Wild and running for one reason
They can't stop us from our freedom
Never gonna change my mind
We can leave it all behind
"I can't believe you're pregnant!"
"I can't believe you're still fussing over it!"
"But its a miracle baby! It survived with you in the citadel for over a week of horror! It's amazing, Ray!"
Raylene stared at the reflection of herself in the make-shift mirror made from polished metal. Beside her, her best friend, Jennifer was staring at her as well. Jennifer had been the one to realize she was pregnant... the best healer of them all. If it hadn't been for her magical hands, Andy Jr. might never have made it.
"So how's Damien doing?" she asked, changing the subject and looking over at her friend with a faint smile.
"Oh, you know how he is. He's still gushing over the fuss Andy made over him. I swear, if his head got any bigger, you might as well put a blimp over the Havens broadcasting our location to F.E.A.R." Jennifer shook her head in exasperation. "I swear, he has such a mancrush on your man, Ray. Maybe you should be worried," she added a little playfully.
Raylene laughed softly. "No, I'm not afraid. Andy is very much batting for our team, sister, and I wouldn't have it any other way." It had been about a month of silence from F.E.A.R. - ever since Jessica's death, they seemed to be laying low.
******FLASHBACK******
The Prophet walked across the desert land alone. Alone save for the form in his arms. Alone he walked to the citadel, the headquarters of F.E.A.R. Almost at once, he was confronted by Shadow Agents who froze upon recognition of the figure in the Prophet's arms. Kneeling down, he lay down the body of the Betrayer. He rose up, backing away from her form and watched.
"Tell your leader that we are not playing games. For every life they take from us, we will take a life from you. This is no game anymore: we fight to win." He turned at this point, intending to simply walk away from the scene when a hooded figure appeared in front of him. His pale skin almost white, and some sort of viscous dark fluid seemed to be running from his putrid mouth.
"You killed my daughter!"
"You killed Dahvie. And countless others. You tortured the love of my life and my brothers and my sisters, I will stand for it no longer." He raised both hands, raising the middle finger on both and sneered. "Fuck you, mother fucker." And he walked away, heading back to the Havens where his family lived.
******END FLASHBACK******
And then the flood gates had opened. Countless youths had fled the territories that F.E.A.R. had controlled, even some older citizens packed their belongings and made their way to the Havens. Among them had been Raylene's own half-sister. Her sister who had been overpowered by her mother and step-father, her step-father who had so believed in everything F.E.A.R. stood for.
Raylene had been so relieved, though the influx of citizens to the Havens had definitely taken its toll on their resources. They'd had to move again, though this time, Raylene thought that maybe, just maybe, they might be able to stay. "Hey, Christy, get over here and pull your weight!" Raylene exclaimed, laughing as the red-head darted forward towards her. "Get your head out of the clouds, we have food to prepare.
At 16, Christy was usually in training all day to be an active member of the Legion, though they still had all their chores. Raylene knew that Christy was no stranger to chores, being forced to do most of them when she was back with her mother anyway.
"Do you want to wash potatos or peel them?" Raylene asked her sister, smiling slightly.
"Is that really a question?" Christy arched an eyebrow at Raylene and laughed. "I'll wash."
"Shoulda seen that one coming, Ray!" Jennifer piped up, laughing as she chopped up the veggies for the salad that night.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Ray chirped as she picked up a knife to begin peeling the potatos into the trash and then handing them off for Christy to wash and cut them up to put them in a pot to boil.
"Hey, at least you guys help with the work. This isn't half as bad as back home. If I hadn't run away... I'd probably be knee-deep in dirty underwear or something," she shook her head slightly as she thought about it. It was so much different here and Christy loved it. She could be herself here without fear of being persecuted. She fell into the easy and playful rhythm that she hadn't enjoyed since Raylene had left.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"You're sure, man?" the Destroyer asked as he looked at his brother ponder over the maps.
"The time to strike is now... while they're on the down low. They're regrouping, we dealt them a hard blow by killing Jessica. We need to bring them to their knees. Because if the refugees are escaping, they are weak. And if the refugees are finding us... then so can they." The Prophet straightened up as he looked at his brothers and his generals.
"Damien. You'll be the frontman on this. Your branch of the Legion will follow us into the citadel." Damien nodded slightly to the Prophet, knowing that his branch of the strongest fighters in the Legion would be the best on the front lines anyway.
"What of the others?" The Mystic asked softly.
"No. This time, we are going to win. We all are going. Every one of us able to fight will be going. That's why I'm order the younger ones to be trained. If they can wield a weapon, then they are going as well. This will be our final showdown. And we will either triumph... or we will all go down fighting.
