Down to Earth (A 100 Fanfiction)

Chapter 23 - The Commander

Roman heard someone enter the tent, but he didn't bother to get up and see who it was. He curled up into a ball and pulled the covers over his head. 

"I know you're awake, Little Prince."

His heart skipped a beat. He mentally scolded himself for how he was feeling. Pushing the covers off of himself, he turned his head to look at Raven Reyes standing at the entrance to his father's tent. 

The light from the lamp on his table created a dim light within the tent, illuminating her figure and making her skin seem like it was glowing. She looked beautiful in this lighting, but then again, she was always beautiful to him. 

"Hey," that was the only word that he could manage to say. 

"Can I come in?" Raven asked. "I need to tell you something important."

Roman nodded slowly before turning his head back to face the fabric wall of the tent. He focused his gaze on the small model airplane clasped in his hand. The first thing he had ever built, with the help of his father of course. It was one of the best memories that he ever had with him. 

"I know why we can't get through to the other Ark stations, Mount Weather is jamming out the signal."

"Yeah, I figured. That should explain the sounds Monty heard on the black box from the Exodus ship. Could be why the ship crashed," Roman responded in a monotonous tone. "That's probably why we can't use those stupid walkies either."

He was returned with nothing but silence. After a while, he did hear her footsteps move closer to his bed. His heartbeat was racing when he felt the bed sink beside him as she sat down. 

"He's gonna be okay," she said in a much calmer, gentler voice.

Roman tensed, shrinking more into himself. His frown deepened at the mention of his father. He remembered returning to hear that his father had gone on a search party to find the delinquents and make peace with the Grounders. And then, that very same evening, his party came back and told Roman that his father had chosen to stay out there and go talk to the Grounders by himself. There hasn't been any word from him since.  

"It's been two days, Raven," he replied. "His party came back without him. And if the Grounders have him then - "

He paused when a soft hand touched his head. Its fingers gently stroked his dark hair. 

"Reyes, what the hell are you doing?"

"It's a gesture of comfort, I thought I'd give it a try," Raven said. "I promise we'll find him. And if he's just like you - too stubborn to die - then I know he'll be okay."

When he was a toddler and he had a nightmare, his father would always come and sit beside him and stroke his hair to calm him down. It always made him feel better and allowed him to actually sleep properly.

This gesture reminded him of that. He felt his muscles relax for the first time in forever. He let out a breath that he never even knew he had. It was calm, serene. He hadn't felt this way in a long time, years in fact. He wanted to close his eyes, enjoy the long-lost peace, and her soft touch just a little while longer ...

No. 

He shouldn't be enjoying this. Not when their friends were on the verge of being drained for their blood.

Get a hold of yourself, Kane.

He sat up in the bed, making her remove her hand from his head (much to his disappointment). He turned around and faced her. He hoped that his eyes could tell her how grateful he was for that. 

"The radio, do you think we can work past the frequency?" he asked, changing the subject. 

Raven shook her head, making his heart fall. "I already tried. But, if they can block our signals, then they're bound to have a tower to broadcast that frequency. We can get to that and make it go boom. You in?"