"To the two magnificent warriors by my side," Kylie toasted Alex and Lucas with her glass. Lucas had managed to win his fight against one of the Erudite girls as well, which the three of them were now celebrating with a big slice of cake in the canteen.
"We definitely need to catch up with a proper celebration on Saturday!" Kylie was fortunately fully recovered by now and bubbling over with energy.
Actually, Alex had planned to maintain her contact with Tess, one of the nighttime staff in the control room on the weekend, to take a look at any changes in the surveillance cameras. But at the sight of Kylie's radiant smile, she just smiled tightly and turned back to her plate.
Kylie and Lucas won their second fight, while Alex dropped to the floor after a few punches for precaution's sake and tried to look faint after Eric had examined her attentively over the last few days and pitted her against the previous top student, Jason.
In general, she noticed Eric eyeing her quite often, but then had to admit to herself that she only noticed it because she was eyeing him at least as often. However, she always had the feeling that he was looking straight through her charade.
The next few days of training flew by. In the morning they were woken up by Four, did a lap around the lake, trained, had lunch, continued fighting and training, had dinner and then dropped into bed with aching limbs - the other initiates at least. Alex, on the other hand, slipped noiselessly out of the dormitory after everyone had fallen asleep, patiently waited for the right moments on the surveillance cameras and trained in the secluded gym for another two hours.
As the initiation progressed, the motivation of some initiates to stick to the rules significantly decreased. One night one of the Candor girls had gotten into a fight with a Dauntless member in one of the bars and was still in the infirmary the next morning.
"Next one to break a rule gets kicked out," was all Eric had to say about it in training the next day.
Alex wasn't sure if he was already in a bad mood before entering the training room or if it was caused by the rather mediocre performance of the initiates. One thing was for sure though, under these conditions the training was pure torture. Eric didn't seem to have any other activities planned today and spent his day tearing down the initiates one by one.
The irritable mood had spread to the initiates over the course of the day and most of them fell into bed exhausted after dinner. Although the training had certainly taken more out of her than usual today, Alex still made her way to her secret gym at night. But when she arrived in the right corridor, exhaustion took over and she finally slipped into one of the empty rooms and fell into bed there.
When the alarm clock went off next to her, she actually felt much fitter again. This rest did not last long, though. More precisely, until she re-entered the common dormitory, which to Alex's horror was completely empty.
The initiates must have been taken away for something. Alex cursed herself. In her frustration, she almost overlooked the note lying on her bed.
War games in the Geider district
Kylie
The note still in her hand, Alex stormed out of the dormitory and headed for the tracks. When she reached the stairs, she could already hear the squeaking of metal. Just as she reached the track, the last person jumped onto the train. Her feet almost flew across the tarmac. She would not miss this train. She would not be thrown out of Dauntless just because she had missed a stupid train.
The train slowly picked up speed again, only one carriage was still level with the platform. Her lungs were burning. Just before the train left the platform, Alex threw herself at the handle mounted outside the door.
"Alex!", Lucas beamed at her from the doorway and offered her a hand.
Her feet missed the small landing outside the door, however, and so she slipped off. By the time she had stabilised her grip and was ready to heave herself onto the train, Eric was blocking her door.
"You're out," he stated dryly.
"Excuse me?" Alex was completely out of breath.
"I told you the next person who breaks a rule gets kicked off. You can jump right off at the factionless." With those words, he pulled the door shut in her face.
Alex blinked irritably at the grey sheet metal in front of her. Then she shook her head briefly and pounded on the door.
"You're joking, right? You can't kick me out just because I couldn't sleep and went for a walk!"
"Rules are rules. From 10 o'clock onwards, initiates have to be in their dormitory on nights before training days," Eric's muffled voice sounded through the door.
"You can't kick an initiate out for something like that!"
"I can and I will."
"Asshole."
Alex's blood boiled in her veins. This was not how her dream of Dauntless would end. The train was picking up speed and by now the headwind was really whipping her in the face. Gripping the handle tightly, she looked at her surroundings, checking if she could perhaps pull open the door or climb onto the roof and from there reach the next open door. At that moment the wires above the roof flashed white as they came into contact with one of the posts. If she didn't want to get grilled, she probably had to find another way. Her hands grew stiff while her mind was racing.
She couldn't think of anything. Her mind kept running through all those different scenarios in her head but nothing seemed to work. She tightened the grip around the handle. She wouldn't give up either. She would just have to wait out the ride here. The wind tugged at her clothes and diminished her hopes of arriving safely at the scene of the war games. At the latest during the crossing of the big river, Alex clung to the train with everything she could spare.
Only when the train slowed down the next time did she regain hope. It was the exit and entry point for the Candor neighbourhood. A wide green strip on which one landed softly and had enough space to adjust one's speed to that of the train. Alex reviewed her options again but made a quick decision as her fingers stiffened in the wind. As soon as the grass verge was within sight, she jumped off. Her stiff knuckles protested at the impact, but she could afford no rest. Instead, she sprinted off immediately, her sight set on the nearest open door. Thanks to the reduced speed of the train, she actually just sped past the carriage to her side. After only a third of the green strip, she successfully heaved herself through the open door at the other end of the carriage.
A Candor girl shrieked in surprise, but Alex didn't care. With rattling breath, she leaned against the cool sheet metal and let her gaze wander through the crowd. After a few seconds, she found what she had been looking for. Eric looked up from his tablet with his eyebrows drawn together.
"I'm not leaving Dauntless because of a little walk." Despite her uneasy breathing, her voice was loud and clear.
Alex couldn't interpret his gaze, she just knew he was staring at her for half an eternity.
"That's not for you to decide."
"Maybe I should though. Better decisions would be made for Dauntless."
"For Dauntless? For Dauntless, you're nobody right now."
"For Dauntless, I am unimagined potential."
Eric laughed.
"Well, with so much arrogance, this should be entertaining. I'll give you another chance." Before Alex could breathe a sigh of relief, Eric turned his attention to the rest of the group.
"Initiates! We will arrive at the Geider quarter in a few minutes. There we will go through a new form of training with you today. For these war games, you will be given these weapons." He pointed first to the rifle in his hand and then to two fully packed bags on the floor. "These weapons were created specifically for simulation games like this."
The pain caught her completely off guard. Before Alex could react, Eric had already shot her thigh. She winced but managed to stay on her feet. For this, she earned a disapproving look from Eric and an appreciative one from Four.
"These weapons simulate real gunshot wounds. So for about two minutes, a shot will feel like a real gunshot wound."
Alex felt the uncertain looks from her fellow players but was too busy trying to keep the pain in her thigh at bay and not fall over.
"The object of the game is to capture the opposing team's flag and return it safely to your own base. There will be two teams. Alex," at her name she looked up through clenched teeth, "against the rest."
"What?!"
Eric stopped in front of her with a wry grin in his eyes.
"If you win, you can keep proving yourself. If you lose ... well, the factionless quarter is right around the corner."
"I have to beat all the other initiates just to stay in the Dauntless selection process?" she asked incredulously.
"The other initiates, Four and me." His voice sounded so confident. Alex clenched her hands into fists.
"So I have to defeat dozens of initiates and two of Dauntless' best fighters and in return, I get the gracious chance to still be kicked out of Dauntless in a few months?" Alex sounded stunned.
"You're lucky you're even getting another chance." Eric folded his arms in front of his chest.
"It's not really a chance if there's no hope of winning, is it?" Angrily, she stared back at him. Eric had turned back to his tablet.
"You might as well give up if that's more your style."
After all, if he'd wanted to challenge her with that, to tease out the something she'd been trying to hide since the beginning, maybe the anger in her wouldn't have bubbled up like that. But there was no challenge in his eyes, there was just boredom. He wanted to humiliate a lost cause, have some fun before she would inevitably end up with the factionless. The bottom line, however, was that he didn't care about her at all. This realisation hit her harder than she would ever admit.
One deep breath and her fists loosened. A second deep breath and the fog of anger and frustration in her mind settled.
"Why such a low stake? Let's make it a little more exciting. If I win, I get to stay with Dauntless. No matter how I do in the initiation, I get a lifetime place as a Dauntless member." Her voice was suddenly sweet as honey.
"A firm assurance of a place in Dauntless? Oh yes, minimising the risks, the Erudites have always liked that. I don't know if your idea right now really proves Dauntless material. I can still let you go without any chance, I think you forgot that, little Erudite."
She snorted heavily at the salutation after her old faction. Then she closed the gap between them, glanced past the ice-blue eyes and whispered in his ear so only he could hear, "Then you won't learn anything about your old friend's whereabouts, though. If I'm informed correctly, you've been longing for a reunion with Jack for a long time."
With a small smile, she watched his neck muscles tighten. There it was. Her secret weapon against Eric. Played out so early. If she was kicked out of Dauntless, though, she'd have no use for it anyway.
"If I win I will be Dauntless, no matter what. If I lose, I'll take you to see your old friend. Do we have a deal?"
Alex stepped back and watched as Eric carefully considered her proposal.
"Fine, if you beat us all and capture our flag first, I hereby assure you a guaranteed place in Dauntless. What your place is at Dauntless, however, will still be determined by the initiation ranking."
Not breaking eye contact, she snatched the blue flag from his hand, which he held out to her. They each grabbed a rifle and some ammunition before jumping off the train in the Geider district.
Eric explained the rules in more detail and then looked at Alex expectantly, so she let her eyes wander over the surrounding houses and streets of the deserted Geider district. She had often used this neighbourhood for her training sessions.
"I don't know my way around here at all. At least give me ten minutes head start to find a good base."
Eric smiled wickedly. "Fine, I'll even give you another hint. Our base will be the Geider Tower. Good luck."
Eric smiled at her victoriously as she adjusted the harness around her shoulder and smiled at Kylie and Lucas. Then she disappeared down the nearest alley. She ran north first, then made a sharp turn and ran straight for the Geider Tower. It was on the market square, so it had a large open area around it. A great place for a base since no one could sneak up on it unseen. The door at the foot of the tower was locked, so to make sure it stayed that way and no one noticed her presence, Alex promptly tied her bringing to her belt and climbed up the façade. At the very top was a half-open viewing platform and on four pillars on the corners stood a tiled roof. The pain in her leg had actually disappeared again and after her sleep tonight Alex heaved herself effortlessly up to the roof. There she huddled against the tiles and prepared herself. Then it was a case of wait and see.
It wasn't long before she heard the voices and footsteps of the rest of the troop approaching. As expected, Eric was giving out orders and positioning people. Sometime later she heard the hatch to the platform below open and two people enter. Ben and a Candor girl.
"You do know what it means that we have been chosen to guard the flag?" the Candor girl asked after they had attached the flag. When there was no reply from Ben, she continued to speak.
"We are currently bringing up the rear. The Erudite girl will never be able to even touch the tower. Our task of guarding the flag is completely redundant. We are completely redundant." A muffled sound rang out. Perhaps she had kicked something with her heavy boots. Ben continued to be quiet and so silence fell over the platform.
Alex smiled. No one thought it was possible that she could even make it to the tower. Fortunately, she didn't have to. When the start signal sounded, she tied her own flag to the top of the tower, then silently crept to the edge of the roof and swung in to join the two other initiates. The two were so surprised by the attack that Alex was able to take them both out within seconds, grab the flag and disappear back onto the roof with it. Less than two minutes had passed before Alex sounded the signal announcing the end of the game.
Then she sat down on the edge of the roof and waved the flag at Eric.
"You haven't taken the flag to your base yet! The game is still on!"
"Actually, I've already done that. If you walk a few steps backwards, you'll see that my flag is attached to the roof of Geider Tower. You never said my base had to be somewhere else."
This time Alex took the stairs down and heard from afar the heated discussion that had broken out among the initiates about the rules of the game and Alex' abilities.
"The door was locked from the outside. How on earth did you get on the roof?" Jason wanted to know as she stepped out of the door onto the square with both flags. Filled with satisfaction, Alex looked around first at Eric, who in return did not dignify her with a glance. Ignoring the twinge in her stomach, she turned her attention back to Jason.
"I climbed."
"Climbed? You almost couldn't reach the high bar the other day and you're telling me you climbed that tower to the roof without any equipment or belay?"
"Are you telling me you couldn't do that without any equipment or belay?"
After some back and forth, Alex decided it was easier to demonstrate that she could climb the tower than to listen to this discussion. By the time she got back to the ground, her audience had fallen silent. Eric still hadn't looked at her even for a moment.
Four finally initiated that another round of capture the flag was to be played, after all, the initiates were supposed to learn something that night.
This time Eric and Four were the team leaders of the two sides.
"Since you lost last time, I'll let you have the first choice." Eric smiled challengingly at Four.
Alex had been unsettled by Eric's reaction, or rather his lack of reaction, at first. Now she was getting angry. He had simply passed over her performance and now he was bantering with Four again as if nothing had happened.
"Very gracious. I choose Alex."
Surprised, she looked up. Then a smile crept onto her face.
She had trampled her plan. Thrown the safety of the midfield overboard. She had just risen to be the most interesting competitor and that within minutes.
Oh, she definitely belonged in Dauntless. With shoulders taut and chin up, she stood at Four's side. Let the others try to get in her way. She wasn't afraid. Eric was right. It was the Erudite way of life, going from one plan to the next, every risk calculated, every possibility considered. That was her old life.
And as Alex stood there waiting to see how the other Initiates were distributed, she vowed to herself that this would be the beginning of a new chapter. A chapter in which she lived her potential, in which she lived herself. A chapter of freedom.
