Time, many years in the future. Place, one of thousands of urban centers worldwide. Who is a different story, one I will let you learn about... Now enjoy.
Time has changed the world from what the ancestors knew of it. Three great powers have come about to control the globe and space colonies. There are a few smaller countries but they exist at the whim of the bigger ones and often act as proxies for wars. Few cities would be recognized with the huge size and almost uniform look. Few monuments from the past still exist. Most were lost in various wars of absorption or rezoning of the new mega cities that soon followed. Mass transit has taken over from personal vehicles allowing less traffic but more population movement.
A light fog covers the lower levels one of the greater cities. The tops of many of the buildings are high enough to get in to low clouds. Along the row of mega skyscrapers that have gotten so close many have walkways connecting them to each other. Inside such a warren people live often never going outside of the building. The lowest levels have the heavy manufacturing. Government offices use many of the upper floors of buildings.
The small office has barely any air conditioning but the balding man does not seem to notice. He has gotten use to the heat after working so long in the same room year after year. His mauve suit has some old stains. The desk around him had stacks of paper and electronic data slates. He reached though the stack to pull out yet another name scrawled on the applications then discard it.
The telecommunication unit rings and he groans putting it on sound only, “This is…” He is interrupted by a female voice whining about how soon he will return home. The old woman in a red dress keeps going for two minutes by the chronotimer before he finally a chance to tell her he will be home on time, and to not worry.
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After the talk he gets back to work and looks over yet another data slate. He looks many other ones over the information sliding down the data. In the end he chuckles, “You really tried but we know you, Elitist.” He types in the man’s number, 0501.4580.3491.1336, under the number 0501.4117.4117.1336 in to the accepted filling out yet another 2,000 humans.
The man calls a number. The communication unit blinks never showing who was on the other side. He then starts the rote he learned, “The great government has ordained me to pick out the Elitists that would degrade our country and I have.”
This time there is a female voice on the other end. “You have done well. Send the list.”
Sweat sheen gets on his forehead as the file transfers over. His predecessor almost twenty years ago disappeared when the file was compromised. The video he was shown of the woman makes him very careful of who is allowed in his office. The file slowly transfers over, far slower then the small data file should take.
The end of it has the female voice say, “List has been received and inspected. You have done good citizen.”
He replies, “As the government needs.” The line goes dead without preamble.
With that done he starts to organize those not accepted putting them in boxes with labels of probable and unacceptable. The unacceptable will go out in the morning for lesser government jobs. The folders of those he did put in for acceptance get put in a shredder disposing of them without a thought. The data slates wiped and put in to be reused.
He collects the trash in a bag and disposes of it himself. He would not allow a janitor in to the office.
He looks at the chronometer late yet again and puts on the old worn jacket over his sweat stained shirt leaving the one fan on the desk in office still running as he exits. Tomorrow he will be back to work gathering more Elitist for the next list.