CREDENCE ∆ Brayden

0.2

-Brandon's POV-

My eyes seemed glued to the table in front of me. My heart was pounding in my chest, fingers nervously gripping my back. Sweat formed on my palms, causing my grip to slowly loosen. I swallowed hard. No medicine could contain my anxiety.

With a long inhale, I looked up to the two men standing at the front of the room. As all eyes fell on me, it dawned on me that I was the last one to look up. I quickly shut my eyes to avoid any further embarrassment. My strategy of course, worked to no avail.

"Open your eyes, initiate," a voice said. I forced my eyes to pry open and focus on the speaker. It was a short, yet muscular man with dark hair and dark eyes. I realized it was the leader of The Resistance. His counterpart looked to me as well. Though his features were softer, his eyes were just as cold.

All eyes were removed from me as the leader moved forward. "I guess you're the new ones," he growled, staring at the group in utter disappointment. "Most pathetic bunch I've seen in a while." At those words, the initiates cowered back.

The man moved to one side, stopping at a boy with curly brown hair. "You," he said to the boy. "What's your name?"

I watched as the boy stared in shock at his superior. His eyes went from one corner of the room to the next, a single bead of sweat dripping from his forehead. "My name?" The boy mumbled. He was so quiet, I barely made out the words. No sooner than the boy spoke did the leader pull a gun from his pocket. The initiates jumped back.

"Hesitation, I don't like it," the leader hissed, his lip twitching. "Get out."

Those two words were all it took for the boy to run out through the back exit. I noticed he left his bag behind. I knew that now that he had hesitated, he had thrown away all his chances of survival.

As our eyes followed the boy exiting, the leader slammed his boot onto the ground. Our attention was caught again. "My name is David Escamilla," he told us, beginning to walk along the lines of hopeful youth. "If you're lucky enough to get in, you'll be able to learn a bit more about me."

I shuddered a bit. The man known as David seemed like a stringent person.

In my peripheral vision, I saw the blonde girl next to me roll her eyes. Unfortunately, David saw it also. Within a second, his gun was pointed to her. "Out," he ordered, haughtiness in his tone. The blonde retreated out the back door, this time remembering to bring her bag along.

The event didn't seem to shake David or his assistant in the slightest. Instead, the two made their way to the doors that lead deeper into the building. "Everyone to the square," the assistant spat out, "we're doing examinations of your physical capability."

As if it were a cue, the initiates began to file through the other doors. My legs faltered as I stood, making me the last one up. I sighed softly to myself. I was sure I wouldn't make it. When it came to physical ability, I was majorly lacking in skills.

"Scared?" The boy to my right retorted. I looked over to him, eyeing his dark hair and double nose piercings. "Maybe," I chuckled. If I was lucky, I'd make an acquaintance of some sort. To my surprise, the boy laughed back, and I exhaled in relief.

"I'm Brandon," I said, almost too quickly. The boy glared at me in suspicion. "Telle," he announced, extending a hand. I took his hand into mine and shook it firmly. I was about to say something else, when I saw David moving down the line of initiates. Telle noticed too, and we ceased our conversation.

Right as I began watching, a thin brunette boy was sent out the exit. He didn't look like he could fight very well. David then moved to the next person, asking them to flex and stretch. The next three people were sent into the next room over, meaning they had passed the examination. The next person was almost instantly sent away. It was a girl with short hair who must have been under five feet tall.

A lump formed in my throat as David continued down the line. For every two people let in, one seemed to be thrown out. Maybe my chances were lower than I expected.

David and Andrew had finally reached Telle. They took note of his piercings, which appeared to be a sign of brawn. After asking him to stretch out his limbs, Telle was silently sent to the next room. He had passed.

My heart skipped a beat as I realized that it was my turn. I quickly pushed my nose ring into place in hope that they'd notice. However, the moment David laid eyes on me, he cringed. I tried to ignore it, but his look of disgust was starting to get to me.

David looked over to Andrew, who shrugged. The two exchanged glances for a moment before David moved over to his counterpart. The two whispered amongst themselves, and it frightened me that I was the subject of their conversation.

"Is he Runaway material?" Andrew whispered, though he was a bit loud. I felt myself frown. David whispered something to him, then turned back to me. My eyes widened in fear. I might as well just leave now and spare myself the shame.

"Do something daring," David ordered, predominance in his tone. His request would surely only humiliate me further. I would fail, everyone would laugh, and then I'd be forced to leave. "Right now?" I said softly. Someone a few feet over in line snickered. "Yes," David snarled, "right now."

I didn't move. When David saw that, his eyes narrowed. "Three," he said. I stiffened even further when I realized he was counting down. "Two."

I was under so much stress, I lacked common sense. I thought of all the daring things I could do at the moment. Run? Scream? Push someone? No, they wouldn't like that.

"One."

I then made the poorest decision in my entire life. I raised my hand, clenched a fist, and knocked David in the nose with utmost force, sending him stumbling backwards. A horrible cracking sound filled the room, and everyone gasped. Surely I'd be skinned alive for that.

However, instead of drawing a gun and murdering me on the spot, David began chuckling. Everyone looked at him as if he were insane. He then looked over to me, nose gushing blood and a smirk on his face. I panicked and turned away to exit.

"Where are you going?" David called out as I placed a hand on the door. I turned to him. He looked like he had something else to say. "What?" I said cluelessly. Everyone in the room must have hate me.

Then, David said the two words that would change my life.

"You're in."