The Parables

Humus - Precinct Eight

Humus - Precinct Eight

My eyes open wide. Heavy bangs ricochet off the door. Whoever is making them is refusing to cease their actions until their call is answered. Groaning, I pull my pillow out from under my head and lob it at the door. It misses by a metre and the banging continues. Grumbling to myself, I drag the duvet off me and sleepily wander over to the door. Pulling it open, I come face to face with Gaius. He nods at me and I smile back, bleary-eyed.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Gaius queries.

I shake my head. "No, I was, er..." I smile sheepishly and nod my head. "Yeah, I guess you did."

"Well, feel free to go back to sleep if you want. We've got a couple of hours until we arrive in The Commune but breakfast is going on the table in a few minutes."

"Food will wake me up." I grin. "You better be stocked up on tea because I could do with several mugs of it."

Gaius grins at me. "We've got plenty, mate. Oh, and make sure you put on a lilac or pale purple shirt and black trousers when you get dressed."

"Why a lilac shirt? Does it have to be that colour?"

Gaius nods. "It's Precinct Eight's colour," he explains. "All Martyrs from Eight have to wear that colour when they come here. It's a bit unfortunate, I guess - pale purple is more of a female colour."

"You can say that again," I mutter. "If only it were a shade darker." Gaius nods his head at me then shuts the door.

Opening the wardrobe doors, I sift through the clothing hanging on the rails and pick out a lilac buttoned shirt and a pair of black trousers. I swiftly change into the outfit then leave the room, heading into the main area of the carriage. Gaius is sat on the sofa, his eyes glued to the television, watching a repeat of a previous The Parables like a dog watching a door, waiting for its owner to come back home through it. He turns his head in my direction, nods at me then looks back to the television.

Shrugging, I take a seat on an armchair and glance up at the television. The screen is focusing on an empty part of the track, when suddenly, a pool of rich scarlet blood starts to expand into the view. My head instantly whips the other way. My eyes search the room for something else to look at. But it's too late. The picture has already left a large scar in my mind, and even though it was just a puddle of blood, it was the life source of some innocent adolescent who died so somebody else could live. It isn't something I want to see regularly.

"For God's sake, Gaius, why are you showing Humus that?"

Turning my head, I watch Ariella put her hands on her hips and sigh exasperatedly. She strolls forward, grabs the remote off the coffee table and switches the television off. She then turns to Gaius and gives him a stern look.

"What?" He frowns. "He walked in whilst I was watching it. I'm not stopping him."

"You know what those previous episodes do to people," Ariella hisses to him. "They petrify you so much you'd rather die here on the spot than with dignity fighting for your life."

"It's okay, honestly," I pipe up. "I'm fine. It just startled me, that's all."

Ariella frowns at me then sighs. "Breakfast is on the table," she mumbles, walking away.

Getting to my feet, I head over to the table and sit down, regarding the food laid out on the table. From sausages and bacon to eggs and toast, mushrooms and tomatoes to pancakes and waffles, the spread is too much to ask for. I've never had this much of a choice in my life and I'm determined to make the most of it. Helping myself to a small portion of everything, I slowly begin to pile my plate up.