Third Life

On his eighteenth cycle, Christopher has to join the ranks of the Formation. A society built on strict rules, where discipline is rewarded with immortality and inefficiency is punishable by death. Within the walls of the Formation, measurements control every aspect of a person's life, but the resources outside the walls offer the only means of survival. When Christopher is assigned to be a scout, his life is flipped upside down. Though it has the lowest causality rate in the Formation it is one of the most dangerous jobs because it puts him in danger of crossing paths with the Others. While searching the forest for the river, the Formation's final means of survival, Christopher is confronted by the truth of his world and his own existence. He learns the history of the war between his tribe and the Other's and questions everything he's been led to believe by the Formation. This novella dives into questions about free will, faith, and duty.