Out There (22 page)

One night I had a dream about Katelyn and woke with a start. After pulling myself together, I saw it was practically five in the morning, but I couldn't fall asleep again, so I went down to the kitchen to get some food.

The significance of that morning though was during my return from my early-morning snack. I was passing Mother's room when I heard her say, “I know Ava doesn't get exceptions because she's my daughter.”

I froze and inched closer, trying to hear more. She must have been talking on the portable intercom, which only Council members received.

“But her being my daughter makes me see clearly that we cannot rush into this without fixing the bug first.”

Bug?

“Sylvia's on it but I want to give her a few more months… Yes, I know that we have limited time.”

Limited time for what?

“We need to think about the others. What good is it if we lose them all? How will we look then, Margaret?”

That name sounded familiar… where had I heard it?

“Maybe we should look for an alternative… OK, fine I get it, not enough time.”

Then I remembered overhearing a similar conversation at the Centre with a woman named Margaret. The Council were all talking about something to do with test results and time. I couldn't remember great details, but it obviously wasn't good.

“OK, I'll see you in the office. Bye.” I heard her moving around, so I ran back to my room and shut the door behind me.

Suddenly I felt nervous. Thoughts of what she could have been talking about infiltrated my mind like poison.
Was it about the surgery? Did it involve me? Why was there limited time? Why was the conversation so secret? Was it related to the other conversation I overheard?

The main thought that kept passing through my mind however was:
Was my life on the line?

That small incident had firmed my decision and suddenly I saw that I really only had one option. So I changed clothes and gathered all the necessary belongings into my little brown bag. After I heard the door shut behind Mother as she darted out for an early morning yet again, I snuck down the stairs and quietly left the house. And before I knew it, I found myself on the tram headed towards the edge of the city, and hopefully the answers.

Chapter Eleven

Ava, Half An Hour Later

I stared at the Bubble wall like a challenge. After checking over my shoulder and checking over my nerves, I jumped through to the other side. I steadied myself and placed my piece of bark on the grass next to the Bubble.

“You can do this, Ava,” I assured myself and began walking into the forest. It was very different when I could see everything, unlike before at night. The colours stood out the most – vibrant greens and browns with different shades of colour on the plants. It was so much more beautiful than that silly image on Katelyn's window…

Katelyn.

I had to be strong, so I forced myself onwards through the thicket until I had passed the ruins and was left to wander through trees alone. I only prayed I was heading the right way. Occasionally, rustling would sound from the bushes and I would stop and wait for him to come out.

“Hello?” I would call towards the noise. But there was always no answer, so I would continue.

After walking for ages, the noises started becoming more frequent, a rustle here, a snap there. Paranoia began to seize me and I started to walk faster and faster until I was running. I kept running past trees and dodging unidentified objects until finally I tripped over one. It was bound to happen. Luckily I threw my hands out in front of me so my face didn't smash into the large rock protruding from the dirt. But when I sat up I noticed a large gash on my left palm and a bit of blood seeping out of it.

“Ouch,” I said and tried to wipe it away, but it only made it messier. “Oh well.”

I gathered myself and continued walking until I reached the clearing. The tiny pouch and ribbon dangling from a tree branch was my sign and I slumped on to the log to catch my breath.

Then it occurred to me that maybe I wasn't doing the right thing. What if I did die? Then Bri would be so crushed. Not just Bri, but everyone – my mother, my friends. It would ruin everything; I was supposed to get surgery in a few weeks. I considered turning back while I had the chance, but I caught myself. I had come so far.

I stood and put my hands to my mouth. “Hello! Anyone there! Please come, I want to talk!” I yelled out towards the trees. Then I sat and waited for him to come.

It took about ten minutes, but soon I heard rustling in the bushes in front of me. I reached down and grabbed a large stick off the ground and held it firmly in my good hand. My heart was pounding and I had to fight to keep my breath steady as I walked over to the noise, branch poised in front of me. I pushed the leaves aside and there he was.

He looked completely different in the light. I could see that his hair was actually a light golden brown, which matched perfectly with his deep golden green eyes. He seemed tall, but not as strikingly so as several nights before, and he was covered in thick muscles. He also looked much darker than he seemed before, almost Lexi's colour, but I noticed a thin line of white on his hips poking out from under his tattered shorts.

His gaze too surprised me; it was firm, like he was taking in all of his surroundings, but he looked at me with such intense amazement, I felt my cheeks burning.

“I've seen you before,” he said with the deepest voice I'd ever heard. “Who are you?”

At the sound of his voice something twitched inside me; it was a feeling I'd never experienced before and originated deep in my gut. He took a step towards me and I held up my branch at him.

He held his hands up and backed away. “What, were you planning to attack me with that?!” he chuckled.

Hearing him laugh made my stomach twist again and I prodded the air with my weapon of defence.

“Whoa, calm down, I won't hurt you,” he said gently. “How can I trust you?” I asked.

“Cross my heart,” he said and made a crossing motion over his left shoulder.

He talked like a normal person, with perfect English, so I felt a bit surer that he wasn't a crazy wild man.

“So are you going to put down the intimidating weapon then?” he asked with a grin.

Slowly I lowered it and said, “I want to talk.”

“About what?”

“Come sit,” I said and beckoned him over towards the clearing and we sat side by side on the log.

“Who are you?” I asked him.

“I asked first.”

“My name is Ava Hart.”

“I'm Derron.”

“Just Derron?”

“Just Derron.”

“Why no last name?”

He looked puzzled for a moment. “Well, that's what everyone calls me.”

“There are more of you?” I was beginning to analyse my escape plan if necessary.

“Yes, I live in the Village over there,” he said and pointed out towards the trees.

“How did you survive out here?”

He thought for a moment then said, “Well, four men brought us here almost seventeen years ago, when we were all babies, and set up the Village. Then they died of diseases when we were young so I guess we just learnt how to fend for ourselves.”

“So there's an entire city of you?”

“What's a city?”

“It's like a large community with buildings and people and businesses,” I said, gesturing with my hands. “You know, a city.”

“So like a village?”

“I don't know, I've never been to a village.”

“Where are you from?” he asked, looking at me and I was sure he was trying to analyse me too.

“The city. There are only women there though.”

“Women? So you are a girl then?”

“Yeah, you've never seen a girl before, have you?”

“No, I've heard about them but I thought they were myths.”

“Where I'm from they told us that men went extinct many years back so seeing you is strange to me. How did you survive The Great Wars?”

“The what?”

I realised that he had no idea about my city or how we thought of men as vile corruptors. It was probably best that it remained that way.

“Never mind. How many of you are there?”

He counted on his fingers. “Six including me.”

“You know maths?”

“Maths?”

“I guess you don't. How do you know how to count?”

“Cain taught us.”

“Who's Cain?”

“The eldest in the Village. He remembers things from before we came here.”

“Like what?”

“He doesn't say much. Mostly things like how to speak English, get food and social courtesies and stuff. Otherwise, we all would have died.”

“Lucky you… why don't you wear a shirt?”

“A what?” He looked down at himself. “Why would I do that?”

“Because it's the civilised thing to do.”

“But it's not practical.”

“Why not?”

“It would be covered in sweat and dirt within minutes.”

“But, but…”

“Why, does that make you uncomfortable?”

“I-I…” I knew exactly why. But for some reason I couldn't form the words. All I could do was stare at the strange boy before me, with this sensation of being uncomfortably intrigued. “It's just strange.”

He smiled and said, “You're strange.”

“Says the person that lives in the forest.”

He laughed and looked out towards the trees then back at me. “Oh, you're bleeding,” he said and reached over and grabbed my hand. He inspected the rapidly bleeding cut gently. “Let me take you back to the Village to fix this.”

“No, I think I'm fine,” I said and pulled my hand back.

“You're not. That's how the men died – infected wounds,” he said and shrugged his shoulders, “but if you want to die…”

I saw Bri crying at my ceremony. “Fine,” I said, “take me to your Village.”

“Here.” He stood and held his hand out to me. “Take my hand.”

I hesitated for a moment, looking at his dirt-covered palm. His eyes were honest though, so I gave him my good hand. He stared down at it for a moment then smiled, somehow causing me to shy away, my face flushing as I did so. Then he led me through the trees. His movements were swift and exact, dodging every tree perfectly and leaving me to fight to keep up. He never stopped to get his bearings, just kept going like he knew the place cold.

As we walked, I began to feel even more nervous about being in a city of all men. They were the root of pure evil and couldn't possibly do anything except bring upon destruction. But there was something about Derron that made me feel safe; I knew he wouldn't let them hurt me. But I realised that I had left my merciless weapon back at the clearing, so he had better stick to my expectations.

“Here we are,” he said and pushed aside some branches to reveal a larger clearing.

It was not at all what I was expecting. What he called buildings were actually little huts made of large pieces of tree trunks with scruffy nets covering the doorways. There was a large pile of wood in the middle of the clearing which was black at the ends, and several smaller similar piles scattered around. At one end of the clearing was a large box made of more chopped wood, with all sorts of things sticking out of it. There were sharp spears, ropes, leaves, berries and bottles. It seemed so primitive, but at the same time so developed for having been left alone in a forest with nothing.

“This is…”

“Amazing, right?” he finished for me. “Here, let me fix your hand.”

Derron led me over to a small hut and held aside the net for me to walk through. It was dark inside, but I could see many different bottles with liquids and herbs.

“Here, you can sit there,” he said and pointed to the leaf bed on the floor.

“Thanks.” I sat on the barely comfortable seating.

He walked over to the collection and pulled out a container with a clear liquid and a bandage. “Hold out your hand.”

I did as instructed and he poured the water-like substance on my cut. It stung like crazy. “Ouch!” I yelled and snatched my hand away. “What is that?”

“I don't know, but it prevents infection.”

“It hurts too, did you know that?”

“Believe me, I know,” he said with a grin and put the liquid back. “Give me your hand.”

He took it and wiped the dirt away with his own hand, then took the bandage and wrapped it tightly around my palm. His hands felt rough and laboured, yet his touch was gentle.

“Thank you,” I said and looked into his eyes.

“No problem,” he replied and smiled back at me, and his eyes seemed to sparkle as he did so. Golden flakes swimming in a sea of emerald. I then noticed he was still gently holding my hand, his thumb brushing against the fresh bandage.

He seemed to realise too and cleared his throat. “So how about a tour?”