Pane or Pain

The outside world was unknown to her, but she could see a glimpse of it through the window in his room. She sat on the sill and watched, fingers twisting and untwisting hair as the planes flew high overhead. Each one brought with it the question of whether or not what it held in its carriage would be dropped today. I breathe a sigh of relief as they fly away, explosions sounding from other parts of the city, but right now, right now I am safe. My breath has fogged the glass and I rub my hand over the cracked panes, clearing my sight as I wait, heart beating for the next wave to begin.

It’s been like this for two years now. The Assent calls it “The Cleansing,” they send over bombs and missiles to wipe us out. They don’t realize that they are just making us more hateful of them.

“Cicily get away from the window!” Jerome barges into the room, hand on the door, tan trench coat swaying behind him. “How many times have I told you! Inspectors are walking the streets. They lie in wait just for foolish kids like you to be seen in the windowsill and then you’ll be Taken.” Our parents were taken early in The Cleansing. Taken isn’t the right word for it though. They were not Taken but Chosen; part of the one hundred chosen to test to see if the illness we had was deadly, and how much of a threat the world faced. The Assent quickly found them dangerous and executed all one-hundred sending no notes of warning before attacking us. We weren’t told of the one-hundreds death until a fingertip arrived on the doorstep of each family whose members had been chosen. As we stood on the doorstep burying grief, the first bomb struck our city. That was the day that I finally stood face to face with fear and retaliated with anger.

“Jerome, you cannot expect me to sit in here and stare at the cabinet walls all day while you are out on the streets doing who knows what, but it’s probably more dangerous than me staring out the window!” I snap. “Besides, I’m 17, that’s hardly a child and I know how to defend myself from the inspectors.” The illness began three years ago, a raging illness that not many survived, those that did became different. We were human in form and thought, but our eyes glowed emerald green or violet, and we found new strength and resilience from objects that once could harm us. A bullet can’t pierce my skin, and my brother has the power to warp wind to his will. My parents both controlled bodies-my mother was connected through heartbeats, and my father through minds. When they were chosen to see how dangerous we had become they killed many scientists in an attempt to escape. The reports showed the electroshock therapy systems used, the pins and needles shoved into them to see how strong we had become. Humane nature was lost with its morals as The Assent decided we were not able to live among normal humans, instead, the safest thing was for us all to die.

Jerome sighs “Cece, you know I want to bring you, but the council meetings are only for adults.”

“I’m nearly an adult, I only have three more months!” I protest. My only wish has been to get revenge for what The Assent has done. I want to help our council push back against the world and prove we are just as worthy to live as people as they are. We were all human at one point before we became whatever this is. “You know how much I want to help, can you at least tell me what’s happening and what’s planned ahead?”

“Cicily you know how important confidentiality is. If you were caught by an Inspector, while looking out the window,” he eyes me with that last comment, “you would be interrogated and tortured. I refuse to tell you something they can use to make your pain worse.” Inspectors were what we called The Assents doctors. They were the ones who experimented on our parents and took our people off the street to experiment on. Inspectors had been responsible for most of our deaths since bombs had little effect on us anymore. Instead, inspectors would Take you and send you to their headquarters where you were tortured to find your power and then killed with whatever best fits your power. If you were resilient to fire, they drowned you, could know someone's mind, they would crack yours wide open. The list of torture went on and on and would not stop.

“Jerome it is killing me not knowing, please, please, I promise not to look out the window again if you would just tell me.” I put my hand together as I begged, widening my eyes in innocence.

“No, it’s too dangerous!”

“Jer, please”

“Alright fine. But you can’t tell anyone and you can’t sit by the window again.” He stares me straight in the eyes and offers his pinky.

“Pinky promise,” I say and shake his pinky. “Now tell me what’s happening.”

His excitement is palpable as he begins bouncing on his feet. “We found it Cece. We found a way to stop the war.” He cracks a grin that I haven’t seen since we received word of our parents' death. “We found out the exact location of The Assents headquarters. We found records of the execution of the one-hundred and we have been in correspondence with the heads of state that aren’t part of the assent! They have agreed to help us make The Assent listen, and if they won’t they have agreed to help us take The Assent down.” This is what I have wanted for years. I secretly hope that The Assent won’t listen and we can take them down, for our parents and the ninety-eight others that had to die. We have wanted this moment for a long time. “In two days time we strike the headquarters, travel by helifish into their base and hold it until The Assent agrees to listen to us. Then we will meet and have three options. One: peaceful talk and solution, Two: blackmail with the video footage of what they have been doing to us, and Three: violence. Now hopefully it doesn’t come to violence, but if it does, Turmac has agreed to lend us supplies while they prepare for war with The Assent, and Valencia, Grismois, and Karkerta have agreed to aid us in the war. In two days time, the war will be over, or have begun anew.” He takes my hand. “Cece, we might actually get through this.” Hope shines in his eyes and wetness as tears slide down his cheeks. I grip his hands in return.

“Jer” I whisper “this is wonderful news! Were you not going to tell me that you’re leaving?” I feel a bit betrayed that he hadn’t thought to tell me he was going somewhere and I’d be on my own for days while he raided The Assent’s base. And I couldn’t believe that he was about to partake in one of the most dangerous invasions throughout our history in Jamarich.

“I was planning on telling you I had to take a trip for the next council meeting, I was hoping to avoid telling you unless I had to.” He looks at me sorrowfully, knowing I would have hated him forever if he had left and never returned. “I’ll be back before you know it” he promises.

The following morning I awoke to the floors rumbling. The house was shaking and dust fell from the ceilings that hadn’t been cleaned in years. I leaped out of my cabinet and ran to the window, breaking my promise to Jer, and was met with the sight of planes filling the sky. I ran to the cabinet that Jer slept in and all that was left was an empty room with a single note. I began reading the note and as I learned of his deception I began to cry.

Cece,

I am so sorry I had to lie to you. The meeting has

already been done, the countries that banded

with us have already been destroyed. The Assent

is on its way here to exterminate us. I wanted you

to be able to have hope one last time. You

looked so excited that I couldn’t tell you the truth.

I’ve run down to the black market to get us a

last breakfast like no other.

Love you,

Jer

I sobbed as I read the note. Fate is an evil thing you never realize until it’s too late. Ours had already been set in motion when the one hundred were chosen and now? Now we could only look back in misery for what was meant to be. I stayed at the window all morning, eyes red and puffy, my heart felt as if it had been dragged through the mud and faced a battalion already, it ached from the past years and the nothing that could stop what had been set in motion. I watched and waited until I saw Jer at the end of my block. I couldn’t hate him for what he had done. He was my brother, and in place of my parents, he was my protector. But I was still upset that he had lied. A grin spread across his face as he saw me in the window, weighed down by grocery bags he jogged towards the house. And that’s when the skies decided to rain fire. The last thing I remember was seeing Jer's face as he stared up at the sky, despair skittering across his features before he turned to me with love in his eyes. My eyes welled with tears before the world went black.

History has repeatedly shown the greed for power and the unattainable goal of peace. Wars break out and repeat and when warned against something humans still reach for it out of greed. I became dust and starlight, a seer of all worlds. When one era ended, I became the new one. Vengefulness has always been God's intent and I was born anew with vengeance sparkling in my eye.