Chapter 20
Their meeting ended, and despite caustic glares sent his way, Wells and Raven shuffled awkwardly down the hall in the same direction. Wells cleared his throat. “Um, I just, I wanted to apologize, about all that in there.” He began, rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s just. You understand, right?”
Raven raised her chin. “Yeah, I do. I just don’t like it.”
Wells hesitated, this would be a gamble, but he needed someone on his side. He grabbed Raven’s elbow and pulled her aside, down a hallway so crumbled and destroyed that passage any further would be dangerous. “Listen, Mount Weather is impossible to destroy.” Wells stepped in closer so that he could be heard even at a whisper. “They’ve got an impenetrable bunker. I have no idea how Clarke managed to get out, but she stole something from them.” Raven’s eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, but before she could respond, Wells pushed on. “That’s not the point though, they have advanced weaponry that we can’t possibly match without better technological infrastructure. They have missiles that can levy entire towns and we have what amounts to bows and arrows and pipe bombs. We go to war with Mount Weather and we won’t win.”
Raven’s hostile body language melted away, Wells could see the slight widening of her eyes, the way her jaw slackened. She didn’t actually believe they could win a war by taking out a dam, did she? “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that an alliance with Mount Weather is the best possible option for us.”
Wells expected shock, but he didn’t expect disdainful laughter, he took a step back. “Are you serious? We are literally surrounded by armed warriors, twice over. Every distinct civilization in a five hundred mile radius from here is allied and ready to kill us should the Commander say the word, and you want to ally with the one group of people with no allies, who can’t even step outside?”
Wells rolled his eyes. “Alright, say we ally with the Grounders, and we do defeat the Mountain. What do we do then? Take a step back in the advancement of civilization? Raven, your whole job, literally, is to innovate. Your expertise is designed for space. You are a mechanic that specializes in electrical circuits and electricity. What are you going to do once we take that technological step back? In Mount Weather, you’d be invaluable. A brilliant mechanic, and you can step outside? We need you, the Grounders? They’ll think you’re a threat.”
That gave Raven pause. “What are you going to do?”
Wells wasn’t stupid. “Think it over. If you decide you want to help us, I’ll explain to you my plan.”
Raven nodded. Wells didn’t follow her as she turned down the hall and marched away, fiddling with her necklace.
Raven wasn’t stupid. She knew that she ran the risk of becoming extraneous when they allied with the Grounders. They survived for a century without the technology that she was expert in, and Anya had mentioned that they were hesitant to ally with a people that used guns the way that they did. That suggested to her that the Arkers would need to make sacrifices in order to ensure assimilation into the Grounder culture. But would that go so far as to completely make her useless?
“You think too hard.” A voice startled Raven from her thoughts.
Raven didn’t remember walking into the hospital, let alone taking a seat next to Anya’s bed and crossing her arms. But yet, she was here, and Anya was being a pain. “Not my fault it takes extra concentration to think through your concussion.”
The other woman’s grin was unexpected, but not wholly unwelcome. “It’s hardly my own fault.”
Raven shrugged, fighting her own smirk as she lounged back into her shitty metal chair. If she stretched her legs out, she could rest the back of her head on the backrest of the chair. The lights burning into her eyes helped to block out some of her more distracting thoughts. “Do you have mechanics in Trikru?”
“Mechanics? What do they do?”
Raven shrugged a shoulder, frowning. Now she had to readjust to find that comfortable spot again. “They build things, make things easier. They invent sometimes. Fix stuff.”
Anya grunted. “I’m not sure. We have builders and architects.”
Raven heaved a sigh. “Yeah, I figured.”
Silence settled between them. Raven had to admit, she liked that. They could just sit in silence or they could bicker or tease each other, or just chat. Nothing seemed to bother Anya. Her detachment was refreshing.
“You are wondering about your place in our society.” It wasn’t a question really, not even a prompt for further explanation, a flat statement. Raven couldn’t tell what it meant. Maybe she just didn’t have the energy to insert inflection into her own voice.
Raven didn’t bother moving, or vocalizing a response for that matter.
“It shouldn’t matter.”
“Well it matters to me!” Raven snarled, glaring at the other woman’s profile.
Anya rolled her eyes. “You’ll find your new place eventually.”
“Eventually,” Raven scoffed. “And until then I’ll be a helpless freeloader. Yeah, I’m sure your people like that about as much as mine do.”
Anya shrugged, and Raven could feel the stitches tug in her own chest. “It’s true that each person in a village must do their share, but that’s not to say that each person does not also benefit from the group. The idea is that, while the hunters hunt and the farmers farm and the warriors gather and train, the pregnant woman can have her child, the injured and sick can heal, the children can play. Not everyone is as useful as their neighbor on any given day. We hold each other up. You will find a way to be useful. You’re too stubborn not to.”
Raven grunted, bringing her arms up to rub at her temple. “Is that my headache or yours?”
“Yours.”
“Fuck Wells,” She groaned out.
“Who is that?”
“One of Clarke’s old friends. I don’t know. I shouldn’t talk about it.” Anya didn’t prod, but something didn’t sit right with Raven. “It was weird though.”
“I thought you shouldn’t talk about it?” There was a teasing lilt to her voice, but she wasn’t shutting Raven down.
“It’s just. Okay, so there’s something up between Clarke and Wells, that much I know. But Wells is trying to go behind her back. Get us to ally with the Maunon. I don’t think he trusts Trikru.”
“He is a natrona. He should be killed.” Anya grumbled.
“No, I definitely should not do that.” Raven shook her head. “It’s just. I think he knows that I wouldn’t ally with him. I think he tried to distract me enough into agreeing with him.”
“Is that what this existential crisis was?”
“I mean, yeah, but it’s not like I wasn’t already thinking it. He’s good.” Raven furrowed her brows. “Really good. It’s like he can read weaknesses like a damn book.”
“What is he planning to do?”
“I don’t know yet. He wouldn’t tell me. Wanted to make sure I would side with him when the time comes.”
Anya’s hand reached out, locking it around Raven’s wrist. Raven jolted, turning to find hazel eyes harsh and unyielding. “You have to get him to trust you. If he can sow doubt into you, he can be dangerous. If the Skaikru begin to doubt Lexa, this could end her, and your people.”
Cold dread filled her chest as she stared in surprise at Anya. She was an intense person, but she wasn’t normally this harsh. But Raven supposed it was to be expected. Anya clearly cared for Lexa, she had raised the Commander herself, and she had just gotten her back from the dead. Raven could understand. “He wants to send Finn back into the Maunon.”
“Finn, your boyfriend?”
“Ex,”
“That is a dangerous move.”
“That’s what I said, but everyone else seems to like it. Finn would take a communication device with him to Bellamy.”
“And Bellamy is that man, the one who holds contempt for Clarke?”
“The very same.”
“I’m assuming Bellamy’s loyalties do not lie with Clarke and the Commander?”
“That would be a fair assumption. But that doesn’t explain why Wells trusts him more than his childhood best friend.” Raven steepled her fingers, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees. “There’s something else going on there too.”
“Something drastic must have happened to change his loyalties from someone he cared for to someone he barely knew.”
There was a heavy pause before Raven blew out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “They’re soulmates. Holy shit.”
Anya blinked in surprise. “It makes sense.”
“Think about it, Wells was and still does follow Clarke like a puppy even though she hates him for some reason, until something threatens the safety of the people inside Mount Weather. Because, even if our ideal plan works seamlessly, there are going to be casualties. Bellamy being the sole source of leadership in the Mountain makes him a target. Wells would want to alleviate pressure on him as much as possible to ensure his safety if Bellamy had a connection to Wells a little beyond just friends. They gotta be soulmates.” Raven caught herself making wild hand movements as she spoke, bringing them to her lap sheepishly.
Anya didn’t seem to acknowledge Raven’s sudden embarrassment. “In that case, Wells is a lost cause. There will be no converting him.”
“So, we just, let him fuck up the alliance?”
Anya nodded. “Talk to Lexa. Talk to me. If we know what he is doing it will be easier to make sure he doesn’t accomplish what he wants.”
The Commander of the Coalition struck an intimidating silhouette against the bright lights of the hospital. Anya would perhaps never get used to the sharp cheekbones and confident brow of the girl that used to be too gangly and small for her own clothes. She had beaten pride and dignity into the scrawny little thing, turned a child who loathed authority figures into the embodiment of authority. Perhaps this would be Anya’s crowning achievement.
“Shopta, Onya.”
Anya brought her arm up to greet her Commander. “I’ll be ready for the assault.”
Lexa scoffed. “Yu na nou jomp in dison.”
“Skrish, I’m fine.”
“You are hurt. I don’t need a dead general, I need a live one. Reivon would agree.”
Anya clenched her jaw. “Yu nou na lan op ai keryontai gon ai.” There was once a time when that tone of voice struck fear in Lexa’s heart, but that time was long gone. Lexa only rolled her eyes.
“You will tell her then. I’d like to see how that turns out.”
“I am my own person, I make my own decisions.” Anya grumbled.
“You cannot say she has no influence on your decisions. It is difficult to separate yourself from feelings when your keryontai is involved.”
Anya narrowed her eyes. “Who is it then?”
“Who is who then?”
“Yu keryontai.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Anya rolled her eyes. “You act like I don’t know you best. Who is it? Is it Skaikru?”
“Sha.”
“Who?”
“Clarke,” Lexa rubbed along her jaw, avoiding all eye contact with her former mentor.
Anya had nothing to say, for perhaps the first time in her life. And yet, instead of satisfying, Lexa found it unnerving. “Clarke,”
“Sha,”
“Who knows?”
“You, the both of us.”
“That is all?”
“Sha,”
“Keep it that way.”
Lexa rolled her eyes, and Anya had to suppress the urge to whack the side of her head. Some habits refused to die. “I learn from my mistakes, Onya.”
Anya raised her chin, watching her former seken, the way she shifted and ground her teeth. Yes, this was certainly her crowning achievement. “We have a lot to discuss.”
Lexa pulled a chair closer to Anya’s bed and took a seat with a heavy sigh. “We do. I’ve called upon the armies of the Twelve Clans. TonDC and the Trikru warriors already here will help provide food for the Skaikru. Raven has a plan to open the door of the Maunon bunker. Clarke and Wells are working on a system to communicate with a spy in the Maunon.”
“Wells, he is a natrona.”
“Wells? He’s Clarke’s friend.”
“Sha, and he is attempting to organize against you.” Anya’s lip curled in disgust and anger. “He asked Raven to help him organize a truce with the Maunon.”
“And Raven?”
“She agreed to keep an eye on him. To allow him to entrust her with his plans. Raven is loyal.”
“You put a lot of trust in this girl you’ve just met.”
Anya scowled. She wished that her glares still scared Lexa the way they did when she was a child, but Lexa learned the trick herself. Anya would have to live her life strung between exasperation and pride.
Lexa gave away her own game as the grin overtook her face. “I’m happy for you, fos.”
Her sincerity only ruffled Anya more. “Whatever, we need to discuss what you will do with him.”
Lexa sat back quietly for a moment. “He’ll continue his own path. It stays between the three of us. You will not, under any circumstances, tell Titus-“
“That’s hardly a problem.”
Lexa’s lips twitched as she moved on, ignoring Anya’s interruption. “Titus does not believe we can trust the Skaikru. Give him a reason and he will do everything he can to sabotage this alliance.”
“Kill him.”
“You know that I cannot afford to lose the Fleimkappa right now.”
“You should have killed him years ago.”
“The time will come, Onya. There must be a suitable replacement, and not in a time of chaos.”
Anya rolled her eyes. Lexa knew she wasn’t so impulsive normally, but bedrest was unbearable for warriors. Lexa knew from experience. But this aggression and frustration was extreme, even for Anya.
“Her heart hurts.” Anya griped, glaring away from Lexa and further into the empty room.
“It is childish drama.”
Anya practically growled, but with a warning glance from Lexa, settled back into her cot with a huff. “This Wells can do damage to you, Lexa. He seeks to undermine the alliance. We believe he has a Keryontai inside the Maunon. There won’t be persuading him.”
“I can’t imprison him, Anya. And before you say anything, it is not because of Clarke.” Lexa grumbled. “His father was their former leader. The Skaikru are split into factions, but they all unite in a singular reverence for Wells’ father, Thelonious kom Skaikru. He is a hero to them. Wells is a leader of the scouting faction alongside Clarke and this Bellamy they’ve mentioned. Wells holds command and respect, and a close tie to a Skaikru legend. Imprisoning or killing him would incite fighting within and among the Skaikru, and that anger would be directed in multiple directions. We’d lose the skills of the Skaikru to political discontent. This is our only chance to bring down the Maunon. Without that, the Skaikru will never be accepted into the Coalition.”
“Wells is a threat, Lexa.” Anya warned. “He is a master of lies. He had Raven questioning her place among her people with just a few sentences.”
“The best I can do is ensure that he is subverted at every turn. You made the right decision telling Raven to spy on him. What are his plans so far?”
“He’s smart. He refused to tell Raven immediately. He will most likely require her to prove her loyalty.”
Lexa remained silent. “You can vouch for her?”
Anya’s lip curled menacingly. “I will vouch for her.”
“On your honor as Trikru?”
“Sha,”
Lexa hesitated. “Then I will pardon her, for whatever she must do to gain his trust. When they are discovered and apprehended, she will not be punished.”
Anya lifted her chin, and Lexa winced at the sound of grinding teeth. “Mochof, Heda.”
Lexa looked away. “I’m not trusting her, Fos. But I trust you. It will be both of our heads if she fails.”
Anya stared down at her scratchy bedsheets. “I know.”
Wrangling a chance to talk to Octavia without that Trikru hawk glaring down at him was next to impossible, but Wells managed to catch her during wood chopping duties.
“So, let me get this straight. You and my brother are soulmates?”
Wells thoroughly regretted it.
“Yes,” His face burned with embarrassment. “Yeah.”
“That’s honestly hilarious. He despised you and everything you stand for, dude.”
“I’m perfectly aware.”
“It’s just. Shit.”
“I know.”
“So, why are you telling me this?”
“Because Bellamy is stuck in Mount Weather, and I don’t know if you noticed, but your new friends here want to launch a full-scale attack.”
“So?”
“So, Bellamy will be the first one to be held hostage. He’s in direct danger.” Wells grumbled, stepping closer to Octavia to avoid being overheard. “Wallace is a nice guy, but he’s not stupid and I doubt that he’s above eliminating threats. If he thinks that Bellamy has anything to do with this, he’s the first to die.”
That got under Octavia’s skin. She fidgeted, scratching at her forearms. “What do we do?”
“We need to convince the Arkers to ally with Mount Weather. They’ll shelter us.”
“Hold on,” Octavia raised a hand to stop him. “Do you know what they do to them? To the Grounders?”
Wells hesitated a second too long.
“They bleed them dry, use their blood as their own cure all remedy for their ailments. They harvest them like hogs. You see those carcasses over there draining? That’s what they do to humans. Live humans. It’s sickening. And that doesn’t even get to the Reapers.”
“Octavia-“
“No, my soulmate is in there because they think he’s an animal to be harvested and experimented on. He’s in constraints right now, being injected with something that at first was agonizing. He’s gotten used to it, but that doesn’t mean the burning in every vein in my body is gone.” Octavia huffed, looking carefully away from Wells’ face. “Bellamy for now is safe, he’s not being drained. But there are people in there who don’t have three days, let alone a week, let alone indefinitely. It’s our duty to stop them. Do you see the way their warriors look at us? They have hope that we can finally release them from the clutches of their children’s boogeymen. Is it not our duty to help them? To finally be contributing members of the Earth?”
“Fine.” Wells crossed his arms. “So, your soulmate is being experimented on. But what about your brother? He’s your flesh and blood. He protects you with everything he has in him. He didn’t want to go with the Mount Weather guards until they told him that you were already safe with them. It was a lie, but he won’t do anything that could possibly put you in danger. Don’t you think you owe it to him to do what’s best for his safety?”
“Don’t you dare.” Octavia spat. “My life has been nothing but ignoring my own existence so that I didn’t put my brother at risk. I didn’t have to crawl under those floorboards. I could have let them get caught, but as much protecting of me that he did, I did the same. You may not know what it’s like to have a sibling, but it’s more than duty. I am not just an extension of Bellamy Blake. I’m my own person and I need to make decisions that are for me, and the people that I care for. Bellamy will be rescued with the rest of Trikru. But not if you get in the way.”
Wells glared down his nose at the shorter girl. “Mount Weather can guarantee us all safety.”
“Let me be clear. I will not be caged inside a metal box anymore. I’ve gotten a taste of freedom. You might be able to convince some of the more fearful Skaikru that our safety should come first, but look around you. These are actual trees and actual streams and the sky is actually blue. We didn’t think we’d ever see this. You’ll have a hard time finding allies that would be willing to give this up for dark halls and windowless rooms and fluorescent lights.” Octavia didn’t wait for Wells to respond, she hefted her hatchet from its resting place imbedded in the chopping stump and stomped towards the forest to find more firewood.