Faith was never a particularly proud woman, high school and John had seen to the halting of its cultivation, if anything any and all pride was derived entirely from the Father's Project, if she had any large sources of pride, it would have been shattered.

As she staggered down the hall, looking for her High Priestess for comfort, she dried her tears long before anyone had seen her, she hadn't been thrown around like that since she ran away from home, and it was still just as humiliating, she had been in similar situations enough times to know how to manipulate her clothes and hide the bruising.

With every step she took, she could feel her pants sag down little by little, uncomfortable with the feeling she pulled up her pants, the waistband in the old ratted pants she had worn for who knows how long now must have loosened up and stretched while Gordon had his fun with her, he enjoyed doing whatever he wanted to her, battering her around like a defenseless housewife among other things, pushing and pulling on her to let her know just how much control he had and how far he was willing to go.

It was all so traumatizing that in her priceless grief that she almost unknowingly bumped into two Peggies who walked shoulder to shoulder.

"Oh, my apologies, I did not see you there, I, I trapped in my own little world at the moment" Faith sniffled, turning her head to the side so they couldn't see any trace amounts of her crying.

"No, it's fine, actually we've bin lookin' fer you" the larger, barrel chested man said, his heavy country accent.

"You have?" Faith squeaked, stifling a gasp, fearing she was going to be abused again.

"Ma'am I apologize for my compatriots lack of professionalism, but he is indeed correct, we have been tasked with find you, we are here to help you" The other Peggie said, she was shorter, an African American woman, stand tall next to the man with a straight back, not letting the immense size overshadow her.

Faith blinked a few times in quick succession to remove anything that clung to her eyelashes like the leeches that clung to her Gate, apart of her didn't trust either of them but she did anyways, she felt some sort of connection to them, the two sported matching bruises across their persons, they looked like they had seen their fair share of problems some time ago, and Faith understood that.

"Who are these people?" Faith asked, regarding the man and woman, she never seen them before

"This is two entry level members, they're names are Frank and Emily, they have been working deep in the lowest levels of the Gate, you wouldn't have seen them unless you looked for them, but I digress, they have also experienced cruelly done personally by Commander Jacob, thus they have no personal allegiance to the man, and are more then willing to do whatever they have too to successful help retake your Gate" Amanda explained stoically.

"Heck yeah!" Frank quietly cheered gleefully, only to be harshly shushed by Emily and Amanda.

"Amanda I greatly appreciate every step you take to take back what I have lost, but I don't know how to lead these two, to lead you, we are four against many, I am not tactically capable enough to stop Gordon and retake control" Faith nervously replied, she truly didn't know what else to say, she truly wanted to stop Gordon, but she lacked the power.

"Don't fret, I took this into account, while you gone, I took the liberty and I sent out a trusted agent out into the field to retrieve the Junior Deputy for you, and when he arrives, you can sit back while he cleanses the Gate and restores us back to our former glory" Amanda stated as if it were nothing.

"What!?" Faith squeaked in fear, her eyes bugling at the news Ben was coming here.

You can't be serious! Please tell me you are joking!" she begged her High Priestess.

"No, My Lady, I'm not joking, wasn't this what you wanted? This is the most logical choice if we wish to complete our goals, your goals" Amanda admitted, her brow furrowing, detecting something was wrong with Faith's response, it was something she did not anticipate.

"Oh my Father, Oh my Father" Faith began chanting at nauseum as she buried her face into her palms, a fresh wave of anxieties and fears, regardless of his intent, Ben showing up was going to be absolutely dangerous beyond belief.

"Your expectations not withstanding, I fail to see how this will go badly for us, worst case he just kills our trusted agent" Amanda shrugged.

"That is bad!" Faith exclaimed.

"Death is death is death! No matter who it is, it is always a tragedy, especially if it's one of the very few people that still wholeheartedly follow the Father's word and law!" She cried.

"We had some experience dealin' wit' th' Deputy, he wasn't so tough, we ca' hold 'em if he comes afta' you" Frank grinned hoping his unending optimism would leech onto everyone else, he knew he wasn't the smartest or the fastest, or much of anything, but at the very least he tried to bring smiles to everyone just as Faith did when he first joined.

"Benjamin is not some wild animal!" Faith cried, furrowing her brow at the man.

"Benjamin? Frank echoed, his face scrunching up in distaste.

"Benjamin don't sound very threatenin' what happened to th' Judge or whatev'r?" the southern man went on to say before Emily harshly elbowed him in the ribs to silence is irrelevant yammering.

"My Lady, what my friend and the High Priestess is trying to say is that this is our best move, we can't just walk right up to Gordon and shoot him in the head, that will cause to much discourse and eventually a inevitable fight where everyone will tear everyone apart, including you, we need that outside third party intervention, the Deputy is our best hope" Emily tried to say gently, but the trial that was her life had hardened her considerably, gently was not in her vocabulary.

"When the time comes, tell those who are still loyal to flee and hide, let the Deputy do the rest" Amanda joined in.

"And what would I do? What would you ask of me while my flock is butchered? as I said before, death is death is death, and murder is murder is murder" Faith almost begged, her voice strained against her throat, she was growing tired of raising her voice so much.

The High Priestess discreetly observed her surroundings before reaching into her pocket.

"Please, My Lady, take this" Amanda pleaded before subtly pulling out a simple handgun and held it out to Faith.

"Amanda, I can't, I, murder is not right" Faith stammered, not willing to take the firearm as she pushed the gun away from her.

"And what will you do if Gordon decides to finally get rid of you for good, or decides to hurt you some more" Amanda said, pointing at her covered wrists, were her fresh bruises resided, Faith could feel her cheeks burn as her High Priestess saw right through her, or rather right through her sleeves.

She felt embarrassed and ashamed that she had gotten caught so easily, she was so warped up in freaking out over the possibility of their new arrival, she had forgotten to keep the bruises she had recently received hidden, her eyes dropped like a pair of anchors sinking to the sea floor while Frank and Emily voiced their shock and disgust over what happened to their idol, vocalizing their desires to procure revenge for what happened.

"Please Faith" Amanda said, her voice as soft as velvet and as gentle as a mother, she tried her best to reach her ally.

"Your life is in danger every moment you are down here with him, with each passing hour, the Defiler; Gordon turns more of your flock against you, its only a matter of time until they won't be your flock anymore, they all blame your for your lack of action, if you get the Deputy down here and purge the defectors that will bolster morale and bring everyone back to your side again, stronger then before, you'll be a hero to them" Amanda explained, not taking her eyes off Faith who was now trembling

Her eyes still laid on the floor, she could feel the cold sting of tears began to dot her eyes as Amanda spoke, she didn't want to admit it, but she could understand what her allies were saying, she didn't want them to be right, but yet again, what choice did she have, even under Joseph's watch, it was do or die. Her shaking hand slowly reached out and took the gun from her High Priestess, the slick steel slid smoothly through her uncalloused hands, it was cold to the touch and the smell of stainless steel filled her nose.

Holding the gun and looking down at it, she could feel a part of her burn hot, it was something she had always tried to keep down, anger, rage, wrath, she hated Gordon, but hate was forbidden, she knew many girls under her same name disappeared from that very thing, hate always drove one to do rash things such as the profane act of murder, sure she had killed once before, but she vehemently told herself she didn't commit murder as it was all in an effort to save a life, Ben's life and in turn herself, and that makes it entirely different, she wasn't a sinner, she didn't break the rules, she was still a good, modest woman in the Father's eyes, she had to believe it, it was one of the last bastions of sanity she still clung too, but regardless of it all, she couldn't trap herself in the physiological debate any longer, she needed to move on for the sake of herself and everyone around her.

"Now that's settled, I suggest we move on to the next topic" Amanda concluded.

"We need to prepare for the Deputy's imminent arrival" she said.


The sun was high in the sky as it loomed over the pizza place Rook was supposed to meet Faith's ally at, Rook had only found the abandoned establishment thanks to Jess, she had led the way there, she only tagged along from sheer curiosity and malice, she wasn't going to pass up a peggie just sitting around in a house somewhat near by, and despite everything she and Rook had been through, he was still tight lipped about the radio call that summoned him here, he just kept saying he had no idea what it meant, but she could tell he was hiding something, he was always a terrible liar, so her answers would only come from within the pizza place.

And now as the two of them now stood out front gazing at the establishment, Jess wondered if this whole thing was for real or a trap, or even new secrets to uncover, meanwhile Rook, tried not to look at the pizza place with grim anxiety, it made his chest feel tight, he couldn't possibly fathom who or what was in there, he hadn't felt this freaked since he killed and covered up Redd, it made the bow on his shoulder felt a little to tight for his liking, the belt on his waist felt one notch to tight and the weather sudden went up a few degrees. He kind of hoped Jess would shoot first and ask questions later and inadvertently send the Peggie or Peggies, and his secrets to their grave.

"Well let's get a move on then" Jess unexpectedly said before charging for the door, just as unexpectedly.

Watching the woman rip the door open, causing dust to escape the doorframe and cobwebs shake in the new breeze, Rook's breath caught in this throat, he wasn't expecting her to take point like that, she never did.

Electing to hide the gasp of fear, he tried to follow as quietly as possible, sweating now running down his back. The whole expedition to the pizza place had been nothing but questions from her about the Peggie sounding like they and Faith personally knew him, but he didn't tell her anything, claiming no knowledge of anything and was just in the dark as her.

But no matter what he claimed he could tell Jess wasn't fully buying it, she must have planned to uncover the truth herself, all the more reason to get to the Peggie/s before her.

As soon as the two entered the place, they saw its interior in its entirety, the place was in a state of disrepair as any other interior, tables overturned, things broken and out of place, the faint traces of pizza fermented the air under the scent of mothballs, the only light in the whole building came entirely from sunlight pouring in through the windows, but at least it didn't have those tacky singing animatronic characters in the corner. But despite the detestable conditions, much to Rook relief and Jess's irritation, not a single cultist could be seen, not even a trace to denote their presence at one time or another, it was just an abandoned pizza restaurant.

"What a surprise, no one's home, come on this was a waste of time, let's get out of here" Rook scoffed, feigning disappointment, in truth he was relieved no one was waiting for him, one less headache to deal with.

But any thoughts of returning home were cut short a sharp creak from floorboards in another room caused both Jess and Rook flinch, one more so then the other, the noise was much to deliberate to be the building shifting under the hot sun, someone was in here with them.

The heavy realization hit them like a fallen ceiling beam, like clockwork they shifted to investigative to murderous, silently preparing for a fight, quickly readying their bows, pointed at the source of the noise, neither of them said anything, they held their breath and simply waited as another creak from the warped floorboards could be heard, and then another, from the sound of it all, it came from the back kitchen and was making its way to the single adjoining door way that rested in the wall directly in front of them in the far wall, a faint shadow was cast upon the floor through the door for two seconds before what cast said shadow stepped out, revealing itself as Cameron Burke.

"What the fuck!?" Rook couldn't help but exclaim at the sight of the man.

Not once could he recall thinking about the man much less worry about him, he had written him off as dead long ago, so now his surprise was palpable as he saw burke alive and dressed head to toe in Peggie attire.

"Hey there, let's take it easy now, huh?" Burke said, raising his hands above his head, his voice slightly cracking at seeing two arrows pointed directly at his skull.

"How the fuck are you still alive, Burke?!" Rook barked, making a point not to move the arrow pointed at his head.

"Wait, you know this shitheel?" Jess asked, looking over at her lover.

But Rook didn't answer her question, he was too concentrated on the peggie before them.

"I can tell we got off on the wrong foot, so if you'll let me, I'll dispel the tension" Burke said before slowly turning his body from side to side to show he had nothing on his person, then looked back to Rook who still said nothing and stared back at him, deeming it somewhat safe to do so, Burke let his arms rest at his sides again. Jess didn't do anything, she wanted things to unfold.

"You must be Jess, I've been told a lot about you" Burke said, now looking over at the woman.

"Don't fucking say my name, Fuckstick!" Jess spat angrily as she pulled her bowstring even tighter, she wanted to make it painfully clear that she had no intention on letting the man address her so casually.

With a tight jaw, Burke understood just what kind of woman she was, Lady Faith's stories didn't do her justice, Jess was a fouler creature then he was told, seeing it was useless to keep talking to her, he returned his focus back to Rook.

"It's been quite a while, you've certainly made a name for yourself" Burke said almost uncomfortable, he didn't expect another person to be here besides Rook.

"I thought you died, but really your just another fucking traitor, how the fuck did they break you, I though you were stronger than that" Rook seethed as he glowered at the Eden's Gate clothing he wore, Jess did the same but at him directly.

"Despite how our lives have diverged from one another we're the same, see?" Burke said as he back his left sleeve to the elbow, revealing a large rectangle on tender, soft flesh, a layer of skin had been extracted from elbow to wrist.

"Fuck off we're the same" Rook spat, he knew Burke meant no ill will about it, but it really rubbed him the wrong was, he refused to accept comradery with a cultist.

"I was a very angry, arrogant man before I came here, but now… the Father and his family helped me see a better me, John found my wrath and removed it, I'm sure he did the same to you, right?" Burke asked.

Rook couldn't help but scoff at Burke's words, he was somehow aware of what John did to him, hell It pissed him off just to think about the large crude wrath stretched across his chest.

"We aren't the only ones, Pratt was freed of his pride and Hudson of her sloth, we are unclean Ben" Burke urged his supposed friend to believe him.

"Hudson is perpetually traumatized and Pratt is a shitscum traitor, the Seeds fucked them up good, God knows how much therapy they'll need!" Rook argued, but Burke merely observed Rook carefully for a second, his face denoted a sense of sadness, an air of disappointment, like a let down parent.

"And it appears you too have changed" Burke sighed, the anger on Rook's face was clear as day, he was most certainly wrathful.

"I'm just the same as ever" Rook snarled in defiance.

"I spoke at length with the Sheriff about you, and the other deputies before we departed to apprehend the Father, I learned a lot about you, and that man I learned about is not standing before me is not him, you've become a demon" Burke said, a sadness running through him.

"Look at all that you have done, the pain and death you have wrought, though I may have stayed in the Henbane for the entirety of my tenure, I have heard many things from both Faith, John and Jacob, you've slaughtered countless without mercy, burn precious good your allies desperately needed, killed your own, tearing everything down... Your supposed to save us, not destroy us" Burke said softly as if place a weight on his heart.

Rook wanted to make some unruly remarks, to yell and scold the man, to get angry, but before his blood could properly boil, Jess spoke up.

"Ok, no for real, who the fuck are you?" Jess demanded at Burke, reasserting that there was an arrow trained on his skull.

"I am Cameron Burke" Burke stated, matter of factly, not batting an eye at the death sentence that was focused on him.

"In another life, I was a very cruel Warrant Officer, I took pleasure in asserting my dominance, bending people to my will... I was terrible, wrathful, sinful, but now that is no more, thanks to the Father I have transcended my ilk and have become whole, a new man, one that wishes to preserve humanity after ends itself" he went on to say.

"What the fuck are you doing here Burke? I doubt your looking to partner up again" Rook interjected, he had heard enough of Burke's bullshit, it was the same cultist mumbo jumbo he heard again and again, now he couldn't care less.

"Well now that you mention it" Burke said nervously with a single chuckle.

"No, shut the fuck up!" Rook scoffed, not comprehending what he had just heard.

"It's true, I have come to you for help, it appears you won't come to us for help some measures need to be taken" Burke said before explaining why he was here in the first place, about Faith and Gordon, as the political turmoil that was boiling in her Gate.

"So, let me get this straight, you want me, to just follow you, someone who is very clearly drinking the Kool aid, back to your cultist hive so I can kill all the quote unquote bad guys in your little civil war, and just them?" Rook deadpanned, placing his hands on his hips, he wasn't sure if this was a joke to break the ice or make the real reason why he's here sound not as drastic.

"Yes" Burke nodded matter of factly, he saw absolutely nothing wrong with said summary of the situation, earning a scoff from Jess who felt just the same as Rook.

"Jesus fucking Christ, the world really is ending" Jess scoffed as she buried her face in her hand, finally disarming her bow.

"I don't see why you see this as so egregious, Lady Faith has promised your safety from her men so long as you abode by her rules, and besides, you already infiltrated a Gate, for her, didn't you?" Burke asked pointing a finger at Jess.

"But that's different, I went in and out for a single person, I ain't going in there and killing a bunch of people that look just the same as another group of people, and even if I go, how do know I won't be killed or worse the second I get there or when the job's done, like come on you have to understand how fucking shady this, you got to work with me here" Rook ranted, exasperated, every little thing about this was far to fucked for his liking, he couldn't believe how fucked he was, why was he actually arguing this, Burke was fucked, he needed to either die or be dragged back to the prison and let the Sheriff deal with him.

"Ben, you can't seriously be thinking about agreeing to all this?" Jess called out, seeing the contemplation in him.

Her voice snapped him out of his reverie, Jess using his name a chill run down his back, it was once on a blue moon she did that.

"I ain't gonna walk into no fuckin' bunker nor am I going to let you go, it's to fucking dangerous, no way!" Jess cried, taking a step towards Rook, taking her eyes off Burke.

"I never said I was!" Rook snapped, his anger spiking, he didn't mean to let it slip, Burke, the woman on the radio and the Sheriff had him all riled up, and Jess's wanton defiance wasn't helping.

"Then why don't you tell him to shut the fuck up and kill him or capture him or whatever, Numbnuts here clearly means something to you, so hurry it up, if I mean anything to you, you'll get too it" Jess retorted.

"Don't fucking play that card with me, I'll play this how I like!" Rook shot back.

All the while the two bickered, Burke took a step back, he really didn't want to get caught up in their lover's quarrel, he was already in enough hot water as is.

"Dude look I-" Jess began, her words accompanied by frustrated sighed.

"You can't keep taking risks like this, who gives a shit if he's your friend, but he's a peggie now, he will kill you without any hesitation!" Jess cried.

"But clearly he's not, he's here on Faith's orders to retrieve me or whatever, they need my help" Rook argued, growing frustrated with her.

"Why though? Why does Faith fucking need you after everything her family put us through?!" Jess countered, the anger in her dropping as curiosity began to take over, she understood bigger things were at work.

And on Rook's end, her question choked him up a little bit, he had once again let his emotions get the best of him, his anger clouded his judgment and almost reveled why Faith needed him so, and that scared him, if anger twisted him so, who knows what he'd say if he was talking to some random person and not Jess of all people.

Before the conversation could go any further or Rook could sweat anymore, noises from the outside world could be heard as if there was a nearby window, it made all three go deathly silent as the noise grew and grew, it was the sound of the crunching of dirt under tires and engines purring, it sounded like multiple trucks pulled up outside, before Rook could proclaim this was all a setup or for Jess to shoot her arrows, Burke practically ran to one of the windows and wiped away a smear of dust and grime before peering outwards, a startled gasp quickly following. Curious to his odd behavior, Rook belayed an order to kill him and instead he and Jess silently mimicked him, wiping, and gazing out another window and sure enough, it was four big trucks, peggies manning them and quickly climbing out and spreading out across the front area of the storefront.

"No, no, no, this is bad, very bad!" Burke cried his once completely neutral face was replaced with a look of fear and worry, not expecting this outcome.

"The fuck is going on Burke?" Rooked called out over to the increasingly nervous peggie, his plaintive look was unnerving to Rook, he was clearly not with these guys.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so very sorry" Burke began pleading to Rook lacing his fingers tightly together.

"Burke, what's happening!?" Rook called out again, more sternly.

"I think they followed me, I don't know, I snuck out with them to meet you here, I thought they had a mission or something!" Burke proclaimed in fear.

It was true Burke and Rook didn't know each other prior to arresting Joseph, but Rook had enough in him to know that Burke was telling the truth, the assholes pulling up were Gordon's guys or whatever Burke said.

"Fuck! Fine, we'll deal with it, you stay here, you're coming with us!" Rook ordered before nodding to Jess, making sure she was ready for the ensuing fight, and sure enough she was.

"No! no! I can't I'm sorry" Burke exclaimed as he quickly backpedaled from the window, back towards the door he first emerged from.

"What? where are you going, what the fuck?" Rook yelled, watching Burke almost run away.

"I'm sorry but I must leave right now, I can't be seen here, if my presence here with you is known, it will put Lady Faith in great danger, I can't allow that" Burke cried before turning tail and full-on ran away, leaving Rook's view before he could do anything.

"May we met again on better terms, may the Father guide your way!" his voice echoed as a door opening and slamming shut could be heard.

"God damn it, Burke!" Rook roared in defiance, he knew he couldn't hear is voice, but it still pissed him off all the same.

"Dude, fuck 'em, we got bigger things to worry about!" Jess cried as she still peered out the window, nocking an arrow, ready to kill at a moment notice. The peggies were getting closer and planned to kick open the door.

With a grunt Rook reluctantly agreed, perhaps he could channel his wrath for Burke into the fuckers outside, but before he could do that, he needed a quick inventory of everything he had on him to fully prepare for a fight; handgun, bow and arrows a plenty, machete, everything he had everything he needed to rip and tear. Before signaling to Jess that he was all ready, more thoughts whisked through his mind, Burke, Faith, the woman's voice on the radio, no of it made a lick of sense, Faith couldn't seriously wish for him to cull the herd, and she's been telling people about it, at least two people knew about said plan and most likely Faith's and his relationship to some extent, and that made him very uncomfortable for a multitude of reasons, even with all that aside, he still had to drag Burke back to the prison, kicking and screaming if need be, like it or not the Sheriff cared more about the warrant officer more then he ever did.

It made Rook sigh heavily, it was all just more things to his ever expanding to do list, but right now, despite everything on his mind, there was a silver lining; the number one on his to do list; the peggies out front, they would make ideal stress relief, and that put a smile on his face. Even though he had already done a quick inventory of his person, he quickly unsheathed his machete a second time, he stared down at the polished finished that reflected his visage back up at him with impeccable quality, it was almost like he was looking at his evil twin.

The Rook within the machete blade sported a cracked, crooked smile with a matching piercing gaze, there was something in his eyes that screamed danger, an odd glimmer was cast over him, as if the cold steel were rippling water, he wasn't sure if it was caused by a shaky hand that held the weapon, or if his entire person was shaking, but it mattered not to him. Putting the blade away and looked over to Jess, for a split second, she noticed this evil twin, her eyebrows raised in confusion but in the end, it didn't really matter her, any sign of awareness disappeared with the signaling he was ready to kill, and with that the two moved in succession, to the ideal locations to begin their counterattack.

And as soon as the slowly encroaching peggies got within their range, Rook and Jess sprung from their places and attacked with the viciousness of tigers, much like any other peggies they came across, the cultists didn't stand a chance, for months peggies have been beset upon a rather unaggressive Junior Deputy, they weren't wholly expecting such ferocity, from left and right, Jess and Rook struck, like a pair of foxes in a henhouse the ground turned red, Rook swung his machete, slashing into peggies like a painter making delicate brushstrokes to bold and confident swipes by made by Van Gogh himself, even arrows from both from the pair were fired with such accuracy and grace the arrows were like birds of prey, talons outstretched and prepared grab its prey, the necks of peggies. Firearms that happened into Rook's hands were fired with the expertise of a trained gunman, a hitman's precision, not a single shot wasn't devastating, and throughout all that, Rook was able to switch between all his weapons with such fluidity and speed as he was used to simply dropping them and picking them up when he deemed necessary, he left his machete within the corpses of peggies, pointed up right, like Excalibur stuck in its stone housing, his bow would usually return to his back or sometime cast to the floor only for Jess to retrieve and return when it suited then both, guns into pockets.

And as body after body fell, either shot, pierced, or slashed, Rook found he couldn't help but laugh, an ugly cackle erupted from him and grew louder with every life he took, his blade cut through like skin was butter, and by the way Jess dispatched goes, she too bellowed some hideous laughter, enjoying the slaughter as much as he did. And when all that was said and done, Rook and Jess was victorious, at their feet, a spread out all around the, some in one relative piece, others in pieces, how long it took them to rend their foes was beyond Rook's understanding, it has we'll have been one big blur to him, the killing was had a kaleidoscope or red and other colours, reality it settled back in once it was all over, and Jess manifested in front of him.

Just like he was, she was panting breathlessly as their fight was quite strenuous, staring down at all the bodies with the same wicked smirk, making sure they were indeed all dead. Even though everything fell back into place, the world still spun greatly, it was like he closed his eyes and spun in place as fast as he could, and the only thing that seemed to quell the rapidly moving was staring at her as she stood motionless, catching her breath.

What was more, the longer he stared at her, it inspired other changes within him, adrenaline lightly flowing, eyes dilating, muscles tensing, it was like he was preparing to fight once more, and then he moved, driven by pure instinct, he roughly grabbed Jess by the waist and pulled her close, with the bloodlust fading, a different kind of lust was taking over, his subtle attraction for the woman had grown far too much to keep in check, she had promised intercourse more then once now, and yet time after time they were denied, and now that all threats had been eliminated and comfy truck seats scant meters away, amid the death and blood, he was going to have his way.

And Jess seemed to read the room perfectly, she knew what was going on within his head and played along, she wanted it too, when she looked up at him, she was quickly lost within in his emerald eyes, she never knew a guy could have such pretty eyes, especially when they clashed perfectly with the crimson that was dotted across his face, his face was just so perfect, it stimulated all the right things within her, she didn't care about the argument they had prior, Ben had proven himself, he was a tried and true warrior, baptized in blood and fire, the lives he took were countless and war came naturally to him.

He was perfect.

Mesmerized by all he was, she leaned in closer to him, their noses almost touching, she said what Rook had wanted to hear for a while now, her words came out like silk and made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as she purred.

"I fucking love you" she proclaimed before pressing her lips upon his, making Rook return in kind, kissing back with hungry lips looking to get as much as he could get.

His grip on her waist tightened and kept her pressed against him, he held her like that until his body said no more, the contact was no longer enough, things needed to escalate. Acting on said impulses, Rook quickly and fluidly picked her up and threw her on to his shoulder, carrying her like the many bodies he had moved. And yet again Jess offered no resistance or argument, simply enjoying what was happening, what was going to happen. Carefully Rook threw her into the passenger seat before closing the door and practically ran around to the driver's side and climbed in, when he opened the door, he half expected the peggies left their trucks as pigsty, but surprisingly it was a lot cleaner then expected, just about spotless, more then good enough to fuck in, sure the E-brake in the middle of the cabin was going to be a little annoying, be he knew they could make it work. He quickly climbed in, his eyes undressing Jess while sweeping some crap off the seat before sitting himself down. While Jess whispered sweet nothings into his ear, he twisted the key that was still in the engine and gave the truck just enough life to get the radio going, he began flicking quickly through radio channels for something good enough to make love too.

"Oh John, Oh, John, Oh Jo-"

"Wake up, Get up, ou-"

"Bang, Bang, Bang, pull my dev-"

"Peace in the Middle East has broke-"

"I give my life, Not for honor, but fo-"

With a disappointed groan, Rook clicked the radio off, it was painfully obvious nothing good was playing, but that disappointment was short lived as Jess gave him something else to think about as she roughly tugged at his pants, trying to get her prize, not wanting to waste any more time, he completely disengaged from the radio and turned to Jess who waited impatiently before throwing himself atop her, yanking at her clothes as she his, today had been bullshit, but now he was going to get what he deserved.


Anxiety rolled around in Faith's stomach like a cement ball, the anxiety was something she had come to accept, it was such an ever-present force that it not being there was almost uncomfortable. And by the way Amanda, who stood across from her looked, she was feeling the same. Burke was supposed to call in and inform them both of his progress a time ago, he had snuck out with an outgoing platoon Gordon had commissioned for an expedition to figure out what the Henbane Resistance is up too, or so Gordon said.

Currently, Faith and her High Priestess hung around a small barely used room, probably a forgotten storage room, waiting for Burke to call in to give his sit-rep, Faith's eyes kept flicking to the door, she kept half expecting the door and Gordon or someone he trusts to come in and execute them both for what they were up too, if so, Frank and Emily were unable to help them on account of them doing their own tasks, blending in with the rest of the flock, getting a lay of the land by trying to figure out where everyone's loyalties lay.

"I'm beginning to think your Deputy may have shot first and asked questions later" Amanda sighed in disappointment, their only hope disappearing like the stars at dawn, and deep down, though she'd never admit it aloud, by she liked how Burke looked, he was an excellent specimen of the male species.

"No" Faith huffed defiantly, the idea sounding completely foreign to her.

Amanda only stared at her in response, she was unable to tell if Faith was that desperate for Rook to be her savior from the treachery they were slowly drowning in or if she was that afraid to accept the noose was tightening around their collective necks and Gordon primed to kick the chair out from under them.

"We have to believe... We have to have faith" Faith pleaded as she stared at the communication device in Amanda's hands.

With a sigh, Amanda brought the walkie to her lips and tried to raise Burke again, the static it made whenever she tried previously was really getting on her nerves.

"Burke, call in, repeat, I am ordering you to respond!" she ordered curtly before pulling the walkie away.

And sure enough, more static poured from its receiver, it was enough to make Amanda sick, but before she turned it off for good a voice could be heard cutting in and out into the point of incoherence, for all Faith knew, it was God himself trying to contact her just as he did Joseph, but Amanda had other conclusions.

"Burke! Are you there?!" Amanda demanded again before falling silent, leaving a palpable silence over her and Faith.

"Yes, I am here" Burke's voice came, a layer of panic around it.

His voice made Faith emit an audible noise of relief, him being alive made her do happy, it meant everything was alright.

But the fear in his voice suggested otherwise.

"What's going on?! What's your status?!" Amanda barked into the walkie, as stalwart as ever.

"I'm sorry, I failed, the Junior Deputy was unresponsive to my pleas and to make matters worse, Gordon's men showed up, I evacuated before anyone saw me" Burke prattled off, still sounding very afraid.

Faith understood his fear and sympathized with it, it almost awoken something within her, there was no way Burke could just enter the gate now, it was locked, and Gordon had the key, the best he could do was hide around the door and wait for someone to open up then sneak in.

"Where are you know?!" Faith called out, hoping the man was close by.

"I-I don't know, I'm in the woods, hiding, I'm trying to be seen, I don't know who's out here" Burke stuttered, now trying to keep his voice down.

Faith desperately, truly wanted to give him words of comfort, advice, orders, anything that would improve his chances of survival, she knew Burke had no firearms, or anything to defend himself with for that matter, every move he made from here on had to be precise.

"You can't come back until your mission is successful, failure is not an option!" Amanda ordered harshly.

"Amanda!" Faith barked to verbally slap her on the wrist.

"What she is trying to say is please don't give up just yet, keep trying!" Faith pleaded.

"Benjamin had given me an idea when he said something while we conversed, I think I can survive out here and continue to speak to the Deputy, I won't know until I try" Burke breathed.

"Please, Burke, please careful!" Faith begged, hoping for the best.

"I will try, but I don't quite know how to phrase it, but I think he isn't entirely lost to us, I just need to keep trying" Burke said with shallow breaths, it sounded like he had been running recently.

"What do you plan to do?" Faith asked expectantly.

"I think… I wait hold on" Burke said nervously before the walkie clicked off.

"He's been compromised" Amanda deadpanned with a sigh.

"No, I refuse to believe that" Faith said warily, swallowing the lump in her throat.

"We'll have to see then" Amanda nodded.

And then Faith was forced to play the waiting game, they waited several minutes for Burke to respond, each minute more painful then the last, Faith had to fight herself from pacing as she was not capable of standing still and silent for so long, it was maddening, thankfully after the fifteenth minute, Burke finally remade connection to them, his only words were to inform them he could no longer able to talk, it was to dangerous, but he also told them not to worry, he had a game plan and would not report in until the mission was successful. The message left the two women in turmoil, Amanda didn't know what to think, she was beside herself as she didn't like Burke going off on his own with no further instructions, but then again, he had potential, he knew Rook so it might work, whatever it was he planned, Faith on the other hand, had the upmost Faith in in him, she believed.

"He has an idea, so we have to trust him, we'll wait for now" Faith suggested.

"And what if he takes to long, for all we know Gordon plans to kill you this time tomorrow, you can't be passive forever, you must take action before all your allies lose the ability too" Amanda said, trying her best not to sound scolding, but years of order giving made it difficult.

Faith's eyes rolled around her head as she thought, she couldn't bring herself to keep her eyes on her High Priestess, she had a very strong point, one Ben repeated many times, she had to get more hands on if she wished to survive, but every time she thought of getting tough, images of how she executed her own flock member to save Rook would come flooding forth, despite the morality of it all, it made her quake, her legs buckled, and arms shook, nausea and dizziness soon followed. But all that was pushed aside, more important things were at stake, decisions needed to be made and Amanda awaited an answer.

"Then I suppose we need to grease the wheels a bit for Burke" she supposed as she nodded to herself.

"What do you have in mind?" Amanda asked, crossing her arms.

"The last time we spoke, we desperately wish to speak to me, I denied him of that, hopefully he still feels that way" Faith suggested.

"Do you really think he'd still be willing?" Amanda asked.

"Just like we've been doing before, the only thing we can do is have Faith and believe" Faith answered solemnly.