CHAPTER TWELVE

"This is gonna be my act when I go on tour for my magic show." 

***

"My sister has been out there alone for twelve hours, arm up, we're not coming back without her." 

 I was not in any way prepared for this rescue mission. It was pitch-black, and I was exhausted, so running into enemy territory was probably not the smartest idea. I yawned deeply, slightly pissed that Bellamy woke me up by smacking me in the face with a pillow, and reached forward to grab a spear. I shot him a look,"If I trip and stab myself you're to blame." 

 The other delinquents seemed to take my act as a cue to all grab weapons, because that is exactly what they did. I twirled the spear around, promptly dropping it and having to pick it up before anyone saw. 

 "You're going?" Raven asked approaching me and eyeing my rather extravagant hair. "You look seconds from death." 

 "Just slap me, I'll be fine." 

 Raven took my joke too seriously, as a sharp pain shot through my cheek. I winced, "ow!" 

 "You said to!" 

I rubbed my still stinging face, as Raven grinned triumphantly, shaking her hand. I rolled my eyes, "oh sorry, did my face hurt your hand?" 

 "A little." 

 I laughed sarcastically, hefting my spear and yawning again. Raven's face turned serious. "Hey, keep an eye on Finn for me, would you?" 

 "Sure." 

Raven clapped my shoulder like she was my dad or something, and then turned to disappear back into the Drop Ship I took a deep breath, rubbing my face with my hands. My shoulders sagged slightly with exhaustion. I was tired. Maybe it is because being locked up, you just sit around all day and do nothing. I just want to lay down and sleep, but now I have to venture into the dark forest where I could possibly be murdered by a bunch of bloodthirsty Grounders. 

I really need to look over my schedule. 

 The Spacewalker came up beside me, a grim look on his face. His hair was much shorter, and didn't hang around his neck anymore... it was weird, but I kinda liked it. 

 "Did Raven do that?" I asked, and he nodded. "Do you think she could cut mine?" I ruffled my hair, and Finn snorted. 

 "I don't know if she's up for a challenge that great." 

 "Ha, ha." I scrunched up my nose, pouting. Finn chuckled. Before I could think of a witty retaliation, a light in the sky caught my eyes. More like, a lot of lights. Falling from space in a large group. A very sick feeling churned in my stomach, I knew enough to know that is very bad news. 

 "The flares didn't work." Raven announced as her, Clarke, and Bellamy joined Finn and I, staring up at the sky. "They didn't see them." 

"A meteor shower tells you that?" Bellamy asked, apprehensively glancing at our small group. 

 "It's not a meteor shower, it's a funeral." Clarke corrected, her lips drawn into a tight line. "Hundreds of bodies being returned to Earth from the Ark... this is what it looks like from the other side." Her face had a slightly green tinge to it, like she was going to throw up. I felt the same way. So many people... 

 "They didn't get our message." 

 My stomach felt like there was a boulder resting in it, but I managed to find the strength to step in front of Bellamy protectively when Raven lunged at him. "This is all your fault!" She yelled, her eyes gleaming with partially supressed angry-tears. I held up my hand, putting a hand on Bellamy's chest. 

 "I helped you find the radio!" Bellamy yelled back as Clarke and Finn struggled to hold Raven back. I held out my hands cautiously, I do not want to be on the receiving end of Raven's rage. 

 "Yeah, after you jacked it from my pod and trashed it!" She screamed, her eyes wide and her breathing heavy. I was tempted to take a step back, as being in the middle of their screaming match was not what I needed right now. 

 I wondered who was sacrificed for survival up there. Was it anyone imprisoned? Or was it random? The one thought on my mind was clear, giving me a headache from how much weight the words held:

How do you choose who dies so others can live?

 "He knows! He knows!" I repeated myself to get the point across, raising my voice to be heard over their yelling. "Okay? He knows what he did!" 

 "And now he has to live with it." Clarke added, giving me a steely nod.  

 "All I know, is that my sister is out there, and I am going to find her." Bellamy growled, turning and addressing Finn. "Are you coming or not?" 

 "Uh, yeah." He replied, his voice small. 

 "Then what are we waiting for? Let's move out!" 

 ***

I was walking next to Bellamy at the front of the group, since apparently that's what leaders do. The night was pitched black, which was not helping my whole exhausted thing. I yawned again, and Bellamy pushed my shoulder slightly. "Jeez, Sunshine, you look fantastic." 

 "Your sarcasm is not appreciated..." I mumbled, holding my spear to the side so I wouldn't actually trip on it. "Usually it would be though, keep it up." 

 "The flares were a good idea." Bellamy muttered, hefting his ax. "So don't beat yourself up. This was my fault, you were right... now I have to live with it." 

 "We don't have to worry about anything until Octavia is safe." I deadpanned, turning to peek at Bellamy from the corner of my eye, only to find him already looking at me. I blushed and training my gaze ahead. "Which she will be. She's a badass, I don't know why you worry about her so much." 

 "Because she's my sister." He brushed a branch out of the way, and I ducked under it. "I've been worrying about her since the day she was born." 

 "Only adding to my point." I jumped when I felt something brush against my arm, but relaxed when I realized it was just Bellamy. "She lived under the floor for majority of her life, and she isn't seriously fucked up... badass." 

 Bellamy chuckled quietly as I stumbled over a root and almost face-planted to the ground. "I wish I could say the same about me." I joked. 

 We came to the edge of a steep, rocky incline. Some kid named John was the first one to find something. "There!" He pointed down the cliff. "Isn't that Octavia's?" 

 I squinted, very vaguely seeing a piece of cloth fluttering on a branch. I shrugged, "Bellamy, rope." 

 He handed me the rope that was slung over his shoulder, and I tied one end around a relatively sturdy looking tree, and tossed the other down the hill. It was rocky and steep, not a good combination. But hey, maybe I have an unknown talent of rock-climbing. 

 "What are you doing?" Finn asked apprehensively as my eyes zeroed in on the fabric, tossing my spear to the side and yelling a 'sorry' as it almost hit Monroe.  

 "Well, we need the rope to get back up." I said it as if it were obvious, something that annoys people endlessly. "Can I have that flashlight?" 

 Finn passed me the flashlight, and I, throwing all regards for hygiene out the window, clamped the  object between my teeth, and turned to the end of the flat ground, sharply tugging the rope. 

 "You sure this will work?" Bellamy asked, and I dropped the flashlight into my hand to answer. 

 "Don't worry, this is gonna be my act when I go on tour for my magic show." 

 "What does that even mean?" One of the kids in the crowd cried, and I chuckled, putting the flashlight back into my mouth and beginning my descent. 

 I was sweating the entire time, my heart fluttering as I skid down the rocky hillside. I kept thinking about how much it would hurt if I fell. Which, spoiler alert, is a lot. My legs were shaky, and I decided I couldn't take it anymore. I let go of the rope and jumped down the final bit, grabbing the tree that the fabric was dangling on. My feet hit the ground hard, and I winced as a shot of pain spiked through my ankles. 

 I shone the light on the piece of purple fabric, holding it up. "Does anyone remember the color shirt she was wearing?" 

 "It's hers!" Bellamy yelled back almost automatically. I stuffed the fabric in my pocket, looking at the little bit of hill left. "I'm gonna go all the way down!" 

 "I'm coming!" Bellamy yelled, followed by a chorus of mutters from the campers. I did my best to ignore, and continued my downward trek to solid ground. I finally let go of the rope, making my sore hands into fists. Stupid rope burn. I shone my flashlight around the ground, until something caught my eye. 

 I knelt down right as Bellamy joined me, and felt my throat go dry. There were drops of crimson blood on the rock, and lots of it... 

 Octavia's blood. 

 Bellamy gasped slightly when he saw, crouching next to me and dipping his fingers in it to determine how fresh it was, they came back coated red. The fear in his eyes was obvious, and I swallowed. Octavia was hurt. 

 I suddenly flash-backed to when we were searching for Jasper. His blood had been splattered against rocks as well, and I had thought it looked like a warning... now, it seemed like a war cry.

The uncomfortable heat of Finn's torch provided us with a warm glow, I took a step away, feeling that if I stayed any closer, my hair would catch on fire, which would be unfortunate. "Someone else was here." He pointed to a set of footprints, much too large to be Octavia's. 

 Bellamy's jaw clenched, and his eyes narrowed. I knew how he felt... it's kind of like if someone took Monty. And let me tell you, if that happened, I would totally kick someone's ass. 

 "They get deeper over here... He was carrying her." 

 More and more people began joining us on the ground, and I took a deep, quivering breath and turned to Finn. "Which way?" 

 "Yeah, if they took her she's alive." Jasper elaborated, his pale face glowing in the firelight. "Like when they took me." 

 "Nate, Finn, I want you guys up front. John, go see what the hell is taking everyone so long. We're going now." 

 I nodded, wishing I had kept my spear; although I knew it wouldn't help me much. I wasn't cut out for large weapons, they seemed more of a burden than an advantage. 

The forest was creepy at night as is, but it seemed to only get creepier as the sun began to rise, casting a ghostly shadow over all of the trees. We walked in silence, we were all tired and scared, but it made it better that we were traveling in a group. 

 The skeletons did not exactly help out our morale. 

 "Whoa." Bellamy held up his arms, and I walked right into them, before looking up. My breath caught in my throat and  my arms erupted in goosebumps. They were human corpses, reduced to bones and bloodstains, chained up on the trees like trophies. 

Or warnings. 

"We're going in there?" I mumbled, my voice an octave higher then usual. "Like, past the, uh... human corpses?" 

   "Yep." 

"Cool.Cool, cool, cool-" 

 "I'm not going in there!" One camper yelled, followed by a chorus of agreements. 

 "If you don't want to continue, you can go back to camp!" Bellamy yelled, "We can't ask you to risk your lives." 

 "You don't even gotta ask." I gave Bellamy my best grin, patting his shoulder, and stepping past the corpses. I closed my eyes tightly, my entire body clenched in fear. I waited a few seconds, before exhaling and turning around, spreading my arms. 

 "See? It's cool. Come on." 

 Jasper came next, and then Finn, Bellamy, John, Roma, and Diggs. A small group, but a group nevertheless. Bellamy gave me a tight lipped smile, and together, we ventured into Grounder territory.