Chapter 1: The Beginning of The End

The sun is just about to rise when Soojung leaves the house on her bicycle. She rides through the quiet streets of Sinukwan listening to the chirps of the birds as the region slowly wakes up. The baker waves at her as she passes by and Soojung smiles at him. She likes the old quiet man for he doesn’t gossip about her family like the rest of the people do. It has been the talk of the town when her father suddenly disappears without a trace and only a year later the people turn to them with pitiful eyes as her sister, Sooyeon, was transitioned to a different region because of The Ceremony of Transition.

Each year, boys and girls from all the four regions who turn eighteen are sent away from their homes to undergo the ceremony. It always happens in the Dome, a huge structure built at the center of the capital, Hannan. When Soojung was younger, she had been afraid of the massive circular building. Soojung remembers crying when Sooyeon told her that she has to go there. The fact that Sooyeon never went back, added to her fear more.

Soojung arrives at the vineyard and she immediately goes towards the green house built at the back. She climbs off her bicycle before opening the door and stepping inside the room. Her mother is at the other side, tending to her plants. Soojung slowly walks closer to her until she is standing directly behind her mother.

“Mom,” She calls.

Her mother hums, acknowledging Soojung but didn’t turn around to face her. Soojung rolls her eyes at this. She had never really bonded with her mother ever since her father and Sooyeon left.

“Mom I need you to look at something.” She tries again.

This time, her mother does turn around. Her face always reminds Soojung of her sister although she doesn’t remember seeing Sooyeon look this emotionless.

“What is it?” Her mother asks.

Soojung wordlessly hands her an envelope. A postman had arrived at their house early that morning and left that at their doorstep. Soojung already read what was written in it, now she watches as her mother does the same.

Her mother reads the letter then sighs. “Well, I can’t say I haven’t been expecting this.” She says. “It is spring already.”

The letter is a formal invitation for the Ceremony. An invitation for Soojung who turn eighteen this year. It is her turn to be sent to the Dome.

“We’re leaving tomorrow.” Soojung says.

Her mother folds the letter then puts it inside the envelope before giving it back to Soojung. She stands up and pats Soojung on the shoulder. “I understand.”

Soojung is tempted to wish to be transitioned to another region, but familial ties chain her on the brown soil of her mother’s vineyard.

Soojung finds herself curled up in the middle of hundreds of barrels of wines in their storage room. She nibbles on a piece of bread as a small kitten paws at her shoe.

“Where’s your mom?” She asks the small creature, its big eyes blink at her. Suddenly, they hear heavy footsteps and it startles the stray, making it run away. Soojung frowns as the owner of the footsteps arrive.

“Hey kid,” Jonghyun says. He is the son of one of the workers and Soojung once thought that he would marry Sooyeon someday. But Sooyeon was transitioned to a different region and now Jonghyun is a husband to the daughter of the owner of the dairy farm.

Jonghyun throws a huge basket at her and Soojung quickly catches it. “We’re going to pick the grapes. Come help us if you’re not going to do anything fruitful.”

“Everything in Sinukwan is fruitful.” Soojung mutters, tucking the basket under her arm.

“Not cows.” Jonghyun counters. They start walking out of the storage room. “Those monsters are noisy and they a lot.”

Soojung laughs at him and Jonghyun fondly ruffles her hair. The sun has become brighter now and Soojung has to squint as the light hits her eye.

“You’re eighteen this year, right? Jonghyun suddenly asks.

“Yeah,” Soojung frowns. “They sent a letter this morning. I’m leaving for the Dome tomorrow.”

Jonghyun stops walking. He turns to Soojung, a wistful smile on his face. “Good luck kid.”

They stop talking after that, each one going through their own work quietly. Soojung starts thinking about the things that she has to pack, which one to bring and which one to donate to the charity house near the school. They’re only allowed to bring two bags with them so there will be a lot to donate if she doesn’t come back.

Soojung arrives home in the evening to find the house is still empty. Her mother is still probably in the vineyard over working herself as usual. She goes straight to the kitchen to prepare for dinner, pulling out ingredients and heating the pan. Once she finishes, she stores her mother’s food and eats her own. Soojung sighs as she glances at the almost empty dinner table. She barely remembers how it was when her father and sister were still here, she was too young back then.

But she remembers her father as a gentle man who always listened to her, his arms steady and strong as they lift her whenever she demands it. She was spoiled rotten by him. Her sister was the same. Sooyeon protected her from everyone and taught her how to defend herself from bullies at school. Her mother had always been impassive around her but they were happy.

The sound of the front door was loud and it startles Soojung. She her lips as she stand up to clean the table, bringing her plate and cup to the sink to wash them. She hears her mother drop her bag on the couch before her footsteps starts becoming louder as she enter the kitchen.

“What time will the bus leave tomorrow?” Her mother asks before sitting on a chair and removing the plastic foil wrapped around her dinner’s plate.

“We have to be at school before eight in the morning.” Soojung answers. The dishes are clean now, so she sets them aside to dry. She turns to face her mother, crossing her arms and leaning her back on the counter.

Her mother nods. “I’ll wake you up at six.” She starts eating and Soojung knows that’s her way of ending the conversation. But she wouldn’t let it end like that.

“What if I don’t come back?”

“Then I’ll have to donate your things.” Her mother says calmly. “And wish you will have a good life.”

Soojung blinks angrily. “Don’t you care about me at all?” She hisses.

Her mother drops her spoon on her plate, sighing. She looks up at Soojung and for a second, Soojung might have seen a flicker of guilt in her eyes, but it could also just be a trick of the light.

“I care about you.” She says softly. “But you had always been your father’s daughter.”

Soojung shakes her head. “Why do you always say that?”

She pushes herself off the counter and stomps towards her room, slamming the door shut behind her. She doesn’t understand why her mother likes saying puzzling words to her and she often ignores them but Soojung is leaving tomorrow and she cannot help but wish for her mother to be nice to her even for just once. She pulls out her suitcase from under her bed before throwing the door of her closet open. She starts pulling out clothes and throwing them on top of her bed, making sure to put enough underwear in the pile.

Soojung grabs a couple of frames from her side table, photos of her and Sooyeon two years ago, carefully putting it inside her suitcase. She starts folding her clothes and dumping them inside her suitcase. When she can’t put anything to it anymore she opens another bag and puts her things inside until it becomes full too. The suitcase closes with a loud zip and Soojung sighs as she flops on the bed, lying on her back and staring at her white ceiling.

She closes her eyes and wills herself to sleep.

A loud knock on the door wakes Soojung up. She grumbles, turns to lie on her stomach and buries her face on her pillow. The sound of knocking stops, her mother’s voice replacing it.

“Wake up Soojung.”

Soojung pushes herself up until she is kneeling on top of her bed. She looks out her window and watches as the sun slowly rise, turning the sky from purple to orange.

She stands up and walks closer to the window, pulling her blanket along with her. A thought comes up to her, sudden and frightening.

“Soojung are you up?” Her mother calls.

I want to be transitioned to another place.

“I’m awake.” Soojung says, voice jarringly loud.

She fixes her bed before stepping out of her room, hoisting her bag on her shoulders and pulling the suitcase behind her. When she arrives in their living room, her mother is sitting on the couch, quietly sipping her tea.

“There’s breakfast in the kitchen. Eat first before we leave.”

The bread is warm and the cheese is newly bought. Soojung eats them in silence. Her mother comes to stand by the entrance of the kitchen just as Soojung finishes drinking her glass of milk.

“Are you done?” Her mother asks.

“Yes.” Soojung wipes with a napkin before standing up. “I am.”

Her mother nods. “I placed a dress on top of your bed. Wear it today.”

The dress is beautiful, Soojung notes. It is color blue, almost the same as the color of the afternoon sky but just a few shades darker. She puts it on and finds that the dress fits just right. It hits her then that this could be the first and last gift her mother has given her. She might not like her mother much but she will treasure this dress. She styles her hair into a loose bun before getting out.

She finds her mother already putting her bag and suitcase inside the trunk of their car. She stands on the side of the vehicle, waiting for her mother to notice her arrival. Her mother looks up and Soojung is surprised to find a small smile on her face as she looks at Soojung.

“It looks good on you.” Her mother says.

“Thank you.” Soojung whispers.

Her mother hums, closing the trunk before walking towards the other side of the car to get into the driver’s seat. Soojung opens the door to the passenger side and climbs in. The engine roars to life and her mother manoeuvres it out into the driveway. Soojung watches through the rear-view mirror as their house become smaller as they get farther from it.

There are children walking on the sidewalk, probably on their way to the school. Soojung recognizes some of them as the children of the workers in the vineyard. Their bags are small and Soojung knows that some of them might not have any books in them. They have a scarcity of books that started last year and it has come to a point where three children have to share one book.

When they arrive at the school vicinity, Soojung sees three buses parked in front of the main building of their school, there are already other people, ceremony participant, standing near the buses. Some of them with parents while the others alone. Her mother stops the car just close enough to the buses. She unbuckles her seatbelt and wordlessly steps out of the car, Soojung follows her. They haul her suitcase out of the trunk and her mother helps her in putting the straps of her bag through her arms.

The buses are huge, the emblem of the capital painted on its sides. Soojung swipes her eyes over the silver hawk spreading its wings and the star behind it. Her heart starts beating faster and she suddenly feels cold so she wraps both arms around her body.

“I’m scared.” She admits and she hears her mother sigh.

“You don’t have to be.” Her mother says. “It’ll be fine.”

Soojung looks at her face and then down to her wrist where a metal bracelet is wrapped. “And then they will make me wear that too.” Soojung says to her.

Her mother lifts her hand up and looks at the bracelet. The bracelet is used as an identification device for all the adults in the country. No one will be able to travel from region to region without them, and even if you do have them, you will still need documents approved by the capital to pass through the gates separating the regions. The bracelets are only given to individuals after they finish the Ceremony.

“Every adult wears them.” Her mother murmurs, face blank. “And you’ll be an adult soon.”

“Any advice?” Soojung exhales, titling her head to the side.

Her mother shrugs. “Try to socialize. Find people you can trust, you have an eye for that. I believe you’ll do well.”

“Cryptic as usual.” Soojung rolls her eyes. The teacher starts calling out names and Soojung sees one of them waving her over, telling her to get inside the bus.  She turns to her mother. “I should go.”

“Of course.” Her mother nods.

They exchange awkward hugs and then Soojung is climbing the bus. None of her classmates spare her a glance, but Soojung can see the same nervousness that she has reflected on their faces. She finds her seat and is glad to find that it is beside a window. She wants to watch the road as they travel. Her seatmate is a petite girl, freckled and with dark brown hair. She smiles at Soojung but they don’t converse.

Once all the participants find their seats, the teacher assigned on their bus stands in the middle. The woman squeaks when the engine starts. Soojung recognizes her as her odd History teacher. “The travel time from Sinukwan to Hannan is approximately four hours.” If this was a regular class the students will be so raucous and Soojung will have to strain her ears to hear the teacher. But the people in the bus are so quiet even though some of them don’t appear to be listening. “If you didn’t have enough time to sleep last night,” The teacher continues. “I suggest you sleep while we’re on the way. But if you want to see the marvellous turbines of Kaptan then stay awake.”

Teachers from Kaptan stay in their region for three days to teach before going back to Kaptan. They are boastful of their region’s accomplishments specially the turbines because it provides electricity for the country. Soojung sometimes hates them. People from Kaptan would starve if it wasn’t for Sinukwan, Soojung thinks to herself. They should be thankful.

She leans her head against the window and watches as they pass through the region. She sees their vineyard and Soojung is suddenly overwhelmed by emotions she couldn’t explain.

“Your family manages the vineyard right?” The girl sitting beside her chirps. “My father really likes the wine your family makes. He saves money every week just to buy a bottle.”

“I’m glad.” Soojung says quietly.

“Last night he allowed me to drink one glass.” The girl continues. Soojung closes her eyes when she sees the wheat farm. It will take half an hour until they reach the gates. Soojung could use the time to nap. The girl probably realizes that Soojung’s not interested to hear her prattle so she murmurs a small apology and remains quiet afterwards.

Soojung wakes up again because of the sounds of gasps and excited shrieks. She opens her eyes and the first thing that greets her is a white field where tall structures with rotating blades are built in a straight line.

“The turbines.” Soojung whispers in awe.

The turbines are painted white, just like most of the structures in Kaptan. Soojung sees a couple of tall white buildings with glass windows and glass like walls. She wonders where they keep all the books they didn’t supply to Sinukwan.

“Whoa! Look at that!” A boy sitting in the front exclaims.

Everyone looks out their windows and Soojung’s jaw drops as she sees the gates separating Kaptan from Hannan. The gates are taller and far more terrifying than the one built in Sinukwan. They make Soojung feel more nervous. The bus nears the entrance where two guards, a male and a female, are standing. It halts and Soojung sees the two guards climb up their bus. Their teacher stands up from her seat and silently hands them an envelope.

The guard reads the letter inside the envelope, and then he nods at his partner who motions for the teacher to let them see her identification bracelet. Soojung has never seen how guards scan the identification bracelets before so she is very curious about how it works, and if the silence of the other students in the bus is any indication, then it seems that she isn’t the only one. The teacher shows them the bracelet and the female guard pulls out a small rectangular device from her belt bag. She lets the device hover over the teacher’s bracelet for a moment and then she looks up her and nods. The guards sweep their eyes over the students in the bus and Soojung notices the faint smirk on the male’s lips.

“Good luck on the Ceremony everyone.” The female guard says before getting off the bus, her partner following behind her.

The bus kicks to life again and start to enter the tunnel under the gate. The only way to pass the gates in every region is through the tunnels built under them. The tunnels lengths always depends on how thick the gates are and with the looks of the gate they saw earlier, it looks like it will take a while until Soojung sees sunlight, she almost feels nauseous because of the darkness. Soojung breathes a sigh of relief when they reach the end. Gasps fill the bus when the students finally see the region of Hannan.

Hannan is very different from Sinukwan, Soojung thinks, even better than the glass like buildings of Kaptan. Soojung sees numerous luxurious looking houses and well clothed people walking the streets, none of them looking like they have ever experienced skipping meals.

“They are eating while walking,” The girl beside Soojung murmurs and Soojung slowly nods. They both look at a man walking while munching on bread. The man sees their bus and waves at them while grinning.

“Law makers in Hannan have more than enough food to eat while some children in Sinukwan are dying because of starvation.” Soojung mutters bitterly. “I hope they all choke on their food and die.”

“Don’t say that!” The girl gasps. Soojung turns at her and raises her eyebrows making the girl look down as if scolded. “Or- ... or at least don’t let them hear you say it.”

“You’re the only one listening right now,” Soojung says.

“Well,” The girl shrugs. “You never know.”

Their bus parks in front of a tall building, which Soojung later realizes as the Dome. The students climb off the bus one by one then the teacher makes them form three lines in front of the building. Soojung chances a glance towards the other participants from the other regions. The participants from Kaptan are all tall and lean. Most of them look impassive making Soojung wonder if her mother is a Kaptan native, she chuckles and dismisses this thought because her mother’s parents are both from Sinukwan and are part of their region’s council.

Loud laughter startles Soojung and she turns to see a group of newly arrived participants, all of them have good physique so Soojung assumes that they are from the southern region, Apolaki. Soojung often hears about how their children are trained to be fighters early on even before they are old enough to be participants in the Ceremony. The participants from Cirena are all already inside the building so Soojung didn’t have a chance to see any of them.

Soojung looks at the wide door of the Dome and she feels her knees trembling as their group near it. It seems her fear of the building finally decides to make itself known again. Soojung looks down on her feet and focuses on them instead while she calms her nerves. She starts breathing in and out slowly until she feels brave enough to step forward, but when she does, her head bumps into something hard and she stumbles backward. Soojung would have fallen to the ground if it isn’t for the hand that steadies her. Soojung trails her eyes from the long limb to the face of its owner. Tan skin and heavy lidded eyes of a boy greets her.

Soojung quickly steps back from the boy and stands straight. “Sorry for bumping into you.” She says. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“Obviously,” The boy exhales. “Just don’t do it again.” He says before leaving.

Soojung blinks at the back of the boy who is now walking towards the Dome. “How rude,”

A hand on her hand surprises her, just then the voice of their teacher speaks.

“You better get in there miss,” The teacher says. “Or they’ll close the door on you.”

“Right,” Soojung says before hurrying inside the building, eyes focused on the inside and not on the door.

Once in, she finds the participants from her region huddling together, she walks towards them but didn’t join their conversation, and instead she starts observing the place. The first floor of the Dome is very wide and the ceilings high, the walls are painted grey and Soojung observes that there are four elevators, two on each side of the building. Soojung finally sees the participants from Cirena, very smiley people, she notes. The wide doors of the entrance of the Dome close with a loud creak and then a bulky man appears at the front of the crowd. He waits until the participants become quiet before speaking.

“Welcome participants!” The man says. “My name is Yongwoon and I am one of the supervisors for this year’s Ceremony. I will be guiding all of you towards our auditorium where you will meet the other supervisors. Please follow me.”

The man turns around and walks towards another tall door. Soojung and the other participants quietly follow behind him into the room. The auditorium is as wide as the first room they entered, but here there are seats that are more than enough for the number of participants. At the front of the room is a tall stage where a number of adults are standing. The man who introduced himself as Yongwoon climbs the stage and joins them. One man steps in the center of the stage and stands just behind the microphone there. He is wearing an expensive looking black suit and his hair is brushed neatly.

“Hello everyone. My name is Changmin.” The man speaks to the microphone and his voice echoes across the room. “Another spring has come and as all of you know this season marks the start of the ceremony that will make all of the eighteen year olds of our country become fully adults.”

He stops for a moment to scan the large number of participants with his eyes, a proud grin set on his mouth.

“All of you will undergo a series of tests which will help us in determining the type of transition suited for you. These tests will determine the type of skills you have. Skills which will be our guide in choosing which one of you are more inclined in creating ways in providing the country more food, like the people of Sinukwan.”

Soojung rolls her eyes. “He could have just described us as farmers,” She mumbles to herself. “It’s not like we’re embarrassed of it anyway.”

One group of boys from the other side of the auditorium starts chanting the name Apolaki and Changmin laughs at them. “Or become soldiers like the brave citizens of Apolaki.”

“But maybe some of you will become the future doctors of our country, just like those who came from Cirena. “

The participants from Cirena clap and cheer loudly as the name of their region is mentioned. And then the man tilts his head to the side and smirks as he continues his speech.

“Or maybe you are destined to be sent to Kaptan and be the source of power that will help the future of our country.” The tone of the Changmin’s voice turns taunting as the last of his words leave his mouth. “We will help you in determining your future path so we hope you will give your full trust to us and the System.”

The other people behind him nod solemnly as the man speaks about the System. Soojung sometimes wonder why none of the adults ever question it. The System has always been a mysterious entity in their government and Soojung has been told before that only the people in Hannan know what it truly is.

“You will be given keys to your dorm and a temporary identification bracelet later. All the participants will be separated into a number of groups of four people with each member coming from one of the regions. These groups will be led by one of the administrators.” The man explains. “The tests will officially start tomorrow but for now we will be having a feast!”

The crowd cheers excitedly and Soojung hears some of the participants from her region gasp. And later on as they are all seating in front of a long table, Soojung’s eyes widen at the sight of all the food Hannan prepared for them. She has never seen these many foods in her entire life.

“Our festivals are nowhere near this,” Soojung whispers as she picks up a fork. The amount of dishes in front of her is starting to become a bit overwhelming.

“Hannan is a small place,” Changmin suddenly appears behind Soojung eliciting a gasp from her. She turns to the man with wide eyes and Changmin chuckles at her expression. “And we rarely get visitors so when we do,” He motions to the tables filled with food. “We go all out.”

Changmin straightens his back and crosses his arms in front of his chest. “You kids will be transported to your dorms later,” The other people in the table start to listen to him. “There will be a device placed on top of your beds. You will use it to write about your experiences in the Ceremony.”

“Like a diary?” A girl chirps.

“Somewhat yes,” Changmin says. “I’ll take my leave now. Please enjoy the food.”

When Soojung arrives at her assigned dorm, she finds three other people already inside the room. A boy is sitting on the floor and a girl is lying down on the bed, they stare at Soojung for a while before the girl jumps off from her bed and runs up to Soojung to grab her hand and shake it.

“Hi! My name is Jinri,” The girl has short hair and pale skin. She is wearing a white blouse and brown skirt. Her eyes are bright and her smile is contagious. She is still shaking Soojung’s hand. “I am so glad I’m not the only girl in this group.”

“Oh,” Soojung says. “Yeah, me too.”

“Jongin is from Apolaki, Jinri is from Cirena and I’m from Kaptan, so you must be from Sinukwan.” The boy sitting in the middle of the bunk beds says. It looks like he is in the middle of folding his clothes. “I’m Ilhoon by the way.”

“Nice to meet you.” Soojung looks around the room in search of her luggage. She was told earlier that they were already brought to her dorm. Ilhoon notices her wandering eyes and chuckles.

“Jinri claimed the bottom bunk so Jongin put your things on the top one.” He nods to the top bunk on the right side of the room. Then he points to the other top bunk. “Jongin is already sleeping.”

“Hey,” Jinri says beside her, her arm already linked with Soojung’s right one. “You still haven’t told us your name.”

“I’m Soojung.” Soojung says quickly. She looks at their arms.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Jinri says before untangling herself from Soojung. “I have been told before how clingy I am.”

Soojung shakes her head. “It’s okay. I’m just not used to skinship.”

“You should rest,” Ilhoon says gently. “We’ll have a long day tomorrow.”

“But shouldn’t we be writing on that diary thing?” Soojung asks, remembering Changmin’s words to them earlier.

“We can just start on it tomorrow,” Jinri shrugs. She sits on top of her bed and crosses her legs, but then she seems to remember that she is wearing a skirt so she covers her legs with her blanket.

Soojung nods, toeing her shoes off before climbing up her bed. She finds her suitcase and bag on the center of the bed occupying all the space, she asks Ilhoon to help her bring her suitcase down and the boy obediently does it. Her other bag is smaller so she leaves it at the foot of her bed. She finds the diary, a small handheld device, and turns it on. Not wanting to be scolded by the assigned administrator to lead them, she writes on it.

21-04-2243  23:43

Hi, my name is Soojung. I am 18 years old and this is my first night here in this ... place.

I am a participant of the annual Ceremony Of Transition. My sister participated in this two years ago. My mother and I never saw her again after that.

She must have been Transitioned to a different place.

I don’t really know what else to type here. I’m not really used to expressing my thoughts to anyone so this is something new to me.

Oh, I am rooming with three other people here. Surprisingly they allowed us to have mixed genders in one room. In our group we have two girls and two boys.

Jinri seems to be nice. She smiles a lot and she is the first one to approach me. Ilhoon is nice too. But I haven’t spoken to the other boy, Jongin, so I have nothing to say about him yet. I hope we all get along. I wish to learn about the other regions through them.

To be honest I am very curious of what the tests are going to be like. They haven’t told us anything about the process of the Ceremony back at school, so there was no way for us to prepare for it.

It is getting late. I’ll write more tomorrow.

-Soojung

See foreword for author notes :)