61

His day of freedom and leisure was both too little and too much for Mouse. He was fascinated by discovering how much things cost, from a replacement for his work overalls to a meal or a drink at a workplace, but it also brought him too much information about the repressive system to which the inhabitants of the station were subjected.

It was surprising how in that class system in which everyone was inserted there were details such as the cost of a personal communicator, a device so that your acquaintances or your superiors at work could contact you, it was something unaffordable for the lower classes, the F and G, with a cost of twenty thousand salaries it was a whim that few would indulge in. There were smarter ways to spend money. But the real reason behind such a high price was none other than that people did not rebel, did not organize, forgot about social relationships and focused on a life of working, sleeping and escaping through food or drink.