A punch bag went flying back as Laura Jones roundhouse kicked it. She then punched it repeatedly and then stopped she bowed to the punch bag and walked over to a bench. She tided her blonde hair into a ponytail and put on her glasses her boyfriend Matthew Weeks smiled at her and handed her a bottle of water.

"There you go Laura" he smiled as she took the bottle and took a long drink from it. "Hey I can't wait we finish school tomorrow our final exam and then we are both off to the same university!" he said happily. "Oh sorry you want a towel?" he said apologetically. Laura nodded and caught the towel Matthew threw at her. "Yeah I know I just feel sad it's been five years since you know" Matthew nodded and looked sad her sister Kelly was killed in the first running of the Battle Royale Program since the reform of the FEAR Act one class a week was chosen and it did make students worry but no classes nearby had been chosen for over six months. "Hey lets go for a walk by the lake if you want to it's only seven" Matthew suggested.

"Ok that sounds good." Replied Laura smiling, she had been seeing Matthew for three years and he was a kind and loving boyfriend who would always go out of his way to make her happy. She ran her hands threw his gelled black hair and kissed him.

Meanwhile across town Caroline Stead was busy running along the beach her athletic frame was not to be confused by being muscular she kept a good fit body and enjoyed being healthy she looked at her stop watch she was beating her time. Caroline was fiercely competitive and she knew the exam would seal her place in society as a good citizen she kept on running past her friend Eda Tasan who was watching her run up and down the beach. Eda smiled as Caroline ran past and waved at her. Eda was quite short at 5'3 she had nerdy glasses but didn't let that stop her she enjoyed being a geek but she secretly wished she could have the luck Caroline had with all the boys. "Hey Caz three more times up and down and then we'll go ok?" Eda shouted as Caroline turned around and headed back up the beach.

"Hey Eda!" a voice said from behind her. Eda jumped and then blushed; standing behind her was Tim McClane a blonde haired surfer who was in her class set. Tim was carrying a Boggie Board and was wearing a dry suit he smiled at Eda and

he winked at her which made Eda blush even more. "Have you been revising for tomorrow?"

"Yeah I have it should be ok though I'll do fine though I hope it only three hours long!" she exclaimed with a slight stammer she just hoped Tim didn't notice that she was going shy.

"Three hours you make that sound like a good thing?" exclaimed Tim and then he laughed. "Hey you fancy going to get something to eat after the exam?" he asked hopefully. Eda blushed.

"Ok then"

Daniel St John Smyth sat on his bed reading a book he sighed and then looked over to his bedside table he saw a picture of himself and his brother Max "The Winner" of the original Battle Royale GB since Max had won he had vanished and never returned home he had heard nothing from him at all in five years and he did suffer the stigma of being the winner's brother he tried to remember what his friend James Fairfield had said to him, something in Japanese meaning The Burden Hardest to Bear. Unlike Max James' brother and sister where killed on the island from what he could remember they where killed before the game began to show the students that this was no joke. The sick part of this was his brother had vanished and he had lost his mentor Max had always looked after him when he was at school and made sure no one bullied him. The television was on and it was showing previews of the forth coming Battle Royale 5th Anniversary Special LIVE 12am May 23rd! Daniel turned the television off he never watched the program for very good reasons.

"Hey mate are you going to watch the program tomorrow?" asked Peter Gregor to Bradley Asagba. Greg was a weasely looking boy with ginger hair and bad acne but he was a bully along with Bradley Asagba who he followed around like a sheep.

"I never miss it last program I bet on the eventual winner from the start and won five hundred credits!" he smiled that fit but crazy brunette a good call at 25/1!"

"Lucky fucking bastard!" exclaimed Peter as he lit a cigarette. "Hey what do you make of our year tutor?"

"Fit as fuck! By the way Gregor you need to get laid!"

"Fuck off!" laughed Greg as the two sat on a wall watching people go by.

Matthew and Laura walked hand in hand along the park past the lake it was a beautiful evening the sun was just setting and it was reflecting along the lake. The two seemed perfectly happy it was a perfect evening they saw a figure sitting on a bench starring at the sunset.

"Hey that's the transfer student who joined us at the beginning of the year isn't it?" asked Laura quietly.

"Yeah I think it is Dave Jordan said Matthew quietly as they walked past him. Dave didn't even seem to notice them. He just starred straight ahead smoking a cigarette and playing with a small medallion around his neck. The two rounded a corner "He was in a car crash last year and missed his final exam so he was kept back a year but I haven't heard him say a word to anyone he's a bit of an enigma Miss Hall is the only one from what I have heard is the only one he'll speak to."

Alexandra Polanski sighed as she was reading a book what the exam requirements where needed to pass. She was Polish and her parents had moved to Great Britain after The Party had taken over, she had done very well at school getting placed into the A set of her year last year and she had hoped to study to be a doctor at university. She looked at her clock it read 21.15 she gave a yawn and crawled into bed sleep was welcome it was going to be a long day tomorrow and she just wanted it to be over.

The morning sun shone brightly down on Andy Wainnwright as he walked through the school gates he was early even by his standards. It was eight in the morning and he sighed as he walked past a memorial for the thirty seven students who had died on the island five years ago. The plaque read THEY GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THE PARTY WE HONOUR THEM FOR THIER SACRIFICE.

Andy looked at it sadly his sister Gemma had died in the first ever Battle Royale and she had murdered some of her classmates in the process. He shook his head he had felt so bad about what his sister had done and he did suffer over the past five years afterwards. The burden hardest to bare was a quote he had heard and like Daniel he suffered from it, he guessed the same was true about Laura to. He slowly walked into the school grounds.

"Hey Andy wait up!" called a friendly female voice from behind him. It was Scarlet Wildman a good looking girl with long black hair with two red streaks in her hair. "Hey Andy your here early aren't you?" she asked. Scarlet was a really friendly girl who got with everyone in her class and all of the year.

"So are you Scarlet why are you here?" asked Andy.

Scarlet had noticed that Andy had starred at the memorial and said kindly "Andy its five years since it happened isn't it?"

"Yeah I guess so" replied Andy. "Hey I'm just going to the library just to make do final bit of revision."

"I'll join you if you want me to?" asked Scarlett. Andy nodded and smiled.

Quite soon the outside the sixth form block the students where arriving.

Alice Smith was busy talking to her friend Rachel Prichard. Alice was a stuck up girl who dad was in The Party as a Director of Education.

"Hey you know after these exams my dad has promised me that he will get me a job within the ministry!" She exclaimed.

"Hey Alice there's more to life than a job you have to look on the bright side of it in just over three hours we'll all be free and well I know what I am doing a going for a career in the GBAF." She smiled Rachel smiled. Rachel had joined a as a cadet in the air force and had passed her exams to be a pilot and she knew that she had a great career ahead of her in a few weeks she would leave civilian life and become and become a member of the elite GBAF.

Rachel looked around and saw Chelsea Groves and her two flunkies Tara Fitzpatrick and Hannah Kidman walked past her. Chelsea had a very bad reputation for being a slag she had had slept with at least nine of the males from the year including Bradley and Paul Mouland her two friends where just as bad as they walked past the other students they got quite a few glances from the girls and a few admiring glances from the boys. Chelsea walked over to where Dave was sitting on his own on a wooden bench.

"Hi Dave" smiled Chelsea.

Dave looked up at her and picked up his bag and walked off.

"Hey you are losing your touch Chelsea!" laughed Tara as she walked off.

Sandra Walker and Paul Mouland walked into the corridor Paul smiled at Sandra he was happy that he had finally started to date her and she was a kind girl who made him feel good. Sandra was a nice girl with long blonde hair and a friendly face while Paul was a rocker who played in a band on the drums.

"Hey wait up James!" shouted Carl Black as he ran after his best friend James Walker. James was a geek at school who had single handily had got Carl from having to repeat year twelve at school.

"Ok you lot listen up I want you all over at the examination hall within the next five minutes" called a voice behind them. Miss Andrea Hall walked behind the group. Miss Hall was early twenties she had arrived in September of last year and she was a kind teacher who looked after the year. She was wearing a jacket with a blouse and black trousers. She looked around the sixty students. "Hussle then people!"