Ambivalence

Chapter 13: Plans

By: Knowledge Eater

Disclaimer: Ubisoft owns Far Cry 5, I just like to play with their world and characters.

Aiden peered out of a window for the umpteenth time. Speaking to Faith took a little longer than he planned, he still needed to go scavenge for supplies with some of the Cougar's scouts. And preferably he wanted to be out while the sun was up.

The junior deputy was just making his final preparations with making sure all of his weapons were cleaned and loaded. With the influx of resistance members and their family members residing in the prison their ammunitions supply also took a hit. But Aiden was able to secure decent weapons, an assault rifle and more ammo for his standard issued handgun he received along with his deputy badge. It survived a lot and he miraculously managed to not lose it.

He had just packed his weapons and spare ammo to his holsters and pockets when he sensed another presence in the cell. There was only one person that could sneak up on him without him hearing them or, in Hurk and Sharky's case, smell them.

"Jess," Aiden said her name without turning around. He fished out his jacket that he had been using as a blanket and sniffed it. Eh, it smelled decent enough so he put it on. He turned around and found Jess watching him.

"You ready yet? We're waiting," Jess said, a small trace of annoyance could be heard in her tone.

Aiden frowned. "We?" His eyebrows rose to his hairline once he quickly figured what the huntress implied.

He looked over his friend and could immediately notice the way her eyes were narrowed. While Jess' face was almost always in a frown, they've spent enough time together to easily read each other's body language. And right now the way Jess kept her eyes narrowed told him she wasn't as annoyed as her tone implied, as she normally is when she's waiting on him, but he could safely bet she had a headache.

Aiden pulled the handgun from his holster and tapped the butt of it on the bars of his cell. Immediately, Jess hissed and scrunched up her eyes, followed by her letting out a line of curses. Then she glared at him.

"No way," Aiden shook his head. "You can't come along." He quickly held up a hand to stop Jess from arguing, not that it really worked. Jess swore at him.

"Hell no," Jess argued. "I'm going with. There are Peggies to kill."

The deputy shook his head. "Jess, I know you're still hurting." He moved his pistol back towards the cell bars and tapped them again. The sound had the same effect on Jess as before.

"Stop that!" She cupped a hand to her forehead.
"I'm only tapping them. Even though you use a bow, the scouts and I use firearms. And then if we run into any Peggies they'll have their own loud guns as well. How will you handle those sounds?" Aiden holstered his firearm. "I'm sorry but you need to stay here and rest."

Jess swore again. "We've been here for days! I've been resting."

"I know that," Aiden said, his face softened in sympathy.

He was well enough aware that sitting idle for so long bored Jess. Staying busy with hunting and fighting against the cult was her coping mechanism to keep her own trauma at bay. If she wasn't busy she was prone to nightmares and panic attacks, both of which were very frequent when she had nothing to do but sleep off the lingering headaches caused by the concussion he was responsible for, which made him feel extraordinarily guilty about. He was glad that Jess didn't hold it against him.

"Please," he slowly stepped towards her and placed both of his hands on her shoulders. He immediately felt her muscles stiffen at the contact, and her not pulling away from him was another indicator of the pain she was in. "Out of everyone I trust you to have my back the most." It was a compliment he told her so frequently whenever they took a breather to lick their wounds when they traveled through Hope County. He said it so much she ceased scolding him for patronizing her.

He tightened his grip slightly. "So when we find the Father I need you to be at your best. And I know you'll want that killing shot on him."

Jess took a moment to glare at him, but eventually her face softened. "You serious? I thought you wanted to arrest him."

Aiden pulled away and sighed. He kept his voice low. "Honestly? My gut says the confrontation with him isn't going to go well. I'm sure he'll pull out some hidden ace from his sleeve and in the end he'll have to be killed. Hell, I think the sheriff feels the same way."

Jess sighed, all fight deflated from her. "Okay, fine, I'll stay," she said begrudgingly. "But when you get back I want a headcount of how many of those sons of bitches you killed."

The male smiled. "Of course." Before he stepped out he thought about pressing his luck with persuasion on Jess to see if she would tell him what happened between her and Faith, but he felt that topic was still a bit sensitive between them. He'd wait until she was one hundred percent before having that conversation with her.

"Well," Aiden announced as he inched closer to his cell's exit. "I better get going. And please don't underestimate those headaches. I've had a concussion or two when I played football in high school. The headaches mean you still need to rest and heal."

"Yeah, yeah." Jess waved a hand. The junior deputy managed a step out of his cell when Jess made him halt. "Aiden, wait."

He paused and turned to fully face her. "What's up?"

She looked conflicted for a moment, her eyebrows lowered in a frown. Finally, her blue eyes lifted to look at him. "Remember what I said back then when we went into that Bliss filled cave? How it made me see you as a…an Angel."

"I remember," Aiden replied. His chest tightened in sympathy. He couldn't imagine having to see any of his friends as an Angel.

"Well…be careful out there, all right?"

A small smile grew on Aiden's face. "I will," he promised. He nodded and caught himself before saying good-bye. Jess had a thing against saying good-byes, she considered them bad luck. So he simply turned and left.

"You okay there, Jess?"

Jess stopped rubbing her temples and looked up at Tracey. "Fine."

Tracey frowned, she didn't believe the woman but wasn't willing to push it. She shrugged and kept leading Jess and Grace towards the hall that led to the third floor stairs and facilities. Technically Tracey wasn't an official member of Aiden's social circle that would require her to pitch in with guarding Rachel, but Jess had wanted to speak with her.

All three women headed into the laundry room on the appearance of doing just that, their laundry, to avoid suspicion from the cousins, Sharky and Hurk, and the sheriff. The room was relatively small, since all floors had one, and it was completely void of anything other than a few tables, empty carts, and of course the large washing and drying machines.

Jess immediately jumped up to sit on a table, Grace leaned against a washing machine that was directly in front of the entrance, and Tracey stood in the middle of the two women.

"So what did you want to discuss?" Tracey asked the hooded woman.

"There was something you said to Aiden," Jess began, "during one of our meetings with the sheriff. When we were talking about the flower bitch you told Aiden he wasn't convincing enough."

Tracey figured that's what Jess was going to want to talk about. She didn't know Jess too well, but she knew enough that the woman wanted Faith and every single Peggie dead.

"I was there," Jess continued, "when we went into the flower bitch's bunker. I heard you telling Aiden how to navigate the place and how to shut it down. And I know that's information you didn't know yourself. So what did you do to get Faith to talk?"

Tracey shrugged, there was no reason for her to lie or avoid telling the woman anything. They both were on the same side, and they all wanted to find the Father. They were so close to ending this war and without the Father there would be no cult, they'd fall with him.

"There really isn't a secret tactic of anything. Faith is still human, she hurts just as we hurt," Tracey confessed. "And when she hurts she wants it to stop, just like any other person."

A small smile grew on the corner of Jess's face.

"There's only one problem with that," the other woman in the room, Grace, announced. Tracey almost forgot about her, she was so quiet and hadn't moved from her position.

Jess sighed. "Aiden, I know. But he said he wanted her alive. If we rough Faith up a little she'll technically still be alive."

Grace shook her head. "I don't think it'll be wise to test Aiden's trust in us."

Tracey shrugged. "I know he's the unofficial leader, but he ain't in control of all of you. What could he do? He can't force any of you to do anything."

"It's not so much of what the deputy could or could not do to us. If he doesn't trust us to keep Faith alive what if he takes her elsewhere? He had her somewhere else before the prison," Grace explained.

"He kept her in a small, personal bunker not far from here," Tracey admitted. Both women looked at her. "He asked me for a favor if he didn't survive Rachel's gate."

Jess interrupted, "who the hell is Rachel?"

Tracey still had her mouth open when she was interrupted. "Rachel is Faith's real name," she shrugged. "We were friends before the Father and his brothers came along. It's still a habit to call her by her real name." She shook her head. "Anyway, I don't think Aiden would be stupid enough to take Rachel to that bunker again if he decided it was not safe to keep her here."

Jess slammed her fist down on the table she sat on. "I don't understand why the hell Aiden wants to keep her alive! She's only useful by the information she can give us."

Tracey wasn't sure if believed the same way, there was still that one tiny stubborn part of her that wanted to believe Rachel was still somewhere in Faith, but the bigger part of her felt the same way Jess did. "I wanted her dead once, but there's no doubt that the information she gave to help you guys at her bunker made things a lot easier, probably saved lives too. Even if she doesn't know where the Father or the Chosen are, her knowledge of the supplies the cult hoarded and hid can be just as helpful to us."

Jess nodded. "Oh I know that flower bitch knows where the Father is hiding."

"Maybe that could be why the deputy is keeping her alive," Grace suggested. "It's more useful to have Faith alive than dead."

Jess swore in response. "It's a mistake to keep her alive! She may be helpful now if it means to keep herself alive, but eventually she'll betray us. I know it. What's the worst Aiden can do if I just kill her?"

Something clicked in Tracey's head, she remembered something the deputy told her when he first confessed to her that he kept Rachel alive. "He can arrest you."

Jess laughed in response. "You're serious?"

Tracey nodded. "He implied as much, when he stressed how important it is for no one other than us to know that she's still alive. If anyone tried to 'take justice into their own hands' he would be forced to arrest them."

"It's one thing to kill for self-defense," Grace explained. "Like the deputy did with John and Jacob. But it's another to kill a prisoner that's helpless."

"The flower bitch is anything but helpless," Jess argued. There was a calculating look in her eyes and the room was silent for a moment, then she sighed. "But I get what you're saying." She paused and swore again. "And I won't doubt that Aiden won't keep to his word about that. Even if it was me."

"So killing her is out of the picture, for now," said Tracey. "I don't doubt she may try something later, but for now she's at our mercy. Which makes it the best time to get her to talk."

Jess looked thoughtful for a moment. "Question is how can we get her to talk without making it obvious to the sheriff or Aiden? And what if the flower bitch rats us out?"

"Well," Grace countered, "she doesn't know that we ultimately won't kill her." She looked at Jess. "She had the opportunity to rat you out to Aiden, didn't she?"

Tracey tilted her head in interest. "Why would she rat you out to the rook?"

Jess audibly growled, her hands tightened into fists. "When Aiden and I went to get those medical supplies, I found an old friend who had been turned into a zombie. Or Angel, whatever the hell the flower bitch calls them." She sighed angrily. "I may have taken out my anger on her yesterday."

"Ah," Tracey replied. "And she didn't tell Aiden about that?"

"She didn't," Grace confirmed. "And there are ways to weaken a person, both physically and mentally, to make them vulnerable into talking. It's just a matter of time."

"Time that we might not have," Tracey reminded them. With the Chosen attacking the strongholds they worked so hard to take over, they were easily taken out by the Chosen's aircrafts. The jail would be just as vulnerable to air attacks. "But we can still try your tactics. If it looks like our time is running low then we may have to use Jess' methods."

The hooded woman grinned again. "So what are these methods you have in mind, Grace?"

The veteran shrugged. "We can't outright starve her, for one. But we can decrease her meals. Hunger can make anyone desperate."

Jess scoffed at that. "Damn right it will. And she doesn't deserve a single crumb of our rations."

"The sheriff and Aiden take Rachel her meals sometimes," said Tracey. "But they both can be busy at times, so we can always volunteer to feed her."

"I wouldn't recommend doing anything to her food, or giving her anything spoiled," Grace explained. "It can be noticeable if she gets ill, or if she doesn't eat the food and Aiden or the sheriff see it was tempered with."

"Agreed," Tracey stated. "So we make her a little hungry. Dehydrating her would make things so much faster, but she has access to water in her cell. Any other ideas?"

"Faith doesn't drink the water from the tap," Grace pointed out. "I've noticed she only drinks bottled water."

Both Tracey and Jess' eyes narrowed in thought. "We've taken control of the water plant so the water is clean," Tracey replied.

"Then why does she refuse to drink the water?" said Grace. "I guess that's more information we can pull from her."

"Roughing her up a little can't hurt," Jess muttered. She looked at Grace. "I won't hurt her too badly, nothing broken. And I won't hurt her where clothes won't hide the bruises."

"Roughing her up may be a good thing," Tracey agreed. "If anything it'll remind her of her history. Trust me, the more helpless she feels the more she'll cave to whatever we ask of her."

Both women nodded. Jess slid off the table slowly. "With Aiden gone today I just might start taking out some anger."

"Just remember not to go overboard, Jess." Grace reminded her.

"Yeah, yeah," Jess waved her hand as she headed for the exit. "What made you change your mind about this anyway, Grace? I thought you would be against this."

The veteran shrugged. "Like you both have said, she knows information that can help us end all of this. Despite everything the deputy has done for us, we can use every advantage we can take."

Tracey stayed behind and watched as Jess slapped Grace on the back as they both exited the room. As she stood in the empty, silent room she contemplated on one of her own ideas to make Rachel both miserable and willing to talk. She had a few people to chase down.

Faith cursed and fought the urge to hop on one foot and favor her stubbed toe. But if she did that, she'd be putting all of her weight on her bad leg, which still wasn't strong enough to support her weight on it. She had been slowly walking about her cell all day to rebuild her strength, but doing so left her feeling fatigued. Thus that was how she spent her day, walking for a few minutes and then slept for an hour, only to wake up and do it all over again.

Her progress was slow. In the morning a few steps left her leg throbbing. By the afternoon she was surprised the sheriff passed by to offer her a can of mixed fruit and a water bottle with the same tablet Aiden gave her the day before. Then the sheriff left without a word. It was a little difficult to read his facial expression with his large hat and his bushy mustache covering most of his face, but she could still see a bit of a frown on his face.

As hungry as she was, she inhaled the fruit greedily and practically licked the remaining syrup in the can. She was still hungry, but knew she was in no place to ask for more food. But she was grateful she was given something to keep the hunger pain away.

The remainder of her day she continued walking and resting, but the longer she walked the longer her leg throbbed. When the small window in her cell showed the sky darkening she was worried she overtaxed herself with how her leg began to burn. But she was somewhat glad that the pain distracted her from her thoughts.

Throughout the day there was rarely anyone that walked by on the floor, on her side or the opposite. Then when she heard footsteps approaching her cell she felt both excited in hopes that it was Aiden, spending the whole day alone left her eager to have a conversation with him, and she felt nervous to receive a visit from Jess again.

Upon first seeing a hoodie her heart beat painfully faster in her ribcage, but then she recognized it was Tracey standing outside of her cell. Seeing her former friend still made her palms sweat in fear.

Faith watched as Tracey uncovered a ring key that was strapped to her wrist and unlocked her cell door. Once the other woman stepped into her cell Faith took a step back until she felt her cot bump against the back of her calves.

"Take a seat," Tracey said softly.

It was difficult for Faith to hide her fear, but she did as she was told and sat on her cot. When Tracey left her hands it was instinct for her to shut her eyes in anticipation of a strike. When she felt nothing she opened her eyes and watched as Tracey simply pulled her hood down. The woman then paced back and forth in her tiny cell and seemed to have focused on something on the ground. Faith followed her gaze and saw that Tracey spotted the empty water bottles she left on the floor beside her bed.

"So a little birdy told me that you don't like the tap water," Tracey began.

Faith swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. She wondered if Aiden had mentioned it to her. "It's not that I don't like the water," she began to explain.

Tracey rolled her eyes. "Can it, Rachel. You never had a problem drinking the local water before. So spill, what's wrong with it?"

It still annoyed her to be called by the name she had abandoned, but she didn't feel like fighting with Tracey. Even worse, she didn't feel like getting hurt. "There's nothing wrong with the water."

Tracey took a step towards her, it was another instinct for Faith to push herself as far back as she could. She felt trapped when her back hit the hard wall. Then her former friend smiled.

"In that case," she bent down and picked up one of the empty water bottles before she headed for the sink and filled it with water. "Then you won't mind drinking some, you look a bit parched."

Faith pretended to look nonchalant. She shrugged a shoulder and accepted the offered bottle. Drinking a little of it wouldn't hurt. She tilted it back and gulped down a few mouthfuls. To emphasize her distaste, she grimaced at the taste. Not that she had to act all that much. Years of drinking only bottled water and she could immediately taste the difference with the tap water which almost tasted like the rustic looking sink it came from.

"Huh," Tracey muttered as she watched her.

"What do you want, Tracey?" Faith asked.

Her former friend shrugged. "What, I can't stop by to say hi to my old best friend?"

Faith narrowed her eyes. "You wouldn't waste your time coming here just to say hi."

Tracey barked out a laugh. "Yeah, you're right. I stopped by to offer…a bit of advice."

The shorter woman frowned.

When she remained silent Tracey continued, but not before she leaned towards her. "You see I'm not the only one that thinks the stuff you keep in there," she jabbed a finger against Faith's forehead, "can be useful. And I don't think I have to remind you of just how we can get you to talk."

Faith was just about to ask who she was referring to as "we" but before she could say anything she felt a tight pressure on her bullet wound. Needles and a bright hot pain erupted from her leg. She didn't have to look down to know that Tracey was pressing against it. She tried to keep herself from crying out, from giving Tracey that satisfaction, but she was helpless to stop the yelp that escaped.

As quickly as it started, the tight grip on her leg loosened. Before Tracey could hurt her again, Faith curled up on herself and protected her leg with her hands. She wasn't aware she was crying until a water droplet fell onto the back of her hand.

"What do you want?" Faith whispered.

"Answers," Tracey replied nonchalantly. "Where's the Father?"

Faith shook her head. "I don't know." She tightened into a ball tighter to protect the more sensitive parts of her body. After a moment she heard Tracey sigh.

"I really hate to do this, ya know, Rachel?"

"That's not my name," she replied.

Tracey shook her head and took a few steps back. Faith's ears perked when she heard another set of footsteps approach her cell. Her heart soared in hopes that it was Aiden. But when she saw Jess step into view her heart dropped down to her stomach. Cold perspiration formed on her brow and she swallowed another lump that formed, this time with great difficulty due to her mouth suddenly becoming dry.

By whatever miracle, Jess didn't step into the cell. She simply stood behind them and grinned at her. Movement caught her attention and she looked back to Tracey who was pulling something out of her pocket.

"I'm sure this brings back memories," Tracey waved the item in her face. After a quick moment Faith recognized the item as a syringe. Then her former friend offered it to her. "Take it."

Unsure of what was in the syringe, Faith shook her head. Though she had her suspicions of what was in it based on Tracey's implication. "I don't do that anymore."

"Really?" Tracey sounded surprised. "I know the cult is against usage of drugs and alcohol. What was it again? It 'taints our temple that is our body?'" She stepped away from her and pulled out a small roll of duct tape. She turned towards the sink and taped the syringe to the back of the toilet. "I'm sure after a few more questions from my friend here you'll be gladly wanting what's in that syringe."

With that, Tracey winked at her and stepped out of the cell. With the cell door still open, Jess finally stepped inside.

With her leg throbbing and incapable of going anywhere, Faith pushed herself against the wall and helplessly watched Jess slowly approach her. Her heart hammered in her chest so hard she felt lightheaded.

All she could do was hope and pray that Aiden would appear and interrupt whatever hurt was coming her way.

A/N: A bit late on uploading, and the chapter is a bit shorter than I wanted, but as someone awesome (Akira Hayama) has been saying, sometimes a story needs to slow down. And there are some small details in this one that will be important in later chapters. Thank you to those that take the time to let me know their thoughts, you're all great!