CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE:

"Y/N SHOULDN'T BE OUT HERE."

The sun was up, a day passing since the incident between the grounders on the bridge. Dead bodies, skeletons, and limbs laid all around the field as the Exodus ship had gone broken, being burnt from the large explosion that had happened the night before after the grounders incident. Small bits of fire could be seen throughout the broken pieces of the Exodus ship as footsteps could be heard on the rocks.

A group had gone out to search for any survivors that could've survived the Exodus ship, but like they expected, no survivors were seen. The Griffin twins stayed close together as they searched for answers, knowing their mother was on this ship. Other teenagers were a few feet away from where they were, including Finn, Bellamy and Raven. The Collins boy took many glances at the youngest twin, concern written on his face as he watched her search around, his best friend a bit beside him.

"Y/n shouldn't be out here." Finn states.

"Hers and Clarke's mom was on the ship." Raven reminds, sighing. "They're looking for answers. You want to help Y/n, find me the black box, hard drives, anything that'll explain why the ship crashed."

"Stay sharp. Grounder retaliation for what happened on the bridge is coming, just a matter of when." Bellamy calls out.

"Can you blame them?" Finn asks.

Bellamy shakes his head. "No. I blame you."

"Maybe if you didn't bring guns--" Finn starts.

"If we didn't bring guns, we all would've been killed." Raven snaps.

"Why they're coming doesn't matter anymore. It's our job to be ready when they do. We're on our own now." Bellamy tells them.

Sighing quietly beneath his breath, Finn looks back at Y/n while Raven glances to the Clarke. The blonde was slowly walking towards a burnt part of the ship, liquid dripping down a small pipe. The Griffin girl takes a sniff before backing up, groaning at the smell as she places a hand over her nose.

"Clarke, stop!" Raven shouts.

The girl in the red jacket was quick to run over, Y/n doing the same as she gets to her sisters side. Finn and Bellamy followed Raven, the Collins boy stopping beside Y/n and grabbing her hand as Raven crouches a bit near the liquid, making sure to stay a bit away.

"Rocket fuel?" Clarke questions.

"Hydrazine. Highly unstable in it's nonsolid form. If this stuff meets fire, we're all pink mist." Raven explains, dipping a small rock in the liquid. "Fire in the hole!"

Everyone's gazes snap to her as she throws the rock a bit away from them, most people jumping back when a loud explosion happens, not big enough to hit them but big enough for people to hear that were in the forest around them.

"We need to clear the area." Raven calls out.

Bellamy nods. "Okay, then. We move in formation, no straggling, weapons hot. We got to get back before dark."

And with that, everyone began making their way into the woods and back to camp.

Y/n, Clarke and Finn were shocked.

Bellamy was in rage.

Despite Bellamy's dislikes about it, his plan had been unsuccessful to come back to camp before it was dark when they left as the Exodus ship had crashed miles away from the camp. So, instead, they had gotten back early the next morning where most teenagers were already awake, few of them training while some kept watch. Right when they walked in, a few campers had came to them and told them the news.

The Griffin twins and Finn had been quick to be on Bellamy Blake's heels as the older boy was stomping into the dropship where he knew their unwanted visitor was. Teens stood around in the first floor of the dropship when they had walked in, some holding guns in their hands as if to make sure the boy wouldn't do anything.

"Where is he?" Bellamy asks, his tone of voice sounding demanding.

The teenagers' heads all snapped to them as they moved to the side, two boys, Connor and Derek, standing on each side of their visitor. Y/n, Finn and Clarke's eyes widen at the familiar face even if they already knew he was here. Blood, cuts and bruises laid all over the face and arms of the one and only, John Murphy. Despite getting banished, the boy had found his way back to camp and was brought in.

"Everybody but Connor and Derek out... Now!" Bellamy demands, and everyone obeys.

"He claims he was with the grounders." Derek informs.

"We caught him trying to sneak back into camp." Connor adds.

"I wasn't sneaking. I was running from the grounders." Murphy corrects.

"Anyone see any grounders?" Bellamy questions, getting shakes of the head from the two boys. "Well, in that case--" They all watch as the older boy aims his gun at Murphy.

Finn pushes the rifle down. "Hey, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"We were clear what would happen if he came back." Bellamy reminds as he aims the gun at the boy again.

Finn steps in front of him. "No! If he was with the grounders, then he knows things that can help us."

Bellamy raises his brows. "Help us? We hanged him. We banished him, and now we're gonna kill him. Get the hell out of my way."

"No. Finn's right." Y/n protests, crouching in front of Murphy.

"Like hell, he is. Y/n, think about Charlotte." Bellamy reminds.

"I am thinking about her, but what happened to Charlotte was as much our fault as his." Y/n argues, gently grabbing one of Murphy's hands.

Clarke follows her sister and crouches, gently grabbing the other boy's hand. "He's not lying. His fingernails were torn off. They tortured him."

"You and the grounders should compare notes." Finn tells Bellamy.

"The grounders know we're at war. What did you tell them about us?" Bellamy asks.

Murphy shudders, sighing. "Everything."

At his shaky confession, the Griffin twins share glances with each other before glancing over their shoulders at Bellamy and Finn who also glance at one another. Soon enough, the sisters stand up, beginning to walk out of the dropship.

"Once he's better, we find out what he knows, and then he's out of here, okay?" Clarke reassures the older boy.

"What if he refuses to leave?" Bellamy questions. "What do we do with him then?"

"Then we kill him." Y/n replies after a moment before they walk out.

The sisters walk together, both heading to the room where the radio was at in hopes of maybe contacting the Ark as they haven't spoke to them since the morning of Unity Day. The two share a glance before they head inside, only to see Raven sitting there, headphones over her ears while her head snapped to the Griffin twins.

"Oh. Sorry." Clarke apologizes. "We didn't know anyone was in here."

"You two okay?" Raven asks, taking notice of how pale they both looked, getting nods in response. "Still nothing from the Ark. It's like they shut it down from their side. It could be solar flares blocking the signal."

"But you don't think so." Y/n concludes.

Raven shakes her head. "I got a bad feeling."

"There's a lot of that going around." Clarke whispers before the two begin to walk out.

"Guys, wait." Raven calls, making them stop and turn around. "I'm sorry about your guys mom." Just then, blood began to drip from their eyes, making her shoot up. "Oh, my God, guys, your eyes."

The twins glance at one another as their brows furrow in confusion, eyes widening upon seeing what was falling from their sisters' eyes before they reach their hands up, seeing the red liquid on their fingers. Just then, the sound of Connor's voice calls out from outside the tent, calling out for either one of the sisters. The three rush out, seeing Connor stumbling while blood dripped from his nose, rough coughs leaving his mouth.

"Connor?" Y/n murmurs in question.

"It won't stop." Connor croaks out.

"Clarke, Y/n." Raven calls, handing each of them cloths for their eyes. "What's happening?"

Neither of the sisters respond as they glance back at Connor before hearing even more coughing, seeing more people, the same people that had been in the dropship with Murphy, vigorously coughing out blood, some bleeding from their noses or their eyes like the twins.

"Raven, get away from us." Clarke demands.

Raven furrows her brows. "What?"

"They're the ones who brought Murphy in." Y/n realizes.

Quickly rushing past the girl in the red jacket, making sure not to touch Raven, the sisters make their way into the dropship just in time to see Murphy stumbling along the ground as he was roughly coughing out blood. The two exchange a look before kneeling down beside him in hopes of knowing what was going on.

"Murphy, hey, look at us." Clarke instructs to which the boy obeys. "We need you to tell us exactly how you escaped the grounders. What happened?"

Murphy shakes his head. "I don't know. I woke up, and they forgot to lock my cage. There was no one there, so I took off."

The sisters share a look. "They let you go."

Just then, Bellamy comes stomping into the dropship, the gun still in his hands as he stepped closer to the sisters and Murphy, causing the twins heads to snap to him where the boy takes notice of the blood beneath their eyes.

"Bellamy, stay back." Y/n orders.

"Did he do something to you both?" Bellamy questions, glancing between the twins. They shake their heads. "What the hell is this?"

"Biological warfare. You were waiting for the grounders to retaliate for the bridge?" Clarke begins.

"This is it. Murphy's the weapon." Y/n adds.