Earth: Criminal Rehab

Chapter Ten

Gerard

And then I was alone again. I had no brother. I had no friends. My quality of life was at an all time low. The whole "choosing sides" thing was extremely childish. I didn't understand why people got so thick-skinned about it. It was such a big fuss and it resulted in an unnecessary separation.

I had a reason for staying with Ryan, but I just wasn't sure of it yet.

Brendon had been following Ryan everywhere he went. We were all pretty shocked when he made the decision, knowing how much they hated each other after events on the Legacy. Brendon became Ryan's little pet. He looked a bit uneasy and unsure around him. It wasn't obvious, but the way he constantly avoided eye contact and confrontation reminded me a little bit like myself.

Ryan looked back at the crowd behind him, "Let's move!"

We were walking back towards camp after the smoke died down. We were going to check if there was anything left that was valuable or salvageable. Our camp seemed surprisingly recognizable. Most leafy green plants had browned or blackened, but other than that, nothing was too badly damaged. The ship was still standing tall and in one piece. The smell of smoke was so thick you could almost taste it in your mouth.

I traipsed around the edge of the ship, searching for loose supplies. I found a pocket knife and a few packages of food. It wasn't enough to survive with, but it would make do. The thought definitely crossed my mind. I could survive on my own. I didn't need Ryan or Pete or anyone. I spun around, watching and waiting to see if anyone would appear. When no one did, I made a run for it.

I was never quiet on my feet. One moment I was wild and free; the next moment someone was on top of me on the ground.

"Where the hell are you going with that?" he said between his gritted teeth. There was no point in lying now. I was a bad liar anyway. Trying to convince him I would share my things was a waste of time.

I tried to wriggle out from his grasp, but he only tightened his grip. He pinned me to the dirt and pulled the knife from my pocket. Just to be sure, he gave my leg a good slice. He made sure I couldn't leave. I tried to swallow the low scream that came from my mouth, but I hadn't ever felt that kind of physical pain before.

The commotion gathered a crowd. Ryan emerged from the back, "What's this all about?"

The man reluctantly climbed off of me and stuffed the knife into his pocket, "Found him trying to run off with food."

Ryan bent down and sifted through my 'belongings'. He shook his head, looking disgusted, "It's not much, but take what he has."

"That's bullshit!" I spit at him when he turns around. He stopped and listened. I stood up straight, trying to ignore the growing pain. I continued, "This isn't the Legacy anymore! We don't have to live by their rules or any rules if we don't want to! You're encouraging chaos. Is that what you want?"

He chuckled and threw his arms in the air, "What's wrong with a little chaos?"

"We just escaped from chaos! Chaos is the reason why we lost supplies and it's the reason why 16 of the remaining humans on the planet are separated from us! You can stop this!" I pleaded to him.

Ryan finally turned around to face me, "Stop this? I'm just getting started."

A fist came flying out of nowhere. The man who had cut me was back in front of me, striking my cheek with a hard blow. People around us started to chant and cheer. It's like they wanted to watch it. It's like they were hungry for entertainment. I threw a punch back and kicked at his stomach. He swiped under my legs and sent us both back to the ground. I tumbled over, landing myself on the top this time. I was never a violent person. I never learned how to fight, but I knew how to defend myself. I punched harder and hit his head against the ground. We were both out of breath. The roaring of the crowd grew louder.

I got off of him and looked down at what I'd done. He was bleeding from his nose and big bruises were already beginning to show on his face. I turned back to face Ryan, heaving heavy breaths, "Don't you see? You can't control this! You can't control this many people!"

The cheering turned to murmurs and I had a feeling that people were starting to listen to me. They were listening to what I was saying and what it meant and that it was true.

"Life support on the Legacy is failing. That's why they sent us down here. They needed to know that Earth is survivable again. And guess what? It is! They're watching our vitals and they need to know that this is a safe place to bring everyone else: your mom, your dad, your grandparents, your kids... Not only do they need us alive, but we need them to help us. We need doctors and scientists and teachers to help us understand what goes on down here. Fighting and killing each other will not help our case! Killing each other is not only decreasing our numbers, it will mean more unnecessary death to our people up there," I said and pointed to the sky.

Ryan glanced around at the faces of his people and walked closer to them, "We're stronger than you think. Don't listen to him. Maybe his crime will be forgotten once the people on the Legacy invade the land we claimed, but not all of us are so privileged. We can take care of ourselves! We are not prisoners anymore! They say they'll forgive our crimes. I say you're not criminals!" he began to scream, "You're fighters! You're survivors! Whatever Earth has in store for us, we can take. We shouldn't be worried about what's here for us on the ground. The Earth should be worried about us!"

There were eruptions of support and clamoring all around. There was no stopping Ryan.

"So if anyone doubts me – if anyone doubts us – they can leave now," Ryan slowly lowered his voice. When no one moved, he turned towards me.

I found Brendon in the crowd. Once again, he wasn't far from Ryan. He was watching me. If there was any kind of look in his eyes, I could see the doubt. I could feel it. I could hear it, as if his eyes were screaming and pleading.

I gathered myself and brushed the dirt off of my clothes. I swiped the knife that was rightfully mine in the first place and began walking in the other direction. I wanted to believe that there were footsteps behind me. I desperately wanted to think that someone was with me on this... but I was alone.