Ethereal

2038

They sprinted into the fields towards the safety of the mountains.

The family kept low, nearly on their hands and knees so they wouldn’t be seen. The edge of the mountains were only several hundred yards away now, and the children tried not to feel frightened of the dark giants that loomed higher and higher above them.

They were almost there now, if the father had outstretched his fingers, he could almost brush off the dirt that clung to the ragged boulders that stretched up the mountainside.

A sudden whoosh flew over their heads, a bright light raining down on them as a beacon lit up the darkness. They all continued to run until they heard the crack of a whip and a yelp.

Three pairs of feet tripped against the dirt as they whirled around. A tank-sized SUV was parked several feet behind them, a large spotlight attached to its roof that made their eyes burn inside their skulls. Another cry was heard in front of the SUV, and the family looked around at each other before they realized one of their own was missing. Before any of them could move, several shouts commanded them to stay where they were, and though the family couldn’t see them, two dozen Citadel Officers had them surrounded at gunpoint.

The family began to weep – they had been caught.

The family looked around wildly for their daughter, their eyes widening as they found her caught underneath a thick black net, so heavy that she was unable to move her arms or legs. Another, smaller car pulled up next to the SUV and a woman dressed in a black stepped out into the spotlight. Her pale skin seemed to glow in the dark, her dark hair and attire an inky shadow that clung to her skin. She looked at the family, who were standing helplessly in the blinding light of the SUV’s beacon, and then she turned her attention to the girl trapped underneath the net.

The family watched as the woman pulled out a small syringe and jabbed it into the girl’s exposed neck. She stopped struggling almost immediately, and her cries quieted. The girl had been paralyzed – every muscle in her body was frozen except for her eyes, which darted around frantically at the officials that stood over her.

“Nor!” her mother cried, rushing forward towards her daughter. An official suddenly materialized from the darkness, his gun raised high above his head as he swung down at her temple. Without another sound she collapsed to the ground, causing the father and the brother to come rushing forward as well.

The rest of the Citadel Officers broke into the clearing, their faces concealed in thick black masks that made their heads look twice their original size. They forced the remaining two to the ground, shoving their hands behind their backs before throwing them back onto their feet and marching them towards the SUV. A guard picked up the mother’s unconscious body, carrying her close behind.

“What about this one?” said one of the guards pointing down at the girl in the net.

“There’s a girl’s orphanage that’s a few miles from here. They’re always looking for small hands during harvest season.” The woman said, and the officer nodded in response. She shouted something at a pair of officers behind her, ordering them to move the girl into her car.

Once the net had been removed, a guard came and lifted Nor into his arms. She willed her arms and legs to break free of his hold so she could run, but her body was unresponsive. The official threw her into the backseat of a car and slammed the door closed. The woman slid into the driver’s seat soon after.

Eleanor was silent as she started the car and reversed in the field, illuminating the back of the SUV. She could see her family sitting in the back of the car, thick chains wrapped around their wrists and ankles. Eleanor tried to raise her hands to the window but couldn’t, her breath creating a thick cloud of fog that clung to the window.

“Where are you taking them? Where are they going?” Eleanor said in a sluggish voice, feeling tears welling up in her eyes. She could feel a scream building at the back of her throat, but her throat seemed to close on its own accord. She watched the car’s headlights reflect off her father’s hooded eyes, all she saw was pure and utter devastation within them. She caught only a momentary glimpse of her brother’s dark hair and the shadow of her mother’s face before the woman put the car in drive and they pulled away from the SUV and Eleanor’s family. The darkness was so thick that they were soon swallowed whole within its gloom. A voice in Eleanor’s head told her that this was the last time she was going to see her family.

The woman silent at first, perhaps wondering if she should answer or not, before giving in and saying, “Your parents broke the sanction law ordered by the Citadels. They’re being sent to the Sacramento Providence, where all major Citadel offenders go.”

“They’re going to jail?” Eleanor said, feeling her heartbeat quicken. She had only heard stories about the Sacramento Providence at school. She was still too young to learn about the different Citadels, and so her teachers only relayed simple tales of far off places that she would probably never see. The woman shook her head.

“To be enslaved. They’re taking them to the Camp, and once you’re in, you don’t leave.” She said.

“What do you mean?” Eleanor said.

“They’re gone. And they’re not coming back.”