The hours dragged on in the dark, but eventually, the violent hissing outside the cavern began to fade. The dense, sickly yellow mist thinned out, slowly dissipating into the canopy until all that remained was the sharp, acrid stench.
Aleksander stood perfectly still, letting his heightened senses sweep the forest outside. Once he was certain the air was breathable and the chemical threat had entirely passed, he let the invisible magical ward drop.
He walked over and nudged Bellamy's boot.
Bellamy jolted awake, his hand immediately dropping to the hunting knife at his belt. He blinked rapidly, his eyes adjusting to the dim light as he looked toward the entrance. The yellow wall of death was gone.
"It's over," Aleksander said quietly, already hoisting the massive buck onto his shoulders. He tossed the two snared rabbits to Bellamy. "Let's get back. The camp is going to be panicked."
They stepped out of the cavern and back into the forest. The landscape had changed; the outer edges of the ferns were blackened and brittle, and a thin layer of grey ash coated the forest floor, crunching beneath their boots.
As they marched back toward the dropship, navigating the damaged brush, Aleksander broke the silence.
"The horn we heard right before the storm hit," Aleksander stated, his tone analytical and calm. "It's a localized signal. The Grounders clearly use it to warn their people that the acid fog is rolling in."
Bellamy adjusted his grip on the rabbits, his mind instantly turning toward camp defense. "Well, that's one piece of good news. It gives us a built-in alarm system. If we hear that horn, we know to lock down the camp and get everyone inside the dropship immediately."
Aleksander shook his head, his dark eyes fixed on the path ahead.
"If we depend on their horn all the time, Bellamy, we hand them a massive psychological advantage," Aleksander countered, his voice cold with tactical precision. "If the Grounders realize we use their signal to retreat, they will weaponize it.
They could blow the horn when the sky is perfectly clear. We would panic, abandon the walls, and lock ourselves inside a metal box. It would leave the camp completely unguarded, allowing them to freely maneuver, surround us, or steal our supplies without firing a single arrow."
Bellamy's footsteps faltered for a fraction of a second as the realization hit him.
He had been looking at it like a survivor. Aleksander was looking at it like a general. Relying on an enemy's communication network was a fatal trap.
"A decoy," Bellamy muttered, his jaw tightening as he fell back into step beside the Alpha Station boy. "They could flush us out or box us in whenever they wanted."
"Exactly," Aleksander confirmed. "We can use the horn as a secondary indicator, but we need our own watch. We need spotters in the trees looking for the physical fog, not just waiting for a sound."
Bellamy gave a grim, understanding nod. The rules of engagement on the ground were incredibly complex, and one wrong assumption could get all hundred of them killed.
"Spotters," Bellamy agreed, his voice hardening with resolve. "I'll set up the rotation as soon as we get back."
Inside the dropship, the terrifying, corrosive sizzle against the hull finally faded into absolute silence.
Clarke stood near the heavy metal doors, listening intently. She exchanged a tense look with Octavia before reaching out and gripping the heavy release lever. With a loud, hydraulic groan, the doors slowly hissed open, revealing the smoke-stained, blackened clearing of the camp.
Clarke stepped out first, her medical instincts on high alert as she scanned the perimeter. A thin layer of grey ash coated the ground, and the edges of the ferns were shriveled and dead, but the air was clear. The chemical threat had passed.
"It's clear!" Clarke called back into the dark ship. "Everyone, you can come out. But stay away from the tree line and don't touch anything until we check it's safe."
The delinquents slowly spilled out of the dropship, coughing and blinking in the afternoon light. But Clarke and Octavia didn't move from the front gates. They stood side-by-side, their eyes locked on the tree line, waiting in agonizing suspense.
Ten minutes later, the brush rustled.
Bellamy and Aleksander emerged from the shadows of the forest, completely unscathed, with the massive buck and the snared rabbits slung over their shoulders.
The heavy, professional facade Clarke had maintained all day instantly shattered. Relief washed over her so powerfully her knees nearly gave out. Without thinking, she rushed forward, closing the distance in seconds, and threw her arms tightly around Aleksander's neck.
Aleksander froze for a fraction of a second, completely unaccustomed to such sudden, unguarded affection. But as he felt Clarke's trembling exhale against his shoulder, he slowly relaxed his stance, wrapping one strong arm around her waist to steady her.
Right behind her, Octavia collided with Bellamy, burying her face in her brother's chest. Bellamy dropped the rabbits and wrapped his arms around his sister, burying his face in her hair as he let out a long, ragged breath of relief.
"I told you not to worry," Bellamy murmured.
Octavia pulled back, punching her brother lightly in the arm before turning to Aleksander. As Clarke stepped back, her cheeks flushing slightly as she realized what she had just done, Octavia didn't hesitate. She threw her arms around Aleksander as well, squeezing him tight.
"Glad you didn't melt, Alpha," Octavia whispered with a smirk, pulling back and looking at the massive deer still hoisted over his shoulder.
Aleksander offered a faint, smooth smile, completely unbothered by the weight of the animal or the sudden physical affection. "It takes more than a little bad weather to kill us."
By now, the rest of the camp had noticed their return. A murmur of awe rippled through the teenagers as they saw the sheer amount of fresh meat Aleksander and Bellamy had brought back. For a group that had been living on meager Ark rations, the sight of a massive buck was a game-changer.
Aleksander casually swung the heavy buck off his shoulders, letting it drop to the dirt with a heavy thud.
Wells and Murphy pushed their way through the crowd to see the commotion.
"Wells, Murphy," Aleksander called out, gesturing to the downed deer and the rabbits Bellamy had picked back up. "Skin them, bleed them, and get the fires built. The camp eats tonight."
Murphy stared at the massive carcass, his usual snark completely absent for once. He looked from the buck up to Aleksander, realizing exactly how lethal the Alpha Station boy actually was. "Yeah," Murphy muttered, pulling his hunting knife. "Yeah, we're on it."
As Wells and Murphy dragged the hunt toward the fire pits, Bellamy turned to the rest of the camp, his voice echoing over the clearing with absolute authority.
"The fog is gone, but the work isn't done!" Bellamy barked. "Back to the wall! No one sleeps until this camp is secure!"