Part I

The day was fading into night as they reached their destination, all of them worn out and feeling defeated despite the victory. Octavia could feel that something was wrong. No one would tell her what had happened, how they had all gotten out, how it was possible that Pike was dead at the hands of the vengeful Trikru. They wouldn't even meet her eyes for more than a second.

Kane had sent Miller and Bryan to go find Clarke. Why they needed to find Clarke, she didn't understand. Clarke had made her choice to stay in Polis, hadn't she?

When the group finally arrived at the cave, Octavia looked up at the darkening sky and saw that the rain had stopped. Bellamy was still there, chained up to the cave wall. When he saw them, he stood up.

As Kane entered the cave, he glanced at Bellamy with a disappointed look. Bellamy had broken everybody's trust. His mentor and father figure stared at him like he was a stranger, his sister hated him. He'd lost them both.

"Where's Indra?" Octavia asked her brother.

"Left, said she's sorry."

She nodded. If the Commander really had died like Kane had told her, it made sense that Indra would want to be there. Lincoln looked at Bellamy with a concerned expression. She saw it and said without mercy, "He's fine".

Shortly after, Octavia stood watching as Lincoln bid farewell to Denae and the other grounders that had been imprisoned in Arkadia.

"Go easy on him," Kane told her, repeating her future self's words. "He was just trying to do the right thing."

"Yeah," she muttered "by getting himself killed."

Kane looked down, hoping he could help them. Then, when Lincoln had returned, he announced, "We'll stay here tonight. We wait for the others to come back with Clarke, then we move on, plan our next move."

"Move on to where exactly?" Sinclair asked as he hover over an unconscious Raven like a mother bird.

"We don't know yet," Kane stated "Abby will reach out soon. She's our inside man in Arkadia."

"That's too dangerous," Bellamy exclaimed. "Pike's on high alert, he's gonna catch her."

"Pike's dead," Kane informed him coldly. He turned back to the others. "Thanks to our source, we know what's coming."

"What source?"

It was Octavia who'd spoken. Everyone froze. She wasn't supposed to know about their visitor from the Future.

"That doesn't matter now," Kane said, dismissing her. Octavia looked at him in disbelief. Why wouldn't he tell her who this mysterious source was?

"The threat is real, and it's already here," he continued.

"Yeah, yeah. The homicidal A.I. who destroyed the world almost a century ago and is trying to do it again now… This whole thing sounds insane, Kane. You know that, right?" she thundered, then, crossing her arms, demanded, "And how do you even know you can trust this source of yours?"

Kane smiled at her. "We can."

"Then tell me who it is." When nobody answered, she fumed, "Something is going on and you're not telling me about it."

They looked away, avoiding her accusing eyes.

Octavia sighed and shook her head. "You know what, I need some fresh air." She got up to walk out of the cave. Then, when she heard Lincoln following her, stated firmly, "Alone."

Everybody stared as she walked away and stomped out of cave.

"We can't keep her in the dark forever," Sinclair argued patiently.

"We're not supposed to tell her," Kane lamented.

"Why?" Lincoln demanded.

Kane shrugged. "She didn't say."

Lincoln shook his head, frustrated. Suddenly, he remembered the other Octavia. He'd barely had a change to understand what had been going on before she'd tranqued him. He hadn't even gotten a good look at her.

"Was she okay?"

Kane nodded. "She seemed to be."

"She looked different," Lincoln mused, almost to himself.

"She was different."

Bellamy was listening intently to the conversation, trying to understand what was going on. What were they talking about? Who was she?

"She said losing you broke her. That when she lost herself too," Kane went on. "She came back here for you, to save you."

Lincoln smiled slightly. His love, so brave and strong, capable of crossing time and space for him, for them. He would be eternally grateful.

"And we won't keep Octavia in the dark forever, just until this blows over," Kane told them, then joked, "Her powers will develop soon enough. We don't want to get on her bad side."

They all shared a smile and a laugh, with the exception of Bellamy.

"Glad to see all of you think this is a joke. We're in the middle of a war here," he snapped.

Lincoln got up and walked toward him. "Yeah, a war you helped start."

"The war was always here, and Octavia's gonna end up getting herself killed in the middle of all of this. Is that what you want?"

"What I want is to protect her, always," Lincoln said, unflinchingly. "Even from you."

Then, he left to go find her.

Octavia was standing by a tree, looking out into the woods. Her arms crossed over her chest, her teeth grinding in frustration. What the hell was going on? Why was everyone lying to her?

She heard Lincoln's footsteps behind her, approaching.

"Thought we were in this together," she said.

"We are."

She turned to look at him. "Then why won't you tell me the truth? Why won't anyone tell me the truth?" she demanded. He looked away. "You're all hiding something from me. You think I can't tell?"

"Okay..." What was he supposed to say? He couldn't tell her the truth, but he couldn't lie to her either. "You have every right to be mad about that–"

"Oh, that's not all I'm mad about," she sputtered suddenly. "What if it had been me? What if I'd done that? How would you be feeling right now, uh?"

Lincoln thought about her hypothetical death and shuddered. She continued, "You're all I have left. What the hell was I supposed to do after you–" she stopped herself, taking a deep breath and trying to steady herself. "You were just going to leave me with nothing, without so much as a goodbye. You didn't even give me a choice!"

"And what choice did I have?" Lincoln asked softly. "Was I supposed to just leave them behind to be executed because of me? Was I supposed to let you die with me?"

No, of course not. Octavia knew she would've done the same thing. She shook her head and cried harder, covering her face with her hands. His heart broke at the sight and he pulled her into his arms. She held him back tightly, hiding her face in his neck.

"Don't you ever do that again," she sobbed, holding him to her like she would never let go. "I love you."

"I love you," Lincoln said as he held her tighter and nuzzled her neck. He pulled back to kiss the cut on her cheek, her bruised eye. "Moba*1."

Moba. I'm sorry.

Lincoln kept repeating the word over and over, in an effort to both show his sorrow at hurting her so much and comfort her. He kissed her skin everywhere he could reach. Moba. Moba.

He kissed her lips. The kiss started tender, then turned passionate, possessive. It had been so long since they'd been alone together, since they'd touched. Hungry for each other, taken by pure lust and need, they gave in. He pushed her against a tree and started pulling at the opening of her jacket, taking it off. Leaning down, he took off her boots and worked on pulling down her jeans and underwear. Octavia pulled at his pants, then fell on him, straddling his hips. She sank down, and, bracing her hands on his chest, rode him.

Afterward, Octavia lay in his arms. Her head was on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. She'd almost lost him today. The steady thump-thump of his beating heart calmed her. He was okay, she reassured herself, He was here.

"Octavia..."

"Shhh..." she whispered, closing her eyes and burrowing closer to him.

Thump-thump. Thump-thump.

He kissed her forehead softly and whispered, "Ai hod yu in*2." Octavia smiled and felt the tears return. Tears of joy, this time. Then, she remembered the reason why she'd walked out of cave in a fury, and pulled herself up so she could look him in the eyes.

"Tell me what's going on, Lincoln," she pleaded. "What's everyone hiding from me?"

He reached up and touched her cheek tenderly. "I promise I'll tell you when this is over."

She ground her teeth in frustration, but nodded. "I'm holding you to that," she warned.

Settling back down next to him, she closed her eyes and hoped he would keep his promise.

"We should probably go back, uh?" she asked, unwilling to move. Despite the cold winter air that chilled her skin, it felt so good to be in his arms. They were still mostly clothed, with the exception of her jacket, jeans and underwear. Her discarded jacket lay covering her exposed parts.

Octavia looked at him again. This beautiful, honorable to a fault, amazing man she loved and had the incredible luck of having him love her back. They leaned in for a kiss. She knew that, together, they were strong enough to withstand anything. There was no enemy, no homicidal A.I., no war that could break them. Whatever happened, they would be okay.


When they went back inside, Kane was on the walkie talking to Abby.

"How are things over there?"

"I couldn't risk an uprising, so the few remaining followers Pike had have been sent to lockup," Abby said over the walkie. Monty looked down, thinking about his mother. "The same with Jaha and his people. They were a danger to Arkadia. I couldn't let them walk around freely, especially knowing what we know now."

Kane glanced at Octavia for a single second, and told Abby, "I agree."

"Abby, listen. We might still have a ways to go here. I think we're gonna need the Rover."

"Okay, I'll send Sergeant Miller," Abby told him. "We can trust him."

"Tell him to leave the Rover by the south wall, near the passage exit. Harper will pick it up."

Harper nodded, agreeing.

"Abby…" Kane continued. "be careful."

There was a heartfelt pause. "You, too."

They disconnected.

Harper left to get the Rover and Kane turned to the others. "You should all rest up, while you still can."

"There's a river near here. I'll go out to fish something for dinner," Lincoln announced. Then, to Octavia he said, "You should stay here, get some rest."

She started to protest, but he pressed on. "Just for a little while," he pleaded. After the past few hours, or rather the past few days, she needed it. Octavia could hardly remember the last time she'd slept, but she wasn't about to let him out of her sight.

"I can't rest after we come back." She went to get the fishing net she'd been using lately, and said, "Let's go."

Lincoln sighed and smiled at her stubbornness.

"We'll be right back," Octavia announced as she took Lincoln's hand. They walked out of the cave.


About two hours later, Lincoln and Octavia returned with 3 trouts. He carried two of them, and she carried the other and a few large leaves that would serve as plates.

"Oh, here, let me help you guys," Jasper said, getting up.

Octavia held one of the fish out to him. Seeing his squeamish expression, she smiled. He looked at the fish in her hand dubiously and backed out. "Then again, I could just watch Raven…"

She nodded knowingly. "Yeah."

The young boy returned to sit next to where Monty and Sinclair hovered close to a still unconscious Raven. Lincoln and Octavia set to work. She took off her jacket and gloves and sat by the fire next to him. Together, working in unison and harmony, they prepared the fish and put it over the fire.

They were the middle of cooking their meal when Harper returned.

"Thank God!" Harper groaned when she saw what they were doing. "I'm starving…"

"The Rover?" Kane asked.

"Outside, about half a mile from here. I drove with the headlights off, just in case."

He smiled and gave a small nod of appreciation. "Good job, Harper."

She nodded, and went straight to where Octavia was cutting up the fish and placing them on leaves. She took one and sat down next to Monty. Octavia thought she saw something between them. There was something in the way she looked at him. Octavia remembered looking at Lincoln the same way when they'd first fallen in love.

Kane took one of the leaves with cooked fish and brought it over to where Bellamy sat, looking forlorn. He handed the food silently. The two men shared a look, and Bellamy nodded once in thanks.

After they'd all eaten, they settle down for the night. Monty stood watch outside, Lincoln and Octavia huddled together, and Sinclair kept a close guard over Raven. Raven who, while everyone else rested, battled. She'd woken up a hour ago and was trying to keep Alie out by maintaining her mind busy. Reviewing her old Zero-G text books, singing songs she knew by heart, anything she could think of, over and over and over again, all in the effort of trying to muffle Alie's voice in head. Alie had been showing Raven her own most painful memories, trying to get her to submit. But Raven fought, hard.

It was almost dawn when Miller and Bryan came back with Clarke, Monty following behind them. The others got up from their restful position when they entered.

Clarke was shocked when she saw Bellamy chained up to the wall.

"What's going on?" she demanded.

"He's our prisoner for the time being," Kane stated. "But that's not why we brought you here."

"Wait!" Raven grunted suddenly, then turned her head toward Sinclair and Jasper's direction and pleaded, "Guys…"

Sinclair winced and asked, "Again?"

Alie was listening to their conversation through Raven and she wouldn't let the bitch get any details. She nodded and the older man who was like a father to her picked up one of the last tranq darts and gave her another dose. Raven was out like a light.

Clarke stared in horror. "What the hell is going on?"

So, Kane told her. He told her about Alie and her plan to leave the world in ruins again, about the chips, about Alie 2 - the second version of the program, which also happened to be the flame in grounder creed, about Raven's condition. He told her as much as he could without mentioning their time traveling friend.

"Our source helped us out and we fled Arkadia," he finished.

Clarke stopped short, her thought going immediately to one person. "My mom, is she okay? Why isn't she here?"

"Abby's our inside man. She's fine," Kane swore, smiling at her. Then, he pressed on to more important matter. "To save Raven, to get that thing out of her head, we're going to need one of the 100's wristbands. Our source said you knew where to find one…"

She thought about it and nodded. Niylah. "Yeah, I do. But who's this source? How would they know all of this?"

That's what Octavia still yearned to find out. But Lincoln had promised to tell her later, and so she would try her best to remain calm and patient, and trust that he would tell her the truth when the time came.

"Someone we can trust," was all Kane told Clarke.

In the end, they decided that Harper, Miller and Bryan should stay behind at the cave. Lincoln and Octavia took Helios, and Kane drove the Rover with Clarke by his side, showing him the way; the others rode in the back of the car.

As soon as they stopped in front of Niylah's house, the woman herself came outside. She was armed with a machete and she looked pissed.

Clarke got out first, hoping to calm her down.

"Skaikru aren't welcome here," Niylah hissed.

"Niylah, please," Clarke implored. "We need your help."

"My father was massacred by Skaikru in a bloody field, trying to help them."

Octavia looked down, feeling ashamed and disgusted that her own flesh and blood had taken part in the deaths of the 300 peaceful, sleeping Trikru warriors, her people, who had been there to protect Skaikru. Including Niylah's father and Gavriel's parents.

She and Lincoln dismounted the horse, and the others exited the Rover. Seeing Raven in Sinclair's arms, Niylah softened. She couldn't stand seeing a suffering soul.

"Niylah… please," Clarke pleaded again.

The other woman nodded reluctantly and motioned them to enter her home. Inside, Niylah showed them the way to her bedroom, where Sinclair deposited Raven on the bed. The others followed.

"The last time I was here, you had a silver wristband. It was one of ours. Do you still have it?" Clarke asked Niylah urgently. When she frowned, Clarke explained, "We need it to save her."

Niylah nodded and went to go get it. When she returned, Clarke told her, apologetic, "We're gonna need the room to ourselves. When she wakes up, she can't see you. It would put us all in danger. Please."

The other woman hesitated, but nodded and left the room.

While Sinclair and Monty set out to work on the EMP and the wristband, trying to figure out what Raven had planned to do with them, Clarke returned to the main room where the others stood talking softly to their host.

When Niylah saw her approaching, she made herself busy elsewhere.

"Can you get that thing out of her head?" Octavia asked Clarke.

She nodded. "I think so. I've seen be done." Her eyes went wide, threatening to fill with tears at the thought of Lexa dying while she stood there, helpless to save her.

"It's a good thing they found you then," Lincoln said, looking relieved.

That reminded Clarke of more important things. "I was actually on my way to find you."

He frowned. Clarke pulled the small tin box that carried the flame out of her long coat, held it up to Lincoln and stated firmly, "I need you to help me find Luna."

"Why?"

"She's our last hope," she said, placing the box back in its place protectively, and quickly explained what was happening in Polis. With Ontari as the new self-proclaimed Commander, and now the threat of Alie, the future seemed very bleak.

Then, they heard a loud scream coming from Niylah's room. Raven. She'd woken up and now Alie was trying to make her submit again. They all rushed toward the sound. Clarke pointed at Niylah, who was standing across the room, and ordered, "Stay here! Please!"

"Raven… Raven, stop!" Monty pleaded, trying for calm her down, as the others walked in the room.

"Stop! Get out of my head!" Raven yelled, She kept screaming, trashing on the bed as Lincoln and Bellamy held her down from either side.

"We don't have any more tranqs," Monty told them, looking terrified.

They were running out of time.

Clarke turned to Sinclair. "Is the EMP ready?"

"Yeah," he replied, bringing it over.

"Then do it!" she demanded.

And so Sinclair did it. Raven went rigid, grunting. Everyone stared in horror. Then, she slumped down, unconscious. Clarke pressed two fingers to her neck, checking her vitals. Please, let her be okay.

"Is she alright?" Kane wanted to know.

"She's alive," she informed them, relieved. Then, she retrieved the scalpel from the tin box. Kane had already explained to her exactly how it should be done, according to his mysterious source; and she'd seen Titus to this to Lexa not a week ago. "Now for the next part…" She nodded toward Lincoln and Bellamy, who were standing on either side of the bed, and ordered, "Turn her on her side."

The two men did as they were told.

Clarke made a vertical incision on the back of Raven's neck. At first, only blood came out, but then, a silvery chrome-like liquid came pouring out of the cut on her skin. That must have been what was left of the chip. When it had all come out, Clarke turned Raven back toward her. She was still unconscious.

"Now what?" Bellamy asked.

"Now we wait."

When nothing had happened, Clarke shook Raven's shoulders gently.

"Raven," Clarke called her friend's name, slightly tapping on her cheek. "Raven, come on…"

Raven awoke slowly and painfully. Wincing, she sat up on the bed. Reaching back to touch the cut behind her neck, she laughed, "Ow…" She was actually happy to feel pain. Raven was finally free, no longer under Alie's control.

"Welcome back, Reyes," Octavia said happily, taking her hand.

She smiled back at her friends.

They all rejoiced as Raven showed signs of being back to normal. And, with what they'd just witnessed, any disbelievers there might still be among them quickly turned into believers.

Later, in Niylah's main room, Kane handled the walkie.

"Miller. Miller, come in. Over," he spoke into the device.

A few seconds later, Miller replied, "We're here, Kane. Over."

"Raven's okay. Contact Abby to make sure it's safe to return. It's time to go home. Over and out."

It was agreed that Clarke, Lincoln, Octavia and Bellamy would go to find Luna, hoping she would agree to take the flame and become the next Commander, while the others would pick Harper, Miller and Bryan up from the cave and return home. They said their goodbyes and watched as Kane and the others loaded a recovering Raven into the Rover, before going in themselves.

After they'd gone, Clarke turned toward Niylah to thank her one last time, and the others, noticing the tension between them, made themselves scarce. Bellamy hovered nearby, and Lincoln and Octavia bid goodbye to Helios, as they had decided that where they were going was no place for a horse, and Niylah had promised to take good care of him. Still, it hurt to say goodbye to the animal who'd become almost like a baby to her. Octavia could feel her heart breaking, but this was the right thing to do.

Then, they bid farewell to Niylah and left on foot to find Luna and, with any luck, save the world.


"It's just up ahead," Lincoln declared as they neared the edge of the woods. He was holding Octavia's hand in his as they walked and squeezed it. They'd been walking for hours, and now, they could already hear the sound of water rushing from somewhere close. Soon after, they arrived at a stony shore. There was nothing there with the exception of a circle of figure like shapes made up of stones.

Lincoln told them they needed to make a fire, then he grabbed a branch from a nearby tree, pulled a few of the leaves and threw them in the fire. It changed, a green flame shining brightly.

"Signal fire?" Octavia asked, marveling at the color.

He looked up at her, smiling. "Yeah."

"And now?" Clarke wanted to know. They all looked at him expectantly.

Lincoln sat down in front of the fire and kept feeding the fire. "We wait."

Octavia settled down next to him, helping him with the task, and the others followed suit. About an hour later, Lincoln announced, "They're here."

He was staring into the water. The others looked in the same direction and saw the ripples in the water. Suddenly, four people emerged from the it, wearing special gear and carrying weapons.

Their leader was a tall man with light brown skin and a bald head, his face bore a big tattoo and a handful of scars. He seemed to recognize Lincoln.

"Lincoln," he greeted with a nod.

To which Lincoln replied the same way. "Atticus."

Then, glancing at Octavia and the others, Atticus asked, "Who are they?"

"Friends. You can trust them," Lincoln told him matter-of-factly. "We need to see Luna. It's urgent."

The other man nodded and retrieved a case with glass vials from a pouch. He took three of them and handed each of the vials to Octavia, Clarke and Bellamy. Lincoln didn't need one. He'd been to the Rig before and Luna knew and trusted him. There was no need for secrecy with him.

Octavia looked at the vial in her hand dubiously. Then, she looked to Lincoln.

"Safe passage?" she asked, remembering the Trigedasleng words he'd taught her, back when they were first supposed to come here. It seemed like a lifetime ago. So much had happened since...

Lincoln nodded. Octavia trusted him more than anyone else, trusted him with her life. So, she took the lid off the vial.

"Cheers," she lifted the vial and gulped it down. She felt the world spinning, felt herself go weak. As she collapsed, Lincoln caught her in his arms.

"Octavia!" Bellamy yelled, trying to reach her, but the grounders stopped him.

"She's okay," Lincoln promised.

"If only she drinks, only she goes," Atticus told Bellamy and Clarke.

When the others looked at their own vials, frowning, Lincoln explained, "A safe passage only remains safe by being secret."

Resigned, they sat down on the ground and drank the liquid.


Octavia woke up in Lincoln's arms.

"Hey... Welcome back," he said sweetly.

Still feeling groggy, she looked around. All she could see were metal walls surrounding them. "We're here?"

"Yeah, we're here."

She smiled up at him. "We finally made it," Octavia teased, raising an eyebrow. Lincoln returned the smile and he leaned down for a kiss.

"Come on." He helped her up.

Taking another glance at their surroundings, Octavia realized they were inside a metal container. Then, she looked to where her brother and Clarke lay. They were beginning to wake up, too. Noticing this, Lincoln knocked twice on the metal door and it opened. Atticus stood on the outside.

"She's waiting," he told Lincoln.

Atticus led them to a room filled with people. When they entered, they all stared at them curiously.

"Luna's in there," he said, nodding toward a door. Clarke moved forward determined, but he stopped her, then looked at Lincoln. "She'll only see you."

"No. I have to see her," Clarke protested.

Lincoln nodded, backing her up. "Please."

The man studied them. "Wait here."

Then he went into the adjoining room where Luna waited. Moments later, the door opened and he gestured them in. "Both of you, come on."

Lincoln looked at Octavia and she gave him a smile of reassurance and a kiss. "Good luck."

She and Bellamy watched them walk away and sat down in a corner to wait for what would, hopefully, be good news.


Lincoln and Clarke walked into the room where Luna stood, barefoot as was her habit, waiting for them.

"Lincoln, it's been a while," Luna greeted him with a smile. Then, she sobered. "I hear you have something urgent to talk to me about."

Clarke stepped forward. "Yes, we do."

Luna glanced at her, narrowing her eyes. "Go on."

"You're the last of your kind, Luna, the last Nightblood."

"Lexa's dead?" Luna asked Lincoln.

He nodded seriously, and she closed her eyes mournfully.

Clarke went on, trying to swallow the pain that still lingered from Lexa's death, "Her spirit chose you to become the next Commander." She took the small tin box that held part of her heart from the inside of her jacket and showed it to Luna. "This is your birthright. Titus entrusted me with the Flame."

"Then he should've told you that I left my Conclave swearing to never kill again."

"You don't have to kill," Clarke told her. "To lead is your birthright, how you lead is your choice."

Luna still looked reluctant and distant.

"Here, look…" Clarke opened the box and removed the Flame, holding it up for Luna's inspection.

"I recognize the sacred symbol," she said. "but what is it?"

"This is the Flame. It holds the spirits of the Commanders before you, of Lexa."

Luna stared at the Flame, speechless. Clarke took the chance to make the proposal. "Please, Luna… Will you accept it and become the next Commander?"

There was a pause. Then, Luna said, "No."

"Will you at least listen?" Lincoln insisted.

Luna hesitated, almost said that she'd heard enough, but nodded. Lincoln was her good friend and she trusted him.

"You're our last hope. If you don't accept this, we're all doomed. It will be the end of the world as we know it," Lincoln explained. "I'm sorry to lay this burden on you, but we need you."

"I can't, Lincoln. I can't go back to that."

"You don't understand–" Clarke attempted to speak again.

"No, you don't understand," Luna interrupted, trying to stay calm. "I killed my own brother at the Conclave. And I left it, swearing I would never hurt, never kill again. And now you want me to go back there?" she shook her head. "No… I'm never going back."

"It doesn't have to be like that. Before she died, Lexa changed the way things are done. Just drein no jus daun*3, Blood must not have blood," Clarke told her. "You can keep the peace. There's no need for war. You can carry on with Lexa's new peaceful way."

"I can't imagine the people were very receptive to that whole new idea," Luna muttered.

Clarke grinned. "No, but that didn't deter Lexa from doing the right thing. And they had to accept their Heda's*4 decision."

Luna considered.

"Lexa really did that?" she asked Lincoln. "Jus drein no jus daun?"

He nodded. "She did."

Luna thought for a moment. Then, quietly, she told Clarke, "I'd like a moment alone with Lincoln."

"Luna..." Clarke tried again. But Luna shot her a look that silenced her, and Clarke left the room. She hoped Lincoln could convince Luna. Otherwise, they were all screwed.

Alone with Luna, Lincoln pleaded again, "The entire world is at stake, Luna. This is bigger than any of us. There's a new threat out there, like nothing we've ever faced before. I'll let Clarke explain better later, she understands it better than I do. The point is… we need you."

She remained quiet, thoughtful.

"You know I wouldn't ask something like this of you if we had another choice," he went on. "I'm begging you."

Lincoln stopped talking and decided to give her some time to think.

Luna paced the room slowly, restlessly, her decision forming in her mind. Suddenly, she stopped and turned back to Lincoln. She nodded, resigned. "Alright, I'll do it." Lincoln looked up at her, joyful and relieved. She help up a hand. "But I have a condition."


As soon as Lincoln left the room, Clarke rose from her seat.

"And?" she demanded when he reached them.

Instead of answering, Lincoln went to Octavia's side and offered her his hand. "Come here," he asked her. Octavia frowned, but took his hand and stood to follow him. To the others, he simply said, "Give me us a minute," before he pulled her aside, away from prying eyes and ears.

"Luna says she'll do it," he revealed.

Octavia beamed at him. "That's great!"

"But she has a condition. I have to stay here and lead them," he said, nodding toward the people. She frowned, thought about it. Then, she shrugged and smiled. "Then I guess we're staying."

"Really?"

She nodded.

"I just figured you'd want to go with your brother, be a part of the fight."

Sure, Octavia wouldn't mind a round with the damn A.I. bitch who was trying to destroy them all, but she was certain her friends could handle it and she was so tired of war. As for Bellamy… Well, there had been a time, not too long ago, when she'd been more than willing to sacrifice herself on a battlefield just to stay by her brother's side. Now, their relationship was strained and uneasy. Part of her would never forgive him for mindlessly murdering 300 of her people.

"Actually, I think some distance might be good for us right now." Then, she shrugged, smiling slightly. "Besides, coming here together was always the plan anyway, right?" She cupped his face. "Where you go, I go."

Lincoln took her face in his hands. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

They leaned in for an incredibly sweet, yet passionate kiss.

Just then, Luna joined the crowd. Octavia recognized her at once from one of Lincoln's drawings. Luna looked to Lincoln, who smiled and nodded, accepting her condition. She nodded seriously in return and went to address the people.

Everyone gathered together to listen to their leader and she held a closed fist in the air to silence them.

"There's going to be a change in leadership around here," she announced. "My duty has called me to become Commander." The people gasped in shock and Clarke breathed a sigh of relief. Luna went on, "I leave for Polis very soon, but I'm leaving you in very good hands." She motioned Lincoln to come forward and stand next to her. Octavia smiled proudly at him as he did so. "I've chosen Lincoln to guide you. There's no one I trust more for the job. He will not let you down."

Lincoln hoped she was right.

"You are all my family and you will always be in my heart," Luna continued. "But now I must fulfill my duty and reclaim my birthright as Commander of the 13 Clans."


Clarke performed the Ascension ceremony soon after as Fleimkepa, a role Titus had entrusted her with. It was a private ceremony, with only Luna herself, Clarke and Derrick present in the room.

Luna sat backwards on a chair, bent over slightly. Clarke had parted her wild hair down the middle, on the nape of her neck, exposing her skin. Luna reached for Derrick's hand and he took it, giving it a squeeze.

"This is going to hurt," Clarke warned, holding the scalpel in her hand.

The other woman nodded and Clarke made a vertical incision down the back of Luna's neck, and placed the Flame - or rather, Alie 2 in its crystal matrix form - inside.

Luna gasped. "I can feel it…" she exclaimed, in shock and wonder. She held on tighter to her love's hand. "Derrick, I can feel it."

Clarke finished her work by stitching the cut closed, and using their tattooing tools to gently draw the sacred symbol of the Commander on the back of Luna's neck, over where she'd placed the flame.

Then, Luna slowly got up from the chair with Derrick's hand always in hers, and before them, stood Heda Luna.


While Luna ascended, Octavia transformed.

She and Lincoln would be staying here on the Rig, away from the war and the chaos of the outside world. The war was over for them. They would live in peace and harmony. Together, they could make a good life here. Well, provided Luna and Clarke managed to save the world, that was.

She'd befriended Shay, a young girl from the Rig, while they'd waited for Clarke to return with Luna. The girl had wanted to show Octavia her room and while they were there, Octavia decided it was time for a change.

Looking at herself in the mirror, in Shay's room, Octavia removed her weapons, her jacket, her fingerless gloves, undid her warrior braids... Slowly, piece by piece, she shed the warrior. She would always be a warrior at heart, but their life was here now, so she put that part of herself away.

With the girl's help, she'd gotten some new clothes that fit her slim frame well and fixed her hair. Octavia wore it down now, in a simpler hairstyle, with only a few braids adorning it. Glancing at her reflection again, she noticed how different she looked. Softer, gentler somehow. Younger.

Octavia, then, went to meet up with the others by the containers to say goodbye to Luna and the others. When Lincoln saw her, he was utterly awestruck. She looked so beautiful.

"Hey," he greeted her, a slow smile creeping on his lips.

She smiled brightly at him. "Hey."

"You look different."

"Yeah, I just needed a change," she told him, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear, a little self-conscious.

"I like it," he said, before leaning in to kiss her gently.

They shared a smile.

Bellamy and Clarke looked on, witnessing their exchange. Clarke smiled softly at their love, before going into the container that would carry them to the ship and then to land.

Derrick followed her, while Luna glanced around at the Rig and its people, saying goodbye. How would they treat her once she reached Polis? Would they accept her as their Commander or would they shun her and still think of her as a deserter, a traitor? She had refused the call to become Heda once… But she wouldn't let her people down, not when the fate of the world was at stake. She would rise up and perform her duties. And she would work hard on keeping the peace.

She turned to Lincoln. They said goodbye in their grounder fashion – grasping each other's forearm and leaning in for a hug. "Take good care of them," Luna said.

"I will," Lincoln vowed. "Thank you, Luna."

"Thank you, my friend."

They parted and Luna joined Derrick and Clarke. Lincoln and Octavia waved them farewell. Good luck, Octavia wished them silently.

Before entering the container, Bellamy hesitated and turned back to look at his sister. He didn't want her in the middle of the war, but he didn't want to leave her behind either.

"Just go," Octavia told him, shaking her head.

Bellamy looked down, and joined the others inside the large metal box. Atticus had already handed the vials to Clarke and Bellamy. The two sat down and drank the drug before the door closed on them.

Lincoln put an arm over Octavia's shoulders, holding her close and kissing her head. She wrapped her arms his waist and held him back just as tightly as they watched the container lower to the ship that would carry them to shore.

After they'd gone, Octavia looked up at Lincoln and he leaned down to kiss her. Though they were still worried about the whole Alie situation, they decided to focus on their new responsibility, the people at the Rig. They could make something good here.

~ end of Part I


*1 – "I'm sorry."

*2 – "I love you."

*3 – "Blood must not have blood."

*4 – "Commander's."