infamous

7 - the river

we all walk, silently, through the thick woods, few words spoken, but we're making good time.

its gotten colder, damper and more miserable, which is a worry, because im sure that clarke plan is to swim, but she says "we'll sort it when we get there".

we're close, and i walk with X, at the back of the pack.

"im telling you, we do it soon" he says. he thinks we burn the map, but we can see the mountain if we climb the trees.

"the trees, it'll do nothing. trust me, when we get there, ill sort it out" i reply.

"from these books you've read, or have we stopped lying to each other" he asks, as i stop walking.

"how the fuck else would i know?" i ask him, as he stops too.

"i can fight, i can fight good, but in the dark, the fuck was that? books?" he says, and i shake my head.

"i didnt say i learnt that from books" i reply.

"guys, keep up" jasper says, as clark and finn run towards something.

we catch up, seeing clarke, finn and octavia running towards a clearing. in the middle, sits a big motorhome, rusted and decaying.

"what is that?" bec asks, and everyone else knows, but her. they all learned it in school, but i learnt it myself. somehow she didnt go to school either.

"no clue" X replies, and i know his past, and that he didnt go either.

"they drove them on the roads. like a house on wheels" i say to them, as the rest of the group inspects the clearing.

about 40 feet wide and long, just ankle height grass, with a few big shrubs and bushes.

"i say we sleep here tonight" clarke says, trying to open it up.

"cant waste 6 hours of daylight, the sooner we get there the better" finn says, and although we're at each other, he's right.

"better than sleeping in the trees" she replies.

"he's right, gotta keep moving" i say to her.

-

we've reached the river, at sunset. the sun is an amazing orange, beginning to darken into dusk.

the river is lined with earth, but all one flat rock, on each side. the 30 feet of rock will house our camp for the night, and monty, jasper and octavia are out looking for firewood.

bec and X fill up drink bottles. clarke and finn drink from the water, as i sit, on the forest edge, against a tree.

i still can't believe all of this. we made it. im off of the arc, escaped my death sentence. im in my element, with a handgun already. im the prime example of someone to lead the 100 children , to teach them, to make the right decisions.

but thats not me. im not a leader. i work alone, and having control or leadership doesnt phase me.

the river flows rapidly, sending clear water gushing past us, and it looks deep, dangerous and deadly. we've all swum on the arc, when we were children, but not much at all.

we have a plan to cross, using wood as floats to basically float until we end up on the otherside.

but not tonight, its way too cold.

finn, scooping a hand into the water, suddenly shifts. the rock underneath him crumbling into the flowing water, as clarke yells his name. he plunges into the rushing water.

X yells profanity, as bec just watches in horror.

i run, from the tree, bounding in stride, heaving off my hoodie and shirt, the pistol going with it into the heap, as i run and leap into the water. not a hero leap and dive, more of a flailing splash.