XX


HUMAN beings have been the designers and the constructors of several wondrous objects such as the precise pyramids of Kemet and the International Spacestation. Another architectural masterpiece derived from the brains of mankind was Penitentiary Pacific. It was a place set aside from all normal societies on the planet. It was the size of a metroplex and ultimately it housed just as many people. Sixty percent of its space was used for its millions of convict residents, and twenty percent of its space was used to house the military personnel and administrators. Thirteen percent of it was for the cafeterias and for the supply storage, and seven percent of the penal territory consisted of IC Hospital Wards. Its construction began in 2003 and ended in 2012. Engineers and construction workers from Japan, France and the United States did the actual digging and constructing of the prison habitat, but its funding came from all nations on Earth.
The aggregate, six hundred billion dollar cost of this project extended far beyond its expected budget, but during the digging of the tunnels in late 2003, the discovery of several tons of gold provided extra funds for the establishment's fabrication. Back in 1999, Guam was declared an island of catastrophe because of the unpredictable natural disasters that constantly occurred. All citizens were forced to permanently evacuate their homes because of the many lives taken by the repetitive hurricanes. Two years after the abandonment of the island, the United Nations decided to convert the disaster-stricken woodland into an international Corrections base. This was when the production of Penitentiary Pacific began.
Its setup was similar to the setup of a major city. There were many roads from sector to sector for the military shuttle buses. Also there were hundreds of hallways used for bikes and walking, because the buses were always crowded. There were hallways on every floor that ran parallel and perpendicular to all of the main roads and the side roads. The Central, or Main Sector, was like downtown. This was where the main cafeteria and the main laundryroom were located. Also this was where the Main Control & Surveillance Room was situated. Right outside of the Central Sector were the North, South, East and West Sectors, where almost all of the prison cells were located; all except for the detainment cells, which were in what was called the Solitary Sector, located in the basement underneath the Central Sector.
Although the inside of the entire Penitentiary Pacific establishment looked decent, the inmates' sectors looked less than decent. Their sectors were nowhere near as nice or clean as the quarters for the military personnel and the administrators, which were located at the far North and South sectors, and the far East and West Sectors, sort of like suburbs. They had rooms instead of cells, with carpet instead of cold floors. And most of the personnel dined at their sector's local cafeteria instead of the main cafeteria. They wanted as little contact with the inmates as possible.
The entire penitentiary and its twin tunnels were built earthquake resistant. Although the force an earthquake could still be felt, it's exterior was made to withstand any actual destruction. The entrance/exit tunnels stretched ten miles into the Earth to reach the prison, which was two miles beneath the ocean floor's Marianas Trenches. Though it was nowhere near as wide or as long as the eighteen hundred-mile Marianas, this was the largest penitentiary ever built in the history of the planet, with enough space to hold over ten million inmates.
The penitentiary's security operated in junction with each country's military services. The administration was abundant and well organized. Every prisoner was subject to be searched by a member of the martial staff at any time. Privacy did not exist and no incoming packages were allowed. All rules were explained upon the prisoners' arrival. Also there was no visitation. The closest thing to visitation was a room called the COMMUNICATION ROOM, where inmates could occasionally talk to an approved guest for eight minutes on the visua-phone while watching them on screen...

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