A/N: Divergent still belongs to Veronica Roth and Katherine Tegen Books. No violation of copyright intended.
When the Choosing Ceremony is over, the Dauntless run down the stairs, screaming and whopping. I feel a little odd in my white dress, but new clothes will come at the compound. A train comes and all of the Dauntless Born begin to run. I see, we have to jump on the train. I follow them and realize I'm a pretty decent runner. I can keep up with about half of the Dauntless born initiates. We jog for a couple of feet before people start to haul themselves up, through the sliding door. I grabbed the spit by the door and pulled myself onto the step. With no help, I hauled myself into the car.
I stand next to the wall, breathless from the physical extortion. Uriah walks to me and smiles.
"Quite a thrill, isn't it?"
I nod, unable to speak. This is partially due to the fact that I am winded, but mostly because a cute boy is talking to me.
"So, why'd you choose Dauntless?"
"Well, it was my aptitude, but also because my ex-boyfriend said he was going to choose it, but he didn't."
"So you're single?"
"Ya, I guess."
"Well, I might be interested, after we get to the compound."
He turns away just before I begin to blush.
I just listen to the wind whistle through the door until a scream awakens me from my trance. I look out the door and see people jumping onto a roof. I brace myself. If I make it, I'll be one step closer to Dauntless. 3... I have to do this, 2... Come on! 1... I jump, launching myself forward and rolling once I feel my body on the roof. A girl from Abnegation by the looks of it is approaching me, offering out a hand to help me up. Shoving her hand away, I push myself up painfully. I'm going to have to get used to that.
A couple of feet in front of me stands a man who is covered in tattoo's and pierced all over his face and ears. He waves a strong hand, beckoning us over.
"Down there is where the Dauntless compound is. You have to get there."
I peer over the three foot wall. A hole in the roof leads down into darkness.
"What's at the bottom," a nervous boy asks.
"Well I guess you'll find out," he says with evil glistening in his eyes. "Now, someone's gotta go first. Who's it gonna be?"
I peer over once again. The hole leads to a black pit, leaving everything up to the imagination. I start to wonder if I made the right choice. I came here to belong, not to die.
"I'll go," the small Abnegation girl says.
I absolutely can't let a Stiff go first. Maybe it's my old faction, or just my personality, but I like to be first.
"No, I'll go," I say quickly.
The Abnegation girl rushes forward, but I beat her. Edging myself as close to the edge as possible, I count to three, just as I did on the train. One... two... three...
The wind whistles all around me. My dress flies up, and using my hands the best I can, I try to keep it down. I can't wait to get out of it. I hit a net at the bottom with a thud . A young man, 19 by the looks of it, reaches out for my hand. I take his hand and he heaves me up.
"Name," he says gruffly. He looks strangely familiar.
"Um... My," I begin, but something stops me. This is my chance for a new life, a new identity. If I ever want to leave my cruel past behind, I have to move forward. "Kriss," I say, deciding that the name sounds strong, yet not masculine.
"First jumper, Kriss," he says, raising my hand and turning me towards the audience. Then he turns to me. "Four," he says, shaking my hand.
I walk over to the side and see the Abnegation girl I fought with, she is staring daggers at me as Four helps her up. She whispers something to him and he turns towards the audience and yells "Sarah" before she is pushed over to me.
"Why did you go before me?"
A thousand answer rush through my head. The nice one, the rude one, or the Dauntless one.
Of course, I have to say the Dauntless answer.
"Because I can't be shown up by a stiff."
"You know, this is my faction. I belong here. Same as you, same as him," she says, gesturing towards Uriah who just jumped. "I picked this Faction."
"Some of us never forget our customs. I guess time will tell."
Right before she can say something back, Uriah comes towards me. My heart leaps, but I don't know why.
"So, we're Dauntless," he says, nodding towards the rock walls surrounding us.
"Yeah, I guess."
Another Dauntless-Born jumps, screaming as he flies through the air. At first I find this odd, but then I realize he is screaming out of thrill, not fear. Uriah gives me a quick hug and smile and rushes off to meet his friend. He leaves me over the moon.
Four and Tris tell us to follow them and we head down an elevator. Uriah comes up and stands next to me, introducing me to his friend, Jared. We walk for a while, talking about old Factions and politics as we walk across a thin path. On the other side of the slick rock is a deep overhang leading down to a fast rushing river.
We turn a corner and a big, I mean huge, common center where hundreds of people covered in tattoos and adorned in black.
"This is the Pit," Four says gesturing towards the crowd, "and this is the chasm," he says pointing at the slick rock and rushing water on our left.
"We have a chasm to prove the difference between bravery and idiocy," Tris says, finishing Four's thought. "One stupid jump and you are done for."
We walk through the Pit while the Dauntless cheer for us, yelling and clapping loudly. This is way different from the Erudite! I love the loud, chaotic chatter of the members.
Four and Tris lead us down a stony grey hallway into a room.
"This is where you will be staying for the next ten weeks of initiation. Get used to it."
"Girls or boys?" someone behind me asks.
Four looks around at the dingy beds around him. "I think you can answer that," he says with an evil grin.
A couple of gleeful hollers fill the room. I personally find it stupid and kind of odd, but if this is the Dauntless life, I'll take it any day.
"These are the bathrooms," he says pointing to a row of metal toilets on the far side of the wall. "Should make the Candor feel right at home. Everything out in the open."
Behind the stalls are the doors that lead to the shower, which, thankfully, are separated by gender.
"Yeah, life in Dauntless is a lot different from any of your other factions. I learned that quickly," Tris says as we gawk at the lack of privacy.
We all nod quickly before Four begins to speak again.
"Find a bed and get changed. I'll be back in ten minutes to get you for dinner."
I take a bed farthest away from the bathrooms so I can avoid the smell and take a look at the clothes. Black leggings, a tight black tank-top, and, my favorite, black combat boots, perfect for running in.
I change quickly, hoping everyone is too preoccupied with their changing to watch mine. Four comes back just as I finish using the bathroom and we head off again. He leads us to a big inferno where his commands are strict and surprising.
"Throw your clothes in. This is where you start to leave the customs of your old faction behind. Embrace Dauntless."
We all follow suit, though some are hesitant, maybe even rueful. I am. I love this dress, even if it reminds me of my cruel childhood. But this is my new life. I am not Erudite. I am Dauntless. I am not intelligent. I am Brave!