Lynx

Episode 1.1

“You can’t hide forever,” Barry said flatly, staring at his device and scrolling slowly with his thumb.

His comment was directed to the skinny teenager beside him, his blonde hair mostly covered by a hoodie. “That’s what you think,” his companion replied. “I’ve done pretty good so far, didn’t you see my act a minute ago?”

The act he referred to was clever in its own right. He hadn’t really planned on stopping anywhere tonight, but the smell of coffee lured him into the Electronics-Coffee Hub, known as the Echelon. Upon entering, he nearly ran into the back of a recruiter that had a sharp looking young man listening intently to him. Just beyond them, he could see a recruiter rising up out of his seat. He had obviously been watching that door for his next victim. Vultures. Miles stumbled a little bit, dragging his right hiking boot heavily across the floor. Watching the recruiter out of the corner of his eye, he continued to limp to the bar. He decided the recruiter was successfully deterred when he disappeared behind him at the sound of the bell above the door.

Miles gave himself a half-smirk as he recalled his little ruse. Barry wasn’t as impressed. “It’s not as clever as you think. And anyway, when the draft comes around you’ll wish you had enlisted beforehand. You’re not going to avoid the draft by faking a bum leg. They have x-rays and tests and things for that sort of trick.”

“Shut up.” Just like the cool kids, Miles punctuated his statement by taking a sip of coffee.

Barry, apparently not in an argumentative mood, allowed them to fall into a long silence. For half an hour, neither said a word, partially because Barry soon found Miles unentertaining and turned to his device, and partially Miles had nothing else to talk about. He finished the coffee and stared gloomily at the mirror across the room. In a half-hearted manner, his eyes followed the image of a wild-eyed young man in the mirror. He had seen that look before.

A shout rose above the din. Eyes frighteningly wide and sweat pouring down his face, the young man clawed his way on top of a table. Shaking, he managed to bring himself to his feet, and there he stood on top of a table, screaming. A swarm of recruiters surged forward and restrained him, and with great difficulty, they carried the violently thrashing man out of the shop. This wasn’t the first occurence of its kind. News coming back from the front lines about chemical inhalant weapons and Sedger torture camps was terrifying enough to send droves of scared draftees to openly sell and consume a powerful street drug known as Green Peace. Users experienced skyrocketing levels of dopamine and felt extreme ecstasy before plunging into severe depression or bouts of hallucinations. One dose was enough to drive a person crazy and render them unfit for service.

And thus it was becoming used increasingly frequently, and with each successive sighting, the public grew less concerned with the episodes. Even before the man was carried out, several customers had already turned back to their devices and the babble of conversations started up again. Miles, himself, was hardly impressed with the show. He hadn’t even been intrigued enough to turn around and watch it, instead he was complacent watching it all unfold in the mirror.

Miles wasn’t too keen on going into the military either, but he wasn’t desparate enough to consider using drugs to turn himself into a psychopath. That’s not to say he hadn’t considered it though. He preferred to keep his wits about him and use them to his advantage. Luckily for him, he hadn’t been drafted yet because both of his parents were dead. At least, according to the government they were dead. He never really believed it.

Irregardless, Miles had received a draft notice in the mail which he promptly disputed in court, pleading with the judge that his little sister, Lilly, needed him for support. After being bribed substantially, his little sister put on an excellent act, complete with tears and running mascara. The court ruled that his service time would start as soon as his younger sister Lilly turned 18. Three weeks stood between him and the military. He was terrified.