The Dissenters by Lauren M. Flauding

Author:Lauren M. Flauding [Flauding, Lauren M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Blurtery Publishing
Published: 2016-05-18T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

The base is nearly empty. Almost everyone left to go on some mission they wouldn't tell me about. I thought maybe I'd be able to see them on the surveillance monitors, but the room was locked. So I go to the library instead.

I search through the dusty shelves until I find my great-great-grandmother's journal again. I pull out the picture of Lucia and study it more carefully. I'd mistake the woman for my mom except that her hair is shorter and her mouth is a little wider. Plus, she's wearing ancient clothes. I sit down at the nearest table and open to the first entry in the journal.

I'm so excited! I actually met someone who has an Amplifier today! I was finishing up my shift at the museum when he walked into the Civil Wars Room. I didn't know he was Amplified at first, but then I overheard him commanding himself to recall the history of the 4th Urban War so he could compare it with the plaque on the wall. I couldn't help asking him a few questions. He said he got Amplified a few years ago to cure his lung cancer. It was an incredible story. Then he showed me a few tricks he could do with his Amplifier. He did a flying kick and almost knocked over a case of ancient guns! It was amazing to see someone that old move like that. Sometimes I wish I could be Amplified.

I chuckle at her enthusiasm. She didn't put dates on any of the entries, but I'm guessing it was probably about 50 years after they began the Amplification Project. I flip past several pages and read another entry.

Yesterday, my friend Regis broke his leg on purpose in order to get Amplified. Things are really getting out of hand. The Community is approving Amplification for broken limbs, dyslexia, obesity, depression, diabetes, and dozens of other conditions. A number of people have accidentally killed themselves trying to become eligible for an Amplifier. About a quarter of the population is Amplified now, and there is great discrimination against those who are not. Those who are Amplified receive all the best labor positions and are the most prominent in the Community. It's wonderful that the Amplifiers are improving people's lives, but I'm worried about the divisions and violence they're causing. We might have been imperfect before, but at least we had peace.

I'm starting to feel a little nauseous. These are details they conveniently left out of the history films they showed us in school. I search through the pages until I find the last entry of the journal.

It's been several years since I've written, and I probably won't write again. Last week they passed the Equality Movement, which means that everyone can become Amplified if they submit to certain conditions. However, the other sectors had different ideas on how best to achieve equality, and they wouldn't compromise, so they're separating from the Community. The East will have equality through physicality, the North decided on equality through resources, and the West chose equality through freedom.

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