Author's Note:

Hello my beautiful crias(baby Llamas), super excited to finally publish the first chapter of Amid The Ruins! Just a brief side note-Not every character submitted to me will have a major role in this chapter. I assure you, however, they will have their time to shine. Each chapter will be focused on a few select characters.

Also, let me know if any typos escaped my grasp.

Riley took a quick look around him, before kneeling down by the creek to start filling canteens. He rarely left the camp, given that people relied on him to make decisions, but sometimes he just needed time alone. Thus, when there was an opportunity from time to time for him to volunteer to go off to the creek to get water for boiling, he always volunteered. Who could blame him? It's not like it was his choice being shoved into a leadership position. Once the soldiers protecting the refugee camp deserted, he was the only one left besides Liam who had a clue about firing a gun or defending themselves. And so, the others put him on a pedastal because they didn't want it themselves. Who would? None of them had the slightest idea what they were doing. Sure, they had fences, water, and a reasonably consistent supply of food, but there was an unspoken dread in the camp that seemed to grow every day. No one dared say it, but people were terrified. It had been around two months since everything began, and there was still no sign of government intervention. In fact, things had only gotten worse.

Once he finished filling up around twenty bottles, he began packing them into his hiking pack. He wasn't in any hurry. Taking a handful of water, he splashed it over his face. The refrshing, frigid water helped get rid of some of the dust on his face, the cold shock giving him a sense of clarity. Despite everything that had happened, it was nice being able to take a simple walk in the woods. To breathe fresh air and feel the crunch of leaves under his feet without metal fences protecting him from death. Hikes had always been his thing as a kid. Whether it was a trek in the mountains, or just a bike ride through his neighborhood, he loved the outdoors. His dad seemed to have rubbed off on him. He'd always appreciated beautiful landscapes, bright days, and forests. Nowadays it seemed to get harder and harder to see the beauty in things.

Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps. He didn't even need to turn around. That familiar moaning, accompanied by dragging footsteps told him everything he needed to know. Turning around, he saw a relatively short woman with frayed blonde hair, and glossed over eyes that obscured what was once probably a shade of blue, not unlike his sister's. Her hair seemed to be graying, although with all the dirt and muck it was difficult to tell. A mutant, as most of the people in his group liked to call them. Just about everyone had a different name for them.

Equipping his machete, he stepped forward, allowing it to draw closer. As soon as it stepped within arms reach, he shot to the side, kicking its foot out from under it and sending it to the ground. From there, he hacked into its head until it finally stopped moving. After a moment of pulling, he freed the blade from its skull, staining the leaves with thick, dark blood. Just as he began to walk away, he noticed something on one of her fingers. There on her ring finger, was a wedding ring.

John found himself rather bored, an odd sensation given the circumstances. While the fences provided them with safety, they sometimes felt like a prison to him. It wasn't as if there was much to do around camp. He enjoyed playing chess with Hank on occasion, but that got tiring after a while. There weren't all that many people he could relate to. It seemed like taking naps and worrying was all people in the camp did. However, before he could become too thoughtful, a head poked through his tent. Familiar golden-brown eyes shone at him.

"Hey," Gia said, brushing a strand of black hair from her face, "wanna give me a hand with dinner?"

"Sure," he replied, "I could use something to do."

"Couldn't we all?"

Before long, the two were helping organize the large collection of ramen noodle packages into something that could feed the whole camp for the night. They had to be careful not to use too much, especially given that they hadn't had a supply run in nearly a week. Less and less people were willing to risk themselves, especially after the incident three weeks back. However, they also had to be careful not to give people too little. The hierarchy at the camp was very ill-defined, and they could have a lot of anger if people didn't get enough. The last thing they needed was friction in the camp.

"We're gonna need more alchohol gas for the stoves." He said, noting that of the four canisters for each of their gas stoves, only one was mostly full.

"Riley says he'll be organizing a supply run tomorrow," Gia replied, "we'll be alright."

Gia had a habit of optimism. He never really understood her all that much. Cheerfulness wasn't a common quality nowadays.

Before long, they had begun boiling each package individually on each of the gas stoves, doing their best to manage all four of them at once. It usually took around eighteen packages to feed everyone, and that was quite a bit of food given its rarity. Riley had made the call to shorten their meals to only twice a day a few weeks back, and even then, there were times when they had to divide it up further. Those were always the worst days. Every so often, someone would snap, and they'd find an empty tent and a good portion of their supplies gone with them. It wasn't as if they could stop them, or even blame them.

"You really think the government's gonna work things out?" He asked conversationally as they waited for the second batch of ramen to boil. The sun had begun to set, and dinnertime would be soon.

"Yeah, I do. That's how things have always been in the past, right?" She replied.

"Maybe...it's been two months."

"Things will get better, one way or another. That's just how stuff goes."

"I hope you're right."

"Hey, Cio, could you let me in? I brought enough water to last us at least until tomorrow."

Ignacio jogged over to the gate, unlocking it for Riley. He'd been absentmindely wandering for the past five minutes, as he tended to do when slow days like this one came around. It was unusual for so few mutants to be around the fences, but he welcomed the ability to let Riley in and out without having to worry about them.

"Thanks," Riley greeted, walking inside and locking it again with the chain, "has Gia started on dinner yet? It's her turn, right?"

"Yeah, she's on it." He replied, walking alongside towards the center of the camp.

"Good, we're gonna need to go out into the city again tomorrow...supplies are running low."

"You know I'm always down for a little adventure." A small half-smile made its way onto Riley's face.

"Let's hope the others are."

Jade found herself making much more noise than she was willing to admit, as she and the others sat around the night fire eating. Eating had always been her favorite part of the day. The sun had now completely set, and she enjoyed the quiet nighttime brought with it. Even before the outbreak, she had always been a night owl. It was oddly peaceful, sitting with the others by the fire, even though the smoke sometimes shifted into her eyes when the wind changed directions.

However, the peaceful silence was quickly shattered by a yell.

"Hey," a man's voice yelled from around the front gate, "is anyone here?!"

Everyone shot up from their seats, running toards the gate as Riley led the way. An older man, probably in his fifties, was standing by the front gate, a teenage girl by his side. His hairline had largely receded, but was still a graying brown that must've looked more youthful in his earlier years. His panic-stricken eyes were a dark brown, the same as the girl next to him. His daughter, probably. His face was chiseled but aging, large crinkles on his eyes standing out. His cheeks were prominent, flushed red from adrenaline. He was carrying a kid, probably no older than seventeen, in his arms. Blood was stained all over his shirt, and it didn't look to be his. The kid was out cold, maybe even dead. The girl looked terrified, the same panic evident on the man's face.

"Who are you?" Questioned Riley before opening.

"Please," the man replied, "just open up! My son's been shot!"

Author's Note:

Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter, more to come soon! Please remember to give it a review, especially if you've submitted a character for the series! Even a simple 1-10 rating helps.

==Character Credits==

Ignacio Moreno / Created by Wolfie McCoy

-Mariano Moreno

Jade Smith / Created by Zayngel22

John Curlmen / Created by RainGain

Riley Hall / Created by GrabbageTheImmortalChinchilla

Geovanni "Gia" Polanski / Created by thedaffodilqueen

Skylar Ranoss / Created by Me

-Darren Ranoss

-Pfiefer Ranoss

NOTE: Not all of the main POV characters appear in every chapter, including this one, for the sake of avoiding overcrowding. Don't worry, they'll have their time.