“Together we shall continue to thrive in this, the best republic. Created to move us forward and give those without hope a glimpse of tomorrow.” The symbol burst onto the screen in a flash of fire, then slowly faded into the background, sending the room into an eerie dim light that found its way underneath the door. Suddenly, the room became bright and sterile as Supervisor Lane walked to the head of the class. His hair was matted down to his head with a helmet like quality, and his uniform was in need of a time machine, to find the original body it had once dressed.

“What you have all witnessed,” he paused to add tension to his words, “is the reason you have been here the last seventeen years of your existence. Tomorrow you will all be given a role that will allow this republic to continue to thrive. Each of you has something to contribute— I have made sure of that.” He marched between the desks, where dozens of eyes stared back at him. Each set of eyes looked upon his face, as though he was breathing life directly into their bodies. As he reached the back of the room, he turned to face the screen. Standing erect, with his hands behind his back, he nodded to the room, which sprung to attention. The scrapping of metal legs across the tile floors gave him pleasure. These were his hope that he gave to his republic. They would now be a reflection of him.

In his career as a Supervisor, Lane had only had one failure. It was the darkest day when he learned that one of his had strayed. They had lost their way in knowing that the republic was their family, and he felt it as though he had planted the bomb that caused the collapse of the Institute. He had pushed that memory from his mind, and dove farther into training the next set of citizens.

As they waited for a signal, there was a loud bang outside. All eyes focused on him. They dare not move before being told so. “Stay here.” Lane barked as he turned on his heels toward the door. In the hallway, a group of Supervisors rushed towards the location of the sound. As they wound their way through the labyrinth of doors, they came to the exit. The steel doors were locked, but through the bullet proof glass, they could see smoke. The sounds of screams began to fill the atrium, which they had passed through only moments before. Lane darted through a crowd of prospective parents to see scorch marks on the marble floor. From the ceiling a figure hung, swaying in rhythm with the deafening screams. The militia pushed their way through the crowd and quickly began rounding individuals into groups.

“Seal off the area. No one in or out without first going through an exam.” Sergeant Zorn shouted orders that overpowered the crying that had washed over the crowd. He caught Lane’s eyes and pointed towards his men to bring Lane forward.

“Come with us.” The other Supervisors took a weary step back as Lane was trotted forward into the center of the atrium.

“What do you have to say about all of this?” Zorn glared at the ceiling as the figure was lowered slowly down. From the corner of his eye, a wave or relief rushed over him. It was not a person, but a doll.

“I don’t know.” Before his mouth could stop the words they came out like vomit. “I supposed it it tragic.”

“You suppose.” Zorn towered over Lane, who was no small man himself. A piece of his ear was missing from a fight that killed its opponent. He had been giving the nickname “Wraith” which was fitting given the terror he caused. Especially the fear Lane’s students had the first time hearing Sergeant Zorn speak.

“What I meant to say, Sergeant, was I would be honored to have my group assist you in finding the perpetrator of this crime and bring them swiftly to justice. Tomorrow they will be assigned to a sector and begin their training to reenter society.” Lane knew he had to tread lightly. Glaring down at the balding spot on Lane’s head, Sergeant Zorn smirked.

“We all have our roll in the republic”, Zorn jabbed his large finger into the emblem on Lane’s blue coat, “And I’m sure you’ve trained them very well.”