Rise

Chapter Fifteen: It Begins

Matt awoke in a cold sweat, the heat from the jungle gone the instant his eyes opened. Pushing back the covers, he rose from the strange bed, not knowing how he arrived there. He rubbed his eyes, a feeble attempt to bring himself from his haze. 

With his legs resting over the edge of the bed, and his naked feet against the cool earth, Matt held his head in his hands, trying to remember. Images came back in fuzzy spurts, bringing Matt back to the graveyard, then his flight through the jungle, and then Emma's face as the recollection ended. The boy nodded softly, remembering how he had passed out. A moment later he shook himself violently - a more direct attempt to wake himself up - when he realized that he had to join up that morning. 

Rising from the bed, Matt's thighs burned, the trek through the plains catching up with him. He hoped it would go away as he stretched them out, having a feeling basic training wasn't going to be easy.

The tent walls rippled as a wind ripped throughout the camp, Matt's first clue showing him he was not in a building. Sharpen up, Matt chided himself, still trying to break the haze his mind was in. 

Matt slid into his boots and began to make his way out of the tent, only noticing the second cot when his legs brushed against the linens covering the worn mattress. Emma's already out. Shit. How could she let me sleep in? 

Set into a panic, Matt burst through the entrance flaps, nearly trampling Emma as he did so. It seemed she had not abandoned him after all. A smile appeared on her face at the sight of him, and she wrapped him in a tight embrace, causing them both to stumble sideways. 

"I wasn't sure whether you were going to wake back up," she murmured, her lips quite close to Matt's ear. The closeness startled Matt at first, but his stiff body loosened moments later, the hug very welcome. 

"I'm fine," he grunted, not entirely sure of it himself. 

"You sure?"

"Yes," he lied.

"Good," Emma said, releasing him from her arms. "The doctor here said all we could do was wait. Said there was nothing wrong, you just seemed to be sleeping, though you were slick with sweat. He wanted to keep you in his ward, but I knew you'd be more comfortable sleeping near me and Flint. It wasn't hard to persuade him, their beds are already quite full. Come on, we're -"

"A week? What?" Matt bumbled, trying to articulate his confusion. "How long was I out?"

"Just one night, don't worry,"

Matt sighed in relief, before moving on to his next concern. "Anything else wrong with me?"

"The doctor took your temperature and there was no fever . . . so, no. I don’t think so."

"Good," Matt sighed in relief.

"How do you feel now?"

"Tired, stiff," Matt replied, stretched out his back, "but otherwise, no different."

"Good."

A loud bark filled the silence that had fallen between the two, and both Matt and Emma turned to see Flint barreling towards them, tongue swaying in the air. 

"Where did you get off to?" Emma asked playfully as Flint leapt onto Matt, licking his face. He barked twice in response before continuing Matt's facial. 

"Alright, alright, it was just one night!" Matt said laughing. 

After a few more generous licks, Flint got down off of Matt, curling up on his feet. 

A violent wind picked up through the camp, rattling the many tents and sending dust and sand hurtling around everyone. The particles beat themselves against the brilliant metal of the buildings of Foundation like a golden hailstorm, blocking out the clear blue sky above. Couldn't have asked for better weather, Matt thought, his mind remembering the plan for the day.