The Rogues

1- Intro to Detra

Do you ever feel as if you don't belong somewhere? As if the everyone around you is constantly walking in an endless circle and you're the only one standing still. That's how I feel...living here...in this hell hole I call home.

You're probably wondering...Where do I live? I live in a big urban society called Detra.  Ah Detra. Home sweet home.  "Giving perfect lives to perfect people" is our slogan, though I would describe it as anything else but perfect here. I mean...If being held hostage by your government is "perfect", then the shoe fits.

In Detra, everyone's lives are planned out for them. The government (aka Detra Gov), basically plans your entire life out for you. You have no say on how you want your life to turn out, and must follow the rules. If you don't obey the rules, you are arrested and are outlawed to "the chamber". Nobody knows what the chamber is...but I wouldn't like to find out. There are many strict rules in Detra but it's very important to always remember the five main ones. The rules are:

1. You must work in the job position Detra gov picks for you.

2. You have to use the resources the government gives you ( house, car, food, clothes etc.)

3. You  must marry who the government mates you with.

4. You can only have one child.

5. You must never question or protest against the government.

You also mustn't ever cross Detras borders into the "no man's land". The no man's land is a place beyond Detra that is said to be horrific. No one who has traveled into the land, has ever returned, that's why they call it "No Man's Land"...no man makes it out alive.

Up until you are 15, you attend regular school to learn basic knowledge. Once you turn 15, You are placed in one of five work categories and you are given a specific job. The work categories are, Healthcare, Law, Education, Labor and Government. Detra Gov does this so no one is left unemployed and unhappy. After you are placed in a job, you are given your own home and are provided with food, a car, clothes and other necessities. You train in your selected work area for two years, then you are given a job. At age 20, you are "mated" with another person, whom you have to spend the rest of your life with. Detra gov does this so everyone can have a family and find happiness. I just don't understand how being mated to another can bring anyone happiness;That's the part I'm dreading.

Oh-I guess I never introduced myself; My name is Evelyn Kane. At 15, I was placed in the healthcare category, and I work as a secretary in the Detra hospital. Though I'm just a secretary, I was trained in nursing. All I wanted to do was to be a nurse, I wanted to do good, help out people...but the government put me as a secretary. A boring secretary.

Though its not ideal, there is nothing I could do about it. Throughout my life I have noticed something very strange...that everyone around me deals with this bullshit! Every single person lives their lives happily doing everything the government tells them, without a single complaint. How can I be the only person who thinks differently? I'm miserable here. I feel as if I'm imprisoned by this "perfect" society, that in my eyes, is filled with flaws. I want to pick my job, I want to have several children, I want to eat and wear what I want, and most importantly, I want to marry for love. Spending the rest of my life with a man I hardly know just isn't what I want. I want to marry someone because I'm truly in love with them...I want to be able to look into their eyes and know that they are the person I want to spend the rest of my life with! Detra Gov picks your match based on who they think you'd be the perfect with...but I don't want a computer system to decide who I love...I want to decide who I love. I think of my parents; they act as if they are in love. They claim they were the perfect match. But sometimes I ponder...are they really in love, or are they in love because the system told them they were? I feel that no-one here even knows what love is...I don't even know what love is. It doesn't even matter, I could never tell anyone how I feel...I would be arrested...maybe even thrown in the chamber!

I hope that maybe one day I'll wake up like everybody else and realize, "hey! This place isn't to bad!" That maybe one day I'll suddenly love my job, and fall in love with my match. Maybe Ill finally accept this bullshit government system that controls my every move. Maybe one day I'll feel normal. I'll be happy. Maybe.