Oblivion (on hold)

Chapter One

Chapter One

---

"One more human, named Max Jones, was captured and arrested for assisting in the murder of Mary Eliot," the news-anchor said.

"Finally," remarked Dad, "they're catching those troublemakers."

Mum nodded her assent. "Humans really are good for nothing. They let their feelings get the best of them." It was a rainy Friday night, and my brother, Derek, was out with his friends.

Mary Eliot's murder was the most exciting thing to happen in Umbra for months. She was a twenty-something Inferius guard in Pravus, the island for humans and one of the three huge island continents made by the Superius. Normally, any Pravus guard has to go through years of training beforehand, because sometimes the humans can get rather fractious. But Mary was reckless, stupid, and spoilt, and managed to become a guard after only a year of training. No-one really knows how she died. Some people think that she killed herself, but she had everything she wanted. Money, beauty, a fiancé, a circle of loyal friends, the job she desired. Why would she kill herself? She didn't have a criminal record or anything because of which she could be suspected. And if she did, why would she choose a dagger with her initials on it? Why not a gun or some other weapon that didn't leave a trace? Every Pravus guard had ready access to whichever weapon he desired. That just gives the two old ladies across the street more evenings to spend gossiping than doing something worthwhile or productive.

"What do you think, Fee?" Mum suddenly asked, snapping me out of my reverie.

I was just about to say something when the newswoman interrupted me by saying, "This is just in: another human is found guilty of Eliot's death. Police suspect that there was a whole gang of about six or seven people involved."

Suddenly, Dad said, "Is it eleven already? Fee, you should be sound asleep by now! Come on, be a good girl and go up to your room."

I sighed. Dad still treated me as if I was seven instead of seventeen sometimes. I didn't mind it that much usually, unless he said something in front of the whole school. In that situation, I would start pretending I didn't know him, duck my head, and dart away.

"Yes, Dad." I responded and started trudging up the stairs. In Mancipium, we Inferius have very few choices regarding our life. All of us have the same, small rectangular bedroom with pinewood furniture. There's a cramped bed in one corner of the room in front of a small square window. That's the only window in the whole room. Next to it is a table in which I keep all my writing supplies and other possessions in it. There's a study table and a mirror too. Opposite the bed is a cupboard that has all my clothes, and that's it. We Inferius get just enough clothes to wear, which means seven pairs of jeans, seven tops, two dresses, one pair of pajamas, and three pairs of shoes for everyday wear. All these clothes get replaced four times a year. We also get some winter clothes when the season arrives.

When I reached my room, I closed the door behind me, and immediately tripped over a book on the floor. It was an old-fashioned paperback with half the words faded. I had discovered it while taking a shortcut to school. It was about the life of a woman named Jane Eyre, and it had been written ages ago. I was surprised to even find it. There are some places that still publish old books like these. The Superius shut most of them down, but evidently some still remain. Jane was an incredibly inspirational heroine.

I faced the window after I had changed into my pajamas and clambered into bed, and looked out at the beautiful, starry sky overhead. It was hard to find beautiful things in the seventy-second century, Mum usually said when I talked to her about it, especially when humans were dying everyday. I didn't even know whether all of them were guilty of something. Maybe they were just like us, innocent. Their precious lives were being snatched away from them, while we Inferius were in the safety of our homes. I shook my head to clear these thoughts; it's not like I could do something about it. People always say that an individual can make a difference, but I don't think so. We are as important to the Superius as an elephant is to an ant. One of us cannot make a difference. We'll just get our head chopped off. That's what happens to any Inferius who breaks the Law.

---

I muttered a 'hi' to Lexi as I neared my locker at school. Instead of replying, she continued to stare at a fixed point behind me.

"Hel-lo," I said. Her only response was a dreamy sigh. The Superius were erudite but they hadn't quite succeeded in completely ridding us of our emotions. We could still feel, but just barely. I turned and followed her line of vision to see an auburn-haired boy from my Umbra Chronicles class, Kyle Mathews.

"Kyle?" I asked Lexi, grinning. She nodded.

"You know you cannot do anything about your crush, unless the Superius pair you with him, and that is as likely as me getting an A plus in Umbra Chronicles without cheating." The day each Inferius turns twenty-one, he or she is sent a picture and all the details of the person he or she is to marry. They then get married about six months later.

"I know, but a girl can dream," she said cheerfully.

"Did you do your Arithmetic homework? I didn't understand the last question," I asked.

"I think I'm going to go say hello," she said and sauntered away down the hall. I glanced at my watch and saw that the bell was about to ring.

"Lexi! We need to go to Arithmetic class now!"

She pouted, "Fine." I laughed.