The Werewolf Experiment

Chapter 4

I woke up gasping for air. That was an awful dream. One that I hoped would never come true. I rubbed my head and whipped off the sweat that had gathered on my forehead. I swung my feet off my bed and placed them on the floor. For an instant, I wish I had shoes on. The floor was incredibly cold. I stood up and stretched my body. It hurt. It felt like I was hit with a truck. The light in the room flashed on. I guess it was morning now. They always did that. It seemed like a torture technique. Like they wanted us to know how many days were going by. Like they wanted us to know that we were going to function on their time and their time alone.

"Attention ladies and gentlemen." It was the lady once again on the intercom. I looked up at the ceiling, feeling like she paused for an eternity. I could hear my heart pounding in my chest. "Most of you have failed your first trial. Most of you were told that there would be serious consequences for further failure. That is true. Most of you would have been harmed worse than you are if the first trial wasn't only based to see where you will be starting. Each of you will need to progress. If it is evident that you are not progressing you will be killed. If you refuse to participate in the trials you will be killed. If you do anything to tamper with the trial results you will be killed. These are simple rules. Remember that there are many, many people in the streets that you can be replaced with. You are merely a pawn in the bigger picture, but if you succeed you will be rewarded. Not in money, but in power. This is the time of new technological advances. You all have the opportunity to be a part of that. You have the opportunity to be a part of something greater. You all are not prisoners here. You will not be isolated as you have been these past couple of days. These rooms will now only be where you sleep and bathe. In a moment the doors will open. You will be allowed to walk out of your room and down the hallway. You will enter the large room. This is where you will eat and can talk with the others that were brought here with you. When you are not participating in your trials you have the choice of being in the common room or your bedrooms. You will be served dinner and shortly after the lights will flicker notifying that you all should head back to your rooms for the night. You must return to your rooms. If you don't you will be forced into your rooms. Every night the doors to your rooms will be closed and they will be opened again in the morning. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be served every day. When it is your turn for your trials, two guards will come and get you. Not only will there be trials but also other tests that you all will be summoned for. Now please enjoy the common room and breakfast." I heard her turn off the intercom and then the sound of the doors opening. Once they were open there was a sense of silence. It seemed that everyone was on edge about this. I slowly walked to the door and peered out to the hallway. I could see others doing the same. Slowly one by one they began to walk out of their rooms and down the hallway slowly. They were on guard. None of us had ever been through anything like this before. Unconsciously I held my arm to my chest and took a step out of my room.

"Madeleine." I heard his voice. A small smile came across my face. I thought I would never hear his voice again. He was walking toward me. He didn't have his usual smile on his face as he took in my appearance or maybe it was because of this place. There was a cut on his face. It was still swollen around it. Maybe he got it from his trial. He was now in front of me and gently grabbed my arm. His eyes were looking all around my arm and then to the rest of my body. I assumed to see if I was hurt anywhere else. "Did this happen in your trial?" he asked. He looked me in the eyes now. I looked in his as I nodded. His eyes weren't the same. They now looked dull. Like the life in them had been drained.

"Yeah. I failed it. The guy that caught me. He broke it. This is all they did." I said as I looked back at my arm and the bandages that were wrapped around it. "What happened to your face? How did that happen?" I asked as I gently touched it.

"When we first got here. They did this to me since I was being difficult. I passed my trial. I don't know what got into me. I just didn't want to die. I had never run so much in my life. It felt like that guy was right behind me the entire time. I don't know what I would've done if he caught me. I'd probably be in worse condition than you. I wish I knew what was going on here. I haven't slept in days." he said as he rubbed his face.

"We should get going. You look like you could use some food and we can see how everyone else is doing." He nodded as he stepped to the side allowing me to walk in front of him. There was barely any talking going on. Everyone was waiting in a line to be served food. As I looked at everyone here I could see each of them hurt differently. Some of them were holding onto their stomachs and wincing in pain as they walked. Perhaps that's where their injuries were. Some of them had bruises around their necks. Others were limping. I felt a sense of rage. How could people do things like this to us? What was this even for?

"Here, let me help you," Kane said as he grabbed my tray of food for me.

"You know I still have one good arm. I could carry my own tray." I chuckled. He shrugged his shoulders as he began walking to one of the tables that were in the room. I followed behind him as he set our food down. There were already people at the table but they were all silent. Some of them weren't eating while others were just pushing their food around. It seems like everyone was struggling here.

"What is this?" A small voice said. One of the youngest in our group. His parents had lost their jobs so the three of them were once a part of our group. They got caught one day stealing. They were trying to get clothes and food for him. They were arrested and we haven't seen them since. We don't know what happened to them but everyone in our group has looked out for this little boy as if he was our own. His face was bruised and swollen. His shoulders sagged as he looked at us. I had to fight back the tears that wanted to escape.

"I don't know Timmy," Kane replied to him. Kane's hand was balled into a fist as he looked at Timmy. I knew he was thinking that this boy didn't deserve this. He was only 12. He was supposed to be so innocent and bring happiness into our lives and now to see him in this state. We ate our food in silence after that. Once most of us finished our food a handful of guards came into the room. There was low murmuring amongst us as we looked at them. One by one they began walking to random people and grabbed them. One of them was heading our way and I couldn't help but feel like he was going to grab me. I wrapped my arm around Kane's arm. He held onto my hand as we watched him walk toward us. I closed my eyes preparing for the yank but it never came. I felt Kane let go of my hand as he stood up and heard yelling from Timmy. The guard had grabbed Timmy. "Hey, stop! He's just a boy. You can't take him!" Kane yelled as he tried to stop the guard from dragging Timmy away. The guard briefly let go of Timmy only to punch Kane in the face, making him fall to the floor.

"Out of my way!" the guard yelled. He grabbed Timmy again and began dragging him out of the room. Timmy along with the others that were grabbed was yelling and crying as they were being dragged away. I went to Kane's side to help him up. He whipped away the blood that was dripping from the corner of his mouth. He looked in the direction that they had dragged Timmy. Kane was silent as he looked at the now closed-off wall. We didn't know if Timmy would come back or if any of the others would come back either. I hoped they would though. I prayed that they would.