Blind passenger

30 Minutes later…

"I can't tell you how much I liked Madi hitting Octavia," Echo told Bellamy as they walked through the small airlock that allowed them to pass between the docked Gagarin and its mothership, the Eligius. "I wish someone had recorded it, but to be honest, I almost punched her myself when she tried to visit Clarke..." Echo started her conversation after the others had gone their separate ways, probably to get some sleep. "Yeah, she definitely deserved it. And luckily it wasn't me," Bellamy laughed at her comment before realizing what she had just said. "Wait, she did?" Was it when..." He added, asking her in surprise. "Yes. Not long after you left..." Echo explained. "I told her not to..." Bellamy immediately got annoyed, not knowing what really happened.

"No, I think she's sorry." Echo started, "She cares about Clarke. I only kept her out because Clarke told me she wasn't ready to see her or Niylah. It's almost ironic that they were the ones who wanted to see her. That led to our little standoff," Echo explained, "I closed the door before she could get creative."

"Like starting a fight..." Bellamy added with an annoyed face, "You did the right thing.

"I don't think she wanted to fight at all..." Echo countered, "Maybe with someone else, but she didn't attack me...probably because of you. Even though I almost killed her..."

"At this point, I think every one of us has tried to kill each other at least once... I mean even Clarke and Madi..." Bellamy stated this rather sad and disturbing fact. They both laughed briefly. It wasn't funny, but humor was the only thing that made the situation bearable.

"So you and Clarke are getting along?" Bellamy asked her after a short pause, wanting to change the subject for the moment. He knew that Octavia would demand enough of his attention for the day. Bute still had no strategy for their next encounter.

"Yeah, actually, once we got a few things straightened out," Echo revealed, "I think she's actually a lot like the Clarke you told me about. I'm actually starting to like her."

"That's good... She's still the same person," Bellamy said, gently grabbing her wrist to stop her from walking any further, "You don't know how much this means to me..." He then hugged her and she hugged him back before kissing him. 

Standing there, alone and in the middle of the corridor, Echo and Bellamy held on to each other. For a moment, that was all that mattered to them, just the thought of the peaceful time that lay ahead of them.

"I almost broke her neck when we tried to get Madi back, because of you. Because I was so angry about what she did. I'm glad I didn't. That Madi stopped me..." Echo confessed into his arms before slowly looking up at his face again to see his reaction. Seeing his disbelieving and speechless face, she added, "I thought you should know…"

"Shit Echo... It's okay... I mean, it's not, but I don't blame you. I didn't know..." Bellamy said, struggling to believe this story. He wasn't mad at her. In fact, he was touched that Echo was truly willing to avenge him because she loved him so much. But since her anger was directed at Clarke for something he did, or rather caused, by giving the flame to Madi while ignoring Clarke's pleas - he was more than relieved that Madi was there to stop her. Especially since Madi would undoubtedly have killed Echo if she'd killed Clarke in front of her.

"And knowing how much Clarke means to you, I couldn't have forgiven myself if I had. Especially now, after what Madi told us..." Echo continued. "She would have killed you then..." Bellamy said before he started to laugh briefly, completely irritating Echo. But then she also started to laugh. "I'm glad she intervened. Because I couldn't bear to lose just one of you."

"Why are we talking about how it could have been worse?" Bellamy put to Echo as he held her in his arms in the middle of the hallway. Since it was already daylight, at least according to the clock, a lot of people would be up by now. But neither Bellamy nor Echo really cared how this might look to other people passing by.

"Because it's true... I can't imagine what would have happened if Clarke had died... Or Octavia," Echo replied, but immediately realized it wasn't the right time to delve deeper into those inappropriate dark thoughts, "I'm sorry... That was bad of me..." She immediately apologized for her insensitivity.

"No, it's okay. I asked myself the same question. Especially Clarke. Fearing for someone's life while being so angry at them. To the point of almost hating them..." Bellamy revealed, "Maybe that's what real torture is like... Maybe I deserve it..."

"No, don't say that. . No one deserves that... Not even Octavia..." Echo suddenly said to his surprise, "Clarke knew what she did. She believed you were dead. I saw the pain on her face... Before I told her that you didn't die... That changed her mind and she finally allowed Madi to come with us while she went and stopped McCreary".

"Enough Echo, please... I don't want to talk about it..." Bellamy cut her off. He tried not to be harsh or insensitive, but he wanted to sound firm enough to shut her up. At least for now.

"I can't imagine how hard this must be for you. Clarke... Octavia... just everything... you did the best you could," Echo said, coming closer and resting her head on his shoulder as they walked slowly towards Clarke's room. She just realized all the things she hadn't talked to Bellamy about. And now that the bunker was supplied, there was plenty of time to finally talk about these things.

"I should have listened to Clarke..." Bellamy replied, pressing his head against hers, "Yeah... it's very hard. Unimaginably hard. Just like it must have been for Clarke when she found out that I gave the flame to Madi." Bellamy said, facing his own guilt. He paused and looked into Echo's eyes. "She's my best friend. Like you... Even Octavia... Losing one of you would... No... I don't want to think about it ever again..."

Echo remembered that Bellamy had been a broken man when Clark had supposedly died in the Praimfaya. Even years later, he hadn't really recovered. And just when it seemed that everything might be okay, disaster struck twice: first in the name of Eligius, and then in the name of the bunker under the rule of Bloodreina.

"I know how much she means to you. And Octavia too..." Echo said, "It's okay." She stroked his cheek gently, trying to comfort him.

"I love you, Echo," Bellamy gasped into her ears while she said nothing in response. She just enjoyed the closeness and comfort in his arms with a smile on her face. But after a while an almost stupid sounding question came to her mind. Maybe not stupid, but certainly a bit naive. 

"Do you think everything will be okay from now on?" She asked him suddenly, surprised by her own words.

"I hope so. Because I can't take it anymore. No one can... You just have to look around at everyone's faces..." Bellamy replied. He was so right. Echo laid her head against his chest and he laid his head gently against hers. It didn't matter if anyone saw them like this. They had earned this moment. And many more to come. After holding each other for a few moments, they looked at each other and exchanged nods. It was time to join Clarke and Madi.

"Let's not keep them waiting any longer," Bellamy said, and they began walking slowly back to Clarke's room.

"Hey Bellamy! I need to talk to you quickly," Shaw's voice circled across the hallway, and he was already sprinting to catch up when Bellamy and Echo turned to look at him. "What is it?" Bellamy asked immediately, not in the mood for a long conversation as he urgently needed to see Clarke again.

"We may have a problem. Maybe even a big problem, depending on the circumstances," Shaw got right to the point. When Bellamy remained silent, but stared at him for a moment with an incredulous expression, he began to explain the situation: "We were 21 when we went to Earth... But 19 when we left Earth..."

Belllamy, who couldn't follow Shaw's equation, just kept looking at him before finding his voice again. "And?" Bellamy asked him, still not understanding what Shaw was getting at.

"It should only have been 18 and not 19. Look: Indra, Murphy and the healer left us to stay in the bunker. But not the rest. So 21 minus 3 is 18..." Shaw explained to them in detail.

"Thanks, I know math…" Bellamy replied slightly annoyed, wanting Shaw to get to the point. Meanwhile, Echo had already come to her conclusion, having understood Shaw's rather cryptic message.

"Me too. I'm a pilot. And I didn't miscount. There were 19. Instead of 18 when we arrived..." Shaw insisted, finally making Bellamy understand the root of the problem. "And before you ask, yes, I counted myself as well... Both times," he assured

Bellamy's annoyed look told the tale as the coin in his head finally flipped. "Please... No... Please..." he begged to a higher power or something so that this wasn't the beginning of another crisis.

"We need to search the ship immediately," Bellamy said after regaining his composure. His mind had gone back into crisis mode. And suddenly he thought of Clarke and Madi, he did not want to come back with another problem. This has to be solved and that rather quickly.

"And the bunker," Shaw added as he reached for his radio. "Here, I linked this radio to the ship's communications system. I put it on channel 001. It's the priority channel."

"But I didn't try it. I was going to do that later," Shaw warned him as he offered him the device. "Like from your bedroom while you were having a little chat with Raven," Bellamy accused him mockingly as he took the radio from Shaw, who handed it to him with a slightly annoyed face.

"Here goes nothing," Bellamy said, and pressed the talk button, "Ground, do you read? This is Eligius calling..."

"Repeat… This is Eligius calling. Do you…"

"I hear you Bellamy… Loud and clear" Monty's voice suddenly came from the other hand. Before he could say another word he could hear Monty screaming "It works…" seemingly across the whole room.

"Bellamy?" Another, definitely female and familiar voice asked him through the channel.

"Raven?"

"Yeah… What's up?" She came straight to the point

"Hey... I was just wondering... Is anyone down there missing anyone? Like the prisoners or anyone in general?"

"What...? What's going on, Bellamy? You're asking for a reason... Tell me what's going on?" Raven asked him. He sighed. "Okay, listen... but keep it to yourself and only tell those you trust the most. Shaw just told me that he counted through before and after we came to Earth, and the answer is simple: We came back with one too many. I hope I don't have to explain why that's a problem, because we haven't found the person and we don't know who it is..."

"Shoot. Are you serious...?" Raven asked him angrily, "How did this happen?"

"I don't know. We can discuss it later... I don't think Shaw just didn't count right, so..."

"Me neither..." Raven replied.

"You need to sweep the bunker. Start with the prisoners first. Count them through and then report. Afterwards you are going through Wonkru…" Bellamy explained his plan to her.

"Of course," Raven thankfully agreed to his plan, "I'll tell Indra and Miller. We'll try to be as discreet as possible..."

"Thanks. That's all I wanted to hear. We find the person…" Bellamy assured her.

"Yeah, you better do…"

"All right, Bellamy out," he spoke into the device, and a crackling sound on the other end signaled that their conversation was over. 

"Hey, can I...?" Shaw intervened from the side, but his request was in vain.

"Sorry... this will have to wait," Bellamy put him off, "We need to find a person who doesn't belong here. How hard can it be... Okay, listen: Go look for Dyoza and Kane. Tell them about this and bring them to the bridge. Tell them what the problem is... I will call the bunker and look for Octavia. This might be her first chance to be helpful again," Bellamy told them, and Shaw nodded before quickly leaving to carry out Bellamy's plan.

"Clarke and Madi need to know about this," Echo suggested after Shaw left them.

"No, they shouldn't be bothered with that..." Bellamy rejected her idea. He had no strong objection to burden Clarke with something that might not be worth telling. Together with Echo, Shaw, Dyoza and even Octavia he felt confident to handle this crisis without driving Clarke or Madi crazy. But especially Clarke.

"But Madi is the commander. You made her that, remember? And besides, Clarke might know something that could help us. You know, she might know what to do..." Echo insisted, annoyed by Bellamy's hesitation. "'Yeah, you're right," Bellamy finally agreed, despite his discomfort at the thought of coming back with yet another problem and maybe even a new crisis for them.

Under other circumstances, a blind passenger would be no big deal. Except for the fact that the Eligius contained not only the commander herself, but other important people as well. Many suitable targets. Like for an attack. Or a bombing, perhaps? Bellamy felt a shiver run down his neck to his back. Every hair on his body stood on end. Not to mention McCreary's bomb in the cargo bay. Bellamy began to remember all too well the damage Illian had once done to Arcadia. Or to himself. He, too, had once been a blind passenger, sneaking aboard the dropship with Commander Shumaway's help after he had shot Jaha. "What would I do if I were the one hiding?"

When they reached her room, he started pounding on the door, completely forgetting that Echo still had the code to the room. It took a gentle but determined push from her to get him to give her access to the door's keypad.

"3192131" Echo tapped into the display, which immediately turned green as soon as the code was completely entered and Echo pressed the acknowledge button. The door opened with a soft hiss, and much to their relief, they saw Clarke and Madi so busy drawing that they didn't even notice them entering. Or didn't want to…

It wasn't until they closed the door behind them that Clarke and Madi noticed them and greeted them with a smile for coming back in one piece.

"Hey," Bellamy greeted them, "Do we...?"

"No, you are not disturbing us," Clarke replied before he could finish his sentence.

"You're drawing again?" Bellamy asked her when he saw that she had just started to paint. It was too early to tell what it might be, but Madi's painting already showed a few more details as he looked at it from the side. It was definitely some kind of portrait. He was glad that Clarke was on her way back to normal.

"Oh yeah, Madi wanted to improve. And we have a lot to talk about..." Clarke explained. "How did everything go?"

"We got everything done. The bunker is in good hands for the next few days," Bellamy informed her, wanting to start with the good news.

"That's good," Clarke said, relieved. "You did a good job," Madi congratulated them as well.

"Hey, you look better already. You have more color in your face... That's... good, right?" Bellamy tried to make some small talk.

"Mom, took me off the painkillers almost completely..." Clarke reported. Even though this was a very welcome attempt at small talk, she couldn't think around his stressed and worried face. "Is everything okay?" she asked him suspiciously. When she saw Echo give Bellamy a quick look, she understood that something was indeed going on. Something rather unpleasant. "Oh, not again, please."

"Yeah," he tried to play down his worries with a quick smile at Clarke, not noticing Echo's telltale look at him from behind.

"Because you don't look like everything's okay. What's going on?" Clarke didn't let go and dug deeper. She could definitely see some kind of concern on Bellamy's face. And Echo's tense face didn't help his efforts to hide it either. No, she didn't look like she was trying to hide her feelings. She appeared to be annoyed by Bellamy's pointless attempt to play it off. As usual, he was terrible at hiding when he was stressed in any way. And like most of the time, he tried to put on a straight face or a forced smile to hide his true mood.

"Tell me what's going on, Bellamy?" Clarke asked him, annoyed by his constant evasiveness.

"We may have a problem," Echo took the initiative, not wanting Bellamy to continue his charade.

"May?" Clarke asked back in confusion, already preparing for the absolute worst. Madi, who had been drawing on her paper, suddenly looked up at Echo, worried by the news.

"Everything's fine Clarke. It's probably no big deal," Bellamy tried to reassure Clarke, although Echo had already let the cat out of the bag.

"Then you don't mind if I ask Echo?" Clarke asked him promptly, challenging him, "since she seems more sincere than you..."

"Okay, listen..." Bellamy finally relented with a soft sigh, "I don't want you to freak out, but we may have a blind passenger aboard this ship. Shaw counted, and on our way back there was one more person than there should have been. And of course we don't know who that person is and where he went..."

"And what are you going to do about it?" Clarke asked him, perplexed, since she hadn't expected this kind of problem at all. Especially after what happened to Arcadia at the hands of Illian, Clarke knew only too well what consequences a single rouge individual could cause. Especially when it came to revenge or just the shameful desire to do harm in general.

"Looking for the person, obviously. But we try to play it cool. Pretend to the others, here and in the bunker, that nothing is wrong and hope that we find the person. Better sooner than later..."

"Well, if it's a prisoner..." Clarke threw in, exchanging the same worried look with Bellamy.

"But if it's not a prisoner... it's one of our people..." Bellamy replied. 

"Then maybe someone in the bunker is missing a friend... or..." Clarke said before it hit her like a lightning bolt. It could be worse. Much worse.

"Or...?" Bellamy asked expectantly, while Echo leaned in behind him, trying to anticipate what Clarke might come up with.

"Maybe you should take care of Octavia, wherever she is now... I don't know... But it's suspicious enough..." Clarke said. She could see Bellamy's face go pale as he looked back at her in shock. It wasn't just his face that lost its expression. He felt his heart sink into his lower limbs.

"Yeah... Shit... I'm on it... Thanks... Damn... Why didn't I think of that..." Bellamy jumped up and sprinted out of the room without another word. In all his exhaustion he forgot that Octavia still had a huge target shield on her. She was probably in great danger and too important to lose. After all, she was still his sister. His family. 

"Wait..." Clarke called after her, noticing that Echo was about to run after Bellamy, "Bellamy's going to take Octavia out of the line of fire. We need to talk to Shaw and Dyoza and get some trusted hands together and look for the person."

"We...?" Echo asked, irritated and surprised at the same time.

"I'll come with you," Clarke said, setting her sketchbook aside.

"No Clarke!" Madi shouted and instinctively grabbed her arm, "Your mother said you shouldn't move too much. And I say it too..."

"And let me guess, you are going instead?" Clarke asked her challengingly. She could see Madi's hesitation as she remembered her promise to Abby and Clarke. But at the same time her inner voice, or rather her intuition, told her to act. To help them find the person: "You could be a target too... We all could..."

"I know Clarke..." Madi replied, "Yes... I want to help with the search... But I'm staying here, and so are you," Madi said, so determined that it sounded like she was in charge for once. Echo looked at them with a faint smile. For some reason, it was impressive to see once again how much they seemed to care for each other.

"I know you want to get up, but you're right. You could be a target, too, Clarke," Echo addressed her as she reached for her belt. "Here," she said, handing Clarke her pistol and a spare magazine, "just in case."

Clarke took the gun with a nod and placed it carefully next to her. "Thank you."

"I'm almost certain you won't need it, but you never know..." Echo assured her.

"But what about you?" Madi asked her.

"Don't worry about me," Echo said with a confident grin on her face. 

"Go find our passenger," Clarke said, and Echo nodded back at her before beginning to execute their plan.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." Clarke remarked to Madi as she slowly put the gun down on the nightstand and picked up her sketchbook.

"Me too..." Madi agreed.

"Where would you hide if you were our unwanted guest?" Clarke asked as she looked at her drawing and thought about her next additions. 

"I don't know Clarke..." Madi replied.

"You don't know?" Clarke asked her incredulously.

"Please don't go looking," Madi warned her, "it could be a younger person... I would hide in the air vents... Or in the cargo".

"Yeah... maybe," Clarke said, thinking of other places to hide.

"Strange..."