Straying Paths

Chapter 3

Chapter 3 

As I left the Hub, a sense of relief and sadness hit me. I was now going to leave my family forever in search of a better life. I didn't even get to small talk with the other Dauntless members before they all started to run towards the train that surrounds the city. I instantly followed them. They were all jumping into the train, so I jumped as well. A rush of adrenaline hit me and I felt alive. I quickly walked further into the train to allow others to jump in. It was not a fancy train. The cart that I jumped into was made out of wood with some iron to hold it together. Around me, the others started to sit down on the wooden floor, so I did the same.

"Hi, I'm Isaac." I said to the guy sitting to my left while going in for a handshake.

"Hi Isaac, I'm James. Nice to meet you." he said as he accepted my handshake.

"You're from the Dauntless I take it?" I asked. I hoped to maybe make a friend in the new faction.

"Yes, how did you know?" he answered with a grin.

"Well, I haven't seen you in Amity, and you're about twice the size of some others in the cart." I replied.

"Yeah, that ought to expose it." he answered while laughing a bit.

We made small talk until we reached the Dauntless faction's compound. James and I connected well with each other.

"Alright everyone. It's time to see if you're Dauntless material. The initiation process starts soon." I hear someone say at the opening of the cart. I look over and see one of the Dauntless trainers. He looks a lot older than the rest of us.

"In one minute, you are to jump out from this train onto a building. It is high up so make sure to not fail because then, you'll be neither a Dauntless nor Factionless. You'll be dead."

Dead? The initiation process will start with an activity that can kill you. My heart starts to pound. I stand up and make myself ready to jump on top of the building. James is in front of me.

"Just be confident and make sure to run before jumping. It's not that bad." He says looking back at me. I'm too anxious to bother with a response. James runs out of the cart and I follow behind him. I jump and it feels almost unreal. I landed well enough and did not hurt myself. I've never felt so alive. Excitement rushed through my body. This good feeling did not stay long though. I heard a scream coming from behind me. One of the other initiation members didn't make it and fell down the building. The screaming sounded like it came from a girl and was constant until she hit the ground. I, like many others, rushed to the edge of the building to see if she had died. I was horrified once I made it to the edge. She did not have a head anymore. She had landed on it. I became incredibly nauseous and ran back to the centre of the building. Some people started to throw up. Almost everyone was horrified. Everyone except the leaders and some that had been with the Dauntless before.

"Pull yourselves together everyone. We don't get scared when faced with death. She was not even Dauntless material so no need to whine about it." one of the dauntless leaders said with a determined voice.

"No need to whine about it". Was that all he had to say when someone died? This felt wrong. Should I have stayed with Amity? I mean, what kind of leaders do not care the slightest when a 16-year-old girl dies in such a horrific way. I felt such rage towards the leader. I pull myself together and take a deep breath.

"Let us introduce ourselves. I'm Oliver, the leader of the Dauntless. These two here with me are William and Lucas. They are my advisors and are responsible for your training. The first test you all have to face is to jump down there. If you don't jump, you'll be left behind as a Factionless. Everyone is free to jump when they feel like it. Don't take too long" Oliver said after lining us up.