Pessom and Optom

File 560329 ~ Abigail Scotch

Age: 68

RestDay: 11/8/2048

Profession: Accountant

Living Family: Melissa Scotch (43-Daughter), Emmanuel Scotch (39-Son), Georgia Scotch (65-Sister), Ian Scotch (70-Husband), Emily Mane (11-Granddaughter)...see more

Departed Family: Lisa Elm (+Mother), Mason Scotch (-Father), Daniel Scotch (+Brother), Casey Elm (-Grandmother), Ferdinand Scotch (+Uncle)...see more

Top Achievements: $1000 donation to Animal Society Shelter (+), Protested twice against gay marriage (-), Cheated with friends husband (-).

Classification: -

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Eli propped up his glasses with his finger and slid the file over to the negative pile. Immediately, a soft red light traced the outline of the tablet before sending a beam of light out of his office ceiling. The screen’s information dispersed and reappeared on the other side of his desk, etched into pale red paper. Seeing that the information had been successfully copied and therefore permanently saved on the master device, the screen dipped black before returning with a new file. 

Eli allowed himself a moment of hesitation before retrieving the paper-copied file and getting up from his chair. It was always a low-point of his day to deal with the negatively-classified departed, even if for only a little while. From the looks of Abigail’s description, she seemed like the type who wouldn’t accept her fate, dragging on the meeting even more than necessary. 

Walking past the cubicles of his fellow coworkers, Eli nodded at some of his friends, or at least the people he had known the longest. Meeting up to 10 humans a day, he didn’t have much time for social events. Still, it was good to stay on friendly terms. He wove his way through the hallways of the headquarters, picking up the pace after looking at his stopwatch. He had never been late before, and he wouldn’t be now. 

After a few minutes, he found himself outside of the building, the space around him switching from a beige finish to a forest path. It had been his boss’s idea to make the area more earth-like for a clean transition. He, on the other hand, found the dirt and spiderwebs a great nuisance and kept to the stone path as much as possible. It was this path he followed for another couple minutes before arriving at a small circular clearing, distinguishable by only a small puddle in the center. 

Just as he smoothed down his linen suit, an outfit meant for human interactions, the puddle began to swirl. It flashed red and bubbled at the sides, increasing in intensity. The inner liquid of the puddle bubbled higher than the rest, molding itself into the distinctive shape of a woman. As the shape grew to full size, the bubbles dissipated and slowly vanished into the air, leaving a human standing where it had once been. 

“Hello,” started Eli in an unemotional voice, “unfortunately, your body has been put to rest and your time on Earth is over. Allow me to escort you to Pessom, where your spirit will inhabit.”

Naturally, Abigail let out a look of disbelief. “This might be the strangest dream I’ve ever had,” she remarked, eyeing the plant life around her.

“I can assure you, Abigail, that while your reaction is normal, this is not a dream. There will be specialists in Pessom who can help you get accustomed further. I’m sure your father will be waiting to see you.”

“I’m not going to see him,” Abigail responded curtly, her lips drawn to a thin line. “And clearly, this is not a dream if that disgusting man is being mentioned. I cut him out years ago. If I’m really dead, I’d like you to bring me to my mother thank you very much.”

 Eli hesitated. Explaining the different places was always the hardest challenge for him, especially for the negatively-classified like Abigail. “It is entirely your choice to see him or not, Abigail. The rest of your immediate family, on the other hand, is located in Optom. The only way to talk to them will be through video calls. Now if you don’t mind, we really must be getting on our way, Pessomi will be waiting for you.” He started walking down the path to the left, knowing from experience that Abigail would follow. There was nowhere else for her anymore. 

Sure enough, after a pause, he heard footsteps behind him, followed by a flurry of questions. “Pessom? Optom? Pessi? What do those mean? And what do they have to do with me?” Abigail demanded.

“Pessomi,” Eli corrected. “And it all starts with how you lead your life on Earth. Once you die, your top three achievements, whether good are bad, are reported to the settlement headquarters where I work. The bigger impact your actions had, the more likely they are to get into your top three. From there, if the majority of your decisions were negative, you go to Pessom, and if they were positive, you go to Optom. To answer your second question, Pessomi is in charge of Pessom, and his brother, Optomi, is in charge of Optom.”

Abigail didn’t speak for a moment, digesting the information. “Wait a minute..” she realized, “if I’m going to Pessom, that means my decisions were bad! How can that be? I led a perfect life on Earth.”

Sighing, Eli flipped open her file to review her achievements. “You donated $1000 to charity, which was positive. However, you also protested gay rights and cheated on your huband with your friends husband, both negative actions. 

Abigail opened her mouth to argue but stopped, knowing she was out of her depth. Finally, she opened her mouth again, finally letting out her bottled up fear. “Is Pessom...like hell? Will I be tortured forever?”

Eli felt a pang of sympathy for the woman, despite all her negative actions on Earth. “No, you will not be tortured,” he responded truthfully. “Pessom and Optom are identical in theory. The only difference is the people we assign to each. After all, it is the people that make up a society, not the buildings.” 

At this point, the previously green trees gave way in autumn vegetation. Warm colored leaves sprinkled down across the path, only to be replenished by new ones on the trees. A soft chill brushed up against the travelling pair’s skin. Eli reached into his pocket and pulled out a rusted golden key, which he then held outward to the air. A wooden door materialized in front of the key, not held up by any walls and leading nowhere. Eli only smiled however, for they were at the end of their walk. Turning his back to Abigail, he held out his hand and turned the key. 

“Welcome to Pessom.”