“Red.”
A woman turned and looked in the speaker’s direction. The man stood out from most other people by being dressed. Albeit dressed in an ill fitting, ripped suit, but dressed is dressed.
He was pointing.
“Red. Red.” The woman followed his finger. He was pointing to a car.
Which was blue.
Not that either of them could tell the other that.
The man sighed. “Flange monkey scrugh na na na.” He looked at his feet.
Then started to cry.
“Scrunch Spanner,” he sobbed.
In the distance, a man crawled through some trees – one arm outstretched, his nose bleeding, both eyes blackened. He cried quietly, unable to understand how he was boxed in at all sides by things he couldn’t see.
*****
The theory was interesting: What would happen if you broke the connection between subject and object? What if you could remove all meaning from the word “Red”and you showed someone a swatch of red?
A group of linguistic scientists started with a small step – essentially a word virus.
Early experiments were promising but the effects were devastating.
Some people suddenly lost the ability to ‘see’ things they had no words for. Others were paralysed – either with fear or confusion. Some responded with childlike wonder – seeing the world with new eyes.
***
Their findings were presented to the Board. One member suggested that people with trauma could have the meanings disassociated from the words and a new round of funding was secured.
***
A shaking hand twisted the lid on a plastic bottle. He was so thirsty. He didn’t know the word for what he was feeling. He wasn’t even sure what the specific words was for thing was he had to do to resolve the issue, but even without the words he knew what to do.
He opened his mouth and took a deep swig of bleach.
***
The hypothesis was simple: The process of disconnecting a single word at a time was too slow. Wouldn’t it be better if we had a faster way of doing this. Something that looked at the linguistic section of the brain and then disconnected a set of words?
The planning was extensive – sound proofed rooms, carefully studied parameters. A test session was set up and. They discovered that their virus was too potent almost immediately. Their test subject was losing more words than he should have.
The Devil, as always, was in the details.
Like a virus, it had been coded it to be communicable. One word sent it into the minds of the scientists who heard it. Who then spread it to those they spoke to.
From a very safe distance, the contagion pattern was studied and the spread simulated. There was but one solution.
And so it came to pass England was quarantined. No radio broadcasts, no flying over the country. Aid was dropped in but it was readily apparent that nothing could be done.
Only mute observation as a country lost its way.
*****
A woman found a kitten in a tree. It was doing something she didn’t understand, but the sound made her sad. Holding out her hands she managed to coax it down. She wasn’t sure what she was holding but she carried it gently to a crying man in an ill fitting suit.
She held it out to him and asked, “Red?”
