Curfews And Conspiracies | Freewrite: 3/26/22 | Prompt: A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

Welcome back to my freewrite prompt story for this week. I was immediately attracted to the photo provided for "A Picture Is Worth A thousand Words. It spoke to me about a time in our time that will come; of that, I'm certain.

• Describe what you see

Fifteen circles shades blue are stationed across the city in various housing or building complexes. Images of people are contained within each circle. The skyline is dark covering the clouds. Several skyscrapers lie in the midst of the city. Sprawling city with numerous buildings. Lights in all the buildings are turned off. By the positioning of the photo, I can't see ground level to determine whether any activity is taking place.

A bridge lies near the edge of the city.

• Describe what you feel

I feel as though the something out of the ordinary has occurred. No major city will have turned all lights off on every building. Perhaps a natural disaster caused a blackout. Of the fifteen people indicated by the circles, did one of them cause the blackout? I feel as though those individuals are connected on some level by an occurrence. Maybe they are friends. Then again, they could be the only survivors left after a catastrophic event. It may be their only way to connect with each other.

• Write a story or poem about what you think is going on. I leave with you my story for: A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words - 3/26/2022.

The bedroom curtain, normally drawn to allow access to the beautiful orange and yellow sunset each evening, was shut and secured. Carlton managed to drag the small box along the side wall until he reached the curtain's edge. He reached inside and grabbed one of the hand-made binoculars capable of night surveillance. Fourteen left to be delivered, he thought. He opened a small area on the edge of the curtain and peeked out. He didn't have to worry about anyone seeing his reflection. He hadn't paid for electricity service this past six months. But, neither had anyone else in the city. The roving blackout mandated by the authorities began to occur more frequently than first ordered. Last week, an eight hour curfew had been dictated. All the citizens of the city were in the dark literally. A dark cloud hovered over the skyline. Now, he couldn't remember if the dark clouds or the blackout came first.

He focused the lens of his long-distance eyes across the width of the city. Desperately trying to locate his friends, he counted ten blue signals. Finally, after ten minutes, the last four signals appears. His heartbeat finally settled back to a normal. The last four signals appeared.

After locating the group in the exact building each occupied, he readied himself. He tried to take every precaution not to be discovered. His group couldn't be sure no one else had the same equipment from the dealer with a shady reputation. He could only hope no one spotted him at the window.

Keeping track of time this past six months was extremely difficult for all citizens. However, about fifteen minutes later, Carlton locked his condo and headed toward his friends.

Three blocks later adorned in a black outfit, Carlton managed to reach the first condominium maneuvering through the alleys. Finally, he stood at the building's entrance. He couldn't see the reliable doorman in attendance to accept that extra twenty bucks for late-night visitors. As did others, he obeyed the curfew.

Within minutes, Paulon scurried down the back balcony stairs until he reached the bottom level, then jumped the short distance. Carlton commented how his friend's black hoodie would suffice for their work that evening.

"Do you hear the eerie quiet?" Paulon's voice trembled. He was adamant about his beliefs and was a bit unsettled the longer the blackouts continued. It wasn't a conspiracy theory, he believed, that authorities demanded an accounting of all citizens every week. Just in case some were abducted, he reasoned.

"It's been quiet for over six months. What do you expect..a parade?" Time was against him that evening, with thirteen more group members to reach.

Sensing the agitation in Carlton's voice, Paulon eagerly made a suggestion.

"We'll cover more territory and reach the others if we split up. I'll take the south side; and you, the north up to the city bridge. We're not allowed to cross the bridge, you know. That's another thing."

Carlton interrupted before his friend leaped onto another theory.

"OK. Let's do this as quickly as possible and meet back here," he conceded. "Tell Zenuya to keep that special aroma candle lit for me." Carlton let slip a sly grin that Paulon could hardly see.

"You know we're not allowed to burn candles!" Paulon hissed. "That's another thing, no lights on anywhere."

Before he could continue, Carlton pulled Paulon close to the pavement. They halved the equipment in each other's backpacks, said goodbye, and headed in opposite directions.

He didn't dare make the trip unless he could distribute at least some of the equipment his group required to communicate. No mobile phone service. The ham radios were the best he could accomplish.

He didn't want to admit to his friend that indeed the night felt eerie.

He wasn't given to conspiracies. However, each day unexplained occurrences happened with no insight from authorities.

Carlton remembered the exact day it started.

He was working at his work when suddenly electricity in the building shut down. all employees were ordered to go directly home immediately without question. Explanations would be given on the evening news.

However, no explanations came forth. And the following weeks and months saw numerous changes in the citizen's livelihoods. Forty hour work weeks were reduced to ten. It was especially difficult for the young adults.

The day the dark clouds moved in and blanketed the city, panic ensued. The only way to keep order was to issue curfews. Patrolmen were on constant alert to keep the city free of looters.

His remaining group of fourteen friends didn't know how far and wide these unexplained events extended. Among them, no one could decipher the real truth. But they vowed to keep asking questions discretely. Someone must know something, they reasoned.

Carlton's main question was why no one was allowed on the other side of the bridge? He was worried sick about his parents. They lived alone in another city just off the bay. They hadn't spoken since the blackout.

Zenyua and Paulon, especially, filled the group's heads each day with gossip and various conspiracy theories. What if the two were right? he thought. When you've only one source for information, and that source should flow from those in a position to know and have sworn to protect you, you're torn as to who and what to believe.

This was true, especially when you see unexplained occurrences. How could an entire city not recognize and question them? he thought.

Something just didn't feel right.

Carlton finished his run delivering the equipment to the remaining members. All drop offs were successful without discovery from the authorities.

The last drop off brought him closer to the bridge. He stopped and looked back toward his apartment and let out a deep sigh. Deep down, he knew his job was done and that night would be his last there. His heart ached for Zenyua. He hated breaking promises.

With tears releasing slowly, his thoughts turned to his best friend he'd promised to meet once he finished his deliveries. But he knew Paulon, more than the rest, would understand.

Carlton let out a deep sigh. then turned and headed toward the avenue that lead to the inoperable toll both.

^{Image source provided by @freewritehouse for purpose of contest}

^{Image used with permission of contest owner}