A/N: Hello Everyone! Long Time, No Chapters! Well, I Know I've Been On Hiatus For A Few Months, But I Went On FanFiction On A Whim Last Night And Realized How Much I've Been Missing Writing For You Guys. So, Here I Am Again With A Brand New Chapter. Hopefully This Time, I'll Finally Finish This Story. Enjoy And Please Review!
Caged, Chapter 10: Preparation
...Shi...
I eyed the counselor incredulously from across the recreation room. She scanned the space periodically, making sure we all played nice. Her sunshine yellow uniform made it difficult to look at her for more than a minute, but I forced my eyes to stay glued to her. I glanced at Sasuke from the corner of my eye. He sat at the opposite end of the room with three other boys that I suspected were his recruits, eyeing the clock just as intently as I was eyeing Ms. Sunshine. It was almost time. Just as Sasuke stood from his seat, a violent shriek ripped through the room.
"I can't take it anymore!" a boy screamed in sheer terror, knotting his hands in his white-blonde hair. "They won't stop! Just make the voices stop!"
For a moment, I was paralyzed in shock. I glanced over at Sasuke, his face twisted up in a confused grimace that I was sure mirrored mine. We agreed that Sasuke would throw a fit to distract the counselors so Lucy and I could sneak out and find a way into the medication closet. But, this kid bit the bullet instead and served as an even better distraction since it took nearly every counselor within a hundred foot radius and three shots of sedatives to calm him down. Lucy and I slipped out of the recreation room and down the hall, flattening our bodies against the wall to avoid being seen by the cameras.
"Be my look-out," Lucy mouthed, her stormy irises darting around suspiciously.
I nodded and slithered back toward the recreation room so I had a perfect view through the long windows in the doors. If anyone was coming, I'd be the first to know. My heart hammered wildly against my ribcage and blood pounded behind my eardrums. I could've sworn my heart was going to explode if she took any longer. The excitement in the recreation room was beginning to die down; they had the boy completely doped up on sedatives and were lifting him onto a stretcher. Suddenly, something nudged my arm. I whirled around to be met with a grinning Lucy.
"Did you get it?"
She nodded and proudly patted the stuffed bear she never went aywhere without. "They never suspect the bear."
...
"Good work," Sasuke nodded in approval, smiling down at Lucy's bear. "Very clever. They'll never look at the bear."
Lucy grinned proudly and scratched behind the bear's ears. The eight of us sat at our own little table in the middle of the cafeteria; sitting away from everyone else would look too suspicious. We all picked at our less-than-desirable lunches as we discussed the next phase of our plan.
"Now, we need weapons," Jesse suggested, excitement twinkling in his eyes.
"Weapons?" I looked nervously at Sasuke. "Weapons for what?"
"In case of emergency," Sasuke reassured, noticing the panic on my face. He seemed surprisingly calm considering we were now talking about possibly murdering our counselors. A shiver rippled through my body. "This isn't just a rebellion, Shi. This is going to turn into an all-out war and we need to be prepared."
"To fight, not to kill," I could feel the panic rising up in my throat like bile. I swallowed hard and attempted to compose myself. "I just don't think we should go that far."
"C'mon, Shi," Gwen sighed. I could almost hear her eyes roll in her head. "Are you a kitten or a tiger?"
"Meeeeow!" Zack added with a chuckle.
"I'm not a kitten!" I huffed, shoving a forkfull of unidentifiable meat in my mouth. I guessed it was some kind of pork from the fatty texture.
"Then prove that you're a tiger," she challenged malevolently.
"How?" I wondered. Nervousness bubbled in the pit of my stomach. Gwen's an arsonist who locked her family in their rooms and set the house on fire; her idea of proving myself and my idea of proving myself were very different.
Gwen pursed her lips for a minute in thought. "Go on the weapons mission with the boys,"
"I can do that," I smiled, breathing a sigh of relief.
"But," she continued. An ominous smirk danced across her lips as she spoke. "you're going to be the one to go in and get them. Alone."
A hush instantly fell over the table; I knew this wouldn't be good.
"Gwen," Lucy gasped. "going there alone is suicide."
"She won't be alone," Gwen corrected her. "The boys will stand guard while she gets them."
"But you know who she's dealing with-"
"Shut up, Lucy," Gwen snapped, her fiery curls boucing wildly around her shoulders. "She's doing it. Right, Shi?"
I gulped and scanned the table. Everyone's faces were frozen in a mask of concern - even Sasuke's facade faltered. I sucked in a shallow breath and slapped on a confident smirk that matched Gwen's. "Of course."
...
We all decided to wait a few days before attempting the weapons mission; the counselors were on high alert after the latest episode. Rumor had it that a kid by the name Roman was a master of weaponry. It was said that he could make a weapon out of anything, thus the reason he's been locked away in solitary confinement for as long as anyone can remember. This kid was a legend and no one seemed to know if he actually existed or not, but he was our best shot. Sasuke, Jesse, Shawn and I were chasing a ghost for the slightest chance in hell of getting out of this place; we really must be crazy.
We all met in the emergency stairwell under the cover of nightfall to execute our plan. We were told to bring any sharp objects we could get our hands on if we wanted any sort of help from Roman, so the four of us descended into the basement with our pockets filled with stolen goods. My heart thumped louder with every step I took down the dark corridor, thoughts of what could go wrong plaguing my already distraught mind. No one knew anything about this kid and I was about to go into a dark room with him alone. He could have his own weapons in there with him and be preparing to kill me at this very second. I swallowed hard and tried to focus on something, anything else.
"You know you don't have to do this," Sasuke whispered, shoving his hands through this hair. "You're the alpha female. If anything, Gwen should be proving herself, not you."
"You sound worried," I raised a brow at him. He instantly flushed scarlet and put on his usual cocky mask, but said nothing more. "I'll be fine. Let's hope this Roman guy as a thing for brunettes."
"Just don't get yourself killed," Shawn chimed in. "I hear he's got a short fuse."
"Thanks," I threw him a poisonous glare. "That helps a ton."
"No problem," he chuckled with a strangely sexy wink.
The rest of the descent was quiet, the only sound being the erratic beating of my heart. My stomach overflowed with anxiety; it took everything in me to hold down my dinner.
"Looks like this is your stop," Jesse nodded toward the door to the basement. "Empty your pockets."
The others complied and shoved every last fork, pen and pair of scissors into my pockets until my jeans were nearly falling off. I swallowed around the nervous lump in my throat and took a step toward the door, my pulse pounding in my ears.
"Wait," Sasuke put a hand on my shoulder. "Do you remember the saying?"
I nodded and forced the corners of my mouth to turn upward into an uneasy smirk. "Yeah, try not to look so worried."
And with that, I plunged into the dim hall.
...
I rattled with every step I took, every piece of metal in my pockets clicking and clacking against each other; it was impossible not to hear me coming. I held my breath as whispers rose out of the solitary confinement cells, filling the hall with ghostly voices.
"She's here,"
"She actually made it?"
"We've been waiting for you..."
I stopped in what seemed like the middle of the hallway and steeled myself. "A war is upon us and I'm looking for a warrior named Roman. We need thy help." I recited, hoping I'd said it right. It was also rumored that Roman would only see someone who said the saying correctly and although it wasn't a difficult saying to remember, you'd be surprised how easy it is to forget something when you're scared for your life. It was defaningly silent for a moment, the atmosphere getting noticably heavier with each passing second.
"I've been expecting you," a phantom voice floated out of a cell all the way at the end of the hall. "Come, my dear, speak to me."
"Are you Roman?" I asked tentatively as I made my way to the very last cell.
"Sometimes," he replied thoughtfully. "For tonight, I am he. How may I be of assistance, Shi?"
My blood instantly ran ice cold in my veins. "How do you know my name?"
Roman laughed lightly. "My dear, Shi. The walls can hear everything you and I say, it's just a matter of knowing how to listen to them. Now, what do you require of me on this fine evening?"
"I need weapons," I answered, attempting to camoflauge the fear in my voice. I wiped my palms on my jeans. "There are eight of us who are leading a revolt. I brought these for you," I pulled out a handful of forks.
"I see," Roman said carefully. "Send them through."
I complied and slid everything I had through the slit used for meals.
"Very good," he hummed in approval. The soft clinking of metal could be heard beyond the thick door. I guessed he was inspecting the loot. "You have done well, Shi."
"So, can you make them?"
He laughed again. "Of course I can, silly child. I will send you a message when they are done."
"How will I recieve this message?" I wondered confusedly. He was locked in a metal box; how could he get anything anywhere?
"Listen to the walls," he whispered almost inaudibly. "They will tell you all you need to know. Goodbye, Shi."
Then, it was silent.