Chapter 50
Adara, Octavia, Miller and Sterling had gotten dressed in the Trikru clothing. Octavia braided her hair into that of a hunter and they left with spears and backpacks. Monty had found an old tablet that still worked and converted it to solar power to charge up the battery. He had downloaded all the conversations they had recorded and anything else they thought relevant. To anyone watching who weren't clanspeople, they looked like a typical hunting party. Octavia had brought down a deer and the boys were now carrying it. Along the way, both Adara and Octavia were hunting small game such as rabbits, squirrels and the occasional bird or two. They would gift the deer to the Commander and Tondc, and use the small game to barter for clothing.
They neared the village of Tondc and looked around. Adara remembered on the maps that Foggy Bottom Metro station was near the Potomac. Now the river had moved a few hundred feet and was now flowing through what was once the pentagon, or at least through the back of it.
They were challenged by Fio and when he recognised them, he let them in. He never commented on the food they had brought, though he did wonder who had killed the deer.
They passed through the gates and went straight to the Commander's tent. Clarke was waiting outside for them.
"We brought a present for the Commander," Adara said, pointing to the burden Miller and Sterling were carrying. The Commander came out upon hearing the statement.
"Thank you for your generosity," she said. Adara nodded. The Commander gestured to two warriors to take the deer to the food tent.
"What about the other animals?" asked the Commander.
"We want to barter them for more Trikru clothing, if that's okay."
"Yes. We will be able to barter for them," the Commander replied, thinking that the Skaikru really were trying to fit in. Clarke was wearing Trikru clothing as well now and she was wearing braids, too. Adara didn't know the significance of the braids, but knew Octavia would.
"Come in, we can trade for the clothing first and release you of the animals and then we must discuss the problem with the mountain." The Commander turned on her heel and re-entered the tent. The rest followed her.
Once everyone was seated - Sterling and Miller were taken by Fio to train with the warriors, but Adara and Octavia were at the meeting - the Commander asked if there was any more from the maunon. Adara pulled the tablet from her bag and set it up to play the conversations they had recorded. Clarke, Octavia and the Commander all watched as the civilians talked about their saviours and then the replay of Dante and Cage's conversation.
"They really see us as their saviours? After all that the mountain has done to my people?" asked the Commander, incredulously.
"Don't forget that the civilians have no clue about what the others have done and are still doing." said Adara. "The main reason for showing you this, is because we have a way in through a vent. Sterling and I will be going in and show them the recordings of the truth behind their leaders' words and actions."
"You make this decision without consulting me?" asked the Commander, incensed.
"Yes. At the moment, we are not part of the coalition so we are the only ones who can go in and you can deny any knowledge of it. None of your people will be risking themselves." Octavia was not happy that she was not going. She could fit inside the vent.
"What happens if you are captured?" asked the Commander, wondering why Adara was risking herself.
Adara shrugged. "We get drained and killed. I'm hoping that because we look like Trikru, they'll put us in with your people. If that happens, I have a few tricks I can use to get us out."
"What tricks?" asked Clarke.
"You know, the double sight, the telepathy and something I discovered last night." Adara said.
"You've learned a new trick?" asked Octavia.
"Yeah. I wanted my drink which was on the other side of the room. I was debating if I should get up or not when the drink floated to my hand! Scared the crap out of me. I was just thinking that I wanted a drink and it came to me!" Adara said, still surprised that it had happened. "I practised with different things and they all came to me. So I think that if we're put in cages then I can just 'lift' the keys from one of the doctors and let us out."
"Are you acknowledging that you are a seer?" asked the Commander, astonished at what she heard.
"What's a seer?" asked Octavia.
"Someone who has great spiritual powers," Clarke replied.
"No. I'm not a seer. I'm just someone who has some mental abilities that others don't have." said Adara, depreciating her powers.
"You are still a powerful person. You need more added to your tattoo." said the Commander. "I'll have the tattooist change it after the meeting," she said, reverently.
"The point is that we need to get in. If we can get those civilians onside, they can help us take the mountain." said Adara, uncomfortable with the scrutiny she was getting from the Commander.
"And if you can, then what?"
"We open the doors and let you in. You deal with the military and we'll keep the civilians out of the way. That way if you need to irradiate the mountain again, you can and the civilians will be safe."
"How?" asked Clarke. She hadn't thought of a way to keep them safe last time and she was still regretting the decision to kill them all.
"Quarantine has its own air supply independent of the main bunker supply. It has to, because if it didn't then when you were in quarantine before joining the main population, you would have contaminated everyone just by breathing. The only way to decontaminate someone other than the way the mountain men do to your people is in quarantine." Octavia shuddered, she remembered what Bellamy had said he went through during his decontamination.
The Commander nodded.
"Can you turn off the acid fog and unlock the main gate in time for us to get there and get in?"
"I believe we can. We'll find Maya and I'll wake her up. With her on side, she can get us a radio. I'll get Monty to give us a radio frequency we can use. Other than that, all we need to do is give a thumbs up on a camera. Someone in our bunker will be watching and can relay that to you through the field radio. We can do this, Commander. This is our time to strike instead of reacting to whatever they do. If I can find Echo as well and wake her, we can make real headway."
"When do you want to go?"
"That's the problem we have. I want to take Jasper and wake him up too. With Maya safe, he may be of use to us. I want him to get those civilians who agree with us to quarantine. He can stay there with them until we can give them our bone marrow. Once the Ark comes down, we can use theirs as well. We also need to get in touch with Kane. We've only talked to them once since we've been down and they're probably wondering what's going on."
"How long until you talk to them?"
"I'm hoping it'll be tomorrow. We need them to come down AFTER the mountain falls. I don't want them trying to stop us. They'll try to negotiate with the mountain, but we need to do this for us, not for the so-called adults on the Ark. I wasn't around the first time you faced the mountain, but I do not want my people going through that a second time."
The Commander nodded.
"Very well, inform us when you wish to start. I have called for the clans to gather here. It will take another 10 days for them all to gather together."
"Hope we can hold out that long, Commander, but it depends on what's going on in the mountain. If we talk to Kane tomorrow and tell him to bring the Ark down in two weeks, hopefully the mountain will be down by then. I'll plan to go inside the mountain in 4 days. That's six days shorter than you need, so make sure you have enough warriors." Commander Lexa nodded.
"Good. Now to get you the correct tattoo to reflect your status. It will help you in the mountain too as my people will recognise you as a leader and a shaman."
"Shaman?"
"If you do not see yourself as a seer, then you are a shaman." the Commander replied. "This is non-negotiable, Adara. You have abilities that belong in the spirit world. You are to be marked as a shaman." Adara nodded, not really in agreement, but she knew it would help with the Commander's clans.
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The meeting with Kane was to be held in the morning. Adara, Octavia, Miller and Sterling had spent the night in Tondc and had risen just before dawn. They walked back to the bunker, hunting on the way. When they reached the bunker, they made their way to the kitchens and dropped off their prey. They then went to the Command centre and waited until Monty was ready.
"Got it," said Monty. "I'm bouncing our signal all over the place. No-one up there or in the mountain can pinpoint our location. It will look as if we are in Florida somewhere."
"Nice work, Monty," said Adara, clapping him on the back. "Now, let's talk to Kane."
Monty got in touch with the Ark. Kane's voice came through loud and clear.
"Bout time you got in touch, we were beginning to think something had happened to you," he said, grumpily.
"Sorry, but we've been busy dodging the mountain men," said Adara mendaciously.
"How are you doing? Is everyone all right?" asked Kane.
"Yes, we're all alive still. We've been hiding in old buildings when we can and in trees when we can't. It seems that the mountain men haven't learned to look up, yet." Everyone was looking at her with confusion. Why was she telling them they were still running from the mountain?
"Anything else?" asked Kane, leaning on the console.
"Yes, we've made contact with the Commander and she has agreed to support us when we take the mountain. Clarke is in Tondc acting as our ambassador. She's safe there, Kane. The Commander isn't going to risk her. You know that." Adara said, acerbically. "Look, Kane, we are going to attack the mountain in a month's time. You bring the Ark down in two weeks and we'll come and meet you. You'll have to make sure that your people do not shoot us, okay? We'll more than likely be dressed as grounders."
"Why?" asked Kane. "Why are you dressing like grounders?"
"So we can evade the mountain men. If we are dressed like them, the mountain men think we are them and leave us alone. We always travel with at least four people and we always carry hunting weapons and catch game. They see us and they think we're grounders. They are hunting the kids from the Ark, not grounders, Kane. We are in hiding, but we need to go to Tondc every now and then."
"Oh, right. Got it," said Kane, finally understanding.
"Is my sister there?" asked Bellamy.
"I'm here, Bell," said Octavia.
"You doing okay, O?"
"I'm good, Bell. I'm head of hunting and I'm one of Adara's council, only she calls it a cabinet."
"I thought Clarke was the leader?" said Bellamy, confused.
"And I thought we'd already had this conversation, or am I wrong?"
"No, you're not wrong," said Kane.
"Okay, can you make sure that the Griffins know Clarke is alive and well, please. Also make sure that those of the hundred that still have parents are told their kids are alive. Have any of their parents been floated since we've been down?" Adara asked, hoping like hell that no-one was.
"One. He wasn't floated but Mark Black's father died after a fall. He was in good health otherwise. This happened six days ago."
"Crap," said Adara. I'll tell him personally. Raven, find out who's team he's on and where he's at right now, please." Raven nodded and left.
"Is everyone else okay up there?"
"Yeah, we're all good."
Okay. Make sure you empty out Farm station into Alpha and Mecha, also factory station. It'll be a tight fit, but more of our people will survive that way. It's summer here, so there's plenty of food at the moment, but you'll have to have people going out and collecting enough food to survive winter. Kane, it's going to be hard work to get enough food for everyone and build a home." Adara stated. She knew that if she didn't give them jobs to do, then when they came down, they would cause trouble or just sit behind their fences and do nothing to make sure they survive. Adara wasn't sure how they would behave. She hoped David, Luna and the others found Bermuda habitable.
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AN: This chapter is short, but the next is the start of the fight in the mountain.