A resistance fighter

I was born out here on the fringes, far from the shining ADVENT cities. My parents got rid of the television the same week the Speaker started his broadcasts. They wanted nothing to do with that oily voice.

Out here there’s no law, no safety net, no one coming to help. You learn early how to handle a rifle, how to move quietly through the trees, how to survive when no one has your back.

I watched the sky burn for years. I watched neighbors disappear. I watched the resistance scrapes and raids from a distance until one day I couldn’t stand on the sidelines anymore.

So I joined them. Not for glory. Not for ****, exactly. I joined because I refuse to live on my knees.

I’m tired of hiding. I want to fight.