Chapter 2: We are Apogee!
1
Clarke, Finn, Monty, Jasper, and I started our hike through the forest. Although I had seen a few forests before in my past life, the wildness of this one was beyond anything that I had seen. Everything was so lush and green so every breath that I took was fresh and I could practically taste the life around us.
As we walked, we came across a stretch of violet flowers that were gorgeous. I touched the soft petals with a light smile on my face. Finn plucked one of the flowers and moved to give it to me, but I pushed his hand aside.
"Save it for the princess, spacewalker," I chuckled as I moved passed him.
"It's poison sumac," Monty said, plucking the flower out of Finn's hand. "The flowers aren't poisonous. They're medicinal, calming, actually," he explained then ate the flower.
"His family grows all the pharmaceuticals on the ark," Jasper added.
"Hey, guys, would you try to keep up?" Clarke asked, annoyed.
"Come on, Clarke. How do you block all this out?" Finn asked.
"Well, it's simple," Clarke said. "I wonder, 'Why haven't we seen any animals?' Maybe it's because there are none. Maybe we've already been exposed to enough radiation to kill us. Sure is pretty, though… Come on."
While Clarke walked on ahead, we followed behind her. I understood her rush, but a twenty-kilometer hike was not something we would likely finish in a single day without a trail, so I knew that we would be camping out no matter what.
5
"I got to know what you two did to get busted," Finn said as we walked.
"Sumac is not the only herb in the garden, if you know what I mean," Monty explained with a wink.
"Someone forgot to replace what we took," Jasper added.
"Someone has apologized, like, a thousand times."
"What about you, Octavia? What'd they get you for?" Jasper asked.
I sighed, trying to understand what it must have been like to live through Octavia's life, and replied, "Being born."
Clarke was waving us over as she knelt down, so I used the moment to rush ahead and join her. I could hear them continue to talk in hushed voices, but it did not matter once I saw what had caught Clarke's attention. There was a five-point buck grazing in the small clearing right ahead, oblivious to our presence. She motioned for the others to be quiet as they approached, and we all got the chance to see it.
"No animals, huh?" Finn asked teasingly.
After that, he slowly crept forward, trying to be quiet, but his boot crunched a twig. The deer was startled and lifted its head to look for the source of the sound. When it turned its head towards us though, everyone, myself including, gasped as we flinched backward. A partial second head was attached to the far side of the deer's face which included a deformed second snout and a possible third eye. The buck sprang off into the far brush while the rest of us were left with the haunting image.
As disturbing as the deer had been, it only slowed us down for a few minutes before we were back to hiking. The terrain was tough with hills and fallen trees throughout the whole journey, but the three guys kept their spirits up as they talked along the way. It was mostly about their time on the Ark and the mischief that they caused, but every now and then, they brought up something important.
"Hey, you know what I'd like to know? Why send us down today after ninety-seven years? What changed?" Finn asked as we made our way down a large hill.
"Maybe they found something on a satellite, you know, like an old weather satellite or…" Monty said hopefully but then he was cut off.
"It wasn't a satellite. The Ark is dying," Clarke interjected with a serious tone which made everyone stop and look back at her. "At the current population level, there's roughly three months left of life support, maybe four now that we're gone."
"So that was the secret they locked you up to keep, why they kept you in solitary, floated your old man?" Finn asked in shock.
"My father was the engineer who discovered the flaw. He thought the people had a right to know. The Council disagreed. My mother disagreed. They were afraid it would cause a panic. We were gonna go public, anyway, when Wells…" her voice went quiet as she remembered what happened.
"What, turned in your dad?" Monty asked.
"Anyway, the guard showed up before we could. That's why today. That's why it was worth the risk. Even if we all die, at least they bought themselves more time."
"They're gonna kill more people, aren't they?" Monty asked.
Although there was a prompt telling me what Octavia had said in this moment, once I read it, I knew there was no way that I would say something so insensitive when the others still had family and friends onboard. Instead, I pushed myself ahead of the group with a huff which let Clarke and Finn have their own little moment since Jasper followed after me.
I walked onto an outcropping of rocks which overlooked a small river that I could easily jump into. Despite the long hike so far and the sweat on my body, I probably would not have even considered jumping into the water, but the annoying prompt that kept trying to make me be Octavia was ringing in my ears. It was far worse and more annoying than any other time that the instruction had appeared, so I quickly gave in once I felt a headache threatening to form. I peeled off my vest, jacket, and then my pants before I walked to the edge.
"Octavia, what the hell are you doing?!?" Clarke demanded.
I looked back over my shoulder and gave her a smirk before I jumped off. The water was very cold, but also refreshing. Remembering that Tori had supposedly gave me power over the elements, I scooped up some water with my hand and tried to make it do something, but it did not seem like this would be something I could learn overnight.
"Octavia… we can't swim," Monty shouted as the group raced onto the rocks.
"I know, but we can stand," I chuckled, standing up to reveal that the water was only waist high.
"Wait. There's not supposed to be a river here," Clarke said, consulting the map.
"Well, there is, so take off your damn clothes," Finn retorted with a smile.
While the others undressed, I leaned back in the water, trying to float on my back. These kids may never have swum before, but I loved swimming back in my past life. I could not show off those skills right now but floating should be considered too strange for me to pick up naturally.
"Octavia, get out of the water," Jasper said, alarmed.
I righted myself, confused, since I did not think there was anything that should be able to threaten me, at least in the water, but it turns out I was wrong.
4
"Get out of the water now!" he shouted.
I only had enough time to turn around and see the ripple in the water that was quickly coming at me. Something long and snake-like grabbed me by the thigh and dragged me into the deeper water. I had never been attacked before, my past life or this one, so it was a frightening experience, especially since I was pulled underwater, but just as my panic reached its peak, a strange calm washed over me. I grabbed the animal by the head and traced my fingers up until I found its eyes.
With all the strength that I could muster, I punched its eye with my middle knuckle raised. I felt a sickening popping sensation, but the creature let go of me and I desperately swam for the shore. The rest of the group was shouting, and Jasper was the first to come charging into the water to help me get me out of the water. He pushed me onto the rocks while Clarke and Finn picked me up by my arms. They sat me down as Jasper climbed up and I leaned forward, giving him a hug.
"Thank you," I said.
Clarke reached over and tore the bottom off of Jasper's shirt then she tied the strip around my leg, above the wound. "You're gonna be ok," she said.
"Note to self… Next time, save the girl," Monty said with a smile.
That caused us to laugh and eased the tense atmosphere. Clarke helped me get the rest of my clothes back on and it was decided that we should camp for the night so that I could have a break. My leg was not too bad, but I could not put my full weight on it which meant that we would end up moving slower. I was sure that Bellamy and Wells would worry about us if we did not return tomorrow, but with hopefully little more than a river between us and Mount Weather, I did not think anyone could be convinced to turn back.
As everyone settled down on a patch of soft moss for the night, I leaned back against a tree trying to organize my memories of the 100 series. I knew that Mount Weather would be one of the main antagonists in the series, but since the Grounders had yet to make an appearance, I knew it was too early for us to reach them. Something was bound to happen that would force us to turn back, but for the life of me, I could not remember what it was which worried me. In this place, there was no way that it could be something good.
Eventually, we all fell asleep, but at some point, I heard something move which woke me up. I noticed Finn was getting up and he gave me a smile when he saw that I was awake then he placed a finger to his lips. Although I was awake, I did not have the ability to stop him, so I just waved him off while shaking my head. His smile got wider, and he slipped off into the woods. I looked around and noticed that there were placed that were glowing in the darkness. I may have wanted to get up and take a closer look, but with Monty and Jasper asleep, using my good leg as a pillow, it would not be easy.
After a while, Clarke woke up and looked around as she sat up. I pretended to sleep while she got up and slowly walked away. Finn returned shortly with something in his hands, but he headed for Clarke instead of the rest of us. I let the kids have their moment, even though I knew it would only make things more complicated for them in the future. Instead, I spent the time desperately trying to remember the events of the first episodes, but this was not something that I could just wish back in my head no matter how hard I tried.
3
The next morning came, and I was still no closer to remembering, so I could only go with the flow. Jasper made a point to help me walk which was nice, but those almost puppy-dog eyes would not work on me. I was twice his age, even if my new body was not, and I could not help but look at him like he was a kid, so he was doomed for regret if he had set his sights on me.
2
Since no one wanted to try swimming across the river, Finn had the idea of making a rope of vines so that we could swing over to the other bank. The guys scattered along the bank to find something that would work while Clarke kept me company out on the rocky outcrop. She took the time away from the guys to help me take off my pants so that she could check my wound.
"It looks like its healing fine," she said.
"Thanks, Clarke. I appreciate the help," I replied, standing up, then I carefully pulled my pants back.
"Of course," she said quietly.
"You know… this is just the beginning. Mount Weather might have the food we need, but we still have a hundred people to take care of and they aren't the easiest to handle, especially my brother."
"What would you have me do then, Octavia?"
"Nothing that you aren't already doing; I just wanted to remind you. Some of us may have a decent head and heart, but that doesn't mean the whole group does. My brother is a good guy, but there is something that he did, I don't know what, to get down here. He will do whatever it takes to keep me and himself alive which could lead him to do some stupid things. I just don't want you to hate him, or me," I explained with a sigh as I sat down on a rock.
"You don't seem like someone who spent their whole hiding under the floor. You know people, how they think and react under situations," Clarke commented with some suspicion.
"I wasn't always under the floor, nor was I in solitary confinement while I was in prison," I replied with a shrug.
"There is something that you aren't telling me."
I chuckled, "I was born a secret, princess, so I tend to keep them."
8
Before she could give any type of response, Finn, Monty, and Jasper walked up with a large vine. Finn started climbing a nearby tree that stretched out towards the river and tied off the edge of the vine. Monty and Jasper joined us on the shore which seemed to stop Clarke from questioning me further. Eventually, I would have to tell her something if I wanted to help guide the group, so I just needed to figure out something believable.
Finn got the vine secured and made his way back down. Jasper brought the hanging end over to him and Finn started a series of tugs and test pulls to see if it would stay. While I was in no hurry to get across, that did not mean no one else was.
"You wanted to go first. Now quit stalling. Mount Weather awaits," Clarke said, annoyed.
"Just hang on till the apogee, and you'll be fine," Jasper encouraged.
"The apogee like the Indians, right?" Finn asked with a smirk.
"Apogee, not Apache."
5
"He knows. Today, Finn," Clarke sighed.
"Aye, aye, captain. See you on the other side," Finn replied with a little salute.
Just before he could go, Jasper said while looking at me, "Wait."
"What?"
"Let me… I can do it," he replied.
"Knew there was a badass in there somewhere," Finn chuckled as he passed Jasper the vine and patted his shoulder.
Jasper smiled and gave him a nod. He looked at me one last time then turned his attention to the vine in his hands, fear slowly creeping into him.
"Hey, it's okay to be afraid, Jasper. The trick is not fighting it," Finn encouraged.
That gave Jasper the courage that he needed, and he took a deep breath. "See you on the other side!"
He jumped off the high spot and swung his way towards the other side of the river while cheering. The rest of us watched with a mixture of worry and excitement, but there was something that filled me with dread as he tumbled onto the other bank. He stood up and dusted himself off as he glanced around.
"We are apogee!" Jasper yelled with excitement.
The rest of the group cheered, but something inside of me told me that something was wrong. Finn passed Clarke the vine so that she could swing across next. I wanted to say something; I just did not know what. Everything was moving too fast, and I had no idea what I needed to stop, only that something was about to happen.
Jasper bent down and picked up some kind of metal sign. Holding it up over his head, he shouted, "We did it! Mount Weather! Whoo! Whoo!"
Then it happened, exactly what my senses had been trying to warn me about. Out of nowhere, a spear flew out and hit Jasper directly in the chest, knocking him off his feet. The others screamed out his name, but I did more than just that.
3
It was hard to describe exactly how I did it. One moment I was standing next to Monty and then I saw Jasper go down. There was an anger and fear that my friend, someone who had jumped into a monster-infested river to try and save me, had just been killed in front of my eyes. Then, just like when I had been attacked by that snake creature, a strange calm washed over me, and I knew that I had to get to him. Suddenly, I was standing at Jasper's feet with no idea how I had gotten there, only that I felt like I had just run ten miles.
1
"Octavia!" Clarke shouted.
"Get down!" Finn yelled.
Another spear came flying towards me this time, but I ducked down by Jasper, barely dodging it. He turned his head to look at me and tried to mouth some words, yet nothing came out. I covered his mouth, shaking my head, then looked back across the river. Clarke, Finn, and Monty were all crouched behind the outcrop, looking between the two banks.
"He's still alive!" I shouted.
I rubbed Jasper's cheek with my thumb, but then stood up. I picked up the spear that had been thrown at me and walked out onto the bank.
"Come on, you assholes! You could attack a defenseless kid, now come at me!" I screamed.
"What the hell are you doing, Octavia?" Clarke snapped.
"I can't get Jasper across by myself," I said quieter in hopes that only she would hear me.
Another spear was thrown at me, but I jumped to the side and dodged it. "Fuckers! What did we do to you?" I yelled.
Thankfully, it seemed that Clarke had gotten my message, so I kept baiting the Grounders towards me. Several more spears were thrown in my direction, but I either dodged them or knocked them away, in one lucky chance. By the time that the Grounders gave up on trying to hit me, the rest of the group had gotten Jasper back across, but that did not mean that I was lacking in injuries. I had taken a number of close scraps which included a wound to my shoulder and another to my thigh.
If Finn had not come back for me, I was not sure that I would have survived. He carried me across the river and took me to a cave where the others were gathered. As soon as I saw Clarke again, I gave a sigh of relief because I knew that she had survived to the end of the series and let the blackness that had been threatening me claim my mind.