Tame The Caged Beast

Chapter 3: Present Day

My shoes slapped the cobblestone as I ran through the town square. For the love of freaking God. They said sign up sheets were in the west end. I had checked every west end, east end, north end and south freaking end and no damn sign up freaking sheets! My ponytail flapped behind and was double looped because it had already past waist length. Alden and Nicolai tried to keep up with me. As fast as I went I didn't crash into anyone. I slipped and dodged everyone I ran into but the two boys behind me had no such luck. They ran and Alden crashed into a lady holding dirty laundry, causing all sorts of under garments to fly into the air and Nicolai was almost as smooth as me but no cigar. He ran into a man herding cows and he ran smacking into one. It mooed in distraught. I jumped and ducked to get my way through.

I saw it then.

Near the Samson Fountain.  A flapping sheet nailed to the brick wall.

I ran faster towards it and skidded to a stop nearly crashing into the brick wall. There were names that filled the first three pages and and only half way down the fourth page. Quickly, I  grabbed the pencil from my pocket and scribbled my name. It filled the line completely. I was now satisfied

Nicolai and Alden had finally decided to join me. Nicolai was breathing heavily through his nose and Alden was hunched over with his hands on his knees ready to topple over.

"Don't...ever...do that...again!" Alden wheezed falling to his knees finally.

Nicolai had taken the pencil from me and wrote his name underneath mine. He then took the pencil and put it into Alden's hand and hoisted the boy up by his arms and scribbled his name there, too. Alden weakly smiled and gave Nicolai and me a one armed hugged.

There had to be at least two hundred names on that sheet and our names were the last ones on it.

"What do we do now?" he asked sounding lost.

I grinned and shoved the pencil back into my pocket.

"Now, we wait," I said.

$@#$@*&^%$#@

These are going to be the longest three weeks of my life!

The sign up sheet was there for anyone who wanted to become a hunter. After all that I had seen and been through you would think I wouldn't want to be a hunter but think again. I want to show these people I am strong. I will fight hounds  if I have to. Even if it means putting my life on the line.

I will make sure no one has to ever go through what i have been through.

I was flat on my back watching the clouds float by. Big fluffy cotton balls just floating there in the sky without a care in the whole world. They never touch the ground. Only the sky. Is that what heaven is? Just floating mindlessly in the sky?

"Why aren't you afraid?" a quiet voice asked.

At first it startled me because it was unrecognizable. I had never heard it before. At least, I don't think. I rolled on my stomach to see Nicolai propped up on his elbows staring at me with his big brown eyes.

He wanted an answer and him asking made Alden question me, too.

"I don't know," I said lying on my hands, "I don't feel afraid anymore. Maybe doing this will instill fear and make me, you know, me again."

After what had happen seven years ago I shut down. I didn't smile. I didn't laugh. I didn't cry. I didn't even show fear. I was so blunt about everything. It made neighbors worry when I  would get hurt and i wouldn't cry out or cringe.

Alden missed that happy me but it look like he wasn't going to see that me again.

Nicolai was the same but since seven years ago he at least tried to crack a smile or cry when he was in pain. I didn't. Not anymore

I used to wear dresses and care about my hair. Now I wear whatever clothes I find which are boys' work clothes and I let my hair grow. I didn't cut or maintain it. There are days I don't even brush it.

I was seventeen now and since I was ten I had stopped showing any kind of emotion.

"I want something that is better than what we have now," I told them, "It's an outlet. We can finally conquer our demons. The monster that broke us will finally die."

They didn't say anything. They just stared at me waiting for an answer. I had nothing. I just rolled back onto my back.

We were in a field. A fake field in the walls. The grass was real. There were trees dotted here and there but this wasn't like the field we used to have outside the walls.

I laid on my back looking at the sky as I saw what I thought were birds fly by. Except they weren't birds they were people.

The hunters have been getting more and more advanced equipment to fight the hounds. Their latest styles were the agility boots and air pressure combat gloves.

The boots had springs built into the sole so that  it allowed them to jump higher than any other normal human. They were cool actually. Watching people jump and soar without trouble was invigorating even if I wasn't the one of them. The boots were made thick black or brown leather that went to the knee and had a flap under the sole where, if you press your hand to it, you could feel the tight coils.

It was amazing to be able to jump and run faster and  higher than any other human.

The air pressure combat gloves were my favorite. They were light brown leather gloves that went to your elbow and on the inside of the arm was a gauge, where the pressure would increase and the force of a human punch would be increased up to a hundred times greater.

"I'm sure I want to do this," I said reaching for the sky.

So badly I wanted to touch those clouds. I wanted to touch them and knock them out of the sky, wondering if they would want to be in the position we were in right now.