365

Rebellion

I couldn't wait any longer. With only an hour before Robert was sent into a toxic wasteland to scavenge, I shed mere societal expectations, discarding  all shame, indignity and dishonour at the wire fence.

"ROBERT!" I continually bawled, clawing distressed, at the flimsy barrier. Contemptuous stares burrowed into the back of my head. The wrinkled faces of the elite sagged and drooped, like fresh dough, trickling down each crack of the concrete towards me, furrowed eyebrows became interwoven and knit together as crowds of them gathered around me, creating an atmosphere of scorn and disdain to loom over the entire bunker. Emerging from the rows of perfectly still human beings, Robert sprinted towards me, disregarding his lame leg -trying vehemently to keep him confined within the crowds of untouchables.

Eventually he lurched towards the fence, though I felt transparent as his gaze lay fixated on the crowd of elite behind me, glaring at us both. Perched on carefully carpeted ground, the elite were distorted - detached from any empathy or compassion they may have had before the end times. A cacophony of tutting emerged from them as Robert stood staring at their scornful frowns. I persevered in clutching his quaking hands,  violently dragging his gaze back towards myself. Regarding his face, my senses were overwhelmed by that familiar sonourous symphony of bullets plummeting to the barren soil of the wasteland; the odour of rotting flesh baking under a scorching sun, oozing through impenetrable bunker doors, and the sight of nobody caring. I cared. I cared immensely for those people, continuously dehumanised by the elite, who lounged, unaffected by what was to happen to their peers - though they didn't regard the untouchables as such.

"Get back in line 103!" Roared an A.S.U officer, wielding his M-16 and a smirk. "Get away from the elite before you regret it, son." He continued. Wordlessly, Robert and I had parted - immediately, I was consumed by the elite as they dragged me by my shoulders into their crowd - dozens of women, like crows began to squawk and scold me - their arms flapping about as if unconsciously attempting to reach liberty. My vision blurred and I crumpled, like paper, to the earth, under the weight of my sorrow and the insurmountable pressure of the elite's disdainful glares as they loomed threateningly over me, turning everything black...

A lukewarm sensation enveloped me  trickling down my spine, dripping down my arms, creating streets, paths and rivers, reminiscent of the times in which cities existed. The lukewarm continued to dance its arrhythmic, jagged dance down and off the sides of my legs; it became entangled in my hair, matting it instantly. Finally, as it caressed my face and cemented itself to my skin, I awoke. A carmine tint cleansed my eyes of all tranquility I had in that moment - this was blood - pooling around me, expanding, consuming everything in its path, staining the pristine, royal blue carpet  beneath me. Frantically, I looked up to see the limp corpse of an elitist member, her face was unrecognisable under the dirt and blood secreted to it - revolted, I rolled in the foetal position to my other side, like a child, I layed completely vulnerable under the raining bullets and choirs of agonising screams until everything fell silent.

An untouchable collapsed to the ground beside me, M-16 strewn across his frail body, he panted exhausted before laying in the still expanding pool of blood surrounding me. His eyes, toiled with fatigue before eventually closing. Adrenaline ripped through my arteries - they had done it- this was the revolution. Cautiously, I gripped the gun, raising it to his neck , building pressure caused the man to wake, terrified.

As my voice quivered uncontrollably, I managed to scrape out only a few utterances. " Were the scavengers sent  out?" I demanded in a shrill whisper. Unable to face me, the man attempted desperately to look at me, practically forcing his eyes to the back of his skull before choking:

"You're the girl - who gave me the hat! Please miss! We couldn't save them, we had to wait for the officers to leave ..." I released my grasp on the weapon, allowing the man to rub his throat.

"Are the A.S.U still gone?" I queried, before apprehensively looking around the bunker. The wire fence was shred to ribbons - a poignant reminder of what division could do; cadavers littered the bunker floor, though I could only see lavish dresses and robes stained red with blood. "Are you all still alive?" I persisted, impatient for answers.

"A few remained, as they always do, we wrestled their weapons from them and the rest was simple - a few of the less able of us didn't make it." He gestured to a child who could have only been 9 years of age, their appendages contorted by thalidomide before birth, among the piles of bodies on the concrete floor. My attention was gradually ripped away from the infant as the man continued "The rest of the A.S.U haven't returned. They should have been here by now."

Immediately I felt something was amiss, I sprinted towards the fence, tearing open my skin as I stumbled through it, urgently trying to find the corpse of one of the A.S.U officers. Hesitantly, untouchables scuttled out from each crevasse in the disheveled bunker, watching me tentatively as I rummaged through the various bodies strewn across the cantine. "They're planning something!" I shrieked, as I found one. I stared at the officer, convincing myself of shallow breaths escaping their slightly parted lips - I must have been deluding myself. I felt through their pockets until a metallic tingling numbed my fingers. I snatched the key from the deceased officer, darting towards room 72 - it was plastered with hazmat suits and adequate protection from the corrosive fallout outside. I fumbled stupidly with the lock until a click assured me I had gotten inside. Swiftly, I threw on a suit, before grabbing everything else supplied, and marching out of the room triumphantly.

A sonourous clunk, drew the untouchables sights away from me, then a soft hissing brought their attention to the bunker door. Panicked, they hid, camouflaging themselves among the various other bodies as they waited, expectant of the A.S.U. The doors opened, revealing perhaps the most blood curdling sight imaginable. The outside.