Pleuvoir | Eric Coulter

Apat

K a r o l i i n a

I was falling.

As much as I wanted to express my fear by shouting, my mouth wouldn't let me. It was snapped shut like it was glued with cement. I felt my arms wave wildly as I fell from the roof, air whizzing past me.

My vision was blurry, all I could make out were vague images of big, black stones. The air was knocked out of my chest, funnily enough. I thought I would've already gotten used to jumping to places.

Suddenly in my midst of falling, I came across a soft, stretchable, elastic object. My whole body bounced up like a ball being hit, and it took me a moment to realise that I just hit a net.

A flipping net.

A nervous, disbelieving laugh bubbled from my lips. All this time, I thought a thin bit of foam was waiting for me at the bottom—maybe even nothing. After all the things I did to reach Dauntless, I didn't know what to expect anymore.

"Name?"

I coughed, still exhilarated from my fall, "W-What?"

"I asked what your name was, initiate." The man in front of me said, brown eyes rolling,  "Is that too hard for you to comprehend?"

I racked my blank brain for an answer, "I-uh..."

"Hurry up, Abnegation." He snapped yet again, displeasure showing in his features, "Before the next jumper lands on you."

"Karoliina," I blurted, scared by his announcement, and dragged myself out of the net blindly, "I-I'm Karoliina."

"Eight jumper, Karoliina!"

Hands settled themselves on my waist as I heard some claps and cheers on the side. I felt my body being lifted by the man whose name I still do not know. Warmth seeped on the spot where the man held me.

"Go stand with the others."

I hastily nodded, slipping out of the man's arms and scurrying to the side where the rest of the initiates were waiting. Heat blossomed in my cheeks, feeling the curious glances from the Dauntless members who were littered around.

An Abnegation in Dauntless?

I kept my head down, not liking their attention. It felt like I was a prey, and they were the predator. I hated it. I hated attention.

Maybe choosing Dauntless wasn't the right decision after all.

∞

"For those of you who don't know, my name is Four."

I lifted my head up, just enough to see the brown-eyed man a while ago. He had his mouth formed in a tight line, jaw rigid with tension. His eyes were also narrowed, scanning our faces.

His name was Four?

"Follow me," He turned and went ahead without looking back.

"Hurry up," He barked when no one did as he told.

Quickly, we followed Four as to not anger him even more. I stayed behind the group, playing with the seams of my dress. I felt a bit lost with my clothing. Everywhere I looked, it was black, black and even more black. It was like something was deliberately telling me that I didn't belong.

"This is the Pit, centre of life here in Dauntless."

My thoughts dissolved when I gazed at what Four was talking about. In front of me was exactly like the name Four uttered—it was a pit.

There were Dauntless members everywhere, talking and chatting loudly. Some were Dauntless kids, playing around with carefree smiles on their faces. The Pit was huge, and it took a circular form. Its walls were big, unpolished boulders, edges threatening to pierce into your skin if you weren't careful. I could also see metal stairs planted on the walls, some occupied by people.

My eyes narrowed suddenly, seeing a familiar man leaning on one of the railings.

Wasn't he the one who administered my test?

At my silent question, the man turned his head in my direction, sensing me looking at him. I slowly stepped back when he started descending the stairs and into where we were standing.

"Four," He called when he was near, "Mind introducing me to the new initiates?"

I gulped, moving behind a tall Erudite. My heart was thudding fast, nervous of being seen by the strict looking man.

"This is Eric," Four stated, voice blank of emotion, "He's a leader here in Dauntless."

"I heard he got the position when he was eighteen," The Erudite before me muttered, "How cool is that?"

Leader at eighteen? Was that even allowed?

"Alright, let's go." Four said, moving back and walking towards two black entrance doors. I immediately followed, eager to get away from the man on the side who was watching us like a hawk. I kept my place behind the tall Erudite, using his form as a shield.

The Erudite abruptly ran towards a Candor girl.

I stilled, horrified that no one was blocking me anymore. When I felt a prickling on my skin, I knew he had seen me. The gaze was too powerful for it be not his.

Slowly, I lifted my head and stared back at Eric. I thought he would come near and taunt me about choosing the wrong faction, taunt me that I'm not going to survive here. Instead, he did the exact opposite.

He looked into my eyes with a dead expression, and then walked away without uttering a word.