Chapter 15. 8832, “Lid”

It was his lunch today, Kaas grimaced even though the food tasted quite good. He did not specify its composition, and therefore did not know what exactly he was eating, but as long as the taste was acceptable, he could eat anything.

Of course, Kaas did not begin to tell Aska that in the past, he ate food much worse than this salad with 'wolf's liver', with his previous income, he did not get to choose and be capricious, and his choice was only from the worst.

After counting the days spent here, he wondered, it's already the eighth day, I've been here for a full local week.

A week can be considered a small period of time, earlier, for reading books and monotonous life, they flew by like minutes for him. But now it seemed that his world had turned upside down, and his whole life had changed completely. Besides the fact that he became a child again and ended up in another world, he really did not have a moment of quiet time.

Learning a new language and the rules of a new world, could it be like just moving to another country? The answer was obvious, of course not.

While Kaas rested and ate after training, he had time to think.

With the increase in synchronization, I feel differently, as if in the early days I was sleepy and did not think anything, but day after day, I seem to wake up.

If I think about it, it's not so bad, it makes it easier to get used to a new life. Only 8 days, and I already really live here.

And these are not just words, I eat, exercise, sleep, communicate.

For the last ten years, I had no goals and plans at all, once a week going to the store, eating, sleeping, reading books and no prospects, no future, but now …

Right now, the whole world is open in front of me, unless of course it all ends with some kind of joke.

"Aska", he called.

"Yes?"

"No, nothing", he said, catching himself not being able to formulate his question.

"You don't have to hesitate to find out anything, just ask", she replied, noticing his confusion. "I'm your assistant".

There were too many questions, and that was what prevented him from choosing one of the thousands that were spinning in his head. For a moment, he felt completely confused and lost his footing. He looked at Aska and the hazy horizon outside her window.

"Aska, what's outside the window?" he asked thoughtfully.

"Outside the window? This is the forest that surrounds the city."

"And the city, is it on the mountain?"

"Not at all, why did you decide that?"

"It seems so."

Aska looked at the view from the window and nodded.

"Do you really want to take a closer look?"

And without waiting for an answer, she waved her hand and the 'transparent' wall separating Kaas's room from her virtual one changed to the same view from her window.

Kaas sighed in surprise. His angle of vision changed when the window was in the distance, he could only see the forest, but now ...

He got up and carefully, as if afraid that he would fall from a great height, came closer, and even touched this 'window' to make sure that the wall was still there and nothing threatened him.

Aska began to explain:

"You already know that there are three main types of cities in Kiva, and we are in the most ordinary of them. This is the city number 8832, the name 'Lid', the population is 792 thousand 322 people, the maximum population is 1 million people."

"Lid is far enough from the center, so it was never fully populated."

"This flat area in front of the forest, which you see now below, is a security ring around the city, its width is 1 kilometer. On the left you can see the terminal of the station, there are eight of them around the entire perimeter of the city."

Kaas looked and really saw a protruding building of light turquoise color, which seemed monolithic and it was impossible to estimate its size. Both the forest and this building were quite far away.

"Aska, I don't understand what I'm seeing."

"I will show you a map of the city."

After Aska's words, a scene was displayed next to the window, where there was what was supposed to be a model of the city, but more like a flower or a nut. Or a spaceship. Or…

"City of the 3rd class", Aska began to explain, "the total diameter is 6 kilometers, the main radius is 2 kilometers, and 1 kilometer of the security zone. Height 2 kilometers, depth 1 kilometer."

"All cities of this type, although they have different designs, are structurally similar. the first 200 meters above the surface and 200 below it, are divided into 20 floors, which occupy the entire area of ​​the city."

The layout of the city changed to follow Aska's words.

"Each floor is 12 meters high, the space between them is occupied by service and transport systems. These 20 floors are the main public space of the city. The surface is also called the zero floor. This is because the numbering of floors goes from top to bottom. The twentieth floor is the lowest floor available to citizens."

"The room where you live is located in one of the eight residential areas of the city, which are buildings connected by the transport system with the public space of the city, and towering 1500 meters above it."

On the diagram, what Aska called the city's districts looked like cyclopean monolithic buildings, which, like 8 huge petals, rounded inward, were located along the perimeter of the city. From the outside, it looked as if the city was covered with a dome with a diameter of 6 kilometers and a height of 2 kilometers, and the buildings of the districts grew, obeying its shape. If you evaluate the size of these buildings, if you look at the outer diameter of the city, then at the base of the buildings, they were the same size and the distance between them was exactly the same as their size. In the depths of the city, the buildings went about 500 meters, but the distance between them remained the same, due to the fact that their width was approximately halved in comparison with the external size. At the top, the area of ​​the building was noticeably smaller than at the base.

"Each building in the district has 250 floors, with a total net living area of 100 square kilometers."

"In the center of the city", she continued, "there is an administrative building, its diameter at the base is 500 meters, and its height is 2 kilometers from the surface."

"I realized, this is the same building that I saw in the video before!" Kaas exclaimed.

"Right", she confirmed, "this is also the building in which you were treated. It contains all the main services of the city."

"But what's more important to you now is the residential areas. Our district is number 2. This is a monolithic building intended for 125,000 people, underneath, on the fifteenth floor, is your school."

"Aska, where do my ... parents live?" he asked, stuttering.

"Nearby, their apartment is right behind the wall, but they have left for more than a month for work and will return only after another 2 months. But do not let this reassure you, you will have to meet with them pretty soon, albeit virtually, it will not differ much from a personal meeting." she answered and continued:

"Look, the lower part of the city, which goes 1000 meters underground, is the most important. There are water reserves, components for synthesis, processing systems, a reactor, an industrial zone. This is where all food and most things are made. In particular, your exercise machine and your food, everything from there."

"Delivery takes place through transport systems within the city walls. There, as you already know, many things are stored."

"Most things are created from basic components and differ only in design, therefore, it is more correct to assume that components are stored throughout the city. For example, your bed, or your chair and table. If you want to buy another one, then, in essence, you will not acquire a unique object, but the right to a certain design and use of resources." she explained.

"The most visited places in the city are, of course, cafes and clubs, which are mainly located in areas between residential districts in the open air, or on those 20 floors."

"All floors and the surface are connected by a transport system, therefore, you can get to any floor and to the surface directly from your room."

"External transport terminals, allow you to move between cities and other areas of the country and the planet. You can see part of one of them from the window; you can get into it from any of the 20 floors of the city directly."

The city was a single whole, huge like a mountain, at the same time complex and simple. Kaas's eyes wandered helplessly through the city's map, unable to cope with the volume of information rushing to him. Where is what? How was it built at all?

Seeing Kaas's face, bewildered by the abundance of information, Aska ended her story by removing the map of the city and returning her room to its place.

"That's enough for now, you should be studying the language for 2 minutes. I'll let you watch more detailed videos about cities later."

"Aska, wait a second, where is my room on the diagram?"

Aska returned the map of the city. Zoomed in the desired area, and on it, inside, a point was highlighted.

"Your room is on the 98th floor of the second district. It is almost 800 meters above the ground, which is why the view is like this. But as you can understand, this is just a picture, all the dwellings with real windows with a live view cost extra money. In addition, I removed all activity from this image, otherwise you would be distracted by constant flights of intercity transport."

"Okay", Aska waved her hand, and the city map disappeared again, replaced by their impromptu language program, "You will have a lot of time for everything, but it is very limited for learning the language."

***

Learning resumed, for the first lesson Kaas was able to add only 1.3%, the reason for which was the time spent on a short acquaintance with the city.

During lunch, Aska studied some information, and Kaas ate food and did breathing exercises.

The second lesson ended with an increase of 2.7% and an overall result of 46.6%, which was a kind of record.

For rest after the second language lesson, according to the plan, a whole hour of time was allocated.

Aska referred to the fact that she needed to work, and suggested that Kaas watch a standard training video while he eats and rests, while she herself again went about unknown things in her terminal.

In the video, there was nothing more than the construction of the city 8832, 'Lid'.

What was shown could not be called construction in the usual sense for Kaas.

The purpose of the construction of the city was simple, the growth of the population of the country. The site was chosen in a sparsely populated region, close to the border with the Prius Republic, which was neither an important nor an attractive place on the planet, especially considering that the central cities of the Republic were located too far from this border.

When the geographical position of the place chosen for the construction of the city was shown, Kaas first saw Assia from the outside. The planet was similar to Earth, the same round, the same blue, but with some shades of purple. The continents, seas and oceans were very different in location from the Earth, they had in common only that they were there at all. The only thing the planets had in common was the presence of cold poles.

Kiva was just next to the North Pole, its area was, visually, about half the area of ​​Canada, and even strongly resembled it, although it was located differently and bordered on nine other countries, both small and large.

The site for the construction of the city was prepared in advance, for several years, but it was just the eviction of local inhabitants, animals, insects and plants. And the construction of the city began not at all in the place where it was planned, but in one of the autonomous city-plants, which apparently specialized in the manufacture of city embryo.

Given the right materials, all that was needed was a month of time, which was enough to make a huge black platform, reminiscent of a hockey puck. The only difference was in size, this washer was 500 meters in diameter and 100 meters high.

After the completion of its manufacture, it, while unknown to Kaas, rose into the sky and slowly moved towards the installation site of the future city, where it dropped exactly to the center and began its work.

This blank was not something ordinary, it already contained a reactor and all the mechanisms necessary for operation, that soil under the city that could be converted into the necessary materials was used right on the spot, the excess was taken out, the necessary materials, on the contrary, were brought in the same way, as the core itself was delivered.

The construction of the city from the moment of planting the core took only 2 months. The first stage was the construction of the foundation of the city, and it took a whole month. During this time, the core plunged into the ground while increasing in diameter until the platform reached 6 kilometers. But this was only outside, inside the entire underground structure of the city was prepared to a depth of 1 kilometer, except for the premises. During this time, there were only 2 deliveries of materials, and the waste was exported 9 times.

In the second month, the city itself was being built. At this point, all the land under it had already been used and disposed of, and it became known exactly how much materials needed to be delivered for this. They were all delivered in several parties at once and simply plunged into the platform of the city, and then the real 'magic' began.

The city began to grow according to its design. At first, 10 underground floors were erected, which was not visible from the outside, but then, it actually grew right before our eyes. How can you imagine a building with a diameter of 4 kilometers? And here it is, slowly but surely rising from the ground, first for the first 200 meters, like a huge pancake, and then 8 districts and the central tower began to rise from it.

According to the description, it was clear that the delivery of the material takes place from the bottom up, along the transport system of the city, which passes within its walls. The material itself was not some ordinary concrete or steel. It could change as you like, taking the planned form. It became clear how, so easily his bed and exercise machine plunged into the floor, and how cans of food were delivered. The entire city could change, and if its construction took only a month after the foundation was erected, then such small changes were not worth any attention at all.

It turned out that there was no construction equipment and no waste except the surplus of the land itself under the city. There was no dirt or dust during construction. No roads, pipes, electrical wires were required. The city was completely autonomous, it had its own reactor, and it built and supported itself. The water supply system was closed. Most of all the things that the residents used were of the same materials that could be rebuilt into any other things and no garbage needed to be buried or burned. Plasticine could be a good example, no matter what you blinded out of it, you can always mold something else.

After the completion of construction, the city was in quarantine for another 1 month, without a single inhabitant. It was routine security to make sure everything works as expected. And only after that, terminals were opened and new residents came to the city. Everything was checked, starting with an invisible dome with a diameter of 6 kilometers, which provided the ecosystem of the city, not allowing animals, microorganisms, natural precipitation, and even wind into it. And ending with showers in residential premises, everything should work, down to the smallest screw, if there was such a screw in the city.

No common city was inhabited by only 1 resident, although it could work for him alone due to full autonomy, there was no difference. But the city still needed traditional specialists. Teachers in schools, supervising physicians for a medical center, police. Therefore, applications were accepted in advance and usually, the settlement began with the first 10 thousand people.

These same people, after settling in, chose a name for the city, and also adopted local rules of life, such as whether it was allowed to have pets, what types of services and entertainment would be in this city, and such.

This was important and therefore, people often tried to move to a new city in order to start their own business if it involved service, entertainment and additional education. Everything virtual could be available everywhere, but, for example, the Zemtsu school, which was in Lid, had its own gym and real coaches. Although the city, with its real area of ​​more than 250 square kilometers, made it possible to accommodate a lot of everything, it could not 'stretch' more than its limit, and it could not be completed and expanded.

The living quarters were fixed only conditionally. The minimum room that was provided for everyone free of charge was typical. Kaas lived in such a place, it was 5 meters long and 5 meters wide, the ceiling height was 3 meters. It was really spacious, but the city reserve was sufficient to provide each of them with more than 100 square meters of space. The premises could be combined or expanded. They united when people lived together, in families, so a couple could just live in a room of 50 square meters without additional payments. But if someone wanted to have more than the standard 25 square meters per person, then they had to pay extra rent, only 1 gold per 1 square meter per day.

Not only the area of ​​the room was paid, but also a special place, for example, if the apartment had a real window, it cost from 1 gold per 1 square meter of window surface per day. The ceiling height of 3 meters was minimal, but they could be increased up to 12 meters, and of course, you had to pay for it. If Kaas decided to increase the ceiling height to 4 meters, it would cost 25 golds a day. With prices like that, it was obvious that the benefit was really not going to help improve living conditions.

Business premises also had to be rented, at the same price as residential premises. It was impossible to buy premises or housing for private property in the city, only rent. But a rich man could buy and build his own house or even his own city on a free territory, and it was extravagantly expensive, but it had its own advantages and disadvantages.

If you could do anything in your own house, then the city had a different status, the owner did not have it in direct ownership, but he could build it with a specific purpose or theme, such as an amusement park, resort, sports center, or a city where only pet owners live.

There were significantly fewer such cities built on the initiative of people and for their money than the rest, because few people could chip in and collect 700 Zeoses to implement their idea, and even fewer people who could do it on their own. In addition, there is a way to change the rules of any city in such a way that it suits you. It is enough to gather a group of people and agree to settle in a new city or in any other, where they can make the necessary change to vote. But building their own city ensured that these rules could not be changed by a vote of ordinary residents.

8832, 'Lid', was the most ordinary city, with the most common rules and a set of services, 52 sports had their representations in the form of clubs and even stadiums. The number of standard schools was 8, the same as the number of districts. Regular cafes providing free food supplemented the themed cafes opened by people, 34 cafes, 29 restaurants and 27 entertainment clubs, of which 6 were quite extreme, with the rule of turning off the recording of what was happening. The only museum was the museum of the founding of the city, located in the central building, which contained information about the territory on which the city was built, archaeological finds that were made in this place during construction, and such. There was only one art gallery where local artists exhibited their work. There were no libraries in the city, any historical books were in museums in large cities or private collections.

After watching this video, Kaas realized that the city only seemed like a small anthill, but in fact it was spacious and comfortable. Considering that there were completely no roads for vehicles, and there were 20 closed floors and a surface with open tiers between residential areas, this gave huge areas for parks and any kind of leisure. If desired, in such a city more than 3 million people could live freely and would not feel constrained.

In Lid, it was forbidden to litter on the streets, it was required to choose routes and keep a distance while walking so as not to disturb other people. There was a complete ban on any pets or insects. So, it was not only free of bacteria, but even native species of cats, dogs or cockroaches.

Local laws in such cities were established by citizens according to the 70/30 rule, that is, changes were adopted if 70% of all citizens who are eligible for such a vote, voted for them, and therefore, such laws were quite stable, and it was impossible to constantly change them then one way and then the other.

The overview video ended just with the break.

"Kaas, it's time to go in for sports", Aska reminded him in the tone of an assistant, who had done work properly, and plunged back into her business.

This time Kaas chose a workout for physical fitness, of course with a dynamic suit.

He expected Adri to give the same exercise as two days ago and was ready to compare how much better he was. But the coach followed his plan, and Kaas could not yet communicate his desires.

The working condition of the suit was the same as before, the load started at 5% and each cycle increased by 5%. However, to say that the new exercise was strange is to say nothing.

Adri, as in the last lesson, showed the full cycle with his own example. At first glance, it was extremely simple. He laid on his back, then lifted his body and turned to the left, then laid face down and aligned his legs with this position. It turned out that he turned face down, but didn't roll, but in a bizarre movement, simultaneously making a turn of the body like a pair of hour hands, about 30 degrees. Then he made the same movement, but starting with his legs, moving them around with a turn, and only after that, turning his body around and thus, he turned over onto his back and turned his body around again by 30 degrees. Then he made these two movements in the opposite direction, which returned him to his original position. This was the cycle.

Although the procedure was relatively straightforward, repeating the movements was easier said than done, even if there was no dynamic suit at all. One exercise gave Kaas an unimaginable load on the abs, arms, buttocks, back and neck.

After the eighth cycle, he naturally gave up simply because he could no longer turn even a little. The muscles of the torso turned out to be his biggest weakness.

However, despite the fact that Kaas did not complete the recommended 20 cycles, Adri was apparently pleased, nodded approvingly to Kaas lying helplessly on his back and left, completing the workout.

Aska, like last time, helped him by returning the bed and asked:

"How do you like today's training?"

"Just fine", Kaas replied, not knowing exactly how much of this statement is true and how much is a lie.

"This is good, and your results today can be considered excellent, including language and synchronization." she praised and summed up, "speech skills reached 46.6%, morning synchronization was 2.9%, peak 15.8%."

"It turns out that my timing difference has grown and in the morning my health will be much worse than today?"

"Anything can happen, just check, you still have a nutritious dinner and quite a lot of time for your breathing exercises. Perhaps they will help you improve your real sync."

"Haha ..." he grinned forcefully.

"Why are you laughing?"

"In fact, I am satisfied, even feeling lousy in the morning, I know the reason and I know how to deal with it. This is the best it can be, much worse when the cause is unknown or impossible to overcome."

Lying like an inverted turtle, Kaas could not see Aska's approving smile, who was still busy with her own business.

Only half an hour later, he was able to get out of bed and go to the shower. Taking off his dynamic suit and turning on the water, he somehow sat down in the corner, adjusting so as not to overload his muscles and engaged in his meditation and breathing exercises.

Inhale, one, two, three…. Exhale, one, two, three. Kaas focused on sensations in the body, imagining how, inhaling, he receives energy with air and directs it to the solar plexus and the point between the eyebrows.

After a quarter of an hour, he relaxed so much that he himself did not notice how he fell asleep. And he woke up only when Aska called him:

"Kaas, I have 3 minutes before I go rest, wake up."

Her voice can really make the birds shyly shut up, but there are no birds in this world, Kaas thought, standing up.

A 'biter' glowed softly on the wall, reminding him to use it. Kaas took it mechanically and, strictly following the instructions, bit it. At the same moment, his teeth seemed to sink into a sticky dough, and the handle of the device glowed green, then yellow, white and went out, along with which the feeling of dough on his teeth disappeared. The whole procedure took about a local second. Kaas put the biter back down and looked at his teeth in the mirror. After making sure they were as perfect as before, he dressed and returned to the room.

"Aska, did you call me?"

"Yes, I was just worried that you would sleep all night in the shower and forget to eat", Aska replied, showing him the food that was already waiting for him.

"Thank you, I would have slept through everything for sure."

"You, ... no, We have been in this world for a whole week", she suddenly said, - in theory, we have 12 days left, but given a number of circumstances, I think it is better to complete your preparation in the next 8 days.

"Something urgent?"

"No, nothing like that, but 20 days is the deadline and given the circumstances, it is better not to risk too much delay. In addition, there are certain things that need to be done, this is to see relatives, visit the school and the Zemtsu club. Your results are satisfactory, and if the progress is the same, it is better sooner rather than later."

"I get it, you are the commander", he replied with a smile.

"Exactly, it's good that you understand that", she replied with a chuckle and disappeared in the best traditions of the illusionists.

8 days like this, 8 days, Kaas thought, ate quickly and went to bed, for nothing else he had neither the strength nor the desire.