Ivan could already here sirens wailing in the distance. His eyes would open slowly as he felt his limbs fill with energy.

“Ugggh.” he’d groan, looking down to find a blanket over his legs. That’s when he heard snoring into his right ear. “Hmm?”

  He found Jacklyn lying her head over his shoulder. She too was fast asleep, saliva drooling from her mouth. He was starting to feel his hand resting over her hip. Containing his demure look, he could only sigh.

The sky was barely turning blue when they left. After getting ready, they’d leave the hotel and sneak past five blocks downtown. They now stood behind another apartment, observing a small store in front of it.

“The cops would be searching the motel by now.” Ivan said, but no response was made. “Jackie?”

  She had her arms crossed, but would immediately snap back, red-faced. “Um… yeah… good thing we got out of their in time.” Jacklyn whispered, looking back at the store. “So, this is the place?”

“Yeah.” Ivan answered. “Just like back in Chicago, huh? Donated from the Green zone, and perfectly legal."

Jacklyn raised an eyebrow. “So we’re going to rob the place?”

“What, no!” He looked at her questioningly. “I got a plan. Trust me.”

“But-”

“Just trust me.” he said with a raised whisper.

  With half-heartedness, she accepted. “What’s the plan?”

“First off, we get up, and walk over there.”

  With her skepticism, she stood up alongside him. They casually walked across the dark streets of the area, reaching the other side without incident.

“What now?”

“I knock on the door.” he said with a grin.

  Knock! Knock! Knock!

  She’d groan, “Then?”

“We point our guns at the door.”

“Oh… Wait, what!”

  In a couple of seconds, the door indeed opened. In front of them now was a man around his late thirties in pajamas; rubbing his eyes thanks to the morning grogginess.

“Uh… hello, how can I-” He saw the guns. “Oh my god!”

  In an instant, his hands were up, “Whoa, don’t shoot officer! We can work…”

“Bill, it’s me.”

“things out! I swear I’ll pay my bill this ti-” He stopped his begging when that was said. “Oh, Ivan. Nice to see you again.”

“Yeah, nice to see you too.” he said with a groan of himself.

“So who’s she?” Bill asked, pointing at Jacklyn.

“She’s a visitor from outside the den.”

  She gave him a welcoming wave, as he waved back he noticed the uniform she was wearing. “Get in… now.”

  When Bill entered, Ivan would say one last thing to Jacklyn. "You care about the people helping you, right?"

  She nodded. Then they entered with their guns still on guard.

  They did as such. Bill would lock the door behind them.

"Wow, good nostalgia huh?” Ivan said, looking at the nearly empty shelves and freezers that took up the large room.

   "Yeah, don't rub it in too deep alright?" Bill chuckled.

   “Sure." Ivan complied. He'd look at the empty counter, where he was reminded of something. "Hey Jackie, remember Reggie?”

  She looked down onto the floor. “… Yeah.”

  Ivan, feeling uneasy by the tone in her response, further asked, “Uh... How’s he doin-”

“He’s dead.” It was then quiet. “Thanks to a firing squad. He was caught trying to flee the city.”

“Oh… Anyways, w-”

“Get what you can.” Bill said, standing behind his counter with crossed arms. “Just don’t go overboard.”

“Alright.” Ivan headed for the soups section first.

“Ugh, you two got some nerves to want to leave the den. Honestly I don’t know if you both will make it through."

  The two said nothing. One due to choice, the other due to fear.

“Look, the US has the largest Pizazzium reserves in the world… Well, mainly because they’re the only country that has it. You should already know where most of their budget goes to by now, right?”

  Still nothing from them.

“Well put it this way, If Australlium had the power to divide a country between caps and commies, then Pizazzium has the power to forge another Empire. You really want to run away from those guys?”

  The two said nothing as they walked towards the counter with their supplies.

“Ugh, they have an army that can burn you to ashes!" Still nothing. Bill only groaned. "You really want to go back Chicago, do you?”

  Ivan sighed. “I’m not going to Chicago, Bill.”

“You can work another five years to- Uh, you serious?” Bill said, baffled.

“Mmm Hmm.” he nodded.

“Uh… we’re going to the green zone.” Jacklyn answered.

“Wait.” Bill scoffed. “Are you guys crazy or something?”

“Apparently yes. She knows a way in by the way.” Ivan said, briefly pointing at Jacklyn.

  His scoff turned into suspicion. “And what would that be?”

“I got family there.” Jacklyn put it simply.

  Bill had nothing to say while she added, “Also, Ivan can't go back to Chicago. He's now a dead man."

   He nodded in agreement, but he had to remind them, "You know we’re all the way in Eastern South Dakota, right?”

  They nodded.

“Then you should know why what’s outside these walls are known as the red zone.”

“Look man, I don’t know if we’re going to survive long enough outside either.” Ivan admitted. “… But I can’t stay here anymore. Going to work will absolutely guarantee you that I won’t be buying from you anymore."

  Bill unfolded his arms, his gaze showing bewilderment. “Uh… why?”

  The two exited out the door a little while later with a backpack's worth of supplies, while the Sun’s glow was barely visible over the horizon at the time.

  ”Hmm, I am sorry for what they did to you back at your old job, but I don’t think that trying to break through the walls is a good idea either. Their next trade expedition isn’t for another five weeks.” Bill warned, but his tone instantly dropped. “But you and that girl make a great argument here. So, all I can do is wish you the best of luck.”

“I know.” Ivan nodded.

  Bill would smirk. “You were one of my favorite customers, you know.”

  Ivan shrugged that complement off with a bothered 'Hmmph' as they went into an alleyway, looking for any oncoming troops. Two Armored fighting vehicles passed by, their turrets brandishing. When they were out of sight, they ran towards the next one.

   There was a group of guardsmen walking casually down the street. They just needed to wait in the shadows before they’d all leave.

  ”Ivan, one more thing.”

  He turned around to look at him.

Which made Bill briefly glance at the waiting Jacklyn. “Please… just try.”

  Ivan sighed. “Meh, we’ll see.”

“Good Morning to all of you who reside in the den. Today’s temperature is set at eighty seven degrees with a couple of clouds here and there. Last night’s rainfall contributed greatly to the agricultural sector, and hopefully will be a productivity boom for the farmers…”

“Damn, they had to come at this time.” Ivan muttered.

“Why do you say that?”

“The announcements are like bells to a dog. Obviously waking all of them up for work... but someone needs to take them there; and who else but the military.”

  They would witness the soldiers make way for three trucks that would park in front of the apartment buildings.

“Oh shoot.” Jacklyn whispered.

“Okay, follow me.”

“What, where are you going?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Ivan said, approaching one of the guards.

“B-but won’t that-”

  He had already grabbed onto him, covering his mouth. Ivan was on the verge of getting his knife out when Jacklyn ordered. “Put him down!”

  The other soldiers quickly spotted him and drew out their weapons. “It’s the targets!”

  Ivan’s face drooped. ”Damn it Jackie.

“Drop the weapon now, both of you!”

“Ivan, do as he says!” Jacklyn screamed, obeying their command as she walked alongside Ivan.

  The soldiers kept their guns pointed at them, one shouting. “If you don’t do as such in ten seconds…”

“Ivan, please.” Jacklyn begged.

“Yeah, you don’t have time dude… L-let me go, and we can get it over with!” the held soldier ordered.

  Ivan reached for the soldier’s pocket, grabbing a pistol and a cylinder shaped device. “Don’t worry…”

“Hey, let go of that!”

“I was planning on letting you go anyway.” He pulled the pin from device and dropped it on the ground.

“Son of a bitch!” The soldier grabbed onto Jacklyn’s arm, making her yelp. “The girl’s get-”

  The muffled blast unleashed a large puff of smoke that enveloped the entire block.

  Jacklyn would get back on her feet to hear screams all around her. She struggled to open her eyes, doing her best to resist the burning. “Ivan…! Ivan!”

  Then she felt her hand being gripped tight. She was suddenly yanked out of her place, and sent out of the smoke. She wiped her eyes clean of the tears before opening them. “Ivan!”

“Just be glad that you didn’t cause too much damage!” He pointed his pistol at three oncoming troops, shooting suppressing fire as they entered into another alleyway.

“Um, sorry” She brooded, still wiping the tears from her eyes.

“Behind you!” Ivan pointed, handing her the pistol.

“Eep!” Without thinking, she turned around and fired a couple rounds. The three soldiers would be wounded in their legs and arms. Ivan would watch her back, shooting two more soldiers dead.

“Clear... Well, almost.” Ivan took the pistol right out of her hand, and walked over to the wounded men and women.

"Hey Ivan, don't tell me that-"

  BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!

  Jacklyn could only gasp, speechless at the inevitable.

   "Hey Jackie, help me drag them in." Ivan said, walking over to the corpses and dragging one inside. He'd turn around to find her still standing there, with distraught eyes staring back at him. "Go!"

   Jacklyn nodded hastily before doing as she as told.

  Ivan then picked up the soldier’s rifle along with the ammo, handing the pistol back to Jackie in exchange for the soldier's. He took away the soldier’s goggles, as Jackie did the same. “Anyway, if we’re going to escape, then don’t be that naïve, okay?”

“I know that.” Her shoulders tensed as she put on the goggles. “It’s just that I was-.”

“Look, I know you mean well, but if we’re going to attempt this, I need you to cooperate, alright?”

  With a surge of motivation, and a hint of sorrow, she nodded.

“Good.” He released the safety pin of another smoke bomb as the speakers announced, “Attention Citizens, you are authorized with staying indoors and locking your rooms. We are currently under a code red. Please stay calm, our military…”

  He went out of the alleyway and tossed the explosive at an oncoming Personnel carrier and the troops that stood beside it.

  BOOM!

“C’mon.” He grabbed onto her hand.

  They ran in the direction of the vehicle, heading down the street and towards a metal fence. Ivan climbed up the fence while Jacklyn did the same when she found out where she was. Ivan shot some more suppressing fire on the other side, the bullets would race out like flames at light speed. The enemy’s fire, did the same.

“What now?” Jacklyn shouted amidst the chaos.

  Ivan looked frantically for a new plan. That’s when he found a large silhouette nearby. “We hide underneath that.”

“Oh, yeah.” she grinned in relief. Before the smoke could clear up, they were underneath the truck as the troops kept searching and searching.

“Damn it, where the hell did he go!” one of the soldiers yelled. “Ugh, you all know what to do! Search every nook and cranny for these turds!”

“Yes sir!” his comrades chanted.

“Now what do we do?” Jacklyn blurted.

“Just keep holding on. We were trained for this kind of stuff weren’t we?”

“But won’t someone-”

“Let’s just hope that they don’t.”

  Jacklyn cringed at that. What made it worse was that the soldiers did as ordered.

  Bam!

“Move it, move it!” one of them shouted, followed by the frantic screams of the civilians close by.

  They heard boots everywhere before one of them would reach the doors of the cargo truck. He opened them, only to trigger the words, “They’re not here!”

  More sounds of doors crashing down and screams were heard. It just wouldn’t stop.

“Ivan?” she pleaded in whisper, watching as their captain walked towards the truck. She gasped. “Oh no.”

  Ivan felt the same way. Worst yet, the smoke was starting to fade away. He only had one option left, and it was best that he make the most of it.

  He let one hand free and aimed it towards the soldier’s feet. ”Imperium”

  He witnessed a blast of black mist shoot into the air. In an instant, the soldier was wobbling in place before getting it together.

“Captain, did you find anything?”

“Uh, lemme see.”

  The Captain bent over and shed a light into the underbelly of the vehicle. He soon pulled back and turned it off. “Nope, it’s empty as well.”

“Oh, okay then.”

“Tell them to leave the civies alone and regroup, we’re moving along.”

“Okay sir… so they got away?” the soldier asked, upsettingly.

“Of course, now… just get moving, alright?”

“Yes sir.” He ran off, “C’mon men, let go of them…”

  Then the captain would begin to wobble after a few seconds. “Aaah…. What just… Never mind.”

”Hmm, the test worked.” Ivan smirked. He’d lose it once she saw Jacklyn’s face. “Uh… you all right?”

  He caught Jacklyn shaking, her eyes broadened and her voice shrill. “What… what the…. What the hell was that?”

  Ivan’s had nothing to say, and just let it sink in as they heard the civilians step onto the truck. In a couple of seconds, it would begin to rumble and start moving.

“Attention Citizens of the den, we’ve lifted our security to a code yellow. Please return to your designated driver and start the next work day.”

  Click!

  They spent the entire time keeping quiet, choosing to look out at the dilapidated buildings that covered every street in this cage they call towns. Along the way, they would only see countless trucks that lined every street.

  When their ride stopped…

“Uh, sir… M-may I stay at home?” A person with a weak voice would ask.

  They’d hear him cough.

“What happened to him?” a soldier would ask calmly.

“He’s too sick to work, sir.” said another voice. “He’s been sick for five months now. Shouldn’t they be doing something about that?”

  In a few seconds, the truck began to move.

  Rat-at-at!

  The screams would fade as they moved further away from the scene as possible.

“Sweet Celestia.” Jacklyn gasped.

“Funny how you say that.” Ivan muttered.

  The shocked face would fade, but the event kept slinking into her mind.

  They didn’t know how long they hung on there, but they knew for sure that it felt like forever. It would be awhile before they’d leave the town and onto the other side. There, stood vast patches of gold that spread for miles upon miles. Jacklyn was the one to be marveled by it the most, despite being here since yesterday. The image from before was still in her mind, but she’s glad that something came along to distract her from it. She looked towards Ivan, expecting the same thing from him; but all he saw was an indifferent frown on his face.

”Ivan…” was all she could think of with the pity she had.

  The truck would keep on driving for quite a while, until it would soon slow down and come to a complete stop.

“Jackie…? Jackie!”

“Huh?” She said with a jolt that nearly caused her to let go.

“This is our stop.”

“What?”

“Uh… we’re getting off here.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“Of course I am.” he guaranteed.

“But the main checkpoint is-”

“Shhh.”

“Nothing here, sir.” said another voice.

“Oh no!” she squeaked. “What do we do-”

“On my mark.” He took a brief pause.

“Clear, sir! Checking the next one!”

  After another pause, “Go!”

  He dropped to the ground, rolling out from the truck. Seeing this, Jacklyn would do the same. Once out, she wasted no time in joining Ivan in the field. Upon meeting him, her hand was grabbed by his’.

Moments later, they could only hear a faded 'Clear!' out behind them.

“So where to?” Jacklyn asked.

“The Entrance is a couple miles up ahead.”

“How many?”

  Mildly annoyed, he answered. “I don’t know. It’s just up ahead. So don’t try to get yourselves caught, because I’m certain they’ll turn against you.”

  Ivan then bolted into that direction, his head ducked. With a hint of pity, she followed. While doing that, she did what she could to not think of that.

“So, I like this place.” She said bluntly.

  Ivan huffed at this. “So you like watching people get oppressed and shot?”

“No… I mean… this… Uh… what’s it called again?”

“Oh, a plantation.” he answered, his mind in a haze.

“Yeah… those.” She chuckled as her cheeks were reddening.

“I thought you meant by…”

“Ugh, of course not Ivan. What made you think that?”

“Well, remembering Chicago, of course… and the part of town you were from.”

  With a roll of the eye, she giggled. “Puh-lease, Ivan. It was just as bad there as it was where you lived. So don’t think that, okay?”

  Ivan groaned. “Fine, if you say so.”

  They continued to crawl through the lines of stalks, only being able to hear the birds chirping, the trucks whirring and-

“Get down!” The two hid deep within the tall plants before five drones hovered above them. Green as the soldiers’ uniforms and lights that made fireflies jealous, they searched through each and every part in that area. They’d scan the plants, nothing. They’d scan the ground, nothing. Understanding this, they simply left.

  Far Away from the search, Ivan had his hand over Jacklyn; making sure she didn’t scream.

“You all right?” he asked, letting go of his hold.

“Mmm Hmm.” she nodded, recovering from the sudden incident. Softly, she breathed; and then they were off again. “So… this is where you worked at, right?”

“Like everyone here, yes.”

“I can’t believe you have a job in something as beautiful as this.” she said, looking around once again.

“Pfft, awe is the first thing that comes to your mind when you come here. Then you had to face the music once the work hours were assigned to you.”

  She’d frown at this thought. “Oh… I see.”

“I thought I’d be back in Chicago in a couple months, maybe weeks… turns out I ended up here. All thanks to the New Minutemen.” he sighed. “To their credit, they at least saved me from Lunarist troops.”

“Hmm, those people spell nothing but trouble;” Jacklyn huffed. “and… I’m glad that they didn’t get to you.”

“Well, it wouldn’t be any difference if they took me in. Might as well just go along, right?”

“Don’t say that!” she responded. “It’s best to see you safe than with working for that lunatic!”

  The Ping went on the air.

“Good Morning Fellow workers of Ft. Wilson, South Dakota. Today is another beautiful day to fulfill your dreams… And now, please stand for the Pledge.” the speakers began. “… I Pledge allegiance to the Flag, of the United States of America…”

  They continued to crawl downwards as it went on.  ”Oh Ivan… who are you to say that?”

“… with Liberty and Justice for all.” There was a brief silence before, “And now, enjoy your day. Remember to respect your fellow workers and continue to strive for your brighter tomorrow.”

  Cl-click!

“Hmm, good luck with that.” Ivan mumbled.

“Why say that?”

“You know.”

  Jacklyn’s wanted to say more, but couldn’t.

“All right, you know what to do!” shouted a soldier. “Now get to work!”

“Shoot that was quick.” Jacklyn mumbled, hearing the sound of shoes pressing against the wheat.

  The more they went forward, the louder they became.

“Mommy, do you think one day we’ll go home?” a little child said.

   Jacklyn’s eyes only widened as her mouth slowly opened. She could only hear silence as a response. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of footsteps mixed with a few sniffles.

“Hide.” Ivan ordered.

  They hid once more, crawling slowly towards the crowd. Jacklyn would go on to see them. Some of them would stop at a certain position and begin to cut through the tall stalks with their sickles. Others would keep passing by. They kept their pace going as they blended in, letting their soft crawls mix in with the every step the workers took. All were oblivious to their moves thanks to that tactic.

“Ivan, what are you doing?”

  He stopped to quickly look up. “Uh…”

“You know it’s work time, right?” said a woman looking down on him.

  With a roll of the eye, and a small groan. He raised a hand in the air, specifically the one holding the pistol.

“Oh my god.” she’d gasp. “Just as I thought.”

  Jacklyn only kept his mouth agape.

“Huh?” the lady looked over to where she was hiding.

“Damn.” she mumbled.

“Jackie, meet Miss Madelyn Fuentes.”

“So, you two were the ones wreaking havoc across town.” Madelyn chuckled. “That explains why you weren’t here.”

“Gee, you think?” Ivan groaned.

“Keep in mind that I have the gun pointed at both of your asses, so-”

“Don’t try anything funny, I know.”

  The three kept walking down. To break the silence, Jacklyn would ask. “So… Miss Fuentes… Do you know what you’re doing?”

“Oh of course I do, Ma’am. You know how much they’ll pay for hunting down criminals.”

“Actually Ma’am, I don’t.”

  Ivan face-palmed.

“A simple ‘Get out of Jail free’ card.” she chuckled, but her tone quickly dampened. “And I really need it too.”

“Hmm.” Ivan grumbled.

  Jacklyn couldn’t believe this. “Does that mean that-”

“Yes, Jackie.” he groaned again.

  Her voice now grew more panicked. “B-but why the hell would you-”

  Madelyn sighed. “I’ve been here for more than a year now, and I’ve been trying to save enough money to go to New Haven, Connecticut… But, you know how the law works in these bases.”

“Yep.” Ivan said, glancing at the workers.

  They all stared at them with a hint of tremor in each one of them. None would even want to approach the trio. However, judging by what he’s heard…,

“Jackass one and two thought he could take on the world… how pathetic."

“The poor girl looks like she’s crying… God damn this place.”

“Bad guys like them don’t deserve to be here, right son?”

“They did their best to go against this system, I envy them.”

  Ivan could only grumble.

“Um… Did Ivan tell you how he got in here?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, basically, it was the same thing for me. Minutemen came and ‘rescued’ me and… you know the rest.”

“Yes, yes we do.” Ivan mumbled.

  That’s when Jacklyn figured something out, “But why New Haven? Isn’t that a Green Zone, also?”

“Yeah, but since I got you guys in custody, getting in would be a breeze.” she said bluntly.

  Jacklyn’s eyes continued to water.

“Just let it go, Jackie.” Ivan sighed. “You tried.”

  She remained quiet.

  The celebration in Madelyn’s head would fade out when she was made aware of her tears. “So… where were the two of you planning on going?”

“Washington State.” Ivan said.

“Washington State? I thought you were-”

  He briefly pointed at Jacklyn. “She’s got relatives up there, apparently. Plus, I’m now considered a dead guy back home.”

“Oh, that’s so sad.” Madelyn commiserated. “So claiming to be you will get you shot, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Hmm…” To ease the mood, she had to ask. “Do… you guys know each other?”

  They nodded.

“We both went to the same High School back home.” Ivan told her.

“Oh really?”

“Mmm Hmm.”

  The frown remained on her face as the seconds passed. “Well, I’m sorry that it had to be this way, though.”

“I know… We live in a dog eat dog world, right?” Ivan derided sketchily.

“Well… What if the dog didn’t want to eat him?”

“Huh?”

  They turned to look at the agonized Jacklyn. “What if he didn’t have to eat him?”

  The two looked at each other before looking back at her. Madelyn was the first to say something. “I don’t know, ma’am…  I just don’t know.”

  She continued to keep quiet.

   Later on down the field, they reached a dirt path that lead to a long two story building. It was bordered by a metal fence. Where they were heading, was a gate that was guarded by two towers that were garrisoned by troops. Upon seeing them, the gate began to slide open.

“Don’t cry, Jackie.” Ivan said, leaning over to her upon hearing her weeps. “I told you that you tried.”

  She nodded.

  As the door opened, the other side revealed something unexpected.

“Oh shoot.” Ivan mumbled.

“Uh…” Jacklyn uttered, frozen in place as her mind trembled. “Uh…”

“Good Morning Ivan, Jackie.” the lady in front of him said with a smile and wave. “How’s it been?”

“Grrr…” He hid the redness on his cheeks, while his shoulders tensed up.

“Long time no see.” She raised her pistol in the air.

  BLAM!

  Thwap!

  The two winced at the shot, only to find that Madelyn was on the floor with blood oozing from the back of her head. After that ordeal, the crops began to shake rapidly. In seconds, a pattern of men and women in black and beige had lined up and blocked the way back. Their guns armed.

“Yeah, long time no see, Marianne.” Ivan grumbled.

“Well, since we’re here,” she frowned. “We can have a little talk before it’s done.”

“What do you want to talk about?” Ivan groaned.

“Hmm. First off, I’m surprised that you've been hiding here all along.” Marianne sighed before looking at Jacklyn. “And I’m also surprised that you decided to go after him.”

  She remained quiet, her tears drying.

“It was hopeless to begin with, you know.”

  But with that, she began to speak. “Why, Marianne?”

“Huh?”

  She looked at her with a mixture of anger and heartbreak. “We were friends since the first day we met…, why would you do this?”

“Pfft, look who’s talking?” she said, pointing at her uniform.

  She held her hands as she looked back down.

“Well then, before we finish the job, I would like to say that the rest aren’t around. Less Pain equals less time, right Ivan?” She began to point her pistol at him with point blank range.

  Ivan would mumble, “Of course.”

At the same time, she aligned herself with the soldiers to lift her hand in the air.

“Please Marianne!”

  They looked over to a newly weeping Jacklyn.

“Don’t do this!” she begged. “Please!”

  Marianne only sighed again. “We’re Mercenaries Jacklyn, not actors.”

  Jacklyn’s weeps were becoming more audible as they awaited their fate. Seeing this only bothered Ivan… ”Ignis!”

  Marianne’s eyes quickly flung open. “Shoot!”

  She leaped off the ground, as a ball of flames exploded underneath her. The men and women who stood beside her were engulfed in flames as she landed on her feet. Outside the fence, she heard more screams of agony. She only pouted. “Damn, I forgot.”

  The men and women behind them too were on fire.

“B-By Celestia’s Mane.” was all Jacklyn could mutter at the gruesome sight before Ivan would pull her away.

“No time, let’s get moving!” he’d yell.

  She could only stare at the burning corpses as they ran towards the closing gate. With a little boost, they reached into the others side.

  BLAM! BLAM! BLAM…!

  Three bullets flew right past them, but another three deflected off Ivan’s arm. They reached the door in front of them, which would open once they stood there.

“Stop!” said the office, pointing his pistol at them. It would be met with a grab of the arm and a yank outside.

  Ivan grabbed the pistol in Mid-air and turned around.

”Frigidus!”

  Jacklyn’s horror still remained as ice enveloped the entire doorway… and the officer’s body. “Uh... I-Ivan, what in Celestia is-”

“I told you, that there’s no time, now get going!”

  As he ran off she briefly looked back at the glacier, made a huge gulp, and quickly followed along.

  They ran down the massive room that was filled with fancy wooden tables all around. It was so huge, that it would expand to the second floor via a stair was attached to the center.

“Uh… Ivan, what kind of place is this?” Jacklyn asked, looking at the velvet curtains and carpet around her.

“Where the high-rankers go for a fun time.” Ivan answered.

“So… this is the kind of place you lived in?” she asked solemnly.

  He only kept quiet as they reached the door. With a brief glimpse of the other side, Ivan whispered, “Let’s go.”

  The next room was an empty lobby, adorned with large windows at the front.

“There’s the exit!” he pointed.

“Thank Celestia we’re-”

  To their dismay, a convoy of five Humvees were rallying around the fountain outside. In an instant, they increased in speed and managed to reach the door before the troops can assemble. The nearest cover they could find were white pillars that decorated the entrance.

  On the other side, the glacier finally exploded after two grenade blasts. Marianne entered the room, and along with another squad of men and women, they charged down the hall.

“Ivan, Jackie, please.” she’d think to herself. ”Just work with me.”

  Back on the driveway, another soldier was shot in the face, courtesy of Ivan. Quickly, he went back behind the pillar as the enemy continued their relentless gunfire.

“Jackie!” Ivan shouted. “Get behind me! We’re pushing up!”

“What, you crazy?” she shouted.

“Just do it!” Without waiting, he grabbed her by the hand and ran down the stairs towards one of the now body-littered Humvees. Once there, he took out a grenade, and tossed it towards another’s window.

  BOOM!

“Jackie, take the wheel!” Ivan shouted.

  He fired another batch of rounds at the enemy behind him before opening the door and heading towards the turret. Suddenly, there was a battle cry from inside. The soldier attempted to aim his knife for his throat. Ivan quickly grabbed onto his arm, punched it with his fist, and then jabbed the knife straight in his chest. He then darted towards the Machine gun once he let him drop. The first target was the Humvee ahead.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at…!

  The bullets showered it with intensity before finally giving in.

  Jacklyn, watched in fear as the fiery event unfolded.

“Go! Go!” was what snapped her out of it.

  She pressed the gas pedal and quickly eased out of the parking space, going at full throttle towards the dirt road.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at….!

“Get down!” Marianne screamed before the bullets would strike the entrance with force. Three troops were shot dead by the attack. Even though the others managed to get behind cover, another would be shot.

  A bullet missed her by inches and scraped the pillar.

“Whoa!” Marianne jumped back. “Ugh, damn it.”

  When the bullets stopped, she looked back towards the driveway and found that they managed to destroy another Humvee and leave the last one to remain a sitting duck. “Oh son of a bitch.”

  She walked down the stairs and observed the damage from up close.

“M-Ma’am.” one grunted beside her.

“Oh God.” She quickly kneeled over and got out a syringe. She injected the blue liquid in her arm.

“Uh… Grrr…” The soldier stood up, watching as the wound and the pain would fade. “Uh… Thanks, Ma’am.”

“No Problem.” she nodded, then turned to her troops. “Go check for more wounded!”

“Yes Ma’am!” they saluted, and got to their job.

  That’s when another soldier would run over to her. “Uh, Marianne?”

“Yes sir?”

“Uh… we… our… uh, only an eighth of us remain.”

“That’s disappointing.” Marianne told him.

“Uh… w-what do we do now?”

  She kept staring at the sight. “Ugh, isn’t it obvious? We’re withdrawing.”

  She picked up her walkie talkie. “Attention men at the gate, a rogue Humvee is driving towards your area via the wheat fields, please advise.”

  She then put it away. “Hmm, we should never underestimate our enemies. You know that, right?”

“Of course, ma’am.” the soldier nodded.

“Very well then” she breathed. ”Should’ve remembered that phrase.”

“Marianne, this is Big Mac.”

  She picked it back up. “Oh, what’s up?”

“… I’d like to talk to him.”

  The Humvee sped down the road without encountering anyone along the way.

‘You better get ready, Jackie.” Ivan said, checking the Machine gun for ammo. “Once you carjack a military vehicle, jail shouldn’t be the first thing to come to your head.”

“Well, we’re already a target, anyways.” Jacklyn reminded him. “So, it wouldn’t matter.”

“Yep. Just keep driving.”

“Ok-”

  She would be interrupted by a voice that declared an, “Incoming transmission.”

“Huh?” She looked down towards the surface above the air conditioner, finding a flashing red light. Noting the power symbol over it, she pressed it. What appeared then was a holographic display of a pony. A pony that stood with a bullet proof vest and a rifle beside his hooves.

“Hello.” he’d say.

  The voice rang a bell in Ivan’s head, but was unwilling to show it.

“Uh…” Jacklyn was in shock and awe, not knowing what to say next.

“Can ‘Ah… can ‘Ah speak to Ivan please?”

  She nodded. “He’s in the turret.”

  The pony nodded also, and the hologram shut off.

  Ivan waited for him. There was no point in acting surprised once he saw his face. When he appeared…

“Uh… H-Hey Ivan.” the pony said shyly.

“Hey, Big Mac.” was all he said, continuing to stare at the road ahead.

“So… How’s it goin’.”

“Not bad.” he deadpanned. “Been a while since we last saw each other, huh?”

“Eeyup.”

  The two stood silently as Jacklyn kept driving along.

"How's Maribelle doing?" Ivan asked.

"She's doing fine." Haystack answered. "I didn't appreciate what you did to her."

"Well, there's no guarantee that she'd make it out alive and unhurt."

"Eeyup."

  After a short pause, Ivan chose to ask, “So you didn’t get the opportunity, didn’t you?”

  The Pony looked down, holding one leg with another hoof. “No… no we didn’t.”

“That’s a shame, you know.”

“… ‘Ah know.”

"And the Marriage?"

That question was like a jab to the throat. "It's... It's doing okay."

"Well then." Ivan said coldly.

They remained quiet after that; but it would change when Ivan would plainly ask, “So… how do you plan to kill us off?”

“Well… Y-you’ll have to find out.”

“Hmm, I guess you’re right.”

  He went over to the power button and shut the transmission off. After a couple of seconds, Jacklyn took the initiative and spoke. “So… who was he?”

  After thinking it over, he simply told her. “Just an old business partner from the ‘magical’ land of Equestria.”

“Oh…” Her heart kept breaking as they kept driving down the road.

  Then the sound of beeping would get their attention.

  Blam!

  BOOM!

“What the-” Jacklyn discovered the explosion in mid-air beside her.

“Flour it!” Ivan screamed.

  She quickly pressed on the gas pedal.

  Like a steering wheel, he tilted the HMG, causing the turret to turn and face the Humvee that fired that rocket.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at…!

  The bullets pounded against the armor. It returned fire, making Jacklyn swerve left and right to dodge as many bullets as she could. The vehicle would go on to fire another rocket towards them before exploding.

  BLAM!

  The rocket too exploded in midair.

“Nice.” Ivan muttered.

“Ivan!” Jacklyn screamed.

“What!”

“Do something!” she shouted, pointing at the road ahead.

  He looked over to the hologram behind him, finding a large squad of troops form a line across the road.

“Oh shoot, not them!”

  The soldiers fired relentlessly at them. What came at the two were bolts as bright as the blue sky. Jacklyn ducked as they tore through the glass. With that, Ivan opened fire. The flaming bullets would strike close to their bodies. This caused them to ascend into the air towards the Humvee with blue flames on their backs.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at…!

  Holes were starting to appear in the vehicle as Jacklyn did her best to keep them off. She took out her rifle, and counter fired.

  However…

  Thwap!

“Aaargh!” In pain, Ivan fell back towards the chair while clutching his stomach. ”I guess this is-”

  He suddenly felt a tingle in his hands, as if they were being electrocuted by several scraps of metal. He suddenly got the urge to grab his rifle and aim towards the soldiers out the window. The burst of bullets punched through the soldier’s flat mask. As blood shot out, the body crashed against the window. Jacklyn would jump from her seat in shock.

  With a load grunt, Ivan forced himself off his seat and opened the door. Hanging on, he fired as many rounds as he could towards the incoming troops. The bullets pierced through the green metal armor that covered them. Five of the eight would fall as Jacklyn stopped the vehicle. The dead body rolling down to the ground.

  On her uniform now were large droplets of blood. “O-Oh my!”

  She shook her head and quickly refocused on Ivan. “Hey Ivan, are you okay!”

“Grrr… Just keep going!” he yelled, climbing towards the Machine Gun.

“Uh… I-Ivan, are you ok-.”

“Just get going before-”

  BOOM!

  They watched the explosion behind them, tracing it towards the top of the wall.

“Oh Celestia!” Jacklyn gasped.

“Go, go, go!”

  She quickly made the Humvee dart forward at full speed.

“Ready! Aim!” The Soldier was ready to swipe his arm downwards.

“Stop!”

  The soldier quickly looked at the person who gave him the order, or looked at the young stallion. “Oh, Mister Haystack, you’ve arrived.”

“’Ah don’t recommend that you keep firin’.”

“But sir, your target’s getting closer!” he reminded the pony. “Not to mention that the ARC’s attached to the turret are preventing us from destroying it!”

“It still isn’t worth it, sir.”

“Ten Delta Operatives were killed by those bastards!” he yelled hotly. “Do you think I can let them off easy like that?”

  After a short break. “N~ope.”

“Sir, I was generous enough to use an Abrams tank for this!” He motioned his arms at it. “The TOW cannons would obliterate them to-”

“And what then?” he spoke sternly. “Won’t that put an even worse reputation on y’er country, mister? Do you want them to shame you?”

  The two stared at each other for what felt like hours before the soldier finally gave in.

  He then reached for his walkie-talkie. “Cease fire, and withdraw. We’ll let the security forces deal with them.”

“Yes sir.”

  Static!

  The tank would begin to reverse.

“Ugh, you know-”

  Haystack interrupted. “Do you have any regard for your citizens, Sargent Hernandez?”

“Yes sir, it’s my duty.” he said straightforwardly.

“So, why would ya go out of your way to kill just two people?”

“Because…” Hernandez eyed from left to right, giving him an awkward smile. “I-It had to be done-”

  Haystack headed for the edge of the wall, taking out his Sniper rifle. Once there, he placed it over the barrier and began to look through his scope.

  Lifting a finger, Hernandez hesitated to speak. “Uh… Mister Haystack?”

  Jacklyn continued to drive towards the massive walls ahead. Her mind could only be on the road, but Ivan kept waltzing in.

“Yes, Sargent Hernandez?” asked Haystack.

  Ivan kept holding onto his wound, doing his best to not let go of the machine gun.

“Do… Do you know why we did what we did in Iraq?” Hernandez asked.

  The Humvee had now exited the fields and was driving down an asphalt road.

“Actually… ‘Ah don’t know.”

“Ivan…” Jacklyn shouted worryingly. “Hang in there, please!”

“We only did it because we needed to end the war.” Hernandez answered.

  Ivan sighed. “I’ll… I’ll do my best!”

“But… weren’t there other methods, Sargent Hernandez?” Haystack asked, looking at the rogue Humvee through his scope. “Couldn’t it be done in a more civilized fashion?”

  They were only a few miles away from reaching the massive fence that blocked them from the walls. Sadly, it meant they were one mile closer towards their key battle.

“You know that people like them wouldn’t listen, right?”

“They would, Sargent. They just needed the right words.” He pulled back the hammer, letting it slide back into place. “So why do you think this case is any different?”

  Haystack could see the Humvee ram through the doors.

  However…

  Static!

  Hernandez began. “On second thought…”

  Once the Humvee was in the right place. Haystack muttered, “You don’t know, right?”

  He then pulled the trigger.

  Thwap!

  One of the tires blew to pieces, causing the vehicle to swerve wildly.

“What the-”

  They were suddenly in the air as their world spun round and round. The vehicle would crash on its front and roll over with force. It would land on its wheels before finally releasing smoke of defeat.

  Haystack breathed a sigh of relief. "Please Ivan.... we can work this out."

“Attention rogue workers! Surrender at once, or face brute force for your actions!” a soldier called from the speakers above.

“Ugh…” Jacklyn grumbled. “You all right, Ivan?”

  His only answer was through firing the machine gun at the warily advancing soldiers.

“Just get out there and defend!” Ivan shouted, shooting down every soldier one by one.

“Uh… G-Got it!” She grabbed her rifle and opened the door.

  Erratically, he fired the weapon from left to right and vice-versa. The troops kept charging towards the Humvee, hoping to subdue the two with sheer manpower. However, it wouldn’t be close to that once the casualties started to come in.

  Jacklyn would shoot one soldier in the knees making him collapse on his belly. She watched the soldier struggle to get back up, but one of Ivan’s bullets took him out. With a glum expression, she’d utter, “Celestia help us.”

“Retreat!” another soldier cried. “Retreat!”

  The troops begin to pull back, but that wasn’t enough to stop the flow of casualties.

  Through their binoculars, they were able to observe the bloodshed.

“Hmm, you were saying?” Hernandez smirked.

  Haystack could only glare at his remark.

  Ivan kept shooting until he found Jackie pinned down against the door. That’s when he got an idea.

  Later on, Jacklyn would shout, “Ivan, do you need help-”

“Take this shield that’s attached to the back of the seat, and push forward!” Ivan shouted. “I’ll cover you!”

“What, but-”

“You were a part of the Peace Corps once, it’s just like that! Get going!”

“Uh, yes!’ she crawled back inside, and quickly loosened the shield. Once it popped out, she grabbed the attached baton and crawled back out, heading towards the enemy fire.

  With the advancing troops heading for her, it gave Ivan the opportunity to mow them all down.

  Click!

“What?”

Click-Click!

“No, no, no.” he said.

  BOOM!

  An explosion landed right beside the broken vehicle. “Shoot.”

  Another explosion hit beside him.

  Jacklyn on the other hand, had to deal with the first rounds of bullets striking her shield. She knew what to do then. She pressed a switch on the handle which would make two shields slide out of each side.

  BOOM!

“Damn it.” He looked down at his stained uniform, the wound visible. It still hurt like a snake bite, but that wasn’t going to stop him. With the pain still resonating, he reached towards the eject button and pressed it. With a sudden push up, he was in the air. He would land on the ground before another explosion would destroy the Humvee completely. ”How coincidental.”

  She looked behind her to find what happened. “Oh thank Celestia!”

  Then she began to pull back.

“Grrr.” Ivan struggled to stand up, but was able to manage as he crawled towards Jacklyn’s position.

  Bullets would keep flying by as he approached her. The trip there was rather quick.

“Ivan, you-”

“Push!” Ivan shouted.

  She nodded and they charged down the empty lot with bullets still pounding against the shield.

  BOOM!

  Not caring where the explosion occurred, Ivan simply shouted. “Go faster!”

“Right!”

  They increased speed as they approached the barracks, with Ivan shooting down anyone who got in their way. When they reached the barracks, they quickly sat against the wall.

“You okay, Iv-.” She looked at the blood that was dirtying his sleeve. “Oh Celestia.”

  She reached into one of her pockets and took out a syringe. Quickly, she’d inject it into his arm.

“Huh?” He quickly felt the difference just seconds after the vaccine entered into his bloodstream. He could now stand up without any difficulty.

  Unfortunately for Jacklyn, the opposite of a thank you was in store. With contained anger, Ivan told her, “You know, you could’ve just handed it to me in the Humvee, right?”

“Uh…” Blushing, she looked down. “Sorry… I’m sorry.”

“Grrr, just don’t do it again, got it?”

“Mmm Hmm.” she nodded again.

  Now on his feet, he went to the edge of the wall and shot some more rounds at the enemy troops, killing two as they attempted to push upwards. “Now Jackie, let’s get going.”

  She’d nod in anticipation. “Right.”

“So Marianne, you knew him before?” asked a soldier, observing the damage in the estate.

  She opened a bottle of soda and drank from it before answering. “Yep, he was a good friend.”

“Um… Do you think they’ll be able to… subdue them?”

  She was quiet with that. After looking at the bullet holes in the fountain, she’d say, “Do you think the chances are very high, sir?”

  He shrugged. “Um… No, not likely.”

  She sighed, flicking her air with the wind. “Don’t worry, I got another person to help me.”

“Hmm, who would that be?”

“Well, he was a friend during the early days of my first deployment.”

  Intrigued, the soldier replied, “Interesting,”

“Indeed.”

  Rat-at-at!

  The soldier screamed in pain before falling to the floor. Two more would follow, failing at their attempted ambush.

“This is Eagle five, we’re losing men at high rates!” another cried desperately from his room. “Send help, please!”

  He quickly grabbed his shotgun and ran out the room, “Die, freaks!”

  BLAM!

  Tw-tw-tw-tw-tw-tw-tw-twang!

“wha-wha-!”

  Whack!

  The soldier flew back with such force, slamming against the wall.

“Nice hit, Jackie.” Ivan complemented, shooting down two soldiers firing from their rooms.

“Uh… thanks… I guess.” she said, looking at the unconscious body.

“Now let’s go. The last barrack is just next door.”

“Got it.”

  They went into the last room which was the gateway to the outside.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at…!

  Bullets teared through the window, deflecting off of Jacklyn’s shield. Ivan returned fire, finishing the soldier off. They each jumped through the window and went inside to an empty room.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at…!

  Bullets flew through the door, making them get out of harm’s way. As time went by, the shooting became less and less audible, soon coming to a stop.

“Huh?” Ivan mumbled.

  Slowly, the two slowly crawled to the door. It was battered to the point where only the edges and the hinges were visible. Ivan would signal her to stay cautious, as they exited out the room and into the hallway.

“Odd.” Jacklyn whispered as they passed by room to room.

“You know I expected more from the US Army.” Ivan scoffed, looking into one of them to find a tape recording on a desk. He simply stuffed it in his pocket.

“We already got a lot, Ivan.” she stated, then her tone shifted when she saw Ivan do as such. “You seriously going to take that?”

“What?” Ivan wondered. “Just curious, that’s all. Not gonna use it as blackmail or anything.”

  Jacklyn only scowled. “Let’s just get out of here.”

“Su-”

  They heard the coils from the beds creak.

“What was that?” she cried, whipping her baton towards the direction of the noise.

“Grrr, don’t tell me that Maribelle wants a rematch.” Ivan said while taking a couple steps back. That’s where they heard a strong breeze behind him. Strong enough to snap Ivan into alert. “Jackie, shield up.”

  She obeyed said command, asking, “What for?”

  Ivan quickly ducked downward as a gunshot rang behind him.

  Twang!

  Ivan combined his hands and swung his arms at the attacker.

“Oomph!” The man flew back, crashing against the wall. He kept his fancy gun however, and fired another round.

  Rat-at-at!

  The Revolver flew off his hand, so he had to go into the alternatives. He got up before the next rounds could hit him. When he charged towards Ivan, he managed to even it out.

“Hey!” Ivan snarled, bothered by this sudden change.

  Head to head, the two threw as many blows as possible. Ivan managed to block most of his punches, while the attacker managed to do the same.

“Arrgh!” Ivan screeched when a punch to the stomach was what he got. He got payback with a backhand slap to his face. The man fought back with a kick, he managed to jump back… only to be punched in the face and knocked to the floor. Looking up, and watching him take out the knife, he squinted his eyes closed.

  Thwap!

  Whack!

“Ow!” The man shouted when the baton slapped him across the cheek. She attempted to make another blow to his face, but was denied thanks to the man’s wrist. The two struggled to gain control, but it would continue into a stalemate.

“Don’t you dare hurt him, mister.” she growled.

“Coming from ‘ze lady who hesitated to do anything.” he rebutted.

  Her mouth went agape, but she regained her composure. “Don’t play games with me!”

“Whatever you say.” he said with a ravenous smirk.

  On the floor, Ivan instantly recognized that voice. He only did the most logical of choices. “So Pierre, looks like you’re no longer wearing that mask, huh?”

“I believe so.” he answered. “You like my hair?”

“Pff, seen better. Not to mention” Ivan grunted, getting on his two feet. “that you got yourself a new uniform there.”

  Pierre’s firm hold loosened, watching Ivan look at his black trench coat that was adorned with gold buttons. “It was a gift from my boss.”

“Well, it explains what you’ve been doing for the past two years.” Ivan said. “So, how did it favor?”

“It’s been fine. Though, terminating my original contract with BLU wasn’t all that easy.” he said plainly, putting a hand on Jacklyn’s shoulder, causing Jacklyn to slowly pull back with her defensive stance in place. “But, I’m liking this job. Once we’ve completed our hunt, we can just go back home and call it a day.”

  Ivan snickered. “You see, that isn’t happening?”

  Pierre raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Why so?”

  He walked towards Pierre, only to be stopped by Jacklyn’s hand holding his arm. She gave him a shake of the head when he looked at her. He just responded with an eye roll. Standing in that spot, he answered. “Haven’t you noticed? We’re fighting in the Barracks thanks to your leader… H-How were you able to-”

“You don’t have to know.” Pierre interrupted.

“Why not?”

“You’re leaving this place, right?”

  Ivan crossed his arms together. “Ugh, true.”

“Oui, there was a reason why I ordered these men to withdraw.” he said, taking out a cigarette.

“Just so we can fight?” Ivan groaned.

  He smoked his cigarette, a puff of smoke leaving his mouth. He reached into one of his interior pockets and got out his second pistol. “Ivan, we knew each other for a week. By then, you should know how I fi-”

  Whack!

“Aaargh!” Pierre screeched, falling back on his back.

   With screams of rage, she beat his baton relentlessly at his head. “Don’t… you… dare… hurt…-Aaargh!”

  She held to her stomach, wincing at the blow. The next punch however, was blocked by her shield. “Ivan, run!”

“What?” Ivan said, mouth agape.

“Just go!” she’d shriek.

  With very little resistance, he ran down the hall. There wasn’t anything that would distract him as he ran towards the desired exit.

  Jacklyn held on to her position, using it as an opportunity to trip Pierre to the ground and kick him in the face. The best thing she could do after that, was run.

  Ivan reached the last room, which was a small office. He looked out the window to find the less defended road just past the green grass in between them. Past the road was the massive wall, We made it alright.

  He took out a bottle of rum he found, and took as much large gulps as possible until the glass was empty. He would let out a huge breath once he slammed it against the desk.

   Bam!

“Huh?” Turning around, he found Jacklyn slamming her body against the now closed door, huffing and puffing.

“Let’s… get the hell… out of here!”

“Agreed.” Ivan said flatly.

“Good, cause we got-” She grew quiet when she saw the glass in his hand.  Connecting that to the opened bottle next to it made her say, “What the hell are you doing?”

“Uh…” He looked at the glass, then back at her distraught face. “Um… You’ll see.”

  The reply only made her feelings turn sour. “I-I can’t believe you!”

“Grr, I use it to recharge those fire powers you saw earlier!” Ivan snarled. “Now let’s just go, before that guy comes back to try to give us another lec-”

“No!”

  He froze, turned around, and looked back at her glare.

“I wanna know, why the hell… are you drinking that?”

  Ivan facepalmed. “Grrr, why is that, of all things, so important right now? You do realize that we’re being chased, right? Not to mention that I already told you-”

“I’m surprised you still haven’t changed, Ivan!” she snapped.

  He was quiet for a while, then rolled his eyes before turning to face the window. “But I’m not surprised that you haven’t changed.”

  Her glare changed to a frown, as she held her arm. She began to make soft kicks in the ground, looking away. “I know Ivan… it’s just that… I’m tired of that place… that’s all.”

  Ivan kept looking at the troops outside, taking out a tear gas explosive. “Shoot… Now then, that’s our only way out. If we take it, we can quickly get out of here.”

  There was no response. “Jackie?”

  She looked up quickly. ”Uh…”

“Come on, get over here please.” he said with a hint of comfort.

  She only nodded, and began to walk towards him.

  Ccchhh!

“Uaaah!” She jumped forward and yelped upon hearing that.

  Ivan pointed his rifle at the door. “Get out of the way!”

  She complied. The bullets punched through the door before a groan of pain could be heard. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

  Ivan released the pin from the explosive and tossed it through the window.

  BOOM!

   Hearing the gunshots outside, Pierre only smoked his cigarette as he held his wounded stomach. He muttered, “Eh… Pourquoi veut-il pas écouter?”

  The two charged through the smoke.  Ivan blind fired as many shots as he could in front of him. Then he’d feel the metal slamming against his face. “Umph!”

  After a couple of random slaps against the metal, he finally felt the handle bar and opened it. With instinct, he found his way inside the vehicle. “Umph, hey!”

  Then he felt himself pull back and slam against the seat as the smoke cleared. When it completely did, he noticed the idle vehicles being passed by. “Damn!”

“Just be happy that I’m sticking by you!” Jacklyn yelled, sliding around two soldiers charging towards him. He stuck her baton out, letting one of them smack her head against it.

“You asshole!” The next soldier fired as many rounds as he could, but it wasn’t enough. “I’ve found the target, he’s fleeing in that jeep!”

  Jacklyn increased her speed once the bullets were starting to strike from the right and in front.

“I got it!” Ivan shouted, breaking the front window with his rifle.

  Rat-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at-at…!

  The squad held the line, but would lose most of their troops in the failed attempt. The moment she reached their destination, they retreated while she pushed the breaks as hard as she could. The jeep would turn its tail at a perfect angle when she turned the wheel leftward with all her might. They were met with a giant metal black wall though.

“Celestia damn it!” Jacklyn glowered. “Now how are we going to-”

  Shwoom!

  BOOM!

“Whoa!” She then braced for the falling shrapnel.

“Come on, let’s go!”  Ivan screamed, reloading the grenade launcher.

“Oh, okay!”

  The vehicle instantly bolted through the broken gate without delay.

“Damn it!” Hernandez shouted, kicking his foot against the tank before reaching into his walkie-talkie. “Get every Javelin unit up here immediately!”

  Haystack only ran to the other side with urgency, rifle in his back.

“Grrr, fine! I’ll fire the TOW missile then!” Hernandez bitterly responded.

  Haystack listened nonchalantly though, but was insistent in taking out that Jeep. That’s when one of the passengers stood from the sunroof of the jeep, rifle in tow.

Foom!

BLAM!

  Both bullet and grenade collided, creating a mass explosion of white smoke.

“Ugh, Ponyfeathers.” Haystack mumbled, lowering his weapon.

“On second thought.” Hernandez muttered, hand over his eyes. “Nevermind.”

  Ivan could still see the walls from where he stood, but it would slowly fade with each inch passed. With the feeling of security, he sat back down. “So… off to Washington State, huh?”

  Jacklyn was quiet, still focusing on the land in front.

“Well then…” Ivan chuckled. “Looks like we’re off to a good start.”

  Again, nothing. The only difference was that she was biting her lip, and squeezing her hands against the wheel.

  Seeing this, Ivan had to do something. “Honestly, I’m glad we made it through. With all the stepped up security, it proved to be-”

“Ivan,” she austerely spoke. “What the… What the hell just came from your hands?”

  He looked back out the window. “Powers.”

“Where… did you get them?”

  Ivan kept that position intact. “It’s… it’s best that you don’t know.”

“Why not?”

  He sighed. “It’ll get more complicated than it already is.”

“Doesn’t look that complicated to me!”

  He was quiet for a couple seconds. “I was in a… in a strange place west from here… a place that lost its marbles thanks to some drink… I… drank those said drinks, and now I can burn, freeze, and mind-control anyone in my way.”

  With the same stance, she asked. “So… is that the reason why you’re on the run?”

“What, no.”

“So what is it then?”

  He remained quiet.

“Grrr… You know, I have been leaning towards thinking that you were just caught in the cross fire or just got involved with some local gang, but that little girl you just slashed with my knife should’ve been a wake-up call for me.” she said with a raised voice. "Not to mention that a good friend of mine is in on it too... I just... I just can't comprehend this!"

“So… does that mean that you don’t want me around?”

  She did her best to contain it, but she couldn’t anymore. "Hmm, Yes! That’s what I’m getting at!”

“Oh.” Ivan frowned. “Then that’s okay with me then.”

  He opened the door, and hopped out, rolling onto the grass. It wasn’t as rough as expected, so he simply got up and watched the jeep drive away. He wiped away what little grass was on his uniform and headed north. “Well then, that’s the end of this ride.”

  He placed his hands in his pockets. “I guess I can try to reach the NVR, getting a job there won’t be that hard…”

  Ivan looked back in the direction where she had driven off, revealing that she was gone. However, he could hear the engine rumbling though. He turned around to find the jeep going the opposite direction, making him frown again, mumbling, “Hmm, I always knew she couldn’t handle the journey.”

  Then the jeep was heading in his direction.  ”Huh?

  It would get closer and closer, until finally arriving at his position and turning to block his path.

“Uh…”

  The vehicle turned off, and Jacklyn went charging through the door.

“Wha-What are you-!” he tried asking as she grabbed onto his collar. “Umph!”

  With his back now against the car, and his collar held with an iron grip, he looked down to face her.

“Ivan…” she started, looking down towards his uniform. “Just… Just get back in the car.”

  Ivan chose to say nothing, still frowning at the sight before him.

“You know how I get in situations like this… don’t you?”

  Ivan just stared at her, letting nature’s silence take over.

“Well, I don’t care what the answer is.” She’d look at him with tears forming in her eyes. “Just don’t do that again… please.”

  They kept staring into each other’s eyes, until Ivan leaned away to walk around the vehicle.

“Ivan, please.” she begged.

  Once on the other side, he sat in the front seat and closed the door. Jacklyn only stood still as she watched. “Uh…”

  Ivan simply leaned back and said. “Well, we better hurry if you want to get to Washington State without being in a body bag.”

“Oh…” she nodded hastily. “Okay.”

  She rushed back towards the driver’s seat, and went inside. She’d turn on the vehicle, and get to driving.

  Ivan chose this as a perfect moment to play the recording. When it started up…

“Hmm, the top dogs at Fort Xavier want us to guard the gate from ‘expecting intruders’ today.” the man said nervously. “Heard that he killed six people when he escaped… well, all I got to say is that…  There was no point in resisting. The world is already cruel enough, gunning down your security won’t make things better. I mean, what the hell is he going to do here? We practically scared the people here into not messing with us. Does he really think that we’re going to kick their ass with just rocks and sticks…?”

  The man spoke again. “But even if he chooses to go outside these walls, what then? How the hell is he going to survive there? Does he-”

  Ivan stopped the recording, pushed the window down, and tossed it out into the plains. Pushing it back up, he turned to Jacklyn, who was eyeing the plains with quivering eyes. He only sighed as he looked back out the window. “Give her time, Ivan. Just give her time.” Next Chapter: Chapter 3 Estimated time remaining: 9 Hours, 12 Minutes