Encaged

Chapter 1

I look outside the transparent window and see the glistening galaxy. A beautiful sight, actually. I hear some people think it is mostly black, but I have a different idea. From out here, there is a large tint of purple and pink, with a hint of a shimmery silver. Then in the middle, a large white-yellow sun-star brightens the atmosphere. And here I am. A girl imprisoned in a glass like box, staring at the sky. The only thing that she has left. The sky.

I was 9 when this all happened. Both my parents were accused of blowing up important building which creates all of our food. They only thing they missed was that my parents never did that. Then one day a man showed up at the courthouse. He claimed that his parents were the building at the time of the explosion, though somehow they escaped right before it came. Sounds suspicious doesn't it? Well he brought evidence. So the jury ruled that my parents would die the same way everybody else did in the building. An explosion. And I was there to witness it all, but I could do nothing about it. The next day that same man brought his parents to the courthouse. They accused me of helping with this whole master plan.

So here I am, in a glass box held in the universe, waiting for my death.

I do have a few friends though.

There is a boy, around my age, who sits far away on my left. His name is Max. Then another girl, Haera, is housed on my right. This is our 'group'. A group is made for every few kids. We talk often enough, but we're not close to tell everything. Though, we know each other thoroughly.

This morning was weird, in my opinion. Haera was on her usual rants about life, but Max just sat down, looking distantly away. So I've decided to sit with him.

"What's wrong," I question.
"The world and everything in it," he answers back.
"Then what is wrong with 'everything in it'," I quote.
"Well, it's just, ugh, I can't say," Max lowers his head. "Sorry Kas." It was a long pause until I said something else. I was focusing on his darkish-brown hair glistening in the galaxy light. It's funny how we look almost alike with our hair, but exactly opposite.

"No, no, I understand. We all need our times of peace and privacy. I know I have asked that from you many times. So," I pause, "be okay." I turned to exit the glass room then he stopped me.
"Wait! Come back!" He yells across the room.
"Ummm....." I turn around and sit in the same couch as before.
"It's my sister. She is being executed in an hour and I am not allowed to come. They said they can't trust me in there because of my history with escaping," Max explains.

I mentally run to the corner of my head and pull out the memory of Max's story. He was 10 when his single mother robbed a bank. They needed the money, so his sister and him helped with the planning but never went with it. For they knew, something would go wrong. Max's sister, Albany, went off to stop their mother but it was too late. Their mother, Piper, already got caught and was executed on the spot. Max and Albany cried for days. Albany was then sent to a separate detention while Max was stuck in here for knowing about the outline. He hasn't seen her since.

"But you are 13 and a half, you are allowed to see her," I worry in rage.
"I know but now they set new restrictions for people encaged," He tries to understand.
"Who?" I ask.
"The warden."

It was then my stomach dropped down to the eeriest part of my abdomen. I fell back in my chair and felt the world spinning. A panic attack. They happen here and there for certain reasons. Certain reasons that is only one person. The Warden. And this warden is one so closely I hung onto until she let me fall. Fall into the depths of the world with no regard of such life dangling at her fingertips. Slipping so little bit that it makes that world suffer. And not even caring.

"Kas are you okay?! Haera come here! It's worse than before!" Max whines. I see then Haera rushes over and try to help me up. But I feel nothing at all.
"Quick! Help!" Is all I hear Max and Haera scream. Then the room fills with sirens and cries. Haera's cries. You don't ever hear her cry or even be emotional. Just complain. This is the first time I have ever seen her cry.
"Haera, are you crying?" I croak.
"No!" She cries some more.
"We need to get out of here," a man in a hospital suit commands.
"Copy that," a women assures him. Then they lift me onto a gurney and float me into the ambulance. I dizzly glide my hand across my forehead, but stopped by the man.
"Don't do that sweetie. It will only make the pain worse," he attempts to explain. I nod in agreement that I don't really mean. I mean I have been through much worse.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

"She will be okay right?" I recognize as Haera's voice.'
"Yes, Ms. Kearing will be fine," the doctor replies.
"Oh, thank god!" Max paces around the area with joy. After, Max and Haera both enter the room and hug me.
"Umm, guys. Need some space here," I choke.
"Oh, um, sorry," Haera pats my head.
"Why are you guys hugging me? Was it really that bad?" I ask with fear.
"Hmm hm," Max hums in agreement.

I look out the window that faces the hallway and see her. Her perfect face and perfect frame that makes her the center of attention. But I also see her thin mask that covers her gruesome evil and cakey make up hiding the horror of her true identity.

"So Kas, I have never understood why you faint at ease when we mention the warden?" Max tilts his head.
"I don't think I have told you guys have I?" I look down and stare at the floor, waiting for an answer.

Again I face the monster standing outside the glass window, only this time, she also faces me. After a playful laugh with the doctor, she ends the conversation and begins towards me with an evil grin. She opens the door and heads at me. I quickly try to squirm under the hospital covers but it is too late.

"Hello, Kas," She chuckles.
"And greetings to you-," Max tries to confide.
"Cruella," Haera scoffs under her breath. We all laugh in our heads.
"Well, that just lost Max his privilege to see Albany's death," The warden strongly implies.
"Well for your information, you already created some stupid rule for Max not to see her anyway," I snap back. As if that weren't enough, I continue on. "Oh and also, if you hadn't noticed, why can't you be a nice person for once. I mean haven't you tortured enough people already." I finally broke into her head. You could see her eyes well-up.
"Oh, and well for your information, it's part of the job," She gets in my face while speaking in a girl-snap tone.
"Well for your information," I speak in the same girl-snap tone, "you can get a different job Whisper."
It's been years since any encaged has spoken her name allowed. To us, she's made it a disgrace to say her name. A sign of disrespect, foul, and rebellion. Her dead green eyes look into mine, creating a death threat. No words needed.

"You better watch your mouth, little girl." As she spoke those final words, I was done with her nonsense and terrible rules.
"And you better watch your back, Warden," I spit in the same snake-like tone. As she heard my expression, she pivoted in her tracks. But the world seemed to go in slow motion. She began to run, pulling out a sharp dagger in her right hand. Whisper comes close to my face and I felt the expression plastered on it. Scared and confused, but the anger it scribbled all over. I saw it coming. But I took the risk.

"Oh you're in for it," she screams. She hovers the dagger over my face, bobbing it up and down, hesitant to do what she is about to do. Kill me. In my peripheral vision, I notice Max and Haera attempting to find the help button. I then see Max slide over to the small, red button, and forcefully push it. A miniscule sound beeps, loud enough to get Whisper's attention.
Growling, Whisper races to Max and hisses, "But you first." The nurses slowly flood in, but not quick enough. I tug at the sturdy wires that keep me steady and keep track of my health, but not sturdy enough to entirely hold me down. My arms yank at the cords and break free. I throw myself towards Whisper, knocking her over before she could assassinate Max and Haera. Attempting to get up, I fall back down.

And darkness fills the air again.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

It's strange, the universe and its medical discoveries. When I hit the ground and my mind turned black, I felt transported. As if I were in 3rd person and I could control the world. When I dabbled in partial suicide per say, I could glide around the universe, like a ice skater. I could glide to the infirmary in the sky. A white, icy box held in the sky. Just like our cages.

I remember my mother showing me a clip about ice skaters. Before our world had become our world, there was a time of grace and enjoyment. Beautiful and graceful. And full of elegance. When I saw them dance on ice, I could feel it beneath me. The smooth icy water flowing against my metal shoes. It was like a reassurance that in our messed up, terrible world, everything will be just fine.

But I knew every time, that the world will always be the same. It will always never have peace, it will always never be okay. And I knew it was always that way.