Chapter 3
It wasn't out of the ordinary for us to be watching news at 8. It was actually our daily ritual. Something my dad never joked with. But for the first time in forever, something on the news caught my eye.
The headline read. "Government to eradicate Radiants to a refinement facility."
I wasn't sure if I read it correctly, but the shocked looks on my parents made me know that I read it right.
The newscaster's voice perched up. "The Nigerian Government has decided to eradicate young Radiants from low income earning homes, to help the parents to take care of their upkeep. Due to the recent retrenchment of workers, the Nigerian Government has decided to help to reduce the expenses being put on parents to cater for the welfare of their radiants family members.
It is believed that in Nigeria, 1 in 13 families have a Radiant in their home and 90℅ of them live below their income. Thereby not having enough to take care of themselves. It is widely known how expensive it is to raise a Radiant child. An energy pump alone costs thousands. Daily converted energy refill runs into hundreds and building a solar powered house costs a lot more than refilling converted energy for ten years.
The President of the NLC and the managing director of Salmob medical team Mrs. Ify Chiwetel, has met with Kree Badmus, the present leader of the Nigerian federation, who has agreed to implement laws that would allow Radiants to be kept in a refinement house with other radiants. A place where energy would never run out and the safety of the radiants would be a priority.
The budget alone for taking care of Radiants on a yearly basis by the Government costs #132 billion, usually because of the expensive installment of solar panels which constantly renews energy on the streets and solar radiated seats in transport vehicles and specific public places for the Radiants.
With the creation of the refinement facility, the Government would need to only pay for a quarter of the yearly budget and the rest of the money would be put in other sectors. Inspections would begin tomorrow and we ask people to be on their best behaviour, as they allow the security enforcements to do their job hastily ."
I muted the television for a while, as silence gripped the whole house. The government was finally going to do what was on everyone's mind. Getting rid of the expenses. Us.
Tobi spoke up. "Does that mean that they would take Tamar away?"
Toni frowned. "They better not. Tamar's my only sister. They can't separate family members. Right?"
I didn't have the heart to answer because I was just as scared as they were. To the outside world, the whole thing didn't sound completely awful. In fact, it would seem like a blessing in disguise, but we the insiders, knew how the government ran its scheme. It wasn't the first time they've unfairly locked people up for being different. So we certainly knew how they would treat radiants like vermin.
Dad grunted. His thick moustache twitched above his thin lips. "They can't. We're not low income earners."
Mom shook her head. "But I just recently got fired."
Dad gritted his teeth. Each word he muttered with disdain. "We are not low income earners. Got it? I won't let anyone take my daughter away from me."
I had to speak up. "What if they force you to?"
"Over my dead body would they lock you up in some refinement facility. We might not be part of the upper class or the rich, but we are living a pretty decent life. None of that bullshit can happen to you. You are our little genius daughter, who has a bright future ahead and you just got an admission into Caden University. A school you've always wanted to be in. You are going to be here with us. I'm sure of it."
Mom frowned. Her frizzled hair twirled over her forehead delicately. "I don't know. Why don't we hide her somewhere or take her to another state? The Government's desperate now. If they take her, it would be hard to get her back, even if I manage to get a job. The Economy is failing and they are cutting whatever they think is dead weight. First, my job. Now, it's the Radiants. What next? We need to be prepared for this."
Dad didn't seem like he liked mom's idea one bit. "Once any one of us goes on the run, we'd land in prison. That's worse than just losing her. We just have to have faith that the law would be on our side. We have done nothing wrong and everything would go on smoothly. Trust me."
I really wanted to believe Dad, but I couldn't help the feeling of worry rushing through my head. I just needed to block the thought, count to five and I'd surely be fine.
.....
It was kind of unfair that Radiants in my school never stood by each other. We were probably only just 27 in total, which was nothing compared to the school's 690 students total.
We usually avoided each other solely because of how people treated us whenever we were together. It made more sense to try and interact with regular humans than to surround one's self with a Radiant. I was lucky to have a sympathetic friend like Raheemat and I did occasionally talk to a guy named Jacob, but the other Radiants in my school weren't as lucky as I was. They had no one. I didn't even try to befriend them and I hated it so much. I hated that my kind were segregated and disliked even more for being around each other. It annoyed me, especially because there was nothing I could do about it, than to stand back. It was common knowledge why people didn't like us. We were expensive to maintain and we looked "weird". The orange eyes seemed to put humans on the edge. I really couldn't understand why.
That was why most Radiants went to Radiant School. It was safer and had no risks. No one would look down on us or bully us because we would solely be around each other. That was why I wanted to go to Caden University. I wanted to be around my people with complete peace of mind. No fear. No worries. I wanted that. But instead, I had to go to regular school just like everyone else because my parents couldn't afford any secondary school for Radiant children. Not that I was blaming them. They were trying their best. They always were. I knew how expensive it was to raise me. I've seen how much money they've put doing that and it upset me how right the government was about my kind. It was expensive as hell and it worried me a lot. I just wanted to normal simple life like everyone else and instead I got this. I only hoped that I had the strength to carry on, despite it all.
.................
It seems like the Government wants to reduce their budget by keeping the Radiants in an enclosed facility. In real life, Radiants aren't real but there are people taken away from their homes or murdered unfairly, especially in places when the economy is tumultuous and where there's no regard for human life. I just needed to touch aspect in some societies where human rights aren't considered and decided to incorporate it in my book.
Xoxo
Jasmine.