Run.. The voice whispered inside my head as I cradled the barely two month old in my arms. Trying to keep her asleep as I reached the barb wire fence.

If I could slip past it, even though it was on. That would mean freedom and life for us . We'd be out of Grey Valley for good.

Though death must have been the better fate for us both. For as soon as my hands touched the wire, I was stopped and pulled forcefully to a halt.

"Where're you think you're going Red Nine?".. The voice hissed between teeth. A firm hand gripping my hair as the other held a rather wicked looking knife.

"It's Johanna," I snap, knowing it to be my former teammate, Tianne. Well, before she got the MEC. "I don't go by my numbers anymore. "

"We know," She said almost gleefully, an evil look in her eyes that now turned an eerie shade. One the color of freshly spilled blood. "That's why, we voted you to go."

The blade got closer to my chest as I tried to shield the child in my arms from it. A searing pain pierced though me and I let out a cry. Letting the welcoming darkness take me.

I was finally

free....

Vocabulary:

MEC: (Motorized Engine Can) A prize well sought after in the valley. Though it comes with a price, as once you contain one. You are controlled by the ghosts and demons of those before.

Numbers: What you are assigned to instead of a name once you've entered the valley. Though some rebel and keep their original name.

Grey Valley: Otherwise known as the valley of death. Grey Valley is home to outcasts and to the test like death games.