This Black Blood is Without End
Chapter 24 - Countdown
"I must say, this is a rather bold plan you've all come up with."
The President of the United States of America – or at least, what tiny sliver of it remained – studied the effect his words had on the room. A circle of tense, pale faces stared back at him from around the oblong conference table, their expressions lit by the white glow of LED lights and the wall of monitors displaying the current tactical situation around Mount Weather. His son was the only one who correctly read the critique hidden in his pleasant tone. Cage's scarred upper lip twitched with suppressed agitation as he shifted forward in his seat, his eyes fixed on his father.
"Mr. President, I believe you are the one who always says that swift and decisive action is preferable to cautious inaction."
"That may be true, but rushing headlong into a situation we don't yet fully understand is courting catastrophe. If I understand what you are showing me here, and I think that I do, then what you are proposing would put our entire security force at risk. This is not a small group of disorganized savages, and they are already encamped in a defensive position. It will use up a significant amount of resources to pull this off safely, not to mention the precious lives we might lose should anything go wrong."
President Dante Wallace folded his hands together over the documents in front of him and leaned back in his chair, his expression stern. He watched as his son's lip twitched again, this time into a petulant sneer. Dante felt the familiar disappointment rise up in him as he regarded his only child. Cage had so much potential, so much raw intelligence. He would be an excellent President himself someday, if only he could learn to reign in his more volatile emotions.
"With all due respect, Mr. President, this plan is not something we propose lightly," Cage continued after the moment of tense silence had passed. "We all understand the risks involved here, and we all agree that they are justified given the possible rewards."
He turned back to the display, enlarging a series of images as he spoke. The President remained silent, allowing his son to further his case uninterrupted.
"Our scouts have already established secure over-watch positions and sent back visual confirmation of the targets. The tactical strike team is already being assembled and briefed as we speak. We simply need your go ahead, Mr. President, and the operation can proceed at zero-three-hundred tonight under cover of darkness."
Cage enlarged several camera shots taken at long range, displaying the defensive perimeter of the encampment. The images were overlaid with tactical graphics displaying the planned ingress and egress routes, as well as the selected drop zones for the gas canisters and shock munitions. He highlighted another display and estimates of round expenditures and possible casualties appeared, as well as a proposed operational timeline. A mission execution countdown clock was ticking steadily away in one corner of the screen, only increasing the sense of urgency that already pervaded throughout the room.
"And the samples we've already gathered from the current subject?"
"Fully viable. The good Doctor has already synthesized over a dozen doses from the first batch alone. She assures me the subject will be able to produce more in time, but it won't survive as long as our blood stock usually does. This procedure is more physically taxing than the blood transfers. Of course, we will need to use all of the doses we currently have to carry out this operation safely, but if the mission is successful, and we secure more subjects…"
Cage's words trailed of, letting imagination fill in for him. Everyone knew what was at stake here.
The President sighed, stroking the fine white stubble on his chin as he thought things over. He wasn't naïve to the realities of their tenuous existence. Even if only one out of ten of the individuals in that camp proved to be viable donors, it could provide his people with over a hundred doses synthesized in just a matter of days, with hopefully more to follow as they improved and perfected their techniques.
Perhaps with an increase in the number of subjects to study a more permanent solution could be found, and they could all finally be free of the weakness which bound them to this cursed Mountain. It was his greatest hope for his people. He knew he couldn't let this opportunity go to waste – no matter his personal or moral reservations.
"Very well," President Wallace finally said, and a soft exhalation of relief sounded throughout the room. "I still have concerns, but I must agree that we can't afford to miss this chance. You have my approval to proceed with the operation as planned… for now. I expect a full update brief prior to mission execution, however. I will give my final approval then. Understood?"
A chorus of agreements answered him. Cage's eyes gleamed with excitement and pride as he nodded along. This would be a huge victory for his son, if he could pull this off.
President Wallace stood, looking down at the faces assembled at the table, his expression grave.
"This is a dangerous and unpredictable situation, so any avoidable mistakes are completely unacceptable. Our people are counting on us. Let's not let them down, shall we?"
As though his words were a starting pistol at a race, the room erupted into frantic activity as the men and women all went to work, each and every one of them aware of the high stakes and determined not to fail.
Unnoticed by all, the wall of monitors in the conference room first flickered, then fuzzed, and then for just a fraction of a heartbeat… went red.
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Wells hit the packed mud and grass on his large backside, his breath exploding from his chest in a gasp as he stared up at her with wide eyes.
"What did I just say about hesitating?" she growled.
He moaned, using the butt of his spear to haul himself up from his undignified position. Lexa narrowed her eyes and watched him stand, waiting for him to meet her critical gaze and answer her. He finally looked back at her with a sort of tired wariness, saying nothing. Despite the beating she had been giving him for nearly the past hour, she was surprised to see that there wasn't even a hint of anger or aggression in him, and for some reason this did nothing to improve her mood.
"Again," she instructed, leveling her spear towards his chest.
The young man took a long, calming breath, then set himself back into the fighting stance she had shown him. He took a hesitant step forward then paused, his spear point wavering as he tried to decide how to proceed. She waited, clenching her jaw and trying to force herself to patience. Another tentative step, then finally he attempted a half-hearted jab in her direction, which she easily deflected. She closed the distance, intentionally opening herself up to another attack as she did so, and was disappointed when he ignored the obvious opening and instead backed away from her, his footwork unbalanced and sloppy.
Lexa felt the moment her inner frustration finally bubbled up and exploded out of her. They had drilled these moves over and over just thirty minutes ago. Now it seemed like he was more worried about hurting her than actually executing the techniques she had taught him. The boy had no innate aggression, no physical passion or instinct for violence. If he didn't start fighting like his life was at stake, he wouldn't survive the first five seconds of a battle against Reapers, Azgeda, or anyone else for that matter. He might as well spend this time digging a grave for himself right next to all of the other graves he had already dug so far.
She snarled, the savage sound bursting out of her as she leapt forward past his weak guard and threw her shoulder into his stomach, hooking his leg and wrenching his spear from his hands all in one fluid motion as he tumbled backwards once again. Spinning with his spear in her off hand, Lexa pulled her arm back and launched it with all her strength into the nearby wall of the camp twenty feet away, where it embedded itself with a loud and satisfying thwack into one of the thicker pine beams. Three feet to the right of where the spear now quivered parallel to the ground, Harper let the load of firewood she had been carrying drop to her feet in a slow tumble, a look of shock on her face.
There was a moment of stillness and quiet around them as both Wells, Harper, and a few other nearby bystanders all held their collective breaths. Lexa straightened, forcing her shoulders to relax and her hands to unclench.
"We're done here. Practice the basic forms I showed you earlier until you can do them in your sleep. I'm sure Aden will be happy to spar with you more if you wish, but don't come to me again until you're actually ready fight."
Lexa forced herself not to say anything more, already angry with herself for her lack of control. Angry with Wells for his lack of fighting ability. Angry with herself for letting Clarke slip from her fingers and disappear back into the wilderness the day before. Angry at this strange existence she had been forced to live in since her death in another time and reality.
"I'm sorry. I'm terrible at this," Wells said, sitting up and shaking his head as she passed by him to leave the makeshift training grounds. As his eyes followed her, his forlorn expression changed to one she was far more used to seeing on his face; a look of suspicion.
"Seriously, how did you even learn this stuff on the Ark in the first place? Hand-to-hand combat with swords and spears isn't exactly the kind of thing a personal assistant normally knows how to do. Did Anya, like, train you to fight like a ninja, or something? What's with that?!"
She paused at the mention of her childhood mentor and teacher, the image of her as she was in this reality coming to her very clearly for a moment. Her clothes and hairstyle were different, of course, but the sharp angles of her cheeks and eyebrows, and the piercing, hard glint in her eyes were the same. Along with the vision came a feeling of familiarity, and of a trust and respect so deep that it was indistinguishable from love. It seemed that Anya was just as important to Lexa Black in this reality as she had been to the young Heda of the clans.
Before Skaikru had shot her to death, that is.
"How about this… If you manage to actually hit me the next time we spar, I promise to answer all your questions. Deal?"
Wells rolled his eyes as he climbed to his feet once more.
"You don't make it easy for me to trust you, Black."
"Whether you trust me or not won't matter if you die next time there's a serious fight," she countered, her impatience and frustration returning full-force. "The offer stands. Practice those forms and stop pulling your damn punches. As annoying as you are, I actually prefer you alive. This camp needs you."
With that, she strode away, her jaw clenched tightly to keep from saying anything more. Her temper was inflamed today and she was on the verge of saying things she would later regret. He shouted something after her, but she ignored it.
Lexa needed a break from him. From all of them, actually. She had hoped that sparring might help her work out some of the frustration that had been building in her ever since she had woken up from her vision in the Spirit World to discover herself all alone again, but it hadn't. Instead it was just quietly boiling away inside her like a building storm, making her feel increasingly reckless and violent.
Alone... Always alone. Clarke had just left her there, unconscious and vulnerable in a forest filled with enemies. After all this time spent in an agony of wondering where she might be; days spent thinking about her, looking after the Sky People for her; endless days and hours of worrying over whether or not they would ever be reunited, or if she would somehow, impossibly, recognize her and remember their love from another world… and Clarke had just walked away from her the moment her guard was down.
Lexa felt her bruised heart tremble, despite the cold iron she kept locked around it.
Oh, she knew why the other girl had done it, but it still rankled. She had left her behind to go save that imbecile Bellamy, no doubt. What unfair twist of fate had made that insufferable man a prince of Azgeda in this new reality, she couldn't comprehend, but she knew Clarke well enough to realize that she wouldn't let him die if she could help it. She was probably with him right now, as a matter of fact, nursing him back to health with the curative plant Lexa had told her about.
When she had arrived back safely yesterday, her people had mostly greeted her with excitement and relief, and she had been glad to see that Jones and the others were also all safely returned. Aden especially had been happy to see her. The boy had actually hugged her, his wiry, thin arms gripping her so tightly that she had felt some of her aches and pains from her earlier fights spring back to life, but she hadn't told him to stop. It had been kind of nice, getting a genuine hug from someone whom she loved and who loved her back.
Breaking the sad news about Roma had been less nice, but the young sky people had taken it stoically for the most part. They had even conducted death rites for her that night over their camp fires, speaking the words into the flames as it wasn't yet safe to retrieve her body for a proper burial. Wells had added a carved headstone for her next to the others that morning, right next to Atom's, and they had placed flowers and some of her smaller belongings there in remembrance.
Lexa had watched all of this quietly, ignoring the stares and whispers of the others as they speculated over what little she had told them. She had kept her story simple and just stated that they had found Lincoln taken captive by other grounders, not wanting to confuse them or spread panic by telling them about the Ice Nation just yet. She wouldn't be able to explain how she knew so much about them, so that conversation would have to wait until a more opportune time.
Roma had been brave and fearless. She'd saved Lexa's life once; a debt that now Lexa would never have the chance to repay, as she had missed her only opportunity. She didn't blame the Clarke of this world for what had happened, to be sure, but understanding how a tragedy had unfolded didn't make it any less tragic.
Another sobering thought weighed on her that night, adding to the burden of all her other worries.
No matter what decisions she made next, she knew, Roma would not be the last of them to fall.
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That previous night, huddled together for warmth on her cot in the privacy of their shared tent, Lexa had told Aden about all that had happened since she had seen him last, sparing no details. The young Natblida had listened quietly, his pale face attentive, his concern for her throughout her tale obvious. He was the only one in existence who could possibly understand, after all. After she had said everything that could be said, including her tense meetings with Clark and with the Flame, he had reached over to grip her hand in his, giving her a warm smile.
"You'll find her again, Heda," was all he said, and the trust and certainty in his voice was so sincere that she felt her throat tighten with unexpected gratitude.
She ruffled his blond hair, smiling at him affectionately.
Thank the spirits for Aden. This would all be so much worse without him here by my side. No matter what happens, I have to keep him safe.
He batted her hand away, but he was grinning too now.
"Just don't leave me behind again, okay?"
"I can't promise that. You know I can't."
"You said we had to look out for each other here," he insisted stubbornly, frowning at her. "How am I supposed to watch your back if you keep running off by yourself and leaving me behind?"
At the stern look she unconsciously gave him he deflated a little, some of his assertiveness disappearing. She might be his sister here, but she was still his Commander too. The Aden of her reality would never have dared make such demands to her, not when they both knew they were essentially on battlefield each and every day.
"Heda, I just… I just don't want anything to happen to you again! Now it's not just Reapers we have to worry about, but Azgeda, too? How are we supposed to defeat all of them, even with the weapons we found?"
"By not fighting them at all, of course."
He looked thoughtful, so she waited patiently without saying more. He was a smart kid. It didn't take him more than a few moments to guess her intentions.
"The Coalition of Clans! But, can we really do that? We hardly know anything about the clans here," he said, looking doubtful.
"We know a lot more now than we did two days ago," she argued. "If Lincoln survived and escaped, he'll rejoin Trikru and pass along my request for parley to their war chief."
And hopefully they send their emissaries to meet with me before the rest of the Ark comes down and complicates things, she thought to herself.
Doing what she wanted and needed to do would become much harder when there were more adult Sky People on the ground, all with their own ideas and agendas that couldn't be trusted. Lexa needed to consolidate her base of power before they arrived.
"Once we have an agreement with our birth clan to start, then we can push for similar negotiations with the Azgeda delegation as well… and Clarke."
"Then Wanheda will help us," Aden proclaimed, and the confidence of his assumption made her smile.
"I hope so," she said. "You mustn't call her that here though. It could cause trouble."
The boy nodded. The ease with which he accepted the monumental tasks before them warmed her heart. After a while they both laid down in their own beds for sleep. Lexa had been lost in thought, replaying every moment, every surprising revelation, every shift of conversation between her and Clarke that day, scrutinizing and wondering over everything she had learned about this reality's version of her lost love, and so she was surprised when Aden broke the silence by asking a question in a quiet voice.
"The Flame really said Polaris Station needs to return to the surface?"
She shifted uneasily at this reminder of her bewildering encounter with the living spirits of the Flame within her, then turned her head to look at him in the darkness.
"It did, yes."
"That means you are going to have to talk to her," he said.
Anya.
She didn't say anything and the boy seemed to take it as quiet agreement.
"I'm glad it's you that has to talk to her and not me," he confided. Then, in an even softer whisper that was thick with boyish dread, he added, "She's going to be so pissed at Aden Black… and probably you too, Lexa."
Wonderful.
Figuring out how to deal with the intimidating doppelgänger of her dead mentor up on the Ark was just what she needed to be worrying about right now, on top of everything else.
Clarke, this would all be so much easier to deal with if you were here with me right now!
Given their turbulent history together, it probably wasn't necessarily true… but it had made her feel better to imagine it.
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Returning her thoughts to the present moment, Lexa crossed the camp towards the dropship, leaving the training yard behind. As she went, she worked to contain her scowl and school her features into the cool, calm façade that everyone expected of her. It was just one of the burdens of being a leader, of being who she was. She couldn't afford to let her inner turmoil show on her face, not with everyone looking to her for confidence and reassurance.
As disappointed as she felt over how her meeting with Clarke had ended, Lexa was back amongst the sky people now and there was still much work to be done. They had real weapons now thanks to the supply depot they had raided during the storm, but many of the bullets they had found were useless, the powder within them having long expired. It was a problem Raven and the others were already working on when she returned, but solving it was proving to be slow going. There had been another complication waiting for her upon her return, as well.
Thanks to Raven – the genius young woman who had floated down to them from the heavens several days ago like a literal angel of deliverance – communications with the Ark were now back online.
Lexa wasn't sure how to feel about this.
The others were ecstatic, of course. A schedule had been drawn up so that everyone had a chance to speak to their families and loved ones. The boost to morale had been immediate. For obvious reasons, Lexa and Aden had not yet taken their turn; however, they had both received several urgent demands that they speak with the Ark's Chancellor, which Lexa had promptly ignored.
She would speak to their leader when she was ready, and at a time of her choosing, not his.
As for anyone else, well… Did Lexa Black even have any family left up there? Aden claimed to remember their mother, but he also said that she had died several years ago. He had looked so sad when she asked him about it, as though he were disappointed that she didn't share all his memories about her. It had made her feel a bit guilty, the fact that she couldn't even remember the face of the woman who had supposedly raised both of them in this reality.
I'm not Lexa Black.
The thought rose up in her stubbornly. It wasn't in her nature to just give up and accept a whole new identity. Her mental strength was part of the reason the Flame had chosen her in the first place. Despite her own doubts, and despite all the things the Flame had hinted to her, Commander Lexa was not someone accustom to accepting defeat of any kind.
What did she mean, I brought myself here? It's not like I wanted to die! I shouldn't be here at all.
She stomped up the ramp of the dropship, entering through the flap of canvas that had been hung there to keep out the elements. As she did, she nearly collided with someone who was just about to exit.
"Oh! Fancy that, Lexa Black, just who I was looking for," Raven said, squinting at her face. "You look pissed. What's wrong? Did something happen?"
If the young mechanic had looked tired yesterday when Lexa had seen her, today she looked absolutely exhausted. There were deep circles under her eyes, and her hair was falling out of the ponytail she had pulled it back into, little stray wisps falling to frame her face with disarray. Even so, she was as keenly observant of details as ever, and she clocked Lexa's scowl before Lexa herself even realized her face was frowning.
"Nothing's wrong," she reassured her, forcing herself to relax. "How is the ammunition issue coming along?"
"Slow. Frustrating. A real pain in my ass," Raven retorted, nearly growling.
"Any complications I need to be aware of?" Lexa asked.
"No. It's just slow going, is all. I've got it covered."
Ah, but it was so goddamn fantastic to have someone like Raven Reyes in the Skaikru camp now! Her aggressively competent, no-bullshit attitude was such a relief to the Commander. If only every one of the Sky People down here were like Raven, her life would be a thousand times easier and their problems far more manageable.
"I know you do. Just let me know if you need any more helpers to speed things along. There are plenty of idle hands in this camp. I can always give you a few more people to assist."
"Yeah… I mean, thanks. I'll let you know," Raven said, sounding surprised by the offer.
"You said you were looking for me?" Lexa prompted, after a pause.
"I was. I am. Are you done beating up the Chancellor's son? This could take a while."
Lexa smiled very slightly at this. Perhaps she had gone a bit hard on young Wells earlier. He was a big boy, though, and she had needed the exercise. It wasn't like she had actually hurt him during their training – aside from his pride, that is.
"Our training session is over for now, yes," she said. "I'm taking a hunting party out later, but not until just before dusk. What do you need?"
"Aren't you worried about those men who attacked us before? What did you call them… Reapers?" Raven asked, looking at her askance. "We don't have even close to enough working bullets for all the guns we have. Isn't it a big risk to leave camp right now?"
"We won't go too far, and we won't be using the rifles so don't worry about the ammo. I don't want to draw their attention with gunshots. You're right, it's a risk, but everything we do here now is dangerous to some degree. We have to take some risks or we won't make it, and this camp needs food."
Raven gave her an indecipherable look. They were alone together on the first floor of the dropship, for once. Even the communications station was unoccupied, which was the first time Lexa had seen it sitting empty since she returned the day before.
"You know, I think I get it now."
Lexa didn't know what she was getting at, so she just waited, watching her without expression. She hadn't really gotten to know the other girl yet on a personal level. Their interactions had been brief and businesslike, or hurried and frantic as Reapers chased them through the woods. Her memories of Raven in her own world weren't very helpful either. She had loved Finn there too, and had despised Lexa for her role in his death. It hadn't made for much intimate conversation. Everything else she knew about Raven, she knew from what Clarke had told her.
"Why everyone is so… so obsessed with you, or impressed or whatever," Raven clarified, forging ahead with that bold, confident way of hers. "Anya, Sinclair, even Finn, they all talk about you like you're something special. I couldn't figure it out at first, and then I landed and it was weird how everyone just, follows you, like, no questions asked. I was expecting things to be a total mess down here when I arrived, and they are, kind of, but not at all like I thought. Even Finn! At first I thought maybe Finn and you… Well, never mind. Not important, Reyes."
She broke off, muttering to herself, and Lexa lifted an eyebrow, waiting for this strange, passionate young woman to get to the point of her rambling speech. Raven looked embarrassed for only a second, then rallied to a finish, meeting Lexa's eyes with an earnest gaze.
"What I'm trying to say is, I think I get it now. You're like… a real badass bitch, Lexa Black."
Now it was Lexa's turn to look at Raven with surprise.
"I think that was intended as a compliment, so thank you," Lexa said, very neutrally. "I have to disagree with you on at least one thing, however… It's not at all true that everyone here follows me without question."
Raven waved a hand, dismissing the point.
"It was totally a compliment, so you're welcome. Oh, and that was just a figure of speech. Don't worry, I get it. I know it can't be easy, taking on the role of chief babysitter for a bunch of snot nosed delinquents. As the only other certified adult here, believe me, I get it. I've got your back."
There was a pause as Lexa tried to decide how best to respond. This seemed like a very unusual but very genuine offer of friendship, so finally she simply smiled and nodded, accepting the other girl's offer for what it was.
"Thank you. I think we're all fortunate you came when you did," Lexa said. "You impress me too, Raven Reyes."
"Yes, well… now that we got all the mushy 'lady solidarity' crap out of the way," Raven muttered, walking away from Lexa to pull a small case out from where it was stored behind the navigation station. "Here, I have something for you."
"For me?"
"Yes, something from the Ark. It's actually kind of embarrassing I didn't show you this sooner, but things were so chaotic after I landed, and there just hasn't been time. But I finally got around to looking it over, and I think you're going to like this."
As Lexa took the case from her with curiosity, she immediately recognized it as one of the one's they had recovered along with Raven from the Polaris escape pod a few days ago.
"Where did you get this?" she asked, though she already suspected the answer.
"Anya gave it to me just before I launched," Raven said. "Don't worry! She said she knew I would look at it. That's basically the same thing as giving permission, if you think about it. Besides, I had to do some work to make sure everything was correctly installed. It was pretty easy, though. Sneaky Anya, she already had the software loaded on the equipment I brought down. She's more than just a scary, pretty face, that one."
Apropos of nothing, Raven suddenly blushed… hard.
The Commander barely noticed, as she was busy snapping the latches on the case open.
What Lexa found, upon opening the case, was a small assortment of equipment. There was a tiny flexible earpiece, a small control module with some wires and charging ports, a larger headset with a microphone, and a small datapad that wasn't much larger than Lexa's hand. As she picked up the datapad, she was hit with a rush of familiarity. Her thumb stroked a chip in the black plastic in one corner, and her fingers twitched with movements that were pure muscle memory. Without even pausing to think about how she knew what she was doing, she turned the device on.
This is mine… Hers. This is Lexa Black's datapad.
The realization was instantaneous. As the screen powered up, she recognized everything on the display. For Lexa, the combination of complete familiarity along with the unnatural, alien disquiet she felt over using the forbidden technology in her hands made her head spin. The only thing worse than this had been when she had briefly handled the pistol still hidden away in her pack.
"This is…"
"Yours, yes, I know," Raven said, sounding apologetic. "Sorry, I had to turn it on to check that everything worked. I didn't realize it was your personal datapad at first. You know, you don't have a single picture of Aden on there. Why is that?"
"Too risky," Lexa said, the answer spilling out of her without conscious thought. "It would be a record of his existence. If anyone ever saw them, if they figured out what he was…"
Understanding overtook Raven's features.
"Oh, of course. He's unregistered. I knew that. I should have realized…"
"Is this all?"
"What? Oh, no! This isn't really even it. It's just so you have a screen to use. As soon as I saw all this, I suspected what it was all really for. Sure enough, there was extra software and code already installed on all the communications systems. Why do I get the sense that this isn't the first time you and Anya have used backdoor comms channels, hmm? What is it with all you Polaris Station people, anyways? I've never met people so damn secretive before in my life!"
Lexa licked very dry lips. She thought she understood the implications of the equipment in her hands, and it made her palms sweat with rising apprehension.
"Polaris Station enjoys its privacy," she said, the answer again coming with ease.
It wasn't the answer Leksa kom Trikru would have given; it was the answer Lexa Black would have.
If she wasn't so distracted, she might have noticed how thinking like Lexa Black became so much easier when she just let her guard down and relied on her instincts to guide her. The memories were all there, she knew, tantalizing her in the back of her mind, fuzzy and out of focus when she tried to grab hold of them directly.
I'm not Lexa Black.
"Then you will be happy to know that I already tested this earlier today, and it works flawlessly. Your channel is completely hidden," Raven explained. "No one else on the Ark will have any way of knowing that you're communicating. It's completely off the grid. You might have some issues if you try making a call when someone else is using the main comms panel, though. There is only so much total bandwidth available, you know. Voice only might still work, but you'll probably lose video."
"Understood. Thank you," Lexa said, feeling eager to be alone again now that she had her… not her's… datapad to look through. She would worry about the device's other uses later, once she had a moment to think.
"You're welcome. Oh, and I almost forgot," Raven added, grinning. "I was supposed to tell you before that Anya fired you. Congratulations on your new unemployment! It might not actually matter anymore, but now you can't say I didn't tell you when she calls."
Lexa didn't have time to say anything to this announcement, because the datapad in her hand gave off a low chime and a blinking icon appeared on the center of the screen. Lexa recognized it with a sinking feeling.
"Speaking of which, that will be her I bet. She must have seen you connect."
Lexa looked down at the datapad as though it had become a live snake in her hands, coiled and about to strike.
She wasn't ready to talk to Anya! She didn't know enough yet, didn't remember enough. She needed a few minutes to prepare, to think about how to handle things with her, how to strike the right tone and get the information she needed without revealing too much.
Mostly, she needed a moment to prepare herself to see someone she had thought she would never get to see again. Someone who had once been very important to her.
Raven was watching her and something of the apprehensions she was feeling must have shown in her face, because the younger girl laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"I don't actually think she's that mad. The firing thing was just a cover," Raven said, obviously trying to sound reassuring. "She cares a lot about you and Aden, Lexa. I'm sure she just wants to know you're alright."
Lexa looked at the hand on her arm, then at Raven's face. She cleared her throat.
"If you don't mind, I think I would like to take this call in private."
"No, yeah. I mean, sure, no problem. I'll make sure no one comes in. Just yell if you need any help with the connection," Raven said, backing out of the dropship and disappearing through the flap of cloth at the door.
Taking a very deep, very slow breath, Lexa pressed down on the floating icon, accepting the transmission before she could change her mind.
Almost instantly there was static, then an image began to resolve itself, wobbling slightly before stabilizing on the small screen in Lexa's hands. A figure was framed there, and as the picture clarified, the figure moved forward until their face was nearly completely filling the screen, their keen eyes piercing through the vast physical space between them through the tech and pinning Lexa with a look that could have frozen even the Azgeda Queen's icy, dead heart.
"Lexa," the woman snarled, her beautiful voice ringing with authority, determination, and was that… just a hint of disappointment as well? Despite herself, the Commander felt herself react, her heart racing with a heady mélange of joy and dread all at once.
"Please, please tell me that you didn't just throw away everything we've worked towards for a hundred years by chasing after your brother on that dropship and suiciding the A.I. in your brain which just so happens to be humanity's only hope for survival? Because, Lexa, that would be just… so very disappointing."
This was all said in a heated rush, and yet the older woman still somehow managed to make each word of her delivery succinct, clear and biting.
Lexa took a breath, schooling her features. Whether she felt ready or not, it was time to face her old teacher once again.
"Hello, Anya."
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AUTHORS NOTE:
I'm aaaalllllliiiiiiiivvvvvvvvveeeeeeee! A bit short, I know, but it felt right. Also, it's not such an easy thing to rip a multi-year hiatus bandaid off! Oh, the urge to go back and edit the ever living hell out of past chapters is strong, my friends, but I resisted. Maybe I will keep going, if there is still interest. Cheers :)