CHAPTER ONE
HIKE THROUGH THE WOODS
"you committed, i'm your crime"
˚✧₊⁎*⁎⁺˳✧༚

     A forest that ones upon a time felt so evergreen in the eye of the beholder has began withering away, the ones oh so stark shades of green wilting to a dul shade of brown. Though the sky hosted the most alluring hues of oranges and pinks, there was no denying the hollow feeling lingering in the air. Every gust of wind, every wilting flower only furthermore confirming the deafening reality of it all; it was only still before the storm, and thus far, it was shaping up to be the biggest storm Dylan Brown Kane had every faced.

     Mayhaps the clumsy, dark haired girl would have paused for a second to admire the beautiful scenery around her if it hadn't been for the storm already brewing inside of her.

Stealth; cautious and surreptitious action or movement. One could possible compare it to a car, its body slinking silently in the direction of its prey. Well, Dylan was no cat, so much was clear, nor had she ever actually seen one. So the Kane girl made her bravest attempt at being stealthy. But there was no hiding the fact that on earth, she really wasn't. To be fair, she had only been her for a short amount of time, and there was no way for her to really have learnt how to be stealth, seeing as half the time— scratch that; all of the time was spent trying to run from the grounders and not dying. Well, that, and just a pinch of admiring a certain grounder. . .

     No. Dylan was on a mission, one that demanded her undivided attention. She had made her desicion by rejecting his advances, and having him lingering in the back of her mind like a pest would only cloud her focus. So, she shoved him to the very back of her mind as she redirected every thought towards the task at hand; finding her friends.

Not that the girl had a mirror to check her apparance in, but she could only imagine how much of a mess she looked. That much she knew judging from the rest of her body which was covered head to toe in the dark ash that erupted from the drop ship, multiple bruises and scuff scattered around as well as the dried up blood decorating her once pale skin. She didn't exactly expect her face to differ any from her body. In fact, Dylan was fairly certain some bird had decided to make a nest in her hair, the several twigs she had pulled out of it provoking her ridiculous theory.

Her feet fell heavy on the ground despite her trying to blend in with the scenery. She was tired. Which in turn made her sloppy. Dylan slightly regretted leaving Lincoln and his offer to run away behind. Okay, no. She gravely regretted it. She wasn't quite sure why she suddenly had this overwhelming urge to be the hero and save the day. Maybe Bellamy and Clarke had rubbed off on her. Or maybe she just really needed her friends at the moment. Whatever it was, the urge inside of her to save them, or at least just find them, was strong enough to make her forsake what probably was her only shot at survival to search for someone who she wasn't even sure was alive, all the while some crazy grounder killer dude called Tristan was probably tracking her.

Out of all her stupid ideas, this had to at least make the top three. Or maybe five. Shit, she could even hear Clarke in the back of her mind scolding her for going after them. But Dylan was confident this was exactly what they would have done if the roles were reversed. In fact, they roles had been reverse. When Lincoln had brought her back to his cave, all of them risked their lives to bring her back. She couldn't turn her back on them, not now— not ever.

Dylan was slowly beginning to realize one important fact; they were the closest thing she had to a family.

Currently, Dylan was following the sound of chirping birds and a rushing sound of water. She could almost smell the wet soil and delicious liquid. She had been weary of water here on earth ever since that thing almost killed her and Octavia in the lake, but that wasn't going to stop her from having a sip. She was dying of thirst, literally.

Not to be all too optimistic, but Dylan had a feeling her surroundings weren't too strange to her. Actually, it all seemed eerily familiar to her, and seeing as she had only ever been hanging out around the drop ship and such, that had to mean she was close to it.

A placed itself upon Dylan's lips as she broke through the thickly layered forest and onto a riverbank. She let a small cheer escape her lips as she collapsed to her knees, cupping her hands and scooping water into them. The cool feeling as the liquid ran down her throat was better than she had recalled. The Kane girl wasn't sure water had ever tasted quite this good ever before. Maybe it was true, maybe this very lake was incredibly tasty and refreshing. Or maybe it was because she was dehydrated. Whatever it was, the water was doing its job on hydrating her. So much so that she almost considered drowning in it just to relish in the sweet feeling a second longer.

Before she continued to drinking, she made a quick once-over at her surrounding, checking for anything abnormal. When she was sure she wasn't being stalked by a grounder, or anything other that was out to kill her, she continued enjoying the water. She was extremely tempted to jump into the clear blue water, but three things was keeping her from doing so. Number one, the chances of a freaking sea monster or something eating her. What not with her previous experience combined with the fact that this godforsaken, radioactive earth seemed to have a thing knack for throwing curveballs at her wherever she went. Two, she greatly preferred drinking water icy cold, but swimming in? Not so much. And lastly, she was in a hurry to find her friends. She would love to take a break, but that could wait to either nightfall or for when she located the drop ship.

With a sorrowful sigh, Dylan got to her feet, brushing some dirt off her knees. She shot one last look behind her, before continuing in what she assumed was the direction of the drop ship.

˚✧₊⁎*⁎⁺˳✧༚

After a while of walking, and several stumbles and falls, Dylan had still not reached her destination. The dark haired girl was evidently exasperated, and when Dylan Brown Kane was tired, she also got very very grumpy— and just a tad bit annoying. But seeing as she was treking through the thickly laid forest, she had no one but herself to annoy. Geez— she was really hoping Bellamy was still kicking it somewhere, she really needed someone else but herself to annoy the shit out of. Dylan just wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to make it by herself. Not only was survival hard enough as is, but it was like she was stuck in a continuous loop of thoughts without anyone to talk to. The overthinking was slowly killing her, and at one point she found herself hoping Tristan would just finish her off before she did so herself.

The Kane girl had successfully managed to find food, which was positively suprising. It wasn't like she found an entire five course meal, but it was enough to keep her going for now. Berries. And yes, she had learnt a thing or two from Monty, and of course— farm station back on the Ark— to know that they were perfectly safe to eat. They tasted sour and bitter, but Dylan forced them down. She needed all the energy she could get, and it wasn't like she had any room to complain.

The sky was slowly edging from a beautiful cerulean shade of blue into a darker one, several stars starting to peep through to illuminate the otherwise somber night. A frown was plastered on her face as a sigh escaped from her lips and into the somewhat chilly air. She needed shelter for the night. Sleeping out in the open did tempt her considering how astonishing the view was, but it was too risky. There was just no way she had gotten this far only for her to be offed in her sleep.

A few minutes more of walking, and Dylan had manage to locate herself a home for the night. It was a cramped and small cave that smelt like moss and mud, but it would do for the night. She made herself comfortable on the ground in the very corner, curling up into a ball as an attempt to keep her warmth through the night. Then, she let her eyes slowly slip closed. A well deserved sleep was falling upon her.

˚✧₊⁎*⁎⁺˳✧༚

     It was the actual freaking ass crack of dawn when a screeching bird interrupted Dylan from the peaceful slumber she had been blessed with. She grunted loudly in annoyance, refusing to open her eyes for at least five more minutes. She was cold, but her jacket that she nicely had draped over herself before she fell asleep was doing a good job at keeping her warm and protected from the chilly morning air. Every puff of air leaving her nostrils turnt into what looked like mist.

     Okay so maybe Dylan was being a little dramatic when saying her ass was literally freezing off, it was summer still, edging towards fall and inevitably winter, which meant that it was was confirmably cold out, but not freeze your ass off kind of cold. Well, at least not yet. Besides, Dylan had always been dramatic of some sorts. She enjoyed the reaction it put into others, as well as it gave her a reason to complain. And as optimistic Dylan was, she did enjoy complaining a bit. But what sane person didn't? Dylan even dared theorize that the only thing keeping her sane was her constant string of complaints. All lighthearted, of course,

     Dylan hadn't really given a thought to stuff. Ever since they got down to earth there hadn't really been a silent moment for her to just sit back, relax and let it all sink in. What was there to sink in? The cold hard reality that her only real family was dead. Her father was dead.

   Dylan had always opted for the name Brown. In her humble opinion, it fit her better— had a nicer ring to it. That as well as the fact that she just didn't want to redirect attention over to her father. Marcus Kane. The girl would never admit to how guilty she felt for saying this, but being Marcus Kane's daughter was nothing to be proud of. At least not for the last few years. The man was a dick, and Dylan was certainly not the only one whom harbored this opinion about him. But then again, he was still her father. And despite every insult she had hurled at him, Dylan still loved him. Even if she had made it a whole ass career to avoid him at all costs back at the Ark. She missed him. But alas, now there was no longer any career to make out of it. Marcus was gone, and this time he wasn't coming back to nag at her like he had always been doing. Marcus Kane was never coming back— not ever. Dylan had nothing to do but to accept these facts. The sooner she did, the better.

     The only hope left for her was for Bellamy and the others to be alive and well. Currently it was the single thing was what was keeping her going.  Everyone needed hope in life, especially facing a challenge as big as the one Dylan was facing. She had to believe that her now not just friends, but family, was alive. They had to be. Or else she would loose it.

     As depressing as it probably sounded, her soul was slowly starting to chip away with every single traumatic event. And at the rate she was going, it was as if she was dancing at the edge of a cliff, patiently awaiting the next curveball, hoping it would send her toppling over.

     Dylan got to her feet, throwing a look around the small cave. She didn't bother to remember any details of it. Chances were that she would not be coming back. Daylight was seeping through the moist air of the cave, letting Dylan know it was time to continue her "journey", if you could even call it that. Time was of the essence and she was not about to waste any of it.

Dylan had managed to create a sort of coping mechanism admits all of the war and danger down here on earth. She found herself daydreaming a lot, so while she silently moved across the forest floor, she allowed her mind to wander. She pursed her lips. Right now, she wasn't in dirty and cold clothes, and she wasn't walking. She was lying at a beach, one of those fancy ones she had seen in the movies while wearing a skimpy bikini lying under those big umbrella things— whatever it was called. Sunglasses rested on the bridge of her nose, and she had some random fruity drink in her hand that she imagined tasted heavenly.

But it was sadly just that. Imagination. And Dylan was currently in dirty and cold clothes, making her way through a thick forest that probably was packed with threats around every corner.

     "How fucking very." Was what slipped out of her mouth after tumbling down a small hill due to her not watching where she stepped. A small shriek had escaped her lips as the ground beneath her disappeared, and she soon found herself with a deep frown as she was sat on her ass. When would she catch a freaking break?! If up to earth; never.

Dylan huffed as she got to her feet, greatful that she at least hadn't injured any part of her body. That would be the absolute last thing she needed right now.

She brushed some dirt off of her ( not that it was to any avail ) before continuing to walk. She wasn't even sure she was walking in the right direction anymore, and the fall had thrown her even more off. She had to guess.

Apparently she guessed right, because after walking for only a few more minutes, she heard voices. And luckily for her, she recognized the language as english, not grounder language or whatever, which meant that either some grounders were trying really hard to trick her, or she just found her friends. Taking her chances, she picked up her pace, heading towards the sound. But just as she was about to break through some bushes, arms pulled her hastily back, a hand slapping infront of her mouth.

Her eyes widened as she was pulled behind a tree trunk, just in time for someone else to break through the bushes just like she had planned to. Whoever had grabbed her swiftly turned her around, and a gasp would've escaped her lips if it weren't for his hand on them.

Lincoln.

word count; 2718
a/n

well i'll be damned. Honestly i never in a million years imagined that i'd be here, writing book two with book one finished and about to hit 40k. it's crazy really. i started this series off because i found myself searching a lot for a good lincoln fic to read, and kind of for my own enjoyment, and to see other people actually taking a liking to it all is just crazy. thanku all sm for the support! also, i'm sorry if this chapter was kinda short n boring but it was kind of filler so stick w me! stay tuned for more chapters soon babes! meanwhile, have a great day.

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