Young Writers Society

Edgar Monroe

Since when did I start sleeping on cold stone floors? And who the fudge had turned the AC up? My room smelled like a sewer chilled to the inner temperature of an iceberg. Well, the smell wasn't too big of a change.
I opened my eyes and rubbed them thoroughly. Something told me this was going to be a bad day.
I couldn't have been any more right, and it started when I opened my eyes.
"Alright, who moved me to the basement!?" I yelled, looking around at the bare grey walls and cement floor. "Mom? Dad? This isn't funny!"
But wasn't our basement bigger than this? And didn't it have hot water pipes running around? This basement was as empty as the inside of a tomb.
I shuddered at the thought and got up, wobbling unsteadily before finding my feet. There was no door, just an entryway into the hall, but I hesitated before going out. I had played far too many zombie games that ended in disaster when you went around corners rashly.
My hands fell to my side and suddenly struck cold metal. A black police flashlight hung from the loop in my shorts. Next to it, in my pocket and nearly tearing the seams out, was a crowbar.
Well, at least I wasn't weaponless.
I grasped the crowbar tightly, even though I knew I looked ridiculous, and strode forward.

deleted

Jamie

“We have a survivor here! She’s female, Caucasian, approximately sixteen years-old...”

I was lying on something cold and hard. I tried to look around but thick tears were blurring my vision. All I could make out was flashlights and blood...lots and lots of blood...

“Stay with me, sweetheart, you’re going to be okay...”

I couldn’t recognise the voice. I tried to lift my head to see what was going on and was met by a shockwave of excruciating pain making me cry out in agony.

“Just try to relax for me...” the voice told me. “Survivor has suffered serious trauma to the head – requesting EMT immediately...”

“Wh-wh...” even speaking caused me pain, “...what’s h-h-happened t-to me?”

The voice didn’t speak. Suddenly, I felt myself being lifted onto something soft, people surrounded me and then everything went black.

I bolted up as though I’d been hit with lightening. My heart was racing, me head was throbbing and beads of sweat trickled down my neck. Breathing heavily, I looked around to see where I was but darkness engulfed me. Lifting a shaky hand, I tried to feel for something, anything that could give me a clue as to where I was. Instantly, my hand met with a cold hard wall, and another, and another...I tried to feel for windows, maybe a door but there was nothing. A surge of panic ran through my veins. Where the hell was I, a cellar, a basement?

I desperately tried to stand but for some reason my whole body ached. Using the walls for support, I managed to get to my feet. Suddenly the sound of objects hitting the ground could be heard. I knelt down and scrambled to find them. My hands managed to locate two objects, one was small and round, the other felt thick and heavy, like a-

“Hello?” came a sudden voice from the other side of the wall. It sounded male. “Is anyone there?”

My head instantly whipped to face the sound. I wasn’t alone. I desperately started banging my palm against the concrete wall until it hurt.

“Help!” I shouted, the panic inside me growing by the second. “Please, help! Get me out of here!”

God, I hope they could hear me.

Calligraphy, who is the person with the 'permanent bed head'?

Tobias (Toby) Cole. Sorry

Kili Burkke,

Okay, this kid starting to SERIOUSLY annoy me. I can tell that he thinks that a) I'm not hot and b) that I'm weak, simply because that's usually the reaction I get when I meet new people. All that "Ewww, she's got braces and no figure" crap. I laugh to myself, grimly. Just wait until I get to use this blade.

I follow Vince to the door, Tobias close behind me, still running his hands ruefully over his head. Vince has opened the door, but he lets it slam shut behind him. I stifle a laugh as he panics and starts pounding on the worn gray metal. I push it open.

"Take a chill pill; you're fine," I say, grinning. He just glares at me and gestures behind him. Sand. Nothing but sand. Stretching far into the distance. My grin fades. A hot wind blows through the door, ruffling Tobias' already messed-up hair.

"Great," I mutter, "Just great." And then suddenly all of the confusion and anger that I've been feeling because of this whole creepy situation bursts out of me in a yell of rage. I pull my sword and swing it at one of the metal poles that stand outside, which might have been a decrepit playground. To my surprise, the blade, instead of bouncing off of the pole, slashes right through the rusty, worn metal. Vince and Tobias stare.

"Sharper than I thought," I say, grinning again.

Tim

I sighed heavily as the noise turned out to be nothing more than my paranoia. Slightly relaxed I put the gun back into my jeans and started wandering aimlessly through the halls. I soon found an unlocked door off to the side, and letting my curiosity get the better of me I opened it.

To be shot at from some girl crouching in the corner. I ducked and hit the floor, drawing my gun as I did so. The girl was screaming as she fired round after round, and I had blocked my face from the continuous stream of light and noise.

'STOP! STOP! STOOOOOOP!" I yelled. Slowly, the retreating beast of senseless sound was no longer haunting my senses. With extreme caution I raised my head and peered through the gun-induced smoke.

My eyes locked onto the still shaking girl. I decided to try and approach her; maybe she would know something about this place. I threw on my usual goofy grin and said "Damn, you need to play some more Call of Duty"

Danyel Cruz

I woke up on cold concrete. I bolted upright, and scanned the room. People I didn't reconize were wandering around aimlessly. Curious of what I was sitting on, I felt my back pocket, and pulled out a wooden slingshot. I didn't remember ever seeing it before.

Glancing around, I saw people with crowbars, guns, knifes, and anything else you could kill someone with. And I get a freaking slingshot? I shook my head, and decided to put it back in my pocket. I kept my hand grasped around the handle, just incase something were to happen. Not that I'd be able to actually protect myself with it.

I stood up shakily, my head was throbing, like somebody was stabbing my brain over and over again. I rubbed my head, leaning against the cool wall so I didn't fall. After about five minutes, I felt a bit better, and grasped the slingshot. Looking like a complete idiot, I walked forward, ready to see what the hell is happening.

Juli

I slowly felt a sense of calm wash over me, and slowly I regained the ability to breath. I wiped my face and looked up to the man. Was this really a good time to be joking? Besides, I had never played Call of whatever before. He bit his lip and offered another goofy half-smile. I looked away from him and brought my knees up to my chest.

"We're going to die, aren't we?" I asked without looking up to him.

That had to be it. This was like one of those horror movies where everyone wakes up unaware of where they are and they all die. I felt a tremor of worry shiver through me. He came and sat beside me, but I still didn't look over to him.

"I think death is a bit or an over reaction. There has to be a way out of here."

An optimistic, I need one of those around. They always calm me such a great deal.

Tobias

I watched, vaguely amazed as the sword sliced right through the rusty pole. Nice, nice. And then my brain seemed to finally wake up and drawled in a very sarcastic tone: 'Well duh, it's rusty. Man Tobias, how slow can you get?' I shook the thoughts away, agitated, and then gave my companions another look. The first, the girl, was a red head. Faye. She had red hair too. But she didn't look at all like this girl. Other than the pale skin. And the red hair. Okay so they shared some base genetics but my Faye was... my Faye was not here. Was she? Could she be?

"Faye?!" I called out loudly, turning away so that I only got the briefest profile of the boy. Asian. Some sort of punk hairstyle. Would probably rough me up in a fight. "Faye!"

"Uh... I don't think any of our family are here." the guy said as the two followed me back into the room. I gave him a look that was torn between lost puppy and over-dramatic teenage agony. Hey. I'm known for those, okay?

"Alright. Well. We have to work out where here is." I reached up to rub my head again, wincing at that throbbing pain behind my eyes. What did I do? Hit my head or something? Yeah, must have done. Maybe I put up a fight. Maybe I got knocked out by whoever brought us here. Whoever brought us here. "Right then. Last memories, what does everyone remember last?"

To say the girl had been in enough of a rage to slice and dice a pole five minutes ago, she seemed perfectly cheery now. Actually, her volatile attitude reminded me of Laura. Yes. There was something irritatingly Laura about her. But it was also sort of comforting.

"I remember being at home, maybe going to sleep..." The girl shrugged. "Sorry, not much."

"Look I really need some water alright," the guy protested, his eyyes catching sight of the bottle at my waist.

"Just water treatment, sorry mate," I said before he could ask. "But hey, if you find some muddy water around here, I can clear it up for you. Oh wait a second. Aren't we in the middle of some sort of desert?" Yeah... mornings were juust peachy, thanks.

deleted

Note: There's no electricity in the prison (I don't know if I mentioned that) so there would be no neon lights.

Claira Memmer

I groaned. How had my bed become so hard? I turned over and tried to pull my blanket with me, but there was no blanket to pull. What the...?

I opened my eyes, and shot up. All around was cement, or concrete, or whatever the frick it was in block form. I heard a tiny clink and looked down to see a dagger strapped to my waist. Laying by my feet was a water bottle, filled to the cap. I, myself, was in the middle of the room, all alone. I stood up and turned in a circle. It took a minute to realize that the room wasn't just a block of gray - it had a two doors. But which one to choose? Because I obviously couldn't stay there.

I heard a metallic scraping sound coming from the door to my right, and there was something about the sound that ground my bones. So, slowly, I headed left. I peered through it, to find it a larger room, maybe a cafeteria or something? Hard to tell. Anyway, it was empty, and it wasn't doing me any good to stay there. Not if I wanted out of this place - wherever this place was.

I went through a series of doors, not sure where I was heading or why I was here. I just wanted to find someone, anyone, or get outside. Anything to answer some of my questions.

It took a while, but finally I came through a door to find a small group of people huddled around some vending machines. "Who're you?" I asked. It was the first of many planned questions.

In case you're wondering, I'm with Juliette, Tobias, and Vince.

Note: Kili is with Tobias and Vince, not Juliette.

Kili Burkke,

"Who're you?" The voice comes from behind us, just as I'm contemplating how much I'd like to stab Vince. I whirl around, drawing my sword as I do so. A girl stands a little ways down the corridor from us, with a knife in her belt and a bottle of water in her hand. She starts back, glancing nervously at my blade.

"Oh! Sorry," I say, smiling awkwardly. I really need to work on this whole stab first, ask questions later thing, "I'm Kili."

"Uh, hey," she says quietly, still eying my sword, "I'm Claira."

I return my sword to its scabbard, "Pleased to meet you," I say, and then gesture to Tobias and Vince, "We were looking for water, and we found these vending machines, but I see you already have some water...care to share a little?"

I smile encouragingly, hoping against hope that Vince doesn't come up with some smart-ass remark that will ruin our chance at some water.

Oh, sorry, I knew that. *smacks head*

Claira Memmer

This girl... was out there. But there was something about her that I liked - I had no idea what it was yet, but hey, I had no idea about anything.

"Um," I said, "don't you think we should figure out exactly where we are and what we're doing here before we waste the supplies we have?"

After all, as far as I knew, there was no way out of here. Probably a ludicrous thought, but so was the thought of us here.

"Oh, and who're you?" I looked at the boys.

Sorry it's short, but I wasn't sure what Kili's response would be.

Kili Burkke,

So it's fairly evident to me that I've singled myself out as a weirdo. Ah, well. I shake off the thought. Tobias and Vince introduce themselves, Vince with a slight sneer in his voice. I turn back to Claira.

"We've already seen what's outside the building, and trust me, it's not pretty. We're in the middle of the fricking desert. Which brings us back to the water problem. There's some pretty old-looking gatorade in these vending machines, and even if it's any good, it'll only last us so long."

Claira nods and Vince rolls his eyes, "Right, so let's back to what we WERE doing...opening these stupid vending machines!"

So saying, he tries to kick through the plexiglas front of the machine with the gatorade. His foot bounces off and he curses with pain. I can't stifle my laughter, and Claira giggles a little, as well. Vince glares at us. I stick my tongue out at him at start examining the plexiglas.

"I don't think that my sword will be quite right to do the trick...but your knife is short enough that we could get enough leverage to cut a hole, Claira."