Living History

Alone

I jerk awake. The chained rope rattles and echoes in the silence. I sigh and stand, once again looking for a way out, once again expecting to find nothing. I've looked for an escape since I was brought here almost two weeks ago. Since then, only two people have talked to me, and only briefly. They were always backed up by what felt like a crowd of people in a place I couldn't see.

You will be tested in seven days.

That was what they'd last said to me. The guy didn't even seem to care all that much. Like he kidnapped and tested people for fun, but was getting bored. Just thinking about it made me sick.

This isn't the first time I've been here. This is the fourth, actually. Because my test had been abnormal the first time, they want me to come in every single time a new test comes out to confirm that I'm not a Soul Mage.

I can't stand the test. It's not that I'm worried about it - I'm not a Soul Mage, and no test will ever say that I am. I just hate the test. It's essentially Mind magic torture designed to trick me into revealing my powers. But since I have no said powers to reveal, it's just torture. And I have a feeling at least two of them get off on it.

The seven days warning was five days ago. I'm still looking for an escape. Why? Because I hate this test, and at this point I couldn't care less if it made me look more suspicious. I'm not a Soul Mage, and I just want my life back. The council has been on my case for four years now. Each time I'm taken, I end up losing the job I had before. I certainly can't tell them why I disappeared for two plus weeks either, so there's not much I can do about it. But I actually liked this job. I worked at a small bakery in our small town. At this place, I felt like I was learning something useful. I liked the people I worked with, and the pay wasn't terrible for the work I had to do. It's nothing like my last job, which I could almost say I'm glad to be rid of except that it paid twice the wage.

The money wouldn't be an issue if it was just for me. Unfortunately, my mother hasn't had a job for over three years, so what started as some extra cash quickly turned into our only source of food for five of us. As far as I know, they haven't really struggled when I've been gone being tested, but that doesn't make me feel much better. I'm sure they all know something up, just as I'm sure my mother is giving them all kinds of made up nonsense while I'm away.

I wasn't sure until after the second time, but now I'm positive: she's the reason I've been getting caught. Either her or one of my siblings, but though we may not all get along, I doubt any of them would have the guts to have turned me in. And when I saw her face the second time I'd returned home, I was positive. She's always made my life hell, but turning me in for a bounty is a whole other level.

I sigh and sit back against the wall. No escape, once again. I really don't know why I try. I'm pretty sure they keep me in the same cell every year just to see if something happens.

With nothing to do, I usually just go back to sleep. I have a small cot in the corner, which is always the first place I check. The steel can't be bent, there are no nails to take out, and the whole thing is too heavy for me to push, let alone lift. I crawl back into bed. My sleeping schedule always gets fucked when I'm here. I sleep about 2-3 hours, get up and look for an escape, occasionally get a meal, then go back to sleep for another 2-3 hours or until my test.

I rest my head on my arms and lull myself to sleep with dreams of escaping into a world where I'm not accused of being something I'm not.

I jerk awake again, out of the same nightmare as usual. The test comes back positive. The trial is shortened to a few sentences. There, in front of the jury and the rest of the audience, I'm killed on the spot by the council members. My Mother is awarded the final bounty, given for those who turn in someone who tests positive. My family could live for three lifetimes off that bounty. My siblings probably wouldn't care, except maybe Dai, the youngest. He doesn't really understand what's going on yet. He still kind of likes me.