When Kaia woke up, daylight had broken. The car was stopped, parked right in the middle of an empty road in the dilapidated city. Kaia got up and out of the car. Chris was up front, fiddling under the hood. He cursed to himself, messing with the chrome parts that made up the engine.

"What happened?" Kaia asked.

"Poor girl shit herself," Chris said. He stood up straight, putting his hands on his hips. "I've had her remodeled so many times, but that doesn't change the fact that she was built in the 1960s, so sometimes she just..."

"So, no car?"

"Yep, we're gonna have to leg it."

"...Leg it?"

"That means walk, dumb ass."

Chris knelt down in front of the car, putting his hand on the closed hood. "Hey. I love you. And I'm coming back for you, I promise."

He kissed the logo on the front of it before straightening himself out, grabbing his satchel. "C'mon, let's roll."

"Do you know where we're going?"

"Yeah! I've been down this way a thousand times. Now hurry up. And don't make too much noise, zombies could hang out around here."

Kaia shivered. She'd almost forgotten about zombies. Granted that gave her a lot to worry about. 'Zombies' was just the general nickname they gave anything that wasn't a vampire, werewolf, or witch. Thankfully, the stereotypical walking dead weren't really a thing they had to worry about.

"Don't be a pissbaby," said Chris. "There's nothing to be too worried about. At least for me. For you, you might want to keep some of that training in mind."

"Yeah, okay," Kaia grumbled.

They walked for a while, the clouds parting and the sun starting to beat down upon their heads. Kaia could feel sweat on her forehead, and pulled her thick hair back into a ponytail, but that didn't seem to help much. She sighed, walking over to an old bench and sitting down.

"Can we take five?"

"I thought stamina was part of your training, little miss guard."

"Yeah, I got a D in that aspect."

Chris chuckled, sitting down next to her and crossing his legs. She looked around. The part of the city they were in used to be a place for window shopping, it seemed, but now he buildings were decrepit and emptied of most, if not all, of their contents.

"I used to come here a lot," Chris said. "You know, before the war."

"Really?" Kaia asked. "What was it like?"

"Busy," Chris replied. "Full of people, all the time, even during off seasons. Everything was overpriced but I still came here every Friday. That was my day off. I'd go get myself a lunch at a local cafe, eat at the oceanfront, pop into a few shops, and then stop at my favorite one. It was mainly my favorite because they sold candy in the back."

Kaia smiled. "That sounds really nice."

"It was. I miss it. Now those stores don't even exist anymore. This part of the city was completely ripped through by 2025. Your kind is brutal, my dear. They tend not to leave any stone unturned."

"Except for the Raymour and Flanigan," Kaia said. "...That's a store, right?"

Chris snorted. "Yes, a furniture store... It was intact because the genius that originally captured it right when the war started kept it meticulously maintained and protected. Met him a short while after my town was obliterated and we needed a new homebase. Took us in very kindly, since he was good with other vampires as long as we followed his rules. Then I killed him so we wouldn't have to follow his rules."

"Chris!" Kaia cried.

"What? It's a dog eat dog world out there. Not my fault that I always wanted to live in a furniture store when I was a kid. Follow your dreams, laptop. Follow your fucking dreams."

Kaia rolled her eyes, standing up and continuing to walk along the desolate road. She could picture this place being full of people like it once was. She could practically smell the cooking food in the air, hear the sounds of the chatter, the music playing over the broken loudspeakers. But now, it was dead silent, the only sound to be heard was of her and Chris's footsteps reverberating around the ruins. She felt a prickling on the back of her neck as she heard another set join them. It was a quick and cracking walk, clueing her in that it was some kind of quadrupled. She attempted to glance behind her, but Chris planted his hand firmly on the back of her head.

"Don't look at it," he grumbled. "Just keep walking."

"Is that-?"

"Don't say it's name, either," he hissed. "Just don't say a fucking word."

They continued to walk, tension heavy in the air. She could hear the Skinwalker behind them, it's heavy step indicating it's intimidating size. The worst images fluttered through her mind. In the textbook, she had just been shown stereotypical art of a Native American witch wearing a wolf's skin, but she knew that they could make themselves look nightmarish if they wanted to. Werewolf-like, even. But it was easy to tell the difference. Werewolves didn't leave a sour feeling in your gut and a twisting in your heart.

"I can't take this anymore," Kaia whispered. "We have to do something!"

"If you folks learned any better, it's to just avert your eyes. Don't fucking look at it, Kaia. If you look at it, I'm gonna let it kill you."

"Wait... Chris are you scared?"

"I'm half Navajo, of course I'm scared! These were the only fucking things my dad ever believed in! Fuck god, fuck ghosts, but these? He knew they existed, and he was terrified of them. That made me terrified too from a young age. I fucked with wendigos and other creepy folklore back then, but I never fucked with these guys. My grandma literally slapped my cousin once for name dropping em'. We take this shit seriously."

Kaia took a deep breath. "Well, I respect your cultural view, but, uh.. I was trained to fight, not to cower away in fear."

"Says the girl who nearly pissed her pants the first time a vampire tried to sweet talk her."

"I was not going to-! Ugh. Forget it."

Kaia broke out of Chris's grasp and whipped around, freezing when she saw the Skinwalker. Just as she predicted, it was huge. It was taking the form of a large black wolf, it's brown eyes appearing fully human, only serving to make it more terrifying. Well, the Navajo were certainly right to fear these creatures. She regretted not listening to Chris, but then again, she was doing her job. This is what she had been training to do for almost two years. She took the gun out of her pocket and fired. The Skinwalker hopped backwards in an almost comedic manner, as if it had never expected the small, unassuming women to be armed. It ran off, deciding that the two of them weren't worth it. Chris finally turned around.

"Well shit," he breathed. "You're definitely brave and dumb."

"Like I said, I'm just doing what I was trained to do," said Kaia. "We're Just lucky that it wasn't a FleshGait, those things are a million times creepier."

"I can take a FleshGait anytime. A Skinwalker? Fuck that. You can handle all Skin-Walker related cases from now on."

"Skin-Walkers are witches, it wouldn't have even hurt you!"

"You sure about that?" Chris asked. "Cause I'm pretty sure my fear was just making my flesh taste better."

Kaia sighed, a small smile on her face. "At least now I know you're not invincible. Which is probably bad news for me, considering I'm alone with you in the middle of the Outlands."

"Get over it," Chris said. "You're better off here with me than being pushed onto your knees behind the facility and shot execution style. Or, you know, however they do execution these days."

"Usually it's just arsenic," Kaia said.

"Arsenic?! Jesus Christ on the fucking cross, that's a slow ass death! That's what vintage ladies used to poison their loved ones and get their life insurance policies! That's like a fucking million steps away from what we used back before the war to execute!"

"I guess they just want people to suffer in their deaths so it discourages others from following in their footsteps." Kaia said matter-of-factly.

"Girlie, you are talking about this way to casually. Like, you know how fucked up this all is, right?"

Kaia shrugged. "I mean, I've never really thought about it... I just always knew that's what happens to people who do bad things. They're punished, and they die."

Chris shook his head. "Again, fucked up. You humans never change."

"You were human too, once."

"Yeah, but I never made anyone drink arsenic, so..."

They walked in silence for a while longer, the baking sun still causing the heat to rise around them. Chris took a pamphlet out of his bag and started to fan himself with it, while Kaia pulled her sweatshirt off, wrapping it around her waist. After another hour or so, they were walking through a residential part of the city. The houses were just as torn up as the buildings. One stood out, however. A large white house, completely undamaged aside from some chipping paint.

"Whoa," Kaia said. "Does someone live there?"

"Yep," Chris nodded. "This is William Johnson's house. He does dealing, trading, and shit like that. He managed to hook up his computer to Japan's internet services since they're one of the only places that still has it. Fucking kudos to him. He does a lot of trade and communication, is what I'm saying. He's step one to completing this coup of yours."

"I don't want to overthrow the government! Just stop their experiments."

"Honey, if you think you're gonna be able to do this without pulling an Anastasia Moore then you have another thing coming."

He pushed open the gate, walking up the long pathway to the house. They passed under a magnolia tree, which Kaia marveled at for a moment, running her fingertips over its wilting blossoms. They finally came up on the porch, and Chris knocked on the door, crossing his arms. The door swung open to reveal a tall, muscular man, his long blonde hair pulled Back into a ponytail.

"Well, Well, if it isn't Christian Pollack! Come back to defeat me in another game of chess?"

"It's not the 1800s anymore, pal, so stop fucking talking like it is, okay? I've told you that, like, five times now. Anyway, I'm here because I need your help. I want an army."

William raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you partake in battle?"

"Since I met this kid," Chris said, elbowing Kaia.

She smiled politely at the vampire. "Um... hi."

Williams eyebrows shot up. "Good Lord! And a human too! Did prison really change you that much!?"

"How'd you find out I was in prison?" Chris asked.

"I hacked into the compounds documents after I failed to see you drive back past the house the day you went shopping," William said. "No worries, I will inform your friends that your not dead. Now, come in... and leave the human girl outside."

"I'm not leaving her outside like a dog. She's coming in, or you're not allowed access to the south tunnel anymore."

William narrowed his eyes. "You wouldn't."

"I would. Business is business, brother. You're not my friend, you're not my family, and you sure as hell aren't my boyfriend. You're my cooperater. And if you stop cooperating, then all the little perks you get from my end of the bargains will be null and void. Capisce? Bow let the human in, it's sweltering out here."

"You're a right bastard, Christian," William sighed, but opened the door all the way. "Very well. You may come in. Please take off your shoes, I just cleaned the floors."

Kaia obeyed, slipping off her boots. The cool wood on her feet was a relief. Chris carelessly kicked off his own boots, walking down the main hallway after William. They entered a grand dining room, where most of the chairs were still covered in ropes to prevent people from sitting down.

"Was this a museum?" Kaia asked.

"Good observation!" William said before Chris had a chance to open his mouth. "This house was built by the Stone family in 1824. They were wealthy plantation owners. This house has barely even been renovated ever since. The only things that have ever been changed about it are the residents and the furniture. Ah, if walls could talk..."

He started to ramble on with a longer, more detailed history of the old house. Chris looked over at Kaia, his expression sour.

"Thanks for getting him going," Chris said. "Now he's not going to shut up until he finished telling us about how significant the peanut crop was in the Carolinas."

They were led down a long, narrow set of stairs as William spoke, which presumably lead down to what would have been the servants' quarters back in the day. Now, it severed as a huge tech room for William. Kaia stared in awe at all the computers. They still existed for creating and storing documents, but the internet was a thing of the past. The humans, at least the ones in the U.S, seemed to collectively agree that since it was the internet that helped give birth to the war, they were better off in not restoring it once it was inevitably taken down.

"This is where the magic takes place!" William said. "Now, how many soldiers do you require? 20, 40, 50? Mind you, the price will increase the more you add."

Chris thought for a moment. "... I don't know, I've never done this before."

"My compound Is pretty big," Kaia cut in. "So we'll probably need a lot."

"Hmm... pretty big... a lot... okay," William said.

He sat down at one of the computers, starting to type something. Text popped up on the screen in Japanese, but he closed it out, instead going for another document. He worked for a minute, not revealing his thought process until the very end of his searching.

"Alright, I recommend a battalion of about 80 strong, but I'll send for 90 just in case a few refuse so you may end up with an odd number. This should account for any that get taken down by bullets, as the humans in that compound are heavily armed from what I've heard. Now, that will be 500 meters."

"I don't speak metric, genius. Now, how fucking many?"

William licked his lips, turning back to his computer for a moment and typing something in.

"... I'm requesting that you give me approximately 1,640.42 feet of your territory to have as my own."

"That's outrageous!" Chris cried out. "Over 1,000 feet for under 90 people!? For-fucking-get It!"

William sighed. "How about if I keep the price the same but increase the amount to 100?"

Chris thought for a moment. "... I don't know... what kind of people will you requesting, exactly?"

Kaia left the room, not particularly interested in the negotiation aspect. She didn't care how Chris made it happen, as long as she were able to go back to her compound and save the people there from a tortuous death. She ran her fingers along the wall, deciding to go back upstairs. She went into the dining room, turning and heading all the way up the other flight of stairs that led to the very top floor of the house. From the window, she could see most of the broken suburban neighborhood, a shadow of what once was streets full of meticulously maintained and beautifully painted historic homes.

She heard a soft groan come from the room adjacent to her. She reached down, fumbling for the gun, managing to pull it out of her pocket. She looked inside the chamber. Seven bullets left. She took a deep breath, holding her gun at the ready as she slipped into the room. On the floor, she saw a girl not much older than her. Her clothes were old and dirty, and she had obvious scarring on her neck and wrists. She was William's feedbag. Kaia swallowed back a cry, instead putting her gun away and approaching the other girl carefully.

"Hey," she said softly. "I'm Kaia. Are you okay... ?"

The girl seemed to be barely aware of what was going on around her. Her eyes were staring up at the ceiling, glassy and pale blue. There was life in them, but there didn't seem to be that much going on, either. Kaia dared to touch her on the shoulder, and the girl groaned softly again. Kaia knew she had to take action. It was her duty to save other humans. She picked the girl up, struggling a bit before finally finding her center of balance.

"I'm going to get you out of here," Kaia whispered. "Don't worry, you'll be free from him soon."

She walked back down the stairs, moving to escape through the backdoor. From the servants' room, she could hear William and Chris's arguing.

"Christian, if you charge in there with any less than eighty, you will all surely die, including your little human friend!"

"Fine, fucking Fine! Take your 500 non-American meters! I don't give a shit anymore! It's not like I'm being closed up inside a bubble surrounding my own home anyway!"

"That rundown strip mall isn't your home!" William argued. "We all have lost our homes. I say give up the property and be done with It."

Kaia moved through the dining room, their voices fading. Finally, she made it to the home stretch. She didn't have her shoes on and she didn't even know where to go, but that was the last thing she cared about. She just needed to at least get the girl outside, maybe find her some food and water to restore her energy. Chris would surely know where to find some. Just as she was about to make it to the door, however, she was caught.

"How dare you steal my food!" William cried. "You traitor, Christian! You fucking traitor!"

"Goddammit, Kaia!" Chris cried. He whipped his head around to face his cooperater. "It's not what it looks like, okay!? She's just stupid! She's doing what she was bred for, saving humans! She's like a sheepdog that won't stop nipping at kids heels even though it's not being worked! Just, it's not like I can deprogram her, just let me sort this out!"

William looked at him, furious. "Find another person to sort out your army. The deal is off."

Chris groaned. "What did I just say!? Didn't I just say this wasn't my fault!?"

"I don't care what you do!" Kaia yelled. "I'm saving this girl!"

"Kaia, you can't fucking save her!" Chris said, his voice cracking. "She's basically a fucking vegetable, put her down!"

Kaia paused for a moment, not used to hearing her real name come out of his mouth. She slowly placed the girl down on the ground, her arms folding back towards her body. William marched over to her, scooping his victim up in his arms and giving Kaia a threatening look before marching back down the hallway. Chris ran a hand down his face, sighing and pulling on his boots.

"... Guess this means I have all the shit I've ever given to him back," Chris grumbled. "But now, I've lost my only access to the world outside this shithole. Thanks a lot, kid."

"I was just doing what I was trained to do," Kaia said softly. "... Like you said."

"Yes, and notice how I painted it in a negative light? Look, I'm not happy about the way he gets his meals either, but guess what? The world is a shitty place and you can't save everyone. Swallow that pill now, it'll save both of us more strife."

He exited the house ahead of Kaia, his hands shoved in his pockets. Kaia came up behind him, hopping awkwardly as she tried to pull her own boots back on at the same time. She had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from crying.

"I'm sorry, Christian. I just... She..."

"Was completely helpless and in the hand of a monster? I know. She was lobotomized, Kaia. A real Rose Kennedy, that one. Just like other humans that are caught wandering through the Outlands, so they become an easy meal source for the vampires living around here. It's awful, but you can't help them. Okay?"

"... Do you do that?"

"No," Chris snapped. "I wasn't lying about stealing my blood from other places. I've never had a live feed once in my life, not even from someone as easy as a girl that's had her cerebrum scrambled. I have morals, you know. So does my family. Now please, just... don't talk to me right now, I need to figure out what the fuck I'm gonna do. You cost me big, girlie. Now I have nothing here, no money to shop with, and no connection to the world outside this shithole. God, you know, I'm half tempted to just go home and leave you to figure out this shit for yourself."

He walked ahead of her once again, his strides long and fast. Kaia lagged behind him, slightly depressed. In a way, she knew he was right. She had done something irresponsible, and even if she had saved the girl from getting fed on all the time, she wouldn't be able to make her normal again. It was almost pointless, in a sense. But there were still people she could help. She knew it. She still had to fight for what was right, even with some new restrictions. She looked over at the vampire. She was going to get him to help her no matter what.