The Ground
"Prisoner 210! Against the wall" A strong voice infiltrated my serene mind, disturbing my meditation.
I calmly open my eyes, and a familiar face greeted me. "Jason? What is this? Mealtime isn't for another hour, and I still have 4 months until I'm of age."
Jason turns to his partner and gives a silent order to step out of my cell.
"Look, Tanemahuta. Stuff is happening. But they're sending you and the other prisoners to the ground. Pack what you want and put it in this bag. It'll be under your seat when you land. You have 60 seconds," Said Jason.
I didn't ask any questions. Jason was always straight with me. It's why he became the closest thing I had to a friend on this damned ark. Besides, I was finally given a ticket out of space. To Earth, everyone's dream.
I raise from the floor, and Jason throws me a pack. Under my bed were four, twelve inches by twelve-inch books. Bound in old leather with Maori writing upon the cover. They were left to me after the death of my tupuna. The council at the time deemed the books of no value And allowed me to keep them. Then I grab the only remaining photo of my grandfather, mother, and me.
I turn to Jason and give him a stern nodded. He then reaches into a box and pulls out a metal bracelet. "Hold out your right hand," he says.
Before I knew it, the thin needles on the inside of the bracelet penetrated my wrist with a sharp but brief sting. I was then led to a ship where other juvenile prisoners around my age. It was odd. To finally see people around my age. There were even some children I had known ten years ago, before my incarceration. But no matter what the situation was, I was happy to see more than just Jason and his partner's face.
As I found my seat, I felt the eyes of my fellow prisoners looking at me. I really couldn't blame them. My long dark wavey hair fell to the middle of my back. It was thick and untamed. My eyes are hazel with golden flecks. I stood at 6'3" with olive-brown skin and a physique built like a warrior.
When I finally took my seat and buckled up. Jason put my pack in straps beneath my chair. I closed my eyes once again. Because if we didn't die on the way down. The earth just might kill us.
Boom! The ship was undocked and launched into space. The sheer force shook the ship, and it vibrated through my body. It had not been 5 minutes yet when a man with dark skin and dark hair appeared on the screens hung throughout the ship.
I toned him out. No matter what he said, these kids had no idea we were on our own from this point on. It had been nearly one hundred years since humans had walked on earth and breathed in air that was pumped from vents.
After a nuclear apocalypse, humanity lived in space stations just outside of the orbit of the earth. We started with thirteen stations until one of them blew up. After that, the remaining station came together and formed one ark.
They say that Earth shouldn't be survivable for another four generations. So if they were sending a bunch of kids down as lab rats, shit must have hit the fan on the ark.
When the launch ship touched down after a very turbulent entry, an odd silence fell over us. The constant hum of a space ship was no more—just pure silence. I was the first to undo my seat belt and look for the outer door. It didn't take long before I noticed it. When I got there, a young man in a guard's uniform was already preparing to open it.
"The outer door is on the lower level! Let's go!" someone shouted, and the prisoners flocked to the door. Or should I say, people? After all, we're all free now.
The young man smiled and gripped the lever that controlled the door.
"Stop!" A blonde female shouted and pushed her way through the crowd. The moment I saw her face, all I could see was panic. She thought too much, but unlike everyone else, I understood the source of her worry.
"The air could be toxic," She said.
She was right, but regardless, we had no other options. There was no food on the launch ship, and whatever toxicity the air had, it would eventually get into the ship.
"If the air is toxic, we're all dead, anyway," replied the young man. He was already in control, the blonde attempted but failed to find a reply as I watched her lips quiver.
Suddenly another voice interrupts our opening of the door. "Bellamy?" A girl with long dark wavy hair calls out.
The young man in the guard uniform, Bellamy, slowly turns around and stares speechless. The people began to murmur and speak on rumors of the short, dark-haired girl.
"That's the girl who hid under the floor," multiple people said.
I raise my eyebrow and look at the girl, and Bellamy closes the distance between them. 'Young love?' I thought. 'No.'
Bellamy suddenly chuckles and says, "Look how big you've got."
The girl puts her arms over his shoulder and pulls him into a longing hug. They soon separated, and she takes a long look at his guard's uniform.
She pulls at the sleeve and asks, "What the hell are you wearing? A guard's uniform?"
"I borrowed it to get on the dropship," He immediately replies. "Someone has got to keep an eye on you."
The girl happily hugs him again, but their moment is interrupted by the persistent blonde.
"Where's your wrist band?" the blonde asks.
The dark-haired girl snaps her head around. "Do you mind? I haven't seen my brother in a year."
Boom! There it was. That affection I had never seen, so I couldn't identify it. They were siblings. It was a capital offense on the ark to have a second child. It was practically never heard off. And it was, the child never survived to be as old as this girl.
"No one has a brother, " A boy from the crowd calls out.
"That's Octavia Blake. The girl they found hidden in the floor." A girl calls out next.
Octavia gets agitated by their words and attempts to lash out but was held back by her brother. I chuckle to myself. The girl is a real spitfire. It radiates from here. Cooped up for years, she's more than ready to be set free.
Her brother mutters something to her, and they both turn around to face the door. Bellamy reaches out and pulls down on the metallic door lever. The ship depressurizes, and a brief white smoke cloud graces the edges of the door. A few moments later, the door drops, and bright solar light invades the ship. It was blinding and warm. The rays of light had a richness that could be felt once they hit the skin. It took a moment for our eyes to adjust and the beautiful new world to come into focus.
The subtle breeze weaved its way through the group, and many of them took long deep breaths of the fresh sweet air. Octavia slowly stepped forward, and steel breaking anticipation swelled in my body.
She then hopped off the outer door and landed on the ground. With both of her feet firmly planted and in moist brown dirt. I watched her body swell, then she screams, "We're back, bitches!"
Everyone just loses it after that. We jet out of the ship and run free and wild to take in the beauty of the foreign world. I then stop and look around at the young childish faces and regain my composure. I then took off into the woods. Far from the dropship.
X
The ground is beautiful. Everything my grandfather spoke of was nearly true. He spoke of large glass buildings and roads that stretched across the lands. But this world is different. Nature had reclaimed her territory. Trees, flowers, brush, it covered everything as far as the eye could see.
It was enchanting, species of plants never before recorded. Like the people I came to the ground with, I had a fire ignited in me the moment the earth air filled my lungs. That fire stirred me towards exploration.
A few miles away from the landing site, I chance upon a great tree with massive surface roots. The roots grew in a peculiar fashion that created a natural den under the tree. The tree sat on the top of a hill that sloped down into a creek.
I settled in nicely. I then look over the books that my grandfather once gave me. He always believed that we would have to work our way back to modernity once we returned to earth. And so, his first years on his original space station, he created my family legacy in the form of four books in our people's language --Maori.
There was a book on plant species. It was a good reference, but even some of the fungi around me were completely foreign. Though, it was still a good foundation with its wealth of herbalists' knowledge. The next book was on hunting, traps, food preparation, and uses for all of the animal parts. For now, it made more sense than the third book. The contents of the third book were stolen by my grandfather. Each chapter was headed by a set of coordinates followed by pages of inventory.
Finally, the fourth book started with structures and how to build them—anything from a home to a makeshift irrigation system. The second section was about weapons and their crafting processes.
Yeah, my dilemma is real. But at least I'm better off than the others. But based on the fourth book, I would have to back to the dropship, eventually. But I worry that grandfather was right. On the arc, many professions survived humanity's departure from Earth. Biology centered in genomics, and genetics wasn't one of them. My grandfather was the last geneticist as he was the last earthborn human.
He and his father believed that, like us, the people on the ground would be able to survive a high radiation environment. He said the people who were weak would die off, only leaving the strong. This process was called natural selection. Now, if these people would be similar to their human ancestors or unrecognizable creatures, it was to be determined.
To believe that only those on the ark survived a nuclear apocalypse would be foolish, somewhat. Instead, I assumed the worse. So, I ran as fast as I could through the woods. Once I reached the dropship, I salvaged some things to get me started and was about to leave when I saw a familiar face leap from the drop shit into the middle of a scuffle.
"Finn Collins," I muttered.
Though Finn was a friend, I never wanted to see him down here. For if I had, that meant she was left alone. My body went on autopilot. My legs and arms moved on their own accord, drawing me closer and closer to Finn.
"Fff." I didn't want to call for him.
"F- Finn!" I had to know.
"Finn Collins!" I shouted again.
This time everyone's attention was on me.
"Mahuta?" Finn asked with great shock, " I thought you were dead, man."
"Well, here I am." I reply, "Where's Birdy? Shouldn't you be with her and not picking fights?"
"Look, man. I"
"Did something stupid and got locked up. Great." I didn't want to talk, so I walked away.
"Mahuta!" Finn called out, but I ignored him. The longer I looked at him, the more I thought about Birdy being on the ark without us. It wasn't a pleasant thought.
As I left, I only got so far until Bellemy stopped me. He asked what I was carrying wrapped in cloth. I all but told him to fuck off kept walking on.
X
Back at my natural made den, I got to work. I started with the scrap metal I took from the dropship. I then walked down to the little creek and found what my grandfather called a whetstone in his book. Or at least it was the closest thing I could find.
Due to it being scrap from a larger source, it was relatively sharp. All I did was give it a curve and sharper edge. From there, I found healthy branches and shaved away the bark, then sharpened the edges.
When I was finally satisfied with my work, I took some cloth, tied together five primitive spears, and added a strap for easy carry. Following my grandfather's instructions went searching for a Deer Trail.
X
"The one thing we know for sure is that a deer trail is a place where deer have traveled. The fresher the sign in the trail, the more recent it has been used. The more deer sign in the trail, the more often it is being used." Were the words of my grandfather.
I had found just that, a commonly used trail with hoove marks. I proceeded to follow the trail while keeping a healthy level of situational awareness. I was no professional, but I had to pretend to be until I was.
After a length tracking session, I almost gave up as the trail led me out of the forest into a plain region. That's when I saw it. A deer with a greyish hide. It had antlers, signifying it was male. Four legs and a body that could feed me for weeks.
I grabbed a spear and crutched low behind the brush. I watched the animal eat peacefully as I stalked it. Honestly, it was a bit unnerving. To kill something for food made me queazy. But my mother and grandfather used to repeat this phrase to me every time I get frustrated with a task. It was almost like a family mantra.
'Mind over matter.'
The mind is a powerful tool. It was why humans conquered the earth, and it was why we were able to build bombs of mass destruction.
So, I calm myself and bury my feelings deep within me. I recall my grandfather's book and identify one spot that would disable my prey, allowing me to move in and kill it.
Moving to the edge of the brush, I rise to my feet and take a stance. It was no different than martial art forms. I just a weapon now. With controlled breathing, my muscle compressed, my body twisted in motion, and I chucked my first spear, hoping to nail my target.
As the spear took to the air, the deer suddenly looked up to its right and was about to take off when the spear stabbed it through the ass, downward out of the belly. As the deer collapse and wailed, I grab my remaining spears and run out to it.
To my far right, I see Finn, Octavia, and three other people. I pay them no mind as I step over the deer, grab it by the antlers, and put my knees on its neck. I then pull up with great force as my body weight crashes downward.
Pah!
The neck snapped, and the deer stopped its wailing. I sigh and recall the pryer from books. I the spirits of the forest and the deer for its sacrifice.
"What the hell was that?!" Finn called out as he moved towards me.
"Hunting. You know, for food. Eat or die." I reply. "I've been tracking it for miles. It's mine."
"But it's defective." the blonde girl from the ship spoke out.
I looked at Finn, and he said, "Princess, this is Tanemahuta. The Ark's genius before he got locked up for killing a guard. But you can call him Mahuta. Mahuta, this Clarke, her mom's the doc back on the Ark."
"You make me sound like Psycho. If I had left the matter to you, Bird might be dead today."
Finn sneered. "But she's alive. And that guard would be too if..."
"Okay. I'm not listening to this. I need to get beast ready. And Clarke, radiation has touched everything on this planet. Even if you canned food from 100 years ago, it would have high radiation. The planet was nuked. Eat or die." I tell her.
I then stood up and was about to drag my catch away when a sudden thought popped into my mind.
"What are guys doing here?" I ask.
"We're looking for Mount Wheather," Clarke replied. "It has nonperishables and supplies we need."
I was still confused. I looked up at the sky and then at Clarke. "But it's getting dark, and we're miles from the dropship."
"Well, I thought we wouldn't have food. But that's before I meet the Psychotic Genius."
I smirk at her. "Snappy," I comment. " And we don't have food. I have food. How far is this Mount Wheather?"
"Twelve. Thirteen miles, give or take," said Clarke.
Twelve miles isn't bad. And if it actually has supplies, It would be better if I got first pick. I nodded a bit, then told her to lead the way.
"I thought you had a deer to eat?" she asked.
"Now we have a deer to eat. Come on, burning daylight." I spoke lightly. Though, I could still see the group was wary of me. As they should be. Not that Finn was right. I had a good reason to kill that guard, and it was self-defense, not they anyone wanted to believe me at the time. And the only witness was Bird, she was a year older than me at the time, but her words were just as meaningless.
X
-3RD POV-
Mahuta was dragging his deer through the woods on a makeshift sled made of his spears. In front of him was Finn, Octavia, Clarke, and two more guys he learned were Monty and Jasper.
Monty and Jasper were best friends. They found themselves on the ground because they were locked up for stealing botanicals. Clarke was locked up for treason. While Finn was doing time for doing an unauthorized spacewalk, which Mahuta found hard to believe.
During the walk, Finn asked a pretty valid question. He wanted to know why the Ark would suddenly send people to the ground after 97 years. Octavia made light of his curiosity. She was just happy that she didn't have to sit in a cell for the rest of her life.
Monty and Jasper had a few theories of their own about earth satellites and people on the ground. That's when Clarke decided to speak her mind.
"It wasn't a satellite. The Ark is dying," she said nonchalantly, causing the group to stop and look at her in disbelief.
"At the current population level, there are roughly three months left of life support, maybe four now that we're gone," she added while taking the lead.
Mahuta just laughed to himself as he followed Clarke with his dead deer.
"So that's the secret they looked you up to keep. Why they put you in solitary, floated your old man?" Finn asked her.
"My father was the engineer who discovered the flaw. He thought people had a right to know. The council disagreed. My mother disagreed. They were afraid that'd cause panic. We were going to go public when Wells--"
"Turned your dead in?" Finn asked.
The group was silent for a brief moment.
"Anyway, the guard showed up before we could," said Clarke. "That's why today. That's why it was worth the risk to send us down here. Even if we all, at least they bought themselves some more time."
"They're going to kill more people, aren't they?" asked Monty.
"You're damn right." said Mahuta, "The council is full of a bunch of self-righteous pricks who only care about themselves and maintaining their fragile egos."
"Good!" Octavia chimed, "After what they did to me, I say, I say float them all."
Mahuta chuckled. "Damn straight."
Finn frowned at Mahuta. "What about, Birdy?" he asked.
"Well, I'm down here, that means she's the smart person on the Ark. You're down here too, so I'm guessing we'll be seeing her soon. Besides, it's almost time for her visit, and I'm sure Jason will tell her what's happening."
"She still visits you?" Finn asked, surprised.
"Every week," Mahuta replied.
Mahuta continued to walk when he saw Octavia standing on rocks, stripping down to her underwear. Monty and Jasper gawked at the beautifully nearly naked woman. Mahuta, on the other hand, let go of his sled and began to strip as well.
As Octavia walked to the edge and looked down at the river of crisp, clear water, Clarke called out and asked what the hell she was doing. Octavia looked back with an awe-striking pose then jumped.
A moment later, the group heard a splash and rushed to the edge to see if she was okay. Mahuta didn't stop like the rest as he joined Octavia in the water with a great splash. When he finally came up, his wild hair was slick and out of his face. He stood next to Octavia as he shook his hair with a joyous laugh.
Octavia looked at him with big eyes. "What the hell did you do in your cell all day?" she asked.
Mahuta followed her eyes and looked down at his chiseled body. He was nearly a foot taller than her, with more than half his body out of the water.
"I was a big reader. " he replied, "In between chapters, I would exercise a bit."
"You must have read every book on the Ark," she quipped.
"Thank you." he chuckled, then looked her up and down. " You pretty fantastic yourself."
Octavia giggled with a light blush. "You think so?"
Mahuta lowered himself in the water the moved in circles around her. He then stood up directly in front of her and said, "Only second to Birdy. No one beats Birdy."
"Birdy. You and Finn talk about her a lot. Who--"
"Hey! You guys need to get out of the water." Jasper interrupted with a panic-stricken voice.
Mahuta looked up, and Octavia turned around. Quickly approaching them was something big enough to cause a small wave. Before it attacked, Mahuta grabbed Octavia and tossed her aside. The water monster then snatched him as he shouted for help.
The beast took him beneath the water. Mahuta fought the beast and punched at his head in an attempt to break free. When Mahuta finally resurfaced, he called for his spear. But the beast still had a hold of him and fought to make a meal of him.
At the same time, Octavia had managed to climbed out of the water, while Clarke and the other were at a loss of what to do. However, Finn took off his coat to jump in when Clarke stopped him with the idea to distract the water monster.
Octavia simply said, fuck that and pulled Mahuta's spear from the deer's body, as the other spears were bond together to form the sled.
Splash!
Clarke and Finn managed to push a boulder into the water. The water beast let Mahuta gone and quickly went for the boulder. Jasper screamed for Mahuta to get to shore as Octavia was running toward Mahuta with his spear.
Mahuta had just grabbed shore when Octavia tossed the spear. Mahuta caught it and then shocked everyone when he went underwater.
Mahuta held his breath with his spear in hand. He couldn't swim, all he did was float and wait, and the serpentine creature rushed back to finish him off.
In his mind, the voice of his grandfather narrated a passage from his book.
"You do not have to be agile to catch the boar, bear, wolf. They each rage and charge without thought. All you need is a well-positioned blade, and it will kill itself. All you must do is stand firm, and the weight and velocity of the beast will take care of the rest."
Mahuta blew out his last deposit of oxygen as he turned to the side and helped his spear with both hands. The serpentine beast collided with the spear head-on.
Mahuta could hear the screams above the surface as the raging monster took his body. The further it took him, the deeper the spear drove into the beast until it eventually slowed to a halt.
The group watched anxiously when Mahuta exploded from the water and took in a chest full of air. Mahuta dogy paddle to the nearest shore. Many thought he was hurt until they made it to Mahuta's side to see his right hand in the mouth of the aquatic beast, towing it along with him.
Finn reached out to help Mahuta, but Mahuta just stared. "we're friends now?"
"I thought you were mad at me?" Finn replied.
"I am. " he replied, "Take the fish. You can feel the spear in its mouth. Grab it there, then pull it out."
"You're going to eat this too?" Monty asked, terrified.
"Food is food, man. And this is a big fish."
X
Sometime later, Clarke was looking over Mahuta's wounds. He swore he was alright, but Clarke was still worried. It was now dark, and the group was back in the forest. Mahuta was cleaning the serpentine beast, and Clarke was pestering him.
"If I promise to let you check me out when I'm done, will you leave me alone?" he asked.
Clarke smirked at him. "Yes. As long as you remember to let me check you out. We can't have those wounds getting infected."
Mahuta nodded in thanks, sending Clarke went on her way.
"So, where'd you learn to do this?" Jasper asked, "This wasn't in Earth skills."
"My grandfather. He wanted me and my future children to be ready for the ground." Mahuta explained as he cut the first section of the beast and laid it on two branches.
"You mind making a fire?" Mahuta asked Jasper.
Jasper nodded, then went off with Monty to build a fire pit. That night the group feasted on the water monster that Mahuta named, nine colored eel for its dull rainbow-like skin.