The Lighted Fountains of Nereid
by Steven Translateur
Angie Emerald paid the 50 unit fee and entered the Fountain Park of the
Planet Neptune satellite Nereid. She beheld rows of lighted fountains
with sculptures of every conceivable God and Goddess including Zeus and
Aphrodite. She approached one - a fountain of Athena.
She kneeled before it in reverence. "Oh great Athena," she implored, "please use your wisdom to find me a husband!"
She needed marriage not for the money but the companionship. She tried
everywhere - night clubs, personals, comrade parties, etc... She could
not find Mr. Right.
Everybody on Nereid was wealthy because of their ownership of shares in
the Neptune Water Company. Angie was worth 8 million units. She kept it
a secret because she did not want people to love her only for her
resources.
At the Apollo fountain, she found orange colored water spewing forth
and strobe lights blinking. The God of music & poetry & ethics!
There were two handsome males gazing at the spectacle. She approached
they. "Hello," she said, "I hope you do not think I am too forward by
introducing myself. But my name is Angie and I could not help notice
you."
"Hello. Not at all," said one of them. "Our names are Todd and Reginald."
It was love at first sight with Todd. She clasped his hand. "I've been
looking for you my whole life! This place is magical."
The artificial gravity kept everybody on the ground. But Angie and Todd's hearts soared.
They spent the next few weeks in a whirlwind romance. They visited the
Orbital Amusement Park and rode the Arienne roller coaster; they swam
in the Sea of Butterflies; they dined in the Sky Tower Restaurant; they
frolicked in the Pools of Sorcery; and they made love in the Hotel
Melted Ice. They fell deeply in love.
Their marriage was a magnificent affair of 500 associates, a gargantuan
chocolate wedding cake, and a live band playing the hottest tunes of
the outer moons.
After the wedding, tragedy struck. A spartan rival Moon, jealous of the
breezy lives of the Nereidians, invaded Nereid. The robbed the
inhabitants of their ample servant robots, and put everybody to work.
The invading powers that be assigned Todd to work in a factory that
manufactured flashlights, while Angie was forced to be a waitress in a
busy establishment!
The two of them toiled for months. They hoped to find solace at the
Lighted Fountains but the invaders closed it. They closed all
attractions and pastime joints. Misery came down upon the Nereid colony.
The senators of Nereid appealed to the Solar Government for assistance in the Solar Parliament on Planet Mars.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” said Klide Cormer, plenipotentiaries of moon
Nereid to the senate chamber, “My home Moon is in a state of crisis.
Since last December and it is now March, Nereid has been occupied by
rival forces. They have wrecked Nereidian lifestyle, and compelled
everybody to give up their leisurely ways and get back to work! This is
all well and good except that the great people of Nereid had earned
their way of life through shrewd investing combined with the
manufacturing of fantastic, loyal, hard-working robots and androids.
The robots were doing all the work and amen to that! What is so wrong
with that? It freed up the Nereidians to devote themselves to their
hobbies including music and art! Please, I am imploring the senate to
order solar forces into battle with the invaders to free Nereid and
restore Nereid liberty! Please do not be jealous of the Nereidians.
They want the best for everybody – you and you and you, including
wanting to retire everybody. The theory of work on Nereid is that it is
for the automatons! People should be free to do whatever they want and
have long, extended lives on top of that. Nereidian technology allows
for such a lifestyle. If you support Nereid, you too may someday
benefit from the advances of Nereid. Thank you and please help us!”
A vote was taken and 90% of the senators were in favor of helping free
Nereid. The mighty Armed Forces of the Solar System, with the
endorsement of the Solar Precept and Parliament, swung into action.
They sent 50 warships to Nereid to challenge the invasion and
succeeded. The invaders withdrew.
The Nereidians rejoiced as their home was restored to its former glory.
Music and art shops reopened, robots were rebuilt, and everybody
celebrated!
At the Lighted Fountains, Todd and Angie frolicked once again, taking
photos and even swimming in some of the pools. Their love grew stronger
and they had a large family of Nereid offspring who were born wealthy
and blessed. One of their brightest offspring became an engineer
though, who helped construct the next generation of Nereidian robots –
androids that closely resembled human beings – so much so that they
were nearly indistinguishable; this improved the quality of life for
everybody substantially.
In his memoirs, Klide Cormer reflected upon the Nereidian way of life
with glee, emphasizing its many many virtues including all the free
time that adult Nereidians had to explore the lighter side of life. In
one chapter, he also gives high praise to amusement parks like the
Lighted Fountains for all that they do to entertain, inspire, and help
pass the time of the lucky Nereidians.
In the post invasion land of Nereid, music and art flourished
immensely. There were new songs and artwork. Heavy percussion crept
into Nereidian music, the kind that you could feel right down to the
bones when it was blasted. This sort of assertive sound expression was
an outcry of the Nereidians against the stifling oppression of their
former invaders. Art was just as dramatic – swirls of colors adorned
abstract outrages against oppression and unnecessary toil.
Angie and Todd and family lived happily ever after. And the Lighted
Fountains of Nereid, where they met, was expanded to 200 fountains of
deities of all persuasions and all perspectives.
THE END
© 2019 Steven Translateur
Bio: Steven Translateur's work has appeared in a variety of
publications including
ANTIPODEAN SF, MIND IN MOTION, and NEXT PHASE.
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