The sky was deep, with gray clouds seemingly swirling and twisting around. Droplets are forming puddles on the street, reflecting the red lights of the police cars. The air is full of heavy moisture and a scent of wet earth and steel. The trees swayed and creaked, their branches straining against the force of the strong wind. The sound of the droplets became more intense every second, as if they were going to crash into the roofs of the old houses.

Ava Smith stepped out of the car with her Law Enforcement Team. There was a Psychopath in the old street waiting for them to eliminate.

Rushing in the rain, a young man appeared in the group’s vision, Zephyr Sawyer.

“Sorry I’m late. My name is…”

 “Zephyr Sawyer,” Ava said, looking at the report from the computer, “welcome to the team, but unfortunately today’s case is a bit thorny. If you encounter a difficult situation, stay back. Trust the evaluator; trust the watcher’s eye.”

The next down the car came by the entire Law Enforcement Team 1. Thane Hunter, the most experienced old man, was supportive and intuitive. Felix Frost is an optimistic young member. Alexandra Rodriguez is a woman who has the best brain for computer work and tracking down information.

Even though Zephyr was one of the top students at school, he never saw a real law enforcer on task. He was stunned by the scene in front of him. Felix suddenly padded his back and said, “Don’t worry, it’s just a normal thing. Ava is just being overly sensitive, as always. Don’t mind; she is just the kind of person who is aloof with wisdom, ability, experience, and responsibility. And you must be at the top of the school to become our team member!”

“C’mon, time to go!”

“Coming!” Felix replied and led Zephyr to the group.

Ava explained the plan calmly: “Today’s target is a tall, middle-aged man with one arm injured during the previous fight. He has a female hostage hiding in an old house. Currently, the young woman is alive. However, he may harm the hostage at any time. Last time, he got a mental rating of 150, but there are no detecting cameras in the old street, so we don’t know his current rating. A rating of 150 allows the evaluator to be in paralyzer mode. Last week, this man’s mental rating rose suddenly. According to data analysis and tracking cameras, it is deduced that it is the result of long-term discrimination and psychological disorders. His family abandoned him because he had autism, which was affecting the mental rating of their family. He was abused by his classmates during childhood. Now, he is often bullied by his colleagues. Last week, his boss expelled him for ‘affecting the company’s overall image and reputation.’ His mental rating jumped from 70 to 150. I guess it’s just the last straw that broke the camel’s back. Anyway, this is the basic information; as always, please don’t say anything sensitive to the target. Keep all equipment clear during the process. Felix with me, and Thane with Zephyr. Keep in track with each other all the time, and of course, always check with Alexandra. Also, …”

“Alright, alright. If you keep talking the target runs away.” Felix called out.

“Then, collect evaluators.”

The evaluator is the most powerful tool to detect mental ratings in contemporary society. It allowed a scan through one’s brain immediately and would only unlock with a legal holder. It served as the eye of the Watcher. It signaled the user with an acoustic bone conduction system to allow enforcers to ensure the mode and state.

This was the first real time for Zephyr to fulfill his role as an enforcer. He dreamed of being an enforcer as a young child and promised himself and his father to be so. He had imagined the scene of holding the real evaluator in his own hands a thousand times before during his years of school. This was the starting point of his career that he was looking forward to. However, at the same time, sweat was all over his intertwined fingers, as he couldn’t hold the evaluator properly. He tried to calm himself down with a deep breath and grasp his shaking hands on his wet coat. It was the most contradictory experience for him.

They split into the assigned group immediately to start the investigation of the area. From the entrance of the street, Ava and Felix went for the north, while Thane and Zephyr approached the south.

The street was dark. The buildings were crumbling with stained dirt and grime. The rain had become less intense after they entered the zone, leaving the sound of the creaking roof and street cats. Zephyr was more cautious than usual, as he kept the evaluator beside his body to take action at the first moment. His eyes were controllably scanning the environment around him, looking out for any possible traps. Thane was walking in front to lead the investigation with his experience and instincts. Here was an old wanderer on the street who had a weary and worn-out appearance. He was lying on the street with a half empty alcohol bottle next to him. His eyes were closed, and he purred loudly.

“Sometimes, don’t be oversensitive. It is better to focus on what is in front of you,” Than glanced at Zephyr behind him, as if he understood what he was thinking about. “The first time is always different. We assume that everything is suspicious just because of one thing in the zone. Look, the roof is just old and creaking, nothing will fall from it. If something falls, it’s just because the roof is old. Psychopaths became psychopaths for a reason. They have this special scent that I can track as an old executor.”

“But my teacher said that it is the best to keep everything clear.”

“Yes, your teacher is correct, but most often not everything can be defined as clear. And not everything is worth your effort to come up with the truth since it’s how nature works. If you don’t believe me, point the evaluator to the drunk wanderer there.” Zephyr reluctantly raised his evaluator and pointed it to the wanderer.

 Mental rating 43. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

***

They continued walking down the pathway.

Suddenly, Felix called out on the line, “This is Felix. We got the target. The hostage is alive. Come quickly.” His voice was much more serious compared to his normal tone.

Zephyr and Thane soon reached the location of the GPS signal of Felix and Ava. The room was dark and gloomy, with only a hanging light swinging back and forth. The lightbulb was broken but it still glowed with a cold white color. The dim light flashed on the target and the hostage, showing the body outlines to the enforcers. There was a scent of rusted steel and wasted food. The hostage’s position was not positive. Her face was pale, her lips bloodless, her eye wide with fear. She was a trapped and defenseless animal under the psychopath’s control. On the other hand, the target seemed satisfied with his status. The corners of his mouth turned up and started laughing towards nowhere. Starring at a point in nullity, it was like he was in another world.

“We must take over as soon as possible. Mental rating is contagious.” Ava whispered to the group, leaving her eyes on the target.

Zephyr knew that concept. The contagiousness of mental rating–individuals, groups, and even the whole society’s mental rating is affected by the criminals. Especially for hostages who are in the criminal’s hands, their mental rating is mostly likely to be affected and rise suddenly as the incident gets more serious. If not interrupted, society will be set into turmoil.

After a brief discussion, Ava and Thane decided to force in first, with Felix and Zephyr by the door. They knocked open the door and pointed the evaluator at the criminal immediately.

Mental rating 189, over 100. Law enforcement target. The safety lock opened. Non-lethal paralyzer mode. Please aim at the target with full attention.

The man, shocked by the sudden break through, conditionally grasp the hostage in front of him to cover himself from the evaluator. Ava moved forward gently pointed the flashlight to the target, as Thane moved to the side. The man moved to the back of the room. His hand groping for something in the back, seemingly finding something. Ava realized the suspicious movements and decided to take the shot. Since the hostage shouldn’t be in a positive mental condition, it was worth the risk to try. However, it was too late. Bang! A barrel falls over. Liquid flows in to flows. The pungent smell of gasoline diffused through air. The lighter’s flamed flickered to life, as its unstable yellow-orange light illuminated the enraged face of the man. His face was twisted and full of fear.

He extended the flame towards the group of enforces, trembling with the unsettled light. “Why are you people here? How could you have the nerve to stand here to judge me! It is all because of you! It’s you who resulted me like this; it’s all your fault!” He shouted with a quavering voice, holding the hostage even tighter.

“Who said autistic people should be treated like this? Who? It’s you! It’s you! My mental rating was never under 50 since the age of five. This is not logical. Not making any sense. The calculation for this didn’t work. There is no solution for it. You have no idea how my life was. Enough, enough! Ridiculous enforcers! Ridiculous Watcher! You don’t have the right to judge me!”

Beep. the evaluator signaled. Mental rating 220, over 200. Law enforcement target. The safety lock opened. Lethal eliminator mode. Please aim at the target with full attention.

There is no chance for turning back. The Watcher confirmed that this man was no longer need for the peaceful society. At the same time, action was taken. The flashlight was thrown at the single lightbulb of the room, eliminating the confusing instability. A calloused hand pressed on immediately, shutting down the only bright flame. Felix rushed in immediately and lit up the room with another flashlight, followed by Zephyr. At the moment the room returned to light, Ava shot the flustered target with the evaluator. The man fell to the ground heavily, releasing the hostage, who kneeled and moved to the corner of the room. The eliminator shot was poisonous and lethal to human body, whenever it was shot, one could never be back. The society no longer needs this autistic man’s contribution. It was the Watcher’s judgement. It was a fair judgement.

The room returned into darkness and quietness. Felix had the flashlight on the hostage. She was quaking with terror with her hands and arms shaking violently, as if they were controlled by an invisible puppeteer. Her legs were weak, unable to support her to stand up. The only sound was her shallow gasps, as if her lungs struggled to draw air into it.

Thane pointed the evaluator at the woman, to check whether her mental rating was affected. Unfortunately, the only thing it presented was the number 178 in yellow and the line graph with a steep gradient.

“I’m sorry.”

“Wait! What is this about?” Zephyr questioned me immediately.

“Her mental rating is high. She is an enforcement target,” replied a thick voice of the experience man.

“Why is she the target? She’s the victim. She will recover. It’s just temporary. Humans recover from tragedies and suffering.” Zephyr pressed Thane’s evaluator down.

“What are you doing?”

The woman, terrified, screaming with her trembling voice, toppled the cabinets towards the investigators. She picked up the oil barrel and flung it towards the enforcers like she was a wild animal without any rational thinking. Crawling on the floor, she reached to the lighter of the man. Unhinged. Mad. Insane.

Beep. Mental rating 201, over 200…

“Enough.” It was Ava, shooting the woman with her cold face.

“No…”

The cityscape had glowed under the ethereal golden sunlight, awakening another day of the land. As the working world came alive, it’s another day of the sound of eager footsteps for productivity in the city center. Zephyr arrived at the office in the wake of the news report audio around the hallway.

“The incident of the heated conversation about the autistic man had come to an end by yesterday’s midnight. It was…”

“The psychopath, Benjamin Mitchell, 42-years-old…Mental rating 220”

“Eliminated…”

“Social malignancy…”

“The watcher maintained peace and justice…”

“The hostage, Emily Reynolds, 23-years-old…Mental contamination…”

“Morning,” Zephyr yawned.

The office was quiet with only the sound of typing. The group was working on the detailed report for yesterday’s enforcement.

“It was difficult right?” Thane’s voice interrupted the quietness of the room. “But I must admit that I enjoyed the risk. You got your first experience with the eye of the watcher, and everything was perfectly done.”

Felix added, “yeah, you see how the evaluator can spot the change of the mental rating more sensitively than normal scanning cameras? When the hostage’s mental rating had been 178, I had the feeling about this result. I’m glad that we got her down rather than just paralyzing. From my observation, she would still turn into a crazy cat with her unstable status after mental care practices. Oh no, she might not even recover from mental care and suffocate herself in the hospital. Eliminating her was the best choice to avoid later problems.”

“But she was just temporarily scared! If the later mental care was done properly, she would recover and return to normal life. She was only under frustration.” Zephyr argued.

“You can be sure that she won’t turn into a monster after the mental care, even if her mental rating would return to normal. It’s simply better to not take more risks. It’s better to end things with less time and no more risks. Or would you rather save her life and face the risk of the future deaths of others?”

The air was thick with unspoken words, as silence fell heavily on them. The pause seemed forever, freezing the atmosphere of the room.

Zephyr calmed his voice, restraining his emotions, “It was just 201. 1 over 200. I don’t understand. She is 23 years old. It’s just the start for her. Why should she pay with her life for some assumption for the future? It is not ethical. It’s…”

“Do you know what fairness, justice, and ethic is?” Ava interrupted him with her eyesight not moving from the report, “It is the Watcher. Our society has only improved since the system was installed. It presents the citizens with their best life to pursue. The citizens know what they are suitable for from the career rating. They have been provided with the safest environment to the mental rating which largely reduced crime rates. The evaluator and the cameras allow us to spot the criminals more efficiently. Nothing is wrong, and nothing will be.”

The absolute silence filled the air with tension again. Felix exited the room for his day off, leaving Ava and Zephyr in awkwardness.

Beep-beep-beep. Stress level 1. Location: Khos Academy.

Stress level indicated the overall mental rating of the area, which had 4 distinct levels. In most cases, the generic level would be 0 if nothing was deviating from the right track. However, for schools, the system was quite different, only consisting of levels 1-3. It was sharper and more sensible to change the mental rating of the new generations under pressure from various aspects. This allowed the Watcher to take care of the future.

Ava checked the message for the specific reason for the stress mounting. Unsurprisingly, schools were always connected with bullying. The two stood up and walked straight out the office with the absolute silence in the atmosphere and remnants of the argument in their minds.

Often, people were bullied at school for no reason. This might cause the area stress to rise, since more prey was chosen spreading a negative air around campus.

Entering the campus, a herd of students targeted their prey at the corner of the playground. The predators believed that there was nothing wrong, while the prey was solitude and vulnerable. Apathetic bystanders ignored the scene but whispered to each other in their cold voices.

The school’s principal rushed to meet the two enforcers to explain his stance. With a smile from ear to ear, he said in a dramatic voice “What wind has blown you to our humble shore? It’s such an honor, but I wonder about the purpose of your trip. As you can see, it’s the students’ recess period.” He seemingly wanted to express his respect to the enforcers, but the sense of unease filled his words.

“What are students doing at the corner over there? The stress level of this area has raised; therefore, we shall conduct an investigation.” Zephyr scanned the teenagers with the evaluator, finding that their mental rating had begun to deviate from the normal path.

The principle rubbed his hand together, “they are friends.”

Suddenly, a teenager shouted, “it’s 63 again today. Look, it’s true that I said for Mondays it’s always 63. Normal people like me have a mental rating of no more than 40. But I understand why you and some other people have this more-than-forty problem. Don’t be sad, it’s not your problem. In fact, I’m sorry for you. The only issue is about your family. Your blood. I assume that most people here know your sister, Emily Reynolds. The mental contaminated person over 200. Her mental immune system was just too fragile and vulnerable, just as yours. See how you are affected by her death. I’m so sorry for you, wish you are born in a better family in your next life.”

“They…they often quarrel like that. It’s not a problem. Our school has been on the list of model education two years in a row. We are still working on the application for this year. That kid, Ethan Reynolds, will be expelled. I notice that mental contamination is a fundamental problem for teenagers. You know, I have friends at the system.”

Zephyr reacted emotionally, “This is bullying. You believe that it’s his blood that resulted a slightly high mental rating?”

“Well, is there any problem about it? He’s too sensitive, so if you think this is the problem, as I said, he will be soon expelled. He may go to another school in another district. This is beneficial for this school, other students in the school, and you guys, who have no need to worry about incidents in another district. Right?”

Ava stopped Zephyr from further arguing, explained the situation with her calm voice. “I assume that you have learned about the genetic fallacy of mental rating. I may explain to you in simple words. Basically, according to the textbook, it’s ‘one’s mental rating isn’t affected by your genetic formula.’ This theory has been proved by scientific reasoning and real-life examples. Then, you may wonder why some cases have criminals following a genetic trend. Well, this is called the vicious circle of genetic assumption. If you are not open-minded enough and believe in genetic theory, you may try to exclude individuals with a genetically high mental rating. However, if you exclude them, their mental health and wellbeing would be negatively influenced. Eventually, they might take the risk of raise of mental rating. But it’s not their fault, it’s yours. I’m sorry that your friends at the system didn’t tell you about this essential knowledge for opening a school.”

The case ended with Ava solving every problem. On the way back, the two returned to absolute silence. Zephyr lowered down the window, enjoying the gentle breeze and golden sunset of the late summer evening. The sunlight illuminated the horizon reflecting the cityscape like treasure. It was a world full of vibrant colors and life. On the other hand, Ava was focusing on the report with her solemn face.

Zephyr couldn’t bear the silence and awkwardness, breaking unwelcoming aura, “this is my favorite period of the day, overflowed of hope.”

“Isn’t sunset often connected with the end of the light of the daytime?” Ava turned her face looking at Zephyr.

“Thank you for today. I admit that sometimes I’m impulsive.”

“No problem. You only need more supporting evidence.” She focused on the report.

“I’m sorry for my attitude in the morning, but I insist on my point. She deserves a chance to live. Emily Reynolds. As you can see her death must have influenced her brother’s wellbeing.”

“I understand. I have sympathy for that young boy, but I still can’t deny the evaluator’s assessment. I’m not brave enough to take any other risks.”

“I know we have to balance risks. Have you ever thought of the outcome where Emily recovered, Ethan didn’t get bullied, and everything would be peaceful.”

“I understand. But what if Emily couldn’t recover from the severe contamination? She could have died during quarantine. How could this affect Ethan? If she did successfully get the lighter when you sympathized with her, what if the house exploded and everybody died? How could society be influenced by the deaths of multiple enforcers, a hostage, and a criminal? I understand, but I can’t take the risk. I’m sorry.”

Zephyr froze for seconds. He had never seen Ava being such emotional with her words. “Alright, well then, I see your point, but let’s take another angle…”

Ava turned her body towards Zephyr and closed the report for the case. After keeping silent for a few seconds on her heavy face, eventually she said “it’s fine. I can explain to you more.”

After a deep breath, she continued “You may think that I’m a cold-blooded person with no emotion when dealing with cases. Most people think like that and I’m not denying. But the reason behind is…” Taking another breathe, “My father was an enforcer. He was the one who made me who I am. I was determined to be an enforcer since primary school. I clearly remember it was a dreadful rainy day when I was 9 his colleague informed us, he died from the hand of a criminal. My mind was blown up. It was such unrealistic and hard to believe. Mother didn’t tell me how exactly he passed, so I was more determined to find out the truth with my actions as an enforcer. I passed the test with a full mark. I checked the report of that incident and found that he…” Her voice choked. “He took the risk. On the report, clearly written ‘didn’t follow procedure. Sympathy for the criminal. Psychopath became uncontrollable and stabbed Smith with a short knife in his shirt.’ From then, I promised to strictly listen to the evaluator at any time.”

“I understand how ridiculous I’m. Enforcers are the ones who are closest to the abyss, who avoid others from it, but can’t let themselves fall into it on the first hand. Things are relative. In fact, I have wondered these days about other results of Emily Reynolds and the autistic man, of course happy endings. I question myself, my actions, my determination. It might be unjust and unfair to her and her brother, but taking the risk might threaten society again, being unjust to the larger community. I have to maintain peace for the whole.”

Zephyr signed, “I’m sorry for your father and I understand how you take the big picture into consideration. But what’s the difference between Emily Reynolds and the psychopath who killed your father? The psychopath was a criminal with an unstable mental rating and unpredictable actions, while Emily was a hostage of mental contamination resulted by a sudden trauma. Now use what we call common sense. You can return you a normal mental state with all kinds of medical care. She only was exposed to the tip of the abyss, which was redeemable. In this special case, it’s worth it to take the risk to save a life. As you are a rational thinker, I believe that you know this deep in your heart. No one could be absolutely balanced; humans lean to a side uncontrollably. And no one could be perfect with balancing risks. The man who thinks he is perfectly balanced with his judgement must fall into the paradox of the omnipotence. Therefore, take a side of your true belief.”

Ava kept silent while Zephyr continued, “be the one who expresses sympathy, like how you save her brother from a miserable childhood and adulthood under the shadows.”

“That’s because there is nonsense of how blood influences mental rating, but I do realize that hostage is different from criminal. Maybe we could have got a better result.” Ava said with a smile.

Time stood still at this moment with the two figures sitting in silence, lost in their thoughts. They were unanimously immersed in the breathtaking kaleidoscope of colors dancing on the horizon of the cityscape. The scattered clouds were painted with vibrant colors, while the sun’s gentle and warm rays penetrated the gaps of the clouds and glowed over the enforcers’ face. Nature became the hope for their life of gazing into the abyss.

“It’s indeed the best time of the day.”

“Because it ends the turmoil of the day.”

Ava collapsed onto the couch after the most luxurious sunset she had ever seen until the sun had barely risen from the horizon as she woke from her most restful sleep of the night. It had been 20 days since her last day off from the exhausting work. According to the Watcher’s rules, enforcers were required to take time off work to maintain their mental health at the normal state. Therapists and mental care medicine of the top ranking were mainly for enforcers in return for their determination at the front line. Being an enforcer was honorable and admirable from the perspective of the public, but what enforcers paid for the society was much more than they thought.

She turned on the television for the morning news.

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen today is September 1st, 2124. We will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Watcher. Since the Watcher system was implemented for our living, society has improved in various aspects. Crime rate reduced 50% since 2064, while economics yield increased 50%. According to the public data collection, 90% of respondents are currently satisfied with their life and believe that their life has been improved by the Watcher. The Watcher is the greatest development of mankind to promote a bright future. Now, let’s give our attention to the Director of Ministry of Public Security, Atlas Warden.”

“I’m honored to represent all enforcers for this interview. I believe that our society will develop through the continuous accumulation of data from the Watcher system. Enforcers will do the best to maintain order and peace.”

Tired of hearing her boss speaking, Ava turned off the television. Suddenly, her phone rang, giving her friend’s name, Selena Blackwood. The next second when she answered the call, Selena’s cheerful voice filled her ears.

“Hey! How is it going for work? It has been a while since we last met.” Selena asked, sounding like she was in a positive mood.

“Hey, just relaxing at home,” replied Ava, leaning on her back.

“I’m glad to hear that you are taking time off. I’m sorry to interrupt your weekend, but can you take some time to chat with me at the coffee shop beside the central plaza? I’ve got some news for you,” Selena suggested in a hesitant manner.

“Sure. Then let’s meet 20 minutes late.”

 Ava quickly dressed into her casual and headed out the door. After the 20 days non-stop work with psychopaths, she was excited for something different for living.

She arrived at the central plaza and found Selena in front of the coffee shop. After a few greetings, they entered the shop.

“You must be a hard worker these days. Look at the dark circles under your eyes, you seemed to not sleep for nights. Now I feel guilty for inviting you out,” Selena started the conversation.

“No, it’s fine. I feel better here with you than lying at home. Makes me feel more alive. So, what are the news?”

“I’m sorry to bother you because there is good and sad news. But we always start with the good news,” Selena took a sip of her coffee, “thanks to the Watcher’s love matching system, the man of my dreams appeared. It’s just the right time for me for love and romance. I wonder how the system did this with just the right timing and right person.”

“Congratulations! This is how Life Plan works. Hopefully, he feels the same way.”

“How wonderful! At first, I didn’t believe that the system could find my life partner in just seconds, but after talking to him, it turned out we were such a good match. I can’t imagine how hard finding a partner was 100 years ago without the operation of the system. Also, thanks to the system for its judgement on my job. I’m glad to be a social media worker. Over time, I clearly noticed how suitable I’m for this. Now comes the second good news, I got a promotion and became the manager.”

“Career management is also an essential part of the Watcher’s Life Plan system. It seems people’s satisfactory level has raised a lot, according to the morning news.”

“It’s all your credit, Ms. Enforcer. Talking about career path management, I want to hear from you about some suggestions for my brother.”

“Owen, I have not seen him for a while, guess he is working on the Watcher’s final exam?”

“Yeah, he stressed about that a lot in the past months, which is understandable because the score determines the job choices and suggestions for him. Teenagers are much more competitive nowadays. All want to obtain more chances for a desirable job. You know that my brother has surpassing intelligence since an early age. Unsurprisingly, his score was such high being the highest grade of the year, which caused the three major departments to send out their invitations simultaneously.”

“That’s a good thing. He will have more opportunities to get in touch with the advanced fields. This also gives him an honorable social status.”

“Yes, BUT he refused to work in these three departments. According to him, his life would be miserable and stressful with his mental rating upsurging. He said he wants to enjoy life as a normal mid-class citizen. The Ministry of Public Security is dangerous and dealing with psychopaths is terrifying. Ministry of Science costs his sleeping time. The Ministry of Economy is the hardest. I know the minds of those people born with intelligence work in a unique way, but I don’t understand why he wants to be an author journaling about the environment. He said the Watcher’s career management can’t bring any contentment for his life,” Selena stopped complaining at a loss for words.

“Alright, calm down. How is he right now? Fine with his mental rating and emotions?”

“I’m not going to lie to you, Ava. His mental rating is not in a desirable state. That’s why I want to talk to you about this urgently. I’m afraid that he may pass 100. I promise you he didn’t do anything illegal harming the community,” Selena said in a flustered voice.

“Well then. If this is aggravating his mental health, I suggest you let go. Remember that mental rating reflects one’s overall wellbeing. If he struggles with being healthy, you should let him make his own choice to recover to a content and satisfy normal state. Maybe his passion leans toward journaling,” Ava consoled.

“But the thing is the Watcher suggests him to work for the ministries. According to my experience, the system’s career management is an accurate, reliable, and correct path towards success. I can’t let him step into something unpredictable, and now this is threatening his health. He…”

“Selena, would you rather ruin him now without trying a new path,” Ava interrupted, “as you said, he is smart. He can work his own way out of the uncertainties. Now, the first thing is to ensure his mental rating at a stable condition.”

***

Ava went back home after solving Selena’s problem. She took a shower and released herself on the bed.

“Career management…,” she thought starring at the ceiling of the apartment, “indeed, Owen could be a happier person if he doesn’t follow the perfect and best-fit suggestion of the Watcher. What if I didn’t choose to be an enforcer? I also had the choice to work in the Economy or Science Ministry, but I certainly rejected them all and chose to be part of the Public Security and I worked here for years until now. But why am I so determined for years? Because of my father? What’s my purpose of working here?”

As she pondered about these questions, her eye lids became heavier and heavier. Then she soon falls asleep by the quiet hum of the city out the window.

The weekend passed in the blink of an eye. Ava headed her way to the Public Security building, where the morning light dances upon the glass facades. The Public Security main building was at the center of the city surrounded by affluent neighborhoods and large corporations. This was the most advanced and safe zone under the governance of the Watcher. Since the three ministries and the Watcher’s machinery were all at this zone, the mental rating street cameras were especially sharp in addition of Public Security Drones. Therefore, this zone was hailed as “the heart of the city.”

Ava was called to the director’s office for a new series of cases. The director was the one representing one of the cornerstones to address information to the Watcher’s comprehensive database. Being an indispensable figure, he had a sense of mystery. Atlas Warden was a 40-year-old reliable person at manipulating his subordinates and maximizing the possibilities. His hair, slicked to the back, revealed his forehead and piercing eyes. He preferred to dress in a long black trench coat of high-quality fabric with his formal inside. No matter the season, Atlas typically wore a red scarf around his neck, creating a sense of solemness of its color in contrast with the black coat.

“Good morning, Ms. Smith. I have read your report for the ASD psychopath and the Khos Academy. "You seemed to experience a tiring week,” Atlas said with his eyes kept on the document.

“Indeed.”

“How is the new enforcer doing?”

Ava hesitated for a moment then answered, “he is principled and has his own judgement.”

“Good to hear. He has much more to learn from you,” Atlas turned and looked at the team leader. “Well, now here is the new case. This is highly prioritized; I hope you can solve it as soon as possible. It has been reported by the directors of the Economy Ministry and Transportation Ministry that there is random unstableness of mental rating in their field. People whose mental rating got unstable are the influential figures. If their mental ratings can’t return to normal, or even get worser, this can result the society to fall into panic and disorder.”

By stating the problem, Atlas projected the data on the screen. These were data collected from the public camera scanning at the “heart of the city” where these people often appear for work. The scanning cameras in this zone were the best devices despite the evaluators. Thus, it was hard to believe that there was any problem with the scanning process. However, the mental ratings were truly unstable. For example, the rating for an economist was 46 at the central plaza but suddenly rose to 139 at the plaza’s bus station. The moment when Security Drones were about to approach, the main rating returned to 68 as if nothing happened. In other cases, the mental rating increased gradually passing 100 but dropped suddenly to the lowest range between 0-20.

“Also, some figures of our ministry have been reported to be mentally unstable in the past two weeks. Hopefully, this doesn’t get any further,” Atlas said seriously.

After receiving the document and data for this case, Ava left the Director’s office and returned to her team’s room for further discussion.

***

“This is weird,” Felix said, looking at the analysis of the device, “usually, people take mental health care immediately when having an unstable rating. For these thought leaders, it wouldn’t be a surprise to take a full caring system. But they didn’t even buy any medicine or seek medical advice from anyone.”

“When has the mental rating started to be unstable?” Zephyr asked Alexandra for the record.

“Benjamin Sullivan, Director of Department of Economic Planning, started to be unstable 2 months ago. Olivia Anderson, Director of Department of Public Transportation, had her rating gradually increasing 3 months ago. At last, Alexander Reed, retired developer of the Watcher’s system, has been unstable for two weeks,” answered Alexandra, “there has been no pattern found for the timing. However, from my research, there is a potential for multiple other’s mental rating to go crazy. At least 10 administrators of each ministry tend to experience a quick shift in their rating.”

They reached a consensus to investigate the environment where these people recently appear was an essential first step. “The heart of the city” nurtured all the possibilities for development of the city with of major ministries gathered. The rating cameras were like all-seeing eyes representing the Watcher, casting every corner of the place. The skyscrapers of reflective glass gave a sense of oppression. Despite this, the laughers of the musical street performance balanced the atmosphere of the community.

Suddenly, this delicate balance was disturbed by the area stress alarm from the security drones. The enforcers, without evaluators, sought the source and reason of alarm on the street and contacted Alexandra at the office for more standby drones to support the enforcement. Appearing on the street, the three familiar faces on the report wandered at the plaza as if nothing happened. Ava directed the team and the drones to arrest the three immediately, keeping the least amount of fuss.

“Alexandra, immediately turn off the alarm of the public announcer and intervene the all-clear signal and return the music at the loudest volume. We need 4 more drones with auto enforcement system and an auto-drive car,” Ava called the analysis room. Since the three people were mainly known by the public, it was important to keep down the enforcement process to avoid unnecessary turmoil.

While Ava directed the office for support, the three other enforcers moved toward the targets with their ID cards, leading them to a remote alley under the pretext of cooperating with the investigation to stall time for the drones to arrive. The targets seemed perfectly calm though, answering the questions the enforcers asked. From the action and behavior, it was hard to determine whether they were real psychopaths.

“Attention, enforcement drones arrived. Alexandra sent one each to your locations.” It was Ava, who headed into the car ready to approach after the enforcement.

Almost at the same time, the targets were paralyzed by the drones and controlled by the enforcers. Eventually, Ava arrived at the alleys to pick up the people and return to the Public Security office.

After some time of silence, Zephyr broke the air, “don’t you think this is so unusual. The target was calm and normal even though their mental rating has been up to 170. We arrested them easily and everything went perfectly. This leaves me a bad feeling though.”

“Same,” replied Thane, “Alexander Reed even asked me about my work the moment before the drone arrived.”

“Influential governors and figures…” Ava slowly said in a thoughtful fashion, “it seems like we should drive deeper down their backgrounds. Absolute perfection only raises suspicion.” Then she informed Alexandra to research the background of the three people as a support of the later interrogation.

***

While waiting for the anesthesia stage, the team worked on researching the background of the three people. It was true that they all have been involved in one incident­­—the overthrown of the Finance and Transportation AI System. This was a former system 20 years ago that competed with the Watcher to maintain the society’s balance and peace. The Finance and Transportation AI tracked and designed the best plans for individuals in these two fields to promote satisfaction and at the same time ensure the development of these two fields. For example, by using data and incorporating the overall market of a product, the system could suggest certain people purchase to clear the market and fulfill the needs of the customers. In the sense of transportation, the system suggested traveling methods and routes to avoid traffic and at the same time maximize the use of resources. The system aimed to kill both birds by one stone. From the citizens perspective, their lives were more convenient with the planning and support of the system. This decreased the crime rate to some extent. While from the government’s perspective, maximizing the use of resources promoted economic growth and saved time for science development and security assurance. It once was competing with the Watcher System and got overweighed because of increasing transportation accidents of the immature system. Benjamin Sullivan and Olivia Anderson were the two initiators of the project, while Alexander Reed vetoed the system and brought the Watcher to a more reliable state. It was clear that there was a connection between them, but the reason for the random increase in mental rating was still in the mist.

“Their anesthesia has worn off, but I assume that there is a serious problem right now” reported Thane walking in the office. “Their mental ratings have returned to normal, all under 50.”

“What?!” cried Zephyr, with his eyes wide opened and brow locked in a frown. “It’s impossible for one’s rating to drop from 170 to 50 or less in just 5 hours sleeping.”

“I know, and we haven’t got time for the interrogation. But according to the rules, we have no right to limit a normal person’s freedom,” Thane replied.

“Facing the impossible, the only two things to suspect: either the preconditions are wrong, or out minds went crazy,” Ava said, being the only one who was unperturbed. “Clearly, we haven’t got crazy. Thus, let’s make a bold assumption: the targets’ mental ratings are initially normal and normal throughout the entire process.”

 Felix questioned, “then why did the street cameras signaled and how could the drone possibly shoot the targets?”

“It would a different story if the cameras were hacked,” Thane expressed with uncertainty.

“We can’t rule that possibility out,” Ava asserted. “To make sure, we could explain to the three about the problem and seek support. If they are willing to stand under the cameras of the central plaza again, we shall use the Evaluators to check their mental rating at the same time with the camera scanning. If the scanning surely isn’t correct, Alexandra can take time to find out the source of the hacker, while we could work on the enforcement immediately after the suspect’s position is found.”

“Surprise the hacker with the gift of the Evaluator,” added Zephyr.

***

After a conversation with the three administrators, they easily agreed to the plan saying that it not only matters of personal reputation but also the system’s overall reliability. They were just vulnerable beings under the protection of the sacred system. Since it was a race against time, they must implement actions immediately.

To avoid the real criminal from realizing the situation, the administrators were separated into different cars and arrived at the plaza at different timing. While Thane and Felix followed the administrators to the plaza with the Evaluators, Ava and Zephyr were ready to approach the hacker’s position, setting their car on the side of the road. Alexandra overrode the video casting of the cameras indicating Thane and Felix to prevent the Evaluator to be seen by the Psychopath. The sun had set over the city with a golden glow on Ava’s car. The air was filled with thick tension, like a coiled spring about to burst. It was like the stillness before the thunderstorm. The stillness pressed down the enforcers making it even harder to breathe.

“Currently, their ratings are all above 150. I turned off the public alarm and the patrol drones. I’m working on source. Ready to check with the Evaluator.” It was Alexandra from the call.

At the same time, the Evaluators reported:

Mental rating 39. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

Mental rating 47. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

Mental rating 42. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

“Clearly, it’s not their fault,” murmured Alexandra to the screen.

She raced against time inserting commands into the computer. Trying multiple times, she quickly filtered the correct coordinate of the location and copied it to the map. The pin on the map indicated a residence 800 meters away. The location was sent to the Zephyr who pulled out the engine and sped on the road. Arriving at the location, they noticed Alexandra to override the cameras. Armed with determination, the sound of rapid footsteps echoed through the hallway, stopping at their target’s door. They burst into the room with the Evaluators to arrest the Psychopath. However, what they saw was a dingy place with the air filled with the smell of stench cigarettes and decayed food. The fainted light of the computer in the cramped room showed the scene of the street cameras and mental ratings. The fan’s whirring sound mixed with the overheard call of Alexandra and Thane. A young man, thin and gaunt, appeared to collapse on the floor.

“It seems there is no need for the Evaluator,” Zephyr approached to the man checking the vital signs. Ava called the ambulance and informed the other team members.

***

It had been two days after the man was arrested for hacking the system and manipulating mental rating. He nearly died in the room out of lung disease. The man’s name was Liam Riley, 26-years-old, unemployed. He grew up in a poor neighborhood full of violence. Both his parents died in a traffic accident twenty years ago. To survive in the society, he learned about computing and coding with the bequest. The street cameras hadn’t scanned him for 2 years.

He recovered a week after the incident and was placed into Special Psychopath Quarantine, where Ava was responsible of questioning him. Zephyr was at the observation room to record the conversation.

“Hello, to the Watcher’s requirement we start the interrogation process. By the way, we sent to the best medical health care center for the lungs. During your unconsciousness, we checked your rating to have an average of 130-140. Well, now I’ll start formally,” Ava started the conversation.

“I assume you found out the true faces of the three scoundrels,” Liam said feebly.

Ava ignored him and continued, “how did you learn to hack the Watcher’s security system?”

“I was fascinated by computers when I was young. Then I learned by myself. The Watcher’s system is such weak and easy to break through to change the rating.”

“Why did you hack the system?”

“Isn’t it clear?” Liam replied, “for my mental rating to appear normal. But most importantly, to damage the mental rating of the ones who doesn’t deserve to be clear.”

Ava didn’t say anything, looking at him for him to continue.

Liam sighed, “from your face I see how you don’t realize the truth. Well, of course, enforcers are numb figures representing the corrupted Watcher. You claimed to everyone to maintain peace in the society, but your very existence is a conspiracy! I was such innocent, though you know the truth, leaving the Evaluators unharmed. Thinking about it, I was so stupid deciding to turn myself in. Well, I got no choice now.”

Taking a deep breath, he continued “so let me reveal the truth of the mischief. Do you know about the Finance and Transportation AI System twenty years ago?”

“Yes, I found out the three administrators are all part of the program,” Ava answered, decided to let him continue.

“Oh, so you actually researched, impressive,” Liam said surprisingly, “As the Watcher’s loyal prayer, I assume you think the Watcher is the supreme god of the world? Now I’ll tell you the existence of the Watcher reliability is a conspiracy! Twenty years ago, transportation and economy ministries formulated the program. The program tracks down every step of an individual in the two major fields of their life— money and actions. This decreased the crime rate not only because of the increase of satisfaction, more also because of the 24-7 surveillance. People didn’t know that they were tracked every step they took. After two months of promotion, citizens thought highly of the new system. I don’t know why people loved life under surveillance. Nevertheless, this threatened the prestige of the Watcher, which was the start of the conspiracy.”

Liam coughed severely, had to stop speaking. He turned to the cup of water and the pills to alleviate the symptoms. Then he continued, “The developers of Watcher System decided to cooperate with the developers of the Finance and Transportation. The developers of the Watcher suggested to revoke the Finance and Transportation System by offering its developers money and prestigious social status at the Watcher System. The developer of the Finance and Transportation couldn’t afford to be tempted and eventually gave in. Yes, it was Benjamin Sullivan and Oliver Anderson, and of course other people I attempted to manipulate.”

Ava interrupted him, “Why shall I trust you?”

“Remember, I can hack the Watcher easily. There is nothing I can’t get from the computer. If the Watcher can use comprehensive data, why couldn’t I hack in its database? Never mind, let’s continue. Even though the developer of the Watcher wanted to eliminate the system, the citizens were fond of the new system. The only way was to make the system to appear problematic and untrustworthy. Therefore, they reached a consensus to create transportation ‘accidents’ to reduce the credibility. Lots of people died by following the system’s transportation planning. My father and mother died too. Eventually, Alexander Reed, the Watcher’s main developer, or the main power behind the mischief, announced the Finance and Transportation System invalid and brought the Watcher to another notable stage. It’s such ridiculous that these people’s mental ratings are still normal. And they are living in in wealth, glory, and honor!”

Ava stood in the room, both doubtful and shocked. She frowned her face and said, “so this is the reason.”

“Surely is. Miss, hope you trust me. I’m betting on this, whether the truth could be revealed depends on you. You know,” Liam coughed again and continued in a weak voice, “I could have not set this randomness in their rating. I could have set their rating above 200 immediately and kill them for my parents. I could have hack in your Evaluators. But I didn’t. I planned all this for you to trust me, if you are not a robot following the Watcher’s rules.”

Ava had nothing to say, left Liam a bottle of water and walked out of the room. She turned to the recording room where Zephyr was and saw her teammate in a pale white face, as if the world had collapsed.

She took a deep breath, while Zephyr turned to her and asked, “what do you think?”

She pursed her lips for a moment, hesitated and said, “it’s common sense, right? But…”

“We need more evidence,” Zephyr said, as if to answer.

“I’ll deal with the Director, no worries,” Ava said calmly.

Walking through the long corridor, Ava pondered about what Liam said and its credibility. If everything was true, it would be revolutionary. It was always a question of how the society would be without the management of the Watcher. The sound of the footsteps was heavy as the whole atmosphere was.

Ava entered the Director’s office and handed in the interrogation report.

Atlas asked in a deep voice, “so why did you come to me?”

“I think we should have a fair judgement on this incident. Even though my existence as an individual in this society is negligible and unimportant, it is still my responsibility to promote justice. And I have the right, and everyone in the society have the right, to know the truth.”

Ignoring Ava’s point, Atlas turned his sight away from her and said, “how’s his mental rating?”

“About 130-140,” Ava answered wondering about the purpose of the question.

“Then how about the three administrators’ mental rating?”

“At a normal state, under 50,” Ava lowered her voice.

“Isn’t clear Ms. Smith? Would you rather believe a Psychopath or honorable leaders of the top fields?” Atlas said firmly.

After a few seconds of silence, Ava stated, “I was pondering about my purpose of being an enforcer. If the only thing the society needs to judge a person is their mental rating, we only need more accurate drones and cameras all around the street. But it is true people praise for the existence of enforcers. Therefore, I shall contribute to the society as a human being with mind and heart not as a living drone.”

Atlas looked at Ava in an unbelievable fashion, putting the report aside, and sighed, “Well if that’s your choice, you must offer factual evidence to me for this incident for your point. In fact, I believe in your abilities, and I trust you. I’ll pretend you said nothing and nothing happened if you give up, or of course find no evidence.”

Ava left the room and returned to her desk for research about the Finance and Transportation system until mid-night. Zephyr also joined her. However, most files were kept top-secret and were visible. They also went to Liam’s residence for any more clues. Everything was in vain.

In the morning, they agreed to visit Liam again in the quarantine system to ask about any preservation of the hacked data. However, surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, Liam died from his lung disease in the cold quarantine session.

Dear enforcers,

Why is the Watcher System reliable? What makes it invulnerable? It is completely fair with the rational calculations of numbers of the comprehensive database. Through scientific methods, it declares that it could judge everybody in the society. People trust it because the judgement doesn’t incorporate any personal emotions and biased judgements. Then why do we need human police and governors? When the Watcher was first released, these people were supposed to supervise the AI in case of any misconception. However, as the system gets more matured, the chance for error and misconception decreases, which reflects how perfect it is. In this case, even the police and officers rely on the system without their thinking and common-sense of their own. Thus, what’s their purpose now? Are they serving the same purpose as before? No, I mean, are you serving the same purpose as before? I don’t know. Hopefully, you are. Let’s tell from the following days from your performance.

Today is October 16th, 2124. Please be aware of the flames of every following Mondays.

Sincerely, CW

It had been three weeks after the death of Liam Riley. Nothing special happened during this period. The report for Liam Riley’s case spread among the ministry with people doubting its credibility. Thane surely reviewed the case again with his intuitive judgement and kept the answer to himself, while Felix kept silence of the case in the three weeks. Alexandra was supportive of Ava and Zephyr, continued to research extensive information, but had no successful results. This left the truth in the deep sea of unknown. Ava and Zephyr seemed not able to focus for a while, as if their souls had wandered out their bodies, until the day of the arrival of this letter.

Walking in the corridor to the director’s office, Ava tried to suppress her racing heart with anticipation. While her footsteps echoed on the unforgiving walls, her breath was filled with the weight of anxiety. In fact, Ava doesn’t believe the director would ever forgive her for her impulse with Liam Riley, even though he said that he would forget everything. As she approached the door with her sweaty hands, thousands of possibilities raced in her mind. After taking a deep breath to recall her logical thinking, she pushed to open the door.

“Hello, here for the letter?” Atlas broke the awkwardness of the air.

“Yes,” Ava answered with her eyes looking at the tip of her toes.

“No need to be like this, I said I trust you,” Atlas realized Ava’s nervousness, “I’m sorry for his death.”

“Yes,” Ava raised her head and said with a bitter smile.

“How is you mental rating? I can lend you some time to rest, if necessary,” Atlas said with concern.

“It’s all clear, under 50. You can check on your own. I think the letter is more important, isn’t it?” Ava asked.

“Now, let’s move on for the new case. I assume you have read the letter. It was placed in front of the gate this morning, but no one saw the person who put it there. Ms. Parker of the front desk handed it in to me,” Atlas clarified where the letter came from.

“Well, the most important is the context,” He continued with a raised voice, “this is a provocation and accusation against the whole public security office, even the Watcher. People would be set into panic by this mysterious person, causing extreme social unrest and rise in public mental rating. Thus, both team 1 and team 2 will be responsible for this under your directions. Don’t let me down.”

Ava brought the news to her team and warned them of the risks. They started the pre-investigation immediately, aiming to determine some suspects. However, since hand-written letters were unusual, it was difficult to find similar writing in the public net. The street cameras beside the ministry building only reflected a robot that left the letter in front of the gate. Tracking down robot, it traveled to the recycling churns and was destroyed, leaving no more clues. The only disconcerting clue was the connection between the robot and Liam Riley. According to the purchase records, the robot was purchased by Liam Riley using the money he got from stock speculation. A week passed with no considerable progress. Investigating points always had driven the enforcers into dead ends. Tracking down these minor clues was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

It was October 23rd. Along with the alarms noting the breakthrough of the security systems of governors, 20 national officials were find died in their home in the morning, including scientists, developers of the Watcher, officers of the Public Security, and multiple leading economists. The victim’s name list included the three people involved in the Liam Riley case­— Benjamin Sullivan, Olivia Anderson, and Alexander Reed. In addition, multiple other targets of Liam Riley’s random mental rating were also killed. This proved that there must be a special relationship between CW and Liam Riley. The suspect left another letter.

Dear enforcers,

Liam took revenge on the system by his independence, and I’m here to end his plan in my fashion. Next Monday 9:00 A.M., let’s meet at the central plaza under the thousands of eyes of the public.

Sincerely, CW

Ava and the team leader of team 2, Ryan Sinclair, met with Atlas for the further countermeasures. The office was filled with the weight of anxiety of the three enforcers.

Atlas started the conversation, “because it will be at the central plaza, there must be citizens there. The priority is to prevent the public being there resulting in a rise in area stress. Therefore, drones would be prepared from the previous night to close the area. This would also benefit us. The second priority is to maintain the enforcers’ mental health. If the target does anything out of boundary, the enforcers’ mental rating would be concerned. But if someone’s mental rating becomes dangerous, use the Evaluators for law enforcement immediately.”

“Team 2 will be clearing the environment,” Ryan continued, “this allows Ava’s team to track down the suspect. However, there is a hidden problem, about the suspect’s mental rating. If the previous cases were done by him or her, the mental rating must be high. However, the suspect not only left multiple houses clear without any trace, but also didn’t trigger the camera scans on the street. This left the mental rating unknown, but it’s probably at the normal range.”

Ava took a deep breath, “since there is relationship between Liam Riley and CW, he could have used some hacking technique to manipulate his rating. Analyst of our team worked on the key for Liam’s hacking in the previous days. She already overcame the issue and reported the problem to the Watcher’s security system. This won’t be a problem for the Evaluators to detect the real number.”

The meeting ended as Ava informed her team about the plan.

She ended her words, “this time is special, be careful.”

The team backed her up with optimistic words and all left the office. Ava told Zephyr to stay afterwards.

Ava looked at Zephyr in his eyes with a serious face and said slowly, “Control your impulse this time. It’s different. It could be the prelude to something unpredictable.”

“Alright! It’s our job to make unpredictable predicable,” Zephyr answered with a smile.

It started to rain outdoors, with little droplets and first, turning into restless pounding raindrops. The grey clouds covered the light of the sun leaving darkness in office of team 1.

***

In the second morning, the sky was shaded in blue, gradually turning lighter with the sun rising the horizon. The glass of the building and the white clouds were painted in the hues of orange and pink, displaying a breathtaking image. As the sun had risen completely, the sky’s color turned more vibrant with the run’s rays glowing on the leaves of the drenched trees. The air was full of moisture of last night’s rain and wet dirt of the roots. The scene of astonishing, yet impermanent.

The central plaza was locked with the drones, avoiding the citizens to enter, while the two enforcer teams set up all the equipment. Ava informed everyone about the risks and the priorities again, emphasizing the goal. The enforcers were attentive as hawks, scanning the environment for any sense of danger.

It was 8:59 A.M., every second passed like droplets dipping down on heart hearts, filling the air with anxiety.

Boom! A sudden explosion broke the barriers made by the drones like a thunderclap breaking peaceful air of the bright morning. The ground shook beneath the feet of the enforcers and the security drones. When Ava was calming others down, the explosion continued, seemingly flames and smoke extended from the security cameras and the security drones. The acrid pungent of the air brought the group back to the cruel reality. A figure emerged from the smoke of the explosion ghostly. At first, only showing the counter lines of his body, he was tall and imposing, wearing a long jacket of his slim body. With the support of the fans, the mist slowly diffused, making it clear to see him. He had a dark and waving hair, falling across his forehead in a messy fashion. Walking out of the haze, he showed his dark and commanding eyes, gazing at the enforcers.

“Who are you?” Ava forwarded her steps, holding the Evaluator tightly.

“Casper Wilde, Ms. Ava Smith,” the suspect said with a sense of lightness.

Casper silently held out a gun out of his pocket, pointing at the team. Guns were strongly forbidden in the country since it symbolized violence and disobedience of the Watcher. For decades, the Public Security hadn’t been aware of the use of guns. The Evaluators were the best to suppress the criminals. With Casper holding a gun in his pale white hands, the enforcers were mostly shocked that they didn't move a single centimeter.

“Alright! There are eight of you in total. I have eight bullets. One per minute,” Casper said confidently.

“That’s impossible. You can fool over the street cameras, but you can’t fool with the eyes of the Watcher,” Ryan pointed the evaluator towards the suspect.

Mental rating 83. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

Every enforcer of the two teams had their evaluator point toward Casper in a static posture. Their hearts had beaten in the fastest rate, even making them unable to breathe normally. On the other hand, Casper was standing right in front of them relaxed with wind blowing his clothes. He smiled to the enforcers in a scornful way as if he was totally fearless of them, of the evaluators, and of the Watcher.

“This makes nonsense,” Ryan lowered the evaluator with his eyes turning wider, gazing at the target.

“59 seconds, and one minute,” Casper said looking at his watch. He killed an enforcer of team 2 with the gun in his hand and continued, “so have you realized the issue?”

The group was alarmed. They couldn’t imagine how a friend died in just a second under a gun of a psychopath. The enforcer was killed with a shot at his head.

While some people panicked, Ava turned to Ryan and whispered, “the only possibility for this is that he hacked in the Wachter’s evaluator system. Stay calm, we need time for Alexandra to override the control.”

Ava called Alexandra, “override the control of the evaluators immediately. He must has hacked in.”

“While you guys are working on the stupid computer, I may continue on my speech,” Casper said, “Do you guys believe in the accuracy and credibility totally of the Watcher? I see how you trust it.”

“Yes. The evaluator gives the most accurate rating to arrest criminals like you,” Ava answered firmly. She intended to find you the purpose of Casper’s terrorism.

“Well, Ms. Smith. Then what do you think about the judgement of Liam Ridley? Is it fair and just?”

“What do you mean?”

“You must admit that the judgement isn’t clear enough since you really sympathized with him. You do somewhat believe in his point about the Finance and Transportation and the Watcher, right? He is such an ignorant person who wants the goodness and truth to be spread among the society. Liam is a genius hacker. He learned about everything on his own. He is gifted, in fact. He wants the citizens and the people of the world to have the right to know about the conspiracy of the Watcher. Then he died in quarantine, leaving the truth unknown. Oops, 2 minutes!”

He lifted his arm and shot another enforcer. People were frozen in their place for the whole time, holding the evaluators in their trembling hands.

Rating Updated. Mental rating 71. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

Ava shouted to the call, “Alexandra! The evaluator!”

Alexandra replied in a voice of uncertainty, “Ava? Ava. I don’t think the evaluators are hacked. Or any of the street cameras. It’s working well completely. I don’t know what’s happening.”

“Makes no sense,” Ava mumbled with a rapid breath.

“Continuing,” Casper ignored their panicking, “I don’t think the system is a fair method to evaluate a person. Therefore, you, enforcers, are puppets of a stupid AI saying that the system is completely fair and just. You follow the system without your own thinking process, assuming everything is correct by a number. I think that independent thinking is the most valuable of any human being. We are complex livings with the most advanced brains ever. Human beings are proud of their development for the past centuries because they perceive information and process their thinking. Without independent thinking, there is no difference between humans and cold robots. Even animals think for themselves about how to find and prey. Thus, it can be deduced that enforcers and everyone in this society believing the Watcher is the only fair god is even worser than animals. 3 minutes.”

Casper shot Felix, who was standing still having his eyes straight forward as if looking through nullity.

He mumbled, “I don’t understand.” Eventually, he fell on the solid floor with his heavy body.

Rating Updated. Mental rating 50. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

The rest of the people trembled out of fear, still holding the evaluator tightly in their hands, hoping for a miracle. The air was still and quiet, compressed with anxiety and confusion.

Zephyr broke the silence with his alarming voice, “everybody, stay out of his sight, keep yourselves safe!” He approached the two enforcers of team 2 and patted Ava and Thane on their backs. He can’t bear to look at the cold corpses of the three enforcers. They died under extreme fear and confusion about the order of the world. Zephyr couldn’t let anyone else lose their lives under his condition. He shook Ryan’s shoulders with his weak and quivering hands, dropping the evaluator on the ground.

Thane turned to Ava and said, “I don’t think it’s the evaluator’s problem. Maybe we really shall find another method to arrest this person. This situation is weird. We shall end this ASAP.”

“Yes, thank you,” Ava answered.

“Ava, Ava?” Alexandra shouted from the call, “the area stress for your region increases promptly. The drones are commanded to work on the enforcement. You shall focus on the target.”

Ava pointed to the evaluator on Casper again.

Rating Updated. Mental rating 25. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

At the same time, the enforcement drones started to alarm.

Mental rating 139, over 100. Law enforcement target. Safety lock opened. Non-lethal paralyzer mode. Public Security Enforcement team 2, Ryan Sinclair.

Mental rating 121, over 100. Law enforcement target. Safety lock opened. Non-lethal paralyzer mode. Public Security Enforcement team 2, Sophia Martin.

Mental rating 101, over 100. Law enforcement target. Safety lock opened. Non-lethal paralyzer mode. Public Security Enforcement team 1, Thane Hunter.

“Wait!” Zephyr called, but it’s too late. All of a sudden, three enforcers were paralyzed by the drones.

A dissonant laugh burst from Casper. He said in a sarcastic tone, “seems there is no need for me to put down the people. Look! The Watcher judges its enforcers at this very moment! Now I can take my time with you two.”

Ava controlled her confused emotions and took a deep breath. She asked firmly, “What’ s your purpose?”

“Finally, you want to talk to me. I’m here to show the uselessness of the enforcers and the Watcher. In my opinion, only those who act with their own will are the most valuable people. After all, who are you to judge good and evil? By the dominion in your hands? By analyzing biological force fields to understand the shape of a person's mind. It's all just a machine. The Watcher can’t judge me when I was young. Whatever I did, the Watcher sees me as clear and clean. If you ask me why? I seriously don’t know. But I know that it makes me determined with my goals. I want to rule and abolish the ridiculous Watcher System. I want to return the independence of human beings to reconstruct the glory history! I’m here to invite enforcers that can judge by their own. Now you should prove to me!”

Zephyr released the evaluator and approached suddenly to Casper. Zephyr intended to end the turmoil by wrestling on his maximum strength and ability, even though he hadn’t been trained because they solved most cases with the evaluators. Casper suddenly ran forward and locked Zephyr’s neck, making him enable to move. He threw the gun to Ava while controlling Zephyr’s freedom. Zephyr had no more strength after a few seconds of thin air. Ava was frightened as she checked the mental rating again on the evaluator, which showed her to be 10. With a rapid breath, she threatened Casper to release her colleague with her own legs feeble and helpless.

“If you want to save him, drop that scrap in your hands and kill me with the real gun,” by saying this, Casper pointed to the gun on the floor.

Ava didn’t release the evaluator, but instead she had two weapons in both her hands.

“With the real gun, you feel the weight of life?! This is how killing and judging people by your own independence feel like! With the scrap metal, you can do nothing at all! Only when you know the value and weight of life, can you correctly judge criminals, not by the AI telling you every single step! Now, if you slightly move your finger, you can punish me, who killed these people!” Casper shouted with his eye growing wider with the sense of eagerness.

Ava process in her mind, “killing on myself is illegal, but I must kill this man to stop his wrongdoings. Illegal? The Watcher says he is normal and clear. But he is absolutely not. How could the Watcher…”

While she thought about thousands of solutions, it was like a chaotic storm and bombed her rational mind, which was tangled with threads. Her ankles couldn’t hold her trembling body and her limbs were heavy and unresponsive. She lifted both guns and tried to aim at the target with the real gun, but failed since she couldn’t hold the gun tight.

Rating Updated. Mental rating 0. Non-law enforcement target. Safety lock locked.

“I’m sorry. I can’t control it,” Zephyr squeezed out the words.

“Unfortunately, you are not the one,” Casper said and suffocated Zephyr with his merciless hands.

Casper released a smoke bomb and disappeared in the mist, leaving the lonely plaza with cold corpses, paralyzed men, drones, and Ava’s hiss of despair.

One moment she was working as an enforcer, the next she was drawn in a maelstrom of disaster of no way to escape. In the whirlwind of chaos, everything happened at once trapping her in the midst of madness. Her dizzying head teemed with the shattered image of the plaza, dropping her disoriented body into a black hole of collapsing faith.

After another deep investigation of the analysts, the evaluators and street scanning cameras weren’t hacked or mismeasuring. Remnants of video cameras were found at the scene. Since the pre-investigation in the morning didn’t find any video cameras, it might have been brought by Casper during the time of continuous explosion. At 12:00 P.M October 30th, 2124, the full process of the incident was exposed on social media just like how Casper said, “under thousands of eyes”. The video was only 20 seconds, showing the disabled evaluators under the cruel scene. It was unclear how the video passed the audit, but it truly resulted in a heated discussion online in the presence of the massive rise of mental rating. Even though the video was soon deleted by the Public Security, the influence of the video was clear that the public was doubting the reliability of the system. Continuously, some individuals posted their opinions about the case raising the level of concern. Even some radical individuals whose mental rating increased promptly marched at the gate of the ministry as if promoting a revolution. However, due to the high mental rating, they were soon enforced by the security drones. Overall, the society was under great disturbance on Monday October 30th, which was named the “Black Monday”.

The ministry urgently organized meetings to solve the case and the uproar of the society, which Ava participated in as the only healthy person primarily involved. Ava’s mind was in extreme distress as she only claimed some concise evidence and observations, leaving the decision making to the others. After a day of confusion, the Public Security announced in the morning news of Tuesday October 31st that the video was posted by an anti-Watcher terrorist aiming to threat the control of the system. The context of the video was made by qualified technique on the computer and there shouldn’t be any concern about the system. The enforcement teams were working on the case to find the suspect. The Public Security Ministry would pay for the mental health care for the people who were affected for free. There was an evident shift in the area of mental stress after the clarification.

It was Wednesday November 1st, Director Atlas requested Ava’s present in his office to inform her of the resolution for the case.

“Hello, Ms. Smith,” Atlas said in a calming tone, “I know it’s tough for you. It is unfortunate to lose everyone. I decided to lend you 3 weeks of break and concentrated mental health care system. Presenting the governors, I don’t want to see your mental rating increasing.”

“Thank you,” replied Ava, “may I ask about the follow-up of this case. Will I still be included for the later process?”

“Oh, of course not. You should take the health care. This case has officially been passed to a special enforcement team who has a strength with argumentative and doubtful incidents. This has been a decision of al governors and the Watcher. And you should take mental care immediately. I already contacted the organization, and everything should be prepared after you leave this room.”

“Do you mean I won’t be able to find out the truth on my own?” Ava asked further.

“Miss, you don’t have to worry about the team. They are skilled and reliable. I told them to inform at the very moment,” Atlas replied seriously.

“Really? Reliable? Then why did the ministry lie in the morning news about the truth of the case? Would the Watcher agree with your decisions? I’m not the Watcher, thus I don’t know. But we can tell from the change in your mental rating.” Ava said with concern.

“Don’t you ever doubt the system. This is none of your business anymore, so keep out. Also, what would be your choice if you made the decision? Lie to the public and maintain social peace, or tell them the truth about the broken evaluators and the deaths of your colleagues resulting social disorder? We decided to be more holistic. People trust the Watcher because it’s holistic perspective about the world to be beneficial to the majority. Our priority is the maintain order and peace.”

Ava interrupted, “to maintain order under conspiracy and deceptions? I see the side you pick.”

She continued ignoring Atlas, “Then what about the Liam Riley case? What’s the Watcher decision about it? I’m not doubting about the system or the governors, but I believe I shall be involved. Everything is in the mist, but it should be more transparent. And I’m sorry to reject the mental health care. I don’t think there is a problem about my mental rating. It was under 100, and indeed it is. You have no reason to take any enforcer for mental care if the rating is less than 90. Next time, could you check my rating first hand on the system? Also, it’s nonsense for me to not be a part of the special team as a normally rate person. If you don’t let me, I shall investigate on my own...”

“Enough!” shouted Atlas, “Ms. Smith, from now on, you are forced to take mental care and leave the building immediately. You’re suspended. Never ever go deeper anymore for this case or else I’ll take away your enforcer rights!”

“Well,” Ava said calmly with her eyes on Atlas, “I don’t think you have the right to disable my enforcer ID, since I still have a 100% adaptation value for being an enforcer, according to the Watcher’s career management. But still thank you for giving me such long time by my own.” By saying this, Ava left the room with a slam on the door.

Ava didn’t leave the office building that night, since there was a risk of being prohibited to enter. She sat in the empty office surrounded by an eerie silence. The once noisy office full of happiness was a tomb of those who passed away. The heavy air was full of their memories together as a team. Ava’s eyes wandered around the room, scanning the familiar objects. The remnants of the departed people ­—Felix’s plants, Thane’s notebooks, and Zephyr’s photoshoot of the sunset from the car, made their presence lingering in the atmosphere. The desks, still cluttered with papers and documents, were untouched. The cushions were still on their chairs. Nothing had changed in the room, but everything changed with the ones who weren’t present anymore. The bittersweet reminders of their existence washed over the room, leaving Ava an oppressing and suffocating loneliness. Ava couldn’t hold the sense of disbelief, continuously asking questions to herself. How could this happen within two days? The scent of the perfume in their office welled up Ava with tears. Loneliness and grief overwhelmed her. How could she stay such clean and normal after the death of everyone? Why wasn’t she affected? Questions swirled in her mind of confusion. Tears filled her red eyes of grief uncontrollably sliding down her cheeks at the period of the sun sliding down the horizon, with a red hue coloring the office with a sense of sorrow.

Ava tried to sleep in the night, but she couldn’t. Everything in her mind when she closed her eyes was the cruel scene of Casper’s killing. However, at the same time, she was hesitating for the investigation, knowing the possible risks Atlas said. The longer she pondered about the case, the two conflicting views of herself started by increasingly evident. Revealing the unpredictable truth to the public was surely her job, as the citizens do have the right to know. Nevertheless, would the truth be beneficial to the development and peace of the community? What if the truth was actually harmful and disturbed the years of balanced order? Would it be selfish to find out the truth about the case but ignoring the overall peace of the society? Would it be better for people if the truth was kept secret?

After the incident, Ava asked Alexandra of personal issue of a robot of Zephyr’s thinking. She didn’t know why she asked for it, but she was sure that Zephyr was an important person changing the path of her life. The brain of Zephyr was taken to retrieve information of the person, forming a human robotic figure of him. Ava turned on the robot, seeking to help in the paradox.

Holographic projection was just like the real person standing in front of Ava. The messy and unkempt brown hair covered the thin brows and the same tender brown eyes.

“Hey! Wake up!” Zephyr said, “this is ridiculous. The brass is making every effort to disprove the reality that there are individuals whom the Watcher is unable to authorize! Could you ever let this go?”

“I know. I see. But there is no way out for them. We all know how peace and order are important in a successful community.”

“Won’t you be upset of the truth being unrevealed?” Zephyr asked.

“Yes, I’m… But both Liam Riley and Casper Wilde’s cases made me to realize that maintaining order is as important as practicing justice. The fact is sometimes we can’t simply put an equal sign between them, and they couldn’t be executed at the same time either.”

Zephyr said angrily, “then how should we deal with people unrestricted by law? What is your thoughtful way? I would kill the man with my own hands rather letting go of the corrupted system.”

“This is the only occasion on which a unique response may be used; after that, things resume as they always do. Most likely the only option is to prosecute him, allow for his defense, and then sentence him,” Ava replied with the most reasonable way for execution of her thought.

“This is ideally theoretical. But you are always making unimpulsive and thoughtful decisions. I would kill him. You can kill the system. Order is indeed important. I realized it ever I met you. I trust you. You have the ability to change the system. You are the one who maintains the balance, while I lean to one side of the scale. Remember, nothing could be perfect, judging everything without any mistakes. There must be a paradox for every omnipotent.”

“Thank you. I wonder why you don’t say anything like this when you were around.”

“I was about.”

Even though Ava knew this was just a mechanical figure possessing the thinking system of Zephyr, she was still glad to hear his voice again, leading her path in the dark.

It was midnight, and Ava still wasn’t asleep. She turned robot zephyr off since she burst into tears whenever hearing his voice. The office was quiet and dark with the faint streetlights filtering in the blinds. Recalling the memories of the case was a headache for her, but without recalling it she couldn’t solve the case. When she was evoking the painstaking details, a drone entered the room.

“Hello, Ms. Ava Smith. I’m a drone to lead you to the heart of the city. This would help you to find the truth of the Casper Wilde case. Representing the Watcher, I sincerely invite you to follow me to be a part of the city,” claimed the drone in a robotic tone.

Ava was confused, as she thought the drone was about to force her out of the ministry building. However, after a moment of contemplation, she decided to follow the drone as the part of her investigation about the Watcher. The drone led her out of the office room and approached the elevator to the director’s office. The lights in the corridor were dim leaving only the emergency signs lighting. The hubbub of the day was gone leaving the building with a scent of diffuse disinfectants.

“Where are we going?” Ava asked the drone.

“To the deepest fundamental,” the drone answered and entered the elevator.

They arrived at the director’s office while the drone moved by the bookshelf by the wall. It pushed in one of the books which allowed a doorknob to magically appear on the wall beside the books. Opening the door, it turned out to be another elevator with its only floor to be the “heart.” Ava hadn’t seen or heard about this secret elevator in the director’s office before and the “heart.” The small elevator could only consist of 2 people maximum, making the air oppressive. Ava couldn’t hold to be cautious for what would happen next at of the elevator. It took a long time for the elevator to arrive, as if the cell would continue dropping for her lifetime. The door of the elevator slowly opened leaving Ava with the scene of a room of all walls of screens and a group of people sitting at the round table, all wearing a helmet connecting their brains to the system’s operation.

“Welcome to the Watcher’s heart,” the drone said and returned to the elevator.

Ava, confused, slowly walked forward toward the group of people, scanning the room with her eyes. The screens on the wall showed mental ratings, cameras, web tracking, economic trends, and all sorts of information about the country.

“Hello, I’m the Watcher,” a mysterious voice said, “By tracking down your mental rating, we believe that you have the potential to join us, join the Watcher.”

“I believe the Watcher is an artificial intelligence. And I’m here as a part of the investigation of Casper Wilde’s case, as the drone told me I could find clues,” Ava said cautiously.

“Yes. We sent the drone to have you here. And now, you’re not only about to find the truth of the Casper Wilde but also have the chance to find the truth of the world, of the Watcher. I will now tell you about the system.”

Ava hesitated at first but eventually walked forward to the table.

“The Watcher System is perfect. It’s omnipotent. Most people in the society believe that the Watcher is only an AI. The public know the Watcher as an AI operation that could organize the society with its comprehensive database collection. This is true indeed. However, there is a part that we didn’t publicize about the operation of the Watcher. The Watcher is actually made of two components to maintain its perfection. One the computer and AI, while the other is the Heart, the elite group” the Watcher stopped, waiting for Ava’s reaction.

Ava suppressed her confusion and nervousness and said calmly, “I believe there must be a reason.”

“Yes. The Heart, we are the ones who correct and the support the AI whenever it couldn’t work properly. Their brains are connected to the system’s comprehensive database to enhance its work. This includes all cases of criminals who couldn’t be judged by mental rating of the evaluators. To target these people, we must also be different from the majority, as it is said that only criminals know what criminals would think and do. Therefore, we are the ones who couldn’t be judged by Watcher AI. People of the Heart could be manipulative masterminds, emotionally suppressed individuals, chaotic personalities, or criminally asymptotic brains. We find people like us, who can’t be judged by the Watcher, to invite them to the Heart and eliminate their existence in the society. This leaves the society clean with all people who can be judged by the Watcher, while the elite group becomes a part of the Watcher. This makes the Watcher System perfect again, able to judge anyone in the current society.”

Ava processed his words and questioned, “the system maintains its own perfection by including the special group it can’t define in the society. So, you mean that the Watcher is a consist of criminals that even the computer can’t judge?”

“Yes, but not entirely. Not all of us are criminals. Just about a half is. But whether someone of the Heart is a criminal or not is not important. The important thing is that we maintain the absolute perfect reputation of the Watcher System and bring order to the society,” Samuel said as if everything was all meant to be like this.

Ava cried, “you are telling me our peaceful society is a result of the successful management of criminals! As you guys couldn’t be judged when you were in the community, your crimes surely weren’t tackled properly. Who knows how many people suffered from your hands? And now you are here to rule the society? To maintain order? To call yourself the Watcher? Such ridiculous!”

“Well, according to the fair calculation of the AI, we helped the majority of people to feel safe in their current state. As the elite group, we also think differently, which brings a wider field of imagination to the society’s development. I don’t understand why you are so mad. But we really killed two birds with one stone, first, we maintained the system’s perfection by eliminating the elite group from the society, which brings people’s trust in the system to form a peaceful world. Second, they facilitated the development of the country with our masterminds. Together with AI, we carry an advanced world. Balancing the scale, we believe keeping the overall peace is much overweighed than the lives of sacrifice of a few people of our previous crime actions. Don’t you believe it’s important to favor the majority? Or would you sacrifice the majority for the sacrifice of the past? Isn’t this rational and fair?”

This set Ava into silence, giving it the same paradox she pondered about. She decided to cut the conversation, “criminally asymptotic individuals…Now I know why you called me here. Casper Wilde has a criminally asymptotic brain, right? That’s why you want me to stop investigating deeper.”

“Yes, you’re different, Ms. Smith. We found Casper Wilde and invited him to join us with his ideology. In fact, his ideology about independence is quite valuable. He agreed without any hesitation. He is not here today because I think you will do something overstepping boundaries if you see him again. I sorry for the deaths, but the value of his mind weighs more,” Samuel looked at Ava in her eyes.

Ava closed her eyes grasping her uniform with her hands, trying to control her emotions. The scenes of the past flowed in her mind. She asked, “then why invite me?”

“Because we find out that we have the same goal. Even though you are not one of the special groups, you tend to show a surprisingly stable mental rating throughout your life. You can balance between the sense of justice and social order. We raise social order and peace above everything. For you, even though you resent us emotionally, you understand the importance of the existence of the system to the society. You know how the society would be without the system. Therefore, no matter how you hate us, hate the system, you can’t resist it. We are impressed. After discussion with the members of the Heart and AI, we believe you can show your value as a participant.”

“You want me to work with criminals of the past and people with mental issues? Nonsense! This is just a laughter matter, uh? What if I reject?”

Samuel laughed, “then you may continue your life as an enforcer, but we strongly suggest you to be more ambitious. We know exactly what you are thinking through scans and tests. Won’t you want the society to be a better place?”

“Yes, but not in this way,” Ava said firmly, “won’t you be afraid that I tell the truth to the public and expose every malpractice?”

Samuel replied confidently, “Miss, we do risk assessments before anything. You surely won’t, because you are the one who knows the best about balancing justice and order. You are not Zephyr Sawyer, who weighs the ideal justice over everything. You consider more. You know the best about the turmoil and chaos in the society if the Watcher System collapses. We still open our door to you if you change your mind, see you tomorrow.”

Ava signed, “the Heart surely doesn’t have a heart.” Ava turned away from the Watcher and left the Heart with determination, walking straightly to the elevator. Everything was swirling around as if it was the end of the world. She leaned her body on the wall of the elevator as her body started trembling unrecognizably and uncontrollably, trembling out of confusion and fear. Her mind collapsed with the massive information received, racing thoughts of unknown in the fog. Her legs were weak like jelly, barely managed to stay on her feet. The ringing in her ears was a constant reminder of the tragic world. The sharp pain of her throat made it impossible to breathe. Under tinnitus, she vaguely heard someone screaming. It wasn’t until she felt the pain from her throat that she realized that it was herself who was screaming in the cell.

***

“Ability the change the system,” Ava mumbled to herself, as she approached to the secret elevator again. It was November 6th, when Ava was determined to face the reality of the system and “change the system”. Ava aimed to change the system of the combination of AI and brains of specialty. The collapse of the system would bring chaos to the community, and thus she won’t dysfunction the system. On the other hand, it was more important to improve the current system. It was another midnight in the Public Security Ministry of Ava and the heart. It was the same corridor of the building, dark and quiet, but Ava was the different one striding down the path with her unyielding soul.

“Welcome to the Heart.”

“Reconsidering your words, Watcher, I have my answer,” said Ava, with firmness in her eyes.

“Everyone believes the Watcher is omnipotent. You, the Watcher, achieve omnipotence in the society by incorporating the unjudgable. I’m against a complete revolution or subversion, because, as you said, even though I recognize the shortcomings of the system, I can’t deny the system’s contribution to a peaceful society and the public’s reliance on it. I’m well noted how strongly people pray for peaceful society. I guess this is why you find me to be a participant. Adding more participants to the party allows it to develop and advance its operation. This proves that you are constantly looking for improvements of the system. Therefore, I’m here to bring change.”

“We are including more participants to maintain the omnipotence. Since the system is perfect, we don’t need any changes. All is to keep at the current state,” replied the Watcher.

“That’s the point. You sure want yourself to be totally omnipotent. All your management is based on this matter,” Ava made a pause, “the omnipotence paradox.”

She continued, “Could an omnipotent man create a stone so heavy that he couldn’t lift? If he can, at the moment the stone is created, he won’t be omnipotent anymore. On the other hand, if he can’t create the stone, he isn’t omnipotent at all. Well, it’s contradictory from any perspective unless the precondition is misunderstood, which leaves the man not omnipotent. Similarly, the Watcher is known for its omnipotence, and it can’t lose its omnipotence. Thus, we are sure that the precondition is absolutely valid. In this case, if the one who passes judgement is perfect, it must be able to judge itself. Can the Watcher judge the Watcher itself? If not, Watcher will be the exception of its perfect system, denying its omnipotence. Then what if it can? The system will maintain its perfection about the point of judging everyone. However, the members of the Heart, which is a part of the Watcher, are no longer special. They are only people who meant to be judged but weren’t, denying the system’s past omnipotence. The only solution for this is to change.”

The Watcher asked, “so you want us to incorporate the idea of judging ourselves. This is impossible. If we judge ourselves, the system will collapse, leaving no goods for anyone.”

“But you want to stay perfect, don’t you?” Ava said, aiming on the Watcher’s weak point.

“We just have to maintain our perfect outfit in the public,” the system retorted with a robotic voice.

“Oh, now you are denying your own omnipotence! I really don’t mind telling the public about this,” Ava sneered.

This set the room into silence of the Watcher’s data processing to approach for a valid answer. The mechanical voice came upon, “then what’s your plan?”

“It’s simple. The members of the Heart allow the system to learn about ‘crimes of the specialty.’ You said that only criminals know criminals. Therefore, only the special ones know the other special ones. Since not everyone of the Heart once was a criminal, the system only needs to learn about how to judge the bad ones, leaving the rest unaffected. This doesn’t bring an end to your power, but at the same time you can judge yourself. This filters the system, making it even better. In your words, it’s killing two birds with one stone.”

The Watcher replied, “Absolutely. This is an applicable plan to keep our omnipotence. Balancing the value of some members, we believe it’s better to keep the system perfect and clean. Thank you, Ava Smith, leading the system to a new era.”

“May I ask for a personal favor?” Ava said, “please tell me about the rating for Casper Wilde.”

Mental rating 479, over 200. Law enforcement target. Lethal eliminator mode.

***

Thane returned to the team soon as his mental rating was back under 100. Ava’s life as an enforcer continued taking her own stance of belief. As the sun dropped down the horizon, coloring the glass of the building in rainbow, the turmoil of the day ended.

How to judge the rightfulness of something? From a consideration of personal advantages and disadvantages, or for the majority’s benefit? From the restriction of law, ethics, or religion? From the Watcher? Or from personal views?

Is the Watcher a completely fair existence? Technology was once designed for the convenience of the society. However, it might also lead the world into the era in which there was no turning back. When the society was defined as numbers and codes, the complexity of human nature couldn’t be found. If the people followed the directions of numbers and codes, what would be the value of our existence? A safe and perfect society under the rule of AI was nothing more than a fantasy. The society under the Watcher was still an unsafe place because people relied on a simple and convenient, yet uncertain, ugly, and dangerous figure.

If the truth of this world was shared with the public, what would people believe then? The society couldn’t be exactly right; therefore, it was necessary to keep one’s own correctness.