Subject #44

The Capture (Two)

        When I wake up after the fight with the mysterious man, I lay in a stiff, cold bed.There was only one source of light in the room and a chest on the end of the bed.I swing my legs over the side of the bed and walk over to the chest. When I open it, it is just filled with black clothes, black pants, shirts, jackets, socks, and even black underwear.Then I notice it, the non-familiar smell of salt and fish.I was wearing a pair of the" black outfit".I walk over to the door and try to turn the knob, but there isn't one, just a slab of glass.     PUT HAND HERE a female voice spurred from the panel.I followed it's orders because I didn't even know where I was.The panel glows green, clicks and then the door opens.I walk out to a big square full of people sitting down and talking or just sitting, then I see Lila and Jack across the room.The see me and wave and I return the jester. As I walk over I notice the man who attacked us, but he looked different than before, I could see his black hair and tan skin.He doesn't look at me and I fight the urge to attack him, and keep walking.When I get over to Jack and Lila, they wear the same clothes as me. Then a female voice blasts through the room catching my off guard and making my stumble

        "Every child in the Quad please meet at the Train," the women voice informs us in a calm voice,"AND HURRY" the calmness left her voice and all that was left was a makeshift yell.All the kids around us noticed the seriosity in her voice and got up and ran to the Train, as she called it.

       The Train was a beat up looking building with a little "train" car in it.On top of the grown women stood with a mega phone.She had a great big scar cutting across her left eye.I stood next to Lila and Jack as she spoke,"LISTEN UP YOU LITTLE MAGGOTS," she yelled from the megaphone,"YOU HAVE BEEN BROUGHT HERE BY THE ITO TO TEST YOUR ABILITIES."In the back a hand went up,

"What is the ITO," the boy said with great curiosity

        "DID I SAY YOU COULD TALK," the woman said and through a knife it flies by me and I watch it all the way. Just as I think it was just to scare us it sinks it’s three inch blade into the boys face. He screams in pain as two men come by and take him away. Fear swims among all the kids as if it were a real thing eating away at our souls.The I notice everyone stiffen up and stop moving, but I can still see the knife sinking into the poor boys face and spilling blood everywhere around him.

        “GOOD,” the woman says with a slight smirk ,”KNOW WHERE WERE WE… OH YEAH, THE ITO IS GOING TO TEST YOU ON YOUR ABILITIES, FOR THE ONES WHO DON’T PASS, THERE WILL BE HORRIBLE RESULTS.AND IF YOU SAW WHAT JUST HAPPENED TO “NO MANNERS” OVER THERE THERE ARE MURDEROUS CONSEQUENCES TO BEING RUDE,ILL MANNERED OR JUST PLAIN HORRIBLE AT SOMETHING...ANY QUESTIONS,”No one raises their hand, probably just the image of the boy flashing in their minds,”GOOD NO LET’S GET ONTO THE FIRST CHALLENGE… THE MAZE… THIS MAZE WILL TEST YOUR AGILITY,BRILLIANCE, AND SPEED.ONLY THIRTY OF YOU WILL MAKE IT OUT ALIVE, AND THE OTHER TEN WILL NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY AGAIN.WITH THAT SAID GET INTO THE CAR TO GO TO THE MAZE.” she hops off the car and ten people get in, and it zooms off and comes back in about two minutes and then me,Lila and Jack,plus seven others get into this round…

        When we get there we get out of the car and stone walls surround us.The other people are no where to be seen.I see two doors on the opposite sides of the room. The same flat female voice that was in my room speaks,” Please step through the doors.” The seven strangers stay behind as we walk to the door on the right wall.Just as we walk up to it the door swings open.There was a slight hesitation but, I walk into the the dark “Maze” ahead of us.Behind me Lila and Jack follow me. I stop after a few steps and spin around,” We will make it out of every “Challenge” they give us,TOGETHER,” I say this last part louder than the first part of the sentence.Both the two nod and then we proceed on our journey through the “Maze”.Every few seconds I hear a scream or a “click” but it does not get my attention, because all my mind was on was getting through the “Maze” alive and with Lila and Jack.After about thirty minutes of walking around something finally happens.I step on a pressure plate which clicks under me and then a flurry of arrows shoot past me.I duck just fast enough to miss getting an arrow stuck in my head.Then I hear Lila’s voice behind my yell,” OVER HERE.” I follow the sound of her voice to a wall which splits into two and I crawl into the narrow space. The arrows fly past us with no sign of getting slower. I watch as a limp body fall infront of us. Whoever it  was had about nine of the arrows stuck in his body.He growns and I jump back, pulling him with me.I flip his body over and see his eye balls are missing and blood is flooding from his nose and mouth.The arrows were poisonous, and if they think only ten are going to die, they are sadly mistaken.

        After, about a few minutues the arrows stop with a click and the air again, goes silent and I get brave enough to peek my head around the corner.the air around me is dark and silent like before the arrow inccident.I motian my hand for my friends to come out, we decided to leave the teen behind for the people running the ITO. I get up to stretch my legs and move around.As I walk I  am more cautious of the ground then the walls and ceiling around me. I run my hand across the most Maze wall, the stone is cold and moist, we probably have been walking in a circlebecause I keep seeing the same black spot in the sand. There has been no accidents or dangers in the past ten minutes. I turn a corner and a girl runs into me. "Get out of my way you idiot."the girl yells at me and then runs off.I get up and wipe the sand of me, when I looked at the girl she had burn marks on her shirt.This had made me more aware of all of my surroundings then before.

"Zach, I don't want to go this way..." Jack wines," I LIKE my life."

"Quit wineing and hurry up, we don't have all the time in the world," I yell back, not wanting to die.

"Okay, Okay," Jack says as we turn another corner. As we turn, a giant fire