Who We Are [Bellamy Blake]

Chapter 53

The gasp that quivered out from her throat and lips seemed to fill the entire room, like a thick substance that would drown those who were in the room. Her eyesight came back, and she felt an immense amount of pain rippling through her entire body. Her breathing was short breathed, hardly any air getting in or out, but she was alive, and she could feel it. The pain, the emotions, the pleasure, the realization. She wrapped her arms around Bellamy despite everything in her being hurting, and she felt herself calm down right away.

"Oh, Bell..." She whispered into his ear, hearing her voice as if for the first time. She shook her head into the crook of his neck, and then realized the level she had stooped too. Pushing back, she breathed in deeply through her nose and looked him right in the eyes, "Why'd you come here? Someone would have seen you."

Bellamy looked off put by her comment, but he knew that it was just who she was as a person. She would never show attachment if she could help it. "One of the people in here helped me after Lincoln... You know. They still don't know I'm here, but I have to leave and stop the fog."

"Go, I can't stay, they know who I am." Athena said, "There are ways out of here."

"I know a few." Jasper said, speaking for the first time.

Athena looked over and nodded at the younger man, then back at Bellamy, "You have a radio?"

"I do." He nodded, "But the frequencies might be being listened in on, so if we use them, it must be carefully."

"I understand." She stood, rising shakily to her feet. "Where are you with the fog?"

"Getting there." Bellamy's face tightened, "They... they launched a missile at Tondc."

"Who was there?"

"I don't know." He said, "Lexa and Clarke... O."

"I'll go back." She said, "If Lexa and Clarke are dead, they will need someone to lead. Lexa herself asked me to become her second."

"Bell, they're sending down guards." Jasper said in a panic, "We have to get her out of here now, and you."

"Right." Bellamy walked beside Athena, careful to keep an eye on her in case she fell. They made it to the shoot that sent dead bodies down to the Reapers. Bellamy grabbed her wrist and in his hand was a small, silver cylindrical device. "This will stop the Reapers, but I need to test it on you first."

Athena nodded, and then Bellamy pressed the button. The noise was irritating, and it made Athena feel like her insides were twitching, but it did not bring her to her knees. She had not gone through the excessive and gruesome conditioning that those turned into Reapers did. You had to be given the drug long enough to want to kill for it, to fetch human beings for torture, to obey orders and fight to the death. Athena had only had a small dose, and while it was still in her system, she did not have the carnal drive that made her one.

Bellamy placed a smooth, cold gun in her hands, "Take this. If there are any Reapers down there, and you lose that-" he pointed to the cylindrical device, "you can use this."

She nodded, as if taking orders from a commander. In reality, it was the person she cared for most trying to keep her alive, but she couldn't see it that way. Not now; that would make it harder if she lost him, and he was in a far more dangerous situation than she was once she was out of Mount Weather. His cover had not been blown yet, and so he had some security. He pressed his hand to her shoulder, and she glanced at it. When she looked back up, she felt Bellamy's familiar and soft lips on hers, and for a moment, nothing had happened to her over the last few days. Nothing that was worth remembering when his lips were pressed against hers. It was a swift kiss, as they were cutting it close on time, and then she was sent down the shoot where hundreds of Grounder bodies had been tossed like leftovers no one wanted.

As she made it to the container at the bottom, she landed of the soft bodies of dead friends. She swallowed and held her breath, as the scent of death was fresh in the air. Looking left and right, she saw she was in the clear for now; they had probably sent out their Reapers to pick people off, but the Grounder army was too large for a few Reapers to even make a dent in their numbers. As long as Bellamy could turn off the fog, they would not stand a chance against the alliance that had been made. Their time was up, it was time for those who could breathe Earth's air to rule. Those who could not survive on their planet should die; survival of the fittest.

Despite the endless tunnels and mines leading to dead ends, Athena found her way to the base of the mountain, and she knew she was close to the army. She kept quiet as she navigated through the trees, wishing that the stars were out so that she could use them to guide her, but it was daylight, and she was extremely vulnerable out there. Any guards around Mount Weather could spot her from a mile away. She needed to find cover, and fast. They were likely to be panicking about the radiation leak that killed Dr. Tsing, but that also meant that they would be on high alert for her, the escapee.

When the camp was in sight, Athena neared carefully. They would be on high alert, and she did not look like herself. Black underneath her eyes, her shirt torn and her body bloody, she wouldn't be surprised if they took her for a Reaper and shot her down before she got within five hundred meters of the camp. But it was Aslan who came rushing out towards her, his stocky stance belonging only to someone of his size. Sauntering over like a tame bear, he began to shake his head.

"Thought you'd be in there for at least a few days." He mocked, playful tones to his voice.

"Things took a turn for the worse." She smiled up at the big oaf.

"Yeah, we found Lincoln."

"Can I see him?"

"No way." Aslan shook his head, "You'll strangle him."

"That was my plan."

"Come on, I'll get you caught up." He said, "Your boy still in there?"

Athena breathed smoothly then, realizing that things were going to work out. Aslan had that calming presence on occasion, and she knew that no matter what, they would figure this out. That optimism flooded her and it felt sickening, but she couldn't help but smile. "He's doing what he was made for; taking control and doing what needs to be done."

Ah, seven more chapters. How exciting! I wanted to make this story last longer, but I really want to focus on editing my Red Riding Hood stories and creating more to them. I've actually been meeting with a local author whose published tons of books, and I think I might be able to go somewhere with it. So, chapter 60 and then an epilogue and this story will be wrapped up :)