Book of One-Shots and Short Stories

Bygone Times

Welcome Back, dearest readers! I hope you enjoyed the last article. I know I again took some time to post a new one and I am soo sorry! I have been a bit under the weather lately so I wasn't able to post one, but this one is quite long so I hope it makes up for it! Enjoy!!!

There was once a time of bliss...A time where we had rights... Rights of choice, of speech of standing up to others. The era seemed too good to be true, but it definitely existed. I just wish I had been born early to experience it. Unfortunately, I hadn't. I was born in times of dictatorship, where only a fistful of people had the rights previously mentioned. That is why I received this letter, this letter that would end the 18 years of life I had experienced. 18 years of hard work, sacrifices, and tears, 18 years of being controlled by the jurisdiction. My hands shook as I slowly opened the letter's flap already knowing the letter would end my life, and I was right...

Dear Mr. Hanford,

We are honored to inform you that you are the next person chosen for sacrifice. You should be proudly giving your soul for that of Mr. Jack Lennon. The honorary ceremony shall take place in two days after which your soul shall be given up for a noble cause. You shall eternally rest 2 days after the honorary ceremony. Your parents shall be receiving 2000$ as a gift for your sacrifice. Please remember there is no escape to this, if you plan to run away, you shall be tracked, of course, we don't expect you to do such a thing, this is just precautionary. Thank you in advance for your noble sacrifice, you have done well.

Yours truly,Jurisdiction of Althea

My sobs echoed through the room, the paper clenched in my palms was wet from the tears dripping on it. My heart ached, I was my family's only hope. Both my parents... my legless father, my paralyzed mother. Why me? Why couldn't it be anyone else? As soon as I thought of that, I felt guilty. I couldn't wish for someone else to suffer, that was horrible, no, I couldn't do that. I wiped off my tears with the back of my hand. I stood up slowly, the weight of my body supported by the bedhead before me. Why did those rich snobs get to live forever while watching us crumble to dust? Why did the dreaded founder of the community have to come up with something so cruel to reach immortality?

Althea was founded by Mr. James Althea, cue the name of the country, in 2055. The community consisted of all kinds of populations; there were those who didn't have a worry in the world and those who suffered daily for an ounce of bread. James Althea came up with a "genius" idea for people to live forever, in other words, immortality, but it all came with a price. For each person who became immortal, another had to die to maintain the population. This usually meant that those who were nobodies in the community were killed for those who supposedly contributed to make the community a better place. Althea was created after World War 5, which caused mass destruction around the world, the community, was supposed to be a safe haven for its citizens, but it turned out to be more like hell. The only citizens who were treated with respect were the upper classed citizens, now they lived a life of pure lust. Before a citizen was sacrificed to turn the other immortal, an honorary ceremony took place for the sacrificial soul. This is when they would reward the family with some money depending on your status and the community would pray for your soul to rest in peace. Two days after the ceremony, the person was brought up to the central stage where he or she would be given pills for instant death and the audience would watch them perish before conducting their final rights. On the same day, the lucky person anticipated to be turned immortal would be injected with the serum, which would soon make him invulnerable.

I sighed before getting up from my seat, my knees buckled as I went to the dining room. My parents were waiting expectantly to start with dinner. I rubbed my palms against the back of my jeans, I was nervous. How was I supposed to tell them that their only son was destined to die in four days? I pulled out the chair across from them, my hands slightly trembling in the process. I sat down quietly. I sighed, I couldn't wait any longer, they had the right to know.

"Mother, father I have something to tell you both." I started cautiously.

"Go ahead, son." My father replied, his eyes sparkling with curiosity. I knew those of pure sorrow would soon replace them, but I cherished the moments I had.

"I just got a note from the jurisdiction, I was chosen," I whispered, not meeting their eyes.

 The table was quiet for 3 precious minutes before my mother broke out into full-fledged sobs. I quickly got up from my chair and hugged my mother, my chin placed in the crook of her neck. Her sobs sent gentle vibrations through my body. It broke my heart to watch her suffer like this. I glanced back up at my father, he had silent tears streaming down his face, his lower lip was trembling. I held out my hand for him to take, he grasped it and squeezed it tightly. I willed myself to not cry, at least not in front of my parents, I had to stay strong for them. I slowly calmed my mother down, caressing her cheek and wiping her tears away. I heard the doorbell ring, I stood up carefully from my mother's embrace, immediately missing the warmth of her body, and headed towards the door.

I opened the door slowly, only to be greeted by my best friend's presence. She was smiling widely, her golden hair set loose gently swinging against her cheeks. She looked flustered as if she had just come running to me, her blue eyes shined brightly as she gave me a tight hug. I hugged back whilst fighting a sob that was threatening to spill. She pulled back and glanced at my face, her expression morphed into one of confusion and worry. I sighed before pulling her towards my room without a word. She followed quietly. When we reached her room, I locked the door and beckoned her to my bed, she sat down. I took the dreaded letter and silently handed it to her. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion before reading the letter. Her eyes widened as she read the first line, her hand went to her mouth, her eyes watering in the process. She threw the letter away and hugged me close. I felt her warmth in my body, I tried not to think about how much I would miss my friends and family. I could hear Esperanza's silent sobs, her tears soaking my t-shirt. I sighed before pulling back. "Calm down Ranza, it will be okay, just please promise me you will take care of my parents. Please. They don't have anyone, they need you when I am gone..." I stated, my hand was on her shoulder, gripping it comfortingly. She nodded before promising. I hugged her once more before inviting her over for dinner. She reluctantly agreed. I led her to the dining room where I saw my parents crying on each other's shoulders. I went over them and hugged each one.

"It will be okay," I whispered in their ears softly. I sat down on my seat beside Esperanza. "Let's eat guys; we can't dwell on the future." I sated as cheerfully as I could. With that, I accepted my fate, I accepted the fact that I was saving a life in return and that I was preventing another family from losing a loved one. So on the day of my eternal rest, I happily swallowed the pills after giving my parents and Esperanza the last hug...

Wow... So that was big, I actually took time to write. I hope you guys liked it, I was actually thinking about making it a novel seeing as the plot is quite interesting. Of course, the end would be different, happier maybe and it would be a lot more elongated. I hope you enjoyed it. Like, comment, and subscribe!