𝐠𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭︱octavia blake, book 2

( eighteen )

"The rover's almost charged. We need to pack up. We'll be home soon."

Harley picked her head up at the sound of Bellamy talking from where she was at the back of the rover. He was ducked out of her view, checking the battery level so they could start moving. She had woken up minutes ago back on land along with the others, only to find out Clarke was given the Flame which was a clear message from Luna. To try any further was a waste of time. They were on their own now, in a war they couldn't possibly survive without a nightblood. Harley was exhausted at the thought. She wanted to know when they'd be done with this. It seemed like days ago they were peacefully at Arkadia, but it all changed in seconds.

"Then what?" Clarke questions Bellamy from where she had been aimlessly pacing back and forth. "Run away?"

Sighing, Bellamy shut the door and hopped off. "We're not running away, Clarke," he answered. "We need to regroup with the others and find another way to defeat - "

"There is no other way!" Clarke interrupted, exclaiming. "We need to find a nightblood. We need to unlock the Flame. It's the only way to stop ALIE." She emphasized her words, sounding a mix of frustration and determination.

"You said Ontari slaughtered them all," Harley spoke up, more tired than anxious. It wasn't an option anymore, but Clarke was holding her ground stubbornly.

From where Jasper was sitting on the rover's top, he adds on to Harley's reminder. "What do you expect us to do, Clarke?" He asked her. "Walk into random villages asking for their nightbloods?"

Stopping her pacing, Clarke ground her heels into the mud and kept her hands in tight fists at her sides before declaring; "If that's what it takes."

Appearing from the back of the rover, Octavia hopped out and slammed the door shut behind her, passing Harley, before shooting a glare to Clarke. "No, Clarke," she protested the stubborn leader. "If ALIE can find us on Luna's rig, then she can find us anywhere." Her stare darkened. "I won't help you destroy another innocent grounder village." Harley winced at the coldness in Octavia's voice, remembering what happened at Tondc. It wasn't the first time she had been hurt in a fight, but a permanent reminder of a white scar on her arm would forever be there.

"If we don't find a nightblood, there won't be any grounder villages or a home for us to go back to," Clarke fires back stubbornly, taking a step to Octavia with an equally frigid glare.

Sensing the drift between Clarke and Octavia, Bellamy breaks through to them both by pointing out; "That's all the more reason we go there and make sure our friends are okay."

"He's right, Clarke. We have to regroup," Harley pipes in when seeing the agitated look on her face. It seemed like they were completely out of solutions, and it was best they let their friends know what's happening. Clarke knew they were right, and she had lost. Tight lipped, she nodded before stamping away until she was past the trees and into the woods.