Chapter 3
As classes had started again, all of the students in the first class of Imperial Schools were in the classroom learning philosophy. Most of the students were hopelessly bored, not caring about the subject at all, and the professor droned on. Through the last part of the lecture, Natonito came into the class quietly himself and watched, not wanting to interrupt.
�Today we are talking about existentialism,� the professor started. �Existentialism is the belief that nothing is important except for the here and now.�
�I like that belief,� Bill said.
�Not so fast. There are some people who have combined existentialism with other political agendas. Basic existentialist thought bases life upon one�s actions, and judges whether you are good or bad, courageous or cowardly, based on what you do, not what you say or believe, or your position in life,� the professor continued.
�Oh, that�s not so good after all,� Tom said.
�There are only a few of you that would be given any credit in an existential world. After all, morality is of a different type,� the professor said.
�Existentialism is generally a post-war phenomenon of effete peoples,� Daniel said. �As long as the war continues as it does, it will not be a problem for us.�
After laughing, the professor said, �Yes, that is true. I doubt it will be a problem in Bravia either, but as for the rest of you, this is something you will have to deal with if there is prolonged peace.�
�Another reason to have constant war,� Natonito said. �Existentialism is the sign of an immature and weak civilization.�
�That much is true, and it tends to be a problem among urban elites,� the professor said. �Do any of you have a favorite philosopher?�
�How about Edmund Burke?� Natonito said.
�I haven�t heard that name mentioned for a long time,� the professor said.
�Who is Edmund Burke?� Bill said. �And why should we care?�
�Edmund Burke was a philosopher of the conservative sort, someone who believed in freedom and liberty, but also responsibility and tradition.�
�I have never thought of him as a philosopher, but that works,� the professor said.
�I have always enjoyed the conservative philosophers as well myself,� Daniel said.
�Why do you say that?� the professor said.
�As a lifelong resident of rural Bravia, I appreciate those philosophers who understand the importance of farmers to any healthy civilization,� Daniel said.
After laughing, the professor said, �The power of farmers over us city folk is something we try to forget. Farmers tend to be a conservative lot anyway, thanks to their being in touch with the nearly constant rhythm of the earth and sky. Those for whom the world does not change do not see any reason for change themselves, and I cannot say I blame them. Were it not for them, we would all be fools, constantly rushing this way and that.�
�Sometimes we act like that enough as it is,� Natonito said, smiling.
�Yes, that is true. What is the reason you have joined us today, Directrix?� the professor said.
�I want to speak with one of the students in class, but I will wait until class is over,� Natonito said.
�Are you taking the nerd out again?� Bill asked.
�If you mean Daniel Miller, then yes,� Natonito said. �But at least he will not end up in the Imperial Marines, which you will if you do not improve your grades.� The class laughed.
�I did not know you took an interest in philosophy,� the professor said.
�Well, as a young man I spent time in the rebellion, and when one is hiding out in caves, one has a lot of time to think about life, and so philosophy is a natural habit of revolutionaries,� Natonito said.
�I see. Is philosophy a normal habit of government leaders?� the professor asked.
�Not usually. I would not say that I am a normal government leader, though,� Natonito said with a smile.
�Well, you can go off now. It is time for the students to read their assignment for the day, and I am sure Daniel has read it already,� the professor said.
�Thank you,� Natonito said. Daniel walked over and followed Natonito out of the class.
�I wonder what Natonito wanted him for,� Delia said to herself.
As they were walking to Natonito�s office, Natonito started talking to Daniel. �You want to know why I brought you out of class, right?� he asked.
�Of course I do,� Daniel replied.
�I have received word from the Imperial Corps of Engineers office in the city of Bravia that they need someone to help out with some of their Graphical Information Systems work. They are looking for a kid to learn their new system from the ground level, so to speak. All your expenses will be paid, and you will receive a stipend of $1000 a month beyond living expenses. Since you have expressed an interest in the Corps and are the best and hardest working student at the school, I put your name in, and they liked what they saw. If you are willing, you will have a job for the summer, minus the first few weeks of summer, which you might be busy for anyway,� Natonito said.
�Sounds like a plan to me. So far so good. Is there any sort of contract that goes with it?� Daniel asked.
�Of course there is. You are a wise one to ask though. With any type of service comes some sort of service agreement. It is good to learn that lesson while you are young, and before you get busted for reneging on something you do not remember signing up for,� Natonito said, handing Daniel a small booklet.
�Well, so far I think I would love to do it,� Daniel said. �I will look at the contract this afternoon, though, to see that I am ready to accept all of the obligations it entails.�
�You can look over it now if you like,� Natonito said. �They want your acceptance rather soon.�
�Alright, then let us look at this booklet,� Daniel said. Opening the booklet, he comments, �At least it isn�t in small print.� He and Natonito laugh. �Well, first it talks about how this is a contract to work the entire summer, explains the position and the duties that are expected, the compensation, as you mentioned earlier, what type of living arrangements and eating arrangements I will have at the base, the hours of pay, the passing of a physical, the fact that they can unilaterally cancel the contract, both work and pay, if performance in unsatisfactory but that I cannot cancel the contract without returning any stipend earned up to that point. Just the normal contract rules for this sort of thing, I suspect.�
�That�s good to hear, you�re a smart kid,� Natonito said seriously.
�Well, I�ll sign up for it now. I think it will be a good opportunity, and I hope I am the person that they are looking for,� Daniel said. �Where is the contract?�
�Here it is,� Natonito said, taking a folder with bond sheet inside of it.
After looking at the terms in the folder and nodding in agreement, Daniel signs the forms with his traditional southpaw signature. �Thank you for the opportunity,� Daniel said.
�Thank you for accepting it. The colonel in charge of the base will be pleased to have his slot filled. They were worried that no one would accept it,� Natonito said.
�Why?� Daniel asked, puzzled.
�Part of the physical involves a drug test,� Natonito said.
�Why would that bother me?� Daniel said.
�Well, maybe not you, but most of the young people around use drugs, and to stay a whole month just before summer break without using drugs is anathema to most young people nowadays,� Natonito said.
�I am not most young people,� Daniel said.
�And that is why you will succeed where others fail. Even these noble kids that you go to school with, many of them will fail,� Natonito said. �A noble name will not save you forever unless you work to make sure that nobility actually means something.�
�Yes, that is true. How many bright commoners join the engineers and get titles?� Daniel asked.
�Not many, but you will probably be one. Since they want you to come in now as a young person, they will probably want you for at least one term of service, maybe more. I am sure that will not harm your relationship with Delia. After all, most engineers work on domestic projects. As a mapper, you will work on both development of areas of the empire as well as recon service for the military. Both of them involve office work and field work, but nothing as dangerous as the imperial marines have to go through,� Natonito said.
�Hahaha, that is true,� Daniel said.
�Well, now you can go back. Class should be done now, and you might want to talk with some friends,� Natonito said with a wink.
�Yes, that I do. I am sure they want to know what is going on themselves,� Daniel said as he walked out the door. Upon leaving he met up with Cherie, who was sitting in her chair, Henry, and Delia.
�What was that for?� Delia said. �Did you get in trouble for something?�
�Not at all,� Daniel said. �I signed up to serve with the Imperial Corps of Engineers for the summer as their GIS trainee. I have the first few weeks of summer free, but starting in June, I belong to the Corps for the rest of the summer.�
�At least you�ll get to come to the wedding,� Cherie said tiredly.
�You two are getting married in May?� Daniel said, somewhat surprised.
�Yes, my parents gave me the ultimatum,� Henry said. �It is not really that much of a burden to me, since I was planning on marring her later anyway.�
�Well, what are we going to do at the wedding?� Delia said. �I assume you want us to play a part in it.�
�Yes, we do. Natonito and my sister will give me away,� Cherie said with a weary smile. �I want you as my maid of honor, Delia.�
�And I want you, Daniel, as my best man. We will work out the tailoring towards the end of the school year, but we have already set the colors. Cherie and I will both be wearing dark blue, since we cannot wear white,� Henry said.
�I see. It should be beautiful still,� Daniel said. �Blue is my favorite color as well.�
�Really, it is the favorite color of my uncle, and so that is why we chose it. He and my father are paying for the wedding together,� Henry said.
�Ah, I see,� Delia said. �To save money, can Daniel and I share rooms?� She winked.
�We�ll see,� Henry said. �As long as that does not get us all into trouble.�
�I see,� Daniel said. �Shall we go off to eat now?�
�Sounds like a plan to me. I could eat enough for two,� Cherie said with a smile.
The four them then went off to the cafeteria, where they had dinner and talked some more, reveling in Daniel�s excitement as well as the news of the wedding. They were still young enough to enjoy the excitement that came ahead instead of dread the hassles and surprises that would inevitably come with it.
To the youth is given bravery, so that they may brag about their deeds when they grow old and no longer have the energy to face such a nervous life. It is best to be young once, make all your mistakes then, and keep some of the excitement as you grow older so that you are not foolish enough to try to be young again when you grow too old. That sort of foolish act leads one to make worse mistakes in the name of a mid-life crisis.
They did not know, nor concern themselves, with the problems of middle age. Those would come soon enough. What they did was try to make the best of the time that they did have though, and no one could fault them for that.
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