The Damaged

The Picking

The room was buzzing with excitement.  The girls were all hyped up and doing each other's hair.  Some were putting on dresses of this Legion.  Since we were the Hunters Legion, the girls that were changed already were wearing short, tight animal print dresses.  They were different styles like leopard, fox, tiger, deer, and so on.  One of the Minors saw me and got up from her cedar stool.

"Hi.  I'm Amnessa.  You're Calya, right?  Welcome to Legion H.  Names A-F get dear print dresses."  She bent down into a small spruce bin and pulled out said dress.  "Here you go."  She handed it to me and pointed out the changing room on the side of the Lodge.  I slipped in and pulled the dress on.  Apparently we had to keep our boots on.  When I stepped out, Amnessa handed me a cool looking thin leather glove.  I slipped it on my right hand like I saw on the other girls'.  Danette poked her head in the door,

"Ten minutes until The Picking!"  She announced, and closed the door behind her.  I could taste the nervous energy in the air, and it tasted like cold metal or electricity.  Or blood.  They tasted the same to me.

My heart pounded in my stomach and my head spun.  I felt my bread coming back up in my throat as my breathing speed up.  I swallowed down a yelp.  I didn't know why I was so nervous.  It wasn't like I hadn't worked really hard this year.  No way could they mark me as lazy.  The Lodge buzzed with nervous energy and I wondered how any of us could possibly stand still during The Picking.

A girl that looked about thirteen came up to me with a birch comb and began to pull it through my platinum blonde hair.  It was cut an inch below my ear, so there wasn't much to brush.  She finished, then sat me down on my bed and started braiding small braids framing my face.

"I'm Tadella."  She said as she finished.  "Goby-pick."

"Goby-pick."  I said back, because I did.  I did want her to do well in The Picking.  I wanted everyone to do well.  But my idea of 'well' was NOT being chosen.  Everyone else thought being chosen was a good thing; a great honor.  When they said that, they were wishing me death.  When I say it, I'm wishing them life.

"Five minutes."  Danette stuck her head in again, "Everyone line up AO."  Good, I thought, were going age order.  Rank order would be embarrassing because I had only just joined.  I would be last in line.  We all lined up, and I looked at the girl on the end like I always do when we're in AO.  She was only six, just barely.  She was wearing leopard print, like Tadella.  I wondered what her name was.  I slipped out of line for a second to do my annual self-tradition.  I sneaked up to the girl  on the end,

"Goby-pick."  I whispered to her.  She smiled, "I'm Calya."

"Goby-pick."  She said back, "I'm Simanett."  I smiled back at her and made my way quickly back to the front of the line.  I lost my good mood when I saw who was in front of me; the girl who had stolen my owl.  I glared at her, but of course she didn't see me.  I couldn't very well accuse her now, or I might loose a Good Behavior point.  Those were how the Uppers kept us in line.  The Uppers controlled everything, and one time, I saw a sixty year old Upper, and also a ten year old Upper with long hair.  They didn't have to follow any rules.  Most of our produce went to them anyway, about eighty-five percent, so they could monitor if we were doing a bad job.

The line started moving so I followed.  It was a shorter walk to the Openium from the HL than the WL.  We lined up in our Sector, merging with the Majors and the males.  The other Sectors slowly filed in while the sun beat hot on my head.  There was a quite rattle of whispered excitement floating around the circle our Sectors had made.  The Uppers had gathered under a small tent in the center, but only five representatives had shown up.  They all looked over thirty, and there was only two girls.

I was already sweating, so I was glad I wasn't wearing the long sleeve Woodchuck uniform.  I wasn't so enthusiastic about the Major Hunter boys checking me out, though.  I bet they chose these uniforms for their entertainment.  They knew we couldn't date until we were sixteen, and even then, we were still assigned partners at eighteen whether we were in a relationship or not.  Life was unfair.  Everyone grew quiet when the Top Upper stood and cleared his throat.

"Welcome all, to The Picking, where we select a lucky hundred of you to be in the running sacrificed to the Wisdom Keepers, the War Keepers, the Peace Keepers, and the Life Keepers."  Total bull.  "You will work for them in all their might and glory until the next round of The Picked come to join you as loyal servants of the deities."  A cheer went up, so I clapped my hands respectively.  What he meant to say by all of this is 'we have too many people, so we're going to kill you now.'  He continued, "Today, we will choose one hundred to compete in the challenges.  Those who fail, die.  Those who succeed go to the next round.  We get rid of twenty five Picked every round, until we are left with twenty five.  After the three rounds, the remaining twenty five will compete for the Keepers' attention.  Those who attract their attention, which we know had happened when they light the brazier in front of the respective Picked, will be brought to the sacred sacrificing place of the Keepers, and have their blood spilled on the immortal stones to bind their souls to those of the Great Keepers!"  What he meant was 'hey, so after you survive all the other times we tried to kill you, your'e going to amuse us by dressing up funny, then we're going to use the buttons in the Upper building that you don't know are there to set the brazier of people we don't like on fire.  And what happens to the remainder?  They come to be the Upper servants!'  Oh, goody.  I can't wait.

"Let The Picking begin!"  The crowd erupted into cheers.  This was going to be a long day.

Everyone stepped up to the brazier in the middle of the field one at a time, starting with the First Sector.  The Hunters were the Fourth.  They got twenty from each Sector, and right now they were Picking through Third.  I clapped every time I was supposed to, even if it didn't feel right.  Then they got on to Fourth.  Wood was Fifth, so I hadn't watched any of my old friends get chosen... yet.  My name was called, so I moved towards the brazier.

My legs were stiff from standing for so long in one spot, and my heart was pounding hard in my throat.  I stood at the brazier and counted my ten seconds for it to light.  At nine, I was relieved it hadn't lit,  but all my hopes were shattered when, on ten, the fire blazed and the crowd applauded me respectively.