Chapter 57

Palla hadn't lied. They'd ridden hard for the camp. Octavia spoke with Echo and asked her to stay with Clarke and Madi, while she rode beside Palla. Echo didn't question her out loud, but gave her a look letting Octavia know that they would talk about it later. She did as asked and stayed near both Clarke and Madi. It wasn't that hard honestly, but when they couldn't all three pass on the path, Echo hung back and brought up the rear. It actually made her more comfortable. That way she knew Octavia and Palla had the front while she protected them from behind.

She would be glad when the trials were over they had a full force of jusgona. She knew then that she wouldn't have to worry about their protection because more warriors would be following them. They wouldn't be seen and that was more helpful. It would also be better because Madi and Clarke wouldn't have to worry about being attacked. And, Echo knew that they wouldn't know about most of them because the jusgona would eliminate the threat before they ever got wind of it. Echo would know via reports and then after conferring with Octavia they would tell Heda about the ones they deemed the most worriable.

Octavia rode beside Palla most of the way back, only passing her and taking the front when it was necessary. Palla didn't seem to mind much. A few times, Clarke joined them to talk to Palla. No one seemed to be worried about it. The ride was quiet and fast.

When they entered the stables, Palla, Octavia and Echo took care of the caballos while Clarke and Madi headed back to their rooms. Echo wanted to go see how Raven was faring, but she also wanted to talk to Octavia. After they finished caring for the caballos, Palla left the stables. Echo waited with Octavia to walk back to the barracks.

"Chit?" Octavia asked when she realized that Echo was staring at her.

"What happened while we were watering the caballos?" Echo asked her.

"Nothing happened."

"O..."

"Echo, seriously, nothing happened. Madi and I talked while Clarke working on breaking camp. When we were done, we helped. By then the bird was done, you were back with the caballos and we ate. There is nothing to report or tell you," Octavia told her, hoping it would stop the conversation.

"HOD OP!" Echo yelled as she grabbed Octavia's arm.

They fought quickly, but not before they were both on the ground. They hadn't drawn on each other and that was only because they didn't want to kill each other anymore. But, punches, kicks and biting weren't out of the question. Echo finally had her pinned and looked deeply into Octavia's bright green eyes.

"Chit?" she tried again to ask her friend.

"Madi asked me to follow Palla and be her shadow."

"Chomouda?"

"She believes that Palla is getting closer to Clarke. She isn't dissuading it. She just wants to make sure that she is worthy of Clarke."

"Madi asked you to vet a potential lover for Clarke?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Octavia answered.

"Oh, this is too much," Echo said before she started laughing.

"What?"

"The fact that I believe you are the first person to touch Clarke in six years and you are having to vet another lover is amusing to me," Echo replied.

"Madi doesn't know about us," Octavia countered.

"Or, she does and she is testing your loyalty."

Octavia opened her mouth to say something back and then closed it. Was it a test? By if it was a test, why would heda have waited so long to do it?

"Relax. Heda knows that you and Clarke were together. She doesn't care. She questioned it at first because she wasn't sure that you could be objective, but then she saw you with Niylah. She approves of you both by the way. I know that you don't care, but Madi does. She wants you to be happy, but she wants Clarke to be happy as well."

"Can she be happy, again?"

"With Palla? I don't know. There is something about Palla that reminds me of Lexa, but I don't think that Clarke is ever going to be over Lexa. They were keryon houmons. That isn't a bond that you just forget. Palla is special. She has had a hard life like Lexa. She's lost someone, too, like Lexa. I think that there are enough parallels there that Madi just wants to be sure that Palla isn't going to hurt Clarke."

"You know that she told Clarke that her biggest regret was leaving her at Mount Weather," Octavia told her.

"I know. Clarke is trying to move on, but then she looks at Madi, now that she has the Flame, and I think all she can see if Lexa dying in her arms. She is afraid to love again. But, Madi is helping her. I want to trust Palla would be good with her heart, but I don't know what Palla's intentions are. Madi wants her to be protected."

"She does. She wants us to issue a jusgona to Palla, too. She's going to wait until after the trials."

"Why?"

"She said something about making them ambassador and protector in one."

"Do you think that she'll send one of us?"

"No. She wants us close. She trusts us most, that is true. But, she also knows that we are both ruthless and we will stop at nothing to protect each other, Clarke and Heda."

Echo nodded. She knew that what Octavia said was the truth. But, she also knew that Palla believed in reincarnation like Madi did as well. It wasn't just the Flame that kept memories alive. Palla believed in full soul rebirth. She heard Madi and Palla talking about it, but she hadn't really listened completely. She believed that people could be reborn and sometimes they bore the memories of the prior life, but those that spoke about it in Azgeda were revered, not feared. She wondered if Palla had said something to Madi to make her wonder or if she was generally just worried for Clarke. She thought that Madi and Palla had a good relationship, so this new assignment seemed out of character for the Heda. Echo resolved that she would talk to Madi about it after she saw Raven.

Raven was another project that she was working on. It wasn't just that Raven was her Second. It was more than that. Raven was trying to become Jusgona. Echo wasn't sure that it was a good idea, but she knew how stubborn Raven was. She'd rather face Clarke and Madi's wrath after she paced the trials, if she could do them, then let Raven find someone else who wouldn't care about her well-being to train her instead. She also had to admit that Raven was growing on her. She couldn't help it. Raven had helped her stay sane on the Ring. She'd saved them, so in a way she owed Raven. If this was how she repaid her debt to the Latina mechanic, then so be it. There were worse ways to pay back a debt.

"Echo!" she shouted as they walked up to the barracks.

Echo could see her excitement in her eyes. There was a fire in Raven's eyes since Clarke had found that feeling was coming back in her leg. They were all excited to see what Raven would be able to do once she had complete feeling back. No one, including Niylah, refused to believe that Raven wouldn't somehow make a full recovery and be walking soon. And, because of that, Echo was having to rein the mechanic in during training. It was another reason that she was scared to see what Raven had been up to while they were in the woods.

"Hei, Sekkon, chit op?" Echo replied when they were nearer.

"Can you get Clarke and Palla to meet us in Engineering?" Raven asked her.

"Sha, Reivon, but what about Oktevia?"

"Bring her as well. I have something to show you. Something I think that you might like. And, I promise that you can question me as much as you want after I show you, okay? Just hurry up," Raven told her as she moved back to Engineering without waiting for a confirmation.

"We'd better go. Who knows what she's got up her sleeve? And, knowing Raven, if we don't hurry, she might blow something up. Even though I know we aren't staying here forever, this place is comfortable and I would appreciate being able to sleep in a bed tonight than on a bedroll again," Octavia told her as she headed straight for her room to get Clarke and see if Niylah was there as well.

"I'll find Palla, then," Echo stated with a laugh as they both headed upstairs.

Echo knocked on Palla's door, while Octavia went into her rooms across the hall. Minutes later, they were all heading downstairs and into the Engineering Bay that Raven lived and worked in. Niylah was already there. Clarke could see some equipment set up in the corner that looked like exercise machines. Each one looked like it would help Raven regain her strength in her leg based on the movements and exercises that Clarke had prescribed for her to do.

"Sit. Sit. It isn't bad, I promise," Raven told them.

Clarke looked over at Niylah. The former tradeswoman shook her head and pointed to a stool. Clarke took a seat. Echo sat beside her with Octavia and Palla behind them.

Niylah moved over towards Raven. She stood between two rails that were affixed to the floor and set at just above her hand height. Raven moved into the middle of the rails and stood there, holding on to them. She turned and looked at Niylah.

Echo wasn't sure what was about to happen, but she was sure that she was going to be upset with Raven for it. She begged the mechanic to take it easy while they were gone. She wasn't sure how long they were going to be gone, but she knew that Raven wasn't going to stop just because she wasn't there to rein her in. It was why Echo went to Indra to train with Raven. She asked that they work on Raven's bowmanship. Indra agreed quickly. She knew how stubborn Raven could be and she knew her own temper. Believing that she might actually kill Raven by accident in they trained in the pins, Indra told her that they would work on Raven's accuracy and her draw times. Thinking about that as she watched Niylah and Raven before her, she made a mental note to go talk to Indra after their little demonstration to see how things went in training.

Niylah made sure that Raven had a good grip on the rails. She whispered something to the mechanic before she turned to look into Clarke's clear blue eyes. There was a silent question between them. Clarke gave Niylah a quick nod which she returned. As soon as Niylah got her "permission" from Clarke to continue, she bent down near Raven's left leg. She reached out and undid the buckles and straps to the brace. Looking up into the Latina's eyes, everyone could see the fire and the determination burning there. Raven never let go of the rails, but she nodded and told Niylah, "Sha."

Niylah removed the brace but kept her hand on Raven's leg. She waited until Raven was steady. When she felt like Raven was set, she moved behind her and to support her. She placed her hand on Raven's waist and then looked up at their crowd.

Clarke looked shocked. Echo looked like she didn't know whether to be angry or happy. Palla was her usual stoic self. But, Octavia looked like she was about to cry for her friend. When Raven saw that, she turned back to Niylah and said something. Niylah turned to look up at Octavia.

"O, come here," Niylah told her.

Octavia was around Palla's stool and over to the rails in seconds. She looked at Raven and then at Niylah. She couldn't believe that Raven was standing on her own, bearing weight on her leg and she wasn't collapsing.

"Take my place, O," Niylah told her.

Octavia moved around and then ducked under the rails. She waited for Niylah to move before she got right behind Raven. As soon as Niylah was outside of the rails, she reached over and placed Octavia's hands on Raven's hips. She gave Octavia's hands a good squeeze, knowing that Raven would feel it too, and take the encouragement to continue with what she wanted to show them. Octavia turned and looked up into her lover's hazel eyes.

"Just keep your hands there, O. Raven will do the rest. Don't let her fall, though."

Niylah moved away just a bit. She was close enough to get to Raven if needed, but far enough away to show them what she figured out she could do. Clarke stood up. She moved across the room.

Echo was watching her legs. She didn't dare look into Raven's eyes. She knew if she did that the emotion she saw there would break her. She couldn't completely drop her warrior persona in front of them. She'd break down later, possibly with Raven. But, she didn't stop looking at her legs. She noticed how they weren't trembling. She seemed strong and confident in what she was about to show them. Knowing that Octavia was there to catch her meant a lot to Echo, especially since Raven was her Sekkon, but the suspense of what was about to happen was killing her.

Raven looked up at Clarke standing at the end of the rails and just smiled. Clarke looked back at her quizzically. The smile grew and Raven leaned forward just enough to show Clarke that her left leg was bearing weight, her weight, and it wasn't buckling. She was essentially standing on her own. Octavia wasn't holding her weight; she was merely keeping Raven centered between the rails. And, then Raven took her first step. Clarke looked on in awe. Then, she took another step, and then another, and then another, until she made it, albeit slowly to the end of the rails and in Clarke's face.

"You can walk?"

"I can walk," Raven told her.

"Can you feel it?"

"I can't feel anything on my leg, but I can feel the pressure when I walk," Raven stated.

"You walked."

"I walked," Raven repeated.

"Tomorrow, you ride," Echo told her still staring at her legs and how they were holding her weight.

"I want to test you again."

"Then, do it. I have lessons in the morning. You've got the rest of the day," Raven told her.

"Then get over there to you table and let's see what else is new in that leg of yours," Clarke ordered her with a smile on her face.