Untitled Novel…Part 4 :P
Hello!
I am now releasing Part 4 of this untitled novel for your enjoyment. It’s like midnight right now, so I am super tired!
SIDE NOTE……
I thought I should mention that I reapplied to the Praxis program, and I was accepted! I am super excited to start and learn through this experience! Thank you to everyone who prayed and believed in me!
Okay, on to the novel!
As always, I recommend reading the previous parts of this novel before reading part 4.
And now, part 4 (LONG awaited, I’m sure). ;P
There was no light to tell Katrina that day had come, but somehow, she knew when to get up. Apparently, all of the other girls had this same instinct because they were all waking up at the same time, too. She realized quickly that her fingers will still locked on her pendant, which she quickly stuffed inside her tunic. Something told Katrina that since all of the other girls were not wearing pendants, that it probably wasn’t the norm here and hers might be taken if discovered. But that’s silly. Katrina thought. If they had wanted to take it, they easily could have done so when they kidnapped me in the woods. She shook her head to clear it. This place was very confusing to her.
Another thing…Ever since last night, the good voice in her head had been trying to tell her why she was here, but Katrina was having a very difficult time understanding it. She had finally fallen asleep frustrated and annoyed.
The other girls were lining up at the door, so Katrina walked over and found her place as well. No one spoke, and it was like this for the majority of the day. Words were exchanged when necessary. They walked in a single-file line to breakfast, and then to a classroom where they watched a four-hour lesson on tape. Then lunch was served, and the girls chattered politely and quietly. After lunch, Katrina was assigned a job with four other girls from her compartment knitting socks. Plain white socks. By the time she and the others assembled themselves back in their compartment for dinner and the “social hour” as many called it, Katrina’s hands were aching. She had an unpleasant hunch that this routine was repeated every day. The funny thing was, she knew of no other way of life. This seemed rather comfortable to her. There was an itching feeling in the front of her mind that this daily routine was all right. Perhaps this is why she was sent here.
But no, that can’t be true. I have a pendant. She thought. It was silly reason, and she knew it, but it was the only thing she knew for certain. Lying on her bed now, Katrina’s mind was racing over the events of the day. She felt a slight headache coming on, and she instinctively clamped her hands over her ears to block it out. The school lesson from earlier came rushing back into her head. It was “The Voice.” Katrina pushed even harder on her temples, hoping to permanently prevent the sound of that voice from penetrating her mind.
By talking subtly to the other girls in her compartment, Katrina gathered that she was part of a large community called “The Collective.” The brand mark on her hand was identical to the marks on every other person she saw. It was part of the routine. Everyone was equal.
“That’s nice.” A voice said soothingly. Katrina cringed. The Voice. “Each person is trained to be a unique part of society. No one is out of place. All you need worry yourself with is doing as you are told. It is for your best interest.”
The Voice was repeating what they learned in “school.” The Collective was perfect. No one need question its motives, because it acts for the good. There is only we. Only us. Only The Collective. Katrina squirmed. Something about this was wrong. She knew it was. It was just that accepting the messages made her feel better. Made the headaches go away….it was so tempting…
But she still had a mission to complete – she felt it deep down inside. Katrina shook her head and the headache intensified. She had to resist. Why? Because she had a feeling that she was different. These other girls? They knew nothing but this monotone routine every day, and what’s more, they enjoyed it. Katrina had asked one of the others is she was happy, and the girl had blinked, stared at Katrina vaguely, and said, “We are satisfied” with a big smile. Something about that smile wasn’t quite right either. And she knew. She knew that she knew something more than they did. The only problem was, she didn’t remember what it was that she knew.
Then, unexpectedly, another voice entered her mind.
“Don’t trust them. They are lying. Things were once different. Things were better. Better than The Collective.” Katrina blinked in surprise. This was the first voice she had been able to hear fully. The first complete thought. She felt a twinge of something…something she couldn’t quite place her finger on, but it was there.
It was the stabbing pain in her right hand that made Katrina rather cross at the voices that seemed to be waging war in her mind. “STOP IT!” She screamed in her head and she winced and squeezed her wrist. The brand mark on her hand was not completely healed. That’s silly. Thought Katrina. Why should it be? I was only branded yesterday. Was it really only yesterday? It seemed like years. Fear gripped her as she realized that the days in the woods, the days where she had known more about herself, where slipping from her mind already. She continued to think long after the lights were turned out for sleeping.
“Show me my mission!” Katrina whispered to her pendant, rubbing it in the dark. Her headache was only slight now – much to her relief. The darkening of the lights seemed to help some. The pendant did not give an answer, just as Katrina knew it wouldn’t. There must be more, she thought. She rubbed her thumb along the front, along the part that bore her name. She had been careful not to mention her name after realizing everyone was called by their tag that was printed on their tunic. Katrina was known F-1104 here now. She had no idea why she had a real name while none of the other girls seemed to even know what it meant to have a real name.
Suddenly, the place where Katrina’s thumb was excessively rubbing the pendant became warm. Unnaturally warm. She looked down on it, and it started glowing a soft blue hue that sent excited shivers up and down Katrina’s whole body. This was it. This was why she had kept the pendant. This was the reason she was here. Slowly, the pendant started to open up to reveal a small blue pearl that instantly made Katrina remember…
Well, there you have it! 🙂
Stay tuned for part 5…
Until next time,
Hope Frances
