The air is getting cooler and we are all exhausted. Our will is strong but our bodies are weakening with every step. We keep on running regardless of the pain.
We are Dauntless, after all. Well, most of us are.
Not that that means anything anymore, I remind myself.
I take a moment to actually look at the others and my stomach drops. I feel like it is the first time I have actually seen them since the attack. I had been so focused on my own injuries that I failed to notice the wounds and bruises covering the others. Tobias has bloodstains all over his torso and thighs. Is that his blood? My blood? How could I have missed that? I am selfish. Selfish, selfish, selfish.
But I already knew that.
"We aren't far from the perimeter." Tobias stammers. He doesn't usually show weakness. He must be in worse condition than he let on. My brow furrows.
"We better be. Zeke here looks like he's about to throw up." Uriah quips. Zeke casts his brother an impatient glare and smacks the back of his head. I want to hit him too. He should take this more seriously. We're all in danger.
"There, up ahead!" Cara is the first of us to see the fence in the distance. We all seem to get a second wind and pick up the pace.
"Shouldn't we be careful? There might be guards here already." I add, causing Tobias to fall back and stop to my left. He speaks to the four of us.
"She's right. We should stick to the shadows until we have a clear line of sight to an escape route. Everybody keep quiet, I'll be just a few feet ahead. Follow my lead." He winks at me and puts a quick kiss on my forehead. A small gesture, but enough to hold me over.
We are so close to freedom, I can feel it in my bones. We slowly make our way around a gigantic ancient structure. I make out the phrase "ULLAR FIELD" across the top. I have never been this far south of the city before, and I take it that the others have not either. Tobias is familiar with the surveillance of the area due to his time in the control room, but being out on our own with a price on your head is quite a different story.
We are now a few hundred yards from the fence. Tobias gestures to Cara, and she quickly hands over a small metal tube, a little thicker than a marker. We stop at an alcove in the building.
"Stay put. I'll run and cut the hole for us to go through. When it's done, I'll signal for you to run."
This was it. Tobias was going out there unprotected. Fully exposed. I quickly scanned the surroundings for a tree, rubble, anything to provide him cover. I found no safety and held my breath. He will be fine. He will be fine.
He leaves the shelter of the building and jogs toward the fence. I am still not breathing when he starts working.
"He'll be alright, Tris. There's no way anyone is out here yet." Uriah nudged my shoulder. At least his optimism can come in handy some of the time. I let the breath I was holding go and focus once again on Tobias and the laser.
"I didn't think it would take this long, Cara. Four has been at it for at least ten minutes." Zeke worried. Sometimes I forget that he is one of Tobias's only friends, that there are other people that worry about him like I do.
I know for a fact that Tobias forgets this as well. That, or he doesn't even see it to begin with. That is what people like Marcus will do to a person.
"My apologies Zeke," Cara spits out sarcastically, "That I don't have a better POCKET LASER. Where is your fence-shredding-device hiding, hmmm?"
She exaggerates "Pocket Laser" slowly but sharply and raises her eyebrows.
Ouch. That was harsh. I've never seen an Erudite act so...so...
No. We are not separate factions anymore. I need to stop categorizing people. It is a habit that will be tough to break.
"Tell me how you really feel Cara." Zeke taunts. Cara is furious.
"Knock it off." I don't raise my voice. I don't make a fist. The threat lies within my eyes and tone. They must have seen something in that glare, because the bickering ends and all eyes snap forward to Tobias.
"Come on Four..." Zeke quietly chants.
Not a second later, Tobias turns and gives us the signal to run.
"Let's get the f*ck out of here," Cara mutters before she takes off running ahead of us. Uriah, Zeke, and I share a surprised glance for a fraction of a second, and then are on her heels. We duck into the small opening in the fence and disappear into the unknown.