Call to Arms: Betrayed

The Game, Part 2, Games 3-4

"Be still, girl. I haven't hurt you yet," Kowaleski mocked as he kissed Alyssa's head lovingly. He brought his knife to her stomach and began carving, making her scream with pain. "Hush now," he whispered as he began to...

Alyssa awoke suddenly, sweat beading on her body. She looked around, her eyes wide. She looked at Jeremy, who lay on the floor, snoring. She stood and then went to the small window in their cell. She stared at the stars for a moment, trying to calm down. She shivered as though Kowaleski was touching her, making her flesh crawl. She yawned suddenly, revealing her fatigue. "I can't sleep right now," she thought miserably as a guard passed by her cell. "Go to sleep!" he yelled as she went back to her bunk. "Go to Hell," she muttered as she stretched out on the bed. She stared at the ceiling for what felt like an hour before she finally drifted off.

*****A few hours later*****

Alyssa sat up, awake for some reason. She stood and then looked out the window. The first lights of dawn were painting the sky crimson. She sighed as she began to whistle. "In this prison cell I sit, thinking mother dear of you. And our bright and happy home so far away, and as the tears they fill my eyes. Spite of all that I do, though I try to cheer my comrades and be gay," she murmured as she smiled. "Yes, soon we shall see our home again," she muttered as Jeremy farted in his sleep. "Fool," she thought as she hummed the song that had come to her. "Tramp! Tramp! Tramp! The boys are marching. Cheer up comrades, they will come. And beneath the starry flag, we shall breath the air again of the free land in our own beloved home," she murmured as someone knocked on the bars. "Hey, Alyssa," Konstantin said as she went to him. "You wanna see the skyline?" he asked as he opened the door. He gave her a jacket and she pulled it on, hiding most of her cuts. They walked out of the cell room and then out of the compound. Alyssa went to a car and Konstantin entered it while she looked around. She breathed out, her breath steaming in the cold air. "Wanna go get a bite to eat? I have a couple rubles from my last paycheck," he said as she got in. She shut the door and he drove off, putting on a CD. Rock began to play as he pulled out of the compound parking lot. "Is that Guns 'N Roses?" Alyssa asked as he nodded. She laughed a bit and then hummed along to the music. "You wanna eat at McDonald's? Even here, it's one of the cheapest places to eat," he said as she nodded. He drove a bit farther and then pulled into the drive thru. He ordered in Russian and then pulled up to the window. He paid and then went and got the food. He passed her a coffee and she took a long drink of it. "What was that song you were singing?" Konstantin asked as she paused. "Tramp, tramp. The boys are marching. It's a Civil War ballad about POW's. I find it fitting for the occasion," she said as he smiled. "Kowaleski's toying with you now. He'll leave you be for a few months and make you train with the Spetsnaz division to see how well you handle yourself" he says as she sighs. "Well, I hope I still have a friend when the games do begin again," she said as he turned to go back to the base....

****At the base****

"Blackwell, meet your sparring partner," Grigorvich mocked as he shoved her to a large, tattooed man. He smiled at her and then tried to touch her. "Come at me," she growled in Russian as the man laughed. He cuffed her across the face and sent her flying. She hit the wall and then stood. The man laughed and then came at her again. She side stepped him and then kicked him in the knees. As he went down, she put him in a headlock. He gasped for breath as another man grabbed Alyssa around the middle. "Let me go!" she exclaimed as the one she'd put in a headlock stood, touching his neck and wincing. "Bitch," he growled as she keep squirming, trying to get free. "Let her go," Kowaleski said lazily as the man dropped her. "Fists only. Get her someone her own size," he said as a man came to her. Alyssa balled up her fists and then stood, her stance steady. He threw a punch and she dodged, returning one of her own. He caught her fist and then laughed. "Weren't you taught to guard your vital organs?" he asked, his voice harsh and whispery. He punched her in the stomach and then across the face. She fell and then watched as his eyes softened. "Are you okay?" he asked as he held out a hand to help her up. She spat at him and then stood. "Come at me!" she exclaimed as he laughed, his laugh cold. "I like you. You're feisty," he said as she stood and stared at him. "Hit me. Take your frustration out on me. Have a few hits," he said as she began to hit him. A few dozen bruises appeared on his flesh as she hit him in the mouth. He reeled back and then spit something out of his mouth. Alyssa saw what it was and then stiffened. A few tears fell from her eye as he laughed. "Don't worry, dear. You get the first for free, but if you try and take another-," he said as he made a threatening gesture toward her throat. "You understand, little one?" he asked as she nodded. "Good. My name's Vladimir Markovich, colonel of the Russian Army and Spetsnaz," he said as he walked away.