“Clunk, Clunk, Clunk,” The sound of my boots pounding against the torn concrete and steel grating of the metro station echoed between my ears.

  My fists fighting the air as, it became defiantly unyielding with every increase in speed. I was running hard; harder than I had ever before. This time I could feel in every fiber of my being: this was for my life. I could hear the hollow “Clack” of the feet behind me, the sound growing closer and much more pronounced, almost in sync with the pounding of my heart. The faster the drumming of feet behind me became, the more I understood that this was the end. This was it, the last I would run, the last I would escape it.

            I turned the corner sharply skidding on my feet, and then continuing to run. I saw a staircase up to the city up above. If I could escape into the crowds I would be fine, they wouldn’t be able to find me. The world had changed quickly and dramatically without warning. When I was a child, the world had its problem but it was never like this.  When I was a small child, I remember my parents talking about the government and how it was going much to far too the Right. I didn’t understand it then, but I understand it now. They were quintessential Liberals that went to environmental protests and help campaign for candidates that talked about equality and providing for those who had less. They were compassionate and held humanity all life in high regard. Unfortunately our country no longer had room for people like them when everything was said and done. In the year 2015, when I was still in kindergarten, the world became once again well acquainted with terror when Al Qaeda was able to unite all off shoot organizations and buy a small nuclear device from North Korea, whom at that point had become an even more rogue nation than it was before. Their leader Kim Jong-Un decided that he was done trying to appease large western powers of the world and began to make money for his country by selling arms and missiles to terrorist organizations which allowed them to slowly build up it’s arsenal. Soon North Korea invaded South Korea and made its way to Japan, this sparked the Neo-Korean war. Eventually, though reluctantly, the United State had to act due to treaties held with South Korea and Japan. While all of our troops deployed out to fight the two front wars to save Japan and South Korea, other nations decided not to help. And in the Fall of 2015 shortly after receiving said nuclear device, Al Qaeda detonated the device in Washington D.C. This killed millions of people, and wiped out the American government.

            Because the succession laws in the United States did not provide for the situation of all members in the line of succession being assassinated, the highest ranked general in the armed forces at the time came to power, General Charles Gaston who had been appointed, General of the Armies during the Neo-Korean War. Unfortunately this man had very different beliefs about how the country was to be run, especially after the attack. Immediately civil liberties began to become restricted. Ultimately the United States was victorious against the rogue action of North Korea, and occupied the whole country of Korea. General Gaston then moved to occupy Japan in its weakened capacity and soon after invaded China after a surprised bombardment on their military installations and bases. After securing China, the United States worked to colonize the whole of China completely absorbing it’s massive military into our own. After this our government invaded all of its former allies who refused to help in the Neo-Korean War. Because of the enormous military the United States now had it was able to overwhelm the U.K., Canada, Mexico, South America, and all of Europe within a short span of time. Soon all of Asia was annexed, due to the United States’ strong hold on China. Due to underdevelopment and the fractious nature of the continent of Africa it only took a month to overwhelm as well. The United States now held a wealth of raw materials as well as newly gained soldiers. Soldiers in the International Corps were given special privileges and their families were well taken care of; so many young people joined the military, and soon military service became compulsory. Eventually all that was left was Russia, who put up the hardest fight but was eventually overtaken in 3 years of fighting.

            The United States became the United Continents in the span of 15 years. And over those years the climate on the mainland changed dramatically. Suddenly we were all required to give DNA samples to the government, and get microchips inserted under our skin. Our identification cards bore a small family tree in the back as well as our genetic ancestry. Many people protested this identification card when it first came out. I remember being about 10 or 11 years old when I saw the government use some sort of weapon against the crowd the looked like a solar panel. The protestors collectively dropped to the ground writhing in pain. After that police rounded everyone up into large armored trucks that looked like moving vans and took them away. At the age of 12 when I entered the 6th grade, we were notified that we were to begin undergoing military training. When I got home from school that day large black windowless busses came to gather up all young men who were in college or out of high school. After the men, these same busses came for women of the same age. We were told by the Gaston government that we can only achieve world peace and the end to all suffering if the United States was in the control of the world, bringing freedom to everyone. That was not what the Gaston administration was bringing to the world. I still don’t completely understand why Charles Gaston wanted to annex the entire world; it all just didn’t make sense. Despite hard censorship, because of my parents’ ties to now outlawed underground political organizations, we began to hear about people disappearing in droves, and many country’s populations being decimated.
           

            Unfortunately I wasn’t interested in hearing any of that as a young woman. I had been thoroughly indoctrinated and enjoyed the perks of being a member of the youth corps of the military. We were tasked with making sure all citizens complied with laws and did not speak out against our “benevolent” leader. I flourished within the corps gaining rank, and eventually I was promoted into the International Corps. I was accepted into the International Corps, which was our nation’s military, at a high rank. When I was deployed I was in charge of thousands of men and women who did all that I commanded. There I was in charge of eliminating unsuitable and unacceptable elements in the United Continents’ nation-states. I was deployed for 3 years and then returned home. The horrors of our missions haunt me everyday now. Often the government gave us the name of villages and we were to go in and make sure everyone was in their homes. And then we were ordered to put on our gas masks and gas entire villages, and cities sometimes. I had been trained from a young age to regard these people as combatants and traitors to the United Continents. Because I did not regard these people as human beings at the time I became very good at what I did, so much so, that at 24, I received a promotion to General. The promotion did not mean as much as it had during the democratic times, because there was a general for every state in America, as well as a higher-ranking general for every country in the United Continents.

 After my service abroad I was allowed some time at home with my family. I had always turned a blind eye to my parent’s political beliefs because they kept it quiet. And then one day, special operations members of the International Corps came to my door. I knew exactly what they were there for and tried to tell my parents to try to escape, unfortunately our home was surrounded on all sides. I remember the day like no other, I was 25 years old and I remember exactly because it was my birthday. My mother had made me breakfast and we were all settled down at the table when the heavy door knocking occurred. I looked through the peephole and a feeling of dread filled my being; the men’s stark black uniforms and heavy leather boots told me everything I needed to know.

“Mom, Dad they are here for you, you need to try to escape,” I whispered.

            My mother and father walked to the back door and then looked back at me, “They are at the back of the house honey, it’s over and we accept that. Just please pretend you didn’t know, and we won’t tell them.”

            “Ok,” Tears began to well up in my eyes as I opened the door.

            “General Jill Nzinga, I am lieutenant Duffy please step aside we are here on the order of our victorious and great leader Charles Gaston to arrest Chandler and Margaret Nzinga for high treason,” I said and did nothing but salute and step aside as per policy of my Corps. My parents knelt down to their knees and put their hands up on their heads. Despite their cooperation, the soldiers were very rough with them dragging them into the street. The government of the United Continents must have suspected something because Lieutenant Duffy stopped and read another piece of paper.

            “General Nzinga, Chandler and Margaret Nzinga are hereby sentenced to death immediately and on site. And as the United Continents requires unyielding loyalty, you General Jill Nzinga, are charged with the task,” Lieutenant Duffy, handed me a firearm.

            “No…” I said my voice breaking.

            “If you do not do this, you will be sent to a reeducation center to correct any defects in your character. And your parents will be sent off for medical testing,” Lieutenant Duffy said quickly and without emotion.

            I knew what that meant, and a bullet to the brain was far more compassionate then anything they would experience in the military medical labs. They would be subjected to new chemical weapons, experimental medical procedures, and new medications. And if they died, our military scientists have found ways to revive them and start testing all over again. This is why the United Continents was able to take the world so fast. Many of those who joined the military were promised a very long and healthy life due to the rapid growth of medical technology. In third world nations, this promise in conjunction with the promise of food and high pay for their families, was appealing and our military grew all the more.

            I took the handgun and walked out to where my parents who were kneeling on the sidewalk, “I’m so sorry, but this is what has to happen,” I said to my parents.

            “I know baby, I’m sorry you have to do this. I love you,” My mother said beginning to weep.

            “I love you too honey, and we don’t hate or blame you for what is about to happened please go on with your life,” My father said also beginning to weep.

            “I love you too,” I aimed, steeled myself and quickly shot both of my parents cleanly through the head. They fell to the ground and as their blood flooded the sidewalk, I felt like my soul had bled out as well.

            “Good work General Nzinga. I know you understand what is at stake when we allow dissidents to live in our nation, we will never forget 11/15,” Lieutenant Duffy gave me a salute in respect of my rank, and his men rounded up the bodies of my parents into a van and then another crew came immediately to clean up the blood. And after about 20 minutes there was no trace of what had happened, except for in my mind.

            After the event I was deployed once again, and continued to wipe out more and more populations, but this time I had hate in my heart. I don’t remember when it started but it began to make me feel better to kill. It was what I was trained to do, and unfortunately with the death of my parents at my own hands, I became numb to human beings and suffering. My superiors commended my ruthlessness, but more and more I was dying inside. I began to take a drug the military had made and provided to curb emotional response, called Emodone. And as I gassed cities and gunned down entire families, I did so in a drug induced stupor.

            One day I ran out of Emodone, and I had to go out for a mission while I was coming down. This time the mission was not abroad but in our home country. And as we let loose the canisters of lethal gas, all the emotions I had choked back came rushing back to me. And I began to scream uncontrollably under my gas mask, and without thought, I felt my body begin to run. I was running hard before I could even fathom what I was doing. I ran for a good hour until I stopped and realized no one had followed me, I had torn off my gas mask a long time ago, and I sank down to my knees in the forest that I had entered and began to scream again. This time my screams turned into wild, heavy sobs, I felt like I was losing my mind. After a moment, I passed out, and did not wake up again until it was dark.