Percy's stepfather turned him in when he was twelve. The men who had arrived to collect him were civil, until the shoved a dark sack over his head and loaded him into a bus with sixty other children.
In a word, it sucked. They were forced to spend the night in a warehouse, with no food or drink. A few kids had wet themselves, causing the whole place to stink. The girl next to Percy, a small blonde, had her head head between her knees to hide the fact that she was crying. If Percy's hands weren't tied, he would have been able to comfort her.
"Are you alright?" The black-haired boy whispered, despite strict orders to stay silent. The girls blotchy and red eyes widened in fear as Percy is greeted with the butt of a gun to his jaw.
"Silence!" One of the officers shouted, turning his back on the boy left to lie in his own blood.
In the morning, the children were all shaken awake, then thrown roughly back into the bus to continue their journey.
One boy, across the aisle from Percy, was wearing bright yellow rubber gloves, crudely duct taped to his bare arms. The girl sitting next to Percy, a short, dark haired girl, had a gag in her mouth. The hispanic boy sitting by the window had his hands and feet tied together, and thick gloves that resembled oven mitts. The blonde girl from the night before was staring blankly at the seat in front of her. Finally, one of the officers stood at the front of the bus, leaning his gun on the seat.
"Good morning, children. My name is Sergeant Nicks, you are permitted to call me 'Sir.' The recent plague of Idiopathic Adolescent Acute Neurodegeneration Disorder has forced the government to take matters into our own hands. You all will be taken into a camp until a cure is found. Cooperate, and your time with us will be easy. Rebel, and you will be punished severely. Am I understood?"
Every single child on the bus nodded, except one boy. Asian, pudgy, and tall, Percy suspected this boy was secretly a teddy bear in disguise.
"When will we see our family?" He squeaked pitifully.
"When we find a cure." The officer said simply. Suddenly, it dawned on him. This. This is what Gabe had meant. This was his punishment. This was it.