Astra knew she messed up. She struggled to get up, gagging at the sight and smell of blood. A man was screaming in agony at the loss of his foot, she stood on shaky legs. This wasn't how the plan was supposed to go, and in the hallways, she could hear Dr. Rogers panicking as he couldn't put Celia done with the shock collar. What hell have I gotten into now? she thought, limping to the doorway. There was a stand off going on, Celia's eyes red with frenzy, and from the distance, Astra swore she saw a drip of blood drip down from her eye. Was Dr. Rogers still shocking her? A sudden burst answered her question, as the everyone in the hallway went flying. She watched in horror as Celia grabbed Astra's lab coat, and took off, running around the corner. A guard, struggling to his feet, grabbed his weapon, getting ready to shoot at, another person slamming the guard down. It was Dr. Rogers, and he was screaming into his face, a wild punch knocking the guard out. The s
The sky is cloudy, and gray, the "smell" of rain in the air. It was crazy how I could tell from real and to what's not. Zomb, Caia, and Nova are behind me, Zomb's eyes scanning the area nervously. She doesn't look scared which means there shouldn't be anything to be worried about. Entering Main City had been difficult, the city knowing Caia, and sending out an alert to all Officers on duty. Zomb is busy looking out for them, as we enter in the territory of no point in return. Caia looks calm, focused, Nova clumsy. She's not use to so many rules, and how she has to jump away from the public eye. I will admit, Main City has changed in the years since I last lived in it. The buildings have overtaken most of the land, so high, I'm surprised they don't touch the sky. Cars fly now, and I watch as a building0 builds itself. Main City has advanced alot in technology, and I smile a bit. But then I remember Celia, and the bubbling anger returns. During the trip, Zo
Caia and I are quiet for a long time, as she looks in the distance, her eyes far away. I want to say something but decide against it; I don't have much to say.As we sit atop the building next to each other, Caia begins to talk, saying that she was from the poor side of Main City, saying she tried her hardest to get ahead in life. She had studied her ass off, attempting to pass all of her classes to move on forward, her motivation being her family.Caia cleared her throat as she began to talk about the night she had gotten kidnapped. She had been getting ready for her last test that would determine if she would be a Official, or a Peacekeeper. Caia hadn't really cared about the title, only cared about the credits she would get. Both paid enough to get her out of the slums of the poor side of Main City, and as her mother's health was declining, and her father was killing himself in doing risky jobs for a small sum of money, Caia thought it was her time to step up. And step
Zomb lead the way, following her nose. She said she could sniff out danger a mile away, and I felt like we should have taken her a bit more serious. As the slums grew further away, and we snuck into the property line where middle classes lived, I could feel my anxiety growing. Zomb stopped though, and her left eye twitched. "Something happened." she murmured, and she looked around again. I was curious to know what she meant, but at the same time, I could feel my pulse rising, the muscles in my stomach pumping as my body filled itself with adrenaline just in case. Nova looked afraid, and it was only Caia who remained calm, a blade glinting in the palm of her hand. I tried to recall all the training I had gone through as a child, silently cursing myself thatI had gotten us into this mess. Without saying anything, Zomb shoved us forward with a hard push, pointing that we shoul run forward, in a direction away from Main City. I wanted to argue, but her eyes were slitted
In the chaos, Zomb led us away from the packed people trying to stop the kids. We ducked into an alley, Nova trying to catch her breath as she leaned on the building for support. Meanwhile Zomb slammed her fist against the wall, making a dent in the brick structure, as she paced angrily, swears coming out of her. "Jonathan, what the fuck was up with that Caia chick? She's on our side and then suddenly decides to go after Celia? The person we were trying to save?!" she spits out, cursing some more. I don't know what to say because what could I say? We were in danger, and Caia had the Retreat's location, and so many people who were going to be arrested for it. And we had led her straight to Celia. I could feel the stress settle on my shoulders, and I tried to fill my lungs up with as much air as possible. "What happens now?" Nova asked, and I froze. This would effect her too. If Caia went back and identified the three of us, she was also going to be held in Mai
Nova, and I run past deep into the trees, away from the bodies, and I could feel my hear breaking with each step I took away from her. Nova was choking back sobs, trying to keep up with me. Their relationship was closer than mine and Zomb's-Lyssa's-and it was Nova who had convinced her to come with us. She was probably blaming herself for this. We sought a clearing from the others, and collapsed next to what looked like empty huts, breathing hard. Nova was staring up to the sky, her eyes steaming tears. I didn't have the words to comfort her-didn't even know what to say to her. I simply held her hand, and her grip on mine tightened, her sniffles calming. Night time came over us, and I could feel exhaustion hitting me out of nowhere, sleep sounding like the best option. I felt my eyelids close, and yet I never let go of Nova's hand. There is a sound that I hear. It's high pitched, and catches my attention. I sit up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.
The screams stopped as footsteps scattered all over the ground, and Officers yelled orders to try to stop the kids. They ignored them and ran off, trying to pull out more darts to put them down. Nova was knocked out cold, and my legs began to fall asleep being underneath her. I decided this was as "safe" as it was going to get to rest, since there was no plan at the moment. I gently moved Nova to my right side, placing her on the green grass. She didn't even open an eye, so overtook by the drug being pumped in her system. I held on to her hand though just in case there was something or someone that would try to take her fomr me. I wasn't taking any chances. I let my eyes close, sleep taking me once more. There is a song playing, and it's low, and bitter, yet sweet. The words aren't even words, or there too garbled to be understood. They ask me a question, but I don't have an answer, and the song attempts to pull me forward so they can help me find a solution. I
When I finally left the room, I tried to loosen the skin tight clothes this person had. Whoever lived here was a scrawny person, and I stretched out the plain black shirt, tying the strings on the sweatpants. The owner of the house really was a glamorized person, as the clothing was some of the most outlandish outfits I'd ever seen. Even the simple clothes that I wore now were flashy, with a red glittered dragon on the back, and the ends of the sweatpants having rhinestones on them. The shoes were running shoes, and I threw all of my clothes away, momentarily mourning it, before the feeling of being clean since leaving base came upon me. Nova was tying her shoes, plain black running shoes, and she had worn an all black tracksuit. I hadn't realized until now that she was thinner than when she first left. And with the look in her eyes, she looked more haunted than before. I wondered if she was thinking about Zomb, and the failure of this rescue mission. Who was I
The country Anthem was founded in the year 2099, after the collapse of the British Empire. Due to several wars that had been breaking out, an uneasy truce forming. Though famous for their trades, their science was blossoming, advanced technology coming out almost every year. Until they caught wind of what was going on in Main City. Instead of being appalled, they were intrigued, dipping into the funds for Anthem's cities building being put into purchasing young children, and being wired to their desire. Secretly, they were being sold off into distance countries used as either bodyguards or assasins needed for shady governments. Some were even experimented enough to be kept as pets. Once the animal DNA came into play, they did whatever they wanted to those poor chidlren. Until an escape was planned and half of them went missing. Now, catching the attention of a certain team, Anthem's most ugliest secrets are coming into the light. And
Rumors have been going on around a country not far from Main City. Anthem. A prosperous country with even more advanced technology-and even more secrets hidden within the Capital Tower. Children and young teens are going missing. The Officers are coming up empty handed, but even they cannoy deny something strange is going on over there. And that's where Celia and her team come in. Contacted by Anthem's leading lady Saoirise Renn, she's desperate to get some answers and hopefully get the children back home safe and sound. Something is taking the children. Someone has plans. Celia and her teammates are determined to take down the kidnappers.Jonathan's POVTruthfully, I don't want Celia and the others to join in on this mission. Not that I don't need them; more of a I want them to lead as much normal lives as possible back home. Their childhood has been taken from them; they don't need to witness the disaster in another country. But I know when we're
Jonathan's POVWe're in the main building of Main City. The cameras are facing us, and the smallest groups of kids that I've seen. The survivors. They are the only ones that made, desperate to stay alive, and be reunited with their families. But after everything that's happened, they look like empty shells of what they use to be. It's Celia who's talking into the cameras; the feed is being shown to every available screen in the city. She looks more like an adult than the child she is, and I feel a wave of sadness. "We have no government, and we have no one to lead us. The time to choose what we do and how we do it is now. We ask that each person vote on someone they trust to be the leaders. No one that approved of the Testing trials, or experimenting on children may enter." and when she says this part, there's fire in her eyes, as if she's daring them to do it. "We're on our own now." she says, as the cameras cut out. Several months later...I wake up sore fr
Astra's POVThe hurt in her chest is what makes her go through the ruins of her old office. A keycode there would fix all her problems.She limped, touching the tender spot on her head, feeling a wave of dizziness hitting her. She needed to grip her broken down desk for support. Opening the drawers, she found it at the very bottom, still glued after all this time. Perfect. Pressing the buttons with the numbers she had remembered by heart, the keypad pinged, before going green, the walls sliding down and exposing another room. Lights flicked on one by one, and at the end of the hallway protected by a glass case was exactly what she was looking for, They will all pay. She walked forward, and made slow steps to the concotion that had started it all. This had been the very first testing of the product, one that had long ago been perfected. And she was going to take it. Shattering the glass case, and grabbing it in her hand, she rolled up her coat sleeve,
Jonathan's POV"Did you kill her?" I asked when we grouped up with the others. Celia takes her time looking at me, shaking her head side to side, before looking back at the ground. It's a small bit of comfort after all; that is Lu's mother, someone that we know and is within the group. "Did you find her uncle?" I ask, Tomaz, Nova, and Tessa making sure we weren't followed. We have no idea if Lu is going to join us or not, but I still think we should wait just in case she changes her mind. Celia cocks her head to the side, as if she's listening in on the distance, and then relaxes. "Her brother is in a different country, a small place called Aponeal. He has no memory of the life over here." she stops, looking unsure as if she should keep talking. "Yes?" Nova asks gently. "He has a family. And a daughter the same age as me. He has his own life. Why can't she be happy that he's happy, even if it's away from her?" Celia asked, glaring at her shoes. "It's co
Astra's POVIn the end, when the bodies were stuffed in body bags, Astra felt nothing. Just the usual craving for a cigarette. It was the only thing she felt besides nothing. The worst part about her craving, was that it wouldn't be fufilled. She didn't want to go to the unmarked land, and search through old stores for what she wanted. They probably weren't that good anyway. So there she stood, feeling nothing but that annoying craving. When the ceremony is said and done, Astra wanders off to the Rejects and Runaways. Some are trying to hold her hand, and thank her. Others call her the angel of justice. Most don't come up to her; they probably fear her which she is okay with. She sees one of the oldest of the groups standing off to the side, graying brown hair braided down her back. The woman gives Astra a curt nod, and Astra heads over to her, noticing that Lu is still not among them. "Have you seen my daughter?" Astra asks quietly, making it look like they're j
It feels like they've been warped back in time, as the las tliving Higher Ups stand there with nooses around their necks, flimsy chairs underneath them. Astra thought about having their face covered, but she didn't want to miss the fear in their eyes as they realized that their life was going to end. She raised her eyes to the crowd, bowing as they cheered, some booing. Officers were crowding the front, and she held out her arms, and spoke into the mic. "Welcome everyone, to the once in a lifetime show!"Jonathan's POVWe're running fast down the halls, Lu leading the way. I've managed to recover by eating a lot of food, and chugging some water from a cafeteria we passed by. There's not any Officers waiting to ambush us, and I wonder where everyone is at, when Lu disappears down a hall. I follow, noting that this is a dead end, and I glance around, searching for some sogn of where she went. A pebble hits my ear, and I grab at it, noticing that a painting is
Jonathan's POVWhen I wake up, I'm strapped down on a hospital bed, the room spinning. An I.V is in my arm, pumping me with liquids-or drugs. I'm alone, feeling sicker and sicker the more I move my head around. At one point, movement catches my eye, and a figure stands at the edge of my bed, reaching out for me. "Who are you?" I say out loud. I sound drunk when I speak. "You're safe." The voice says, turning around and walking out of the door. My head leans back, and I fight off the nausea. I need water, I need these restraints off, I nedd something. I pull my arms, and legs, feeling the leather bite into my skin, and my stomach rolls. I lurch upward as I try to expel the contents of my stomach. There's nothing, so I make loud dry heaving noises, spit landing on my blankets. The door opens, and someone walks in, making a disgusted sound. I know that voice, though I hadn't heard it in a while; she steps closer into the light, confirming my train
The truth is what broke them. Lootings, and havoc began. The middle and poor to break into the homes of the rich, taking their food, and value. Theu took objects, shoving the people that were still in their homes into their basements, and locking them away. "Down with the System! Down with the Testings! Down with the Systems!" They chanted, swinging their fists in the air, and screaming at one another. They are not fighting one another; they simply attack the rich, and steal the objects. Drones with cameras fly by, but no Officers are on the scene. They're all with Astra, who still continues to play her little game with the Higher Ups. No one is coming to help. Businesses are getting destroyed, people running for their lives. A finely dressed woman stands in between a random man, and her daughter, a the man holding a knife as he points at the jewlery on the little girl. "People of Main City, may I have your attention?" the screens ask, and for a mome