Hello, stranger.

You must've noticed by now that our world is dead.

Destroyed by the sheer force of nature and a devastating war, the environment eventually became so toxic you couldn't even breathe its air or walk outside. Mankind was forced to find shelter in enormous glass spheres, which they soon started to call the Globes. Quite ironic, actually, since it's basically a glass prison—the prison in which they are waiting for the air to clear and the world to return back to normal. They have been waiting for nearly two centuries. I wonder if they forgot why they were there in the first place.

They don't know you can walk outside once more. At least, I think they don't. Still, some of the Globes' inhabitants choose to remain in their glass cage. I'm not sure if they have even realised the world has fixed itself—to some extent, of course.

However, some of the Globers don't seem to find their idea of home so horrible. Like always, you've got the entitled and the poor. The rich and the wealthy, also known as the High Families, live in sophisticated mansions and sip on their wine, while the poor die in the streets. The suppressed, starving, lower class regg work all day and night to please them. Ruled by the mysterious, tyrannical set of five Masters, they live in constant fear, unlike the High Families who have nothing to be afraid of—well, except for a bad hair day.

And, of course, you have us. The Outsiders.

I was under the impression the name explained itself. Apparently not. We, the Outsiders, are the ones who have succeeded in escaping the tyranny of the Masters, but still have to face their wrath every single day. The Masters' Authorities do their best to hunt us down and kill us, but, we haven't given them the luxury yet. They'll find our Tribe one day or another, or one of the other eight somewhere else. I have no idea where they are, or how big those Tribes are though.

Either way, we are all going to die—whether it's by the hand of the Authorities, disease or wild wolves. We've accepted that, but we try to make it as hard as possible for them. We are all accustomed to death, especially me.

In the Globes, you're only allowed to have a single child. Otherwise, it'll simply become too crowded. My mother became pregnant—for the second time. My parents and brother had to escape, or face the wrath of the Authorities; having a second child is a capital crime and punishable by death. They planned their escape for months, and even then, when they took a run for it my father and brother died trying to protect my mother. She made it, but she disappeared once she gave birth to me... outside the Globes.

So, here I am. A seventeen-year-old Outsider who has lost everyone except for her foster dad and friends.

Who would ever believe I'd return to that glass prison that had taken everything from me?

It seems like destiny had a different plan.

My name is Tenna, and this is the story of the girl who returned.