Chapter
1 – More Dead Than Alive
Stopping my hearse outside of a ruined
church, I get out, grab my shotgun, and keep my head down as I enter it. Inside,
various people in priestly robes are gathered for a meeting with what look to
be ordinary people also dressed in similar robes. They are whispering together
and going through some kind of ceremony that looks foreign to me. Even though I’m
in the shadows, they seem to notice me. Before any of them can say anything to
me with their fake smiles on their faces, I aim my shotgun at them and start
firing. It doesn’t surprise me much that a few of them don’t go down in one or
two shots since I know who these people are.
They have cybernetics like me, but
unlike me, they aren’t covered head to toe in cybernetics and nearly
bulletproof armor. Walking through their gunfire, I take out one after the other
until only one remains. The last one keeps fighting until I shoot off one
mechanical arm and leg from them and only then do they give up.
“What-what do you want from us?
Aren’t you a priest like me?” the man asks.
“I’m not like you. I know who you
are. You and your friends were enforcers from Old America or some other faction
inside them. Whatever the case is, I know you had something to do with the slaughter
of my flock, my family, and my friends. Tell me where your leaders are and I’ll
spare you from living the rest of your life in the condition you are now,” I
say.
“…I don’t know anything.”
“It’s not right to lie in a house
of God even one that’s destroyed and tainted by your use of it like this one,”
I say before shooting another one of the man’s mechanical limbs off. “Answer me
honestly.”
“I honestly don’t know! The only
thing I do is that we got the orders from an android that came from us from one
of the last three states. That’s all! I swear to God that’s all I know.”
“Fine.”
I shoot the man and cross myself
before saying a prayer for my enemies around me. Continuing to the back of the
church, I go through a door and find a cache of weapons, restraints, food, and
water. Despite my body being made of mostly cybernetics, I still need to eat
and drink like a normal person so I eat and drink what’s here and pack up what I
can carry in addition to taking ammo for my shotgun and more guns. Among the
supplies, I find handwritten notes and letters that detail the orders of the people
who were here and maps with locations circled on them. From what I read, these
people were not only assassins for Old America but also kidnappers.
Most people in this new America
seek God since the recent results of a godless nation have shown them the
fruits of sin and it looks like people in Old America are taking advantage of
that for some reason. Perhaps it’s to make them slaves of labor or pleasure or
to make them soldiers because Old America is running low on them, so low in
fact that they’re making an army of robots to protect them and to take back the
lost states or at least that’s what they say. Every attempt they’ve made has
failed including attempts to use the forces and aid of foreign nations, but the
American people have endured, so this new one doesn’t concern me. Still, I
could use the information I found here to help me in the search of finding
those who ordered the murder of my friends and family and tell of this cache’s
location and the information of its kidnappers to those who need it such as those
who hunt kidnappers. For now, I will focus on my own goal.
Being in this church reminds me of
that cursed day that made me this way. Mercifully, I remember very little
except the pain, the shooting, the burning, and the screaming, which I’d still
like to forget. In fact, I wouldn’t mind forgetting that day and living as if
it never happened. On that day most who were close to me died while I somehow
survived despite being the target of enforcers who were targeting the
religious. The famous Roxy and her band of faithful Catholics and allies that
have been aiding people across the country happened to be our saviors because
they were passing by and on their way to one of Old America’s states to wear it
down. They tried to save as many as they could, but they only ended up saving
me. In their charity, they gave me this cybernetic body to help me continue
living, however, they said I won’t be able to live outside of this body and
would almost instantly die without it.
They left soon after giving as much
food, water, and weapons as they could spare along with some advice before
continuing on. That advice they gave might’ve been useful, but I don’t remember
what they said. All I knew and still know now is that I was the reason my loved
ones were in danger and that I had to leave and ensure they and others like us
wouldn’t be targeted again. Turning to face the altar where a broken cross that
has a dismembered corpus of Christ on it, I wonder why He allowed things to
turn out this way. Remembering His suffering, I humble myself, kneel, and cross
myself before leaving the church to continue to carry the cross that’s been
given to me by getting into my hearse and driving off to one of the marked
locations on the map.
This hearse that I’ve been driving
was one of the only vehicles we had left after the attack. Honestly, it’s
fitting given the man or lack of man that I am now. The face in the mirror looking
back at me bares no resemblance to my old face since it was practically burned
off. People say that I look like death itself and my actions add to the image
that’s been painted of me. I’ll not likely live after finishing my
mission because I’m one man against many soldiers. Back in the day, I would
only resort to violence as a last resort, but nowadays, it’s the only option to
solve this problem of mine that I can think of. The murderers and kidnappers
coming after my loved ones, those searching for God, and the Church need to be
punished and I won’t put my second foot into the grave until that happens.
Stopping by one of the locations on
the map, I find a populated marketplace. I must keep myself cloaked here to not
attract attention and scare people away. Also, having the cybernetics that I have
are a sign of having immense wealth so I could attract the wrong kind of
attention as well. This place seems out of time as if it exists in
the past or future. Settlements like this are either centers of crime or towns
where most people stay in and are suspicious of one another. People here are
acting as if there isn’t a civil war going on. Families are walking around, honest
businesses are earning their bread, and people are enjoying life.
What could be hidden here that’s so
important for the murderers and kidnappers of Old America? Could it be the
population here? There are many of them and the church I was at isn’t too far of a drive from here. Maybe they’re using it as a cover so that whoever comes here
doesn’t suspect anything. Perhaps there’s a cache of weapons here. Whatever the
case is, I keep my head down as I search for what is so important.
Thirty minutes pass and I begin to
think that there’s nothing here. Seeing this all reminds me of the life that I wanted
for the people I loved. There’s still time to give it to those who remain and
keep it safe for those who are enjoying it. I consider questioning everyone
here starting with the business owners about the enforcers until a group of
them backed up by a larger squad of androids arrives. Sticking to the shadows,
I overhear the enforcers give the speech they give to all settlements about how
Old America is going to come back and reconquer their land and it would be best
to pledge their alliance now or suffer the consequences. The families begin to
go inside the buildings as what I assume to be the community leaders talk to
the enforcers.
“We politely refuse your offer,”
one of the leaders says.
“Why would you? America has been at
war with itself for years and the government is trying to unite it,” the enforcer
says.
“They’re trying to unite it with
force.”
“As if the rogue states didn’t rebel
without it.”
“That’s because it’s our right to
rebel if the government is corrupt. It’s one of the founding values of this
country.”
“It’s also the right of the
American government to keep and take back its land.”
“The corrupt have no rights.”
“We could say the same thing about
you.”
“You can say it, but you’ll be
wrong. As we have said before, we politely refuse your offer. Leave peacefully
or we’ll show you why Old America is losing this civil war.”
Both parties stare at each other in
silence while slowly moving their fingers to their triggers until the sound of
cars roaring to this location catches their attention. They accuse each other
of secretly calling in backup before shooting at one another. The people of
this settlement start joining in by shooting from the rooftops, windows, and
start coming out of the buildings guns blazing. Joining the fight, I try to be
in front of everyone so that I get shot instead of them. Thankfully, I end up
saving a few lives because of it. Eventually, there are only a few enforcers
left with the rest being androids who are soon joined by a squad of five
enforcers backed up by ten androids that arrive in trucks. It seems like we’re going
to be overwhelmed until more trucks come in, but help comes out of these trucks
that help get rid of the remaining enforcers and androids.
While we celebrate our victory and
thank our saviors, one of them comes up to me and says, “Father Woo?”
“How do you know me?” I ask.
“Roxy and her crew told me about
you and there aren’t many priests out there with cybernetics like you. Let’s
sit down and talk. We may need your help.”
“I’m only out here to obtain
justice for the people that did this to me, killed my loved ones, and to make
sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
“Well, you’ve managed to prevent it from happening again today and that’s exactly what we need your help with.”
“Okay, I’m listening.”
