"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."

Chapter 1: Capture

Excited about my minute of relaxation, I hopped into the Freshener. Our Fresheners were programmed so that the water would only run for exactly one minute. No more, no less, and definitely no exceptions. The Nations told us that it was wrong to waste water on things that were unnecessary – like fifteen minute periods in the Freshener. Our ancestors did, but look what happened to their society. Although it wasn't because they spent a healthy amount of time in the Freshener, it was because they were too overloaded with information. Clearly the populace couldn't keep up with everything that was happening, and it just collapsed.

"Freshening complete," my bot, Fae, told me in her perfectly smooth voice.

I stepped out of the Freshener reluctantly. The robotic arms that focused on cleaning me in that short time retracted back into the tile walls; however, as soon as my feet touched the small plastic mat outside the Freshener, new arms replaced them. They dried and styled my hair, dried my body and did my makeup—which we were only allowed to wear on special occasions. My styling took about as much time as freshening did, so the arms left me quickly. One arm draped from the ceiling and held a mirror up to my face.

"Is this acceptable for tonight?" Fae asked me.

My hazel eyes were greener than the predominate brown because of the makeup, but my hair looked the same as it did every day—brown and curly. Except most days the curls looked unmanageable, not lined in perfect ringlets like tonight. The lipstick stained my lips bright red against my fair skin. I smiled, pleased with Fae's work.

"It's wonderful!" I exclaimed.

Fae didn't reply to my giddy comment. She merely said, "Your Formal Dress is available in your bedroom." The door swung open automatically.

I flounced into my glass bedroom. Curtains separated my room from the outside world. My standard size bed stood on chrome supports in the center of my room, in the middle of two chrome side tables. One had a tall orchid that climbed upwards to the ceiling, and the other had a Communication Link. It was identical to my parents' bedroom, along with every other bedroom in the Nation Alexandria. I didn't mind, though. Supposedly back when our ancestors were alive, some people didn't have beds. Bleakness in my bedroom wasn't a problem for me at all. Besides, the design wasn't changeable. It had been put in place back when Alexandria's founders had been put in place.

Knowing I would have to leave soon, I punched in the short code to obtain my Formal Dress. "Please step to your left," Fae instructed me. As soon as my right foot was out of the way, a chrome dress rack slid out the wall. It held my Formal Dress, and a pair of silver shoes was under it on a small platform. "Is dress color seventy-four the shade you requested?" Fae asked.

"Yes," I replied admiring the emerald satin.

"Would you like to be dressed?"

"Yes."

A metallic arm protruded from the wall and took my dress off of the rack. It unzipped the dress and held it open. "Please step in, Miss Avery," Fae instructed me.

I obeyed her, and immediately the arm pulled my dress up. Quickly, the dress was zipped and the arm skillfully tied the loose fabric at my side neatly into a bow that sat comfortably on my shoulder. The arm shrank back into my white wall, but returned with a full length mirror. Another arm fetched my shoes and placed them in front of me. "Please step in," Fae repeated. Once again, I obeyed.

"Dressing completed," Fae informed me.

"Thank you, Fae. You may power down," I said.

The mirror flew back into the wall along with the dress rack and shoe platform. "Are you sure?" Fae asked.

"Positive," I replied turning to leave.

"Systems are shutting down," I heard Fae drone before shutting my bedroom door.

I walked swiftly to the glass elevator that was at the end of the hallway. The plush white carpet sunk with every step I took in my silver shoes. I almost felt guilty knowing that the domestic workers spent a lot of time cleaning them every day and I was allowed to ruin them so easily. Of course, they had to do something. The bots would normally clean, but the Infraction Centers had become so full lately that the people who committed minor infractions had the opportunity to work for government officials instead of spending two years at the Infraction Centers. It was a simple solution. At first it made me uncomfortable knowing that people who had broken the law were supposed to live here, but I got used to it quickly enough. My father told me that if they even thought of harming us, they would go right back to the Infraction Center; and for much longer than two years. That was why the politicians were handling them.

I pressed the clear button to go to the first floor, and the elevator spiraled downwards. It used to disorient me when I was small. Now I was completely used to the feeling of the elevator. In fact, after it stopped frightening me, I would ride it up and down for fun. Of course, when my father caught me I got into trouble.

"Oh Avery, you look beautiful!" my favorite domestic worker, Rhea, gushed. She was about my mother's age and had been here for as long as I can remember. She was here because she had committed a major infraction, but she didn't have to suffer for it. The woman was luckier than most.

"Thank you!" I chirped. I had been anticipating this night for so long. It was a formal dinner for the government officials of Alexandria, and I was old enough to be invited. Seventeen was the age in which children were allowed to accompany their parents to formal events. Needless to say, I was giddy with excitement.

Rhea gave me a quick hug and then stepped back to admire my outfit. She smiled warmly and said, "You've grown up so much!"

I laughed lightly. Rhea had almost raised me herself. My mother was hosting guests constantly from the number of officials my dad had over from work.

"It's not funny, it's true," Rhea told me, straightening out my bow.

I shook my head. "I feel the same as I did when I was ten. Just taller."

"Well, you certainly are taller! Now go, your parents are waiting for you by the Transport."

I gave Rhea another hug before walking out to the Transport. "There you are!" my mother greeted me. Her dress was the same as mine, only it was blue instead of green. "Well, you look nice."

"Thank you. You do, too," I replied grinning cheekily.

My father frowned at my joke. He never liked that I joked about how everyone dressed the same. "You had better not make any jokes about that at this dinner, or I will…"

"Never take you again," I finished for him.

He sighed, exasperated by my behavior. "Get in the Transport," he told me and my mother, opening the wide door on the side.

We all climbed into the wide compartment and sat across from one another. My parents were next to the door and me next to the window. There were three seats, one for each of us. It was the same for every family. Each couple got to have one child, and you were stuck with whatever gender you got.

My father pressed the silver button next to his seat. "City Hall," he said.

"Destination: City Hall. Travel time is approximately seventeen minutes and forty-four seconds. Please stay seated until the Transport arrives at the destination," the bot told us.
As soon as the bot's speech was over, the Transport floated out of the Transport Compartment and into the air. It sped at a constant pace over the neighborhood. All of the houses below were completely the same. All two story glass rectangles. Everyone had two maple trees and a patch of roses and ferns in their gardens. Maple trees lined the streets in a perfectly straight line, and all were evenly spaced.

I sighed and looked away from the boring view below. Nothing ever changed here.

"Something wrong?" my mother asked.

I shook my head. "No. I'm just bored," I said.

Instantly, my mother lost interest in me and looked past me and out the window.

When we arrived at City Hall, we had to wait in line for everyone's Transports to be unloaded. Several bots were opening the doors on Transports and people piled out of them and into City Hall. These bots were the ones that walked around, though. They were created to serve in City Hall. Bots at home were just built in computer systems for every room that had retractable appendages. Domestic workers were not allowed into City Hall. In fact, you had to have a perfect record if you want to enter City Hall for any occasion. Keeping all of our government officials safe was of the upmost importance.

Finally, it was our turn to get our door opened. The bot opened the door and greeted us, "Welcome, Shol family, to City Hall." Responding would be a waste of our time. These bots were programmed to say one thing according to each family in the transport, and they couldn't have a conversation.

My father and mother walked quickly into City Hall, gossiping about the families that they saw there. However, I walked slowly and marveled at the beautiful architecture. The building wasn't glass like everything else in the Nation, no, this one was made out some solid material that was in separate blocks and sealed together by some hard grey stuff. There were six gargantuan pillars made out of the same grey stuff, and there were three on each side of the large, intricately carved double doors in the center. A large roof like covering was supported by all of the pillars, and that had a large carving—I couldn't tell what of—on its triangular surface.

My curiosity about the building was cut short by a tug on my arm. "Avery, come on. Their seating our family," my mother informed me.

I nodded and followed her into the ancient building. The inside was even more exciting than the outside. The carpet was a deep shade of red and there were hundreds of paintings that lined the walls. Even though my mother was trying to rush me through the hall, I tried to admire all of the paintings. Unfortunately at the pace my mother was going, it was impossible. I wondered how she couldn't even pause for a moment to look at all the vibrant colors and beautifully detailed art that every building but this one lacked. So much color was such a rare thing for me to see all at once. I didn't even know the name for most of the colors on the paintings. All of it was so overwhelming, but I accepted that I wouldn't be able to see everything this time. I would be here a lot more, I thought.

The dining hall had the exact same plush, red carpet, but the walls weren't filled with artwork. The walls were painted golden, but what really made the room beautiful was the dome roof. It was painted like there was some other world up there. Men with wings flew in all sorts of different directions, and all of them were naked. Several other men, without wings, were resting on clouds, eating or drinking. The men with wings appeared to be serving them. The wide windows along the curved walls showed a large courtyard, decorated with vibrant, blooming flowers and fountains. City Hall had more life in it than the rest of the Nation in all of its glass, chrome homes. Once I was able to take my eyes off the roof, I noticed the tables. There were so many circular tables that it made my head spin. Each table had six arm chairs, and the table the bot was leading us to already had one family sitting at the table.

The family of three seemed happy. The oldest man at the table looked to be in his fifties and had dark hair, dark skin and brown eyes. His goatee gave him a professional look. The woman next to him shared his coloring, but looked a lot younger than he did. As she scanned the people in the room, she whispered things to her daughter. Her raven hair was pulled into a tight bun that allowed her face to be completely visible. The couple's daughter looked exactly like her mother. We shared the same dress, but her dress was black. She was extremely beautiful and looked stronger than most girls her age.

When we arrived to the table, the bot pulled out our chairs for us and we sat. My father and mother appeared to know the family and began to chat immediately. The couple's daughter wasted no time in introducing herself. "Hi, I'm Maria."

"Avery," I replied, shaking her hand.

"Is this your first time here?" she asked.

I laughed nervously, "Yeah, it is." My feet shuffled nervously under the table.

Maria took a sip of water. "It's nice to finally have some company," she commented. "I've had to listen to them ramble on and then a bunch of politicians ramble. The food part is nice, though," she finished with a smile.

"What do they serve us here?" I asked excited at the prospect of exotic food that I hadn't the pleasure of before.

Maria shrugged. "It's different every time," she said carelessly.

I wondered how it was even possible to serve a new meal for every dinner. My parents had been here for at least one night a month since I could remember. We didn't receive nearly as much variety with the food we got at home. Three meals a day, and there were seven different options for each meal. Needless to say, it got a little boring.

Before I had the opportunity to ask another question, the hum of conversations around us had died down. My head snapped towards the front of the room. A podium was stationed there and a man was adjusting the microphone stand in front of him. He began, "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to City Hall."

The room broke into applause as soon as he finished, but stopped shortly after.

"May I present, the President of Alexandria!" he exclaimed and applauded before leaving the podium. The inhabitants of the room joined him, myself among them.

Before he took to the podium, the President smiled and waved. He cleared his throat, and began to speak. "My fellow citizens, I welcome you tonight to City Hall. We are proud to telecast this event, through the nation's exclusive television network. However, tonight is not a cause for celebration."

Unrest took over the room, and people began muttering to one another. What did he mean? I looked at my family and mouthed, 'What?' Indifferently, my mother shrugged. My father, on the other hand, looked pale. Something wasn't right, at all.

"We have received reports—" the President began, but was cut off by yelling in the back of the room. Every head turned to see what the commotion was, and when I saw what it was, I froze.

"Get down!" a man bellowed and fired a gun. Nobody listened, though. Everybody screamed in panic and attempted to get out of the room. In outrage, the man fired his gun again. This time, my stupor was broken and I flung myself onto the red carpet. I crawled around desperately searching for an exit.

'What's going on?' I thought. It was the worst nightmare imaginable. Citizens were going to die, I just knew it. Being that this was my first experience of violence, I was on the verge of tears. My heart was beating so fast it was a miracle my ribs didn't split in two. Shaky hands and blurry vision was the least of my concerns, however. People hurting other people was such a foreign concept to me. Why would anybody do that? Sure I had received a slap from my mother once, but killing someone was unthinkable. There were maybe two people in Alexandria that had been put away for murder, and they were diagnosed as mentally insane. These men seemed like they knew what they were doing, though, and it made it all the more horrific.

As I clambered around on the floor, finding my parents was of the upmost importance. "Mom! Dad!" I cried as I avoided people who were on their feet. But soon, searching for them wasn't an option. There was so much gunfire and screaming that I had to get out. I could find them as soon as I escaped this death trap. Unfortunately, the door wasn't an option. The man that had originally fired the gun had friends with weapons as well. Terror was beginning to cloud my judgment immensely; in fact, everyone was in their own level of insanity at that point.

I had managed to get to one of the large windows, but they were as far away from the exit as you could be. It was managing to calm me, though, because the threat was on the other side of the room. Despite this "safety", I still had to get out. The urgency to leave was astounding, and people were trying to break open the windows. I decided to join. I stumbled onto my feet and grabbed the chair next to me. I slammed it into the glass and it cracked. As I swung it back again to try and break the glass separating me from refuge, a strong arm restrained me. "Let go!" I screeched.

A gun clicked behind me and I stopped struggling. "What's your name?" a man demanded.

My lips remained sealed until I felt the cold metal of a gun press against my head. "What is it?" he tried again.

"Avery Shol!" I squeaked.

He swung my body around like I was a worthless piece of junk and fired at the window I had been trying to break. I yelped at the loud clamor of the gunfire and glass shattering. "Let me go!" I shrieked. If it was possible, my horror increased tenfold. What was this man going to do with me? Why the hell did it matter what my name was? Instead of sticking around to find out, I stabbed his shin with my spiked heel and sprinted through the broken window into the courtyard.

"Damn it!" I heard him curse loudly.

My escape was being slowed down by the heel of my shoes sinking into the Earth, so I pulled them off as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, my pause had given enough time for my assailant to come after me. Acting on instinct, I threw one of my shoes at his head. I missed miserably, but continued my sprint.

"STOP!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

I blatantly ignored him and ran for the street ahead. Every muscle in body was trying to slow down, but I refused to die. Not like this. But my pursuer had different plans, and he fired his gun at me. I stumbled onto the ground and before I could get up, the man had tackled me to the ground. During this maneuver, I had slammed my head onto the asphalt and blood was now free flowing down my face. I groaned in pain as he flipped me over onto my back.

He kept me pinned down with his legs while he tied my hands together in front of me. The throbbing in my skull was dulling my panic about the situation. Everything was spinning—including the gun pointed at my face. "Shol, right?" he asked tying the final knot of the rough, thick bounds around my wrists.

"Yes," I snapped as menacingly as possible considering my circumstances.

He snarled, "Watch it. I have the gun, remember?" Quickly, he grabbed a fistful of my brown hair and pulled me off the ground roughly. I howled in pain. "Shut up!" he commanded me and shoved his gun into my spine.

Tears were now streaming down my face and mingling with my blood. It made the hair that had been removed from its original style stick to my forehead, and my now ruined brown ringlets were partially blinded me. Instead of trying to fight him off again, I decided to beg. My head was too delicate to try anything physical. "Please, let me go," I groveled. Sobs closely followed my pleading.

"Sorry cupcake, I can't do that. You're way too valuable to let go," he said indifferently. It was like I was an animal to this man. What did he mean I was "valuable"? Everyone was equal in Alexandria. It didn't matter what your job was, everyone had equal opportunity and… value. Or so I thought.

"Besides, we aren't going to hurt you," he informed me.

I tried not to snort at the irony of his statement. Wasn't going to hurt me… yeah right, I thought. I already had a giant gash in my forehead and was lucky I hadn't been shot. Several others probably had, though. Quickly I attempted to shove those thoughts out of my head and off a cliff, but they refused to budge. My parents could be dead, a nagging voice told me in the back of my mind. Shutting it up was difficult, but I managed once we got to our destination.

It turns out I wasn't the only one who had been pursued. Maria and several other people our age were all grouped by a fountain at the back of the courtyard. Noticing that Maria had a bullet wound in her arm amplified my panic about this mess. My captor noticed my violent shaking and rolled his eyes. "What are you scared of?"

I didn't even bother answering.

A/N: Review :D