M A I A

I stood at the top of the steps watching my friends below as they headed for the shield. Gav stood beside me, more focused on the people around us than the shrinking figures in the distance. "I don't need a babysitter you know."

He glanced over with a lopsided grin. "I'm not a babysitter, I'm back up."

I laughed softly. "I guess I can be okay with back up. But hopefully I won't need it."

Gavril gasped softly and I turned to look. Across the courtyard, a dog was running toward us. Gav dropped to his knees to meet her and ruffled her fur with a big grin on his face. I hesitated before kneeling down beside them. Gav looked over, his eyes gleaming with unshed tears. "Me and Ella got a puppy in Baltimore. She said it would be too much trouble, but Peter wanted it too. Her name was Strelka, like the space dog." I knew the end of the story. They'd all been arrested in Baltimore.

"I've never seen a dog in real life," I murmured. As if I called her, the golden retriever turned to me and began sniffing. I put a hand on to scratch behind her ears.

"I see you met Picasso." I looked up at the sound of Russell's voice. He came over with Clarke who looked on with a small smile on her face. I motioned her over and she joined us on the ground with the dog. Russell took in our wide-eyed faces and his smile fell away. "So, it's true then. Kaylee told me Earth was destroyed, but I guess I held out hope for man's best friend."

"This is Gavril," I told Russell. "He's my–"

Gav looked up from Picasso with a big smile. "I'm her bodyguard." The sight long-legged, broad-shouldered Gavril Garipov on the ground with a dog, was enough to make me laugh. The smile on his face made him look far younger than his years. He wasn't the least bit threatening. Gav looked toward me and shrugged as if he did not see what was so funny.

Clarke helped me to my feet. The smile had returned to Russell's face. "You're going to like it here." My eyebrows shot up. "I haven't decided anything for sure. We'll discuss it over dinner."

I turned toward Clarke as Russell walked out of view. "We could really have a chance here," I murmured. "A fresh start." Clarke nodded, a small smile on her lips. I let out a sigh as I took in the courtyard. I could barely imagine what it would be like to just be. To not be fighting for our lives or failing to stop the end of the world.

"I wish Shauna were here to see this," I whispered. She'd been so young; she'd missed out on so much of her life. She would love the color, the spirit. She'd always had a thing for art. "Monty and Harper would have loved this too." I glanced out over the fields. "It's like a farmer's psychedelic wet dream."

"Jasper would've loved the Jo Juice," Clarke joked. I let out a short laugh. A second later I was blinking back tears. Clarke nudged my shoulder with hers. "They're with us." I pressed my lips together and nodded. "Come on, let's go find something to wear."

Clarke tied the straps of my dress behind my neck. I stared at our reflections in the mirror. We looked so different dressed up, so unlike the people who'd been fighting for their lives a few days ago. "When's the last time you wore a dress?" Clarke asked. "Because I feel like I've been wearing those pants for three years."

I opened my mouth, then closed it. It took me a moment to remember. "Mount Weather." Clarke let out a soft sigh. "It's okay. Did you know my mother was a seamstress?" I asked to change the subject.

Clarke nodded. "When we were kids, my dad had her make me one. It was beautiful, she was so talented. I wore it to a comet viewing party." She smiled softly, reliving the memory.

Only Alpha station got to go to events like that. The rest of us were stuck searching for a view in crammed hallways. But after they passed, we always had little extra money from all the commissions mom had gotten. Extra money meant treats. So, despite everything, those were still fond memories for me too.

"She would've loved this dress," I said with a sigh. It was a similar style to the one Delilah had been wearing. It tied behind my neck with a low back, but it was orange where hers was yellow. The front was low enough that the scar on my chest was front and center. I reached up to touch it, and in doing so caught sight of my tattoo in the mirror. "Eight-year-old me never would have believed this."

Clarke nodded. "We've changed since the Ark."

"So has everything else," I said, gesturing around us. She laughed. I turned toward the door and sighed. "Speaking of changes…Let's go have dinner with the king."

We descended the steps into the tavern and the room went silent. "What?" Clarke snapped, standing beside me in her own pink dress. "It's just a dress."

Gav stood up from his table and before I knew what was happening, he had me under the arms, lifting me up. I laughed as he spun me around before setting me back down on my feet. "I can't believe Cal is missing out on this."

I shook my head. "Cal and I are just friends."

He sighed. "Bellamy then. Hell, Kenna and Alex should see this too. You look like a goddamn princess." I waved him off, trying to hide the pink in my cheeks. I joined the others at the bar while Clarke talked to Abby.

Delilah put another shot in front of Murphy, but I swept it away before he could take it. Before he could protest, I knocked it back myself. I looked at him for a moment. His near-death experience during the red sun had messed him up. He looked like shit. I put a hand on his shoulder. "You good?"

"Better now," he said with a wink. I rolled my eyes at his attempt at deflection. "You don't have to worry about me. I always bounce back." I squeezed his shoulder before letting go.

As I headed toward the door to join Clarke, Gav offered me an arm. "You weren't invited," I reminded him.

"No one said I couldn't walk you to the door." He shrugged. "Besides, everyone knows a princess needs an escort." I groaned, but accepted his arm, nonetheless.

The three of us made our way across the courtyard and up the castle stairs. At the door, Gav let me go and gave us bow. "I bid you both adieu."

I let out one sharp laugh. "Has anyone ever told you, you're ridiculous?"

Gav flashed a lopsided grin. "Once or twice."

One of the palace guards opened the door, and Clarke and I stepped inside. With Gav gone, things felt more serious. This was our one chance to convince Russell to let us stay. My stomach did a summersault. The guards escorted us through the entryway and into the great hall.

Russell and Simone were there waiting. Before them stretched a long table stacked with all kinds of colorful foods. It looked amazing. And familiar. At my side, my hands tightened into fists. My nails digging into my skin was the only thing keeping me grounded. This was not Mount Weather.

Clarke glanced at me for a moment, then silently took my hand. I let her, clutching her hand tight, but trying my hardest to keep my face blank.

We took our seats and Simone offered us each a glass of wine. It took all my willpower not to down the whole glass in one gulp. It took me several moments to compose myself enough to join the conversation.

"You destroyed the planet of your birth," Simone was saying.

Clarke gave a terse smile. "Actually, we born in space. But I take your point."

"Our ancestors destroyed Earth all on their own," I said, conveniently leaving out how we were a bit responsible for destroying the last piece. "But I would assume you know that. We all know the Eligius missions were just a way to exploit other planets for resources Earth no longer had." I took a sip of my wine.

Simone and Russell shared a look. "How many people have you killed, Clarke?" Simone asked, looking back toward us. "Or should we call you Wanheda."

It was Clarke's turn to freeze. "Jordan likes to talk," I said with a sigh. "What other stories did he tell?"

"He said you went into a protected compound like this one and murdered everyone inside," Russell told us.

"Went into implies we weren't taken against our will. I suppose he left that part out?" I asked, looking between them. "The Mountain Men should have died in the first Praimfaya. Instead they spent a century abducting and murdering outsiders to keep themselves alive. They lied to us, manipulated us, and when that didn't work, tortured us too. Children."

I paused to let that sink in. "What Clarke did, she did to save us all. Not just those of us she knew, but the hundreds of earthborn who'd lived in fear for generations."

"Would you do it again?" Simone asked Clarke.

"I will not apologize for saving the people I love."

Russell folded his hands together. "But we are not your people."

"But we want you to be," I said. I held up my arm, showing them the tattoo. "Two weeks ago—or what feels like two weeks ago—this meant nothing to me. Now it means I have a whole new family. You choose your people. We want you to choose us."

"Even if we could trust you, how can we trust the hundreds of others asleep on your ship?" Russell asked. I kept my mouth shut. There was no good answer to that question that wasn't a lie. Half of those were Wonkru and their loyalties were tenuous at best. Some of the others were Shadows, but I didn't know them. Others were McCreary's men, or Diyoza's. People who'd tried to kill us all days ago. I could barely trust Alex and he'd saved my life.

"When the others arrive, I suggest you fly back to your mothership," Russell said calmly. "Because as you've rightly assumed, you won't survive outside the shield."

A

Our rescue party marched to the ship in relative silence. No one was exactly in the mood to talk. Kaylee and her guards from Sanctum kept their distance. Bellamy and Octavia were having their family spat, and Raven was mourning Shaw. Echo and Alex just weren't big talkers.

We were halfway to the Gagarin before Cal dropped back. I turned to see him walking alongside Octavia and rolled my eyes. Alex smirked. "What?" I snapped.

"You're cute when you're jealous, O'Brien."

"I am not jealous of Octavia Blake." I scoffed. "She started a fucking murder cult. She's insane."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "And yet she's still Maia's little sister, and Cal's new pet project." Gavril had filled us in on the stunt Cal pulled on the mothership. He could've gotten himself killed; he could've fucked up his healing. But none of that mattered because he had to go play white knight. Cal was the closest thing I'd ever had to a brother, but damn could he be an idiot.

"Don't tell me you're drinking the Wonkru Kool-Aid too, Al."

"I don't give a shit about Octavia or her fucking murder cult as you put it." Alex shook his head. "But I'm not about to get tied up in that shit." He glanced over his shoulder at Cal and Octavia for a moment. "She reminds me of Ella. A black hole."

I bit my lip. Alex had barely talked about Ella or Peter since we'd gotten to Alpha. He kept his business to himself. None of us ever really knew what was going on in his head half the time. "How're you holding up?" I asked after a long pause.

He shrugged. "You know me." And that was that, topic closed.

Before I had the chance to push the issue, there were voices up ahead, chanting. "Death to Primes! Death to Primes!"

I sent up a silent prayer. "If there's another fucking cult I swear to god."

We caught up with Kaylee and her guards. "It's too late, your family is lost," they were saying. "You're the priority. We must return to Sanctum."

"Our people are still there," Bellamy protested. They'd left Diyoza on the ship with Clarke's kid and her teacher. "We can't leave them."

"We don't need their help," Cal said, coming up to join us. "We'll get them."

We waited until nightfall, looking for our chance to strike. We had the numbers to take them, but just barely. And they had guns. Even if we could take the ship, chances were, we wouldn't all make it inside. "One of them is leaving," Echo said, putting her binoculars down. "And she's taking the guns."

"I'm going for the guns," Octavia said.

She darted toward the ship. It took me a second to realize Alex was following her.

"What a fucking hypocrite," I muttered.

They were just far enough out of view that it was hard to see. But Octavia looked to be as good with a sword as Maia had said. Come to think of it, Maia also mentioned she was good with a sword. I filed that away to think about later when we weren't all crouching in a bush.

Just as Octavia and Alex were finishing off the hostiles, another emerged from the ship. Diyoza leapt up and took the figure out, then turned on Octavia and Alex. "They were withdrawing! Why the hell would you attack?"

I knew what the answer was for Alex. No matter how good he was at internalizing his shit, he had to let it out somehow. I turned toward Cal. "Get a handle on him before he fucks us all over." Cal nodded, not taking his eyes off Alex. I didn't say that if Cal had been as focused on his own people as he had been on Octavia Blake, he would have seen it coming. But the thought did cross my mind.

We made our way into the ship. Madi and Gaia had been hit with tranqs, so Cal and Alex carried them inside. Octavia was the last to come up the ramp. Bellamy stepped in front of her. "Not you."

"Oh, come on. What are you going to do, leave me here?"

Cal appeared beside me. "You heard what Kaylee said, it's too dangerous out here."

Bellamy looked at the bodies on the ground. "She can take care of herself."

Cal jogged down the ramp. "Then I'm staying too."

My jaw dropped. "You are not."

"Staying outside the shield is a death sentence," Cal told me. "But two is better than one."

I looked between Cal and Bellamy, waiting for one of them to back down. But Bellamy wouldn't. It didn't matter that it also meant leaving Cal behind, they still didn't trust each other. And Cal was too goddamn high and mighty. I groaned. "Fuck it, three's a party."

"Kenna–" Cal started. Before he could get another word out, I held up two middle fingers.

"If you're staying, then so am I."

Alex started down the ramp. "Me too, Malikov."

"Gav and Maia need another Shadow up there," Cal said, shaking his head. "And you need to breathe. I can't have two hot-heads out here getting us all into trouble." I thought he might protest. Instead Alex retreated into the ship without another word.

I stood beside Cal as the door to the Gagarin shut in our faces. Octavia turned and headed toward the woods. "Well, are you going to help me find the rest of those assholes or what?"

We tracked the others through the woods, until they finally came to a stop. They were talking up ahead, but we were too far to hear. Cal gave me the signal to move forward and the three of us snuck between the trees so we could listen in.

They had a kid, it looked like one of the ones from Sanctum. She was dressed different than the others, and one of the men was carrying her. "What do you mean a new host?" One was saying.

"From Earth," the man explained. My blood ran cold. Whatever they were talking about it wasn't good. If they hadn't been targeting our people before, they definitely were now. "She had the blood, I saw it."

I turned to look at Cal and realized that Octavia was missing. "Where are the others?" The first man asked.

"The others are dead," Octavia said, stepping out of the trees. "And you're about to be." She stepped toward the man who appeared to be in charge.

He held his hands up. "We have no quarrel with you." That didn't slow Octavia down. She swung her sword and marched on. The man pushed his mask over his face and stepped forward.

A spray surrounded him, clear liquid coming out of one of the plants. Octavia walked right into it and screamed. She dropped to the ground, writhing in pain. "We call it mace plant," he told her. "Don't worry, you'll survive. You'll just wish you hadn't."

We watched from the trees as one of the men threw Octavia's limp body over his shoulder. "We have to go after her, don't we?" I whispered. Cal nodded, and I groaned. "What could possibly go wrong?"