I jumped down from the lower branches of the trees, stumbling a little when I hit the uneven ground. Octavia came jogging through the trees behind me, the other Grounders following close behind, slightly breathless after their task.
'O, you okay?' Lincoln asked when he spotted her, moving over to sweep her up in a tight hug.
'Yeah I'm fine' she reassured him, pulling out of his grip as the Commander approached.
'We successfully led the panthers a fair distance away but there's no telling if they'll return, we should get moving as soon as possible' she reported, taking a swig of water from her bottle once her breathing had returned to normal. Bellamy was close behind Lincoln and moved towards his sister with a concerned expression.
'Are you sure you're okay? That was a risky move, it could've gotten you killed!' he exclaimed, frowning when Octavia pulled away from his concerned touch. She was fully capable of looking after herself and fully intended for her brother to realize this.
'I'm fine Bel, I know what I'm doing' she replied confidently, the doubt still visible in Bellamy's eyes but he said no more about it.
'We head off now before the panthers return' Lexa cut in, all of us eager to leave before another attack occurred. Our group was soon moving south once more, the Grounders that were leading the horses bringing up the rear.
Oddly enough I wasn't feeling the tiredness that had begun to set in earlier, my steps now light as my mind focused on one single thought. Even my growing hunger had been forgotten in place of a far more pleasant feeling.
My gaze was fixed on the Commander who was a short distance ahead of me as I walked beside Octavia. I savored the moments when the braided head would turn and she would glance over her shoulder as if checking on everyone's positions, though her eyes sought out only mine. Even just these brief moments left me slightly breathless, my lack of attention soon becoming noticeable to my friend when I narrowly avoided tripping over a protruding tree root.
'Woah, did you fall out of that tree back there or something?' Octavia teased lightly, wondering what had happened to my usually collected and alert self. Her words pulled my attention to where she walked beside me, my mind suddenly going blank at the question.
'Uh, well something like that...' I said in response, trailing off as I remembered precisely what had happened in the tree. With the rest of the group remaining in silence, our conversation carried to anyone within earshot and I saw a small smile form on Lexa's face at my evasive response, clearly having the same thought as me. Octavia shook her head at my reply but gave up her questions when I didn't elaborate further, far more wrapped up in my own thoughts to even try.
Within a few hours of setting off Lexa called us to a stop to have something to eat now that evening was closing in and we set up a small fire to cook the meat over. Nearby rocks were used as some seating, those left remaining crouched around the flames. I ended up perched on one of the rocks opposite Lexa, unsure if this was a good thing as I repeatedly told myself to stop staring and fixed my gaze on the ground instead.
The meat was soon cooked and I reached from my position to take a slice of meat from the fire but the tug from my stitches stopped me short. I immediately pulled back and was about to stand to try again but before I had a chance one of the meat strips was being held towards me, Lexa having seen my effort had jumped up to pass it to me.
'Thank you commander' I said with a smile, holding onto the piece of meat for a second longer than necessary, our gazes locking instantly and I almost laughed at her hasty retreat when the seconds passed by, the others momentarily forgotten. Thankfully they were to busy sating their own hunger to notice anything out of the ordinary and it was a small relief when Lincoln spoke up to break the silence.
'How much longer will we be travelling south Heda? he asked almost tentatively, though I noticed the other Grounders looked up to see what the response would be, clearly it was a thought on everyones mind. Lexa contemplated the question for a moment, we had been travelling for days now and there was still no sign of what was causing the panther's movement north.
'We keep going for as long as it takes' she replied after a moment, raising her voice slightly so as to address the entire group rather than just Lincoln. 'It cannot be long now until we find the answers we're in search of.'
A thoughtful silence met her reply and I hoped that she was right, after all of this time the last thing we wanted was to return without having ever discovered what was going on.
'We set out to find what has been driving the Panther's north and we continue south until we do' she told us, not satisfied to return to camp until we had achieved what we had set out to do.
'Won't our people get worried if we're gone much longer? They will be expecting us back soon' Bellamy quipped in, not that his opinion was welcomed at the time. He soon realized this when the Commander's weighty gaze settled solely on him.
'You're more than welcome to return to camp and put their minds at ease, you can find your own way back' she retorted calmly, knowing full well that travelling such a distance alone would not end favorably for him. Bellamy wisely said no more, remaining quiet as he finished off his meat.
No more objections were made and a few Grounders rose to stretch their legs, an empty space appearing between myself and Lexa, one that I was extremely tempted to close. Before I even had time to argue with myself over the prospect, a strangled cry sounded from a nearby Grounder and my head whipped around to see what was happening.
A large blade protruded through the chest of one of the Grounders, blood spilling from his mouth as the sword was pulled free and he fell to the ground revealing the identity of his attacker. A reaper stood with a sickening smile on his face, his blade dripping red with the blood of his most recent victim. We barely had a moment to register the surprise before he launched himself towards the closest Grounder, the rest of us soon leaping up to aid him.
The Reaper swung his blade with a wild fever, even when he received a slash to his chest there was no stopping the brutality of his attack, his sword slicing into the Grounder even as his own blood gushed from a fatal wound.
Before he could inflict any more damage, the sheer number of Grounders overwhelmed him and they pried the weapon from his grip, pushing him forcefully down onto the ground. He continued to struggle against the grip of his enemies as Lexa and I stood over him. I could hardly believe what I was seeing, all of us having assumed that the last of the Reapers had died out after the battle at Mount Weather.
'Lexa, he doesn't have long left' I told her quietly, seeing the blood pooling into the ground from the deep gash in his chest. Wasting no time, Lexa stepped forwards and knelt by the restrained Reaper. As she did so I went to where the injured Grounder had lowered himself to the floor, casting a glance over his injuries but he shook his head and gestured back to where the Reaper was being held, he would okay for the time being. Nevertheless, I ripped some of the material from his shirt and wrapped it as a temporary bandage around his wounds.
'How many more of you are there?' Lexa asked the reaper as I returned to her side, not reacting when he turned his wild gaze to her and let out a grating laugh, his eyes momentarily rolling back into his head. I shuddered at the sight, reapers had never been known to be sane but there was something about this one that I hadn't seen before. When he made no move to reply Lexa stood and didn't hesitate to push her boot against the wound on his chest and I couldn't help but wince when a screech of pain escaped from his lips.
'I can make this experience far more painful for you if you wish. Answer me, how many more of you are there?' she repeated, digging in her boot further until he was squirming in agony beneath her.
'Search him' she commanded when he continued to hold his silence, a Grounder proceeding to roughly search through the Reapers clothing. He pulled a scrap of paper free and held it out to the Commander for inspection. She took it and after a quick glance a cold expression spread over her face and she drove her boot into the Reapers chest once more, far harder this time as she demanded to know how many more there were. The Reaper spat blood from his mouth and gave us all a twisted grin, lifting his head with great effort to stare at each of us individually.
'More than you can count' he choked out, a growl of anger escaping Lexa's lips before she pulled her blade free and brought it down into his already wounded chest, the sickening grin remaining on his face even after his head slumped lifelessly back onto the ground.
'What's going on Lexa?' I questioned as she sheathed her sword, turning to face me with fury written all over her features. I retrieved the scrap of paper from her grip and looked down at it, frowning when I saw the scribbles that covered it, realization dawning when I saw the large circle that had been drawn around a small image labelled camp Jaha. The surrounding forest was clearly mapped and a few directional arrows had been placed from further south of our position.
'They're attacking camp Jaha' I said quietly, a nod from Lexa confirming my suspicions.
'That was just a scout, we have to get back and warn them' she told me, and I could only stare at the map in shock as Lexa turned away and began shouting orders. Only a few horses had been brought with us in case any messages needed to be carried back to camp, they were going to come in useful now. They were grazing a short distance back so we would be returning to them before splitting into two groups, those on horseback returning to TonDc to gather reinforcements, the others to travel on foot to camp Jaha in the hope of warning them of the attack.
Turning my attention to the wounded Grounder I hooked one arm around his and heaved the warrior to his feet, both of us grunting in pain as our injuries protested at the movement. Mine was only dull in comparison to what he must have been feeling, my wound having had longer to begin healing.
I supported as much of his weight as was possible considering the differences in build, though he clearly made the upmost effort to walk as independently as he could. It was tough going dragging the wounded Grounder through the forest but I set a fast pace, acutely aware that he was losing blood with each step we took. The others were not too far ahead of us and it was a relief when we finally arrived at where the horses had been left tied up loosely.
Without wasting a second those left on foot, Octavia, Bellamy, Lincoln and a few of the Grounders were ordered to head straight for camp Jaha in an attempt to arrive before the reapers. They set off immediately as I helped the wounded Grounder onto a horse the others mounting their own horses.
Once the Grounder was sat atop the horse and I had checked that the bandage was still in place I did not hesitate to head straight for Lexa's horse, grasping her hand to pull myself up onto the animal to sit in front of her. She kicked her heels as I settled down and we were moving a second later, the others falling in behind us as we pushed into a gallop back to camp.
'The Skaikru will be fine Clarke, the camp is well defended for such circumstances' Lexa reassured me, sensing my worry for the unsuspecting inhabitants in the camp.
'I just hope Octavia and the others arrive before the Reapers' I confided, not wanting to think about how much damage could be inflicted by the mass of Reapers that would descend upon the camp.
'They're travelling on foot, on horseback we can get our warriors there to counteract the attack' she said confidently, though I couldn't help but expect the worst. No more words needed to be shared as I lent back into her, the forest flying by us as we sped north, her grip tightening comfortingly as silence fell through our small group.
We had been travelling for a few days on foot but on horseback we had no intention of stopping for anything and even though the light was fading as the day drew to a close, we took the risk to ride on through the night not having time to waste setting up a camp. By the time we arrived back at TonDc it was late the next morning and we had not stopped once the entire way.
I slipped down from the exhausted horse and Lexa landed beside me not a second later, calling orders for the horses to be taken to rest and for others to be brought to replace them. The camp was soon filled with a tense energy as news spread and the warriors assembled but my focus was on the injured Grounder, if he didn't get treatment soon he would be in serious trouble.
He leapt down awkwardly from his horse but his leg gave way as he did, sending him crashing to the ground with a pained grunt. I moved over to help him up but he waved me away, levering himself up with his blade. Lexa strode past me to where the warriors were assembling, no doubt ready to set off at a moments notice, time was essential at this point. I grabbed Lexa's hand as she moved away, not caring who saw as she turned to face me.
'Be safe' I told her, wishing that I was able to accompany them to the battle but I had my own responsibilities here as a healer.
'And you' she responded with a small smile, squeezing my hand gently in return but then she was gone and I was left grasping empty air. After a short moment I turned away and knelt back down by the injured grounder, hearing the others swiftly depart behind me as the sound of hoof beats faded away until they were gone completely.
There was an almost eerie quiet in the camp now that the majority of warriors had left for camp Jaha, but I ignored the sensation as I gripped the Grounder tightly by the arm once more and led him in the direction of the healers hut. Blood was now seeping more freely from the wound that was tightly bound and I lowered the grounder down onto the bed of furs before retrieving my medical supplies from the table on the other side of the hut.
He was incredibly lucky that the gash had not been infected during our return journey, there would've been far less chance of survival if it had. The Grounder hissed in pain as I peeled the bandage back, revealing the gaping wound beneath though he was now to weak from blood loss to complain further.
I poured alcohol over his leg to disinfect the wound before proceeding to treat it. The wound on his arm was in a similar condition but it was not long until I had that cleaned and bandaged as well. The treatment had been rather painful for the Grounder who had only accepted the minimal amount of pain relief and he was now in a light slumber as he recovered from the ordeal.
Satisfied that he would make a full recovery I cleared up the collection of bottles and bandages before leaving the hut and returning to my own tent to wash the blood from my hands. Once the worst was gone I lifted my own shirt to see how my injury had fared, I gritted my teeth as the fabric pulled away from the stitching, blood having seeped into the surrounding bandage. Dropping the shirt I reached for the spare bandages I had brought with me and changed the dressing carefully, taking a painkiller to take the edge away.
Now that all injuries had been dealt with I could no longer ignore my worries about what was happening with the others. Would they reach camp Jaha in time? Would the reapers get there first? It was impossible not to dwell on the worst possible outcomes so with a sigh I left my tent and walked back to the healers hut to check on the Grounder to take my mind away from it all.
Entering the hut was a whole new nightmare. Blood. Everywhere. Pushing inside, my boots were soon slick with the red liquid, almost causing me to slip as I observed the horror in front of me. The Grounder who I had successfully treated not an hour ago was laid precisely as I had left him, the only difference being that his neck had not been slit ear to ear on my departure. Blood covered the interior of the hut, a deep gash along his chest still leaking with blood that seeped into the bed and pooled along the floor.
A shocked gasp escaped my lips and the figure stooped over the lifeless body was alerted to my presence, a twisted smile forming on its lips as it turned to face me. The Reaper was drenched in the blood of his victim, no remorse in his eyes as he made to advance on me with glinting blade in hand.
Frozen in horror for a fleeting moment, I lifted my gun on instinct and squeezed the trigger with shaking hands. Despite the inaccuracy of my shot, the close range sent the bullet piercing straight into his torso, three more following in quick succession. The Reaper dropped to his knees clutching his chest, a faint gurgle escaping his lips before falling lifelessly to the ground.
I stumbled back out of the hut, breathing deeply as I turned away from the lifeless remains. There was no time to process what had happened as my eyes darted around the empty area of camp, my guard raised instantly. That couldn't have been the only reaper.
Hearing movement from behind me I spun around, raising my gun in preparation only to stop short when a Grounder came jogging out from behind the huts, hands raised in the air when he saw the weapon.
'hod op!' the Grounder called out and I lowered the weapon as he approached, noticing his torn, blood spattered clothes.
'Reapers?' I questioned, hearing faint sounds of fighting in the distance, most likely from the far side of camp.
'There are only a few, they will not be a problem for long but they were searching your tent so I came to find you' he told me, gesturing in the distance to where my tent was located.
'We should leave now, if the Reapers are looking for you then this is the last place you should be' he warned me, eager to set off and get me out of danger.
'We can't just leave, the others might need our help' I reasoned, not willing to leave the few Grounders that remained to fend for themselves and get myself out of harm's way. If I had to make a choice then I wouldn't be going anywhere.
'If that is what you wish' the Grounder complied, inclining his head slightly as I moved in the direction of the fighting, we had to ensure that the camp was safe. We moved quietly between a few of the nearest huts, wary of what we might find around each corner.
No danger presented itself and we were about to move on further when a startled grunt sounded at my back and I turned to see the Grounder a few metres back, mouth opened to call in warning but blood merely spilled from his lips as the large blade protruding from his stomach was pulled free.
'No!' I cried, only making it a few steps as he twisted with the last of his energy and stabbed his own dagger into the flesh of his attacker. The Reaper growled and stumbled back a few steps before one of my bullets pierced his skull.
I dropped to my knees by the collapsed Grounder, his eyes hazy as the blood seeped freely from his body. He attempted to rise but merely fell back down with a choked groan. I pushed my hands against the wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding but it was futile, the blade had done far too much damage.
'It's okay, if I get you back to the hut I can sort this out' I told him, at least having to try and save his life. The Grounder shook his head weakly and placed his hand on top of where mine were pressed against his wound.
'Em ste odon. Beja, yu souda bants' he pleaded with me, wanting me to leave and stay out of danger. I shook my head, not intending on going anywhere now.
'Yu gonplei ste odon' I whispered quietly as the life left his eyes and his hands fell limp to the ground. Another death at the hands of the Reapers, who knew how many more there would be. The thought filled me with an unquenchable anger and I rose into a standing position, my eyes coming to a rest on a Reaper that was tearing through the huts towards me and I felt no fear.
I lifted my blade and faced the attack head on, letting my anger fuel my lunges and it wasn't long until the Reaper was hard pressed to keep my sword at bay. His defence didn't hold for long and I thrust it forwards into his chest, pulling it free to turn and take on the next sneering Reaper.
My anger may have pushed me to new strengths but it didn't make me invincible. The Reaper at my back knocked into me hard enough to send me crashing to the floor, my sword ripped from my grip as I fell. Without pausing to catch my breath, I twisted onto my back and pulled my gun from its holster, firing off shots until I was out of bullets, taking down two of the Reapers in a matter of seconds.
I threw my now empty gun to the ground and launched myself at the closest Reaper, landing heavy blows to his face in an attempt to drive him back. He growled angrily and wiped blood from his nose but I noticed he did not retaliate with a swipe of his sword. They weren't here to kill me so they wanted me alive, I could use that to my advantage.
One came up from behind me and wrapped his arms around me, lifting me from the ground in an attempt to end my raging attacks but I threw my head back sharply to collide with his face, the Reaper dropping me to grasp at his now broken nose. Before I could deliver any more damage the other Reaper threw a powerful punch at my chest which knocked me to the ground, my back slamming into the hard earth as the breath was forced from my lungs.
As I attempted to recover the vile creature was on top of me, his hands pressing mercilessly into my throat, cutting off my already limited oxygen. I writhed and bucked beneath the imposing figure, but was unable to release his crushing grip. My head now becoming fuzzy I would soon be unconscious and desperately grasped for anything to use against my attacker.
My hand clenched around a rock by my side and with what little strength I had left, brought it crashing into his head with tremendous effort. The blow to his temple stunned him enough that his grip loosened for the briefest of seconds but that was all I needed to twist out from beneath him, gasping for breath.
Without even giving him a moment to retaliate I brought the rock down onto his head a second time, his eyes rolling up into his head as he fell unconscious to the ground. My energy now dwindling, I could do nothing as a rough shove sent me falling to my knees once more, the Reaper with the bleeding nose leering as he stood before me, a sharp pain resonating through my face when his fist collided with my jaw. My head snapped to the side and my vision wavered for a moment but despite the pain I turned back to face him once more, spitting defiantly at his feet before attempting to rise once more.
Having none of it, the Reaper took me roughly by shoulders and pushed me back down, his foot driving into my stomach shortly after causing me to double over in agony. Through my watering vision I saw the outline of another Reaper approaching, a blunt object in hand. I barely felt it connect with my head before the world slipped away into darkness.
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