The Beginning of the End (Clove Kentwell)

Chapter 23

"Iris!" She heard someone shout again. Iris took off in the direction of the voice hopping to find a way out. Iris saw a man in the distance but she couldn't see who it was. They kept yelling for her and Iris kept sprinting until she was right behind them. Iris tapped on the man's shoulders and Gabe turned around. Iris stumbled backwards. "Iris, thank goodness your alive." Gabe said running over to her and hugging her. Iris pushed him off of her, "Gabe your not supposed to be here." Iris told him. "I know Iris....... I came to see you." He said giving her that goofy smile. "No Gabe you don't understand.......your- your dead." Iris said putting her head down not being able to look him in the eye. "Iris I know that." He said giggling, "I just came to save your life." "Thank you Gabe but I know as soon as I close my eyes you will be gone.....because all you are is my hallucination." Iris said as her voice broke. "I may be a hallucination but I am here right now." Iris smiled, "Okay ye old wise man." Iris said laughing, "Then tell me something wise." Gabe smiled, "Follow your heart not your head because usually your head is what gets in your way of your accomplishments." Iris smiled at him, "Thank you Gabe." Iris hugged him closing her eyes but just as her mother did Gabe also disappeared. Iris clenched her fists for a moment then put her hands over her face remembering what her mother said earlier. Iris looked around and decided to climb a tree to see if she could see the town. As soon as she put her hand on the tree she heard a branch crack behind her. Iris turned around and saw Gale standing there.

   "Looks like I found the little brat." "Oh please Gale you couldn't handle me if I was a brat." Iris said rolling her eyes. "I think I cou-" "Yeah I really don't care I just want to get out of this forest." Iris said cutting him off. Gales jaw fell a little bit but he quickly closed it and furrowed his eyebrows while puffing his chest out. Iris once again rolled her eyes walking up to him. "Which ways town?" He looked at her for a second giving her a glare. "Listen I don't need you as bad as you think I do." Iris said putting her hand on the axe on her back. Gale looked up to her hand then quickly looked at the ground as he turned around. Iris let go of her axe and followed Gale.

   "So someone like you is apart of the revolution?" Gale asked trying to make conversation. "Yup.... I mean I didn't really asked to be I was more forced." Iris said shrugging it off. "How bout you?" Iris asked carrying the the conversation. "I haven't really decided but I think I am going to." Gale said looking out towards the dark trees. "Good....the more the merrier." Iris said looking at the leaves in front of her as she walked. Iris heard some leaves rusting to tue left of them and Iris grabbed Gale pulling him down into a bush beside them. "What are you doing!" Gale yelled. "Shutup dingbat..... I heard something." Iris said looking out into the trees. She saw a bush shake taking her attention off the trees and over to that. She watched closely as she waited for whatever or whoever was in the bush. Just as Gabe was about to say something a beautiful good sized deer stepped out from behind the bush. Iris smiled putting her hand on her axe. "And what the heck are you going to do with that?" Gale asked a little to loudly. The deer looked up at them making Iris freeze. "Don't move." She whispered to Gale. They waited until the deer finally looked back down and ate the grass in from of it. Iris slowly pulled the axe out of its holder and held it beside her steadily. She slowly made her way to the dear trying to avoid every twig and dead leave on the ground. Once she decided she was close enough the deer looked up once more as it's ears twitch. Iris grabbed her axe firmly with two hands as she slowly stood up ready to slash at the deer. But as soon as she brought her axe into the air the whole ground started shaking making her almost fall over. The deer sprinted off into the woods but Iris had bigger problems as she heard the sound of trucks coming towards them.

Iris places the axe back in the holder while running back to Gale. "Peacekeepers!" Gale shouted at her over the rumbling. Iris nodded looking around for a spot to hide. Suddenly a pain hit her leg among her fall to her knees. Her hands grabbed the wound feeling blood run into her hands. Iris looked around her to see peacekeepers surrounding her with guns pointed at her. Iris put her hands up as she felt some of the blood from her leg that was on her hand trickle down her arm.

The peacekeepers grabbed her yanking her into their truck, Iris looked behind her to see Gale ducked behind a bush watching from afar. One of the peacekeepers grabbed her shirt forcing her into the truck as she as she also felt her axe slip out of the holder on her back. Iris stepped in with her good leg and sat down as two peacekeepers sat beside her. "I'm hurt." Iris tried telling the peacekeepers on either side of her. "My leg is bleeding currently." Iris said in a monotone voice. She sighed not hearing an answer from the peacekeepers.

Once they got to district 12 Iris was feeling light headed but they grabbed her shirt just like before and drug her out of the vehicle. Iris practically fell out because she was unable to walk due to her hurt leg. She forced herself up looking around to see tons of people all gathered around watching her. Once of the peacekeepers brought her to the center of all the people then walked away. Iris stayed where she was and didn't move, afraid of getting shot. Suddenly a man started walking towards her and he looked like a peacekeeper but he didn't have a helmet on like the others. He walked up to her and got in her face. "So you're the little punk that's been doing all of this!" He yelled in her face spitting in her. Iris flinched back closing her eyes but when she reopened them the man's gun was pointed at her head. "If you're going to do it.....please get it over with quick." Iris said almost pleading. "You know what I don't like that idea." He said putting his gun down and back in its holster. He clenched his fists at his side and somehow got closer to Iris than he already was. He then knocked her in the head right where she got by Gale before. Iris stumbled back trying her best not to fight back. "As what you don't have it in you to fight!" He yelled. Iris squeezed her eyes shut as she felt him kick her bloody leg making her fall over grunting from tue pain. Iris looked up at him as he laughed. Her hearing was becoming worse and things started getting fuzzy as she looked around the crowd. Iris forced herself to stand up as she took another hit to the jaw sending her flying onto her back. She laid there on the ground for a second hearing him shout at her but not hearing any words he was saying. Iris forced herself up once more then he knocked her in the left cheek making her black out as fall onto the ground unconscious.