Helen blew on the artefact. A puff of dust fluttered into the air which she brushed away as she continued to clean the item in her hand.

In a small hut in the colony, she worked alone to clean all of the items that had been scavenged and found over the last few surveys. She always kept the hope that she would find something of the ancient world that would be worth keeping, especially to show Isabel. But, she sighed when she saw the item that she had spent the last hour cleaning was a broken mug that couldn't stay in one piece.

She would rarely find anything of worth. It was only because resources were running low that the colony council allowed her to continue examining their finds. Hope that they would find anything useful was dwindling. Helen closed her eyes and silently prayed that Isabel would find something today. She could do with seeing her daughter's bright smile again.

It's a shame that she had to explore on her birthday, but she couldn't fault Isabel for wanting to help. She was always striving to prove herself to everyone. Helen's heart ached fearing the loneliness that Isabel must go through with others around her, all because she was different. Helen wished that she could find a way to show Isabel that the traditions and rules of the colony didn't define her, or them.

''Helen, may I have a word?''

Helen looked behind her to see a middle aged man approach her. He was a round man with thinning hair, dark skin and one of the friendliest faces anyone could gaze upon.

''Yes, Jon. Please, come in.''

Jon entered the research hut, ducking under the upper frame so he didn't hit his head. He glanced around the interior. ''Is Isabel not here? I would have thought she would be happy to help you examine artefacts?''

''She's with the other explorers.''

''Didn't you say that today was her birthday? Or am I mistaken?''

Helen shook her head and stood up, still barely reaching Jon's shoulder. ''It is today. But I think she was glowing at the chance to find something important and didn't want to miss out.''

Jon smiled. ''It is amazing how you are able to chart days.''

''I'm probably not doing it accurately,'' Helen shrugged. ''But, it gives us something to look forward to. We need brighter days.''

At her last words, Jon's expression grew noticeably grim. ''That is the reason why I was asked to come to you.''

''Asked?'' Helen questioned, and then frowned. ''What do the council want now?''

''They wanted me to check on your progress, specifically if you've found anything that can generate light?''

She shook her head, causing his shoulders to slump. ''With every new find, I'm keeping less items. Everything is irreparable. That includes lightbulbs and lamps. Why are the council so concerned with them now?''

''We cannot rely on nature's light for long. Fireflies and other luminescent insects or either dying or drifting further from our reach. Helen, the council fears that if we do not find something soon, we may be consumed by darkness before the next mating season.''

Helen felt her heart freeze. The thought of the colony being swallowed by complete darkness terrified her. ''Can we not move on?''

''Where would we go?''

''Anywhere. At this point, I'd rather face the Dragons then…''

Jon hushed her quickly, absolute panic gripped his very being. ''Do not speak of them. Do you want to bring them down upon us?''

Helen couldn't suppress a groan of frustration from rolling off her tongue. ''I have spoken of them so many times over the years and they haven't found us. We shouldn't be silent about them, just as we shouldn't be silent about our history.''

''You know what the council thinks.''

''There is no history as there is no future. There is only now where we must survive.''

The two old friends stood together in silence. As Helen folded her arms across her chest and stared at the rocky ground, Jon's eyes drifted across the hut. All around, he could see items of the old world that had been brought to Helen, or that she borrowed, to examine and understand their purpose. It almost intrigued him as much as it frightened him. He almost chuckled thinking of Isabel. A girl half his size was braver than he ever could be.

Helen grit her teeth. ''Surviving isn't the same thing as living.''

''It's better than the alternative.'' Jon said. Hoping to lift the dire mood, he decided to change subject. ''After the mating season, Ciara and I are hoping for a girl.''

Helen grinned. ''I suppose after having 4 boys, that would be a nice change of pace.''

''Yes, maybe we'll lucky and we'll have twin girls. The council would like that.''

Helen felt her foul mood return. ''I don't like that. You shouldn't have children because the council tells you.''

''It's what's best for our future. Without control or balance, we'll eventually go extinct.''

''If they're worried about that, why won't they let Isabel join? Why must they spread lies that she could impregnant women with girls like her? We don't know that.''

Jon looked away, feeling embarrassed that his attempts to make his friend smile failed. ''I do not agree with everything the council says. Isabel has every right to find a mate. Just as Gabriel did with you.''

Helen flinched at the mention of Isabel's father. The man who disappeared so many years ago with no clue or explanation. ''He only chose me because I amused him. All my life, the only one who has believed in my pursuit of history has been my daughter…'' she noticed Jon about to argue but she held up her hand to stop him. ''You don't have to lie for me. I do appreciate that you let me get on with my work. But I know you like to stay safe. You have a family after all.''

''So do you.'' Jon said. ''You and Isabel are lucky to have each other.''

Helen smiled faintly. ''Yes, we are.''

She only wished that there could be more for both of them. She remembered hearing in books how rats used to be kept in cages by humans to test their experiments on. Right now, she felt like humanity was the rat with Dragons as the new masters, leaving them to see if they could survive in an environment that pushed them to their limits. It wasn't the future she wanted for Isabel, nor any children of Isabel's if she decided to have them.

She hoped that Isabel would find someone one day. She almost laughed remembering the times Isabel would tell her that she hoped to find a woman like her mother. Smart, fierce and kind. There were fleeting moments where Helen imagined another life, if things had been different and she was born differently, she and Isabel might find happiness together. She shook away those thoughts. She couldn't allow herself to think of her daughter like that, no matter how isolated they would feel.

''Helen,'' Jon's voice brought Helen out of her thoughts. Her dear friend approached her and placed a chubby hand on her shoulder. ''Know that what I'm about to say is not a lie…I admire you, and the work you do.''

Helen smiled and hugged him. Though she was unable to reach her arms around him completely, it felt nice to have a shoulder to lean on for support. ''Thank you. I need to hear that.''

''And I think you're right. We should be with who we want to be not for the simple purpose of reproduction and survival. But because they give us life.''

At the statement, Helen's thoughts drifted to Isabel.

The sound of the alarm bell being rung outside caused them to pull away. Immediately, they could hear the other people in the colony rush around to see what the commotion was about. Helen and Jon rushed outside with the woman hurrying, fearing that something might have happened to the explorer group that Isabel was part of. She could hear whispers from the others, something about people injured and missing. Her heart dropped into her stomach. She lifted her head and searched for her daughter.

She felt an overwhelming relief when she saw Isabel in the midst of the crowd, standing with her friend Jess. However, Helen's attention darted over to the other explorers getting medical attention from the colony doctors. She noticed one man, Giovanni, with blood seeping from a wound in his shoulder. Overcome with fear, she pushed herself past the crowd to Isabel.

The young woman saw her mom running towards her and cried out. ''Mom!''

They wrapped their arms around each other and hugged tightly. Helen was so worried that she failed to notice the substance all over Isabel's body until she was holding her. Isabel's body felt strong and firm compared to this morning. She pulled back and examined her daughter. ''What happened to you? What is all this stuff on you?''

''That's what we need to find out.'' Isabel said.

Out of the corner of their eye, they could see Giovanni hobble towards them. ''Get her cleaned and examined.''

''Why? What happened?'' Helen questioned.

Gasps could be heard throughout the colony. Helen looked over and saw numerous unconscious bodies of people she didn't recognise being carried. Their hands and legs were bound with rope.

Giovanni nodded towards Isabel. ''She will tell you the story. After you're clean, we need to have a meeting with the council and inform them of what has happened.''

XXX

HEY MY SWEET SUPERSTARS! YOU HAVE ALL BEEN SO AMAZING WITH YOUR SUPPORT FOR THIS STORY. IT MEANS THE WORLD TO ME. FOR THAT, I DECIDED TO RELEASE THIS CHAPTER A BIT EARLY FOR YOU.

DID YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER WITH HELEN? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON JON? ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU LIKE THAT WAS TALKED ABOUT OR HINTED AT IN THIS CHAPTER? DON'T BE AFRAID TO LEAVE ANY COMMENTS OR REVIEWS. THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE WITH ISABEL AND HELEN. I NEED TO PUT THIS WARNING HERE. WHILE I WON'T BE RUSHING TO FULL SMUT SCENES YET, THEY WILL HAPPEN AND THEY WILL BE EXPLICIT (IF YOU KNOW MY OTHER STORIES, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M ABOUT). THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE A LITTLE FIRST TASTER OF THE SEXY STUFF, BUT IT WON'T BE TOO MUCH. I WANT TO WORK ON BUILD-UP WITH THIS STORY AND SET UP THE WORLD AND CHARACTERS. I ALSO LOVE TO HEAR YOUR PREDICTIONS AND THEORIES TOO. THEY ARE SO FUN TO READ. THIS IS A DIFFERENT TYPE OF STORY FROM ANYTHING I'VE WRITTEN SO FAR, SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE I'M DOING MY BEST.

ALSO JUST IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW, I HAVE A POLL ON MY PROFILE TO VOTE FOR FUTURE STORIES AND WHICH ONES YOU'D LIKE TO SEE FIRST. GIVE IT SOME THOUGHT AND THEN VOTE AWAY.

THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING AMAZING. TA-TA FOR NOW.