Chapter 3

Soon they reached the bus, Beth was the last one on. For some reason she will never understand, the only open spot on this new bus that had benches instead of seats, was next to Ander. She looked at him, to see him staring already. The tension between the two was unbearable, and Beth could feel her face burning with not even embarrassment, but rather misery. Instead of sitting next to him and risking the pain she could inflict upon herself, Beth stood, holding on to one of the ceiling handles. While everyone else talked of their crazy run-ins and intense combat stories, the two sat remained in silence. Failing to break eye contact a single time. The lack of words translated to more than she could comprehend. The bus came to a stop and the warriors made their way to the cabins, as she was walking up the stairs, she looked to the other cabin for just a last glimpse of him. That's when she noticed him doing the same. She tried to hide the redness that was spreading like a forest fire on her face as she turned and shuffled into the cabin. It was still so hard for her to accept that this was real. That Ander was there, actually there. she had always wondered what would happen if she'd ever crossed paths with him again. Of course, she never knew what to would expect, but she also wasn't counting on it being anything like this.

*~*

Two weeks later, Beth woke peacefully and in her own timing. Which was not a far stretch from the sirens considering the sun hadn't risen yet. She noticed that the boys in her cabin were still sleeping which was not a surprise. The prior week had been extraordinarily painful. Her and Ander could hardly be in the same room before the uncomfortable silence would make an appearance. After the first few days, he stopped looking at her altogether. She found it harder everyday to be in his presence. On the bright side, no one had died, their tactics had become more solid, and their strategies more thorough. There were very few things that could shake them. However, as they got better, so did the enemies. Ander spoke of this at one of the night meetings that they had started a week prior, he was starting to worry. They were down to five weeks until the end of  camp. Until they would be expected to become the leaders of the Delahonte Army, which is a terrifying thought. The temporary elder leaders that replaced the base leaders before them had since stepped down due to medical and mental strains, and the new base members would be expected to take over. Beth was unsure of what the Quill was thinking, being the leaders of the country, you'd think they'd have a better strategies than letting a group of teenage fighters lead the entire army of the country. If we survive, I don't know what will happen to our families, our friends, nothing will be the same.

Beth quietly put her clothing on, and slipped her bow and quiver over her shoulder just incase. As she walked by the other cabin, she tried her best to look inside for Ander, yet refused herself the indignity of getting embarrassingly close to the window. That was when she decided that her conscious was on overload and continued walking. Beth hiked through the woods until she found the log on which she had reminisced her memories just weeks before, about the boy that she had no idea was even there. Beth sat quietly, looking out over water. Enjoying the peace whose existence that she had seemed to overlook those first few days. As she was looking about the serene waters, she heard twigs snapping.

"I had no idea anyone else knew about this, much less would be up this early to see it." A familiar voice commented softly. She shift her gaze to Ander, his face so much stronger than before. Beth never knew it was possible, but he somehow managed to get even more attractive than the days prior. Her heart raced at the sight of him, and how close he was tossed her stomach around.

"Neither did I, I couldn't imagine anyone else wanting to venture this far out into the woods. I've realized they have no sense of adventure in them." She looked back over the water in silence. "Why hasn't the siren gone off?"

He came forward, sitting on the log leaving distance between them. "Don't think we deserve a day off?"

"Well, I didn't think about it that way."

"Our sirens go off once they start in our direction. I watched them one morning. I snuck out, and everyone thought I had been captured or killed.  What I would give to see the terror on their faces again, when they thought they were seeing a ghost." Beth laughed softly, he was good at easing tense situations. He always had been. The two sat in silence, but he looked at her, and she looked back.

"Why did you tell them to choose me, Beth?"

"I don't need to be a leader, it's safer when I'm not. Besides most of what I know comes from you anyway. It would be foolish of me to be captain when my competition was the one person who taught me what I know." she paused, "I also know you'd prefer it to be that way."

"You've always been a leader, I just don't understand."

"You don't need to understand. I decided." She stared at the water waiting for him to say something, but instead he just kept his silent gaze fixed on her. "What?"

"Nothing." He looked away as quickly as he could, but his eyes soon returned and locked with hers.

Suddenly overwhelmed by memories, Beth retreated back to the cabins in a calm manner without uttering another word. Noticing that everyone was still sleeping, she walked to the Commons Building to make breakfast. As she was washing her hands, she noticed Ander out the window. It was difficult for her to grasp that she had just had an actual conversation with him. It was nothing like she'd imagined. For so long, she feared reuniting with him. She thought she would freeze in terror, unable to utter a single word. But it was nothing like that, she felt more at ease when she spoke to him. For once, she felt as though she was safe. Beth turned off the sink, scurried and opened the door.

"Ander!" He looked at her, his eyebrows raised. "Wake everyone up, I've got breakfast in ten!" He smiled and banged on his cabin doors yelling my message to the sleeping teens. Through the windows of the cabins, I could see the boys moseying out of bed as though they were rising from the dead. Beth laughed to herself as she shut the door and finished preparing a large enough meal to feed seven teenagers. She had finished just in time for all six boys to come barreling through the door. She stood back laughing and watching them act like animals over bacon and eggs, each of them finding some way to mess with her before finding a seat at the dining room table. Noeh and Ander were laughing, as they rushed her way.

"You better eat something, lady. I know you hate breakfast- like most other things- but you hardly ate yesterday." Noeh said as he poked her stomach.

"I guess I am a little hungry." She confessed with a smirk.

"A little? Beth, you can eat more in one sitting than I can in three days. I honestly have no idea how you're so skinny." Noeh teased as he piled more bacon onto his plate.

"Fine, throw me a plate!" And as if he was waiting for a cue, Stievan threw a plate at Beth like it was a Frisbee. She loaded her plate with eggs and bacon and sat at the table with the rest of the boys. "Well, captain," Beth said looking to Ander. "What's our plan?" He glanced at her with an expression she could not identify.

"The plan is to stick together. No man- or Beth- can be alone out there." We laughed a little, "But, seriously, we absolutely cannot risk leaving anyone alone. We are already greatly outnumbered. But, I also think we should make the group smaller, split into groups."

"Split up? Ander, are you out your mind? There are only seven of us. We will get annihilated. Plus you just said we need to stick together. That doesn't seem very 'together' to me." Chaess whimpered, the boys broke out into loud debate. Beth looked at Ander who was obviously looking for some assistance.

"Guys-" The boys continued their chatter, "HEY!" They immediately shut their mouths and stared at Beth. "Thank you. Ander is right. Traveling in such a large group puts us at higher risk of being seen. We should split up. It will make it easier to hide and follow."

"Idea," Quinn cut-in, "Why don't we divide into three groups with even skill sets. Say one group would be me, Noeh, and Stievan. It evens out strong suits. Another team should be Beth and Chaess, and the last Ander and Peitre."

"That's a good idea, that way we have a better chance." Peitre added.

"Then that's our plan. We head out when that alarm sounds. We all know how to fight, so fight like the life of someone you love depends on it. We need to keep our minds focused, distractions are everywhere, and as I understand this isn't easy for any of us. We are not trained killers, we are trained fighters. You all know there is a distinct difference. I'm sure none of you, prior to coming here, had killed a single person in your life. That's because its not normal to go out and kill. What we are doing here is no easy task. But, that's why they chose us. We are seven of the country's strongest young adults. They need us. And we cannot let them down." There was nodding and mumbling in agreement. Beth stared at him, she couldn't help it. She'd spent so much time trying to forget why she was in love with him, but it was that right there. That was it, she thought to herself, Oh, who am I trying to kid? Was in love with? I still I am. I never stopped.

"We need a name." Stievan suggested.

"Yeah! Something intimidating, we can leave our mark better!" Chaess said, we all looked at him.

"Chaess, we are basically a group of teenage murderers, I think the whole intimidation thing comes with us." Quinn remarked.

"Hey, hey, hey," She said, "He didn't say anything wrong. That's what we are going for."

"How about the dolphins? Those things are wicked, they fight sharks and win!" Chaess said with overwhelming energy. Everyone stopped and looked at him as if the poor boy had four heads, one eye, and smelled like rotten eggs.

"Okay, now that-" Beth paused,"-that's what we are avoiding. Nice try though." She added trying to support him.

"How about something like 'The Seven?'" Quinn asked.

"Actually, I like that. 'The Seven.'" Ander said.

*~*

It was about half-way through the day, when the Seven had all decided to carry on like a normal day. For hours they had been remaining in the Commons Building waiting for the alarm, but nothing happened. They left their suits on, just in case.

"Hey, Beth." Noeh said as he approached her.

"Hey, walk with me?"

"Sure." They started walking towards the stables that they had not yet explored. "I saw him looking at you."

"Who?"

"Ander, he looks like he's afraid of you."

"He's not afraid of me, and trust me that is not his look of fear."

"What happened?"

"Ander and I were, well, simply said we were a thing back when were little."

"Well, obviously genius. Don't have to be a rocket scientist to see that."

"Very funny-"

"Beth, tell me, you've never told me."

"Fine, fine. Ander and I had been best friends for as long as I can remember. But the difference between us and normal couples is that we were just kids. Well, long story short just before my thirteenth birthday, also the year I met you, we made new friends. Ander thought the new friend and I had feelings for each other. Which he did, but I did not. Ander, being the person that he is, thought I returned the feelings and after trying to shake the feeling of being replaced. He left. He said goodbye and hadn't spoken to me until the second day we were here."

"Wow, so you broke his heart?"

"In a sense, yes I did. But, it wasn't intentional." She stopped before the sliding door of the stables. "No matter what he thinks, I never meant to hurt him, and I never had feelings for the other guy. I was waiting for Ander to come back, and of course he never did." She turned back to the door and slid it open, flipping the light switch and taking in the view of the ginormous barn.

"That's how he broke yours."

"Yes." She said looking in each of the stalls, and the tack and feed rooms at the end. All empty.

"Did you ever fall for the other guy?"

"No, I never even thought about him. All I could think of was Ander. He did nothing to break my trust, or to even hurt me, but it felt like he did. I felt abandoned and I haven't let anyone that close to me since."

"Beth, why didn't you ever tell me?" He asked, his blue eyes meeting hers.

"I've never told anyone, it still hurts me, and it's a little embarrassing that I am so desperate and heartbroken over a relationship that happened before I even knew what love was."

"You know what love is now-" He paused. "You love him." Beth looked to the ground, then to the ceiling, tears blinding her eyes. She had never realized that another person would be able to analyze that part of her, she thought that she was able to disguise it.

"Everything is different now."

*~*

She sat in that same spot outside of the Commons for hours as the boys had come and gone. But still no siren, fear engulfed every last touch of skin and bone on her body. She thought about the possibilities beyond that siren, what was causing the siren to refuse to blare out its gut wrenching tune. She wondered if they had done something to win, but then again it couldn't have done that quickly, she feared so many things.

"Hey, Princess!" Chaess shouted as he ran to her.

"What? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothings wrong. You just looked all dopey and sad over here."

"Well, okay then." She laughed a little.

"Is everything okay?"

"That's a good question. One that I'm not sure I have an answer to." He raised an eyebrow, perplexed by her answer. "I'm worried about why the siren hasn't sounded. Something seems off, and I'm not sure I want to discover what that something is."

"I'm sure whatever it is, we will figure it out. And-" He stopped speaking as he noticed the delivery truck pulling up to the drop off. "Yay! Deliveries!" He shouted as he ran to the truck. Beth watched as the boys helped the delivery men carry boxes into the Commons. She watched Ander the most, the muscles in his arms expanding at the weight of the objects he was holding. The boys were laughing, and carrying on as if they hadn't been there for the past two weeks of murder and destruction. To Beth, it was amazing. She loved to see the boys meander around as if the world were really a beautiful place. But it's not. And Beth was aware that even the boys knew that.

*~*

Chaess awoke to the familiar sounding of the siren he'd come to hate. In a flash, he was suited and ready to fight with his new partner who was killer. Literally. He'd been observing how she fought in the field over the weeks of battle. He was amazed at how powerful and unstoppable one girl could be. She was the youngest out of all them and yet if she went against even Ander, she would win. Chaess was sure of it. He's was very relieved when they got paired as battle partners. If they ever got into a rough situation, he had no doubt that she'd be the one to recover them.

The bus ride was awfully quiet in comparison to how it normally was. Usually the only quiet ones on the bus were Ander and Beth. Chaess had decided that they were silent because they were the most lethal of the group, and the rest of them used their noise to cover up the fact that they will never compare to the fierceness of those two. The bus screeched to a halt and all seven of the team scurried off the bus like sly little creatures. He saw Beth just ahead of him jogging to the western region of the battle grounds, her and Ander were shouting orders and pointing to different sectors of the battle grounds. Chaess increased the speed of his gait to match strides with Beth. The two nodded two each other and parted from the rest of the group heading directly for their planned sector. Almost immediately, the skill of the partnership was tested as six Dumarian soldiers appeared from the wooded area ahead of them. Beth and Chaess stopped running and pulled their best weapons. Chaess pulled his two swords while Beth pulled four daggers holding two in each hand. The Dumarian soldiers attacked. Chaess sliced the air, yelling and grunting as he sliced a mans chest open and another's throat, returning to the man with the sliced chest for one final blow to the heart. He saw, through his peripheral vision, Beth sending two daggers clear through two mens' hearts. A lethal smile formed on her lips as she flicked a dagger to her left where a man was about to slash her with a sword and jumped onto him to continue her fight. Chaess met eyes with the remaining soldier who looked as though he was about to piss himself. He leaped for the soldier with one sword in the air and the other at waist level and collided weapons with the soldiers. Clashing and banging sounded as their swords met between their bodies. With one swoop of his sword Chaess disarmed one of the soldier's. The soldier, while Chaess was focused on the weapons, kicked Chaess's knee in causing him to fall to the ground. Silence. The soldier stalked towards Chaess who was lying on the ground, hands on his knee. The soldier smiled like a predator and raised a swords to kill Chaess, that was until a dagger lodged into his heart, dropping him to the ground immediately.

"Are you okay to get up?" Beth asked. "Do you need a healer?"

"I'm okay. Thank you for that."

"What are partners for?" She smiled offering a hand to Chaess who stood with her help.

The two continued on through the forest, Beth now using her bow to take soldiers out in the distance and Chaess slicing through anyone who got close. They tore through their sector with vicious calculation and action. They were fearless and unstoppable. It wasn't long before the forest fell silent and the two retreated back to the rest of the group for the night.

*~*

It had been a rough day for everyone. They all had pushed harder than any of the battles before. Ander watched as Beth snuck into the stables, watching her surroundings, attempting to make sure no one was watching as she slipped in the sliding door and pulled it shut behind her. Part of him wondered why she was being so secretive, the other part knew it was better if he didn't. He sat and watched the stable door for hours, worried that she was in trouble or something of the sort. Darkness fell quickly, and in his concern he went to the stables. He found Beth cuddled up in the corner of that stall fast asleep. He smiled, then shook his head. He didn't know how he felt seeing her so peaceful, so- beautiful. Her body moved slightly and her eyes opened slightly.

"Is this going to be hobby for you? Coming to this stall?" He asked to avoid embarrassment.

Startled, Beth sat up quickly and ran a hand through her loose blond hair stained with blood.

"Depends, is it going to be habit for you to come in after me?" She retorted.

"Point taken." He said, unsure of what else to say he slowly turned and started to leave.

"Wait," She said, "Where are you going?"

"To bed, it is night. I sleep during the night."

"Night already?"

"If darkness means night, then yes. Yes, it is night." He said smirking at her.

"Well, I have no intentions of sleeping out here." She said as she brushed debris off of her battle suit.

He decided to wait for her, but he didn't know why. He watched as she brushed pine shavings and straw away from the corner of the stall where she had cleverly hidden her weapons.

"Now why did you do that?"

"You never know what dangers there are. Plus it was more comforting knowing that I wouldn't accidently impale myself with a dagger in my sleep."

He laughed as she gathered the rest of her weapons, together they left the stables and headed back to their cabins. The night was barely lit by the small sliver of light that was the moon. Ander observed the sky, noticing how truly beautiful the night was. He intended on seeing it again.

"Thank you." Beth said softly as she turned to her cabin.

"For what, may I ask?"

"For making sure I was okay." She said with a bashful smile, she seemed almost afraid to speak to him, and when she did speak they were only witty defenses. He wondered what it was like for her. To see him, he wondered if it was anything like it felt for him.

"You're welcome," He said turning away but paused and smiled delicately, "Goodnight, Donoway."

"Goodnight, Rockwell."

*~*

Author's Note

For this chapter and all from this point on, I would appreciate any grammatical fixes along with any critiques and feelings you have on the writing. Thank you!