─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
"JOHN MBEGE... SLICED THROAT. ROMA BRAGG... SPEAR TO THE CHEST. NOT AS LUCKY AS ME."
As Jasper rambled on, counting the people they've lost since touching the ground, Riley did her best to block him out. She tried to stay focused on Monty and Raven's project, encouraging them with silent words in her head to hurry. She'd look back from the door to the control room, before back to the computers, observing what the pair were working so hard on.
"Finn Collins... Death by Clarke."
Riley's never met Finn, but heard a bit about him. He was once Raven's family, and had to pay the price for a mass murder. She could see Raven visibly tense at the mention of him, her hands freezing in place, before she shook her head to brush it off and continue as Jasper went on.
"Dax... Death by Clarke."
"This should do it," Raven mumbled, positioning a cord to one of the computer's boxes. Riley watched, on edge with feat setting in the pit of her chest. This had to work, she hoped.
"Atom... Acid fog, then death by Clarke... Trina and Pascal... Gone."
Ignoring Jasper, Raven inhaled sharply and shut her eyes tightly as she plugged in the cord, frightened this wouldn't work. To Riley's amazement, the computer screens began to light up, green words and numbers flashing across. She grinned as Monty pumped his fist in the air, shouting in excitement, but wincing shortly after from his injury. "You're in! It worked!" He exclaimed, patting Raven's shoulder from behind.
Raven was completely stunned, gasping in amazement before she got back on track to the mission. "We still have to get the kill switch without ALIE finding us," she said, pulling the keyboard close to her.
"Connor and Myles... Choked on plastic, thanks to Murphy. Drew... Ninja star to the face. That was a good one."
Huffing, Riley rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms over her chest. She hadn't even known these people, never met them once, but hearing the horrors that they've endured from Jasper, who sounded so careless from being chipped was upsetting for anyone. But remembering that Monty and Raven were able to hack back into ALIE made Riley smile, proud, knowing they could save their friends.
Suddenly, a familiar female voice that wasn't Jasper's rang through the speaker. "Why'd you guys lock the door?" It was Harper, Riley realized, and her eyes widened. She turned around just as Monty raced towards the pad.
Pressing the button, Monty whispered to the one of the other side, hoping no one else could hear him. "Harper, do you see Jasper?"
There was a second of silence, before Harper wasn't given a chance to respond, as a large crash ensued from outside the door as Riley heard a small cry of pain. She cursed under her breath as Monty shouted Harper's name, ready to unlock the door. Raven noticed and immediately stopped him, calling out; "Don't!" If they did, Jasper could get in, and with how close they were, he couldn't see what Monty and Raven accomplished.
Riley suddenly felt sick as she watched as Jasper pressed an object to the door's window, the shadow an outline of a gun. Jasper wasn't supposed to be armed, so he must have stolen it off of Harper. "Jasper, if you hurt her.." Monty warned him, his voice low.
"I know you care about her," Jasper informed them, keeping the gun pressed against the door's window. "All you have to do is destroy the machine, and she'll be fine." Riley bit her lower lip, sending a quick glance to the small machine that the other two worked so hard on to save everyone with one of ALIE's chips controlling it. They couldn't. "She'll be fine, I promise," Jasper continued, vowing. "I don't want you to lose anyone else."
-x-
They couldn't lose anyone else. It wasn't easy, Riley knew, because they were in the middle of a war. But she couldn't bare the idea of losing anyone she's grown close to, such as Harper. However, if they destroyed the machine or opened the door, it'd be over for everyone. It left Riley torn.
Jasper was clearly growing frustrated with their lack of deciding, as his voice filled the speaker and rang into the room. "Guys, you're running out of time," he informed them. "What's it gonna be? Raven's machine or Harper?" Riley couldn't see them, only shadows, but she heard Harper gasp in pain before speaking.
"Don't give it to him!" Harper exclaimed, before there was a loud noise of skin hitting skin.
Having enough, Riley dashed forward and pressed the button she's seen Monty hit on the pad from their side of the room. "Jasper, stop!" She demanded. She knew Jasper didn't want to hurt her, and it was the chip making him do so. "You don't have to hurt her. There's no reason for it," she pleaded.
"You can stop it, Ri," Jasper offered calmly. "Just open the door."
Riley shook her head. She looked over her shoulder to Monty, who motioned with his hand to keep Jasper talking before he snuck out the other door in the room, handgun clutched in hand. She just needed to stall him, keep him from attacking Harper again. "If we do, then what? You chip us? Steal our memories?" Memories were all Riley had, no matter the situation she was in, whether they were good or bad. She needed them.
"The pain goes away," Jasper stated, referring to when Riley comforted him, promising that it would get better. "If you take the chip, you won't remember Mount Weather. You won't remember Emily. You won't remember Maya."
At the mention of her home, adopted sister, and best friend, Riley's hand clenched into a fist and she took her finger off the button to take a deep breath. She just needed to stay calm, until Monty stopped him. ALIE wanted her to break, to open the door so Jasper would finally have access. When understanding that Riley wasn't going to break, Jasper spoke again, but this time his voice was more robotic.
"Raven, you're chances of reaching the killswitch again are less than two percent." Raven looked shocked, but knew it was ALIE speaking this time, not Jasper. "I've added additional security. I know the digital signature of the chip that Hannah gave to Monty. The moment you use the portal to interact with anything within my code, I will know. I will find you," he threatened her. "Are you really willing to let your friend die for a two percent chance?"
Jasper's voice faded into nothing, and Riley nearly jumped out of her skin when hearing a gunshot ring in the air. She didn't have to hesitate. She quickly typed in the code she saw Monty use and the doors slid open, revealing Jasper on the ground out cold, and Harper and Monty working together to tie him up. Harper looked a bit hurt, but she was alright, and more important, alive.
Raven approached from behind Riley, staring down at Jasper. "Good thing there's no pain in the City of Light," she remarked. Riley couldn't help but snort in agreement, glad that at least he wouldn't feel this pain until later when they finally shut ALIE down.
This time, Harper joined them in the control room. Jasper was bound to a chair behind them, unable to move and therefore unable to harm any of them or the machine. Riley stood with her eyes wide as she watched Raven hack into ALIE. It's been a while, and she was hoping that they weren't too late to help the ones who had left.
"I don't believe it," Raven suddenly breathed out in surprise.
"What?" Monty asked eagerly, leaning forward. "Did you find the kill switch?"
"Don't answer that," Harper protested before Raven could respond. "ALIE can hear us." Riley paused to gaze to Jasper, who was finally awake. He was looking to the side of him, keeping quiet for the first time. She didn't mention it, instead, looking back towards the computer screens.
"I'm reading her code, Harper," Raven informed them. "ALIE already knows."
"Knows what?" Monty questioned anxiously. "What're you talking about?"
Pointing forward, Raven gestured to one of the screens. "Clarke is in the city of light."
Dumbfounded, Riley's jaw practically dropped in surprise. That wasn't even close to their plan, she thought. Something must have gone wrong, and they had to have done something different, including taking the most dangerous risk. "Did she take the chip?" She asked, alarmed.
Confused, Raven shook her head slowly in bewilderment. "She would've had to, but.. ALIE's running a flush sub-routine to find her. Sending Clarke's code out to everyone," she explained.
"Like she's a virus," Monty pointed out.
"Exactly," Raven confirmed with a nod. "ALIE wouldn't have to do that if she could control her. It's like Clarke is running a different program."
There was only one way that was possible. "Did she put the flame in her head?" He whispered in question that was much more unexpecting than just a chip, Riley thought, leaving her completely speechless. It wasn't just shocking, it was brave.
"You don't have to whisper." Jasper speaking caught Riley off guard. It was the same robotic tone that she heard before, which meant ALIE was talking for him. "I'm aware Clarke has merged with the other AI. Thanks to her, my code is now updated to version two point zero of my program."
Catching on and frankly frightened by it, Monty asked what it meant when ALIE is updated. Raven swallowed thickly before responding. "She'll delete the killswitch. We won't be able to stop her."
Shaking her head, Riley took a large step back. That wasn't an ending they could consider, otherwise, they're all dead. "So find the damn killswitch!" Harper demanded. Raven began rapidly typing, her eyes focused on the screen. This was going to work.
-x-
Riley was no doctor, still, so giving first-aid to a bullet wound wasn't much fun. Roan's was much easier, because Clarke had worked on it first. But she didn't want Jasper to bleed out, even if he couldn't feel the pain. She was knelt in front of his sitting position, her hands working on the skin shown from his cut pant leg. She knew nothing she did would hurt him, but her hands still remained as gentle as possible. Waiting for an update on Clarke was taking too long, and she needed something to keep her busy so her mind didn't race of the thought that her friends were dead.
Keeping Jasper's leg elevated forward, Riley noticed that there was no swelling, which meant that Monty's shot didn't leave any internal bleeding. She wasn't going to sew it up, not able to trust herself, but to clean it up and keep pressure on it was better than nothing. As Riley inspected it, she didn't notice the way Jasper glanced to his side, nodding to nothing before speaking to her.
"I'm sorry, Riley." Caught by surprise by the whisper, Riley paused her actions, her blue eyes flickering up to meet his. "You've been through so much pain." It was as if for a moment Riley had forgotten Jasper wasn't chipped, and it was really him talking. She shook her head and blocked him out, figuring she could have a decent conversation with him later, but Jasper wasn't close to giving up yet. He needed to push harder if he wanted her to break.
"Everyone sees it," Jasper continued, his voice growing more mocking. "People think I have issues, but you? Where do we start with you?" There were plenty places, Riley thought, but wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing he was getting under her skin. "Your parents? Died by radiation. Refused the blood treatment in their protests, but you... You kept using grounders blood even though you knew it was wrong." Riley tensed, trying to convince herself that she only did it to survive and later redeemed herself by helping the delinquents.
"Then Harper had to suffer so you could breathe outside," Jasper continued, edging Riley on. She could hear Raven murmuring to the screen, something about Clarke, but looked up once more. He knew it was working now, with Riley's short temper. "And then everyone died. They all died, and you lived. How does it feel?"
"Shut up," Riley finally hissed quickly, her lower lip curling.
Jasper spoke up over her words, pressing further. "How does it feel knowing you're the last of your people? That Maya died, and you had to keep living." Riley suddenly felt as if she was back in Mount Weather, watching her people die as she clutched Maya, wailing with grief.
Gritting her teeth, Riley shook with fury as she clenched her trembling hands by her sides into fists and sprung to her feet. "Shut up!" She shouted again, willing herself not to strike Jasper, desperately trying to convince herself it wasn't him. "Shut the hell up!"
"Riley! Come on!" Riley could hear Monty from behind her before she felt his arms threading around her, pulling her back, much to her struggle. "Let's go, you need a break!" He demanded, tugging the screaming girl back until she was out of the room. He waited until they were out before pushing her against the wall, holding her tear-stained red face in his hands as he attempted to calm her down. "Hey, hey. This is what ALIE wants. She wants you to break and take the chip because Clarke's going to stop her any second. Don't break down, not now. Just breathe," Monty urged her.
Breathing shallowly, Riley tried to mimic his breaths in short wheezes. She kept reminding herself she wasn't in Mount Weather anymore, and that she needed to stay calm, because they were in the middle of war. She nodded quickly, coming back to reality as she used the back of her hands to wipe at her eyes. Monty waited until he thought she was really ready before guiding her back into the control room with his hand on her lower back.
Riley could see Harper and Raven eyeing her for a second, but she shrugged it off, pretending as if she hadn't just had an outburst. "Where's Clarke now?" She asked instead, striding past Jasper without as so much as glancing in his direction.
"We're just waiting," Raven murmured after clearing her throat. "She had to have done something." Riley noticed all the screens were blank now, no words or numbers flying around.
"But how will we know if she did it?" Monty questioned, taking his hand off Riley's back and glancing towards the screen.
"She did it." At the confirmation, Riley turned back around, seeing Jasper had his head down, his voice broken and cracking. Monty was the first to rush over, crouching in front of his best friend. "I was finally happy." Even though they had a short spat, Riley felt her heart ache a bit at his words, knowing how much this must have hurt him even though they won.
Monty went to work untying the binds from the chair, freeing the crying male before speaking again. "Jasper. I know this world can suck. But at least it's real. We can get through this, together," he promised.
Riley turned her head, letting the pair have their moment. It didn't involve her, not now. Instead, she looked at the plain computer screens, her mouth turning into a smile despite the breakdown she had moments ago. They finally had a win, and ALIE was gone. Riley only turned back around when she heard her boyfriend and her friend apologizing to each other.
"Sorry I stabbed you."
"Sorry I shot you."
Suddenly, a tiny smile arose on Jasper's face. "I didn't feel it." The others laughed and even Riley allowed herself to do so. Wincing, Jasper stood, finally feeling the pain of his injuries as Monty gave him a hand. To Riley's surprise, Jasper embraced him, burying his face into Monty's shoulder, apologizing again despite Monty's reassurance that it was alright.
Jasper slowly released him, turning back around to face the three girls. "I could use a drink," he admitted.
"We all could," Riley confessed, not realizing how she badly she needed one until now.
"This round's on me," Jasper offered, limping away and towards the exit. Monty reached out, offering to help, but he quickly brushed him off. "No, no, I got it." He staggered out slowly, leaving the rest of them alone.
A wave of relief hit Riley as she stepped forward, pulling Monty into a tight hug. It was nice, clutching him so tightly that it was as if her breakdown never happened. She only pulled away after a minute, but still rested her hands on both his shoulders before expressing what was on her mind.
"At least I know one way we can celebrate."