The next morning Tori, and everyone else for that matter, was woken alarmingly by an air horn being sounded from the bonfire. People started emerging from their tents pajama clad and sleepy-eyed, wondering why someone would be making so much noise so early. Tori and Diana were some of the first to come out and see Jay in the clearing, dark circles under his eyes and unsteady on his feet. He looked like he hadn't slept in days and when they got close enough to him they could smell the booze on his breath. It was a very strong smell, like it was seeping out through his pores and sticking to his clothes. He looked like a homeless person would during peace time, with a scruffy beard and glassy eyes. The sight was sort of scary and the older people of the camp shook their heads in distaste.

"Bring it in, bring it in" said Jay, waving his arms toward himself.

The rest of the camp crowded around until most of the people were present, including Faye and the rest of the supply teams. Marie yawned and almost fell backwards, forcing Cora to place a hand on her back to keep her steady. Tori smiled, remembering that Marie was a terrible morning person. Even when she would open the coffee shop for the first few hours she would be making lattes with her eyes closed.

"As some of you might have found out" said Jay, "we had a traitor in our midst." Several people started looking around at each other with eyebrows raised. "Fear not, for I have eradicated the mole."

Diana sighed and Tori rolled her eyes. Everyone around them started whispering, wondering who of them wasn't present to try and figure out who it was. Of course they didn't know the whole story, and for all they knew they had no reason not to trust Jay, so they hung on his word, waiting for him to continue.

"But, that doesn't mean that we don't still have a problem." He started pacing back and forth in front of the group, stumbling to the side a little. He caught himself and chuckled with his eyes on the ground, his smile quickly fading to a hard line with his lips pressed together. "I don't know exactly what all he told the other team. That obviously poses a problem."

"What do you plan to do about it?" asked Faye's friend, of which his name was still unknown.

"We're going on the offensive, for real this time."

He said the last part so quietly and calmly that it actually had Tori worried. Diana seemed to feel the same as her face reflected the same surprise and Marie was just standing there with her eyes closed. Cora was holding her up with a lazy smile but she seemed to sober up at the look from the other girls. She turned her attention back to Jay, who seemed to be surveying the group.

"I need some volunteers for a mission." He pointed to Faye and then to Manny and his guard friend. "Any of you guys up for it?"

"I am" said Faye. "My group will go."

"Sure" said Manny, with a sideways glance at Tori. "When do we leave?"

"We need a few more people first" said Jay. "Anyone else?"

"We'll go" said a voice from behind them. A guy from one of the other supply groups indicated him and a friend would be in.

"Perfect" said Jay, "meet in the council tent in five."

The girls grouped together when everyone dispersed back to their tents. Faye caught eyes with Diana and pulled her aside. They seemed kind of awkward together, which was to be expected after not having been in contact for a long time and after what had happened. They had suffered through their own version of the Conflict before any of the big stuff started happening to everyone else. Both of them had lost parents, friends, had been targets for murder. Both of them had fantastic gifts that no one else really knew about. They had a camaraderie that was different to other groups, and even though they didn't really know each other anymore, they still both knew that they would do anything to help each other if they could.

"Hey you" said Diana.

"Keeping everything together in the Mod Squad?" asked Faye.

"Sure. How's the supply running going?"

"Not the best honestly. We're running out of places to hit without driving hundreds of miles and the gas in this area is starting to run low."

"Had to happen sometime" said Diana. "I kind of assumed that we would have to move or something eventually since there's stuff we'll need that we'll have to travel to get."

"Yeah but then it makes it hard to farm if we have to uproot, and it's dangerous to move such a big group of people in the open."

"Well anyway I think we're gonna hit a fever pitch soon." The girls looked around at the campers waddling sleepily back to their tents. "Either we're going to work together with Calloway or one of our camps will be wiped out."

Faye looked somber and nodded her head. "Yeah, I just hope to be on the right side when that happens." She gave Diana a quick hug and then turned to head for the council tent without another word.

Diana returned to the other girls and stood with her arms wrapped around herself. She might not be very close with Faye anymore but she was still worried about her friend, going out on some dangerous mission doing who knows what against Calloway and his men. No one except the people going on the mission would know what they were doing so they would all have to just continue on with their day in worry, hoping that the team would come back in one piece.

Jay circled everyone around him inside the office and the smell of booze that rolled off his tongue was almost nauseating. Faye took a step back and Manny stifled a laugh, and the other two supply runners smirked with their eyes roaming everywhere but Jay's face. Eventually he cleared his throat and the rest of them started to pay closer attention.

"We're going to take the pipeline road out in two vehicles to the highway when it starts to get dark. We'll all be in one car with an extra driver and the other will be a decoy. When we hit the highway, we're all gonna jump out of the back quickly and hit the treeline, that way if anyone is watching from a distance they'll see the trucks going towards the city and keep watch on them instead of us."

Faye and Manny exchanged a look and then continued listening.

"We'll hike the best we can through the woods to Calloway's district and watch for a while. If we get an opening to do some damage, huzzah, let's do it. If not, we'll just take what we learn and bring it back to form a better plan."

"OK" said Faye, "but there's a problem."

"And what's that?" asked Jay.

"You're forgetting that that place is a fortress and he has at least thirty soldiers on the perimeter at all times."

"What's your point?" Jay looked at her like he was expecting a smart ass answer. "If you're nervous about going see yourself out and I'll find someone else."

"I'm not nervous about going and if you continue to talk to me that way I'll smash that fucking bottle over your head." She gestured to the empty liquor bottle on his desk and Jay looked over at it, then back at her.

"Fine. We leave when it starts getting dark. Any questions?"

Everyone chimed in at the same time with a simple no.

"Regular jobs til then?" asked Manny.

"Yes," said Jay, "but don't overdo it."

Dom climbed into the truck with Giana at the wheel and settled in for the drive. He kept stealing glances at her every few minutes and he noticed that at least three out of five times she was looking back at him, and the eye contact made him slightly nervous in more ways than one. She was the enemy, he couldn't actually be falling for her, could he? She worked with Calloway, did the same things that he did. He must have chosen her as his right hand for a reason, and with as brutal and unforgiving as he was she would have to be similar to carry out his requests. Then again, she had such soft eyes and such a kind smile that he simply couldn't believe that she was a bad person. It was really easy to click with her and it kind of worried him about what might happen over time. He didn't want to end up falling for her for obvious reasons, but if he did, what would happen then?

Giana started the truck and they took off with a few courtesy waves from some of the soldiers in the area. There was a sense of brotherhood in Calloway's faction that was hard to ignore, and he wondered if he was beginning to like it. He knew he was comfortable the first visit to the area, and being back with familiar faces and comforts was a good feeling. Of course he missed Tori and the other girls, but something about the rigid perfection and carefree camaraderie made him feel at home with Calloway. It was a double edged sword, one that he would have to be careful not to fall on.

Trees whipped past the windows in a blur of deep green as they sped towards the city. He wasn't exactly sure where rally point four was, but he did know that Jay's supply teams would be in the area. Hopefully it really would be just a recon mission and he wouldn't end up having to fire at anyone from the camp, especially if Tori or anyone else was involved. They knew when he decided to do what he was doing that there would be rough times where making a decision wasn't easy in terms of keeping his cover, but he was dead certain on one thing; if it came to hurting anyone from the group or blowing his cover, his cover would be in smithereens.

Eventually the city skyline came into view and the both of them sat up a little straighter. The city was mutual territory so anyone could be anywhere, meaning they always had to be on high alert. Giana's rifle sat between them on the seat and Dom's lay across his midsection pointing out the window. As the buildings grew closer he checked his rifle and made sure everything was ready to go and then checked hers the same way. She glanced at him and smiled and he couldn't help but smile back. After that moment he couldn't tell if the butterflies in his stomach were because of her or because of the job, but he didn't really care.

The truck slowed down and entered the city at a normal speed, staying on the outskirts close to the highway for a better chance of escape if need be. There was a grayish fog that hovered over the area because of the fires, and a light ash rained down that reminded Dom of Silent Hill. It was really eerie how everything seemed to have a gray tint to it even in the early morning sun, but he supposed it was good since the darkened sky would make it harder for them to be spotted by anyone else roaming the city streets. That said, it would also be harder for them to keep track of the people they were supposed to be watching, meaning they would have to get closer than normal which had him on edge. Giana seemed to notice his jumpiness and she reached a hand over to rest on his knee. She squeezed lightly with her eyes forward on the road and he covered her hand with his, thankful for a relaxing connection.

The truck pulled into a car wash that sat near a large intersection surrounded on all sides by gigantic buildings. Giana pulled all the way into the car wash area and parked there so the truck wouldn't be seen and proceeded to exit the vehicle. Dom did the same and they met up at the back entrance of the wash with their weapons in hand. He surveyed the area quickly to determine they were alone and when he turned to say something another mouth was on his before he could get the words out. He stumbled back a little bit but Giana caught him around the waist with one arm and steadied them with the other against the wall. He wrapped his arms around her and they kissed for a few seconds before breaking apart slowly. He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him and she smiled so wide it seemed her face might stay that way.

"Well that was..."

"Yeah, I uh, I couldn't help myself."

"That's OK with me" said Dom. "Plenty OK."

The two of them left that spot all smiles to find their way to the top of one of the buildings around the corner. She picked a hotel that had a nice big roof and pointed to it, indicating they would take the stairs and head up to see what they could find moving about the streets. It was a large building and it took them few minutes to get to the top, even in their tip-top shape, but it was worth it as the view from the roof was incredible. They could see the whole downtown area of the city in all of its former glory. He imagined that it would be a lot better looking if they sky wasn't so gray and everything wasn't covered in ash, but they had to take what they could get. Giana pulled a map out of one of her cargo pockets that was folded up inside a plastic bag. She took it out and unfolded the area they were in and pointed to a couple circles in pencil.

"We're here" said Giana, pointing to the first building. "We've scouted a four square block radius from this spot and the other circles are points of interest. Here we have a pharmacy," she pointed to the next circle to the right, "and over here there's a few restaurants."

"You guys have done your homework" said Dom.

"Yeah well, I figure since we're not sitting at home playing Modern Warfare anymore I'd rather be prepared than, you know, actually dead."

"No I get it, we don't get respawns in real life."

They both smiled with their eyes sweeping the streets. It was harder to track movement than it normally would be since the ash played tricks on their eyes, but they were both alert enough to concentrate hard and make the crucial distinction.

"We might be here for a while" said Giana, "so you might want to get comfortable."

Dom wasn't sure if it was the lack of family he was left with when Matthew died or being away from his friends, but he was really starting to feel comfortable with a female presence around him. Back before the Conflict he was easily shied away from big parties or other gatherings, not because he was socially awkward, but because he knew he would run into the inevitable situation where he would be face to face with a pretty girl and wouldn't know what to say. He could hang out with the guys all day and talk sports or technology no problem, but when it came to yucking it up with the ladies he had more difficulty. Matthew used to say it was because their parents had such a perfect marriage that he seemed to subconsciously think that he had to be perfect to click with someone, and while a part of him knew that to be nonsense, the other, more vocal part, drove him crazy thinking maybe it could actually be true. That said, he would instantly start to nitpick at everything about himself when he came in contact with a girl he was attracted to, wondering if his hair looked okay or if his shirt was stained. He ended up looking shy and sort of quirky to girls he'd met through work, and a lot of the time that wasn't actually a bad thing. There were a few dates he had gone on with a girl that brought her laptop to him to be fixed, and since she seemed to like his quietness they ended up seeing each other quite a bit. She was the studious type, like him, with dark skin and creamy brown eyes. It turned out she was only in town for the summer, though, visiting some cousins, and that when school came back around she was heading to her hometown in Mexico to do research for her thesis. He was sad to see her go, but thinking back he realized that the fleeting summer love they had was a nice teenage memory. The way he felt about Giana, on the other hand, was a lot more complicated.

The way the ash fell reminded him of snow, and the thought of the coming winter scared him a little. It would be a relief to the summer for sure, since he knew it would be getting unbearably hot really soon, but the harsh cold nights of the dead of winter didn't sound too inviting in a tent. Luckily it was still cold when they left so everyone still had a good amount of warm clothing to wear, even though laundry was going to be a big chore with all of the water being frozen. Most of the things they took for granted in peace time, like running water, electricity and indoor heat, had already become luxuries they didn't have access to, but they were getting used to it quick. Calloway's group had procured some washers and dryers from a nearby laundromat, easily done since no one really had any use for them anymore, and set them up in the rec building in the warehouse district. Other groups didn't have it so easy but tried and tested methods from days they only knew about from History class still worked a charm. Everyone took their turns learning new things like siphoning gas with a cut off garden hose or making torches with homemade napalm and old t-shirts. A person was only as good as their skillset so everyone beefed up their survivalist talents in hopes of having something to eat and fresh water, meaning it was increasingly harder to compete for the ever-dwindling resources.

Finite resources were the reason they were on the hotel rooftop that afternoon, and after a couple hours of staring off into the gray skies of downtown Denver their surveillance kicked into gear. Giana sat up straight and locked onto a target, simultaneously grabbing her binoculars from next to the ledge they were sitting on. Dom followed her eyes to see where she was looking and spotted the vehicle pulling down a side street about half a mile from them. Shortly after a second truck followed in behind them and both trucks pulled over next to a convenience store.

"Well that's different" said Giana.

"What is?" asked Dom.

"Usually the trucks split up to cover more ground. We never understood why they would stray so far from each other before since it would have been child's play to round them all up, but it seems like you spooked them."

"That may be a good thing, though. If they're scared they're going to tighten everything up, be on high alert twenty four seven. They aren't used to that so they'll end up getting tired pretty quick."

Giana smiled. "Good call. Let me radio this in and then we'll head down and see if we can get closer."

It took her about five minutes to get in contact with Calloway directly and tell him about the new movements of Jay's group. He didn't hear the response since he was busy keeping watch over the edge to see if the trucks moved, which they didn't. Two people stayed next to the trucks while the other two went inside, but he couldn't tell who was who. When Giana came back he gave her the thumbs up that they were good to move and they set out to stairwell.

Back on the street Giana checked the map, the folded area they were in still on top, and navigated their way through the side streets while they walked. He watched her check around them for landmarks they could use in case they got turned around, and he realized that she really was very good at what she did. Him and the girls were just winging it as they went along, but it seemed like Giana was really made for it. She exerted a sort of elegant power in the way she moved, deliberately and stealthy even though neither one of them knew exactly where they were going or what they were about to get into. He felt comfortable with her and that was yet another thing that would etch a mark in the attraction column, whether he liked it or not.

They moved quickly from street to street, staying low and watching behind them constantly. On the last street between them and the others they reached the final corner, stopping to get a peek around and find out what the situation was. Faye and another girl Dom didn't know stood by the vehicles while two more were inside that they couldn't see. Laying eyes on Faye made his heart pump a hundred miles an hour. He really hoped they wouldn't have to engage them in a firefight, since if he hurt Diana's friend he would never be able to forgive himself. Giana looked on for a few more seconds and then moved back, hands to her sides.

"I know you're nervous about engaging them" said Giana.

"No, it's not that it's just-"

"It's OK, I'm not going to fault you for not wanting to take out people you made friends with." Her eyes were soft and the way they shimmered made him want to kiss her again. "We're not here to fight, and hopefully we won't have to, but if it's them or us..."

"I know" said Dom.

She reached over and squeezed his arm before turning around and getting back to the situation at hand. It seemed awfully quiet, almost enough to make him uncomfortable. There were no birds due to the lack of people and the ash coming down thicker every hour so the large empty streets seemed lonely. He wondered for the space of a breath what it would be like to be the last person on Earth, and the overwhelming unoccupied space gave him a sudden sense of Agoraphobia that he tried desperately to rid himself of. He shook his head and closed his eyes for a few deep breaths and the feeling was gone.

Around the corner Faye and the other girl walked towards the door as the other two came out, one being Faye's guy friend and the other someone else he didn't know. They carried out armfuls of supplies, which couldn't be easily seen, and loaded the stuff into the back of each truck, being sure to separate the loads evenly in case one of the trucks was lost. Apparently they had thought putting all of their eggs in one basket was a bad move, and the fact that he and Giana were watching them meant they thought so for good reason. In the middle of getting everything loaded a beep sounded, two quick, sharp pulses, low enough that they could barely hear it. He looked at Giana questioningly and she looked back the same way, cluing each other in that they had heard the same thing. Faye pulled out a radio and held it up to talk but a loud voice came through first, echoing off the surrounding buildings. They couldn't make out what he said but as soon as the voice stopped everyone jumped into the trucks and reversed, turning around to go back towards the corner he and Giana were sitting at. Both of them got up and ducked inside the business on the corner and waited for the trucks to pass, then ran out toward the hotel.

"What do you think happened?" asked Dom in mid stride.

"I don't know but it sounded bad, we need to try and follow them the best we can."

The talking stopped as each of them saved their breath for running. Once they reached their own vehicle they were both too winded to talk so Dom scoured the map for possible exits routes they could use to catch up faster while Giana drove. The other vehicles weren't in sight by the time they reached the highway so they decided to head back towards the warehouse district since Jay's camp was on the way. There were still abandoned cars on the highway so driving too fast was almost guaranteed to end badly, especially if someone tried to set a trap by moving cars into certain spots to try and coerce a driver to steer a certain direction, usually into spike strip or by another car with someone waiting behind it with a shotgun to blow out the tires. It seemed like Faye and the others weren't too worried about it, though, since they were nowhere to be seen and they had only been about three minutes ahead. Dom hoped above all else that something hadn't happened to anyone at the camp, especially Tori or one of the other girls, and in that moment he remembered how much he ached to see them again.

When the pipeline road came into view both of them sat up a little straighter and got ready for whatever could be coming. Giana crossed over to the other side of the road and started down the pipeline, keeping to the edge of the trees the best she could. She drove a mile and a half before turning into the trees to turn the truck around so it was pointing back out toward the road. Dom opened his door and hopped out with his eyes trained in the direction of the camp, ears open to try and hear anything he could being carried on the wind. He could smell the bonfire and see smoke over the trees but no voices traveled that far.

"We need to be fast and silent" said Giana, cocking her rifle to make sure it was ready to fire.

"Yes ma'am" said Dom, and Giana's smile was one that he wouldn't soon forget.

Thanks to a wet spring in the area the trees were full-bodied and covered them well. They moved up the treeline as quickly as they could without making too much noise, stopping every few hundred feet to check around them in all directions. Another mile or so down the road they stopped to check and Dom laid eyes on a guard making a circular pattern around a small boulder. He was at the ready with both hands on his weapon, eyes constantly sweeping the trees. There wouldn't be an easy way to get around him so they would just have to stay close to that spot and hope that someone would come to give him information on what was happening, if anything. The worst part of recon was always the waiting.

It didn't take long for something to happen. Not even five minutes after they had arrived within seeing distance of the guard two more came running after him, stopping and waving their arms back towards the camp. The guard turned and ran with them, leaving an open spot for Dom to move across the clearing and get closer. Giana stayed where they were so they would have eyes on both sides, communication to be done with hand signals. Before he had a chance to get comfortable in his new spot the sound of engines had him moving back to the treeline on the opposite side. Four trucks were making their way through the pipeline road with Faye and the others at the back. Manny was in the second truck with Cora and Marie was in the third with Faye's friend and someone else. Seeing people that he knew and cared about ramped up his adrenaline and made his need to know what was going on much more dire. After the trucks passed he ran across the clearing back to Giana with a plan in his head.

"You need to get out of here" said Dom. "They're going to see the truck within minutes and either have someone turn around or radio in that we're in the area."

"Why just me? Where are you going?" asked Giana.

"I still have friends in camp, remember? I'm gonna see if I can get close enough to flag one of them down and get some answers."

She nodded stiffly and checked her watch. "If you're not back by tomorrow morning I'm coming to get you."

"If I'm not back by tomorrow morning Jay has probably had me killed." He chuckled and swept the trees again for moving bodies.

"Not funny."

Before he could comment they heard an engine, at least one of the trucks coming back towards camp. As soon as the truck went by them they saw that only one person was in it, realizing at the same time the others were probably looking for them. Voices echoed through the trees and instantly they both turned back to back, guns out and eyes open. They were being hunted.

Dom launched forward with a quick grab of Giana's arm and led them deeper into the woods. Their only chance of getting away clean would be to disappear into the trees and wait the others out. They ducked and weaved around bushes and large branches until they were winded from running then caught their breath behind a large tree. Giana sat with her back against the trunk while he crouched facing her so he could see around and spot any oncoming pursuers. They could still hear voices, no doubt their running was loud enough that their footsteps could be traced to a general direction. None of the pursuers were in sight but he kept his eyes peeled, glancing side to side every few seconds. The rest was quick and they were back on their feet, moving southeast away from the camp. Squirrels and other small woodland creatures scurried out of the way into their hidey holes as the two of them thundered by, trying to put as much space between them and their potential captors as they could. Everything seemed to be OK until, to their horror, they released there were more people after them than they thought.

The plan they had silently agreed on was to head south and then curve back towards the highway if possible, but it seemed that Jay's men had thought ahead. The first group that had begun the chase were trying to lead them in that direction since, Dom guessed, one of the other trucks stopped a ways up the road and the occupants were attempting to hit them on their flank. He stopped dead in the middle of running and changed direction, a near fatal move that had him roll his ankle on some leaves. It didn't hurt at the moment due to the massive amount of pure adrenaline coursing through his veins, but as soon as they settled down he wouldn't be able to move very well. Giana looked worried at his half-run half-limp but she carried on full speed beside him. They ran for what seemed like hours before three more people showed up on their left about fifty yards ahead of them, and sure enough gunshots echoed through the trees. Bullets ricocheted past their heads but they plowed on, ducked low to avoid death or serious injury as long as possible.

After another half a mile Giana crouched behind a tree and took aim with her rifle, popping off shots in the direction of the encroaching threat. Dom was still a little worried since even though most of the people he saw he didn't know, he didn't get a good look at the people that were flanking them from left, so it could have been Faye or Marie or Cora. He couldn't think about that, though, especially when bullets were flying past him at an uncomfortable distance. Voices from behind them shouted from two different spots when Giana started firing, presumably an order to halt or proceed with caution. One thing they didn't know was whether they were wanted dead or alive, but having had that encounter with Jay he guessed it was the former. Two more shots fired from next to him and a scream ripped through the air, alerting them that Giana had hit someone. They couldn't tell who it was or where the person was hit, but it was enough to make Jay's men back off. As soon as they retreated a bit Giana tapped Dom on the knee and got up, heading deeper into the woods.

They continued on until they reached the river, though a few miles down from where the camp fished. It was mid-afternoon so the overhead sun was enough to bake a cake and the fresh river water looked inviting. The two of them made eye contact with each other and nodded simultaneously, then walked into the water with their rifles over their heads. This part of the river was more shallow since it went round a bend about fifty feet from them so it was possible to walk, but it wasn't easy. They were exhausted from the adrenaline and running through the woods so fighting the current was the last thing they wanted to do. The only thing that kept them from getting swept away was the refreshing coolness of the water on their skin.

On the other side of the river they continued through the woods until the water couldn't be heard anymore, giving them ample peace of mind that they'd lost their pursuers. Giana was a little shaken up, understandably, and Dom was a virtual basket case. His hands shook so hard he could barely keep them still, something that wasn't missed by Giana.

"Water was a little chilly" said Dom.

"Yeah it was. Nice to cool down the core temperature, though" said Giana.

"So what now? Wait it out here until it gets dark and try to make our way back to the highway?"

"I think so. If you want to try and trap some food I'll get-" She was cut off mid-sentence by a beep of her radio. "Sir?"

"We got intel that an attack is imminent. You need to get back here. Now."