ABNEGATION HELLIONS
CHAPTER NINE
Beatrice POV
When the ceremony ends, the Dauntless jump to action, hooting and hollering and stomping as they run down the twenty flights of stairs and out of the doors of the Hub, making as much commotion as possible. Once we're out of the building, I keep Uriah in my peripheral vision, not wanting to be separated from him as we run in the pack of black-clothed Dauntless.
We race through the streets until we climb after the Dauntless up to a train platform. We stop to catch our breath ― though the other transfers, dressed in their Erudite blue and Candor black and white, look much more winded than Uriah and I are ― before the train is upon us and we are sprinting with the other Dauntless once again. Uriah and I skillfully and easily swing ourselves into the train car after a few Dauntless-born. I turn and reach out my hand to a Candor girl, helping her in after me. She is tall and pretty, with mocha skin and short, shiny black hair.
"Thanks," the Candor girl says as she follows me to join Uriah farther back in the car. Uriah and I sit against the wall, and the girl follows our lead. "I'm Christina."
She offers her hand and I shake it, thankful that Uriah and I thought to practice the greeting. "I'm Tris," I tell her, "and this is my brother, Uriah." I decided last night that I wanted a new name here in my new life, just like Tobias and Ezekiel did. I choose my nickname, Tris, because I still am the same girl I always was in those stolen moments I was allowed to be myself, away from the stifling rules of Abnegation, but I no longer want to be Beatrice, the Abnegation failure who seemingly ruined everything for everyone. I can remake myself here, but I still have my brothers and Tobias, I am still me.
"Tris… Beatrice?" a Dauntless-born girl with light brown hair and a kind smile cuts in. I raise my eyebrows and nod. "Sorry for interrupting… when you said Uriah I knew you must be the twins that Zeke has mentioned. I'm Marlene."
"You know our brother?" Uriah asks excitedly.
"Yeah!" Marlene says brightly. "He's dating Shauna, Lynn's sister." Marlene jerks a thumb at the Dauntless-born next to her, a bored-looking girl with a shaved head.
"Hey," Lynn says indifferently, but something about her tone makes it clear that she isn't interested in chatting with us. Okay, then.
"None of you look much alike," Marlene says, wearing a puzzled look on her face.
Uriah shrugs. "Resemblance or not, Eh…" he pauses when he catches himself using our brother's given name "...Zeke is our brother. So, you hang out with him much?"
"Sometimes," Marlene says. "Lynn and I usually go when he has parties and stuff."
Uriah smiles. "Good, then I guess I'll see more of you," he flirts.
Marlene gives an equally flirty smile back. "Looking forward to it. I'll save you a dance."
Uri smiles almost shyly and blushes just a little. I roll my eyes. These two seem to be either a great match or a terrible one ― it's hard to tell if the ways in which they seem to be similar would be a good thing or bad.
Next to me, Christina has started to chat with an Erudite transfer ― a boy with shaggy blond hair. I remember seeing him as we left the Choosing Room and smile to myself as I recall how terrified he looked.
"It's time to jump," Lynn says impatiently.
When I near the train car doors, I am shocked at what I see. There is no platform here; no, the train tracks hug a seven-story building, and we have to jump onto its roof. I use the term "hug" loosely; there is a significant gap between the two.
Marlene and Lynn leap out the door. The Erudite, once again, looks horrified. Uriah nudges me. "See you there, pansycake!" he calls and takes a running leap onto the roof.
Christina grabs my hand. "I need you to drag me."
I laugh. "Okay, on three!" We count down and together, we run and jump. Christina tumbles to her knees and nearly pulls me down with her, but with all the jumping on and off trains Uriah and I have done, I stick the landing and manage to stay upright. I almost wonder if I should have gone for a tuck-and-roll landing instead as pain shoots up my shins at the abrupt impact.
Nearby, a Dauntless girl wails as she reaches over the ledge. A Dauntless boy tries to calm her down and lead her away from the ledge; looking over for a brief moment I see a girl lying on the sidewalk, seven stories down, her hair fanned out around her and limbs bent at unnatural angles. I close my eyes and count to three, giving myself a moment to feel the impact of what I just saw, then I turn and walk away from the ledge. I cannot help that girl now, so I need to move on and focus on becoming Dauntless.
"Nice landing," Uriah grins. "Ready for this? Whatever it is that comes next, that is?"
"God, yes," I enthuse. I don't know what they will make us do now, and I do not know how we get into Dauntless from this rooftop, but I am ready for anything. I just want to see Tobias and Zeke, and see with my own eyes that my babies made it here safely.
"Listen up! My name is Max! I am one of the leaders of your new faction!" shouts a man at the other end of the roof. He is older than the others, with deep creases in his dark skin and gray hair at his temples, and I recognize him; he was the Dauntless leader that presided over last year's Choosing Ceremony. He stands on the ledge like it is a sidewalk. Like someone didn't just fall to her death from it. "Several stories below us is the members' entrance to our compound. If you can't muster the will to jump off, you don't belong here. Our initiates have the privilege of going first."
"You want us to jump off a ledge?" says an Erudite girl. She is a few inches taller than me with mousy brown hair and big lips.
Max looks amused. "Yes."
"Is there water at the bottom or something?" asks the Erudite boy Christina was talking to on the train.
Max smirks. "Who knows?"
I look around at the other initiates and spot the Candor boy who attacked me after school a few months ago. He picks at his cuticles, trying to look casual. Not only will Tobias be waiting for me inside the compound, but this is my chance to show up that Candor jerk.
"I'll do it," I say in a strong, clear voice. The crowd of initiates gapes at me. All but Uriah; he just smirks.
I walk confidently toward the ledge ― or at least, I hope I appear confident. Inside I am kind of freaking out. But I know this is a scare tactic and I will land safely at the bottom. They wouldn't kill us all before we even make it into the compound, and Tobias would have warned me if I were in danger.
"Go Tris," Uriah shouts. His hands are cupped on either side of his mouth, making his voice carry even farther.
"Bet she'll chicken out," the Candor jerk sneers.
I reach the ledge and quickly unbutton my loose Abnegation coat, then I ball it up and throw it at Candor's chest. I smirk at his shocked face. Beneath it, I wear a gray t-shirt, tighter than anything I have worn in public previously, and gray leggings. I make eye contact with Max and give him a small nod.
I don't think. I just bend my knees and jump.
The sensation of free falling is unsettling and incredible. I can't hear a thing over the air howling past my ears and my heart pounds with adrenaline. The hole surrounds me and I drop into darkness.
The falling sensation stops abruptly when I hit something so hard that it knocks the wind out of me. Whatever I landed on is firm but flexible, giving way beneath my body before pulling taught again.
My fingers grip rope and I realize that I have landed in a net. There is a net at the bottom of the hole. I look up at the sky through the opening above me, cover my face with my hands, and laugh. That was actually really fun, a great welcome into Dauntless.
Hands reach out of the darkness and I grab the nearest one ― one that I recognize by its very long fingers. He pulls me off the net and catches me when I nearly fall. With my feet on solid ground, I look up at his face.
Tobias.
I try to suppress my grin. The corners of his lips twitch.
"Can't believe it," says a girl behind him, placing a hand on Tobias's shoulder. She has dark, purple-streaked hair and three rings through her right eyebrow. I want her hand off his shoulder and it takes everything in me not to smack it off of him. She smirks at me. "A Stiff, first to jump? Unheard of."
"There's a reason why she left them, Lauren," Tobias says, side stepping away from her. He turns to me. "What's your name?"
"Tris," I say confidently with a half-smile. Tobias keeps his expression neutral but smiles at me with his eyes.
"Tris," Lauren repeats. "Make the announcement, Four."
"First jumper, Tris!" he yells to the crowd, and they stomp feet and cheer. Tobias guides me away from the net with a hand on the small of my back. "Welcome to Dauntless, Tris," he says in my ear.
A high-pitched scream crescendos before another mass of gray lands in the net, and everyone laughs. I shake my head and laugh at my twin. "Who's the pansycake now, Uriah?" I call out in the direction of the net as I start down the steps, and I hear Four snort.
The ground is ten feet below the platform. I spot the group of people I am looking for just before I make it to the bottom. A few yards away from the stairs stands Shauna holding Adeline ― who is even asleep! ― and next to her, Zeke has Landon in his arms. Landon giggles as his uncle tickles his stomach. Zeke sees me coming down the steps and quickly transfers Landon back to Shauna's free arm.
"Zee!" I squeal and launch myself toward him. He catches me and engulfs me in a bear hug.
"Beatrice!" After we hug for a moment I step back and look at my brother. He is about an inch taller than when I last saw him, still much shorter than Uriah. But his hair is by far the longest I have ever seen it before, and the muscles in his arms and torso are clearly more defined through his snug black shirt. Uriah, having now descended the stairs as well, takes his turn hugging our big brother. I take Landon from Shauna and let her continue holding Adeline, not wanting to wake my sweet but perpetually cranky girl.
"You should have come to see us," Uriah pouts at Zeke after he pulls back. "I know you could have managed it."
Zeke frowns sheepishly. "I'm sorry, guys. I was mad." But then he grins. "But who could stay mad after seeing these little angels, huh?"
Uriah chuckles. "You haven't spent much time with Adeline if you're calling them 'little angels.' Landon, though, is an easy, happy little guy. Adeline is always crabby."
"At least it wasn't just me," Shauna interjects. "I thought maybe the kid just hated me!"
Christina approaches us and I greet her with a smile. Adeline stirs and begins to whine, and Uriah quickly takes her from Shauna and holds her upright against his chest the way that she likes and bounces while keeping his feet in place.
"So? I was told that you'd help me take care of everything we need for these guys?" I ask Zeke.
"Yep," Zeke replies. "I'll be the best uncle you ever saw." Uriah scoffs, and I laugh. He can try, but I don't think Zeke will ever beat out their Uncle Uriah. The twins are about as attached to him as they are to me. I imagine it will be hard on them when I move into an apartment on my own or with Tobias. I hope that Tobias will want us to live with him, anyway. I am not sure why we have not discussed that.
"Oh my gosh, who are these cuties?!" Christina shrieks.
"They're mine," I admit, smiling.
"Tris… Beatrice Prior," Christina says, realization striking her.
"Ugh, I see my reputation precedes me," I grumble.
Christina jumps to reassure me. "No, no, no! I recognize your name but I wasn't judging you, I promise. And, your babies are adorable." Adeline lets out a whimper and Uriah shushes her.
"Hey, Tris, you have a bottle for her?" Uriah interrupts. "I think she's hungry." I grab the bag from Shauna and pull a bottle from a side pocket, and hand it to Uriah. Then I pull another out of the other side pocket and reposition Landon.
"Can I?" Asks Zeke hopefully. He smiles down at Landon as he holds the bottle for him to drink. "So, how's Mom and Dad? How'd they take the news?"
"Mom has been good," I say. I feel like there's a rock in my stomach at the thought of having left Mom today, and just thinking of my dad at all. Our home has been tense ever since I announced my pregnancy, and especially since the twins were born. I hope that things can go back to normal between Mom and Dad now that the babies and I are out of the picture. I can see by Uriah's expression that he feels the same way. "She has been her kind, supportive self. Same volunteer projects, same job."
"And Dad?" Zeke pushes. Uriah sighs.
"Dad hasn't spoken to me in ten months," I inform him. "Not since the day I told him I was pregnant. I rarely saw him anymore, anyway. He was always working late."
"He spoke to you today," Uriah protests.
"Yeah, that's true. He did say three whole sentences to me today." I roll my eyes. But then I feel guilty for it. "It was nice, though. Hearing him speak to me again… knowing that he still loves me. Until the end there." Zeke raises his eyebrows and I shake my head. This is not the time or the place to dredge up Dad's comments about Tobias.
"You couldn't have seriously doubted that he loved you, Bea. You―" Zeke begins but he is interrupted by Tobias. I had not even noticed until now that most of the Dauntless had cleared out of the tunnel.
"Alright, initiates!" Tobias bellows. He gestures for us all to follow him and Lauren, the girl from the net.
"Give Adeline to Shauna, Uriah. We'll meet you at the dining hall." Uriah carefully hands my daughter to our new friend Shauna and I give Zeke the diaper bag. It feels so good to see him again. I have missed my big brother.
We leave Zeke behind and walk down dark hallways. The floor seems to slope downward, taking me deeper and deeper below the earth's surface. We stop abruptly and I almost bump into whoever is in front of me, but Uriah pulls me back. It is so dark that I cannot see the faces of the people around me.
Lauren says something and leads the Dauntless-born away. Looking around, I see that there are ten of us remaining: five Candor, three Erudite, and two Abnegation. Tobias finally speaks. "I usually work in the control room, but for the next month I will be your instructor. My name is Four."
"Four? Like the number?" Christina scoffs.
Tobias glares at her. "Yes. Is there a problem?"
"No," Christina says. Christina really needs to shut up. Tobias told me how he got that nickname ― by breaking Dauntless records, having the fewest fears. He ranked first. I don't think he likes being challenged.
But when we get to what Tobias tells us is called "The Pit," Christina does it again. "The Pit? Clever name," she says sarcastically.
I stomp on her toes to warn her to cut it out, but Tobias is already stalking up to her. He folds his arms and looks down at her. His stance and the cold expression on his face- one I don't even recognize on him- instantly have her terrified. "What's your name?" he asks in a low, quiet voice.
"Christina," she squeaks.
"Well, Christina," he says coldly, "the first lesson you will learn from me is to keep… your mouth… shut. Got that?"
Gulping, Christina nods and Tobias returns to the front of the group. "What a jerk," Christina mutters.
I instantly feel defensive. Just as I open my mouth Uriah cuts me off. He probably guessed that I was about to react a little too strongly. "He's our instructor, Christina," Uriah says quietly. "This is Dauntless, not Candor. We are soldiers, and he is our superior."
Christina lowers her eyes and nods. Uriah got his point across. I meet Uriah's eyes in silent thanks.
The Pit is aptly named. It is literally a huge pit in the ground, miles long, with places carved into the walls for eating and shopping and other such things. After giving us a moment to take our surroundings in, Tobias takes us to what he calls the Chasm. It is an underground river that flows stories below us. On one side of where Tobias stands, the water is calm and placid, shiny and smooth. To his other side, the river is a mess of white water as it rushes over the rocks. I look over the edge and watch the water crash against the rock walls of the ravine.
"The Chasm represents the fine line between bravery and idiocy," Tobias yells. "A daredevil jump off this ledge will end your life. It has happened before and it will happen again. You've-"
I don't hear what he says next because I feel a hard shove to my shoulder, and suddenly there is no gravity, and then I am too busy clawing at the simple metal railing on one side of the chasm. I look up, gasping in shock and fear, to see the Candor jerk who I have since learned is called Peter, smiling at me evilly. He pushed me!
"C'mon, slut, prove you belong here," Peter sneers. He starts to pry my fingers from the bar, but then he abruptly crumples to the floor. Uri's hands wrap around my wrists and he pulls me back onto the path while Christina and a big Candor boy flutter around uselessly at his sides. I look back to where Peter is sprawled on the path to see Tobias standing over him with one foot on his chest. A bruise is already forming on Peter's jaw.
"You ever pull a stunt like that again, and I will make sure you find yourself factionless. Am I clear?" If I thought Tobias seemed scary when he put Christina in her place, I realize now that what we saw before was a very tame version of Four. He looks absolutely murderous, and Peter looks like he's going to shit himself. Good, I hope he does. He deserves the humiliation.
When Tobias looks up at me I can see the fear in his eyes still from my fall. He leaves Peter where he stands and steps closer to me, still looking intently into my eyes. "Are you okay, Tris?" he asks quietly, soothingly.
I nod. I clear my throat before speaking, afraid that my voice would otherwise come out timid and scratchy, and I do not want to sound weak or afraid. I can't. Not here, not among my fellow initiates, the people I am competing with to make it into Dauntless. "I'm fine. Thank you."
Tobias nods and we all leave the Chasm and follow him to the dining hall. Uriah's arm never leaves my shoulders. Uriah and I are walking right behind him, flanked by Christina and the big Candor boy, who I learn is named Al. Being so near Tobias is comforting. I always feel safer when he is near me.
"Peter is such a jerk," Christina grumbles. "Always has been, but I didn't expect that from him."
"He attacked her after school when she tried to come back after the twins were born," Uriah confides, going on to explain about the fight that led me to continue homeschooling. Tobias clenches his jaw and he glances to Peter at the back of the group with pure hatred in his eyes.
Tobias pushes open the doors to the dining hall. We follow him in and are greeted by more stomping and pounding and whooping. The Dauntless sure are loud, I think. But I like it. Their enthusiasm brings a smile to my face.
"I'll show you where Zeke and I usually sit," Tobias says with a glance back at me and Uriah.
Christina gives me a questioning look. "He's friends with my brother," I explain. She nods.
Uriah sits down next to Zeke before I get a chance to, so I sit across from him after reaching across the table to take Adeline from Shauna, who smiles at me. Tobias sits to my left and Christina to my right; when I look her way, I notice that we seem to have a whole entourage.
"I'm sorry," I say to the boy with the shaggy blond hair, "I met Al over there, but I never got your name."
"Will," he says, reaching out and shaking my hand. Still feels awkward. We sit down and I answer the usual questions about the babies. Zeke explains all the strange foods at the table, which shocks our new friends that transferred from Candor; apparently it's, like, a crime or something not to have experienced a hamburger. Tobias can hardly contain his smile as Zeke howls at my sarcastic and snarky responses.
Uriah and I are reminiscing with Zeke about some of our truth or dare games when the entire dining hall goes silent. The entire faction seems to be watching a guy with greasy hair and a face full of piercings walk through the dining hall.
"Who's that?" Christina asks.
"Eric," Tobias answers. "He's a Dauntless leader."
"But he's so young!"
"Age doesn't matter here," Zeke says. He looks cold and hard, nothing like the always happy, joking Ezekiel I am used to being with. When I look again at Eric, I realize that he is making his way to our table.
"Well, well, all the Stiffs together having a little reunion." He drops into the chair on the other side of Tobias. You could cut the tension with a knife. "Aren't you going to introduce me?"
Zeke holds his body unnaturally rigid. I hold Adeline closer to me.
"These are Zeke's siblings, Tris and Uriah, and those are Tris's children," Tobias says in monotone. "Over there are Christina, Will and Al." Tobias almost seems to be trying to block us from Eric's view, but Eric just leans forward for a better look, then studies Uriah and Landon. Especially Landon. My heart pounds, Landon is Tobias's mini-me. Eric narrows his eyes and smirks. Then he turns back to Tobias.
"What have you been doing lately, Four?" Eric asks.
"Nothing, really," Four responds. Zeke motions to me and I stand and walk around the table. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Eric looking me up and down. His eyes are cold… almost like Marcus's. Almost like my father's were the night that I told him I was pregnant.
"Max tells me he keeps trying to meet with you, and you don't show up," Eric says. "He requested that I find out what is going on with you." I hand Adeline to my brother and he holds her protectively. I get the feeling that Eric is very bad news.
Four looks at Eric for a few seconds before saying, "Tell him that I am satisfied with the position I currently hold."
"So he wants to give you a job."
The rings in Eric's eyebrow catch the light. Maybe Eric perceives Four as a potential threat to his position. My father says that those who want power and get it live in terror of losing it. That's why we have to give power to those who do not want it. The thing I have learned, though, is that we can never really tell people's true intentions. Everyone believes Marcus isn't power-hungry, but I know better. He is a wolf in sheep's clothing.
"So it would seem," Four says as I return to my spot beside him.
"And you aren't interested."
"I haven't been interested for the last year."
"Well," says Eric. "Let's hope he gets the point, then."
He claps Four on the shoulder, a little too hard, and gets up. "Oh," he adds, "Max also said to let you know that baby cots are being delivered to the dormitory, and your slutty Stiff initiate will have daycare provided during training." I feel all the muscles in Tobias's body coil tight, and Zeke actually jumps to his feet. I place my hand on Tobias's thigh discretely to remind him not to give himself away to Eric, then shoot a look at my brother to remind him that he is holding my child. This is clearly not a good time to fight a Dauntless leader. "After we show the initiates to the dorms, Max wants to see us both to discuss the details." Eric smirks at Tobias, then at me, before turning and walking away to get his own meal. Zeke grits his teeth as he watches Eric go.
"I hate that bastard," Zeke growls.
"I got the feeling you weren't friends," Uriah says, smirking.
"He was in our initiation class," Tobias explains. "He transferred from Erudite." I nod. His mention of Erudite makes me think of Caleb, and I wish he were here with us. We aren't quite complete without him, even if he only sometimes hung out with us, but this is the way it is. It won't ever change. Caleb is Erudite now, and he always will be.
After we finish eating, Tobias stands and gestures for us to follow him. But then Eric reappears, says something to Tobias, and they have words for a moment. In the end, we all follow Eric, and Tobias trails behind us. I carry Adeline while Uriah keeps Landon. We stay near the back, and Tobias watches the babies as we walk. Adeline started crying a minute before we got up from the table and she hasn't calmed down much yet.
"Can't you shut that stupid kid up?" Eric calls back after a couple minutes, glaring at me.
"I would if I could," I retort.
"Isn't its dad in this faction somewhere?" He just called my daughter an "it". I hold back a growl. "Can't he take care of it?"
"What makes you think her dad is here?" I sass.
Eric narrows his eyes, then turns back and keeps walking.
When we get to the dormitory, Eric explains the cuts. Tobias already told Uriah and me about that. So far, our class consists of twenty initiates: ten Dauntless-born and ten transfers. Only ten of the twenty will become members, with four cut at the end of stage one and the rest after the final test. The transfers cry out in outrage and I scan my eyes over the competition. It's going to be tough, some of them look pretty big. But this is what we trained for. Uriah and I will make it. We will.
As we go to file into the dormitory, Tobias leans down and whispers in my ear, "meet me by the Chasm at 11:30. I'll wait for you." I nod then follow Uriah into the dorm, and Tobias walks away.