District Nine

NOT!

It wasn't until I saw my reflection
That's when I woke up and realized
That the truth had been hidden away from us
A sign, an omen, a-
A   G L I T C H

~

"It's simple", the boy they had declared to be their leader explained. Well, it really couldn't have been anyone but him. He had never decided to become their leader, he had been born to be one. The other's had gathered around him by themselves. He just had this aura, the certain something that made the lost boys want to join him. The flocked to him like moths to the flame, catching on fire as they came in contact with him. 

"There are only three important things you have to remember. Don't trust anyone, except if he knows our secret code word. Don't take the pills they are giving you under any circumstances. Don't swallow them. Ever. No matter what happens. If you are forced to take them just place them in your mouth and hide them under your tongue. But don't ever chew or swallow them. And the last and most important rule, we stay together. Always. This is the only way we can escape from here. All of us." He spoke in a hushed voice and the other seven stood around him, their heads pressed together in a small circle to eagerly absorb every single word that fell of his lips the same way a dehydrated person would hold open their mouth to catch every small drop of water they came across. All of them wore the same white uniform, under the bright light of the neon tubes lining the ceiling they seemed dazzlingly white in the oddest way. A stark contrast to the black hair all of them had. The same straight as a ruler cut on everyone. They were planning the revolution in broad light. There were no dark corners for them to hide in and secretly plan their way out. They had no other option but to plan their resistance under the unnaturally bright light of the neon tubes above their heads. The lights never turned off. Never allowed the inhabitants of this prison advertised as a safe haven even a second of peace and quiet. They were risking their life with what they were doing and they all knew it. But what kind of life did they even have to lose? A life illuminated by the shining of an artificial sun, trapped underground. It had taken just a small ray of actual sunlight to ignite them. And they would burn down everything else in their way.

"When?" In retrospect, neither of them would have been able to say exactly who of them had asked the question that had been on the tip of all of their tongues. Maybe they had spoken it in unison and maybe it hadn't actually been uttered at all. Maybe the question just had been so omnipresent in their minds that they didn't need to ask it out loud at all. Their leader took a couple wary glances around like he did every other second. Almost panicked. Paranoid.

"Soon, one is still missing", he muttered.

"You can't save all of them." Hesitantly the boy standing next to their leader raised his arm as if he was planning to put his hand on his shoulder to comfort him. But then his hand just hovered in mid-air for a bit. Seeming a little helpless. In the end, he put it back in his pocket without doing anything.

"I know. But I have a feeling we need to be nine. Nine or none."