After the night of the Blue Death, America's population had dwindled drastically, with barely up to twenty million left. Amongst that twenty million, barely up to five million fell into the range of civil workers and nobles, while the remaining fifteen million became slaves.
With such little population, all that was needed was one state, lavishly upgraded to suit the insatiable taste of the ruling class, while the rest of the country remained a pile of rubble and wreckage. Dangerous beasts roamed the streets where civilians lived, occasionally, and the rare interference of the military was enough to make sure the population of the people did not reduce drastically.
By the way, slaves were invaluable assets in this time of abundance.
While New York was made the new America for the wealthy, the poor living outside the state were given arm bracelets bugged with trackers to make sure they never ventured out of zones. Once a child reached the age of ten, they were forced to wear the arm bracelets and since humans had grown stronger due to the mutation, these kids were considered strong enough to engage in menial tasks.
While men were thrown into the mines where the blue comets fell, the sounds of their rusty pickaxes smashing against the hard surface of the crystallized Aetheriums echoed all day, women pushed the wheelbarrows filled with shards from the mines and also engaged in other minor tasks like cooking of low-quality porridge.
At the end of each work shift, a crusty old loaf of bread with some porridge was provided and at the end of the day, more food was given out to workers for themselves and their family. The food rations were barely enough to feed a family of four, because of this new couples were reluctant to have children so that they could have more food.
Lucius was from a family of four. His father worked in the mines, while his mother was amongst those tasked with cooking. He had a little sister Lia just two years younger than him and each day they would stay in the dilapidated building structure they call home while waiting for their parents to return with some food.
Due to the little they had to eat, and the quality of their meals, they were both emaciated, their bones visible for all to see. Their skins were pale, and their faces were covered by their unkempt black hair. In this world of abundance, they had no choice but to dress in sack clothes and walk around barefooted.
How could they hope for better clothes when something as common as water was given in rations?
Two bottles per day for each household, leaving many thirsty, but they just endured and patiently waited for more rations the next day. Regardless of their situation, Lucius and Lia were happy and their parents showered them with love and kindness as much as possible.
Even after the day's hard work, they always made out time to chat and laugh with them, telling them stories from the good times on earth before the Blue Death event. These stories were entertaining for the youngsters and were usually enough to distract them from the hunger and thirst they felt.
As time went on, Lucius began noticing something strange about his father. While they all suffered from malnutrition, he was thinner and paler than usual. One morning he was about to leave for work and Lucius noticed the rough blue surfaces on his skin, the man was constantly scratching those spots.
He thought nothing much of it and played with Lia all day, but that night something unusual happened. Their parents always returned in the evening, but this time it was already late at night, but they were yet to return.
Lia kept crying, saying she was hungry, and Lucius tried consoling her by saying their parents would soon be back. That night, their father's friend came with the daily ration and a sad look on his face. He told Lucius that their father had contracted the deadly virus known as Aetherscourge, caused by continuous unprotected exposure to Aetherium.
It was a deadly disease that could spread, so when the soldiers found out, they dragged him away from the others to execute him in a bid to prevent the spread. Alarmed by the commotion, their mother ran to their father who was about to be shot dead, unwilling to let go of him, and in the end, both were murdered in cold blood, their corpses burnt to ashes.
The man spoke in a cold but calm tone, with no sadness in his voice. The way he spoke made it clear that such events were common, and it was an ill fate that awaited all those who worked in the mine, it was only a matter of when!
With the food brought was a slave bracelet, which he presented to Lucius. While he was only nine at the time, they needed the food and the only way they could survive was if he started working. The man left the two shocked and confused by what they heard, the news of their parents' death was something they didn't foresee.
While Lia cried loudly, Lucius just sat there, silent and tired. He was young, but he had witnessed a lot of tragedies already, and his father always told him never to cry as a man.
"If you cry now, who will console your sister?" His father always said.
A tear rolled down his left cheek as he sat like a statue in one corner, watching his sister cry. He wanted to console her so badly, but he didn't know how to do that, especially since he was on the edge of losing his composure.
He just watched her tire herself, after which she ate a bit and then crawled up to him, laid on his laps and slept off. Only after she was fast asleep did the tears start pouring out.
"Dad, Mum… I miss you already…" Lucius cried.