𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 · 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥 ⁴

𝟒.𝟏𝟗

──── 「FINAL FIGHT」 ────

     Seeing Bellamy so distressed had been something close to heartbreaking. I had thought, out of everyone, he'd have figured I did have a plan, and not a stupid one this time, Roan would have never allowed me to participate with my initial plan so we had devised a new one that'd satisfy us all and wouldn't kill us in the process nor start a whole war again. Hopefully.

I approached my post seeing Azgeda's symbol on it. It felt weird, but I had to agree that cruel and vicious did suit me lately; not that I minded, honestly. Someone had to do things around here and that person was me. I knew the plan half of the other clans had devised against me thanks to Echo and Roan, which helped me plan a new strategy of my own to survive the Conclave without alliances because, the truth was, I could only trust myself down there and I wasn't going to drag Octavia into it.

If I know Bellamy, he probably asked her to hide, especially knowing how close the black rain is. And I trusted she would. I just needed her to stay alive until I got rid of the alliance against me. My weapons of choice had been too medium blades: two because I knew I'd have to deal with more than one Champion at a time and medium because I didn't have time to lose stabbing them more than once. We got this. I inhaled deeply. We've trained for this, we know how they move. I let out a long exhale. I got this. I gulped and licked my lips just before I heard the horn that announced the beginning of the Final Conclave. Bunker, here we come.

     A Nightblood. I froze on the elevator as Echo and Roan left, a smile on both their faces. That's insane, I've seen her bleed way too many times not to have noticed her blood being black. I realized I should probably get out before the doors closed and so I did, running up to Roan and Echo. Why didn't she tell me? She doesn't trust me.

- "How?"

- "Does it matter?" –Roan eyed me.

- "Is it tested?" –I pressed him- "If it's not, she could die in the rain."

Echo and Roan interchanged a look. It wasn't tested, she could die. Fuck, Sam, what's wrong with you! We got to the throne room, each clan had a post with a candle on it that was to be put out once their Champion died.

- "Why did you let her fight for you? You know fully well she won't hurt my sister."

- "You should leave with your people, Skaikru."

They both moved to their side, next to their light as I looked around for Kane, he was pacing back and forth from our post to the wall; I would have assumed he'd be able to hide his worries by now. Clearly not. Trikru's post was next to us, Indra just next to it.

- "So, it's true." –she eyed me- "Samantha is fighting for the enemy."

- "I'm sure she has a plan, Indra."

- "To save you or all her people?"

I noticed exactly how she enunciated those words: she didn't mean 'you' as in Skaikru but me in particular, she didn't mean Azgeda either with 'her people' or else she'd have said 'clan'; by 'people' she meant those of us she cared about. I was certain that included Indra, maybe not for how close Sam was to her but more so for O. Octavia.

- "I must tell you." –Indra moved closer to me and whispered- "There's an Alliance to take down Azgeda first."

- "What! How many?"

- "6 Champions." –I tried to keep calm, that was half the contestants going after Sam, not to count Luna who'd be dying to kill whoever stood in her way- "Samantha wasn't supposed to be there, I'm sorry."

- "How do you know about this?"

- "Because I started it."

The horn sounded proclaiming the beginning of the Final Conclave. I gulped as I looked at the balcony. Whatever you're planning Sam, just keep O and yourself alive. I can't lose either of you, not again.

     After talking to Kane and Bellamy, I moved to my post, deciding it was best to follow their instructions until I saw Sam. Surely, she'd have a plan. As the horn was all the noise I could hear, I braced myself for what was to come.

I started walking around the city, moving low and staying hidden as much as I could. I heard the clash of swords so I went in the other direction, towards a small street. Bad choice: another Champion was there and, as soon as he saw me, he started running after me. I had to hide. I ran through small corridors trying to lose him, throwing stuff on his way and finally having enough advantage to hide under a fallen metallic structure over which he jumped. I stood there, waiting until I heard him jump down screaming; there was a small hole at the other side of where I was hiding, so I moved closer, seeing my persecutor and Luna. That was close.

     It was pure luck I had been carrying all that time a small monocular with me that I intended to put to good use as the time passed and nothing happened, but just as I was about to move to the balcony, Gaia came back, announcing the first fallen. I clenched my jaw and my fists so hard I left a mark, but I didn't care. Gaia didn't look around as one of the councilmen passed her by coming to our row. No.

- "The first Champion has fallen."

- "Please, don't be her." –I whispered as the man got closer.

- "Strei kom Sangedakru." –I closed my eyes and breathed relieved as the clan's light was extinguished- "Yu gonplei ste odon."

     I mean, how hard can it be really? I started walking around Polis, keeping all my senses alert to detect the minimum disturbance that could indicate that someone else was there. I killed Roan's four men. This is just two more. I heard voices. Yeah, the only problem is these are the actual best warriors of their clans, not mere soldiers. Roan's voice sounded in my head. Divide them. And then mine. Oh, yeah, and how am I supposed to do that, huh? And back and forth. Improvise. Yeah, that's great advice, thanks, Roan.

Now that I was in the terrain, I wondered... my bow. Fuck, where did I leave it? I needed a second to think, so I entered one of the houses. I brought it with me when we came back and we discovered the alliance with Trikru. Did I leave it in the tower? I heard footsteps outside. Fuck. It's at Sheda's. I won't make it. I took a deep breath. Fine, I'll improvise. What's the worst that could happen?

The house had a second floor, so I moved upstairs, getting a view of the street and seeing the group of people looking for me coming my way. Divide and conquer. I smiled to myself. I might not be able to fight six at once, but three seems like a reasonable amount. I had an idea, it was risky and most probably not fair game but if anyone cared, they wouldn't live to protest.

I looked around the house, finding a small blade and, once I did, I took my sigil and cut my arm slightly, covering it in my blood. Let's see how many bite this. I checked before I moved outside, throwing my sigil where I knew they'd find it and leaving a bloody handprint insinuating I had left that way and the blade on the ground. I'm sure they won't risk all checking my trace. Hopefully, that'll buy me a couple of minutes to take out whoever stays back.

I moved back to the house and waited. They walked past me, not even bothering to check the houses nor the windows, which was a stupid move, but they were too worried about my sigil on the floor to care.

- "Em ste stedaunon!" –one of them picked it up shouting. [She's dead]

- "Hir." –a brighter one had moved to the end of the street, finding my bloody handprint and yelling at the rest- "Es ste nou." [Here. She's not.]

They got together on the further end of the street, so I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I could still see them from the upper floor's window; it looked like they were having a heated argument until three of them left through the next street, leaving another three there. Alright. Showtime, Jusheda. I allowed them to walk past the door of the house I was in as they kept moving together, something I still failed to comprehend. Maybe because of Luna. No, definitively because of Luna.

- "The fight just started," –I moved outside, startling them; I didn't recognize them or their clan in the distance, but that didn't matter now- "did you seriously expect me to be dead that early in the game." –I shook my head- "Offensive."

- "You die here, Jusheda."

The woman pointed her sword at me as both men laughed. I realized she had a bow and quiver with her, which she left on the floor behind her. I'm going to need those.

- "Mebi nodotaim." [Maybe another time]

The woman was the first to approach me, for the street wasn't big enough for the three of them to get at me without hitting each other. This is an advantage I didn't plan, but I'll take it. She rose her sword towards my face but I easily stopped her with my right blade as I moved my left towards her, stabbing her in the abdomen before kicking her back.

The men had to move not to run into her as she fell to the ground; they looked at each other and decided to come at me at the same time, raising their swords and one of them his shield that was a piece of metal he must have taken from one of the side alleys. Now that's clever usage of the city props. They moved their swords at the same time, forcing me to jump back as I realized they had to measure their movements not to be too wide or they'd crash. For a moment, I stopped thinking, only focusing on the fight ahead, but it was getting us nowhere. I had to force them to lose the shield.

As I managed to push them back, I ran back and entered the house as they screamed coward at me. A coward. I scoffed to myself in my mind. I'm just forcing you to come to me again. I got to the upper level, jumping onto the rooftop of the next house, and turned to look at them. They laughed, thinking I was stuck.

- "So much for the mighty Jusheda."

- "At least you've heard of me." –I rose an eyebrow mockingly- "I don't even know who you are."

That seemed to anger them and, as we all know, angry people make bad decisions most of the time. Exhibit A: the first one ran up to me, clearly not calculating his impulse as he fell from the rooftop to the street once I moved away, tripping him with my foot. I shouldn't have laughed, but the truth is, I did.

- "You won't laugh once that's you down there."

- "Try me."

He ran up to me. He had two swords now, I assumed she took the woman's one. His swords clashed with mine; he jumped, trying to cut my face but I stopped his sword with both of mine, pushing him back. We moved in circles for a moment, catching our breaths before he came at me again. I managed to cut his face, but he kicked me on the abdomen forcing me to take a couple of steps back, losing one of my blades as my feet stood on the border of the rooftop.

- "Last words?"

- "See you in hell."

He ran up to me, wielding his sword now as if it were a dagger, moving it to my heart but I yielded it with my arm, pushing him to the side forcing him with my body to let go of the weapon before I turned completely around and elbowed his head; the red blood starting to drip but he didn't hesitate to come back at me; he rose his sword with his left hand, I counter it with mine and pushed both our swords to the side, moving my free hand to his shoulder to force him down and kneeling him with all my strength on his abdomen but he didn't let go, so I repeated my movement until he started coughing blood. He forced me back, but I was ready: once he rose his sword I got down and slashed him across the stomach; he fell to his knees and I ended him, slitting his throat.

- "Yu gonplei ste odon."

I whispered as I caught his sigil, quickly moving back to collect the other two. Three down, three to go. Then the rest. And to find mine and my sister.

     I had gone outside a couple of times, trying to check if I could see Sam or O, but I didn't; it was as if they both had simply vanished. Maybe that's for the best. I did see, however, the group of people Indra had mentioned; they were roaming around the city completely unbothered by anything else. They probably thought that, even if they encountered Luna, in between the six of them, they could kill her. I wished they did. I moved inside as Gaia stood there. It had been a couple of hours since the first death. I had imagined the first minutes would be the bloodiest ones, but I had been wrong.

- "Anything?" –Kane asked me as soon as I moved to sit behind our post.

- "Nothing." –I shook my head- "On any of them."

- "Bellamy..." –Kane sighed- "You should be looking out for your sister."

- "Sam is my family, I don't care if she's fighting for Azgeda."

- "If it comes down to it, one of them will have to die." –he patted my back- "I'm sorry, son."

I rubbed my forehead, not even wanting to think of that, not wanting to think of whose death would affect me the most. Nothing makes sense. I rose my eyes, looking at Echo and Roan who seemed to be engaged in their own heavy discussion. It makes no sense.

- "The three next Champions have fallen." -Here we go again. I rose from my seat, watching with a heavy heart as the man approached the candles- "Resnak kom Yujleda. Yu gonplei ste odon." -Come on, girls- "Guara kom Podakru. Yu gonplei ste odon."

One more, come on. The man walked past our post and relief filled my heart until I realized where he was going and I felt like I couldn't breathe again. No, Sam, no. Roan and Echo looked calm still and that almost infuriated me.

- "Gael kom Ingranronakru. Yu gonplei ste odon."

I closed my eyes as a loud exhale left my lips. That was too close. As I opened them again, I landed them on Roan, who simply nodded at me with a satisfied smile on his face. He knows something I don't. He then moved on to talk with Echo and I moved after them.

- "What do you want Skaikru."

- "You know something about what Sam's doing that I don't."

- "She's doing what she does best." –Echo mocked me- "Getting rid of the extra weight."

- "What is that supposed to mean?" –I eyed them- "You think Sam killed those three?"

- "You've seen her fight, you've seen her kill. Judge for yourself."

     It was starting to get dark, and I wasn't sure where the hell the rest were. Did they all die? Where is Octavia? I felt like screaming her name, but I knew I shouldn't. On top of that, I was missing the woman's sigil, who someone must have stolen while I killed the other two men. And I wanted it back. 3 sigils were not enough tho.

I moved down an alley, seeing a pair of boots on the floor. I took out one arrow and placed it on the bow I had taken, pointing it at the figure as I slowly moved up to it. I recognized the Champion. Ilian. I looked around, trying to see any signs of Octavia having been there; I figured if she'd ally with anyone it'd be him.

- "Yu gonplei ste odon."

I didn't know him well at all, but I knew he had left after Octavia and, seeing him there and how Octavia reacted when he stood to fight for his clan in the Conclave, I knew something was up. I landed eyes on his wound again. An arrow. That didn't make sense, that was off. The only one with a bow was the woman I took it from and she had been dead for way too long. Her quiver wasn't missing any arrows when I took it. I looked around me. Something's wrong, someone's not playing by the rules.

- "Bilaik Jusheda!"

I turned in time to see two out of the three missing Champions from the initial alliance. Fuck this shit. I'm done.

- "Announcing yourselves?" –I shot an arrow at one of them- "Dumb move."

The arrow hit him on the leg, making it impossible for him to move for some reason, seeing him fall to the floor behind his ally. I'm not complaining. It was good he couldn't come at me though, for the other guy was bigger than Roan and he had no other weapon but a long, spiky, sharpened, weird hammer. He could probably smash my head with that thing, fuck. I took a deep breath. He's big, sure, but he's slow. I shook my shoulders. We got this.

He rose his weapon; it felt almost like slow motion before it hit the floor next to me as I jumped away just in time. Now, that was too close. I need height. I quickly glanced around me as he rose it again. Alright. I jumped away just in time once more, running backward as I shot an arrow at him that hit him in the upper arm. I told you, slow.

I put the bow down, picking my sword as he approached me again. Only this time, he knew I'd jump back, so he moved the pointy hammer horizontally and I had to drop to the ground not to get my neck sliced, but that was fine as I could then stab his leg as he swung the weapon back. He yelled in pain, which I didn't expect, and he fell to his knees, the hammer heavily falling next to me as he lost strength. My chance. I rose and jumped over a box as he rose his head, trying to move the hammer back up. I jumped from the box, an arrow on my bow, and shot him, piercing him through his open mouth and downward. I fell behind him, seeing him let go of the hammer, moving his hands to his neck as he died. 

The other man had managed to stand up, hearing him grunt in pain, raising my eyes from his now dead ally to see him pointing his blade at me. I jumped back, feeling the first blade he threw cut my cheek as I moved to the side, grabbing an arrow and turning to face him completely. He had murder in his eyes, throwing his last blade at me as I let go of my arrow. I felt the blade on my shoulder, but the reward of watching my arrow pierce his throat was more rewarding than the pain I felt. I sighed. One to go.

I moved toward him, watching the last seconds of his life before he stopped struggling and left our cruel world. I tore his sigil from his neck, finding another one tied to it. Please, no. I took a deep breath as I turned it around, finding the Delfikru symbol. The woman's. I breathed relieved. I turned around, hearing footsteps behind me and immediately wrapping my hand around the handle of my blade.

- "I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

- "Lincoln taught me well."

- "I see you have quite the collection there." –Fio pointed at my neck before eyeing the dead man between us- "I took Mezi's."

- "I'll get it back, it's fine. Thank you for picking it up for me."

- "Let's see what Azgeda has taught you."

     Bellamy had insisted there was an extra player on the ground and he was decided to get down to check it, especially since Echo was nowhere to be found. I couldn't allow him, that was against the rules and could get us all killed, but he didn't stall so I had to agree to let him go as the sun set.

The death of four more warriors was announced just as Bellamy left with the sun setting: Delfikru, Ouskejon Kru, Trishanakru, and Sangedakru. I looked around the room, the faces of those whose Champion had fallen had all one thing in common: despair. I kept pacing the room, waiting for Bellamy to come back and for more Champions to fall, praying Octavia would be the last one standing. The competition was thinning and the best remained.

- "Three more Champions have fallen." –the ceremony started once again- "Boldak kom Boudalankru. Yu gonplei ste odon." –one candle less- "Mezi kom Louwoda Kliron Kru. Yu gonplei ste odon." –I took a final deep breath as the man approached us- "And Fio kom Trikru. Yu gonplei ste odon."

I looked at Indra, who gulped as she heard the name of her Champion. Gaia quickly moved after her and hugged her. Three clans left: Floukru, Azgeda, and Skaikru. The strongest until the end. Roan stood on the opposite side, he was calm and had been for the whole ceremony since the Conclave started. I knew Samantha could win this for him, but I hoped Luna would get her out of the game and that Octavia managed to kill her; it was the only way we'd win. Octavia would never harm Samantha, but not knowing what the King's plan was, I had doubts concerning the opposite scenario.

Echo showed up out of nowhere but Bellamy was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she came back before he could catch her. A bolt of lightning illuminated the whole room as it started to rain, everyone in the balconies rushing inside before they got wet. It's here.

     It didn't particularly please me to fight Fio, but with everything I had learned from Ion and especially from Sheda, it wasn't difficult; adding the skills I had acquired from Azgeda, I almost felt bad. Almost because I didn't like Fio much since he fought Octavia all those months ago, he had been an asshole most of the time. I only felt bad killing him because I liked Indra, but I was going to make sure she survived Praimfaya too, alongside Lila, of course.

I took the sigils from him as he was carrying two aside from his, finally able to recover my own. I counted how many I had. 7, the alliance has fallen. And mine, so that's 8. I assumed Octavia had Ilian's so that made 10. Luna was probably still alive, so that made 11. 2 clans to go, then. I kept walking around the city, finding the bodies of the last 2 Champions. So that's Luna, Octavia, and me. I have to find O or hopefully even find Luna before she gets to Octavia.

This city didn't need to be this big. I stopped walking for a second, tightening the white strings of the black corset that Roan had given me to keep Jackson's work as untouched as possible and that I was wearing over my black shirt. He'll hear me if I die because of his stab. I was getting bored and starting to consider yelling for Luna when I heard someone running. I had almost reached a plaza, getting there to find Octavia at one side of the fountain and Luna at the other. I started to walk towards them when a bolt of lightning illuminated everything, Octavia looked at the sky and ran inside the nearest house.

- "Hey!" –I yelled at Luna before she could so much as to even think of following Octavia inside- "You're forgetting about me."

- "I hoped you'd be dead by now." -she turned to face me.

- "Touché."

     I wasn't sure how it happened, but I had come across Luna in one of the plazas; the first thing I did was look at her neck, seeing she was carrying more than just her sigil.

- "It's not Azgeda's." -Luna smiled darkly as she read my thoughts- "But I'll get that one too."

I moved around the fountain. We could have been like that all night until someone else showed up, but that didn't happen; what did arrive was the black rain. I knew my only option was getting inside a house, even if Luna followed me. I had to try.

I ran to the nearest house, throwing the door open when I heard her. Sam. She was alive; her hair in a braid falling down her back, the white fur on her shoulders covering the protections was almost completely red, her war paint white and black. She stood there, throwing her bow to the floor and the quiver before reaching for her two swords, determined to face Luna on her own. I wanted to yell at her, tell her to run for the black rain was starting to fall, but she didn't scream in pain, she didn't fall to the floor as the water burned her skin. How? Impossible.

They didn't waste more time talking as I looked at them, my hand white as I clenched my fingers around the handle of my sword, following their every move, praying to whoever was listening that my sister would be victorious.

     I took both my swords and approached Luna. The metal clashed and clashed but never ripped skin. The rain became heavier, puddles forming around us, making it harder to stay still.

- "Give up, you're never going to win me."

- "Ugh, shut up."

I took the initiative that time, forcing her to move back a couple of steps, weapons colliding until we ended up in a tie again, our swords forcing the other's away from their body. That was when I saw it. With all the care and attention I could, I rose one of my legs and hit her in the abdomen, taking her by surprise. Luna took a couple of steps backward, one of her swords falling next to me as I had it trapped.

- "Azgeda."

- "No, that was you underestimating me."

She yelled as she moved to me. She might have had only one sword but it didn't matter, I couldn't touch her and it was infuriating, but I knew I had to keep calm. We knew angry people made bad decisions. I managed to cut her side, but at the same time, she cut my left arm, my hand opening immediately, my sword falling on the mud.

- "It's over."

She stroke again, so much anger, so much fury... she was decided to kill the whole human race and I couldn't let her. As we moved in a circle, I saw Octavia still at the door, her sword long gone, replaced with a spear, she mouthed something, but I didn't catch it as I felt the cold touch of metal caressing my side, Luna's fist then on my nose and I fell to the floor, my sword too far to pick it up.

- "You're weak, you lack focus."

- "You're pissing me off."

- "Good."

She strode towards me before I could raise, her sword landing next to my head as I rolled around, kicking her in the ankle; she fell to the ground next to me, her sword in a puddle. I felt warmness on my stomach and I figured Jackson's stitches had finally broken. They resisted longer than we all expected. He did a great job. I grunted annoyed more so than in pain. I'm not dying like this.

I jumped over Luna, my fists colliding with her nose and jaw before she managed to hit me in the stomach, forcing me on my back, trying to strangle me but I quickly punched her where I had slashed her skin and the pressure on my neck softened long enough for me to breath and strike back, moving my head up and hitting hers. She moved back up, moving her hand to her forehead, seeing the blood before moving back to take her sword and so did I, doubling slightly in pain. We got this.

- "You can't seriously think you can win me. No matter who trained you, you're not one of us."

- "I don't want to be one of you. I don't need to."

We started fighting again, mud covering us, rain falling, and both bleeding from different places. She moved her sword upward like she was trying to slide me in two, so I moved back, my feet on a puddle, slipping and I fell on my back. Luna pointed her sword at me.

- "My blood didn't help you at all here."

- "It did." –I smiled, I still had my sword in hand so I moved it up, stabbing her leg and she fell to her knees beside me- "I'm not dying today."

- "You'll go down with me."

She rose her sword, ready to pierce my heart when a spear flew directly to her chest, completely trespassing her body. She rose a trembling hand to her front wound as she looked at me. I'd never forget her face: she looked startled, of course, but also haunted. Blood started pouring out of her mouth as I approached her, taking her in my arms as we both fell to the ground. I didn't like who she had become, but the Luna I first met? I had aspired to be like that someday, to end the fight, to move on and just live, but that just wasn't how it was meant to go.

- "You can rest now, Luna." –I caressed her face.

- "I hope you'll find your peace, Samantha."

- "It's too late for that." –I tried to smile- "But I'll try." –I squeezed her hand- "Kom woda so gyon op, gon woda so kom daun. Say hi to the ones I've lost for me." [From water we are born, to water we return.]

I saw the life abandon her body and it suddenly felt as if I were carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders; I closed her eyes and looked up, taking a deep breath. I had killed people before, Grounders, people from the Mountain, guards... but this was the first time I truly wished I hadn't. I knew I had to do it, it was the only way to keep Octavia and the rest alive, but it didn't necessarily mean I wanted to do it. I knew Luna had changed, but as she died in my arms, all I could see was the peaceful, compassionate, and kind woman I had met all those months ago. If she had changed to that, maybe she could have gone back and, even if she couldn't, it was our fault she turned this way, back to the Grounder's hostile ways. I shook my head. I can't afford to think like this now, we have to end this.

I took the sigils she had and placed them around my neck with the rest before I left her body on the floor. I held my abdomen as I rose, looking to the door of the house in front of me, seeing Octavia's worried look. I walked slowly up to her.

- "That was a good throw."

- "I've been practicing."

- "You fought well, O." –she approached me to hug me but I stopped her- "I'm covered in black rain, it'll burn your skin."

She looked at me up and down, her eyes landing on my stomach so she prompted me to enter the house. I sat in one of the chairs in the room as she looked around the house for something I could use to stop the bleeding, I supposed. We remained in silence for a while before she spoke again from another room.

- "How...?" -she didn't have to finish, I knew what she meant.

- "Let's just say the lab became Mount Weather number 2." -she gave an unconvinced look- "It didn't hurt and I'm fine."

- "What do we do now?" -she sighed- "I'm not going to kill you, Sam."

- "I appreciate that." –I chuckled, raising and approaching her- "Take this." –I placed Luna's sigil and all the ones I had on the table in front of her, including mine- "Go up there and do what you know it's right."

- "But..."

- "I'm right behind you." –I squeezed her shoulder and smiled.

- "You think they'll accept this?" –she eyed me, taking them all- "Two Champions uniting all the clans?"

- "They don't want to die; you offer them an out, they'll take it."

- "Does Roan know?"

- "Yeah, I made the deal with him last night. I was going to meet you to teach you the basics of how Azgeda fights, but I ran onto him and Echo and the rest is history."

- "Thank you."

- "For what?"

- "Having my back out there." –she smiled- "And in general."

- "You are the one who had my back, you killed Luna, not me."

- "She was distracted, I was just trying to help my sister."

- "I wouldn't have pulled it out without you." -I squeezed her shoulder now that my hands were dry- "I'm so proud of you."

- "I know you'd have, you are too stubborn to die like that. Besides, we're a good team."

- "And you still think those idiots up there would dare going up against Skairipa and Jusheda?" –I laughed- "I'd like to see them try."

- "I'll rather not."

- "Let's go, I bet your brother is running up the walls by now wondering what happened to you."

     The doors to the throne room open, revealing two figures covered in blood and one of them also covered in rain. Murmurs rise as the sisters enter the room side by side, but no one dares to raise their voice at them as they approach Gaia, Octavia handing her all the sigils before Samantha sits on the throne and Octavia approaches, standing next to her.

- "Your Champions have all fallen, including Luna kom Floukru who fought for all of us to die." –Samantha addresses the crowd first- "We will not kill each other when there's a solution I'm sure you will all like to hear now that your lives are in our hands."

- "The bunker can hold up to 1200 people." –Octavia continues- "It's clear none of you will take it for your clan alone. We have a proposition for the heads of the remaining 10 clans." –the sisters look around; slowly, each head of clan nods, prompting them to continue- "Not one clan survives, but all do." –Octavia states, leaving a couple of moments for her words to settle in- "A 100 people from each clan, chosen by you to survive the end of this world and raise with the new."

Octavia places her hand on Samantha's shoulder as the heads of the clans murmur in between them and with their advisors. Samantha crosses glances with Roan who nods imperceptibly, having known what the plan was all along, judging it was better to save 100 of his people like that than risk them all dying for his pride.

- "So, we ask..." –Octavia reclaims their attention- "Will you share the bunker equally?

- "Or will you burn?" –Samantha's eyes wander the room threateningly- "We know it's not the most traditional ending for a Conclave, but I'm sure, seeing only we're still here, for you it's either burning tomorrow or agreeing with us now."

Indra is the first one to agree to those terms, looking proudly at Octavia who feels her heart slightly lighter knowing they've done it. Slowly but surely, all the other clans agree and everything seems settled until someone starts yelling at the back of the room.

- "This is a mock of our traditions!"

- "So you choose death?" –Samantha doesn't even look bothered, resting her head on her palm- "Fine with us." -she moves her gaze until it lands on Echo, who nods and easily kills the man with an arrow- "Would anyone else like to question my sister and I's decisions?" –Samantha looks around, her gaze is confident, almost daring them to oppose them as she encounters the eyes of everyone else in the room- "Good. 100 people per clan. Choose wisely. Go."