The Four - Book 2

Chapter 3

Lana

"You each are going to have a squad. There's at least fifty of them. There's five to a group. And I will tell you now, this is hard work. This is war." Gale says as she walks Paytah and I down a freaky looking hallway.

"How hard?" I ask.

"You will be treated like soldiers. This is why I picked you two, you look like you can handle it better."

"We survived the test. We can do anything." I spit out, angry.

"You can do it. But handling it..that's different." Gale says. "It's not just physical."

I look over at Paytah, who looks oddly calm. Who knows what's going on in his mind. But I saw that his parents weren't there. I saw Aira talking to him. Something is up. But I've learned that pushing him too much might just get me burned alive, so I don't dare say anything.

I hear voices getting louder, and soon enough I'm staring at the 50 different squads.

"You're squad 38." Gale says to Paytah. She turns to me. "You're squad 35." She walks away to some sort of stage looking thing, and grabs a mike.

"All squads, report to your rooms. Thank you."

Paytah and I stand there while everyone scrambles to their rooms. All of them are either kids or young adults. We wait until it's just us two in the large area.

"Guess we should meet our squad." I say, and we both start slowly walking to the rooms.

"It seems weird," I say, "that us four changed everything."

"That's why I don't trust anyone."

"You trust us?" I ask. "Do you trust Aira, Juris, me?"

"I hope." He looks at my room number. "see you tomorrow." And he goes to his door.

What a douchebag.

We've been through hell together. He saved my life, we saved his. We were all in this together, and he hopes he trusts us?

"You're messed up. You know that?" I spit out before he twists the handle. He looks up, curious.

"How couldn't we be after this-"

"Before all of this." I spit out. "You're sick."

"You're sick for kissing a person who you think is sick."

Now I'm angry. Sure, maybe kissing him was not the greatest idea. But does he maybe think I did that for a reason? And if not, he saved my life, I wasn't thinking. But still, he's making me feel weak. And I know just how to get him back.

"Why weren't your parents there to see you?"

Now his face grows red. He's clenching his jaw hard, probably thinking of an answer. But to be honest, I don't know where his parents were.

"You trust Aira. You told her. I saw you two talking-"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"But-"

"Screw off." He states, and it catches me off guard. Did he just tell me to screw off?

Tears start to come to my eyes, but I push them back.

"Fuck you." I say, and open the door. The tears immediately go away when I see four people staring right at me. Two boys and two girls. It's...awkward. They don't say anything, only state.

"Squad 35, right?"

The only answer I get is the darker skinned guy nodding.

"You're Lana." I look over at the girl sitting on the top bunk, feet dangling over the edge. She's short, but with straight blonde hair up to her butt. Her green eyes shine. Earth element. "I'm Liz."

The dark skinned boy stands up and shakes my hand. His eyes: also green. But he's pretty built, not long and lanky like Juris, not as strong and naturally built like Paytah, but in the middle. He smiles. "Nice to meet you, squad leader. Names Callum."

"I'm the squad leader?"

"Um..obviously." The girl says, looking at her nails. Her long silky black hair shines, her eyes: red. Fire element. My first impression of her?
I don't like her. Guess it's just something about me and people with the fire element that just doesn't click.

"She's tired, that's all. Her name is Payton. I'm David." And finally, the little boy, who's only probably 9. His eyes: light blue. Air element. His brown shaggy hair makes him look even younger.

Funny. Payton. The girl I know I immediately won't get along with, who has the fire element. Just like Paytah.

I recap in my head. There's Liz, the short, long blonde haired girl with the earth element. Callum, the dark skinned boy, also earth element. Payton...fire element. And the little boy named David, air element.

"So, you're one of the four." Liz says, leaning over her bunk, chin rested on her hands.

"You're one of the four who started a war. You should be proud." Payton snarls.

Oh, I am so done with her.

"I was kidnapped-"

"I think you were okay with it, since lover boy was also there-"

"Bitch!" I scream, jumping on her, but Callum snatches me, holding me back. I don't use my element, cause I know she'll just use hers right back. "Let me get this straight, right off the bat. Don't fucking think you know who I am. Cause you don't. I was taken away from my family, my little brother, my life. You were watching me, I know the whole world was. Don't you fucking think I wanted any of this shit. I am tougher then hell, and you know that. So, don't you dare judge me, especially with Paytah."

Payton's mouth shuts tight.

"Yeah, keep your mouth shut, keep it fucking shut, just like that-"

"Okay, let's calm down." Callum says. I relax, find my bed, and jump right in it. If the real Lana were still here she would eventually say sorry.

But Lana isn't here. She left right when she got into that white room in the beginning. Right when everything changed. She's gone. The Lana before all of this.

Gone.

Replaced with a girl who thinks she will survive all of this. Who thinks she'll be strong and acting tough will help.

But deep down she knows it won't.

••••••

Hello!!

Well, it's been a longgggg time!

I'm on a road trip and sat here thinking, dang, I should really continue with that book.

I know it's lame now, BUT I am thinking of sown great things in the future :)

Please vote, comment and share with friends

-Grace