Chaos Faction

• T H I R T E E N •

"Dream, you know why I don't use my powers anymore."

Niki was perched on top of the counter of her store, her arms folded stubbornly across her chest. Wilbur, who was beside her, laid a hand on her shoulder supportively.

'I do know," nodded Dream. "And I'm sorry to bring this up with you, but we honestly might not have another option. The leaders want to make a move as soon as initiation is over, we're running out of time."

"They already know we're Divergent," said Wilbur. "The only reason they've left us be is because we've done nothing to disturb society since we completed our own initiation.

"That's all the more reason for you to help," sighed Dream. He felt sorry for the two of them, he really did, but it was hard to get through to them without being too harsh. "Look... you can stay here in your little bubble, and keep doing what you're doing and ignoring what's going on, but the thing is, like you just said, they already know. And they will come in for you, wether you like it or not. They want to get rid of every single one of us. So the way I see it, you can sit around and wait til they come for you, or you can try and help us fight our way out of here."

Wilbur and Niki stared at him, both of them speechless for a moment.

"Okay," sighed Niki. "But... what, you want me to listen in to what they're planning? You realise I can't sit here and do it, right? I've got to be at least close enough to them to be able to hear anything, and if they see me hanging around they'll immediately suspect something."

"We'll set something up so you can do it without them noticing," said Dream. "There are a lot of Divergents in this initiation class, and we've got at least three new shields on our side. We're better prepared than we've ever been for something like this to happen, we just need to pull ourselves together, and work out a plan."

"I'll do it," Niki nodded. She didn't look happy about her decision, as she glanced at Wilbur, but he gave her an encouraging smile.

"Have you spoken with Sykkuno and Corpse?" Wilbur asked.

"No," said Dream. "I was hoping you would, since you know them so well. Let them know what's going on. At some stage we'll need to get everyone together and talk about this, but in the mean time, we'll see if Niki can get some information out of the leaders. I'm thinking if you try for a meal time, wait outside the hall and see if you can hear through the walls, that would probably be your best chance at being unobtrusive about it."

"I'll try," Niki nodded.

"Thank you," said Dream, giving her a genuine smile.

"You too Dream. It's good to see you again. And nice to meet you, Jord."

Jord, who'd been silent for the entire discussion, smiled at Niki and Wilbur.

"Nice to meet you too."

~.~.~.~.~

Training was vastly different, when the initiates woke up on the morning of stage two.

For one thing, although the majority of them didn't know it, Techno and Dream had finally come to an understanding. They were still trying to preserve the illusion that they still didn't trust each other, but for someone like Jordyn, who could feel the shift in the atmosphere of the room, it was a little more calming.

For another, gone were the days of punching bags, knives, and guns. There was no one on one fights. In fact, in stage two, your greatest enemy was yourself.

Whilst the majority of the initiates waited in the training hall, Dream and Techno took one initiate each into separate rooms to undergo what appeared to be some kind of testing. Despite the shift in atmosphere, everyone could feel the sense of dread pervading the room. No one was really talking - most were deep in thought about what they imagined would happen to them in the testing rooms. Especially since most of the initiates looked like they'd seen a ghost when they came out afterwards.