Chapter Five
I wait by the tracks with Eric, waiting for the initiates to arrive. Undeniably, he knows how infuriated I am with him for the stunt he pulled with Peter and Tris. There was never even a chance for her here in Dauntless to begin with. She should have stayed in Abnegation because I can't protect her here. Max said that Eric can decide to cut the initiates at his own discretion, but I hardly find that fair. He will keep the ones that remind him of himself, heartless and cold.
I meet his gaze and for a moment, I thought he was going to speak to me, but then the initiates started filing in. One by one, the crowd of them grows, but still no Tris. I search the crowd for her friends, curios to ask if they have an update on her. The train approaches and I could hear the tracks start to screech as it started whirring by.
Fire. All I felt was fire in my lungs as I broke into a sprint, running alongside the train. I reached out for one of the handrails and pulled myself up. The rest of the initiates followed.
"All right, everybody listen up!" I shouted. "We are going to be divided into two teams. Eric and I are the captains." I scan the crowd and a streak of blonde passes by in my line of sight. It's Tris. I thought she was cut. What is she doing here? Does Eric know?
"You each will be given a gun. A paintball gun, that is. You get shot, you're out. This is the Dauntless version of capture the flag. The first team will get off the train and be given a chance to hide, while the second team waits." Eric says. "I'll do you a favor and let you pick first Four." He says with a smirk.
I scan the room, but I already know who I want.
"I'll take the stiff." I say confidently. I look at her and her face is red. She's blushing.
"Trying to prove something, are we?" Eric asks.
"Something like that." I say. Laughter breaks out upon the train and we continue to pick from the initiates. I can't seem to take my eyes off Tris the entire time. I hope she isn't hurt. I do have a strategy behind this all. Eric will automatically go for the biggest, strongest initiates he can find. What he doesn't realize is that they will be slower, which will leave them at a disadvantage in capture the flag. I picked Tris because she is small, fast, and I just don't want her around Eric.