The First On The Ground

Sic Semper Tyrannis

(AUGUST POV)

I turn to face the door to the room I'm being held in as it is opened. Indra walks in shaking the guards arm before Madi and Mika enter after her.

"August," Madi and Mika says as they run over to me.

"Hi," I say as I hug them back.

"They were ready to burn this place down if they couldn't see you," Bellamy says as he walks into the room, causing me to smile.

"Thank you for letting me say good-bye," I tell him.

"August, this isn't good-bye," Bellamy says causing me to look at him confused.

"Octavia's sick. They say she might not wake up," Madi explains.

"Okay, Madi, Mika. That's enough," Indra says as she walks over to the girls. "We can't risk them being seen here. They'll be safe now, and so will you. Be quick." Indra and the girls leave the room, leaving me and Bellamy alone.

"What did you do?" I ask him, seeing the pain on his face.

"Monty's algae," Bellamy answers as he looks down.

"Oh, my God," I say having heard what it did to Clarke and Murphy.

"As head of the army, Indra can accept Diyoza's terms for peace. By the time Octavia wakes up, if she wakes up..." Bellamy starts explaining.

"She will. You said that Murphy and Clarke were fine. They didn't even have a doctor," I tell him, even though I knew nothing was going to make him feel better about the situation.

"I poisoned my little sister, August," Bellamy says trying to keep it together.

"Hey, I know this is hard, but she was willing to destroy the last survivable land on earth just to win a war, not to mention kill the people we love," I tell him, trying my best to comfort him.

"Well, we're almost there. Indra's about to take over for Octavia. Once Wonkru surrenders, I'll come and get you out. We'll head back to Shallow Valley together," Bellamy explains as he stares at me.

"Together," I agree with him, with a small smile. Bellamy moves some hair out of my face before resting his hand on my cheek. I let myself have a second to lean into the embrace before I clear my throat. "You should go before you get caught."

(BELLAMY POV)

"How is she?" Indra asks as we walk into the room where my sister is.

"Her systems are shutting down," Jackson answers.

"You were there. Tell us everything that happened. Did she take anything, drink anything?" Niylah interrogates me.

"It's like I told Miller. She was eating one of your rations. Why?" I answer her.

"Because she might have been poisoned. That's why," Niylah accuses.

"Niylah, that's enough. She's his sister," Indra orders.

"We were sharing it the Wonkru way. I ate it, too, and I'm fine," I explain.

"Have you considered that the worm toxin might still be in her blood?" Indra asks Jackson.

"It's possible, making this a secondary reaction to the substance she was exposed to, but a week ago," Jackson answers.

"English, Jackson," Miller states.

"Dialysis won't work. Nothing will. We need to prepare for succession," Jackson explains.