Once I get to the Lodge from school it’s the same routine. I do some of my homework, get dressed into one of my training outfits and head down to the training center. Nothing new, even though it is Friday.



I look around soon spotting Saige practicing her sword moves on a stand up dummy. She wears a black tank top and black leggings with boots. She swings the sword back hitting the dummy’s side as she makes contact with it. Then she spins around slicing another one’s head off as she stabs another in the stomach. She then kicks behind her knocking a dummy down then leaping onto of it before jabbing the sword into the dummy’s chest.



“Glad it’s only practice right?” I ask walking over to her. She snaps her head up and grins.



“Yeah, but I could still do some damage with this sword if I needed to."



“I know, it may only be a dull sword but it still helps with training.” She smiles as she puts the sword back.



“So what’s up?” She says walking back over to me.



“Nothing just looking for something to do.” I say shrugging. “Anyway, want to try some hand on hand combat? We don’t really learn that at Jama’s.”



“Oh, so Jama doesn’t teach you everything.” She says crossing arms in front of her.



I sigh knowing she doesn’t want me to go to Jama’s just as much as her brother does. “Look, we do sometimes practice hand on hand but it’s mostly using battle tactics. We learn how to use different weapons and skills.”



“Oh, so everything you learned here but you have your own personal trainer?”



“Will you all stop being on edge about this! It wasn’t our fault! Like you said Logan chose this for us, it wasn’t our decision!”



Her face softens a bit as she remembers what she said last night. She sighs and nods, “I know, it’s just . . . well like what Danni said. It doesn’t feel complete without you guys here.”



I know what she means, sometimes at Jama’s I feel lonely. It’s a big house with only a few people in it. And the only people you can talk to are Jama and Kimberley. I sigh, “I know, it’s the same thing at Jama’s. I do miss it here it’s just . . . ”



“You’ll miss it over there too right?” She says. I nod in response. I know the Lodge will always be my home but now I’ve gained another home as well.



“I will, and I can’t just give up one home for another. I can’t live with one, then not the other. Do you get what I mean?”



“I understand.” She sighs sadly. “It’s like if I try to choose between Jason and Blake as a better older brother.”



I think for a moment trying to decide if that is a good comparison. “I guess you could put it like that. Now,” I get down into a fighter’s stance having my hands up in fists close to my body, “Do you want to try hand to hand combat?”



She grins getting down into her own fighter stance. I wait for a second like Jama taught us and wait for her to strike first. She uses the obvious move, trying to get under me using her fist to punch my stomach. I jump back just in time using my leg to kick up trying to hit her in the chin, but her reflexes have improved as she grabs my ankle twisting it along with my whole body. I loose balance and fall face flat on the ground. She brings my leg up bending it back over my back. I curl my lip as the pain increases. Then I use my other leg kicking her side getting her off me.



She rolls on the ground and that gives me enough time to pounce up and get into a stance before she gets up. This time I strike first. I seem like I’m going to kick her so, of course she dodges it. Like expected, but instead I grab her left arm and wrap her head in a leg head lock. We both fall to the ground. I use my other leg to pin down her left arm. She tries to shake me off of her with flailing her right arm around. I grin knowing I won this fight, but I got to cocky. She reaches back with both her feet, wrapping them around my neck and pulling me off her. I fall on my back as she gets up gasping for air from my head lock.



“Where . . . where did you learn that move?” She asks me.



I am also breathing heavily. Saige and I both have the same style of fighting and are about the same in height and weight. But since I’ve been training with Jama, Kimberley and I both train each other in hand to hand moves. She, although, knows more than me and has taught me a lot.



“Kimberley,” I say. “She taught me a lot of stuff for fighting.



“Do . . . do you think you could teach me?” She asks standing up straight. “It will come in handy in battles.”



I get up onto my feet. “Sure. It’s actually really simple.”











Saige and I practice for almost an hour on the move. She’s a quick learner though. Of course she is, she’s a Carter. I show her a couple more moves. She does extremely well. She has me in a leg head lock when suddenly the alarm goes off. Everyone freezes. The red lights flash in the training room and throughout the Lodge. “Security Breach!” A voice monitor says.



Saige quickly gets off me and helps me to my feet. “Shit!” She hisses. “Unions.”



“Everyone stay calm.” A voice raises up against the frightened voices. I can tell it is James’s. His loud irritating voice is always the one that gets everyone’s attention. We see him climb up onto a training platform. “Listen everyone, people who are over the age of fourteen come with me. Bring any kind of weapon. The rest of you stay in here and hide. Make sure to stay safe.”



“We want to help!” Some boy cries out from the crowd. “We are old enough!”



“No, you’re not! Carson will be in here after the fight to say if it’s all clear. Bianca,” he looks at a girl about his age, “watch everyone in here till it is all clear.”



“Yes Sir!” She says.



“Fourteen year olds and up let’s move out.” Like that everyone fourteen and older grab as many weapons as they can and follow James out of the room. Saige and I both spot Jason, Blake and Kimberley together grabbing machine guns from the panel.



“I want to help.” I whisper quietly. “Come let’s go we can pass for fourteen year olds.” I grab Saige’s hand.



“What, no.” She stops pulling her hand away from mine. “We should follow orders, it’s dangerous if we go just stay here. Kimberley, Blake and Jason will be fine, don’t worry.”



“I’m not worrying.” I say, “I just know you and I could help them. So, come on.”



“Ronnie, stop. Stay here, the orders say to stay here.”



I turn to her stunned. “Since when are you one to follow orders?” I ask. She gives me a weird look but it fades in an instant. I know her all too well to see she desperately wants to go help. She looks around me then turns her eyes towards me. “We are going to get in so much trouble.” She complains running past me.



“Oh relax.” I answer catching up to her. “It’s not like we’ve never gotten in trouble before.”



She grins at me as we reach the panel. I grab two pistols and stick two more knives in my belt for good measure. I wait for Saige to catch up to me. She has a rifle in her hands.



“Nice,” I compliment her.



She shrugs, “It’ll keep us alive for now.” I smirk at that but it soon changes into fear. This isn’t a drill, it’s real. Now I wonder what I’ve gotten us into.



We follow the soldiers in front of us making sure we are in the back more. Only a few soldiers were behind us. I take a deep breath as we walk down the hall. Everything seemed quiet, really quiet.



“What are you doing!?” Saige hisses at me pulling me down into a crouch. “Let’s keep moving.”



“We can’t.” I hear the fear in my words as they come out. I turn behind me. They’re just around the corner. I take my gun and point it at the corner we just turned.



“Wait what are you-” Saige leaps at me but I already pull the trigger. It only skims a little of the wall but just enough so everyone stops.



“Soldier what the hell do think you’re doing!?” It was James’s voice at the front who whispered out loud. I don’t respond. I wait for a moment then see a man pop his head out from the corner. His face turns into shock, “Fall back!” That man screams.



“You ten go after them!” James commands the men behind us. “You two stay down.”



We both don’t look at him making sure he doesn’t know who we are. I cock my gun again and hold it by my side. James stops us right where the hall opens up into the main room. We hear a gunshot and I duck covering my ears. “Okay, maybe this wasn’t my best plan.” I admit.



Saige is doing the same thing as I am. She turns her head towards me in shock. “Wait,” she says. “You once had a good idea?” She says jokingly.



“Shut up.” I snap nudging her as we hear more gunshots escape the barrels of their guns.



“Wait for my signal!” James says holding up is right hand. “When I give it there will be no shooting just combat, does everyone understand!?”



All the soldiers nod. “Pst, Ronnie.” I shake my head once turning it to my other side seeing Kimberley only a couple feet away from me. I suddenly feel my stomach become woozy. I grin at her shrugging a little.



Kimberley curls her lip and falls back to where we are. She narrows her eyes down on us.



“Please don’t tell us to back Kimberley, please don’t tell us to go back.”



“We want to help!” Saige adds. “You can’t make us go back.”



Kimberley just smiles, “Whoever said I’m making you go back.” Saige and I exchange a glance then looks back at Kimberley.



“Now when the signal is given we are going into hand to hand combat. Remember what I taught you Ronnie.” She takes my shoulders. “Get them like this, then do not hesitate because you only have a second. Get them like this then jab your knee right up into their ribs. I don’t think it can kill them but it will defiantly hurt them. Got it you two.”



We both nod in understanding. She stares at us both then hugs each of us silently. I can tell she was scared because she is trembling. “Be careful you idiots.” She whispers to us. Her voice cracking trying to keep us from seeing her sacredness. Then goes back in her position.



The gunshots die down then the room outside is filled with a battle cry roar and I hear the clashing and grunts the people fighting. That’s the moment when James yells the word “move” and we charge out into the room. I switch my gun for a knife and charge into the chaos.



Once Saige and I step out of the hallway its madness. Men are punching each other and some even have guns throughout the mass of men. I look around seeing Tanner, a soldier friend of Kimberley’s being strangled.



“Hey!” I scream not waiting for Saige as I charge to the man stabbing him in the side. He releases Tanner and groans as I pull out the knife. He turns to me. His eyes baring down. I don’t have time to react before the man’s powerful fist blasts me back on the floor. I gag for a minute deciding if I am going to throw up or not. My vision is blurry but I get up and shake my head. I make out Saige struggling with the Union soldier with a knife in each hand. He is clasping her wrist and she is struggling to get them away.



I clutch my fist and see an open option for me to strike. I pull out a knife from my belt and twirl it once in my hand. I run towards Saige and get between her and the soldier. He looks down at me, hate in his eyes, but his mind doesn’t comprehend what I’m about to do before I take the knife and jab it up into his stomach. He releases Saige and I twist the sword for good measure then yank it out with one clean move. The man clutches his stomach. He falls to the ground moaning in pain.



Saige and I see no means to hurt him any longer. He has a fifty percent chance of living. He could find a soldier who would treat him or die trying to get out. Tanner left during the chaos. Probably found another soldier to fight. I grab Saige’s wrist but she quickly pulls away from the pain.



“Ow!” She hisses. We both duck down behind a desk to examine her wrists. She holds them out showing each one have purple and red welts all around them.



“Can you bend them?” I ask concerned. She closes her eyes bending both wrists. She flinches as she starts to rotate them.



“It hurts but yes.”



“Can you still fight?”



She whips out a knife with a determined look. “I give up when my heart stops beating.” I grin once then nod in agreement. Then we both take off back in the commotion of the fight.