Chapter 2: Bulletproof Heart

[BLACK TRANSMISSION]

I've always wanted to run away.
Not because of the Killjoys, I know we're the good guys. Just because I'm sick of this world. Of humanity. Of the way we have to live, hidden away. It's all because of this Korse guy of course. He was once a Killjoy, the traitor. Now he hates us.

My name is Black Transmission. I'm a Killjoy (a girl), and I live in Killjoy zone 2. You see, there are different Killjoy zones, where we live. They're camps. The kids, like me, get Killjoy training, which means you learn how to survive and how to defeat enemies and stuff. The adults do everything to help us survive. They look for food, they kill enemies. It's the way the world works. Well, it's the way our world works. Because the people in the city, they live in a different way. They always have enough food and safety. They don't need no training, because they ain't being threatened. We are, though. We have a hard life.

The worst thing of all: we're stuck here. We ain't allowed outta the zone till we're 18. That sucks, 'cause I'm 15. I still have to wait three bloody years. How will I survive? I want to see the damn world, not be stuck here!
I ain't got many friends. In fact, I don't think any of the other Killjoys really calls me a friend. They always wonder why I ain't never laughing. I always say "I'm not okay". 'Cause it's true. We're doomed anyway, ain't it? How can we ever beat Better Living Industries? I know they say the four fabulous Killjoys; Party Poison, Kobra Kid, Fun Ghoul and Jet Star can beat them, but if so, why haven't they already? I ain't never seen them. It's said they're always travelling, fighting enemies. Only sometimes they stop to rest in one of the Killjoy zones. That may be so, but I've never seen 'em here. The other Killjoys sometimes pretend to be the four fabulous Killjoys. They pretend to kill Korse. I never play with them, their silly games suck. Out there is the real world. But we ain't part of it.

'Black Transmission!' One of the other kids came into my shelter, where you could always find me when I wasn't having my Killjoy training. 'Training starts!'

'Sure, I'm comin'.' I got up and go outta my shelter. I walked towards the training grounds, where my teacher and the other students were waiting. 'You're late – again,' my teacher, Scar Crosser, said sternly.

'Whatever,' I mumbled. He pretended not to hear me, and started with the lesson. 'A few weeks ago I began teaching you how to use your laser gun. Have you all got your gun with you?'

Of course I had my gun. I got it outta my pocket and showed it to my teacher. 'Very well. See those dummies?' He pointed to a row of dummies a few meters away. 'Try to shoot them! I'll walk around and correct you if you do something wrong.'

I started shooting, even though it was kinda pointless. I knew I was much better than the others, who could hardly hit a dummy even if it was right in front of them.
'Well done, Black Transmission,' Scar Crosser said approvingly. 'You're already very good at this, aren't you?'

I shrugged. 'It's really easy.'

'Some of your classmates seem to have more problems with it,' he said.

Yeah, well, they suck, don't they? I thought, but I didn't say nothing. I'd gotten in trouble before because I said something insulting.

'Okay!' the teacher called. 'Let's go to the next subject, running.'

'Why do we need to learn that?' a stupid kid, Heartache Aftermath, said.

'Because you gotta be able to do that too, sunshine,' I said. 'Especially you, since you suck at fighting.'

'What? You filthy –' Heartache Aftermath started to say, but Scar Crosser cut him off. 'Black Transmission, stop that. And Heartache Aftermath, I don't know what you wanted to say, but I don't think I want to know. Anyway, running is very important. You can't always win.'

He refused to say any more, and went on to explain what we were going to do. I didn't listen, because we'd already done this a hundred times. We just had to run laps, and every lap the slowest runner had to sit on the side. That way, you had to run long and fast. I wasn't worried. I was always one of the last to stop running. Heartache Aftermath, on the other hand, sucked at running. I grinned at him. He showed me his middle finger.

After the training, I went home. It had become evening, and my parents were back home. The rest of the day they were always busy looking for food. The evening was the only time of the day that I could see them. I hated the fact that they didn't have much time for me. But I understood why: we had to survive. That was the essence of the Killjoys.

After having eaten dinner, I went directly to bed. There was no need to stay any longer, as conversations with my parents would become awkward. I wasn't much of a talker.
I closed my eyes, and talked to myself softly until I fell asleep. I had a strange dream.