Welcome to my novel! Please put feedback and tell me what you think about it! It's an adventure story based on my years at my high school. I hope everyone will enjoy this! Thanks and read on!

Chapter 3

Mr.Burkis was examining the documents and the gun on a heavily lit table. His face was very serious and at last he began to laugh.
“Good job rookie. I’m surprised you got out without getting caught.”, he laughed. Ellis looked away nervously and he tilted his head.
“You didn’t get caught, right?”, he asked with a serious tone in his voice. Ellis shook her head slowly as she was prepared for a scolding.
“Who caught you?”, he asked. Ellis couldn’t respond and clenched her fist.
“Who caught you, Ellis?”, he repeated. Ellis swallowed hard and looked up, bracing herself for the worst.
“Ms.Kolton. She caught me in a rope trap. For some reason though, she handed me the items and let me go. She’s really nice and I even met two new friends.”, Ellis replied with a few cracks in her voice. Mr.Burkis suddenly clenched his fist really tight and gritted his teeth.
“Whatever you do, try your best to avoid her. For your sake, please.”, he said in a hush tone. Ellis nodded and saluted.
“Yes sir! So, are you mad at me sir?", Ellis asked quietly. Mr.Burkis shook his head.
"No. It was your first mission. I know you tried your best to not get caught so, there's nothing you can do about it.", he said with a sigh. He then patted Ellis' head gently.
"Come on. I'd like you to meet some people.", he said to break the silence. Ellis perked up and followed Mr.Burkis as he began walking.
The two arrive to a group of twelve students who look to be about the same grade as Ellis. She tilts her head and turns to her teacher.
"These are the Freshmen Unit. They just started. Go on...say hi.", he explained with a smile. Ellis stepped forward shyly and smiled.
"Nice to meet you guys. I'm Ellis Noosen!", she said as she held out her hand. The group of students glared at her as she stood in the same position for a few moments. She began to get nervous and her hand slowly went down.
"Oh come on guys. Be nice to her.", Mr.Burkis sighed. The group shrugged and one boy stood up.
"If she can hit a bull’s-eye on the target, then we can accept her." , one boy said with a serious tone. Ellis jumped a bit and gulped hard as Mr.Burkis handed her the gun. She closed her eyes and turned away as she began to shiver in fear.
“Oh and by the way, you only have three tries so, make them count.”, the boy added with a slight chuckle. Ellis’ hands were shaking as she held the pistol. The target paper flew down and Ellis tried to control her shaking body.
“Ready…set….GO!”
At that moment, Ellis stood still. She couldn’t even bare to pull the trigger, even if she had her protective gear on. She inhaled a few times as her eyes were closed. She kept saying it was alright in her mind. She opened her eyes and fired the 3 shots. She pant in fear and looks up to see how she did. The freshmen unit looked at the paper and only sighed.
“You didn’t get a bulls-eye, Ellis. Good luck next time!”, the boy said with a sound of sarcasm in his voice. Ellis gritted her teeth and clenched her fist, knowing that she won’t be accepted in the freshmen unit. She then punched a wall to let out all of her frustration. Ellis took her hand away and looked at the blood on her knuckles.
“Ellis! What’s wrong with you?!”, Mr.Burkis exclaimed. One boy from the freshmen unit sighed. He walked over to Ellis and looked at her with a glare.
“Are you that upset that you won’t join us?”, he asked. Ellis finally had enough and punched the boy in the face with her bloody knuckles. He fell back a few steps as a smirk emerged on his face.
“Fine. See if I care! If I had the chance to kill you, I would!”, he screamed. Ellis walked out of the room while murmuring under her breath. Mr.Burkis walked after her out of the room. He saw her slumped down in the hallway.
“You okay, kiddo?” , he asked. Ellis shook her head. Mr.Burkis sat down next to her and rubbed her back.
“It’s alright rookie. You looked like you were going to throw up or something back there.”, he said, laughing a little. Ellis buried her head within her knees.
“I’m….scared of guns Sir.”, she said as her nails dug deep into her arms. Mr.Burkis sighed and got up. He took Ellis’ hand and pulled her up.

“Go back in there and try again! One thing we never do here is quit!”, he shouted. Ellis looked at Mr.Burkis and gave him a smile.
“Yes..sir!”, she replied back as she saluted him. Mr.Burkis laughed and gave her a hand gesture to go in. Ellis walked back inside and headed over to the boy.
“What’s your name?”
“The name’s Luran. And yours?”
“Ellis.”
“Are you going to try my challenge again, Ellis?”, Luran asked. She nodded and got the gun from Mr.Burkis. The target paper flew down and Mr.Burkis gave the signal for Ellis to shoot. At the signal, Ellis took a deep breath and shot 3 rounds in the center, aiming for the bulls-eye. Mr.Burkis examined the paper for a few minutes. He then looked up with a smile.
“She got a bulls-eye out of the three shots!”, he exclaimed. The group ran over to Ellis with such excitement. Ellis let out a sigh of relief and walked over to Luran.
“Sorry about punching you earlier.”
“Sorry about what I said earlier.”, he said as he looked back. He then balled up his fist and put it out in front of Ellis. She then understood what he was trying to do and she bumped fists with him. A person in a wheelchair rolled over to Ellis. She backed up a few steps, shocked that a small girl in the wheelchair. The girl held out her hand with a slight smile.
“It’s nice to meet you Ellis. I’m Jolesce.”, she said with a serious tone. Elis gave her a cheerful smile and shook her hand.
“Hi Jolesce! I’m Ellis!”, she said with a cheerful tone. Everyone then smiled and laughed. Mr.Burkis walked over to Ellis and handed her the gun she used.
“Here. It’s a reward for your hard work. Get used to it and I’m sure you’ll grow to love it.”, he said as he handed her the M1911 she used. Ellis took it with a smile and put it in her bag.
It was the end of the day and Ellis was getting her bag together. She put her jacket on and she was ready to go home.
“See ya tomorrow Mr.Burkis.” , she said as she walked out of the room. A few minutes later, she was out of the building and suddenly she heard a loud explosion. She ran around the back to see where it came from and she saw smoke coming from the IT department. She ran over to the massive hole in the wall of her department. There she saw Ms.Kolton and Mr.Burkis. He was bloody and beaten badly. Ms.Kolton had him by the collar and was ready to punch him again.
“Stop! Don’t hurt him!”, Ellis screamed as she ran over to Mr.Burkis. Ms.Kolton gave her a refreshing smile and walked over to Ellis.
“Ellis! It’s very nice to see you again. How are you?”, she asked as she hugged her. Ellis was struck with fear that she couldn’t move at all. She felt a strong sense of evil behind Ms.Kolton’s nice words.
“What…did you do to Mr.Burkis?”, she asked as she began to shiver in fear. Ms.Kolton pulled back from the hug with an evil smile on her face.
“I’m just paying my old friend a visit, Ellis. Nothing more nothing less.”, she replied. Ellis pulled out her gun from her bag and stepped back from Ms.Kolton. Ms.Kolton began to chuckle as she walked over to Ellis.
“Were you really going to shoot me, you foolish girl?”, she whispered. She then kicked Ellis’ gun out of her hand and took a handful of her hair. She pulled back on it hard with such power.
“Remeber this: I am stronger than you. Don’t forget that I can kill you if I wanted. Don't dare you interfere with any of my plans or I will kill you, you worthless IT mutt!”, she whispered. Ms.Kolton then kicked Ellis in her gut, making her pass out next to Mr.Burkis as it began to rain.
"Am I...a worthless..mutt of..IT?"

Chapter 2

Ellis was leaning against the wall in the hallway, waiting on Mr.Burkis. Her heart was rapidly beating as if it was going to pop out of her chest. The door opened and Mr. Burkis stepped out. Ellis ran over to him with a big smile and such high energy.
“Mr. Burkis!” she shouted as she tried to contain her excitement. He chuckled and patted her head. Mr. Burkis walked back into the room as Ellis followed after him like a duckling. He offered his student a seat and she sat down. He sat down moments later and began to speak.
“Your assignment will be to go and retrieve some documents and a gun.” he began. Ellis nodded as if the assignment was going to be very easy.
“Now the hard part is this: Those items are in the Vocal department, the strongest department out of all of us.” he said with a serious tone. Ellis gulped hard and stood up. She then saluted him and nodded.
“Yes sir! I’ll do my best!” she said with a hint of confidence and courage. Mr.Burkis saluted back in return and smiled.
“Good luck, rookie. Come on, I’ll show the secret entrance.” he said as he walked out the door. Ellis followed closely behind her and as she headed out of the door, she got mean glares from everyone around her. She felt uneasy but kept walking.
A few moments later, they arrived at a hallway with a vent. Ellis tilted and thought for a moment, and then she understood what she had to do. She turned to her teacher for final instructions.
“Just don’t get caught, okay?” Mr.Burkis sighed. Ellis nodded and got down on all fours. Mr.Burkis unscrewed the vent and pulled it back. Ellis began to crawl through the tight space and kept at it for a few moments. In the distance, she saw a bright light. She kept continuing towards it as the brightness increased. The light was then divided into 3 bars and Ellis saw a strange room where she had never been to before. At this moment, she understood that it was the Vocal department’s room.
She then began ramming the vent as hard as she could. She stopped after a few minutes. She then, proceeded to kick the vent with all of her might. A few kicks and the vent went sliding across the floor. Ellis then got out of the vent carefully and quietly.
In the distance, she saw a few papers and a black gun on a desk. She immediately knew that it was the documents and the gun Mr.Burkis asked for. She tiptoed toward it slowly and trying her best to keep her breathes quiet.
She was inches from it and then, suddenly her leg was caught by a rope that pulled her upside down. She screamed and began to freak out.
“Well, what do we have here?” a person said from the shadows. A chill was then sent down Ellis’ spine as she turned to the figure in the darkness slowly. The person began to walk towards her and Ellis began to freak out more and more.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please don’t kill me!” she cried as the person got closer and closer. The light then shined on the person who appeared to be a beautiful blonde woman wearing a nice outfit. She then, flashed a refreshing smile at the terrified Ellis.
“May I ask what you’re doing here, young lady?” she asked. Ellis didn’t know how to respond to the question. The woman then began to walk around Ellis as she began to freak out even more.
“What department are you from?” she asked with a serious tone in her voice.
“I.T!” Ellis shouted. The woman then smiled and untied the rope from her leg. Ellis dropped to the ground softly and got up quickly.
“I’m sorry! I just wanted to get some documents and that gun over there!” Ellis began to explain. The woman looked over at the items Ellis was pointing to.
“You want those? Who sent you?” she asked.
“Mr.Burkis!” Ellis replied with a big smile. The woman tilted her head and sighed.
“Go on and take them.” she said. Ellis began to get confused for a moment.
“HUH?!” she exclaimed as she began to understand. The woman went over and got the items. She then handed them over to Ellis who was still confused.
“T-Thanks a lot…miss...”
“Tina. My name is Tina Kolton. Pleased to meet you, young lady.” the woman said with a gentle smile.
“I don’t know if you want to trust her Teach. Maybe she’s a spy or something.”, someone said from the shadows. Ellis turned to the voice as a girl stepped out from the shadows.
“I’m not a spy! I swear I’m not! I’m just a freshman!” Ellis exclaimed as her hands were flailing all over the place. The girl let out a small laugh as she came closer to Ellis and held out her hand.
“It’s nice to meet you then! The name’s Bridget.” the girl said with a cheerful tone. Ellis smiled back and shook her hand. She gathered the items in her arm and headed out of the door.
“Thanks by the way you two!”Ellis shouted as she ran out. Bridget and Tina waved back to her as she ran back to her department.
“Was it okay to let her take that thing, teach?” Bridget asked. Tina turned around and began her nail.
“So, John didn't leave after all. Bridget! Get some of the seniors. We're going to pay our old friend a visit.” Bridget commanded with a sharp edge in her voice. Bridget was then shocked and hesitated.
“Y-Yes ma'am!”
Ellis was walking back to her department when she all of sudden hears a shout.
“Excuse me!”
She turns around and suddenly, a girl jumps onto her. Ellis starts freaking out and the girl keeps hanging on to her. The girl then jumps off and gives Ellis a big smile.
“Hi! I love your bag by the way I'm Macey!” she begins. Ellis looks at her camouflage messenger bag. Ellis smiled and held out her hand.
“I’m Ellis. Nice to meet you Macey.” she said. Macey then shook her hand and the both of them laughed.
After a few minutes, Macey left and Ellis continued back to her department in such a good mood with her successfully retrieved items in her possession.
After getting caught by the Vocal teacher and meeting two new friends, Ellis has successfully completed her first mission.
“I have retrieved the items you asked for, sir!” Ellis announced as she spread out the documents and the gun down on a table. Mr.Burkis chuckled and patted her head.
“Good job rookie. You did well.”

Chapter 1

As a freshman, Ellis didn’t know what to expect. She stood at the front door, breathing in and out. She wanted to go inside, but her body didn’t want to co-operate with her mind. After a few minutes, she opened the door and stepped inside her new school. She pulled out a map and looked for the I.T room. She followed the map and arrived at the door. Ellis took a deep breathe and grabbed the knob. She slowly turned and opened the door.
“Freeze!!”, a group of people shouted as they pointed firearms at Ellis. She dropped to her knees and put her hands behind her head, fully terrified.
“Don’t shoot me please! I’m a freshman and I was looking for the I.T department! I don’t want to die!”, she cried. The group kept their guns pointed and glared as if she was lying.
“Leave her be guys! She seems to be telling the truth.”, a man said. Ellis looked up to see a bearded African American man walk out from the shadows. He kneels down and puts out his hand with a big smile.
“Don’t be scared. We’re the I.T department. My name is Mr.Burkis. What’s yours little lady?”, he said with a kind tone. Ellis took his hand and got up. She looked around at the other students, still glaring at her. She looked down and thought that everyone hated her as Mr.Burkis began walking ahead. He stopped and turned around and saw that Ellis didn’t move from the same spot. He walked back over and patted her head.
“Don’t worry about them girl! They’re just tense nowadays that’s all. Now, your name please?”, he said with a refreshing smile. Ellis snapped back into reality and looked up at him.
“Ellis! My name is Ellis Noosen!”, she answered. Mr.Burkis gave her a smile that reminded her of someone she knew and she smiled back as they began to walk ahead.
“Why are they so tense Mr.Burkis?”, Ellis finally asked out of curiosity. Mr.Burkis then stopped and turned his head slightly.
“You mean you don’t know? About the Wars?”, he asked with a serious tone in his voice. Ellis shook her head as she got even more confused.
“What Wars?”, she asked. Mr.Burkis then leads her to two chairs and asked her to have a seat. He took a deep breathe and began to explain.
“The Wars started when I started my job here 5 years ago. I was talking to some of the rest of the art department teachers in the teacher’s lounge and some of them were laughing at me. I was confused and brushed it off. Later that week, my desk was completely destroyed. They splattered paint on everything and even cracked my laptop screen. I found out who did it and we both fought. The students then adopted the behavior and it just went downhill from there if you can’t tell.”
Ellis did her best to understand the information that she was just given. She began to shiver and gritted her teeth.
“Do you know when these Wars will end?”, she asked. Mr.Burkis sighed and got up.
“Whenever we’re all dead I guess.”, he replied. Ellis got a sense of fear and began to feel nauseous. She swallowed hard and got up finally. Mr.Burkis turned around with a smirk as he walked back over to Ellis and put his hand on her shoulder.
“Are you ready for your first assignment?”, he muttered. Ellis nodded and saluted him, like she used to do before. Mr.Burkis smiled at her and ruffled her hair.
“What am I, a commander? You start tomorrow rookie!”, he laughed. Ellis chuckled and psyched herself up for her first assignment from her teacher. Despite from the sudden near death experience, she took a liking to her new environment. As she walked home later that afternoon, she kept the information on the Wars on her mind. She climbed in her bed and looked up at the ceiling with those same thoughts on her mind.
“I wonder what my first assignment is going to be.”, she muttered. She closed her eyes, waiting for the next exciting day to come.

Prologue

She kept running and running through the dark forest as the rain poured on her. Her breathe was thinning and she barely couldn’t see. She wanted to stop , but she didn’t want to die! People were chasing after her, wanting to take her life. Her legs were becoming weak and her chest was rambling, trying to get oxygen.
“Crap, crap! I need to hide! I need to hide!”
Those words kept ringing in her mind as if it was her heart beating. She then flung herself in a pair of bushes, trying to hide from her opponents. She kept looking around for the group that was hunting after her. They pulled out their flashlights and shined it through every crack and crevice of the dark forest. The light then shined on a pair of bushes with her body hiding behind it. One of the men forcefully grabbed her arm and began to drag her away.
“No! Let me go!”, she screamed as fear began to sink deep into her mind. The girl began to think about what they would do to her and what might happen, if she was going to be dead or alive.
The girl knew she had to save herself and quick. She then used her free hand to pull her dagger out of her pocket on her left side. She stabbed the man that was holding onto her arm several times until the tight grip loosened. The man fell to the ground and the other two men realized what was happening. The girl then proceeded to stab the other two men before they both could hurt her. Their flashlights dropped to the ground with a thud along with their lifeless bodies as massive amounts of blood emerged from them.
“No…what have I done?”, the girl mumbled as she dropped to her knees. She picked up the flashlight and shined it on all three of the lifeless bodies all around her.
“No! No!! I killed someone!”
The girl let those words go deep into her mind and sink in. Her body couldn’t handle all of this excitement and she began throwing up. She couldn’t control her stomach and it began to get worse. After a few moments, she stopped and her vision began to blur. She couldn’t believe what was happening to her. She began to think it was all a dream and that she needed to wake up. Her vision began to blur more and more as she collapsed to the wet grass.
“Ellis! Ellis!!”
This girl named Ellis didn’t know what she got herself into. She thought that this school year was going to be exciting , but it seems that she was terribly wrong. Just a freshman and having to deal with this was too much for her weak body to handle. She just wanted to have a normal school year, but that all ended once the wars began!
Ellis woke up in a clear white bed, still terrified of what happened. She clenched the sheets tightly and began to shiver in fear.
“Ellis! You’re finally woke! You okay girl?”
She turned to her a man near the bed wearing a simple shirt and jeans with a concerned look.
“Mr. Burkis...I killed someone.”, she mumbled as her shivering began to get worse. Mr. Burkis sat down on the bed softly and patted Ellis’ head.
“Listen girl, things like that happen a lot to all sorts of people. I know you’re terrified right now , but you have to stay strong through this. You have to do this type of thing frequently. I know it’s tough for you , but you have to do it.”, he says with a gentle tone, kind of smiling a little.
“Were you….like this when you killed someone?”, Ellis asked softly. Mr. Burkis began to laugh a bit and nod.
“Yeah, I was just like this when something like this happened to me. I believe I was younger than you were though.”, he answered with a gentle tone. Ellis began to get curious and wanted to know why.
“Why? What happened?”, she asked out of curiosity. Mr. Burkis got up and ruffled Ellis’ hair with a big smile.
“That is going to be for another day, darling.” , he replied with a wide grin on his face. Ellis giggled and turned her body the other way and closed her eyes again.
“Sleep well, little trooper…”, Mr. Burkis whispered as he opened the door and left the room quietly. As she slept , her mind began to ease up and she slept very soundly as the rain continued to pour hard outside along with the loud rumbling thunder.

Prolouge coming soon!

Welcome to this world of my first novel Charter Art Wars! I'm really excited to start this story and build it up as I go! I probably may start this during this week. The Prolouge will be up soon as I can type it. Please read this and tell me what you all think! Thanks