by Teresa Grabs
“Let’s go you three,” the female outpost agent said to the waiting trio.
She led them from the waiting room and through the door the other two were taken through. They walked down a long hallway that led to the back of the outpost. The agent opened the back door. A man shouted obscenities as the group left the outpost. When Echo stepped outside, she saw why the man was yelling. Behind the outpost sat gallows that dropped into a large hole in the ground. The last two arrivals were prepared for their execution. The male agent grinned at Echo as he pushed a button and the floor dropped from the gallows. Edward screamed, Andrew laughed, and Echo clutched Charlie harder. She had never seen someone executed before. The male agent walked across the gallows floor that had not dropped and cut the rope. It took several seconds for the sound of the body landing on something in the hole. Echo cringed.
“Saves time and resources,” the male outpost agent said as he returned to the office.
“Move it,” their escort demanded.
They made their way across the back of the outpost to a small drone and security patrol center by a door in the fence. The agent slid a card into the center’s panel, and four patrol drones appeared on both sides of the fence. The door screeched open.
“Need to oil that,” the agent said, removing a handheld scanner with a trigger from the patrol center.
“Harris, Andrew,” a drone on their side of the fence announced as the agent scanned his bracelet. “Enemy of the State. Terminate upon identification.”
She shoved Andrew through the door to the other side of the fence and scanned Echo’s bracelet.
“Monat, Echo,” the drone reported. “Enemy of the State. Terminate upon identification.”
Echo quickly stepped through the door rather than being pushed out like yesterday’s uneaten food.
“Mulligan, Edward,” the drone reported as she scanned the last bracelet. “Enemy of the State. Terminate upon identification.”
It was too much for Edward who broke down and collapsed on the ground again. The outpost agent dragged him through the door. As she stepped over him, he tried putting his feet through the door. She kicked them away from the fence and shook her head.
“Have a good death,” she said, pushing a button on the patrol center.
Seven
Everyone watched as the door closed, and the agent walked back to the outpost. They remained by the fence not sure of what they were supposed to do next. They quickly found out.
“Step away from the border or be terminated,” the drones reported. Their screens displayed a five-minute countdown.
Echo and Andrew looked at each other, then out into the Austero Plains and gulped. Exiled. She had never imagined she would be banished. Andrew stomped off first, kicking the ground. Edward curled up more and hugged his stuffed animal.
“Wake up, wake up,” he cried.
“Edward, you have to get up!” Echo said, shaking him.
“No, I want to wake up,” he yelled.
“ANDREW! Help me!” Echo hollered before Andrew could get too far. “PLEASE!”
Andrew stopped and sighed. He kicked another rock on the ground, then hurried back to the fence. They drug Edward between them as Charlie barked and ran ahead. After a few minutes of dragging the resisting Edward, they heard an alarm sound. Panicked, they dropped him and looked around as they tried to figure out if they were too close to Bakerton, but the drones simply returned to their duties.
“Idiots!” Andrew yelled toward Bakerton. He sat on the ground and ran his hand through the loose dirt.
Charlie and Echo sat near Edward and tried to get him to stop crying.
“Do you think they really mean it?” Echo asked.
Andrew snorted. “Kids.”
“You don’t look much older than me!” Echo snapped, looking at her new companion.
Andrew glared at her then spat on the ground. “Nah, I don’t think they mean it. If they really wanted to kill us, they would have done it with the other two. More efficient that way.”
Edward’s head perked up. He grinned as if he had heard something funny. Echo and Andrew looked at each other and shrugged. Suddenly Edward leaped to his feet and ran back to the fence. Echo grabbed Charlie before he could run after him. They watched in horror as two drones appeared as Edward ran closer to the fence and killed him. Echo buried her head in Charlie’s fur while Andrew simply stared with raised eyebrows.
Andrew inhaled deeply. “Change that. I think that’s exactly what they mean.”
“How can you be so callous! He was just a scared kid!”
“Who couldn’t follow directions,” Andrew reminded her. “Look, kid, I’m all for breaking the rules, but when someone tells you they will kill you, it usually means they will.”
“You didn’t think that earlier,” Echo said quietly.
Andrew sighed. “What I said was that I didn’t think they meant it.”
Echo thought about that for a minute. “You’re right, sorry. Did you really try to kill another student with a knife?”
Andrew laughed. “Is that what they say?”
Echo nodded sheepishly.
“Ah man, if only I had. Then I would say I deserved this. Nah, I argued with my dad one day, and he sent me to the re-education center. Said I needed to learn to show more respect.”
“Dang!” Echo said and shook her head. “And I thought my mom was bad.”
The two laughed until early morning rays cast shadows of Bakerton over them. The events of the early morning hours weighed heavily on both as did the stark reality that they were beginning new lives as exiles.
Andrew took a deep breath and huffed. “Well, I’m off,”
“What do you mean, you’re off?” Echo asked. “Where are you going to go?”
Andrew looked around and pointed west. “That way.”
He started walking and left Echo and Charlie behind. “Wait!” Echo yelled.
“Catch up if you want to. Otherwise, you’re on your own.”
It took Echo and Charlie a few minutes to catch up. For the next few hours they walked in silence, but it was better to be an exile with someone else than an exile alone. As far as she was concerned, him, Charlie, and the things in her backpack were all she had left in the world. She would do anything to hang on to what little she had left.
There was nothing in the Austero Plains surrounding Bakerton except dirt, sand, and the occasional scrub. The two walked in westward for hours but never strayed far from what seemed like an old road. More out of training and habit than fear of the new, open world around them. Sweat erupted from her hairline and flowed down her face in little rivers and created waterfalls over her nose and chin. Occasionally she glanced behind to see if the city was still visible. They only stopped walking once the peak of the tallest building dipped below the horizon.
“What are you thinking?” Echo asked, breaking the deafening silence.
“Nothing,” Andrew said.
They watched Charlie chase his tail.
“How far do you think we’ve gone?” Echo asked.
“Does it matter?”
“What if –”
“Do you always ask so many questions?” he asked.
Echo sighed. She was happy Andrew was here, but sometimes she wished he wasn’t. At least Charlie didn’t mind when she asks questions. She sighed and stood up. Her hands shielded her eyes from the midday sun as she looked around. They couldn’t go east since that would take them straight back to Bakerton. Nothing seemed to be in front of them, and the heat made it difficult to really tell what was to the north or south of them. She swallowed her growing desperation. She sat back down and wished she had something to keep the sun off her. She also desperately wanted something to drink. Andrew was the first to stand up and resume his new life.
She resigned herself to her new life and continued the westward path Andrew had chosen. His guess was as good as hers at this point. This time though, he talked more and soon they passed the time with tales of
each other’s lives, friends, and experiences. Now and then Echo or Andrew paused just long enough to look around. Hours passed, and the sun now rested in front of them. Both were tired, hungry, and thirsty. Even Charlie’s pace slowed as he longed for his dry kibble and a good long drink from his bowl.
“What are we going to do?” Echo asked when Andrew paused to look around.
He glared at her. “We?” He raised his eyebrows. “We’re not going to do anything. I’m doing my thing; you’re doing yours. I’m not taking care of anyone besides myself.”
Echo huffed and sat on the ground. How could he be pleasant one minute and so callous the next? She stared at him, but this time really looked at him. He wasn’t Ansel or Jodi. He wasn’t her dad or even Principal Sharpe. He was someone who had spent years living in the re-education center because he couldn’t get along with others. For all she knew, he lied about why he was sent there in the first place and would waste no time killing her in her sleep.
“Come here, Charlie,” Echo called.
Charlie trotted over. His mouth was open, and his tongue flapped with every bounce in his step. Echo clung to Charlie and found a new fascination with his fur. Anything to avoid Andrew for the moment. Andrew got the hint that she was would not be moving again anytime soon and sat down a few yards from her on the ground. He looked at her, sighed, and shook his head.
“You school kids are so immature,” Andrew said, opening his backpack.
“We are not!” Echo argued. “Besides, you went to school too.”
“Oh, grow up.” Andrew rummaged around in his backpack and pulled out a protein bar and held it with his mouth while he pulled out a small metal flask and opened it.
Echo couldn’t believe her eyes. He had food and drink, and he didn’t tell her before now? He really was a callous individual with no regard for others.
“Can I have some? Please?”
Andrew looked at her and started moving the flask toward her then snatched it back and took a long drink. He laughed at the growing desperate expression on her face. “Sorry, I’m not that stupid. You should have had a contingency plan.”
His laughter was the last straw. She had Charlie. She didn’t need some callous nobody that only cared about himself. With a great huff, she stood up, slung her backpack on, and stormed off on her own. She didn’t know where she was going or what was waiting for her, but where ever she ended up, it would be away from him.
◆◆◆
Charlie followed her on their new southern course. As she walked away, Andrew’s laughter faded into the distance. The further she walked, the more emotional she became. The anger, sadness, fright, confusion, and desperation that had built all day finally burst through the dam she created. She tried to outrun her emotions, but it was no use. They were in front of her, behind her, they engulfed her very being.
Her eyes clouded, and she walked out of pure instinct until she tripped on a small rock that jutted out of the sandy soil. She stumbled just enough to bring her mind back from the brink, and she stopped. Echo rubbed her eyes on her shirt and blinked. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She looked behind her at the rock she tripped over, then back to a collection of rocks and boulders that formed a rock oasis in front of her. What? How? Is this real? She gulped and looked around again as she slowly walked up to a large boulder and touched it. Huh, it is real. As she climbed on the rocks, her sweat soaked shirt left patches of dampness in her wake. Charlie rushed over and licked the moisture from the rock.
“That is so gross,” Echo said.
She twisted her shirt and wrinkled her nose as sweat rained on the rock. Charlie, on the other hand, was delighted to drink her sweat. She watched him lick, and it made her even more thirsty than before. Without thinking too hard about it, Echo plunged her sweat soaked shirt into her mouth and sucked on it. Gross. Salty. Wet. It soothed her parched mouth and lips. She climbed to the highest boulder and looked around. There was nothing out there of course, but for now, she was happy to be alone. Sitting on top of the boulder, her mind wandered to Johnny and how he reacted waking up to find her gone. She sat on the boulder under the late afternoon sun and cried. She cried about what should have been and what could have been. All she had wanted was to become a citizen, and now she was exiled and alone. Well, not entirely alone. She had Charlie. She dried her eyes and watched Charlie dig into the soft dirt and sand that sat in the middle of her oasis. They could live here. Charlie barked excitedly and dug faster and harder.
He piqued her curiosity, so she hurried down from the boulder to the shady corner between a large boulder and some medium rocks that were large enough to turn into seats. Echo sat on a rock and watched as Charlie dug. His tail swung so hard his hind legs would often lose control, and he’d fall into his dirt pile. She smiled and laughed. It felt good to see Charlie happy. She sat and looked out into the vast expanse of sand and loose dirt that surrounded the little oasis and sighed. Charlie put something in her lap and without thinking about she smiled and picked it up.
“What!”
Charlie barked and wagged his tail. He wanted to play with his new-found toy, but the bone sitting in her hand left her mortified. Maybe it’s not what I think it is. Charlie barked again, and Echo tossed the bone. He happily retrieved his new toy and brought it back to her. She played fetch until he grew tired. Instead of bringing it back to Echo, he carried it over to the shade, plopped down, and panted. With their game over, Echo’s attention turned to where he had dug. She kneeled and dug around in the loose dirt. Bone after bone revealed themselves. It was precisely what she thought it was. Curiosity overruled her thought process until her fingers touched something in the dirt that was not bone.
Tears flowed down her sand and dirt covered cheeks turning her once white face, brown with mud as she cleaned off the skeleton’s bracelet. Exiled like her. She sat on the ground near the grave and cried. Her mind wandered to Andrew, and she wondered if this person had brought food or at least a flask. She placed the bracelet on the nearest rock and returned to digging. There was no flask or backpack, but something more unexpected. Under the skeleton, in the solid dirt, were scraps of cloth. She tugged at the fabric until the ground revealed its secrets. She sat on the ground and stared at the scraps of fabric in her hand.
Whoever they were, they were just like her. They died alone. She looked back into the student’s grave and felt sick. One by one, Echo gathered the bones and started placing them back. Loose dirt shifted and revealed the student’s notepad. She picked it up, dusted it off, and set it on the rock near the skeleton’s bracelet. It took her a few minutes to line up the bones and Charlie was disgruntled when she took his new toy away from him. Before the light disappeared, she covered the skeleton with the loose dirt.
“I’m sorry,” she said, smoothing the sandy soil.
Echo rested against the rocks, clutched the scraps of uniform and notepad, and drifted off to an uneasy sleep.
Eight
Echo rose from her seat when Principal Sharpe announced her name and walked to the podium to collect her diploma and certificate of citizenship as her parents clapped proudly. She was warm and happy. Proud. Johnny hooted and hollered, and everyone was delighted. Principal Sharpe shook her hand as she received her certificates and congratulated her on a job well done. She returned to her seat and watched as her friends received theirs. After everyone’s name had been called and individual awards for service, loyalty, and honor had been handed out, Special Agent Wheatley approached the podium.
“It is my pleasure to present the graduating class with their assignments,” he said.
The room erupted with applause.
“Megan Carter, Bakerton Office of Nutritional Health.”
Everyone on stage clapped and shook their heads. They knew Megan was the best cook in tenth-year.
“Ansel Harris, Bakerton Department of Commerce and Distribution.”
Anyone who knew Ansel knew that buying, selling, and trading were three of his top qualities.
> “Jodi Young, Bakerton Department of Social Order.”
That one surprised everyone because, while Jodi certainly didn’t go out of his way to break the rules, he hardly did anything to enforce them in others.
“Echo Monat, Bakerton Natural Science Research Center.”
Everyone clapped, and her friends cheered. She was assigned to her dream position. Now she could learn about her world, conduct research, and share her findings with everyone.
As the ceremony ended, all the new citizens stayed for one last hoorah as students at an after party in the physical fitness center. Echo and her friends laughed for hours and enjoyed each other’s company until the morning sun shone in the upper windows and signaled it was time to leave and assume their new lives as citizens. Megan was the first to leave, then Ansel. Jodi stayed to talk to Echo alone.
“Um, you know, Echo.” He found renewed interest in the tablecloth.
“Yeah.” She giggled.
“I…I really like you, and I was wondering if you would be interested in applying for permission to date…with me.”
Echo blushed and giggled at the spectacle in front of her. “I thought you’d never ask.”
“Really?”
Echo nodded.
“Oh, wow, you’ve made me so happy!” Jodi leaped from his seat, grinned, and ran out the door. He announced to the world that they were going to be dating.
Echo giggled even more and hurried to catch up to her friends, but as she crossed the threshold of the physical fitness room, a horrific scream filled her dream world and jolted her awake.
