May sat by Brady telling her a story whilst Bray slept soundly on a soft bed of blankets and moss created by the Speleos. May kept glancing up at Ellie as she paced impatiently.
"Ellie you going to wear a hole into the ground if you keep marching up and down like that. Why don't you sit"
Ellie paused and gave May a wry look.
"Aren't you curious as to what it was all about. Amber asked Jack if he knew where Salene and Lex was before she asked me to watch the kids. Why are they going off by themselves?"
"I'm sure we'll find out eventually Ellie, Amber just wanted to talk to them alone. She asked me where Salene was before she left as well"
"Yeah well, she's been shutting everyone out one by one apart from those four and I don't like it. Even she and Jay have been quiet around each other lately. I just don't like it"
"You just don't like not knowing everything that's going on. Look we've been through a hell of a lot in the past few months, I think everyone's just on edge, jittery"
"Yeah well I've a mind to go and ask them all..."
"Ask who, what?"
Ellie pursed her lips and scowled across the cave at Ebony as she stood arms folded listening to the conversation.
"No-one and nothing Ebony" replied Ellie coldly before sitting by May.
May put her head down and started talking to Brady once more, as Ebony crossed the floor towards them.
"Where's everyone else?" said Ebony settling down on her haunches by the two and looking down at Bray who slept on.
"Around" shrugged Ellie
"Outside?"
"Perhaps" replied Ellie, unwilling to give any information away to Ebony.
"They've been getting quite chummy again lately. Reminds me of the good old days when they all first started out. Amber the leader, the others her little followers, doing what she asked. Sickening really"
"Really Ebony sounds a lot like when you started out. You and the great and mighty Zoot, all your little zootists following your every order. Power and Chaos. I'm surprised your not happier about this whole situation, after all, you succeeded in your endeavour, Power and Chaos are now in play"
"Not really, there's no-one in power now and it isn't chaos, its death Ellie"
"Same thing, Ebony" snapped Ellie
"Alright you two, you want to argue, take it elsewhere. Your upsetting Brady and you'll end up waking Bray with your sniping." interrupted May, trying to sound calm for Brady's sake. "Personally I think the time for pointing the finger is over ok. We've all done stupid, pathetic, idiotic things that we're not proud of, but we're here and we're stuck with each other. And the only way we're going to survive is by working together, which means putting aside differences"
"Well well, look who's been growing a back bone over the past few weeks"
"Shut up Ebony. Maybe if you tried trusting people now and then, instead of being so afraid of them, you may find you have some good qualities to offer"
"Not likely" muttered Ellie standing. "I'm going to get some food for Brady May, I'll be back in a minute"
Ebony stood and watched Ellie retreat out of the cave huffily before looking down at May and the children and giving them a smile. May merely eyed her once before turning her full attention to Brady once more, unwilling to carry on any conversation with Ebony.
Ebony took the hint and followed Ellie out into the larger expanse of the living quarters of the Speleos tribe. Ellie was mingling with some of the Speleos as they gathered together a bowl of fruit and rice for Brady. The cave was a hub of activity with the whole tribe working in their own way and causing an effect of peace and harmony amongst one another. As Ebony surveyed the group, she noticed Amber, Jack and Trudy re-enter the cave network. Amber stopped and spoke to the two for a moment before they split off in different directions. Jack approached Ellie as she turned back to the sleeping quarters, food in hand.
"Hey Ellie, tribal meeting up top"
"What you mean, you've had your own private chat, now you want everyone involved" snapped Ellie towards him as they passed Ebony.
Trudy looked on bemused as she paused by Ebony.
"Do you know where Ram and Jay are?" she asked "Amber's called a Tribal meeting on the cliffs"
"A tribal meeting?" scorned Ebony "What is this..."
Trudy cut Ebony off mid sentence with a harsh tone.
"Look Ebony, if you don't want to be there, you don't have to. I'm just spreading the word. Now do you know where Ram and Jay are or not?"
"No, I don't" lied Ebony with a smirk
Trudy rolled her eyes and headed off into the sleeping quarters where Jack and Ellie we're still arguing. Trudy ignored the two and went over to May.
"Thankyou May, hey baby" she smiled down at her daughter "Can you and Ellie take the kids up to the top of the cliffs. Amber's calling for a meeting of sorts for us all"
"Sure no problem" smiled May "Everything ok?"
"Yeah, I think we all realise it's time we started sorting some baggage out right"
"Yeah I know what you mean" said May standing up
"Hey do you know where Ram and Jay are? Or anyone else for that matter, everyone seems to be scattered here there and everywhere. We've told Ruby and Darryl, they've headed up already"
"They were with Stealth last time I saw them, heading off down the tunnel which leads to the glade"
"Ok, thanks" smiled Trudy before glancing over at Jack and Ellie who had fell silent "Ellie, maybe you want to find Amber and tell her Bray is asleep. It may be better to ask one of the Speleos to watch him for us"
Ellie merely pursed her lips and walked off in search of Amber.
"Ill stay here until someone returns for him. Why not leave Brady down here too, I'm sure they won't mind watching them both" said May, "Then I'll meet you up top"
"Ok, come on Jack, lets see who else needs rounding up" said Trudy
Within half and hour, most of the group had gathered on the cliff top. The elders of the Speleos tribe were also present, after the murmuring amidst the group settled, faces turned to Amber for answers.
"I've asked everyone here, because we...I have been thinking a lot these past few days about our future" she started, trying to find the words she needed "A few of us have been discussing our next move"
"You mean your little posse you've got there" replied Ebony, nodding towards Lex, Salene, Jack and Trudy who sat nearby
"Actually, I've spoken with more than a few members about our future prospects Ebony. It seems most of us want to do something about it" replied Amber before taking a deep breath. Ebony really knew how to rub her up the wrong way "Look, we know the virus hit the city again, that's why we're here. But we also know that there are people out there, our friends, our family who have could have survived. I think its time we went and looked for them"
"You mean go back?" asked Ruby, looking unsure of the prospect "Is that safe?"
"No, it suicide" said Ebony
"It's a chance we have to take" interrupted Amber
"Your willing to risk everybody's lives, for a chance we may find one of your precious rats?"
"I'm not risking anything. That's why I've called everyone here," said Amber, her voice bristling with impatience "I need to know who is with us and who isn't"
"Well I'm certainly not" Ebony folded her arms and glared at Amber
"Well there's a surprise" replied Amber, returning the glare
"Hey, this is getting us nowhere" said Lex standing and halting the argument before it went any further "Whatever decision is made, we are going back, no matter how many decide to join us"
"What makes you think there back there anyway?" asked Ram, who sat a little away from the group looking out over the distance
"You should know Ram, you're the one who removed most of them" said Amber
"Or killed most of them" added Salene quietly
"Hey the Chosen had a nice set up going, all I needed to do was take over and clean up a few things"
"What's that supposed to mean?" retaliated Amber
"The chosen were carting people off the mainland for months before we came. Where do you think half the slaves disappeared too"
"The mines" replied May
"Well yeah some of them, but the chosen were pretty good slavers weren't they" said Ram, stepping forward moving close to the group. Blank faces looked back at him "You really think they were moving all your friends to the mines to work, when they had the perfect opportunity to start moving outwards. That was their plan remember, world domination. Ultimately flawed, but you gotta admire the beauty of it"
"Ram what are you going on about?" asked Lex
"Perhaps you should ask her" said Ram, nodding over to Stealth, a Tribe elder of the Speleos "How about it Stealth, had any dealing with the boys in the blue robes?"
All eyes turned to the young woman who sat on one of the boulders littering the vast cliff top. She shot Ram a look of disgust and shifted her eyes over the group.
"Stel?" asked Lex
She sighed and stood folding her arms.
"Rams talking about the Gulls"
"Well you were one of them weren't you, and from what I can gather, round about the time The Chosen were carting slaves to and from the mainland" said Ram with a sly smile
Stealth stayed quiet but shifted her focus from the group to the ground
"It doesn't take a genius to figure it out, although hey I am a genius and I figured it out. You see while you have all been learning how to fish and make necklaces, or throw stones from a sling, I've been asking questions, learning a few things, gathering information."
"Ram, what are you talking about?" said Jay, getting bored by his former leaders usual spiel of being a genius.
"Stealth's only been with this tribe three years, before that she was a Gull. The Gulls, are slavers, have been for years, and what's more, they are slave traffickers. They are the tribe the chosen used to move most of the slaves onto this island. When we came and, easily, took over the Chosens territory, it was just as easy to continue on with the same routine. Deletion gets so messy sometimes, so if anyone got in the way, who am I to not advantage of a good thing."
"You mean some of our people could be here, on this Island," said Lex, unfolding his arms and clenching his fists but instead of aiming his growing irritation and annoyance at Ram, he turned, towards Stealth "You knew this and you didn't tell me"
Some of the others had stood also and all eyes burned into Stealth who looked indignant at the accusation Lex was making.
"Yes I knew we set up trade with the Chosen, and yes we trafficked slaves for them. But I can't be sure if your people are here, or if we traded them through"
"That's not the point," said Lex with gritted teeth approaching her "You lied to us"
"You knew I was a Gull once Lex" said Stealth in retaliation "And I didn't hear you asking me any questions"
"You knew who the chosen were, and you knew that they had it in for us at the time and that they carted half of us off as slaves, never mind Ram and his little buddies taking up where the chosen left off"
Lex was starting to lose his temper as he squared up to Stealth giving her a menacing glare.
"So that's supposed to tell me that I know where your friends are?" said Stealth, taking a defensive stance against the man who was shooting her a deadly look
"Yes" shouted Lex, his hands clenching into fists before he took a cool calm breath "After all, you were cosying up next to Phantom every night"
The remark hit sharply at Stealth, in the past few weeks since their capture and escape of the gull tribe, she and Lex had become, what she had thought, was close friends. She'd gleaned a lot of information from him, and in return told him of her own experience both with the Gull tribe and the Speleos.
"That's enough Lex," said Amber from behind him "We're jumping ahead of ourselves here. First back to my original question. Who is with us?"
The wind howled quietly through the surrounding treeline as the crowd grew quiet once more. Stealth and Lex still stood facing each other defensive stances but at safe distances from each other.
"Look it isn't a hard question people, where going to eventually go back with or without you. But wouldn't you rather know your part of a tribe, safe around the people your with, feel part of a family?" said Amber turning slowly to take in the faces looking at her.
She couldn't help but notice the eye roll and smirk coming from Ebony's direction, but the woman stayed silent.
"Well you know I'm with you" said Ellie with a soft shrug "Whatever the decision"
"Me too" said May
"What is there to lose," added Darryl
"Well I know I was your transport over here, and I'll help you get back but I've already been talking to Sully and if they'll have me, I'm welcome to join the Speleos" interjected Fish, who'd been quietly sitting at an outer edge of the crowd.
Amber nodded toward him, with a small smile of gratefulness that he had gotten them to safety. She knew he'd thrown himself enthusiastically into the workings of the Speleos and had enjoyed his new life with them.
"Anybody else?" asked Amber, pointedly looking at people who had spoken.
"I'm definitely with you guys," said Sammy as Amber looked over to him
"Me too" added Gel with a nod "After all, I can't stay here can I?"
Amber tried to suppress a roll of the eyes. Gel had moaned most of their stay here, mostly due to the fact that she wasn't in what she considered to be civilisation. She certainly wasn't an earthy type of girl.
"That just leaves you five," said Amber looking in the direction of Ruby, Slade, Ebony, Ram and Jay.
Amber purposefully included Jay into the equation. This way he'd have to make a clear decision, and realise who was calling the shots at the moment. She knew he wasn't happy, but it was a smart move on her part. She'd put him in a corner and he had to voice his decision one way or the other.
Ruby looked nervous, the past few weeks had been an eye opener or sorts. Before this life had been slightly lonely. She hadn't been part of a tribe, but merely a loner as part of a gathering of loners who inhabited a lonely town. In the past month she'd experienced how Tribes, true faithful close Tribes worked. They were a family, and it had been a long time since she'd been part of a family, and here was one inviting her to join them. She took in a breath stood up and gave a nod.
"I'm in" she said, not willing to let the opportunity pass by and Amber gave her a warm smile.
Amber moved her direction of focus towards Ebony and Slade who stood close to each other. She eyed Ebony with a steely gaze.
"Well?" she asked pointedly
Ebony returned to stare a moment before sighing and unfolding her arms, settling her hands at her hips.
"You really want me to join your little posse?"
"The offers on the table Ebony" replied Amber
"Why would any of them," Ebony nodded towards the group behind Amber "Want me to join you?"
"Because they know what it's like to be part of something, how important it is to belong. None of us are perfect Ebony, and we've all had our fair share of losses and deceits happen to us over the years. And yes a lot of them at your hands. But we also know it's better to have you on our side, than as our enemy." Replied Amber, "Look this isn't going to reflect badly on you if you don't want to join us. That's fine, we split, go our separate ways and maybe, if its what you want, you finally rid yourself of us. You'd never have to see or deal with us again. But it's time to finish it all now if that's the way you want to this to end. OR we can all start again, put the past behind us, move on"
Amber knew Ebony wasn't a fan of her longer speeches, usually Ebony wasn't happy with anything Amber had to say, especially when she hit home with some of her points. However the look in Ebony's eyes had softened slightly and her stance didn't seem as defensive as it usually did. As Ebonys lips formed into a soft pout of defiance, trying to fight the feeling Ambers words made sense, Slade put a hand on her shoulder comfortingly and looked over to Amber.
"Well it can't hurt to try right," he said softly to Amber
Amber gave him a soft smile but kept her eyes on Ebony. They'd certainly had a rocky relationship in the six years they'd known each other, but she knew there were demons she needed to rest within herself concerning Ebony, and she was determined to do so. They didn't need Ebony, but there was something inside her which made her reach out to the woman and hope that she could get over some of the treacheries of her past. Perhaps, Amber reflected that a big lesson she'd learned herself over the past years, was not to give up on people.
Ebony folded her arms once more and looked a little more relaxed from Slade's gentle touch.
"Fine" she replied quietly, not shifting her eyes from Amber "I'm in"
Amber finally moved her eyes back to Ram and Jay and gave them a questioning gaze.
"Who am I to be the party pooper" said Ram with a smile "Count me in"
"Aright Amber" said Jay as she looked to him "It looks like you've got your Tribe together"