AN: Three chapters left! If you have any final requests or want to say hi then find me on tumblr under the same name or leave a review! I hope you're enjoying it.
Clarke and Lexa move slowly through the aisles, footsteps perfectly silent, as they seek out their targets. Fortunately for them, they know the general layout of the store, unlike the Mountainmen who are invading it. Also, they are not weighed down by heavy protective gear, and instead can move swiftly and silently through the store, ducking around corners in order to come up behind their enemy.
At the moment, Clarke is in the lead and Lexa is watching their back, both with guns at the ready. Clarke turns the corner and Lexa follows, only to have her back shoved against the wall and into an alcove by Clarke. Lexa stifles a groan and shoots a glare at her wife, as she still has several painful injuries from their fight the night before. Clarke holds up her finger to indicate silence to Lexa and returns her attention forwards, waiting for the unsuspecting soldier to walk down the aisle.
Clarke waits for the footsteps to approach and when he is in her reach but still unable to see their hidden forms she lashes out with one arm, smacking the man in the face with the butt of her gun, breaking his nose and stunning him. Clarke catches him with her free hand but before she can do anything else, Lexa delivers the final blow, stabbing a knife through the upper part of his throat up into his brain in order to prevent the man from making a sound. Lexa grabs the other side of his body and together, the couple carefully lowers it to the ground and into the alcove, hidden from view.
Clarke grabs the assault rifle off the soldier and his handgun, but Lexa takes the time to silently unsheathe the twin swords from her back. She leads the way towards the next aisle, using the blade as a mirror to look around the corner and make sure the soldiers are facing away from her. Lexa glances over her shoulder to find Clarke with her gun raised, ready to back her up. Lexa nods at her and then rounds the corner, running silently down the aisle towards the two soldiers creeping away from her.
Clarke tenses at how exposed Lexa is and prepares to shoot, but the soldiers don't even hear her running towards their exposed backs. Foolish of them to both be facing the same direction. Lexa raises her right hand and with all her strength sweeps downward, decapitating the soldier on her left in one swing. Before the solder on her right can even fully face her, she stabs upward with her left hand, driving her second sword straight through his heart. Blood gurgles from his mouth and he doesn't even get the chance to make a sound as Lexa pulls her sword from his body and grabs him by the shoulders to lower him gently to the ground. Lexa turns back around to face Clarke. giving her a smirk as she spins the swords in her hands. Clarke giggles at her wife's display and then quickly runs forward to search the pockets of the soldiers, grabbing some more ammunition and a grenade.
The next corner they turn around they find themselves out of the high shelves and in the cold meat display area. Just in front of them, Clarke sees a stairwell door start to crack open, and she quickly pulls Lexa forward, sliding the last few feet across the gap to hide behind one of the counter height level refrigeration units. She peeks around the corner to see one man making hand signals at two others, obviously directing them where to go. Intent on taking out these men silently before they can circle around them, she slips out of her blazer and grabs four knives off a display cart. Trusting that Lexa will have her back, she crouches down and runs forward until she notices the leader twitch towards his weapon. Before he can even bring his gun up, she throws a knife, impaling him right through one of his eyes. His two subordinates get their deaths from a knife to the back of the neck and to the chest, as the last one has time to fully turn around. Clarke remains still and raises her last knife just in case any of the men are alive, but none get up. Before she has time to check on Lexa, she feels a sharp pain on the outside of her ear. Checking to her left, she sees another Mountainman falling backwards with a knife in his chest. She turns back to her right to glare angrily at Lexa as she reaches up to find her ear intact but with a shallow cut dripping blood. While Clarke is thankful that Lexa saved her life, she knows how skilled her wife is with knives, and can't quite tell if it was just an accident or passive aggression about the secrets she had kept. Using her last knife, she pulls her left arm back as far as she can and flicks her wrist to hurl it as hard as she can at Lexa's face.
Lexa had seen the specks of blood darkening Clarke's hand and felt a little regretful at having cut her, no matter how small it was. She can't dwell on her regret for long, however, as the next thing she knows Clarke is hurling a knife towards her face. She drops to the ground, spinning to land on her back with her weapon raised towards the man behind her who is now slumping to the ground with a knife through his mouth.
As Lexa staggers to her feet, she hisses, "That could have killed me!"
"Now you know what it feels like!" Clarke hisses angrily back.
Lexa narrows her eyes at Clarke, and simply huffs, "We'll talk about this later."
Clarke gives Lexa a falsely sweet smile and walks over to help her up. Once they both have their weapons ready, Clarke takes the lead again, leading Lexa down one of the food aisles. When she gets to the end, she thinks she hears footsteps, so she crouches down and peers around the corner. Unfortunately, as she is bending around the corner, her chest pushes into the soup cans on the shelves, and these cans push on the ones on the other side, knocking several off the shelf and onto the ground.
Clarke quickly pulls her head back from sticking out in the aisle and gives Lexa a wide-eyed look. "I didn't touch a thing!"
"You might not have, but they definitely did." Lexa growls as she shoots a quick glare at Clarke's breasts.
Clarke quickly holds her arm protectively across her chest. "You've never complained about them before!"
Before Lexa can reply, gunfire sounds and bullets start hitting areas around them. Lexa and Clarke both turn around and run back down the aisle, half crouched and guns raised. Now that the enemy knows where they are, no need for silence anymore. As they emerge at the other end of the aisle, Lexa faces left and shoots two men quickly and efficiently right in the chest, and Clarke does the same with the men to the right. As they run down the next aisle, Lexa takes lead, leading with her assault rifle as she runs, while Clarke covers their back, running forward with her body twisted around so that she can shoot anyone that tries to follow them.
Bullets start flying, and Lexa takes out three more men in front of her. As she gets to the end of the aisle, she grabs a can of soup and throws it at the elevator button 20 yards away, which lights up with a bright yellow glow. Pausing to check for more soldiers, she waits several seconds until the doors are about to open then makes a break across the open space. Clarke picks off one more man behind them then follows closely behind Lexa, running as quickly as possible to avoid the spray of gunfire following them. Lexa shoots right and Clarke covers left as they rush into the elevator and hug its sides for all the protection they can get.
Clarke jams the button for the second floor and the doors start to close with loud dings as bullets ricochet off the metal. The couple takes the time to reload both their weapons and catch their breath as the elevator travels slowly up, cheery elevator music playing from a speaker in the corner. Clarke huffs and shoots out the speaker then joins Lexa in facing the doors. The two wait anxiously and awkwardly as the elevator slowly ascends to the second floor.
After what seems like hours but is really only a moment, the elevator dings and the doors open. Bullets start flying as the doors pull back, and Clarke and Lexa immediately start firing, picking off any soldiers standing out in the open. Several men crash through the skylights from the roof and Clarke raises her gun to fire at them, picking them off while they are defenseless. Lexa sprays an arc of bullets all around them, but when more men start pouring out of the aisles she grabs Clarke by the back of her blazer and tugs her back into the elevator before they can be overrun.
The couple backs up and continues to shoot people until the elevator doors fully close, leaving them in awkward silence once more.
Hesitantly, Lexa whispers, "I'm sorry about the uh, knife…"
Clarke quickly cuts her off. "I don't want to talk about it."
Lexa nods and faces the door again, but doesn't feel right leaving it at that. Hesitantly, she rests one hand gently on Clarke's shoulder, although her gaze is still directed towards the door. "You know I love your breasts, right?"
"Oh my god." Clarke groans then turns and slams Lexa against the wall of the elevator, kissing her hard. When she pulls away, Lexa is stunned and barely holding herself up against the wall. "I'm not actually mad at you, OK? We're gonna get into fights, but we're in this together, forever. Got it?" Lexa, still wide-eyed, nods quickly, which causes Clarke to smile and give her one more quick peck on the lips. The two resume their positions facing the door with weapons raised, and as soon as the elevator dings and the doors open, they run out.
No soldiers are visible, so the pair quickly runs towards the tall shelves again. Lexa grabs a rifle off one of the fallen soldiers and slings it over her back. "I'll go up."
Clarke looks up from where she is grabbing more rounds for her gun to see Lexa scaling one of the 40 foot high shelves as easily as if it were a tree and she were a monkey. She shakes herself out of the sight to whisper yell, "I'm going clockwise, you got my back?"
Lexa doesn't stop climbing but she does turn her head down to smile brilliantly at Clarke. "Always."
Clarke smiles and then starts making her way up and down and around aisles, slowly picking off any Mountainmen who get in her path. Every once in a while, she hears the echo of a shot from above and knows that Lexa is still alive and has made another kill. After a few minutes of this swift team efficiency they have, Clarke finds fewer men in her path and starts hearing bullets pinging off the ceiling. She runs around the next corner and finds a group of five men all with their guns aimed upwards firing towards her wife. Clarke mercilessly mows them down only to find that Lexa is now up and running down the shelving unit away from the bullets that land all around her.
When Lexa disappears off the top of the shelves, Clarke feels a flash of terror strike through her as she watches Lexa fall and then disappear. With no hesitation, Clarke takes off running through the shelves, barely aware of her surroundings and only focused on reaching Lexa. She feels a bullet tear through the top part of her shoulder and turns around to quickly kill the two men behind her. Once her back is clear, she ignores the pain shooting through her shoulder and continues running down the aisle, taking a right when she hears the sound of a smaller caliber gun firing.
As Clarke was running to Lexa, the brunette was holding her stomach with one hand and firing off rounds with her smaller gun at any Mountainmen she could see. When her immediate attackers were neutralized, she dragged herself a few feet into a corner where she was mostly protected. When she looks down at her stomach, she finds that her vest has stopped the bullet in the middle, but the wind was knocked out of her from the shot and she will most definitely have one hell of a bruise. On the right side of her stomach, she is bleeding sluggishly from a bullet wound, which she tries to apply pressure to until she feels a sharp pain from her left shoulder. Unwilling to set her gun down, she half-heartedly pokes her left shoulder with the tips of her fingers but she doesn't need full range to know that she has dislocated it yet again.
Suddenly, Clarke slides up next to her, dropping her gun to grab both sides of Lexa's face. Lexa can barely hear Clarke's concern through the loud pumping of her heart, but she can clearly see the distress and fear in her eyes.
Raising her good arm with a grunt, Lexa shoots an approaching man over Clarke's shoulder. Clarke grabs her gun and wraps her arm around Lexa to drag her to her feet, grunting at the new stress on her bullet wound.
Still half supporting Lexa with one arm and gun raised with the other, Clarke heads towards the gardening section, firing off bullets to help cover their retreat. They duck behind a large pile of fertilizer and trade shots with approaching soldiers, forcing them to take cover so that Clarke and Lexa can make a break for it.
Without needing any communication, Lexa pulls herself up and runs as best she can towards a nearby display shed. Clarke shoots anyone who pops up and Lexa does as well, but she still takes a few more bullets to her vest, grunting in pain each time. Once Lexa is halfway there, Clarke takes off after her, taking a slightly different route to draw more fire away from her injured wife. She jumps through a Christmas display, knocking over two trees and smashing a plastic Santa, but manages to stay on her feet. She comes into contact with several more soldiers who she is able to shoot, but takes several more hits to her bullet proof vest. However, she manages to stagger into the shed only a few seconds after Lexa.
Clarke collapses in pain onto a sack of mulch and starts tearing at her now shredded blazer and button up shirt trying to suck in as much air to breath through the pain. Lexa quickly slams the door shut as bullets start hitting the side of the shed and rips off her own destroyed shirt just like Clarke. When she sees the red stain on Clarke's shoulder, she quickly crawls over to check on her wife. Using her good arm, she applies pressure to the wound.
Clarke sees Lexa's wound and pulls some bandages and medical tape from her cleavage. At Lexa's raised eyebrow, she smiles and shrugs; it's a good place to store stuff and it's not her fault she was born with it. Lexa takes some of the gauze and packs it into her bullet wound, taping it in place over the exit and entry wound. Clarke then takes the last half of the gauze and tape and applies it to Lexa's stomach wound. Quickly, she pops Lexa's shoulder back in place and then starts ripping up strips of her shirt to tie around the last of her own grazes.
Lexa grunts as Clarke pops her shoulder back into place but is well used to it by now. She knows she should make a sling, but they can't afford for her to only have the use of one arm. While Clarke continues patching herself up, she slowly sneaks to the front of the shed and looks through the bullet holes to check on what is happening outside. She starts counting the soldiers and making note of their positions until she gets to 30, then she gives up.
Crawling carefully back over to Clarke, she helps tie a strip of shirt over a bullet graze on Clarke's arm. Once she has tied the knot tightly and given it a gentle pat, she starts reload the guns she has left. Clarke does the same, and the two work quickly in silence for a moment, until Clarke breaks it.
"How's it look out there?"
Lexa slams a magazine into one of her guns and looks up to make eye contact with Clarke. "Piece of cake for Heda and Wanheda."
Clarke smiles at the smug grin Lexa has on her face, knowing that her wife is lying even if there are no outward signs of it. "Your left shoulder is hurt, so take right, and I'll cover left, OK? Use a smaller gun in your left hand, and this rifle is the lightest you can use it in your right." Lexa nods and takes the gun from Clarke, trading her for one of the heavier guns she won't be able to lift.
Clarke goes to lift a strap over her shoulder and winces as it presses on her bullet wound, so Lexa takes it from her and sets it over her right. "Do you still have the grenade?" When Clarke nods, Lexa holds out her hand for it. "You're left-handed and your shoulder is injured." Clarke sighs and reluctantly relinquishes the grenade, accepting Lexa's logic.
Lexa jumps to her feet and pockets the grenade, wanting to throw it when more Mountainmen clump together. Clarke pushes herself to her feet as well and is immediately met with Lexa's lips. Clarke pushes forward, kissing Lexa back, and tries to pull their bodies together but is obstructed but all the weapons they are carrying. Lexa pulls back with a small smile and rests her forehead on Clarke's, opening her eyes to gaze upon blue for what may be the last time. Inches away, blue eyes stare intently back, meeting green. Clarke's smile grows bigger when she sees the black smudge of "war paint" on the tip of Lexa's nose, knowing that it must have smudged from her own.
Lexa's eyes drop to Clarke's lips one more time, then her cheeks which are adorably smudged with black from her own "war paint", then back to her eyes, memorizing the face of the woman she loves with her entire heart; memorizing the face of her soul mate. It's that thought that prompts her into speaking.
"Death is not the end. I'll see you in the next life, Klark."
Clarke smiles, remembering the secret Lexa had revealed earlier that day, and nuzzles her nose one last time before pulling back and whispering, "May we meet again."
With one last grim smile, the two ready their weapons and face the door. With a nod from Clarke, Lexa pushes open the door and runs out after her wife.
Clarke immediately starts shooting, taking out the semicircle of soldiers 20 yards in front of her. Bullets start flying past them from other soldiers, and Lexa quickly returns fire, firing off a few quick shots to the left to help Clarke and then returning to the right, spraying bullets at any sign of movement until she runs out.
As if they planned it, Lexa ducks to grab another weapon and Clarke pivots in a circle, firing a rapid stream of bullets in a circle and over her wife's back. Men continue to fall as Lexa holds up both her weapons in front of her and continues to pick off more and more Mountainmen. Clarke looks up and spots two men on the balcony fumbling with a grenade launcher. With only a gentle hand on Lexa's back as an indication, the two drop to a crouch simultaneously as the other soldiers stop firing and a projectile flies only a few inches over their heads, impacting with a fiery explosion into the shed where they had taken refuge.
As wood chips start raining down on them, Clarke drops her empty gun and pulls out two smaller ones, standing to face Lexa to fires at both sides while Lexa fires over Clarke's shoulders at the men aiming for the blonde's back. When the gun in her right hand runs out of bullets, she nods at Clarke, and the two pivot in opposite directions, going back to back. As Lexa comes around, she drops her gun and slides the grenade from her pocket, chucking it at an approaching group of men. They scream in pain as it explodes right in the middle of their group, but Lexa ignores it, instead hunching over as pain lances through her injured side.
Fortunately that Lexa had ducked, for a second grenade flies just through the path her head was just previously occupying. Clarke stops firing at the men in front of her long enough to point the gun strapped to Lexa's back at the two idiots on the second floor with the grenade launcher. As they fall, Clarke pulls out her last gun and starts advancing towards the last few men in front of her.
As she is already bent over, Lexa grabs the knife strapped to her ankle and hurls it at an approaching man. With the smoke swirling around them, he doesn't see the knife and drops to the ground with it impaled in his neck. Squinting through the smoke to see the last remaining soldiers, Lexa pulls the gun strapped to her back and raises it at the last remaining soldiers in her line of sight. Just as she finishes putting a bullet through the last one's head, she hears the tell tale click of an empty gun. Quickly, she reaches into her pocket and pulls out a magazine, tossing it to Clarke without looking.
As soon as her last gun is empty, Clarke turns to Lexa, immediately finding a magazine flying in a low arc towards her. She catches it in one hand while the other releases the empty, and slams it in. A bullet grazes her thigh but she just calmly raises her gun and shoots the offender. As she looks around for more soldiers, she starts backing up towards Lexa. The brunette does the same, and the two meet in the center of their ring of destruction, backs touching and slowly spinning in a circle until a minute has passed and all remains silent. The shed behind them is still on fire, and several more fires are burning from the grenades. Dead bodies litter the area, dropped guns and used bullets litter the ground, a shelf has fallen and knocked its contents everywhere, and the smell of blood and death permeates the air. Panting harshly but in synch, the couple leans their backs into each other with utter exhaustion and finally lowers their weapons to their sides.