The seagulls flying through the sky screeched their loud morning "hellos" to one another as they flew above the temporary camp of the Twilight Tribe. Amber's eyes opened to see the bluish hue of sunlight streaming through her tent. She squinted slightly, still tired from last night's deliberations. Most of her night consisted of staying up later than everyone else, putting out the fire on the beach and sitting along the shore contemplating the future. It seemed to her that it would never leave her mind, not fully, until she knew everyone was safe.

Jay was still asleep beside her. They had shared a tent together with little Bray sleeping in between them. His breathing was still quiet, his chest rising very slow, then going back down to repeat once again. Amber stared at him for minutes, comforted by his company whether he was awake or not. Ever since losing him for those days while he was comatose, she had developed a need for him to be with her no matter what. It was a dependency that Jay had grown to like as time grew on. Amber laid sideways, resting her head on her hands, staring at Bray and Jay as though there was nothing else better in the world. But still those thoughts threatened to escape from the back of her mind. She finally decided to get up and out from the tent, deciding she needed some fresh air.

The waves crashed along the shore, white foam sticking on the sand for only a few seconds before it disappeared. Strong smells of salt rushed to Amber's nose. Memories entranced her, and she remembered the experiments, the banishment, the torture. It seemed that bad thoughts would not leave her be. She closed her eyes, pressing her palms against her temples. Why couldn't she just forget it?

This place could be better, she thought.

She wanted it to be better, better than that forsaken city in which memories of Zoot and other megalomaniacs struck fear in her heart. Once more the sunlight caused her eyes to open. The cloudless sky was enviable to her, for it had nothing in the way of its existence. She sat in the sand where the waves could not reach, and breathed in the salty air. Maybe this would be the last time she had to, maybe- further on- this island would make a peaceful settlement.

"Amber," Lex called out to his fellow tribe member.

She turned to the voice, and upon seeing Lex turned right back around. For some reason she just didn't want to hear anything from him. Her thoughts were annoying her enough to drive her insane.

Lex strode over to the tribe leader, sitting down beside her as she stared on to the sea. His thoughts were on Siva still. There was no comfort in his tent for him, no one to lean on. And it troubled him. It wouldn't matter to him who was with him as long as he had some female company, but somehow... Somehow Siva's death left him angrier and colder than before. She left him, and he knew that her face would never be seen again. Even now, as her body was miles away in the city, he felt torn. On this beach, he could find nothing to help him take his mind off of it. There was no profit to be won, for the only people he had seen on this island were his companions. It crossed his mind a few times to leave, but it simply was too rash despite his tendencies.

Amber had been the first person he had seen awake this bright morning.

She looked stressed, as she normally did in any new situation where the stakes were high. He wasn't fooled like the younger ones in the tribe. He knew exactly what the others, including Amber, were thinking. Some were ridiculous false hopes that he fathomed would never come true in a million years, others were ones that were terribly real. The frightening part was that some of those thoughts consisted of other members, ones that Lex believed should not be trusted. However, he never shared those thoughts with anyone besides Ram.

Ram, whom had been Lex's enemy up until Siva's untimely death, was now his closest ally. Which he thought highly odd as well, but then again this was tribeworld, and things changed whether one wanted or not. It was the one law that someone could abide by.

Lex took in a sharp breath, focusing on the sky. He felt supremely pessimistic at that moment, wanting dark clouds to roll in and bring the rain with them. He wanted the weather to match his mood.

Sounds could be heard from various tents, and both of the members knew that they would not be able to contemplate their thoughts and feelings much longer. Both of them stood up, and headed towards the log where they had had their first meeting.


Author's Note: I'm posting this on eyeboards as well, if you want to check it out there. I might put extra stuff on that chapter, just because.