Chapter 13: The Breakout Club

"You really don't remember what happened?" Said Esther.

Two days had passed since the massacre and life went on at Garrenbuck as if nothing happened at all. Esther and I were standing at the edge of two blue mats as we eyed the other prisoners in our testing group. The group seemed to be smaller than previous sessions and I didn't think that was a coincident.

"No, the nurse said that I blacked out. Why?"

I was released from the infirmary earlier that morning and Esther was the first of my friends that I had seen. She explained in one breath that both Ana and Joan were alive but concerned for me. Ana, who had been by my side when the carnage began, thought I had somehow been shot in the madness.

"It was crazy. One second they're trying to kill all of us and then suddenly, the lights go out."

Our assigned doctor for the afternoon monotonously explained the rules of the test as he did every day before each test, just in case any new unfortunate souls were added to the mix. By now I had the important ones memorized. The name of the game wasn't murder- that was their job, not ours. Rather we were supposed to demonstrate our ability to effectively defend ourselves against attacks and display our overall strength.

"I overheard some doctors talking about it and they don't think it was a technical failure," Esther continued.

"They think the guards cut the power on purpose?" I asked.

"No," she had this amazing ability to speak like a ventriloquist, carefully moving her mouth while avoiding any suspicion. "They think it was one of us. Probably a witch who changed prematurely and managed to keep a low profile."

"What are they going to do?" I asked.

The doctor began to randomly pair us up. After my first sparring duel I quickly learned that they cared little about fair matches. Qualities such as height and weight were not considered rather, the doctors were more interested in the development of one's supernatural abilities. Things such as sporadic bursts herculean strength or lightning quick reflexes, were traits indicative of a vampire or werewolf. Therefore, one's physical appearance did little to indicate their overall skill.

"They're going to find the person. Probably stick them in Solitary Confinement until the send off date."

My ears perked up upon hearing my identification code. "#81417 and #63345."

I stepped onto the mat and rolled my shoulders as I prepared for the beating. A smirk toyed on the edge of my lips as I watched my partner take his place in front of me. The not-so gentle giant took his sweet ole' time as he settled into a comfortable fighting stance. My fists twitched in anticipation. By an unfortunate stroke of bad luck, I was paired with the same boy who gave me a sizable welt on my forehead and a concussion after my first sparring match. I had been eagerly awaiting for my chance at a rematch ever since I first woke up in the infirmary. From the periphery of my vision, I watched as Esther and Paxton began their own dangerous dance.

I turned my attention back to my partner just in time as he lunged forward to attack. Dodging with ease, I managed to land a solid punch beneath his ribs as I ducked out of his grasp. In the last three weeks, I paid special attention to my partner as he sparred various individuals. He was an offensive player, fueled by pent up aggression. I quickly realized that as long as I kept his hands off of me, I had a shot of winning.

"Come on, sweetheart." I stepped to the side as he lunged forward. "Don't make this harder for yourself than it needs to be."

For every step he took forward, I took two back. That was until, I found the heel of my foot resting dangerously close to the edge of the mat.

"You're gonna lose." He taunted.

I gritted my teeth as I willed myself to remain silent. Between his attacks and little rants, he managed to lose control of his breathing. With the steam steadily draining from his engine, I decided to move into attack mode. He swung his fist towards my head as I ducked beneath his arm and jumped onto his back. Jamming my elbow between his shoulder blades, he fell to his knees and I rolled onto my feet. He turned to face me, only to be greeted by the sight of my fist.

"Don't." I kicked him in the groin.

"Ever." Then, I kicked out both of his knees.

"Call." Blood began to gush from his nose like a geyser.

"Me." My fists moved on their own volition as his face began to turn an ugly shade of purple.

"Sweetheart." He smacked the mat with his fists as his eyes rolled to the back of his skull, "Got that, sweetheart?"

I only stopped my attack when the Doctor advanced with two guardians on his flanks. He bent down and examined the neck of the boy who laid haphazardly on the floor. He nodded once, confirming that the boy was alive and then gestured for the Guardians to carry him out. He looked so fragile, I thought as they hoisted him into the air. He was a six foot sixteen year-old and built like a linebacker and yet in that moment, with his body curled into the fetal position, he looked no more dangerous than a child.

"Easy girl," Esther limped to my side. "I'm sure Ana would be proud."

"He deserved it," I shrugged her off.

"We're all just trying to survive here." She and Paxton had been much kinder to one another. Esther left the fight with a sprained knee  and he, a busted lip.

"But try to remember who the real enemy is, Phe."

——————-

Ana and Joan were scraping their plates clean by the time Esther and I joined them in the cafeteria.

"Back from the dead again, I see." Joan joked as I took my seat.

"It really wasn't that bad," I insisted, "I just passed out"

"I wish I passed out," Esther shuddered as she reflected upon yesterday.

Like a smile riddled with gingivitis, there were newly formed gaps at the lunch tables- where the fallen once sat. New prisoners would come, like they always did, and fill in the gaps but until then we were forced to bare the unsettling sight.

"It's what happened after you passed out that I'm more concerned about," said Ana.

I nodded. "You mean the lights going out?"

Ana rested her elbows on the table as she took a measured sip from her styrofoam cup. She stared at me over the rim of the cup. I disliked this Ana- the part of her who felt the need to always be so strong. She had this "Daughter of Atlas" way about her as if she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders. It reminded me of own weaknesses, one of them being my unwavering dependence on her.

"I mean, when you made the lights go out."

Esther choked on her food. Joan smacked her back as she attempted to regurgitate the swallowed mush.

"That's not possible," I said, "I wasn't even conscious at that point."

"I don't understand it anymore than you do but one second you're convulsing on the ground as if you've been possessed and then there's an electrical surge which blows out the lights- weirder things have been true." I bowed my head into the crook of my neck as an ache appeared in my temples.

"Does that mean she's a witch?" Asked Joan, "Because that sounds like magic."

"I don't know if she's a witch," Ana lamented, "but this means, they'll be looking for her. And only God knows what will happen if they find her."

The ache turned into incessant pounding. "This is not happening to me right now."

I was prone to blacking out. It was a medical condition as far as my mother was concerned. But I always grew up worrying that it was something other than normal. I didn't burst any light bulbs but there were times when I'd wake and something would be out of place. Nothing serious- just a missing sock or a hair clip but for the life of me, I could never remember what transpired in those moments. Being an 'Other', I suppose, gave some context to those blackouts. There was a strange ability, whether it be magic or not, was developing inside of me.

"This is happening and now we're going to need to act faster than we thought."

I picked my head up from the table. "What do you mean?"

Joan and Esther shared a look. "Wait you're not serious-"

"We're breaking out of Garrenbuck," said Ana.

**I seriously do not know how to end chapters if not on a cliff hanger. How do Authors do it? Anyway, this is another short one but the next three chapters will definitely be making up for that. What do you guys think about the progression of Phe's character? Not exactly the girl hiding in Nic's shadow from the first two chapters. I hope you guys are enjoying the book so far and thank you for getting this book to trend so high on multiple Wattpad lists. I really appreciate it!

XOXO,

Ro.**