Chapter One
Living in space wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. In fact, it was pretty terrible. I remember reading about this really old movie, Zenon Girl of the 21st Century. What a load of crap. If only life on the Ark was even remotely like life on Zenon's 'Spay-Stay'. But instead of epic clothes and concerts, we got fake food and a Council that killed their people for the smallest of crimes. For instance, if a child was sick, and needed medicine if the doctors or the parents went over the 'allotted amount of medicine' that parent or doctor was floated. Killed by sending them through the airlock and into space. If a mother was pregnant with a second child, both mother and child were floated.
Unless a criminal was under the age of 18, then we were sent to live in the Sky Box, the Arks prison, until our 18th birthday. Then we would be re-evaluated and possibly, possibly, sent back to live with the rest of the community. I say 'we' because I was one of the lucky 17-year-olds that were sent to the Sky Box. All because one of my best friends, Monty Green, didn't replace the weed we had taken from Farm Station. Thanks to him, the two of us and our friend Jasper Jordan were locked up until our 18th birthday.
Mine was in thirteen days.
"Prisoner 624" stated one of the guards as he stepped through the door to my cell with a silver attache case. And he wasn't alone. Filing in behind him were two other guards, their shock batons at the ready. "Prisoner 624, on your feet" the large male guard stated. I was a non-violent prisoner, so I had no clue why the guards were acting like I was. Quietly I stood from my small cot and faced the man who had put the case down on my cot.
"What's going on?" I managed to ask when the case was opened, revealing gnarly looking metal cuffs.
"Face the wall" the guard ordered.
"What's going on?" my voice squeaked out the question as I did what I was told.
"Hold out your right arm." So I guess I wasn't going to get any answers. Unsurprising. Still, I did what I was told and held out my right arm. I had a feeling deep in my gut about what was going to happen, and it wasn't good. I still had thirteen more days until my eighteenth birthday, but I guess they just wanted to get it over with. Conserving oxygen and all that.
After all, why would they keep a criminal no-body alive when there were well-behaved important people to keep alive. Logically, I guess it made sense, but that didn't stop the panic that made my heart pound in my chest and tears to burn behind my eyes. I didn't even breathe when I felt the guard grip my arm and the cool metal of the cuff hit my skin. I wasn't expecting the pain what came with the bracelet. A scream built up in my chest, but it was instantly muffled by the guard placing a hand over my mouth.
A few moments later, I was being led out of my cell with a tight grip on my arm. With wide, tear-filled eyes I looked around and saw that I wasn't the only one being lead to their death. This wasn't right. A lot of these kids were just that... kids. Children who weren't anywhere close to their eighteenth birthday. And a lot of them were non-violent offenders like me. Frantically I looked around for Monty and Jasper, but they were nowhere to be found.
While some of the other Delinquents fought against the guards, I walked silently to what I assumed was my death. I wasn't expecting to be put inside a drop-ship outfitted with seats. One for each and every one of us. What the hell? I was thankful, though, that the guard had let go of my hand and let me choose a seat of my own. Instead of the alternative, where they all but forced the kids who were fighting back into the seats and strapped in. Some of them were even tranquilized and carried inside.
Carefully I watched as the guards brought in the prisoners. Letting out a sigh of relief when I saw my friends. "Jasper! Monty!" I called out, waving the boys over to me; using my left hand considering the bulky silver cuff was still stabbing into my right wrist and it hurt too much to move.
"Seren!" they said at the same time as they rushed over to me and took the two open seats next to me. "Do you know what's going on?" Jasper asked once he and Monty were strapped in tight.
"Mass floating?" I suggested with a shrug. "I have absolutely no idea" I sighed.
It wasn't too long after that the drop-ship doors snapped shut and I gripped the boys' hands in fear. The next few minutes were spent with my eyes closed and my teeth sinking sharply into my lower lip. If the boys said anything to me, it fell on deaf ears. At this point, I figured that they weren't floating us. But since that wasn't the case... then what the hell was going on?
I must have passed out in my seat because the next thing I knew the floor was shaking beneath my feet. "What happened?" I groaned. "What's going on?" I asked the boys.
"You passed out," Monty told me. "And according to that guy", he pointed across the way to a boy I vaguely recognized as the Chancellors son. "We just hit the atmosphere."
"Wait, like earths atmosphere?" I asked. Just then, the small screen above my head came to life. Looking around I saw similar screens flicker on.
"'Prisoners of the Ark, hear me now.'" Chancellor Jaha's voice rang out, his demeanor calm as ever. "'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 a chance for all of us, indeed for mankind itself. We have no idea what is waiting for you down there'" he told us. Nervously, I looked at my boys and held onto their hands. "'If the odds of survival were better, we would've sent others. Frankly, we're sending you because your crimes have made you expendable..'"
"Your dad is a dick, Wells!" I heard a boy call out. He wasn't wrong.
Jaha went on to state that our crimes would be forgiven. Not too hard to forgive people who were dead. Because that's just what he was doing. He and the Council were sending all of us to our deaths. If the earth was safe, radiation-wise, then it would be the other dangers that the ground posed. Exposure, lack of food and water, wild mutated animals and of course... not all of the delinquents were locked up for non-violent crimes. Plus, our Earth Skills teacher was a psychopath who barely taught us anything.
There were a few boys who had decided to unstrap their belts and float around the dropship. The first was a guy I knew as Finn Collins, AKA the Space Walk Bandit. He had been arrested for going on an illegal spacewalk and wasting a few months worth of oxygen. While the other two boys... well, I actually had no clue who they were. And, as it turns out, I never would. When the parachutes deployed, all three of them went flying. My stomach turned when I saw the two guys on the ground. Lifeless.
"Listen" Monty spoke up once the ship stopped. "No machine hum," he said. Closing my eyes, I tilted my head to the side and listened. As usual, Monty was right. There was none of that ever-present hum of machines keeping us alive.
"Whoa" came Jaspers' voice. "That's a first," he said.
With a grin, I opened my eyes and looked at my boys. "A girl could get used to that."
The silence was short lived, however, as we all started undoing our seatbelts. I would say that I would have normally waited for Monty and Jasper...but that would be a lie. The second my seatbelt was undone, I ran to the lower level, where the door to the outside waited. I just wasn't expecting to see a guy a few years older in a guards uniform.
A second later, I was being shoved into him. Quietly, I thanked him as he held me up before addressing the delinquents behind me. "Hey, just back it up, guys," he said, his voice sending a slight shiver down my spine. Then, he turned and went to open the door, only to be stopped by Dr. Griffin's daughter yelling at him.
"The air could be toxic," she said.
"If the air's toxic, we're dead anyway" was his response.
"Bellamy?" a tired female voice called out, stopping the guy from pulling the hatch once again. He then turned, a look of shock and relief etched on his face. Following Bellamy's gaze, I saw a pretty brunette. Her name was Octavia, we weren't friends, but I had helped her a little bit during our forced Earth Skills classes. As an illegal child, she didn't get the same school opportunities the rest of us did. Looking at my feet, I backed away from the door a little so that the siblings could have their moment. Not for the first time, I wished I could have something like that. The closest thing I had to siblings were Monty and Jasper.
"What the hell are you wearing?" Octavia asked her brother. "A guards uniform?" So I guess Bellamy wasn't a guard then?
"I borrowed it to get on the dropship," he said. "Someone has got to keep an eye on you."
"Where's your wristband?" asked the pushy blonde, causing both Octavia and I to turn on her with fire in our eyes.
"No need to be rude" I muttered.
"Do you mind?" Octavia asked, her question was obviously directed to the blonde. "I haven't seen my brother in a year" she added.
"No one has a brother" some idiot in the back called out.
"That's Octavia Blake, the girl they found hidden in the floor."
I couldn't blame Octavia for lashing out. If I were put in her position, I probably would have reacted the same way. So when she went to rush by me, I simply stepped to the side. Only she didn't make it that far, Bellamy had instantly reached out and grabbed Octavia around the waist and pulled her back.
"Let's give them something else to remember you by," he told her softly.
"Yea? Like what?"
"Like being the first person on the ground in a hundred years" Bellamy smirked.
Octavia gave him a smile in return before her eyes cut to me. "You're coming too," she said and I just looked at her in confusion. "We're friends, right?" she asked.
"I gue..." I started but stopped with a shake of my head before grinning widely. "Yea, yes, we're friends." As I took Octavia's hand, I looked over my shoulder to try and find Monty and Jasper. But they weren't in the small crowd behind me. With a shuddering breath, I squeezed Octavia's hand but kept my eyes locked on the door.
When Bellamy finally pulled the lever, I had to close my eyes to block out the bright light. Squinting against the sunshine, I walked down the ramp that the door had made with Octavia at my side.
"I think this part is all you" I finally spoke, looking at the brunette.
"What, but..." she stammered.
"The world is yours, Octavia," I told her with a smile, dropping her hand as soon as we made it to the edge of the ramp. And then, Octavia Blake became the first of us delinquents to stand on the ground.
As she stood there, taking in her surroundings, I did the same. The trees were greener than I had even imagined and the air was warm with the remaining heat of summer. There were even birds chirping in the trees.
"We're back bitches!"
With that, before the rest of the prisoners could, I jumped off the ramp and gripped Octavia in a hug. Letting go when Bellamy came over to us with the others running around us. Leaving the two siblings, I glanced around for my boys. Grinning when I saw the back of Jaspers head, I all but skipped over to them. Jumping onto the lanky dweebs back with a laugh.
"Seren!" Jasper laughed, spinning around with me on his back.
"Can you believe it?" Monty asked, his dark eyes shining in the sunlight.
"Its freaking surreal" I breath, looking around at the mossy trees. "So, I hate to be the one to bring it up but... how likely do you think it is to find something to smoke down here?" I asked with a playful smirk.
"You would think that since pot is the reason why we were arrested that you wouldn't actively go looking for it," Jasper said as he dropped my legs.
"No, Jas, Monty's the reason we got busted" I reminded. "But it's cool, I forgive you," I told him as if that had been a real concern. I had never once been made at Jasper or Monty for anything. Ever. We were family, end of story.
The next twenty minutes or so was spent wandering around the drop site. At some point in time, Jasper had found himself part of a small group of guys that I didn't trust one bit. I didn't say anything to him about it, though. Instead, me, him and Monty laughed and joked.
When we noticed that the Griffin girl, C-something, had a map, Jasper simply sent Monty and I a playful wink before sauntering over to where the girl and Jaha Jr stood.
"Cool, a map. They got a bar in this town? I'll buy you a beer." he said to the two of them, only for Wells to turn on him and grip his scrawny arm roughly. Instantly, my spine straightened and I went to step forward. But Jaspers new 'friends' beat me to the punch.
"Hey, hey, hey, hands off of him," said the creepy ring leader. "He's with us."
"Relax," Wells said, "We're just trying to figure out where we are."
I honestly wasn't expecting Bellamy to speak up, "We're on the ground" came his voice, once again sending pleasant shivers down my spine. "That not good enough for you?" he asked.
From where I stood, I could see Wells' jaw tick in aggravation. "We need to find Mount Weather," the Chancellors son told the older man. "You heard my father's message. That has to be our first priority."
"Screw your father" Octavia spat.
"Seconded" I rose my hand. "Your father sent 100 children to their deaths" I added, brushing past the blonde so that I could stand next to Octavia.
"What," my new friend continued with a sneer. "You think you're in charge here, you and your little princess."
"Do you think we care who's in charge?" the bossy girl said, "We need to get to Mount Weather not because the Chancellor said so, but because the longer we wait, the hungrier we'll get and the harder this'll be."
I hated that I was just like everyone else when it came to the...animosity I felt for people like Jaha Jr and Princess Griffin. They were the privileged kids, the ones who didn't have to share a graham cracker with their parents for dinner. Everyone had a strict allotment, but the privileged ones got more than their fair share; as if being in a position of power made them more worthy of basic needs than the rest of us. And then they wonder why so many citizens of the Ark start stealing or even lash out against the Council.
I also hated that Princess Griffin was right. Between Monty and I, we could identify edible and toxic plants. I could even make medicines from those plants. But we still needed meat, and blankets and a place to sleep. Even if all we could find were tents.
"How long do you think we'll last without those supplies?" she asked. "We're looking at a 20-mile trek, okay? So if we wanna get there before dark, we need to leave now."
"I got a better idea" Bellamy started. "You two go, find it for us. Let the privileged do the hard work for a change." At Bellamy's words, there was a chorus of agreement throughout the camp.
"He's not wrong" I shrugged when the blonde girl looked at me for whatever reason. "But neither are you. If we're taking a vote, mine would be for you guys going off into the wilderness with volunteers. While the rest of us hold down the fort here, just in case you all get eaten by mutated elephants or something."
"You're not listening," Wells said, obviously ignoring me. "We all need to go."
With a quiet scoff, I rolled my eyes. I went to speak up once again, but the creepy guy who was leading the group of guys that had come to Jaspers rescue earlier. "Look at this, everybody... the Chancellor of Earth" he sneered, causing the rest of us to chuckle.
It didn't take much for a small scuffle to ensue. Though it was mostly the rat-faced boy whose name I believed was Murphy, picking on Wells. I part of me felt a little bad, Murphy had stomped on Well's ankle, causing the Chancellor's kid to stumble and probably sprain it. He couldn't even stand and I could guarantee that he more than likely didn't even know how to throw a decent punch. Thankfully we didn't need to find out, as Finn jumped down from where ever it was that he had been hiding and got between the two boys.
"Hey, Spacewalker," Octavia stepped forward. "Rescue me next" she flirted, and I had to stifle a laugh as the crowd dispersed and Bellamy walked over to his sister. "What? He's cute. Right, Seren?" she asked, looking at me over her brother's shoulder.
"Not really my type" I shrugged.
"He's a criminal," Bellamy told her, causing Octavia to roll her eyes.
"We're all criminals," I told him before walking over to Monty and Jasper. "So about that beer" I smirked, shoving Jaspers shoulder playfully. "But for real though, I bet we could find some fun plants around here."
"And some medicinal herbs" Monty agreed. "Spearmint, Yarrow, stuff like that."
"I'll keep my eyes open" I nodded. Suddenly, someone came up behind us and grabbed the boys by the shoulders. Turning I saw that it was just Finn.
"4 of us. Can we go now?" he said.
"Woah, go?" I asked. "Nu-uh. Make that five, these two idiots don't go anywhere without me."
"Sounds like a party" I heard Octavia say, looking over I saw her and Bellamy coming over to us. "Count me in."
"Hey, what the hell are you doing?" Bellamy hissed.
"Going for a walk."
"Hey" the blonde spoke up, grabbing Finns wrist. "Were you trying to take this off?" she asked, looking at his wristband. Causing me to look down at my own. I don't know why I hadn't thought about taking the stupid thing off. It still hurt like a bitch.
"Yea. So?" Finn shrugged, causing the girl to scoff.
"So, this wristband transmits your vital signs to the Ark," she said. "Take it off, and they'll think you're dead."
"Should we care?" I asked.
"Well, I don't know. Do you want the people you love to think you're dead?" she asked me. "Do you want them to follow you down here in a few months? Because they won't if they think we're dying."
"The only people who matter to me are already down here," I told her, motioning to Monty and Jasper. "Now let's go get those supplies."
We left the drop site a little while later. I had even managed to find a small burlap bag inside, and I brought that with me. Just in case we came across any nuts or berries, herbs, anything we could eat.
As we walked, I stayed between Monty and Jasper, while Octavia and Finn flirted and Clarke, Princess Griffin, brooded. Monty and Jasper joked back and forth, while I was mostly silent, keeping my eyes peeled. I was honestly surprised when we happened upon a whole grove of poison sumac bushes. Instantly, I picked a few of the flowers and put them in my bag.
"Now that, my friends, is game" Jasper pointed out, causing me to let out a snort of laughter.
"That, my friend, is poison sumac" Monty pointed out, causing Octavia to shake the flower from her hair.
"Relax," I told her as Monty plucked a flower and handed it to me. "The flowers aren't poisonous. They're actually medicinal, lots of vitamins and it's really easy to brew them into teas."
"Monty's family grows all the pharmaceuticals on the Ark" Jasper explained. "And Seren was apprenticing at the greenhouses" he added.
"Hey, guys, would you try to keep up?" Clarke said impatiently, I just rolled my eyes.
"Come on, Clarke, how do you block all this out?" Finn asked her.
"Well, it's simple" she started. "I wonder 'why haven't we seen any animals?' Maybe it's because there are none. Maybe we've already been exposed to enough radiation to kill us. Sure is pretty though. Come on."
Again I rolled my eyes and pulled a sumac flower out of my bag. "Some should slip her some poison sumac" Octavia muttered, causing me to laugh and choke on the petal I was nibbling on.
I walked at my own pace just behind the boys. Picking at leaves and flower petals as I went. Clarke had complained again that I wasn't keeping up with the group. But I simply shrugged and told her that she could suck it up or not get her share of the berries I had picked. That shut her up pretty quickly.
Octavia had even kept me company and I showed her a little bit of what I knew. This was a better learning experience than any Earth Skills class we had on the Ark. I was still a little... awkward about our new found friendship. Other than my boys... I didn't have friends. I was the weird orphan girl who liked reading about plants. So when Octavia asked me what my type was, referring to my earlier comment about her crush, I simply groaned. Monty and Jasper never asked me these kinds of questions.
"So, I've got to know what the three of you did to get busted" Finna interrupted Octavia, thankfully.
"Yea, I've been wondering about that too," Octavia said as she pushed ahead to walk next to Finn again.
"Sumac wasn't the only herb in the garden...if you know what I mean," Monty told the, "And Seren always had the best crop."
"But someone forgot to replace what we took," I said, looking pointedly at Monty.
"Someone has apologized, like 1,000 times," the boy said.
"So what'd they get you for?" Jasper asked Octavia.
Octavia's whole demeanor changed just then and I couldn't help the wince. I knew what they had arrested Octavia for, it was common knowledge. Somehow, my tactless friend forgot that Octavia was a second child.
"That, my friend. is the complete opposite of game" I said, as I watched Octavia run ahead to where Clarke had crouched down. Waving us over, Clarke smiled and put a finger on her lips. Joining the others, I looked on with awe. In the clearing, not too far away from us, was a deer. It was absolutely beautiful.
"No animals, huh?" Finn smiled, leaning a little towards Clarke before creeping closer to get a better look. However he didn't watch his step and a dry twig snapped beneath his boot, spooking the deer. I knew that earth had to of had mutated animals, but I wasn't expecting the buck to have another face. It was freaky looking and it naturally spooked my little group.
"I knew I should have stayed back at camp" I mumbled. "I'm blaming you" I added, pointing to Finn.
"How is it my fault?"
"You volunteered Monty and Jasper" I shrugged. "My plan was to stay back, but you had to bring these two idiots along with you." I wasn't actually mad at Finn of course. I just had a really really really bad feeling about Mount Weather, and if there were mutated deer...then there was probably mutated predators. Maybe even people.
"You can go back if you want," Clarke told me, her blue eyes soft.
I really hated to be the wimp out of our group. Really I thought that it would be Monty, but he was holding strong. Letting out a sigh, I simply ran a hand through my messy hair.
"No," I said with a shake of my head. "No, I'm good."
"You sure, Seren?" Jasper asked. "You look pretty freaked.
"I'm sure, loser, now let's go," I told him with a roll of my eyes before I started off into the woods once again.
As we walked, Monty and I pointed out all of the plants that were edible. We also made note of the ones that were poisonous, and ones that we had never seen before. Obviously, the radiation mutated more than the animals.
I had stuck close to Octavia, too, showing her a little of what I knew. It didn't take long for me to realize that having a female friend would be good for me. And I think having a friend outside of her brother would be good for her. As I got to know her a little better, I realized that the girl was slightly boy crazy. I couldn't blame her, though. She had spent most of her life hidden away one way or another and the only male she had ever really known was her brother. Octavia had once again asked me what I looked for in a guy, a question that made Jasper and Monty chuckle.
Though I didn't really have a specific 'type', I had ...dated around, for lack of a better term. It wasn't like I was sleeping with a new guy every day, but I didn't usually look for anything other than a one night stand every couple of months. Just something to take away the boredom and stress. When I told Octavia this, a light blush graced her cheeks and I could help but smile at her.
We stopped to rest for a few minutes. Not one of us were used to walking this much over this type of terrain. The Ark sucked and the Earth Skills classes sucked even more. Munching on a few berries I had foraged, Jasper and Monty joked about the last guy I was seeing, causing me to groan. His name was Dustin Gomes and he was... well, clingy. While I had wanted a simple hookup, Dusty had wanted the whole shebang. Marriage and a kid and all the things I didn't want just yet. I just wanted to grow plants and hang out with my boys.
The day before I had gotten arrested, Dustin had been trying to get me alone. Jasper was under the impression that he was going to propose and I didn't doubt it. Since my eighteenth birthday was right around the corner, he thought that there was a time limit.
"Hey, you know what I'd like to know?" Finn asked when we mobilized again, effectively taking my mind off of my ex. "Why send us down today after 97 years? What changed?"
"Who cares?" Octavia responded. "I'm just glad they did. I woke up rotting in a cell, and now I'm spinning in a forest
"Preach" I agreed. I stumbled a little bit down the incline we were taking and winced when I hit my wrist on a tree, the one with the wristband.
"Maybe they found something on a satellite," Monty suggested. "You know, like an old weather satellite or..."
"It wasn't a satellite" Clarke interrupted, her tone suggesting we were idiots for not knowing what she knew. "The Ark is dying." That caused us all to stop except for the blonde who just pushed passed us. "At the current population level, there's roughly 3 months left of life support, maybe 4 now that we're gone."
"So that was the secret they locked you up to keep," Finn said. "Why they kept you in solitary, floated your old man?"
"My father was the engineer who discovered the flaw" Clarke sighed as we trailed behind them. "He thought the people had a right to know. The Council disagreed. My mother disagreed. They were afraid it would cause a panic. We were gonna go public, anyway, when Wells..." she trailed off.
"He turned in your dad didn't he?" I asked when Clarke didn't say anything I just scoffed. "What a douche."
"Anyway," Clarke sighed once again obviously not wanting to think about her best friends betrayal. "The Guard showed up before we could. That's why today. That's why it was worth the risk. Even if we all die, at least they bought themselves more time."
"They're gonna kill more people aren't they?" Monty asked. But Clarke didn't answer and we all stopped walking.
"Good" Octavia spoke up. "After what they did to me, I say float them all," she said as she walked passed us.
Jasper was the only one to follow after her. "You don't mean that," he said.
I agreed with Octavia. Back at the drop site, I had meant what I said. Everyone I cared about was already on the ground. I didn't have anyone up on the Ark, and the only ones they would keep alive if possible would be the people who deserved to float more than anyone.
With a shrug, I followed after Octavia and Jasper. Only to bump into my best friends back when he stopped short. "Oh damn, I love earth," he said. Looking over his shoulder I saw what he was seeing, Octavia, stripping down in front of a small stream. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw that Clarke looked absolutely appalled at the skin the Blake girl was showing while the boys were...well, boys. Rolling my eyes, I joined my friend on the rocks and looked down at the water. There was no water on the Ark, at least not like this. So naturally none of us knew how to swim, But this stream wasn't all that deep, maybe about waist high, so it's not like we would drown. Sharing a grin with Octavia, I stripped off my jacket and kicked off my boots before stepping to the edge and grabbing Octavia's hand.
"Seren! Octavia, what the hell are you two doing!?" Clarke yelled when she realized what we were doing. Octavia just looked over at Clarke with a dare in her eyes before the two of us jumped.
Instinct had me hold my breath, but the coldness of the water made me want to shriek. It did, however, feel good on my throbbing wrist. Clarke's mom was a doctor, so maybe the blonde teen would know something about why mine was still hurting and the others didn't seem to be bothered. Maybe I was just a big wimp.
When I rose up above the water once again, I kept most of my body under. I could see the others looking at us with fear in their eyes.
"Seren! We can't swim!" Monty called out, I just rolled my eyes and flipped onto my back. I had seen in this in old movies and I had always wanted to try it. Floating on the calm waters was just as peaceful as it seemed in the movies.
"No, but we can stand," Octavia said as she did just that.
Clarke had said something about the river and how it wasn't supposed to be in this spot. I just rolled my eyes but didn't say anything. Her only map was a hundred years old. Geography can change in a matter of minutes. As the others started to strip down to join us, I simply floated back towards the rocks and started to climb back up. Just as I did, Jasper stepped forward, but his smile instantly dropped into a look of worry.
"Octavia, get out of the water!" he called out. Looking out at Octavia, I saw why Jasper was worried. Something was making its way towards Octavia. A second later, the... thing struck and dragged Octavia under the water.
"No" I gasped. Without even thinking, I jumped back into the water, instantly the thing let go of my friend and went after me. Unlike Octavia, though, I was able to fight back a little better and I did all I could to kick the monster snake-fish thing. It didn't let go of my leg, but at least Octavia was safe. Oxygen was starting to become a problem as I struggled against the creature. I knew that I was a little ways away from my friends at this point and I was pretty sure that I was going to die.
I wasn't expecting to be let go. Frantically, I thrashed up to the surface and gasped for air. I could hear the guys calling for me, turning in the water I tried my best to get to where Finn and Monty were waiting for me. From what I could tell, they had found some way to distract the creature so that it would let go of me. It worked, obviously, but I didn't know for how long so I tried my best to wade towards the group.
"Seren, it's coming back!" Monty yelled out. "It's coming right for you."
When I finally made it onto the slab of rock next to Octavia and Jasper, I let out a shaky breath of relief. But it was short lived when I felt the hot pain in my leg. I wanted to touch the bite, to push my skin together in hopes of making the pain go away. But something in me knew that that would be a terrible idea.
"Octavia, are you okay?" I coughed. Instead of answering, Octavia whimpered and nodded her head as Clarke tied a piece of Jaspers t-shirt around Octavias' leg. When she turned to me, I just grunted in pain when she touched the skin around my own bite mark. "There's a-" I groaned. "Ugh, there's a sweatshirt lining my jacket," I told her. "Instead of ruining someone's shirt, use that." Clake just nodded before rushing off to where I had dropped my jacket.
"Note to self" Monty spoke after Clarke came back and tore into my hoodie. "Save the girl." Like the others, I couldn't help but laugh. Though as I did, I instantly started to tear up. That was the single most terrifying experience of my life.
We ended up making camp not too far away from the river. Deciding to leave at first light so that Octavia and I could rest. Using some of the plants from my bag, and some water, Monty made a paste to help bind the respective wounds on me and Octavia. And it stung. Once we all settled in for the night, we decided that going back to the river was too dangerous. Meaning we would have to find an alternative route back to Mount Weather.
Deciding to try and get some sleep, I couldn't help the smile when I saw Jasper and Octavia curled up together and already sleeping peacefully. Monty was laying close by them and was close to passing out. Even Clarke and Finn were sprawled out on the forest floor. With a sigh, I leaned up against the same tree as Jasper with my jacket serving as a blanket.
The next thing I knew, I was waking up to the sound of shuffling feet. Blinking my eyes, I looked around and not only did I see both Clarke, followed by Finn, disappear behind a large tree; but the trees were glowing. It was absolutely beautiful and unlike anything I had ever seen. Granted, most things down here on earth were unlike anything I had ever seen. Still, though it was definitely breathtaking. With a stretch, I stood and started to limp towards where I had seen Clarke and Finn disappear.
"You call that a sip?" I heard Finn ask. Curious I picked up my pace as best as I could. Rounding the tree, I saw the two of them standing in front of a glowing moss covered stump and Clarke was drinking water out of a large leaf.
"Save some of that for me" I joked, causing the two of them to jump. Without a second thought, though, Clarke helped me stumble over to the stump and handed me the leaf. I had to hold back the moan as the water touched my tongue. Better than the water on the Ark by a mile.
"You think this means we're all gonna grow two heads?" Finn asked, causing both Clarke and I to laugh. "What do you know, Seren? She can laugh" he joked. "Come on, you guys have to see this" he added. Sharing a glance with Clarke, I simply shrugged while she held out an arm to help me walk. Slowly, we followed the long-haired boy until he crouched down and brushed aside some leaves. Groaning at the pain in my leg, I settled for sitting on the moss covered tree root across from Finn while Clarke crouched down beside him. "That's a toe," he told us, pointing to an imprint in the ground. Leaning forward, I saw the perfect footprint int he soil. "Plus, near as I can tell, whatever it is, it's walking on two feet. My guess...monkeys."
Clarke barely stifled a laugh at that. "I'm sorry," she told him. "It's just, according to everything I've ever read, there were no bipedal animals anywhere near here. Certainly not monkeys."
"You read anything about glow-in-the-dark forests or man-eating snakes?" Finn asked.
"He has a point," I told her. "A lot can change in a hundred years. It's not the world our ancestors left behind." Clarke opened her mouth to disagree, but then she realized that Finn and I weren't wrong.
Early the next morning, we all made our way back to the river. Apparently, Finn had an idea as to how we would cross without having to actually get in the water. The plan was to basically swing across on an apogee vine. Finn had even climbed up to where the long vine was fastened tight around the tree branches. He had even offered to go first, Jasper second. The rest of us would follow if it was safe.
"You wanted to go first" Clarke called out as we watched Finn pull on the apogee. "Now quit stalling. Mount Weather awaits."
"Just hang on to the apogee and you'll be fine," Jasper told the other boy.
"Apogee, like the Indians, right?" Finn asked.
"He said apogee, not Apache" I rolled my eyes.
"He knows" was Clarke response, sparing me a glance before turning back to where Finn and Jasper stood. "Today, Finn."
But just as Finn pulled back on the springy vine, I saw Jasper look over at where I stood with Octavia. "Wait," he said, causing Finn to stop. "Let me. I can do it."
A part of me was extremely proud of my best friend. But the other part was extremely terrified that he wouldn't make it across. In the end, I believed in Jasper, though, he could do this.
"Knew there was a badass in there somewhere," Finn said as he handed the apogee vine over to the goggle-headed boy. When Jasper paused and let out a nervous breath, Finn just patted him on the back. "It's okay to be afraid, Jasper. The trick is not fighting it."
With that, Jasper gripped the vine tight and looked down at us. "See you on the other side," he said. And then he swung clear across the river, all but crash landing on the opposite bank. "WE ARE APOGEE!" he yelled, causing the rest of us to cheer. He had made it and seemed to be unharmed.
Now that we knew that it was safe, Finn handed the vine over to Clarke. She was up next. Across the way, I saw Jasper pushed aside some leaves on the ground before holding up an old metal sign that was riddled with bullet holes. "We did it!" he called out, holding the sign high above his head. "Mount Weather!"
And then my world came crashing down around me. What looked like a spear came soaring out of nowhere and struck Jasper in the chest. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. All I could do was scream.
