An Act of Self-Defense

War and Politics

The cadets participate in competitive war simulations in zero gravity, where Ender's innovations overwhelm his opponents. The war consists in a team deathmatch where they have guns that freeze your body or extremities. The goal is to get one person on the other team's gate without getting him frozen. Graff promotes Ender to a new army (named Salamander) composed of raw recruits, but Ender's success continues. He forms bonds of friendship, loyalty and trust with several of his current and former squad members, like Petra. A jealous commander of another army, Bonzo Madrid, compels him to fight at the bathroom, and Ender quickly overpowered him. In an act of self-defense, Ender kills Bonzo. 

On Earth, Peter Wiggin uses a global communication system to post political essays under the pseudonym "Locke", hoping to establish himself as a respected orator and thence as a powerful politician. Valentine, despite not trusting Peter, publishes alongside him as "Demosthenes". Their essays are soon taken seriously by the government. Though Graff knows their true identities, he recommends that it be kept a secret, because their writings are politically useful.

"He even thought of Valentine then and wanted to go home." (Scott Card 102)

As I assumed before, Valentine has an influence on Ender and makes him want to leave Battle School and return home. I think this might be foreshadowing and Ender might actually return home, leaving the war away from him. 

"'Just between you and me,' Petra said, 'if they gave the Battle School an enema, they'd stick it in a green green brown.'" (Scott Card 109)

Again, as I predicted, Ender's relationships can and do affect him. Here, we can see Petra console Ender and try to cheer him up. I can make an assumption that his friends might keep him at Battle School and, if he makes it, later in battles against the buggers, 

Conclusion

Like I predicted, Ender's relationships with others affect how he behaves and probably how he will behave in the future. Ender isn't a person who makes friends easily, but so far he has a good group of friends to be there for him. I believe that Petra might be a love interest for Ender, but Ender hasn't shown any love emotions yet and he's only 8. 

Genocide

The Final Battle

Ender is now 10 years old and is promoted to Command School on Eros after a brief respite on Earth. After some preliminary battles in the simulator, he is introduced to a former war hero, Mazer Rackham. From now on, Ender directs real human spacecraft against bugger fleets via an instantaneous communicator. The battle simulations are controlled by Mazer. As the skirmishes become harder, he is joined by some of his friends from the Battle School as sub-commanders. Despite this, Ender becomes depressed by the frustration of the battles, his isolation, and by the way Mazer treats him.

Ender is ready for his final test.This time, he is fighting in the buggers' home planet. He is outnumbered by them, but Ender is still confident. Ender almost completely wastes all the manpower he has when he forms a shield of ships around the Molecular Detachment Device, a weapon that destroys molecules in a chain reaction. The Device destroys the planet and the surrounding bugger fleet. Everyone starts applauding, but the simulation continues to roll. Ender is confused. Mazer walks toward him and congratulates him. Ender has won the war. Ender has destroyed an entire species. 

"Because they need us(...) Because they need somebody to defeat the buggers" (Scott Card 198)

Ender, before his final test, realises that the army does not care about him, they need him. Ender is nothing but a mere weapon to be used by the army in order to defeat the buggers. This has lead me to believe that Ender might rebel on the army and change it in some way. Or maybe he wants vengeance because of what they made him do. 

"The best soldier in any army, lying on his bunk crying." (Scott Card 213)

Ender, after realising what he has done, lies in his bunker, crying. Memories of the death of Stilson, Bonzo and his sister Valentine flood his mind. I think that Ender might try to make up what he has done somehow, which to me, is basically impossible. Ender has killed an entire species of aliens, and I don't know what could possibly make up for that. 

Conclusion

After reading these chapters, I was completely shocked at the things that are happening. Ender has committed genocide and he has slaughtered an entire species. I am really intrigued to what will happen next and how this fact will change Ender. I think Ender will be greatly affected because of his actions and he will rebel or leave the army. 

His Game Begins...

The Rise of Humanity

Humanity has begun interplanetary flight. New worlds and races are being found now. One race in particular, nicknamed "buggers". The discovery of a bugger forward base in the asteroid Eros leads to war between the species. The battle to recapture Eros results in the discovery of advanced alien technology, including gravity manipulation. There are political conflicts on Earth between three ruling parties, the Hegemon, Polemarch, and Strategos, but are put aside in the face of the threat from the buggers. Preparing for the expected third invasion, an International Fleet (I.F.) is established, with headquarters on Eros. Increasingly advanced starships are built and secretly launched to attack the buggers' home worlds. Humanity has begun to develop commanders capable of defeating the much larger bugger forces, the I.F. creates a crash training program for children with the best strategic minds, the Battle School.

Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is one of the school's trainees. He has a close bond with his sister Valentine; but fears his brother Peter, a highly intelligent scoiopath. Valentine didn't make it to Battle School because she was too kind, and Peter was too violent, but Ender was perfect. At school, the I.F. remove Ender's monitoring device, which is implanted on every kid to monitor their emotional status, and whatever they do in or out of class. Ender thinks that ended his chances of Battle School, and he gets teased by a fellow student, Stilson. Ender beats up Stilson before the fight is broken up; unknown to Ender, the fight was fatal to Stilson. When explaining his actions to I.F. Colonel Hyrum Graff, Ender states his belief that, by showing superiority now, he has prevented future struggle. Graff, on hearing of this, offers Ender a place in the Battle School, situated in Earth's orbit, where Graff quickly isolates Ender from the other cadets because of his mental capabilities. Ender is more intelligent than any of his classmates, so he is set apart to establish superiority. 

"And as he got in the car that waited silently in the corridor, he heard Valentine's anguished cry. "Come back to me! I love you forever!" (Scott Card 57)

This quote perfectly explains the relationship between Ender and Valentine. I think this might have an effect later in the story. Perhaps Valentine stops loving Ender, which impacts him a lot and might make him drop out of Battle School. Or maybe she keeps loving him and that stops Ender from fighting the Buggers. I'm feeling like their relationship is a huge deal to Ender and the story, so I think that those two options might happen. 

"Nobody looked at Ender."  (Scott Card 73)

I think Orson Scott Card is trying to say something here. Besides Valentine, I think that his relationships with the other students will also affect, since he is already set apart, I think he will try even harder to prove that he is worth something. I think that maybe the other students are intimidated by his intelligence, which might make him have the right friends, or lead a powerful attack towards the buggers.

Conclusion

I think that the way Ender develops his relationships with his family and students will affect the story, because they might have an influence on Ender. Ender is highly intelligent, so maybe other students that are also set apart might approach him. Also, I think his family will make him quit Battle School because they miss him or they might be an influence him to kill the buggers in order to keep them safe. I know it is far-fetched but it is still an option. 

Day's Strategy

Surrender

On the second day of the ceasefire, Eden is admitted to the hospital for testing. After the testing is done, Day gets a call about June, saying that she's been attacked by Commander Jameson, who is feeding the Colonies information about the military strengths and weaknesses of Los Angeles. Knowing the need to buy time, Day convinces Anden and June to pretend to surrender - who in turn convince the Senate. After the Senate meeting, Anden tells June he gave up Dakota, the Republic's largest territory, in exchange for military support (and treatment for Day) from Antarctica.

At the same time, Day plans to use the people to help fight against the Colonies and puts out a message across LA using spray paint - "LISTEN FOR ME." When he gets back, the lab technicians tell him that Eden cannot provide a cure for the plague, because the virus is a mutated version of the one Eden was infected with.

Anden officially announces the Republic's surrender when enemy airships begin to approach LA in anticipation of the end of the three-day ceasefire. During the announcement, June heads to the hospital to check on the cure progress. When the lab tech explains why the cure isn't working, and where it originated, June realizes that the infection she caught (in Prodigy) might be the same disease as the plague.

"I draw the one thing I know everyone will recognize as coming from me-a red streak painted onto an outline of a face." (Lu 175)

Day knows that people trust him and what is more recognizable than the red streak that made him famous in Legend. People will know it is him and that way, he gains more power. His plan is going well so far and the people will follow him anywhere. Day might use the people of the Republic of America to achieve his goals in his plan.

"I'm not sure we'll ever create a cure." (Lu 192)

Day's situation here is relatable because his feeling of helplessness is greater than most. His only family is sick and there is no cure for him. We can relate to that moment because we have all been through a moment when we can't do anything and we just have to move on. Even though Day's situation is a little more intense, since Eden is his only family, we can all have a sense of what he's going through. I can especially relate because once my cousin git sick and she couldn't be cured so I was left in a state that I couldn't help anyone. 

CONCLUSION

Day has a strategy that can work if executed correctly but is also suffering because of Eden. The Republic of America is at a great war and Day might have a way to give them an advantage in battle. But the discoveries I have encountered (June's disease might be the same as the plague and Eden will never be cured) have changed the tables a bit. The question remains, what is more important to Day, winning the war or helping his brother?

A Massive Headache

Champions Do Cry

After Day has a severe headache (caused by his disease), he reveals to June that he has months to live. However, while they are talking, Denver gets attacked by the Colonies. After making it to a bunker reserved for the wealthy, they discover that Tess and several other Patriots are being held there. Day gets the authority to lead them on a mission to sabotage the Colonies, and they destroy a nearby Colonies airbase. Meanwhile, June and Anden head to Ross City, Antarctica in hopes of finding allies. The only offer Anden receives, however, is to give up some of the Republic's land in exchange for military support.

After another severe headache that was triggered by an explosion, Day is contacted by the Chancellor of the Colonies. He is blackmailed, and if he doesn't tell the people to revolt against the Republic, June and Eden may die. The Chancellor gives Day a three-day ceasefire. Right after the call ends, Tess is put into quarantine because she has become infected by the plague running rampant in the Colonies.

On the first night of the ceasefire, June and Day are reunited. 

In the middle of the night, Day wakes up from a nightmare. He leaves June's apartment to visit his old home in the Lake sector, not knowing that June followed him. There, he remembers

what happened to his family. Then he breaks down in tears, because he doesn't want to feel the pain of losing his family, which June had been involved in.

"I'd rather step away than be reminded every day that I only have a few months left to be with you" (Lu 101)

After a brief discussion with June about the Princeps-Elect position, Day thinks to himself that he would rather be parted from June than be reminded of the little time he has left with her. Day loves June and would spend every day of his life with her, but since his time remaining is so little, he would rather not be with her and cause her pain.  What would June do if they switched places?

"No matter what happens in the future, no matter where our path takes us, this moment will be ours" (Lu 133)

When Day and June finally reunite on the night of the first ceasefire, they tell each other how much they love one another. June states that she doesn't care about what happens in the future, what happens to them or anyone. She only cares about that moment, where everything else is irrelevant and is not as important as them. This is very deep and touching, especially through everything June and Day have gone through. 

CONCLUSION

Day is having frequent nightmares now and he is in a lot of pain. The attacks and bombings are making it worse for him and he doesn't to spread that pain to others, especially June. The past chapters have made me reflect on what I would do if I was Day. It also made me relate to Day and his problem with June. He only has a few months, and he doesn't want to waste them.

The End of the Prodigy

The New Republic

    The story continues when Kaede flies the jet through a train tunnel in the great Armor wall and the trio crash in Denver, though Kaede does not survive the gunfire that follows. It is obvious that something is amok, and they realize that the Elector is losing control while the Senate sits back and lets the Republic fall as the public revolt.    Day climbs to the top of the Capitol building (the same building Anden is in) and wins over the Republic by telling them he supports the new Elector.
    In the aftermath, most of the Senate is arrested, and the military is shaken by the removal and arrest of many high-ranking officials. Day is reunited with his younger brother Eden, but he is also informed by a doctor that the experiments done by the Republic when he was younger have left him with an illness that will imminently kill him.
     June is asked by the Elector to become his Princeps, the leader of the Senate and his second in command. She wishes to deny as she would never see Day, but Day informs her that she should take the position, and that a relationship between them would be impossible, leaving out the truth that he is dying. June is confused and upset, but Day doesn't want her to have to deal with the pain of his death. He kisses an agonized June before he leaves.

"I don't want to see the Republic collapse. I want to see it change."(Lu 346)

Day admits that he has changed his mind and supports June's decision of change. I think Day will love June no matter what, no matter what separates them. Even though they part ways, I think they will find a way back to each other. 

"He is beauty, inside and out. He is the silver lining in a world of darkness. He is my light." (Lu 371)

As I said before, June and Day are like glue and are always with each other. Even though June has to let him go, she knows that she loves him in every single way. This is a very sentimental ending and I don't think Marie Lu will keep them apart for long. 

CONCLUSION

   I can't help but admit that I did cry a little and felt sentimental at the end of the novel. So much has happened and so much is yet to happen. I feel awful that June and Day have to go on their own but I hope that they will reunite. Day is such an important character, I don't think Lu will kill him. Guess I'll have to read Champion to find out.

The Colonies

    A Shining Metropolis

    Day carries June to the other end of the tunnel and out into the Colonies. The Colonies city they emerge into is an enormous shining metropolis. However, they realize that it is not as perfect as they thought, and that the Colonies is a heavily consumer dominated, corporate police state.

    They are taken to a hospital, and Day is excluded due to his being a celebrity. Day discovers that Kaede has come through to the Colonies as well. As June dreams and works it out for herself, Day is informed that the leader of the Patriots, Razor, is in fact working for the Republic. The Republic Senate, angry with the new Elector's changes, wished to remove the Elector, and used Razor to do so. However, Anden survived, and many Patriots were arrested.

    June passes out at the hospital in Tribune City, Colonies of America. Later when she wakes up, she is captured by Colonies soldiers, June is handcuffed to a bed and she manages to escape from the cuffs using a paperclip ring. Kaede, June, and Day escape from Colonies soldiers who wish to sell them to a military company as prisoners of war. Kaede takes a jet and flies to the Republic. 

   "June still sounds weak, but there's a burning purpose behind it, the sense that we're about to do something pivotal. She can tell that something has changed inside me." (Lu 328) 

Day is escaping from the colonies with June, and even though she's weak,  she can tell something will happen. This tells me that something big will happen, involving Day, that affects not only him, but the whole Republic. Day is going to be a part of something revolutionary that will change ideas and make other people think again. 

"Are June and I a good match? No. It's the first word that pops into my mind." (Lu 330)

Day thinks about his relationships during his calm, and free time and figures out that he and Tess are a better match than June and him. My prediction is that Day will realize how Tess has supported, protected and stood by Day all these years, and he'll end up terminating his love interest in June. 

Conclusion

Day and June have survived the colonies, once thought to be a utopia, a place where freedom is everywhere, but were corrected. Not everything is always as it seems and sometimes the best things are bad, or can eventually turn bad. Day and June's has changed a lot and it's showing maturity between them. Kaede is being included more in the story, which I love, and the suspense created is amazing. I want to see what Day is or will be a part of in the next chapters and what will become of him. 

Collapse or Change? Breaking or Forgiving? Republic or Rebel?

Tension Rises, and Friends Fight

        The story continues as Tess reveals her feelings towards Day and the tension between the two rise. Tess has always been jealous of June and had been convinced by a Runner named Baxter that she is a double agent. They never go back to what they were, but they forgive each other. After a while, Day finds a train carriage with a boy inside a glass enclosure. He thinks it's Eden and gets really excited until he is disappointed by finding out it's not him and it is revealed that the Republic has been using victims of the plague as a bioweapon against the Colonies. The soldiers approach and Day abandons the boy and swears to himself that he will kill Anden, no matter what.
 
        The day of the assassination arrives, but June is against this operation. She has been ill so she pretends to faint in order to stop them, but Razor keeps the car moving against the orders of Anden. June stops the assassination and causes her and Day to flee the area and make their way to the tunnels between the Colonies and the Republic. They destroy a Republic entrance and make a shelter in a bunker. June and Day argue harshly and Day reveals his jealousy towards Anden, and his anger because a part of him holds her responsible for his mother's and brother's deaths. He also states that June is still with the Republic and never left them. They stay away from each other, and June, in an attempt to make peace between them, teaches him to fight and it works. They forgive each other, but June grows very ill.

"June will break your heart. I can see it already. She'll shatter you into a million pieces."(Lu, 231)

In the aftermath of Tess' and Day's fight, she states that June will break Day. I find this quote interesting because it highlighted the fact that June is the one responsible for Day's mother and brother's deaths and foreshadowed Day and June's fight. I think this quote might lead up to June actually breaking Day, maybe she joins the Republic again and leaves him for someone else.

" 'How could you not want to see the Republic collapse'(...)'I want to see it change for the better.' " (Lu, 264)

Day and June are in the middle of a fight and they both make some good points. Day asks her how can she still defend the government, even after her family's death, and June says that she doesn't want the Republic to collapse she wants it to change. That is what I found interesting about this quote, that there is a part, even small, of June that still is part of the Republic. I think this might foreshadow the change of sides that June will have and how she will try to change the Republic from the inside (maybe?) and supports the theory that June will break Day.

Conclusion

The past few chapters have been intense, and it is both fun and hurtful to watch my favorite characters argue between them. They all make very good points and have a decent yet fierce fight. I think that Day and June's relationship will be nothing to what we expect and that Marie Lu will change the whole story around and add a plot twist in the end. I want to know how June will survive her illness and if she caught a virus or something like that. In the end, the past chapters were insane and I had fun reading and deciding with which character I would side with. 

United States of America, Pre-Republic

Change of Mind

     June is taken to the capital city of Denver, a snow-covered city protected by a large shield war known as the Armor to meet the Elector, Anden. She is surprised by how different he is from his father. Anden opposes the Republic Senate's ideals, who wish to maintain their control over the nation. June tells him that someone wants to assassinate him, she does this as a decoy so that he trusts her and moves to the real assassination location. 

    June eventually manages to convince the Elector that the decoy assassination is real, and receives a pardon from the Republic. As she spends more time with Anden, she realizes how different he is from his father and how he wishes to change the nation. She also notices that he is in love with her and later kisses her. After a few days, Anden wants to remove the Trial system that divides the nation and also make the Republic of America a better place. June begins to have doubts, and attempts to send a signal to Day to stop the assassination.

    Anden tells June about how the Republic began and how its intentions were good in the early years. Global flooding submerged most of the Eastern United States under water, and people were filled with terror as thousands fled into the west. The Republic was formed by the military to establish order, and they blocked the East US. Soon, though, the military gained too much power and the Trials, originally optional and fair, became mandatory and were used as a means of population control. Anden wants to change the Republic and bring it back to the way it used to be. June is further convinced that Anden is not a threat and repeats her signal to Day.

    Day is sent on a mission by the Patriots to make a fake attack on a train to provide proof that there was in fact an assassination attempt. Day makes himself known to soldiers to feed the rumor amongst the people that he lives. He has mixed feelings about June's warning signal and asks himself how far does he mean for her to go? After seeing Anden and June's kiss on camera, he suspects she might only want him to stop because she is in love with Anden.

"In the midst of it all, I hear a few call out, 'Day lives! Day lives!'" (Lu, 130)

People are starting to notice that the person who was killed in Legend during Day's execution was not Day. This can cause a huge problem in the Republic because people will stop listening to them and start looking up to Day. I think this is good because the Republic can fail if people do this. What I think will happen next is that the people of the Republic will stop trusting the Republic and start to realize what is really going on with the world.

"I never considered the idea that he might be able to get into June's head."(Lu, 136)

I think that this is a really interesting quote because Day makes the point that Anden is playing a game, not them. As soon as I read the quote, my mind started spinning around over what could happen, and what this means. What I think it means is that Lu is foreshadowing what will actually happen, Anden revealing that he's been acting and knowing the Patriot's assassination attempt the whole time. I think this is a really good twist and would be interesting to see if this happens. 

CONCLUSION

These pages were filled with little hints of what could happen next and what Day and June will become. It was also fun to learn what happened on the rest of America, but also a little shocking. I'm hoping to learn more, not just about America, but what happened to the whole world. I'm also intrigued to know if what I predicted is correct because I think that would make an excellent twist to the story. In the end, we'll never know until we finish the book. 

June, the Prodigy

 The New Elector Primo

    The second novel of the book trilogy Legend, Prodigy is the sequel to Legend and starts off with June and Day arriving at Vegas because they heard a Patriot base was hidden there and wanted to make a deal in order to save Eden, Day's younger brother which is captured by the Republic. June and Day disguise themselves because they are the most wanted fugitives of the Republic of America. The JumboTrons light up for the anthem but the pictures of the Elector Primo are quickly changed by another set of images, his son Anden Stavropoulos. The people of the Republic are alerted that the Elector Primo has died and his son has replaced him as the new Elector. When they are almost discovered, Kaede, a Patriot, finds them and takes them to a nearby barrack.
There they meet Razor, a double agent that is a high ranked officer known as Agent DeSoto, and a leader of the Patriots. They arrange a deal so that Eden is rescued and returned to Day. The drawback is that in order to save Eden, they must kill the new Elector Primo. June and Day are separated with June having to go to a Vegas airship hub, and Day is taken to the warfront city of Lamar.

    June is arrested on purpose and taken by Thomas, the responsible for June's brother's murder. We learn that Thomas and Metias were secretly in love but their relationship was forbidden because they both served in military together. June is taken to the Elector Primo by her request, and as a part of the Patriot's plan. When they meet, June doubts whether she should kill him or not, Razor knows something that he hasn't told her. Day is infiltrated by Kaede to the Colonies and he sees the world beyond the Republic: a huge land of sea caused by a shift from the sun that burned the whole South Pole.

"Everything I am familiar with is gone," (Lu, 29)

As we already know, June has been a part of the high class her whole life. She hasn't known the suffering of the poor sectors and she's used to answering orders and idolizing the Republic. Being with the Patriots and learning all these secrets from the Republic makes her feel unsafe and out of her comfort zone. Her whole life has been stripped away and replaced by a new one. I haven't been through that but I can tell it is a hard experience.

"Can I trust Anden? Or do I trust Razor?" (Lu, 76)

June starts to doubt about the murder of Anden. She figures out that Anden is not the man described by the Patriots. Or is he? This desire of knowing the truth is really bugging me and I want to know what the truth behind Anden is. Like June points out, there is something Razor knows about Anden that he hasn't told June and I'm dying to know what it is.

Final Thoughts

Day and June's story has been able to keep up and I just love how every one has their own traits and qualities. Marie Lu has a way of describing things that I just love. For example the way she described Las Vegas, tall skyscrapers with soldiers and armies all over the place. Vegas seems dangerous and safe at the same time. Another thing that has been crossing my mind is what will June do with the Elector Primo. I am very intrigued on what's going to happen next and whether or not Razor is trustworthy.

He is a Legend. She is a Prodigy. Who Will Be Champion?

Live in the Moment, Walk in the Light

     Metias is trying to tell June something as he puts a series of puzzles for her to find. First she finds words that are misspelled and she arranges the misspelled letters to form a sentence: F O L L O W M E J U N E B U G D O T C O M. She accesses the website and starts reading his journal. It turns out Metias was investigating their parents' death, it wasn't an accident. He hacked the civilian database and he discovered that their father had been suspicious of his work. He discovered the truth and changed jobs because of that. He was murdered. He also found out that the plagues aren't spontaneous, they're intentional. The meat that is supposed to come from the high-rise terraces comes from underground. The Congress didn't know what to do with the viruses that occurred there and killed animals. Then they remembered the war against the Colonies. They test the viruses with the slum sectors and see how they react and then build bio-weapons. Thomas began to suspect Metias and was later ordered to kill him. 

     June learned that Kaede is a Patriot and goes to her for help rescuing Day. She also sees Tess joining the Patriots as a medic. She convinces Kaede to help her and in return she gives Kaede an electro-bomb(for disabling guns) and 200,000 Notes. They start a plan to rescue Day. And John.

    Commander Jameson changes the schedule for Day's execution and June needs to think of something fast. She tells Day to ask Commander Jameson to see John one last time. The order was granted and John could escape using the ventilation shafts. But June was taken by Thomas for investigation. Soon, there was an explosion. The electro-bomb. June quickly runs away and helps Day reach the exit. John pops out of the ventilation and helps June and Day. Day is a little drowsy and slows them down. They ran out of time. John leaves them and acts as if he was Day. They all fall for it. John dies.

     The Patriots receive June and Day but they don't give them shelter, instead they drive them far away from the Batalla Sector and drop them near a building. Day wakes up and sees June leaning back on a wall. He cries when he hears from John. June asks him why Day. He responds like this:

"Each day means twenty-four hours. Each day means everything's possible again. You live in the moment, you die in the moment, you take it all one day at a time. You try to walk in the light." (Lu, 304)

Definitely one of the best quotes, if not the best, I've heard (in this case read) in my life. The ending is pretty emotional and really touched me. I think that what Day says is true and that people shouldn't be focusing on the past, they should be living in the moment. The Boy Who Walks In The Light and The Girl Who Shatters The Shining Glass are opposite, but complement each other. People should live in the moment like them. People should walk in the light.

"In my mind, I turn to Metias and give him a final farewell. Someday I'll see him again, and we'll tell our stories to each other . . ."(Lu, 304)

After Day's beautiful words, June pictures Metias and embraces his death. She forgets about him and puts him in a place where she can draw his strength. She overcomes her emotions and becomes a new person. She lives in the moment.

THE END

The most emotional ending I've read so far. Legend is definitely my favorite book. I would totally recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It is so good and intriguing. You can totally relate to the characters and many elements of the story are excellent and enhance the overall view of the plot. This book changed me and now I want to live by Day's ideals. I think Marie Lu is a great author and I WANT TO READ PRODIGY!!!

The Black Streak

 The Truth Behind the Lies

       June visits a gala being held to celebrate her capture of Day. She hears Thomas say that Eden's case is confidential and many generals have gone to see him. The Elector Primo (basically the president) gives June 200,000 Notes(currency) for her capture and congratulates her. She is uneasy because of Day's mom but she tries to forget about it. She reminds her of Metias.

       June keeps researching about Day. She reads his files and she is surprised. The file says he died at age 10 and that he scored 674/1500 on his trial. No one scores that low. She hacks the security and checks his tests. Amazing at physical tests and his written exam and interview were perfect. Day has a score of 1500. June isn't the only prodigy of the Republic.

      Commander Jameson wakes Day and takes him to his sentence. They assign his sentence on four days. After this, Day is taken to a roof where he is chained to the ground. He stays there for two days and then he goes back to the cell. He is barely recognizable.

      June visits Day and informs him of his Trial. He says that they took a piece of his knee, injected something in his eye, and force-fed him a medicine that made his heart stop and then he woke up in a morgue. June realizes that they did all this to make their soldiers see better, think smarter, and endure harsher conditions. Day tells her that he thinks the Republic is intentionally infecting the poor people to test viruses. Everything he says fits.

    While she sits at her house, June reads and views photos of Metias. Then she starts to get curious about his death. What if Day didn't kill him? She keeps looking and hacks the Republic she views the images of Metias and watches the knife closely. It has some sort of black mark that looks like rifle grease. Just like the rifle grease streak Thomas had on his forehead.

"I am no longer the Republic's only prodigy with a perfect score." (Lu, 187)

June finally realizes that she isn't the only one that has perfect scores and that Day is a perfect example of a perfect soldier. I think that the way she finds this is amazing and proves how smart she is. Even though she doesn't have Day's physique, she's still more analytic than him.

"Well, let me tell you a secret. I'm from a poor sector too. But I followed the rules. I worked my way up, I earned my country's respect."(Lu, 218)

I chose this quote because I think that the fact that Thomas was from a poor sector is a big deal. Now we can understand him better and kind of see why he is some sort of lapdog. He always follows the rules and hates the poor. Why he hates them, we have no idea. I want to know his past and what caused him to be like this.

CONCLUSION

This reading was crazy. There is a lot of information and so little to write! I try to summarize as best as I can while putting the important details but Marie Lu likes details. I think that she is one of the best writers and she keeps nagging at me telling me to read and find out the truth. Can't wait to read more. I want to know the truth. Doesn't everybody?

     

Daniel Altan Wing

     The Hunt

     June starts to go out to the Lake sector of Los Angeles monitored by Thomas, she is out to find information about Day. She goes to a bar where she accidentally enters a Skiz fight. She stood up for Tess which was betting alongside Day, but Day was hidden inside a warehouse. June knows Skiz fights very well and ends up winning. Kaede, her opponent, stabbed her with a knife and Day regrets betting on Kaede. She gets attacked but Day saves her life for Tess.

      Tess tries to heal June and June ends up sleeping alongside them. Day walks up to her and kisses her in the alley they were sleeping in. They spend a few more nights on the streets, without knowing each other's identities. One night, Day goes out to his house and visits John. He tells him he's close to gathering money for the cures but he needs them quickly. June silently watches them talk and discovers that the boy is Day. She warns Thomas and gathers a plan to take down Day.

      Day hears the faint noise of ambulances and medic trucks as June tells him the plague patrol is taking his family. He quickly runs towards his house, not hesitating one moment, but when he gets there it's too late. He reveals himself to his family and tries to hide them. Day is pinned down and his family doesn't have any other choice to give up. Day hides and Commander Jameson runs out of patience. She orders Thomas to shoot Day's mom.

      That's when Day notices the girl. She was ordered to hunt Day. Day is shocked by the image of his mom collapsing to the ground and he is captured. He gets shot by Commander Jameson in the leg and he is outnumbered. He is taken to a prison and is chained to a wall. He is tortured and doesn't get much food or water. Then, we discover Day's real name: Daniel Altan Wing.

"Because of my idiocy, she has tracked me right to my family. She may have even killed Tess. I trusted this girl, had been duped into kissing her." (Lu, 155)

The feeling of distrust is horrible. Day trusted her and would've protected her like family, but June broke his trust and broke his feelings too. I think this quote will define Day's view of June and I'm intrigued of what will become of them.

"The woman Thomas shoots hasn't even crumpled to the ground yet when I see Day launch himself from the rooftop."(Lu, 158)

Day really cares about his family, just like June. They have both lost someone they care for and Day doesn't know how to handle it. June freezes and tells herself she doesn't care and that he killed Metias. I chose this quote because I don't think Day is capable of killing someone, especially after seeing this reaction.

CONCLUSION

The story has drastically changed and the twists and turns have made me more drawn into the book. I'm interested how Day's point of view has changed and how he will be treated. I also wonder what happened to Tess and if she's still okay. The pages I read were intense and I am more and more intrigued by this book.

The Ten-Second Place

 THE MYSTERY MAN

     Thomas tells June about her brother and how he died. He takes her to Commander Jameson which lets her analyze the body and she precisely describes the events that unfolded. She is notified that she has entered Commander Jameson's squad to replace Metias. Soon enough, the soldiers take Metias' body, and soon enough June has a plan.

      Day wakes up and finds himself in a dark room with Tess. Some of the plague suppressants Day took survived the fall, but not too much. Tess also informs him that someone is looking for him and claims that he has plague cures. Day hesitates at first but is also intrigued about what this man has to offer.

      Commander Jameson helps June set up Metias' funeral. There, she meets Chian, an interviewer from the Trials that was also Metias' mentor a few years ago, and has some really dark thoughts. June thinks she'll never smile again and that she is lost in the darkness.

      Day walks into a bar hoping to get some info on this mystery plague cure guy. He meets the bartender, a pretty girl that looks like she's been in a few Skiz fights. Skiz fights are illegal 1-on-1 fights that people bet money on. She tells Day that the mystery guy wants him at the Ten-second place at midnight and that her name is Kaede (KY-EH-DEH).  Day knows exactly where the Ten-second place is: a year ago, he broke into a bank where the guard told him he would be cut to pieces by the vault's lasers and Day told him he would rob it in 10 seconds and, of course, he did.

     June waits for Day in the Ten-second place. She is at the rooftops with the appearance of a man. Day talks to her from a microphone that is barely hearable. They discuss about the cure but June ends up failing, she doesn't have to wait for Day, she needs to go to Day.

"I should be the one going out there. Not you." (Lu, 90)

I chose this quote because it perfectly describes how deeply and greatly June loves Metias. Family is one of the most important things in life, if not the most important. Having family being stripped away from you is terrible and I can relate to June that way.

"Don't get too close to her, you trot." (Lu, 100)

Tess is walking past several people and bumps into someone who was pretty angry. Day's first instinct is to protect her and I think that's an important characteristic of him. Day wants to save everyone and he will do anything to do so. This quote and event made me wonder if Day actually killed Metias.

                    C O N C L U S I O N

What I've seen so far is that Day is very protective and is always trying to help others and save those he can. This makes me doubt whether Day killed Metias or not. June is also a loving yet analytic person. I want to see more of June and how she and Day develope throughout the story. I've also started to change the color of my quotes with Gold representing Day and White representing June. 

The Legend Begins...

The Criminal and the Prodigy

          Day is the most wanted criminal. He is not the most dangerous criminal, but the most wanted. He makes the Republic look bad by destroying military property, robbing banks, and does other crimes that don't involve casualties or fatal injuries to people. The good thing though is that the Republic doesn't know what he looks like. Everyday on the Jumbo Trons there is a different picture with the words WANTED on it. He and Tess, his companion, watch over Day's old family. They live in the Lake sector, where the plague is affecting everyone and as a routine, the soldiers go to each house to inspect everyone's home for the plague. If there's a plague, they mark the house with a big, red X on the door and takes about 10 minutes. The inspectors get to Day's house. John, his older brother, is the only one who knows Day is alive, he was supposed to be dead. He doesn't tell his other relatives, like Eden, Day's younger brother, and his mom because he wants them to be focused on keeping themselves safe. Plus, Eden turns 10 soon and he needs to study for his trial. The Trial determines your future, it is graded over 1500 and consists of many parts. If you get a score between 1200 and 1400, you pass, 1200 and under and you join the poor or go to a "labor camp" where you die. You fail. 1450 and up, you get access to 6 years of high school and 4 years at the top universities of the Republic. The inspection takes hours and Day gets worried, but when they're finally done, the inspectors draw a red X, with a vertical line across it.      

     June is the Republic's favorite prodigy. She aced her Trial by being one of the few people who had a perfect score of 1500. She is at the principal's office for escaping and climbing a building. She believes that if you want to catch Day, you have to be like him. Her brother, Metias, picks her up with Thomas, his best friend. Thomas has always been polite and nice, well behaved. He gladly takes her home and drives Metias to Los Angeles Central Hospital, where he needs to guard some vials of a mutated virus. June feels sad as she watches him leave. She really loves her brother.

       Day walks in to Los Angeles Central Hospital, he overhears someone tell the nurses about if they need help. He hears the man say his name is Metias. Day acts like he is injured, he wears leather boots, dark clothes and a black wig that covers his long, blonde hair. The soldiers let him in and Day stumbles into one. The soldier looks angrily at Day and tells him to move away and wash his dirty face. Day goes to the bathroom, puts on a mask and runs through the ventilation shaft. He quickly runs down the shaft, reaches the third floor and gets in the room with cures for the virus. He grabs a doctor and threatens the soldiers. There are no cures in the fridge. He runs and runs while soldiers shoot at him. He breaks the glass window and falls into the ground. Before he enters the sewers, Metias greets him, but Day quickly stabs a knife into his shoulder. He runs through the sewers to the city, fatally injured and with no hope. He couldn't get the cures for his family.
 

     "The Republic's favorite little prodigy is in trouble again."(Lu, 11)

This quote is told by June, one of the narrators, and describes her as the little prodigy from the Republic. This tells us that June is very valuable to the Republic and is one of the best in Los Angeles. After this quote, it is told that she has way older classmates and she is one of the youngest people in Drake (college). The way she is described further enhances how awesome she is.

"My mother used to hope that I would rise up from my humble roots. I'm famous all right, but I don't think it's what she had in mind." (Lu, 22)

The quotes I chose describe the main characters and narrators, Day and June. Day says this one and it describes how he is not what everyone wants him to be. His mother wanted him to be great, to rise from the slums and become someone of importance. In a way, yes, he did fulfill his mother's dreams of becoming famous, but not in the way she wanted. Day is famous for making the Republic look bad, not for being a soldier or someone of higher rank. This quote represents how Day is not someone to admire and he doesn't have a strong connection. Well, not a connection at all.

    CONCLUSION

Day and June are shown to be really awesome people and I can't wait to discover more of their abilities. I really want to know their backstories and how they got to where they are. I hope Marie Lu adds more to the characters than what we know. The story so far is quite good and I want to know what happens to Day's family.