the eyes. His stare burns through to my bone. “The results are finally finished.”

“And?” Anxiety floods my senses.

“Everyone provided good scores. Except one.”

“Who?” I feel as if I might burst.

“You.”

One word. It took one word to shatter me. My nightmare had become a reality. I desperately search his face for a hint. For anything that’ll lead me to believe he still loves me. That my scores mean nothing to him.

Instead, Ezra continues. “You did well on the intelligence, responsibility, and manners portions. But, your scores for ethics and personality weren’t as good. Your tests show how you think mostly with your heart. That’s dangerous to a functional society. And, well, your Life Humanity test was a mess. You clearly don’t agree with any of what I’m doing.”

I break-in, “I don’t! This is wrong! A test score does not define a person! Besides, what does it matter if my beliefs are different from yours? I mean, you know me! Do you really think I’m a danger?”

He doesn’t reply. Seconds pass but they feel like eternities.

Ezra stands. He slams his hand down on the table and I jump. His eyes narrow as he says sternly, “You could be. That’s why you’re being sent away. I have workers coming to take you in an hour. You’re going to a deserted island where you will work for the rest of your life.”

I feel as if I’m floating in space. As if everything is far below me and I will fall to my death at any given moment. I desperately hope that I’m dreaming. That I’ll wake up with Ezra holding my hand and kissing my cheek and telling me I’m okay. That he loves me.

But that is not what happens. I’m pulled back to reality and, within seconds, I’m on the floor, sobbing. “Please. Please, Ezra, my love, don’t do this. Don’t send me away. You still love me, don’t you? Ezra.”

“Enough!” he bellows. I reduce myself to soft whimpers. He looks down at me and mutters something under his breath that I barely hear. “Not anymore, Myra.”

For once, I see what everyone else has been seeing. The mirage is gone.

Before, I was seeing my Ezra. The love of my life, the man who could do no wrong. But everyone else was seeing our great leader. He stands above everyone else. His eyes are filled with hunger. His starvation for power will never be satisfied. His cravings have destroyed him. He is not stressed. He is evil. There is no trace of the boy from high school or the man I thought him to be.

A demon takes his place. I do not know this monster.

I reach for his hand in an attempt to see if there is anything left. If the one I love is still in there, somewhere. He does not take it.

0003

Inside the grand brick house, a couple is putting on their shoes and jackets. They are getting ready for a walk. Ezra runs a hand through his hair and glances over at the girl.

She is nineteen and studying to become a medical expert. She was one of his testers for the Humanity Test. She received the highest score. Ezra grabs her by the arm and pulls her close. He kisses the top of her head. “Ready to go, love?” he asks her.

She smiles and nods.