Callum was in the middle of getting dressed in the same clothes as always, baggy jeans, t-shirt, oversized hoodie, and sneakers. He would’ve worn a dress but those were banned three years prior. The council decided dresses were too lady-like, which messed with his disguise. So now he wears gender neutral clothing. Ever since the Council took over, a group of women from all over the world, new rules were created. The most important of these rules was no men. Over time society figured out how to reproduce without men. They then used gene-editing to prevent men from being born.
What Callum never understood was how nobody ever thought of the mental health issues caused by all of this editing. Gender dysphoria became a major issue. People knew that they were supposed to be the other gender and nobody did anything. Callum was never told what exactly men had done to get themselves killed off. The only reason Callum was a boy was because seventeen years ago his mother decided to break the rules. Callum didn’t know why it was so important that he be a boy. She had to break multiple laws just to have him. He could not ask her since she died not long after having him.
Callum was raised by his Aunt Jaz until he was fourteen. When he realized just how dangerous it was for her to raise him. He stole his aunt’s clothes, makeup, food, cash, and car. He now lived in that car. He left a note to thank her and tell her he was leaving. He didn’t tell her where he was going in case she decided to look for him , or worse, report him.
Callum didn’t have many friends, no one to protect him if he got caught. Not that much could help him at that point. He was not sure what would happen if he were caught. Which is why he had so many precautions set up. Not only did he change his appearance but his name, stance, and voice as well. Never in drastic ways though. When he was around others he would be Callie, a quiet girl who didn’t like attention. Not that he was around others that often.
He didn’t attend high school since it was too risky. Spending eight hours a day with thirty people at a time would give him too much of a chance to make a slip. He had attended school before it became nearly impossible to hide his gender. Once he hit that point he started schooling himself. His cousin Maz would take an extra copy of homework everyday for him to work on.
Callum had no way to get any actual work for the same reason he didn’t attend school. So he relied on what he could steal. He never stole anything of much value, only the necessities; food, water, and sometimes clothes.
He pulled out an old fashioned road mapped and started driving. As he was putting the map back a small slip of paper fell onto the seat next to him. After a little while Callum looked out the rearview mirror and saw three cars behind him. He made a bunch of turns but, no matter what he did, they were still following him. He was on the run. He wasn’t exactly sure why he was on the run but that didn’t change the fact that he was. Being the only living man in the world was dangerous but that’s how it had been his whole life.
Twenty minutes later he was still being followed. He was running out of options. He was surrounded by desert. Then he saw it, an abandoned car sitting there about a hundred feet yards from him. That’s when he made his move. He got to a fork and made it seem like he was going one way, then, at the last minute he turned, forcing all three cars to lose him. He gave himself a short window to park himself directly behind that car he saw earlier. He parked, shut off the car, laid in between the seats, and waited. While he was waiting he noticed a small slip of paper sticking out of the seat pocket. He pried it free and began to read. This was one of the papers he had stolen from his mother when he left. He had read through a few papers over the years but this one must have gotten stuck early on making it so he never got the chance to read it. The paper was a list of laws. Laws he had never heard of before. He quickly put it back and sat silently, thinking about what he had just read. He had no idea how long he was sitting there when he finally decided to keep going.
After an hour he got to Ngozia, a town known for its idealism which was exactly why he chose to go there. Ngozia was one of the few places where people could say whatever they wanted without repercussions. He figured he could get answers there. The following day he set out with a plan. His first stop was at the library where he began creating a pile of books with very specific titles. After a little while a woman approached him. She had dark black hair with blue streaks that complimented her yellow striped shirt and blue jeans.
“Interesting book choices, you looking for something in particular?” the woman asked.
“Just looking into some things,” Callum said without looking up.
“What kinda things?” She asked, genuinely curious.
“The old world,” He said finally looking up, his tone having a hint of desperation.
“Fascinating,” she said while sitting down. “My name’s Devika but you can call me Devi. What’s yours?”
“Callie,” he said, unsure if he could trust her yet. He knew nobody in the town would snitch for most things but this was big. He pulled out a book from his pile flipped to a certain page and started reading. After a second he rifled through his pockets and pulled out a second slip of paper. Once he finished comparing the two he explained what he read. “The first amendment promised freedom of speech, religion, assembly, the press, and petitioning. The second amendment promised the right to bear arms. The third promised the right to refuse soldiers refuge. The fourth promised the requirement of warrants. The fifth promised the right to not testify against yourself in court. The sixth promised the right to a fast trial, a lawyer, and the right to question witnesses against you. The seventh promised the right to a jury trial in certain cases. The eighth promised the prohibition of cruel punishments and excessive bail. The ninth promised the right to vote, to travel, to privacy, and to one’s own body. Finally the tenth promised any powers not specifically given to the federal government and not prohibited from the states are given to the states and people.” he paused as the realization flashed across his face “these rights are what the people of the Modern era had,”
Devi didn’t say anything. She just stared lost in thought. After a minute she nodded to herself and looked at him.
“What did they amend?” she asked curiously.
He began flipping through more pages and stopped when he got to the one he was looking for. “Something called the constitution. It was apparently written by a group of men – no wonder we don’t know anything about it,” he said smiling to himself before the realization hit him. “Wait a second, if this constitution was written by a group of men then that means that there used to be men in the line of power.”
Callum knew that men had previously existed but he was never made aware of exactly what they did. They had only ever been described as worthless. It was obvious that his mother knew all of this. Since the page he had pulled out of his pocket was a copy of the Bill of rights.
All of this information flooded into his brain. The pain and confusion all narrowed down to one thought: how dare they. How dare the council decide what should happen to the world – what should happen to men – just because they were angry. Now he was angry and he was going to do to them exactly what they did to him and his mother and all the men they killed.
“This isn’t just a list of rules, It’s a list of liberties. Do you know what this means? People used to have the freedom of speech, thoughts, even certain actions. If you could say anything, what would it be?” Callum asked Devi.
“I’ve always wanted a little brother,” she said with a thoughtful smile.
