Chapter 9: New Beginnings at Last?

Clarke's POV

After Madi's ascension ceremony, the days started to blend together as we did everything to prepare Wonkru to move to Shallow Valley. We were also busy preparing for the election of the members of Madi's council and just to add a bit more unto our plates we began strategizing how we were going to save Murphy, Raven, Jackson, and my mom.

"I think we should just barge in there and take it," Octavia said nonchalantly, "it's our land and they can't take that away from us."
"Are you nuts?" I asked in horror, "we'd be putting our own people's lives on the line. Diyoza thought this through and so shall we."

I looked to Bellamy to see what he thought, but all I got was a blank intense stare that made me feel empty and void inside.

"All I can tell you guys is that some people attempted to go to the desert, they had a cut and somehow this weird worm got into them and started collapsing their organs on the inside before they exploded," Miller said with a bizarre look taking over his features.

I struggled to believe that the Death Wave had led to dessert animals adapting and becoming even more hostile. Crossing the desert on foot would have been hard enough before, now it would be twice as bad.

"Maybe it would be best if we take trips on the rover carrying people?" Monty whispered from his seat beside me so that only Harper and I could hear.

I turned my face towards him and shook it, "that would take too long, and it'd be too many trips from here to the valley, we'd be putting in danger those in the valley and those here if Diyoza tries anything."

"What was that Clarke?" Kara Cooper asked, giving me a suspicious glare.

I didn't really trust her and wouldn't have wanted her to be involved in this meeting, but for whatever reason, she was here and made me feel like I couldn't reveal my master plan because then she would find a way to twist it so that the people of Wonkru would believe it to be against them.

"Oh nothing, just me talking to myself," I said, plastering a fake chuckle that I hoped would be enough to convince her.

She gave me a look that would have made anyone else shiver, but I didn't falter. I held my head high and didn't give her the chance to ask any more questions, instead moving to look at Bellamy once more.

"Bellamy, do you have any ideas of what we could do to rescue our friends without getting them or us hurt?" I asked hoping that he would say anything, anything that could possibly work.

His eyes finally focused, and it was as if he'd just woken up from a trance or something, "we could always try to negotiate a peace arrangement with Diyoza. I mean she's cunning, and a criminal, but she doesn't strike me as a nonsensical person."

"Bellamy, that's a ridiculous idea!" Octavia exclaimed standing up. "She's betrayed us before there is no doubt, she'll do it again."

Indra sighed from where she stood by the door, "I think Bellamy might be right, we might have no choice but to strike a peace deal with them. She might be willing to let our people free and share the valley with us, as long as we give her an important place in the government."

Gaia's silence was astonishing because despite her lack of words her face and eyes spoke louder than any of us had. It was obvious that she refused to put Diyoza as one of our government leaders.

"She's not one of us!" Octavia exclaimed, "plus she's a criminal, a murderer for gods' sakes."

I looked at her with a softer look, "Octavia, do you remember when we first landed here. We were criminals, among us there were murderers and while yes all of us eventually only killed to save our people in the end we also murdered hundreds of grounders and they murdered us, and despite all that I became a representative in Lexa's court, we were take in as the thirteenth clan. We are now one united clan, but things were not always like that, and if we would have wanted the grounders to treat us differently then I think we should treat the Eligius people like we would have wanted the grounders to treat us."

I looked around the room and found the proud smile of a few and the astounded look from others.

"That's it, that's how we do better," Bellamy said, "humans have fought wars and killed each other and our planet on the basis of betrayal and the pissing match of this is now my land you're not welcome. We are one race and we can learn to live with each other. There is no need for a war to be fought or for us to destroy the last remnants of what once was our home. Let's do different this time let's treat each other as we would have wanted to be treated as Clarke says. Let's be a society that learns from its mistakes and doesn't have to live to just survive. Let's settle down with our families and have lives and begin fixing our broken planet."

I don't know why but I felt Bellamy's words seep into me and give me a surge of hope. A surge of newfound energy that I hadn't had since we had first landed on the ground.

Madi smiled from her seat, I had not been pleased with having her present, but Gaia was adamant that the Commander had to be present and while she would be free to listen in on our discussion until a council was elected her decision would be the final action.

"I think we have all shared our thoughts on what would be the best course of action and I have finally come to one conclusion and that is what Bellamy and Clarke have spoken about," she took a deep breath as Cooper snickered, "we will give the people of Eligius the benefit of the doubt, we will offer them peace and Diyoza a place on the council and in exchange, they will return our people to us. However, we will keep a watchful eye on them and be cautious."

She looked around the room with a glare she had learnt from Bellamy in the short time she'd known him, threatening them to question her decision. When nobody spoke, she adjourned the meeting, and everyone but Octavia, Bellamy, Madi, Monty, Harper, and I left.

"Madi, I don't think this idea is wise," Octavia said once it was just us in the room, "Diyoza's people have technology that we lack, she doesn't necessarily need us. She's not going to willingly unify with us when we have nothing to offer her."

"That's the thing, Octavia, she wants to cure her people and will need doctors and healers and while she has my mom and Jackson, they will refuse to work to help her if she hurts us. Also, her people don't have many skills in things like engineering, programming, spacewalking, food production, hell they probably don't even know how to live off the land. We do have something to offer, plus if they don't agree with our terms, what do we have to lose? Diyoza is likely using Raven and Murphy as bait for my mom and Jackson, which means she won't likely hurt them anytime soon. If we declare war, then we'll damn our family up there and ourselves down here."

Octavia sighed finally understanding, "I guess I have to come to terms with forgiving and moving on despite their past betrayal." She smiled slightly and said goodbye.

Monty who had been silent since he's whispered to me earlier finally spoke, "I am so proud of you guys. I think this might be the birth of a new and better era of the human race."

Harper smiled and stood up, "I am very proud of you Madi, maybe, just maybe we are finally moving on to something new. I truly hope for that." She then grabbed Monty's hand as a smile plastered on her face, "I think this calls for a celebration, don't you?"

He smirked wickedly and stood up and they both left the room with their hands conjoined.

"What does that mean?" Madi asked with an innocent curious look.

Bellamy and I looked at each other with smiles, a red tint quickly took over my cheeks as I thought of Monty and Harper's exchange just now, "oh nothing, I am sure they're just going to go drink or something."

I smiled at Bellamy's awkward reply, Madi was not going to let it go that simply, she is not dumb.

"I am not stupid you know; I think I've lived enough to understand just a bit of their exchange just now. And there was no insinuation of drinking, if anything I'd bet they're going to have sex or something," she says nonchalantly as if having this conversation with her parents was totally normal.

Of course, I knew that grounders raised their children exposed to public displays of intimacy, but I'd never had to experience Madi's understanding of it.

"Young lady! I think its time for you to go to self-defense class."

She smiled and stood up fast, "I love you guys see you later."

After she left, I went to stand up when Bellamy grabbed my hand and looked into my eyes, "she definitely takes after you," he said with a smile.

I raised my eyebrow at him, "Na ah did you see that speech she gave back there, that was all Bellamy."

"I think it was more strategic and thoughtful Clarke."

He then got closer to me and began to tickle me, "Bellamy!" I exclaimed as laughter filled the silence in the room.

Bellamy' POV

After Madi had left Clarke and I bothered each other for a while and agreed to meet in the radio room in a while to contact Diyoza. Then I finally excused myself to go check on Echo. She had been supposed to be present at the meeting, but for some reason had not shown.

I found her sitting on our bed with a clouded look, "Echo? Are you alright?"

She turned her face in my direction and sighed, "I am fine, please just let me be." Upon closer inspection, I noticed the tear stains on her cheeks and wondered what had happened. Echo didn't normally cry. Usually, she held on to her emotions until she either blew up or she would beat it in training.

"Echo, I have known you for a long time now, I am not a stranger to you. I can tell when things are not alright."

I sat beside her and took her hands into my own. Echo was scary, when she was in pain, she didn't show it and that was scary, however, when she showed it that meant that the pain had been too much for her to deal with on her own.

"I just don't think it would be appropriate for me to share this burden with you," she said attempting to pull her hands from his grip.

"And yet I have never known you to care about what is considered appropriate or not and you know I don't really care either, so please Echo spare me the excuse, just tell me, what's wrong?"

She sighed and gave in, "it's just I feel like I am robbing Aurora and Madi of their dad. You know I am sure they have hope that you and Clarke will soon make amends and settle down with each other. And I don't want to be selfish about you, but Bellamy you're my only family. You're the only person that I truly care about and I don't think I can lose that and if you want to go and be with Clarke then that's fine, but I guess I just feel alone in the world and would want nothing more than to hold on to you and have a life besides, you and I know that now you and Clarke have a family together, but I guess I am just selfish."

I hadn't expected those words from Echo, I mean back on the ring we had been each other's partners for a few years now. I owed her my recovery from mourning Clarke, in fact, I owed her my life because there were days up there when I thought things would just be better if I'd give up if I pulled a trigger and ended this life of constant fluctuation. I thought maybe then I'd see Clarke again. I'd be beside her and I could ask her to forgive me for leaving her behind. It was in those days that Echo had become my rock, she would always be there to remind me that Clarke had sacrificed herself so that I could live, and that her death would have been in vain if I never returned to Earth.

"You're not being selfish Echo, and if I've been absent from you since we arrived back here then I am sorry. Honestly yeah, I can see how the girls would probably want Clarke and I to get together, but neither of us has plans of that Echo. You know Clarke will always be one of the most important people in my life, but so are you." I sighed, "I love you Echo, and I want the girls to love you as a second mother. Believe it or not, they're now your family too."

She sighed as if I didn't really understand what I was asking of her, and maybe I really didn't, but the girls were going to be a constant in my life now and as such also in hers. I wanted them to get along with each other.

"I have to go," I said just realizing that the time to go to the radio room had come. "We're going to try and make a peace agreement with Diyoza. When I come back, I'll probably bring the girls with me so that they can begin to get used to you."

"Bella..."

I walked away fast not listening to her because I knew what she was about to say, "See you later."

I rushed through the halls and stairs with little to no thought going through my head. Before I knew it I was inside of the room. I walked to an empty seat beside Harper and whispered, "Where are Madi and Clarke?"

"I heard Aurora was crying when they went to the room because she never saw either of them or you anymore," Harper said as a smile took over her face, "Clarke was calming her down, she said they'd be here as soon as possible."

I nodded understanding and immediately feeling guilty for being negligent of both my girlfriend and youngest daughter. I hoped that the council members were elected soon because raising two kids was proving to be difficult when both Clarke and I were busy discussing the best course of actions to take.

Then I heard running footsteps and knew Madi was approaching the room.

"We're here!" she exclaimed from the entryway of the room. "Bellamy!"

I smiled as she rushed and sat in my legs with a smile. "Is your sister feeling better?"

Clarke walked into the room and took the seat opposite of mine, "yeah, but Clarke and I had to promise that the four of us would have a family day for just us once we went back home."

I nodded thinking that maybe it'd be good to bring Echo on that as well, even if Aurora had only wanted it to be the four of us.

"Do you think you and your sister would like to go sleepover with Echo and me, maybe we could find some games or something to do."

Madi's face then morphed from her happy go lucky self to a serious and mysterious look. "I guess," she then stood up from my legs and walked to sit on the seat beside Clarke.

"Can they Clarke?"

Clarke looked up suddenly as if she'd been caught unaware, "Uhm what?"

I chuckled realizing she'd probably been thinking something intently.

"Can the girls sleepover with Echo and me tonight?"

She clenched her jaw and nodded without speaking a sound. Madi then put her hand on Clarke's and slowly began to rub her finger on the top of her head.

"Alright let's get this done," Madi muttered as Indra and O walked into the room.

Monty nodded and readied the radio, then Madi spoke, "Ground to Eligius, do you copy?" She smirked as if that had been something, she had wanted to do her entire life.

"Eligius here, to what do I owe the pleasure," Diyoza said sarcastically from the other side.

"I am the new Heda of Wonkru and I am contacting you to reach a peace agreement," Madi stated firmly putting a strong and forceful voice on that would become a must if she was going to serve as the figurehead of our people.

"Hahaha," Diyoza laughed and I clenched my fist.

"Oh God please," I heard Clarke whisper as she closed her eyes.

"Well little girl let me assure you there is little that you offer that will convince me, but I guess I'll indulge you, do please share why I'd accept your offer what's in it for us."

Madi swallowed and took a deep breath as she shared with Diyoza our agreement and terms.

"Well I guess that sounds fair enough, fine I'll agree so long as you promise to have a slot on your council for me. Also, my people will be treated fairly. The moment I feel that they're being bullied or even segregated, we're at war again and I hope you remember that we have the heavy machinery."

"My word as Heda is a command, any action against your men, is an action against me and will be therefore punished in accordance to the wrongful action, however that goes towards your men too."

"Alright I can agree to that, in that case, I guess I'll let wonderboy and techie girl free as an acknowledgment of our treaty."

"Deal."

"Until we see again, Heda."

Madi placed the radio down and looked at her mom and me as if asking if she'd made us proud.

"Good job sweetheart!" Clarke said.

"Come on Madi, let's go get your sister and head to our celebratory sleepover." I opened my arms for her and she reluctantly filled them before we began to walk out.

"I love you Madi," Clarke called out from inside.

"Love you too."

A/N

Hey guys, don't kill me. I know I missed both of last week's updates, but what can I say I am off on an internship in a farm where the Wi-Fi is weak, and well I barely have time to write. I honestly still don't even know how I got this done.

I hope you guys like it by the way.

Please review, follow and favorite, and let me know what you think of the story so far. Thank you to those who followed and favorited and reviewed/commented. I love reading ya'll's comments because honestly, it encourages me to write when I am feeling lazy.

Stay Safe and Hopefully, I'll be able to post Chapter 10 tomorrow. Until then.

Love and many thanks,

Emily1050