The Dome

Sunday at the Square

A sea of green, gray, blue, and occasionally black traveled across the Square, walking with both light and heavy footsteps across jade tiles. Some of the tiles, Silasque noted, especially the ones toward the front, were less shiny and worn. Every time she came to the Square, that was what she noticed. Not the guards, not the silence, not the fear that hung in the air. She noticed the tiles. As she wove through the sea of people, a jolt of alarm ran through her as the final bell rang. She was late. As quietly and inconspicuously as she could, Silasque crouched down and slowly crawled in between the rows of people, hoping no one would point her out and expose her. She wasn't all that tall, so she didn't have to crouch down too far. Suddenly, a toddler looked down at Silasque and pointed at her. Silasque's breath caught in her throat and she froze, feeling the loud pounding of her heart in her ears. She pushed back her long, wavy brown hair to keep an eye on the toddler and moved forward very slowly, praying as hard as she could that the toddler wouldn't open his mouth. After a couple of seconds, the toddler must've gotten bored of watching Silasque move at a snail's pace because he looked away and started taking in his surroundings. Silasque guessed it was his first time here. Looking in front of her, Silasque could now see the spot where she was to stand. She hurried over there and stood up slowly, feeling the eyes of the people around her boring into her. Not realizing that she had been holding her breath, Silasque allowed herself to relax a bit. She composed herself, patting down her hair and smoothing any unseen wrinkles in her plain clothing, which was the same as what everyone else wore, a gray shirt and green or blue pants, and a black jacket if it was cold out.

She had a face that was slightly rounder than most others in her society and she had lips that always paled in comparison to most everyone she met. She got both of those qualities from her mother. Her face looked mostly like her mother's, except for her nose, which had a little bump along the bridge of it. It wasn't obvious though. That, along with her long legs and thin figure, she got from her father. Overall, Silasque was a good mix between the two of her parents.

Silasque looked ahead like everyone else and tried to pay attention to the people on the huge stone platform. There were fewer people on the platform than last time, Silasque observed. And just like that, it hit her. There were only Guardians. A chill ran down her spine. How could she forget! This Sunday was the day where the Guardians made the most important announcements of the year. Another chill ran through her and this time she shivered. This was the year she got her job, and this was the year her sister had to take the Test.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome!" The eldest Guardian, known to the public as Father, addressed the crowd in his deep, bellowing voice, "After the counting, there will be several important announcements and then you will return to your respective houses for food distribution."

Guardians, in Silasque's opinion, always dressed a bit...eccentrically. Actually, thought Silasque, excessively would be a better word for it. Guardians always wore black robes that just reached their heels. Silasque didn't understand how they could stand the heat. The rims of the hoods on their robes were decorated with some kind of fur, and the men always had their hair cut short, while the women always had theirs cut to shoulder length. Most female Guardians also put their hair up in a perfect ponytail without a middle part. By the looks of it, middle parts were probably forbidden, which, in Silasque's view, was totally ridiculous.

Father paused for a moment, then initiated the counting, "Raise all children five and under up where we can see them."

Mothers all over the Square with young children lifted them high up in the air and a serious-looking Guardian in her mid-thirties stepped forward. She was just known as the Counter. She counted the children in a matter of seconds and reported the number to Father.

He nodded, then turned to the crowd, "You may lower your children now. We have one passing, may I ask who it is?"

A woman in the middle of the crowd burst into tears and raised her hand, "My son, Henry Merchant. He passed away last night at 11:23. I-I don't know how, he suddenly started coughing and wouldn't stop and I ran to get help but it was too late."