Mass Hysteria

6

Christian looked over the new recruits of the American Idiot Squadron. He didn't know what to expect of the kids, many of whom were teenagers.

This was a battle. And in a battle, you need to fight, to win.

There's no time for death.

"Okay, listen." Christian yelled at his trainees. "You heard Billie last night! This war isn't for sissies! This is going to be a full out musical war." Chris paced the aisle of lined up cadets. "If anybody is weak or faint of heart then leave."

Nobody left. Nobody dared move.

"Good..." He muttered.

-----

Kaitlyn stood in the single file line she was told to line up in. She looked over at each person down the line. She was in the middle of the line.

There wasn't many.

Last night she got the tour of the place from a guy named Jack, he was gruff. The camp was pretty big. The cabins and the cafeteria were pretty close in distance together. Only the training center was far. Jack didn't take her there. The only thing he showed her was a long road.

"This is the training center." He said dully.

"This?" She asked. "It's just a road."

Jack smiled, as if reliving memories of his own. "Yeah."

After the tour was over, he dropped her off at the cafeteria. She found her way around the place though. The cafeteria was decently sized, almost looking like a high school cafeteria.

Once she got her food, she sat down at a table alone. But soon a few others came and sat with her.

Billie Joe had been there too. Kaitlyn didn't dare go to his table. Billie sat at a round table that held the Vigilantes leaders. Mike, Christian, Gloria and Billie. But it wasn't just a table, it was also a stage. There was a microphone in the middle of the table- that's where they made announcements, Kaitlyn guessed. But little did Kaitlyn know, that Billie was drunk.

One of the girls she met last night at dinner peeks her head out of the single file line and looks at Kaitlyn. Gloria catches her and shoves her back in line.

"Like a sheep runs from the herd." Gloria mutters. Christian shakes his head toward the ground.

"Everybody start moving!" Christian yells. He and Gloria get in front of our group.

We all break formation and start to walk slowly. Christian and Gloria lead us. I can hear them talking between the two of them.

"They're never going to make it in this." I hear Gloria say.

"You never know. After all, the minorities did prevail." Christian remarks.

The minorities? Do they mean other kids like us?

The girl who stepped out of line jogs next to Kaitlyn. "Hi, I'm Gina."

Kaitlyn looked the girl over. She must have been 16ish and short. She had equally blonde hair, like Kaitlyn herself. She was dressed in all black. Kaitlyn still had on her clothes she had on when Christian and Gloria rescued her. She'd refused to leave a part of home.

Kaitlyn nodded to Gina. "Kaitlyn."

"What do you think they're saying about is?" Gina asks.

"I'm pretty sure they think we're all gonna die." Kaitlyn snorts in sudden laughter. She quiets down as she feels like the rest of the group is staring at her.

"I can't believe Billie last night." Gina sighed.

"Did you not meet him? I feel like I was the only person in this camp who actually met him one-on-one like a concert meet." Kaitlyn asks, looking to Gina.

"No, I only met Christian and Gloria. When Billie came onto the stage last night I was in awe of him." Gina said.

The stage was a part of the cafeteria where the camp got all of its announcements from- usually from Mike. But Billie Joe was out tonight and Mike didn't realize it.

Billie Joe rambled once he was at the shiny podium in the mess hall. Kaitlyn decided that he looked messier than when she met him just a few hours earlier. Everybody's attention was on their leader.

Billie Joe said both intelligent information and unimportant information. After he was done speaking, he started crying. He looked like he was having a breakdown. Kaitlyn couldn't understand why. She wanted to go to him and bring comfort somehow but how could you when the lead member of a band you practically worshipped was a major douche in real life?

"So was I when I first met him." Kaitlyn mutters. "Wait till you get to know him, he's a great guy."

Christian holds up a hand to make the group stop. They obey and everyone stops roughly.

"Welcome to your first test." Christian says, turning around and smiling at everyone.

Kaitlyn is tempted to ask what it is but Christian answers for her.

"Surviving in a war." Christian gets out a small hand gun and shoots a person in the chest.