Following her finger that pointed east to where the barn was I could see something like a fence in the middle of an open area. A ring, inside it there were some big dark figures, I couldn't distinguish what they were from my position. Louise began to walk towards the fence, my curiosity followed her. After every step I got even more intrigued. The thing had lines too round to be a machine, it was tall and based on four long legs with something like feathers in the tail. Deep in my memory I had the faint image of what it was but I just couldn't put my finger on the word - unfortunately school never was my strong suit.
- Have you ever seen one of these?- Louise asked me after getting to the fence, resting her arms on the wood sticks.
- Definitely not. What is it?
- A horse.
As the word came out of her mouth it was like my brain was lit up by an electric discharge connecting the image to the word. An animal of that size was surreal. They weren't extinct but it was the same as seeing a tiger outside the zoo, just extraordinary. Not many farmers had animals in their properties, the government encouraged the growing of food rather than anything else which made keeping farm animals very rare since they were more of an expanse rather than a source of income. Against all odds, there it was, three gigantic brown horses strong and healthy making my trip triple its profits.
- I cannot believe that is a real living horse!!
By that time I was mounting on the fence screaming the words with the camera to my face taking pictures after pictures under beautiful sunlight. Meanwhile Louise was laughing out loud by my side and holding my back with one hand so I wouldn't fall off on the dirt beneath us. The horses were walking around slowly eating the green grass and shaking their hair in perfect poses. All I know is that I shouted a lot and ran around the fence looking for better angles with Louise behind me as a bodyguard for a long while.
Too many photos later I finally calmed down and decided I had taken enough pictures. I leaned my back on the fence and began to check the material. The lighting was good and the horses looked magnificent as I imagined they would be. I was so grateful to that farm lady I didn't even know how to thank her. Going to the zoo was something I always dreamed of, even though it was significantly downsized over the decades and it held only a few bird species and small monkeys it was still the only green part of the city. I never had the chance to visit, tickets were the price of a popular car. It was a luxury only the elite could afford.
- Louise… I'm-
- No.- she interrupted me with a smile - Just send me the pictures you took and we are even.
- But...
- Think of it as a gift to your generation, so you kids can remember what really matters.
With a tap on my back she started walking towards the house again. What a peculiar woman she was.
At the front door I waited for her. Louise came out with a piece of paper with her email address to which I should send the best pictures and, according to her, file the request to visit her land next time.
The walk back to the bus stop was hot and slow. Running around all day without eating anything wasn't something my body was ready for. I couldn't wait to get home to eat a fine microwaved burger and take a hot shower, if there was any hot water left but I'd prefer not to think about these technicalities. Focusing on getting to the bus, then the boat, then the subway was already troublesome enough.
Twenty minutes of waiting and the red bus showed up. Besides me there were only a couple more people inside who probably worked in the mines. It was a long drive to the port, about an hour, which made a good nap since I was so tired. There wasn't much to see on the way back, just infinite lines of reservoirs and cable towers connected one after the other and of course corn fields, miles of it. Soon after I sat down I was dead asleep for the whole drive.
At the port, before entering the boarding area the security cops asked for my permission. I handed it over and I was told to wait for the next boat on the benches, it would leave in two hours.
- Are you fucking kidding?- I was so tired I let out without thinking.
- Watch your mouth you dirty little punk!- replied a man that looked my age - Go sit your ass down before I take you down for contempt to an officer.
Instinctively, I took a step back for precaution. Why did cops have to be so disgusting? They acted as if they were the law themselves. Holy protectors of peace and order but in real life they only beat innocent people who most of the time had no way of defending themselves.
- No problem, sir. Have a nice evening.- and I walked away with my head down.
Confronting them was useless, the best way to live was to avoid them at all costs. I learned it the hard way.
In the boarding area there were not more than ten people waiting. I chose a corner far from the officers to sit. I wouldn't want to be disturbed after I had fallen asleep again because that was definitely happening. Sleeping anywhere at any time was a super ability of mine and it became very useful in that situation.
The boat horn was my alarm. Not the one I would choose to wake up to, but a very effective one, making every brain cell I had shake.
Before boarding our bags had to go through a search to make sure no one carried a bomb or a gun to hold the entire boat hostage. It took 30 minutes from the search to the metal detectors, to being escorted to the passengers area. A two hours wait for a twenty minutes ride. Through the bridge by car would have been less than five minutes. There was one, actually two bridges, but they were both blown up during the war and the government never built them back up and neither blew up the rest, they left the metal and concrete skeletons hanging between the new buildings and the towers of containers. A scar to never let the city forget what happened. Actually it became a touristic point where you could bungee-jump from the broken edge into an ironic spectacular view.
Within twenty minutes I was back in Tier-1. Home shitty, home. Personally for me the city looked more alive during the night rather than daytime. Buildings were so high the tops could only be seen with a 90 degrees head tilt. All covered on luminous billboards, neon signs and brand letterings that populated every space available.
In total opposite to the country roads, the city streets were completely taken by cars and people. The subway circulated in exclusive elevated tracks fighting for space between the buildings. Buses had elevating mechanisms that allowed cars to drive beneath them, making them look like moving tunnels.
To get home I had one hour before the last train. Usually I would skate there easily but since I was hungry and sleepy It was better to take the bus. In theory there was enough time for me to get to the district station before the last train so I relaxed and picked up my headphones from the backpack. As I was searching through my bag while walking to the bus stop, the heavy city air made me aware that I haven't used my mask the whole day. In the countryside the air was so clean and light my lungs got a bit overwhelmed by all the oxygen making me forget the day to day mask. After a whole day breathing fine I was reminded of the asphyxiating Tier-1 air.
Me and the bus arrived at the same time at the station. A horde of people got in and I was glad I had put my mask and headphones on beforehand, there was no room left to move even one inch.
Looking through the window all I dreamed about was my bed, the photos could be uploaded in the morning, sleeping and eating were the top priorities. The trip was tiring but I would definitely do it again, not just for the photos but to visit Louise, she was very mysterious and that triggered my curiosity.