Chapter 1

Her green eyes intently scanned the crowd of growing protesters.  The gathering had risen to a sea of chants and fists as the students circled around the courtyard. Their white signs bore the peace symbol in blood red and other signs that posted the president's face with smears of black X's along the picture. Several large circles of people sitting on the grass, interlinked their hands and sang out "Grant us our peace! Give us our Freedom!" as many others danced naked around the students walking by with streaks of colors painted on their bodies.  Streakers would run up towards uninvolved students whom most just continued on their chosen path.  
She had participated in a protest earlier this year and she reveled in the feeling that the experience had evoked in her.  The rebellion, defiance of authority, yelling and being yelled at.  Although she didn’t entirely believe in the cause she protested for, secretly she had enjoyed participating.
Tami was in her final semester of nursing school.  Her mother had enough prestige, not to mention money, to get her into New York University.  Her mother had been a top grad of her class and had even taught a few courses there over the years.  When it came time for Tami to choose her field there was no other choice.  It was going to be nursing or nothing.
Not that she was unhappy with the chosen field for her.  She liked the emotional part of it.  She felt that the person healing can do as much for the soul as the medical advances could do for healing the human body.  She just wasn’t sure where her place was truly going to be.
This break she was going home to be with her mother and brother.  This might be the last time she would get to see either of them for a while.  Her mother had been reactivated to duty.  With the Government feeling threatened by this so called “Rebellion”, mocked for its unoriginality, and the pressure that Europe was providing to change, they had recalled many inactive men and women back into service.  
Her brother on the other hand was, in her opinion, desperate to follow in her fathers footsteps.  Being of legal age only two months ago he had already pledged to enlist.  Because of his grades and involvement in the Junior Government program he was going to be eligible for the officers program.  Which meant he was going to be on the fast track to being a jackass Captain.  Not that her brother was a jackass but there wasn’t a Captain that she had meet that had an ounce of respect for those who weren’t all Government.  Secretly she wondered if brainwashing wasn’t involved.
Unlike her brother Tami had taken quite the opposite view to the Government.  She felt they were all corrupt and paranoid.  She had never lead a sheltered life and had many chances to experience the world around her.  After her fathers death, they settled in San Francisco which had become one of the lucky cities to not have been effected by the recession as most of the other cities across the country had.
In the background, Tami could hear the frantic unzipping and zipping of bags as her roommate threw objects around the room in a lousy attempt to pack. Tami turned to face Brianna, watching as her fair haired roommate shuffled around her side of the room obviously irritated by the protesters as expressed by the furrowed brow she was sporting. “I don’t understand why they feel they have to do this,” Brianna exasperated turning to Tami.
“Its…a…college…Brianna,” Tami clearly enunciated playfully tying her honey brown hair into a ponytail.  “What do you expect?  It's tradition. Every time we're on the brink of war there's going to be a protest, especially at a college.”
“Well that doesn’t make it right,” Brianna huffed.  “If the Government wasn’t here to protect them, we would have been invaded and slaved by another country by now.  People just don’t appreciate what others sacrifice so that they can stand there and protest.”
“You might bring up a good point but you will never get any of them to agree,” Tami nodded her head in the direction of the window.  “People hate being forced to change, especially our society. Take away our freedom and we will react. I mean take in what has happened in the last administration. Remember when Martial law was first enforced?”
“Yeah I do,” Brianna said not really engaging in the conversation. “If you ask me that was the best thing they did for us.”
“Well I can guarantee that none of them see it that way.  Besides you just say that because if they hadn’t enforced it then you never would have meet Daniel.   I mean, come on, it was the first step towards taking away what this country stood for,” Tami protested. “First the government starts to tap into our phone lines, check our emails, then all of a sudden they're controlling our  food supplies and when we go to sleep…”
“It’s for our own protection.” Brianna interrupted. “If the government didn't care for us, don’t you think they would have just let those hoodlum Rebels continue to ruin the food supplies we have?  There has been a large decrease in violent crimes.”
“At least that you can see,” Tami muttered under her breath before raised an eyebrow at her contesting little roommate. “There's a big difference between helping and controlling, Bri.”  
“Am I hearing what I think I'm hearing from you?” Brianna paused what she was doing to stare at Tami. “That sounds like Rebel talk?”  She said as a
“What? No!” Tami laughed nervously.  Not that it was a false statement but people now days had to be really careful with talk of association with the Rebels and beyond that she really hadn’t made up her mind on which side of the line she stood on. “I'm just...making observations.” She stumbled with her words.
“How could you have so little faith in the good they are trying to do for us?”
“Don't you ever...wonder?” Tami said softly.
“No and you shouldn't either. You have to have faith.” Brianna continued with stuffing clothing into the bags as the crowd grew louder. “Why won't they just fucking grow up and come to their fucking senses?” She gazed out of the window and her eyes widened in excitement. “He’s here!”  She shrieked running across the room and threw open her door and bolted down the hallway towards the stairs.
Tami could only snicker as she listened to the thundering noises coming from the stairs as her petite roommate hurried down them. She went to the window just in time to see Brianna throw open the doors outside and jump into the arms of a tall light haired man.  He just barely kept his balance as her legs wrapped around him as did her arms like an octopus grabbing its dinner.
She continued to watch as he not so gently pried Brianna away and nearly dropped her on the ground.  Tami winced thinking to herself how he had no right to treat his own girl or any other girl like that, yet Brianna would not listen to her.  She had never listened to her, even when she had come home from her dates bruised.  
‘You don’t know what it is like for them,’ she would defend.  Tami shuddered at the memory of the last time Brianna had come home from a date and she turned her attention back to packing.
“Daniel?  You remember Tami don’t you?” Brianna and the blonde haired man entered the room. Tami looked up towards the unfriendly set of cold eyes staring back at her. She looked away from the gaze, pretending that her bag in front of her needed immediate attention.
“I thought you said you were packed,” he grumbled, clearly annoyed as his eyes looked at the room in shambles.  Clothes a strewn everywhere, makeup scattered on the floor and two open suitcases on Brianna’s bed.
“Well, I almost am,” she tried to defend herself as she went to the bed and picked up another hand full of clothing and stuffed it into the nearest suitcase.  Within a couple of minutes Brianna had both suitcases stuffed and was struggling to zip the last one up before Daniel yanked the suitcases off the bed and headed out the door.
“Brianna!” his gruff voice barked up the stairs as he was lugging two suitcases down the narrow stairway.  “Move it!  You know that the transport won’t wait for your lazy little ass!”
“I’m almost ready!” she cried back.  Her gaze fell on her roommate who was raising an eyebrow to the previous call.  “What?  I am,” she shrugged and smirked.
“I still don’t see what you see in him, why you let him treat you that way.” Tami sighed. Brianna just shook her head in reply.  The two of them had had this conversation one too many times, never to any avail.
“You're just jealous you don't have a boyfriend, especially one that's in the Government” Brianna quipped.  “Mine is a Captain, 4 years older than me and fucking HOT! ”
Tami could do nothing but roll her eyes and cringe at the last words parting her roommate’s lips. “Still doesn’t justify the way he treats you.”
“Tami, you'll find another beau one day,” Brianna looked to Tami’s eyes placing a consoling hand on Tami’s shoulder. “And stop twirling that ring! It'll irritate your finger.” Tami looked down towards her hands to find that she was unconsciously twirling the gold band with the solitaire diamond around her ring finger.  She still refused to remove from the finger that her fiancée had so lovingly placed it on almost two years ago. "Seriously, I don't understand why you still wear that thing."
Tami took a deep breath, “Well you better get your lazy little ass in gear girl,” mocking the tone earlier presented by the soldier. “What time is your transport departing?”
“I’dunno?” Brianna shrugged.  “It’s a Govy transport so you know it won’t be on time or leave without me.  I’m just excited that Daniel is taking me with him.  This is just going to be so wonderful.”
Tami stuck out her tongue in a fake puking motion. Brianna picked up the closest pillow and tossed it her direction.
“Hey!” Tami protested as she caught the pillow tossed her direction.
“Aren’t you going to be late for your flight?” Brianna asked with a glare.
“Just like you are going to miss your transport,” Tami snickered.  “I still got time the shuttle isn’t leaving for another 45 minutes or so.  It is just nice to be able to get out of here and go home for a couple of weeks.  This place just gets to me sometimes, you know?”
“Brianna! NOW!” Heavy footsteps pounded up the stairs in the girls direction.  “Quit yapping and get a move on or I'll leave your useless little ass here.”
Something boiled in Tami at the harshness of his voice.  “Hey!” Tami interjected.  “You don’t need to yell at her like that you know.”  The words had escaped her lips before she realized what she had said.
He turned to look at her and narrowed his eyes. He moved his bulk across the room, quickly closing the distance between himself and Tami.  He stood almost a foot taller and bulged everywhere from his few years of military training.  Tami didn't know if it was from fear or sheer dumb bravery but as he stood there, inches from her face, she just stared back at him, her face clear of any fear she might have had. “What did you just say to me?” His voice growled deep in his throat.
“You may be able to intimidate her but you can’t intimidate me,” She desperately hoped he didn't see her hands trembling as she struggled to maintain paced breathing.
“You wouldn’t make it a day in the field.  Your ugly little ass will never save a soul.  I don’t know why you are even going to school here.” He eyed her looking for the intended reaction, but she wasn't going to give him the pleasure of letting him see how he truly made her feel.
“Come on Daniel,” Brianna whispered as she stepped next to the bickering two head bowed in a submissive position.  “I’m ready.”
Without breaking eye contact with Tami he replied, “’Bout fucking time.”  He then turned his attention to his woman and grabbed her upper arm.
Flinching in surprise to his grip she looked over her shoulder to Tami with wide eyes.  She mouthed the words ‘Sorry, see you next semester’ and with that Tami watched her roommate and escort awkwardly traverse the hallway and disappear down the stairs.
When she knew that they were both out of the building Tami collapsed upon her bed.  She rubbed her face with her hands.  When she pulled them away to look at them she noticed how badly she was shaking.  She took a deep breath and tried to refocus and keep packing.  There was a schedule to keep to.