eliminated

:3:

okay but side note the three and the colon looks like a lil face ok back to the story

what to listen to while reading this chapter:
"lost and found - ODESZA remix" -pretty lights

•~•

those were the last words i heard.

it went through my chest.

that was the last thing i remember.

and then, suddenly, i was back.

i gasped and sat up. my eyes flew open and i took in my surroundings. i was in a small circle of trees, maybe four or five. the grass underneath me was soft and smooth, like it had just been watered. i looked up at the sky without clouds and saw things flying in the distance. machines? search drones? no. they weren't robotic enough to be man-made.

"they're called birds." i heard a voice in back of me. i stood up and spun around. it was sean.

"they're alive, just like you and me." he continued, putting supplies from the floor into his backpack. "but we won't be soon. we have to keep moving. follow me."

sean walked down a path and i followed him. i was still so confused. i remembered that i was at a public shooting. no, i was being shot. no wait...

i shook my head, as if clearing away the irrational thoughts. "where...are we?" i asked him, rubbing my head as a headache pulsed through my brain. "what happened? i thought i died."

he chuckled lightly. i took his hand as we hopped down from a rather tall rock. "you're not dead, if that's what you're thinking. i shot you with a sleeping serum bullet." sean explained. "you've been asleep for twenty-three hours."

"WHAT?" i yelled, and then calmed down. "wait. the bullet. it was fake then. i thought everyone hated the eliminated. who would do that? who would sacrifice their own safety for a stupid eliminated?"

"i would." sean said quietly. he wouldn't face me. "i'm tired of seeing innocent children die just because they weren't born with genius brains. their lives matter just as much as everyone else's. so i waited for a special eliminated to show up at the right time. when i found out id been chosen to eliminate you, i guessed you might be the one. your attitude, your rebellious streak...you're perfect for what i have planned."

i nearly tripped over a tree root. "what exactly do you have planned?"

he stopped and looked at me. "i plan to survive out here. and you should too."

i furrowed my brows. "but why dont you just prove to the society that the supreme leader is corrupted?"

sean barked a laugh and kept walking. "corrupted! fat chance. those people are so stupid they'll follow anyone who says they have the authority to lead them. and once they're stuck on someone, they won't let go until that someone is dead and gone."

"then we should do something about it." i prompted. "get rid of maguire or something."

he snorted. "how could a scrawny little girl and an ex-official do that? let's face it, we're good as dead if we try to stop the supreme leader. just be grateful we saved our own skins in time. hurry up now, let's go."