I brushed myself off and took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh scent of pine sap. Then I nocked an arrow and walked forward silently, my bow ready. My father had taught me how to walk without snapping any twigs when I was younger. Said it might save my life someday. I never really understood what he meant, and he died before I could ask him.
My mother tried to sell my father’s gear: a bow he made himself, a hunting knife and a few basic traps. I begged her to give me a month to learn how to use them. 28 days later I came home with my first rabbit. Since then she’s pretty much given me free reign, as long as I keep putting food on the table.
She does what work she can, as do my little brother and sister, but there is only so much they can do. They’re still young, and my mother is getting older. At night she soaks her feet in hot water with herbs, and rubs her neck. I think she’s secretly looking forward to the Choosing ceremony. Not that anybody in our family has ever been Chosen, but she can hope. For my part, I’m determined to make myself useful and prove I can provide for us.
Twigs snapped behind me and I whirled around, pulling the taut string to my ear. But then I heard voices. There shouldn’t be anybody else out here, unless…
Oh shit.
I ducked just in time to see a group of elites wander into the meadow.
They were laughing and shoving each other. They looked like us, mostly. Of course they were dressed better, with richer materials and clothing than I’d ever seen. Apart from the handful of guards posted around the compound, who wore a standard uniform, and a small team that came through our village every few months, I didn’t have much to compare to. All elites looked young and healthy, and clean in a way that people of my village could never hope to, as if they took a bath every night and every morning.
One of the elites held a finger up to his mouth and gestured to the others to loop around to the side. My heart stopped, I was sure they’d smelled me, but then one of them yelled “heeyah” and chased a buck into the clearing. The others ran around it in circles, terrifying the poor beast. They let it buck and dart and think it could escape into the woods, before appearing just in front of it again. They moved so fast my eyes could scarcely keep track of them.
Then one of them, with long dark hair slicked back over his ears, and a black velvet jacket, grabbed the buck by the antlers and snapped them both off with a firm twist. As the animal stood there, stunned, he plunged the antlers into either side of the buck, skewering it and sending a spray of blood up over his white shirt and face. He smiled and licked some of the blood from the corners of his mouth. My stomach turned sour.
The other elite crowded around the animal and held out silver chalices, gathering the warm blood from the still-quivering body. One of them found a vein in the creature's neck and bit in deeply with his teeth. The leader was about to join them, when he sniffed the air, and then turned and looked straight at me with hungry eyes.
Before I could even think about standing up and running, he was at my side. He lifted me up over his shoulders and carried me back towards his friends.
“Ready for a new game, boys?” he called out to them.
I pushed and struggled against his body but it was like trying to move a house; his muscles felt like solid stone. I was considering gouging his eye with my thumb when he dumped me on the ground. Probably would have been a stupid move anyway—the penalty for physically harming an elite was death.
“What have you found there, Nigel?” one asked, brushing back strands of golden hair and spilling blood from his cup as he gestured towards me.
“It may not be as swift as the deer, but I bet it will taste much better,” said another, with shaggy brown hair and leather pants.
“Here is the game,” Nigel said, as his companions spread out in a circle around me. “Run. See if you can get away from us.”
“I can’t,” I said. “You’re too fast.”
“Now that’s no way to think,” he said, while his friends snickered. “You should have more faith in yourself, a strong young thing like you. I’ll tell you what, we’ll stand over at the edge of the trees, way over here.”
He moved to show me the place he meant, leaving me alone in the center of the clearing.
“If you make it to the other side and touch the trunk of any tree, we’ll let you go.”
I looked behind me and took note of the closest tree. It was only twenty feet or so away from me.
Maybe I can make it.
I launched myself up and forced my legs to push harder and faster than I’d ever moved them before. I only got halfway before I was shoved backwards by an incredible force. I landed where I’d started, groaning in pain and trying to catch my breath.
“You almost had me that time! Why not try again?” called the voice from the other side of the meadow, along with more laughter.
They were going to kill me. I was well outside the compound. People would assume I’d run away and gotten mauled by a bear or something. My little brother and sister would think I’d abandoned them. I gritted my teeth and slowly pulled my father’s hunting knife out of my boot.
I stood up and starting running again, hiding the knife in front of my body, and just as I reached the same place I’d made it to last time I lashed out—just in time to see the blur of a shape moving in front of me. I felt the knife hit its mark.
Another blow sent me flying backwards, but not before I heard a cry of surprise from my tormenter.
“You little bitch!” Nigel said. But he was surprised more than upset.
“First of all, I’m sure you know that the penalty for attacking an elite with violence is punishable by death, with zero exceptions. I was thinking of letting you go, after toying with you for a while, but that’s out of the question now.”
“Secondly,” he grabbed me by the hair and forced me to look at his forearm, where a large and deep gash from my knife was just beginning to seal itself up. “We heal quickly. Even if you haven’t had much personal experience with our kind, surely you’ve heard the rumors. We’re immortal. You can’t hurt us.”
“You, on the other hand….” he brought his fingernails softly down the side of my face, and let one sink into my skin, leaving a red scratch and a drop of blood. “So soft, so fragile.” He murmured.
I noticed his gaze drop from my chin to my chest. The neckline of my shirt hung open and my torso was dripping with sweat. He licked his lips and motioned for his friends to pin me down.
I screamed as he tore off my shirt.
“That’s enough.” a voice boomed out through the clearing. My eyes had teared up in panic, but I made out a blurry shape walking into the clearing.
The other elite backed away, but Nigel held his ground.
“We’re just having some fun, Damien. Of course you’re welcome to join us—” Nigel smiled.
“She doesn’t look like she’s having fun,” the newcomer said, nodding at me. “And you’re breaking the law. Commons aren’t to be hunted or touched, certainly not raped. We follow the rules, the agreement, the covenant. I won’t let a hothead like you ruin a century of progress.”
“It’s not like she was going to tell anyone,” Nigel said.
“We don’t obey you,” the blonde one called out, but there was uncertainty in his eyes.
Damien reached down, grabbed my blouse and handed it to me. I clutched it against my bare skin, covering my breasts. His sky blue eyes had kindness in them.
“We’re sorry about this, miss. You’re welcome to file a complaint—”
Nigel scoffed.
“Through your community leaders or at the next council meeting.”
I put my shirt on and stood up. “I can go?”
Damien nodded, gesturing with one hand that I was free to leave. I took two hesitant steps before turning back.
“And the deer?” I said, nodding at the fresh carcass.
Damien raised his eyebrows in surprise.
“That deer would feed my whole family for weeks. I’d rather not lea
ve it here to rot.”
He crossed his arms, and studied the deer.
“Could you even carry a buck that big?”
I picked up my knife from where it had fallen. “I’d cut it into manageable chunks, and make several trips.”
“You’d need me to stand guard against the others here. I hadn’t planned on doing that.”
“I can take care of myself,” I lied.
Damien laughed. “Tell you what, I’ll walk you to the fence and throw the deer over, you can dress it there.”
“I’d be greatly indebted to you.” I said.
He was as good as his word. He walked me back carrying the buck for me, and swung it easily over the gate. Then he watched me as I climbed a tree, walked out over the limb, and lowered myself down.
“The perimeter fences are for your safety. If you come out here again, and you face the same situation, I doubt you’ll survive. Oh and, you’d better clean yourself up before going home.”
I looked down at my shirt, which was covered in blood. He dismissed me with a wave of his hand, and he was gone.
Chapter Two
“Sweet Mercy!” my mom said when I appeared in the doorway, my clothes and face covered in blood with an enormous flank of buck across my back. “I haven’t seen an animal like that in twenty years. Not since your father and I were young. Where on earth—”
I smiled, my white teeth flashing from my dirty face.
“I had to walk for miles before I caught its tracks.”
“But how did the thing get in through the fence?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t know, must have jumped.” I lied.
She looked in both directions and ushered me in.
“I’ll start cooking this up.”
“There’s more, out by the fence,” I said.
“Jamie!” she called, “Go help your sister carry the meat in.” My little brother poked his head down the stairs.
“That’s alright, I’ll grab Trev. He’ll be able to carry more,” I said.
“Wash your face first,” mom said handing me a wet rag. “You’ll scare the neighbors.”
I rapped on the door of the third house down the street. Trevor had been my best friend since we were little. His father was the town’s blacksmith. He spent most of his days fishing the small stream that came through our land, we often traded fish for pheasants and rabbits at the town’s market.
I smiled as he opened the door, filling the door frame with his broad shoulders.
“I’ve got something for you,” I said. “But you’re going to have to carry it yourself.”
“Rabbit?”
“Better.”
He grabbed his jacket and followed me through town. It took us five minutes to clear the residential area; neat rows of cottages and cabins that had been built after the Culling.
He gasped when he saw the kill.
“What did you tell your mom? No way a buck that big could have squeezed through the fence.”
“Willful ignorance. She’s not that interested in where I go.”
“It’s a shame the antlers broke off, this would have made one hell of a trophy.”
He checked the body, “Where did you shoot it? How many arrows did it take to bring it down?”
“It’s... complicated,” I said lamely, holding my hands together in front of me.
He ran his fingers over the flank and froze suddenly when he reached the neck.
“These are bite marks,” he said, turning white.
He turned and grabbed me by the shoulders.
“Did they see you?” he demanded, roughly.
“I was careful. They were just hunting it for sport, but they left the body.”
He was so angry he was shaking. He squeezed his fists together. I knew he was trying to keep from shouting at me. “You could have been killed. If anybody even knew you were past the barrier… you’d be flogged, at least.”
“You know meat’s been scarce lately.”
Trevor reached down and took my hand.
“I know, it’s just… you need to be more careful. If anything happened to you—”
He looked down at me with his warm eyes. I felt my skin tingle and flush as he leaned in closer. But just when I thought he was going to kiss me, I shoved him away and punched him on the shoulder. He forced a chuckle, but I could tell he was annoyed. I knew how he felt about me. But with Choosing tomorrow, the timing was all wrong. Besides, Trevor had always been my best friend. Sure I’d noticed him growing up in the last two years—I’m not blind. Sometimes he helped his dad work in the shop, his strong, muscular arms pounding a sledgehammer down on red-hot rods of metal, his sculpted abs dripping with sweat.
I’ll admit I’ve had… inappropriate thoughts. But I wasn’t sure I was ready to risk our friendship. At least not until I was sure we could really be together.
After showering, I put on my nicest dress and some red lipstick. I checked myself over in the standing mirror. My dress was forest green and brought out my eyes. We didn’t have many occasions to get dressed up, but tonight was Festival, the biggest holiday of the year.
I’d always looked forward to Festival. There would be lights, firecrackers, apple pies and ice cream. But this year would be different. I felt a knot in my stomach, and chewed on my bottom lip. This could be my last night in the compound. And there was nothing I could do about it.
I’d never felt so powerless as I did then, standing in front of the mirror, wondering what my future would bring. Finally I sighed, and went downstairs to help my mom finish setting up the table out in front of our house. Jamie and Loralie were already running around the meadow, involved in some children’s games.
Trev had repaired the buck’s head with screws and steel wire so that the magnificent antlers stood proudly. We were roasting the meat on a spit; it would probably feed two hundred people. We weren’t a wealthy family, and in some previous years we’d had a disappointing showing.
Each family put out a table of foods they’d prepared and everybody would share and sample. For wealthier families, it was a chance to show off. For poorer families, a chance to eat delicacies they could only dream about the rest of the year. The council members also used Festival as a way to keep track of how families are doing, so that they could assess rations. It’s not total communism, but roughly 10% of each family’s income goes to the council, and they can save it, store it or redistribute it as necessary. They make sure nobody goes hungry.
There were 2735 people in our city; I know because they keep a big sign near the front gates. The numbers were monitored and never exceeded 3,000 total. As long as there were no problems, the elite left us alone to manage ourselves. Travel was mostly forbidden, though special access passes could be obtained for trade, study or in rare cases, marriage, which left some room for interaction and communication between different compounds. And there were hundreds of compounds. I didn’t know how many. My father told me once he’d been to three others in his life, and told me about the small differences in dress and food.
I don’t remember the wars, myself. Like my parents, I was born here. There had been peace and order for as long as anybody could remember. There were stories about the Before: when a handful of people had enormous houses and cars and helicopters and more wealth than 100,000 people put together. I couldn’t imagine people starving, suffering, without anybody taking care of them. Not to mention the diseases, the disabilities, and the chronic, constant pain.
Then came the Fulfillment, when the elites were perfected. Then the Race Wars, between the humans and the elite; which ended in the mindless slaughter of billions. Finally King Richard made peace, the Covenant was signed, and order established. I’d learned all of this in history class. We had mandatory schooling until we were thirteen.
Our compound, Agrave, was a wonderful place to live. We didn’t have the luxury of the elites, and there were still rich and poor people—but even the poorest among us had a house and never went hungry. We didn�
��t suffer: the weekly Communion was enough to keep us healthy. Almost everyone was, as far as I knew, happy and satisfied.
I turned towards the stage at the sound of music playing through the speakers, just in time to see the mayor, Mr. Thompson, grab a microphone.
“Welcome, everyone, to the 98th Annual Festival of Agrave!” his voice boomed out over the crowd. People started cheering and clapping their hands. “Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.”
I put my right hand over my heart and recited from memory, along with everyone else.
“I pledge allegiance, to the Clan, and to the Republic, which was founded for my protection. I’m thankful for the freedom to live my life without pain, suffering or loss; I’m thankful for the Pact, the Covenant between our two races, that saved my humanity.”
There were several minor announcements, but nothing formal—the Festival was a celebration, not a pageant. That would come tomorrow. I wandered around with Jamie and Loralie, looking at all the decorated tables and grabbing handfuls of food.
Trevor’s friend William gave me a glass of blackberry wine. We ate, listening to the bands play, and then I went back and greeted guests at our table so my mom could look around for a while.
After dinner there was dancing. I danced with William, laughing as he spun me around, his curly red hair bouncing in the lights. Loralie, Jamie and I joined hands and spun in circles, then Trev joined in. We fell down and rolled in the grass.
There were sparklers and fireworks, they were so beautiful, the music so touching, that I felt my eyes start to tear up. It felt like I was saying goodbye, and it was breaking my heart.
Trev glanced over at me, then grabbed my hand and pulled me up, wrapping an arm around my waist.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Just one dance, before…”
I nodded, then leaned into him, resting my head on his chest. I could give him this, at least.
We spun slowly in time to the music, a melancholy song that made me burst with longing. Maybe it was the wine, or the song, or the anxiety of what tomorrow would bring, but when he reached down and lifted my chin, I didn’t pull away.
That Moment When: An Anthology of Young Adult Fiction Page 35
