The Fog

Noelle scraped the bottom of the can with her spoon licking the ladle clean. Her shoulder still ached from the bullet wound Abby had dressed with medicine and bandages. Hair in a braid out of her face she eyed every guard that passed her small room. There were no cuffs, no chains, but there were still limits. Tossing her can to the floor she hopped off the table and ventured into the hall.

The mountain man was being held in the anti-lock chamber where no radiation could come through. A girl named Raven had voiced the idea to Abby during the mini-surgery Noelle went through. Now they were interrogating him about the Mount Weather. As much as she wanted to be there, she was glad she had freedom to roam.

Several groups were working outside of the Arc on various things. One group huddled around a pile of clothes, their fingers working on fixing any rips or tears. Another worked on building a small meat hut where a tall man butchered small rabbits that had been brought back. She found her attention more focused on a group near the southern most part of the gated area wielding metal weapons. Octavia was among them slicing the air with a newly made machete. A tree stump was embedded with smaller knives with a single red target painted on the bark.

Watching them from a distance she saw how choppy their throws were, some blades barely scraping the tree, with the bulls eye left untouched. Noelle couldn’t stop the smirk from appearing at the thought of the nimble sky people barely holding their own in a fight. Guns kill people, that much she knew, but the grounders knew how to move. And if the grounders know how to move then the mountain people know a lot more.

“What are you staring at?” Octavia glowered at the pale skinned girl. The dark hair covering her head was twisted in mini braids that formed one large braid that slapped against her mid-back. A leather jacket rested on her shoulders with a dark grey shirt underneath. She twirled a knife in her fingers carelessly.

“Just watching you make fools of yourselves.” Noelle snickered when the knife Octavia threw fell into the dirt two feet left of the stump.

“Think you can do better?”

“I know I can.” Stepping forward she didn’t miss the way people edged away from her as she moved. Her usually bare feet were now covered with a thick pair of shoes that sloshed in the mud. Bellamy had dropped them off once she had been returned from surgery.

“Let’s see what you’ve got, mountain girl,” Octavia sneered. Shoving the handles of the knives into Noelle’s hands she crossed her arms. Noelle ran her fingers along the cool metal and paced the area the others had been in. Mimicking the stances they had all taken she scoffed out loud.

“No wonder you can’t hit the target. You’re too spread out.” Bringing her legs closer to her body she tossed the knife into the air and caught the tip in her fingers. “You are all way too tense and fumble with your limbs. It’s about fluidity.” Quickly she drew her arm back and let the knife free, the weapon spinning end over end, before sinking into the center of the target. “You move like cavemen.”

“Lucky shot,” a dark haired boy called out. Octavia nodded in agreement.

“I could hit the target more blindfolded than you could standing five feet from it,” Noelle challenged. A hush fell over the small group and Octavia moved until they were almost toe to toe.

“Wanna bet?”

“Name your price princess,” Noelle stated simply. She could feel the anger rolling off the girl and fought the urge to laugh at her.

“If I win, you leave this camp and never come back.”

“And if I win, I’ll tell you the reason why I hate Lincoln more than I do you disgusting people.”

“Why would that benefit you?” Her jaw was tight.

“Because the emotional torture you’ll experience will be enough for me.” Noelle kept her dark eyes locked on the bright blue of Octavia’s, their standoff electrifying the air around them. The same boy who had called her out now handed Noelle a set of four knives. Not bothering to look at him, Noelle took a step back from her competitor. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

“Someone blindfold her!” Angrily Octavia marched toward the stump with her machete hitting her thigh with each step. The other groups that had been training now surrounded the small area. Chatter buzzed through the crowd as Noelle stood still letting a girl tie a cloth around her head. “Any last words before you have to leave?”

“Duck.” Noelle threw the first knife and a gasp filtered through the crowd. Octavia dove to the dirt just in time to miss being hit, the blade now embedded in the center of the target. Deciding to put her out of her misery, Noelle went through the small weapons in rapid fire style, each one burying to the next in the middle of the stump. Off in the distance Noelle could hear a bird, that noise mixing with the sounds of the heavy breathing around her. “I would say that was about three seconds, no?” Her fingers pushed up the cloth covering her eyes and she barely had time to collect herself. Octavia’s arms wrapped around her middle and they both went into the mud with Octavia’s scream echoing around them.

Chants began to circulate the crowd. Octavia slammed her hand into Noelle’s face trying to push her as far into the dirt as she could. Pain shot through Noelle’s shoulder but she shook off the attack, swinging her free arm up and knocking the brunette off her torso. Kicking her feet out and using the momentum Noelle sprang to her feet and spun, the sound of a machete slicing through the air creating goose bumps on her arms.

“You’re a real piece of work,” Octavia grunted. The machete was tight in her grip. “Coming in here and thinking you can show us all up. You’re not even a real grounder!” Noelle dodged her advance and grabbed onto her wrist, the younger girl crying out as Noelle twisted the arm and flipped her onto her back. Pinning the machete Noelle used the strength of her thighs to squeeze Octavia’s abdomen to hold her into place.

“I’m not trying to show you up,” she hissed. Octavia wiggled under her and slapped with her free hand until Noelle pinned that one too. “I’m trying to teach you how to fight.”

“Because you know all about that. You might have my brother fooled but I see you for what you are. A failed experiment that was rejected twice.” She spat in Noelle’s face and the crowd went silent. Octavia threw her body upward knocking Noelle off balance. The machete was forgotten, Octavia balling her hands into fists and sending a flurry toward the girl now under her. Noelle blocked most of the shots, the pain from her shoulder sending black bubbles in her vision. Octavia landed a punch to her jaw and she instantly tasted blood. “You’re just mad because you can’t fit in anywhere. And you sure as hell don’t fit in with us!”

Noelle saw the opening and took it, her fingers wrapping tight around Octavia’s throat. Panic spread through her body from the lack of oxygen and Noelle forced her back to the ground. She threw the first punch, and then the second, feeling the satisfaction of blood on her knuckles, and only stopped when Octavia whimpered in her grasp. Nobody moved to help.

“I was his second. And if you knew anything about us you would know that means I was a grounder, to them, to the mountain men, and especially to you.” Noelle slammed her head into the ground with a final thrust of her arm. “I don’t need a gun to create intimidation and I certainly don’t need you harping on me when I’m trying to save all your pathetic lives.”

“Why did he leave you then, huh?” Octavia’s voice was hoarse and her hands were covering the bruising skin on her neck. The crowd parted for Noelle gawking at her. “If you’re so highly looked upon why did he leave you?” She raced forward and grabbed Noelle’s arm. “Answer me when I’m talking to you!”

“He left me,” Noelle yanked her arm free and glowered, “because he was too scared to face the reapers.”

“What are you talking about?” The young girl was panting.

“We were tracking some of the mountain men through caverns and I got stuck in a trap the reapers had set. Once they got too close, he bolted, and left me there to die.”

“What’s so scary about reapers?” Noelle didn’t acknowledge the other girl who spoke until Octavia licked her lips slowly.

“Reapers are grounders turned into monsters by the mountain men. They are the experiments used only when they have the physique the mountain men decide fit. He was afraid he would be captured and turned into one himself.”

“I would run too,” Octavia blurted. Noelle shook her head laughing coldly.

“To abandon your people, your second, is a sign of cowardice and a disgrace to your tribe leaders. He’s not allowed back into his village because of what he did, and now especially because he’s been with you.” Noelle wiped her lip with the back of her hand. “So maybe instead of judging me, you should be judging him and his ability to defend you if the going gets too rough. None of you will survive with just your guns against the grounders let alone the mountain people.” Her eyes floated through the dirty faces around her before settling on Octavia again. “And you hit like a girl.”

“I am a girl,” Octavia seethed.

“Guns don’t see gender, they see blood.”