I stepped outside of the dome. The sky was blue and there were no flames. It was absolutely gorgeous. It’s the best thing I could have possibly imagined after being stuck inside an artificial world all my life. Immediately, I know that everyone is enjoying this just as much as I am.
As we walk around, I see trees, grass, and all of the things that I’ve only seen in glimpses of pictures. All I really want to do is lie down in the grass and look up at the sky that I’ve never gotten to see before, but I know why we left the dome. I know why we’re really here. It is so we can have a new life where we are not born into our jobs and social classes. We left the dome so we could bring freedom and equality among ourselves. At that, I hear Adam calling us together,
“It is here we must begin thinking about our new lives and setting up a new and fair government. We must join together to seek peace and happiness!” Adam announces.
“What does he mean ‘fair government’?” A woman in front of me whispers to her husband. In fact, there is whispering all around me. It is the noise of disagreement, disapproval, and confusion.
“Everyone please!” Adam begins, as the murmurs get louder. “The council will come to a conclusion. Just please try to find a place to rest for the night!”
I find a nearby tree to sleep under. I’m just about drifting off when my friend Pace comes over and wakes me up.
“Hey,” he says.
“Hi,” I say back.
“So, what do you think about all of this?” he asks.
“I…” I think about it for a moment. “I think it’s crazy. I think we need to start assigning jobs and start building houses and start establishing leaders.”
“Wren,” he begins. “You heard Adam. We can’t have the same government we just came from. We can’t…” but I don’t hear the rest. I’m already fast asleep.
When I wake up from my dreamless sleep, it is chaos. There’s people running around and screaming. There’s belongings scattered around and everything is a complete mess.
“Wren!” Adam calls me over to a group of council members. Pace is there too. “Wren, you must help us.” Adam informs me that some people agreed with the government system we had in the dome and they don’t like what we’re proposing.
“Which side do you choose?” Adam asks. I think for a second. I certainly did not enjoy how unfair the system was in the dome, but we do need leaders. Just a different kind/
“I’m with you guys,” I say confidently.
“Great,” a sense a relief floods over the councils faces. “The others have already started to target our people. I believe it is best to find a new place.”
I agree.
So we walk. We gather our things and walk for the day until we’ve found an appropriate place to live. We start building with the materials available and we start to gather food.
We live in peace for about two months. Until one day when one of our village members discovers a spy from the opposite side. Apparently he’s trying to gather information about our resources. That same evening, Pace meets me and tells me that there is to be a council meeting.
When I arrive at the meeting, I find out that the spy is being held hostage by our side. They’re trying to get information out of him.
“Sit down, Wren,” Jasper, a council member, tells me. “Apparently they plan to invade us because they want these resources that we have found. But I don’t know if this spy is being truthful.”
“We need someone to see what they’re planning. That’s why we want you to spy on them,” Adam says.
I don’t’ know why or how I agreed to this, but the very next day, I’m past the guards and into the opposite side. I gain information that yes, they are planning to invade. Only I don’t know when. After I’ve gathered my information, I sneak back to my village. I tell the council the news.
“Oh dear,” Jasper says. “We must establish an army, guards, anything to keep our people safe.”
…
It’s been a year and nothing has happened. Now, our village is more like an underdeveloped city. Everyone lives on edge, knowing that we may be on the brink of war. Eventually something will happen, but for now we do what we can until then. It’s too bad we have to live it waiting for war.