Consensus: Part 1 - Citizen

004

Sleep didn't come easily for Rena. She kept remembering the terror in Kirti's eyes. Dal looking so wild as he came out of the fog. The knife, and how it made everyone vulnerable the second it came out. Then it was in Rena's hands, and there was blood everywhere.

By the time morning arrived, she was exhausted. A hot shower was almost soothing enough to wash yesterday's events from her mind. But as she stood at the bathroom sink, brushing her teeth, she noticed the back of her hand in the mirror.

011.

She'd dropped two points. It wasn't that she'd gone to the Barrens, or what she'd done to those men. None of that was illegal. What lowered her number was the police report. The vote of an officer carried a lot of weight. More than other citizens.

As Rena stared at her rating, she didn't feel cheated. The subjective nature of the report wasn't what bothered her. It was that her number now seemed so small.

Eleven!

Only 11% of the population was at her rating or below. That meant 89% of all the people in Esh were more productive and useful than her. More valuable to society. Only nine points of difference between her and those criminals who stole Kirti's credits. Was she going to end up like one of them? Stealing from other citizens because she was too lazy or stupid to contribute?

Rena rinsed her mouth before standing up straight. Then she glared at herself in the mirror, as if her reflection were someone else. Another citizen she was evaluating. She inspected her dark brown hair, falling in wet strands around her face. Some as long as her chin. Her light, olive skin.

Are you stupid? she wondered.

The eyes squinted in response. Green irises, flecked with blue. There was intelligence behind them.

Are you lazy?

The outline of her muscular shoulders against the white bathroom wall said otherwise.

Are you a criminal?

"No," replied the person in the mirror. But words didn't prove anything.

Will you contribute?

"Yes."

Rena studied her mouth. Lips that turned up at one end. She wasn't sure if this one could be trusted.

o

When Rena was done getting ready for school, she headed into the kitchen. Clarine had made oatmeal. Suzanne was in her high chair with a spoon. Most of her breakfast was ending up on her face instead of inside her mouth. Clarine took the spoon and scraped off some of the excess before looking back over her shoulder. "Good morning."

"Morning."

"Can I get you a bowl?"

"No thanks. I got it," Rena said, walking over to the stove. When she'd filled her bowl and topped it with diced fruit and nuts, she went to the table and sat down next to Gareth.

"Hey, cutie."

Gareth smiled, revealing several cubes of apple he had arranged in a row between his lips. "Morning," he tried to say.

"Wow, Gareth. Your teeth are unusually large today. Mom might need to take you to the dentist."

He smiled even wider and one of the apple cubes popped out of his mouth and bounced across the table.

Clarine was just handing the spoon back to Suzanne again when she noticed it. "Gareth! One at a time. I don't want you choking."

"I'll cut them smaller," Rena said. When she got up to grab a knife out of the drawer, she could hear Marshall's muffled voice from the next room.