The quiet of the woods surrounded Marcus with an ominous threat, like enemies could be hiding around any corner, ready to spring a trap or drop a cage. His paranoia wouldn't have been questioned given his experiences but out here, looking for Abby, he couldn't afford to let his trauma get in the way of finding her. Lincoln pushed on ahead of the group to make sure they were following the right tracks while Bellamy and Wick kept watch on the tree tops for enemies and Clarke and Marcus scanned the forest ready for anything. Trees used to be a sanctuary for Marcus and now he scanned every branch for possible danger. Being so on edge, the sounds of the forest around him felt sinister.
I need to get a grip if we have any chance of resucing Abby. If she were here, I would be able to handle this but I don't know what she is going through and what she might have to endure before we get to her.
"Hold!"
Marcus jumped as Lincoln called out and he raced ahead to see what the younger man needed. Clarke frowned at the tense nature of their leader but kept her thoughts to herself.
"What is it Lincoln?" Marcus asked, his breath catching in his throat.
Lincoln pointed to the tall mountain ahead of them, "We are headed straight for Mount Weather but our people weren't taken by mountain men. If I had to guess, I'd say that a tribe of grounders kidnapped Abby, Raven, and Monty and traded them to the mountain men."
Looking out at the formidable mountain, Marcus motioned the others forward and had Lincoln relate his news to them while he tried to shake the feeling of dread creeping up his spine.
Clarke gasped and clutched at Bellamy, "We can't get in there. It's too well guarded and they could send the fog if we even seemed like a threat."
"We will just have to think of a way to not look like a threat," Bellamy told her, trying to calm her down.
As much as the young Griffin argued with her mom, there was no debate that the two women loved each other fiercely and Marcus resolved again to push through his anxiety and get Abby home safe.
"We need a disguise."
Everyone looked at Wick.
"What?"
Two hours later, Lincoln weaved his way back through the woods carrying an armful of grounder gear and swords as well as an already well-armed Octavia.
Shaking his head, Marcus said, "Thank you for joining us Miss Blake."
"I would have come sooner if someone hadn't decided to sneak off behind my back."
Lincoln looked at Bellamy and shrugged, "I told you it wouldn't work."
With a punch to her brother's arm, a peck to Lincoln's cheek, and a wave to Wick, the young woman turned to sorting through the pile of clothes with Clarke.
"Are you sure this is going to work?" Marcus asked Wick and Lincoln as he dragged them away from the others.
Wick shrugged, "We know they trade with grounders so the logical thing would be to assume so long as we bring something they want, we can catch them with their guard down."
"I agree," Lincoln said, "It is also the only thing that has a shot at working quickly."
The direct answer left Marcus nodding in resigned agreement, "I have one change to the plan. I will be the one you are delivering, not Bellamy."
"He's not going to like that."
"I don't care," Marcus said, "Like Abby, I am a recognized leader among the sky people and if anyone is going to be put in irons, it should be someone who is still a little rusty with a sword."
Wick laughed, "I'd lead with that argument."
As expected, Bellamy argued about Marcus taking the risk but Octavia pulled him aside and whispered something in his ear to calm him down. The siblings walked back to the group and Bellamy put the fashioned manacles into Marcus' hands.
"They have a quick release button on the underside of the left vice," the older Blake said, "once they have the door open, you can free yourself and make sure the door stays open. They should have guns and taking one of them by surprise should be…"
Marcus waited with a small smile on his face and Bellamy trailed off as he realized that the older man would already know all of this.
Clapping him on the back, Marcus said, "Thanks Bellamy, I'll take your advice."
Bellamy blushed and walked back over to where his sister and Clarke were putting the finishing touches on their makeup. Quickly rubbing black soot and oil around his face, Bellamy exchanged a worried glance with Clarke.
Keeping her voice quiet, Clarke whispered, "is he going to be okay once we put those things on?"
Bellamy shrugged, "He hasn't seemed worried about it."
"Just because a man stays quiet, it doesn't mean there isn't a problem."
Octavia snorted, "Understatement of the century."
"He wants to rescue our people as badly as you do Clarke," Bellamy said, feeling the urge to stick up for the stern man, "He wouldn't jeopardize the mission."
Giving her own shrug to the matter, Octavia stated, "If he starts freaking out, one of us can hit him on the head."
Clarke gave a small laugh and stood, "We need to go before it gets so dark the Mountain Men shoot us on principle."
Joining the older group, Bellamy helped Marcus slip the manacles on his wrists and though the man shivered for a few moments, he didn't complain. Bellamy and Lincoln stood on either side of him while the rest of the party spread out like a proper grounder tracking unit.
They weren't completely surprised by the advancing grounder war party; Bellamy spotted the branches moving ahead and the disguised group stopped to circle around their "captive."
Breaking through the leaves and branches, a group of six grounder men approached with weapons drawn and Bellamy cursed under his breath. He knew they didn't have time for this but the warriors in front of him looked ready for a fight.
Lincoln stepped forward to greet the battle party, speaking in Trigedasleng while the rest of them shifted their weight around and tried to look intimidating. Clarke glared at the strange men, her mind focused on what everyone was saying and trying not to think about the horrors her mother was facing. Even Wick knew enough to keep his mouth shut and not give them away.
NO.
NO.
Marcus threw himself on the ground and tried to hide his face from the men currently talking with Lincoln. He would remember those voices for the rest of his life; even his dreams wouldn't give him a rest from the gruff taunting sound of those voices. If they recognized him it would be all over and a fight with this group would be bloody. He found himself trembling with fear and took deep breaths to calm his panicking brain.
"And who do you have here?"
The sentence in English threw the group off and Lincoln froze as the leader of the strange grounders walked up to the circling sky people and pushed them aside. Keeping his face in the dirt, Marcus held himself still with only his shallow breaths giving any clue that he was cracking. Too quick for anyone to move, the bulky man kicked Marcus over and started laughing.
"You found my pet!"
No one moved. Clarke stared in confusion while Marcus struggled to reach the release latch on his cuffs and the man standing before him kept laughing.
Move Marcus, move, don't die.
An arrow through the laughing man's throat cut off the awful sound and he collapsed on top of Marcus as the clearing exploded into combat around him. The surprise bolt from Octavia's crossbow and the two guns Bellamy had strapped to his waist gave the sky people a clear upper hand and soon the men were dead in a circle around their fallen leader while Marcus struggled to get out from under the dead man's weight. With Lincoln and Wick's help, he stood and released the manacles from around his wrists. Looking at the group of dead grounders around him, Marcus turned around and threw up into the bushes behind him.
No one spoke while he heaved what little food he'd consumed today onto the soil. Once he finished, a small hand pushed a strip of wet cloth in front of him and Marcus wiped his mouth and face down. Looking up, he found Clarke's blue eyes staring at him with fierce determination.
"They were the people who captured you right?" She asked, as straightforward as her parents.
He nodded, "Yes, the whole village did their part but they…he…"
"You don't have to tell me," Clarke said, laying a hand on his arm, "I just wanted to make sure I didn't have to feel guilty about killing them."
He didn't know what to say to that, and any kind of thank you didn't seem enough so he patted her hand with his own and looked up at the group of people around him. Wick was the only one with worry in his eyes but everyone else held compassion or concern. Lincoln tilted his head to ask if Marcus was alright and the older man nodded back in confirmation.
If someone had told me that I would one day have a group of people in this life to call friends, I would have sent them to medical to have their head examined, Marcus thought.
Out loud he said, "Let's go get our people back."