"Unnamed" Chapter 1

Chapter 1! Yay...maybe...Anyway, read!
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1.

UNWILLING PARTICIPANT

Jake woke in the room he had been spending most of his time in for the past six days after a night of uneasy sleep. For a moment he hoped, foolishly, that when he opened his eyes that he’d be home again, ready to go and eat pancakes, but saw nothing but the same dirty room with three other people he didn’t really know sleeping on bunk-beds in front of him. Jake groaned not-so-quietly, not caring if he woke the others, and fell back onto his pillow. He was at camp, the camp he did not want to be at, the camp he had been dreading for a month now. Thank god it ended this afternoon. He slapped his face softly with a hand that wasn’t trying to untangle itself form the blanket and then struggled up after another groan. Jake cursed loudly as his head hit the ceiling of the room and he staggered backwards on the bed, tripped over his pillow and fell back onto the mattes. He lifted a head after another groan and heard the other three people stirring. Just what he needed; more people who actually enjoyed the camp…

“Jake…” one of them muttered sleepily. “It’s six…what’re you doin’?”

Jake muttered something incomprehensible and struggled up again. He slowly climbed down the ladder form the top bunk, careful not to hit his head on the ceiling again, and walked across the room and out of it, trying not to make eye contact with the other boys. There were two people up in the common room watching a weird cartoon on television that Jake hadn’t seen before. He didn’t take an interest in it, merely sat on a lounge and told himself things to quell the anger the burning slowly inside of him.

One more day, he told himself. One more day and then this’ll all be over.

He had packed his pocket knife just in case he needed to murder a rabbit or something to stop himself from actually stabbing someone in a rage for the duration of the camp, but so far he hadn’t had to use it. Which was a good thing, he reflected silently. He had a feeling he’d need to use it today though. There would probably be people sobbing at the thought of having to leave the camp and return to their own houses. Jake wouldn’t be able to stand that and he did not feel sorry for the bunny or frog that would have its throat slit that afternoon. Half an hour passed slowly, far too slowly for Jake’s taste, and the people in the other rooms begun shuffling out and slumping onto lounges in the time. Suddenly the television flicked off and thirty four people groaned in disbelief. Jake wasn’t among them. Mr Brake strode into the common room, remote in his hand and dressed in a white t-shirt and blue jeans.

“Get up every one! Time to go! Breakfast now!” he yelled, clapping his hands together loudly four times. Everyone but Jake stood up and slowly exited the room behind Mr Brake. Jake shook his head, quite confused. Mr Brake had done that for the past six mornings of camp and the conditions had been exactly the same. He had said “Get up!”, only there was no one still in the rooms. They were all sitting on the lounges in front of him. Perhaps Mr Brake had been referring to the action of getting onto their feet rather than getting out of bed, but he doubted it; Mr Brake didn’t seem very bright to Jake. Groaning again he pushed himself out of the lounge and followed after the large mass of people chatting to their friends happily. Jake had no friends. He needed no friends. People, mainly his parents, had said that it sounded like a lonely existence, especially as he was just starting High School, but Jake didn’t find it lonely. It was what he wanted, he needed nothing more. He had his subconscious to argue with whenever things got lonely.

He trudged up a long path from the common room to the huge kitchen a fair way away. It was freezing outside, but Jake did not show his sudden drop of temperature as everyone else in front of him did. He simply continued walking normally in his bored and annoyed fashion he had adopted the moment he set foot on the ground of the camp. Breakfast passed fairly slowly and Jake ate his bacon and egg without enthusiasm before leaving the kitchen for the first activity of the day.

Rock Climbing, needless to say, was dull and unexciting, as was sailing which proceeded it. Finally dinner was served in the afternoon and Jake joined the rest of year seven in the recreation hall for the afternoon activity of “fun games”. Jake seriously doubted the title would be genuine but he didn’t have much choice. He groaned softly as the games were explained and he soon realized that he was not mistaken in his assumption and managed to find a corner no one seemed to want to go near for the most part of the two hours. After an hour or so, Jake suddenly found himself with a mouth very dry and nagging for water. He struggled up and walked out the door, mumbling something about a drink and fresh air to the teacher on his way out. Of course, he wasn’t going to get a drink simply because he was thirsty; Jake just needed to get out of the room filed with sweaty people enjoying things that did not deserve to be enjoyed. He hurried down the insanely long path way from the recreation hall back to the common rooms and lodges as there were no bubblers or taps anywhere in the place. He did not mind though; it gave him an excuse to be absent from the “fun games” night for longer. Jake reached his lodge, walked through the door into the common room and pushed open the door to his room. Mumbling darkly at the ceiling again, Jake bent down to get his drink bottle before taking a very long gulp from it.

Slowly he placed down his drink on the ground again and turned around and paced the room, anger starting to rise in him again as he thought of the two hours remaining until he could finally get on the bus and go home where his own bed awaited him. There was still two hours…and he did not like waiting. Pacing soon grew tiresome too and only added to his steadily rising temper. Finally he stopped, faced his bag and grinned. A rabbit would die now. He stooped and wrapped his hand around the handle of his pocket knife. He felt powerful all of a sudden, like he held the life of someone in his hands. He stood up straight again and walked to the door before striding out of the common room. And that’s when it happened.

Suddenly the room was filled with a blinding blue light that originated from a point just in front of Jake. Shielding his eyes but too late to stop walking, Jake walked right into the blue light and when his foot came down again, it didn’t meet with carpet, it met with a hard steel floor with a loud thud.

The light slowly faded and Jake realized he was no longer in the common room. His head spun, his ears pounded and his vision blurred and he swayed, staggering, pocketknife still clutched tightly.

“A kid,” he heard someone mutter softly. Then footsteps. “The greatest of allies.”

Where was he?