Chapter 2

"Andrew wake up!"

"Huh? Get up? Oh I must have fallen asleep. Were probably there now." Andrew Hamilton (Boy # 18) thought to himself, while awaking from his slumber, then yawning. "Huh. Wait as second. I don't remember laying on the... wait... wha...where are we?" Just as Andrew was beginning to wake up from his long sleep, he noticed that he, his twin sister Andrea, and his classmates were no longer on the bus, but in a room. It appeared to be a classroom. But for some reason there were no desks, aside from a teacher's desk, at the front of the room, that stood in front of the blank chalkboard, and not to mention the lights were out.

As he stood up, he examined the classroom, which was at the moment occupied with many of his classmates- with the exception of his sister Andrea (Girl # 18); her friend and the only Native American student in his class, Abequa Holder (Girl # 16); Bianca Capello (Girl # 5); and himself- lying on the floor unconscious. For a second, he thought they were all dead. Some of his classmates were lying face down on the floor, while a few, such as Rollo Kyle (Boy # 9) were piled on top of each other. In the unconscious Boy # 9's case, he was currently laying on top of the also still unconscious Christopher Schiz (Boy #12). He took a look out the windows and could see that night had fallen. "Damn," he thought. "We must've slept for the entire day."

It wasn't long until his train of thoughts and wonders were broken up by his twin sister Andrea, who broke his silence by questioning, "Where are we? Where's Mr. Ross and Mr. Huxley? I don't see them anywhere." It wasn't long before their classmates started to mimic her, after waking up themselves.

"Huh? What is this place?"

"Huh... how long was I out?"

"Why's it so dark?"

"Why are the lights out?"

"Sabrina what's going on?"

"Where are we?"

"Huh? Oh... are we there now?"

"Hey... what's going on?"

"Where's Mr. Ross?"

"Mr. Huxley? Mr. Ross?"

"What the fuck's going on here?!"

"I don't like this place, Jamie!"

"Sami? Sami? Where are you?"

"Da fuck are we!"

"Hey! Get off of me!"

"I want to go home!"

"Don't tell me were back at school!"

"... the... hell?"

"Kuso a!"

"Wait... what?"

"Alex? What's that thing around your neck?"

The latter of the quotes started to catch everyone's attention. They started to feel something on their necks that wasn't there when they fell asleep.

"What?" Alex asked finally taking hint of what Bianca informed him about. "What is it?" He then started to feel his new found neck attire and then tried to yank it off, but failing.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A new voice informed. Alex turned to see that it belonged to the abtrusive and mysterious transfer that had arrived one week prior to this day: Robin Keller (Girl #4).

Then Daniel decided this was the best moment to barge his mouth in by questioning, "Or what? What's gonna happen? Will he... uh... I don't know... maybe... uh...die?" in one of the most pompous and sarcastic tones imaginable.

"Yes. He will die. In fact everyone would if they imitated that act." Robin answered, smirking smugly at herself, for her knowledge of what she knew, that the almost everyone else didn't know. Daniel was just about to open his mouth to retort, only to be cut off by Katsuo Ohara (Boy # 6).

"Kanojo wa sodesu." Everyone just stared blankly and confused at this reply, not understanding a single word he just said. He just rolled his eyes in annoyance and sighed, before replying, "She's right you know. I think I know what's going on here."

"But.. wha... how?" asked Andrea Hamilton (Girl # 18) stuttering both frightfully and confused.

"Oh you'll find out chotto no ma," Katsuo replied.

Then suddenly the lights of the classroom flicked on and all eyes turned away from Girl # 4 and Boy # 6 and towards the front of the classroom to reveal group of men who have just entered through the door at the front of the class, catching everyone's attention.

Most of the men appeared to be army soldiers, wearing modern day camouflage outfits and held guns in their arms. Two men of the group stood out the most. One of them was easily recognized by the students and identified him as Principal Orson Huxley. The other man appeared to be in his early to mid forties. With light brown hair balding at the forehead. He was slender build standing at a height of five feet eight inches tall. He wore a gray suit, with matching trousers and a black tie to go along with his clothing attire. There was silence, but it was broken by the man who stood beside their principal.

"Why hello there. My name is Orwell G. O'Brien. I'm the director of the United States of America Youth Reform Act. Lets be friends," he introduced with an ominous smile.

He was about to speak again but was cut off by the quarterback of the football team, Joel Krizmanich (Boy # 15), who yelled out, "What fuck is this Huxley?! Some kind of joke or something?!"

"Youth Reform Act?" Milo Garcia (Boy # 19) began, "Is that some kind of boot camp... or something?" he asked curiously and lost.

Then Principal Huxley then cut in before more students could but in and ask more questions. "Krizmanich! Garcia! Hold your tongues and raise your goddamn hands next time! Sorry about that Mr. O'Brien, they're real mouthy brats at times. Please continue."

"Thank you. I can see that you're all wondering what you are doing waking up in a deserted classroom, with collars on your necks, and being confronted by a group of army men. Well I am pleased to inform you all that you will be participating in the Thirteenth Annual United States of America Battle Royale event. Now is there anyone here that knows what the USA Youth Reform Act is?" Only two hands were raised, the rest were just confused and lost. O'Brien then picked on one the two whose hands were raised. "Yes you. Girl with the short brunette hair," he said referring to Robin Keller (Girl # 4), who eventually turned out to be the female figure that had her hand raise."

"The BR Program is a program that originated in Japan, that places the youth into a program that gives them a time limit of seventy-two hours to kill each other or their collars will detonate if they refuse," she answered. When she was finished there was shock among her classmates to go around.

"What?"

"Say what?!"

"Kill each other?"

"She's lying."

"Seventy-two hours?"

"Wait... what?"

"Pfft. Yeah right."

"This is gonna suck."

"Wait. Did she just say we have to kill each other?"

"Is this some kind of joke?"

"I must've hit my head real hard."

"Collars... detonate? Like they... explode?"

"You've got to be kidding me."

"No way."

"This better be a joke."

"This isn't funny Huxley."

"You're lying."

"She isn't lying guys." Everyone turned to look at Katsuo Ohara (Boy # 6). "That's Battle Royale. The youth in Japan got so out of control; vandalizing, stealing, and murdering and all that shit, got way out of line, the Japanese government passed the BR Act to punish the youth. It eventually spread to China, and overseas to Canada and the US."

"So basically... what your saying is, this is all happening just because we were a bunch of dicks?" asked Christopher Schiz (Boy # 12).

"You're catching on Schiz," answered Principal Huxley, mispronouncing Chris' last name as "Shiz."

"It's 'Sk-itz'."

"Whatever." He was about to speak again but was cut off, by the chuckling of Drew Jackson (Boy # 7).

He then gave him a glare, before asking, "What's so funny Jackson?" in a serious tone.

Drew then replied still giggling and smiling, "I get it. I get it. This is some kind of hidden camera show or something isn't it? And Robin, Katsuo, and this guy," he said pointing to Mr. O'Brien, "and these guys," referring to the soldiers, "are actors. Boy, you seriously think-" He was then cut off by Huxley.

"No. You're wrong Jackson," Huxley replied in a very serious and stern tone of voice, "It's not. Soon you will either kill or be killed."

Then Kymjae Holmes (Girl # 12) then spoke up, "Wha da fuq should we believe you?"

"Yeah. Nobody is that evil or stupid enough to pass a law that forces kids to kill each other," Vanessa Gold (Girl # 20) piped in agreeing with her.

"Besides Mr. Ross would never let anything like that happen to us," added Jon Painds (Boy # 4). "Come to think of it, where is Mr. Ross?"

"That's your cue," Huxley said signaling a soldier, who walked out of the classroom, to return a moment later with something very unpredictable for the students.

The students gasped at the sight, of what had been unfolded to them.

It was indeed a cadaver of a middle aged man in his mid forties, with bullet holes showered into him and was apparently bleeding from head to toe. The classroom, as if on cue, erupted into a tsunami of screams and cries coming from newly scarred students.

"GODDAMN!"

"HOLY SHIT!"

"MOTHERFUCKER!"

"DUDE!"

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

"WHAT THE FUCK!?"

"NO WAY!"

"Yes way," Principal Huxley replying to the latter of the shouts made from the now horrified 8th graders.