Ending Day (no longer being written)

Prologue

Mackenzie looked up at the clock and grabbed for her small container of hand sanitizer off of her bedside table. Today was January eighteenth of the year 2060. In a frenzy, the brown haired girl pushed down on the top of the container, forcing the plastic thing to dispel its clear, translucent contents onto her hands. She rubbed them together and then released a sigh. This would have to be enough, but...maybe it wasn't. No one could cheat death. That was the Institute's mantra they drilled into the minds of its people. The government claimed that the way to keep order was to give everyone the exact time and date of their deaths-their Ending Day, as it was called by most of the world. This was determined by a machine known as the Dust Biter. Sometimes when it was out of order, people that claimed they could see the future determined people's fates, but they were often wrong, so the machine was kept in use. Apparently, more would be accomplished this way and no one would slack off. There was more to it than that, she knew. With her connections to their leader, President Sloan, she knew that a higher being had declared that these dates be given out, in order to further their life. Though she didn't know what this being was, she knew it was ancient and powerful, and going against it would push your end date forward, and cause you to perish sooner. No one wanted that, but the feverish young adult known as Mackenzie didn't want to die today. To go against the system would be suicidal, but just because it seemed to be impossible didn't mean it really was. Today she would attempt the impossible-live past eight thirty, which had been the time determined for her death.

Today was her Ending Day, and Mackenzie decided that she would live to see tomorrow's sunrise, even if it killed her.

Sloan had been a childhood friend of hers. Cold but kind occasionally, the leader of the Institute of the United States had revealed to her how she would die. No one was allowed to know this information usually, but she had been allowed to due to her unwavering loyalty to the Institute. Disease would be Mackenzie's end. Some air borne one that would cause her to cough up all the food matter in her stomach, possibly bits of her organs as well. It was similar to tuberculosis, but the name was lost to her memory. However, she'd done all that she could to avoid this. Besides sanitizer, she also wore a mask over her mouth and nose to keep from breathing in the virus. She'd locked her bedroom door and sat on her bed, waiting for the time to pass. The digital letters on her beside clock read as 8:23 PM. If she could just last until 8:31, she would outlast her Ending Day and live to see tomorrow. Mackenzie looked at herself in the mirror. Gray, tired eyes looked back at her amidst a tangled mess of pale brown hair. She moved to tie it back and released another sigh. She looked back at her clock and then twiddled her thumbs and the rest of her fingers nervously. It was 8:24 now. She only had seven minutes to go. There was an unusual sound from outside, one that Mackenzie couldn't pass off as a car horn or some wild animal. She stood up from her bed to investigate, but as she did so, her window was smashed in, and armed men in dark clothing swarmed her, pinning her to the ground and taking off her mask. She looked up at them with wide eyes, recognizing the first man. He glared at her and kicked her side with a steel toed boot, knocking the air out of her lungs. "Oh, Mackenzie," the man said mockingly. "Sweet, stupid Mackenzie. Did you really think you could get away with this?" "It was worth a try," she gasped. "Why does it matter, Cyrus? Why can't I live past that time?"

"Because Thanatos wouldn't allow it." The man held up something sharp in his gloved hand. It was a syringe. Its tip glittered from the lights in her bedroom. Mackenzie looked up at it in horror. She didn't know what Cyrus intended to use that for, but it couldn't be anything good. She struggled, but the men holding her down wouldn't let her go. "Who's Thanatos?"

"That's not important." Cyrus brought the syringe down, plunging the tip into her arm. A scream escaped Mackenzie. It felt like liquidized fire was inside of her. Her throat began to burn, and she soon found it hard to form words. Her breathing became ragged, and she looked up at Cyrus even though it hurt to lift her head. "What...what did you do?"

"It's the virus that traitor Sloan warned you about. The disease it causes would normally take a few days to kill you, but this lab created version will go much faster. You'll die in a few minutes, maybe less." He laughed. "It was foolish of you to try this in the first place, Mac. I don't know what I ever saw in you."

At that, the men holding her in place let her go. It was just as well, since Mackenzie had lost the strength to move. She crawled forward, one hand outstretched towards her former husband. "You...monster! When Sloan finds out about this-"

The woman's ex shook his head. "Sloan will be dead soon. I'll be taking her place, my dear, and once I do, I'll make sure no one else rebels. Thanatos knows best, and he'll give me everything I could ever have wanted." He scowled at Mackenzie. "It's quite sad, Mac. If you had only followed the rules like a good little girl, he might've granted you power too." Mackenzie's body shook as the coughing overtook her. Blood spilled out of her mouth, and leaked out of the corner of one of her eyes. "Cyrus...you c-can't..."

"Oh, but I can." The man kicked her side, and a fresh burst of pain shot through her trembling form. "Farewell, Mackenzie. You should know you can't cheat death."

Cyrus and his men began to disappear as Mackenzie's vision started to fail. The disease overtook her, and she coughed and coughed until she went still on the floor, the carpet wet with her blood.

Author's note: Hello, readers! This is a very new thing for me. I have never tried writing this genre of story before, so I'll just have to do my best. Yes, this story will be a bit dark, as you've seen from this little portion. Updates may take a while due to school and the fact that this story was only just written a few days ago :/ Enjoy, comment, and vote as usual! Bye for now! ~ awesomeri14