Science Fiction
Date Published: July 1, 2018
Thanks to nanochips implanted in human brains, the world is at peace in 2055. But not everyone likes having their emotions controlled, or their religion suppressed.
Eighteen-year-old Raissa embarks upon a perilous mission to free the world, just days before the release of nanochip Version 7, which will broadcast every citizen's thoughts to the Collective.
The countdown has started, and Raissa must make choices that jeopardize the lives of billions, including the only boy she has ever loved.
Note: Some discussion of technology, some “techno-speak”; clean, no sex or swearing; some non-graphic violence, a tiny bit of graphic violence.
EXCERPT
“Excuse me?”
He turned and melted into the crowd. His chip must have a problem. If he had waited for her answer, she would have told him that nobody can predict love.
Relieved that the paladins had moved on, Raissa dismissed the stranger and soon waded through a tour group. As the guide lectured a gawping mass of children on the history of the uprising, the kids swiveled their necks like seal pups to capture their surroundings with video glasses. They made Raissa grin. The smile vanished when she spotted Café Kadosh where she was to keep watch for her great-uncle and his signal.
In the courtyard, patrons stuck their noses in their messengers or watched the enlightenment wall across the street. Raissa feigned interest in the propaganda broadcast on a monitor that was five stories tall and fifty meters wide. Beneath the Collective’s seal—a circle of twelve hands interlocked around a human brain embossed with a symbolic chip, complete with titanium circuitry—Vice Chancellor Vasiliev was touring a lush field of wheat. The subtitle identified the location as a former blast site in India. Raissa turned on her cochlear speaker. “The world is at peace,” Vasiliev was saying. “The planet is healing. A new day is dawning for humankind.” Raissa turned off the speaker. Each Collective member delivered the same message.
She claimed an empty table by placing her backpack on it, confident that nobody would disturb the pack or notice the weapons inside, as the chip punished anyone who even contemplated thievery. She headed inside and approached a boy behind the counter. “Jasmine tea, please.”
“Have I seen you before?” He was close to her own age—eighteen.
“It’s possible.”
He smiled. “Do you go to the university?”
Is he flirting? He had a friendly expression, and she liked that he was tall with curly black hair. “I’m starting university next semester.” Had her chip been functioning, she would have been writhing in pain on the floor for lying, instead of calmly peering into his brown eyes.
About the Author
Scott Cramer has optioned two screenplays, written for national magazines, and authored four novels: EDEN CHIP and the TOUCAN TRILOGY (Night of the Purple Moon, Colony East & Generation M). Scott and his wife reside outside Lowell, Massachusetts.
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