Anyway enjoy this short starter chapter, hopefully it makes sense to everyone.
Enjoy!
Chapter 1
Back in the Game
Training Day One:
My favourite part about the training when I was younger was
always the manner in which we trained. I mean, the trainers were so strict and
tough. No drinking until you complete this circuit twenty times, no breaks, you
don’t stop until told, if you complain you will triple your set amount. It was
tough and hard, and it made you want to scream out against everyone and
everything, but it also made you really happy. Well, it made me happy, feeling
the pains and burning throughout my body as I was pushed past all limits.
Here though at Fallout, it was nothing like that. They gave
you the breaks, the let you take things at your own pace and they gave you the
set amount of work and didn’t change it… and it was torture.
“Please scream at me or something, I feel like I’m being
babied and kept at beginners level,” I turn around to face Derek and the
trainer. I can see that Derek is finding this funny, but the trainer looks
quite confused.
“ Honestly, you lot must be super weak if you train like
this, doing barely anything. I mean I can’t even feel anything from doing this,
I feel like I am just dancing around,” now I had made Derek laugh for real.
“ Well, what do you want to do? Here we have people train in
a way that makes them feel most comfortable. I thought this may have been something
you would have preferred to they way you used to train,”
“ Well, I don’t. Even after I got out I still went to a gym
where the trainers was so strict and tough that I would feel like I was back in
uh never mind, but I was comfortable with that,”
“ Well, we may be able to fix that then. Tom, can you go and
get Kaley? I think Whitney might like to meet her,” Derek had turned to face
the trainer. I could see the side of an evil smirk and the look of fear in the
trainers eyes.
“ What? Is she strict?”
“She is terrifying,” and with that, Tom, left the room and
went to fetch Kaley.
“ Well then,”
* * *
“ Hurry up! You have been doing push-ups for the last two
minutes and your only on 159! Your meant to be on 200!” Kaley, was terrifying!
She looked sweet, nice barbie blonde hair, big brown eyes and painted nails.
Small figure and in a cute little trainers outfit. I may have actually laughed
when she walked in the room. I mean really, they said this girl was terrifying.
But I regretted laughing a few seconds later, when she
started yelling and attacking me. Correcting my form and making me work harder
than before.
I was loving it!
Kaley looked around 23 years old and had sweet as sugar
voice, which went totally tough when she was yelling and being stern.
“ Quick question, where’d you get your nails done?” I asked
with a small smirk, I wanted to know how far I could push before she snapped.
“ Did I say you could talk?”
“ Do I answer that, or is it a rhetorical question?”
“ Just for that little comment you are going to be doing
another two hundred push-ups before we start with the press-ups!”
“ Yay!” And just like
that Kaley was sitting on me whilst I was doing the sets. She was crossed
legged on my back and filing her nails.
“ Are you comfortable yet? Or do you want the other trainer
back?” she asked using her innocent voice. It was a trap and I knew it, but I
just couldn’t help myself.
“ Well, I was thinking that I could use some pineapple
juice. That would make me comfortable,” And that was when she snapped. From
there on out Kaley was as mean and strict as the trainers from Hostage Rage,
and I felt perfectly fine with that. For the rest of the training session I had
a smile on my face, and couldn’t stop laughing whenever she yelled.
* * *
“ Good work today, I have never seen someone so young come
through here and actually survive a training session with me. I am impressed,”
“ You haven’t heard my history then have you?”
“ No, I know. But you have been out of the game for three
years, and your 14. Usually teens and kids your age don’t spend their time
training and keeping themselves in shape,”
“ Well, I was taught from a young age, work until there is
nothing left of you, and then keep going because even the ashes can hide
something strong,” I replied as I took a drink from my bottle.
“ I think you and I are going to be friends, and I can’t
wait to push you even harder tomorrow. Now go and rest, your going to need it,
you have written tests and lectures at four and it’s already three,”
“ I think you might be right, I’ll see you tomorrow” And
with that I grabbed my stuff and left the gym, going down the hall until I
found the locker rooms. They were just like any high school locker rooms. Sower
stall, mirror, sinks, toilet stalls and lockers for gym clothes. Also benches
to sit on. But the thing about these lockers was they were electronic, each one
had to be opened with a specific code, and an ID card. Mine was at the end of the row in the back of
the room. On the top of the locker was my initials and the number, which
happened to be 16.
Inside the locker was two shelves and an open space with a
hook for a bog or jacket.
My bag was inside, and on the shelves were spare gym shoes,
shower stuff and deodorants. I didn’t have any photos on the inside or any
posters. I didn’t have any to put there. Besides, I didn’t know how long this
locker would be mine, or how long I would be here for.
“Hold on baby your
losing it, the waters high, your jumping in, swimming and letting go, and no
one knows. You cry but you don’t tell anyone, you might not be the golden one,
your held together with a smile but your coming undone, “ I was singing as
I got changed and ready to go. My friend, Tania used to sing that to me each time I couldn’t sleep, back
when I was in the camp. It had become a habitat to sing it.
Once I was in my street clothes I grabbed my bag and left,
heading to the common area. Inside there were three others, Tyler, Blake and
Payton. They were too busy talking to even notice that I had come in. So I slid
past them, trying not to get swept up into a never-ending conversation, and
into the kitchen area to grab some juice and some salad before going back into
the lounging part of the room.
“ Hey! Whitney, did you just finish your first training
session?”
“Yeah, originally I had Tom, but then he got swapped out for
Kaley. Why?” I replied to Payton. She was much like me except a little shorter
and had dark pixie cut hair. It suited her though. Her bright green eyes really
stood out against it.
“And you survived?!” Tyler looked like he was going to die
of shock when he heard what I said. The others were much the same.
“Yeah. It was actually a lot of fun. You know, I don’t see
why everyone is so scared of her, she’s actually pretty sweet. I like how
badass she is though, I really got a good work out thanks to her. Just like
when I was with HR,”
“ Did you meet the same Kaley we’re talking about?” Blake
came and pressed the back of his hand to my forehead. “ You must be sick. I
never thought anyone would willingly let Kaley train them. Especially after being
out of the game for years. Which I almost forgot, you never told me what you
did before you came here apart from ‘ this and that’,” and with that little
comment, people were acting like something terrible had happened, like I was
dying or something.
“Guys, you don't need know my past. And if you must know, then yes, it was a
horrible thing to go through, and that yeah, I have lost quite a bit through
life because of some things. But that doesn’t mean I want you to feel sorry for
me, because I’m not sorry for me. I shouldn’t have let myself feel that pain ,
I shouldn’t have let myself get drawn into that place, the darkness in my head
from the loss, in the beginning,” I took a breath and sat up a little straighter,”
And I don’t know why everyone thinks that because you go through something bad,
you don’t want to go back. If that was the case, I would never have come here.
But it’s a part of who I am. And a major part in that is being super tough and
needing to be pushed against,”
“Ok, we won’t feel sorry for you. But that doesn’t mean we
aren’t going to be mean to you or horrible. We are going to be your friends and
stick with you. I mean, we were all brought in together,” Blake walked over and
sat beside me.
“ Okay then. Now I am going to go and have a sleep after
eating this because I am wiped,”
“Sounds like a plan, I’ll come and get you when it’s time to
go to classes though,”
I nodded at Payton before finishing my salad and juice and
leaving to the small quarters I was given.
* * *
Running down the
halls, I was looking for a door. The one that would lead me to where they were
holding them. I couldn’t find it, there was no way to find them. And it was all
my fault they were taken.
“ Stop!
I kept running,
ignoring the calls behind me warning that they would shoot me down if I didn’t
stop. I picked up my pace knowing the ruthlessness of these people. Being
trained by them, you learn that when they say they will shoot they often will.
“ This is your last
chance Bethany, STOP!”
* * *
I was being shaken, by Payton.
“Wake up already!” She was yelling right down me ear while
continuing you to shake me.
“I’m awake,” My voice was groggy and hard to understand. I
reached toward the nightstand to find my bottle of water on it. I took a swig
and then rubbed my eyes. Looking around I see that when Payton had come in she
had opened the windows and curtains, I could feel the breeze on my face.
“ I don’t know why you were so hard to wake up, honestly it
was like trying to wake the dead,”
“Sorry, I was having a nasty dream. Its hard for me to get
out of them when I have them,”
“ Well, I’m sorry it wasn’t a nice dream to begin with. But
at least you will now have enough energy to sit through the lectures,”
“HA! I’ll probably sleep through those too!” at that we both
laughed before she left so I could get changed and brush my hair. I slipped
into some dark wash denim shorts, with thin chains running along the side of
them, and a singlet that had a wolf on the front. It was my favourite on out of
all of mine.
Quickly running a brush through my hair I put it into a high
messy bun, just to keep it out of the way.
I walked out of the small room and out to the hall to see
that Payton was waiting there for me with a notebook and pencil case.
“Do we need those?” I motioned towards her things and she
nodded her head.
“Yeah, do you have them in your room?” instead of answering,
I ran and grabbed them from the small desk in the corner of my room.
“ Let’s go then, if that's everything we need to bring with
us,”
Payton started down the hall, pointing out certain places,
reminding me what they were and why I might need to go there. As we passed
her’s and the boys rooms she showed me, which was whose and when not to disturb
the boys or to stay out of the area. She also showed me which room Derek had,
as it turned out, he didn’t even use it much. Only the past few weeks when they
had been preparing for me to come in and join had he started using it again.
As we reached the end of the hall we went through the common
room and out into another area. There were about fiver doors along this area,
another hall in a way. We walked down to the last one, which was marked with a
sign saying “Lecture Room 5”.
“Here is where we will be spending a lot of our time for the
next for weeks,”
“ Please tell me I’m not late!” a shout was heard from the
other end of this short hall. Turning around I smack right into someone.
“ Oh no, sorry!” I look up and see that in fact, the person
had run into me was one of the other new agents who was brought across from HR.
His name was Tristan, and he was really annoying. But we made a promise, he
wouldn’t talk about my past, and I won’t tell them what he did.
“ Again! Really? Do you even look where your going?” not to
mention he has a really bad habit of running into me, literally every time we
saw each other.
“I said I was sorry!”
his face turned to a scowl and narrowed his pastel blue eyes, his soft
brown hair was starting to flop infront of his eyes once again.
“Doesn’t mean you look where your going, does it?” I pushed
his head back with my index finger and watched him fall backwards onto his
butt. “ Now, Payton,” I turned towards
the girl seeing she was desperately trying to hold back her own laughs at the
scene that was playing out before her. “ Shall we go in?” I finished asking.
“ We shall,” she turned and opened the door for me. Now, I’m
not going to lie, I honestly thought I was going to wind up in some small
little room with a few desks and a rundown whiteboard with a creaking fan and
bad lighting. I didn’t expect to walk in and see a full lecture hall with long
desks on elevated floors and bright light shining through the sunlight in the
roof and windows. Also the high-tech smart-board, like the ones they use in
schools now days.
“Um, wow” I mutter slightly as I look around. Up the back
were Tom and Tyler, they were waving at us and pointing to the seats on either
side of them. Getting the hint we took up the stairs and went over to them.
“Saved you guys seats, figured you might want to sit with
us,” Tom said moving over slightly to give Payton room to sit down. Tyler did
the same for me so I would be able to sit next to him.
“ Thanks, can’t say that I’ve ever had a friend who would do
that for me in the past,” I said smiling at the two boys.
“What do you mean?” Tom asked looking past Tyler to see me
staring back at him like there’s nothing wrong.
“Well, as I grew up, I was taught never to trust anyone,
which meant I never had any friends,” I shrugged and turned to look forward,
seeing Derek walk in carrying a stack of papers and what looked to be some sort
of electronic.
“ Good afternoon gang, I hope your all ready to continue on
where we left off last week. Also I want those of you who haven’t, to meet
Whitney, she has just arrived for training. Please make her feel welcome here
as a new agent,”
Derek walked forward and up the stairs putting the
electronic device on my desk and handing me a little booklet as well. “ These
are for you, if you have any problems with it just come by and give me a shout.
I can help you out,”
“ Thanks, but what is it?”
“It’s your ACMAD,” Tyler grabbed it and had a look at it and
looked as if he would die just by looking at the thing.
“ In English please,”
“ It’s an agent communicator and mission assignment device,”
Payton answered stared in awe.
“ Why do you two look as though your going to be killed just
by seeing the thing? Its just an assignment and communicator thing, don’t you
lot have them?” I asked, my eyebrow quirked up and reaching to have a proper
look at the device. I was quite surprised it was at first glance, much like an
IPhone or other smart phone. But then I pulled out a back panel and saw that it
had a keyboard and more little things to check out.
“ No, we don’t get them until you have your first mission.
And you don’t get those until you’ve completed one full year of training. So
why would you get one on your first day?”
Tristan asked, his glare was only half-hearted though.
“ None of your business. Besides, how I am I suppose to know
what goes on inside the big guys head’s when they assign missions?!” I stand a
little from my seat and glared at him, daring him to try and make a snarky
comment.
“ Will you two shut up and sit down? Besides, she’s not the
only one getting one. Tom, yourself and Tyler, as well as Payton will be
getting one because you are all going on a mission so if you wouldn’t mind
calming down and letting me get on with the lesson for today?” Tyler gave me a
slight tap on the arm so I turned to see he and Tom were grinning ear-to-ear.
This is going to be so much fun!
More, now. ;)
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