Read Online Samedi the Deafness by Jesse Ball - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jesse Ball
Tags: Fiction, Literary, General, Psychological fiction, Self-Help, Personal Growth, Memory Improvement, Terrorists, Mnemonics, Psychological Games, Sanatoriums
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in the space of two days, and both of their dying was partly his fault. He had kept the thought far from him, but it was undeniable. In the brackets and boxes of his voluminous memory were all the impressions, labeled and fitted, of both deaths. There would be for him no easy forgetting.
A Lesson
When James had applied for the work, taken and passed the necessary examinations, been shown to the back room, fitted with a suit, fingerprinted, voice-tested, lie-detectored, he came before a powerful man, the owner of the firm.
—You are young, no? said the man. Younger than we like here. You know, we like a man to have a bit of experience before coming to us. We feel it puts him on better footing with those he will find it necessary to interact with as a professional.
James said then that he certainly had been around, had traveled extensively, and was well versed in the fields adjoining that of this profession.
—But that's the thing, don't you see, the man had said. There's no way to know what will be required. You have to make a study of everything. And, of course, he said, once you put something in, it never comes out. The training is quite effective that way.
He took James by the arm and led him to the window.
—How old are you? he asked.
—Twenty years to the day, said James.
—To the day, said the man quietly, as if musing. To the day. You have to know what you're getting into. It is a strange life, that of the mnemonist. It is most difficult to form relationships. Many of our best find their lives are lonely. Of course, the remuneration is great. You will find the work easy, though the travel is time-consuming. And truly, I mean it. You will hardly forget a thing once you have gone through the training. When are you scheduled?
James said that he was to begin the next week.
—So, you will be twenty-three when the training is done, said the man.
He pressed a buzzer on his desk. A man came to the door.
—Sir?
—This Sim. I would like his progress monitored. I would like to be personally apprised of it.
—That can be done. Certainly, sir.
—Very good.
The owner made an away-with-you gesture with his hand, and the man disappeared through the door.
I wonder, thought James to himself. Will I begin to remember older things more clearly, or just things from now on?
In his exploring, James had somehow managed to enter a locked room. Consternation then among the technicians.
—What are you doing here?
—I'm sorry, said James. I didn't realize.
—But this is the egg room! cried one of the attendants, a young man dressed head to toe in white.
—I can see that, said James. It looks like an egg room. I can't imagine what else it would be.
—You have to leave immediately, said one of the technicians.
The others all nodded their agreement.
—If you leave now, no one will say that you were here. We will all say that you have never been in the egg room.
—Okay, said James. I'm leaving.
And he left the egg room through the door by which he came. It locked after him with a definitive click.
Never again, thought James. Never again, the egg room.
RULE 143
When entering a room one must always wait until one is spoken to to speak if the room is occupied by 3, 5, or 7 people. If there are 2, 4, or 9 (or 8 on Thursdays), one has the right to speak first. Otherwise, 8 is the clouted numeral and one mustn't speak at all until one has slept and woken. This may of course be laid like a trap, like a setting at table, but such deeds will be recorded and rewarded as they are done, whether good or ill. If 1 is in the room, the bell applies. The library is exempt: a rule of silence save between those in love and alone. Never should there be a gathering of more than 9. That room cannot be entered. One would knock, and request, by dint of paper, the leaving of the room by an occupant. OF COURSE, if one enters in a pair, the rules are more complicated. The pair may speak first,
A Lesson
When James had applied for the work, taken and passed the necessary examinations, been shown to the back room, fitted with a suit, fingerprinted, voice-tested, lie-detectored, he came before a powerful man, the owner of the firm.
—You are young, no? said the man. Younger than we like here. You know, we like a man to have a bit of experience before coming to us. We feel it puts him on better footing with those he will find it necessary to interact with as a professional.
James said then that he certainly had been around, had traveled extensively, and was well versed in the fields adjoining that of this profession.
—But that's the thing, don't you see, the man had said. There's no way to know what will be required. You have to make a study of everything. And, of course, he said, once you put something in, it never comes out. The training is quite effective that way.
He took James by the arm and led him to the window.
—How old are you? he asked.
—Twenty years to the day, said James.
—To the day, said the man quietly, as if musing. To the day. You have to know what you're getting into. It is a strange life, that of the mnemonist. It is most difficult to form relationships. Many of our best find their lives are lonely. Of course, the remuneration is great. You will find the work easy, though the travel is time-consuming. And truly, I mean it. You will hardly forget a thing once you have gone through the training. When are you scheduled?
James said that he was to begin the next week.
—So, you will be twenty-three when the training is done, said the man.
He pressed a buzzer on his desk. A man came to the door.
—Sir?
—This Sim. I would like his progress monitored. I would like to be personally apprised of it.
—That can be done. Certainly, sir.
—Very good.
The owner made an away-with-you gesture with his hand, and the man disappeared through the door.
I wonder, thought James to himself. Will I begin to remember older things more clearly, or just things from now on?
In his exploring, James had somehow managed to enter a locked room. Consternation then among the technicians.
—What are you doing here?
—I'm sorry, said James. I didn't realize.
—But this is the egg room! cried one of the attendants, a young man dressed head to toe in white.
—I can see that, said James. It looks like an egg room. I can't imagine what else it would be.
—You have to leave immediately, said one of the technicians.
The others all nodded their agreement.
—If you leave now, no one will say that you were here. We will all say that you have never been in the egg room.
—Okay, said James. I'm leaving.
And he left the egg room through the door by which he came. It locked after him with a definitive click.
Never again, thought James. Never again, the egg room.
RULE 143
When entering a room one must always wait until one is spoken to to speak if the room is occupied by 3, 5, or 7 people. If there are 2, 4, or 9 (or 8 on Thursdays), one has the right to speak first. Otherwise, 8 is the clouted numeral and one mustn't speak at all until one has slept and woken. This may of course be laid like a trap, like a setting at table, but such deeds will be recorded and rewarded as they are done, whether good or ill. If 1 is in the room, the bell applies. The library is exempt: a rule of silence save between those in love and alone. Never should there be a gathering of more than 9. That room cannot be entered. One would knock, and request, by dint of paper, the leaving of the room by an occupant. OF COURSE, if one enters in a pair, the rules are more complicated. The pair may speak first,
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