The Maze

Chapter 4

Arieth's pov

"Chosen?" I repeat to myself as I sit nestled between two big guards. We have been driving for hours now and the shock still hasn't worn off.

How did I get chosen? Me? This isn't real. It can't be.

One of the guards sitting beside me must have gotten tired of my mumbling and turned to me and said,"You weren't chosen."

My eyes widened as I stared at the guard. Was this a kidnapping? No, my parents sent me off...

"You were volunteered." He finished.

"Volunteered?" I whispered, stunned.

"What does that mean?" I asked frantic.

His jaw tightened with annoyance.

"It means your parents paid us a large sum of money for you to compete in The Creating." He turned his head away from me ending the conversation.

No... That's not right. It cant be, they would never do something like that...

An image of their proud, smiling faces filled my eyes.

How could they?

My throat tightened and hot tears of betrayal ran from my eyes. How could they! My life was perfect! And now they sentenced me to death. No one has ever survived The Creating.

It was their delusional belief that their daughter would be the first one to make it that would get me killed.

The guard turned back to me with a grin.

"Come to think of it, you wouldn't have been chosen this year anyways. It would have been some girl from Michigan." He turned back to the window still grinning.

That set me off. He pushed me right over the edge of the cliff I'd been standing at. I dropped my head into my knees as I broke into hysterical sobs.

This was it. My life is over, before it even began.

The car came to a halt and all four doors opened as the guards simultaneously got out of the black S.U.V.

A big, muscled hand latched on to my arm and pulled me from the S.U.V.

Remember your training.

Father's words repeated themselves in my mind. I kicked my legs and punched the guards as hard as I could. Tears blurred my vision as I yelled and fought, trying to break free.

The guard pulled my arms behind my back, making my shoulders go back and my head snap up.

We were standing in front of a building with a giant concrete wall that shot up in the air behind it. Glancing both ways, I couldn't see an end to the great wall.

There were already guards there holding another person. As I looked at the person they were holding I realized this boy was my partner.

Blue eyes met green and he turned away quickly.

No. They are not going to do this. We can straighten this out. Tell them my parents made a mistake. I lifted my foot and threw it back into the guards shin.

Pain shot through my heel as it collided with something very hard. These stupid guards had armor under their suits.

I struggled to get out of his grasp, but it was no use. I knew I had no chance of getting out, but I couldn't give up.

If I went through those doors, I most certainly wouldn't come back out.

Suddenly the double doors swung open to produce a middle aged women in a white dress with a rose pinned to her left shoulder.

"Welcome young ones, I am Mrs. Edmonson." She said with a smile. The sound of her voice made me stop struggling. It was cold and hard. With no other sound other than authority.

I twisted my wrists, trying to dislodge at least on of the guard's fingers.

"There's no use." A voice whispered beside me.

I lifted my head and looked at the person who was supposed to enter the maze with me. He was tall and toned. His dark brown curls hung in his face and his green eyes gazed at me with absolutely no hope in them.

The guard had him hunched over slightly, with his arms also being held behind his back.

This boy would either be my enemy, or my savior. The latter is most likely true considering that all the past competitors went different ways as soon as they were released into the maze.

This boy wasn't going to help me. He was going to try to stop me. I glared at him, putting all of my frustrations into my eyes.

A tear falls from his eye as he turns back toward the woman.
I turn towards her also, no longer trying to get away.

"Your rooms have been prepared, where you will get rest and food. In two days you will be put into The Creating program."

The boy starts throwing his shoulders back and trying in vain to get out of the guards grip.

Reality must have hit him.

A second guard comes up behind the first with his gun raised. He points it at the boy's neck and pulls the trigger.

The boy's body instantly goes limp in the guards arms as his head lolls and his eyes close.

A red, shiny dart is plucked from his neck by the second guard. Then he comes towards me with the gun.

I cry and kick the guard holding me with all my might. But I ended up just like the boy.

With a red, shiny dart in my neck.

****************************** (castiass_2)