“Get up.” Dani’s raspy voice woke me from my scattered sleep.
My body ached from sleeping on the hard surface, but I moved quickly to please the woman. Swinging my legs over the edge, I hopped down and followed her, though I didn’t have a choice in the matter, as her hand had a firm grasp over my arm. She brought my out of the ward, and down a worn down hallway, all grey and mossy; clearly they didn’t care much for interior design, but rather a safe place to keep people like the hundred out.
She brought me outside, where I had to raise my free arm to cover my eyes; the sunlight was blinding after what felt like two days in the dark, torch lit ward. Once my pupils had adjusted, constricting to allow less light in, I was able to see. Upon first glance, the forest looked empty, but as I continued my scan, I could see three men coming towards me; the one in the middle shockingly recognizable.
“Murphy…” I gaped; we had exiled him weeks ago when he tried to kill Charlotte (for good reason, though).
One eye was large, puffed up and he couldn’t see through it. The other was bloodied within; a vessel popped. His face was caked with dirt and blood alike, much of it dark and dried, though some of it fresh. He limped, using the Grounders at his side as support, though it was clear to see that he was both disgusted by them as well as fearful of them. His eyes met with mine and I could see so many emotions despite the blood; hatred, fear, hope, surprise…
“Avarice…” He croaked.
I went to rush to him, but Dani still had a grip on me.
“I wouldn’t go near him.” She growled, “He is very ill.”
I could see that, well enough. Blood had dribbled down from the corner of his lips.
“What the hell have you done to him?!” I growled.
“You let him go, he was fair game.”
“This is a game to you?!” I shouted, “We are people, human beings with emotions and feelings, we are capable of understanding that we invaded your land, we will leave if you just let us go!”
“Oh we know that you can feel.” She grinned, “This one showed us just how much pain you can tolerate.”
“You’ve been torturing him…” My breath felt shallow. Was I next to be subjected to this pain?
“Tie her up.” Dani called and the two men dropped Murphy, who fell weakly to his knees. They grabbed me, and I wriggled in their grasp, hoping to slip away and the plan after that was just to run. I twisted my neck and plunged my teeth down into the man’s gloved hand; I could taste the metallic taste of the iron in his blood as it filled my mouth. He yanked his hand back, releasing me for a moment. The other guard still had his arm around me, so I kicked him in the knee; he buckled under the sudden attack and I was freed.
I had no chance to save Murphy, and in all honesty, it was fair game out here. It was my life on the line and I had to escape before I ended up looking like him. It was adrenaline that coursed through me, not guilt just yet. My feet fell hard underneath me, and the memory of running from Grounders last time filled my mind. When I glanced back, I realized that running was folly and was only going to result in more harm to me; they were on horses.
They gained on me in mere moments and a bulky arm reached down and scooped me up, throwing me over the horse. They came to a startling halt and I nearly fell off. The man adjusted me, wrapping his arm around my stomach to hold me there. We rode back hastily and I was tossed to the dirt. My hands clenched the ground as I winced, holding back the desperate cry; no one was around to hear me.
My hands were tied behind my back, and they placed me so that I was facing Murphy. His eyes filled with terror, more than I had previously seen; he knew what was coming while I was completely new to this. My imagination, however, was able to fill in the blanks.
At first, I had expected a beating, for trying to run away. Instead, Anya walked around us in a vicious circle like a lion around a herd of wildebeests, feeling out the prey before she attacked. She walked behind Murphy and pulled a curved blade out from a sheath, one edge sharpened and the other with ridged serrated points like shark teeth; once that blade went in, it wasn’t coming out without doing more damage.
“For every lie you give me, he loses an extremity.” She told me.
I quivered slightly, nodding in obedience.
“How many are there?”
“We came as a hundred.” I said, my voice shaking, but trying to sound as honest as possible. “Two died on the landing, many more have died since. I think there are… ninety something left?”
She nodded, pleased with that answer.
“Why were you sent here?” She asked, curious and untrusting.
I wondered if I should tell her that we were all criminals, petty or not.
“Answer me.” She demanded, grabbing Murphy’s hand and lifting it above his head, holding her blade tightly against the joint of his pinky finger. Blood dribbled down and I realized how sharp the blade truly was. Murphy whimpered slightly.
“W-we were sent down to see if it was survivable; they thought the radiation had killed everything, and we were an experiment, sent to see if Earth could sustain us!”
“Why you?” She asked.
“We were those who committed crimes; those not worth giving a second chance as they thought Earth would be a definite death sentence.” I felt the tears stinging in my eyes as I stared across at Murphy.
“Earth has kept us all alive for a century since the extermination.” She snickered, “If you’re going to lie, at least make it believable.”
He blade began to break more skin, bone, cartilage, muscle…
Murphy’s pained scream sent birds from the trees into a panicked soar.
Alright, so I am going to say this now; I have a few chapters lined up to be in this setting. For one, it allows me to develop Ava in other circumstances, around other people, and to put some strain on her relationship with Bellamy. The Grounders add so much to The 100, so I'm enjoying having them in here. I do have one question for you though; Since Bellamy gets around quite a bit, would you as readers like to see some interaction with Ava and a Grounder, or no? (It may sway my original plan, but I want to hear from you readers!)