Since The Lights

in #tellastorytome6 years ago (edited)

A writing prompt by @calluna. Check It Out!

books-1655783_1280.jpg

CC0

It had been year's since the lights. That's what we said. Really though it was much more than that.

Voyager II appeared with a bang. It had traveled, gods know how far, with it's golden record and rhetoric of peace. There it was though, one Sunday morning on the White House lawn. Of course, here in Arkansas, we didn't know that. Everything was dead. Everything.

It's stupid how fast a failed society can burn through it's resources at the end. Don't even know if you can visit the Redwoods. The Mississippi is a creek. I've seen it.

I've been told of days when survival was 'broadcasted'. A man and women dropped into 'nowhere'. Clothes optional. This isn't that. It's better. Now.

Yeah, a lot of people died when the power went out. Mothers, fathers, loved ones......kids. "The Mourning."

After "The Mourning" we had "The Culling". It was natural. The weakest, well, there are no weak anymore.

I was born after. I'm Henry 'Hank' Helms. I'm a Librarian.

Us Librarians have always been apart of the government. It's told we used to be the bottom. Things change.

Now we're envoys, soldiers, investigators. If there is written information we will take it. If it needs delivered we travel by threes. If we don't have it, we will.

We don't have names, not officially, just Dewey's. Numbers.

I'm young and fit and sent on retrievals, more often than not. This is one of those.

The train barrels towards St. Louis. The Gateway to the West. Gods bless coal. West Virginia is a Mint.

I'm after a copy of Automatons, Man or Machine 5th edition.

It doesn't answer any real life question. We would need 'power'. There's been a premium run on these type of books lately. Machine Learning, C++, Python and not the snake.

These books, despite opinion at the time, were printed in mass quantities. Nine billion people. After 'The Culling' just two.

This was a call in. The powers at be used precious resources to reward anyone that could bring a 'Bounty Book' to light. Science, Medicine, the like.

This family had discovered Automatons amongst their ailing patriarchs things. I was to bring it back. Simple.

St. Louis was a War Zone.

I was wearing standard Librarian garb. Leathered coat and thick denim pants. We had, at the outset, issued breastplates but the likelihood of encountering gunfire dropped significantly after the early years.

We had been trained. It was joked that Librarians could beat Olympians. We wouldn't know. The Olympics left with 'The Culling'.

Union Station was dirt. The teased meat and dancing girls aside, I loathed the Cardinal.

There were some folk, after the outage, that took up special office where it hadn't been before. One of these was St. Louis's very own Cardinal. Corpulent and dreary.

"Did you ask them about the river?" The greasebag said.

"Jesus, I just arrived."

"Yeah, but you promised me Dewey."

"I promised I'd ask."

The Mighty Missasip. Just a lifeline. It keeps a rough and tumble lot full circle and shinin'.

I'm swarmed.

The lack of love for government doesn't stop kids.

"I'm looking for, " points at picture "This man, this man. Ci?"

Promises of contact, filth and duty. I wish I didn't know this language..

I take my seat in the handsome. Target identified.

"Ralph Swanson."

"Yeah man, it's on the tour. Sit back and relax .... "

"......this gringo was first.........he found...........ever since.."

"Stop!" I yelled.....

Hopping down.

Librarian.

Voyager II was gone. Power was back. Nobody knows why. I'm still a librarian.

"Yessir, by next Tuesday or it's late."

Thanks again for your time and attention!
@jackofcrows



Sort:  

I really appreciate the transitional stages that occurred after the black out as society changed and adapted, you paint a well thought of picture of how this played out. I love the choice of perspective, a librarian propelled to new heights of power, then just as suddenly, back again. A fun endings. I really loved the book bounty for certain useful books. This was such a well considered story it made for a really fun read. Thank you so much!!

I'm writing a piece now that has this flavor, Aceladama. I shouldn't have read this, but I got sucked in by the little things...like the Dewey, nicely done!

you drew me in with the concept of a 'librarian' as a government employed, book-bounty hunter

Cool story! :D I absolutely love that ending!

Congratulations @jackofcrows! You have completed the following achievement on Steemit and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :

Award for the number of upvotes

Click on the badge to view your Board of Honor.
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP

To support your work, I also upvoted your post!

Do you like SteemitBoard's project? Then Vote for its witness and get one more award!

Interesting take on this prompt.

Thanks, yeah, this was on Saturday night and I might have had a few beers.....Led to this becoming more of a free write than anything. I thought about going in the next morning and editing/fleshing it out but decided to let it serve as a reminder.

That said, there are some ideas and lines in it that I quite like.

Hello @jackofcrows, thank you for sharing this creative work! We just stopped by to say that you've been upvoted by the @creativecrypto magazine. The Creative Crypto is all about art on the blockchain and learning from creatives like you. Looking forward to crossing paths again soon. Steem on!

Sounds great, Thanks!

Coin Marketplace

STEEM 0.35
TRX 0.12
JST 0.040
BTC 70734.57
ETH 3561.52
USDT 1.00
SBD 4.75