"'We've got to have rules and obey them. After all, we're not savages." - William Golding, Lord of the flies
Valery immediately looked in her mother's book. The book had been past from generation to generation since the bombs. Valery's great-great-grandmother knew that one day, her legacy would return to earth. Valery has been reading it since she was 14, and a lot of things were written in it that could help. How to set up a trap, make fire, which herbs you can eat or not and if they have any medical powers, but also how to use tarot cards and rune stones to predict the future or to answer questions. Again, females from Valery's bloodline all had those "powers", although Valery used them more to get what she wants and simply made up a story. But her intuition is very strong.
She was mumbling to herself when suddenly someone sat down next to her. "What are you doing?" It was Jasper. "Hey, uhm, nothing, just reading a bit. I thought it might be useful to set up a trap, maybe I can catch something... but if you have another idea, we can do that." Jasper was nodding slowly. "And you know how to do that?" Jasper asked. Valery shrugged. "I mean, we had Earth skills class from Pike, I didn't see you there?" Valery looked at her feet. "Solitary, Jas," she sighed, "I had heard about it from a guardsman." Valery smiled and held her book up in the air. "This is my earth skills class."
"I really wished I could visit you, you know, Monty as well... You were a good friend and I know you also didn't want to see people, especially your dad and Bellamy, you two were very-" Valery cut him off. "- I know, but I broke up with him before going to the Prison Box, so I had already expected he wouldn't come." Jasper coughed. "He's here as well." Valery shrugged. "I know. I heard him," Valery said grimly, "as usual." Monty came to their direction and started to talk with Jasper. Valery stood up and walked towards Wells and Clarke who were standing above a map. Clarke told Valery about Mount Weather and what would be a good passage to go there. Also, the radio was broken so there was no way to communicate with the Ark. Jasper interrupted. "Cool a map! They got a bar in this town? I'll buy you a beer.' He said to Clarke. Wells grabbed him by the arm and pushed him back ."You mind?"
"Hey, hey, hey. Hands of him. He's with us." It was John Murphy, followed by a group of guys. "Relax, Murphy." Valery mumbled quietly. "Clarke and I are just figuring out where we are and where we need to go to." Wells said to Murphy. "On the ground. That not good enough for you?" It was the familiar voice, and Valery felt sick when she looked to the person who said it: Bellamy. Their eyes met for a split second, and he looked away immediately. "We need to find Mount Weather," Wells started, "you heard my father's message. That is our first priority." Octavia stood down next to Valery, it was nice to see her again, she had always been a sweet little girl that loved Valery's stories, but Valery's eyes widened when she opened her mouth. "Screw your father. What? You think you're in charge here? You and your little princess?"
Clarke sighed. "Do you think we care who's in charge? We need to get to Mount Weather. Not because the Chancellor said so, because the longer we wait, the hungrier we'll get and the harder this'll be. How long do you think we'll last out here without supplies? We're looking at a 20 mile track ,okay? So if we wanna get there before dark, we need to leave." Valery nodded in agreement. "You three can go. Find it for us. Let the privileged do the hard work for a change." Everyone shouted a "yeah". Valery was starting to lose her patience. "You are not listening! We all need to go." Wells said. He got pushed by Murphy. "Look at this everybody. It's the chancellor of Earth."
"You think that's funny?" Wells asked, but Murphy tackled him. Clarke and Valery tried to help him, but they got grabbed by the arms. Valery stepped on his foot and elbowed him. He let her go and she stood down between them. "He's got one leg, Murphy," Valery started nervously, already regretting for interfering. "don't do this!" Out of the blue, Finn jumped right in front of Valery. "Val's right, how about you wait until it's a fair fight?" He said. Murphy looked from Finn to Valery and walked away. "Hey Spacewalker," Octavia said, "rescue me next." Severe people were laughing but Valery was all but in a funny mood.
Clarke, Wells and Valery was sitting together and Finn walked up to them. "So, Mount Weather? When do we leave?" Valery looked up. "Now." Finn smiled at her. "Isn't it better for you to stay here, these guys might learn something." Valery smiled sarcastically at him. "They are all very smart, they can figure it out by themselves. Besides, we'll be back tomorrow with food." Wells looked to Valery. "How are you going to carry food for 100 people?" Valery frowned. "I am stronger than I look." Wells gave her a look, but Finn had already grabbed Monty and Jasper by their necks. "Five of us." Octavia walked up to them. "Sounds like a party, make it six!" Valery smiled faintly at Octavia but looked to the other way when Bellamy approached. "Hey, what the hell are you doing?" Valery turned her back to the people and stared at the map, not listening to them.
"Where the hell did I end up..." She thought to herself. She heard Clarke saying something about the wristband. "If you take it off, they'll think we're dead. And we got send here to check if Earths okay to inhabit. Taking it off will make them think we're dying, so don't. They send us here for a reason, they might want to follow us." Finn grinned. "What makes you think that?" Finn asked. "Clarke's just right." She mumbled quietly. They were off to Mount Weather and Valery stood up and followed them. Suddenly, someone grabbed her hand. "I didn't know you were here! It's so good to see you!" Octavia said all excited. Valery raised her eyebrows, very much surprised. "You guys didn't sound like it." Valery said coolly. Octavia looked at her feet. "I am sorry... I did miss you though. I have been locked up since they caught me, and of course since I was born and I had no one to talk to. It just feels so good that there are not any rules and that I can say what I want!"
Valery smiled faintly. "Well, okay. But just keep some stuff in front of you, alright," Valery whispered sharply, "and you might live a little longer." Octavia smiled. "Alright." They walked further on and suddenly Valery stopped Clarke. "What?" Clarke whispered. Valery smiled and pointed ahead of her. Clarke started to smile broadly. The rest was a bit behind and Clarke signed them to come and be quiet. A young stag was grazing, and it was one of the nicest things Valery had seen. Finn tried to come close but he stepped on a branch. The stag turned his head and they all gasped. "That I won't forget easily." Valery said indifferently when the sight of the two headed stag got branded on her retina.
They were talking about why they would possible send us here, and Clarke was just looking at her feet. Valery knew there was only one possible explanation. "Maybe they have hope. Something can be wrong with the Ark." Everyone stopped and Clarke looked at Valery as if she had seen water burning in flames. "She's right... The Ark is dying," Clarke quickly said, "with the current population, there's three months left of life support." Finn walked up to Clarke. "So that's the reason they locked you up? Why they kept you in solitary, floated your old man?" Clarke nodded and told them the story. "What about you Val?" She heard after a while. Val took a deep breathe. "I was trading illegal supplies for people who needed them. I used my fortune telling techniques to lie against the people I didn't trust in order to get them. Murphy was sick right? I gave his father the medicine he needed to save Murphy. I hid Monty's and Jasper's plants and I traded Moonshine with the guards, so they wouldn't say anything. I was also the eyes and ears of the Ark. My father told me to tell everything, but I never snitched," Valery said and Monty and Jasper nodded in agreement. She continued, "Until I got caught someone turned me in. And even in solitary some people even dared to come for me to ask things, things I could not answer. I pretended to still be quite dangerous, in the hope not to get a trial, and go to the medical centre... but then I got here."
The five of them were staring at Valery. "So, that was you?" Finn asked. "The cartwheeling and singing girl was like the Ark's fairy godmother?" Valery shrugged shily and nodded slowly. "Awesome!" Octavia made a weird sound. "Well, they got some more time. But what they did to me, may let them float!" Valery frowned. "Exactly.You know nothing, you lived for 16 years in a box..." Valery thought to herself.
"Damn... I love Earth." Jasper said dreamily. Valery followed his stares and saw Octavia getting out of her clothes and she jumped into the water. Octavia jumped into the water and Jasper looked from head to toe to Valery. "I am not gonna do that, there are also animals that live under water. " Octavia laughed. "Huh? Valery, are YOU scared?" Valery shook her head and thought about the story of the Loch Ness monster and alligators. She narrowed her eyes and saw something in the water, but she couldn't see what it was, until it came closer. "Well, I just don't wanna face that-" she said and she pointed to the water. It was approaching fast, a creature under water and the rest saw it too. "Get out of the water!" Jasper yelled to Octavia. Octavia got yanked under water and she was nowhere to be seen, until they heard a scream. They rolled a rock in the water to distract the animal and it worked.
"Octavia! Swim to the shore now!" Jasper yelled panicky and he jumped in the water. "Jasper what the hell?! Get out!" Valery yelled. The creature was rapidly swimming to Jasper and Octavia, who just climbed up a rock. Valery lifted a big rock and dropped it. It hit the creature, and it swum away. Octavia's leg was bleeding, and Clarke took care of it. Octavia hugged Jasper, repeatedly saying thank you. Octavia looked up to Valery, shocked. "You couldn't say there might be animals in the water as well, before I jumped in?!" Valery looked at her and shrugged. "Do you think I have a third eye? We don't know anything! You can't just do everything in here! Earth can be dangerous, there can be dangerous animals who survived. The stag we saw was born with radiation in his blood, animals and even humans can be born deformed."
Everyone was staring at her. "History class guys! Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan?" They all shrugged and Valery shook her head in disbelief. Monty broke the silence. "Note to self: next time save the girl." And they laughed nervously. Valery looked up to the sky. "Hey Clarke..." Valery started nervously. "Eh, it's getting dark soon... We could make a camp, maybe." Clarke nodded and she grabbed Valery's arm. "You can speak up your mind with us," she looked at Valery, "please do. I think you know a lot more than us." Valery smiled and nodded.
"Guys, Valery knows what to do." Clarke said and Valery looked with big eyes at her. "Uhm, yes," she said quickly, "we should collect wood. Dry wood, but not that dry. Not soaked either. I can make a fire..." The rest nodded in agreement and Valery started to make a fire. She was rolling a branch between her hand. "Hey Pike told us that-" Octavia smiled, "why are you moving your hands downwards?" Valery looked at Octavia. "Because, it will start burning faster, pressing the branch in the wood- see." A little flame appeared and proudly Valery looked at it. They all fell down in a deep sleep pretty quickly.
The next morning they went off, but faced a river. Finn got a great idea to use a kind of liana. "It's like the Indians right?" Valery smiled, thinking about The Jungle book, a story her mom used to tell her. It was taking a long time, and Valery would like to grab the liana and make the first thing herself, but Jasper was already taking it. "Let me do it." Finn smacked him on the back ."I knew there was a badass in there." Jasper smiled and he swung. He fell down pretty hard, but he was okay. Clarke wanted next and Jasper started yelling, holding up a big board. "Mount Weather! We did it!" Suddenly something flew above Valery's head and Jasper got swung against a tree. "Jasper!" They yelled. "Oh my...." Valery whispered as she held her shaking hand in front of her mouth, looking at the spear that had pierced Jasper. "We have to help him!" Valery said and stood up, but Finn hold her back. "No!" They heard sounds of rustling leafs and Clarke said what they all were thinking. "We are not alone."