Sinful, Deadly, Dangerous: For My People

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1.... 2.... 3....

Breathe in.... and exhale...

Remain calm and clear-headed... I'm speaking for my people... I'm not allowed to be infuriated...

I gave a small glance to Cira, for confidence.

I was a woman, frail-looking and weak... it was true... but in weak people, when cornered, we usually go into a rage to defend ourselves. When confronted with someone stronger than ourselves, we want to fight back with emotion and feelings, over logic.

It was already obvious that I was angry, I hadn't been able to mask my reactions quickly enough.

Breathe... remain calm.

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to decline on bending at the knee for you... I've told you many times, I just don't think its smart. We need groups... we need factions... but you don't even want allies, you just want to grow your own group- without looking at the merit of having more than your own people." I spoke quietly, an edge to my voice. "I appreciate the gift of this apple... and I do have something for your troubles as well..." I continued, taking a deep breath before I pulled out my wildcard.

"One of my doctors has managed to create a good substitute for the radiation medications that have come from before the Winter- those will be expiring soon, and loosing their strength... this medication is not perfect, but it's the best we have right now. I'm willing to share my stores of this new medication with you- on the premises that our two groups become allies, and you stop calling for my submission as a leader. You have nothing to fear from my group- we are nothing compared to yours. We have not threatened you, or done anything to provoke you, yet you continue to ask for me to relinquish everything to you." I spoke, meeting the eyes of the man who called himself "Father".

I hadn't wanted to put this on the table just yet, but every time they spoke, I only wanted a way to get them to realize that I was just as much of a leader as they were... I took another deep breath and looked to Cira again.
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He could see it in her eyes. Her pride, her anger, her offense. This was why she was a poor diplomat. She took things personally. Yet another person that thought just because they could get people to follow them that they could lead. They never could and invariably their people suffered because of their pride, their arrogance, their incompetence.

Mother was lucky he was the first power she ran into in her blundering rule. He wouldn't use bullets as a first resort. He wouldn't kidnap whoever developed this drug. He would be hard, but fair. He would save her and her people from their own isolation and ineptitude.

He took the medicine and passed it to his wife, Rissa. She would see to it that it was properly tested to see if it was worth anything or a bluff. "A claim I'm sure you wouldn't make unless it were true." he said "But you're still looking at this backwards. You see me as a soldier wanting to take what you have when I an a father wanting to share what his children have created. Your people could like in luxury. I could have your home finished in two months, powered, clean running water and so stocked with food you wouldn't have to brave the waistlands to survive."

His tone was still soft, until now. "The phoenix is growing, Mother, and it will continue to grow with or without you. If you do not want to share in our prosperity I will not attack you. I will grow around you. You will have your little kingdom, and when your food runs out. When the radiation storms, and the bandits, and the cold dark nights close their grip around your throats. You will join or you will fade away. I offer you and your people comfort and wealth. Warmth, food, safety. If you refuse, don't tell me, go hoe and look at your cold starving children and tell them they can't have food, and warmth because you said so. In the meantime my people will see if your medicine is what you say it is."

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Fallen watched the hidden meanings of the gifts. Father offered the promise of food without want, and Mother offered a world without the sickness. Fallen cast a glance at Cira, looking for answers that he could not ask with a gesture. This frustrated him. He looked for guidance with a glare.

'Why didn't I know about this new medicine?'
He thought, hoping it would reach his eyes.

He let his anger fall away as he addressed Father in a hushed manner. A small touch of Fallen's hand on Father's shoulder, a shift in the air between them to change the firey static that was the tension between him and Mother. He felt it, just like every other in the room, but he could not risk war yet. He had to drive the wedge between that tension. Already, Mother's people, those who were obviously well-prepared for escape seemed to shift with his tone. He stood quickly as he drew throwing knife and slipped it into his right sleeve. With two large, swift steps, he moved slightly behind Father as a sign to those who saw his movements that this man was under Fallen's protection. A weight fell into Fallen's stomach. Fallen was about to risk his neck, and he only hoped that he got to keep his neck for the insult he was about to commit to Father.

"Please excuse my Father. He is simply so eager to aid you and your people that he cannot hide his anticipation," Fallen spoke up, addressing the people who had shifted at Father's voice more than he addressed the woman they called Mother.

Fallen assumed that hatred would spark from within Father, but saw the people relax. Fallen dropped down beside Father, his neck on the chopping block now as it stretched over Father's shoulder. Fallen whispered in his ear, but not taking his eyes from the others.

"Father, I understand that you want them to join you for noble reasons,"
a lie if I ever told one, "But your tone has caused more tension than you realized. See how they have changed their stances. At least one of them carries a weapon. I have vowed to protect you with my life, and so I shall. But may I suggest that you bring more than a knife to a gunfight," Fallen hissed in his ear, pressing his right arm to Father's so he could feel the blade under the fabric, "Our weapons supply for firearms is dangerously low. I could take out two at best before they finished off this whole room."
 
Kara finished her preliminary examination. Measurements had been taken and written, but her own analysis of it all was still in her head. She cleaned her equipment and hands first. What she wanted to write could not be forgotten even if she tried. She believed the radiation had reached his lungs. Why hadn't they checked for that earlier? Because the effects were usually immediately visible. Kara threw away the gloves she had been using and picked up the clipboard, jotting down her notes. It would be hard to treat him, but if they acted fast, they had half a chance of saving him. But then one had to ask whether or not it was worth spending on those meds on one person. The amount spent to save one man could probably at least save two others if not three or four. If she could avoid making the decision, she would. It seemed luck would give her just that chance.

Ed tapping on her should startled her. The volunteers knew better than that, and -- Kara looked him over -- he didn't belong here. She had half a mind to turn him out immediately, and if he didn't listen, she would threaten to put him on the no-treat list. She would never go through with that, though. Some people had made it onto the list, but none of the doctors actually paid heed to it. There were too many factors involved in saving people to add another sociopoolitical variable.

When he haded her the docket, however, she couldn't help but be interested. Knowing the external circumstances of their patients some time was as important as discovering their internal issues. But when he handed her the gun and the ammo, it had gone far too far.

"Absolutely not," she said, handing the docket and the weapon and ammo back. It reminded her of the early days before the central location for the hospital. She would take just about anything anyone offered to treat them, but she would never take a weapon. "Sir, there's a reason I'm a doctor and not a field medic. I wish you luck on your scav hunt, but I cannot go with you to the Range." Her speech was less than smooth as she stumbled over the unfamiliar words. Scav hunt. Range. They were words she had heard, but never words she had internalized.
 
"Kara if I had another choice I would gladly take it, but your medical training isn't the only reason I need YOU on this, I also need you cause of your expertise in treating radiation poisoning. The docket Mother gave me was the only medic with that training and I can't take him out there. You don't have to carry a weapon if it's that big of a deal, but I need your skills, besides, having an actual doctor out there with me will help me figure out what medicines and equipment the medical team really needs."

Ed was truly desperate for a medic, without one he wouldn't be able to leave the Safezone, or keep his team safe out there in the Range. Having looked over the map Kara's skills with Radiation Treatment was absolutely imparitive with the usual field medic out of commission. Everything he'd said was sincere, Kara would know best what the Medical wing needed and be able to help him find it better. He'd keep the weapons for the team instead, seeing her distaste for holding one.


"I really wish I had another option, but I don't I need you. I can understand your unwillingness to take a weapon, you ARE a doctor, your job is saving lives, not taking them, and it was unfair of me to assume you'd be okay with holding a gun, I apologize."



(I understand it's short but I'm going to be rather busy and I wanted to give my part to the story's progress now before I didn't have time, Sorry)
 
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I set my jaw at an angle.

Neither of us would bend to each other, that was certain, though when one of his council members... it was one of his council members, I believed, had come to try to ease the tension.

I stopped for a moment, then chuckled. "I believe I've seen you before, but I don't... think you have spoken before. Surely you are aware that this is how these meetings happen? He bluffs, I bluff, He threatens, I threaten. We exchange items and services, threaten a bit more and go home. The only thing that's truly at danger is our blood pressure- and that is quickly remedied. He has his... wives, and I have the orphaned children of my people that I pay visits to when I have time to. You have no need to worry for Father... I wish no harm to befall him." I ended the small explanation with a smile. "I have no intention for making a threat due to frustration and anger."

I managed to look Father in the eyes and smile again. "Calm down, old man, you seem to be scaring your own council by threatening me."

I was calming down again, and I felt a little more comfortable. I adjusted the shawl around my head, and took the circlet of metal off of my head. It seemed like the pendent wasn't working its magic on this meeting just yet. "Father, I know your people are growing, but so are mine, So is the Phoenix is growing, so are my Offspring. Shall we stop here? I'll let you run tests on that bottle of pills, see for yourself what it is that I am offering. Tomorrow, if you like what I've given you, send someone to pick up more." I stated and rose up from the table. "I wish the best of health to you and your people." I offered.

Unless he had more to say for this meeting to continued, I hoped that this was over.
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Father didn't like to be interrupted.

Mother however didn't seem to mind stepping in and explaining how she saw the game. How she saw it. Father was above all a soldier. He meant what he said and he didn't like those beneath him questioning his actions.

"One more thing." he said stopping mother.

Stepping around the table and to the door where she stood. "You forgot your apple." he press it into her hand and hold it there as I mean in close and speak too softly for any of the other occupants of the room to hear. "I find your love for your people admirable so I expect you will act in their best interests. We have more common points than differences. You don't want this to turn into a pissing contest so I recommend next time we meet we skip the bullshit and get down to what we want."

He let go and stepped back giving her a smile. "Until tomorrow then." he moved back to Rissa and places a rough hand on her cheek. "Thank you for the apple. I wouldn't have thought of it, I think an orange next time. Mother will know her people need the vitamins." A tender gesture in the wake of tension and then he signaled for Fallen to follow him as he left. "I want to know everything thats happened since your last report. Just because we're in negotiations doesn't mean the world stand still. And Breakfast while we're at it."
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Fallen sighed in extreme relief. He had expected to be sent to a cold, dark place where he would be forgotten over the years. He was sure he wasn't out of the shit hole yet, but at least he was out of the line of fire. The only thing that didn't shock him was Father's reminder of breakfast as Fallen stumbled over his own feet for a moment to catch up with Father.

"
We're falling behind, Father. Every day, our resources risk collapse in the armory. Between the raiders taking our resources in trades and the everyday use we put on our weapons, our resources are low. We need to find another source of metal or raise production in the mines. But raising production is hardly available either. The head miner there is already putting his men on long days. Much more and they will start making unnecessary mistakes. I recommend that we find another way to fight. I understand that resorting to bows and arrows may not be your preference, but at least conserve some of the bullets. Perhaps banishment to the outside instead of death by execution would save some of our ammunition?" Fallen tumbled over his words as he kept up with Father.

These points were all true, but this wasn't what Father meant by his report. That much was certain. Fallen followed him as people eagerly rushed to prepare breakfast for their monarch. Fallen's attention was drawn to the dwindling number of guards stationed around the halls. Father would have wanted to know if he had found anything else on the people living outside of the citadel fortress worth traveling for, but there were more pressing matters at hand that Fallen could not ignore. Fallen knew what his advice would bring, and he hated saying it.

"
We've lost many in the raids, Father. Every day, I lose another to sickness, injury, or dehydration. These men do not know how to care for themselves out there. They don't know how to fight, or even survive. We're putting farmers into suits of armor and replacing their pitchforks with guns. You need more soldiers to do the work you want, and you need the medicine Mother has to offer to prevent them from dying faster. Radiation is the first killer of life in the city, and our scientists don't seem to have the answers." Fallen said this with an uncertain heart, for he knew that he'd already had two strikes against him this morning.

Fallen sealed his mouth at that point. Much more bad news and Father may decide to leave him six feet under after all. It didn't matter that Fallen was just the messenger. But Fallen felt the stones in his stomach push down as he thought about Cira when she had presented the drug to them just moments ago. It had been so long since he'd seen her, and he couldn't risk getting caught now by Father. He kept his gaze forward and his face stern, hoping that Father wouldn't see the trickle of sweat going down his spine. Perhaps he would dismiss it as fear from earlier. Whatever the reason, Fallen had to make it through the day, no matter what.

"
Or do you require other information?" Fallen asked, his years as a bodyguard showing in his stature.
 

Father's appreciation of the apple, the calculated machinations behind every word, elicited a smile from Rissa. It was a little like a game of chess, sitting in those rooms, except that Mother made for a recalcitrant partner. She was the person in chess who insisted on spending five minutes looking at the board before moving her pawn forward reluctantly and then waiting, her fingers still clutching the piece, to see if this move was dangerous and if she truly wanted to carry through with it. Needless to say, the woman annoyed Rissa.

With her lethal calm, Rissa was a huntress, the cat, and meek Mother was a mouse who wouldn't come out from his hole even when he was starving and would only occasionally arouse Rissa's suspicions when the mouse would poke its nose from the hole to see if things were still dangerous. Taking Father's advice to heart, Rissa nodded. Things were still very dangerous. Soon enough, if the mouse did not peek from its hole, it would die a quiet and suffering death. Or it could try to evade its predators in a search for resources. Either way, it was dead. The mouse just didn't know it yet.

Breakfast was brought up and Rissa's stomach agreed wholeheartedly with the sentiment, but she didn't need to voice agreement with any of this. Especially since that little bastard, Fallen, was back around. He disappeared for longer than Rissa thought that he ought to do and he always seemed just so simpering and whining. He was always speaking about worrying, always wanting a peace that would essentially make the Phoenixes roll over in submission to Mother's "children". From the jovial smile of before, Rissa's expression changed drastically. Her eyes narrowed and her mouth thinned to an angry line.

"Do you not have faith in us, bratling? Do you think that if we embraced Mother's ideals of peace, love, and marshmallows that everything would suddenly be all right? You're naive and your maneuvering is not subtle. Speak the truth with a little less opinion if you're going to be scouting." She was not in the mood for his pressure on Father, especially not when Father was so clearly worried anyway. Perhaps he did not know because he did not care, but this foolish boy seemed to think Father cold on the subject of his people struggling. This was not the case by any means, he just didn't let it weaken him as Mother did.

"Breakfast sounds appealing."
 
Fallen was severely un-amused by Rissa's comment. He felt the hair on the back of his neck rise and prickle his skin as he cast Rissa a glare from the corner of his eye. Oh, how he loathed the woman. Fallen almost felt a little self-irritation for his earlier sympathy towards her. Quickly, he stopped the train of thought with a quick resetting of his jaw. Fallen cleared his throat and turned to Rissa, keeping his tone neutral so as not to arouse any more irritation from Father.

"I am going to ignore your blatant insults and point something out to you,"
Fallen walked over to the little queen's plate and slid the salt shaker towards her.

Fallen sat down quickly. He smiled briefly, obviously forced, and began sliding the salt shaker between his hands. It became a metronome, the brief pauses of silence between the sliding glass.

"Stay with me here, now... Think of these points I bring up to Father as tiny business opportunities. Grains of salt, if you will... If you train a man to become an excellent soldier once, you don't have to be concerned with repeated training, the supply while he's training, or to pay the man training him and so on. Let's imagine that only one in ten of these men die,"
Fallen knocked over the salt on purpose, only a few grains spilling out onto the table, "No big deal. Resources are still well-contained, and there's enough to still hold some weight in our community. This means that you're better protected, and you don't need to worry about so much."

Once more, he righted the salt shaker and began moving it between his hands again. He never took his gaze from Rissa.


"Now, if you train a hundred men and 90 of them die," he tipped the salt shaker over, letting the salt pour over the table with no stop to the flow, "Not only do you lose the man, but you lose the weapons, the ammunition, the cargo he protected, the man's experience, time, energy, wealth, and risk uprising from people below you who loved the man."

"And let's not forget that your husband is also protected by these 'marshmallow' men, as are you."
he tipped the salt shaker upright when only a few grains were left in the container, and slammed it down onto the table next to the salt pile he'd made, "I'm sure you can imagine the glass half empty with your gift of perception. But in case you missed it, you would be left poorly protected when these raiders make their way to the city. However, if you would like me to stop giving reports on what I have noticed in my scouting both inside and outside the walls so that you can enjoy your breakfast, please let Father know. With his permission, I would be more than happy to take a day or two off from the endless work of aiding the captains in the training of your soldiers, scouting the wastelands, checking the armory daily to make sure there is no theft, and protecting you altogether." he said with a forced smile, "My concerns are directly related to Father's position of power over the other people living in the wastelands as Mother does. If we run out of resources, we become less than the people you hate so much."

'Idiot... You're so scheming, yet you don't know the first thing of fighting or war.'
he thought to himself as he stood to face Father again.

He put his feet shoulder width apart and put his arms behind his back. He took a deep breath in, causing his chest to swell in reclaimed pride. His shoulder blades popped as he rolled them forward and bowed slightly, keeping his head ducked down to show respect and not meeting Father's gaze at first.


"Excuse me, Father, but I need your direction in order to continue my work. I have faith that your words are far from misguided, and I would not want to disappoint you or the people who serve you,"Fallen said, turning his eyes towards him as he straightened.
 
Kara furrowed her eyebrow and bit her tongue. Everyone knew about radiation poisoning, but people who knew how to handle treatment were few in number. Add that to the fact that he had medical training meant it was of worth spending even five people's worth of meds on him. While getting proper medical equipment was important, it seemed unlikely. She assumed people who went on scav hunts had enough sense to just grab everything that looked like medical equipment. They were short on everything except patients. And besides, if the hospital could spare a doctor, they would have sent someone to talk to Mother about expanding by now.

Wasn't her job to help people in need of help? Was helping the scav hunt really more important than making sure people made it through another day? There were people better suited to the job such as that medic who was in no shape to get out of bed. Her job was to get him out of bed. But she saw that same begging without begging look in his eyes, and with that look came that damned feeling of not being able to help everyone she came across -- that feeling of not being able to help Ian survive Winter. Kara cast her eyes toward the ground and took a deep breath. She could get through most days just fine. She had come to view this life as almost decent, almost normal, but today, the dismal reality seemed to resurface everywhere.

When she spoke, her words were calm, but were detatched from emotion, though it could easily be mistaken for being unfriendly. Then again, she had no reason to view this man as a friend. "You ask me to ignore my job in favor of your scav hunt, but you don't even tell me what you expect of me or how long you hunt or where or for what. You haven't even told me who you are, but you know my name. My job is, as you say, saving lives, not watching yours."
 
[DASH=indigo]And it was over.

With a sigh of relief, but also of concern, Cira rose from her seat, quietly following Mother closely. She had seen a lot at the meeting. She understood a lot now, too. She could feel Father's sound and firm approach; she always had thought of his ways arbitrary, but effective, and she knew that it would require a lot of skill to prove him wrong in one way or another. This was going to be one slow, tough dispute that would extend itself in time... and twist over itself in complexity. She felt Mother's resolute approach; just like Father's, only under a different disguise. She felt Rissa's efficiency. She felt Fallen's edgyness... she knew how capable he was, and she understood his situation too.

How long since they had not exchanged a word? The last full moon, of course. And soon, their own personal meeting would happen again, and she was still to make a decision about the medicine. What was she supposed to do about the sample? Cira knew there was always something under development, but she didn't expect it to be ready just yet. She had to act fast, yet she always felt doing things slow...

Breathing in with all calm despite the maintained pace she held behind Mother's, Cira approached close to her, to ask- almost whispering- what she needed to know.

''Mother... It pleases me greatly to see our people is so resourceful to produce such a medicine. I know that a single pill weighs more than many apples in worth; but, do we have the resources to keep producing these? Will there be enough for both our side and theirs? I fear...'' she said, placing her hand on her heart, ''...I fear this... could end up causing us more harm than good...''[/DASH]
 
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As we walked from the meeting, Cira spoke, and as she did, I instinctively grabbed at her hand, shaking my head.

"He scares me, Cira... I fear I can't trust any of his offers, I fear for myself and my people... This was the only thing I could think of....I need to find that doctor again, the woman who came up with this medicine. We need her to figure out a way to make more and quickly..." I spoke, finally loosening the shawl on my head, letting it hang on my shoulders and ran my other hand through my hair. "I'm not as strong as him... I'm not as smart or cunning as you or that assistant wife of his... and... I know he's not a good leader... neither am I... but I'm only doing this until I find someone better...." I looked to Cira, biting my lip. "I know the facade is easy to see through... and I know he thinks poorly of me... but I don't mind, as long as he thinks I'm not a threat, my people are safe...I hope..." I murmured, tiredly.

I gripped her hand tightly for a moment and then let go.

"I just want my people to be safe..." I repeated and then adjusted the shawl back around my head. I didn't pay any attention to my other council, who were no-doubt trying to figure out ways that giving him our anti-radiation medicine will backfire, and how to counteract it. I was too worn to do much more, so I waved then away once we got back to our home, except for Cira... I needed her for a while longer.

"Cira... I know he won't be satisfied until he has my people under his thumb... what do I do?" I asked.
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Listening to her speak, it was clear she was only thinking of a smaller frame of what her job meant. She was right, somewhat, the sick one was better suited to go out, but not in the health to do so. It was true she had no reason to trust him, in fact Mother was the only one who knew his real name, everyone else simply knew him as the name he went by during his exodus here, "Cleaver". He could take harsh words but for her to accuse him of just wanting someone to watch his back, he spoke up at that point.

"Alright fine, I suppose I should at least tell you my name, it's Ed, I defected here from the Phoenixes, and it's not my life I need you to watch, nor save, I can survive out there on my own. It's the people I'm taking out there with me, the people I'm going out there for, that need you to go instead of the medic on bedrest. Your job isn't just to sit in a sick bay all day looking over the already sick, it's also to make sure the people who aren't sick, stay that way. My job is to make sure this complex has the supplies to keep these people alive and thriving, and I can't do that without your help. Me not being to do my job hurts everybody, including the medical staff. Without your help today, long term survival suffers, without your help today, things might start looking like they did when Winter first hit and these people don't deserve to live through that again."

His mind still lingered on her objections. His identity, he could accept, and she was right, he should've voiced his expectations and at the very least clued her in to how his job worked before trying to convince her to go in blindly. He sighed, and shook his head as he bowed it towards the floor. This job though he'd been doing it even when he was still in Father's employ, was something he wasn't accustomed to. He was a culinary arts student, you ask him to cook spaghetti he'd make a masterpiece, but to survive and make sure others survive as well, it was almost too much for him, and he couldn't imagine how it might feel to have someone try to drag him into a problem blindly.

"All that aside, you're right. It was wrong of me to try to drag you into this with no information, so let me at the very least give you some information about what my job is. At the beginning of every week, five individuals including myself, take a truck and follow a colored way point on this map." He started, showing her the map and the blue dot that was the target for today. "Today, the target area is about an hour out northeast, we only stay out for 3-5 hours depending on how much light we have. We save an hour of light for the return trip. Your role in this, would only be to identify medical equipment, herbs and medicines that we need to gather, you would be guarded at all times by myself and two others. Today, we'll only be out for 4 and a half hours. One hour there, 2 and a half in the field and an hour back. I'm sorry about what I said, by the way, shouldn't have said that."

He was finished, and the only thing he could was hope she would agree to go, he wasn't asking her to abandon her patients or her job, at least he didn't think he was. To him, Ed was asking her for assistance so that he could try to bolster her ability to give her patients what they needed. He felt that alone was worth the risk.

"I gotta go get everything prepped, if you still won't help, it's fine. If you will, I'll be in the Garage, just meet me there."

And at that he walked away, towards the courtyard to get the rest of the team ready.
 
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Father watched the display and his face remained unreasonable. "Conflict is never a first resort. I would never send my children to die over a half-built shelter wantonly." he said talking slowly and making sure he was being clear. "I want her to join us peacefully and willingly. That is why we bring them gifts, its not just about showing mother what we can do for her. Its about showing her and her people what we could do for them all."

He was not angry with Fallen, irritated to have him correcting his wife, maybe, but Fallen was his son in all the ways that mattered and it was a Father's duty to be patient and teach. "I do not execute my children either. Or cast them out into the wastes. We're more civilized than that. They go to work doing the less desirable jobs in the factories. Safety equipment is scarce and it will take time before we can make our own. They repay us with the hard work and bravery. And I regret the necessity for even that."

He smiled, finally, and stuck a bent fork into the cooked meat in front of him. He ate what his men ate, it was his wives who could eat specially prepared meals if they chose. "Mother is a proud woman. But she cares for her people, she knows what I can do now, thinks I would go further than I actually would and is willing to pay us off to prevent that from happening. They used to call that the Dane geld. And once you pay the Dane geld, you will never be rid of the Dane." he smiled again, a wolfish expression. "Our people will have effective and renewable treatment for radiation poisoning. I want to know how they make it. Until then, they need food, we need medicine, a deal can be made. I am a patient man."
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[DASH=indigo]Cira held her look of concern, never letting go of her worried expression. She was concerned, after all, and genuinely; but she also kept her inner calm at all times, and if she had to be fully honest, she should have given Mother a far more relaxed look. But there was one thing Cira had learned, and that was to gain someone's trust.

She didn't buy it all, either, of what she said to her. Looking at her hair was nothing but a reminder of how Mother really was, underneath. Underneath the so-called mask... strong and beautiful and with a young spirit. She just kept it all well hidden; Cira suspected she was not entirely aware of her own full prowess, but that didn't change the fact that it was hidden.

And Cira knew about hiding.
She hid a lot, after all.

Cira felt her hand being released, and watched her adjust the shawl back again, not paying much attention to the rest of the council that was leaving the room.

The shawl. The head. Her hair.
Her thoughts. Her mind. Her power.
And she barely leaves enough space for her eyes to see through.


''Do not let your thoughts paralyze you in fear, Mother. It is easy for these thoughts to wrap themselves around you, blinding you, obscuring your perception of things. Thoughts can poison your heart, can poison your emotions...,''

Cira trailed off, frowning. Poison? Why was she saying that? An image crossed her mind. She didn't know what it was. A dark drop falling on a dark, liquid substance. Poison. It didn't make much sense for now, but she would keep the image present until she understood what it was all about. Perhaps the word would have a different meaning for Mother than for her. Blinking, Cira resumed with her speech.

''...they can poison your mind. And it is with your mind that you need to see clearly ahead. ''

She is clearly confused.


Cira slowly placed her hands over Mother's shawl, near the eyes, and adjusted it so that a little bit more of her face could be seen.

''Do not be afraid of showing others what are you are really made of.''


She took her hands away, and paused. So far, so good. But Mother probably needed more concrete advice. Something not as cryptic. Cira cleared her mind, and let the question run again through. What do I do...

''Stay alert, Mother, and observe what you have. Violence can always be avoided. Observe people. Finding out what motivates them is the key to your success; I am sure you have more to offer than what you think. Look at yourself. What do you see in the mirror? Our offering may fire back to us, but so can theirs. Not the apple itself, but the message with it.'' Of course, for Cira an apple was more than just a fruit. It could mean a myriad of things. ''Temptation. Ever heard the story... of the goddess of discord? It took just an apple... Divide and conquer, Mother.''

Cira concluded, hoping to have inserted the seed of some idea in Mother's mind. She wasn't sure she managed to, since after all Cira's way of speaking was quite peculiar. Her gaze wandered away as she stopped talking. She still had to answer the same question, only now for herself.

What do I do...?


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I was quiet for a moment.

I understood Cira, though I didn't quite believe her- doubt colored my behavior.

I feared what would happen if I took her advice, this was true. I feared "showing people what I was made of"- other parts of her advice were just as troubling.

"Cira, temptation is a fickle thing... and... I'm afraid for my people to be enthralled by their deal... I'm afraid to owe them... I know that offering them the medication will not end well if I can not control it, but there is little I can figure out on how to counteract their moves..." I spoke, looking to my adviser and friend. "I fear being overtaken by them."

"That man... their king... Father... he's unrelenting in his behavior... I fear if he takes out all the stops... I fear him taking up arms against us and forcing our hand. We need to come up with something... we need a fail-safe that we can count on." I admitted, then continued, "He's crafty, and very strong-willed. He wants a fight."

"I believe that perhaps your idea of temptation will work in some areas, but we can't control what it will do."
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He'd waited all he could and the team was ready to go, but no sign of Kara. Thomas, a larger brutish man with an old bolt action hunting rifle slung over his back came up to Ed, his gruff voice booming out, "We don't got time to wait boss, we need to get moving' if we wanna sleep here tonight." Ed nodded and gave an irritated sigh before letting out a loud whistle signaling his team to rally up.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen! We're going northeast today! So far it's uncharted territory, so I haven't a damn clue as to what.....or who we'll find, let's just hope whatever we do find isn't out to see our heads without the rest of us attached." He began, however one of the team members, a young one couldn't have been more than 23 spoke up.

"Northeast? Shit! No one told me we were goin' northeast, that's fuckin suicide man! You heard the rumors right? People eatin mutants! And no tellin what else we'd fi-" He managed to get out before the nervous boy was cut off by another guy on the team, Louis who interrupted the frightened Sam saying, "Ain't our job to bitch about what's out there kid! Nut up or shut up."

Another harsher whistle erupted from Ed who now had a more angered look washing over his element worn yet still youthful looking face as he continued on with his briefing, "I'm sorry did I give the impression that I was done? Anyway....we got another issue, Don's out with radiation poisoning, I tried getting another doc, but no luck was to be had, so we have no medical support for this trip! Cause of this I'm shortening our time out on the Range and all of us are going to have to be even more careful than we usually are! Let's roll!"


Ed then hopped into a large pickup truck, an old F600 fitted with off road tires. It had most certainly seen better days, the paint was pretty much gone, rust gaining the upper hand in that struggle years ago, the interior was dirty and tattered, only one of the headlights still worked. The original bed had been replaced by a hauler bed for better use as a supply run vehicle, and the body though it had been shoddily reinforced, had its fair share of bullet holes punched in it. The hood was scorched on one side, cause accidents happen, and just about the only thing anyone could do with it was keep it running, and parts that worked were scarce.

The team was strapped in, Ed and Louis up front, Sam in the only remaining back seat, and Thomas on the bed, and with that, Ed gave the key a twist inside the ignition, however the engine only began to come to life and then sputtered out. Ed groaned and rolled his eyes in his mind thinking, -goddamned temperamental piece of shit just start!- and after giving the floorboard a kick, turned the key again, only for the same thing to happen again. "Son of a bitch!" He exclaimed, "Just start you crap truck!" and gave the floor another good kick as he turned the key again, only this time, a fire broke out under the hood, much to the surprise, and chagrin of Ed and the rest of the team who scrambled their ways out of the truck.

Louis quickly grabbed an extinguisher and started unloading it at the fire, all the while Ed throwing wrenches and screwdrivers at the truck, which as silly as it may have seemed, he believed hated him for some reason only the inanimate object could know.

Ed couldn't take it anymore and let out steam yelling, "WHAT THE FUCK!?!?!? WHY TRUCK?!? WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR GODDAMN PROBLEM YOU METAL BITCH!!!!" After throwing a larger wrench at it, denting the body plating on the truck, he took out a pack of cigarettes and lit one, taking a long, somewhat stress relieving drag off of it and held the carcinogenic haze inside for only a moment before letting the aromatic cloud escape his lungs.

"Louis, you told me that damn thing was ready to go!" He barked, still a bit pissed off at his automotive nemesis. Louis looked under the hood, then looked at Ed a puzzled look on the stereotypically bearded southern mechanic's face. "Don't know wuss wrong wit her boss. She purred jus fine this mornin'" he replied, to which Ed only said, "Well get that bitch fixed! I'll be back in a minute I'm gonna get some of that nice fresh fallout air before we go." and at that he walked out of the garage and stood outside exhaling another blast of stale tobacco smoke, while Tom followed him outside, "Somethin's got ya bothered today man, and I know it's not just that old truck. What's goin on?"

Ed turned to him, and from his nose more smoke bellowed out as he said, "I'm not trusted around here Tom, Mother probably doesn't see it, but I see the way the others are watching me, waiting for me to do something suspicious. I've had bad luck all day, and the stress of it just boiled over with that damn truck. I'm just ready to get my job over with for today, and blow off the steam in the rec hall. Thanks, Tom, can you go check on Louis see if he needs any help?"


Tom nodded and gave a quick smile, "Yeah boss I got it, oh by the way, even of the others don't trust you, we got your back, you and me, Louis, Sam and Don? We go through hell to make sure the rest of the place survive, Mother trusts you too, or she wouldn't have let you stay with us." He said before walking back over to the truck, Ed nodded to himself, reassuring himself as he exhaled the last puff of smoke from his cigarette and threw it on the ground before stomping it out, running his hands through over his face and through his hair, giving his head a quick shake before turning back towards the garage.
 
It's also to make sure the people who aren't sick stay that way. The words stuck in Kara's mind even as the man -- Ed -- turned to walk away. She hadn't even had time to retract what she had said before and tell him that she'd think about it. He had simply told her that he would be in the Garage if she wanted to join. Did she? She had her job to do, but he had questioned her job description. There was at least a little bit of business to finish up whether or not she decided to meet Ed at the Garage.

What she did have to do didn't take long, and it certainly didn't take all of her attention. Her thoughts kept going back to Ed and what he had said, questioning her duty. Maybe he hadn't known it, or maybe he had guessed it, but her sense of duty to the community was what kept her going day after day. Without Mother and this place, she was nothing. There was Father and his ways, and Kara knew her skill set was useful to anyone, but from what she had heard about the man, she knew he would require her to submit to him. She didn't know whether or not he or someone else would interfer with doctoring. And while she did not like making the hard choices, she would rather not let someone else make them for her. Mother trusted them, and she trusted Mother. And he had mentioned that he had defected from the Phoenixes. Maybe it was politics, but whatever the reason, it reaffirmed Kara's belief in Mother.

So when she did find herself walking toward the Garage, it was truly her decision. She had spent so much time with the sick, trying to sweep up the mess after it had been made, but Ed was right. If there was a way to prevent it, then she should try it. Ian had been working for that, and he should have been here instead of her. His whole life had been forward thinking. If he had survived, he might have already found a solution to all this. She swallowed the thought as her right hand reached out to turn the door handle to the garage. In her left hand was a pack of medical supplies. It was possible Ed's team already had a med kit, but she wanted to be sure. She couldn't get the image of the gun Ed had so casually handed her out of her head. When she did open it, she saw a truck and a couple people working on it. Maybe Ed's team had already headed out and this was another truck, but maybe thi was it. She approached them and asked, "Is Ed here?"
 
Tom looked up, and then his head turned towards the bay door that led to the ruined streets. Heading through that door was Ed, "Yeah, right there."

Ed was pacing around a bit impatiently until he saw Kara, "Changed your mind huh?" He stated gruffly, "Good thing, my crew's morale was dipping below the red line, now we gotta doc to keep us on our feet. ALRIGHT BOYS THE DOCTOR IS IN!" He finished a smile on his face, the first one all week. Louis looked up from under the hood of the old truck. "Her?! You're gonna bring a girl out there?! You nuts?!" Ed threw a rag at Louis, "Shut up! This is the first bit of GOOD news we've gotten all day! I'm waiting on you to give me the second bit, so focus on what You're doing and I'll focus on bringing the doc up to speed about how things are out there, Get me?!" He barked, Louis rolled his eyes and nodded, "Yeah Yeah, I got it!" and at that he dipped his head back under the hood.

"Well" He started, "Better get you acquainted with the crew, the big guy is Tom, the ray of sunshine under the hood is Louis, Over there packing that small crate is Sam, and well, you were probably treating Don this morning, he got hit with a nasty infection, coupled with radiation sickness, probably said that on his file though, er....You have uhm any questions?"