It had been one day since the battle with the Ripa. After burning the bodies of the dead, Anya had left to send word to her Commander of Clarke's arrival.
Clarke finally had the time to radio the Ark since they first landed.
"Ark, come in this your Commander. Over."
Only static greeted her for a full minute before a response came.
"This is the Ark, we read you Commander. Over"
Clarke was relieved to hear the sound of her dad Marcus's voice. "Dad, it's good to hear your voice. I wish I could talk longer but I have news."
"What is it Clarke, is something wrong?" She could hear the worry in his voice plainly.
"Well not exactly," She answered. "We made contact with survivors on the ground, they're Becca's survivors, her legacy and flame live on and we found the source of the signal disrupting our navigation systems."
"I'm sensing a but Clarke, what is it?" Marcus said, ever the pragmatist. Celebrating the news of Becca would come later.
"The signal we thought was coming from some derelict old world technology is actually not disrupting, it's actively jamming us, and it's coming from Mount Weather.."Clarke answered, knowing what his reaction would be.
"Mount Weather? The same Mount Weather that Becca was supposed to rally survivors to? Why would it be jamming us? Are Becca's people not friendly?" Marcus questioned.
"They're friendly enough," Clarke answered his last question. "Mount Weather betrayed Becca, they burned her at the stake, and jammed our navigations so we couldn't follow."
"...I see, what do you plan to do about it?" Her Dad asked, most likely knowing her answer.
"Bring justice," Clarke answered simply. "Any I deem innocent will join the fold, everyone else will die screaming as Becca did. I will radio once it is done."
"Very well, I love you Clarke. May we meet again." Her Dad said, hope in his voice.
"I love you too, may we meet again." Clarke replied in kind before switching off the radio.
She climbed down from the second level of the drop ship to see the guard she used when Octavia was busy, he was waiting patiently by the ladder.
Dax was her largest warrior by a decent margin at seven feet tall, he had short blonde hair and stubble, and dark blue eyes. He rested his hands on the pommel of his massive two handed war hammer.
She doubted any but he could even lift the thing, let alone wield it. She had seen him single handedly break a shield wall of Sardaukar still loyal to Jaha with it.
Both of her guards were truly forces of nature. While Octavia was a hurricane of blades and blood, Dax was an avalanche of overwhelming strength and broken bones.
Dax might be her most physically imposing warrior and near non verbal, but she knew he was actually a very kind and loyal man who loved his mother and girlfriends more than anything.
"Thanks for waiting Dax." Clarke said, greeting the giant.
"Mm." Dax nodded.
As they made their way outside she spotted Octavia walking in from the tree line with the scout Anya had left as a liaison.
'Interesting' she mused.
She called out to them, "You know, I don't believe I got your name yesterday in all the excite - " Clarke began but was cut off.
"Lincoln, his name is Lincoln Kom Triku, he's one of their best scouts and lives in a village called TonDC." Octavia replied, surprisingly well informed.
Clarke raised an inquisitive eyebrow at the too-knowledgeable woman. Octavia looked away with a light blush dusting her cheeks.
"HA, I WIN! PAY UP!"
"Fiiiine."
Clarke craned her neck to look over her shoulder for the two voices. She saw a very smug looking Harper tugging Zoe to the dropship who was trying her best to look upset despite her grin.
Clarke just rolled her eyes at the lovers' antics. The couple had been betting sexual favors for years if the rumors...and noises were true.
"Finn!" Clarke called out.
Finn jogged up to her, he wore the same armor as the rest of her warriors but had no weapons. "What can I do for you princess?"
"Take over Harper's next scouting patrol, if something moves I want to know about it." She ordered, ignoring the 'princess' comment entirely.
He just grinned his sardonic smile, nodded and ran off.
Lincoln spoke up, "What did he mean by princess, and why did we have no weapons?"
"It's because my parents are three of the five representatives of my people, I'm not a real princess. A joke," She clarified. "As for why he carries no weapon, he is a scout, one of my best but strictly non combat. It's not my story to tell." She wasn't about to tell what amounted to a stranger, the story of how Finn had a mental breakdown when he was forced to kill a family by Jaha.
Finn was doing remarkably well since he had begun seeing the Healers. Every Healer on the Ark was trained in mental healing as well as physical, especially those assigned to the Sardaukar. It's part of what made Healers along with Engineers sacred among her people, life would be impossible without them. A crime against a Healer or Engineer was a crime against life itself to her people. It was the one crime the Chancellors never dared commit.
"I see," Came Lincoln's late reply, breaking Clarke out of her musings.
Clarke eyed the darkening sky, dusk was nearly upon them.
"Bell. Start dinner up, I'm starving." Clarke called to her General over her bone/vocal chord conducting headset.
"Aye aye Princess." Bellamy responded cheekily.
"Tell me Lincoln, have you ever had moonshine?" Clarke asked with a mischievous smile, titanium wolf's teeth gleaming in the low light.
The same time.
Lexa sat upon her gnarled oak throne impatiently waiting for more news. She had sent Anya to investigate the object that fell from the sky the instant she saw it from her tower.
Anya had sent word that the object had contained warriors capable of sneaking up on a Triku scout in the middle of the forest. Truly not a feat capable of by many. She had said that she was going to attempt contact due to their non aggression and asking her scout to speak with their Commander. She wasn't sure who this other 'Commander' was or why they were on her lands but she would find out.
Lexa was brought out her thoughts by a messenger slamming open the chamber doors, out of breath and looking like he had seen a spirit.
"Report." She commanded, not waiting for the messenger to flounder a greeting.
"Heda," a wheezing breath, "Anya sends word," another gasp for air, "Wanheda has come." The messenger finally spit out.
'What?! This had to be wrong. Almost nobody believed in the prophecy of Becca's people any longer. An entire clan of Natblida was hard to believe,' She thought, emotions running high despite her practiced mask firmly in place.
"Did she say how she knew this to be true?" She asked the messenger as she pulled her Damascus steel dagger out and began twirling it.
Having finally caught his breath the messenger answered. "Sha Heda, their leader, she bears the mark and the blood. What's more, while she was visiting their camp a horde of over three hundred Ripa attacked, killing all of Anya's men save for Lincoln and herself. Wanheda…she and her Gona, her 'Sardaukar' slaughtered the Ripa to the last without losing a single Gona. She bids you come meet with Wanheda."
'Three hundred Ripa! Without a single loss!?' She trusted Anya but this was a bit much to believe. 'The only way it could be possible is if they were all highly trained Natblida.' She mused.
Either her most trusted general was lying, had been fooled, or was telling the truth. She wasn't sure which was worse. Then again, if this really was Wanheda, and she really would bring about the end of the Maunen then she would hope Anya spoke true.
"Ready my guard, we leave at daybreak." Lexa commanded the guards at the door, sheathing her dagger and heading to her chambers for a well deserved bath.
It was well past dark when the call came.
"Princess, there are a dozen men in radiation suits headed your way with rifles. They're less than a minute out. Over." Finn said over the radio interrupting Clarke's story of how Wells had walked in on Miller and Monty.
Clarke's head snapped up alert. She switched from her scouts encrypted frequency to the general encrypted frequency. "Incoming, masks on but stay where you are. Lincoln said these guys are fond of knockout gas, so act the part. Wait for my signal. Octavia, get Lincoln inside." Clarke whispered her orders.
Not twenty seconds later gas canisters landed among their camp spewing gas. All of her people acted the part and fell over feigning unconsciousness.
"These are the people that killed the Cerberus units?" One of the assailants questioned incredulously.
"Shut up. We've got 'em President Wallace, beginning transfer now. Will radio again once we're at processing. Emerson out." A cold, detached voice said.
"Now!" Clarke whisper-shouted.
As the over confident Mountain Men were ambling about, the 'unconscious' bodies rose as one, silent and swift as death. The Sardaukar, aural dampeners engaged each grabbed the closest radiation suit wearing man pulling him into the effective field of the dampener and slit his throat with zero preamble while the supposed leader was restrained and had his radio and weapon taken from him.
The man was forced to his knees before a thoroughly unimpressed Clarke.
"Where is processing?" She demanded.
"Carl Emerson. Mount Weather Security Detail. Carl Emerson - " Emerson began to repeat. A trained response to interrogation and torture.
"Fine. Dax, break him, but don't damage the suit." Clarke ordered coldly.
Dax set his war hammer down and reached for Emerson with his massive hands. He grabbed hold of the man's right upper arm and forearm, he slowly, with inhuman strength began bending it backwards until a *pop* sounded. Emerson to his credit still was repeating his mantra. Dax kept twisting and bending the arm as bones could be heard grinding and snapping. Then he moved onto the other arm, then the left leg, then the right leg until Emerson was nothing but a shell of a man weakly sobbing out his mantra.
"You have my respect." Clarke stated, surprised at the man's willpower. "Die knowing that."
Dax picked up his war hammer and simply let the handle slide between his fingers while dangling it over Emerson's head, silencing him forever.
She turned to her Sardaukar surrounding the scene and addressed them. "We are done waiting. The Mountain faces justice tonight." She said to uproarious cheers.
Lincoln walked up to her, Octavia at his side. "You mean to move against the Mountain tonight? Without the Commander's aid?" He asked in disbelief.
'How to word this without causing a diplomatic incident?' The thought.
"I mean no offense to you or your people but what does the Commander have to offer that hasn't been tried in the last hundred years? I don't need more men and you already supplied us with the maps of the reaper tunnels." Clarke said, trying not to offend.
"…"
Bellamy spoke up before Lincoln could answer, "There is a reason they keep those tunnels guarded. Has to be a way in." He said catching onto what Clarke was getting at.
Clarke nodded at him. "Lincoln, I believe there is a possibility there are survivors of your people in there. It would help if we had you with us."
Under the cover of darkness they moved undetected with aural dampeners engaged and night/urban cloaks on.
They were at the mouth of the reaper tunnels when Lincoln broke the silence.
"Do you intend to fight who knows how many Ripa in the dark of the tunnels?" He asked.
To his side Octavia answered with a smile full of gleaming fangs, "fighting in dark, enclosed spaces? Ahhh Home, Sweet Home."
Many of the nearby Sardaukar laughed quietly at that while Lincoln looked at them like they were crazy.
"Alright, I want a Warsuit at each flank of the column, shields behind them, archers next, and Healers in the center. Protect the Healers and Engineers at any cost." Bellamy ordered out formations.
"Dax, Octavia, and Lincoln with me in the center," Clarke added.
Raven's Warsuit started the march forward, now wielding a massive coffin shield on each forearm and a combat knife the size of a normal sword in each mechanical hand.
The Warsuits had originally been used for dangerous space walks before they were adopted by the Sardaukar and weaponized. They also carried the relay necessary for their radios to reach further than half a mile.
They passed beyond the light of the moon and into the tunnels. It was damp and dark with distant firelight dancing on the rock walls.
As they neared the firelight they could hear a clamor of grunts and flesh tearing.
Clarke and her Sardaukar were completely without sound as they rounded the corner to reveal a large three way junction packed with Ripa gnawing on the bones and flesh of their own dead.
Clarke whispered, only able to be heard over the radio. "Secure the junction. Charge."
Raven led the charge in her Warsuit, aural dampeners still on. She crossed her arms, massive coffin shields fitting snugly together as she bowled through the Ripa stomping as she went. Upon reaching the left junction entrance she began slashing out with combat knives, severing limbs, torsos and heads while also smashing the coffin shields into the emaciated forms of the Ripa, turning them into twisted bags of flesh containing loose bones.
As the front of the column secured the left junction, the rear of the column moved to secure the right while Finn remained at the entrance they had come in to watch for anything on their flank.
Once the junction was secure, a loud rhythmic clanging of metal on metal sounded throughout the tunnels. Inhuman screams echoed off the rock walls as torchlight was growing in proximity and intensity down the two guarded junctions.
"They're coming." Clarke said over the radio, bracing for the coming wave.
The Ripa rounded the corner, they filled the twenty foot wide tunnels shoulder to shoulder as they rushed headlong at them.
The monster's charge broke upon the shield walls while Warsuits cleaved and smashed amidst the tidal wave of flesh.
At the back of the horde Clarke could see a lone Mountain Man holding a video camera, presumably feeding footage directly to this 'President Wallace'.
Clarke was feeling poetic so she pulled down her mask and shouted over the clamor of battle.
"Send forth your legions so they may break upon my wrath! I have come to judge your innocence and found you wanting!"
She turned to Harper who was firing broadhead arrows one after the other with her compound bow to lethal effect.
"Back of the horde, right side. Take the shot." Clarke ordered succinctly.
Harper apparently didn't need to be told twice as the words had barely left Clarke's mouth before she shot over the crowd directly into the man's eye through the lens of the camera, impaling the man's head to the wooden support post he was in front of.
Clarke clapped her on the shoulder.
Clarke was damned if she wasn't going to get in some last minute action, so she strode forward bloodied axes in hand. A Ripa swung a broadsword overhead at hoping to cleave her in two. She crossed her axes and caught the blade underneath the axes' beards, then she pulled the axes apart with such force that the blade snapped. As the now half a sword swung through open air towards the ground she brought both axes back together at the creature's neck severing it cleanly.
She looked around after the last Ripa had fallen. Fox and Charlotte were at the center of the junction tending to the wounded, Finn still dutifully watching their flank.
A gore covered Octavia and Lincoln were looking at each other like they had just gone on their dream date.
'More power to 'em' she thought, making her way back to center and the Healers.
They had lost two warriors, expected but no less unacceptable to her.
John and Murphy looked to have gotten the worst of the wounded but were healing the few gashes quickly thanks to the properties of their blood and the ministrations of Charlotte and Fox.
Harper was fussing over a grumbling Zoe with a fading cut on her leg.
Monty sheathed his Warsuit's knives and jogged it over to Miller effortlessly lifting him off his feet into a searing kiss, his shield and spear lay on the ground forgotten.
Wells, after cleaning as much blood off of himself as possible, ran over to Finn and pulled him into a side hug kissing him on the cheek.
Dax was checking Roma over for any wounds while she just let him, looking amused and keeping a watchful eye on Fox. Their little polycule was very protective of each other, always fussing over one another.
Publicly open polycules were fairly uncommon on the Ark after Jaha had tried outlawing more than one child and same sex marriages. That had been the first time he was almost overthrown. Sure resources were tight but thanks to Becca's gifts of satellite salvaging, nuclear fusion, and molecular 3d printers, they weren't that tight.
Clarke herself had been invited into a few relationships, and she had been tempted but she didn't want Jaha to have that kind of leverage over her. She could try to accept a previous offer now but she felt that everyone had progressed in their relationships and that she would just feel left behind, but she understood that in a polycule each relationship was different and beautiful because of it, her parents had taught her that well enough.
Raven was still single much to the woman's chagrin but she viewed her closer to a sister, she had practically been raised alongside Clarke after Jaha began enabling her mother's alcoholism as a way to control Raven.
"Wanheda," Lincoln broke Clarke out of her romantic musings, "It's this way." He said, pointing down the tunnel the man with the camera had come from.
"Right tunnel, same formation!" She ordered her troops. She and Dax helped carry the two dead in the center.
They reached a cart filled with the dead, they were clothed in dirty white bandages and their features were sunken. She looked above the cart to see a metal hatch, it was about sixteen feet above the ground in a chute.
She looked at Raven in her Warsuit, she had to crouch it in these tunnels.
'She should be able to reach' Clarke thought.
"Raven, see that hatch? Rip it open. Everyone else be ready for anything." She ordered.
Raven crouched forward, pushed the cart out of the way and stood. She dug the Warsuits mechanical fingers into the seam and pried. With the sound of grinding metal and failing hydraulics the hatch gave way, and she climbed up.
There was a silence that seemed to stretch on forever as Clarke waited for Raven to report.
"Clarrrrke, we're all clear but you're going to want to see this…" Raven radioed, trepidation in her voice.
Clarke jumped through the now open hatch, her Sardaukar following her, Octavia helping Lincoln.
There were hundreds of cages lining the walls of the circular room. No…cages was too generous a word, these were kennels, too small to even move in. Inside were broken humans, some looked to be children. They were emaciated and had the unfocused eyes of those that had given up all hope and were simply waiting for death.
At the center of the massive circular room were a dozen operating tables with leather straps and on them were thrashing Ripa.
'They were turning these people into monsters right before the other's eyes to deliberately break their minds.' Clarke realized with horror.
Over near a set of doors were two figures hung upside down with tubes connecting to them draining them of their blood.
Clarke was seething, these Mountain Men had much to pay for, and she was going to collect with interest.
She heard a soft *thump* behind her, she turned to see Lincoln on his knees, face drained of color, and watering eyes. Octavia was kneeling next to him cupping his face trying to get him to look at her.
"Lincoln," he did not look her way. "Have hope and take heart. Your people still draw breath, that is all my healers need, they will walk under the sun once again."
"Kill the Ripa on the tables, dump them through the shute. Healers, with Lincoln's help, take these people one at a time out of these kennels and do what you can." She whispered over the radio.
As her orders were being completed she crouched next to Lincoln and told him of the plan. He shook off his horror and began. She ordered Dax, Miller, and his squad of three shield bearers, three bow wielding scouts, and three melee fighters to stay behind and guard the room.
Clarke pulled out the radio they had taken from Emerson and switched it on.
"President Wallace, come in." Clarke said over the stolen radio.
After a minute had gone by, a response came, "This is President Wallace, who is this?" Came the annoyed voice of the President.
"This is Commander Clarke Griffin. My Troops have infiltrated the Mountain. Lay down your arms and surrender." Clarke ordered, giving no ultimatum. She would not negotiate with humans that possessed no humanity.
"And subject my people to your mercy? I think not." The President said with warped self righteousness.
"So be it." Clarke said as she crushed the radio in her grip.
"Alright Men, Women, and Gentlethems. We're going to be fighting in hallways just like old times so you know the drill. Kill any that resist." Clarke quickly ordered followed by the rhythmic stomping of steel toed boots.
"I want two columns led by a Warsuit, Raven in the lead column. Move!" She called out to her Sardaukar.
Raven's warsuit walked to the double doors leading into the mountain and pried them apart. As she stooped into the ten foot tall sterile-white hallway a staccato of gunfire erupted, barely having time to raise her coffin shields.
Still somewhat crouched, she charged forward, taking up the entire hallway with the Warsuit's bulk. Shouts of alarm could be heard growing closer to the rapidly advancing column, followed by the sounds of men grunting in pain and bodies colliding against metal.
As the Warsuit kept advancing over the now broken bodies, the warriors behind quickly delivered killing blows to the screaming men.
The columns split at a fork, Clarke with Raven's column and Bellamy with Monty's.
As Clarke's column was passing a four way junction gunfire erupted from the side hallways the second the Warsuit passed hoping to catch the warriors behind it unprotected, only to be disappointed when their bullets ricocheted off of tower shields. Upon hearing the break in gunfire the scouts popped up and fired a volley of arrows over the shields down each hallway permanently silencing the gunmen.
Upon reaching a cargo elevator Raven let go of a control, reached into a pouch at the warsuits waist and produced Emerson's key card and swiped it. Nothing happened.
"Fine, be that way." Raven grumbled, and produced what looked like a spike with a light atop the handle.
She stabbed the spike into the card reader and after a second the light atop the spike flashed green and the doors opened.
After discovering they were on the second floor, Clarke ordered Monty's column to guard the elevator while her and Raven's column cleared the first floor.
Several elevator trips later her column discovered the first floor completely abandoned, and in a hurry. She radioed Monty that they would be going straight to the third floor and to wait for her orders to follow.
Leaving behind a squad to guard the elevators on each floor, they descended deeper into the mountain finding each floor abandoned.
When they reached level six, labeled as residences, gyms, and commons all hell broke loose. The moment the doors opened, gas grenades rolled in and gunfire erupted.
Raven and the shield bearers advanced out the elevator and set up a bastion while the archers behind shot arrows anytime the gunfire paused.
After thousands of rounds of ammunition and several elevator trips the column washed over the two dozen soldiers in a crimson tide.
Determining that there were only civilians left cowering in their homes Clarke ordered Raven's column to keep them inside their residences and guard the elevator. Clarke and Monty's column began the process of heading to the last level marked level 7, Command Center and Oval Office.
After killing a measly two soldiers watching the elevator they reached the command center.
Clarke entered alongside Octavia and she saw a weathered old man wearing a moth eaten suit. He had his hand hovering over a button.
"Stop right there Clarke or I'll initiate the self-destruct," they paused, "I had hoped you people would be different than the outsiders but you're worse." Wallace sneered.
"Your civilians are still alive on level six, would you kill them too?" She asked, ignoring the man's barb.
Wallace looked surprised, "You didn't kill them? How am I supposed to believe-"
Still surprised and distracted with talking, Clarke threw one of her axes in a blur of movement, severing the man's arm at the elbow. Octavia was on him in a flash, knocking him to the ground, boot pressing down on his ribs.
Clarke slowly walked around the desk and picked up her ax, wiping the blood off on his suit, "I don't care if you believe me. They will remain unharmed until their guilt has been weighed. You, however, will die screaming." Clarke stated coldly.
After gagging Wallace and tourniqueting his arm, Clarke had Monty exit his Warsuit and access the computer and cameras.
"Ok, the jamming signal is offline. I radioed the Ark, they're beginning preparations," Monty said before pulling up cameras and pausing.
"Clarke, we have rats, two of them." Monty told Clarke.
Clarke knew the term 'rat' on the Ark meant someone sneaking around in the vents so she leaned over his shoulder to see the monitor and asked, "Where?"
"They're heading to the Harvest Chamber." Monty said, pointing to the camera feed.
Clarke watched in abject horror as a dark skinned woman in a white doctor's coat and a man wearing a similar suit as President Wallace emerged from a vent right next to her two healers. The woman grabbed Charlotte as the man grabbed Fox intending to use them as hostages.
The man didn't even have time to bring his gun up to Fox's head before Dax was on him, wrenching the now shattered wrist and purple hand away, sending the pistol flying before headbutting the man into unconsciousness.
Charlotte wasn't as lucky, the woman in the lab coat pressed a syringe filled with red liquid into her neck, her thumb on the plunger.
Over the camera's audio Clarke could hear the woman, "Get back or I'll turn her into one of the monsters!"
A small child that Charlotte was just checking over launched herself at the doctor with a small war cry, she latched onto the woman's leg gnawing at it with an animal-like ferocity.
Dax lunged forward, punching the screeching woman in the face knocking her to the ground and likely breaking her jaw but not before the doctor plunged the red liquid into Charlotte's neck.
Dax was eyeing Charlotte carefully, waiting to see what happened…
Charlotte was checking herself over, checking her pulse. "My heart rate is a little fast but I feel fine!" Charlotte laughed out with relief.
The woman now being pinned to the ground spoke up, "How ish tha poshible!? You shew alweady be fwothing ah da moush!" She was answed by a swift kick to the head by Dax knocking her out.
'Well that could have gone much worse.' Clarke thought, releasing the breath she was holding.
"Ok Monty, can you remove everyone's permissions while giving me full access?" Clarke asked.
"Yup, done, aaaand just do a retina scan here," he pointed to a device on the wall with a chin rest.
Clarke rested her chin on the padded rest as the machine began scanning her open eyes. She could feel her pupils dilating wildy in what she knew to be morse code.
'What the fuck was tha-" she began to think before being interrupted by an artificial, feminine voice.
"Passcode accepted, level 8 access granted, welcome Heir to the Flame."
"Ok, what the fuck was that?" Asked a very confused Octavia.
Monty began typing with renewed vigor. "It says here that there's a level that only Becca had access to, it's…..her lab."
"That must have been why her plan was to rally survivors here…but why?" Clarke asked, just as confused as Octavia.
"Regardless, we need to judge the civilians here before we go exploring. Any ideas?" Clarke quickly got back to the situation immediately at hand.
Monty's fingers began flying over the keyboard once again. "The records show that they were using 'outsider' blood as a way of healing radiation sickness and once they couldn't give anymore they were turned into those Ripa things. According to personnel files, the main people in charge were the two rats and President Wallace. I have a list of everyone that refused treatments."
"Perfect, print the list. Octavia, take the list to Bellamy on the sixth floor and kill anyone not on that list. Spare the children, I won't punish them for the crimes of their parents. Bring those left to medical, I want them to see the people from the harvest chamber and understand why we did this. Oh and make sure they aren't exposed to any radiation, I don't care if you decontaminate our warriors or put the survivors in radiation suits." Clarke ordered.
"What about you?" Octavia asked.
"I have gifts to prepare for the Commander," she said as she threw a wide eyed President Wallace over her shoulder.
