Curer

You grow up, there, and you grow up and be a curer. Save the world from the Virus, yeah? Can you do that for me?

— Thomas Weller, to his daughter

Theoretically, 'curer' could reference a dozen mundane professions, each of equal relevance. But in Fractola, there is little context that the word requires. In any circumstance, it means but one thing: a curer of the Virus. A miracle worker.
A career that is nothing but a figment of the imagination of a child who still possesses the innocent naivete of someone who has not yet learned the language that Fractola's rulebook is written in.

A Universal Ideal

Across Fractola, no one is ever taught what it is to be a curer. There is no introduction at school, no social norm that sets the standard. To a child, it is simply common sense.

When one truly examines the prospect, it does seem to be basic logic - the kind that sometimes only specific demographics quite grasp. But there is the matter of control - the control that Fractus cannot seem to let go of.

It hurts people, so why don't we try to stop it?

— Marionette Weller

It is a harsh reality. And the brutality of the truth is the reason why Fractolans let their children dream - because, to most, blissful ignorance is better. Because it is easier.

"I want to save the world"

This is a common phrase among Fractolan youth - it was a common phrase for Earthen youth, in the Free era, as well. It is something that parents have always shaken their heads and laughed at - but now, that laugh is less mocking, only mournful of the dream that is decidedly impossibility.
But some dare to hope. Some dare to entertain the possibility that there could be a future that is anything but isolation and fear. A world where a normal person can walk in public interacting with people in real life, breathing more air than they ever thought possible...
But only if the world can be saved.

Impossibility

Most, at least those of regular wealth, would say that Fractola needs curers. Those who happen to be part of the VCD would say so passionately. But then, there is the overwhelming voice that will not - that forbids it. It is the voice of Fractus, that seems to contain an insurmountable power, an unbeatable authority. And the worst part, the most devastation truth of all, is that they do.

The Talk

There is a conversation that a Fractolan parent has with a Fractolan child. Or maybe it is not a parent - maybe it is a teacher, or a babysitter. The conversation is one that alters one's worldview, slashes it, mangles it until it is permanently broken. It is about how one's dreams will never come true.

Vignette

"I'm going to be a curer," J's little voice - spirited, ignorant. Gideon bit his lip; as the parent, he was meant to be mature enough to withhold a "no you don't."
"And why is that?" He struggled to keep himself placid, neutral. J looked him dead in the eye.
"Because our world needs saving."