Insurrection (Completed) [editing]

2. Bitter Memories

Author's note: here's chapter two. Enjoy! (:
Chapter two - Bitter memories
Keira filled her backpack with snacks and made her way to the junior training area. A few of the students who'd been in her group the last week were already sparring. She noticed two new faces and decided to make friends.
One of them, a big boy with midnight blue hair walked towards where she was standing. She smiled and waved, just in case he was coming to talk to her. He raised his eyebrows and smiled back. Relieved, she met him halfway and introduced herself.
"Keira, the invisible one, and you are?" She said, almost laughing at her own remark.
"Jason," he replied. They shook hands.
"Want me to show you around?" She asked, surprising herself. Usually she would have left it at hello and gone to do something on her own.
"That would be nice, thanks Keira, he said.
She led him around the area; explaining what everything was and helping him to figure out his timetable.
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Jake knelt down to tie his shoelaces. Adrian stood next to him and surveyed the area. His eyes settled on the person he had been looking for.
Layla, his girlfriend. It had been two weeks since he'd asked her out and their relationship was going quite smoothly. They were perfect for each other. Strong, arrogant and at the top of the class. When Adrian had been recruited and when Layla had volunteered, they had been competitors, but once they were at the top, they realized that there was nothing else to do but be nice to each other, which had led to their relationship.
Adrian smiled as Layla walked to him. She jumped into his arms and embraced him. Jake got up and walked away, not wanting to be part of their mushiness. It upset him how Adrian had gotten a girl so easily and so fast, while most of the girls he had his eye on were already taken. He shook his head and joined his group that had already started jogging. Adrian could catch up later.
"Do you want to take a quick warm up jog before we start?" Keira asked Jason.
He nodded and motioned for his friend to come and join them.
"Keira, Liam. Liam, Keira" he introduced them to each other.
"Hey," Keira smiled at Liam.
"Hi," he smiled back.
"Okay, let's start," she said.
She started to jog and they caught up with her. They jogged around the fitness field and came to a stop when their trainer called them.
"How are you guys doing?" He asked.
"Fine," they replied in unison.
"I'm Marvin, we'll start with ab work, follow me," he said.
They followed and started with their training session. No sooner had they started, did the group increase in numbers. Soon there were more than ten people doing push-ups and other things with Keira and her new found friends. After the last four sets, a sweating Jason helped Keira up and they sat at a bench to rest and prepared themselves for the next session.
The pain of working out wasn't bothering Keira anymore as she was used to it. She had done almost the same thing for a week now and her body had gotten used to it. Thankfully, it wasn't so hard for her to get up or climb stairs without groaning. Keira didn't think she could deal with that pain again, matched with those stairs.
A sweating Jake stepped off the sparring mat and walked to Tristan, his trainer, who had asked him to do him a favour. He took the envelope from Tristan and smiled.
"Thanks man," Tristan said and he smiled back.
The envelope wasn't sealed, so on his way to the junior training area, he read the letter. It wasn't very easy to understand, it had words he had never seen before.
Probably some secret code, he thought to himself.
Confused, he folded it and put it back in the envelope just as he was approaching Marvin.
"Hey, Jake, what you got there?" Marvin turned around to face Jake as soon as he had closed the envelope.
"It's from Tristan. Here," he said. He handed the envelope to Marvin and shook hands with him.
"Thanks," Marvin received the envelope and skimmed over the letter.
"Okay guys, the break is over. Start with the leg raises and go backwards until you've done all ten sets," Marvin shouted to his students.
Jake watched as they lined up in rows. He looked around to see if he could find Keira. She was walking with one of the new guys. He remembered his face from somewhere, probably assembly. They looked like they were enjoying each other's company. Keira was laughing and he was fooling around.
"All right you two, enough," Marvin said. Jake's staring had caused him to notice Keira and her new found friend.
Jake could see the blush creeping into Keira's face. She giggled one last time and sat down to start with her leg raises. Keira's eyes met with Jake's and she smiled and waved. He couldn't help smiling back. Marvin patted Jake on the back and jogged with him back to the senior training area.
"Done!" Keira shouted. She stuck her tongue out at Jason and pulled a funny face. He smiled and jumped up.
"That's only 'cause I gave you a little head start," he chuckled.
"Jealousy, jealousy," she waved her finger at him, "race you to the weapon zone!" Keira said, and she sprinted off in the direction of it. He shook his head and sprinted after her. Jason caught up to her after a few seconds and they ended up jogging there.
They were joined by Liam and a few of the friends he had made during the first session. The trainer gave each of them a bow and a few arrows and separated them into teams of two. Keira landed up with Liam, Matthew and Sean.
They were given mechanical moving targets and expected to shoot them in the areas glowing red. After the first two rounds, Mason, the trainer, explained that they needed to be able to aim precisely in case the Ferliobogs attacked or if the ones in captive tried to escape.
Keira felt a wave of pain in her chest, she thought it fun to be shooting targets that weren't real but when Mason had explained it had upset her to think that they were expected to shoot the poor creatures at any time.
Keira excused herself at the beginning of the third round and picked up her backpack where she'd left it. The pain was getting to her and a painkiller was in order. She jogged to the student compound so that she could ease the pain but she found the gates locked and bolted.
"Probably security," Keira said to herself. She turned around and went back towards the training compound. As soon as she got there, her watch beeped; it was time for the midday break.
She sighed and sat at a bench just outside the entertainment area. Her appetite had gone with her good mood, so she munched on an energy bar and had a packet of fruit squares.
A loud voice boomed out of the speakerphones above her.
"The second training session has been moved to tonight. Instead, we will be having a Ferliobog taming demonstration at the dome. See you all in an hour!"
Keira's heart skipped a beat. She was going to have to watch a Ferliobog being whipped and treated like a circus lion. The image of her pet and companion appeared in her mind. She buried her head in her hands and forced her sobs back down her throat. It was not the time to get emotional over Bo. He had to go; the false accusations would have killed him.
The day her father dragged him away was one of the most painful memories that had been etched into her brain. With no explanation her father had put a noose around Bo's neck and forced him into his truck. The hurt in his eyes had broken her heart. He didn't deserve to be so suddenly neglected and left out in the wild to survive alone.
Her stomach churned at the image of the Ferliobog being whipped and she closed her eyes tightly, trying to force the image out of her mind, but it wouldn't budge. Her stomach clenched painfully and Keira gasped in agony at the sheer thought of the ferliobog being treated the way it was.
Her train of thoughts were disrupted by the sudden warmth beside her. She wiped her tears and lifted her head. It was Jason. Jason smiled concerned and went to rub her back soothingly, trying to calm her down.
"You disappeared, what happened?" He asked.
She sniffed and replied, "I just, uh, got scared you know? What if the Ferliobogs do attack? What if they're not the only creatures out there? What would happen? I'm afraid of facing them," she made up her questions as she spoke. It made her sick to make up excuses and she had the urge to blurt her disgust and concern, but her fear for her life kept it at bay.
She couldn't let anyone know that she had once been emotionally attached to a Ferliobog. It was forbidden. Bo had 'disappeared' from a testing lab when Keira's father brought him home. The punishment was that the kidnapper be killed along with his family. If anyone found out, she would also disappear just like Bo had.
Jason hid his amusement and put his arms around her. He liked the way she was so fragile. It was, well it was definitely something you didn't see every day.
"If it ever happens, I doubt they'd put us out there, we haven't been trained enough," Jason said reassuringly and Keira shrunk and felt a nugget of guilt settle. She didn't like lying.
"I guess you're right," Keira said.
"Do you want grab something to eat?" Jason asked.
She nodded and they got up to go to the food court.
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The grand arena was filled from top to bottom with trainers, students and tutors. Most of the students were waving flags with the guardian symbol and others cheering with excitement. An invisible fence separated the audience and the field, in case the ferliobogs tried to escape.
Keira sat down and waited for it to start. She didn't understand why everyone was so excited to see such cruelty take place. If she was given a choice, she would have rather stayed in her room. However, there was no way to get out of it; every student had a wrist band with their name and a small chip which allowed them to take part in activities.
The wrist bands were colour coded, yellow for the juniors, red for the seniors and blue for the trainers and graduated guardians. The wrist band was also an attendance register, each time a student missed an event or an assembly it would be recorded.
The event was started by the cadets, who performed the battle song and the national anthem. The music and costumes made Keira feel a little better, her frown disappeared and she began to relax. It was followed by the head commander of guardians who explained to them why the demonstration took place.
At the end of it, he told them to have fun, learn, and enjoy from it. Keira let out a sigh and folded her arms. Jason questioned her with his eyes and she shook her head, pretending it was nothing.
The first gate was opened and a dark green creature came tumbling out. A loud cheer filled the arena.
Keira stood up to see what the Ferliobog looked like.
It's bear-like form cowered and tried to protect itself by covering its ears. The noise the crowd was making was too loud. It's fur was spiky and it had blotches of yellow all over. A scar going down its right eye and spatters of blood on its back were evidence that it had been mistreated.
Keira swallowed and felt both her anger and her sadness rise. She balled up her fists in indignation and felt tears prickle at her eyes. Keira struggled to keep her emotions in check, they were all threatening to spill and she had to clench her jaw to stop them.
More cheers filled the arena as another gate opened and a second ferliobog came out. It was larger, it's fur was blue and it had a red patch of colour on its right eye. This Ferliobog ran and jumped into the fence to try and escape. The electric fence sent a wave of painful electricity through the ferliobogs body. It curled up into a ball and rocked back and forth to try and soothe the pain.
Keira's breath lodged in her throat and she stood up abruptly having the urge to run out and protect the ferliobogs. This was wrong, this was so wrong and Keira dug her nails in her skin and sat down trying not to cry and scream hysterically at their pain.
Keira could hear the laughter and cheers of people, but they seemed silent compared to the noise the creatures were making. They were whining, like little puppies that had been hurt. She closed her eyes and blocked her ears, trying to block their pleas for help.
A pool of disgust and hate swirled around her body, every fibre of her body brining her anger and fury towards to Guardians and the rest of the revulsion to the people laughing at the ferliobogs.
As the blue ferliobog had hit the fence, she had heard it yelp. The electric fence had shocked it and sent the creature into a frenzy. She covered her mouth to suppress a scream and sat down. It was too much. The memory of Bo came flooding back. His soft brown eyes and the growling sound he made when he was happy.
The many days they had spent walking in the forests around her grandparents' house, the picnics and the fishing that they had done together. A small tear ran down her face as she heard the whining and screaming sound the ferliobogs were making.
A man in a red tail coat walked out of one of the gates, he was tall, stocky and in his right hand was a leather whip. He lifted his hands into the air and introduced himself,
"Ladies and gentlemen. My name is Aris and I will show you how to tame a vicious creature and make it do whatever you want it to."
Applause came from every corner of the arena and people cheered and shouted his name. In fear, both of the creatures turned to him so that they could find a way of escape. It looked like they were about to attack him, the way the creatures were roaring and charging. Their helplessness was mistaken as viciousness.
Aris cracked the whip and hit the ground in front of the creatures that were approaching. At first, the creatures didn't stop but when he hit the ground a second time they both stopped. The creatures looked at each other and roared as if they were communicating and making a plan. They both diverted and went around Aris, who turned around and cracked the whip a third time.
He did it again and the creatures went around him again, trying to find a way out. It went on until the creatures looked tired. Their chests were heaving and their breaths raspy. No one could hear it though; all that was heard was the loud cheers and chattering of the people in the arena.
The only person who seemed to hear every little sound the creatures made was Keira. She could tell that they were tired, panicking and that their agitation was growing.
"Can't you hear the sound that they're making?" Keira shouted to Jason. He shook his head and continued watching.
A whine came from the green ferliobog and it tried once again to charge at Aris. The blue ferliobog ran towards the gate it had come from and clawed at the iron gate to try and escape. It roared and shouldered the gate again and again.
Aris somehow managed to get onto the back of the green ferliobog. He pulled the fur by its neck and charged it towards the blue one. Keira's heart dropped. The ferliobog was in pain, Aris was too heavy and he was crushing the creature's fragile spine. It yelped and tried to shake him off. He pulled out a smaller whip and hit the creature on its side.
Keira's conscience screamed at her to do something. The pain in her chest came rushing back. She couldn't bear the sight of the two creatures being forced into position. It was bad enough that they had been mistreated many times before, but know they were whipped and forced into place.
As soon as Aris had whipped it, the ferliobog had stopped struggling and moved the way Aris wanted it to. The blue one responded to its mate's whining and turned around and made eye contact with the smaller creature. A rumbling sound came out of both of their throats.
The green Ferliobog was trying as hard as it could to carry Aris' weight in fear of being whipped again. He had been given enough experimental drugs and beaten too many times already that week.
Keira watched as they both settled down and ceased to make any sound at all. Aris jumped off the back of the creature he had been on and bowed.
"That, is how you tame the ferliobogs," he shouted. Everyone applauded and cheered.
The pain in Keira's chest escalated, gripping her heart with fear. She picked up her backpack from her seat and pushed her way through people who were pumping their fists and praising Aris. The noise was crushing her.
Keira climbed down the stairs and ran out through the entrance. Her eyes were filled with tears, causing her vision to be blurry. She turned to the left and ran as fast as she could. There was nothing to stop her from crying, she didn't have to hide it anymore.
She stopped at what she thought was an abandoned shed and sunk down to the ground. She could still hear the creatures crying and whining, the same sound that Bo had made when her father had taken him away from her.
The green ferliobog had made contact with her, its watery eyes pleading, asking her to do something. It's like it had spoken to her and given her a message from all the ferliobogs that had been hurt and killed as a result of human entertainment.
The intensity of her heartbeat and the pain in her chest caused her to topple over and curl into a ball. The pain had spread to her legs and her arms. Her body shook in terror and her brain struggled to calm her down. She gritted her teeth, tears streaming down her face and she prayed that something or someone would come to her rescue.
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Author's note: this chapter is dedicated to CharlotteCeceAdams <3 for helping me to get noticed. Go and check out her book Never Have I ever. It's the best.. Seriously, you won't be able to stop reading... :O
Love you Keevz <3