Refinement: A War of Europe

Chapter Eight: West: The Dreaded Rope

Eloise~ West (England)

I walked into the cafeteria for breakfast at five-thirty with an extra spring in my step. My black hair hung messily to my shoulders, and my eyes sagged a little from the long day yesterday, but they were still bright.

“Why are you so happy this morning?” Arielle shot me a death glare. Her hair and make-up were done perfectly, but you could still tell that she wanted to plan someone’s accidental death. I was used to it. She was never a morning person, and the only way that you could wake her up was to throw her around for a few minutes, or hold food up to her nose.

“I am happy because I like to look at mornings as a new beginning. A new hope. With every sunrise, comes another chance to become the person that you long to mold yourself into.” I must have said it unconvincingly, because she banged her head on the table. 

“I hate morning people.” I shrugged, "Love you too, Bestie," and walked to join Lex and Jenny in the line to get food. I typed my name into a screen, and scanned my hand.

“Weight: 120 lbs.

Height: 5“3

Metabolism: Average

Age: 15,”

Popped on the screen. My cheeks burned, as Lex looked over my shoulder.

“Only 120? You will probably getting more food than us all.” My cheeks still burning, I asked,

“What do you mean?”

“They give you only the amount of food you need until Lunch, and they measure that amount by your weight, height, metabolism, and so on.” A woman handed me a plate full of fruit, and eggs. I accepted gratefully. We didn’t get fruit often in the West anymore, since the War started. I only remembered tasting a grape once before.

Like everything else in the Base, everything in the cafeteria was white. There were seventy-eight long tables lining the room. I weaved through women, children, and men on my way to where Arielle sat. I saw one soldier, with a bulging stomach, and a two year old in her arms.

“All of the children here are born to be soldiers one day. Whether they like it or not. Some of the girls and boys will make it through Inauguration just for breeding purposes.” Grayson said behind me. I made my face go emotionless, even though my stomach churned. Breeding purposes? My tongue suddenly swelled and it became hard to swallow. I turned around to look into Grayson’s eyes.

“Are we really that desperate?” Grayson let a smile spread onto his face.

“Yeah.” Without another word, I turned and proceeded to the table.

“Grayson never talks to anyone.” Lex said casually, shoveling his food into his mouth. Jenny looked shyly at Lex, and said,

“He is just broken. All soldiers are. You are eventually going to get numb after you see so many people die.” Jenny looked at the ground again, and smiled. I realized that she was holding Lex’s hand. They were so close. I wished I were that close to my siblings. There is something so beautiful about adoption. Breaking down the barrier of blood, and discovering what real family is. A real family is who you love more than anything. Real family doesn’t have to be confined to a pattern of someone’s DNA, or skin color.

“Attention, Inaugurates! Follow me, please.” Grayson shouted with an unusually loud voice. We filed into a single line. Inauguration was about to start. Physical Abilities. I looked back at Jenny with a twinkle in my eye.

“I can barely climb a tree. I don’t think I will be doing very well.” Jenny smiled at me nicely.

“It is just about endurance. Your body can do anything the brain tells it to do.”