3Alexis'+Tale+of+Utopia+=D8

 MIDDLE _ BEGINNING _ END Work Sheet


 * Describe the start of your story. My story starts in the center of City 42. Two girls, each with raggedy hair and clothes, are running from authorities. || * Introduce your characters: Cobalt has lived on the streets all her life. She never had parents, so she' snot sure of her age. She looks about 13, though. Her younger sister, Marietta, is only about 7, but has an amazing gift for speaking and understanding things. They both are resourceful kids, who have lived on the streets since early childhood.

> > > ||
 * What do they want? They used to want what everyone seemed to want. That is, a home ,family, and a normal life. But they soon realize that inside of those homes, there is something more morbid going on than The Leader is telling society.
 * Where are they going? Cobalt and Mari are mainly focused on keeping away from the Enforcers, who try to put them in a family home. The girls are attempting, to right the balances that have been thrown off ever since The Leader took over. But it seems impossible- and can it really be done?????
 * Where are they going? Cobalt and Mari are mainly focused on keeping away from the Enforcers, who try to put them in a family home. The girls are attempting, to right the balances that have been thrown off ever since The Leader took over. But it seems impossible- and can it really be done?????
 * What happens in the middle of your story? The girls realize what is happening to the citizens- but there is no way to stop it!!! || * How will all your story and characters develop? My characters will realize that they are not alone- others know of the bad things happening.


 * Plot Twists and Turns? Sometimes things are not as they seem. This will happen a lot in the story, where, in a giant, futuristic city, almost anything can be found and be learned from.


 * How will you lead up to the climax? I'll lead up to the climax by having the geirls realize something is up. ||
 * Outline the climax...How does the story ? The story ends by there being almost no chance to overthrow the government... || * Is your ending what your readers are expecting? My ending will be what some readers will expect. Other readers will have a totally different idea of where this is going.


 * Have you used foreshadowing throughout your story? I'll use foreshadowing throughout my story. What is coming will be shown, in little bits and pieces. ||

 **The Secret**

 by Alexis Good  Slap, slap, slap. The sound of tattered shoes pounding on cracked pavement resonated throughout the (almost) deserted alleyway, Stomp, stomp, stomp. The noise of polished boots hammering on the ground filled the small space soon after. Two girls, the oldest being no more than 13, were racing down Workers Street, one of the most desolated places in City 42. Several men, all clad in the same standard-issue clothing, were chasing after them. These men were called Enforcers, an elite group of soldiers who were devoted to The Leader, the man who ran City 42. The two girls did not seem like the kind of people who would catch the Enforcer's attention, but that was the entire reason the two were being chased.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">You see, inside of those homes, something bad was happening. Once, they spoke up about it to someone. That did them no good. In fact, it was the reason they were running. You weren't supposed to know about it, and if you did, you were a threat. Cobalt was searching for somewhere to hide. Come on, come on! And there. If the girls ran fast enough, they could reach the little hut around that corner. Since the Enforcers were so far away, she could whisper to Mari without them hearing. "Around the corner. There's a hut. We can hide there. But RUN!" And then they did what they did best. Ran.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">The people in those houses never acted normal- Mari found that out a while ago. Once, she peeked into a window long enough without being seen, and some strange stuff inside happened, right before her eyes. First, after the resident would finish working at their computers for ages, they would sit in a standard-regulation couch. (Everyone had roughly the same houses, clothing, haircuts, and furniture) Across from them, the large television set would crackle to life.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">On screen, The Leader would be shown. An aging man, with short-cropped hair and a stern look. His black eyes looked empty, but they also seemed to say something. Standing in a crisp, clean uniform, he spoke. Through the thick glass of the window, nothing could be heard, although the resident would slump over near the middle of the speech, almost unconscious. Words would flash on screen, things like "OBEY", and "LEADER IS ALWAYS RIGHT", and "WORK HARDER".

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">After the speech. the resident awakened, got up, and continued working. For a 7 year old, Mari was remarkably smart, and understood right away what was going on. The citizens were being brainwashed into thinking everything was fine. It explained why the girls were being chased, and why when somebody spoke up, they were disappeared. Since Cobalt and Mari never had homes, they couldn't have been brainwashed. When they spoke up, they were hunted down, also. Neither one had ever seen jail, which was definitely a good thing.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Back in the present, they managed to hide in the shed without being seen by the Enforcers. "Glad we got out of that one, huh?" She laughed, and life almost seemed normal again. Well, as normal as things could get when you lived in a democracy-turned-dictatorship, run by one of the most evil men on the planet. He was known only as The Leader. And after the War, he decided to take over. The world was promised equality and happiness, but they ended up being slaves to the people of Upper City 42, that is, the rich ones. The ones not as well-off resided in Lower City 42, and did all the work, thanks to the brainwashing techniques used by the government. The girls didn't feeel like resting yet. After all, it was only early in the evening. So, always on the move recently, they took off. Slowly, of course. Cobalt and Mari didn't want to attract to much attention: Although the people of the town were too busy working and receiving messages from the Leader, they may realize something was wrong if they heard commotion outside.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">"There's got to be something we can do about this whole thing!" Cobalt was mad now. " We can stop it! Maybe. But not just us- we'll need help. From other people who know- somebody else has to know, too, right?!?" <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Mari was nervous."Ssh! But, yeah. I think we can do it, too." And then, after a while, "Hey, I'ts getting dark. Do you think we could find a place to sleep or something?" Cobalt agreed, and so they started searching for something old and abandoned to stay in. The thing was, the girls assumed that anything abandoned was ignored, and that was hardly the case. The government knew about the people who knew their secret, and of course they knew about where they would seek refuge.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Finally, an old tin lean-to came into the girl's view. 'Perfect! nobody will find us here. We can stay for the night, and then talk later in the morning." Too tired to be cautious, Cobalt and Mari creaked open the door. "Hello. We've been waiting for you." And the face of several armed Enforcers devilishly grinned in the dim light.