KING, the hundred

thirty: together again

"I've waited a hundred years
But I'd wait a million more for you"

turning page by sleeping at last

"Avery?" Octavia's mouth hung open in disbelief.

Avery stared back, her eyes wide. Octavia took in the girl's appearance for a second. She had blood staining her shoulder and arm, sweat was pouring down her face, and her skin was pale. As soon as Avery saw her friend, she relaxed. Relaxation turned out to be a significant mistake as she slowly collapsed to the forest floor.

Octavia was at her side in an instant, gripping the girl's shoulders to get a sense of her condition. Octavia put a hand to Avery's forehead and nearly recoiled at the touch. She needed something to drink, and fast.

Octavia shot up from her position and ran back, over the bodies of the grounders, to retrieve Lincoln's bag. Ignoring the pain that blossomed in her chest at the sight of Lincoln's belongings, she pulled out a small flask.

She hurried back to Avery's side and tipped the small flask up to her lips. Avery didn't think she'd ever tasted anything sweeter than that small drink of water. She took a moment to compose herself and asked the main question on her mind.

"Where's Lincoln?" Avery asked. Octavia's eyes filled with tears.

"Gone," She replied, trying her absolute hardest to keep it together. "Reapers took him."

"I'm so sorry, O." Avery replied, putting a soft hand on her friend's shoulder.

Then, they heard gunshots in the distance.

The pair made eye contact.

"Either I'm going crazy or those were gunshots." Avery said, her speech starting to slur. Octavia nodded at her friend.

"You're not." Octavia said. More gunshots went off. "They're not far!"

Avery used most of the strength she had left to push herself up with her forearms. Octavia looked appalled at Avery's effort to move, but the King shrugged her concerns off.

"What are you waiting for?" Avery asked, trying her best to sound cocky despite her exhaustion. "Grounders don't use guns."

Octavia worked quickly, slinging Avery's arm around her right shoulder and Lincoln's pack over her left.

Avery walked unevenly, stumbling over various roots and rocks on the forest floor. But Octavia was there to catch her each time. As they made their way towards the gunshots, the trees around them thinned, revealing the crash sight of one of the Ark's stations.

Unlike the crash Avery had seen, this crash created a large crater in the side of a mountain and knocked acres of trees and rocks down with it. The debris field was massive, and Avery could easily tell that she wouldn't be able to walk through it easily.

Octavia and Avery spotted the grounders at the same time. The grounders fired their arrows and spears from various places in the forest. They could also hear the cries of what they assumed were delinquents below them, closer to the spaceship-made crater.

Avery unhooked her arm from around Octavia's neck and leaned against a nearby tree. Octavia began to protest, but Avery cut her off.

"Go." She said, urging Octavia forward. "Save them."

As she watched Octavia disappear into the trees in front of her, Avery slowly lowered herself to the ground in between a large rock and a tree. She prayed that the location gave her enough cover from the grounders.

When the loud foghorn sounded, Avery smirked at her friend's genius. She ducked down further as she heard many of the grounder's footsteps as they ran for cover from the "acid fog." Avery was counting on that noise actually being from Octavia. If it wasn't, she didn't think she had the energy to run anyway.