The Hourglass

by Donaldson, Casey

  “I’m fine. Thanks,” she whispered back. “Do you know her?” she asked. “She seemed to know all about you.”

  “Heather? Nah. She just got all the information out of me when I was put in here. We’ve been here for a week, waiting for the bus.”

  Sarah’s heart sank. So the girl, Heather, was going to the ship as well. She figured as much, but it was worse to know it as an absolute.

  “Marland, why are they sending us to the ship, do you know? I mean, what we did wasn’t that bad, right? Shouldn’t we have been sent to the farms?”

  “There have been bombings,” whispered Marland conspiratorly. “The farms have been targeted so they’re not taking on new people at the moment. Everyone gets sent to the ships.”

  “But, wouldn’t that have been on the news?”

  Marland laughed derisively. “Of course not. Do you think the Covenant wants people to think that the Accord is hurting them? Don’t believe everything you hear, Sarah.”

  “Then how did you hear about it?” demanded Sarah, feeling somewhat miffed.

  “One of the guards told me. Straight from the horse’s mouth, so to say.”

  Sarah thought about it. It made sense.

  “Do you,” Sarah hesitated, realising that she was going to show her ignorance even more, “do you know what’s going to happen to us?” she finished. “I mean, what happens from here? We get on the prison ship and then what?”

  “I don’t know for sure,” replied Marland, and Sarah felt that she could almost see the shrug she was sure Marland was doing. “I mean, I’ve never really seen anyone who comes back. Have you?”

  Sarah frowned. There was that cousin of Abby’s, but he had worked on the ship, not been a prisoner. Yet she had known people, or at least known-of people who had been sent away. She couldn’t recall ever really seeing them again.

  “So what are you saying?” asked Sarah. A creeping sensation of dread travelled down her spine.

  “Just that I don’t know anyone who has returned. What if, what if they throw us overboard or something?” whispered Marland, her voice so soft now that Sarah had to strain to hear her. She sounded excited, like she had wanted to talk to someone about this for a while but never had the chance.

  “But they couldn’t! People would complain. We would know about it.”

  “Would we really? Who would complain about criminals not returning?”

  “If I didn’t return my Mum would,” replied Sarah confidently.

  “But what if she was told that you’d done something, something bad, and that they had to increase your sentence? What if they just keep on providing excuses? If they say that there was an accident or something?”

  “Marland, stop.” She didn’t want to listen any more. It was sounding too much like a crazy conspiracy theory and she was worried that if she listened to any more of it she would start to believe it herself.

  There was a pause.

  “Just think about it, ok?”

  “Sure, fine.” Sarah rolled over onto her side. She tried not to think of anything. Everything was just so awful at the moment that she definitely didn’t need images of people throwing her overboard to drown at the forefront of her thoughts as well.

  Chapter Five

  The Broken Bus

  Sarah woke up early the next morning. Marland was already awake, nervously picking at her fingernails again. She gave Sarah a tentative smile, which Sarah returned. Heather was still snoring away on the bench. A guard came about half an hour later. She threw a protein bar to each of the prisoners and grinned when the bar she threw at Heather landed on her chest, waking her up with a snort. The guard unlocked the door and held it open.

  “C’mon ladies. Time to go, your bus awaits.”

  Heather held up the protein bar, disgruntled. “Is this it?” she demanded.

  “You can eat on the way,” replied the guard. “Let’s go.”

  They all shuffled out into the corridor. Sarah ripped open her bar and munched on it thoughtfully. She wondered what the food situation would be like on the ship. She often went without breakfast, more for the lack of food than anything else, and she was quite happy with the protein bar. It tasted like rubber but it was filling.

  Protein bars were one of the few readily available foodstuffs that didn’t wax and wane with how well the war was going. It was synthesised some fifty years ago by someone with no sense of taste, smell or presentation, but it had, they were all assured, all the necessary vitamins, proteins and minerals that were needed. They were originally intended to be an emergency food source but had quickly become the staple food product for many people in the city. Sarah supposed that meant her city was probably always in a semi-state of emergency.

  They passed through the small room with the desk and walked down a few corridors before emerging into the sunshine outside. The light made her blink and shade her eyes. They were in an enclosed pen made out of chicken wire attached to the back of the building. Slowly her surroundings came into focus as she acclimatised to the glare. There was a bus waiting on the other side, its door neatly lining up with the door in the wire fence. It was a small, dingy bus with a beaten and depressed look about it. It looked old, almost pre-war. She wouldn’t have been surprised if it was. Pretty much all new technology and money went into funding the war effort. The city and its people usually had to make do with what they already had, and she figured that herself and her fellow prisoners probably ranked below the city when it came to funding. The guard unlocked the wire fence door and ushered them through, her hand on her gun in case any of them dared to run. Heather elbowed herself to the front and went in. Sarah had no idea why anyone would be so keen to get on the bus. Or at least, she didn’t until she entered it herself. The seats were as beaten up and sad looking as the outside of the bus. Bits of padding leaked out from most of the seats and there was graffiti everywhere. She wondered inanely where people had got the pens from. Each seat had room for two people and lined both sides of the bus. Every two-seater had a single person on it. Heather had smugly spread herself over the last empty two-seater so that she didn’t have to share. Now Sarah and Marland were forced to decide who to sit next to. Sarah wished that they were all wearing little badges that detailed their crimes. She would rather deal with a small-time thief like she was supposed to be than a murderer. She looked around. Everyone on the bus was young. The details she had been given prior to her court case had indicated that she could be sent to a juvenile farm if proven guilty, and while it wasn’t exactly a farm they were going to, the juvenile part looked about right. A few people were looking her way now. She would have to decide quickly, in case the person she sat next to decided to read too much into her choice. She chose the first seat where the person on it was sitting up next to the window, so that she wouldn’t have to ask them to move over to make room for her. She hardly registered what the person looked like, trying so hard to go unnoticed herself. Marland looked at her desperately as she walked down the centre aisle, clearly wishing that they could have sat together. She sat next to a small girl and Sarah watched as she gave the girl a smile. The girl made a rude gesture and turned back to the window, ignoring her. Marland’s face crumpled and she buried her head into her hands. Sarah felt sorry for her and decided to wait until she looked up again to give her a smile of encouragement, but Marland didn’t so much as glance up. Seeing that she wasn’t going to move any time soon, Sarah turned back to find out who she had ended up sitting next to. The person was staring at her, studying her carefully. Sarah stared back, making her own assessment. He was about the same age as her, but it was hard to tell exactly because his hair was white. For a second she thought that it was pure white, but on closer inspection there was some silver in there as well. It drew her attention immediately. She had no idea how she had missed it when she had sat down. His light brown eyes looked like they were laughing at her. Sarah returned his gaze warily. While she was relieved that his eyes didn’t hold the crazed gleam of a homicidal maniac, hi
s silent laughing was almost as unsettling.

  “I know, right?” he said, gesturing around him. “The bus looks like it’ll fall apart at any second. A small fire broke out when I knocked the wall earlier. I kid you not. Two wires crossed or something.” Sarah thought he was joking until he pointed at a small hole in the side of the bus. It was blackened by fire and there were two exposed wires visible. He laughed at the expression of shock on her face and held out a hand. “I’m Finn.”

  Sarah paused before reaching over and shaking it. “Sarah.” She realised that she had never actually shaken anybody’s hand on meeting them before. It seemed old-fashioned and somehow adult. Of course he could just be making fun of her.

  “So what did you do to get yourself on this unique trip of a lifetime?” he asked with joyous enthusiasm that jarred with their surroundings.

  “None of your business,” replied Sarah. She had made up her mind not to tell anybody why she was in there. The less they knew the more careful they would be when dealing with her. Also she wanted to say something to stop his gleeful attitude. It seemed almost absurd when she herself was feeling so damn miserable.

  “Ah, I see,” replied Finn, not disturbed at all, “you’ve decided on strong and surly.”

  Sarah didn’t say anything and looked away. She definitely felt like she was being made fun of and she wasn’t in the mood.

  “Me, myself and I,” continued Finn, as if the conversation was still flowing, “am in here because of a slight misunderstanding between me and a rather stupid, meat headed soldier. So there is no need to be afraid. I’m a perfectly acceptable human being.” The last statement betrayed a hint of disgust, as if a ‘perfectly acceptable human being’ was in his opinion less than it should be.

  “I’m not afraid of you,” replied Sarah before she realised that he was just baiting her to get a response.

  “And she’s back in the conversation!” he replied.

  Sarah just shook her head. Much to her chagrin she was starting to like him. “So do you know anybody else here? Do you know what it’ll be like?” she asked seriously.

  He shrugged. “Not really. I was in a cell with that dude for a while,” he gestured towards a boy sitting three rows behind them. Sarah turned around. He was older, about nineteen, and was burly and solid. “Aggravated assault. He king hit someone in the street.” Finn’s face was expressionless and Sarah turned back around before the boy realised that they were talking about him. “We’re not the best of friends,” he added dryly. “As for what it’ll be like, I know they search you before you go in. Girls’ and boys’ quarters are on different sides of the ship, but the kitchen and dining area are shared. There’s meant to be some sort of work program, and that’s about all I know.” Sarah gave him a quizzical look. “There was a brochure in the court room,” he explained.

  “Oh. That doesn’t sound too terrible.”

  “But would they put the terrible stuff in the brochure? I’m thinking not.”

  “Thanks for the words of comfort,” she said dryly.

  “It’s what I’m best at. So who and what do you know?”

  Sarah pointed at Heather. “She killed someone who was trying to rob her. She’s a cow. And she,” she pointed to Marland, “burnt down a shed. I understand her mum’s not the greatest. She’s ok, but I think she’s a little crazy. She thinks that they throw us overboard.”

  “Hmm,” murmured Finn thoughtfully as he took them in. “So you would advise that I avoid the cow?”

  Sarah rolled her eyes. “No go ahead. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to meet you. Her name’s Heather. She enjoys sadism and knives.”

  Finn chuckled. “So are you going to tell me what you’re in here for?”

  “No.”

  “Let me put it this way, are you likely to cut my throat while I sleep?”

  “No,” repeated Sarah. “I mean, it would be pretty hard, what with the boys’ sleeping quarters being on a separate part of the ship.” He looked slightly alarmed and she laughed. She realised that she couldn’t even remember the last time that she had laughed properly, even before the pie incident. And she was never this good at talking to strangers. Something about being sent to a prison ship with no idea what was about to happen seemed to have loosened her inhibitions slightly. Finn grinned. Sarah looked past him and out of the window. They had been driving for a few minutes now and she realised as she watched the familiar buildings go by that soon they would be leaving the city. She had never left the city before. Most people never did. Leaving the protection of the city to go into the war zone outside was not commonly considered by the locals. Even if they wanted to it rarely happened. Technically it was permitted, but the Covenant couldn’t risk its citizens travelling to a city controlled by the Accord and spreading information. This meant that if you tried to walk out of those gates, you would find yourself in a small room with a bunch of soldiers questioning you on, why, exactly, would you want to leave this beautiful, peaceful, and most of all safe town? What other reason could you have, they would ask, to leave such a protected place in the middle of a war if not to go help the enemy? That would be treason. And predictably, every potential wanderer would eventually end up assuring the Covenant soldiers that they love their city, that they are grateful to stay in the city so well protected by them, and that actually, now that they thought about it, they really didn’t want to leave after all. And so nobody ever left the city, except for the rare exception of someone being granted a permit. The permits were usually only granted if the person was seeking to work on a Covenant controlled farm, or if they were leaving on official, government-sanctioned business. Seeking a permit to work on the farms was rare. This was mostly because the farms were populated by convicts, and so people who volunteered to go out there were thought to be crazy, despite the extra protection provided by the soldiers and the lucrative wages that were available. Sarah didn’t think that working on the farms would be so bad. When everything was factory packaged and sold for its nutritional content, rather than taste, fresh food had become the pinnacle of luxury. If working on the farms meant that occasionally she could taste the wares, it would almost be worth it. Every year on her birthday her mum saved up enough money to buy her a piece of fruit to eat all by herself. It was her favourite day of the year. Three months, she told herself resolutely. Three months and she would be back home.

  Chapter Six

  Alternatives

  The bus trundled to a halt as there was a gate of razor edged barbed wire blocking off the road ahead of them. They had arrived at the city’s final gate. A soldier strolled out of her hut to talk to the bus driver, her hand on her weapon as she entered the bus. Another soldier stood inside the hut, watching. The bus driver talked in a voice that was too low to hear. He handed the soldier an electronic data list, which was inspected. The soldier turned to face the prisoners, her face unreadable. She walked down the aisle, counting off people as she went and checking them against her list. Most of the prisoners avoided the soldier’s eye. They had learned, maybe better than most, what happens to people who annoy the soldiers. It never ended well, unless you were the soldier. The soldier reached the end of the bus and then marched back down to the front. She turned around to face them again.

  “I have been authorised to recruit any such person on this bus who wishes to join the Covenant’s army,” she intoned, her voice loud but neutral. “If you do so your sentence will be removed, however you must serve out a seven year period of service. The cost of desertion is death. Due to your criminal activity you will not be paid for your first six months of service. After this allotted period, however, you will be started on a base wage. This is your chance to redeem yourself, to give back to the society you took from. This is your chance to avoid prison. You have two minutes to decide.” The soldier checked her watch and ambled back outside to talk to her co-worker.

  Finn turned to look at her. “Would you?” he asked.

  Sarah shook her head. She didn’t even have to think abo
ut it. Her sentence was only for three months. Plus she knew where they would assign her if she joined the army. She would be the cannon fodder, the expendable soldier. She had a neighbour who son was in the army and he had told her about where they send the newly recruited criminals when he had returned home on leave once. He had told her that they were sent to the worst areas, where there was a huge death rate. He said that they were injected with substances that turned them into maniacs, so that they charged the enemy without fear. She knew he was just trying to frighten her, but at the same time she knew that it was more than just a story.

  “You?” she asked.

  Finn shrugged. “Maybe. I don’t know.”

  Sarah didn’t say anything. She didn’t know how long his sentence was. He was making fun of her for being secretive yet he had hardly divulged much himself, so she just sat there quietly and let him think. After all, she barely knew him.

  Having convicts join the army was a controversial topic. Some people thought that prisoners should be automatically sentenced to join. This, of course, was made impossible by the Drafting Act. According to the Drafting Act, made between the Covenant and the Accord, only volunteers could enter the army. The Act was initiated early on in the war as both sides were drafting far too many people to be sustainable, and both sides were suffering for it. Hence it was agreed that all soldiers must be volunteers. Prisons were, naturally, prime recruiting grounds, but even prisoners must make the decision voluntarily.

  The soldier returned two minutes later.

  “Well?”

  Two boys and a girl, all sitting at the back of the bus, stood up and left with the soldier. One of them was the giant Finn had been incarcerated with. Finn made a slight movement, as if he was going to stand up, but he ended up staying seated. He glanced at Sarah quickly, but she didn’t look back. Sarah watched as the volunteers were handcuffed and led towards a building that stood twenty metres away as the gate was pulled back and the bus drove forward again. Apparently the new recruits weren’t to be trusted just yet. Finn was watching her as she stared out of the window at the landscape around them. There were still a number of buildings, but they were generously spread out. There were a few Covenant soldiers walking around so she guessed that what she was looking at was one of their bases. She couldn’t really make out much beyond the buildings. This was the first new scenery she had seen in years. Anything outside the gates had previously been relegated to her imagination. Sure, she had seen the propaganda shots of people on farmland being protected by the Covenant’s soldiers, but beyond that it was mostly rumours and gossip.