The Before Short Story Series. Part 1 - Иван Перепелятник

‘Thanks!’ Gleb smiled. ‘I really hope that we will outplay Tonya’s Murz!’

They all burst into laughter.

‘Okay, Tonya,’ Gleb continued, trying to set his camera somewhere. ‘We need to work out the first part—the introductory words about the history of Cheremkhovo.

‘Take one!’ Gleb declared somewhat solemnly.

Tonya fidgeted in her chair, fixed up her hair and began the story.

‘Hello everyone! Today our whole team—Olga, Gleb and myself—are going to Cheremkhovo to the abandoned mines. As for now we have already covered about half of the way to the town, located about 19 miles from Irkutsk. Underground transport highways in the direction of Cheremkhovo are yet not operational, so we make use of a good old electric car for our journey. This means that the travel time will not be measured in minutes, as many of you are used to. I must admit, the road to the town is not in the best condition. So don't be surprised—the car can sometimes shake a little on bumps. We should be there within half an hour.’

‘Cheremkhovo will soon turn 400 years old, friends,’ Tonya continued. ‘For many years, the city had been living only on coal mining. But since the middle of the 21st century, mining had stopped, which further added to the pressure on its economy. The decline in population, unfortunately, continued. Now about ten thousand people live in Cheremkhovo. Today, the main income for citizens is from two sources. The first one is tourism. Many tourists coming to relax at our unique Baikal resort, known all over the world, are interested in seeing the other side of life. The open-pit mines of Cheremkhovo, where coal mining has been carried out for about 200 years, make a strong emotional impression. Coal mines, like bleeding scars and ulcers on a live body, are a clear demonstration of of how difficult the ecological situation in the region used to be. If you take a bird's-eye view high from the sky at the entire mining quarry, a complete picture of the damage to the ecological balance caused by man at the time appears. These are such complex routes—walking and flying around the site—that local guides practice, entertaining tourists. They say that this program is very popular and well-paid.’

Tonya stopped, ‘Gleb, won’t this be too much—‘bleeding scars and ulcers on a live body’—isn’t it too eloquent a description? There are yet no such scars there.’

‘Tonya, first look into literature, the history of the town, archive documents. I have prepared thoroughly—the text is based on proven facts. There’re no my devices here,’ Gleb insisted on his line. ‘You’d better keep moving, come on. We have absolutely no time left before we get to the city.’

‘Mining at Cheremkhovo had been stopped long ago’, Tonya continued the story, looking into the camera. ‘Thermonuclear ITERs provide new energy for the world, as an inexhaustible source of modern power and potential for industry and economy. But much more interesting for our story is the second source of income for citizens. About 15 years ago, a new high-tech production of capsules for Trackers was launched in the city. Yes, of course, you are right, those same Trackers or identity passports, the unique chips that identify a person, tracking bio-activity indicators, and which also provide a preventive security function. It is important to emphasize, please don’t be confused, we are not talking here about production of all the complex inner filling for the Tracker—only about its shell. We note right away that although this is a shell of a chip, it is not less complex or sophisticated because of this. Just imagine—the entire range of capabilities of this device has to function reliably in the human body for at least 300 years. Life expectancy at the beginning of the century has reached 200 years. Our contemporary supercentenerians, who get listed in the Guinness Book of Records, live up to 220–230 years. Three centuries is exactly the lifetime of the Tracker as drafted by the designers. Such a chip in my body has been functioning for more than 20 years. Guys, imagine what a critically important element this shell is!’

‘The paradox of this story is this.’ The camera switched to Olga. ‘On the one hand, the regional authorities, stimulating the economy of Cheremkhovo, have launched the production of capsules for Trackers. This is an excellent investment, help for residents, new jobs, taxes to the budget, employment possibilities. Nothing to lose, a world to gain! At the same time, there are rumors that it is in Cheremkhovo, not far from the city, that one of the communities of renegades or, as they are also called, divergents is located. And as you know, divergents are those who reject new opportunities offered by modern infrastructure of the economy, a new quality of life, access to which is possible due to the integration of the chip into the human body even before birth. Tracker is the key to everything! From the monthly minimum social allowance for a citizen of the Republic, to the opportunity to get to the lunar colony. Unless, of course, you are very lucky, or you are very rich, or you are directly related to the scientific programs under development on the Moon.’ Olga smiled and continued. ‘In order to safely hide themselves from the PAX system—and divergents view it as one of the greatest evils of modern life, which deprives us, as they believe, of the right to be individuals, to choose, to destiny and life itself—they have to look for nooks, remote places to carry on life.’

‘Olga, but don’t they have to earn for their living somehow, to buy food, clothes, and anything else necessary?’ Both girls were already on the camera.

‘That's right, Tonya. Nowadays, it is difficult to live without a digital identifier, to say the least. The reason for choosing Cheremkhovo, as we