Impossible Dreamers

Chapter 43 (mektwi-ept): In the bag

Signs on the walls of the factory the next day were all about the Festival of Happiness and Invention. Everybody was supposed to be excited about the fact that people were being told to be happy, and Bartyronians were all going to have a chance to show how clever they were.

But only Bartyronians. The people of the rest of the world, all of whom, it was said, were now under the control of Tyro, were not allowed to take part in this festival. Especially not Grabblers. They couldn't take part, so they would have be content to watch the whole thing on the public viewing screens. In fact, they would have to be more than content. They would have to be ecstatically happy.

It would, at least, mean that there would be one day during which Liana would not have to do the mindless work to which she had grown accustomed. But until then, there would be more and more stuff to learn about Tyro and his stupid ideas.

So Liana learned that every Citizen of Bartyronis would have to attend the Festival, either by going to the Grand Hall in the Palace, if they were an Upper or higher, or watching on a public screen if they were a Mipper or lower. Any citizen would be able to submit an invention, and it had to be something that would benefit the people of Bartyronis. During the whole period of the Festival, everyone in Bartyronis would be incredibly happy, and they would have to show it by smiling as broadly as they possibly could. It was recognised that this might be a strain for some people, so there would be 'arrangements' which would make this easier, though there would be a price attached. Liana hadn't discovered what the arrangements were, or what the price would be.

But really, Liana didn't want to think about this. She wanted to think about the possibility of meeting up again with Herago. Meeting up again in a dream.

While the learning screen was showing her pictures of Bartyronis, and the Hall in the Great Palace where the Festival would take place, Liana's mind was on her dream of the previous night. She could remember every single detail. Even the song of the bird in the garden was etched in her memory, and she would be able to reproduce it if asked. She kept turning over the incidents in her mind.

In the daylight of the Bartyronian factory, it was hard to believe that her meeting with Herago had been real. But somehow it was also more real than what was going on around her, including Silmoa patrolling, and every so often administering a shock to Liana for not paying proper attention to her work.

Then again, she realised that some of the things that Herago had said didn't make much sense. What was this about the showing? Did he mean that they would finish their showing in another dream? That might be an enjoyable thing to do, but what, really, was the point? But if he meant that they would do the showing in real life – then where, how, when would that be possible?

Impossible. Yes, of course, that was what Herago specialised in. But that was about pretending you were doing something when actually you were doing something else. The idea of doing a showing under the eyes of the Bartyronians didn't really fit with that.

Liana drifted through the rest of the day without paying much attention to what was happening. The preparations for the Festival were being explained, but as far as Liana was concerned, that was nothing to do with her. She just longed for the day to finish so that she could get back to her dream, and find out what Herago was talking about.

Eventually all the Grabbler girls returned to the hostel, and after yet more talk from the hostel Guardians about how wonderful the Festival would be, and how lucky they were to be able to watch it on the public screens, they all marched off to the sleeping room.

Liana was eager to lie down and get to sleep, and she quickly put her head on the block filled with sawdust that served as a pillow, and closed her eyes.