The night air was surprisingly quiet, almost lulling in its stillness as he made his way back through the deserted streets. Yet, it still seemed to carry a heavy feeling to it, like the tense calm before predator's clash. He felt it with an almost physical intensity: a subtle prickle on his skin, the fine hairs along his neck rising in an instinctive warning with every step he took. He acknowledged the sensation, his gut feeling but something he consciously ignored despite its growing urgency. His heavy chains remaining tightly coiled around him but their metallic points sheathed and still with the one holding the dagger tightly wrapped around his arm, ready to strike out or drop into his hand at a moments notice. He moved with deliberate silence, an almost desperate attempt to maintain the fragile truce of the night that seemed to somehow be morning with him.
"Hey! You! Whatcha think you're doing! Are you mad or something? Quickly, get your ass over here!"
The shout ripped through the fragile silence like tearing fabric, sharp and demanding. It came from ahead and to his right, a muscular silhouette barely discernible against the faint moonlight that occasionally pierced the scudding clouds, materializing from the deeper gloom of a recessed doorway. John's head snapped up, broken from his daze. He offered the figure a brief, weary glance, a look that served as a mix of asking and warning to 'leave him alone,' determined to continue onwards. His singular focus was his destination being his home, his sanctuary. He aimed to simply walk past, to vanish into the night's embrace. But his silent warning went unheard. A powerful hand clamped down on his arm, the grip unyielding and he was roughly, unceremoniously, hauled off the street and into the shadowed maw of the building.
A low growl rumbled deep in John's chest, a sound he barely recognized as his own as his chains surged to life in a blinding flash of silver steel. Instantly, some segments whipped out, coiling around the muscular man who still held him, their razor-sharp points hovering inches from his throat well the dagger sat an inch from his eye. Simultaneously, other links sprang forth, forming a defensive web, their tips already finding and training on the shadowy figures emerging behind the muscular man, revealing previously unseen threats he had only just begun to register.
"Let him go now or I will cut you down where you stand!" a shaky voice declared from his side, the nervous tremor in its tone almost as unnerving as the cold glint of the sword it wielded, now pointed directly at John. He quickly scanned his surroundings, his gaze flicking from face to face. He counted six of them in total, including the one currently held by his chains. They were mostly armed with swords, held with varying degrees of confidence, but he also caught the faint outline of an axe in the hand of a figure to his side. His eyes narrowed, piercing the deepest shadows at the back of the room where a seventh, crouched form was almost perfectly camouflaged against a high shelf. His instincts hummed a peculiar note, this hidden one felt less like a threat, more like a wary observer.
"Calm the hell down! All of you, put your weapons away!" The muscular man, still held captive ordered well keeping his composure. His voice was a low rumble that instantly silenced his companions' protests before they could begin. He shot them a piercing glare before they reluctantly lowered their weapons. They didn't sheath them though, instead keeping them loosely in hand, poised and ready to strike at a moment's notice as the tension in the air began to thicken.
"Could you please let me go? I didn't mean to surprise you like that, but it's not safe or good to be out on the streets right now for a range of reasons." The muscular man continued, his tone softening slightly but still held its firm, commanding tone. "A goliath is going to be passing through here soon and many groups from various factions are waiting to get a crack at it. Some fewer savory types are hiding a bit further out to pick off people or to nab slaves, a pretty boy like you would be a prime target for capture and sale or they would just flat out kill you for your flashy gear. Thing is they're also the only reason the various people around here haven't begun to fight one another yet; no one wants to weaken themselves before facing the goliath or opening themselves up to the scavenger's, even if their enemies are near, they're holding themselves back for the big fish. A person like you, on their own, would be a prime target for the damn vultures waiting, practically a walking bonus to kill, loot or capture, which is why I pulled you over when you ignored me. Look, I'm sorry if I startled you. So, let's try this whole thing again. My name's Jamal. I'm the leader of this little ragtag group and even if we're probably the smallest we look out for our own and try to still look out for others, as hard as that often is." He finished with a small, reassuring smile, keeping his eyes steady on John rather than his chains or dagger.
John's gaze swept over the group again, taking in the details he missed on the first look over now that the tension had seemed to ease slightly. Five muscular dark-skinned men, including Jamal, all with shaved heads. Their forms were undeniably powerful and strong that all but screamed of years of training from before even the changes, their skin possessing a slight sheen that gave them a luster under the dim light. They wore thick, stitched up jackets, each bearing the same distinctive mark, all clad in shorts in the exact same state as their jackets, a peculiar choice for the cool night but not something worth mentioning. The only visible woman among them, the one with the axe, had mocha-like skin, her hair tied up in a bun behind her head and dressed similarly to the men. A flash of palpable disdain crossing her eyes as she met John's stare but he honestly couldn't care less. His gut still quietly assured him the crouched figure in the back meant no harm, his gaze briefly flickering over them before slowly and deliberately he released Jamal, the chains retracting with a nearly inaudible whisper, though he kept them ready, a silent promise of swift retaliation should it be required much like how they kept their own weapons at the ready.
"Look, I appreciate the kind intentions, but right now I don't give a damn about them," John stated, his voice flat, devoid of emotion. "If they attack me, I will fight back. If they try to kill me, I'll kill them in return like I should have been doing from the start. I need to learn to become numb to killing and taking life, becoming numb and unfeeling towards it and everything else till I lose my emotions, so if anything, I hope they do try something so I can get a proper start on it. My hesitation till now has already cost me too much, too many moments of weakness lead to too many regrets all now etched into my soul." He told them plainly before turning, preparing to leave only for Jamal to place a heavy hand on his shoulder, stopping him before he could even take a step, the women faintly heard muttering about a buff edge lord under her breath and he could feel her eyeroll but even so he ignored her, focusing more on the now clear height difference between him and the man next to him, he realized now that he barely reached Jamal's chest, making him briefly wonder how his chains had so effortlessly caught the larger man before realizing he had let it happen.
"It seems like you've been through a lot, I hear that pain in your words and sure as hell see that guilt in your eyes, I've been there, I've been through that along with that question of 'if I had done this would it be different' but none of what you said or even wondering about what if's will help you, instead if you go through with your current plans? To lose your emotions and numb yourself?" Jamal countered gently, his deep voice resonating with an unexpected depth of understanding. "To become numb like that and to lose your emotions though killing will just turn you into a real damned monster. Being able to still feel remorse, pain and all that from taking a life shows you're still human So when you lose that? That's when you stop being human and become nothing more than a rabid dog with a thirst for blood, seeking more and more keeping to keep that feeling of numbness. Why don't you slip away after the Goliath raid starts? It would be safer that way for you and this can give you some time to think and get your thoughts in order. Take it from someone who knows, your current state will just end up getting you killed, process what your feeling, come to terms with that guilt but never intentionally try to lose what makes you human." He reached into the satchel at his side, his movements unhurried as he pulling out a cold, dented and slightly battered energy drink. "Here, it was a bitch to get this, but you seem like you need it more than I do to help try and settle you. I'd offer some alcohol, but that's starting to become near impossible to find these days and its prices are rather mad when you do find it." He offered the can to John with a small smile and a soft, self-deprecating laugh, earning a sharp 'tsk' from the woman at the side who muttered about weakness and fools before turning and walking deeper into the building, her disdain clearly palpable.
John took the can, its coldness a stark contrast to the heat of the moment before popping the tab with a soft hiss and began to drink, the sweet, artificial taste a strange comfort. "Why are you doing this, though? What do you get out of it?" he asked, his gaze fixed on Jamal's face, searching for a hidden motive finding only a strange understanding.
Jamal's gaze drifted past him as the others seemed to begin ignoring them, his head tilting towards the cloudy sky outside with a distant look in his eyes. "What do I get from it? Nothing really. Maybe it's because I've been where you are now, taking the life of someone important to us or maybe I just feel that we have to help each other out, especially with the way the world is now where a guy would kill another just for a bit of meat or a tin of some unknown food. I mean, I heard there are even these strange walls a distance out all around us and the few people still in contact with other people, possibly other countries said that they had the same thing. Right now, we're all just ants with others holding a magnifying glass over us. Humanity had the reset button pressed and now we've gone from the top of the food chain to the bottom. Maybe it's a punishment for our ignorance or just a sick joke for killing each other in greed. Either way, I feel we need to stand united for this regardless of our pasts, regardless of what we may have done, as difficult as that is." He finished, a bitter laugh escaping him, a sound filled with the weight of shattered hopes and the harsh realities. "I know that sounds sappy and pathetic, hell you can laugh if you want and even feel free to judge me as well if you'd like, I know this lot always do when I get sentimental like this. But do at least listen and trust this old soldier's rambling on this matter, a plea from someone who's seen enough division and been bathed in blood of the innocent and guilty alike. I won't hold you back any longer now, you can take your chances and leave or take some time to think about what I said till the Goliath comes." He brought his gaze back to John, his expression earnest and his hopes that John would listen to his words clear.
John finished the energy drink, the last drops a metallic tang on his tongue a taste he hadn't realized he had missed, he didn't laugh at the man before him though. He didn't judge. He simply stared at Jamal, trying to reconcile the man's idealism with the brutal reality of what the world had become. Jamal spoke of understanding what he had just gone through along with unity, of shared struggle, of human connection and concepts that would no doubt feel alien and dangerous to anyone else after seeing what people had become. His own instincts even now screamed for self-preservation and to hardening of the heart, he couldn't imagine others who had spent two years going through this, or how Jamal had kept his spirits and ideals intact all the way till now. Yet, the cold can in his hand, the unexpected kindness seemingly forcing itself somewhere deep within the fresh wounds of his spirit and mind. He didn't believe in easy answers or unity and people, not anymore at least, but Jamal's words, his genuine concern, were a small, unwelcome crack in the resolve in wanting to follow through with becoming emotionless and numb. For a moment, the relentless drive to become numb faltered, replaced by quiet contemplation of this strange, altruistic leader in front of him and how he seemed to have still kept his ideals even till now. It made him realize well he still had to become stronger, colder and far more ruthless perhaps... perhaps he could still be kind, trusting and warm but being far more selective from now on, trusting only those who had proven themselves or he knew would be absolutely loyal. He watched Jamal walk over to the others, smiling and joking, a small smile on their faces as they seemed to mock and poke fun at him, he saw how the only woman in the group, with an exasperated look began berating him well hitting him yet clearly in a playful way, lacking any real heat in her words or actions. It brought back memories of his own time with Alice, would she have approved of his choice to try and become numb or kick his ass for it? Would it actually be worth it? No answers came and it wasn't questions anyone could answer except himself.