Arthurs Note: Do not own The 100 nor any other ideas that are included! I'm merely borrowing it!
Jawrulez: Octavia might be a General…naw she will be something even better! As for Monty you are just going to have to wait and see!
Kuroneko200: I'm glad as well. Most stories have her being by herself and I truly wanted someone to be there for her this time around and help her through her struggles.
Hel13: Why thank you! Each chapter hopefully will build up more suspense and questions! Just to keep everyone on their toes!
Sailor Sayuri: I so love your enthusiasm haha! Thanks for the pie and here's your next chapter! More dragon action soon! *Throws arms up in the air* WOO!
HeirOftheHowlingWolves: You are on to something there pal!
NoPainNoGain509: Hope you love this one just as much! Dragons have emerged! No French needed curse all you want!
True2YourHeart: Mostly Marcus worked a way to lessen the blow, Abigail worked to increase it. Like everybody else they are all waiting for dragons! Here ya go!
Arial Wolf: More awesomeness on the way!
EyesOfTheSoul: Soon Over
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Mablung12: I will always keep updating no matter what life throws at me!
Martindillon27: You're welcome! Hope you love it more in these next couple of chapters!
Chapter Four Finding the Truth
The sun slowly sank deeper below the horizon allowing the stars to shine down on Earth. I looked up now being able to see them without the lights from the Ark blocking their radiance. The moon itself was full and bright. A beacon of hope in the darkness of the forest we are now trudging through.
"We should set up camp now. We put as much distance as we could between us and the Ark." Octavia knelt down rummaging through her bag as Monty all but collapsed on the nearest log.
"Dear good lord! My legs are burning."
"You alright Monty?" I asked looking around the clearing we were in. It wasn't much but it will do for the night. Luckily there was a stream nearby and just before that Octavia was setting up the rocks for a campfire just below a pile of logs and rocks. It provided much cover, allowing a 180 view of our spot.
"Yeah just worn out, it's going to take me awhile before I'm fit again to handle these long treks." I nodded and stood up.
"Well I'll help Octavia out with the fire. What kind of wood do we need?"
Octavia stopped placing the rocks down and looked up at me, "Get regular sticks or logs but in order for me to start it I need some dry leaves or fiber from the barks of trees." I quickly left to go do just that. I knew Octavia only came with me for the freedom but knowing that she is still here gives me much found relief. I don't know anything about starting a fire. I was so caught up on saving us from the mountain that I didn't learn the skill needed to survive from Earth's elements.
A few minutes later I had my arms full with the things Octavia asked for and slowly walked back. I took my time to gather my thoughts. With all the running and getting ourselves situated I never had the time to fully grasp what happened. For one…no one back at the Ark wishes to see me again, especially the ones closest to me. Another thing I found that I was relieved about is…ever since that incident with my father, I never once saw another shadow. For once I actually tried looking for them throughout our walk but no red eyes were in sight. I could even look Monty and Octavia in the eyes and not be scared of the possibility of their own faces deforming.
"Here you go." I knelt down while Octavia took the logs from me and started to place them in a strategic order. I hesitated to ask. I knew where Octavia learned this from and I didn't want to ask for fear of her being angrier at me. I also needed to learn though, I didn't want Octavia doing all the work. So I swallowed down my fears and sat closer beside her. "Can...You show me how to start a fire?"
She froze and looked over at me. "Why do you want to learn?"
"Well…I don't want you doing all the work. I should be able to pinch in every now and then." She seemed to contemplate this. Eyeing me up and down as Monty groaned and got up from the log before sitting in front of us.
"Well if Clarke is learning so am I. Show us Octavia." Sighing and looking between us both she nodded and grabbed a few logs and sticks.
"Ok well first off I'm not a great teacher. So if you want a better explanation I can't give it." We nodded as she started explaining a step by step process of how to properly set up a campfire. By the end of it I promised to try it myself the next night. "We should probably set up night shifts as well. We are out here alone in the woods, we also don't know if the grounders will attack us on sight. It would be better if we stay safe than be sorry for it later."
"I agree there should be enough of us to take a couple of hours during the night. I call first shift then!" Monty bounced up and walked back around to the top of the makeshift ledge above us.
"Alright I call second shift then!" I yelled back at Monty. The clearing became quiet as we unrolled our sleeping bags. "Octavia I want to thank you for today."
"Don't even start Princess as much as I wanted to leave that place I still left my brother back there." I nodded and looked down. Octavia set up her bed nearest to the wall of logs and rocks and turned her back to me. I didn't even try to start up another conversation with her. I didn't want to rile her up much more than she probably already is and she is right. She might have wanted to be on her own but she loves her brother just as much. Leaving him must have hurt her more than letting him go in the mountain.
I sighed knowing I wasn't going to be able to sleep after I laid down and stared up into the sky for a couple of minutes. The only sounds I could hear was Monty above us and the soft sparks from the fire. I looked over to my left seeing the Jansport bag alongside the others and decided I might as well try and decipher the language. With my father in mind I got up as quietly as I could and settled back down with the bag close to the fire.
Again the familiar smell of aged paper and leather bounded books hit me and oddly calmed me down. I relaxed not even realizing that I was stressed this entire time. The smell enveloped me giving me peace and sorted out my thoughts rather than them being a complete mess. The box was placed at the bottom of the bag and I slowly pulled it out and placed that beside me while I looked through the papers.
That strange language stared up at me as I read the English language written from various writers. I hummed and got into a better position, my legs crossed at the ankle and my back leaning against a log.
"Ok…let's see here." My finger moved against the paper, flowing with the language. "Umm…Mu los kiin nol-"
"What are you doing?" I gasped spinning around to see Octavia suspiciously staring at me, her body half turned.
"Jesus Octavia…" I grabbed my pounding heart when she sat up. When I met her stare directly I debated on telling her what I found from my father's vault. He did try to keep it from everybody even my own mother the person he loved. Also judging from these handwritings and how old the papers were this very secret was kept from everybody for a very long time. Again though…we are no longer a part of the Ark, we are our own people now. So with slight apprehension I showed Octavia the papers.
Her eyes stared at the stack then back at me. "What is that?"
"I have no fucking clue. I found it only yesterday…it's my dad's." We were silent as I fingered the corner of the sheets. I knew I could talk to Octavia about anything, she kept Ton DC a secret and even stuck by with me through my banishment. I could trust O with my life. "He kept it a secret."
"How do you know he did?"
"It was in the wall of our room. Hidden by an ancient looking vault. These papers and this box right here were inside of it."
"Oh…" She took the papers from me and started looking them over as I inspected the box.
"Why are you up anyways? I thought you would be snoring away by now?"
"First off…I do not snore."
"Yeah you do!"
"Shut up Monty! You're supposed to be on the lookout!" I smiled almost forgetting about him but I also knew he would keep this a secret. Besides it was only us three from now on. There was nobody else to tell.
"Second I wanted to see if you were going to sleep. I knew back at the Ark you haven't been sleeping well." I nodded as she handed me back the papers. "I also don't have a clue as to what that language is. Do you?" With a shake of my head I placed the papers beside me where the box used to be.
"Not a single clue." I sighed out frustrated with myself.
"What's in that?" She scooted closer over towards me and peered down at the box in my lap.
The wood glimmered in the fires light as if it was just polished yesterday. My forehead scrunched up as I looked closer at the dragon. It had three heads. I tilted my own as I looked over the box more for any indentations.
"I don't know that either. This box doesn't seem to have any locks on it…but when I tried prying the lid open it wouldn't budge."
"Are you sure that it even has anything in there?" I gave her the box and she took it but nearly dropped that damn thing. "Holy shit…ok, so it has something." She shook it against her ear. "Yup I hear something moving inside."
"Do you have any idea on how to open it?" I asked putting the box away in the bag along with the papers.
"Hell the only thing I knew how to open was a floor panel." She chuckled getting back up and back to her sleeping bag. "Now get some sleep Princess you're gonna need your beauty rest for your shift."
The rest of the night was peaceful as I rested. For the first time in weeks I slept without any nightmares, without any blood or screams. Towards the end of the night after my shift green eyes were dancing behind my eyelids before they turned a lighter shade of green then yellow. The sun greeting me between the tree tops.
Monty was snoring away beside me and Octavia was coming back from the stream. A filled water bottle in her hand. I groaned rubbing my eyes.
"Morning Princess, you slept like Monty over here." She kicked him in the back and he retaliated with a swipe of his hand.
"Ugh…stop calling me that or else I'll think of a nickname for you."
"Go ahead and try. Here might as well freshen up before we go." She threw a small leather bag at me. Getting up on my elbow I looked at its contents. A white small bar of soap, some cloths and small little blades.
"Octavia…where?"
"I kept some to myself when Indra taught me how to make soap." She nodded towards the river and it was just now that I noticed her hair was still damp from her most recent dip. I nodded hastily getting up excited about the prospect of actually being clean ever since I landed on the ground. "Don't worry about Monty I'll keep him occupied."
With that I slowly walked to the stream, bag in hand. The morning was beautiful far from what I was used to seeing. Usually a fence would block my path by now but instead what greeted me was a wall of water. It happily leapt across the rocks with glee creating a beautiful white foam. I smiled seeing the trees sway in the gentle breeze, the birds chirped happily in the morning along with the other small critters.
The water was cold but it provided much comfort to my aching muscles. My old clothes lay forgotten on a nearby rock as I basked happily in the sun, floating on the surface. I continued to relax for a good half hour before finally deciding on cleaning myself. Slowly taking off my father's watch I swam to the shore to get the cleaning products. When I placed the watch near the bag holding the soap I noticed something glistening off from the watch.
Underneath the main body of the watch was pure silver but imbedded in the middle was the same logo from the box. The markings were red and the silver seemed to be running off from the dragon. As if it was painted on. Only the heads were showing so with a swipe of my thumb I revealed the rest. It covered the entire bottom of the watch were it would lay against my skin and upon closer inspection I saw its tail branch away from its usual encircled confinement and point towards the dial.
"Clarke are you almost done! I need a bath too!" Monty's voice startled my revere and I scrambled to finish cleaning myself.
"Sorry! Yeah I'm almost done!" When I finished drying myself and put on some new clothes I walked back towards my group. Octavia was polishing her sword and Monty was coming back from the forest.
"There you are!" He hurried over, "Let me have some of that soap!"
"You better not waste it! It takes forever to make soap." Octavia glared up at him and he waved his hand nonchalantly.
"Oh don't get your panties in a twist! I won't waste it!" I smiled as he hurried back towards the stream.
"Well at least I know he won't take over an hour to bath himself. You really are a princess."
"Oh shut up Octavia..." Dropping my things besides her I brandished my watched into her view. "Can you take a look at this by the way?"
"Mmm?" She took a quick glance at my watch. "What's wrong with it? It's still working." I only turned the watch around. "Oh well…wait, isn't this on your box?" I nodded and reached over to get the object.
"I noticed it when I took it off in the stream. The water must've took off whatever coat was on it." She nodded.
"Why would your father go through so much just to hide a box? What does this symbol mean anyways?" Shaking my head I looked out into the forest.
"You guess is as good as mine…"
"Hey…the tails are different…" She took the box and placed the symbols side by side. "Look the one on the watch is pointing to this," She touched the dial. "The other is pointing down."
The tail on the box was pointing down. A detail I haven't noticed before as I look closer. "Nothing is there though…on either of them." I groaned rubbing my face as I tried desperately to put the pieces together. "I honestly want to know what is so important in this thing."
"Well I'm very interested in it now…mind if I try a few things?"
I shrugged getting up, "Help yourself out. I'm going to scout the area anyways to see if it's safe for us to head out. Can I borrow your sword?"
Octavia was only partially listening to me as her attention was drawn to the two objects but nonetheless she passed her sword wordlessly without looking up. I hummed keeping the point down as I walked away from camp.
The forest was beautiful this morning. I saw squirrels scurrying up the trees in haste, birds flew in circles around one another or between the branches. My feet crunched the leaves making that satisfying sound that I only heard in movies. It was surreal that I was here now making it myself. A bird flew by my head making me swerve. It was a beautiful red bird with a black chest and a long beak, its wings were beating so fast that they were merely a blur. If I remember correctly this was known as a hummingbird.
How I wished I had my sketchpad to capture its beauty as it flew over to a beautiful pink flower and stuck its beak inside of its petals. My fingers twitched and I continued through the woods being mindful of where I was going and keeping the stream to my left so I wouldn't get lost. The sword felt heavy in my hand as I lifted it up onto my shoulder to keep from dragging it on the ground.
So far it was quiet. There were no Grounders in sight but even if they wanted to be seen I'm sure I wouldn't be able to catch a peek of them at all. They were the masters of the forests around them. They were called Tree People for a reason. Well that was one clan…I'm not sure about the others.
I barely recall The Commander describing too me that there was 12 clans all over these lands. I scoffed, just thinking about her forms a pit in my stomach. I slowly took deep breaths after hoping up onto boulder and looked around more. I tried putting those thoughts to the back of my mind as I scouted the area for any trouble. So far everything was normal.
Normal…I never thought I would be uttering that word in my mind. Since this world is all about survival and war…normal would be far out of anyone's reach. As they try and live for their life and not actually enjoying it. We at least had the privilege to do so up in space but even then it felt fake.
I sighed softly and looked up at the clear sky. Even seeing the bright blue space above me is an honor blessed upon me. I hummed knowing that I was gone for a while now and slowly made my way back to my friends. Thoughts still rang throughout my head. The number one thing is…where will we go?
Can we continue going north? If I remember correctly the Ice Nation resides somewhere north. They also aren't the friendliest clans. Preferring to slice before asking questions.
"Clark there you are, look I think I know how to open it!" I blinked not realizing that I've made it back to camp so soon. Monty was sitting with my box now, he was fresh and clean from his bath. Our things were packed up and ready to go.
"Really?" Octavia came up beside me as I handed her the sword back.
"He asked when I was stuck on it for a good 10 minutes." She huffed and threw water over the fire, white smoke bellowing up as I sat beside my friend.
"Alright mister genius, how do we open it?"
We sat cross legged and Monty placed the box down on the ground. "Well I didn't open it yet…even though I was dying to see what's inside." I chuckled when he pulled out my father's watch. "This is your father's so it should be you who does the honor but how I figured it out was simple. Usually with these strange pictures they always match up in some way. Like a puzzle piece blending with another." I nodded as Monty adjusted himself to be facing me along with the box. Octavia soon came over and sat down creating an incomplete circle around the box, its right exposed.
"Just get to the point Monty." Octavia yawned out.
"Right, right…so I moved the symbol on the watch over the box to see if it connected to anything you know?"
"Like if the design on the box was missing anything this picture on my watch would complete it?"
"Correct…I did this slowly as to not miss anything but I found out, this wasn't the case for your box."
"What do you mean?"
"Well it actually continues the picture on the box, to your watch." With that Monty turned the watch over so it was parallel to the front of the box the dial facing against the wood. "Look…" I squinted at what he was pointing at. The tails looked incomplete…like tips of their tails were cut off but the closer Monty put them together the clearer it became. The tails were actually circling around the others as if they were hugging each other.
"Well god damn Monty…you are smart!" Octavia patted his arm and he huffed.
"Anyways…the key to open this is the dial. The screw located inside of it is the key, so when you push it against the wood it should open."
"Should?"
"Like I've said…I haven't opened it because it felt wrong." He handed me back my watch and I looked down at it.
My thumb slowly caressed the symbol. The metal glistening from the sunlight causing it to warm up.
"Come on Clarke…open the damn box." Octavia leaned back on her hand glaring at me.
I sighed pushing thoughts of 'Why?' out from my head. My father was a logical man, he always thought ten steps ahead. He always had answers for everything. If one of his answers was to hide this from his family then I'll be able to understand. Especially when I'll be able to see what he hid.
I took a deep breath suddenly feeling warmth spread throughout my limbs making me sweat. The hair on the back of my neck stood up as I leaned over and faced the dial against the wood.
I hesitated…my hand was shaking and I felt the sweat start to pool from my palm. Was this really the right thing to do? After hiding it for so long…and keeping it well hidden, would my father want this to be open now? Would he be scolding me right now? Giving me his most disappointed stare ever? What if…whatever is in here…things will never be the same again? I looked up at my friends and they were starring back at me with worried faces. I shook my head and with the last shred of confidence I pushed the dial forward.
"Heda!" I groaned internally as Indra stormed into my tent. We were just about to head to Polis to have a meeting with all leaders of the 12 clans to figure out what our next move will be. Since we heard reports that the Mountain was taken down; the leaders wish to know what will become of it and what we should do about the Sky People.
"Yes Indra?"
"Heda, reports are coming in from our scouts around the Sky People's camp. There was an incident that lead to three of their very own running towards the woods."
"Do the scouts know what has happened that caused them to run?"
"No Heda. I suspect they were banished." I nodded looking down at the map on my war table that now held a circular object that portrayed the Sky Peoples base. To even think something that big could have the capability to fly.
"Do you know the three that were banished?" Indra stayed silent, a trait that let me knew right then and there that this was the main reason she was here. Yes letting sky people have free reign on the ground could be disastrous for us. Their knowledge on technology far surpasses our own and the similarities between them and the Mountain Men can't be overlooked. If more Sky People start roaming without being in the coalition it could mean another war. Something I wish to avoid at all costs.
"Indra..."
"I'm sorry Heda…but our scouts report two of the three were easily spotted and identified. Octavia Blake and…Clarke Griffin." Blue suddenly clouded my vision making me look up sharply at my general who squirmed under my heated glare. A flash of gold also entered making me look around my tent and lose eye contact with Indra.
"Report!" I stood up, my shoulders squaring back with my left hand clasping the sword connected to my hip.
"As far as the scouts can see, the three Sky People were banished from their camp. Clark Griffin was in the middle of the chaos."
"How can they tell that they were banished?" The leader of their people was banished? How was that possible? I saw it myself…they were looking to her for help, she was the beacon of hope and peace to them. Yet…they casted her out?
"The Sky People were chasing them out hurling stones as they went. The three headed north…"
"I hope you sent a scout to track them."
"Of course Heda, I've sent my best warrior's to do this delicate task."
"Do you know the third that was accompanying them?" My mind swirled with questions that needed answers. What happened in the last couple of days that sparked such an outcry among Clark's people to banish her?
"No Heda." I walked to my throne barely giving it a glance at the numerous branches sticking out. My shoulder armor was laying against the armrest along with my red sash.
"Then we should go see for ourselves and question them."
"Heda is that wise?" I looked over at Indra and she quickly looked down ashamed of voicing against my wisdom.
"Speak up Indra, what are your concerns?"
"We did leave the Sky People to their fate at the base of the Mountain…Clarke will certainly hold a grudge against you…even hatred…if we-"
"HEDA!" Indra was cut off as a warrior came bursting through my tent falling down on his knee bowing low. His breathing was labored and sweat dripped off his head in waves.
"What is it?"
"It's the Azgeda Heda! I was scouting the three Sky People when I saw them! They crossed into our boarders and are headed towards them as we speak!"
Something old shifted in me, something I haven't felt in two years. Dread, fear and anxiety. Whatever name you would like to call it but it's something I wished to never feel again since I heard about Costia's kidnapping. "Round up our warriors! I will not have Queen Nia take those Sky People! Warrior you will lead us to them! Hurry!"
"Yes Heda!"
"Indra! Gather the horses quickly!"
"Yes Heda! Men gather the horses and-"I clasped on the pauldron feeling Heda slowly mask over my emotions over the situation of Clark. 'Azgeda will not win this time.' I strode out of my tent seeing my warriors hustle towards their steeds. The sounds of armor being placed on, horses neighing and stomping the ground anxiously and dirt kicking up in the air. The scene before me certainly did convey what I was feeling on the inside as I strode over to my horse. A white mare that reminded me of Clarke.
"Clarke…" I rubbed Star's snout as she whinnied softly towards me. "I'll be there…this time." With that thought I mounted up.
"Holy….shit." Octavia's words made me snap out of my shocked stupor as I blinked. My eyes must've been deceiving me…this couldn't be real.
"Sweet! Scrambled eggs for breakfast!" Monty cheered rubbing his stomach happily.
"Monty! This isn't the time for that right now!" I ignored them both looking intently at the now revealed secret…the secret that has been locked inside this box for ages. It caught me in this trance, my body was not my own anymore. When my eyes landed on the object it filled me with such warmth I could've sworn the fire wasn't out besides us.
The sun slowly peeked down from the branches illuminating the object. The emerald sparkling and making other forms of green reveal itself on its hard shell. My hand slowly reached out without me telling it to do so. The egg was twice the size of my hand…what looked to be scales covered every ounce of its shell. When my hand finally touched it the egg seemed to have taken life around my hand…turning into a brighter shade and warming up at my touch. The shell itself felt like the smooth expanse of a boulder yet the scales themselves made the egg feel rough.
"Besides when do you see an egg with scales before huh?"
My other hand gently helped me to lift the egg out of its confined space. Every part I touched seemed to cause the colors to brighten immensely and warming the egg up even more. I sighed happily as sudden emotions of safety and happiness invaded me. I cradled the egg like an infant looking down at the shell seeing the various colors of green swarm all over its shell.
"Clarke?" I blinked looking up at my two friends who were staring at me then the egg.
"So no scramble eggs?"
"Monty!" I laughed as Octavia covered her eyes.
"No Monty…"
"Why is it swirling with colors?" Monty scooted closer looking down at the egg.
"I don't know…it feels warm though…should eggs feel warm?" Octavia shrugged.
"Beats me, should eggs be that size and glow like it's a diamond? Why are you asking me? We never had animals on the Ark so our expertise is next to none."
"True…we don't even know what kind of animal it is inside that shell Clarke. You think it's safe to be holding it at all?" I looked back down at the egg and was surprise to actually feel a shift.
"For some reason…I know it won't harm us. When I touched it…warmth just flooded throughout my body." How can I even tell though? Monty was right in some way, how can I be certain that whatever is inside is safe?
My father…I have to trust my father. I mean he wouldn't let a creature that could potentially kill everyone on the Ark be stored safely for decades. My heart was also telling me to trust this…creature. A buzzing was slowly making its way from the back of my head. Like that known tingle everyone gets when something small blazes by.
A chuckled escaped from my lips. The buzzing continued to tickle me behind my ears making me reach up and rub behind my earlobe.
"Is it even alive? I mean it was in that box for god knows how long." Monty stood up. As I shifted up as well looking around for the bag to hold the egg in. How can this…organic live for so long inside an egg and still be alive? What is even inside the egg itself? I sighed as I knew I was only getting more questions than answers. The answers that I believe I can get are all in an unknown language.
I bent down grabbing some of my clothes and wrapping the egg in a bundle along with the quilt it came with before placing it in the backpack. The quilt itself was made of a very soft material…soft like silk but tough like cloth. The color matched that of the egg. While I carefully placed it inside the bag the others were already gathering their own.
"Well what should we do about it?"
"For now the egg is harmless," I started to say. "I believe we should walk farther away from our enemies then find the next course of action for the creature. Obviously it's still alive, it's shifting like crazy behind me." As I said that the egg rustled again, shuffling the bag a bit for my friends to see the truth in my statement.
"Yeah, key word there…for now."
"I sort of agree with knucklehead over here Clarke. You think it's safe to carry that thing around with you?"
"I'm not entirely sure, something inside of me is letting me know that I should trust it. Another part is also telling me that I should trust my father."
They both looked at each other, probably debating on whether to fight me on bringing the egg with us. It is a dangerous factor, an unknown dangerous factor. I thought hard about the egg. To sense if at any given moment I felt any sway in my resolve of what I thought of it now.
The egg itself was nestled against my lower back, molding against me perfectly.
"It could be a weapon did you think of that?"
"A weapon?"
"Well yeah, why else go through such trouble just to hide an egg? Obviously it's special. What form of special though?"
"Did your father do anything that was…odd?" Thoughts of my father invaded my mind. Him working over certain wires and part of the Ark I could never figure out. Him sitting over a table and drawing while I watched in his lap.
"No…" I turned towards Monty muttering into my hand as I thought hard. "I never saw anything he did unusual."
"Well until we find another safe spot to rest let's just leave the egg alone. No one touches it ok? Not even you Clarke." Nodding my head towards Octavia who in return shrugged.
I sighed thinking of a place to go for us. We couldn't wander around aimlessly anyways. "Octavia do you know where most of the clans reside at?"
"Mmm…I know some…not all." She stood beside me thinking deeply. "I know we are in Triku lands right now. Up north is the Azgeda..."
"Who we want to avoid right?" She nodded.
"At all costs…from what I heard from Indra the Queen only wishes war instead of peace. She's a bloodthirsty lunatic. What is also up North is the Desert clan or Dead Zone. Supposedly that's where the Nuke's hit first." I nodded listening intently as I continued to think of places for us to go. "Lincoln told me of a clan called the Boat People they are peace keepers and try to stay out of wars as much as possible. They are seen as weak because of it."
"Where are they?" Monty asked taking a swig of water from his container.
"North East of us…I don't know the exact location though. Lincoln only told me that their leader was named Luna." I nodded looking at her to continue.
"Most of the other clans are to the West of us, such as the Delphi, Plain Riders, Blue Cliff, etc.…South belongs to Broadleaf and Shadow Valley clans."
"Do you know the conditions of each area? Like the North I know is either ice or desert."
"Sadly just the Boat Peoples area is all I know. Apparently they live by the ocean and sometimes I hear they come out of it." I tapped my chin feeling the weight of the bags and the egg as I thought deeply.
"I like the sound of Blue Cliff…do they have cliffs that are blue are something? Let's go there!"
"Oh Monty…" I sighed dramatically as Octavia looked like she was about to smack him upside the head.
"What? Seriously though…it sounds cool right?" I chuckled and thought about what Octavia said.
"What about past all the clans?"
"You mean further West?"
"Yeah…are there any clans that far?" She shook her head and raised her hands up in half shrugged gesture.
"Indra never told me what was that far West…I never even bothered to ask."
"Why can't we stay here again?"
"Because Monty…we are being chased by our own-used to be people…if they catch us anywhere near the Ark they will attack. Don't even get me started about the Grounders, we don't even know if there is a kill order on our heads."
"Right…well I vote South, Blue Cliff sounds nice." I looked to Octavia who merely shrugged.
"I don't care as long as it's free." I nodded and sighed.
"All right south it is then…hope the Blue Cliff leader is tolerant of us…" Or at least nicer than the Commander was. I was thinking of ways to get there and how long it would take due to our rations when a deep voice cut my train of thought off.
"How about North? Queen Nia will sure be a very nice host to you…" I gasped spinning around to stare at eight men all dressed in blue armor. Their faces covered in white paint as they held spears pointing straight at us. Their horses stomped the ground nervously.
How in the hell didn't we hear them? I felt the color drain from my face. Oh no…did they hear everything we were talking about just now?
"Shit…" I whispered. As they moved closer, boxing us in.
Our breaths were ragged as we noticed how boxed in we were. Since we wanted our back to be covered during our stay here…we didn't think about what might happen if our enemies boxed us in from the front. Completely cutting us off from our only escape.
"You should know better than to leave a huge signal to everyone within a couple of miles of where you are located." The first man who spoke raised his spear and pointed to my left. Looking in that direction I saw the campfire and the column of white smoke bellowing up into the sky.
"Double shit…I forgot…" Octavia hissed. The Azgeda all laughed mockingly and started to speak each other in their tongue.
"Well, well…Sky People sure don't know how to keep their tracks hidden from others." I assumed the one who kept talking to us was their leader or something of the sort. He had long black hair pulled back in a mess ponytail. Strand of his bangs fell of his face which was covered in white paint. His jawline was square went along with his pointed nose and dark black eyes.
While he was busying looking around our camp the others made sure to keep us from leaving by moving their horses around to block any open space between them.
"Clarke Griffin, Sky Princess…you are coming with us, Queen Nia wishes to…speak with you." The way he said those last words sent shivers down my spine as we raised our hands in the air when their spears moved dangerously closer to our bodies.
"On what matters does she wish to speak with me about?"
"That only concerns the Queen, I am merely the escort to bring you back." He nodded to another rider who dropped down from his horse. "Comply and I won't have to use force on either of you." I scowled as the rider began to pat me down.
"Like hell we are going with you…" Octavia spat reaching for her sword.
"Octavia!" I saw it before she did before her scream of pain can be heard throughout the clearing as the leader threw his spear from behind her. It embedded itself deep into her shoulder blade making an unhealthy thud when metal encountered bone. "Stop! We will listen! Don't hurt her anymore!" I screamed as she fell to her knees holding her shoulder tenderly. Guilt suddenly ate away at me. Here I was in this predicament again…my friends are in danger and I don't have the power to fight back.
Monty was grabbed from behind and pushed to the ground with his hands behind his back. "AGH! Let me go you white freaks!" They ignored his cries as they continued their actions.
"Just to make sure none of you try another stupid mistake." He smirked walking towards me, pulling another spear from behind his back and pointing; as he got closer the edge just barely grazed my neck making me lean back. "We will haul you behind our horses all tied up together like sausage links." He nodded and I felt hands grab at my wrists and yanking them none too gently behind my back. I winced and yelled up at this man who seemed to be in charge of the group.
"Let me take care of my friend at least! She needs medical attention."
"No…it was her fault she reached for her sword. If she dies on the way to Queen Nia then so be it." Octavia yelled out again making me look over. The riders already had her tied up from behind. Her sword now in their custody. What made her yell was the spear being pulled out as the blood now ran freely down her back.
"Please at least let me patch her up before she bleeds out." I begged.
"Clarke…I'll be fine." Octavia looked up at me and smiled gently before groaning in pain as they lined us up behind their leaders' horse. I looked down trying to fight back tears as they made us try and walk the same pace as the horse.
"Let's get moving! I wish to be back for dinner!"
For a good two hours we walked before they finally stopped I was behind Octavia and kept an eye on her. During the entire trek she kept swaying and having to be pulled rather than let her walk on her own feet.
"Octavia…are you ok?"
"A little dizzy…and tired." I reached up and moved her tattered shirt aside to take a peek at her gash. The blood had long since stopped gushing out as it slowly dried the patch up…what was worrisome though was the white puss forming at the edges. It was the starting signs of an affection. I knew exactly what plants to use but if these idiots don't let me work on her soon then she will more than likely have her limp chopped off at the shoulder. "How bad is it Princess?"
I rolled my eyes as I felt Monty look over my shoulder. "Pretty bad." Monty whispered as three riders neared us with containers.
"Drink…" I glared at him and took a swig of the nice cold water. I didn't realized how thirsty I was until the water hit my parched throat. Before I could take another mouthful though he pulled away making me shot daggers into his back.
"We will let the horses rest for another 10 minutes before we set off again." The leader ordered out as he moved things on his saddle.
"Octavia can you sit down?" I turned my attention back on my friend. She might seem tough but I still see the girl who loved to adventure around the dropship without a care in the world.
"Nah…don't want to try it…I might not be able to get up again." She looked over at me tiredly her eyes half lidded.
Her words were a bit slurred as I looked around. The Azgeda were lounging around munching on food and others were keeping watch. Their clothes were splattered with crimson that stood out against their normally spotless blue and white clothing.
The sun was hitting us dead on making the three of us sweat. I groaned shifting my bag slightly feeling the moisture of sweat running down my back and my shirt clinging to me. When I moved my bag cool air moved forward and I sighed before I had to place the bag back to where it belonged.
Monty was moving his hair to the side when I realized he wasn't sweating as much as I was. I blinked wiping at my forehead and feeling the amount of sweat I was pushing out comparing it to Monty's and Octavia's. That's when I felt it…the warmth I was feeling wasn't from the sun but rather from the egg against my back. It was…pulsing heat. If that even makes sense, the heat would be there against my back but then slowly and gradually it would disappear only for it to reappear.
I blinked trying to get my backpack and reached for the egg but Monty stopped me. "Clarke? What are you doing?"
"This egg is doing something and making me sweat buckets of water right now."
"Don't take it out in front of the Azgeda are you nuts?!" He hissed looking around. "They will take it from you!" The thought sent shivers down my spine and made me angry for some reason. They will not be taking my egg! I nodded slowly letting the bag go and Monty's hand went back to rubbing his hair away from his face.
"Let's get a move on! Nia is about an hour's ride away." Everyone grumbled as they slowly walked back to their horses.
"She's here?! In Triku territory?!" Octavia hissed as we were ordered to move. "That's a breach against the coalition. She's going to start a war by just setting camp here."
"How so?"
Octavia sighed tiredly and moved her injured shoulder around slowly. "The rules state that each clan must stay within their own territory unless the Commander herself orders all armies of the 12 clans to mass together. Like with the Mountain attack."
"Queen Nia though is known for hating the Commander and going against her word all the time correct?"
She nodded at my question as we climbed up a short hill. "It's known by everyone. They also know of Nia's vile act of taking Costia's life. There is black blood between Triku and Azgeda."
"Shut up back there!" The ropes were pulled and we all stumbled against the other as the rider in front glared at us. "None of your whispering now!" We stayed silent throughout the rest of our hike to the Azgeda camp. My eyes stayed glued to Octavia…making sure her health doesn't go past what I can treat. Monty I knew was ok thanks to the ropes behind me being slacked. The pulsing never stopped and seemed to grow in heat at each throb or it was probably me just being overheated. Either way I want this back pack off of me.
"Who goes there?!" I blinked looking up.
"We are of Azgeda and we have what the Queen requested!" I leaned over finally seeing the Azgeda army. Their tents looked ragged compared to the Triku. Most of their colors were badly faded as we continued to be pulled along by horse further into the camp. The other Azgeda warriors were either glaring at us or didn't even bother looking up from what they were doing.
"Alright Sky People." I gasped as I was pulled forward away from Monty and Octavia. Only three riders remained now pulling each of us individually into a huge tent. It was much bigger than the others and much nicer than the ones surrounding it. Two guards stood at the entrance.
"Tell the Queen I have come back with the Sky Princess."
I watched as a guard went inside and the rider turned towards me. "If you so much as try anything against her…she will kill you with no remorse. You and your little friends." I glared as this conversation brought back memories of Gustus saying almost the exact same to me when I was meeting the Commander for the first time.
"You may enter." The guard came back holding the flaps back.
"Come on get moving!" Monty was pushed inside first along with me. I stumbled not seeing a step ahead of me and quickly caught my footing. The inside was cool and pleasant, being a nice welcome to my overheated skin. The egg inside the sack just continued to get hotter and hotter though as I looked around. All over were guards…their spears pointing threateningly at us as we were shoved down onto our knees in the middle of the tent.
"My Queen I have brought the Princess from the sky…as you requested." The man bowed who was in front of us. He blocked my view from this Azgeda Queen.
"Thank you Irek…you and your riders will be rewarded as promised." Her voice was dark and sultry, holding nothing but pain to who it was directed to. Monty shifted beside me and actually scooted closer towards me. I saw fear in his eyes as he looked around the tent. My eyes following his own and I couldn't help but gasped as I finally saw them…Triku.
Red splattered my vision as I took them in. the sight of dead bodies were against the walls of her tent. Their blood dripped down onto the floor causing the nauseating stench that I now noticed. I didn't know who they were. Their faces were disfigured, various weapons poked out from their limps. Most of them were likely dead already but I saw a few who were still breathing raggedly…or at least I hoped I did.
"Ah I see that you have noticed my artwork." My eyes snapped back to the owner of that voice. "Clark of the Sky People." The woman before me was around the same age as my mother. Her face was covered in white tribal tattoos that ran from her forehead down to her cheeks. Her clothing; a long white robbed fur with a blue jacket, dark pants and boots. Not one splotched of red though.
"Nia…Queen of the Azgeda."
"So you have heard about me? I'm touched, I hope it was nothing but praise about me." She smirked mockingly and leaned back in her throne chair. It looked to be made of metal covered in some white substance. The jagged edges making it look like actual ice, it didn't compare at all to the Commanders throne though. She swung one leg over the other and laughed. "Though I'm sure being around the Commander, she like to throw insults my way and tarnish my good reputation."
I glared at her as she chuckled. "What do you want with me?" I wanted to get out of here, get my friends to safety and finish playing these games with her. That seemed to have caused a change in the atmosphere as her warriors around her shifted nervously. Her eyes turned a darker shade of grey.
"It's not what I want Clarke…it's what I need and must have." She stood up then and marched towards the remaining Triku that still lived. "You know these men here were doing their daily perimeter run. Making sure no one gets into Triku lands. Especially Azgeda…" The man bounded up against the tent wall could do nothing but glare as she reached for the nearest dagger attached to one of her guards' hips. "They failed miserably in their task as you can see."
Her warriors chuckled as Nia twirled the dagger in her hand effortlessly. The warrior in front of her never once soften his glare as she slowly stopped her motions and pointed the tip of the blade to her captures eye.
"We were in their sights plain as day and yet they didn't see us. They failed miserably and I'll happily show them the error of their ways. I'll also be showing the great Commander her own mistake in trusting her warriors a bit too much." Before anyone can react; the blade suddenly disappeared, a sound that was unmistakably like someone jabbing it into a tree could be heard throughout the tent. She did it so quickly that the Triku warrior wasn't even able to utter a scream. His head lulled forward, the blood seeped down the blades handle and onto the floor with the rest of the liquid.
Monty gagged and I looked away. Unable to bear witness to her atrocity.
"Does this sort of thing disturb you? Really? After what you've done in the mountain this sort of thing shouldn't even faze you Princess from the sky."
"What do you want?"
"I want Wanheda." I blinked at Octavia. She was getting paler by the hour and needed medical attention and fast.
"It means…Commander of Death." She panted out glaring at Nia.
"C-Commander of…death?" I gasped out looking back at the Queen who smirked raising her hands up in the air.
"You did bring down the mountain that has plagued these lands for decades. Every Commander that has ever lived tried desperately to bring down our rival and yet…you come out of the sky…and killed each and every mountain man in less than a year." The Queen knelt down to my level. "You are the very essence of death…Wanheda and I need your power to my advantage."
"I don't have any powers though. What I did was by pure luck!"
"Oh Wanheda…don't be selfless you should take the glory and wear your title with honor. Oh to see your handy work in those halls would be a blessing for me! It must've been a thrill to eradicate our foes without any remorse."
The flashes of the dead suddenly popped into my head again…mainly the children. Who wouldn't live out their lives due to my choices. To protect the lives of my people. The air around me was thickening. It was humid and clung to my skin.
"You have the power of fire at your fingertips. Death by fire is your power! Your gift!" She stood up then. "First you killed 300 Triku warriors in seconds! Then burned the Mountain Men with our air that was poisonous to them!" She laughed walking back to her throne. "That kind of power should be used for more deeds such as my own. It should be harnessed and trained!" She sat back down, her eyes ravaged my form up and down making my skin prickle with unease.
"I have no power. All I wanted was my people safe, which was my driving force." I growled finally getting frustrated of not only this bullshit but because of this god awful heat. It was very uncomfortable. Shifting a bit my knees made it known how much they ached, the shift cause my bag to fall off my shoulder and caught Nia's eye.
"Why haven't their belongings been taken?" her voice lost its sultry hue, replaced with a dark malice. Nobody moved or answered the Queen who turned and glared at the three who brought us in. Who I completely forgot were still here. "Irek! Answer me this instant."
"Y-Yes my Queen." He came forth from the corner of the tent and bowed on his knees. "W-We didn't have the time to check their belongings. We were spotted by scouts who were already keeping an eye on them."
"Scouts? Who? Why didn't you deal with them?"
Scouts? I thought looking over at my friends who were just as confused as I was.
"We did your highness. I sent half of my force to deal with the nuisances. Sadly though one got away."
Silence…I looked from Irek back to the Queen. Everyone was still as stone, waiting for the Queen or Irek to continue. Her face was emotionless though, not giving out any indication to what she was thinking or feeling.
"T-They were Triku warriors my lady."
The egg suddenly shifted causing me to look at the corner of my eye to the strap. Monty must've felt it too because he turned his head my way with worried and confused eyes. I gritted my teeth in his way begging him to keep silent. He must've noticed my alarmed state and slowly nodded looking back forward. I groaned mentally as it continued to move causing the zippers to make sound.
"So…let me get this straight then Irek. The three Sky People were under watch from Triku, no doubt by the orders of the Commander." Her eyes were starring hard into Irek's head who had it bowed. "You killed all but one. They are more than likely reporting to Heda as we speak. Notifying the Commander that Azgeda is on her lands, without her orders. Which by the way is a sign of war." The Queen leaned forward a bit placing her elbows on her knees. "What was our plan Irek?"
"T-To come onto their lands undetected."
"Yet…what has happened?"
"Heda knows we are here now…with the Sky People."
Throughout my months here on Earth and seeing all that I have seen; I would've guessed that I was prepared for what the Queen did but that still didn't stop the yell of shock that escaped my lips as the Queen swiftly grabbed an axe that was beside her leg and with great practice threw it without a moment's hesitation. The sickening crunch of bone and muscle hit my ears. Irek screamed holding the axe's handle that was now embedded into his collarbone.
"Not only the Sky People but their LEADER! WANHEDA!" She stormed towards Irek who coward down under her form. Irek was easily a foot taller than the Queen's 5 foot 5 height but this burly man acted as if his Queen was the size of a giant. "Now! Not only is our plan compromise but the Triku will be upon us soon! The Commander no doubt as well! She would not want Wanheda in my custody! She fears of her power as well!"
"My Queen I am sorry! Let me remedy my mistake! I'll-" Another crunch resonated throughout the tent and a scream before silence. My eyes were wide as I say the Queens true self. Every word the Commander said about her was true. She was the devil herself.
Irek's body fell limped. His head rolling to the side and hitting the leg of a nearby table.
"Take this thing out of my sight." She waved her bloodied axe around and sighed. "Check their bags. We must cut this meeting short, the Commander is no doubt on her way and we must make a hasty retreat, as long as we have Wanheda then I call this little plan a success."
Warriors came upon us as the body of Irek was dragged out. Monty tried putting up a fight as his bag was taken and carried over to the queen. His hands had to be freed from their restraints in order to do so. Octavia's was next and she merely sagged against me.
I started to panic. They were going to find my father's egg. The one thing he sworn to obviously keep secret, it had to be important in order to hide it on the Ark for so long especially from mother. If this bitch had it in her hands…
I groaned as my sore wrists were finally free from the ropes, but before I can react they took both bags away from me presenting them both to queen.
"No wait!"
"Clarke!"
"Monty let go!" I struggled in his grasp as the Queen looked up at us then back down at my bags.
"Open hers up first." She smirked towards me and I glared at Monty.
"She's going to find out either way. I'm sorry but I don't want to see your head roll away too!" Monty looked apologetic towards me as the Queen watched her men open both bags at the same time.
"Well, well…dump the contents on the table." Her eyes were sparkling as the warrior with my Jansport bag walked over tipping its contents out. The egg rolled to the center of the circular table, it rattled to a stop. My papers were left in a neat pile beside it thanks to my wired thread. "Now…Wanheda what is this?" She smirked towards me pointing to the bundled up egg.
"Nothing just dinner. Eggs you know. Yum, yum breakfast." Octavia voiced out as she slowly stood up gripping my arm with both hands to keep herself steady.
"Oh but the size of this…egg…is something I haven't seen before. Unwrap it." The warriors immediately obeyed her command. Each layer falling to reveal the gleam of emeralds. I gasped as the center now looked to be burning a bright red. It would flare up to the sides of the egg then ebb down to the center, revealing the emeralds that glowed brightly.
It shifted causing everyone in the room to jump back. The warriors gripped their weapon.
"Fascinating! You Sky People never cease to amaze me!" Queen Nia laughed as she stepped forward to grab the egg. "It's just pure heat coming off of it! Tell me Wanheda…" I winced at my damned name. "What is this? Is this the source of your power? Is- GAH!"
Her hands…were red, smoke was coming from them as some of her skin was folding in on itself. She clenched her hands close to her chest. The egg itself didn't look any different. The glowing orb in the middle continue its pulsing.
"What fucking weaponry is this Sky Princess?!" She marched towards me as two of her guards grabbed me and pulled me away from Octavia's grip.
"I-I don't know!"
"Like hell you do! It was in your bag!" She seethed in my face. This close I could smell the burnt skin coming off of her hands and I gagged. Her hands smelled all too familiar, like the smell from the Mountain of its people. When I didn't answer her, she motioned to her guards. "Plant her face in her own weapon! Let's see if she will talk then with half her face scarred forever!"
"No!" I yelled and kicked at the guards trying to free myself from their grasp.
"Let's see if your own weapon will hurt you back ten times than all the people you burned!"
"Clarke!"
"Let her go!"
"Silence them!" I heard scuffling but my eyes were zeroed in on the egg. The closer I got the more heat I felt from within. Not only that but…I felt at peace despite knowing what was going to happen to me. I felt shielded, as if this egg was giving me the strength to be strong. My heart was pounding in rhythm to the eggs glowing orb. I grunted when my stomach was pushed against the edge of the desk, both of their hands pushed the back of my head and towards my egg. I didn't resist, my own body wasn't listening to my panicked mind to fight back. Until my cheek was pressed firmly into the eggs shell did Monty's scream of remorse hit my ears.
My eyes looked over to my friends who were being held back. Monty had a bruise forming on his cheek, his eyes wide with shock. Octavia as well who also had her mouth open in disbelief. The egg was pressed firmly against my face. I could feel the heat emitting from the shell. Yet…no burn.
"What is this magic? Do you truly control fire?"
What was happening? What is this egg and why wasn't I being burnt by it like Nia? I was finally able to lift my head and looked closer at my egg. Where my cheek once laid was now a swirl of colors ranging from green back down to orange. There was a soft thud making the egg jump a bit in the air.
"My Queen! Heda is over the ridge with her army!"
"WHAT?!" The Queen looked between the three of us before storming out of the tent. Most of her warriors following as my friends and I were left alone with only the guards out front. The air was left from my lungs as my friends rushed over towards me. Octavia grabbed my face and began inspecting it.
"How the hell didn't you get burned?"
"What the hell is inside of this thing that can burn off skin? What creature is it?" Monty grabbed my papers putting them back in the bag and pointed to the egg. "You should grab it…I don't want to get burned." Nodding my head I began recovering the cloths until a shift stopped me having me freeze in complete and utter dismay.
A crack could be seen. It wasn't there before, it was small but highly noticeable. With trembling fingers I reached over.
"Woah! Clarke look!" Octavia pointed, my eyes zeroed in and I gasped.
A hand? No talon more like. It was pressed against the very same crack my finger was against. It shifted causing the crack to move upwards a bit.
"Whatever it is…it's coming out and I'm sure as hell not letting Nia have it." Monty half whispered as we heard more commotion outside.
"Nor the Commander…" I looked to them both who nodded as we hurried to grab our things. I looked up after everything was packed back into the bag except the egg. The bodies of the Triku still hung limp. I knew from the funeral of Finn that the Grounders believe in burning their dead.
"Octavia…" I looked over at her. "Will the Queen be pissed if we burnt her tent down?" Octavia smirked.
"If only Raven was here…she'd blow it up."
"Commander…" Star shifted beneath me as Nia came up to her side. My hands fisted around the reigns. Keeping my emotions behind Heda's mask. Oh how I would give to chop her head off her shoulders.
"May I ask Queen Nia…why you are in my lands with your army? Without my permission?" I knew why she was here. For the Sky People, they had what she wanted. Technology and power. Fear as well. The Sky people have made the clans weary of them. They brought down a foe that we have been trying to asunder for decades. Nia just wanted to use all their resources for her own vile needs. Most likely…no with certainty…to kill me and take the title as Heda.
"Oh it's just a training exercise Heda. My army is starting to have too much green men around. We needed to show them some action." Her hands were hidden behind her back, underneath her jacket. It unnerved me that I didn't see them out in view. Was she hiding a weapon?
"We had reports of your men…escorting Sky People."
"Ah yes…you see they were out hunting and lost their way. We merely showed them the way home."
"So you don't have any with you at this very camp as we speak?"
"Why…of course not Heda. You did say to leave them alone until all leaders of each clan discuss the next course of action with them. I would never go against your wishes. Oh great Heda!" She bowed mockingly and Indra snarled beside me.
"Don't you dare disrespect our Heda, Nia!"
"I wouldn't dream of it Indra."
"Then you wouldn't mind if our warriors' scope out each and every tent would you?" Indra shifted her horse forward a bit causing Nia to move back a step. Her hands still hidden.
"Of course not. Please…let me accompany you myself." I circled my finger around in the air, a signal to my warriors to search the area. They immediately obeyed.
"After this search Nia I want all your army gone from my lands…is that understood?" I glared at each Azgeda. Never forgetting the lives lost over Costia and one barbaric woman.
"Again Commander I will do as you say. We were about to leave anyways." My eyes narrowed in suspicion as Indra and I hopped off our horses and followed Nia through the camp as my warriors combed through each tent.
"I don't like this Heda." Indra whispered in my ear. I nodded watching as the Azgeda glared at my warriors.
"Neither do I, we must prevent a war starting here Indra. Do what you must, I do not want a fight breaking out right now. Keep my warriors in line."
Indra bowed and did as I commanded heading towards a large group of men who looked about to kill each other.
For a solid candle mark my warriors went through each tent without any troubles. Nia seemed to be compliant enough. My only worries were that of Clarke, I knew Nia had her. The sword handle quivered under my grip. I couldn't deny my feelings anymore. I cared for Clarke of the Sky People as I did for Costia, maybe even more so. To think Nia again had someone I cared for in her grasp made my blood boil…but there was one major factor, even two.
Nia doesn't know I care for Clarke. Our…conversations were held inside my tent. Another major factor, Nia NEEDS Clarke. Word is spreading around that she is Wanheda. A title I know Clarke will disdain and saddens my heart with guilt at what I had to do. What I made Clarke do to earn such a title. I vow though that I will try my hardest to remedy my mistake. I will not let what happen to Costia hinder anything between Clarke and me.
Even if she doesn't trust me…or never wants me the way I want her. Then the least I can do is be by her side till the end. Hoping to gain her trust.
"My Queen! Your tent is on fire! We are trying to contain it!"
"WHAT? Of all the time to…" Nia voice wavered as she looked to her warrior then towards me. "I'm sorry Heda but please excuse me. I must make sure my belongings don't get ruined and hope my tent doesn't get to badly damaged."
"I will come with you and help." I didn't want Nia leaving my sight. This must be a trick that she had up her sleeve to hide evidence of her true plan.
Nia narrowed her eyes towards me a bit before briskly walking towards the large column of black smoke that started bellowing up into the sky. We walked briskly through the warriors running around us as they grabbed water and chucking it at the tent. It did little good as the fire continued onwards onto smaller tents.
I coughed and grabbed my sash wrapping it around my lower face to keep from inhaling the smoke. My eyes burned and made them water from the intensity of the heat.
"Heda!" Indra jogged towards me. Her own face covered with her warrior mask. As she pointed to where Nia was running off to around her tent with a couple of her warriors.
I gasped and cursed at my lack of attention to her. "Follow her! Gather a handful of warriors to see where she is running off to!"
"This way!" Monty yelled over the yelling of the Azgeda behind us. Octavia laughed but despite her short boost of adrenaline she continued to trip and fall. It was obvious that the wound was starting to get to her.
"Nia is going to be pissed! People should know! Tents and candles never mix! WOAH!" She ducked just in time. The arrow embedding itself beside the tree.
We continued to run as fast as we could. I knew if we stayed with Nia it was going to be pure torture for all of us. Her using us to get her way and by doing so in any way she can. If we went to the commander…my gut churned at the thought of her. No. I will not ask her for help. Not after she left me at the mountain to fend for myself.
A sudden wave of understanding washed over me and I looked down. I was holding the egg close to my chest. Shielding it from any debris or weapons that barely grazed our skins. No matter what positon the egg is in, no matter what contact I have with it. The egg never burned me like it did with Nia. Was it because it was my father's?
"Clarke pay attention!" My feet righted themselves after I tripped over a branch. My attention coming back to the situation at hand as we were coming up at a river. We all came to a stop panting, Monty leaned over his knees coughing uncontrollably. My eyes scanned the river.
It was easily the widest river I saw and the most dangerous looking as water splashed high against the rocks. The current causing ripples of water to form in on themselves.
"Is there a way around it?" Octavia panted out. A spear embedded itself besides Monty making him stumble back into me.
"No time to find out. Come on!" I charged forward feeling the egg shift in my arms yet again as the ice cold water hit my legs causing me to gasp.
"Clarke seriously! We can't swim!" Octavia was right behind me and Monty yelled out a curse before running in after us. "If I drown! I'm haunting your ass!"
"Then learn quickly you dork!" I gritted my teeth when the river went up to my chest. The egg shifted a bit in my hands when the cold water touched its shell. I blinked seeing white smoke coming from it and the sound of sizzling water. Before I can inspect the egg though an arrow whizzed by my head and splashed right beside me causing me to yell out and push forward harder. It was getting tough though.
The current was pulling us down the river. Slowing our progress. The water beneath us acted like a giant wall pushing our legs out from under us constantly.
"Help!" All I saw was his head being taken under the water and dragged down the river. His hands flailing to grab something. We were in the middle of the river by now, it wasn't deep enough for us to swim but it sure as hell was strong. A wave of water splashed over my head as I tried to think of ways to get to Monty in time but most of them were of me being on shore. Not knowing what was at the end of the river and knowing the Azgeda were after all of us I knew I had to risk my life to save his.
"Octavia keep pushing forward I'll get him!"
"How!?"
"Just go!" Without thinking I dived after him. My heart was pounding as the water crashed into me from all around. Bubbles blocked my vision as I saw the blurred form of Monty ahead of me. He was flailing his arms, kicking with all his might and trying desperately to fight against the current that was pulling him deeper into the murky water below.
I didn't think about the egg in my arm as I swam over. The current and I moving with it and not against it, like Monty, had me with him in no time. With all my strength I pulled him out of the water with me.
The roar of the waves meet my ears as I hacked up the water I swallowed. My vision constantly being obscured by the amount of water running over my head. Monty's arms were around my shoulders trying to catch his breath and when he did I knew I would've been able to laugh if the situation was less dire as we floated faster down the river.
"I'm haunting your fucking white ass Clarke!" I grunted ignoring his statement when a boulder came into view.
"Help me swim towards the boulder! You can chew my ear out later."
With Monty's help we were able to both grab onto the boulder. It was tough considering that water was the major factor of us not having a very good grip but we managed to at least have our heads above the surface.
"Ah…shit." I furrowed my eyebrows up at Monty who was looking behind me. "We have company…"
I turned around and my world stopped. My breathing was coming out in short gasps and I felt my chest constrict at the sight before me.
Azgeda and Triku were at the edge of the shallows trying to get to Monty and I. The Queen was there yelling out something but I couldn't hear what she was saying. The roar of the water was too loud and deafening. What also wasn't helping…was piercing green eyes staring straight into my own blue ones.
"The Commander…" My words were soft as we continued to stare at each other. She didn't look any different. She was just as beautiful as I remembered. With long brunette hair flowing past her shoulders, a strong chiseled jawline. Her Commander makeup was in full swing that went perfect with her tanned skin that looked soft and inviting.
Her hand was clenched around her sword handle as she barked out an order pointing towards us. Her eyes never left mine. This far away I couldn't tell what she was trying to say.
During my time with Lexa I found out she had walls placed around herself and the only way to see what she is actually feeling is through those damn, captivating eyes of hers. So when I say that I don't understand her, I don't mean vocally.
My egg jerked up in my arm making me look down. It was kicking repeatedly at the same crack over and over, causing the seam to unwind more and more. Emotions invaded me and I started to figure out that…these weren't my own. Excitement and anxiety. Was it the eggs emotions?
"Clarke look its Octavia!" Octavia was at the very edge of the shore and began pulling a long rope from her bag before swinging it over her head.
"Grab the rope!" She tossed it Monty reaching out with one hand as it sailed over our heads.
Monty grabbed me and wrapped the rope around his arm.
"Clarke!" With Monty making sure that I was close to his side I turned my head to the sound of Lexa's voice. She was now waist high in the water, one arm extended out towards my way as her warriors bustled around her.
It was an exact mirror image…of how she left me. So I did what any normal, raging, emotional, young adult would do in my situation as I stood on the other side of the shore facing Lexa.
"Nice Clarke…real mature…" Monty rolled his eyes and groaned when Octavia joined in. "Seriously you two? I thought I was the immature one here!"
Octavia was being…creative compared to my single middle digit raised in the air. She had both of hers up and was doing some crab walk dance while waving her hands around erratically, yelling.
"Fuck yeah! Take that bitches! I whip my hair back and forth! I whip my hair back and forth!"
"Come on you two!" Monty grabbed our bags that clung to our backs and dragged us off into the woods. Leaving behind the armies that were still trying to get across the river. The image burned into my head of Lexa's confused face before my view was taken up by trees.
"Come on Clarke…can't you be more gentle with my wound here?"
"With the supplies I have, this is as gentle as I can get Octavia." She groaned as I pierced into her skin, stitching up her wound after a very thorough cleaning.
"The thread probably isn't helping her out either Clarke. I mean we did scavenged it off of cloth and it's not the most comfortable material." Monty continued to stoke the fire sitting on a rock that more than likely fell from the roof of the cave we were in.
After we ran until the sun was far gone. We did a scout of the area looking for any signs of our captures. I sighed after finishing Octavia's shoulder and leaned back tiredly.
"All right done. You're very lucky that you didn't have a serious infection or else I might've not been able to help." She pulled up her shirt giving me a smirk.
"Thanks a lot Princess."
Merely waving my hand I took a glance at my egg. The entire shell now, was littered with cracks. The usual radiance was gone. Now only the orange glow remained that seeped through the cracks. Looking over at the documents that were drying up by the fire; luckily the papers stayed intact despite its rough journey, I got up and started thumbing through the ones that were completely dry.
Our belongings were spread out around us. "Whose bright idea was it again to jump head first into a freezing river?"
I could feel Octavia's eyes on me but I merely gave her the finger. "Shut up!"
The rest of the night was uneventful. We did our shifts, kept the fire going and made sure nobody was coming in our cave.
"Wake up sleepy bums." I groaned when Octavia's boot gently prodded my shoulder.
"You can't give me five more minutes in my sleeping bag?"
"Nope! I learned the hard way from Indra about sleeping in. Monty! Get your ass up." Huffing and rubbing the sleep from my eyes I couldn't help but ponder. What the hell do we do now?
Now we know for a fact that the clans are after us. The Commander, Lexa, has more than likely ordered all the clans to start looking for us.
"We need a break. For now this cave looks like a nice place to rest for a while."
"Rest? We need to keep moving."
"No, Octavia needs to rest till her shoulder is better. Plus where would we go? We need a plan." Monty sighed running a hand through his hair.
"I agree with Clarke, I really don't want to admit it but…I don't feel 100 percent right now."
"Well it's two against one, I won't argue besides the both of you have very good points."
"Also you're the only boy so you must admit defeat."
"What does my gender have anything to do with anything!?"
"Well surely you don't want two angry PMSing woman angry at your ass for not agreeing correct?"
"Oh Octavia stop messing with him, he doesn't need to worry about that for another two weeks."
"T-Two weeks?"
"Oh yeah your right!"
"I'm gonna go and get water." Monty rushed out carry our water bottles as we both laughed. Before Monty could leave though we all stopped hearing the echo run throughout the cave.
CRACK!
"It's coming out of the shell." Octavia whispered when I was trying to gather my strength to look at the source.
'Just one day…all I want is one day of peace.'
R&R PLEASE!