Haunted || Octavia Blake || 1 ||

29: S t o r m C l o u d s

"Of course," Sinclair replied.

"Clarke, is my son with you?" Chancellor Jaha inquired, a touch of hope in his voice.

Clarke paused and glanced over at Bellamy and I, tears of remorse in her eyes.

Bellamy sighed and walked forward a couple paces. Slowly, he picked up the radio and said, "Chancellor Jaha? This is Bellamy Blake. I - I'm so sorry. Wells - Wells is dead, sir."

Silence sounded from the other end of the line. A few indistinct scraping noises and a few muffled voices could be heard. Then, Abby's tone broke through the radio, "Clarke, I'm going to talk you through the extraction step-by-step, okay?"

Before Clarke could reply, a loud gust of wind rattled the loose pieces of tin lining the sides of the drop-ship. The small lights showing up on the dashboard next to Raven flickered on and off.

"The storm," I whispered as I glanced around. "It's here."

"Clarke, give five ... to medical ... Medic ..."

"What?" Clarke shouted as she hurried back over to Finn's unconscious body. "Raven, what's wrong?"

Raven lifted the radio's headset that was lying nearby on the table and placed it over her ears as she examined the dashboard in front of her. She shook her head. "It's not the radio. It's the storm."

"Clarke ..." Abby's voice broke through the speakers once again. "We need to hurry. Weather forecasts are telling us that there is a hurricane right on top of you."

Clarke nodded as she removed the blankets from Finn's sweating body. "No kidding. Okay, I hear you."

A loud crack of thunder sounded from the sky above us and a flash of lightning illuminated the room. The howling wind started to drive pelting rain against the sides of the drop-ship. The whole compartment creaked and groaned at the fierce battering it was receiving.

I stood up from my chair, wiping the saliva and blood from my face. Quickly, I snatched two tin cups from a crate in the corner and knelt down beside a large barrel of rainwater that was being kept in the drop-ship for a situation exactly like this.

I dipped the cups into the fresh water and brought them back to Clarke so she could cool Finn down before the extraction took place.

"Thanks," Clarke gratefully received the water from me and turned back to sponging Finn down. Raven left the headset in the care of Monty so she, too, could assist Clarke.

Abby's voice cut through the crackling static of the radio and began calling out instructions to Clarke.

Not really knowing what else to do, I backed away from everyone and folded my arms across my chest in an effect to stop them from shaking. I set myself down next to the water barrel and quenched my own thirst before turning to glance towards my left.

The two grounders whom Bellamy had caught were both chained to the wall in a far corner of the room. Looks of anger and resentment were clearly evident on their features as they studied the chaotic scene before them. The storm had completely blocked out the sun so it was too dark to properly see them, but I knew, I knew that one of those grounders was the boy who had blocked my way of escape in the tunnels. I just knew it.

I looked over at Bellamy, who was so intent on watching Clarke operate on Finn that he hadn't even noticed my absence. If he knew that one of those grounders had been apart of my capture earlier, he would kill him. I couldn't risk that. Not before I talked to him. Not before I found out why he saved my life. I had to keep that bit of information to myself ... for now.

A loud scream burst from Finn's lip and I jumped in surprise. He was now awake, thrashing and crying with pain. Clarke had just taken out the knife and Raven was trying to calm him down.

Suddenly, Finn's eyes rolled back in his head. His fists and jaw clenched tightly shut. Salvia burst from his mouth as his whole body began to shake.

He was having a seizure!

"Clarke!" Raven yelled. "Clarke, help!"

Clarke rushed to Finn's side and tried to hold him down as she exclaimed, "Get my mother on the radio, now!"

Raven only paused for a moment before rushing to the dashboard. Desperately she hit at the buttons on the machine but the lights went out before she could get transmission. "The radio's dead!" she yelled, whirling back around to face Clarke. "Interference from the storm."

She sprinted back to Finn's bed and dropped to her knees beside him. "Please Clarke," she pleaded, tears running down her cheeks, "don't let him die."

Clarke pressed her lips into a thin, firm line as she stared down at Finn. "It's the poison," she stated. "It's affecting his brain. Quick, Bellamy, help me roll him over onto his side. There'll be fluid in his lungs. He'll choke! Quick!"

Bellamy hurried to aide Clarke and together they tipped Finn over. Finn emptied the contents of his stomach onto the floor with a loud gurgling sound.

"The seizure, it's stopping," Clarke called out. Suddenly, she snapped her head up and glared at the two grounders who were sitting on the opposite side of the room.

"This is all your fault!" she growled angrily.

Glowering furiously at the grounders, Clarke snatched up the knife that she had extracted from Finn's chest and stormed over to them, Bellamy not far behind.

"Clarke," I frowned at her as she passed me. I slowly got to my feet, watching as Clarke shoved the knife in one of the grounders' faces.

"What's on this?" she screamed. "Is there an antidote? Tell me! He's gonna die!"

"Clarke," I stepped forward and grasped her arm. "I - I don't think he understands you. T-they don't speak English."

"Oh he understands alright," Bellamy shot back as he withdrew his belt from his pants and cracked it menacingly through the air. "And he's gonna tell us even if I have to force it out of him!"

"Bellamy!" I cried out. "No, don't! This is not who we are."

Bellamy only gave me a quick side glance as he responded, "It is now."

"Wait!" I called out, placing a restraining hand on Bellamy's chest. "I - I have an idea. Clarke, give me the knife."

Before Clarke could protest, I reached over and snatched the knife from her. I slowly walked forward until I was standing right in front of the grounder who had stopped me in the tunnels. Looking into his deep hazel eyes, ridden with pain and anger, I whispered, "Please, please tell me what the antidote is ... otherwise ... I'm going to die too."

Then, with one quick move of my wrist, I slashed the blade across the palm of my hand and watched as a stream of bright red blood erupted from my skin and dripped onto the floor.

Gif: Octavia as Clarke stalks past her towards the grounders.

XX