Blackwatcher1234: I hope I can make that work.
Marble123: Thank you very much.
RebelTreeko: I'll certainly keep that in mind.
So, after everyone had a short break from each other, we're getting right back to the conflict.
Here we go.
(Trikru territory, somewhere in the woods. Clarke Griffin.)
Clarke bounced up and down as her horse galloped down the trail through the woods. Well, it wasn't her horse, it was Lexa's, but that was beside the point.
After her revelation on how to best defeat the Mountain Men, Clarke quickly concluded that she needed to travel back to Camp Jaha. So far, they'd covered a fairly decent distance, but they still had a good ways to go.
They broke from the tree line, riding over a narrow section of trail in between thick shrubbery on either side. It was barely large enough for two horses, forcing them to travel single file over the small space. Clarke led the way.
The pounding of hooves continued for another few seconds before Clarke's mother, in her infinite wisdom stopped her own horse.
Clarke groaned as she came to a stop as well. Abby hopped off her horse, withdrawing a metal canteen from her pack.
Abby bent over a small puddle in the middle of the trail. It was muddy, but probably not terribly unsafe to drink. She filled the canteen as Clarke dismounted, walking back to meet Abby.
"Mom why are we stopping?" Clarke questioned.
"You need to drink too," Abby said, holding the canteen out to Clarke.
"I'm fine," Clarke assured her. "We're almost home."
Abby looked away with a vague expression of displeasure. That didn't matter. It wasn't important to Clarke that her mother disapproved of her decisions. The fact was, after her time with Lexa, Clarke felt more confident than ever that she was the true leader of the Sky People. Damn her mother's position as Chancellor, and so what if Maynard was the Osleya? Clarke held the power.
"Our scouts patrol these woods," Clarke turned back to the mixed group of grounders and guards. "Be careful where you point your weapons."
"Yes ma'am," One man returned.
"The grounders listen to you," Abby said as Clarke turned back to face her mother.
"Lexa told them to," Clarke replied.
It didn't look like Abby believed her.
"We shouldn't have stopped," Clarke said to the group at large. "Mount up!"
"Clarke," Abby said, drawing her attention again.
"Mom," Clarke said insistently. "I need to get back to that radio to see if Bellamy's made contact."
"No, listen to me," Abby returned. "I know you don't think you need my protection anymore, but you do. You have to trust that I know what's right for us."
Clarke looked to the ground between her mother's feet. She didn't trust that Abby knew what was right, or anyone else. Clarke trusted herself and that she was right. Nonetheless, she nodded anyway, placating her mother slightly.
"Let's move out," Abby ordered to the group at large.
Most of the men were already prepared to leave thanks to Clarke's earlier order. She wondered why Abby felt the need to make a redundant order that Clarke had already made. Clarke figured that it could only be because Abby didn't want it to look like her daughter was running the show. She couldn't humble herself enough to admit the way things really were.
Just as she climbed up on her horse, a gunshot rang out through the trees. The man just behind her was hit on his right side.
The grounder cried aloud in pain as he toppled from his horse. Two guards and Abby quickly dismounted, going to the grounder's side to help him.
Clarke took off down the trail, searching for whoever had shot the rifle. Based on the angle, the shooters must've been off to the right somewhere, probably on top of a small hill or something. It was a crude guess, as Clarke didn't know that much about marksmanship, but she knew that a bullet couldn't bend in a circle.
"Go with her!" Clarke heard Abby shout to the other two men with them.
Clarke ignored the shout, spurring her horse in the direction of the gunfire.
She took the right fork in the path just ahead, travelling up a hill. She rounded a small bend in the trail, and on the other side, she saw Octavia, Indra, and three other grounder warriors. There was the body of a man in a green suit with an oxygen tank on his back laying face down on the side of the trail. Octavia stood over another man in a green suit with her sword to his throat.
"Octavia don't!" Clarke shouted. "He's from Mount Weather, we need to keep him alive. Check to see if he's got a patch kit. We need to get him back to camp."
Indra gestured for the man to her right to follow Clarke's orders, but she looked pissed. Clarke wasn't sure what Indra had against the sky people, but her in particular. She had never liked Clarke, not since the first time they met.
Octavia shoved the man to the ground as he groaned in pain. Clarke noticed there was a hole in the right leg of his suit. That explained the groans. The radiation in the air was seeping into his skin.
The grounder went to the groaning man's side, searching for any materials he might have, while Octavia went to the dead man. She found a small pack and began rifling through it, searching for anything resembling a patch kit.
Instead, though, Octavia pulled out a small rectangular object. It looked like paper, or multiple papers.
"What is that?" Clarke asked.
"Clarke," Octavia walked towards the blonde holding out the papers. "You and Lexa were the targets."
She took the papers from Octavia. They were small and made of cardstock, but what Octavia said was plainly true. Clarke and Lexa's faces were displayed on the picture, circled in red.
"We have to warn the Commander," Indra said. She followed by ordering something in Trigedasleng to Clarke's grounder companion.
Clarke continued looking at the picture of her face, feeling herself growing angry. At the same time though, she grew angrier when she flipped to the next picture. She saw Maynard's face. His face was circled twice. Clarke wasn't sure what that meant in comparison to the single circles that surrounded her face and Lexa's, but she didn't like it one bit.
(Mount Weather, Harvest Chamber. Bellamy Blake.)
Bellamy woke to the inside of a cage. He saw other people sitting in cages directly across from him. This was obviously the place where Mount Weather kept the grounders to be drained for their blood.
It only took a few more seconds for the burning on his skin to kick in again. When they'd taken him inside to be harvested, Bellamy had been doused with scalding hot water, then covered in chemicals that felt a lot like drain cleaner, and finally doused again with hot water. Only that time, the guys decontaminating him had used brushes, scrubbing Bellamy's skin until he bled.
He could still feel the rawness of his skin and the burning of the chemical dust floating through the air. Those chemicals weren't in the air now, but they had seemingly permeated their way into Bellamy's nose and lungs. It hurt to breathe.
Looking to his right, he spotted three grounders, clothed in white undergarments, hanging upside down from the ceiling. They were hooked up by the veins in their arms to a white blocky-looking machine.
Bellamy pulled himself up to a squatting position. His back ached. There wasn't enough room inside the cage to fully stretch out his body, forcing him to sleep in the fetal position.
He reached through the bars of the cage, grabbing hold of the lock. Bellamy shoved against the door, trying to bully his way out of the box. It rattled back and forth but stayed firm. That door wouldn't move. He kept pushing anyway.
A voice spoke softly from the cage next to him.
Bellamy stopped, unable to understand the words. The voice came from a young woman, leaning against the back wall of her cage. She said something else. Obviously, she thought he was a grounder.
"I can't," Bellamy shook his head, his brain too frazzled to form sentences properly. "I don't understand you."
"Sky Person?" The woman asked accusatorially.
She leaned forward to the wall in between their cages, staring at him with hard eyes. Then, she spat in his face.
"I take it no one has told you we're not enemies anymore," Bellamy said in annoyance.
The woman just glared at him.
"I need to get out of this cage," Bellamy said.
"And then what?" The woman asked with a sarcastic tilt to her voice.
Bellamy remained silent for a moment, thinking over everything he'd been told. These people were taking grounder blood and would likely take blood from the forty-six delinquents trapped inside. They made Lincoln and countless other grounders into their own personal soldiers. Bellamy was irate. His still raw skin did nothing to assuage that feeling.
"I'm going to kill everyone in this mountain," Bellamy answered darkly.
(Camp Jaha. Maynard Draiman.)
I watched as a team of five Guards once again dismantled a five-man grounder team. Neither side had any weapons, thus keeping them from killing each other. I had quickly stepped into the role of lead trainer at camp. Though, I was sure the men I trained would use the word taskmaster.
"It looks like your people are better suited to fighting as a unit," Roan pointed out.
I nodded in agreement. The Furlan had joined me in training, but we learned quickly to try to avoid matching up Furlan with grounders. About half the time given that particular matchup, the grounder would completely lose control, attacking viciously and aiming to kill.
"Time to switch things up," I replied.
I whistled loudly, grabbing the attention of the entire group. The Guards were patting each other on the back. After being repeatedly beat down in the single combat drills, it probably felt good to get a one-up on the opposition. The grounders looked a bit annoyed. Thankfully though, they seemed to respect my leadership. It was the Guards so far who I'd had more trouble with.
"So what have we found out?" I asked loudly.
The Guards and grounders looked back and forth between themselves, as if one of the others would answer the question.
"That the grounders stumble around like a blind man in team drills," One Guard quipped loud enough for everyone to hear.
"We found out that the sky people have no respect for individual confrontation," A grounder returned.
The voices grew in intensity as the grounders and sky people started tossing insults back and forth at each other.
"Well that didn't go how you wanted it to," Roan quipped.
"Hey!" I mustered up all the power in my voice. I whistled loudly.
The shouting stopped as the group turned collectively to look at me.
"It looks like we found out that ya'll can't take a joke," I spoke harshly. "Ya look like a buncha bickerin' kids."
The heads in the group dropped slightly as my words hit them. They needed the lesson. These people needed to learn to work together.
"I don't care if ya don't like the sky people," I said looking at the grounder group. "And I don't care if ya don't like the grounders." I looked to the Guards. "Fact is we're all gonna fight together. If ya can't do that, then we all die."
I paused for a moment to let the words settle in.
"So we're gonna learn to work together," I said more calmly now. "Split into groups of six."
The grounders and Guards immediately started to group together. That wasn't going to work.
"Three sky people, three grounders," I ordered.
The looks I got from the crowd were incredulous. They all looked pissed.
"Go on," I repeated my order.
Slowly, the grounders and Guards began sectioning themselves into groups. Most of them remained unhappy.
"We're gonna do group combats again," I said. "This time, yer workin' with different people. I expect ya'll to figure this out."
Over the next few minutes, I ordered the groups to face off against each other. I found quickly that they worked together better. There wasn't any infighting. Instead, the men, whether they won or lost, after their fights would meet up and discuss their performance.
Suddenly the whole vibe of the area changed. The guards and grounders were actually working together. They were trying to create the best strategy possible for success, combining their knowledge of combat. It was encouraging to see that.
"I'd say that worked," Roan commented.
"Hopefully the next step works just as well," I replied.
After another ten minutes, I had a clear idea of which groups were the most capable. I separated those two groups from the rest.
"Now we're gonna mix things up a bit," I said. "Akio, Elena, yer joinin' them."
The grounders complained loudly. They obviously weren't happy about this development.
"Yer gonna have to work with Furlan," I said. "Deal with it."
Akio and Elena each joined one of the groups. The two sides began discussing their battle plans in hushed tones. The grounders in the groups still looked pissed.
Just as the two groups began their fight loud shouting came from the gate. Someone was crying for the door to be opened.
I saw Clarke and Abby enter the camp. They were joined by four Guards holding two stretchers. A grounder lay on one stretcher bleeding from his stomach based on the smell. He was still alive for now, but death lingered over him. On the other stretcher was a Mountain Man. He too was in grave danger, albeit less so than the grounder.
The concerning part was the question of why the grounder had been shot. I didn't have a good answer to that question.
Instead of pondering on that, I set my attention back on my task of training our soldiers.
(Camp Jaha, Medical Ward. Abby Griffin.)
"Jackson!" Abby shouted as she dashed into the medical ward. "We've got two patients. You get the radiation burns. I've got the gunshot wound."
The men brought the two stretchers, bearing the bodies of the grounder who had been shot and the Mountain Man. As she entered, Jackson quickly came to her side, helping her set the grounder's stretcher on one of the few beds they had.
"He's lost a lot of blood," Abby said. "I'm going to need O neg, as much as you can get."
One of the Guards who helped carry the stretcher jogged off to gather the O negative blood. Meanwhile Jackson joined Clarke at the Mountain Man's side, doing whatever he could to help with the burns.
Abby pressed her hands down against the grounder's wound, trying to keep it closed with pressure. As she did though, she noticed that there was another man in the room she didn't recognize. He had a scruffy gray beard and hair with a small Yin Yang symbol tattooed on his neck.
"Who the hell's this?" Abby questioned to Jackson.
Jackson looked up briefly from his work on the Mountain Man. He tracked Abby's gaze to the guy with the scruffy beard.
"This is Charles," Jackson answered as the man approached Abby. "He's one of the Furlan who came back with Maynard."
"I'm sort of the group's medic," Charles said. He had a British accent but not in a posh sense.
"Then get over here and help me," Abby ordered.
Charles quickly grabbed hold of whatever bandaging and sewing supplies were nearby. He swiped a bottle of rubbing alcohol off the counter on his way towards Abby.
He uncapped and poured the alcohol over the wound after Abby removed her makeshift bandaging performed in the field. Disinfecting was probably a good idea before they went in to stitch up the wound.
Abby heard more footsteps as Raven jogged into the room, probably attracted by the sound.
"Anything from Bellamy?" Clarke asked, knowing that Raven was helping Skylar monitor the radio for a signal from Bellamy.
"No," Raven returned, staring down at the Mountain Man.
"Then why aren't you at the radio?" Clarke questioned harshly.
"Skylar's there right now," Raven replied harshly. "How about you back off?"
The two women obviously hadn't gotten over their confrontation back in Ton DC. Clarke had falsely accused Raven of poisoning Lexa. Abby had agreed with her daughter, but it turned out that they were both wrong.
"No leave it on," Clarke ordered. "It's the only thing keeping him alive."
Abby wasn't sure what that comment was in reference to as she and Charles went about the process of stitching up the grounder's wound. They needed that blood right now. He was going to die soon.
"Well how can we treat him if we can't touch him?" Jackson asked.
"I can rig up some scrubbers in the air lock," Raven said. "Give me twenty minutes."
Raven promptly sprinted from the room.
"Shit come on," Charles swore. "Hang in there mate."
Abby looked down to the man beneath her. The grounder's breath was slowing. She took his pulse. It too was weakening.
"Get that blood now!" Abby shouted.
The blood wasn't coming fast enough.
Abby lifted the grounder's head off the bed, trying to help him clear his airway.
"Come on fight," Abby hissed.
Instead, the man lay back slowly, his eyes closed, and a final breath escaped his lungs.
Charles stopped working with the bandage. His eyes landed on the grounder's face.
"He's gone," Charles said softly with a shake of his head.
Unbeknownst to Abby, Indra walked in the room, sneaking her way behind the doctors. She appeared like a shadow next to the grounder's head.
"Yu gonplei ste odon," Indra whispered slowly as she cut a braid of hair from the man's head.
Indra set her eyes on Clarke, approaching the younger Griffin menacingly.
"A killed lives while a warrior dies?" Indra questioned rhetorically. "This is your way?"
"I'm sorry Indra," Clarke said. "But he can help us beat Mount Weather."
"Then let me make him talk," Indra said.
"No," Clarke replied. "We're not torturing him."
"Clarke's right," Abby jumped in. "He might just talk because we saved his life."
"You people are so weak," Indra said scornfully.
She turned her back and left the room with palpable anger.
Abby watched as Clarke stared down at the red face of the Mountain Man. There was a far away look in her eyes.
"Are you okay?" Abby questioned, placing a comforting hand on Clarke's back.
"He's going to need a transfusion," Clarke said, ignoring Abby's question. "With our blood."
Clarke's words only furthered Abby's theory that Clarke was decidedly not okay.
"I'll type him as soon as we can take off that suit," Jackson said.
Clarke turned to leave. Abby wasn't having any of it. She stopped Clarke with a strong hand on her wrist.
Clarke turned to Abby with an annoyed expression. Abby met her eyes determinedly. She needed an answer.
"Someone tried to kill you today," Abby said. "It's okay if you're upset."
"Just another day on the ground," Clarke replied, still covering for the way she really felt.
(Mount Weather, Harvest Chamber. Bellamy Blake.)
Bellamy continued to strain against the door of his cage. Sweat trickled down his brow as he slammed the door back and forth.
He'd been at it for at least half an hour, but no progress. The woman in the cage next to him looked tired of Bellamy's antics. She probably would have tried to knock him out if she could. Thankfully though, the woman was locked up and unable to get to Bellamy.
There was a screeching sound as someone entered the chamber.
"They're here," The woman said. "Quiet."
Bellamy stopped and sat back in the cage, trying to make himself inconspicuous.
Two men had entered the room. They walked straight to the cages, eyeing the occupants critically.
"This one'll do," One man said, going for a set of keys at his waist.
The grounder the man referred to was none other than the woman in the cage next to Bellamy. Her face contorted into an expression of fright.
For one reason or another, Bellamy couldn't stand the sight. He hated that these people were taking the grounders and stealing their blood. It was downright evil.
Bellamy kicked the door of his cage twice. The whole thing rattled, sending the man's eyes directly to Bellamy. He pulled the key out quickly.
"We got us a live one," The man said.
The second man, who wore a white lab coat, shoved a metal pole through the bars of Bellamy's cell. That object looked awfully familiar.
Bellamy felt his muscles spasm as the metal touched his skin. It sent an electric shock throughout his body.
The pain lasted only for a second, leaving Bellamy to catch his breath. The first man unlocked Bellamy's cage and opened the door.
Bellamy turned over, making to crawl for the door. The guy in the lab coat shocked him again, sending Bellamy falling backwards.
He felt a slight prick in his shoulder, but he couldn't see anything. The shock left his head spinning and his eyes shrouded in bright light.
Suddenly, Bellamy felt a deep exhaustion settle over him. His eyelids drooped and he fell forward. The blinding electric lights disappeared, leaving only black.
(Mount Weather, Harvest Chamber. Bellamy Blake.)
Pain. That's what Bellamy felt when he woke up. It was like a million tiny needles sticking into his skin at once. A blinding flash crossed behind his eyelids.
Bellamy gasped as his eyes flew open. Everything was bright. He couldn't really see. He desperately tried to regain his breath, still feeling like he was plunged into an icy river.
Gradually, the world came into focus, but not how he expected it to. Everything was upside down. His feet hurt, like he was chained by the ankles.
Then, it all made sense. He remembered being shocked and knocked out. The two guys must've hung him upside down to drain him for his blood.
A young woman bent down in front of him. Her hair was dark, and her eyes were a deep brown color.
"Who are you?" She asked.
Bellamy looked to her confused, but also concerned. He breathed in and out heavily, trying to maintain his composure. This wasn't exactly how he had imagined breaking into Mount Weather.
"You're from the Ark aren't you?" The woman asked.
Bellamy looked to her, wondering what the questions were for. He didn't understand why she would be concerned about such a thing.
"Do you know Jasper?" The woman asked, evidently deciding to accept her guess as correct.
"Maya," Bellamy realized.
He somehow remembered her from the emergency radio contact Monty made with them outside Ton DC.
"How about getting me down Maya?" Bellamy said.
Maya met his eyes for a second, then nodded. She stood, tearing off the sensors from his skin as she went. The heart rate monitor flatlined, just as the door to the harvest chamber was thrown open.
Maya straightened to meet the oncoming presence. Bellamy didn't know who was there, but he knew for certain that it wasn't good for either of them that someone came in at that particular moment.
Bellamy decided to play dead, hanging as limply as possible. He closed his eyes, using only his ears to detect sound from the outside world.
"Lovejoy, hey," Maya said awkwardly.
"What are you doing here?" Lovejoy asked. "You're not cleared for this facility."
"I know," Maya returned. "I'm sorry."
She paused for a moment only adding to the awkwardness of the conversation. As poor an analogy as it was, this reminded Bellamy of when they were playing that stupid lying game on Unity Day. When someone accused you, everything you said was under the microscope. Of course, this situation was much more serious and infinitely more life threatening.
"I just wanted to see what was so special about him," Maya said. "But…he's dead."
Thank god Maya picked up on the flatlined monitor.
"So he is," Lovejoy said as he walked by Bellamy.
Seconds later a mechanical whirring sound was emitted from the ceiling, and Bellamy felt himself being lowered to the ground.
His wrists touched the floor first, then his head, but Bellamy kept himself as motionless as possible. He held his breath, trying to hide himself as best he could.
The whirring stopped when Bellamy's entire body lay against the floor. Bellamy felt Lovejoy removing his ankle restraints. This was good. If he was the only one, then Bellamy could take him out nice and quiet.
"You're a brave girl, coming in here alone," Lovejoy said as he moved to the second ankle restraint.
Bellamy knew that every second he spent lying here was another second Lovejoy would have to identify him as living. Yet, he kept his cool, lying calmly against the concrete floor.
"You should be more careful from now on," Lovejoy continued as he pulled the tube out from Bellamy's neck.
Bellamy felt Lovejoy stand and heard his voice move closer to where Maya stood.
"This place is dangerous," Lovejoy said. "Definitely not a place you want to be."
Bellamy peered through his eyelashes, trying to keep the appearance that he was dead. He saw that Lovejoy had his back turned. Perfect.
He rehearsed the move in his head. Bellamy nodded slightly and exhaled internally. Doing so out loud would have alerted Lovejoy to his presence.
Maya nodded quickly up and down multiple times while Bellamy stealthily came to his feet.
He was utterly silent. No one would have heard him.
Now in a low crouch, Bellamy prepared to explode.
"Now g-" Lovejoy's words were cut off by a violent grab.
Bellamy snatched Lovejoy from behind. His hands went to either side of the man's head. Lovejoy was evidently too surprised to realize what was going on. Then, with a mighty jerk, his right hand going one way and his left going the other way, Bellamy broke Lovejoy's neck.
Lovejoy exhaled softly as he collapsed to the ground like a ragdoll. As sick as it sounded, Bellamy felt pretty badass for that move.
"You alright?" He questioned to Maya.
She looked to Lovejoy's body in concern. Her features betrayed her fear, but that was okay. It wouldn't make sense if she wasn't afraid after witnessing such a thing. Hell, Bellamy's heart was pounding.
"I'm fine," Maya returned softly.
The grounders in the cages shouted indistinguishable words at them. They sounded hopeful and energized by Bellamy's actions.
"Help me get him undressed," Bellamy said. "We need to get rid of the body."
Bellamy stripped the vest off Lovejoy's body. His neck still lolled to the side unnaturally. Maya moved in to unbutton his shirt.
Phase one was complete. Bellamy was safely inside the Mountain and now he had a disguise as well. Phase two came next, finding a way to contact Camp Jaha and checking on the forty-seven.
(Camp Jaha, Engineering. Raven Reyes.)
Raven sat in her chair trying to remain comfortable. That wasn't too terribly difficult, especially not compared to their first few months on the ground sleeping in tents in the cold. The real difficulty was trying not to get bored.
She idly fiddled with a few spare parts, building whatever random stuff she could. When Maynard joined her in the room, it became a little easier. She had someone to talk to at least. Though, after a while, they each took to their own tasks. Maynard spent his time reading Atlas Shrugged. Raven went back to building stuff again.
Things livened up a little bit when Octavia joined them. Raven once again had someone to talk to. The two women had taken to playing a few card games. Maynard just kept reading from the thick book. Raven was slightly shocked at the number of pages he'd turned through already in just over an hour.
"Damn it! Again!" Raven complained.
Octavia laid down her hand of cards. Once again, she'd beaten Raven. It was beyond frustrating.
"It's all statistics Raven," Maynard said without looking up from his book. "Play the odds and you'll win more."
"I'm trying," Raven groaned audibly.
Octavia just chuckled at Raven's misfortune. She collected the cards and started shuffling.
As she did, the calm atmosphere was sucked out of the room when Clarke entered.
Raven turned her head to see the blonde standing in the door frame watching them. Octavia too noticed Clarke's entry. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, Raven noticed that Maynard also saw Clarke. He remained leaned back in Skylar's chair with his feet propped up on the desk in front of him, but a darkness surrounded his demeanor.
"Any word from Bellamy?" Clarke asked.
"Nothing," Raven returned.
"Why hasn't he radioed yet?" Clarke asked more to herself than anyone else.
She began to pace back and forth looking stressed out. Raven frowned at Clarke's mannerisms. This concern was too far. Bellamy, in all likelihood would be fine and worrying about it wouldn't help at all.
More than that though, Raven wasn't sure how to feel about Clarke right now. She figured that she should give Clarke some grace. After all, Clarke only made the best assumption she could based upon the circumstances when she accused Raven of attempting to poison Lexa. But giving grace was easier said than done.
On the other hand, Raven was concerned that Maynard wasn't ready to forgive Clarke at all. Raven could practically feel Maynard's anger radiating off him.
"Relax Clarke," Raven said placatingly. "Bellamy will be fine. Just give him time, he'll radio."
"How can you stay so calm?" Clarke asked hotly. "Bellamy's in there risky his life for us. What are you doing? Playing cards? Reading?"
Clarke breathed heavily, still angry. Raven remained silent, unsure of how to respond.
"At least I'm doing something," Clarke said.
A slapping sound came from behind her. Raven jumped in her chair, looking to the sound. She saw that Maynard had slapped his book shut.
"What's that?" Maynard shot back. "Beratin' yer friends for not doin' enough work?"
Clarke stood fuming as she stared at Maynard.
"I've been trainin' our soldiers for the war," Maynard said. "Raven just saved that dude's life by fixin' the airlock. Octavia captured that same guy who has valuable information on our enemy. If ya don't think that's work, then I don't know what to tell ya."
Raven glanced back and forth between Clarke and Maynard. She knew that ever since the incident in Ton DC, they'd been looking for any excuse to take out their anger on each other.
"Maynard," Clarke said in a calm yet patronizing tone. "I have been strategizing with the grounders for days. I can assure you no one's been working harder than me."
"I don't care how hard ya've been workin'," Maynard returned as he planted his feet on the ground. "I do care that ya keep tellin' us how we ain't doin' enough."
"I suppose then now is a good time for me to tell you that the Mountain Men painted a target on your back," Clarke said, slapping two pieces of pages on the table in front of her. "They want you dead."
Raven looked to the pictures while Maynard stood and walked over to view them as well. The first was a picture of Clarke and Lexa. Their faces were circled in red ink. The second picture was of Maynard. His face was circled twice.
"We caught that man when his partner shot one of the grounders with us," Clarke said. "His shot was meant for me."
"So what?" Maynard questioned. "I won't get caught in that position like you did. I ain't that stupid."
"Really?" Clarke replied. "Only one of us speaks proper English."
"Oh wait, who saved our ass when the grounders showed up to attack Camp?" Maynard asked sarcastically. "That's right. It was me, twice."
"Well that's just great isn't it?" Clarke shot back. "You killed more grounders than anyone. Of course, they'd want us dead, you killed one of them every other day."
"Ya think I wanted to do that?" Maynard asked.
"Doesn't matter," Clarke returned. "And by the way your girlfriend was the one who burned three-hundred of them alive. She's killed more than any of us."
Raven looked to Clarke angrily. She and Clarke had agreed that using the rockets on the dropship was a viable solution to their problem. Now, Clarke was throwing the decision they made together back at Raven.
"Don't bring her into this," Maynard said threateningly.
"Hey," Octavia shoved her own seat backwards, shoving her way between Maynard and Clarke. "That's enough. We're all doing the best we can. Quit arguing and get yourselves together."
Raven agreed with Octavia in her mind, but she wanted to punch Clarke right about now. It was tough for her to determine which one she wanted more.
"I'm done with this shit," Maynard said with a shake of his head. "Next time ya bring Raven into this, yer done."
The threat was vague, leaving it up to the imagination what Maynard meant.
"Why?" Clarke asked aggressively.
She pushed her way past Octavia staring straight up into Maynard's face. Clarke definitely had some balls to pull that move. She stood only to the base of Maynard's thick muscular neck, but she didn't back down.
"She can't fight her battles for herself?" Clarke questioned.
Maynard looked about ready to lose it, but it was Raven who lost control, not her boyfriend.
Raven stood, her chair clattering to the ground. She walked straight up to Clarke and promptly shoved her backwards. Clarke stumbled slightly while Raven closed the distance again.
"Cut it out Clarke," Raven warned lowly.
"Or what?" Clarke hissed.
"Want to find out?" Raven pushed her way forward.
Raven's forehead was practically touching Clarke's. All she wanted was an excuse to plant her knuckles on Clarke's jaw.
"Stop it!" Octavia shouted over them, once again placing herself between the opposing sides of the argument. "This isn't doing anyone any good. Bellamy wouldn't want us to be fighting over this."
Raven huffed and clenched her fists. She just walked straight past Octavia towards the door. Raven knocked into Clarke's shoulder on her way out.
Raven's feet slammed into the floor as she stomped her way down the hall. She didn't know where she was going, but she didn't particularly care. Raven just wanted to spend some time alone.
She heard a few indistinguishable words said in the room behind her. It was probably Maynard threatening Clarke, or the other way around. Raven didn't particularly care. She just wanted to be left alone with her thoughts.
(Mount Weather, Harvest Chamber. Bellamy Blake.)
Bellamy emerged from the small side room he used to change into Lovejoy's clothes. They were a little bit tight on him. Bellamy was after all a larger man than Lovejoy. That was okay though, Bellamy didn't need for the uniform to fit him perfectly.
Maya's eyes locked on him as he exited, closing the door behind him. She looked down, almost like she couldn't bear to look at Bellamy dressed in the clothes of a man she once knew.
Bellamy ignored her obvious discomfort and pressed the button on the wall. An alarm rang out three times, then a mechanical clicking sound came from the room behind him. In that room was a chute, leading down to the reaper tunnels, at least according to Maya. It was a fairly handy way to dispose of Lovejoy's body.
Bellamy picked up Lovejoy's belt from the floor, attaching it around his waist. A pistol was jammed into the holster on his right hip. Hopefully, Bellamy wouldn't have to use it.
"You've done enough," Bellamy said to Maya. "You should walk away."
"You don't know where you're going," Maya replied.
"So draw me a map," Bellamy said.
"No," Maya shook her head slightly, meeting Bellamy's eyes. "I'm in."
"Okay," Bellamy said. "I need to get to the radio so I can contact Camp Jaha. We heard Jasper's SOS."
"I helped him set that up," Maya said. "I know where it is."
That was good. It saved Bellamy the struggle of having to locate it himself.
"Bellamy," Maya spoke again uncertainly. "Your people are disappearing. Two so far, Monty and Harper."
Bellamy looked away, trying his best not to imagine what had happened to them. His brain was filled with horrible images, despite his best attempts.
"I thought they'd be in here, b-" Maya started.
"I want to see the others," Bellamy cut her off. "Now."
"The dorm's on the way to the radio," Maya nodded slightly.
Bellamy nodded in returned, then moved to lead the way out of the room.
"Wait," Maya said.
Bellamy stopped and turned back to her. Maya quickly ripped the tag on his uniform off. That seemed unhelpful. It would be better for him to have an identity.
"Everyone here knows everyone," Maya explained.
She reached down, taking Lovejoy's cap off the ground.
"Put this on," She said. "And roll up your sleeve."
Bellamy unbuttoned and pulled up his left sleeve, exposing the flesh beneath.
"Tracking chip?" He asked.
"It'll trip alarms once we start moving," Maya said. "We have to take it out."
Maya turned back to Bellamy with a scalpel in her hand.
"Do it," Bellamy sent her a nod of encouragement. She looked more nervous about cutting open Bellamy's arm than Bellamy felt about having his arm cut open.
"How'd you know what my name was before I told you?" Maya asked as she made an incision in Bellamy's skin.
"Clarke said Jasper couldn't stop talking about someone named Maya," Bellamy answered, barely feeling the cut.
He felt a small movement beneath his skin as Maya removed the chip from his arm. Bellamy took hold of a small piece of gauze and placed it against the open wound.
"Put this in your cage," Maya held the tracking chip out to Bellamy.
Bellamy complied, taking the small chip from Maya.
He opened the door and dropped the chip against a metal beam. As he did, the woman in the cage next to him met his eyes. She looked almost wistful.
"I'll come back for you," Bellamy said. "I promise."
He sent her a nod of encouragement, then followed Maya out of the harvest chamber.
(Camp Jaha, outside the airlock. Marcus Kane.)
He stared directly into the Mountain Man's eyes.
When Kane was alerted that the man had woken up, he'd been elated. They would finally have some information on the Mountain. In twenty minutes though, he'd found out nothing. Well, that wasn't strictly accurate. Kane had found out that the man was called Carl Emerson and that he worked Mount Weather security detail.
"Please answer the question," Kane asked, trying to be polite.
"Carl Emerson, Mount Weather security detail," He said in a monotone voice.
There was a surprise.
"You said that already," Kane continued. "You don't seem to be grasping the situation here. You should have died in the woods. We saved your life."
Emerson's eyebrows rose slightly as he looked to the ground. The man appeared almost bored.
"Why not help us bring an end to all this?" Kane asked.
The man remained silent for a moment, then he looked up to meet Kane's eyes.
"Carl Emerson, Mount Weather security detail," He said again.
"He's not going to talk," Clarke said from behind Kane.
The two Griffins had joined him at the airlock to interrogate Emerson. Abby still looked concerned for her daughter, as she had explained to Kane earlier. The doctor was concerned about Clarke's growing position. Clarke looked royally pissed when she'd arrived, like she'd been in some sort of big fight.
"He will if we open the door," Kane said certainly.
An expression of fear crossed Emerson's face briefly, but it was gone just as soon as it appeared.
Abby walked past Kane and pressed a small button beside the airlock door. It controlled the intercom. She had muted the mics so Emerson couldn't hear them.
"We are not doing that," Abby said sternly.
"We need to know what he knows," Kane returned. "Vulnerabilities, troop numbers-"
"She's right," Clarke cut him off. "Torture doesn't work."
"Clarke," Kane tried again hoping that someone would listen to reason. "It could save your friends."
"I'm the Chancellor," Abby said, ensuring that Kane would have no trouble figuring out who was in charge.
"Then act like one!" Kane shouted. "I told you I would support you as long as I believed you were doing the right thing."
"I am," Abby returned. "And if you disagree convene a vote and take my place."
"I don't give a damn about the title," Kane said. "I just want to save our people."
"So do I," Abby said.
It certainly didn't sound like it to Kane.
He shook his head. Kane walked past Abby down the hall, looking for anything else to occupy his mind.
(Mount Weather. Bellamy Blake.)
"There are three hundred eighty two people inside this mountain," Maya explained as she led Bellamy through what, so far, had been a maze of tunnels. "If any of them realize you're not one of us you're dead."
They stopped by a metal door, which Bellamy assumed was an elevator. Maya swiped a small card on a control panel on the right of the door. It beeped, then Maya pressed the down button on the elevator.
"We're on level two," Maya continued. "The dorm's on five. There's a camera in the upper right-hand corner. Keep your head down."
Bellamy nodded as the elevator door slid open. He entered looking to the floor to hide his face. Maya pressed the button for level five.
"Hold the elevator," A male voice said as someone reached his hand inside the doors.
They opened up again as a dark-skinned man in a suit entered.
"Hey Maya," The man said, pressing the level seven button. "You know I missed you in my Expressionist class."
"Yeah," Maya replied awkwardly. "I had some work to do."
"I'll get you the notes," The man whispered, leaning back to Maya with a smile on his face.
It sounded like Maya was some sort of artist, or at least she greatly enjoyed art.
Bellamy rested his hand on his gun, just in case something went wrong.
The elevator dinged and two more people entered. Bellamy was feeling really stressed out now. This was the perfect sort of place to get caught.
The black guy backed up to allow space for a dark-haired man and a blonde woman to enter the elevator.
They stood in complete silence for a few moments while the elevator trundled down to level five. It dinged and the doors opened.
Maya and Bellamy moved out as quickly as they could without looking conspicuous. That was way too close for Bellamy to feel comfortable. At least they weren't on the damn elevator anymore though.
(Camp Jaha, Engineering. Clarke Griffin.)
A loud high-pitched ringing sound came from behind Clarke.
"I could probably replicate this frequency," Skylar said. "You know Raven would be better at this right? She's the mechanic. I'm just good at coding."
"I don't really want Raven's help right now," Clarke replied coldly.
She continued to pace back and forth on the floor of the engineering room. Clarke had barely been able to sit still during her short return to Camp Jaha. She desperately needed to hear back from Bellamy.
Bellamy was the key to everything. If he failed, they all failed. But, if Bellamy could turn off the fog, get to the grounders, then their victory was virtually assured. It wouldn't be easy for him. His life was certainly at great risk, just like all spy's, but that was the price they had to pay.
"Clarke," Skylar said, shutting down the buzzing sound. "This feud with Maynard and Raven isn't going to help. We need their help."
"We'll be fine," Clarke returned with a shake of her head.
"Hey," Octavia practically ran through the door. "Any word from Bellamy?"
She sounded just as worried as Clarke felt, probably more so. Octavia's concerns were almost certainly more personal than Clarke's though. That's what Clarke told herself.
"Nothing yet," Skylar answered regretfully.
"Lincoln's still missing too," Octavia said. "He should be back by now."
"They'll be okay," Clarke assured her.
"They'd better be," Skylar commented. "The whole plan rests on Bellamy getting in."
"He will," Clarke said, unable to believe the lack of faith.
An awkward silence hung over the three women. Skylar seemed to be absorbing the negative energy around her, just growing more frustrated with everything since her injury.
"Councilor Kane, Clarke Griffin, and Maynard Draiman please report to the south airlock immediately," A voice echoed over the intercom.
Clarke grumbled to herself. She'd have to see Maynard again. The redneck would be lucky if Clarke didn't sock him in the face.
"We'll finish this later," Clarke said as she left engineering.
Clarke wound her way through the halls of the crashed Ark, meeting Kane as she came around one corner. The two of them walked side by side, saying nothing.
When the reached the air lock, a guard stepped aside to allow them to see the prisoner. Maynard was already there, leaning back against the wall staring at Emerson with a calculating look on his face. Abby was there as well, waiting to meet them.
"Did he say anything?" Kane asked.
"No," Abby answered. "But his blood did."
Clarke was perfectly happy to let Kane and her do the talking. She sent death glares at Maynard. The Jew didn't even look at her, continuing to stare at Emerson. He did, not so subtly, flip her off pretending to scratch his rapidly graying beard.
"Jackson found genetic marker anomalies that only come from someone who was born on the Ark," Abby said.
Clarke's eyes whipped back in her mother's direction. That revelation mattered way more than looking angrily at Maynard.
"It's started," She whispered.
Kane looked back and forth between Clarke and Abby once. He seemed unsure and slightly nervous.
"It didn't come from the blood transfusion?" Kane asked.
"No," Abby replied. "I took the sample before that."
"They're bleeding my friends," Clarke said angrily staring at Emerson.
"We don't know that," Kane said.
"Yes we do," Clarke returned certainly. "We were genetically engineered, they weren't."
Clarke was pissed now. She was pissed that the other three weren't more pissed. Abby and Kane seemed more concerned with her. Maynard meanwhile, hadn't looked away from Emerson.
Clarke walked determinedly forward, her eyes on the release button next to the airlock door.
"What are you doing?" Kane asked, stepping out in front of her.
"Killing him," Clarke returned like it was obvious.
She made to walk around Kane, but the man held her back with strong hands.
"Get out of my way Kane," Clarke ordered angrily.
"Calm down," Kane spoke softly.
"Clarke," Abby said sternly. "You're not in charge here."
"Amen," Maynard spoke up for the first time, though he still stared at Emerson with cold eyes.
"We do things my way," Abby said, ignoring Maynard's comment.
Maynard grumbled to himself quietly as he straightened.
"Mamash na'al," He said condescendingly as he passed by Clarke and Abby.
Clarke watched him go. She wasn't sure what the words meant. They definitely weren't English. They didn't sound like Trigedasleng either. Clarke was confident though, that the words weren't meant as a compliment.
(Mount Weather. Bellamy Blake.)
A school bell rang as Bellamy and Maya walked down the hall towards the dormitory. Maya stopped Bellamy, grabbing him by the wrist to ensure he didn't walk out into the open. Kids could generally tell when something was wrong. They just had a better sense of that sort of thing than adults.
"Okay, come along, everyone inside," A woman's voice said.
"Homeroom has now begun," A voice over the intercom spoke. "All students should now be in their classroom."
Maya peeked around the corner, being sure that no one was there to notice them.
"Come on," She whispered, leading the way out again.
Bellamy followed her. There was a small set of stairs in front of them, only six steps.
"Mister?" A curious voice spoke from behind Bellamy.
His hand went to his gun in a panic as he turned around. He didn't see an adult though. What Bellamy saw was a young boy. Bellamy quickly dropped his hand. He wouldn't shoot a kid, no matter what the circumstances.
"Are you on a ground unit?" The kid asked.
Bellamy stared at the young boy unsure of how to respond. He could infer that a ground unit was made up of men wearing hazmat suits. What exactly they did Bellamy couldn't guess.
"My dad's training for a ground unit," The boy continued.
"It's pretty cool up there," Bellamy said, finally getting control of himself. "I hope he makes it."
The boy smiled brightly, then walked off towards the still open door. The teacher standing at the door ushered him in quickly.
On the back of his pack, stitched into the fabric was a small rectangle with neat lettering embroidered on it. The letters read, Lovejoy.
Bellamy's heart dropped. He'd killed that kid's dad, broken his neck and tossed him down a chute like it was nothing. The little Lovejoy couldn't have been older than seven. Bellamy closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to keep himself under control.
"They're just kids," Bellamy said.
"What'd you expect you'd find here?" Maya asked.
She looked to Bellamy with an unreadable expression on her face, then walked off down the hall again. Bellamy watched her for a moment.
He knew how painful it was to grow up without a father. That was his life. Yet, Bellamy had just condemned a poor seven-year-old boy to the same fate.
Bellamy shook himself and followed after Maya.
He kept the brim of his hat low as they passed by a few people on their way to the dorm. Rounding a corner, Maya stopped in front of an open door. Inside, were the forty-seven prisoners.
"There they are," Maya said.
Just as they stopped, an alarm blared from the ceiling. With a rush of air, the door to the dormitory began to close. It slammed shut with a thunk. Bellamy didn't react. He couldn't give away his cover.
"What the hell's going on?" He asked Maya quietly.
"I don't know," Maya answered. "It's not a breach, but it can't be good."
Bellamy turned back to the door, casting a quick glance in the direction of his friends. In one of the two windows, Bellamy saw the face of Jasper Jordan. He looked fearful, but as he saw Bellamy's face, he looked shocked.
"Get me to that radio," Bellamy said, turning back to Maya.
Maya nodded vigorously, casting a brief glance at Jasper before dashing off back the way they had come.
(Camp Jaha, Engineering. Maynard Draiman.)
I was pleasantly surprised to see Raven in Engineering as well as Skylar. Skylar sat in front of her computer working on something or other, while Raven worked with small tools on some sort of electronic device.
"Hey," Raven said, noticing my approach. "You okay?"
Apparently, I'd spent enough time with Raven for her to become fully comfortable with all my mannerisms. Then again, I was now comfortable with all of hers as well.
"Mount Weather's already bleedin' them," I said with a defeated expression on my face. "We're too late."
"No," Raven shook her head. "I don't believe it."
"Jackson found traces of blood that only develops on the Ark," I explained despondently.
Skylar turned in her chair, watching us.
"You can't give up Maynard," Raven said softly, coming closer. "You never quit. It's one of the things I-"
Raven stopped speaking suddenly as if she caught herself from saying something she hadn't meant to. She swallowed hard, then started again.
"What I'm trying to say is, don't quit," Raven said.
"What do we do though?" I questioned. "The troops are as ready as they're gonna get. Alliances are prepared and all we can do is wait for Bellamy. We don't even know is he's gonna make it."
"He will," Raven assured me, grabbing my hands in hers. "We've got this."
I looked down to her hands smiling softly. I didn't know whether I could believe her or not. That was the love of my life, and I didn't know if I could believe her.
A buzzing and screeching sound came from the radio lying on the center table of the room. I twitched slightly, trying to block out the sound. Just a second later though, it came into focus.
"Camp Jaha?" It was Bellamy's voice. "This is Mount Weather. Can anyone ready me?"
"Holy shit," Skylar swore softly.
Letting go of Raven's hands, I dashed towards the radio, grabbing hold of the receiver.
"Camp Jaha, this is Mount Weather. Can anyone read me?" Bellamy asked again, more intensely this time.
"That you chief?" I asked.
"Maynard?" His voice returned.
My shoulders sagged in relief. Maybe we did have a chance. Raven lay a soft hand against my back as she joined me next to the radio.
"Ya okay?" I asked.
"I'm fine," Bellamy answered. "But that's it for the good news. We have to talk fast. Something has changed. Jasper, Monty, and everyone else are locked in the dorm."
"They all alive?" I asked.
"I think so," Bellamy said. "For now. Maya says that they're already using their blood. Things will get ugly in here real fast."
"Maya's with ya?" I asked.
I had only heard of the girl so far. Evidently, she was pretty damn important to the guys inside, Jasper especially.
"She helped me escape," Bellamy said. "If it weren't for her, I'd be dead."
Silence was all that came through the radio for a moment.
"Maynard, there are kids in here," Bellamy said. "We need a plan that doesn't kill everyone. Please tell me we have one."
That ruled out opening the doors and letting them all die of radiation sickness. We couldn't kill kids. In the immortal words of Sting, 'The Russians love their children too.'
"Workin' on it," I replied. "But we can't do anythin' until ya disable the acid fog. Skylar'll help ya."
I looked to the redhead, wanting to be sure that I was correct in my assumption. Skylar nodded in response.
"Got it," Bellamy said. "What else."
"Ya gotta figure out a way to free the grounder prisoners," I radioed. "They've got a whole army in there. Set 'em free and they'll take out their captors willingly."
"Trojan Horse," Bellamy said. "Good plan."
"What does Maya think?" I asked. "That gonna work?"
"She says it's not a problem," Bellamy answered.
That was good.
"Maynard, if I'm going to pull this off, you need to buy me some time," Bellamy said. "It won't be long before they realize I don't belong here."
"Don't get caught," I responded. "I'll figure somethin' out."
"Come up with it quick," Bellamy said.
"Don't worry about that," I smirked lightly as I spoke. "Just focus on tryin' not to die."
"Copy that," Bellamy said.
I exhaled heavily and carried the radio over to Skylar.
"Ya got this," I said with a nod of encouragement.
"What are you going to do?" Skylar asked.
"Divert their attention," I responded simply.
I turned to Raven, meeting her eyes.
"Yer gonna want yer gun," I said.
(Camp Jaha. Maynard Draiman.)
I led my small force down the hall towards the air lock. It consisted of myself, with Lucille on my hip, Raven, cradling her rifle, Roan, Octavia, Indra, three grounder warriors I'd been training, and three Guards who I'd also been training.
"Move," I ordered the guard at the door.
He looked uncomfortable, like he wasn't sure what to do.
"Get out the way," I warned.
The guard complied, standing aside.
I stopped at the door to the airlock, meeting eyes with Emerson.
"Get yer suit on Emerson," I said. "I'm gonna let ya outta here."
Emerson looked to me uncertainly, but after a few seconds, he followed my instructions. Obviously, he didn't know what my plan was.
It took a few minutes for Emerson to don and properly seal his suit against any outside radiation. Raven depressurized and opened the airlock the second Emerson was ready to go.
Roan and Indra of all people took up positions at opposite sides of Emerson's body, grabbing him by the elbows.
"I would tell ya not to run," I spoke as he stared at me through his gas mask. "But I think ya know what happens if ya do."
Emerson nodded in understanding.
I led the group outside. It was dark and foggy. People sat around eating dinner or enjoying the quiet. That quiet didn't last for long as everyone inevitably noticed the squad leading the Mountain Man out of the Ark.
"Maynard what are you doing?" Kane questioned stepping into our path.
Abby followed Kane just a second later. Whispers passed back and forth between the voices in the crowd. Clarke even stood just by the electric fence, watching us suspiciously. Lucky for her, she might get her wish.
I didn't answer. I just kept walking. I could hear Raven gripping her rifle uncomfortably. She didn't want this to escalate. I didn't either, but I was certainly willing to fight it out, if that's what it came to.
"Maynard stop," Abby ordered.
"Step aside Abby," I returned with an order of my own. "I'm lettin' this guy go."
One of the grounder soldiers appeared at my side, rather threateningly.
"Absolutely not," Abby said incredulously.
"He hasn't told us anything yet," Kane backed her up.
"And he's not goin' to," I said. "So, I'm makin' him useful."
"Get the prisoner back to the airlock now," Abby ordered a Guard next to her.
"Yes ma'am," The man replied moving forward to take Emerson from Roan and Indra.
Raven turned her rifle, centering her sights on the man's forehead.
"Raven," Abby spoke in a disbelieving tone. "Lower your weapon."
"Hell no," Raven returned stonily.
Another two men approached us. The rest of my squad promptly stepped out to meet them. Octavia, Indra, and the other grounders drew their swords. Roan kept hold of Emerson, also drawing his. The few Guards with us, raised their own weapons. I lightly rested my hand against Lucille's handle.
"I'm willin' to bet that most people in this camp would fight for me not you," I said calmly. "I saved their lives when I beat Han. What do ya have? A title?"
I chuckled to myself lightly.
"I don't care if yer the Chancellor," I continued. "Get out the way before this gets ugly."
Abby met my eyes with a dark expression. Clarke too looked on curiously, but I couldn't be sure whether she was on my side or her mother's. Clarke probably wanted to see us both lose.
"Indra," Abby said dangerously quiet. "Tell your people to stand down before this gets out of hand."
"No," Indra declined to obey Abby's order.
More of the grounders joined my group, drawing their weapons and placing themselves along the line with me.
"We stand with the Osleya," One man said.
Akio, Elena, Dieter, and even Chuck joined my group. Chuck looked reluctant to fight, but that was okay. With six Furlan, I didn't see a way we would lose.
"People could get hurt Maynard," Abby said. "Raven could get hurt."
I tamped down my anger. Abby had just threatened Raven. I didn't want a violent conflict.
"Move, and no one gets hurt," I ordered deadly calm.
Abby remained silent, eyeing me coldly.
"Not one of us knows what's right all the time," I said. "I wouldn't claim to have that power or that wisdom. I'm tired of this bullshit, so stand aside."
I gripped Lucille tightly, ready to draw if necessary. Abby didn't look ready to back down. I wouldn't back down either.
"The grounders trust Maynard," Kane said quietly, leaning over to Abby. "Maybe we should too."
Abby said nothing for a long moment, staring at me with flaming eyes. I didn't think she would give up. She certainly didn't have that smell to her.
"Stand down!" I ordered the men around her. "Don't die for somethin' pointless."
"Do not stand down!" Abby shouted back.
The Guards whispered back and forth, looking confused as to who they should obey. Kane sent a subtle signal to the men, telling them to put their rifles away. Thank god someone had sense.
Slowly, the Guards lowered their guns.
"What are you doing?" Abby asked incredulously. "Get your weapons back up!"
No one followed her directions.
I spread my arms in a wide shrug, looking at Abby with a look that said, 'what are you going to do?'
"Hearts and minds," I said knowingly to Abby.
I led my squad forward with Roan still being the only one keeping hold of Emerson. I didn't really think it mattered that he was the only one though. Braveheart was more than enough for practically anyone to handle.
"Open the gate!" I ordered.
The gate guards complied with my request, allowing us to pass through. Clarke stared at me with an unreadable expression as we passed her by. I still wasn't sure what she thought of all this.
"Alright buddy," I said, stopping Emerson in his steps. "I gotta message for yer leader. He's a dead man walkin'."
Emerson stared at me, taking in every last word I said. He was determined to be released.
"Yer watchin' us, but ya haven't seen jack shit," I continued. "We gotta massive grounder army just waitin'. Ya can't see it, and even if ya could, yer little acid fog can't hurt them. And now, since ya so kindly showed up, we can shut down the reapers with yer tone generator."
Emerson breathed heavily.
"Ya'll got one more chance," I said. "Let our people go or be destroyed. Ya understand?"
"I got it," Emerson replied.
"Excellent," I said with a smirk.
I grabbed hold of the pressure release valve on Emerson's oxygen tank. I pressed it down, letting the air inside out. The gauge rapidly dropped from eight hours to six, where I stopped the release of air.
"Yer gonna get back to Mount Weather in six hours, not eight," I said raising my eyebrows.
"Six hours?" Emerson questioned. "That's not enough. How am I supposed to deliver your message then?"
"Better run boy," I smirked.
There we go. Another exciting chapter.
Maynard and Clarke are really in opposition now. I promise though, that if you are a Clarke fan, she won't be bitter and resentful forever. She'll come around eventually. When she does, she'll probably be a better character than she was originally too.
Also, if you were wondering what Mamash na'al means, it is a Hebrew expression meaning something like, "You are as intelligent as a shoe."
Anyway, thanks for reading.