All characters from Divergent belong to Veronica Roth as well as all characters from Twilight belong to Stephanie Meyer. I own nothing except my version of events.

A/N: Hey everyone!

I feel like I should apologize for my erratic posting for this story, it really has been all over the place.

I've been having a hard time writing out chapters lately. I still haven't finished it so I'm kind of going chapter by chapter. I've never done this before and so far I absolutely hate it, but life has been hectic for months now and so I haven't had the time to keep up with my writing. I've also kind of lost a bit of my writing flow and so my rough drafts (emphasis on the word, rough) have been pretty bad. So bad that when I get to editing I go over them at least ten times before I feel like they're good enough to post. Honestly I don't know what's going on. But I promise I'm working on it and I will keep trying to post at least once a week… well except for next week cuz I'll be really busy. But yeah, Oh, and let me know your thoughts so far through the comments or private messages, I really do appreciate them.

Side note, the reading stats for my stories haven't been appearing since September so I have no idea whether anyone is still reading along with me. I've contacted support a few times but so far nothing's been done, I hope you guys are still there.

Anyways, enough about that, let's get back to it…

Chapter 26 Brace for Impact

Days passed as I tried not to think about what Carlisle had divulged. I kept up with my daily routine and avoided being alone with Tobias for fear he'd ask me if I'd figured out a way to get out of here. I wanted to tell him everything, but Carlisle had made it clear it was crucial for me not to repeat it out loud, not with so many cameras watching my every move.

Not to mention I was also avoiding being alone with him for other personal reasons. I just couldn't stand the disapproving looks he continuously threw my way.

Because after Alec had invited me to have dinner with him the other day, it had become part of our daily routine. Except Alec now joined our table during most of our meals. We flirted shamelessly. Both of us enjoying the game way more than intended. I still wasn't sure it was completely a game, but I could only assume that it was...

I was only doing what Carlisle had told me to do.

Act normal.

Pretend nothing was going on.

Follow Alec's lead.

If only Carlisle had found a way to also tell Tobias so that he would understand why I was acting the way I was. I could barely contain my annoyance. It didn't help that he had become a grumbling lump in his chair during meals, scoffing and rolling his eyes at any opportunity.

Edward looked just as annoyed but never dared to outwardly show it. I'm sure he knew I would not take kindly to it. Tris, on the other hand, had gone from confusion to interest. Ultimately settling on concern in the end. I was sure Tobias had shared his thoughts over the situation since he still believed I was trying to replace Eric with Alec. Which was an impossibility.No one would ever compare to Eric. It twisted my gut just to have to admit it to myself, but at my core, I knew it to be true. After Carlisle had admitted to Eric's involvement in setting us free, I'd thought it would lessen the pain caused by his betrayal. That somehow it would make it easier for me to accept and forgive the lies he had told. Yet I'd found nothing of the sort.

I've thought about it over and over again in my head. Going through mock scenarios in which he told me the truth.

Would I have reacted better?

Would I had forgiven him?

Would it had made a difference?

Would I have even believed him?

The truth was that I didn't know, and now I never would. Because Eric had taken it upon himself to make that decision for me.

He'd kept me in the dark instead of telling me the truth.

He hadn't believed in us... in me.

And maybe that's what hurt the most.

That after everything we'd been through. After I had all but bared my soul to him. Tried to include him into my life and my space. Had already tried to include him into my family with Tobias, who was one of the most important people in my life, and was already considering announcing our relationship to the world in order to move forward. He hadn't trusted me enough to tell me the truth.

There were just so many reasons not to believe in him. Nor was I willing to forgive him and trust that he would never lie to me again. It had been one lie piled onto another, and another, in an endless amount of transgressions that I couldn't even see the beginning nor the end.

It was tragic really.

He had lied to keep me by his side and now he didn't have me at all.

All we had now were memories of the past.Suffering through a pain I couldn't stop myself from feeling.

And that's where Alec had come in.

The truth was that Alec had come to mean a lot to me in just the short time I've known him. He'd been the only person in this place who'd tried to befriend me, who tried to get to know me as the person that I was and not as the person he had seen through the screens. Who asked questions that delved deep into my thoughts, what I liked and what I disliked, and had come to understand why I didn't open up to people as easily as others did. Had taken the time to suggest hobbies I might be interested in so I wouldn't be bored out of my mind with nothing productive to do in this place. The only person who honestly tried to do everything in his power to make me happy through small actions or simple encouraging words. Who actually cared, and not just pretended to care like everyone else.

He was… different.

And though I could only ever view him as a friend for now, I had to admit he had also given me the kind of hope I had prayed for. Something I had thought I'd lost forever. He made me look forward to the next day instead of letting me dwell in the darkness I had lost myself in. He was a breath of fresh air. The beam of sunlight penetrating my dark gray cloud.

I secretly wished I would someday develop feelings for him. I knew we were playing around for now, I didn't forget that part, but I just wanted him to continue to give me hope that there was more for me out there than this. That I didn't have to hide my heart in a block of ice so that it would be almost impossible for anyone to penetrate.

I just needed any semblance of hope at this point… just a smidge bright enough to help me believe again.

I felt a poke on my forehead and I blinked back into the present, gentle fingers now smoothing the wrinkles on my forehead. "What's got you thinking so hard?" Alec asked softly. My eyes blinked back in to focus on his face, but I didn't respond. He pulled his hand and body away from me, settling himself back onto his seat. "You look constipated when you do that. You know we have medications to solve that problem." He lightly teased.

I threw my head back and laughed, shoving him playfully. "Your words make me swoon."

He smiled indulgently. "I'm a real ladies man." He said proudly.

I arched a brow just as indulgently. "Are you really?" I asked.

He smirked and brushed his hair away from his face, his head tilting slightly giving me a panty dropping look. Too bad I was too jaded to feel anything. My panties were so tightly locked I had them trapped in a steel cage with multiple padlocks for extra security. I internally sighed in disappointment. "What do you think?" He asked. He tried to keep playing it off but he broke quickly, chuckling and shaking his head. "Nah. I've had like one girlfriend my entire life... if I could even call her that."

I giggled at his admittance. I doubted any man would ever openly admit to something like that. Again, it was one of the things I liked about him. He was an honest, genuine person. A guy who didn't care if his ego took a hit by telling the truth. "You know I find that hard to believe." And it was true. I wasn't trying to boost his ego or anything. Alec was incredibly attractive with his chocolate brown eyes and those cute little dimples in his cheeks. His smile was always bright and his happiness just radiated off of him it was almost contagious.

"Why?" He asked in disbelief.

"You're too hot not to notice. So either, the ladies are too shy to talk to you or you're the one too oblivious to notice."

His mouth opened in shock as he gaped at me. "You think I'm hot?" He breathed out.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah." Our eyes connected and I tilted my head in question. "Do you not know you're hot?" I asked curiously now. It had never occurred to me that he might not know that. I found it very hard to believe though.

"Uh, I know I'm not ugly." He answered honestly.

I chuckled and shook my head, but didn't say more, going back to the puzzle book Alec had given me to pass the time.

"You're hot too, you know." Alec admitted after sometime.

I lifted my eyes and smirked up at him. "Oh I know I am." I confirmed, winking at him playfully.

He opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by an incoming alert from his communication device. He looked down and pulled the device out of his side holster, swiping his finger over the screen. A second later he exclaimed in excitement, "Yes!"

I turned to look at him again. "What's up?"

"Remember the last time we went out to the airfield and you asked if we could show you the aircrafts but I said we couldn't until we got approval?" He asked. I nodded in remembrance. He jumped out of his seat and extended both of his hands down for me to take. "We got it!"

"Really?" I asked, now with a smile on my face too, taking a hold of his hands without another thought.

"Yup. Now come on so we can meet up with the rest of the gang." He said brightly, pulling me out of my seat.

I giggled and followed after him, hearing him notifying the other guardians to guide Tobias, Tris, and Edward outside to the airfield.

"Oh I forgot to mention," Alec started casually, turning to look at me as we walked side by side. "Aro wanted to speak with you today after lunch."

My body wanted to lock at the pronouncement but I fought it back, continuing on with my movements and hoping I wasn't walking stiffly alongside him now. "Ok, did he say for what?"

He shrugged a shoulder. "No, but I'm sure he just wants to get to know you."

"Will Tobias be there too?" I asked, hoping I wouldn't have to face that monster alone.

"I don't think so." He responded, sliding his access card on the panel next to the sliding double doors, gaining us access to the airfield.

I had so many more questions but decided not to push for more. I could see Tobias, Tris and Edward already waiting for us and I didn't want them to worry about it too.

"This is exciting." Edward enthused as soon as we'd reached them. He looked unabashedly excited, his bright eyes moving to me for just a split second before they flitted between aircrafts.

I chuckled at his excitement. Anything that brought us joy these days I gobbled up to stock up for the bleak days. "Very exciting." I nodded.

Tris rolled her eyes at me. "Don't sound too thrilled."

I childishly stuck my tongue out at her.

She playfully did the same.

"My two girls looking more beautiful than ever." Tobias deadpanned with his hands in his pocket.

Tris playfully slapped his bicep, pouting up at him in the adorable way she always did when she wanted his affection.

It both hurt and filled me with absolute joy to watch their love for each other unfold before my eyes.

In all the chaos, they had been the one thing to remain constant. They'd had each other since the beginning. The world imploding around us had not made a difference in the slightest, if anything, it had made them stronger than ever.

I shifted my eyes away from them. I could handle glimpses of their love but not for prolonged periods of time. My heart was too broken to take that head-on.

The other guards around us ignored us, as they usually did. Until a tall man with rippling muscles that stretched out his already too tight black t-shirt appeared from a side door. "Hello, my name is Demetri. I've gotten a request from the higher-ups to give you a tour of the different models of aircrafts we have here. We're going to start with the Solaris Gingham 527, which is right over here. This one was built to hold large amounts of cargo…"

We followed along like good little students, oohing and aahing over everything we set our eyes on. Well, mostly Edward and Tris did the noises while Tobias and I looked on in simple interest. One of the aircrafts they showed us looked like a white ball with wings and a tail. It was a two-seater used to visit other cities nearby. It had an invisibility shield that they activated for us to see firsthand. If I hadn't known it had been there before, I would've never guessed it was still standing in its original position still. It was hard to detect even this close up. The only hints of its existence were the barely there flashes of light that reflected off its surface when it caught the suns glare. Apparently the majority of the aircrafts here came equipped with an invisibility shield. I thought it rather handy but found it suspicious that this place needed to maintain its secrecy in the air. Why did they need to hide and from who?

I didn't ask but I felt the questions burning my tongue with the need to come out.

We stopped by another airship. This one of a medium size, big enough to seat 15-20 people inside. Definitely more if they allowed passengers to stand. We were told this was built for defense, to carry soldiers when rescuing people from the fringe. I wondered if they did that often. I also wondered where they kept those 'rescued' because not once had I seen anyone who had actually come from that place. It was weird they were mysteriously absent. I wanted to question that too but refrained from doing so, knowing there were too many eyes watching us who would undoubtedly find my questioning highly suspicious.

I was moving to follow after the crowd when I felt Alec's hand suddenly pulling me back. I turned to look at him with a questioning frown but he simply placed his index finger over his lips, motioning for me to be quiet. Not questioning it any further, I followed his lead but was surprised when he suddenly pushed me up against the side of the open door to the aircraft we'd just been in. He surprised me even more when he pressed his body up against mine.

I was about to ask what the hell he was doing when he leaned down to press a soft kiss against my neck. I tried to pull away but he forcefully kept me in place.

"Aro's men are watching." Alec warned lowly, I immediately stiffened in his arms. "Keep playing along." He ordered.

I tried to relax my body but it was hard to do at the moment. I wasn't used to another man's body so close to mine, invading my personal space like this. Not since….

Yeah don't go there.

"He'd noticed our closeness through the cameras the first few days you were here." He said softly, continuing the trail of closed mouth kisses along my neck, not daring to use his tongue or to even open his mouth other than to speak. I was slightly comforted by that fact but still tried not to flinch away from him on instinct. "I've been playing along to keep him pacified. I'm sorry I wasn't able to tell you sooner."

"You're telling me now. Thank you." I said, wrapping my arms around his neck now. I'd had a suspicion it's what we'd been doing since he'd started being more openly flirtatious since Carlisle had spoken to me, but I hadn't been sure until this very moment. My eyes shifted to the front of the plane, noticing the dirty smirks coming from two of the other male guards that had followed after the group through the reflection of one of its mirrors. I pretended not to care.

"We're planning your escape within the next few minutes." He said abruptly. I stiffened again at the news. His hand then lowered to my waist to give me a reassuring squeeze. "I'm sorry, Bella. It wasn't supposed to be like this, but Aro requesting to speak with you alone moved up the timeline. When we get back to the group, do not let anyone out of your sight. Keep them with you at all times. You'll know when it's time to move. And when you do, bring them back to this plane as fast as you can." I was about to ask how I would know, but then Alec pulled back to cup my face in his hands, smiling as he looked down at me. He surprised me again when he pressed his lips softly against mine. My lips molded to his, but when he didn't push for more, neither did I. "Take my gun." He murmured against my lips, pushing his body against mine so I could feel the hardness of his handgun against my own stomach. I pulled my arms away from his neck and slid them slowly down his chest. "But for the record." He started again. "My feelings for you are real, Bella." He said, shivering against me when I slipped my hands underneath his shirt. My fingertips grazing his abs for a brief second before I discreetly pulled the gun out of the waistband of his pants to slide it into my own.

I tapped his side to let him know it was secure and he pulled away from me, releasing me all together. More loudly he added, "If I had known showing you the planes would turn you on I would've showed them to you sooner."

I chuckled and rolled my eyes, playfully smacking him on his chest.

We made our way back to the others who were now a few planes away. Tobias immediately narrowed his eyes at me in disapproval again as we neared, looking about ready to say something in front of all these strangers. I threw him a scathing look, which managed to hold him off from making a scene. Now was not the time to have that kind of conversation.

"Alright, let's move on to the last one." Demetri said, not having noticed we'd been missing at all as he began to lead us onto the next one.

Moving forward, Tobias had just started to maneuver his body closer to mine when a loud booming explossion rendered the air, followed by an eardrum-bursting alarm going off in all directions. We all flinched at the noise and looked up as one, watching in stunned silence as debris and pieces of glass started falling from the sky.

Soldiers closest to the building ran to take cover, shielding themselves from the chunks chipping off from the top floors of the building. Luckily, we were far enough away that we'd been saved from the falling debris.

"Wha–" Demetri began to exclaim when he was cut off by a bullet to the back of his head. In succession two more gunshots were heard, sounding so close I felt them reverberate through my own body.

With panicked eyes I turned to my side, finding two of our guards with the same bullet holes as Demetri. Jane's unconscious body crumpled on the floor nearby. My brain didn't have enough time to process before I heard my cue.

"Go!" Alec shouted. The gun he'd used to shoot Demitri still held in front of him which was now aimed towards the multiple access doors to the airfield.

Without hesitation my body moved. "Run!" I yelled, pulling onto Tris' hand who had been standing the closest.

They all looked back at me with panicked eyes but followed me without question…

except for one.

"Edward!" I yelled at his frozen body. The look of horror as he looked down to the now dead bodies in front of him would be forever etched into my brain.

Fortunately, Alec grasped onto Edwards arm with his free hand, pulling him in front of him to propel his body to move forward.

"What the hell is going on, Bella?!" Tobias shouted next to me. His eyes looking wildly around him as people who had been outside began looking around themselves, not knowing what the hell to do.

"No time for questions. We're escaping right now!" I screamed over the noise, letting go of Tris when I was assured she was running beside me. She looked just as horror struck as Edward, but she hadn't let the shock freeze her like he had. She surprised me even more when she turned to look at me, her eyes clearing up almost instantly as she came to understand what was going on faster than the rest. When she did, she moved to run beside her brother, using her proximity to get Edward to move on his own.

We ran through the rear of the planes that separated us until we made it to the one Alec had pushed me up against earlier. I jumped right in and moved to the side to let the rest in too, noticing three of our other guards trailing behind us. As soon as they jumped in, two of them moved immediately towards the cock pit to prepare the plane for take-off.

Alec turned to the back of the aircraft, his fingers moving over the screen pad that had automatically lit up at his touch. A panel slid up into the plane, revealing the entire back of the plane stocked up with all kinds of weaponry. "Grab a gun and shoot anyone heading to this plane!" Alec ordered as he holstered his hand gun to his leg and took a machine gun for himself. We all hurriedly did as we were told, even Edward. I secretly hoped he wouldn't use it unless absolutely necessary. I was pretty sure he didn't even know how to use it.

I took my position by the entrance of the plane, opposite of Alec. And when he began shooting down the soldiers running towards us, I did the same.

"It's not activating to my fingerprint!" One of the guards yelled from the cockpit.

"Shit!" Alec cursed, brushing his hair away from his face. "Just keep trying." He ordered.

I bit my lip as I watched regular workers from Volterra running towards the other ships in the airfield. It didn't feel right to shoot people who only looked like they were trying to escape the now burning building. "What about the people running to the other planes?" I asked in a panic. I caught a movement in my peripheral and I swooped my gun to the side, shooting down a soldier coming from the front of the plane.

"No, they're on our side! Shoot the soldiers shooting at them if you can."

"What the fuck is taking them so long?!" One of the soldiers exclaimed in frustration, with a hint of panic he couldn't hide. I wondered who the 'them' he was referring to were, but it was obviously not the time to question something like that.

"Shit! Edward and Tris move away from the doors!" Alec suddenly ordered when a new group of soldiers burst out of the double doors we had exited from earlier.

"Why?" Tobias exclaimed angrily.

"Because they're expendable, just like the rest of us!" He answered without thought.

Tobias began to ask for clarification but I shut him up, "We'll answer that later, Tobias. Focus!" I ordered.

He growled angrily, pulling Tris behind him, who in turn squatted down behind his feet. Still shooting our enemies down while using Tobias as cover. She knew it was pointless to disagree with him on this. Now was clearny not the time to fight over something like that.

Suddenly, the floor underneath our feet began to vibrate, followed by the sound of grinding metal and an escalating whooshing of the air.

"We're on!" The guard at the cockpit exclaimed in relief, as the aircraft came to life underneath our feet.

Not a minute later, it began to ascend off the ground.

"Wait!" Alec ordered. "We have to wait for Eric!" I turned to look at him in surprise, sensing my gaze his eyes flickered to mine for a split second before they shifted back to the tower. "But if he doesn't appear within the next 30 seconds, we leave without him. Those were his orders."

Without permission my eyes looked around wildly, looking for the familiar set of blonde hair that always brought me a mix of emotions. I knew I shouldn't care whether he made it or not, but with so much gunfire all around us I couldn't help but to worry for him, silently begging for him to suddenly appear in front us.

"There he is!" One of the soldiers exclaimed pointing towards a set of double doors two floors above the ground.

And there he was indeed, leading Caius and Carlisle down the stairs as he took the rear. His face looked deadly, fully focused on his mission as he ran backward, shooting into the doors they'd just exited from. He fell slightly behind the other two but made up the distance by artfully sliding down the railing of the stairs, catching up to Caius and Carlisle quickly and effortlessly.

Alec spoke up again as soon as they hit the ground floor. "Tobias and I will cover him, the rest keep shooting the others."

My instinct was to cover Eric too, but I had to trust that Alec and Tobias would have his back. Still I made sure to scan my eyes around them as they neared. I could see him pointing to one of the two-seater aircrafts for Carlisle and Caius to take, covering them while they settled in. He continued on with his journey towards us when their doors were secured closed and the plane began to come to life.

He was now just a few planes away. His strides as he ran long and fierce while the gun in his hands swiveled around to shoot down his enemies. But as he began to pass the last plane, he hit the ground hard, tackled right off his feet.

"Eric!" I yelled, watching him flipping to his back and punching the guy as soon as he got the opportunity. They were soon rolling on the floor grappling for control.

"Fuck! I can't get a clear shot." Alec shouted in frustration, his rifle aimed and his eyes locked on the scene before us.

I could see his rifle moving erratically as he tried to aim at the moving target while Eric and the soldier continued to roll around on the ground.

"Tobias!" I yelled, but he was too busy shooting at the oncoming group of soldiers behind them that I knew he wouldn't be able to help. I was just about to jump off to help Eric when suddenly Alec beat me to it.

"Alec!" I yelled in a panic. Shooting the stragglers Tobias couldn't get to now that Alec wasn't helping him cover.

He ran forward and tackled the guy off of Eric, now becoming the one grappling on the ground with the soldier. "Go!" I heard him yell.

Without hesitation Eric began running towards us again.

"No!" I yelled. We couldn't leave Alec behind. He might have been expandable to everyone else, but not to me, at least not anymore. I jumped off without another thought but two strong arms wrapped themselves tightly around me. Eric catching me in midair and carrying me back into the plane.

"We have to go!" He yelled over the noise, still holding onto me tightly as I tried to get out of his hold.

At his order, the plane began to ascend.

"Let go, Eric!" I desperately screamed, trying to wiggle out of his arms, but his grip was like steel as it kept me safely secured to his body.

Anger was surging within me. I couldn't leave Alec behind. But the more I struggled the more Eric's hold on me tightened. When I realized he wasn't going to release me I began to give up.

But it was now or never.

Either I could watch helplessly as we left Alec behind, still struggling against his opponent. Or I could do something about it. Even if he couldn't make it into our plane, at least I could give him a chance to find another way out of Volterra.

Without another thought, I wrapped my legs around Eric's waist, using his body to steady myself as I focused my aim. I pressed the trigger, praying to whatever was out there that I got the right one.

I held my breath as both bodies stopped moving, until one of the bodies was pushed to the side and Alec jumped to his feet.

"Run!" I screamed, but I could see that even if he ran, our plane was already too high off the ground for him to reach.

Until another voice thundered behind me, "Move!" Tobias yelled.

Eric automatically moved out of the way with me still in his arms, but I felt them loosen just enough for me to slip away. I shoved him away from me and moved towards the opening as I watched Tobias unwind the steel wire connected to the roof of the aircraft and threw it out the door. I dropped to my knees to watch over the edge of the plane. I could see Alec's black hair whipping in the wind and the cord swinging just as wildly. I didn't think he would make it, but Alec surprised me when he pushed off the ground and miraculously caught the wire in his hands.

"Pull him up!" I yelled over the noise.

The cord began to mechanically reel in and with it, Alec too, until he finally reached onto the legs of the aircraft and used it to hoist himself up and onto the plane, sweating profusely, his breath almost wheezing out of him as he tried to catch his breath.

"You fucking idiot!" I cursed, wrapping my arms around his neck without waiting for him to settle himself. Really I just wanted to punch him in his face for what he'd done but refrained from doing so knowing he was probably already beat down from the fighting and the running.

He chuckled breathlessly and wrapped one of his arms around me, leaning on his other hand to hold both of our weights. "Sorry. I had to make that interesting." He joked.

I pinched his side and pulled away.

"Ow!" He exclaimed with another laugh, using the arm that had fallen off of me when I'd moved away, to rub his side.

"Don't ever do that again!" I ordered angrily, pushing him away from me to get up onto my feet again.

"Wasn't planning on it." He answered still breathless, looking up at me from the floor now. His chest was still heaving from the exertion but his unwavering smile was ever-present, looking so out of place in the situation we were currently in.

I rolled my eyes and finally looked away from him, only to become entrapped in Eric's unfathomable stare. He was breathing heavily from the attack and the run, too. He had a couple of cuts on his face and a bruise starting to form on his left cheek bone. It had been so long since I'd found myself this close to him that my heart beat wildly inside my ribcage. The cuts and bruises did little to diminish his handsome features. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed him since we'd arrived at Volterra. I loved and hated it in equal measure. But the look he was currently still giving me was beginning to make me uncomfortable. I desperately wanted to look away but found I couldn't.

Fortunately for me, Tobias had decided to get his answers now.

"Does anyone mind telling me what the hell is going on?" He asked in irritation.

My eyes shifted to his and I released a heavy breath, readying to answer the little that I knew. "I actually don't know much." I admitted. "Carlisle only told me to follow Alec's lead and that's what I did."

"So why didn't you tell me?!" He exclaimed, looking furious now, not bothering to hide his hurt either.

"I wanted to!" I cried. "But Carlisle told me there were cameras everywhere and we couldn't risk Aro finding out about their plans by telling you. If it makes you feel any better, he didn't actually tell me what they were planning. He just warned me to be prepared."

"It's true." Alec said coming to my defense, hoisting himself off the floor to stand beside me. "Carlisle explained what he could but he didn't have much time. He gave her just enough to get her to cooperate with us but nothing more."

"We've been planning your escape since I practically got here." Eric butt in, finally deciding to step in.

"You were in on it… again?!" Tris exclaimed this time, looking downright offended on my behalf. If the situation were different, I would have probably laughed at the look of outrage on her face.

"Yes." He admitted.

"What? How?"

"It's a long story…" Eric said looking suddenly tired as he dropped into the seat behind him in exhaustion, "but I guess we have the time to discuss it now." His eyes flicked over to me for a brief second before they shifted quickly away as if it hurt him to look at me. "Disagreement amongst the people in Volterra has always existed, but its only increased in size over the past 25 years. One of its major supporters has been my father, Caius."

"Why?" I asked.

He didn't bother to look at me this time as he answered, leaning his elbows onto his knees as he stared at the door in front of him, where Alec had pulled himself through, which was now firmly shut. "To explain, I would have to go back to a time before we were all born." He informed us. "Since the creation of Chicago and Volterra, there have always been three leaders tasked with the duty to not only keep the city of Volterra running, but to also continue watching over the experiment. Every generation of lead scientists has treated the experiment for what it was, an experiment to be viewed and analyzed but never to be interfered with. The number one rule which had been followed without fail generation after generation… until Aro came along. Aro has always been too greedy for his own good. Once he'd been appointed one of the three positions, his ego rose to dangerous levels. My father has always suspected Aro of not having the experiment and the city's best interest at heart, but for years Aro had shown no sign of malfeasance and both my father and Marcus had been able to keep him in line thus far. That is until Victoria came along and decided Divergent's were the enemy."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

This time he did look up at me. "Through Victoria's influence on Jeanine, the faction system which had kept peace in Chicago since the beginning of its creation, began to slowly dismantle, and though Aro made it seem as though he tried to stop it. He didn't. Aro waited until Victoria's influence on Jeanine had fully established before he decided to do something about it."

"But he said Divergents were the answer to the experiment, so why would he put that in jeopardy?" Tris asked this time.

"Because Aro would rather keep his control over the experiment than to see any successful outcome out of it. Like I said, Aro's always been too greedy, and having power over the experiment had not been enough for him in the end. So he planned for a way to gain the upper hand over Marcus and my father…"

"Through us." I finished for him.

He looked up at me then and nodded. "My father had always suspected Aro was planning something, but he could never figure out what, until it was too late. Without telling either Marcus or Caius, Aro had inseminated our mothers. Using us to finally succeed in taking full control."

"But Caius got you out. How?" I asked.

"He threated to dismantle everything. Aro wasn't aware that my father had suspected him of any wrongdoing, and so he didn't know about the uprising of the disgruntled people of Volterra. But it was then that my father decided to show his own hand. And so they'd come to a compromise. If Aro returned me to Volterra after my birth, then Caius would not unleash the revolt he had already been planning."

"No wonder there's camera's everywhere. He's been afraid of another uprising." I concluded.

"He made it so that it would be almost impossible to rebuild any form of well-organized revolt to take over Volterra again. Still, my father found ways to work around them." He paused for a moment and released a harsh breath, as if what he was about to disclose weighed heavily on his conscience. "Unfortunately, the little organization that had barely begun to form had been quickly shut down when the memory serum had been developed, and I had been ordered to infiltrate the experiment once again. We didn't know if Aro suspected my father of revolting against him again. He'd never mentioned it, but we knew he had made that decision to keep my father tethered to him like Marcus still was."

I wanted to ask how Aro had forced him to become a part of the experiment but I didn't want to derail the conversation more than we needed to. We had more pressing questions to get to at the moment. "So when you came back home the plan was set in motion again?" I asked, unable to leave out the biting tone in my voice.

He looked up at me and sighed, shaking his head slightly. "Yes and no. My father had been too relieved at having me back here that he refused to risk my safety. And so he refused to participate in the rebellion again, even after I insisted we needed to get you guys out. I knew you would sniff out how wrong this place was in a matter of days and I feared what you would do in order to get out of here and back home. So I went behind his back to organize the rebellion again. It wasn't until my father discovered of Aro's true plans that I confronted him again." His eyes shifted to mine again and held them this time. "When my father informed me of what Aro was planning for you, I told him what I had done and threatened to do everything in my power to get you guys out whether he helped me or not. Even if it got me killed. And I would have done it, but I knew telling my father that would get him on our side once again. I knew having him on our side would make us unstoppable."

We were quiet for some time, all of us thinking over his words.

"What was Aro planning to do with us?" Edward finally asked.

"To use you and Tris as leverage to get Bella and Tobias to comply. They lied to you guys." He stated bluntly. "Tobias and Bella are the only ones genetically pure. They only took Tris because they knew Tobias would fight his way back to her and therefore, so would Bella. And if you hadn't found out about my secret identity you might've been spared. To be honest, once you chose to go to Erudite instead of Dauntless, Aro discarded you as part of the inseminated. Especially when he discovered you were genetically damaged too. Though because Marcus is also your biological father, I'm sure you would have been extracted from the experiment eventually. Aro couldn't afford to have neither my father nor Marcus against him."

"What about you?"

"I'm genetically damaged too." He said without hesitation. I think we all looked back at him in stunned silence. Honestly I hadn't expected that. Though I don't know why I hadn't acknowledged it as a possibility, especially since Edward and Tris had been declared damaged. "I was also saved because of my father, and because from the beginning, Aro had been planning to implement me into the system again even after I'd been brought to Volterra after I was born. Aro can be very vindictive. He wanted my father to suffer the loss of his child, just like he allegedly had. But Aro never cared for you two as his children. He just hated not having my father following his every command like Marcus did."

"So what now? Carlisle said there were people trying to set us free but from what I gather from the amount of people and aircrafts following after us, that's not exactly the whole bit." I said.

Eric looked back at me again, his eyes always gravitating towards me even with the clear guilt tainting his eyes every time he did. "Aro is not going to let you go without a fight. Not just because of his pride but because he needs you. You two were his last hope for a successful experiment and now with you both gone and headed to Chicago, he knows his experiment will be completely destroyed. He's not going to happy, which means, he will retaliate. Besides the fact that the rebellion couldn't stay after the uprising, we also needed the forces to protect you and the city."

"So what you're saying is, we have to prepare for war." I surmised.

He nodded solemnly.