Elysian // J. Murphy

-chapter one-

-a year and two months later-

Victoria and Murphy lay on the floor, watching as the chalk in Vic's hand stains the concrete. She draws a scene of how she believes the middle of a forest would look. Towering trees, rapid flowing river underneath an enormous waterfall, grass growing wildly around the stream, an overall gorgeous view. Guards unlock and open the door that leads into Murphy and Victoria's cell. The teenagers stand up.

"Prisoner one-two-seven, please face the wall with your hands behind your back." John does as the guard's command and gives Vic a look to keep her mouth shut.

"Prisoner one-six-four, please face the wall with your hands behind your back." Another guard demands, catching the attention of Murphy.

"She's not eighteen. What are you doing?" He pulls against the guard's grip.

"Murphy, stop. It's fine. Just listen to them, please." She looks into his piercing blue eyes for what feels like the last time. John is taken out of the cell, forced to remove his gaze from her. Victoria follows closely behind. She looks around at everything going on. All the delinquents from floor one to three are being escorted out of their cells and led all in the same direction.

What the actual hell is going on?

Victoria didn't notice she stopped walking until a guard shoves her forward roughly. She stumbles over her feet, but corrects her stride and continues to be shoved by the guard. She finds the back of Murphy's head before he turns a corner with multiple other prisoners. The guard guides her in the same direction which eventually leads them over to an escape capsule. The guard at the door stops her.

"Hold out your right arm." She does as she's told and watches as a thick, silver band is clasped around her wrist. Multiple needles prick her skin. "Name?"

"Victoria Martin." The guard opens her profile on the tablet in his hand. He checks her off and motions for the other officer to bring her in the ship. Her heart rate increases when she's buckled into a seat, unable to escape it. Looking around at all the teenagers, she's only in search of one face.

Murphy immediately starts looking around when he gets seated in the exodus ship.

Where is she? What if they floated her instead of putting her in here?

His breathing becomes rapid while all the scenarios play out in his head. The ship detaches from the Ark, jerking everyone's body forward only to be caught by the seatbelts. Murphy leans his head against the seat, clenching his jaw and welding his eyes closed.

Vic's nearly nail ridden fingers clench around the armrest as the ship hurdles away from The Ark at a meteoric pace.

Where the hell are we going?

The Exodus ship's temperature increases as they enter Earth's atmosphere. Monitors placed all around the three levels of the capsule light up with Chancellor Jaha's face.

"Prisoners of the Ark, hear me now. You've been given a second chance, and as your Chancellor, it is my hope that you see this as not just a chance for you, but a chance for all of us, indeed for mankind itself. We have no idea what is waiting for you down there. If the odds of survival were better, we would've sent others. Frankly, we're sending you because your crimes have made you expendable." Vic internally screams in anger at the man telling her she's nothing but a science experiment. Her hands ache in pain like an elderly person's joints. She loosens the grip on the armrests in order to soothe the cramping sensation.

Murphy watches as Finn Collins exits his seat after picking at the lock like his life depended on it. He floats up to a higher level and earns multiple cheers from other teenagers. John begins to pick the lock on his seatbelt, but halfway there the entire hunk of metal whips, causing multiple sounds to erupt until all noise ceases completely. Murphy's seatbelt unlocks and he immediately jumps up, crossing his arms over his chest and standing at the front, right at the dropship door. There is a lever to open it. However, everyone begins rushing down the ladder in a very disorderly manner. He watches for that one person; prisoner one-six-four; his cellmate. A brunette jumps from the second stair, catching Murphy's eye until she flips her head to him. It's not her. He sighs when no one else comes down the ladder. He turns and forces himself to the front.