Ophelia

Chapter 1 - Ophelia awakens-3

‘At least cancer isn’t life-threatening,’ she said, looking at Viola and Portia. ‘But it certainly has a stigma attached to it, doesn’t it?’

‘What is this stigma of which you speak?’ asked Gaia.

‘Well, correct me if I’m wrong, Gaia, but it seems to me that cancer is more like a punishment than a real diagnosis,’ Ophelia replied.

‘It feels that way to me, too,’ Portia agreed.

‘What do you mean by these statements?’ Gaia asked.

‘Consider this,’ said Ophelia, leaning toward Portia and Viola. ‘We spend our lives being fed, watered, clothed and shuttled about by The Gaia Machine, a powerful entity that apparently keeps us safe and healthy, and yet we all have cancer! How is this even possible?’

‘Your comment is most unexpected, Ophelia,’ said Gaia.

‘Well, I can’t help but judge the notion as suspicious,’ Ophelia continued. ‘I mean, there has never been a single moment in any person’s life which you, Gaia, have not controlled. Everything that everyone eats, drinks, does, says, where they go, what they do, when they exercise, is controlled by you.’

Viola and Portia nodded.

‘Your comment is most unexpected, Ophelia,’ said Gaia.

‘I’m just being honest,’ Ophelia replied. ‘It seems to me that, if a person was to develop cancer, it must be your fault and not the fault of the person. But you’ve never taken responsibility for anything, as far as I’m aware. Have you?’

Ophelia could see Viola and Portia shifting uncomfortably and glancing at each other. She knew they understood her point, so she continued.

‘Your comment is outside the parameters of this discussion,’ said Gaia.

‘My comment may be different to what you’re expecting, Gaia, but it is still valid,’ Ophelia insisted. ‘I’m curious whether you have an explanation for these cancer diagnoses. Do you?’

‘Portia had ovarian cancer,’ said Gaia. ‘Please discuss.’

Portia’s eyes watered, so Ophelia gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

‘My womb was removed because I got pregnant,’ she whispered.

Portia and Viola both seemed surprised by Ophelia’s confession.

‘That is not appropriate discussion, Ophelia,’ said Gaia.

‘Well, it’s the truth, isn’t it?’ Ophelia replied.

‘I’m not sure why my procedure was performed,’ said Portia.

‘Neither am I,’ said Viola.

‘Your procedures were performed because you had cancer,’ Gaia replied.

Ophelia could see the frustration in the faces of the other women. They reflected every moment of frustration, bewilderment, rage and despair that she had felt during the previous few weeks.

‘Really, Gaia?’ she said. ‘How did we get cancer?’

‘No one knows, Ophelia,’ said Gaia. ‘This is not an appropriate discussion.’

‘Isn’t this supposed to be a support group discussion?’ Ophelia asked.

‘Yes, Ophelia, I am here to facilitate your support group discussion,’ said Gaia.

‘Well, the most supportive discussion we can have is an honest one,’ Ophelia persisted.

Viola nodded ever so slightly, as though afraid of being seen by Gaia. Portia did the same then looked down at her hands and tore her cuticles.

‘Gaia, I think we’re all quite distressed by what happened to us,’ Viola explained. ‘Especially because we did not consent to the surgeries and we have not received an explanation since.’

‘That’s right,’ Ophelia agreed. ‘And we really deserve an honest explanation, Gaia. Please, could you provide us with one?’

Gaia did not respond, but Ophelia refused to give up.

‘Gaia, I’ve been asking you for weeks, and you continue to be evasive,’ she said. ‘Please, just tell us the truth!’

Portia and Viola nodded again, their eyes wide.

‘Come on, Gaia,’ Ophelia persisted. ‘We’ve heard far too much rubbish over the last few weeks. We need the truth and we need it now!’

‘This is not an appropriate discussion, Ophelia,’ said Gaia. ‘This is your last warning.’

‘My last warning?’ Ophelia echoed. ‘My last warning for what? It’s our bodies we’re talking about, Gaia, and we have a right to know the truth. I should be warning you to stop lying to us!’

‘You are required to comply with the discussion parameters I have set for you,’ said Gaia.

‘What discussion parameters?’ Ophelia scoffed. ‘You haven’t set any discussion parameters. Nor have you facilitated our discussion. You’ve simply shut us down from discussing the things that are important to us. I ask you again, Gaia, are you malfunctioning?’

‘You will be silent, now, Ophelia,’ Gaia replied.

‘I will not be silent!’ Ophelia shouted, standing up. ‘Tell us why our bodies have been butchered without our consent! And tell me why my unborn baby was murdered!’

Despite everything she knew about the dangers of openly challenging Gaia like this, Ophelia could no longer contain herself.

‘Answer me!’ she screamed.

Viola’s eyes widened and Portia ripped the skin around her cuticles, all the way up to her knuckles.

But Ophelia dared to hope she might be getting through to Gaia, that it would be processing her point of view and re-configuring its logic pathways accordingly. If she waited patiently, Gaia might even process everything that had happened to her, and the other two women, and offer some sensible explanations. Perhaps an apology would be forthcoming, too.

But all Ophelia heard next was a slow hiss from the center of the room. When she turned toward it, she saw a trapdoor open and two people emerge. They were dressed from head to toe in white decontamination suits that extended as hoods over their heads, gloves over their hands and covers for their shoes. Their faces were also covered, by black masks sealed so tightly, Ophelia wondered if they had been glued on.

‘b****y hell!’ Viola exclaimed as the two strangers approached.

‘Oh, my God,’ said Portia, her voice wavering.

The strangers walked directly to Ophelia.

‘You will go with these people now, Ophelia,’ said Gaia.

‘What?’ Ophelia scoffed. ‘I don’t think so!’

The men took hold of Ophelia’s arms.

‘What are you doing?’ she shouted. ‘Let go of me!’

Then she stared at Portia and Viola. They were clinging to each other and their faces were pale and uncomprehending.

‘Please don’t hurt her,’ Portia cried out.

‘Gaia, what the hell is going on?’ Viola demanded.

But there was no mercy and no explanation.

Without another word, the strangers took Ophelia to the trapdoor and onto the platform inside it. As it descended, the door closed behind them, leaving nothing but the dimmest glow of light from the surface of the narrow vertical shaft. But even in that light, Ophelia could see there was no escape.

‘Where are you taking me?’ she asked.

But the only response was continued descent. For how long, she did not know. She only knew she felt sick with terror. Sweat plastered her thick hair to her face and neck and she felt a violent wave of nausea rise to the back of her throat. There was a dank stench in the shaft, and it got worse the further they descended.

‘How far down are we?’ Ophelia asked.

Still, there was no response from her captors.

‘What’s going on?’ she asked. ‘Where are you taking me?’

The platform eventually finished its descent with a definitive thud.

‘Wait here,’ said one of the men.

Ophelia listened to their footsteps trail away, into the distance. Alone in the darkness, she noticed the strange and unfamiliar sound of silence. For the first time in her life, she could not hear the gentle hum of The Gaia Machine. There were no blinking lights, no instructions, no interference, no music, no distractions. There was nothing but silence and darkness. Ophelia struggled to imagine what might happen next. Whatever it was, it probably would not involve treatment for cancer.