Chapter Eighteen:

The Barrier

My life has been Hell, Hell, Hell. I remembered that quote as we snuck around the massive school, looking out for any rogue students. I had to admit that, before this, I loved my life. I knew I complained a lot, but my life probably couldn't get any better. I missed the simple things, like mom or dad driving me to school. I missed Jace coming into my room and pranking me by taping saran wrap around my door.

I'd forgotten who'd said the quote, and I didn't know why it was popping into my head, but it suddenly felt like I wasn't the only one suffering through this. There was everyone else, those with me then and those still back at town, hoping and praying for our success.

Speaking of success, I'd been wondering where all the students were. The ones against us. Except for when they'd chased us when we were in the truck, there was no sign of them.

"What the hell's going on...?" Julian muttered. I'd never really known him before now. He was a second-year, who'd been close with Bishop before all this happened. But he was trustworthy and loyal, and someone I could trust easily.

"I dunno," I admitted. "I thought that there'd be at least a few students patrolling."

Nicholas poked his head around a corner and gazed down the hallway. "Clear," he whispered. "We can take the staircase up. James is either in the principal's room, or he's with the barrier. Both of them're upstairs."

I nodded. "Okay, let's go!"

Trish MacGrath

Mina led us through the cellar of the school with a grim determination on her face. She really did look like a leader then, and it felt like we'd be safe as long as she was with us. It was similar to the feeling Kayce had radiated when we'd said our good-bye's, promising to see each other again.

Mina halted us and peeked around a corner. She then signalled for us to back-up, and frowned.

"Three people ahead," she warned us quietly. "There may be more though. And the faculty're tied up here. We have to be quick, but we have to be quiet. We don't wanna get to the truck without everyone else."

Everyone nodded. Vi and I exchanged glances, smiling to reassure each other. Mina hefted two pistols up and readied to fire while everyone else got ready as well.

"Go!" Mina whispered hoarsely.

We jumped out of cover and opened fire. I tried not to look at the students while I pulled the trigger on my assault rifle, but I didn't want to hit any of the teachers. I tried to clear from my mind the image of one of the students falling flat on his back as my bullets carved through her body, but there was no avail. I'd just killed someone.

Kayce Grey

We hurried up the steps until we reached the principal's office. Hoping for the element of surprise, we burst in and held our guns at the ready. No one was inside.

"Damn!" I swore. "He probably is at the barrier!"

Julian took a few steps in the principal's office, probably checking around just-in-case we were missing him.

"I don't see anything," he announced. Julian was striding back to us when he suddenly hit the floor, face-first. I would have laughed, but then I saw the girl on his back.

"Boo," she said, a smirk finding its way to her lips.

Nicholas was the first to react by running over. He looked like he was going to tackle her, but she flipped overtop of him, grabbed his shoulders and launched him back at us. We just barely managed to avoid Nicholas, who slammed into the wall enough for it to break.

I got a clear look at this girl, once Julian had hurried over to us. She looked deranged or insane, and had all sorts of wires and tubes attached to her body. She looked like she'd been experimented on.

She cackled and lunged at us. We opened fire, but somehow she managed to dodge our bullets. Ellie charged forward then at a speed I'd never seen before. That must have been her power.

Ellie matched the girl's speed as they fought, sometimes too fast for us to follow. We ceased fire for fear of hitting Ellie rather than the deranged girl who she was fighting. Ellie finally kicked the girl hard enough to send her through the window.

"GO!" she yelled at us. "I'll cover!"

Julian jumped forward with Ellie. A back-up plan, just-in-case.

We sprinted to the room where we believed the barrier to be. Hopefully, if the students were hiding from us, we wouldn't have given away our position.

Trish MacGrath

I moved to the body of the person I'd just killed. Elise Fitzpatrick. She'd been my enemy from day one of my school life at the Conduit Academy. She'd lost me friends, spread rumours about me, and bullied me, even though she knew I would defend myself.

And I'd just killed 'er.

Mina cut the ropes of the surviving faculty and started to escort them outside. And then he hand was suddenly on my shoulder.

"Trish? Trish, are you okay?" she asked softly.

I hadn't even realized that I'd been crying. It felt so surreal. I'd just taken a life. Was all that Elise had done in her life for nothing? Her life had just ended as easily as you would shut off a TV. She was gone forever.

"C'mon, let's get outta here," Mina said as she wrapped an arm around my shoulders, leading me out of the cellar.

Vi was holding her gun tightly enough to make her knuckles white. She was thinking the exact same thing as I was. We'd both took the killing shot that day.

The few faculty who'd survived were Ms. Thatcher, the VP; Mr. Wallace, the principal; and Mr. Nelson. They told us that they were the only ones. Everyone else had been taken away to be executed, one-by-one.

I cringed at the thought. Was this what we'd have to face from bad guys once we'd graduated? Would one of the villains be a former classmate? I couldn't bear the thought of having to kill anyone else.

"There's a truck near the cellar," Mina said, snapping me out of my thoughts. "You have to get there and be quiet about it. Those three were the only ones we've encountered here, and I don't like it."

Kayce Grey

Learning from our mistakes, this time we opened the door quietly and surveyed the area. It was just me and Nicholas now. I hoped that Julian and Ellie would be okay.

Nicholas gently nudged me away from the door and poked his head in, followed by his assault rifle, and then he disappeared behind it. I followed him, watching my step through the darkness.

The room smelt disgusting and nearly made me throw-up just by how overwhelming it was. I saw Nicholas' form and followed him, step by step, so we wouldn't be separated.

"Finally," came a voice from the darkness. "I was beginning to think you were all too cowardly to fight me."

Bishop. I gripped my gun tighter to stop from yelling my heart out at him. I could see Nicholas tense as he was doing the same.

"A dog and his mistress, finally come to see me." Bishop appeared from behind a large, glowing column of light. It was the barrier. We'd found it, and we'd found Bishop. "It's the way things should be."

Bishop looked distorted, somehow. It was like something was moving beneath his flesh. I rubbed my eyes ferociously, hoping that Bishop wasn't making me hallucinate.

"Kayce, I'm going to give you this last chance," he said. "Join me. Help me destroy the things that hold this world back."

"Screw you!" I spat. "I'll never forgive you for what you've done here!"

Bishop looked downcast. "I'd hoped you'd join me willingly. I hate to force people. Why do you think I had Victoria Stafford recruiting people to my cause? Sad that she turned against me. She didn't want the gift I offered. But you have my gift, Kayce. You have no choice."

What? Bishop, without waiting any longer, turned on a light. All around Nicholas and I were bodies—bodies of the kids in his army. Some had been dead longer than others, and some were in odd positions that didn't seem possible for the Human body.

"You have no choice, Kayce," Bishop repeated. "You're one of the only ones whose body accepted my gift. You're mine."

"Like hell I am you son of a—!" My body suddenly felt weak, and I had to struggle to stay on my feet.

"What're you doing?" Nicholas roared. "Stop it, James! Stop it!"

"Kayce, kill the dog," Bishop said. "Kill him now."

Trish MacGrath

The faculty were waiting in the back of the truck with Victoria, Vi and me. Victoria had sighed for about the fifth time before Vi finally asked her what was wrong. I admit; I'd never seen someone who looked like they were in such turmoil.

"Most of this is my fault," she answered quietly. "I thought that everything was unfair. I believed in what Bishop told me, and I... I recruited more than half of the kids for his cause. Their deaths are on my hands."

I was surprised at first, mostly because she admitted it so readily, but then it gave way to understanding. Victoria was feeling the death of every student, knowing that it was her fault. What caused her to open her eyes then? How did she find out what Bishop really was?

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for any of this..." Victoria hung her head. I got up and moved to sit beside her, and then wrapped an arm around her shoulder like Mina had done with me.

"If we didn't do wrongs, we wouldn't know what was right," I said. "My dad taught me that. My mom lived it. And now I understand it better. You should too. It's not your fault, Vic. They joined, and they didn't see what was really going on. It was their responsibility."

Victoria sighed, but nodded. Suddenly, a large flash of blue light came from one of the windows at the top floor. The barrier rippled, but it didn't go down.

"The barrier..." Mr. Nelson murmured. "What happened?"

"Kayce, Nicholas, Julian and Ellie're going after Bishop and the barrier," Vi told them. "If they succeed, we can get out of here."

Ms. Thatcher put her head in her hands. "Dear God... Why did we not see this?"

"We made a mistake," Mr. Wallace said. "We did what every other teacher does. We expected these teenagers to act like adults, but we treated them as children. It must have driven at least one of them to do this."

The barrier rippled again. I found myself crossing my fingers for Kayce and everyone. I hoped they were all right.