When I came to, I was in a burning field.
The air was so thick with smoke I could barely breathe. The
once familiar town was unrecognizable. It looked like the remains of a
battlefield from a movie.
But that didn’t last long either. The fire had died down by
the time the sun rose. The tall wall of flame had shortened and most of the
buildings had fallen.
It felt strange being the only thing in that place that
still had its original form. Was I the only one left alive? I had no way of
knowing and I lacked both the energy and desire to seek out the answer.
I felt that since I survived, I should live on.
I started walking, the building crumbling behind me my
incentive to move forward – to escape the danger. I wasn’t really concerned
about getting burned up like the people lying around me. The enemy’s air raid
had ended.
But still, I had to keep moving.
It was already a wonder I was still alive, so I didn’t know
if a rescue team would even be coming.
Would I survive? Could I survive?
Whatever happens, I won’t be able to escape from this red
world. It was such an absolute hell that
even a small child could understand it; a boy of eight. Me.
I collapsed.
Was it because there was no air? Was it because no energy
was left in my body? I stared up at the clouded sky. I knew that everything
around me was burned up, the many shriveled people littering the ground, so my
only escape was to look into the sky.
The dark clouds loomed overhead, telling me it would rain
soon. That’s good. The fire will be put out once it rains. I said to
myself that it hurt. I said so on behalf of all people who couldn’t even say
so.
That was ten years ago.
Now I was trying to escape from another hell. A cleaner,
pristine, and more organized hell, but hell just the same: Virgilius. I was taking a risk. I knew that I would probably fail
and get canceled, never to see anyone ever again.
But I still had to try.
“Sage! Hey, are you listenin’?”
Gray snapped his fingers in my face. I was placing food
capsules in certain sections of my tray in the lunch line or I’d have broken
his fingers. I glared at him as the lunch lady placed my tray in one of the
machines, pressed a button and then handed it back to me. Actual food had
replaced the pills.
“Man, what’s with that look?”
“Gray, what the fuck do you want with me?”
Gray was my friend. Sometimes he was an annoyance that I
longed to get rid of. But six out of seven days of the week, Gray was my
friend. “I just asked if you have P.T. this afternoon. Geez.”
“I’m skipping.” I knew that skipping my Physical Training
exercises would land me in The Pit. But that’s only if I got caught.
His mouth gaped at me, forming into a perfect ‘O’ before
closing it. He realized that I was walking away and he was now forced to catch
up. “Are you serious? You can’t just skip P.T. You’re so busted if the Drones
catch you. You’ll be in The Pit for three hours, min!”
“Like Sage gives a shit, Gray,” came an arrogant voice from
behind us. We both turned and looked to see a girl with platinum blonde hair,
blue eyes and pale skin, an overwhelming look of apathy on her face.
“Nobody asked you, Cerulean.” I could hear the panic in his
voice.
“Like I give a shit, Gray.”
We sat at our usual table, the three of us, and I mindlessly
ate my meal while the two of them continued to fuss at each other. There was
normally a fourth, Midnight, but she was currently in The Pit. No one would
tell us why and we didn’t ask questions. Curiosity got you into trouble around
here - outside the classroom, at least. We’d find out the truth once she was
let out.
“In all seriousness, though, are you really going to skip
P.T., Sage?” Cerulean asked. I only looked at her as I shoveled the instant
mashed potatoes into my mouth. I gave a half shrug and she said, “Keep this up
and you’re gonna get thrown into the Camps, doing hard labor.”
The Camps were a punishment facility – a harsher version of
time-out. Time spent there varied, depending on what you did. Obedience was
expected, at least from the adults. But really, how well-behaved did they think
a bunch of amnesiac orphans given Crayola crayon names would be? Especially
during the “adolescent” phase.
“Wanna go outside?”
They both looked at me, then at each other, and then back at
me. We’d just left from “outside.” Gray cleared his throat. “We go outside
every day.”
I tore into my biscuit, rolled my eyes. “I’m talking about
‘outside’ outside.” I pointed at the window behind them, to the silver and
white-washed city filled with all of its doctors and scientists who’d taken
care of the three hundred and fifty orphans who had survived the Red Wipe ten
years ago. “Past the gates and into The Wasteland.”
“Are you crazy!” whispered Cerulean, the pitch of her voice
elevating. “Do you want to be canceled? You know they’ll do it just like that.”
She snapped her fingers in my face to emphasize her point.
I glared at her. I really hated that shit. “There’s something
out there. Why do you think those who’ve talked about leaving Virgilius have
been sent to the Camps permanently? What are they schooling us for? I’m sick of
living like this.” I threw the bread onto my plate. “I’m leaving.”
“That’s suicide, man!” Gray was freaking out at this point.
“Besides, how do you plan on getting out alive? They’ll cancel you on sight!”
Both Gray and Cerulean’s expressions changed almost
instantly. They must’ve seen the look on my face. Too bad I couldn’t see
it.
“You think I’ve been eating half my meals and skipping P.T.
for fun?” Their brows creased with worry, but something lit in their eyes.
“Tomorrow night. You can stay or go, it’s up to you. But I’m leaving this
hell.”
