Over the fence

Chapter 1

Over The Fence

Skye Robertson - Subject 013

21/03/2098

I woke up with a headache and found myself in the compound infirmary. I attempted to sit up but a nurse ran in and lay me back down.

"Where do you you think you're going? You need to rest," She scolded.

"What's the time?" I asked, completely ignoring her previous statement.

"It 13:30, why?" She checked her watch.

"Shit,I have 30 minutes until training. I have to go." I got up and made my way to the door, trying to pretend that the searing pain in my back and head was just a fragment of imagination.

"13," She called me by my mark, "Wait, sit down. I'll tell your instructor to excuse you from training today," She gently grabbed my non-injured arm and steered me back to the bed.

"You know very well that he won't let me off. It's our last day of training before the test," I sighed, "Remind me why we have to even train for this test? It's not even physical."

Her figure grew rigid,"You know I can't tell you. It's fine you can go train, just remember; Don't push your self too hard. Take it easy, 13."

I walked down the passage towards the dorm rooms. I quickly changed into my training clothes which consisted of a white tank top and black tight fitting pants that had strips of black leather on the side. I tied my hair into a messy bun and laced up my combat boots.

I arrived at the training hall and sat on the floor waiting for the instructor to arrive. He was known by the name of Amos. He had a big build and was in his early 20s, frankly, he scared me shitless. When he was in a good mood, he reminded me of Satan in a bad mood. Imagine getting on his bad side.

No one knew why we had to train. It was, yet another, load of batcrap introduced by the bureau last year. People in the rich parts of the sector don't have to train, this society was biased beyond belief, if you were rich they considered you to be an exact replica of god. If you poor you'd be lucky to be treated like a piece of gum stuck to their shoe.

I heaved a sigh and walked toward the cluster of people waiting for Amos to arrive as people started filing into the hall.

"What are you waiting for, Subjects?You know the drill; 3 laps, no make it 7, around the sector," His deep voice voice boomed. This was Amos in a good mood.

"Oh, and try to avoid being stabbed while passing through the clover section," He added, referring to the girl who was stabbed yesterday when a peasant, even poorer than us, asked for food and she said she didn't have any.

We groaned and began to run. The sector is split into two sections, the clover section which is where people who fail the test live. There aren't many, mostly because they all die within the first six months of their inhabitance. The bureau doesn't provide them with food, water, or anything really. The fact that we are running low on resources is no joke. The Bureau, being the greedy pigs they are, decided that they would share the limited resources with the people who live in the Ruby section, this select group have all past the test therefore are valuable to the Bureau and can lead the sector to success.

The test will decide whether you live in the Ruby division, or the Clover. Basically, you live and bask in the lap of luxury or you live in a slum. There is no in between.

The sector was no where close to small. It had a long electrical fence that ran along the city's perimeter. I finished my first lap with the perfect - note my sarcasm - combination of heaving and panting. My throat felt as if I'd just kissed a gas burner it and my mouth lacked moisture. I had sweat cascading down my back and face. I stopped for bit but I knew I had to continue. Consequences were not a joke here.

I wiped some sweat off my forehead and continued to run. By the time I finished my 5th lap I was on the verge of passing out. I slowed down to a jog. Making my way through the Clover section, I tripped on a rock, falling face first onto the ground. I managed to break my fall with my hands but in a matter of seconds, I felt an intense pain shoot through my knee.

I looked down to see a shards of glass buried deep in my knee. Wincing, I slowly turned to sit down. I knew I had to move on quickly else I'd be attacked, but the pain was too much for me to continue. I shakily brought a trembling hand down to my knee and began removing some of the smaller pieces of glass. After a few minutes of excruciating pain, moved on to the biggest piece that was lodged deep in my knee.

I bit down on my bottom lip to stop myself from screaming. When the glass fell out completely, a torrent of blood spewed out making a small puddle of burnt amber on the ground below me. I carefully pushed myself up off of the ground. A river of bright red goo gushed down my calf.

I took a step and fell down again. My head spun like helicopter blades, all efforts of recovery flew out of my mind, bidding my un-peaceful train of thoughts an unpromising farewell. I felt myself being lifted off of the ground, glancing up, I was met with a familiar sight. 14.

I tried to thank him but my words were stolen by my lack of strength.

"What the hell happened this time?" Amos screamed.

"She fell in the Clover section, she can barely walk, Sir," Concern was dominant in 14's deep, yet raspy, voice.

"Ok," He sighed, rubbing his temples, "Just take her to the infirmary, I don't have time for this. Don't think you're off the hook,13 you will still complete training today," Amos stated firmly.

I was grateful for his good mood, but too sore to utter a word.

14 lay me on the bed I was in earlier and the same nurse stitched up my knee. I dug my nails into the thin white sheets, wincing in pain. After what seemed like hours, she was done and I could leave, again.

I limped back to the training hall and saw that everyone had finished their laps.

"Okay, listen up, Subjects. Because it is your last day here, there isn't much more to be taught. Pair up, we're doing combat," Amos demanded. This lead to a chaotic mess of people finding partners.

"Subject 13, what the hell are you waiting for? Your pain is not my problem, find a partner. Now," Amos reprimanded. I scanned the room looking for a partner. In the corner of the room, a person stood idle, watching everyone pair up. I walked over to him. He had dark brown hair that created a meaningless mess atop his head and piercing green eyes, one could get lost in those fields for hours. His cheeks were a rosy pink. I searched his neck for the mark.

14.

I gasped lightly and spun on my axis. I'd rather face Amos than him.

"What? Don't I get words of gratitude for saving your life? Twice, might I add," He smirked.

"Thank you, I guess."

"You're most welcome."

"Why did you save me though? I mean, no cares about anyone, so why you?" I asked looking into his eyes.

"I'm not heartless. Plus, I live to swim against the current," He clamped his lips together, the playfulness in his eyes droned out.

"Nobody is heartless. If someone was, I'm afraid we'd have ourselves quite a problem," I teased.

All conversations seized when the head of the compound, Edith Forrester, walked into the hall.

"Subject 13, please come with me. There's someone needing to speak with you," She ordered.

To say I was shocked would be a major understatement. Nobody ever gets visitors in here. Every child living in the compound has no family.

I limped down the hall trailing behind Edith until we got to a small room. She opened the door, much to my surprise my twin brother, Colton, stood with his hands in his pockets.

This was beyond impossible. The Bureau killed him last week, right?

Hey guys so I hope you like the chapter I hope it's not to short anyway please comment I would love to hear your feedback ❤️❤️

Editing creds go to inlovewithloveXOXO go read her book chasing stars it's really good