Chapter 32
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I took a faltering step back as I watched all of them.
What the hell did he mean by the 'perfect punishment"?
Before I could react, Coach Dutton grabbed me by the arm, causing me to wince in pain.
Let go
of
me!" I tried to pry his fingers off but he only gripped my arm harder.
"Are you seriously going to assault the third in command of this facility?" He queried, making me pause.
I suddenly realized what he was doing. He was punishing me for what I did to him in the locker room and is using what I did to Konan as an excuse. To an outsider, Coach Dutton would be right in punishing me and trying to fight him would only make me seem like I'm challenging authority. Knowing he had me in a corner, Coach Dutton smirked before turning to the others. "Today, we are going to learn something new and Miss Ashmore is more than happy to give us a demonstration. Follow me." With that said, he dragged me towards the exit, out of the training room and the others followed suit behind. My heart pounded furiously as my mind raced with a million thoughts wondering what this punishment might entail. At the same time, I looked around, hoping desperately that I'd see Prince Theon. I don't care that I am some project to him. I know he'd save me and put an end to this. Even if it's just one last time.
Coach Dutton entered into a dimly lit but spacious room. In this room, there was barely any furniture and in front of us was another room separated by glass starting from the floor to the ceiling. Beside this glass room was a door and inside it, I could see a white leather chair and a bunch of harnesses dangling from the ceiling. My heart began to pound harder. Was s he going to tie to tie me up?
"Gentlemen!" Coach Dutton said to the guys as they filled the room and faced the glass wall. "Today, you're going to get into the thick of war. You've been learning combat, tactical and strategic attack as well as weaponry. This," He motioned to the room behind the glass wall,
... is where it it all I comes together. This is called a simulation. You will be placed in a 3D setting that looks a lot like real life and you will be tasked with surviving against the worst of the worst."
An unpleasant shiver ran down my spine.
"This simulation will first bring out your worst fears and the system will interpret it into images for us all to see." He said, bringing out a remote from his pocket and with the press of a button, the bare walls of the room became a blank screen. The boys 'ooohed' and 'aaaahed' clearly impressed, and I would have been too if I didn't just learn that my worst fears will soon be made public.
I looked up at Coach Dutton and found him smirking at me. "Let's see how tough you are now." He said, and Konan smirked as Coach Dutton dragged me towards the door of the glass room. Every fiber in me wanted to run but I knew I couldn't. That would mean challenging authority which the Alpha King could in turn use to kick me out. Opening the door, I was led into an all white spacious room. The air here smelled like a mix of chemicals and it stung my nose with how intense it was. To my left was a huge monitor system with red, green and yellow led lights blinking on it and at the center of the room was the chair and rope thing hanging from high up. Upon close inspection, I noticed it wasn't a rope but a big eletrical wire. Pushing me, Coach Dutton forced me to sit in the chair and when he buckled a leather strap around my wrist, binding me to the chair, my body began to shiver. 1/3 12:39 Thu, Oct
Chapter 32 55%
Within a minute, both my wrists and my ankles were bound to the chair and when I tried to move, I realized I was stuck. Looking at the glass wall, I caught my own reflection staring back at me, wide eyed and terrified. "W-what are you doing, Coach?" I asked as I saw him move to stand behind me.
His eyes narrowed as he smirked. "I am teaching you a lesson." With that said, he placed his arms on my shoulders and forced me back against the chair and before I knew it, he wrapped a leather strap around my neck, and buckled it, keeping me frozen in place. My breath came out in short, shallow pants as the leather strap chafed my throat and added pressure to my airway, making it hard to take big breaths. "I don't want to do this! Please, stop!" "It's either this or
sor I go straight to the Alpha King telling him you assaulted a student without cause." He whispered in my ear, while meeting my eyes through the mirror. "So, choose wisely."
I looked away, deciding not to struggle and Coach Dutton took that as his cue to go ahead with his punishment. Looking through the mirror, I saw him connect the wires to the chair and then there were little tiny wires which he began to attach to my head. At this point, I could barely hear my thoughts above the hammering of my heart. I continued to take shallow breaths, constantly looking at the door, hoping Prince Theon would barge in and save me. Will this hurt? Am I ready to face my worst fears? Worse, won't making my worst fears public ruin my life?
"Listen up, Boys!" Coach said, staring straight at the glass wall. "The simulation will begin in a minute. It is made to test your mental toughness. Watch and learn how it works. All Elites have been through this training and you all will too. Our dear Ryn will demonstrate how tough she really is in the face of her worst fears and we'll see if she is truly Elite material." I saw his smirk and then the lights went dim. A computerized voice began to count down from ten and the more it did so, the drowsier I became. "Five."
Five.
"Free."
"Two. Two.
"One."
I opened my eyes and found myself standing in a clearing, illuminated by the full moon. I checked my hands and found them unbound. I moved my legs and realized I could move. Yet, I knew this wasn't real. Turning around, I discovered I was surrounded by trees and darkness and yet there was something familiar about this place. Something...ominous.
Where am
12
A twig snapped somewhere in the woods and I turned sharply.
"Hello?" I called. "Is anyone there?"
I cringed at my own question. This was a f***g simulation and I am meant to be facing my worst fears.
So what the hell was it?!
Goosebumps began to rise on my skin as I stared into the darkness where the sound came from. I suddenly felt like I was being surrounded and watched by something truly evil. Taking a step back, I decided to run, but when I turned. I saw two people standing about two feet away. I couldn't believe my eyes.