Music: “FORGOTTEN” - by MS (© GnomeTone Records)
Maybe I was looking at this all wrong. If these folks weren't here by accident, then someone had to know they existed.
But why?
Why would anyone want to cast someone off just because they disagreed on political or social issues? That was…stupid.
I thought for a moment, and an idea started to take shape.
“If you could get out of here, guys," I said, "where would you go?”
Otger scratched his head, but Dayl’s face lit up instantly.
“Easy,” he said. “I’d get my butt off-island. Get to the free zones.”
“Free zones?” I asked, careful not to reveal too much. Better to stick close to the truth. “I’ve never heard of a free zone.”
The engineer leaned back in his rickety, handmade recliner of pipes and cloth, lacing his fingers behind his neck. Two small children ran past, squealing and waving a frayed rope with a tattered imitation of a kite attached to it.
“I don’t think they teach about it in schools anymore, so I’m not surprised,” Dayl said. He watched the kite rise higher as the kids ran toward the furnace vent. “They’re the little islands surrounding Pävärios. Colonized when our people discovered this cluster of islands. The biggest one became Clockworks. But there are smaller groups who decided to moderate their advancements. Not so much dominating nature as working with it.”
His smile grew wider, and I could only imagine what he was picturing.
“So you’d go there?” I asked.
Dayl nodded vigorously. “Definitely! Live free and among people who actually wanted me? Who wouldn’t want to go there? I could share my talents and not have to pay a fee every time I stepped outside my front door…”
“Or so you hope,” Otger cut in sourly. “You don’t actually know if those places even exist…because we can’t get off the island to be sure. For all you know, you’d make the journey there and find a barren rock to starve on.” He shook his head. “No, I’ll deal with what I’ve got here. I just want a way to exist in Clockworks. Live my own life.”
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