Chapter 1

Emerson was sitting on the bunk. They had all been through decon and were waiting on Dr. Tsing to release them. He was a little rattled by what the young blonde had told him, but he knew that he had to tell Dante about it. He really didn't have a choice about it. He owed it to his family to tell the President what she offered. He knew that if he went to Cage first he would react badly and send the Reapers out. The blonde had warned him against that.

He was surprised at her audacity. She had been alone in front of Mountain. She stood there with just a radio, but he could tell that she was the one in control of that meeting. He knew that very quickly. She wasn't afraid of him. She wasn't afraid of the Mountain.

The other thing that caught him off guard was the fact that she was inside the Vail's range, and she knew it. She wasn't afraid of the fog. She told him that she was in control of it. She could control the mountain from outside of it. She had technology and she knew how to use it. She might be the daughter of the head of their medical, but she was the one in command. He could tell that she wasn't asking or looking for approval as she gave him her demands. She was precise and consistent with it. He knew that she could end him with just a look. He was actually a little afraid of her, too. She knew things. Things that she shouldn't know, but she did. She offered to save his family, but he had to talk to Dante to make that happen. She gave him a mission.

"You are free to go, Emerson. Cage wants a full report within an hour," Tsing told him. "The others told him that you spoke with the girl."

"I did."

"And?"

"She had some interesting things to say," Emerson answered.

"Anything we should be worried about?" Tsing asked him.

"No yet, no."

He didn't wait for her to say anything else. He walked out of the decon rooms of medical and headed up towards the main levels of the compound. He knew that Cage would expect him to head down towards where Cerberus Project was being worked. He headed for the security headquarters, instead.

He checked in his rifle and got a pistol. He placed it in the holster on his belt. He checked the battery on his radio. He knew that Cage would be calling him soon, but he was going to Dante first. He only hoped that Cage wasn't with Dante. He wanted to speak with Dante first, so hopefully he would be the voice of reason after Emerson told him the same thing. He had to play this carefully. He knew from the look in the blonde's blue eyes that his children's lives and futures were at stake. She promised to save them. His children were the only thing that would make him betray the Wallaces.

He took a deep breath and he made his way to the Presidential office. He hoped that he was doing the right thing. He didn't want to have to smuggle his own family out, but he would. He knew how and where. He was just afraid that the Grounders would kill them as soon as they exited the tunnels. He hoped that if it came to that, he would have the blonde's guarantee and she would keep them from being killed.

He was glad that there was no one in the hallway when he knocked on the door. Dante answered it himself. His hands were covered in oil paints. He was working on a new "masterpiece." It was the only way that Dante found to keep himself calm and collected in their bunker. He never tried to go outside himself. He left that to the security teams, the Reapers, and Cage's goons.

"Lieutenant Emerson?"

"Yes, sir, can I speak with you?" Emerson asked.

"Yes, please, come in," Dante stated as he stepped back and allowed Emerson to enter his office.

Dante shut the door behind him. He walked across the office and grabbed a rag. He wiped his hands and watched as Emerson took a seat in one of chairs in front of the Presidential desk. Dante's interest was piqued. He wasn't stupid. He knew that his son was working on things that he hadn't authorized, and he knew that Emerson was one of the more loyal security guards to Cage and not to him. The fact that Emerson looked nervous caused him concern.

"Has my son done something that I should know about, Mr. Emerson?"

"Not yet, Mr. President, he hasn't, and I would like to keep it that way."

Dante moved around and sat down at his desk. He looked at Emerson more fully. He looked freshly washed and decon'd. He cocked an eyebrow.

"Do you need something to drink, Mr. Emerson?" Dante questioned.

"No, I don't, sir. I'm good. I had enough back in decon."

"I see. Is there something that I should know? Did something happen?"

"Yes, sir. I went out there because we noticed that the savages had been staying back unusually lately. There was a sighting. I took a team to go see what it was," Emerson told him. "Cage wanted to make sure that no one knew what was going on, so he made it a secret mission. I only took four guards with me."

"I understand, Lieutenant."

"It was just one girl. She couldn't be old then eighteen or nineteen, sir. She wasn't dressed like a savage. She was dressed...well..."

"Yes?"

"Like us, sir. She said that she was from one of the surviving ships that crashed. She knew things, sir. She knew my name. I think she knows yours, too."

"She was the one on the radio?" Dante asked.

"Yes, sir."

"I see," Dante said as he leaned back in his chair. "So, the survivors have found a way to hack into us? Did she tell you anything else?"

"Yes, sir, she did."

"And, what was that, Mr. Emerson?"

"She told me that she has a cure."

"A cure?" Dante inquired, interest completely piqued.

"Yes, sir. She has a treatment back at her...whatever it is. She is willing to share it with us. To prove her point, she will ask for five people to take the treatment first. The only caveat to that is that she is selecting the first five."

"I see."

"Yes, sir, I thought that you might."

"So, they've gotten into our data banks and computers. They may have hacked our frequencies. And, she's offering us to live on the ground."

"Yes, sir, she did."

"And, what of the savages?" Dante questioned.

"We are to leave them alone."

"If we don't take her up on her cure?" Dante probed.

"I believe that she'll end the Mountain, sir. I don't know what type of tech that they have, but I'm sure that it might be stronger than ours. Sir, she told me that she'd be watching. She knew about my children, sir. She also warned me that Cage would be a problem."

"And, you've not reported to him, yet, have you, Mr. Emerson?"

"No, sir, I came to you first."

"Good. Let's head down to the security office and see what we can find out about these people. I'll go with you, but enter after you. This way Cage won't know what you've told me," Dante explained.

"Yes, sir."

They left the Presidential office and headed for the security control room. Cage was there, waiting. He was staring at the video. Emerson didn't realize how long he'd been out there talking with Clarke, but it was all on tape before him.

"Ah, Emerson, good, you're here," Cage said as he moved closer to the monitors he was at.

Dante came in a few minutes later. Cage looked up. He held the look of contempt for his father and Dante knew it. Emerson knew that Cage would try to make this into a power play for the Mountain. Dante would gladly give him the reins to run things, but Emerson knew that even Dante was afraid of Cage's rage. He realized too late that he indulged his son too much. Cage was a fool when it came to power. Cerberus was proof of that, but it got results, so Dante let it slide. Emerson hoped that Dante would be able to keep the reins tight this time.

"Yes, sir."

"What did the girl want?" Cage demanded.

"She's offered us a cure."

"A cure?"

"Yes, Cage, a cure for us to walk on the ground like we are meant to," Emerson told him, playing up to Cage a little.

"She wants to help us?"

"Yes, Cage, she does."

"For what?"

"She didn't say, but she has enough control to control our radios already."

"Lee, I want every camera pointed at the drop sights for those space craft. I want to know what we are dealing with," Cage stated to another guard.

Emerson watched as the cameras started turning. He watched hoping that Clarke wouldn't be mad at him. When the cameras found the compound that they were looking for, Cage called for the coordinates.

"Power up a missile, Lee. Let's show these space cadets who is really in charge down here. I will not have us dictated to by a child," Cage raged.

Emerson shot Dante a look. Dante just nodded. They would have to make sure that Cage was neutralized quickly.

The cameras quickly turned and the computers started making noises. The security team typed away at their keyboards furiously to no avail. Suddenly the main screen came up with a big white raven. Emerson just stared at it. He knew that it was a sign from Clarke and her people. Cage had already fucked up.

"Stand down, Mount Weather," a voice came over the intercom. "The Princess didn't lie. We are watching. Don't try that again, or I'll self detonate them and you can all kiss your collective asses goodbye. Follow our directions and see the sun for real and feel it. Don't and be buried in your concrete tomb."

Dante turned to look at Emerson.

"Tell me more about this deal that the Princess gave you, Mr. Emerson," Dante demanded, in voice that reminded all of those in that room who was really in charge of the bunker at the moment.

"Lee, get Johnson and McIlroy up here and working on our systems. I want them out of them ASAP. I will not be dictated to," Cage hissed.

"Lee, working on seeing how to free our systems. Do it quietly and try not to piss them off. We really don't want to anger them if they have control of the missiles and who knows what else. Before we do anything against them, we need to be free of them, Cage. But, I want to know more about what this Princess wanted. Tell us more about it, Emerson. You were with her."

"Yes, sir, I was. She told me that she had a cure and that she'd share it with us. I think that she means to let us join her group. They seem to be like us, at least in dress and technology. I don't know how many people they have, but it would honestly give us a bigger gene pool to work with, sir."

"Thinking with your dick, Emerson?" Cage asked, with a sick smile on his face.

"No, sir, thinking practically. If we can live on the ground, wouldn't you want to be with people like us and not the Savages. Besides, she knew that we wouldn't completely trust her. She also knows our people and our names. They have knowledge on us, sir, and we know nothing about them."

"And, what are the rules of this cure?"

"So, far, she's said that she would call us on the radio after dinner. She'll give us five names. Those are going to be the first that receive the cure. She'll meet with Cage and the five tomorrow morning. If the five that she calls for aren't brought, she'll take it as we aren't going to accept the cure and she'll seal Mount Weather permanently," Emerson explained. "This would become our permanent tomb. We would be sealing our fate."

"I see."

"Yes, sir. And, I'm afraid that Cage's rashness might have cost us some lives. She holds all the cards in this, sir. She knows that we are suffering and she's offered us an out. I say we take it. I say we send these five and see if it works."

"I think that is a sound plan, Mr. Emerson. For the moment, please take my son to his room and make sure that he stays there until the next broadcast from this Princess..."

"Clarke Griffin, sir. Her name is Clarke Griffin," Emerson added. "She's a doctor of sorts, or so she says."

"Well, let's see how much doctoring she can do," Dante replied. "Cage, you will not speak to her. You will not say anything until tomorrow when she comes to take the five back to her camp. I am assuming that she has some way to keep them safe and oxygenated. I know that we only have so many suits left, so we need to hope that this works. But, we are going to be smart about this."

"Yes, sir," Emerson said. "And, how will we do that, sir?"

"We will question everyone that comes back. We will find out more about them while our people are inside their compound. And, we will use that time to find a way to get our systems back to ourselves. Once we have complete control of the bunker again, we'll strike if needed," Dante answered.

"But, father, we should just attack them and take the cure," Cage raged.

"Like you have against the savages with your Cerberus project, son. It doesn't work. If they are willing to share it with us, we will see what we can get out it. I will not surrender our people to them. I know that we are subjected to the boundaries of this bunker. Our families came here to survive the bombs, and if those that ran to space are offering to return us back above ground, that they can walk on, then I will take it. They are our cousins, Cage, and we owe it to ourselves to try. We will start with the five. If they are indeed cured, we will begin to push back to see what they really want with us."

"Sir?" Emerson questioned.

"If they can cure five, then we can use those five to cure the rest of the populace, Emerson. We will have Tsing test them as soon as they come back to us. I am sure that they have a bigger reason to help us than just wanting to help," Dante responded. "Hopefully, they need us to fight the savages. Plus, they'll have guns, too. We can use their gear, too. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. We just need to figure out how we fit into their world."

"Yes, sir, I understand."

"Father, how will we tell the people about this?"

"You leave that to me, Cage. I'll deal with it. Mr. Emerson, with me. Sergeant Lee, don't forget to escort my son to his quarters until further notice. I'll be by to see him later. We can't have him causing any problems before we see what these people from space can do for us. And, Mr. Lovejoy make sure that McIlroy and Johnson figure out a way to get this 'Little Bird' out our systems. I will not let some young upstart from the stars tear us down. We've spent too much time in here not to inherit the world," Dante told them all. "Don't worry, Cage. We will stay the course and we will take the ground for ourselves, Savages be damned. If I have to use these people from space to do it, I will."

"Yes, Father," Cage replied and let Lee take him away.

Dante and Emerson stepped out of the control room. Dante could tell that there was more on Emerson's mind, especially after Cage's outburst in the control room. They had done well to cover the fact that the President already knew what was going to happen. Dante reached out and put a hand on Emerson's shoulder. He looked him in the eyes.

"Do you trust Sergeant Lee, Emerson?" Dante questioned.

"Over the rest, sir?"

"Is he loyal to you or to Cage first, Carl?" Dante asked, using his first name for emphasis.

"Yes, sir, he is loyal to me."

"Then gather a few guards and make sure that my son stays put for the time being. Put him under house arrest if you must, but make sure that he doesn't leave his rooms until I speak with him further. Take care whatever else you need to do for our security at the moment, Lieutenant and then come back to my office. I wish to speak with you more about this before Miss Griffin contacts us with her names."

"Yes, sir," Emerson replied, snapping to attention.

Dante just nodded and started to walk away. He turned suddenly and realized that Emerson was about to head back into the security control room to check on things. Dante knew how to be a leader. His father had taught him, and his father before that. Dante knew that he had to find a way to keep this from getting out so quickly. He needed to make sure that no one tried anything or helped Cage start a new war that they possibly could lose before it began.

"Oh, and Mr. Emerson," Dante started.

"Yes, sir," Emerson replied.

"It goes without saying that this absolutely cannot get out yet. It would be a security nightmare, I would imagine. We can't have a mutiny now, Emerson. Think of all that we have worked and lived for in here. We can't let it all go to waste. We need to stay ahead of this and them if we can."

"Yes, sir, I understand. I'll make sure that the men do as well. It is only Dr. Tsing that might be a wild card, sir," Emerson told him.

"I'll worry about the doctor, Emerson. You were about my son and your men," Dante said and turned to leave again. "I'll see at least an hour before dinner."

"Yes, sir," Emerson answered, again snapping to attention, even though Dante was already walking away without waiting for his reply.