Again, there's a lot of Trigedasleng in this chapter. If you see a mistake, please let me know so I can correct it! Thanks :)
"Wamplei Gon Kein" = "Death To Kane"
"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." - Octavia Blake, "Survival of the Fittest"
The cell was small, Kane thought it might have been a closet back when the building was whatever it used to be. Offices? Condos? Who knew; it was lost to the apocalypse now.
Despite the fact that Bellamy and Kane sat against opposite walls, their feet knocked together whenever they moved. If the door opened with any force, it would knock Bellamy unconscious and he would be trapped behind the wood.
Kane pushed his manacle further down his leg, trying to slip his heel through it. He had been in this position before, captured by the same commander, and he didn't like his chances of coming out relatively unscathed again.
"What's the use, Kane?" Bellamy asked, leaning his head against the wall. His forearms rested on his knees as he stared at a spot next to Kane's head. "Even if we escape, it's a 35-story drop outside that window. And I don't see us fighting our way down the stairs without weapons."
Kane's hands stilled, no longer working the metal against his heel. "I expected some fight out of you."
Bellamy's eyes had been wet all morning, but when he looked at Kane again, they were red, screwed up in the pain of his loss. "Yeah, well, I don't really see the point."
Kane pulled his hands away from the manacle and rested them on his knees. "Bellamy, just because we didn't find her, doesn't mean Octavia's not still—"
"Just stop!" Bellamy spat. His hand tore through his hair from the back. "Stop telling me she's okay! She's not okay! My sister's dead and it's your fault!"
Kane's shoulders sank as he closed his eyes, letting his head fall against the wall harder than he should have. The pain was almost welcomed compared to the aches all over his body. Lexa had let her warriors rough them up on the way into the city despite Clarke's protests, but she was just as much a prisoner as them now.
When he opened his eyes, he could feel the tears threatening to show themselves but he clenched his jaw, trying to keep them at bay. After a few seconds, he composed himself and let his face go blank as he looked at Bellamy. The boy's face was still screwed up in pain as he glared at him. Marcus forced himself to meet his eyes.
"We all make choices that have unintended consequences," Kane whispered. "I have more ghosts hanging over my head than I should — 620 of them that could have been avoided."
Bellamy looked away, slouching further down the wall, his knees hitting Kane's. Bellamy let out a sigh before meeting his eyes again. Kane asked, gently, "What is it?"
"Was the Council monitoring the radio once they knew Raven was sent to Earth?" Bellamy asked, his voice cracking.
Kane's eyes narrowed and his mouth opened slightly. He swallowed a lump in his throat and said, "Yes, once we knew Abby sent her, we had someone on that radio at all times. We didn't want to do what we knew had to be done to buy time on the Ark. But the Culling happened, we knew too late that you were all alive down here."
Bellamy wrapped his arms around his knees, nodding to himself.
"Why do you ask?" Kane prodded.
He let out a rattled breath. "I'm the one who threw Raven's radio in the lake."
"That's why you resorted to the flares," Kane said quietly, nodding slowly.
"Their blood is on my hands just as much as yours."
Kane felt an ache in his throat and tried to clear it. He reached over and touched Bellamy's knee, gripping it firmly. "No, it's not. You couldn't have known what we were doing, you had no communication with us. You were looking out for your own well-being, Bellamy. You were trying to save your life. Don't you dare put that on yourself."
Bellamy nodded, letting his eyes shut slowly.
"We will get out of here. We will find your sister," Kane whispered, squeezing Bellamy's knee before pulling away. His head turned toward the door at the sound of the footsteps in the hallway. Bellamy shuffled away from the door as much as he could.
It opened a few seconds later and Titus stood in the opening. His eyes were hard as he glared down at Kane, ignoring Bellamy completely. He leaned down and chained up his hands before undoing his leg manacle. Titus yanked Kane to his feet. "Heda gaf yu in. Taim don kom op gada in gon yu kripon. | The Commander wants you. It's time for you to answer for your crimes."
"He didn't do anything!" Bellamy shouted. Titus turned to him and smacked him around the face; Bellamy fell limply against the wall.
The rover screeched to a halt at the Polis city limits. Abby threw open the back door and jumped out. Octavia helped Indra to her feet and, together with Abby, helped her out of the vehicle.
"We should hurry, the Commander isn't known to delay with her threats." Indra said, heading toward the trail that led into the city. Though her voice was weak, her movements were anything but. Abby had patched her up as best she could, her arm in a sling and her leg heavily bandaged, but Indra was moving like they weren't there at all. Octavia kept close to her just in case the pain became too much.
Abby called, "Raven, let's go!"
Raven opened the door and said, "I would just slow you down, besides, someone has to stick with the radio."
Abby frowned at her but didn't press it. Raven had a point; they had already wasted so much time, Abby had already wasted so much time by denying that Marcus wasn't in danger. She nodded and set off after the other two.
They were running through the woods, passing travelers heading to Polis, people who looked at them like they were crazy. Indra kept up somehow, Abby didn't know how she was doing it. Her resilience amazed her. They broke through the trees and didn't give the beautiful city a passing look as they ran down the hill, their destination far off in the distance.
Abby's feet couldn't carry her fast enough as she sprinted through the capital, seeing no faces in the crowd, only the tower in front of them. She was the first to reach it, despite being the oldest of the trio. A sentry stood at the entrance door, a spear clenched in his fist.
"Beja, ai gaf yu teik ai in! | Please, I need you to let me in!" She pleaded, staring at the man with renewed tears in her eyes now that she was so close. He's here. But if this man didn't allow them entrance, their journey had been for nothing.
"Nou Skaikru deyon. Heda hedon. | No Sky People today. The Commander's orders."
Indra and Octavia had reached her and the chief of Tondc limped toward the guard, fury written on every inch of her face. She snarled, "Yu na gaf osir in au ai na jok yu teisa au! | You will let us in or I'll rip your tongue out!" Her fists clenched, ripping open the healing flesh and causing blood to dribble down the back of her hands. He stepped aside after a moment of internal deliberation despite the fact that he was the only one armed.
The forty flights of stairs felt like nothing to Abby. The fact that Marcus was here somewhere kept her going. He gave her strength, like he always had. The hope that he was still alive pulled her up those stairs like a rope. She had accepted long ago that hope was everything, but it wasn't until a few months ago that she really understood what hope was.
Hope was waking up in his arms after a nightmare where the Mountain Men seemed so real, their drills so loud. Hope was laying in bed and talking about their past because they had finally accepted the other for who they truly were. Hope was planning for a future because she felt like they had one because of him. Hope was watching him with Bellamy or Octavia, Clarke or Benja, and knowing that this man — this insufferable man she used to hate with every fibre of her being — was the only person who could bring her back when she was on the verge of losing it, to take her to the edge of oblivion and return her to her senses in one piece, to make her feel like she was wanted. Hope was Marcus Kane and, to her, that was enough. It would always be enough.
Hope was what drove Abby through the doors of Lexa's throne room, but fear was what stopped her dead in her tracks.
She took the room in in a matter of seconds. The 13 clan leaders stood near the far wall, Clarke among them, watching as the Flamekeeper kicked what looked to be a large sack of flour on the floor. But she knew it was Marcus, curled in a ball, too weak to fight anymore. His shirt had been ripped from him, she saw it discarded on the floor just outside of the blood that smeared along the tiles. They bared his chest and back so the other leaders could see the damage that was being done.
Clarke's face was buried in the Ice King's chest, unable to watch the beating. Roan looked across the room at Abby's arrival, there was something of an apology in his eyes. She had so many questions about this new friendship with the leader of Ice Nation, but no time to voice them. Abby's chest rose and fell, heaving with the effort to control herself. She watched Roan turn Clarke around, Clarke protesting until their eyes met and she called out a weak, "Mom?"
Lexa looked toward Abby, her cold eyes masked in war paint. She said calmly, "Mounin, Abi kom Skaikru. | Welcome, Abby of the Sky People."
Abby felt a chill go down her spine, the contrast of the Commander's eyes and voice setting her on edge. Her breath came in a rush as she glanced over at Titus again, who kicked Marcus in the ribs. She heard a small cry come from the bleeding mess on the floor and a heat filled her chest. He's still alive.
She turned back to Lexa and said, "Yu nou don dula dison. | You don't have to do this."
Lexa's voice was cold this time. "Em ste don. Em gonplei ste dena odon. | It is done. His fight is nearly over."
A weak voice croaked from the floor, "Ai gonplei nou ste odon nowe. | My fight is never over."
Abby's eyes tightened and she pressed her lips together to keep from crying out in relief. She couldn't look at him for fear of losing it completely. She couldn't see what Titus was doing to him, hearing it was enough. She had to make Lexa call it off.
Lexa commented, almost bored, "Em kik raun. | He lives."
Clarke's eyes flared up in anger and she pulled away from Roan, who growled, "Don't make it worse."
"Shof op | Be quiet," she snapped as she strode across the room toward her mother and the Commander, shoving aside two guards who tried to stop her. "I kept my silence long enough. You've had your fun, Lexa. Let Kane go."
Lexa glared at her. "Jus drein jus daun."
"Kein don nou daun! | Kane didn't do that!" Abby turned to the door and found Octavia holding up a gasping and pale Indra. The forty flights had been too much for the warrior in her condition.
"Indra," Lexa said, a hint of surprise in her voice. She held up a hand and the sounds of the beating stopped. Abby closed her eyes, breathing slowly to control herself. She opened them again when Clarke took her hand. Lexa looked toward her ambassadors, scanning each of their faces before looking at Clarke and Abby. "Ai ron disha hef em sonraun op. If eni kru-de nou badan kongeda op, seim na kom em au. | I give this man his life. If any clan disobeys the coalition, the same will come to them." She looked back to the 12 leaders and shouted, "Gon yo we! | Everyone out!"
Eleven of the leaders filed out of the room, not bothering to look at the bloody man on the floor. Roan stayed at his spot against the wall. Titus approached Lexa once the door was shut, "Heda, disha Skaikru gada nou mou biyo hasta flosh klin. | Commander, these Sky People have no more to say about the massacre."
She glared at him, "Ai gaf sen in hashta dison kom Skaikru noumou. | I need to hear about this from the Sky People themselves."
"Heda—"
Lexa shot from her throne, glaring at her advisor, "Titos, ai laik Heda, nou yu! Gon we! | Titus, I'm the Commander, not you! Go!" Titus staggered back a step at her outburst. He gave her a stiff bow before he backed out of the room, cradling what looked like a broken knuckle. Lexa said loudly as the door shut, "Haihefa Rowin, haukom yu ste kamp raun hir? | King Roan, why are you still here?"
Clarke nudged Abby's hand with hers and whispered, "Go to him."
She pulled away from her daughter as the King of Ice Nation approached Lexa. He gave her a comforting look, but she barely saw it. Her eyes were on the bloody man on the floor. But what Roan said made her pause as she knelt next to Kane. "Azgeda jos ste kom teina dison kom Skaikru. | Ice Nation is just as entangled in this as the Sky People."
"Ai beda konge Titos? | Should I summon Titus?" Lexa asked, flicking an eyebrow up lazily.
"Taim yu gaf in, taim ai na teik gonplei in. Ba Kein don laksen pleni gon Azgeda en Skaikru. | If you want, then I'll accept the fight. But Kane's been hurt enough for both Ice Nation and the Sky People." Roan said, his voice challenging. He wasn't about to back down from Lexa. "My people are at war with themselves, I will not make excuses for what those who choose to renounce my title do. Instead, I choose to take responsibility for their actions. I stand with Skaikru. Their fate is my fate."
Abby smiled as she sunk down in the blood that surrounded Kane, sitting cross-legged. He was curled on his side, his eyes closed, agony written on every inch of his face. Abby looked at his back first and ran her hand lightly over the bruises that were forming there, he let out a whimper and his eyes opened as much as they could.
She sank her head against his shoulder and whispered, "It's okay, Marcus. You're going to be okay."
She pulled away from him to continue her assessment. He rolled onto his back and cried out — it was a pathetic sound and she knew he would never have let that escape him if he could help it. He was looking up at her now, his head at her knees. Abby lifted his head up and scooted under him before lowering it down, allowing him to rest his head in her lap. He smiled weakly up at her.
She couldn't returned it, not when she got a good look at his chest, at all of the blood that covered him. There were cuts everywhere — his chest, ribs, arms, shoulders, face. The knuckles on his hands were split open like he had fought back at first.
The people behind her were arguing now, but she could barely hear them. Blood pounded in her ears as she stared down at the man in front of her. Her hands trembled as she ran them over the cuts on his face. He leaned into her touch and it only caused her to shake more. She clenched her jaw, trying to keep her emotions in check, but when he opened his eyes again, there were tears collecting in the corners, and she felt the lump rise up in her throat.
Octavia sat down next to them and took Kane's hand. "How are you holding up, old man?"
Kane smiled and felt a laugh bubble up in his chest. It forced its way out but blood came with it and the women helped him onto his side as he coughed it up onto the floor.
Abby rubbed his back as she whispered to Octavia, "What're they talking about?"
"Indra's telling her about the massacre," she replied, watching Kane with concern.
"Did she tell you where Bellamy is?" Abby asked as Kane stopped coughing. Octavia shook her head as she helped Abby roll him onto his back again. Octavia handed her a med kit, the one from the rover. She didn't know why she hadn't brought it herself.
The girl walked away for a second and Abby thought she was leaving them but she returned with Kane's tattered shirt. She sank down next to Abby, near Kane's head, and used it to wipe his mouth free of blood. Abby smiled to herself and scooted further down his body to start on the deep gashes on his ribs.
"Is he going to be okay?" Octavia asked, continuing to clear the blood from Kane's face.
"If I can get him to Mount Weather, yes," she said as she felt her hands shake against his skin again. Octavia grabbed them and whispered, "You can do this, Abby."
She nodded, silently thanking her. She had to think of him as just another patient or she wasn't going to get through this. She closed her eyes, breathing in deeply through her mouth — the room reeked of blood and sweat, she didn't dare breathe through her nose. Her hands stopped shaking and she started cleaning the wounds, ignoring every time his stomach pulled away from her, from the pain.
He needed stitches, a lot of them, but for now all she could do for him was prevent infection and bandage up everything until she ran out of supplies. A bruise was spreading across his stomach, alerting her to his dire need of surgery. Abby let out a rattled breath and started to listen to Indra's story as it wrapped up to take her mind off of the severity of Kane's condition. Lexa said, when it finished, "I promise you justice."
Octavia glanced at Abby before she sprang to her feet and crossed the room in a matter of seconds. "And where's Kane's justice? When will he get vengeance for what you put him through today?"
"Octavia," Clarke whispered.
"Come on, Clarke! How could you stand there and watch as he was beaten?" She asked, rounding on her. "What was the point? To show the other clans not to act out? That's bullshit and you know it! He didn't kill those warriors, he didn't order it, he didn't even know it was happening. It was all Pike; but where's Pike now? Not here, not bloody on the floor like he should be."
"You've made your point, Octavia," Lexa said.
"No, I haven't even started, Commander. I see what you've done to Kane, under the guise of justice. Where's my brother? Is Bellamy in some ditch, discarded like he's nothing?"
Lexa said calmly, "Your brother's fine—"
Octavia scoffed, "Define fine."
Lexa's lips pursed. "Your brother's in a cell, waiting."
"Waiting for what?" Her fists clenched at her side.
"Until I decide what to do with Skaikru," Lexa said harshly. "And I have. Skaikru must bring us Pike or someone will answer for the massacre."
Abby's hand tightened on Marcus' arm — surely she didn't mean him. She glanced down at his brand. Was that what it meant? That he was responsible for every crime their people committed? She never would have let him get it. She would have fought him over it more.
Lexa continued, "Take Marcus, but we keep the other one, to ensure you follow through."
Octavia marched toward the Commander but Roan caught her before she could do anything stupid. She shouted, "Like hell you're keeping my brother!"
"Clarke will be staying in Polis too," Lexa said, a cold smile on her face. Clarke glared at her, they all knew she was no more than a hostage at this point. "As ambassador for Skaikru, she will ensure that your brother is not killed before your time is up."
"And how long do you give them, Commander?" Roan asked, an eyebrow raised. "Kane's in no shape to be ordering anything."
"You have one week," Lexa said after a moment of thought. Abby looked down at Kane, half-bandaged and still bleeding everywhere. Was that even long enough?
Indra and Octavia walked over to them and Abby looked up. "How do we get him out of here?"
"I have no idea," Octavia whispered, kneeling next to Kane. Abby knew she cared about Kane but also knew that if given the choice she would rather be walking out of the city with her brother. Still, Octavia placed her hands under Kane's shoulders, trying to lift him.
"Octavia," Kane whispered, his eyes not opening as he spoke. "Bellamy's in a cell five floors down."
Abby's eyes met hers, the younger woman lowering Marcus' shoulders to the floor again. He had been silent for so long, had he not realized how much time had passed since they last spoke of Bellamy, how much other conversation had happened? Did he think that they could break him out of his cell on their way out while carrying his broken body down forty flights of stairs?
"Where do you think you're going Roan?" Lexa called angrily. Abby glanced up to see the Ice King striding across the room toward them.
"I'm no ambassador, you can't keep me here, Commander," Roan barked. He nodded for the women to move out of the way. Roan lifted Kane into a standing position, draping his arm around his shoulders. Octavia rushed over and pulled Kane's other arm around her.
Abby watched as they half-carried a semi-conscious Marcus Kane from the room, Indra limping after them. She turned to her daughter, who stood not far from Lexa. Abby knew the distance was still too close for Clarke's liking.
She crossed the room to her daughter and pulled her into a hug. It was nothing like the last one they shared. Clarke hugged her back in full force, her arms squeezing Abby tight.
Clarke whispered, "I tried, Mom. I tried to stop her."
"I know," she said, stroking her hair. "He'll be okay."
Clarke nodded into her shoulder. As she pulled away, she said, "I won't let anything happen to Bellamy."
"You stay safe," Abby whispered before pressing a kiss to her daughter's forehead and hurrying after the others.
Reviews are always welcomed! :)
Let me know how I'm doing, especially now that the decision of 'Blood Must Not Have Blood' from the show has been overturned because let's face it, it was a cop out on JRoth's part and bullshit. I love hearing what you all have to say! -TenToo