The Perfect Machine: Kingdom Of Glass (GxG

8. Follow Me

I open up my eyes and realize that the loud clamour originates from the outside of my cell. At first, I thought it was a piece of my dream. Yet, it's not, as someone is fighting down the hall. I bounce down from my bed to see Eden is as well, being conscious and glance around to discover what's going on.

"Grab them!" I hear somebody yell, and we both stagger to the door. Around ten ladies are tossing clenched hands at one another, kicking, shouting, and in any event, pulling hairs.

"They are fighting for territory," A woman who stands next to us says. Her long, ruffled blonde hair rests on her shoulders as she has her arms crossed over her chest.

"Why?" I wonder as I know they will get in trouble for that.

"It's a prison," She rolls her brown eyes.

"It's stupid," The woman adds and lets out a sigh as she shakes her head, clearly in disapproval.

"Why is nobody stopping them?" Eden asks the taller lady.

"The guards watch the cameras, but they usually just watch it for fun," The woman shrugs.

"Of course, they do," Eden mutters. One of the women falls on the floor lifeless after getting a hard punch in her head.

"She needs help," I say to Eden over the loud shouts, but we both wince as a lady gets hit in the nose.

"It's not our problem, River," She says, but I disagree. I'm worried I might end up in the fight, but we can't let her die lying there.

"I am going," I say, but Eden grabs my arm in a quick, firm grip.

"You might get into trouble," She warns me as her eyes drown with worry.

"I know," I say and hurry through the battling individuals and I nearly get kicked in the process. I sit down close to the lady to check her heartbeat. It's there and I shake her slightly to wake her up.

"Come on, wake up," I say, but she doesn't. I stand up and try to grab the woman by her leg to pull her away from the crowd, but she is very heavy, so I cannot move her.

A tall figure rushes into the crowd, and I notice it's the woman with the hoodie. Harlow stands right in the middle of them with arms stretched out to divide the group.

"Move it!" One of the women shouts at her, but she doesn't listen. The angry woman goes straight at her, but Harlow pushes her so hard she fell backwards onto the ground.

"Stand still!" Guards run through the front door, and they start to attack to grab us to put handcuffs on.

"I didn't do anything," I argue to the guard who holds me tightly.

"I don't care you are coming with us anyways," I watch them gathering everyone who was a part of the fight, including the woman with the hoodie.

"She didn't do anything either," I defend her, but he won't listen to me.

"Let's go!"

Each and every one of us involved in the fight is brought into isolation. There is no bed, no window, and no light. Cement walls and darkness are the only company. There is a smelly toilet in the corner, but I am staying away from that.

People in the other rooms are screaming, hitting doors and slamming walls. They are begging for their lives.

"I didn't do anything, and I shouldn't even be here." A woman shouts and I can't help but feel the same way.

"Shut up!" One of the guards yells, so sick of listening to them crying. After that, it all went quiet, and I am not sure if that is better. The silence is frightening and I don't know what will happen.

"Let me out!" Someone yells, crying — a loud noise sounding like a strike onto metal rings in my ears. The woman screams even louder and she sounds horrifying. Yet, it didn't help to cover up my ears with my hands.

I lean up to the door to get a peek out of the hole where they bring in the food. There is not much to see, but a guard stands in front of that woman's door with a frown as he hits it. If she could calm down, he would stop.

***

"Open up!" A man shouts and wakes me up from my deepest dreams. It's all confusing as I look around, but I remember where I am. The door that held me in the darkroom opened.

"Get out!" The man yells, and we all get out and stand in front of our rooms. I watch every single woman. They seem tired and filthy, just like how I feel. The guard paces back and forth to look at each of us. The way he watches us is discomforting, and it is as if he is looking for someone in particular.

"You!" He points at a tall and well-built woman.

"Come forward!" The guard says, and the woman does as he says. She stands straight and looks right forward, with an empty look on her face. I get the feeling that she might be used to follow orders like these. Perhaps she used to be in the military, just like Harlow. The shape of her body and that rough scar on her cheek can be a clear sign.

"You!" Another woman steps forward and this one is shorter and is as skinny as I am. She trembles in her place and I can understand her fear. I can feel it scream in my bones as my heart pound so loudly I think anyone could hear it by now.

"You!" He points at me, and my heart sank to the bottom of my core. I step forward as I feel my hands shake but hide them behind my back.

"And you!" The guard points at the woman with the hoodie, Harlow.

"Sir!" Another guard steps forward and whispers something to him.

"I don't care!" He shouts at him, which makes the man walk away. The tall, well-built woman steps forward. He picks out another woman and seems happy with his choices.

"Follow me!" He yells, and so we do. We walk through hallways after hallways, passing cells, guards along our way—a couple of women in our group whisper to each other and question everything. We step into a room that has small cell rooms on each side. It's dark and grey but better than the isolation room.

"Pick a room and stand in front of it," The guard shouts. We all do as he says.

"Tomorrow, you are going to leave this prison," He says, and everyone smiles with disbelieve, but the guard narrows his eyes.

"You will leave for the military," He sighs in disbelieve, and I close my eyes as I feel my body starting to tremble again.

"You can't do this!" The skinny woman shouts.

"I did nothing wrong!" She yells again and her face is so pale as if she just saw a ghost.

"Doesn't matter. The military needs more hands," He shrugs, not giving a care in the world. I peek at Harlow, who stands still as a statue. She appears as if his words didn't strike a nerve or a fright in her. I wish I had control of my emotions like that.

"You can't send us," The woman says in shock.

"We can and we will," He answers back and stand right in front of her.

"Tomorrow, a truck will come for you and take you to the base," He explains.

"Base?" The short woman questions.

"Yes," he rolls his eyes.

"We can also call it the playground if you prefer," The guard rolls his eyes, and she remains silenced.

"For now, get a good night's sleep," He is indicating us to go into our cells.

I sit down on the bed as I'm at a loss for words. It's unbelievable and I didn't do anything wrong. I can't go to the military. I have absolutely nothing to offer.