Solarbabies

We live in the new time.

The year is 41, and the Protectorate

controls all the water on Earth,

and therefore, all life.

I am the Warden of Orphanage 43,

one of the many orphanages

that border the wasteland.

Children are brought here at an early age

to be indoctrinated to serve The System.

It hurts me to do what I do.

I, too, must serve The System.

Sometimes in my dreams,

I see the Earth as it was before,

green, with flowing rivers

and mighty oceans.

Can it ever be like that again?

There is a legend,

a tale told by the Tchiganis,

that speaks of a visitor

that came from the heavens.

The people called it Bodhi.

The legend says that it has come to Earth

to free the waters once again.

Is this legend true? Who knows?

- We challenge.

- And we accept.

- By the rules.

- Sure.

You want it by the rules?

Then let it be squared fair.

- All right, let's go!

Lead off!

Okay, go! Go! Go!

Pick it up! Pick it up!

Go, Charles!

Right now! Hit it up!

- Watch out! It's clear!

Pound him, Jason!

- Hey, Jason, look out! He's behind you!

- Watch your back!

- Violation!

- Who saw it? I didn't.

Okay, then. No rules!

He's open! He's open!

Crunch him! Crunch him!

Stop Gavial! Get him!

Damn!

Free ball! Free ball!

Jason! Jason!

- Skate, Petey!

- Jason!

- Jason! Over here!

- Get the ball!

- Watch his legs!

- Move it!

Come on, Metron,

you're in the clear!

Go for it! All right!

You got it!

- Break left, Jason!

- Come on, defense!

Gavial! Come on, Gavial!

- Come on, Terra!

- Jason!

- Nice speed! Nice speed!

- Come on, Jason!

Damn!

Go! Go, get them! Skate!

- Come on, keep it tight.

- Quick, over here!

Scramble! E-Cops!

This is E-Police.

- Come on!

- Let's go!

- Come on, let's get out of here!

Move it!

Let's accelerate!

You are in orphanage perimeter violation.

You are surrounded.

Hold for immediate restraining action.

You are warned, perimeter violators.

Scatter! Use the cave!

Stun weapons have been authorized.

You are warned

and reordered to hold positions.

Tug, watch out!

Skate! Come on!

Gavial!

You are warned

and reordered to hold position.

You are surrounded.

Scorpions.

You have had special treatment, favors,

training by experts

from my maiming squads.

- Do you deny that?

- No, Strictor Grock.

And yet you allow yourselves

to be trashed

by left-brain rollers using homemade gear?

Strictor, if we just had...

Cut your breath

before you betray your putrid thinking!

Scorpions.

Without me, you're nothing,

you don't exist.

You're an extension of me.

If you are defeated then I am defeated,

and that cannot be.

- Where'd he go?

- Down one of the mine shafts.

Forget about him.

I can hear.

You did it. You fixed my ears.

Thank you.

What's your name?

Bo...

Bo... d... hi?

Bodhi!

Bodhi!

I can hear!

I can really hear!

Where's Daniel? He always beats us back.

- Well, what if they caught him?

- Not a chance!

Let's move or we'll miss roll check.

- Come on!

- First call. First call.

Water privileges will be announced

at free schedule assembly.

Come on!

- Fall in. Fall in!

Dorm unit commanders,

start your head count.

Staffers, ready your group.

Where's Daniel?

- Unit 12.

- I don't know!

Hurry it up, unit 12!

Unit seven!

Unit four.

Unit eight.

Unit nine.

You better be quiet now.

I'll be back as soon as I can.

Do you like air? I mean, do you breathe?

Uh-oh.

Well, better not take a chance.

The following units are scheduled

for water privileges. Unit three.

Unit six.

- Hey! Hey!

- Unit 12.

Water privileges denied.

Remember,

behavior determines existence...

Get back, get back!

Programming assembly has been called.

Appear with enthusiasm

for programming assembly.

It's my drinking ration.

You like it here.

It's quiet.

That's the difference between us.

I don't like quiet.

Yes, I know.

Why do you let them go beyond the walls?

It's good for morale.

It lets them feel they're getting away

with something.

And after all, there is no chance of escape.

The nearest uncontrolled water

is 100 miles away.

- I want them punished for it.

- All of them?

I saw only Solarbabies.

Were they winning?

Odd name for a skateball team,

don't you think?

"Solarbabies."

Soft. No menace.

Why do you suppose they chose it?

They don't seem to need

anything more menacing, do they?

They always seem to win.

But you needn't worry.

They'll be properly punished.

They called themselves "Eco-warriors."

"Eco," taken from what?

Rabbit?

Hey, if they took it,

they should give it back.

Tutor Nover,

I would like to see Jason, Metron, Rabbit,

Terra and Tug

on the dog block immediately.

- Looks like trouble.

- Busted.

Sundown for the Solarbabies!

This orphanage is dedicated

to producing useful members

of the E-Protectorate.

I will not run it as a prison.

- Do you understand that?

- Yes.

Yes. Then why did I have a Strictor

from the E-Police Maiming Squad

in my office this morning?

- We were challenged by the Scorpions.

I'm sure you were.

But you could have taken the challenge

here in organized play.

- They wanted the outside arena.

Of course they did.

There are no rules at the arena.

Now understand something.

My power ends at the walls.

Outside, it's the Strictors' world.

There is nothing out there. Nothing.

Stick with us.

Learn to serve order

and you'll achieve a decent lifegrid.

- Let them do 10 cubic meters.

What?

Ten?

Let them do 20 cubic meters.

Hurry up! Come on, let's go!

All right, it's a good game!

All right. Come on! It's my roll.

Twenty cubic meters by sundown

or double that tomorrow.

Start digging!

- What is that?

- What's that supposed to be?

Hey, crowbrains! No birds allowed.

You got a problem, Darstar?

Bye-bye, Mr. Magic.

The guy's a total moon.

Terra!

- I like the sweat.

- Get out, you creature of filth!

Hey, I just wanna talk.

Maybe just a little hands-on parley?

Now I'm listening.

Gavial! Get out of there!

Next time.

Well, little Stakker,

they gave us 20 cubes in the ditch.

Yes, there's times

when it pays to be just a mascot.

- Forget it. He's not wearing his ears.

When's the next water privilege?

How long do I gotta wear this scuzz?

You're gonna have us holding

our noses for the next two days.

Unless we had a rainstorm.

Sure, well, how about a hurricane

or a flood while you're at it?

You believe all that dog squeeze

they feed us in class?

That's not the way it was.

Here's how it used to be.

"Thunder rolls distant across the sky,

"in echo to pale flashes of lightning.

"The vast cloudscape thickens.

"The scent of purest water

hangs in the air to be savored,

"before the first large warm drops fall.

"Then, within seconds, the air is no more,

"replaced by a vertical curtain

of falling rain.

"The land drinks

and the earth is refreshed."

Could you imagine to see clouds

and feel rain falling from the sky?

One of the few good things the

Protectorate ever did was outlaw fiction.

- Where'd you get this?

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