“We aren’t going to just up and leave our home. It took us so many years just to be able to afford a house here in Los Angeles. Now you want me to just walk away from everything we’ve worked for because the damn mutant shifters have decided to come out of the closet?”

Nora listened to her father arguing with her mom. She was sitting next to her two older brothers on the stairs who were doing the same thing. Listening to their parents trying to decide what to do.

“Don’t worry, Nora,” her older brother Tucker whispered. “No matter what happens we’ll stick together. We’ll be fine.”

“Don’t lie to her, Tucker. We don’t know that. We don’t know anything. Our lives are over, stolen by the fucking mutants. I was supposed to graduate high school this year with an associates degree. Shit, Nora would’ve been at her first year of high school if it wasn’t for them,” Ronald, the eldest of them said.

Nora hugged herself listening to her brothers arguing on the stairs. None of them had been in school for the past two years. It was too dangerous to run the schools with all the shifter attacks. Nora was so tired of feeling scared all the time.

“… because it’s up to me to protect this family. I joined the HRAF and you will too. We are all going to do our part in taking back our country from these freaks.”

“The Human Rights Activists Faction is crazy. They are half the reason for all the fighting, we can’t have anything to do with those fanatics.”

A steady rapid drumming sounded in the distance. Everyone in the house quit talking and froze in place. It was gunfire. There was another fight breaking out.

“Let’s wait, maybe they will stop,” Nora pleaded as Tucker grabbed her arm. “I don’t want to go back into the sub-basement.”

“Shut up and move,” Ronald growled at her. “It’s to keep us safe.”

Their parents were coming too but then there was a knock at the door. It wasn’t a regular tap at the door. It had a strange rhythm to it that meant something to her father because when he heard it he turned back. He went and opened the door.

“The mutants have decided to take over this neighborhood. They’re killing all the humans in these houses. Get your family. We’ve got a wagon about two miles up the road. We’re taking care of ours and you’re an HRAF brother now, so we came to help you get out.”

“Thank you,” her father embraced the man with the bald head and tattoos on his scalp.

Her mom signaled for them to continue to the basement but none of the three of them moved. “Now we’re leaving because some guy says we should?”

“Get your go bags, kids,” their father said.

Nora didn’t want to be locked up in the damp darkness for days at a time again so she listened to her father and went for her bag that was under the stairs. Her brothers followed his orders too.

Once their mother saw that they were willing to leave she too got her bag and handed her husband his. “I hope you’re right about these people,” she said to him with a frown on her lean face.

As soon as they left the house the shooting got louder. There was screaming and the sound of shifters growling and fighting. They raced down the road as explosions shook the city. The man from the HRAF gave her mom, dad, and Ronald a gun.

Men and women dressed in HRAF colors, red and black were all over the neighborhood armed with guns and shooting. Nora saw four of them ripped to pieces by a bear shifter. She was so terrified she began to run faster than her family toward the wagon that was overflowing with people already.

So many are trying to leave. How will we even fit?

“Shoot, dammit,” the HRAF man commanded. Nora heard the gunfire going off right behind her.

“No keep going, run Nora,” Tucker screamed out a sound of terror at her back.

The wagon was leaving!

“No, please wait,” Nora cried out running as hard and as fast as she could. A young boy about the age of Ronald stuck his hand out and pulled her into the wagon. As soon as she was in she turned to help pull her family inside but there was no one to help.

Their bodies were in pieces over the street. Mutants swarmed the street killing the HRAF so quickly that there were none of the street fighters left to escape with the people they saved. The young boy who saved her hugged her as they both cried. He’d just lost his father and she’d just lost everything.

Nora Prush sat up with a start as Slade shook her. “You were having that dream again, weren’t you?” He asked frowning at her. Nora nodded looking up at Slade, the young man who had pulled her into the wagon six years ago and saved her life.

The memory of losing her family was still so raw. Time had only forced her to accept that they were gone, it did not heal the pain of their loss and absence. Nothing would ever heal that pain.

“Nora? Are you listening? This is dangerous, you can’t be crying in your sleep. You could be overheard. The shifters could find you and kill you if they heard you hating on them in your sleep.”

Nora smiled at Slade with his creased brow and stern face. He’d shaved his dark hair off like his father and had the same tattoos etched into his skin. “I am not going to get caught, Slade. I’ve been training for this mission since I joined the HRAF. You’re worrying too much.”

“Nora, this is your first solo mission. Of course, I’m going to worry.” He kissed her quickly on the mouth and looked around to see if any of the others saw him. When no one did he breathed a little easier.

Sleeping with your trainee is forbidden but Nora was willing to risk it to be with Slade. He’d saved her life and after her family was killed, he’d looked after her when he didn’t have to. She loved him.

“You need to get started if you’re going to make it to Freebasin today,” Slade said. “That shifter loving city should be burnt to the ground.”

Nora put her hand on his shoulder. “Not everyone is as brave as you are. They are probably scared, Slade.”

He nodded but still held the scowl of contempt on his face. “Get in there and learn everything. Do whatever it takes. This may be our only shot.”

Nora nodded eagerly. There was no way she was going to botch up this mission. It was her chance to really strike back at the shifters for murdering her family and killing the innocent girl she used to be.

Tossing back the sleeping bag she pulled on the boots and common clothing that was not black and red HRAF uniform. Nothing on that she had packed or carried could tie her to HRAF which gave her the chance to approach as just another frightened human, too afraid to stand up to the shifters.

Slade continued to repeat the orders she already knew as she strapped on the backpack and common weapons. “I’m ready,” she told him putting a finger to his lips.

He leaned forward pressing his forehead to hers. “We are going to avenge our family until there are no shifters left.”

“Yes,” Nora agreed. “We are.”

“Don’t lose your way, Nora,” He said giving her auburn ponytail a tug. “These humans in Freebasin have an alliance with the shifters, they will try to sway you.”

Nora rolled her eyes at him. “Yes, you’ve said that already. I’m not going to forget what shifters did to our families. I can’t be swayed. I am bringing their doomsday.”