Resistance (by Skillet)

"Heart is beating faster, feels like thunder. Magic, static, call me a fanatic. It's our world, they can never have it . . ."

It was in the dark of night, hidden by a fort of blankets, where Bethany began to read. With the light of a flashlight, a glow illuminated off of the book, causing the words to look like they would jump out at her. This would be a long, long night of reading.

Opening the first page, the first three words were "Oh no, oh no, oh no!"

Thrilled, Bethany began to read.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no!" Owen screamed, his back roughly hitting the solid earth. The world surrounding him represented a jungle, and the air was moist and cool. Despite the cool temperature, Owen was sweating all over. As he shakily got to his feet, he took in his new surroundings, his face a look of pure panic. He mumbled words over and over, desperetly trying to convince himself that this was all a dream. It had to be a dream. It had to be. Nobody was only bluffing about imprisoning him in a book, right? If he wasn't bluffing, that meant . . .

That meant this jungle was real, not just conjured up in Owen's imagination. It felt too real to be a dream. So where had Nobody sent him? Where was he?

WHAT PATH WOULD YOU LIKE FOR OWEN?

Dinosaur attack.

Fall into quicksand.

Obtain poison ivy.

"This isn't good," he whispered. Then, a roar echoed across the jungle, and loud footfalls shook the earth. His heart rate sped up quite quickly at the sound, but with the bad chain of events that he'd recently gone through, he wasn't very surprised.

"Dinosaurs?" Owen cried, looking up to the sky. He couldn't help but think that the first reader had begun to shape his life here. He didn't know if there was anything he could do to prevent it now, but he could try.

Unfortunately, the dinosaur heard his cry. It raced through the bush and appeared in between two tall trees, causing them to crack in half and fall to the ground. It was a gigantic T-Rex, with arms the size of Owen and huge, sharp teeth. Fresh blood dripped from its mouth, but that didn't mean it wasn't ready for lunch. It slowly advanced on the boy; it's feet soundly pounded the earth.

Owen backed away, trying not to loose his footing. Running away from the dinosaur would only make his death quicker. He nearly tripped into a hole but held himself steady, keeping his eyes even with the T-Rex.

The dinosaur advanced towards him, licking it's chops. It's beady black eyes bore into Owen's, hungry and venomous. It snarled softly, searching for the best way to catch it's meal.

Owen continued to back away, holding his hands behind him to navigate through the trees. He never tore his gaze away from the T-Rex, for he was afraid it would lunge the minute he looked away. He edged deeper into the jungle until he could no longer see the hungry dinosaur. He turned around and dashed for some form of escape.

With an angry roar, the T-Rex began to run after him. The pounding of it's feet were heavy enough to shatter the earth, but somehow Owen stayed balanced. He raced through the bush, ducking low over branches and jumping high over rocks. The journey seemed endless, and the jungle seemed to go on forever.

Behind him, the T-Rex was gaining speed. The boy was no match for one very large, hungry dinosaur, and it reached him with ease. Startled and even more fearful, Owen tried to ignore the pain in his legs and pushed further. In his wake, the dinosaur knocked down dozens of trees, and soon the rocking of the ground was too much for the boy. He lost his footing and stumbled, falling straight into a clearing.

But Owen had no time to look at his new surroundings. The dinosaur loomed over the boy, barring it's gigantic teeth and roaring down at him. In one swift move, the T-Rex lunged for Owen, it's mouth opening wide.

With a terrified yell, Owen rolled over and made a run for it while the dinosaur was distracted. His eyes darted around the clearing. There was a huge ravine sitting before him, and a treacherous river lay seventy feet below. Across from the gorge were a few dozen buildings that looked like something out of Jurassic park. Separating that and Owen was a rope bridge that allowed access across the ravine.

Wasting no time, the boy started across the bridge. It swung and creaked, looking as though it might break at any moment. Owen placed another foot on the next step, cringing as the bridge groaned.

At that moment, the T-Rex regained it's sense and unleashed an earth-shattering roar. It ran to him, prepared to do anything to get it's meal.

Owen wanted to shout at it, to slice it down and bring it to it's death, but his body felt heavy, and he was tired and dizzy and sore, and his small fists were no match for the gigantic T-Rex. So he ran.

He fled across the bridge, cringing and cursing as it creaked loudly. His next step caused two of the floorboards to break and fall soundly into the river. Owen gulped and looked back, but it was too late. The dinosaur jumped towards him in a wild attempt to catch him.

Unfortunately for both Owen and the T-Rex, the bridge went down. The T-Rex wailed as it fell with the rest of the bridge, making a big splash in the river. Owen yelled as he began to fall to his death, wildly clutching at the air. Suddenly, he stopped falling.

Gasping in confusion, Owen opened his eyes to see the hood of his sweatshirt had gotten caught on a floorboard. The part of the bridge that hadn't been cut off was still connected to the other side of the gorge. Laughing breathlessly at his luck, Owen shakily climbed the connected floorboards until he reached the top. He pulled himself up onto the grass and kicked away from the edge, hoping to never fall into it again.

He stood up, his legs wobbling and hands shaking. Turning around, he found himself surrounded by a group of adults, age ranging from twenty to fifty. But before he could say anything, something sharp pricked the side of his leg. He cried out and fell to the ground, suddenly unable to move. Hands grabbed him, lifting him up and carrying him inside their premises. He heard conversation between the strange people, but couldn't detect what they were saying.

In his fading effort to stay conscious, he sputtered out one name that was the centerpiece of all his worry, which had been constantly in the back of his mind all day.

"Bethany!"

Bethany shut the book. Her heart was fluttering with anticipation with every word that drew her in. She felt like she was being absorbed into the book, connecting instantly with the story it told. It was action-packed and kept her light on her feet. It made her both fearful and excited for what was to come next. Every word was laced with mystery, every syllable dripping with adventure, and every sentence ending in a cliffhanger. Would the boy survive? Would he die? She could hardly wait to find out.

But now, her heart was pounding not out of excitement, but out of horror. The main character —Owen— said her name! Her's! She knew it was most likely coincidence, but it was almost eerie how everything seemed all too familiar. First, the boy on the cover seemed familiar. He looked like that boy from her math class, who's name was also Owen. That part was probably was strangest of all. She knew that she could recognize him from anywhere. He was unforgettable . . . except he was only a fictional character.

Then again, he had said her name. What fictional character was named Bethany? It was so strange how it felt like destiny when she found this book . . . only to be given the surprise that one of the character's names was Bethany.

Wiping the sweat off her forehead, Bethany sighed and set the book on her nightstand. She sounded crazy. Fictional people simply weren't real. Neither did they bear any connection to real people.

So even with these unsettling thoughts, she managed to close her eyes and embrace the quietness of her house. With one last look at the mysterious book, Bethany curled into her blankets and slowly drifted off to sleep, which brought dreams of boy magicians, evil villians, and best friends named Owen.

It was dawn, and Bethany had just woken up, much earlier than she had before. For now, something was keeping her from her slumber. She gazed about the dark room, where the first of the sun's rays would begin to shine through the curtained window of her bedroom. With a faint smile that was worn mostly in solitude, she looked, one by one, at her many books stacked along her shelf.

They had always brought her a sort of certainty, knowing that there were worlds hidden in those pages. No matter the book she read, they always told a story. She knew she would not always have the luxury of reading whenever she liked. With every year of school, more work was pushed towards the students, and Bethany found herself reading a bit less than she would like. But, oh well. She could reread them all if she wanted.

Then, a thought came to her, and she automatically reached for the book on her bedside table, Story Thieves: Pick The Plot.

"Wait . . . what am I doing?" Bethany whispered to herself. The sun hadn't even risen yet. She could gladly wait until morning . . . yet something stopped her from refusing. She felt the dire need to read this book and learn what happens to Owen, no matter how long it took. She'd never felt this sort of determination to finish a book, but embraced it. Sure, the main character had called out her name, but that was not a reason to get stupidly frightened over nothing.

Both frustrated at herself for getting worried over nothing and feeling the need to read her new book, Bethany opened the book to it's marked page and continued to read.

"Gah!"

When Owen opened his eyes, it was when a bucket of cold water had been thrown on him, drenching his hair and clothes. He sprang upright, sputtering and gasping as he adjusted to his new surroundings. It looked like he was in a laboratory. The walls were a plain gray, with various locked doors stationed everywhere, and labeled things like "airlock" and "fuel room". Rooms that resembled jail cells were all along the hallway, which was what Owen currently resided in. The cell was simple enough, with a small bed, sink, toilet, chair, and window. Next to the door was a man in an orange jumpsuit, holding a now empty bucket and looking quite intimidating.

"Ah, I see you're awake now, stranger. That sleep dart was good for knocking you out, but it was taking long, and we are all impatient for answers," said the man, setting down the bucket on the floor. "So tell me, boy, state your reasoning for recklessly wandering the jungle. Planning to hunt down and single-handedly kill a dino on your own? Without a squad?"

Owen blinked. "Excuse me? I don't live here. I have never even seen a dinosaur until today, and I didn't choose to almost become that thing's lunch. I was running from it, and then I made it across the bridge and found you guys. But before I could get help, you kindly decided to blow dart me."

The man narrowed his eyes, crossing his buff arms around his chest. Owen noticed that the man was wearing a bright orange jumpsuit, labeled TSA in small letters at the right hand corner. "Wherever you came from, you're an idiot for coming here. You're lucky we decided to let you live. Most of my crew thought you'd be useless as an inexperienced member. I said we could benefit from training someone from the outside. I better be right, or else you and I will not be on good terms."

"Uh huh," Owen replied. "Is there a way, you know, out of this realm? This might sound crazy but I need to save my friend Bethany, a girl who can travel between realms. I won't be any trouble if you show me the way out."

The man stared hard at him, taking a step closer. "I don't know what all in your head, boy, but you better be smart and lose the realm talk. There is no way outta here. This prison is for time criminals, and no one can afford to break out and mess up the universe more than it already has been. There is high security, and no way of getting out of the agency unless with a hunting squad. Like it or not, you're with us now. No way around it. You go out there? You get eaten by dinos. Now get changed into that jumpsuit on your bed and join everyone in thirty minutes for dinner. Make some friends, because you'll be stayin' here for the rest of your life. Well, until you get fed to the dinos."

With that, the man left without even introducing himself or asking Owen his name. He guessed it didn't matter. He would learn everyone's names eventually here. Well, that depended how long he stayed. Could he escape somehow and get back to Bethany before the worst occurred? He would do everything in his power to stop Nobody and defeat him once and for all. He was not the same boy that he was a few months ago. He felt different, older almost, and definitely braver. He had to save Bethany. Just like that Star Wars quote: he was her only hope.

Mentally, he cursed himself for not learning some jailbreak tricks from Moira. If anyone could escape from jail, it would be her.

"God, how am I going to escape this prison?" he muttered angrily, kicking his shoe hard against the gray stone floor.

"There's no way out," said a girl's voice. Owen jumped. "Who's there?"

"It's me, Kara!" the girl replied. "You don't recognize me?"

He looked to the right to find that a small section of the prison cell next to him was connected to his. He hadn't noticed before. Walking over, he saw a girl sitting cross-legged on the ground. She wore the same orange jumpsuit as everyone else, and had short pink hair. She looked about his age, and she was really pretty.

"Um, I don't, sorry," Owen told her. "I'm Owen."

"I know you're Owen," she said, smiling a little as if he'd just told her a joke. "I think the most important question is: what are you doing here? I thought I told you not to come here."

He frowned. "What?"

"I left you a note, remember? It's safer for me to be here," the girl said, slowly standing up. "I really don't get why you came. You've only gotten yourself trapped here, just like the rest of us."

"Right," Owen replied, feeling immensely confused. "Well, now that I came, I guess I'll . . . um, leave, if you could show me the way out?" Yes, that sounded good.

Kara frowned, realization dawning on her face. "Wait . . . you don't know who I am, do you?"

Slowly, he shook his head, giving her a guilty smile.

"That actually makes a lot of sense," she said, letting out a breath. "Wow. I could recognize you anywhere, honestly. I guess my time traveling caused us to meet. The first time I met you was in my past, and now the first time you're meeting me is your present."

"Wait, you time travel?" Owen gasped, too confused to acknowledge the other things she said. Kara simply nodded, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You can get me out of here! I've had the worst day. I'm currently trapped inside a book, my best friend will soon be split in half, and now I'm in a prehistoric era, living inside this jail cell."

Kara stared at him, brows furrowed. "Okay, well that sounds like a crazy day. Kind of unbelievable, though. Except that last part, because we really are being held prisoner in the prehistoric era."

Owen shook his head. "It's true! Okay, I get that it sounds crazy, but it's true. I'll explain everything, I swear, but you need to time travel me out of here. If you just put me back in time, that will give me all the time I need to save my friend and escape this book."

"I can't."

"You can't?"

Kara rolled her eyes. "Owen, do you not see the prison we're in? This place is huge, with no way out. Time traveling is only optional for people with a time watch. With the watch, you can easily go back in time. Sadly, all these prisoners, including me, have been stripped of our time watches. Time traveling is not optional unless we escape, which we can't do. Believe me, I've tried once. The only people who get out of here are the dinosaur wranglers and hunters."

"Dinosaur hunters," Owen repeated. "I've heard that before . . . from that really intimidating man who was in my cell a few minutes ago."

"His name is Tobias. We all have to call him 'instructor' and 'sir.' He's one of the instructors of the agency," Kara said, making a face. "Never get on his bad side."

"Trust me, I don't plan to stay long. If we can't time travel out of here, what other ways can I escape?"

"No other way. But if you want to get out of the joint and be outside, you can become a dinosaur wrangler or hunter and explore the jungle, hunting for dinosaurs." Kara looked down, playing with the edge of her sleeve. "The job is dangerous, though. Many people don't come back alive."

"If that's my only way of escape, then so be it," Owen said in a tone that was much braver than he felt. "I have to escape this book before the readers make me get into worse situations than before."

"Book?" Kara asked. "What book? What readers? Is this one of your nonfictional things again?"

Owen sighed apprehensively and walked to his bed, picking up his new bright orange jumpsuit. "I'll tell you the full story . . . maybe tonight or at dinner. But first I'd better get changed into this jumpsuit."

"Ah. I remember when I first tried on that thing. I hated it, and I still do," his neighbor grunted.

He ignored her and changed quickly, setting his dirty sweatshirt, jeans, and socks on the bed, exchanging his white socks for new black ones. His stomach rumbled. Fictional world or not, Owen was hungry. Apparently, he didn't have to wait for dinner long. A ringing sound blared three times across the building, alerting every member that dinner was starting. Every door opened automatically, and Owen stepped out, soon followed by his new friend.

"So," Owen said as they walked side by side through the hall. "What do prisoners do here, exactly? The jobs can't only be dinosaur wrangler and hunter."

"No," Kara agreed, her short hair flying behind her. "There are lists of other jobs you can be assigned to, all which I can't name at the top of my head. First, you have your skills tested with a simulation test. The test will decide your top three job choices, and from there you are free to choose which job you will do. Everyone has to do a job, and we all must work each day for as long as your job requires. Each job is mentored by an instructor, who teaches you the basic skills before sending you on your own."

He groaned. "This'll take up more time than I realized. This entire stupid thing is delaying me from saving Bethany."

She glanced at him. "Bethany? I remember you talking about her. Is she your girlfriend?"

He felt his face go red. How embarrassing. This was even more embarrassing, now that he was trapped in a book with hundreds of people reading. He hoped no one he knew was reading this. "What? No! She's my best friend, and she's in danger from this guy named Nobody —"

Kara placed a hand on his shoulder, which felt both comforting and strange at the same time. Her eyes were sympathetic as they stared into his. "Hey, it's okay, Owen. I promise I will try to help you with whatever problem you're fighting. For now, lets get dinner and you can tell me your whole insane story from start to finish."

Just like that, he found himself relaxing. "Okay."

He would find Bethany someday. He felt it in his heart. But for now, he had to fill his empty stomach, prepare for a simulation test, and find out how the heck he was going to escape this place.

"This is how we rise up. It's our resistence, you can't resist us. Are you listening?"

A/N - Ok so basically the only reason this is so different from the actual Pick the Plot book is because I wrote this chapter before I read the actual book, so now I'm just going to continue with my own plot, but I'll still have it loosely based on the book. If you enjoy my story, please don't be afraid to leave an encouraging comment or just any of your thoughts/ideas about this chapter! To the people who have posted reviews - thank you! You all make writing this story worthwhile!