Chapter II

Joey

JOEY GASPED AS SHE came to an abrupt stop, rocks chipping off the ledge of the vast chasm under her feet and disappearing into the darkness below. She wildly rotated her arms backwards to keep from falling over the edge until she fell back on her rear. Panting, she swiftly crawled away from the ledge until she felt comfortable enough to sit back on her heels. She placed a hand over her rapid heart beat, and that's when her eyes met a pair of black cargo boots standing directly across from her. Slowly tilting her head upwards, she found Michelle stood with her bow raised and an arrow aimed at her. Cautiously, she made her way to her feet, but Michelle's glare never wavered.

"I'm sorry, Joey," Michelle said, fire kindling in her eyes.

"Are you?" Joey said with a voice full of betrayal. "Because a sister wouldn't do this."

"This is the way it has to be."

With barely any time to react, Joey's eyes widened as Michelle's finger slid off the string, and instantly Joey felt a sharp pain explode throughout her left shoulder. Her legs began to feel like they would buckle and she stumbled backwards. Her heel slipped off the edge, and the weight of her body dragged her down. She couldn't do anything to keep herself from falling as her body felt completely numb. Like she couldn't move her arms or legs, and she tumbled over the side.

The freezing wind blew through her hair and her clothes as she rapidly descended, and seconds later, cold daggers pierced her body as she was plunged into icy water. As the waves pounded just feet above her, the cold jolted her from her shock. Realizing what had happened, she tried helplessly to swim towards the surface, to take in a breath, but every time she got inches away from breaching the water, the waves crashed down, and the current sucked her deeper into the depths. Feeling the water bombard her, she was sent into several front flips.

She frantically glanced through the murky waters with her blurring vision, and found the arrow protruding from her shoulder. Reaching for it, she grabbed hold around the shaft tightly and gave a quick tug. Pain coursed throughout her body, and she let out a shout, though all it did was cause her to lose her last bit of air.

Glancing up, she watched as the rippling water grew distant the further down she sank, and she knew her lungs weren't going to receive the oxygen they pleaded her.

Her eyes slowly closed, accepting that this was how her life was going to end, when something gripped her wrist and yanked her upwards, engulfing her in blackness.

Come on, Joey! Come on!"

She felt a rhythmic push on her chest, and her eyes shot open. Something crept up her throat and she swiftly rolled to her side spewing water. She flopped over onto her back, and looked upward as her vision swam. "What ... what's happening?" her voice came out in a whisper, and she panted heavily, the sound of her blood thumped in her ears.

A gentle hand touched hers. "I need you to stay still. This is going to hurt."

Another set of hands resting at the top of her shoulders pressed her down against the strangely soft ground.

"Ready?" called the same voice, but no one answered.

Unexpectedly, some of the most agonizing pain she'd ever felt entered her left shoulder, and she screamed at the top of her lungs. Arching her back, she tired to flail and be free of whatever pinned her down, but whatever it was was too strong and kept her from leaving the ground.

After a good few minutes, the pain subsided and she rested on the ground breathing rapidly.

"Hurry!" a different voice called out. "Get that bleeding stopped. I found a hook and some wire to close the wound."

She felt a pair of hands pressing something against her left shoulder, but this time she couldn't call out from the ache it brought. She was too weak. Too weak to stay conscious, and she easily succumbed to the darkness that consumed her mind, her head rolling to the side.

Joey bolted upright from her lying position on the sandy ground, sending a shock wave of pain through her shoulder. She panted heavy, sucking in deep breaths as if she was getting air for the first time.

"Michelle," she breathed out in a whisper, terror filling every ounce of her being. She wanted to tell herself that it would be okay. That it was just another dream like she always told herself, and that everything was fine, but she didn't find peace in those words this time.

A sturdy hand touched her shoulder and she leapt back, dismissing the pain as she slapped a hand through the air, and screamed.

"Joey, relax!"

Her heart pounded against her chest as Thomas's voice drifted into her ears, and he shifted in front of her face. She gripped his arms, feeling herself dig her nails into his flesh.

"You're okay! It's us!" Thomas grimaced and his arms twitched.

She glanced between Thomas and David, who plopped down beside her, noticing that there was no present danger. Slowly, she relaxed her hands and instantly broke down in a heavy sob.

Thomas reached out to embrace her, and even though it hurt her wound, she didn't care. She wanted his comfort.

"What happened?" David asked, placing a tender hand on her knee. "Are you okay?"

She buried her face in Thomas's jacket, and gave a slow nod. "It was just a nightmare," she whispered.

She heard sand rubbing against polyester material, and she turned her head to the right to see David shift from his knees to his rear on the ground beside her. She then suddenly realized that he was sitting next to her in his ice form, and noticed how cold the atmosphere had become. He pulled his knees up to his chest, but kept his gaze straight ahead looking out into the distance. "You sure do seem to have these nightmares a lot," he continued. "Back home you were hospitalized because of them, and here I heard you. A few times actually." He turned to face her. "Is there something going on? Something you're not telling me?"

Sniffling, she averted her gaze as her heart quickened. She knew that he could tell there was something more to her, and she felt awful for hiding it from him—seeing how he had shared so much with her—but she also knew that he would never fully understand her. "I ... uh—"

"Maybe she doesn't want to talk about it," Thomas defended, his voice rising. She felt his heart pounding as her head rested against his chest. "It's none of your business anyway."

"Hey, you guys." She pushed away from Thomas. "I really don't feel like listening to you argue right now." Shooting David a glance from the corner of her eye, she said softly, "I will tell you when I feel ready." She knew that one day soon she would have to explain to her best friend about the power she possessed, but dreaded even the thought of him finding out. It was one thing for Thomas to figure it out through a vision and understand, but telling someone aloud made her shiver. "I just need more time."

Placing a hand on her head, her vision swam and ached, and her stomach unexpectedly churned. She then realized that her shivering may not have only been from her thoughts.

David scooted over to his original spot and laid back down on the grainy surface. "Well, the sun ain't up yet," he said loudly. "Maybe we should keep trying to get some sleep," his last sentence became jumbled with a yawn. "You know there won't be much resting when the suns up."

Thomas sat up straight and sucked in a breath. "I'm not really tired anymore, but I can tell you are." His left arm wrapped around her gently. "Go ahead and sleep." She frowned, but when he winked she gave him a confused look. "I'll keep those nightmares away," he whispered.

Giving him a weak grin, she felt tears roll down her cheeks. The last time anyone had said something like that to her was when she was ten, and the one who said it had been her father a few days before he was taken. Holding back the remaining tears, she roughly scooted down, grimacing the whole way, and laid down placing her head on his thigh.

She laid there for several minutes, trying to fall asleep, but she found it hard. From across the way, she could hear David's soft snoring and imagined him switching between his normal and ice form like he had done back in the cave when they first arrived in the Domes, and she couldn't hold back a grin.

A jolt shot through her arm and she let out another soft yelp, feeling Thomas's hand gently squeeze hers. Panting, she bit her tongue, trying to get her thoughts off the pain. Maneuvering her hand, she intertwined her fingers with his and gripped his hand tighter.

She shivered as a cold breeze blew by, trying to keep her body from jolting, but each shiver sent a new bolt of pain into her shoulder and it left her gasping for air and tears spilled from her lashes.

Thomas squeezed her hand back as if to let her know that he was right there with her. "What are you doing in there?" she heard his words ever so softly, like they were a whisper that wasn't meant to be heard. She felt his hand slip from hers, and slowly she turned her head up to find him rapidly peeling his jacket from around his shoulders. Shrugging it off, he gripped the collar and through his around her torso. She wanted to protest, tell him that if he wasn't like David then he needed to keep it for himself, but she couldn't open her mouth. She was too weak and exhausted. Instead, she let out a sigh and accepted the warmth.