A/N: The first chapter of the second book! I don't actually intend for it to do very well, especially because Leap of Faith didn't do particularly well, but I wanted to expand upon the changes I made. So... you guys are stuck with this!

That being said, new readers read Leap of Faith first! This is the second book in a series. You'll be pretty lost if you read this book from now, so go back and read Leap of Faith first. It will help a whole deal with grasping what's going on.

Till next time,

D.L.D

*I do not own the Divergent series or any of its character and plot work. All of that goes to Veronica Roth! This is simply an adaption*

Chapter One: Welcome to Amity

Like a wild animal, the truth is too powerful to remain caged - From the Candor Manifesto.

I wake with his name in my mouth.

King.

Before I open my eyes, before I wake, I force myself to watch, see, as his body crumples to the ground. Limp. Dead. Red blood begins to gather, pool, around his lifeless corpse, and I can't make myself run. I can't make myself turn. Not now, not after I did it once before. This time I cannot be a coward, cover my eyes and run away; this time I must watch, wide-eyed, raw and punished. This is my sin. This is my evil deed.

This is my doing.

Meliodas crouches before me, his hand on my left shoulder. The train car bumps over the rails and Zeldris, Estarossa and Damon stand by the doorway. Only Veronica strays behind, carefully watching the pair of us, her cinnamon eyes keen. I take in a deep breath and hold it in to relieve some of the pressure building rapidly within my chest. I need to get a better grip on my mind; I need to get a better grip on my emotions.

An hour ago, nothing that had happened to me felt real. Everything was a dream, everything was separate. Nothing was feeling real, being real.

Now it is.

I breathe out and the pressure is still there. It's terrible, like a choking, forceful hand pressed down upon my lungs, ribs and heart. But I deserve it. I deserve this terrible, pressing pain after what I have done. Who I have left behind. This pain is minuscule to the one I've caused and to shoulder it is no burden; to shoulder is the act I must do to repent for my misdeeds.

"Liz, come on," Meliodas says, his emerald eyes searching mine. "We have to jump."

Right now, it is too dark to truly see where we are, but if we have to jump that means we are near the fence. If we are near the fence, then we are near our final destination. Carefully, Meliodas helps me to my feet and guides me toward the doorway. Wind pushes at my hair and face, waking me up a little more, but my nightmare - memory - lingers in the back of mind. Remains. It will take a lot more than cold air to free me.

The others jump off the train one by one: Estarossa first, then Damon, then Zeldris and Veronica last. I take Meliodas' hand in mine, squeezing it. The wind picks up as we stand by the opening, and like a guiding hand, it pushes me back, toward the safety of the car. But, instead of listening, we launch ourselves into darkness and land hard on the ground. Throbbing, the impact jars the bullet wound in my shoulder. I bite my lip to keep from crying out and look for my sister.

"Are you ok?" I say when I spot her sitting a few feet away, rubbing at her knee. She curses under her breath, only to stop once she spots me as well.

"Yeah," Veronica nods, scrambling up to her feet. I hear the stifled winces in her voice, the sharp hiss of air between her teeth, and look away. I will not make her feel weak in this moment, not when she has nothing to feel weak about.

We all landed in the grass close to the fence, several yards away from the worn paths the Amity trucks used to deliver food to the city, and the gate that lets them out - the gate that is currently shut, locking us in. Towering above us, the fence is built to rival a building, too high and flexible to climb over but also too sturdy to ever knock down. Usually, the fence would seem like a formidable thing, something to avoid. Tonight it is like a barren, empty wall.

"There are meant to be Dauntless guards stationed here," Damon frowns, straining his eyes to cut through the dark. "Where are they?"

"They were probably under the simulation," Meliodas shrugs. "And are now..." He pauses. "Who knows where, doing who knows what."

We'd managed to stop the simulation - the weight of the hard drive in my back pocket reminding me of that - but we didn't pause to see its aftermath. All that I remember was seeing chaos and panic, Dauntless soldiers turning on each other, shooting one another, shooting themselves. Candor was nowhere to be seen and Erudite were closely linked to their leader. Abnegation was suffering and Dauntless was fractured. What happened to our friends, our leaders, our factions? Anything could have happened. There is no way to truly know.

Meliodas approaches a small metal box on the right side of the fence and opens it up, revealing a keypad. Its keys gleam in the dark, cutting through the heavy gloom of the night.

"Let's hope that Erudite didn't think to change this combination," He says as he types in a series of numbers. He stops at the eighth one and the gate clicks open.

"How did you know that?" Veronica asks, narrowing her gaze at him. Her brows pinch as she studies Meliodas, her skepticism evident. Thick with emotion, it surprises me that her voice does not choke her on its way out. "Isn't that classified information?"

"I worked in the Dauntless control room, monitoring the security system. We only change codes twice a year," Meliodas says, nonchalantly shrugging off Veronica's skepticism.

"How lucky," She mumbles. She passes Meliodas a wary look.

"Luck has nothing to do with it," Meliodas responds. "I only worked there because I wanted to make sure that I could get out. I never intended to stay in Dauntless."

I shiver. The way he talks about getting out - it's like he thinks we're trapped in here. From a certain perspective, it does makes sense: factions, city limits, very strict social rules that vary from faction to faction... The list can actually stretch for a while if you look deep enough into it. However, I never thought about it all that way before. This city was all I'd ever known, I grew up thinking it was all normal. But what if it wasn't normal? What if we are trapped here? Now that I think about it like that, I feel foolish for never considering such a thing.

We walk in a small pack, Estarossa cradling his bloody arm to his chest - the arm that I shot - and Damon with his hand on Estarossa's shoulder, keeping him stable. Zeldris is still, watching, his gaze stretching into the darkness beyond. Veronica stubbornly wipes her cheeks every few seconds, and I know that she is crying, but I don't know how to comfort her right now. I don't know why I am not crying myself.

Instead I take the lead, Meliodas silent at my side, and although he does not touch me, he steadies me.

Pinpricks of light are the first sign we get that we are nearing Amity headquarters. They start as squares of light, small and boxy, before growing and stretching into illuminated windows. A cluster of wooden and glass buildings, modeled after ancient farm buildings and outhouses. Huddled together, they are quiet, cosy and rather small in comparison to the city's buildings in other factions. They lack the grandeur, the splendor, but that makes them pretty in their own way.

Before we can reach the buildings, we have to walk through an orchard. My feet sink into the ground and above me branches grow into one another, forming a kind of tunnel. Dark fruits dangle among the collection of leaves, big, ripe and ready to drop. The sharp, sweet aroma of rotting apples melds with the calming scent of wet earth entering my nose. Adds a fruity twist to the otherwise earthy atmosphere of the orchard.

When we get close, Damon leaves Estarossa's side and walks in front. "I know where to go from here."

He leads us past the first building, its windows still alight with a golden glow, and urges us toward the second one, on the left. All of the buildings aside from the greenhouses are made from the same dark wood, unpainted, rough. Light and carefree, I hear hints of laughter wafting through an open window. The contrast between the laughter and the stone stillness within me is jarring, yet I find myself warming a little. Smiling. It will be nice to be somewhere welcoming, kind.

Damon opens one of the doors. Normally, I would be shocked at the lack of security, but we are at Amity headquarters. They often straddle the line between kind trust and plain stupidity - I am also someone who does that.

In this building, the only noise is that of our squeaking shoes. I don't hear Veronica sniffing, but then she was quiet about that before. She never liked people seeing her cry.

Abruptly, Damon stops before an open room, where Nadja Liones, representative of Amity, sits, staring out of the window. I recognise her because it is hard to forget Nadja's face, especially since she is the only relative of mine to not choose Abnegation. Well, she was the only relative. But, that was not why her face was one to remember, one you would spot even if you'd seen her only once. My aunt, Nadja, was adventurous when she was younger, she longed to be Dauntless. But in her conquest to be brave, she gained a reminder of what recklessness causes: loss.

A scar stretches in a thick line from just above her right eyebrow to her lip, rendering her blind in one eye and giving her a slight lisp when she speaks. I have only heard Nadja speak once, but I remember how it sounded. With her clear blue eyes, she would have been a conventionally beautiful woman if not for that scar. She would have looked like Veronica.

"Oh, thank God," She says as she spots us all, her eyes homing in on myself and Veronica. For a moment, they linger on Damon - her fellow leader - but they ultimately fall on us, her nieces. With open arms, she walks toward us both. Instead of embracing us, she places a hand on each shoulder, like she remembers Abnegation's distaste towards casual physical contact.

"I'm so glad you're both safe," She whispers, looking at Veronica and then settling upon me. "Especially you, Elizabeth. You worried me most."

"Sorry, Auntie," I blush a little, feeling like my old self once more. Feeling like a small child once more. It has been a while since someone adult has scolded me - it has been since Margaret visited all those weeks ago.

"The other members of your party got here a few hours ago," Nadja pulls away from us, turning to address her fellow faction leader. Clearly, she is referring to the group of Abnegation who had been with my father and Damon in the safe house. In all my hurry and panic, I didn't even think to worry about them. "They weren't sure if you all made it out alive."

Then, she looks over Damon's shoulder, first at Zeldris, then Meliodas and finally at Estarossa. Immediately, her eyes widen, locked on the limp state of his arm, at the tugs of pain that twitch at his expression.

"Oh my!" Nadja gasps, her eyes lingering on the blood staining Estarossa's shirt. "I'll send for a doctor. I can grant you all permission to stay for the night, but tomorrow our community must decide together. And" - She eyes Zeldris, Meliodas and I - "they will likely not be enthusiastic about Dauntless presence within our compound. I of course ask you all to turn over any weapons you may have on your person."

I wonder, suddenly, how Nadja must know that I am Dauntless. I am still wearing a grey shirt. My father's shirt.

At that moment, his smell, which is an even mixture of sweat and soap, wafts upwards and it fills my nose, fills my entire head with him. Tears bubble in my eyes. I clench my hands so hard into fists that my nails pierce my skin. Not here. Not here.

Meliodas easily hands over his gun, but when I reach behind me to turn over my own concealed weapon, he grabs my hand, guiding it away from my back. Then, he laces his fingers with mine, smoothly covering up what he just did. Tension overtakes me. I know that it is smart to keep one of our guns, but it would have been a relief to turn it in.

Zeldris does not turn over a weapon, instead he turns out empty pockets and lifts his shirt, revealing no hidden weapons. Nadja nods and hums in appreciation, a small blush scattering over her cheeks at the unnecessary actions.

"I am Nadja Liones," Clearing her throat, she extends a hand to Meliodas and Zeldris, smiling. A Dauntless greeting. I am impressed by her awareness of the other factions' customs. I always forget how considerate the Amity are until I am really with them.

"This is M- " Damon begins, but Meliodas interrupts him abruptly.

"I'm Dragon," He says, easily grinning and shaking Nadja's hand. Like a mask, like a switch, he has gone from silent and somber to carefree and charming. The opposite of what I saw of him; the opposite of how I really got to know him. "I think you already know Liz and Veronica, but those two are Zeldris and Estarossa."

A few days ago, "Meliodas" was a name only I and his brother knew among the Dauntless; it was a piece of himself that he gave to me, trusted me with. Outside Dauntless headquarters, I remember why he hid that name from the world. It binds him directly back to his father.

"Welcome to the Amity compound!" Nadja grins in return, her eyes lit with a bright fire, adventure. Her eyes fix onto me, matching her crooked grin. "Let us take care of you."

We do let them. An Amity nurse gives me a salve - developed by Erudite to speed healing - to put on my shoulder, and then escorts Estarossa to the hospital ward to mend his arm. Nadja then guides us to the cafeteria, where we find the other Abnegation who were in the safe house with my father and Veronica. Ellate is there, and some of our old neighbours, and the rows of wooden tables are as long as the room itself. They greet us - especially Damon - with held-in tears and suppressed smiles.

I cling to Meliodas' arm. I sag under the weight of the members of my family's faction, their lives, their tears.

One of the Abnegation puts a cup of steaming liquid under my nose and says, "Drink this. It will help you sleep as it helped some of the others sleep. No dreams will bother you."

Inside the cup, the liquid is pink-red, like fresh strawberries. I grab the cup and drink it fast, downing the contents in a new record. For a few seconds, the heat from the liquid makes me feel like I am full of something again. As I drain the last drops from the cup, I feel myself relaxing, feeling soothed. Someone leads me down the hallway, to a room with a bed in it. That is all.