Earth, 2200

“Mom ... Mom! I can’t fall asleep.”

“Again?”

“Yeah ... Can you tell me a story?”

“All right. Once upon a time, there was a powerful King...”

“What’s a king?”

“It’s like the Overseer, but even more important.”

“Okay.”

“That King lived in a beautiful palace high up in the blue sky.”

“What’s a palace? And how can the sky be blue? The sky is deep purple and sometimes black.”

“Well, I heard that long time ago people used to live outside. Right on the surface. They probably all lived in palaces. And they also say that the sky was blue at the time.”

“You can’t go outside without a radiation suit.”

“I know, sweetheart. It’s just a story.”

“So what happened to that King?”

“I’ll tell you if you stop interrupting me.”

“Sorry...”

“The King was very nice to his people. He gave them everything they ever needed, without wanting anything in return. In fact, he was so nice that he told them they could do whatever they wanted.”

“Why?”

“Because he thought they would just trust him to always do the right thing.”

“Oh ... looks like he wasn’t too smart.”

“He was very smart. But he was even more generous and kind.”

“So what happened?”

“What happened is that the people decided to storm his palace, kick him out of there, and become kings themselves.”

“Whoa! That’s so mean!”

“Indeed it is, my boy. The King tried reasoning with them, but to no avail. He tried to explain to them they’d be much better off with him being their King and them being his people, but they wouldn’t listen. So he locked himself in the palace and stopped talking to them for a while, hoping to give them some time to cool off.”

“Did they?”

“Not in the least. They quickly forgot all about the King and turned against each other. They started torturing and killing each other. They began to destroy the land, burn up trees, exterminate entire species of animals. There was no end to the madness”.

“Mom, is that why we have to live in vaults now?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. Anyway, the King was very, very sad. His heart was bleeding. He could not watch all those cruelties and murder any longer, and there was no way to convince them to stop, so he let most people die, and only saved those who were not entirely mad.”

“Wow, harsh!”

“Yes, it is. In our world, sometimes even the nicest people are forced to do something harsh when there is no other way.”

“Like when Dad beat me because I kept running outside without a protective helmet?”

“Exactly like that, honey.”

“So what happened next?”

“Well, the King got really sad because he didn’t enjoy at all what he had to do. He loved his people. So he chose a small group and made an agreement with them. He’d help them as much as he could, but in return they would have to do exactly what he says. You see, when people don’t follow the laws of love, they can only follow orders.”

“Like when I threw stones at that little animal and didn’t feel sorry for him and then you were mad at me and told me to do hard work and I cried and then I finally realized the animal was very poor and didn’t throw stones anymore?”

“Something like that. In any case, that seemed to work for a while, but then it got worse again.”

“Why, those people stopped listening again?”

“No, they listened, and they mostly obeyed, but they did it out of fear, not out of love. I’m not sure I can explain this to you, because you are probably too small to understand the difference. See, the King didn’t just want them to obey his orders. He wanted them to love him just like he loved them. And he wanted them to love each other.”

“And they didn’t?”

“Not always. But at least they were not trying to reject the King any more. So the King thought it was time to meet them. He left the palace and walked towards their town, looking like a regular man.”

“Just like that? Hmm, after everything that happened he should’ve taken some weapons with him.”

“Oh, he had plenty of weapons. Remember, he was a very powerful King. But he didn’t want to scare them. He wanted to convince them to love him, and that is pretty hard to do with weapons.”

“I see ... So, did he convince them?”

“Some of them, yes. Even though he was wearing the simplest clothes and was looking like an ordinary, poor man, some of the people recognized him.”

“How? Did he tell them?”

“Not directly. But sometimes you just know. I guess there was something King-like about him.”

“Is this the end?”

“No ... are you bored?”

“Not at all! So, everybody was happy and they finally made peace, right?”

“Unfortunately not. Some of the most powerful people in the land didn’t like the fact that man was speaking like the King. They thought they had everything under their control, and they didn’t need anyone to interfere. In any case, they only knew a King who was ordering them from above, and they certainly didn’t expect a poor guy who had no power at all. So, they caught him, beat him up, and killed him.”