Disclaimer: The usual. I don't own anything.
Abby was approached by when she finished breakfast with her people. Abby wanted to go and check with Dante on his plan to search for her daughter. Kane assured her that he would look into that, and the friendly doctor was very eager to start. Abby wanted to look at the medical records herself to find out more. If she could help these people come out of their complex, it would be a great achievement.
Abby accepted the files she was given and walked with the doctor towards the labs. She was going through the comments Lorelei has written in her notes about the tests and the results. She couldn't wait to see the actual lab reports. They got into the elevator and went to another floor where the medical labs are located.
For an underground complex, the laboratory was fully equipped. They had a surgery room and all the tools they needed to perform operations. They had computer facilities and Lorelei took Abby to one of the terminals. She keyed in her credentials and pulled up the reports.
Abby spent considerable amount of time discussing the lab tests and the results with . Abby can tell that the doctor is very knowledgeable and did everything possible to test the blood samples.
"How did you get the blood samples? From what I was told, the grounders wouldn't have volunteered." Abby asked .
"We had to tranquilize them. Treat them like wild animals that required testing. Unfortunate but necessary." answered her.
Abby felt disturbed by the thought of treating humans like animals, but they have done worse in the Ark. The people in the complex are trying to survive and find a way to go to the surface. She couldn't fault them for taking extreme measures in acquiring blood samples.
"Can you show me the results from the samples you took from us?" Abby asked. Lorelei typed in and pulled a different set of medical records. Abby can see the vast difference between both results.
"You are right. Our radiation tolerance is considerably high compared to your samples or even the grounders." Abby commented on the results she was looking.
"I believe it's from the direct sunlight you have been exposed to and the radiation in space." suggested and Abby agreed. She had seen the rise in radiation in their historical medical data at the Ark.
"It grew with generations. DNA passed on as well as exposure from childhood gave us the immunity. We saw evidence of that back in the Ark." Abby explained.
"Is there a way to replicate that here?" asked Abby.
Abby shook her head. "The changes will take time and it will take generations even with artificial radiation. No. It won't work." will be disappointed. "But there may be another way." Abby said, when an idea popped into her head. Lorelei's interest was piqued.
"What if we go to the source directly? Instead of the blood that contains the radiation endurance, what if we get it from the source?" Abby suggested. 's eyes went wide.
"Bone Marrow?" Lorelei asked to confirmed.
"Yes. Bone Marrow Transplants. We can get it from the grounders, but they will need someone trained to be able to extract it. If we can get it, then it will provide a more permanent solution." Abby was thinking the logistical problems in the solution.
"That's promising Abby. I don't know why we didn't think of it before." told her, inspired by the idea. Abby was happy to help.
"Since you can't go outside, I'll have to do it." Abby volunteered.
looked concerned at that thought. "There's no need. We can send one of the guards to get it for us. I'm sure if we show them how, they will be able to procure it." Lorelei refused Abby's offer to go herself.
Abby shook her head negatively. "You know how complex it is to collect bone marrow sample without making permanent injury to the patient." didn't argue on that. "It will be a painful process as it is. We don't want to let untrained hands do it and mess it up. It will have to be me." Abby said determined.
didn't know what to say. She didn't have the authorization to tell Abby about information she wasn't supposed to know.
"I will talk to the President and let you know." Lorelei told Abby. Abby nodded in understanding. She knew that all the request must go through the chain of command.
With a possible solution at work, they left the lab in a positive mood back to the common area.
- 100 -
When Abby reached the mess hall, she saw more familiar faces than before. They were not in the Alpha station when they landed. She looked around at the chatter and found Kane busy with someone. She approached them. Kane noticed her and ended his conversation to turn toward her.
"I see we have more survivors." Abby commented, looking at the smiling faces.
"Farm station survived the landing. They heard the radio call from President Dante asking to come to Mount Weather. On their way, they were attacked by grounders. Only half of them survived." Kane informed her.
"That's awful." Abby felt bad for the trouble Farm station suffered. At least Alpha station had all the survivors in Mount Weather without any danger.
"On the good news, Emerson managed to find a lead about the dropship survivors." Kane informed her. Abby switched her focus on that.
"Did he find out where Clarke is?" Abby asked urgently.
"No. But the grounder said that they were at a village nearby. Emerson informed Jaha and he sent volunteers to visit the village." Kane told her.
Abby was pissed off when she heard that. "Why didn't anyone come and find me? I should have gone with them. Why didn't you?" She demanded Kane, angry for not informing her sooner.
"Because there's nothing you can do Abby. If the grounders had her at the village, she will need guards. Not her mother running into the fray. Let the guards bring her back safe." Kane answered patiently.
Abby gave a frustrated sigh, knowing what he was saying was correct. She would complicate things in the middle of an attack.
"Who volunteered?" Abby asked Kane. She wanted to know who had gone to get her daughter.
"Emerson was leading them. Finn volunteered. Charles Pike also decided to join, against Jaha's wishes. Rest were the soldiers from Mountain Weather. Our people are still recovering from the landing." Kane told her.
Abby knew that Finn will look for Clarke. Charles Pike was a surprise, but he was a good man when she knew him in the Ark. With Emerson and others from the mountain knowing the terrain and the ground better, she relaxed knowing that her daughter had the right people after her.
"It's hard to wait to know that Clarke is safe." Abby told Kane, who sympathized at her predicament.
"She's a survivor, Abby. She will know what to do. You need to keep faith." Kane comforted her.
"She's just a kid." Abby argued. She was her little daughter that she needed to protect.
"Yes, she was. But she also survived on the ground longer than us. She's not a kid anymore." Kane pointed out. Abby agreed with that. Her daughter had to grow up fast, because she was sent to the ground to survive.
"I hate the waiting." Abby complained once again.
"I know. Let's go check on the new survivors and see if we can help them. Keep yourself busy until they return." Kane advised.
Together, they walked through the survivors, checking with every one of them on anything they needed.
- 100 -
It was evening when the team returned. Abby made herself busy with the new arrivals and taking care of them and organizing beds with Dante and Jaha.
When Kane found her, she didn't realize how much time has already gone between she last checked with him.
"They're back. Let's go." Kane invited and Abby handed over the blankets in her hand and went with him quickly.
They moved quickly to the room where quarantine cleared people settle in and found the team that went to the village. They looked tired.
"Where are they? Did you find Clarke? Is she in quarantine?" Abby asked in a rush. She was looking over to the quarantine zone to see if she could see her daughter.
Noticing the mood in the room, Kane held her back and looked at Pike.
"Abby." Pike said, standing up. "We didn't find her." He told her.
"What do you mean you didn't find her?" She asked confused. She looked at Emerson. "Kane said you found a grounder who told you they were there."
"He did. But when we got to the village, they were not there." He answered her.
"Maybe they were hiding them. Or maybe they had them somewhere else. Did you ask? Did you interrogate them?" Abby demanded. She switched to the councilwoman role at that moment.
It was Pike who answered her. "We had the village cornered and looked around. When we didn't find our people, we asked them. They decided to attack instead. We defended ourselves and there were casualties in their side. We had to retreat back." He explained.
"What about the grounder Emerson talked to? Maybe he sent us in the wrong direction. Maybe he'll know more if we interrogate him properly." Abby asked, still not ready to give up.
"He's dead." Emerson answered her. He looked at Finn when he said that. "He was a liability. He could have given our position away." Finn said, annoyed at being subtly accused for killing the grounder.
"We will find someone else. I promise you." Pike told Abby. Abby didn't look convinced. Clarke was out of her reach, going further and further away.
"Do whatever you need to do. Get our people back." Abby ordered and turned before she broke down in front of them. She walked away with Kane following her.
- 100 -
She came to the common area looking for something to do and she was granted her wish. approached her with a bright smile.
"There you are. I've been looking everywhere for you." She exclaimed.
Abby managed a small smile at the young doctor. "Sorry. I had to be somewhere else. How can I help?" She asked.
"President Dante approved the bone marrow transplant experiment and we were able to procure one already." Lorelei informed Abby.
Abby was surprised to say the least. She thought the process will take weeks.
"Already? How did you get the sample? Was it extracted by someone with experience?" Abby asked, not knowing how it was possible to do it so quickly.
"Yes. Luckily one of the soldiers had medical field training and he was able to retrieve it from one of the grounders they encountered." told Abby as if it was not a big matter.
Abby had a lot of questions, but she didn't ask them. Her priority is to get to the experiment, to test out the bone marrow sample.
"Let's start testing the sample then." She said instead and followed Lorelei to the labs.
They both worked together to prepare the sample for transplant. Abby went through the medical records to find a suitable candidate to receive the transplant.
"The younger they are, the more adept they will be to the transplant." Abby commented. "But not growing up children whose bones haven't matured yet. Someone between eighteen and twenty is the ideal candidate." Lorelei went through the list of candidates they had filtered to find someone.
"Here. Her." Lorelei pointed to someone in the list and pulled up the medical records. Abby looked closely.
"Keenan Mykulak." Abby read the name out loud.
"She's one of the young people here. You may have seen her when you came into the complex. She is assigned to help your people get a tour and guide them." Lorelei explained. Abby nodded, remembering the young pleasant girl.
"Do we need to inform the President to proceed? And I need patient's consent as well. It has to be voluntary. Not forced." Abby was determined that it must be the way.
"Of course. We won't force anyone against their will." Lorelei promised. "President Wallace has given us clear access to do what is necessary to find the cure. I will send someone to get Keenan here to get her consent."
Lorelei stepped out of the lab to ask the guard stationed. Abby stayed, going through the records and making sure they had everything they needed for the transplant surgery.
They didn't wait too long. Soon, a nervous looking girl entered the lab.
"Keenan?" Abby asked the girl with a smile, trying to make her comfortable. The young girl nodded.
"Don't be afraid." Abby comforted her and rubbed her shoulders to ease the tension. Keenan looked at her and relaxed a little, still jittery.
"We are trying to cure the radiation sickness you face when you go to the surface." Abby explained. Keenan was curious. "We may have a possible solution, but we need to test it on someone. To see if it will work."
Looking at Keenan's concerned face, Lorelei stated "It is completely voluntary. You can choose to refuse." Abby thought the tone in the way it was said, sounded more like the young girl didn't have a choice but to volunteer. But she didn't think too much about it.
Keenan nodded, giving her consent. Lorelei led her to the bed and Abby readied the transplant equipment.
Soon, they were done transplanting the bone marrow into Keenan. Abby performed tests to ensure that the transplant didn't get rejected by the body's auto immune systems. Satisfied with what she found, she smiled at Keenan.
"The transplant went successfully. We should see your blood cells generate the resistance by morning." She told the girl. Looking at Lorelei, Abby continued. "We should do another round of tests in the morning to confirm the resistance cells are there before we expose her to the surface." Lorelei nodded in agreement.
Abby gave the girl's arm a squeeze before she stripped off the gloves in her hands and threw it in the waste. She left the lab to go to the mess hall to have dinner with her people. She was excited to see what will happen the next day.
- 100 -
Next morning, Abby skipped breakfast to get to the labs quickly. Lorelei was already there with Keenan.
"Sorry I'm late." Abby apologized as her way of greeting.
"That's ok. I've started the tests already. You can check the results." Lorelei pointed to a monitor with the results. Abby, now familiar with their system managed to navigate through and view all the test results.
"The resistant cell counts are good. Almost as equal to the grounder blood. Less than the Ark survivors, but we don't need that much to survive in the surface anyway." Abby commented as she went through the results.
"I think we are ready for the surface test." told Abby who nodded in agreement.
"We can monitor from the security stations." Lorelei guided Abby to a separate area while a guard took Keenan with him towards the surface.
Abby watched as the secure door at the surface open, letting a scared Keenan outside.
"She looks terrified." Abby commented.
"This is the first time she has been out of the complex. She probably is terrified." Lorelei replied. Abby could understand the feeling. It's the same way the Ark survivors felt when they landed on Earth after living in a metal box all their lives.
"No signs of sickness so far." commented. Abby felt positive at what she was saying. It could be a breakthrough.
They observed Keenan walk through the fields, touching and feeling everything on sight. She walked further and further away from the door.
All of a sudden, they saw her looking at her arms. Abby zoomed in on the monitor and saw blisters starting to appear in her hand.
"Oh no." Abby whispered, realizing what was happening.
Keenan gave a blood curling scream as more blisters started to appear all over her body.
"Someone. Get her inside. Quick." Abby yelled in panic.
"It's too late Abby." told her calmly.
"We could still help. If we bring her in, we could treat her." Abby was adamant.
"She walked too far from the door. By the time we had someone in suit go to her and bring her back, she would be walking dead." Lorelei stated the reality.
Abby knew she was speaking the truth. But it was painful to watch the life of a young girl be destroyed this way. A young girl who is Clarke's age. She couldn't avoid comparing the peril Clarke was in and the death looming over her like this girl. In Keenan's case, it was a forgone conclusion. She prayed that wasn't the case for her own daughter.
"I need to go." Abby said. She couldn't stand watching the girl die from radiation slowly. She left the security room to go to the room where she was sleeping. Everyone was gone in the bed bunkers they were sleeping in. Probably roaming the complex and mingling with the local population. Abby was glad that there was nobody there. She wanted some time alone. She curled herself in her bed and cried.
- 100 -
Bellamy was going crazy in the room he has been imprisoned in. Other than the person who came with his food at meal time with a guard on tow, he was left alone in the room. There were no cameras or speakers in the room. He was isolated and alone.
He wondered if this was how it was in the Skybox for his people. He didn't know how Octavia coped being stuck inside a cage with no one to talk to, all day long. It was worse than living under the floor. At least when Bellamy or their mother was home, Octavia had someone to talk to. Being caged like this with no interaction was worse than that.
He couldn't imagine how Clarke survived it. From what he was able to learn about her past, he knew that she was kept in isolation even in the Skybox because of what she knew. They didn't want her exposing it to others. She probably didn't get any conversation even with those who came to give her the meals. He was having trouble after two days. She went through it for a year living in isolation. Bellamy wasn't sure he would make that long.
He was also worried about his people. He didn't know if they had survived the attack or not. He didn't have a clue about their condition. Nobody told him anything about what happened to his people. He had no way of finding out or asking someone. He tried asking the guards, who sneered at him in response. He kept quiet since then.
He was expecting the next visit with his lunch meal anytime now. Every time they come in; he was looking for the opportunity to escape. His wounds have healed up relatively now and he has gained his full strength or somewhere close to it. He felt that he could put up a fight now and create a chance to escape. He pretended to be weak to let the guard feel safe enough to relax, so when he did escape, they won't expect it.
His idea worked yesterday. Every time they came, he pretended to be weaker than he was before. He could see the guard ignore him, but he still had a steady grip on the rifle. And Bellamy didn't feel ready. This morning, it looked as if they were a bit distracted. Bellamy didn't want to rush it and he remained patient. He hoped that lunch time will be right opportunity for him to act.
But his plans foiled before he could execute it. Instead of the usual caretaker with the meal and a single guard, the door opened to reveal multiple guards with shock batons. Bellamy got up from the bed, surprised at the change in the routine.
The guards approached him with the shock batons and before Bellamy can fight through, he was tasered with them. Bellamy fell to the ground, feeling the shock go through his entire body. His nerves felt like they were on fire. He felt someone push a syringe in his neck and everything went blank after that.
- 100 -
It was past lunch time when Abby went to the mess hall. She had skipped breakfast and she didn't want to skip lunch as well, even if she didn't think she could eat anything. She was still feeling the effects of losing the young girl and she can feel the anxiety building in her, worrying about Clarke. She didn't feel like joining her people for lunch for the day. She picked up her food and tried to leave. But her escape was interrupted by the President himself.
"Abby. I was hoping to have a moment with you." He asked her. Abby shrugged and sat at a free table. Dante sat with her in the table, away from others in the mess hall.
" told me about the result of the experiment." He told her. Abby nodded in silence. "I'm sorry. I knew Keenan. She was a lovely girl." He sounded genuinely sad at the loss of her life.
"I'm sorry." Abby said, apologizing for her part in the role of the girl's death.
"I'm also sorry about your daughter. Emerson told me they couldn't find her at the village." Dante sympathized.
"I hope we will have better luck next time." Abby commented.
"We will send people out soon. After the last situation, the grounders will be searching for us to get revenge. We need to wait until they stop expecting us." Dante told her.
"Why don't we go with a large army and rescue them?" Abby asked. She wanted to get her daughter back any means necessary.
"Because we will lose a lot of lives along the way. We may have the firepower but they have the manpower. And they know the terrain better than us. By the time we reach your people, they will be dead." Dante explained. Abby can understand that reasoning.
"It's frustrating to be in here when my daughter is out there." Abby sighed.
"I understand. It is a burden to have to stay inside. That's why I want my people to go to the surface. That's why I'm desperate for a cure." Dante exclaimed.
"I'm out of ideas right now." Abby told him. She didn't know what else she could try.
"Don't give up. said that Keenan survived in the sun for almost fifteen minutes before the first signs appeared. That's an achievement in itself. We see reaction almost immediately." Dante was positive that Abby was on the verge of a breakthrough.
"I can't. Not after what happened to the poor girl." Abby was aghast at the idea of experimenting again.
"If we don't do something, Keenan's death will be in vain. If we find a solution, her death will have some meaning." Dante justified. Abby remained unconvinced.
" , our resident psychologist raised some concerns about your well-being. She is worried that you may be overwhelmed by your emotions for your missing daughter and the death of Keenan. She was worried that you may have an anxiety attack and asked if she could prescribe you some medications. I approved of course. I wanted to personally hand deliver it to you." Dante told her and pushed a bottle that contained some pills towards her.
"What's this?" Abby asked as she read the label on the bottle. The label was very old and it didn't represent whatever was inside.
"Anxiety medications. believed it would help you process your feelings and cope with it." He explained. Abby looked unsure. She knew she was having difficulty dealing with Clarke's absence and everything that happened. But she didn't want to be medicated.
"Trust me. It helps. I was using it after the death of my wife and daughter. I took it, so I won't fold and let everyone else suffer because of it." He explained.
Abby accepted the bottle hesitantly. She decided to keep it with her and decide at the end of the day if she wanted to be medicated or not.
"Thank you." She told Dante, who looked relieved.
"I hope you feel well soon and reunite with your daughter." Dante wished Abby and got up from the table. Abby sat there with an empty plate, lost in her thoughts.
- 100 -
When Bellamy opened his eyes the next time, he realized he wasn't in the room anymore. Instead, he was strapped to a laboratory bed. He looked around in panic to see what was happening. His eyes landed on the doctor he met before. He tried to remember her name.
The doctor turned toward him, away from the machines she was staring at.
"Oh good, you're awake." She exclaimed in a cheery voice. Bellamy was getting irritated by the way she spoke.
"What are you doing? Why am I tied up?" He demanded answers.
"We're going to do an experiment. We recently came to realize that using bone marrow from you and your people could be the answer we have been looking for. And now we want to put it to a test." She told him. Bellamy didn't understand what she was trying to say, but he didn't show it.
Bellamy struggled against the restraints. But it was pointless. The straps had him tied up to the bed very tight.
walked toward him with a syringe with a long needle at the end. Bellamy couldn't hide the fear that came up when he saw it.
"Stay away." He said, aiming to be menacing, but came out as desperate.
"Don't worry. This will hurt. A lot." told him as she plunges the needle into his hip in the back that was exposed in the bed. Bellamy lets out a scream as the needle penetrate his body.
She starts extracting the marrow from the hip bone and the pain was excruciating. Bellamy cried out as she kept extracting. His body was going numb from the pain it was experiencing.
"There. We're done." said as she pulled out the needle. Bellamy let out a whimper as the needle came out. He felt her put a bandage on his back to prevent any blood spilling. Any strength he had gained left his body during the procedure. He felt like he was weak again.
"Bring her in." told someone outside the lab. Bellamy saw the guards roll in another bed into the room. The girl in the bed was not strapped, but whoever it was, she was in no condition to escape. She had blisters and burns all over her body and she was whimpering in pain like he was.
connected some machines onto the girl's body. Bellamy could see the machines they were using, were the same ones used on him before. took the content from the syringe and put it through some machine and waited, while the girl in the bed kept crying in pain and Bellamy was no better. He kept his head to the side as he watched what was happening.
"How is she?" A new voice entered the room. Bellamy twisted his head and saw a middle-aged man in a well-dressed suit standing at the entrance of the door.
"Good. She was exposed during the accidental containment breach in one of the dorms." told the new man, and the smile they shared told Bellamy that it was not an accident.
"Will she survive?" The man asked the doctor.
"We'll see. I'm just processing the marrow for transplant. It should be ready right about now." As soon as said that, the machine in front of her started beeping. She pulled out a tube from it and used a syringe to extract its contents.
Bellamy saw the man get closer to to observe. He glanced at Bellamy and Bellamy could tell the disdain he had towards him. Not that Bellamy felt any better about these people. Given the chance, he will kill everyone in the mountain without a second thought.
Bellamy watched as walked to the girl and injected her with the syringe in her hand. Within a minute, he could see changes happening to the girl. Her cries stopped and the blisters started to heal. He could see that her body was healing from whatever they did.
"It works. Cage, it works." told the man called Cage, excited. They both looked at the girl in marvel as her body healed itself.
"How soon can we do it to everyone?" Cage asked the doctor.
"I had to drain half of his bone marrow fluid to use it on her. If we take anymore, he will die. Unless your father approves this for everyone, we need to wait and act patiently." She told Cage. Bellamy didn't understand their conversation. All he knew was that they didn't want to risk his life. He was necessary.
"What do you suggest?" Cage asked for her advice.
"We monitor Maya for now. We need to know if anything that happened to Keenan will happen to her as well. We can expose her to the surface more and more to see her resistance level. Once we are satisfied that she can survive, we should proceed with the rest." suggested. Cage nodded in agreement.
"I'll update my father. Carry on. Good work doctor." He walked out of the lab.
approached Bellamy with a big smile. "You are going to save us all." She plunged a syringe in his neck and Bellamy felt himself go to sleep.
A/N: I know there's not much Bellamy in the chapter. Don't worry. He will play main role soon. For the moment, he is a prisoner sitting in a room with nothing to do but wait.
I am neither a doctor or an expert in bone marrow transplantation. What I wrote is based on what I read about it online. Forgive me if there's any mistakes. Just take it as part of the changes that happened in the 100 Universe.