Bellamy After the Mountain Chapter 4.
Bellamy walked towards the barricade with hands high above his head trying to look as non threatening as possible. He did not want to be shot at again. Behind him Lincoln's hands were together and he hung his head, shuffling like a man who was defeated. Wick brought up the rear. Hands to the sky and a frantic worried look playing across his face as he searched for signs of impending violence.
Behind them Scarface and his friend escorted them in. Scarface waved up at a sentry guard and a door at the bottom opened. Once they were inside Bellamy lowered his hands and tried to assume his most confident pose, shoulders back, chin up. Lincoln's posture resolved into the silent killer he was, as his bare hands fell to his sides, menacingly. Wick remained hands to the sky desperately trying to look harmless. They stood still as what Bellamy perceived to be the Head of the Guard walked over to them. Scarface stepped forward and spoke to him quietly.
He was a tall well built man with grey hair at his temple and a strong jaw that clenched and unclenched before he spoke. "Well well what do we have here. Bellamy Blake most wanted man on the Ark. Where is your sister?" Bellamy decided to ignore his question. It wasn't relevant and besides he didn't want the big man to know yet.
"We have come from camp Jaha under Chancellor Griffin's orders to find survivors. We've brought a working radio that you can use to contact the camp." Bellamy waited for a response. Big Man just looked at him. "Who's in charge here?" He continued, although he was pretty sure he already knew the answer.
Big Man walked past him and stood in front of Lincoln. "What is he doing here?" The edge to his voice made it very clear that if he got the wrong answer Lincoln's life was in danger. "Lincoln is our friend under the personal protection of the Chancellor. He has saved hundreds of Ark lives and is our ally" Big Man looked him up and down and decided not to start anything, yet. "Do you have many allies?" He asked squinting at Bellamy. That was also information Bellamy decided he didn't need to share just yet. The vibe in this camp was wrong.
Gunfire burst from the wall behind them. "Movement in the trees commander!" A voice called out. "Hold your fire!" The commander yelled out. "We have friendlies out there." He turned to Bellamy. "Isn't that right?" Bellamy met his steely stare. "Absolutely. This wouldn't have been the first time we walked into a trap. We have guards and warriors stationed beyond your perimeter. Waiting for us to give them the all clear." The Commander circled Bellamy then stood intimidatingly in front of him. "Then you should give it to them."
"I don't think so." Bellamy said carefully. "My orders were to leave the radio with whoever is in charge and get on with my mission." He looked at Wick. "He will make sure it's set up and operational and then we have to leave." Bellamy tried to make his voice imply dire consequences if they didn't and hoped that they didn't call his bluff. Just then Lincoln shifted into a new position. If he had looked menacing before now he looked down right lethal.
The commander eyed the radio that Wick was gingerly pulling out of his pack thoughtfully. "Very well, he can get to work. I am in charge here. We don't have any Councillors and we don't want any Chancellor here. We rule ourselves." He fixed Bellamy with a stare that in the past might have made his blood run cold. "This is not the Ark!"
The Commander motioned for one of his men to stay with Wick while he worked. "I need to send my man back out so that he can confirm it is Arkers holding the camp. Like I said we've seen a lot of traps. We needed to be sure." He exchanged a brief glance with the grounder and hoped that he knew what Bellamy was really asking of him. "Sure, why not, his type make my people uncomfortable I am not sure I could vouch for his safety anyway" With that he made a hand signal to the guards on the entrance and the door opened once more. "Hold your fire, the commander hollered." Then he turned to Lincoln with a mean twinkle in his eye and said. "All the same though, I suggest you run." Lincoln simply ducked his head at Bellamy and ran from the camp covering the distance to the trees with astonishing speed. Only when Bellamy could see him no more did he let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.
Bellamy looked beyond the Commander at the camp behind. It was roughly semi-circular butting against the shore of the lake. In the water close to shore he could see twisted metal wreckage extending out into the lake. Some of the structure was above water, some of it must have been submerged. The wreckage disappeared leaving only clear water for about 100m until a large section rose out of the water like an island fortress. He could see guards standing look out on the top. Wick was already halfway there on a raft being pushed by two guards wielding long poles.
"What happened here?" Bellamy asked. Now that Lincoln was out of danger he wanted to win the trust of this commander if he could. "What happened to the civilians?" As he eyed the shore camp he could see that every man and woman was in Guard uniform. "George why don't you give Councillor Blake the tour and fill him in. I don't have time for babysitting right now." Scarface came forward and indicated that Bellamy should follow him. He was actually smiling for the first time since Bellamy had met him. "Why don't we start in the mess hall. That crap you guys had for lunch didn't hit the spot. If you know what I mean." Bellamy had to smile back at that. "Lead the way George."
Then it was Bellamy's turn to be rafted to The Boat as the local Arker's were calling their home. watching the poles as they dipped in and out of the calm water he could tell that it wasn't very deep. Probably shallow enough to stand most of the way. That was reassuring. Bellamy mentally added learning to swim to the list of skills he needed to master. Lincoln could probably teach him, he reflected. Then he wondered if Octavia already knew how to. "How did anyone get to shore?" Bellamy asked as they approached an open airlock about 2ft above the water. George's face darkened and then he told Bellamy the story of what happened when the boat had crashed to earth.
