Would you trust your developing years to a mysterious organization expecting a successful life in return? In the midst of the 2040s, Livvy Blunt, a girl with an unquiet mind, lives in confinement. Her home is a monastery, a place of silence and meditation created to keep her mind free from the frivolous matters of the modern world. The Monastery is a corporation with a clear goal: transform young Empty-heads into skilled Silver-hairs. The means to do that are controversial: uploads of skills to the brain. The more youngsters manage to keep their minds empty of gossip and avoid overthinking life, the more skills can be transferred. Livvy has a hard time trying to keep her mind idle, but her sacrifice should pay off by the promise of a successful future as a Silver-hair, a professional any recruiter would fight to hire. But when time comes for her to choose her set of skills, she is denied every professional and fun skill she ever longed for. People say she’s lucky for being selected to the Monasterial Upload Program, but she’s not so sure.Excerpt from the book:Silence! echoes the voice of one of the monks. We all align our bodies and lower our heads a tick more.Ahem!A boy at the far end of the line discreetly clears his throat, letting everyone know we are in formation and ready to proceed. We drag our bodies toward the end of the corridor in a non-rehearsed, yet well synchronized, trudge.‘Optimize your mind,’ reads the sizable old banner hanging in the main lobby.Small versions of the banner are scattered throughout the lobbies and halls of The Monastery. Sometimes I wonder if they were strategically placed. They must be, because every time my mind goes rogue, wandering about wherever, another banner is there to remind me to focus.After barely a couple of minutes regulating my mind, my thoughts are captured by the breathtaking wooden barrel ceiling of the library. Long bookshelves, chambers crammed with all sorts of books; a spiderweb connecting a shelf and a rolling ladder reminds me where the nickname Untouched Library comes from. To think all this incredible knowledge is literally within reach and, yet, no one here will ever use it - what a waste. Books must really have been relevant back in the day this three-story colossal structure was built. Just another sorrowful side-effect of technological evolution.We halt as we wait for another group of teenagers to cross the hall. This is my favorite part of the day. It’s when I have the opportunity to watch other Empty-heads walking around. Looking at them gives me confidence; a reminder I’m not the only one taking this journey. It also reassures me that the program is trustworthy. If it weren’t the case, this place would be uninhabited. There are few smiling faces, I must admit, but self-restraint is part of the program.I like to observe them and wonder what’s in their minds. To learn about their history, their dreams, their view on life. Have they decided on their set of skills yet? What type of future have they chosen for themselves? Am I going to see any of them after I graduate? Could be that my BFF-to-be is around here somewhere… maybe my future boy-Another ‘optimize your mind’ banner interrupts my overthinking!
