(The song does not pertain to the story line, just something appealing to listen to! Happy reading!)
"Well, if it isn't the famous duet: Lucas Reign and Adelaide "Popper" Foster! My name is Max, and I am the head figure of the Dauntless training facility," the man at his desk said, holding out his hand for us to shake.
I smiled and gladly shook it, "I guess we don't need to introduce ourselves. It is a pleasure to meet you,sir."
Baffled, Max replied, "Please, don't call me sir, call me Max."
I nodded.
"Please, take a seat."
My partner and I sat down, waiting for Max to get his paperwork off his desk and organized.
Max looked at us both with pride, "It is such an honor to have you guys here with us. Both of you have made such an achievement in the history of this Faction."
Lucas chuckled, "Thank you, Max. However, onto some business. Why exactly are we here?"
"You see," Max started, standing up and going to the window, "I needed a more diverse training staff. Yes, the instructors we have are some of the best, but there was something missing. A certain talent...from someone of a higher level. So, I requested for someone from the Special Corps, specifically you two. Why? Because both of you have achieved so much at such a young age, and I admire that about both of you. Plus, you both have a high skill level and are young, which may help make a better connection with the new initiates than some of the other leaders. Is this okay?"
Lucas looked at me to make the final answer.
I smiled, "We would be honored to help your disciples. All I ask of you is to allow Lucas and I a little time to get used to the new rules and system."
Max smiled, turning to face us, "Excellent! Take all the time you need!"
He looked at his watch for a brief moment, "It's time for lunch, so I will introduce you to everyone then. Enter the dining hall when your name is called. You are dismissed."
Lucas and I both took our leave, being led to the dining hall by a Dauntless guard.
"Are you sure you want to do this, popper?" Lucas asked, looking straight ahead.
"We'll be fine. Just think, we may be a significant influence for these kids. Why, you having second thoughts?"
Lucas shrugged, "No, I just want to make sure you were set on the objective at hand."
I nodded, only to welcome the silence once again. There was something behind Lucas's voice, like a sense of worry. I'll find out later.
Before we knew it we were standing in front of the doors to the hall. The guard turned to look toward us.
"Here we are. Now, enter in in the Dauntless attention form, and walk all the way down and make your way up onto the far table at the end and stand on it so everyone can see you. That is where Max will read off a series of major events/accomplishments each of you have achieved. It was a pleasure meeting both of you," the guard said before entering through the doors.
Lucas and I took a deep breath in, awaiting for our names to be called.
"Initiators, leaders and trainers, may I have your attention please!"
The room fell silent immediately.
"Today, we are truly blessed. I have requested an amazing opportunity for this year's' initiates, so don't mess it up. I have requested from the Secretary of the Dauntless Faction to allow two members of the Special Ops to come in help with training. Luckily my prayer was answered, and now we have the two most qualified members in the history of Dauntless working with us until initiation. First, I would like to introduce you to: Lucas Reign."
Gasps could be heard from the door as his name was called. Lucas walked in on cue to Max, making his way through the doors and hopefully going down to the right area where the guard noted us to go.
"Lucas has been in the Special Ops ever since he was 17 years of age. He has successfully completed 5 high-ranked missions, including assassinations and special government operations. For the remainder of the training stage, he will be helping train the Dauntless-born with Lauren. Girls, do not try and attract him, because you will be rejected in the end. Please give it up for Lucas!"
An applause sounded out throughout the corridor, leaving me only to tense up a little bit. Sure, I was used to the publicity, but this time it's different. These are people that I am going to help train! I have to be a good role model for them.
"Welcome! Now, onto the person who has impressed me the most, and who I would regret to piss off. A lot of you may know her by her nickname. I have the ultimate pleasure of introducing you to: Ms. Adelaide Foster, also known as "Popper"!"
I walked through the doors, my head held up high and hands behind my back. Gasps and catcalls erupted, and the eyes of the initiates crept behind me. To be honest, it kind of creeped me out. I made my way to the table, stepping on it before returning to the formal position.
"Adelaide was given this nickname because of her signature move to pop out a joint when finishing an opponent. She has been in the Special Ops since she was 15 years of age, and has completed a total of 10 high ranked missions, including assassinations and uncovering Faction scandals. She will help teach the new initiates with Four and Eric. Boys, do not aggravate her, because she will bite. Please welcome Adelaide Foster!"
The crowd of young trainees and leaders erupted in applause and screams. I bowed and saluted to Max, showing my appreciation for my new start.
"Just stay there, Adelaide. I welcome both to the Dauntless family. I hope you enjoy what our faction has to offer. Now, relax, get to know everyone, and eat. After, both of you will report to your designated areas. Lucas, you will be going to the Pit, while Adelaide will go to the training facility. Thank you, and enjoy the rest of your lunch!"
I was immediately ambushed by leaders and initiates telling me their names, wanting to talk to me, and inviting me to eat with them. I eventually settled down to sit with an initiate named Tris, who seemed less annoying then the rest.
"Alright, I will introduce you to more initiates you will be training. This is Christina, from Candor; Will, from Erudite; and Albert, who is also a Candor."
I smiled, "Lovely to meet you all."
Christina nodded, "Same as well."
All of them seemed to be nice, but fairly naive. Just by the way they all acted, I could clearly tell they were not fully accustomed to the Faction yet.
As I was starting to eat and getting to know this quartet, I felt a light tap on my right shoulder. Turning, I was met by a man with dark brown eyes and brown, short hair. His skin as lightly tanned like it was kissed by the sun.
He smiled awkwardly, "Hi, I'm Four, one of the leaders you will be working with."
I nodded, holding out my hand for him to shake, "I'm Adelaide, pleasure to meet you."
He shook my hand, keeping a somewhat firm grip, "Pleasure to meet you as well."
Letting go, he carried on, "We are going to the training room to practice knife-throwing after lunch. I heard that was a specialty of yours?"
I smiled brightly and nodded, "Do you guys the knives down there?"
"Yes, we supply all of the weapons. There are targets set up for them, and they have to aim for the vital point of the target."
"They have targets now?! Man, I had to throw knives at a thick wooden board! Lucky sons a bitches," I said in a surprised expression.
Four chuckled, "I'm guessing you haven't seen the training room yet?"
I shook my head, "No, I have not."
"Well, you will see it in about five minutes. I have to go and get all of the supplies ready, so I will see you down there shortly."
Four left right when he finished the last syllable, leaving me with the initiates.
"Well, you had a better encounter with him then we did on my first day. He nearly ripped my head off," Christina said blankly.
I turned to face her, "It's because I'm of higher status than him. He'll warm up eventually."
"I doubt it. So, out of curiosity, what is it like to be in an elite group?" William asked, interest dripping from his voice.
"It's bittersweet. I like that I have made a successful ground for myself, but at the same time, I hate it when people use it against me as if it's supposed to offend me."
A bell-like sound sounded out through the grand hall, telling me that it was time to start training. I decided to stick with Tris and Christina, just so that I didn't look like a lost puppy.
Entering the training room I could tell a lot of changes were made. Although they still had the same punching bags my class used, there was a new wrestling mat-even though it was stained with blood- and actual knife throwing targets. Man, I wish they had those when I was here.
I immediately noticed Four waving at me. He stood next to another male who seemed to be the Leader of this pack of initiates. He had grayish blue eyes, and what seemed to be a mini faux hawk. He had two black eyebrow piercings over his right eyebrow, and tattoos that looked to resemble tire tracks on his neck. I could tell he contained cockiness and arrogance by the way he stood. I ran over to the both of them, greeting Four.
"Hello sir, how are you?"
Four sighed embarrassingly, "Please do not call me sir. I have the pleasure of introducing you to the Leader and head trainer of the initiates, Eric Coulter."
I smiled as his sarcastic tone and held my hand out towards Eric, "Pleasure to meet you sir."
An arrogant chuckle sounded from his lips, as if he liked being called sir, "Likewise."
He left without shaking my hand to go talk to the initiates about what was going on for the remainder of the time.
Appalled by the behavior, I turned towards Four.
"Is he always like that?"
Four chuckled and nodded before directing his attention to Eric, who was barking out orders.
"Before we do some knife throwing, however, I would like our new trainer to introduce herself," Eric said, turning toward me and crossing his arms.
All of the initiates turned toward me, staring at me with curiosity. I was uncomfortable at first, but once I started running my mouth, the feeling went right away.
"Hey guys. All of you should know my name, since Max announced it. You can call me either or, I'm not too picky. I have been in the Special Ops for a total of five years, my partner three. I specialize in hand-to-hand combat and knife throwing and accuracy. Any questions?"
A lot of initiates rose their hands, eager to know more.
"Alright, we obviously cannot have all your answers questioned, so I'm going to call out names," Four said, scanning the crowd, "Tris."
Tris smiled, "Do you have any hobbies besides knife-throwing?"
"Yes, I do," I said, a smile overcoming my face, "I enjoy writing on my spare time. Right now I'm working on a personal autobiography."
"Molly."
"Were you part of the team that discovered the illegal trade of items before the war between Erudite and Candor officials?"
I nodded, "I was."
"William."
"As an ex-Erudite, I grew up swallowing textbooks. In one book of Dauntless officials, it said that you had the name 'popper'. What event got that name?"
I laughed, "You obviously ate them whole."
Everyone chuckled at my statement.
"I got the name from my first partner. While we were escorting the Secretary of Dauntless to a yearly Faction dinner, rogue Dauntless attacked us on the train. From there, I took down my opponents by popping out their shoulders. My partner than said, 'Jeez, Adelaide, first it was throwing knives, now it's popping out joints? You might as well be called Popper instead of Adelaide!' And it stuck from that day forth."
"Peter."
"Are you really fit to train initiates like us? Because I honestly think you're a fluke."
My smile turned into a dissatisfied frown.
"Come here."
Low bickering sounded throughout the crowd as the boy, Peter, came forward. He was fairly tall and had an innocent face with a small nose and rounded eyes. His dark brown hair glistened with the light. However, it was ruined by confident smirk he had on his face, but I knew how to wipe it off.
"What is the first rule of battle?"
"To not underestimate your opponent, why?" He questioned.
"Hm," was the last thing I said before wrapping my leg around his left knee and knocking him to the ground. Once disabled, I quickly flipped over him using his left shoulder, my right foot pushing his body the rest of the way down, soon moving it to hold down his right arm. My hands went to lift up his left arm. I carefully placed my left hand down near his armpit.
Pop!
Just like that, I jolted his arm up, and his shoulder popped out of place. A screeching cry from Peter sounded throughout the room, along with uncomfortable calls coming from the other initiates.
"Are you sure? Because you failed to follow it," I yelled, pushing my right foot onto his hand.
Another cry sounded from the boy.
"Let this be a lesson to all of you," I said, thrusting his shoulder back into place, "do NOT underestimate my abilities, because I can kill each and every one of you before you can make your final blink. And you, Peter, I better not have to do this again, or the next time I will not hesitate to make you bleed, nor put you in the infirmary. Now, get back with the group."
"Okay, okay," Peter said, running back to the group. I guess I scared him pretty well.
Looking around, I could see frightened and amused faces, especially on Four and Eric. However, they seemed to have more of an intrigue rather than amusement. I guess it's rare to get that kind of reaction out of him.
"Enough talking," I said, "I want to see everyone's skill level on throwing. Do whatever protocol you follow. Hurry up!"
Obviously frightened, all of them scattered, quickly trying to figure out where they needed to go.
I turned and looked over at Four and Eric, unamused.
"You guys need all the help you can get."
That was the last thing I said before heading to where the lifeless targets were being stabbed by our future.