The Worlds Truth

Chapter 1

The sky was lit up by the fiery orange glow of the sunrise. A sunrise is a sort of rarity here, due to the fact that it stays day or night for months at a time. This is due to the slow rotation of the planet around the sun, plus a bunch of other sciency crap that nobody really cares about. Usually an occasion such as this would call for a huge party, with everybody on our island taking part in the festivities. However, this day is different. The date was August 13. This is a day where everybody is ordered, by law, to stay in their houses. It has been this way for hundreds of years, and nobody knows why. Yet this tradition has been upheld without fault for years, and would have continued to be done for many years to come. However, me being the rebellious teenager I was, I couldn't resist getting together with my friends and trying to find out what this mysterious days real purpose was supposed to be. This is the story of the fateful day that changed the course of history as we knew it.

"Abby... Abby... Abigail! Where are you?" shouted Chris

"Up here on the roof. Why are you yelling?" Soon after I said that, I saw my brother stick his head out the window and start to look around. "Up here bro."  He looked around for a moment before seeing me and started up to meet me. I have always liked going to the roof, it was quiet and besides my brother, nobody ever really looked for me up there. It was simply a nice place to get away. After a rather entertaining struggle by my brother to climb up to the roof, he finally reached the top and sat next to me.

"You know you shouldn't be out here right now. Lockup starts in 30 minutes." We both sat up there for a while, just taking in the surroundings. "I still don't get people's weird fascination with sunsets. It's nothing but colors in the sky, but to each his own I suppose." He has never been one to enjoy the sights. "As much as I enjoy sitting on the cold roof 30 minutes before we are forced back inside for a day, I think we should go back. There will be plenty more sunrises and sunsets and plenty more days to sit on the roof." That being said, he began his slow clumsy journey back from the roof into the house. After he left, I remained to take in the last bits of beauty and to watch the sun's rays' methodical advance across the ground, like an army pushing out the remains of a fallen nation whose time had ended. But now, as the fiery orange turned to a cool blue, I figured it was about time to follow my brothers lead and head back inside.

I crawled back in through the big window on the second floor into the study. This was less of a place for work, and more a place for my dad to escape from the terror that is my family. I locked the window and headed for the other side of the room to return a book that I had taken with me on my little roof adventure. As I walked by the large mahogany desk that sits in the middle of the room, I heard a very familiar voice.

"I've been expecting you." This voice came from a chair that was slowly spinning towards me. After about another quarter spin there sits my best friend Elizabeth, petting what seems to be a rather annoyed cat, not approving of her attempt at being a B list Bond villain. After seeing my apparently obvious look of disapproval, she tossed the cat to the ground and walked over to the shelf where I placed my book. "So what's the plan for today? Do you have any idea how hard it was to convince my parents to let me show up for lockdown? You better appreciate all that I do for you, Abby."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're my hero Liz you truly are, what would I ever do without you." I said, as sarcastically as humanly possible. After a few more minutes of bad jokes and small talk we heard the ding of the speaker.

"Attention all citizens. The Lockdown will begin in 10 minutes. We kindly request that you all return to your homes or the homes in which you will be staying with for the next 24 hours. Again, we remind you that it is of the utmost importance that you comply. Thank you all, and have a good day." The buzzer clicked off. We both stood in silence for a moment, looking at each other, deciding what we should do. After only about 30 seconds of thinking, Chris walked through the door to the study.

"Just wanted to check that you were in and didn't get stuck on the roof during the lockdown. Dinner's ready. Come get it before it's cold." He turned and started down the hall to the kitchen.

"Alright so here's what we'll do. We'll go eat and then say we're going to bed. Then, once everybody is asleep, we will sneak out, simple as that." I really hadn't thought about how to get out, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. I decided it would be best not to tell her that part.

"That's cliche and boring, but I suppose it will work." I will never understand Liz's love for flashy and dramatic. But hey, to each their own I suppose. Now for dinner, and to begin planning for the day to come. I mean honestly, what's the worst that could happen?