Hope

Chapter 9: It's Showtime

I struggle and manage to lift myself up in my bed, my eye hurts. I open it to see a dark grey color, like cloth, it's a bandage. I open my right eye slowly and look around. The cells are empty and quiet. I can hear shuffling near by, I concentrate on this when the cell door slams open.
"You're awake," a guard says, I nod,
"Alright then, get up!" he shouts. I slide off of my bed and stand up. I flinch slightly, it hurts, a lot. He grabs my shoulder with a firm grip, "It's showtime."
We walk out down the halls, "I haven't seen this hallway since March" I think to myself. He shoves me into a room full of soldiers, there's paint and mirrors everywhere. Once I'm inside the soldiers walk towards the entrance and stop just as they have passed me. A small group of women turn the corner and enter the room. They see my and smile chalantly. I'm told to stand up as they lead me to a door in the back of the room. The tallest woman grabs my arm and opens the door, inside is a small closet and we enter. She holds a finger to her lips as she licks the door behind us. Loudly she says to me, "Today is the day!" she giggles, "time for your family to see the real you." Her face turns serious and she whispers, "I'm going to help you get out of here." After further instruction she dresses me in my presentation outfit. My hair is tied up and I have warrior makeup on. She excentuates my sunken cheekbones and the darks circles under my eyes. She helps me change into the outfit we are all apparently forced to wear. A gray jumpsuit with our Ukoo symbol on it, then she stuffs it with weapons, real weapons. We both exit the closet as she smiles at the other women. "The fake weapons are in place," she says. Twenty guards surround me, the four nearest me grab me firmly and take me outside.