Hupert

Chapter 1 (10/10+?)

“I am not convinced you are fully conscious of the gravity of such a statement” said Jude “you were all prevailed upon to kill a great deal of men so that an order is maintained!”

“Yes, and everything we agree to is according to God’s will” said Cândido to a disconcerted Jude

“Some may conceive death as the end, but the one who says life is man’s ultimate virtue fools oneself, for there is nothing beyond the grandiosity of our freedom” Paul

“It is not possible for us to explain through words the reason to how circumstances come to be, for there is no such reason, everything unravels from nothing independently of our will” Marty

“I suspend my judgement on the discussion you present before us” Nona

“I suggest we elect the solving of the envelope’s problem as our main purpose in the present” Will

“Do as you may, but I will not resign myself to be part of a scheme for hasting the death sentence of a man” protested Jude.

“Do as you may, dear Apollo (1). However, if you refuse to assist us, your name will be nowhere to be found on the report” said Will, sportively.

“The report?”

“Yes” Nona “we need to turn in a weekly report of the solved problems and the ones which are yet to be dealt with”

“And the more unresolved problems, the more reports for us to write per month” Marty.

“Furthermore, for every report not containing your name, 10% of your income will be discounted” said Will with a smile that could not occupy a larger range of his face “hence, I suggest you work on reaching a consensus with us, through dialogue, or you will not see this 10% for every month we do not solve the problems in which you refuse to take part”

“Very well, then” said Jude, still with her arms crossed, but now projecting a defeat posture “is there any way to solve this, managing to avoid the sacrificing of Sócrates?”

“No Socrates may be allowed to live or die without facing the ultimate penalty” Cândido “unless he quits being a Socrates”

“We could recrute new Socrates in the normal world and, later, release the current Socrates from his mortifying sentence” Jude.

“You understand that all the newly recruited Socrates will be killed instead, do you not?” asked Will, as slow and clear as he assumed proper for Jude’s comprehension.

“I know” Jude answered rolling her eyes impatiently “however, if we announce the consequences of becoming a Socrates during the recruitment, the accepting of the inevitable death will be their choice” Will frowned hoping Jude did not notice the absurdity of such statement; she continued, ignoring his reaction, “and it is not my position to oppose or judge anyone’s choosing” Will contained his smile while the philosophers exchanged concerned glances.

“Well” Nona ended the silence “we might as well get started on the recruiting paperwork for Socrateses, then”

They spent a few hours doing so and, eventually, the same bell which announced the coffee break rang once again.

“I presume it is time for the lunch break” Jude.

“Not precisely” Nona “it is the ending of today’s shift, we will resume only tomorrow”

“Is our shift’s duration only the morning period?” Jude

“Exactly” Cândido “and do not dare question our need for leisure! We need time to think!”

“I apologize, it was not my intention to dismay you or challenge the absolute vitality of leisure” said Jude

“I will send today’s progress on the paperwork to the archives’ administration” Marty “if they approve it, the recruiting will be disclosed in the normal’s territory by tomorrow”

“I guess I will see you all tomorrow, then” Jude said her goodbyes.

“If that is the Lord’s will, yes” Cândido.

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(1) In the dialogue Fédon (the one with the death of Socrates) Plato writes that the Apollo’s fest made them put off the day of Socrates’ sacrifice; like Jude intends to do here.