Unaware: The Adventures of ViLuma

By L.C. Reid

Four teenagers with different pasts will share a common destiny. 

What do an outspoken rich-kid, a Spanish overachiever, an outcast, and the black sheep of a family all have in common? Nothing, except Olivia, Brooks, Emilie, and Lucía find thems

• Language: English
• Publisher: New Degree Press
• Release date: Apr 27, 2021
• ISBN: 9781637301258

Book preview

Authors Note

The older I have gotten, the more I have realized the truth about racial injustice is never shared. The Black Lives Matter Movement made me feel frustrated and upset with the injustice in America and how it has escalated over the past few years. How little we talk about the stories of the death of Emmitt Till, the beating of activist Fannie Lou Hammer, and shooting of seventeen-year-old Edmund Perry angered me. Many children in schools around the US may not know Black history aside from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The racial injustice, even fifty-seven years later, continues to escalate. With each new case of brutality, it feels like we have no control over who dies, who survives, and who tells the stories of these crimes. That’s what I want to change. It is a privilege to learn about racism instead of experiencing it.

I watched too many news stories about young Black people dying and it is overdue for the media to stop representing Black people the way they do. I am bothered by how a white man can shoot up a school, only to be taken peacefully away in handcuffs and described as a disturbed young man, while a Black man is killed for just walking down the street and is then portrayed as a criminal. People have no control over how their story is told after they have passed. There are too many people who have lost their lives and been villainized simply because of their skin color.

Headlines such as Speak Out Reader Opinion: Jacob Blake should have followed orders from Kenosha police show how strongly the media is mishandling the deaths of Black people around the country.¹ The idea that someone not following orders means they can be killed is unjust and people need to be held responsible. The media has turned a blind eye to deaths around the country.

There is power in telling stories. There is no way to stop stories from being told, but people need to be held responsible for how stories are told. There is too much injustice and misrepresentation being spread for me to not speak up. There are too many white people who believe it’s a Black issue or no longer care about it once they turn the television off.

Most people believe America is okay—if not great—the way it is. But, if people take the time to learn about new perspectives and the history that has built racial injustices today, we could enact true change the US has only began to scratch the surface of.

My mom has always encouraged me to find my voice and be true to myself. Her encouragement has led me to listen to my heart and embrace who I am. I find many people are not able to put themselves in someone else’s shoes. Many people say they are not racist or homophobic and they are for equality. Then, within the span of a breath, they make a joke proving they have no idea what equality means or what it looks like. For this country to move forward, everyone must be willing to educate themselves, to be better, to think, and to actively strive to understand each other.

The world is such a beautifully diverse place and I want to celebrate that idea in this book. Inside this book are four main characters who all come from different backgrounds and seem to have very little in common, but they grow and learn from each other in a way all people can when brought together to solve a problem.

It is my hope in reading this book, people will understand better the importance of equality, feel compelled to reflect and question their learned behaviors and prejudices, and go forward with the intent to be more mindful of how we can all be better.

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1 Speak Out Reader Opinion: Jason Blake Should Have Followed Orders From Kenosha Police. Chicago Tribune, September 3, 2020, accessed January 15, 2021. https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown/opinion/ct-sta-speak-out-st-0904-20200903-6puqbehf5fesbfegmelmxop6rq-story.html.

Prologue

The world was covered by an ocean, with one landmass spanning the size of Texas.

The world of ViLuma had a two-class system.

There was a small group of extremely wealthy people who glimmered and shined. Their skin ranged from navy and dark purple to baby blue and lavender. They wore amethyst and sapphire jewels to highlight their skin, and were unofficially called the Richies.

The lower class, the people who lived in Raven, struggled every day to survive. Their skin ranged from moss green and gray to grass green and silver. They wore rags the upper class had thrown away. The lucky few wore clothes without holes. There were very few jobs in the world and even more limited opportunities to change their station at birth.

The middle and lower class blended together, as those in the middle class hung on to the edge of poverty, always teetering toward being lower class.

The middle class dressed like the lower class, but were the only people whose skin ranged from dark orange and mauve to creamsicle and rose. They survived by farming and being the only people who lived outside the town and took care of the animals and nature outside of the immediate town. Very few middle-class people had jobs inside the town. They were the guards of the prison or traders who traveled between towns.

The lower-class people lived in Raven and either didn’t work or worked as housekeepers, babysitters, or cooks for the Richies. The world operated on a taxing system and there were different tax brackets for the different groups. These taxes were mainly based on the skin color of the collective group.

The only way to be a Richie was to be born into it. They lived off old money and acted as royals, keeping themselves in charge. They always wore their best dress and suit when they went to visit Raven. They would order the silkworms from the farmers outside the city and hired a few lower-class people to make the silks. The people were paid next to nothing and the upper class found ways to justify it. The government insisted the lower class could live off less than the richer people and they had everything they need.

Society became lopsided as the lower class grew and the middle class shrank. As animals were becoming harder to find, some farmers would spend all their time traveling to find new cattle until they were forced to give up. The farmers had to choose to be prison guards, fishermen, or to move to Raven. As more people moved down the class ladder, they struggled to survive in the small town with so few jobs. They lived in terrible conditions that caused their skin to turn sickly green and grays. Once their skin turned from their natural creamsicle to grass green, the people knew there was no return to their middle-class status. What was left of their farms would now be completely taken away, usually sold to another farmer. That is why most became prison guards and gave up their farms willingly before they could become lower class, to remain in their community.

Chapter 1

Emilie’s POV

Hey, hello? Wake up. This was the first thing Emilie heard as she felt her body being shaken. She opened her eyes and became disoriented; she was in what appeared to be a cell. The sun from the window blinded her as she sat up, convinced it was a dream.

The person who was crouching next to her was an Asian girl with long hair that was dyed blue. She was looking at her, asking her questions with her hands on Emilie’s shoulders. Emilie’s ears were ringing until the girl pinched her hard on the arm.

Her hearing and body came rushing back to her. Emilie suddenly felt like a caged bird desperate for an escape. She scurried against the wall with her head in her hands as she began to breathe as if she had just run a marathon.

What is this? Where am I? Her voice came out as a whisper.

She ran to the cell door and used her body weight to shake it with no success: the door refused to budge. She couldn’t grasp a single cognitive thought as adrenaline coursed through her veins.

None of the people around her answered her. She was becoming more frantic as she seemed to be the only one losing their mind at the current situation. She was looking around, desperate for a way out.

A Latina girl was softly speaking in Spanish. A white boy looked back at the blue-haired girl.

The Latina girl was still talking as the Asian girl with neon hair got up from trying to talk to the boy. She looked concerned, as it didn’t seem she had much luck talking to either of them.

I’m with her, the Asian girl finally acknowledged Emilie’s questions as she glanced at her before glancing at the two other people. I have no idea where we are. Who are you? She looked straight at Emilie first.

I’m Emilie, she said after a pause.

I’m Olivia. Olivia stared at Emilie for a minute too long, like she had no