Marks

She was shaking as the branding iron drew near her arm. It took only two seconds to produce a good mark. But red-hot steel shoved against your skin felt like an eternity. There was no shame in screaming, and scream she did. She had to be barely sixteen years old. Brave to be there. 

Chase didn't know her, but still had to look away as it happened. He remembered his first mark. It hurt like hell. This would be his eleventh. And after the two Slummers in line ahead of him, he'd feel the mark's bite once again. Branding people like cattle was barbaric. For some time now, he had been questioning the legitimacy of the priests and their commands to collect the marks.

The nurse sprayed his new burn with instant bandage and told him to step to the next table for his wellness kit. It contained the same things every time: twelve ibuprofen and two "feel-good" tokens. The clerics thought the kit good for morale. For the price charged and pain he endured, Chase thought that the kit should contain one hundred feel-goods.

He stepped out of the door, and the girl was sitting on the steps still whimpering.

"Hurts, doesn't it?" said Chase.

"Yes, a lot. I thought I would be tougher."

"Are you kidding me? You're a champ for getting your first mark so young. How old are you?"

"I just turned sixteen today."

"Happy birthday! Can I treat you to a couple of feel-goods?"

She hesitated for a second as she scanned his dirty, worn clothes. Of course, she was just as tattered. They were both clearly Slummers. They looked poor because they were. Life outside the wall was impoverished. But overall, he looked safe.

"Sure."

Chase extended his hand and pulled her up.

"What's your name?"

"Angie. And you?"

"Chase."

They walked through dry, dusty alleys toward the bar. Along the way, they passed small groups of old, lethargic people sitting on worn tires, wooden crates, and other pieces of junk. These elderly folks, except for occasional chatter, had little to do but dream about the kingdom. A world one hundred feet away, on the other side of the wall. A place of abundance. Where there was no lack of water, food, or comforts.

"Will Harry's Feel-Goods work for you?" asked Chase.

"I like Harry's. It's where I had my first drink. I was probably only thirteen at the time."

They sat at a table, and Chase called to the waiter, “Two feel-goods here, please."

"What mark did you get today?" Angie asked.

"Audi."

"Oh, nice."

"Let me see yours." Chase turned her hand to reveal her forearm. "Game of Thrones. I got that one four or five marks ago. But mine is on my shoulder."

"What others do you have?"

"Let me see. I have a swastika, Bugs Bunny, cross, YouTube, Game of Thrones, star, equals sign, Captain Crunch, BP, and smiley face. And today, Audi."

"I'm impressed. You're definitely covering the bases."

"Yes, I guess. But even though I got another one today, I'm losing faith in them. The more I collect, the less I think they do anything."

"Oh, don't say that. The priests are clear that marks are the true way into the kingdom. I'm going to get at least one a year until I get in," claimed Angie.

"I'm thirty-two now, and don't think I'm any closer today than when I started. I don't think the pain and effort are worth it."

"But every time I look through the window, wow, I want it so bad. Can you imagine having a room all to yourself? And all the food you could ever eat? When I get in, I'm going to have a burger every day for a year!"

"Don't forget the fries and chocolate shake!" said Chase.

"I've never had any of them, but I'm going to."

"No, me neither. But I hear they're so good. Make no mistake, I think we'll get there. I'm just not sure getting all these marks are the way. Lord knows I'm done with the slums."

"Me, too. You want to go take a look?"

"Sure. My feel-good is gone."

"Let's go."

Chase could barely keep up. Angie was so optimistic about her prospects of entering the kingdom quickly. But Chase hadn't been so lucky. He had battled the world of scarcity for far too long. 

The window in their neck of the slums was just one of many. The wall gave Slummers ample opportunity to peer in.

"See the mansion with the blue roof? I want one just like that."

"Yep, that one is pretty nice. But be careful not to press too hard on the window, or you'll break it."

"Haha, right!"

Chase knew, as everyone did, that the windows were unbreakable. Many people had tried. No rock, stick, or bullet would even leave a mark on them. Nor was it possible to burrow through the wall itself. It too was impenetrable. There was no clear path above or under it either.

"Look at those people on the bench. It looks like they're eating ice cream."

"They definitely live a beautiful life in there."

Angie saw a man on the street and waved at him. It was rare that the kingdom's Chosen ever paid attention to the windows, but he waved back. Then he walked toward the window.

“Look, a Chosen is coming to see us."

"I've never seen that before," said Chase.

The Chosen walked a few feet from the window and tried to tell them something.

Although the windows allowed no sound to traverse, he continued talking and pointing to his left. 

"He wants us to meet him at the next window," said Angie.

"I think you're right."

The next window would be exactly one hundred yards from the current one. They were spaced that way all the way around the wall. Although they had to wind through a number of alleys, it would only take a few minutes to get there.

As they got about halfway there, a man approached them.

"Hi, how are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, but we're going to a window to see someone," said Angie.

"That would be me!"

"What? You're the Chosen that we just saw?" asked Chase.

"Yes, my name is Justin."

Angie quickly scanned the guy and turned to Chase, "this isn't him. Nobody from the inside comes out."

“No, I think this is him!" said Chase.

“Well, where's your Chosen robe, and how did you get out here?" Angie asked.

"I'm wearing it, and I just came through that door."

Once again, Angie looked him over. To her, he appeared to be wearing old, crummy jeans and a torn t-shirt. "Right! Do you think I'm stupid? And, I don't see any door."

Chase looked at her as though her feel-good was working a little too well. "He's wearing his robe," Chase said.

"What are you talking about? Are you two in on something? I'm not fooled that easily."

"Do you two want to come into the kingdom?" Justin asked.

"Of course," she replied. "But not with you. I'm going down to the next window to talk to someone on the inside. Not you."

"Let's see what he has to say," said Chase.

"No, I'm not playing, whatever game it is you two are up to. See you later." She marched on down the alley and disappeared amongst the other Slummers.

"Well, how about you?" Justin asked Chase. "Do you want to come into the kingdom?"

"Of course!"

"Let me see if you have the mark. Lift the front of your shirt."

Chase had nothing to lose, so he played along. If the guy wanted to see his stomach marks, it was no big deal.

"Yep, you've got it!"

"It?" asked Chase. "Don't you have to look at them all?"

"This one is all you need." Justin was pointing at Chase's belly button.

"That's not a mark. That's my belly button."

"It's the one that gets you in."

"OK, I think Angie was right. You're just messing around with me."

"Not at all. The good news is that all you need is a belly button. It's not about what you do to get in. It's about who you are. Everyone with a belly button is a child of the king, and the kingdom is yours."

"But all Slummers have belly buttons. Do they all get in?"

"Absolutely! Everyone, including you."

"But the priests said that you had to get marks. That was the only true way."

"Yeah, I've heard that many times before. And unfortunately, all the Slummers that I've approached in the past don't believe me. But there is only one mark that's required."

"So I can get in right now?"

"Absolutely, the door is right down here. Come and see."

The two walked about thirty feet, and sure enough, there was a door in the wall. Chase had never seen it before. He was dumfounded. 

"Where did this come from?"

"It's been here for centuries," said Justin. "There's one between all the windows in the wall. Slummers don't see it because they're not looking."

"Somebody must have slipped something in to my feel-good. I feel like I'm dreaming or something." Chase shook his head as though trying to clear cobwebs from a deep sleep.

Justin opened the door and stepped in.

"Come on."

"I've got nothing to lose," Chase said as he stepped through.

Everything changed. His old, weathered sandals turned into a new pair of tennis shoes with gold trim. And a beautiful robe replaced his clothes. On his left wrist was a gold and silver Rolex. And most importantly, on his right hand, was a gold and diamond ring containing the king's seal. Only the king and his children wore such rings.

"I worked so hard saving money for marks. I went through the pain of getting them. And all I had to do was walk through that door? I had the Chosen mark all along and never realized it." Chase wasn't sure if he should laugh or cry.

"All this is a gift, Chase. It's not a reward. There's nothing to do to earn it."

"That's the best news I've ever heard. I need to share it with my friends. Can I go back and tell them?"

"Of course, if you like. But I think you'll find it a hard sell. I've approached over a hundred Slummers over the years, and you're only the third one to come through the door."

"I can try," said Chase. "But first, where can I find a burger and fries? And a chocolate shake, too."

When Chase stepped back into the slums, it was so much worse than he realized. People living in such squalor. They were hungry and thirsty. And none of them could see the door. Their fixation on the religious priests, marks, and scrapping to stay alive in this world had blinded them to the truth. It broke his heart to see them in such a retched state. And yet, only an hour before, he had been there with them.

Seeing it all with new eyes, gave him a sense of urgency to let every Slummer know. But they wouldn't listen. They couldn't see his robe or ring. Nor would they go with him to the door. He wanted to physically drag them there, but he knew that wouldn't work. 

He started to understand the problem. Their hearts were hard, and they resisted the pull of the truth. Although he visited with a dozen of his friends, not one would go with him to see the door. It was as if they hadn't suffered enough yet. They needed to get to a place of total resignation. Only when they had given up on all their efforts to get in could they accept the gift.

He heard in the distance, "hey Chase!"

It was Angie. She ran up to see him.

"Did that Chosen ever come back to the window? He was a no-show at the other one. I waited at least an hour for him."

"Angie, please listen. The guy that approached us was from the kingdom. He really was a Chosen. I went in and had a burger! It turns out that you and I already have the mark. We were born with it."

"You had a burger?"

"Yes, with fries and a chocolate shake. It was fabulous." Chase took her hand and turned her forearm to reveal her new mark. "That mark doesn't do anything."

"Well, it does something. It hurts."

"Will you just come see the door with me?"

Angie chuckled. "I don't think so. We both know there's no such thing as a door in the wall. If there was, Slummers would just walk through it. They wouldn't get any marks, or anything."

"But that's the point," said Chase. "The door is there for everyone. You just have to open your eyes, see it, and go through it. Please just give it a try."

"Well, casually walking into the kingdom sounds pretty attractive, but I'll pass on it today. I'm in no shape to go in."

Angie said goodbye and walked away. She still had too much faith in marks. Having already invested in her first, she wanted to continue down that road. But she thought it was at least possible that suffering through marks may not be the only way in.

Chase returned to the door alone. But he had hope that eventually Angie, or some of his friends, would follow. He stepped through to the other side and picked up a cup of ice water. Now, on which banquet table was the lobster?