The Winds of Change (Apocalyptic & Eva)

[EvaRose]

They were all asleep at the time it happened, when the dogs started to howl out as the sun peaked over the mountain tops and there were shouts. Traps went off of course (bear traps, swinging logs, traps that brought nets up under your feet to catch you) and the dogs were let out for they didn't need to use their eyes to know where the strange people were located. It wasn't long before everyone was awake, hurrying for their weapons and attacking the three who came to their area. They were in a city surrounded by a mountainous region and nothing but nature. The sounds of battle were the only thing that made the place not so peaceful, that woke her up from her sleep though her father didn't want her out of the tent. He was protective of her that way, preferring to keep his eighteen year old safe instead of letting her join the others as they fought. It wasn't long before she was dressed and out of the building, commanding the dogs because they all followed her without hesitation, choosing to do as she said whenever she said it. The battle died down as the sun rose higher into the sky, two of the beings were killed and one was surrounded by people and dogs.

The man who led them was tall, with flecks of grey in his black hair that just touched the tips of his ears. Like with most of the people those days, there didn't seem to be a hint of fat on his body. Food was scarce enough and the man had everybody exercising every day so they could keep up just in case a raid like this occurred. He had been raised to do things like this, to capture the very people he now lead and to stay safe while doing it. His daughter stayed a few feet away, her green eyes looking at the armored person whose weapons had already been taken by the others. Her pale skin was a bit strange given how much time they spent outside, but it never became tanned or grew red. Her clothing consisted of a dark green shirt and a pair of black shorts, it wasn't exactly camo but it was good enough to keep her hidden. "You're going to regret coming here," she head her father say. She stood at 5' 5" compared to him and his 6' 7" height. "Take the armor off, either that or you can accept death."

One of the dogs ran over to her, barking softly and looking up at her. Her hand went down to pet its head softly. Most of the dogs were either German Shepherds, Huskies, or Dobermans. I lot of them were a mix of the breeds of course, furry so that they would stay warm during the winter months. The people were of various age groups, those under eighteen were told to stay inside the building for their own safety. Her, she turned eighteen the day before and was enjoying being outside for once. And when the next day something like this happened? Of course she was glad that her birthday was yesterday.

 

[DetailedTy]

The soldier knew he was beaten, his weaker partners already perishing from the battle. When commanded to take off his armor he lifts his head to look at the man who stood just two inches taller than himself. "Death does not scare me, but to live to fight another day, I shall do as you say." The Super Soldier takes off his helmet slowly and lays it on the ground before unhooking his armor from his skin and slowly sliding it off. He had a pair of tight pants on under the armor along with a white wife beater. Though staring his foes in the face, it did not deter him from folding his armor in a correct way before laying it down at the mans feet. "The armor is off, now do as you wish." The man, Damon as he is called back at his home base, kneels down and lowers his head to the tall man.

Fighting for his life was always an option, but when presented with a chance to lay down his arms and live to see another day, even a being such as himself saw it as a no brainer to do as the enemy had asked. "I wish to be taken to my cell now." He exclaims while looking at the ground. Damon did not expect his captures to do as he said, but it was the next logical step after capturing an enemy. Though the man should have felt fear while surrounded by guns and dogs, fear was not an emotion that existed within his body anymore, being bread to do nothing but fight and kill, there was no room for fear.

 

[EvaRose]

The man didn't look all too pleased with this. The man in front of him showed not a sign of fear and it was strange. Of course, he had no idea about how people were injected with blood after he left, since he never returned and all. He was about to motion to a fellow rebel for a gun when he saw his daughter out the corner of his eye. "Damnit Esme," he muttered under his breath. The man shook his head and took a step back from the strange man. "Lead him to the cage." He bent down to pick up the armor before turning and strolling towards his daughter. While he did that the others were leading the defeated soldier into the building and to the cage their leader spoke of.

"Esme, what have I told you about-?"

"I'm eighteen, dad, I get to come outside now." Her eyes had been on the strange man, wondering about him the same way her mother once did about a certain someone. Her hand moved to scratch the loyal husky between his ears, her eyes never leaving her father. "So, you're going to keep him alive?"

"Yes, see if he might be able to answer some question. You-you go inside. You may be eighteen but it's still not safe out here." Even as he spoke the others were walking around, some setting the traps again while a few others were carrying off the bodies of the other two soldiers. He spoke in his authoritative tone, the one he had when there was no room for argument. Only because he could carry her in did she turn and walk into the building, wanting to at least keep her dignity.

 

[DetailedTy]

Damon could hear the arguing between the father and daughter, it made him wonder why the father just did not force the daughter inside or intimidate her into doing so. It was confusing but the rebels often did things the wrong way or differently. Once in the cell, Damon had a seat in the middle of the cell, his head down as he waited for a visitor. Damon figured he was captured for a reason, the rebels would not squander this chance to torture or get answers out of their enemy.

On the other side of the valley a friend of Esme finds her with her dogs. "Hello Esme, I see your father still does not accept you are 18 and able to come outside during a fight. When will he see how mature you have become? Besides, if it weren't for you training these dogs, they wouldn't have that prisoner right now. Which confuses me, why have a prisoner? Why not kill the man?" Zoe was her name, the daughter of one of the warriors that goes out when trouble finds the community. "Perhaps they are going to torture him, one can only hope." Zoe leans down to pet one of the dogs, patting the mutt on the head as she looks over at Esme.

"I heard your father is leading another gang of hunters, hopefully they come back with another Moose, that would be satisfactory. I much enjoyed cooking the large creature." Although around Esme's age, Zoe helped her mother and sisters cook and prepare most of the food that comes into the village. "Later tonight some of the girls and I will be watching the meteor shower, will you be joining us?" Zoe had a bit of ADD, one second she could be talking about food, the next about space, but she was a fun girl to be friends with.

 

[EvaRose]

Esme sighed softly and looked at the dogs around her before sitting down, looking up at Zoe and just listening as she ranted about different things as she sat there patiently. Dogs moved to her, licking her cheeks and sniffing and she petted them gently before they moved away. She said nothing on the man of course. Really though, she hated it when people died. Seeing people be brought in after a battle, hurt and groaning in pain, made her sad. It was why she didn't work with most of the other females in the infirmary.

"I don't think I will," she said softly in response to the question. "One of the females are going to have pups today, and I've been there for all of them, can't be away this time either." She paused for a moment, thinking about it before raising her shoulders in a lazy shrug. "You never know though, she might have them early and maybe then I can come out and join you. Dogs are unpredictable after all." Her eyes darted around then, looking at the dogs as she tried to spot the one she had spoken of. The dogs were all allowed to roam freely through the building, which made it hard to keep track of one. "I'll talk to you later, Zoe, I have to go find her. Anyway, I think your mom is calling."

 

[DetailedTy]

Zoe nodded as she heard her mother. "Okay, hope to see you there." Zoe runs off to meet her mother, leaving Esme to find her pregnant pup. Back at the prison, Damon sits and waits as the villages leader walks in. He leaves the cage closed as he grabs a chair and sits it outside the cage, sitting down and crossing his arms. "I hope you're ready to answer my questions." The man spoke and Damon slowly lifted his head up to look at him. "I shall answer none of your questions, the worst you can do to me is kill me, I have no loved ones, no friends, and I do not fear death. For death will only set me free." Damon puts his head back down and closes his eyes, he can hear the frustration coming from the man.

Soon Damon hears the cage being opened and he's dragged out and out of the prison. His shirt is torn off and he's slammed against a thick pole. His hands are tied behind the pole, as well as his feet tied together at the ankles. "Death is the least of your worries." The man lifts a whip from his waist and cracks it in the air, getting the attention of the villagers. "Lets see if you talk now." Damon slowly lifts his head as the man speaks, "Have at it." He encourages him before the man lifts the whip and cracks it across his chest, creating a gash about six inches long. Not a flinch from Damon as he looks down at his chest, watching the gash slowly close up, leaving a faint scar with the gash once was. "I fear, nothing." Damon spoke with confidence as his eyes glaze over with a dark black color. Upon closer investigation, Damon had several scars on his body, he was battle hardened, ever since he was old enough to pick up a knife.

 

[EvaRose]

Esme heard the crack of the whip, as did the rest of the people in the building. Children where put inside of course, mothers not wanting to see anybody be tortured. And of course, Esme didn't want to watch either. She couldn't to look for the dog until silence fell, pure silence. It was astounding for there to be nothing but silence, especially when one thought about the amount of dogs that happened to be in there. Her green eyes tilted up to look toward her father and the man, expecting there to be a large gash with blood coming out of it by then, but there wasn't. There were scars but nothing that looked new, though she distinctly heard her father whip the man while she was looking. By then, Esme knew the different between hitting the skin, air, or something else entirely. Even her father looked Astounded for a moment before his gaze turned thoughtful. And she knew it, this man was going to be caged up until her father's curiosity was satisfied.

A light whine that reached her ears tore her from her thoughts and sent her walking in the direction of the female. It was a German shepherd female, belly swollen with pups as she laid on the ground. Because of that sound, others were talking and moving again, most wondering how a person could be whipped like that and heal up so soon. They were all astounded of course, and questioning whether keeping the man alive was a good idea. Esme spoke calmly to the female, rubbing the belly of her with a gentle hand, feeling the pups move beneath and smiling a bit. Life was a precious thing in her eyes and a terrible thing to waste of take. She rose to her feet, sure that the female would not be giving birth within the hour and moved toward where her father was, staying a few feet away though and in the shadows. She earned his wrath once that morning, didn't want to again.

 

[DetailedTy]

Damon stood there, watching the man put away his whip since he figures it's useless against the prisoner. "Leave him out here tonight, until I figure out what to do with him." The man told his warriors before turning to leave, "The Government has a new breed of Super Soldier." The former soldier of the Government knew that much, he knew they were up to something but never thought it would be something like this. A being that can regenerate their cells with such speed, it was amazing and unbelievable.

Damon let his body rest while tied against the pole, his eyes looked about the village, watching people help each other, he watched as they farmed, the kids played and the warriors, the ones with armor and guns at their side, laughing and joking around with the civilians. This was all confusing for Damon, as a person bread for fighting, he didn't understand how such people could live so care free. He was taught to think the rebels were animals, people bound and determined to ruin the order of the Government. This was so different, such happiness and glee spread about the village, and the fact that the warriors were allowed to be free and have fun, it perplexed the man bound to the pole.

 

[EvaRose]

Esme looked at her father as he walked away, glad to find that she wasn't caught at least. If he did catch her then there was no telling what he'd do as punishment. She stayed silent for a few moments, making sure her father truly was away before moving forward. If there was one thing she got from her mother beside her looks, it was her kindness and naivety. Still, what could go wrong with just sitting down and talking to someone whose hands and feet were bound to a pole? And it wasn't like anyone was paying attention to him in the first place.

She looked at him for a moment, mostly looking at the scars that were on his body before sitting down just two feet away from the bound man. "What's your name?" She asked, a bit of curiosity in her eyes as she looked up at him. "I'm Esme, you already met my father. Are you human?" The dogs weren't going near the man at first but came over because she was near, most not going past her. One big one sat beside her and laid his head on her lap. It was a old dog though that rarely saw fights anymore. It still bred though, and it was that one's pups that would be born soon. Her hand went to the dog's head, scratching between its ears though her eyes stayed on the taller man.

 

[DetailedTy]

Damon was not interested in the woman yet as he kept pondering about the villagers and their way of life. It was interesting to see how they interacted and talked to one another, as if they were one big family. Back at the base Damon was isolated to his room, the gym or the mess hall, and when in the mess hall he was instructed not to talk to anyone, just eat and go back to his room. Soon he tears his eyes away from his surroundings as he looks at the female sitting in front of him. "My name is SS-109B." That was the number given to him when he was born, the number tattooed on the back of his neck. "The name I gave myself though, is Damon." Damon was different when it came to the Super Solider program, he was calculative about his next move, he weighed the odds of survival against the odds of success, although he often took the chance anyways.

"Your father huh? A first generation soldier from the Government, it's funny how he's still alive, let alone able to reproduce." Damon figured women hated the personality of the Super Soldiers, they were mostly dry, humorless and acted more like a machine rather than a human. "Yes, I have met him, he saw the neat little trick I did when he lashed my chest." With a smirk he looks at Esme. "I was hoping for another lash so I can add another scar to my collection." He added before looking back around the village.

 

[EvaRose]

Esme blinked a few times at what he said, not sure what he meant when he said that. Of course he father could reproduce because he had her, and the phrase only made her mutter "weird" under her breath. She looked down at the head of the dog, stroking its head softly once the man was quiet again. She thought about what he said, wondering if her father used to be the same as this man. If he hadn't been with the government, being brainwashed to be a certain way, than she would've thought him a lost cause. Her mind went to her father though, a man who had changed from being like...this and into her loving father. If he didn't change then she probably would never have been born. And so all she did was sigh softly before speaking.

"So your goal is to get more....scars?" She looked up at him, head tilted to the side and one eyebrow raised questioningly. She lowered it though and sat up straight, clearing her throat softly before speaking again. "Don't you have any goals don't have to do with battle scars or something of a fighting nature?" Her fingers moved then and scratched the dog under his right ear, not caring as his tongue lolled out and his tail wagged. She could smell breakfast being cooked and sighed softly. There was no lunch there, just breakfast and dinner. Sometimes there was one or the other even, which made her come to appreciate food.

 

[DetailedTy]

Damon figured that the woman knew something about the Super Solider program, with her father being in it and everything. "When your soul purpose is to fight and kill, you do what you have to to have fun, collecting scars and my thoughts are all I have. It's frowned upon in my world to speak to other people, to smile, to laugh. My only purpose was genetically injected into my body. You have no idea what I am capable of doing, what I was bread to do." Damon looks back at the young lady before looking back out at the land. "Just know this, you may have captured myself and killed the other two soldiers, but you won't hold off the next squad to come this way, and there will be more when they realize we're not back." Damon gives Esme a slight clue as to what is to come next, but he wasn't about to give anymore.

"Hell is coming, it's sad for you that you'll be caught in the middle of it all. Hopefully your little traps can hold back a few, but they won't hold back the others." Sure Damon could tell her more, and perhaps scare her, but he was intent on being vague and checking out the rest of the village. "Sounds like a mutt is in pain." He adds, his enhanced hearing able to hear the pregnant dog going into labor.

 

[EvaRose]

She was up on her feet quickly when she heard what the man said, the dog beside her jumping a bit and barking, which only made the others follow its example. Before she ran off to find the dog though, Esme stopped and turned to look at the man. "I will not of lived life sadly until that moment, unlike you who knows nothing of the good things in life. If anything, I'll feel sad for you." She looked away from him quickly, shaking her head slowly before turning and hurrying off.

As soon as she left so did the dogs, all of them getting up and away from the bound man. Esme was soon at the side of the birthing dog, giving the female gentle words of encouragement. She had been doing this she was ten, so it was nothing new to her. The dogs usually had this under control, the only reason she was there was because there were a few times already when something went wrong. Of course, the female and her litter would be moved into a tent so they wouldn't be in the way of the others in the building. It was a quick birthing too and soon there were three plump puppies at the belly of the female, nursing and whimpering softly. People looked, awing as they looked at the newborn pups.

 

[DetailedTy]

Damon stayed on the pole for a few more hours until a few men took him down and lead him back to the prison. Damon sat back down and ate what they gave him, though he was a prisoner, he still needed nutrients. While sitting in his cell, he thought about what he saw around the village, everything he was ever told was turning out to be a lie. But he couldn't make that judgement on just one day, he would need to see more. He needed to get back out into the village. Without giving it much thought, he begins to taunt the guards until they get so pissed that they force him out of the cell and back to the pole. "You can stay out here until you learn to shut up." The guards walk off before he smirks and looks around the town, it was dark now with lights marking peoples homes.

He saw kids running around chasing bugs that lit up like a flashlight, he also saw men coming back with large amounts of meat. The women grabbed the meat from the men, kisses were exchanged then silence fell upon the village again. Damon relaxed against the pole, closing his eyes as he tried to think about what all he has seen, everything was so different from what he was taught.

 

[EvaRose]

"It's okay. Your pup is fine," she said softly, soothingly speaking to the dog as she carried the pups from where they were born and into her own home. Her father didn't mind before so she thought nothing of it now. The pups looked like a nice mixture of both the female and the male, cute and healthy at the same time. She wished that she could just hug them, sure, but their mother would never allow it. Once all three pups were placed on the blanket, the female laid down and Esme lowered the tarp so that the bitch could sleep in peace. It was night now, which meant that there was still time to go to see the meteor shower with her friends.

As she strolled to the area though, her mind went back to the man. Seeing that no meteors were falling yet, Esme took a detour back to the pole that he was tied up to earlier. And she truly was surprised to find him there again. "You're still hear? I thought my dad would put you in your cage by now." Again she stayed a few feet from him, though she wasn't afraid of the tied up man. If he did try to go near her after all then her father would have his head. "Have they fed you yet?"

 

[DetailedTy]

There wasn't much to see since most people were inside now, so Damon turns his attention to the woman who walks over to him. It was the curious young lady who came over earlier. "I enjoyed the pole so much that I pissed off the guards so they would bring me back out here." In some way he was telling the truth, he needed answers about these people and perhaps this lady would give them to him. "You've asked many questions, now I have a few for you." Damon turns his eyes back to the woman, his eyes had a certain glow to them, sort of like cat eyes would catch stray light and glow, making it easier for the feline to see in the dark. "Why are your people not fighting for control? Or hell bent on bringing war to the lands?" Damon needed these answers.

"How come your people work together to survive? I always thought you were savages, people who shunned technology and hated the Government for how they are trying to bring back the old world." The man relaxed back against the pole, looking at the girl so he could judge her body language for lies. "Tell me about your people." He adds, studying her movements intently.

 

[EvaRose]

The things he asked her were surprising to say the least and she didn't know what to say to him at first. To say the least, the woman was more than offended by what he said about them being savages. "We aren't heartless wild animals, that's what you government people are for. They-" She bit her tongue before she could say anything else, calming down a few degrees and actually thinking about his request. It was hard for Esme to remember that he was a military drone, or at least raised to be one. "Listen," she said softly once she calmed down, "we aren't like that. All we're trying to do here is live another day without people dying during one of your governments raids, the way my mom did." A sad look was in her eyes as she said that, her gaze turning to her feet as her eyes grew a bit watery.

She looked at him after though, wiping at her eyes with one hand. "All we want is freedom. Look at you, you've been raised to do one thing and are made to do one thing. There are books about people who aren't like that, who didn't have to fight. They were raised in houses, with happy families and didn't have to be scared every day of their lives. That's the kind of life I hope there will be in the future." Her hand went up to push her hair back and behind her ears. "We don't want to be taken, made to be one way like...well...you. I'm sorry if you're disappointed to find that we aren't as battle crazy as they taught you all to be."

 

[DetailedTy]

It's been about three weeks since Damon was captured by the rebels, he has spent most of his time outside on the pole, even during the rain. He's been studying, talking to that girl named Esme, mostly at night when she could hide from her father. Everything he was taught by the Government was wrong, it made him furious, his whole life was a lie. The man had anger built up inside of him, though he did not show it very easily. "Why?" He had asked himself more than once, why was the Government so Hell bent on destroying civilization and conforming everyone to their liking. From what Damon could see, these people wanted nothing but peace, a land to call their own. All they wanted was a life where they could live freely and not be afraid to step outside of their homes.

Damon had his feet untied a few days ago and now sits with his hands behind his back, he could hear something outside of the village, outside of the concrete walls. It was the second wave of soldiers sent by the Government, this time it was more than just three but Damon couldn't get an exact number on them. Soon he watched as the dogs all shot up, "Round two." He tells himself as the dogs start to bark and go wild, an alarm sounding through the village. Damon slowly stood up as he watched men get ready for battle, the women and children all ran for their homes and all Damon could do was watch.

 

[EvaRose]

"Stay inside," her father said to her before hurrying out of the tent to join the others in the fight.

Before she could protest, he was out the tent and hurrying away to the fray. Esme was seething with rage of course, not having been allowed to go outside since the first raid. Her father made sure that the guards at the doors didn't let her step out no matter what she said, to the point where she gave up. And now, here they were with another fight and her father wasn't letting her out again when they needed all the able-bodied people they could get. It wasn't as though she didn't know how to hide away in the shadows and command the dogs from there even. There were things she could do without confronting the people head-on the way her father always did.

The female was whining softly where she laid and Esme went over, lifting the covering so she could look at the pups. They were all there at least, all of them were safe from harm. Her mind went to the tied up man, the one who named himself Damon. Without thinking she jumped up to his feet and ran out of the tent. If anything went wrong then her father would blow his top, but if there was a chance to listen to him and still, in a way, help, then she was going to take that chance. "Would you help us?" She asked as she came up to him, eyes narrowed and not a hint of fear in them. There was a foot of space between them, enough for him to kick out and hurt her if he really wanted to, but she was too stubborn right now to care.

 

[DetailedTy]

Damon stood up as he looks at the woman, shaking his head when she had asked for his help. "You sound pretty desperate if you're asking for my help." Damon smirked before breaking the rope that had tied his hands behind his back. "Understand one thing, I was never your prisoner." Damon touched the womans cheek before running from the girl and heading to the outside of the village. It looked like he had ran free, leaving the villagers to fight their own battle. Damon heads around the village until he finds the leaders tent, he rips a hole in the back and runs inside to find his gear. It takes him a while to suit up, sliding his helmet on when the suit forms to his body. Damon grabs his weapons, sliding his assault rifle to his back and grabbing the arrows to his bow.

Damon perches up near the Village and scopes out the battle. He can see the men due to the helmet, allowing him to see the heat coming from the soldiers. Damon needed to learn more about these villagers and he couldn't do that if they were all dead. While scoping out the battle, he can see one of the soldiers about to sneak up on the leader, Esme's father. Damon grabs an arrow off his back and pulls the bow back, he holds the string tight before letting it go. The arrow goes through the back of the head of the soldier, dropping him dead and his body falling against the leader.

 

[EvaRose]

Esme was more than surprised when he broke the ropes, surprised because he didn't escape before when he could've done that and gotten away. And then he was touching her cheek, an action that seemed too gentle for a man like him and that made her cheeks turn a rosy shade of red. Her eyes went around the village to look for him afterword but he was gone by then and out of her range of vision. She was soon in her tent, looking at the hole that was made and muttering curses though she was still smiling a bit. He didn't kill her so that had to mean something, didn't it?

Her father had been aiming at one of the other soldiers when he felt a weight on his back, turning around and moving so that the corpse fell to the ground where he just stood. The arrow that was sticking out of the soldier's head was one of the ones he had confiscated from the man that had been captured. The man came to the conclusion that either the captured soldier escaped or his daughter let him go, because nobody else would think of doing that. He would continue to fight whether being targeted by the once captured soldier or not. Deep down, he knew that his life was saved, because if he couldn't miss than neither would the super-soldier. He turned on the approaching solder, swinging his iron clad fist into the man's face.