𝐏𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓/𝟏.𝟏𝟕.
☆ BLAZES OF PAIN ☆
"𝓘𝓯 𝓸𝓷𝓵𝔂 𝓘 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻𝓮..."

☆꧁*꧂☆

   ACROSS THE BRIDGE, right in the middle, Allaia and Clarke cautiously approached the female Grounder. The woman stared at them blankly in a silent analysis, with no emotion visible in her vacant gaze. Her eyes lingered longer on Allaia, studying her features in reverie.

"Your names are Clarke and Allaia?" She asked sternly.

The girls nodded. "Yes." Clarke replied firmly, delusive confidence lacing through her fierce tone.

"I'm Anya." The woman introduced herself, emotionlessly. "Lincoln was right. There is something strange about you that reminds me of Sirra. I've heard you bear the mark of Adaley kom Trikru, Allaia." Anya said, looking straight at Alle. 

   Allaia interpreted Anya's words as a sign to reveal her infamous scar, which everyone seemed to be obsessed about. Alle wasn't going to argue, so swiftly, she took off her jacket, remaining only in her black tank top. Anya's eyes narrowed in admiration as her glimpse collided with the seam adorning Allaia's forearm. 

"Incredible." Anya whispered under her nose. "The star. Just like from the prophecy."

"Why did you want to meet with me too?" Allaia inquired with residues of her bravery.

   Clarke stuck out her hand, expecting Anya to do the same, but the woman simply glanced at it with the slight reserve. Clarke pulled her arm away, sighing heavily.

"I think we got off to a rough start, but we want to find a way to live together. In peace." Clarke began her speech, but Anya only smirked smugly, raising her eyebrow at the blonde whose eyes shimmered with hope.

"I understand." Anya responded. "You started a war that you don't know how to end."

The girls frowned, not knowing how to react. What war?

"No, we didn't start anything." Clarke protested. "You attacked us for no reason." She stated, a trace of accusation was undeniable underneath her deceiving illusion of weak equilibrium.

"No reason?" Anya taunted mockingly, tilting her head to the side. "The missiles you launched burned a village to the ground." She spat angrily.

"The flares?" Allaia's eyes widened in terror. "No, it— It was a signal! For our families..."

"We had no idea..." Clarke breathed.

"You're invaders." Anya growled viciously. "Your ship landed in our territory."

"We didn't know anyone was here." Clarke explained, citing on a pathetic excuse. "We thought the ground was uninhabited."

"You knew we were here when you sent an armed raiding party to capture one of us and torture him." Anya snapped with a hiss. "These are all acts of war!"

Clarke and Allaia sighed in defeat.

"I see your point." Allaia assured gently. "That's why we need to put an end to all of this."

"Lincoln said there are more of you coming down. Warriors." Anya mentioned cautiously. 

"The Guard. Yes." Clarke confirmed. "But also farmers, doctors, engineers. We can help each other. But not if we're at war."

Anya replied after a few seconds of pondering. "Can you promise that these new arrivals won't attack us? That they'll respect the terms you, Allaia and I agree on?" She inquired, examining their facial expressions with narrowed eyes, as if in an attempt to detect a potential lie.

"I promise I will do everything I can to convince them to honor the terms that we set." Clarke stated, causing Anya to scoff in annoyance.

"Why would I agree to an alliance that your people can break the moment they get here?" Anya asked, raising her eyebrow at the blonde in amusement combined with disbelief.

"If you fire the first shot, those people coming down won't bother negotiating. Our technology— They will wipe you out." Clarke said roughly, and Allaia nervously bit the inside of her cheek.

"They wouldn't be the first to try." Anya smirked mysteriously. 

"ALLAIA, CLARKE, RUN!" Jasper screamed, emerging from his lodge. He raised his rifle and began to fire at the opposite canopy.

   Gunshots reigned throughout the forest, wrecking absolute havoc. Jasper fired bullets into the high crowns of the trees, aiming at the Grounders hiding in there. Arrows echoed right after, as a ruthless counterattack, thrown at the girls with almost perfect accuracy. 

   Allaia faltered, not quite in a riddance of the alcohol in her veins, stumbling as arrows were rocketing near her body with an inconceivable speed. Letting out an aquiver exhalation, she ducked downwards, in fear of losing her life. Alle swore under her breath, vaguely glancing around, miserably searching for an escape of the fire line. 

   A sharp sound of a blade resonated into the air as Anya held her knife, trying to slice Clarke. Then Bellamy stepped forward and pulled the trigger, the bullet hitting the female Grounder. Anya cried out in an excruciating pain, withdrawing down the bridge. 

"Girls, get down!" Finn shouted loudly. 

   Out of nowhere, a spear streaked from the trees, racing towards Clarke and Allaia. Alle tackled Clarke onto the ground as the weapon glided beside them, threateningly close. 

   Finn met Allaia and Clarke in the middle, hurriedly reaching for their arms, and pulling them away to relative safety. Volleys of bullets and arrows were flying around them, risk and tension intensifying to the point of the highest pressure combined with fright as they ran down the side of the bridge. Lincoln and Octavia waited at the end, when suddenly an arrow swept in their direction, aimed at Octavia, but Lincoln rapidly pushed her behind him.

"Oh, my God, Lincoln, you've been hit!" Octavia's eyes widened in terror as her cast locked with the arrow poking out of his chest.

"It's just a scratch." He breathed, extracting it from his body with a low grunt. "Okay, run. Don't stop until you get behind your walls. Go! Take her!" Lincoln yelled, gently shoving Octavia into Allaia's arms. 

"Lincoln, no!" Octavia screamed deafeningly, struggling in Allaia's hold. 

Eventually, they ran away, shattering their fragile hopes for any sort of truce. 

☆꧁*꧂☆

   BY NIGHTFALL, THEY reached the gates of the camp, panting heavily due to the lack of breath and exhaustion. During the whole way back, Bellamy and Allaia's hands remained intertwined in a wordless support, as he constantly asked her in a whisper if by any chances she was wounded anywhere. His genuine concern, maybe even overprotective habits, seemed to subdue her fears and worries. Her thoughts swirled into external reality in a silent cogitation of what could have happened if everything went off differently. 

Finn glared at Bellamy with noticeable animosity. 

Bellamy rolled his eyes, irritated to the very edge. "You got something to say?" He growled in rage.

"Yeah! I told you, no guns!" Finn shouted at the group, his tone leaking with anger and resentment.

"I told you we couldn't trust the Grounders." Clarke interjected sternly. "I was right."

"Why didn't you tell me what you were up to?" Raven demanded. 

"I tried, you were too busy making bullets for your guns." Finn snapped.

Raven fell back slightly, evident hurt glimmering in her disappointed eyes.

"You're lucky she brought that." Bellamy seethed. "They came there to kill you, Finn. They could've killed your sister!" He yelled angrily, vaguely pulling Allaia closer to himself as she rolled her eyes.

"You don't know that." Finn hissed in response. "And don't touch my sister, Blake."

"You two act like children. Grow the fuck up." Allaia chuckled, slightly moving away from Bellamy, much to his displeasure. "Finn, it was stupid to go there without any protection. You don't know their intentions. I know you just want to believe they're good. I do too." She admitted. "But if we want to survive, we need to think realistically."

"Jasper fired the first shot!" Finn stated accusingly, pointing at Jasper whose eyes widened as everyone glanced at him.

"You ruined everything." Octavia blamed Jasper bitterly, turning around abruptly to walk away.

"I saved you!" Jasper shouted, but she ignored him. "You're welcome." He scoffed, and brushed past Clarke. 

"Well, if we weren't at war already, we sure as hell are now." Finn looked at Clarke with a scowl. "You didn't have to trust the Grounders. You just had to trust me." He stated before he left, Raven trailing behind. 

"That's pretty dramatic." Allaia muttered.

Bellamy shook his head with disbelief. "Like I said, best Unity Day ever." Irony resonated through his voice.

   A sudden explosion filled the air above. Allaia glimpsed at the nightly sky in astonishment as a purple flash of lights burst into the horizon, descending from the depths of the outer space. It fell from the atmosphere within the range of neon rays of sparkles and elusive speed, overshadowing the lustrous stars. Allaia gasped in awe, but her enthusiasm faded away as soon as she realized the true nature and realness of these shiny glares flying down the sky.

The Exodus ship.

With Abby, her father, and Nixon on board, to be exact.

   Her smile faltered, in the ultimate awareness of what it meant for her. Allaia was beyond excited to see Abby again — she's occupied a special place in Alle's heart since forever; Allaia truly loved Abby like a mother and couldn't imagine the life without her. Abby seemed to see her emotional currents like lightnings; she was the clarity for Allaia's storms, always there to chase away the thunders of Lai's nightmares. 

   When no one was willing to acknowledge Allaia's accusations towards Nixon as he sexually harassed her with no remorse, scavenging on her misery, Abby blamed herself for not noticing earlier what was happening behind these prison walls. She couldn't believe that the girl she treated like her own daughter suffered in silence for so long, too afraid and forced to leave her hell unspoken.

   This tiny spark of brightness shining on the sky symbolized the end of Allaia's freedom.

"The Exodus ship?" Bellamy questioned, staring at the horizon in reverie. "Your parents are early." He smiled as Clarke grinned, letting out a relieved breath. 

   The spacecraft continued to fall, burning with the sphere's blinding firelight. Instead of slowing down, the Exodus ship increased its speed, descending to Earth uncontrollably, with no sign of any precaution to deploy for the landing. Allaia's insides morphed into ominous coldness, turning upside down, as she dreadfully watched the glints of purple flares disappear behind the forest.

"Wait. Too fast." Clarke panicked. "No parachute. Something's wrong."

   The hills of ravine were set in flames as an explosion erupted from the crash site. A cloud of ash and dust rose on the skyline above, its spectrum glimmered with incandescent bursts of dark smoke. The inferno on Earth spread like a contagious disease, the ashen mist dispersed the horizon with its fatal embrace. 

   Numbness overpowered Allaia as she felt a part of her fall apart within the fume of death hovering in the air. Dull sound began ramming into her skull as she wavered, frailly hearing Bellamy calling out her name in concern. Strong arms wrapped around her, engulfing her in a sense of empathy and support as her eyes were locked on the sky. The scream so loud tore from her throat her like a silver of glass, igniting agony through primeval pathways of her soul. 

They were all dead, within just a blink of an eye.

Just like their last hope of survival.

☆꧁*꧂☆

   WHEN SUNRISE BEGAN to absorb the world in daylight, Allaia sat in the middle of the forest situated nearby the boundaries of the camp. Finn stayed with her during the whole night, holding her closely to his chest, but when the dawn started setting it, Alle forced him to get some sleep, seeing how heavy his eyelids were. 

   A sense of peace emanated from these woodlands, so Allaia decided it would be the best place to relieve her sadness and let herself mourn for the dead. 

   So she cried into her chest unceasingly, for those she lost for evermore. Tears seemed to keep her alive in this everlasting cage of suffering, unable to extinguish what has been. Pain came in waves, minutes of sobbing broken apart by short pauses for recovering shallow breaths, before hurling herself back into the outstretched arms of her grief. 

"Allaia?" She recognized this soft voice immediately. Bellamy. "O told me you could be here." He sighed worriedly, and sat next to her.

   With swollen eyes, salty tears spilling down her cheeks, she glanced at him with utter vulnerability radiating from her devastated gaze. His heart broke a little, crumbling as he helplessly watched her wipe her face with her trembling hand.

"Yeah, I needed to think." Allaia murmured eventually, blankly staring at the horizon spreading above. Her mind abstractedly evoked the cloud of ash and dust from last night, causing her to shiver immensely.

"How are you feeling, love?" His eyes never left the side of her face as his eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"Empty... And sad. I don't think there are any words that could describe how I'm feeling right now." Allaia replied in a whisper. "I've just lost a woman who was like a mom to me. After my real mom was floated when I was three, Abby was always there for me. She taught me everything I know." Her voice crackled to the point when she couldn't hide her emotions anymore. 

"And my father is also... dead." She continued anxiously. "Our relationship was basically nonexistent. The last time we talked... We argued. Badly. I mean, he really tried to have a normal conversation with me, but all I did was yell at him. I was so mad for all these years he ignored me. Do you know what my last words to him were?" A humorless laugh escaped her lips. "I told him that I don't have a father." 

   Her dark eyelashes brimmed heavy with tears; her hands clenched into shaking fists, in a desperate battle against the grief. 

"Baby..." Bellamy began shakily, intertwining their fingers and giving her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"I'll never forgive myself that." Allaia mumbled, avoiding his eyes at any cost. "And the worst part is that I also feel this... huge relief, you know? On the Exodus ship, there was a person I hated so much for all the things he's done to me. A part of me is happy that he's finally gone. Does it make me a horrible person?" She sobbed quietly. "Because I feel like it does."

"Do you remember what I told you yesterday, angel?" Bellamy questioned, gently cupping her cheek, making her face him. 

"No, I was drunk as fuck."

"Then let me remind you, love..." He hummed. "I told you that you are the strongest person I've ever met. I told you that you're beautiful and smart. I told you that the heart beating in your chest is the purest heart in this fucked up world. I told you that you're a hero, angel. And finally, I told you that you're so damn perfect that it seems unreal." Bellamy revealed with a slight smile. "Anything rings a bell?"

   Allaia could feel the heat rising upon her face. The blooming shade of a rose as red as a flame was setting her heart on fire as her mind tried to assimilate his affectionate words.

"Not really, Bell. " She exhaled, embarrassed.

"Everything I said is true. You're incredible, angel. Please never forget that." Bellamy pressed lovingly. "Whoever you hate so much, I'm sure he deserved it. I don't mean to push you into telling me something you're not comfortable with, but... Did anyone hurt you, princess?"

Allaia pursed her lips. "I guess I owe you an explanation." She sighed.

"No, no, I don't want you to think about it this way." Bellamy protested. "I'm just really worried about you, love."

"Bell, I just feel like I need to tell someone or I'm gonna explode from all these thoughts." She let out an aquiver breath. 

"Okay, I'm here for you, Alle. No matter what." He assured delicately, never letting go of her hand.

"So, you wondered who Nixon is." Allaia began quietly. "We met when I was about fourteen years old. He was a training guard and his daily task was to patrol cells in the Sky Box. Nixon was my first friend ever. He would visit me and tell me stories about the Ark. I felt a connection with him, you know? He was lonely... Just like me." She explained. "At first, Nixon just wanted a close friend, someone to talk with. But one day, something changed. A year later, when I was almost fifteen, Nixon came to my cell. He told me he loved me. Romantically." Alle blurted. "I didn't know what to say. But I only saw him as a friend. And I told him that. Nixon got mad. Really mad. Um— He kissed me. Without my permission. He tried to do more, but I managed to stop him." 

   Her amber eyes looked as if an ocean had been encased inside of small glass marbles. Then the smooth spheres appeared to be cracked; the ocean had started to leak, little water droplets streamed down Alle's s rosy cheeks.

"Nixon changed. He became aggressive. He would come to my cell and take his anger out on me. He would slap me and punch me in the places no one could notice any traces of abuse. Sometimes he would even touch me inappropriately." She sobbed and Bellamy wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to himself. "He would insult me. Call me a worthless bitch no one cares about. A waste of space. He would say no one's ever gonna love me." Alle cried out. 

"I... I was too scared to tell anyone. Nixon threatened he would kill Abby, my dad and my sibling if I snitched. I knew he was capable of murder, so I chose to stay silent." Allaia admitted, sniffling. "For over a year, I suffered in silence. There were a few moments I thought I couldn't handle it anymore, but I'd never end my life on purpose. My mom Vivian sacrificed her own to let me live, so I needed to keep fighting, for her, even though I wanted to give up so bad." Her voice cracked as she released a hysterical cry. 

Alle took a deep breath. "One day, Nixon was angrier than usual. He said he's tired of my constant rejection. He— he tried to force himself on me. Nixon almost raped me, Bell." Alle whispered as erratic sobs ripped through her body, her muscles and bones. She pressed her forehead against Bellamy's shoulder. 

   Storms of frantic sobbing unraveled emotions buried deep inside her soul as heaving cries filled with violent rawness tore from her throat. Bellamy was rubbing soothing circles on her hand, innerly fuming with fury. 

"Abby heard screams and stopped him in time. I tried to press charges, but in the end, the Council stated he was innocent." Allaia sighed.

   Bellamy's rage paralleled the incandescence of infernal flames, alight with fire igniting anything within its reach. Hostile red eclipsed his vision like a bloody moon eclipse, unveiling anger beyond reckoning and impossible to contain. To say he was mad was a huge understatement; waves of wrath arose in the depths of his soul, crawling inside his veins like a devilish creature, seeking to wreak havoc. Bellamy clenched his jaw as hatred and fury intoxicated him, awakening the primitive urge to harm.

"That fucking piece of shit should be glad that he's dead now." Bellamy seethed, enraged. "I'd fucking end the bastard with my bare hands."

His infuriated glare softened when his eyes collided with Allaia's teary cast.

"Angel." Bellamy begged,