chapter twenty-eight | lincoln & the reaper
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Outside the Ark's ship, a tense atmosphere gripped the waiting Arkers as they anticipated news from Abby and Jaha. The impending Grounder attack weighed heavily on everyone's minds, and anxiety hung in the air. Among the anxious crowd, Hunter stood with her arm in a sling, flanked by Finn and Clarke. Their worry deepened as they continued to receive no word from Bellamy and Octavia.

Finally, Abby and Jaha emerged, prepared to address their people. "By now, you've all heard the rumor, and unfortunately, it's true. The Grounders are coming," Abby announced, and a wave of murmurs rippled through the crowd. "We have a difficult decision to make. Thankfully, Chancellor Jaha has found his way back to us, and we're discussing all options," she continued.

Chancellor Jaha stepped forward, emphasizing the urgency of the situation. "But to be safe, you need to pack. Now. Whatever you can carry," he urged, causing Hunter to exchange a worried look with Clarke. "We may need to leave at a moment's notice."

One of the Arkers voiced their concern, "Where will we go?"

Jaha admitted candidly, "I don't know, is the answer." He scanned the crowd. "But I've heard of a place, a City of Light, across the Dead Zone."

A skeptical voice from the crowd questioned, "What makes you think we'll make it there?"

"Because we made it here," Jaha responded with conviction. "I have faith, and right now, given the alternative, that's good enough for me."

Clarke stepped forward, her voice filled with apprehension. "Not for us." She gazed at Hunter before addressing the crowd. "If we leave here, what happens to our people in Mount Weather?"

Jaha's response left Clarke feeling disheartened. "As your mother said, that is a very difficult decision to make. But the time has come for each and every one of us to ask: Is this how the story of our people ends? Did we come all this way just to die tomorrow?" Jaha's voice rose. "Because if we're not gone by the time that sun rises, that is exactly what will happen."

Clarke's desperate plea to her mother yielded little reassurance. Abby simply instructed the crowd, "No decision's been made. In the meantime, please report to your station supervisor and gather emergency supplies."

Hunter shook her head in frustration and moved to leave, but someone grabbed her hand. She turned, along with Clarke and Finn, to see that it was Bellamy. "Hey, where have you been?" Clarke inquired.

"In the dropship," Bellamy replied. "I need Clarke to come back with me right now."

Alarmed, Clarke pressed for more information. "Why? What's happened?"

"I'll explain on the way. Bring a med kit. Meet me at Raven's gate," Bellamy instructed urgently, leaving Hunter and Clarke bewildered.

"This is my fault," Finn lamented, his gaze filled with guilt as he looked at Hunter. "The Grounders are attacking because of me."

Hunter reassured him, her voice steady. "The Grounders are attacking because that's what they do."

Finn glanced around, then back at Hunter. "Go with Bellamy and Clarke. Abby said no decision has been made; if that changes, I'll let you know." Hunter nodded, her expression filled with concern, as she and Clarke followed Bellamy towards the dropship.

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With Clarke's help, Hunter climbed up the ladder into the dropship, her mind flooded with memories as she entered the room. There stood Lincoln, once again chained to the walls, but something was different this time. He appeared manic, with blood on his face and frenzied screams escaping his lips. Bellamy rushed to their side to reassure them, "It's okay, it's okay. He's been restrained."

Hunter couldn't help but gaze at Lincoln, her voice filled with disbelief. "I can't believe we're back here again."

Octavia, looking defeated and sitting against the wall, implored Clarke, "Can you help him?"

Hunter and Clarke soon realized that Lincoln was now a Reaper. "I don't know," Clarke admitted, her eyes fixed on Lincoln. "I knew Mount Weather controlled the Reapers, but I had no idea they were creating them."

Bellamy questioned the consequences of these transformations. "If they can do that to Lincoln, what are they doing to our friends?"

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Hunter watched from a distance as Clarke began to examine Lincoln. He was starting to scream and thrash violently, desperate to reach Clarke. Suddenly, his convulsions intensified.

"What does it mean?" Octavia asked, shining a flashlight on the convulsing Lincoln.

Clarke tried to assess the situation and noticed a bleeding wound on Lincoln's leg. "What happened to his leg?" she inquired, her focus on finding a solution.

Octavia examined the injured leg. "I shot him."

Clarke redirected her attention to Lincoln's leg, determined to help him. "He's lost a lot of blood," she noted, acknowledging the gravity of the situation.

Clarke turned back around and looked at Lincoln, who was growling and yelling, pulling on his restraints to get at her. She stepped closer and noticed something unusual.

"Can you shine a light on his neck?" she asked. Octavia and Bellamy complied, causing Lincoln to grunt and turn his head away from the light, revealing needle marks on his neck.

"You think he's been drugged?" Hunter stepped forward to have a closer look.

"Maybe -" Suddenly, Lincoln's restraint snapped and whipped Hunter in the face, causing her to fall to the ground. He then grabbed Clarke by the neck, attempting to bite her.

Octavia rushed over, trying to pull him off, but he pushed her away, knocking her into the wall. Bellamy ran to help, attempting to break Lincoln's grip, but he ended up getting head-butted. Lincoln threw Clarke to the floor before breaking free from his other arm restraint and making another attempt to attack them. However, his leg restraint prevented him from getting any closer.

Hunter managed to crawl away, clutching her head in immense pain. She watched as Bellamy tried to shock lash Lincoln unsuccessfully, which only resulted in Lincoln pinning him down. In response, Hunter ripped off her sling, found a broken pipe, and stood up. She slammed it into Lincoln's back and then struck him in the head with it, knocking him unconscious.

Gasping for breath, Hunter fell to her knees, blood dripping down the side of her face.

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Octavia and Bellamy managed to secure Lincoln to the floor using a mesh cover and additional locks. Clarke looked at Hunter's gash on the side of her head.

"I'm fine," Hunter reassured her, sitting against the wall. "Go help Lincoln."

Clarke sighed and returned her attention to Lincoln. "We need to stop the bleeding and remove the bullet. Hold his leg down." Lincoln began to wake up, and Octavia tried to offer him some water, which resulted in him attempting to bite her, causing the water to spill.

"I'll get some more," Octavia said, trying her best to hold back tears. She got up, and Bellamy stopped her.

"O, once the drug is out of his system, he'll be okay," Bellamy attempted to reassure her.

"You can't protect me from this one, big brother," Octavia replied before leaving the room.

Clarke initiated the process of removing the bullet from Lincoln's leg while Bellamy and Hunter held him down. As she worked, Lincoln's condition continued to deteriorate, and Hunter couldn't help but feel a sense of helplessness.

After successfully extracting the bullet, Clarke began to bandage Lincoln's leg. Hunter observed their efforts. "Your mom would be proud," she offered, acknowledging Clarke's medical skills.

Clarke's response reflected her uncertainty. "My mom would know how to save him."

Octavia opened the hatch, returning with a Grounder. This prompted Bellamy to grab his rifle defensively. "Bellamy, don't! He's Lincoln's friend and their healer," Octavia intervened, attempting to defuse the tension.

Hunter, recognizing the Grounder's face as the village leader from Finn's massacare, tried to remain inconspicuous, hoping he wouldn't recognize her. Tension hung in the air as the situation unfolded.

Then, Lincoln's convulsions and frothing at the mouth intensified. Clarke approached him, and the Grounder followed suit, reaching for a vial. "Yu Gonplei ste Oden" he whispered.

 Clarke quickly intervened, suspecting something amiss. "Wait!" she called out, causing the Grounder to draw his knife.

"Back off! Right now!" Bellamy aimed his gun at the Grounder, ready to protect Clarke.

Clarke attempted to decipher the situation. "Yu Gonplei ste Oden," she murmured, recalling where she had heard the phrase before. "It's what they say before death. He's not trying to heal him; he's trying to kill him."

The Grounder, identified as Nyko, confirmed her suspicion. "Yes, Death is the only way."

Hunter watched the tense confrontation unfold, intrigued by the gravity of the situation. Nyko's actions and the phrase Yu Gonplei ste Oden held a dark significance. Hunter's attention was drawn to Nyko, whose gaze suddenly fell upon her. He recognized her, and his anger flared. "You," he accused, leaving Hunter feeling vulnerable.

Nyko approached Hunter, his anger palpable. "You were at my village, you killed one of my people, watched as your friend killed others!" he accused vehemently, grabbing her by her jacket.

Hunter stood her ground, her voice trembling but resolute. "I also took a bullet to stop him." Nyko's anger hung heavy in the air, and Hunter found herself fearing his response.

Nyko's anger seemed to intensify, but before the situation could escalate further, Finn arrived through the hatch. Urgency laced his words as he addressed the group. "We have to go; the camp's leaving."

Upon seeing Finn, Nyko's fury redirected toward him. "You!" he yelled, his rage palpable.

Finn tried to reason with Nyko, but the Grounder's anger knew no bounds. He grabbed Finn, slamming him against the wall, his hands closing around Finn's throat, choking him mercilessly. Finn looked into Nyko's eyes, he wasn't even trying to stop him.

Hunter rushed forward, attempting to pull Nyko off Finn, but her efforts were in vain as Nyko shoved her aside. Panic welled up within her as she looked around for a solution, and her eyes landed on a shock lasher. She seized it and approached Nyko, delivering a shocking blow that incapacitated him.

Breathing heavily, Hunter watched as Nyko lost consciousness. Finn gasped for air, finally freed from Nyko's grip. Hunter's shoulders sagged with relief as the immediate danger subsided.

As Hunter stood there, Finn's eyes met hers. The gravity of their situation weighed heavily on both of them, and they shared a silent understanding of the difficult choices they had made.

Hunter glanced at Finn, her eyes widening as she realized Lincoln was lying motionless on the floor, not breathing. Panic set in for a moment. Clarke and Octavia rushed over to him, and Clarke immediately began performing CPR.

Nyko, the healer, sat up and watched in astonishment as Clarke successfully revived Lincoln. "He was dead. How did you do that?"

Clarke looked at Nyko and asked, "Have you ever tried reviving reapers before?" He nodded. "And they died, like this?" Again, he nodded.

Clarke exchanged a knowing look with Hunter; they were both on the same page.

"What is it?" Bellamy asked, curiosity and hope in his voice.

"We know how to stop the attack," Hunter announced confidently.

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Hunter descended the ladder slowly, each step causing her pain to flare up. As she reached the ground, she approached Finn, who was sitting down, and then stood in front of him. Her concern for him was evident as she noticed the bruises around his neck. Gently, she moved his shirt collar aside and tenderly touched his neck, her gaze locked with his.

"Even if you can save Lincoln, he won't be the same. The things he's done," Finn spoke softly, his eyes fixed on hers as she kept her hand on the side of his neck. "They'll stay with him."

Hunter peered deep into Finn's eyes, her thumb brushing against his cheek. "We don't know that," she replied, her voice filled with determination.

"Yes, we do," Finn countered, taking a step closer.

Unable to hold back her emotions any longer, Hunter brushed her thumb against his cheek, and tears welled up in her eyes. "Lincoln's savable, and so are you," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "I'm sorry I did this to you." She sobbed softly, and Finn tilted his head, wrapping his arms around her gently. Hunter rested her head on his shoulder, their tears mingling.

"It should've been me," she cried, her voice heavy with guilt and sorrow.

- :((