EVENT #010

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam and any other megacity the Displaced happen to be in/travel to!
WHEN: May 28, 2512
WHAT: Golden-eyed monsters stream into New Amsterdam and other megacities the world over.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Violence, death, body horror, mind control, and transformation.

> EVENT #010

It starts in the middle of the night, when most everyone should be fast asleep in their beds, whether they're still taking up a cot in the safehouse or staying in their own apartment. One moment it's quiet, with most of the rest of the city having also turned in for the night, and then in the next? It isn't.

There will be mass confusion as the scope of the situation becomes clear. Monsters stream out onto the streets, thundering up the stairs of a train station, skittering out of construction sites, or climbing up the walls. Some of them fly. Others slither. Others run, loping forward with only one goal in mind: to find something to sink their teeth or claws into and to leave destruction in their wake at every turn. They are a horde, a swarm, a teeming mass of creatures that have no intention of stopping. All of them have eyes or bodies that shine gold and wherever they go, they seem to leave decay. Concrete turns black and porous where they step; plants wither and die.

There is no real preparing for an attack of this scale. New Amsterdam will awaken as the sound of these monsters crashing down on cars or bursting through storefronts or into homes forces people to run screaming from their dwellings or places of work. There is no discrimination in who these beasts might target, and no discernable pattern in where they go.

All that one can really tell is that they seem to want to spread out. They're constantly on the move, leaping from victim to victim, and they're relentless. No one knows why they've come, where they're come from, or what will make them stop. At least for now, the only option seems to be to cut down their numbers. It's time to fight the horde.

The first night will be utter chaos as everyone reacts to the monsters' sudden appearance, but by the morning hours news reports will start streaming in. This is not only happening in New Amsterdam, or wherever else a Displaced might be staying, but seemingly everywhere. Some cities seem harder hit than others, but practically every megacity is overrun with the creatures.

With no way of knowing who might have unleashed the monsters, all of these cities have essentially been turned into battlefields. Not many civilians are prepared to fight for their lives, and it will take a mobilization effort from the police, Morningstar, the Displaced, and anyone else who's willing to take up arms in order to survive.

◉ As a note, this attack starts simultaneously in multiple cities. While it's the middle of the night in New Amsterdam, the monsters will appear at other times of the day in other parts of the world depending on the timezone!

> BESTIARY

So as to not make this post overly long, we have compiled all of the monster descriptions into a Google doc here for everyone's reference!

> (NOT SO) SAFEHOUSE

For those Displaced who stay at (or spend any time in) the safehouse under the hoverbike shop or the Red Wings bar, they may become aware of the presence of the monsters sooner than others, due to the fact that at least a few of the giant mole monsters will end up burrowing up through the concrete basements to wreak havoc. The screeching noise of steel claws tearing through the floor will be sure to wake up even the deepest of sleepers.

This won't just be an occurrence on the first night of the attack, either. Unless something is done to deter them, tunnels leading straight into the safehouses will continue to be created, allowing even other types of monsters to find their way through (the smaller ones, that is). Where exactly they're coming from won't be entirely clear, though it's a safe bet to assume that they must have originated in the cave system somehow.

Suffice to say that El won't be happy about the safehouse being compromised in this way, though this isn't a possibility that ze or anyone else could have really prepared for. While ze can't do much to physically help with containing the invasion of the monsters, ze will offer whatever resources ze can—though Morningstar is going to be busy in plenty of other locations, as well, and they only have so many resources.

The Red Wings, being a Displaced-operated location, will also be in need of assistance, especially if it's meant to be a point of safety and a hub for handing out supplies. Speaking of—

> RED WINGS HQ

As things begin to deteriorate, Clarke Griffin and Stephen Strange sink their resources into Red Wings, adapting it into a base of operations for the Displaced. Clarke also called in PRESERVE to set up a checkpoint here, too, and anyone—from the Displaced to civilians—will be able to seek aid here. (Of course, Red Wings will be just one of a few locations throughout the city where they attempt to set up shop, but Red Wings may prove to be more fortified thanks to the talents of the Displaced.) Civilians will not have access to Red Wings' safehouse, however. That's still something that Clarke and Stephen want to keep under wraps, for now.

In the bar proper, there will be medical aid, supplies, and even weapons for those who can use them. During rare moments of downtime, the gang at Red Wings will also work on reconnaissance missions to find safe spots throughout the city to provide much needed protection and safety for the people of New Amsterdam. This task may be much easier said than done. Gathering intel on the monsters is a high priority, too, and for anyone who tries to capture a monster to learn more about them, the basement might be a good place to hold them. If the Displaced are going to be able to fight back, they need to know exactly what it is they're fighting.

However, the truth of the matter is that this attack happened quickly, and in the middle of the night to boot. As much as the group at Red Wings tries, resources are stretched thin, and they didn't have time to prepare as much as they wanted to. Supplies need to be rationed, bandages and stitches used for wounds that really need them, and if you're not a great shot, it might be best to let someone with more training take that gun you're eyeing.

More than anything, despite the difficulty, this is a way for the Displaced to help out as many people as they can, and a way for them to cement their humanitarian efforts and affect the population's opinion of them. The citizens of New Amsterdam are sick of this cycle of destruction, and are just waiting to be empowered. Now's the time to teach them to fight back and help them protect their city.

Red Wings' safehouse underground will be damaged by burrowing monsters as well, and will need protection. The bar itself will escape relatively unscathed.

> INVESTIGATING / GATES

Maybe the best way of dealing with the monsters isn't violence at all. Maybe there's a more strategic way to deal with this.

The monsters will be moving from city to city via the gates, just like the Displaced do. There might be a way to keep them from spreading, or at least slow them down, by shutting down the gate network. Of course, with the mag trains shutting down, getting back home could be an issue. One option is the delivery network of hover trucks. They'll still be running to get supplies from city to city, but their batteries don't run indefinitely, so these will be relatively local trips only. No getting from New Tokyo back to New Amsterdam with this method, unfortunately, and convincing a driver to let you hitch a ride might be a challenge, but it's doable.

Of course, there's also the question of where these things are coming from. Intrepid characters might be able to track them back to their nests, which are tucked away in wildly different places depending on the city. In New Amsterdam, they might be in the caves below the city. In other places, they might not be in the city proper at all, but just outside of it. It's important to keep in mind that the nests are far away from any of the action taking place elsewhere. Tracking these origin points may provide some answers, but the cost would be less involvement in the crisis taking place.

And then there's the matter of the monsters themselves. How can you fight an enemy you know nothing about? For those determined or crafty enough, capturing them might be an option, although this will take some creativity. Once these creatures are captured, they'll need to be kept contained, and kept alive. Just because they're monstrous doesn't mean they don't have to eat, after all, and some will need special environmental considerations as well, such as the mind control slugs.

What happens after that is up to the Displaced. Is dissecting them the best bet? Their internal anatomy won't be wildly different from most "normal" animals, with the exception of some creatures who have strange appendages or the like. Still, this might give the Displaced a better idea of how they operate and what their weak spots are. Sending samples to a lab is another possibility, if the Displaced can figure out how to safely store those samples. After all, the world is in a crisis, and no one is running tests at the moment.

All monsters, though, seem drawn to the blue light. When a Displaced uses a power or activates the empathy bond, the creatures will lock onto it, utterly transfixed, and if this is done enough times, that gold glow of theirs will intensify. What does it all mean? Maybe figuring that out will be a pathway to stopping their attacks.

> PITCHING IN

While all of this is going on, it certainly won't be just the Displaced who are heading out into the streets to try and stem the flow of the monster attack. These creatures are certainly not holding back, and no matter how much work might be put in, their numbers are overwhelming. Plenty of people will end up dead as a result, ripped to shreds or dragged off somewhere to be eaten. Yet, for some reason, these monsters are not as vicious toward the Displaced. They'll engage them in a fight and injure them, but they never go so far as dealing a fatal blow.

Seeing how that's not the case for the rest of the populace throughout the world, however, some groups and organizations will be rising up to do their part.

Police departments will be mobilizing in every megacity to put the monsters down, and while they are armed, it's not on the same level as the UNA. They also don't have any sort of training that's prepared them to fight monsters, but they'll still be putting their lives on the line to put a dent in the monsters' onslaught. When it comes to enforcing regular law and order, they certainly won't have the bandwidth for anything like that. Then again, most people won't be in any position to take advantage and commit crimes either, given the chaos that will be a constant everywhere.

Morningstar will also be jumping into action around the world. The New Amsterdam branch will be most likely to work alongside the Displaced and share some of their resources, particularly with those who are signed up as official agents or those who've supported them in the past. In cities like New Prague and New Beijing where the Displaced have made some contact with Morningstar before, they'll also be open to working with the Displaced. However, their resources are by no means robust. Morningstar is an organized rebel group, but they're hardly an official army in any sense of the word. They might be able to hand out a weapon here or there and they have a safehouse set up in almost every city, but beyond that, they'll mainly be getting boots on the ground to help with the fighting.

UNA soldiers who have been left without any sort of purpose or guidance will now have an opportunity to put some of that training to use. Their involvement will be much more scattered, though in some cases small groups of these soldiers who used to work in units together will reconnect in their effort to fight off the horde. However, having been cut off from the UNA in an official capacity, they won't have much in the way of gear or weapons. They're still formidable fighters, though, and now might be the perfect time to reach out and make a connection with some of them.

Mercenaries belonging to various different outfits, depending on what city they're based in, will also be joining the cause. Whether they're acting out of a basic desire to survive the attacks or if they're actually being paid by someone to go out there and risk their lives will be less clear, but they're some of the best-equipped fighters (other than the police). They also won't really find much reason to protest any of the Displaced pitching in to fight with them. The more firepower, the better, right?

A group of regulars from the New Amsterdam fighting rings will be rising up to add their fuel to the monster-fighting fire, as encouraged by Hawke and whoever else might know them well enough to reach out. Given that some of these people have illegal mods to enhance their strength or cybernetic attachments that can do impressive amounts of damage, some of them might hold their own against the monsters. Hell, some of them might even ask the Displaced to demonstrate some of their powers if they end up fighting together, as word of their abilities has become more known among their ranks. Either way, they'll be jumping into the fray with quite a bit of gusto.

PRESERVE will be involved on the other end of these efforts and will be doing their best to tend to the wounded and the dead, along with finding shelter and safe spots for people to barricade themselves from the attacks. It's not like the grand majority of civilians could stand a chance against these monsters, after all, yet not all of them can rely on their homes to be safe enough to stay in. They'll be quick to accept an offer of Displaced help, as they'll be doing their best to try and drag the recently dead to hospitals to get them put into medi-units before they're too late. Along with what's set up at Red Wings, they'll also be cobbling together other relief spots throughout the city for taking care of wounded and offering up what supplies they have (food and water, medical supplies, etc).

And what are the corporations doing in all of this? Well, suffice to say, mainly just panicking. Unsurprisingly, they're not much help during a crisis like this, with most of the super-rich opting to hide away in whatever highly secure bunkers they might have. Too bad that these bunkers might not prove so secure in the face of these attacks. Could that prove to be an opportunity if someone went looking?

> FINAL OOC NOES

Please refer to the OOC EVENT POST for all OOC info, including suggestions for directions on how to engage with the event. Given the spread out nature of this event, as well as the amount of additional details provided here, please direct all questions to our QUESTIONS thread below. This is, naturally, a huge event in terms of scale, and so we're certain there are aspects of it we haven't covered and questions that have yet to be answered. We do encourage that all of our players use the event planning post for any additional ideas and for touching base!

Please do not begin to thread out any aftermath until AUGUST 8, 2020, which is when we will put up the aftermath log and OOC post. If this date changes, we will provide a gamewide update as needed! As a note, the August calendar will be posted alongside the aftermath!

As a reminder, there is one power level up available for this event, granted for a thread of at least 5 log/action comments containing your character utilizing their power in some way during the event itself. They will need to reach the 5 comments required by SEPTEMBER 11, 2020 to be eligible. Submission will be handled on the wrap up post.

Our Activity Check will be posted AUGUST 1 at 12 AM UTC. It will run for seven days and close on AUGUST 8 at 12 AM UTC.

Have fun and fight some monsters! Or … whatever else you might do with them. 😉😏 Your secret's safe with us. 😙

> NAVIGATION

Comments

[coalitions]

[Lexa can't begin to imagine what it's like for her, and at the moment her priority is just knowing Clarke's in there. There's a melancholy she feels that she doesn't know much what to do with, it is not a type of emotion she understands. Clarke hasn't attacked her again, so she hopes it is better.

She waits, even if she feels impatient and anxious. Clarke is the one in danger, not her. Lexa finds her sword and sheaths it, stepping closer to the shadows where Clarke is hiding but not fully into them. Emotional comfort is not one of her strong suits, but she has to try, for Clarke.]

Bellamy brought Murphy inside where there's help. I will check on him in a few minutes. His wound did not look mortal. [And Lexa is an expert when it comes to mortal wounds, so she sounds confident. Even if she is somewhat concerned. Her priority is Clarke.]

You don't need to hide from me, Clarke.

[strove]

[The true and proper temptation is to retreat until she's better. Clarke has been paying attention to reports from others, so she knows that there will be a time when she's better. Others were better, after all. They just needed time, too.

When she opens her mouth to speak, the sound that comes out scares her. Unsettles her. She shudders in place. And then she latches on to the neural implant, and uses it to send a message to Lexa:] I'm sorry. I can't bear the way I sound right now. You can come closer. [Clarke isn't so consumed with vanity that she can't deal with Lexa seeing her this way. It's more that she doesn't like how she feels or the uncertainty of what she saw with Murphy. She can't even focus on the questions there. Not yet.]

[coalitions]

[Lexa is surprised by the message at first but then she understands. With the drastic change to Clarke's appearance and body, she won't sound human. She nods and steps closer, reaching a hand out to Clarke palm up. A quiet offer for contact if she likes, but she won't take it personally if it is uncomfortable for her. Lexa is not typically filled with compassion, but she can only imagine the horror she would feel, locked in a body not hers on top of everything else.]

I remembered what you told the others about holding onto someone sick.

[She saw it firsthand with Garak and Julian, but that was faster, and she killed the slug within seconds. This is not so easily reversible. Lexa feels an ache in her back she'll have to stretch out later.]

Do you want me to check on Murphy now? I can make it fast.

[strove]

Please.

[There's a beat before she adds:]

He's not supposed to be a Nightblood.

[As in: Clarke doesn't know the story. She doesn't know what happened, or what led Murphy to keeping it from her. She briefly takes Lexa's hand to pass on the confusion and frustration and worry. How much has she missed back home? And what does it mean that Murphy is concealing yet again another thing from her?]

[coalitions]

[Lexa didn't see the black blood but she would once she looked in, so it's good that Clarke is essentially warning her. She'd demand answers from Murphy otherwise. That is not a priority over Clarke. She frowns, wondering why he would hide that from Clarke. Her, she understands, since Nightblood means a great deal to her. But Clarke?

She squeezes Clarke's hand and pushes back at her reassurance and also confusion. She sends a wave of love too, so Clarke knows nothing she's done or become would make a difference.] I will be right back. Stay here.

[Lexa is gone briefly since she steps inside only to see Julian with Murphy and Bellamy. It's from a distance, but since she knows Julin is a doctor, it seems reassuring enough to report back to Clarke. He did not look well, but he was alive. She comes back outside.]

He is alive and with Julian. He's in good hands. [She has only known the doctor a short time, but he seems very competent and earnest.] If he has the blood, maybe he went through the same process with your mother. [Lexa is using this as a way to distract Clarke from her situation. Thinking instead. ]

[strove]

[The mere suggestion makes her recoil with frustration. Yes, there was a process, but it wasn't one that occurred with Murphy. It had almost happened with Emori, but she had prevented it. And Murphy believed he would be next in line: the next person to be sacrificed because he wasn't needed. It's not as if Lexa knows the history there. Why would she?

Her reaction is visible and physical in no small part thanks to the strange body she's wearing. Her movement is swift and unnatural, yet fluid and unhappy. She doesn't come close to hurting Lexa, but she does unwound a little. Briefly, anyway.]

No. No, it's not like that. [Not thinking, just rejecting. Clarke doesn't know what it means, or why he'd hide it.]

[coalitions]

[Lexa doesn't understand the full process or how it was done. Frankly, it is a little over her head in terms of science, but she'll figure it out eventually. It simply made the most sense with the facts in front of them. Clarke was made a Nightblood. Maybe Murphy was done the same.

She accepts Clarke's denial with a nod. She would know better. Lexa frowns, puzzling over it. She stretches out her arm to see how badly Clarke knocking her back did, and there is a twist but nothing too serious.]

It's strange he would hide it from you. [She says out loud what Clarke's own confusion is.] From me, I understand. [She's really not all that keen on Nightblood basically being deformed or taken over by outsiders. Clarke is one thing, but how many others? The blood truly has lost its purpose.]

Let me touch you. [She puts her hand out.] It may keep helping you.

[strove]

No, I don't think it'll help.

[But it's more than that. Clarke doesn't like the idea of Lexa feeling exactly how uncomfortable she is at the moment. Her body feels repulsive. Oddly, it's not being monstrous that got her here, that makes her feel this way. She's hurt others before. But it was carelessness. She had absorbed that energy out of Rey knowing the risk, and allowed it to happen.]

I don't want you to feel me like this.

[But these words barely begin to grasp or reveal the situation itself.]

[coalitions]

[ Lexa hesitates before folding her arm across her chest instead. She can't imagine what Clarke is feeling right now, and if she needs to keep it to herself, she understands. Lexa who is always in control of herself, of her feelings, of her bodily autonomy, can see how it would be a nightmare to become something else. ]

Whatever you need, Clarke.

[ She settles down on the ground right there, crossing her legs and simply giving Clarke the space while being nearby. She isn't the best at comfort, but she hopes just being there might do something. She finds more and more often she has no clue what she is doing anymore. ]

Julian knows about all three of our blood now. I'll talk to him, make certain he keeps it to himself, especially for Murphy. Whatever his reasons, he should be able to tell you himself.

[strove]

I'll talk to him, but Lexa—people among the Displaced know of my blood. If Murphy bleeds, they'll assume it's similar to what happened with me.

[Keeping it a secret seems redundant at this point. None of the Displaced know of the blood itself, or what it meant to Lexa's people. Or even Sanctum's people. Clarke is reluctant to add more secrecy after what Murphy kept from her.]

Murphy will have to tell me why he kept it from me regardless of what anyone knows.

[And adding more tension there will just cause problems.]

[coalitions]

[ Nightblood was no secret between her people but it was sacred. She understands now that it no longer is, it's simply blood here. Clarke and Murphy were made. It means anyone can be made. It is a tough pill to swallow but so is everything she's learned since coming here. She did keep her blood secret, asking Bellamy to cover up one of her wounds earlier before anyone could see it, but that's her issue. Not Clarke's. ]

He will tell you. I don't know him well, but he has to know that he can't avoid it now.

[ Everyone has their reasons. He will too. It's up to Clarke if they're good enough to justify the lie. Lexa will think about it on her own, separately. She is open to creating connections between the other two that's only her own, but they're still too new. ]

How did this happen? [ The infection. ] I saw what happened when the slug got in someone's ear. [ Another type of possession. ] But not this. Were you infected?

[strove]

[If it were anyone else, Clarke would conceal parts of the truth. But guilt surges inside of her. She knew what would happen to her, but she had thrown caution to the wind. Many people worry Clarke overdoes it, but the reality is that her calculated risks are taken for a reason. With Rey, she hadn't wanted her to be dipping closer and closer to violent behavior.]

I helped someone.

[Lost in the text is the pant of laugh, the feeling of irony. She knows how ridiculous it sound.

So, she follows up:] Lexa, my power is to steal life from others.

[She doesn't go on, not yet. If anyone would grasp what it means for Wanheda to have that power, it would be Lexa. She'd also know how much of a burden it would be for Clarke to have that constant reminder day in and day out.]

[coalitions]

Of course you did.

[There is no recrimination in that, only weary affection. Her love is bold and strong and stubborn. And she will throw herself into danger for others, she is always ready for the cost. Lexa is only sorry that this time helping someone meant Clarke's infection. If she thought it was possible Clarke would learn to be more careful next time, she might say so, but she'll usually pick others over herself. It's just her way.

Her eyes widen in surprise at that detail. She knows Clarke doesn't want to be Wanheda, it was a title given to her because of death and pain. It reminds Clarke of how ruthless she can be, how much blood trails behind her, and Lexa understands how hard she holds that on her shoulders.]

That must be difficult for you.

[Understatement, she knows. Lexa given that gift would be ruthless and willingly so. It is probably best to be within a person who would resist.]

Steal life from others ... did you steal this infection from someone else to help them?

[She's following the dots since this comes back to Clarke's infection. If she could pluck the illness right out of someone and take it on herself, would she do that? Lexa thinks she might be looking at proof.]

[strove]

I needed to slow her down. She's a lot stronger than me, and she had one of those parasites in her head. [It's not the first time that Clarke has had to use her ability on Rey. She's seen Rey's strength in action when it had been more conscious. When it was something else controlling her and eradicating any of her thought? There was zero chance of her coming out of that as any sort of victor. She was bestial in nature. Focused.

And Clarke wouldn't hurt Rey, not after how long they'd been here together. No matter what friction they could have on and off.]

I knew there was a risk, but I couldn't let her live with what that thing would make her do.

[Because she knows about Rey's idealism and hope, and the way she views the world as if it can be black or white. She couldn't do that to her, and she could already see her taking a dark turn thanks to her relationship with Catra.]

[coalitions]

I understand. These are your people now too.

[ And that means Clarke will put herself at risk for them recklessly. Even if it then put herself and Murphy in danger. Her intentions are good. This is where Lexa and Clarke are different as leaders. Lexa's been trained to believe that as a leader some people are more valuable than others in the big picture. She's made harsh decisions that led to death and misery of her own people for what she considered the greater good. She would let the person in question wither and die instead of infecting Clarke without even blinking.

She's been trying to unlearn a few things. It's not an easy process. And in this, she feels like she is still right. ]

But you are a leader, Clarke. These people need you. Sometimes you have to put yourself first. [ Lexa holds up a hand, ready for argument. ] I know we've had this conversation before and don't agree, but unless this person is a skilled healer like you are, it wasn't an even trade.

[strove]

[There's a disgruntled sound on her end. Lexa doesn't understand. Lexa simply assumes that it's a matter of accepting these people as her own, rather than trying to help a friend—trying to help someone who holds on to optimism so dearly and has seen herself going in an opposite direction.]

She's not my people, [she says at first, knowing the sharpness of her tone isn't going to be heard. She assumes Lexa will be able to guess it.] Rey and I are at odds a lot, but there's something in her that I want to help protect. Something that we never had. [That innocence. That naivety. She worries about it.]

It's hard to explain, but I don't want to see her go to a worse place. I've seen the start of it already. This isn't about my people. My people are my people. [The line is drawn, and will forever be drawn.]

[coalitions]

[ Lexa would not understand that, not truly. She sees it as clan loyalty. She's never had a friend before. The closest thing to a friend she had was Gustus, and she had to kill him. Clarke is not her friend, she is her equal and lover, but she has only seen friendship from the outside.

She listens though, or rather reads, and tries to connect it within her mind. Clarke is describing it better than she thinks. She understands it with that something that we never had. They've discussed what it would be like to not be them. Her expression softens after that, showing it landed. ]

Does she remind you of Madi?

[strove]

No.

[Maybe if she had met Madi before she met Rey, she'd see the similarities there. The naïve hopefulness that drives both of them. The need to do good and believe in it, even if it might cost them their lives. The extremes they'd go to, and the path they took to get where they are.

The similarities are there, but Clarke as she exists now can't see them. She's blind. Madi is Madi and Rey is Rey.]

I've known her for a while now. I knew her before I even knew a Madi could exist. [And Clarke hasn't seen the darkness that could overtake Madi in her loss of Clarke, so she can't process that for Madi in the same way she's seen it for Rey.] She's from a world with a lot of problems, but she doesn't process them in the same way. And having to deal with that—I don't know. I can see it hurting her. Doing what I did there was easy enough.

[coalitions]

You sounded parental. Or familial. Protective, concerned.

[ Lexa doesn't know what parental looks like herself, so she only guesses at timems. Anya had her moments where she was a mother or sister figure to Lexa. Older, wiser, respectful of the Nightblood under her care. Titus was more a mentor than a father, and Aden was her protege, not her son.]

I understand what you mean by what we never had. [ Innocent was not in either of their vocabularies. ] What's done is done. Murphy will live and Julian is here for medical support.[ That's the logical side. It's covered. Her expression softens and she looks down.]

I'm not used to being so .... [ She pauses, thinking of a word she can stomach. ] Concerned. I should have been here with you. [ She left Costia alone once and she was abducted. ]

[strove]

You can't keep me from making mistakes. [The answer comes swift, almost as if it's pointed.

But then she shuffles, thinking it over. It's not concern, is it? Clarke can recognize where like is seeking like here. It's not concern. It's a matter of control. Trying to have a way of dominating the unknown elements. Keeping them all within reach.]

Thinking you can will only cause you more pain. This is because of what you lost by arriving here, isn't it? [Of course, this is a conversation better had when Clarke isn't part monster and speaking via text, but Clarke has never been one to wait for the Right Time.]

[coalitions]

I've rarely been able to keep you from doing anything you want.

[ Lexa replies dryly although with genuine affection too. That is true of both of them. They are born leaders with strong wills and different views of the world, different histories that led them to that view. While they won at least one battle of wills each, it was never guaranteed for the next one.

Clarke is right. This is about control. Lexa is used to having control. Now all she can control is herself, and she's failing at that when her emotions are not as locked up. She is not surprised Clarke plans on pushing on a conversation despite her monstrous form. She is a dog with a bone sometimes. ]

Without my people and my power, I am not Heda.

[ She is nothing. ]

[strove]

You told me once that I was a leader. That I was born into this. Here, I am a leader to these people even if they have no reason to see me that way. I do what I must during crises, even if it hurts myself. I don't need to see them as mine to act. A leader shouldn't only be a leader when they know people will listen.

[And Clarke had been afraid of bringing her style of leadership to this world. For the longest time, she had marked Markus as someone who could lead in her stead. Not only could Markus help others, but she could help him. And when she suggested something unfavorable to him, he was the type of man who would push back. Always push back.]

Lexa is a leader. Heda doesn't have to mean anything for that to be true.

[coalitions]

You are a born leader, Clarke. Years passing and other worlds hasn't changed that about you.

[ Not that she suspected it would! Clarke is a powerful presence. Lexa was typically considered the strongest personality in a room until Clarke stepped into it and something started to balance between them. Sometimes leaning one way or the other, but there was a shift. Titus saw that as a threat. Lexa saw it as an opportunity.

Lexa sighs and relaxes her shoulders, no longer in a proper meditation pose.]

I'm not saying I give up, but I'm trying to adjust my strategy. I have to learn how to talk to people, not in orders or declarations or as a leader, but as a person they want to listen to.

[ See her strategic mind knows that's how she has to do it. She has to win them over in a personal way, not by simply being the born leader or the strongest of the clans. Lexa isn't put off by hard work and effort, she thrives on it, but she isn't someone who sits at a bar and makes small talk. ]

[strove]

You did something like that before, didn't you? To meet Kane and Jaha. [Jaha's manic messaging upon returning had been terrible and unclear, so it's hard for Clarke to completely parse it out. At the time, he was unhinged and ready to look for salvation anywhere that would let him find peace from the loss of his son. But she knows Lexa's capable of it.]

Though I wouldn't risk looking weak to these people. Just have good ideas. The rest follows.

[She trusts that Lexa has good ideas, even if she doesn't always like those ideas. But Clarke also doesn't show weakness in the face of ideas she feels uncertain about, so ... it goes around and around.]

[coalitions]

I did. [ She confirms. ] I knew what they wanted to see. For Kane, an innocent girl to save. For Jaha, a tool to save them.

[ Lexa couldn't trust asking them directly. It was impossible to get a clear answer that way. Instead she tested them. It worked. She is always paying attention to people around her, at home and here. She's quiet in Red Wings but she knows every inch of it now. Every corner, all the workers, all the regulars. ]

I think it needs to be the opposite. [ She says slowly. ] I need to be strong. I need to make a mark on these people, on our situation. I'll figure out a way.

[ Lexa does not mean strong the precise way she did back home; she does not plan to stab anyone with a spear here. Strength can be in a presence too. She clasps her hands together in her lap. ]

This city was ill-prepared for this. It's alarming how weak they are. [ Most of her people do know at least the basics of self-defense, or they're encouraged to. It's a harsh world. ]