Knock, knock, knock! Somebody was pounding on the door to the small house. Somebody was after the entire family. Somebody was on their way to drag them away. This was the end, there was no resisting. Everything that had been fought for...gone. Shit, shit, shit! The screams of those being dragged away nearly pierced Galina's eardrums as she bolted awake, sweating. Nightmares again. They had been a common occurrence, going back to at least her father's death. It was something she struggled with, truly believing it was partially her fault, but could she have really prevented it? Perhaps he was better off dead, considering the fate he would have met instead. The aliens. They intervened little in the affairs of Earth, but when they did it was merciless.
Trying to wipe all remnants of the dream from her mind, an exhausted Galina sat up in bed staring out to the bright orange sunrise that by now completely illuminated her room in her tiny flat. Down below she could already hear the bustling activity of the market below. They always had an early start, knowing that many of their best customers ventured in early in the morning. The cult priests. They always arrived early and then returned back to their congregations under the illusion of "cleansing" themselves for the day, as if they had done nothing wrong. "Crafty bastards, they are." Galina chuckled at the very thought as she picked up a partially smoked cigarette from the ashtray beside her bed. She lit it up and then took a deep puff as she lied back down in bed. The sensation of tobacco smoke filling her lungs immediately calmed her, prompting her to start the day.
Quickly putting out the cigarette butt, Galina hopped out of bed and stood up in the centre of her bedroom once again staring out the window. There was nothing visible for kilometres except for the towering smokestacks of factories where much of the poorer districts now worked. Off further in the distance she could just barely make out the silhouette of the towering skyscrapers that dotted much of the wealthier districts. It nearly made Galina sick to even think about who was among the residents there, the very people who preached against decadence while indulging in decadence themselves. The world had gone backwards in a few decades, that much was clear.
Letting out a sigh Galina began dressing herself. There was bound to be interesting people down in the market today. Despite everything else that was one of the few places she actually looked forward to visiting daily. It was one of the few places where nobody had allowed the cults to pollute their minds and many of the regulars were like a tight knit family. Galina liked this, having no family of her own left. Living in the dead centre of the free communities had its benefits and was certainly sought after by many. Galina had gotten lucky, however. She had connections and they had hooked her up with an apartment flat. It wasn't much but it was home and technically illegal, but when were the cult's laws ever just? And that was exactly why such communities existed in the first place, as Galina and so many others knew well.
"Good morning." Galina was immediately greeted as she walked into her frequented breakfast establishment. Immediately the aroma of fresh ham and eggs filled her nostrils as she seated herself. It was a smaller diner but also very popular, judging by the amount of people who were already present. If there was only one benefit to being in the free communities, it was the abundance of food that people took the time to prepare. To everybody else overindulging was just another form of decadence that was frowned upon; you could eat just enough to simply fill you up, nothing more. Remember, our past decadence gave us this punishment. You do not want to repeat it. The words of one of the prominent priests filled Galina's mind as she thought about the world outside of the free communities. Did he genuinely believe what he was preaching or was he just rallying to get people under his submission? Maybe one day the belief had been genuine, but it was difficult to see that now.
"Thank you. Did any of those damned priests come in today?" Galina asked after thanking the server for her food. She could only smile in approval as she noticed they had perfected her order, one of the perks of being a regular.
"Not that I've seen. I'm not sure most sink that low." The server responded, trying to hold back laughter. Not sink that low? What was he talking about? The priest's own rules didn't apply to them apparently and those cultists who saw it tried to excuse the whole thing away; "They guide us so why shouldn't they be rewarded?" The whole thing was so enraging to Galina that at that very moment she had to hold rage that suddenly began building up within her. Here was not the place, not now over breakfast.
Finishing up her plate of ham and eggs, Galina set down a single crumbled bill on the table. It baffled her that currency from the old world was still used yet everything else was so thoroughly condemned. She wasn't about to question it though as somehow she knew she would never get an answer. Instead she just sat at the table for several more moments, but as she looked up she noticed something peculiar. There appeared to be a man staring straight at her as if he had been watching her. "Creepy." She uttered before putting her head down.
Just as Galina had placed her head down, from the corner of her eye she noticed the man get up from his seat and leave. Was he watching her? Was he a cult priest perhaps, trying to find somebody to bust? It wasn't often that happened and if it happened to her she knew she was in no position to offer any sort of bribe. She suddenly felt fearful. Was she about to get into trouble? What if it was somebody searching for more people to ship off as slaves? That was the main condition that gave Earth some degree of sovereignty still, that occasionally the aliens get provided with fresh labour. Even many of the cultists disapproved, but accepted it still as one of humanity's punishments. That alone proved that nobody was about to fight against it. It was a common reality here now in what was supposedly called "Boston" at one point, and all over the rest of the world too.
Trying to wipe all remnants of the dream from her mind, an exhausted Galina sat up in bed staring out to the bright orange sunrise that by now completely illuminated her room in her tiny flat. Down below she could already hear the bustling activity of the market below. They always had an early start, knowing that many of their best customers ventured in early in the morning. The cult priests. They always arrived early and then returned back to their congregations under the illusion of "cleansing" themselves for the day, as if they had done nothing wrong. "Crafty bastards, they are." Galina chuckled at the very thought as she picked up a partially smoked cigarette from the ashtray beside her bed. She lit it up and then took a deep puff as she lied back down in bed. The sensation of tobacco smoke filling her lungs immediately calmed her, prompting her to start the day.
Quickly putting out the cigarette butt, Galina hopped out of bed and stood up in the centre of her bedroom once again staring out the window. There was nothing visible for kilometres except for the towering smokestacks of factories where much of the poorer districts now worked. Off further in the distance she could just barely make out the silhouette of the towering skyscrapers that dotted much of the wealthier districts. It nearly made Galina sick to even think about who was among the residents there, the very people who preached against decadence while indulging in decadence themselves. The world had gone backwards in a few decades, that much was clear.
Letting out a sigh Galina began dressing herself. There was bound to be interesting people down in the market today. Despite everything else that was one of the few places she actually looked forward to visiting daily. It was one of the few places where nobody had allowed the cults to pollute their minds and many of the regulars were like a tight knit family. Galina liked this, having no family of her own left. Living in the dead centre of the free communities had its benefits and was certainly sought after by many. Galina had gotten lucky, however. She had connections and they had hooked her up with an apartment flat. It wasn't much but it was home and technically illegal, but when were the cult's laws ever just? And that was exactly why such communities existed in the first place, as Galina and so many others knew well.
"Good morning." Galina was immediately greeted as she walked into her frequented breakfast establishment. Immediately the aroma of fresh ham and eggs filled her nostrils as she seated herself. It was a smaller diner but also very popular, judging by the amount of people who were already present. If there was only one benefit to being in the free communities, it was the abundance of food that people took the time to prepare. To everybody else overindulging was just another form of decadence that was frowned upon; you could eat just enough to simply fill you up, nothing more. Remember, our past decadence gave us this punishment. You do not want to repeat it. The words of one of the prominent priests filled Galina's mind as she thought about the world outside of the free communities. Did he genuinely believe what he was preaching or was he just rallying to get people under his submission? Maybe one day the belief had been genuine, but it was difficult to see that now.
"Thank you. Did any of those damned priests come in today?" Galina asked after thanking the server for her food. She could only smile in approval as she noticed they had perfected her order, one of the perks of being a regular.
"Not that I've seen. I'm not sure most sink that low." The server responded, trying to hold back laughter. Not sink that low? What was he talking about? The priest's own rules didn't apply to them apparently and those cultists who saw it tried to excuse the whole thing away; "They guide us so why shouldn't they be rewarded?" The whole thing was so enraging to Galina that at that very moment she had to hold rage that suddenly began building up within her. Here was not the place, not now over breakfast.
Finishing up her plate of ham and eggs, Galina set down a single crumbled bill on the table. It baffled her that currency from the old world was still used yet everything else was so thoroughly condemned. She wasn't about to question it though as somehow she knew she would never get an answer. Instead she just sat at the table for several more moments, but as she looked up she noticed something peculiar. There appeared to be a man staring straight at her as if he had been watching her. "Creepy." She uttered before putting her head down.
Just as Galina had placed her head down, from the corner of her eye she noticed the man get up from his seat and leave. Was he watching her? Was he a cult priest perhaps, trying to find somebody to bust? It wasn't often that happened and if it happened to her she knew she was in no position to offer any sort of bribe. She suddenly felt fearful. Was she about to get into trouble? What if it was somebody searching for more people to ship off as slaves? That was the main condition that gave Earth some degree of sovereignty still, that occasionally the aliens get provided with fresh labour. Even many of the cultists disapproved, but accepted it still as one of humanity's punishments. That alone proved that nobody was about to fight against it. It was a common reality here now in what was supposedly called "Boston" at one point, and all over the rest of the world too.