Embers

Chapter 1

I scream. Everything's blurry, and all I can focus on is my Dad's menacing grin. His eyes are a fiery orange and his mouth is trickling with blood from his last victim. I try to run, but i am surrounded by solid concrete walls.

"Ally," I hear a soft voice calling me. Is it Dad? Does he remember me? Is he still in their somewhere?
He's getting closer and I know what I have to do, but I can't. He's so close, now, that I can feel his hot breath on my neck.

"Ally," there it is again, but louder. I begin to panic, searching for the voice.
He grabs my shoulders and tips his head back, with an open mouth, exposing his teeth.

"Dad!" I scream as loud as I can, with hot tears rolling down my cheeks.
In an instant his head is thrown towards the flesh of my neck and it all happens so fast. I pull the trigger and watch the light leave his eyes, at the sound of the bang. I kill my own father, and I have never felt a worse pain. I drop to my knees and-

"Allannah!" My best friend Jackson's loud voice wakes me from my trance, and all of a sudden I am slammed back to reality.

I'm in a classroom. I'm sitting at a stainless steel desk. The instructor's stare is piercing through my soul. There's only one place that could have this kind of torture.

"Miss Harte, answer the question." The instructor catches me completely off guard.

"Um, sorry sir, could you repeat it?"

"Not listening again, I see." He shakes his head and scribbles something down on a piece of paper. Damn, I can't use anymore warnings, not with the principle on my back. He's basically waiting for me to slip up, so he can expel me. And yes, he does have the power to do that. Even over the most stupid things.

"So as I was saying," he pauses to throw me a dirty look, "due to the recent outbreak of the TK42, or as you may know it by, the Ember virus, we are starting a new curricular to educate you, for you safety. Now does anyone know how the virus affects the body?"

My hand shoots up, just to prove to him that I am a good student. I know more about the virus, than anyone in this class, so I will not let him underestimate me.

"Yes, Miss Harte..." the instructor sighs.

"Symptoms of the virus include fever, aggression, increased irritability, discolouration of the irises and eventual insanity. Infected do not show full symptoms until over the age of 18, but we can easily tell them apart from us, due to their orange eyes." I finish, with a smug look on my face and the instructor looks stunned. I turn to my right and give Jackson a discrete high-five under the table.

"Uh, yes, Miss Harte, that is correct."

Before the lesson can continue any further, the school siren sounds, indicating that we are free to go for the rest of the day.
My happiness is overwhelming when I realise it's the weekend. I'm out of that hell-hole for a whole two days.