RESURGENT
As Miss Roth left us with a cruel ending, and numerous questions unanswered, here is my version of the final book in the Divergent series. This is for all the initiates who need the third book URGENT-ly (Pretty proud of that one)
Resurgent – rising or becoming stronger again.
Reviews would be fourbulous (Did you see what I did there?)
Disclaimer: I do not own Divergent, or otherwise Insurgent would have at least mentioned Tris' love for burgers several times.
CHAPTER ONE
I stare blankly at the white wall. My fingers trace the outline of the three ravens on my collar bone. Each one representing the three members of my family I left behind. My mother and my father - dead. And my brother, Caleb, who I barely acknowledge as my brother anymore.
My hand glides further down to my left shoulder, below the Dauntless seal, and further down to my left wrist. I picture three more flying birds down my arm, except more vibrant and vivacious, pulsating with energy. Except these would symbolise the three friends that I left behind. Lynn. Marlene. And Will. Unfortunately Tori isn't much of a tattoo artist now.
I turn to my side on the bed and feel Tobias' lukewarm breath against my ear. Tobias' breathing is slow, inhaling through his nose and out through his mouth, making him seem gentler than he is. His facial features soften we he sleeps, his jaw not so tight and his forehead is relaxed. He's Tobias now, however when he wakes up he'll put on the tough façade of Four.
I am supposed to be asleep, my body feels exhausted. However whenever dreams are somehow crueller than reality it makes it difficult to do so. And when reality is in a now Factionless city, dreams must be awful.
My dreams focus on the images shown in the video, the video that changed everything. A man on his knees with a gun pressed to his forehead. A small person hanging from a telephone poll. A hole in the size of a house, full of bodies. There are worse images as well.
Edith Prior.
For two whole days I've been captivated by the name, by the woman, by the person who promises life beyond the gates, and that Divergents should restore the morality of the lives outside the gates. And I'm positive that I'm not the only one enthralled by the possibilities.
It took several gunshots to calm the pandemonium in the atmosphere when we discovered the truth. Evelyn, had an icy look of hatred displayed on her face and managed to threaten if she heard any more discussion of Edith Prior there would be penalties. Most likely a death penalty.
I wanted to rebel. I wanted to run from the 'perfect' society we had created and explore what was behind the gates. But I didn't. The Factionless were armed and I wasn't, plus Tobias
Her control was expected, after devoting many years to achieve power for the Factionless, she will refuse to let anything to interrupt her new leadership. Evelyn is controlling, power-hungry, and worst of all, Tobias' mother. She knows how to manipulate him.
I don't trust her.
Impulsively, I leap out of my bed. The Erudite mattresses are soft and light, and I'm fond of them despite the unnatural shade of white. Although everything in Erudite is unnaturally clean. Although Erudite doesn't count as a faction anymore.
I tiptoe to the door, trying to avoid disturbing Tobias in his peaceful sleep, the way his lips are parted makes him seem like an eighteen year old, not an ex-Dauntless leader, a vulnerable eighteen year old, my Tobias.
I walk through the streets as silently as possible. An advantage of being small makes my footsteps less audible so the Factionless guards here nothing as I scurry down the streets. Taking a final left I find myself in front of the Erudite headquarters. Surprisingly there's very little security; then again not many people want to relive the events of two days ago. I slip through the one guard that's fast asleep on a chair and sprint upstairs.
Sprinting up the stairs reminds me of when I chose Dauntless, running up with the initiates, feeling the burn in my legs, the pumping of my heart, and my lungs grasping for air. I laugh manically, and I don't stop until I reach the top.
I am at the level where Tori stabbed Jeanine Matthews.
The memory sends a chill through my spine, and I regret running up all these stairs. A breeze wafts past which makes me feel colder. I could have sworn two days ago there was no breeze. The window is open, wide enough so a grown man could fit through. Curiosity overwhelms me and I walk to the window.
I fit through easily, and I fall on to what looks like a balcony. I groan internally as I feel my left foot throbbing, and hobble around the balcony. The view up here is magnificent, and high up is great for thinking. I keep shuffling and I pause when I see the human silhouette.
"Uriah," I breathe.
"Hey Tris" Uriah grins, although his infectious smile doesn't quite reach his downcast eyes, "You can sit on my lap if you want."
I remember the distant memory of Uriah trying to persuade me to sit on his lap, before all the chaos began; it was the Dauntless initiation ceremony, before we both entered our fear landscapes. I laugh, it is an unfamiliar, hollow sound, but it feels better than the constant worrying.
"Tempting," I call back, and this time Uriah's smile meets his russet eyes.
"It's a hell of a big mess," Uriah nods downwards to the used-to-be Erudite faction. Glass fragments litter across the streets. Once tall proud buildings are now left to ruins. And worst of all, there are still a few bodies ditched on the ground, some look intact, others look like blood-spattered messes.
I don't know how to reply, all I do is sink down and sit next to Uriah. This could have been my faction if I chose differently, I could have been one of the bodies sprawled on the streets, or I could have been one of the survivors whose fates are pending on Evelyn's decision. It's a relief that I'm not.
The silence between us is comforting. Soothing. We both have things to figure out. Great heights and quiet help things get figured out not mindless conversations.
"What was your aptitude test results?" Uriah asks, his eyebrows furrowing.
I'm not supposed to tell my results, being Divergent should be a secret. Only a matter of days ago being a Divergent would have ensured a death sentence. However there are no factions, and I trust Uriah – a true friend, someone who supports me even at my strongest.
"Dauntless, Abnegation and Erudite." Each one feels familiar on my tongue; it's strange that neither of them exist anymore.
Uriah releases a long whistle, his eyes glued to destruction down below. "Three?" He pauses for a while, each time he tries to start a sentence he stops, finally he says, "Dauntless and Amity."
I raise my eyebrows sceptically, "So you're part pansycake?"
Uriah laughs, it's a comforting sound, the past few days he's been fairly vacant, barely being his usual bouncy, boisterous self. "You did not just call me a pansycake."
"Actually I only called you part pansycake. What happened in your aptitude test then?" I ask. Images flood into my memory, I remember Tori explaining that the first choice crossed out either Dauntless or Amity. So surely it was impossible.
"You remember the cheese and the knife decision, right? Three guesses who took both," Uriah laughs again and I join in with him, what he did was stupid and irrational, yet so very Uriah.
I can't picture Uriah as an Amity member though. His snake tattoo on his ear would stand out, and his smug smile would contrast with the harmonious Amity ones. His paintballing spirit would differ a lot from their holding hands. And his energetic aura would differ from Amity's peaceful atmosphere. I always though Uriah was Dauntless through and through.
Tomorrow is Judgement Day for the Amity. Evelyn will decided the outcome, and most likely it will be inequitable. I wonder if Uriah is thinking what would have happened if he chose Amity. Most likely he'd have been severely punished – doing the old factionless jobs, or dead.
Death will always be better than being factionless.
"There are no cameras here," Uriah states. His eyes still concentrate on the debris below. Uriah telling me this is a small act of defiance against Evelyn's rule. Defying what's wrong is Dauntless. "We should make a run for it."
"Now?" I ask.
Uriah shakes his head, "Tris, I'm not that stupid. Whenever there's a chance, whoever wants to go, we make a run for it."
I picture it in my head, a group of us, waiting for the right time to run. Me, Tobias, Uriah, Christina, Zeke, Shauna, possibly Cara, and whoever else is willing to escape from our lives. Being freer than we ever thought, running toward a great perhaps. It scares me.
"And the outside doesn't scare you?" I ask, "Be honest."
Uriah's brash grin fades, his dark eyes looking serious, "I'm no Candor, but yes, yes it does. But what's life worth if no risks are taken and we just disappear into the background?"
"Spoken like a true Dauntless."
"Excuse me? I'm Divergent," Uriah replies, putting on a fake offended face, he looks even insulted when I reply "Sorry pansycake."
"It's Mr Pansycake to you," Uriah laughs, and we just continue laughing, ignoring the pain of lost loved ones, ignoring that we will make a move that will risk our lives, ignoring that Amity initiates could be dead by tomorrow. All we do is laugh until our stomach hurts and our eyes water. It feels refreshing.
"I think I'm going to bed now," Uriah announces, "No spontaneous building diving Tris."
"Just because it crossed your mind, doesn't mean it crossed mine," I answer dryly as I watch Uriah slip smoothly from the window.
Lynn and Marlene's death took a lot deeper impact on Uriah than me, he knew both of them his whole life. Their death ended their lives but not Uriah's relationship with them. Uriah looks tired all the time now, he has dark circles underneath his eyes and his skin is more grayish than bronze. His laugh sounds hollow and distant and his eyes are never focused on the person he's talking to.
Uriah is broken.
Loss is like a bullet wound, it never heals perfectly but you learn to move on, despite the amount of pain that it causes. I guess by now I should know enough about loss to realize that you never really stop missing someone-you just learn to live around the huge gaping hole of their absence. But I'm still learning on how to do that.
I don't know how many hours it is till I crawl back into bed with Tobias. My spot feels cold and empty and I slide closer to Tobias for warmth. Adrenaline is pulsing through my veins and my mind is flying at impossible speeds. I feel rebellious. I feel in charge. I have the same feeling when I first chose Dauntless, a sense of freedom. Except this time I am actually free, I can be who I am Divergent. Not Dauntless. Not Abnegation. Not Erudite. Not Factionless. Divergent. And it's beautiful.
Author's note: Voila, chapter one accomplished! Don't worry there will be no love triangles involving Uriah, Tris and Tobias, or love triangles at all, since 1) Love triangles are overused 2) The girl it revolves around is incredibly selfish – Tris is Abnegation and 3) Fourtris fourever (I should really stop with these four jokes, they're stupid, but addictive)
I like reviews more than Uriah likes people sitting on his lap. And that's a lot.
Breath1ess.