A young girl with icy blue eyes and dark brown hair sat on a rug resting on top of a wooden floor, a simple radio in front of her. Meanwhile, an older woman with brown hair and grey eyes was in the kitchen boiling water on a stove.

      The radio spoke, "August 10, 2066. The war wages on as countless countries have already fallen into anarchy. World leaders are struggling to keep order while crime rates across the world have hit an all-time high. Paranoia has gripped the population as many have taken precautions to ensure their own survival. Some believe this war had been brewing for years as mysterious tensions between countries across the globe while others believe this is a punishment inflicted by a higher power to punish the people of Earth for the evil we have done."

      The young girl leaned forward a bit as she listened to a sudden passion within the man's voice coming through the radio. The voice spoke, "Although many have lost hope of a brighter future, the Resistance grows to overcome the darkness of what some are referring to as the Blackout. We refuse to stand by as our lives are ripped from us by an unseen enemy. We will fight to protect the people and cities we love! Some may call us crazy but we know the truth of this war and we will be prepared when it reveals its ugly face to the world."

      Suddenly, the radio turned off. The girl looked up to see the woman standing over her, "No radio during dinner, Aisling. Besides, you know I don't like it when you listen to that Resistance propaganda."

      Aisling frowned before sitting at the kitchen table. The two began eating quietly before Aisling looked up at the woman. The woman glanced up before looking down again as she said, "I know you like listening to the radio, but I can't have you being influenced by those delusional Resistance members."

      Aisling mumbled as she looked down and played with her food, "They're not delusional..."

      The woman looked up again and retorted, "A secret terrorist group that turned every country against each other with some made up superweapon? Honey, I don't know if you've noticed but that sounds like it came from the imagination of a mad man."

      Aisling snapped her gaze up before snapping at her, "Why else would every country just turn on each other, mum? Former allies launched full-scale attacks on each other!"

      The woman stood up and said, "Tensions were growing for years! This was bound to happen! You can't just chalk everything up to some made up enemy to make yourself feel better! The Resistance is just delusional, paranoid idiots who think the world is out to get them!"

      Aisling lowered her head before her mother quietly sat back down, letting out a long sigh. She said softly, "I'm sorry, hun. I'm just worried you'll get yourself into serious danger if you believe those people. You're only fifteen."

      Abruptly, Aisling stood with her head still lowered. Her mother expected the teenager to snap again but instead, she quietly walked away before going upstairs to her room. The woman dragged a hand down her face before muttering, "If only your father were here..."

      Meanwhile, Aisling grabbed a backpack and began packing her things as she muttered incoherently to herself. Stomping back downstairs, Aisling stopped when she heard her mother's voice from the kitchen, "I don't know what I'm gonna do with her... She's gotten more and more aggressive lately. She lashes out more than usual. Not to mention the fact she's beginning to believe those... Those Resistance people."

      Aisling slowly crept towards the doorway, pressing her ear to the wall to listen while staying out of sight just beside the doorway. Her mother continued, "Whenever I look at her, all I see is her father." Aisling looked at a picture hanging up on the wall. The picture depicted her as a young child, her mother, and a man.

      The man had dark brown hair and icy blue eyes. Unlike Aisling's mother and herself, the man didn't smile. Aisling heard her mother keep speaking, "I can't stand her eyes. It's as if she's staring through me anytime she looks at me. I just want to end it all."

      Aisling cautiously peeked into the kitchen. Her mother had her back to her, a phone held up to her ear with a hand over her mouth. She seemed to be cutting up food to be cooked despite the two having just eaten.

      Aisling asked quietly, "Mom? A-Are you okay..?"

      The woman tensed up before slowly looking over her shoulder at the teenager. Aisling noticed that the cutting board had no food on it and that her mother was wielding a hatchet as if she were going to cut a slab of meat with a cleaver.

      Aisling's icy blue eyes stared into her the woman's grey ones. The woman's expression changes to one of terror, her pupils constricting as she dropped the phone. It hit the ground and broke into pieces.

      Aisling walked towards her carefully as she asked, "Mom, what's wrong?" She never broke eye contact, reaching for her mother's shoulder.

      Suddenly, Aisling felt a stinging pain under her eye, blood trickling down her cheek. She stepped back, her eyes wide as her mother was now facing her. Tears were in her eyes as she was slightly hunched over, her chest heaving as she grabbed the hatchet. Blood dripped off the edge.

      Aisling reached up to her face, feeling the fresh cut under her eye as she continued to stare at her mother. When her mother spoke, it was as if her voice was laced in venom, "Stop staring at me..."

      Aisling frowned, gazing at her mother in the eyes as she went to speak, "Mom..."

      The woman lashed out angrily, "I said stop staring at me! I'll take those eyes out if I have to!" Aisling stepped back until her back hit the wall.

      Aisling's voice cracked as she said, "Mom, please. Y-you're scaring me."

      The woman broke into a fit of broken laughter, dropping to her knees. She released the hatchet as she tangled her fists in her hair. Aisling slowly made her way towards her, resting a hand on her shoulder.

      Aisling found herself on the ground as her mother lashed out again, pinning her to the ground with her hands around Aisling's neck. Her eyes widened as she clawed at her mother's hands, struggling to breathe.

      Out of the corner of her eye, Aisling saw the hatchet laying on the ground nearby. She reached over and gripped the handle as darkness began to creep into the edges of her vision. Quickly, she kicked her mother off.

      The two recovered, Aisling taking a defensive stance with fear evident in her expression. Clutching the hatchet tightly, she watched her mother grab a fork before laughing, "I'll pick out your eyes! I'll never have to stare at them again!"

      As her mother ran towards her, Aisling screwed her eyes shut. She swung blindly, feeling the hatchet's momentum halted mid-swing. It became heavier towards the end as she heard the sound of metal falling to the tile floor.

      Slowly, Aisling opened one eye. Her mother's face had an expression of shock frozen on it, her mouth agape. The hatchet was buried within the side of her skull, blood trickling down the blade and handle onto Aisling's hand.

      Letting go of the hatchet, Aisling stepped aside as the limp body crashed to the ground with the hatchet firmly embedded into its skull. Looking at her hand, Aisling watched the blood trickle down her arm. Clenching her fist, she said quietly, "I can't stay here..."

      Walking throughout the house, Aisling gathered whatever supplies she felt she may need into a backpack. Within her room, a stuffed rabbit laid on her bed. She gently set it in the backpack before mumbling to herself, "I'll need a weapon for self-defense..."

      In search of a weapon, Aisling walked into her mother's room before opening a closet. She found a long, wooden box with the name, "Alroy," carved into it. Opening it, Aisling found a lone sniper rifle. Aisling strapped it onto her back, adjusting her backpack so it was comfortable.

      Aisling made her way downstairs, staring at the body on the kitchen floor. Slowly, Aisling walked over before placing a foot on the corpse's back. Then, she grabbed the hatchet, struggling a bit to get it unlodged before sticking it in her backpack.

      After gathering her supplies, Aisling dragged the body outside before dragging it to a tree. Then, she grabbed a shovel to begin digging a grave. When she finally had a grave sufficient enough, Aisling carefully lowered the body into it before covering it back up. Finally, she grabbed two pieces of wood, making them into a cross and holding them together with some rope before sticking it in the ground for the grave.

      As Aisling began to walk away, she looked back at the house with a frown before saying quietly, "Goodbye..."

      The sound of a heavy door shutting snapped Aisling back to reality as she found herself staring at the abandoned house. Molly was standing on the porch with her goggles on her head. Aisling asked, "Why do you always have those goggles?"

      Molly replied with a shrug, "I like them. Besides, they could come in handy eventually."

      Aisling shook her head, "Whatever. Let's just get to Bellheir."

      Molly was caught by surprise when Aisling tossed her a gun. Fumbling a bit to catch it, Molly gripped it tight before asking, "What's this for?"

      As Aisling climbed onto the motorcycle, she replied, "I noticed the only thing you had for a weapon was a switchblade stuffed in your boot. A gun is more useful if someone has a longer ranged weapon like a sword."

      Looking down at the gun, Molly noticed it was a modified pistol. Aisling explained, "There's a small knob on the side. Slide it and it'll become lethal. Otherwise, it simply stuns someone with some electricity. If we ever get separated in the wild, three shots five seconds apart means help. Got it?"

      When Molly nodded, Aisling said, "Good." Pressing the back of her neck, a helmet formed on Aisling's head again. Molly climbed on behind her and asked, "What's that metal on the back of your neck?" She pulled her goggles over her eyes.

      Aisling replied simply, "Nothing you need to worry about, kid." The two began driving through the forest once again, both quiet as they made their way towards Bellheir.

      Eventually, the two came across a ravine. When they stopped, Molly peered in and said, "We should probably go around."

      Aisling retorted, "I've already wasted enough time. Just hold on, alright?"

      Molly nodded before asking, "What're you going to-"

      Suddenly, the motorcycle began going backward before quickly accelerating forward. Molly's breath caught as Aisling leaned forward, her eyes trained on a boulder that had been eroded enough by rain to form a crude ramp. Molly screwed her eyes shut as she felt the motorcycle fly into the air.

      After a few moments, the motorcycle hit the ground. The impact caused Molly to feel as if her heart just got lodged into her throat. Slowly opening her eyes, she heard Aisling ask, "Are you okay, kid?"

      Molly nodded before gathering her nerves and saying, "We shouldn't be far. We'll be past the treeline soon." Although Molly couldn't see Aisling's face, she felt the older female visibly relax before beginning to drive again.

      Soon enough, the two could see a small city in the distance once they were out of the trees. Aisling spoke up, "Once we get there, we can take a break. You're probably hungry." Molly nodded a little.

      When the two arrived at the city, they had to cross a checkpoint. Molly observed their surroundings as Aisling talked to the guard. The city had buildings built with three to five stories at most, much different from Ardosa with its tall buildings reaching towards the sky.

      Aisling began driving again before pulling up by a shipyard. She said, "There should be a sort of hotel we can stay in here. Normally there's one by the shipyard since tourists used to get tired on the ride here. Not like there was much for them to see here anyway."

      Molly followed as Aisling walked down the boardwalk, watching as she read a sign with odd symbols on it. Molly asked, "What's that?"

      Aisling replied, "It's Resistance Code. We made it during the Blackout to encrypt sensitive files and letters."

      Molly asked, "Who would try to read it?"

      Aisling explained, "The people who caused the war."

      After a few moments, Molly asked, "Who caused it? Nobody ever really told me why the war happened."

      Aisling turned around to look at her as if she were trying to judge whether she should tell Molly or not. Molly began feeling uncomfortable since Aisling's eyes seemed to pierce through her. It didn't help the color was an icy shade of blue, making her gaze unsettling to be under.

      Eventually, Aisling sighed and replied, "I'll tell you later. Now's not a great time. It's kind of a long story anyway."

      Molly asked, "Why are you guys still called the Resistance anyway? What're you resisting anymore?"

      Aisling thought for a few moments before replying, "I guess it's because what people know us as. We were originally called Dawnguard but the public preferred to refer to us as the Resistance."

      After a few moments of silence, Molly asked, "So, why are you still in it? Is it really needed anymore?"

      The question seemed to put Aisling into deep thought, staring at the sky. Molly began to wonder if she upset Aisling in some way before Aisling spoke up, "Honestly, I don't really know. I guess we're all... Scared."

      Molly said, "But you said Resistance don't get scared."

      Aisling looked back down at her before saying, "Everyone gets scared, kid. If you don't get scared. You aren't human." A familiar pang was felt in Aisling's chest as she remembered Arden telling her the same thing.

      Molly thought to herself, 'Either she's beginning to trust me more or she doesn't realize she's contradicting herself from earlier.' She asked, "So, what're you guys scared of?"

      Aisling replied, "The world I guess. The media demonizes us. It makes it hard for any former Resistance to find jobs in the real world. People are scared that we'll be really violent so they normally avoid us. That and a lot of the Resistance is paranoid. We never got rid of the people who caused the war. We kinda just... delayed their plans I think."

      Molly asked, "Does that mean there could be another one..?"

      Aisling looked at Molly, seeing the expression of fear plastered on her face. Her expression softened as she felt a sense of pity for the teenager and thought, 'She's only seventeen. Born at the beginning of the war. Has she ever even seen the outside world? No wonder why she seems fascinated by the boats. She probably never traveled outside of Ardosa.'

       Kneeling down, Aisling ruffled the teenager's already messy hair as she replied, "Probably not for a long time, kid. Don't worry. We may have not completely gotten rid of them but we messed them up pretty good."

      Molly nodded before Aisling stood again, looking at a building in front of them, "We'll stay here. It's a Haven."

      Molly asked, "What's a haven?"

      Aisling explained, "Small Havens are kinda like bed and breakfasts for Resistance members to avoid hostiles. The larger ones are like small communities for Resistance members. Normally they aren't needed in places like these since Toraigh Island is mostly controlled by Resistance members after it seceded from Ireland. We kinda act like that old martial law thing where the military takes over to run the country if there's ever a crisis that causes the former government to become obsolete."

      Molly struggled a bit to grasp the concept but didn't question any further. The two walked in and after Aisling paid with odd coin-like things. They were black circles with a missing center. In the center, there was a bird with its wings spread while flying up.

      When Aisling got their room keys, Molly followed close behind Aisling to the rooms as she asked, "What did you pay that lady with?"

      Aisling looked back at her and replied, "Resistance currency. It's called Etherium."

      Molly had a confused look on her face as she questioned, "Why do you guys need your own currency?"

      Aisling explained, "It's not really just ours. It's standard across Toraigh Island. It succeeded from Ireland during the war five years back since it wasn't able to provide much support. But, social structures collapsed since we had no government of our own and the Euro became worthless here. Instead of using Euros like Ireland, the Resistance created its own currency so we could function internally independently. Then, it was adopted by the rest of the island."

      Molly mumbled, "That just seems complicated."

      Aisling retorted, "Hey, I'm not the one who makes the rules. Besides, it's hard for people to think rationally in the middle of a war. Especially when you're trying to fix you're fucked up infrastructure."

      Eventually, they made it to their rooms on the top floor. The rooms were fairly cozy and there was a window overlooking the coast. Aisling said, "These rooms are conjoined. So, if we have to stay the night, you can always get me if you need anything. I'm gonna go get us some food so you stay here, alright?"

      Molly nodded before sitting on her bed. She began unpacking her bag, eventually pulling out the pistol Aisling gave her. Setting it aside, she said to herself, "I can learn to use it later."

      A long, white bar sitting on the dresser caught Molly's attention. Out of curiosity, she walked up to it and pressed a small, blue button. A screen rose out of the bar, causing Molly to jump back as the screen came to life with colors and sounds. Tilting her head to the side, Molly was entranced by what the screen depicted.

      When Aisling came back, she found Molly watching the television with a look of wonder in her eyes. Molly eventually looked back and jumped up as she explained excitedly, "I pressed a button and this screen thing rose up! Then, it showed this creature with a girl and it was caring for her and- and-"

      Aisling cut her off, "Hey, calm down. Have you never seen a television before?"

      Molly shook her head, "Not like that. What's that white thing on it?"

      Aisling looked at the television and raised an eyebrow, "Um, a girl?"

      Molly shook her head again before pointing at the wolf, "No, that!"

      Realization hit Aisling as she thought, 'She's never been off the island. She's never seen a nonmutated animal.' She replied, "That's a wolf."

      Looking at the television, Molly gasped, "That's what a wolf looks like? They're so cute! Why do the ones around here look so scary?"

      Aisling replied, "Toraigh Island has high levels of radiation. That radiation causes animals to mutate. Now no more questions, alright? I'm tired and couldn't find anyone willing to give us a ride to America yet." Outside, the sun was beginning to set.

      Molly grabbed some of the food out of the bags and began eating. She said, "Tomorrow, you have to tell me about what caused the war like you said you would."

      Aisling waved a hand in the air with her back to Molly as she walked through the door to her room while saying, "Whatever, kid. Just go to sleep." Molly noticed the slight limp Aisling had and thought to herself, 'That wasn't like that earlier... I'll ask her tomorrow if it's still like that.'

      Eventually, Molly turned off the television and laid down on her bed. She set her goggles on the nightstand before staring out the window. She said to herself, "I wonder why Ash wants to go to the United States so badly... I'll try to get more out of her tomorrow."

      Reaching over, Molly turned off her lamp before rolling onto her side. Soon, she felt sleep overtake her.

      Meanwhile, Aisling stared at the ceiling with half closed eyes. She sat up abruptly when she thought she heard a loud thud. Narrowing her eyes before seeing a figure out of the corner of her vision. Abruptly, she went to grab where the figure's throat would be before finding there was nothing there.

      Footsteps came from behind Aisling, causing her to whip around before realizing there was only a wall behind her. Shadowy figures crept in the corners of her eyes. She closed her eyes and buried her hands in her hair, scratching as she growled, "Fucking aye. There's nothing there, chill out."

      Crawling back into bed, Aisling kept her eyes closed as she tried to fall asleep. A series of noises throughout the night prevented her from sleeping soundly as she tossed and turned frustratedly. Eventually, her exhaustion swept over her in a final attempt to make her fall asleep. Finally, Aisling managed to fall asleep.