CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Song: Crossfire by Stephen
The last thing Mira wanted to do was leave Cory, but if she stayed with him any longer she was sure someone would spear her or cut her head off. She rose slowly and picked up her sword again, tears streaking her face. She felt empty and lost and strangely confused. She couldn't believe that Cory was dead. It had always been impossible to imagine her life without him, and she was forced to face the reality too early.
She walked away from Cory's body on wobbly legs with a distant expression. Around her, the battle continued and she didn't take notice when a grounder swung their sword at her. She simply swung her own sword and cut him down, sending him to the ground. Her whole mind had shut down in grief and all she had left was her instinct to defend herself. She continued to fight ruthlessly until a shadow in the corner of her eye snapped her out of her daze. She instantly recognised the figure as Bellamy, running awkwardly amongst the tree line. He was carrying a smaller figure and struggling to do so. She knocked yet another grounder over the head with the hilt of her sword before sprinting towards Bellamy and the unidentifiable figure. As she got closer, she realised it was Octavia and her gut filled with dread and fear of her being in the same situation as Cory. Some of that dread and fear lifted when she saw it was only an arrow in her thigh. It would hurt like hell, but wouldn't kill her.
Bellamy's eyes widened at the sight of her. Her face was covered in blood and it also stained her clothes in some places, it was even in her hair. His worry only dulled slightly when he realised it wasn't hers as she doesn't have a single new cut on her. Which meant it was someone else's blood. Mira had killed, and by the looks of it, a lot of people. The girl who arrived on Earth with hope in her eyes and joy in her heart was gone. She rushed forward and sat beside Octavia, whom Bellamy had placed down to sit against a tree.
"Shit," she breathed out, taking in Octavia's injury.
"You're an idiot," Octavia told her. Mira gave her a confused look in return. "You went all Tarzan and jumped ten metres out of a freaking tree," she explained.
Defiant battlecries stopped Mira from responding and made the trio jump. Mira looked past the trees to see people -well, sort of- attacking the grounders. All of them had some sort of disfiguration, such as an enlarged hand all the way to an extra head. The way they fought the grounders was ruthless, even more than the grounders themselves.
"What the hell is that?" Octavia asked, grunting in the effort to twist herself around to see the source of the sound.
"Reapers," Bellamy responded. The tone he used suggested to Mira that they were not friendly. That and the fact that they were fighting the grounders and in most cases winning. "Let's move," Bellamy said, moving to try pick Octavia up again.
"We'll never make it back to the drop ship," Mira pointed out.
"Leave me. I'll find another way," Octavia insisted.
"No!" Mira instantly protested. She wouldn't loose another one of her friends. Especially if there was anything she could do about it. Bellamy refused to leave her either.
"I'm not going anywhere without you," he told her. A sudden rustle of twigs made Mira spin around, her sword raised. Lincoln stepped back in shock with his arms raised in surrender. Mira slowly lowered her weapon.
"Octavia," Lincoln breathed out, rushing to her side and brushing her hair out of her face.
"Did you do this?" Octavia asked, "bring the reapers here?" Lincoln nodded and explained that Finn helped. He went on to check her injury. Bellamy and Mira reluctantly shuffled back and let him do so, since he definitely knew what he was doing more than either of them.
"It's deep," he announced.
"She's going to be okay though," Mira insisted. "Right?" Lincoln nodded and the action visibly soothed both Bellamy and Mira.
"I can help you," Lincoln told Octavia, "but you have to come with me now." Mira's heart dropped. She couldn't say goodbye to anyone else. Octavia looked at her brother.
"Go," he insisted. "Let him help you."
"Bellamy no!" Mira protested. Bellamy gave Mira a quick apologetic glance.
"No way," Octavia responded. "I have to see this through."
"You can't walk and I can't get you back to the drop ship," Bellamy told her. Mira could tell that he really didn't want to let her go but if it meant she lived, he would do anything. Mira had to think the same way. It didn't matter what she wanted she needed to do what was best for Octavia.
"He's right," Mira agreed glumly. "This fight is over for you," she told her best friend. She could feel her throat tightening with more tears. She wrapped her arms around Octavia's shoulders and squeezed tightly. Mira's tears fell onto Octavia's shoulders. Octavia was sobbing quietly too. Bellamy and Lincoln watched with sad eyes.
"I love you," Octavia choked out. Mira took a deep shuddering breath before responding.
"I love you too," she mumbled. She pulled back, clutching Octavia's shoulders firmly. "You are the sister I never had," she told her. Octavia smiled sadly and more tears fell from her blue eyes.
"Tell Asteria-" Mira cut her off, nodding. She knew what she needed to tell her.
"I will," she promised. Mira reluctantly stepped back and let Bellamy say his goodbyes, which she could tell was very emotional. Lincoln scooped Octavia up in his arms easily.
"Keep her safe," Bellamy instructed Lincoln, who nodded before disappearing into the dark forest, leaving just Mira and Bellamy. They looked at each other, sharing their thoughts without words and nodded. They needed to get to the drop ship before they launched the rockets.
Together, they made their way back behind the ruined wall, fighting as needed. Bellamy, with his gun and Mira, with her sword. The drop ship was only a few metres away when they were attacked by a grounder. He was so big he made Bellamy look small, and Mira look like an ant. Bellamy immediately went to shoot him, but both their faces fell when it was revealed that he had run out of bullets. The grounder smirked and swung at Bellamy with his sword. Mira took a quick step between them and blocked his swing. Their swords collided and Mira used all her strength to push him away. She surprised herself when she sent him stumbling back. Mira took the opportunity to yell at Bellamy to run, which she did herself. She sprinted to the entrance of the drop ship, with Bellamy hot on her trail. At least she thought he was. When Mira turned around her eyes immediately fell on Bellamy, who was getting beaten by the grounder. And there was no way he was going to win. Bellamy had at least disarmed him, but the man was a lot stronger than him. Mira took a step forward to run to his aid and save his life, but was stopped by strong arms wrapping around her waist and pulling her back towards the drop ship.
She looked up and saw Jasper, giving her apologetic eyes. "No!" She shouted. She tried to pull away from Jasper's grasp but he was surprisingly stronger than her. "Jasper let me go! I can save him!" She protested.
"I'm sorry Mira," he mumbled. Mira continued to thrash and cry and Jasper continued to pull Mira back into the drop ship, though she made it difficult. She didn't dare take her eyes off Bellamy for a second, even though what she saw was horrific. He was being beaten bloody. Blood was flying out of his mouth with each punch from the grounder and he was having the wind blown out of him repeatedly.
"Bellamy!" She screeched again, drawing his attention momentarily. He saw her struggling to escape Jasper's grip and his face fell at the realisation of what he would have to do. He locked eyes with Jasper, and nodded. Jasper returned the nod and continued to pull Mira back. Mira sobbed and screamed. She couldn't loose Bellamy. She had already lost Cory and Octavia; there was no way she could survive without Bellamy. The last thing she saw of Bellamy was him being beaten to death, and Finn rushing to his aid. So Finn was as good as dead too.
Jasper dragged her all the way to the back of the drop ship so that a crowd of delinquents would be between her and the exit. The second he let go of her, she lunged at him, dropping her sword in the process. That didn't matter. She was still pissed. She didn't get very far in her attack though, someone else pulled her away, kicking and screaming again. She didn't manage to see who it was as her attention was drawn to the closing drop ship door.
"No, Bellamy's still out there!" She shouted to Clarke at the front of the room, pulling the lever with a defeated look. But she wasn't heard over the loud collective gasp, followed by shouts from the delinquents when they realised that one grounder had made it inside. Anya. Mira picked up her sword again, overcome with rage.
"Jasper, now!" Clarke ordered. Jasper frantically pushed the button that would launch the rockets; and end Bellamy's life.
"No!" Mira screamed again, tears catching in her throat. Her sword clattered as it fell to the floor. But nothing happened. The rockets didn't work. Mira silently prayed to every god she could think of that Bellamy would use this time to escape -if he was still alive that is.
Anya stood with two swords raised, but that was no match for forty-eight (give or take) delinquents who were angry beyond words. Many of them had just lost their friends, loved ones, a leader. They started to beat her too, until she was on the ground and crying out in pain. Mira couldn't care less what happened to their enemies leader. Clarke on the other hand, had to intervene. She pushed everyone back until she stood in front of Anya defensively.
"She deserves to die!" One of the delinquents protested.
"No!" Clarke responded. She was angrier than Mira had ever seen her before. "We are not grounders."
No sooner had those words left her mouth than Jasper pressed the button again. He had fixed it and this time it worked. The rockets launched and shook the entire drop ship. Mira screamed Bellamy's name in despair and fell to the ground, sobbing and muttering his name over and over and over. She felt someone's arms surround her and pull her close. Asteria's, she figured. Asteria was all she had left. Besides her, she'd lost everyone. Mira sobbed so wildly and she didn't care who saw. She was too overcome with grief to care. She'd lost too much. Charlotte, Cory, Octavia, her father, Murphy, Bellamy... and the happy girl she used to be.
WORD COUNT: 1888
poor Mira my smol bean she's lost so much :'(
there's only one more chapter to go I'm so excited and it should be up soon like within the hour possibly