Hey, Troy—come back here," I whispered sharply, my instincts buzzing. I don't know why, but this feels like the moment Raven's supposed to come down.
Charlotte stirred, rubbing her eyes. "W-What happened?" she asked groggily.
"It's nothing. Just go back to sleep for now," I assured her with a small smile, brushing her shoulder gently before standing.
I moved over to Connor, who was still keeping watch by the prisoners. "Connor, wake up. I need you to help Troy guard the camp for the rest of the night." He gave a short nod, already shifting his grip on his spear.
Next, I crouched beside Tomas and Paul, shaking them awake. Both blinked blearily up at me. "What's going on?" Paul muttered.
"Grab your weapons. We're heading out," I ordered, my tone leaving no room for questions.
They exchanged a quick look but didn't argue, quickly reaching for their spears. I, meanwhile, dug into the pack I'd stashed earlier and pulled out three dark, long hooded coats. The fabric was rough but heavy enough to hide our silhouettes. I tossed one to each of them.
"From now on, this is our signature. Wear it," I said firmly. The two nodded, slipping them on, the hoods casting their faces in shadow.
I fastened one of my swords across my back, the weight settling comfortably between my shoulders, while keeping the other in my hand. Tomas and Paul gripped their spears tightly, standing ready.
I pulled my hood up. "Alright," I muttered, feeling the anticipation coil in my chest. "Let's go."
The night was still thick with darkness when we slipped out of the bunker. Our hoods hid most of our faces, shadows clinging to us as we moved like wraiths through the forest.
"Hey, look—it's a meteorite!" Paul suddenly whispered, pointing up at the night sky.
Tomas squinted, his voice full of awe. "Cool… let's go check it out."
I stopped in my tracks, sighing. "That's not a meteorite. Follow me."
"What??" Both of them spoke at once, stunned.
"Yeah… and this is gonna be troublesome. If I don't act fast, over three hundred people on the Ark will be sacrificed. I need that transmitter before it's too late." I thought, but I pressed forward, leading them through the forest.
The trees slowed us down, and so did the damned mutants. Twice we had to stop and kill smaller, twisted creatures, their deformed bodies snarling out of the underbrush. Each delay cut into our time. By the time we broke through the last line of trees, dawn was already bleeding across the sky.
Too late.
I clenched my jaw, frustration burning through me as I spotted the pod half-buried in the earth ahead. We rushed over. Paul was wide-eyed, staring. "Whoa… it really is a pod. How could that be?"
I ignored him and yanked open the hatch, scanning inside. Empty.
"Shit!" My boot slammed into a rock, sending it clattering across the dirt. My fists tightened. I'm too late. The sacrifice is already in motion.
I forced myself to breathe, then turned sharply to Paul and Tomas. "Enough looking around. Follow me."
We moved again, and soon the sound of running water reached us. A river. This is it… this is where Bellamy tossed the transmitter.
But as we neared the bank, movement caught our eyes.
"Grounders," Tomas whispered, lifting his spear.
"No… not them. It's the camp." I lowered his weapon with a hand.
Before I could say more, one of the figures by the river spotted us and shouted, "Grounders!!"
Every head turned our way. Weapons raised.
Then a voice rang out above the others. "Come here!" It was Bellamy.
I exhaled slowly. "Follow my lead. Stay calm."
Paul and Tomas stiffened, but obeyed. We stepped into the open. I counted about ten of them—Bellamy with his gun pointing at us, Clarke standing close, Finn tense at her side, and… there she was. Raven. Sharp-eyed, strong-willed, beautiful even with dirt smudging her face. A genius, a fighter… and Finn's girl.
Too bad for him.
They were all bunched together, half-shielding Raven, weapons of scrap metal and makeshift spears pointed at us. They didn't recognize us, not with our hoods casting shadows. Bellamy's finger twitched against the trigger.
Then I spoke. Calm. Even. "It's been a few days, huh?"
The reaction was instant. Confusion rippled through their ranks. My voice sounded normal—too normal.
Slowly, I reached up, pulled back my hood. Paul and Tomas followed suit.
Bellamy's eyes widened. His gun lowered a fraction. "Wait—you're that guy!! You're still alive?"
Clarke froze, recognition flashing across her face. "Bellamy… this is the one you told me about?"
"Yeah," Bellamy nodded, still in disbelief. "This is him."
Raven frowned, looking between us. "What's going on? Who are they?"
"When we landed, they… disappeared," Finn said cautiously, his hand on Clarke's shoulder.
"Disappeared?" Raven pressed, still skeptical.
"Yeah," Finn confirmed grimly.
I stepped forward, Paul and Tomas at my sides. The tension spiked—Bellamy's gun came back up, Finn shifted protectively in front of Clarke.
But Clarke's voice cut through, steady. "Wait. It's alright."
Her eyes locked on me. "Where have you been?"
I ignored her question. My voice was sharper now, colder. "No. Answer mine first. What are you doing here?"
The words hung heavy in the air. My blood ran cold. I already knew the answer. The transmitter wasn't fixed. The Ark would sacrifice over three hundred lives.
I clenched my fists behind my coat, forcing my anger down.
Hey, what's with the hostility?" Raven asked, her tone sharp but cautious.
I glanced at her, then swept my gaze over the rest of them. They were all standing there, tense, waiting, surprised at my words. My voice cut through the silence.
"Just answer my question."
Clarke stepped forward hesitantly, her voice softening as if to calm me down. "We tried… but the transmitter failed. It's gone. People on the Ark… they're planning a sacrifice."
Her words were like a blade twisting into my chest. My fists clenched. My anger rose with every second that passed. They could all feel it—my mood shifting like a storm. Bellamy stiffened, his rifle heavy in his hands, eyes narrowing at me.
Finally, I turned my full gaze on him. My voice thundered out, raw with fury.
"You bastard. What have you done?!"
The others flinched at the sudden outburst. Clarke gasped. Finn tightened his grip on his weapon. Even Raven froze, caught off guard.
But Bellamy… he stayed silent. His jaw clenched, but he didn't speak, didn't deny it.
I forced myself to breathe, steadying my voice though the anger still burned beneath. "Fine. Calm… calm. Now what?"
Raven glanced at the broken pod, then back at me. "Well, now that I think about it… maybe we can try another way. It'll take a long time to fix this transmitter, but it's not impossible. There are options."
I sighed, shoulders heavy. So it can't be changed. Not yet. Not unless I push things myself.
My eyes flicked over the group. And these people… they're only going to bring more trouble onto themselves sooner or later.
"Well then," I said flatly, breaking the silence. "What are we waiting for?"
They looked at me uncertainly, unsure if it was an order or a taunt. But I ignored them for the moment, turning instead to Paul and Tomas. I pulled them a few steps aside, lowering my voice.
"Go back to the base. Be careful on the way. Start the training I told you about—hand-to-hand combat with the grounders. Troy's in charge while I'm gone. And don't forget…" I paused, looking them both in the eye, "…hunting grounders. I want results."
"Yes, sir," they both replied in unison, though Tomas hesitated for a moment.
"What about you?" he asked. "What about them?"
I smirked faintly, patting his shoulder once. "I'll go with them. Just follow what I taught you. Trust my instructions, and you'll be fine."
They both nodded firmly, then pulled up their hoods again before disappearing into the treeline, shadows melting back toward our camp.
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