Chapter Text
The air was thick with near-silence, unbroken even by crickets. Only the quiet trickle of the ink-dark river interrupted the stillness and quietness. The night, only lit by the half moon hidden in clouds, suffocated the clearing in darkness.
Footsteps.
Three pairs of black boots carefully stepped along the broken asphalt and clumped dirt. The leader of the trio, a short and wiry man, signaled with his hand, slinking through the crumbled buildings and crouching behind a wall. His two companions, another man and a woman, followed.
Just ahead of them, a deer lapped at the river.
Jack exchanged a glance with the much larger, more intimidating man beside him. With a sharp nod, the lage man began to draw a great bow back, fingers tracing the feathered end of an arrow.
Before he could take a shot, the deer squealed and collapsed, a different arrow lodged in its chest.
Someone ran to the kill from across the river, and with a snarl, the largest man stepped out of the shadows, training the arrow on the intruder.
The intruder went stiff, raising his hands in the air. “Tyreese.” He said coldly.
“Oak.” Tyreese growled back, tearing the intruder’s night vision goggles from his face. “What are you doing on our territory? The river marks the border. This deer and this land belongs to us!”
“Not any longer.” Oak said smugly, his dark brown hair falling over his brow.
“Bold talk for a man outnumbered three to one.” The woman, Marcy, left the shadows of the rubble.
Oak grinned. “It would be, wouldn’t it?”
As he spoke, an arrow screeched through the air, striking Marcy in her shoulder. She howled with pain, falling over as Jack ran to her side. He dragged her back behind the building as several more arrows fired all at once, soaring over the river.
Oak punched Tyreese in the nose, slapping the bow aside. Tyreese stuck out at him, but he dodged and rolled away.
Splashing from the river caught Tyreese’s attention. Half a dozen people were climbing out of the river, running forwards to their deputy’s defense.
The man caught the first with a great punch to the jaw, sharpened brass knuckles breaking skin, and then another to the stomach. A second soldier fell in pain as Tyreese swept his leg and kicked him in the face. Several came at him at once, and he pulled his dagger from its sheath, swiping madly to keep them back.
“Ty! Watch your six!”
From behind him, someone swung a blade at Tyreese’s head. It was intercepted by Jack, who tackled them to the ground.
Jack stomped the enemy soldier’s wrist and kicked the weapon away, pressing his back to Tyreese’s and raising his own knife. “I’ve got your back.”
Tyreese just grunted, throwing another punch.
For a moment, the two fought side to side, barely fending off the attacks.
Another several people were crossing the river, whooping and spewing threats.
A scream came from Marcy, snapping the attention of both Jack and Tyreese. One of the soldiers had driven a knife between her ribs to the handle.
Cursing, Tyreese threw his knife, taking the ear off the other man, who stumbled away in pain.
Jack rushed to Marcy’s side, binding the knife in place and pulling her to her feet. “Tyreese! We need to go!”
“We can’t!” He snarled, disarming one soldier only to have his arm sliced by another. “They’ll take the shore!”
“There’s too many, It’s NOT WORTH any of our lives!” Jack spat back. “This is an order, retreat!”
Furious, Tyreese stepped back, scooping Marcy up easily. The intruders didn’t follow. He ran with his companions even as the cheering jeers from their enemies seared his ears.
Celeste sighed, staring out at the cloudy sky. She squoze her hands together, trying to keep them from shaking.
A cracking twig behind her caused the woman to whip around, knife in hand. She relaxed as soon as she saw who it was.
“Sophia.” She acknowledged the younger woman. “How is Marcy?”
“She’ll live.” Sophia sat beside her, undoing her messy braid. “I was able to remove the knife and arrow and stop the bleeding. It was a hard surgery though, and it will take time for her to heal.”
“Tyreese? And your brother?”
“They’ll be fine too.”
“You’re a good medic. I’m grateful to you.” Celeste closed her eyes and took a steadying breath of relief. “We have so few. So few soldiers to defend the group. We can’t afford to lose anyone else.” She stared curiously back to the sky, squinting for stars between the blanket of clouds. “This is the first time we’ve lost on our own territory since I took over. We’ve grown so weak…”
“Nobody blames you.” Sophia turned her own eyes upwards. “I have faith that tides will change for the better. The youngest generation may be less than what had been before, but they are strong. Someday, they will grow to be strong soldiers.”
“That’s too far away.” Celeste retorted. “I fear for the long term survival of The Warriors.”
Sophia didn’t respond.
The long, dark strands of her hair cascaded forwards in a sudden gust of wind. The clouds parted quickly, revealing stars glittering across the sky. Moonbeams shone down upon both women, reflecting in their eyes.
With a gasp, the pair saw as something blazed across the sky, disappearing over the horizon in the direction of the Great Walled City.
“What was that?” Celeste whispered in awe.
“A sign.” Sophia said without hesitation. “The Stars have sent us a message. Our salvation will come from the Walled City.”
“I --I don’t understand.” Celeste shook her head. “How could the City save us? It is a place of oppression!”
“I do not know, but you know as well as I do that The Satellites do not fall lightly.” Sophia stared determinedly off at the horizon. “Trust me Celeste, as you’ve trusted me before.”
“So be it.” Celeste followed her gaze, standing tall. “Our salvation will come like the fire of a falling star.”