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chapter fifteen.
returning ghosts.
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Now that Raven was back, her eyes were lighting up, and she looked like the old inspired mechanic June fell in live with at the dropship camp. She can't help but smile at the sight, it gives her a warm feeling, that mixed with the orange and yellow sun rising. The mechanic is sitting across from her holding a leather book, flicking through the pages along with the bouncing of the rover that they squeezed everyone inside of. With no more room, Bellamy, driving, was attempting to get ahold of Miller, Bryan, and Harper who was left inside of the cave they came from as Raven explained the true story.
"Becca's journal is amazing. At twenty-six, she found a pathway to access a human mind. That same year, she had to lock up A.L.I.E. because her answer for what was wrong with the world was too many people." She paused. "She was 27 when it launched the bombs."
"What did she write about the Flame?" Clarke questioned after a beat of silence.
"ALIE 2.0," Raven corrected. "She saw it as a way to atone for her sins. She designed it to not just access a human mind but to merge with one. It could never wipe us out because it would be one of us. She would put it in herself first. Altered her genes so her body wouldn't reject the implant."
"Bekka Pramheda, the first Commander," Clarke marveled. "The gene therapy made her blood back, didn't it?" Raven nodded.
Octavia squinted in the blonde's direction. "How did you know that?"
"Nightblood," Clarke answered simply. "That's where it came from. Somehow, it became hereditary. Luna has it. That's why we have to find her. If she can access ALIE 2..."
"She can tell us how to stop ALIE 1," Octavia finished for her.
"And we can save everyone else," June added.
Rubbing his temples tiredly, Sinclair shook his head. "Bekka Pramheda gets her second shot at atonement," he mumbled.
"Get back to the mind pathway," Monty told Raven. "If ALIE uses it to upload our minds to the City of Light, then there's a chance my mom's still alive." June's smile vanished, being replaced with a faint frown that she doesn't want Monty to see. She can't be the one to crush his hopes.
Wincing, Raven tried to find a way to respond without hurting him. "That depends on your definition of alive," she said gravely.
When Arkadia comes into view as a speck, Bellamy cut in. "Eyes sharp, weapons high. We're almost home," he warned them. He lifted the radio's speaker. "Miller, come in." He only received a static. "Harper, you there?" He urged.
June feels her chest churn uncertainly. "They had to have been home by now," she said worriedly. What if their friends were ambushed?
"We can't think like that," Clarke said calmly. "They're probably at Arkadia, waiting for us." June knows that she'll have to hold onto that for now.
But when they reach the gate, June caught a glimpse at how deserted Arkadia really was. She can't see much, but so far, there isn't a soul in sight. Monty took over driving while the rest, excluding Sinclair, Raven, and Jasper, piled out with their guns, Octavia with her sword, in the case of an attack. June held her rifle forward, finger lightly brushing the trigger as they pass through the busted gate.
"We left two days ago," Clarke noted in confusion. "Why haven't they fixed the gate?"
"Maybe because there's no one here to fix it," Jasper suggested, poking out of the roof of the rover. When June passed the open hole, she sees he's right. Arkadia is emptier than she's ever seen it as if no one had ever been here. She feels a chill, as if there are ghosts of eyes on her, watching her every move, waiting to strike.
"It's like a ghost town," Octavia murmured in wonder. Bellamy sighed and lifted his walkie, requesting for Miller again.
"Maybe they got chipped," Jasper thought.
"If they got chipped, they'd been waiting for us at the cave," Bellamy dismissed.
"Maybe they saw the open gate, went in for Lincoln's book," Jasper tried again.
Irritated, Octavia rolled her eyes, lowering her sword. "Maybe you should stop saying maybe," she stated with an edge in her tone.
It's quiet for a few seconds before Clarke spoke up. "If they are chipped, ALIE already knows we're coming," she said.
"We'll handle it," June tells her, attempting to reassure Clarke as she had earlier, with faith. Clarke sent her a faint smile as Monty stopped the rover, parking it in place.
June doesn't understand why everyone went silent until she lowered her gun, turning around, to see Octavia had glanced down to the ground near June's boot. She followed her gaze, her brown eyes widening when she sees a puddle of blood near her, the laces dragging in it. June made a noise of surprise and jumped away, her lower lip starting to wobble as her heart broke, knowing exactly what this spot was from.
"Let's get his book and get the hell out of here," Octavia declared, her voice strained as if she's fighting back tears.
"That's a plan I can support," Jasper agreed.
The hangar bay doors open as Monty drove the rover again, driving it inside. June brought her weapon back up again, prepared in case the inside wasn't as empty as the outside, but it's not different in a bit. "Close it up and turn it around," Bellamy called to Monty. He looked to the rest. "We need to get out of here quickly." The doors slide shut once they're all inside, and June put the gun's strap over her shoulder, going to the rover's side door and opening it, giving Raven a hand.
Raven grimaced, looping her good arm over June's shoulder and putting her weight on her as she carefully slid out. "You okay?" June whispered, double-checking. Raven nodded, sliding her arm back, walking by her side as they enter further.
The area is alike to the outside, but the tables are full of playing games like cards, chess and checkers and half-full plates of food. "It's like they just got up and walked away," Clarke observed.
"We're in and out," Bellamy decided. "Pack as much as you can into the rover."
"I'll get the map," Octavia offered. She doesn't give her brother a chance to protest, already taking off down the hall.
Jasper cocked his head in her direction. "I'll uh... Go with her. Probably shouldn't be alone."
"You don't wanna load gear, huh?" Sinclair asked him, amused.
"Not even a little," Jasper admitted honestly, following Octavia's trail.
June knows they fought in the hut while Raven was chipped and haven't been on the best of terms, but she smiled after him, picking up a nearly empty bag from the back of the rover. "I'm going to go stock up on medical supplies," she announced, knowing they were almost out. She had learned a few techniques from Abby, but Clarke was the best nurse they had, and they'd both need the supplies.
"I'll come with you," Clarke offered.
Moving quickly, Raven put her hand out, stopping June from walking away. "What's the rush?" She questioned, slightly concerned. "They won't be coming back."
"How do you know?" Clarke asked.
"ALIE's mission is to chip everyone, it wouldn't make sense to return to a place she already took out," Raven explained.
Shrugging loosely, June tugged the strap of the bag on her other shoulder. "Then we can take our time. Besides, I'm just grabbing a few items," she reassured her. "I'll be back before you know it. Work on the Flame with Clarke, she'll need you." June slung her arm over Raven's shoulder, glad they were the same height, to press a kiss to her cheek as a see you later. She relaxed at the tough, this time allowing June to leave without protest.
The halls are even creepier than anywhere else. June doesn't feel as much more confident walking through them, jumping at the slightest creak. Arkadia had fallen from the sky and landed on the ground, so it was still settling she tried to tell herself. She doesn't know what other explanation there could be. ALIE clearly left no chipped person behind, so what did June expect? The ghosts of everyone she's ever killed to pop out and attack her? She wouldn't doubt it if it was possible.
When June reached medical, she typed in the numbered code on the keypad, feeling a twinge of nostalgia. She missed giving Abby and Jackson a hand when things seemed so much simpler before everything fell apart with Clarke leaving, the Mount Weather explosion, Pike becoming Chancellor, Lincoln dying, the City of Light... June shivered, feeling as if someone was eyeing her getting lost in her thoughts and saw the code she put in, so she darted inside to get away, letting the doors slide shut after her.
Tossing the bag on a counter, June went to work to get her mind off of everything. She set her gun down, propping it against the wall and opened different cupboards, pulling out rolls of bandages, tape, cotton, dressings, antibiotics, dressing, wipes, and a bottle of Monty's moonshine to tuck inside. She didn't stuff the bag, leaving behind much of it, knowing this had to be over soon. The war had already started, and June survived enough of them to know what they'd need to grab.
Suddenly, the glass doors gliding back open causes June to nearly drop the jar she was about to put away. She whirled around, about to reach for her gun, in case it wasn't one of her friends, but no one was there. June tried to convince herself it was just a glitch, that the lights have been flickering and it meant nothing - when two arms attempt to wrap around her.
June prayed she wasn't trying to be scared by one of them as she swung her arm around, bashing the glass jar of moonshine to the side of her attacker's head. As he's distracted, letting out a low shout of pain, June bolted for her gun. She didn't recognize him, a tall, broad man dressed like a grounder. Her heart was racing in her chest, but where she had placed her weapon is gone. He must have taken it, or moved it.
June isn't about to let herself, or her friends, be attacked without a fight. She doesn't care how smaller her frame is compared to his, and that she's weaponless. She's blindly throwing fists, her rage and fear clouding everything Octavia and Lincoln trained her to do, and when there's an opening, the man takes it. June is grabbed by the throat with a thick glove, and she suddenly can't breathe when he squeezed and no matter how much she scraped at his arm, he won't let go.
"Who are you?!" June wheezed. "What do you want?!"
"I want you all dead," he hissed back, his voice muffled through his mask.
If that's what he wants, June isn't going to make it easy. Her boots are barely scraping the ground, but she furiously kicked, managing to land one on his shin. The grip loosened, enough for June to hit the ground, falling on her back. She gasped for air, struggling to seize her chance to get away. June has no choice but to crawl, her neck and chest aching from the oxygen she was deprived of. But he's one step ahead, reaching for her leg and dragging her back.
Swinging her other leg around, June kicked him in the face, forcing him to back down. She took a deep breath, shooting up and staggering on her feet. She launched forward, putting the palms of her hands on his chest and using all of her strength to shove him, hard. The man fell back, just outside of medical. June slammed her hand on the button near the pad, the door sliding shut and separating them.
Panting, June watched him slowly stand, staring down at her like a murderer from an old horror movie shown on The Ark. He pulled a weapon from his belt, and when she recognized it, her heart dropped. A hammer. Sucking in a deep breath, June let out a scream that she hoped her friends would hear, but with the distance, they probably wouldn't. "Who are you?!"
He doesn't respond, only bringing the hammer down, causing a circular crash to appear. "Show your face, you coward!" June hysterically screamed again, causing her throat to burn.
He still says nothing, swinging the hammer down again, and again, June backing up. She ran straight to the counter, snatching the walkie put there for emergencies and pressed the button, knowing Bellamy had the only other one. "Bellamy, Bellamy, come in!"
The glass shattered, and June never gets to know if Bellamy replied. The man is storming in, the radio flying out of her hand as he grabbed her once more, by the neck again. She hissed when she feels broken glass dig into her skin, furthermore when he lifted her by it as if she weighed nothing, slamming her down on a medical table. June gasped in pain, a sharp pain exploding in her back. He doesn't release her throat, leaning over her, the mask glaring her down.
"You know, this reminds me of another time," he sneered. June is suddenly paralyzed, frozen cold at how familiar the voice sounds. She had only heard it one other time, in Mount Weather from the Lieutenant that brought her to the doctor that gave her the bone marrow treatment. He doesn't hold back. "I'll have you know, I didn't enjoy listening to your screams then - but now, thinking back to that memory... It's all that brings me joy."
"No..." June whispered under the curled fingers around her throat, no longer fighting back from the shock.
He used his free hand to tuck under the mask, ripping it off and revealing the cold, hollow face of Carl Emerson himself.
Horror filled June that masked the terror, but she can't let him know. There's no use begging for her life, to be spared. He'll thrive on it. She can't squirm, so instead, she uses her words to fight back. "Then kill me," June challenged through gritted teeth.
"Oh, I will," Emerson promised darkly. "Just not yet." June doesn't have the chance to be confused. He lifted her up a few inches before swinging it back down, her neck at an awkward angle before it was snapped back down, a crack echoing when the back of her head hits the metal table.
White, hot pain fired up in the back of June's head and her vision blurred at the impact. She suddenly felt sluggish, her eyes starting to flutter shut. The last thing June felt was Emerson lifting her, her limp limbs swaying as she's carried away, surrendering into the darkness.