Years ago, our parents never would have thought the day would come when our governments would make their decision. From what I’ve heard, life used to be decent, and at least partially free.

Now though, twenty three years later, I find the white walls of our confines to be nearly soothing. The year 2050 should have been a prosperous one- that’s what they said in our parents schools.

I was five when they took me, my brother was five when they took him, too. That was the magical age I suppose.

“We’re taking you home.” One overly large man from the driver seat had said.

“You took me from my home!” I had countered. “Take me back!”

We were always taught not to talk back to these men, to simply obey before they made things worse for us. I couldn’t help it though- I knew I’d never see my parents again.

“I’m afraid we can’t do that. You’re needed for something much greater.” The man from the passenger seat explained.

I couldn’t imagine then what they meant. Now though, I did know. But it certainly wasn’t for something “Greater”.

“Annalise!”

I spun around to find my brother bounding toward me, breaking me of my thoughts from years before.

“Is it done?” I asked, my voice no longer seeming to belong to me at all. It was far too sad, too… controlled.

He nodded excitedly.

Of course he was excited. He didn’t know yet what it all meant. Or what it would do to him.

“They said that since you were an ideal candidate for fire, it made my chances for water that much greater. I accepted it well, so I shouldn’t get sick, right?”

Sick. That’s what they called it. What it actually was, was the body’s rejection to the serum. If we rejected it, we became ill quickly. It would take mere days before it wasted us entirely before the men moved our bodies to the furnace in the basement.

I shuddered, then regained the plastered on smile that I’d mastered so easily over the years. I knew I’d need it for the day he turned eighteen. Now, I was grateful for it. Jonas had just turned eighteen and passed his “test” with flying colors.

“No, Jonas. You shouldn’t get sick. I’m happy for you, water will do well for you.”

I lifted my palm to him, igniting the bare skin there until the golden embers shone from his eager face. He lifted his hand, too, setting it against mine. Instantly, small overlapping waves simmered the flame as he watched in awe.

“That’s amazing…” he whispered.

As he let his hand fall back to his side, his eyes appeared lost and distant.

“What is it?”

It took a moment for him to respond, as he contemplated his words. There were eyes and ears everywhere.

“I’m just… not sure how I’d use it out there.” he replied finally, jutting his thumb towards the guarded main exit.

“You’ll figure it out.” I said, resting my now extinguished hand on his shoulder. “We have classes for a reason- they’ll start to teach you how to use it.”

Jonas seemed to lighten at that, and his previous cheerful mood returned.

We sat for lunch, taking our assigned seats across the benches of the long white tables, and waited for our food. The officials always brought our plates to us, we were never allowed to take them from the kitchen ourselves.

As I looked over at him from across the table, his excited mutterings with his cell mates, I pictured what it would be like for him when he discovered the truth of our outside world- one he hadn’t been allowed to see since he was taken.

It would be weeks before he would be allowed to go on rounds with me. I would be tasked with being his advisor, which meant I would have even more restrictions to my duties. While I was grateful to be allowed the outings with him, it also terrified me.

I didn’t want him to see the things we saw, the utter destruction of our world around us. The ground was bare and lacked of any crops or fruitful trees, and what trees there were had been scarred with blackened burn marks- an order I was expected to follow through with.

They said the planet was plagued, that we were required to fight off the disease in order to obtain new life, a new world.

Something felt entirely, completely, wrong.