Three in a half weeks later...
The group of four had found a routine to get up early in the morning, about an hour or two before everyone else, in order to get a head start on their exercises before training. Immediately after the incident involving Avicus, Isabelle had thought that Eric and Four would arrange for matches, but that wasn't the case. Instead it was more combat training, more knife wielding, and more firearms handling as well as a trip to the wall to familiarize the initiates with it— it was where most of them would most likely be working anyway. There was an obstacle course thrown in here and there, as well as tests in endurance, agility, and stealth. Avicus' endless humiliation at the hands of Isabelle, Warsan, and Mattie would have to wait.
Isabelle and her friends had showered, brushed their teeth, and dressed while the rest of the initiates slept peacefully in their cots. Isabelle tied her hair up in a ponytail as the three of them made their way into the training warehouse to get some practice in before breakfast. The rankings had been updated after dinner the night before, but the initiates wouldn't have seen the results until the next morning, like Isabelle had as she entered the training facility.
1. Robbie 2. Durro 3. Kathryn 4. Sido 5. Virgil 6. Nicole
7. Mattie 8. Isabelle 9. Artemis 10. Nikki 11. JD 12. Warsan 13. Vikki
14. Flot 15. Morgan 16. Aldo 17. Mark 18. Aliyah 19. Alexandria
20. Maxine 21. Axel 22. Avicus 23. Jordan 24. Jay 25. Danielle
26. Abigail 27. Shelby 28. Anne 29. Conner 30. Levy 31. Bruce 32. Mia
The truth of what happened a few weeks back in the showers traveled quickly amongst the initiates, transfers and Dauntless born alike. With light shed upon the subject, the ill-feelings that Isabelle and her crew felt towards the black-haired punk was shared amongst the other initiates. Some of the other initiates tried to ignore the situation, thinking that the entire thing would sort itself out eventually. Others actively shunned Avicus, leaving him out of conversations and things of the ilk; but there was a small group of initiates who took it upon themselves to incite as much frustration or anger in the boy as they purposely bumped into Avicus as they passed him on the way to dinner or they would provoke him by talking about him behind his back. Isabelle wasn't sure if that was the best choice of action, but it was refreshing to see that most of her peers had decided among themselves to do something about the situation.
The leaders had also decided to take some action in the matter, precautions mostly. They ordered for at least two guards to provide security inside of the initiate's living quarters; Avicus was ordered to change beds—now he slept in the cot closest to the door in order to have a close eye kept on him during the earliest and latest hours of the day. He was never to be alone, as at least one guard was to watch him intently throughout the day, with the exception of training as Eric and Four would be there to monitor the boy.
They also decided it was the best course of action to keep Avicus occupied with different tasks after dinner to keep him out of trouble. He was ordered to clean the floors, wash the dishes, prepare the kitchen for the next morning—things of that ilk to ensure that he wouldn't be sneaking about and causing more damage that had already been done—all under the supervision of one or more leaders.
Max wasn't happy at all upon hearing news of the incident involving Avicus, Nikki, and Isabelle. He was ashamed that something as severe as sexual assault could happen within the compound, especially among the initiates—the future of the faction. It wasn't the first incident to occur, but Max wanted to ensure that it wouldn't happen again.
Despite it being a few weeks after her attack, Nikki was still weary of him as she tried her best to avoid the boy at any cost. Isabelle, on the other hand, was still choleric with both Avicus and the leaders for their lack of intervention. She was completely vexed, but tried not to allow it to persuade her thoughts or actions, trying to remain focused on her training, as did Nikki.
The four friends stretched their limbs before they did a few laps to warm up; with each passing day, the running and the overall training that Eric and Four had made them endure became easier and easier. Isabelle was now able to keep up with her friends, although she was still the weakest at running. She didn't mind though, she was just happy to be doing so well.
After the laps, they walked one more to cool down before they started to practice hand-to-hand combat on each other. Isabelle and Mattie demonstrated their techniques on each other, throwing punches and dodging them, providing counter attacks to kicks and such. Isabelle even tried practicing the move the learned the other day where she jumps onto her opponent to take them down with her own weight, but Mattie knew of her friend's style and was able to throw the smaller girl onto the floor—ending with both girls laughed at the attempt as Mattie helped Isabelle off of the ground.
Meanwhile on the observation deck above, Eric had walked into the warehouse to make sure that everything was ready for the day's training, as he did every morning during the nearly two-month training period. As he walked in, he overheard groans and the sounds of fists hitting the punching bags—sounds Eric was very familiar with. He stepped towards the rails on the observation deck until he saw the four figures practicing down below in the early morning's dim light.
He saw the tall girl and the dark-skinned boy practicing in the ring as the strawberry blonde observed from the side, mentally taking notes, but the lone brunette who stood at the punching bag caught his attention. She punched, kicked, and dodged the bag, all while repeating her actions. He could see the sweat bead run down the side of her face, her hair swaying from side to side as she continued to hit the swinging bag.
Eric couldn't help it when the corner of his lip curled up in a smirk as he watched her, Isabelle. When she first arrived at the compound nearly seven weeks earlier, Eric hadn't even the girl a second glance. She was just like all the other female transfers he'd seen the previous two years he'd been an instructor—she was so average to him, unnoticeable and mediocre. Watching the girl from above he noticed that everything that he thought made Isabelle ordinary now made her the exact opposite, upon realizing who she was. Now she stood out from the other girls, the other transfers. As he stood watching her from above, Eric noticed that over the past couple of days he couldn't get the girl out of his mind.
Everything about her was so ordinary—her plain brunette hair that was always up in a ponytail, her seemingly average brown eyes, her shorter stature, and her seemingly quiet, submissive demeanor. But as of late, Eric had noticed that Isabelle was becoming a bit more brash and bold with every passing day, especially after winning her first match when she told him off. Of course Eric felt a little disrespected, but later on that night he couldn't resist feeling a sting of amusement that the girl had finally grown a backbone—even if it wasn't much of one.
Eric could remember vividly the result of Isabelle's attack, the image of Avicus passed out bleeding on the floor fresh in his mind. It was then, however, after the other leaders had dragged Avicus' unconscious body to the infirmary along with Nikki, that Eric finally seen all the potential that Isabelle had within her to become a great member of Dauntless, if she were to embrace it. He saw it in her eyes, her beautiful hazel eyes—the fire that burned inside of her after she had beat Avicus to a bloody pulp in the shower room. She wasn't submissive at all, Eric noted; she was just playing the game, playing the role of the wallflower until she saw her opportunity to overtake the opponents who held power. When she would make her next move, Eric didn't know, but he knew it'd be soon, before it was too late. It wouldn't be long before she made a name for herself and Eric was going to witness it firsthand; Isabelle was an enigma waiting to be solved. Eric chuckled to himself before leaving the observation deck.
The four finished their early morning workout only a few minutes after Eric had left, not even notching that the leader had been watching them nearly the entire time—well, watching Isabelle. The transfers went back to their quarters to freshen up before they headed into the dining hall for breakfast.
The rest of breakfast was quiet as the initiates ate or picked at their food. Isabelle was filled with an uneasy sensation of ungodly rage as the images of the scene in the shower a few weeks back plagued her mind constantly, almost never leaving her. Isabelle swore that every time she saw Avicus she wanted rip off his head with her bare hands and make him wish he'd never met her, make him wish he'd never transfer to Dauntless for his own sake.
Breakfast was over with quickly as the four transfers said their goodbyes to Kathryn and Robbie, wishing them luck during training. Eric and Four where already in the training facility and ready to go when the transfers arrived in the warehouse for the day's training. As they entered the warehouse Isabelle's eyes fell upon the scoreboard again to which she scoffed; in order to be kicked out of Dauntless Avicus needed to drop at least six more rankings—and that's if he didn't win any matches or improve in his other skills. It was a stretch, but Isabelle was sure that they could pull it off. If Eric and the other leaders weren't going to do anything about it, Isabelle just had to make sure to take the matter into her own hands.
Her eyes scanned the area to find the black-haired boy— the one who had single handedly caused more distress and irritation than anything else in Isabelle's life... well, that wasn't completely true, but at the moment it was. After a few seconds of relentless searching, Isabelle had spotted him as he stood at the other end of the large group, towards the back so that he could be hidden amongst the others. Isabelle could see the remainder of the black eye and bruises she had inflicted on the bastard from their fight three weeks earlier, his lip was still swollen slightly. It was needless to say that Avicus was not at all pleased with how far he had dropped in the listings, cussing and verbally threatening all those who merely looked at him wrongly with violence. Avicus was nothing short of a child who tried to act like an adult. Personally, Isabelle would've liked to see his rank lowered even more—if she was a leader Isabelle would've made sure that Avicus would've been kicked out of Dauntless for his disgusting behaviors, but this would have to suffice for now. She smirked, but felt that she could inflict more damage on him if she was allowed; all in due time, she thought, a glimmer of something truly malicious reflected in her hazel eyes.
"Ten laps," Eric shouted at the initiates, "before we begin today's matches. Let's move it."
By this time in their training running ten laps only took a few minutes, unlike the half-hour it nearly took them to do in the beginning of initiation, with the exception of the stragglers—those who were sure not to make it past the first stage. The group finished their cool-down lap and returned to the ring were Eric and Four waited patiently.
Four looked down at his clipboard, reading through the paired-up opponents that the two leaders had assigned the night before at dinner. "The first match of the day will be between Avicus and Isabelle."
The brunette nodded as she started to untie her shoes. When she approached the ring, Eric jumped down to stopped her, placing his hand on her sternum. "Change of plans," he said over his shoulder to Four before turning back to Isabelle. Her face dropped when he smirked in turn, "Avicus will be fighting Nikki this morning."
Isabelle narrowed her eyes at the instructor, but turned and walked away towards the strawberry blonde who approached the ring. The brunette stopped her friend, lightly taking her by the arm and pulling her close enough to hear her whispers. "I've been watching Avicus train the past couple of days, his right arm is his dominant one so when he swings for a punch, he'll use that arm. Before he punches, he always blinks twice; wait until you see him blink, then dodge to the left—when you do that, hit him as hard as you can in the throat. He'll be disoriented, so take him out as quickly as you can, okay?"
Nikki nodded, taking a deep breath to settle her nerves.
"Today girls," Eric snapped, the irritation noticeable in his tone.
Isabelle ignored the leader and she smiled reassuringly at her friend, "good luck."
Nikki nodded again as she unlaced her shoes and placed them on the side before jumping into the ring. Isabelle walked back over to Mattie and Warsan, crossing her arms over her chest. Nikki was a strong fighter and adapt to learning how to take control of the situation, so Isabelle knew that she could overtake Avicus.
The brunette glanced up at Eric only to find him simpering at her, so Isabelle glared at him in turn, hoping that he could see how angry he had made her once again. He merely chuckled to himself before turning his attention to Avicus and Nikki in the ring. Isabelle thought it was a low blow on Eric's part to make Nikki face her attacker after what he had tried to do to her, but after thinking about it it started to make sense. This was time for Nikki to extract her revenge on the black-haired fiend. To be honest, Isabelle was looking forward to fighting the boy in the ring, making him bleed and beg for mercy. It would have to wait though, Isabelle thought, the time will come soon enough.
Four announced for the match to begin, his eyes also glued on the initiates. The two stood facing each other, their forearms up in a blocking position as they encircled each other like sharks circling their prey. Avicus jerked towards Nikki, but didn't attack yet. The girl still stumbled back, causing her opponent to laugh.
Nikki didn't care as she concentrated all of her attention on Avicus' face, waiting for him to blink. He took a few steps closer to Nikki, but this time she stood her ground. Just then, she saw it, Avicus blinked twice just before he cocked his right arm back slightly as he prepared to strike. Nikki dodged the punch in the nick of time as she stepped to the left; before he could counter attack, Nikki had already moved in and punched Avicus straight in the neck, causing him to grasp his throat as he fell to one knee from the mere force of the punch.
With him vulnerable, Nikki spun and kicked the dark-haired boy right in the jaw; he fell to the floor, his head smacking hard against the floor as a tooth flew out to land beside his open mouth, blood dripping down from his lips onto the mat below him. Nikki stood in a defensive position as the boy stood slowly, wiping the blood from his mouth. He rushed Nikki in blind fury, only to have her sweep kick under his legs, causing him to fall once again. This time he landed on his ass.
Nikki didn't hesitate to get behind Avicus as she locked her arm around his neck, grabbing her wrist with her other hand as she began to suffocate the boy with her biceps. He tried to reach up and get a grip on the girl's arm, but she used her foot to pin his wrist against the mat in a quick and forceful motion—if he could've, Avicus wouldn't let out a painful scream. His face started to turn red as he struggled in the girl's grasp, but Nikki continued to squeeze with all her might.
"Alright, that's enough." Four said suddenly, getting the attention of everyone in the room. "Nikki wins this match."
Reluctantly, Nikki released Avicus from her hold. He fell forward, only barely able to support himself against the floor as he choked for air, the color slowly returning to his face. The blonde stood and made her way out of the ring, grabbing her shoes and striding over to her group of friends with a satisfied grin.
Eric looked a little taken back at the results of the match, surprised that Nikki was able to take Avicus down in such a short period of time. He glanced over at Isabelle who was smirking at him, her arms still crossed over her chest. He furrowed his brows at her, which only made her smirk broadened. How do you like that, Eric? She thought playfully at the leader.
"Good job, Nikki." The brunette said to her friend as she stood besides her, retying her shoelaces.
"Thanks for that tip," she whispered to Isabelle, giving her a wink, "but I don't think Eric is very pleased about it."
Isabelle scoffed, breaking into a smile, "Eric can go fuck himself. I'm just glad you made it out without a scratch."
"Same here," Nikki laughed. "It felt really good to fuck him up a bit—Avicus, I mean. Did you feel this good when you beat the shit out of him?"
The brunette nodded in agreement, still smiling at the blonde, "More than words could describe."
The rest of the matches went well. Warsan was able to defeat Sido in the fight, which would definitely help him when the new rankings would be posted. Mattie's match ended in a tie against JD, meaning that she would wouldn't move too far in the listing. Eric had deliberately made Isabelle's match against Virgil the very last one of the day, his own little revenge against Isabelle for helping Nikki win her fight.
The brunette almost lost her match against the red-haired beauty, but at the last minute she was able to jump up, wrapping her legs around Virgil's neck as she held onto his knees, using her weight to bring the boy down, wrapping her thighs around his pretty little neck—almost like what Nikki had done to Avicus earlier that day. Virgil conceded before he lost consciousness, resulting in Isabelle's victory and her rise in the ranks. Eric was conflicted with feeling pride in her continuous success and frustration in her newly found rebelliousness.