The City Of A Thousand Lights (Book One)

Chapter One; Part One

A young girl sits on a cold metal chair, her elbows resting on a similar table, covered only by a thin sheet of synthetic fabric. Her crystalline blue eyes shone with what could only be delight. A tall, broad shouldered man sat across from her, he had the same eyes. The father ruffled his daughter's long, wheat colored hair with one hand while using the other to animate his words. There was a thin woman standing over a run down old stove that exuded the fragrance of cooking oil and rust. Her hair, the same color as the child's, was pulled into a low chignon. The mother stirred a miscellaneous pot, emitting the smell of a stew of sorts. A small cake-like object was on a plastic plate in front of the girl. She was beaming brightly as her parents sang her a song then coming over to envelop her in an embrace. The girl was the happiest she had ever been.

"Happy birthday Addie, you're a big girl now!" The father whispered in Addie's ear. She was turning twelve years old. That means that she could finally go to the center school if she got accepted. That was the one chance for her to improve her standings, to secure a bright future. That wasn't a problem, as Addie was the smartest child in almost all of the city. Some say that she can practically predict the future with the perfect logic that she thinks in. That was only a common fact to her teachers and classmates. The only ones that the family told. Not a soul thought that it was common information to anyone else but the small community. But in such a heavily surveillanced world, nothing is a secret to the government. The family learned that lesson the hard way.

All of a sudden, the door to the shack burst open, spilling tall men with trench coats and suits into the home. The father stood up and shoved the mother and girl behind him. He whispered fervently in the mother's ear to run away, find a safe house, leave the city. But he was too late. The men grabbed the girl's arms, twisting them sharply behind her back and pulling her towards the door. The father lunged, desperate to save her, but he was painfully out numbered. They put him and his wife in handcuffs, sitting them back down to explain what was going to happen. As they spoke the father's face seemed to look more and more furrowed with anger and distrust, but he could not deny that this was the best chance, the only chance to save his daughter. He nodded his head solemnly, and the girl was led to a sleek black car right outside of the shed. As they pulled away the mother and father shed a tear for their lost child.

~•••~

Beep beep beep beep

My alarm clock sounds. An annoying, high pitched whistle designed specifically to wake me up, refreshed and renewed. 'Well I am certainly awake now' I think to myself. I lay still on my bed, trying my best to drift back asleep, to prolong the time between waking and "school". More like government officials in training. The things that they teach us would never be practical in everyday occurrences. How to hold a gun, to see a riot before it happens, any normal citizen would never have to think of that. But lucky me, I'm not normal.  

I sit up and slide my feet into a pair of house shoes. I push myself off the plain grey comforter and over to a simple set of drawers. Rows of the same identical academy uniforms sit in wait. I pull on the white undershirt and a light green t-shirt. Stretchy black pants and combat boots next, until I look the same as yesterday, and the day before that. The only variable is the style of my shoulder length, silvery hair and a small, barely noticeable, septum piercing. I examine myself in the floor length mirror, making sure every element is in place. My hazel eyes stare back at me, with the cold, calculating look that seems to be ever present. Today feels different somehow. 'Of course it does!' I think idly to myself. 'It's mid- year testing, the day that determines your ranking for the next half of the year!' Just delightful.

I pull half of my hair into a small bun and leave the rest down, like usual. My boots make a soft thumping sound as I walk to my bedroom door. My hand freezes on the handle, and I turn back around, facing the room. This was going to be the last time I saw this room before having my future set in stone. Who knows if I would ever sleep here again, the dormitory was always open. I shake my head softly and turn the handle of the door, opening it up to a dimly lit hallway with bright lights at the other end. The smell of breakfast permeates the musty air. I smile, just a little, before starting down the hallway.