The city to which i had awoken was cold.
I have this feeling of being mysteriously preserved for ages. The scenes here are so familiar. I wonder if I had been here before. I wonder why I am here. I wonder who I am. I feel like I had been asleep for so long.
I strolled along Street 3 a week ago. It was where I first grasped a hint of what could have been my life before my slumber. The memory was vague. The images were severely distorted. The scenes flashed very fast. For a moment I was stunned by the overwhelming flood of sounds, pictures, emotions and intuitions. I saw weeping. There was Smoke. I saw pain and suffering. I saw a curse. I decided to sit for a while in the sidewalk. Maybe to compose myself. I sat there longer than I intended and it was from that rest that I was able to examine the City.
I heard this city is fortunate. No life exists beyond its barriers. For the first time I noticed how Smoke had covered the Heavens. Light is dim everywhere in the City, save the houses and buildings where light bulbs shine brightly. I saw sorrow in the smiles of the people who passed by. I saw weakness. I saw fear.
Children are lonely in the City. Mannequins watch after them while their parents work hard whole day. I saw some children chase a little puppy, shooting it with strange-looking toy guns. The puppy shrieked as it limped hopelessly from the children. It fell down, still crawling away for its life. Then suddenly, it gave a long whine, with which some of the children shuddered. It convulsed. It choked and the whine slowly ceased. Finally, the poor creature stopped moving, its eyes falling on me, as if it knew I was there watching the cruel torture. I trembled. The puppy’s long whine continued to reverberate in my ears. It clouded the noise of the City. It clouded the peals of vicious laughs that followed. Every sound faded except for the puppy’s moan as it struggled for its life. Then the Mannequins took the children home.
It was on my way home that I met Venus. She was irresistible. One would rarely find a woman of such beauty and wits. We talked, and on that day, became good friends. We enjoyed each other's company. It was from the conversations we had that I discovered one of the most unusual things in this city. One day, while we were talking, she showed me an odd-looking syringe. She said it is called a RLXNSHP Apparatus. It is used to get LV. I was examining the Apparatus when she said she likes me. It was quick. Nevertheless, it was sweetly said. I was dumbfounded. It took me some time to decide on what my reply would be. I struggled, and finally, said I like her too. She smiled. It was very lovely. Then she took my hand, and injected the Apparatus. She said that with that, I can give her my LV. It didn’t really hurt. In fact, it was even a bit tickling. A clear fluid slowly filled the Apparatus, and when it was full, the fluid crystallized into a beautiful gem-like candy. That was my LV, Venus said. It was beautiful. Then she ate it. She said the Apparatus would continually drain my LV. She also injected an Apparatus in her hand. We were supposed to exchange our LV, according to her.
LV is an unknown matter produced by the body when exposed to the Sun. Since time immemorial, people had been working hard to discover its composition. What it is. How it can be created. Unfortunately, none was successful. I learned it is a commodity in this city. People are actually buying it in the market. LV is said to be a precious drug. It is a powerful stimulant. Its effects are ecstatic. It improves health. It brings happiness, peace and warmth. It comforts. It satisfies the soul. It is simply magical. It is given to orphans, to the sick, to those who are in pain, to those in sorrow. Everybody wants it. Venus said many are actually abusing the RLXNSHP Apparatus to get LV. Years ago, only adults possessed it. Now, even the younger generations are using it. They just can’t live without it. They just can’t live without LV.
Children are lonely because they aren’t allowed to use the Apparatus and they don’t get to eat enough LV. Children who grow without eating enough LV have less LV in their bodies when they grow. Mannequins cannot give enough LV to children. Children are supposed to be given LV from their mommies and daddies. But some mommies and daddies also grew without eating enough LV, and so their bodies could hardly give it. Besides, the Sun doesn't shine much in the City.
In the market, many women sell LV. Men take them home, and there, inject them. They use another form of Apparatus. Something more corrupt. The men end up eating Corrupt LV, and women end up broken. That is how things are in this city.
It took some days for me to notice that Venus’ Apparatus drained slower than mine. I concluded she also grew without eating much LV. My LV drained fast, and I ate less. Slowly, I felt more and more empty. I became more restless each day. Then one day, I became just like the others: sad, scared and empty. A day came when the Apparatus drained the same amount of LV from us, and we ate the same amount of LV a day. Things became hard for us because we both wanted more. My LV wasn’t enough to satisfy Venus. The Apparatus drained me half empty of LV . And then, I wanted more out of her. Both of us felt empty then. I started going to the market. She started eating the Corrupt LV I consumed. Then our lives sank into utter misery.
Then yesterday. I broke the RLXNSHP Apparatus. She also broke hers. She was in tears. I decided to leave. I was walking down Street 3 when I saw something I never noticed before. The sight broke my heart. I took one last glimpse of my old place I shared with Venus. I continued walking, hoping someday I could go back, and finally, have enough LV inside me to fill her.
The place was still as cold as ever. Still, the sun wasn't shining. All over the street scattered piles of broken RLXNSHP Apparatus.
