Author's Note:

I must apologize for taking so long to get this chapter uploaded. I don't have a beta, so I had to take a break from working on this to be able to find my mistakes. I hope that this chapter makes up for my tardiness! This chapter is almost 7,000 words, so I hope this will tide you wonderful people over until I am able to get chapter 10 finished.

I am in desperate need of a beta! If any of you would be interested in helping out, send me a private message so we can make arrangements.


Octavia's POV

Octavia hurt everywhere when she woke up. She winced as she tried to move, and slowly opened her eyes. She looked up and was startled to see someone leaning over her. She studied his face and remembered him, "He's the Grounder that saved me at the river." Once she focused on the dark eyes looking down at her, she couldn't look away. Octavia could feel his arms under her and realized that he was trying to help her again. She shifted when he lifted her up, and the motion made everything spin. She placed her hand on her head to try to slow everything down. When she felt the moisture on her scalp, Octavia pulled her hand away, looking at the blood that now covered her palm. She moved the hand back toward her head, and everything went black again.

She felt like her world was spinning. Octavia couldn't see anything through the darkness, but she felt strangely safe. Warmth encompassed her, surrounding her. A flower emerged from the darkness. She recognized the white flower, but she couldn't remember why. She reached out to grasp the flower and examine it. It seemed to float farther away from her as her hand moved closer to it. Finally, Octavia wrapped her hand around the bloom and pulled it closer to her. She remembered the fragrance it gave off as her thoughts drifted to that night under the moon.

Octavia felt a swaying motion slowly pull her awake again. She tightened her fist around something unfamiliar and slowly opened her eyes. She could see that her hand was clutching onto someone's armor, and remembered what happened. She lifted her head from the Grounder's shoulder and looked up at him. She knew that he was probably taking her to that cave again, and she realized that she wouldn't be able to help herself in this situation. Octavia looked around when the Grounder suddenly stopped, and spotted the hidden doorway to the cave. She back to him before he gently placed her on her good leg. She could feel his hand burning into her waist where he was supporting her as he opened the hatch. He swept her back up quickly; Octavia gasped, grabbing at his chest again to steady herself.

He smiled down at her before he jumped through the entrance. He eased his arm from under her back to close the hatch again. She clung to him and thought she could still see his smile through the shadows. He carried her through the short tunnel and into the main room. He settled her on the bed once again, and lit a nearby candle. He moved to stoke the coals in the fire pit, and she noticed that he left the blade of the knife he used in the coals. He lit several more candles and arranged them around the first.

Octavia could only watch in silence as he worked; she still felt dizzy and confused from her fall. She tried not to wince when he cut the fabric from the gash on her leg. The wound that she received at the river had been ripped open violently during her fall. When he poured water through the wound to clean it, Octavia could see that the inner muscle was exposed in the wound. The Grounder rose and walked to the fire again. He moved a kettle over the heat, and then pulled the knife out of the coals. Octavia pulled herself back when he moved toward her with the red-hot blade. He moved forward quickly and held her leg down before pressing the blade to her flesh. Octavia screamed in agony before everything disappeared.


Lincoln's POV

Lincoln couldn't help but smile as Octavia clung to him so he could close the hatch behind them. He carried her into the main body of the cave and placed her on the furs. Quickly, Lincoln lit a candle so he could see to treating her wounds. He moved to the small fire pit and stirred the coals with his dagger. He left the blade buried in the heat and moved about to gather what he would need. He could feel her watching him silently as he walked around the cave.

He settled beside her and gently pulled the fabric away from the gash on her leg. He cut it off quickly so the wound would stay clean. The blood was dried on her flesh, but the wound continued to seep. Carefully, Lincoln poured water over her leg to remove any debris left behind. Her fall down the bank ripped her old injury wide open, and tore the muscle beneath. Lincoln knew he needed to close the wound before infection set in. He went back to the fire pit and placed his kettle over the heat before retrieving the knife.

When he turned back to Octavia, he could see fear in her eyes as she looked at the knife in his hand. Lincoln crossed the room quickly and placed his free hand on her leg to keep her from moving. He could hear her pleading with him before he pressed the knife firmly against her leg. She screamed in pain before falling back limp against the bed.

Lincoln hated to cause her so much pain, but he knew of no other way to heal a wound that big. Carefully, Lincoln lifted her leg so he could tie a bandage around it to keep it clean. He turned his attention to the wound on her head, and was glad to see that it finally clotted. He cleaned some of the dried blood from her face before checking her for other injuries. Her hands and arms had minor scratches on them, but nothing serious. Her other leg and torso both seemed to be bruised, but not injured. He arranged her more comfortably on the bed before rising.

Lincoln removed the kettle from the fire and poured some of the water into a small bowl. He added various herbs to make a drink to help her sleep, so her body could rest and heal. He lifted her head and shoulders onto his knees, and carefully trickled some of the tea into her mouth. She swallowed by reflex, and he repeated the process to get enough in her system to keep her comfortable. He sat back and watched her lay in his bed. Slowly, his thoughts drifted back to his duty. As Lincoln rose, knowing he needed to finish his assignment for Anya, he thought about how this woman was causing him to neglect his duties. He set the rest of the herb tea with some bread next to Octavia, and covered her with one of his furs. He couldn't resist brushing his fingers along her cheek before he turned to leave.


Bellamy's POV

Bellamy stomped through the forest toward the pod. He needed to reach the small ship and destroy any of the communications on board before the Ark was contacted. He knew that when the Ark discovered that he killed the Chancellor and escaped to Earth, they would want him executed. He was rash in his decision, but his options were limited. Commander Shumway told him he could get onto the drop ship with Octavia, as long as he assassinated the Chancellor. Bellamy hadn't seen his baby sister in nearly a year, so he was willing to do anything to see her again, to protect her. The fear he saw in her eyes when he admitted his crime still pained him. All he wanted to do was keep her safe, but he managed to hurt her himself.

Bellamy shook his head to clear his thoughts as he continued through the forest. He reached the valley a short time later and started searching for the pod. He finally found the pod in a small clearing and ran up to the door. When he opened the door, he was surprised to find someone inside. The young woman sat slumped against her seatbelt in a space suit. He could hear her breathing, but he could also hear a voice calling out on the radio. The Ark was requesting feedback from the pod's pilot. Bellamy quickly found the radio and pulled until the wires broke free from the control panel.

Bellamy ran from the drop pod to reach the cover of the trees. He couldn't risk anyone finding him with the radio, and his people were probably searching for the pod already. He cut quickly through the forest searching for some way to destroy the radio. He could faintly hear the river in the distance when he stopped to rest a short time later. He pushed through the brush when he neared the river bank. Bellamy looked down at the radio in his hand and took a deep breath; I hope I'm doing the right thing. He threw the radio as far as he could into the shallow river, and was satisfied that no one would stumble upon it.

Bellamy turned away from the river and followed the path he used to find somewhere to dispose of the radio. He climbed back up the mountain, enjoying the satisfaction he found in preventing the Ark from contacting them. The Ark and the council would only want to give orders to his people. Bellamy could imagine what would happen when they discovered he was amongst the delinquents. Bellamy was startled from his thoughts when Clarke appeared behind him. "Where is it?" She grasped his shoulder and stopped him in his tracks.

"Hey, princess. You taking a walk in the woods?" Bellamy smirked down at her.

She continued speaking, "The Ark is running out of oxygen. They don't have enough time to fix the system. They're getting ready to kill to buy them some time. And I can guarantee you it won't be council members. It'll be working people. Your people." She emphasized the last part, and Bellamy could already feel the guilt building up. Finn and the woman from the pod joined them just as suddenly as Clarke had.

"Bellamy, where's the radio?" Finn asked, shoving against Bellamy's chest. "I have no idea what you're talking about." Bellamy returned.

"Bellamy Blake? They're looking everywhere for you."

Bellamy looked down at the new edition and snapped, "Shut up." Bellamy did not want to explain to their people how he managed to get on the dropship with them.

Clarke seemed confused by the girl's statement. "Looking for him why?" she asked.

"He shot Chancellor Jaha." Bellamy braced himself when she spoke, knowing that Clarke and Finn would turn on him now. He looked down at Clarke when she finally spoke.

"That's why you took the wristbands. Needed everyone to think we're dead. And all that "whatever the hell we want"? You just care about saving your own skin."

Bellamy turned and continued walking, not wanting to explain himself to them. The girl from the pod ran forward again to confront him. "Hey! Shooter! Where's my radio?"

"Get out of my way," he spoke in a low voice. She refused to move, holding her ground in front of him. "Where is it?" she asked again.

"I should've killed you when I had the chance." Bellamy hoped that threatening her would get them off his back. She stepped toward him instead, "Really? Well, I'm right here." Bellamy grabbed her by her shoulders and moved to pin her against a tree. Before Bellamy could think of his next move, the girl pulled out a knife and held it to his neck. "Where's my radio?" She asked again.

Clarke stepped forward, trying to maintain peace. "Raven, Bellamy, stop it!" The group stood tense for a moment before Bellamy released the girl and she lowered her knife.

Bellamy turned away from them before he spoke. He knew that Clarke and Finn were curious about his crime. "Jaha deserved to die. You all know that."

He turned at the girl's reply, "He's not my favorite person, either. But he isn't dead." She looked up at him as she spoke.

"What?" Bellamy couldn't understand how Jaha was still alive. He couldn't quite believe the girl, but she had no reason to lie about this.

"You're a lousy shot." Raven answered with a shrug. Bellamy was standing rigid, completely shocked when Clarke walked up to him. "Bellamy, don't you see what this means? You're not a murderer. You always did what you had to do to protect your sister. That's who you are. And you can do it again, by protecting 300 of your people. Where's the radio?"

Clarke's pleading was painful to hear. Bellamy's guilt over killing Jaha was something he was still learning to live with. The 300 deaths on the Ark would be his burden now as well. "It's too late," he said quietly. "I tossed the radio in the river, we will never find it." He shook his head as he spoke, knowing the search would prove fruitless.

"Show me where and let me decide of its too late." The girl said as she walked closer to him again.

Bellamy shrugged his shoulders in defeat and turned toward the river, "Follow me."


Lincoln's POV

Lincoln travelled quickly to reach the ridge again. He needed to reach the object that fell, and determine what was sent down. He moved down into the valley, toward the area he determined was the landing site. As he closed in on the area, he could hear raised voices. He crept closer to the group, and recognized three of the people from the Sky People's camp. The fourth, a young woman, was one that he knew he hadn't seen before. When he figured out that she arrived in the pod, he realized that the Ark was sending more people down. He continued moving down the valley to find the pod. When he found the small ship, he stayed under cover in the trees to make sure that he was alone.

He studied the small object, realizing that it wouldn't have been able to hold much more than the single passenger that arrived. He moved quickly to the door of the pod and lifted it open. The interior of the ship held two seats and a large area that seemed to be the controls. He searched for anything in that he thought could be useful, but soon discovered that the ship was nearly empty. He found a small box full of bandages, creams, and other unfamiliar items; he decided to bring it with him. Nothing else seemed to be easily removed, and Lincoln knew he couldn't afford to spend much more time investigating. He returned to the forest and headed for his village.

It was early afternoon by the time Lincoln returned to his village. Anya was speaking with her second, Tris, near her hut. Lincoln waited patiently for her attention to change so he could speak with her. She motioned for him to join them, and he followed them inside. Anya sat before speaking. "What have the Sky People sent down, Lincoln?"

Lincoln pulled the small case out and handed it to his leader. "It appears to be a healing kit. It has bandages and creams inside." He watched as Anya opened the case and slowly pulled the items out to examine them. She closed the box and handed it to her second, "Nyko should look at that so he can determine if we can use any of their medicines." The young woman nodded and held the box, but did not turn to leave. Anya glanced back at Lincoln and bid him to continue, "Tell me about the object. What fell from the sky, and why was it sent?"

"When I arrived, a small group of the Sky People had already discovered the object and its contents. To avoid contacting them, I waited for them to leave and listened to their conversation. Apparently the object was a small ship that brought a woman down from the sky. She told them that she was sent down to make contact with the group, and notify their people of the situation. They appeared to be fighting about an object that was supposed to allow them to talk with their people in the sky. When they moved far enough away from the ship, I went to it to investigate what it contained." Anya nodded, accepting the information he provided and waited for him to continue.

"That," Lincoln said, pointing at the small box in Tris's hands, "is the only thing I could find that I could remove from the ship. The ship could hold two people, although only one arrived. Most of the inside of the ship seemed to be the controls for flying it. I could find nothing inside other than that box that I thought would provide our people any benefit. I was unable to gain any knowledge about their purposes here."

Anya nodded again, appearing to be deep in thought about what the new arrival could mean for her people. She turned to Tris, "Go, and take that to Nyko. I will speak with you later." The girl left silently, obeying her mentor's wishes. Anya returned her attention to Lincoln, "I will order the warriors to stay in the area and watch for the Sky People's movements. They may return to the ship, and if they contact their people, I want to know. You should track their movements. I want to know everything they are planning. You are my best scout, Lincoln do not fail me in this." Anya stood and led Lincoln back out into the village.

Lincoln left immediately, he needed find out what the Sky People planned to do quickly. When he approached the camp, Lincoln realized that he must have missed crossing paths with a group of people that returned to the new pod for parts. Lincoln moved closer to the camp so he could eavesdrop of the conversation the people were having. Those working around the drop ship were busy arranging several items to build a signal. They planned to communicate with their people after nightfall using the fuel from the new ship.

Lincoln didn't understand how they planned to signal their people, but he knew he should report this small amount of information to Anya. He looked up to the sky, and estimated that he would be able to return to his village before dark. Lincoln moved away from the camp carefully so he wouldn't be seen. When he knew he was far enough away, Lincoln started jogging through the forest.


Bellamy's POV

Bellamy trudged through to trees in front of the small group, ignoring their murmuring. When they reached the river, Bellamy pointed to the area he threw the radio into. All four of them waded in the water looking for the foreign object, but the current was stronger than it seemed. The radio couldn't be found in the section of river they searched.

Clarke looked to Finn and spoke quietly before she walked back into the trees. When she arrived with several people a short time later, Bellamy realized that she went to the pod to find more of their people to search. After about an hour, a voice shouted out, "I found it." Bellamy watched as Raven ran across the river to grab the radio.

She started pulling debris from the casing, while water poured out from inside. "Can you fix it?" Clarke asked. Raven turned her head as she looked at the radio. "Maybe. But it'll take half a day just to dry out the components to see what's broken."

"Like I said, it's too late." Bellamy said, already feeling the guilt over destroying their only way to tell the Ark that the ground was habitable.

Clarke stomped through the water to get closer to him as she spoke. "Do you have any idea what you did? Do you even care?"

"You asked me to help. I helped," Bellamy returned.

"300 people are going to die today because of you." He could see her anger as she spoke.

"Hold up," Raven interrupted. "We don't have to talk to The Ark. We just have to let them know we're down here, right?"

Finn shrugged at her question. "Yeah, but how do we do that with no radio?"

Raven smirked at his reply, "We need to get back to the pod; I have an idea."


Bellamy returned to the drop ship with Finn to manage some of the preparation for Raven's flares. Clarke and Raven stayed at the pod to collect supplies, and sent them back to make ramp guides and a power source. Bellamy busied himself with the ramps for most of the afternoon and evening. Several people were now returning to the camp laden with supplies from the pod. Clarke and Raven arrived last, carrying fuel from the pod's engine.

Bellamy watched silently as Raven assembled her flares and checked the progress in the camp. She declared that everything was acceptable shortly before dark, and the crowd let out a cheer. They ate their meal quickly as night set in, and waited for the Ark to pass overhead so they could send their message.

"It's time!" Raven announced. The crowd stood and gathered together to watch the flares launch. Bellamy and Clarke stood together as the flares burst into the sky, burning bright red. The flares shot high into the air before arcing across the sky. Bellamy noticed that Clarke chose to stand beside him. "Do you think they can see it from up there?" he asked.

"I don't know, I hope so." She paused a moment before she continued. "Can you wish on this kind of shooting star?" Bellamy looked at her, amused at her question. "Forget it," she added before he could reply.

"I wouldn't even know what to wish for. What about you?" Bellamy turned to Clarke waiting for her to answer. She continued watching the sky, as if searching for an answer from the stars. "I only wish that they see our signal and understand our message." Clarke sighed before turning away from him. He watched as she disappeared amongst the crowd.


Lincoln's POV

Lincoln jogged through the forest at a quick pace. He needed to inform Anya of the Sky People's intentions. If they planned to contact their people, they may be planning to bring more down to Earth, into claimed territory. His people could not afford an invasion from within. Lincoln entered his village at dusk and looked for his leader. Anya was in her hut with Tris when Lincoln knocked. Tris opened the door to greet him and nodded her head at him to invite him inside.

Anya didn't waste her breath when he entered. She sat in her chair and looked at Lincoln, waiting on his report. "They are planning to contact their people after dark. When I arrived at the camp, a large group was retrieving supplies from the new ship to make some kind of a signal. Those that remained in the camp were building part of the signal when I was there. I don't know how they plan to do it, but they are doing it tonight."

Anya sat silently for a moment while she thought. "If they are communicating with their people, we need to be on guard. They could be planning for an invasion or an attack. We need to increase our defense, and inform the Commander." She turned to Tris before continuing, "You must go to the Commander and report this information. Leave now, take your horse and you should reach the stronghold before dawn." Tris nodded and left. Anya and Lincoln moved outside to the village.

The sun had finished setting as they spoke. Anya and Lincoln both looked up to the sky, each contemplating what the Sky People could have planned. A bright light on the horizon caught their attention. Everyone in in the village watched as the three lights burnt across the sky. They flew high across the sky, burning another trail against the stars. Lincoln and Anya watched as the signal fires descended from the sky slowly. As the objects headed toward the ground again, Anya stepped forward and cursed under her breath. Lincoln realized the village on the other side of the ridge they were facing was in danger. Everyone in the village held their breath and watched for sentry fire from the sentry point.

The ridge on the horizon slowly started to glow orange, but not from their sentries. Anya shouted an order to the remaining villagers, "Go to the village, help our people!" She turned to Lincoln before mounting her horse, "I want to know what just happened. Find out what they did and report to me immediately." She jumped up onto her mare and kicked her into a gallop. Lincoln glanced back to the ridgeline, worrying for the fate of his neighbors.


Bellamy's POV

Bellamy walked through the camp, stepping over and around the people that were celebrating with the moonshine from Monty's new still. He was looking for his sister, hoping to talk about their fight that morning. He realized that he never saw her when he returned to the camp, and assumed that she was just avoiding him.

He walked to his sister's tent and stopped outside the entrance. "O, are you in there? I want to talk." He waited for her reply, but no sound came from in the tent. Bellamy entered the tent and found it empty. He returned outside and started searching all of the tents in the area. His sister was good at sneaking around and hiding, but he hoped that he could find out where she was from someone in the camp. Everyone that Bellamy spoke to said that they didn't remember seeing her.

Bellamy was starting to get worried about her when he stumbled into Clarke. "You're up?" he asked, surprised that she wasn't asleep like most of the people in the camp were now.

"Yeah. Knowing that hundreds of people might be dying on the Ark makes it pretty hard to sleep," she said.

"Raven's flares will work." Bellamy returned.

"Her radio would've worked better." Clarke spat at him.

He knew he deserved her anger, but he couldn't worry about the Ark right now. "Have you seen Octavia?" he asked.

Clarke thought before she answered, "No, but it's Octavia. She's probably chasing butterflies." She seemed to dismiss the idea with a shrug before she turned toward her tent.

Bellamy touched her arm before she left. "Clarke, I've checked the camp. She's not here."

Clarke's expression changed from indifferent to worried at his words. She touched his hand where it was placed on her arm. "Ok. I'll help you find her. Let's check again. You go to the dropship. I'll check the rest of the tents."

"Thank you," Bellamy said before she turned away.

"Don't thank me. I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it for Octavia." Clarke snapped before she turned away from him.

Bellamy returned to the dropship and ran inside. He searched each floor carefully, and woke up several of the people inside to ask about his sister. Finally, Bellamy returned outside, hoping that Clarke found her in one of the tents.

Clarke walked up from behind him, "Did you find her?" she asked before he noticed her approach. Bellamy turned around and shook his head. "No, I haven't seen her since this morning when I sent her back to camp. Where in the hell is she?"

"I don't know, but we will find her. We'll form a search party and retrace the path she took. We will find her Bellamy." He nodded in agreement and walked with Clarke to the fire pit. Bellamy glanced at the people still gathered around the fire, and was pleased that they seemed alert and sober. "Hey everybody, gather round," Bellamy called out. Monroe, Roma, Diggs, Murphy and several others walked over to stand with him and Clarke. "Octavia is missing. She's been out there for 12 hours. Grab your weapons and whatever else you might need. We leave in five minutes." The small crowd jumped alert when he started speaking, and rushed to get ready. Bellamy and Clarke walked together, knowing they needed to find Finn.

When they reached his tent, the light was still on inside. Bellamy stood at the entrance and called out to him. "Finn. I need your help." Whispers came from the tent before Finn and Raven finally exited.

"What do you need?" Finn asked, looking between Clarke and Bellamy.

"Octavia never returned to camp. We are going out to find her. You are our best tracker." Finn nodded at Bellamy's request and turned back into his tent. He returned immediately with his pack. The small group moved toward the main entrance for the camp to wait for the rest of the search party to gather.

Everyone that Bellamy spoke to arrived quickly, with a few extras joining their ranks. Clarke tried to dissuade Jasper from joining, but the boy refused to stay behind. "Clarke, I need to do this," he said adamantly.

Bellamy placed his hand on her shoulder and looked at both of them. "We need all the people we can get." He admired the boy's courage. Jasper refused to leave the camp after his attack.

Their attention was drawn into the sky when one of the people around them called out, "Did you see that? Look up there. It's so beautiful." Hundreds of meteorites were burning through the sky, creating a beautiful light show.

Raven stepped forward and said, "They didn't work. They didn't see the flares."

Bellamy looked at her confused, "A meteor shower tells you that?"

"It's not a meteor shower, it's a funeral; hundreds of bodies being returned to the Earth from The Ark. This is what it looks like from the other side. They didn't get our message." Clarke answered solemnly.

Raven jumped at Bellamy, screaming, "This is all because of you!"

"I helped you find the radio," Bellamy stated in defense.

"Yeah, after you jacked it from my pod and trashed it!"

"Yeah, he knows. Now has to live with it." Clarke said.

"All I know is that my sister is out there and I'm gonna find her. What are we waiting for? Move out!" Bellamy said. He moved toward the forest with the group. When he noticed that Finn and Clarke weren't following, he turned back to the camp. "Finn? We're not gonna find her without you." The girls walked back through the camp talking as Finn moved to join them. Bellamy lead the search party in the direction he traveled this morning, ordering everyone to spread out and look for any sign of his sister.


Octavia's POV

Octavia woke slowly, her body continuing to scream for rest. She smelled something familiar and breathed deep, trying to remember the smell. Octavia opened her eyes and blinked a few times to clear her vision. She could see the moon through the ceiling, "The moon?" She sat up when she remembered where she was and winced when she moved her leg. Octavia groaned and reached up to move the fur off of her so she could look at her leg.

As she moved the fur, she remembered the scent she found familiar. "It's the same as the fur I found when I woke up in the forest. Did he-?" Octavia stopped the thought, not wanting to believe that he was somehow acting as her guardian angel. "If the wings fit" she thought before shaking her head. She closed her eyes for a moment, realizing that shaking her head was a bad idea at the moment.

Octavia finally looked down at her leg. She untied the bandage that was tied around it, and was amazed. "He fixed it?" She looked for him in the cave, but couldn't see anyone. "Hello, is anybody here?" she called out. When she was answered by silence, she retied the bandage and looked around the cave. The candles and fire were both extinguished, but the moon provided some light for her to see. She spotted the bread and tea placed on the table beside her, and reached for the small bowl. She sipped the liquid gingerly, but returned it to the table when she found it distasteful. She ate the bread quickly, and started contemplating what she could do.

Octavia knew that her brother would begin looking for her when he discovered that she never returned to camp. She remembered what her brother had been saying about the Grounders, and what happened to Jasper. She began to worry what this Grounder might plan to do with her when he returned. She didn't think that he would harm her, but she refused to wait to find out what his plan was.

Octavia grabbed onto the table, and pushed herself up to test her leg. She was satisfied that she could manage walking. She walked to the tunnel that lead outside and carefully made her way through the darkness. When she reached the exit, she realized that she would not be able to climb up to get out of the cave by herself.

Slowly Octavia felt the anxiety of being trapped start to build. She tried telling herself, "I am not afraid," but it didn't help. She returned to the main room of the cave and looked around. She examined at some of the objects on the shelves and tables around the room, intrigued by the items she couldn't recognize. When she reached the rear of the cave, she found a small part of the wall was packed with rocks to close in a crack. "If I can move these rocks, I might be able to get out of here". Octavia reached for her small knife, and realized that her small pouch was missing. She searched the shelves nearby and found an antler.

Octavia used the antler to pry the rocks from the wall. When she broke through the crack, she could see faint moonlight filtering through the rocks. She moved a few more rocks to enlarge the hole so she could crawl through. She carefully lifted herself up into this small tunnel, and rested when she got her legs safely inside. Finally, Octavia pulled herself through the tight tunnel, nearly getting stuck a few times. When she finally reached the end of the crack, Octavia collapsed on the ground to catch her breath again.


Bellamy's POV

A short time after the search party left camp, one of the young men called out, "Look! Over here!" Bellamy moved quickly to reach him. He pointed down a steep bank that lead to a ravine. "What is it?" he asked.

"Right there. You see it? Is that Octavia's?" He pointed down the bank with his flashlight to a small shrub. A small object appeared to be stuck in the branches. Bellamy called out for rope and set his pack down on the ground. "What are you doing?" Finn asked him as he secured the rope around a tree near the bank.

"We need the rope to get back up." He said as he grabbed hold of the rope in one hand. He grabbed the flashlight from the guy standing next to him and started easing himself down the bank. He pulled the scrap of fabric from the shrub and recognized it. Octavia made the pouch to carry her dagger in shortly after they arrived. Bellamy sharpened a sliver of scrap metal from the dropship into a blade for her to carry with her at all times. The blade was still secured inside the pouch, but the strap she used to carry it on her hip was ripped. "It's hers." He yelled up the hill. "I'm going all the way down."

Bellamy reached the bottom of the ravine and used the flashlight to search the ground for any sign of his sister. He was standing in the middle of a dried creek bed littered with large rocks. He crouched down and placed his hand on the rock that was stained with blood. Finn and Jasper appeared behind him and examined the scene as well.

Finn pointed to a set of large foot prints scaring the mud. "Someone else was here." He followed the prints, pointing out shallower and to deeper ones. "The prints are deeper going that way. He was carrying her." Bellamy nodded his agreement and looked back to the rocks.

Jasper spoke with a shaky voice, "If they took her, she's alive. Like when they took me." Bellamy turned to the group at the top of the ravine, trying to ignore the idea of his sister being held captive by the people that staked Jasper out to die.

"Everybody get down here, we found tracks."

Finn followed the tracks from the ravine to a well-used path cutting through the forest floor. Bellamy followed close behind him, trying to understand the trail he was following. The dark path appeared abandoned, but everyone was on edge. They followed the path for over a mile before they saw something reflecting back through the trees. As they got closer, they recognized human skeletons displayed on the trees at either side of the trail.

Everyone in the group started murmuring about the Grounders. Bellamy understood their fear, but he couldn't consider not continuing the search for his sister. He turned to the group and spoke, "Go back if you want. My sister, my responsibility." Many of the people in the search party turned back to camp and ran. Bellamy nodded to those that stayed before turning back to face the Grounder's territory. "I'd walk into hell to find her," he said to himself as he started walking.

Finn overheard Bellamy's words and replied, "I think we just did."


Lincoln's POV

Lincoln could feel the fatigue from the day wearing into his bones, but he knew that he couldn't rest until the day's events were explained. He thought about returning to his cave so he could sleep, and contemplated what he would need to do about the woman he left in his bed. He needed to return her to her people before she was discovered. She was becoming too much of a distraction for him. Lincoln knew he couldn't care for the woman, they had no future together; yet he couldn't help being infatuated by her.

Lincoln returned to the drop ship a short time later. He could hear the sound of celebration from behind the wall, and crept up the edge of the boundary. Everyone appeared to be inside the camp, because Lincoln couldn't spot any of the sentries. He wasn't able to hear very much from his position, so Lincoln moved closer to the wall. They seemed to believe that their signal worked, but no one seemed to think that they started a war by using their signal. Lincoln realized that they were unaware of the consequences of their signal.

He moved around to a different part of the camp, and found Octavia's brother moving through the camp searching. Lincoln watched as he moved from tent to tent, speaking to people. Lincoln was finally able to find out what the man was looking for when the blonde exited a tent. He was looking for his sister because he realized that she never returned to the camp. Lincoln thought about the girl that was probably still sleeping in his home. He watched as a small group formed to discuss finding the missing member of their camp. They armed themselves to travel back through his people's land to search for her. Lincoln knew that the warriors would stalk the Sky People once they entered the village's territory. This search would appear to be a direct attack, no matter how small the group.

Lincoln left the camp to return to his cave. He hoped that he could reach the cave and return the girl to her people before they made it too far into his people's territory. If he could return her to her brother, perhaps her and her brother could return to their home before the fighting started. Lincoln knew that Anya would not attack the camp without a direct order to do so from the Commander.

Lincoln travelled quickly through the woods, but shortly after he crossed into his village's territory, he was stopped by one of the warriors. He explained to the man some of what he learned at the camp. "They haven't yet realized that they assaulted the village. They are celebrating that they launched their signal right now. All of them are drunk, and most of them have started to retire. I'm going to do the same. There is nothing else to learn about them tonight." Lincoln stepped back from the man and bid him a safe night before continuing.

It was after dawn when Lincoln finally returned to the cave. He knew that he wouldn't have much time to return her to her people before his people discovered them. If he could move quickly, he thought he would be able to pull it off. Lincoln entered the cave quietly, not wanting to scare Octavia. He had to relight the candle that had burnt out in his absence. Lincoln lifted the candle and turned to the bed to wake his guest. Lincoln placed his hand on the empty bed, and felt that it was cold. He searched the cave even though he knew that he wouldn't find her.


Author's note:

Chapter 10- Captive and Captor, will be out soon. Please review and let me know how you are enjoying this story!