Lauren's hazel eyes slowly begun to open to the dark world around her while she yawned deeply. She stretched her arms high into the air while she rested back into her chair to relax, the chair was soft and comfortable, and it made a good place for Lauren to sit back and finally relax. After that horrible day at school, Lauren really felt like she needed it, she begun to settle down and close her eyes to take another relaxing nap, however her relaxation suddenly ended as her eyes shut open as she finally started to take in her surroundings.

Girl #1, Lauren Dye had found herself to be in a crowded, dark and claustrophobic bus. Now this...this definitely isn't right. Lauren felt a frown form on her face as she begun to take a look around the place. She begun to twiddle her thumbs nervously as her eyes slowly darted around.

The bus seemed run-down and completely devoid of any color or decorations, the only visible color Lauren could see was the color of her own school clothes and the dark blue curtains that hid the windows from Lauren's sight. Curiously, Lauren opened the curtains, hoping to see something nice outside but only to find that the road was as bleak and as murky as the bus. The foreboding road was consumed by fog, so much that not even the moon's light could shine though into the blank bus. The sight of the dark road sent a dark chill up Lauren's spine, then suddenly Lauren felt another dark chill, this time on her neck. Lauren timidly lifted her pale hands to her neck, and felt a cold metallic collar that wrapped it's self all around her neck. The collar was arctic and left Lauren with an intense choking feeling around her neck.

Lauren nervously and gently tugged at the collar as her heart begun to beat rapidly in her chest. The collar was all it took to bring Lauren to the reality of what was happening, she was in the program. The Battle Royale. She was going to die.

Lauren nervously begun to remember previous series of the program. Honestly, it didn't have much of a creative name, but it always made for great Saturday night telly. Lauren remembered, that she always loved to go home with her mates and binge watch the show on Netflix. The show itself was simple, 30 to 50 students from a Secondary School or College were chosen to fight to the death in front of the whole nation, if there were no kills in 12 hours, all the collars would explode, killing all the students instantly. Lauren bloody loved the show, with the 5th season being her favorite. For the 5th season, a special ed school called Baycroft was chosen, Lauren thought it was because news and media had a right fuss about representation in the series. At first Lauren was concerned, and thought that it would've been boring, but it ended up being the best season yet! Lauren found it to be completely hilarious to see mentally challenged, wheel-chair bound and outright insane students run around killing each other. In the end, a young wheel-chair bound girl with tourettes won, she did this by manipulating one of the mentally challenged kids into killing the others, with her to simply shoot him in the head to win. Even though she was an evil bitch, the way she shouted "Fuck" every forty seconds just made the whole thing so hard to take seriously.

Lauren looked straight down in shame while still holding her chest in fear. "This is Karma, isn't it?" she thought. Lauren felt tears begin to form in her eyes and drip down her pale cheek, ruining her mascara. She knew she was going to die in this game, she knew she was weak compared to most people in class, she knew she had no fighting chance, and it terrified her. "What is being dead like?" She asked herself.

Suddenly, Lauren heard the ear piercing sound of trumpets and drums ring into her head from above. When she looked straight up in response to the loud noise she found speakers that were encoded into the ceiling. The noise was so loud that it begun to even hurt Lauren's fragile ears, in response to the pain, she quickly put her fingers into her ears. It wasn't long until the music begun to slowly fade out into silent darkness. Leaving behind the sound of confused children whom recently awoke. Lauren timidly took her fingers out of her ears, and witnessed Boy #6 Micheal Gee. The short and weak boy violently tugged at the silver collar on his neck while screeching in terror while tears begun to swell up in his blue eyes. His breathing was set at a fast pace, with his widened eyes and terrified face not doing any justice to the terror he felt. Lauren couldn't help but stare on worriedly, she wanted to say something to at least calm him down, but she couldn't find the words.

Suddenly, the sound of a cough was heard from the speakers, at so loud a volume it made most people on the bus jump. The bus quietly remain quiet as the voice prepared to speak.

Transcript of The Program launch night

*Applause is heard as a presented dressed in black suit and trousers enters the stage. The presenter has medium sized brown hair and is smiling*

Presenter: One town, forty eight students, and a whole world of pain!

*Introduction to the program plays*
Presenter: Hello and welcome to the return of the program!

*Applause quickly increases in volume*

*Presenter laughs*
Presenter: It's finally back, now this year The Program have been searching across the country for the perfect victims. Now this time, we have selected a nice little school down in a nice little town called Fareshire. The parents have been notified, the teachers and traitors killed and now soon the students will be ready for a night of death! Now, tonight we've done something a bit different than usual, instead of, you know, a boring old island. We've decided to have the game in a grand mall and village! Shall we have a look?
*Audience starts screaming "yes"*

Presenter: Alright then.

*The panning of the camera changes to the outside of a mall*
Presenter: Well, this is the outside of the mall in the middle of the map in D-5! It's very pretty isn't it. The bus is going to park right outside here where we let the students run free! Inside the mall, which is HUGE! It takes up 6 zones from C-5 to E-2 there are so many shops! Phone shops, food shops loadsa shops! Outside of this there are loads of parks and little shops and a few houses and a museum! Now, we know where they will die. But who are the students?

*Camera pans to CCTV of the inside of a bus. Many children are seen inside, they appear to be incredibly frightened*

Presenter: Now, why don't we have a little talk to the students, and introduce them to this years rules.

*The presenter coughs into her microphone, the students in the CCTV footage look up and immediately give her voice attention*

Presenter: Welcome to The Program, Tutor 11MU and 11EBT!

*A few screams are heard inside of the bus*
Presenter: Pay very close attention to these instructions please. Okay? Okay! Right, all of you will be parked outside of the mall in area D-5, once you arrive, which shouldn't be until too long, you will all leave, one by one in one minute intervals.

All of you will get one randomly selected weapon, with random food and water. Every 24 hours there will be new danger zones. You all must kill each other until only one of you remain. Every 6 hours I will give an announcement of the deaths. If there aren't any deaths in 12 hours, then all of your collars will explode. If you try to escape, or if you go into a forbidden danger zone then your collar will detonate.

Now, that should be about it! Does anyone have any questions?

*The students are all speechless and are too shocked to be able to speak. The bus has also appeared to stop moving*

Presenter: Okay! Now the game will start in 5!

*The audience and presenter both countdown eagerly*

Presenter + Audience: 4! 3! 2! 1!

Presenter: Girl #1, Lauren Dye!

Lauren's eyes widened as she heard her name be called. "Already!?" She thought in her head, completely unprepared for the game. Nervously, Lauren slowly got up from her seat while whimpering, she looked around at all her classmates, every one of them speechless and scared for their files. Lauren desperately wanted to wake up from this horrible, horrible nightmare.

Lauren slowly made her way down the bus, everyone's eyes were fixated on her. Lauren leaned on the seats for support, the terror in her mind controlled her and made her shake violently. Her eyes were a fountain of tears that could drown the world in minute. "I don't want to die" Thought Lauren as she approached the front.

Once Lauren got to the front of the bus, the door slowly opened, Cold air made its way inside the once warm bus. Lauren timidly took a step outside, she looked at her surroundings, the ground was covered with a thick sheet of snow and the air filled with a misty fog. Lauren's teeth chattered at the cold atmosphere, her blazer, t-shirt, tie and skirt was not enough to protect her from the harsh cold.

Suddenly, a figure that towered over her forced a bag into her fragile hands, Lauren stepped back nervously with the bag with a small scream. The bag was colored green and was of a heavy weight. Lauren looked up at the figure to see a man with pale white skin and dirty brown hair, wearing heavy armor with a camo design and texture. The man had a monotone face and eyes that stared into Lauren's soul. Lauren quickly looked away and looked at the huge building ahead, she saw a huge shopping center with white walls and a blue logo on the front. The girl hastily ran to it without thought, hoping to find shelter and warmth.