FemNarutoXGaara00: I also post in A03 but I update at the same time. I honestly do not have much free time to write.
Jo Hamel: Thank you for your encouragement! I really appreciate that you leave a review for almost every chapter, you are awesome!
Vada was apprehensively waiting for the commander, he wished the guards had stayed for a little while but they had already helped him and he didn't want to waste more of their valuable time, so when Inia kindly ask if he would be ok waiting alone he simply nodded and thanked her for everything.
The creak of the heavy wood doors made him jump; he was not ready for this meeting. Vada felt ill-prepared and more nervous than he had ever been in his life, no one had instructed him in what he should or shouldn't do in her presence and he couldn't afford to offend her before she even heard what he had to say.
Vada took a fortifying breath and assessed his situation. He knew soldiers thumped their chest with their swords to salute her but he had no weapons with him so as soon as the commander entered the room and approached him Vada kneeled and dropped his gaze to the floor.
"Kneel for no one and bow only for who you deem worthy"
Well, that certainly had not been what he was expecting her to say. His shock must have registered in his face for she simply raised an eyebrow in amusement while steering him towards a table on the far side of the room.
After bowing, clumsily and uncoordinatedly, he would later recall to his friend's amusement, he followed her silently.
Amusingly his first impression was that Heda was a lot shorter than what he had imagined, stories painted her as an amazon of epic proportions yet in reality she was only a few inches taller than him but what he would tell his friends when they inevitably ask about her, would be how the bards' songs did no justice to her beauty and how she was far kinder than what one would expect such an impressive ruler to be.
Heda took a seat and gestured for him to do the same. He anxiously waited for the inevitable interrogation that was sure to follow her introduction yet, surprising him again, she limited herself to offer him food and a drink.
Vada's eyes widened at the lavish banquet. Being from the desert clan meant that his diet primarily consisted of meat and dairy, sporadically bread and grains, this kind of feast was exclusively reserved for special occasions and even then never in the quantity so casually on display before him.
The boy took a bowl of strawberries and munched on them quietly. His mind was racing a mile a minute; was he allowed to speak or did he have to wait for her to talk first?. Would she hang him if he somehow disrespects her? no, that seemed excessive, even for his over-active imagination, but maybe she would have been flogged or caned. His heart was pounding erratically and his hands started to sweat. Vada –not for the first time since he arrived in Polis- wished he had listened more to his father's tales, he had live in the capital before meeting his mother.
"Do you like the food?. If not I can ask for something else".
Oh fuck it, he instantly realized she had mistaken his silence for displeasure so he hurriedly corrected his gaffe and reassured her "Heda please do not trouble yourself, this feast is exquisite".
"I do not make it a habit to receive messengers outside my throne room but my guards remarked the need for absolute privacy".
He nodded in confirmation. If Heda had been surprised by the odd request she didn't let her face show it, her expression remained completely neutral, and not even her body language betrayed what she was thinking.
"I'm sorry if I offended the flamekeepa but my orders are explicit, what I have to say is for your ears only"
"Neither Inia nor Rockburn mentioned anything regarding Titus… what happened?"
"Please Heda do not punish them for disobeying they only…"
"What happened?" This time her tone was harsh, a stark contrast to her previously pleasant demeanor.
His mouth suddenly turned dry and unease settle in his stomach. She was not downright threatening him or anything but now he understood why so many people feared her; if her voice was enough to send him in a case of mild panic, he reckoned he would simply faint if he were to engage her in a battle.
"I'm sorry… Titus is a sore subject these days but I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I just want to know what happened". Lexa made a titanic effort to suppress her rage; Titus was getting on her nerves more than usual.
He took a few sips of water and exhale deeply, willing his heart to return to normal.
"I arrived yesterday afternoon and requested an audience. After making sure I pose no threat your guards took me to the throne room, we were waiting for you when the Flamekeepa showed up. He said…" Vada paused a second in his recounting of the events.
"He demanded I tell him everything, said he would pass it along to you. When I refused, he ordered Rockburn and Inia to lock me up; instead, they took me to a spare room to sleep for the night and said they would organize this meeting". He smiled fondly, remembering his interaction with the guards.
============ flashback: the previous afternoon ============
Vada was weary of the mammoth of a man guarding the door. He was silent but his hand remained close to his sword, poise to attack if necessary, Vada thought it pointless; he estimated the man to be at least 6 and a half foot (1.98m) and about 300 pounds (136kg), his heavy built alone would dissuade most intruders.
Without being asked the boy handed over his hunting knife and endured silently the search for any hidden weapons.
"He is clean Rock". The woman, who would later introduce herself as Inia, was at least a foot shorter and seemed far too sweet to be a soldier but Vada knew to not judge by looks alone; he had seen many slight looking girls ferociously defeat opponents twice their size.
"Who are you and why are you here?"
"My name is Vada. I'm from the Sankru tribe and want to request a meeting with Heda, I have an important message for her"
"Well you are definitely not going to see her just yet"
Vada started to protest. When talking to strangers on the way to Polis they all had told him that he simply needed to make an appointment, unless they were at war Heda took time to listen to anyone who came to her door.
Inia cut his pleadings short "You stink like a pig and I rather not put Heda through that torture"
Rockburn laughed loudly "My wife might not be gifted with words but she is not wrong kid, a bath is definitely in order"
Vada smelled his armpit and lower his eyes in shame, he realized that in his haste to get to polis he hadn't stop for a bath not even once.
"Come with me, you can wash in the communal showers and I will get you some clean clothes."
============ end flashback ============
"Please Heda punish me if you must but not them, their only sin was to take pity on someone who travelled almost a fortnight to see you"
"Do not worry; no one is going to be punished"
"But the flamekeepa said…"
"Sometimes Titus forgets his place; he is my advisor and the custodian of the flame but he is not the head of my guards nor does he get to control any appointment I might have".
Heda chastised herself for her words; she should not have told a stranger she was having issues with her flamekeepa, it wouldn't bode well for her if anyone knew he challenged her authority and she didn't, at the very least, reprimand him for it.
She idly wondered how much trouble it would be to replace him, unluckily the flamekeepa tittle was only terminated upon death or grave injuries, and as much as she wanted to throttle him sometimes, she didn't wish for him to die.
Luckily, the boy didn't seem to pay any mind to the meaning hidden in her words and was simply relieved to know that no further actions would be taken regarding the issue. She supposed that to those unaccustomed to deal with the secrecy and subterfuge of the court, words very rarely held more substance or value than their literal meaning. A disagreement was simply that, a difference of opinion, not a sign of feeble grasp on political power.
"What is your message?. It must be truly important if you were willing to risk your freedom to protect it"
"A prophecy"
Lexa raised her eyebrows in surprise and pursed her lips in mild annoyance. Polis was full to the brim with those who practiced divination and other related arts. Fortune-tellers of all kinds; runes, animal entrails, and card readers, to name a few, were a dime a dozen these days. She had truly never put much stock in them for they very rarely were more than tricksters entertaining people with their outrageous predictions.
Before she could complain and tell him he should leave, for she didn't believe in flimsy predictions like prophecies, Vada kept talking.
"Since she was a little girl my mother has what she calls special dreams. At first, her parents thought she simply was an over-imaginative child but with time they realized it had to be more than that. She had knowledge of things they couldn't explain; things she had never heard about before or that she couldn't have known because of her age"
An unknown, undefined, voice reverberated in her skull and compelled her to concentrate and pay attention. She was paralyzed, the only time something like that had happened had been the day of her ascension, the day the flame merged with her. Was Heda's spirit telling her this prophecy was real?. She felt throbbing pain on one side of her head, through the fog of agony she somehow managed to acquiesce to the request, she would listen to Vada's words attentively.
"Almost a fortnight ago my mother woke me up bright early in the morning, gave me a fur rucksack packed with food, and told me I had to travel to Polis. She explained she had had one of her dreams and Heda needed to be warned".
Vada wished for a second he still had his bag, he had exchanged it for food a few days before arriving at Polis. He knew it was silly to care for it but it was a constant reminder of his mother, his whole tribe really, and without it, he felt a little lost. He cleared his throat and willed the treacherous tears to not fall, when he found his voice again he recited the words he had memorized so long ago.
Death will bring love and a long-lasting reign
if what was once sealed can be opened again.
The sky and the earth joined as one,
an unmatched force shall they become.
Ancient hurdles to peace will finally fall,
but treachery lurks and sides shall be crossed.
If the wolves are not found what was gained will be lost,
blood will be spilled and your reign it shall cost.
Clarke walked briskly, leaving the boys behind talking. She was too preoccupied with Drew's well-being to maintain a proper conversation.
Piercing screams could be heard in the distance. Clarke's heart clenched in agony, someone had been a victim of the acid fog again.
The blonde took off running as fast as her legs could carry her, not caring about the branches piercing her skin and tearing up her clothes. Tears obscured her vision and she almost fell a few times but Wanheda guided her steps and help her stay upright.
Monroe was visibly shaken, balancing on the ball of her feet to try and keep herself from running. Clarke judged she was the one who found the body. Later Monroe would tell her, with horrifically accurate details, how she had literally fallen on Trina and Pascal's bodies while looking for whoever had been screaming.
Bellamy saw Clarke barrelling towards them and let out a sigh of relief. He would never admit it if pressed but he knew he was out of his depth; he could deal with unruly teenagers but he had never seen something like this and had no idea what to do.
He beckoned her to come closer. Clarke kneeled beside the suffering boy and started to examine his body.
Bellamy's eyes asked what his mouth didn't dare to say, Clarke shook her head and he understood perfectly; Atom was not dead yet but there was nothing they could for him.
"I'm going to help you". She tangled her fingers on his hair to play with it and started to sing to help him relax.
When the blonde got Atom to close his eyes she grabbed the knife from her pocket and plunged it on Atom's neck, quickly and efficiently, severing his carotid artery. She continued singing until he exhaled his last breath and, with a barely audible wail, finally died.
Clarke turned to the three boys who were looking at her expectantly.
"Can you help me carry him?. We can't leave him here".
Without saying a word Bellamy and Wells picked up the boy and helped her drag him back to where the others were. Finn took it upon himself to carry the things they had collected.
Clarke realized that many delinquents had gathered near the dead bodies but actively avoided looking at them, fear and panic had already started to spread around.
"What happened to them?" Roma asked finally breaking the uncomfortable silence.
"The fog… it burns your body". Surprisingly it was Monroe who answered her, her initial horror had turned in steely determination; she swears to herself would do whatever it took to make sure she didn't end up like them.
Roma nodded solemnly and without saying a word she turned around and started to dig a hole with her bare hands. Tears clouded her vision but she pushed them away and plowed even faster. Trina had been her best friend; she wouldn't let her body be defiled by wild animals.
Monroe and a few others looked for pieces of the dropship and with their crude shovels took it upon themselves to help the distraught girl to dig the graves.
Clarke nudged a dazed-looking Harper, "Can you boil some water, please?. I would do it but Glen can't wait much longer." The girl nodded, thankful to feel useful.
The blonde went to the dropship door and saw Octavia and Finn waiting for her.
"Finally!. If it hadn't been for Murphy I'm sure they would have already kill Glenn. You should have seen Mathew, he was scared shitless when Murphy…" Octavia's laughter got cut short when she took notice of Clarke's grim face.
"Atom, Trina, and Pascal died from the fog"
"I'm sorry. I know he was important to you" Clarke said, her voice barely a whisper.
When Octavia started to sob the blonde hugged her tightly. Atom had been the first boy she had ever slept with and while she didn't love him he would always be in her heart.
"We will need to get used to people dying down here, won't we?"
Clark gave her a watery smile "That doesn't mean it gets easier."
When Harper arrived with the boiled water Octavia squeezed Clarke's hand and nudged her to go inside. They would talk later, right now Glenn needed her more.
Murphy took her to the secluded corner where Glenn was still lying down, feverish and shaking.
"Here, drink this"
"It tastes like shit" he complained but still drank a bit more.
"It will help you heal faster"
"It better do. It's fucking disgusting"
Clarke was cleaning his wound when suddenly Drew grabbed her arm and force her to look him in the eyes.
"Thank you"
"It's nothing; I did what anyone would have done had they known how"
"Glen told me that you haven't left my side, you risked your life to find me, and shit you even made this God awful tea"
"Is it that bad?"
"Trust me; there are no words to describe this monstrosity!"
"Oh come on, you are exaggerating"
She took a sip and immediately spat it out.
"Fuck it, it does taste like shit"
Drew laughed when Clarke kept spitting, trying to get the taste out of her mouth.
"Terrible tea's aside I have no idea how will I ever be able to repay everything you have done for me"
"Drew, as I said before anyone…"
"No, you don't understand I…" he dropped his voice to a low whisper "I heard them, Clarke, I listened over and over again how they just wished I would die already. To everyone else, I was simply an inconvenience but you fought for me"
Clarke said nothing but smiled at him and hugged him. Sometimes words were unnecessary.
"Get some more sleep, okay? We will all be here for you tomorrow" Clarke said and the boy just closed his eyes, falling asleep right away.