I never thought that my quaint suburban town would become a dystopia, that the far-fetched fiction I read in books would become my reality. But then she arrived. Her army managed to seize our government, slaughtering whoever protested. By noon, they had corralled us into the town center.
She was short and thin, dressed in a simple black dress with a rather chunky diamond necklace. She sauntered to her pedestal, red patent heels clicking rhythmically with every step. I can still recall the way her honey blonde hair cascaded down the sides of her face in perfect, silky waves, how her piercing blue eyes darted across the crowd, commanding attention and respect, but especially how her molasses-sweet voice hypnotized everyone as she spoke. Everyone but me.
“Irresponsible decisions have plagued the human race since it first came into existence,” she had begun. “If we continue to make these decisions, our species will face extinction. But we cannot lose hope, for there is still a Silver Lining,” she explained, displaying a small, silver square, barely visible between her blood red, manicured fingernails. The crowd was silent. “With one of these chips implanted in your brain stem, all decisions will be made for you according to your predetermined path. Think about how much better your life would be, how much easier it would be. You can be virtually invincible,” she chimed as the crowd roared with applause, suddenly enthralled by this stranger. My arms stayed down at my side, my fingers clenched into tight fists, my mind in disbelief. “For implantation and programming, please report to town hall. The general and my army will deal anyone who fails to make their appointment on time. I’ll see you then!” She paraded off the stage, followed close behind by her guards and a group of hopeful citizens, desperate for an easier life.
Something in me wanted to follow them. It was as if I was being handled, merely a marionette puppet attached to strings. Her shiny silver strings. I knew I did not trust her, I knew I hated her, but something drew me towards her. I hated the feeling. I knew that this dehumanizing chip would rob me of my individuality, deprive me of my freedom. I needed to escape; I needed to run away before they noticed I was gone, before they noticed I had not followed through with the implantation. Only I could be in control of my life. I was not going to let anyone take that privilege away from me.
So I ran. I gathered the few possessions I had from my bedroom, and I ran towards the gates to the outside world, to the only hiding place I could think of: anywhere but here. The streets and buildings blurred together as I ran free. I felt my face beaming with the widest smile of pure joy, my legs pushing to go faster and harder to match the pace of my heart. I neared the gate, sprinting even faster, the fastest I ever had, past it. But there was no gate there; instead, there was a wall of soldiers. I slammed into the corner of a shield, falling backward onto the rocky path. As blood dripped down my forehead, I slipped away from consciousness, still trapped in my hometown.
Would I ever be free?
I woke up with a start in an entirely white, sterile-looking room. I tried to stand, but my arms and legs were bound with metal cuffs to what appeared to be a typical dentist’s chair. I looked down at my hands. My fingernails were caked with dried blood. As I studied them, faint clicks echoed in my ears, growing louder every time. It was her. I struggled and squirmed, trying to escape the restraints, but it was of no use, they were too tight. I would have to face her, to be brave, to fight my way out of this.
To my left, a door slid open and she strutted in, walking slowly with a patronizing confidence, but a malicious demeanor.
“I knew we’d meet like this, I had just hadn’t expected it to be this easy of a fight,” she began. “What a shame, I thought I would have some fun with you.”
“What did you do to me? ” I spat back.
“See for yourself,” she replied smoothly, a twisted smile upon her face. She held up a silver mirror. Streaks of blood painted my face with a rusty powder. Someone had sewn my gash from the shield, but as I turned my head, I noticed that someone had cut my precious hair, revealing a small, perfectly stitched square.
My blood curdled. I struggled to contain my fury and spoke between gritted teeth. “What exactly do you have to gain from doing all of this?”
“Is this really a surprise to you? Didn’t you think this was going to happen?” She hit a button, displaying a video on a large screen on the wall in front of me. My heart sank, but it only fueled my anger.
The girl in the video, the girl whose parents died in a car accident, the girl who lived in an abandoned home and ate scraps for dinner, the girl who didn’t clap at the ceremony, the girl who ran away, and the girl in the room, in the middle of an operation. But there was something strange. There were two steps to the operation. The first removed another older, bronze chip from her brain; the second replaced the old chip with the Silver Lining. The girl was me. My fate was being controlled all along.
“Where did you get this? How do you know who I am?” I leveled at her in horror as she grinned, feeding off of my fear.
“Oh, don’t you see, sweetheart, we’ve known you all along. I’ve been waiting for this day for sixteen years, ever since the day you were born. I had an especially enjoyable time choosing your destiny. You looked like you’d put up a good fight. But we knew you were going to rebel, how do you think we found exactly where you were? You can’t escape us, honey, you can’t escape me, no matter how hard you try.”
“Don’t you call me honey,” I spat at her, clawing at the stitches at the base of my head, breaking free of some of my restraints as she cackled. I heard a snap, and my vision went blank. I thrashed at her blindly, feeling blood drip down my arm as I swung at nothing.
“Oh, honey, I find your naivety amusing. Don’t you know what happens to little girls who don’t do what they’re told?” She snapped again.
I wanted to yell back. I wanted to fight. But I could not speak. She had taken my voice.
I could hear a third snap, but it was different, as if metal mechanisms were locking together. Nothing happened to me. I tried to will everything away. I tried to break free.
“Stop moving!” she screamed, and my body listened. I was pinned to the chair, paralyzed. Her voice changed. It became raspy, deeper.
“Freedom’s an illusion, honey. It’s all an illusion.”
I heard a final lock and a thunderous boom. Then there was nothing.