The Soldier

Choosing

Two Erudites stood next to each other outside of The Hub as a constant flow of people moved in front of them to go through the open doors and into the building. They huddled together, distant from the crowd, not speaking, looking away from each other and at those around them. To any curious onlooker, they could have been brother and sister as the thin, tall Erudites had similar brown hair. An Abnegation woman, after some words to her family, left the mass of people in grey clothing getting off the bus and crossed in front of the building to the pair of Erudites. They stepped apart to welcome the new member into the group.

It was bizarre being in the city, standing in front of familiar structures and being passed by people that I remember seeing on surveillance footage. It was even more surreal to see Natalie Prior in person. Back at the Bureau she was an anomaly, a hero. The things that she has done to help preserve the experiment are legendary and it was a honor to be standing in her presence. She smiled at me and gave Braden a nod of recognition. "You're Anderson's son right? You're a spitting image of him from when I last saw him all those years ago."

Braden returned her nod but kept silent, rearranging the glasses that were threatening to fall of his nose. I could tell he was uncomfortable being in the city and interacting with the subjects of the experiment. This morning he had grown quieter the closer we drove to the city, his lips pressed into a firm, straight line from the moment we passed through the fence.

"Right, time is short. I'll be brief." She stopped the small talk and focused her attention on me. "The greatest proportion of Divergent are among the factionless, but for now Jeanine is focusing her attention on those living within the factions. I'll contact you if I have any leads but for now keep your eyes open in Dauntless. The simulations are normally when the Divergent start to manifest themselves so stay vigilant to those around you." She reached out to touch my arm, her soft, motherly tone just as warm as her hand. "Good luck choosing and look out for yourself, I know the faction can be a little rough sometimes. My children will be making their decision next year." She smiled and looked back at the three figures that were waiting for her, their forms grey blobs from this distance, making it almost impossible to make out any distinctive features but I could tell there was a man and two teenagers, a boy and a girl.

She gave us one last smile before she headed back to her faction. I wondered if I was looking at my future as Natalie rejoined her waiting family members. Would I still be here in 20 years, Dauntless and with a family of my own? An image flashed across my mind of a toddler sitting on the shoulders of a heavily tattooed man in black. I dismissed the thought, I couldn't wrap my head around something as complex as that right now. I needed to concentrate on getting through today.

After her departure, Braden turned his body toward me but his head was still turned to the side, scanning the crowd, wary that anybody was paying attention to us. "Listen, once you're inside, I'll go to the Dauntless compound and hide the tablet along with the other supplies."

I nodded, wondering why Braden was telling me information I already knew. Maybe he was nervous and saying the plan out loud made him somewhat more confident. "They'll be in the supply closet next to the training room on the third floor, only check the tablet when you're sure that nobody will notice your disappearance. It will be loaded with a map of the compound as well as any information about necessary Dauntless members. Make sure you read up on that." He advised. I also knew all of this already but I nodded my head again.

He looked down at me. "Send us a message as soon as you can to let us know that you're safely within the compound."

It had been comical to see Braden as the perfect little Erudite in the blue clothes and the glasses but now my throat tightened with emotion as I saw the glisten of tears in his eyes. Saying goodbye was clearly going to be as hard on him as it was going to be on me. I attempted to swallow as he blinked back the tears. "Well, I better get going. We should be in contact within the next few days. Remember to be a good little soldier, Miss Kaiser, and kick some ass."