The Survivor of Rhine- Part 1/2

This was inspired by Cats 101, which featured Persians. XD

April 7, 2023

I am afraid the ship will sink, just as my mystical subconscious has foretold. What will be left of us? Who and what will be discovered on the unforgiving ocean floor? Will this vessel be draped over the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and never be found? Slide to the shore of a tropical, nearly deserted island? Discovered before it sinks to the bottom? Make it to the Promise Land after all? New York is surely days away.

Storms are beating the ship on the outside, and my hopes on the inside. Chartreuse is laying on my of books I have so messily stacked a the side table. Her cold green eyes are set on the porthole and the rain drops begging to seep in. As if to tell herself not to worry, Char shifts her position to that of one just a bit cozier. Loose pages sticking out from the books crackle in friendly tones at the light touch of her fluffy legs. Chartreuse is the sweetest Persian cat I will ever know, and the best companion for an ominous trip such as this. The only others I wish to be here are my two best friends.

Two thousand twenty-three is known as The Tenth Year. In two thousand thirteen, Catherine Rosenthal came to power. Ever since, she has been slowly establishing a tyrant system of monarchy, with her as the queen, of course. Most of Germany is now militarized, but one of the last places left is the Sub. The Sub is an area made of many southwestern cities surrounding the Rhine River. Many of us from the Sub have secretly taken ships to sail to America, a land still healing from its own latest civil war. Lindsey Schmidt, one of my friends, stayed behind to fight with some of the others from the Sub. Everyone knew that the queen's forces would soon reach us, and it seems they did. But somehow, they did it in secret.

In mid March, the citizens of the Sub woke up alarmed. Ten people had mysteriously gone missing. Two schoolteachers, three office workers, two grocery workers, and three high school students. One of those students was my other best friend, Henrietta Braun. She's only seventeen, not of any importance to an army sent to decimate all opposers. No one else captured would have been considered 'significant'. They must have been randomly picked as hostages. It would make sense, as Henrietta has always been uneasy about the idea of fighting back, much to brave Lindsey's annoyance. She sure wasn't much of a traitor. My best friend was a hostage, and I may never see her again. My other best friend has her mind set to fight, and I may never see her again. All I have now is miss Chartreuse Decker, my sweet and loving feline friend.

-Karina Decker