In the year 2215 humanity has been pushed to the point of extinction. The Water Wars, took place a generation ago, leaving in its wake only death and suffering. Ainsley was much too young to have seen any of it; however, stories have been passed down through time so many that she could not differentiate how much of it was actual history or fiction. She figured that half of it was most likely the truth, other parts changed and altered over time as each person told it to another with one small fact changed, or a few things added or taken away. Stories had a knack for changing over time. What she knew for sure was, that the world had ended. At least civilization as people once knew it was gone. The only thing left in its wake was war and death. Some went up into space to escape the worse of the radiation. Her own people, a comparably advanced colony descended from space many years ago. They were the one’s deemed fortunate and privileged. Their ancestors had escaped the worse of the wars. It is told when they had finally ventured back down to the earth, that it had been nearly picked clean by those who had stayed on the ground. By raiders and scavengers murdering for whatever recourse they deemed worth killing for, it was chaos. It is told that some went to the desert, thinking they could escape the toxins found in the atmosphere only to be greeted by ash and death. Others suck refuge in the ocean, venturing deep into the icy waters in large boats called submarines, similarly to how some went into space. Rumors of people climbing mountain peaks and living in built tunnels spread, returning to humanities original primitive state. People believed they could escape the worse of the radiation by venturing into the coldest parts of the earth, many of which died from the climate. Then there was those who stayed put, deformed and burned alive; and if they did survive it they probably wished they hadn’t. Horror stories of humans who climbed deep into tunnels below the earth of what was once called subways and underground trains; became mutated beyond human recognition, never seeing the light of day again.
It has been told that it all started, with a government corporation that leaked a deadly virus, into the water supply of one country. It was biological warfare used in the cruelest of ways. Most of the water was made undrinkable, and if consumed made the host die a slow and antagonizing death, and so began the fight for clean water. It is uncertain now which country started it and which ended it, people handed down from these nations over time all claim to be the descended from the good guys, the ones that didn’t start the war; the victims. The problem is everyone wants to be in the right of things in history so often so that we forget that there are no true innocents when it comes to war. It all boiled down to fighting for different causes and what they believe to be right for their people and using that to justify the most horrific acts imaginable. Ainsley couldn’t care less who she was descended from, or which nation was fortunate enough to survive living in space. Her parents however often try to explain to her her heritage, and are certain that her family once came from the America’s the nation that was once thought of as the greatest of all nations. Ainsley found it almost amusing to think that a world was once dominated by men in what they called business suits sitting at a large table in what was termed a congress. But words such as democracy and diplomacy were just words thrown around in her history course. When these words were spoken at all, they were used to compare their current living standards to that of the old worlds. Her camp leader often spoke of democracy during his unnecessarily long speeches, however Ainsley thought their living standards was more of a dictatorship if it was to resemble any of the old words terminologies. She knew her father shared the same views of their leadership and order within the camp. He held better restraint then herself to share these somewhat bitter views aloud, unless in absolute private and safety, and only with his daughter during his history lectures.
She found the course of history uninteresting, however, knew much about the old worlds ways due to her father. Ainsley couldn’t care less why the world was as it was, she just knew that things were the way they are and that she was forced to live in it now. Although Ainsley wouldn’t dare say it aloud, she held a certain resentment to her parents for breeding her into the world so full of disease and death.
Her sister Genevieve, however, managed to find light in the darkest of days, and always found something to be grateful for. She desired to be more like her at times, however out of stubbornness she would never have admitted this directly towards her since many of their conversations shared where lectures Genevieve gave her, always scolding her to be more careful. She loved her sister more than anything despite this because she was her best friend and her comfort when things were so grim she almost envied the dead. Her sister was her hope in humanity, that people could be kind and noble. Her parents loved her sister too, and often times Ainsley believed they loved her more, and she didn’t blame them for this because it was understandable. According to her family, all Ainsley ever did was protest against her parent’s wishes, and Genevieve was the ideal daughter in comparison. She studied medicine and the sciences and used it to service and save people taking after their mother. Ainsley, however, was the opposite. The minute after turning sixteen, she enlisted with the group called the Centaurs, that was five years ago. Since then, her scouting missions have been uneventful, to say the least, never reaching more than a few miles outside of camp and only on special occasions were the Praetors allowed to venture past a few miles and only when the food made at camp was running worryingly scarce, and by food she meant mostly artificial protein and vitamin paste made by the people who studied the sciences of the old world to benefit their current one.
Although her job was seen as dangerous to her family, Ainsley soon came to find that what she signed up for was not as exciting and adventurous as she had once hoped. Instead it filled her with despair, looking at the ruined buildings from very far away, and imaging who once lived there when the bombs fell from the sky to claim their lives. Of course she was never allowed to go near to the buildings due to city dwellers who were thought to hide in the ancient buildings, waiting to steal and kill anyone who ventures onto their land. The people who lived in the city where not the only threat. Because of other toxins that lingered into the atmosphere, it was forbidden to send Praetors and Centaurs further down into lower lands. From afar, she played a peculiar game in her head looking at the city from afar into the distance, where she would imagine the types of families and careers these people once had. She tried to imagine what is was like to live in a time, where people’s biggest worries were what choice of food they were going to eat for dinner that night. She wondered if these people died, trying to save themselves, of if they had all just sat in a room held hands and waited for their deaths. She liked to think that these people didn’t know they were going to die, that they died unaware and peacefully. But she knew that was just a fantasy she had, that these people in all likeliness knew what was going to happen, and most had spent their last days on earth fighting and killing for the last piece of bread they found or dying slowly from the water they naively drank out of desperation from thirst. When people are hungry or thirsty enough, they become insane to reason. The world that was left before was ugly and the world left now was even uglier, and she thought she understood it more each time she left the safety of her camp. Each time Ainsley left and said farewell to her parents and sister, she saw the worriedness spread across their faces. This sparked an aggravation in her, because they worried for nothing since all Ainsley did was walk around aimlessly with the other Centaurs praying she would find something that could be taken home to eat. After the radiation had killed most animals, it was rare and celebrated when they did manage to find something they could kill, skin and eat. Something that was not paste and actually tasted like something real. Often times all that could be found, was a small ugly animal referred to in the old times, as a rodent and even that kill was cause for celebration amongst her people. Her camp, was named Apokaluptien after the destruction of the old world. It was their way of commemorating their dead ancestors who live on in the stars.
The leaders of this world, are nothing like that of the old one. The second coming as Ainsley’s world was sometimes referred to was a world of brutality, and because of this it required a brutal leader. Venture off too far, and you may never come back. Either another surviving group would find you or the others would and Ainsley didn’t know which fate would be worse from some of the whispered and somewhat forbidden stories she had heard. Ainsley believed that some of the stories told by the elders in her camp were meant to scare children from an early age into not even contemplating leaving camp, but subconsciously she knew there was truth in it. The world she lived in was too violent for there not to have been truth in it, and she knew that her camp had rules for a reason, even if she did dislike some of them. The leader chosen for Apokaluptien was a man named Axel. He was what some may call cruel, but he always did what he had to do solely out of the necessity to keep their people safe; at least that was what her parents had always told her, and is what Ainsley always told herself. Occasionally she would feel guilt seeping into her moral consciousness because of some of the things her people may have had to do, to ensure that her and her family kept on breathing but she would remind herself that these things needed to be done in order to survive. Nevertheless, that is what everyone in the world tells themselves so that they can sleep at night. The things Axel and his men did for the group were never spoken about by the Centaurs or by anyone else, the Praetors knew how to keep their mouths barred. If Axel and his men, came back from a trip with an unusual amount of supplies, no questions were enquired because no one was sure they wanted to know where they came from. When one of Axel’s Praetor never returned back, again no questions were asked aloud and only the family members, if they had any were informed of the disappearance or death which in this world was the same thing.
Ainsley liked to believe she had self-will to do what she wanted but deep down she knew that all of her moves were somewhat monitored and that if she didn’t follow orders she would be made into an example in some way or another. She understood why her family constantly worried about her, they always said she had a reckless streak and wanted to know too much sometimes when it probably wasn’t her place. Ainsley told herself, though that she would follow almost any order when she became a Praetor as long as it abided by her moral standards which were never to harm or kill unless absolutely resorted to the last option. She would never take a life out of vengeance or simply just because she could. She loathed people who thought they were above The Codes set by her camp, and she always tried to do what she deemed the ‘right’ thing, even when in this world, the right thing isn’t always so clear cut and she believed she started to learn this more and more as each day passed her by. Ainsley sat now and looked up at the sky and smiled at the stars, even in a foul world, they still shined so bright and radiantly. It gave her hope. The nights always felt so long to Ainsley, both literally and metaphorically. Because of the permanent harm done to the air’s atmosphere from the radiation caused by the nuclear Armageddon, created by the leaders of the old world; the night’s were always longer than the day time causing it to be much colder when it got dark than it normally would be all year around indefinitely. The moon rose more than sun ever did, however when the sun did shine it could get intensely warm. When the fall of the modern world came, so did the unpredictable weather and the darkness that followed. The sky is so empty and free Ainsley thought to herself smiling softly to herself as she looked up at the lost souls which shone in the sky, a star representing a fallen soul which ascended into space, where they can be free forever. Ainsley knew that everyone who had ever been lost was dining with the Gods in the night sky now. The dead, leaving back to where her people originated from in deep space where they could finally be at peace.
“So deep in thought are we?” Ainsley didn’t have to turn around to recognize who’s voice she was hearing; it was her best friend. She continued to gaze at the light shining in the night sky in admiration and wonder. No matter how many times she saw the star’s shine, it always put her in a state of ease and blissfulness. She sat, transfixed by the darkness and the beauty of the stars above her.
“What’s it to you?” Ainsley said back, with playfulness in her tone.
“May I join you?” Wren said.
“Would it matter if I had said no?” She said back looking into Wren’s face.
“How was your day? Because of mine, frankly was quite dull and need some exiting stories from your outings.” Wren said this sitting down, taking a place next to Ainsley.
“Shut up. You know that what I do is not much more interesting than what you do.” Ainsley said frustrated looking down at her palms.
“I’m sorry Ains, I was just kidding around,” Wren said taken aback by Ainsley’s reaction.
“It’s okay, I’m just sick of going out there every day and not making any difference.”
With this, Wren didn’t have to say anything else. He just put is an arm around her and the two sat in silence because of nothing more needed to be said.
That night, Ainsley could barley sleep. She tossed and turned for what seemed like hours, so she got of bed and gazed out the window. The night was gusty and cold but the moon shone pale and bright, almost mesmerizing. She regarded outside and she could see just a little beyond the wall which was built by her ancestors so high to keep things both in and out. She longed to just get up, get dressed and leave and go outside. She knew however that, that was against their codes and that it was punishable by severe lashings or possibly worse, she didn’t know since no one had ever been senseless enough to attempt it. Even leaving the safety of her home, at this time would be against the curfew code. Leaving while not on a scouting mission with the Centaur which was always supervised by the Praetor was a violation of the codes. Not only was it foolishly dangerous, but it could potentially put everyone at risk. There are numerous things that could go wrong if one were to leave without the correct supervision. There could let them in even if they were said to be rare, or another group could get in if the gates were not properly closed and shut if opened from the inside. Ainsley put those thoughts aside and got back into bed, praying that sleep would come to her and mask her in its vale of peaceful unconsciousness. But as most things refuse to go her way, her prayer did not abide by her wishes of a goodnights rest. Instead, she managed to get a few hours of sleep but was awoken to the dripping of her own sweat. This was caused by her reoccurring night terrors. As always Genevieve rushed in to comfort her back to sleep. Her sister sat down on the edge of her sheets. Genevieve’s soothing presence almost immediately was pushing her to the brink of sleep, and her sister’s gentle healer hands began brushing back strands of her chaotic flaxen hair which were sticking to her pastel face like glue. Her sister, when realizing Ainsley was falling back asleep, climbed into the bed next to her, protectively placing an arm around her.
Ainsley woke up, dreading her duties for the day, she was absolutely exhausted but she knew that if she missed training today, she would be punished by being left behind on the next few scouting missions. Even though scouting wasn’t as exciting as she thought it would be, it was better than staying behind with the teachers, builders, and healers. She’d much rather be out scavenging and returning home with nothing, than staying behind cooped up inside the walls when she could be out venturing into the sunlight with the other Centaur. Her family and Wren would be all too satisfied with her not leaving camp for a few days. Ainsley could not stand being in camp for days in a row, she dreaded the confinement and could not understand why Wren or Genevieve enjoyed hiding behind the walls and being content with never leaving them. To her, that was unimaginable torture, and she felt she would go insane if she was forced to live like that forever. Ainsley dragged herself to the table, ate half a packet of artificial protein paste along with half a vitamin paste tube. Afterward, she and Genevieve put on their usual training attire and gave a quick farewell to their mother Mabel which in appearance shared a remarkable resemblance to both her daughters. They had both inherited her light hair and blue eyes. Ainsley and Genevieve closed the metal door shut which sealed the entry to their home, and closed the latch behind them.
Ainsley was still tired from lack of proper sleep and was somewhat dreading listening to the training officer declare their routine training for the day, since it was the same repetitive speech and voice every single morning. By law everyone over age twelve, had to begin learning the basic weaponry skills, how to reload a gun but never fire one because they were almost seen as antiques. The gun was Ainsley’s least favorite weapon, it is a weapon for cowards Ainsley said to herself. For whatever reason she disliked having to hold one, even if it was not loaded she thought since guns were so rare, that if she were forced to point it to someone they would have the obvious disadvantage and that was not an equal fight. Guns were only to be carried by the leader Axel and a few of his most trusted advisors, and of course in case of a war they were to be distributed to some of the Praetor. It was compulsory for all to study the weapon of the gun, but most people would likely never have to fire one in their life time because ammunition was scarce and difficult to replicate even for the most experienced builders who were aided by pupils who specialized in the sciences. The use of spears, the bow arrow and a large blade were learnt to be used, and almost to the point of perfection along with learning how to make them. Training was obligatory for everyone, and the training only ever stopped when one was seen as too old or too dead to need it any longer. Because of all the training, no matter what work you did for the community everyone was extremely well built and brawny. Ainsley’s train of thought was immediately broken when she heard a voice come up from behind her.
“Well, you look like you slept well,” Wren said teasingly walking over to stand next to Ainsley.
“So, I look like shit?” Ainsley said annoyed, the veins sticking out of her neck slightly from clenching her mouth which shut tightly.
“No, I just meant you looked tired.”
“Same thing Wren,” Ainsley said this letting out a breath of irritation.
Ainsley decided to ignore Wren since he was making her headache worse. She could have sworn she actually felt a constant hammering underneath her soft temples. She stared at the training instructor as he repeated the same thing he did every day, which was that training was necessary for their group’s survival, that they should respect their weapons and never fear it. She could have recited it by heart from the thousands of times she listened to it. Today, however, Ainsley realized that they had a special visitor. Axel, the leader of their group was standing a few miles behind the instructor and was eyeing the trainees with an unusual look of intrigue and suspicion. Suspicious of what Ainsley could not say. She noticed, however, that one of the usual meat bags, as she liked to call his protectors in her head were not presently with him. She whispered this to Wren, after checking that her training instructor wasn’t looking in their direction.
“So, don’t you think that’s a bit peculiar?” Ainsley said with a pleading look.
“Why do you care? It doesn’t really matter, what Axel and his men do is none of your concern… or mine, for that matter.” Wren’s golden rimmed eyes quickly turned to look at his dirt stained boots.
“Well fine, if you want to keep on being oblivious go ahead and let me know how that works out for you.”
It bothered if not slightly offended Ainsley that Wren would merely shrug off her comment, he may as well have told her to shut up. She detested how nobody could question anything directly aloud without people getting bizarre about it, she expected differently from Wren. He normally listened to her questioning and ranting, besides Wren, she didn’t have many people she could voice her opinion aloud to. Ainsley discretely moved over to where her sister was. She observed how she was patiently listening to the instructor and his lesson plan for the day. Even though the instructions were always the same like clockwork, her sister always listened to them patiently and without missing a word. For this reason, Ainsley kept quiet and replicated what her sister was doing. Even though Wren had marginally maddened her, she managed to smile at her sister in admiration.