Our People (the Third Book of the Her Weakness series)

Chapter 116

Lexa's POV

"Should we wait here for guards to come to us?" Raven questions. "Or should we go on the offensive and attack?"

We all go silent, thinking. "Waiting here is like waiting for an ambush." I say finally. "We do not know if anyone knows we are here, or if the caves are interconnected."

"So we choose a tunnel, any tunnel and look for a map." Clarke says, looking at me to confirm. I nod my head.

"Alright. Lets go!" Raven cries enthusiastically but luckily has enough sense to keep her voice down. She starts heading toward the tunnel to the far left.

"Wait." I order and she stops in her tracks. "These tunnels are thin and we should choose an order to go in. Raven, Octavia you go first. You two are both good marksmen with your guns-"

"Markswomen," Raven corrects with a wink to Octavia.

"Markswomen," I concede. "You two go first. Go carefully and play it safe. If you must collapse a tunnel, do so carefully and far enough ahead of you that you will not be hit by falling rocks. Then the guards then Clarke and I, and finally Nakai and Luna can bring up the back."

"Why are we in the back?" Nakai asks. "I do not mean to sound like I am trying to fight your orders, I just am curious."

"You two have excellent hearing and are used to the sound of the crashing sea in the background. You should be able to hear anyone approaching from behind us and deal with them." I explain.

"And just remember, guys, that not everyone here is to be taken down." Clarke says. "There are kids and innocent people here. If anyone gives up or doesn't have a weapon, don't attack them unless they attack you. Understand?"

Everyone nods.

"And you all understand the order of people?" I ask and they nod again. "Good. Octavia, Raven, lead the way."

"To the right?" Raven asks Octavia.

"To the right," Octavia confirms. 

"To the left, to the left." Raven sings quietly.

"No singing, babe." Octavia says gently. "As beautiful as your voice is, it could give away where we are."

"I got it, no singing." Raven nods seriously and rests her hands on her hips where her guns are in their holsters.

Raven and Octavia lead us to the tunnel on the farthest right of the cave's wall. We move silently, the seriousness of this hitting us fast. Clarke holds my hand, keeping her touch firm enough to know she is there, but light enough so we could easily pull away should we need those hands.

The tunnel would be completely dark if it were not for the candles on the shelves scraped out of the walls every few yards. It is still dark but well lit enough to see where we are going.

The sound of Octavia and Raven screwing something onto their guns makes me frown, hoping our enemies do not hear it.

The tunnel is longer than I expected, but ends suddenly in front of a large cavern. I cannot see what is in it because I am not in front. Raven uses hand signals to tell us what to expect.

'We seem to have stumbled on barracks for the soldiers. It isn't full, but there are still more than twenty soldiers that I can see.' Raven signs.

I sigh, trying to make it as inaudible as possible. Of course the first place we come to is their barracks. Raven looks back at Clarke and I, making me realize she is waiting for our orders.

'Shoot down as many as you can without the others noticing and we will come in behind you.' I sign back.

Raven nods and leans into Octavia's ear to whisper what I said. She did not see what I signed because she was keeping watch on the soldiers.

Raven and Octavia pull out their guns, which have a long cylindrical thing on their muzzle.

"What is that on the end of their guns?" I whisper to Clarke.

Clarke squints and them smiles. "Smart. Those are silencers, they make guns less loud."

I nod, familiar with the concept after Raven excitedly explained it to me when she found a few perfect for some guns she and Octavia had. It seems like they are finally coming in handy.

Octavia and Raven raise a gun in their dominant hands and mouth numbers counting down. Two "pew" sounds come from their guns and they keep shooting until I can hear shouts coming from inside. Octavia and Raven move into the cavern and to the side so the rest of us can come out of the tunnel.

Clarke and I let go of each other's hands and pull out our swords. The guards charge ahead of us towards the center of the room where pirate-soldiers are running at us.

The first one that slips past the guards' flurry of attacks is easily and swiftly struck down by Clarke and me. She does not survive Clarke's sword going into her gut. Blood dribbles down her lips, her eyes open wide with shock as her weapons falling to the ground with a clang. Clarke pulls out her sword and the pirate cups her wound, blood making her hand red as she falls to the ground.

We cannot focus on her for long because the guards are getting overwhelmed by the number of pirates attacking them, even with Nakai and Luna joining the flurry of weapons and fighting.

Three make their way past them and one falls a moment later, a hole in his head from Octavia or Raven's gun. I raise my swords to block the first attacking, deflecting it in the opposite direction of Clarke. This pirate is a good fighter, they must have been in the Floukru army as I recognize a few of their moves.

They wield a sword and a shield, something as not many warriors favor. It is a frustrating combination, as they are evidently well trained. They block almost every attack with their wooden shield reinforced with iron. And those attacks that are not blocked by the shield are deflected by their sword. This is going to be an interesting fight.

Fight! Fight! Fight! Man, fight scenes are so fun to write. And I have no clue if handguns with silencers make a "pew" sound or not...Hopefully this is good, I've been sick since Christmas Eve (2016 is getting in one last punch in the face). Next chapter, more fighting! I hope you guys all had a good Christmas! Thank you all for reading and for your lovely comments! Stay awesome!