Maple raised up out of her seat as the truck lugged it's way into the sub level parking facility. Built directly into a subway station that had long since been abandoned, the parking garage functioned as both a shelter for many of the refugees as well as a home base of Generation. The subway tunnels were protected from any of the outside elements as well as Helix scouts, and the garage was a good place to gather everyone for supplies and food distribution.
"At least we made it back in one piece. Especially with how beat up this truck after that little skirmish." Maple knew they had been lucky that reinforcements had failed to arrive before they were able to get the truck upright and running again. While they could outpower the forces, they wouldn't stand a match for when it came to numbers.
"I still can't believe you wanted me to lift the truck instead of Briggs. He's the muscle man after all."
"Sorry Princess. Must've pulled a muslce during that fight with those guys." Once again, Briggs was grinning from ear to ear. Maple just waved him off with a slight grin, knowing he was simply joking with her. It wasn't the first time nor would it be the last.
As the truck circled around the columns and into the center of the garage, a crowd of people began approaching. Among them were men, womenan children, all wearing whatever rags they could find for clothing. Many of them sported tangled hairstyles and grime across their body. Cleanliness just wasn't a commodity to those who lived under Helix's rules. It's not like they could defy them even if they wanted to. They were trapped under the thumb of the corporation and were helpless to fight back.
Maple creaked the door of the truck open and leaped down, landing one foot down on the hard concrete. The refugees all took a step back and stood waiting patiently. She had never been a fan of the refugees, simply beacause of how they often treated most Alphas. Sure, they all took the help that Generation offered, but it didn't mean that they all liked it. Many of them were just simply afraid of the power that Alphas possessed, despite that they were still human.
Maple paced to the back of the truck and unlatched the sliding hatch, the sound of the sliding metal echoing through the spatious garage. Marcus had already exited the vehicle and had made his way around to the back. In the hatch of the truck, boxes were stacked up, full of rations, medical supplies and other necessary supplements. These were meant to be transported to the Helix outposts throughout the region, but Generation often raided the convoys for their own use. While the soldiers of Helix were Alphas that had been genetically modified to do the bidding of the corporation without question, it didn't mean they could go without food or water.
One by one, Maple began handing the boxes out to Marcus, where he would open them and separate the contents accordingly. As time passed, each pack would contain food, antibiotics and other materials that each refugee would recieve. Without Marcus and his group, they wouldn't be able to live a sustainable life and would eventually die off.
As Marcus began forming the packs, he could hear the refugees begin to grow restless. They sounded like a swarm of flies hovering over a dying animal. It wasn't their fault, they were just having to live from one day to the next. Marcus could understand why they were restless. He gathered up a few of the completed packs and approached the crowd.
"First up, the elderly. I want the eldest members who are seventy and over to come up first." Out of the crowd, only a select few stepped forward, mostly women. One by one, they each gratiously accepted the packs from Marcus and bowed their head in appreciation. Marcus gently waved their gesture off and returned it with a gentle smile. Despite having a rough appearance, accented by his rough scraggly beard and dark eyes, his smile was one of his trademarks. It often brought a calm to those who were in his care.
"Next, I want the children to come forward." As the elders retreated back in the direction of the living areas, children who were old enough to walk came forward. One by one, they followed in their elder's footsteps and awaited their pack. Most answered with, "Thank you mister." or "Thank you sir.", however some seemed too nervous to even mutter a word. Marcus thought of the stories that their parents must have told them of Alphas. For those who were too afraid to speak, he gently reach down and patted them on the shoulder.
Finally it was time for everyone else to recieve a pack. The rest of the crowd came forward and Briggs, who had been standing by silently, took over control of the distribution. If there wasn't enough to go around for everyone, nobody would say anything to Briggs. They simply understood that Generation was doing all they could.
As Briggs took command, Marcus and Maple began heading to the Generations base. Situated closest to the entrances, it was set up so that if they were ever discovered by Helix, the members would be the first to the frontlines and not the refugees they were protecting.
"Eager to head back home and get washed up?" Marcus had noticed that Maple was covered in blood and thought about how concerning that would've once been to a father in his time. He knew it was no world in which to raise a child, but what choice did he have?
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
"Yeah. I thought I was going to become a statue on that building where I sat there so long."
"No, that's not what I meant. You're kind of covered in alot of blood Maple."
Maple galnced down at herself and realized what her father had meant. Blood was streaked across her clothes, and had stained her white tank top red. Her gloves had a film of red over them, and her face was speckled with the blood of the soldiers she had killed. It's no wonder the refugees were staring at her when they arrived. You don't usually expect your heroes to return looking as frightening as she did.
"Oh. Yeah, I should probably take care of that. Alyssa will chew me out anyways if I don't keep these gloves clean."
Alyssa Emmerich, a young lady who Marcus had rescued when Maple was still a child, had quickly become one of the only friends that Maple had. Being an only child, Maple had no sisters to interact with much less a normal social life, and since both her and Alyssa were close in age, they quickly bonded. It was also worth noting that Alyssa was the only human friend she had. Most people feared Alphas, but the notion meant nothing to Alyssa, who had been left behind by her parents when she was unable to keep up. She had only been happy to find herself in the company of people who cared for her.
Marcus gave a laugh at Maple's mentioning of Alyssa, and tipped his head toward the left tunnel. Further down that way, they had a meeting room set up for discussions on what their plans would be, and Maple knew her father was going to discuss what to do next with the rest of the team members. While they wanted to take the fight to Helix, they knew they were currently unable to do so on such a large scale. No dobut Marcus was going to discuss how to change that. Maple nodded in understanding, and proceeding down the tunnel on the right to the residual area.
Proceeding down the non-functional escalator, Maple came to the residual area of the camp. It had formerly been an entry way to the upper levels of the city, but had been blocked off by debris and was used to contain all the people who seeked refuge in Marlow city. It was convenient for everyone since the area was so large and small homes could be set up. The area also contained restrooms that, while no longer functioned, could still be used for shower areas given that there was still water to spare.
Continuing past the residual area, Maple crossed across the platform and down a corridor that led to a living area that Marcus had set up for them. It was two small rooms, extremely small in size, but it was nice that she had a room she could call her own. Pushing back the steel door to their rooms, Maple stepped inside.
Upon entry was Marcus' room. Various army fatigues lined up on one of the walls while the rest of the room was fairly barren, save a small mattress and a small framed photo of Maple's family. Maple gazed down at the photo, and let out a slow exhale.
In the photo were three people. Marcus, Maple and Maple's mother, Helen. She stood around the same height as Marcus, but her features were much more gentle. Her skin was a pale the tone of the moon, similar to Maple's, but her hair was her standout feature. The golden hue of her straight hair shined like the morning sun rising on the horizon of a starlight dusk. It caused her sapphire blue eyes to stand out like precious gems who had been preciously shaped and laid in with the finest details. It had been several years since Maple had lost her mother, but it didn't mean she missed her any less.
Her mother had also been an Alpha who had met Marcus during a crossover mission. Seeing that they performed well together in combat, Helix regularly assigned them together on missions and their interest in one another bloomed from there. After the fallout of the first subject Alphas and the birth of Maple, Helen and Marcus had retreated into the confines of a small town. They had lived there for most of Maple's life until scouts of Helix had stumbled across them. On Maple's sixteenth birthday, while celebrating in a secluded plaza the best they could, a Helix hunter squadron had descended upon them. With little time to react, Helen had laid her life down to allow Marcus to escort Maple to safety. Shortly after, Marcus created the group known as Generation to wage a fight against Helix.
Maple broke her gaze at the photo and reminded herself why she had come to her room. She needed to get cleaned off. Stepping into her room, she walked over to the footlocker next to her bed and retrieved a small bottle of water and a cloth. Removed her gloves and laid them aside and then removed her bandana. With the two items removed, she began scrubbing the blood off of her ghostly white skin. She paused as she rubbed her bare hands together. It had been awhile since she had actually felt any sensation in her hands, as her powers often led to her skin being baked in the process.
A unique feature that no other Alpha had possessed, was Maple's ability to produce what was believed to be a "flame" from her fists. While most Alphas possessed some form of mutation that led to the manifestation of a weapon from their body, Maple's was unique in that no weapon was formed but instead some ethereal vapor. Maple was also unique in that no Alphas had ever been able to produce offspring. A side effect of the proccess was the death of all reproductive cell types in males and females. Why Maple had been born was a mystery to all, including the researchers of Helix.
The downside of the abilities of the Alphas was that the materialization of their weapons often caused bodily harm to them. The Alpha mutation process led to high counts of iron in the subjects body with an accelerated healing factor. This was originally designd to make Alphas more durable, but an unknown side effect allowed a manipulation of the excess iron in the body that could be turned into a weapon. Of course, it was still extremely painful for the weapon to materialize. This was no different for Maple who, often in times of distress, unintentionally triggered her ability, scorching the skin from her hands.
As Maple's thoughts continued to spiral through her head, she failed to hear the door opening behind her. As the time frame to react slipped away, she felt someone grab her from behind...