Don't Move

New Way of Life

"Athena!" a voice shouts out at me. "Heidi!" I shout as I run towards her with tears in my eyes. "You are safe," I say happily, "I thought I lost you." She shakes her head, "No, but the others were taken." "Is this the result room?" I ask her and she nods. "That is what they said," she says, "because I kept asking questions". I laugh a little as she says this.

Everyone goes silent as two guards barge in to grab someone after they affirm their name and we can only watch as they scream and struggle as they are taken away.

"Heidi," the woman calls out and a group of guards grab her, pulling her along as she struggles to walk with tears in her eyes.

She never comes back and many leave until I am the only one left behind.

"Athena," a woman says and two guards are standing beside her. I nod, "Yes, that is me." She comes closer to me and sits beside me on the makeshift bed, "We did the tests and you are able to have children from both our species and human species which is very rare. Also, we need to take you to our leader, James."

"Why?" I ask and she sighs deeply. She just looks at the guards and I sigh. "Just let me walk by myself please," I say with annoyance and the guards stand by my side as I walk towards a car that takes me to a huge glass house.

Once I enter the building, the guards grab me off the floor which causes me to start to struggle and they throw me into a room with a huge man standing infront of me.

"So, you are Athena," the tall man says kindly as he looks down at my dishevelled state as I am sprawled on the floor, "it is nice to meet you." I stay on the floor because I am not sure if I should get up and he smiles at me.

"You will be taking care of my children," the man says kindly, "I am James, the leader, and later you will get your mark showing your type of job as well as your level. At this event you will see all the new humans and get your information together. Everyone from one from the Kerogens will be watching so that they can get a new slave or whatever they need." "Why are you telling me all this?" I ask curiously. He comes closer to me and I do not move, "Because I like newcomers to feel safe and informed on what they have to face soon. You will get one last goodbye."

He walks out of the room and guards come to take me towards the car again where I am transferred to a place that has chairs that we are tied to. Once it is filled, the chairs begin to move about as we are watched from above by the Kerogens and they take us towards a man holding a scorching branding iron as each, from the youngest child to the oldest, are branded. One-by-one we are put in line as we watch another get branded.

"All those aged 6 and above are to be branded. Anyone below that age will go for reeducating and be given the opportunity to get a more privileged job," a voice announces like a drone.

I sigh in relief as I realise Leto is safe for now.

I shift my attention to the circular dome that is made of glass and the sand covering its base as the sky is darkened with Kerogens as well as the singular line leading to the man holding the branding iron.

"Tyler," I whisper as I see him go towards the branding.

"Male, Tyler, 20's, not fertile, yellow, farm," a man announces calmly as Tyler's chair gets moved away.

"Female, Heidi, 20's, not fertile, green, nanny," the same man says much later on.

The rest of the names are drowned in Tyler's and Heidi's screams that echo in my mind.

Soon, it is my turn and I scream in agony as the fire burns my flesh to a crisp causing me to smell my own burning flesh hanging in the air.

"Female, Athena, late teens, fertile (rare), orange, nanny (hired)," the man says but I am almost knocked out of my feeling as the smells cause me to faint.

I wake up in a room with Tyler on the other side of a glass wall and I run towards him as our hands are apart from each other. My tears fall as my heart hurts.

"Did you get to say goodbye to Leto?" I ask him and he nods. "Yeah," he says sadly, "they will allow me visitation since she is my child, but I am not allowed to speak about certain things and you?" I nod, "I said goodbye, but I don't think I will get visitation."

"Goodbye Tyler," I say sadly. "I love you A," he says seriously, "I will never get to say it, but I do and I want you to know that." "I love you too," I say with tears in my eyes, "more now than when I saw you again with Leto."

The guards come in and I walk with them willingly.

Soon, I arrive at the leader's home and I am put into a room with many other girls. There is about twenty girls in one room.

We all head to bed in silence, but I struggle to sleep and I watch as the sun starts to rise through the curtains. Then, the alarm blares and everyone gets up as well as me. My clothes are handed to me by the other slaves as we dress in fully white clothes and keep our hair open so flowy hair.

I am directed towards James office and I find fourteen people standing there alongside him.

"Athena," James says with a smile, "these are my children. Anax (23), Alisha, Amoli (21), Berli (19), Camden (18), Hagan (15), Norah (14), Kabir (10), Udeline (8), Ivaan (7), Imogen (6), Cayle (5), Edolie (1), Emery (0). You will be taking care of Kabir, Udeline, Ivaan, Imogen, Cayle and Edolie as well as Emery if her mother agrees." I nod as I look at the little ones staring back at me, "Yes sir." "The older ones may ask you for whatever they need as long as it doesn't interfere with the littles," he says and I nod once again, "someone will choose you to have their child at some point, but your responsibility first and foremost is these ones. Your duties start from tomorrow and today you need to watch the current nanny do her job."

I nod, "Yes sir."

All the kids leave the room and I follow the nanny in her duties.

All the kids have black hair straight or curly hair. Their eyes are so rare and beautiful, but their bodies are so human.

Kabir's, Ivaan's, Cayle's and Emery's eyes are yellow, Udeline's and Edolie's eyes are pink, Imogen's eyes are orange.

The older kids: Anax's, Berli's and Hagan's eyes are pink, Alisha's and Camden's eyes are yellow, Amoli's eyes are gold, Norah's eyes are red.

As I watch the current nanny, I think about James whose eyes are Gold while all his children have such different eyes which causes me to wonder.

Exhausted, I head to bed without even thinking about anything else.