#a companion to go with the joey hudson one

[dadtron-3000]

Another fun piece for @sledge-1959

Companion to this post

☆⁠Swear you hit me like a vision☆⁠

[quentinbecks]

Words: 2 k

Warnings: Just mentions of violence and of being blisssed

Gift 1/2 for @weekend-writer 🖤

“Silly deputy. Did you really think you could outsmart me?”

Dylan’s hazel eyes flash open as the disembodied voice floats through the room. He turns his head, trying to follow the sound as best as he can in his current state.

Somehow he’s found himself tied up in the siren’s bunker, the green bliss that’s flowing through the vents making him feel disoriented and confused. Last he remembered, he had just been leaving the 8-Bit Pizza Bar after regrouping with Sharky and Nick when he had been hit with a bliss bullet. Now, he just has to wait patiently for Faith to make her grand entrance; one surely to be just as dramatic as her brothers.

“I’ve given you so many chances now. And yet, time and time again you push me away, you push all of us away when we’re just trying to help you. All the Father and I want is to save you, Dylan.”

The lilted voice sounds closer now, as if she’s right next to him. But, Dylan is very aware of the tricks she plays, what with her apparitions appearing all over the Henbane. With her he never knows what’s real and what’s not anymore.

“Having me jump off a statue is a funny way of showing me you want to save me,” he slurs out as he tries to relax his taut body.

Since the reaping began his interactions with Faith have been complicated, to say the least. With Jacob he knows what to expect, what with having grown up with a father that wasn’t so different from the soldier. Dylan’s main problem with the man stemmed from the fact that he just takes himself far too seriously all of the time. It’s as if the veteran had never heard a joke before in his life. That and his treatment of Staci made him realize just how fragile Jacob’s masculinity truly is.

Unlike with Jacob, Dylan has always enjoyed pressing the Baptist’s buttons far more than he probably should have. Grace and Mary May have warned him about the dangers of pushing him too far; that there’s almost always consequences for doing so.

But, it was a good distraction when he found himself strapped in John’s torture chamber with Hudson. His wit was what discombobulated the man enough that it forced him to storm out in a rage. Outside of his inability to bring Joey with him during his escape, Dylan counted it as a success.

That was until John radioed him with threats to Mary May’s well-being. What can he say? He has a soft spot for the bartender and thanks to all of the project’s gossipy lackies, the Seeds were able to find that out for themselves. A perfect piece of information for them to use against him.

It’s different with Faith, though. The siren doesn’t show her cards quite so easily. When he had first met Dutch the older man had warned him that she was prone to manipulating others with her stories of victimhood and her soft demeanor. But Dylan has always thought that there may be some truth to what she said; not everything is always so black and white.

“Did you think I would actually let anything happen to you?,” Faith asks with a giggle. “You took the leap of faith and you survived. Don’t you think that’s a sign, deputy?”

Faith turns her head to look at him over her shoulder; her green eyes sparkling with an eagerness for him to just say “yes”. Agree to her whims and she won’t have to use force. But he’s seen the angels, she doesn’t need violence to be powerful.

“Not really?,” Dylan responds with a lackadaisical shrug, his body weakened from the free-flowing bliss that his companion has yet to shut off. “Maybe if you would let me sober up we could talk properly.”

Faith hums in contemplation. He knows it’s a risk for her to let anyone see her outside of the bliss. Dylan doesn’t know if it’s how Joseph wants her to operate or if the whole setup was of her own making, but he knows how eager she is to please the Father, that she has much more to lose than her brothers; if the fates of Lana and Selena were anything to go off of.

But, she shoots him a smile, one that’s all teeth and too saccharine. “Okay,” she chirps before heading back into the green foggy abyss. The sound of buttons being pressed fills the air as the vents stutter to a sudden and complete halt.

As the bliss clears, Dylan can see Faith standing near a set of monitors that look like they’re covered in moss. For the first time since he’s been here he realizes that the floor is covered in an overgrowth of grass.

Where are they? And how is foliage growing inside of a bunker? Just like everything else that occurs in the Henbane region, this makes no sense.

Faith makes her way back towards him and he can see just how different she looks without the bliss as her disguise. Her dirty blonde hair looks thin and unkempt and her white floral dress, which usually looks so girlish and innocent, looks worn down. All in all she looks like a wreck and honestly, Dylan can’t fault her.

“Well, deputy, I gave you your one wish, now will you give me mine?”

“Faith, I’m not joining the project. You know I can’t,” Dylan replies with a laugh.

“And why not?!”

He can see the way her lip slightly quivers as she pouts; it makes him feel a bit bad for her. Still, not bad enough to turn over his friends and colleagues to a cult for her, though.

“Because you have Burke in here currently drugged to his gills with bliss while you’re all holding my coworkers hostage. I just can’t let you do that, Faith. I just can’t betray them, no matter the cause. I know you would do the same if you were in my shoes and it was your brothers who had been captured.”

Faith lets out an indignant huff before she sits down on the ground in front of him, folding her knees underneath herself as she does so. “It’s not about them, though. I’ve seen you; The Father has seen you. You’re special in a way that they aren’t. You belong here with us.”

Dylan sees her patience beginning to wear thin and he wonders how long they can keep up the charade; the banter starting to feel more aggressive compared to how playful and girlish she was prior. This is their third meeting and she has yet to break through to him.

He wants to tell her that he’s not as special as Joseph says, that’s it all a ploy that he’s using to keep his siblings in line and to punish him. Or at least that’s how he’s perceived the man’s mindset during their brief meetings.

He opens his mouth to tell her when he hears a knock on the metal door. Sluggishly turning his head, he sees one of Faith’s chosen standing in the doorway, an angel standing guard right behind him.

“Sister, the Father will be here shortly. He would like to meet with you before he sees the deputy.”

Both the siren’s and the chosen’s eyes flicker towards him; one filled with disgust while the other looks upon him anxiously.

“Would you mind doing me a favor?” Faith is asking the other man, yet her gaze still lingers on Dylan. If he’s being honest, it’s a bit unsettling.

“Anything, sister.”

“Can you make up a space for my meeting for me? I’ll be down briefly.”

She finally turns back towards her chosen, her green eyes glimmering as if she hadn’t just been on the verge of resignation moments earlier. It’s a good reminder of how confusing she can be, how almost everything about her is performative; despite those tiny hints of tragic truths that slip through sometimes.

“Of course. I’ll get right on it,” the man responds before turning on his heels. “Come on,” he grunts, snapping his fingers to bring the angel with him to attention. “Let’s go.”

Faith stands as the door closes, brushing off the strands of grass sticking to her knees and dress. “Can I trust you, deputy? I know how you’ve managed to slither your way out from under my brothers’ eyes.” She saunters over towards him, fingers tapping against his shoulder; her guard already back up. “I would hate to see what would happen if you tried any of your sneaky tricks here.”

No, you can’t trust me.

Dylan cringes at the return of the coquettish tone to her voice. Now that Joseph has returned to check up on her and make sure that she’s contained him, her personality has changed yet again.

Still he gives her his best grin, one that has helped charm his way into many a person’s good graces. Though obviously Faith isn’t like most people he’s met before.

“Of course. I’ll be on my best behavior.”

“I don’t believe you,” she coos as she leans down. “Just remember, if you try to escape I still have two of your friends here,” she whispers in his ear.

The faces of both the sheriff and the marshall flash through his mind. If he leaves, their lives could yet again be at risk, but the same could be said for if he stays. It’s truly a lose - lose situation.

“I’ll see you soon!”

Faith practically skips out of the room, leaving him alone for the first time since he arrived. Dylan pulls on the leather restraints holding him tight to the chair. In spite of the bliss still lingering in his bloodstream, he’s able to flex hard enough to break the bonds.

Once his right arm is free, he unbuckles the other strap, shaking out his limbs. His body feels like it’s been hit by a Mack truck, but he knows he has no time to try and become both fully coherent and less stiff; not with Joseph close by. It’s now or never.

He heads towards the monitors that Faith had used to shut off the vents. It’s possible that there’s a security system on one of the computers that he can use to unlock a door. As he reaches the desk he looks down and notices something unusual laying atop one of the keyboards.

A flower crown? Really?

Dylan thinks wistfully that if they were in another time, another place, the two of them could sit around outside in the fresh air away from drugs and cults and make flower crowns together. He truly believes of all of the Seeds, Faith is the one that he knows he would have gotten along with had the circumstances been different.

There’s no time to dwell on the what ifs and what could have beens. He hits a green button next to the keyboard, watching as a door to the side of the room opens. He falters before running out, his hands going out to grab the bliss and twine infused crown. As he’s shoving it in his pockets an alarm goes off. He guesses that wasn’t authorized to open that door.

“Sorry, Faith,” Dylan chuckles as he starts to run, heading down a staircase that he hopes will lead outside. “Guess your men are smarter than they look.”

There’s yelling from the room he had just been in and he can hear men come rushing down the metal stairs. Thinking quickly, he hides behind boxes that are more than likely filled with the green drug; shipments to be spread throughout the county.

His fingers clutch onto the delicately made flower crown as he watches chosen after chosen scurry like mice. Maybe in another life, he thinks.

Maybe in another life.

[lulu2992]

What I learned listening to Far Cry 5′s audio files

The game’s lore, as told by its characters.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Deputy Joey Hudson

Biography

Before Eden’s Gate took control of Hope County, Hudson says the only thing she did was write up hunting violations. A couple of years before the events of the game, her former partner Danny was shot by someone they had pulled over for speeding. She blamed everyone and everything, herself included, before understanding tragedies like this happen and there is nothing we can do about it… except hope it won’t happen today. Hudson comments that every gun in the county feels off and she wishes she had her usual equipment. She is surprised the National Guard isn’t here to help them but says the President is probably too busy being on social media. She thinks prepping is pointless.

When she was pulled out of the helicopter after Joseph’s failed arrest, she noticed the person who was holding her right hand had a tattoo on her wrist that was the same as the one Hudson’s mother had on her shoulder. She thinks the helicopter is what “fucked” them and that they should have driven to Joseph’s compound instead.

In John’s bunker, she says her mind was somewhere else and she doesn’t remember everything that happened. She begged people for help and they just smiled. She was so convinced she was going to die in this bunker that the fact she didn’t makes her feel numb.

She believes they are going to have a lot of paperwork to do when this is all over and wonders what counts as a crime and what counts as self-defense. She says she will hunt a turkey and roast it to celebrate their victory.

Comments about other characters

She wasn’t sure the Deputy was going to come back for her. Not because she doesn’t trust them (she says she thinks they are impressive) but because she doesn’t know if she would have had the courage to do it. She says that, when the cult is dealt with, the Deputy will either get medals or get fired.

Hudson is a bit nervous around Peaches and is surprised to find out Cheeseburger is a bear. The only animal companion she doesn’t find scary or weird is Boomer. In fact, she always wanted a canine partner.

She says you could really see failure on John’s face when the Deputy escaped his bunker and that things got “worse” after that. She is disappointed she didn’t get to see him die (even though she admits it’s “fucked up”) and says she is for “instant death penalty” for people like him.

Other characters’ point of view

People say she is tough, which means it will be challenging for John to break her. The problem is he “loves a challenge”... Some cult NPCs wonder why they keep her in the bunker when there are so many other people more worthy of being there. One explains she is one of John’s “special projects”.

[chazz-anova]

My official Far Cry 5 fanfic!

Alrighty everyone! After a LONG time, I’ve finally finished the first section of this fic and I am so excited to start posting it everywhere lmao, so please feel free to leave your comments in the replies I’d love to hear what people think! Now without further ado; here’s chapter 1!

Veronica glanced lazily at the clock, which read 3:28am. She'd gotten off work about 4 hours earlier, but couldn't seem to lull herself to sleep no matter how many drinks she had or smoke breaks she took. Lately, the young sheriff's deputy had felt unsettled, like she was stuck in a rut. Ice clinked in her Crown Royal glass as she raised it to her lips, finishing it with a swig. "What's wrong with me Olive?" She asked the calico cat that padded silently into the room. The cat replied with a dainty mew and climbed into Veronica's lap. While petting her companion, she glanced around her modest townhome. 

It was a tastefully furnished two story home with a balcony and a neighborhood pool. She sat on a powder blue couch that was joined by an armchair off to the side. The TV screen in front of her read 'Are you there? Press X to continue" Answering the question aloud, she muttered "Sometimes I wonder if I am still here" She lifted Olive off her lap and replaced her with an engraved silver tray, a baggie of weed, and a Cherry Dynamite flavoured Swisher. She may be a deputy, but some vices she was reluctant to give up. 

A few moments later- Veronica stepped out onto her balcony, blunt in hand. She slowly took in the familiar scenery, living right on the outskirts of Hope County afforded her one of the best views. The Whitetail Mountains towered over the town beyond, the neon lights of various restaurants and gas stations glowing upwards and framing the tall peaks in a surreal glow. Her gaze turned up to the stars, dazzling like diamonds on the velvet black sky. As she lit up and the lighter illuminated her balcony, the atmosphere shifted a degree 'Everything will be different soon.' The thought flew through her mind without warning, and she shivered as though possessed. "Jeez..." She murmured and took a long drag of the sweet smoke, shaking her head and praying for rest to come quickly, after this she’d go and try to lay in her bed until sleep overtook her finally. 

Running. Feet pounding the ground. Lungs shriveled and screaming for a full breath. Tears welled up in Veronica's eyes as she wind cut at her skin. In front of her, millions of faceless souls reached their hands out; grasping for her as she ran, seemingly suspended between them and what she ran from. The group was insistently whispering "Help. Help us." Veronica turned around, slowing a fraction. Behind her there was a plume of green smoke billowing out of an unseen source, threatening to take her mind and steal her heart if she got too close. The entities in front of her were murmuring "Please help us" "We need you". With each  pleading moan their voices grew; louder and louder until their words were a guttural, rasping cacophony of screams. And just as suddenly as they appeared, they were gone and replaced by deafening silence. The air seemed to be holding its breath, and Veronica turned to see the smoke gone as well, leaving her alone in the blackness. 

Upon waking, Veronica gasped and clutched her heart, which was fighting to escape her chest with each beat. “Fuck!” She exclaimed and looked around her room. In the darkness she saw everything was normal, her desk and computer stood in front of her and no one occupied the chair in the corner to her relief. She took her phone from the nightstand and saw that it was only 6:20am. “Man, screw this.” She burrowed back under the black covers and pulled them over her head. 

The next time she awoke- gentle sunlight streamed in through the half open curtains and her eyes fluttered open. Checking her phone, it was now 10:42am, and relief filled her. Looking underneath the time she saw a message from her co-worker and good friend, Joey Hudson. It read “Come to your shift ready for some bull today!” Veronica sighed, typing out her response “Always do!” 

Soon enough, Olive jumped onto her bed and sat, giving her an impatient look. “Alright you little beast, I’ll get up.” She smiled at her furry friend and swung her feet over the side, striding into the kitchen and grabbing the cat food while also setting her coffee pot to brew.

In about 20 minutes- she was sitting on her balcony with a hot cup of mostly cream and sugar with a little coffee, and a quickly rolled joint. ‘Please let today go by quickly...:’ she prayed to no one in particular. Her work outfit looked creased from not being washed recently, and she knew Sheriff Whitehorse would have something to say about that. ‘After this joint I should probably get going.’ V thought, looking through the balcony windows at the clock. 

Veronica stepped into the grey/white walled sheriff’s office; seeing Nancy at the front desk on the phone, examining her long nails disinterestedly. She gave her a quick wave before heading back to Sheriff Earl Whitehorse’s office, where a commotion could be heard. 

“I don’t care how scared of him all you backwoods hicks are, where I’m from we get shit done!” An aggressive man declared, venom dripping from his words. ‘This must be the aforementioned bullshit Hudson mentioned.’ Veronica sighed before pasting a professional smile over her frown and stepping into the room. “You’ve got no right to just come in here like-” Hudson’s confident voice was absorbed by the same angry voice that had started the yelling, “Oh I’ve got every right missy. Know why? Because I’m a federal marshal, and what I say goes.” The tension in the air was malleable. Between Hudson glaring daggers at the stranger and Whitehorse’s dejected look, Ronnie knew she had just walked into a shitstorm. “Woah, let’s take it down a notch okay?” She said, directed at the man in front of her. He was of a bulkier build, and his stance said he was used to having things his way or the highway. “Oh great, another dumbass deputy to deal with! Sheriff, get your team and your shit together.” The man pushed past Veronica and Joey, shouldering his way out of the room. “Nice to meet you too!” The youngest deputy called before turning back to Hudson and Whitehorse. “So, who pissed in his cheerios?” 

Hudson just shook her head angrily, as Whitehorse replied grimly “Joseph Seed.”

“That pastor who’s been causing trouble in Hope County?” 

“That’s the one. He’s formed some kind of militia and is kidnapping folks… I’d get yourselves ready, because as soon as the judge fills that warrant we’re all going to pick him up.” 

V met his words with an incredulous look, retorting “He’s bad enough that we all get to join Captain Sunshine there on a simple warrant like that? I mean, every time we’ve had to deal with him and his followers it’s never seemed that severe.” Hudson spoke up, pulling her phone from her pocket and presenting a video “Look for yourself. Someone sent this in a couple days ago.” 

Grainy footage showed a tall, shirtless man in aviators preaching to a flock of similarly dressed people. The video zoomed in on the man’s chilling blue eyes; and the camera suddenly fell to the ground, showing the owner of the device being dragged forward and put on his knees before the preacher. In a casual manner he reached forward and placed his thumbs against the man’s eyes, pressing while his victim’s screams grew louder and more pained. Soon the man fell to the ground, and Joseph flicked the blood from his hands as though it were water. Veronica’s eyebrows raised in surprise as the scene was cut off and a new image appeared on the screen.

The recording was now taking place outside. There was a sizable wooden stage and Joseph stood in the center, a large curtain obscuring what was on a stand behind him. “My children, we must repent for our sins!” Joseph called while pulling the curtain down with some flourish. Veronica gasped in shock upon seeing the man from before who’d had his eyes crushed. He was lifted up onto a wooden pole, his eyes had been replaced by a white flower in each eye socket. Looking down his body- it was clear someone  had mutilated his chest cavity as well, carving out space for a bouquet of the same flowers.  On both sides of his head antlers had been impaled into his skull, where dried blood decorated the base of each antler in grotesque detail. 

When the video finally faded to black, Veronica handed the phone back to Joey. “Wow, I’m glad I didn’t have anything heavy for breakfast.” She deadpanned, shaking her head. “This is a mistake, we need more people.” Whitehorse murmured and walked out of the room with an exasperated look. “Old man’s taking this real hard… I think he saw something real messed up on the last call out to Joseph’s compound.” Hudson looked after him with worry clear on her face. The other deputy nodded, unable to clear the images from the video from her mind. “Even though he’s clearly an ass, maybe the Marshal is right and we’ll just go snatch him up real quick.” 

“Hopefully..” Hudson murmured and left the office as well, leaving Veronica alone. 

The rest of the day- Marshal Cameron Burke holed up in a back office making heated phone calls, trying to find a judge to sign his warrant. V spent most of the day riding with another deputy, Staci Pratt. Veronica couldn’t stand Pratt, so every call they went on was a chore. However, the shift was finally drawing to a close as the pair pulled up once more at the station. 

As soon as they walked in the door, Burke was on them. “You two, I suggest getting some rest tonight, because I found a judge. Once I’ve gathered everything I need, we’ll be flying out to Joseph’s compound.” Veronica checked the clock in the lobby, nodding “Well it’s 9 now, when are we leaving?” The Marshal sighed, as though responding was a chore, “We leave when I call and tell you we’re leaving.” V narrowed her eyes while crossing her arms, “You know, I’m not sure what your problem is, but don’t talk to me like that. You’re an adult, not a petty child, act like it.” The federal marshal was shocked someone had stood up to him, and unsure what to say. Seizing the opportunity to make her escape before her mouth got her into more trouble, Ronnie rushed past the man, shaking her head. ‘What an asshole!’ She thought as she punched numbers into the timeclock, hurrying out of the building without further incident.

About 20 minutes later, Veronica was speeding down the winding country roads in her beat up Mazda Miata. The roads were entirely empty, save for a deer she saw on the side of the road while taking the next turn. Upon rounding the corner- a large flare of light and an earth-shaking explosion caused her to slam on the brakes. “What the hell…” She peered out of the window. “Guess I should go check on that.. being an officer of the law and all…” Her murmured words were enveloped by another explosion, causing her to jump. Some days the job of a deputy wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. 

Ronnie had finally reached the area where the explosions had been coming from, after breaking several traffic laws to get there. Stepping out of the car, she drew her gun and took a preliminary look around the clearing. There were almost cartoon-worthy scorch marks on the ground that had wiped away any sense of greenery on the ground, but no one seemed to be around. V kept the gun at her side and started her sweep of the area. Right as she was going to start heading back to her car to report this to the station, she heard someone walking through the woods to her left. “Note to self, don’t light the fuse before you’re ready to have it blow up..” She heard someone mutter to themselves before she yelled “Freeze! Who are you and what’re you doing here?” A man of medium build walked out of the treeline, holding his hands in the classic ‘I surrender’ style. He wore a green sweatshirt, and a matching ballcap. “Charlemange Victor Boshaw at your service ma’am, I apologise for the bother-” 

“You describe an explosion as a ‘bother’?” Veronica interrupted, gun staying trained on him. 

“Well yeah. It sure bothered me that it exploded.” 

“May I ask what you were exploding?” 

“So my totally awesome cousin Hurk gave me some dynamite that he made himself, and of course being a good buddy I told him I would try it out! Well, silly me I didn’t realise that Hurk only knows how to make short-fused dynamite! So when I went to light it, it exploded preemptively so that’s why there’s those scorch marks… ma’am.” 

Veronica cocked her head to the side, giving the man an incredulous look, “Would you be offended if I said that was the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard?” He thought about it for a moment before responding sincerely “Nope.” The deputy nodded, saying “Well I appreciate the honesty! Unfortunately, I’ve gotta call the station for this one.” She fished her badge from her pocket. The man crossed his arms, asking “Well what exactly are the charges?” 

“Uhm… detonation of an explosive device and illegal possession for one.” 

“I supposed I can’t argue with that.” He said amiably, watching Veronica reach for her radio off the utility belt she still hadn’t removed after work. 

The pair sat on the curb together, one handcuffed one not. “So you’re the Sharky Boshaw?” Ronnie asked, giving him a mischievous smile. Sharky grinned and shrugged modestly “The one and only!” 

“You’re a legend around the station, I’m surprised I haven’t seen you before! Out of curiosity… why choose this spot for blowing shit up?” 

“Well I was actually on my way to the store when I saw this spot and thought to myself ‘That would be a good field to set off some fireworks’. Then I remembered Hurk had put his stuff in my backseat, and that dynamite is just a less pretty firework, so here we are!” 

When his story was finished, V gave him a look that was part amused, part withering glance. “I can’t tell if you’re joking.” He shrugged with a lackadaisical smile. Before either of them could continue the conversation, a light brown Crown Vic pulled up and the sirens on the roof let out a quick whoop before one of the night shift deputies stepped out. “Hey Veronica! Boshaw, the backseat’s ready for you!” He said, helping Sharky stand and turn towards the car. Veronica stood with him, and gave a curt nod to her coworker, “Thanks for coming out, Sam.” 

Finally after that detour, V was almost home. It was a relatively long drive back and forth, but she didn’t mind it. Working with Sheriff Whitehorse was worth it since she’d known him almost half of her life. Veronica and her mom had moved to Hope County when she was only 12, her mom found work as an officer and then an office administrator for Earl until Nancy came along and gave her mom the chance to take her pension, and start a new job as a conservation officer at a small national park nearby called Polebridge. 

The actual sheriff’s office was in Missoula, about two hours away from Hope County, making Veronica’s drive home take about an hour since she lived practically in between the two. 

 Keeping her eyes on the road, she dug one-handed through her purse for her phone. Once it was in hand she said “Hey Google, call Mom.” and a soft chirp came from the device, processing the demand before dialing. Three rings in- a cheery voice answered. “Hey sweetie!” 

“Hey, mom, I just had a question?”

“Sure what’s up?”

She paused, rethinking her request for a moment. In that second, her nightmare from last night danced through her thoughts and her mind was made up. “Oh um, well I’m going out on a warrant tonight, and I was wondering if you could watch Olive for me? It’s probably nothing, I just had a weird feeling.” 

“Of course! I’d love to see my grandkitty! I’m glad you know when to listen to your gut.” 

“Well I learned from the best! I just got home now, can I pack her up and head over?”

“That’s fine! I’ll be here for a bit. Can I plan on you staying for dinner?”

“Uh… yeah that’ll work, I don’t have any plans. I’ll see you soon, love you!” 

“Love you too!” 

The line disconnected with a click as Veronica pulled into her driveway and stepped out of the car, fetching her keys from the caribinger she kept it on. As she approached the door, she heard insistent meowing on the other side. “I’m comin’…” She chuckled and pushed the door open to reveal Olive, who immediately rushed to hug her legs as she stepped over the threshold. “Hey monster, ready to see grandma?” She asked in a baby voice and grinned at her, reaching down to pick her up. As soon as she did- the cat clambered up to her shoulder and balanced precariously “Why are you like this?” She joked, removing her before making her way to the hallway closet and pulling out the cat carrier and a half-full bag of cat food.

Once she’d put a few more odds and ends into an overnight bag, she took out her decorative, pink bong and loaded a bowl. The water bubbled and pure white smoke filled the center chamber as she lit the greenery in the bowl. After coughing her lungs up for a few moments she set the glass piece on the table and stood up, “Okay, now we can go!” She declared and bundled Olive and all her things into the Miata. 

In a quick 15 minutes- the two of them pulled up in front of her mom’s. It was a tidy ranch style home, painted robin’s egg blue with crisp white shutters. V knocked on the door, Olive’s carrier in one hand. 

Her mom answered the door with a sweet smile on her features, immediately wrapping the deputy in a tight hug, “Hi Ronnie!” She exclaimed before pulling back. “Hi mom!” She responded and stepped through the door, setting Olive down. Sarah Rook looked like an older version of Veronica except her hair was a chestnut brown as opposed to V’s dirty blonde; they shared aquamarine eyes and a light spattering of freckles.

The younger woman pulled the zipped and freed the hyper cat, who immediately jumped from containment to survey her surroundings. “Someone’s impatient!” Her mom chuckled and watched the cat sprint off into the hallway. “She takes after me I guess.” Veronica smiled and inhaled deeply, “Is that steaks and mac and cheese I smell?” 

“Well I thought I’d at least fatten you up before you leave tonight.” Her mom said and ushered her into the dining room. There was a round white table there that was joined by a tall china cabinet filled with memorabilia. The places had already been set, two red and white checkered table mats sat across from each other at the corresponding seats and the silverware was laid out neatly. “Sounds good to me, I’m starving!” Veronica took a seat and watched her mom buzzing about the kitchen as she put the finishing touches on their meals. 

Once everything was done, the table was filled with food. A bowl of salad in the middle, with a basket of rolls to the side. Their plates were adorned with juicy t-bone steaks, mac and cheese, and potato salad. “I knew there was a reason I hadn’t put you in a nursing home…” V joked as she savored a bite of the rare steak, just how she liked it. Her mother scoffed, and took a sip of water, “As if you could.” They both shared a smile and then turned to see Olive padding into the room, her head in the air as she scented the air. “What a brat.” Veronica said as she jumped up on the table expectantly. “You did say she took after you!” Her mom retorted, picking up the naughty cat and setting her on the floor. “So, what’s this warrant you’re going on?”

“Mom, you know I’m not supposed to divulge any details...”

“Oh please, I used to be in the game, and still kind of am. I worked for Whitehorse long before you did, I don’t think I need to be counted as a citizen.” She said, rolling her eyes. Veronica looked uneasy as she considered it for a moment, then relented; “It’s some doomsday cult leader… Joseph Seed. Something about him really freaked me out.” She confessed, almost hanging her head. Being freaked out was not the norm for this deputy. “Why’s that?” 

“I think it’s just his ability to brainwash all of these people… anyone who can do that has too much power. Also Earl is scared of him, which is weird. He’s usually so gungho about catching the bad guys, but he doesn’t even want to go on this warrant.” 

“That’s certainly odd. I’ve never seen that man back down, there must be something seriously bad going on.” Her mom looked off, her brow furrowed in deep thought. “Hopefully this mission will just be in and out. That way I can get back to my baby!” She said the last part in a higher pitch, directing it at the cat, who was sitting in the window behind them. “I hope so too sweetie. People like him are the reason I’ve got a bunker.” Ronnie smirked, saying “Yeah you and everyone else in Hope County, it seems like.” 

“It never hurts to be prepared!” 

“I guess so.” She relented, standing and grabbing their dirty dishes. 

After all the dishes were cleaned and hugs were shared, Veronica stretched and glanced at the clock which showed 10:45pm. “Man how’d it get so late so fast?” She mused and stroked Olive’s soft little head. “Hopefully a late dinner won’t give you any nightmares.” Her mother thought out loud and wrapped Veronica in another suffocating hug. “It was nice having dinner with you baby, I love you!” She smooched Ronnie on the cheek before pulling away and giving her a loving grin. “I had a good time, and the steaks were amazing. Thanks for having me over, I love you too!” She returned the kiss on the cheek and put her hand on the doorknob. As she stepped out her mother wished her luck on the warrant later, and then she was in her car once more. 

20 minutes later, V was brushing her teeth, staring at herself in the mirror wearing a simple black night dress that fell to her thighs and was fringed with lace at the bottom. Long day… who knows when that asshole Burke is gonna call me.’ She thought, spitting out the toothpaste and wiping her mouth with the back of her arm.  As she flopped into bed, the black sheets felt cold without Olive’s presence, but she felt it was for the best. It was 11:11pm as she glanced at the clock. “Make a wish…” She murmured while her eyes shut, the feeling of a full stomach lulling her to sleep. 

A blaring ringing tore through the dark silence in Veronica’s bedroom. It was her phone, blasing her generic android ringtone. Her eyes snapped open and she grasped for her phone, having to blink the bleariness away before seeing that it was Hudson calling her. She looked at the clock for the second time that night to see only two hours had passed, making it around 1am. She slid the green answer icon across the screen and answered, her voice thick with annoyance, “Hello?” Instead of Joey’s pleasant voice, she was met with Marshal Cameron Burke’s gruff one, “Rook, get your ass up and get dressed. We’re executing this warrant now.” 

“Do you have any idea what time it is?”

“Yeah, time to arrest that asshole Joseph Seed.” Burke practically shouted, and then Veronica was met with a dial tone. She scoffed, pulling the phone from her ear to look at it and see only her lock screen, a photo of Olive in a taco costume. “Guess I’m getting ready.” She grumbled and turned on the lamp sitting on her nightstand. The light flooded every corner of the room, forcing V to squint as she flipped the covers off and walked over to a chair in the corner of the room that was covered with clothes and blankets. She snatched her green work button up before finding a tank top and some jeans. On top of her dresser, she eyed her jewelry box and plucked out a rose gold heart-shaped locket with a matching chain. It was engraved ‘To Veronica, Love nana’ Once she was dressed, she buckled her utility belt and hurried down the stairs to the front door. 

Something forced her to stop and take a look at the open plan townhome. All was calm and nothing stirred in the living room, yet she felt eerie as she left. Almost like she was abandoning her castle. She shook her head, shaking the thought off and stepping through the door to lock it. As she was walking to the car she pulled out her wallet from her back pocket, it was a replica of the one used in Pulp Fiction that said ‘BAD MOTHERFUCKER’ on the side. She opened the zippered secret pocket, pulling out a faded scrap of paper. On it was written ‘Good luck on your first day! -Mom’. She’d slipped her that on her first day at the sheriff’s department. At the time, V had laughed and said “I’m not a kid!” But stowed it away nonetheless as a good luck charm. A sudden, bone-chilling breeze whipped across the land, forcing a shiver to wrack her body. Veronica stepped into her car, feeling like this was going to be a long night. 

The deputy’s hands clenched the steering wheel- frustration written all over her features. She’d already been to the station only to get redirected to some field by Nancy, who was the only one not joining this adventure. Apparently the sheriff had asked her to come in and man the scanner, just in case things got out of hand and they needed to call reinforcements. Ronnie shook her head as she saw Hudson, Whitehorse, Pratt, and Burke standing in front of a matte black helicopter that had a badge on the side. Upon walking up to join them, Veronica called “Well this is fancy!” Staci stepped up next to the marshal, exclaiming “Yeah, the feds decided to help us out on this one!” He clapped Burke on the shoulder- earning him a heated glare. “Anyways… everyone pile in. Hudson, you’re flying us.” The grumpy man got to the point, motioning everyone into the copter. 

In no time they were in the air, flying to Joseph’s Compound on an island in the middle of Hope County. Veronica looked at the screen of the gps in the front, searching for the time. She found that it was 2:37am, and asked “So what exactly is the benefit of going to get him so late?” Cameron replied- his voice dripping with unearned confidence “The benefit, Rook, is catching him by surprise.” As Ronnie was about to speak up, Pratt cut in with, “You don’t catch men like Joseph Seed off guard.” 

At that moment Joey spoke up, “Crossing the Henbane now.” Everyone looked out of the wide windows, only to catch sight of a perfect rendition of Joseph Seed’s face captured forever in stone in way of a towering monolith. “Crazy motherfucker…” Burke murmured, his gaze held by the monument. “Jesus Christ.. we’re officially in peggie country.” Hudson shook her head before looking back to the skies. “You know, they call this Angel’s Peak. It’s a holy place for them.” Pratt said, sounding almost wistful.

“How much longer?” Cameron asked. 

“Just long enough for you to change your mind so we can turn this bird around.” Whitehorse insisted. “You want me to ignore a federal warrant, sheriff?” Burke scoffed.

“No sir, I want you to understand the reality of this situation. Joseph Seed… he’s not a man to be fucked with. We’ve had a few run ins with him before and it hasn’t always gone our way. Sometimes.. sometimes it’s better to just leave well enough alone.” 

Burke scoffed, lifting up the warrant. “Yeah, well we have laws for a reason; and Joseph Seed’s gonna learn that.” Instead of replying to that, the sheriff radioed Nancy to make sure she was still there, and told her that if she didn’t hear from them in 15 minutes to call backup. V looked down and saw a white church surrounded by other smaller buildings, she was mystified. The whole situation didn’t even seem real. ‘Maybe it’s just because it’s late and I haven’t gotten any good rest lately.’ She thought, trying to comfort herself. Somehow it didn’t help. 

“So what’s with calling them ‘peggies’? I’ve never heard anyone at the station call them that.” Veronica asked, hoping to lighten the mood. “Project Eden’s Gate. P. E. G. It’s what the locals call them.” Earl explained. Somehow she knew he was trying to distract himself as well. 

As they got closer, it was obvious there were people everywhere. “So much for taking him by surprise.” She muttered, shaking her head and thinking ‘I could be asleep right now.’ The helicopter jerked slightly as it landed on the ground, the blades whirling to a stop. All of them exited the bird, taking in their surroundings. Peggies surrounded them on all sides and the compound had as many as 12 buildings; dorms, a barn, and various other houses. The cult members regarded them suspiciously, casting daggers their ways and muttering insults. Ronnie looked to her left as they walked down the main path, there was a man wielding a flamethrower and keeping a pire of fire sufficiently lit. “They don’t fuck around…” V commented, her brow furrowed. 

The group made their way into a fenced corridor topped with an arch that said ‘Church of Eden’s Gate’ with the cross adorning the center. As they walked, a creaking then metal clanging could be heard behind them, causing Veronica to whip around only to witness them closing the gate behind them. “Why are they closing the gate?” Joey asked, looking to her partners for answers but receiving nothing. They approached the door to the church and could hear a choir of members singing a hymn as Whitehorse motioned for them to hold up. “Going in there, we do this my way, quietly.” He said sternly, mainly for Burke’s benefit. Cameron smirked and put a hand on Earl’s shoulder, “Relax sheriff. You’re about to get your name in the papers.” Veronica couldn’t help but shake her head, something was wrong here. 

As the white double doors swung inward, V took in the scene and was enthralled. Joseph was standing at the front of the church delivering a sermon, “Something is coming… you can feel it can’t you? We are creeping towards the edge, and there will be a reckoning. Because we know what happens next; they will come for us… to take from us. Take our guns, take our freedom, take our faith. We will not let them!” The church patrons were captured by his presence, hanging on every word. 

The deputy, marshal, and sheriff made their way to the platform Joseph stood on. White candles surrounded him, casting a holy glow on his features. “We will not let their greed, their morality, or their depravity hurt us anymore!” The preacher’s voice grew as Marshal Burke reached him and held the paper warrant aloft. Whitehorse murmured “Goddammit…” and Cameron said forcefully “Joseph Seed, we have here a warrant for your arrest, under suspicion of kidnapping with intent to harm. I’m gonna need you to step down with your hands where I can see them, and come with us.” Veronica noticed three figures she hadn’t seen practically melting out of the shadows to stand behind The Father.

“Here they are, the locusts in our garden. They’ve come to take me from you, to destroy all we’ve built!” The peggies started to converge around Joseph, their voices joining together as they objected. He parted through them, his calm demeanor quieting their shouts. “We knew they would come. This is what we’ve prepared for. Go…” He sent them off and came to stand in front of the pews, raising his hands up. “I saw the lamb of the first seal and I heard the noise as if of thunder as one of four beasts sang ‘Come, see’-”

Cameron cut him off, “Step forward!” Joseph stepped closer- undertered from preaching, “And I saw and behold, it was a white horse... and Hell followed with him.” He finished while looking from Earl to Ronnie and finally holding out his hands, a worn brown rosary dangled from his wrist. “Rook, cuff this son of a bitch.” Burke growled. 

V stepped forward, about to pull out her cuffs when the people behind him caught her eye once more. She recognised them to be his family. From right to left; there was a gruff looking man with scar tissue climbing up his side, next to him a beautiful young woman wearing no shoes and a lacey, floral dress. Veronica’s gaze lingered on her a moment before she took in the last figure- a tall man wearing an expensive looking duster. His piercing stare found hers and she felt as though he was seeing straight into her soul. Ice filled her veins and she froze in place, suddenly feeling like a gazelle who had just realised the lion was upon her but only when it was already too late. There was so much animosity in the man’s eyes, like he hated her for even thinking of taking his brother. 

“Earth to Veronica.” Burke’s annoyed voice snapped her from the trance she was in, causing her to shiver before finally producing the cuffs. The metal clinked around Joseph’s small wrists, and right as she was about to secure the second ring, he turned his hand to grip her wrist tightly and V looked into his eyes. “God will not let you take me.” He said calmly without an ounce of doubt. “Good thing God doesn’t get to decide in the end.” She retorted before shaking off his hand and slapping the final cuff on with a resounding click.  

As they walked out the church doors with Joseph in cuffs, armed peggies started to surround them. “Back up!” Hudson yelled, taking lead. Burke pushed a woman down when she got too close, and the crowd became more riled up, closing in as they walked to the helicopter. Soon, they started throwing rocks at the group and screaming, trying to defend their Father. The whole time Joseph stayed eerily silent, even as they were getting into the copter. Pratt fired off a few warning shots to the cultists that were trying to mob the vehicle, Veronica and Burke pushed a few of them from the copter as they gained height, yet the peggies continued trying to swarm them.

One of the cultists did something, because the helicopter went into a tailspin, and the engine sputtered. Joseph looked skyward and began singing Amazing Grace, his tone calm despite the chaos. They made impact with a tree, then another and everyone but Joseph was screaming, their lives flashing before their eyes. Upon impact, the whole world cut out and everything was black.

Veronica’s eyes opened, and the world spun in streamers of color. Nancy’s frantic voice could be heard over the ringing in her ears, she was yelling into the helicopter’s headphones. She looked around and saw Burke across from her, dangling by his seatbelt, Earl was next to him, doubled over; and Joey was to her right. She tried to take in a deep breath and sputtered on thick smoke that was no doubt coming from the engine. Before V could swing forward and grab the headset to alert Nancy, she was pushed lightly back into her seat by a battered Joseph Seed. He smiled at her softly, grabbing the headset on his own while maintaining eye contact. “I told you that God wouldn’t let you take me…” He murmured soothingly. “We’ll see about that…” Veronica persisted. He shook his head and spoke into the headset mic, “Dispatch? Everything is just fine here. Call no one.” Veronica scoffed, ‘Surely Nancy will know something is wrong-’ The thought began to cross her mind before she heard her last hope’s response: “Yes, Father. Praise be to you.” Her mouth dropped open in shock and horror, watching the man she came to apprehend smirk before whispering “No one is coming to save you.” 

He climbed from the wreckage and met a handful of his flock, reassuring them in a hushed tone. V started to struggle against her seatbelt, which was stuck fast. “Fuck, fuck, fuck..” She muttered and beat at the clip. Her companions began to wake and she turned to see Joseph standing on the hood of a car, his hands raised as he delivered an impromptu sermon, “The first seal is broken… now we must take what we need, for this world will be no more. We must stop all those that stand in our way- including these harbingers of doom. Begin the reaping!” He screamed the last sentence into the night air, his followers cheering. 

They swarmed the copter for the second time that night, Veronica, Joey, and the others squirmed trying to get free. Hudson freed herself finally, only to be savagely pulled from the wreckage kicking and screaming. “Joey!” Veronica yelled, reaching after her only to just miss her hand. More peggies ran over and were about to reach in, when a ring of flames surrounded them instead. “Fuck!” V exclaimed, pulling frantically at her seatbelt. Burke was able to free himself and dash out of the small opening in the wall of fire. Heat was searing her skin and desperation made her claw at the restraint harder and harder, finally the belt snapped and she tumbled forward to what used to be the roof of the vehicle. Ronnie caught herself just barely and found herself sprinting away into the foreboding woods. 

Branches whipped at her face, scratching her cheeks and forcing her to hold her hands out in front of her. Not far behind, the men who hunted her yelled, “She’s escaping! Grab her!” Emotions overwhelmed her; panic, fear, anger, confusion. “Goddammit give me a break!” She huffed, breath ragged from sprinting. She spotted a soft light in the distance, a campfire. V ducked behind a thick tree trunk- whipping her head around in both directions wildly, adrenaline and fear coursing through her. The angry voices were distant enough for her to turn and survey the campsite. 

There were two lawn chairs on either side of the fire, and a cabin beyond that. One of the cultists patrolled the perimeter, both hands on his handgun. She caught sight of a sizable branch in front of the fire, and knew what she had to do. Ronnie crept forward on the balls of her feet, trying to avoid any stray twigs as she made her way to the branch. Finally she was there, taking the worn wood in her hands and feeling the weight of it. ‘This should do..’ She thought with a grim look. The deputy continued forward, waiting for just the right moment to slip behind the guard. Veronica gripped the bat harder and was about to swing when the guard turned around, surprise on his features. She wasted no time slamming the branch down on his head with a crack as he turned his gun towards her. The first blow slowed him- and for good measure she delivered the finishing blow. Through the branch, she could feel his skull give and an initial spray of blood shot from the wound, flecking V’s face in red freckles. She gasped and looked down to see his body twitch twice more before stilling, his heart steadily pumping out his life force.

Veronica felt cold as she watched the light drain from his eyes, shock starting to take over. She’d never actually killed anyone before. The world faded back piece by piece as she grabbed the man’s gun, and more screams came from the woods. She had to keep moving. A small drop off into the woods was her escape, and she crouched in the ferns on the woodland floor. There was another fire in the distance, and her enemies were scouring the area for her and Burke. 

Suddenly- her radio crackled, causing her to jump and grab it from her belt to muffle the speaker. “Hello? Hello.. it’s Burke… I think I lost them.. I see a trailer ahead across a bridge and I’m going to try to get inside. If anyone is still alive, if anyone is out there...” The signal was lost and it cut out. “Well I guess that’s where I’m going.” V sighed, and started slowly making her way through the woods. She passed the second fire, narrowly avoiding detection by two guards standing there. From there, she ascended a small hill that led to the bridge the marshal had mentioned. It creaked as she took to the wooden planks, practically crawling her way to the other end. When she got there, a white trailer with a green roof stoof in front of her. There were steps leading up to the back door which she pushed open cautiously, eyes darting side to side straining to catch any movement in the darkened abode. 

As soon as she cleared the door Burke was to her left, hands out and ready to attack. Veronica grabbed his arms, stopping him in midair before he regonised her. “Oh my god, Rook… you’re alive!” He cried with relief. “Yeah, no thanks to you, asshole. You left me to die back there!” She scoffed, glaring daggers at him. “I… It was just fight or flight, I was-” He struggled to defend himself.

“It doesn’t matter. Whitehorse told you this was a bad idea, this is your fault no matter what you have to say.” Ronnie cut him off, pointing an accusatory finger at him. When he had no retort she continued, “Now we have to find a way out of this shit show, and to rescue the others. Did you have a plan?” Burke sighed, walking further into the trailer, motioning for her to follow. The walls were wood panelled, and words were scratched into most of the walls; ‘The Father’, ‘Walk the path’, along with other mantras and bible verses. Pictures were also posted all over the spots that had no words. They all depicted the members of the Seed family in various poses and situations. One such picture was a framed portrait of all of them, Cameron grabbed this and stared into their eyes. He looked haunted. 

“The plan is to put all of these fuckers in jail. No matter what it takes.” He gathered himself before tossing it on the table and going to point out of one of the front windows. “To get out of here, I was thinking I could try to hotwire that truck, unless the keys are in it. It’s probably only a couple hours back to Missoula, then we’re gonna come back here with the National fucking Guard, and take care of these lunatics.” 

“Fine, let’s just get out of here before-” Veronica was cut off by a shot ringing out, and one of the windows behind her shattering into a spray of glass. “They’re in there!” Screamed a man, and more shots were fired at the trailer. “These guys just don’t give up!” She exclaimed, exasperated. Burke took shelter against one of the walls, pulling out his gun to fend off the attackers. V scanned the room and found a gun mounted on the wall, she grabbed it and cocked it before crouching under the shattered window, sitting up to aim outside. There were four peggies firing at them. She took aim at the first, shooting him square in the chest and knocking him to the ground. Burke took out one on the other side then turned to say “Cover me! I’m gonna go get that truck started!” Veronica nodded curtly before turning to shoot out the window twice more. 

Even more cultists were arriving at the scene and taking up arms, it seemed almost hopeless. V fired shot after shot, taking out as many as she could until she finally heard the sweet roar of an engine, and Cameron shouted for her to join him in the truck. “Finally, fuck!” She gasped, dashing from the trailer and ripping open the door to the vehicle. “Let’s fucking go!” He yelled while she slammed the door and immediately leaned out of the window to shoot at the peggies behind them. Burke careened down the simple dirt road, Veronica shooting at their enemies as they approached a chain link fence and busted through the gate with no problem, then they were crossing a bridge to the main road. 

Burke was gasping, close to panic, while V just felt numb. ‘Shock must be setting in, great.’ She thought distantly. “God, I had no idea Rook. I didn’t know how bad it was, how right Whitehorse was… I wish we’d never served that warrant.” He rambled, glancing between the deputy and the road. “It’s too late for wishes, Burke… they’ve got the road blocked!” She exclaimed at the sight before her; peggies had their trucks and sawhorses blocking off the next section of street. She lifted her gun once more, shooting at them while Cameron swerved wildly to avoid the obstacles. One of the cultists to their right set off a flare, letting the rest of them know where they were. 

The pair crashed through another barricade, and Ronnie kept shooting at the people pursuing them that were in an identical looking truck. “We aren’t losing them marshal!” She shouted. “Alright, I guess we gotta try something else.” He huffed before taking the truck off road, almost going airborne as they crashed through a wooden fence. Blinding headlights were blazing behind them as more and more peggies joined the chase. Veronica happened to glance in the bed, and spotted some red sticks. “Oh fuck yeah.” She chuckled, reaching out of the window and grabbing a stick before producing her simple purple lighter that had miraculously stayed in her pocket. She lit the fuse on the dynamite, squinting her eyes as the cord came to life and the flame hissed. V chucked it at one of the trucks behind them, causing a loud boom and fire bloomed from the wreckage. “Shit! That’s pretty satisfying.” She commented, turning to Burke who still looked too scared to be impressed. 

After lighting a couple more sticks and tossing them out, causing some major chaos, they found themselves about to go under an overpass. Right before they passed underneath, a sleek white plane flew out of the clouds and began shooting at them, hitting some green crates on the side of the road only for them to explode. Keying into this as they finally passed under the bridge, she fired quickly at the crates scattered around an upcoming roadblock, sending people flying in every direction. “A plane, are you kidding me?” Burke yelled and pounded a fist against the wheel.

A gargantuan bridge waited on the other side of the roadblock, there was a sign mounted near the top that read ‘Henbane River Bridge’. As they raced across, Cameron took a deep breath before saying “Home free, after this we are home free!” Veronica wasn’t so sure as more planes swooped overhead, and suddenly a high-pitched whistling could be heard getting closer and closer, before V yelled “Bomb!!” and orange flames whooshed across the bridge, enveloping their truck and sending them tumbling into the river below. 

The vehicle was in a freefall with chunks of concrete, the river’s waters rushing up to meet them. Neither of them had time to say anything before they made impact. Veronica was incapacitated for a moment and when her eyes opened they were underwater, trapped once again. She saw Burke across from her pounding on the window, shattering it on his third try and swimming up to the top, leaving her to drown. Ronnie gathered together her last bits of energy, slamming her elbow into the passenger side window until it finally broke, and she maneuvered her way from the descending car. Her arms flailed as her lungs screamed, daring her to take a breath before breaching the surface, and then it went black. 

Not too long later, her eyes snapped open and she grasped at the wet silt underneath her, she was on the shore. On the bridge there were countless flashlights casted down upon the water, looking for her. She heard Marshal Burke yelling off in the distance, and saw a group of peggies pulling him away as he shouted “I am a federal marshal! You can’t do this!” Veronica tried to get the will to get up and run, knowing she was next; but her muscles screamed with exhaustion and wouldn’t cooperate. She was able to lift herself to crawl maybe a foot before collapsing once more, staring up at the sky and trying to accept that this was the end. 

A figure came into her field of vision and the barrel of a shotgun was dangerously close to her head, she didn’t even have the energy to protest as the person lifted her over their shoulder with a grunt, and began carrying her through the woods. Her vision faded in and out, allowing her to see them pass by a radio tower and then a cabin, only to walk down some metal stairs. Then she could fight no more; and everything went black. 

[ofravensandgenesis]

Rules: Name ten favorite characters from ten different things (books, tv, film, etc.)

Tagged by @amistrio , thank you for the tag! :D ♥ There’s going to be more than one in some options just bc they’re from the same verse/series/etc, but we’ll count each entry as one. Onwards!! In no particular order:

- The entire Addams Family but Morticia and Gomez Addams in particular (The Addams Family) - Glottis and Manny Calavera (Grim Fandango) - Bilbo, Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin (The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings) - Guybrush Threepwood and Eleanor Marley (Secret of Monkey Island series) - Tanjiro, Inosuke, Zenitsu, and Shinobu Kocho (Demon Slayer) - John Seed, Jacob Seed, Sharky Boshaw, Joey Hudson and Staci Pratt (Far Cry 5) - Hercule Poirot (Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot) - Zevran, Morrigan, Alistair, Varric, Aveline, and all the rest of the companions and advisors except for Solas (Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, and Dragon Age Inquisition) - Goose (Untitled Goose Game) - The Traveler (Journey)

Tagging uuuuuuuuuh @contodomialma , @undead-gearhead , and anyone who hasn’t been tagged!!! :D

[shan282-ao3]

The Devil Has Come Ch5

Originally posted on Archive of Our Own [x]

Chapters: 12/? Fandom: Far Cry 5 Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Female Deputy | Judge/John Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Jacob Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Joseph Seed Characters: Original Female Character(s), John Seed, Jacob Seed, Joseph Seed, Faith Seed, Staci Pratt, Nick Rye, Sharky Boshaw, Female Deputy | Judge (Far Cry), Original Male Character(s), Kim Rye, Boomer (Far Cry), Joey Hudson, Earl Whitehorse Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Torture, Fluff, Minor Character Death, Recreational Drug Use, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Eventual Smut, Character Death, Slow Burn Series: Part 1 of Bottom of The River

Summary: They should never have been there. Whitehorse and Pratt were right when they spoke against going to Eden’s Gate. They should have left The Project alone. They’d started something and there was no going back now. The lamb had broken the first seal and the deputy had been helpless to stop her.

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It had been nearly a week since she’d spoken to John on the radio. The channel that he had previously called her on remained silent when Sarah was tuned to it which was more and more now. She told herself she was just keeping it on that channel so she could get a heads up if John sent his goons after her.

Since leaving the Ryes’ and taking US Auto back for the Resistance, Sarah and Rook had been laying low. Sarah had collected Boomer from the packing facility and brought him back to her house where he’d proceeded to make himself at home on her couch. It was comforting to have him there, though he’d woken her up a few times so he could bark at squirrels.

She was curled up on the couch reading a trashy novel when her radio blared to life, causing Boomer to leap up from his spot next to her and start barking again. Sarah shushed the dog and looked at the radio in front of her, anxious to hear what it was about to relay.

“Deputy? This is Mary May over at the Spread Eagle.” Mary’s voice rang out and Sarah sat forward, her book discard and elbows resting on her knees. “We’ve got a bit of a problem. John Seed and his fucking Peggies are trying to take the town.”

Sarah swore and jumped up, she cranked the volume on her radio in case someone else called and ran into her room to change. While she was rushing to change into something more practical, she heard Dutch telling Rook to head to Falls End.

Changed, Sarah holstered her 1911 and slung her rifle across her back. “You stay here Boomer, I don’t want you getting hurt. I promise I’ll be back soon.” She gave the dog a few pats before heading out the door, locking it behind her.

As she climbed into her truck, she debated radioing Rook to let her know she was on her way, but she decided against it. If the Peggies had their radios tuned to the channel she didn’t want to alert them to her arrival.

The radio clicked on with the car, she had forgotten that she’d left it on Peggie radio. Oh John carried through the speakers and Sarah couldn’t help but smile. The song was actually really pretty. She caught herself singing along in no time and didn’t really care, it was catchy dammit.

“I’m gonna strafe these sinners.” A voice echoed through the radio of a fallen cultist nearby. Sarah looked to the sky in time to see the plane start to fire and dove for cover. Bullets peppers the spot she’d just been standing and she took a shaking breath.

She’d shown up to a mostly calm situation, the Peggies had already won the battle and taken over the town. Her plan had been to stay low and do this stealthily, then a few had spotted her when she was trying to get into the church and that plan got thrown out the window.

Rook had shown up just in time and, with the added firepower, they’d managed to free most of the people of the town and take out the majority of the Peggies on the ground. That’s when two panes had shown up and everything went to shit again.

Mary May was screaming at Rook about a mounted gun somewhere but Rook was focused on keeping the ground reinforcements at bay. Sarah could get to it, she just had to time it right. She looked to the sky again to figure out where the planes were and about how long she had till they fired again.

The one plane that had just fired was circling back to fire again, however the other simply circled the town menacingly. It was black, unlike the other white was a bright white, similar to all of the other Project vehicles. Its color and height above them reminded Sarah of a circling crow.

The white plane fired again, as soon as the bullet were past her spot Sarah shot from cover and ran towards the general store. She kept looking back towards the black plane as she hastily climbed the ladder. On the roof, she spotted the mounted gun almost immediately and rushed to it.

She lined up the shot with the white plane and held the trigger down. They exchanged fire until enough of her bullets had hit the engine and the plane exploded, the force causing Sarah to jump back and press herself against the ground. Pieces of the plane rained down on the streets below, the smell of burning fuel filled the air, and the flaming carcass of the plane crashed down near the water tower.

The black plane circled once more before turning and leaving, Sarah took it as her cue to climb back down and rejoin everyone else. By the time she was back on the ground, Mary May, Rook, and Pastor Jerome had already disappeared into the Spread Eagle. Sarah stepped in just in time to hear the tail end of their conversation.

Jerome nodded at her as he passed on his way back to the church, Sarah returned it and leaned against the wall, watching Rook and Mary May share a beer. She felt a little ignored, neither had even acknowledged her presence, in Rook’s case she had her back to her but Mary May could see Sarah standing there clear as day.

“Rook?” Sarah finally said, causing her friend to look in her direction.

“Partner!” Rook cheered and grabbed Sarah, pulling her down onto a stool. ���Good job taking down that plane. Thought it was gonna kill us all.” Sarah smiled at the woman and shrugged at the praise.

“It was nothing, you would’ve done the same.”

“Well yeah, obviously, but I didn’t you did. Mary May can I get another beer and…” She turned to Sarah with a prompting look.

“Oh um I guess a vodka tonic.” A minute of waiting and the drinks were served. Sarah smiled at her drinking companion as they cheered before taking a long drink from her glass. She breathed a happy sigh and the warm feeling the licked her throat as the drink went down, she hadn’t had a proper drink since before all this shit started and God she’d missed it.

More patrons filed into the bar and as day turned to night Sarah and Rook found themselves moving to a small table outside, their drinks moving with them. Sarah nursed her eighth vodka tonic of the night, sipping it idly through a tiny straw she’d stolen from beside Mary May’s coffee pot.

“You got a first name?” Sarah broke the silence, she kicked her feet up on the table, leaning the chair back precariously.

“Yeah?” Rook responded with a small grin, quirking her eyebrow.

Sarah waited for her to give it before letting out an exaggerated sigh. “Well… what is it?”

“Tessa, Tessa Rook.” Rook, or rather Tessa, responded, Sarah would have to get used to the first name.

Sarah broke into a goofy grin. “Wait your last name is Rook?” A nod of affirmation sent Sarah into a fit of giggling. “So you’re Tessa Rook the rookie? On God, that’s the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

Her hysterics infectious as soon Tessa had joined in the laughter, only to start laughing even harder when Sarah, in all her idiocy, leaned back and topped her chair. She paused in shock before meeting Tessa’s eyes and laughing just as hard.

“Jesus fuck I love that.” Sarah wiped a few tears from her eyes, still laying on the floor. Mary May’s face swirled into view to tell them they were cut off and Sarah only grinned stupidly at the woman and waved her away. Someone pulled her up off the ground and handed her back the jacket she’d left inside, John’s jacket, the keys jangled in it.

“G’night Rookie. See ya tomorrow.” Her words slurred together and she waved at the other woman before shoving her hands in the pockets of her jacket and starting her trek back to her truck. It was slow going, she was swaying an awful lot, not to mention it was dark as shit out so she was tripping over her own feet.

With a lot of fumbling, tumbled toes, and swearing, Sarah finally found the truck and pulled the keys out to unlock the door. The key scrapped against the door, missing the lock on the hand completely and dropped from Sarah’s hand. “Fuck me.” She swore, dropping to the ground to find them, kicking them farther away in the process.

After maybe two minutes she gave up, she was a quitter by nature and slumped against the side of the car. Her radio dug into her side, an idea popped into her head and in her drunken stupor, it seemed absolutely genius.

It was still turned to the old frequency she’d shared with Tessa before John had hijacked it, he hadn’t talked to her on it in a while but maybe he still had the frequency tuned.

She clicked the button to talk and waited a second before actually saying anything, “John?” She waited, nothing. “Come on John I know you’re there. Johnny? Johnnycakes? Answer me.” She was practically whining.

“What?” John finally answered and he sounded irritated beyond all hell. “Do you have any idea what time it is, deputy?”

“No.” She deadpanned before bursting into another fit of giggles. “You know you say deputy weird.”

“What do you want Sarah.” His tone was getting more irritated by the second and Sarah couldn’t help the amused tone that slipped into her’s.

“Whatcha doing?” No answer. “Torturing lost souls? Marking sinners? Hey, what’d my sin be?”

“What are you talking about?”

“When you called me the first time, to tell me you were gonna free me from sin, you said you knew my sins. Well, what are they?”

“Wrath. Pride. Sloth if the past week is being taken into account. No one has seen you in days have you even left your house?” There was playful accusation in his voice

“Hmm, okay I guess those are valid. Guess I pictured myself as more of a Lust girl but Pride is fine too.” She shrugged, her slur was worse than it had been earlier as exhaustion started to take over.

“You’re drunk,” John replied, realization finally dawning on him.

Sarah clicked the button to talk again and laughed. “No shit honey.”

“I’m sending someone to get you.” She could practically hear him pinching his nose in irritation. He was probably shouting at some exhausted guard, Sarah couldn’t help but at the image. “Where the hell are you?”

“Outside Falls End, but I have a car. When I find the keys I can drive home don’t worry.”

“You’re not driving home,” He snapped, “Just wait there, someone is coming for you. Just wait, please.” His last words were softer, his voice carried the same gentleness as it had at the baptism and Sarah sighed at it. “Sarah? Sarah are you still—”

“I’ll wait, John,” She cut him off, “I’ll wait.” The few lights in town were shutting off one by one until all the was left was the Spread Eagle sign. Sarah’s head lolled back, hitting the truck softly with a quiet clunk, and she smiled up at the stars, waiting.

The crunch of dirt under tires announced her escort’s arrival long before the truck stopped in front of her. She looked up at the driver as they, he, stepped out, and she grinned at him. “John sent his favorite lapdog. Hi Tommy.”

Thomas rolled his eyes and stooped down to help Sarah up. “Hello, deputy.” He didn’t seem pleased to be out here, Sarah didn’t really care.

“It’s Sarah, pretty sure we’re gonna see lots more of each other.” Thomas held her gaze for a second before sighing and shaking his head. He led her to the car, helping her into the passenger’s seat and strapping her in. “Can you take me home?”

“I’m taking you to John.”

“No.” She sounded like an angry child, on the verge of stopping her foot in protest. “Home. If you take me to the ranch I’m just gonna break Johnny’s nose and run away again.”

“It’s not up for debate, missy. Now sit back and fall asleep or something, just stop bitching.” He was definitely not pleased to be here, John probably woke him up. Sarah glared at the man for a second before finally shrugging and turning in her chair so her head was against the window. She tried to pull her legs onto the chair, but they were too damned long and she gave up after a minute of struggling.

The Hope County choir played quietly through the speakers and the beginning of “We Will Rise Again” lulled her to sleep as they neared the ranch.

Sunlight pouring in through the uncovered window woke Sarah up with a pained groan. She practically hissed at the light and rolled over, covering her head with her pillow. She was vaguely aware that it wasn’t her pillow, her bed, or her room, but she honestly didn’t give a shit right now.

She cracked open groggy blues eyes and noticed the glass of water and bottle of pain killers on the bedside, bless whoever had left them because fuck was she feeling last night. She downed a couple pills and chugged the glass before laying back in the bed and taking some steadying breaths.

Sarah finally pushed back the blankets and climbed out of bed, albeit incredibly slowly. She was grateful to see that she was still dressed in her clothes from last night, minus her boots and stolen jacket. There were clothes sitting on top of the dresser in the room and Sarah looked at them curiously for a moment before her attention moved to the bathroom.

She stripped off her clothing, biting back a small curse as she jostled some injuries from yesterday’s gunfight. She turned on the shower and stepped in, finally breathing a sigh of relief when the hot water rushed over her. An audible groan escaped her lips as she washed, the water at her house never got nearly this hot, it was like she was in heaven.

When she’d finished up and toweled herself dry, she dressed in the clothing that had been left for her: jeans that actually fit relatively well and a dark blue button up that was obviously a man’s. She rolled the sleeves up and left a few of the top buttons undone. It clearly didn’t fit still, so she tucked the rest into her jeans. Her boots were next to the door and she pulled them on, someone had scrubbed all the dirt off of them, weird.

Sarah stepped out the door and stopped when she saw Thomas standing across from it. “Morning.” He greeted, he sounded exhausted and Sarah felt a touch of pity for the poor man. He’d probably been out there for hours.

“Good morning, Thomas.” She returned the greeting and followed him as he led the way out the front door instead of the back like he had last time. They stepped out onto a covered patio and Sarah took a brief moment to breathe in the cool morning air before continuing behind her guide.

Thomas stopped in front of a table and gestured for Sarah to take a seat. She looked around curiously before sliding into a chair, tapping her fingers on the wood to stave off the awkward silence that had formed. A copy of the Book of Joseph sat on the table and Sarah traced the gold embellishments on the cover until a forced cough caught her attention.

Sarah looked up to see John and held his gaze as he sat down across from her. He handed her one of the two mugs he’d been carrying and sat back as a cultist who’d followed him set down to plates of various breakfast foods.

“Do you want cream or sugar for that?” He gestured to the mug and Sarah simply nodded, stunned by the domesticity of the whole situation. The Peggie scurried away before returning with a small cup of cream and a little bowl of sugar. Sarah tore her eyes away from John to smile in thanks before fixing her coffee to the way she liked it.

After another few minutes of silence, John just watching her as he sipped his coffee and she nibbled at a piece of buttered toast, she finally broke. “Thanks for not letting me drive, probably woulda killed myself.” She let out a hollow laugh, this whole situation was so weird and she honestly had no clue was to expect.

“You’re welcome. I can’t have you dying for you can reach atonement.” Sarah tensed at that but John quickly waved his hand away. “I didn’t bring you here for that, this time. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t choke on your own vomit during the night so I had Thomas bring you here.” He nodded to the other man before allowing him to leave.

“Ah, lovely, what a wonderful image for breakfast.” Sarah laughed a little and dared to let her guard down as she finally dug into the meal. “So is this going to become a thing? You send one of your guys to bring me here and we eat a meal together.”

“It could be.” John shrugged, faking nonchalance, but the look on his face betrayed him as a hopeful look flashed across him.

Sarah hid a smile behind her mug and finished it off, pushing her plate away. She leaned back, looking around at her surroundings.

“What’s your angle here John?”

“No angle. I just want to help you.”

“But why? I’m not the one who was prophesied, I’m not Joseph’s harbinger of the apocalypse. So why are you so invested in my safety and intent on freeing me from my sins?” There wasn’t a hint of mockery in her voice, she was genuinely curious.

John paused, his fingers lacing together as his brow creased in thought. The movement drew Sarah’s attention and she admired the tattoos that she could see decorating his hand. “I see my own sins in you,” He finally said, his blue eyes darting from her to the Book of Joseph on the table and then back. “I want to help you be free of them. They’re a burden I wouldn’t wish on anyone.”

Sarah was shocked by the honesty in his voice and leaned across the table, to do what she wasn’t sure. Her hand hovered over his in hesitation for a moment, her eyes locked with the Herald before she pulled it back and stood from the chair. John followed her up with a look of apprehension.

“You said last time that you’d show me your plane hangar. Lead the way.” She was grateful that he didn’t try to continue their conversation but instead grinned in excitement and started off towards the hangar.

He held the door open for her to walk through and followed close behind her. Inside sat a sleek looking black plane, white Project logos decorating the wings and tail. John immediately launched into a detailed description of the type of plane and why he’d chosen it. As he went on and on, his voice getting more excited as he pointed out little things about the plane Sarah caught herself smiling. She couldn’t help but find it adorable. He reminded her of Nick the first time she asked him to teach her to fly and he’d spent nearly two hours fawning over Carmina before even teaching her the controls. If things were different she was sure John and Nick would be the best of friends.

Things weren’t different though, and the Peggie armed to the teeth in the corner served as a reminder of that. His eyes never left her as she followed John around the plane, his finger resting on the trigger. He made it very clear that one wrong move and she’d find herself dead on the floor.

John must have talked himself out because he finally finished his excited rant and lead her back outside, stopping by the steps to the front of the ranch. He seemed to be warring with himself over something, the crease in his brow was back. Finally, he snapped a finger and a nervous looking women scurried up, quiet words were exchanged and after a few angry looks cast Sarah’s way by the woman, she produced a set of keys from her pocket.

John took the keys and waved her away then turned to Sarah. “I told you I wasn’t going to take you for confession today.” He held the keys out to her, watching to see what she’d do. Sarah gave him a curious look and took them from her, weighing them in her hand for a minute. “There’s a truck down the road, you’re free to leave when you want.” He turned around and started to walk away, pointedly not looking back as if he didn’t want to see what she was going to do.

“Why?” Sarah called after her, still frozen to the ground. Why the fuck would he give her an escape? This had to be some sort of trap.

He turned and looked after her with soft eyes. “After our last encounter, I now understand that this is something I cannot force on you. When you’re ready to atone you’ll come to me.”

Sarah looked between the keys in her hand and John, still unsure. “I— thank you.” She took a few steps in the direction of the car before pivoting and striding to stand in front of him. “John,” He paused again and met her eyes. “I mean it, thanks. For this, for last night, for everything.” She gestured to her clean clothes and in the direction the breakfast they’d shared.

John smiled and without thinking Sarah touched his arm as she returned it. He looked down in slight shock before looking back up, his own hand coming up to wrap around the back of her head and pull her forehead against his. “I hope to see you again soon Sarah.” He pulled away, the smile not leaving his face, and walked back into the house. Sarah watched until the door had closed before she set off towards the car, ignoring the glares of every cultist standing outside.

She climbed into the car and drove towards the Ryes’, Rook had been sleeping on their couch for the past week and hopefully, she would still be there. It was well past time Sarah told her about John’s new interest in her.

[edensgay]

Third Date

Third Date: A Joey Hudson Fanfiction

Relationship: Joey Hudson x OFC!Deputy

Rating: NSFW 18+

Summary: Joey and Maddy have their third date.

Warnings: Smut. Just smut. Not virginity loss but almost. 

Word Count: 3021

Author’s Note: I’m a FOOL for posting this when New Dawn comes out but idc. It’s still Valentines day for me so here’s my gays getting it on.

It’s their third date, they’re sitting on the tailgate of Joey’s beat up truck eating some food from The Grill Steak. They’re at some overlook up in the Whitetails, nothing but forest and river below them, the moon shimmers on the water and the food tastes delicious. It’s a perfect date so far. Joey has a bit of barbecue sauce dribbling down her chin and Maddy has to resist the urge to lick it off. She’s never connected with anyone like she’s connected with Joey and it drives her insane. She’s never believed in all those lesbian stereotypes before, but she’s five minutes away from hiring a moving company and buying a ring, and if she’s reading Joey’s vibes right, Joey is too. Or she was. Until of course, Maddy ruined the little questions game they were playing by asking something dumb. ‘When did you lose your virginity?’ The words had flown from her mouth before she’d even had time to properly think about them. Maybe it was the horny young adult male in her--’what’s your bra size?’--everyone had at least a little bit of that inside of them. Joey had gone silent, staring at the empty wrapper of her food like it could answer all her questions or swallow her whole. Maddy felt like an ass, Joey wasn’t even out yet. It was a sensitive topic, she knew it was. But her brain and mouth had apparently forgotten how to communicate and now all future plans of moving companies and white dresses--or maybe suits--were ruined. “Sorry.” It feels empty, hollow, but it’s all she can think to say. Her brain and mouth are now better in sync, and she recognizes that anything else she says might just make it worse, and she really doesn’t want to make it worse. Her companion sighs heavily, shakes her head like she’s just finished arguing with herself. “No, it’s-it’s fine.” “It was stupid forget it.” “I haven’t I guess.” She pauses, on some level, she knew that. But hearing it confirmed is something else. “Really?” And they were back out of sync again. Maddy winces, wishing she could go back in time and smack a gag in her mouth or something. Joey shrugs, not meeting her eyes. “There was a girl in Missoula but it was never that serious. Just-ah,” She stops to scratch the back of her head, stumbling over her wording, “nothing that serious.” How stereotypical, Joey had gone to college part-time in Missoula pursuing a Criminal Justice degree, her only gay experiences had been college fumblings. It somehow makes Maddy feel even worse. She’s about to apologize again when Joey continues. “She was curious, just curious. I was head over heels.” She shrugs again, a nervous habit maybe. “It never went past a few awkward fumblings.” Joey takes a swig of her lemonade, still looking away from Maddy. “So, you’ve only ever been fingerblasted?” Mouth. Brain. The lemonade comes out of Joey’s mouth and her nose, synced up better than Maddy’s brain and mouth could ever hope to be. Shut. Up. Joey coughs and sputters and all Maddy can do is sympathetically pat her on her back. Then the coughing turns into laughing, and she isn’t quite sure what to do. “Yeah, yeah I guess.” Her voice is raspy from the choking and Maddy’s ears grow warm, she’s such an idiot. “Sorry, that was.” She can’t find words other than sorry. Her date shakes her head, still chuckling to herself. “No, that was great--you’re great.” A snort escapes her, she’s far from great. She’s just put her thumb so far up her ass she isn’t sure if she’ll ever be able to get it out. But Joey is grinning at her, a shy flash of teeth with a look in her eyes like Maddy’s hung the moon. There’s an awkward silence, where Joey is still clearing her throat and snorting to herself and Maddy is trying to will herself to turn to dust to be caught by the breeze and taken anywhere but here. She’s not good with silences, God she wishes she was. “So, you’ve never had someone go down on you?” Brain. Mouth. Joey stares at her for a long minute, a grandfather clock ticking in the back of Maddy’s head, before shaking her head and picking up her lemonade again. This time she doesn’t drink it but instead swirls it around in the Styrofoam cup, keeping her hands busy. “No, guess not.” “Would you like to?” Joey’s jaw drops, eyes wide and cheeks heated at the suggestion. Thank God she hadn’t taken another drink of the lemonade, unlike Maddy she can learn from her mistakes. “Are you-?” Serious. The word hangs between them. She looks confused, hesitant, and almost--hopeful? Maddy’s stomach flutters at the implication. She keeps forgetting that this is all new to Joey, completely uncharted territory. Joey doesn’t know how to be gay, hasn’t quite found out how to be herself. As she chews her lip, Maddy realizes that she’s perfectly okay with helping Joey find out. The barbecue sauce is still on her chin and the urge to lick it off comes back with a vengeance. She was serious, so serious she has to cross her thighs at the thought of it. “Well, it is our third date.” Now she just looks confused, brows furrowing, her head taking on a curious tilt as she tries to decipher the meaning of that. Right, Joey doesn’t even have cable or Netflix. She’s likely never heard of that stupid dating rule. Then realization dawns on Joey’s face and that hopeful look is back. “You’re right, it is.” Her words are hesitant like she’s afraid of scaring Maddy away, completely unaware that Maddy’s mind is racing with thoughts of Joey panting and crying out beneath her. With a jerky movement and a clean swipe of Maddy’s tongue, the barbecue sauce is gone from Joey’s chin. Their lips collide and their tongues tangle. The kiss tastes like Chad’s homemade sauce and heaven, though arguably those could be the same thing. Her hand fists into Joey’s hair--worn loose for once because Maddy had mentioned that she liked Joey’s hair down--and the girl groans into the kiss. Breathlessly they pull away from each other, eyes lingering on the other's lips as they attempt to catch their breath. “You had sauce,” Maddy explains, licking her lips as she continues to stare at Joey’s. Joey doesn’t reply, just grabs onto Maddy’s sweater and pulls her closer until their lips connect again. It’s tender and aggressive, passionate and delicate all at once. Maddy doesn’t want to scare her, doesn’t want this to end, but craves her. Joey is much the same, afraid of ruining this, but recklessly charging ahead and hoping for the best. For someone who has little experience Joey sure knows how to kiss, the press of her lips against Maddy’s has her mind dizzied and her heart tied in a knot. Three dates in and this is their first time kissing, they’ve held hands once before but nothing like this. For lack of a better word, it’s intoxicating and Maddy isn’t sure she’ll ever get enough of Joey. She has to make up for lost time, two prior dates and the numerous times they’ve run into each other out on the town--it’s a small town. All time wasted not kissing Joey. Joey has never had a kiss like this, with the girl from college she thought had experienced the best of the best, at one point even thought it was love. But kissing Maddy is a whole new world. Her gay chakras have aligned and she’s seen the light. Is three dates too soon to call it love? However, all good things must come to an end and they need air, so they reluctantly pull apart, a trail of spit glistening in the moonlight. Normally, Maddy finds spit to be repulsive, but at that moment in time Joey could spit on her, hell, even in her mouth and she’d thank her. But that’s something to unpack another time. “My place isn’t far.” Joey’s voice is husky and Maddy shivers at the thought of Joey saying her name in that same voice. “Too far.” She’s being petulant, and she knows it but the thought of having to last the entire ten-minute drive back to Joey’s is agony. “We could just-” Her sentences trails off into what’s almost a question, her eyebrows waggling in suggestion as she eyes the truck bed. Joey snorts but she doesn’t look completely opposed, her eyes flicking to the truck bed before going back to Maddy’s face. “You do remember that I’m a cop right?” “And?” “We’re in public.” She doesn’t even sound like she’s trying to convince herself. “And?” “I’m a cop.” Her hand finds a place on Maddy’s thigh causing a delightful shiver to run through the freckled girl despite the unusual warmth of the night. “And?” “Someone could see us.” Joey’s hand squeezes her thigh, her voice getting back into that husky tone as she leans into Maddy. They’re very nearly kissing again, lips hovering so close they can almost feel each other. “Fuck it.” With that Joey closes the distance once more, both hands grabbing onto Maddy’s thighs and pulling the girl onto her lap. A quick squeal escapes from Maddy before being swallowed by Joey. The kiss is messy and urgent, Maddy’s hands tangling in Joey’s hair as Joey slides a hand up her sweater. She nips at Joey’s lip, tongue darting out to soothe before venturing into her mouth. The hand leaves her back and returns to gripping her thigh, leverage as Joey awkwardly shuffles them further back onto the truck bed. She whines as Maddy pulls away, yanking her sweater over her head and shoving it behind Joey before connecting their lips once again. Gently she pushes Joey back, laying her against the sweater turned pillow. Her lips migrate down, pressing sloppy kisses to her neck, nipping at the exposed column of her throat. A hand shimmies up Joey’s flannel, hesitantly cupping her breast, thumb swiping over a covered nipple. It’s thrilling to Joey, doing something like this in public. She’s not out yet, but this pushes that. She might not be out but she’s kissing a girl in public, nobody is around but she’s being gay in public. Her breath hitched in her throat, maybe because Maddy had just shoved her bra up and the breeze hit her bare chest or maybe because they could be caught and she almost doesn’t care. She feels high. “Wait, wait, wait.” Maddy pulls away, leaving Joey vulnerable--exposed--ready to fall. “What?” Her throat is sore, had she been mouth breathing that entire time? “This isn’t right.” She sits up, reading to scoot off of Joey’s lap. Her heart plummets. “This is your first time, I shouldn’t be copping a feel on a truck bed there should be candles and wine, Marvin Gaye maybe-” She’s rambling, attempting to run a hand through her messy curls. That’s it? “Shut up.” Joey fists her hand into the girls tank-top, pulling her back down onto her. Their lips connect and Maddy mumbles protests. It’s sweet that she’s so worried about Joey’s comfort, but in this moment there is nothing Joey wants more than Maddy between her thighs. “Shut up. My first time, my choice.” Well, how can Maddy argue with that? She pulls away, searches Joey’s eyes for something, she isn’t sure what she’s looking for but she finds it. Reassured she scoots lower, pressing a wet kiss in between Joey’s breasts, one hand moving to cup one breast while her mouth moves to cover the other. Maddy presses another kiss to her skin, but this time to the sensitive flesh of her nipple before pulling away. Joey squirms as the breeze cools the saliva, then gasps as the warmth of Maddy’s mouth captures the sensitive bud once more. Her teeth ever so gently graze the soft skin, feather-light in their attention as her hand squeezes the breast her mouth can’t cover. The most attention her breasts have ever gotten was a quick tweak of the nipple, nothing more. But Maddy has her lips wrapped around her nipple, tongue tracing the peak in slow motions that have Joey squirming in anticipation. She can feel Maddy’s hand on her belt, fumbling with the obnoxiously oversized belt buckle. Somehow, maybe there’s an angel out the rooting for Joey to get her pussy eaten, Maddy undoes the belt with one hand. Not pausing for even a moment to celebrate her victory, which Joey has learned is not like Maddy at all, she moves her attentions to lavish Joey’s other nipple.  When she pulls away Joey lets out a whine, pouting as Maddy scoots down her lap until she’s sitting on Joey’s thighs. The look on Maddy’s face is one of pure determination as she undoes Joey’s pants, it’s kind of cute how her eyebrows furrow and her tongue pokes out of the side of her mouth. Without prompting Joey lifts her hips, allowing Maddy to shimmy the jeans part way down her legs. It takes her a moment to realize that she’ll have to climb off of Joey to get her pants all the way off. When she does realize it, it’s with a huff and a frown, now she’s the one pouting. She clambers off joey just long enough to get her pants around her ankles and then wiggle herself back between Joey’s legs, a leg on each shoulder. It’s awkward, but Joey approves. If someone drives by at least she’ll have her pants halfway on and she won’t have to hunt for them. For a minute she feels self-conscious about her simple blue briefs, but then Maddy presses a kiss to her thigh and she doesn’t have the brain power to think about anything else other than the girl between her legs. A finger traces over her clothed mound and she lets out a surprised whine, unable to keep her hips from wiggling. “Shit, you’re really wet.” Maddy mumbles, a throaty chuckle escapes her lips and Joey can’t stop the goosebumps that erupt over her skin. The clever reply she had dies on her lips as Maddy looks at her, lids heavy with a devilish look shining in her eyes. All Joey can do is chew on her lip as Maddy ghosts her lips over her covered pussy. She wants to watch it all but she gives in to temptation and lets her head loll back onto the sweater. Her legs tense when Maddy pulls her underwear to the side and she feels the cool breeze. She feels exposed, and she quite literally is exposed. They’re on the side of the road in a truck bed, anyone could drive by. Then the cold is replaced by Maddy’s hot breath and then by her tongue. Joey doesn’t know how to describe the feeling, but as she tries to come up with words Maddy does it again. Her tongue licking Joey in a broad stripe, a hand tracing soothing circles on her thigh. She hadn’t realized how tense she was until Maddy whispers a soft ‘relax’ against her before sliding her tongue through her folds. She’s almost embarrassed at how loud she’s undoubtedly being Maddy has barely touched her and her skins already on fire. Her legs shake with anticipation as Maddy began to tongue fuck her, slow and languidly at first. Then more earnestly, nose rubbing against her clit as she tried to taste every available inch of Joey’s cunt. Fingers replace her tongue, two pumping gently in and out as she focuses her attention on her clit. She kisses her clit like she’d kissed Joey earlier wet, messy, and desperate. She calls Maddy’s name or rather moans it and she swears she can feel the girl smile against her. Her fingers curve up ever so slightly and Joey feels a pressure building, then her thumb joins her tongue and she feels herself reach a peak. But her orgasm doesn’t come, she’s sitting on the edge with her ass out ready to fall. But it doesn’t come. One look into Maddy’s eyes and she knows the girl is doing it on purpose, her pupils are blown to hell but there’s still a mischievous spark there. She keeps the same pace, never varying, never giving Joey that little push she needs. “You.” It was meant to be accusing but Maddy does something with her fingers that cuts the sentence short with a gasp. Unwilling to pull away she hums around Joey in response, the humming does something fantastic, sending tingles down Joey’s spine. “Maddy,” Joey is fully ready to beg, to set aside any ounce of pride she may have left and beg for the girl to let her come. But she doesn’t have to, at the sound of her name spilling from Joey’s lips Maddy picks up the pace. If Joey thought it was good before then this is fucking fantastic. Her fingers are everywhere, pumping into Joey so fast it seems like she’s vibrating. Where her fingers aren’t her tongue is, licking until Joey feels her legs spasm. Over the sound of her own moans and incomprehensible babble, she can almost hear the sound of her own wetness as Maddy furiously finger fucks her and teaches her the true meaning of being finger blasted. The girl is Gifted, with a capital G. Her orgasm isn’t one of those explosions, it creeps over her entire body until every inch of her is on fire. She’s no longer dangling over the edge, she’s plummeting. For a moment she blacks out, legs tightening around Maddy’s head and locking the girl in place. Maddy guides her through it, slowing her motions as Joey turns to goo. She’s still shaking as Maddy pulls away and rights her underwear, her breath coming out in little pants as she struggles to find words. “Good for you too?” Maddy’s chin is dripping with Joey’s wetness, the moonlight reflecting off of it as she grins smugly. “Fuck. You.”

[jacobmybeloved]

Companion opinion tag

Thank you @far-cry-all-the-time for tagging me!!!! (●´ω｀●)

9. Grace Armstrong

*HOLLERS* MY GURL GRACE UNF- she was my #1 GFH. doesn’t matter how many times I played, I always ran to the Lamb of God Church to grab her first. I think the Seed’s shoulda been less worried about me and more about her cause this girl just dished out damage like no other.

8. Jess Black

I’d usually bring Jess along with Grace. I like her a lot but I mainly use her for her perks. [Plus for some reason she just talks SO MUCH in my game like maybe it’s just me?? but after a few missions i switch her out]

7. Cheeseburgers

MY SWEET BABY. I love him but he’s so big and noisy. Plus Hurk ran him over one time and I felt so horrible I didn’t want to bring him on anymore missions causes I didn’t want him getting hurt ಥ_ಥ

6. Adelaide Drubman

*in Adelaides voice* THIS IS ADELAIDE AT THE MARINA HONEY. Omg this woman cracks me up. I never know what is gonna come out of her mouth but she gets shot down so easily so I just literally never use her. Still love you addie!

5. Boomer

When I’m not using a Grace/Jess combo, I use Grace/Boomer. Boomer is also my go to for when I do co-op with my friends and you best believe if someone hurts that dog I fucking just lost my shit.  (ง •̀_•́)ง

4. Peaches

Goddess of the hunt. Love of my life. sweet precious killing machine. If I’m not using Boomer I’m usually using Peaches, especially for stealth play throughs. WHO DOESN’T WANT A FREAKING MOUNTAIN LION FOLLOWING THEM AROUND THIS SHIT IS AWESOME.

3. Sharky Boshaw

My sweet, pyro fanatic whom I would absolutely die for. Sharky comes in clutch and has actually started to replace Grace in some of my playthroughs, I mean LOOK AT THIS

NOT ONE FUCK WAS GIVEN, he fucking swooped in and was like WHOP. -sighs- I love him.

2. Hurk Jr. Drubman

Hurk buddy, I love you, but you gotta stop blowing up the vehicles that I’m trying to get into. [aka I don’t use him very much, if at all]

1. Nick Rye

My first couple playthroughs I used Nick a lot but I like having my companions with me on the ground so they can revive my dumbass. If I’m going balls to the walls in like an open area with a cluster of enemies I’ll bring him along. Otherwise he’s a sweet angel and I would die for the Rye family.

(0. Staci Pratt & Joey Hudson)

I like love Hudson and she deserved so much better. I was indifferent to Pratt in the beginning but I did feel sorry for him. I wish there was an option after you rescued them for them to be companions because I feel like they’d be super interesting to talk to and hear more abou their backstories.

— Bonus Seeds

4. Joseph

Joseph honey, you made me question my entire life when I got this game and started thirsting after you but you can’t just start kidnapping/having your siblings kill people while preaching how you have to save them.

3. Faith

I LOVE her?! I just love how manipulative she is like SUCH A GOOD VILLAIN. There’s like no telling if she’s telling the truth or not and I think that makes her the scariest out of the Seeds.

2. John

John was actually my first crush playing this game and for some reason I kept getting him and Joseph confused so I’d be like oh wow, Joseph’s hair looks way different and then I saw them in a cutscene together and I was like wait a second 

1. Jacob

I-I hate to admit this, but I actually thought Jacob was ugly when i first started v(ಥ ̯ ಥ)v AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED but I woke up one day and was like I’m fucking stupid THIS MAN IS HOT and then the fan fic followed suit and then the fucking FC blog and then you guys know the rest.

—

TAGGING [FEEL FREE TO IGNORE]: @zacklover24 @shelbypnw @superbcatstudents @superaayojayyworld @spacecharizard @liilaac @newdawnfarcry @thatjessopgirl @farcrying5 @thomas-crush @rush-me-thomas @daddy-joseph-seed @cameoninja @peachespasteltea @scarlettkat86

+ anyone else who wants to do this!

[nadjadoll]

Companion Opinion Tag

Oh boy, I was tagged by @jacobmybeloved for this and I’m very excited about it~

First, let me just say the majority of these characters are my babies and I would die for them.

Grace Armstrong

I want Grace to marry me. Grace is the best companion skill wise in my opinion. She’s definitely my number 1 companion and it saddens my heart to see how ubi treated her in New Dawn.

Jess Black

I love Jess, but I do not love her long tedious jog through the woods recruitment quest. My first playthrough I think I used her the most because of how much better at stealth she is than me.

Cheeseburger

CHEESIE BOY, my sweet burger boy. I use him from time to time when I don’t feel like being any kind of stealthy. I loved him immediately because I’ve never gotten to be friends with a fricken bear in a game before.

Adelaide Drubman

I really like Adelaide but besides the sometimes weird things she says I don’t have many thoughts on her.

Boomer

Best boy. If I’m not using Grace and Sharky, I have Boomer. I’ve accidentally hit him more than I would like to admit but I would still protect him with my actual life. He’s saved me more than the other gfh when he’s been farther away from me than some of them.

Peaches

Love. Love her. No downsides.

Sharky Boshaw

My number 2 companion. I am never without my sweet pyro boy. Sure he’s sometimes more destructive than he is helpful but that’s never stopped me before.

Hurk Jr. Drubman

Hurk is not my favorite companion and I don’t think I’ve used him more than like once the entire time I’ve been playing. I don’t think much would change if they hadn’t had him in the game. And in New Dawn there are characters I would have much rather seen than him, like Jess or Mary May. It would have been really cool to have Mary as a companion.

Nick Rye

Along with Jess, Nick’s recruitment quest is also long and tedious and I hate doing it every time. I also don’t like that there was no option to make Nick land so he can roam with you on the ground. Despite this, I love him and would take a bullet for any member of the Rye family.

(Staci Pratt & Joey Hudson)

I’m going to be honest I didn’t really care much about either of these two for a while. I didn’t even recognize Staci as being the guy from the helicopter when we have to go rescue him. It was hard for me to feel bad for both of them because we don’t really get much time to get to know them you know?

— Bonus Seeds

Joseph

First thought was, get away from me you creepy man. Not my favorite Seed but I still like him.

Faith

Do I even have to say anything about her? Perfect, that's what she is. She is and always has been to me so intriguing and mysterious. Nothing is as it seems with Faith and that’s what pulled me to her. She’s dark, she’s complex and she is hands down one of the best female video game characters.

John

Evil baby boy. Surprisingly I didn’t think much of him for a while. He’s tied with Jacob for my second favorite Seed.

Jacob

Jacob scares me. In reality, I would not want to be anywhere in his presence. In the game, I want to be much closer to him.

[themysteriouslou]

👀 all of them for leslie?

The Basics

1. Give their full name, and describe them or post a picture! (Height, build, hair, eye, and skin color, etc.)

Full name's Elena Leslie Grünewald! Only a handful of people refer to her with her first name though. 5′4/5′5, lean and fit. Wavy, medium-dark chestnut hair; gray eyes, light skin that gradually tans, has a scar that runs across the right side of her jaw.

2. How old are they? 

28!

3. Sexuality and gender? 

Heteroflexible, cisgender female.

Pre-Game

1. How did they end up at the Hope County Sheriff’s Department? How long have they worked there?

Her father told her about the job just as she graduated from the police academy. He had been a colleague of Whitehorse’s when the two were young men in the office and following his transfer he kept in contact with him, so he must have mentioned her interests in a passing conversation. As for the second question, she has been working there for a year.

2. Relationship with Pratt, Hudson, and Whitehorse?

Pratt: he was the first to welcome her to the department—it took them some weeks but they grew close to each other during that time. He teased her a lot (because he was a little shit) but they got each other's back and genuinely care about the other's well-being.

Hudson: one of the first alongside Pratt to welcome her to the county, as well as the one who gave her some insight and help on how to work at the station. It took longer to befriend her than Pratt for the simple fact Danny’s death had been a recent thing and she was still blaming herself from it, but she eventually warmed up to Leslie.

Whitehorse: She has a soft spot for Whitehorse—she knew him since she was a child and had enough good memories of him to consider working alongside him a blessing. Likely sees him as a surrogate uncle figure due to the trust he extended to her as soon as she was given the duty of a cop.

3. Do they have an education?

Yup! Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice.

4. Where are they from? Did they speak a different language there?

She’s from Virginia! Aside from speaking Italian in her maternal family’s household, English has always been her main language.

5. Is there anyone outside the valley that might have come looking for them?

Her relatives and some of her friends back at home—she keeps in contact with them occasionally so I'd think they wouldn't make a big deal out of her going radio silent at first. However, they'd definitely start suspecting something's wrong if there hasn't been a call from her in months...

6. Did they have a religious background of any kind?

Quite — the Grünewalds aren’t attached to religious institutions but they’re Christian nonetheless. Leslie considers herself a believer, just more laid-back and chill about it.

Inside Hope County

1. What was going through their head when the helicopter went down and during the subsequent chase?

It was a mix of words: an increasing stream of "fucks" on loop coupled with an exasperated “are you fucking kidding me”. She was almost moving on autopilot—it was a terrifying experience for her but she knew she had to escape, she had to be fast or else, it was over.

2. Were they afraid of Joseph and Eden’s Gate? Angry?

Leaning towards afraid—she didn’t know what was going on and the only thought on her mind was to get to somewhere safe. Leslie had a few run-ins with Eden’s Gate before the attempted arrest and could understand why the locals were wary of them. Mainly, she was cautious.

3. Did they trust Dutch?

Let's put it this way: waking up cuffed to a post isn’t the best way to start trust between two people.

4. How did they feel about their team being taken by the cult, did they count them as lost, did they want them back, did they not care?

Les was worried sick—the memories from hours before started to return as she recovered, which meant she remembered trying to stop the cult from taking Joey, Staci's and Whitehorse's screams, and the Marshal’s protests as he was found by the peggies. More than anything, Leslie was determined to recover them—she was not going to leave them behind if she had anything to say about it.

5. How did they take to the idea of being part of, if not leading, the resistance?

It… didn’t dawn on her she was leading the Resistance at the beginning. She was just doing what she thought right—if she could help the people of the county, so be it. Then one day she was at the county jail, talking to several Resistance members and one of them said “you gave us hope to fight back”. It baffled her at first, but eventually she slotted right into the leader role.

6. Which companions did they recruit, and who did they travel with the most?

All of them! Nick’s a constant companion of hers, the second companion often varies depending on the region she is at.

7. Did they have time to find romance amidst the chaos? How did they do it?

It's... complicated, considering she fell in love with one of her enemies. Not even her knows how did it happen.

8. Feelings about Joseph? 

Mixed. On one hand he's the man she was ordered to arrest and the accusations against him, the bad he inflicted onto the county's residents should've convinced her he should be taken down. On the other hand... Leslie can see his point. She gets what's he's trying to say and why he is doing all of this, she sees him treating her carefully and taking his time to make her understand (which in turn makes her feel more conflicted tbh). Reading the BOJ in an attempt to understand him only furthers these mixed feelings.

9. Feelings about the other Seeds?

Faith was the scariest Seed for her—she gets into your mind, her persuasion convinces you that you belong with the cult and her management of the Bliss is absolutely terrifying. Leslie feels like she was walking on thin ice around her, yet she didn't see the need to refuse to listen to her (likely because her story pulls her heartstrings and her instinctual need is to help others, even her enemies and people who wronged her).

As for John, Les can admit he doesn't put pretenses and is straightforward about his motives. He doesn't try to use pity or fear to get to her, rather he just tells her the reason he is the way he is. She appreciates honesty in people, so I think she'd be the same way with him. Snarks a lot at him through the radio, though, and probably enjoys messing with him way too much, but that's it.

Jacob... well, here's the complicated part—Leslie should fear him, shouldn't feel at ease in his presence, shouldn't feel safe when she's in his arms, yet she does. It was a matter of survival what made them grow closer and fond of each other and now they don't know how to deal with it. She wants to soothe his scars, both physically and psychologically, wants to be there for him. Wants to save him. For the most part she tried to pretend these obvious feelings weren't there, but as the war wages on, with every unplanned meeting... it's just more difficult.

10. How did they handle having to kill animals and other humans? Had they done it before?

Killing animals wasn’t hard—Les participated in past hunting trips with her male relatives and the county people before. As for killing humans… she tries to not do it when she has the chance. Killing Angels and peggies in self-defense still leaves a bad taste in her mouth though.

11. Which canon ending did they choose in-game, and would you have changed the ending at all?

She choose the Resist ending. Leslie is too stubborn to go back once she had made her choice. As for the second part of the question: boy would I have. I would have spared and arrested the Seeds. Having to kill them hurt me and made me wish we could've given them a chance at life.

Personal

Favorite weapon(s)?

Any type of rifles and explosives! Molotovs and pipes are a recurrent thing in her inventory too.

2. Stealth or firepower?

Most of the time she likes stealth. However, it’s not uncommon of her to go Rambo and punch everything on sight if she has no other choice.

3. How did they spend their time, when not fighting peggies?

Lots of time spent at Fall’s End and the 8-Bit Pizza Bar. You could also find her enjoying the regions' scenery, drawing, fishing or doing tasks for the locals—basically she spent her time on things that relaxed her or took her mind off the war.

4. Where did they live during the events of the game?

Les wandered A LOT. Her actual house is at the border of the Whitetail Mountains and Holland Valley region, but she has had few opportunities to go there after the Reaping. After, she mostly uses her secret log cabin and takes naps in abandoned cars and houses/bunkers.

5. Any other facts you want to share about your Deputy!

- can tie a cherry stem with her tongue.

- used to practice baseball when she was younger.

- doesn't know how to ice-skate for the life of her —her face practically belongs to the floor if someone manages to convince her to try it.

- will laugh at the dumbest of jokes.

- prefers calling to texting people but know she's a keysmasher.

[rookisaknight]

Deputy

Might as well introduce her before I ramble about my good ending aus and self-indulgent shit

This is a questionnaire whipped up by @dutchisland

The Basics

1. Give their full name, and describe them or post a picture! (Height, build, hair, eye, and skin color, etc.)

Molly Sofia Kriz. A lanky brunette, around 5′8″. Skin is covered with freckles, acne scars, and is usually sunburned. Big black eyes. Her father was Czech and her mother was Latinx. Her hair was fairly long before the helicopter crash, after which she chopped it off to just under her chin to get rid of the burnt edges. She rarely has time for a haircut and usually just chops it off with whatever’s readily available. On the rare occasions that she has down time Kim will usually menace her into sitting still long enough to give it a proper trim. Big forehead. Small hands

2. How old are they?

26

3. Sexuality and gender?

Pansexual, she/her.

Pre-Game

1. How did they end up at the Hope County Sheriff’s Department? How long have they worked there?

She’s not a Hope County native but he knew when she graduated from Police Academy that she had no interest in being a big city cop, and angled for a small town assignment. She lucked out with Hope County. Or at least, so she thought. If we was hoping for things to be less complicated out here....In any case, she’d been working there for just under a year before the raid on Eden’s Gate

2. Relationship with Pratt, Hudson, and Whitehorse?

Pratt: Staci was delighted to no longer be the lowest rung on the totem pole and enjoyed giving her as much hell as Hudson gave him when he was the Rook. Based on what little we see of him before Jacob gets a hold of him I’ve always imagined Pratt as just a bit of a prankster. To this day Molly doesn’t drink coffee or sit in a chair at the station without thoroughly examingin both for traps. Still, they have a certain rapport and had each other’s backs. Some possible romantic tension that might have gone somewhere, in a better world.

Hudson: they weren’t exactly having sleepovers and braiding each other’s hair, but they wre close enough to grab coffee a few times when they weren’t at work. Hudson isn’t known for being friendly but she was a little relieved to have another woman in the department. Joey took a few hits for Molly when she thought Pratt or the Sheriff were making life too hard for her, and in return Molly did her best to learn the lessons Joey taught her. A bit of an older sister relationship. 

Whitehorse: He’s not a man to get chummy with his deputies but their relationship was amicable enough. Whitehorse has been in the game for a long time, and once she became aware of how bad things really were in Hope County she was a little in awe of him. He has a lot more respect for her than she thinks, but he rarely expresses it. Whitehorse thought she had potential, just no real call to action yet. 

3. Do they have an education?

An unremarkable academic career in high school, a couple of years at a community college, and Police Academy. Not much of a scholar, although she does like to read. Or did. At this point she doubts she could relax enough to sit down with a novel. 

4. Where are they from? Did they speak a different language there?

Eastern Washington. No, but she did pick up some Spanish from her mom.

5. Is there anyone outside the valley that might have come looking for them?

If she had kept her parents in the loop they might have come looking, but she’d never wanted them to worry.

6. Did they have a religious background of any kind?

Her parents wee Catholic enough to drag her to Mass every Sunday in childhood but not enough to kick up that much of a fuss when she slowly stopped going at 16. She knows enough to pass and would comfortably say that she believes in a God, but even before her time in Montana she was suspicious of organized religion. 

Inside Hope County

1. What was going through their head when the helicopter went down and during the subsequent chase?

She was running on raw adrenaline the whole time and there wasn’t much room for coherent thought beyond “please don’t let me die” . The guilt came later

2. Were they afraid of Joseph and Eden’s Gate? Angry?

She was terrified by Eden’s Gate pre-game, but lately that’s shifted into just a reisgned anger. She can’t hate most of them, they’re simply too sad. Instead she’s just generally frustrated. And tired. So soooo tired.

3. Did they trust Dutch?

Not at first, but once the words “mostly it means we’re all fucked” left his mouth she kinda figured this was either a really elaborate roleplay or a guy she could trust. She bet on the latter. 

4. How did they feel about their team being taken by the cult, did they count them as lost, did they want them back, did they not care?

Her team was the main reason she bothered to stick around instead of high-tailing out and hoping the National Guard could take care of it. Molly’s a good cop but she’s no hero. She didn’t have any high-minded ideas of resistance or revenge when she started out, she just wanted to find her team before it was too late. By the time she’d rescued all of them, though, she found she had other people to care for. 

5. How did they take to the idea of being part of, if not leading, the resistance?

Pre-game she thought of the resistance as four or five gun-crazed survivalists who though dumping more bullets into the situation would somehow make it better. After she found herself on the outside of police protection, though, she gained a newfound repect for what they do. She condiers herself a solo act (more for convenince than for ideology), but she has a lot of loyalty to many many members of the resistance, and yes Virgil, she’ll wear the stupid button. 

6. Which companions did they recruit, and who did they travel with the most?

Jess and Sharky are her usual partners in crime for general mayhem. When she’s inhHolland Valley and knows she won’t be pulling him far from his family she’ll call in Nick for air support (usually getting dinner at the Rye hous after). She adopted Boomer and loves him to death but is far too anxious to take him into battle, so he stays at the abndoned farmhouse she’s been camping out in. When Sharky’s laid up she calls Hurk, but that doesn’t usually go well. 

7. Did they have time to find romance amidst the chaos? How did they do it?

Romance is a strong word. She ends up with a truly hopeless crush on Nick Rye. Not that she’d ever act on it. She loves Kim to death and honestly thinks they make a great couple. But she’d be lying if she said there weren’t a couple late nights in the Rye household where she looked over at Nick and thought “what if?” Still, she keeps it to herself and is pretty sure he doesn’t have a clue. 

8. Feelings about Joseph?

Mostly fear. After that, probably anger. But.she understands the draw. The man has undeniable charisma. In her encounters with him it has honestly been a struggle not to find herself swallowed by those hypnotic voice and that voice. Sometimes, when no one’s around and she’s taking a day in her house...she turns the radio to the Project’s station and just listens to his sermons. Wondering how someone so monstrous and so unhinged could make it sound so wise. 

9. Feelings about the other Seeds?

John: Hates his guts, but honestly he makes a good arch-nemsis. She loves doing things just to stick it to him. Right up until he started taking it out on Hudson.

Faith: she’s felt odd moments of pity for her, but mostly she’s just unnerved by her. Something about that flower child appearance mixed with the cold-blooded calculation that makes her feel very off-balance.

Jacob: despite all he did to Pratt, she has a hard time hating him. Jacob is what he is. She can understand every step that was taken to make him end up like this and on weird level she respects him. Part of this is teh process of conditioning, which requred them to spend a long time in close quarters while he tried to get in her head and turn it inside out. She doesn’t pity him, but she feels sympathy. Which doesn’’t mean she would hesitate to put a bullet through his brain. The best they could do for each other is the decency of a quick death. As befitted a fellow soldier. 

10. How did they handle having to kill animals and other humans? Had they done it before?

Animals were fine, she used to hunt with her mom. People....well, eventually you get used to it.

11. Which canon ending did they choose in-game, and would you have changed the ending at all?

Resist. Absolutely not

Personal

1. Favorite weapon(s)?

She’s a simple gal with a sawed off shotgun and pistol. That’s all you need.

2. Stealth or firepower?

She’ll usually send in Sharky as the literal firepower while she and Jess pick off cultists drawn to his display. 

3. How did they spend their time, when not fighting peggies?

She spends a lot of time at the Spread Eagle or hanging out with Jess and Sharky in her house, blasting music and playing cards. She loves when she has time for dinner with the Ryes, and sometimes she’ll go fishing with Jerome. 

4. Where did they live during the events of the game?

A small, abandoned farmhouse nestled in a copse of woods between Holland Valley and the Whitetail Mountains. 

5. Any other facts you want to share about your Deputy!

She swears up and down she saw Bigfoot in her front yard, but no one belives her. 

[writinanon]

In the Blood

If you missed the first part here it is.

  John paced back and forth. He didn’t have any idea how to explain that the Deputy was immortal. He had no footage. He had no proof but what his eyes had seen. Haloed in sunlight until the candles of the church lit her. Three arrows in her chest. He would have rent the man responsible on principal. The Deputy needed to be brought in alive. She needed to reach atonement. What if Joseph already knew? But then he would have brought her to the safety of the compound if he had known. Someone so precious couldn’t be left to run wild. He turned and looked at the monitors. Deputy Hudson was attempting to kick her door open again. He smiled.

  Rook huffed and puffed, wincing as her arm mended a graze.

 “Holy shit.” Grace muttered through the radio as she watched from a distance through her scope. Nothing quite like going for broke. Rook had lived through two world wars already. She had no way to gauge how old the Seeds were, but she would figure they were at least her age if not older. Sometimes it was good to vent through aggression, Rook had helped a few Courts in their Civil Wars, the ones that treated humans with some respect and not like playthings or pets. Hell, she had even helped to hunt Rogue Wolves down and she knew a Wizard in the Badlands that would be up for a Hunt any time. Tracking down and killing a Rogue Immortal was always satisfying because fighting with an Immortal was always rewarding and her kind were illusive, there was no telling what tricks and tools they had ready to fight with. She had gone on two different Hunts before and both times the other had been glad to finally be ‘ended’. She wondered if that was the price of freedom, insanity. It was something that she didn’t want to keep thinking about, having started to feel the aching loneliness that came with losing loved ones to death again and again. She’d come to like Earl and Staci and Joey, she hadn’t had much chance to meet anyone else. After everything went to hell in a handbasket she gained Nick, Kim, Boomer, Dutch, Grace, Jess, Eli, Wheaty, Hurk, Adelaide, Sharky, Mary-May, Jerome, Peaches, Cheeseburger, and she felt so loved by them. She wanted to free them from the Seeds. But that nagging worry, that whisper that she shouldn’t get attached, crept up on her sometimes.

 “Rook.” She heard Nick over the radio and wondered what he was doing, he was supposed to be scouting to see if there were any convoys in the area. “Rook you ain’t gonna believe this. Someone just hit a convoy. But they didn’t just kill the Peggies.”

  Rook looked over the slaughter, because that’s what it was this wasn’t just killing, and felt dread pooling in her stomach. She had chosen this section of the United States because it was vast, it was quiet, but more importantly it was supposed to be away from Packs, Courts, and Covens. This land was supposed to be isolated, where she would just live for a while, carving a nice niche for herself maybe get a farm or an orchard or hell a ranch. Becoming a Deputy was only to get a foot in the door, to meet people and learn the county.

 “Jesus what the hell happened here?” Grace muttered as they looked over the carnage. Rook shook her head and looked around them. She wanted to be wrong, she hoped she was wrong.

 “We need to get back to Nick and have him tell us what he saw.” She glanced over at her companion. Confirmation was better than denial.

  John smirked, this would work. Joseph and Jacob believed him, mostly because the Deputy had single handedly destroyed two outposts and a supply convoy. And walked away without a scratch. Now he had a plan, they would move Deputy Hudson, and actually pretend to move her because Rook would flee the second she realized they didn’t actually have her fellow law officer.

  Rook blinked as she heard her radio go off. She had laid low for the last few weeks, trailing her newly unwelcomed guest. She had set a few snares for them to trip and the worst possible outcome had hit. There was a Rogue Immortal, a young Rogue Immortal. If she was right they had just reached the Destruction Stage of apathy. Which meant they wouldn’t just fight to fight, they would fight to survive because they found something that took away the empty feeling if only for a little while again. The tracking and trying to get into contact with Cassandra had chewed up Rook’s time and she hadn’t been able to raise to any of the bait the Seeds were trying to lure her out into the open. She had cleared out a few outposts and freed people along the road ways, but that was mostly because she was already in the area and wanted to keep people safe from the Rogue.

 “Well Deputy I’m happy to say that Deputy Hudson has finally confessed all her sins!” John’s voice carried through the silent room. Rook stilled instantly. “So she’ll be joining Jacob and I’ll be taking Deputy Pratt for his turn now. Now that she’s had her sins purged she’ll make a fine hunter don’t you think? Or perhaps a soldier to protect and serve the Flock?” This was bad. She had stopped the Rogue from taking prey, they would be anxious now, and this was a convoy to lure her out specifically. There would be extra people. Perhaps even John or Jacob themselves. It would be too tempting to the Rogue. Rook was out the door and grabbing her rifle and a bowie without conscious thought. They would all die if she didn’t. She knew she was walking into the hands of the Seeds. She ignored the calls of Jerome and of Mary-May as she grabbed one of the dirt bikes that the resistance had stolen back. She revved the engine and took off. They’d use the main road. This was a trap and someone else was going to spring it.

  The man was dodging all of Jacob’s shots. He was toying with them. And then a dirt bike slammed into his chest and then it exploded as it was shot. Jacob looked over swiftly and found the Deputy standing in the middle of the road, rifle in hand and a grim expression on her face. She glanced at the truck that housed Hudson before checking on John. There was a crack and clapping. The man was back up. Jacob narrowed his eyes knowing this man had to be Immortal too. Rook stood and faced him. She didn’t bother shooting him again and Jacob watched it play out.

  Rook could tell by looking at him this man was young. He couldn’t be much older than her.

 “I figured sooner or later I would actually come across you.” He said. “Zachariah.”

 “Rook.”

 “You could just stand aside. It’s only a little county. You’re already catching the Sickness.” She scoffed and raised her rifle.

 “This is my county.” She remarked and fired. He dodged just enough to only get his shoulder and she cursed. He grabbed a fallen Peggie’s gun and fired back. They both dove for cover.

 “You have to be young to care about territory or human life.” He remarked and she scoffed at this.

 “Or I’m more willing to fight the Sickness, and not just give up at the first sign of struggle.”

 “Oh, you want to see a struggle? How ‘bout we both put down our guns and settle this with a good old-fashioned knife fight?” She scoffed and pulled herself from cover at the same time he did, both shoot the guns in the other’s hands. “Now I’m disappointed in us both.”

 “Are we going to keep talking or are we going to fight?” She mused tossing the now useless rifle down and unsheathing her knife. She kept it in a defensive position as he unsheathed his own knife.

 “You wanna play little girl? Well then let’s play.”

  Rook noticed John’s gun and knew he’d have what she needed but she had to get over to it. She brought her arm up and felt a knife bite straight through it and grunted. She stabbed him in the shoulder and forced him back before diving towards the gun. She grabbed it and felt herself get lifted and thrown backward. She clung to the weapon as Zachariah stalked toward her. She took aim and smirked.

 “Welcome to the bliss.” She muttered and fired three shots in his chest. He stumbled back and glared.

 “It’ll take real bullets to bring…” His eyes darted around. “What the hell?” He took off and Rook groaned before sitting up. She pulled the knife out of her arm and winced but her arm healed cleanly. She looked over and frowned at the cultist laying in the road before dodging a dart meant for the back of her shoulder.

 “Really?” She mused and looked up toward Jacob’s general area. “After all your talk of culling the herd and being strong you’re gonna take the coward’s way and shoot me in the back?” She yelled out to him. There was a rustling and Jacob appeared. She waited and he was across from her moments later.

 “I never did like this plan of John’s.” He chuckled and set his rifle down. She dropped John’s gun, useless to her now Bliss seemed to have no effect on the Vampires that produced it. She flipped the knife into her clean hand and rolled her shoulders.

 “Round two.” She murmured to herself.

  Jacob was not going to win this fight with his strength alone, something that was rare. Rook was tired but still on her feet. But she’d lost a lot of blood and an idea sparked. He’d need to get to her leg.

  Rook blocked an attack but wasn’t ready for Jacob to body slam her into the road and to have all the air in her lungs knocked out. She struggled trying to recover but she felt sharp teeth tear into her inner thigh.

 “No.” She muttered and tried to shove his head away but she could feel suction and her struggles grew weaker and weaker as she felt the blood being pulled from her veins. “Moth… fuck.” She was swallowed into darkness. Bleeding out was the worst it always took the longest to recover.

  Her mouth was dry. She was dizzy. She looked over and found a pile of wolves in the middle of the room. She was laying on a nice bed. There was water on the end table. She grabbed the pitcher and took a large mouthful but didn’t swallow. She let it sit in her mouth before she spat it out into the glass. This got the attention of the wolves and she noticed red crosses painted on their muzzles. She rolled her eyes and took a small sip from the pitcher. Slow rehydration was key to not making yourself sick. One of the Judges got up and padded over, nudging her knee on the bed. She chuckled and ran a hand through its fur and grabbed the tray that the pitcher and glass were on, setting it down she poured out some of the water. The other two Judges got up and loped over to it and took a drink as did the one that nudged her. She looked back down at the remaining water and slowly sipped on it. She had a feeling she knew where she was given the small comfort she had woken in. One of the Judges turned around and jumped onto the bed, laying down on her legs. She set the pitcher on the end table and gave the wolf a soft scratch the other two soon joined her and one nestled in behind her and the other laid down on her stomach. It gave a pitiful whine and she gave it pets with her other hand.

 “Clever Jacob.” She muttered.

[finalvlog-a]

@cultfought // continued from [ x ]

          ❝  shit– FUCK. okay, okay… ❞ hudson lunged for alex as they reached the top of the hill. finally – FINALLY – they were far enough away. panting, she stowed her gun, taking something else off her belt. from their place atop the nearest hill, they could watch the peggies scrambling at john seed’s compound. she’d managed to land a bullet between the eyes of anyone who had watched their ESCAPE, leaving the rest to scramble like chickens with their heads cut off… ❝ we’ve gotta keep running, but i don’t think you’re gonna want to miss this. ❞ adrenaline glinting in her eyes, she gives her companion a smile – the first genuine one she’s sported in a LONG TIME. she has a feeling he’ll enjoy this as much as she’s going to. anyone who has spent time under john seed’s torturous hand is bound to come out just a little bitVINDICTIVE. ❝ wait for it… this has gotta be perfect… ❞     she murmurs, before her target appears, oh, right on cue. and there he was, john seed in all of his HOLY GLORY. it was hard to catch his expression from this far away, but it was clear he was irate about the escape of two of his… higher profile prisoners.  giving a wink to alex, hudson hums the opening bars of the wretched    ❛ oh john ❜   as she watches the baptist himself unwittingly approach a small barrel of Bliss. once he’s close enough, she taps the button of the device in her hand and – – BOOM !!!  it’s truly a VISION OF THE LORD to watch john seed sail through the air, landing firmly on his ass in the wake of the remote explosion she’s detonated. it’s not enough to kill him – nowhere near, damn hudson and her trigger-happy ways. still, the sight is enough to make her roar with laughter… and it managed to earn her a HIGH FIVE from alex. ❝ yes! ❞    she cackles, as their hands connect,     ❝ SUCK A DICK, JOHN SEED! ❞

            Everything hurt. Alex isn’t sure he’s ever felt this kind of bone deep ache before in his entire life, but thankfully the rush of adrenaline helped to keep him going and keep pace with Deputy Joey Hudson. During their mad dash to escape John’s captivity they had armed themselves and taken out whoever they could along the way. Alex felt a little better about having a rifle again but he’d only feel truly at peace when this whole shitstorm was behind him, with Sara and Hannah safely beside him. For now though, he had Hudson and she was more than he could have ever asked for.

                        Just as he’s thinking that, she turns to him with a wicked smile and it’s contagious. His own smile is confused, but just as genuine as hers. “Yeah?” There’s a note of excitement in his tone as he shifts his weight and rotates to look in the same direction as her. Back the way they came from is none other than JOHN SEED. Alex squints, the mid-afternoon sun making it hard to see much from this distance but he doesn’t need good lighting to notice the device in Hudson’s hands.

                  His smile stretches wider and he looks back just in time to watch John go flying. Alex thinks he can even see a cloud of displaced dirt from how hard he lands on the ground. A laugh bubbles out of him, sounding foreign to his own ears and a little off but it’s a laugh nonetheless. Without missing a beat he turns and lifts his hand for a high five.

                  Hudson does not leave him hanging for long, the audible crack of their palms meeting gives Alex a visceral kind of satisfaction he hasn’t felt since when he saw the video had successfully uploaded to YouTube.

                  “Get good John Seed!” He joins in on the disrespect, giddy with a newfound adrenaline from having seen John get laid flat on his ass. They don’t have time to enjoy it for forever though and with a nod he turns and they set off again.

                  “How long had you been planning that?” He finally asks, impressed by her tenacity.

[kikkieabby]

Eve chapter-3

"Kim! KIM!?"

Eve shouted over the phone as her eyes widen in fear. Faith giggles at the woman's response as John stared delightedly. Eve begins to bite her finger's in fear as the sound of her friend fills the room. Then, silence…nothing but silence.

"Kim?" Eve asked, only to receive a chuckle from the man who is responsible for ruining the world around her.

"Eve…I heard you given the gift of being someone else's mother. A gift indeed worthy amongst only a few I say. But one we must all never take so lightly."

"What the fuck are you…" Eve suddenly was lost for words. Her mind started to wonder a bit as the world around her started to sparkle. The effects of bliss were taking over a little bit, causing her to feel sleeping and nausea.

"Ugh…" Eve moaned a bit before shaking her head lightly.

"How do you feel…sister Eve?" Joseph asked, making the woman roll her eyes.

"Where are you?" She asked the false prophet. This causes the man to chuckle a little louder.

"I will let you come to me. But you must come alone, with only my brother and sister as companions. For they know the way back home into my arms."

"What?" Eve asked.

"You heard me. I am allowing you to come to my home. You are welcomed, but only you. And once you come inside, you must agree to stand by my side, just as your friend is doing."

"Kim?"

"And her daughter. Both lay silently towards the light of God, embracing his glory as they accept their sins. It's beautiful, I wish to see you like this too."

"Dead?" Eve asked.

"You will see." He tells her before cutting off the

(Earl office)

"Are you fucking insane!?"

Joey growled at the young woman as she packs a bookbag with a variety of items. She, along with her police group, was in Earl's office when they received the news. John and Faith were being prepared to leave by being fitted into a straight jacket and muzzles.

"I need to go! Joseph is on the loose, this could be our only chance to get him!" Eve tells her friend.

"Joseph is fucking crazy compared to his siblings! We were in a helicopter, he didn't even raise a hand before he caused us all to fall down to the ground!" Joey says as Even continued her backing. Ignoring the woman as prepares for the upcoming hell that she was going into.

"Eve…" Joey muttered. This made the dark skin woman sigh before looking at her friend.

"Kim and Nikim are down there with psychopaths and possible rapist! I need to find them and get them away from Joseph. Also, I need to arrest Joseph!" Eve tells the older woman before stuffing a pistol into her bookbag. She then grabs a pocket knife from the edge of Earl's desk. Stuffing it into her back pocket, she looks at the two males in the corner of the room.

"What are you two talking about?" Eve chuckles a bit, trying to ignore her feelings of fear that plagued her heart. Truth be told, Eve was terrified that she was doing this. But her reason for it was deeper than anyone in this could understand.

"Were discussing a way to inform our district of the shit that was in," Earl informs her. "I have been seeing Dutch, talking to him about a possible way to get to civilization. Only to learn that the peggies are nearly everywhere, the closest thing to a peggies free zone is nearly 300 miles away."

"Shit," Eve muttered.

"We need to get out of here," Joey said.

"I agree with Hudson, this place is already fine. They don't need us anymore. We just get in a car, drive to the nearest city and never look back." Staci tells the three in the room.

"No, 300 miles, were bound to be shot at. Or worse, hear that fucking song that makes you and I become blood thirsting monster's." Eve tells her co-worker. "Plus, we don't have Joseph. Nothing is stopping him from expanding his cult."

"Then what are we suppose to do?" Earl asked the young woman. Reaching over to her bag, she zips the large container of various items up before letting out a sigh of frustration. Closing her eyes, she begins to think of a way out. Only to be plagued with horrible thoughts of Kim and Nikim being tortured by Joseph. Letting out another sigh, she closes her eyes. Grabbing a pen, she begins to write something on earl's desk. Staci stares oddly at her as she writes the words down without looking. When she was done, she turns away from the writing and stares at the door.

"Okay, time to go meet Joseph. Wish me luck." Eve tells her friend before placing the large bag on her shoulder. Joey looks down to the ground in sadness, Staci soon follows. Earl on the other hand just chuckled before saying:

"Don't get killed rook." He tells her. Eve nods her head at his words before leaving the office. She walks past the many stares of her fellow resistance. All sad eyes, some filled with tears, others with confusion. Out of all those eyes, eve's met with two allies that she had grown close to. Stopping in front of them, she opens her mouth to say:

"Sharky, Grace, I need you two to watch over the county with the rest of the gun's for hire," Eve says before looking straight only at Grace. "You're in charge."

"What!?" Sharky shouted. This made Grace chuckle a bit before responding:

"You heard her." She tells her friend before Eve continues to walk towards the exit. Once outside, she saw John and Faith standing in front of a large grey truck. Both chained together with a face mask covering the front part of their face, the mere sight of the once powerful siblings made Eve laugh.

"I wish I had a cell phone right now! This is hilarious!" Eve shouted at the two. Faith winces at her comments, while John looks down to the ground. Jess and Hurk stood by the truck that Eve was going to use. Carefully, the two shove the siblings into the back of the truck before throwing Eve's bookbag into the passenger's seat. Jess hands Eve a circle of keys that belonged to the chains on the siblings. She also hands her a small white object.

"A gift from my uncle. He says to eat it. You will thank him later if you do." Jess tells her friend.

"Alright," Eve responded before swallowing the small white object. A shiver runs up her spine a bit before she lets out a small sigh.

"You need backup?" Jess asked the young woman. Eve gives Jess a light chuckle before climbing into the driver's seat. Closing the door shut, Eve starts up the engine before moving the stick to drive.

"Watch the county for me." She tells Jess before back away from her. Swirling the car a bit, she drives straight forward out of the Hope County Jail parking lot and onto the road that led far away from her friends. As she drives, she couldn't help but look back at the side view mirror. Watching the county jail become smaller and smaller, as the road in front of her becomes longer. Once the jail was out of sight, she stops the car in the middle of the road. Hopping out of the driver's seat, she opens the door to the passenger seat. With the keys Jess gave her, she undoes the muzzle's on John and Faith's face. Allowing them to breathe and see the world around them.

"Where are we?" Faith asked. She moves her body against the chains, trying to break free, only to fail.

"On the road," Eve explained before hopping onto John's lap. Her behind an inch away from his face as she unlocks chains contacted their feet together. John looks up at the ceiling of the car as he tries to ignore the feeling of her tight ass rubbing against his chest.

"I need help getting to Joseph bunker. So one of you has to guide me. Faith, your voice annoys me, so John will be my guide. Talk this entire trip, and I will muzzle you." Eve tells the blonde before uncuffing the two. Once done, she crawls off of John then grabs him by the shoulder. Yanking him out of the car, she helps him into the passenger seat. Moving her bag to her side, she buckles John up before leaving to the driver's seat. Once seated, Eve fixes herself a bit before looking over to John.

"Well, where is your brother's bunker?" She asked.

"Why would I tell you where the prophet is?"

"Because if you don't, I will drive back to the jail and let all the people you carved into have their fun with you. And the same goes for you Faith! I am pretty sure some of the people there would love to see you high on your own bliss." Eve explained.

"What are you going to do when you get there?" John asked. "Shoot everyone in sight?"

"No, that's plan B!" Eve responded with a smile. John rolled his eyes at her.

"Wrath...you are definitely Wrath," John mutters.

"Yea and I have the shit tattooed on my body. So are you going to help me or not?" Eve asked the male next to her. Looking over his shoulder to his sister, have see's the light nod she gives him before he looks back at her to say:

"Go to fifth avenue on 129 street past Macon road, once there take a right.

(Joey)

"That's it? That's fucking it!?" Joey shouted at her co-workers. It has been an hour since Eve left, and Joey is still trying to wrap her head around the fact that she left Eve to walk out that door with the seed siblings. Tears were rolling down Joey's eyes as she stares at her male companies.

"This was the rook's choice," Earl tells the woman.

"You let her walk out that fucking door! We were supposed to stay together, and you let her out the fucking door!" Joey growled.

"There was nothing we could do!" Staci shouted at the woman. "Once Eve makes her mind about something, she sticks with it! There is nothing we can do but to support her!"

"Oh, support her! That's a fucking funny thing to hear from your mouth. You haven't supported her not once since we got here!" Joey shouted at the man.

"Hudson, calm down!" Earl growled, but that doesn't stop the woman's tears from rolling down her cheeks.

"Look, we need to get out here," Earl tells her. "We need to get out of here and get help. We can't help her how we are now, we need to go. Now, Eve left us a message and she is right."

The three looked down on the table where Eve had written her message. What it read was something of a shocker. Not because it was a magnificent idea that no one could come up! It was a shocker because no one thought about it.

What the message read was:

Take Nick's Plan and leave the county with the rest of the Hope County Pilots. Leave at night so you will not be seen well. Just stay high and don't travel to close – EVE

"Is it just me…" Staci started. "Or is Rook underpaid to do her job?"

"She is…" Joey chuckled. "She is…"

(four hours later)

"My god this guy is far away," Eve muttered as she drives down the road. The sky was pitch black, not even a star was seen in sight. The air was cooler now, and the smell of death wasn't as strong as it was before. It was quite relaxing, well a little relaxing. The calming feeling was interrupted by the soft snores coming from Faith in the back of the seat.

"Joseph like's quietness. It allows him to speak to god without the interruptions of the sin." John tells her. His feet crossed and his head tilting to the side a bit, he stares out the window into the black of the unknown.

Eve sips already made coffee from a glass bottle Jess had given her before she left. The coffee tastes very sweet to her, nearly like Starbucks coffee! Only it had a bad aftertaste with it that made her gag.

After taking a sip of her coffee, she looks over to John and asked:

"Would you like some?" She asked him.

"I do not accept from the bringer of evil."

"And yet you are with your brother." Eve chuckled before setting the coffee.

"Why are you nice to me?" John asked the woman. Turning his head to look at her, Eve chuckles a little at the question he asked her.

"Nice? Funny." She said. "No, I am only acting like this because the thought of you ending up in jail gives me hope. And I don't believe in hope that often. So I am not happy, I would say I surprised, and when your surprise, you act like your happy. But in reality, your just acting in a new form of shock."

"Is that really what you feel?"

"Yes, yes I do," Eve tells him. John looks forward to the road ahead and chuckles a bit before ducking his head between his legs. Eve looks at him for a second before looking straight forward. A deer stood in her way. Quickly, she tries to swave around it, only to have her car kell over and flip on to the ground. It then slides on the road a bit before coming to a complete stop...

[shan282-ao3]

The Devil Has Come Ch9

Originally posted on Archive of Our Own [x]

Chapters: 12/? Fandom: Far Cry 5 Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Female Deputy | Judge/John Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Jacob Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Joseph Seed Characters: Original Female Character(s), John Seed, Jacob Seed, Joseph Seed, Faith Seed, Staci Pratt, Nick Rye, Sharky Boshaw, Female Deputy | Judge (Far Cry), Original Male Character(s), Kim Rye, Boomer (Far Cry), Joey Hudson, Earl Whitehorse Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Torture, Fluff, Minor Character Death, Recreational Drug Use, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Eventual Smut, Character Death, Slow Burn Series: Part 1 of Bottom of The River

Summary: They should never have been there. Whitehorse and Pratt were right when they spoke against going to Eden’s Gate. They should have left The Project alone. They’d started something and there was no going back now. The lamb had broken the first seal and the deputy had been helpless to stop her.

Read below:

Inside the VA Center, the world outside and seemed to stop moving, it was just the training course and cruel words of encouragement. It wasn’t until she was gone that she was hit full force with the fact that the world had indeed kept spinning.

She’d hiked through the forest for nearly three hours when she finally found a car. It had started, miraculously, but one look at the gas tank meter told her that it wouldn’t run for long. Still, she would take what she could get, if she could get to the ranger station she could get a better car and call for Rook.

She’d broken the radio Staci gave her when she tripped nearly an hour back on an exposed tree root she didn’t see. She’d landed awkwardly on one knee and scratched up her hands forcing her to walk the rest of the way with a slight limp.

The drive to the ranger station was thankfully uneventful, she listened to Peggie radio, humming along as she drove. She pulled into the gas station across from the outpost and climbed out, staying low when she saw the cultists walking around outside of it.

A dead man dressed in camo was slumped against the wall of the gas station, Sarah scrunched up her nose at the smell and searched his body. She had no weapons or ammo, if she was going to get into the ranger station she’d need to take out the Peggies surrounding it. She found a box of pistol ammo and a pair of binoculars but no gun, disappointing but at least it was something.

Around the back of the small cement building, Sarah found a ladder to the roof. She climbed to the roof with the thought that maybe she could use the binoculars to figure out where everyone was and hoped she could find a way to slip in and out without getting caught.

Instead, she found another corpse in camo clutching a sniper rifle against its chest. She grabbed the rifle yanked, cringing at the pop and crack the dead man’s fingers snapped and released the weapon. She found a box of rifle ammo on the ground beside him along with some bandages and a pistol not too far away. There was an arrow sticking out of his chest, she pulled that out as well, she may not have a bow but she could still stab someone with it.

“Thank you.” She whispered to the deadman, aiming the scope of the rifle towards the station. There was a silencer on the end of the barrel, she silently thanked the heavens for that.

She followed a single guard as he wandered out of sight of his companions and fired, watching him drop gracelessly to the ground. The next she sniped as he came around the building to check on his missing friend, he didn’t get a chance to see the body before was dead as well. The third and last one in her line of sight proved not to be as easy, he was doing jumping jacks of all things and the first shot went right past him, the bullet lodging itself in the van in front of him. He startled and as ran to see what had hit the van she fired again and he crumpled to the floor.

The remaining Peggies had heard the noise of the bullet hitting the car and witnessed their fellow cultist drop and jumped into full alert. Sarah shot out the alarms before they could be triggered before sprinting back to the ladder and quickly sliding down it. She had to be smart about this, the rifle would be no use in combat and she only had a clip full of ammo for the pistol. She couldn’t just fire blinding and hope she hit one.

She did her best to stay out of sight lines as she ran across the street, she wished Rook or Grace were here, it would be a lot easier to clear the station with extra guns. She slid into cover and took a few breaths to steady herself before aiming her gun over the crates she was hiding behind.

She fired at the first cultist to come into view, hitting him in the shoulder and sending him yowling for help and she dropped back into her cover. Almost instantly bullets started to fly in her direction, she crouched lower and prayed the crates would stay intact long enough for her to find sturdier cover. She waited for a pause when they would have to reload before running to a new cover spot, firing once more when she’d gotten there, she hit the one she’d wounded in the chest and he dropped to the ground.

The few minutes were tense as she switched between ducking and firing, she’d nearly emptied her clip by the time she dropped the last one. It was then, just when she let herself relax a bit, that snarling behind her sent her scrambling for safety. A Judge, its face painted red and body deformed from whatever sick process and turned it into the monster that it now was, stalked in her direction. Its lips curled and it snapped its teeth, she was close enough to see the blood staining the fur around its mouth.

Sarah fired her pistol, two bullets lodging themselves in the wolf’s shoulder before the clip was emptied. It barely flinched. All she had left was the arrow from earlier, frantically, she pulled it from her belt as the monster lunged. She drove it into the beast’s neck and rolled away, it yowled in pain and stumbled a bit but still turned to finish her off, renewed rage in its eyes.

She closed her eyes as it lunged with snapping teeth and waited for her inevitable death to come but instead she heard a high pitched whining. She cracked her eyes open to see another arrow lodged in the animal’s skull.

Her savior walked up without casting a second glance at the thing and pulled her to her feet. “What are you doing out here alone?” He asked, genuine concern in his voice.

Sarah stared at the boy in shock because that’s what he was, a boy who barely looked 17. “It was trying to call someone.” She answered blankly, looking at the Judge wolf and then him, she was still shocked to be alive. “Thank you.”

“Oh, it’s no problem. I’m Wheaty.” He grinned and stuck out his hand, Sarah couldn’t help but smile slightly and shook it.

“Deputy Lamb, but you can call me Sarah.”

“Deputy? So you must know Rook then?” He was practically beaming at the knowledge.

“Yes, have you seen her? Is she okay?” Sarah’s voice was frantic, she clutched at Wheaty’s hand hopefully.

“Yeah no she’s fine. She’d been really helpful fighting back against Jacob and his guys.” He reassured her before stepping away and surveying the area. “So you took this back? Yourself?”

“I guess, I just needed to get a working radio but I figured I couldn’t do that with them all here.”

“You’re sniper,” He pointed at it slung over her back, “Where’d you get it.”

“A dead guy at the gas station. Why?”

“It’s one of ours, it’s got the Whitetail Militia logo, see?” Sarah pulled it off and looked at the unique patterning on the side and the definite logo.

“You’re with the Whitetails?” He nodded and Sarah suddenly felt a little pissed off at whoever was running it for letting a teenager join. “Do you want it back?”

“Nah, you just cleared a cult outpost all by yourself I think you’ll use it better than any of us.” He was grinning in slight awe and his radio sputtered to life with a loud click. It had to be some sort of code, he clicked the talk button quickly in response before looking back at her. “I’ve gotta go, thanks for clearing this, I’ll let everyone know it’s safe to come here.” With that he walked back to the ATV sitting on the side of the road and drove off, waving as he passed.

Sarah watched him ride off and hoped he’d be okay before turning back to the mess she’d made. She picked her way across the property, looting bodies as she went. She stuffed the cash into her pocket and the bullets into a backpack she found. There was a discarded radio on the floor that thankfully hadn’t been destroyed. She walked into one of the building and sat down on the floor, her back against the wall as she started flipping through channels trying to find Rook’s.

“Rook? You there?” Dutch’s voice blared over the radio indicating she’d found the right channel.

“I’m here.” Rook answered back and Sarah couldn’t help but grin, beyond grateful that she was really still alive.

“Eli just radioed me to tell me the Park Ranger Station got taken back from the cult. Good job, kid.” He congratulated Rook and Sarah felt her smile fall, the familiar feelings of inadequacy filling her stomach.

“Uh, that wasn’t me, I’m with Jess on a rescue mission.”

“You’re an inspiration kid. You’re responsible whether you know it or not.”

“Oh, uh thanks then I guess.” Rook didn’t sound convinced at all, but Sarah still felt a little bubble of rage at the fact that she’d accept the gratitude.

She knew she shouldn’t be upset about this, she was helping people to help them, not to get thanks. But still, she had done this, not Rook, not anyone else. She had risked life and limb to clear out the outpost and no one even had the decency to acknowledge that it had been her, not Rook.

She caught herself thinking that maybe Staci was right, maybe she should stop helping them. It was a dangerous thought and she wanted to curse Staci for putting it in her head. Only it’d been there for a while, waiting at the edges of her mind for the right time to overwhelm her with potentially traitorous thoughts.

Sarah looked down at the radio in her hand, suddenly aware of its weight. She was tempted to throw it at the building across from her, but rationally she knew that was idiotic and reckless. If she needed help this was her lifeline. Instead, she clipped it to her belt and grabbed an abandoned pistol across from her, throwing it as hard as she could through the glass windowpane in the door instead.

The sound of glass shattering set something alight in her soul. Soon she was on her feet, blind with anger and fear, screaming insults at the world and throwing anything she could get her hands on. She grabbed a discarded baseball bat and smashed in the windows of a truck nearby. There were angry tears streaming down her face but she barely cared as she hit on of the doors of the ranger station into it cracked and broke from its hinges.

The windows smashed, doors missing and cars wrecked, Sarah collapsed to the ground. Her rage was replaced with a hollow void as she sat there, numb. She rubbed at the tears that had streaked her face, sniffling and on the brink of crying again.

She felt like an idiot, she shouldn’t be this upset. It shouldn’t matter whether the people of this God-forsaken county thanked her for helping them or not. And yet here she was on the verge of crying over it.

She tried to focus instead on the pain in her hands, it gave her something outside of her thoughts to think of. Her knuckles were bruised from punching something during her rage, her palms scraped up from her earlier fall. There was blood dripping down her left hand from a cut above her wrist, most likely from a piece of glass. She pulled the medkit she’d found from her bag and pressed a strip of gauze to the wound until the bleeding stopped. She’d need to find a river or something where she could clean it out, she didn’t need tetanus or blood poisoning or something just as bad.

She didn’t want to find Rook anymore, she decided and shouldered her sniper rifle again. She wasn’t sure where she was going but she wanted to get the hell away from here.

The drive out of the Whitetail Mountains was thankfully uneventful. Sarah drove numbly, the sounds of Peggie radio filling the car and drowning out her thoughts of fear and anger. She eventually found herself crossing the border into the Henbane and pulling into the 8-Bit Pizza Bar parking lot.

The parking lot was empty and she was honestly glad for it. She really didn’t think she was in the mood to talk to anyone right now, she just needed a drink.

Inside was quiet, Sarah turned on the radio sitting on the corner and walked around the bar to get herself a drink. She blew the dust out of the glass and filled it with whiskey before she dropped down into one of the stools, her glass in one hand and bottle in the other.

She was on her second glass when the sounds of a car pulling up outside interrupted the silence of the evening. She sighed and threw back what was left of her drink, filling it before whoever it was came inside.

The door was thrown open haphazardly, smacking back against the wall beside it. Her new drinking companion strode forward, dropping something on a table as they went. Sarah didn’t look up, hopeful that whoever they were they would get the memo that she wasn’t in the mood for company and leave her the hell alone.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the newcomer walk past her, no words were shared as they grabbed a few beers from behind the counter. There was heavy silence when they finally stopped moving, their staring obvious even if Sarah couldn’t see them.

“Hey, Dep.” Sharky greeted, his voice laced with concern. Sarah took a sharp intake and looked up at him, she tried her best to off a smile but it fell short.

“Hi, Sharky.” She felt some of the tension leave her shoulders. She was glad it was Sharky as opposed to anyone else.

“No one’s heard from you in weeks. Where’d you do?” He came around the counter and sat down next to her, chugging half his beer before looking at her for an answer.

Sarah didn’t answer immediately, instead, she ran her finger around the rim of her glass milling over how she wanted to answer the question. Did she tell the truth about where she’d been, who she’d been with, or did she lie about just as she lied about her run-ins with John? One look at Sharky’s honest expression made up her mind, she didn’t have to lie to him, he wouldn’t going to judge her like everyone else.

“I was with Jacob. He got me and Rook a while ago. The Whitetails rescued her but I got left behind.”

“What? Why the fuck did they leave you?” There was indignation in his voice and Sarah couldn’t help but smile, a part of her cheering for the fact that someone genuinely cared about her.

“They found Rook alive and assumed she was the only survivor I guess. It’s fine, Jacob found me a couple days later.”

“A couple days? How are you still alive?”

“It was just a couple days, that’s not long enough to starve or dehydrate. Anyways I was barely conscious for most of it, I ended up sleeping for three days straight after Jacob got me.” Sharky nodded, finishing off his beer and opening another. Sarah took another gulp of the liquid in her glass, cringing at the taste.

“So have you been with him this whole time?”

“Pretty much yeah. He had me running trails for a week or so, then when he brought me back to the VA Center he had me running training courses. I don’t know why he didn’t just kill me or continue running me through the trails. He called me strong when he found me, I don’t know why. I was barely alive.” She shrugged, looking at the contents of her glass in mock contemplation while the memories of her time at the center replayed. “John showed up two nights ago, he’s gonna kill me when he gets his hands on me.”

“What’d you do to piss off ol’ Johnson?”

“I kinda cut his throat a bit last time we were in the same room as each other.” Sarah answered somewhat sheepishly and finished the rest of her drink before retelling the events at John’s bunker and her other run-ins with him to a very amused Sharky.

“Look, I’m gonna be honest, sounds like Johnson wants to bang you.”

If Sarah had a drink in her mouth she would spit it out. “Where did you get that from my story.”

“The dude made you a fancy dinner after baptizing you, no one else around here has ever gotten that kind of treatment. He sent someone to pick up your drunk ass because he was worried you were gonna kill yourself driving home. He let you just walk off his ranch without even an escort. And he said he wasn’t going to force you to atone, he doesn’t give people that choice.” Sharky explained acting like the all-seeing relationship counselor of the county.

“Yeah okay.” Sarah dismissed him, waving his words away with her hand. Sharky grabbed it and frowned before dragging her off her chair to sit on the table where he’d dropped his stuff.

“How’d you fuck up your hands?” He asked as he poured some of her whiskey over the cuts then set to work bandaging them.

“I smashed in the windows at the park ranger station in the Whitetails.” Sharky let out an amused snort and shot her a look that told he didn’t believe her. Sarah just stared back until his eyes widened a little when he realized she wasn’t lying.

“Alright go, Dep. Smashing private property like a badass.” He laughed and Sarah couldn’t help but join him.

“I’m an awful deputy Jesus.” She proclaimed with a grin on her face. “I vandalize property, I’m always at least 15 miles over the speed limit. Hell, I even let you go free and you’re technically a wanted fugitive. Who thought it was a good idea to give me a badge.”

“Thanks for letting me go, by the way, jail sucks.” Sharky grinned, switching to bandaging her other hand.

“I’ll take your word for it for now. Though if we all survive this and the government shows up I’ll probably end up in jail too. Maybe we’ll end up in a unisex prison and we can talk to each other through the fences in the yard.”

Sharky let out a hearty laugh at that and let go of Sarah’s now wrapped hand. “Fucking hope so.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, Sharky finished off his beer and Sarah pulled at a loose thread on her shirt. She needed to change, these were the same things she’d been given at the VA Center.

“I miss it.” She broke the silence, not daring to look at Sharky as she continued to talk. “The VA Center I mean. I miss the routine. Jacob didn’t give me time to breathe let alone think, it was nice. No one asked me to find their errands or find their friends. I didn’t have to think about anything besides the next obstacle. I didn’t have time to think about how insignificant I apparently am.”

“I think you’re pretty significant.” Sharky offered, pushing her shoulder with him.

“You might be the only one.”

“What about Nick and Kim?”

“Fine, you’re one of three.”

Sharky glared at her words before pushing himself up. “You tired?”

“Sarah was a little caught off guard by the sudden change of subject and shrugged helplessly. “I guess so yeah.”

“Then let’s go, I’ll take you to Boshaw Manor, my couch is relatively comfortable.”

“What, you’re not gonna offer your guest the bed?” Sarah teased as she followed him out to his car. Sharky laughed and gave her an incredulous look.

“Fuck no.” He responded playfully and got into the driver's seat, Sarah snorted out a laugh and got into the passenger’s. She turned on the radio, immediately flipping it to the cult radio and earning a groan from Sharky. “Please Sarah, anything but that Peggie shit.” Sarah snickered and switched it to another station.

[shan282-ao3]

The Devil Has Come Ch1

Originally posted on Archive of Our Own [x]

Chapters: 12/? Fandom: Far Cry 5 Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Female Deputy | Judge/John Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Jacob Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/Joseph Seed Characters: Original Female Character(s), John Seed, Jacob Seed, Joseph Seed, Faith Seed, Staci Pratt, Nick Rye, Sharky Boshaw, Female Deputy | Judge (Far Cry), Original Male Character(s), Kim Rye, Boomer (Far Cry), Joey Hudson, Earl Whitehorse Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Torture, Fluff, Minor Character Death, Recreational Drug Use, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Eventual Smut, Character Death, Slow Burn Series: Part 1 of Bottom of The River

Summary: They should never have been there. Whitehorse and Pratt were right when they spoke against going to Eden's Gate. They should have left The Project alone. They'd started something and there was no going back now. The lamb had broken the first seal and the deputy had been helpless to stop her. Read Below:

Sarah looked over at the new deputy who sat beside her in the helicopter, her eyes glued to her phone screen. She leaned across the seat between them to see what she was watching, frowning slightly when she saw it was about The Project. She’d been a deputy in Hope County for nearly two years and she didn’t care much for The Project. She had no major issues with them, they were mostly nonviolent unless provoked and didn’t cause too many problems, but the department was constantly getting calls about them. She was getting really fucking tired of having to drive all over the place to break up fights that people were starting with its members.

She hadn’t met The Father personally, only seen him in the same video her partner was watching and heard about him from various people in the county. No one had much nice to say about him, but there wasn’t a lot of evidence to prove he’d been doing anything seriously illegal. The department had unanimously agreed to leave him and his flock alone, they didn’t have enough people to go against them and, again, there really wasn’t a lot of evidence to build a solid case. They’d all agreed that if they wanted to stay alive, they wouldn’t fuck with Joseph Seed.

Apparently, however, the US Marshal had a different idea about how to deal with the cult, fucking prick. He’d marched into the station that afternoon and immediately launched into some kind of tirade, calling them all complacent idiots. He’d even suggested that they were in bed with the cult which was fucking absurd. Not that Sarah wouldn’t love to be in bed with any of the Seed brothers, but that was different.

Sarah scoffed at Burke’s dismissive attitude towards Whitehorse’s warnings and focused her attention on the ground below. Nancy’s voice crackled over the dispatch and she glanced up, her eyes on Whitehorse across from her. A smirk pulled at her lips at Pratt’s teasing of the rookie and she turned to her. “Staci’s a bit of a cunt, but I’m sure you’ve figured that out already.” Her smirked widened into a full on grin at the offended sound she got out of Pratt.

A chill ran up her spine as they landed at the compound, the atmosphere inside the helicopter was filled with nerves. She waited for the order before climbing out of the aircraft.

“Lamb, stick close to the rookie,” Whitehorse ordered before they all climbed out and Sarah nodded, matching her strides with the smaller woman.

She didn’t say anything to the rookie, there wasn’t anything she could say to make the situation less terrifying. They followed wordlessly behind the Marshall, Whitehorse, and Hudson, only stopping once they’d gotten to the church. Sarah looked around slightly wide-eyed at the Peggies moving around them, angry shouts and worried conversations reaching her ears. But above all the noise of the cult’s indignation at their being there, there was singing and it was entrancing. She caught herself humming quietly along while Whitehorse and the Marshall argued about how to approach the situation.

“Rookie, Lamb on me,” Whitehorse ordered before turning back to the Marshal.

Sarah took a shaking breath as the doors opened and turned to the rookie. “We’ll be fine.” She told her, though it was mostly to calm her own nerves.

The church was warm, disgustingly warm from so many bodies being in a small space together. Despite this, she felt her blood run cold as Joseph’s voice drifted down the pews to her. She’d heard him speaking before in broadcasts but in the flesh it was different. She could see why people joined, his voice, while it terrified her, also left her with a sense of calm, like he and he alone knew all the answers to every question she could even think of. She wanted to shout at Burke to stand down, to leave Joseph and his flock in peace, but she stayed frozen, just watching.

Her eyes, darting to every moving figure, met John’s to the left of Joseph and she held his gaze for a beat too long before redirecting her attention back to Joseph. John was even prettier up close, fuck Addie for getting all those horrid thoughts about him stuck in her head. As Joseph stepped forward and his brothers moved across the stage she caught John’s eyes again and held his gaze this time as Joseph continued speaking, only looking away once the rest of the Peggies had left the church. Her hand stayed resting on her holstered 1911.

Joseph’s voice, raised and slightly manic-sounding, set her hair on end. “I saw when the Lamb opened the First Seal, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts say, come and see…” A chill fell over the room, Burke’s voice interrupting the crushing stillness that Joseph had left. “And I saw, and behold it was a white horse… and Hell followed with him.” His eyes were fixed on the rookie now.

“Rookie— cuff this son of a bitch.” Sarah almost flinched at Burke’s harsh tone.

“God will not let you take me,” Joseph said, his voice menacing and concrete and his hands outstretched. She looked over at the rookie, uncertain if the other woman would follow through with the arrest. She honestly wasn’t sure if she would if she had the cuffs. He looked between the two of them and something about him screamed safety. A part of Sarah desperately wanted to grab his outstretched hands and hide behind his siblings where no one could ever hurt her, where she’d be safe until the end of her days.

A minute passed before the rookie cuffed him, Sarah was certain Whitehorse was going to tell them to turn back but instead the next thing she knew they were walking him out for the church. Sarah cast one last look behind her at the brothers before she followed behind Joseph and the rookie, her nerves building at the downright murderous look on Jacob’s face. They walked quickly towards the helicopter and she felt an overwhelming sense of dread and she was sure it showed.

Peggies swarmed the chopper once they were in and she fought to get them off as one grabbed at her leg. She kicked and kicked until a blow finally landed on the woman’s face and she fell back towards the ground below them. Through all the panicked shouting Joseph’s voice reached her and she froze, staring at him as he sang Amazing Grace, his face pointed towards the sky. As they plummeted towards the ground, his overwhelming calmness as he kept singing was an anchor and she felt a bit of her panic drain. They would be fine, they would all be fine.

The first thing Sarah felt was a thundering pain in her head and it nearly drowned out Joseph’s singing. She blinked and bit back a groan as she turned to look across from her. Joseph’s attention was focused solely on the rookie, his voice terrifyingly calm as he spoke to her. She gasped in shock at Nancy’s voice over the dispatch, it explained a lot actually but her head was too fogged to process much more than that.

She reached up, groping for the clasp on her seatbelt while he was speaking to his flock. She knew they had to get out, she had to run. That overwhelming panic was back and her breathing came short and fast as she struggled to unlock the belt, her head jerking between Joseph and the rookie.

Panic spread like a wildfire and soon everyone in the helicopter was struggling to escape. Sarah gasped as her clasp released and she fell to the ground, Hudson’s screams filling the air as they dragged her from the chopper. She managed to right herself and climbed out past the rookie and Burke, stopping once she was out.

“Burke!” Sarah shouted after him, furious that he would just leave them like that. “Come on rookie we gotta go.” Her voice was shrill as she watched the rookie struggle with the clasp. Finally, it released and she dropped to the ground, clumsily climbing out. She yanked the rookie to her feet and then looked across the helicopter in fear when the Peggies noticed they’d escaped. “We need to run. Now!” She violently pulled the rookie forward, fear driving her as she sprinted through the woods. She let go of the other as they ran, her breath coming hard and fast as she jumped over logs and dodged low branches. Angry shouting chased her as she ran and drowned out everything else around her.

She spotted a place for cover and slid into it, cowering behind the log and trying to make herself a small as possible. Heavy footfalls passed and she held her breath as she waited for them to disappear. Finally, once it had gotten quieter she turned to look at her companion and froze, whatever she’d been about to say dying on her tongue. The rookie was gone. How could she have lost her, she’d been right there the whole time Sarah had been certain.

The crackled of Burke over her radio snapped her out of her panic and she immediately slammed her hand over the speaker and violently twisted the dial off, praying to a god she barely believed in that no one had heard it. She stayed in her spot, arms wrapped around her knees, and looked at the ground below for a few minutes before tears started streaming down her face. God she was fucked, so fucking fucked.

Sarah clutched her knees harder when she heard distant gunfire and hid her face between them as silent sobs wracked her body. She looked like a deranged mess. She should have just stayed home today. She missed her bed and her cat. She wanted her blankets back and her scented candles and reruns of Friends. She just wanted to go home.

She stayed there until well after her tears had stopped and her ragged breathing returned to something somewhat normal. The sky that she could see through the trees was starting to get lighter, she knew she should find somewhere safer before the sun rose. Moving was an effort, she grunted in pain and her bones cracked back into place, her joints popped at the sudden change in position. Pratt would have laughed and made a Rice Krispies joke if he were there.

Pratt! God, she’d forgotten about Pratt. She’d been so focused on getting out she didn’t see what happened to him. She really hoped he’d gotten away but something in her brain told her he hadn’t. Even if he had he was as dead as she was.

Finally, she stood from her spot and began moving slowly through the underbrush, staying crouched and stopping every so often to catch her breath or stop her head from spinning. Her entire body ached but her head was practically screaming in pain. Everything was foggy and she could feel her blood pulsing through her body. If she were to hazard a guess, she most likely had a concussion and based on the pain in her left ribcage at least a few bruised ribs.

A cabin finally into view and she let out a shaking sigh of relief. Safety. At least for now, somewhere she could lay low until she’d had time to lick her wounds and get back out there. Sarah felt hope flare in her chest and let herself get reckless, leaving her cover and moving as quickly as she could manage towards the cabin.

She was nearly at the door when an arm wrapped around her waist and dragged her back. She tried to scream but she was thrown to the ground, the air leaving her lungs. She sputtered and coughed as a Peggie came into view above her, his features were violent and twisted. “Fucking sinner.” He spat and surged forward, his hands clamped around her throat and squeezed.

Sarah struggled in his grip, her lungs screaming as she clawed at his hands to try to get him to let up. She kicked at him, kneeing his stomach over and over but all she got was pained grunts and his hands tightening. In a last-ditch effort, she flung her arms around her, grabbing for something, anything. Her hands grasped at a rock, small but heavy, and using what strength she had left she smashed it into the side of the Peggie’s head. He flinched away, his grip loosening enough for her to breath a bit.

There was blood streaming down from his temple and dripping onto her as she gasped for air and rammed the rock into his head again. This time he was off of her, topping away to the ground beside her. Panic and adrenaline coursing through her veins, Sarah followed him over, lifting her arm up and slamming the rock down again between his eyes. Over and over she hit him, his skull cracking and shattering under the continuous blows and still, she hit him. She hit him until he was unrecognizable and still she hit him, tearless sobs wracking her body as she did.

When she came back to her senses and stopped, looking at what she’d done she reared back and vomited, the majority of it landing on her jeans and the Peggie. She flew back away from him and dropped the rock with a silent scream. Her hands were covered in blood, brains and bone fragments as she scrambled towards the house.

Inside, Sarah ran for the bathroom, turning the sink on and washing her hands in the scalding water until they were red and raw. She looked up and saw herself in the mirror, face covered in sweat and more blood and brains, and leaned over the sink and vomited again until nothing came out anymore. There was a tiny shower behind her and she turned it on, not bothering to get undressed she stepped into the ice-cold spray, uncaring of the temperature as she sat down and let the slowly warming water beat down on as she stared at her hands with hollow eyes. What had she done?

It had been almost three days since Sarah has gotten to the cabin. In that time she’d somehow gotten up the nerve to move the Peggie’s body, dragging it out into the woodshed behind the cabin. She’d managed to cover most of the bloodstain by kicking dirt over it and she just hoped no one came here looking because she knew she’d done a piss poor job at hiding the crime scene.

She was still inside the compound’s borders and every hour she stayed was riskier than the last. No one had found her yet meaning they were probably still looking for her or they’d assumed she’d escaped somehow. She’d found a backpack her first night in the cabin and had spent all of yesterday packing it. She had found clothing in the bedroom after her shower and changed into them, letting her uniform dry mostly before stuffing it in her pack as well. The clothes didn’t fit well, but they worked just fine and she couldn’t exactly afford to be picky.

When the sun had finally dipped below the horizon and the sky was glowing with stars, Sarah stepped out into the crisp Montana air. She pulled the baggy jacket she’d found tighter around her frame and started to walk. She wasn’t sure which way the compound was but she hoped she was walking in the opposite direction.

As she walked in silence, her thoughts ran around her head like a caged bird searching in a panic for an exit. What was she going to do? What if she got caught? Who was going to feed Finny if she died? Who was feeding Finny now? It’d been three days and while he had full access to the outside, he still liked to come in at night for cat food. Oh God, what if Finny got eaten by a wolf or a cougar? She always locked him in at night. He was probably angry at her for being gone for so long. She hoped Kim had noticed her absence and sent Nick down to her house to fill the food bowls and check on him.

It was easier to worry about her cat than the reality of her situation.

Still, her thoughts drifted from Finny and the Ryes and moved to the rookie. She was probably dead or captured and Sarah felt like the shittiest person in the world. She didn’t even know the woman’s name. She hadn’t bothered much with small talk, it’d been a busy few weeks with tensions between the Peggies and civilians rising and she’d been running in and out of the station building. How could she not know her own partner’s name? Whitehorse had trusted her to watch out for their newest member and she’d ditched her in the forest just like Burke. She’d decided in her panic to save her own skin.

A fence finally came into view and broke Sarah from her spiraling. It wasn’t too high and she was pretty sure she could scale it if it wasn’t for the barbed wire at the top. She let out another hopeless sigh for the fiftieth time the week and started walking along it hoping to find a gap. As if by the grace of God, she soon found a break in the fence where something has smashed through it. She stood there in slight shock at her sudden luck and looked towards the sky with a suspicious look. It seemed too good to be true.

She was slightly hesitant as she stepped past the fence, peering down the road before moving, sticking to the fence line just in case someone came by but miraculously no one did. She eventually found a bridge, an abandoned ATV sitting near it with the keys still in the ignition. Sarah smiled slightly at her luck, the first smile in what felt like years since the events at the compound. It sputtered to life and she braced herself as it jerked forward and she was off, speeding down the road and hopefully towards safety.

She hadn’t been driving for long when a figure stepped out onto the road, gun raised, and she slammed on the brakes. The ATV skidded to a stop a foot away from the person, the headlights flicking off as she turned the engine off and shrouding them in darkness. Sarah raised her hands and climbed off, hands itching to grab her gun.

“Leave the keys.” The figure, a woman, commanded. Her voice was familiar, eerily familiar. Sarah sputtered slightly and frowned, trying to match a face to the voice before it clicked.

“Rookie?” She asked, astonishment clear in her tone.

“Lamb?”