The sun brightened, casting a copper glow through my tent flap. I sat up to see Rori poking her head in my tent. "Wakey wakey, my little sunshine!" She smiled, "you ready to roll?"
I nodded pulling on some pants and a new shirt before stepping outside. Rori was waiting by the fire.
"Ready to go to the Pot?" She asked.
I shrugged. "I just want some food."
"Then the Pot is the place to be." She smiled and winked at me. "It is basically a version of a resturant."
I smiled. Food. Food. "Sounds good!"
Rori shriveled up her nose. "The food isn't actually that great, though. It is like pig slop."
"Well," I shrugged. "At least it's something."
Rori raised her eyes at me. "Where did you get all this positivity from? Surely, not from me."
"Oh. I don't know." I paused, then I thought about my powers all of a sudden. The invisibility, the flying. "What are your powers?" I asked Rori.
She frowned. "People don't really ask that much. They don't like to remember why they are here. And it makes them sound like they want to escape."
"Oh." I sighed. "Sorry, I thought you got trained here."
"That's what they say." Rori sighed. "But really, we just work and work. Like slaves. It all depends on the job you get. Only certain people get to develop their powers."
I looked at Rori. "It doesn't seem like that bad of work."
Rori shrugged. "I have a good job. I am a feather girl. I take care of the hens. And then pluck them for butchering."
"So it isn't a military camp at all?" I asked, surprised.
"Well, once every month fifteen people get picked for military training. They get to develop their powers." Rori frowned. "But you don't want to be on that list. Only three people have returned alive since this camp started. And this camp has been around for eighteen years. So, you don't want to be on that list. It, it is basically murder."
I looked down. "Oh. When are the lists posted?"
"We'll find out this morning. They have announcements every morning so if a list is coming out, they will let us know." Rori smiled as we walked into the Pot.
I smiled, too. "Let's get some food!"
As we walked inside, Rori pulled me to a side table. Two steaming plates of slop were plopped in front of us. It looked like a thicker gravy. I looked up. A girl with thick, red hair looked at me. "Tomorrow the lists are posted. Lunch is at one. Dinner is at seven. Don't be late."
"Okay," I smiled. "Thank you!" I felt butterflies swirling in my stomach. The lists. Tomorrow. Something made me want to be on the list. I wanted to learn more about myself. Even if it was suicide.
YOU ARE READING
Upside Down Tendrils
Fiksi UmumEm has been struggling with her father's death for a long time. Her father always stood up for her. For the town. And now, he is gone. Em has turned into a rebel, but on one cool, autumn day that all changes. She is just an ordinary girl at an...
