The time has finally come. The battle of Area 2 and Area 35. Our areas have
been at war for the past decade. Area 2 is fighting to keep the government how it is now. Area 35 is going against the government, trying to gain power and money for their poverty society. My friends and I belong to Area 35, and we all had our reasons to join the war, not that I wanted to. In both Areas, when you turn 18, you are eligible to represent your Area in the ongoing war. With this came benefits, such as for us, protection for our family and funds to help them survive. I’m here for my little sister. Mom hasn’t been doing so well, she’s been sick for the past two months. I need money to pay for my mother’s treatments, as well as keeping my sister safe. Then there is Miles and Shay. They are twin brothers of 8 children. So they are here for their siblings. We have known eachother since kindergarten, and sure none of us have had a great life but they have had it the toughest. All they have known is to steal and share to survive. They’re kind of like yin and yang. Miles is optimistic and tries to find the peaceful way out in every situation, while Shay’s motto is to act first and think later. But there is balance, so it works. And then there is Mac. We all met Mac during training and she is here for... herself. Her mother died when she was five and her father got sick about three years ago fighting in this very war, he passed away. Ever since then she's been all on her own... I can;t imagine that. However, I admire her bravery and fierceness throughout the whole process of getting here. Deep breaths. Just on the other side of this wall was the battlefield. I can feel so many emotions at once. I can see Area 2 rushing in, confident that they will win. To be honest I felt that way too, but it wasn't fair. They spend every weekend in their yachts and bathing in money, while we are scraping to survive and keep our families safe from diseases or just lack of food in general. Can’t they see what we are standing for! “Ow!” I walk over to Mac. “Mac, are you okay?”. She is wrapping her arm and it seems as if she was bleeding. “Yeah I’m fine, just a little wound from training”. She reassured me, but I still couldn’t help but worry. And just then, the doors open and we all run out to the battlefield. About 30 minutes have passed. I find myself hiding behind a rock and I am freaking out. I lost all of my friends and I don’t know what to do. In my moment of panic I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I can't believe this was how it was going to end. I squinted my eyes and accepted defeat. I’m going to die in 3... 2... 1... nothing happened. “Emmi lets go”. It was Shay. I never felt more relieved in my life. I followed him back to the wall, where we were reunited with Miles and Mac. “Is everyone okay?”, Miles asks. We all nod. Although I see Mac holding on to her arm where her wound is, she is definitely not okay. “I think we should get out of here, head back to the base”, said Shay. We all agreed and began to walk back. “Wait! My locket! It’s missing!.”, Mac shouted. “I need to go back.” I have never seen her this panicked and disoriented before.“You can go back, it’s not safe out there alone”, Miles stated. “I'll be quick and safe, just wait here”, Mac yells as she is already running back to the field. So we wait... and wait... and *bam*. A gunshot. We all looked at each other because we knew what that meant. We are now running back to the field, unsure of what to expect. Hoping that Mac is running back to us with her locket and a huge smile on her face. But you know what they say about dreams, at the end of the day they are just dreams. Once we got to the field we were woken up with a rude awakening. Mac’s body lays lifeless near the wall we all met up at before, locket in her right hand. I couldn’t believe it, this couldn’t be happening to us. We all just stood there and stared. “We should've gone back with her.” Miles said what we were all thinking. “HEY!” A girl approached us, she seemed to be from Area 2. Shay steps in front of me while Miles is holding onto his knife for dead life. I still stare at the lifeless body beneath me. “Sorry about your friend”, she grins as she wipes the blood off of her forehead. Did she kill Mac? Why are we even still out here? I tugged on Shay’s shirt and gave Miles a signal indicating it’s time for us to go. “Wait before you leave. You guys should think about coming to fight for Area 2.”. She offers. “Why would we do that”, Shay grunted. “ I know why you guys are here. Because you're all poor. So you need money for your family. We also need an inside man. If we have an agreement, Area 2 will offer double the benefits you have now.” , she insisted. There was a moment of silence. “Sorry but we're not interested. Lets go guys”, Miles yelled. Just like that we left. She let us leave. We were right there, and she let us leave. Maybe we were making a mistake. I don't know what to think anymore! So much just happened it is hard to tell what is reality. Some time has passed and we are now sitting with the whole army discussing our plan for the morning. The plan presented was sure to work. We were to break into Area 2 and surround them with a surprise attack. This will show them that they need to take us seriously! Although it was a great plan, it was still very dangerous and after Mac, I cannot help but worry for our safety every step. “Hey Em, you okay?''Shay asks me as he brings me a glass of water. I nod. Shay and I have become very close over the past few months. We would sit outside in the park at night and look at the stars. We stare and stare, just enjoying each other’s company. He would tell me how beautiful he thought I was and how brought composure in his life. I am glad that I met Shay, he is truly something special. Everyone has left for bed, so it is now just him and I in the room. “ Hey I was thinking. Remember that girl from Area 2?”, he asked me. “How can I forget? She was standing over lifeless Mac.”, I sighed. “ I know. I was just thinking what if we take her up on her offer. I know Miles would never go for it but it can be good. We can finally be protected and our families will finally be safe. Your mother will actually be able to have a real doctor.” As Shay shared this idea with me he seemed so sure that I would side with him. So he looked very disappointed when I said no. “ Em, this could be good. Think about it. And I don’t want you to get hurt like Mac did. This will be the safest option!” Shay seemed as if he was now begging me to agree with him. Where was this coming from? “Shay no, none of us will get hurt if we stay together, and we can’t betray our Area and go against everything it stands for. And what about Miles? No!”, I yelled. At this point I was furious. Why would he ask me such a thing! I walked away, not even bothering to say goodnight. I did turn back and his face showed heartbreak, I can’t understand why though. “Hey! Are you ready?”Miles said next to me. I nod. It is now morning and we are preparing for our attack. “Where is Shay?”I asked, worried. “He said he’ll be down soon, he just had to make a serious call to our mom.”, he reassured me. I felt terrible the way we left things last night. I just felt tension between us, and I did not want anything to happen to him. We are now boarding the buses to get to Area 2. So many thoughts raced through my head. I haven’t seen Shay, so I assume he is on another bus. I feel like this plan will go well, but I still can’t help but worry. We are now getting off of the buses and are surrounding Area 2 field. Now we wait. Miles and I are hiding behind a building, ready for everyone to come out. I have still yet to see Shay, I just hope that he's okay. “They're coming”. Miles whispers. Here we are, Area 35, all ready to attack. Then we see Area 2, they come charging at us with guns, rifles, and bombs. What is going on? How do they know we're here? I start to panic. We are now doing everything we can to survive. At this point we are all trying to make it back to the buses. Then I saw Shay. I run to Shay and hug him. “Let’s get back to the bus.Miles is already there. Come on!”, I shouted. He didn’t move. Why isn’t he coming? “Em, go now.”, he whispered to me with fear in his eyes. Why is he acting so weird? And then I look to my left. The girl from Area 2 appears standing next to him, with a few other people. “Do it!”, she yells. Do what? I cannot believe this is happening. Shay pulls out a gun. I close my eyes. *Bam*
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