"Brie, we should stop to rest."

I look at Justin, my best friend and second-in-command. "They're hot on our tails, Jay. We can't yet."

"Brie, I'm dying. Can we please just rest?" Alex groans.

"Let me at least find some place for cover," I say with a sigh.

"How long's that going to take?" Brian, Alex's twin, asks.

I shrug. "As long as it takes."

"You two need to shut up before you draw attention to us," Justin growls softly, as we duck into the shadow of a nearby building to avoid detection.

We're in one of the deserted towns near a Slave Camp we hit earlier today. The Sentries are relentless.

"Yeah, " I whisper, narrowing my eyes in the setting sun. "And grow some balls. Seriously. Kelston was braver than the both of you combined."

"And look where she ended up," Alex argues.

"Well, at least she went down trying," I whisper back, motioning for them to move.

Brian and Alex shrug in agreement as we move quickly to the other building. I spot a sewer drain, look around, then nudge Justin. He nods. As the brawn of us, he quickly hauls the lid up, motioning for us to hurry. We oblige, climbing down quickly. Justin closes up behind us, and we slink through the tunnels quietly, trying to find some place to set up camp.

"Ugh, this place smells," Brian says, wrinkling his nose.

I roll my eyes, pulling out my flashlight and turning it on. "It's been unoccupied for nine years, Brian. Anything you're smelling is of your own accord."

Justin and Alex laugh, and I grin.

"So, we're staying here for the night?" Justin asks.

I nod. "Yup. Unless you have a problem with it."

Justin raises an eyebrow. "You'd make an exception for me?"

"Well, of course." I look at him, giving a sly smile. "I love you, after all."

The three boys choke on their spit, and I cackle.

"You're not serious, are you?" Justin asks. "Because, eh..." He rubs the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable.

I snort. "Me? In love with you? You wish, Jay. And for the record, no, we would not leave if you didn't want to stay here. We can't afford to leave tonight."

Justin breathes a sigh of relief, and we continue on until we find a space big and dry enough to set up camp.

"Brie, you're taking first watch," Alex declares as he slips into the warmth of his sleeping bag.

"Well, no shit, Sherlock," I scoff, pulling out my knife and a thick branch from my pack.

"You sure you don't want to rest?" Justin asks. "I can take first watch."

I lean against the wall, using the knife to scrape off the bark from the wood. "Nah. You get some rest. I'll wake you in an hour."

"Alright..." Justin sounds hesitant - something that seems thoroughly unlike him.

"Just..." I say softly, not looking up from my task. "Is there something wrong?"

Brian and Alex are already snoring.

"Uh... no. No, everything's fine. I'll, uh, just get some sleep."

This time I do glance over at him, frowning. "Justin?"

"Nothing, Bryna. Drop it, please?"

"You don't call me my my full name unless there's something wrong. What's the matter?"

"Bee, please, just drop it."

I sigh. "Sure thing, Justin," I mumble, putting down the knife and wood, drawing my knees to my chest and leaning against the wall next to me.

I'm being cruel, playing this card, but whatever's eating at him, he won't tell me. I should leave it alone, but we could have to fight at any moment, and I'd rather not have this between us. If he doesn't tell me now, I'll force it out of him. My methods are cruel, but, I get it done. That's all that matters.

We sit in silence for a good ten minutes before he sighs. "I'm sorry, Brie. I just... We've gotten so small. I miss Kelston, Sara, Jared, all of them. We used to be so big, so... unstoppable. I just don't feel that anymore. I don't know how I would manage if we lost anyone else. You're the only leader we have, after Kip... you know. If we lost you, or Brian, or even Alex... It wouldn't be the same anymore. They're slowly cutting us down. It'd be so easy to give up - spare ourselves more loss. Is Rhode Island even worth it at this point? We're so far, and there will be more loss before we get there."

"Do you even want Rhode Island, Jay?" I ask him, uncurling from my previous position and look at him through the dark. "I mean, you've agreed on the multiple occasions that we've decided on Rhode Island, but you always seem reluctant. Is there something keeping you here? I'll understand if you want to give up. It doesn't not cross my mind, either. But if there's something - someone - keeping you in the Condemned States, you need to tell me so that I can figure out what to do about it. You're welcome to make your own decisions, I can't stop you."

Justin's silent for a moment, and I grab my flashlight, wrap a cloth around it to dim the light, and point it towards the wall behind Justin.

"My sister," he says softly. "She's in a community with my parents. They vouched for her. I want to be with her, especially now that there's a chance not all of us will make it to Rhode Island. I think my parents are going to die soon - I just feel it. I don't want her to be sent to the Camps, Brie. She won't survive out there, especially if there are older men out there. I... I just want to be able to be there for her."

"Then why'd you leave without her?"

"We... got into an argument. She didn't want to come with me when I wanted to escape. I told her that if she was going to be so insubordinate, then I'd leave without her. And being the stubborn idiot that I was, I did exactly that."

I smile thinly. "At least she's safe, for the most part. Do you want to go back? I'm sure I can get you into the gates, help you find your sister and get her to vouch for you so you can stay. As long as we haven't gone too far from her community."

"You don't have to do that, Brie. I know what you've been trying to work towards, and I don't want to ruin that for you. But to answer your question, her community is coming up. If you'll just let me accompany you there, I can maybe start a new life with my sister. I really, really don't want to leave you, but your journey and mine aren't... they aren't the same. I've been wondering if maybe I could leave her and live my life with you guys, but I don't want the probability of death at every turn of our lives anymore. If you want to be apart of that, I can't risk getting any closer, then ultimately losing any more of you."

I smile sadly. "That's alright, Justin. You're entitled to a good life. You've definitely earned it. Of course we'll accompany you. Just don't forget about us in the future, yeah?"

"It'll be hard to forget about you, Brie."

I give him a small smile. "Alright. Get some rest. I'll wake you in an hour."

"Thank you, Bryna," he says softly.

I don't respond, watching him slip into his sleeping bag and relaxing, before turning out the flashlight and returning to my previous position, grabbing my knife and the piece of wood. I continue to strip the wood of bark and sharpening one of the ends to a point, all the while listening and watching for any disturbances.

~~~

The next day, we emerge from another end of the sewer drain. Justin and I are silent, leaving Brian and Alex to fill in the tension between Jay and I.

We walk for hours, the brothers animated, talking, laughing, occasionally shoving each other into a pool of stagnate - and possibly radioactive - water.

"Brie, you're so..." Alex frowns. "What's the word?"

"Distracted?" Brian offers, shoving his brother into a pit of mud left over from a rainstorm two nights ago.

I shrug, scanning the area. "I'm just not in the mood today."

Alex stands up from the mud, pulling his twin into the puddle and matching my stride. "Are you... you know..?"

"Eh, no." I look over at Justin, who's staring straight ahead. I can almost hear his mental turmoil, now that I know how to look. "I'm just tense about the Sentries. They disappeared too easily yesterday. Normally they lead us into a trap, or fish us out of hiding, or something. They didn't even try anything today." It's true. We walked from the sewers, expecting a full onslaught, but there was nothing. Nothing. I'd usually be glad, but it seems strange, mixed with Justin's secret agenda.

Is he going to betray us, too?

The thought comes before I can even register it. His behavior... the sudden want to leave... the Sentries not pulling any stunts... It could be the perfect betrayal. The signs are there. I look at Justin again.

Could he betray us?

When loved ones are involved, I suppose we tend to do reckless things. But would he really think about hurting me, Brian, and Alex? He's fought with us for so long. But he's also known about his sister the entire time.

Is he a double-agent like Fletch and Ange?

This could be apart of his plan. But could he honestly betray us? Me? The twins? The scary thing is, I don't know anymore. I used to be able to laugh at anyone suggesting that he'd betray us, but it scares me that I'm even considering it. He's my right-hand. Surely, he wouldn't?

"Brie?" Alex asks.

I blink, looking at Alex. "What?"

"Is something wrong? You're spacing out."

"I'm fine. Just wondering what could warrant such..." I trail off, stopping in my tracks. Alex, Brian, and Justin stop as well.

A whole army of Sentries stands in front of us, guns and all. Well, shit.

"Hello!" A perky, bright, fake-looking female Sentry greets us, flashing a too-sweet smile with hidden malice.

I watch her cautiously. "Hello," I say, deadpan. My hand itches to reach for the weapons in my pack, but I don't dare, with the guns pointed at me. The girl can't be more than a year or two older than me.

"Sabrina," Justin whispers beside me.

Sabrina grins. "Hello, dear. Long time no see."

So they have a past. I'm going to assume that she's not his sister, because Justin inches closer to me as she speaks, and siblings rarely use endearments such as that. I'm assuming she's an ex. A bitter one, at that, from the hidden malice in her eyes as she watches me step forward, keeping a distance between her and Justin.

"Love the outfit," I say, smiling. "I've always admired the color blue. It looks amazing on you, though. Really matches your eyes, you know? Are you a natural black, or is that dye in your hair? It looks amazing, really compliments your skin pallor. You should really keep it in a ponytail, though. It's easier for people to pull your hair, otherwise, in fights. I'd suggest cutting it to my length," I motion to my chin-length hair, "but not many people can get away with this kind of style. Plus, you look pretty with long hair."

She stares at me, obviously taken aback my sudden friendliness. But she doesn't miss a beat when she says, "Oh, I could say the same for you. Your black clothes really accentuate your eyes. The color black looks really good on you."

I laugh. "Oh, you're funny. Black's not a color, silly. It's the absence of color. Surely you know the difference, being from such an uptight community."

She blinks at me, and I watch her slowly loose her cool.

"Now, we can do this easily, or with difficulty," she says, failing to keep the growl in her voice as she stalks towards me.

"Ooh, you remind me of a dog," I say, widening my eyes in delight. "I haven't seen one in so long!"

She blinks, looks taken aback, frowns, and looks back at her colleagues, obviously trying to figure out the meaning behind my insult.

One of the older men snickers. "She called you a bitch, Sab."

I grin. "Oh, so they do have brains! Here I was, thinking that they were all mindless machines! This'll be so much more fun, then!"

Justin chuckles behind me, saying nothing.

Sabrina turns on me, eyes narrowing. "You use wit to get yourself out of bad situations. You fear me. You fear us."

I giggle. "You look like a child when you narrow your eyes like that. And no, honey, I don't use wit because I 'fear you'. I use wit because I'm a smart ass, and my wit just makes that apparent. I don't fear you. You remind me of a bitter ex trying to intimidate her better-in-every-way replacement."

Some of the men behind Sabrina can no longer hold in their laughter. I'm taking that I'm not the only one who thinks she's got some issues. Her colleagues are even turning on her.

She glares at me, before turning to Justin. "Darling, your sister's to be sent to the camps shortly. Her parents died in a riot a few days ago. If you'd like to save her, turn yourself in, and all transgressions will be forgotten." She beams. "Maybe you and I could even have a life together, like we talked about so long ago."

Justin pales, and I step forward, forcing Sabrina back. "Do not make promises you don't intend to keep. We all know he would never be forgiven, unless someone vouches for him. We're not stupid. We know the rules. And if you step any closer, I'll end your life." I pull out the plastic knife from my belt, the one I use in many situations used to intimidate people.

She takes one look at the knife and her eyes widen. She looks at the wild look in my eye and steps back.

I look at Justin. "The call's yours, Jay. Go with them and save your sister, while living a life of lies, or come with us to freedom. Either way, I support you wholeheartedly."

He looks at me, and I can see the hurt in his eyes. He doesn't want to leave us, but he loves his sister. Love conquers. But does loyalty conquer over that?

He looks between me, Alex, and Brian, then Sabrina and the other Sentries. Then back at me, sighing.

"I'm sorry."

I nod, stepping away as he walks towards Sabrina the Witch and her loyal minions.

Love reigns supreme.

:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:

Hey! Welcome to The Rebellion (Working on the title)!

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. I know this was kind of a depressing first chapter, but it builds into the plot. You'll see.

As you saw in the A/N at the beginning of this story, this will have more profanity, and is different from what I usually write. I apologize if that's inconvenient for you, but I do hope you understand that unlike the adults I write about in The Ghost, these are teenagers, and they don't have much of a filter. I don't intend to use too much of it, but it will differentiate from what I usually use. Again, my sincere apologies to anyone offended. Feedback is appreciated, as always.

What are your thoughts on Bryna's character? Do you think Justin betrayed her, Brian, and Alex by surrendering?

I'm planning on updating every Saturday. I hope you enjoyed!

-Musical_Author