Dark Star
The 100 slight AU- They made it to the ground, but now they have to survive. Easier said than done.
Bellamy x Clarke, Clarke x Lexa, Clarke x Finn, Raven x Finn, Raven x Wick, Octavia x Lincoln, Abby x Marcus, Jasper x Maya, Murphy x O/C, Bellamy x O/C
Characters: Madison Bradley (Emily Kinney), Roxanne Erikson (Phoebe Tonkin)
xxXxx
Chapter One: World on Fire (part one)
"I'll go the distance
Lead the way to your darkest sin,
You know there's something coming down
From the sky above…"
-Les Friction
xxXxx
When she pried her eyes open, the first thing she saw was a mop of blonde hair. Her brain dimly recognized it, but it was also beginning to feel the aches and pains that coincided with crashing into the ground.
"Roxanne."
Her gaze shifted to meet a pair of blue eyes. She recognized those as well. "Clarke," she croaked.
"Hey."
"Is everyone okay?"
Clarke stared back at her before shaking her head. "A few didn't make the fall," she said quietly. "A few more were injured, like you and Bradley." Clarke reached up and touched her arm, which she realized was bandaged.
Roxanne's eyes snapped back to the mop of blonde hair. Her friend, Bradley, was lying down beside her with her eyes closed. She had some scratches on her face, her leg was in a makeshift brace, but other than that she appeared to be fine.
"She's fine," Clarke said reassuringly. "Just a broken leg, but the snap was clean so it should heal okay."
Roxanne sat up slowly. "Thanks, Clarke," she said.
Clarke nodded before walking away. Roxanne watched her go briefly before turning back to her friend. She shifted until she was beside Bradley then reached out to brush the hair out of her eyes.
Bradley's eyebrows furrowed before her eyes opened. When she saw Roxanne, she smiled. "Hi."
Roxanne's lips twitched. "Hi. How are you feeling?"
Bradley frowned for a moment before shrugging. "I'm okay. Besides, you know, the leg."
Roxanne had to laugh at that.
xxXxx
Later
Life on the ground wasn't all that bad. They had access to water and food, they had their makeshift shelter within the camp. Sure, there was some issues when it came to who was calling the shots but no one had died since the fall.
At least not yet, Roxanne thought with a trace of bitterness.
She mused over what had happened over the past few weeks from her post as guard.
They had quickly discovered that they were not alone on the ground. The only people who lived in the forests, dubbed the name "Grounders", weren't the friendly neighbor sort. There was still tension between them but Roxanne understood that Clarke was working out a way so they could live together in peace.
Then they had managed to contact the Arc, thanks to the work of Monty, Jasper, and some girl named Raven.
Roxanne remembered talking to Raven for the first time. She had asked the other girl why she was here instead of in the Arc, since Raven was already eighteen. Raven had explained she had managed to convince Jaha to let her come with but then dropped the subject quickly.
Roxanne still felt a little wary around the girl.
Other than that, she coexisted well with the others. They each had a job to do, whether it was standing guard or gathering water or hunting, they all had to contribute in some way to their little community.
When it came to who was in charge, Clarke assumed that position from the get-go, earning her the nickname "Princess", courtesy of Bellamy Blake.
Roxanne rolled her eyes when she thought of Bellamy. He was too arrogant for his own good in her opinion. And Clarke wasn't the only one who had gotten an honorary nickname from him. Bellamy had recently began calling Roxanne "Roxy", which put her teeth on edge.
"Hey, Roxanne."
She turned at the sound of her friend's voice. Bradley stood a few feet away, smiling widely at her.
"What's up?"
"Clarke's looking for you."
Roxanne's brow lifted but she followed her friend back into the camp. Clarke was waiting for her near the pod with a serious expression on her face.
"You rang, boss?" Roxanne asked.
Clarke's gaze shifted over to her. "Roxanne, I need a favor from you."
Roxanne shifted her weight, tilting her head at Clarke. The hunting knife she held in one hand tapped a slow rhythm against her thigh. "Which is?"
"I need you to watch over things while I go meet with the Grounder's leader, their Commander."
Roxanne's brows shot up. "Why don't you ask Bellamy or Octavia? Hell, even Finn is capable."
"I want you to do this for me. Octavia is coming with me, since Lincoln will be there."
Roxanne's lips pursed. Lincoln was a Grounder who had been one of the first they had encountered. He proved that he wasn't as hostile as his fellow Grounders, so Clarke had started trying to bridge the gap between the two groups with him. Plus, it didn't hurt that soon after meeting him, Octavia had begun to sneak away to meet with him for obvious reasons.
"And Bellamy didn't have anything to say?" Roxanne asked.
"On the contrary, Roxy, I had plenty to say."
Roxanne's eyes rolled skyward before she glared at Bellamy, who was approaching her and Clarke. He glared right back.
"What do you want?" Roxanne snapped.
"To talk with Princess about this meeting with the Grounders," Bellamy said firmly.
"Why don't you just fuck off, Bellamy, and leave this to us girls?" Roxanne challenged, stepping in his way.
"You girls-," he began, scoffing, before Roxanne cut him off.
"Oh, please, finish whatever you're about to say. I'd love a reason to kick your ass."
"Stop it," Clarke hissed, stepping between Bellamy and Roxanne. "This isn't the time to fight. I have to leave soon so stop behaving like children and listen."
Roxanne clenched her jaw before nodding curtly.
"Roxanne, you'll be in charge until I get back. Bellamy, before you start again, I have to do this. We can't live on the brink of war with the Grounders."
"You don't know what you're walking into, Princess."
"And you do?" Clarke shot back. "Just trust me for a minute, Bellamy. I can do this." Before he could reply, she strode off.
Bellamy's dark eyes slid over to Roxanne. "I still think it's a bad idea," he muttered angrily.
Roxanne rolled her eyes again. "No one asked you," she replied coolly. "Go get a small team together to gather some more wood before it gets dark."
Bellamy growled under his breath but stalked off without protesting. Roxanne exhaled sharply, placing her hands on her hips. She watched as he made his way over to Finn then turned on her heel to head into the pod.
xxXxx
Bradley liked standing watch. Once her leg healed, she got into the habit of climbing the trees so she had a better view of the ground below. Lincoln had even gave her some pointers on how to move across the tree branches silently.
Bradley frowned and considered the Grounder, who was talking to Octavia and Clarke below. He was okay for a Grounder. She liked how he left flowers for Octavia.
Bradley swung her feet in front of her, twirling a small butterfly knife between her fingers. She knew the other guards had guns, which Clarke and Finn had found a little while ago, but she preferred her knives. She had the one she was holding, plus two more attached to her thighs.
One was courtesy of Roxanne, who had given it to her on the Arc before they had been arrested. It had been her birthday present when she had turned seventeen.
"So you can defend yourself against the adults next year," she had said.
A week later, both girls found themselves in the Arc's prison for the teens who were too young to be floated for their crimes. She and Roxanne had been caught stealing from the medical ward, since Bradley's mom had been sick. Roxanne had acted without thinking and when Bradley had tried to stop her, they were caught by Clarke's mother Abby.
Bradley had understood Roxanne's actions. Ever since her own mother had died, Bradley's mother, Julietta, had taken Roxanne in and had treated her like she was the second daughter she had never had. Plus, Roxanne was impulsive.
Bradley smiled at that and watched as Lincoln lead Octavia and Clarke out into the woods. Her eyes narrowed as she saw another figure heading back into camp. The guy walked- nearly swaggered- back inside the camp.
She recognized him of course. John Murphy was one of the more popular kids that walked around the camp. But by popular, that meant he wasn't really liked. Being a loner with a bad attitude quickly gave him a bad name amongst the others.
Bradley studied him with some curiosity. He stood alone near the tent where they kept the meat that had been hunted. He was sharpening the end of a twig with his knife, his eyes scanning the camp with disinterest.
Since curiosity always bested her, Bradley climbed down the tree before dropping to the ground. She straightened and nodded at the other guy keeping watch- who, if she remembered right, was called Wick.
She strolled over to where Murphy was standing, sliding her hands in her back pockets. When his steely blue gaze met hers, she smiled. "How's it goin', Murphy?" she asked casually.
"It's going," he replied. His gaze refocused on sharpening the twig to a fine point. When he realized she was still there, he lifted a brow. "Can I help you with something?" he asked, his voice seeped in sarcasm.
"Nope," Bradley said, ignoring his tone. "I was just watching you and wanted to see if you wanted some company."
"Do I look like I want company?" he retorted, his eyes lifting to hers again.
She crossed her arms. "Well, you don't have to be rude."
His hands paused their movements. "Oh right. I'm sorry. Where are my manners?" He lifted his weight to face her directly. "What the hell do you want?"
Bradley rolled her eyes. "You don't know my name, do you?" she asked on a sigh.
"Madison Bradley."
She blinked. "What?"
"Your name is Madison Bradley." Murphy shrugged, his eyes focusing on something else. "You're friends with that weird chick named Roxy."
"Roxanne," Bradley corrected automatically. "She hates being called Roxy. And she's not weird."
Murphy gave her a cool look. "Sure, whatever you say, blonde."
Suppressing another sigh, Bradley straightened. "Well this was a nice chat. We'll have to do it again sometime."
"Sure. Whatever."
Unable to stop the eye roll, Bradley walked away, heading back to her spot outside the camp. With her back to him, she didn't see Murphy's gaze following her.
xxXxx
Roxanne was talking to Jasper and Monty when Clarke and Octavia returned.
Clarke pulled her aside. "How was everything?"
Roxanne shrugged. "Fine. Nothing to report."
Clarke relaxed. "Good," she said with a small nod.
"How was the meeting with the Commander or whatever?"
Clarke opened her mouth then closed it before replying. "Call everyone in," she instructed. "I want everyone to hear this."
Roxanne nodded and strode outside. She let out a shrill whistle, once then twice, which was their signal to the guards outside to come inside. She called out to everyone who was milling around the campsite, catching their attention with ease.
Once everyone was gathered in front of the pod, Roxanne stepped aside so Clarke could speak to all of them. She moved down to stand next to Bradley.
"As all of you know, I met with the Grounder's Commander today. We discussed how we could coexist in peace, rather than living side by side with the possibility of war erupting." Clarke paused before continuing. "The other Grounders are not happy with us staying on their land. The Commander is keeping them in check, but I'm not sure how long that will last. So I think it would be best if we moved on."
The crowd erupted with outcries.
"But where would we live?"
"Screw the Grounders, they can learn to deal with us being here!"
"We can't just leave!"
"Where would we go?"
Roxanne turned slightly. "Shut it!" she exclaimed.
The yelling ceased to a quiet murmur.
Bradley took a step forward, looking at Clarke. "But Clarke, where would we go?" she asked.
Clarke took a deep breath. "We go where we were supposed to land in the first place. Mount Weather."
"And how do you suggest we get there if we have to cut across Grounder territory?" Bellamy asked, shoving his way to the front of the crowd.
"The Commander said if we leave, no one will stand in our way as we make our way to Mount Weather," Clarke replied, ignoring Bellamy's tone.
"And if we stay?" Bellamy challenged. When Clarke didn't answer, he turned to face everyone else. "If we stay, we are giving the Grounders an invitation for war. But I think we could take those bastards, and then we wouldn't have to leave here."
"You really think we could take them?" Roxanne asked, raising a brow. "We don't even know how many Grounders there are and there's only a hundred of us."
"So you'd rather cross unfamiliar territory to end up in a place that may or may not be habitable?" Bellamy shot back, crossing his arms over his chest.
"I'd rather leave here than put everybody at risk for attack!"
"We'd be putting them at risk regardless!"
Bradley stepped between Roxanne and Bellamy. "Enough!" she snapped. "Stop acting like you're the ones who are in charge of making decisions for everyone for just a moment." She walked up to stand next to Clarke, her blue eyes scanning the crowd. "I think we should take a vote."
Clarke nodded. "All those in favor of staying here, stand to my left. And those who think we should leave, stand to my right. Bradley and I will count you off."
The crowd shifted, each person moving to their respective places. Bradley and Clarke went down and began counting people off.
Roxanne glared at Bellamy, who stood across from where she was. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned.
Octavia gave her a small smile. "Look, don't mind Bellamy. He thinks what he's doing is right, even though most of the time he comes across as a…"
"Pompous jackass?" Roxanne suggested helpfully.
Octavia rolled her eyes. "That's one term, I guess. What I'm saying is don't get angry at him for being a jackass, his intentions are good in the long run."
Roxanne scowled as Octavia stepped back. Her gaze went back to Bellamy, who was now staring down Clarke with a clenched jaw. Her eyes narrowed. "He's still a jackass."
"The highest vote is to go to Mount Weather," Clarke announced. "So it's settled. In two days, we'll leave. Until then, we should start gathering as much as we can take with us."
Roxanne noticed Bellamy's expression and lunged forward to grab his arm before he could reach Clarke. "What is your damage?" she hissed, pulling him away from the crowd. "Do you want us to go to war?"
Bellamy narrowed his eyes and yanked his arm out of her grip. "Back off," he snapped.
"Is that supposed to scare me?" Roxanne asked sharply, raising her eyebrows.
Bellamy didn't reply. He shook his head and stalked off, heading back into the pod. Roxanne watched him go, her fists clenched at her sides.
"You know, if you keep yanking him around like that, people might get the wrong impression."
Roxanne turned and saw Murphy leaning against a tree to her left. He was twisting a small, pointed stick between his fingers as he watched her. Her lip curled. "What's it to you?"
Murphy shrugged. "Just sayin' is all," he replied coolly before pushing away from the tree.
Roxanne opened her mouth but the sound of someone approaching interrupted her thoughts. Bradley's brow furrowed when she saw Murphy's retreating form. "Why were you talking to Murphy?" she asked.
"He… It's not important," Roxanne muttered, crossing her arms and tapping her fingers against them. She looked at her friend, who was still staring in the direction where Murphy had disappeared to. "Bradley."
Bradley blinked as if startled. "Sorry," she said. "Lost in thought."
Roxanne arched her brow. "About Murphy?"
Bradley's eyes widened for a moment. "What- no! I was thinking about… us moving and stuff."
Roxanne stared at her friend for a long moment before shrugging.
xxXxx
The next day brought more tension in the camp. There were many who thought all of them should stay and fight, that Bellamy was right.
Bradley ignored most of it. She didn't like the idea of staying here if that meant a war with the Grounders. They had been here much longer than they had and knew the terrain better. She figured they should take advantage of the Commander's leeway and take their chances at Mount Weather.
She was put in charge of guarding the north entrance and stayed up high for a better lookout. She was tempted to go up into the trees again but she knew the other guards needed to stay in sight of each other. Instead, she stayed crouched on a small foothill, her eyes scanning the forest for any movement.
The snapping of a branch caught her attention and she crouched down lower, one of her knives in her hand. She saw someone walking through a patch of trees towards the outer edge of camp and she waited until they reached a small clearing.
Her hand tightened around her knife as her body tensed, waiting a moment longer. When there was a clear shot, she whipped the knife out of her hand, sending it through the air. It slammed into a tree and she gasped.
Murphy stood frozen, a line of blood sliding down his cheek where the knife had sliced his skin. An inch to the right and it would have been buried in his throat.
Bradley darted forward, her eyes huge. "Murphy!" she exclaimed. "Why the fuck were you slinking through the trees like that, I thought you were a Grounder!"
His eyes were cool and distant. "Clarke sent me out to see if the path was clear to the river," he said calmly. "Of course, she didn't warn me to duck in case of throwing knives." He turned and pulled Bradley's knife free before handing it back to her. "Might want to work on your aim."
Bradley gawked at him for a moment before stepping closer. "You're bleeding," she said worriedly. Her hands went to her shirt, ready to rip it.
Murphy's hands shot out as if to stop her but paused. "Don't worry about it. I've had worse."
"Shut up and let me help you," she snapped. With a quick movement, she ripped a thin strip of her shirt off. She reached inside her pocket, drawing out a small vial. "Lincoln showed me how to make this," she explained before lifting her hand. "This might sting."
Cautiously, she dabbed his cheek. He moved back slightly, hissing under his breath before glaring at her. She ignored him and leaned closer, biting her lip. She cleaned away the blood and was relieved to see the wound was shallow.
"You done?" Murphy asked impatiently, his eyes locked on hers.
"It wouldn't kill you to say thanks."
"Oh right. Thank you for almost killing me."
Bradley slapped the torn rag against his chest in frustration. "You know what, forget it. I'm sorry I was doing my job and that I reacted like I did. But don't think you wouldn't have done the same thing, John Murphy."
She turned away only to be yanked back when Murphy grabbed her arm. She pulled her arm away and glared.
Murphy stared at her, his jaw clenched. "Sorry," he bit out.
Bradley exhaled sharply. "Whatever," she replied shortly before she stomped off back to her post.
xxXxx
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the 100.
Author's Note: Hello everyone! This is my first attempt at a fic for the 100, so let me know what you think of it so far.