Heys peopleses... another depressing chappie... I think. It's not exactly the best thing I've ever written. Should I do this story in Ella's POV? I don't know... I had hoped for more reviews, oh well. I shall now demand five reviews before I update! So there! (I know I'm copying someone but my fuzzy mind can't remember who... -eep- sorry!) Even if there are more than five reviews, please still review.. please... Ok I'm rambling...

Disclaimer: sigh Don't I wish?

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Ella absentmindedly doodled on the fogged-up mirror with one trailing finger, musing. What would the experiments be like? What DNA would she have? Would- her lower lip quivered- would it hurt very badly? Confused thoughts whirled through her mind.

Why had her mother done this? If she was so wrapped up in it, why hadn't Ella grown up at the School? The more she thought about it, the more confused she became.

Thud, thud, thud.

She froze. She was upstairs, and the noise below was so faint and faraway- maybe she'd imagined it. Maybe the Erasers wouldn't come.

Silence. Ella relaxed slightly. She'd imagined it.

Thud, thud, thud.

"No. Oh, no. Please, no..." she whispered.

CRRRAAAAAAACK!

That was the door- they were in the house. Ella jumped to her feet, desperately searching for a hiding place. The closet! She darted inside and hurriedly shut the door. She could hear them running up the steps, and she stifled her breathing when they entered the room almost as though they knew where she was. The door flung open.

"Thought you could hide from us, did ya?" Ella almost screamed at the sight. A tall man- but no, he wasn't a man, he was more like a wolf. Wolf's head, man's body with hair all over. Another Eraser stepped into view. "She's young- and pretty, too. We don't have to take her in right away, do we?" Ella shuddered, appalled. "Nah," retorted the other one. "They'd know, and we'd be done away with." As he clapped his hand over Ella's mouth and picked her up, he muttered, "Not like we've got that much longer to live anyway."

Ella lay in a crumpled heap in the back of a van, headed for- well, who knew where. She couldn't cry anymore. There were no more tears left. She curled up into a ball of misery. "Mommy..."

But her mother was the very one who betrayed her. How could she go on when everything she knew was a lie? When her entire world had been turned upside down, with no hope of anything being good? She was headed for the School now, undoubtedly. There was no escape from that terrible place.

Ella began feeling her way around her place of imprisonment. Maybe she could find some kind of weapon or tool... the van lurched to the left, launching her into the air. She crashed into the right wall and window of the vehicle and cried out in pain. An Eraser turned around in his seat. "Shaddup! Or I'll give you something to cry about."

Quietly and more carefully now, she put her hands all around the back of the van. Finally, she reached under the seat in front of her. It was a normal minivan, with the back seat removed (where Ella was) and a screen blocking her passage to the front. But right here, underneath the seat, was a hole in the screen. Ella eagerly thrust her arm through and felt cold metal. She grasped it with her fingers and pulled it through. A gun!

She almost gasped, and considered the weapon. What should she do with it? Shooting herself briefly entered her mind. But then, surprisingly, an image of Max popped into her head. Max! Of course! Max had escaped from the School. Max never gave up. Max would resist them.

Ella examined the heavy metal contraption in her hands. She had absolutely no idea if it was loaded or not. She had seen enough movies to know the absolute basics of handling it, though.

Pulling back the safety and peering down the length of the barrel, Ella pointed the front at the head of the passenger Eraser. She suddenly shivered. Could she do it? Kill someone in cold blood?

But these monsters weren't just anyone. She had to do it. Ella tightened her index finger and pulled...

Just as the van swerved to the left. BOOM! Because the sudden movement threw Ella to the right, the bullet took off to the left of her target- right through the driver's right ear. He howled in pain and stomped on the brakes, smashing Ella's face into the seat.

The van door was thrown open and she was grabbed and hauled out. He tossed her to the ground where she lay still, anticipating death.

"You filthy little," and he proceeded to spew out a string of dirty words that the young girl had never heard before.

"Come on, Rob!" the other whined. "We don't hafta let her get away with this!" The Eraser spun towards him. "Whaddya wanna do?" he growled. "Get us killed?" He pointed a claw at her, shaking with rage. "She's one of the big wig's daughters!" The other Eraser gasped.

Ella took the chance to run to the woods by the side of the road. Unfortunately, Rob's reactions were quick and in two strides he had her by her shirt. He slammed her back against the side of the van, holding her throat with his hairy paw. She started crying.

"Aww..." he crooned mockingly. His other hand came up and one nail caressed her cheek, making her shudder violently. "You just don't understand, do you? How life can be so unfair?" He leaned in, all pretenses dropped. "Know what else you don't understand? You don't do stuff like that. Ever. There is no fighting back, no escape. There will always be terrible punishment." Ella's thoughts raced to Max's flock, but were crowded out when his nail pierced her skin and sliced across her cheek. "And know what? Through your own stupidity you just fell in the van and cut your cheek. Get it? I heard once, 'You talk, you die.' It's the only truth around here." Ella whimpered- he had left his claw embedded in her skin. He growled menacingly and got closer. "Get it?" She nodded fearfully. He savagely removed his claw. "Good. You're already learning."

She was tossed back in the truck, hands and legs bound, bleeding profusely. The engine revved and took off with a vengeance that threw Ella into the back door, almost breaking her neck. After a while, as well as she could she drew her knees to her chest and put her arms over them. She had tried to be like Max- tried to resist them, but it was no use. Maybe... maybe the best thing to do would be just to consign herself to her fate. Which was certainly death.

Ella rested her head on her knees and sobbed until she fell into a fitful sleep.

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