Selection Day

Chapter One

It all started when I opened my eyes to the familiar sound of my alarm dragging me out of my dreamless sleep. I remember looking over at my bedroom wall in front of me and saw that it was 7am. I had only had a solid two hours of sleep. What's new?

"Off," I had said in a groggy voice. The alarm silenced, leaving the only sound coming from the birds outside, their euphonic chirping mocking the thick atmosphere of dread that had been building up ever since I was nine years old. I had let out a shaky sigh and stared at my plain white ceiling, my mind contemplating my fate. Today was the day. The day I had been both dreading and anticipating since it was announced ten years ago. Squeezing my eyes shut, I had tried pushing the fear I felt to the back of my mind. My mind had been spinning with unanswered questions. What if I'm not chosen? What if

Dad isn't chosen? What if only one of us is chosen? Those thoughts flashed over and over in my mind. What if, what if, what if!
I shoved off my blanket, feeling both angry and frustrated as I stalked off to the bathroom. As I had done for years, I kept on reminding myself that I couldn't let this day take away the last fragments of control I had left. The Nordics had already taken away everything else from us, since taking reign of Earth. Fifty years of misery. The selfish bastards felt the need to own and control two planets! Being only nineteen, I didn't know a world without the Nordics. Nor had my parents. The only way I was able get a glimpse of how earth once was, especially what Chicago was like, was through the stories and pictures my grandma had told me. World History before 2040 was strictly prohibited to be taught, (especially in schools), and couldn't even be spoken about. If you were caught talking about pre 2040 earth in public, you would have been executed. The only history we were taught in school was that of the Nordics home planet; Aria, and the planet Icarian, which is where I am being shipped off to as I write this. This was all thanks to the extra terrestrial species 'The Nordics'. Well, the Arianell's in particular, as they are the Royal Nordic Clan. The Nordics who didn't agree with them were executed. The hate I felt for them burned inside me, and knowing that I couldn't do anything to stop this heinous act from taking place, really messed with my self-control. Once I had gotten dressed, I walked into the bright open kitchen/dining area of my single story, South Side Chicago home, that I had lived in my entire life. I had been greeted with the familiar face of my Dad, Marcus, sitting in his wheelchair, accompanied by his robot carer, Carter. My Dad had been drinking his mandatory morning cup of coffee, while Carter watched the news

on our newest television model that I had begged my Dad to buy for months. It was the 'holographic2020' and I vividly remember the excitement I had felt when he finally gave in and bought it. It seems like such a silly thing to want now. So mundane, so materialistic. The only thing I want back most in the world at this moment is my Dad.

I had walked in and greeted my Dad and Carter like it was any other day, even though I knew it wasn't. It was far from it. I had gone over to the fridge and typed in my usual breakfast order of blueberry pancakes, trying my best to push away the thought that this would have been my last time ever carrying out such a mundane task. A task that I had taken for granted.

Everything was as normal as it could be. That was until a hologram had appeared in the middle of the dining room, automatically shutting off every other device in the house, demanding our full attention. In that moment, it had hit home that my worst fear was about to become a reality. The hologram depicted Rose Arianell, the Queen Nordic. She looked just like a human being, with bright blue eyes and a powder white complexion, just like all Nordics. They were the ones who initiated the takeover of planet earth all those years ago. On their arrival, they had wiped out six and a half billion human beings, with a chemical gas, Analapse, leaving only one billion to survive. I remember staring at the Nordic Queen and my heart aching at the thought of what they were going to do. What they have now done.
"Hello my human children!" she had said in an eloquent voice. I remember her voice making my skin crawl and my blood boil. I hate her! I hate them!
"As you all may know, today is Selection Day!"

At this point, I couldn't stand by myself so I had walked over to my dad and held his hand, squeezing it tightly.
"In one hour, you will all have a tattoo appear on the left side of your face. It will be the Nordic symbol,"

The queen had held up her left wrist to show off a small purple tattoo that I had recognized immediately as the infamous Nordic symbol.
"If the tattoo appears purple, you have been chosen. If it appears red, you have not. Enjoy the rest of your day!"

And just like that, the hologram of the Nordic Queen disappeared, leaving us in silence. The room stayed quiet for a solid five seconds before Carter had decided to speak.
"Well at least she was polite!"

That had made me want to throw something at him. Although Carter had been an amazing carer for my paraplegic father, his only downfall had been not having a filter on what he said.
I remember my thoughts racing and feeling like I had had a lump in my throat, making swallowing an impossible task. The sickly sweet smell of my breakfast had made my stomach twist, as I had closed my eyes and buried my face in my hands. The Queens words replayed over and over in my mind. I asked myself how any of this could be happening. I had known this day had been coming for years, but I suddenly couldn't bear the thought of my life being toyed with.