ASCENSION: BOOK 3- APOCALYPSE.

Chapter 9: Return To Arkadia.

As we cautiously approached the gates to Arkadia, the guards in the watch towers trained their arrows upon us.
"State your business!" One of them shouted.
"We request an audience with Abby Kom Skaikru." I replied.
"And you are?" He questioned.
"You don't recognise me do you, Miller? Have I really changed so much in the past four months?" I asked him, hoping some familiarity of who I was would spark his memory.
I watched as he glared at me, unsure of this stranger using his name and then it hit him. Miller looked on in shock and confusion, unable to process the image of the woman before him.
"This can't be..." he stammered as I interrupted his bewilderment.
"Open the gates I need to speak with my mother."
Miller immediately called for the gates to be opened and allowed us to ride into the Skaikru compound.
As Luna and I cautiously rode past the people of my clan, all eyes were upon us. People stopped what they were doing and looked on in shock at my presence. I heard my name being spoken in disbelief as I felt a nervous energy begin to take a hold of me.
"Hold your head up high, Skaigada. Ste yuj." Luna said, keeping me in check. I was relieved to have her by my side in this difficult time.
A crowd began to gather as we dismounted our horses. From inside of The Ark Bellamy approached to see what was causing such a disruption. As soon as he saw my face he stopped in his tracks as though he'd seen a ghost.
"Clarke?" He spoke, struggling to understand how a dead woman now stood before him.
"Bellamy, it's good to see you," I replied with empathy.
He was lost for words as were all who now surrounded me. I slowly walked over to him and looked at the man who I'd known since childhood. His eyes were glazed, months of sorrow once again filling his heart.
It took all of my might to hold  back my tears as he pulled me closer and hugged me tightly.
"I'm so sorry, Sky Brother. I'm so sorry I couldn't come home," I whispered to him.
This was the first step in mending what was broken. I only hoped the rest my people would understand the choice I had made.

As the initial shock of my sudden return from the dead had begun to  subside, we sought privacy inside The Ark to talk about my absence and of what we all now faced.
I introduced Bellamy to Luna and explained that, after the events of Mount Weather, I could no longer be a part of the world I was born into. He struggled to understand why I would choose to leave my loved ones behind, but ultimately Bellamy came to realise how broken The War Of The Shadow Bloods had left me.
He spoke of how things had changed in the past four months. My mother was no longer the leader of Skaikru, she was devastated by news of my death and blamed Lexa for allowing me to return to The Mountain. This eventually prompted her to abdicate from her leadership role, choosing to no longer involve herself with the politics of Lexa's Coalition. Instead she focused on her role as healer to our people.
A vote was taken and Bellamy had been given the honour of becoming the new leader of Skaikru. I was so proud of him, yet it hurt to think my mother would hold Lexa responsible for the decisions I had made.
Octavia was the new Skaikru Ambassador to The Coalition and was stationed in Polis at our embassy for the majority of her time. The Blake siblings had come so far since we were children, both now responsible for the leadership and political standing of Skaikru. It gave me great comfort to know they now guided our Clan.
I asked Bellamy if he would take me to see my mother but he explained she was dealing with her patients. Facing her would have to wait, there was one other person I urgently needed to speak with about the threat that would soon descend upon us. The one person that could shed some light on the prospect of another impending Praimfaya, Raven Reyes.

The three of us found Raven lying on the floor, hard at work in Arkadia's control room, her head underneath one of the computer consoles.
"Ok, Monty that should do it. Re-boot the solar panel systems now." She uttered unaware of our presence.
Monty didn't answer her, as with the rest of Arkadia, he stood in shock as I stepped into view.
"Did it work? Are we back online?" She pursued, yet still no answer.
"Monty? What the hell are you..." Raven suddenly stopped talking as she moved from under the console to meet my gaze.
"Hello Raven," I nervously spoke.
An uncomfortable silence filled the room as Raven looked me up and down, unsure if her eyes were deceiving her. She slowly got to her feet before finally speaking, "Griffin? You've got to be kidding me? No one trapped inside of that mountain survived! How is this even possible?"
"Raven, I can explain ..." I started before she swiftly interrupted me, the realisation of my actions now apparent.
"Explain what exactly, Clarke? That you've been alive all this time? You let us think you were dead! We mourned you, all of us, your friends, your mother, Lexa!" she growled.
"Raven you need to calm down," Bellamy interjected.
"There's a dead woman standing in front of me, how calm do you expect me to be, Bellamy?" she yelled.
As the situation began to get heated Luna tried to calm things down, "You all know Clarke and you know she always has good reasons for the decisions she makes. Now is not the time for judgement."
"And you are?" Raven abruptly asked.
"Luna Kom Floukru," she replied.
Raven suddenly realised who she was speaking to but it did nothing to calm her temper, "You're Luna? As in The Nightblood who fled from her conclave? Well, this is just perfect!"
"Raven, enough! Deal with your anger another time. Right now there's more important things to consider," Bellamy demanded order in the room, knowing that time was of the essence.
Raven reluctantly adhered to the leader of Skaikru, "Fine! Tell us why you've decided to rise from the dead, Wanheda."
I was saddened that Raven would call me by that name, but I understood it came from a place of hurt. She felt betrayed and it broke my heart that I'd caused her such anguish.
"Despite what you think of me, I need your help, Raven. We've been warned of something coming to our lands, something that will rival the effects of Praimfaya. I need to know if there is any truth in this, I need to know if we all now face extinction."