Responsible for survival

Flickering

ECHO'S POV:

I work slowly, unlocking and helping people out of their cages, sending them to the main floor where the two sky people and healers here are tending to them. One of the two sky people is barely 10. As soon as I get everyone out, I'm killing every enemy in this mountain. Using children!? I help the next one out when I hear a scream. I spin round, and stumble to the banister. Three, four, five people are fighting. I roll my eyes. Idiots. "Let the rest of them out!" I command the few others near me, tearing down the stairs.

"HOP OP!" I scream, leaping over the last banister. "NO GONPLEI!" I am not heard over the raucous. The male skaikru looks at me, then at them. He yells to.
"OI! IDIOTS!"
"HOP OP!" I scream. They look at us, split lips and black eyes. "No gonplei." I hiss, glaring at them.
"Azgeda?" One of them hisses.
"Sha. Ba ai lukot. Maunon gaf wamplei op. Nau shof op." I growl. The two skaikru look at me in confusion. "I'm their friend, the mountain men want us dead, so they need to shut up." The male nods, smirking. The little girl moves on.

RAVEN'S POV

We walk quietly down the tunnel. I keep my gun trained on the gaps to my right. I glance behind us, and the pin prick of light that marks the start of the tunnel, the rest of the army, is even smaller. I hurry to keep up. Monroe glances back, eyes sweeping over the five of us. I involuntarily straighten up. She looks back forward, then stops. She points at the ground, then falls prostate to it, mud flying over her. The others copy.

I'm not so lucky.

I fall and the ground is too far and their bullets are to close. I lean my head forward. Just don't let it be a headshot. Please. Please. Burning, exploding pain burns my back. I hit the ground. It turns murky, then inky blackness spreads across my vision and I am painless again.

CLARKE'S POV:

I stumble round the corner, no air in my lungs. No friends behind the water pipes, no friends in Murphy's air vent. Please let them have moved to the next one.
I slam into someone. I stumble backwards, blinking through blurry vision. Hands, warm, calloused hands grab my waist. I blink again. And I see him.

"Bell?" I whisper. He smiles, and leans down, tilting my chin up with two delicate fingers. I've never relished in a kiss so much. His lips are warm, and soft and feel like fireworks. I wrap my arms round his waist. His lips fit mine so well. "I promised I'd never abandon you Princess." He whispers, lips barely off mine, nose touching nose.
A pointed cough brings us back to the crappy present. I smile at Monty, Jasper and Maya, then frown. Why aren't they hidden?
"It's fine." Monty puts his hands up.
"No it's not. They're already got Amaya, Harper, Graham, Charlotte, Fox, Scott, Murphy, Joel and Lillith." I sniff. The list of names echoes in heavy pounds through my chest. Bell squeezes my hand.
"Murphy and Lillith are in the chamber with the grounders." Maya placates, hurrying us through the corridors. A look of worried, sickening fear covers Monty's face. The lights flicker again. She tugs Jasper along, walking with ease in the grainy light. We follow. The hospital looms into view, lights flickering. Maya unlocks the door, and beckons us in. She locks it again behind us. The doors are flung open. It's chaos inside. As we walk in a girl, Lillith and Murphy run to us. I scoop Lillith up. I hold her tight. The other girl looks to Bellamy, her blonde hair touseld and her eyes tired. "Well?"
"The army's on it's way. Acid fogs down." He nods. She sighs in relief, then glances at our clasped hands and smirks, bouncing her eyebrows.
"No wonder his 'your lady' dig didn't go down well." She laughs. Then she frowns. "I'm not staying. My people will be marching with the army."
"We need you here." Murphy points out. She shakes her head.
"You lot can control them as well as I can. Probably better. Azgeda isn't well liked."
"Fine." I cut through the brewing argument. We haven't got time for this. She clearly knows enough. "Go to your people. But I need you to go out via the reaper tunnels at the dam. They have our closest army waiting. Tell them to send the signal to start blowing up the doors." The girl nods.
"Clarke-!" Murphy yells.
"No. We haven't got time to fight. They already have at least 7 of us." I don't tell him they've got Charlotte. This entire mountain would be dead if he knew that. "We have to find the others, and Maya?" Maya looks at me, tearing her gaze away from the chaos inside the chamber. "We're going to start blowing in the doors. I need you to gather everyone you want saving from the radiation in the canteen and that floor." She nods. I look at Monty and Bellamy. Monty is pale, dangerously so. But we haven't got time to worry. Much. It's going to be the knowledge that Harper's in there. "We're going to the control room, ensuring they're protected from the radiation." Bell nods.
"What about the others?" Monty asks. What about Harper he means.
"We don't know where they are. We'll use the cameras in the control room." I tell him, patting his army. "Murphy? You've got this."