Marked

Chapter 3

"726." The driver bowed slightly then gestured me to the door of an old home, one I had never seen. The wood was a thousand splinters jolting every which way, sloppily covered in a deep dirty green. Some of the windows were covered in  plywood,  while other windows were broken and so dirty that the inside of the building was unable to be seen.

I turned my eyes to woods surrounding the rickety building.

I had never seen nature so vast before, my home was always surrounded by other homes. No trees in sight.

I forgot my place. I could't help it, I stepped towards one of the towering toothpicks and  ran my fingers across the rough bark on the tree, the bark was peeling away in thin strips and as I pulled my hand away the sap stuck my fingers together. I smiled. I forgot that my situation was not one of simplicity, I wasn't supposed to just ignore everyone, for a tree of all things! But I couldn't help it.

I stopped moving and listened quietly. The rusting of leaves in the wind, the snapping of sticks by unseen creatures, the sound of frogs and crickets.

Things I knew about from school, things I never believed I would truly experience.

"She will do nicely." A new voice said.

"I thought so as well." 087 replied quietly.

I barely heard them speak, or the front door open, the loud screeching of rusting hinges and the creek of wood beyond its years were lost by the new sensations surrounding me.

"726." A loud booming voice called, pulling me from my trance. I jumped and ran back to the house.

"I-I'm sorry!" I bowed my head and didn't stop until I felt a hand carefully nudge me back to a normal standing position.

"Its a Red Cedar." The man said, I searched for his tattoo, I did not see one. The rules are that your tattoo had to show at all times, since he didn't have one...this was my master. I had shown such...irresponsibility in front of him and he names the tree?

"Red Cedar?" I asked, more curious about him than the tree.

He wasn't old but he surely wasn't young. Maybe his late 30's? His hair was a shiny black and curled around his head, soft glimpses of silver shined through the black.

He had a pale skin for August, but it still managed to glow. Brown eyes were bright, no glasses needed. Just one reason he could be great and I could not.

He had the genetics for it.

He was tall, at least 6 feet. However these traits were not what surprised, what surprised me was the smile. It was so warm...so inviting.

There were lines on his face showing he did it often.

"Do not be so nervous child."

I looked up at him trying to pull the nerves off my face and hide them deep inside, but the way he looked into my green eyes, he could still see the shaking fear of a girl in a new place.

"Sir, if I may ask," He nodded and I continued, "What is my purpose?"

He smiled again. But this time it was not a welcoming smile, it was not full of warmth. I could see the cruelty in his eyes and the pure lust for vengeance in every wrinkle on his face.

"Why child, your purpose?" He knelt down in front of me, "Is to fight."

We don't fight. We don't have wars. We are peaceful...have been that way for decades. What does he mean by fight?

I could feel my eyes widen in shock, but I tried desperately not to seem like the naive child I was in their eyes, "T-To fight?"

The tall man knelt down beside me, "There is so much they keep from you. So much you do not know about outside of what they teach in class. 726, the wars have not yet ended. They are still being fought. Right outside of your peaceful city, the world is crumbling."

"Why don't they tell us?" I asked, part of me didn't believe it. Didn't want to believe it, the other part of me was angry for not being told and my voice reflected that anger.

It was almost as if I had tickled him because as my voice rang out he seemed almost delighted to hear it. As if he was happy I felt something other than fear, "Why should we worry all of you when not all of you can take it? No, only a select few are needed for this task. And you, are one of them...unless you don't want to protect the people you love." He smirked cruelly, "Brinlee? Cohen? Reed? Awe, without people like you to fight...well we would just get taken over. They would die and always wonder why? Why didn't she fight for us? Why didn't she protect us?"

To me, he was no longer a kind man. He was cruel and malicious. Fed off of people's pain.