XX

[PREVIOUSLY: Octavia leads the troops out of the camp, but then, tragedy strikes. Trapped within the walls, with the grounders advancing rapidly upon them, Octavia comes up with a plan that will rid Skikru of the grounders once and for all].

As Raven and Monty put their heads to use in an effort to fix the wiring that ran beneath the floor of the drop-ship, Bellamy and Clarke remained stationary, working over last-minute plans and calling out instructions to any loose stragglers.

Gunners were lined up along every wall, their weapons pointed towards the dense forest. A couple dozen youth lined the perimeter a mile or so outside of camp, keeping watch on the grounders' every move.

Keeping Lincoln's sword by my side at all times, I flittered in between the front lines and the gunners at the walls, keeping tabs on everyone. However, I kept a special look-out for Jasper, Zoe, Bryce and Dustin. They were all at the front line and I just wanted to make sure that they were holding up under the pressure.

It had been a few hours since we had received the urgent call from Nate and so far, the grounders hadn't come any closer. Their army was stationed just outside of the gully. From all the reports that we had received so far, there was so many of them, it was impossible to sum them up in numbers.

Some people were confused as to why the grounders were holding back, and even though it was giving Raven ample time to fix the wiring, it was also making the majority increasingly concerned and suspicious.

As the long hours dragged on by and dusk began to settle across the land, Bellamy finally came to the conclusion that the grounders were waiting for the darkness to come. In such a situation, they knew, that in order to avoid our guns, moving forward at night would be the best option. They would be quicker and faster than us and would be able to gain the upper hand very easily.

As unsettling as this was, Bellamy, pushing aside his own fears and worries, continued to make the rounds, knowing that his presence would be the support and encouragement his people needed.

It was nearing the hour of complete and utter darkness and the tension in the air was so high, you could literally snap it like string. By this time, I was sitting by the door of the drop-ship, running a smooth stone over the jagged edge of Lincoln's blade. Every so often, one of the gunners surrounding the camp would disturb the leaves by his feet. As soon as the noise reached me, I would stiffen up and my fingers would tighten around my sword. I would strain my ears to hear if anyone was coming but, when I would realise that it was nothing to worry about, I would go back to doing what I was doing.

To say that I was worried was an understatement.

"What if Lincoln and Aidan are among the attackers?"

Finn's words of warning rang throughout my mind. That couldn't be true, could it? I swallowed hard as I contemplated what would happen to them if this was, indeed, the case.

Aidan. His eyes. His deep, hazel eyes that always reflected strength and determination, eyes that probably hid more secrets than he dared to think. His skill with a bow and arrow was unmatchable and the times that he came to lurk outside of the camp, waiting to talk to me, was the times when I saw the other side of him, the side that whispered that he, too, was just a human, a caring, kind, sweet, good-looking human.

I didn't want him to die. I couldn't possibly let that happen to him! Not in a million years. If I saw Aidan among the attackers, I would plunge right in and rescue him. I would tell him what was about to happen. Heck, I would even knock him out and drag him away if necessary. I didn't care what it took.

Lexa was right. I did care for him. I couldn't let him die.

Da-da-da-DUM. Da-da-da-DUM.

I snapped my head up and swivelled my body around. Where those ... drums?

"Nate!" I hissed, chucking a pebble at the boy's foot. "What the hell is that?"

Nate hesitated for a moment before replying. "It's them. They're here. The grounders are here! Everyone to your positions, now!"

I leaped to my feet and rushed into the drop-ship. "Bell, Bell!" I cried as I burst inside. "They're here!"

Bellamy, who was standing by the table with Clarke, immediately leapt into action. "Raven! Raven!" he yelled out coarsely as he rapped his knuckles against the floor of the drop-ship. "Are you ready?"

"Almost!" came the reply. "Just hold on, I'll be another few minutes."

"Well, hurry the hell up, they're here!" he snapped as he snatched up his gun and raced outside. "Nate! You and your boys stay put! I'm going to the front line! We need to buy some more time for Raven, you copy?"

"Bell, wait!" I cried as I hurried after him. "I'm coming with you."

"No, you're not!" Bellamy whirled around and shook a warning finger at me. "You're not a gunner, O."

"No, I'm not," I returned as I balanced the weight of my sword in both hands. "Like you said, I'm a grounder."

Bellamy sighed and rolled his eyes before finally giving in. "Fine. Let's go."

As Bellamy and I sprinted through the growing darkness, the icy cold wind slapping sharply against our cheeks, the sound of the war drums grew louder and louder.

As we both scuttled behind a construction of fallen logs that some of the front line was using as a look-out point, the deafening sound of an explosion suddenly ripped through the air.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

"Well, it looks like they found the minefield," Bellamy smirked as he held his rifle to his shoulder and scanned our surroundings through the scope.

"Do you think it'll hold them off?" Zoe piped up nervously from nearby.

Bellamy pressed his lips into a long, thin line. "Let's hope so."

"Bellamy, this is Sterling from the south position, we can see them! They're moving forward and completely evading the gully! What do we do?" Bellamy's walkie-talkie suddenly erupted.

"Hold your posts, I repeat, hold your posts!" he returned sharply. "If your position falls, there's nothing left between them and the front door."

BANG. BANG. BANG.

"Whose firing?" Bellamy demanded as he looked around. Lifting his walkie-talkie to his mouth, he shouted into it, "God damn it, whose firing? Sterling! Sterling! What the hell? I told everyone to hold their fire until the grounders were out of the gully...Sterling?"

Only the sound of static met his statement.

"Oh god," Jasper breathed as everyone realised what had happened.

"M-maybe we should fall back?" Zoe quavered. "If Sterling's gone, we're the only ones left."

"Exactly," Bellamy told her pointedly. "And that's why we're not going back."

For a long, agonising moment, there was nothing to disturb the peacefulness of the night-time air, no noise, no voices, no clattering of armour, no nothing.

"What the hell are they waiting for?" Bryce wondered aloud.

"The longer they wait, the more time we're saving for Raven," Bellamy told him pointedly. "Now, keep still, you're going to give us away."

Silence. Dead silence.

Suddenly, a loud, resounding battle cry rang throughout the forest.

Figures, figures clad with masks and weapons, so many figures I couldn't possibly keep track of them all, came pouring down from the knolls overlooking the gully towards us!

I gasped in fright and flung my sword out in front of my face. The palms of my hands were clammy and my lips were trembling with fright.

This was it. This was war.

"Hold your fire, hold your fire," Bellamy murmured as he looked intently through the scope of his rifle. "Okay, okay, on my count, 3, 2, 1 ... now!"

A barrage of bullets exploded from the guns lined up on the attacking grounders.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

The first wave of warriors fell.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

The next line of grounders were picked off one by one.

"Crap, I have to reload!" Dustin yelped.

"Those were our last clips!" Zoe exclaimed. "Bellamy, what do we do?"

Before Bellamy had a chance to respond, however, a loud yell sounded from right above us. Shocked, Bellamy spun around and glanced up, just as a hideously-masked grounder leaped down from a tree towering above him.

The large, burly frame landed right on top of Bellamy, knocking him to the ground. Bellamy's gun discharged its last bullet and went spinning helplessly across the floor. As Bellamy struggled desperately against the muscular arms that were closing in around his throat, Zoe let out a scream of terror, "They're coming, oh god, they're coming! We have to go now!"

As everyone abandoned their positions and raced back towards camp, a low growl rose up in the back of my throat.

"Oi!" I yelled.

The attacking grounder glanced up at me, his eyes wild with rage. He let forth a stream of brown spit as he withdrew a large dagger from the folds of his cloak. However, before he even had time to raise it, I was upon him. Whirling around, I slammed the hilt of my sword against his head.

Dazed, the grounder fell, face-first, into the dirt by my feet. With a triumphant shout of victory, I plunged the blade of my sword right into his neck.

As I straightened up and offered a helping hand to Bellamy, I nodded towards my sword as I said, "Admit it. You want one."

Bellamy cracked a half-smile as he stated sardonically, "Yeah, sure."

PING.

I barely had time to register what was happening before it happened ... A pang of pain shot up my back as the razor-sharp tip of an iron arrow-head sliced through my skin.

"Urgh!" I screamed as I stumbled forward.

"O!" Bellamy cried out in horror as he grabbed me. "Hang on, O, I've gotcha! Hold onto me."

I nodded, grinding my teeth noisily together in an effort to stop another further cries escaping from my mouth. I tasted blood in the back of my throat. I felt salt stinging my eyes and desperately blinked away the tears.

Bellamy, huffing and heaving, half-carried, half-dragged me through a snag of prickly bushes into the denser part of the forest. Trying to avoid the stream of vicious warriors, Bellamy attempted to take a back route towards the camp.

After a few, laborious minutes, I knew what I had to do. "Bell, Bell, we're not gonna make it!" I gasped out as I tugged weakly at his shirt. "Bell ... you have to leave me."

"What? No!" he shook his head vigourously. "You're gonna be fine, O, you're gonna be fine."

"T-the poison," I whispered. "I can feel it ... It's inside of me. Bell, you need to go. Your people need you."

Bellamy paused as he turned to look at me. "O, you are my people. I'm not leaving you behind."

"Bellamy, Bellamy, where are you?" Clarke's urgent voice crackled through his walkie-talkie. "Raven's ready to go."

Bellamy and I exchanged knowing looks. Hastily, Bellamy reached down and retrieved the walkie-talkie. "Clarke, Octavia's injured, I - I can't get her back to the drop-ship in time. You need to get everyone inside. Blow those rockets."

"B-Bell," Clarke choked out. "I - I can't. We don't know how far the fire could reach. You could both die out there!"

"Clarke, hang on!" Bellamy grunted into the device. Pushing himself to his limit, Bellamy exerted the last of his strength to get both himself and me behind the safety of a large clump of evergreens overlooking the camp.

As he set me down against one of the tree-trunks, he glanced over my shoulder, tears of sadness filtrating his eyes.

Following his line of sight, I, too, took in the horrific scene.

Grounders, left, right and centre, were swarming the camp, our camp. Anyone that hadn't made it back from the front lines in time were caught and mercilessly slaughtered. Numerous bodies, their rich blood staining the fresh green hue of the forest, lay scattered across the ground.

Huge, burly warriors were pushing up against the camp walls, their loud, shrill battle-cries penetrating the night-time air. Among the warriors, I spotted the familiar faces of Anya, Indra, Lexa and Artigas. Closing my eyes, I tried to imagine a different scenario, a scenario that contained none of this ...

The gunners that remained inside of the camp were desperately trying to keep the grounders back with the last of their bullets and grenades, but nothing was working.

As the walls began to careen inwards, Clarke, taking the initiative, herded everyone that remained inside the drop-ship.

"Clarke, you're doing the right thing," Bellamy told her via the walkie-talkie. "It's too late for me, for Octavia, but not for you. Go inside and shut the door ... now."

Clarke, having heard his instructions, paused in the middle of the camp. Tilting her head back, she scanned her surroundings, until, by chance, her gaze fell on Bellamy and I, whose figures were partially hidden behind the trees decorating a nearby knoll.

Clarke's blue eyes, torn with guilt and sadness, looked straight into mine. Her lips parted, forming the words, I'm so sorry. Then, with one quick movement, she retreated to the doorway of the drop-ship. Reaching up, she pulled down the lever that was right above her head.

The large, metallic door creaked and groaned loudly as it lifted up off of the ground. Then, with a giant shudder that rocked the entire drop-ship, the door clamped shut.

Gif: Octavia protecting her brother. (Sorry for the long chapter. We're nearly at the end now, guys).

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