When Hope Dies

The Coolest Safe Place

Your P.O.V.

       Walking from John Seed's ranch to the border of Jacob's region was exhausting. It had been midday when I left the Seed ranch, and the sun was now close to setting. A good few hours of walking and hiding. How fun. Once I had finally set foot into Jacob's region, I felt uneasy. Sure this whole county was a death trap but Jacob's region? It scared me the most and I didn't even know why.

       I eventually found a quad parked alongside the road, hidden in a bush. Hopefully no one would mind if I took it. Hopping on and starting it up, I pulled the quad out of the bush and onto the road. I was by no means a good driver on the quad. I'd never driven one before. Steering wasn't an issue, I got the hang of that pretty quickly. I had issues with either going too fast or stopping too suddenly, frequently almost falling off the back or going over the handles.

       As I drove, I noticed the Peggies were a bit different. Quite a few of them had red ski masks, wearing matching grey camo coats. They held compound bows and were followed by white wolves with docked tails and red symbols on their foreheads. I hadn't noticed them in any of the other regions. What was unique about them? Regardless of the answer, I absolutely did not want to get off and go ask. I didn't want to be anywhere near one of those wolves.

       I noticed that Jacob's region was more forest than anything else. As the sun set and the moon began to rise, my mind wandered away to this cult. At what low point in their lives were these people at in order to willingly agree to join this cult and be murders. The radio at my waist crackled to life. It was Adelaide.

       "How are you doing, honey? Heard what happened to you. I'm real sorry." She said, sounds of talking and laughter in the background. There was a moment of silence before she said, "We think you should come back to the pizza bar. It's safer here." I smiled a little at this. It felt good to know that she and everyone else cared. "I'll head over first thing in the morning, Adelaide. I'm gonna find a place to rest for the night." I said into the radio, doing my best to steer with one hand. "No problem. You stay safe out there, don't want to lose you again." Adelaide said before my radio went silent.

       As I slowed down and looked around at my surroundings, I found myself near the F.A.N.G. Center. Never been there before. Hopping off the quad, I continued to the center on foot. There were resistance members guarding the walls. Safe. I waved to the guard nearest as I walked in, getting a nod in return.

       A cold, wet nose suddenly had wormed its way into my palm. It must be a really big dog. A cute one for sure though. Turning around, I yelped in surprise and hopped away. It wasn't a dog, it was a BEAR. "Oh that's Cheeseburger. He's a big softie. Don't give him burgers please." A passing resistance member told me. There was a cougar laying on a bench. It had a collar on too.

       Giving Cheeseburger a few good pets, I went to the cougar. It looked up at me with an unimpressed gaze before laying its head back down. Exactly like a house cat. Slowly reaching out, I grabbed the tag on its collar and flipped it so I could read it. 'Peaches.' Huh. That is actually pretty adorable.

Cheeseburgers nose continued to find its way into my hand as he was demanding more pets. Once he started receiving pets, Peaches sat up and began demanding pets from my other hand.

       I laughed and gave both of the beasts their pets, trying to keep it equal. "This has got to be the coolest place I've ever been in. And it's safe!" I exclaimed to myself. When I had gone inside the building behind the bench where Peaches lay, both animals followed me. I sat in one of the chairs against the wall, petting both of them, and I gradually fell asleep right there.

Daniel's P.O.V.

       Once I had gotten Nick's plane to him safe and sound, I had been placed in an awkward position as they argued about leaving or staying. They ultimately agreed on staying to help everyone here and to not give up to the Peggies. I admired Kim. She was strong and stubborn, and I'd definitely want to avoid making her mad. Waving goodbye to the couple, I got back into my car. Surprisingly it was still parked where I left it.