Hunter. Sydney Robinson
table and turned to the board to begin to write information down. He wrote the number 82 on the board, along with several other names and locations (quite possibly of corresponding outpost). When he was done, he turned around to see if anyone had come up with the answer.
Jaroslav’s steel-blue eyes circled the room behind the glasses he had to wear now that he was getting on in the years. His once sharp marksman eyes were now developing astigmatism that caused his distance vision to falter; it was why he was no longer in the field and instead teaching history. As per usual, the only student with a hand up was Chase, ever eager to prove his knowledge of pointless trivia or more to the fact that he was hoping to be placed as a Seeker when all the training was over with.
Jaroslav nodded in Chase’s direction as a sign that he should answer, and within a second, the boy spat out something of a response. But Angel had lost interest. In the front of the classroom, something else had drawn her attention. Ashlee, whom Angel had never noticed was in this class before, was passing notes to the girl in front of her.
“Angel, what outpost do we reside in?” Jaroslav asked, distracting Angel from seeing who ended up with Ashlee’s note. Her attention shifted back to the front of the room, and she blinked several times, hoping to stall out the question, without admitting that she hadn’t really been paying any attention. Searching for an answer, she glanced up at the board and the number 82 on it. Before she could respond, Jaroslav spoke again.
“Right, I understand that all this seems pointless to all of you who do not wish to move on to the rank of Seeker, but this is information that could be useful. And while listening to me lecture is not something you would really care to do, it is your responsibility as a student here to retain this information. Failing your practicals outright to become an Elite is not an option.”
Michael, a boy who sat next to Chase at the front of the room, raised his hand in question. When prompted, he asked, “So what is the determinant for our placement? High test scores get us placed with the Seekers, high combat scores are Elites, so does that make a Guardian just someone who is okay in both?”
Jaroslav sighed and looked at the group. “Your future is decided by the Council in this outpost. Of course, your test scores are taken into consideration to find the best fit, but sometimes an individual shows promise elsewhere and is placed in the group where they’re most needed.”
Jaroslav continued to talk, but once more, Angel’s attention was drawn to Ashlee. The note was back in her hand, and she was smiling at it. From where she was sitting, one row up, Angel could read the last comment of the page. “I’ll explain everything tonight,” it read. And the note was passed along again. And this time, Angel was able to see that it was Kelly who was reading it. The said girl turned slightly to look back at Ashlee and nodded, smiling at her, and mouthed “Thank you” before looking back toward the front of the room.
Angel attempted to erase the information from her mind. What was going on? Why were two individuals now acting out of character? The goal of the academy was to remove the need for emotions in your life. The Hessian’s were the balancing force in the world that kept everything running smoothly; they had been since the dawn of recorded history and would continue to be until the collapse of civilization. It was a careful balance of Seekers, who created the laws and studied the patterns of the world; Elites, who maintained order of the law and made sure everything operated correctly; and Guardians, who blended in with society to help keep their existence a secret to help keep the peace. Emotions made things messy. It clouded judgment and logic, and it made doing what needed to be done complicated. So then why were Recruits now showing emotion? Had this been going on the whole time and Angel hadn’t noticed?
It was only after dinner that evening that she realized the problem with the whole situation—she was caring about the welfare of her fellow Recruits. She was showing emotion as well.
Chapter Three
The fire had started again. Over the roar of the flames that threatened to overtake the entire building, Angel could faintly make out the pounding of her own two feet on the tiled floor, and then a second set joined hers. Angel ran faster down the halls, hoping to escape the individual who had done this. She didn’t know who the person was who started the fire, but what she did know was that they were now after her.
The hallway before her seemed to stretch on for an eternity, and Angel was finding it harder to breathe with all the smoke in the air. She began to cough as the oxygen level dropped. She knew she didn’t have much time; she needed to find an exit. Angel raced down endless hallways, but there seemed to be no doors anywhere. She was lost and panicking, and that was never a good combination for the mind, especially when there was little time to think.
A flash of light drew Angel’s attention to her left, where she found a door. With an exclamation of happiness, Angel ran for it, thanking whomever was watching out for her for stopping her from running past the door. She grabbed the handle and pulled on it to open it. But the door wouldn’t budge, and she slammed her shoulder onto the door in hopes of breaking the lock and getting into the room. When that failed and she realized the flames were getting closer, she was about to opt out of the door decision when she heard the sound of footsteps coming down the hall toward her. Angel began to panic as she slammed her shoulder again onto the door.
After several attempts, Angel fell through the door and slammed onto the floor. The little air that she had been breathing was forced from her lungs on impact, and she gasped for air, thankful that the air lower to the ground had less smoke and more oxygen. Angel crawled along the floor, hoping that she could go unnoticed by the person chasing her. Her hopes were dashed when someone seized the back of her shirt and hauled her to her feet.
“Keep running,” a male voice cut through the deafening sound of the flames (which she noted were growing ever louder) and caused her to look up. When Angel got to her feet, under her she found she was looking into the coldest pair of blue eyes she had ever seen. She could feel her heart racing and tried to scramble away. Somehow, the person who lit the fire ended up in front of her. Angel turned to run, but a figure was blocking the door.
“This isn’t going to work,” the voice said. It was muffled, as if passing through a voice enhancer. The man behind her spoke again, and Angel turned to try to hear him better, but it didn’t help. And the minute she did so, the one behind her struck her in the head with something. Angel collapsed to the ground, and her vision went dark.
Angel’s eyes snapped open, and she struggled to control her breathing as she lay in the darkness of her room. The nightmare never seemed to leave her mind at night. It would replay over and over again until morning, when she would wake up and then go about her day to repeat it again. She closed her eyes, hoping the pain behind them would lessen. This was now twice in one day that the migraine had showed up to pester her. Angel sighed and was about to move when she heard quiet voices. Slowly she turned her head and searched for who was speaking.
“And you think he can help me?” Angel’s eyes widened when she heard the sound of Kelly’s questioning voice. The rustle of clothing alerted Angel to the fact that people were moving.
Another voice replied to Kelly’s, “Of course, he can. Scott can do anything, and he knows we are coming. After that, we can leave the Hessians behind and go to people who won’t try to kill you like they did Elika.” It was Ashlee.
“But will this really work?” Kelly asked. “I mean that…well, if he can’t, then this could be a really bad idea.”
“All the Guardians are in bed at this hour, and the Elites are long since asleep. I mean, who would be awake at this hour?” Ashlee continued.
“Why are we awake at this hour?”
“Because we have no other time to sneak out.”
“But why would we need to sneak?”
“Because…just trust me okay. If they find out, there will be trouble. The location is on Benedict Street. It is the small shop called Read-eez,” Ashlee spoke as footsteps could be heard leaving the room.
When the door shut, Angel raised