Topic: A Slice of Normal Life

Cassia

Date: 2017-09-23 14:37 EST
Saturday June 24, 2017

There was no alarm blaring to pull Cassia out of her dreams, but like every seventeen year old girl the allure of a weekend full of doing nothing with her friends was enough to have her chocolate brown eyes fluttering open at the ambitious hour of half-past noon. Black out curtains flung over her windows did their best to keep out the sun, with just enough sneaking around the edges to give a vague impression of a room where a clothing bomb had gone off. There was patches of carpet visible under the clutter with clear paths to doors that lead to her over stuffed closet, bathroom, and hall.

All over the walls she had movie and band posters plastered over every inch until the white wall color could barely be seen. A cork bulletin board took up the space between her two front facing windows and was covered with layers of pictures of her friends and her. Dear memories captured in 4x6" glossy glory. The desk underneath was the only somewhat clean space underneath if having enough room to fit her slim laptop amidst dozens of bottles of nail polish counted. Everything in that room screamed normal.

It took Cassia a solid fifteen minutes to get so much as a toe outside of her covers, but then again the first thing she had done when she could keep her eyes open was to grab the pink-and-rhinestone covered monstrosity that was her cellphone off the bed next to her so she could begin a flurry of messages with her friends. Some of that time was spent getting the perfect I just woke up selfie for social media and then one text message in particular go her motivated.

Lara: Sale at Savannah's.

To Cass it was like the clouds had parted to reveal Heaven. Savannah's was the designer shoe outlet of her dreams. It was this mega fancy store where the shopkeepers turn their noses up at you unless you're wielding plastic of at least the platinum level. They have sales once a millennia and she knew her bank account could handle at least two if not three major transactions. There had been a pair of black patent leather pumps with wicked spiked heels that she was going to literally die if she could buy. She didn't care that they were last season now. They were hers.

She all but fell from her bed in her scramble to untangle herself from her sheets and text back in reply. She was going, she was going to be there. If she hurried she could get the one o'clock bus if her evil stepmother didn't allow her access to the car. Which she probably wouldn't, because that woman was formed from pure spite and put on this Earth to punish Cassia for being born.

Clothes was torn through, piles on the floor shoved out of the way so that she could get to her closet. This was no typical trip to the mall. Her comfortable jeans and a cute top would not cut it today. Cass all but disappeared diving into the racks to tear past maxidress and blouse alike until she had found what she was looking for. That cute black mini skirt had cost her three months of wages and tips busting her ass at the restaurant and that silver silk halter top had been last year's birthday present from all of her friends combined. She'd cried when she opened that package.

She got dressed in a hurry and hit up her bathroom to expertly apply a polished day-look in no time at all. Her collection of makeup would make a professional MUA cry at the sight at its glory.

"I'mgoingshoppingI'llbebackbydinner," she called out as she tore down the stairs with her shoes in hand. She went for the keys hanging by the front door and just as she predicted, Margaret the Wicked Bitch of This House was there as if she'd teleported all the way from the kitchen. Cass let out a groan. "I'll just take the bus..." But she found her way to the door itself blocked.

"Cassia, you have to go for testing today." Her stepmother managed to deliver that in a way that caused shivers to run up Cass's spine. She suspected Margaret practiced that tone in the mirror along with that subtly disapproving sneer that was the only look she ever gave Cass.

Her heart dropped when her mind caught up with the words. "What' I just went for testing a week ago!" The world kept telling her that she was a hairsbreadth away from an adult, but boy could she summon up the whine of someone ten years her junior.

Cass was surprised to see a flash of what she thought might actually be compassion cross her stepmother's face. It was there for only a heartbeat before being replaced by her usual disdain. "There was something off with the results. You're almost done, Cassia. Can't you just behave for another month until your birthday?"

As much as Cass wanted to scream and stamp her feet and say a wholehearted no, she knew there was no use. Fighting against the State testing wasn't something anyone could do unless they wanted to disappear. "Can I go to the mall after?" She asked meekly.

Margaret's nod took a little too long for her liking. "You should go get changed."

Cassia

Date: 2017-09-24 21:27 EST
It took Cassia longer to get changed than it had for her to get dressed to begin with. Of course that had something to do with the fact that she had absolutely no desire to go through the testing again. Her last session should have been the end of it since she was going to be an adult soon and she could opt out finally.

Fresh faced and dressed in plain, comfortable clothes, she dragged herself back down the stairs to find her stepmother was still camped by the front door waiting impatiently. "Took you long enough," she barked and all but pushed Cass out the door where she almost ran right into her brother and a pack of his friends.

Russel was sixteen, already about six feet tall, and as much as she wanted to hate him as much as she hated his mother, he was just too damn nice. He caught her by the shoulders before they could collide. "Hey Cass!" He seemed surprised to see her, which was odd. "Good luck today, okay?" The hesitation in his voice was odd, too. But before she could say anything there was Margaret grabbing her by the arm to pull her away.

"We're already late," she snapped at Cass. When she spoke to her son her tone was suddenly sweet as pie. "Russel, I'll be home in a couple of hours. Why don't you boys order yourselves some pizza?"

Cass wanted to protest and complain. She wouldn't have been allowed to have all her friends over with no adults in the house. But her stepmother had an iron grip on her arm and the pain was distracting. "Ow! I'm coming, I'm coming. God, what?s the rush?"

She got no answer back, then again she hadn't been expecting one. A few moments later they were in the car and on their way.

The houses all blended together as they passed through the neighborhood. Not just because she'd been down this road a million times, but every house was identical right down to the landscaping. If they weren't numbered there would be no way to tell each apart. And this neighborhood was identical to all of the other neighborhoods across the suburb, across every city, across the whole country. The parts of the country that had been rebuilt, at least. The news would occasionally cover the Outlands where people were doing their own rebuilding.

Eventually houses gave way to the commercial center where all of the shops were. Cass stared longingly at the mall as they passed by. Her friends were probably already in there sipping on lattes and trying on all of the shoes. Without her. Maybe they'd buy her something for her birthday.

Pleasant thoughts of all of the different things they might have picked off her wishlist occupied her until the buildings changed again. Now they were in the business district which even on a Saturday was bustling with activity. In one of those tall, unassuming buildings was her father, toiling away for what always seemed like endless hours.

The office buildings would have blended right in with the government buildings, except for the very visible armed guards outside. The testing center was one of the first in the district. The visitor parking lot was about as empty as Cass expected it to be. It meant they got a spot nice and close to the door, which was always a plus since the tests usually left her wiped out.

Margaret usually dropped her off and left, so when she got out of the car and followed Cass through the automatic doors it was yet another surprise. "Why are you coming in?"

"To make sure there are no problems. Keep going." Her stepmother shooed her on.

Cass groaned, but she kept moving forward. Just inside the door she paused to let the scanner comb over her body from head to toe. The green beams didn't just check for weapons and whatnot, they also were a retina scan to confirm identity. Can't get into the building without an appointment. She almost hoped it would flash red at her so she could get to the mall. No such luck. There was a faint chime and a woman's voice gave her directions to go down the hallway to a particular door.

Margaret's presence at her side was more irritating than usual. Cass was sure there was something up, but she couldn't put her finger on what until they walked through the door and it wasn't a testing room.

"Cassia Aphrodias. Please have a seat."

Cassia

Date: 2017-09-26 17:10 EST
Sunday September 24th, Rhydin

Damn, what a good day it had been. Best day ever since Cassia had found herself in this weird, crazy ass place. Actually, probably the only good day, since every other day had been filled with things that made her head spin. At least she managed to up next to minotaurs, dragons, zombies and whatever the hell else was out there without going into a full on panic attack.

She had the day before, for sure. She'd already been on edge by the time she'd gotten to the inn, because she had gotten caught trying to nick a wallet and barely got away. The man she'd tried to steal from had looked like a totally normal human, which she found out had been entirely untrue. Some sort of vampire thing.

Men were almost always her target. Women don't always have pockets to keep their valuables in, and pocketbooks are a little trickier to filch from. Besides, she is fully aware of what a pretty young thing she is, and not at all shy about using that to her advantage. A little eyelash fluttering, a shy little smile, throw in some genuine innocence, and they are eating right out of her palm. The marketplace was her haunt of preference, because those twist of stalls and shops made it easy to slip away. Also, she could almost always get them to buy her something before she ripped them off.

At times she felt bad about stealing. There had been people who offered to give her a job, but really who were they kidding" She wasn't suited for babysitting, security and she'd get lost as a courier. Okay, so the babysitting thing is almost up her alley....but there was a mention of hundreds of kids. Whoa. No flipping way, man. For the time being snatching a couple of wallets every now and again meant food in her belly and clothes on her back.

This vamp guy was pure danger. He set off her alarm bells as soon as she got close, but she had figured it was better to keep the flirt game up to cover her nefarious intentions. It was dusk, with the shops starting to clear out, and he was actually super cute. It was just when their eyes met Cassia got this jolt of dread.

Still, he smiled and said hello just outside a stall selling scarves. Beautiful diaphanous silk things in bright colors. Not Cass's thing, but her friend Lara would have just died to have one. "Very nice, no?" He'd had an accent she couldn't place. They talked for a short while, a conversation she couldn't remember, and then they had shifted away from the shop. That was her usual deal, get them moving from one spot to another and manage the pull with a bump in passing.

Only he had been doing the directing with her not noticing. She'd tried her maneuver and he caught her wrist. "What a bad little kitten." She'd caught a flash of very sharp looking teeth. When had they gotten into that alley' His breath was on her neck and—

There was a crash just outside the alley, it's source something she didn't know, but she'd managed to slip away from Mr. Bitey. Off and running she hadn't stopped until she caught sight of the building she was now starting to associate as being a hub. A safe hub, at that. Only inside there had been a crashing safe, a sentient trunk, and a woman inside it whose name she had learned but didn't retain. The crash had her heart pounding just the same as it had in the alley when she knew she was in big trouble and powerless to stop it.

But that was the night before. Now she was armed with a pizza box loaded with more slices than she had said she'd be taking, though she figured no one would mind. Eventually she'd really thank the glowy pointy eared guy (elf?) for buying it, since it was really a life saver.

There was an empty building far enough away from the Red Dragon that she felt no one would notice where she went at night. It was advertised as office space for rent and the back security door had a lovely keyless entry pad where no one could easily see her messing with it.

"C'mooon baby, be nice to mama," she pleaded with it with her hand hovering close. Little zaps bolted in the space between her skin and the device and then....bam! The lights flashed green and the door lock popped open. "Score!"

It was a temporary crash space, but it was better than being a cardboard box rooming with a trash panda.

Cassia

Date: 2017-09-28 17:56 EST
Saturday June 24, 2017, Earth

Cassia froze at the sight of the long desk. Behind sat five severe faced people, two men and three women, and directly in front was a solitary chair. The woman who had addressed her by name sat dead center. Other than the man seated to the far left, who had administered her testing all her life, she was the only person Cass knew by name.

Serina Ferens. Director of Youth Development. She oversaw the testing and programming for the whole district, which encompassed several cities just like Cassia's. This was the first time she'd ever seen the woman in person, though the beginning of every year they were forced to watch a boring speech about how children are the future, blah blah blah. She knew this woman was far too important to be showing up for some regular testing.

"Cassia," the voice hissing into her ear made her jump. Her stepmother pushed her lightly. "Go. Sit."

She moved woodenly towards the chair. This couldn't be good. Not good at all. Every year there were one or two kids who went in for testing only to never come back out. It was supposed to be an honor to be selected for further programming, but that didn't stop kids from whispering horror stories. Just last month she had worked with her career programmer to go over past testing and decide what paths suited her best. They had been all smiles and encouragement. It was Cass's dream to work in fashion and makeup. But a safe backup plan was for her to go through the management tract. She was a natural, they said, at leadership.

What bull shirt. Now she understood why Russel had seemed so concerned and why Margaret was so preoccupied. She was getting farmed out. She blinked away hot tears as she lowered herself into the chair.

"Mrs. Aphrodias, you are excused."

Her stepmother had stepped up next to Cassia with an oddly self-satisfied expression plastered on her pinched face. Now she looked a little confused when Director Ferens addressed her directly. "Pardon me..." I thought that..." She cut off short when the director raised a hand.

"That will be all."

Margaret looked stunned and confused. She turned towards Cass who was glaring daggers at her and finally moved awkwardly for the door. Clearly she was under the impression she would have been involved in whatever this crap was. Cass's nails dug into the thick denim covering her thighs until she was sure she was going to leave marks behind.

Director Ferens didn't speak again until the door had closed. "Cassia." Her smile was every bit as perfectly plastic as it appeared in the yearly speech. "I believe I am correct when I guess you are unaware as to why you are here." There was no sympathy in the woman's voice, just a sense of simple knowing. Cass nodded, unable to speak. The director glanced down the table towards Marc Ulyss who had been her tester since she started school at five. He was a kindly man who had a lot more gray in his hair now than he had when she'd first met him. Those blue eyes of his were the only source of warmth in that room. Cass focused on him while he spoke.

"Thank you for coming in, Cassia, though it should have been your choice." He glanced towards the door with what she suspected was a little annoyance. Despite what he said she had a very good feeling she wasn't going to get the opportunity to leave now that she was there. He looked like he was going to go on, but the director took over before he could.

"Cassia," the voice was sharp enough to pull her eyes away from Mr. Ulyss. "Do you know what the Program's goals are?"

"Uhh." She hadn't been expecting to be put on the spot with a question like that. "To....make better citizens...?" Her voice was loaded with hesitation. That was a common line all of the year start videos. Director Ferens seemed amused by her response, which made her cheeks flush hotly.

"To make better humans." She corrected. "The genetic programming is intended to create better humans at the core of their very being. To make them more intelligent, stronger, faster, and live longer, healthier lives." That all sounded pretty good to Cass. But there was something about the greedy sparkle in the director's eyes that made her blood run cold.

"The testing is intended to help us create the best version of every student, to create a population that is its very best. However, occasionally there are....deviations." Oh yes, Cass thought. That smile was nothing good. She wiped her sweaty palms nervously against her thighs. "You see, Cassia, every once in a while a student displays the potential to become something extraordinary."

Cass expected the woman to keep going on, but when the silence stretched on for what she guessed to be a million years, she blurted out the question on the tip of her tongue. "And that's me?"

Under that heavy stare she felt like some prey animal cornered by a large, cunning predator.

"Yes, Cassia, that is you." The director fell silent again as she opened up the thin file that Cass hadn't noticed up until that point. The woman looked over whatever was in there, then she turned it so that it was facing Cass. Not that she could see it from there. There was a presumption that she was going to have to get up to take the pen that the director was holding out. That she would take it to begin with. "The elite program comes with many benefits. Not only will you be greatly benefiting the country, but your family will benefit, too."

No wonder Margaret was so eager to thrust Cassia blindly into this. Not only would she get the daughter she never wanted out of her life, but she'd get a big payday, too.

"What if I don't want to?" She asked shakily while remaining firmly in her chair. This wasn't an unexpected question, if the expressions of the five on the other side of the table were any indications.

"Of course you can decline," the director said. "It is ultimately your choice. However, saying no may negatively affect you moving forward." The thinly veiled threat. "And you must decide now." The pressure. The line drawn in the sand.

Cass drew in a shaky breath as she got up from the chair. She wiped her hands again on her jeans. How could they be so damp when her mouth was so dry' She looked over her shoulder towards the door where she was certain no one was waiting for her to come home. Margaret would have bolted the moment she was outside that door, probably overflowing with joy. When she looked towards the woman sitting directly in front of her on the other side of the table she knew she was see a wolf making no effort to hide what it was.

What choice was there" Say no and be ruined. It didn't happen very often, but every few years a family would move out of the neighborhood. Big government vans would show up to help them go to their new homes. Fake smiles masking internal screaming would attempt to reassure those who knew better. Don't go up against the State. Follow the program and live in utopia. Subversion could not be allowed. And this would affect more than just her. How could she put her father through another tragedy' Losing her mom had been bad enough. Single parents weren't to be tolerated, so he'd been saddled with spinster Margaret. Russel had been the only bright spot in that forced hell.

So after what felt like an eternity she moved forward to take the pen and look at the form. Her heart sunk right into her stomach when her eyes skimmed over the tiny, overly complicated legalese to find the signatures at the bottom. On the 'parental consent' line right next to her stepmother's was the flowing script of her father. Part of her had hope he hadn't known at all.

As she set pen to paper she noticed a third line. Beneficiaries. That was very clearly Margaret's spiky script. Hers and Cass's fathers name were there.

Setting her jaw she struck out the names. She didn't just cross them out, but obliterated them with ink until the paper had worn enough to tear. One of the people behind the desk started to say something, but the director stopped them.

Just before signing the paper she added in a new name above the black mess.

Russel Bennet Aphrodias

Cassia

Date: 2017-09-30 22:10 EST
Saturday September 30, 2017 RhyDin

Cassia hurried from the Red Dragon like there was a demon on her heels. She'd only meant to stop in for a cup of coffee and maybe to pilfer something from the fridge, but there had been people there and she'd felt inclined to be social. It was the only place where she let her guard down to actually talk to people.

"Are you a virgin?"

Who the hell asks a question like that' Of a complete stranger! Cass didn't even know the girl's name, had barely talked to her, and she asked that question because Cass is young and doesn't like to drink" And she asked it in front of some guy, too! Who wasn't all that bad on the eyes, though she wasn't into older guys like that.

The question had thrown her off so much that she had forgotten to watch the clock. The guy, whose name she really couldn't remember all too well because it had been unusual, was being very nice and had asked her some much more polite questions. Then she saw the time and high-tailed it the hell out of there without making it too obvious she was running. Hopefully not too obvious.

One thing she was grateful for about RhyDin was the fact that there was a little bit of everything. Something from every land and era that you could ever dream up. This one was an ancient relic from Cass's Earth—not to mention others. She had stumbled across it by accident in her first few days in the city.

A phone booth. With a real, operational pay phone.

She scrambled into the booth and struggled to close up the doors, then peered out the dirty panes to see the clock in the marketplace. It was just visible if she craned her head just right. This had to timed perfectly and she'd made it in under a minute. She was out of breath and struggling to catch it while she waited for the second hand to tick down.

Every penny she'd collected since coming to the city had gone towards this effort, including selling off the only piece of jewelry that had come across with her. That gold pendant in the shape of a tiny bird was a present from her father on her tenth birthday. She'd begged the pawn broker to hang on to it until she could buy it back. Who knew if it was still there. She kept telling herself that having that message sent was far more important to her, but it was a hard pill to swallow.

The second hand hit the hour and Cass all but ripped the receiver off the dock, fed quarters into the slot and dialed like a mad woman. In her hurry she'd been a couple of quarters short and she fed them in at the robotic prompt until she heard it finally start to ring.

One.

Two.

Oh no. Oh no. This hadn't worked. It hadn't worked! All of that money wasted. All that risk she'd taken....All for nothing. This was her one chance her one—

Click. "Hello?" The voice on the other end was hushed. "Cass" Cass?"

Cass's heart leaped into her throat. "Russ?" Relieved tears welled into her eyes. "Oh my god, it worked..."

He hurried to talk over her. "Cass, are you okay' Where are you? Come home, Cass!"

"Oh Russ, you know I can't....I'm fine. Are you okay' Is....dad?"

"Yeah, we're all fine. It was scary there for a while, they ripped the house apart looking for you."

Cass closed her eyes tight and pressed her forehead into the cold glass of the booth. "I'm sorry I put you guys through this. I just....I couldn't stay there, Russ."

"What happened" All they would tell us was you deserted."

Her eyelids slid open so she could stare at the clock. Too much time had already passed. There wasn't much left. "It was terrible. The things they wanted us to do were terrible. But Russ, I don't have much time. I just wanted to—"

"Cass, pelase, please come home. We're so worried." Her brother's voice was emotional, but he was more scared that anything else. It made her pause.

"They're there with you, aren't they, Russ?" She asked softly.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorr—" His voice cut off and she could hear a struggle on the other end a shout.

Cass slammed the phone down and hastily yanked the phone booth door open again. It suddenly slid and she all but fell out of the booth in her effort to get out. Away. In a downright panic she spun around trying to look in every direction at once. Had they found her" Did they trace the call" Were they coming for her"

There were people on the street and she stared at them all like they might betray her. A strangled note escape her throat and she took off running. Not back towards the empty office she'd been calling home for about a week. What if they had found her" She couldn't lead them back to her safe haven. She had to go....go....somewhere away. Lead them away.

She ran through the streets until she could run no more. Her lungs burned and her legs ached. And she was lost. None of the buildings looked familiar to her at all. She dove down an alley way and kept going until she couldn't see the street any more and there she collapsed.

There she cried.

Cassia

Date: 2017-10-01 21:17 EST
Saturday June 24, 2017 Earth

After the paper was signed, Mr. Ulyss was up from the table to sweep Cassia out of the room. Not the door that lead out to the hallway. Of course not. They probably were well aware that she was a flight risk, despite the fact that she had just signed her life away. Even though she hadn't read those papers she knew what she was consenting to.

They weren't in that new hallway for very long. Just long enough for Cass to realize she had stepped into another world. She counted no more than five armed guards, including the one outside the windowless room they slipped into.

"I'm sorry, we don't have very long." Mr. Ulyss said in a rush like he expected not to have the time to say even that much. "It was hard enough to convince the others to let me speak to you at all."

The room was small, bare walled, and had a couple of chairs and nothing else. Cass didn't want to sit, but the old tester grabbed her by the shoulders and eased her down anyway. She hadn't realized until that moment how much her legs were shaking. She wanted to ask questions, but he shook his head.

"If I had known they were going to go this path I would have prepared you during our last meeting. I want you to know I didn't recommend you." She'd known this man for so long he was like an uncle. When he reached for her hand she let him take it and found comfort in the squeeze of his fingers.

"It's not going to be easy, Cassia. The other kids won't treat you well, but....you have a lot of potential to go far." He patted her hand with his free one. "Just keep your head up. You'll....you'll be okay." There was a pounding on the door. The expression on Mr. Ulyss's face looked pained. He was scared for her and that made all of this so much worse.

"Time to go," he told her softly. They rose slowly and he started to pat at the pockets of his jacket. "Take this," he said as he handed her a business card. "They won't allow you any outside contact at first, but just in case."

Cass took the card carefully with both hands and held it close. The pounding at the door started up again and she hurried to tuck it away in a pocket of her jeans.

Their goodbyes were hasty at best, hurried by the guard who had been displeased with how slow they'd been opening the door.

In short order she found herself being escorted down the hallway with a mind full of questions.