17 hours 49 minutes 25 seconds.
She sat in the corner of her cell, her home for the past 4 years, humming a song. She only had 17 hours before she turned 18 and then she would face the council and most likely be floated for her past crimes.
She sighed and looked around her tiny sky box, it had been days since she had spoken to anyone apart from the 1 guard that came just to drop off food. She would always try and get information out of him but he would never speak, she always thought he was afraid of her.
17 hours 23 minutes 10 seconds.
She was counting down her life, literally by the seconds. She knew there was no way the council would vote to let her live among everyone else. She was marked as dangerous, likely to snap at any minute. And maybe they did have her there, but after being locked away for 4 years her patience had been depleted.
"This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine..." She mumbled, it was a song her mother had taught her before she had passed. If only her mother could see her now. She continued to mumble the song under her breath when she heard guards approaching her sky box.
Panicking, she stood up. It wasn't time for them to get her to bathe herself or relieve herself. Eyes widening she knew the only reason they were at her door. It was time.
"No!" She hissed, "I still have 17 hours left. I'm not 18 yet!"
"Prisoner #422, hands on the wall!" One of the guards shouted. She still hadn't moved, the reality of what was happening paralyzed her, she couldn't move. It wasn't her time, not yet, she wasn't ready to die. "Ryan James! Hands against the wall!"
Slowly, she turned and faced the wall and placed her hands above her head. The guards opened the door, doing a quick search on her before the placed a bracelet around her shaking hands. "Ouch!" She cried, her fear quickly turning into anger. "It's not my time yet! I still have 17 hours left! It's not my TIME!" She screamed the last part, fighting the guards every chance she got.
She kicked her legs out, making contact with one of the guards knee, he buckled and grabbed it. Another guard jerked her hands behind her back while the guard she kicked grabbed his baton and knocked her legs out from under her.
Forcing her to stand a single tear found its way down her face as the guards carried her towards a line of what looked like the other prisoners. She couldn't believe what the council was doing. She squirmed against the tight grip the guards had her in. All she could think about was getting away from them before they floated every prisoner in the Ark.
Before she could even plan her escape, she saw what the guards were leading her too. Or rather where. A dropship. One after one all the prisoners climbed in a placed into a seat, the guards took Ryan and forced her down into a seat and locked her in. She thrashed as they left, trying her best to get out of the restraints , all to no avail.
16 hours 17 minutes 5 seconds.
She looked around her, at all the other kids coming in and being placed into a seat. Some where going up one more level above her others where being placed all around. Beside her was a brunette girl around the same age as Ryan, looking just as scared as Ryan felt.
The girl turned and looked at her before she let out a nervous smile, "So this is it, isn't it?" The girl asked. All Ryan could do was simply nod her response. The girl laughed nervously before she spoke again, this time the fear left her eyes, "I'm Octavia."
Ryan looked at her and offered a small smile before she introduced herself, might as well know the person that was gonna die next to her, "I'm Ryan, Ryan James."
Octavia smiled again before looking around at everyone else in the drop ship. The brunette laughed as a boy floated past them as Ryan rolled her eyes at him as he sent her a wink. "What's wrong gorgeous, scared to have a good time?" Shaking her head disapprovingly, she opened her mouth to say something before closing it. If the boy wanted to get killed, let him, she thought. He just smiled and floated on towards the next section of delinquents. Ryan followed his route and noticed a blonde girl glaring at the boy, telling him to get back in his seat. When she turned towards Ryan, she gasped at her.
"Ryan James?" She looked up towards the blonde and gave her a curt nod, "Griffin."
Before she could say anymore, a video came on the with Chancellor Jaha. Ryan rolled her eyes again, she didn't have anything nice to think about him.
"Prisoners of the Ark, hear me now. You've been given a second chance, and as your Chancellor, it is my hope that you see this as not just a chance for you but as a chance for us all, indeed for mankind itself. We have no idea what awaits for you down there. If the odds of survival were better we would've sent others down there. Frankly, we have sent you because your crimes have made you expendable. Your crimes will be forgiven, records wiped clean."
style="font-family: ".SFUIText"; font-size: 15pt;"Ryan inhaled sharply, that was something to work for if they didn't die as soon as the door opened.
The video shut off with not so much as a goodbye, from behind you heard a boy shout, "Your dad's a dick Wells!" Ryan looked around til she found the boy in question. Sure enough, son of the Chancellor, Wells Jaha, has landed himself on the drop ship with a bunch of criminals.
Before anyone could shout anything else, two more boys unhooked their seatbelts and followed the boy Clarke called Finn. Clarke yelled at them to get back in their seats before they got themselves killed when all of a sudden the ship began to shake. Quickly Ryan grabbed a hold of Octavia's hand out of instinct. Falling out of space was not on her to do list. The ship landed with such force it sent the two boys that were currently floating straight to floor, and from the sound they made when they hit it, Ryan knew they were dead.
Everyone quickly began to unbuckle and head towards the lower level of the drop ship. Slowly, Ryan got out of her seat and followed the crowed, curiosity getting the best of her when all of instincts told her to stay put. Climbing down the ladder she found herself behind a massive group of teenagers and kids alike, looking at a y'all brooding boy at the door. Everyone was crowding around him, "Whoa guys just back it up." He motioned for everyone to step back.
"Stop! The air could be toxic!" Clarke yelled, Ryan nodded to no one but herself, no one seemed to noticed Ryan or at least no one let on that they saw her. She chose to go with the latter.
"Bellamy?!" Octavia shouted in excitement before running to the man by the door. The two embraced, "My God, look how big you are." Bellamy said looking over Octavia.
Even in lock up Ryan heard the guards talking about the Blake siblings. No one had siblings on the Ark, it would've never be able to survive. So the original counsel made the rule: one child per family. Ryan heard what happened to them, the mom got floated and the girl got put in lock up just for being born. But she never heard about the brother, the guards never said anything about him, mainly because it wasn't as interesting as the girl that lived under the floor was.
"Where's your wristband?" Ryan heard Clarke ask the man, snapping her out of her thoughts. She glanced at his wrist, noticing that he didn't have the same bracelet as the rest of them had. Raising her eyebrows, Ryan made her way to the front of the group, crossing her arms across her chest. She earned a glance from Bellamy, giving her a curious look. He definitely looked older than the rest of them, if he was a prisoner he would've of been floated by now. He definitely wasn't 18, more like 22.
"Do you mind? I haven't seen my brother in a year." Octavia snapped, causing everyone to start talking about the gossip they heard about her. Octavia started to launch herself at everyone before Bellamy grabbed her by the waist, pulling her back, "Let's give them something else to remember you by." He told her quickly.
"Yeah, like what?" Octavia question, looking at him then all around.
Stepping forward, Ryan put her hands on her hips and spoke fully for the first time that morning. "How about being the first person to set foot on Earth in 97 years?" After she spoke, everyone looked at her, she didn't like the attention but she solemnly believed someone shouldn't be remembered for one thing.
Bellamy smirked at her before he pulled the lever, opening the door. Octavia stepped out slowly and breathed in deeply before throwing her arms out and shouting, "WE'RE BACK BITCHES!"
Slowly, everyone followed her lead, Ryan stayed back and was the last one out of the ship. She looked up at the sky and smiled. 11 hours 22 minutes 15 seconds. She laughed, earning some looks from a few of fellow delinquents.
Looking around, she spotted Clarke, the latter didn't have a happy face on to finally be on Earth. Ryan made her way over towards the blonde, "You don't look happy." She looked around and the two other boys that were around her. "I'm not. They dropped us on the wrong mountain. All our supplies, food and blankets. There's an entire radiation soaked forest between us and Mount Weather."
She finally looked at Ryan and gave her a once over. "The communication is down as well. We have no way of contacting the Ark." Wells said, glancing between the two girls.
"That doesn't matter. We need to find a way to Mount Weather." Ryan looked at the map that Clarke had laid out. "There are miles between us and Mount Weather and the trip will most likely take us into the night. We have no idea what's out there or what to expect. Half of these guys don't know how to manage walking, much less hiking through the woods." Ryan stated, gesturing to half the camp.
"Whoa a map. Got any bars around? Ill buy you girls a beer." A boy with googles on top of his head said while wrapping his arm around Clarke and Ryan.
Ryan quickly moved away from him, "You mind?" Wells asked the boy. "Whoa"
"Relax, he's with a us." A voice spoke from behind the small group.
"Look, we're just trying to figure out where we are. Relax." Ryan said, the agitation clear in her voice.
"We're on the ground. Is that not good enough for you?" Bellamy asked sarcastically.
"We need to find Mount Weather. You heard my fathers message. That has to be our first priority." Wells slammed his hands down on the map, gesturing to their current location.
"Screw your father." Sneered Octavia, "What do you think you're in charge? You and your little princess?"
Finally, Ryan had enough. The group of teens were gathering around her, Clarke, Wells, and Finn. She slammed her hands down on the map before she turned around and faced the group. "Look I don't know about you guys but I don't plan on starving to death. I don't give a crap who's in charge. You want to be able to enjoy this new found freedom we have? Well we have to be able to survive. And what we need to survive is on that mountain. We need to go there and get the supplies we need. How long do you think you'll be able to last before you're weak with hunger? It's a twenty mile trek through the woods. We need to leave soon before the night settles in. We don't know what is out there or what we will face." She was starting to shake with anger with each word she spoke.
"I have a better idea. Let the three of you go. Let the privileged do the hard work for once." Bellamy challenged. A chorus of yeahs followed.
"You're not listening," begged Wells, "We all need to go."
"Yeah if I'm going I'm not worried about bringing food back for the rest of you." Ryan said blatantly. She wasn't responsible for this group of delinquents.
Bellamy looked at her, a question forming on his lips. He was about to ask something when another boy, Murphy, stepped forward. "Look everyone, the Chancellor of Earth!"
"Think that's funny?" Wells questioned. Before anyone could interject, a fight broke out between the two boys. Before it got too far, Finn landed between them, "Kids got one leg, how about you wait til it's a fair fight?"
Octavia walked towards Finn, "Hey Spacewalker, save me next?"
Ryan rolled her eyes. How in the world were they all gonna survive when the first thing they did was argue before they were even on the ground for 5 minutes. She was half listening to Clarke when a group had formed to trek to Mount Weather, her name wasn't one that was called.
"You're gonna need someone with experience in tracking and someone who knows about the plant and wildlife." Ryan stated.
"Yeah and who would actually know that, Look around doll. We are all from space." Bellamy stated throwing his hands up.
"Ryan knows." Wells said, not looking at her.
"And who is Ryan?" Bellamy asked
"She is." Clarke pointed at Ryan. "Her father was a scientist on the Ark. He studied the earth and everything about it. He was almost like..." she trailed off not knowing the right word that fit Ryan's dad.
"He was what they used to call a survivalist." Ryan scoffed. "He taught me everything there is to know about Earth. He was a little extreme."
Bellamy stared at the girl, not really knowing what to think of the brunette with angry eyes. "Well why
don't you lead his expedition then."
"No, Ryan needs to stay here." Clarke said.
"What? You said it yourself, her dad studied all of this."
"She's scared of me." Ryan stated, knowing full and well why she didn't want Ryan to go along. "I'll stay. Have fun surviving out there." She threw her hand up and turned her back on the group and went back inside the drop ship.
6 hours 18 minutes 36 seconds.
It was dark before Ryan emerged from the drop ship, a few kids made a fire and some had started making tents from the parachute. Ryan made her way towards part of the parachute and starting making her own tent. She found a piece of medal that came loose from the drop ship and turned it into a makeshift knife, using skills her father taught her.
-"Remember Ryan, make sure you have shelter. After you find shelter, then start looking for food and water." Her dad told her.
"Of course dad." Ryan nodded, taking it all in.
"And always know what berries you can and can't eat. Have you've been studying the book and notes I gave you?" He question.
"Yes dad, I've already read and reviewed them at least a dozen times today." She laughed.
"I just want you to be prepared, I have a feeling you will be on the earth sooner than you think. You need to know how to survive." Her father had a firery look in his eyes.
"Enough survival talk, both of you. It's time to go eat." Her mom laughed.
Ryan got up and linked arms with her mom as her dad laughed quietly behind them.-
Ryan sighed at the memory, that was one of the last good memories she had of her family. It wasn't long after that her mother got sick and everything went down hill from there.
"James was it?" A voice asked from behind her. Ryan turned around to find Bellamy coming towards her.
"Yeah, whats it do you?"
"Just got a question for you." He asked, a smirk forming upon his face, "why is Clarke scared of you."
Murphy and few more guys piled around him, all looking at her.
"It's none of your business. If you don't know then you don't need to know." She turned back towards her makeshift tent. A hand came and grabbed her butt, Ryan grabbed the hand and the arm it was attached to and flipped the owner of it over her shoulder. Murphy groaned when his body made contact with the ground. "Touch me again and the next time I won't be so nice." She sneered.
"Bitch." Murphy growled. Before he could get his self off the ground, Ryan launched herself on him. She pinned him down and connected her fist to his face. She only got one good punch in before a pair of arms grabbed her from around the waist and yanked her off of him.
"I'm starting to understand why Clarke didn't want you to go along with them. You are a little scary for someone so tiny." Bellamy laughed, placing her back on her feet.
Before Ryan said anything she knew would land her in hot water, she kicked Murphy one time before she turned around and went into her tent. She could hear the boy grumble about her but she could care less. Currently, she grabbed her chest and tried to slow down her breathing. She lost control of her temper again, so she started to do the breathing exercises that Dr. Griffin had taught her to control her anger. If she didn't learn to control her temper now than she'll be dead before the week has ended.
3 hours 48 minutes 12 seconds.
Finally after what seemed like a lifetime, Ryan emerged from her tent. It was dark and getting cool; she wrapped her jacket tighter around her, still flustered from her outburst earlier. Making her way to the fire, she notice Bellamy making a speech about the wristbands, trying to convince everyone to take them off, to abandon the Ark.
"They locked you up, dumped you down here like lab rats to die. Why are trying to help them?" He questioned the group.
"Well how do we stop it? You got an idea?" Murphy asked him.
"Take them off. You take them off then the Ark will think your dead and they won't follow us down here" Bellamy continued to make his speech.
"And if we do this, what's in it for us?" Murphy asked. Ryan's ears perked, wondering what Bellamy could offer them.
"Well someone's gotta help me run this place." Bellamy gloated.
Ryan watched kid after kid get their bracelets off, watching Bellamy glow with power. She couldn't believe how stupid they all were. It was like watching sheep being lined up for the slaughter.
"What do you think your doing?!" Wells demanded, coming from behind her.
"Liberating ourselves. What does it look like we're doing?" Bellamy grinned.
"It looks like you're trying to get us killed moron." Ryan sneered, she watched this go on long enough. "Do you know how to build an engine? Or plant a garden to grow food? Heal anyone? Make a government? Study the new things? No you don't. All of our engineers, doctors, government, & farmers are up there. Our scientists. Everyone you all know and love. They are up there. You take these bracelets off and they won't know the ground is able to hold life."
"She's right. These bracelets are the only communication we have with them. Take these off and they won't think it's safe to follow us." Wells followed.
"That's the point Chancellor. We can take care of ourselves, cant we?!" He asked the group of delinquents around him.
Ryan pushed herself off the tree she was propped on and got in his face, "Look the Ark isn't my favorite place and their sure enough isn't anyone I love up there but if it saves thousands of innocent people from dying then I'm all about it. You all won't be able to survive on your own." She glared up at him, hating the fact he was at least a head and a half taller than her.
"And besides, if it really is safe wouldn't you want the rest of our people to follow us?" Wells questioned.
"My people are already here. Those people locked my people up. Those people killed my mother for a crime of having a second child. Your father did that." Bellamy said to Wells, ignoring Ryan completely who was still glaring up at him.
"My father didn't make the rules."
"No but enforced them, but not down here. Down here we can do whatever the hell we want." Bellamy said, immediately the group of kids behind him started chanted 'whatever the hell we want".
Ryan was about to say something when a drop of water hit her in the face. She looked up as it started to pour, rain. Kids were getting up and dancing, smiling, jumping up and down. Enjoying the rain that pounded against their skin. Ryan couldn't help herself she through her arms out and twirled once letting the rain wash away her anger and her fear. Behind her she could hear Wells say something about collecting the water. Bellamy looked down at the brunette, who just seconds before looked like she could kill him, now smiling up at the rain. Something about her made Bellamy smile at her. She was a lot different the usual girls he was used too.
Ryan twirled one more time, Wells has already walked away and she could careless about the rest of the 100. Her hair was drenched as well as her clothes. The small group that left earlier hasn't returned but she wasn't worried because for once her clock had finally stopped counting down to the end of her days. For once she could breathe a little easier. Because for the first time in 4 years she was relaxed enough to say, "Happy birthday Ryan James. You made it to 18."