avienna.
chapter three

Avienna.

Wake up. Wake up, Avienna.

Faceless men in masks floated around her like ghosts in the rolling wind; howling and haunting. She was so cold that her eyelashes had stuck together by the clinging frost. She felt every prick of the needle, every warm arm that jabbed her; she felt it all.

Her eyes were blocked by the thick haze of amnesia, her surroundings like a distant memory. There but gone.

Warmth overtook her body, her eyes beginning to see. At first, everything was blurry, hazy. The world was spinning, the sky became the ceiling and the grass above her. The sun pricked against her skin, like a brewing beaker; bursting and bubbling.
Then she felt the coldness against her skin again, shivering before curling into her side to try and contain the heat. The diverge of the seasons all hitting her at once, her body was overloaded with different responses, shiver- no contract.

Take deep breaths, figure out where you are.

Her eyes opened slowly, stuck together as if someone had put honey over her eyelashes as a joke. Slowly she stood up, her feet bare with the white, thin material of the dress covering her that felt see-through. The breeze was cold, her legs shivering against the cool of the wind under her dress.
Her body was covered in dirt, her white gown covered in blood and the debris from the forest. She frantically looked around, her heart beating loudly against the cage in her chest. Her arms were covered in small holes, like someone had stuck her with a million needles all at the same time. She slugged her body down to the ground, losing her sense.
Pain struck through her system, her stomach twisted in knots, her mind banging against its cage. She let out a scream, the pain overtaking her body.

"What- What do you want!" She cried out, the pain registering to her brain causing her to crumple to the ground.

But there was no response, the echoing of her voice haunted her as the trees surrounding her edged closer, suffocating her. The world was spiralling, her vision being covered by the faint black dots, the tightness in her throat clogging up her lungs and eventually she could only mutter a whisper, "Why?"

Her body surged the pain, until she couldn't anymore. Mother Nature had drained and ripped the precious energy that Avienna had left in her fighting system. Her head fell to the side, the black dots being victorious and her head rebounded off the leave bedding underneath her.

Breathe.

She couldn't.

Breathe.

She was trying.

Breathe.

She felt the constricting emotion travel up her throat, the tightness, like a stranger was strangling her and she couldn't push it off. The weight, the pressure with every withered wheeze, she knew that she was dying. She knew that this was it. She rolled onto her back, dry leaves crunching and the damp soil clinging to her bare skin. The blue sky comforted her, it took away the agony, the struggle, the realisation. As she stared into the eyes of Nature herself, she was released. Her lungs reached maximum capacity, failing on her.  A tear fell from her eye as her eyes searched the baby blue sky, why?

At first, it was dark. She was back at camp, she was home. She was almost filled with relief that she, maybe, could finally get some sleep. But then, like it was crawling out of a barren graveyard, images flashed before her.

"We're dead because of you!"

"You killed us!"

"Why couldn't you save us?"

She couldn't, she turned away, eyes stinging and red with the rawness of the images. She stepped back until she felt the change of scenery.
Coldness nipped against the back of her neck. Darkness swallowed her, chewed her and spat her back out onto a hospital bed. Her eyes stung with sedative, makeshift shapes blurred before her, making it hard to make out where she was. She tried to glance around at her surroundings, but every movement caused a recoiling effect on her body, her bones cracking and creaking as she tried to move her neck to the left.

People surrounded her, people in masks carrying sharp utensils, haunting items that were used as weapons of torture, prickling against her ghastly skin. Their faces were filled with sinister grins, like Chester cats at the chase. It sent chills down Avienna's compressed forearm as they towered over and around her. They swarmed around the operating table, the cool metal creating anxiety to swirl and churn in her stomach, promising to bring the bile up if the restraint wasn't unlocked. Avienna didn't know where she was but she knew that these people weren't here to help her, she could tell by the way they tilted their heads, gripped the knife as the metal shined against the bright artificial light above the table.

Escape.

She tried to move away, but the restraints held her down involuntarily. She thrashed and kicked but it was no use, every moment pulled more Englert from her body, weakening her already torn state.

"No... please don't," She cried out beneath her faded and drowsy breath, but it was no use.

Escape.

She might as well be mute as they stabbed their knife into her arm, cutting along directly hitting all of her nerves as she cried out, swearing that's he would kill them if they touched her again. But they kept doing, there was no end to her pain.

The men took off his mask, smiling down at her with his big teeth, "Don't worry, darling. We won't kill you."

Lucas' face emerged from the darkness. His features were soft, his hair stuck to his sweaty forehead, strapped against an operating table similar to hers. His eyes were closed but he wasn't completely asleep, he was trying to look through his heavy eyes.
Avienna's heart raced with fear racking her body and every organ ached with wanting the willpower to get them both out of here. She let out a growl, her eyes still making it hard to see definite features but she still gave them a growl, her throat rumbling as she tried to pull against the restraints harder.

Save him. Get him out of here.

"Let him go!" She cried out, her head falling to see Lucas' worn out figure respond to her voice. She could see the hallow of his cheeks, that's the first thing that she noticed. She also noticed the drip in his arm hooked to a bag filled with a blue fluid that hung like the dead skin off of the mans cheeks. The blue, hospital gown draped over his motionless body, swallowing his figure whole. She saw the perspiration and sweat dew cling to his forehead and the way his eyes rolled back every time his eyelids twitched at her broken voice.

She was almost certain that he was unconscious, that she wasn't going to hear his voice again.

"Ave?" He gasped through his chapped lips.

It was only one word, barely audible, but Avienna pulled against the restraints at the sound. A wave of
emotion overtook her; relief. She couldn't help the sob that crackled from her throat as she laid there, helpless as the broken boy himself as the man stood next to them, watching their deteriorating bodies.

"It's gonna be okay," She promised, sniffling slightly, "I'm gonna get us out of here."

The doc only grinned at their hope, he was determined to break them. The pulled the light-green mask over his freshly shaved mouth as he muffled his words, "Now, now Avienna, lying is not good for anyone?"

Avienna only inched away, pressing herself against the cold metal. The thought of losing her best friend was more than she could fathom, an ache striking her heart as she stared at his figure, or lack of. The man only reached out towards her arm, tightly gripping her wrist with his grimy nail beds that penetrated her clammy, discoloured skin. She chewed on her lip to stop herself from giving him the satisfaction of seeing her in pain. She lifted her eyes to see his dark ones staring back at her. But the longer she stared, the brown eyes appeared to be nothing more than just a brown shade. No flicker of light was in his eyes, no other colour; just brown. They were as hallow as the cheek bones on Lucas, they had no shape, no spark. They were about as lifeless as the colour drained from their skin. The sight caused shiver to run down her spine, and at that moment she realised that they might not make it out of this one, because she was staring into the eyes of a cold-blooded killer.

The human emotion of fear worked in many ways, some screamed and cried out for help, while others simply faced the fact that they weren't going to lose their pride in their final moments of existence. The doc surfaced a grin that could only be seen with the corners of his mouth lifted from the mask. Avienna hadn't realised the women in white uniforms sstanding behind them, drill in hand. She eyed the tool, her heart pounding against her cage as it inches forward towards her. The Doc smiled, he was enjoying this, their pain and weakened state. He lowered his head close to her ear, so close that Avienna could smell the rough odor of this aftershave entering her nose.

The doctor only lifted his hand, only for one of the nurses to pull a small hand drill in his callous hand. Avienna could see the corners of his eyes squint slightly, he was grinning, he was enjoying their pain.
Before he started up the drill, he bent down Avienna's ear, that's he could smell his minty breath and the slight aftershave along his jaw. Breathes racked her chest as he inches closer, his hot breath drowning hers, "There are more painful things than death."

He took the drill that was covered in dried blood from its last victim, holding it up in front of the scared girl who had tears running down her face. His face clicked with sinister as he turned on the drill at high speed before digging into the bare bone of the girl. Her body convulsed in such pain she could barely register her senses flipped into high, all she could do, was let out a blood-curdling scream.

Avienna eyes shot open, her body like a recoiling of effects from the nightmare. Sweat was plastered against her forehead. Lucas woke next to her, the night still young. His arm outreached to the girl, "Ave, you alright?"

She couldn't mutter a word, her body emptied and lacked the will to process or respond. She only turned to him, her face pained and her mind stuck in the endless loop of images of the torture. He cupped her chin, forcing her eyes to find his. Tears threatened to fall, tiredness pained her face. Her once lovely eyes of ocean blue were swirling with green, worried and stunned. He wanted nothing more than to take the pain away.

She reached out for his face, brushing her hand against his chin, it was just a nightmare. He was okay, nothing was wrong.

He said nothing but pulled her close to his chest. She inhaled the comforting aroma. She hated this. She hated crying, being weak. But it was horrible, it felt so real.

"How long has this been happening for?" He pressed, his voice croaked as he spoke to her, softly but with concern.

Don't tell him. Don't let him worry.

She blinked sparingly, "I- I... I can't."

Lucas only titled his head slightly, blinking softly

Lucas ran his fingers through her hair, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? The doctor has tablets that will allow you to sleep. We could've gotten help."

Avienna stopped for a moment, those doctors; they did something to her. The itch, she was scratched. She pushed herself off of Lucas until she was standing. He wouldn't understand, he wouldn't help you Avienna. He is too dedicated to the Government.

"I don't need your help. To think that I could trust you. You would never understand, Lucas. Your head is too far up the government's ass." She rolled her bagged eyes before walking promptly back to her hut, where she left the one man in her life that she trusted, lying on the grass dumbfounded.
_

It was a new day. That meant new chores, new orders from the Commander and a hell of a lot of training. Avienna walked through the dewy grass, the sun rising to the left of her. Red ringed her bloodshot eyes, you can guess that she got no sleep last night. Her head ached, pounding abrasive against her bone. She rubbed her temples to try and sooth the pain.

"Hey, girl, we were just heading out to train and I-" Scarlett entered, stopping in her tracks to see her best friend who looked like she had been through hell and back. The bags under her eyes were becoming a permanent feature and her pale face was even more worrying as she glanced around at everyone who was seated in the room. It was like she was constantly in her own world.

Her mouth formed an 'o' shape, "Ooh, rough night?"

Avienna let out a chuckle before glancing at her best friend, "Something like that."

Scarlett was always concerned for her, Avienna took on so much and didn't let anyone in. She could tell that something was deeply wrong with her and it was bothering her that she couldn't figure it out and help her.

Her hand reached and rested on Avienna's shoulder, a kind and caring gesture.

"You can talk to me, Ave. You're not alone in this." Scarlett cooed, rubbing her shoulder.

Avienna nearly scoffed at the sentence, she was alone. Nobody else was having nightmares about some creepy hospital and doctors wanting to torture her every time she closed her eyes. Nobody had the pressure of being a leader, nobody had pushed themselves day after day to be the best so she can protect her people, her friends. Avienna knew that she couldn't talk to anyone, they would think that she's crazy.

Don't let her worry, a voice reminded her.

"I know," she smiled, it was false. She would never put this on Scarlett. She was kind and helpful but she wouldn't be able to handle such a... a dark thought. It was better if she just kept it to herself.

Scarlett only gave her a pointed look, "Good. Now, let's go get some breaky into you, you look like you're dying."

Avienna nearly laughed at the irony of the statement, "You have no idea."

The girls sat in a comfortable silence on opposite sides of the bench. Avienna's mind kept falling back into the trench of the nightmares, being sucked in like the waves that retreat back into the open sea. Every thought would be consumed by the sight of shrinking walls and sharp needles.

Lucas stepped inside the building, instantly being hit by the weight of the room with the heaviness of the heated argument from before still replaying in his mind. He hated leaving arguments unresolved and the constant feeling of distance between them, both physically and mentally.

Avienna lifted her eyes from the table to see the blonde hair glistening against the morning sun. It was Lucas. She tore her eyes away from his sight, hoping he would just walk back out and leave the table. That was hope, and hope was often wrong.

Lucas searched the sea of humans for one, in particular, blonde hair, beautiful eyes and her stare that made her look like a potential murderer? It wasn't that hard to pick her from the dead crowd. Everyone was in a stance of silent chatter, some were nervous about the trails, some were excited, and some just pretend that they didn't care. Everyone would jump at the opportunity to get out of here, anyone. Some would even go to any lengths to make sure that some people, in particular, were guaranteed a spot on the outside.

Avienna lowered her head in an attempt to shut her eyes, sleep the only thing on her mind.

A hand tapped her shoulder, making her groan slightly, "Look, Lucas, can we-"

"Oh- I'm not your boy toy Avienna," Mase cooed, the corners of the tanned face curling upwards into a smirk.

Avienna could tell the high pitched, awfully annoying tone from anywhere, Mase. Mase stood there with her cropped t-shirt, exposing her stomach and the shortest shorts that didn't leave much to the imagination. Her hair was slightly tossed into a half-up, half-down situation, compared to Avienna's plain pony messy tail. Mase had always been seen as Queen B here at camp because she was the Leader's Daughter.

Avienna plastered on a small, toothless smile, "Mase. What do you want?"

"Nothing, in particular, I just wanted to see if you know where Lucas was? He owes me.... something."

Avienna's smile only dismissed into an expressionless tone, "I don't know where Lucas is. Sorry."

"Well isn't that a shame. Aren't you guys attached at the hip," she said, "... or attached to something else." Which sent the girls behind her in a laughing frenzy. Avienna knew better than to bite back, but with her sleep deprivation and the arguing of Lucas on her mind, snapping at her was the easiest option. But the easiest option wasn't always the on to go with. Avienna let out a breath, turning to Scarlett who was too busy glaring at the girl standing beside them.

"Pass the salt, please?" Avienna said, drawing the attention off Mase who crossed her arms accordingly, stomping her foot slightly.

"Yeah bitch, grab the salt." Mase mocked, turning to face her friends that stood closely behind her, "Poor Scarlett, daddy issues and poor friend choices. You could do so much better than this whore."

Scarlett only stood up, her fists banging on the wooden table as she glared at Mase, "And you're the bitch that hides behind her Dad, must be nice."

"It has it's perks, you know, sneaking around. Especially after sleeping with Lucas, god, it was so easy for me to just pick up all my clothes and leave. No one even suspected a thing for a sweet girl like little old me."

Avienna kept her expression serious but on the inside she was panicking. How could Lucas sleep with her, there are so many other girls in the camp and he chose her? Maybe his standards weren't as high as she thought. Scarlett looked towards Avienna who was keeping her gaze directly on Mase.

Lucas stepped forward, sensing the tension more than usual, "Is everything alright?"

Great, the man of the hour.

Avienna didn't move but held the salt jar tightly in her hand, Mase only scoffed. Scarlett frowned at the girl, wanting nothing more than to kick her ass for what she said. They both ignored Lucas as Mase stepped forward, gripping onto her shoulder, fingernails digging into her skin through the cotton of her shirt, "It's not nice to ignore-"

That's it. Avienna was on edge and this was enough to throw her over into oblivion of anger and violence. Avienna grabbed her wrist and held it tightly, making Mase squirm under her death grip. With one twist, she could easily break her wrist, but that would just do more damage to her group than they needed. She stood up, watching as Mase bit her lip as a way to take away the increasing pain that surged down her arm.

"Touch me or my friends again and I'm sure you'll regret it," She warned, throwing her hand back towards Mase as she stumbled back, gripping her arm with her face twisted in pain. She rubbed her wrist, her face convulsing until her face was bursting with anger.

Mase prickled a snotty smile, "Watch yourself Avienna, I can have my daddy kick you at before you could even beg."

Avienna sat back down, bringing her legs up onto the table as she watched Mase cradle her hand,"I'm sure he would be doing me a favour."

Lucas could only muffle a smile at her, she was so fearless yet so cautious with everything that she did. Mase looked back at Lucas, as if in a plea of help. Lucas had slept with her once and now she was thinking that he would drop everything just to save her pretty ass- she thought wrong.

In the chaos of it all, Professor Ale approached the scene and looked between Mase and Avienna- one extremely flushed girl and the other completely cool and calm, "What seems to be the problem here?"

Before either of the girls could answer Lucas rose to the occasion, "Nothing Professor, they were just talking about the trials."

Professor Ale rose his eyebrow towards them, but let them be nevertheless. Avienna kept her body still, watching as Mase ran away and left the scene. She couldn't look at Lucas, not because he slept with Mase but because she was worried that if she looked at him she would burst into tears. Avienna rarely cried, but the lack of sleep and anger was a mixture that no one could control. He was the only person that she had ever cried to, and he was the last. She sucked the emotions away, sniffling her nose and rising to the occasion.

Without a word, she stormed off. Her boots heavily walked across the hard ground, echoing as she left the Caf hut. She had hoped that he would come after her, try to explain himself to her and apologise for making a mistake. But as she exited the building, her best friend was no where in sight.

—

Pain.

It was a familiar feeling, Avienna felt as if she was always in pain- always hurt, always struggling to get ahead of herself. She used to be lively, funny even. She used to crack jokes and she would play with the little children. Now, she could barely smile at her friends who looked at her with worried expressions. It was the pain, the constant ache. She had learnt to push it aside, but it was always there.

She sharpened the edge of her knife, she was preparing to teach a younger children's class, something that she had been doing for ages. She felt that if the children were going to learn to fight, they should learn from the best. She had earned that title, sacrificed many things to become what she was today.

She sat in the barn across from the school on the tractor's bonnet, the barn quiet as the sound of stone against metal, grinding and shaving.

"Avienna," A voice called. She looked up from her knife and saw Lucas standing in the doorway of the barn. She only kept tending to her blade.

"Avienna, please," He stepped forward, it was cautiously though, as if she would pounce at the most unexpected moment, "I need to talk to you."

"I have nothing to say to you Lucas," She stayed, her eyes never leaving her own dead reflection of the metal.

"But I have something to say to you," He offered, stepping closer until her was only a few feet away from her.

She peered up at him through her blonde locks, her face still evident that she was mad, but she always had this anger on her face that never went away. Maybe it was the furrowing of her brow when her mind was hard at work, or perhaps it was the upper lip; full and plump. Lucas hadn't really worked it out yet.

"I am sorry," He started, "I am sorry for sleeping with Mase and I am sorry for not understanding about your nightmares. I was only trying to help."

Avienna only pursed her lips, "I don't care who you sleep with, Lucas. You're a big boy and can do whatever you want."

Lucas was taken back by her comment, she looked so upset he was hoping that she would finally admit the feelings for him. But he was wrong, he was hurt by that, the stinging of his chest bringing him back to the reality of who he was talking to.

"As for my so called 'nightmares', I don't want you to ever speak of them again. I shouldn't of fallen asleep anyway, it was stupid of me," She admitted and slid off the truck until her boots landed heavily against the dirt ground, a cloud of dirt wrestled underneath her.

"You should see the doctor about them, they could help-"

"I don't need help!" She exclaimed, cutting him off and sick of hearing him repeat himself. She threw the rock next to him that she was using, "And I don't need you."

Avienna felt her heart rip in half, she was pushing away the one person that truly cared for her, and she knew that. But he had hurt her, she was hurting. It felt wrong but she couldn't help her anger.

Lucas reached out for her, grazing her arm so softly it was barely a touch. But it felt like a million electric shots shooting up her arm. He rubbed his hand up her forearm until his fingers met her neck.

"But I need you," He whispered, his eyes intense like a fire that could never be blown out. She gazed into them, feeling herself being drawn back to him. She placed a hand in his chest, looking up through her eyes lashes to see the sharp features of him staring back at her.

"We can't," She tried to push him away, "We would get caught."

He smiled at her, at her worry and seriousness, "Let them."

He dipped his head to her ear, his hot breath causing her to relax and the pain subsided. She lifted her chin to be closer to him, feeling his lips drag along the base of her neck down to her collarbone. She couldn't contain her squirming as his body towered over hers, dominating hers. She pressed herself up against the tractor again, feeling the need to seperate herself from him but wanting him to keep going. This was wrong, she knew it was wrong, but it felt so good.

"I love how you react," He murmured into her ear, with every word slow than before, his voicing dropping and his hot breath tickling her ear. He slowly trailed his hand from her waist to her neck, bringing her forward until they were inches apart. She couldn't help it, he had her under a trance that she couldn't break. He grinned, dipping his head down until his lips pressed against hers. At first it was slow, their lips moulding together, his lips against her plump ones.

She needed this, she needed to feel something other than the headache that was pounding against her skull. This time it was her heart against her ribs, it was doubling, pressing hard as she melted into the kiss. He cupped her neck, pushing her closer him so he could feel her, be closer.

The kiss heated, it was more desire than anything, they were just using each other as an escape. As she kissed him, she felt the memories of the nightmare's melt away, the pain from the terrors washed off her body and his hands took the pain. As he kissed her, he knew that she would forgive him, she always forgave him. This was what she needed to be persuaded. You could say that he was using her, abusing her even. But deep down everyone was using someone for their own pleasure, it might not be surfaced but it's defiantly there. He was just another victim to the cruel world.

Climbing to a high, she rode the pleasure and fisted his hair between her fingers, gripping it hard as the passion grew between them.

"Jump," He murmured, kissing the soft spot under her ear. She did. He caught her legs as she wrapped them around his stomach, never breaking the kiss. He carried her over to the hay, lying her down on the soft beading and forgetting about the world outside the barn. Until, she did remember.

She broke the kiss, her breath ragged, "I have a class to get to."

He let out a breath that was almost like a groan, "I have to get back to training."

"Yeah," She said between breaths, hoping that she didn't disappoint him.

He shook his head and cupped her cheeks, "You are perfect." And he kissed her mouth. She smiled, for the first time, it was genuine. She never felt this, this passion and fire for something. It was dangerous, but that made it more intense, more desired. They stayed in each other's embrace, he knew that this would be the last time that he could hold her and not be feared that they were going to get caught. This would be the last time they would have to hide. Because after tonight, the Hunters would be coming.