Chapter 1: Jonas' Revelation
It had been a year now and we had traveled, a long way, eventually we saw more civilizations. Most are secluded; shanty villages; that consisted of mostly escaped men and children from the communities. Now we are staying at one of those very places. Gabe is now 2 years old; he can walk on his own. And he certainly isn't underweight as of now. I am now 14 though I am not very sure. I had forgotten my exact birthdate from the ceremonies. I still had yet to know what the Giver was talking about, about how 'it use to be.' Sure, I had had the memories, but, slowly they had started to slip away until they were faint whispers in my mind. I was pondering these thoughts while sitting around a campfire with the men of my village.
"So Jonas, my boy, how long have you been away from the community?"
"I'm not really sure, about a year and a half," I said remembering the horrid day of my escape.
"Wow how did you get away, you were so young and with the baby?" An aged man asked crinkling his brow eager to learn my story.
This was a tradition in these towns, older men and young men telling their tales of escape. Most of the men were chosen as nurturers and needed to escape the cries of innocent lives being ended. Sometimes people are born with specific morals that can't be erased with pills and thoughts of the greater good of society.
"Well, it was a very, very long journey and Gabe and mine's feet, show the bruises of hardship. I was chosen as a receiver of memory."
"Wow, hot shot." One of the men said.
"Yeah I thought so too. But that all changed, when the floods of memories started. It was slow and steady at first, you know experiencing the pain, and a bit of emotional suffering. Though soon it became harsh and unbearable. The kind of things that would keep you from sleeping at night. The images were so vivid..." I trailed off, a single tear falling from my eye, remembering the times I parted with that forsaken bed.
"So that was it, which was what set you off?" Another man asked. They looked at me in awe.
I'm sure they had experienced pain in their journey, but in the short time I had been with the Giver, I had experienced pain that was unimaginable.
"Pretty much, all the doubt started when I had my first encounter with the stirrings. When they gave me that pill, I felt guilty about erasing things that I had no control over, things that came natural."
"Oh yes, I remember my first stirrings, and that pill was so easy to take; eventually it didn't matter anymore, it was just a thing I did for the rest of my life," Toby, another man around the fire, said in a sad tone, as if he had wished he could reverse it all.
"Well I guess I'll go to my shelter now, I need to sleep."
"Oh Jonas remember we may need to depart." The leader of our clan yelled after me.
Escapees had formed together over the years and appointed a leader then, called themselves a clan. Villages, were departed because of the community pilots. Even though we were long gone from the community, the jets can still travel, far out to find escaped members. Most of the men were from different communities; some I had never even dreamed of were so far away.
When I walked into my shelter, Gabe was asleep in front of the old fashioned television an engineer had found and repaired for him. It was almost prehistoric; strangely enough it picked up images. I was wondering where they came from. My clan had gone out and found prehistoric, cities, with history books, it had some man called Adolf Hitler, and he had a master race. It seemed as if he wanted a community lifestyle of his own. Considering how many people he murdered to preserve his own ideas; this in my opinion seems like the first ideas of community life in the prehistoric times.
"Someday," I whispered to myself wishing to find the source and the reason why I was put on this planet.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Jonas, Jonas wake up we have to run away, quick they are coming."
I woke up instantly and jumped into my clothes. I grabbed everything important to me and ran. For I knew I would never be able to come back to this place again. The green forest floors crackled and flexed under every man's feet. Gabe was ahead and I could hear his cries. A man had scooped him up and they had run ahead. Everything hit me as I ran, but I didn't care; nothing would make me go back to that lifestyle of murder and baby killing.
"Jonas, Jonas this time we have a long way to go, until the next cold dark cave to shield us from the sensors."
"How long," I yelled, breathing hard.
"About 5 to 10 miles."
"Okay."
This was something I was use to, those sensors, came to the villages. Sometimes the others farther away weren't prepared and the men and sometimes women were brought back and probably killed, or should I say released. My clan and others wouldn't ever find peace unless someone or something aided in the destruction of the communities.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Running, running was now my fate, I was doomed to a life of temporary comforts. But still, I will not allow my new found spirit to be crushed and broken for the protection and order of others. My chest filtered in the air of freedom, the air of wisdom, and the air of morality. We are lucky that we found a cave. None of the men can withstand running for long.
I had heard of a strange village of free citizens. And the technology they have. I wondered if that was where the TV signals were coming from. We are now huddled in a cold dark cave, and I am shivering. Usually we spent nights in the caves, until the jets were satisfied that there was no life around.
"Hey Jonas," Toby whispered to me.
"Yeah."
"The leader of our clan thinks we are less then a hundred miles from the great sanctuary."
My heartbeat quickened I was truly going to live to see the great sanctuary. This place was the first village right before the hidden civilization of the free. This village acted as a gateway that filtered out spies of the communities. I had learned a lot about how the world really work from men who I had stayed with and that have stopped by our village. Spies were special operatives that went around acting as escapees, hitting shanty villages and aiding in bringing back all of the people. Then an idea pops into my head at the very moment. If we get to the hidden civilization, they could help destroy the community's way of life. It wouldn't be an easy battle but it would free trapped souls that couldn't escape the confines of the communities.
"Okay everyone it is time for us to rest now, now lets all huddle together for warmth."
Every man lay in a fetal position and scooted close to his neighbor sharing his warmth. Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if I were in the communities. Would it have been better or worse? I wasn't sure but so far I had caring, sharing and comfort. Isn't that what every human being needs to survive? I slowly nodded off, preoccupied on that note. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
We all woke up rested and fresh, then we all headed into the cave deeper to find a hidden hot spring in which to bathe in. After everyone got cleaned up we walked out of the cave. Then we continued on with our journey to the great sanctuary.
"Jonas, how does it feel to be apart of a clan that will be brought into the Civilization of the free?" The leader said placing his hand on my shoulder.
"It feels great, but I hope the whole world could be like that. I hope by the time Gabe is a man he will be able to choose every aspect of his life."
"Yeah I hope so too." The weathered man said walking ahead.
It had been a year now and we had traveled, a long way, eventually we saw more civilizations. Most are secluded; shanty villages; that consisted of mostly escaped men and children from the communities. Now we are staying at one of those very places. Gabe is now 2 years old; he can walk on his own. And he certainly isn't underweight as of now. I am now 14 though I am not very sure. I had forgotten my exact birthdate from the ceremonies. I still had yet to know what the Giver was talking about, about how 'it use to be.' Sure, I had had the memories, but, slowly they had started to slip away until they were faint whispers in my mind. I was pondering these thoughts while sitting around a campfire with the men of my village.
"So Jonas, my boy, how long have you been away from the community?"
"I'm not really sure, about a year and a half," I said remembering the horrid day of my escape.
"Wow how did you get away, you were so young and with the baby?" An aged man asked crinkling his brow eager to learn my story.
This was a tradition in these towns, older men and young men telling their tales of escape. Most of the men were chosen as nurturers and needed to escape the cries of innocent lives being ended. Sometimes people are born with specific morals that can't be erased with pills and thoughts of the greater good of society.
"Well, it was a very, very long journey and Gabe and mine's feet, show the bruises of hardship. I was chosen as a receiver of memory."
"Wow, hot shot." One of the men said.
"Yeah I thought so too. But that all changed, when the floods of memories started. It was slow and steady at first, you know experiencing the pain, and a bit of emotional suffering. Though soon it became harsh and unbearable. The kind of things that would keep you from sleeping at night. The images were so vivid..." I trailed off, a single tear falling from my eye, remembering the times I parted with that forsaken bed.
"So that was it, which was what set you off?" Another man asked. They looked at me in awe.
I'm sure they had experienced pain in their journey, but in the short time I had been with the Giver, I had experienced pain that was unimaginable.
"Pretty much, all the doubt started when I had my first encounter with the stirrings. When they gave me that pill, I felt guilty about erasing things that I had no control over, things that came natural."
"Oh yes, I remember my first stirrings, and that pill was so easy to take; eventually it didn't matter anymore, it was just a thing I did for the rest of my life," Toby, another man around the fire, said in a sad tone, as if he had wished he could reverse it all.
"Well I guess I'll go to my shelter now, I need to sleep."
"Oh Jonas remember we may need to depart." The leader of our clan yelled after me.
Escapees had formed together over the years and appointed a leader then, called themselves a clan. Villages, were departed because of the community pilots. Even though we were long gone from the community, the jets can still travel, far out to find escaped members. Most of the men were from different communities; some I had never even dreamed of were so far away.
When I walked into my shelter, Gabe was asleep in front of the old fashioned television an engineer had found and repaired for him. It was almost prehistoric; strangely enough it picked up images. I was wondering where they came from. My clan had gone out and found prehistoric, cities, with history books, it had some man called Adolf Hitler, and he had a master race. It seemed as if he wanted a community lifestyle of his own. Considering how many people he murdered to preserve his own ideas; this in my opinion seems like the first ideas of community life in the prehistoric times.
"Someday," I whispered to myself wishing to find the source and the reason why I was put on this planet.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Jonas, Jonas wake up we have to run away, quick they are coming."
I woke up instantly and jumped into my clothes. I grabbed everything important to me and ran. For I knew I would never be able to come back to this place again. The green forest floors crackled and flexed under every man's feet. Gabe was ahead and I could hear his cries. A man had scooped him up and they had run ahead. Everything hit me as I ran, but I didn't care; nothing would make me go back to that lifestyle of murder and baby killing.
"Jonas, Jonas this time we have a long way to go, until the next cold dark cave to shield us from the sensors."
"How long," I yelled, breathing hard.
"About 5 to 10 miles."
"Okay."
This was something I was use to, those sensors, came to the villages. Sometimes the others farther away weren't prepared and the men and sometimes women were brought back and probably killed, or should I say released. My clan and others wouldn't ever find peace unless someone or something aided in the destruction of the communities.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Running, running was now my fate, I was doomed to a life of temporary comforts. But still, I will not allow my new found spirit to be crushed and broken for the protection and order of others. My chest filtered in the air of freedom, the air of wisdom, and the air of morality. We are lucky that we found a cave. None of the men can withstand running for long.
I had heard of a strange village of free citizens. And the technology they have. I wondered if that was where the TV signals were coming from. We are now huddled in a cold dark cave, and I am shivering. Usually we spent nights in the caves, until the jets were satisfied that there was no life around.
"Hey Jonas," Toby whispered to me.
"Yeah."
"The leader of our clan thinks we are less then a hundred miles from the great sanctuary."
My heartbeat quickened I was truly going to live to see the great sanctuary. This place was the first village right before the hidden civilization of the free. This village acted as a gateway that filtered out spies of the communities. I had learned a lot about how the world really work from men who I had stayed with and that have stopped by our village. Spies were special operatives that went around acting as escapees, hitting shanty villages and aiding in bringing back all of the people. Then an idea pops into my head at the very moment. If we get to the hidden civilization, they could help destroy the community's way of life. It wouldn't be an easy battle but it would free trapped souls that couldn't escape the confines of the communities.
"Okay everyone it is time for us to rest now, now lets all huddle together for warmth."
Every man lay in a fetal position and scooted close to his neighbor sharing his warmth. Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if I were in the communities. Would it have been better or worse? I wasn't sure but so far I had caring, sharing and comfort. Isn't that what every human being needs to survive? I slowly nodded off, preoccupied on that note. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
We all woke up rested and fresh, then we all headed into the cave deeper to find a hidden hot spring in which to bathe in. After everyone got cleaned up we walked out of the cave. Then we continued on with our journey to the great sanctuary.
"Jonas, how does it feel to be apart of a clan that will be brought into the Civilization of the free?" The leader said placing his hand on my shoulder.
"It feels great, but I hope the whole world could be like that. I hope by the time Gabe is a man he will be able to choose every aspect of his life."
"Yeah I hope so too." The weathered man said walking ahead.