Chapter 3: The friend
Ethan woke up in the early morning with a weight on his chest, he blinked fully waking up
He looked to his right and saw a girl hugging his chest fully naked and then he turned left and saw another girl naked holding his waist as both girl's heads were snuggling on his chest
He sighed and quickly slid away from their grasp and stepped out of the bed, he looked back and placed a blanket over the two girls and then he quickly got dressed
He checked his bandages and sighed in relief when he saw that he wasn't bleeding anymore
He put his jacket on as he walked out of the tent and started heading toward his forge
He noticed that people had started to build the wall in front of his forge and smiled "Everything seems to be going well," Ethan thought then he heard Japer groaning from the shuttle "Well, not everything," Ethan thought as he grabbed some sheets from the parachute and started building his tent next to the forge
Once he was done he went to the shuttle to collect scrap metal and then walked back to the forge
He put the pieces of metal and started cutting them into smaller pieces and then put them into a canister made out of rocks then he stared at the chimney Miller had built for him and threw some wood in it before lighting the chimney up
He then grabbed a big rock from the area around the forge and created a hollow rectangle on top of the rock
He waited for the fire to grow as he took a seat in front of it when he heard footsteps coming towards him
But he didn't turn around and waited for the person that came to speak first "Hey Ethan are you busy?" He heard Octavia speaking and he move his head around to look at her
"Kind of, but I always have time for you little wolf," Ethan said and Octavia raised an eyebrow
"Little wolf?" Octavia asked with curiosity
"You're a free spirit Vi, and you also have a mean streak, like a wolf," Ethan said making Octavia smile as she took a seat next to Ethan
"So what are you doing?" Octavia asked as she stared at the fire in front of her
"Creating a sword," Ethan said as he stood up grabbed a pair of forceps, and with them grabbed the canister that was on the fire and walked to the hollow rectangle "So, even though I don't mind your presence, why are you here?" Ethan asked pouring the melted metal into the hollow rectangle
"Actually I came here for advice," Octavia said as Ethan didn't take his eyes off the now solidifying metal "I kiss Atom last night," Octavia said and Ethan nodded
"I know, your brother told me," Ethan said as he grabbed the forceps again and slowly grabbed the solid rectangular metal "Congratulations I suppose," Ethan said chuckling and Octavia sighed
"He was really cute yesterday, but he works for my brother and I don't want him to feel pressured," Octavia said and Ethan put the metal on the anvil and grabbed a hammer
"It's fine, your brother won't stand in your way, that's what we talked about yesterday," Ethan said and then chuckled "Besides you're beautiful, if that idiot doesn't fight for you then he wasn't good enough for you," Ethan said as he started hammering the metal with a rock
"You think I'm beautiful?" Octavia asked with a smile and Ethan nodded
"Yes you are but don't get your hopes up sweetheart, you're not my type," Ethan said and Octavia scoffed
"Really? What is your type then, Clarke?" Octavia said and Ethan laughed
"Hell no, too bossy for my tastes," Ethan said and Octavia chuckled "Besides, it would be such a drag having to deal with Wells and Finn at the same time," Ethan said and Octavia nodded
"So what's your type then?" Octavia asked in curiosity as Ethan kept hammering the metal
"That's a good question," Ethan said as he thought for a second "A brave one, an intelligent one, one who doesn't take shit from anyone, and maybe Hispanic," Ethan said while chuckling and Octavia sighed
"So I got no shot, huh?" Octavia asked and Ethan raised an eyebrow at her
"Aren't you with Atom?" Ethan asked and Octavia shrugged her shoulders
"We're just fooling around, nothing serious yet," Octavia said and then she smiled "Can't blame me for wanting the man who saved me," Octavia said and Ethan chuckled
"You're such a tease little wolf," Ethan said and then looked at her "Trust me a part of me wants to, but we're too similar Vi, we want freedom too much, so we wouldn't work, though our time would've been great," Ethan said and Octavia smiled
"I know, that's why I didn't try anything, besides I think our relationship works better as friends, or maybe even brothers if we give it more time," Octavia said and Ethan smiled
"Damm straight," Ethan said as he finished hammering the metal and now it was flat as a board, he took out his pocket knife and started drawing the edges of the sword on the flattened metal "I feel like you want to ask me something else," Ethan said without looking at Octavia
"I want you to teach me how to fight," Octavia said and Ethan stopped and looked at her with curiosity
"Sorry, can you repeat that?" Ethan said and Octavia sighed
"I want you to teach me how to fight, so I don't have to be scared," Octavia said and Ethan frowned as he continued to cut the metal
"Why don't you ask your brother?" Ethan asked in curiosity as a metal piece fell into the ground once Ethan cut that part off
"Because he won't do it, and you know it," Octavia scoffed and Ethan nodded
"Fine, I'll do it," Ethan said and Octavia smiled and hugged Ethan forcefully "Careful sweetheart, I still have an aching chest," Ethan said and Octavia let go of Ethan "Okay, first go and find some wooden sticks about this long," Ethan said pointing the longitude he wanted them with his fingers
"And then what?" Octavia asked in curiosity and Ethan chuckled
"And we begin," Ethan said and Octavia beamed with energy "I would get going little wolf, the more time you waste the less time I have to train you," Ethan said and Octavia went ran away to find two wooden sticks
Ethan continue cutting the metal around the drawing and once he was done he saw the first glimpses of his sword
"Now, I need to clean it and sharpen it," Ethan thought as he grabbed his pocketknife and started running it alongside the burnt metal, sharpening the sword
He continued this process until the sword was shiny enough and then he grabbed a leather he had cut the previous day from the shuttle's seats and started wrapping it around the end of the sword
He finished creating the handle of the sword and tie it around the end of the sword creating a bulge at the end of it, he lifted the sword up and sawed it around testing the weight of the sword
"Pretty light, I guess that's thanks to the metal of the ship," Ethan thought as he swung the sword around "Not really very pretty but it'll do the job," Ethan thought as he heard Octavia coming back
"This was the best I could find," Octavia said as she handed Ethan the wooden sticks
"Good, this will do in the meantime," Ethan said as he put the new sword next to the anvil
"Okay, I will teach you three things, weapon fighting, close combat, and survival instincts," Ethan said and Octavia nodded "We will start after breakfast, I will be here waiting, if you're a single second late I won't teach you anything that day, understood?" Ethan said in full seriousness
"Understood," Octavia said and Ethan nodded throwing her a wooden stick, Octavia managed to catch it
"First lesson, sword fighting, the premise of this is simple, you stick them with the pointy end," Ethan said and then grabbed the sword he just made
"Take this sword for example, in the old movies, people attacked swing the sword downwards or sideways, yet that doesn't do anything," Ethan said and Octavia paid close attention
"What you need to remember are parry and strike, learn it and take it as a motto," Ethan said and then grabbed a wooden stick and put the sword down "Here let me show you what I mean, attack me with the wooden stick," Ethan said and Octavia looked at the wooden stick in confusion
"Shouldn't I learn a few moves before attacking?" Octavia said and Ethan chuckled
"Our instincts sometimes help us in ways we can never predict, just attack me like you would holding a sword, then I'll teach you some moves," Ethan said and Octavia nodded and swing the wooden stick down
Ethan parried the swing and then sidestepped and grace the shoulder of Octavia "See what I did there, I swung my sword I didn't stab, so as much as just cut your arm, do that again," Ethan ordered and Octavia nodded swing sideways
Ethan parried the strike and move down sliding the wooden stick over Octavia's stomach "Now I cut your stomach, yet a powerful warrior will still fight with that wound, so that's no good," Ethan said and then looked at Octavia straight in the eye "Okay, one more time, strike," Ethan said and Octavia stabbed forward and Ethan send her to stick to the side and pointed his stick at her chest in one fluid motion
"And here's the big difference, all I need to do is move forward, and my sword enters your body, no strength is needed unless you have a shitty sword the weapon will do the work for you, and even if you miss the heart or vital organs, it doesn't matter, because you twist the blade and cut sideways, or down, before taking the weapon out," Ethan said and took the stick out from her chest
"And even if the warrior you're facing wishes to continue fighting, you'll have the advantage because he will be bleeding out and you won't," Ethan said and Octavia nodded
"Now, many will tell you that you shouldn't kill, or some shit like that, and in an ideal world you should, but this isn't ideal," Ethan said as he started pacing in front of Octavia "Others will tell you to fight with grace and honor, those people are idiots, do not listen to them," Ethan said and then glared directly at her "In a fight, there are only two things that matter, how to survive your enemy and how to kill your enemy," Ethan said
"Honor gets you killed, so when you fight, throw dirt at their faces, if they are males, kick their balls, do whatever you need to do to live, understood?" Ethan said and Octavia nodded
"Good, then we begin," Ethan said and Octavia straighten up Ethan handed her the sword he made "Take it," Ethan said and Octavia grabbed the sword carefully
"Test the weight, how does it feel?" Ethan asked and Octavia lifted the sword
"It's light," Octavia said and Ethan nodded
"It is, too light for my tastes, but I will use it for now, until you're ready," Ethan said Octavia's head perked up, and looked at him in confusion
"Wait what do you mean?" Octavia said and Ethan chuckled
"That sword will be yours, Vi, better start getting used to it," Ethan said and then stood next to her "Now, grab the sword with your dominant hand and mimic my motions," Ethan said and Octavia nodded
Ethan started teaching her some motions of sword fighting and Octavia mimicked his motions "In the heat of battle these teachings, if you don't learn them to muscle memory, they will fade away and then you'll die, so every day, no matter what lesson I teach you, we will practice these movements over and over again, understood?" Ethan said and Octavia nodded
"Good, getting tired?" Ethan asked and Octavia shook her head "Then let's move to close combat, put the sword next to the anvil," Ethan said and Octavia moved to place the sword there
"Now put your hands up in a guarding position," Ethan said and Octavia put her hands close to her face "Nope, not that close, otherwise I can just push like this and you would hit yourself," Ethan said pushing Octavia's fist into her face
"What's your dominant hand?" Ethan asked and Octavia looked at him in confusion
"My right hand," Octavia said and Ethan nodded
"Okay, put your right hand below your chin, close to your face but without touching it, and put your left hand forward," Ethan said and Octavia did as he told her "Now, separate your feet a little, and bend a little like this," Ethan said and Octavia mimicked his movements
"Now, you will be at a disadvantage because you lack strength, and it will require a lot of time to get you that strength, so we're going to work on your speed," Ethan said and Octavia nodded
"But first you need to know how to strike," Ethan said "Close your fist, like this," Ethan said showing her how to make a fist "Now, a strike not only involves your arm, it involves your whole body, put your back into it, twist your body into the strike," Ethan said twisting his body as he threw a punch forward
"Now, when you punch you need to follow through," Ethan said putting a palm up "Imagine this is your target, you want to punch as if your real target is behind my hand," Ethan said and Octavia nodded "Okay throw a punch," Ethan said and Octavia punched the hand of Ethan
"Really that's all you got? Show me strength Vi," Ethan said and Octavia frowned and punch harder "There you go, better," Ethan said "Now, fighting is basically the same as sword fighting, parrying, and striking," Ethan said
"With your left hand block the strike and get your opponents off balance and then strike with your right hand," Ethan said moving his hand slowly towards Octavia who grabbed Ethan's hand and move it out of the way "No, don't grab it because then I can grab your hand and then I got you, just tap my fist away, let's go again," Ethan said moving his hand slowly again
Octavia tapped Ethan's hand away and Ethan smiled "Good, now I'm off balance, so swing your fist here," Ethan said putting his palm under his jaw and Octavia strike there
"Good job, now, let me have it, I'm going to strike and you'll have to hit me, ok?" Ethan said and Octavia looked at him in confusion
"Are you sure?" She asked and Ethan nodded
"Don't worry little wolf, I can take it," Ethan said and he quickly throw a fist at Octavia
The girl parried the fist and then sent a hook to Ethan's jaw and connected sending Ethan stumbling back and rubbing his jaw
"Oh, shit Ethan are you alright?" Octavia asked in concern
"Yeah, I'm fine," Ethan said rubbing his jaw "Note to self, get you something to punch instead of my face," Ethan said rubbing his jaw "You got a mean hook little wolf," Ethan said with a smile
Octavia smiled and then they heard a rustling and saw Bellamy walking to the forge "What are you guys doing?" Bellamy asked in curiosity as he entered the area
"I'm teaching your sister how to fight," Ethan said and Octavia beamed at her brother
"Ethan thinks I'm beautiful," Octavia said and Ethan spluttered and choke on his saliva
"Does he?" Bellamy asked rhetorically and Octavia nodded
"I have to go help Clarke with Jasper, see you later Ethan," Octavia said smiling sweetly at the teen and Ethan nodded
"So, my sister is beautiful?" Bellamy asked and Ethan sighed
"Nope, I will not have this conversation with you," Ethan said shaking his head
"Relax, actually I wouldn't mind if you two actually get together," Bellamy said and Ethan looked at him in confusion "But I don't think that will happen," Bellamy said and Ethan nodded
"Your sister is a great girl, I just can't see her that way," Ethan said and Bellamy nodded "So, is there something I can help you with?" Ethan asked and Bellamy sighed
"Two kids disappeared last night, and they haven't been back, I sent Atom and another guy to search for them," Bellamy said and Ethan nodded, he strapped his spear and his sword on his back before turning to look at Bellamy
"Where is your protection squad?" Ethan asked as Bellamy nodded his head and both teens walked to the edge of the camp
Both teens arrived at the edge of the camp to see Murphy throwing a knife into a tree and missing entirely
"Nice throwing Murph," Ethan said mockingly and Murphy grumbled
"Shut up, its that damm kid, he's messing with my aim," Murphy said and Ethan chuckled
"Yeah, nice excuse," Ethan said scoffing and grabbing his own throwing knife "You have to put your back into it, Murph, like this," Ethan said throwing the knife and hitting the three with pint point accuracy making the knife stick to the three "See?" Ethan said whit a smirk on his face
"Show off," Murphy said and then they heard Jasper groaning from the shuttle
"I'm going to see if Clarke needs any help," Ethan said walking to grab the knife from the three "Tell Atom to meet me in the shuttle," Ethan said walking to the shuttle
He entered the ship as the groans got louder and climb up to the second floor, and he found Monty working on the wristbands and Clarke tending to Jasper while Finn looked at the scene leaning on the wall
"How's the kid?" Ethan said crouching next to Clarke
"His wounds are getting infected, and I don't have stitches to close them up," Clarke said and Ethan looked at the skin of Jasper
"No seizures?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"No, at least not yet," Clarke said and Ethan nodded
"That's good, means his blood is flowing naturally," Ethan said and then looked at Monty "Can I borrow that flashlight for a second?" Ethan asked and Monty nodded throwing him the flashlight
"What are you doing?" Clarke asked and Ethan catch the flashlight easily
"Looking for signs of infection, want to see if it's only on the wound or if it has reached his bloodstream," Ethan said and grabbed the head of Jasper and opened his mouth
He pointed the flashlight into his throat to check for swelling or obstruction but found it clear, he then opened the eyelids of Japer to see if their color had changed
He sighed and then placed his hand on Jasper's chest checking the respiration patterns of the teen in front of him
"The kid got pretty lucky, all things consider, our problem is that we don't have the tools to care for him," Ethan said and Clarke nodded and then looked down in deep thought
Then they heard someone walking up into the room and Ethan saw Wells walking up to the group
"How is he doing?" Wells asked
"How does it look like Wells?" Clarke asked sarcastically
"Hey I just want to help," Wells said and Clarke sighed
"Well, there is one thing we can do," Ethan said looking at Clarke and both teens had a silent conversation between them "You or me?" Ethan asked and Clarke sighed
"I'll do it, you hold his shoulders," Clarke said and Ethan nodded "You two," Clarke said looking at Finn and Wells "Hold his legs don't let him move," Clarke said as she grabbed a knife from the fire and put it on top of the wound
"I'm not going to like this am I?" Monty asked rhetorically Clarke apply pressure on the wound and Jasper started screaming in pain
"You're killing him!" Octavia said as she entered the second floor and ran to Jasper's side and then the teen passed out
"She's saving his life," Finn said in response and Ethan saw how Clarke stopped when she saw Jasper passing out
"Keep going, he just passed out from the pain," Ethan said and Clarke nodded and continue cutting the infected skin
Bellamy enter the room quietly and shared a look with Ethan who shook his head telling Bellamy to keep quiet
Clarke finished applying pressure to the wound and then the room fell into silence "Is he improving?" Bellamy asked and Clarke shook her head "Maybe it's time we talk about putting the kid out of his misery," Bellamy said and Wells stood up and glared at Bellamy
"Back off, ok?" Wells said and Ethan sighed
"Both of you calm down," Ethan said without looking at the teens "Bellamy I'm sorry but that decision doesn't fall to us," Ethan said and then look at Clarke "It's hers," Ethan said standing up
"If he falls into cardiac arrest or start seizing, we don't have the tools to take care of him," Ethan said looking at Clarke in seriousness "So, you better find an answer soon," Ethan said as he walked to where Bellamy was and both teens climb down to the first floor
Bellamy and Ethan walked to the exit of the shuttle and found Atom waiting for them there
"Nice bruise," Ethan said looking at the blackened eye of Atom "So, who are the kids missing?" Ethan asked
"Trina and Pascal," Atom said and Ethan nodded
"Yeah, no idea who they are, anyway," Ethan said and looked around "Did you see where they went?" Ethan asked and Atom shook his head "Shit," Ethan said sighing
"You guys are going hunting right?" Ethan asked and Bellamy nodded "Who's staying back?" Ethan asked
"Murphy," Bellamy answered and Ethan rubbed his face
"I hope shit doesn't happen under his watch," Ethan said sighing "Keep an eye out for the two kids, I'm going in a different direction to look for them, stay safe," Ethan said as the two teens nodded and headed into different directions
Ethan walked around the camp looking for some footprints to follow but found nothing, he sighed and looked ahead "Ah fuck it, what's the worst that can happen?" Ethan whispered under his breath
He walked for a while with his eyes searching for any sort of clue that could reveal the location of the missing people when he heard a whisper behind him
"My prince," He heard a woman's voice whisper to him and he quickly turn around and everything when dark, as the area was surrounded by a blue dark mist, and in the middle of the mist was the woman of Ethan's dreams
"It's you again, but I'm not dreaming this time, what is this?" Ethan asked in confusion and the woman chuckled
"It's impressing that in all of your lives, you always remain clueless about everything," The woman said and Ethan grumbled
"Did you just call me stupid?" Ethan asked incredulously and the woman kept chuckling
"Right, I won't take more of your time my young prince," The woman said as she walked forward and ran her fingers along his cheek "There's someone who wants to meet you, I thought we had more time before the first merging, but you need to be ready for the trials to come," The woman said taking a step back and smiling at Ethan
"When will I meet you?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"Someday, far from today, a warrior will come to your people, demanding a fight, that day, I will be there my prince, waiting for you to rescue me," The woman said
"Rescue you? What does that mean?" Ethan asked in confusion and the woman just smiled
"Sorry my prince, that's all I can give you," The woman said and Ethan sighed
"Can you at least give me your name?" Ethan asked and the woman nodded
"In this life, my name is Valka," The woman said and Ethan nodded "But when you learn about my other lives, you can call me whatever you like my prince," Valka said and Ethan smiled
"It's a pleasure to meet you Valka," Ethan said and Valka smiled
"Of course, it is," Valka said as she disappeared from Ethan's sight, but the area remain the same
Then he heard heavy footsteps coming towards him and then he saw a man with stubble for a beard wearing medieval armor with some fur on his shoulders, his hair was tied in a long ponytail like a Viking type of style with the sides of his head clean shaved
But the thing that Ethan noticed the most was the sword on the back of the man, or rather the beautiful orange gem on the end of the sword
"So, this is my descendant huh?" The man in front of Ethan said as he looked up and down at the teen "Why are you so skinny?" The man asked with a British accent in his voice
"Uh, I'm poor?" Ethan said-asked in confusion and the man nodded
"Yeah that does make sense," The man said as he walked around Ethan "I've seen glimpses of your life, that man you murder, he deserved it," The man said and Ethan looked at him in confusion
"Although who am I to talk, I've lost count of how many men I've murdered, in battle and off battle," The man said "Those were different times of course, yet I don't think you'll have the possibility of showing mercy either," The man said and Ethan grew confused
"What do you mean?" Ethan asked in confusion
"This world, at least from what I can gather, fell back into my customs, there is no order, no law, only people fighting to stay on top, fighting for their homes, and blood rights," The man said, and then face Ethan "The people you came here with, they have been taught that every crime is punishable, so when your enemies attack, they won't want to fight back, is in their nature unless someone breaks them," The man said and Ethan frowned
"So what I'm supposed to do?" Ethan asked in confusion
"You offer them your protection and carry their darkness, and they will follow you, just like I did," The man said and he drew his sword "My name is Uhtred Ragnarson son of Uhtred, lord of Bebbanburg, the Dane Slayer, and I will give you my memories," The man said and Ethan couldn't help but chuckle making Uhtred grumble
"Sorry, it's just that, that was very dramatic," Ethan said and Uhtred sighed
"I know, but that's the way it is," Uhtred said and Ethan nodded "Now, I'm going, to be honest with you young warrior, this will hurt, a lot," Uhtred said and Ethan looked at him in confusion
"Wait what?" Ethan asked in shock
"You're about to experience all of my memories, all of my pain, emotional and physical, all my sadness, all my happiness, all my loss, everything all at once," Uhtred said and Ethan gulped
"Do I have to do it?" Ethan asked nervously
"You could avoid it sure," Uhtred said "But you know that feeling you always have, of missing something in your life, of loneliness, of wanting more?" Uhtred asked and Ethan nodded "That's your life trying to get out, and the longer you avoid it, the stronger those feelings will get, and they will drive you into insanity," Uhtred said and Ethan sighed
"So it's insufferable pain now, or insanity later? Man, what is even my life?" Ethan asked looking up in defeat
"Come on young warrior, your my descendant, my new life, come take the pain head on, like we always do," Uhtred said and Ethan sighed
"Let's just get it over with," Ethan said and Uhtred chuckled
"One final advice young warrior, trust in the stranger, he's your friend from another life," Uhtred said and Ethan looked at him in confusion but nodded nonetheless
"Will I see you again?" Ethan asked as Uhtred placed the tip of his sword over Ethan's heart
"I will live in your memory young warrior, every time you wish to see me, just remember who you were, who I was, and what you will become," Uhtred said "You ready?" Uhtred said and Ethan nodded
"Good luck young warrior, may you live a prosper and fulfilling life with a woman to love by your side," Uhtred said plunging the sword into Ethan's heart and making the teen gasp for air
He blinked and found himself in the middle of the forest again and everything seemed fine "Huh, I thought that this was going to hurt," Ethan whispered rubbing his head in confusion
But soon he regrated his words as an insufferable pain invaded his head making him fall to his knees, he arched his body back falling into the ground, wanting to scream in pain but the pain was too much and made it impossible for him to scream as he felt like he was choking
He was experiencing everything, every single detail about Uhtred's life all at once, how his father had fought Ragnar, how his father had failed and Ragnar took him as his own son, how he grew as a Ragnarson, how he lost that life
How he went and met King Alfred and became the Dane Salyer, the people he met, the woman he fell in love with, and then how he was betrayed and became a slave
How he tried to run away and failed, and then how he was rescued by his brother, the bonds he made with his new brothers, how he lost the woman he loved and then fell for another one
The battles, the scars, the mental loss, everything, he experience it all, too much for a human brain to handle but Ethan push through, he focused on the happy memories as the pain finally started to let go
He lay exhausted on the ground, with tears in his eyes as he stared at the sky, he started crying a lot from all the loss he had experienced but took a deep breath and took a seat on the ground
He rubbed his face, trying to get a hold of his feelings, and sighed "No point in dwelling in the past, got to keep moving on," Ethan whispered as he stood up and got serious again
He dusted himself and continue walking, he arrived at a hill with a road of dirt in the middle of it and he found two sets of footprints on it, he continue walking following the footprints and soon he found what he was looking for and yet he regrated finding it
"Jesus Fucking Christ," Ethan whispered as he found the bodies of Trina and Pascal covered in red bruises and rashes all over their bodies "The hell happened to you?" Ethan asked out loud and crouch down to get a better look at the bodies
"The lads got hit by the acid fog," Ethan heard a voice with an Irish accent to it speak behind him, the teen turned around and grabbed the handle of his sword "Easy there lad, I was just passing by when I saw them, figure I give them a proper burial rather than leaving them here," A muscular man with a full grown beard with medieval armor that covered only his chest said to Ethan holding his palms up in a sign of peace
"Wait, acid fog?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"Oh yeah, nasty shite, it needs no explanation, massive green fog, turns your skin, well, into that," The man said pointing at the bodies behind Ethan
"So, not only do people from the earth want to kill us, now there's a massive death fog, fucking fantastic," Ethan said and the man chuckled
"There are people out to kill you?" The man asked grinning "What did you do? Piss in the wrong stream?" The man asked and Ethan scoffed
"One of my people crossed a river, and receive a fucking spear on his chest," Ethan said
"Ah yes, the three people, or Trikru as they call themselves," The man said "Nasty people if you ask me, they are the kind of people that kill first and ask questions later," The man said and Ethan sighed
"Fan-fucking-tastick," Ethan whispered and the man chuckled
"So, are we going to stand here on our arses, or are we going to bury your friends here?" The man asked and Ethan raised an eyebrow
"With what shovels?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"Those," Them man said pointing to his side Ethan looked to his right and saw two shovels leaning on a nearby tree
"Oh, that's convenient, also why if you're here alone did you bring two shovels?" Ethan said as both men walk to where the shovels were
"I got a feeling I was going to need two shovels, guess I was right," The man said as both males grabbed a shovel
"That's just lazy writing," Ethan whispered as they walk back to where the bodies were "So, what's your name?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"Finan," The male said and Ethan dropped his shovel in shock making the other male look back "Everything ok lad?" The man asked as he saw Ethan shed a tear
"You're not Trikru right?" Ethan asked with a broken voice and Finan nodded "Who's your people?" Ethan asked
"We call ourselves the raven clan," Finan said and Ethan looked at him in seriousness
"Did you ever follow a man name Uhtred?" Ethan asked in curiosity and Finan quickly drew his sword and pointed at Ethan
"How do you know that name?" Finan asked in full seriousness
"We have come a long way Finan from that slave boat, haven't we?" Ethan asked rhetorically and Finan dropped his sword in shock
"Lord Uhtred?" Finan asked in shock trying to hold back his tears
"Not quite, I have his memories, I'm Ethan Gray, I'm his reincarnation," Ethan said and Finan smiled
"It's good enough for me," Finan said as he went and hugged Ethan as the teen hugged him back "Look at you young lord, you look prettier than before," Finan said and Ethan scoffed
"I was pretty back then Finan," Ethan said and Finan chuckled
"Oh when I tell Shitric this, he will cry for sure," Finan said and Ethan looked at him in curiosity
"Shitric also reincarnated?" Ethan asked and Finan nodded
"Me and he did, Hilda and Osferth are with their lord, we chose to follow ours," Finan said and Ethan punched him in his arm
"Why would you do that?" Ethan asked in anger
"My lord, when we joined you we were nothing, you gave us life, and we made a promise, to follow you into all your battles," Finan said and Ethan looked at him curiously "When I woke up in this body, I knew I will fight with you again my lord, and that gives me joy," Finan said and Ethan sighed
"I just don't understand why is this happening, I mean, my lives never crossed each other, why I'm suddenly having these memories?" Ethan asked in confusion
"How many lives have you remembered?" Finan asked in curiosity
"Just one, Uhtred's," Ethan said and Finan nodded
"Then I cannot say much, it is Valka's job to explain this to you when the time comes," Finan said
"When the time comes?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"We have to leave it to destiny and the gods my lord, and we just have to live one day at a time," Finan said and Ethan sighed
"When did you become so wise?" Ethan asked mockingly
"I've always been wise, my lord," Finan said chuckling and Ethan laughed "Come on lord, let's bury your people," Finan said as Ethan grabbed his shovel again and walked to where the bodies were
Both males started digging some graves in complete silence, Finan carry the male teen while Ethan took care of the female teen
They finished dropping the bodies into the holes and put back the dirt on the holes, they finished as Ethan cleaned the sweat from his forehead, and then both males heard a horn sound in the distance
"What is that?" Ethan asked out loud in curiosity
"The acid fog, come on, we have to get out of here," Finan said and started running away followed closely by Ethan
The teen from space look back and saw a massive green fog coming towards them rapidly "Where are we supposed to go?" Ethan asked in fear
"There's a cave nearby, we can take shelter there," Finan said as both males kept running
Then after a while, they found a cave near the area and quickly enter it and took shelter inside it
Ethan stayed near the entrance looking at the fog in fear and then started coughing when the fog invade his lungs before Finan dragged him far into the cave
"Thanks," Ethan said and Finan nodded
"Let's stay clear of the entrance, don't want to be hit by that," Finan said and Ethan nodded
They walked for a while in silence when suddenly Ethan decided to break it "So you said that the grounders were called Trikru?" Ethan asked and Finan nodded
"They're several settlements over this world, or clans if you prefer, twelve if I'm correct, not counting ours of course, then you have the nomads, or the homeless if you prefer," Finan said and Ethan crossed his arms "The nomads you can categorize them into two groups, those who were born with a defect or were simply cast out, we have taken a few of them into our clan," Finan said
"And the other part?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"They called themselves the forgotten ones, nasty of them all, we're talking about murders and rapists, criminals who ran away before facing their clans' punishments," Finan said "They're led by one man, Kjartan," Finan said and Ethan looked at him in shock
"Wait, I knew a Kjartan before, he took my father away from me," Ethan said and Finan nodded
"Yes, I know, but he only shares his name, they aren't the same person, but yet again, he commands a multitude of people like his namesake," Finan said
"How did Sithric feel when he found another Kjartan running wild?" Ethan asked and Finan sighed
"He was pissed, but we told him to wait, we cannot fight Kjartan head-on without our leader," Finan said and Ethan raised an eyebrow
"Me?" Ethan asked and Finan nodded
"Yes, but we still have to wait, you have three more lives to experience, we will know when you're ready," Finan said and Ethan sighed in annoyance
"All this mystical shit is really getting on my nerves," Ethan said and Finan chuckled and wanted to way something more but a growl from inside the cave stopped the conversation between them
"What was that?" Finan asked and Ethan's breath hitched
"Do you feel like something is staring at us?" Ethan asked rhetorically and Finan looked at him shaking his head, then they heard the growl closer and slowly turn their heads to where the sound was
Then from the back of the cave, a massive black grizzly bear appeared staring down at both males
"Holy shite," Finan said and Ethan hit his arm
"Shut up," Ethan whispered as they stared at the bear "Think we can run away?" Ethan asked and Finan shook his head
"The fog still out there, and I rather die by a bear than acid fog," Finan said and Ethan gulped
"Maybe if we stand still long enough he will ignore us," Ethan offered and both males looked at the bear in fear as Ethan reached for his spear and Finan took out some daggers from his pants
The bear roared at Ethan and lounged forward trying to claw Ethan, the teen took a quick step back and lounge his spear forward stabbing the bear's stomach
"My lord, did you just poke the bear?" Finan said as he saw Ethan stabbing the bear
"Yep, and I'm regretting it," Ethan said taking out the spear as the bear roared and ran to Ethan "Shit," Ethan said as he rolled to his right dodging the bear and letting it pass
Finan threw a dagger at the bear impacting the bear's right eye and making him blind from that side
Ethan ran trying to stab the bear again but the bear heard him and bite down the spear of Ethan breaking it apart and Ethan stumbled forward
The bear send its claw forward scratching the right side of Ethan's just over his eye, Ethan fell to the ground in pain hitting his head as the bear roared just over his face and prepare to bite Ethan's head off
Finan jumped to the back of the bear choking it and making the bear leave Ethan alone
The bear backed away, making Finan hit his back with the wall and fall to the ground, the bear turn to him and roar prepared to attack, the bear lounge forward but before it could attack Finan a raging Ethan ran with his sword in his hand and stabbed the neck of the bear
Both Ethan and the bear fell to the ground, but Ethan tripped and the bear fell on top of him, but the teen didn't let up as he slashed the neck of the bear making the bear's blood fall into his face
Ethan managed to push the bear away taking his sword out of the bear's neck in the process
The bear tried to walk forward but his injuries prevent it so it lay on the ground tired and defeated, Ethan walked forward and put a hand on the bear's head in sympathy as he stabbed the bear under its chin putting the bear out of its misery
He sighed and took out his sword and Finan's dagger from the bear's eye and then walked to where Finan was
"You lost this," Ethan said and gave Finnan his dagger "Can I ask you a question?" Ethan said as Finan stood up
"What is it, my lord?" Finan said as he was staring at Ethan's left side and then the teen turn to look at him fully showing his face
"Why does it feel like my face is on fire?" Ethan asked and Finan winced in sympathy
"Let's just say that bear got you good," Finan said
"Ah, yeah that explains it, think the fog has cleared out yet, better if I get this checkout," Ethan said pointing at his clawed face and then looking down "Oh man, I'm covered in blood, it will be a pain to clean this off," Ethan said and Finan looked at him in confusion
"My lord, are you alright? Do you not feel the wound in your face?" Finan asked in confusion
"I think I'm in shock, or the adrenaline is too much and it's preventing me from feeling the pain, or I'm in too much pain that I don't feel it," Ethan said scratching his head "Go check if the fog is gone, I'm going to check out the cave, see if there's anything of value there," Ethan said and Finan nodded dumbly as he walked to the entrance of the cave
Ethan walked to the back of the cave with blood dripping from his face with his right eye close, he was breathing hard but still kept searching the area until he found something really disturbing
A skeleton was hanging from the cave's ceiling with a rope tied to its neck and with his clothes all torn up "Jesus," Ethan whispered as he saw the skeleton and then noticed that he was at the end of the cave
Ethan looked back at where the bear was and then looked at the rope the skeleton had and got an idea "Is this considered grave digging?" Ethan whispered as he cut the rope from where it was tied and the skeleton dropped to the ground "I'm so sorry," Ethan said under his breath as he bent down and grabbed the rope from the neck of the skeleton and then stood up
He walked back to the entrance of the cave and arrived at where the bear's corpse was and bend down tying the rope to one of the bear's leg
"The fog has cleared out lord," Finan said entering back into the cave and then looking at Ethan in confusion
"What are you doing my lord?" Finan asked noticing the teen tying a rope to the bear's leg
"This is food, I'm not going to waste it, I'm going to take it back to my camp," Ethan said and Finan chuckled
"You're really something else lord," Finan said and Ethan noticed something on the back of Finan
"That sword, I just notice it, why didn't you use it to fight the bear?" Ethan said noticing the sword on Finan's back
"Because it's not mine, I just carry it until I find its owner," Finan said and then Ethan recognized the gem on the end of the sword
"Is that?" Ethan asked recognizing the sword
Finan took the sword still on its shed from his back and present it to Ethan "It's yours, my lord," Finan said drawing the sword out and Ethan grabbed it with uncertainty
"How?" Ethan asked holding the sword in his hand
"A lot of our past followed us here, we have been searching for our treasures since we woke up in this life, this one was one of many we found," Finan said as Ethan smiled
"Serpents-breath, it's good to see you girl," Ethan whispered and then his face started throbbing reminding him that he needed to go, he put the sword back on its shed and then tied it to his back next to his other sword and then looked at Finan while grabbing the rope tied to the bear's leg "I should get going before I bleed to death," Ethan said and Finan nodded
"I want to go with you to make sure you get there safe, but your people will be afraid of me so I won't risk it," Finan said "Besides I know you won't die today my lord," Finan said, and then took out something from his pouch "Here, take this," Finan said and Ethan took the object into his hands
"A horn?" Ethan asked in curiosity
"I will try to remain around, maybe Sithric will join me and a few others, if you blow that horn, we will come to your aid," Finan said and Ethan nodded putting the horn into his pocket
"Thank you, my friend," Ethan said as he started walking dragging the bear behind him
Finan waited a few moments to let the teen leave before walking towards the entrance of the cave and going in his own separate direction
100 camp sometime later
The main group, Bellamy, Clarke, Wells, Finn, and Monty were on the second floor of the shuttle with a now-awoken Jasper who had stopped groaning in pain
"Sorry about leaving Murphy here should've known that idiot would try something," Bellamy said to Clarke and Monty
"It's fine, your sister took care of it," Monty said and Bellamy smirked
"So, how's communication coming along?" Bellamy asked and Monty sighed
"Not good, still haven't figured out how to get into the Ark's mainframe," Monty said and Clarke looked at him in sympathy
"Don't worry Monty you will get there," Clarke said and then turn to speak to Bellamy "Speaking of Murphy, we need to talk about what to do if people start committing crimes, or at least trying to kill one another," Clarke said and Bellamy nodded
"Still we shouldn't talk too much without Ethan here, there's a council for a reason Clarke," Bellamy said and Clarke nodded
"You're still going with that thing?" Wells asked in curiosity
"Let it go, Wells, they at least have been doing a good job," Finn said and then the group heard someone coming from the bottom floor
"Hey Bellamy, have you seen Ethan, I can't find him anywhere," Octavia said entering the second floor
"Shit, he hasn't come back?" Bellamy asked and Octavia shook her head "Fuck," Bellamy said rubbing his face
"Hey, I'm sure he's alright, just like he said, he won't die easily," Clarke said and Bellamy looked at her and sighed nodding his head
"Bellamy, Clarke!" They heard a criminal from the camp shout "You guys need to come here!" The criminal said and quickly the group minus Jasper and Monty ran to the exit of the shuttle and then stopped in shock at the scene in front of them
A blood-soaking Ethan was walking slowly towards the camp dragging a giant-sized bear behind him
"Oh, thank god I made it, fuck, you don't want to walk those woods in the night, it gets scary out there," Ethan said looking at the ground with a dazed look on his face
Because of the blood and the darkness of the night, those who were far away from Ethan didn't see his wound but those who were close to him did and couldn't help but stare in shock
Clarke walked slowly to where Ethan was as the teen kept looking around "Ethan, what happened?" Clarke asked and Ethan looked at her with the left side of his face pointing at her
"I found Trina and Pascal, they were killed by the acid fog, it almost killed me too, so I ran after burying those two where I found them," Ethan said and then looked at the bear "Ran into a cave, turns out it was occupied, so my choices were, die by an acid fog or by this motherfucker," Ethan said while letting a small chuckle
"Ethan is that your blood?" Clarke asked looking at the bloodied clothes of Ethan and the male teen was showing Clarke the left side of his face
"Some of it, other parts are from Baloo here," Ethan said pointing at the bear "Hey now that I look at you, I know why Wells and Finn like you, you're really pretty," Ethan said looking at Clarke with a smirk
"What?" Clarke asked in surprise with a small blush on her face as the rest of the group walked to stand behind Clarke
"Oh yeah, the whole blond doctor thing you got going on, is really sexy," Ethan said as the blush of Clarke grew stronger "Speaking of doctor things, how's Jasper?" Ethan asked
"Uh, well he's fine, we managed to create some tea with antibiotic properties," Clarke said and Ethan smiled
"That's nice, you deserve some rest, shame you won't get the chance to do so," Ethan said and Clarke looked at him in confusion
"What do you mean?" Clarke asked and Ethan chuckled making the rest of the group also looked at Ethan in confusion
"I've been going on pure adrenaline, or maybe motivation, don't know, I'm not a doctor, but it's catching up," Ethan said and Octavia started to get worried
"What is?" The younger Blake asked in concern and Ethan turn his head to the side showing his full face to the group
The group gasped in surprise when they saw the clawed bruised face of Ethan and Clarke quickly sprung into action
"Shit, Bellamy, Finn quickly help me take him back to the shuttle," Clarke said and both teens quickly walked forward
"It's fine runaway I can still walk," Ethan said taking a step forward but stumbling down and getting caught by Finn and Bellamy "Okay, I cannot," Ethan said as he was carried to the shuttle
"I'm sorry about flirting with Clarke dude, it's not cool," Ethan said to Finn and the teen chuckled
"It's alright Gray," Finn said as Bellamy climb up first to help carry Ethan up
"No it's not, you already have Wells as competition, I shouldn't be giving you trouble, it's against the code," Ethan said dazed "Dude, you should totally make your move, who knows what can happen, you can be attacked by a bear," Ethan said laughing at his own sentence
"I'll make my move dude, just got to make sure you get better first," Finn said handing Ethan to Bellamy who lift him up
"Hey Bellamy, oh wow dude, you have freckles I didn't know that," Ethan said with a dazed expression and Bellamy chuckled
"Yeah I got them from my mother, come on dude, let's get you someplace to rest," Bellamy said and Ethan saw Jasper lying on the ground
"Hey Jas, seems like I'm taking your place in the hospital," Ethan said with a chuckle
Jasper giggled as Bellamy put Ethan next to him "Don't worry dude I'm leaving my spot so it's all yours," Jasper said and Ethan nodded
"You know what this world, it fucking sucks," Ethan said and Jasper laughed as they saw Clarke entering the second floor "Oh hey doc, I'm ready to be healed," Ethan said letting his head drop on the floor below him
"What's wrong with him? It's like he doesn't know he has a wound on his face," Bellamy asked Clarke as Ethan looked at the roof in a daze expression
"You know what I realized, the council, they're a bunch of idiots, I mean they send us here, without food or water, I mean sure we were supposed to get to mount weather but what would happen if there was no food there or it was infested with animals?" Ethan wonders out loud and Bellamy looks at Clarke with a raised eyebrow
"He's in shock, that's why he's like this, I wouldn't be surprised if he passes out," Clarke said and Octavia crouch next to Ethan
"Hey little wolf," Ethan said and Octavia ran her fingers through Ethan's hair "I don't think I'm going to be able to train you tomorrow," Ethan said and Octavia chuckled
"It's fine Gray, first get better and then we will train," Octavia said as Clarke walked to the pair and started checking the wound, Ethan
"Doc, please don't burn my face," Ethan said and Clarke smiled
"I'll try not to," Clarke said and Ethan sighed
"Good, if I have a burned face then how I'm going to meet the love of my life?" Ethan said and then looked at the roof "I still miss you Aethelflaed, what an amazing time we would've had," Ethan said in a language the group didn't recognize and then he passed out from the pain
"Jesus, how the hell did he walk here with this wound," Clarke whispered cleaning the face of Ethan
"Is he going to be alright?" Octavia asked in concern
"I hope so, we only have to keep cleaning his wound and put a bandage on top of it, and hope to god he doesn't lose his eye," Clarke said still cleaning the wound "You guys can go, I got it from here, he just has to rest for now," Clarke said and Bellamy sighed
"I have patrol, make sure he doesn't die," Bellamy said and Wells walked behind him
"I'm going on patrol too," Wells said as the rest of the group stayed behind
The group remained in silence as they watch how Clarke kept cleaning Ethan's wounds
End of chapter 3