ATARAXIA • BELLAMY BLAKE

[ 0 5 ]

"You wanted to go first, now quit stalling. Mount Weather awaits," Clarke says to Finn impatiently. He and Jasper are standing atop a big rock, Finn pulling down on a vine a few times in preparation.

We have been searching for an alternative way to cross the stream all morning. There was no chance in hell any of us would be going back into that water, no matter how shallow. The vine seems strong enough to carry our weight. Or so we hope. There's really only one way to find out.

"Just hang on until the apogee and you'll be fine," advises Jasper.

"The apogee, like the Indians, right?" asks Finn. Jasper's face falls slightly at his words, and I hold back a smirk. "Apogee, not Apache," corrects Jasper.

"He knows," remarks Clarke. "Today, Finn."

"Aye, aye, captain." Finn smiles cockily before turning to Jasper when he says his name.

Octavia can't stand still next to me. She's leaning on me for support. "What's up? Is it your leg?" I glance her way.

"It's just...how am I supposed to stick the landing?"

I pause. "Uh..." I take a look around me for some other way to cross stream, but find nothing. It had taken a long time even to find the vine to begin with. "We'll figure something out."

I look back at the boys who are now exchanging a few hushed words that go unheard by the rest of us. Finn hands over the vine for Jasper to jump first, and he accepts it with a nervous glance in Octavia's direction. Then he hesitates. Several moments pass and nothing happens.

This prompts me to clap my hands together, cheering, "All right, go Jasper!"

He smiles gratefully, and I send him an encouraging thumbs up as he readjusts his grip on the vine. "See you on the other side."

Finn snickers at his words from behind him, and Jasper visibly takes in a deep breath. He jumps onto the vine, yelling out excited screams. He then lets go at the apogee, just as he had told Finn. I grimace at the way he clumsily lands on the rocks.

Finn manages to catch the vine once it comes flying back towards him while the rest of us make our way to the rock, Octavia with the help of me, and we watch Jasper as he gets to his feet at the other side of the water.

"We are apogee!" he screams, and the rest of us throw our hands in the air, yelling with him in victory.

Jasper is jumping up and down on the ground excitedly when Finn hands over the vine for Clarke to use next. I keep my attention set on Jasper, who goes towards the tree line. He bends over and lifts something up from the grass. It's a big, battered sign that reads Mount Weather.

"We did it! Mount Weather!"

Beside me, Octavia lets out a sigh of relief and throws her head back. I squeeze my arm around her shoulder. But then Jasper's cheering comes to a sudden halt when his entire body flies backwards and lands harshly against a tree, a spear now imbedded in his chest.

The shock of the sight forces me a few steps backwards, pulling Octavia along. "Jasper!" someone yells. I'm quick to scan our surroundings for where the spear had come from and who had thrown it while I make sure to help Octavia to safety behind a big rock. I see no sign of anyone but Jasper on the other side of the stream.

"Get down!" Finn grabs the sleeve of my sweater and pulls me down to the others.

"We're not alone." says Clarke.

I peek a head over the rock to check if Jasper's alive, but Octavia is quick to pull me back down, shaking her head at me wordlessly. We stay like that for a few minutes in silence, shielded by the rocks, waiting to see if whoever had thrown that spear would make another move.