Elements

Chapter 12

Argon P.O.V.

I was walking from my previous room to the one that my team and I would be staying in until we were needed at the front lines. Suddenly, an alarm sounded and a voice came on the loudspeakers.
"All students report to the auditorium at once, no excuses."
A chill ran along my spine. He never calls these unless something important or bad happened....

As I walked towards the auditorium I could see that the other students beside me were freaked out as well. My mind was racing with thoughts about what this could be. We weren't needed at the front lines for six more days, so it couldn't be that. I was starting to panic.

When I got to the auditorium, about half of us were already there. I went and sat in the next row, looking at my classmates to see if their emotions would help me figure it out. It didn't.

When the auditorium filled up and everyone was there, Mr. Fermium took a deep breath and started talking.

"All of you have been working exceptionally hard, and I couldn't be more proud of all of you. Unfortunately, in war things go wrong. Very wrong..."

He paused and was seeming to think about what he was going to say, but Nickel broke the silence for him.

"Hey.... Where's Copper!?" Nickel's voice was coming out in choked up intervals, his face sewn with fear. The room went silent.

Mr. Fermium looked at Nickel with sadness and pity. "Copper was stolen by the scientists..."

Nickel let out a yell of grief. He and Copper were closer than anyone here. Their family died before they even came here, so they only had each other. The room was quiet except for Nickel's screeches.

He glared at Mr. Fermium, tears streaming down his face. "You didn't do anything to st-stop them?" His voice was hoarse and loud.

Nickel's eyes had a sort of glaze to them that made him look insane. When Mr. Fermium didn't say anything he glared at him for a moment.

The tension of the silence was broken by Nickel breaking down into sobs and moans of grief. He sounded like he had just been ripped apart.

Just then, the television up in the wall flickered on. A dark room was shown on it, and a nasally man started talking.

"I'm aware you all know about your precious Copper.... We will let you see her live. She has been informed you are watching...."

A metal table was rolled into the light. Copper was strapped down, tears streaming down her face. "Please!!! Please no! Don't do this!!
I'll do anythi-" her voice drowned out by Nickels yells, which sounded like he had been shot.

A scientist with a mask came over to the table, rolling a small cart behind her. The man's voice came back on. "Copper, what would you like to say to your peers?" Copper's head turned to the camera, tears streaming down her face.

"Stay away from them! They're evil! They'll tear you apart! Nickel....." She shook her head as the female scientist lifted up a spinning knife. "I'm sorry you have to watch this."

The woman started to cut into Copper's cheek, and she cut out a square. Copper was yelling and screaming, blood splattering everywhere. "No! No, please stop!"

All of us watching in horror as we watched the woman cut off Copper's fingers, and skinned her arms. Most of us were either crying or about to. Nickel and Copper's screams echoed through the room.

The woman took out a long claw and showed it to Copper. Copper seemed to know what it was as she reacted with immediate fear and despair.

"Nickel!!! Please!!!! Stay safe, don't die.... I love y-"

Her words were cut off by the woman shoving the claw down her throat, pulling the trigger occasionally. She seemed to find what she was looking for and slowly pulled the claw and whatever it was grasping onto up through her.

Copper's yells turned into screams of terror and pain, her face contorted. The woman pulled the entirety of the claw out, and we saw what she grabbed.

Copper's intestines were slowly pulled out through her mouth until they couldn't anymore. Copper was flipped over and her hands were tied behind her back.

Copper was unstrapped and lifted off the table. They forced her to stand on a chair. Her intestines were thrown up onto a hook from the ceiling above her and tied into a knot as she winced in pain.

The chair was kicked out from under her, making her dangle by her intestines. They were stretching from her weight, and thinning. Her screams slowly replaced all of Nickel's as he watching intently.

Suddenly, her intestines snapped. Her scream echoed against the walls. We all watched in terror as her lifeless body hit the floor with a thud.

"No!" Nickel screamed, reaching towards the screen, and falling to his knees. He had just watched his own twin sister, die by torture.

At this moment we all knew we had to get serious. These people weren't going to show us mercy because we're young. In fact, they were going to do quite the opposite.