Chapter 13: The Last Stand of Charles Pike

Octavia crept through the underbrush without making a sound. Dark eyes were locked on her target and she waited patiently for the right moment. Her mind was calculating the distance to her target, the amount of force needed to knock her target to the ground, and exactly how to disarm him. Muscles taught, her target turned with his back to her position. With a grace and accuracy that would have made Indra proud, Octavia pounced. Within seconds, she had knocked away the rifle and pulled the knife off of his belt. Her target lay flat on his back, staring at the powerful woman sitting on top of him.

"O?" Bellamy's head was spinning from hitting the ground so hard. However, he still recognized his sister, even with the dark paint around her eyes. It had been almost two weeks since he had last seen her, before she fled Arkadia with Lincoln, Kane, Clarke, and Monty. "O, what's going on?"

Anger flashed in Octavia's dark eyes. "You say that like you really have no idea."

"Let me up," he said as he struggled beneath her. Octavia didn't weigh that much but she had pinned him down in a way that he couldn't get the leverage he needed to turn the tables. "Come on, Octavia."

"No," she hissed. With her knees and feet still pinning him firmly against the ground, she reached for the ties that she had clipped on to her belt. With very little struggle from Bellamy, she managed to bind his hands together. Only then did she back off and pull him into a sitting position. "You're going to listen."

"Octavia, where have you been?" asked Bellamy, quickly looking around into the trees. He hoped that she wasn't alone. Another part of him hoped that none of the other soldiers that Pike commanded would wander into this part of the camp. He didn't want Octavia to get hurt.

"I've been trying to save the people you've been murdering," she spat at him. Her body was heaving with every breath that she took. It pained Bellamy to see her this angry- especially when that anger was directed at him.

Shaking his head desperately, he tried to explain, "I'm just trying to protect our people. That's all Pike wants!"

"That's bullshit and you know it." Octavia paced in front of him with impatience. "Pike created a war to get revenge for the people he lost when they first crashed here."

"Do you blame him?"

"Of course not. I would have wanted revenge too. But this isn't the way. You should know that- Lincoln and I tried to tell you how different all the factions of grounders were. You can't hold these people responsible for what Azgeda did!"

"But they aren't different. Lexa abandoned us at Mount Weather and look what happened!"

Octavia glared at him, saying, "Clarke got over it, why can't you? Clarke had to kill all those people, the same as you, and she managed not to murder whole villages of innocent people!"

"Clarke left us. Pike is here and he is trying to save us!" cried Bellamy. He struggled to his feet and he noticed that Octavia's stance stiffened. She was ready for a fight, but he wasn't trying to give her one. "Octavia, come home. I've already talked to Pike- he's willing to pardon you. Please, Octavia."

"Arkadia is not my home. And Pike is not my commander!"

"And Lexa is?!"

Octavia stalked up to stand in front of him, only inches apart. "Lexa isn't the problem. She's declared war on Pike now that he's attacked Trikru. Your little army won't be fighting children and old men now. They'll be fighting warriors!"

Bellamy shook his head. "We're ready."

"And that's the problem. Instead of going to Polis in a truce to talk about the problems between Skaikru and Azgeda, he just started shooting anyone that wasn't like him! Queen Nia is dead, Bel. Lexa killed her. Pike could have had his revenge. The grounders know revenge better than anyone: jus drein jus daun! But Pike got more than his fair share. You're no longer getting revenge…you're just murdering the innocent!"

Her brother stared at her for a moment. They didn't know that the Ice Queen was dead. One of the disadvantages to attacking Trikru is that they had no inside knowledge of the grounder coalition or what was going on in Polis. "How do you know all this? Who has replaced Nia?"

"Kane and Clarke got into Polis. They tried to talk to Lexa and save Arkadia. They're the reason that Lexa send that messenger to Pike. Kane and Monty came to find Lincoln and I. Lexa killed Queen Nia and now her son is the King of the Ice Nation. But Lexa and her army are coming for Arkadia."

"We are prepared for war," repeated Bellamy, holding his head high.

For a moment, he thought that Octavia might hit him, but she seemed to think better of it. The anger and bitterness seemed to leave her eyes for a moment. Even dressed in her grounder garb and the knife she carried on her back, Octavia looked like the little girl who used to hide under the floorboards. "You're my brother. I don't want to see you die."

"If I die, it will be for Arkadia."

Shaking her head, Octavia said, "No, it'll be for Pike. You followed Clarke because she did the right thing. Clarke was destroyed when she had to kill Finn and all of those people in Mount Weather. But Pike is only growing mad with power when he kills grounders. How can you follow that? The man who was my brother and Clarke's friend would never be ok with this."

Bellamy tried to ignore her words. Instead he asked, "Why are you here, Octavia? Why now?"

"Because Lexa has promised to stop the war if we can bring Pike in."

"There's no way you can get to him, O. We're soldiers. We know how to protect our leader. And I know you have spies on the inside. But even Miller, Harper, and Jasper won't be able to help."

"But you could." Octavia stared at him with hard eyes. "Or at least, I had hoped that you would do what was best for Arkadia. You've seen the kind of army that Lexa possesses. Do you really think you can keep them from slaughtering everyone in Arkadia?"

Without waiting for him to respond, Octavia pulled a small knife from her sleeve. Bellamy didn't flinch when she reached forward to grab his wrists. In a single motion, she cut the bonds she had used to restrain him. Without another word she turned away and sprinted back into the dense trees. Bellamy was left standing alone in the clearing, his rifle on the ground a few yards away.

Stunned by what had just taken place, Bellamy didn't move at first. Octavia's words of ire and accusations of murder left him doubting everything that had brought him to this place. But why did he doubt now? Octavia and Clarke had tried to convince him that Pike was wrong before. Even Kane had reached out to him after Pike had taken power, but Bellamy had ignored him. Silently, he asked himself what had changed.

His sister's words echoed in his mind as he walked over to fetch his fallen rifle. Guilt pooled in his gut as he thought about all those that had died because of Pike and the Skaikru army. Pike had tried to talk to the grounders, asking them to abandon their homes upon penalty of death. The grounders had refused. Bellamy had been adamant about trying to warn the grounders. Arkadia needed the land for survival. But they didn't have to murder to get it.

Walking slowly back into camp, Bellamy thought about how many times he had made excuses for Pike. The times he had told the other members of the guard that what they were doing was right. That their campaign was no longer about revenge, it was about survival. Lexa and her coalition would move against them at some point- Pike was just being proactive. They needed to act fast- winter was coming and they needed to plant fields in order to have enough food to survive. And there was no way to share with the grounders…there were just too many of them. People were going to die and Pike wasn't going to let it be Arkadians.

Bellamy pushed the flap of Pike's tent open. The Chancellor barely looked up from his map. Hannah Green gave him a small smile and turned back to continue listening to Commander Drake giving a briefing. They had been planning this for days. Pike wanted to strike the gathering Trikru troops near the rubble of what used to be Tondc.

It appeared that Indra and her Trikru warriors had returned to their lands ahead of Lexa's army. Pike thought that defeating Indra and the rest of Trikru would discourage the other grounders. Bellamy had to agree- with the leader of Trikru gone, why would the other factions want to risk their own people for Trikru land?

"Anything to report, Blake?" asked Drake when he was done speaking to Pike.

Bellamy had every intention of warning them that Kane and Octavia had plans to try to kidnap Pike in order to take him to Polis. But for some reason, all he said was, "All is quiet."

Both Pike and Drake took him at his word. They had no reason to distrust him, because Bellamy had never lied to them before. Pike took a deep breath and turned to address Bellamy. "Are you ready for this?"

"Of course," answered Bellamy, this time with a bit more truth.

"I would understand if you wanted to keep guard over camp," said Pike sincerely. With pity in his eyes, he continued, "There is a chance that your sister will be among those at Indra's camp. If she fights against us, I'm afraid there is nothing I can do to protect her."

"I understand."

Pike nodded solemnly and patted him on the back. This time when he spoke, he addressed Hannah and Commander Drake. "I know that we are ready. We move at dusk. The night vision goggles that we scavenged from Mount Weather will give us the upper hand."

"I'll go prepare everyone," said Drake and he and Hannah exited the tenet, leaving Bellamy alone with Pike. Octavia's words were echoing in his mind.

He tried to push it away as Pike said, "This is it. We're finally going to be able to show the grounders that we aren't just some weak Sky People that they can walk all over."

"Yes, sir," replied Bellamy, but he couldn't look him in the eyes. Pike was too preoccupied to notice that Bellamy may be having doubts. Bellamy followed Pike out of the tent, but instead of following his chancellor to join Drake, Hannah, and the others, Bellamy quietly walked back to where he remembered seeing Jasper before. Sure enough, the young man was sitting next to a camp fire. Pike didn't trust Jasper with any plans and usually left him with the few guards to watch over their camp.

"What do you want?" asked Jasper rather bluntly.

Bellamy shifted uneasily from foot to foot. Lowering his voice, he whispered, "Have you heard from Monty lately?"

"What's it to you?"

"If you have tell him and Kane that we're attacking Indra's camp in an hour. Do what you have to."

He walked away without looking back. It was up to Kane and the others now. If grounders died tonight it wouldn't be because of him. When he got to the staging area that the other members of the guard were suiting up, Bellamy tried to act as normally as possible. He wasn't sure what would happen tonight- if Jasper could tell Monty and Kane in time to warn Indra. But the Sky People still had the advantage- it would be dark soon and it was hard to throw spears in the dead of night. But the grounders would make easy targets for the gear Pike had acquired from Mount Weather.

Bellamy strapped on his bullet proof vest and attached a utility belt with additional ammunition. The air was buzzing with the excitement and apprehension of the upcoming fight. Although they expected to win, there was still the chance that not everyone would make it back alive. But they believed in Pike and dying for Arkadia. Until the conversation with Octavia in the forest, Bellamy believed that too. And he still believed in dying for Arkadia- but perhaps not killing for it.

For the past two weeks, Bellamy had stood solidly behind Pike. And his opinion hadn't changed- the grounders were a threat to Arkadia. But he wasn't willing to lose Octavia. It had always been the two of them. He had gotten on to the dropship for Octavia and did everything in his power to protect her in on Earth. Too many times, he had failed. But sometimes, Octavia saved him. Tonight, he didn't want to face her in that camp; didn't want to have to face the possibility of someone hurting her.

The hour until dusk passed quickly. Drake directed his men to move out and Bellamy fell into step with Pike and Hannah. They didn't speak on their way to what was left of Tondc. When they reached the outskirts of the Trikru camp, Pike waited for Drake to clear the way. Bellamy could see the glow of torches and the vast number of tents that housed sleeping grounders. The one thing he didn't see that he expected to were guards patrolling the outside of the camp.

"I don't see any movement," commented Hannah, clearly seeing what Bellamy was. "Surely they wouldn't be stupid enough not to have patrols."

"They may be in the trees…" murmured Pike, his eyes moving to look at everything around them. "Or Drake and his men have already disposed of them."

A crackle came over the low range radio on Pike's belt. "All clear. Go on your signal."

Pike picked up the radio and with a nod at his companions, replied, "Move in."

With their guns raised, Pike, Hannah, and Bellamy moved in with the other guards into the camp. Their night vision goggles gave their surroundings a green glow, but Bellamy could see clearly. Tent by tent, they raided the camp, but not a single shot was fired. Slowly, everyone met up in the middle, where Pike and Drake stood face to face, obviously confused.

"The entire camp is abandoned," muttered Pike, shaking his head with confusion. "I don't understand…"

"We were betrayed," said Drake in frustration. "We need to get out of here in case they ambush us. Even with our weapons, it will be chaos."

But Drake has spoken too late. Appearing out of thin air, all around the group of twenty guards that Pike had brought on this mission, were the warriors of the Trikru clan. The men and women of Arkadia raised their guns in a defensive position, but they weren't sure where to start shooting. Many of them were crowded together in groups and stumbled over each other.

Before Pike or Drake could give a command, a voice called out from the darkness: "It's over Pike. Tell your men to stand down. You are outnumbered three to one."

Both Bellamy and Pike recognized the voice at once. Whirling around, Bellamy tried to locate Marcus Kane in the sea of faces that surrounded them. He didn't have to search long. Kane and Indra moved through the group with Lincoln and Octavia directly behind them. He also noticed that Miller, Bryan, Harper, and Jasper stood in the front of the grounders, guns raised. More torches were lit and Pike threw his goggles to the ground in anger.

Marching forward, Pike responded, "Numbers mean nothing. I have bullets for every grounder here. Drake, give the order."

"No!" shouted Bellamy and he raised his gun to point at Pike's back. "Nobody moves!"

Pike turned around, wide eyed at Bellamy's betrayal. "Son, you don't want to do this."

"You're right. I don't," agreed Bellamy, but the young man had made up his mind. His eyes flickered towards Kane, who was wearing a smile of pride. "But I also don't believe in slaughtering people in their sleep. There is no honor in that. And now, we would all die. We may take down most of them, but we would die too. Who would protect Arkadia then?"

"What's your solution, Blake?" asked Pike, trying to keep calm. He dropped is rifle and raised his arms into the air. "Are you going to shoot me? You can probably pull the trigger quicker than Drake or any of the others here could shoot you, but then we'd both be dead and this would still turn into a blood bath."

"I'm not going to shoot you. You don't deserve to die," he replied and he truly meant the words. He didn't want to see Pike dead, but right now, he needed to think about Arkadia and the future.

Kane calmly walked up beside Bellamy and addressed Pike. "Chancellor Pike, I am removing you from command and taking you to Polis to stand trial for the crime of murder."

"You cannot be serious, Marcus," exclaimed Pike. "So you answer to the Heda now? You've become a grounder?"

"No. But I believe in justice and what you are doing here isn't that. This is murder, Pike. You're leading Arkadia into a war it cannot win. I'm trying to save our people. So tell your men to put down their weapons. Otherwise Bellamy is right- this would turn into a bloodbath."

Pike exchanged a look with Commander Drake, who had his own weapon trained on Bellamy. The Chancellor seemed to be weighing his options as he took in the sheer number of grounders standing around his men in the darkness. With a bitter sigh, Pike shook his head at Drake. "Stand down."

"But sir-"

"I said, stand down. We've lost this one." Pike looked once more at Bellamy with sad eyes. "You betrayed us."

Bellamy glanced at Octavia, still standing behind Indra. Swallowing his regret, he replied, "No, sir. I just did what I thought was right."

There was a clatter of plastic and metal hitting the ground as Pike's troops unloaded their weapons. Grounders kicked away the guns and began lining the Arkadian's up on their knees, hands above their heads. Indra addressed her new prisoners, "You will remain here under my command. I have orders from the Heda to keep you alive until Pike has been served his justice. The Heda believes that you will all return to your home alive. But only if you do as we say."

Lincoln tied Pike's hands behind his back and walked him into a secluded tent until morning, when they would go to Polis. Octavia didn't say a word to her brother, but she was no longer glaring at him. And for Bellamy, he counted that as a win. They would reconcile eventually- they always did.

Kane patted Bellamy on the back. "Good job."

"You won't kill them, right?"

"That's not my intention," replied Kane. "I will plead for their lives in Polis. And if Pike does the right thing, he will tell Lexa that they were only following his orders. They won't be punished."

"I didn't do this for you," stated Bellamy suddenly. A dark look flickered over Kane's eyes, but Bellamy didn't care. "Pike was right about a lot of things. I did this for Octavia."

Sighing, Kane grimly acknowledged Bellamy's words. "We need to make things right with the grounders. Then we can make things right in Arkadia. By the way, who did Pike leave in charge?"

"Jaha."

"What?" asked Kane, clearly worried about the capacity of his old friend. "You can't be serious. What about Abby?"

"Abby obviously helped you and Clarke escape. She's still in Arkadia as far as I know."

Kane cocked his head in confusion. "As far as you know?"

"We haven't heard anything from Arkadia in a couple of days. Pike thinks that the radios went out again. Sinclair was messing with them before he was captured for treason."

"Treason? Pike executed him?"

Bellamy shook his head. "No, he's just in lock up. Pike said he'd deal with him when we got back. Right now, he doesn't have anything on Abby, but if she tried to help Sinclair, there's a chance she's in lock up as well."

"But no one has heard from them?" Again Bellamy shook his head at Kane's question. Kane cursed and kicked at the dirt. Even in the dark, Bellamy could see the lines of worry that were on Kane's face. "I'm sure they're fine. We would know if the grounders had attacked Arkadia."

Bellamy's words didn't seem to comfort Kane. He gritted his teeth and looked at the tent where Lincoln was holding Pike. Kane knew he should accompany Pike back to Polis to make sure that Lexa kept her word. But Clarke was there and he trusted Indra, Lincoln, and Octavia to get Pike there without incident. In his gut, he knew something was wrong back in Arkadia. Jaha had been on the verge of a breakdown when Kane had left and he knew Abby well enough to know that she may do something rash to help her friends work against Pike.

Leaving Bellamy to deal with his actions, Kane walked over to where his group of rebels had gathered around a fire to announce, "I'm going back to Arkadia."

"What?!"

"Sir, we need to go back to Polis," said Monty and the other clearly agreed with him.

"Apparently, no one has heard from Jaha or Abby in days. Something's wrong, I can feel it."

"Then we'll go with you," offered Miller.

Kane shook his head. "No, what's important is that we make peace with the grounds. Make sure Pike makes it back to Polis. I'll take a radio and go back to Arkadia. I just need to know that everything is alright."

"You mean, you need to know if Dr. Griffin is alright," teased Jasper. Kane merely shrugged off his comment, not willing to deny what was obviously true.

Monty suddenly looked strangely nervous. Quietly he said, "I'm going with Kane."

"Monty, I just told you-"

"I let my mother go."

"What?" Everyone looked at the teenager as if he had lost his mind. Kane looked quickly at the group of Arkadians that were now sitting in a circle guarded by Indra's men. Sure enough, Hannah Green was not among them. "Why did you do that?"

"Look, I know she screwed up, but there's still a chance that Lexa will execute all of them and I didn't want to lose her. I sent her back to Arkadia. If there is something wrong there, I need to go too. I just want her to stay safe," he answered desperately.

Kane took a moment to regard the troubled boy before nodding his head in agreement. "Fine. You and I will go back to Arkadia. If it is just the communications system that is down, you can fix it. And we can deal with your mother when we get there."

"Yes, sir."