Episode Three, Part 5:
You're Still a Traitor

Sol knew she wasn't going to get anywhere in her negotiations with Tobias, and rather than spending her entire evening arguing with him, she had to take things into her own hands.

"I promised my people I'd be back before dark," she said, "so I'm going to leave. I hope you come to your senses soon and give me an answer because Basilisk don't want to wait around here for much longer. You know where to find me when you want to talk."

She wasn't quite ready to return to the shore either, but she didn't want Tobias to know what she was up to. Rather than walking past him in the direction of Exile Allegiance's camp, Sol turned back to her side of the island, walking until she was certain she was out of sight, and then proceeded to take the long route towards Tobias' clan.

She wasn't stupid enough to head to his camp; regardless of their alliance - however uncertain it was - she still knew the risks involved if something were to suddenly change or better yet, if Tobias caught her and had the wrong impressions. The only other place she could think to find some answers was the shelter...

It still wasn't safe to visit Terra Firma Tribe, so it seemed like Sol's only other option if she wanted to return to the beach with some kind of answers.

Initially, she wasn't even sure how to get there, but after following the trail of dead bodies, Sol soon found herself standing outside of the large, evacuated building. It towered over her - standing at twice the size of what the Sovereigns' Quarters had done, and Sol could only imagine how afraid Izzy must have been when she was carried inside, freshly torn away from Kodiak and Elara.

Shaking the distressing thoughts from her mind, Sol took a quick scan around the area before making her way inside the shelter, noticing the damage from where Wynn and Quill had forced their way inside.

She had almost expected it to be like the Bunker: cozy, crammed with mismatching furniture, every inch decorate to feel homely and secure, but it wasn't. It had rows and rows of bookcases - half of them filled with tools and valuable supplies, and various chairs and tables that were still scattered around from where the people had been inside.

There were several rooms leading off from the sides; she checked them, finding an outhouse in one, a food preparation room - which was empty, and finally, what appeared to be an office.

She ventured inside, curious at what she would find and what the room was used for, if it even was at all... The grand desk which she assumed was usually kept neatly centred, was bare of all it's decorations - everything seeming to have been pushed onto the floor by it's legs in some kind of desperate rage. As her eyes followed the mess, she noticed a large, round seal on the wall to her side.

Her hands reached out, curious if the handle would turn and reveal something; to her relief, it did, but it was just a bleak tunnel behind with only a trace of sunlight to let her see through, and Sol wasn't at all interested at stepping foot inside.

When she closed the seal, hearing the loud, metal clank, it suddenly hit Sol that it must have been the way Izzy snuck out of the shelter... From what she had seen in the other rooms, there was no other way out - nothing even resembling a secret hatch apart from the one she had just stumbled upon. Given her own reluctance to explore the tunnel, she couldn't fathom how someone as young as Izzy had found the courage to test out her escape, especially without Elara and Kodiak around.

If anything, it only made Sol more determined to get her people home - so their days of fear and running for their lives were over, especially for Izzy.

As she turned to retreat back to the desk, the torn edges of a paper bordering the perimetres of the seal caught her attention. Something had been ripped, she concluded. Something which was covering the seal - hiding it out of sight.

As Sol glanced down, she noticed the large, scrap of paper trampled under her feet, but the details of the map were more than readable. Curious at whether it would reveal more details about the island, Sol unravelled it as best as she could and laid it on the table.

The edges wouldn't stay flat and as minuscule of an issue it was, it was getting on Sol's last nerve. With a huff, she reached down to the floor and picked up the nearest object in reach, using it to trap the corners of the map to table so they wouldn't lift up.

With it finally visible, Sol perched herself on the desk chair and studied the map, instantly recognising what she saw without even needing to read 'The City of Targo' scribbled in messy, cursive handwriting at the top. Her heart twinged slightly, hating that it hadn't faded from her memory one bit, and all it took was a single glance at the map for Sol to recall every detail of her time in The City.

Trying to find something to distract her misery, Sol traced her finger through the lines of the hallway until she reached what had been hers and Chessca's room, but something was missing...

Frowning, Sol checked in the draws underneath the desk, digging through them until she found what she was looking for. With the pen secure in her hand, she scribbled on the map - adding a fundamental correction to the document.

'Commander's Room' had been crossed out and corrected with 'Commander Riverly and Chessca's room', with even a tiny box drawn inside to represent Chessca's bed.

It was silly, but it felt like a way for Sol to reclaim the power of the memory; to regain her dominance and authority, to remind herself that even in spite of what The City of Targo had done to her, she and Chessca had both made it out alive, anyway.

But as the moment passed and her eyes had surrendered their pathway on the map, Sol knew she was no closer to a plan, and she felt weighed down by the burden she felt she was becoming. Exhausted, she rested her head on the desk, letting out a deep breath and glancing ahead.

Hestia.

Sol's nose scrunched up, trying to understand what her mind had already figured out, but she hadn't caught up... She reached out, grabbing onto the small figuring of a ship which was what she had used to keep the map held down, and examined it closely.

Hestia - the name struck her again, reading it from the carving on the side of the ship, twisting it around in her hands to see if there was anything else engraved onto it. Salvation from The City.

This was it! Sol let out a breath of relief, feeling her shoulders immediately lighten. This was how Tobias had gotten his people onto the island, and how she was going to get hers off of it...

//////////

Sol gripped the figurine of the ship securely in her hands, sighing tiredly as the beach came into sight.

She continued forwards, relieved to see that her people had settled down after the war and all seemed to be resting around the various fire pits that were burning along their camp. It almost felt miraculous that Basilisk had faced so little fatalities in the war - almost as if the world was throwing her a break, giving her a victory as if to make up for all the losses she had faced. Either way, it was one less thing she had to worry about and whoever she needed to thank for that, she was tremendously grateful.

"I don't believe it..."

"Hmm?" Sol turned around, certain that someone had been speaking to her.

"You're back before dark," Kodiak smiled, walking up to her side. "I was sure I was going to have to send out that search party for you."

"Shut it," Sol laughed, punching his arm faintly. "I'm capable of doing as I'm told every once in a while."

"Well, I've know you most of our lives, and this is definitely a first-"

Kodiak barely had a chance to finish his sentence before Sol shoved him away, teasingly threatening to do more damage if he continued his mocking.

"Okay," he held his hands up in surrender, slowly retreating back over to Sol as they walked in the direction of the Sovereign's tents. "Did you find what you were looking for? Let me guess, a way home?"

"Yep," Sol nodded, passing the small ship into Kodiak's hands, offering no context for her own entertainment.

"What's this?" Kodiak questioned, not receiving anything from Sol other than a knowing glance from the corner of her eye, trying to suppress her laughter. "Don't tell me this is our way out of here... I know ships travel on water, Riv, but we're not all going to fit on this tiny thing."

"I don't see you offering up any alternatives."

"That's because you're usually the best person for the job. But I'm having second thoughts this time around."

"Come on, Kodiak, you've never been one to doubt me. Don't start now," she continued their banter, more comforted than she could express at being able to have these tiny fragments of light with him in the face of so much, relentless darkness.

"I don't doubt you," he said. "And I know whatever you come up with is going to be the right thing... But I'm also glad as hell that our people have three other Sovereigns to secretly put together a real plan when their Nobel comes up with a solution like this."

Sol laughed. A real laugh that she felt deep in her stomach; a feeling that hadn't been around in a long time. "The four of us will having a meeting tomorrow, if Dreea's back," she said. "I think I've got a lead."

"Can't wait to hear it," Kodiak smiled at her, gradually drifting up ahead to where Elara and Izzy were hovering outside of their tent, as if waiting for him. "Get some rest," he said. "And don't keep yourself up worrying about this. I'll see you in the morning."

"Night Kodiak," she called after him, trying her best to listen to her advice, but she could already feel herself wide awake with anxiety, and nothing in the world was going to put her heart to rest until she knew her people were going to be fine. 

Three // Part Five
Hestia.

Hestia is an Easter egg. Sister to Poseidon (Neptunum = latin translation of Poseidon). I love including little details like this in my books, hehe. Like with Kodiak's name of 'Ammon' in S8.

Hope everyone's doing well!

In interesting news, my dog was freaking out about A ROCK for 10 minutes today! I eventually had to pull it out of the bushes and set it on the ground (it was smaller than my fist) and he was jumping and so spooked bY A ROCK!!! I do not get this dog.

21/07/21.

Sorry for the delay in posting - Wattpad servers shutdown right as I was about to post this.