Bound (The Guardians) Read Free

in the world. Train lines from all over the Centreland work their way into the ALS like a giant spider’s web. The building sits five stories off the ground and the tracks pour out the sides like metal water from a fountain. Some tracks flow back down to the ground, some remain elevated. The Poridos City train is one of these lines. I always used to think that the trains that had the luck of being off the ground meant they were heading somewhere much nicer than I was.
    I run from the south line platform, up two flights of stairs and down another, to the north platform. My one carriage, clunky commute is exchanged for clean, white, speedy Poridos City train. I rescan my card and wait. When the train pulls up, I push onto it and try and find somewhere to stand. There’s no chance of a seat.
    It’s only a fifteen minute ride from Absotras to Poridos. As a guy smacks me in the back of the head with his briefcase, with no apology, I’m glad the ride is short.
    When the doors open at our destination, I’m shoved from behind by other commuters. I scramble out onto the polished floors of Poridos Central and follow the crowd to the main exit. I walk down the stairs and out into the city.
    Free from the highly strung atmosphere of the travel, I relax my shoulders. I glance up at the early morning sky.
    Overhead I see people shooting past on flight boards, the most common mode of single and double person transportation. They hover into the city, the beautiful and flashy patterns on the boards screaming out to me, “You will never be able to afford one of us!” And as much as it sucks, it’s true.
    I keep my crappy, busted old ride folded up and chose to walk. A group of young children in school uniforms thunder past me. I hear one cry out, ‘Let’s go and see the Tower again before class!’
    ‘Yeah,’ another answers. ‘I wonder how close we can get before we get busted.’
    I look to the north. The building they’re talking about is Guardian’s Tower. I see it almost every day, but it never fails to amaze me. It’s a magnificent structure that sits on a hill above the city. The Tower is made of three thick columns of opaque crystal, all joined at the base, that soar hundreds of feet into the air. The middle pillar is tallest; the one to the left is a bit lower with a flatter peak and the one on the right, kind of shorter again. I’ve always thought that the pillars look like an award platform. They also have wonderful gardens outside the Tower, or so I’ve heard. You can’t really see because the grounds are encircled by a thick opaque crystal border. The only entry I know of is the large heavily guarded front gates. I will never know more than what I do about the Tower, inside or out. Its impervious structure makes it impossible for the common folk to see inside.
    Also, as expected, only people with power or influence are ever permitted to enter the sacred home of our royal family. I wish I could see one of them in person, just once. Maybe shake their magical hand and hope something rubs off on me. But they hardly ever make public appearances.
    The Guardians do a fantastic job at keeping their lives a total secret.

CHAPTER two
    I make my way down the flat stone path of the shopping district. Only a few people pass me by. It’s still too early for the boutique shoppers to be out.
    Down the middle of the straight line of shops is a long garden with green, lush plastic plants. Every hour, on the hour, tiny sprinklers come up and water them. That’s right. They water plastic plants; it’s designed to make them look realistic and shiny. It seems like a waste of perfectly good water.
    My shoe lace comes undone and I rest my foot on a park bench to tie it. Even the seats in the strip mall are made of see-through plastic.
    But as manufactured and fake as this place is, I have to admit that being surrounded by perfection makes me feel less like a forgotten rural girl who lives in a house with cracks in the walls.
    I