The Parables

Mii - Precinct Twelve

Mii - Precinct Twelve

A single tear slides down my cheek, leaving behind a wet, salty trail as it drips onto my knee. At the innocent and naïve age of twelve, I shouldn't be here. I should be home. Not that I can really call Precinct Twelve my home, but I'd prefer to be there than here. I'd prefer to be anywhere but in this position. It should've been someone else. Someone older. Someone stronger. Someone who's not me. My name should've been at the bottom, with the rest of the eleven and twelve-year-olds. If it was, then the Mayor should've picked from the top. He's always meant to pick from the top. He can't disobey the rules. If he were to have followed tradition, I'd be running freely through the Prairie right now, not strapped to a seat in the back of a car that'll take me to a train which will take me to my death.

Anger simmers inside of me. I've kept it in since my name was called out, but I cannot hold it back anymore. Not this time. The minute I escape this car, somebody or something is going to feel my pain. My anguish. My wrath of fury. Another salty tear slithers down my cheek and as it falls from my chin, the fire inside of me subsides, leaving nothing but sorrow and heartache. Leaning my head against the cold glass window, I close my eyes and imagine myself if it were a typical morning. I'd have crept out of our little shack near the Prairie and followed my normal route around the village twice, around the Prairie twice and then to the harbour, if it were a day off school. Waiting for me there, would be Jett clad in yellow overalls and boots too big for his feet.

Suddenly, my eyes snap open. The thought of Jett has made me realise something. He's off work. The two weeks Jett has off work, he has to sit and watch me die in the most merciless way possible. Sitting up, I sigh and put my head in my hands. Why me? Why does every single bad detail happen to me? First my Papa gets sick, then my Mama loses her job to care for him, then Jett has to get a job to earn money for us and now I've been chosen as a Martyr. Which, in other words, means I'm going to die. Life has never been kind to my family, but now it has torn us apart like we're a flimsy piece of paper.

Curling up in my seat, I let the tears drain from my eyes. They drizzle down my cheeks like little raindrops on a window, creating pools of saltwater on my bare knees. Pulling my legs to my chest, I hug them tightly and bury my face in my thighs. For some reason, a few moments later, the song that always made me smile pops into my head. And for some other reason, I start singing it quietly to myself.

"Angels fly by, above in the sky. Showering us with love, and peace from the doves. People are merry, having tea with the fairies. All thanks to the angels that brought us the joy. People start dancing and ponies start prancing. We start to sing, as we come into spring. Everybody's cheery and nobody's weary. All thanks to the angels that brought us the joy."

A small smile creeps onto my face. Brushing the tears from my eyes, I sigh somewhat happily and gaze up at the sky. The early morning sun is gradually climbing to its towering position in the sky above us all, showering down golden and amber light on the landscapes below. Reaching out, my fingers brush against the glass window, catching a drop of the butter coloured light. Curling my fingers into my palm to make a fist, I drop my arm and open up my hand. The light has gone. Only the cracked lines in my palm can be seen.

"The train station's just ahead now."

I look up. "Oh...okay."

My body becomes rigid once more as the dread of being one step closer to The Parables dawns upon me. We'll pull up the station and I'll be whisked off by the train. Next, we'll arrive in The Commune and I'll have a short time to train and prepare myself before I'm shoved into the Labyrinth profuse with laborious, arduous challenges and fearsome beasts, those of which have been genetically engineered to be even more deadly than they previously were. To top all of that off, I will then perish alone, with nothing but the cold air by my side.