The 100 A fresh start

Chapter 1: Walking Away

When the door opened, it was nothing like the dropship. It was nothing like the time he allowed his little sister to be the first outside. That seemed like so long ago. The sunlight wasn't blinding. Why would it be? They were still inside, surrounded by old concrete walls. The air felt heavy, not sweet and fresh. Still it was inviting and everyone wanted out of the tomb. Now the ones at the door were the Clan leaders and their aids.

Bellamy thought how ridiculous they all were; fighting over who got out first. It's not like they would be trapped inside. Everyone would get out, who cared about being first? It was finally decided that the leaders would lead their people out.

When the door was finally open, and the all clear was given, they were like a herd of cattle. Bellamy backed away from it. He could wait, it didn't matter; nothing mattered anymore. He sunk back into the shadows, back to his small corner. He would wait for it to clear. He had no place to go anyway. A few of the kids rushed into the barracks, grabbing last minute, forgotten possessions. They saw him sitting on his cot, but didn't say anything at first. Harper looked at Monty before they finally walked towards him. "You're coming, aren't you?" she asked Bellamy. "Marcus wants our people to meet outside the city."

Bellamy didn't look her in the face. He just gave a little nod. "Yea," he said without emotion.

Sudden memories of Jasper washed over Monty and he took a step towards Bellamy. "It will be a fresh start for everyone now," Monty said.

Bellamy finally met his friend's eyes for a moment before glancing away and nodded again. "I'll wait for it to clear," he said as he lay back on the cot and put his arm over his eyes as he tried to drown out the noise outside the barracks room.

Monty understood. He knew Bellamy hated crowds. He did too, but he hated this bunker more. "We'll see you outside then," he said before he turned to leave. Harper hesitated at first, but the excitement of leaving pulled her away like it did everyone else.

Over a thousand people streamed out. Some had to be carried, but most were in good health. Bellamy almost dozed off waiting for the bunker to clear. He hadn't slept much if any the last few days. Finally the noise faded and then it was gone. The silence echoed throughout the steel cavernous tomb that had been home for everyone, but a prison for him.

Bellamy got up and picked up his pack that he had packed days before. He rolled up his blanket at the last minute and tied it onto the top of his backpack. He picked up his rifle and made his way out.

The place was empty. His footsteps echoed, as the ladder came into view. Bellamy stepped out into the dusty bottom level of the old temple.

He remembered this place. It was where he begged her to come inside. It was the place he finally told her how he felt, and it was where she kissed him. He closed his eyes for a minute to remember how it felt. He relived the moment again, when she wrapped her arms around his neck and the feel of her lips on his, how she looked him in the eyes and said she loved him, the words he had longed to hear from her. He remembered tears in her eyes when she said she couldn't go. The moment he said he wouldn't go without her was the last thing he said. Her eyes darted to someone behind him, and he knew what they had done the second he felt the sting in his neck. Roan came up from behind and injected him with the sleeping agent. They had planned it all along. He felt like a fool.

Waking up on the cot and knowing what they had done to him was the ultimate betrayal. Everything he worked for and all the trust he had in them was shot. Clarke's stupid plan had failed when she and Raven died in the fiery crash. He remembers the look on Marcus's face when he woke, and he knew she was gone.

Bellamy had to get out of the temple and away from the memories; the memories that made him angry, bitter and sad. He thought of Jasper and for a second he understood. But he wasn't like Jasper. He didn't spend over four years in that living hell to just die. He wanted peace and serenity. He needed to get away and find someplace to finally give him the solitude he craved. He tried to make things work, but little by little things ate away at him.

Stepping out into what remained of the city was eye opening. He forgot how bright the sun was. The air had a different smell than what he remembered. He remembered when the city was full of death and the cries of those that had awoken from the chip. Bodies had covered the streets and Clarke was there and thanked him for keeping her alive. He squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to block out the memory of her. He had to get out.

Bellamy heard speaking in the square; it was Luna. She was talking to the people about unity and rebuilding. He saw Roan, Marcus and six other clan leaders there on the platform alongside her. He didn't care about any of it and he kept walking.

"What, you're skipping out on the big inspirational speech?" Murphy said sarcastically as he watched Bellamy walk past him.

Bellamy didn't say anything, he just kept walking.

Murphy caught up to him. "What, you're just taking off?" he asked, "Come on, you're stealing my move," Murphy said.

Then he stopped following and watched Bellamy go.

Emori caught up to him. "John?" she asked him.

Murphy just looked back at Bellamy as he turned the corner. He turned back to Emori and pursed his lips. "It's Bellamy," he shrugged. "Guess he's really going."

"He has to find his own path," Emori said. "You're not surprised are you?" she asked

"No," he said. "Not really."

"You know, we can still leave too," she said. "There's nothing holding us here," Emori said "We can survive on our own; just you, me and this baby."

"We've talked about that," he said turning to face her. "We're in now. Don't you see? All these years, in that bunker; all the work was for this. We have a place now. We're not outsiders anymore, "he said. "We need this."

"But what if the baby…?" Emori started.

"My people aren't like that," John said "This baby will be the first. The first child born between skykru and grounder, and it doesn't matter what he looks like, if he has your hand and my nose, or three hands for that matter. He's our baby, and no one will ever hurt him," he said.

"What makes you so sure it's a boy?" she smirked.

"Because I said so," he smiled.

Emori smiled up at him. "I love you John," she said as she rose up onto her toes and kissed him.

Bellamy kept walking. He wasn't in a hurry. He was surprised at how green everything was. He thought the radiation would have killed the forest, but it didn't. There were more green vines, and although there were a lot of fallen trees, the vines had covered most of them. It was different, but it wasn't the desert he had expected to see. "You're right Monty, it's going to be a fresh start," he said to himself.

He kept going deeper and deeper into the forest, and he didn't stop until he was spent.