Anarchy Novel "Will" Chapter 6 (part 2)
Hi Steemers! I am happy to present my new anarchy themed novel! I will post the entire book for free via steemit posts, a chapter or two at a time.
Title: Will
Genre: Science Fiction, Political Thriller, Comedy Synopsis: Early 30th Century Earth is literally divided by a mysterious wall. On the dark side of the wall, millions suffer from mind control, despotic rulers, war, pain, and suffering. On the light side of the wall, it is the complete opposite. There is peace, freedom, and prosperity. One day a man from the dark side manages to get to the other side, a fateful event which will change the world forever.
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Please note: To begin reading from the beginning, refer to my earlier steemit posts or download the book for free on my blog @ Makingtheoligarchyobsolete.blogspot.com
“There’s only one thing I’m not clear on,” Vintage said. “Really, only one?” Ray joked. Vintage asked, “If you don’t have a government, then do banks issue your money?” Everyone said they didn’t know what a bank was. This completely astonished Vintage. How could capital be raised and trade conducted without banks to supply money, he thought to himself. “A bank is a business that creates money and credit. Sometimes the government does it, but sometimes it’s a private business,” Vintage explained. Everyone couldn’t help but laugh at this. Puzzled, Vintage inquired as to what was so humorous about banks. “It’s a miracle you guys aren’t extinct,” Jovius half jested. “I’m afraid I have to agree with Jovius this time. Sorry, Vintage. Look on the bright side, though. You’re lucky to be alive!” Sophia remarked as she tried to control her giggles. .
“Most people issue their own credit,” Ray began explaining, “Based on what they produce.” Vintage chuckled in disbelief. How inefficient! Millions or maybe billions of people creating their own money and credit? How could such a chaotic clusterfuck possibly work? Vintage asked how such a seemingly complex and tedious system could ever be possible. Ray took it upon himself to get into the details. “The majority of people use some type of electronic credit network. Computers help facilitate production and trade based on what people offer and what people want.” It was still unfathomable to Vintage, but he pressed on out of curiosity. “Are the networks international?” he probed further. “Inter what?” Jovius boomed. Vintage explained that he wanted to know if the credit networks were accepted anywhere in the world. “Occasionally you might come across a vender that doesn’t accept a certain type of credit, but it’s rare. Of course, anyone has the freedom to accept or deny any type of credit at any time. All trade is voluntary,” Ray elucidated. Vintage then asked what would happen if a person decided not to be in an electronic network. “Most people that aren’t in networks trade locally amongst themselves without the aid of technology. There are quite a few people who prefer this simple way of life. There are also small credit networks in which people print their own paper credit. The concept is the same, it’s just not electronic. And then there are those who are completely self sufficient and don’t want to trade anything,” Ray clarified. Vintage asked if it were only individuals who created credit. “I forgot to mention,” Ray answered, “That a lot of families work together to form their own credit, that way they have more diversity to offer on the market. Some small towns and cities do the same, but they’re less common.”
The newcomer was still quite skeptical as to the practicality of such a way to conduct trade. At the very least, human nature was to be greedy and untrustworthy. How would commitments be enforced? No, surely this was all an absurd fantasy. “What if someone does not honor their commitments? How can the credits retain value if there is no enforcement?” Vintage asked skeptically. Sophia questioned, “Does your money always retain its value?” Vintage shrugged and replied, “Well, no, not always. Sometimes there are large fluctuations and money loses much of it value.” “Despite all of the so-called control and enforcement,” Jovius added as he rolled his eyes. “Not honoring your commitments is a fast way to be poor and destitute, so it almost never happens. No one will do business with you if all you do is lie and scam. Yeah, you might be able to travel around and get away with it for a short while, but eventually everyone will know not to trust you and you won’t be able to trade with anyone.” Ray calmly explained.
This was all a bit confusing to the new arrival. His knowledge of economics as well as a host of other things was limited and quite non-existent in some cases. Where he came from, everything was very compartmentalized. If you were a scientist, you knew little of economics. If you were a military officer, you knew nothing about teaching. Everyone had a specialized function. He was curious as to why his companions knew so much of how their economic system worked. He asked, “How do you know so much about your trade systems?” Ray was the first to respond. He stated that he was a software developer and helped create one of the local currencies. However, in general, people learned the basics of trade. He also explained that the best part, in his opinion, was that everything was voluntary. People were always free to create new ways to trade. Sometimes they were successful, other times they failed, but the possibility was always open for thought, debate, and trial and error. Sophia added that usually people had multiple skills, ideas, and creative capacities. In short, most people had a vast plethora of knowledge.
Suddenly, on the horizon, there was a strange vision slowly growing in scope. It was nestled amongst the lush greenery of the low mountains. As the vehicle raced on, the spectacle became more defined. The object was glaring with great radiance like a star. It soon became clear it was a well defined geometric shape of some sort. It looked as if it were an enormous diamond. “What the hell is that?” asked Ray. Jovius, who traveled frequently, was puzzled as well. “You got me, I have no idea. Wanna take a closer look?” Jovius offered with a twinge of curiosity in his voice. The stranger was more curious than anyone but the object was quite far off. With this in mind, he brought it to their attention that the road didn’t go towards the object and they would have to walk. “Why walk when we can fly?” Jovius asked in a half mocking voice as he pressed a few buttons on the control console of the vehicle. The sleek black cargo carrier then began to transform itself. The wheels tucked themselves away and a blue glowing circle of synthetic material ringed itself around the bottom perimeter of the vehicle. All within seconds, they were hovering a few feet above ground and flying smoothly towards the mystery. The sudden change gave a slight jolt to the stomach and Vintage showed discomfort on his thin face. Sophia asked if he had ever flown before. “Never had the chance,” came the queasy reply.
A couple minutes later and they were looking at the marvel up close. It was three enormous transparent pyramids joined together. One in the middle was turned on its apex and was supported by the other two adjoined to it, the other two sitting on their base. The spectacle stretched for what the visitors thought to be roughly five hundred yards in length and appeared to tower more than a hundred yards in the air. Inside each clear wonder was an abundant and motley mix of plants. They all stood with their heads tilted back, with eyes fixated above, taking it all in. “Perhaps someone is doing a grand science experiment,” suggested Vintage. Before anyone could respond, the four were caught off guard by a strange voice.
“Quite the sight, isn’t it?” came the voice. Startled, all four turned around. They saw a middle aged man, perhaps fifty-something. He was tall and lanky with a square jaw and thinning gray hair. “Yeah, we were just admiring it all,” Ray said. “Is this your work?” “This is my family’s work,” came the answer in a friendly tone and a warm smile. “May I ask you a silly question?” Sophia asked. The man said that he would be happy to take a silly question from such a lovely young gal. She asked what it was. “It’s a new type of greenhouse,” he proudly explained. “It was my grandson’s idea.” Vintage thought this was curious as he knew the man wasn’t old enough to have a grandson of any significant years. He asked how old the grandson was. The man looked Vintage in the eye and said, “He’s ten.” “Ten!” exclaimed Vintage. “He must be a genius! How can someone so young have such marvelous ideas!” Everyone began laughing at the innocence of Mr. Vintage. Everyone except their host. Taking notice of this, Jovius apologized and requested the forgiveness of their host, for Vintage was new to their world. He was not aware of how young people could create wonders with the mind if they were left free. The scope of individual genius could bloom if children were not forced into twelve years of authoritarian indoctrination centers. Ray decided to turn the attention back to the grand creation of the man’s family. “So can you tell us about this construction?”
The man happily went on to explain some details of the giant greenhouse. Plants which required more sunlight were placed towards the top of the structures. It was then a downward progression towards the bottom. Plants at ground level needed almost no light. It also had a self-contained irrigation system. He also told them of something which was not visible to the eye. He informed them that the glass was embedded with nano-bots which could amplify the sunlight when necessary to negate cloudiness and make the system more efficient. “The whole point,” he made plain, “Is to see which crops thrive in such an environment and which ones will be less than stellar.” “We’re hoping for at least a twenty percent increase in crop yield.” The technology used to amplify the power of the sun caught Ray’s attention. “Is that the same technology used on the moon settlement?” The farmer quickly affirmed that it was similar technology and that he knew some people involved in its development.
Vintage, however, was still pondering the words ‘moon settlement’. Moon settlement? This was an impossibility in his mind. He came from a world where flying machines didn’t exist. This added to his confusion as to how people left uncontrolled by authorities could be so productive. Why was everyone taught in his world that chaos reigned in the other? “Earth to Vintage, hello!” came the voice. Vintage snapped out of his thought process to see Jovius waving at him to get his attention. “Hey, we’re going up to our new friend’s storage house. He makes wine and is selling some bottles to us and some people on my route. You coming, or do you want to just stay here and keep staring into space?” Vintage said he preferred to wait. “A lot on your mind?” Sophia asked. “Yeah, I’m fine. Maybe I should just be alone for a bit,” Vintage explained with an uneasy look about him.
His companions walked away and the mind of Vintage again started to wander and wonder. It’s not an easy thing to have your entire reality challenged. Everything you once knew is thrown into doubt, everything must be examined. It was painful, but a type of pain that causes an infinite amount of greatness at some point in the future. The world that he thought he understood a great deal was crashing down on him. He now realized that he knew very little. Taking a deep breath, he said aloud to himself, “Why am I here?” He then laid down in the soft green grass, closed his eyes, and began to drift away.
If you like what you just read, you can find more of my writings for free on my blog. makingtheoligarchyobsolete.blogspot.com
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