Unbiased Estimate Chapter 8: Idiocy

Unbiased Estimate
//Chapter 8\\
Idiocy

The ride home was mostly uneventful. However, it took longer than usual as I had to take side roads to avoid checkpoints and such. It was only when the block of flats loomed into view that I realised that I had no idea what I was going to tell my uncle.

I definitely couldn't tell him that I was in the toilet like the last time. (Who in the right mind would sit on the shitter for an entire day?!) While mulling over what to say, I parked the car some distance away, pocketed the keys (I definitely couldn't find the owner anyhow), and made my way back to the flat.

I walked to the door, and was about to knock when I realised that the flat was quiet.

Too quiet.

There would usually be the sounds of my uncle having dinner inside, which included the clinking of cutlery on ceramic along with his normal eating sounds.

I pulled out the pistol and peeked into the window.

The flat was empty.

Or that was how it seemed.

Then, I spied movement in one of the rooms.

I knew something was amiss. I quietly made my way back downstairs.

I found my uncle slouched against a wall at the base of the staircase, in a dark corner.

I hastily made my way to his side and was relieved to find him still breathing, but a trickle of blood ran down from beneath his hair and down his neck. He obviously had been subject to some sort of violence. On closer inspection, I found his arms and legs bruised as well.

I suspected looters, or perhaps the army had gotten wind of my going into dragon territory and wanted to bring me in for questioning.

Either way, the flat was no longer safe, and my uncle needed a doctor.

I heaved his limp form to the car and lay him across the passenger seat. I placed my bag in the front seat, jumped into the driver's seat and revved the engine. The nearest hospital was at least a half hour drive away, and that was not counting stopping at checkpoints. Plus, these days, there's no guarantee that one would receive any medical attention at all.

Luckily, the soldiers at the checkpoints were rather understanding, and waved us through. However, I did receive several stern warnings about breaking curfew.

Forty-five minutes of speeding later, the car careened into the hospital compound and stopped outside the accident and emergency department.

There, a group of doctors rushed out with a stretcher, and quickly whisked my uncle into the hospital. I was instructed to park the car in the car park before going in.

I complied, and soon found myself waiting along with several others in a modest waiting area. The hospital, being a key facility, had its own generators, and for the first time in months, I felt air conditioning.

I couldn't help but wish that it were under better circumstances.

I sat there, shaking my legs. I simply couldn't sit still, as my anxiety for the health of my uncle mounted. One of the men who was sitting there noticed my unease.

"Ah boy ah, what happen?"

"My uncle…"

"Ohhhh you drive him in just now is it?"

I nodded, and the man came over and placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry la. He'll be fine." He said, giving me a gap-toothed smile that I couldn't help but return.

It was comforting to actually hear someone speak to me like that in Singlish again… Most of the time now, all I heard was the government propaganda and air raid sirens.

"Thanks, man." I replied. I fished in my pockets to find half a muesli bar, which I gave to him. He looked hungrier than me.

He wolfed it down and thanked me, then made how way back to his seat.

Eventually, I fell asleep in my seat, only to be woken up the next morning by a very pretty nurse, who told me that my uncle's condition was stable and they were discharging him due to a lack of bed space.

I nodded, and was led to a cramped ward. There was people everywhere. On the beds, on mattresses on the floor and sitting out on the balcony. There was a lone tired looking doctor tending to the whole ward.

Upon seeing me, my Uncle hobbled over and gave me a hug. The nurse said that he sustained a slight concussion and bleeding from the head wound, but should be alright in a few weeks.

I nodded and thanked her, then the two of us made our way to the car. Thankfully, my uncle made no comment about the car not being ours.

He said that a group of masked men had broken into the flat while he was cooking, assaulted him and knocked him out. He said that they were probably looters and that we should move elsewhere.

All I could say was "Where?"

Because we had nowhere left to go. The other flat was probably rubble by now, and my original house was so deep inside dragon territory that driving there would be unthinkable.

He could only shrug.

"We could just live in the car…" I muttered.

"That will have to do for now…" came the flat reply.

I put the car into gear and drove us to a park, stopping to pick up our rations on the way, wound down the windows and shut off the engine. "Nice place?"

"Good enough." Came the reply as my uncle started the fire on a small camping stove and boiled some noodles.

That was our meal for the day, for food supplies were running low.

As I munched on the noodles, I couldn't help but think back to before the war. When we had so much food such that I could afford to be picky. Now, every grain of rice counts, every leaf of vegetable, no matter how disgusting it tasted to me…

For one thing, I yearned for the simplicity my original life as a student had offered.

I couldn't help but sigh as I drank down the soup. Hah, soup. It was oily water, but it was better than nothing.

My thoughts also turned to the dragons. I wondered what would the council decide on, along with what would happen if the war just dragged on.
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Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months.

Law and order became a thing of the past. Looting was commonplace and the only way to get by was to steal, for rations were no longer enough. Word was going around that the causeway and second link that linked Singapore to mainland Asia had been destroyed, much like what happened in World War two. There were also rumours flying around that the Americans were sending an aircraft carrier. That was all they could spare, apparently, for they were bearing the brunt of a large dragon offensive as well…

As a new local saying went: "Sell backside also cannot live here anymore."

No word came from the dragon side, and the war dragged on, with the neighbourhoods falling one by one, block by block.

Word on the street was that at least the dragons left most civilians alone, except for taking the lion's share of provisions.

Given their sheer size, I wasn't surprised.
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Then, one fine day, as I was speeding down a road with my uncle, away from the ever moving frontline, I was contacted by Faelius. He was standing at the side of the road in human form, and motioned for me to meet him as I sped past.

I dropped my uncle at the park and left the pistol with him. I had managed to procure another smaller pistol through some shady channels, and I carried that one instead.

I drove back to see Faelius tapping his foot while waiting for me. He didn't even wait for me to stop, and jumped into the car as it rolled past.

"You have to speak to the council again." There was something in my voice that told me that something had gone wrong.

I accelerated again. "What happened?"

"They are pushing for the complete eradication of humans. They have not seen the horror of those weapons of yours for themselves and will not be dissuaded! You must show them more evidence!"

I stopped the car and sighed.

"Why have you stopped?! We must hurry!"

"I have nothing left to show, Faelius. My computer's battery is long dead, and at any rate, I sold the whole setup to get food. All I have is this now." I said, as I held up the laptop's hard drive, and hung my head. "….I'm sorry…"

He stared at me, then at the hard drive. "Then I shall get you a computer."

"I don't think you can. Most of the computers have been taken by the military for their use. The ones that are left are either broken or just too slow to be of use… And if what you're saying is true…" I handed him the pistol. "Shoot me. I'd rather die a quick, painless death than a slow and painful one by radiation poisoning."

He stared at me, stunned, and pressed the weapon back into my hand. "No. All is not lost, young one. I will get you what you need. Worry not how. Just get us to the warehouse now!"

I blinked and looked at him. Twin fires of cold resolution burned in his eyes. It was infectious, and I took heart.

I drove off again, and within ten minutes (and a lot of weaving through old, abandoned cars), I managed to get us to the warehouse. When I slowed down to park, Faelius simply gestured for me to drive all the way in, which I did. Hence, this time, in the council chamber, Faelius and I arrived in a tiny Honda City.

He clambered out and resumed his dragon form, careful not to squash the car. He then muttered something, and a modest laptop appeared on the bonnet of the car.

I blinked and looked it over. I reached into the car and pulled out a screwdriver and set to work swapping out the hard drive.

I booted up the computer, only to notice that all eyes were on me.

"So, we meet again, human."

I nodded and waited for the laptop to load. "I heard that you need more evidence of the weapons."

"If those weapons exist at all." Came the curt reply.

The computer was lagging… I had to buy time. "I can show you some of the theory behind the atom bomb if it's worth anything."

"Show us." Came the reply, and a desk, chair, along with writing materials appeared before me. I paused to key in my password, then sat down.

Digging through my memories, I managed to find and metaphorically dust off what I had learned in school about nuclear physics.

I wrote down everything I knew, handwriting ugly from a lack of practice. I lost myself in my work, not noticing that the dragons were peering at the paper curiously.

It had been a long time since I last picked up a pen to do something like this….

I even included a crude drawing of the periodic table.

When I looked up, I nearly bumped my head on Faelius's muzzle.

I slipped out of the chair while they were peering at my spidery writing, and opened the relevant file on the computer. It was running pretty hot, but at least it worked.

"These symbols, they mean nothing to us!"

"It's gibberish!"

It was my turn to snarl at them. "It's anything but bloody gibberish! It's SCIENCE." I then proceeded to explain everything to them, as well as point out that what I had written down was by no means comprehensive.

However, they were still sceptical.

I showed them more footage of the atom bomb, as well as digitalised documents detailing the aftereffects…

In the end, I sparked off another discussion, but I still had a creeping feeling that I had not done enough. However, there was nothing more I could do. I had nothing relevant left on the hard drive, and now, the internet had become nothing more than a myth.

While they discussed, I sat quietly in the car, staring into space, my mind blank.

I honestly didn't know what to do, and judging from the direction the discussion was taking, nothing short of an actual nuclear blast could convince them.

I guess I could just bid goodbye to both species right now… Perhaps some alien race will find the ruins of our civilisation and read my journals, and perhaps shake their heads at such a loss…

I could only sigh sadly as I watched the dragons argue.

Their own stubbornness and arrogance was going to be their undoing someday…

I took the laptop, removed my hard drive and left it on the table. Pocketing the drive, I returned to the car, started it and drove off. There was nothing more I could do…

For now, there were more immediate problems to deal with…