Surprise! I know I said a week, but I couldn't wait that long. This is actually hilarious because I just messaged all of my reviewers to not expect an update until later next week.
Well...
I'm a liar.
Anyways, here is the next chapter. I really enjoyed writing this one. Drama and panic are always fun to explore.
Warnings: As I mentioned earlier, there is more gore in this story than my other ones. I try to keep it T level, but it is always so hard to judge. If you have any concerns, message me and we can have a chat. Also, if you think that I have depicted it too much, let me know and I will either adjust the rating or edit the chapter. Also - language, once again.
Note: I just wanted to note that this chapter has a bit more science than I usually put. If you don't understand something, it's most likely because it is a scientific word. I didn't go crazy with terms and facts, but I thought I should mention this before. If you actually want to know more, please message me. I'm a science nerd and love to talk.
Other than that, I don't have any more notes. Enjoy!
Ashes
Chapter 3: Race Against Time
Clarke reached up to rub her head through the hazmat suit that still surrounded her body. She didn't want to remove the helmet yet – she wasn't too sure the conditions outside weren't harmful.
She rolled her eyes.
Of course they were harmful. The world just got burnt by a wave of radiation. Was there even anything else higher up on the 'harmful' scale?
Clarke sighed, eyeing the gap in the helmet. Even though there was a break in the glass, she felt safer with a layer between her body and the outside world.
The break must've meant that the world was survivable. Otherwise, she would've been dead and turned to ashes at that point. Keeping the helmet on wasn't really about being safe – it was about comfort.
It reminded her of when she was little. Her little blanket. She would take the ratty thing everywhere, much to the dismay of her parents. They tried to assure her that they would buy her a new one – a better one. They had the money and the power to do so, after all. Plus, the torn and dirty purple blanket that Clarke never left the house with apparently caused whispers among the people. Were the Griffins running out of money? The people would grasp at anything to start a rumour. Clarke couldn't blame them – there wasn't much else to do on a floating piece of metal.
That purple blanket was her safety. It protected her from the harsh stares of the people. It protected her from the monsters under the bed. It protected her from the boogey-man that would snatch naughty little children and float them. It was her safety blanket, just like that layer of glass was.
Who knew what was lurking outside? Who knew what the radiation had done to the Earth that she used to know so well?
She had learned about the effects of radiation while training to become a doctor on the Ark. It was an important part of her previous life and it came in handy over the last few months on the ground. On the Ark, they were constantly exposed to solar radiation, as well as the potential for the extremely harmful x-rays and gamma rays if the protective shell of the space stations failed. It was a problem that the generations on the ground hadn't had to deal with, as their atmosphere filtered out these harmful rays. They had learned pretty quickly that living in space was not easy.
Clarke laughed internally. More recently, she had been dealing with radiation on the ground. The ground had its own radiation problems – probably more than what she had experienced on the Ark. She was thankful for her training. Many wouldn't have survived without it. The word radiation was not an abnormal word anymore – she must've said it at least a dozen times each day. How much radiation was on Earth? Was Earth survivable? Should she irradiate Mount Weather? How much radiation could their bodies metabolize? What were the properties of Nightblood that allowed for successful bonding with the Flame and prevent damage from radiation? How much time until the radiation killed them? When would Praimfaya hit?
Her life was consumed and dictated by that word.
Radiation. Irradiate. Ionic, non-ionic. Harmful, non-harmful. Gamma. X-ray. Solar.
She could talk about the stupid stuff all day. Earth apparently had an abundance of it now.
Clarke knew enough about radiation to know she should be dead. She knew that she should've looked like Baylis did back at Becca's lab.
She shivered at the memory. The thought of killing that man in such a horrible way had left a mark on her, just as every other death she had a part in. She may not be physically marked like those from Trikru, but she was still scarred.
Clarke couldn't get over the fact that she should've been dead. Her body should have exploded from the amount of radiation she had been exposed to, her insides should have liquefied, and her DNA should have been ripped apart.
But she wasn't dead.
In fact, she felt decent. Her body felt as if it had been sunburnt, signalling that the high level radiation had hit her body. Her skin was dry and cracked, peeling away in some places. Blisters lined her body. She knew that she had internal damage from the black blood that covered the glass – she now knew it had come from her mouth.
She should be dead.
It wasn't a question. It was a fact. She should be dead.
Why wasn't she?
She tried to sit up, but fell back to the ground with a loud groan. Her head spun and she saw stars behind her closed eyes.
Definitely a concussion.
Hopefully it wasn't serious. She needed to get moving. She needed to look for other survivors. She needed to learn this new world.
There was so much to do. There was so much to see. The same feeling that she had when she landed on Earth for the first time had bubbled up in her stomach. The need to get moving. The need to survive.
Laying there was not helping anyone.
Clarke realized what had happened. She understood what must've happened that caused her to be laying on the floor of Becca's lab, amidst all of the destruction and chaos.
She never made it back to the ship. That's why she wasn't in space.
She sacrificed herself.
She remembered the failure of the mechanical alignment of the satellite. She remembered the screams of frustration and the gut wrenching panic. Her hands still trembled when she thought of the fear. She remembered her choice that she made, knowing that her friends needed her. Clarke could almost feel the rusted metal rubbing up against her rubber glove as she climbed higher and higher.
How did she survive Praimfaya?
Before she could entertain that thought further, realization struck her. The memory had struck her so hard that if she was standing up, she would've had to double over.
Bellamy.
He was right there beside her, the whole time. She remembered their failure of the mechanical alignment of the satellite. She remembered his screams of frustration and the panic set in his eyes. She remembered her choice that she made, but she also remembered his. "This is my choice too, Clarke! I bear it so you don't have to alone. We are in this together." His words still echoed in her ears.
Where was he? Did he survive?
She couldn't think of any reason why she would survive and he wouldn't. If anything, he would be more likely to survive the influx of radiation. He had spent his early life living in Factory Station. While she had the luxury of living in Alpha Station, where maintenance was always up to the highest standards, he did not. Factory Station never had full repairs and their technology was much older. Due to this, his exposure to radiation was higher growing up, thus developing his system better.
Clarke shook herself. This was not the time to dive into her knowledge that was needed for medical training on the Ark. It was time to survive.
She tried to sit up again, but didn't do much better than her last attempt. Her vision swam and she could feel the throb on her forehead.
Damn.
She laid back down gingerly, careful not to disturb her head more. Her thoughts turned to Bellamy.
She wouldn't be able to rest until she found him. She needed him. They needed each other if they were going to survive the ground.
If they could survive, who knows what was out there. Who knows who else survived? Those same thoughts kept running over and over in her head, setting her blood rushing and her adrenaline pumping.
Clarke tried to push the panic out of her system, instead focusing completely on Bellamy. She thought of his messy hair and how slicked back it had been when they first landed on Earth. That was the first time she had met him and assumed that hairstyle was his normal. God, was she ever wrong. She had never seen his straight hair again, thank goodness. The curls were apart of Bellamy. She actually hadn't seen his curls in awhile – they were trapped under the helmet.
She thought of his eyes. She used to think brown was a boring eye colour – she much preferred grey or blue. Not many people on the Ark had light coloured eyes – it was, after all, a recessive trait. They were rare, which made them interesting. Then, she met Bellamy. At first, his eyes were nothing special. But then, one day, it hit her – his eyes were some of the most beautiful she had ever seen. God, when did that start? What people used to say about eyes was true when it came to Bellamy – eyes truly were the pathway to the soul. Every emotion he felt could be seen through his eyes. There were so many colours within them– amber, black, and various shades of brown, ranging from coffee and cream to dark chocolate. They were truly mesmerizing.
It was almost like a switch flipped. Clarke's heart jumped out of her chest when she quickly thought back to those moments before the wave hit.
He had told her that he loved her.
She had been so distracted and focused that she never repeated those words back to him. She was so surprised and shocked at his confession.
God, she was so stupid. She should've said something back. She just had so much going on, she had been so focused on the task at hand, she had been so surprised.
She loved him too.
Where was he?
"B-" Her throat was scratchy and hoarse, preventing the words to form. "Bell?" she called, her voice weak. There wasn't an answer. She tried clearing her throat. "Bellamy?!" Her voice was stronger this time. Her throat was so dry, having all of the moisture of the air sucked out by the fire.
Where was he? She originally assumed he was in the room with her, knocked out, but now she wasn't so sure. She couldn't sense his presence. How did she get back to the lab? Was it possible that Bellamy could be in a different section of the building? Did they get separated on the way back? Was he still at the tower?
She tired to remember the final moments leading up to Praimfaya.
The tower looked taller the more that they climbed it. It felt like every rung they grasped, two more were added. No progress was being made and they were running out of time.
Clarke had imagined dying many times more than she would admit. Too many times had she narrowly escaped death. She knew that sooner or later, the icy hands of death would latch on to her and never let her go.
She deserved it.
She remembered all of the mistakes she had made, all of the times death had just missed her. Her escape from Mount Weather, using the flame on herself without being a Nightblood, all of the shots fired at her, all of the fights she had been in.
Death was not something new to her.
Yet, she was frightened.
She glanced below her. They were so high up. She gasped, closed her eyes and clung to the metal poles tighter.
Bellamy, sensing her distress, reached up and lightly touched her calf. Clarke peered back down at him. She could see his lips moving, but could no longer hear him. The radiation had cut off their communication system. They could no longer speak to each other.
Clarke hated that.
It was one of her worst fears. Being alone when she needed someone the most. It reminded her too much of her solitary.
She could read his lips, even though he was speaking quickly. It's okay! Just keep going! he seemed to say. She nodded her head and turned back to the metal structure.
The winds had picked up immensely and they could see the radiation cloud in the distance. It was massive. To Clarke, it reminded her of when she would drop food colouring into a glass bowl of water. The colour looked like a cloud at first, but would spread and diffuse quickly. Praimfaya reminded her of that. Except, Praimfaya was death and food colouring was fun.
It was worse than anything she could've ever imagined.
They were going to die.
Clarke began to climb again.
Bellamy was scared too. As Clarke climbed a few paces ahead of him, he couldn't help but remember the moments he shared with her. All of the times that they had worked together. All of the times they had understood each other.
He would never forget the first time he had fallen in love with her. Truly, undoubtedly, fallen in love. It was the first time he had been hugged by her. It was the first time he had been hugged by anyone other than Octavia or his mother.
It was the first time he felt as if someone other than his family had cared about him.
That was the day they had been reunited. She had closed the dropship doors on him and been captured by the Mountain Men. Finn and himself had begun the hunt for their friends while she had escaped the mountain.
That moment was beautiful – it was filled with peace and love.
Their reunion was one of his favourite memories. It was one of the things that kept him going and gave him hope when she had left for three months.
He was looking forward to another one of those soul capturing hugs.
Bellamy could still clearly remember the way she flew into his body, her arms winding around his back. They were both so battered and bruised, but they both did not care for the pain that their contact had caused. It had taken a moment for him to fully absorb and understand the situation before winding his arms around her small frame.
Octavia had chuckled at them. He had felt happy – his two favourite girls were safe and within arms reach.
That was when Bellamy realized he loved Clarke. Thinking of experiencing life without her had made him understand that they were no longer just friends for survival. They had chosen to be friends. They had chosen to be together.
His thoughts were interrupted with a loud bang. The sound of rushing air was louder than the turmoil of the radiation wave. He quickly spun to look in the direction of Becca's lab.
The rocket.
They had launched.
The reality of the situation hit Clarke in that moment.
She would never see her mother again. She would never see her friends again. She would never get to hear Raven's mechanical lingo, she would never get to hear Emori and Murphy bickering and giggling, she would never get to meet Harper and Monty's children, and she would never get to see Echo redeem herself.
She would never get her happy ending. She wouldn't spend the next five years at Bellamy's side. She wouldn't get to spend nights curled up in bed with him, reading each other books on the Ark. She would never get to listen to him tell her Greek myths. She would never get her life with him.
She would never get her life.
Clarke swallowed hard.
Ai gonplei ste odon.Her fight was over.
Her dreams would stay just that – dreams.
She glanced down at the man she loved and he stared up at her. His eyes were pained, as if he was thinking the same things as well.
"May we meet them again," he muttered, turning back to the spot where the rocket launched from. Clarke closed her eyes, trying to keep her tears at bay. She refused to cry.
Her friends needed her. She would not die for nothing. She would not be the cause of her friend's deaths. She would not allow Bellamy to do for nothing. She continued to climb.
"We only have 20 minutes until the wave hits us!" Clarke shouted. She didn't hear a response from Bellamy. The winds were too high and the rumble of the quickly approaching wave caused sound to be muttered. "20 minutes. Fuck."
They were screwed.
It wasn't long before they reached the top of the tower. Clarke plugged in the computer while Bellamy climbed higher to move the satellite. At this point, there was no time to waste. The reality of the situation had sunk in – if they did not succeed, their friends would suffocate in space.
Due to the communication system failure, Clarke read the diagrams and pointed in the direction for the satellite to be shifted. Clarke did manage to catch a few strings of curses fly out of Bellamy's mouth and his shouts as he turned the heavy metal.
"Left!" Clarke screamed. She pointed frantically in the direction that the large dish had to be turned. Bellamy readjusted his stance, hooked his fingers under the lip of metal, and pulled. His face was strained with the weight of it and Clarke could hear is groans.
When the graphic flashed green, Clarke screamed in happiness. Her hands flew to the sides of her head and she looked at Bellamy excitedly. He was leaned over, clutching the railing tightly. Without wasting any more time, she punched the button to send the signal. The graphic read 'sent' right before the screen shut off.
The wave was close. It was shutting down all of their technology.
Bellamy jumped down, landing beside her with a loud thud. He grabbed her in a bone crushing hug, pulling her as close to him as possible. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him equally as hard. For a brief moment, she felt peace and happiness. She forgot about their approaching death. She felt safe.
They did it.
"We have 12 minutes!" Clarke heard Bellamy scream. Reality hit her again. She looked out at the death wave and felt her adrenaline spike. She shifted right back into panic mode. It may have been 12 minutes until the wave hit Becca's lab, but they were a mile out. It was much closer than 12 minutes.
"Let's go!"
Clarke didn't even know why they were in such a rush. They were going to die. There was no other bunker. There was not another rocket.
Where were they running too?
She guessed it was a primordial instinct. Fight or flight, as people liked to say. There was no way of fighting Praimfaya – it was time to run.
Time seemed to pass too quickly. They both fumbled down the metal structure. Just like before, Bellamy was below her. They took two rungs at a time, climbing down the tower as fast as they could without slipping. It was nearly an impossible task – their boots were wet from the snow and her gloves did not provide much grip. Clarke was impressed that they didn't fall to their deaths.
Bellamy reached the ground first. Just like before, he waited patiently for her. He could've took off running before she was on her two feet. He could've run faster than her.
Yet, he didn't.
As soon as they both were on the ground, they took off sprinting. The race back to the lab was different than the race to the tower. It was now life or death. Of course, it was a similar situation earlier – they had to realign the radio tower or they would all die. Somehow, it was different this time. It was almost like Death had his fingers wrapped around them, crushing the life out of their bodies. Before, it only felt as if Death was reaching towards them.
Death was more imminent and unavoidable now.
They no longer cared for slipping in the snow. The white substance was kicked up behind them as they raced towards their only chance of survival. Becca's lab.
Clarke hoped that there was a radiation proof room in there. She had prepared for everything, why not this? Even though it felt impossible, Clarke still had hope.
Clarke's feet slid out from underneath her, bringing her tumbling to the ground. Wasting no time, Bellamy hooked her under the arm, hauling her to her feet. She took off running again.
Not a moment later, Bellamy tripped on a hidden tree root. He went flying into the trunk of a dead tree, letting out a grunt of pain. Clarke spun around to look at the quickly approaching wave. She could see distant trees falling to its fire.
"Come on!" Clarke reached for him, gripping his hand. He steadied himself before taking off running, pulling her along.
Clarke never knew this fear before. The fear of losing someone to an unbeatable monster. The fear of being chased by death. The fear of melting away and being turned to ash. The fear of not saying goodbye.
Her heart hammered in her chest and she could barely get enough oxygen into her lungs. The air was filled with smoke from the burning destruction behind her. The thick air made her cough. It was getting harder and harder to breathe.
Clarke misstepped, her legs failing her. She fell to the ground with a grunt, smacking her head on a rock. She let out a low moan as the pain registered. Her head spun where her forehead hit the edge of her helmet. She felt blood trickling from the gash on her brow, where the loose glass of her visor hit. Her knee and wrist hurt from where she landed roughly.
"Clarke!" Bellamy called. He was right over top of her, his face hovering beside hers. "Can you walk!?" She was dazed, but nodded anyways. Adrenaline did funny things to the body. In any other situation, she would've stayed on the ground for at least a few more minutes. She didn't even feel the pain in her knee as she stood. "Let's go." Clarke wobbled on her feet, the world spinning in front of her.
"Wait!" she called, a tremble in her voice. She tried to take a step, but she stumbled. "I- I-"
"No time!" Bellamy cried. She took a moment to look at his face. Not only was he showing signs of exhaustion, but signs of radiation poisoning.
How had the radiation breeched his suit?
Clarke glanced down at his arm. Where he caught himself from falling on the tree root, a long tear lay. He must've tore his suit open when he caught himself on the dead tree.
Clarke swore loudly.
"No! We don't have time!" he wheezed again. Without another word, he slung her arm over his shoulders and began to run. She pumped her legs in time with his, ignoring the tipping of the world around her. She closed her eyes, trying to make it easier to focus on running. Bellamy was her eyes as they raced away.
Clarke couldn't get his face out of her mind. He looked sick. His eyes looked tired and bloodshot. His skin looked grey and blisters were forming where she could see. A thin layer of sweat covered his grey face and neck.
He looked really sick.
Clarke heard the groaning of metal behind her. She spun around just in time to witness the radio tower being blown apart by Praimfaya.
The wave was close.
She spun back to the front, trying her hardest not to throw up from her throbbing head and spinning vision.
"Faster!" she called to Bellamy. He nodded his head numbly and began to move faster, pulling her along. She fought to keep up.
Clarke thought that her lungs hurt before. Well, she was wrong.
It felt like her whole body was on fire. The pain she felt from running so quickly and the multiple hard falls, along with the increasing radiation had her head spinning. The smashed glass gave her a gash on her head, but also opened a pathway for the radiation to come into her body.
She could feel that it was having effects on her. She felt hot. It was almost like she had stood in the sun for hours. She could feel blisters forming on her body. Her limbs were swelling and her skin was peeling.
The wave was right behind them. Clarke could feel the heat on her back. Just as they were nearing the lab, Bellamy let out a strangled sob – one that sounded like he was holding back for awhile. He dropped to his knees, falling onto all fours. He brought Clarke down with him. She fell hard beside him, making her knee throb and head whirl.
Clarke glanced behind her.
The wave was getting closer.
"Come on!" Clarke screamed, stumbling back to her feet. She reached down and pulled on his hand. How was he so much worse than her? They were exposed to the same amount of radiation for very comparable amounts of time. "Bellamy! Please!" He looked up at her, desperation in his eyes.
"Clarke... I can't." His voice trembled. "Clarke-"
"Fuck!" Clarke screamed. In a rush of adrenaline, she reached to the ground and hooked her hands under his arms. With a grunt, she helped him back up to his feet. "Let's go!" She began running in the direction of the lab, Bellamy stumbling right beside her.
She burst through the door, slamming it behind both of them. She released Bellamy, allowing his body to fall to the floor with a loud thud. He lay flat against the cool tile, not having the strength to hold his body up. She quickly followed him, falling to her hands and knees.
She coughed several times before blood flew out of her mouth, covering the glass of her suit.
Clarke no longer had the strength to hold herself up. Her arms gave out from underneath her and she landed on the floor hard. She could no longer see out of her visor due to the blood, but she could feel Bellamy's body heat not too far away.
The lights flickered and went out once Praimfaya hit. Clarke could hear glass windows breaking as the force of the wave smashed into the lab. Smoke, dust and ash flew into the building from the cracks in the doors and the busted windows.
The last thing she remembered was Bellamy crying out in pain.
"Bellamy!" she cried out. "Bell-" Clarke choked on her words. She opened her mouth to call out to him one last time, but she couldn't get the words out. She coughed again, letting more black blood flow out from in-between her lips.
Then, darkness.
Alright. So, a cliff hanger. Sorry, guys! It's just the way the breaks fell when I was dividing up the plot. It's evil but necessary.
As always, a HUGE thank you to everyone that is supporting this story. The support is incredible. Actually, this fandom is incredible. Thank you so much for reading. A special shout out to all of my reviewers, favourites, and followers.
Again, I loooooooove feedback. I adore it. I love it so much that I will name my first child "Feedback" or "Review Please". Just kidding. But, in all seriousness, I love reading what you guys have to say! You guys give me such great opinions and feedback, its amazing. I appreciate all reviews. Feel free to give me feedback in a review or a PM. Also, I try my best to reply to every review.
Now, I have a question for you guys! In your review, let me know what you think happens to Bellamy. Also, what would you love to see from this story? Like I mentioned before, I have everything pre-written, but I am willing to listen to your ideas and (maybe) switch things around. Let me know! I would love to hear what you guys think!
As for the next update, I'm not 100% sure. I'm guessing that the next update will actually be in a week. I always say a week and post earlier, but don't expect that this time. I'll be away from technology for the next week so even if I am tempted, I won't be able to post. Haha.
Thanks for reading. See you soon!
Paw