Isaac, the Status Warden, with a proposition.

30 centimetres from the person and Alice noticed a pair of feet right in front of hers. She looked up at long last just before she crashed into this unexpected person.

“Fu…,” Alice was just about to swear when she realised that it was a man before her. A man she recognised, Isaac the Status-Warden. “Funyons!” Alice changed what she’d been about to say. Swearing at a Status-Warden was the last thing she needed.

“Funyons?” Isaac said looking puzzled. “What are those?”

“I… I… don’t actually know. It was a word I read a long time ago at work that I just like the sound of.”

“Ha. Funyons…” Isaac said again trying the word out.

As he was thinking, Alice took her time to give the Status-Warden a cautious once over. He wasn’t in uniform which was the first thing she’d noticed and the reason perhaps she’d been snuck up on. Alice had never seen a Status-Warden in anything but their imposing long black uniforms.

“Do you live around here?” Alice asked timidly. She didn’t want to get in trouble for asking Isaac where his home was. There had been reprisal killings on Status-Wardens for giving people Red Status or worse BLACK.

“It’s nearby,” Isaac said just as cagily. Alice could now see that he too was nervous around her.

“Oh. Mine is an hour's walk in that direction.” Alice said indicating the direction she’d been walking.

“I know. I looked at your information so I would find you here.”

Alice felt a cold trickle of sweat run down the back of her spine at his words. A Status-Warden looking deeper into someone was never a good thing.

“You did?” she was panicking now.

“There was something I wanted to ask you,” Isaac said with a swallow.

“I should really be on my way. It’s a long walk to my lodgings and I will be very tired tomorrow if I don’t get there right away and sleep.” Alice went to step around Isaac and continue on her way home. She wouldn’t stop at the Blood Pool she decided. She would run straight home, lock her door and deal with a Performance Review if she needed to.

“Have you tried Generation?” Isaac said altogether too loudly when Alice looked to move off past her. People turned their heads at his words and he ushered her into a small alcove on the street.

Generation was the preferred term for sexual reproduction. Alice had never done that. Now that they were away from the still lingering faces, she answered his question. “Never. I don’t qualify for testing to find out if I’m Generative.”

Isaac wiped a line of sweat that had formed and trickled down from his brow. “If you are and you Generate the reward is nearly 500 Social Credits.” Birthrates had fallen so much that the government was trying whatever it could to increase the population. “100 for the father. Look,” Isaac said as he pulled back the sleeve on his long shirt showing his Colours-Bracelet. “I’m nearly 200 but I can’t get it any higher. I’m not as mean as Brian.”

Alice was feeling dizzy. Not just from the three blood donations this month. If she continued with her line of thinking, Isaac was practically asking her to ‘Funyon’ him.

“I can’t,” Alice said and then went to step past him for a second time and out into the street.

“I can give you 10 Social Credit,” Isaac whispered softly but powerfully. He pulled up the sleeve opposite his Colours-Bracelet to reveal a Status-Port.

Were Status-Wardens allowed to monitor people in public? Alice thought that was the domain of Citizen Care. Ever judging and punishing people. Alice wasn’t about to ask Isaac if he was authorised to have his Status-Port outside a government building.

“Not for Generation,” Isaac clarified. Swapping Social Credits for sex was prostitution and strictly forbidden. “But for Potential Population Contribution.” Isaac threw all his cards on the table. “Look, just come to my lodging and spend the night with me. Nothing has to happen, I promise. Just get to know each other.”