The rabbit dashed from shelter to shelter, the walls were made out of a reflective, cold substance seemingly mashed into each other yet did not fall. All the others minded their own businesses; some ate from the food place and other from the water hole. Every now and then one of the larger hunters would pounce on her kind and consume. This was common and largely ignored except by those stranger ones. They always seemed so shocked at death, so… sad.
The rabbit poked her head out and looked around. Up towards one of the flowing shelters where the strange ones dwelled, the entrance opened and a strange one she didn't recognise walked out. It stood and seemed shocked by Home as one of the most familiar strange ones walked out and extended her upper legs. The rabbit knew these creatures were safe and so hopped towards them.
Still in awe of what lay before him, Perry's heart seemed to clench in his chest. Never in his life would he have ever dreamed a place such as this could exist. So many animals, so much life in a world he thought dead. It was too much. He dropped his gaze to the ground.
A small, fluffy creature with large ears hopped towards him. It then stood on its hind legs and looked up at him, examining him. Perry knelt down and very slowly stretched out his hand towards it. The creature leaned forward and sniffed his finger. After a few seconds to gain its trust, Perry then scratched the creature's ears to the clear pleasure of his fluffy new friend.
All this time the Overseer watched with a sincere smile. Yes, he is clearly our Brother.
Perry flattened his palm and waited. The creature then slowly climbed onto his palm and steadied itself as he brought his hand back up. Cupping the creature with both hands Perry turned back to the Overseer.
"This place… how have…?"
The Overseer's soft smile surprised Perry compared to her harsh treatment not moments ago. "How have we survived?" Perry nodded. "We were not always like this. We once lived in a Burrow with our Lords, who were then only pets. We were tasked with their survival and we have succeeded for hundreds of years."
The Overseer looked out over the vast settlement of shelters and shifting scenery. "It has not been easy. We would rather die ourselves than let one of our Lords perish, but if we all died out then none would be left to care for them."
"You call them Lords… you worship these animals?"
The Overseer's eyes snapped up at Perry; harsh but understanding. "You are still new to Noah and so I will tolerate your ignorance but only for a short time. These are not animals; they are our superiors in every possible way. Our only existence is to serve them and when needed, die for them."
Trying to prevent another backlash Perry lowered his head and muttered, "I apologise. I did not mean to insult you. Please, can you teach me of Noah and your Lords?"
The Overseers eyes softened. She turned around and motioned for Perry to follow her. "Come."
Perry followed suit with the small creature still in his hands. He noticed it was sleeping so he tried his best not to bump it around as he walked.
Shouting back over the noise of wildlife the Overseer said, "You are lucky we found your tribute Brother. Many humans have come this way and their cruelty to our Lords has been appropriately punished."
Dodging animals half his size Perry shouted, "What cruelty?"
"A number of them have tried to enter Noah with a Lord carrying their possessions. I believe humans call them Brahmin, horribly disfigured remnants of the humble Cow but still a Lord all the same." The Overseer stopped before a long metal shelter and waited for Perry to make his way there.
His moving stirred the small creature in Perry's hands. It immediately jumped out to Perry's disappointment. It barely travelled two metres before a Dog landed on it and tore its small body apart. Horrified, Perry could only watch. The Overseer simply turned away.
"You punish people who use Brahmin as carriers but you let a Dog tear a defenceless creature apart?"
"It is in that creature's nature," she said bluntly. "We can not punish it by doing what nature commands it to."
"And humans?"
"Humans have a choice. We chose to take care of these Lords and those humans chose to abuse them."
Perry turned away and examined the metal tent. "Where are we now?"
"We are at what happens when a human abuses our Lords." She slowly opened the metal door and stepped inside. Following after her Perry was met with the most horrifying thing he had seen since he left Washington.
All along the walls were rows of cages, blood stained the floor, bones littered the dirt. But even worse there were people inside some of these cages; mostly men who looked well-travelled but women as well. They huddled in corners and stared at the newcomers with a look Perry wished he never had to see again.
That chill… that sense of death and pain Perry had once grown so used to.
"What is this…?" He muttered.
"These are the Abusers. Now they await their punishment."
Perry's hands clenched into fists. "Which is…?"
"To be treated like those they abuse. Come, we are about to reach what I wanted to show you."
The Overseer began to walk but Perry stood still. He could not believe what was happening. His weapons… his guns were taken from him. Lucky for them…
Not hearing his echoing footsteps the Overseer stopped and looked back. "What hinders you?"
Perry continued to stare at the prisoners. The pain… the death.
"Why…? Why do they deserve this?" Perry began to shout. "No one deserves this! How could you treat a living being like this?" The Overseer stared blankly back at him. She didn't understand his anger.
"Because… they deserve it. They abuse our Lords; they are not Beings but monsters."
"They are people! How can you tell me an animal's life is worth more than these ones here? A person can think, a person can feel and a person can talk. A life capable of so much is worth preserving but you're treating them worse than they," Perry motioned to the starving prisoners. "Treat your Lords!"
Silence filled the prison. The Overseer should have expected this at some point. This outsider would be the first Keeper not born inside Noah. He will need to be taught. The Overseer slowly approached Perry.
"Very well, you say these human's life are worth something? Worth preserving above a Lord? Then consider our Lords move in packs and behave just like humans. They need to eat, sleep, breathe and reproduce. But they accept their inherent nature; they do not shy away from it and so are better for it."
"They accept it because they can not know anything more."
"Wrong! That rabbit didn't know you but could tell that you were safe. It learnt. It could analysis; how is that not different from a human? What makes a humans ability to do this more unique?"
Perry said nothing.
"You say a Lord can't feel, but I have seen with my own eyes that the Elephants mourn their dead. They stroke the bones of their ancestors with a lose that is even lacking in ancient human culture. How can you say that is not a feeling?"
Again, Perry said nothing.
"Finally, you said a Lord can not talk." The Overseer gave a knowing smile. "The punishment awaiting these abusers is to preserve our greatest secret, our proof that our Lords are the superior beings." She turned and continued on her previous path with a superior stance. "Come with me."
Perry looked to the prisoners but curiosity filled him. He followed after the Overseer. The further they went into the darkness of the tent a sound started to reach Perry's ears. The sound of crunching, snapping and consuming. He knew it from somewhere, but his journey and his discovery was tiring his memory.
Eventually The Overseer stopped before pitch darkness. Perry stood next to her and tried to peer into the distance. The noise was still there but coupled with it was the unmistakable stench of death. The Overseer stretched out her arms in reverence and called "My Lord! I request a moment of your time to reveal yourself to our new Brother."
The noise stopped. The silence, the darkness, the uncertainty. It was all so familiar; all the characteristics of something Perry has fought before.
Something in the darkness was moving towards them, but its footsteps were so silent as to be more terrifying than the ground shaking. Something gleamed in the darkness, lines of dagger sharp claws, skin as dark as night. Every fibre in Perry's being told him to grab a gun or get the hell out of there. But his feet were frozen in place. The Overseer was so confident where she stood.
A pair of eyes pierced the darkness and a lizard like head revealed itself. Death made itself known.
A Deathclaw… these lunatics are keeping a DEATHCLAW?
The Overseer quickly fell to one knee and bowed her head. The Deathclaw didn't even notice, it simply kept its gaze on Perry. Slowly it approached him; its head was mere inches from Perry's face. Why wasn't it attacking? It seemed to be studying him. Looking him up and down. It retracted its head and stood above them in a stance that didn't look natural for it. Like watching a dog imitating a person. What happened next completed Perry's comparison.
"WHO…IS…THIS…INGRID?" The Deathclaw spoke. Its voice boomed over the silence.
"My Lord Azrael, this new comer has shown an understanding and worship of our Lords. We wish to absolve him into the Keepers."
Perry's eyes widened when he heard the Deathclaw speak. They can talk? Why didn't any of the Deathclaws in Washington talk? What the hell is going on?
The Deathclaw looked from the Overseer to Perry and back again. "HOW?"
The Overseer reached into her suits pockets and pulled out Sally's toy horse and held it up like an offering. The Deathclaw slowly reached out and with the kind of care used by a master craftsman, plucked the toy gently from Ingrid's hands using the tips of its claws. It held up the simple toy before its eyes, studying it. The image of a Deathclaw holding up a child's toy would have been comical if Perry wasn't in a state of shock.
God I hate surprises.
The Deathclaw finished its study and surprisingly gave the toy to Perry.
"WHERE… ARE YOU… FROM?" It asked. With every pause it took a deep, painful breathe. It's 'lips' hardly moved but its jaws would always widen, unleashing the decomposing stench of its breath. His lungs were screaming to splutter and cough but Perry used every ounce of his self control to hold it in.
"I…I'm from Washington D.C." He answered with some difficulty.
The creature hummed in understanding. It slowly turned to The Overseer and said "KEEP…HIM." It then turned towards the darkness and silently disappeared. Ingrid, as he now knew her, rose from her knees with a wide smile on her face. She placed her hands on Perry's shoulder and steered him the way they came from. As they left, the sound of snapping and feasting continued once more.
When the two finally left the prisoner and Deathclaw tent Perry fulfilled the wishes of his lungs and coughed violently. The Overseer just watched with that same smile. When Perry was finished he wiped his lips of the phlegm and looked at Ingrid.
"Now you see?" She said. "An animal that has the intelligence of a human and the ability to speak as a human. This is our greatest treasure, proof that animals are superior even in the realms humans once thought they dominated alone."
Perry knew she had a point, after seeing that Deathclaw, he wondered what was it that made humans so special compared to animals. "You know, I always thought that what made humans special was our ability to not just live, but create." He looked up at the colourless sky. "But now I see that maybe that's our weakness, not our strength. After all, our greatest creations were always used to destroy." He looked again at Ingrid. "You said you want to absolve me into the Keepers. Why?"
She looked out across the sanctuary and its shifting landscape. "We are dwindling. Eventually we will die out…"
"Unless you bring in outsiders." Perry finished for her.
She nodded. "Yes, but every human who has travelled to us has been an abuser, carrying their burdens on what you call a Brahmin. None of us would ever wish to mate with an abuser. You stranger, are a gift." Her voice was so solemn now. "You not only carry your own burdens but you keep an item of worship to one of our Lords. In these times, we need an outsider more than ever. And you would be as welcome as one of our own Brothers."
Perry looked down at the toy horse in his hands. A gift from Sally. Sally if I ever see you again I'm buying you a hundred of these. You just saved my life.
With all that was going on Perry realized he had forgotten about Fawkes. "Overseer, can I ask what happened to my companion?"
"The smaller Lords were frightened of your unusual friend, so we are keeping him with some of our larger Lords. But now Brother I must ask, do you have a name?"
Perry nodded. "Yes, my name is Peregrine but you can just call me Perry." The Overseer smiled.
'Very well, Perry. So now I ask of you, will you join us in our sanctuary? Will you protect our secrets and save us from dwindling into oblivion?"
For the first time Perry noticed the number on The Overseers vault suit; 62. These people were preserved from the old world and somehow managed to make a living in this Wasteland. But more importantly, they made a purpose for themselves. They weren't selfish, they weren't deluded and they were protecting maybe the last bastion of animal life on Earth. An ark.
These people were doing good in a world so full of bad. They needed help and it was his duty to aid them. But maybe now after all his wonderings he finally found a place where he can once again wear the suit he knew all his life and just exist. Here, he had a purpose; here he could have a home.
He looked up at The Overseer and said "Yes."
Standing on the metal tent above them a man in a trench coat watched and overheard everything below him.
Kid didn't listen to me. He got suckered in. Boss said not to intervene unless I had to, this suits the bill. Perry baby, enjoy your time here while it lasts, because it ain't gonna last long.
A/N: I'd like to thank the reader who suggested a talking Deathclaw to me as that fit really well with my idea of Noah and their beliefs.
I'll be exploring the history of Noah in future chapters so stay tuned to find out more. I hope you had a great Christmas and a happy new year and I'd like to say I appreciate you all reading my story as your compliments and support are the reason I've been writing for 15 chapters. Thankyou and have a great new year!