The Colonies #1

Chapter 10

I sat at the counter of Tom’s, shoveling porridge in my mouth as he explained about school. So far, I caught a few sentences that made sense, including “starting next week”, “orientation today”.

“So,” I said through the mouthful of porridge. “What you're saying is that we go today and check in?”

“Yes,” Tom said. He looked down at my torn clothes and shoe less feet.

“Have you been without shoes this whole time?”

“Yes,” I answered. He raised an eyebrow.

“I forgot,” he went back in his little room with a twin sized bed and a small, light blue desk by the window covered in gray blinds. He came back out carrying a black t-shirt, brown pants, and leather boots. He threw them at me, and I barely managed to catch them.

I told him thanks as I walked along the wooden floor towards the bathroom. I changed quickly into the clothing, the pants fitting perfectly. They even felt good, with the tight waistband and loose fabric around the ankles. It was awesome.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I frowned. I always looked dirty. I splashed cool water from the tub onto my face and dried it with a cotton towel. I found a comb tucked away in one of the small, dark wooden drawers and began to shove it through my tangles.
I put my hands on the yellowish, smooth counter and stared at myself in the small, circular mirror. Eh, it was good enough.

“So, shadows only come at night, right?” I question as I look out the window. The sky was clouding up. Large fluffy masses of grey and dark blue clouds were rapidly moving through the sky, blocking out the sun.

“Only at night. And by the way, I wanted to show you something before orintation starts at noon.”

“Ok,” I said, pulling away from the window. “What is it?”

“You’ll find out,” Thomas said as he walked through the door and down the mossy stone steps.

I followed Thomas. While I walked, I noticed people staring at me, some pointing. I saw an elderly woman feeding her pigs, and when she saw me, she nearly fell into the trough, which made me laugh. Thomas stopped. I wondered why and looked around him and saw a line of people standing behind a wooden post labeled. ZIPLINE, TO THE SCHOOL.

“Most people use quicksand to get to the school, but zip lines are way better,” Thomas whispered to me as we moved a step up in line. People started climbing a rickety wooden ladder and went to stand on a small, wooden platform in front of the thick metal line. I watched as someone wrapped two thick strands of material around their waist and looped a hook through the front.

“That’s a harness,” Thomas whispered to me. “You hook yourself into the line and slide down. Completely harmless,” Thomas reassured me as he pushed me towards the ladder.

My hands felt clammy, and my heart raced as I struggled to put it on and hook it onto the rope.

Thomas bounced up after me and tugged on the harness.

“Always been a fast learner,” he muttered. “Well, just in case it falls, don’t try to protect yourself in any way because you’d die anyway.”

“Oh. Has anyone died recently?”

“Just a couple hundred, or thousand. It's not a big deal. The zip line is also currently under repair, but good luck.” He pushed me off the wooden platform. I let out a squeak as my legs and arms dangled, but I didn’t fall. I just kept moving faster and faster.

“I’ll meet you at the school!” Thomas called from back at the base. I gave him a thumbs up.

It was a beautiful experience. The pine trees and lakes flash by as the zipline gained speed. I looked in the distance and saw  two nearly identical red bricked schools with three large windows in the front of the three story building.

My Jaw hung open as we came closer, and I figured that the two schools were by the biggest forest I have even seen. The trees seemed to go in every direction for miles and miles until I couldn’t see anymore.

I landed smoothly, unbuckling myself and hanging yhr harness on the rack. I waited for Thomas.

“That was awesome,” I told him, and we walked towards the schools. He nodded his head.

“I know.”

I raised an eyebrow at his confidence as he walked towards the schools.

“So, what are they called?” I motioned towards both of the schools.

“The one on the right is Firebone. And the one on the right is Nighthawk.”

“Interesting,” I say, noticing how the brick coloring in Firebone is redder than in Nighthawk.

“The only problem is that you're in Nighthawk.”

“Why is that a problem?”

“Because I’m in Firebone-.” He explained further when he saw the horrified expression on my face. “It’s only because there was one available spot. And it was in Nighthawk. But you’ll be with Lavender!” He smiled nervously. I sighed.

“Okay,” I said quietly. I knew everybody worked really hard for me to be able to come to this school.

Thomas steered me towards the front doors and let me in. The ground was a pale gray, the walls and stairs black granite. The windows broadcasted the beautiful forest. Some would call this place simple and boring. But it was amazing. It felt like I was walking on glass as Thomas motioned me towards a small office labeled, COUNCELOR JANE.

Thomas put a hand on my shoulder as I looked around at the simple gray walls with a wooden desk in the center of the small room. A lady with red glasses sat behind the desk, tapping a pencil on her bright purple notebook.

I gave her a slight wave as Thomas began explaining the situation. I looked around her room a little more, staring at the picture frames on the walls. One stood out in particular. It was rimmed in black. And under it said ‘the future’. But the picture scared me the most.

The more and more I looked at it, the similarities between the picture of the dark-haired girl with green eyes stood out more. Except the only problem was the girl had black ink pooling from her hands, and I didn’t. But the word etched under the picture sounded familiar.

She was a shadow.