Casted

Chapter 11

"I said get up!" The Stormer repeated. She shook the end of the gun in my face. My heart pounded in my ears like a war drum.

My hand felt for Ben's arm, and when I found it, I latched on. He stirred slightly. His arm slipped tighter around me, which only made me squeeze it harder. "Ben," I said forcefully. My knuckles turned white.

"Ow!" he said, finally showing some kind of reaction. He snatched his arm away and sat up, looking irritable. "What the-" His expression hardened, eyes falling on the Stormer.

"Stand up, both of you," she growled through gritted teeth.

That didn't seem like too much to ask of us, so we did as we were told. That gun was very persuasive. My knees ached as I rose to my feet, but I barely noticed. Even with the early morning chill, beads of sweat rolled down my back. What is going on? Why would there be Stormers in the Task? Had something gone wrong in the real world, and the competition had to end early? Maybe they sent the Stormers in to get us.

"What's this all about?" I asked cautiously, trying my luck. I took a step forward; not a good move on my part.

"Stay where you are!" The Stormer warned. The threat in her voice seemed real- real enough to make my stomach do somersaults inside me. The barrel of her gun shifted until its sights were set on the middle of my chest. "Do what I say, when I say to do it, nothing else."

"Okay, okay," Ben said, trying to calm the situation down. I glanced past her for the split second her attention was off of me, surveying the ground. Zion's sleeping bag lay unzipped and empty. Two sets of footprints led away from it. They already got him, I realized. Fear trickled through my veins as I put my hands slowly in the air, palms facing her. I glanced back at Ben, my eyes poking at him. He did the same.

The Stormer jerked the barrel to one side, motioning off into the trees. The sudden movement of the gun was enough to make me flinch, drawing in a sharp breath like I thought that would send a bullet through my skull. "Walk," was the only instruction she gave.

Again, seemed simple enough. We marched with our hands up out of the clearing. The Stormer followed close behind, like she was afraid we might try to run at any second.

My thoughts were a whirlwind. Where was she taking us? Could we risk trying to get away? Some natural instinct was telling me I needed to get away, but I could feel that gun boring into my back like the eyes of a predator. They wouldn't send Stormers into the Task to kill us, would they? That didn't make sense. Nothing did. Something doesn't feel right about this... Our boots crunched in the fresh sheet of snow.

"Harper, what's going on?" Ben's whisper grabbed me from my thoughts.

I opened my mouth shakily, ready to tell him I had no idea, but the Stormer interrupted me.

"Shut up!" Her voice came so loud and sharp, it sent a fresh wave of fear launching through my body. I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to quiet my unsteady breathing. My lungs pumped in and out like bagpipes. I swear my heart was trembling.

All I could do to answer Ben was lock eyes with him for a moment and shake my head. We marched on through the pale white dawn.

Shapes- up ahead, through another thirty meters of underbrush and trees, there were shapes. They all stood still, silent. I squinted to see them. As we drew closer, I could almost taste the confusion thick in the air, accompanied by the familiar reek of blood. The warm scent rose in the air. I almost gagged. Where is that coming from?

"This is the last of them," our Stormer called when we were close enough. And finally, my eyes fell across the figures. The relief I felt from just seeing them was enough to make me light-headed. The trepidation was enough to make me sick to my stomach. Not a great combination. They were lined up facing us, arms behind their backs like noble soldiers marching into battle. Seven pairs of eyes flickered to us, all lit with identical gleams of fear. Each had a Stormer standing behind him. Lark, Zara, Zion, Celeste, the little blonde girl, Chris... Malachi. I almost sighed out of shear relief, but I really didn't feel like getting shot in the back, so I bit my tongue. Instead I locked eyes with Malachi, and tried to take comfort in the fact that I finally knew he was alive. He was thinner than a beanpole and had one black eye, but he was alive. And Chris... My gaze shifted to him. He masked over his look of anxiety with a classic charming smile and a wink in my direction- a failed attempt to make me feel better about the fact that I could be gunned down at any second.