chapter 44

Clarke?"said Maya as her eyes finally focused on the girl next to her "What's going on?"

Clarke was about to respond, but the incessant blaring of the alarm seemed to have only just registered within Maya as she turned towards the detectors on the ceiling before speaking panickedly as she tried to rise to her feet,"Clarke, the radiation it's–"

"Not a problem,"said Clarke before she pushed Maya back down with a little bit more force then was necessary.

It was then that Maya realised despite the room being filled with radiation, she was not in any sort of pain whatsoever. Her skin was devoid of the red burns that had littered her body only moments before and in fact it seemed to have a healthy glow instead of the usual pallid appearance she associated with all of Mountain's people.

"I healed you. Radiation won't ever be a problem for you ever again,"said Clarke and the look of happiness that came over Maya's face was enough to make her smile a little. The other girl hugged her tightly and began to mutter words of appreciation over and over.

The hug went on for longer than Clarke had anticipated and the alarm had was still going strong after 5 minutes of noise. Maya finally separated from Clarke and said,"You can cure us? Clarke, you've got to help us. This is amazing. The people here would kill for you to–"

"I can't do that, Maya,"said Clarke firmly and she ignored the shocked look of the other girl as she said,"Your people are holding mine hostage. I refuse to help them until my people's safety are guaranteed. You were just a once off. I wouldn't have let you die in front of me not while I could do something about it. Your people have managed so far and they'll be fine once I get out of here to look for survivors from the Ark."

Maya looked crestfallen at her harsh words and said,"Clarke, you don't understand. This life is hell. The things we've done to survive...There are those of who don't care about any of that, but there are those of us who feel as though this place has drained us our last shreds of humanity."

"What are you talking about?"said Clarke before remembering what they had been speaking about before the radiation leak,"Does it have something to do with the radiation?"

Maya yawned before she nodded solemnly and said,"I can't speak much here. I wasn't supposed to tell you this, but all the rooms are bugged. President Wallace and Cage can hear everything you and your friends are talking about. That's what these rooms were designed for."

Clarke was shocked at that revelation and said,"I need to get out of here. This place is just one big, fat lie. Is there anyway I can get out of here?"

Maya shook her head and said,"The command centre is under severe lockdown 24/7 and even if you tried to bust your way out there would be hundreds of people that would die from the radiation leak and you wouldn't be there to help them."

Clarke growled slowly feeling frustrated at the lack of good news. The alarm was still going string and despite it concealing their conversation it had begun to wear on her and she was about to punch the wall in sheer anger before Maya spoke up saying,"There is one way that I could help you."

Clarke looked at Maya questioning, but the alarm had shut off suddenly and there were sounds that echoed out from the corridor. Maya looked at the door in panic before leaning into Clarke's ear and whispering,"Come to medical at midnight. I'm on night duty so I'll be there all night. There's something you need to see."

Clarke was not given a chance to reply, however, as a bunch of men in hazmat suits burst through the door and they began to spread out through the unit before finally one of them spotted Maya and Clarke on the bed. He was holding a device in his hand that bleeped loudly and he said,"Ladies, I'll need you to get to the dining hall. This is standard procedure for when–Maya! Is that you?"

Maya nodded and said,"Yes, Officer Lovejoy. It's me."

Lovejoy seemed surprised and the other guards began to file in once they heard the commotion, "How is that possible? The radiation is through the roof in here. There was a delay within the alarm system and we only knew there was a leak in here about a minute ago. With this much radiation in the air you should have died? How are you alive?"

Maya had begun to squirm under the scrutiny of the guards so Clarke decided to speak up and she said,"I healed her. Also, the radiation leak happened ten minutes ago, not one."

One of the guards didn't seem to believe her and said,"There isn't any possible way you could have given her a treatment so soon and it would have worn off by now in any case."

The man who had said that was hit by one of the other guards and Clarke noticed there was a distinct change in the atmosphere of the room. The air was filled with tension and Clarke felt that there was a missing piece to the puzzle.

Clarke ignored the tension and her voice cut through the silence of the room,"My mistake, I didn't just heal her. I fixed her for lack of a better word. Maya isn't affected by the radiation because she can't be affected by it."

It seemed to take a few seconds for the penny to drop and Lovejoy spoke up again with awe practically dripping from his voice,"You got rid of our radiation weakness?"

Clarke nodded firmly and she was suddenly swarmed by the men and women as more and more requests wishing for the same thing gor them or their spouse or children began to rise up. Some were polite, others were decidedly less so as they grabbed onto Clarke's arms roughly to grab her attention tion, but they were all equally desperate and soon the various pleas turned into sheer, white noise until a gunshot pierced through the clamour.

"Enough,"said a voice with authority and the noise died down dramatically and Clarke turned to the doorway to see another man in a hazmat suit,"Please Ms Griffin and Ms Vie alone. They just went through a traumatic ordeal and the last thing they need is more stress. Back to your stations."

The other men and women seemed to cow under the reprimand from the man at the door and it was only once they all left that Clarke was able to read his name tag.

Emerson.

The man in question put his hand to his ear and Clarke saw the radio attached to it before he began to speak to it. He looked at the two of them before his eyes focused on Maya in particular. Finally, he finished up and said,"Maya, Lorelei wants to give you a check up and run a few tests and just make sure that everything is in order before she allows you to do your shifts tonight."

Maya nodded in thanks and she turned to Clarke and gave another hug before leaving the room and she walked around Emerson and closed the door behind and before long it was only Emerson and Clarke left in the room. The radiometer had been left in the room and the beeps began to become less and less frequent before dying down completely signifying that the radiation scrubbers were back online.

There were no words spoken before Emerson removed his mask and placed it on the table before he said,"I guess congratulations are in order for saving Maya. It must have been one scary ordeal or you."

Clarke raised a brow and she felt her muscles tense as she said,"What do you mean?"

Emerson smiled, but it was a warped thing that twisted the man's features as he said,"I've heard that in the old days, doctors were never allowed to operate on their friends and family because there was always the chance of them getting distracted or losing focus. It's amazing that you managed to save Maya, but I'm sure it would have been a different story entirely if it had been your friends from the Ark in danger."

Clarke felt anger rush through her and she felt a distinct sensation rise up within her. She threw her hand forwards and there was a flash of white that streaked across the room with deadly accuracy and despite her anger Clarke was surprised to see that she had thrown a dagger of ice with amazing accuracy at Emerson.

She hadn't intended to kill him only scare him and it seemed as though her aim had struck true as there was a line of blood that streaked across Emerson's cheek. The ice dagger burst apart into white dust and Clarke turned her eyes back onto Emerson and said,"If I find out that you were or Dante or Cage or Tsing were in any way responsible for this then the next time we meet that knife will go between your eyes."

Emerson looked far less sure of himself tha he had only moments before and he simply scoffed at Clarke before taking his mask and the radiometer with him as he left. Emerson hadn't bothered to shut the door which was why Raven was able to walk inside.

Clarke didn't quite feel like talking to any of the delinquents least of all Raven and Octavia. She thought they had her back, but once they had seen her outside the dropship they hadn't looked at her like she was Clarke, no, they looked at her as if she was some sort of monster and that had hurt more than anything.

On the Ark, she hadn't had any friends beside Wells really and she was glad that she had found people that were willing to accept her for who she was, but in the end they had just watched as she very nearly collapsed in front of them from sheer self-disgust and hatred.

She had killed over a 100 people within a matter of minutes. She had expected some form of support from Raven and Octavia, but they had stared at her as if she were a monster. Anya, of all people, had been the one to comfort her and she had approached Clarke even when her flame cloak was active.

Now, Anya was in all likelihood dead because Clarke had unknowingly lured the Commander's mentor into a trap that the Mountain Men had sprung on them. Clarke knew she would have her work cut for her trying to get peace with the Grounders if Anya actually was dead.

Clarke dispelled those thoughts and instead looked at Raven who still hadn't said anything and seemed quite nervous which was extremely uncharacteristic of her.

Finally, the Zero-G mechanic found her nerve and said,"I've heard about what you did. Rumours have already begun to spread through this place about how you cured them of their weakness to radiation. You're pretty much seen as a hero by them."

Clarke didn't feel as pleased by those words as she should have and she replied harshly to Raven,"Well, it's nice to know people are still grateful when people do stuff for them."

There was a slight flinch from Raven at the veiled insult, but she continued undeterred saying,"Look Clarke, I know the delinquents aren't your favourite people in the world right now, but we need you. The fight with the reapers had sent a lot of us the wrong way especially now that we're safe inside here. There's been a lot of booze flowing around and sex and whatever else people can do to distract themselves from that horrible fight."

Clarke seemed unaffected by this news as she said,"They need me? What would you guys want with a monster like me? I sacrificed so much for all of you. I've killed over and over to keep you guys safe and then when the reapers attacked I killed some more and what thanks do I get? I thought we were friends, Raven, but somehow as soon as I wake up it's my fault that Bellamy and everyone is dead because I sent them away. All of you seemed to forget that we weren't invited here. We got abducted. These guys must have surely known that we were here, but they only came after so many weeks? I'm sorry, but I'm done."

The words spilled from Clarke's mouth like poison, but she knew she had to distance herself from the delinquents if only to keep them safe. She couldn't risk the Mountain Men getting suspicious of any of them especially if she wasn't here to defend them. She needed to escape and get help from the Grounders.

Even if the Mountain Men could somehow shut down all their powers, Clarke still had her own powers and she'd be able to break into the Mountain and from there it would be only a matter of minutes before the Mountain fell.

"What do you mean you're done?"said Raven as she looked at Clarke,"I know you're hurt,Clarke, but they really need your help especially Octavia. With Bellamy gone–"

Raven was cut off by the sound of wood splintering and she was surprised to see that Clarke had split the wooden table in half with her fist alone. Her eyes were glowing a darker blue than Raven remembered and they were far more unsettling than the ice blue they usually were.

"If you knew I was hurt,"said Clarke agitatedly and this time her words held more truth than she was comfortable with admitting,"Why didn't any of you come to help me after the battle with the reapers? I can understand most of them not saying anything, but you Raven? I thought we were closer than that. Were you disgusted? Horrified? Scared? All of the above? I thought after everything that happened with Roma and Finn we were actually close , but now I know that's a lie. Don't even mention Octavia. She made it pretty clear that she wants nothing to do with me. If she wants to get drunk and fuck everything that moves that's her business. "

Tears had begun to drip from Clarke's eyes and Raven tried to move closer, but Clarke held up her hand as she fell back onto the couch and said,"Don't. Just don't. I need some space. Since this place is so great and awesome, I'm sure you guys won't miss me much anyways. I'm only there for when things gets tough, right?"

Raven shook her head angrily and said,"How the fuck can you say that, Griffin? The delinquents care about you. Octavia cares about you. I care for you too, Clarke. You helped me when I was at my lowest. If it wasn't for you, I could have gone the wrong way after what Finn did, but you were there for me. I know you're in pain Clarke. You blame yourself for everything bad that has happened, but none of this has been your fault."

The tears dripped freely from Clarke's eyes and her vision blurred as she just the tears fall. It was more cathartic than anything she had ever done and it truly felt as though the pain that was in her heart was slowly draining away.

A few minutes later, Clarke realised that Raven had pulled her into a hug and she had been clutching onto the other girl tightly. Unlike the last time they had been like this though, Clarke didn't pretend to be okay she just let it all out and she eventually passed out.

It was maybe a half hour later when Clarke finally woke up and she felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Her tears had long since dried up and she had just enjoyed the proximity of one of her best friends being there when she needed her most.

Raven ,who had also fallen asleep, seemed to notice Clarke waking up and she yawned before saying,"I hope you're feeling a lot better. It's almost time for dinner. I'll go bring us something to eat and then we can go to sleep."

"We? You're not sleeping in here, are you?"

Clarke smiled slightly and Raven smiled back as she said,"Yes, I am and for three reasons. First, those bunk beds suck and those guys have probably already stunk the place up with booze, vomit and who knows what else. Second, that bed just seems way too comfortable. "

"What's the third reason?"said Clarke as she felt amusement rise up in her for the first time since she had been in the Mountain.

"Third,"said Raven as she looked at Clarke and all traces of humour were gone,"Third, you're my friend, Clarke. You were right, I was being selfish earlier. You need someone to lean on too and it's not fair of us to expect you to always be strong. I'll be here if you need a shoulder to cry on or someone to speak to. I don't want anymore beef between us, we're way too awesome and mature for that."

Clarke smiled at Raven's attempt to add some levity to what she was saying and she looked at the other girl and with as much sincerity as she could manage said,"Tha m you, Raven. It means a lot."

The genius mechanic smiled back before leaving the room. Clarke was sad to see her go and she felt guilt well up inside her as she began to plan her escape even as she waited for Raven to return with food. Her technopathy had confirmed that there were listening devices in the wall, but she had managed to make them shut down before her talk with Raven had gotten too personal for other people's ears.

Clarke had tried to access the Mountain's control centre through her technopathy, but it had been a tall order. There were masses of firewalls that prevented her from gaining complete control of the Mountain, but she was able to manipulate smaller things like lights, speakers and yes microphones. She hadn't tried any of the doors that led outside, but she had a feeling that required her to be in full control of the Mountain for that to work.

Something she could probably only achieve from the inside of the control centre.

Clarke knew that ger technopath abilities were enough to conceal her movements from the camera when she was going to Maya, but she needed something else for when she was walking through the halls. The last thing she needed was for any of the Mountain Men to spot her just before her escape, it probably wouldn't end well.

There was a thud on the door and Clarke used her technopathy to open the door and Raven walked in with many plates of food balanced on a tray and despite it probably being too much Clarke didn't quite mind as she stood up to help Raven with the plates.

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Perhaps marching into the territory of the Grounders had not been the best of decisions in all honesty. They had reached a nearby village and had been welcomed by over 300 warriors.

Tristan had led them to his rangers and they had thrown him into some cell, but what he hadn't expected was to be in here with Thelonious of all people. The last time he had seen or even heard Jaha's voice was when he had hit the switch that had allowed the remaining Arkers to descend back to Earth.

He never expected to see the man alive ever again much less in these circumstances. Kane once again took a look at the knife that was in between the two of them.

It had been over 6 hours since they had been in there and been told that the only way peace could be had was if one of them killed the other in order to pay for the death of Anya who had been missing for just as long as the delinquents had been. Some girl ,barely older than the delinquents had been left inside with them, and Kane realised she was probably there to make sure one of them went through with.

Their chains were tight around their wrists and they had gotten progressively heavier and tighter as their limbs had begun to swell from having them on. Marcus knew that the Grounders were serious with their demands and he knew that eventually one of them would have to die was as the girl had said.

Blood must have blood.

Kane finally stood up and grabbed the knife. The room had descended into an uneasy silence and the two other occupants of the room were surprised by the sudden motion made by Kane.

Jaha looked surprised and he rose to his feet the chains rattling as he said,"Marcus, what are you doing?"

"What's right for our people,"said Kane as he looked at Thelonious, "What is one life compared to the hundreds of those that survived the landing? We're being selfish and you know it. I've seen you look at the knife too. You know that this can only end one way."

"Marcus, you're not thinking clearly. Do you really think these savages will honour their word? They have already killed some of the delinquents! Children! Then they have the nerve to say we owe them for the death of one general when they already killed our kids? I refuse to bow to their whims and you should too."

Jaha's speech was filled with vitriol and frustration as the impossibility of the situation weighed down on him. He had escaped death multiple times in the past weeks on the Ark, on his way down to Earth and in the Dead Zone as well.

His story would not end here.

"It's good that you don't have a choice in the matter,"said Kane with conviction before he took the knife and cut a large line vertically down his arm. The pain was immense and Kane even felt the knife drag across the bones in forearm, but he pushed through.

Immediately, Jaha ran to his side and said,"Come on, Marcus. You've got to push through it."

Marcus shook his head and said,"My time is over. You already made your sacrifice allow me to make mine."

The world around Kane began to fade to black and despite the attempts of Jaha to stem the wound as well as the other man's frantic attempts to enlist the help of the woman in the cell it was all for naught.

Blood has had blood.