When Songbirds Fly | Bellamy Blake

Chapter Eighty-Three: Exit Wounds

Rain is a blessing I will never forget again. After six years of feeling the faint scars left by its acidic burns, it is a shock to feel it again. Its touch is light, cool, a relief after the heat of the desert.

I relish the feeling of droplets pattering against my skin, tilting my head up towards the dull heavens. My hands reach out for the warmth of the brazier in front of me.

A quiet chuckle sounds from beside me. Raising an eyebrow, I look down at Eno. The charcoal pattern on her forehead runs in grey streaks down the bridge of her button nose. 'What?' I ask, amused.

She shakes her head, holding a hand out to catch the rain. 'I forgot how much I love rain. My brothers used to take me out into the forest when it was just right, a few drops away from a downpour. We had a den. We would sit there for hours... watch the water dripping from the leaves. Sometimes the timing would be perfect and the rain would start just as the sun went down. The forest would glow so blue, like a shower of light.'

Her words remind me of that very first night I spent on Earth. We were in a bioluminescent forest, the trees painted with mushrooms of the purest azure. That was the last night we had before everything went wrong. We were different back then.

From the other side of the brazier, there is a quiet hum of interest. 'You're from Trishanakru?' Echo asks.

She nods, her grin quickly fading. 'I was. I don't remember much, though. I was very little when we came to Polis.'

Looking to Echo and I with a curious frown, Bellamy leans forwards. 'Your family?'

'Ani Riva — my aunt. We came here looking for my big brother. The others—' She cuts herself off, forcing another smile as she looks up at me. 'But I have a new family, now. Like my mother used to say, "You will see many sunsets, but don't forget they also bring the rising of the moon."'

'She sounds wise.'

Laughing softly at Bellamy's comment, she pulls her sleeve up to absentmindedly trace something on her wrist. I manage to catch a glimpse of it: the simple design of a butterfly, sketched onto the skin with more smudged charcoal. I wonder if this is something she does a lot. But then, with dawning realisation, I recognise its pattern.

Echo does, too, and quickly gets to her feet. 'B-Bellamy, your sister's coming.'

The rest of us rise from our seats, turning to see Octavia striding towards us with Cooper following obediently behind.

'Octavia,' Bellamy says with poorly hidden apprehension, 'glad to see you back on your feet. Echo tried to get in to see you, but they wouldn't let—'

'What is she doing here?' the young woman hisses, her eyes suddenly wild with a burning fury.

Glancing nervously to us, Echo clears her throat. 'I just waned to thank you for saving my people.'

Eno mumbles what I realise is a warning to us, shuffling back over to the brazier with her head lowered. Octavia is quick to retort, 'They're not your people. Azgeda is a memory. There is only Wonkru, and there is no place in it for you.'

'I know you two have history, but Echo is on our side. She proved herself dozens of times on the Ring.'

Her sharp gaze darts over to Bellamy, insulted. 'This isn't the Ring.' Then, looking to the people milling around the crumbled ruins, Octavia raises her voice to a harsh shout. 'Wonkru, I banished this murderer from the Bunker six years ago. My judgement still stands.'

'Octavia,' I try to plead with her, 'don't do this. Please.'

'She has twenty-four hours. If she's still here by then, she fights in the Arena.'