The Radix
I'm attempting to gear myself up to get back to writing on this specific fanfic. Hopefully by posting I'll stir up my own interest and break through this terrible case of writer's block. And yeah maybe I'm attempting to put my live journal to use.
For those unfamiliar with it, "The Tribe" was a show out of New Zealand about kids surviving in a post apocalyptic world. It ran for 5 seasons, 52 episodes each and had a major fan following. The cast cut three albums(I think) and several tours. This particular fic picks up right after season 5 ends... the continuing story that Cloud 9 denied us. And so...
Story intro: This is my version of the continuing journey of the Mallrats, Tribe season six if you please. While continuity is of the utmost importance to me, I have made a few minor and not so minor changes. 1Tai-San was never a Techno. Instead it was Jay who was allowed to look for Brady in the holding cages. In the season four finale, Tai-San wasn't present but Lex did see her image on a monitor, placed there by Mega so he would believe she was alive and wandering the city. This set Lex on his relentless quest to find her, inevitably splitting him and Siva apart. Siva in turn joined her sisters (Mega's plan all along) and the rest is history.2Lex never messed around with Gel. While she obviously crushed on him, he in turn was too busy mourning Siva to respond to her advances.3KC, Alice and the Guardian on the island... never happened. For reasons I can't reveal I've chosen to forego that piece of unrealistic foreshadowing.4Mega never told Lex anything about those taken by the Technos. The most Lex knows is the information he received from Fish. So Mega's last words... "Lex knows everything about..." sorry, but that didn't happen. For those of you who are appalled at my audacity, I apologize. I've done my best to create a realistic continuing story, but considering all the holes and loose ends in the story lines of seasons four and five, I had no choice but to leave a few things out. I hope those of you who are still interested enjoy this. Look into the future, what do you see?
I really need to know now, is there a place for me
Tell me where do we go from here?
Take me as you find me, for what I am
And when I make mistakes, please understand
And as long as I know your near
There is nothing for me to fear
-Out of the darkness, a light shines
Burning through the coldest night
And we can find a way (together we'll make it)
With every step we take (moving closer together)
If we're gonna survive, the dream must stay alive
Baby when you hold me, when I'm afraid
Save me through the danger, until the break of day
If there's love there's a chance for me
Just believe in yourself, you'll see
-Out of the darkness, a light shines
Burning through the coldest night
And we can find a way (together we'll make it)
With every step we take (moving closer together)
If we're gonna survive, the dream must stay alive - Merryl Cassie
A New Beginning
Amber stared into the sun setting over the water and waited for the wave of nausea to wash over her. She tried to remember ever getting seasick back when her father used to take them for trips on his schooner. No, it was Solaris who couldn't handle being at sea. Amber was built for life on the water. Maybe it had to do with the fact that they weren't moving forward, simply drifting offshore and more susceptible to the rocky waves.
She looked onto the beach where her friends were bustling about the makeshift camp. It had been two days since they found this cove and decided to stop. It seemed as good a place as any and everyone was desperate to get on land after nearly two days at sea. After a bit of arguing between Jack and Ram on whether or not they were far enough away from the city to be safe from the virus, May had thrown the inflatable life raft overboard.
"Screw this," as she so eloquently put it, "I'm getting off this damn boat!"
The others had agreed whole heartedly, and in groups of five they took the raft to shore. There was no harbor and the water was too shallow to dock the boat. Trader finally threw down his anchor but refused to leave his valuable piece of property. Lex was the first to announce that he didn't trust leaving Trader and the boat unattended. He was sure the boy would bail on them at the first opportunity. Though Amber understood Trader's desire to stay with his vessel, she agreed that they couldn't afford to leave him alone. Besides she wasn't too sure they should move Ruby from below deck. It was then decided that they would take turns staying on the boat with her, to keep an eye on things. If Trader was insulted by this obvious distrust he didn't show it. He was quite used to people being suspicious of him. In most cases it was what kept a lot of them alive.
It was agreed that Lex, Jay, Amber and Slade would take watch shifts on the boat. Ebony volunteered but May adamantly denied that idea, claiming they couldn't trust Ebony any more than they could trust Trader. Some slinging of nasty insults went on before Salene and Trudy intervened and restored peace. Ebony finally decided she didn't want to spend another minute on the boat that wasn't necessary. Ram ultimately chose to stay behind as well. He claimed not to trust the wide open range of the beach. Though the city was more than a day away to the north, he still didn't feel safe. There were hints of his germ phobia coming to the fore again. It hadn't been his idea to travel the coast anyway. If it had been up to him, they would have gone straight out to sea. Though the others saw his point, Jack's argument about traveling along the coast was a better idea to most. No one wanted to be stuck out in the middle of the ocean with no food, water or fuel. At least with land in sight they had a fighting chance.
The cove had turned out to be a good spot. There was lots of food to be found in the thick vegetation that grew along the beach. And there was a fresh water stream coming from somewhere further up the hillside. Plenty of timber for building small huts and the best part was it was completely uninhabited. So they were covered when it came to water, food and shelter. Now, everyone was sitting around wondering what to do next. Apart from surviving, no one seemed to have a plan.
Amber's attention was brought back to the present as she heaved overboard again. She sighed as her stomach settled from it's convulsing. She wished she wasn't feeling so poorly so she could think straight. It bothered her that she'd become ill so suddenly. For a moment she gave in to fear and wondered if it was the virus. Could it really spread this far this fast? They were at least a day's drive from their abandoned home. She shook her head. No, she refused to believe that they'd come this far just to die. Perhaps it was nerves. She had been worrying herself silly over what their next move would be. For some reason she still felt as though the fate of her friends lay in her hands. She smirked, there was no denying that she was never more at home than when she was distracting herself with the welfare of others. There was no time for self pity or despair when she was busy taking care of everyone else.
Suddenly she was struck with a terrifying, if not very real possibility. What if she was pregnant? Amber gagged at the thought. That was the worst thing that could happen right now. Li'l Bray was barely a year old and it was hard enough keeping him alive and safe. No, she shook her head again. If there was one thing she could trust in this world it was just how particular she'd become about safe sex. With Bray she was wild with abandon and the thought had rarely crossed her mind. When it ever did, it only seemed part of the wonderful fantasy that was their love. Bray and she and baby makes three. Since then reality had shattered her childhood dreams of family. Though she loved Jay she could never completely give herself to anyone again. She just couldn't take that chance.
"Oy..." Amber looked up to see Slade climbing the ladder up the starboard side. She was surprised she hadn't noticed his rowing their way before. As he swung his leg over the railing he gave her an odd look. "You alright?"
Amber shrugged. "All this rocking has my stomach in knots." She looked at him. He was looking pretty pale as well. "What about you? Don't look so great."
Slade cracked his neck, a slight expression of pain crossed his handsome features. "Didn't sleep much. Ebony's not feeling well so I was up with her." He pulled a jug of water from his pack and handed it to her. "How's Ruby?"
"Hm," Amber took a large swig. She was parched. "Still pretty out of it. She took a good fall but she's eating a little and drinking so that's good."
Slade nodded and sat on the boat deck. Though he didn't show it, he was worried about Ruby. Despite recent developments he did consider her to be a friend. After the virus the term friend was a rare and near meaningless word to him. At least until he met the Mallrats. He was stupefied as well as envious of their loyalties to one another. How they still had the capability to care for so many people in this strange time of survival confounded him. He looked up to see Amber searching the beach. He knew what she was looking for.
"He's okay," he said referring to her young son. "Lottie's been teaching him and Brady to build sand castles."
Amber smiled at him. "You think I'd be used to being away from him by now." She thought about all the times she and her child had been separated. "It still makes me crazy."
"You're a Mom," Slade said simply.
"Like that means anything;" They both turned to see Ram running up the stairs from below deck, his face a slight shade of green. Without another word he leaned over the rail and retched. Amber and Slade looked away just in time. When he was through he turned around and slid down to the floor. He glared at their looks of sympathy. "Does anyone have any water?" he mumbled.
Amber stepped forward and handed him the jug that Slade brought on board. Without thanking her he made a show of wiping the rim with his sleeve before bringing it to his lips. Amber rolled her eyes and started to climb over the rail. She still wasn't sure how she felt about Ram. Back in the city with Mega threatening to destroy them all she had no choice but trust him. But now with no certain danger before them, her hateful feelings for the one responsible for wrecking her life were beginning to resurface.
"I'm going ashore."
Slade gave her a nod. "G'night."
Precariously she made her way into the raft and untied the knots Slade used to secure it to the bigger vessel. Finally she started rowing the many meters to shore. She could see that a fire had been started which meant they were beginning to cook whatever goods they'd gathered during the day. Despite his city slicker image, Lex had fully taken to cooking by fire. Making sure everyone was fed gave him something to do and kept his mind off more troubling things. The thought of grilled crab sounded delicious and Amber hoped she had a better appetite this evening than she did last night. The night before, Lex and Sammy collected dozens of assorted shellfish and grilled them over the fire but Amber hadn't been able to enjoy it.
The sun was dipping below the horizon by the time she dragged the raft up the beach. One of the kids called her name and she waved at the group with a half smile. Jay looked up from his work and greeted her with his tired eyes. He and the boys had done a lot for one day, erecting four thatched shelters. He and Jack were determined to get as many made in as short a time as possible. So far they'd been lucky with the weather but Jay didn't believe it would last.
Ellie came forward to help with the inflatable. She had a big smile on her face, the sun and sand agreeing with her. She gave Amber a worried look as they secured the raft from the incoming tide. She didn't remember Amber looking this ashen when she left for boat watch yesterday. The same shade of paleness was washing over everyone and only she and Jack seemed to be benefiting from the sun's warm rays.
"What's for dinner?" Amber tried to hide how sick she felt.
"Sammy speared himself two sea bass," Ellie smiled impressed. "And Salene found a way to cook the seaweed into something almost edible."
Amber smirked. "Another meal at sea."
"That and with the clams, mushrooms and herbs we found she's making a stew." Ellie rubbed her stomach. She was starving after spending a day helping Salene hunt down and prepare food. "Too bad we couldn't dig up some potatoes. Could have made chowder."
"Hm," Amber smiled at her friend. "But I think we're doing pretty good for ourselves."
"Yeah," Ellie agreed full of optimism over their present situation. "Give us time and we'll make a new city right here on the beach!"
Amber managed to laugh. "Well, we certainly have enough people."
chap two
For those unfamiliar with it, "The Tribe" was a show out of New Zealand about kids surviving in a post apocalyptic world. It ran for 5 seasons, 52 episodes each and had a major fan following. The cast cut three albums(I think) and several tours. This particular fic picks up right after season 5 ends... the continuing story that Cloud 9 denied us. And so...
Story intro: This is my version of the continuing journey of the Mallrats, Tribe season six if you please. While continuity is of the utmost importance to me, I have made a few minor and not so minor changes. 1Tai-San was never a Techno. Instead it was Jay who was allowed to look for Brady in the holding cages. In the season four finale, Tai-San wasn't present but Lex did see her image on a monitor, placed there by Mega so he would believe she was alive and wandering the city. This set Lex on his relentless quest to find her, inevitably splitting him and Siva apart. Siva in turn joined her sisters (Mega's plan all along) and the rest is history.2Lex never messed around with Gel. While she obviously crushed on him, he in turn was too busy mourning Siva to respond to her advances.3KC, Alice and the Guardian on the island... never happened. For reasons I can't reveal I've chosen to forego that piece of unrealistic foreshadowing.4Mega never told Lex anything about those taken by the Technos. The most Lex knows is the information he received from Fish. So Mega's last words... "Lex knows everything about..." sorry, but that didn't happen. For those of you who are appalled at my audacity, I apologize. I've done my best to create a realistic continuing story, but considering all the holes and loose ends in the story lines of seasons four and five, I had no choice but to leave a few things out. I hope those of you who are still interested enjoy this. Look into the future, what do you see?
I really need to know now, is there a place for me
Tell me where do we go from here?
Take me as you find me, for what I am
And when I make mistakes, please understand
And as long as I know your near
There is nothing for me to fear
-Out of the darkness, a light shines
Burning through the coldest night
And we can find a way (together we'll make it)
With every step we take (moving closer together)
If we're gonna survive, the dream must stay alive
Baby when you hold me, when I'm afraid
Save me through the danger, until the break of day
If there's love there's a chance for me
Just believe in yourself, you'll see
-Out of the darkness, a light shines
Burning through the coldest night
And we can find a way (together we'll make it)
With every step we take (moving closer together)
If we're gonna survive, the dream must stay alive - Merryl Cassie
A New Beginning
Amber stared into the sun setting over the water and waited for the wave of nausea to wash over her. She tried to remember ever getting seasick back when her father used to take them for trips on his schooner. No, it was Solaris who couldn't handle being at sea. Amber was built for life on the water. Maybe it had to do with the fact that they weren't moving forward, simply drifting offshore and more susceptible to the rocky waves.
She looked onto the beach where her friends were bustling about the makeshift camp. It had been two days since they found this cove and decided to stop. It seemed as good a place as any and everyone was desperate to get on land after nearly two days at sea. After a bit of arguing between Jack and Ram on whether or not they were far enough away from the city to be safe from the virus, May had thrown the inflatable life raft overboard.
"Screw this," as she so eloquently put it, "I'm getting off this damn boat!"
The others had agreed whole heartedly, and in groups of five they took the raft to shore. There was no harbor and the water was too shallow to dock the boat. Trader finally threw down his anchor but refused to leave his valuable piece of property. Lex was the first to announce that he didn't trust leaving Trader and the boat unattended. He was sure the boy would bail on them at the first opportunity. Though Amber understood Trader's desire to stay with his vessel, she agreed that they couldn't afford to leave him alone. Besides she wasn't too sure they should move Ruby from below deck. It was then decided that they would take turns staying on the boat with her, to keep an eye on things. If Trader was insulted by this obvious distrust he didn't show it. He was quite used to people being suspicious of him. In most cases it was what kept a lot of them alive.
It was agreed that Lex, Jay, Amber and Slade would take watch shifts on the boat. Ebony volunteered but May adamantly denied that idea, claiming they couldn't trust Ebony any more than they could trust Trader. Some slinging of nasty insults went on before Salene and Trudy intervened and restored peace. Ebony finally decided she didn't want to spend another minute on the boat that wasn't necessary. Ram ultimately chose to stay behind as well. He claimed not to trust the wide open range of the beach. Though the city was more than a day away to the north, he still didn't feel safe. There were hints of his germ phobia coming to the fore again. It hadn't been his idea to travel the coast anyway. If it had been up to him, they would have gone straight out to sea. Though the others saw his point, Jack's argument about traveling along the coast was a better idea to most. No one wanted to be stuck out in the middle of the ocean with no food, water or fuel. At least with land in sight they had a fighting chance.
The cove had turned out to be a good spot. There was lots of food to be found in the thick vegetation that grew along the beach. And there was a fresh water stream coming from somewhere further up the hillside. Plenty of timber for building small huts and the best part was it was completely uninhabited. So they were covered when it came to water, food and shelter. Now, everyone was sitting around wondering what to do next. Apart from surviving, no one seemed to have a plan.
Amber's attention was brought back to the present as she heaved overboard again. She sighed as her stomach settled from it's convulsing. She wished she wasn't feeling so poorly so she could think straight. It bothered her that she'd become ill so suddenly. For a moment she gave in to fear and wondered if it was the virus. Could it really spread this far this fast? They were at least a day's drive from their abandoned home. She shook her head. No, she refused to believe that they'd come this far just to die. Perhaps it was nerves. She had been worrying herself silly over what their next move would be. For some reason she still felt as though the fate of her friends lay in her hands. She smirked, there was no denying that she was never more at home than when she was distracting herself with the welfare of others. There was no time for self pity or despair when she was busy taking care of everyone else.
Suddenly she was struck with a terrifying, if not very real possibility. What if she was pregnant? Amber gagged at the thought. That was the worst thing that could happen right now. Li'l Bray was barely a year old and it was hard enough keeping him alive and safe. No, she shook her head again. If there was one thing she could trust in this world it was just how particular she'd become about safe sex. With Bray she was wild with abandon and the thought had rarely crossed her mind. When it ever did, it only seemed part of the wonderful fantasy that was their love. Bray and she and baby makes three. Since then reality had shattered her childhood dreams of family. Though she loved Jay she could never completely give herself to anyone again. She just couldn't take that chance.
"Oy..." Amber looked up to see Slade climbing the ladder up the starboard side. She was surprised she hadn't noticed his rowing their way before. As he swung his leg over the railing he gave her an odd look. "You alright?"
Amber shrugged. "All this rocking has my stomach in knots." She looked at him. He was looking pretty pale as well. "What about you? Don't look so great."
Slade cracked his neck, a slight expression of pain crossed his handsome features. "Didn't sleep much. Ebony's not feeling well so I was up with her." He pulled a jug of water from his pack and handed it to her. "How's Ruby?"
"Hm," Amber took a large swig. She was parched. "Still pretty out of it. She took a good fall but she's eating a little and drinking so that's good."
Slade nodded and sat on the boat deck. Though he didn't show it, he was worried about Ruby. Despite recent developments he did consider her to be a friend. After the virus the term friend was a rare and near meaningless word to him. At least until he met the Mallrats. He was stupefied as well as envious of their loyalties to one another. How they still had the capability to care for so many people in this strange time of survival confounded him. He looked up to see Amber searching the beach. He knew what she was looking for.
"He's okay," he said referring to her young son. "Lottie's been teaching him and Brady to build sand castles."
Amber smiled at him. "You think I'd be used to being away from him by now." She thought about all the times she and her child had been separated. "It still makes me crazy."
"You're a Mom," Slade said simply.
"Like that means anything;" They both turned to see Ram running up the stairs from below deck, his face a slight shade of green. Without another word he leaned over the rail and retched. Amber and Slade looked away just in time. When he was through he turned around and slid down to the floor. He glared at their looks of sympathy. "Does anyone have any water?" he mumbled.
Amber stepped forward and handed him the jug that Slade brought on board. Without thanking her he made a show of wiping the rim with his sleeve before bringing it to his lips. Amber rolled her eyes and started to climb over the rail. She still wasn't sure how she felt about Ram. Back in the city with Mega threatening to destroy them all she had no choice but trust him. But now with no certain danger before them, her hateful feelings for the one responsible for wrecking her life were beginning to resurface.
"I'm going ashore."
Slade gave her a nod. "G'night."
Precariously she made her way into the raft and untied the knots Slade used to secure it to the bigger vessel. Finally she started rowing the many meters to shore. She could see that a fire had been started which meant they were beginning to cook whatever goods they'd gathered during the day. Despite his city slicker image, Lex had fully taken to cooking by fire. Making sure everyone was fed gave him something to do and kept his mind off more troubling things. The thought of grilled crab sounded delicious and Amber hoped she had a better appetite this evening than she did last night. The night before, Lex and Sammy collected dozens of assorted shellfish and grilled them over the fire but Amber hadn't been able to enjoy it.
The sun was dipping below the horizon by the time she dragged the raft up the beach. One of the kids called her name and she waved at the group with a half smile. Jay looked up from his work and greeted her with his tired eyes. He and the boys had done a lot for one day, erecting four thatched shelters. He and Jack were determined to get as many made in as short a time as possible. So far they'd been lucky with the weather but Jay didn't believe it would last.
Ellie came forward to help with the inflatable. She had a big smile on her face, the sun and sand agreeing with her. She gave Amber a worried look as they secured the raft from the incoming tide. She didn't remember Amber looking this ashen when she left for boat watch yesterday. The same shade of paleness was washing over everyone and only she and Jack seemed to be benefiting from the sun's warm rays.
"What's for dinner?" Amber tried to hide how sick she felt.
"Sammy speared himself two sea bass," Ellie smiled impressed. "And Salene found a way to cook the seaweed into something almost edible."
Amber smirked. "Another meal at sea."
"That and with the clams, mushrooms and herbs we found she's making a stew." Ellie rubbed her stomach. She was starving after spending a day helping Salene hunt down and prepare food. "Too bad we couldn't dig up some potatoes. Could have made chowder."
"Hm," Amber smiled at her friend. "But I think we're doing pretty good for ourselves."
"Yeah," Ellie agreed full of optimism over their present situation. "Give us time and we'll make a new city right here on the beach!"
Amber managed to laugh. "Well, we certainly have enough people."
chap two