We had been through so much. I couldn’t put into words the magnitude of my loss. He was gone. His face gradually lost its color; his heart ceased to beat, announcing his arrival on the other side of eternity. I must confess, I was jealous of him. He didn’t have to say a word about what had happened. I was being left to fend for myself, and there was nothing I could do to change that. Years had flown by since it had all started.
I suppose you’re wondering what I’m talking about, and I must oblige you with a snippet of my story. You see, I was special, and so was my dear friend Avery. Things had changed. Civilization as you all know it was crumbling in our world. We had become a mindless generation, and we had no way to stop our demise. That is, unless you were smart.
The average IQ at the time of said demise was a mere fifty points. It was maddening to see what was happening to our population of so-called brilliance. No books were read, no books were even written. A book was something that some had never heard of. The point being, our populous was declining, and no one could pinpoint the source. The only reason for this is because the majority of people were none too bright to see why.
They had dissolved into a mass of shortened words as a means of communication. It became a laughable offense to be interested in any sort of intellectual progress. You were ridiculed if you had any kind of knowledge whatsoever. Literary classics became obsolete to them… but not to me. Avery was the same. You see, our leaders had realized their folly.
It had all been their elaborate scheme. They had pumped our food full of toxins meant to degrade the human mind. It was terrifying when one realized the capacity of science. To be able to ruin one’s future was a dreadful notion that was all too true in my world. They realized their mistake when the masses began to cry out for more leaders like them.
Now, I don’t want to call my people stupid, as that’s not fair. It was against their will that they lost their ability to think. The government didn’t realize the permanent consequences of their actions. They merely wished for a more “organized future”, or so they called it. I suppose they didn’t have the forethought to predict the devastation that would soon follow after this change that they made.
What they didn’t know, was that there was hope. Some people have a sort of immunity. (That would be me and Avery, in case you were wondering how we survived this blow to intelligence.) Both Avery and I were considered exceptionally intelligent. Upon discovering our existence, government officials were soon swooping in and removing kids like me into their educational programs. But it was all in vain.
One day the doors were brought down by a formidable force—the people. In a matter of twenty-four hours, those of intelligent status were locked up and sentenced to execution through brutal means. Of course, no humane methods were available due to the inability of the people. I must admit, I was terrified as I observed their way of getting around this.
I won’t go into too much detail about how one died to spare you, but let me just say that it involved long, painful hours of agonizing torture. It was only when the body gave out that a person found relief. I remember sobbing as I watched my father go. He too, was immune. But he did not escape like Avery and I did. I am pained just remembering how it went.
All I remember is finding a way out. Avery and I had found an open door, left by some careless guard. He and I had run as far as we could go. For years we managed to escape the clutches of our people. Our own people had turned against us like a pack of rabid dogs. I thought that we might escape to a neighboring country. I had heard of some place that offered freedom, though finding it was not an easy task.
After years of searching, we finally heard of a vessel shipping people like us to this promise land. My mind was reeling with joy as Avery and I sprinted closer to the side of the ship. Without warning, an arrow shot through Avery’s chest. And that was where I was left. I had hardly any time to stay and mourn the loss of my best friend, my other half. I had to continue running for our sake. I managed to reach the deck and found myself being stowed away for my own safety.
Upon seeing an officer approaching, I burst into tears of joy. He smiled and pulled me into a hug and whispered comforting words in a language foreign to me. All I knew is that I was safe. And that was how I reached this new land. And now you have heard my story.