School Game

Chapter 22: A Thing of the Past

"Again," Clive commanded, his gloved hands open and ready to block my attacks. His eyes were focused on me, but not in the sense of observing my beauty or wondering about my inner most thoughts. No, he was looking at me with determination. Determination to push me to my breaking point in order to make me better. He was emptying my cup, emptying my strength, so he could fill me with knowledge, tactics, strategies- so that when I had nothing physically left, my mind would still be battling my enemy. Apparently, those sort of things made a difference in the ring.

It had been a month since I had challenged the Ginger Victress, and so many things had happened since then. Sevin no longer slept in our dorm room, instead she bedded with Daynn's evil harem; though none of this was by her choice. She didn't sit with us at lunch anymore. I'm sure she couldn't. Like a dog on a leash, she was being controlled by her so-called Owner. She probably take a piss without having to ask first.

As you probably guessed, I never had gotten to talk with her. I don't think she was even allowed to converse with me, telling by the way she threw me longing glances in the spaces accidentally left by victress's bodies that shielded her away from me. I knew they were doing this to get to me, and it was getting to me; although I no longer showed it on my face. I was sure though, like sharks circling an innocent swimmer in the ocean, that they could sense my anxiety. All they needed was the scent of blood, for me to try and publicly reach out to Sevin, and they would tear me (or her) apart piece by piece. There, red would fill the salty water, and the evidence of their power would show through; just in case anyone ever had doubted how deadly they could be. I could see all this in the Victress's bloodthirsty glares, and it made me hate them even more.

The worst part was that they were actually following someone else's orders. Sure, they were doing it gladly, but the real person that was calling all the shots wasn't actually on the ground fighting. Yes, the Riltch brothers were sitting pretty on their thrones, powerful as ever and unreachable. They knew where I stood, especially after I declined so many of their tempting invitations, and now everything had changed. I was no longer welcomed into their comfortable prison where they kept the rest of their victims. I was the enemy, and now the real fun had began.

It wasn't only me who was suffering though, but my friends, Karen, Ducky (with his own harem of women), and Clive, had been slightly isolated as well. Night Forest High had become a battle ground for its unsuspecting residence, and a subtle (but vicious) war was breaking out. The strong tension clung to each whispered rumor that traveled throughout the student body, making it grow rapidly. Safe to say, everyone who wanted to be on the winning side didn't join our's, which added fuel to the flames of our small resistance group.

A hard fist wrapped in black leather connected with my gut, and swiftly did so three more times before I had time to come back from being zoned out. I blocked the fifth punch as it was coming at my stomach again, Clive's left fist colliding with my forearms, but now that my hands were down he saw an opportunity and immediately went for it. His right fist swung around, and hit me square in the jaw. I stumbled backwards in surprise even though I saw it coming. It was an admirable blow that would surely leave a bruise.

"Pay attention," He barked at me. "You have to be aware! It's your first fight tonight, and you can't even focus in training. Your facing a Victress tonight, Lynnly! Small mistakes like that will kill you out there!" Clive's eyes glinted silver as they always did when he became angry; although I still had no clue why they did this.

What Clive was still remained a secret to me, and seeing the signs that he wasn't completely human always made me irrationally frustrated. Everyone that knew (Karen and Ducky) refused to tell me anything about it.

Angry overwhelmed me, and the sting his fist left on my face didn't help contain it. I finally snapped, and spat at Clive, "You don't think I know that?! I'm the one fighting tonight, not you! I'm perfectly aware of what's a stake here."