The next few days had gone by in a blur. Training was being more intense and exhausting than Lilith had expected, and tensions had started to rise between the transfers as soon as the physical fights between them had begun. Much to her surprise, she hadn't lost a single combat, thus far. Peter had managed to bruise her ribs with a harsh kick during their fight, but Lilith had ignored the burning and punched him across the face with all of her strenght, and the boy had been out for a few seconds. Her opponent on the second day of fighting had been Will. He was faster than Peter, but he had gone down with a kick to the stomach, leaving her only with a gash on her lip.
However, the true star of the physical combat was Nate. Lilith couldn't have been more wrong when she thought that he wouldn't be able to hold his own. The blond seemed to have rage coarsing through his veins every time he entered the arena, quickly dodging the attacks of his opponents and striking back when their defenses were lowered. The girl often found herself watching him, trying to learn techniques that she could use during her own fights. As much as Four and Eric both tried to hide it, Lilith could also see that they were impressed with Nate's fighting skills.
It was now the third day of combat, and Lilith's eyes raked over the chalkboard as she searched for her own name. There was always someone staying out, for they were an uneven number, and it appeared to be Tris, that time. The brunette found her name next to Myra's, and her eyebrows shot up to her forehead as she looked at the former Erudite. The girl hadn't won a single fight, and her face was covered in bruises from when she'd gone against Nate, on the first day. Lilith had noticed that Myra got anxious easily, and her strikes were all over the place when she did, meaning that she got careless and was easier to take down.
"This isn't good," Christina muttered, elbowing both Lilith and Tris.
"Ow," both girls chorused.
"Sorry," the dark skinned girl grimaced, "But look. I'm up against the Tank."
Tris' light eyes turned to the board, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "The Tank?"
"Dear Molly," Lilith released a chuckle. Christina and her had given the other Candor girl a new nickname, after she'd beaten Drew thanks to her size and strenght, "God, how I wish that were me."
"Hey, if you want to trade, I'm up for it," her friend replied.
Shaking her head, Lilith focused on the arena, as Will and Al took their places. Neither of them were disasters when it came to combat, having won at least one of the fights they'd been in. The main difference between them was their size. Will was tall, sure, but Al still towered over him, and he was a lot larger than the former Erudite. As both boys put their hands up in front of their faces, to shield themselves, Lilith noticed Will's fear as he gulped.
Christina and Tris were still chatting by her side, but the brunette tuned them out as she focused on the fight. Both males were hesitant as they circled around eachother. Whereas Al's size could be an advantage, Lilith assumed that it also made him slower, and she hoped that Will had come to the same conclusion. If not, it would be one hell of a beating.
Al was the first one to attack, his fist colliding with Will's jaw. The boy stumbled to the side, slightly disoriented, but he still managed to block Al's next strike. Using his speed to his advantage, Will hooked his leg around Al's and pulled it, making his opponent collapse to the ground on his back. Lilith desperately wanted to tell him not to let Al get back to his feet, but Eric had lectured her when she'd attempted to give advice to Christina.
The two boys circled around eachother for a few more seconds, more hesitant to attack, now that they had both landed blows on their opponent. Will's eyes shifted to Four, but their instructor didn't say a word, keeping his eyes fixated on them. He seemed to be more unforgiving when Eric was present, which he was, on that particular day. Lilith's gaze turned to him as he pursed his lips, looking down at his watch.
"Do you think this is a leisure activity?" he finally yelled out, "Should we break for nap-time? Fight eachother!"
Al straightened up, looking at Four in confusion, and then back at Eric, "But... when does the fight end?"
"It ends when one of you is unable to continue," Eric folded his arms over his chest. Four had broken up the fights, on the previous day, before they escalated too far, but Eric hadn't been there to see it. It seemed to be a mistake, for now the iniciates were confused as to how much they actually had to fight.
Four sighed, before speaking up, "According to Dauntless rules, one of you could also concede."
Eric offered him a glare, "According to the old rules. In the new rules, no one concedes."
"A brave man acknowledges the strenght of others."
"A brave man never surrenders."
"A man can't be brave if a man is dead," Lilith muttered to herself, low enough that no one heard her. She admired Eric's belief, she truly did, but Four was the correct one, in that situation. Never backing down was courageous, yes, but knowing when to surrender was even more so, in her opinion.
Tensions were high between the two Dauntless as they stared eachother down, and Lilith half expected to see a fight break out between them. Eric's fists were clenched by his side, like he was struggling to maintain his composure. Four, on the other hand, seemed calmer, but still refused to back away. Granger had told her about they'd all been through initiation together, and how the rivalry between them had been present since day one. How Eric had made it to leadership while Four was stuck with the iniciates, Lilith didn't know and she hadn't wanted to pry.
"This is ridiculous," Al finally spoke up, "Why do we all have to beat eachother up? Why do I have to beat Will up? We're in the same faction!"
Eric seemed to be even angrier, but Will spoke first, with a grin on his lips, "Oh, you think it's going to be that easy? Go on. Try to hit me, slowpoke."
Lilith's lips twisted into a smirk as she watched Will finally take advantage of the fact that he was smaller and faster than Al, dodging one punch after another. It took him a few seconds, but he made his way around Al, landing a harsh kick on his back that sent him tumbling forwards. However, Will's sudden attack only seemed to make Al angry. The former Candor turned around, advancing towards Will with his jaw clenched. In a swift movement, he had latched onto the other boy's arm, before uppercutting him straight in the chin.
Will collapsed to the floor, and Al instantly realized what he had done. His features were filled with panic as he kneeled next to his friend, tapping his cheek with one of his hands. Blood spilled out of Will's mouth, rolling down his jaw and dripping to the floor. He was unresponsive, for a few seconds, but he ultimately opened his eyes and released a groan.
"Get him up," Eric ordered, as Four circled Al's name on the chalkboard. The leader then read the next two names, "Next up - Molly and Christina!"
"Tire her out," Lilith mumbled, as Christina sighed and cracked her knuckles, "Don't let her catch you. She's stronger, but you're faster."
Christina nodded her head before making her way to arena. Lilith watched her go, before her eyes focused on Four, who was currently taking Will out of the room. She imagined they were headed to the hospital wing, and the fact that they'd be alone with Eric wasn't good. Either Christina somehow beat Molly, or she'd be in a state similar to Will's, seeing as there was no way the leader would let them stop before one of them was out.
Lilith was surprised at her best friend's bold attack. She'd assumed that Christina would let Molly attack first, and then react to whatever was thrown her way, like it had happened during her former combats. However, she took Molly by surprise when she kicked her in the side, before taking a few steps back. It didn't take long for the bigger girl to strike back, knocking Christina down to the ground and delivering punch after punch to her rival's face.
The screams leaving Christina's mouths sent shivers down Lilith's spine and, before she knew it, she was making her way across the room, to where Eric watched the fight. He didn't seem to notice her presence until she was right next to him, her arms folded over her chest and her face deliberately turned away from where Christina's face was getting bashed in.
"End it," she muttered, with gritted teeth, "Please. She can't take more of this."
"Can't she?" Eric nodded towards the arena, not giving her a second glance.
Against her will, Lilith looked back to the two fighting girls. Christina had somehow managed to remove her arm from underneath Molly, and blindly punched her in the ear. The other girl lost her balance and Christina took that as an opportunity to crawl from underneath her, before taking a kneeling position and covering her bleeding nose with her hands. Lilith's heart ached as she saw her best friend scream as Molly advanced on her once again, delivering a kick to her ribs that sent her to the ground once more.
"Stop!" Christina cried out, before Molly got the chance to hit her again, "Stop! I'm... I'm done."
There was something about the way Eric's body shifted that had Lilith on high alert, as he took a few steps to where Christina was still laying on the ground. With furrowed eyebrows, she silently went after him.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" he questioned, once he got to her, "You're done?"
Christina's sole response was a nod of her head.
"Get up," he said. Lilith had been on the other side of that tone of voice way too many times, enough to know that Eric was furious, even if he was trying to mask it. It hadn't happened during the last few days; they still didn't get along, but they hadn't been at eachother's throats, like when they had first met. Still, Lilith knew that nothing good would come from this as she watched Eric yank Christina up to her feet, before starting to drag her towards the door. He adressed the rest of them over his shoulder, "Follow me."
The transfers were silent as they walked after Eric and Christina. Every few steps, a drop of blood fell from her nose and stained the floor, and she stumbled whenever Eric pulled her too harshly. Lilith's lips were pursed, and she wanted nothing more than to tell the male that the whole situation was ridiculous: Christina had fought, and she had lost. Just because she hadn't passed out, that didn't make her any less brave.
They stopped near the Chasm, and Lilith's heart accelerated as Eric shoved her friend against the railing and told her to climb over it. Four's warnings surfaced in her mind and, for a few seconds, she wondered if Eric truly was sane. Tris shivered from her spot next to Lilith.
"What?" Christina's voice was meek.
"Climb over the railing," Eric repeated, "If you can hang over the Chasm for five minutes, I will forget your cowardice. If you can't, I will not allow you to continue initiation."
Christina seemed to ponder over her choices, before she nodded her head, wiping the blood away from her nose one final time. Though her features were schooled enough not to show her fear, her limbs shook as she climbed over the railing. When their eyes met, Lilith offered her an encouraging nod. That seemed to be enough to make Christina remove her feet from the ledge, baring her teeth as she adjusted her grip on the railing.
Wordlessly, Lilith watched during the next few minutes as her friend struggled to hang on. Each time Christina almost let go, her first instinct was to walk forward and help her, but she knew that Eric would do even worse if she made a single move to help her, while he was trying to make a point. Somehow, Tris' hand ended up latched around her arm, her grip tightening each time Christina's fingers slipped.
After what seemed like an eternity, Al broke the silence, "Five minutes are up."
Before Eric even had the time to check his own watch, Lilith was already breaking free from Tris' grip and making her way to where Christina was still struggling to hold onto the barrier. She'd almost made it to a place where she could help her friend return to safety when Eric stepped in front of her, with an intimidating look on his eyes.
"No," he muttered, "She has to do it on her own."
"Screw you," Lilith replied, staying rooted to her place inches away from him. Her words hadn't been loud enough for the other iniciates to catch onto what she had said, but Eric's lips twisted in anger. She was half expecting to be yelled at once more, but the leader simply stepped to the side, and she didn't linger any further, diving forward to help her best friend.
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Lilith's fight against Myra hadn't been until much later, on that afternoon. After making sure that Christina was alright, she had followed the transfers as they were lead back to the training room by Eric. With each second that passed, Lilith found herself growing angrier and angrier at the leader, the mere sight of him being enough to make her want to break that sculpted nose from his face.
The wisest decision had been to step away from the arena and take a while to calm herself down in the area where the punching bags were. She'd never been a person who felt the need to release her anger on other people or even on random objects, but as she threw punch after punch at the bag, picturing she was hitting Eric instead, all the rage she was trying so hard to contain slowly dissipated.
"Lilith and Myra!"
Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Lilith made her way to the arena, where the other girl already expected her. She didn't doubt that she could bring Myra down, not when her opponent hadn't had a single victory. The two girls were the same size, though Lilith looked slightly taller as Myra cowered, hunching her back. Putting her hands in front of her face, like Four had taught them, Lilith exhaled, and kept her eyes on the former Erudite.
Eager to gain the upper hand, Myra was the first to attack. Lilith had been watching her during the past few days, and she'd taken notice of how, even when fist was shooting for her rival's face, Myra's body stayed as far away as it possibly could. That often made the girl lose her balance when she didn't managed to hit her target, and decreased her accuracy significantly. Lilith moved fast as she ducked Myra's fist, her fingers closing around the other girl's wrist. She tugged the girl forward with all her strenght, before yanking her closer to her and forcing her face against her knee. When she released Myra's wrist, the girl collapsed to the ground.
Much to her surprise, her opponent got back on her feet. Blood poured down from her nose as she put her hands out in front of her face once more, but her eyebrows were furrowed in concentration as she looked at Lilith. Once more, the two girls began circling around eachother, Lilith because she was curious, and Myra because she was hesitant. The brunette soon realized that Myra would not be the first one to strike, that time, so she narrowed her eyes and advanced. However, the girl was prepared, and she dodged both of Lilith's punches, quickly throwing a jab that made the cut on Lilith's lip reopen once more. Copper invaded her mouth as she backed away a few steps, searching for another opening.
The fact that she had managed to make Lilith bleed seemed to give Myra a boost of confidence, for she once more tried to make the first move. The brunette had been expecting it, however, so as soon as Myra attempted to punch her, she ducked downwards, her elbow colliding against the other girl's stomach so heavily that she hunched over. Her eyes were shut in pain, and Lilith took the advantage to throw another punch at her head.
Myra collapsed against the ground the next second, not moving in the slightest.
"That's enough," Eric's voice rang through the training room.
For the first time since they had returned from the Chasm, Lilith met his eyes. For once, it wasn't him that looked like he was coated in anger. She was the one with rage coarsing through her veins, directed at no one other than him. She had the satisfaction of seeing him fidget, before she turned her back on the arena and made her way back to the punching bags.
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AUTHOR'S NOTE
Okay so first things first, yes, I am extending the time that the iniciates spend in training, because you don't make good soldiers in less than a month, that's fucking irrealistic. Anyways, I'm trying really hard with all of these fighting scenes and what not, like I shit you not, they're fucking difficult to describe.
This chapter isn't too different from it's first draft; I honestly just added more dialogue and descriptions and yeah.
I hope you enjoyed, let me know your thoughts in the comments! Hope you're having a lovely day and I hope to see you when I post the next update!