Burnned

After the fall of the old world a new one was made, called the renovation. Welfare programs failed and now the only way to get money if your poor is to put your children up for sale.

I heard him chasing me, but I wasn’t going to let him catch me this time. This time I would get away, I would finally win. I dogged underneath the trees branches that hung low and threatened to knock me out at almost every step.  That and the root tripping me  made every step an adrenaline rush to see if I would fall.

But I wasn’t being fast enough, I could hear him tear through the under brush like  mad rhino. I had only a few precious seconds left. I pushed my self harder. I felt the small fear of being chased, of knowing that if caught pain would await. But I heard his heavy foot steps beginning to fade, and I thought that for once all alone I had gotten away until I broke through the forest and found myself faced with about 10 people with wicked smiles on their face. Their faces relaxed but their bodies ready for a fight.

I slid down brushing my side against the dirt like a basebakll player coming in for a home run. I kicked one of them off f their feet and made a string off cuse words erupt from their mouth. The others began to pounce but I was already up. Two hit the ground where I was only moments before. I made for  the break in their line to try once more for the forest.

I was only a couple of  feet away when the blinding pain erupted from my side sure to leave a mark. I fell to the grpound. IO couldn’t move my body as it lay paralyzed.

“You will never learn.”

I knew who had scorched me, he was the only one who ever was able to char me. I let the pain subside and when my limbs would respond I stood and looked my brother in the eye as best I could as he was so tall. His brown shaggy hair covered his crystal blue eyes which we both shared and his skin a deep brown from always being in the sun.

“Couldn’t you have put it to sting,” I said rubbing the scorch marh where IO had gotten charred.

He held the thin metal pole that emitted intense electrical charge that cook a small section of you flesh but with the currents being laced with medication it wasn’t permanent, only leaving a mark for a few week.

My body was covered with them. Some almost faded others as black as dirt with a star shape split out of purple. It was all part of the training. I had to be able to get away if I was ever taken by some crazy group or maybe just even one insane  person. At least that was what I was always told. Though the oldner I got the more I knew this was just to protect me.

I don’t know why me and my brother went throught this training, why when I went to school I noticed how insanely different I was from all of them. how all of our friends came from other reagions when their parents came to meet with our parents.

My family was one of the main head familes that ran Kotan a pharmaceutical research company. They checked to make sure the drugs released were as healthy as they say. They also do extensive research for disseases. When they found the cure for cancer in the venom of a rare snake and were able to code enzymes into the snake venom so that it attack only the cancerous cells the world rejoiced. We were the most know family. We were all heors.

But its been going bad. We began to fight some other companies whose meds are little more then placebo yet caost a small fortune.

But all of this was pushed out of my mind as I fumed at yet another training session lost.

“One day, I’m going to beat you,” I said firmly, even thought I had been saying the same thing since I was 12 and at 17 I was beginning to doubt it would ever happen.

“I’m sure,” He said skeptically almost rolling his eyes. As if the thought of his little sister beating him was preposterous.

I was about to aim  a sharp comeback at him when th wailing sound of a siren screeched through the air. We have had to run from the cops before, but they this siren sounded different, it had a hitch that put my nerves on edge. It made me wanty to clamp my hands over my ears.

I saw Noah frezze and a look come over his face thatr made me pause beside him. He quickly looked to me recovering himself.

“Ally I need you to run, take this and if anyone chases you I want you to use it.”

And with a push I ran, I waited to hear his footsteps follow but they didn’t. For a moment I slowed but I knew that I had to keep going. I shut downt he growing fears the confusion and the worry for my brother and I ran, because I knew something was so very, very wrong.

I ran faster and faster not even having to think as I moved throught the forest like I never had before. I didn’t take note of my surroundings to find my way back I just ran the forest a green blur behind me.

I heard some one following me with hardly a sound I knew I was coming to the clearing and I braced for a trap just like the one before, except this one would be real.

I didn’t know who would be waiting but when I broke throught the forest and turned to make the edge 9 saw the soldiers dressed in black, they had my friends electa-bound. The electric string wrapped tight around threir wrist and stomac so any movment triggered the string to shock them till all movment stopped.

Some of my friends screamed as they were thrown to the ground and I almost stopped the horror of what was happening by the people I was lead to believe where here to protect us. But when the one who was chasing me broke throught the forest his sise three times that of mine and brandishing a hot whip I bolted.

But fear had cret back into me at the sight of the hot whip where one touch qould fill every nerve in your body with a lava like sensation till you blacked out. They were highly illegal by all forms of government. The penalty of being caught with one was 15 years of life taken away.

 I began to trip over the root and I could hear him coming up from behind me. I saw the branch to late and had to slide to miss it. The Soldier was on me in seconds. He raised the whip and I rolled only seconds before it burned the ground where I was. I hopped up and kicked with all my streagth into his knee and was rewarded with a sadisfying crunch.

He half fell to the ground and that was when I realized he was pain immune. He stared to crawl after me as I was froze staring at the white p=bone jutted out of the flesh that bleed more and more.

I turned and ran but I was to slow. The soldiers had assembeled and I was faced with 2 men with scorches and a woman how seemed to be unarmed.

I lunged at one using my own scortcher to put him down and was one the second on till I felt something wrap around me and then things went black.

The woman had not been unarmed just hiding a eletracution net.

When I opened my eyes I found my self in the all to clean and metal cell of a prison. I touched the cool metal of the walls and the  bars covered in metal fencing that made sure you didn’t slip through the bars.

I knew that before the renovation of our world that people were held in prisons for years at a time. I shuttered at the thought. These were just holding centers for what came next where you would pay your dues.

According to your crime you would pay your years. After the renovation of the old world it was found that holding a prisioner for years and years was ineffective and expensive. So they found a way to stress the heart in a way that it simulated aging. They could a age a person up to 60 years. You wouldn’t age right in front of them but the point was to stress the heart to simulate up to 60 years of living.

I had paid a couple of months for normal teenage things, like staying past curfee and maybe even shoplifting. It probably equaled to a year. But this time I knew it wouldn’t be a slap on the wirt and some months taken away and that scared me. I didn’t want my life to be cut short, none of us even knew how long we were here and for it to be taken away.

I paced ion my metal cell my stomac turning either from hunger oif from the nerves I couldn’t controle. I heard the door open and I had to fight the urge to punch whoever walked through the door. It was a Soldier in his dress blues. He looked amazingly lethal. I allowed him to put the electra- bond on my wrist with out much resistance.

He walked me down the hall to where I knew to be the againg chair. It had some special name but that was what we called it. I came to the door and saw someone being carried out, the effect of the aging sending them unconscious. It was Bear, he had been cought with us and seeing him being dragged to the holding cell so weak made me more angry then scared.

I suddenly wanted to know how many years we were giving up.

“How many years?” I asked.

He stood still as we waited outside the door, for them to clean up and prep for the next prson.

“Fifty.”

The news hit me hard and I felt all the fight leave me. I was losing close to half my life and I didn’t even know why.

“Look, your parents are here, they have the money to release you and your bother but if you don’t fight and stall this then theres nothing anyone can do,” He said in a barley audable whisper.

I was shocked by what he was saying, and why was he saying it. Was he just trying to get me in more troble have even more years taken off my life by resisting. When the door opened and I saw the chair, the needels the moniters and the people in perfect white coats all to ready to cut my life I knew even if he was lying, fighting sounded pretty good.

I didn’t really want to hurt the guard but it didn’t seem I had a choice. I brought my elbow up and he caught it before I could connect with his face.  I dropped to the ground and slipped out of his hold ignoring the pain from the electra-bond. I grabbed the scorched he wore in his belt.

He saw that I had it and jumped back. He yelled and soon many more lethal looking officers filled the hall each brandishing a schorched and probably an elecracution net. I heard as one was released and I jumped aside. It sailed from where I was to hit the guard who had so helped me. He fought the electric current for a moment which was amazing to watch before he fell to the ground unconscious.

I turned to the remaining gaurds and they came in one me all at one. I felt a scorched hit my back and turned to hit the person. I landed only one hit before a baraje opf other shocks lit up my body.

Having my hands bound didn’t help either as I tried to pull one of the gaurds out from under his feet.

Iut almost worked, but instead they lifted me into the air restraining my arms and legs my scorcher falling from my hands. I kicked and caused as much difficulty as I could.

“GET OFF OF MY YOU B******S!” I screamed as I was carried into the room.

They locked me into the chair the Soldiers iron grip keeping me from moving as they strapped me in. I was hooked up and all to soon I was ready for the procedure to begin.

I took a breath as I watched the doctors tap the screen. I heard the machine warm up and barley registered the door opening till the machine were turned off again.

I opened my eyes and the straps were being undone. I looked at the door and a woman carrying a pad nodded in my directions.

“Your parents have made the payment. All the children in custody have been released. You were last. Almost had you aged any way didn’t we.” She said in a voice that didn’t seem so sorry.

I suddenly knew the guard was right. They were trying to age me when my parents had practically paid bail. I had some vary important questions to ask my parents that needed some vary good responses.  I ran out of the room, nobody moving to stop me, I saw the same from a long line of rooms down the hall. All my friends, well almost all. I thought of bear and wondered why he wasn’t saved.

I saw my borhter who wasn’t running for our parents but in the middle of the hall stopped nad searching. When his eyes landed on me I saw relief spread through him and a smile practically split his face.

I ran to him and tackeled him with a hug.

“Im so glad your safe,” he said into my hair.

“Me too,” I said back realizing that I had been worried about him.

“Brian, whats going on. I mean really going on.” I said in the now quiet emptiness of the hall.

I unwrapped myself from him and he looked down on me with a look to old for him, a look that held to much worry and fear, to much stress and to much disappointment.

“Mom and dad will tell you. I promise.”

I looked up at him one more time and nodded, if he promised then I knew it would happen. He had never broken a promise yet.

We walked slowly down the hall, his hand in mine, I had a feeling that in his eyes I would always be the little six year old that he needed to protect from the world.