Traversed

"Ouch that hurt!" "Oops?"

Video of Athena to side. Sorry about the long wait for this chapter. I have been super busy and just got back from vacation. Anyways i better stop talking and let you read. Enjoy!

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Wow, why is it so bright? It feels like the sun is shining directly in my eyes but I don't see anything. I can hear and feel the presence of other people with me but I don't seem to have the strength to open my eyes. Hmmmm, how strange. I flinch when I hear an unexpected clatter right next to me. "Alex, stop making so much noise she needs to relax!" At first the voice is hazy but after a minute or so I recognize the voice as Lennon's. I feel something touch my cheek and realize someone is poking my face. I take this as an opportunity to speak "Dude I'm not some science experiment stop poking me."

"It is alive!" Alex claims in a strange tone I've never heard of before. I've only known Alex for a day but I feel like I can trust him for some reason. I know that he will be a great friend to me. There is just something about him that is so familiar to me. He reminds me of something. I guess I will just have to figure it out. I use all of my will power to open my eyes. At first I can't see that well because of the lighting but my eyes quickly adjust. I look at the room I'm in and feel kind of strange. The room is very earthy and....... Brown. The roof is solid dirt that seems to stick together. It's almost crusty. The walls around us are the same brown and crusty dirt with the exception of tree roots sticking out here and there. The floor is like what a dirt road would be made of, but everything is stable and solid. Quite frankly I need to stop waking up in strange places. This is the second time I have woken up in a weird place. I try to get up but there is a pounding in my head that makes me hesitate. "Ouch!" I whimper and immediately my hand fly's up to where my head hurts. I let my head settle a little and then look up to Alex to see him smirking at my pain. I give Lennon a questioning look and she shrugs. "Where am I and why does it feel like someone bashed my head into a rock?" Lennon and Alex look at each other as if they are having a silent conversation. Alex looks at me and then sighs." What do remember last?" I think about it and can't clearly discern what happened last. "I don't really know. I remember being attacked by the guards and the running into the woods to hide can register little parts after that; like being carried through the woods but those are like blotches memories. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well when you were running away from the city, one of the guards shot your leg. You were running with an injured leg and it gave out when you tripped over a log. When you fell you hit your head on a huge rock with a sharp edge. You had a huge gash on the back of your head and lost a lot of blood. Ezra ended up carrying you here."

"Exactly where is 'here'?"

"Listen Athena, I have something really important to ask you." I had a feeling that this question and whatever Alex says will change my life forever. I don't know if it will be for the better or worse but I'm about to find out. I nudge him on. He takes a deep breath as if he was going to ask the most serious question ever. "How do you feel about the government? I want you to answer me honestly." I look at him but feel like I'm stuck in a trance. I stare at him and he doesn't know how much his question hurts, how angry and upset it makes me feel. I look straight into his concerned eyes as I blink back tears and contort my face." I hate them. I absolutely hate them." His face softens at my answer. "Are you okay Athena?" No, I'm not just thinking about the government turns my stomach. They are the reason the only person I have is Lennon. They are the reason my mom is dead. They are the reason my little brother is dead. My face becomes hard and emotionless. "Yes I am fine. So will you tell me why that is so important?" He looks at me unconvinced and then hesitantly continues talking. "Well, me and Ezra are a part of a rebellion against the government. Everyone in the rebellion is either a part of a family that remembers the old world or hates the government for a personal reason. Athena can you tell me who your mom is?