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[PREVIOUSLY: Lincoln rescues Octavia from her would-be executioners. Octavia discovers a relieving truth and Finn, Lincoln and her have a harrowing escape from Anya and her continent of blood-thirsty warriors].

The sharp sound of flint striking flint echoed eerily throughout the pitch-black tunnels.

A tiny spark erupted from the steel in Lincoln's hands, catching fire to a wad of wood shavings piled up on the ground.

Finn and I, crouched down near Lincoln's stooped figure, watched as he lighted the torch that he had packed in advance.

As Lincoln raised the stick and flashed its light around the tunnels, Finn got up and began fidgeting around impatiently. "So what is it about this place that kills people?" he demanded. "I think we should be prepped beforehand in case something happens, you know, seeing that it's our lives at stake here."

I cast Finn a knowing glance. "Calm down, Spacewalker. Lincoln knows what he's doing."

Finn furrowed his brow as he gazed suspiciously at Lincoln's bulky form. "What if he's leading us into a trap?"

"He saved our lives!" I shot back. "You can at least be grateful."

"C'mon, Octavia, do you really think we can trust a grounder? After everything they've done to us?"

I hesitated as I turned back to look at Lincoln. His features were strong and defined, his physic muscular and tall, his eyes kind and understanding. "Yes. I think we can trust him."

"Why?" Finn persisted, flailing his arms about in exaggeration.

"Because I trust Aidan," I murmured.

Lincoln's eyebrows raised in amusement. His composure is quickly changed, however, when he threw Finn a stern glare. "Do you want to know the answer to your question or not?" he snapped.

Finn rolled his eyes as he folded his arms over his chest. "Fine. Bring it on, big boy."

Lincoln heaved a deep sigh as he looked around furtively. "Reapers use these tunnels."

"What the hell's a reaper?" Finn narrowed his eyes at Lincoln.

As Lincoln tightened his grip on his torch, he responded shortly, "Pray you never find out."

I stared at him in amazement. The rippling muscles in Lincoln's beefy arms were taunt and rigid ... with fear ... He was afraid! It took me a moment to process that our protector was scared. If he was scared, did that mean that we were supposed to be scared too? As much as I wanted to pummel Lincoln with an endless spray of questions, I knew better. We had to stay quiet if we were going to make it out of here alive.

Suddenly, Lincoln's words from earlier replayed through my mind: "Anyone who walks through here dies."

I shivered at the thought. Shaking such things from my cobwebbed brain, I pushed myself to my feet and wrapped my arms around my waist.

"We have to keep moving," Lincoln told us. "C'mon."

Finn and I exchanged worried glances as we started after him.

"Why are you helping us?" I piped up, my quiet, wavering voice piercing the thick stillness of the air around me. "It can't just be because of Aidan."

Lincoln sent me a dark look.

"Fine. Don't tell us then," I muttered, kicking aimlessly at a stone on the ground near my feet.

"What my people are doing to yours is wrong," Lincoln suddenly spoke.

He didn't say anything more, but he didn't need too.

In that moment, as Lincoln and I looked into each other's eyes, we both knew, deep down, that we were more than just mere acquaintances with similar goals for the future. We were allies. We were friends. And we were going to win this war ... together.

"Let's go," Lincoln gave me a firm nod before taking off. The bright flame of his torch illuminated an orange glow on the path before us and cast long black shadows across the walls.

The earthen floor was below me and the rocky walls were all around me, but for the first time in my life, I didn't feel trapped, I didn't feel scared, I didn't feel like the girl under the floor.

I felt like a grounder.

We all pressed on for a few more minutes, going deeper and deeper into the dark, wallowing abyss. Trickles of dirtied water escalated down rows of ragged rocks. Splatters of mud decorated the large, towering walls. The occasional pile of bones and skulls littered the floor, festering maggots and rotting the air with its smell. The further we went, the worse the stench became and the more dead faeces and remains I saw.

"This place is so creepy," Finn whispered in my ear as Lincoln came to an abrupt halt up ahead.

Before I got a chance to reply, Lincoln waved Finn over and handed him the torch he'd been holding. Then, he dug into the pack that was strung across his broad, bulky back and took out a crinkled, brown map.

Finn and I looked over Lincoln's shoulder as he studied it. "Wait. So, if you've never been down here, how'd you map it?"

"Spoils of war," Lincoln returned gruffly.

As Finn and Lincoln examined the area, I slowly walked away from them, venturing deeper into the darkness.

The distant noises of hoots and shouts reached my ears. Drawing back, I breathed, "What is that?"

Lincoln jerked his head up and listened to the sickening, spine-tingling battle cries.

"Reapers."

Ripping the torch off of Finn, Lincoln hastily put it out and cast it aside. Cutting off Finn's words of protest, he stated, "We can't risk having them see us."

"Which way do we go?" I queried in a low tone, my eyes straining to see in the deep darkness that had enveloped us.

"Towards the Reapers," Lincoln replied as he reached over and grasped my hand. "Octavia, grab Finn and don't let him go."

I nodded wordlessly, fumbling around until my fingers brushed against Finn's.

"This can't be the only way, check the map," Finn argued.

"I just did," Lincoln growled. "If you want to get home before Anya slaughters your people, this is the only way. Let's go."

Hauling the two of us forward, Lincoln began walking towards the hideous screeching sounds that were vibrating throughout the tunnels.

Unable to stop my body from trembling, I hung back as I was reluctantly pulled towards the horrendous noises.

With Lincoln feeling along the walls, the three of us managed to reach a bend in the tunnels that was a few hundred metres in front of us. As we rounded the corner, Lincoln quickly pulled Finn and I down behind a large, overhanging rock that was sitting nearby.

Holding his finger to his lips, Lincoln peeked his head over the top of the rock. Slowly, cautiously, Finn and I followed his example.

A few paces away from where we were sitting was a large campfire. The flickering flames threw a radiation of light across the damp, dusky tunnels and the crisp smell of burnt flesh wafted through the air. A huddle of huge, unkept persons, clad with rusting armour and torn, patched garments, were all sitting in a circle near the fire. A pale, sickly man was right in the middle of them all, suffering a cruel and severe beating by their hands. Every so often, a loud, evil cackle of laughter would erupt from one of them and echo throughout the tunnels.

My eyes widened in horror and I ducked back down behind the safety of the rock. You have to be kidding me.

"Princess," Finn nudged me in the side and pointed to a cluster of crates that were stacked up next to the reapers. "Look."

My jaw tightened when I saw the clear outlines of dead bodies, wrapped in canvas sheets, that had been carelessly dumped within the hard, wooden crates. "What the hell is this?"

For a moment, neither Finn nor Lincoln responded. Then, Lincoln turned around and gazed at the two of us earnestly. "You see that tunnel branching off to the right?" he inquired softly, jerking a thumb over his shoulder in that general direction. "It will lead you straight through the woods into your camp. Here, take this." Lincoln shoved the map into Finn's hands.

"What are you going to do?" Finn furrowed his brow in confusion.

"Lead them away," Lincoln responded simply. "Wait until they all follow me and then run."

Withdrawing one of the swords that were attached to his belt, Lincoln flipped it over in his palm and extended it towards me. "For Skikru."

"Wait!" I reached over and grabbed him by the shirt. "You could die! If they catch you, they'll kill you! Lincoln, please ..."

Lincoln shuffled forward and placed his hands on my neck and the lower half of my face, cutting me off mid-sentence. "Worry about yourself, Peace Keeper. I need you to get back to your camp, alive. I need you to get your people out of there before Anya's army comes. Trikru should be there by nightfall but they will send others ahead first, scouts. You must be gone before they arrive. Do you understand?"

I swallowed hard and nodded, the callouses lacing Lincoln's palms scratching against my skin.

"Where are we supposed to go from there?" Finn persisted urgently.

"The map, it charts a course to the eastern sea. There's a clan there, led by a woman called Luna," Lincoln explained hurriedly with baited breath. "She's a friend. She'll help you. Just tell her that I sent you."

"Quick, we have to go, one of them's coming this way," Finn hissed.

I cast a glance over Lincoln's shoulder towards the knobbly, pierced monster that was heading in our direction and let out a shaky breath.

"Thank you, for everything," I whispered as I looked into Lincoln's dark brown eyes. "May we meet again."

"May we meet again," he confirmed.

Suddenly, before I could stop him, he leaped to his feet and let out a loud shout. Whirling around, he sprinted down another tunnel leading away from where we were headed.

With inhumane howls and screams of anger and rage, the reapers all raced after him, waving their axes and swords high in the air.

As soon as the coast was clear, Finn and I tumbled out from our hiding spot and ran.
With a new determination creasing our minds and a renewed hope sparking up within our hearts, we pressed forward as the long, tiresome hours rolled on by.

Dawn was just breaking across the horizon when Finn and I finally emerged from the mouth of the tunnel. Seeing the drop-ship cresting the knoll in the distance, we both broke into a sprint, knowing that it was a race against time if we wanted to save our people.

Gif: Octavia and Lincoln share a moment.

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