The Transfer (A Divergent backstory to Eric)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

  I walk up "Alright transfers fo with Four, Dauntless borns go with Lauren."  Four takes the transfers on a tour, and Lauren sends the Dauntless borns off to do whatever until tomorrow.  A few hours later everyone comes down for dinner, I'm sitting with Matt catching up, I look up and see Lauren wink at me from a table with her friends.  I look down nervously.  "Dude! What was that!?"  Matt asks.  "Nothing man, we've sort of been hangining out, you know I'm going to overseeing the training now."  He laughs "I can't believe this, you've been into her for what?  Two years?" he says as he nudges me.  "Yeah, I know, I've kind of been busy with training and meetings, I've finally got some time to relax."  He grins "well we should go out and celebrate, you finally got your girl!"  I laugh and agree.  We head out to the bar.  We each have a beer, or two, or three.  By the end of the night we're both hammered.  We head back to our apartments at around 1 AM.  I pass out as soon as I hit the bed.  The next morning I have a pounding in my head.  I go down to the training room where both Lauren and Four's groups are.  I roll in the board I made "Everyone gather around!"  I click a button and the board displays all the initiates names.  There is a red line seperating some from the others.  "Do you know what this board is?  It's your life."  I see Lauren sort of laughing in the back.  "We grade you everyday, if you're still in the red by the end of the first stage, you'll be leaving us."  They look a little shocked, as they should.  "To do what?"  asks one of the transfers, Al, I think is his name.  "Well there's no going back to your families, so you'd live factionless" I answer.  "What!? Why weren't we told that?" Christina asks.  "What? Would you have chosen differently, out of fear?  Because if that's the case, you might as well get out now."  I look around at them.  "If you're really one of us it won't matter to you that you might fail, alright?  You chose us.  Now we get to choose you."   Four steps up "transfers will train seperatley from the Dauntless borns, but you will be ranked togeather.  Let's get started!"  I start to leave the room and Lauren grabs me "nice speech!" she smiles.  I laugh "thanks!" 

  I leave to go back up to my apartment still feeling tired from last night.  A few days later I go down to watch Four's group.  They are practicing fighting.  I walk up to Four "ready for some real fighting?"  We both watch them "not even close" he answers.  I step up "first jumper! In the ring! Last jumper! Time to fight!"  The stiff walks up to the mat, and a bigger built girl, Molly.  Molly looks at me "how long do we fight for?"  I glare at her "until one of you can't continue."  "Or one of you concedes"  Four chips in.  "According to the old rules.  New rules, no one concedes" I say.  Four leans over to me "lucky for you, those weren;t the rules when we fought."  I glare at him, then look back at the girls wondering why they haven't started yet "go!"  They square off, at first Molly just backs the stiff off the mat.  I scoff.  She steps back up to try again, after two blows to the head, she's out.  I walk out unimpressed "guess you've still got some work to do."  The next few days are more of the same.  Edward and Peter are the only ones who seem promising.

  Later that night I meet up with a few Dauntless leaders to discess the best way to go about the Abnegation attack.  We toss around ideas for about an hour.  By now it's midnight.  I yawn as I walk back to my apartment.  The next morning I check in on Four's group again.  Today they are knife throwing, I stand back and watch.  The stiff is actually pretty good.  Peter's not to bad either.  I walk down further to Al.  He throws his knife, it doesn't even go the distance to the target.  "Well that was pathetic."  He turns around to look at me "it-it slipped" he stammers.  "Well go get it!" I order.  He looks scared "wh-while they're throwing?"  "Are you afraid?"  I demand  "Of being hit by an airborn knife, yeah."  I glare at him "everybody stop!"  They do.  "Stand in front of the target."  Al walks slowly and turns around to face us.  "Four give me a hand here.  You're going to stand there while he throws those kives at you, and if I see you flinch, you're out."  Four grabs the knives and pulls his arm back.  "Stop!"  I look over at the stiff "anyone can stand in front of a target, it doesn't prove anything" she says.  "Then it should be easy for you to take his place."  She walks up to the target as Al walks back to the group.  "Same rules apply!"  Four pulls his arm back and throws, the knife lands about six inches from her right arm.  "You can get closer than that."  He throws again,  this time landing three inches from her left arm.  "Closer."  "You want me to give her a little trim?" he asks.  "Maybe just a little off the top."  He throws again landing three inches from the top of her head.  He throws one last knife, this time knicking the side of her ear.  "Points for bravery stiff, but not as many as you just lost for opening your mouth! Alright lets break for lunch.

  While I'm eating I decide I don't like to be showed up.  When lunch is over we head back to the training room.  "Alright!  Time to fight,  first fight, Peter versus Tris!"  Knowing he can beat her, I stand back and watch.  Peter starts taunting her, she jabs him in the throat.  Peter stumbles back a little, but punches her hard in the ribs.  He picks her up and throws her across the mat.  He kicks her some more, she starts to cough.  Peter stops and looks at me.  He sees the look on my face and knows to finish her.  He gives her one last blow to the head and she out.  They have to carry her to the hospital.  A few others fight, then it's down to Molly and Christina.  They take their places on the mat.  Christina is no match for her.  Molly has her pinned to the floor in minutes, her face bleeding.  Christina manages to kick Molly off of her, then she yells out "stop! please stop!"  Molly stands back and I walk up to the mat.  "You need to stop?"  She nods.  "Ok! Lets all take a break! Let me give you a hand"  I help her up and she nods as to say thank you.  We start to walk out of the bridge of the chasm.  Christina and I are at the front, I put my hand on the small of her back.  "Are you feeling a little better?" I ask her, not really caring about the answer.  "Yeah, I'm fine" she replies then she lets out a scream as I push her over the railing, I grab her arm so she doesn't completely fall in.  "Grab the rail, oh don't"  I let go of her arm and she takes the rail, she lets out a groan.  "You have three options,  hang there and I'll forget you're cowardice, fall and die, or give up, but if you give up you're out."  Sh ehangs there struggling for about five minutes before I yell "time!"  The others help her up.  "Dauntless never give up!"  I leave to go have dinner, then head up to my apartment.