chapter 8 - trick or traitor

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Have you ever played tug of war? You know, the game in which two teams pull opposite ends of a rope until eventually one drags the other over the central line? Normally, the game requires a judge of some sort, to be the mediator and announce when the mark on the rope has crossed over that line. However, what happens when both teams are of equal balance? When there's just enough strong contestants on one team, as there are on the other? Well, that usually results in the rope going back and forth between both teams, repeatedly, while the judge waits patiently to declare the winner.

The reason I'm describing the statistics of this specific game, is so that you can possibly understand how Dakota had been feeling last night after Octavia and Clarke returned. You see, she was feeling like the judge in a game of tug of war, as she battled internally with her heart and mind. On one side, her mind was telling her to head back to Polis with Clarke, Indra and her sister. There, she would be much safer and assist the Commander in meeting with the twelve clans. Her and Lexa were now as close as ever and she'd hate to be apart from her now.

However, her heart was telling her to remain at Arkadia, where her brother was currently being held a prisoner. Really, there wasn't a specific thing she could do to free him at this moment, nor the other grounders from the medical bay. But still, she knew that the plan was to keep an eye on Pike and Bellamy, and in all honesty, she'd rather do that than deal with Commander duties. Besides, this way Kota would actually feel like she's doing something to fix the main issue at hand, while waiting for the time to strike. Plus, Octavia would be right by her side, and there's no other place she'd rather be.

Finally, Dakota had came to a decision that morning. She decided to remain near camp with Octavia, and wait to hear back from Kane, who promised he'd radio if anything changed. Lexa was definitely against the idea at first, however, she knew that nothing she could say would stop her. Plus, she understood her sister's reasoning. That, and the simple fact that Lexa would forever be in great debt to Lincoln, whether she admitted to it or not. That man went out of his way not only to take care of her baby sister when she couldn't, but also raise her to become the fine young woman she was today. She wasn't going to stand in the way of Kota doing everything in her power to help him. Even if it went being separated once more.

Their parting was sorrowful, but quick, given the knowledge that it most likely wouldn't be long before they saw each other again. Dakota realized that even though she would miss Lexa greatly, right now Lincoln was her priority. She was furious with the horrible leadership happening in that camp, solely because her friends and family were in there. Sick ones in need of on-the-clock care were being isolated, just because Pike decided that there wasn't enough supplies to go around, and no one was doing anything about it.

So, Kota promised herself that she would do everything in her power to make things right. If that meant waiting patiently outside Arkadia's walls, while spying on Pike's trusty minions, then she would do so with utmost determination. Which actually led her to where she was now.

Currently, Dakota and Octavia were at the river bank hiding behind a fallen tree log, while they silently spied on Gillmer and Monty's mother, Hannah. They were followers of Pike, and so Kane gave both girls specific instructions that required tailing them in order to find out what they were up to.

"Pike's detail is still at it." Octavia spoke, touching her ear piece so that Kane could hear her. "Soil and water samples."

"Any idea what they're up to?"

"No, but considering how heavily they're armed, I don't think they want anyone to find out."

"Oh no..." Kota mumbled, eyes widening as she grabbed the brunette's arm. Octavia looked at her in concern, but soon cursed when she saw a lonely grounder child wondering into the river. "I know that kid. His name is Gavriel. He's from the Rendon village." Kota went to stand up but Octavia quickly pulled her down. "Octavia, I can't let them see him. They'll kill him!"

"What is it? What's going on?"

"I know, but it's too late." She sighed, ignoring Kane's questions and gesturing to the farm station members. "He's already been spotted."

At that, Dakota quickly turned her head just in time to see Hannah wave to the young boy.

"Hello there." She greeted him with a smile, and Gavriel instantly looked across the river at her. "Don't be scared."

The boy only stood there, and Dakota could tell that he was unsure of what to do. She was so tempted to just run over there and protect him out of instinct, and she most likely would have done so already if it wasn't for the grip Octavia had on her, keeping her in place.

"We can't let him go. He'll tell his people he saw us." She heard Gillmer say, and she had already decided she heard enough. She slipped out of Octavia's grasp and quickly ran directly behind them into the woods, leaving the brunette in confusion as to what she planned to do.

"Octavia. Please respond."

"Hannah!" Gillmer called out, wanting her to give him the go ahead to take the kid out. He raised his gun in precaution, and when she finally gave him a nod, that's when Gavriel knew it was time for him to go. He quickly darted into the forest just as Gillmer was about to shoot.

"Fan out, with me!" Hannah shouted, and the two other farm station members all ran after the boy.

"Octavia, Dakota, you there?"

"They're going after the kid." Octavia finally responded to Kane, as she got up from her kneeling position and ran into the woods as well. "I'm gonna try and cut them off."

Gavriel ran as fast as he could, dodging and weaving around various tree branches and other obstacles as he did so. Hannah and the others were trailing right behind him, before they each decided to split up in search of the boy.

Octavia was trying her best to keep up with them, and find a way to cut them off, however, she knew that she still had to remain unseen as well. So she was struggling to reach Gavriel on time. It seemed as if the little boy was a goner once Gillmer raised his gun and had a clear headshot on him, but at the last second, the boy jumped down in a ditch, avoiding the bullets.

He went to stand up and run after that, however, out of nowhere, he suddenly felt someone grab onto him and pull him behind some bushes. He could then feel the person put there hand over his mouth, and as he struggled in their grasp, he managed to glance up and see Dakota placing a finger over her lips to shush him. She held onto him tightly, while resting her head on the back of a tree, while she heard Hannah and Gillmer idling a few feet behind them.

"We lost him." The man panted, due to a combination of being out of breath, and from frustration.

"Double back towards the river." Mrs. Green ordered him, keeping her eyes peeled for the boy. "He can't have gone far."

As the two went their separate ways, Hannah stayed while continuing to look around, and Dakota knew that they had to remain quiet until she was sure the coast was clear. However, she began to struggle a bit when poisonous tree-sap started dripping onto her forehead. It ate feverishly on her flesh, burning greatly with each and every drop, and Kota did her best to keep still, but it was proving to be quite difficult. Finally, not even a minute later Hannah was making her way back to the riverbank, allowing the two grounders the opportunity to reveal themselves.

Dakota went to inform Gavriel that she would help him get home safely, however, during the time she had taken to wipe the sap off her skin, the boy had already ran off, leaving her alone. Soon enough though, Octavia managed to find her and she rushed to her side.

"Hey, are you okay?" The brunette asked concerningly, as she brought her sleeve up to Kota's temple in order to clean the remnants of the sap.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just hope he gets home okay."

Octavia nodded, before reaching up to click on her earpiece. "Kane?"

"I'm here." He quickly responded, though in a hushed whisper. "Are you girls okay?"

"You need to find out what Pike is up to."

"Right now." Kota urged him, with a frown. "Whatever it is, they were willing to kill a kid to keep it quiet."

"We're on it." Kane replied, referring to the others in the camp who were secretly against Pike. "You both stay safe."

With that, he turned off his walkie-talkie and exited the room he had been talking discreetly in, and made his way out into the hallways.

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Not too long after that, Kane found himself walking down the Ark's empty halls with nothing but fixation, as Nate Miller walked with him. The plan was to enter the Chancellor's quarters and bug the place with a hidden microphone, so that they could eavesdrop on Pike and Bellamy's conversations. The two were definitely up to no good, and Kane vowed he would get to the bottom of it. He knocked on the door, making sure no one was inside so that he could enter. Meanwhile, Miller chuckled to himself, finding humor in their current situation.

"Bet you didn't think we'd be breaking the law together when you arrested me on the Ark, huh?" He smirked. However, Kane wasn't amused.

He gripped Miller by the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, so that he could understand how serious this was. "This isn't a game, Nate. If we don't find out what Pike's up to, more people will die."

Miller nodded, apologetically, before Kane let him go and turned to put in the code for the door's access panel. However, as soon as they were about to step foot in the room, suddenly they heard Pike's name down the hall, notifying them that the Chancellor was heading in their direction.

"Hey," Kane whispered, putting the bug in Miller's palm. "You put this somewhere smart, out of sight. I'll buy you some time."

After that, he quickly rushed down the hall to catch the Chancellor before he made it any farther back to the room.

"There you are." He said, feigning having been looking for him. "We need to talk about these things Jaha is distributing."

"No, we don't." Pike countered. "That's Abby's department. I have much more immediate concerns." He went to step around him, with Bellamy following, but Kane turned around and started speaking again before they could leave.

"Like the imprisoned Grounders?"

The duo stopped once more, now that Kane really caught their attention.

"Interned," Pike corrected him, not that there was much difference. "For their safety as well as ours."

"They came here for our help. If we're not going to give it to them we should at least send them home."

"They're a liability." Bellamy stepped in. "Let them go, they'll tell their people what they know about us—our defenses and capabilities."

"We're talking about Lincoln and Dakota here." Kane tried to reason, but Pike shook his head.

"No, we're talking about the enemy."

"Not all grounders are the enemy."

"Kane, we've been through this, all right. The election decided it."

Kane glanced up and saw the nod Miller gave him as he walked back down the hallway, knowing that it was now clear for them to proceed where they were headed, so he could wrap it up with his attempts at a diversion.

"Public opinion is a funny thing, Charles."

"Well, my job is to keep us safe." Pike answered, plainly. "Not to be liked."

And with that final statement, he and Bellamy walked away, leaving Kane to release a sigh of relief that it had managed to work...

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Later on in the evening, Miller and Kane were listening to the meeting happening in the Chancellor's office, while Kota and Octavia listened in as well with their earpieces.

"Okay. Let's get this meeting started." Pike announced. "Welcome Farm Station's own Monty Green and factory girl, Zoe Monroe, as we begin our next crucial phase: expansion and salvation. And this will lead the way."

The group secretly listening in couldn't see, but Pike held up a sample vile, so the others in the room could look at it.

"Dirt?" Monroe's staticky voice could be heard questioning him.

"Soil." Pike emphasized. "Fertile, arable soil. Vastly more rich than anything we've found since landing. We'll clear the trees and plant within the month."

"We start with soy beans and corn." Hannah added, quite proudly. "They grow the fastest."

"What's wrong, Monty?" Bryan, Miller's boyfriend, asked once he saw the boy walk away from the center table. "Don't like corn?"

"I've never had corn, actually." He dismissed him, before quickly pointing to a spot on the nearby map. "Is this where we're going?"

"That's right."

"But there's a village here." Monty pointed out. "What about the people who live there?"

"That's sector four." Bellamy's voice rang out in realization. He quickly glanced over at Pike. "We talked about this. The people there are not a threat."

"We need that land. With the loss of Mount Weather's resources, Arkadia will be starving in less than a year."

That new piece of information certainly would have caught Kane and the others' attention, if they hadn't already been listening intently to every word so far.

"With all due respect sir," Bellamy continued. "You still haven't answered Monty's question."

"You know the answer." Pike quickly replied. "Every field must be cleared of stones before it's tilled."

"We were spotted by a child." Hannah's voice cut in, causing Kota to instantly frown at the most recent memory. "So, they'll be expecting us. But they lost their fighters when we took out the army. We don't expect resistance."

"They're Grounders," Monty reminded his mother. "They'll resist."

At this point in the conversation, Dakota had decided that she had enough. She couldn't stand the fact that they still continued treating her people like they were the monsters. The sadists, if you will. However, who were the ones who just massacred an army in their sleep? A time when they were most vulnerable? Afterall, it's not like they expected the people they were sent to protect, to suddenly turn on them. They weren't the murderous tyrants anymore. Now, that infamous title and crown belonged to Charles Pike himself, and Dakota would be damned if she let him get away with anymore unnecessary bloodshed.

With a sigh of frustration, she yanked out her earpiece and threw it on the ground angrily, before stomping off to where her and Octavia had been residing near camp. She didn't even care to listen to the rest of the conversation. It would only be a waste of time. Pike and his crew weren't going to let up, so she was just going to have to take matters into her own hands, and reach that village before they did. Not a minute later, Kota was already untying her horse, Athena, preparing to mount her.

Almost as if the horse could sense her unending nerves, Athena kept nudging her muzzle into her chest, neighing obnoxiously. Perhaps, it was a sign of some sort? While it may just have been the horse trying to comfort her, Dakota couldn't help but wonder if maybe she was trying to warn her. Of what? She couldn't tell you. Still, she knew that animals had a way of sensing immediate danger. So, it definitely didn't help her feel any better about the near future. However, she wasn't going to let the fear of the unknown keep her from solving the current situation at hand.

Octavia joined her at their campsite, and without hesitation, she untied her horse, Helios, and mounted on him as well. Dakota looked at her expectantly.

"What are you doing?" She asked the brunette, who had a frown on her face, clearly angry from the situation too. Especially, given the fact that her brother was a huge part in it.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I know you're planning on warning the village, and I'm going with you. Don't even try to tell me not to, because I'm sick of people thinking that they can tell me what—" Octavia's rambling was soon cut off by Dakota leaning over between their horses, and pecking her on the cheek.

"I wasn't going to tell you to stay here, ai hodnes." She smirked, even though her heart was beating a million miles a minute. She knew it wasn't the time to be thinking such things, but she couldn't help but find Octavia's badass persona and caring attitude an incredibly sexy combination. She truly was her partner in crime. Besides, Kota's people were now Octavia's people as well, because she was her person. The girl that she loved. She would ride into battle with her any day, no questions asked.

"Good." Octavia mumbled, trying to hide her blush. "Let's go then. They're planning on invading Rendon tonight, so we have to hurry."

Dakota nodded, before clicking her tongue and gently squeezing her legs around Athena's ribcage, which notified the horse to move forward. Octavia did the same, and just a few seconds later they were galloping towards the endangered village.

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Octavia and Dakota arrived at Rendon and rode into the village cautiously, with their hands raised.

"Osir nou na bash yo op. Osir nou na bash yo op." Kota quickly stated repeatedly, once the people noticed them. [We mean you no harm. We mean you no harm.] Both girls dismounted from their horses, as the chieftain, Semet, stepped forward with his cane.

"Liar!" He bellowed, looking directly past Dakota and instead, at Octavia. "I've seen your face. You were at the Battle of the Mountain. She's Skaikru." He spat, his voice laced with venom and underlying hatred. "Your guns killed our brothers and sisters, warriors, sent by the commander to keep you safe."

"I'm sorry for your loss," Octavia apologized sincerely, before raising her voice in importance. "But we're here to warn you that the soldiers who did that are coming here now! They want your land and they will kill all of you to get it! You need to leave this place right now!"

"Are you threatening us?" He shouted at her, not even giving her a time to respond. Semet quickly used his cane to knock her legs out from underneath her, before he kicked her square in the jaw.

"Yu nomonjoka!" Kota practically growled at him. She took a step forward to intervene, just as Octavia rolled away from the man who was now trying to bash her head in.

Kota placed herself directly in front of the brunette, protectively, while putting her hand on her sword. She didn't want to have to use it on the people, because deep down she