Grandpa's Secret

"You know we're not supposed to talk about this Henry."

"I just think people should know."

"You're going to get us killed."

" I'm 180 years old. I'm going to die soon anyway."

"Henry! What about the kids. You'll put us all in danger. You saw what happened to the Smith family."

"Yes, and they were heroes."

"Stop it Henry. Rest before your heart dies out again. They won't give you another."

I stayed frozen for a little longer in case Grandpa had more to say. He didn't so I continued to the Resource room. I liked to go when most of the pod was at rest. I preferred Fueled Organic Output Devices over rest for energy anyway. I pondered my grandfather's discontent as I ate the tasteless provisions. What was he so concerned that people should know? As I drifted deeper in thought my chip rang.

"Hello."

"Adam! Get in here now! There's something wrong with Henry!"

I raced to the transporter and into my grandparents room. Grandma stood wide eyed and hysterical over my near lifeless grandfather.

"Check his energy!"

My Grandma didn't move so I pushed past her and scanned Grandpa's chip. His energy was at 5 percent.

"Quick! Call Direct Observation Care!"

Grandma hit the button.

"Direct Observation Care. How many we help you?"

"It's my husband. His energy is low. He's not responding."

"One moment please."

After about a minute of low-fi music and silent panic the holographic Emergency Medical Synthesized Provider appeared at the bedside.

"Ah yes, his energy is dangerously low. Have you tried the micro charger?"

"He's 180 years old. His is expired."

"I'm sorry. He's not eligible for a new heart either. I don't think there's anything we can do."

I checked Grandpa's energy again. It was down to 2 percent.

"Please! Do something!"

"I'm sorry ma'am. We'll be over to pick him up."

Grandma and I stared at Grandpa's chest until it rose and fell for the last time. Before our tears streamed from our faces to the floor the EMSP and Medical Examiners were ringing from the pod entrance. We asked them to keep quiet as we didn't want to cause chaos. Luckily, most of the pod was resting. Their metallic footsteps followed us into the transporter. In the room, one of the bots lifted Grandpa's arm and scanned his chip.

"Yes, he's dead."

My Grandmother's tears and moans intensified as if this was new information.

"Would everyone mind stepping out for a second as we examine?"

We walked out silently and I led Grandma to my room. She sat on my bed and sobbed. I hugged her and placed my hand on her shoulder. She didn't seem to recognize my presence and I could feel my own emotions simmering so I stepped out for a walk. As I sauntered down the hall and past my grandparent's room I could faintly hear the conversation inside. I froze in the same spot I had earlier that night.

"Remotely deactivated I see."

"Yes, determined to be a threat."

"They all are. Everyone who knows."

"They'll all be gone soon. Another 15 or so years?"

"Something like that. Everyone younger than about 170 is oblivious."

"Yes, besides us Officials and I'm sure we don't know everything."

They laughed until a wretched drilling and cracking sound interrupted.

"It's amazing how different the old one’s brains look?"

"Yes. All of the ridges. And they're so soft"

"Why do you think that is? Aging?"

"No."

"I'm sure you're right. I told you we probably don't know everything."

They laughed again.

"Let's bag him up. The old ones have to go to the lab."

I went back to the room to find my grandma in the same spot. I took her by the hand and led her back to her room. We knocked and the door opened just as the zipper shut.

"Can I see him again?"

"Not now ma'am. We can't disrupt the specimen once the examination is complete."

Grandma's sobs turned into wails.

"Henry! I told you! You should have listened!"

The EMSP and Medical Examiner exchanged a quick glance as she sunk to the ground and buried her face in her hands. I lowered myself to comfort her.

"Excuse me. We've got to get him to the lab. We're sorry for your loss."

They stepped around me and my grieving grandmother and carried Grandpa's body toward the transporter. I muttered the outside code so they didn't have to drag him through the pod and out the front door. In an instant they were gone.

I took the responsibility of telling the rest of the pod. Ours was smaller than most because Grandma and Grandpa only had 1 child. My Dad died in a mysterious accident when he was only 77 years old. That was 35 years ago and I was 10. I was the youngest of my 6 sisters and 4 brothers. I wasn't ready to settle down and have children yet but I had 29 nieces, 41 nephews and 12 great nieces and nephews. They were all at rest in their respective rooms. I decided to wait until morning. Once the sun came up I rang the gathering bell. This usually meant there was an emergency so everyone arrived quickly. A collective gasp erupted when I delivered the news. Per emergency procedure, we appointed my oldest brother Todd as Pod Leader. There was no pomp and circumstance, just a simple declaration. We told a few stories about Grandpa and went on about our day.

Not much changed over the next few weeks. Grandma stayed in the room most of the time. I felt for her and I missed Grandpa, but I was more overwhelmed with curiosity about what he wanted everyone to know. I didn't want Grandma to know that I'd been spying the night and I was sure she wouldn't divulge even if I asked. I had to get her out of that room.

"Grandma. Why don't you get up and go to the Resource room. The kids miss seeing you down there."

"I'd rather not. They can come here if they want to see me."

"It's not good for you to stay in here. I'm worried about you."

"Oh, don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

My sister Bree knocked on the door. We all knew Bree was her favorite. They had the same eyes, nose and hair. Bree even named her oldest daughter Evelyn after Grandma.

"Hi. Grandma. Just coming to check on you."

"Oh I'm fine honey. Adam's trying to get me to get up and out of this room, but I'm fine."

"I think that's a good idea Grandma. Come on. Get dressed and come with me."

Bree took her by the hand and got her out of the bed. I stepped out for privacy while she changed. As soon as I heard the buzz of the transporter I creeped back to Grandma's room. I looked in closets and drawers for anything that might lead me to Grandpa's secret. In the closet there were old clothes, hats and shoes. I hadn't seen those in years. I was a kid when The Authority mandated that everyone wear Technoskin Adaptive Garments. There was a device that folded in half with a screen on the inside top and keyboard on bottom. Next to that was a bag of remote controls to who-knows-what. Clearly, Grandpa liked to keep old things. Tucked in the back corner was a cardboard box. We weren't even allowed to have cardboard anymore. The top was sealed securely and there were no words or labels. I fished the heavy box out of the closet and attempted to put everything else back in place. I peeked out the door, grateful that no one was around. I took the box to my room and closed the door. A sweet, earthy aroma escaped as I unsealed and opened the box top. Inside were dozens of collections of bound paper. Paper wasn’t allowed anymore either. One of the paper stacks had the word "Bible" on the front, another "History" and another "Encyclopedia". The others had longer names. There had to be hundreds of thousands of words in each. I'd never seen anything like it. With Intelligent Dictation, most people didn't know how to read. Grandpa made sure we all did. I stared at the blue sphere with green splotches and white swirls on the front of the collection of papers that said "History". Something about it looked familiar but I wasn't sure why. The pictures inside were of humans wearing old clothes and driving metal transporters with wheels. The stories were of “wars” and "countries". It was as if there was some foreign world with people who looked like us but behaved very differently. It was all overwhelming. I looked through the other books, mostly words. In the bottom of the box was a collection of papers bound by a spiral metal apparatus. It was filled with what I remembered as writing, another thing Grandpa had exposed us to. Each page had a date at the top:

"June 5th, 2097

They've made it official and we are now in the bubble. I'm not sure what's going on out there. I'm sick to my stomach. They only let those of us who are wealthy inside. No one who's poor or middle class, no one with disabilities and no one who dissented. We’re not allowed back out. I should’ve dissented. I couldn’t don’t to Evelyn, though. I'd rather die than be in here.

September 24th, 2097

They say we're safer in here and that they’ve found a way to make us live longer. Something about energy chips. A couple just had a baby at 65 years old. That's a positive. It gives me and Evelyn hope. I can't help but worry about everyone out there. I'm pretty sure they're all dead. We should be with them.

February 14th, 2098

It's Valentine's Day but we can't celebrate holidays. It feels like they're always watching and listening. They say the chips will be implanted by the end of the year. It's been nice to not have to work but I miss the variety of life.

July 20th, 2098

Evelyn's pregnant! I didn't think it was possible! We asked for a boy. Now we'll have our own little pod. It's been lonely with just Evelyn and I. Our chips are in and we don't need sleep or real food anymore. Just "rest" and something called Fueled Organic Output Devices. They all taste the same. Ugh! Man do I miss real food. The Authority acts as if the outside of the bubble never existed. Several people have been killed for talking about it. I often wonder if I'll tell our son.

March 9th, 2099

Our baby boy is beautiful. We named him Jacob. We're adjusting to life in the bubble. The secret still gnaws at my heart but there's nothing I can do now. I’ve got to stop writing. Surveillance seems to be more intense.

October 3rd, 2176

It's Jacob. I found these books and I'm dumbfounded. I talked to dad about it. He told me some, but I don't think he's telling me everything. This is awful. I have to say something. What if they're still out there?"

I was too confused to cry. I stared at the pages and questioned everything I'd ever known. I didn't notice the red light flashing above my head until I fell backward. I didn’t have to check my energy to know it was low. They were watching. I thought of going for my charger but I couldn't move. The room swirled, then went black.