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Polis never truly slept. The rise of the sun over the distant mountains illuminated a city already in motion, the sounds and smells of life wafting up even to the tallest levels of the tower.
The Commander stood on her balcony, breathing it in. Meditation had always been a way to center herself, a way to calm the storm inside. To seek council from the Spirit, from the voices of the previous commanders.
Voices that would one day count her among them.
Light footsteps from behind drew her out of her brooding and she didn’t turn, already knowing who was behind her. “Report.”
“Boudalankru are here, Heda. They arrived just before dawn and are requesting an audience with you.”
Of course they are.
The thought goes unspoken. “Good. Have we received any word from Trishanakru?”
“Sha, Heda. The messenger came in late last night, the delegates were delayed by the usual spring flood waters but should be arriving before nightfall.”
Lexa turned, finally making eye contact with her young attendant, a girl of fifteen summers and auburn hair in the traditional hairstyle of the Tower attendants. Her hands remained steady as Lexa’s gaze met hers, something the commander took note of with approval. “And our guest?”
The girl tipped her chin, hesitating only a moment. “Wanheda exited her quarters shortly after dawn, Heda. Along with the… outsider. Wanheda insisted they did not need an escort, but Ryder followed orders and left with them. They were reported to have passed through the market, then headed towards the training fields.”
Lexa kept her face still, refusing to show any emotion at that.
She turned her gaze outwards over the city, landing on the rectangular shape of a green field near the southern gate. She couldn’t make out details from this high up, but she knew her city by heart and could pinpoint any landmark from the throne room balcony with ease. “Thank you, Shona. That will be all.”
Shona hesitated just long enough for Lexa to turn back to her with a raised brow. “Was there something else?”
Shona swallowed, once. “The ah… Flamekeeper has asked me to inform you that the outsider’s… beast is still present at the sacred flame of the Tower, Heda.”
Lexa felt a muscle in her temple tick. “Is that so? Has Flamekeeper Titus asked for the beast to be removed?”
Shona’s mouth tightened and a bead of sweat shone at her hairline. “He said that the outsider told him that ah… he could try and ‘shoo it away himself, if he wanted to’."
Lexa tightened her own expression, if only to keep a short bark of a laugh from escaping. She hid it with only a soft clearing of her throat. “Very well. If Flamekeeper Titus approaches you again, tell him I will have a word with our guest.”
Shona bowed her head, clear relief in the set of her narrow shoulders. Lexa dismissed her with a wave of her hand and the young attendant hurried away.
Lexa turned away from her balcony then, to enter the winding corridors of the tower. She took note of the footsteps of the guards that followed at a respectful distance. Rohan and Tai. Good. She knew their steps well.
The Commander continued on her walk, making her way eventually to a narrow staircase. Her guards stopped at the base of the stairs, backs turned in respect. She continued up the stairs without a glance back, feeling the weight of her station pressing down on her shoulders the higher she climbed. Until she reached a door with the same symbol that sat between her brows painted upon it.
The door gave under her hand, unlocked. No one else would dare step into such a sacred place. The top of the tower opened up with a spectacular view of the valley, stretching for miles in every direction. To the east, Mount Weather’s shadow lingered like storm clouds on the horizon. And somewhere far to the south beyond her sight lay Arkadia – the source of her most recent headache.
A deep mechanical whirring sound drew attention to the reason she came. The beast sat perched on the furthest edge of the tower, just beyond the ever burning sacred brazier. Unsettlingly birdlike, as tall as three grown warriors standing atop each other’s shoulders. The long curved neck, the narrow beak, the crest reminded her of the black water birds she’d see standing on logs and low branches over a still lake, wings outstretched to catch the first rays of weak sunlight.
It moved like a beast of flesh and blood, yet instead of bone and sinew and skin there was wire and metal plates and panels, eerie lights that pulsed and flickered along thick cords as it twisted to look at her. Instead of eyes, lenses that glowed an unblinking blue peered at her. Lexa got the sense that it was studying her, analyzing and calculating with an alien and unnatural intelligence.
It unsettled her beyond words.
The metal beast seemed to deem her unimportant and turned back to its vigil, lights remaining a calm blue.
Watch for when it turns yellow, that’s a sign for you to back off. The outsider had said.
Lexa did not like being so out of her depth, it was not a familiar feeling. Tales of great metal beasts that fed the storms and sowed the soil beyond the sands of the Dead Zone were too fantastical to be believed, when the outsider had first arrived. With weapons and markings strange to the Coalition lands, the outsider had stood before the ambassadors and spoke of the mission that had brought her across the Dead Zone. She had a defiance in the tilt of her chin that rang familiar to Lexa, when a certain blue-eyed girl from the sky had once stood before her unrepentant for the lives she took in fire.
The red haired warrior from the west had proven to be worthy of attention, in the end. Not of any clan in the coalition, yet no bumbling Skaikru either. Her considerable skill with a bow had helped feed Ton DC after a harsh sickness struck the already weak survivors of the Maunon. She’d even managed to impress in the fighting pits according to Indra’s reports – no warrior yet had managed to beat her in a sparring match. Even so, her tales of ancient war machines from the time of the Praimfaya arising from the grave had drawn skeptical scoffs from all who’d heard.
Until she’d summoned her machine from the sky, living tek that caught the light on broad wings and cried with the clanging sound of hollow metal. They’d had no choice but to listen then.
Sunwing was an apt name for the beast.
Lexa eyed the beast for a few more moments, then turned on her heel back down into the depths of the tower.
The crowd surrounding the training field was impossible to miss as the Commander and her guards approached, cheers and groans rising and falling as people jostled for a view. As she approached she even caught sight of various small goods and glittering coins exchanging hands. A man in the colors of Shallow Valley clan spotted her first and his eyes widened. He shoved the shoulder of his companion, a Trikru woman who turned and spotted her next. Her presence sent a ripple through the crowd and the people parted in front of her, clearing her line of sight to the field.
The outsider – Aloy, her mind supplied – shouted as she brought the training pole down in a sweeping arc, cracking against her opponent’s own staff with audible power. The other warrior twisted his staff in an attempt to overbalance her, but in a surprising show of strength and flexibility Aloy remained upright and planted the other end of her staff to stay to stay rooted while using her foot to hook behind the warrior’s planted leg and rip his own balance out from under him. The warrior fell, his back hitting the grass and his breath escaping him in an audible whoosh, the tip of her training staff wedged under his chin in nearly the same second he touched the ground.
The two warriors remained frozen for several breaths before the man on the ground slapped the grass with an open palm and the moment broke to wild cheers from the watching crowd. A grin broke across Aloy’s face and she flipped the staff away before offering her free hand to the fallen warrior, who took it with an answering smile.
Lexa let her eyes roam until she spotted the back of Ryder’s head. He leaned down to whisper something to a smaller figure beside him. Lexa stepped forward internally rolling her eyes. At least Clarke kept the hood up this time.
She caught snatches of conversations from the crowd around them.
“If living among machines can produce a warrior like that, maybe I should travel west...”
“- do you think she’d show me how to do that if I asked?”
“A bold strategy, for sure -”
As she stepped up beside Ryder, she observed the westerner in deep discussion with the warrior she’d sparred with, seemingly appearing to be instructing him on his footing and doing a slow demonstration of the balance trick she’d pulled off. Several other warriors drifted closer, clearly eager to hear her words.
Ryder acknowledged Lexa with a nod as she stepped up. Clarke, she couldn’t help but notice, refused to look at her. But that wasn’t anything new.
“That was certainly a demonstration.” Lexa said coolly. Ryder grunted.
“She’s a warrior of great skill. She fought two other gona before Tove and won against each.”
Lexa let her brows lift, admittedly impressed. Her eyes drifted back to the westerner, taking her in with more attention this time.
Aloy had stripped out of her strange armor and wore only thin leathers, darkened with sweat. A deceptively slender figure, but visible muscle rippled in her arms and scars dotted her pale skin. She’d tied her fire-colored hair up and away from her neck and sweat glistened on her skin. Lexa spotted a blossoming bruise on her upper arm and she suspected there were likely several more underneath her clothing. Good. A warrior shouldn’t be afraid to take a hit.
Her eyes slid to Clarke, who still stubbornly kept her eyes ahead and her arms crossed. The hood over her head did its job to hide her distinct pale hair. “Clarke.”
“Lexa.”
Clarke’s voice was icy, but near cordial. An improvement.
“You look well.”
Blue eyes still seething with anger met hers with the sharpness of a blade. “No thanks to you.”
Lexa let the biting comment roll over her like a thunderhead, bracing against the storm of Clarke’s anger. She’d grown quite practiced at it lately. “What brought you to the training grounds?”
Clarke blinked, seemingly surprised by Lexa’s genuine curiosity. She jerked her chin in Aloy’s direction. “She wanted to see it.”
“Ah.” Lexa hummed. “You could have asked for an escort.”
Clarke shrugged, picking at her sleeve. “I don’t need your help.”
“Really? Even here, Clarke, there are blades in the shadows. I know you know that.”
Clarke scoffed and didn’t respond.
Lexa let it go, eyes snapping up to see the outsider approaching. Aloy noticed her, sharp eyes appraising before giving her a sort tilt of her head. Lexa returned the gesture, an acknowledgment. “You fight well.”
Aloy straightened her shoulders. “Your people do too. Haven’t had this good of a challenge since the fighting pits back west.”
The Commander raised an eyebrow. “Do all your people fight as well as you do?”
“A few.” Aloy pulled her arm across her body to stretch her shoulder. “Kinda have to be, out there.”
Lexa hummed. “Your machines.”
“Yes. You have to be either a good fighter or a good runner if you’re going to survive. Preferably both.”
Lexa let her eyes drift back to the fighting ring and the training poles left propped against the fence line. “Then perhaps you wouldn’t mind one more challenger.”
Aloy’s piercing green eyes sparked like struck metal, and Lexa had her answer.
Aloy rolled the soreness out of her shoulders brought on by what she was sure was going to be one hell of a welt. The strain felt good on her muscles – these Trikru people knew how to put up a good fight. She couldn’t help but see the similarities to the Tenakth back west – fierce and violent, but with an unshakable honor that one couldn’t help but respect.
Across the pit The Commander shrugged off her overcoat and handed it to one of her warriors who took it with visible reverence. The Commander was certainly more than a leader to them, more like a deity. It was easy to see in the eyes of the people as she passed. Commander Lexa certainly held herself with the weight of their stares, the mark of leadership evident in the set of her chin.
Aloy leaned back against the fence line to wait while Clarke did the same on the other side. “Got any tips for me?”
Clarke snorted. “I once saw her drop a man with a knife at thirty paces. Hit him dead on in the wrist.”
Aloy eyed Clarke without turning her head. She’d only heard the very basics of the story after Clarke had trusted her to tell it, but it was enough to easily read between the lines, the tension in their every interaction. Aloy wasn’t that oblivious, not when Clarke was broadcasting her stress so obviously.
“Want me to give her a good whack for you?”
Clarke actually laughed at that, her ever present frown lifting just a moment. Out of the corner of her eye Aloy saw the Commander look up in their direction at the sound.
“Maybe. If you can get in a hit, I’ll buy you one of those peach tarts in the market.”
“Deal.” Aloy picked up her staff, swinging it to loosen up her wrist. Across the fighting pit, the commander did the same, a smooth practiced motion implying a familiarity with the weapon.
They dropped into a ready stance a the same time, and a hush fell over the watching crowd. The two women mirrored each other’s steps in a slow circle with the air of two apex predators meeting on equal ground.
Aloy fought to keep from shaking out of her arm as the welt on her shoulder throbbed. Lexa watched her with sharp eyes, and Aloy recognized a scan for weakness when she saw one.
Lexa moved first, a quick jab to the ribs that Aloy easily dodged. A testing strike. The Commander skipped back across the circle out of range fast as Aloy attempted a counter strike to the hip.
Aloy narrowed her eyes. Across the circle, Lexa did the same.
The crowd seemed to collectively hold its breath for a long moment before both women exploded into movement, meeting in the middle like crashing thunderheads. Two staffs cracked together as loud as a gunshot. The Commander moved with a speed that matched her own and Aloy couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face. If the Commander took notice, she didn’t show it.
They came apart and reconnected again and again, wooden weapons humming through the air until finally Aloy’s staff cracked a glancing blow against the commander’s calf.
“That’s one!” Aloy threw somewhere over her shoulder, not daring to take her eyes off the Commander. Commander Lexa’s expression shifted, her mouth and eyes tightening minutely – a change so small Aloy only noticed because she was close enough to count the beads of sweat on the Commander’s brow. She barely had a moment to register the shift before the Commander moved and it was only pure instinct that brought the staff in her hands up in time to block the blow to her ribs.
The power of the strike shuddered through Aloy’s arms. The Commander feinted left before reversing course and landed a stinging hit to Aloy’s shoulder before they broke apart, backing away to circle each other again.
Aloy took a deep breath through her nose, this time giving in and shaking out the tingles in her arm running from shoulder to fingertip. The noise of the crowd fell away and her vision narrowed to just her opponent. The Commander’s expression didn’t change beyond that sharp eyed look. Aloy refused to look away first, staring into eyes just a few shades darker green than her own.
The Commander tilted her head and Aloy could have sworn she nodded once before they clashed together again. Aloy twisted her staff until they locked together, the Commander pushing back hard enough to make Aloy’s heels slide back a few inches.
Aloy studiously ignored the shaking in her strained muscles as she held her ground. The Commander did not smile but her eyes flickered.
“Do you yield?” The Commander kept her voice low, the only sign of exertion being slightly heavier breathing.
Aloy snorted, squaring her shoulders and pushing hard enough to shove Lexa back. “You haven’t earned it yet.”
To her surprise, the corner of Lexa’s mouth quirked up in a half smile. “Good.”
The commander’s foot shot out to hook around Aloy’s ankle and pulled, Aloy reacting just fast enough to avoid being pulled off her feet. She rocked back onto her stable foot, wobbling off balance for a moment too long. The Commander moved like lightning, twisting around to lock her staff across Aloy’s chest and crush her back against her solid form.
Aloy was forced to drop her staff and bring her arms up to keep the Commander’s weapon from locking across her throat. She bucked but Lexa’s hold was unyielding.
“Do you yield?” Commander Lexa hissed again, but Aloy only growled in response. She threw her head back and felt the back of her skull connect with something that crunched. The Commander flinched with the hit, but the staff stayed locked across Aloy’s torso.
Aloy attempted to roll forward to pull the Commander over her shoulder but Lexa wrenched her back with bruising strength.
They remained locked together for several pounding heartbeats more, this time in a contest of pure strength, Aloy pushing and pulling to try to break the grapple and the Commander standing firm.
Aloy’s muscles burned. She struggled a bit longer before finally blowing out a breath through her mouth and tapping the Commander’s forearm three times in quick succession. “I yield.”
Lexa released her and Aloy stopped herself from falling forward by bracing her hands on her knees. The roar of the crowd came flooding back at the same time as the various pains and aches of the fight. Aloy groaned low in her throat, not caring at all about anyone seeing her moment of weakness. She turned, about to congratulate the Commander on a good fight, but the words died before she could speak.
Lexa dabbed her nose with her sleeve, where blood gushed down her lips to drip off her chin.
Blood black as an oil slick.
The Commander met her eyes as if nothing was of note, gave her a short nod, then turned and melted into the crowd with her head held high and back rigid. The people parted to let her pass, not a single person seemingly bothered by the sight of the Commander’s bloody face.
Aloy watched her go until she couldn’t see her anymore, then bent to pick up both their discarded weapons.
Clarke jogged up to her, her guard following close behind as he had all day. “Aloy! Holy shit, that was… that was...”
“That’s two peach tarts you owe me.” Aloy held up two fingers to emphasize her point before stepping out of the training ring and leaving both staffs were they had been.
As Clarke lead her back to the heart of the settlement, Aloy turned back to where the Commander had disappeared to, brow creased in thought.