Beads of sweat sat on Liz's forehead. It was very early in the morning, but yet it was scorching hot. She was afraid of what was to come today, but she had to be strong. As strong as she could be. All of the Chosen were grouped up around the obstacle course. They explained how it would work. Everyone would go through the course three times and whoever had the fastest time would sit out during the endurance run. She didn't care about being first, she just didn't want to end up dead last. The first two people blew though the course with ease. When it was almost her turn she spotted something on one of the balconies. It was Jacob Seed.

He was here. She glanced up to the balcony again and her eyes locked with his. He was the last person on Earth she wanted to see but yet, there he was. Didn't he have anything better to do? His blue eyes were cold and his gaze was telling her not to disappoint him.

She focused her attention back to the course. When she got the signal she took off. She slowly made it through the tires, trailing far behind the woman she was up against. It took all of her strength to vault over the walls. She climbed the ladder to the zip lines. At the top there was a box filled with handles in it. By the time she had gotten to the top, her competitor was already finished. She hooked the handle onto the line and jumped off the platform. The other woman had made it look easy but Liz had overestimated her strength. Her arms gave out, unable to hold her body-weight and she fell face first into the mud.

Her body hurt all over from the fall. Not like the pain she experienced in the hallucinations, this was real.

"Get up princess!" Someone screamed.

Liz gritted her teeth and got up despite the pain. Mud covered her from head to toe. Her white shirt was coated in a thick layer of brown. She wiped the mud from her eyes and ran back to the start line. The next two times she ran through without falling down and she was thankful that she didn't embarrass herself again. She didn't look up at the balcony again, but she could feel Jacob's eyes burrowing into the back of her skull.

After the course was the endurance run. Liz trailed far behind the group but she didn't stop. She was determined not to make a fool of herself again. Her legs were wobbly the whole tine and her lungs felt like they were on fire. They ran for about two hours. Taking laps around the chalet and through the woods. The June sun beat down hard, and Liz was sweating through her mud soaked shirt. The mud had dried on her skin and in her hair. She really needed a shower.

The group eventually came to a stop at a ridge below the Chalet. Liz buckled over with her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. There were more of the black tents with targets set up across from them. There were already men gathered at the tables eager to get their hands on a weapon.

Liz didn't have much experience with weapons. She went hunting when she was little with her father. But her dad helped her the whole time and all she did was pull the trigger. She had shot guns in the hallucination, but that wasn't entirely real and Liz had been running on fear and pure instincts.

She walked along the rows of tables until she found an empty one. Where she was expecting a gun waiting for her, she found throwing knives instead. Liz let out a small sigh. She didn't even have a remote idea how to use throwing knives. On the table resting five metal knives and in front of her was a wooden block with a red bullseye painted on it.

The soldiers next to her knew exactly what they were doing, throwing the knives with precision and lodging them into the wood. Liz surveyed their technique for a minute before inspecting the knives for herself. She picked one up from the table. It felt cold and smooth in her hand. She took position and lodged the knife at the target. It completely missed its objective and stuck in the dirt to the right of the wood block.

Liz cursed to herself. Screwing up multiple times in the same day wasn't her plan. The next four knives hit the target but didn't stick. They all fell into a heap at the foot of the target. She had waited for everyone to finish before she went and collected the knives. With her undivided attention on making the knives stick, she fell into a rhythm.

Some knives would stick but most of the time they would hit the target with a dud and fall to the ground. She zoned in completely on the target, focusing on making each knife stick. Liz was finally getting the hang of it and would get at least half of the knives stick every time.

Something about getting the knives to impale into the target made Liz feel pride. Like she wasn't going to completely fail. She could do this. With hard work and practice she could belong here. It would take time though. For the first time since she came back home she felt like she had a purpose. Something that was real and not some stupid college degree. Her temporary peace was interrupted by an unexpected visitor.

"You ever going to hit something little lamb, or are you just going to stand there all day?"

Jacob growled into her ear. The voice made Liz jump and sent chills down her spine. How long had he been watching her? She had been so focused in on the target she hadn't been aware of her surroundings. She did her best to regain her composure and shake him off.

"It would be easier to hit something if you weren't glaring at me." She hissed. She turned her attention back to the target but he knocked the knife from her hand.

"Nah, I don't think that's it. I think you're lacking motivation. We're going to get those first-kill jitters out of the way."

Jacob grabbed her arm and yanked her to the center table. Everyone else at the range had stopped whatever they were doing to watch.

"Hey Ramirez! Bring one of them out here."

The man Jacob had yelled at went down the hill from the gun range. He returned dragging someone behind him. The person was restrained and had a bag over their head. They struggled to break free but it was no use. Ramirez strung him up in front one of the targets. Jacob held a knife in his hand for Liz to take.

"Now little lamb I want you to hit the target. And make it stick this time."

Liz gasped and shook her head.

"No! I'm not killing anyone."

One solider shoved her towards the table and Jacob dropped the knife in her hands. His blue eyes were piercing daggers into her. This was her consequence for talking back to him.

"Cull the herd. Do what needs to be done or you'll be sorry."

She looked back to him. She gripped the knife so tightly that her knuckles turned white. She had already made peace with what was about to happen.

"I know what needs to be done." She got in the position to throw, but the knife never crossed the range. Liz whipped around with the knife in hand driving straight for Jacob's chest.

He was quicker than her though. He caught her hand midair moments before it reached his chest. With one swift motion he twisted her wrist and the knife fell to the ground. He yanked her arm back and slammed her face into the wood table. She cried out in pain. His other hand had a firm grip on her neck to keep her down.

"Well goddamn girl. You say you won't kill anyone and then there you are trying to drive a knife into my chest."

A small smirk formed on her face. "Yeah well, you're definitely worth killing." She spat.

Maybe it wasn't the brightest idea to be a smartass to Jacob Seed, but she didn't really care. If she was going to die, she at least wanted to have the last word. Jacob wasn't amused by her sarcasm. He let out an agitated sigh. He drew his pistol and shot at the man pinned to the wall. Liz gasped. She saw the man's insides splatter all over the ground. He slumped over, dead as a door-nail.

"Throw her in one of the cages. Leave her there till I say."

The two men dragged Liz from the shooting range. She didn't bother to stand, letting the men drag her all the way there. They took her a bit down range to the cages. The six cages were occupied with only corpses. They threw her in one and locked the gate behind them. Liz had taken her shot and she had blew it. Jacob saw that move coming from a mile away. Maybe it was for the best though. If she had killed Jacob, where would that have left her? The cultists would have shot her and she'd be dead. That scenario wouldn't have helped anyone.

There was something about him that just pissed her off. Anytime Liz laid her eyes upon Jacob Seed she became flustered. He had put her through the ringer, but he hadn't killed her yet. That had to count for something. He had a purpose for keeping her around and she was clueless as to why. As the sun beat down on her, Liz shook the thoughts from her mind. There was no point of overthinking things when she couldn't do anything about it. She had been stupid, and now she was paying for it. There was nothing that she could do but sit and wait.

..

Jacob stormed off from the gun range as soon as the girl had been drug away. He cursed to himself. How could he have been so foolish? He had underestimated her. Jacob half expected the girl to break down into tears, again. He almost paid the price for it too. Jacob wasn't afraid of dying. He welcomed death, but he didn't want to be taken down by a girl the size of a toothpick.

There had been many times where he had accepted that he was going to die, but each time he survived. Somehow. It was almost as if this was his punishment, to live out the rest of his miserable days on Earth. After the war he had been alone. He had been tossed aside like garbage. He didn't have anyone or anything. He had been a weapon without a purpose. Then his brothers had found him and gave him a purpose once again. He loved John and Joseph and he would do anything for them.

Sometimes though he wondered what the cost of all this would be. They were together but they would never be a normal family. Time and circumstance was responsible for that. Jacob barely saw his brothers and when he did something needed to be done. He hated having to work with his 'sister'. Joseph had adopted so many 'Faiths' that he had lost track what number she was. Jacob didn't care that she had been brought into the project. The girl did her job well and helped their operation. He hated having to pretend that she was his sister. She wasn't there when things were bad. She was just another one of Joseph's devoted followers. Not that it mattered. She would most likely fail like all the others before her did.

He still didn't know what to do with Liz though. Jacob was so sure that the video would have made the Whitetails come running out of their hole to save her. Maybe he had overestimated Eli's affections for the girl. Even though she was his niece, Eli wouldn't sacrifice his whole operation for one person. He would be smart about it. Jacob still had expected something more from the rag tag group of rebels though.

That damn girl had made things more difficult ever since she had gotten here. Jacob would have expected her to know something, but he knew she didn't. She hadn't set foot in Montana for years. She probably knew where Eli's cabin was but they had discovered that long ago. The old man would have never told her where his bunker was.

Jacob had stormed back to the chalet and into his office. He slammed the door behind him. He was still at a stalemate on what to do with her. All his years of military training and tactics and Jacob couldn't come up with a decent plan on what to do with this stupid girl. Maybe his brother Joseph could be of some use. His brother had never steered him wrong before. He would know what to do.

…

When Liz woke again, it was morning the next day. The night in the cage had been long and cruel. The wind had ripped mercilessly at her and she had heard growls that belonged to wolves. She was still covered in dried mud from head to toe, but hygiene had become the least of her worries. Sitting in the hot sun all day, thirst had started to plague her. A day without food or water. It was a punishment worse than any music box could conjure.

She wasn't alone. Jacob was walking over to her cage along with another man. He had dark hair that was pulled back into a bun. He wore dark jeans, a white button up shirt, a black vest, and yellow tinted sunglasses. Jacob and the man touched foreheads and the man walked towards her. Jacob hung back.

Liz had scrambled back from the bars. If this man was held in such a high regard by Jacob Seed, there's no telling what he would do to her.

But the man with the yellow sunglasses approached the cage and simply knelt down so he was eye level with Liz. His smile contained kindness, but his eyes told a different story.

"Do not be afraid my child. The Lord has brought you back here to me for a reason."

There was something about his voice that seemed to calm Liz down. She slowly inched forward towards the bars, curious to find out who the man in the sunglasses was.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you Elizabeth. But you have returned home. This is where you're supposed to be."

She was puzzled to hear her full name spoken aloud. Liz had never seen this man before and yet he acted like he had always known her.

"You know me?" she asked.

"Yes, of course. I sought you out many years ago to join our project, but your parents turned me away. I told them that your whole family could come and be safe from the collapse, but they still refused. Then I asked them what it would take for you to join, and they said… money. For you to go off and receive an education."

The man sighed.

"Money. Greed. It corrupts even the best of us. It consumes us and then we are left with nothing. Despite their sin, I obliged your parents. I told them that I would give them the money, with the understanding that when you returned you would join my family here. But I knew that you wouldn't be fooled by the consumerism and the lies of the outside world. And here you are. You're home now."

Liz couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her parents had sold her off to a cult. That's where they got the money to send her to college. They probably pocketed the rest and then they left town. She felt betrayed. Like she couldn't even trust the people she had always loved. Despite the new revelations about her family, she only had one question on her mind.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"My name is Joseph. I'm Jacob's brother. God has told me that the world is coming to an end. I lead these people for the collapse that will soon come. But you are now part of the chosen few that will survive. I am your father, and you are my child and together we will march to Eden's Gate."

Tears came to Liz's eyes. This man was crazy. She didn't want any of this. She didn't want to be chosen. Joseph offered her Liz his hand to comfort her and to her own surprise, she took it. His words held weight but his tone was soft and soothing to the soul.

"You have no reason to worry. It's not an easy thing to hear at first. I can see it in your eyes that this world had let you down. That you've always wanted something more."

Liz didn't say it, but he was right. She was always wanting for more than what she had. The outside world was cruel and unfair, but it still wasn't as crazy as Joseph Seed.

"You are safe now. We will protect you from the collapse. We will welcome you into our family just as you are, but you have to be willing to do the same. You have to let go of the sinners who cannot be saved. For not everyone can be chosen."

Joseph wiped the tear away that was on her cheek.

"Will you pray with me?"

Liz nodded. Joseph prayed for strength, for wisdom, for guidance on the coming collapse. Liz prayed for freedom, for peace, and she prayed that she could get as far away from The Seed Brothers as humanly possible.

Joseph stood up and smiled.

"I'll see you soon my child."

He walked back over to where Jacob was standing. Liz couldn't make out exactly what he said to Jacob, something about a job well done. Joseph was gone as quickly as he had come. Jacob walked over to the cage.

"I'm surprised you could keep your mouth shut for that long." He said.

Liz gripped the bars of the cage until her knuckles turned white.

"Yeah well one Seed already hates my guts. I didn't need to piss off big brother too."

Jacob smirked. Liz was confused by his amusement.

"Yeah well you've already pissed him off, because I'm the oldest of my brothers." He said.

Her eyes grew wide and she sighed. "Fuck my life."

Jacob shook his head as he pulled out the wooden music box. Liz saw it and started to panic. Her breathing had become labored at the mere sight of it. Her arms flailed wildly as she tried to get her hands on it. She grabbed Jacob's arm and gripped it hard.

She shook her head. "Please no. Not again."

He ignored her pleads and started to crank the music box.

"You are not saved, you are weak. And you need to learn your purpose."

He opened the box and music started to spill out of it.

'Onlyyyy youuuu…'

She released Jacob's arm from her grasp and fell onto the ground. Once again, red clouded her vision. Her body stopped following her commands as she was sprawled out on the ground. She couldn't go back to the world on fire. Not again. She wasn't strong enough. The only thing she held on to in all the chaos was a single idea.

She was going to kill Jacob Seed, even if it was the last thing she would do.

The world on fire had become easier this time. Each man she encountered would disappear into a puff of smoke. Every time Seed would praise her for her handiwork, she became even angrier. She was determined to make the man pay for what he was doing to her. Jacob's conditioning was training her to kill. So when the time came for her to make her sacrifice, she would be ready.

Liz had blown through the trial with ease. When she dispatched her final target at the end, she slowly came back to reality. It was nighttime and she was still locked in the cage. It was now the end of her second day with no water. Her tongue felt like sandpaper. Elizabeth had never felt thirst like this. She thought back to every survival show she had watched on TV, where water was life or death. It had always seemed like a funny idea, like there would never be a situation where she would be without water. Dehydration had started to take its toll on her. Her head throbbed, her body was sore, and her vision had become blurry. The conditioning that Jacob had put her through hadn't been helping either. If she wasn't let out of the cage soon, she would die.

She curled up into a ball on the ground, trying to shield herself from the cold. She just hoped that after she shut her eyes they would open again.

…

Liz had finally fallen into a restless sleep when they came for her. Four men had opened her cage and snatched her. She was awake before her body had left the ground. The four men had a hold of her and were dragging her outside the cage. A few feet down from the cages was a cliff that dropped off at least 30 feet. They were going to kill her.

She started to kick and scream. She did not want to die today. This couldn't be how she died. The men had drug her flailing form to the edge of the cliff. She looked out over the edge. The land below was dark and unforgiving. In the darkness, it looked like it went on forever without end. Liz struggled against the men but it was no use. She was powerless against them, she had to be smarter.

Just before she was about to be tossed over, Liz reached her head back and bit down hard on an arm that had her constrained. She could taste blood in her mouth and she ripped off the skin where she had bitten than man. The man yelled out in pain and Liz was dropped to the ground. She kicked the man square in the crotch. He lost his balance and fell off the cliff. His screams seemed to last forever before he hit the bottom.

The other three men grabbed her to throw her over. She struggled against them and dug her heels into the dirt. Her feet had started to dangle over the edge when a sniper shot cracked through the sky. The bullet pierced one man's skull and his blood splattered Liz's face. The man let out a straggled breath before he went over the cliff. The other men had started to panic, searching for the assailant, but it didn't help them. Two more shots were fired and both men met the same fate.

Liz had slipped from their grasp and started to tumble off the edge of the cliff. She gripped the rocks on the edge of the cliff. Her iron grip was the only thing keeping her from certain death.

A pair of boots had appeared at the edge of the cliff. The boots were attached to none other than Jacob Seed. He was holding a bolt-action sniper rifle that was painted bright red. The man that she despised had just saved her life.

"You gonna pull yourself up, little lamb?" He said.

"Please just help me."

Jacob thought for a minute.

"No. Do it yourself. The weak don't have a place here."

Liz gritted her teeth. She was hanging off the edge of a cliff and he was just going to stand there and watch.

"You're such a dick." She spat.

Her arms had started to grow tired. She tried to grab hold of the rock with her feet, but it was too steep. Despite the cold wind, sweat had started to form on her brow. Liz tried to pull herself up once again but she was too weak. Her lack of arm strength and fatigue from lack of water was her undoing.

Her arms gave out. All her strength was gone and she let go of the rocks that were her lifeline. She closed her eyes waiting for her end, but strong arms caught her.

She looked up to see that Jacob had grabbed her arms, stopping her from falling off the cliff. With his rifle strapped to his back, he pulled Liz up off the rocks and into his arms. She was too exhausted to protest being held. She felt so small being held like this. Jacob was a large man. He was tall and broad chested. He had saved her life twice in one night. He even killed his own men to do it and she had no idea why.

Jacob started to carry her back to the chalet. This man was her enemy, but Liz felt safe in his arms. As if nothing would ever happen to her as long as she was with him. She nuzzled her face into his chest even though she knew she shouldn't. He smelled like gunpowder and pine trees. It was a strange combination, but Liz thought it suited him.

She looked up at her savior. Jacob's striking blue eyes pierced through the darkness and there was a scowl on his face.

"Why'd you save me?" She asked.

"Because any man that turns on his fellow soldiers is a coward. And cowards don't get to live."

Liz thought his answer was strange, but she didn't question it. Her body was crippled and weak. She felt so helpless in her arms. Her eyes had started to grow heavy. She started to laugh.

"I'm still going to kill you." She said.

She couldn't fully she his face, but she was positive that Jacob smiled. The last thing she heard before she fell asleep was his voice.

"Good luck with that."