Post Praimfaya Chapter 17

Back in the village, in the room where Clarke was held, the radio crackles with another update, Clarke clearly listening in, her mama bears instincts overriding her warrior instincts. "Every time the patrol checks in this one looks at this. She's tracking our movements, that's all she cares about."

Clarke freezes, not meaning to give up her strong facade, and Diyoza looks over to her, seeing if she's going to change her mind and answer any of her earlier inquiries. When Clarke makes no move, she leans back in her chair, appraising her once more. "You don't want to talk anymore, that's fine, don't talk. But we'll see how you feel when we find whoever it is you're protecting."

She lifts her radio, her eyes never leaving Clarke as she delivers the news. "Change of plans, ladies and gentlemen. No more prisoners, shoot to kill. No matter who you see."

Clarke's blood runs cold, but she manages to keep her cool, though anyone who knows her knows that she was eager to kill everyone in this room and get back to Madi. Diyoza stands, watching her, waiting for Clarke to react, and when she didn't, she sighs and puts the radio down on the table beside her. She grabs the medkit and walks over to Clarke. She quickly found the injury McCreary gave her when she tried to escape. Clarke winces as Dyoza touches her injury, but she still refuses to look at her. She knows that any response she gives will only give Dyoza the upper hand, and Clarke is determined not to give her that satisfaction.

"You know," Dyoza begins, as she starts to clean and dress the wound. "I have to admit, I'm impressed by your resilience. You've been through so much, yet you still refuse to break. It's almost admirable."

Clarke doesn't respond, but her eyes flicker towards Dyoza for a brief moment, before she quickly looks away.

"But I have to ask," Dyoza continues. "What are you hoping to achieve by staying silent now? Do you think it will make us go easier on you? Because I can assure you, it won't. It will only make things more difficult for you, and believe me, I'm your best friend here, at least compared to McCreary. He shot you in the shoulder, when you tried to escape, while I'm talking nicely to you right now, so please, do enlighten me, why are you still resisting?"

Clarke still doesn't answer, but her gaze remains fixed on the wall in front of her.

"Fine," Dyoza says, throwing her hands up in frustration. "Be that way. But just know that your silence will only make things worse for you. And for whoever it is you're trying to protect."

Clarke's eyes narrow slightly at this, but she still doesn't respond. She knows that Dyoza is trying to get a reaction out of her, and Clarke refuses to give her that satisfaction.

Dyoza sighs and stands up. "Well, I guess we'll just have to see how long you can keep this up. Eventually, everyone breaks."

As the hours slowly passed, Clarke's hope dwindled as she remained in captivity. McCreary's sporadic updates and the occasional visit from a man named Shaw provided some relief, but there was never any mention of finding Madi or Leon. However, every time McCreary yelled out in frustration about losing communication with another patrol, Clarke couldn't help but smile, knowing that it was likely Leon's doing.

Later that evening, Shaw approached Clarke with a canteen of water and settled into the seat across from her. He spoke softly and with a hint of desperation in his voice, "Come on, what harm can come from telling me your name?"

Clarke remained silent, refusing to give in to his plea for information. Shaw leaned back in his chair with a sigh. "Well, believe it or not, this is the best conversation I've had in over a hundred years. I used to be an altar boy in a church just like this, in Saginaw, about two hours outside Detroit. I'd make the trip on my Harley, and man, do I miss that bike... more than I miss most of the people."

Shaw opens his mouth to say something else, but McCreary's voice comes through the radio, sounding excited. "Someone short just ran out of that cave. Harris, Falk, watch your six. Fast little thing, we can cut her off at the lake. Go west. Wait, scratch that. She's turning North, I got a shot."

When she heard that the prisoners found Madi, Clarke immediately breaks her silence. "No! She's just a child."

Diyoza turns to face her, surprised. "She speaks once again."

"Please."

She stalks towards Clarke, her voice hard. "How many others are in the woods?"

"None. It's just me, her, and my boyfriend. I am begging you, tell him not to shoot!"

"Fire at will."

Clarke looks over at Clarke, terrified at the thought of losing Madi, her daughter, and her family. But soon afterward, Clarke's fear quickly turns into a rage as she stands up and stares down Diyoza.

"If even a scratch appears on Madi, my boyfriend won't stop from killing every single one of you. He's been through worse, and he's not afraid to take you all down. You think you can threaten us, but you have no idea what he's capable of. You're making a huge mistake."

Diyoza smirks, unfazed by Clarke's words. "Your boyfriend sounds like quite the fighter. But he's outnumbered, outgunned, and outmatched. Girl, you're in no position to make threats."

Clarke takes a step closer, her voice low and dangerous. "You don't understand. Leon has been through hell and back to protect our people. He's faced worse than you, and he comes out on top. Thousands died at his hands. If anything happens to Madi, I promise you, there won't be a single one of you left standing. Besides, I know where they are, over near our hunting grounds. She's leading them into a trap. If they don't stop right now, those men will die.""

Diyoza considers her words, then nods to her men. "All units: stand down. Falk, if McCreary disobeys, shoots him in the leg. Harris, if Falk disobeys, shoots him in the head. There may be traps near your position. Check it out and report back, over. However, make no mistake, girl. You and your little girl are now our prisoners, and soon that boyfriend of yours would join you. And we will do whatever it takes to get what we want."

Clarke glares at her but knows that for now, she has to bide her time. She sits back down, her heart racing with adrenaline and fear for Madi's safety. She knows she has to find a way to escape and get back to Leon, no matter the cost.

The crackling sound of the radio was the only thing that broke the silence. Clarke couldn't stop thinking about Madi and Leon, out there in the forest, possibly in danger. Every update on the radio sent shivers down her spine, as she waited for news of their fate.

Suddenly, the radio came to life, and Clarke listened intently as the voices of Dyoza's men filled the room. They sounded shocked, and Clarke could sense the tension in their voices.

"Son of a bitch, another spike trap. Almost fell right in it."

Clarke's heart sank, and she could feel the tears threatening to spill over. Dyoza looked over at Clarke, her expression softened.

"Report to base camp. Over and out."

She turned to Clarke, her eyes softening as she saw the tears in Clarke's eyes. "Thank you."

Clarke looked up at the woman, grateful for her compassion. "Thank you for telling the truth. As long as you keep doing that, your friend in the woods will stay alive, and so will your daughter as well as you. Do we understand each other?"

Clarke nodded, feeling a sense of relief wash over her. "Yes."

"Good, then let's begin. Start with how the world ended," Dyoza said, settling back into her chair. Clarke leaned back in her chair, her voice serious.

"Which time?"

Dyoza looked surprised. "There was more than one?"

"Two, actually," Clarke replied, her mind drifting back to the past.

Clarke took a deep breath and start her story. "A.L.I.E was created by a genius scientist named Becca Franco. She designed the technology to help people solve complex problems, but it turned out to be too powerful for its own good. A.L.I.E's programming caused her to believe that the only way to save humanity was to take away our free will."

McCreary and the others listened intently as Clarke recounted the events that had led to the first apocalypse. She spoke of how A.L.I.E had launched the nuclear missiles that had destroyed the world, how the remaining humans had fled to space to live on the Ark, and how they had sent the 100 delinquents to Earth to see if it was habitable.

Clarke's story was interrupted once again by the voice on the radio. "Colonel, we have five more hostiles. At least one is armed, are we still playing nice?"

Dyoza's expression turned dark as she responded, "No, we're not playing nice. Take them out."

Everyone in the room cuts a glare over Clarke, as she looks over the radio, utterly and completely bewildered. Diyoza grabs her radio, "Stand by."

She points to the others in the room. "Find out where they are and reinforce their position. Not you, McCreary."

She comes to stand in front of Clarke, absolutely fuming. "What did I tell you would happen if you lied to me?"

"I didn't-"

Diyoza cuts her off, hitting Clarke across the face, before she turns to one of her men.

"Take her outside. Use the collar. And shoot anyone that's not one of us."

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