“Are you implying that following the Administrators’ suggestions will make us all as useless as King Oren?” he demanded.
She knew her argument was akin to running towards a crevice near the edge of the forest, but she just couldn’t stop herself. “Any parent who thinks of his comfort first will have children that suffer. I don’t believe the Administrators intentionally want parents to neglect their children, but someone should warn them of the possibility. Perhaps some professor at the university—”
“All of the administrators are former university professors, Miss Peto,” the captain said smugly. “And none of them have come to the same conclusions as you. I wonder why that is. Might they know something more than a simple school teacher at the Edge of the world?”
The entire audience—more than one thousand strong that night—sounded a warning of, “Ooooh!”
The captain’s fierce glare wavered for half a moment as Mahrree puffed up her chest in fury. She would not be demeaned, ever. She would be bold.
Just . . . not mention that fact.
“It has been my experience, Captain Shin,” she seethed calmly, “that a collective of men frequently put forth their untested opinions as fact, especially when their egos are in question. Be that collective an army, a government, or a band of boys arguing about who got to the swimming hole first. The results are inevitably an embarrassing display of clenched fists, shouted words, and bloodied noses. And still nothing is resolved to anyone’s satisfaction, thus leaving open yet another opportunity for a collective of men to put forth more useless ideas masquerading as something constructive!”
His eyes were like rock as she spewed her venom, but he didn’t flinch. “Miss Peto, it’s obvious you have very little experience with men.”
Many male villagers were bold enough to chuckle in agreement.
Until Mahrree shot them a look.
“I have enough experience with arrogant, ignorant men who value no one’s opinions but their own,” she boiled. “I’ve been gaining a great deal of experience in the past few days, standing on this platform!”
Several women in the amphitheater giggled nervously, and a few more brave men chorused another round of, “Ooooh!”
Captain Shin remained emotionless, refusing to take her insult. “Miss Peto, you know nothing of the administrators who are endeavoring to lead this world to greater heights—”
“I agree, I don’t,” she cut him off. “I don’t even know if they hold to The Writings, because I’ve never heard any of it quoted in the weekly edicts they send to the villages.”
The captain shrugged. “So what if they don’t? Can’t they make decisions on their own without referring to an old text from an older time?”
“An old text?!” she wailed. “Older time?! It’s for our time! It’s the basis for our village, our families, our lives! If we throw out the guiding principles, what will guide us then?”
“Isn’t that where faith comes in, Miss Peto?” he pounced. “The Writings talk all about faith. So have some faith in the Administrators.”
“Faith means having trust in someone else’s decisions for us,” she declared. “I have faith in the Creator, because I’ve seen how His choices have benefitted my life.”
“You’ve benefitted from the Administrators’ control over food production,” the captain pointed out. “I’ve seen the markets; there’s no lack. I know people here complained as much as anywhere when the management laws were installed, but a year later we see the results.”
“But farmers and ranchers no longer have a say in what they grow or how much they produce!” she gestured wildly. “They might be doing better without the meddling, but we’ll never know now. They’ve lost their freedom!”
He folded his arms. “If losing freedom means a healthier world, then what of it?”
She spluttered and guffawed before she could make her mouth form words. “That’s precisely what happened under the kings! We lost freedom, and lives, and even your precious progress.”
The captain took an aggressive step towards her. “No one has lost their lives under the Administrators, Miss Peto.”
“Not yet!” she proclaimed.
There it was: the first shocked look on his face, but Mahrree was far too furious to gloat.
“How can I have faith in someone if I can’t trust their decisions, Captain? For that matter, how can I trust any of your choices? What kind of influence will you have in Edge?”
He scoffed. “Who’s to say that the Administrators aren’t making the best choices? Or that I won’t? You just admitted yourself you don’t know anything about them, and you certainly don’t know anything about me. I find that admission remarkable, by the way, since you seem to think you know it all!”