Chapter One: Gory
I
When first the Brunette's eyes opened she was blinded by a field of light. The second time they spattered open she could slightly make out a blurred tile roof. On the third attempt the haze was gone and she could gaze up at the white ceiling that she surveyed through a glass plane only moments before the tiles crumpled and slipped in on themselves as the roof was torn open and her's along with many other capsules in the room were sucked out into the void of space.
Elsewhere a blonde woman goes through a very similar awakening process but when her eyes settle, the ceiling doesn't breach, the terrifying roar of oxygen being sucked from their habitat doesn't burst eardrums, and she doesn't die screaming... Yet. Instead the capsule opens with a long hiss as the woman is removed from stasis and awakens in a room full of other groggy humans in very similar confused and tired looking states. All were dressed in very simple undergarments that made them look like the cast of an undershirt add. As the capsules swung open and freed the last of the occupants the mulling about residents, ranging from children to elderly, glanced about one another questioningly. None panicked quite yet but many asked around questions like 'who woke us up' and 'where are the doctors' but most popular seemed to be 'are we here?'
"Alright people, um" the blonde bit her lip, unsure of what to do next. She herself had training as a doctor but she wasn't part of the ship's crew. She had no answers for these people but she knew someone had to start getting some or there'd be panic. "Ok, well, I'm a doctor actually and... Uh..." The blonde cursed herself inwardly. Public speaking was never her thing and it certainly wasn't easy now as she stood before a crowd of frightened people expecting help or answers. She swallowed hard in hopes the lump in her throat would be forced down plenty far enough. "First things first, I need to make sure you're all ok to be moving around. A basic physical will help us see if any of you have any symptoms of problematic stasis. This will be very quick and very easy if we can all just remain calm and form an orderly line." There were a few murmurs of peer discussion among the crowd but slowly they congregated into a relatively neat line save for a few with backgrounds in medicine that approached the doctor to lend aid.
The process of examining all the room's inhabitants really did go quick as the doctor said which proved to have been a great problem. With her one stalling tactic spent now the doctor would have to address the group's real need, answers. Gradually the crowd began to grow rowdy as slight panic set in when they realized the doors that should slide open on approach remained sealed. The doctor herself began to feel claustrophobic as the sea of bodies swam from wall to wall as the people saw a need to test both malfunctioning doors for themselves. A once organized line devolved rather quickly into a panic stricken mob as each person's mind drove their imagination to assume the worst possible explanations. The doctor shouted out pleas for calm as people darted about the room in search of an exit until a large man slammed through her, driving the blonde to the ground. He didn't see her nor would he have cared to anyway and instead of checking on the woman he rushed on towards a capsule he could stand on so he could try and pry open a ceiling panel. The doctor hit the ground head first and for a moment was deafened by a shrill ringing in her own mind as her brain tried to make sense of the direct impacts it was feeling. For a moment the doctor just laid there on the floor and stared at the white ceiling above letting the concussive silence lull her into comfort. Only when the people grew still and casted their gaze towards one of the doors did the woman decide to sit up and catch up with the crowd. A small fire hissed through the crack in the door as it slowly made its way from ceiling to floor tracing it's way along the crevice between the two pieces of metal. The blonde scuttled to her feet and approached the front of the group in anticipation of what was next. Every soul in the room looked into the flame in heart pounding silence, not a one even moved as the fire danced down its trail save for a few mothers who slid children behind them in case something less than kind came through. The doctor felt her own heart stop as the wick kissed the floor and blinked itself out. From just beyond the doors a few voices could just barely be heard before the door began to hiss and gauntleted fingers slid through the cracks to pry open the metal by force. The gap grew larger and larger until the crowd laid eyes upon a few unfamiliar beings clad in black T Shirts and grey fatigues through the space made in the door. Finally one of the men in the fatigues called out from beyond the view of the crowd 'that's enough' and slid in through the space he and his comrade made.
"Y'all could have helped." Muttered the man with light brown hair and a bird beak nose that stepped through the gap while shaking out the strain on his hands. "Ok people if you would so kindly head down this corridor in a neat and organized fashion we will get you to your clothes and to any family members not here with you." The man before them slouched a bit haphazardly with his hands in his pockets but the air of danger he had about him made the simple minded mob want to follow him, but the doctor still had questions. As the others obeyed and ducked through the doorway before hurrying down the corridor at the lead of the guards the blonde slid in beside the man who entered the room while he guided people out.
"Where are we going?" The woman asked as she too helped people slide through the narrow passage the guards made in the door. The man who stepped in spoke low to ensure only the doctor heard him.
"The hangar." He said resolutely.
"Why there?"
With a slight smile the man looked down at the woman and said "Oh, well, we're crashing."
II
Clarke Griffin never had to sit in a military dropship chair before. She never felt the heavy restraints squeeze her frame as a hulking warrior clad in tan armor tugged down on the clasps so the harness would bind her to her seat. She never felt a gauntleted hand tap her head as a voice yelled to her through a visor over the roar of an engine that she should 'loosen up or bite off her tongue'. No, the studied doctor and closet painter never experienced any of these things before, and she certainly had never been on a crashing space ship before. In the monumental hangar dozens of drop ships of varying sizes purred as they prepped to escape their doomed mother. A few guards with varying equipment hurried mobs of near naked civilians from the hallways and strapped them into any number of awaiting carriers. From her seat in one of the smaller ships Clarke could watch as a seemingly unending tide of civilians spewed from the mouth of the hallway and into the crowded hangar. Families clung to one another as their heads swiveled about trying to make sense of the direction they were being given by the shouting guards through booming megaphones. Those directing the mobs stood atop mounds of crates and pointed out people milling about for guards to recover and move into a standing by ship. One of the women lead into Clarke's ship wailed about 'her baby, her baby' as another guard wearing tan fatigues strapped her into her harness. The mother's face was sunken and full of dread as the guard slipped out of the ship to grab more civilians, ignoring her pleas of 'my baby, my baby'. The doctor felt her empty stomach churn as fear ripped through her alongside the revelation that this truly was happening and she wasn't just stuck in a horrid nightmare. Clarke looked down and dug her nails into her belly to calm the stirring nerves inside. She begged herself inwardly to calm down as soon her legs began to tremble and bind together. The blonde shut her eyes tight and and began muttering a prayer of protection, more so to block out the woman's wailing than anything, When a loud noise and sudden heat ripped her attention up. Screams and shouts from all over the nearby area threatened to overwhelm the noise of roaring flames that came from down one of the corridors that until a moment ago civilians were coming through. Clarke snapped her head around trying to see what was going on when more and more distant explosions became all too common. A new guard, this one wearing a black shirt and grey fatigues like the group before, ran into the dropship holding the hand of a small child wearing an oversized black helmet that covered his whole head. The new guard took a seat in the only chair facing down the row of civilians and pulled the child into his lap before fastening the restraints around both of them. The guard tugged on a few cords to get the brace as tight as possible before tapping the child's helmet and holding up a thumb until the boy responded in the very same way.
The guard rapped his knuckles against the wall behind his seat then turned and called into the cockpit "We're all full up!" The pilot turned back and gave the guard a thumbs up before flipping a few switches and barking out something over his headset.
Clarke's breathing grew rapid as she glanced out a window beside her head to watch the last of the ships get filled. With only one eye she watched as a small family got loaded onto a craft and after a short pause a guard came jogging out alone. The lone man waved into the craft and helped seal the door before wandering off out of Clarke's view. As far as she could tell he was the only one not on a ship as the massive hangar doors began to grown open and everything not tied down inside got ripped out into space.
To say the launch from the hangar was terrifyingly turbulent would be a horrid understatement. The blonde felt her organs literally vibrate within her as the dropship that carried her and roughly ninety others burned out of the hangar and into what had apparently been a small comet storm that tore apart the massive station. A handful of smaller crafts zipped from the mouth of the great ship and dozens were blown to bits as hunks of debris or comet shrapnel tore them apart. Perhaps most horrifying were those ships that were pelted by barely visible small shards of debris that didn't cause catastrophic damage but instead left them derelict and still as all inside were shredded. The pilot of Clarke's own craft fought the controls to force the long bodied ship into miracle maneuvers that narrowly missed passing death. She could hear warning alarms buzz and screech as the ship was pushed beyond its intended limit to avoid a comet hunk the size of a shopping mall which cut short the dreams of four other escapecraft.
"He was just a rookie trooper and he surely shook with fright" the guard with the child sang from his seat at the center. Civilians and guards in tan looked to him with terror and confusion as the man began to sing but the three other guards in black smiled and joined along. "He checked all his equipment and made sure his pack was tight" the guards in black began to tap their feet and pound their chests to the beat while rousing their neighbors with nudges and gestures of encouragement. "He had to sit and listen to those awful engines roar," a few worried voices joined the eccentric guards and soon even Clarke noticed her own lips start to mime the lyrics as the ship lurched around a hunk of debris that missed their wing by half a meter. "You ain't gonna jump no more! Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die," as she sang louder and louder Clarke's stomach began to unknot and her heart slightly calmed. "Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die," soon everyone was singing along as best they could as the pilot gritted his teeth and jerked the stick up to climb over an entire section of the mothership that had been torn off by the comets. "Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die, He ain't gonna jump no more!" Again and again they sang this song even while the entire ship rattled and roared as it made entry to a nearby planet's atmosphere that threatened to tear the falling tincan to shreds. Clarke felt her bones rattle as she dug her nails into the seat's handgrips with song on her lips and prayer on her mind until she felt her organs fly. Her stomach and her body followed soon as entry velocity became crashing velocity, which promptly turned into skidding velocity, and finally came to... Stopping.
"Well damn... It worked." The guard at the center tossed another guard in black a silver coin with a grin as he unlatched himself, still singing under his breath.
III
"The Ark is dying... Plain and simple. No longer can we deny that." If only it were 'plain and simple' four years ago when you floated my dad. Clarke scoffed with her arms crossed as she took another long gulp from a shaking cup of coffee in her hands. In the corner of the medical-bay break room was an old beat up monitor broadcasting Chancellor Jaha's latest public address to the people of the ark.
"Life support is... Failing... Our food production is... Inadequate. Sustainability of our current way of life is... Impossible." Every beat felt like a punch to the gut for all aboard the ark except for the almost-rebel Clarke whom was just waiting for the day this address came.
"It would seem that our end is nigh however; brothers and sisters of the Ark I have a plan. I have gathered the greatest minds aboard the ark and they have assured me that this plan can work. More importantly that it will save lives." Clarke was actually enraptured in the Chancellor's speech but her attention was forcefully ripped away when a nurse called her name from the break room doorway.
"Doctor Griffin! There's a guard here in need of your assistance." The young nurse called to an already acting Clarke. The cup of coffee barely settled on the counter before the blonde was out of the room and down the corridor heading to the emergency center.
"What can I expect Myles?" Clarke asked while mentally pushing out everything except the task she was about to undertake.
"The guard has a pretty deep gash on his back that'll need stitches and his elbow needs to be looked at." Myles rattled off while bending back fingers to keep count of the things he needed to tell Clarke.
"Alright, then sounds simple enough." When the blonde drew back the curtains surrounding the hospital bed of her newest patient she caught sight a beautiful black stenciled portrait of an eagle clutching lightning and flanked by wreaths on a tan canvas highlighted by a puckering rip seeping red.
All she could manage was a hushed 'woah' as Clarke admired the art adorning the guards naked back. For a moment she calmly mouthed the words she couldn't understand that were written on the banner beneath the eagle.
"Protigo Maxime Interest Tueri." She almost hummed.
"It means protect what matters most' the guard called from over his shoulder. 'And if you're not too busy I'm kind of losing blood here."
"Oh! Yes, sorry!' Clarke exclaimed when she returned to reality and started working on the guard. 'It really is a beautiful piece though the artist must have a real passion."
"She does' the guard chuckles a bit but is cut off when Clarke forces him still. 'Tattoos are the only thing I've managed to get her to focus on for longer than a week."
"Hopefully this doesn't scar too bad and ruin such a beautiful piece of work then."
"Are you still talking about the tattoo or about me?" The guard asked, a smirk drawing across his lips as he turned to look over his shoulder only to have his head forcefully turned forward by the Doctor. Despite the slight red tinge to her cheeks and her annoyed time Clarke couldn't help but laugh just a bit at the guard's attitude despite the open wound on his back.
"Oh you really are a piece of work... Um... Mister~"
"Lieutenant, actually Lieutenant Bellamy Blake."
"Lieutenant Blake."
"And you are?"
"Doctor Clarke Griffin."
"Nice to meet you Clarke."
The two shared idle conversations for a time going back and forth until Bellamy was all stitched up and cleared to leave the E.R.
"What do you think of that?" Bellamy nodded to the squawking tv in the corner or the medical center lobby as he tugged on his grey guard coat. On the screen Jaha was finishing up his speech to the people and announcing his plan to sever a section of the ark full of volunteers and prepare a landing colony to return to earth after inspections are made of the planet surface to gauge its habitability.
"I don't know what to think of it.' Clarke answered dryly with her arms crossed. 'It's hope I suppose." She shrugged.
"Hope aye? I guess that matters." The guard muttered his response before marching away from the now lone Doctor and back into the Ark's dark hallway.
Clarke didn't see the guard in person again but that meant little to her in the coming weeks. Jaha asked for volunteers from all over the Ark but encouraged the involvement of many that he assumed a first wave colony and scouting party would need and that put her and/or her mother right in his crosshairs. Either the tried and proven head surgeon or her young prodigy of a daughter would have to be sent on this undertaking in order to better the chances of the scouting party's survival. In the end it would be decided that Clarke would undergo this journey along with several hundred other volunteers from every walk of life aboard the Ark. When the time came to be sent off Clarke and the civilian personnel were placed in stasis in order to conserve resources while the newly dubbed 'ranger division' of the guard examined Earth's surface. The plan was working well until a freak meteor shower passed through Earth's atmosphere and right through the section of the Ark, shredding it to bits.
On earth's surface the show was beautiful up in the sky. Colors danced and popped sending streams of burning light all over the great black canopy. The grounders had no idea what they were seeing but most took it as a sign of great things to come while others took it as a sign of great hardships and war.
IV
The guard handed the child off to the woman who was screaming for her own earlier before heading outside of the crashed ship to take in his surroundings. The cool morning air kissed his cheeks and a lingering scent of pine pricked at his nostrils. Beneath his boots the guard felt a thin layer of dirt and soil sucking at his feet while tiny critters scurried away from the trench caused by his ship upon entry. Tall trees came together to provide a thick canopy that allowed only a few rays of light to breach their guard and touch the cold forest floor. Though none seemed to be nearby the guard could hear the familiar noises of various fauna going about their lives ordinarily or sprinting as far away from the foreign object from the sky as quickly as they could. With a sigh the guard turned and waved a hand at the gathered crowd in the craft.
"Come on out everyone the coast is clear, but don't wander too far. We have no clue where we are." With that the man in grey sauntered off a short ways and started examining his surroundings.
Inside the craft Clarke was still too shocked by the sounds and smells around her to even bother unhooking herself from her seat as she had so badly wanted to do earlier. It wasn't until a thin olive skinned brunette trudged out of the cockpit and groaned in pain did Clarke snap out of her daze.
"Well not bad for my first nonsimulated flight, aye Wick?" The pilot called behind her to a blonde man vomiting onto the floor of the dropship with a thumb up.
"That was amazing." Clarke gasped while getting up from her seat and putting an arm around the pilot to help the woman walk out of the craft.
"Thanks... Uh."
"Clarke."
"Thanks Clarke, name's Raven nice to meet you." The pilot extended a hand to the doctor and the two smiled as a bond formed between them until they noticed the slight crimson trail forming down Raven's leg.
"Your leg doesn't look so good Raven but you're in luck." Clarke said while picking up speed in carrying out Raven.
"Oh yeah? How's that?" Raven groaned with sarcastic amounts of optimism on her voice.
"You crashed a ship with a Doctor.
Outside the crash the few guards in tan and rangers in grey started help gather and assess civilians however they could to see just how bad off they were. The de facto leader John Murphy seemed to be paying extra close attention to one girl in particular with olive skin and darker hair who barreled out of the craft exclaiming 'we're back bitches!' At the top of her lungs. The look in his face definitely didn't convey feelings for the girl but instead hinted at something more like begrudged responsibility.
"Alright people for now we make this crash site our home until we can figure out where the hell we are and what our next move is. So, get comfortable and don't wander too far." John's orders didn't come across so much like orders as strongly worded suggestions alongside the threat of violence but the people complied nonetheless.
Night began to fall as Clarke put the finishing put the finishing touches on Raven's leg dressings and scavenged brace. Now the two women sat beside one another exchanging stories of their old lives on the ark and their hopes for the future.
"I bet you with the right tools I can make you a real brace for that leg Raven." Wick pointed at the crudely put together serious of sticks and bindings before starting doodles in the dirt beneath him of his plans.
"Hey! I think I did a pretty good job all things considered!" Clarke barked with a raised hand a playful slap in Wick's arm, messing up his drawings which drew out a hurt gasp from Wick and a loud bout of laughter from Raven.
"Shut up!" Murphy called back into the drop ship at the laughing group, his face painted with seriousness and his rifle sliding to his shoulder. The other guards and Rangers around mimicked John's movements and fanned out to sufficiently cover their area. Murphy scanned the surrounding tree line when he picked out a steady sign of movement coming through the tall surrounding grass. Slowly the ranger raised his rifle until his sight was trained in the moving silhouette in the foliage. Everyone in the dropship held their breath as time began to slow and the creature in the night drew closer and closer until suddenly, he was there.
Murphy sighed out a breathe he didn't know he was holding as he gave the order to relax to his men. With a good bit of pep in his step Murphy marched out of the craft and clasped hands with the tall dark stranger with curly brown hair.
"Fuck, am I glad to see you man." John chuckled and squeezed Bellamy's hand.
"Likewise Murph... Is-" as if right on cue Octavia Blake peaked out of the crashed dropship.
"Bellamy?" She asked the air with disbelief. The older Blake was speechless at first when he saw his sister but Murphy grinned and muttered 'turns out I'm actually a pretty good babysitter.'
Octavia Blake sprinted from the dropship and threw herself into her big brother's arms letting loose sobs of joy and relief as she was finally able to see him again after he was sent to Earth to judge its survivability three months back and she was left in the care of John Murphy, her brother's longtime friend.
"I can't believe it's you Bell. Thank God, or whatever, it's really you." Octavia squeezed her brother whom held her back carefully for a moment longer before stepping from her grasp and moving to address the survivors.
"My name is Captain Bellamy Blake of the Ark's Second Ranger Division and until we link up with the Ark you will obey me as though I was your chancellor. Welcome to Earth."