While few structures at the Peak were barely stable enough to survive a strong wind at least one old hotel had a conference room that could support most of the small community’s population. Even it made a tight fit though with enough tables and chairs for everyone gathering this day.

“I’m really not sure about this, do we even have kidneys?” Rose questioned the crowd around him as they offered up amber-colored beverages in worn plastic cups.

“Of course we have kidneys you moron, I drank it and feel fine.” Mouse replied over the growing noise of the room as more and more people drifted in.

“You drank a sip just now, it hasn’t had time to kill you yet.” Rose replied as he sniffed the beverage.

“So much for Venators being superhuman, can’t even take some of Uncle Joe’s moonshine!” A slurred voice yelled out from the crowd that was comprised mostly of Militia Infantry that had come to grow close to Rose and Mouse over the past week.

“Kevin, I will rip your arms off and shove them up your own ass before I take crap from you.” Rose yelled back before lifting the cup up and chugging the entirety of the contents as the group surrounding him cheered. Never the one to be outdone, Mouse followed suit which brought a second round of barely decipherable cheers.

The militia was an odd group of rag tags who had survived this long based on cunning wits rather than formal discipline or sheer strength. They couldn’t compete with the Bastion on any level except with guerilla tactics and the Gray were rarely fooled by stealth which left the Militia to adapt or die. Each person at the Peak could take a pile of scrap and make something out of it, from a rudimentary stove to a still for moonshine. Living so close to death left them in a compromising position where they had to live each day like it was there last. This usually resulted in the time tested tradition of drinking until you couldn’t remember your own name.

“Those two seem to be integrating well.” Moses mumbled as he sat down across from Baron at a rickety table. Moses was silently grateful he listened to Baron and didn’t wear his suit which would have surely broken the hollow chair legs.

“Do you think this is how the people in the Bastion act in their quarters?” Baron asked inquisitively as he watched the different groups around the room.

“I doubt it, the Bastion has so many damn rules everyone is as rigid as Rook’s cock when he looks at your daughter.” Moses grinned and carefully eyed Baron.

“We don’t even know if she is my daughter and even if she is, a different body most likely....made....err, did the deed. I’m sure I’ve died a few times since then as old as she is.” Baron argued defensively.

Moses shrugged as his plan to test Baron’s temper went off like a wet roman candle.

“Still your DNA. I think it’s good for the boy, maybe Rose and Mouse will find someone too.” Moses added.

“And what? We all settle down on a farm and live peaceful lives?” Baron replied while chewing on a firm piece of unidentified meat he had picked up from one of the buffet tables.

“We both know how it ends, Bastion kills us today or tomorrow. Either way, no one gets to lay down the sword until Bastion and the Gray end. Maybe they’ll get a taste of real-life though, a normal life that doesn’t involve dying more than once.”

Baron shrugged and nodded having already known the obvious answer.

Moses slapped the table and stood up abruptly before pointing at Baron’s plate of food.

“That looks disgusting, I’m gonna get some too.”

As Moses started walking away Baron yelled after him.

“Have you seen Rook ?”

“He’s probably getting rigid somewhere” Moses yelled back, still trying to get a rise out of Baron who furrowed his brow in a disapproving manner.

“Are you sure you can be out here without your suit?”

“A few hours won’t hurt and it’ll be worth it to see you without a visor in the way and no one around.” Rook gave a flirtatious smile and failed to mention that he took two injections of medicine that was meant to keep the Venators from dying from exposure. Being outside wasn’t an immediate death sentence but prologued exposure could lead to illness without treatment.

Rachel rolled her eyes and lead Rook to the firing range where no one would be at with the party going on. The two had been using whatever excuse they could find to spend time together over the past week. They tried to keep things quiet but the city wasn’t big enough for a relationship between a Venator and an Officer to go unnoticed. Rook only had to deal with the occasional comment from his team but Rachel had far more issues with her staff. After what happened to Anderson and York no one said anything directly to her but that didn’t stop the passive-aggressive behavior. Two days ago she found the door to her apartment was painted with the words “Bastion whore”. She told herself it didn’t bother her but this city was her family and it cut deeper than she let on. She knew it wouldn’t matter once the attack though, either they’d all die or they’d survive thanks to the Venators and the hatred would go away, or she hoped.

The snow wasn’t falling but a thick layer covered the ground around the range where the two carelessly ran through. Moonlight caused the field to glisten and shimmer with light to the point it looked like a field of gems. Their boots crunched the snow as they ran up a berm that was used as a backstop for the range. Once at the top Rachel turned to face Rook who looked over the mountain range.

“Hell of a view.” He said while gazing out over the snow-covered trees. The forests not around the direct blast zones of the bombs had thrived with no human interference. Even with the Peak cutting down trees for fuel and housing they were no real threat to the massive woods growing in every direction. With enough time the vegetation would encompass the desolate remains of the cities and wash away the scars of the war. The mountains of the Peak were the start of the encroaching forests and showed little evidence of the war.

“Yeah, the forest goes on for miles.” Rachel said as she stood beside Boot and looked over the same landscape.

“Not talking about the forests.” Rook said as he turned to face Rachel.

“That was the cutest corniest shit I’ve ever heard.” She laughed before leaning in and much to Rooks’ surprise, kissed him. His eyes widened and he fumbled with his hands before she finally grabbed his arms and put them around her waist.

So this is what it’s like to kiss a girl.

“Damnit” Grinch mumbled over the sound of rain battering the roof of the tipped over bus stop he was using as shelter. He lit another wax cube of dry fuel which finally after the fourth try caught the flame. He gingerly sat the fuel down in a tin can with the side cut open so it could be used as a make-shift stove. Grinch dug around a bag he had taken off a dead cannibal a few days earlier and found a can of unopened spam which he carefully opened. After cutting the slimy substance up into thin slices he laid them on a small wire grill on the can. It was only enough space to cook one or two at a time but he didn’t mind the wait.

The rain was so heavy it made it difficult to navigate the terrain even with the asphalt road being mostly intact. Not to mention his feet, he was no stranger to long marches on an empty stomach but that didn’t mean he enjoyed them. This spam was a delicacy for his empty belly and the small flame was pleasant to watch as it distracted him from the poor surroundings. While poor circumstances weren’t anything new to him, being alone for this long was. He had always preferred being by himself but now that he was truly alone, he was beginning to regret it. Grinch found himself thinking about Rose and Mouse arguing over car logos. Something he had always thought was a waste of time but now it brought a smile to his face as he watched the flame dance inside the rusted can.

The meat hissed as the fat dripped down the metal can and started smoking before burning up. Grinch unlatched the clasps on his helmet and eagerly removed it so he could smell the meat. He wouldn’t have it off long he reasoned, just until he could eat and that wouldn’t be enough time to get radiation sickness.

While waiting on the meat he took a plastic tarp and laid it just outside the roof of the bus stop. He put one end of the tarp in a metal canteen and the other he tied to the top of the bus stop. He would need to purify the water before he could drink it without getting radiation sickness but his helmet had a filter for that. He had been collecting bits of wood and burning them in a metal tin to make carbon which he wanted to use to make a carbon filter to help extend the life of his helmet filter. He knew from past experiences that the helmet filter wasn’t something he could depend on forever and Venator or not, he needed water.

As he sat back down next to the fire he let out a sigh and stretched his back before suddenly freezing and holding his breath. He noticed it too late, he let himself get relaxed and that would cost him.

As Grinch leaned back he saw a Gray standing just a few feet away from the bus stop. Its eyes black as coal were fixated on him but it didn’t move, just stared. Grinch used the precious few seconds to observe this species and hopefully find a weakness. It was a thin gangly creature with four limbs but two more appendages on its back that he wasn’t sure the purpose of. He slowly reached for his rifle which was next to the brown leather pack of supplies. Keeping his eyes fixated on the Gray he moved closer to the weapon but before he reached it the creature lifted its top appendages and sprinted towards him. The top appendages were similar to a Gecko’s neck and it flared out to make the creature appear larger than it was. They had thin gray skin between them and would have startled anyone who wasn’t accustomed to the random and strange Gray adaptations. Grinch had seen enough Gray to not question what the creature was and only focus on killing it, he could figure out the anatomy of a corpse much easier.

As fast as Grinch was, he wasn’t fast enough. The creature lunged forward just he started to swing the rifle towards it. The force behind the creature knocked Grinch backward and through the thin metal wall of the bus stop. Both Grinch and the Gray came to a stop in the mud on the side of the road, he had no idea where his rifle was and the Gray was still on him. The creature shrieked and squealed which stung Grinch’s ears. His right arm was pinned to the ground by the Gray’s arm so he used his left hand to deliver a hard punch in the creature’s face. The blow connected with a bone-shattering sound as the heavy gauntlet sent the creature tumbling off Grinch and into the mud. Grinch jumped to his feet just as the Gray was scrambling to get its legs under it from the slippery mud.

Grinch ejected the blade from his right arm out to full length and gritted his teeth as he screamed back at the creature that hadn’t stopped shrieking yet. Grinch knew he should wait for the Gray to lunge at him before making a fatal blow but he was angry. He was angry at the Bastion, Baron, the survivors, everything. All he knew was hate and the anger burned through his veins. He ran at the Gray which had barely enough time to raise its arms in defense which did little to stop Grinch’s blade from slicing through them. After slicing the creature’s front arms off it made a shriek that was higher pitched than the previous ones but the new sound was cut short as Grinch twisted his wrist and severed the creature’s throat open. Gray thick matter spilled out and mixed into the brown mud.

Grinch retracted the blade after he was satisfied it wouldn’t be getting back up. He used his hands and feet to crawl back up the muddy ditch and get back to the bus stop. Once back under its cover, he looked over the remains of his dinner that was scattered everywhere and crushed in the dirt. He had little time to wallow in self-pity though as he heard the sound of more shrieks in the distance, from all directions. He needed to move, fast.