Here's chapter 2! I hope you all like the story so far. I also have another 100 fanfic out there called The World Above, go check it out and tell me what you think!
CHAPTER 2
As they hiked forward through the snow she frantically created a believable story in her head. She couldn't tell these people the truth. All that would do is earn her a one way ticket back to a Trikru cell. If she was careful to play dumb and keep her story vague enough, she might be able to convince them that she was actually a member of Trikru. Their army was so large that she doubted they would call her out on the lie. Maybe she was just a soldier who had gotten knocked on the head and lost her way. Or maybe she was just some stupid kid who ate one too many Jobi nuts and wandered into Skaikru territory without realizing it. But neither of those stories would explain her injuries or lack of clothing.
She was yanked out of her thoughts by a shout from up ahead. Her eyes snapped towards the sound where she discovered three more Sky People signaling to her group. Miller waved back enthusiastically and jogged ahead of her to whisper to one of the other men. She watched the man's gaze fall directly onto her as Miller's mouth moved furiously.
"Ben, untie her hands and zip her damn jacket up." The man said, pushing past Miller. She recognized his voice from the radio. "She'll freeze to death before we get back to camp." He closed the distance between them in only a few long strides.
"She tried to attack me Bellamy." Miller said in protest, clearly unconcerned with her wellbeing.
"What's your name?" he asked staring down at her. His voice was scarier in person than it had been over the radio. It sent a tremor through her body.
"Beth." She lied, glad that she had come up with a name beforehand because the lie rolled easily off her tongue. The lanky red head had taken the jacket off of her shoulders and untied the rope around her wrists. He allowed her to slip her arms into the coat and Bellamy zipped the front up to her neck before Ben retied her hand in front of her.
"Damn," a younger boy in the back whistled as he sauntered up to the group. He ran a hand through his greasy black hair. "they sure know how to grow 'em down here on the ground."
"Bell," Miller ignored the boy's comment. "she broke the treaty. The Grounders aren't supposed to cross into our land!" he said in exasperation.
"She's not Trikru." The largest man in Bellamy's group spoke for the first time. She eyed him with suspicion as he stepped forward. She didn't recognize him, but she knew from the way he stood and carried himself that he was not a Sky Person. He had the hard face and body of a man who had been born and raised on Earth.
"What do you mean?" Bellamy turned to the man.
"What the hell are you talking about Lincoln?" Miller's voice was becoming louder each time he spoke.
"I know this girl." The Grounder came to stand even with Bellamy. Both men stared at her, Bellamy with curiosity, Lincoln with… pity. Did he pity her? She narrowed her eyes at him, hating the sympathy she was receiving. "She's been a prisoner with my people for a few months. Autumn." He looked at his partner. "Her name is Autumn."
"Months?" Bellamy's brows furrowed. "Since before we came to Earth? She doesn't look that dangerous." His eyes slid down her body, making her uncomfortable.
"She's valuable." That was the only explanation Lincoln offered. She wondered why he was with the Sky People when he was clearly of Trikru.
"Fuck yeah she is." The greasy haired boy licked his lips when he said the words.
"Shut it Shawn." The Sky girl snapped.
"Jealous Monroe?" The boy snickered. Bellamy and Lincoln sent him hostile glares before refocusing on Autumn.
She watched as Bellamy, who she decided was the leader, weighed his options. The man would have looked as threatening as his voice sounded had it not been for the light dusting of freckles that covered his nose and cheeks. They made him seem younger and somewhat innocent. But his eyes were dark and she could see death within them; death that he mourned, and death that he had caused. His face was emotionless, giving her no hint as to where his mind was going. Those black eyes flicked between her and the forest at her back.
Her body trembled relentlessly from the cold. All feeling in her right leg was dull and she had to constantly look down to make sure it was still attached. She was acutely aware of six pairs of eyes that were boring into her from all sides, but the ones that she felt the most were the pair right in front of her.
"Let's get her to Abby." He said flatly in a tone that warned the others against challenging him. Miller however didn't seem to get the memo.
"Abby is our doctor, Bellamy, not theirs." He gestured to Autumn. "Why the hell should we waste our time saving her life? They betrayed us, remember? Or have you forgotten what happened at the mountain?" Miller taunted. Autumn watched in shock as Bellamy turned on the boy and threw him against the nearby tree with little effort. His forearm crossed the boy's throat while Miller struggled to keep his toes on the ground.
Lincoln was quick to pull the men apart. Miller fell to the earth coughing as he sucked in air. Bellamy's glare was deadly while he watched the boy crawl back to his feet.
"Guys, come on!" Monroe stepped between the men. Autumn commended her bravery. "We need to move." After a long pause, the boys finally nodded in agreement and readied themselves for the walk home. Lincoln put a heavy hand on Autumn's shoulder and nudged her forward.
"It's not far." He assured her. "Ten minutes." She heard his words but made no response. Ten minutes seemed like a death sentence. Her feet and joints ached from the cold. More than a few times she had lost her footing and nearly fallen face first into the snow. But each time, Lincoln grabbed her arm and pulled her back to her feet. A wave of relief washed over her when she saw the tall fence that surrounded the Skaikru camp.
As the group led her through the gates, she couldn't ignore the savage scowls that were cast her way from those already inside. She figured that they believed she was Trikru, just like Bellamy and his group had originally thought. Whatever alliance these people had with Trikru, it wasn't exactly as friendly as she had previously thought. They may have agreed to be peaceful, but that did not mean they like each other.
On the other side of the camp she saw the ship that had fallen from the sky. It was magnificent, bigger than she could have ever imagined. The sun beat down on the metallic surface, sending a bright glare directly into her eyes.
"Get her inside." Bellamy said to Lincoln. "Take her straight to Abby. I'll go get Kane." With one last look at Autumn, he turned and strode off. Lincoln shuffled her through the door of the ship, which was really just an old tarp hung up in front of a gaping hole.
The inside of the ship was just as breath taking as the outside. The floors, ceiling, and walls were all made of the same slate gray metal. She was used to homes made out of broken tree limbs and rotting wood. There was a certain beauty about the dull colors and smooth surfaces of the ship. Just based on their shelter, the Sky People had a better chance at surviving the winter than the other clans.
When they entered what Bellamy had referred to as medical, she wasn't surprised that it looked exactly the same as the hallway, with only a few exceptions. Multiple tables and cots lined the room and the cabinets on the walls were overflowing with various bottles and tubes. An array of tools, only a few of which she recognized lay orderly on one of the nearby tables. On a cot in the far corner, a young boy was sleeping, a bloodstained rag wrapped around his upper arm.
"Lincoln?" She crooked her neck to find a petite woman rounding the corner. She stopped suddenly when her eyes fell upon Autumn. She could see her mind racing as she assessed Autumn from a short distance away. "Get blankets from the closet." She ordered as she took the girl by the hand and led her to the closest bed. She began to unzip the jacket but Autumn pushed her hands away. The thought of being exposed to the cold again made her eyes sting with tears that she refused to let fall. "It's okay." The woman whispered in a voice so calming that Autumn stopped struggling.
"Abby, here." Lincoln placed a stack of blankets next to Autumn on the bed. He stood for a moment, clearly unsure of what to do next.
"Bring me fire." Abby said. The man nodded and jogged towards the exit. The doctor continued to unzip the jacket. Autumn gave out a small yelp of surprise and pain when the woman wrapped her arms around her underneath the coat. She fought her embrace for a fraction of a second before she was overwhelmed by the warmth of Abby's body. The heat pierced her frozen skin with an unbearable sting. Autumn wasn't sure how long they had stood like that, she hadn't even heard Lincoln reenter the room and set a large metal bucket near the cot. Inside the bucket, flames were growing higher and brighter by the minute. Each flick of the flame let off a new wave of heat that slammed against her legs.
The tears that rolled down her cheeks were unstoppable. Thawing a body was painful, this she had known, but she hadn't been prepared to suffer through it. Her mind began to empty of thoughts and her eyes stared blankly ahead. She was hardly even aware that the doctor had pulled away or that Lincoln had picked her up and laid her down on the bed. Sleep clawed at her like a predator pulling its prey into its trap. She fought it as long as possible, but eventually she was pulled under a heavy blanket of black.