The Girl from Nowhere

The battle.

Andes lost count of the bodies dropping around her. She kept fighting, hoping the end was soon. They’d been fighting off and on for two days now. Octavia was fighting by her side, as were her ten. Suddenly she felt a glancing blow to the side of her head. Liquid rushed into her eye, blinding her. She wiped and looked down, black blood, her blood. She turned to look, and immediately knew what happened. She was hit by a recoil from O’s sword. Octavia was on the ground and she was hurt, bleeding from her side. The warrior she was fighting had his sword raised high, readying for the final kill. Andes quickly parried his downward thrust away from a wounded Octavia. She drove up with her other sword and sliced open his belly. He dropped heavily in front of her. She bent down to O. “Octavia, look at me, look at me, hang in there,” Octavia’s eyes were glassy and Andes knew she needed help now. She put Octavia over her shoulder and took off, heading back away from the battle, towards the medical tent. When she got there, she was yelling, “Abby, Abby! Get me Abby!” Jackson appeared and helped Andes put Octavia on a table. Andes grabbed a cloth that was sitting there and pushed it into the wound, trying to stop the blood. Her own blood was still pouring down her face.
Abby came running up and assessed the situation, barking out orders, “Jackson, get me sutures, Andes, put this on your head,” as she tossed a towel in her direction.
Andes tied the towel around her head so she could see. Jackson came back and Abby began closing Octavia’s wound. Andes held her hand, willing her to be ok, trying to give her strength. She bent towards Octavia’s head, “hang in there O, hang in there, I’m right here.”
After a few minutes, Abby had the wound sutured up and she told Jackson to give her a shot of antibiotics. She turned her attention towards Andes, taking the towel off her head. “You need stictches too, this is really deep.”
“Is she gonna be ok?”
“Yes, she should be. It didn’t hit any vital organs.”
Andes breathed a sigh of relief. But there was no time to relax, “I have to get back out there Abby, I have to get back, so do it quick, I don’t have time.”
“I’ll close it up as best as I can, but after this is all over, you’ll have to come back, because you need stitches on the inside of this cut also.” She washed the wound and started to stitch. “How’s it going out there? “ She was trying to get Andes to focus on something, her eyes were too wild. “Andes, how’s it going out there? “
“Not good, a lot of people are dying. On both sides. This isn’t right, there’s so much death. I have to stop it, I have to figure a way to stop this.”
“Andes, you’re doing all you can.”
“No, I have to do something.” She hesitated for a moment, and then her eyes snapped back into focus. “I have to cut off the head of the snake.”
“What does that mean?” Abby asked as she finished up. Andes didn’t reply, she got up and walked out of the tent. “Andes, you have to come back later and get re-stitched, “ she called after her. But she was gone. Abby turned her attention back to Octavia, who appeared to be stabilizing. And now more injured were coming in, she had to hope Andes would be ok.
Andes rushed from the tent looking for her horse, which she found standing with a group of others. She clicked her tongue and the horse came to her. She jumped up on its back and rode back into the thick of the battle.

Clarke and the other captives were tied up and blindfolded, kept well behind the battle lines. They were in a heavily guarded tent. Clarke heard the commotion outside, the battle cries, and she was going crazy wondering what was going on. It had been days since they were captured. Danko had already executed one of the clan leaders, leaving five of them alive for now. Suddenly she heard voices, and shouting close by. Her heart started pounding because she thought she heard Bellamy. She felt a rush of air as the tent door opened and he was by her side, removing her blindfold and her gag, untying her hands. “Clarke!” he pulled her into a quick hug,
“Oh my god Bellamy, what’s happening?”
“Let’s get you out of here, we can talk later.” Echo was with him, and they worked quickly to free everyone. They left the tent, stepping over the guards who now lay on the ground dead. They ran for the cover of the trees, where there were horses waiting for them. They had to share mounts, so Clarke was behind Bellamy. They took off away from the battle, having to make a wide berth around the armies, not wanting to be seen or caught. It was hard to talk when they were riding so hard, so Clarke had to bite her tongue, her mind filled with questions. She looked over at the battle through the trees, some of it being visible. It looked like utter chaos. She couldn’t tell who was who out there. Finally they made it to behind their own army. Bellamy stopped on a hill overlooking the battlefield. Echo lead the others back to the med tent, while Bellamy and Clarke stayed behind, watching.
“Bellamy, what is happening, please tell me.”
“It’s all out war Clarke, the ice nation and the six clans that were with him, against the remaining clans. “
“Who’s leading our clans?”
“The commander.”
“The commander? Who is the commander?”
Bellamy took a second before he spoke, “Andes.”
Clarke just looked at him, “Andes? Andes is the commander?” she asked incredulously.
Bellamy nodded. “She took the flame.” And then they both saw it at the same time, Andes riding to the front of the lines on her gray horse. They heard her shouting something and Bellamy moved closer so they could hear what was going on. And Clarke laid eyes on Andes for the first time in four months. Her heart leapt at the sight of her, her hair short, a presence about her, so strong and invincible looking.

Andes found her ten and called them to her, and rode to the front of the battle lines, her ten providing a protective shield. She made it to the front, and called out for Danko. “Danko, coward, killer, murderer, show yourself.” She repeated this over and over. Soon, the message made its way back to him, because he appeared on a large black steed, wanting to see who dared to call him a coward. And suddenly, the battle slowed as all the warriors eyes were drawn to the two on horseback, circling near each other. Andes horse was prancing as she moved back in forth in front of Danko, they were about twenty yards apart from each other. She was covered in blood, showing no fear, looking every bit the strong warrior she was. “Fight me now, and let’s end this.”
Danko finally got a good look at this new commander he had heard about and recognized her. “Well, now, if it isn’t my little plaything. How have you been my little sparrow?” Danko circled closer. Now the armies were all watching, a temporary halt to the fighting. “And why should I fight you?” he asked.
“Because if you don’t, you’ll appear weak. Are you afraid of a girl?”
“I’m afraid of no one.” He took in his surroundings now, seeing that all eyes were on them. He wanted the flame. And the only way to get it, evidently, was to cut it out of this girl’s neck. “Do you really think you stand a chance with me, little sparrow?” The silence stretched across the battlefield now. “Your sister was lovely. “ he said as he kept his horse moving, back in forth in front of Andes. “It’s a shame I had to kill her. But I had my fun before she died.” Andes stayed in control, Costia was gone, and these were just words meant to goad her into a miscalculation.
Danko continued, “I will fight you, but I won’t kill you on this battle field, I will take you to my tent, and finish what I started all those years ago.” Andes mind was in lock down, nothing he said could bother her. She was full of steely resolve, she was hyper focused, her mind readying her for the battle to come.
“Yes, you will fight me.” Andes said slowly, now she was circling closer to him. Her eyes locked into his, “And I will cut you ten times, and the tenth cut will be your head coming off your body.” Danko had a brief sense of foreboding, but it was gone as quickly as it came.
Andes slid from her horse, and took off her armor. She stood with her legs apart, arms spread out from her body, holding her swords, her eyes closed, her head back facing the sky. She could feel the power of the flame, she could see how this fight was going to play out, her mind that far ahead of the action. Yes, the flame was working in her.
Danko watched and smiled, he started to feel overly confident now, that earlier feeling was gone. Hand to hand combat on the ground played to his strengths, after all. He dismounted and charged at Andes, hoping to catch her off guard. She moved easily out of his way, and with a quick flip of her wrist he was bleeding from the calf. “One.” Andes said. Danko barely felt the cut, he laughed. “I hope you can do better than that sparrow.” He took a more measured approach now, looking for an opening. Thinking he had one, he lunged again, only to be met by one of Andes swords, held in the air, while the other snaked out to cut his arm. “Two” Danko was still confident. These wounds were nothing, hardly scratches, hardly any blood. “You keep counting sparrow, you’ll never make it to ten.” He came at her again, swinging violently, and Andes danced away and parried his sword on the downward swing, trapping it briefly on the ground, feeling his momentum stop, but also feeling his weight forward. She suddenly let his sword go, and he stumbled forward slightly, and Andes cut him twice on the back of his legs. “Three, four.” She could feel a little impatience from him now. “I enjoyed your sister’s screams as I tortured her.” He said, trying to break Andes concentration, trying to get her to hesitate, to lose her focus, to distract her. He reached down to the dagger at his thigh and quickly threw it, missing Andes head by an inch, because she knew it was coming. He charged again and Andes rolled forward, catching him by surprise, rolling past him, but not before her sword slashed at his side, this one deeper than the others. “Five”. Danko looked down at this new wound, this bleeding heavier. He was enraged. He screamed and came at her again, again she was ready, cuts six and seven across his chest, deep lacerations. Eight sliced his hamstring, crippling him, falling to his knees. Andes slowly came forward, stood in front of him. She drove one sword into the ground, only needing the other one now. Danko looked up at her, fear in his eyes. She thought of her sister now, thought of the pain this man caused her, the pain and suffering she must have endured. “Jus Drein Jus Daun.” Andes took her sword and ran it through his stomach. “Nine.” She stared at him now, knowing his death was near, knowing she had avenged her sister finally. She put her foot on his shoulder and pulled her sword back from his body. He clutched at this gaping wound, looking down at it in disbelief, still upright on his knees. All the clans watched now as she circled behind him, this girl from nowhere, taking down one of the greatest warriors in the lands. She had her back to him now, her eyes closed. Andes gathered her strength, and Costia’s face swam in front of her, and then Clarkes, “Yu gonplei ste odon." and in one fluid motion she turned and jumped, a warrior’s cry erupting from her chest, and her sword came down across his neck, separating his head from his body. “Ten, “ she whispered, meant for Costia, but heard by all. The entire battlefield was quiet, no one was moving, and no one knew what to do next.
She re-sheathed her swords, and slowly walked back to her horse. She mounted and grabbed his mane, he reared slightly, once, twice, then she had him moving towards the armies. She now drew one sword and held it in the air. Cantering down the enemy lines, not saying a word, but demanding fealty, she watched as they took a knee, it happened in waves, as she kept moving down the line, the warriors all dropping to one knee, pledging their allegiance to the girl from nowhere, to this new Heda, the new commander. When she reached the end, she turned and faced her armies, and rode in front of them, watching them kneel, hearing their shouts, pledging their loyalty. She finally made her way to the freed prisoners, the clan leaders, Clarke, safe. She was so relieved. She addressed each leader, asking if they were ok, talking with them. Clarke was last, “Clarke, “ she nodded at her, looking her over, noticing how thin she looked.
“Commander, “
“Are you well?”
“Yes.”
“Good,” and with that she turned her horse around and rode off to speak to Indra and the other generals.
To say that Clarke was disappointed was a huge understatement. She didn’t know what she expected, but she knew it was more than that. Clarke was determined to seek her out later. Now, though, she headed to the med tent to see her mom. When she entered the first person she saw was Octavia. She rushed over to her, Bellamy was by her side, holding her hand. “O, oh my god, O, are you ok?”
“I’m fine, I’m gonna be ok Clarke.”
Bellamy smiled down at her, “O, I’m going to check on Echo, ok? Clarke will stay with you for a little while, right Clarke, “ he looked up and pleaded with her to stay.
“Of course I’m staying, I’m not going anywhere.” They sat in silence for a little while, Clarke just holding her hand.
“She saved me.”
“Who?”
“Andes, she saved me then carried me back here. I owe her my life.”
“Join the club,” Clarke said with a little smile on her face. She squeezed Octavia’s hand, who smiled back.
“Jaks died.”
Clarke’s face fell and she closed her eyes, “oh no.” Tears started slipping out of Clarke’s eyes. “They shot at him to chase him off when he tried to protect me. I prayed he was going to be alright. How did you find him?”
“He was on his way back to Arkadia, at least that’s what Andes thought.”
“She knows then?”
“Yeah, she was there when we found him. She was on her way to warn us about the Azdega army. Just by luck we ran into her, then we all found Jaks by the river. He was still alive, barely. Andes was a mess. It was really, really sad. When he died, the other two started howling. It was eerie, like something out of horror movie, the sound. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it. Andes carried him back to Arkadia, and we buried him in the cemetery. “
Clarke was heartbroken. Sweet Jaks, dying, trying to protect her. Dead because of her. Would Andes ever forgive her for this? Was this the reason for the cold reception? Or was it because Clarke drove her away. Broke her heart and sent her away. She could see Andes moving about, talking to people, heading towards the med tent. She entered and her eyes met Clarke’s right away, but she looked away quickly. Clarke watched as she visited the wounded, holding their hand, talking to them, making them feel special, because to her they were. Every life mattered. Clarke wondered how Andes was handling this much loss of life. Would she forever be scarred like Clarke was, haunted by the deaths. Or would she be more like Lexa, accepting death as inevitable, a product of war, the flame changing her. Andes finally made her way over to Octavia, grasping her hand with affection, smiling down at her, “O, glad to see you’re still with us, how are you doing?”
“I’m doing well, commander, thanks to you, oh, and sorry about that little cut on your face.”
Clarke was now just noticing the deep gash next to Andes eye, barely stitched together. It looked hastily stitched, and Clarke could tell that it needed more to minimize the scarring. “What happened?” She wanted to reach out and touch the wound, make sure it was ok, but she didn’t want to overstep her bounds.
“My sword was pushed back into her face.”
“It’s nothing, just a scratch,” Andes said as she winked at O.
Clarke looked Andes over, her war paint was still on and she looked so beautiful Clarke’s heart hurt. Her eyes wandered lower, looking for any other injuries. She was covered in blood, both red and black. She could see some wounds seeping, here and there, around her arms and legs, but for the most part, she seemed fine. She was limping slightly, favoring her right leg. But she didn’t seem to be in much pain now. She did look exhausted, like she was about to topple over.
“I have to go, but I’ll see you both later, ok?” And with that she left and Clarke saw her go towards her tent, the commander’s tent. Clarke still couldn’t wrap her head around that. Andes was commander, she had the flame. She had so many questions.
“Earth to Clarke, earth to Clarke, “ O was trying to bring her back, snap her out of whatever was going on in her head.
“Sorry. I’m just so confused. How did this all happen, how did she take the flame?”
“She volunteered. We had all decided that the only way to unite the remaining clans was to have a nightblood commander. Andes was there at the meeting, and she spoke up, said she was nightblood. They were all pretty shocked at that. So, she said she would take it, but they knew they just couldn’t give her the flame, she had to earn it, had to earn the respect, it would have never worked otherwise. So they set up a conclave of sorts, sent the ten best warriors they had into the ring with her. She had to fight to the death, she had to beat them all. And she did. It was amazing, she was amazing.”
“Wow. “ She wished she could have seen it, she wished she could have been there for her. Clarke looked back at the commander’s tent. A few people were moving in and out of it. She saw the healer walk in, and hoped she would stitch her up properly, she wished Andes had asked her to take care of it. There was a lot wishing going on in her head. Most of all, she wished she had handled everything better all those months before.
“Clarke, Clarke, “ Clarke looked down at Octavia, “go talk to her, I’ll be fine.” Clarke hesitated, “Just go, go, geez, I’ll be here, I’m not going anywhere.”
Clarke bent her head and kissed O’s cheek, “Be back, ok?” O nodded. Clarke walked to the tent, a little unsure of herself. The two guards saw her and stood aside to let her enter. Clarke saw the healer stitching Andes head wound. There were two other younger women preparing her bath. Indra was there also, and she was talking to Andes. Andes saw Clarke come in.
“Clarke, come in,”
“I just wanted to stop by and check on you. Make sure you were getting stitched up.”
“Yes, Marrta is doing a great job, aren’t you Marrta,” Marrta nodded. Clarke moved closer to inspect, and she agreed, it looked pretty good. She finished up and put some salve on the wound. She left the salve and spoke softly to Andes in Trig, Andes nodded and Marrta left. Indra was preparing to take her leave also, but before she left she place her hand on Andes shoulder, “I’m proud of you, you did good out there.” Andes placed her hand over Indra’s, “thank you Indra, I couldn’t have done this without your support, I won’t forget that.” Indra nodded to both of them and left the tent. Andes sighed and looked up at Clarke. “Hey.”
“Hey.” Clarke reached out and touched the wound, and Andes had to fight the urge not to close her eyes and lean into Clarke’s hand. “You were amazing out there today.”
“Thank you.” The two young women came over to Andes now and helped her up, helped her to the tub, and began undressing her. Clarke felt a pang of jealousy. They were pretty and young, and they were touching Andes naked body. When she was undressed, she climbed into the tub, moaning as she sank into the warm water. She rested her head against the back of the tub and closed her eyes.
Clarke saw a piece of paper on the ground, near where Andes undressed. She reached over and picked it up, opened it, it was the picture she drew for her. She kept it with her all this time. Clarke smiled and put it on the table, a warmth filling her up right now, her chest feeling full of emotion. She brought a stool over to the tub, her head so full of questions. “So, you took the flame.”
Andes kept her eyes shut, “Yes.”
“Why?”
“There was no other way.”
“We would have found a way.”
“We? You were already captured, you could have been killed, you all could have been killed.”
“You didn’t want this, you said you never wanted this.”
Andes looked at Clarke now, and Clarke saw the exhaustion again, utter exhaustion. Now she felt bad she was badgering her with questions.
“Clarke, please. I don’t have the energy for this conversation right now. I just want to crawl into that bed over there and sleep for days.”
With that, the two girls returned with wash cloths, and Andes let them wash her. They washed her all over, and she let them, her eyes closed, barely moving. Clarke wanted to throw them out of the tent, wanted to be the one washing off the stain of battle, soothing her. She shook her head, trying to clear away these feelings. When they were done washing they helped her out of the tub and began walking her to the bed. She was covered in bruises. She slid under the covers and she was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Clarke didn’t know what to do now. She pulled a chair over to Andes bed and just watched her sleep. Her face relaxed now, long lashes touching her cheeks. Her short hair made her seem a little harder, but sexier if that was possible. Clarke reached out and moved a lock of hair away from her eyes. She pulled her knees up to her chest and laid her head back.
She woke up much later, sometime in the middle of the night. Andes still hadn’t moved. Clarke’s body was cramped from sleeping in the chair. She looked longingly at the other side of the bed. She looked back at Andes and decided she was not moving, so Clarke walked around to the other side and got in. She pulled the covers up and fell asleep immediately.
She woke the next morning to a pair of gray eyes staring at her from the other side of the bed. She had hoped she could have slipped out before Andes was awake, but here she was, in her bed, and she wasn’t sure she was welcomed.
“Clarke, what are you doing here?” Andes was on her side, with her head in her hand.
“I’m sorry, I was just so tired. The bed looked so inviting, you were out like a rock, I guess I didn’t think it would be a problem. Sorry.”
“It’s ok, “ Andes said with a small smile. Not the smile Clarke was used to, no sparkle in the eye, just a tired smile.
“I’m sorry I bothered you with all those questions last night, too. “ No answer from her. Clarke was looking for any sign, any sign at all of the Andes she knew all those months ago. Hoping she was still there somewhere, and just needed time. She decided to go light, “You cut your hair.”
Andes reached up and rubbed her head, “Yeah, we can thank Raven for that.”
“Why did she cut it?”
“She thought I needed a different look for the conclave. She calls it my sexy bad ass cut.”
Clarke smiled, trying to goad Andes into one, “She’s right, it is sexy badass.” And with that Clarke tossed the first pebble into their sea of attraction, hoping for a ripple, hoping to reach Andes. She noticed a softening around her eyes, just a little, and little warmer gray in them too. She was in there Clarke decided, she just needed to be coaxed out. She noticed that the two girls from last night reappeared now, getting Andes clothes ready. Clarke looked up at them and looked back at Andes, “they yours?”
A little wider smile, not much, but a little wider. She nodded.
“You choose them?” Clarke asked with a small smile.
“Yes,” she said wryly, the connection between them trying to re-establish. “They help me get dressed.”
“Oh, need help with that now?”
Andes shrugged, smiling more, almost an old Andes smile, “It’s one of the perks, you know?”
“I didn’t, but I guess I do now.”
And they just laid there for a few seconds, on opposite sides of the bed, both on their sides, with their heads in the hands, staring at each other. Andes looked down at her hand that was on the bed, willing it to be still, because it just wanted to travel the few inches to touch Clarke’s.
“Heda! May I enter?”
Andes needed to escape this, needed to put space between her and Clarke, she had to stop this now, because she felt herself weakening, and she couldn’t have that.
“Sha!” With that, Indra came in, saw Clarke, “Sorry Heda, I didn’t realize you weren’t alone.”
“It’s ok Indra. Clarke just fell asleep here last night.”
“Heda, we’re breaking camp, and we’ll head back to Polis when you’re ready. Yours is the last tent.”
“Sorry, I guess I slept in. I’m getting up now, and I’ll be ready shortly.”
Indra nodded slightly, “Yes Heda,” and turned and left.
Andes rolled out of bed, stood up and stretched, naked to the world, naked to Clarke. And Clarke felt it, felt the electricity, the heat starting up, the want, the lust, all of it still there. The women started helping Andes get dressed, and Clarke felt it was best to leave, she didn’t want to overstay her welcome, and she needed the fresh air to cool off.
“I’ll see you out there, I guess?”
“Yes, I’ll be out shortly.”
Clarke left the tent, still not sure where she stood with Andes. There was something different between them, and Clarke had no idea what it was, but Andes was playing it cool, or maybe that’s how she felt, cool towards Clarke, maybe she exorcised Clarke from her system. Isn’t that what Clarke wanted after all? She didn’t want to love anyone anymore and she didn’t want to be loved. Probably better if Andes was able to rid herself of her feelings for Clarke.
When Andes finally emerged from her tent, she went to her horse and jumped up on its back. She looked around and met those blue eyes, and for an instant she was carried back in time, to their first day, to Clarke’s rescue, holding the sky girl in front of her on their wild ride through the forest, running for their lives. Andes remembered not wanting the ride to end, thinking Clarke fit perfectly in front of her, remembered the smell of her hair. These thoughts would get her nowhere, so she kicked the horse forward and addressed her generals, the clan leaders, and the ambassadors. “I would like to invite you all to Polis in a week’s time, we will celebrate a new alliance with a festival. We’ll celebrate a new beginning. We’ll put this war behind us, and move forward.” With that she rode off to the front of the column , nodding to the men and women in her army, reaching down to shake their hands, put a hand on their shoulder, she made people feel like a part of something bigger. And for the first time Clarke was struck by how right this seemed. How right Andes seemed leading. She seemed a far cry from the loner she met so many months ago. She was proud of her, her heart full of happiness to see this transformation. Her heart just full of happiness, and she knew right then, that she wanted Andes back somehow. Raven and her mom were right, Andes made her happy, and it was ok to be happy again. Lexa would always be a part of her, she would always have a special place in her heart for her, but there was room for another. Clarke was tired of fighting it. Just let her in. Let her in and see what happens.