Episode Six, Part 3:
The Boy from the Bunker

Show me where my armour ends, 
show me where my skin begins. 

As Reegan's guards escorted her away from the beach and back up to the trail towards their campsite, a sudden urge took control of her; one that had been been pushed aside too many times to count.

"The rest of you, go ahead," she ordered, coming to a stop in her tracks and letting her team continue past her. "I'm going to trail behind; I need some time to clear my head. I'll meet you all back at camp."

Majority of her people seemed hesitant to leave her, especially with their suspicions that she might try and return to Basilisk and challenge Sol once again, but Zeek - who was one of the guards at Reegan's side - nodded to everyone else to listen, hanging back until it was just him alone with her.

"What are you plotting, kiddo?" He asked once everyone was well and truly out of earshot.

Reegan sighed. "Don't worry about me; it's nothing stupid, if that's what you're thinking. Go catch up with the others."

"I couldn't, even if I wanted to."

"What do you mean?" She frowned, unable to figure out his intentions.

"Well, I'm your Second, aren't I?"

"Yeah... What has that got to do with it?"

"Anywhere you go, I go too," he said. "Otherwise, how else am I going to be able to take the fall for you if someone tries to hurt you?"

Reegan smiled bashfully. "If you think that's what your duty to me is, you're wrong. I don't want you to get hurt for me."

"Well, try and keep us out of trouble, and I won't have to," Zeek laughed, refusing to lower his standards or what he was willing to do to keep her safe. "Can you tell me why you sent everyone away? Or, what I really mean to ask is, please tell me you're not planning on heading back down to the beach..."

"Man, you really don't have a lot of faith in me with this leadership thing," she joked, comforted by how easily she found it to let her guard down with him around. "Of course not," she said. "I just..."

Zeek shifted, sensing her hesitancy. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I at least need to be with you in case anyone from Basilisk followed us up here."

"I just don't what you to think it's stupid, that's all."

"Whilst I haven't known you for a great period of time, I'll admit that the term 'stupid' isn't part of the vocabulary I'd use when describing you. Try me, and I'll let you know what I think. Maybe I have got you all wrong."

Reegan rolled her eyes, amused by their constant push and shove. "Tobias was killed around here. Right on the other side of those bushes, actually. I wanted to see him, and... And make sure he's properly at rest. I figured it was the least I could do."

Zeek pondered for a moment, dropping his gaze from her, but a warmth took over his face. "I don't think that's stupid," he said. "Not at all. I think it's kind. Tobias would have been proud of you. He'd know he made the right choice."

Reegan put on a brave face, wishing she saw enough proof in her own actions to believe Zeek, but she wasn't quite there yet. If she could take down Basilisk, then there'd be no more doubt; it was all it came down to.

Unable to say anything in response, she lead him through the bushes to where Tobias' body was still lying, nervous at what she might find. Of course, Reegan had known death; not only from losing both of her parents, but from growing up in the world she had. What she didn't have a lot of experience with was dead bodies.

Tobias looked noticeably worse than when she had last laid her eyes on him. The horror of his death had sunk in by now, and the shock was well and truly passed, making the stench the most prominent thing to stick out to Reegan.

"Are you okay, kiddo?"

Zeek set his hand on Reegan's back as he approached, unintentionally causing her to jump.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I-I just feel a little uneasy."

"No need to apologise. This would be an unpleasant experience for anyone, whether they knew Tobias or not."

"I know. But I'm not so sure this was the right idea, anymore," she confessed. "I don't think I can..."

"Touch him?" Zeek sought confirmation. The penetrating, watery gaze from Reegan was all the answer he needed. "Don't worry," he said. "I can do this. My last act of service for him; it's only right."

Reegan nodded and took a step back, allowing for Zeek to bend down and latch his arms underneath Tobias' body, carefully beginning to carry him over towards the empty grave dug several metres behind them. She watched as Zeek lowed him into the ground, trying to be as delicate as he could, but it was an impossible task to do gracefully.

Once Tobias was completely resting in the grave, Zeek searched around for the shovel that had been used to dig into the ground, founding is disregarded to the side.

He picked it up, holding it tightly in his hands as he stared down at his friend, suddenly feeling a warm stinging to his eyes.

"Thank you for all you've done for your people," he said. "I won't let you be forgotten, I swear. Reegan will take it from here, and I'll watch out for her. You have my word, Tobias."

Reegan felt a lightness in her chest as she listened to Zeek's vow, some sort of closure, she thought to herself.

"I don't know what the hell you've signed me up for," she said, tempted to take her eyes off of Tobias' body, but she wouldn't allow herself to. "But I'll give it my all, anyway. Hope I make you proud; you know I'll be trying to. Rest easy, now, Tobias."

She curled her lower lip, trying to keep herself from crying, and nodded beside her to Zeek, giving him the order to begin covering him over in earth. But, mere seconds later, she reached her hand out to his wrist, yelling at him with an intense urgency in her voice.

"Wait!"

Zeek came to a sudden halt, almost dropping the shovel from his hands. "What?"

Reegan didn't have time to explain; she simply dropped to her knees, leaning down into the shallow grave and lifted up Tobias' shirt. Zeek waited for something - a clue - any sort of hint at what she was realising, but Reegan offered nothing.

"Please tell me what's going on," he asked. "Is something wrong?"

"I... I knew it," she said. "Basilisk did kill Tobias..."

"How do you know? I'm not saying I've ever doubted it, but what now makes you so sure?"

"His wounds," Reegan gestured to various scrapes and cuts that littered the skin of his stomach and what was visible of his arms. "Riverly said he had killed himself, but why would he have all these wounds on him? They've hardly been done himself; the angle they must have came from is all wrong, and they just don't make sense. Someone else has clearly done this to him, likely because he tried to fight back against whoever was attacking him."

"I hear you," Zeek said, "but I've been meaning to ask... Who's in that grave?"

Reegan's eyes diverted across, finally sparing a thought to the second grave that had been dug, only it was already filled in and Reegan didn't have to poke the shovel in far to know that there was another body inside.

"Ivy," she sighed. "Basilisk are good, right? I mean, I hate to give them credit but man, they're good. They staged this entire thing to appear as some star-crossed-lovers who died together, but forgot to cover their tracks... Now that I have all the proof I needed that Riverly is behind this, I know exactly what I need to do. For Tobias."

"Kill her?"

Reegan nodded. "Basilisk are going to wish they never set foot on this island."

//////////

All of Basilisk were crowded together on the far west side of the beach, holding onto any possessions they had left - most owning nothing more than the clothes on their backs. Conversations filled the crowd as they all awaited instruction from their Sovereigns - one of whom was sidetracked with a very important task.

"There you are," Kodiak smiled, letting out a breath of relief as he hurried through the people in his way, finally reaching Elara and Izzy.

He immediately leaned down, grabbing onto Elara's arms and helping her to her feet, soon beckoning Izzy over.

"Kodi, what's going on?" She asked. "Where are we all going? Back home?"

He let out a nervous breath, flickering his eyes over to Elara to figure out if she'd had a chance to break the news to her yet, but it was clear that she hadn't known a way how to.

"Soon," he said, crouching down so Izzy stood slightly taller than him. "We're going home soon, but we need to go somewhere else first."

"Why?"

"This new place is going to give us better shelter," Kodiak explained. "That means all of our people can sleep inside, probably even on beds, while us Sovereigns organise a way home."

"Shelter from the weather, or shelter from other people?"

Kodiak noticed Elara frown behind Izzy, and was certain that she was glad Izzy couldn't see the hurt expression on her face. It wasn't fair that someone as young and innocent as Izzy knew that sometimes the things people needed the most protection from were other people; it wasn't fair that life had already given her the miserable lessons which had taught her that.

"It's the other clans, isn't it? We're in danger."

"No, Izzy, we're safe," Elara stepped in, wrapping her arms around Izzy and pulling her in so Izzy's back was pressed tightly against her chest. "Kodiak, Uncle Wynn, River and Dreea are going to protect all of us, and that's why they're moving us to this new place."

"It isn't where I was before, is it?"

Kodiak gulped, suddenly afraid that his plans were going to come crashing down and Izzy wouldn't accept his plans of moving into Terra Firma's old campsite.

"I was so scared being there without you both that I think I'll still be afraid there, even though I know it's different. Besides, didn't Uncle Quill and Uncle Wynn break the entrance? How is that going to keep us safe?"

She meant the shelter, Kodiak realised. He let out a breath of relief but after a moment's reconsideration, he wasn't sure that her assumption made things any easier for them.

"No, Iz, we're not taking about there," he said. "We mean Terra Firma Tribe's old campsite..."

"It sounds a little bit familiar," she admitted, "but I'm not sure."

"It's where you were when Uncle Wynn and Auntie Dreea found you and brought you back here," Elara was cautious in her answer, completely prepared for Izzy to freak out when she connected everything, but it didn't come. At least, not as terribly as she had been bracing for.

Izzy subconsciously scrunched up her face, her breathing shifting so that they could both hear it coming out in hurried exhales, and she stumbled backwards a little into Elara, but she didn't fall apart.

Kodiak reached out, taking hold of her hand and squeezing it in between both of his own. The firmness of his grip on her was enough to draw Izzy's attention his way, and her panic seemed to resolve to second-place as her devotion to Kodiak took over.

"I'm not going to let anything happen to you," he promised. "Do you hear me?"

Izzy nodded, feeling her lower lip quiver with emotion, but she felt a brush of bravery in the air that swept past, somehow able to keep her composure.

"He can't hurt you anymore. And Ell and I are never going away again. You have us, for always."

Izzy drew in a sharp breath, shifting and suddenly looking up at Elara. "For always?" She asked, wondering if Kodiak meant it in the way that Elara had taught her to.

The older girl beamed down at her, running a hand through her long, wavy locks. "That's right, sweet girl," she said. "For always."

"Then I think I'm okay with that," Izzy said, turning back to look at Kodiak, smiling ever-so-slightly as she waited to see whether her acceptance was what he was waiting for. "If you guys will be there with me, then I won't be afraid. We can go anywhere together."

"We will," Kodiak smiled, feeling his heart weigh heavy with adoration. "We'll always be together - the three of us. We'll go home."

Izzy giggled softly to herself, curling her fingers around Kodiak's hand and holding onto him. "Home is other people, silly."

"Did you dad teach you that?" Elara asked, combing her hand through Izzy's hair, already debating which braid to tie it in next. She'd almost forgotten what she was asking the young girl about; that was until she heard her answer.

"No," Izzy said. "You."

Elara's heart swooned in her chest and the murmur that escaped her could only be described as fondness. Her cheeks burnt red with heat - a pride she had never known before - and her arms wrapped tighter around the young girl as she leaned down, sinking her lips against the top of Izzy's head.

"I love you so much," she told her, not needing to hear it back, just needing her to know, and she did.

Izzy giggled once again, Kodiak joining in with his own sounds of joy a he stood up, maintaining his hold on her hand. She knew that he was about to lead them towards Terra Firma Tribe - the same place that held the cell she had been locked up inside, alone - but despite her own searching, Izzy couldn't find any reason in her young heart to feel afraid. In fact, she started to believe that it was impossible to anything but safe when on either side of her stood the two people she loved the most.

//////////

Dreea walked into the meeting room where Sol, Wynn, and Kodiak were waiting for her, all crowded around a slanted table and curiously observing everything they could see. It was dark inside with only a small window for light, everything else being illuminated by one of the many candles they had found around the camp.

"I've gotta say, this place isn't exactly what I was expecting from Calvin," Dreea admitted, already hoping they wouldn't have to stay there for too long.

"I'm with you," Wynn chimed in. "Kind of creepy, if you ask me. Then again, I don't know what else I was expecting from a murderous, kidnapping, sociopath."

"Well, don't get too hung up on redecorating this place. We won't be here long," Sol said. "Are we ready to go through the defence plan?"

Everyone nodded, waiting eagerly to see what Sol had come up with and if they had any contributions to her ideas.

"It's a little rough, but since we know Exile Allegiance are planning on sending a fight, I was thinking it would be worth having a team of fighters stationed a few minute's walk away from here; that way, they could slow down their attack and buy us enough time to arm ourselves and get organised here. We could send the groups out in shifts, maybe even having someone hide out near the beach to see if Reegan and her posse show their faces there."

Wynn sighed, immediately revealing his doubt in Sol's plan - something he wasn't used to feeling.

"What is it?" She asked him. "You don't think it'll work?"

"No, I think it'll work," he told her, "but I also think that it's not a long-term solution."

"We're not going to be here long-term. That's the point," Kodiak said.

"I know. But in case things don't go our way, we have to be prepared to stay here longer than we'd like: that means ensuring we don't just deflect their attacks or slow them down, but be certain that our people are safe here and they will be for however long we're stuck on the island," Wynn said.

"You're right," Kodiak reluctantly agreed. "But since we don't know when Reegan is coming for the fight, our main priority should be focusing our plan of attack - stationing our people, supplying weapons, a strategy for taking down as many of Exile Allegiance as we can. And we have to assume that they'll be coming soon; Reegan knows we're not expecting it, so she'll come when we're least likely to be ready."

"If that's true, then it's best to believe they're already on their way," Dreea said. "Better to have Basilisk armed and ready, even if we end up waiting a long time for Exile Allegiance to show up, then to be unprepared which could result in our deaths."

Sol sighed, letting out an exhausted groan as she dropped her head, wishing to shut out the world for a few moments. "I'll go break the news to them."

"I can do it," Dreea said, noticing her clear defeat. "You led us all up here, got us all settled in; you deserved a break. Besides, I'm sure Chess and Atlantis would love your company for a few hours."

Sol nodded, managing a faint smile at their names, and letting go of a long-old breath. Still, with knowing what was coming Basilisk's way and all that still remained in between her people and going home, she didn't find the next breath any easier to take at all. 

Six // Part Three
Home is other people, silly. // Did you dad teach you that? // No. You.

I have to say, that may be one of my dialogue between Elara and Izzy. ♡ It really tugged on my heart when I was writing it.

It was so sweet to include that cute Kodiak/Elara/Izzy scene in between everything else. That's one of the main reasons Elara ended up becoming a mother to Izzy; so she could continue to hold onto moments of softness and innocence in the face of every tragic thing the world tries to throw at her.

I also really loved getting to know more of Reegan's character in the first scene. She reminds me a lot of Sol in the earlier seasons, which is why I think it's quite interesting that she is so against Sol, and they're now at war with each other. I also think Reegan's newfound relationship/mentorship with Zeek is very similar to that of Sol's and Eryx's (you know, before he tried to kill her, lol), or her and Joren. That was one of my main intentions behind Reegan and Zeek, and I think the fact that Zeek refers to Reegan as "kiddo" - just like Joren did with Sol - is further drawing the comparisons between the two.

I'm so excited for what's to come! And I actually got an update out within 2 days (instead of two weeks like the others, haha) so hopefully that's promising of my writing updates over the next few weeks. I'd like to get this book finished this month, but I can't guarantee it (even though I've been writing this book for 5 months)!!!

10/10/21.