We were back on B2, the floor where I was given a concussion and the trainees had been sparring.
Before making our way down the stairs to where the trainees were, I saw one group of ten people sitting on the bleachers. As we walked towards that bunch, they all stood in formation at the ready.
"At ease recruits," Dahlia stated. Everybody changed their stance at the same time. "As you can see, today we have a very special guest with us. She is Mistress's personal pet--"
"I'm. Not." I whispered to myself, apparently louder than I intended because Mia grabbed me by the back of my head. My hands went up to hers.
"Mind telling the squad what's on your mind?" Mia was aggravated now. I grimaced at her grip but didn't answer. "You see, Keira here thinks that she still has a free will and does not belong to Mistress no matter what happens. She believes that she can escape from here and she even tried. Yes, this bitch was the one that managed to stab Mistress's thigh. She got quite far to escaping. Farther than anybody. Gotta give her that. She got punished for it too, but apparently, we have been a little too lenient with our punishment because she is still headstrong. After today, however, I believe her attitude will change though."
"With what Mia said, Keira will be joining us today for training, so I don't want anybody holding back on her behalf. Is that understood?" Dahlia addressed the trainees.
"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" The squad answered.
Mia let go of my hair, shoving me towards the group.
"All right, now give me 10 laps for warmup!" Dahlia ordered the troops.
Everybody set off on a run, while I just stayed behind looking quizzically at them both. Were they expecting me to do this with them?
Dahlia's eyebrow shot up taking in my apparently defiant attitude. "If Keira doesn't finish the laps with you all, then everybody gets ten more laps. If she refuses to partake in any of the activities today, then you all will get double the work." She smirked at me.
What? Is she seriously turning the whole squad against me?
When Dahlia finished her statement, the soldiers stopped running and headed my way. I took a few steps back with my hands in front of me. I don't mind running, it was something different to do here, besides, I needed to exercise, I just wasn't expecting to be thrust into it like this, much less after the beat down I received yesterday.
"I-I'll do it. I'll run." I stammered against the group.
"You'll be running point. If you fall behind, we'll drag you with us." A young blonde female stated. Everybody stood back, forming a pathway for me to walk past them.
I don't have much of a choice. I think some running might be good for me anyway, hopefully, I can bear the pain from the kicks. Running will also give me a chance to focus on myself and not where I am or what has happened.
I passed by the group without directly looking at anyone. I could feel them staring daggers at me. After making my way to the front, I set off running at a comfortable pace. Immediately, I could feel each step tugging at the muscles on my abdomen, but I tried to push through anyway.
My bare feet pounded on the ground, driving me forward with each step. I had already done five laps, managing to keep my breathing and pace steady, but the pain in my stomach was getting unbearable. I was forcefully gripping my sides trying to lessen my discomfort but I was progressively slowing down.
"Keep going, don't slow down." The same woman as before spoke up. "You're halfway there."
I tried to keep going, I really did, but my body was not cooperating.
I felt a hand on my back push me forward. I kept pace with whoever was pushing me for about ten seconds before having to stop, doubled over in pain.
The same person who had their hand on my back told everyone to keep running. It was the same blonde woman as before. She stopped to crouch down beside me.
"You have to keep going. If you don't, things will turn out worse for you. I'm sure you don't want to see what happens when you anger an entire squad." Her tone was insistent.
"It hurts so much. I can't keep running. I feel it with every step." I was grimacing at this point.
"What hurts so much?" It felt weird having someone here ask about my wellbeing without having put me down or abused me first.
I lifted my shirt for her to see the dark bruises on my stomach and ribs. Her face showed immediate concern.
"Look, I'll help you finish the rest of the laps, but unfortunately you're going to have to work through today's training as best as you can. I'll help you in any way I can as long as you do everything that they ask."
She didn't even give me a chance to answer back. I felt her arm wrap around my waist and lift me while she slung my arm over her neck. I winced at the sudden contact and upward force.
After getting me back to my feet, she kept holding on to me.
"Try to run as best as you can. I'll keep pushing you forward and don't worry, I won't let you fall." She smiled at me. It was a genuine smile. An actual genuine smile. How foreign it seemed.
We set off on a run once more and I just grabbed my sides with my free hand the rest of the way. The pain went from dull to stabbing, and by the end of the laps, tears were cascading down my face.
When we finally finished all ten laps, the blonde woman carefully set me down. Before I could tell her thank you, Dahlia called to her.
"Private Winters! Who gave you permission to aid Mistress's pet?"
"No one, ma'am!"
"Then why did you help her?"
"Permission to speak freely?"
"Granted."
"Because you said to not hold back on her behalf. If one of us fails, then we all fail. Even if she's hurt, we can't leave her behind. She has to learn to work through the pain and push forward for the benefit of the group."
Dahlia stepped out from in front of Private Winters to address the troops.
"All right, you all heard what Private Winters said. If one of you fails, then you all fail. I don't want to hear any more excuses for not completing a training or losing against other squads. Same rules will now apply moving forward, if you fail a session, you'll get double the work."
A couple of groans and angry mutterings were heard.
"Now, everybody grab a pair of bastons and get into formation," Dahlia ordered.
What the heck are bastons? I used both of my hands to laboriously try to get up from the floor.
"Here." Private Winters was at my side helping me get up. Once I was up, she handed me a pair of wooden sticks. Oh, so this is a baston.
"Thank you," I mumbled, looking at the sticks.
"I guess you'll stand over here since we're uneven now." She grabbed my arm and set me at my position. She then stood a couple of feet behind me.
"Today we'll be going over how to defend and attack in case you've been disarmed. In the case that you don't have a gun, most often than not you can find something laying around that resembles a baston." Dahlia spoke.
She proceeded to do a couple of exercises and I did my best to emulate them. I don't know why I was allowed to learn such things, but I wasn't going to complain. Anything that helps me to better defend or attack my way out of here, I will take it. Although I couldn't follow through with a lot of the movements, I still tried them out.
For the last half of the class, we were paired off. Since I was the odd one out, I was stuck doing the exercises with Mia. I was kind of scared, to be honest. Even if we weren't sparring, I don't know how much she would hold back. To my surprise, she wasn't being aggressive. In any case, she was correcting my form and helping me follow through with the movements even though they were painful to do.
"Why are you doing this?" I asked Mia.
"What?" She wasn't expecting me to talk to her.
"Why are you teaching me how to fight and defend myself? Isn't that counterproductive to you all?" I asked sincerely.
"It is and it isn't." I looked at her inquisitively. "Well, for one it'll help us become better soldiers by accounting for any aberrant behavior among pets, and two, you'll need to be trained anyways for when Mistress decides to put you in the ring."
"What? What are you talking about?" This new piece of information didn't make sense.
"Well... erm... How do I put this?" Mia hesitated. "You know about dog fighting?"
"...Yes?" My eyebrows knitted in worry.
"It's pretty much the same thing. Different cells will have their pets fight until one is unable to keep fighting or dies. In the meantime, there are fights in house, where different departments' pets fight to see who gets to represent our cell." She said this like it was such a normal thing to have.
"Wait, do you mean there are more prisoners like me here? Other places like this?" I was worried and starting to feel uneasy.
"Prisoners, slaves, pets, playthings whatever you want to call it, yes. Many cells too. Everybody has been gathered off the streets like you by different teams. Everybody is pretty much an average Joe. They are then conditioned in different ways to see how they will react and hold up in a fight. Some are experimented on, others are left as control, a couple are trained, and many are tortured to see how far we can push the limits of the human body to create better soldiers. You'd be surprised to know that it's all funded in secret by the government."
I just stared at her agape. I didn't even know what to say. Why was she telling me all this information so willy-nilly?
"There's a reason why Mistress's office is full of human body parts. When a pet dies in battle, they are dissected and studied to see what made them stand apart or what made them fail. Every little bit of data is important to her research."
I was feeling queasy. Is this the fate that awaited me? Is this what others have already gone through? And above all, this is condoned by the government? How was I supposed to shut them down if I ever did manage to escape? The questions raced through my mind.
"Wh-why are you telling me all of this?" I could feel the color drain from my face.
"Because it's better that you know it sooner rather than later that way it won't be that big of a shock."
"That big of a shock?!" I huffed incredulously at what I was hearing. "How can you say that?"
"It is what it is. You can't do anything about it." She shrugged it off. "Come on, let's keep practicing."
"Is it ok if I take a break, ma'am?" Sweat was dripping down my forehead. I was trying to contain myself.
"No." She narrowed her eyes at me.
"Please. I just need to use the bathroom." My hand rose to my mouth.
She scoffed, "fine, but I'm coming with you."
I rushed to get to the restroom where I was taken the first night. Once inside, I locked myself in a stall before Mia could say anything and just emptied my stomach. The sour taste of the acid burned all the way up to my mouth. How could they treat people like this?
"Hey, uh... I'm sorry for dropping that bomb, but it's a reality you're going to have to deal with. Truthfully, I'd rather see you succeed in here than become just another specimen in a jar. It's not the most glamorous lifestyle, but hey, at least Mistress will take care of you. You've got beauty, guts, and spirit, that is something rare to find among pets." She spoke from the other side of the restroom stall.
Um, thanks? Is that a compliment?
I didn't answer her. I was so nonplussed that I couldn't say anything, so I just flushed the toilet and exited the stall.
Mia placed a hand on my shoulder and looked at me somewhat sympathetically.
I can't read these people.
"Let's go back and finish your training for today." Mia gave my shoulder a light squeeze. I responded with an apprehensive half-smile.
I sighed and headed back.
The rest of the training went by uneventfully. I had learned quite a few moves which would hopefully prove useful in the future. By the end of the training, I was struggling once more with the pain in my torso.
We were all standing at attention. I had taken the spot where Private Winters had directed me the first time and just mimicked their stance trying not to grimace too much.
"All right squad, that's the end of today's class! I see a lot of improvement from many of you. Keep practicing on your time off. Before you head off for lunch, Mistress has sent a base-wide communication and has asked that everybody report to the Arena by 1400 hours, so you have six minutes to get there. Gather your belongings, get some water, and then find your seat in the Arena. You're dismissed!" Dahlia commandingly addressed the group.
"Yes, ma'am!" Everybody responded in unison.
Ok, I'm certain those commands are for them, so what was I supposed to do now?
Dahlia came up to me and told me to put my wrists out. I debated whether to do it or not but seeing as how they weren't being harsh with me today, I wanted to keep that going for my sake.
I hated the feeling of the unforgiving, cold, biting metal on my wrists. With the collar on, I don't see the need for them to keep using these damned handcuffs.
"You did well today. A little coaxing, but you completed everything." Dahlia assured as she was clipping the leash to the collar. She patted me on the shoulder.
I responded with a half-hearted smile.
"Come on, we're also going to the Arena."
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A/N
Hello everyone!
Once again, thank you for the support!
This chapter is a necessary filler for setting up the events to come.
Also, it's a respite for Keira, but watch out, something big is around the corner.
Enjoy your weekend and remember to vote, comment, feedback, and share!
P.S. If you want to know a little more about Dr. Garnett and Keira, there is a comment thread in 'Ch. 12: Panic.'
If you have any questions, ask away!