I Am Not A Number I am A Free Man

    “What was that you said?”
    “I am not a number, I am a person.”
    “Me thinks the man doth protest too much.”
    “How do you make that out?”
    “What was your classification?”
    “Zem Em.”
    “Not double zero?”
    “No.”
    “You weren’t licensed to kill?”
    “No.”
    “But you did kill.”
    “Yes, but only as a last resort.”
    “Zed Em, what kind of classification is that?”
    “Its part of a code name.”
    “What was the other part?”
    “Seventy-three.”
    “So you were a number long before you were brought here.”
    “Its not the same thing at all. Zed Em Seventy-three was my identification name.”
    “So you’re not a number, you’re a person.”
    “Yes.”
    “Explain it to me.”
    “I don’t have to explain anything.”
    “It’s my job to find out for myself!”
    “Yes.”
    “Well just for now indulge me.”
    “I’m not a number because I’m a person. And I’m a free man because I’ve resigned.”
    “You are a number, Number Six. And you’re not a free man because you are a prisoner. And a prisoner you will remain until you give me the information I want. And if you don’t give………….I’ll take it.”
    “Well just get on with it then and put us all out of our misery.”
    “You mean you’re not going to make it easy for me?”
    “What do you think?”
    “You could make it easy for yourself, that’s what I think. Is it really so important, the reason behind your resignation?”
    “It seemed to be to your predecessor.”
    “And it will be to my successor. I’m interim, not here for long.”
    “You’re dressed like me.”
    “I could say the same of you.”
    “We look like to overgrown school boys.”
   “Floreat Etona!”
    “What’s that, Latin for be seeing you?”
    “If you like. Mind how you go Number Six.”
    “Number what?”
    “Number Six, think of it as your new recognition name, or code name if you prefer. That way you’ll soon get used to it.”
    “I won’t be around long enough for that.”
    “I wouldn’t put money on that. Good day.”

Be seeing you