THE RETURNED
It is rare to have a somewhat intact, written account of life in any of the periods of Gilead from the point of view of the perpetrators. Many official documents exist. Few extant personal observations have been found. Much was lost in internal purges, as well as the destruction of documents as Gilead's integrity eroded in its final days. It is even more rare to have first-person accounts from some of the few well documented events in Gilead's history. In the case of the account below, it is the 'Great Child Theft' from the first years of Gilead's existence - from the point of view of one of those who Gilead had claimed was 'trafficked'.
The rest of the world referred to it as 'The Angels Flight'. The account below is from a boy on that flight, who grew up in Canada, and then 'escaped' back when he was of age.
Even more interesting is that the account below is set in perhaps the most stable of Gilead's periods in one of its most stable divisions, the New Gilead District twenty years following the trafficking event. Twenty-five years into Gilead's existence, it's practises and institutions became more bureaucratized. As mentioned below, Handmaids and Marthas eventually gained minimal 'employment rights', namely regularized retirement with housing. Such employment practises eventually spread Gilead-wide.
Other equally extant, first-person accounts of perpetrator life is rare. Uniquely, though, this one regards one of those trafficked to Canada, who grew up idealizing the life he'd been taken from. Facing persecution in Canada for his views, he illegally repatriated himself. He ended up in Gilead's Guardian service in the employ of a Commander who ended up running the New Gilead-Beacon Hill Chancery itself. The writer hints broadly that Commander Blaine and his martha, Beth, may have had links to the resistance.
The subtext of the narrative is his growing disillusionment with the society he has sworn to serve.
Otherwise, the narrator tells his part of it well, except for in parts. No attempt has been made to redact portions which many believe are unintelligible due to poor sentence structure. It is left to the reader to discern for her- or himself the meaning of such accounts.
As to the historical identity of the author, reconstruction attempts so far have been futile. The name 'Jefferys' is unknown to research as a Commander in Boston. The name 'Červeňák' is also unknown, with or without the diacritical marks. The name 'Jeff' is so far unknown in any of the attempted lists of those who were taken from Gilead to Canada in that period. Attempts to construct such lists have been controversial due to disagreement about authoritative sources.
The claimed twenty-year 'where are they now?' pieces in Canadian media have so far not been found.
So it is that this, 'The Returned' document, as it has been dubbed, is presented as is. Further research awaits. Authorship has no serious doubts, however the document's integrity awaits further research into whether or not it was composed in one or multiple settings. The most reasonable assumption is that it was composed as a whole subsequent to the events it describes in its last pages. Any theorized composition in whole or in part before that begs a whole host of questions.
The title 'The Returned' is not part of the earliest manuscript-text, and is assumed to have been added by a later redactor, someone unknown to scholarship at this time. Also, the manuscript relates what it portrays as word-for-word quotes from various people. It is unknown, but unlikely that they are actual quotes, but are reconstructions by 'Jeff' - universally assumed to be the sole author.
Following the oral presentation of this text, 30 minutes has been provided for questions. For time's sake, each questioner will be allowed only one follow-up. Panel members will be individually available at this evening's cocktail hour.
THE RETURNED
"If it is all right with you, I'll just read the report. First and foremost, I want to congratulate you for the hard work you've done for the faith and for Gilead. Finishing first in your class is no small feat. There's been some talented cadets here at the Academy. So here it goes."
We present to Jeff Jeffreys this certification for Guardian of Gilead, for service in this district. We congratulate him for his work on behalf of the faith, and commend him to take the oath of faithfulness and obedience to the Guardians of the Faith, the Commanders and their Chancery. Be it known that by his oath, he commits himself to the chain of command within Gilead and the Guardian service, promising under penalty of The Common Mercy of the State to obey all lawful orders. He also commits himself to mobility of service, as well as the transfer of his oath into any district into which he's called, according to each district's customs of transfer.
"Ok, that's it. Jeffreys, I do want to say that the route which got you to where you are today is unique, and a testament to your faith, and your commitment to Gilead and its mission."
"It says here that you were four when kidnapped, and trafficked to Canada. Three years ago you made your way back home - my word, a perilous journey that was! A year of reorientation to Gilead, then two of these last years at the Academy where you distinguished yourself."
"Is there anything you wish to say before I present you with your credentials, and tell you your first assignment?"
I said, "Sir, it has been quite the journey. But the faith has made me whole. I am forever grateful to the Academy, the Commandant, as well as the Guardians of the Faith for their continued sacrificial service. All through my upbringing among the infidel, this has been my dream. Some normalcy. My roots. I also wish to thank you, sir."
He said, "You're young. Still. I can't see you carrying a rifle for too long. There's lots of work in security, lots of opportunity for advancement. Also, with your pedigree, who knows. Commander Jefferys for you?"
I said, "Please forgive me, but part of what I hope to accomplish is finding out what had happened back then - how insurrectionists could have pulled off such a crime."
He paused, then said, "A lot from that era is still being discovered. Gilead itself had been going through growing pains, and a lot of what we take for granted today was still in a state of flux back then. I mean, the Guardian function into which you're entering. It's nothing like it was at the beginning. Back then someone like you entering the service would probably have had one salvaging a week, and that's not counting the particicutions that Guardians would supervise. These days you'd be lucky to have one each of those a year."
He then stood and said, "But hey, that was then, this is now. You have God's world in front of you. Please accept your credentials. Report to the office, they've got your marching orders from here on in. Godspeed. Go get your gear, weapons and equipment."
"And I hereby assign you to the Blaine household, Commander Blaine. Serve it well."
ENDURING REEDUCATION
It was definitely not the way I'd expected to be welcomed home. To them, I guess, I was just an ordinary refugee. In flight from the godless in Canada, returning here to my roots in Gilead. I had not expected a prison cell. From what I remember back then and what I'd been told, I'd been a Commander's son. That must have counted for something. Apparently not.
The daily reeducation sessions were wasted on me. For all that's holy, I could have taught them. I don't want to appear critical of my old home, and I do need to remember that the people imprisoned with me are not like me. They were fortunate and were acting as if they were not. They saw themselves as victims. Victims of Gilead. How could that be? Surely the instructors at our daily sessions could see that - see the difference between those unpeople and me.
Apparently they don't use that term here any more. Unpeople. Back in Toronto, I'd always known who I was and how I'd got to Canada. My foster parents were good people, it's just that they were not people of faith, and they had been part of the Canadian political correctness that had believed all the lies about Gilead. It's amazing that any of the children trafficked that day had ever turned out normal. Most didn't. Especially the girls.
Me, I'd been suspended from school - grade 8. I'd started a Gilead club, even had a few members. So much for the veneer of Canadian inclusivity - I was 15 and my foster parents got a visit from the RCMP for that. Then CSIS. The more persecuted I was, the more determined I became to let Canada know that they were on the wrong side of God, in their persecution of all things Gilead.
I had thought, wrongly, that I'd be supported by those I'd been trafficked with. No sir. They were brainwashed. Like I said, particularly the girls. What was worse were the boys who, while probably not homosexual, were in essence gender traitors. Even the boys had been seduced by the Canadian notion of raising expectations for girls - it was disappointing seeing my trafficked male counterparts drink that kool-ade.
The first time someone from Gilead made contact with me, it was heady. I was sixteen. They said that the righteous down south had noted my enthusiasm for the truth. They brought me material. I had no idea how they'd smuggled it through that tight border. Then the big reveal - the whole thing had been a Mr. Big sting. I ended up with criminal charges for abetting a criminal organization - Gilead! - in Canada. Then their goofy liberalism caught up with them. As I was a minor, I was 'sentenced to counseling.' Their lame version of the reeducation that Gilead itself subjects deviants to here. I walked through the counselling unscathed. I knew the words they wanted to hear, so I gave them that.
Although I'm not a deviant, I was now in prison in Gilead. After my escape from the Godless up north. Like I said, I could teach this stuff. Indeed, the instructors (not the guards) were not exactly first rate. The only times I'd been beaten or tazed was when I pointed out some of their errors. Strangely, that exercise of authority against me was a welcome change to the deviant society up north that mollycoddled youth. At least here one learned to respect their God-ordained superiors.
So it was I was torn. I was released before I had discovered that sweet-spot, one of offering a respectful correction to a superior, one that they would listen to.
