Red

A novel.

I

“You like apples,” his mother said. “Apples, and nothing else. Now, eat your food.”

Without hesitation, Mars ate his apple slices. Then he asked, “Are we allowed to eat strawberries and cherries too?”

His mother nodded. “And it’s because our leader, Ruby, likes them. Whatever she likes, we like. It’s because her opinions are right and whatever we have that is different is wrong. It’s a very serious crime if you think thoughts that are near or fully opposite to what we think. You like apples, and if you don’t, you’ll get punished.”

Mars nodded. It was fully understandable, it seemed. He wholeheartedly agreed with it, for people’s feelings could be hurt if their minds didn’t agree with others.

“You wear your coat inverted,” his mother said. “You walk to school with your friends. You listen to your teacher and make at least one compliment. You will have the mindset that everyone there is beautiful and the same as you. Fail to do any of these things and you’ll be grounded. Continue to fail to do these things and you know what happens.”

A major transgression-worthy punishment. Maybe he would be forced to clean the gallows. Or maybe even polish the guillotines. He might even be asked to retie those dangling ropes from the branches of the trees near the prison. He always saw people maintaining those things, but it never occurred to him what the instruments were for. 

He said goodbye to his mother as he left the dwelling. He had heard that Blue called it “house,” but here it was called dwelling. 

He found his friends waiting outside for him, as usual. There was Blood, Pepper, Rose, Cherry, and Brick. 

“Good morning,” Rose said. “You look good today.”

Mars wondered if he did. But it was useless to question because Rose had no obligation to think otherwise. 

As did he. He did not have the privilege to think of others as fat, ugly, or in any way opposite than beautiful. 

“You too,” he said to her. The group began to walk.

“These sidewalk tiles are paved perfectly,” Blood said, looking down at the ground. 

“I like how these lampposts are even on the sides of the street,” Pepper said. “I approve. I agree. I support. I think it is good and that’s my opinion.”

The right opinion, of course. Everyone in Red knew what to think and what not to think. That’s how no disagreements were made, and no debates were started. A peaceful harmony was all that there was in Red. 

Since the time of birth, everyone was taught what was right and wrong. And since everyone was taught equally, there were no excuses if opinion crimes were made. It would undeniably be the criminal’s fault and no one else’s. It made Mars wonder if that wasn’t the case all the time. Could it still be the criminal’s fault if his or her parents raised them the wrong way? Would he still then be the criminal--or the victim? He always shrugged the idea off because he was not allowed to think that some parents weren’t be perfect. Everyone was perfect, and he knew that. When someone made a mistake, it was never one. It would always be deemed intentional. And no matter how big the mistake was no judgements were allowed to be made. It was also taught that mistakes were inevitable and a part of life to teach you things you could never learn without them. 

It was because of this that Mars didn’t bother to tell Cherry, at the moment, her shoelace was untied. What was the point? If mistakes were perceived as good then they shouldn’t be stopped. 

A minute later she tripped over them, scraping her knee on the sidewalk. 

“Ow,” she said. “It looks like I am bleeding. Nice!”

“No need for any procedures, as it will heal on its own,” Brick said. 

In the time that it took to walk to their school, no strangers passed by thinking a single thought about Cherry walking with a bleeding knee. It could’ve been because they had their minds wired not to, but the likely reason Mars believed was that they had been constantly forced their entire lives to not make their own opinions. And they knew the threats that kept them from doing it. 

So Mars forced himself to do the same--keep his mind closed on thinking of how possibly weird it was to be walking with a bleeding knee. And how weird it was to not question it, or even perceive it as good. Of course, he knew that he wasn’t allowed to, but it was instinct for his mind. He found it hard not to think about it. He knew that his friends didn’t have the same problem, as they all walked normally from then on, forgetting about the bleeding knee. But since the tripping incident, Mars couldn’t keep his head out of thinking about it. The bleeding knee that was still bleeding and not being taken care of. 

Unorthodox thoughts, he thought. I better stop before I get in trouble. Walking with a bleeding wound in public is perfectly acceptable. I am not allowed to think otherwise. 

So they made it to school. Where everyone with their inverted coats and red backpacks went to their classes. Again, Mars found himself questioning the oddity that it was to have inverted coats. He wasn’t sure if anyone else thought the same, but if they did, he wasn’t allowed to ask or share his wrong and different opinion. The reason was very clear and embedded in their heads at a young age: With a different thought, they had the potential to harm other people. They could hurt their feelings. And feelings were the most important thing they valued. They could ruin the harmony of Red, they can cause disagreements. A huge disagreement would cause the starter to be in jail. 

When they filed into their classroom for the day, everyone walked through the door looking at the teacher saying, “Nice shoes, Ms. Lipstick!”

“Thank you,” she said to each one. “Thank you. Thank you. And Cherry, that’s a nice bleeding knee you have there.”

When it was Mars’s turn he hesitated. And he could’ve sworn it was only a split second, but suddenly the room grew tense as every student trained their eyes on him. 

So what if I delay my compliment, he thought. They won’t care. They’re not allowed to think of my mistake as wrong because they would disagree with me. And then they would be arrested. 

And at the same time, Mars couldn’t think differently of Ms. Lipstick’s shoes. If he thought it didn’t look nice, he couldn’t say it. It could hurt her feelings. So he forced the words out. “Nice shoes, Ms. Lipstick!”

She smiled and nodded, accepting the compliment with another thank you. 

The truth? He didn’t give a single care about her shoes. But he had to lie, or else her feelings would be hurt knowing that everyone except one person liked her shoes. And he would rather lie than make her feel bad. It was just the right thing to do.

“Today we will be learning about the contingents within our country, everyone!” she enthusiastically said. If she didn’t like her job, Mars realized, she was forced to hide it with fake happiness.

“We are Red,” she said. “Our leader is Ruby. And we are the best.”

And it was true. It was not a law, but there was an unspoken rule that to be friends with someone from another faction was abnormal. It was also an almost unspoken rule that Red was superior to every faction, while the others were inferior in comparison. High up was Red so much that they considered themselves undeniably the best--but everyone knew that the other factions thought of themselves the exact same way. Although it was never taught that. It was just assumed. And of course, it was assumed correctly.

“Do you agree, class?” the teacher asked. 

“Yes, we agree!” everyone said. 

“Good,” she said. “Now, Red has many features that make it outstanding--” she burped loudly, “--the other factions that are also unique to the society…”

Mars’s mind drifted off from there. Again, no one cared that she burped mid-sentence. Of course, it was expected. For mistakes could not be judged. It made him wonder what would be there to stop anyone from continuously making mistakes, then. 

It had been a while now that he had these thoughts in his head. He didn’t know where they came from and he wanted them to leave. He wanted to be like everyone else. Was it too much to ask for?

But he couldn’t resist raising his hand. When he did, the teacher nodded at him. “Yes, Mars?”

“Excuse me,” he said. “Say excuse me. Purple has a rule that you have to. And it makes sense.”

He could see that the teacher was not pleased. “And why does it make sense, Mars?”

He couldn’t say because it was rude to burp. Or else he would definitely get a punishment. That was a different opinion, and it would hurt her feelings. He didn’t want that. So he just closed his mouth and slumped in his seat, as if he didn’t have an answer. He was glad that he would be safe from judgement, for his classmates couldn’t think of him as bad. He was glad that though they witnessed it, his friends would still like him and be friends with him. No matter how different they were in comparison to him, no matter how many mistakes he made. 

But the teacher didn’t leave it at that. She seemed inclined to get even. So she ordered Mars to stand up.

“Go to the front of the class,” she said.

Mars obeyed as she took out a belt. He was told to face the board. Then, as if the class was empty of the students, Ms. Lipstick began shrieking and whipping his back with the belt. It hurt, for sure, and he never felt such pain. But he was not allowed to move. To disobey a teacher was wrong, and it would hurt her feelings. 

But it was instinct. After a few whips, he ran from his post with tears of pain, trying to escape the belt. She chased after him, still shouting.

“You’re hurting me!” he said. “You’re hurting my feelings!”

“Shut up!” she said. “I am simply making a mistake that I will certainly regret. Mistakes are forgiven and they are allowed. If you think bad of me after this incident you will hurt my feelings. After this, I will still like you as my student.”

Mars didn’t see her logic, so he thought it was appropriate that he in return hurt her feelings. “You’re fat! You’re ugly! You’re immature and abusive!”

She gasped and suddenly stopped at the spot, breaking down in tears on the floor. Mars saw nothing but the truth in those words. She had an abnormally large belly, an unattractive face, and she burped and farted and yelled at people in class every day. 

He looked at his classmates. Of course, they had all watched the incident, but none of them had spoken a word or acted. To choose a side would hurt feelings for sure. If they defended Mars, Ms. Lipstick would be hurt. If they helped Ms. Lipstick, Mars would be hurt. 

Mars knew that Ms. Lipstick’s loud and excessive wailing was sure to get some attention from teachers outside. So he chose that moment to sit back in his seat and blend in with everyone else. When they came into the classroom, they saw the teacher crying on the ground. The principal was called.

“Who did this? Who hurt you?” he asked her. 

Ms. Lipstick’s mouth quivered. It was at this moment Mars thought his world was at an end. He would be in serious trouble. 

But Ms. Lipstick didn’t say his name. Instead, she stood up, wiped her tears, and said, “I will not say, Mr. Fire Truck. He is my student and I take care of him like my own child. That is my job as a teacher. He may have made a mistake but it is forgiven.”

“It’s okay to tell us,” the principal said. “You may hurt his or her feelings if you do, but he or she has hurt yours. This is a matter worthy of calling the police.”

But she refused. He continued to press her but she did not succumb. It was because of this that the principal was forced to stop, or else he would begin to hurt her feelings. 

“Very well,” he said. “You are allowed to not tell me who the person is. Have a good day. And nice shoes.”

Mars breathed a sigh of relief and safety. He knew he had only escaped because of the hypocritical and contradictory rules of his society. What he did was a huge transgression. He had hurt someone’s feelings that day, something forbidden, and from now on he would feel a burden that no one in centuries had felt. Guilt.

II

“If you are okay with telling me, how did you know that the Purple say ‘excuse me’ after a burp?” Rose asked.

“I do not want to tell,” Mars said. He knew she had to stop there, no matter how curious she was, because she could hurt his feelings. 

She nodded, looking a bit… sad. Mars thought he had done it again.

“Sorry. Did I--”

“No. You didn’t hurt my feelings. I am fine with you not telling me.”

Whatever Mars could do, there was no telling if it was a lie or not. That was how it was with the people in Red. He just didn’t know if everyone knew that as well. 

The truth was he had forbidden friends outside of Red. One in every main faction, in fact. And the one from Purple had told him that fact. And he agreed. It just seemed… right. Burps were rude. But he knew that although it seemed right, it was wrong. His mother had taught him that all opinions of the other factions were wrong. 

“Oh, sorry,” Rose said. “Forgive my mistake. I forgot to say something. Good morning. You look good today.”

He was walking with her to school because he was late to wake up, and she was the only friend that decided to wait for him. It made him wonder if she wasn’t just a so-called friend like the others. It made him wonder if she was an actual, real friend. Not fake, like what everything else in Red seemed like. It made him feel like she was something more. Did he want to test it?

“Do you mean it?” he asked. 

She knitted her eyebrows. “Of course I do. If I lied I would hurt your feelings.”

But I would never find out anyway, he thought. It was such a dumb thing that only he saw. No one else wondered--no, cared--about it. 

“So you mean it,” he said. “But what if you didn’t? Because what if I am ugly? If I had a face like Ms. Lipstick?”

“What are you trying to say? Ms. Lipstick has a beautiful face, just like everyone else’s.”

No, she doesn’t, he thought. It’s ugly and I’m the only one who sees that. 

But he couldn’t say it out loud. It was a crime to have a different opinion, but yet, he felt no threat. He held that opinion deep in his mind where no one would find it. If he was interrogated by the police, he would never tell. He knew there was absolutely no rightness of owning an opinion, yet he still owned some. It was dangerous. 

“Yes, of course she does,” he said. Now he knew that even if Rose meant it, that he looked good today, it wouldn’t matter. Because she said it every day anyway. She was forced to give a compliment and would no matter what. No matter if it wasn’t true, and no matter if she agreed or not. 

Only he understood the contradictory side of Red. His other friends had left him alone to walk. Did they stop to think if they would hurt his feelings? But it didn’t matter. Because it would be deemed as a mistake and mistakes are forgiven, for they cannot be judged. Also, if they were late to school as well, had it been if they waited for him, they would disobey the teacher’s rule of coming to class on time and would, therefore, hurt her feelings. So what would they do? Was it possible to please everyone? Mars had this ongoing idea in his head that there was no possible way to not offend someone at least once in a lifetime. The only problem was he had little proof, and if he ever tried to speak with Ruby, their leader, she would never accept it because different opinions were wrong. However, if she disagreed with him she would hurt his feelings. But it would be okay because mistakes are forgiven and they cannot be judged. Because if they were judged you could hurt the person’s feelings. 

He wished he could tell this to someone. Rose, maybe. His friends in other factions, maybe. But if he was caught then he would be punished. Punished harshly, no matter how much his feelings were hurt. 

When they got to school, it was already the first recess out of three. In the yard, he saw a policeman talking with the principal. 

“You can go on without me,” he told Rose. “I’m going to see what’s going on there.”

He went alone toward them, as the principal was leaving. 

“Good morning officer,” Mars said. The first thing he noticed about him when he came up to him was his strange badge. It had a rainbow symbol on it. He thought of it as childish, but he would never say that as it was a hurtful opinion. 

“Nice badge,” he said instead. 

The officer didn’t smile at him. He narrowed his eyes. “Is it, boy?”

“Yes,” Mars lied. 

“Thank you,” he said, while still holding his suspicious look. Mars began to feel scared. For some reason, whenever he talked to a policeman, they always somehow had the suspicion of his wrongdoings. His ownership of multiple different opinions. It was as if they could read his mind. 

“Why are you here, in this school environment?” Mars asked. To prevent it from sounding like he wasn’t approving of it--because it could hurt his feelings--he said, “I mean, what is the purpose? Of course, we always love having a policeman here to make us feel safer.”

Society is fake, he thought. Lies and dishonesty.

“A student here yesterday hurt someone’s feelings, and I am investigating who it is,” he said. 

“Oh,” Mars said. “It certainly couldn’t have been me, officer. I am a good boy.” He thought that would come out as bragging, which would hurt the officer’s feelings, so he added, “I mean, I just try to be one. Just like everyone else, of course. If I am doing it correctly, that is good for me.”

Disinterested, the officer nodded and left him. 

The whole day was without a doubt the same. His friends shared their right opinions of how the sidewalk stones they walked on that day was perfectly paved, and the lampposts were perfectly even on the streets. The students walked into class after they complimented on the teacher’s shoes. Mars noticed that whatever shoes she wore, and they seemed different each time, they were still complimented on, no matter what. 

The day went by as if nothing like yesterday happened. The entire class seemed to have forgotten the incident. 

Then there was a part of the day that no one but Mars anticipated. He would walk with his friends home, but when he got there his parents weren’t home yet. So he rode a bicycle to the border of Red and Orange, where there was this orange tree where he and his other friends would meet up. The friends from other factions; the ones that would be considered strange and punish-worthy if they were ever found out. Talking to other people with different opinions? It was destructive to Red’s society, or Blue’s, or all of them for that matter, as feelings could be hurt by them. 

But Mars didn’t mind. In fact, he probably liked the idea of having friends that were friends even if they viewed things differently. It told him that they were real friends, and not only friends because they were forced to like the same things. Sky loved to swim in the ocean. Reds were never allowed to even go near them. Autumn liked playing a sport with a bouncing ball that was called a basketball. Reds knew no such thing.

The best part was that they respected each other’s likings. There were no disagreements, for they were all still friends. No feelings were hurt.

Mars was the last one there when he saw everyone under the tree, peeling oranges and eating them. 

“Mars is here,” Clover said. 

“Clover, want a slice?” Autumn asked. 

He shook his head. “I don’t like it.”

It was definitely strange to hear such words for Mars, and he was sure everyone felt the same. But they all had the agreement that they had different tastes. 

“I love oranges,” Mars said, and he knew he would get in trouble for it, but he took a slice from her. It was, in fact, his favourite fruit. He had to admit that where he was from, apples weren’t the best.

Mars sat down next to them under the tree, eating his slice, knowing if his mother found out she’d disown him. 

“It’s good, right?” Sky asked. “I like it too. But my favourites are mangoes, from Yellow.”

“Well I didn’t bring any,” Daisy said. “You’re supposed to like blueberries, Sky.”

“I know,” he said. “But something in my gut tells me I don’t. Just like how Mars likes oranges.”

“Are we going to try to meet someone from Black or White?” Violet asked. 

“Good question,” Mars said. “They’re not exactly the friendly type. As far as it seems, from what we know from school, they don’t really specifically like anything. Well, Black doesn’t, but Whites are neutral. They like everything. And you can see why both are shamed factions. I know Red wouldn’t allow either because they only allow people who share their taste, as well as… well, all of your contingents, too.”

“It seems that this is the only time we get to feel free,” Sky said, pouting at Daisy. “And when I get to eat mangoes.”

“Oh, shut up,” she said. 

“I have the best story to tell you all today,” Mars said. “I did it. I insulted my teacher. Yesterday.”

Autumn laughed as if it was a good thing. “You did? Tell us about it.”

Mars hesitated, thinking he was about to do something truly unacceptable to Red. An indirect crime of hurting other’s feelings without even doing so. A reputation-changing crime. But he forgot what it was called.

“But we’re not allowed to talk behind people’s backs,” Violet said. That was what it was called.

“And I’m not allowed to eat grapes from Purple, but I do,” Clover said, popping one into his mouth. “Because they’re the best and I like them.”

“As if that was true,” Sky said. “They’re disgusting.”

They both laughed. Mars wondered if it was possible that everyone in Red could be like this. Not caring for a different opinion of someone else. Just respecting it. 

So Mars told his story. About the punishment and the insult. And in the end, they laughed. 

“You called her fat and ugly?” Sky said. “Hilarious!”

“But… but we’re not allowed to,” Mars said. “It’s not that funny. It’s bad and it hurts her feelings, whether it’s true or not. And whether it’s true or not is subjective--induced by the thoughts of people.”

“From where I’m from, insults are funny,” Sky said. 

It was true. Blue had different values than Red, just like how it had different values than Green, Yellow, Orange, Purple, and the rest. Mars knew not to question the doings and sayings of his outsider friends. They were different. It was because of that fact that they were treated harshly and hated by any other faction that wasn’t theirs. 

“Green knows to reject insensitivity, so I would say it’s bad,” Clover said. “But how you said it, Mars, how you just yelled it at her… I have to agree with Sky. It’s pretty funny.”

Daisy shrugged. “Think what you want.”

“Well, I saw a policeman today with a different badge,” Autumn said. “With a rainbow on it.”

“Me too,” Mars said. “All colours in one place. For what? I can’t believe Red would allow a badge like that. It’s against our belief that having a united country with all of its contingents together in harmony is possible. Because we think we’re superior.”

“Sounds a lot like my faction,” Sky said.

“You think Red is superior?” Autumn said. “I’m disgusted. I mean, Orange thinks the same, but I don’t.”

“I don’t either,” Mars said. “Sorry if I hurt you.”

“It’s just against what I think, that’s all,” she said. 

“Well, I agree with you.”

“The badge,” Daisy said, thinking. “You don’t think it’s the rainbow police?”

When no one answered, not knowing what she was talking about, she continued. “My friend Sunny told me about it. An organization founded by the leaders to hunt down converters.”

“Good, because converters are weird,” Violet said. “Make them arrest Clover so I can stop having to bring these grapes for him. He should eat his avocados.”

Clover looked stunned. “I thought we had an agreement.”

Mars didn’t think the same. He valued the freedom of choosing a culture. It could’ve been the fact that he had been spending a lot of time with Autumn in Orange, and becoming almost one of them through their tastes and likings that he thought that way. He felt inclined to defend converters because he was becoming one. And becoming one was dangerous. So incredibly dangerous that he was beginning to regret his decisions of spending time in Orange. But the truth was that he liked it. He liked it when Autumn showed him how to peel an orange or dribble a basketball, or light things on fire. He enjoyed his time with her, learning to be an Orange. 

Autumn looked at him as if she thought the same thing. In return, Mars had shown her a lot of Red’s leisure activities. They were both in disagreement with Violet. 

He also knew that Sky and Daisy liked to spend time together in their domains, liking each other’s cultures, and Clover had always liked to visit Purple. Though he needed a guide, and Violet didn’t want to be his because her faction valued the extinction of converters and hated the thought of Clover becoming a Purple. For compensation, since she didn’t want to make him feel bad, she brought him grapes, which he liked. 

The only way not one of them has ever been caught was because they all looked the same--human. They had found out that there really was nothing different about them except their likings, opinions, and values--because they were all human creatures and therefore could be friends. It may seem that the differences were enormous and plentiful, but that didn’t stop them from hating each other. 

“I think converters are fine,” Daisy said, smiling at Sky, who of course, had taught her a lot of things about Blue. 

“You’re all biased because you are all converters,” Violet said. 

“You think it’s possible to change an opinion?” Mars whispered to Autumn.

She shrugged, not knowing. “Violet’s just stubborn.”

Again, Mars felt the same feeling of wanting to scold her for that--he was the last one to find the group and because of that, he was the last one to get the most accustomed to their agreements. And those were: Judgements are allowed. Opinions can be stated. Never compromise the group, whether it would be blackmail or any other act of devious treachery. 

He felt the urge to tell her that she could be hurting Violet’s feelings, but he realized that Violet would also know the agreement terms and allow those types of things to be said about her. Because if they were true, then they were true. Nothing could be done--you could lie and say she wasn’t stubborn, but it wouldn’t change the fact that she was. Mars knew she was reluctant to bring Clover grapes and reluctant to bring him to Purple--because they hated converters, of course. And Clover felt hurt by that because he thought of her as a good friend. 

They were all good friends. Mars knew none of them would ever compromise the group. Even if they began to do wrong things. Autumn’s accusation of Violet being stubborn, for an example. Mars knew Red would never allow that, as it was an assault to her emotions and--because spoken behind her back--to the well-being of her reputation. He knew he shouldn’t have allowed that, because he was a Red, but he did. Because Autumn was his friend and he may not always agree with her, but that didn’t make them hate each other. 

Self-esteem was valued greatly in Red. One tiny disturbance on anyone’s could cause a great deal of trouble. The worst crime would be to leave someone devastated, to the point of crying, just like what Mars had done to Ms. Lipstick. When he had done that he felt as if he had shot a gun at her head. It was terrible, and he felt guilty. She would never be the same, and he knew that she was forced to act like it never happened because she was to forgive mistakes. But he thought of how bad she must feel to carry that burden--a burden even worse than his own, which was guilt. The burden that was to remember and know that someone thought of her as fat and ugly, and the thought that she couldn’t do anything to change that person’s mind. Unless she herself was changed, which of course, could not happen. Whether it would be the diet and lifestyle of her daily routines or the genetic compound of her heredity, her appearance was hers and hers only. She could not wish to get another. It was because of that fact that she couldn’t stop anyone from thinking bad of her, as Mars did. Mars knew if it was truly genetics, then she couldn’t change her fatness or ugliness. The only way to stop an assault on her self-esteem was to believe that everyone didn’t think of her as fat and ugly--which was revealed to be false when Mars had stated his opinion of her. Ignorance is bliss. 

In some ways Red’s rules made sense. The way someone can be devastated because of a stated opinion was destructive to its citizens. Mistakes like hurting someone with words were to be forgiven, but not forgotten. He could imagine Ms. Lipstick still remembering him calling her those things, even if she decided to forgive him. 

So he answered to Autumn, “She may be. But she may also not be. It’s subjective. I for one agree with you.”

Autumn nodded. “It’s fine. As long as we tolerate it we’ll be there for her as a friend. It should be like that. After a fight, a married couple would still die for each other. Mistakes are part of humanity, and if you live without them then you aren’t human. Throughout history, they’ve been made and all we can do is rebuild from them.”

Mars nodded. “No matter what, I don’t think there’s a way to stop them, either. There will always be bad people in this world. All we can do is stop them. There’s no perfect formula to create a society without them unless you take everyone’s free will. If only there was a way.”

“Which there isn’t, because it’s not possible,” she said. “Yes. I agree with you. We share the same opinion.”

“Do you think it’s right to not?” Mars asked her. “That the policeman feel guilty for doing their job of arresting people who have hurt other’s feelings? Because it’s such a petty thing to go to jail for?”

“I don’t know. If I answer yes, there will always be people that answer no,” she said. “If someone likes apples, there will always be people that like oranges. It’s because of this that disagreements happen. And when they do, war happens. The wars that have happened in the world--they could’ve been prevented if everyone thought the same.”

Dividing the people into contingents with the same opinions was what the leaders must’ve had a vision for, Mars thought. Except it’s different. They don’t let converters happen and they think their faction is superior to others. Two different opinions are equal. None is more valued than the other, because how can they be? They’re just two different thoughts. One doesn’t require more thinking or more of an effort to think. 

To test it, he took off his jacket. Red wanted everyone to wear inverted jackets, and he wondered why. He inverted it again, so it was back to what it was originally designed for. He put on the jacket that way. Initially, it felt weird to him, but he realized it was the same. Just like two sides of a flipped coin. The sides are different, with different textures on them. But they’re both the same. A face of a coin. They shared a common similarity that allowed them to work in harmony--so the coin could flip. How can the coin flip without a heads? How can it flip without a tails? It would be pointless to flip it then. 

He realized mankind was the same. Individually, and in groups, they were different. But they were all humans. What was to stop them from working together, like how heads and tails worked together to flip the coin? All groups worked together. Even the neutrals, the ones that were sideless. They were the rim of the coin, connecting both sides. 

When the sun went down and night came, he saw his friends prepare as a team. Sky lit the campfire, the one that was near the orange tree, Clover brought snacks, and so on. Even if one forgot something, like how Mars was in charge of bringing flashlights for the dark, the team made up for it. 

“I’ve got you covered,” Autumn said. “I brought the flashlights since I know you’re forgetful.”

Mars smiled. It was his turn to return something. He noticed that she had forgotten a coat. Maybe because she didn’t know they planned to stay at the tree until late at night, or she was forgetful too. Whatever the reason, he put his coat around her. The team--particularly Autumn--made up for his mistake of forgetting flashlights, so he helped her back. 

“Thanks,” she said. 

They spent the night talking and laughing, sharing jokes that made fun of each other’s factions--the only difference was that they didn’t mind.

III

The majority of Red didn’t live in fear of offence because it was obviously usual to never experience it. The first time a citizen felt the pain of it, it would be phenomenal for them. The next day Mars found out that Ms. Lipstick had disappeared with no explanation. When asked about it, classmates told him she had ended her life unexpectedly with no reasonable explanation. 

“This may be my fault,” he told his friends as they walked home one day. 

“Why?” Pepper asked. “How can it possibly be your wrongdoing?”

“You all must know why she did that,” he said. And when they didn’t, confirming with a shake of their heads, he sighed. “Is it really that serious for her to get hurt verbally to the point of depression? Doesn’t she have the choice not to believe it?”

“We don’t really know what you’re talking about,” Blood said. “But yes, it’s very important. I believe you should get executed if you hurt someone’s feelings badly.”

It was weird to hear something like that for Mars because he knew everyone had witnessed what had happened days ago. What made him sad was that he didn’t know if his friends only pretended to have forgotten about it for his safety or they were forced by law to forgive his mistake.

“I’m not sure if she would have a choice to not believe any verbal abuse aimed toward her,” Cherry said. “What makes it worse is if you hear it and you know it’s true.”

“So you remember, then,” Mars said. “You remember when I called her those mean things?”

She shook her head. “When did you do that? You’re a good person, Mars. I don’t think you would ever do that.”

Mars understood that it was necessary for her to make him feel better if his self-esteem was for any reason low. He also understood that she thought a compliment would do the trick, but it didn’t. It just made him believe even more that Red was delusional and he was the only sane one in it. 

He realized too that it was only because he had met friends that thought like him that he continued to think this way. And through their secret meetings, they had strengthened their values, their unorthodox thoughts and opinions, and made it clear that it was okay to have them. 

But in Red, it still wasn’t. So he forced himself to abide by the rules and understand Cherry was being a good citizen--or a good person overall--and he was to return it and pretend that he was still a regular, ordinary Red citizen. Which of course, which he found so obvious to see, he was not. It was plainly clear to differentiate him from the crowd, but he knew because of the delusional thinking of Red no one would blink twice at him. The evidence was a few days ago, the big incident that caused Ms. Lipstick to get depression, and everyone had witnessed it. But yet none had acted, because they were at a contradictory paradox in which they didn’t understand to think with their instincts--to think for themselves and act whether they felt like it or not. They did not know whether to help him or her because to do so would hurt the other, and they ignored their empathetic instinct--which Mars was sure every single person had, even a Red. They didn’t have the ability to decide for themselves who needed the most help. This was because they couldn’t decide that, since they weren’t allowed to own an opinion. If they supported one or the other they were sure to get in trouble. 

He had to act like he was like them too, from now on, and pretend like everyone else the incident never happened. 

He said, “You’re a good person too, Cherry.”

She smiled. “Thank you.”

But inside his head, he disagreed. She did not help when Ms. Lipstick physically harmed him in front of the entire class. She did not help when Mars had clearly shown he didn’t like it--by running around to escape it. She did not help when the teacher began to cry on the floor. No one did. So he concluded that everyone in Red wasn’t nice. They were just trying to follow the rules, and because of this, because they succeeded every day, they thought they were nice. But was it true? The law could be as simple as to not murder. If you didn’t murder every day, did that make you a good person?

He had done it again! He had disagreed with something when he had already decided he would not do so anymore. He knew he wasn’t allowed to, and if the policemen caught him he would be dead. But he couldn’t understand how this was an act of treason; an act that would supposedly cause society to break down if everyone did it regularly. It was taught in school that disagreement was the deadliest sin. It caused wars in history. It caused breakups in friendships, relationships, partnerships. It broke down close and internal ties and built ones that were founded only on hatred. Red, and all the other factions, existed only to erase that threat. That possibility. Everyone had to think the same thoughts and opinions because hurting others’ feelings would destroy ties. This caused everyone to never feel the pain of a disagreement, and because of that, one who did would be depressed at the extraordinary pain, as Ms. Lipstick had gone through. 

But Mars had the undying thought that everyone, like him, did secretly have unorthodox thoughts--if only for a few seconds. When Rose told him he looked good every day, there must have been some days he didn’t, and she noticed, but she would have to say the same thing anyway. It was because of this that he thought, how would Red work if this could happen? How was it possible to erase any and every single momentary, disagreeing thought? How can you walk by people, and as they call you beautiful, you feel the fear that inside they think you’re ugly, but you would never know because they would never tell or they’d get arrested? Ignorance is bliss, but there’s also the fear that what you may not know can hurt you. In some cases, the latter would be worse. The truth can be harsh but it can be useful. Sometimes you have to be brought down, your feelings have to be hurt, to get better. It was two steps back and three steps forward. If a person smelled bad and walked to work every day with people noticing, what would be better? If the person was left in bliss because of the obliviousness to the fact he or she smelled horrible, while everyone suffered, or to tell the person so he or she can change his or her behaviour and habits to improve upon attractiveness, ultimately giving the person a gain rather than the temporary loss of having hurt feelings? 

Mars was told as a child by his mother not to bring food upstairs, because it would attract bugs. If he had never known, and they came, would that be any better? Ignorance is harm. That’s what he lived by.

He didn’t understand how people got compliments every day without wondering if it was deception. Probably because in Red, self-esteem was valued so much that even if the person didn’t believe in the compliment he or she gave, he or she was forced to in order to make the person feel good. Pleasure was a necessity, and it was more important than opinion in Red. 

It was taught that the police believed if you held an opposite thought than everyone else--if it was about a person, for instance--you are still harming the person no matter what you think, even if you keep it in your head. Just like talking behind backs--you aren’t telling the person your thoughts, but still harming them. It didn’t matter if the person was left in bliss due to ignorance, he or she was still being harmed by the people talking behind backs because of one sole possibility: The secret opinion could be spread, and it would cause disagreements. So it was the same as keeping a different opinion in your head. If about a person, it is harmful to him or her because of the potential to cause a disagreement, even if you promise to never share the thought. The potentiality was dangerous.

In fact, the potential to cause disagreements was the motivation for the police to search every single persons’ mind for an unorthodox thought. Even thoughts weren’t safe, and even they weren’t yours. They can be kept if they were good thoughts, but if they were different you would be in trouble. 

It bothered Mars that they did things this way. It, in fact, hurt his feelings. But what was he to do about that? Sue the police? Of course, suing wasn’t allowed due to the potential to cause disagreements and hurt other’s feelings. Red held power over everyone without them knowing. And they were happy because they didn’t know. Again, ignorance is bliss. How can you try to change a wrong society when everyone was happy? There was no problem, only to Mars there was. He wasn’t even allowed to have these thoughts about Red anyway since they would cause disagreements. 

Mars felt no chance of escaping this world because, according to everyone except him and his outsider friends--there was, in fact, no problem with it. Everything was fine. Everyone agreed with each other and everyone was happy. But it bothered him so much, to the very core, that they were all so oblivious! How can they not see? Where were their empathetic, ethical, logical, and justly instincts? The basic moralities and concepts of being human? The ability to perceive badness? The unique thinking of the human mind was vanquished in Red. No one thought for themselves in the fear of hurting others--as if that was the worst thing in the world. And the worst part, of course, was that not one found anything wrong with his or her meaningless and useless lives and thought it was perfect. 

Meaningless! They were meaningless! Because they all thought the same and were the complete opposite of unique! All enforced by the law not to hurt others’ feelings. It made Mars sick but he couldn’t do anything about it. The revelations of the true side of Red was a burden to him--he wished he was still like everyone else and he was still oblivious to everything, so he can continue his meaningless life in peace just like everyone else. 

But at the same time, he was proud--proud to know all these things to make him feel like he had meaning. Proud to know he was high above everyone else--much like what Red thought, and what every other faction thought--and that he defied the rule ignorance is bliss.

One day Mars thought about doing something. He would need his outsider friends, of course. The ones he had in Red were fake. Ones that at first became his friends and were forced to never leave him now, because it could hurt his feelings. It was impossible to tell if they didn’t like him but still stayed with him for that reason. 

Sky, Clover, Daisy, Autumn, Violet--they were the people he felt the closest to. His real family. There were no other people he felt good with and had a sense of true belonging with than them. Not his mother, or his father, or his brothers and sisters, or his school friends. They were all brainwashed to him, and there was no way to convert any or all of them because they were afraid to take risks of having unorthodox opinions and going against society--because of fear the police would get them for sure. That was the problem: No one wanted to have a different thought because it was risky. They wanted to be safe. Even if it was their very human instinct, they wouldn’t. Mars was sure it was because of fear, not because they didn’t want to hurt others’ feelings. 

“We’re at your dwelling, Mars,” Rose said. “The second-last stop. Mine’s the last.”

Mars suddenly became aware of what was happening. “Oh, yes. My dwelling.”

She nodded. “It seemed like you drifted away back there, during our conversation about the perfection of the sidewalk tiles and the evenness of the street lampposts. What were you thinking about?”

“I was just thinking about how Blue calls our dwellings houses,” he lied. “Did you know that?”

She shook her head. “Where do you even get that information?” Then she paused. “I mean, you don’t have to tell me. That might seem like pushing and I don’t want to hurt your feelings.”

Again, the stupidity of Red, Mars thought. 

“You can ask me anything you want from now on,” he said. 

She looked uncomfortable hearing the words, as if they were foreign. “Are… are you sure? I don’t think our leader Ruby would like that rule.”

“Well, forget about Ruby. Just for this rule, okay? When you ask me anything, I have to answer honestly. So choose what you want to ask before you do because my answer could hurt your feelings.”

“How would they? Whatever your answers are would be my answers. We all have the same thoughts, everyone in Red. Disagreements are impossible.”

Because I don’t have the same thoughts, and you don’t know that, Mars thought. And I think it’s possible for everyone to do so, to have their own thoughts. Deep inside everyone thinks differently but everyone is afraid to speak up because Red will hate them. The fear of getting shunned overpowers their humanity. Their freedom of choice. And they think this means happiness.

“Nothing,” he said. “The answer to your question: I’ve swam at my friend’s dwelling before. He’s a Blue. And I know you’ll think differently of me when I say this--but you would never tell me that--but I like swimming. And Reds aren’t allowed to but go ahead and tell the authorities. They won’t get any evidence from you.”

He closely studied her expression to see if she would think bad of him. My friend has a friend from Blue this whole time? He has swum before, all along? Is he a true Red? Is he a converter?

But no, her expression didn’t change and she still looked friendly. In fact, she actually smiled, and said, “A nice imagination you have, Mars. Have a good day,” as if she had heard nothing of what Mars said. 

She began to walk alone down the street to her own dwelling, and Mars began to think of the possibility he was wrong. That the people of Red didn’t have their own opinions, and they weren’t hiding them. That they were truly as dull and the same as what they were viewed on the outside. They didn’t hide their thoughts with lies. They didn’t give false compliments. They meant them, even if they didn’t have meaning.

IV

School was repetitive, as usual. The new teacher, Mrs. Fire Hydrant, was okay. She had a sweet voice and was very, very much more attractive than their last one. Some kids got distracted when she asked them to do something. Some weren’t able to think as she talked to them. It was quite funny to Mars, but still, he felt bored as he walked through the tedious hallways of the place he went to daily in his routine life. He was walking past a kid putting up a poster on the wall that was nothing but the colour red. 

He had taped it above the water fountain and smiled. “Smart placement, right?” he told Mars. “Whenever people go to drink, they will see it.”

“Of course. I agree with that placement, and I love it,” Mars said. “I agree wholeheartedly.”

But the boy had a look of confusion on his face, heavily contemplating as he stared at the poster. “No, it might seem too patriotic. Too egotistic about the place I live in. That might hurt feelings somehow.” So he took it down and left.

I don’t see anything wrong with that poster, Mars thought. What is wrong with it?

Later on in the day, outside in the yard, Mars walked by himself. Immediately about twenty people walked next to him and asked, “Are you alone? Do you want me to walk with you?” He refused their offers every time, and they left him alone. 

He saw a girl taking a picture of two boys. One of them said, “Thank you. But that might’ve hurt your feelings. Here, I’ll take a picture of you and Crimson.” So they switched positions and the boy took a picture of his friend and the girl. Then the other boy, Crimson, said, “Lobster, I don’t want you to feel as if we’re more important than you. Let me take a picture of you and Poppy.” They switched positions again. After, the girl said, “I’ve been in two pictures in a row. That might seem unfair. Let me take one of you and Lobster, Crimson.” They switched positions again. Then Lobster said, “Poppy, you’ve taken the picture twice already. I don’t want that to hurt your feelings, making you feel as if you’re being left out.” So they switched positions again, Lobster taking the picture. Then Crimson said, “I feel as if I am being given less labour, having only taken one picture. That might hurt your feelings. Lend me the camera, Lobster.” They switched positions again. Mars didn’t know how many times they did this, looping in a never-ending cycle. And when he walked by them, Crimson saw him and said, “Hello. Would you like to join the picture? I don’t want you to feel left out, it could hurt your feelings.” How could he refuse? It would seem rude, possibly. So Mars agreed and ended up in the picture. Then he said, “Let me take the picture. I haven’t taken it yet, and it might hurt your feelings that I am taking advantage. I don’t want to be insensitive.” So they switched positions, and Mars took the picture. He chose that moment to secretly look at the storage of photos, and what he saw amused him, but barely surprised him. There were hundreds of the same recurring set of photos, always in a different combination of the three friends. He shook his head at the absurdity of it. 

After the indefinite photography cycle, Mars’s friends found him in the yard. 

Here it comes, he thought.

“We’re sorry that we haven’t found you yet,” Blood said. “I don’t want to make any excuses, it was deeply and totally our fault. I mean, my fault. No one else did anything wrong, trust me. I’m sorry if I hurt any of your feelings.”

“No, it was my fault, and not Blood’s,” Pepper said. “Just mine. Blame me, I delayed the group in finding you, Mars.”

“What are you talking about?” Rose said. “I delayed the group. It was me, and only me. None of you did anything wrong. I am to blame, because I did the act, and I’m sorry. Forgive me if I hurt your feelings, Mars.”

“No, you must forgive me,” Cherry said. “I made the mistake. You didn’t do anything wrong, all of you.”

“That is nice, but it was truly my fault,” Brick said. “I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings, Mars. But it was me.”

“And I’m sorry that this apology is taking a toll on time, Mars,” Blood said. “It was I who initiated it. It is my fault that this is too long, and is most likely wasting your time. I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings.”

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong, Blood,” Pepper said. “I was the one who made this apology too long. I’m sorry Mars, if that hurt your feelings.”

“It is who must apologize,” Rose said. “My answer was the longest, and it must’ve bothered you. I’m sorry Mars, if that hurt your feelings.”

“They are only being nice,” Cherry said. “It’s me. I made the apology long and was the one who took too much of your time, Mars. I’m sorry, if that hurt your feelings.”

“Truly it was me, you all must know that,” Brick said. “I made the apology too long, not any of you. Blame me, because it was actually me.”

“I’m sorry that by mentioning that this apology is long, we have made it even longer,” Blood said. “It is truly my fault and I wish to make it up to you. I’m sorry if any of your feelings are hurt. I want you to know I deeply care about your happiness, and it was I who made the mistake by slightly disrupting it by making this apology too long by mentioning it was long. The truth is, it is I whom everyone should blame. And don’t worry if you will hurt my feelings when you do, because it was my mistake. I only wished to be forgiven. And I’m sorry again for making this apology longer by continuing it, only because I have said it was too long because it was too long.”

“I’m sorry for making it too long,” Pepper said. “Because it is I who actually made it long, no matter what Blood says. I am deeply sorry. Your time is precious and your feelings are, too. I wish to try to make it up to you. I want you to be happy and I made a mistake in doing so. My sole purpose is to make you happy. I don’t want any feelings to be hurt, because we all know that hurting someone’s feelings is the worst thing anyone can ever do. I want you to know this apology is mine, and mine only, because it is my fault. And I’m sorry to any of you all that thought it was your duty to apologize because it’s mine. And I could’ve hurt your feelings by taking the ability to apologize from you, so I’m sorry for that too. And I’m sorry that I added this apology to our apology because it only made it longer. I’m sorry Mars, if that hurt your feelings because too much of your time is wasted.”

“You?” Rose said. “It was me! I made the mistake! I’m sorry for raising my voice. That could’ve hurt your feelings. My mistake. But it was I who made this apology too long, and it should only be me who apologizes. I’m sorry, Mars. I want you to know that my intention was never to hurt your feelings, and if there is a possibility you are angry at me, I will accept it. Also, you should only be angry at me. I am to blame, and no matter what any of us say, it is I who actually made the mistake of wasting your time. Even now, I am continuing the mistake, by adding to the apology, and I’m sorry--I have to. Only because there’s a misconception that it wasn’t my fault when it was actually me. Anyone you ask will strongly deny it. I’m sorry.”

“And I’m sorry for not speaking up,” Mars said. “It is actually my fault in wasting time. Not yours.”

“No, it was me,” Cherry said. 

“I’m sorry if this hurts your feelings, but that is untrue because it was me,” Brick said. 

Mars knew this was only another example of the foolish contradictoriness in Red. The society was built to demolish any source of disagreement, only because the most important value it had was the feelings of others. But a scenario like this, when everyone wanted to take the blame, a disagreement is existent, is it not? Red also valued their supremacy over any other peoples, over any other faction. It seemed they only cared about the feelings of another human if that human was a Red. 

Before the long apology could get any longer, the recess ended and they were all called back inside for more lessons. It relieved Mars, but he could tell all his friends didn’t feel the same because they wanted to continue the apology. But disagreements weren’t allowed. And so he said, “I feel relieved that the apology had to end because it was taking too long. Does anyone agree?”

Since they valued his feelings too much, they all forcibly changed their emotions and agreed with a series of yes’s. Mars found this completely absurd, how they had to agree to him so a disagreement wouldn’t occur. Hurting someone’s feelings was too much of an evil act, and they couldn’t afford anything to accidentally do so, not the slightest action nor say. It was all ridiculous! The boy with the poster, or the friends with the camera, or his own friends and their apology that ended up in a complete loop because they didn’t want the blame to end on anyone but themselves. Selfless maybe, Mars had to admit, but still completely absurd.

They spent the day reading internet articles about Red and its opinions, as Mrs. Fire Hydrant had instructed them to do. Many of them picked a single controversial topic and put heavy detail on it, telling specifically how the reader should think and agree in the topic, with no consideration of the possibility the reader might want to create an opinion of his or her own. No, they spoke with enforcement, masterfully saying without saying what was right and what was wrong in the topics, and what everyone should think of it. It wasn’t as if the reader could disagree anyway, could they? They were all written by Red journalists. 

“Okay class,” Mrs. Fire Hydrant said. “I have a short meeting to attend to in the office. Crab Partycup, you’re in charge.”

Crab, who was staring at her, jolted in his seat and slurped a bit of drool. “Yes, of course, miss. I will take care of the class and we’ll be okay when you get back, miss.”

As soon as she left, he told the class, “I think Mrs. Fire Hydrant is a much better teacher than Ms. Lipstick. There’s just some kind of quality that makes her better. Who agrees?”

“I do!” the entire class said in unison. Mars surely didn’t know why everyone thought so. He could see the girls’ expressions stay the same, as if they thought both teachers didn’t have much difference, but they had to agree with the boys anyway since it would hurt their feelings.

“But that might hurt Ms. Lipstick’s feelings,” Crab said. “Wait, it won’t. Because she’s dead!”

The class burst into laughter, slamming desks and doubling over. Apparently, it was so funny to them they couldn’t even breathe. They spent minute after minute laughing and laughing as if it was the funniest joke in the world. Mars pretended to laugh along, but something inside him--and he didn’t know what--told him that he shouldn’t be. There was some kind of unspoken knowledge in Red that a dead person didn’t have feelings, so you could say anything to them. But some instinct inside him, something that opposed Red’s, told him that it was still wrong. Disrespectful, somehow. Insensitive. He sincerely felt bad for their former teacher, but he knew even if he got people to agree--since they couldn’t disagree--they would still find that strange. So to hide his thoughts he acted along with them. He laughed and laughed at nothing in particular. 

“Now everyone,” Crab said. “Get back to work. We have to please Mrs. Fire Hydrant, to not hurt her feelings. And sorry if that sudden demand seemed a little harsh. I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings, and I want you all to know it is a mistake that must be forgiven.”

“We agree,” the class said in unison. “We forgive you.”

Everyone went back to his or her laptop, reading internet articles. Mars worked until someone behind him said, “May I please borrow a pencil?”

As soon as he turned to give one, the boy said, “Never mind. That might come across as too needy, and I don’t want to hurt your feelings. I should have my own pencil, and I’m sorry.”

Mars gritted his teeth and forced himself to say, “That’s okay. Mistakes are forgiven in Red.”

“Thank you.”

Mars wanted to slam his pencil on his desk anyway. He wanted to shove it down the boy’s throat and tell him, Take it! Why would it in any way hurt his feelings? It was a normal thing to ask for. A basic human necessity--the ability to request for help. So he still gave the pencil and said, “I don’t want to hurt your feelings by making you think that I think that you are too needy.”

“Thank you.” But he gave it back. “But I don’t want to hurt your feelings that I am somehow taking advantage of you by making you think you are making me think I am not being too needy when in reality I am by asking for your pencil. It’s okay, you won’t hurt my feelings by refusing to give me a pencil. It’s totally understandable.”

Mars shrugged and took it back. 

Time passed as the class continued to work. Mars was getting bored. He asked the person next to him, Cherry, “This topic we’re reading. Why do people care so much about this topic? It seems petty.”

“It’s because it’s trending,” she said. “That’s the simple explanation. And don’t say something like that. You can hurt someone’s feelings. Everyone knows hurting someone’s feelings is the worst possible crime anyone can ever do in Red.”

“I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay, mistakes are forgiven. Also, I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings by acknowledging a mistake that you have made.”

“That’s okay, mistakes are forgiven.”

Later in the day, when school was over, Mars and his friends walked home, the usual routine. 

“These sidewalk tiles are paved perfectly,” Blood said, looking down at the ground. 

“I like how these lampposts are even on the sides of the street,” Pepper said. “I approve. I agree. I support. I think it is good and that’s my opinion.”

“Did I mention that you look good today?” Rose told Mars, as usual. 

“You too,” he said, even if he knew both their compliments were enforced routine and not genuine. He was beginning to get tired and annoyed by this.

“Thank you,” Rose said. 

They told each other stories, as usual. 

“A few days ago I saw a kid in a wheelchair,” Brick said. “I didn’t want him to feel bad, so I took a chair and sat on it, and moved around by sliding on it, the whole period. I saw everyone else doing it too, agreeing with my strategy not to make him feel bad. I don’t want him to feel as if I’m better in any way, just because I can walk.”

“That’s very sweet, Brick,” Pepper said. 

“Thank you.”

What? Mars thought. In the eyes of Brick, it could be. But Mars thought it was completely idiotic. To him, that would be an act of mockery. A terrifying insult would it be if he suddenly saw everyone on a chair, pretending to be disabled. How horrifyingly rude!

As if he was right in that theory, Brick said, “And then for some unexplainable reason, the same day when school ended, he was found to have run away from home, in his wheelchair, crying. No one knew why. Some suspected he was converting into a Blue since Blues always cry. But he was confirmed dead the next day.”

As soon as he said that, Blood said, “He was disabled? How funny!” And the group laughed hysterically. Once again, Mars went along with it, but deep inside him, something told him it was wrong to. 

“A funny joke,” Rose said. “I have another joke.” She hesitated. “Sorry, I can’t tell it. It might hurt someone’s feelings. I’m also sorry I lead you on to believe I was to say something.”

“I have a joke too,” Pepper said. She hesitated as well. “No, I cannot say it. It might hurt feelings. I’m also sorry I lead you on to believe I was to say something.”

“Well, I have the funniest joke ever,” Cherry said. “Wait, no. It will likely hurt someone’s feelings. I’m sorry I lead you on to believe I was to say something, I wasted your time.”

Of course. It was only in Red that it was considered all jokes were forbidden because of the chance they could hurt someone’s feelings. Jokes always had a victim, whether it was a person, an abstract noun, or the teller. They always laughed about something, and whatever that something was, it could hurt people’s feelings that people were laughing about it. No jokes were good, and it was deemed so, which lead to the conclusion that everyone knew what a joke was, but not a single person in the history of Red had ever heard one in his or her entire life. No one could laugh at them. The only exceptions were the jokes about dead people, of course, since they were more than okay to make. Dead people didn’t have feelings. My parents are dead? That is so funny! I’m free! This is so exciting! Or, Grandpa passed away? No more care-taking labour! Haha! These were things Mars found extremely hurtful, but it seemed Red didn’t see them the same way. Because whom would it hurt? The people were dead. But he still found it quite odd, which was why he had never made a joke about a dead person. He wondered if he was the only one who had that opinion, or if it was entitled only to him. It was bad that he kept secret thoughts in his head that disagreed with Red. People might assume he was a converter if any leaked out of his mind somehow. 

After a failed attempt at jokes, since they all had the possibility to hurt someone, they went back to stories. If they were going to share jokes, it would be best not to talk at all. Someone could be seriously hurt by anything any of them had to say.

“I have one,” Blood said. “I heard it from another friend. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings by having other friends behind your backs. That is why I will tell you this story of his, to include you all.”

“That’s okay, mistakes are forgiven,” everyone said. 

“So, the story. My friend invites another friend over. It was a simple invite. But then he thought it might hurt feelings that he only invited that one person. He ended up inviting every single person he ever knew in his life: Teachers, parents, schoolmates, extended family, all into a huge party. They accepted his apology that he had only invited one friend, and made it clear he didn’t intend to make it seem as if that one friend was somehow in any way above them. He wanted to let them know they were all equal. I was there, too. It ended up being one of the biggest parties in Red. As you know, it is completely strange for someone to invite someone over. Pastimes outside of professional life are unheard of.”

“I agree,” everyone said, even though again, something inside Mars, told him that was completely ridiculous. 

The walk ended when everyone left and Mars went to his dwelling second-last, as usual. He entered as his parents were talking about something, making points at each other back and forth, almost like an… no, he didn’t want to believe it. They were impossible to exist in Red. The correct term was ‘debate’, and they happened sometimes in Red. They were formal, and of course, had absolutely no hatred between the sides. Because after all, the purpose of the elimination of disagreements in Red was to erase any hatred. Hatred caused hurt feelings. Hurt feelings caused wars. And wars were bad. 

Through their speaking Mars deduced that they had been having the “formal debate” for one hour, and it was about the order of items in which his mother had written her grocery list in. And he was witnessing the end of it.

“Why are you putting cherries first?” his father said. “And apples second? Are you implying somehow that cherries are more important than apples? Fruit supremacy is not tolerated. They’re equal. That can definitely hurt feelings. Now put apples right beside cherries.”

“Yes, understood,” his mother said. “Sorry for my mistake. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings.”

“That’s okay, mistakes are forgiven. And I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings as well. It wasn’t my intention.”

Then, as a common, formal routine for spouses who have recently had a debate, they hugged and kissed and left on good terms. It was only a matter of time before once again, Mars found this absolutely ridiculous. It was clearly an argument, the very thing Red existed to fight against. Yet they made excuses, by saying it was not. It was substantially clear that they were being contradictory once again, and most times Mars just couldn’t take it anymore. He was angry that he was the only one who saw these things and saw through the foolishness of the rules of Red and its opinions. There had to be something done about it. But no one had the will except him, because as far as he knew, he was the only lonely outcast who didn’t belong. He was the only one who got these inside feelings. There was a theory once that he had, about everyone secretly having them. It could be real, but it wouldn’t be in the eyes of Red. Red called itself perfect, but he wasn’t sure if that was true. There were contradictions and pettiness in the things he saw every day, and the things he saw every day were merely people following and agreeing to the rules of Red. He wondered how everyone thought this was normal, and how he didn’t. Both things were equally mysterious to him. For all he knew, he was the one being strange and odd. The people of Red, if they ever knew or found out about his secret thoughts and opinions, would surely think of him the same as how he thought of Red now: unorthodox. These inside feelings he had felt throughout the day were kept for a reason. He didn’t want to say them because of the fear that he would seem odd to Red and its citizens. He didn’t want to be different, he wanted to be normal. Didn’t all? But maybe being normal wasn’t good--at least, not in his situation. Because the feeling inside of him was one he trusted, one he knew for some reason was right. And he knew Red was wrong. So was it okay to want to be normal in Red, where you apologized for more than you could count every day, valued the feelings and self-esteem of others the most, and laughed about nothing except dead people? Because everything he had experienced in this one day was nothing but ordinary to Red and its citizens. It was only a regular day for him, and it constantly bothered him that he had to go through it for the rest of his life. 

How Mars survived in Red was a mystery to him, never to be solved. 

V

The next time Mars had a meeting with his outsider friends, he was excited. They always planned it when everyone was available. His parents were home late so today he could go. He remembered to bring apples because Daisy and Autumn both liked them. Jumping on his bike, he sped away.

There’s something else I usually bring, he thought. But I forgot. It’s fine. 

Their meeting spot was always the orange tree in Orange. It was always secluded, both physically speaking--the people--and mentally speaking. Mentally being the restraints of the rules of their factions, of course. They had the freedom to share owned thoughts and the freedom to have fun insulting each other as friends. 

Sometimes this made Mars feel that they grew closer as a group of friends when they made fun of each other. There was just… something about it that made it feel like it was a part of friendship. He felt as if all relationships should be that way: Highs and lows. Fights and apologies. It was okay to disagree, but that didn’t make you enemies. He lived by that philosophy--that when no matter how many times a couple fought, they still loved each other because they accepted their flaws. He didn’t know if that was right or wrong, because he was confused by the values of Red. For sure, they would say it was wrong.

He made it to the orange tree, but something was different. No one was there except Autumn. She looked impatient as if she had been standing there for a while. 

Before Mars could ask where everyone was, she spoke first: “Flashlights?”

“No,” Mars said. 

She looked disappointed. “You can’t continue doing this, Mars. Especially since now we really need them. Don’t worry, someone else brought them.”

Mars had to get used to not continue making mistakes. It wasn’t much of a problem in Red, as he knew there was no way the people would criticize him for it since that would hurt his feelings. They were forced to forgive them. That allowed him to make as many mistakes as he wanted, but of course, with his friends that wasn’t the case. He was sure they were all individually used to the same ideology in their own faction. At least, the ones that valued the forgiveness of repeated mistakes. 

“Sorry, I will remember to bring them next time,” he said. There was a concept that it would be rude not to bring something to a party, whether it would be a gift or food. Violet had taught them that. That was what he liked about Purple--they valued this idea called manners and etiquette. He didn’t know much about it, but it made so much sense to him. He knew if he pestered Violet about it more she’d feel terrible to teach him about it, as she would feel she contributed into making him a converter. 

“Everyone’s at Blue,” Autumn said. “We went there to swim at the lake. You were slow to get here, so we left without you. We were planning to leave a note. Then we heard someone calling for help in the swamp. The one nearby, remember? So they sent me to get you instead of a note, so I can guide you to where we are. So get on your bike and hurry!”

She jumped on hers and Mars followed her to Blue. The border was a tall fence they couldn’t lift their bikes over, so they left them on the ground and began to climb. 

“Hurry, her friend needs help!” Autumn said, already at the top. Mars decided to ask her questions later. She held out her hand and Mars grabbed it. They both climbed over the edge and jumped into tall, yellow grass, an area that resembled a small plain. Into the forest nearby there was a swamp, and that was where Autumn was leading him. 

They got there quickly. His friends were surrounding a mysterious object. It was a pod-shaped structure that was completely dark. Mars saw a new girl with them, too. 

“Please get him out of there,” she said. “Please!”

“What’s going on here?” Mars asked. 

“This is Snow,” Autumn told him. “She’s from White.”

“I’m Mars,” he said. 

“My friend is trapped in there,” she said. “Ash. He’s from Black.”

“How?”

“It was a trap, set by the rainbow police. They put them everywhere near the borders to catch any illegal converters. Ash got stuck in one. Do you know anything about how to get him out? Please?”

Mars shook his head. “I’m sorry, I don’t.”

“He knows as much as we do, Snow,” Sky told her. Then he faced Mars. “And Mars, there’s a lot to talk about. Snow told us a lot of things. The story of how she and Ash got here. The rainbow police.”

“Secret organization to hunt down converters, right?” Mars said. “The policemen with the rainbow badges. The name is intuitive. They’re dangerous, I’ll let you know that. Everyone in Red knows a bit about them through rumours.”

Sky nodded. “It’s getting dark, and we need to get him out soon. Snow says the trap will expire in hours. Whoever’s inside gets immediately killed by toxins.”

“Yes,” Snow said. “Please, I’d pay anything for you all to get him out.”

“No need,” Daisy said. 

“We have little time to figure this out,” Clover said. “There’s nothing on its smooth, dark surface. If we’re going to open it, we’re not going to do anything with the pod. We need an outside force.”

“No, no, no,” Mars said. “You’re all thinking his wrong. From all your efforts we can conclude it’s designed to be opened by nothing. If there’s any chance of opening it we need to find out what does. And it’s simple. Something that the rainbow police have, but we don’t.”

“If they have a key or something else, we would still need it,” Autumn said. “But I understand. It’s our best chance, that’s all you were saying. To get the key we need a rainbow policeman. We don’t have one, so we need to find another way. Except it’s our best way. So either we find a rainbow policeman or find some kind of way to exert enough external force through that shell to open it.”

Violet laughed, which made everyone feel uncomfortable due to the circumstances. “Since we don’t have a chance on either, you have to find a new way. I say we leave him. It’s designed to trap and kill converters, and it did its job. We’re lucky, but he wasn’t. We’re wasting our time because we’re not getting him out.”

“I’ll sly your throat, you sick--” Snow said before Mars pulled her back. 

“Understand we have a pact,” he said as she shrugged him off. “Our favour is helping you. We didn’t ask for a situation like this tonight. One that may put us all in danger. Act as if you’re unaware the rainbow police may come any instant, but we know. It’s simple logical deduction: This trap is a trap. Nothing else. The rainbow police are coming to check their catch and that’s the reason you’re anxious, isn’t it? Not because your friend is going to die by poison but because you need to hurry. You said you were being chased by them, with no reason to believe they’ve stopped.” He looked at Sky. “Toxins. You told me that little fact, but you didn’t believe it, did you? Because I know you all wouldn’t trust anyone easily.”

Sky nodded. “Tell us if Mars is right, Snow.”

She made a frustrated noise. “Yes, he is. I’m sorry you’re all in danger and I’m taking advantage of your help. That’s the answer you all wanted to hear, correct? Even if it’s right, the truth is I don’t care. I need your help and if you all get killed by the rainbow police coming now then you can’t blame anyone but yourselves for getting into this mess. You can blame me, but you had the choice not to help me. And tell me how you’ve figured me out.”

“I figured it out as soon as you went into a rage after Violet’s remark,” Red said. 

“I acted normally, as anyone would if someone with enough insensitivity would say something like that,” she said. 

“But that’s where I caught you. What you don’t know is, we’re not the same “normal” as you. If you noticed--you were the only one who scolded her. Because you don’t understand that we accept Violet’s different opinion. It may not be right, to you, or to us, but we don’t attack her for it. And that’s the pact I told you about. So I suggest you follow it since you’re in our company, and have respect because you’re under our courtesy. We risk every second here but we do it in favour of you. No death threats, please.”

The rest of them smiled, seemingly impressed at Mars. 

Mars took the sign as a compliment to him because he was so used to detecting them in Red. He then focused on the matter at hand.

“Ideas,” he said. 

“I’ve got it,” Daisy said. “If there’s no way we can get through it externally, our only option is internal. We get Ash to help. As Snow said earlier, we don’t know if Ash is incapacitated or not.”

“But at least we’re certain he’s alive,” Sky said. After reading the look of confusion on everyone’s faces, he said, “Okay, we’re at least near-certain.”

“Why?” Daisy asked. 

He pointed at Snow. “She’s still here.”

Everyone looked at her mysteriously. Mars felt vibes of suspicion running throughout the group. 

“I’ve had enough of your harassment,” she said. “If you all want to go, then fine. I’ll help myself. It’s true that risks are being taken here. It’s true I don’t know if he’s alive or not. But he’s gotten me this far and I don’t know what I’d do without him…” She stopped. “Is this a test?”

Violet snickered and tossed the key to Mars. He smiled and opened the pod, as Sky and Clover helped to get an incapacitated boy out of it. 

Mars was about to speak before she said, “I know. Your friends found the key and they were just stalling until you got here. Because they want everyone here to see if I’m honest. And the reason you know they found it is because they’re still here. Through Violet’s statement about leaving Ash in the pod, I knew you all don’t waste time with strangers like me, and you’d all rather leave than be at risk. In an ironic way, you all wasted your time and you should’ve just gave me the key when you found it. Instead, you lied and made up stuff to say about finding it, or using a force to get through the shell, or finding a rainbow policeman to pickpocket. In truth, you wanted to see if me and this trap, this entire situation itself, is the trap set by the rainbow police. And that if you had helped me something bad would happen.”

“We’ve had our experiences before,” Autumn said. “We have procedures when we encounter something strange. If a person, we make sure we can trust them. Your honesty was shown through your words and loyalty to your friend.”

“It’s nice you figured it out, so we don’t have to explain it,” Mars said, “but the fact is there’s a reason we haven’t gotten caught like you and your friend by anyone, even if we’re a bigger group. It’s because we don’t get baited easily. We distrust anything and suspect everything. The code we agreed on to keep our safety. Judgements are allowed. Opinions can be stated. And the one you learned now: Never compromise the group. Now you’re part of it because you’ve proven you can be. You know our rules now.”

She nodded. “I understand. Thank you. May I ask why the key is found near the trap?”

“We’ve seen many of these before,” Daisy said. “Either for convenience for whoever set them--or stupidity--they’re always found within a close radius of the trap. We all lied when we said we didn’t know how to open it.”

“Your inability to get baited by the enemy. How did you learn that?”

“We witnessed a friend do the opposite,” Mars said. “He was a good person. Part of the group. But he died when he heard a little girl in the woods crying for help. We were around a fire, and still ignorant. Being the good person he was, he told us to stay here and he went to help. As soon as we heard gunfire we ran. How did we know it was a trap? The next day we went back and didn’t find a dead boy and a dead little girl. If the girl was innocent and was just unlucky whoever was chasing her had killed our friend, she’d have been left there with him. But she never existed. A recording for bait. We knew that day not to trust anything because the police are always hunting down people for their opinion crimes. In scary ways, they get inside our head and know if we did an opinion crime. If you were part of a trap set by the rainbow police, you’ll understand why we had to get you to confess. You confessed that they’re coming for you now, but you decided not to tell us because we’d get scared off. It’s for our safety.”

“Speaking of that, let’s get moving,” Clover said. “Let’s bring Ash to the orange tree.”

Sky picked him up over his shoulder, and the group left the area quickly.

“We need to tread through the swamp to escape.” Mars looked at Snow. “And I know it’s slower but you need to tread in the water like we always do. It covers our traces. Understood?”

“Impressed, I must admit. Ash and I are lucky to stumble into you all.”

They climbed over the fence of the border and made it to the tree. Sky set Ash down at the base of the tree, still unconscious, as everyone sat. 

Ash eventually woke up and was confused at what he woke up to. 

“Let’s keep things quick,” Snow told him. “They’re friends. They saved you from the trap. No need for thanks. And they’re sensible people, too. Not indulged to the rules of their factions. I already knew just by looking at them. Outsiders, like us. But insiders too--they still live their lives in their factions.”

“Yes we do,” Mars said. “But it’s hard. Hard to keep a secret, and hard to know it affects your life. As in--making you see the world in a new way. My life in Red can’t be the same when you find out what it’s really like in the point of view of a real human. I’ll take it that walking in public with a heavily bleeding wound is bound to get people wondering if you’re okay if everyone in Red had the human condition--our nature. But no, in Red no one bats an eye. No one does to anything--not even to burps or farts or teacher harassment.”

“Then you have the same view as us,” Ash said. “We’re only following the human instinct that our factions got rid of. The ability to regard normality of our lives were erased by the rules of our factions.”

“We’ve been running for weeks, from the rainbow police,” Snow said. “Only our two steps ahead keeps us alive. I can see for you six, it’s wit.”

“You promised us answers about what you know,” Sky said. 

Snow nodded. “Yes. I assume the rainbow police’s description is intuitive. They were created by the combined efforts and resources of Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Amber, Topaz, Amethyst, Obsidian, and Diamond. The ordinary police take care of opinion crimes but the rainbow police take care of illegal converters, hunting them down and acting in all contingents. They’re undoubtedly more dangerous, and more skilled. Now Ash and me: He ran away from home and went to the closest other contingent: White. All because of the idea that the society of his faction is all wrong. Of course, my motivation to leave was also based on that idea. He found me in White because I was different, I stood out. Much like how you say you do in Red, Mars. I’m sure you all do.”

There was a series of yes’s and agreements around the party. 

“I was planning to run away too,” she said. “Ash gave me the chance. The rainbow police somehow detected our unorthodox thoughts about the way things work in our contingents and are after us, on our trail. And here we are.”

“We’re like you,” Ash said. “We agree with you. Everything you all do makes perfect sense--the way you talk, walk, think, say, do… you’re all human. You embrace your human instincts. You believe your unorthodox thoughts are merely different opinions, and they should be allowed. But the stigma of your contingents has forced you to not do anything about it. Snow and I believe everyone has that same human nature inside, and it needs to be let out. The people of Red, Blue, Green… all of them, have become robots. It’s natural to think differently, and it’s natural for humans to respect that.”

“I think I can speak for all of us when I say you have described our entire individual lives in a few sentences,” Sky said. “Also, it’s only Mars that has ever spoken up about doing something about it. It’s impossible to change our modern society because it was designed by whoever made the rules so that it couldn’t be changed. How you may ask? One simple reason: The people view that there’s nothing wrong in their lives. They don’t care that they’re not allowed to think different thoughts. They don’t care they live monotonous and boring lives. They’re happy. You can’t cure a person if the person has no disease. We’re just the outsiders. The people that happen every few or so centuries that have no clear motivation to go against their society--only doing so because they feel something isn’t right. And they feel it because it’s their human instinct. The people who designed this society made backup plans for that: the police. To clean up unorthodox thinkers and kill them. You don’t like swimming? Well in Blue, you do. So you get killed--eliminated from the world to not interrupt its blissful people from having a disagreement. We have absolutely no proof that the world wasn’t always this way. Some people believe in history there was a time that people were allowed to have different opinions, and wouldn’t get arrested for offending each other for them, but there’s no evidence. It was all erased by the creators of this society to prevent motivations for changing it. It was done so it wouldn’t fall into the hands of us. If there was ever a world where those things could happen, people like us would never know now. You say you act on human instinct, but what if you’re wrong? What if your human instinct is really just evilness and you’re blinded? What if we really are insane and we believe in wrong things and that society is right and they have every right to capture us?”

“Producing negativity is useless in our campaign to win against society, Sky,” Mars said. “All those things you’ve said: It has happened to you, too. Don’t let society fool you into thinking they’re right. And do you know why? Because no one is. Your opinions are yours, and you believe they’re the wrong ones. But theirs can be equally as wrong since they oppose yours. Don’t let them win, Sky. You’ll be a follower of their rules just like everyone else. Like Ash said: robots. You shouldn’t be scared to say your own opinions, because if you are, that means you feel that they aren’t right. So it might not be your true opinion, even if you think it is. You also shouldn’t be scared of people disagreeing with you, because that means you have a feeling your opinions are wrong. You’re afraid they’ll think of you as evil. ” 

He looked at all of them. “Listen, all of you. It doesn’t matter if you act on human instinct or not. What you think is what you think. If you try to change it, you’ll be changing yourself. There’s a reason you think differently: because you’re not the same person as anyone else. There’s not another Sky in this world, or Clover, or Daisy or Autumn or Violet. No duplicate of Snow or Ash either. If you think the same as everyone else you’ve become the same person as them. Individually, every person is unalike and contrasting physically, emotionally, mentally, and logically. This is what we want Red and all the other contingents to respect. That’s why I want things to change. I don’t want to make everyone agree with me, only let them decide if they want to. Because right now, the factions don’t let them.”

“We have to talk to the leaders,” Daisy said. 

“The leaders never show their faces, everyone knows that,” Clover said. “But they’re far from anonymous. They’re commonly the main topics of conversations, and their decisions are known. But they hide their faces.”

“The authorities have a tendency to do that,” Ash said. “The rainbow policemen are ghosts. We’re on the run away from them but we’ve never encountered one. Never came in contact.”

“They’re highly-skilled operatives,” Autumn said. “They’ll hide in plain sight. The other day Mars and I saw one.”

“I have a question for you, Mars,” Violet said. “You believe that every person has their humanity deep inside them. Their primal, biological, human instincts. The drive to be a human being. If so, then why do our factions still arrest them for doing so? Their urges are regular, and the police should have them too. Do they not share the empathy of having a commonality?”

“I’ve wondered the same question myself,” Mars said. He thought of Rose earlier, of how she didn’t think differently of him after he confessed his wrongdoings. She stayed a friend and acted as if he didn’t say those things, like how no one acted when Ms. Lipstick abused him. Either she resisted her urge to do so, to make an opinion on him, to have different thoughts about him than everyone else, or she hid it well. He wanted to believe she hid it well but he wasn’t sure. “My faction, Red, arrests people for owning different opinions, like all of your factions. It confuses me why they do so because they should feel the same as we do: that it should be okay to own a different opinion because it’s human nature. Wars were started because of it, it’s true, but it represents that we are creatures that don’t agree. So, Violet, I don’t know.”

“The truth is: There is nothing that can stop different opinions,” Snow said. “Everyone is different and unless they were the same there will be a disagreement. There is no formula that conceives the same experience for everyone because everything affects everything. You won’t like ice cream when it’s winter, and you won’t like hot soup when it’s summer. Simply because of the circumstances that your opinion on them is affected. A person may be in a bad or good mood and depending on which he or she will act differently to their surroundings and people, even if they’re all still acting the same. All these factors change the outcome of your opinion. There are too many to count, to make sure everything will be perfect for the person to like something, so Red made it easier: They made it so that everyone liked the same things no matter what. No matter what circumstances. If you’re famous, there will always be people that hate you, and there isn’t any way to change that. It lies in human nature the answer to the question of why. People are different and tend to have different thoughts because of it. When people are given a list of colours ranked from best to worst by the majority of humanity, assuming their favourite is not first they will never change their opinion according to the list because, in their eyes, their favourite colour is the best. And that, Mars, is why Red arrests people when they think wrong. Because in Red’s eyes, it’s wrong. And in yours, it’s not. So your task, if you ever want to change Red, is to make people see that, and let them decide if they agree with you or not. You can’t motivate people onto your side if they don’t agree with you.”

“They think we have a motivation,” Ash said. “The leaders. They think we have some sort of urge that came out of nowhere that turned us against them. The truth is, we don’t. We only have the motivation to do good. And since it disagrees with them they think we’re bad. The whole world thinks we’re bad, but it doesn’t mean we are. Our only hope of winning is if we make them believe the truth: that we think we’re genuinely good and working for justice. But they never will, because Red is crafted so that each and every option there is to tear it apart from the inside is removed. People won’t follow you because their lives are safe, perfect, and they believe they’re happy. They won’t take risks to join you, and they don’t want to agree with you, even if they do. The only way is to send them a message that they’re not alone in their feelings. That there are many other people that agree with you like them. Make them see that. Join and connect everyone so they don’t stand in fear, only stand up to it. Let it be known that you’re not the only one that thinks these things. If you really believe that opinions are held somewhere deep inside every single person in Red, like Snow and I also do, you need to let them say them. That is how you fix Red. No violence, destruction, or debates. End the fight by making everyone on your side, so you have no one left to fight. It’s the quickest way to win.”

Mars nodded. “I agree. Tell us again, both of you, the values of your contingent.”

“Black values the right not to agree,” Ash said. “You must know already. We’re hated because we have no opinions. We don’t agree to anything. Except me, of course, since I’m like you all. I have my own thoughts and judgments. And to me, they’re impeccable, of course. I value my tastes more than anyone’s because they belong to me. But Black has no tastes and believes in nothing. We just live without opinions.”

“White allows the right of having two different opinions about something at once,” Snow said. “Even if they are contradictory. It’s something that won’t make sense to many people, which is why we’re hated as much as Black. Think neutral: If a war happened we would support both sides. That’s who we are. We believe in both sides of anything. Just as Ash said about him, I disagreed with that because I don’t always support both sides. I won’t be against something while also supporting it. The opposition is unethical.” 

“I see,” Mars said. “In Red, we wear our jackets inverted. In White, you would wear inverted and non-inverted in equal amounts of time, and maybe even design jackets for that purpose. Jackets that have designs either side.”

“And in Yellow, we spend most of our time in the sun,” Daisy said. “But you would spend equal amounts of time indoors.”

“Exactly like that,” Snow said. “Most contingents would recommend picking a favourite, but our favourites are all the choices. We don’t have favourites, in the same sense as Black, but for a different reason. Black doesn’t want to choose, but White chooses everything. Now, we’ve told you everything we’ve promised. Can we focus on my and Ash’s home for tonight, possibly for a longer period than that?”

“I’ll take care of that,” Violet said. 

Mars wasn’t so sure about that, as he already had the sense Snow and Violet disliked each other. But he allowed it, as everyone else did by saying nothing. 

“It’s getting dark,” Autumn said. “Violet, take a flashlight and escort them. Everyone else, we better get back to our residences.”

“Houses,” Sky said. “You all call it such strange things.”

“I agree,” Mars said. “But we have to get back.”

So everyone grabbed their bicycles and went separate ways. When Mars got back to Red, the streetlights were on. 

And how even they are, Mars thought, on the sides of the streets.

VI

Weeks passed, and inside Mars was unhappy. The more time he spent with his outsider friends, the more it made him feel like an alien to Red, and it was no more he could pretend he still fit in it. His friends were dull, the compliments he got were dull, and the days were dull. He always longed to spend time with his outsider friends. He heavily spent time in Orange with Autumn, because it was a place he just felt he belonged to. It had been bothering him for the longest time whether he should confess being a converter or not. The will to do it was enforced by the boringness of Red and the appeal of Orange, and it overpowered the fear of getting caught by the rainbow police. 

Confessing would be a death sentence. When it would be widely known, his presence would be odd to people, even his friends. Some would even harass him for it as if his colour identity was everything that made him up as a person. He would be persistently avoided, made fun of, abused, and there would be no escape. But it wasn’t enough to stop him from one day making the decision to tell, because the urge to be an Orange and the feeling of being one was too much for him. He needed someone to tell, and there was no one else but his parents. He only hoped they would understand and shield him from Red. The secret could not be held any longer, and it had to be let out.

“Mom, Dad, I think I’m an Orange,” he told them. 

His mother gasped and his father threw his drink at him, the glass breaking onto the floor. “Get out of this house! You’re no son of mine! You putrid converters and your disgusting and unethical behaviours!”

“Hopefully a phase or your mind is temporarily broken, son,” his mother said. “That is morally wrong, and morally disgusting! Shame on you!”

“But I prefer oranges over apples,” Mars said. “I like playing with a basketball. I love to light things on fire. It’s not just a hobby of mine, but a true passion for the amount of fun it can give you.”

“Get those radical thoughts out of your head,” his father said. He raised a belt. “Or do I have to do it for you?”

“You are being completely immature,” Mars said. “You must respect my decision of accepting my colour identity. If I feel like an Orange, I am one. This should be allowed because people should be able to make decisions about who they are themselves.”

His father didn’t listen and attacked him. Mars didn’t run this time, as he knew it would be useless. He wondered at how this could be allowed when the main rule in Red was not to hurt others. Of course, it wasn’t to be followed if someone had broken the rules since he or she deserved to be punished. Everyone in Red agreed with it. But death was never an option since Red didn’t agree with capital punishment. It was, in fact, mandatory for someone to be cast away from Red if the need for them to leave the presence of other people was necessary. 

Every day since his confession, his parents harassed him, torturing with harm and words. He felt as if they beat him enough to be close to death, but never reaching it--a tactic that was probably intentional was what Mars assumed. Make him feel like he was worth more dead than alive. What upset him was that his relationship with his parents had never been problematic before. It couldn’t have been since disagreements were not allowed in Red. But all of a sudden since he revealed his colour identity it was never the same, literally and emotionally. Emotionally because it was different to be around peers and close people from now on. The word of his colour identity spread. It wasn’t as if his brothers and sisters, or his friends, or his teachers teased him about being a converter--they couldn’t possibly as they’d get arrested by the police for opinion crimes--but tension and awkward feelings arose whenever he was within their presence. He was right that it would all happen to him. It was true judgements were not allowed in Red, but being a converter wasn’t either. Inside he knew everyone hated him, and discriminated him, and wanted to kill him. But they had no choice but to hide that fact. They couldn’t think of him differently, they weren’t permitted to. Mars knew they all still did, but the police would never catch them because they kept their opinion a secret. It was certain; you couldn’t possibly think of someone the same when it’s been introduced to you that they were a converter. It was a crime worse than murder--which never happened, as the no-disagreement rule of Red made it so there were absolutely no sources of motivation for anyone to commit a crime such as that. 

Still, he stayed resilient. He experienced harassment but he never backed down and regretted his decision for a single moment in his life. Because he didn’t regret it--he would cherish his colour identity and accept it. There was no reason to hide in the shadows forever. If it wasn’t known, he would end up lifeless inside, so he told everyone. And he knew the consequences. But he did it because he understood that to reveal who you were was important, or else you would be misunderstood. There’s no point in keeping a secret such as his because it would just burden him even more than having everyone know. At least he felt relief that who he really was inside was now widely known. He was an Orange. He decided it because he felt like one. He came from Red but it didn’t matter. Origins couldn’t be erased but the thing itself could evolve. 

Genetics could’ve been responsible for the level of attractiveness of Ms. Lipstick, but that didn’t mean it was to be left at that. If the teacher really wanted to, she could’ve worked hard to lose weight or have better hygiene habits. It was only because she knew judgements weren’t allowed that she didn’t care about her appearance. But as Mars strongly believed in, opinions were a natural instinct for everyone. There was no way he would believe not a single person made a judgement on Ms. Lipstick when they saw her. It would be in their heads instantly, inadvertently, and naturally. It couldn’t be stopped--that woman is fat, or that woman is ugly. Thoughts like those would snap in their heads before they could even stop them. Whether the truth or not, it was what they thought. Mars knew everyone thought this, and they didn’t tell her not because they didn’t want to hurt their feelings, but because of fear they will break the rules and get arrested. 

These theories were shared and tested by him. His outsider friends agreed that it was possible. But Mars thought it wasn’t only possible, but certain. How can you not have an instinctive thought like that in your head instantly? Human creatures are judgmental creatures. They make judgements about everything without knowing every single day, and it wasn’t possible to stop. Only to rewire their brains could it be possible, but that would be going against their biology. 

Yet Mars had doubts. Maybe everyone in Red, and the other factions, really were put through harsh centuries of devolution and degradation, enough to the point that their biology was changed. Their brains focused on having no thoughts at all about others that could be in disagreement with what Red wanted. It was tested when he confessed his misdeeds to Rose: everything he did and thought that was unorthodox to Red, and in total disagreement of everything it stood for, its values and verities. And she didn’t care. He couldn’t tell if she actually did or not, but he was sure she didn’t. She acted as if he was making it all up, but lying wasn’t allowed in Red either, so she must’ve known it was the truth. Openly it didn’t bother him, but discreetly it disturbed him that a friend such as Rose would not mind still being around a full-fledged criminal and converter, with twisted and so-called evil views. It was like being friends with a person who confessed he or she was a serial killer, in fact, the total equivalent. But in Red serial killers weren’t possible, because the society was perfectly crafted in a way that they couldn’t exist. No disagreements, no hurt feelings, absolutely no possible motivations for a murder to be wanted. 

Mars still wasn’t sure what to think about his theory. He wanted to talk to Rose more and see if he could bring up her inner and natural human impulses. He wanted to talk to someone at the least. 

Since he was hated in Red, and he felt as if he belonged in Orange, he decided to talk to Autumn, about everything. 

She comforted him outside of her residence--what Orange called it, illegal to be called anything else. It was a cottage with a backyard that overviewed a lake, surrounded by trees. Sitting at the steps, she tried to make him feel better about his life in Red. 

“Being a converter is hard,” she said. “I’m sorry you had to be one. In a way that meant you had no choice, I mean. I’m sure if you could choose you would choose to not be a converter, so you wouldn’t get hatred. I know you wished you were a regular citizen just like everyone else, and you never had to think differently.”

“It’s not so bad,” Mars said. “In fact, I feel oddly proud. I don’t want to be the same anymore. Why would I want to be another programmed robot of Ruby? I’m only glad that others are like me, such as you. I don’t want to suffer being different alone. Snow is right. We are outsiders living as insiders. We don’t have a contingent. We have no place to go, so we force ourselves to stay in the place we have. Which doesn’t work because we’re out of place.”

He took a breath of fresh air and exhaled. The cool nature breeze was nice. His own opinion. Others could possibly not like the outdoors. They could be arrested for it if they weren’t an Orange, and something about that told Mars that it wasn’t right. The free reign of individual thought was thought of as bad, and everyone knew why. The possibility of disagreements. But he wondered if it was worth the price to pay--having to force every human’s thought to be the same so wars couldn’t be started. He might just do the work for Red, by forcing himself to change his opinions to the Red ones, so he won’t be constantly ridiculed of his own. He told Autumn this.

“There’s no point in being hurt by someone making fun of your opinion because there’s certainly those who make fun of theirs,” she said. “Maybe if we learned to not get hurt by different opinions, it would be a better world. If you changed your opinion to someone else’s because he or she called yours bad, you would then have new people who would call your new one bad. And if you switch again, there will still be people who are against you. If you can possibly change your opinions to Red’s, then you will gain hatred from us. That’s how it is,” Autumn said.

“True,” Mars said. “I have many problems, and I need ways to fix them. It takes up every second of my life and I can’t enjoy.”

“Then enjoy,” Autumn said. To help, she offered to remain silent. “Invoking talk always brings you to speak about your suffering and all our suffering. You can’t let it take up your life.”

“What do you propose I do?”

“Just… talk about other things. Interests, maybe. We as a group never get the chance to be just friends. Because every time, you or someone else brings up the topic of the wrongness of everything and we have no choice but to focus on that.”

He took a deep breath and sighed. “Fine. Interests.” He shifted his gaze to the area around them. Every Orange lived like this. Nature around them while they lived in a cottage. Mostly so they could see the leaves of the trees during fall. Every Orange had to like them, for it was the opinion of Topaz. Part of what made Mars feel as if he belonged in Orange was his strong liking to that. In Red other opinions were illegal, as well as all the other contingents. They didn’t give their citizens a chance to see the fall leaves. Any forests you would be lucky to find in Red would be evergreen forests. Of course, green trees weren’t any better but at least they wouldn’t turn orange as well.

Autumn followed his gaze at nature. “Your interests are boring, though. I mean, nature is fine, but it’s not exciting. I like paddling a canoe, though. Let’s go.”

Mars nodded. He wondered if Autumn was on the way to become a converter, too. Disliking Orange’s opinions was a possible sign. She had also said she loved the evenness of the lamps in Red and the perfectly paved tiles of the sidewalk. It was dangerous to do so. But she found the inverted coats strange, which relieved Mars. And apples weren’t her favourite, although she had said they tasted really good. 

Mars helped her heave the boat into the water. They grabbed their paddles and hopped aboard when it was fully out of the shore. They didn’t take their orange lifejackets, which was a required precaution of Orange every time you swam or went in a boat. But they were used to breaking the rules. Autumn had said she didn’t give a single care in the world if her parents caught her without one. 

There were boundaries in the lake that they had to follow too, but nothing stopped them from going past them. Mars almost laughed because it was just too easy.

“Imagine wearing a coat in Red when it’s this chilly,” he said. “Their design is for the outside to be on the outside, so it can resist the temperatures, but yet we wear them inverted for some ridiculous and nonexistent reason.”

“Shh,” Autumn said. “How about I refuse your rejection of my offer to not talk at all? Please relax and enjoy.”

Mars agreed and exhaled. She was telling him not to think about rules or factions, Red or Ruby, unorthodoxy and righteousness. She was only trying to help him, ease his pain and stress. The pain of being a failure in his community of Red, and the stinging of his parents’ abuse--or the stress of the fact he couldn’t do anything about Red, society, the authorities and the constantly-told freedom that he didn’t have. He didn’t know which of any of that was the worst. 

But for Autumn’s sake, to respect her sincere feelings of sadness for him, he chose to stop thinking about those things. Instead, he chose to have fun by splashing water at her with his paddle. 

“Not fair,” she said, but she was smiling. She playfully and sarcastically said, “You hurt my feelings!”

Mars laughed at that. It was so abnormal to hear the words now since it was never heard in Red. In a real situation, of course. The term was known only as a possibility someone could say it, but it would never happen. He had only heard it seriously used once in his life, and that was when he had said it to Ms. Lipstick as she abused him. 

Autumn playfully countered with a splash of her own, laughing. The two of them got each other wet that way, hysterically laughing as if it was hilarious. It was only with his outsider friends that Mars had ever felt real fun. His friends in Red? They did nothing but be together, and it always involved school. Walking there, being there, leaving there. Outside of school, they did nothing. No kid in Red did, simply because it just wasn’t an activity known or done. Even in school, they had no fun together. They only talked about school and their schoolwork, of course. Mars couldn’t believe he had the audacity to call them friends. 

But here he knew what a real friend was. Autumn cared about him, shown when she comforted him to relax. His friends in Red would never do that, for it wasn’t in their nature. Autumn always had his back, shown when she had brought flashlights only to cover for his mistake of forgetting. His friends in Red would never do that either, for it wasn’t in their nature, once again. 

Friends--they trusted each other, too. Mars couldn’t even trust Blood, Pepper, Rose, Cherry or Brick for anything. To keep a secret, or to do something for him, or anything else. He simply felt as if he couldn’t. And that shamed him to think they considered themselves his friends, and he considered them his friends too when they couldn’t even trust each other. He should consider them acquaintances at the most. People he respected only because they went to his school. The closest to a friend he could call them would be in a professional sense. Colleagues, maybe. If one of them died Mars honestly wouldn’t care. They were lifeless to him. Robots. He felt as if that was the absolute perfect word to describe them--he had to thank Ash for that. The boy from Black had a true insight into their society. He knew very well the wrongness in it, and that’s why Mars liked him. 

“I’m tired,” Autumn said, stopping to rest from throwing water at him. “And we’re both drenched. We need warmth.”

“We both need warmth? And there’s two of us? Quite suggestive, I’d say,” Mars said, and they laughed. 

“Well, why not?” She settled herself in a comfortable position next to him, close enough that her auburn hair spilt over his shoulder. 

“You don’t want to talk about the world, but we’re going to have to someday,” Mars said. “Because you know there’s a problem in it, too. The reason our group exists is that we have things in common. Our discriminated differences and our hatred for it.”

“I’d say not the first. Only you have confessed to being a converter. The rest of us lead safe, secretive lives. I won’t ask why you confessed due to my respect for personal privacy, but I’ll ask if you have told anyone else in the party yet, or if you plan to ever.”

“I will. Even Ash and Snow, as I trust them. You have to agree that we’re all in the path to becoming converters. It starts with a simple sign--liking another faction’s opinion. Sky likes mangoes. Clover likes grapes. If you take a look, the conversion has already begun in most of us. The only difference with me is I chose to reveal it. You all wouldn’t, would you?”

Autumn frowned, shaking her head. 

“You’d feel guilty if you would. But I don’t. I’ve told you that I feel oddly proud. But now, I’d minus the odd part. Why shouldn’t I be proud? I have no reason not to be.”

“Yes, you do. You’re hated by everyone.”

“But that’s because they think being a converter is wrong. Do you think it’s wrong?”

“No. I feel sympathy for them. I can see why Violet doesn’t, but that’s because she’s not used to change. Adjustment to different standards is not one of Purple’s values.”

“So if you think it’s not wrong, why be ashamed of it?”

She took a moment to think about that. “I think you’re right. It’s all true. Only if you did think it’s wrong would it be shameful to be a converter. But it’s not. At least, we both think it’s not. You can argue with Violet all day long about it, but you decide for yourself an opinion about the topic. It’s not a controversy--everyone knows and is taught conversion is bad. But there’s nothing that can stop you from disagreeing.”

“Only the police,” Mars said. “But as we know, it’s ridiculously easy to keep secret opinions from them. They’re barely around, and even if it seems like they can get inside your head, they can’t. It’s impossible. Opinion crimes aren’t completely monitored, and that’s not just another theory I made. I think it’s actually true. I believe it. That gives me more evidence about my thought that people do keep secret judgements about everything. And because of human instinct, whether they like to or not. There’s simply no way to tell, either. Get them to confess, but they could be lying. They can even go so far as to believe the lie, so lie detectors are useless. The truth is very hidden in a human creature’s mind. Think all the unorthodox thoughts in there you want. No one can get to them.”

Autumn nodded along. She rested her head on his shoulder. “People just think whatever they want. It’s what makes them people. Take that away and they’re robots because robots can’t think for themselves. Robots are told what to think by programmers. Ruby? She’s the programmer. The citizens of Red are her robots.”

“Except they’re not,” Mars said. “They’re different, slightly. If you give them a new programmer, replace Ruby with someone like me, they won’t follow. Because it’s ingrained so harshly, established and set in their heads so perfectly, to only follow what they believe is right. Which to us is very, very wrong. Why? They’re taught from a young age, at birth, what’s right and wrong. Everyone is, in fact. Parents, teachers, and society are all instructors to children on the ethics of the world. And they’ll believe anything because they just came into the world and don’t know a single thought. They’re not allowed to decide for themselves what they’re taught until they’re older. If they’re a Red, then they’re taught to be a Red. They can’t decide if they want to be a Blue, or Green, or other. This is what everyone knows. That a child will believe anything taught at birth. But for me? I don’t believe it. I think somewhere deep inside every human creature are the real ethics, the right ethics. Human ethics. If you teach a child to kill, telling them it’s good and right, sometime in their life they will question it. They have to, and only because they have the human quality of empathy. The ability to feel another human creature’s feelings is a very human one--we value that ability.”

“And then there are ones that don’t,” she said. “There are those times a person forgets about empathy. To be mean, or selfish, or vengeful. The sadists and the masochists, the greedy and the envious. All the ones who forget what is morally right. I don’t understand, and this is a question I’ve asked my whole life. Why do people like those exist? Why are there people that know what is right and wrong from their human instincts and still do wrong? What makes us forget about empathy when we murder, when we steal, when we assault sexually and lie and hurt and cheat and torture and hate? It’s unexplainable how people do wrong even if they know it. It’s just human nature I suppose, and I don’t know. It disturbs me to think people do such things when they know how bad it is, and how much pain they inflict on others. Natural causes may amplify the actions, such as a psychological disorder or a biological urge, but still, the fact remains that it is by choice of the people.”

“I don’t know either,” Mars said sadly. “I don’t know why they do it. It’s just the human condition. It can’t be changed, either, unless you get out of this condition. I think it’s simply because we forget about empathy that these things happen. And we forget because we’re human. We make mistakes, and Red acknowledges that. That’s why we value forgiveness. For example, war bombings. Empathy is lost when they occur. The people behind the controls don’t realize how much pain others may feel when the bombings happen at the touch of their fingers. They don’t understand the amount of responsibility they have to control the fate of many people’s lives. It’s quite funny. The people behind the bomb controls may have the will to do it, but if they were the people being bombed, they don’t want it to happen. Different sides, different opinions.”

“It’s called selfishness,” Autumn said. “We don’t want to get hurt but we don’t mind if others do, simply because it won’t affect us. Empathy is a powerful emotion but there are too many people that lack it. That’s the problem. Not disagreements, like what our factions think.”

Mars thought about the amount of truth in those words. Maybe the perfect world would not be to rid all the possibilities of disagreements but to rid the lack of empathy. Because empathy was what made the two sides see the goodness in each other’s sides, and is what ends up solving the disagreement. 

“Wouldn’t a world where people could think all they want, be perfect?” Mars asked. “Where you can value feelings and empathy, like a Red. You can like swimming, like a Blue. You may see the importance of the environment for future generations like Green and love the bright sun as a Yellow. You’re allowed to live like an Orange and keep good manners like a Purple. And you’re also allowed to stay out of a controversial dilemma while also supporting both sides equally or tilted, just like Black and White. I say these things because they’re all my opinions. The values of my being, my person, my human.”

“Whatever they do, or say, or threaten, don’t let them break you, Mars,” she said. “You’re right, it should be that way. Where everyone can think what he or she wants and not get hurt for it. Our minds are a human right, and only to the body, they belong to. If they’re not controlled by you, then how can you still call you yourself? You can’t let Red win, because we know its morals are wrong. It doesn’t matter if the people are happy, and the people don’t want to be saved. They need saving, and a person to clear their vision.”

“But what we stand for is letting everyone own their free will. The freedom to have one. If we save them for good, save them from their blind suffering, it will still go against their own will.”

“And that’s a dilemma you have to solve, Mars. Maybe you can’t cure a person that has no disease. But what’s to stop you from giving the cure to a person perfectly healthy?”

VII

“Have you heard of the new shoes, Mars?” Blood asked. “They’re for everyone, and they come in all colours. Ruby likes red, and we all like red too.”

To stay a good Red, Mars said, “I like the red ones too.”

“Me too,” said everyone else, except Rose. 

Mars thought he saw a tinge of confusion on her face, but finally, she said, “I love the red ones too.”

“Perfect, we all agree,” Pepper said. “How about we…”

“How about we all go to the shop together right now, no parent supervision, and get all of us a pair?” Mars said. 

“Nice idea,” Cherry said politely because of course, it wasn’t one, “but my parents are going to buy me a pair already. Thanks for the offer.”

“Mine too,” everyone else said. 

“I agree, my parents shall get me them,” Mars said. Of course, everyone knew Mars’s parents secretly despised him now, and would never get him a new pair, but how could they argue? They weren’t allowed to make that assumption, and a comment that stated that would hurt Mars’s feelings. To everyone, it was now known that Mars was a converter, and derision was expected. But Mars delved in the safety of the fact no one would tell, as it would hurt his feelings. The rainbow police couldn’t get any answers out of anyone, they had to find out themselves. And since they were such an uncommon sight Mars wondered if he could actually pull off being safe from them forever. He had only seen one constable attending the ‘mysterious-Ms. Lipstick-offended-and-suspiciously-gone-with-no-explanation-incident’ at school and that was all. They were as secretive as Mars’s thoughts about Red. They were enemies but they hid from each other. 

Also, it was definitely true that outside of school, his friends were uninterested in doing anything else. They probably wanted to be good kids, by doing all their chores and homework. Their reputation would change if they participated in pastimes outside of regulatory routine, and they probably didn’t want to be judged. Although it was impossible anyway since they lived in Red. But Mars knew they just didn’t want to do such a taboo thing. No one hung out outside of professional life, whether it would be school or work. Just like how no one was allowed to make judgements or opinions because it had the possibility to offend someone, cause disagreements, and start wars. 

They continued walking while commenting on the lampposts and sidewalk tiles, when the group was down to Mars and Rose, as usual.

“Listen, I would like to take that offer,” Rose told him. “It’s strange, and it might seem weird, but I probably would enjoy doing something like that outside of school. It’s never been done before, but there’s no rule against it.”

Odd, Mars thought. 

“It’s fine,” he said. “I’m going to be busy anyway. I was going to say let’s do it another time.” He had only asked that to everyone because he knew they were going answer no. It was a test to see if they were truly Reds. He didn’t expect Rose to agree to it, and it sparked hope in him that his theory could be true. 

“Oh,” she said, and he could swear he saw confusion and hurt in her eyes, but she lightened up immediately. “I understand. It would be strange. If you don’t mind me asking, what are you busy doing?”

“Since you can ask me anything now, I won’t lie to you. I have another meeting with my outsider friends. The ones I do spend time with outside of school.”

“So you do?” she said, and she covered her mouth. “I mean, nothing. I said nothing. I’m so sorry, I mean, I didn’t do anything. Haha, a nice imagination you have. You’re funny. Oh look, my house--dwelling, is over there! I’ll see you tomorrow!”

But it was too late, and Mars had witnessed the slip-up. Embarrassed, she left, but he could hear her whispering insults to herself, calling her stupid and dumb. The only thought he had was that there could still be some hope left after all.

#

It wasn’t the orange tree this time. It was an urban neighbourhood in Yellow, in an alleyway, during nighttime. A place Daisy introduced them to.

“The most secluded area I know,” she told them. “A different place for once, that’s all.”

“I brought the flashlights,” Mars said with pride. Everyone laughed and playfully cheered. 

“As if we need them,” Daisy said. “Lights are everywhere in Yellow, in the cities. The big sun covers us at day and in the night, we get all the light we want from electricity. If you didn’t know yet, we Yellows love bright lights!”

“The light is very uncomfortable for me,” Ash said. “In Black, we barely have any light. We correlate safety with the dark. I say we smash all the lights we see. How fun would that be?”

Everyone gave him weird looks. It was slightly unnatural since it was something all factions agreed on disallowing--vandalism. It was viewed the same way by everyone: bad.”

No one cared, though. They understood he came from a different faction and they respected his opinion.

“I would agree the lampposts bother me,” Mars said, “since they’re uneven. But that’s not the point. We’re not here to talk about our factions.” He looked at Autumn and she nodded. 

Sky nodded too. “Right. I agree. We always talk about that. Why can’t we just share thoughts like friends?”

“The new shoes,” Violet said. “Who cares what colour is the best? They’re ugly.”

“I would say the yellow ones are the weirdest,” Snow said. 

“I say the white ones are the dumbest,” Daisy said, glaring at her. “It’s what I think.”

“Bananas and mangoes are my least favourite fruits,” Snow said, staring her down. 

“I rip paper and break chalk in class whenever I feel like it, just for fun.”

“I use sunglasses so I can dim the sun.”

“Well, I use them so I can make the clouds look darker.”

“Enough,” Clover said. “These aren’t true anymore.”

“We weren’t fighting, Clover,” Daisy said, which was an obvious lie. “Or disagreeing. We were just stating our opinions.”

“I agree with Snow,” Ash said. “The sun is too bright. Everyone should wear sunglasses to cover it.”

“Did you know I have a deep hatred for coal?” Violet said, and Mars noticed her inch closer to Daisy. Defiance to their reasoning, he assumed, and because she disliked Snow. “I prefer daytime over nighttime and bats are my least favourite animal. I’m also scared of the dark.”

“Well, I am deathly allergic to grapes and dumb fools. Hold on, I have to sneeze.”

They continued to argue from there. 

“Not good,” Autumn said. 

“It’s exactly what our factions were built to erase,” Mars said, and as soon as he said it he knew he had made a mistake.

“You said you wouldn’t bring that topic in,” Autumn said, a little angry. “But I won’t fight. You wanted to tell them something, Mars. Distract them with your surprising announcement.”

He thought it was a good idea. So he did, calling for attention. Everyone stopped arguing, and also made an excuse that it wasn’t arguing. 

“I’m a converter,” he said. “And a guilty one, too.”

“You confessed?” Sky asked. “I’m impressed. That’s very dangerous.”

So Mars spent time talking about it. He explained in detail the terrible things his parents and siblings did to him, which included death threats with a kitchen knife, robbing him of meal, drink, and bathroom privileges, and abusive beatings from his disgusted father. 

“Sorry about that, Mars,” Daisy said. 

But then Ash started laughing, and everyone looked at him in shock and confusion.

“What?” he asked. “I was expecting more.”

“How can you say that?” Autumn said. 

“It’s what I think. That’s our pact, isn’t it? Our agreement?”

“Unbelievable,” Clover said. 

“You let them do that to you?” he told Mars. “If you’re afraid of the concept of standing up for yourself, then you deserve pity. You know what I always say? If someone kills someone you love, kill them back!”

Violet stepped forward aggressively but Snow told her to back off. “It’s what he honestly thinks. You all stated clearly there’s no right or wrong way of thinking. No good or bad opinions.”

“I don’t think you understand what’s good or bad yourself,” Violet said angrily, which made them both step back. She could be scary when she wanted to. 

“Yes, I do,” Ash said. “For example, hurting others is fine. Being selfish is okay.”

“That’s it, we have to talk,” Violet said, turning around. “Ash and Snow excluded.”

She pulled them away from earshot. 

“I’ll be honest here, something about this boy doesn’t seem right,” she said. “He feels… odd. Dangerous. Sketchy.”

“I agree,” Sky said. “I say we leave them behind. They’re not harmful, which is why we trusted them, but they just don’t seem right. But they’re still not working for the rainbow police.”

“Nothing stops the possibility,” Mars said. “But listen. Ash is from Black, and now we know what it’s like there, and why all the other contingents hate it. I understand why he was driven out. Black isn’t supposed to have any opinions, but Ash does. And they’re bad ones since he probably had no one to teach him otherwise because everyone who lives in Black has no opinions. Ash has opinions that don’t agree with anything or anyone. No one sees them as good ones.”

“Are you serious?” Clover said. “They’re outright bad! Everyone knows that.”

“Yes, but they’re still opinions. And we said no opinions are good or bad--he’s right. It seems we have crossed into a moral dilemma. His logic is sensible, but his values are not. We all know there are good and bad values, and those particular ones are the ones every single human creature agrees on. What every faction agrees on. The boy thinks it’s okay to kill. The girl--something tells me she’s only on his side because he’s her friend. Inside, she doesn’t agree with him.”

“A disagreement between us and them,” Autumn said. “It’s exactly what the factions hate. We see that now. We see how dangerous it is, too. But we can’t let them be right.”

“What are you proposing?” Violet asked. “That we stay with them? How long before one of them backstabs us? No, Autumn. It’s a bad idea. We can’t accept their opinions, even if it’s what we believe in. Because they’re just wrong.”

They continued to talk except Mars. He looked away for a moment and brought his gaze to a shadow he saw that had quickly gone into a building.

“Everyone, down! Cover!” he said, and they all hid behind a wall. 

“What is it?” Sky asked. “Have we been spotted? Is this area not secure?”

Mars waved over for Ash and Snow to join them. They came, asking what the sudden commotion was.

“We saw you all suddenly drop down back there,” Snow said. “Is it a trap? By the rainbow police?”

“I don’t know what I saw,” Mars said. “But I’m certain there’s someone watching us. Daisy, is it possible we were followed?”

She shook her head, trembling. “No. I know this is an abandoned factory and industrial area. No one but us in these streets. And if Ash had done his job correctly, this area would have all doors locked. No one could get to here through the back door of that building, and that’s the only way to get to this area.”

Just like how Mars was in charge of bringing tactical equipment, every person had a job. Ash was given the responsibility to make sure they were safe, and not being targeted or stalked. He was supposed to lock all the doors that could get to the alleyway they came in. 

“I locked every single door I could find,” Ash said. “I have a knife. Let me go after him.”

“No!” Autumn whispered. “But I agree we search for the person. If it’s only one, we’ll be fine. I would highly suggest to split up to find him or her faster, but if it’s a rainbow policeman we might be in serious danger.”

“This area is supposed to be secure,” Daisy said, a little guilt in her voice. “I’m afraid you all will doubt me from now on. I’m sorry. Who would even know we have a meeting here? We’re the only ones who know.”

It was only when Mars heard her he realized who it was. He had to leave because he didn’t want them to know he may have caused a potential danger to the secret of their group. The most important rule was not to sabotage or compromise it in any way, and because of his ego, because of his confidence, because of his pride in thinking he was safe from a mistake, he caused this situation. He never thought his theory would work. He never thought a regular Red would do this. It would be shameful to tell them. No, he had to sneak away and find her himself. 

So he did. When no one was looking he slipped away, going around a wall. It would make them scared, that he suddenly disappeared without an explanation, but he took the risk. He had to find her.

He searched for ten minutes around the area. He turned a corner and bumped into someone, both of them falling to the ground. Heart racing, he was half-thinking their cover was blown. But it was only whom he expected to find. 

“Mars!” Rose said. “That was too loud, I’m sorry. But you have to help me. You do think like them. Like me. A converter. Help me, I’m becoming a converter too!”

“Slow down and tell me why you’re following us,” Mars said. He never expected that another programmed robot of Red would be like him at all. 

“I was curious,” she said. “I have to confess my heretical misdeeds. My unethical thoughts. I’m guilty of opinion crime--I hurt someone’s feelings.”

Mars relaxed. “You can tell me.”

“Remember those trending new shoes? This morning, when you weren’t with us, I told Blood, Pepper, Cherry and Brick my real thought about the colour. I acted on instinct. I just had the sudden compulsion to say it. They liked the red ones. I told them: ‘I hate them. The blue ones are better.’ I know inside they hate me now, but I couldn’t stop myself. I know it’s wrong, but I did it, and I don’t know why! They acted like I never said it. Even this afternoon, I changed my mind and agreed that the red ones were the best, and it was like that had been my opinion all along. It scares me how they ignore my mistake like that--are they doing it for the sake of me as their friend, or they’re just repulsed by me?”

“Hold on. What is all this, Rose?”

She exhaled. “The truth is, that day you confessed your own wrongdoings to me, I acted like I didn’t believe you. But I did, and it bothered me. I began to think differently of you, and I know it’s bad, but I did. I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for acting regularly?”

“It’s not regular. I’m a regular Red and I did it. I don’t understand why.”

“Because you’re not a regular Red. And only in Red is that irregular. But it’s not. If you live like us outsiders, you’ll understand.”

“So you agree? For the longest time, I believed I was the only one. But I followed you here and found out you and a bunch of your friends think the same way. When I commented my opinion on those shoes, on how I liked the blue ones, my friends left me for the rest of the day. They acted like I never said it since they said so when I asked them about it. But they still avoided me.”

“Ridiculous, right? How they leave you like that? Your good friends? Because you think differently? 

“Red doesn’t find that ridiculous, Mars. They find that normal.”

“But do you?”

  After a long moment of hesitation, and reluctance due to guilt, she answered, “Fine! Yes, I do. I will admit I’m a terrible person, although you’d disagree. Disagree all you want, you won’t hurt my feelings, but I believe I’m a terrible person. I must’ve hurt their feelings with my opinion!”

“And you don’t seem to care they could’ve hurt yours, by avoiding you all day? Care to see the logic?”

She took a moment to process it. “Oh, you’re right! I think the rules of Red have numbed my mind from seeing that since I’ve been under its watchfulness for so long. I need you to help me think more like you. To see a simple contradiction like that, since they’re everywhere in Red--no, what am I saying? I needed you to help me stop this! This foolish, unorthodox thinking! I don’t want to be an outsider, a criminal, or worse… a converter! It leads to an unsafe life! I just want to be ordinary. An ordinary citizen. But I have signs of conversion, and it disgusts me!”

“You feel like a Blue.”

“How did you know?”

“You prefer the blue shoes, and this afternoon you almost called your dwelling a house.”

She nodded, her expression full of pain. “I don’t know why. But it feels right to me. The word, I mean. It feels normal to call it a house instead of a dwelling. But no, it’s not. All my life I’ve been told it’s called a dwelling. My parents always taught me it’s called a dwelling.”

“Well, your parents are wrong. You must accept that. People want to call it dwelling or not, but you have to decide for yourself. You have to face the fact your parents can be wrong. You have to face a lot of facts, and what I just said is one of them. You must accept and agree to give free rein to your urges.”

“My criminal urges?”

“Red may think that, but to us, we feel normal when we let them happen. So naturally we think they’re human urges, and it’s true.”

“What have they done to you? It’s like you’ve never been raised in Red.”

“I did this to myself. I used to believe in the values of Red until some sense started kicking its way into my brain. It was natural, and I agreed to them not because I wanted to but because I had to. My thoughts appeared and didn’t go away, and time after time they chose things for me. Before, I used to make zero judgements, but now I make them all the time. But I act like I don’t and stay normal by lying. I experienced what you went through, which was to have these thoughts. It’s the first stage. Doubting Red, doubting the rules, doubting it all. Then I went into the stage where you pretend you’re normal, and you tell yourself you’re having a phase that you think everyone must have secretly, and you are not to talk about it because you could get in trouble, of course. The next stage is when you realize you’re wrong and you’re alone. That no one else thinks like you and they’ve never been what you went through. It was at that stage when I found these friends of mine. I don’t know what would’ve happened if I didn’t, but I did. And now you did, too. You don’t have to suffer through the next unknown stage, you can join our group. We all have the same problem--which we don’t view as a problem--and we all think like you. We embrace it and know that we’re the normal ones. We allow ourselves to have our own thoughts. It’s something that should be allowed for everyone, including you. So, are you in?”

She looked confused on what to say, on the verge of being torn apart. 

“I don’t know,” she said. “But--oh, who am I even kidding? I can’t get these thoughts out of my head. Fine, I’ll agree. Just say the terms.”

“You can judge, you can say your opinions, and you will never compromise us. Agreed?”

“Yes. I would like the freedom of keeping my own thoughts in my head, only owned by me. But what about the police? How do you all avoid an encounter with them?”

“Simple. They can’t really get in your head. No matter what you think or what they do. It’s all propaganda and intimidation. You can think of whatever you want and they’ll never know.”

“That can’t be true. But it might since there’s really no proof they can get inside your head. But that’s an opinion crime--making judgements even if people don’t know. Because of the potentiality the secret can get out and hurt the person’s feelings behind their back by ruining the person’s reputation. It’s a crime and it’s a good one. How terrible I’d feel if I believe people think of me badly. The suspicion would kill me. It’s the possibility of secret judgements that make others hurt your feelings unintentionally.”

“If you never tell your opinions to anyone but us, you’ll be fine. And you have to get used to the fact that can happen. You have witnessed Ms. Lipstick get devastated once her suspicions were clear, and she took her own life. But that’s because she’s a regular Red, unlike you. She can’t take the pain of hurt feelings; she’s not used to it. But you have to. People will think of you badly, and you have to face that fear. It’s what we all did. It’s a natural part of being us, being normal. That we don’t get hurt too much by petty things, we take the insults and judgements seriously and don’t let them get to us. The truth is, the secret judgement crime is a lie. No one will get hurt feelings by thinking other people think of them badly. Except for us. Reds will never think that because they’ve lived their entire lives knowing people only think of them nicely. They’ve been showered with compliments their whole lives.”

“What about me?”

“Do you mean why you suddenly got self-conscious?”

“I don’t know what that means.”

“It’s something we made up. It means you care about what people think of you. I was going to say that Reds aren’t self-conscious, and the reason you are is that you’ve unlocked your human traits that they don’t have.”

“You all have them too?”

Mars nodded. “Because I’m different--I think unlike a Red--there was a day I began to wonder if the sentence you told me every morning wasn’t true. That I looked good that day. That was when I began to experience the symptoms of regular humanity. Self-consciousness. I began to wonder every day if it was true, and I was sad I would never find out since as I said, there is no possible way to find out what another person is thinking, to get into their mind. We just have to tell each other and hope it’s true.”

She exhaled, relaxing. “Thanks. All this made me feel better.”

“So you keep saying you have your own thoughts. It’s okay to share your opinions now.”

“Right. They’ve been popping up here and there, every day. And I can’t stop them. They just feel right. Human instinct, as you say, I suppose. Well, the first one was actually the Ms. Lipstick incident. When you insulted her, I realized something. Others might disagree or strongly deny, but I think they’re wrong. Your appearance does matter, and whether you like it or not, whether you believe it or not, it will affect you your entire life. It’s just the sad truth that true love is first found on a basis of attraction. You would never try to go meet that person you saw at first sight if you didn’t want to because he or she was repulsive.”

Mars nodded along, agreeing. 

“And I thought more about that topic. For example, I thought that lust can sometimes be uncontrollable but it’s a natural part of life reproduction, instilled in our brains. So arresting someone for an action involved with it is trying to enforce a negative impact on our built-in instincts. It’s a biological urge, and that’s the truth. How can we change it? Attraction to one another’s anatomy for the pleasure it may bring is biological instinct for a human being.”

She continued to talk about everything she thought about that wouldn’t be allowed in Red. How she had longings to try to swim in a sea. How her favourite drink was water and not cranberry juice, what all Reds liked. How she was always sad and moody all the time, sometimes outright depressed.

“So you’re right,” Mars said. “Conversion signs. Unpopular and totally opposite opinions about attraction. Reds are supposed to believe in true love and pure hearts and all. Red thinks we’re a perfect colour to represent all that, and I have to say I would agree. It just seems right. Also, you like water, and you want to swim in it. You’re always sad. You’re like my friend Sky.”

“Who?”

“He’s a Blue.”

She muttered curses under her breath. “I don’t know what to do, but if I was to pick between a red or blue object I would have the urge to pick the blue. But I’m a Red, and I’m supposed to pick red. I’m not just a converter--I’m an outright, absolute traitor!”

“Calm. We’re all on the path of conversion. Even you know I am one, now. I’ve always felt like an Orange. It doesn’t mean you’re bad--only unsafe from the rainbow police.”

“That’s what they’re called? All the rumours are true, then?”

“We’ve never encountered them but our new friends have, if ever so slightly. They came from Black and White.”

“Black and White? Are you insane?”

“I know they’re extremely hated contingents but these two are good. The boy is sketchy, but we trust them both. Why don’t I introduce them to you?”

She agreed to it, so Mars brought her to their spot where everyone was still worried. 

“Where were you?” Autumn asked when he finally showed up. “We thought we’d be gone like you if we tried looking for you. I’m sorry.”

“I found her,” Mars said, as Rose shyly waved at them. 

“Who is this?” Autumn asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes at her.

“It’s just my friend Rose, who followed me. Before you all get mad at me, she’s one of us. I told her everything we knew, as a test to see if a Red would become one of us. And I’m not sure if it worked or if I was lucky with whom I picked, but Rose thinks like us. She’s even a converter.”

“Gross,” Violet said, rolling her eyes. 

He spent the next few minutes explaining all the details of her story.

“You were the shadow Mars saw, right? In that building?” Daisy asked, pointing to it. The door was now locked. “It opened, and someone was watching us, and then ran away.”

“What?” Rose said. “I’ll admit I followed Mars here, but I was never near that building.

VIII

“Do you think planting an idea as a rumour in Red would help tear it apart?” Mars asked Rose one day. He had been contemplating the idea. “If you were converted, I think everyone could be. If I sparked a rumour about an opposite thought of Red’s, some people might agree.”

“And you would cause a monumental argument for the decades. But I don’t think it will work. The disputants would be put down because they would be seen morally wrong by the majority of society and things would be back to the way they were. I advise against it. It’s one of the worst opinion crimes--you know the police hate secrets. Hidden thoughts by people kept in their mind that are opposite to what Red thinks. Keeping them is illegal.”

“It would be the safest and easiest way to take Red down. I understand you are just confused and complexed at your new empathetic compulsions, but I have been with them for a while. You are still bent on converting to be a Red again so you can be normal and legal and be a safe, dull, and risk-free citizen of Red once again. You are refusing to accept the true instincts of humanity, all because you were taught they were wrong at birth.”

“It’s what we all want. Everyone in the group. You yourself have told me you wished you were just a regular Red. It’s not something to feel guilty about.”

“I’ve changed my mind since I feel that if I do become a Red again I would be making a mistake. I believe we are different for a reason, and we can’t stray from our difference because of that reason. We have a purpose on why we’re this way. I chose to embrace it long ago and now I am actively fighting against any who oppose it. I will cause a rupture of disagreement in Red, and you don’t have the choice to stop me. In time you’ll see the goodness and worth it will bring.”

“What if no one agrees with you?”

“I’ve asked that myself before you converted. You could’ve been the most ordinary Red I knew, more than anyone else. You were smart at following the rules and you cared above all at making sure you were a citizen that agreed with everything and never hurt anyone’s feelings. But I recently found out that was fake and you were acting--acting undeniably well--when you told me you were. You confessed everything that you are and you said you couldn’t stop having those thoughts in your head, so why still try to? Out of all of us in our group, I’m the only one who has taken initiative to move on after the shock of my different opinions, and now am planning to give other people the freedom to have them too. You can choose to help me, but I have a feeling you’d prefer the cowardly life and bow down to the stupidity of Red’s rules again and still try to pretend to be one of them. I’m going to plot against Red and Ruby and everything the society’s system was designed for because I believe truly that I am right, and one who does shouldn’t put that belief to waste. If things go on and I don’t do anything, Red will advance into nothing except staying the same as it is. Where people suffer without knowing and stay happy, and no one is allowed to think for themselves which slows down innovation and creativity to a complete stop. Our race won’t move forward if I don’t act. And I also think that even if the people of Red don’t want to be saved, and they don’t want the freedom to think--like you--they still deserve it. Once they see how empty their lives are and how real and delightful the possibility of free rein thinking is, they will understand that they were in a time of darkness, and they didn’t even know they were. And if none of this gives any motivation for you to help me, it’s okay. The safety of continuing to pretend you’re a Red for the rest of your life is tempting and pleasing, maybe even irresistible. Addictive would even be a great way to describe the enticing trance Red puts you in. It makes it hard for converters to stay converters because of how much stigma and hate is put toward them. It makes them not want to be who they are because if the police find out they’ll be arrested. But I see it differently. Maybe you can change your identity or maybe you can’t. But the way I see it is that my identity is a gift and I don’t want to waste it. Who cares if the police catch me? Will they try to change me back to a Red? Will they try to make me see being an Orange is futile and disgusting? That the attempt to stay an Orange is absolutely useless? Again, the choice is yours on helping me. I do entirely understand the fact that to stay in your current identity is dangerous, and you would rather pretend to be a Red your whole life while keeping your so-called evil thoughts in your head. The appeal is simply greater and no one can argue with that. But if you choose to do the opposite--the risk is greater--but as well as the satisfaction. You’ll be free from the chains that hold your values. If you succeed with my plans maybe everyone can be free from the chains too. And who knows? Maybe if you pick the first option you’ll succeed in your efforts to be a Red. You’ll live your entire life acting like one so much that you’ll forget your true identity and be one of them--dull and boring robots, all the same. The idea of having different opinions, the idea of being a Blue--or whatever you have converted to--will only be a distant, faint memory--if you choose to be a Red again. That might certainly be great, but it’s not guaranteed. Let’s face it--would you also want to do that, knowing you have changed yourself not for the better, but for the worse? Because you have refused your identity and chose someone else’s only because you were told it’s better? Every Red citizen is the same, and wouldn’t it be amazing to experience things differently than them?”

“I still don’t know,” she said. 

“You keep saying that, but is it true? And if it was true, and you still don’t know, are you even giving a minimal effort to actually decide for yourself?”

She had tears now, because of the pain of being a converter, because of the pain of the illegality of it, and the pain of having Red think she was bad. In truth, she wanted to be a sweet, little, innocent person--didn’t everyone? According to her, her symptoms were becoming worse. She had an empowering compulsion to write and draw her schoolwork with the blue pen Sky had given her. She had refused the offers of cranberry juices and now drank water even when she wasn’t thirsty. Worst of all, her feelings surged more than before, and the slightest reminder of her state of being forced her inner sadness to come out. It was proven now since it wouldn’t be a usual time for her to cry. If Mars had not known she was a Blue, he would have put it as quite melodramatic. He kept his sympathy for her. He also knew the pain of being a converter. It took over his life when it shouldn’t have. The main topic of what someone should be judged for should not be his or her colour identity but for the personality and qualities of the person that defines them. The characteristics they can actually choose. Those were the ones that they could change from birth. Not their appearance or their feelings at what contingent they felt most like. The feelings to not be a Red were mistakenly perceived as temporary mis-thoughts that could be changed by the person. In truth, they could not be changed. When a person had a feeling they were a Red, they were a Red. When a person had a feeling they were a Blue, they were a Blue. It’s not what they chose--it was who they were. Much like an appearance, it couldn’t be altered. It was proven in the same way Rose had her different opinions about society that would be deemed morally incorrect--she couldn’t get them out of her head. Did the people of Red really think thoughts like those could be rid? How could they, if Rose herself couldn’t do so? Mars knew for certain she did not choose to have those thoughts in her head. They naturally came, even if she disliked them. Her opinion on the colour of blue was viewed as bad, and yet she had them. And she was a good person--probably the nicest person Mars knew. So the only explanation was that she couldn’t change that opinion. Much like how your colour identity couldn’t be changed. Anyone who still thought so was ignorant, foolish, and unsophisticated. A lack of empathy and the fact they didn’t have a colour identity struggle themselves allowed them to have that opinion because the persecutor is ignorant of the well-being of the persecuted. For a long time, Mars wondered why that was. Why people do bad things to other people if they know it’s wrong themselves and they know if they were the ones having bad things done to they would dislike it? It was only when Autumn told him that he understood. It was another human instinct or quality that made humans what they were: selfishness. It was a characteristic that was evil but yet sometimes irresistible because of the tempting, guilty pleasure it could bring. Why save treats for your friends when you can eat them all? Why invite that repulsive friend to play with you if you have the choice not to, and you can enjoy not having him or her around you? Why do your chores at home when you can easily not and instead have fun?

“I understand your feeling,” Mars told her. “I understand because I have gone through what you are going through. In those times I was by myself, but as you can see you don’t have to experience that now. It’s okay to feel bad about everything. About how Red hates you and your likings, identity, opinions--and you don’t want it to. Ask yourself why you want Red to like you if it has been so harsh on you. Is it because of your family? Your friends? The strangers of the society who have nothing to do with your life? Why do you want their approval? Why do you want to be normal? It is these questions you have to ask before you choose your option. Because whichever option you pick--to help me or to stay a regular Red citizen--there will be both satisfaction and consequence. And before you pick you must know both of each option. I know it’s hard and even impossible to stay who you are since the entire world is against you. But if you give up you let them win you over--win you over to the side you know is wrong. The side that doesn’t allow anyone else to be like you--independent in thought, unique in identity characteristics, and alone in personality and thinkings. Is that what you want? I have thought before that maybe the world has us born so we can change it for the better. It knows Red is bad and we’re here to make it good. Maybe it has been doing that all the time, for as long as it has lived--have people born that would help it be better. The only problem is, it’s hard to do such a task, and the people chosen to do that task refuses to because of the risks. They’re afraid. But then there are those people who have accepted their role in the world and they become heroes. Countless of them. Heroic because of the deeds that no one else did, that no one else would do. The world has given itself--no, the world has given humanity, people that stand up to make it a better place. There are probably too many of them to count and they hide in the shadows instead of doing what they believe in because they want to live a fair and safe life like everyone else. They don’t want to fail and have the stigma of it. They don’t want the society they live in to acknowledge their failures. Throughout all of history, this has happened to everyone. And the reason why only so few are regarded highly as heroes and out-standers? Nowadays there are not enough people trying to be like them. If there are no people left that want to be like them, we will get none. So the choice is yours on whether you want to be a bystander and help lower the population of heroes to the point of extinction--which is what Red is great at doing--or you can be yourself and make Red bend to your own will without letting it bend yours. The only reason Red is disgusted at you is that it’s so used to the past. It’s so used to having things one way. But you can make it multiple ways. You can make it see that being something else than a Red is possible and real, and it’s not morally bad in any way. Change the views of the world. I’ve wondered once if it’s possible to change a person’s opinion and now I realize that it shouldn’t even be a question. It’s completely possible. And if it is, what stops you from doing it to everyone? From infecting your opinions to others by making them seem ideal and realistic, and superior to other opinions? It might be hard but it’s possible, and because of that there’s a chance. A chance that I think I can take. Sure, you have the choice not to take the chance. It’s risky. But if you do, and it turns out satisfactory, you’ll be happier than if you didn’t. And if the chance blows you’ll still be happy that you tried. Either way, if you choose to help me change Red you’ll be happier than if you didn’t. Don’t you see? It could be your purpose in life--the world is trying to tell us. The fact that makes me see it: We’re the only ones that think differently than everyone else. It couldn’t possibly be perceived differently than a sign. So please, accept your colour identity. Accept your seemingly wrong-but-right thoughts that you can’t get out of your head and would rather keep them. Accept everything about you because they are the characteristics of you. And what you think, what your opinions are, it defines your person. If you think like everyone else you’ll cease to be you. You’ll be everyone else. And as I’ve stated multiple times before: It’s a tempting option to be like everyone else so you won’t be hated and you’ll be safe. But think--if the world thought your way, and the people now are put in it, they would be the ones hated. It’s just how society works--that the majority rules in all aspects of it. But the majority isn’t always correct, and why I want to change Red is to make them see that. I want everyone to know that he or she has the freedom to think whatever he or she wants and whatever thoughts he or she has, they are correct, never wrong. And their human empathy will always make them think right if they accept it. Because there could be people that do think wrong. Maybe they like crime or are selfish. Maybe they’re truly evil and sadistic and their excuse is: If any thought is right, why are we hated? Well, even if you dislike this truth, that is exactly what we are going through right now. People hate us for thinking differently and think we’re bad and evil. That’s just the truth--that the evil people we know in history just think differently. And we hate them for that. That’s what we’re running for; to let everyone think freely. When they do, there will inevitably be consequences. For example, the very reason Red and all the other factions were created: disagreements. They will no longer be prevented if everyone thought freely but that is just a risk we take. We have to accept that people will disagree with us and not get offended and that people will judge us and hurt us and think of us badly, too. But that’s just human nature, and if we fix that problem, we’ll have what we hate right now: Red. Where no one judges anything or anyone. And it’s already a harsh world, isn’t it? Maybe saying a world with those qualities may be nice is true, but look at our current situation. It’s truly horrible since people aren’t allowed to be human or allow their instincts and thoughts to take over and affect their opinions; to affect what they really think--their own values and perspectives about the moralities of society. The human condition is just a puzzling and complex thing to understand and I think personally we’ll never fully grasp the concept as long as we exist. We just have it, and we live with it, and because we can’t change that we have to accept it. So please take into account everything I have told you and accept the fact society hates you because you’re yourself. And help me change it. Help me take down Red.”

She wiped her eyes on her sleeve. “Thank you. That made me feel better. It’s only--I understand everything you have said, and your way of thinking, but I don’t want to be a Blue. Even if everyone else and I accept it, it still won’t be seen as natural. It will still make people uncomfortable if they’re not Blues themselves. Just like how if your parents still love you as an Orange, they’ll feel a certain discomfort being with you because of how different you are to them. I’m sorry for not wanting to accept being Blue. I know I should, but to be honest, it disgusts me myself. I don’t care if everyone loves me, I don’t love me.”

“That’s the problem with converters. I get that. I once was like you--I hated myself. But you have to learn to like yourself. Why? The most important person you have to learn to love is yourself because it’s the only one you’re guaranteed to live the rest of your life with. Maybe you need more time to accept your colour identity, or maybe you never will. Just know accepting it is a real possibility. I am living proof of that fact. You make good points on your end, about how you’ll still be uncomfortable with yourself even after everyone including yourself accepts you. But the only reason it’s like that is because you were raised to think who you are is wrong. That teaching might be with you your whole life--the initial thought that you were morally wrong--so I want to change Red so the new people born like us won’t experience that. They’ll experience a world where they’re immediately accepted and they’ll never know a life where they wouldn’t be. They’ll never get teased and bullied, harassed and persecuted, hated and discriminated. A world where anyone born is allowed to choose: Am I a Red? A Blue? A Green? Do I value what Yellow thinks, or do I feel like an Orange? Do I believe in Purple’s morals, or do I agree with Black or White? But again, I understand the reason behind your decision. It’s the safe option.”

Mars was about to leave since they had reached his house long ago, during the walk home from school. But she stopped him.

“Wait, you misunderstood me,” she said. “I will help you because I want to. Everything you said is too much for me to forget. Plainly because every single word you have said, I have agreed with. Everything spoke of truth. So I will be like you. Not pretend to be a Red anymore. Maybe I will even confess to being a Blue and Red will now have two converters. Then maybe we’ll get widely known and more converters will pop up. It’s all hopeful, but I’ll help you.”

Wise choice, Mars thought, smiling. 

“How do we start?”

Mars had been pondering at this for a long time. He already had a plan. “Do not talk to our outsider friends about this since what we do only happens in Red. We’ll start small--or big--if you perceive it that way. We’re going to start an argument, and then disagreements will rise.”

“What argument?”

“We’ll spread a rumour about the goodness of having non-inverted jackets.”

“Perfect.”

IX

Without a doubt, Mars had come to enjoy the group meetings more than his real life. In fact, the meetings were the only times he enjoyed himself. His parents, still filled with as much anger toward him as the first day he had confessed, had grown tired of abusive behaviours and had now resorted to ignoring him. He wondered if there would be a day when he would run away from Red and if it was soon, for it was clear to him that he hated his life in it. 

There was a time he kept his different thoughts while still maintaining the actions and doings of a Red, but now it became harder and harder to do so as time passed in his new state of mind. He realized the longer he had begun thinking this way the more he couldn’t resist acting with those thoughts and keeping his reputation as a regular Red. For example, he had to hold himself back from yelling at his friends for routinely saying their opinions about the perfection of the streets, especially when he noticed a crack in the sidewalk tiles or one lamppost wasn’t exactly lined up with its opposite. But he didn’t feel that urge when Rose commented on his look every day since he knew it was different from before. She now knew it was for the purpose to not arouse suspicion and it wasn’t meaningless anymore. In fact, every time she said it to him in the morning she winked at him to remind him that fact. And every time he said thank you to her he winked back. 

Then there were times someone made an awful mistake in a school presentation, perhaps if it was absolutely terrible. Mars found this unfair, but still, everyone praised him for his good work and the teacher gave him or her all A’s. No one got a mark any lower since if the teacher did, it would hurt the student’s feelings. This allowed Mars not to focus on his work and do absolutely nothing during projects and presentations, while still getting a good mark. He thought the fact you could do anything at school with total incompetence and still succeed was pointless, for there was no point in school at all. It was these thoughts every day that made him believe more and more that Red was foolish and utterly useless, and its rules made no sense as they were completely contradictory. But they were still there, having the purpose of making everyone happy. And no one could not be since there were no disagreements. 

There were countless examples. It was annoying when a new and popular item went on sale and everyone immediately had an identical favourite, much like the new shoes. Of course they chose that opinion; it was the rule--but still, Mars believed they were choosing for the sake of safety and secretly they had different favourites. It was proven with Rose; why not everyone else?

There were more times when someone got an injury and he or she left it on purpose, completely unattended because no one would judge it anyway and all Reds were supposed to like the sight of blood. Then there was an instance when a teacher made an error in her work as she wrote things on the board but no one was allowed to say anything about it or her feelings could be hurt. Another time, someone in class smelled terrible and no one said anything about it. These were all times Mars knew something was definitely wrong with Red. It would be accurately human to speak up about these things and notify the person about them. The first example: Oh, you have a wound! Are you okay? Do you need help? It was an urge Mars had to resist. He had to stop himself from saying it whenever he saw someone with a wound. But in Red, no one would care, and he found that strange and alien, but yet that was how it was.

The second was practically the same scenario. It would certainly help the students if one of them raised a hand and notified the teacher about the error. Did it matter if it would hurt the teacher’s feelings, reputation, self-esteem and image a little if it benefited him or her and the class? Benefit the teacher so he or she can understand and learn from a mistake and benefit the students so they will learn rightly, not wrongly? Mars found it insane that though it was clear on the board, no one spoke about it. He had to resist telling the teacher about it, especially since she was new. Ms. Lipstick had mysteriously vanished and was legally claimed dead, it was told, but everyone knew what she did to herself at home. 

And the third example? A person that stinks? This was one Mars had trouble with. He had to dig through a deep understanding of his morals to find the answer and he concluded still that the person should be told. It was possible it would hurt the person’s feelings very badly but he thought that since the purpose wasn’t an insult, it was fine. It was merely a notification, a warning that the person needed better hygiene or another solution to fix something that bothered everyone. It was the truth and it was a problem. So it needed to be spoken about to the person.

He found many examples every day where he would rather do something else than he was supposed to but resisted. These urges he knew were normal and the regular Reds were abnormal. He was only feeling the right things and he knew they were right only because… of some feeling. He didn’t know what. This made him wonder if it was the opposite and maybe he was abnormal. It was like the example he gave Rose of how evil people think they’re morally good through different opinion. He wondered if he actually was the evil person, and all these thoughts were hated by Red for a reason. Maybe they were right to hate him, and right to want him dead. Because what truly defined right and wrong? The fact the reason he thought this way could only be described by a feeling his gut made him slightly doubt his cause. Gut feeling could be wrong--it wasn’t unheard of. 

So it came down to the real human ethics of empathy. It was when he resorted to that topic that he found the reason to believe he was right and Red was wrong. Empathy was what he stood for and it was a good reason for his actions. It was there and then he knew that everything he believed was right and therefore he should no longer question it. Something, some unimaginable force, or maybe it was purely natural, had given him the view of rightness. It was this view that allowed him to see through the lies of Red’s goodness. He had no reason to believe this was natural but no reason to believe it wasn’t, either. The truth was he didn’t know--and he wanted to know--why he was this way. What caused him to be different? Maybe it was natural, and diversion of a designed society will always occur by nature of the world. Maybe people will always be born different and it would never be found out why. It was only possible to know that they were and that changing that was impossible. 

After he set his mind straight on his beliefs, he then continued to question why if they were right, Red still materialized and came to be, supposedly from nowhere? All the history taught at school were wars--no details about them--and none on the coming and configuration of the faction-built country they lived in. Perhaps it would never be told, as the construction of the country was immensely confidential and if the news spread the breakdown of society would be colossal. It could be that the history was so evil, it was to never be disclosed, and would permanently be hidden or erased in the eyes of the public. All that only made him even more curious to find out how Red came to be. It could never be found out, or it could if he tried. 

Because he questioned the ethics of it all, of everything: Why was Red this way, if through his sense of empathy and knowledge of humanness, he knew what he thought was right? How was Red created and formed in a way that mankind would forget empathy and instead be forced to abide by the foolish and contradictory rules of Red? Mars didn’t know how it was even possible, for he wondered how not that many people were like him--seeing through the stupidity of it all. He was glad his friend Rose had, but no one else. He pondered that maybe, for any Red, it would only take a push, like how he had pushed Rose to think his way as time passed. Maybe they had gotten so accustomed to their lives in fear that they had forgotten to think morally and instead wanted to stay happy in their cruel lives. Whatever the reason, he knew for certain Red was wrong. Everything about it was, down to the very cracks of their sidewalks and uneven lampposts on busy streets. 

It made no sense how the rules depicted a world with no disagreements since they were disagreements themselves. It was not allowed to hurt others’ feelings, but yet if someone was a converter you could hurt them all you want. Only because they’re considered evil? Mars thought with empathy--for example, he thought capital punishment was morally incorrect because a murderer being murdered would be hypocritical. Maybe only for a moment, it would be morally correct to the people closest to the victim. But only because their minds were filled with the thought of vengeance and equality--an eye for an eye. It was that point of view that made Mars think, could they be correct? It was possible they could be. He understood it was completely unfair their close one was the victim, and just as unfair the murderer would not get the same treatment as what he had done himself. That was the sole reason capital punishment was a controversy. It all made him confused and sometimes he wished it was possible to be a White. He could remain neutral in the argument so he would have no enemies. It was also this that made him think, in some ways, Red could be reasonable. Red would not have a controversy such as capital punishment since it would be impossible to disagree on it. The opinion would simply be decided by the leader, Ruby, and everyone would be on that one side. Therefore, no argument could happen. 

But this taught Mars that a leader could be wrong sometimes; that was how he came to be, was it not? The leader of Red, the one who decided everything for the contingent, made mistakes and was sometimes wrong. This was how he disagreed and had his unorthodox thoughts--because he disagreed with the leader. And since the leader made the opinions for Red, the entirety of Red disagreed with him too. Perhaps it could be an option for him to fix Red, as a last resort plan. If it was truly impossible to fix everyone back into a human state, then he would consort with Ruby and open her eyes to the wrongness she was entitled to feel guilty about. 

But he knew it wouldn’t come to that, for he still believed highly in his theory everyone was secretly like him. It was a thought that gave him the drive to help them be free. It was his life goal, as well as Rose’s, too. But he suspected the reason Rose helped him was not for that reason--she didn’t care about the people--it was probably for personal gain. She wanted society to be friendlier toward her and she was also inclined to help such a close friend of hers. It didn’t matter why she helped to Mars for she was helping anyway. Although, he knew the motivation was as important as the action. But he chose to not worry about that now. He merely wanted to bring Red down to its knees, first. 

#

“Are you ready?” Rose asked him. She was on her bike outside of his house. “Please hurry.”

“Let’s go,” Mars said, hopping onto his own bike. “I’m staying overnight, by the orange tree. I’m experimenting if my parents will even notice one of their sons is missing for the night and if they will care.”

She nodded. “I’m thinking of running away.”

Mars froze. “What?”

“Nothing but the truth when I say I cried terribly last night. I told my parents to brace for the news, and also for them to still love me after it. They promised, but it was useless. I said I felt like a Blue and they’re furious. Now I regret it and I want to leave. Maybe go to Blue and pretend--no, be--one of them. Why are you so surprised?”

Mars relaxed. “Nothing. It’s only… I was thinking of running away too. But not to Blue, sorry. If you are, I can’t go with you.”

“Orange, I know. But illegal converters crossing borders are the rainbow police’s speciality. They’re trained to catch them. I wasn’t there, but you all told me when Ash fell into one of their traps.”

Mars didn’t answer and instead began to ride. Rose followed behind him silently. It was turning dark and when they would arrive at the orange tree it would be nighttime. 

They rode through secluded and quiet roads that cut through forests, the same route Mars had known these past years to get there. For each and every time he had ridden to the orange tree, he had never seen a car passing by. This made him believe there would never be one, so it was safe to be in the open. A kid riding alone to a border between contingents would definitely be suspicious. More so if two--although, maybe not. It would be safe to assume they were only two lovers trying to find a private location in the middle of nowhere. 

Also, it would be equally as suspicious if Mars had seen a car on the road, alone and coming from the direction of the border, for he could safely and legally assume they were converter trespassers sneaking into Red as how he wanted to sneak into Orange and how Rose wanted to sneak into Blue. Perhaps that was the reason he never saw a car on the road. It made him wonder if there was a point of it being here at all. Maybe it was abandoned and from historic times, when they were needed. But nowadays, everyone knew the only connections that were still around between factions were the leaders. They often had meetings to discuss private things about the country. Other than that, illegal trespassers such as converters, or Mars and his friends--technically he and Rose were converters--would be the only people ever to see more than the faction they were born in.

“I have to tell you something,” Mars said, as they rode. Rose rode up to his side to listen. “The reason I was surprised is that I was thinking of running away myself. But I didn’t tell you I was already doing that.”

“What?”

“Tonight, right now. I’m not staying overnight. I’m staying forever. I’m going to find a dwelling--house, sorry--in Orange, hopefully near Autumn.”

“Oh,” she said, a little quietly. “Does this mean goodbye?”

Mars shrugged. “It’s a hopeful dream, but I’m not sure it will happen yet. We’re still awaiting the events following our rumour, remember?”

“So you’re not leaving yet?” She exhaled with relief. “How about we make an agreement to not run away before we find out what happens with that rumour?”

“The reason I was thinking of leaving Red tonight was the possibility nothing will ever happen. Maybe it won’t do anything. Remember when I told you about my life outside of Red, the day your conversion began? You acted like it didn’t affect you and you thought of me the same. What if that happens with everyone who hears this rumour, but this time they’re not acting? Maybe you were a lucky catch--maybe not everyone’s like you and will escape Red’s trance and believe in the rumour.”

She shrugged. “Maybe you’re right and you were lucky with me. But we have to wait a little longer, please?”

Mars knew it was the safest thing to do anyway, so he agreed to it. He knew it would make her happy, and there was also the possibility something could happen in Red. Maybe the colossal disagreement he wanted. And the only way to find out if his plan had worked was to stay in Red. In Orange, he would have no connection to news outside of the faction unless he was a leader. He would want to know if something big happened in Red. 

He had planted the thought--the thought of the possibility non-inverted jackets were superior to inverted ones--with his brothers and sisters. He knew they were talkative and gossipy about topics like those at school, and he knew with them the idea would spread fast. So far, weeks have gone and went, and nothing had happened yet. But he still had high hopes to wait longer. Maybe more weeks. He disliked delaying his plans of escaping Red but he really wanted to find out if something would happen. And if he left Red now, he knew Rose wouldn’t want her closest friend to leave that soon. So he would wait.

They arrived at the orange tree and everyone was there as usual. Mars was always the last, always a little late. It was his way of making sure everyone would already be there. He found comfort in the sense the group would be complete only when he wanted it to. It was an unspoken rule everyone was equal in power in the group, but also another unspoken rule that he usually took the lead during times that needed a leader. 

“There they are,” Clover said when they saw Mars and Rose arrive. 

“Mars,” Autumn said, dragging him by the arm away from everyone else, after telling them to give him and her a moment. “I need to talk to you. They told me to inform you of these things and only the original six know. Not Ash or Snow or Rose. First of all, Ash has been acting stranger and stranger since.”

“Ash?”

“Him. Remember those things he said weeks ago? You’ve missed a bunch of meetings doing who knows what, but they’ve only gotten worse. He told us he prefers to eat meat because he likes the thought of animals being slaughtered. We were in Blue and he saw a crocodile in the swamp and then spoke of how fun it would be to watch it eat one of us. He smiled when one got close to Clover. He’s said a bunch of other strange things and it’s making us uncomfortable. Even scared. This constant and silent approval of sadism we radiate on him just because we don’t do anything is making him think he can continue with his thoughts. Also because of the pact we made, saying that we wouldn’t care about different opinions and you can say them aloud. And where have you and Rose been in these past meetings?”

Mars didn’t answer because it was secret. Plotting how to take down Red with Rose, the consistent abuse of his family and friends, and the entirety of the stress of his life and wanting to run away from it all had been keeping him from going to the meetings even if they were the only times he could be himself and enjoy. But it was mostly the job of secretly acting upon Red along with Rose that had taken most of his time from seeing his outsider friends.

Autumn shook her head. “Never mind. It must be connected with the huge dilemma that’s going on in there, right? The disagreement of the jacket inversion? I understand if the stress is too much for you to come to us. Big things are going on in Red, I heard.”

Mars forced himself to act confused but inside he was completely surprised, even though he knew what caused it. 

“Don’t worry, I’m the only one who knows,” she said. “It’s some rumour that we heard from Topaz, the only one who knows what’s going on in other factions. I could also find out through you and the rest, of course. So, tell me, is it happening? Is there some huge disagreement going on in Red? You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I have one more thing to tell you that only us six know.”

“I don’t know anything about the disagreement.” It was a half-truth, half-lie. “What’s the third thing?”

“The rainbow police. The person you saw spying on us. It has to be them; it’s the only logical answer. They’re onto us and they know we exist. Just stay alert and be aware of everything. We could be in danger, but it has been weeks and nothing has happened.”

Mars nodded. “Understood. Now, I have to talk to Rose. Sorry.”

She frowned at that, but Mars left anyway and dragged Rose to speak to her privately. He told her the news regarding the disagreement in Red. 

“It would make sense that we haven’t heard about it yet,” she said. “Red is a big place. Or, even easier to believe, maybe the disagreement is all secret. The war is fought through thoughts. People in their heads pick a side and don’t speak up about it, which explains why it seems like there’s nothing going on but in reality, there’s a war being fought mentally. And every single person in Red is unaware it’s being fought, except Ruby, who probably told Topaz, and that’s how Autumn knew. So the leaders, and us, are the only ones who know a disagreement is on the uprising.”

Mars smiled. “You figured it out immediately. I would never have thought that. You’re too smart.”

“Thank you.”

“This isn’t Red anymore. Answering that after every compliment. You can drop the act.”

“But that was sincere.”

“Oh.” Mars knitted his eyebrows. He hadn’t considered that possibility. It made him feel… strange. To think the monotonous response he had heard too many times in his life after every compliment was meaningful this time. Though nothing verbally of the action had changed, it still felt different. It had meaning to him this time, and that was the difference that mattered. He knew it was genuine and not a forced response.

“There’s a vehicle coming!” Ash said, and everyone focused his or her attention on the vehicle in the distance coming toward them. 

“We need to move, it’s the rainbow police for sure,” Sky said. “They must be armed. The swamp in Blue? It’s the closest area where we’ll have thick foliage to hide from them.”

“Good enough for me,” Clover said. Everyone else agreed, so the group followed Sky to the border. They helped each other climb the fence and went into the swamp.

X

“Official announcement of the leaders: Nine perpetrators have been deemed fugitives and are now residing anywhere within the country. These nine have committed horrible acts of treachery to the beliefs of their own contingents. Conversion, opinion crime, and disobedience to the rules. Stay calm, evacuation procedures are not imminent due to the lack of information about these fugitives. The rainbow police will hunt them down to the best of their ability and they will succeed. The indisciplined misdeeds of defiance belong to the following…”

The speakers began to list them, one by one, their full names and the faction they belonged to. They were so loud and powerful that they could hear it from the swamp. They felt terrified but also assured, for they knew at some point something like this was going to come. It had been only a matter of time--they were sure someone had caught them in Yellow. A rainbow policeman to be sure. Now it was confirmed. They were all being chased by them. There was nowhere to go and nowhere to hide forever. Permanently on the run or not, they had to take action. They continued to trek through the swamp after hearing the devastating news, staying intentionally away from civilization. Now, it was only time that separated their freedom and their capture. They all knew it was close to hopeless to run from the rainbow police. Close, for Ash and Snow had done it for so long--proof that they could be outsmarted and outrun time and time again. The original six, including Rose, were at the hands of experienced fugitives now. Ash and Snow had been running from the rainbow police as official criminals long before them. The only problem was surviving without coming in contact with civilization. Any person within the entire country knew about them and, therefore, no one could be trusted but themselves.

“How did you two do it?” Clover asked Ash and Snow. “Running from them for years, not able to go home.”

“Regularly,” Ash said. “What else? We took things we needed from a store. If you really want something from a store, take it. It’s not bad at all, although I’ve been with you all long enough to know you don’t want to do that.”

“No,” Mars said, surprising the group. “We need to. No other choice. The world isn’t fair to us. It doesn’t give us the right to be unfair back, but in a way, it can be seen as justified. If we all truly believe what our thoughts had lead us to believe--that our instincts are right--then we have to assume the world is wrong. We have to steal.”

“I agree. Finding an alternative option is a waste of time,” Sky said. “The rainbow police are after us. They’re going to set traps, have searching drones, run infantry by night. They already consider us fugitives. As Mars said, it doesn’t mean whatever we do should be right because we still have no choice. If we steal or not, it won’t change the fact we’re still criminals. We need food and water and supplies if we’re going to outrun them. I don’t know how long--maybe forever, or until we find a secluded area and settle down--but right now we stay alive as long as we can. Maybe we even start our own criminally insane band, or maybe a new faction that supports what we think. The future is unknown to us. But currently, we need a place for the night.”

“How about we talk about something I’m willing to bet has crossed each of our minds already,” Violet said. She pointed to Ash and Snow. “These two are our problem. We’re faultless. You’ve all put the thought away because they’re our friends but I know you’ve considered it. We were fine without them--had always been, would have always been.”

“Don’t go blaming us,” Snow said. “We’ve shared our burden with you unwillingly. The moment you decided to help me get Ash out of that trap was when you got into this mess. Remind me again whose choice that was?”

It would’ve been wrong to say Violet’s statement was untrue. Ash and Snow had been running from the rainbow police since they could remember. Their paths intertwined and now they shared the same problems. Everyone seemed to agree. Daisy nodded, Sky hung his head, and Clover said, “I’m sorry, but I have to agree with this one. We were all fine--under the radar--until you both showed up.”

“How do you know?” Mars said. “Let’s consider a coincidental scenario: Only when they came it aroused suspicion that they were the ones to cause this manhunt. How do we know we wouldn’t have been caught anyway?”

“It’s no coincidence if you understand the facts,” Violet said. “For years we’ve been fine. You can’t ignore that it’s a truly reasonable accusation that things got disrupted by these two.”

“I don’t want to fight,” Snow said. “It would be irrational due to the circumstances of our situation in the present moment. But I know what you’re thinking: Either we end this debate now or never. Leave us to die or not.”

“You read my mind perfectly,” Violet said. 

“We all know we can’t leave anybody,” Mars said. “It might seem wrong I’m being overly fair to them, but it’s pure empathy. For the most part, this is not their fault. They’ve done what we did, only less careful. They’ve caught the attention of the rainbow police. We both need each other’s help. They need to teach us how to survive and outsmart the rainbow police and we need to help them live. A group of nine is better than seven. We can help each other out and ideas aren’t limited to a small number of minds. We have a better chance of all surviving. So, I’m not asking you to forgive these two, but the truth is it’s safer if we stay with them.”

“Case closed,” Sky said. “Violet, no more words about this. We have to go.”

“We know these areas,” Ash said. “If we keep going in this direction there should be an operational gas station and convenience store up ahead. I say we grab the lone employee’s throat, stash his body in the bushes, and use the place as a hideout.”

Immediately everyone, except Snow, disagreed. Mars happened to be looking at her and her expression told him everything: that on the run she was used to going with everything Ash planned. Used to not disagreeing, so they could survive. She must have experienced the terrible things Ash had to do, secretly despising them, but not doing anything about it. And she was sick of it.

“But we do have to deal with the person running the store,” Mars said. “We have to be reasonable. We can’t disagree with everything Ash says. Expertise on being a fugitive is through experience. The only reason they’re here with their lives is that they had to fight for it.”

“Has anyone thought of turning themselves in?” Autumn asked. “I’ll admit it has crossed my mind. We can confess and try to show them our actions are justified.”

“Because we think our thoughts are right, and they think they’re wrong?” Sky said. “No, that’s not going to work. That’s like a murderer trying to reason that he thinks killing is good.”

“Yes,” Ash said. “What’s wrong with that?”

Sky ignored him “If we’re going to make them see our way, it can’t be through turning ourselves in.”

“How about we focus on getting to that gas station?” Rose said. “Hunger never stops depleting, unless you’ve all forgotten.”

#

Ash had agreed not to kill the employee at the cash register, for the sake of earning respect from everyone else. Instead, he knocked him unconscious. They snagged all the food and drinks they could. When it turned late, they rested to sleep against the wall.

“They could be gaining on us at this moment,” Autumn said, resting her head on Mars’s shoulder. 

“Shh,” he said. “Go to sleep.”

“Worrying drains you. It must be true. But now the thought that will always be at the back of my mind is that I’m being chased. And if I get caught, as Sky said, there will be no reasonable justifications. Not even the smallest--we’ll all be put to death immediately because our factions don’t tolerate converters. According to society, we’re disgusting and immoral. If only that were true because since we know it’s not, it makes it worse. We’re only different, but we’re still the same as them. They judge us purely based on our colour identities. It’s hardly fair--when was it that the fact if you are a Red or Blue, or Green or Yellow, or Orange, Purple, and even Black and White made you not a human anymore? We’re all the same, aren’t we? We only think differently, look differently, but the last I checked, we can interbreed. We’re the same species. But it’s only because of those facts that we’re considered different races. And therefore hated by others unlike us. It’s a philosophy that makes sense on a speculative level, founded by the basis of early prehistoric thinking: what is different in comparison to you is unfamiliar. And if it’s unfamiliar it could be dangerous. But for us, us nine, we’re not dangerous. We have a different way of thinking, a different perception of the world’s ethics, that probably scares the people. Tell me I’m wrong. So because we are different we have the potential to be dangerous. The only way we can make them see that we’re not is through empathy, except as we all know the citizens of the factions have lost empathy. It’s only a lost fragment of the human mind now--hidden by years of living without it, buried deep within the past. We are the representation of the past because it’s almost certain that we are reincarnated thinkers of the past. There must have been a time when people, all people, thought like us. Maybe it’s the mutation of evolution how we’ve come to be so mindless, and maybe we didn’t take part in it, and so we’re like this. Maybe it’s not. Whatever the reason, there is no way to transfer our practical and morally correct knowledge about the way the world should think. And that’s because the people are afraid of thinking another way. They don’t want to change. They like their life, and they don’t want to accept new things, new changes. Their whole lives they’ve been taught converters are bad. To live amongst them suddenly, all because of a political change, is certain to raise conflict within their inner values. It would be unusual for them. Unfamiliar, and therefore, as I said, dangerous. I think that’s why we’re hated.”

“Think no longer. It’s safe to confirm that’s the truth. Also, sleep.”

“We’re the last ones still awake. I don’t think that’s a coincidence to ignore. You know my worry about our survival is why I’m not sleeping. What about you?”

“Nothing.”

“If you don’t want to be open it’s fine.” She exhaled. “I’ll tell you another thing that keeps me awake. I miss when there were just the six of us. I’m afraid that if we find more and more converters, people like us, we’re going to be too big of a group and we’ll become impossible to go unnoticed. We can’t take in everyone. But you’re right, there’s nothing we can do. Ash, Snow, Rose, they need our help. We’re the closest thing to family for them, since theirs hates them. We’re all outsiders.”

“Maybe I’ll tell you the things that I think about that keeps me awake,” Mars said. “These are thoughts I’ve never told anyone yet.”

“I’m listening.”

“Are humans naturally good or evil? Over the years of our existence, I’m sure it’s impossible to tell which. We’ve done many good things but we’ve also done horrible things, with the knowledge that whatever we do will affect other people that feel the same way we do. No one has answered why it’s like that. Why we hurt when we know it will inflict pain, and we ourselves know pain is bad because all humans fear and hate pain as an instinct. This unknownness leads me to believe that maybe the reason we hurt intentionally even with empathy for others is that we’re naturally inclined to do so. We’re naturally evil. It’s not easy to disprove. Many evil acts over the centuries of our history can add to it. It also makes me wonder what is the source of our natural evil. Maybe we don’t have one, because we’re not. It’s arguable that we’re naturally good, as, for the most part, the majority of us have lived in harmony together, from ancient civilizations to now. But it’s still questionable. Maybe we’re just designed in a way to produce hatred against people that are not like ourselves because we think of ourselves and our opinions and thoughts as perfect and the best, and anyone who thinks otherwise is against us theoretically. Who wouldn’t think they are the best image of a human? It makes perfect sense. Our tastes and thoughts are our own, and since they’re our own we perceive them as supreme. The absolute perfect opinions. And so when someone disagrees, we perceive them as an enemy because he or she thinks differently than us and thinks our opinions aren’t right, or not the best, or untrue. It could be a natural instinct. Maybe this is why the factions exist. To erase that instinct. But it still stands as a mystery. We truly don’t know what causes us to disagree--it could be because we’re different but why are we different? Why does someone like apples, but someone likes oranges? If one is truly better than the other, shouldn’t they both agree? One of them has to be better than the other, they can’t be equal: but who would decide that? Only us. And since we’re different, then we can’t agree. This causes conflict, and conflict causes hatred. This all supports the possibility we’re naturally selfish and evil. It’s just how we are. Although you can try to strongly deny it with evidence. There are people, many more than the bad people, that dedicate their lives to serving others willingly. Then there are people who choose to do bad things instead. I used to envision a world where anyone had absolute freedom. You can think, say, or do whatever you want with your own will. But as I said, we are all different, and so your will is certainly going to go against someone else’s in one way or another. Again, this raises conflict, and conflict leads to hatred. All because of difference, which makes us all have different feelings and thoughts that can agree or disagree with others similar to our taste. In the world I envision, total chaos is imminent and inevitable. A place where anyone has total freedom is bound to produce mayhem due to the clash of wills. Maybe one wishes to be with someone, with that someone’s love is unrequited. Hatred is bound to happen. Maybe one wishes to force others to obedience, wanting them as servants, but they refuse. Hatred is bound to happen. So then I have come to realize a world like that, where it seems perfect because total freedom is indefinite, is actually a nightmare. The world has to be imperfect to be perfect. It’s the reason we have regimes, rules, and generally known morals. It balances everything. I then began to think of another world. Different this time. I realized total freedom is chaotic, but why not total freedom with rules? For example, you are allowed to think and do whatever you want but only if others are not hurt in any way. And disagreements are allowed--since they’re inevitable--and you have to accept them and you can’t do anything about it. You’re also not allowed to have hatred because of one. But then I found out that if that world was real, it wouldn’t be one of total freedom anymore since there are rules. Maybe a perfect and free world is impossible to have without rules--but then it wouldn’t be thoroughly free. And if it’s not thoroughly free, would it not be perfect? It’s this paradox that stops us from creating a perfect world. The only way is to have an imperfect one and make everyone believe it’s perfect: hence Red, and the other factions. They make us believe our lives are not limited or regulated, and we live happily. But in truth, we are suffering--or, if everyone still had the instincts of us, we would be. Because we’re not allowed to disagree. We have to agree with the same things to make that happen. So we don’t have freedom. But yet, the citizens see their lives as perfect, don’t they? They think they are free, and do you know why? They believe the thoughts they have are theirs only. They believe they own them when in reality they were given to them by society. For example, the new shoes. My Red friends, and probably your Orange friends, have all come to the conclusion they themselves like the colour their society likes. My friends liked the red shoes. They think it’s their own opinion, one they came up with themselves, but Red was designed to make them think that. In truth, they were inclined to think that through the structural idealism taught to them by Red. It was a natural instinct for them to like the red ones, because of how much exposure to the colour that was given to them in their lives. They’re also lead to believe not liking the red ones is immoral and wrong because they’ve been raised to think that way. In Rose’s example, she liked the blue ones more due to her personal preference because as I said, everyone is different. She would be considered a Red-to-Blue converter. Also hated because she disagreed with the society of Red. Therefore the hatred of conversion began.”

“Yes. Violet disagrees with us on converters. She thinks it’s morally wrong to become something you’re not--to be another colour identity than your original. We don’t think so, but she doesn’t hate us. She’s still our friend and we’re still hers. It should be this way for the entire world.”

“That is the world I have told you I envision. One where you can do whatever you want with the exception of any action that will hurt others in any way and disagreements are allowed. We don’t support Violet’s decision to disagree with us, but we tolerate. And because we do, we’re not enemies, and we don’t have hatred. You’re right--if only this was how the entire world thought.”

She sighed. “I understand what you’re saying. But it’s hard to get everyone to agree to create that world because as you’ve said, there will always be some people that won’t agree and follow because we’re all different. It’s this difference that causes the problems humanity face. Doesn’t that fact make you think that maybe our factions are right and ethical to be the way they are? They eliminate all disagreements through immoral ways but the price is worth to pay because now there are no big problems in our world. Evil is erased because everyone agrees on the same things. The logic of the factions makes sense, and it’s that fact that makes me wonder why I’m against them in the first place. But I won’t stop being against them, because even if I can see the rightness in their logic, I have a gut feeling they’re still wrong.”

“That makes two of us.”

“Because I just fully believe we should own opinions. And not get hated for it. I just think that’s how it should be, and it happens to be that my world is against it.”

“Not the entire world. We agree with you. But majority rules, and that’s why we’re seen as wrong. I’m sure if the majority of people think like us, anyone thinking as a regular citizen today would be considered unethical.”

“Yes, and just because the majority agrees on one thing, it doesn’t mean it’s right. That’s the reason corrupt regimes happen. When too many people agree on a bad thing, it gets out of control, because the good people are outnumbered. Then evil wins. For the most part, in history, most of humanity agrees on the same moral and ethical instincts. Don’t kill. Don’t steal. Don’t hurt or inconvenience others in any way. That’s why we’re still alive and we haven’t torn each other apart: because the majority of us agree on good and we outnumber the bad. If it was the other way, and the good was outnumbered, it would be terrible. It’s simply the bigger side of humanity that will win.”

“You said just because the majority agree on something, it doesn’t mean it’s right. That’s your reason on why you oppose the factions even if you understand their point of view and logic.”

“Hmm. I suppose you are right. Thanks for helping me see that. Now my actions are justified.”

“Try telling that to the rainbow police.”

“Good point. Also, you can’t only think of our country as a world that doesn’t allow disagreements. For the most part, they don’t allow agreements either. The whole thing is a scam, a lie.”

“Why?”

“Converters, for starters. I know Rose is on the path to being a Blue. Which means she agrees with them and their tastes. But her faction, Red, doesn’t allow that. So they’re practically eliminating the ability to disagree and agree. They strip us of that freedom entirely. What if you’re attracted to Blues? Or Greens? Or any other? Your own faction wouldn’t like that. They’d find that disgusting and weird. Immoral, wrong, inhuman. Therefore being contradictory by disagreeing with you, since the sole purpose of their existence is to not disagree. Also, for example, what if you are an Orange, and you love a Red? And the Red loves you back, therefore agreeing to be together?”

“I suppose.”

“But the factions of both Red and Orange wouldn’t allow that to happen, even if both of them agree to be together willingly and there is no conflict, no disagreement. If there is no disagreement, why don’t they support it? Now I remember--it’s this dumb and contradictory logic of our factions’ rules that made me against them in the first place.”

“Again, that makes two of us.”

“But don’t you agree?”

“Wholeheartedly. If the Red and Orange want to be together, why don’t they just escape their own factions so the rules don’t apply to them?”

“Then they’ll be deemed illegal converters and will be hunted by the rainbow police. Then they’ll be on the run forever since there’s no place for them to stay that people will accept them both.”

“Then they’ll try to hide from the rainbow police in a swamp, and find a gas station in the middle of nowhere, and end up unable to sleep on the ground inside so instead end up talking to each other about their thoughts on the world, in the end making the Red really tired.”

“I suppose.”

“Good night, Autumn.”

“Good night, Mars.”

XI

After a few days on the run from the rainbow police, the group had come to accept the reality of their situation. They were forced to be on the run forever, always hiding and moving and making sure they weren’t caught--or else they would be killed. It was a traumatic experience for some of them, for some of them refused to believe reality. The normality bias had its devastating effects on each and every one of them. It was hard to believe this was the end. No, their homes were still intact and they could possibly return to them at any given moment. But the problem was they weren’t welcomed. Also, the fact that the rainbow police would find them instantly. 

The danger of finding the so-called specialists at hunting converters was unreal to them, for an encounter had not happened yet. They still blindly ran into areas of the country no faction covered, possibly even unexplored lands to everyone, with the hope of never coming into any contact with their pursuers. Again, because of this, the normality bias was affecting them. They disbelieved the fact they were in any real danger when in truth they were in the most danger anyone could potentially be in. The reality of facing a rainbow policeman was rare, but if one so happened to luckily find them it was over. They weren’t armed--they weren’t fighters either. Ash was, but he would have no chance against a rifle. Diplomacy was the agreed solution instead of violence when they would ever find a lone wanderer--or group--of the rainbow police. 

The first time the original six had met Ash and Snow, they revealed that they had never seen or encountered a rainbow policeman. Apparently, they were ghosts. Legends, myths. The shadow that disappeared after Mars had witnessed it in Yellow was the closest they had ever been seen or have been near to any of them, as well as the vehicle that had caused the group to run into the swamp. 

It was that fear of always being unseen that was inflicted upon Mars. They were experts at what they did, so why weren’t they caught yet? As far as he knew, the nine of them were the only present illegal converters at the moment, officially announced by the leaders. Were they walking into a trap? It made him feel uneasy, but he knew it was normal to since considering the circumstances it would be strange not to be afraid. Mars was mostly calm, though. If anyone was to be frightened it was Daisy--she got scared easily. She mentioned that she would not return to that abandoned area in Yellow after the shadow incident--she jokingly blamed Mars for it since he was the one who found the stalker and they laughed about it, but Mars knew secretly she felt unsafe in her own faction now. The feeling of being watched was so uncomfortable--and you make yourself believe it didn’t affect your actions but it did. Over the past couple of days, Daisy had been the one always mentioning things a paranoid person would say. Don’t go there, I just have a feeling it’s dangerous. Don’t eat that, it could be a trap. Don’t take that, it could have a tracker or a camera. What do you mean I’m overly scared and paranoid? We’re being hunted by the rainbow police, it’s perfectly normal to assume everything can’t be trusted. It’s the normal reaction of someone with the circumstances we have. 

In the present moment, they were hiking through a forest. Ash lead the way for the group--Sky co-leading because of the obvious trust issue--and Mars thought these thoughts as Rose came up next to him. 

“Can we please talk about what’s happening in Red?” she asked. 

“I don’t see why not.”

“Do you think the disagreement has gone further? That there are marching crowds in the streets loudly supporting their opinion on the jacket?”

“With the current knowledge at our disposal, it’s not safe to assume anything. We can only hope you’re right.”

She nodded. “Yesterday, you said you were going to help me understand my thoughts. Like a mentorship. Because you’ve been like this for a while and you’re experienced in it, like the rest of the group, but I’m not. I’m new to everything. I still remember the values of Red, and I want to change that so I can start being more like you and the rest.”

Mars nodded. “First of all, the most important value isn’t the self-esteem and feelings of others.”

“It isn’t?”

“It’s your own.”

“But that sounds selfish.”

“How can you be happy if you spend all your time trying to make others happy? That’s selfish to yourself. It’s also important to care about you. Maybe sometimes more than others. How can you help others if you need help yourself? So make sure to know your opinions matter more than the feelings of another person. If your opinion hurts someone’s feelings, then that person is immature and disrespectful to the understanding that that’s what you think. This also proves that disagreements should be allowed. Maybe not supported, but allowed.”

“They should? But then conflict arises.”

“That’s the issue with Red citizens. But if they learn to accept the opinion of the person they disagree with, and still stay mutual or close friends or associates, that’s how you be us. How many things do you think you and everyone else in this group disagree on?”

“Countless. I have pondered about that myself.”

“Yet you stay with them. Because true friends don’t leave you because you think differently with the opposite opinion. Forget about Blood, Pepper, Cherry and Brick. They avoided you because you like blue shoes. How does that become the deciding factor of your friendship? It’s ridiculous. This happens all the time in Red, remember. Always trust your thoughts and instincts, never the ones someone else has that was given to you. An example? Ruby, and all of us.”

“But Ruby is always right, isn’t she?”

“No human being is always right. That’s another thing you must learn to accept. We make mistakes, as we are told in Red, and we forgive them. Now, that doesn’t make it okay to continuously make mistakes, which Red citizens have learned to do.”

“Tomato Ketchup in our class.”

“Exactly. Tomato always fails every test but the teacher has to give an A so no feelings are hurt. We know because the Ketchups are just known to do that. Tomato’s father and mother both did it in school.”

“Okay, I think I’m beginning to understand.”

“Listen: the most important thing to remember is to trust what you think. Your instinctual behaviour is right. If you’re wrong, people will tell you, won’t they? So you have nothing to lose if you always trust yourself. Whatever thoughts you have, they’re right, because no opinion is wrong. That’s why they’re opinions and not facts. So always trust what you think and stop caring if those thoughts hurt other people because disagreements should be tolerated. Again, tolerated, not encouraged.”

“So if I believe I’m a Blue, and I like Blues--for example, Sky--I should know it’s normal.”

“Why would it not be?”

“Well I’m a Red, aren’t I?”

“Let me let you in on one little secret,” Mars said. “The factions represent nothing. It’s a misconception. We’re all the same: human creatures. But at the same time, we’re different because of our thoughts. I suppose it’s contradictory but it’s comparable to the beliefs of a White. It’s not abnormal to like a Blue because they’re only people, like you. That’s the truth about the world that no one today believes: that if the factions were gone, nothing would be changed. We’re all equally human and a person at the least. So why shouldn’t you like a Blue? Why shouldn’t we all like Blues? It should be that way.”

“True. I really feel like a Blue, then. Maybe I should talk to Sky. But it makes me nervous.”

“Why?”

“Well, he’s a Blue. And I’m a Red. We’re complete opposites. The values of our contingents oppose each other directly.”

“Did you not just say you’re a Blue? Also, did I not just say the actual reality is that we’re all the same: a human being? It wouldn’t be abnormal to talk to him. I suggest it. Sky thinks like you. You’ll make a connection fast. Also, he’s quite dismissive about those kinds of things.”

“Will you be hurt?”

“That you will become a Blue and therefore disagree with me since I’m a Red? No, I accept different opinions, and if I do get hurt by them because of my natural human feeling, I don’t show it. Again, it should be that way for the world. One more thing: I’ll care less because I’m not a Red anymore. I’m an Orange. I made a connection with Autumn fast. We’re not all converters here, but the rainbow police assume we all are. For one, Violet is the least converted. Most of her opinions are still based around what Purple thinks and only some are from us.”

She inhaled. “Okay, I’ll talk to him. But what if I am intimidated by his looks?”

So that was the true cause of her being nervous. As soon as Mars registered it he only laughed. 

#

The light of day began to wear thin, and civilization was now a faint scene in the distance. The group ate harvested nuts and fruits and stolen cooked meats for a meal. Their rations would soon run low and they would have to find more again, which meant either finding more places to steal food from or living off of the natural products of the forest. Inexperienced in hunting and fishing, the most reliable option was the easiest: to steal. But the group preferred to stray from human contact, for fear they could be seen and caught. They had no choice but to teach themselves how to survive in the wild, which would not be easy when most missed the safety and sanitary aspects of civilization. But they still tried--Ash taught everyone how to make a fire, for cooking, warmth, or even a distress signal if they ever separated. He also made it clear that even if it was the most likely way to get found and killed by the rainbow police, it was necessary to their survival. Temperatures dropped and the light ceased during nights, and if they caught any fish or game it would need to be cooked for their healthy survival. There was no more fun and games--learn to live on the run from the rainbow police or be hunted. 

There was the talk of finding a spot to live in forever. Maybe the nine of them could build something near a lake. It was this that reminded Snow of a distant memory she had of her childhood. 

“There is a place we can actually go,” she said around the campfire. “It’s far. It’s an old cottage by a lake, far from the factions. My grandmother told me about it.”

“But you’ve never been there?” Violet asked.

She shook her head. “But it’s real. She said so, and she doesn’t lie. She was never more sure about this than anything. It’s a remnant of our old ancestors, and I know where it is.”

Mars could feel the tension in everyone. They all probably thought the same thing: something like this screamed trap. It could be false--there was no cottage in the middle of nowhere they could hide in. But they were glad to take their chances, for it was better than hopelessly wandering. Snow spoke of electricity, tap water, modern things they were used to. It was decided they would try to go there because there was no other place to go. All the factions were death zones and it could very well be the last hope. 

The night sky showed itself when twilight was over, revealing its hidden yet unmoving stars. Tomorrow they would hike for a long time, trying to cover as much distance as possible, and as much away from the rainbow police on their trail. Mars relaxed and stared at the atmosphere as he tried to sleep on the grass. As usual, he couldn’t sleep. But he noticed no one could either because they were all doing the same thing as him--lying in the grass and staring at the wide-open expanse of the visible sky. 

“Why do you think they haven’t found us yet?” Sky asked, the first one to speak. 

“Because they don’t expect us to run here, into these unexplored lands,” Daisy said. “They believe we’ll die out here. What I want to know is if these lands really are unexplored, or if we as humans have been here before. The history of this country is unknown, or the history of the world. We know nothing about the past, but that’s something expected--the leaders must want to hide what our cruel savagery has gotten us into centuries ago. We have no knowledge of anything, really. It’s like what they told us in school: the factions are all you know and all you’ll ever know. That’s the world. But we know it’s untrue, for the world can’t be that small. It remains a mystery and will likely always be since we have no more records of the past. My mother said history will always be like that, anyway. We don’t have good memories as humans, she said. We tear down and create new worlds, and the old ones are forgotten. Forgotten so long ago that we have to dig up things from the ground to understand what life was like before. We today will never know what life was like before, if humanity had always lived like this or if there was once a better world where everyone thought the way we do. What a paradise that would be, wouldn’t it? If there was once a world where everyone was like us.”

“But it’s also realistic to imagine it’s always been like this,” Clover said. “Regular humans have always had feelings. Maybe to keep them in check there were rules set so people wouldn’t offend each other. How about I tell you all one thing I’ve always wondered: what if the side we’re against, the one that supports the rules of the factions now, is actually right? What if there are some people that just own the worst, most hurtful opinions? Such as morals that are twisted, or values that are evil. They could truly disgust other people that a human creature can think that way. There can be many problems in people that just can’t be accepted, even if we believe anyone can think and do whatever they want in their own way. The depressive. The chemically dependent. The mentally unstable. The anthropophagists. The reproduction-uncontrollable and heavily infatuated, who act upon it without consent. The materialistic-hungry. The expert maniacs in the narcissism, egotism, sadism and masochism departments, sometimes with no reason at all. These are the foundations of the criminally insane. And if we want a world with total freedom of thought, there will always be people--who are naturally prone to evil and selfishness--that think these things are good. That is unacceptable, right? We think so, and the factions agree. There is a side of goodness in the restriction of different opinions. What if someone has a truly bad and disrespectful opinion, and it actually disturbs other people? Sometimes I think Green is right, and all the other contingents that you all belong to. It’s best this way so people don’t disagree and feel hurt by the thoughts of other people. Because in this world, the slightest opinion can devastate someone. Mars, you’ve told us the story of Ms. Lipstick once, and we all know what happened to her. Things like these may be uncontrollable if everyone is allowed to disagree. I don’t want to hurt your feelings, everyone, but I might have to disagree with what we believe in. Of course, you all allow disagreement. But I’m sure you wouldn’t with what I’m about to say now: I think the factions can be right. Their side is justifiable and reasonable.”

“Traitor!” Violet said. “If you think they’re right this whole time, why don’t you live with them? Live in Green with those foolish, grass-eating, recycle-obsessed robots.”

“See?” Clover said. “This is what I am talking about. There are things people can think that will hurt others, and also make them feel hatred toward the person. Through disagreement, hatred arises, it’s no lie. Only a true fact. And Violet, I can’t let go of my unorthodox instincts and thoughts, so I can’t go back. I’m still like you eight. I let empathy lead my moral thoughts, by understanding the feelings of others so I can base my judgements on that.”

“Oh, you’re right,” Violet said. “I’m sorry, Clover.”

“It was a natural reaction for you to hate me, Violet. You disagreed fully and wholeheartedly, so hatred was inevitable. This is why I think the factions are right in some of their ways--I know you all won’t agree with me but that’s what I think.”

“It’s an understandable and acceptable concept, Clover,” Mars said. “I for one still don’t agree, but your side makes total sense. But think: if this was Green or any other faction, they’ll hate you to the point of wanting to kill you. But for us? We remain your friends, just with a little disagreement, as Violet showed. And you know why? Because we all know--the people of the country are robots with no empathetic instincts, which we have. If they were true humans they’d still accept you, even with a different thought that opposes theirs. Because the thoughts of someone’s mind should not affect the relationships of that person with anyone. They are private, personal, and most of all solely that person’s. They shouldn’t be taken away, only hated by those who oppose the thoughts. That is what I think the world should be like. But I have to agree, your side is agreeable. There can be some thoughts of some people that are completely terrible and disturbing, mainly because they have them and they think they’re right. Those examples of the many problems people can have--they come out of nowhere as part of our nature. And to think some people have those thoughts--the thoughts of committing crimes, hurting or taking the dignity of other people--is morally right, is in fact truly disturbing. You’re right. It’s something that can’t be accepted because there’s no reasonable way it can be, if you have the empathetic and moral instincts of a real human, like us. Maybe we shouldn’t think whatever we want, because people will always think badly. But to force everyone to agree with the same things, like how the factions do? I don’t think it’s an ethical way to do it, even if the citizens agree with it and are fine and happy. But I have to give it to Red and the other contingents: they halt criminal activity almost to a complete stop, because everyone has the same exact morals and values, and will not resist that code. They have somehow erased the evil side of human nature, which shows it is possible.”

“Yes, but they force everyone to think good instead of bad in order to accomplish it, and that strips the freedom to think freely, which is what we support,” Autumn said. 

“Maybe not so,” Sky said. “I once thought maybe no one is being forced. Maybe everyone is just so used to living with what they’re taught that their opinions are naturally based on their faction’s values. If you don’t know what I mean, think this: a Blue boy is raised with Blue culture, and that culture is so intense it makes an impact on the Blue. He immediately bases opinions on Blue culture. My favourite fruit is the blueberry. Being a Blue his whole life, he naturally chose blueberries as his favourite fruit. And he chose it with free will. Nothing or no one forced him to. It’s a thought I’ve had for a while, and more and more I believe it’s true. People choose freely, but with the illusion of freedom, since they are inclined to choose based on their culture.”

“Then how does that explain us converters?” Rose asked. “All I’ve known in my life is one of a Red’s. Yet I favour Blue things. I’m proof that goes against that theory.”

Sky shrugged. “I don’t know. Unexplainable for us, but I’m sure there is an explanation. And you have to realize we’re classified as illegal converters, which is why the rainbow police are after us, but we’re not all actually converters. Most of us are only half, at the most. For example, I personally think valuing manners and saving the environment is important, like a Purple and Green. But I haven’t converted fully into one of those yet. For the most part, I’m still a Blue, I have the values and opinions of a Blue, and I like Blue and its people.”

“There’s a possibility your theory can be true,” Mars said. “Also, I’ve thought those same things myself. But there’s still one thing that’s not right. Maybe they allow us to choose freely, and we naturally choose the ideals of our faction, which is convenient for them. But when we don’t choose the ideals of our faction and become a converter, they hate us. That is unacceptable. I think we should at least be moved to the faction we feel most accustomed to. My whole life I’ve felt like an Orange, secretly, and told no one. I thought it would go away, and it was maybe a phase. My parents and peers harassed me for it once I told them. I think they really and truly are disgusted by me. I’m so repulsive to them they torture me for it. I think I should be accepted, and all converters should be accepted. Why? We didn’t choose to be whom we feel as. I didn’t want to be an Orange, but I am one, whether psychologically or willingly, it doesn’t matter, I’m an Orange. Some people think with converters, it’s all in the head. We’re only telling ourselves we’re different in colour identity. But that’s not true. I don’t think I’m an Orange, I am one. It doesn’t make sense for them. You are a Red. So why do you feel like an Orange? I just do. I don’t have an explanation, and do I need one? Accept me as an Orange. The topics of conversation shouldn’t always be about my colour identity, too. Everyone I know knows I’m an Orange, because I publicly admitted it, and they won’t stop talking about it. Last I checked, a Red feeling as if he or she is a Red isn’t always the main topic of conversation, isn’t it?”

“Yes, this has to stop,” Autumn said. “Maybe I haven’t been through the pain of an open converter myself, but I understand what they go through. We’ve all learned in school, haven’t we? In history, people have been tortured for being converters. The most horrible acts include sawing them in half, burning them, other things that bother and scare me. That was in the archaic times, but even in upcoming times, they’ve been given unfairness. Hiring bosses despised them, so they never gave the job, no matter how good they are at it. They were treated unequally during anything. It’s horrible--and just because they disagreed with something? Just because they felt like agreeing to something else that their society claimed was taboo? Converters have never felt anything but pain for being one. If only they were born different, right? If only they were born into the faction that would accept them, or if they weren’t into conversion. It’s all luck and chance, and they can’t control it. So why punish them for it? Yes, people believe it’s all in their minds and they’re falsely saying it’s not their choice, but that’s untrue. They genuinely believe they are a converter. I don’t understand--everyone knows how bad and shameful being a converter is. Why would anyone willingly want to be one? No, converters are converters because they feel like one, not because they choose to be one. It’s very heartbreaking when a converter confesses to being one and ends up becoming estranged by his or her family, who now show their love is conditional. No, the acceptance of anyone should be unconditional. Never base your love on the fortune of someone’s colour identity, whether it’s fortunate or unfortunate because they don’t choose. If we want this to happen, we need the leaders to accept it too, because whatever they think, their contingent thinks. But what would make them agree converters should be accepted, when all throughout history, years and years of it, they never were? Maybe a country with eight different autonomous sections will never be good since they’ll always disagree and have the chance to start wars. Because if all factions combined into one state, and all their different opinions merged, converters would be the norm. Everyone would be allowed to think whatever they want of whatever faction since they don’t exist anymore. But one could only hope for a dream such as that--in reality, it’s always nations and groups, hunting against each other. I’m certain there’s never been a time in history when we as humans are split into nations, and the nations are split further into individual areas within it. It’s just how we do things as humans. We separate, form groups, and fight other groups that disagree with us. That’s just how we are, and if we can change it, it’s never been done. I think it will always be like this, anyway. The world is too big to be one nation, I suppose. Things will always be the way they are in the world unless people change it. And only the people with the wills to do so will do so.”

“Converters are stupid anyway,” Violet said. “I’m sorry if that hurts you all.”

“This is another problem,” Mars said. “We’re becoming more like the factions. We don’t have to say that, Violet. If we do get hurt by other opinions, we have to accept it.”

She nodded. “It’s only, I thought by saying that you would all hate me. I don’t want to be hated… like a converter, I suppose. May I ask you all a question? Like what Autumn was talking about: will you all like me unconditionally? As a friend?”

“Of course,” Clover said. “In fact, I’m sure that’s a set rule here anyway. There are already… individuals whom we apply it to.”

Mars understood what he meant, and he might’ve been the only one who did. He was secretly talking about Ash. There were many unethical things he thought were correct, and they set that aside. They trusted him, kept him as a friend, and knew he would return those favours too. After all, he had done nothing but solely help on the group’s survival. He was good, even if he didn’t seem so with his personality. Sure, he could sometimes be intense, but as Clover said, the group would stay as a group unconditionally. 

As if on cue, Ash said, “Friends? Stop exaggerating your emotions.”

Snow elbowed him in the stomach. “But it’s true, right? Right, Ash? We help them with intent because we share mutual affection, not only because they give us help to survive and is seen as a valuable resource, right?”

“Whatever, sure,” he said, turning over. “I want to sleep.”

Maybe I’m not so sure about him, Mars thought.

XII

The cottage was deliberately far so the authorities of the country wouldn’t find it. It was necessary, yet a liability to their seemingly endless hike toward it. Only suffering was felt when the heat of the sun was on their skin, the lack of nourishment fed their hunger and thirst, and the frequent uphills in their path. Exhaustion caused numerous breaks, and during one Clover volunteered to climb a tall tree to give him a height advantage to scan their surroundings. 

“Are you sure?” Violet asked. Ever since she had inadvertently hurt Clover’s feelings for his opinion she seemed to show more sympathy toward him. It could have also been the years of acting repulsed from him when he wanted grapes, for she was the only one who could bring it to the orange tree they always went to, and of course she didn’t want to, for the fear of contribution of someone into conversion. “Please don’t get hurt.”

He looked up at the tall tree, which was much taller than those beside it for some odd reason. “Easy. Every Green knows how to climb a tree twice this size. There is no problem here, no worries. I may try to find the lake the cottage is nearby or just scout where we are for coordination purposes.”

“If you fall off the tree and die, I swear I’ll kill you,” Violet said. Clover laughed at that. “Good luck.”

#

As he went climbing the tree, the rest of the group rested at the base. Soon Ash got up and subtly said, “I’m going to find food,” and left. 

“How angry I’ll be if he doesn’t make it back,” Snow said. “Sometimes I worry. You know, I’ll just go with him. We’ll be back soon. Ash, wait up!”

So everyone else stayed and chatted. Occasionally, Violet would look up and yell, “Clover, are you okay! What do you see?” at the no-longer-visible Green. 

“I’m not at the top yet!” he would yell back. 

“I’m highly confident Clover is going to live, Violet,” Mars told her. “Also Ash will find us some food. It’s all that’s been on his mind lately.”

“I don’t think the rainbow police will ever find us,” Rose said. “They might as well give up. Of course, they have reason to, since it’s more than certain we’re going to die here. Not to be pessimistic, but we only have the supplies we stole and the food and water we can find. Sometimes thinking in a negative sense also gets you to do more, as worry and fear will increase your drive to survive. But too much fear will stop you from doing anything. You have to find that perfect state of mind in between.”

“Very profound ingenuity,” Daisy said. “Although I’ll admit I’m more in the latter part. I’ve been trying to hide my paranoia very obviously, haven’t I?”

“I don’t think anyone was fooled,” Sky said, and they both laughed. 

A while later, Clover made it back down safely. 

“You do not want to know what I saw,” he said. “I didn’t see the cottage, so it must be really far. But I saw something coming toward us in that direction. A jeep. And for certain, I saw someone come out with a rifle.”

“That’s impossible,” Mars said. “How could they have outrun us that far? We don’t need to worry.”

“Don’t be so naive,” Sky said. “It’s the rainbow police. They’re experts. We have to turn around. Whether they have a trap set up for us when we go back the way we came or not, we have to.”

“No, we’re sticking on our path,” Mars said. “I know what’s going to happen, and if you don’t believe me, then it’ll be your fault. There are two ways this can go. First, they don’t know we know they’re coming. They’re going to set a trap for us over there. Second, they do know we’re coming, and they know we’re going to turn around. Both ways, they have backup plans. If we turn, we don’t know what we’re dealing against. If we go forward, we do. It’s a single jeep, with a single squad. It’s better to stick with what you know. Clover, you didn’t see anything behind us, right?”

“If I could, then I didn’t,” he said.

“We have to turn,” Daisy said. “It’s too dangerous. They’re coming for us. Please, Mars.”

“For once in your life please control your fear, Daisy! We’re making a rash decision!”

“There’s no decision here,” Violet said. “We’re turning around. They know we’re coming that way. Sorry Mars, but you’re the only one who wants to continue on this path. For all we know…” Her eyes suddenly widened as a revelation hit her. “For all we know, Snow was lying about the cottage. We have to find them, now!”

She was already racing before anyone could object. No one did, anyway. They all understood: Ash and Snow were going to desert them. Why else were they gone for so long? But it wasn’t safe, because the rainbow police were found to be in their direction. For all they knew, they could be anywhere in the forest if they were fast enough to cut them off in their path. They had to find them, and for their own safety.

“It’s faster if we split,” Clover said. 

Mars had to stop for a moment to find out if that was a good idea or a bad one. In fact, he wished everyone would just stop and think for a moment. Only actions were controlling them, and not their thoughts. Violet had gone to find them so fast, she didn’t stop to think where they might have gone. Mars knew with certainty where they would have gone because he knew Ash very well. 

“Sure,” he said. And he ran in the other direction before anyone could stop him. 

The cliff. It was one they had seen as they hiked on their path, a few hours ago. They had gazed at the magnificent view, sitting on the ledge, all of them. Then Ash had looked down, and Mars saw him. He knew what he was thinking, for he knew his friend well. I can kill someone easily with this ledge, and the evidence would be hidden because it would be down there. Violet had made such a smart prediction. Ash was a selfish, violent, irrational thinker. It made sense why he left so abruptly. He also wouldn’t expect anyone to follow him, except for Snow. He would then tell Snow his real plan, which was to desert the group because nine mouths were harder to feed than one--himself. Of course, Snow would never agree. Then he would have no choice but to kill her since she would run back to the group and tell everyone out of pure loyalty to Ash--she cared too much about him to let him leave alone like this. Ash needed a way that was easy and would leave no evidence. Because Mars knew Ash’s mind so well he knew where to go and what to do. 

Every bit of doubt had left when he reached the cliff. The forest ended in an area right before the ledge, and he saw Ash dragging a scared and helpless Snow to it. Since it was exactly what he knew he would see, he didn’t hesitate to run at him. His back was turned, and Snow was too much in disbelief to see him. He ran as fast as he could to reach them. Ash was dragging her closer to the ledge, and she had tears, crying for help, and for him to stop. 

Then he was there. Without thinking, he rammed into Ash with his shoulder, with all his strength. The element of surprise on his side, Ash was knocked off the ledge, screaming all the way down, just as Snow reached out to grab him. “No!”

Mars was tired of having to run so fast. The fastest he ever ran in his life. He dropped to his knees, panting, too tired to even register what he had done yet. 

“Are you blind?” Snow scolded him. “Did you not see what you just did?”

“I’m sorry,” he said, and now the guilt came. “I had to. Why didn’t you fight back?”

Snow didn’t even have the energy to be mad at him. Instead, she sat next to him and said, “If it was any other person, I would have. But not Ash. Maybe I was too much in shock to believe what was happening, because he was the one who found me, cleared my vision to see the stupidity of White, and took care of me while I ran away from home.” She took a second to wipe her eyes. “I couldn’t hurt him, no matter how hard I tried.”

“I suppose it’s your character,” Mars said. 

“It’s a fatal flaw,” she said. “We had our first disagreement. Before, I always trusted him and his instincts because I didn’t have anyone else to tell me what was right and wrong. Now, I grew fond of you seven. And I realized that Ash wasn’t acting regularly, compared to you all. How I told the difference, on who was the correct side? I just knew--you all thought with a sense of righteousness. Ash didn’t. Maybe it was because I shared the same sense or not, but I knew you were right and Ash was wrong. So when he said he was going to leave you all, and I could come with him if I wanted, I said no. Before I knew what was happening, because he knew I would go back and tell you all, he grabbed my arm and started pulling me to the cliff, which was already nearby. I didn’t resist, even if I knew he was going to dispatch me. It then came to me he never actually cared for anyone, not even me. He would kill anyone who was against him, and without guilt. Do you know why?”

“Because of the values of his contingent. Do you hate me for doing that?”

“No. You had to.”

They sat in silence, grieving for their friend. Mars couldn’t believe what he had done. Ash was fairly innocent. With the view of Black, he would have done nothing wrong. It was the way he was raised--built to emotionally abuse and trap those around him. Snow was in a time of weakness when he had found her. She had no choice but to trust Ash was right, and that he would never hurt him. Mars didn’t blame her for that. 

The rest of the group eventually found the two sitting on the ledge at the cliff. 

“What happened?” Autumn asked. “Wait, don’t tell me.”

Without words, they realized exactly what happened. Autumn joined Mars on the ground, resting a hand on his back. “You were left without a choice. It was him or her, and we all knew who is more innocent.”

Then Mars snapped. He suddenly stood up. “No. No! This was wrong, you see? It disturbs me you think I should have no regret!”

“The context of the action was appropriate,” Snow said. 

“We had to kill Ash,” Mars said. “But why? He followed all of our rules. It doesn’t make sense. We hated him, resented him, merely for his disagreeing thoughts and morals.”

“But they’re bad morals. Don’t you see?” Daisy said.

“That’s what our factions think with us!” Mars said. “They think our morals are bad. Ash is us, and now we are them! We have become the factions, and didn’t welcome Ash’s different thoughts and opinions! We need to change our rules. There should be some sort of majority rule. I agree Ash followed all our rules, but yet we all turned against him. You all don’t feel bad about this incident. In fact, you must feel safer! It was unfair. Since the majority of humanity values the right morals--such as our group--we should have a rule where if more people disagree than accept a member’s morals, we leave them behind.”

“And what if the majority is corrupted?” Sky said. “Especially in a country, it would be dangerous: the regime agrees to the wrong morals, and everyone ends up thinking like Ash.”

“I know. It seems we can’t change things, we’ll always go back to the Red way. Red is inescapable--we were all taught that. But I’m willing to hope that the majority will always be on the side of human empathy. It only makes sense that we are naturally built to think about each other, so we can survive by working together. We’ve always lived in harmony throughout history, with a couple of bumps along the way where people seized power and control and became evil. But for the most part, I believe people have always learned to live amongst each other as civilizations.”

“Before we change the rules of this group, we need to get one thing straight,” Violet said. “Snow, were you lying about the cottage? Did Ash maybe tell you to, so he can send us off into our inevitable deaths?”

She hesitated. Then confirmed it with a slow nod. 

“Now we have to turn,” Rose said. “No matter how many rainbow policemen are waiting for us back at our homes. I’d take my chances with custody rather than death out there in the forest. For sure they’re going to kill us--the citizens of the factions hate all the queers with a passion. But there’s a chance we can reason out. Tell them we’re not really converters, maybe? Tell them we’re lying?”

“At least we have one thing set,” Autumn said. “We have to turn. Why did I even believe in such a fantasy? Why would there be a safe haven in these unexplored lands? The only people who walk here are the illegal converters and the rainbow police. If we would find any building out here, it would be built by the rainbow police.”

There was no certainty there wasn’t a building, which was what Mars wanted to believe. It was definitely possible something out here could have been built by their ancestors from long, long ago. But it would be ancient, and no longer useful to anyone. The group was right--they had to go back. He wished he would never see Red again, but he had to. 

“Hold on, where’s Clover?” Violet said. She began to panic, looking around, calling his name. “Clover!”

“Quiet down,” Sky told her. “We can find him as we go. We can’t have anyone else running into the woods by themselves. He’s either lost or caught.”

Violet agreed to calm down to keep their stealth. The rest of them who were left--Ash and Clover both gone and missing, continued on their path back the way they came, toward home.

XIII

“Do you know how I got my first friend? I’m sure you don’t. I’ll tell you how, then. I wish I could say it was hard, or maybe scary, but the truth was it was the most effortless thing I have ever experienced. In Blue, we have this kind of taboo that you have to be friends with a friend you make forever, or else you’ll be disliked, in a sense. I’m sure Red has that too, and the other factions. We have to do this because if you leave them, especially after being friends for a long time, it would hurt their feelings, wouldn’t it? So in school, on the first day, I was the shyest person around. But Blue makes it infinitely easier to find anyone to be your friend, and I’m sure you know why. The first person I met had a benevolent smile and radiated friendliness. I decided to speak to him. I asked, ‘Do you like to swim?’ Of course, he excitedly said he did. I then asked him many things, if he liked to gaze at the sky, if his favourite drink was water, if he liked watching the blue jays in the spring. He liked all of those things. I couldn’t say it surprised me. And that was the beginning of my long-term friendship with River, which was founded on the basis of the many things we had in common. Soon we spoke to other kids, and we formed our group. There’s me, River, Vein, Jeans, and Lake. The reason why it was so easy for me to make friends? We all liked the same things. In theory, any of the first few kids I talked to in that schoolyard could’ve been my lifelong friends. I soon found out this is not a Blue thing. This story matches Autumn’s with her first friend Blaze. Then, Carrot, Tiger, and Solar. Ash with his first friend Ink. Then Char, Pupil, and Smoke. Snow with her first friend Sclera. Then, Teeth, Cotton, and Dove. It soon came to me that we’ve all made our first friends this way. I’m sure you did, too. You’ve told me about Blood, Pepper, Cherry, Rose, and Brick. Why is it so appealing to me to instead have the choice to have to pick my friends, if they all had different opinions and tastes? Maybe I could have talked to River that day and asked if he liked to swim. And maybe he could have said no. Then all the other things I liked, he didn’t like either. Then I would become uninterested in him, as he would with me, and we would go find other kids to talk to who liked the things we did. Why does it give me a feeling that a world like that would be better? Is it because I like the thought everyone is equally and individually different, and I dislike the thought if everyone is the same? It must be that, because who wouldn’t want a world where the first person you talk to would be your friend since they inevitably like the same things you do? I don’t know why I prefer the opposite. Maybe it could be like this: you meet someone and tell them your interests. I like cruises. I like skydiving. I like tennis. And they would say: Cruises terrify me. I don’t like the thought of being stranded in the middle of the sea with the possibility of sinking. Skydiving is not a great experience for me, I don’t like it. Tennis? It’s the most boring game I have ever played. I hate it. Then you would understand, respect what they think, and move on. Maybe you get hurt a little at what they said about your favourite things, but still, move on. It’s understandable why they oppose what you think, with valid reasoning. And it totally makes sense on why you would feel a little hurt: because you believe yourself the things you like are good, and when someone else doesn’t say so, you disagree and feel a little bad. But it doesn’t matter. Find someone else. I find it better if you find someone to be friends with, or to be your partner if you both have things in common that suits both of you. It makes me feel like relationships between two people would be more special that way--you can give a reason to people on why you two are friends or partners. It just makes connections and relations more precious. But in Blue? Anyone can be your friends because of course, they like what you like. There’s no such thing as disagreements because of this. Don't you agree with what I’m saying?”

Mars nodded. He was barely listening, which he wouldn’t admit, but for the most part, everything Sky said was true. The only way a relationship can be special is because of the fact the two people of the relation are connected by special things. Would it be special if everyone else liked those special things? The relation would lose its uniqueness. Also, it was most definitely true that if someone wasn’t interested--maybe even disliked--the things you were into, most likely you wouldn’t be friends, more as acquaintances. You would respect each other professionally if it was your classmate or coworker, and you wouldn’t lose that relation and trust. Only, the relation would not go deeper and strengthen since you and the other individual were complete opposites in likings and tastes. Disinterest was what disconnected people over time. Friends lose value as you find new ones--it’s just how the world works. Maybe you spend more time with your new ones, but not because you have lost respect and grew hatred for your old ones, but either because of disinterest or physical distance.

“I just wanted to tell someone that,” Sky said. “Someone that I know has a lot of sense and logic. You, my friend, was the last one to join the original group, but I believe you have grown to be the most like what we strive to be. Unorthodox thinkers. You are the sanest in your sense of human instincts out of all of us. Most of us are still fond of what our faction likes. Ash is unlike the rest of us with his utterly different and opposite morals to us, the majority. Clover confessed he thinks the factions are right at some things, and Violet is still the most ingrained person into her own contingent. Rose, I still don’t know. She might be the least converted out of all of us. While we all believe the way we think is right, she still hangs on to the values of Red as if they are actually right, and she feels as if her thoughts and opinions are wrong. Possibly because she is the newest member into our group--the group that thinks opposite to what the leaders and the factions think. But you? You are the most…”

“Converted?” Mars said. “I wouldn’t get hurt by that. It’s true. I’d say the second most is Rose, and yet she is far from what I have been through. She hasn’t accepted wanting to be a Blue, yet. While I am not almost converted, but fully converted. I proclaim my colour identity as an Orange, while I was originally a Red. It doesn’t bother me that this is hated, and it doesn’t bother me that I am a converter. Yes, you’re right. I think I am the most converted. As in, the one out of all of us that opposes the country the most. I have seen hints that tell me you all still miss your old lives. You believe you might be thinking wrong this whole time, and the factions are right. Me? I have fully engrossed myself into our way of thinking. I have fully embraced the fact that we are the correct ones, and the factions are unethical. I have no doubts anymore. Red is my enemy, and I don’t care how much they try to intimidate me into their values. I am entirely independent in my opinion--I think what I want to think, and I have no regrets.”

Sky nodded. “As the only two boys here left, I’ll tell you something: I only wish I can be more like you. In truth, I feel like I can only strive to, but never get there. You may be the one that has a mind completely erased of Red’s opinions. Not me, or any of us. Who knows? You might’ve been the last to enter our forbidden group, but you were the first to develop your way of thinking out of any of us. They came naturally for you, didn’t they? You didn’t need to meet someone at the border of your contingent and another’s to open your eyes to the foolishness of the world. No, your thoughts came first. Then you met us. And we let you join because we wanted to think like you, not because you wanted to think like us. When did your first unusual thoughts come?”

Mars tried to remember. “I don’t really know. It must’ve been such a long time ago. I can tell you one thing my parents told me as I was a baby: I was the only one out of my brothers and sisters who spat out the applesauce they fed us. They said the closest to something like that they’d seen was from my older brother Cardinal. He first made a weird face as he tried it, but eventually, he ended up loving it more than any of us. But for me? The odd one out--I spat it out again and again, no matter how many times they tried to get me to eat it. They told me out of anyone in Red at that time, no one had seen anything like it. Every baby learned to love and eat applesauce the first time it was fed to them. But I didn’t. They thought eventually I’d learn to eat it, but as I grew up I never did. Always spat it out and cried. It was abnormal to them--they weren’t sure what to make of it. When I was older they fed me apple slices, and at least I liked those a little bit. They were relieved I did, or else they would ask other Reds on why I didn’t. They already had told everyone about my distaste of applesauce, which everyone else loved, of course, as a Red. They also fixed my mistake, giving me applesauce when I was older, telling me I could cause problems if I didn’t like it. So you know what I did? I lied. I ate it and said I loved it and was glad to see their faces of relief. It’s probably my longest kept secret. And, as a baby, that must’ve been the first time I rebelled in the opinion of Red. When was your first sign?”

Sky exhaled. “I never had it that early, like you. My first sign was when my friends and I biked around the neighbourhood. We were very young. Jeans mentioned that she got perfect on her test. Of course, as you know, no one can’t. It would be an offence for a student’s self-esteem. But she said she made so many mistakes, she should’ve actually failed. The teacher told this to her and said to do better next time, despite the perfect score. And the only reason for that perfect score was so she wouldn’t get hurt feelings. But she did, very much. She told us she cried all night. I’m not sure if you know, but Blue isn’t as strict on self-esteem as much as you told me how Red is. In fact, sometimes they encourage tears because that’s just how we are in Blue. We like to be sad. So, my first sign was when she told us that, and everyone understood and comforted her. But then I said, ‘So you failed one test. Why would you cry because of that? That’s a very melodramatic reason to cry.’ My friends all looked at me suspiciously, like I was crazy, and if they thought that, I wouldn’t know. They were supposed to hide their feelings to not hurt me. They couldn’t disagree either, so they said nothing. But the rest of the day, they ever so slightly avoided me more than usual. I felt terrible. I sincerely believed a failed test was not a good reason to cry, and I also knew my friends secretly disagreed with me. In Blue, that’s a perfect reason to cry. I had gone against Blue’s opinion and therefore thought differently than everyone else, which was not allowed. Luckily, no police went after me, even though it was clear I was a disagreer. So that was my first sign. It’s strange, isn’t it? These things are what everyone should know--that crying for one failed test is abnormal. But in Blue, it’s the total opposite.”

Mars sighed at the absurdity of the story. He was on Sky’s side without a doubt. He began to understand Red wasn’t the only foolish and contradictory faction--his friends experienced the many things he did in their own contingents, especially the process of finding out the rules and opinions of their factions are dumb. 

“With one look at a Blue, you can tell I’m not one of them,” Sky said. “Why? I have probably cried at most ten times in my life, even including my babyhood--my parents told me I cried a total of five times. It’s strange and abnormal for a Blue, who is expected to be sad and cry at least once a day. I mean, I see Rose being more of a Blue than me. Sometimes when we talk she ends up in tears because she’s scared, or in sadness toward the world. I always don’t know what to do--I can’t really cry at the same thing, I don’t do that. I’m not a Blue. And she does it because she’s on the path to becoming a Blue. She’s a converter. I just find it weird to cry so easily. It’s one of the many things I oppose as a converter, I suppose. What about you?”

Mars shrugged. “A lot of things I find dumb in Red. For no explainable reason, we have to wear our jackets inverted. We have to wear red schoolbags. We always apologize for the pettiest things. I got perfect on my math test! Oh, I’m sorry if I was seen as bragging. That could’ve hurt your feelings. And we have to think the sidewalk tiles are perfectly paved and the lampposts are perfectly even when most times they’re not.”

“Well, in Blue, every Monday we have to swim to school. Odd, but nonetheless the law. As I mentioned, we have to cry once a day, which is no problem for any Blue except me. I just can’t bring myself to cry that easily. I’m not as depressed as everyone else. I find myself like Daisy, a Yellow: always happy when outside in the sun. We have to brush our teeth after every single thing we eat, whether a snack or meal, and we have to thank our teacher for being a teacher every class, at least one compliment for every student. Mr. Neptune, thanks for being my teacher! That must’ve been the one sentence I’ve said the most in my life. It’s all these weird rules that make me hate Blue, sometimes.”

“I agree. I also have to walk in my class every day and tell the teacher a compliment. Nice shoes, Ms. Lipstick! It bothers me when one day they’re actually really ugly. Like her.”

Sky laughed at that. “Anyway, do you think we should be finding the girls at this point? They’ve been panicking at the absence of Clover--especially since it’s been around two days by now. They’ve been searching everywhere for hours. Want to know what I think? Not to be negative, but I believe he’s been caught by the rainbow police.”

“Don’t tell the girls, but I think so too.”

“Well, it seems we have a mutual agreement. Let’s go find them.”

“Hold on. We were told to find food, remember? And we’ve found nothing. Also, I can’t believe they care so much more about Clover than Ash. It’s what I said, remember? We only secretly hate Ash for thinking differently, even if he followed all our rules and thought he was innocent.”

“But you have to admit he was kind of a jerk, and a lunatic, right?”

“So you’re one of them? Am I the only one who empathizes his death? I feel guilty because I killed him, and you all don’t seem to care only because it was him or Snow. And you’d rather keep Snow any day. I’m willing to assume you all are relieved he’s gone.”

“If you really want to know, Rose told me they all are.”

“What happened to staying as a group unconditionally? Especially since Ash didn’t break any conditions. He only disagreed with all of us simultaneously, but that’s allowed, isn’t it? What he thought was wrong to all of us, and what we all thought was wrong to him, but did he care? He accepted us, but we didn’t accept him.”

“He has the morals of an insane person. Only insanity can be the cause of someone thinking killing and stealing is good. And he accepted us? He tried to run away.”

“Albeit because he has much less empathy than all of us. There’re two sides here: you, and all the rest of you. You all think we shouldn’t have been so nice to him, while I digress. The only difference between why the group mourns for Clover more than Ash is because of what they think. And didn’t we disclose that the opinions of someone shouldn’t reflect on who they are as a person? Isn’t that what we stand for as converters? We have become contradictory. Didn’t I say we are becoming more like the factions? That’s proof of it. We judged Ash on his opinions, just like how they judge us on ours as converters and hate us for them. Everyone should receive the same amount of sympathy and compassion, no matter what they think.”

“So you believe a criminal should be thought of the same as an innocent?”

“I do. They’re both people.”

“A monster is born when a criminal arises. I disagree. But that’s what we stand for, isn’t it? The ability and freedom to disagree. Maybe we think differently, but that doesn’t make us enemies--unlike what the factions think. You’re a good person, Mars. You think with the utmost empathy that can be possible. And it doesn’t mean you are the nicest person--because you can be cruel sometimes. It only means you think best in other’s views.”

“I’m cruel sometimes?”

“Well, yes. You pushed Ash off the edge of a cliff to save Snow because of your empathy--you knew how much more trouble Snow was in, so you helped her. As I said, having a lot of empathy doesn’t mean you are nice. I’m not saying you are the opposite of nice. Only you act on instinct, which meant you had to push Ash off.”

“But I regret it. I could’ve just stopped him, talked to him, or bargained. Draw up a covenant so we won’t see him as dangerous anymore.”

“So maybe something clicked in your mind that withdrew all of that. Maybe as you saw him bringing Snow closer to the ledge, you understood through empathy how much emotional abuse she was put through from him, and you wanted to end it once and for all. You wanted Snow to be safe from Ash because you understood how unsafe she felt whenever he’s around. You understood that if it were you, you would wish Ash would somehow die already so you can be free. Why else would you have the courage and willingness to kill him? Your instinct of making others survive overrides your morality. You care more about the safety of other people than those who don’t, and of your safety, too. You and all of us knew--Snow is innocent. Very innocent. So you put the facts together: Ash was the target, and you couldn’t do anything else but push him off to save Snow. All this went through your head in a second without your consent. It’s how your mind is built, the second you were born, the second you spat out that applesauce.”

“I feel regret because now my empathy has shifted from Snow to Ash, then?”

“Yes. Don’t feel guilty, Mars. There’s a difference between murder and killing.”

Mars got up from their stakeout position. “That’s it. I’m going to find the girls. We’ve done nothing but waste time we could’ve used to find game, and I’m worried about them. If it’s true the rainbow police caught Clover that easily, they can catch any one of us here, right now.”

Sky agreed and followed him. “Do you realize we’re certainly going to come into an encounter with them when we reach home? They must be patrolling the streets of every contingent at this moment, wondering if any of us stayed behind and chose to hide in our houses. Dwellings, sorry.”

“Residence,” Mars said. “I’m an Orange.”

“Right. But there’s the likelihood they’re not searching our residences right now. Logical reasoning: no matter how much our parents love us, they don’t love us unconditionally. The moment we reveal we’re a converter they’ll hate us as much as society does. So they would never let us hide in our homes. They can’t stand the thought of a disgusting converter living with them. They would feel uncomfortable at the amount of disagreement tension in the air beside one. So because of that, the rainbow police would deduct the impossibility of us hiding in our own residences. But at the same time, what if we are? So they’re probably still searching, just to make sure.”

“I’m not going home.”

“But we all are. We’re all returning to the factions.”

“The factions, yes. But I’m never setting a foot on Red again. Orange is no better, but Autumn and I agreed she’d help me find a place to live there.”

“I keep forgetting you’re a full converter. Well, for me, I actually feel a little happy I’m returning to Blue. It’s the only place I’ve ever felt alive in, but probably with the exception of Yellow. I just can’t resist those mangoes.”

It took a while to find them all, but soon the group was complete. Bad news for everyone: without Ash, Mars and Sky were clueless to find food, and Clover was still nowhere to be seen. They really had no option but to make it back to their homes. One more week of starvation out here, and they weren’t going to make it. Of course, the threat of the rainbow police was as high as their current position, possibly higher, but what choice did they have? They had nowhere to run.

“But there’s one thing I saw while looking for Clover,” Rose said. “It’s not good. It actually scared me how close I was to him. I was walking randomly until I spotted him, very close. I’m not sure if he saw me, but it was a lone ranger with a rainbow badge. He was setting a trap, I think. I ran away as fast as I could while trying to make no noise. We have to go.”

“No!” Violet said, and everyone looked at her. “Please, stay here a while longer. We can find Clover, I promise. He isn’t caught by the rainbow police. He’s still somewhere here, lost, looking for us. Please.”

“Violet?” Daisy asked in confusion as if it wasn’t her. 

“No, I think being around you all has caused me on my path to conversion,” she said, her expression full of fear. “Melodrama? I think I’m becoming a Blue. I even asked if you all would stay as my friend no matter what I do. Why would I do that? I would never do something sappy like that. I’ve also been worrying about finding water the most--you all don’t even care about it--and I’ve gazed at the sky more times than I can remember, which only began recently.”

“There’s no doubt we have all experienced a change of character in you lately,” Mars said. “Whether that’s good news or not for you, Violet we have to move. The rainbow police have been trying to locate our position from day one. We don’t take a break from being hunted.”

The rest agreed. Sky continued to lead the way. 

As they walked, Daisy caught up next to Mars, and said, “I may have to confess something too. We know Purple is known for always being scared, unadventurous, and cowardly, right?”

Mars nodded. They all knew the story of why Violet had opposed her faction. She was probably the toughest and scariest person he knew. She didn’t take no for an answer and was sometimes arrogant and stubborn. It was the opposite of a true Purple, who valued fear and paranoia. 

“I might be a converter too,” Daisy said. “I mean, I always was, for thinking differently. But now, I think I’m becoming a Purple. And I wanted to tell you because you don’t know yet, but remember when we first started out here? We all knew that not all of us were converters, but the rainbow police assume that and are hunting all of us. But now I’ve found out we’ve all been experiencing changes. I’ve begun to always get scared, and you all thought it was merely my personality, but it’s not the only clue. I always wait until everyone is served their share of fruit and nuts before we eat. When there’s the last piece, I ask everyone if I may have it. I excuse myself sometimes and go somewhere private just because I have to sneeze. Ridiculous, isn’t it? I’m beginning to value manners more than anything. I’m sure you all aren’t bothered if I sneeze while I’m talking to you all, right?”

“Not the slightest. Be comfortable around us.”

“Because we’re close friends? That’s what I’ve been telling myself, but I still go away to sneeze because I keep thinking it would be rude if I accidentally sneezed on any of you. So I’m a Purple. That’s not all. I’m not sure if anyone has noticed yet, but whenever I talk to Autumn, it’s like she’s always angry at me for no reason. It could be the stress of our current situation, but I don’t think so. You also said she likes some things that Reds do. That, plus the fact she’s always mad for no reason--a Red, isn’t it? You’ve told us before that Reds have a tendency to be angry for no reason, but they also have the capability to love more than a usual person. And Sky? He said he hates night and likes the day when the sun is out. He also said he would eat sticky notes if he had the chance, and one time he randomly told me his favourite animal was a giraffe. The first sign of conversion was his strong liking to mangoes, wasn’t it? Finally, Snow…”

“Enough,” Mars said. “Maybe we’re all converters now, but there’s no need to analytically criticize each sign. It’s a paranoid act. Which I suppose can be explained by you becoming a Purple.”

“I think that’s the reason as well. I’m emulating the thought process of a normal Purple: always worrying and being scared. I’ve alienated myself, and I feel terrible. It’s not that I want to stay a Yellow, but I don’t want the deadly stigma of a converter. It’s dangerous. I suppose I can’t do anything about it. If I feel like a Purple, then I am one. But when I return home, I’ll be hated. I have to try to hide it. Hide my queerness.”

“It’s okay to be a converter. You must understand that--everyone should. Because it’s the truth. Being a converter doesn’t make you any less of a person, any less human.” 

#

Nightfall neared after hours of hiking and resting. Due to the very real threat of the rainbow police now on their tail, the group decided to light no fire. It was too dangerous, no matter how badly they needed it. They found a spot right at the base of a hill, with a slight overhang, to hide while they slept. The only sounds they heard were crickets, and the slight whimpering of Daisy, who was too scared to do anything else. 

“Shut up!” Autumn whispered. “You’re going to get us all killed! I’ll rip you in half!”

“Stay calm,” Mars told her. To help her ease herself, he put an arm around her as she leaned toward him. “They can be anywhere. I honestly don’t know how they haven’t found us yet. But don’t you worry.”

“Everyone, don’t move,” Sky said. 

They all saw it. Behind them, from someone on top of the hill, came a beam of light. A lone rainbow policeman, searching the area with a flashlight. Everyone was too much in fear and shock to even breathe--which helped them in this case. They couldn’t afford the slightest sound, so Snow covered Daisy’s mouth when she began to sob.

They watched the beam move around. Left and right. The holder didn’t make a single sound in return, and the forest seemed to become silent. Forever had passed since the holder moved on, the light disappearing. Mars mentally sighed, and he felt Autumn trembling against him--or it could’ve been him, he didn’t know. The silence continued for so long that he fell asleep. 

He dreamt of evil policemen, corrupted officials, and people in the shadows of dark alleyways. 

And he had to be awoken by a scream. Of course, he did.

XIV

“I can’t believe people have the audacity to hate other people based on if they are a Red, or Blue, or any other colour identity. An example: that man looks like a Green. I prefer Oranges, and see them more human as those Green queers, so I will hate him even if I have not considered them as a person and their inner personality whatsoever. Or: I am hiring a worker. One is a Blue, one is a Purple. I think Purples are ugly, so I’ll hire the Blue, no matter how much better the Purple is at the job. It’s this hatred toward colour identity that sometimes makes me wonder if making everyone believe in whatever opinion they want is a good idea. Maybe it’s not. Maybe what they think will sincerely disturb and hurt someone. Another example: I’m a Yellow, and I have a dispassionate and utter hatred toward the Red people. Simply because they are Red, not because they are bad people. What if an opinion like this, that someone owns, hurts others terribly? Maybe the factions can be reasonable in that they don’t tolerate different opinions, only because those opinions can potentially be truly evil. So there are benefits and drawbacks to a world where people can think whatever they want. Even if what they think might not be unethical, it may still hurt others. Because a world with ultimate freedom is bound to inevitably have evilness. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ll say it again: it’s why we have regimes and rules. Because of the possibility that someone will break them. We’ve had this conversation before: when Clover said there is a side of goodness to the restriction of different opinions. I’ve thought about it, and he could be right. The majority of humanity think similarly, for the most part, about ethics. If someone thinks differently by choice, because of the freedom to have an individual opinion, he or she will always be hated by the majority for being unethical. So the question is, should we restrict the differentiation of opinions, or not? If we do, people will be allowed to think badly. For example, colour identity hatred. Thinking the blank people are inferior to their blank own people, only because of what they look like, or what they believe in, or any other reason--sometimes no reason other than they are different in comparison to them, and unfamiliarity is deemed dangerous.”

“Yes,” Autumn said. “The truth is, it would be a terrible world where people aren’t allowed to think what they want. But it always happens inevitably, in every civilization and historic time period, no matter what. And that is the forcing of ethical belief. It is a mutual and widely-known agreement on humankind on what is good and what is bad, and if you think bad you’ll be hated. In a way, every civilization already has limitation and restrictions on what people are allowed to think. The freedom of thought is never real as long as there’s a majority that agrees on one thing. That majority will overpower the minority and dictate what they should think to them. No matter what, every civilization will do this. There has never been a time we were allowed to think how we wanted to, for there are always people that try to enforce the idea of the ethics of the majority of humankind. A world with the restriction of thought has never been more real, always existing, and without a possibility of not existing.”

The group had continued on their path as soon as morning came. Everyone was too tired to speak except Mars and Autumn, and their topic of conversation was expected. Mars couldn’t stop thinking about Red, and it worsened with the thought he was returning to it now. 

“But please, take your mind off those things for once,” Autumn said. “You worry about it too much. Remember what I told you when we were on that canoe?”

“Of course. I’ll never forget that memory. You told me to stop worrying about the topic of Red, even offering to stop speaking about it so as to not invigorate any of it in me. But I can’t stop thinking--ranting in my head about the absurdity. And how can I not worry? A single scream this morning woke us up, and before we knew it, Violet is nowhere to be seen. It troubles me.”

Finally, someone else spoke up. “We have to conduct a search for her,” Rose said. “We did for Clover, we have to for her. But I know what you’re all thinking. It’s certain she was abducted. She wouldn’t leave in the middle of the night and get lost by herself.”

“So we can’t waste time,” Mars said. “I’m sorry, but we have to leave them behind. We have no idea how to find them, and most likely they’re in the rainbow police’s custody now. A manhunt will waste time and energy that we need to return home.”

“Speaking of home, what do you think is happening in Red now, Mars?”

“I don’t know, but for sure, it’s either in ruins or still the same. To tear down Red, it is hard but simple. An argument can do it, but to spread that argument, or make people spend their energy into the argument, it is hard. Because no one wants to disagree--it is built in their very own mind and instincts not to.”

“But everyone knows our faces,” Sky said. “We’ll be caught in an instant. At least, our own contingents will recognize our faces. We will have to find a house to live in, in a faction not our own.”

Mars still couldn’t stop thinking about Clover and Violet. Were they being interrogated at the moment? Maybe even already dead? The signs of conversion would be clear for Violet. They would find out she is the Purple in the group, and would also see her weeping and being scared of them, and they would assume she is converting into a Blue. Clover would be hard to find out. In fact, he could be the new least-converted out of them all, even admitting going in the other direction by believing Green is right in some aspects of what they think. It was possible they could make an agreement for him to be put back into his home. But it was unlikely. Everyone knew how dangerous it was to be a converter, and how much hatred was aimed at you. The rainbow police would have no mercy. The moment they find evidence of conversion in someone, they will take that person and bring him or her into their headquarters. And only a fool wouldn’t know what happened there--brutal torture and execution. Converters were a plague to society, it was believed. It perplexed Mars how they thought that way when it was simply a matter of luck in where that person was born. If a person converting to Red was born in Red, there would be no problem there. But how unlucky would that person be if born in another faction? Then that person would be deemed a converter, and hated, simply because of the circumstances of birth. It was a matter of privilege--the most privileged are the ones lucky at where they were born. If Mars was born in Orange, he would not be a converter. It was the same as the case of his teacher, Ms. Lipstick, who was born in her body--the one that Mars found repulsive. He felt guilty in identifying her that way and knew it would definitely hurt her feelings. But how can he argue with the truth? You can lie to yourself every day about a false truth, and it wouldn’t change that false truth. But that’s what he realized: privilege. Ms. Lipstick must’ve gotten less of it because of her appearance, which Mars found unfair, but he also knew there could be nothing done about it. Maybe people say appearance didn’t matter, but that didn’t change the truth that less-repulsive people received more opportunities and privilege. It could be inadvertent--totally innocent and unintentional. A person hiring an actor: There are two candidates. Applicant one is more handsome than applicant two. And without knowing it, he chooses applicant one not out of hatred for applicant two, but simply on natural instinct, since applicant one must’ve appealed better because of his genetic aesthetics. And again, a decision such as that would be totally inadvertent. The person hiring would be unaware of what really made his decision, unknowing it was the appeal of the attractiveness, and thinking he made a fair decision. It could be like that, and to prove it further was if applicant two had proven himself to be tremendously better at the job, but still wasn’t chosen. Although, it would be fair if applicant one was better. There must be many cases of this in the world. For one, and the biggest one Mars knew, was for finding a partner. Mars found nothing wrong with wanting to find a more attractive person to be your partner or spouse--basing a choice on appearance--but if you only wanted attractive people, you would exclude a whole range of people that you would never know if they were suitable for you. They possibly could--maybe it could’ve been who they were on the inside that made you like them. But you would never find out if you strayed from them--average-looking people or subjectively ugly people. And of course, it was a higher chance of finding someone attractive attracted to you was if you were attractive yourself, which was what Mars knew was another case of genetic privilege. He knew that no matter what anybody said, everyone wasn’t equal--in the sense of being a person. Their rights and opportunities could be, but them as a person would never be equal. There would always be people better than you at something, or worse than you at something. There would always be the excelling and the inferiors. It was this fact that made the truth the truth: that you can make everyone start on the same line, but it doesn’t mean they will all reach the finish line at the same time. So, that explained the properties of privilege. Mars now understood many examples that could explain how it worked. And the one that he knew the most was the birth circumstances of a converter because he had experienced it himself his entire life. Converters would never be considered equal to a non-queer. No, their eccentric characteristics would set them apart because they were different, and they would never receive the same rights because of it. It was this unfairness that always angered Mars, but he knew no one but his friends would agree with him. Not even all his friends agreed--he knew Violet disagreed. He wondered if he should hate her for that--only because he knew for sure he was the correct side. But didn’t the group make it clear that there was no right or wrong opinion? He was beginning to see flaws and contradictoriness in the group’s rules and ideas, more evidence they were on the path to becoming the factions. He wanted to hate Violet for not liking converters, but how could he? Violet had never shown any more distasteful feelings toward him compared to everyone else. She treated him equally as everyone else. It was then he realized that this was the perfect person--the ideal one that he knew everyone should be like. Violet disagreed with converters, always acknowledging her hatred for them. But she still treated them fairly and equally as if they were not even a converter. She disagreed but yet didn’t let her hatred get the best of her, still treating converters such as Mars and Rose with respect. That was how it should be like with people who hated them. Hate in opinion, but to still be nice to them. Treat them as a human even if you yourself disagree with it. The only reason conversion-hatred is bad for converters if because of the actions and feelings that go along with it--persecution, harassment, shame. But if none of that was real, while still allowing people to hate converters since it’s their own free choice to, it would be better. Yes, it would still feel bad that people despise you on the inside, even if they don’t show you by still treating you as a regular person, but it’s fair: allow them to think what they want--though morally wrong in your own view--and they will still treat you fairly as a person. You disagree with them, but hatred is nonexistent. That was the ideal world Mars wanted, he was sure now. A world where disagreements are allowed--unlike Red--but hatred is not. It may be hard to achieve such a world, but he knew it was possible. Even if you think it’s disturbing and unethical people hate converters, they deserve the free will to choose what they want to believe--they deserve to own opinions. At least they won’t harm you based on it. You’ll still have the privileges of a non-converter. What better world can you ask for, where everyone is happy? People are allowed to hate converters, while converters get the same privileges. But again, there would still be people who disagree with that, because they don’t think people should be allowed to practice conversion-hatred since it’s unethical. But it would be unethical in their sense since they’re not allowing converter haters to think what they want. Sure, maybe thinking converter queers are terrible is morally wrong, but what else can you do? Force them to think otherwise? That would be violating their ability to own an opinion, no matter how bad or evil the opinion is. The perfect example was Ash: in a way, he was actually innocent. No one else agreed, but Mars knew it was true. He was following all the rules--possibly with the exception of not compromising the group, as he wanted to kill Snow. But Mars knew the reason why no one was sad at his death was their secret despise. They hated him for being a creep, thinking the bad things are good, and the good things are bad. They related him to a serial sadist. The similarities weren’t far off. But Ash was merely having a different opinion. And again, though the opinion is unethical and totally morally wrong in the view of human empathy, he was still following the rules by having a different opinion--which was the common idea the whole group stood for and the factions opposed. It was all this that made Mars feel bad for having to kill Ash to save Snow. Yes, Snow was more valuable as her heart was purer, and Ash really was evil by trying to kill her, but he still felt empathy for him. All people should deserve empathy, no matter who they are, evil or good. Why? Because they are still human creatures, very much the same as you and everyone else. There’s a reason all criminals at trials have the right to a lawyer. Not only the possibility that the suspect might actually be innocent--and being framed--but also the possibility the act the suspect did might be justifiable. Also, it was the same empathy that was responsible for prisons. It might be too cruel to kill the criminal--fairer if the life was kept and secured in a facility. Humanity has had millennia to perfect their wisdom of justice, and as a result, was the modern trial system. It was possibly the fairest way of treating a suspect or criminal with fairness, justice, and empathy. The closest to perfect--but still not perfect. Mars knew it was possible that suspects were still deemed guilty even if they truly were innocent. Maybe the false evidence against them was strong, or the person who made the plan to frame them was very good at it. There would be no way to tell unless you violated the mind and saw their inner thoughts. And Mars had already concluded that it wasn’t possible to do so. A person’s mind was the most personal anything can get. Without the advantage of reading a mind, nothing can be truly certain. Evidence can always be fake. It was scary that way, how you can never be safe from being claimed guilty, no matter how innocent you are.

They spent the day mostly looking for food. They were getting closer and closer to starvation. Dangerously close. Their energy was expelled at a faster rate, and being tired had become an expectation. With their exhaustion came stress. While walking, Snow would accidentally step on Autumn’s foot behind her. She would apologize, but Autumn would throw a fit of rage, telling her not to do it again or she would choke her to death. Daisy continued to submerse herself in her paranoia, always mentioning the danger they were in and how close to death they all were if the didn’t find food. Sky couldn’t stop commenting about how beautiful the sun was and his craving for mangoes. And Rose couldn’t stop crying for no reason. Mars found that annoying, but he supposed she was a true Blue now. Though he wouldn’t admit it, he found that a bit funny. But humour wasn’t valued at a time like this when the rainbow police were dead on their trail and they were going to die of hunger. 

They took a rest after a huge uphill. There were fallen logs they sat on. Rose offered to try to find water since they were all thirsty. It was also clear why she would be the one to want it the most.

“No,” Mars said. “Have you forgotten what happened to Clover?”

So she agreed to hold in her thirst. They sat for a while and admired the view for their high vantage point. 

Autumn, sitting next to Mars, said, “I have to tell you something.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t pester me!” she yelled. “I’m going to tell you already! I mean, that was what I was going to tell you. That I’m definitely a Red. I didn’t see it in me at the time, but I suppose the stress of our days has revealed it. I’m sorry for being angry all the time, but I’m on the path to conversion. What I wanted to tell you was that I never felt much sympathy for you as a converter, Mars, simply because I didn’t share much of your experience. It truly is terrible to be one, at least, because of the stigma. I wanted to tell you it’s okay to be a converter. I feel your pain. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. And I realized that through the fact that I am now a converter, I don’t feel any less human. I’m still the same person, no matter what my opinions are as a converter. I’m still a person. I’m saying this because I believed in what Violet said. That converters are not good. I doubted you as a person when you told me you are an Orange. I was also secretly against you living in Orange, thinking that’s not a good idea because you’re a Red. Now I understand. You’re not a Red anymore. And now I’ll welcome and guide you in Orange. I wasn’t ready to do so yet, only because I still doubted the humanity in converters. I have fallen victim to the stigma that they’re disgusting. The factions don’t allow us to think what we want, and only to think what they want so disagreements won’t happen, and wars won’t be started. But they’re wrong. Disagreement is a human right, no matter if people disagree. Ha, they couldn’t if it was true. That’s quite funny. But I’m saying that the leaders have good intentions in not allowing disagreement, their method is just unethical. People should think what they want, and say their opinions, and not have to worry if people get hurt by them. They shouldn’t care if society thinks their opinions are morally wrong and bad, because society would be wrong in trying to make everyone think one way. I’ve said before no civilization is unlike the factions: they say you are free but you’re not. You have to act a certain way, especially in public, or else the society will question you. You have to believe in the right things, or else society will question you. You have to behave good, or else society will question you. And when they question you, they’ll force you to be normal. Every society will always restrict personal thought, as long as your personal thought disagrees with their values. And it’s simply because of the majority--that’s what society practically is, isn’t it? Society is simply the majority. And they will always make you think one way. There’s no such thing as free thought. It may be for good intentions, as I’ve said: to make sure disagreements won’t cause hatred, and the hatred won’t cause wars. But even if it’s for good intentions, it’s still bad. So I wanted to tell you that. And I wanted to apologize for acting differently--I’m a converter now. I’m a Red. I lied to you when I said I thought apples are average in taste. No, they’re delicious. They’re the best fruit by far, and of course, you don’t have to agree with me. I also have an urge to invert any jacket I wear, and I even prefer to keep my devices low in the battery just to see that precious, divine colour. I’m guilty of Red actions and thoughts. Even what I’m saying now proves it. I’m overly confessing and apologizing to you because I value your feelings, and everyone else’s, more than anything. More than my own life. I know you all accept my angry attitude now, knowing I’m converting, but I still yet have to say sorry for it. So I’m sorry if my anger has hurt any of your feelings. If any of you felt bad, I can join Ash at the bottom of the cliff, manually, if that’s what you prefer. And if any of you disagree I’ll tear your arms off your shoulders!”

“It’s okay,” Mars said. “Yes, we all know you have been secretly hiding your Redness. It’s something every converter does. They’re ashamed of changing their image publicly because of the stigma and hatred against them. But it’s better to accept your colour identity than lie about it. When I confessed my conversion, I immediately felt relieved to get something off my chest. I didn’t even care if they would not hate me or not accept me--I knew they would for certain anyway. And being a Red means you have the capability to love more than usual. Yes, we can get very angry very easily, but the opposite is just as strong. There’s just a correlation between Red and anger and love--maybe because of the face’s colour while you express those feelings? Possibly.”

“Yes, I do love. I love your and everyone else’s feelings more than anything. I already said I’d die if you all weren’t happy. Your feelings matter more to me than anything else in the world. I don’t want to hurt them and I’d die if I did.”

Spoken like a true Red, Mars thought. It seemed she really was a converter. Mars knew at some point they would all reveal their conversions. That was why they were all together in the first place--because they all opposed the ideals and values of their own faction. It also seemed that his friends began to reveal them only after he told everyone his new colour identity as an Orange. Was it because they admired his courage to, and wanted to confess themselves? Maybe they saw how well it went for him, so they were inspired. 

Mars looked at Snow. “What about you?”

“What about me?” she asked.

“The only thing I know about you is that you’re against the idea of agreeing on both opposing ideas at once, because of the absurdity in its contradictoriness. That's why you hated White. But there’s a converter in you somewhere.”

“And if there isn’t? Will you hate me, since I’m the only non-queer here?”

“That would be reversed of the stigma, but still the same concept. No, we wouldn’t hate you.”

“What if I told you I feel like a Black? That I agree with the contingent’s morals and values? Would you hate me like how you all hated Ash? Will you secretly despise me for thinking acts of evil are good?”

“Well, are you a Black?”

“I don’t know what I am. I know I must be a converter, as I don’t feel like a White. But I’m still unsure. Maybe I’ll never find out. Maybe I’ll remain a White, in a sense, by agreeing with all factions, all at once. It’s far-fetched, but it could be possible. I’d still be a White, but a different kind of one.”

“An interesting possibility. There’s no way of saying it’s not true. And the more you describe it, I believe that’s actually what you are. You have no specific values or views. You’re open to everything, always. I mean, you don’t disagree with us, and you didn’t disagree with Ash: he did bad things and you didn’t question it in the slightest. Of course, he did those things to survive, such as stealing food while you were both fugitives. But yes, you don’t have any opinions. I didn’t think it was possible, too. I thought everyone, no matter what, will develop automatic and unintentional personal beliefs.”

“Then you’re wrong,” Snow said.

They continued to hike after the break. They mostly walked in silence, and it was relieving for Mars. He didn’t know when the last time was that he had felt such a complex closeness with his friends. None of them spoke a word and yet they communicated. Sky, leading them, stepped over certain plants on the ground that could be harmful, and everyone followed without him saying anything. Rose found a stream and pointed to it, telling everyone to refill the jugs they stole from the convenience store without speaking. It was such a profound moment for all of them. Sometimes silence spoke louder than words, especially when everyone was too tired to talk. The rainbow police could listen, too. Did they think of that? Mars was sure if they did, they would have all been caught by now. So why weren’t they?

In the evening, he and Daisy were left with the responsibility to guard the area, looking out for their pursuers since they all knew with two abductions, it was clear they were on their path, and it was also undeniable it was them. It had shaken everyone when they found Violet to be missing in the morning, oddly thinking how none of them was taken along with her. It wasn’t as if she was alone. They were all close by when they had slept at the base of that hill. But mysteriously, they had taken her while they had all been sleeping.

Sky and Rose were left to find food, which at this point was nearly impossible without Ash, who knew how to spear fish. Catch rabbits before they reached their holes. What plants had edible berries and seeds, and which mushrooms were non-poisonous. He also knew how to perfectly cook each thing at the fire. Yes, he was a pure survivalist. Snow spoke of how good he was at it sometimes, and always mentioned she was only alive because of him. Of course, they didn’t live off the wild--occasionally, they’d steal food in whatever faction they currently visited. Never their own, as they were being pursued there.

Autumn and Snow were tasked to make a fire. It seemed everyone was paired in two. Mars remembered Autumn strictly saying it was mandatory, and no one should forget. The rainbow police were out there and the worst thing to do was to let them have you alone. It was a perfect, zero-witness opportunity that any fool would give them.

“I know you’ll hate me for this, but sometimes I miss my old life,” Daisy said. “Though shallow, I miss my friends Sunny, Taxi, and Schoolbus. I regret coming out here. Maybe--and I’m sorry for saying this--if I had stayed behind in Yellow and not went with you all, it would have been better for me. It’s because I don’t think we’ll win. I know we care a lot for Clover and Violet, but the truth is we can’t do anything. We’re powerless to stop the rainbow police, who are undoubtedly picking us off one by one before we even reach our homes.”

“We all have regrets.”

“Yes, but I’m guilty of having them. Only because I don’t want any of you to think I’m disloyal. But we were reckless to think we can escape them. We only produced more suffering for us. But it’s true we’ve learned many things on the way, and many tragic events have happened that make me also not regret our flee. But the rainbow police is winning right now. And it reminds me of a fictional story that Clover told me once, that his friend Jalapeño told him, whose friend Grass told him, whose friend Leaf told her, and I don’t remember the rest. It’s kind of a funny story, too. Possibly my favourite.”

“I’m listening.”

“So there’s this person named Luse. He liked to race people. But the problem was, he always came last. He was simply slow, as people told him. He was harassed for it, too. He was put to shame, made fun of, and bullied to the point where he doubted himself. He had a specific bully he hated very much, whose name was Suhsaiatee. This bully was the fastest runner in his school. So Luse wanted to prove to everyone he had the potential to beat him, by challenging him to a race. Now, this bully was built for running, and it wasn’t just his hobby. It was his profession. Luse’s opponent was a meticulously designed and perfectly flawless person, and I mean his body’s genetics was designed against failure. He had the perfect build for winning races. And Luse was a tiny insignificant gnat who had everyone believing he wouldn’t do anything to the bully’s legacy. But you know what? After the countless insults and harassments, Luse trained and trained. No one thought it was even close to possible for him to win the race, but in the end, he did. He proved everyone wrong. He had won against Suhsaiatee. After that? He had a sudden, random urge to legally change his name to Whin. The end.”

“That’s such a simple story.” 

“Is it? I never thought so.” She exhaled. “I always found it amusing because of its deep complexity.”

Telling each other stories reminded Mars of how he used to do it with his Red friends, as they walked home, every day. He also remembered how he had never heard a joke in his life. A real one, at least.

“How about you tell me a joke instead, to pass the time,” Mars said. “The stress of our situation is overpowering, and I need to laugh. To be happy about something.”

“Oh. Well, I don’t have many. But I do know one that is sure to get a laugh out of you. Here’s my joke.”

About a minute passed before Mars asked, “What is it?”

“That’s it,” she said. I know it’s not the humour you’re expecting, but my humour is humourless, which is why it’s funny. I consider that true humour.”

Another moment of silence passed. Then both of them began laughing hysterically at the stupidity of the joke. Mars had never felt so happy in his life--laughing about nothing, which was what he found funny.

“I’m going to get water from the stream behind that huge rock,” Daisy said. Mars let her. Although there was something he had to remember, was there? Well, if he could remember it, he would know it by now. And he didn’t. So he let her go alone.

XV

“Daisy? Daisy? Daisy!” How stupid of him! Now he had gotten everyone to look for her, but of course, it was pointless. She was nowhere to be seen, and a mere hour ago was likely the last time they would ever see her again.

“I told you to never let your assigned partner out of sight!” Autumn scolded him. Even a dumb person would know she was very, very angry, and that was why Mars knew. 

“I’m sorry,” he said. He couldn’t deny that the fact he was extremely forgetful and sometimes naive, was how the group had so much trouble. Bringing flashlights? No, not a chance. Staying with your assigned partner? Too much to expect of him. And he couldn’t believe how close she actually was when she disappeared--the stream of water was only right around the huge rock that blocked his view of it. The rainbow police were ghosts, incredibly expert at hiding from them. They could even be around them right now, watching them. The thought made him shudder.

“It doesn’t take a smart person to figure out that you’ve caused two of the permanent losses of our group,” Sky said. “And I’ve never felt sympathy for Ash’s loss, I’ll admit, but the fact is we’d still have him to help us find food if you had thought of negotiating first, instead of driving him off the cliff!”

Mars was familiar with guilt. He could do this all day; listen to their insults and scoldings. It wouldn’t affect him. He already knew his fault. It was true that maybe they would still have Ash and Daisy if he hadn’t been so careless. But there was a point to be made for his side: the rainbow police were going to catch them all anyway. They might as well turn themselves in for their executions. Converters did and will never have a chance at making themselves equals--people will always hate them. This unfortunate series of losses had made him believe winning was out of the equation. It always was--they never had a real or clear idea of where to go and what to do. It was a blind escape, making the rainbow police chase them in circles for the pointlessness of it. Only making them do more work--and still, that work would inevitably be completed. But he didn’t want their misfortune to lead them into panic and gloom. They had a tendency to capture them one by one, for whatever reason. He knew the group would become smaller and smaller until there was one person left, and that person would stand no chance. Did they even want to endure it any longer? They were in their hands now. Was it better to surrender? There were five of them left, which included him, Sky, Autumn, Rose, and Snow. 

“It’s not that we hate you, but be more careful,” Autumn said. “But also, we really hate you!”

Mars knew to ignore her--she was only acting on her Red conversion. And the statement had a tinge of White.

“How close are we home?” Snow asked. “I haven’t seen mine in forever.”

“We’re nearing it, is my guess,” Sky said. “Let’s keep moving, even during the night. We’re dying of starvation, and our bodily excretions are minimal because of it.”

They continued on with the dreadful sense of hopelessness. They individually knew it was a waste of effort to run, and the worth was nothing, but they never said it aloud. One thing they all must’ve wondered, which Mars knew they probably have at some point, were the latent methods of capture by the rainbow police. Strangely, they had not seen a single trap set in the woods. They had never seen any face to face, and they chose to capture one by one. It was peculiar, but nonetheless proficient. As long as you were in their vicinity they could steal you silently and quickly by some unknown phenomenal way. 

So the path was long and wiry, their destination the reason they left in the first place. But who could argue that they had another choice? They were weary from the journey, and they had reached the limits of their capabilities. They wanted to go home. But they would face the same problem: who would accept them? To everyone, they were seen the same as cutthroats, but the repulsion was possibly worse. They were abominable and unwelcomed. 

And Red? Mars knew it was the last place on the planet he wanted to go to. Its values seemed so illogical to him, and he didn’t want any of it. They were all shallow--always hurt by the pettiest things. It was such a pain to live there. Every second he had to be careful about what to say, so most days he said barely anything at all. Anything he spoke could hurt feelings, and no one wanted that. He liked to think of Red as a place where everyone was constantly in an incurable bad mood. Because the reason why people got hurt much easier sometimes than other times was their emotion at the time being. They could overreact at things they never usually would overreact to, due to the circumstances affecting their feelings. That was understandable. But to force everyone around you to accustom to your mood, by making them act differently only because of you, was a bit of a stretch, wasn’t it? It would be good if they acknowledged your mood, and but to make them change their behaviour was selfish. Worse was to spread your mood to them, infecting with your own behaviour. An example would be to force everyone to be sad because someone you knew died. Mars knew that in the current world he was in now, people have become too sensitive at all the petty things that were said. But in Red that was the law: to behave accordingly to people’s needs because you valued their feelings more than anything else. To never hurt someone’s feelings by action or speech. And just like any other place, you had to follow those rules. The law was meant to represent morality, as they’re there to benefit people. But the law didn’t equal ethicality. Mars knew of a story from ancient times that proved it. There was a queen who held a rule for the people. It was forbidden for her to be touched by anyone, and it turned on her in a comically satisfying way when she was on a boat that capsized. As she drowned there were many people that were there that could have helped her or saved her, but of course, they couldn’t. They chose to follow the law instead of their own morality. Not because they valued the loyalty to the royal family more, but because they didn’t want to get in trouble. It was an extremely strict view of the law, and was it really worth not saving a life? It was these types of decisions that had to be made. What did you value? It didn’t have to match the law to be ethical. Because only you decided what was ethical. And if you didn’t, and your regime did, then they would be lying by saying you have free thought, that you can think whatever you want. That’s what an ideal world would be, wouldn’t it? And the examples were numerous, for the tiny misdeeds couldn’t be controlled by law. Lying and cheating were technically perfectly legal. Hunting animals could be. But it didn’t mean they were ethical.

The horizon was dark now, and still, they kept moving. They stayed close to each other, walking in silence. The air was tense and Mars was sure the rainbow police were watching them, but there wasn’t a thing he could do about it. They were walking toward their deaths. 

“I realized something,” Sky said. “About children--they’re believers. They’ll take in anything you tell them. If you say a stranger climbs down their chimney to leave objects for them once a year, they’re not hesitant to think it’s real. So what makes it that when we mature, we begin to doubt? We doubt things we were taught as children, and we lose faith in things. Is it because when we mature we have a stronger sense of logic? Quite a mystery. But adulthood leads us to common sense, and it could very well be a suitable explanation. What I’m trying to say is that as children we take in the world as much as we can, and when we’re older we refuse the world as much as we can. We don’t agree with some of the rules we have to follow, or the way some things are. Yet whatever you tell children to do, they’ll follow with minimal resistance, complaining at the most. They’re much easier to shape into something than someone already shaped, which I suppose is why they are more versatile than adults. But I think this because when I was a child, I questioned Blue, but I didn’t think much of it and still followed its rules. And now? I refuse to follow them. Maturity leads to more independence, it’s true, but I want to know why. I suppose as you grow you get smarter, and you realize a fat man can’t fit in a chimney.”

“We do what we’re told when we’re younger, which is why we keep those habits when we’re older,” Snow said. “It’s what leads me to believe how the factions are this way. They force children into whom they want them to be. Our minds are fragile as children but in ways more exceptional than adults’. And exactly for the reason that we believe in things we know can’t be real. Magical things. Why do we believe in those tales and legends when we know logically they’re not possible? They have a bigger capacity of hope, I’ve come to know. It’s what I think, at least. All and everything we know is from us. We are the microcosm, aren’t we? Maybe the laws of physics, math, science and everything are there, but we made them up. We made our definitions and names for them, and all our formulas and algorithms.”

“You’re right, Snow,” Sky said. “We are truly the epicentre. All our knowledge is what we created. We teach it to our children, so they can catch up on millennia of discovery so we can move forward into discovering more with the knowledge we already have, which is the point of education. A cycle that never ends. Don’t you think we will reach a point of too much discovery that we will run out of time to teach it all to new generations, resulting in a hyper-scheduled era where children have no time to be what they are--children? Already in current times, they need to find the time to play. Because they are children, and they need to. What do you think, Snow? Snow?”

She didn’t reply back, and when everyone turned around they saw no one. She had been at the back of the group, and she had completely disappeared without notice. If she was anywhere nearby, it was too dark to tell. 

“She’s gone,” Autumn said. No one said a word after that, carrying on in their walk. It was useless to do anything about it. They could only keep going, and eventually, they would all be caught. And it wasn’t as if they were insensitive. They cared a lot about her--but they simply knew any effort to search or mourn was futile. Everyone silently agreed to this so they moved on. 

Mars was scared, and he didn’t want to show them. He had been scared this entire time on the run, of course, but the fear was never at this level. There were four of them left, and still prone to danger as the rainbow police could be following right behind them. How could they not be? Snow was taken right behind their backs, snatched as easily as it could ever be.

It must’ve been midnight when they all grew tired. They wanted to cover as much distance as possible, but their home was still far. They had to rest. So they gathered leaves, found a cosy spot next to a hill, fell on the moss and tried to sleep. But even if they were all tired, none of them did. Sleep became evanescent and they continued to talk about anything their minds drifted upon.

“The factions have a vigorous grip on the world, and humanity,” Rose said. “That disagreement in Red--I hope it’s real. That it’s tearing apart the contingent right now. And I’m not going to check. Mars, Autumn--Sky said I can come with him to Blue.”

Mars nodded. “When I get home, I’m heading to Orange. Autumn will get me settled until she goes to Red. And I keep telling her it’s the most dreadful place she’ll ever visit, but she doesn’t care.”

“It can’t be that bad,” she said. “The way you talk about it, it’s designed perfectly, with the utmost highest level of sophistication.”

“That’s if you care about the evenness of lampposts, placement of sidewalk tiles, laws and rules, how everything and everyone is in order and agreement, and the good behaviour of a citizen. And I don’t. It’s all a lie to me, anyway.”

“After I introduce Rose to Blue, I’m heading straight to Yellow, where the lights are always bright,” Sky said. “I’ll tell everyone my name is Wasp. My mother and father, Corn and Lemon, died in tragedies. My brother Bee is dead, too. I’m an orphan that needs a home here, and my old one burned down.”

“You’re not going to stay with me in Blue?” Rose asked. When he shook his head she looked genuinely hurt. 

“If only we can all agree on the same things,” Autumn said. “So we can all be together. Maybe if the factions were united as a nation, as they should be. The world is only a giant place where people attack back and forth, with multiple, different sides to everything. The entirety of humanity’s relational connections strives off opinions and bias. All conflict derives from it. You see it everywhere. People, every second of the day, state opinions naturally in any way, and from the tiniest conflict to the biggest argument, it is always created through opposing sides that are equal in morality. The myriad of mankind’s problems arise out of the spite we create against each other, which is natural. There is no way to change it. It can be as big as a political view of regimes, or as small as if you think that restaurant review of five stars shouldn’t be that high. Everyone creates their own experiences, and it is only expected that because of that fact, we create our own thoughts on things. You can ask anyone: how many tiny oppositions have you seen or experienced today? Did someone make at least one comment on correcting the grammatical error of an article, or speech? Did someone make at least one comment on the weather, food, place, people, or an object? Has at least one person gotten angry at someone or something relating to the fault of that person? Humans creatures, whether we like to or not, fight each other minimally or maximally all the time. It’s part of what we are as a species. The whole of the world’s collectiveness is mounted on the relations of people, and if those relations are always opposing due to our different opinions, it is a miracle that we still survive in harmony. The perception of our world, which began as early as the exit of our mothers’ wombs, relies on what people tell you and teach you. Most of the things you know of the world couldn’t have been discovered yourself. And so bias comes into the equation, because if the majority of what you know is taught by people, and we know people can be wrong, how do we know what is truly right and wrong? The only sentient beings we can base an opinion on that topic are us--yet as I have said, we can sometimes be wrong. In truth, our sense of right and wrong relies purely on our instinct. And so a world where you rid that instinct, such as Red, which is one contingent I will use as an example, is one of transcendence for humanity. As young, we are told everything. We as human creatures thrive off leadership and teachings of others. When those teachings are wrong--which is hard to tell because there is no way of telling--you get the society of Red: a single leader always telling and teaching everything to everyone as if they have recently exited their mothers’ wombs--while the leader is wrong. But how do we know the teachings of Red, and the leader, is wrong? Simply because of our human instinct, which Red has erased. That is the sole reason the citizens of Red are oblivious to the seemingly nonexistent oppression they face. The customs are eligible, for they live in peace through ignorance. They are happy and that is what matters, isn’t it? Yet you are not, and so you cannot live in Red. But what are you to do? This is our problem. We cannot stand the fact the people of the world are always in disagreement, but we still disagree. Because we can’t stop it, it’s our nature. And the reason Red succeeds to stop it is that it rids that nature, which is deemed unethical to us. Yet still purely ethical, because the people are happy. So this contradictoriness is what we oppose, correct? The sides aren’t equal--Red is understandably more morally correct than us. And it’s this rightness in Red that we don’t like. Because something in our deeply hidden human instinct tells us everything is still wrong, no matter how many times we are told everything is right. And why do we think that? We have the ability to make our own opinions, as all regular, ordinary humans do and should do. That brings us to the start, about how a world with free opinions will always hurt feelings because we will naturally disagree--which in coincidence is what we stand for. So all the facts are set: we need someone or something--preferably not a human that can be wrong--to tell us which side is the most ethical. Because this cycle of contradictoriness never ends, and we don’t know who is right, us or Red. But as any argument goes, each side sticks with and fights for their side until the end, which is what we shall do, no matter how many people tell us we are wrong. That’s how everyone should be--stand by your opinion no matter how taboo, strange, or unaccepted it is. You can’t have someone tell you what to think, it restrains you from being yourself. And if you are not yourself, who are you? You would lose your humanity because as I have stated, the ability to make judgements and opinions of our own is part of our humanity. So if your thoughts are told by others unethical, you decide yourself if they are or not. The choice should all be ours--we control our own minds. And if we think wrong--who cares? Because we don’t really know what’s right or wrong, we only base it on empathetic instincts, which isn’t a reliable source as it derives from us, human creatures. Remember, humans can always be wrong. It’s a known fact we all make mistakes. So think what you want to think; believe what you want to believe. And for those who punish you for doing so? Those who oppose your thoughts merely because they think theirs are more ethical or right? Don’t let that stop you from thinking what you want to think. It all matters the same, and if people attack you then tell them what I have told you. Tell the whole world what I have told you to make it understand that we should think what we want. They can’t tell you that you’re wrong, because they can be wrong themselves. Unless there is some supreme entity with an omnipotence that can reveal the truth of true ethics, we are clueless and in the dark, burdened by our own humanity, stuck in this condition forever.”

XVI

Once again, another one of them was gone in the morning, and no one was surprised. It was also expected that Rose would be crying all morning because the closest thing she had to who she was now was gone. And she couldn’t control her Blue instinct, so she cried. She couldn’t stop thinking about him even in the afternoon, when they were continuing on their way to the home they knew they would never reach. They were getting closer now. It was possible to make it in about two days. Rain had begun to pour--which Rose liked. Blues loved rain, of course, as it was water and sadness.

Mars could only talk to Autumn because Rose wanted to be left alone. The loss in the morning was a lot for her.

“What you said about personal thought last night,” Mars asked Autumn. “It can’t truly be right, can it? Because what if someone really just thinks evilly, and if they listen to what you said, you’ll only give them more motivation to keep thinking they’re right. I think killing is fun and okay, and people can’t tell me I’m wrong.”

“So you disagree with me? Because this is my point. Disagreements happen. I only speak my opinion, don’t I? Because I myself cannot be right or wrong since no human can. You have missed the point of what I was trying to say. And yes, there will be people who think evilly, and those who think those people think evilly. But those who think those people think evilly can’t be right--they have no way of telling if they are right and the person that is evil is wrong because we define evilness based on human empathy. If someone hurts others, generally they’re bad. But putting aside human empathy, if we forget about it for a moment, we get a new perspective: that people that are evil merely have different views, thoughts, and opinions. Perhaps the most outright, blatant example is Ash. It may be depressing to think the truths of ethical values are unachievable to us, but that is simply the case for humanity. We are sentient beings that think our own thoughts. We have no way of telling if they’re truly right or wrong. The way humanity usually does it is what the majority thinks. But we have already stated that the majority isn’t always right, since aren’t the factions the majority, and we are the minority, and we still believe we are right? How can that be? So yes, the majority can possibly be corrupted. Listen: right and wrong are through opinion, and everyone makes their own opinions. There is no telling the truth of right and wrong, and we only assume. Everything we believe is biased. There are no good or bad opinions, it’s true. Righteousness is only a view and is only an opinion. This is the truth. And yet, still an opinion. How can you tell if everything I have told you is right? It’s only an opinion of mine, and I can be wrong since any human has the undeniable capacity to be wrong, to make mistakes because we are human. My point exactly--truths are opinions and opinions are truths. Believe what you want because there is just truly no right or wrong since those views are merely opinions created by other people. What we know about right and wrong is taught to us by parents, and parents can be wrong, since they were taught by their parents, and their parents can be wrong. See? The cycle of bias never ends. Why do you think people raised terribly are usually corrupted criminals, deemed insane? It cannot be their fault for they were taught badly. Yet, they weren’t taught badly, since bad is a perspective and is a basis set by the majority. This is the truth about the entirety of the world’s ethics and morals. That there is no true ethics or morals. It’s all in our heads. Humanity decides for itself, and it can decide wrong. There is absolutely no way of telling if we are wrong, too. It may all seem confusing, but that is the truth. And yet, it might not be the truth. Because I can be wrong, can’t I? Do you see? The cycle never ends. You can’t believe or trust anyone anymore. You cannot even trust yourself since you have the possibility of being wrong.”

“That is truly a burden for us.”

“And so it is. Debates in the news, political arguments, people taking sides. Now, because of Red and the factions, they’re erased. But in ancient times, they always happened. And who will tell you what is truly ethical and what side to take on those worldwide arguments? Whichever side you take, the other will hate you and think you are wrong. Does this mean there’s no right and wrong? Yes! Opinions are yours and yours only. In an equal argument, your opinion is worth as much as everyone’s else’s. All the geographic issues, whether they are political, economical, environmental, or social, or whatever, you have to be careful what you say about them, or you can hurt someone’s feelings. The issues of society, the majority of them anyway, are caused by the disagreement of human relations. Two sides, always two sides. Never in between or a scale. Discrimination of converters is an example. Natural disasters are not, but what can we do about them? We live on a planet that goes by its own rules. We cannot change them. And so to erase all other human issues Red was created, and the only threat we have to face problems as a race are those natural disasters. But who is to say we aren’t the cause of those either? It is possible our effect on this planet has changed its climate drastically, in return the planet attacking us back. The point is Red and the other factions were made to erase society’s issues--with the exception of natural disasters, of course--and it has done well. And what I’m saying is that we used to have a world where you had to be extremely careful about what you said, and every joke you made, or everything you wrote. The topic of society is always sensitive and people can get hurt. That’s not a bright world, isn’t it? It’s outright terrible. Yes, people should think what they want, but also, they shouldn’t be harassed for it. Who cares if they don’t agree with you? You’ll waste your time and energy trying to convert them, trying to get them to your side in the debate because you think it’s more ethical. As long as those unorthodox thinkers don’t bother with anything, and keep their ideas to themselves, they shouldn’t be attacked. Look at us--the queer converters. Do we have any negative effect on society? We simply live our lives the way we want to. It’s hard to comprehend the fact that nowhere in the world is free--every inch of land has been claimed by a nation and as long as you’re in the borders of that nation you abide by its rules. You cannot escape power and regimes unless you retreat into the wilderness where no one will bother you, but who would do that?”

“That’s an extremely insightful view of the topic, Autumn. I agree. The world is more controlled than people think. But you also have to acknowledge that this is still the best way to keep order and have freedom.”

She nodded. “I suppose.”

They continued on without a word. Mars took this silence as a chance to finally grieve for the losses of his friends. He missed them dearly, and he only wished they would be in peace, dead or not. There was no chance of him seeing them again. Too many of them had been taken, and soon all of them. There was funny Sky. Logical Clover. Perky Daisy. Realist Violet. Sketchy Ash and Innocent Snow. Their fates had all been decided the moment they decided to run because there had been no hope from the start. There would be no such thing as converter equality or converter freedom, and there would never be. As long as Mars self-qualified as an Orange he would be killed. It was this that truly angered Mars, very deep in his core. It was unfair, of course, and the citizens of the factions held not a single pinch of empathy to care about them. Red proclaimed to value empathy, as they had its citizens care about the feelings of others more than anything else. But the truth was Red rid the empathetic instincts of a human. Because Converters were still mistreated even if they didn’t mistreat; harmed even if they didn’t harm; and hated even if they didn’t hate. Converters were discriminated because they thought what they wanted, and in the factions, it was too dangerous to because it could cause arguments and hurt feelings.

Back then, it was the general view that everyone should be allowed to think what they want. But even then there was contradictoriness when those same people would hate evil people--as it was another general view. Evil people simply have different opinions. It’s this contradictoriness that is wrong with the world, Mars believed. To expand on the example, a person can be a fighter for free personal thought, publicly announcing his or her dedication to the idea everyone should be allowed to think whatever they want. But then they also have a hatred for people that think killing is good--terrorists, murderers, and all that. He or she would be contradictory. And why? Because that person is trying to receive the least amount of hate from society by agreeing to the opinions of the majority--the general view. But the general views of society are contradictory, and so when this person agrees to them all, the hate arrives anyway, because he or she is contradictory, when the person is only trying to please society by agreeing to its views. What started as trying to please it in the first place angered it, which was a contradictory cycle. You couldn’t agree with the general views of the world without experiencing a contradiction. In this case, you can’t stand for the idea everyone should be allowed to think what they want and that evil people are bad and should be stopped at the same time. Another example of contradiction would be when people say everyone is beautiful and attractiveness is subjective. But they still get repelled by ugly, disgusting people. It would be deemed hypocrisy, and hate would arise. The truth is, in terms of physical aesthetics, there is a general opinion on it made by society, which can change at periods of time. So there are many examples. And all of them prove that to be ethically correct in opinion--which would be to agree to the general view, the majority’s opinion--would make you receive hate no matter what. The points of view of anything are subjective and there can be more than two at any given case. You would get hate no matter what your opinions are because that is simply the case. Humanity disagrees, even if there is one side that the majority says is correct. The majority of humanity believes killing is bad, so why do people still do it? This is mere evidence that right and wrong are subjective--which people will strongly deny. Mars found Autumn to be right. Even if there are clear rights and wrongs, there actually aren’t. We as human creatures decide right and wrong, but we’re human creatures. We can make mistakes. And there is no one to tell us if we actually are right or wrong. 

“There’s just something about us that makes us disagree,” Mars said. “Part of our condition, I assume. And we can’t get rid of it. So when we disagree, fights and hurt feelings arise, and we can’t stop them because we can’t stop the hatred. Well, before Red and the factions were created, of course.”

Autumn nodded. “Yes. One thing I’ve wondered is why we have become so sensitive. Is it because we are tired of disagreeing so much? The world gets hurt too easily nowadays. The different opinions of others hurt feelings too easily now, which is why the factions were created--to stop disagreements, we all know that. The world is very complex, and one thing it never seems to agree on is ethic. The great debate of economic society, if people should benefit from working harder than others, or if everyone should receive the same no matter what to be entirely equal and fair? The killing of the evil as justice, or the view they can always be redeemed? These are some of the many examples that prove there is always something we disagree on, as part of our nature. Maybe it can be explained. Maybe it can’t. But one thing we know for sure is that we will never stop disagreeing. We’ll always find a way to disagree. Look at our scenario--the factions were built and designed to never disagree, and yet we are born. And what do we do? Disagree. I suppose the factions have a system to eradicate people like us if they’re ever created, which is why the rainbow police exist. The perfect society is merely a dream, and unachievable even when we think it is. But that doesn’t mean we should lose hope--we can always achieve one that is astoundingly close to perfect. Such as the factions. They already erase almost all arguments about opinions.”

“But what if fights arise over facts? We know some things are right for sure, and not everything is down to opinion. I know of a story that explains it well. It goes like this: There are ten people in a house that can never leave to see it from the outside. Nine, the majority, know the house is cube-shaped. How? A fact: the inside proves the shape by simple logic--the walls are the inside of a cube. But there is a single person that believes otherwise and thinks the house is sphere-shaped, though with scientific facts are untrue. But should he be allowed to believe in what he wants to believe in? He is shamed by the majority and is called stupid. Harassed for it. Criticized for it. Of course, he is wrong, but he doesn’t believe so and thinks the world they live in is a different shape. Even if the nine who think the house is a cube also have photographic evidence, because they launched a drone to view and take pictures of it from the outside--the single sphere-houser think it’s fake and made up and continues to believe in what he wants to: that the house is a sphere. He’s considered crazy, but it’s his belief. This is what I’m worried about. That if we have our dream of a world with free thought, people will think wrongly--and it doesn’t matter if it’s opinion, because what they think is really, truly incorrect. Then people can get their feelings hurt because of that.”

“Agreed.”

They were too tired and hungry to talk much more. They walked a while in silence. The breaks became more frequent. Rose had finally moved on and escaped her sad state. And no matter how bad their own contingents were, all three found themselves to be terribly homesick. 

“Are we almost there?” Rose asked. 

“I think so,” Mars said. “Although I wouldn’t recognize any patterns in these trees or hills. Only Sky or Ash would be able to tell. But home is close, I know it. You’ll find yourself in Blue in no time.”

“And if the rainbow police catch us before then?”

“We’re powerless against them. What would you expect? If you’re caught, then you’re caught. If you’re not, then you reach home. All that matters now is that this ends one way or another. When we reach home, even there we will be hunted. There’s no safe place for us converters, and there never will be. But I’m not going to let that fact change me. I am an Orange, Autumn is a Red, and you are a Blue. Don’t ever forget that. If it’s going to take the whole world to hate us to get us to change, then don’t even let it happen. When humanity will exhaust all their options to get rid of us, they’ll understand they can’t. So stay a converter, until there are too many of them for society to realize it has to accept us. If that’s the only way, so be it. We can try force or negotiation, but the best way is to show them what would happen if they don’t tolerate converters. It may take years for that to happen. It may take the lives of countless converters before it happens. But at least one day in the future, we can hope there will be kids just like us that don’t have to go through what we went through. A little girl that was born in Red and wants to be a Blue or perhaps a little boy that was born in Red that wants to be an Orange. It’s always an argument about the idea of a person able to change who they are, or not. But I suppose only you can decide for yourself which side you agree with, by proving it. Let the converter population fluctuate. Let it be known that it will never vanish completely Understood?” 

“Yes.”

“There are only three of us left,” Autumn said. “We can watch each other at all times. We don’t have to let the rainbow police win. If we can watch over each other, even take shifts when we sleep, we can make it home. All of us. It could be that they’re setting up a trap for us there, but we have no choice.”

So they continued walking. Walking and walking. Free but at the same time trapped. There would be no salvation at the end of the road for them. Mars didn’t know what they would do to them if they got captured. He would inevitably find out, which didn’t make him feel any better. They watched each other, never letting a single person out of sight. It was a simple effort that could counteract an abduction, but of course, it was to no effect. Mars had been watching Rose from behind, walking ahead, and when he blinked it was as if she had never existed.

XVII

“Mars, I want to tell you something. There’s only two of us left, and whoever is going to be taken next, the other will be alone. I want to say that everything you’ve ever stood for in your life is for a reason. And people will strongly deny that. People will say it’s pointless. But just keep the thought in your mind that they’re wrong. The termination of conversion, the contradiction of the rules, and the unfairness of it all. Don’t care if they say it’s all ethical. I want you, from now on, to always think whatever you want freely and without fear. I want you to know that you are able to think whatever you want, and if people are hurt by what you think, then don’t mind them. Maybe you’ll be the minority, but everyone is different, and it’s only fair you deserve to stay in that minority. The general opinion of something is always decided by what most people think, and it makes sense as to why that works. But the general opinion isn’t always the right opinion, and I want you to remember that. If I get taken away first, you are by yourself. And everything we have learned as a group will all be down to you. The same will happen if you are taken first. The last person to remember what we know would be me. The odds are impossible right now, and we know there’s absolutely no chance of winning. There is not going to be an outside force to save us now, at the very most crucial moment. There is not going to be a change of heart of the enemy. No, we have lost and we are going to lose in the future, again, and again. The converters that will be born in the future can only depend on themselves now. I know we dreamed of a place where converters are allowed, one that we would start as well. But there’s no hope of even the slimmest chance. You can try to cause an argument in the factions but it will always be cleaned up. The people are happy, while we converters are not. And so to make sure everyone is happy, they will kill the converters. That is how it is--your privilege is determined by the characteristics of you, made at birth. We want a world where that statement can’t be true, but it will never come. Human creatures are purely judgmental, and to take away our ability to judge is to create a society like the factions. But to take away our ability to judge is unethical. And so it becomes a never-ending loop. There is no possible way to design a flawless place. And even if Red and the contingents tell you that, they’re wrong. Because the only way is to believe there is a perfect society, but in reality, that’s as far as you can get. I’m sorry, but this is the truth. There will always be problems for humanity, and we must solve them for eternity. Maybe one day we can make a problem-less place, who knows? But for now, it is truly impossible. For now, we are limited by what we know in this age. And I believe this is as far as we’ll ever know. Humanity will constantly argue and argue, as they have for the centuries and millennia we have existed, and to ignore the argument is the best way to live--which we can’t. We will always get involved one way or another, whether it be peacefully living in your house until a war forces you to evacuate, or peacefully minding your own business until someone brings up a controversial topic to you, and you get hated for making an opinion on it, which will happen no matter what. Ignorance is bliss, but also harm, as you like to believe. Innocents will get involved whether they like to or not, in an argument of humanity. It could possibly be that the country they live in changes its rules, and they are affected. Or even simply doing something odd in public. In both cases, arguments are drawn to different opinions. And in both cases, you will receive harassment for disagreeing--not following the country’s new rules or not stopping your odd action in public, even if they don’t like it. In ways, your life is more controlled than you think, and one with ultimate freedom isn’t possible unless stigma is completely erased. Which is what the factions did, correct? They rid stigma because everyone does and believes in the same things, so no one can be hated. So this is why they were created. The reason behind them was to finally make a good, perfect world, which is still imperfect because some people disagree with it--us, the converters. Quite depressing, actually, to think that problems will never go away, and for every one you solve, two more arise. But that’s the way the world works, and humanity has dealt with it in our entire existence. All animals have the intelligence to create opinions. Lions might prefer that prairie over this prairie. Sharks might prefer that fish or this fish. Birds might prefer that migration location or this migration location. They all decide for themselves. But what sets us apart is our ability to act on these opinions, and attack others who disagree. A spider will care if you destroy its web, but what can it do about it? Meanwhile, we will retaliate if someone attacks our opinion. We will hate someone slightly more if they disagree with us. We will cause wars to get what we want because people disagree. And the bigger the attack, the longer it will take for the wound to heal. Maybe two friends will argue but remain friends, but a country that waged a war against the world, causing lots of destruction and suffering, will not be forgiven so easily. It’s a part of us to be able to disagree, so you would be ridding a part of humanity by taking that ability away, as the factions do. Which is why we’re their enemy. Maybe we don’t know who’s truly right in this moral battle, but what we know is that we chose a side because we agreed with it, and we fight on this side. That’s what matters--what you think, not what humanity thinks. And these will lead to choices that may have consequences or not. There are many examples where an opinion is needed, and right and wrong begin to blur. The sacrifice of one for the many? The act of lying to leave someone in bliss? An act of crime in order to do something good? Being honest and taking the blame even if you had the opportunity not to? How about: is the value of one human life as much as the value of multiple? And therefore it would not be worth a sacrifice? These are all decisions, moral dilemmas, that will surely create opposing sides that will hate each other for choosing the opposite. And it doesn’t matter if everyone picks one side in one of these arguments, while you are the only one to pick the other. Because the majority isn’t always right. In fact, as I’ve said before, we have no way of telling which side is right. It comes down to opinion--your opinion. A law may be a law because the majority of a regime deemed it correct, and it has passed all trials to become one, but people are still allowed to disagree with it. Maybe even people in the regime disagreed with it, but they could do nothing because the majority wanted it. This is a serious flaw in ethics and the world. Many things are based on majority because it makes sense--if more people want it, why choose what they don’t want? It would be unfair. But would it really be? Maybe just as the value of one human life is equal to the value of many, the value of one person’s opinion is equal to the value of the opinion of many. If so, then the majority cannot always win anymore. This is a new way of thinking that might seem wrong, as it would be deemed unfair--nine people want this, and one person wants that, and we choose the latter? It isn’t fair! But who is it to decide what’s fair? Maybe it’s fair but it’s unethical and wrong, all because of corruption. What if the majority becomes wrong? Is this how we get dictatorships? Is this how we get evil? Greedy people taking advantage of their power, simply because most people agree with their wrong opinions? Think what you want, make your own opinion on it. But that is my opinion, and I have told you about it. It may very well be fact, but who am I to say that? In history, we have tried all ways of systems of agreement. Majority over minority. One person over everyone else. Everyone equal. These are all attempts at a perfect society, and some have worked better than others. But none are perfect, and we know that. There will always be flaws. Why, even a nation that supports the majority can elect a leader that is truly terrible and corrupt--possibly because the majority is terrible and corrupt. Or, they elect a truly good and perfect leader, but yet the decisions he or she makes are still hated by some--the minority, of course. There is no way to get everyone to agree because it’s simple logic--if there are two sides, and people are allowed to pick, it’s certain that not all will pick the same. Because every individual mind is different, with different thoughts. What the factions did to get everyone to agree is to rid that freedom of thought, as we know. Also, as we know, it’s unethical. But is it really? If we go back to the old way, where everyone is allowed to disagree, we would be in chaos again. This is why I’ve said we have no way of telling the truth about ethics. Maybe there are some decisions you never want to make because you agree equally to both sides, or don’t agree with any. Dilemmas that will leave you with guilt either side you choose. I say if you ever encounter one, choose the side which will leave you the least amount of guilt. Most people do this. It’s the simplest solution to a dilemma. Negative duties and positive duties have conflict, but which one is more important? For example, how you killed Ash. Your negative duty was to not harm him, and your positive duty was to save Snow’s life. Obviously, your positive duty overpowered the negative. So you valued it more. And what if the negative duty is more important? What if, in a war, you would rather refrain to drop a bomb on one thousand people, even if it meant they would kill a hundred of your own? We are told that in decisions like these, there is no right and wrong. And so why do we still feel guilt in whichever choice we make? Is the problem guilt itself? Maybe if we rid guilt, we as human creatures would be improved? Guilt holds us back from making these decisions. If we didn’t have it, we wouldn’t care at all on which option we chose in these decisions. We’d just choose one and have it over with because as I said, the best solution is to pick the option that will leave you with the least amount of guilt, which would be a useless method if you didn’t have guilt. Without guilt, you wouldn’t value anything. You can kill a single person, or a hundred people, and not know the difference. In theory, without guilt, all of the world’s moral problems would be solved! It could be like that. But is it… ethical? Well, as I said, if you didn’t have guilt you wouldn’t even ask that question. It horrifies me that some people in history have actually mastered this--the art of not feeling guilty. In fact, all evil people have. Which might just tell us something--maybe it would be bad if guilt was rid in the world. Then everyone would go around doing bad things to benefit themselves since they wouldn’t care about the consequences. Steal things, kill people they hate, perform acts of ravishment to fulfil their biological needs. Guilt is actually what holds us back from evil. It is a tool imprinted in our minds to help us see clearer. Guilt is good, even if people think it’s bad. Yes, it may feel terrible when you experience the emotion, but the emotion is there for a reason. All in all, Mars, I want you to understand all this and not let our knowledge die when we do. Keep it somewhere. Tell it to someone. And I will do the same if I ever get the chance. For when we are captured, all is lost on what we know. And if you truly believe what we know is correct, and we are right in this argument against the world, then fight for it. A person who doesn’t fight for the cause he or she believes in must have doubts about it. And that--is not an opinion. That is a fact.”

#

Those were the last words of hers before she was abducted by the rainbow police. Mars had been alone for a while now, wondering when he was going to be taken too, and when he was finally going to arrive home. Maybe they would leave him since they knew he would die anyway. It had been a dark night when they were huddled together for warmth against the rain, trying to sleep. Mars listened as she talked, and he had fallen asleep. When he woke up in the middle of the night, there was an absence of warmth next to him, and he knew she was gone. Now he wished he was gone too because he didn’t want to continue alone. He missed all of his friends. All of them. He hadn’t properly missed them because he had been so occupied on survival, which he realized was pointless without someone to live for. Now there was no one in the world that loved him. He was by himself, as he was in the beginning when he thought he was the only converter in the world. It was true now. 

He didn’t stop moving forward. One day he climbed a tree and looked at his surroundings. Red was as close as ever--reachable within the same day. It was the closest faction, and no matter how much he swore to never return, he had no choice. He needed a place to stay. He needed food. He needed people, most of all. 

He had seen something else as well. In the other direction, he saw smoke rising into the sky. It was a fire. And of course, he automatically assumed it was a camp of the rainbow police that had been hunting them. But he couldn’t understand why it was so far away.

On the way, he wondered about a way Red could be fixed to make it more ethical, but yet still just as effective. It came to him now that if only Red didn’t force everyone to think one way, but instead changed their minds through persuasion. Then it would be their absolute free choice. The power to change a person’s mind had the potential to make you a leader. By making people agree with you by choice, what could people do against you? Maybe that was what Red did, maybe not. Maybe Mars had failed to see that Red was already using this technique--it never forced anyone to think its way. They thought the Red way naturally since they were taught it all since birth. But Mars found that so impractical because of course, there would be a special case, an odd one out, that would be an outsider. He was an example. By assuming everyone would immediately follow your rules as they are born learning them, you would have problems. He didn’t know why it was like this--why in a perfect world, there will always be some mistakes, some imperfections. Why did he convert? There could very well be a reason he did not know. 

Mistakes were always things human creatures did. They weren’t anything new. Mars knew that with pure certainty and if he had to explain it to someone, he would say: We do these things because we’re human. We can’t help it. So before you kill a killer, think if it’s necessary. Think with empathy. It may feel terrible enough for you to want to get your revenge without the care of consequences, but in the end, the death will only satisfy you with guilt. The acts were the same, weren’t they? The killer killed someone you loved, and so you killed the killer. You both did the same act, and the only difference was that one did it first. But why did it matter who did it first? If two countries were in a war, would it matter on which side is morally correct? Many people would die no matter what, so both countries had to take the blame. And then it wouldn’t matter anymore who started the fight. The mother would always come in to stop the two children from fighting, and tell them she didn’t care who started the fight. Both of them would be in trouble anyway. It could be seen as unfair for the kid who only wanted to defend him or herself, and the truth is, it is. But if the world was this way, if everyone blamed who started the fight in every single fight, the need for justice would be redundant. And it didn’t matter who had done the most terrible thing either--at least, it shouldn’t matter as much. Both sides should always take the blame for being in a fight because it takes two to always have one. 

So close to red… so close… he thought. The last time he was there, in that dreadful place, he had tried to cause an argument. He didn’t know what he would find now. But he was nearing it. The end of his journey was finally here. All the pain and losses would come to an end, too. 

But he still felt a presence. It had never left. It was the feeling that he was still being followed by the rainbow police. Behind him, hiding in the trees, there was at least one person watching him, ready to take him. He walked faster. There was definitely a pursuer. 

And the presence became truly felt now, right behind him. But he didn’t dare to turn and find the person. Instead, he froze in absolute fear. Because he had not escaped after all. Someone is after me, he thought.

“Yes, I am after you,” a voice said. “And it seems I have found you.

XVIII

The man was peculiar. Being with him for only a moment, Mars could tell with certainty he wasn’t a Red. Or any other for that matter. He was another person like him. Maybe not a converter, maybe not a contrasting thinker to Red, but a person who didn’t follow the rules. But it wasn’t because he was a person who asserted resistance to Red, but because he held authority over it. Mars had come to realize that he was standing before the person known as Ruby.

“You are correct, but not just her. All of them. I’m all the leaders,” he said as he, for some reason, ripped the rainbow badge off his chest. “You will walk with me to Red and you will comply.”

Mars had no other choice. Though hidden, he knew the man was armed. He followed him, somehow not able to do otherwise. He wanted to attack him badly, but yet he didn’t. He also knew it wasn’t any sort of mind control, for he was making the decision himself to follow. He didn’t know who this person was, but he projected authority and dominance.

“I am armed,” the man said. “And yes, you don’t know me. The leaders are my aliases, but in truth my name is Spectrum. I’m the supreme ruler of the country, and that is the simplest way of explaining it.”

They walked in silence until they arrived at Red. Mars had not been in it for so long that it was barely recognizable. Throughout the streets, people rioted back and forth, with two sides clear in the midst. Signs and banners were held up with symbols of their respective side, and there were harassment and coercion. 

“Unacceptable,” a woman said, holding up a sign that showed a red leather jacket with an interdictory symbol, meaning non-inverted was disgraced--grey would mean inverted, for the inside of the common Red citizen coat was grey. “You agree with non-inverted? You all are disgusting people! Morally wrong! Seduced by evil!”

“The non-inverted shows our true colour, and represents normality,” another man shouted. “Blinded by incorrect opinion is a thing of the past if you join the non-inverted movement! It’s much better in every way!”

“No, the ordinary is inverted!”

“We were all taught that, but if you take the time to choose, non-inverted feels more correct.”

“Your accusation of wrongness is wrong itself. The morally right way to wear a jacket is to have it inverted. That’s the way it has always been and it’s for a reason: because it’s good and right, and most importantly normal.”

“The people fight,” Mars told Spectrum. “I have won.”

“It is true that Red was designed not to have things such as these. Disagreements,” the man said. “What you don’t understand is it’s also designed to stop one if necessary. I have returned to Red, their supposed leader. They will follow me because they know Ruby is always right.”

A while later, pushing through the crowd and entering a building, he brought Mars underground through an elevator. Mars assumed it was a secret place, only known to Spectrum, where he plotted his plans that he inflicted upon Red and all the other factions. It was filled with many monitoring screens, filling up the walls of the lair. They displayed what happened outside, which told Mars the man could easily find out what went on in the streets secretly. Tables everywhere were covered with blueprints and both handwritten and typed documents. The only light came from the bright screens, and the room was dark. 

“Tie yourself to that chair,” Spectrum said. There was no resistance, once again, when he did so. He wished to believe he was mentally programmed to obey him, the leader, but that wasn’t the case at all. He did so with his own will, through his own choice. He sat down in the chair and wrapped the ropes nearby around his waist, legs, and wrists. He didn’t complain as he didn’t want to, for he willingly chose to obey.

“You may think you are close to disrupting Red, but you are very, very far from it,” Spectrum said. “It is built to withstand arguments if necessary. This riot has been ongoing several days but nothing extreme has happened. Before, there would already be murders, injuries, casualties of all sorts, driven by the hatred that was powered by their disagreement. This is a party in comparison to historic times. Watch at how quickly and easily it can be rebuilt, and everything in Red will be back to normal.”

He pressed a button on the wide control panel under the screens with a single finger. “The argument will be disclosed by Ruby. She thinks inverted jackets are superior. This announcement is approved by her.”

Through the screens, Mars watched as the riot listened to the speakers around the city. What he saw before his eyes made him fear with disbelief--the people immediately stopped fighting! The non-inverted jacket side dropped their signs and changed their opinions. The inverted side welcomed them and did not even gloat or insult at how they had been right all along, and how they had won. It was only a few minutes until the entire commotion throughout Red was completely gone, the population in total agreement. Everyone walked on and continued with their daily, ordinary, and routinely lives. Almost like nothing had happened, though clearly there had been a huge fight.

“A single person to connect them all,” Spectrum said. “We as humans are built in instinct to follow and obey a superior-ranking being. Whether it would be an imaginary deity or a political leader, we obey because we understand and believe they do what is best for us. It is this instinct that the creators took advantage of when designing Red.”

“This is impossible,” Mars said. “Surely there is at least someone who will keep fighting.”

“Maybe in the past. But now, everyone’s brain is inclined to follow what is deemed as right. There are no more fights. I have united the contingents and now pose as their single leader, in secret of course. They believe they have their own individual leader. But as you know those leaders’ faces are never shown; their voices are never heard. It is always through the speakers that their thought and belief is heard through, always spoken by a single announcer that works for the leader.”

“The announcer is always you. I am impressed at your ability to manipulate the people, but you already have a law enforcer organization at your disposal. The rainbow police.”

“Do I? And how many rainbow policemen have you seen in your entire life that actually looked real and honest, trying to sincerely capture you?”

Mars thought about it. It was then he realized he had only seen one and only one, never more than one. Every time, one person in the shadows. One person hunting them in the woods. One person coming out of the jeep. One person at his school, monitoring it for the perpetrator.

“There is no such thing as the rainbow police, or the municipal police, for that matter. The propaganda has manipulative lies,” he said. “And that disinformation has been spread secretly, always seeping into your head in a sneaky manner. Your head has been feeding onto thoughts and rumours without you knowing, from day one. The very first rainbow policeman you had contact with at your school was me. The person spying on your group of associates at Yellow was me. Every single time, it was only me, hunting you all down. Nothing but an illusion. They’re not real, and they certainly do not exist even as a rumour. Only the lies were fed to you, and they came with the delusion that you were told. They are only there to make converters fear, to make them afraid of being converters. And as you know, Red and the other factions are so meticulously designed to not have converters. You and your associates are the first in many years, and you weren’t natural either. Converters don’t exist. People are told they do, but they never happen. How could they, when society is so perfectly made so no one makes crimes? And when no one makes crimes, there is no need for police. That is how this country is devoid of them--because they are useless. Opinion crimes are only spoken of as something to avoid, but yet they aren’t possible to happen. Everything in Red is so perfectly and flawlessly crafted so this is all possible. The reason your group of associates is excellent at escaping them time after time is because they don’t exist. If they did, and there are many of them, they would catch you in an instant. But no--they are simply myths, which’s only main attraction are stories to be told and heard, but never to be seen. This also explains why the enforcing of no-doing of opinion crimes is so weak. In reality, only the stigma of it and the tellings of your parents and teachers are what stops it.”

“Is this the time I compliment on your genius? Your intellectual and brilliant creativity? If you are to keep me here, let’s stop waiting in patience. Tell me what I am here for if you aren’t planning to kill me. What purpose do I serve being down here with the secret leader of the country?”

“I am no much as a leader than a regular citizen. But one with a higher purpose than most. If I am a regular citizen, there truly is no actual leader of Red. No powers or authorities, no regime--as it is only deception and propaganda. Red is an anarchy, but one you might not expect. As you know, the entirety of this country and everything about it is maintained and watched over by a single person. I am no immortal. My own mortality will chase me in the future. This test--this life of yours, as well as your associates--only exist so I may have a successor since as you know, I am no ordinary Red citizen, forced to obey the rules. I think like you. I have my own ethics and values, chosen by me and not my society. I think with human empathy and act with human instincts. All of this defines what you are. And you are this not for no reason. I personally chose you to think like this--it wasn’t natural. How could it be, when you see how perfectly crafted Red is? How do you think it would be possible that all the factions would produce an unorthodox thinker when they are flawless, and also all at roughly the same time, for the thinkers are the same age? No, you are all the way you are for a reason. Only one of you will remain the way you are, to replace me, and the rest will become regular citizens again, through therapy and training by me. Before you ask any questions, I already chose one of you eight as my successor, and it is not you. You will be reinstated into Red after this. You are the last one as well since you were the last one caught. I congratulate you on that if it represents any meaning to you.”

“It doesn’t.”

“Fair to me. But this is why you eight happened. And you are all young for a reason. Young and complex thinkers. So you can grow up into my position--only one of you--because it is necessary. The country needs a person with regular humanity to watch over it, so the rest can live in peace and bliss in their obliviousness. So they can all go back to agreeing and valuing their comrades’ feelings.”

“What if I refuse to believe this? What if I think that I was natural? I have proof--you said that your subjects numbered in eight. The original six, plus Ash and Snow. That means Rose wasn’t intentional, but she became one of us. What are you to tell me? That she was intentional, and only a distraction? A red herring? And what about our friend that died in the woods, by the rainbow police? By you, I mean.”

Spectrum seemed to be at a loss for that one, even shrugging as an initial answer. “Quite some mysteries for me, actually. But it’s not proof that the society’s system is broken. Rose was a lucky catch--as you had put it. As well as your other associate. How they converted, I suppose we’ll never find out. It is fair and safe to assume that Rose was to be reinstated as a regular citizen again as well. Because think: I rid the humanity in everyone. How would a naturally-born person receive the motivation to gain it back? I selected each and every one of you--except Rose and your other associate, of course--one per faction.”

“If you think like me, wouldn’t you see that as wrong? You put me and the others at risk. You gave us a terrible life. We lived in a world that viewed things the wrong way, contradicting our beliefs. Harassment and discrimination robbed us of our rightful lives because of you. We all wished to be normal and live like however we were supposed to in our respective factions.”

“That is true. But it was necessary, and I have informed you on why. I believe I am good. Why not? I support the creation of the perfect environment in which no one feels bad. What else could you ask for? I eliminated the possibilities to start wars. I prevented many disputes by making their origins nonexistent. I am good. Call me delusional, or deluded. But you are the one delusional and deluded, and fact is fact. You are wrong. No matter what your opinion is on that, it is to no avail, because it’s the truth. I don’t care if you don’t think you’re wrong, because I know you are lying to yourself.”

“The world now is dull. The people out there are practically lifeless. They talk and act but they don’t live. They can’t think for themselves, they can’t make any decisions. It is because they have lost the ability to have their own thoughts, have their own judgements, have their own opinions.”

“Yes, and this is the perfect world. Is this not what everyone wants? A world without conflict? I have told you the reason the police don’t exist is that they don’t need to. No one will break the law, and not through fear, but because the only reason for them to live is to follow the rules. They’re clueless without their leader. You slightly disturbed the harmonious system momentarily, but it’s built and designed to never break. You will never win. The people have never been happier because it’s impossible to feel sadness. No one disagrees.”

“That is not good if they are stripped of free will.”

“Oh, but they’re not. You see, they believe and choose themselves with their own decision to think and agree with society. I know you have wondered if they do so out of fear, but they do not. They willingly agree with their wholehearted opinion to everything their leader likes. And it is their choice. They are not stripped of the freedom to think, as you had thought this entire time, but simply they all--because Red is designed this way--agree with the same opinions. When they all like the new red shoes, it is not to follow the rule. They actually all like the red ones. And it is not a coincidence either. It is simply because Red is designed that way, as I have said before. How Red got everyone to agree on everything purely by their own moral choice? Unknown reasons, it might seem, but they’re there. It is the absolute flawless dream world for humanity. A place where there are no disagreements, and willingly by everyone, too. You’ve always believed every human has empathetic instincts. But don’t you see? Red was designed to erase those primal instincts! They’re gone, and society can never be better. The people are happy because they don’t understand sadness! The people always agree because they don’t understand disagreement. They’re people that suffer blindly--they need saving but they don’t want to be saved. And so it’s a simple moral dilemma since part of empathetic instant is to not force people against their own will, correct? So what can you do? What way can you free them and make them happy too?”

It was Spectrum’s constant teaching that Mars finally knew he was right. He had already known that--that the people need saving but don’t want it. And he also knew to go against their will would be against what be believed, which was to let everyone choose what they wanted. It was, in fact, a colossal moral dilemma, and he realized he was in a trap. Humanity was in a trap. Red was so perfect, that no disturbance on the outside force could break it, and also there was no reason for that, which was the important thing. No reason for it to be broken since it this entire time it actually followed ethically: it gave people what they wanted willingly--a world without conflict. 

His whole life he had constantly been pointing out at things that were wrong in Red. Maybe they could be viewed as wrong. Maybe the rules were contradictory. But they weren’t unethical. Everyone was happy. Everyone had fundamental and virtual freedom--just not the same concept or way of it that Mars had previously thought. A different form of it. No one was forced to agree to Red’s rules but they did because they wanted to. Nothing, in fact, was wrong with Red. But yet to Mars, it was still a nightmare. 

“Believe me as a villain but I am truly the hero,” Spectrum said. “That is what every villain says, but this time, for me, it’s the truth.”

“I understand,” Mars said. “But I still don’t agree with it. I never will.”

“So now you disagree with what you stood for.”

“Yes.”

“And it means I have won, correct?”

Mars was at a standstill for replies. It did indeed seem that Spectrum had won, for he had turned Mars against everything he had ever believed in. Mars wanted to rid people of their happiness and freedom by destroying Red--that was wrong, and he knew that. But something deep inside him still told him that he was right, and Spectrum was wrong. The problem was, he didn’t know what it was, and he had no proof that what he thought could be correct. Spectrum had every bit of proof: to the happiness of the people, to the reasonless thought of disbanding the idea of Red. Mars was truly at a standstill of emotion. He didn’t have anyone to ask but himself who was truly right. It seemed that maybe there actually was no right and wrong. It only mattered what people thought and believed. Everyone had different points of view--he had already pondered about it with the example of capital punishment. But there were countless examples. One most famous would be the tale of a hero-villain. A person that stole money and gave it to the poor. Money was retrieved through inglorious misdeeds, but the purpose was to satisfy the need of people who were born unfairly. Good or bad, right or wrong, it would only be viewed differently by whatever person you were. There was no bad opinion in what you chose for that scenario, for both could have equal argument points and both could be seen as morally correct and morally incorrect, shown with examples on both sides. 

This was one of those moments, except ethically, it was leaning toward Spectrum’s side. Mars had no good points. All he could go with was a feeling that he was right to free the people of Red, who didn’t want to be freed. And that wasn’t enough in a legal and official argument, especially against the leader of the country. He was out of reasons and he had lost. He had no choice but to admit Spectrum was actually right. There was no problem in Red--he was only deceived by the morals that he thought were once his--but were actually unnatural. He was born with them with a purpose--to be a potential candidate to replace Spectrum. Everything he knew was false, and now he knew the truths.

There was possibly one thing he could base his thoughts on. And it was something that had been bothering him since the time it happened. It burdened him with guilt and sorriness, even if his friends comforted him into knowing it was the right and good decision. When he had killed Ash.

There’s a difference between murder and killing, he had been told by Sky. 

“Yes, Ash,” Spectrum said. “You killed him, and it was for a good reason. This may yet be another moral dilemma. An assassination for an evil villain to prevent potential future casualties? It sounds to be worth it. But you would be taking a life of a person, something you would see morally wrong if you thought with human empathy. Because the villain wouldn’t want to be killed--it would go against his wishes, his freedom, as well as equally go against your values and verities.”

“But I had to,” Mars said. “I had to trade his life for Snow’s. Snow is a truly good person, and we all saw that. She was only emotionally trapped into helping Ash because he was the friend that helped her survive.”

“It was a sole act of love, which is agreeable. She may have disagreed with Ash but in no universe would she go against him. He had possibly saved her life. She would be clueless without him on the run. He taught her to steal things so they could survive--food, clothing, tools, materials.”

“Yes. So when their disagreement got too far, Ash wanted to kill her, because those were the values of Black. I understand now that Black is hated by all factions for a reason: they value things that no human would. Like criminals: everyone thinks differently but one thing everyone with empathetic instincts agrees on is not to do bad things such as a criminal. Ash was acting on what Black would do, killing Snow as a way of erasing a threat to his opinions. Snow was innocent, and she supported him all the time. I had to trade lives--it was a good soul for a bad one. That’s what inclined me to push Ash off the edge before Snow could. What bothers me is no one after that questioned it, or disagreed with it. They accepted the fact I killed someone because they knew the purpose was for good and didn’t think of me differently after that. They thought of me the same. My reputation never changed after that heinous act. What makes me think is if I didn’t do it to save Snow. If I had done it for another reason. I would be inevitably hated, which is undeniable. But why? They are both the same act--the same exact act. The intention was different, but they’re essentially the same.”

That was the fundamentality that allowed those moral dilemmas to exist. The reason for the act defines what punishment is received. It is a universal fact killing is bad, but capital punishment is not because it cannot be allowed for the villain to live for potential, future crimes. But aren’t they the same? It is a universal fact stealing is bad, but doing it to give to the poor is not because it is unfair that they are poor, and so it must be unfair for the victim or victims that were stolen from too, to make things equal. But aren’t they the same? These situations are judged with law and justice by people in charge. For example, they could be judged in a court. Except Red never faced any of these dilemmas because everyone agreed to the same things, so courts were no longer needed, much like the police. 

“You may be afraid to share opinions because others may not like them,” Spectrum said. “If you have bad opinions, you’ll be shunned. That’s just the way it is with society. It’s been like that all through history, and it will be like that all through the future. This is why the modern world is so hurt and offended at seemingly petty things. Why the feelings of others are so valued, so valued to the point you can be afraid to say anything or it may hurt someone. It’s like that. I’m sorry Mars, you just can’t change it. Ash: you turned on him for the reason you hated Red. He thought differently because he had unorthodox thoughts. You as a person now represent Red’s basic moralities. That to disagree is to sin. And you should be punished for it.”

“No,” Mars said. “No. No! He was different! He wanted to kill, and that’s bad! It’s human nature that you don’t kill!”

“He just had a different opinion, didn’t he? That’s exactly what you value, isn’t it? Face it, Mars. You now know why Red is reasonable. You now know why it’s the way that it is. And if something doesn’t change the way it is for the better, it will stay this way. Because this is the best way for humans to live in peace. For all of them to agree all the time so hatred isn’t possible to be born. That’s the formula for erasing war from the equation. The variables are as simple as making everyone have the same opinions and forgiving mistakes instead of criticizing. So the creators of Red did that. And look at what it has become. It has flourished into a hate-less society, where no one feels bad. The generations of Red born have known nothing but a flawless, perfect, happy life. They intend to live it out that way, by following the rules willingly, and they don’t want any change. Maybe in historic times, Red would seem unethical for its rules, but now? It has never been better. The truth is, you can’t save a man who doesn’t want to be saved. The world is finally perfect.”

Yet everything was still wrong. Mars could still sense it. But what could he do? Spectrum was right. No, Red was right.

XIX

A long time ago he didn’t know what those devices did. He was naive. But that was before; before he after watched the many footages Spectrum had shown him, which were distressing and sombre in vibe. He didn’t know people were capable of such terrible acts--then again, he knew people were capable of almost anything evil. He just didn’t believe it, because he was innocent back then. He didn’t know they used saws, oil and fire, stakes and nails, hanging ropes, heavy, vertically falling blades, and even horses to give the most amount of pain to a human creature. 

“Oh, yes,” Spectrum said. “Even horses.”

“Why are you showing me this? I know how much converters are hated already. This--years and years of footage containing many awful acts of converter torture in history--it’s enough to tell me how much they’re hated. I’ve seen too much already, and my eyes can’t give it back. These images are in my head. Is that what you want? To show me what people do to converters, scare me because of it, to the point I will not want to be one? It won’t work. Don’t you see? It’s not my choice to be a converter. If I had the choice, I would gladly choose not to be one, to not make my life extremely hard. But no, I am a converter by default. It’s who I am, and how can you change who you are? Maybe your personalistic traits and physical characteristics, but inside you are the same person, and your being is impregnable. It’s because of this that I’m still me, and you are still you. You cannot be me, and I cannot be you, in a literal sense. Let me be me, as you cannot attack my being in any way. Stop this atrocious bigotry and understand the rightness of conversion.”

“That all very well could be true,” he said. “But what is that supposed to do against what I think? Don’t you believe in the idea everyone should be allowed what to think, whether true or not, right or wrong?”

Once again, this man was beating Mars in logic. He was quite eccentric, but also correct about everything he said. Mars had nothing against him to argue since the man used his own logic against him. Yes, it was definitely true everyone should be allowed to think freely, and he had exposed Mars into hypocrisy when he had tried to enforce his own idea to the man. Spectrum had every right to think what he thought. But there was another thing Mars stood for, and that was the ability to respect the thoughts of others. To leave them be when they had them. 

“But I think it’s okay to not respect the thoughts of others,” Spectrum said. “That’s what I think, and so, I do it. Therefore, I am against your conversion.”

Mars was defeated again. He had nothing else to say, for he was right. He had made his own contradictory rule, which was something he despised in Red. If you had to think to respect other thoughts was necessary, then that meant you weren’t truly free in what you were able to think. You could not have that rule at the same time as having the one that meant the freedom of thought since you wouldn’t be free in thought since it was required to agree with the respect of other opinions. 

“I will admit you have been winning this little dispute of ours,” Mars said. “But I still know I’m right.”

“And what tells you that?”

“Something inside me. I just know I am correct, and you are the wrong one.”

“And what if I told you I also had that same feeling in righteousness? Which I do. How would we know who is correct?”

Mars wanted to jump out of his binds and grab the man’s throat. It seemed he couldn’t say anything that wouldn’t be used against him, and a deep feeling of anger and fury boiled inside him against this man. 

“If you are too angry to want to suffocate me to death, how about we choose another topic of conversation?” he said. “The hunt. Now you must know why it took nearly forever for the rainbow police to catch you and your associates. It was a one-man operation. Only me. That is the sole reason you were able to outrun the rainbow police for so long. Also, I had to take one of you at a time, bringing you back to my headquarters. If you are curious, and you want explanations, I can give them to you. We have all the time we want here, like how I also did in my task to capture you all. I would say so myself--while keeping my humbleness--that I did an excellent job.”

You still took forever, Mars thought. Weeks. 

“I’ll have you know that doesn’t insult me the slightest.”

Stop doing that, Mars thought, annoyed. 

“Doing what?” he asked. “And that flashlight you saw while you were hiding? I was only teasing you, making you scared. Of course, I also chose that opportunity to seize one of you in your sleep, tranquillizing first, then carrying her off. The entire hunt had been in my control the moment you ran into the wilderness, with the illusion of the perception that you were always steps ahead of me. I knew exactly where you all were, at all times, and picking you off one by one had never been so easy. It was fun. A little game I enjoyed. You had no escape from the start. I sent the message that you would be hunted by the rainbow police, and only a fool wouldn’t know you would run into the uncharted territories, the only safe place for you all.”

“And what about that campfire smoke I saw in the distance?”

He smiled. “I never made a single one.”

Mars knitted his eyebrows, then mentally shrugged. “You must be so proud. But I don’t regret the escape. It only proved that we cared about our lives even if we knew our actions were pointless. And that’s what we all should strive for, isn’t it? The morality of survival, which makes you just another creature on this planet. If you lose the will to survive, are you living?”

“You and your personalized moral codes. Disgusting to humanity! You think your sense of righteousness leads you to a virtuous and sinless life, doesn’t it? And the belief that your moral compass is the correct one, superior over any other? There are many things that you are wrong in. For one, believing that everyone is equal and compatible in the sense of propagation, and able to live in harmony with each other. No! Red is above all others and is superior in every way. We are better than the other peoples--who are merely dirty animals who feed on our scum--and we are supremely epic in comparison, sublime and glorious. The Blues, the Greens, the Yellows, Oranges, Purples. The Blacks and the Whites. The magnitude of our scale of superiority is so monumental they cannot even contemplate about matching it. Red is the best ethnic group, and who could argue? Your efforts are institutional and ephemeral, a waste of energy cast into a final failure. I think enough is enough. I have given you last moments to spare in your state of mind, for soon it will be gone, and you will degrade back into an ordinary Red citizen, mindless by your definition. I will not underestimate your mental fortitude, but I know in time it will break. An epiphany in your mind will occur to remind you Red’s values are more important than the ones you have now. We as human creatures are made to feel hurt emotionally. Red is supposed to exist solely to erase that emotional sensation. The scenario in which one might get hurt feelings due to the opinion of another’s is hard to bear. It causes disagreements, fights, and hatred. We don’t want people to feel hurt by other opinions, do we? No matter how small of an opinion. And this is why we take small matters--petty little opinions--and take care of it with the imaginative sense of it being somewhat a matter of importance. Hurting someone’s feelings is an evil act only the most heartless would do. Get it through your ludicrous and delirious mind that any little thought of yours can hurt someone, and will cause a big disagreement and oppositional battle. You’ve always thought everyone should be free to think what they want, and it is a human right for them to have. But no, it is a selfish thing to want. Only spite will arise, and soon all serenity will be lost. A world like that would cast terror into the hearts of people. No, Red is the complete opposite. It only values the happiness of people, making sure no one gets emotionally hurt by another opinion. When Red was created, the known line ‘nothing is perfect’ lost its truth.”

“What are you going to do to me?”

“In time, you will see. In time, you will understand. Oh, in time, everything will be clear to you. Your vision is clouded by false beliefs, and your judgement is affected because of it. You have told me that a person’s being is impenetrable, no matter what. That they are safe within the walls of their person, and their very being cannot change by any outside force. That a person will be him or herself, and there is nothing possible to do to change it. Do you want to see if that is true?”

XX

The days went by since Mars had first sat on his chair. He had grown uncomfortable in his position and longed to stretch. He was fed and nurtured by Spectrum, but something told him not out of pity, or because he was a prisoner. But because he genuinely cared, as he planned to reinstate him back into the society of Red. How he was to, Mars didn’t know. It wouldn’t be easy to get him to forget about his verities. Amnesia was something out of the choices since he would forget how Red worked and everything about his life. No, Spectrum intended to do something different to him. 

Mars assumed since he was the last one caught, all of his friends were already back in their respective factions, living their lives regularly as they would if they never experienced conversion. 

One day, Spectrum came into the room again. Mars didn’t know where he was when he wasn’t in it. He moved in front to face Mars. 

“Did you know, I once wondered what a world would be like if it was populated plentifully by one person? The same exact person? What would happen? Would they fight, or would it be impossible for them to since they’re the same person and they think the same way?” He turned to face the screens, the ones which Mars had been staring at for days, the ones which viewed and spied on the city and its inhabitants privately. “And then I realized that I already knew the answer.”

He faced Mars again. “I’m going to begin.”

“You can’t do anything to me.”

“A tempting challenge that we shall see the outcome to. No, never mind. When this is done only I will see the outcome, since you will end up believing you were never different than a regular Red citizen your entire life.”

“That’s impossible. Indoctrination using constant and consistent pressure--brainwashing--is mythical.”

“It could be if I’m enforcing a thought that’s never been there.”

It took Mars only a few seconds to understand what he meant. Somewhere inside him, another thing had been implanted other than his empathetical instincts. He knew what it was: Red instincts. Spectrum must’ve known and planned to give a little piece of it to the eight of them at birth, so to convert them back into what they were supposed to be, all he had to do was bring it out and make it overpower his regular humanity. For Rose, it must’ve been easier, for she had lived her life as a regular Red longer. Her Red instinct piece inside of her was bigger, and it took less to fish it out. It bothered Mars that there was a tiny piece inside of him that thought the Red way. He thought he was one hundred percent him, but it seemed if Spectrum was right, he was not.

“You’re correct,” Spectrum said. “And yes, your piece is very small. But no matter what, with enough fishing, anyone can bring it out. You lived the first few years of your life like a Red, didn’t you? Your unorthodox and unethical thoughts only surfaced when you met your outsider friends--which I hope you already know that was planned. They were the trigger. Their triggers were to meet you, too. You all triggered the empathetical instinct in each other. Before, you were all regular citizens of your faction. All I have to do is treat you like a newborn: teach you everything again on how a Red thinks. It won’t be easy, but it’s possible. I have to constantly enforce the ideals of Red onto you until you catch on, start valuing them, and then become a Red again. You will eventually forget who you were before as a different thinker, and all your bad thoughts will go away. The urge to have those bad thoughts will go away as well because now you don’t have a trigger. Your friends will be regular citizens too, and this time, there is no planned meeting for you eight. Think about it. Rose never converted until you confessed your bad opinions to her. She even told you that. Before you did that evil act, her life was normal as a Red. But then you opened her eyes to your view of things and she became you, her happy and perfect life officially abolished. Let’s begin with tedious teachings. First: what does Red value most?”

Mars didn’t want to answer, because he disliked the thought that he was already on the way to becoming a Red again. It could’ve been his Red instincts, or his overpowering urge to politely answer, but he said, “The self-esteem and feelings of one another.”

“Good,” Spectrum said. “Now, what does Red value most?”

“The self-esteem and feelings of one another.”

“Good,” Spectrum said. “Now, what does Red value most?”

“The self-esteem and feelings of one another.”

“Good,” Spectrum said. “Now, what does Red value most?”

“The self-esteem and feelings of one another.”

This continued enough times until Mars couldn’t think of anything else that someone could value. The only thought in his head was that this was the right thing to value and nothing else. He didn’t know how much time had passed since the next question. It could’ve ranged anywhere from hours to days, but Spectrum then asked, “Why is it important to agree to Red’s opinions?”

“To not disagree. Disagreeing can cause hate.”

That question continued between an indistinguishable amount of hours and days once again. This pattern continued until Spectrum asked a variety of questions, such as, “Why is it important to forgive and forget any mistake?”, “Why is it important to only like what Red likes, and not any other faction?”, “Do the rainbow police and police exist?”

One instance, Mars forced himself--and it was very, very hard--to stop answering. “You’re not getting through to me. I still believe the opposite of all those things.”

“Oh, but in time, you won’t. Trust me. You once thought Red citizens were robots, didn’t you? That couldn’t be much further from the truth. You all are programmed in a way. And yours is special, but still practically the same. You will succumb.”

“How will this work anyway? If I am put back into society, they still publicly know I am an Orange. They will still hate me.”

“But you forget that they believe to forgive and forget any mistake. It may take a long time for some, such as your confession, but a long time has passed since you were in Red. They certainly have already forgotten your confession, and they will also not question your long period of absence. That’s how they are ‘programmed’ to think. I will make you think like a Red again. Is that not what you wanted when you first realized you were different?”

“I don’t want it now, for I truly understand the worth of my thoughts. You are evil.”

“Oh. Am I?”

“When I first met you, before we entered Red. Why couldn’t I hurt you?”

“Because your morals are amplified to more than what a real human actually feels. You thought you were, but you’re not a real human; none of you eight were. You have human feelings, but they are enhanced. That’s how you were able to tell Red was a lie, unlike everyone else.”

“I know that. But I still couldn’t hurt you, and I hurt Ash. Why? In my mind at that time, I felt like I didn’t want to hurt you. I also felt like following you. But right now, as I speak, I’m wondering why I didn’t. It’s not like me.”

“You think it’s not like you. I already said your empathetic instincts are intentionally and extremely amplified than an actual regular human. No matter how hard you try, or how much you think you want to, you don’t want to hurt. That’s how I knew I was safe from you.”

“And Ash?”

“You moral instincts were greater than your value of empathy. You wanted to save someone, and that overpowered the urge to not kill someone. Especially since you know Ash has wrong opinions, and Snow doesn’t. Snow, in fact, thinks like you, as you may already know. She only doesn’t resent Ash because she has a connection to him emotionally stronger than any of you. And I did that for a purpose: It was to show you another reason to why some people do things they know that’s wrong. It could be love overriding their morals. Their mind doesn’t do it by choice, only their feelings do. Snow defended Ash though she knew he was wrong--its a clear example of that.”

“You are evil.”

“Keep saying that false accusation.”

The questions continued after that, in the way of intense but calm interrogation. Spectrum pummelled him with question after question, always the same exact one countless times until he switched it, and Mars complied easily. The man faced no resistance at all when he asked for an answer, and when he got one he still asked again. Mars wasn’t sure how this would enforce anything into his mind. It could be possible, slowly and eventually, but he didn’t think it was. 

“You are evil,” he told Spectrum.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you. Say that again?”

“You are…” That would be mean, wouldn’t it? He didn’t want to hurt his feelings. “You are… nice.”

Spectrum smiled strangely after that, and Mars didn’t know why.

After what seemed like weeks of asking and answering, Mars absolutely knew for sure Spectrum wasn’t getting anything done. He complimented the man on his looks, outfits, and opinions, but he did those by choice. Not because the man forced him to. Every time, the man smiled as if he knew something Mars didn’t, but he didn’t care. 

“I don’t understand why you think you can get to me,” Mars told him once. “You never will. Oh, those are nice shoes, by the way. As I was saying, it’s impossible to break me. Your efforts are useless and you are wasting your time. You are very nice, by the way. So, are you ready to give up on me or not? Because it will never work. In what universe do you think it will work? I’m sorry, that must’ve come out as rude. I hope I didn’t hurt your feelings. You can do it, you can break me. I believe in you, and I support you. Anything to raise your self-esteem.”

“Thank you,” Spectrum said. 

“But anyway, you won’t get to me. My mind is still as sharp as it first was. I still believe in what is right and--did I ever mention you are very handsome, sir?--but still you haven’t gotten to me. Have you ever made any progress?”

“I’ll let you decide.”

“Well, you haven’t. That’s the truth--but I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings. I want you to know I apologize if they did.”

More time passed and Mars was still bound to the chair, answering questions, and he was certain weeks have passed. This was beginning to get ridiculous. Spectrum was doing nothing to him. It was almost funny--the man was begging for him to change back into a Red. Asking questions repeatedly like a beggar would beg. 

“Name your associates,” Spectrum asked. 

“Ski, Clove, Dais, Autumnia, Violetta, Ashy, Snowfall, and Roslyn,” he said. “Why?”

“Name them again.”

“Skeleton, Clovis, Day, Autumniletta, Violin, Ashes, Blizzard and Rosalinda. See, I remember them perfectly. I don’t know what you’re trying to get at here. You are doing nothing to me. You have been doing nothing and you will be doing nothing. This is all pointless. Get me out of this chair and I’ll promise I’ll just continue to pretend to live like a Red. You are a very nice person, probably the nicest person I’ve met. I’m sure you will let me.”

“We’re not done.”

“Oh, I understand. Sorry if I hurt your feelings, it wasn’t my intention. I hope you know your self-esteem is more important than my life. It’s only--I have a feeling you’re just not doing anything to me. Your progress is still at the start. I believe in all my opinions still, I remember who I am and who my friends are.”

But Spectrum refused to listen to him. Instead, he asked, “Are you sure about that?”

“I am.”

He went to the control panel and typed something. On the big screen, the centred one, footage began playing. Mars saw trees and water. A lake in the middle of it all, with a canoe being paddled by two people, a boy and a girl.

“I want you to tell me who the two people are in this video,” Spectrum said. “If you would politely, please.”

“Of course,” Mars said. “Anything to make you happy, sir. I’d die to make you happy.”

He nodded. Pointing to the girl in the video, he said, “First, tell me who this is.”

The boy and girl were talking. Relaxing on the canoe, in the middle of nature. Trees surrounded them, and he could tell it would be such a nice place to be in. The only thing he disliked were the trees--they weren’t evergreen. Though it still looked nice. But the girl. She had auburn hair. She was quite pretty, but he was far from fond of her. Her face reminded him nothing except a distant thought in his mind, a single sentence: Whatever they do, or say, or threaten, don’t let them break you. He didn’t know what it meant, and he was sure it was nothing. 

“I’m sorry, sir. I don’t know,” he said. “Have I failed you? Have I hurt your feelings? I’m sorry for doing so--you are such a nice person, I don’t think you deserve it.”

“It’s okay,” Spectrum said. “Mistakes are always forgiven. Now, can you at least tell me who the boy is?”

Mars focused on the scene again. They were playfully splashing each other with water now, laughing as they did so. When they were done, the girl moved closely next to him in an affectionate manner. 

This was when he looked at the boy very closely. Studied his features, his actions, and looked deep inside him and into his thoughts, too. But with his maximum effort, the examination was merely superficial. He attempted the best analysis, but yet he just couldn’t figure who the strange boy was. “I’m sorry sir,” he said. “I don’t know.”

XXI

“You once thought ignorance is harm. But in fact, you are wrong. Red lives in bliss because they are so incapacitated in it to realize any other view. What they think is all they can think, and to think anything otherwise is evil. Red leads them in a seductive trance, and it is all possible through ignorance. The people know limited things, and that is why they are happy. They thrive off of ignorance and stupidity. They use it every day. Since they have it, they cannot understand the complex contradictions and foolishness of the rules of Red, much like how you first did. The creators of Red envisioned an impeccable world that would remain ethical, and one that only produced happiness and bliss for its inhabitants through ignorance. They are forever to be remembered as glorious and truly successful in their efforts. We may never find out who they are since they are just merely prehistoric aspects of the world now. And by the world, I mean Red. Red is all the world, and the world is all that’s Red. Outsiders are nonexistent as all we know is Red. Red is Red. The people are Red. The world is Red. As for how each faction perceives themselves comically superior, compared to the other factions, Red thinks of itself as the same. Only the truth is, it is the centre of it all. If you had to pick something or someone to represent the regime of this country which is all that is of the world, it would not be me, it would be Red. Because I am Red. I am a part of it. I have already told you that I am only a citizen of it, and I am charged with the responsibility to maintain and watch over it. I am only a citizen with higher responsibilities and not a leader for that matter. Because the point of Red and this country was for it to be in total anarchy. Not in the way you might think. Organized, deceptive anarchy. For the people believe they have leaders since it is ingrained in our humanity and human minds that we are to always follow a higher authority. It’s just the way we are. So Red deceives everyone into thinking they have a leader, like all the other factions. In reality, they don’t. Also, the leaders don’t show their faces, don’t strictly enforce the rules, speak, do, or come in contact in any way with the public. This is all because they don’t need to. Red is an imagined world with no authority, and no law-enforcement organizations--police. They are not needed because everyone agrees willingly to the same things. Crime is impossible, and therefore, danger from other human beings is impossible. The police serve as an imaginary threat, to make everyone know and fear if they ever get out of hand to follow the rules. All of this has to be maintained by at least someone, was something that went in mind when the creators of Red were planning. If not artificial intelligence, as they can malfunction due to contradictory logic of their programming or they will eventually break down naturally, it had to be a person, the creators thought. So it had to be generation after generation, one person overseeing the operation and success of Red. And not the other factions, because as I said, the other factions can be nonexistent for all that matters. They are part of the world, and if the world is Red, they are Red. And so, the creators made a plan to have the first overseer. The first person to pretend to be all the leaders at once. They also invented the test, which would make some children, at least one per faction, go through every single thing you had gone through and end up here, so one of them can be the new overseer to replace the aged one. There will always be one that agrees--it’s just the way the formula works by the creators. Yes, you are only a part of a cycle. You think you are naturally this way but you are not. Your gift of thinking differently than everyone else and society was gifted. No, I will not tell you who out of your group chose to accept the role as overseer this time. And you know it’s not you. But yes, that is how the overseer system works. Every generation, there will be children like you. First, they think and believe they are inherently bad and dangerous to Red. Then, they find others that trigger their instincts, and also move on to accept it. Finally, they decide to do something about Red, fail, and end up like you. Do you think it was a challenge for me to catch you? It was the calmest and easiest thing I could ever do. I was taught and prepared on what to do by the last overseer, the last Spectrum. Now, that is everything I know of Red. I have taught you what I know. The rest is secret to the creators, and since they are long gone we will never find out now. Just know Red is good, and to remember that forever. It couldn’t get any more ethical than it is. It values what you value, so why go against it? Red supports the opposite of scrutiny. Red supports freedom and anarchy. Red supports the self-esteem of a person: The simpleminded and ignorant human creature. Red supports agreements and happiness and clears any stigma of failure by always forgiving mistakes. Red supports everything good and does it in the most ethical way possible. It is truly the perfect world, and that makes me question why you want to ruin it. Now you see why all this time you have been viewed as evil. It’s because you are. Maybe not intentionally. You want to save a world that doesn’t need saving. Why? Do you not understand? Do you want the world to be war-ridden again? What do you think caused history’s greatest wars? The supportiveness of opposing deities? The view that one specific type of people are above others? The logical and ethical opinion of how a nation should be ruled, whether it should be democracy, communism, or if the regime should support different values? To say all three and more is correct. To disagree is to sin. We exist to eliminate all of them and we have succeeded, and now you want to tear it all down. Our world is now perfect because we have the same views of right and wrong. And that’s all that matters; that’s the most important thing in the world. I have also tediously reminded you that we think the same by choice. The creators of Red, somehow with unknown ways, made everyone think the same with their own free will. Their decision. Red is perfect, Red is unparalleled, Red is inescapable. It may be true that we are stuck in it, and there is no possible way to even see it since it’s naturally impossible for a Red citizen to think differently--unless you are part of the overseer program. It may be true that there’s absolutely no hope of trying to change it, and humanity is at a standstill in it, because it is impossible--in the past, present, and future--for anyone to gain motivation to change it. But we are not stuck in such a bad place. In fact, we are stuck in the best place. Never before in history have we been living in such a peaceful and lovely world. You can never be unhappy here. This is a paradise that will never be abolished. Only the strongest will can escape its appealing beauty, for the hypnotization of its appeal is too empowering. The society itself is the epitome of grandeur, aesthetically pleasing in the most literal sense possible. Red has won against you, and now it has assimilated you. Red welcomes you into its society and wants you to be a part of it.” 

Spectrum paused. “Society is controlling anyway. Even if it’s seemingly free. If you don’t brush your teeth? You’re strange. If you don’t wear clothes? You are unfit to be in the community. Even with the so-called freedom we are entitled to in some societies, there are always unwritten rules that everyone knows they must follow, or else they will be driven out of the society by their own comrades, given the reputations of freaks. It’s these unwritten laws that we abide to naturally, and we don’t understand that it’s also because of these same laws that we are not truly free.”

He stepped out of the shadows, toward the boy. “Let me ask you the very first question I asked you before: What does Red value most?”

“The self-esteem and feelings of one another. You can’t break me, Spectrum. I’m still the same person.”

“Now, what do you value most?”

“The self-esteem and feelings of one another. How many times do I have to tell you until you realize this plan of yours is not working, and will never work?”

“This will be your final question until you are ready to join Red again. What fruit do you like? You like apples. Apples, and nothing else. Now, answer.”

Without hesitation, he said, “I like oranges.”

“What fruit do you like? You like apples. Apples, and nothing else. Now, answer.”

Without hesitation, he said, “I like oranges.”

“What fruit do you like? You like apples. Apples, and nothing else. Now, answer.”

Without hesitation, he said, “I like oranges.”

“What fruit do you like? You like apples. Apples, and nothing else. Now, answer.”

Without hesitation, he said, “I like apples.”

###