Ace

2

It was another five years before another set of children joined Alyssa in the bunker.

All of them, different ages, different location, different families. A were younger than her but it didn't stop her from feeling sorry for them and the families they were ripped from.

They were all trained, to fight in the but she was always trained separately, always with the guards. The other children were they to bring variety as Ivan had said. They were mixed, both boys and girls, all above the age of five, but no older than nine.

She wanted to befriend them, ask about the outside world, if they knew where they where. She was ten, able to understand what had happened to her, the wrong that had been committed. She wanted to but didn't know how to. She's been so estranged from children her age and didn't know how to even communicate with them.

She felt different from them, not because she was older, but because of her experiences. She couldn't bring herself to talk to them, not until Maggie.

Nicknamed Baby Doll, she came in as a big ball of lightning and Alyssa couldn't help but befriend the girl. She, like Alyssa didn't want to stay either. She was thirteen when she came in and was refusing to train.

**
"You wanted to speak to me Alyssa" Ivan had asked, stepping into her cubicle of a room. Donovan had submitted her request and he was curious to find out what she wanted. "Make it quick though, I've got a lot to do so..."

"I'm requesting permission to train a new comers" she went straight to the point. No need to suffer his presence more than she had to. "She's not taking to well to training and I'd rather train her than have what happened to me happen to her"

"What's this rubbish Alyssa" Ivan asked, outraged. How dare she? "Do you think you've grown so big that you can speak to me like this. You have more privileges her than anyone else and you say this to me"

"I mean no disrespect. I'm good, almost as good as Donovan if not better, I can help train her so she acclimatizes well with how things are here".

Ivan had stared at her. She did make a valid point. She has been trained and can also train others and with time, they could even make her do rounds, collect debts and even snuff out opposers. Yes, wonderful idea.

"Who exactly are you planning on training?" She was winning him over. She knew it. She had to, or else, they would break her spirit and that was just not okay. She has watched a lot of children come, spirit broken, succumbing to this life but something about this girl, she didn't want broken.

"Maggie. She's a new intake. Thirteen years" she replied, praying he says yes. If he agrees, she could have someone to talk to. Another person apart from Donovan that she could relate with.

"Fine. We'll set something up and see how that goes".

"Thank you. This means..."

"You only have one chance at this Alyssa. One chance. You make sure she becomes good if not, she either goes to the trainers or the block. With that he left her room.
**

The block. The place no one comes back from.

Children who refuse to break, no matter what they throw at them are deemed useless and are sent to the block. No one ever comes back from there.

With the training of Maggie, she started formulating a plan, a plan to get out, to escape and bring Maggie with her. Together they could start a new life, far away from this hell, be different people and learn to live again. So for the next year they had worked, planned, strategized, mapped out every possible way to make it out and soon, they will be free.

###

With the sweat dripping down her back, she stared at Dimitri, Ivan's nephew and her sparing partner. He's been the only one who can seem to hold his own against her lately.

They where in a separate sparring room, smaller much smaller than the main one every other person was in which was just beside it with a mirror separating them. She could she them all but no one could see her and she preferred it that way.

"You're becoming soft on me Lyssa. What gives huh? You distracted today"?

Of course she was. She could hear that kid crying again. He was always crying and it tugs at something in her. She couldn't really explain it but she felt drawn to him.

"I'm pacing my self you sneaky bastard" she replied with a grin, "it wouldn't do well for my ego if I put you down before the match actually starts now would it. It'll just go straight to my head".

"And we all know that your head is already big enough" he teases right back. Sparring with Alyssa is always fun, different every time.

With that she lunges at him, faking a left hit but clearing him off the floor with her legs. When he hit the ground, that was game over for him. Knock out.

She walked over to her water bottle and towel. She looked over at him through the glass as the others fought around him. All this while he still cried in the corner, not learning the basic moves, not training, just crying. A few more days of this and it's either the whip or the block and she'd really hate that. He looks so small, so fragile.

Sparring time was over. They were to go to the showers and then it was thirty minutes of lounging around. A little reprieve from the normal strain of training.

By the time she got out of the shower and to the lounge, everyone was there, talking. The room was round with a few mats in the middle where everyone sat and talked. She never sat with them but on a stone slab that surrounds the edge of the room.

The topic of discussion changed immediately she got into the room as usual but she didn't pay any mind to it. She zeroed in on the boy. He was in a corner, on a stone slab, away from the rest as usual. Not crying but not talking to anyone either.

She sighed. He had come in a couple of weeks ago with some others. She could see them all gathered around nosy ass June. She approached. One of them liked to talk and that was good enough for her to get the information she needs about the kid. Starting with his name.

Stopping behind the girl, she could feel her stiffen. The group stopped talking as well as others. Wanting to hear what she has to say.

"You" motioning to the girl, "what's your name"? She demanded. The girl looked scared, terrified and that was good for her for now. She wouldn't hold back or question her or beat around the bush.

"Cla.. cl.. Clarissa ma'am" Clarissa stuttered. Going through her mind quickly to know if she had done any wrong and was in trouble. She was certain Alyssa was there to kill her or maybe take her to the boss.

"I need to speak with you, come with me" Alyssa told her and moved away from everyone, towards the end of the room where she knew no one would hear what they had to say.

She motioned for her to seat on a slab then sat beside her, facing the room, keeping her eyes on the boy and everything else.

"Clarissa, tell me everything you know about 'Cry Baby'"

*Thanks for reading 😘
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