01/02/2015
0 recensioniPrologue
My name is Mia Salker and I joined the Military Academy two years ago after I lost my family.It was a cold and snowy Christmas that night. My father, my mother, my sister Jenny and I gathered around the table at the Christmas dinner. My mom had prepared all kinds of food and the smell was amazing. The candles made just the perfect atmosphere and everyone was waiting to taste the food.
Then, suddenly, the lights went out and someone stormed inside the house making the icy air come in. The wind blew away the candles and darkness took over the room. I heard heavy footsteps of boots followed by the panicked screams of my family and I knew that I should act. However, as soon as I stood up from my chair, a hand covered my mouth and tried to drag away towards the front door. There was also the sound of a gun outside the door. Confused and alarmed, I took a knife from the table and placed it wildly where I supposed was his or her face. He screamed and let me go. I wanted to run but all I can remember is that something heavy had hit my head and I collapsed on the floor unconscious.
I woke up lying on the floor with a breathing mask cupped over my nose and mouth. Blue and red flashlights were out of the window. I took the mask off my face and tried to stand up. It was morning and when I came out of my front door there was not just a crowd of police officers and FBI, but there were three covered bodies lying in the garden. My family.
Every day I recall my scream after that scene. Every day I ask myself the same questions: Why? Why them? Why I’m still alive? Why aren’t they?
After I discovered my family was gone, a man came to me and suggested that I joined the Military Academy.
This Military Academy is made for people above eighteen years old (I’m twenty) who don’t have a family like me. They train us like soldiers and when we reach a certain age we join the real army like the Marines. Except me.
Girls cannot train as soldiers. However, this is not the only problem. There are also boys that don’t train because they are not courageous or other aspects that a soldier must have. Some other freaks and I do bullets for guns because they don’t know where to put us. The soldiers call us names like “freaks, smartass, and scientists”. The soldiers and we are natural enemies. But not all the soldiers, just one group. A group that is the best of all the soldiers in the academy.
We just sit in a lab room and construct bullets for them while they train to be Marines and help the world.
However, there is that specific soldier: let me introduce you to Sam Burnett, the most annoying person on earth (obviously, the head of that group). I wish I could train so I could learn how to punch him properly on the face. Hard.
So, here’s how things are:
Two years ago, the Military Academy opened to us and we all joined in. When those soldiers discovered that my group and I where sorted in the lab as scientists, they busted out laughing. After, we said that we were smarter than they were, so Sam had the dumb idea to compete with us in some stupid competitions, like constructing guns or run a hundred meters track to see who was smarter. We had twenty competitions in these two years and my group and I won just three. But only because they always choose physical competitions. And we are smart, not athletic. Therefore, the first time we’ve done these competitions our Captain Will thought it was a good idea to test each other. Now every time we compete, it becomes a public thing and the rest of the academy cheers for entertainment.
Then, second thing, there is Sam’s best friend, Mike. I don’t want to just punch him, I want to strangle him. He always makes us feel bad by reminding us that we are useless and we will never have a future. Which is true. Making bullets for the rest of my life isn’t exactly what I want to do. But since I don’t have a choice, I’m kind of happy here. I have a roof, food and some good friends.
In my group there is Alicia, my best friend;
Stacy, a good friend;
Ben, a genius;
Andrew, another very good friend;
And Lucas, Andrew’s best friend.
Then in Sam’s group there are:
Mike, his best friend (more like a brother, he says);
Jim, an athletic addict;
Bart, a fan of himself;
Billy, a computer genius;
And Derek, selfish and popular for his humor (not really).
Obviously, they are the best soldiers in the whole academy, but none can beat Sam. He’s not just good at, well, everything, he is also the vice-captain of our academy. Sometimes, Captain Will (the captain of our academy) leaves for a couple of days to visit the Marines and Sam must be left in charge of everything. He will be our captain in the future, when Will goes in pension or- as Alicia says- expires. Will is not so old, he is in his forties and keeps a good shape, even a better shape than our academy building. This academy has been built in 1898, but then was closed in 1938, and then reopened in 1968, then closed again in 1988, and finally reopened in 2012 (two years ago).
Well, this is my house now, and it will be for maybe forever. I don’t like forever, I like a few years. But the only way to be someone here is to be a soldier. And as far as I’m concerned, this won’t happen.