Ashes of the FutureChapter 9 – Old Shadows, New Fires
The camp buzzed with tension in the days following Captain Elara Reyes' introduction. Rumors spread like wildfire through the ranks. Some whispered that she was a clone, others thought she might be a Grounder spy implanted with false memories. A few were too curious to care. Most were afraid. The idea that someone had lived beneath their feet this entire time shook the survivors to their core.
Kira stood by the edge of the training circle, wiping sweat from her brow after a particularly grueling match with Octavia. The younger girl had grown skilled, her style more fluid now that she trained both with Kira and with Indra. She reminded Kira of herself—young, burning with pride, eager to prove.
"You're holding back," Octavia said, breathing hard but grinning.
Kira shrugged. "You're not ready for my full strength. Yet."
"Then bring it next time," she challenged, stalking off with her sword bouncing on her hip.
Kira smirked, watching her go. That girl was a hurricane waiting for the right storm.
Clarke approached, her expression strained. "Lexa wants to speak with you. In private."
Kira sighed and grabbed a towel. "Let me guess: politics, protocol, or prophecy?"
Clarke didn't smile. "She seems... unsettled. I think it's about Elara."
Lexa waited in the war tent, alone save for a flickering oil lamp and a bowl of untouched stew. Her posture was rigid, hands resting lightly on the hilt of her dagger. The moment Kira entered, Lexa looked up. Their eyes locked, tension arcing like lightning.
"The stories of this Captain Reyes are troubling," Lexa said without preamble.
Kira sat across from her. "She's not a threat. Not to us."
Lexa's gaze sharpened. "Not yet."
Kira leaned forward. "You brought me here to weigh truths, not fight ghosts. Reyes wants to help. She trained under Ark military doctrine. She's seen Grounders only through old files. She doesn't have your prejudice."
Lexa bristled but said nothing. Instead, she turned her dagger slowly in her fingers.
"You vouch for her?"
"I do."
Silence stretched between them.
Finally, Lexa placed the dagger down. "Then she lives. For now. But her loyalty will be tested."
Kira tilted her head. "By me?"
Lexa didn't answer directly. "She follows your orders. She watches you."
"That bothers you?"
Lexa's voice softened. "No. But it complicates things."
They were quiet again. Outside, the camp roared with distant laughter and the crackle of fires. Here, in this tent, time slowed.
"Do you trust me?" Kira asked.
Lexa didn't hesitate. "More than most."
Kira stood. "Then let me handle Elara. And trust that I won't let you down."
As she turned to leave, Lexa spoke again, quieter. "We're all made of old shadows. But some of us burn brighter."
Kira looked over her shoulder. "Then let's light a fire they can't put out."
The mission to test Elara came sooner than expected. A Grounder village had gone dark two days north. Scouts hadn't returned. Lexa suggested a joint force investigate. Clarke organized supplies. Bellamy protested sending Elara on her first mission so soon.
"We barely know her!"
"Which is why I need to see what she does under pressure," Kira said.
"And if she snaps?"
"Then I'll be there."
The forest felt colder this far north. Shadows stretched longer. Elara moved silently beside Kira, wrapped in a thick black coat, her eyes constantly scanning the trees. Clarke led the group, with Bellamy and two Grounders bringing up the rear. The village came into view at dusk.
It was... wrong.
Every door hung open. Fires had long since burned out. Chickens roamed untended. There was no sign of struggle, yet not a single soul greeted them.
Clarke stepped inside the first hut. "Empty."
Bellamy frowned. "Too quiet."
Kira held up a hand. "Something's here. Or was."
Then she heard it. Breathing. Behind the well.
Kira moved swiftly, knife drawn, and found a child—barely seven, filthy, shivering.
"Hey," she whispered gently. "It's okay. You're safe now."
The boy looked up, tears streaking his face. "They came out of the sky. Burned everyone."
Kira's blood ran cold.
"Who?"
The child whispered: "People in black. With glowing eyes."
Clarke stepped forward. "Reapers?"
"No," Elara said suddenly. "That sounds like Alpha Unit."
They all turned.
"Alpha Unit?"
Elara nodded grimly. "Experimental soldiers. Cybernetically enhanced. Built for recovery missions. They weren't supposed to be real."
Kira felt a chill she hadn't known since arriving on Earth.
"You mean there are more of you out there?"
"Not like me," Elara said. "They weren't meant to survive this long. If they're active now, it means something woke them."
Kira turned to Clarke. "Get that kid back to camp. Bellamy, set up watch. Elara, you're with me. We need to track these things."
Clarke hesitated. "This could be a trap."
"Which is why I'm going."
They found the tracks an hour later—deep boot prints, abnormally spaced, heavier than a human should weigh. The trail led west, into the jagged cliffs.
As the sun set, Elara crouched beside a mark carved into the rock—an old Ark symbol for containment breach.
"They're not just awake," she whispered. "They're active. And someone gave them orders."
Kira stared at the mark. Her gut churned.
Something bigger was coming.
Something that could burn both Grounder and Skaikru to ash.
And she would be the line that stopped it.
End of Chapter 9
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