Divergent: Hidden in plain sight

Chapter 1

I often wonder what is beyond the wall. Are there more people? Are there cities like the one I live in if so are they safe? About 200 years ago there was a war that destroyed the rest of the world. We couldn't possibly be the only survivors, it just doesn't make sense.

The city that we live in used to be called Chicago. When I was a little girl I always dreamed of leaving. I always dreamed of leaving the city and meeting new people, but that was just a dream of a child.

Our founders built a wall to keep its citizens safe and in doing so they divided us into five factions to help keep the peace.

My faction is, Amity, Amity was formed in order to have a peaceful society free from conflict and sadness caused by the war. They are the peaceful ones, valuing happiness, harmony, trust, kindness, and forgiveness. The faction produces all the food for the other factions and the faction the counselors come to for advice. We can also administer peace/calming serum to help settle internal disputes. We also put it in our bread, which is pretty sneaky.

Are faction doesn't have a leader but a representative, Johanna Reyes. She's nice, sweet, and caring; which makes me trust her, but only a little. She believes that Amity should keep out of conflict and live in peace.

Jeanine Matthews is the leader of Erudite. She's smart, cunning, and feared by everyone. She pretty much runs the whole city even though that is Abnegation's job. Erudite believes that ignorance is the fault in human society. To me, they are a greedy faction, which makes me not trust them.

The faction Candor doesn't have a leader but a representative, Jack Kang. Since Candor values honesty they run our justice system. Candor believes that deception is the fault in human society. They believe in honesty above all and are very very good at reading body language to detect lies. What infuriates me about Candor is that they can't keep their mouths shut.

Dauntless is our warrior faction. They are the police that guard and protect the citizens. Dauntless was formed by those who blamed cowardness for society's problems. They are in charge of the city's security, they are our military. All members of Dauntless are physically fit, and I find them absolutely amazing and badass.

Then there's Abnegation; which was formed by people who blamed selfishness for human nature's mistakes. They value selflessness above all others, and that reason is why they run the government. Abnegation's leader is Marcus Eaton, and from some rumors that have been going around are that he abused his son, and that's why he left Abnegation. Abnegation is located just outside the sector next to the Factionless.

The Factionless are people that don't fit in with any factions. Some made themselves Factionless because they felt that they chose the wrong faction, and others were kicked out of their faction. According to Erudite, there are more factionless people than there are people that have a faction. Which is kinda hard to believe.

I'm not like the others in my faction and everybody knows. I don't belong in Amity. I'm not a peaceful, happy person. But I know I'm different in other ways too. I often want to be intelligent, but I want more, I want to be selfless, brave, and on occasion kind. I don't understand why we all have to be just one thing.

Today is the day that will determine the rest of my life. Today I will take the aptitude test that all 18-year-olds have to take. The purpose of the test is to determine which faction you belong to based on your most dominant trait.

Tomorrow is the Choosing Ceremony, where the test takers must choose which faction they will enter. They have the choice of staying with their family or choosing an entirely new faction. The aptitude test should be taken into account in your decision, but it's still their choice.