[hr][center][h1][color=aqua][i]Sector Two:[/i][/color][/h1]
[sub][i]~A Collab between GreenGrenade and Lord Wraith~[/i][/sub][/center]
The crowd stared up at him, and Gareth stared right back, accepting his fate in silence as emotions threatened to billow to the surface. A cold breeze bit into his skin, goosebumps breaking to the surface. He swallowed past a lump in his throat as he pictured Danny, just turned eighteen, watching the broadcast in their shelter, unable to do anything as his older brother was sentenced to death. Helpless.

Gareth shut his eyes. What was he going to do? He couldn't just leave Danny, not like their father did. He had to say something. 

"Danny," he said, eyes finding a camera. No one else was there anymore. It was just him and the lense. "Danny, I need you to stay strong. It's going to be okay, you hear me? I'm not going to die out there. I promise. I'm so sorry, buddy." His breath shook as he exhaled. "I'll see you soon, okay?"

Closing his eyes, Ewan slightly bowed his head upon being chosen, accepting his fate. Looking up towards the crowd with unblinking eyes, Ewan looked around as the people of Sector two stood with their Leviathans. There was no cheering here, there was no shouts of excitement, there was only a somber mood that hung over Aquanatic City. Raising two fingers in a salute, Ewan turned to lock eyes with Gareth as he nodded. They would fight but only because the Council demanded it, not because they wanted to. From this moment on, everyone outside of Sector two would be nothing more than a shark or crocodile to Ewan. A dangerous animal in his way that needed to be removed. 

Rough hands suddenly strongly gripped Ewan's arms as his salute was forced down and his arm pushed behind his back. Escorting the Leviathan towards the train, Ewan struggled against them looking back at the seemingly subdued Gareth. Were these not members of Aquanatic City, Ewan would have drawn upon his powers and submerged them under hundreds of pounds of water, but yet even these men now were only doing their job. The hiss of the train doors broke Ewan from his thoughts as he was roughly shoved inside. Stumbling before regaining his footing, Ewan moved to exit the cabin only to find the doors refused to open. With one last physical protest, he slammed his fist against the metal doors before reluctantly stepping back and lowering his arms in defeat.

"No point in doing that," said Gareth, massaging his arms where the men had grabbed him. "We're doing this, if we want to or not." He looked up, meeting Ewan's gaze. "The Council gets what it wants." His jaw tightened as he remembered his mother, staring down the barrel of a gun, a crowd of people watching in fascination and fear.

[i]Live, Gareth. Live.[/i]

He flinched as the shot rang through his memory, recalling the way his mother had slumped to the ground, blood pooling around her head. He'd never forgotten that morning, the way it had changed his life forever, how powerless he'd felt. And now, Danny was going to be put through it, too. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. 

"If you're the one that kills me," he said, his eyes begging Ewan, "Please, make it quick. I don't want my brother to see me suffer."

"The Council needs to know we don't want to be doing this. Just because we were born with abilities others don't have, doesn't mean we should be forced to fight and kill for their entertainment." Ewan sighed before slumping into his seat. "If enough of us could put aside our differences, if enough of us could go against what's expected of us, we could put an end to the games." As Gareth talked, Ewan shook his head.

"I won't be the one to kill you, Sector two above all else works together. No one was happy to send us into the games and no one would take pleasure in either of us killing the other. I propose an alliance." Ewan said before continuing further. "We're going to get to meet our competitors before they toss us into whatever death trap they have planned right? That's how it usually works anyways" Pausing, he turned towards Gareth as a slight edge of excitement began to infiltrate his voice. "We make allies, find people like us who don't want to fight, expand our alliance. There will be others like you who have family, others who don't want to kill or fight for the amusement of others. We could start a revolution as long as we get allies, if you're in that is?" Ewan's question hung in the air as he concluded his statement, his keen eyes watching Gareth for any sort of positive reaction. 

Gareth stayed silent as he processed what Ewan had said. An alliance? A revolution? How did he know that the other competitors won't just turn around and stab them in the back? How was he so sure that he wouldn't? Yes, there would be strength in numbers. Yes, they would stand more of a chance. But how good is an alliance when no one trusts each other? Gareth laid his head in his hands, running his fingers through his hair. Eventually, he looked up.

"Okay. I'm in." [i]For Danny. For mom.[/i]