Disclaimer:- All publicly recognized characters and the paragraph in italic at the start of chapter belong to Veronica Roth. I own nothing except this alternate ending.

1

Paralyzed

TRIS

I hear footsteps in the hallway outside. The soldiers are coming. Good—I need them to. I need them to be exposed to the airborne serum, to pass it on to the rest of the compound. I hope they wait until the air is clear of death serum. "My mother wasn't a fool," I say. "She just understood something you didn't. That it's not sacrifice if it's someone else's life you're giving away, it's just evil." I back up another step and say, "She taught me all about real sacrifice. That it should be done from love, not misplaced disgust for another person's genetics. That it should be done from necessity, not without exhausting all other options. That it should be done for people who need your strength because they don't have enough of their own. That's why I need to stop you from sacrificing all those people and their memories. Why I need to rid the world of you once and for all." I shake my head. "I didn't come here to steal anything, David." I twist and lunge toward the device.

I hear footsteps in the hallway outside. The soldiers are coming. Good—I need them to. I need them to be exposed to the airborne serum, to pass it on to the rest of the compound. I hope they wait until the air is clear of death serum. "My mother wasn't a fool," I say. "She just understood something you didn't. That it's not sacrifice if it's someone else's life you're giving away, it's just evil." I back up another step and say, "She taught me all about real sacrifice. That it should be done from love, not misplaced disgust for another person's genetics. That it should be done from necessity, not without exhausting all other options. That it should be done for people who need your strength because they don't have enough of their own. That's why I need to stop you from sacrificing‟ all those people and their memories. Why I need to rid the world of you once and for all." I shake my head. "I didn't come here to steal anything, David." I twist and lunge toward the device.

I hear a gun fire. Instinctively, my body turns to the right. The bullet hits the wall, creating a hole in it. I quickly enter the code; Caleb's voice is still ringing in my head. The gun goes off again. This time, the bullet hits me. An excruciating pain explodes in my spine. But I don't give in to it even though my body begs me to do so. I push the green button. A light turns on behind it. I hear a beeping sound.

The pain becomes unbearable. I fall to the floor on my stomach. Forcing my arm to move, I touch my lower back. My hand is coated with a deep burgundy color when I bring it in front of my eyes. My vision fades. My body feels numb. The last thing I see before fading into darkness is David collapsed in his chair.

I feel like I am floating. I can't feel my body anymore.

A light shines on the other side of my closed eyelids. I struggle to open my eyes. And when I do, I see my mother's face. Golden strands surround her face, creating a halo. She touches my cheek. He hand is ice cold. "Hello, Beatrice," she smiles.

"Did I do it?" I ask. My voice is faint. I never want to let her down.

Her eyes shine with tears; she leans over to kiss my forehead. "You've done more than enough, my daughter." She whispers. Her voice sounds like it's coming from a very distant place. Another world.

She kisses my forehead. I feel myself fading into darkness again. I try to move so I can grasp her hands. Any part of her. I don't want to let her go. Not this time.

"You have to," she almost scolds. I don't realize I've spoken aloud. "You have to live. You haven't even started to do so. Let it go, Beatrice. I'll always be waiting." I look into her eyes, and find nothing but honesty. I think about Tobias, his dark blue eyes and strong and warm body. I think of my brother and my friends. She's right, I need to go back. "Okay, Mom." I say. My vision blurs again. The last thing I see before succumbing to oblivion is my mother's face. She looks so beautiful. She might as well be an angel of her God up there.

A voice repeats my name over and over again. A light shines on the other side of my eyelids again. But this one is too bright, bordering on the edge of being uncomfortable. I try to open my eyes again but narrow them against the sharp beam which vanishes with a click. I open them again and stare at the face of a blonde haired man in white coat. My throat feels like it's on fire. I open my mouth and rasp, "Water."

A nurse comes into my view and puts a straw between my lips. I frown and try to move my arms so I can hold the glass and drink it myself. It is only then I realize I can't move. And it's not because of the tubes and needles connected to almost every part of my body. I look at the doctor and hear him confirm the worst suspicion bubbling up inside of me. My arms and legs are paralyzed.

Author's Notes:- Let me know what you think!