Love Is Weakness

Justice

The forest seemed almost peaceful as I and two other grounders traveled on horseback along the path towards the grounder camp.

It had only been a few days since I had woken up in the infirmary, and it had taken a lot of persuading to convince my mom that I was ready to leave camp. My injuries were healing up nicely so she couldn't use that as an excuse for me not to go.

I rode at the front of our group, now familiar with the way to the new location, the grounders riding a metre or so behind.

Ribbons of sunlight pierced through the branches overhead, the shifting patterns of light casting a soft glow over the landscape.

Our pace was slow as I admired the beauty of the forest, the only sound being the rhythmic beat of our horses hooves against the uneven path.

I had wanted to find Raven before I left but she was nowhere to be found. Even after searching the ark high and low I still hadn't caught a glimpse of her.

After asking a few of my friends, I learnt that Jasper had seen her around a few times, but told me that she had seemed nervous, casting wary glances over her shoulder from time to time as if expecting to find someone sneaking up on her.

I wanted to assure her that she was in no danger and once she was out of hiding I would talk to her properly, but for now there were more pressing issues to deal with.

I sighed and increased our speed to a trot, the grounders behind doing the same, no matter how beautiful the forest was, it didn't clear my head of what was about to happen.

I had been sent word that the Mountain leader was being questioned today. I wanted to be present to hear what he had to say, but also to reason with the grounders who, without a doubt, would be intent on exacting revenge against their enemy.

As we approached, I dismounted quickly, handing my gun to a waiting grounder before entering the camp.

My first thought was that there were a lot of Grounders present, too many to just be from one clan, it seemed that those from other tribes had also come to witness the events. Walking through the mass of Grounders I finally found Lexa with Indra, waiting silently for me outside her tent.

'Clarke, now that you're here we can begin' Lexa stated before striding purposefully across the camp.

I followed her wordlessly, used to the way in which the Grounders wasted no time on greetings, finding them a waste of precious time.

Lexa dissapeared into a large hut that had been built to the side, away from the other huts that had been newly constructed. Indra and I followed close behind, the two guards by the entrance parting to let us through.

Once my eyes had adjusted to the dark interior, I gazed around to find my bearings. Lexa and Indra stood on the far side of the hut, their gazes trained on the hunched figure in the center.

It took me a moment before I realized that it was president Wallace, his hands tied tightly behind his back and his head bowed in defeat.

I felt a pang of sympathy at his treatment but I was not about to question the commander in front of him, we had to show a united front. His once pristine suit was now creased and stained with dirt, numerous rips spread across the sides from his capture. He was far from the proud, respected man that he had once been, a heavy sadness now filling his gaze as he stared blankly into space.

Sensing my dissaproval, Lexa glanced over at me, her eyes glinting even in the darkness of the dimly lit hut.

The anger I saw there reminded me of what this man had done, not only to the grounders but to my people. The only reason he was standing on the ground was because of the bone marrow transplants from my friends.