Pendulums

Introduction

Orca is an extraordinary realm. Surrounded by  looming seas on all four directions, the citizens of Orca, the Humanoids were firm believers of the fact that nothing existed beyond what they saw. The realm itself is divided into four sections -- the North Abodes, South Abodes, East Abodes and West Abodes. The Oids thought this was a very neat and precise layout of land that their ancestors had also made use of.

Well, if the realm is surrounded by sea, and four regions are demarcated, then what is in the middle of it all, one may ask? In the middle of the abodes, towering high above all else, ancient in structure but modern in architecture, stood Pendil. It is where all Oid parents want their children to go, and requires quite a high level of intelligence and intellect, that is not capable of the human mind.

Admission was particularly hard, as Oids did not go to school till the age of eighteen, up until which they spent their years helping their parents. The admission was solely based on what you have in your head rather than what has been put in your head. This made Pendil a place only for those who are born geniuses, often from elaborate and deemed families. 

Of course, those who miss the requirements, even by the slightest mark are the ones who become your local Oids-- the shoemakers, the artists, the cooks, the blacksmiths and the gossipers. 

But, what is Pendil? Pendil, as the name probably doesn't suggest, is a place, a humongous one at that, in which the smartest cream of the crop have been employed. They engineer the technology that governs Orca. Now this is an especially important task, as Orca is not ruled by people, rather I should say  Oids, but technology. 

In the wars of the 23rd century, rulers of different countries fought for world dominance--for absolute power over the entire world. Nuclear bombs, poisoned pills, explosive jackets, treachery, death, suffering--and no guilt. The war only led to the annihilation of mankind, and the rise of a new species, Orcs. Where they descended from, how they came is unknown, although folktales are often narrated with great vigor in diners. 

The Orcs, slowly evolved into Oids. The only differnce between the two was that Orcs resembled animal thought whereas Oids resembled a more profound thought process, few possessing real emotions. The arrival of Oids, and the discovery of technology was almost spontaneous,  for fire, stones and wheels did not excite them. After developing cutting-edge inventions, the people of Orca came to the mass consensus that the realm would indeed be ruled by neither he nor she, but the one that thing that transceds them all--technology, itself. And that was exactly what the Pendil did.

It made little sense, as the technology was indeed developed by the same race that it was governing--only, a little smarter. But, noone protested as it was the sole reason why war had not erupted in a very long, long time. 

The people at Pendil worked long hours, and often without breaks. They did not have a Boss, that overlooked their work or progress, but they did have a Pendulum. Workspaces had a stereotypical blue glow, and workers wore a navy blue uniform, that monitored their heartbeat, and health--you know, so they don't die of exhaustion. 

The workers were arranged in one vertical column, one behind the other, about 6,000 workers. Now half of this column, (3000 workers), was taken and arranged in a way such that the first workers of the two columns faced each other. Essentially, a line of 3,000 workers sitting one behind the other, facing another column of workers. In the space between these two workers, was a Pendulum. 

Not a small one, oh no, this was a large, metal bob. And it constantly moved in uniform motion, powered with a little electricity, because frictional force was still very present. Each time it swung back, a soft click would be heard. The role of this Pendulum, apart from its role of creating an unnerving environment, was to punish those who did what was not required. Not mistakes, but what was not required.

The first workers of each column were the ones who had committed to stretching their backs, yawning, shutting down their programmes without saving changes or even just sighing after a long day's work. If these workers continued to commit to similar actions, the Pendulum would only but swing a little further, bash their heads in, and they wouldn't see the face of Orca again. 

Given this introduction, why not start with the story?