The Shepherd’s Path, Part 19: Life in Sanctuary
Everyday citizens in Sanctuary live like many humans have over the millennia. Each citizen is allotted an apartment based on their family situation. Individuals living alone get small flat style apartments with only about 50 square meters of space. A group of citizens can request combined accommodation, and generally in this case it is assumed that multiple people will share a single larger sleeping room. Weekly deliveries of food and other day-to-day essentials are provided for all citizens via direct delivery to their door or, or to a designated collection area in special circumstances. The option to purchase additional items exists, using credits earned during working hours. Should a more substantive item be needed, such as a replacement appliance, it is requisitioned directly. All of this is accomplished via a computer in the apartment. The apartment, as well as its appliances and fixtures, can be controlled from this computer, or via a virtue if one is present.
Each citizen is expected to work a minimum of 9 hours a day, 5 days a week. Exactly what job they hold is based on the order to which they belong. After every full 5 years in a position, they can request a transfer to a new position or order, although such changes can occur more often if a notable vacancy exists. Travel to and from one’s place of work is done via walking for short distances, and public transit trains running set routes along individual spurs within the city for longer ones. Apartment assignments and transit routes are optimized to ensure minimal transit time, with an average of 15 minutes being the most common and 30 being the upper limit. Due to the constant activity within Sanctunary, no set hours exist, although most citizens work primarily within either the day or night half of the cycle. The day/night cycle is not really observed in a typical sense except in terms of personal scheduling, as within the city proper all activities are occurring all the time.
Every citizen earns a stipend based on their job, experience, and other factors. This takes the form of Production Credits, or just ‘credits’ for short. Each one represents a certain amount of production time and is used to purchase non-essential products. The base cost of each item is based on the time it takes to produce it, thus ensuring a relatively stable economy. Continuous focus on improvements tend to result in price reductions for old products, since constant development and innovation ensures that a newer version is usually available. The result is that prices stay largely the same, aside from a small additional increase due to added population, while general quality goes up. The addition of a new production district tends to drop prices to a small level as well. Compared to the salaries of many other workers from other worlds, the relative buying power of a Sanctuary stipend is small, but citizens are quick to point out that they don’t have normal living expenses.
Despite being a society geared towards the Shepherds’ mission, Sanctuary’s leadership determined early on that typical aspects of daily life need to be available. Restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, sporting events, and all manner of “nonessential” activities and needs are worked into the design of Sanctuary society. Many simple jobs working on these are given to young adults who are not yet old enough to serve their time in the military orders, and are considered part of a basic education. During off-hours and days, Sanctuary’s citizens can enjoy most of the amenities and comforts available in the most developed cities across the colonies.
Royez walked as fast as he could back to his apartment. The show would start soon, and he didn't want to miss it. His shift in the Basilica of Archangels had ended nearly an hour ago, but a quick trip to a shop on his way home had delayed him. Basic nutrition was provided to all residents of Sanctuary, but Royez knew his wife loved food from one specific bakery. As he approached the door, he attempted to ready his ID tag for scanning. Trying to hold his purchases in his left hand and get his tag with his right was still an awkward motion for him. His right arm still didn't quite work as well as it should, even four years after it was injured. That injury had ended his promising career as an angel pilot, and saw him transferred to oversee a production line making the same angels he had once trained on. He finally retrieved his tag and flashed it in front of the scanner. The door opened, and he stepped into the dark apartment.
The lights came on immediately, revealing the apartment he and his wife shared. She was working late and wouldn’t be home for several more hours. As he put the bag of food he had bought at the shop on the counter, a voice asked him a question.
“You are later than I expected. Another three-point-one minutes and you would have risked missing the show.” The voice was feminine, with a slight mechanical hint. “Workers came by and delivered the new display. I have already calibrated it to your preferences.”
Royez acknowledged the voice and looked over at the large screen on the wall of the apartment. The old one had begun to fail, and he had needed to request a replacement. It was just a basic, free model. A simple display was part of the standard equipment of an apartment. He could have spent nearly a month's credits on a more advanced model, but why bother.
“Please turn it on, and dim the lights,” he asked. The lights dimmed immediately, and the screen came on, showing the tail end of an update about transit system delays caused by excavation for a new living block. Royez quickly put his purchases from the market in the refrigerator and grabbed a bag of snacks and a cold beverage. He set them on the small table in front of the couch before sitting down. His shoulder was aching, but it didn’t diminish his excitement for what came next.
The next news segment started. “In operational news, the 85th battalion, Heralds of Wrath, executed the long awaited assault on a force from the Meridian Sovereignty. This unit had been actively using the farming communities of the Corin Valley as a staging area for assaults into the Vannerholm Collective. The force was destroyed….” Royez drank in every detail, his mind flashing back to his time in that very unit before his injury.
“The 85ths leading ace, Kyle McMaster scored 4 confirmed kills during the operation, giving him a total of 31. Another round of that and he will be in contention for the division's top ace. Sergeants Ma Manay, Julio Drake, Corporal Michael Sutton and Private Christina Weatherly rounded out the top 5 kill counts with a combined 11 kills. Overall casualties for the operation were three wounded and one kia. It is with great sadness that I must announce the death of Senior Sergeant Kira Manning. Manning was killed when her angel took a direct hit to the cockpit while securing the Meridian command HQ. She has been posthumously promoted to the rank of Master Sergeant.” Royez’s heart sank as he heard about the death of Master Sergeant Manning. She had been his team leader during his time in the 85th, and he had been in contact with her over the last few years as a close friend. He cracked his beverage and raised it towards the screen as Manning’s picture came up.
“Cheers to you, sarge. See you on the other side.” He drank the whole bottle in one go.
