The Freehold

The Alexandria Stronghold was one of the most powerful structures that belonged to The Freehold. It was one of the few strongholds where the Church suffered a crushing defeat trying to capture. Nestled deep within a rugged mountain range, the stronghold of The Freehold stands as a testament to resilience and strategic prowess. Carved into the sheer cliffs and fortified with salvaged technology, it blends seamlessly with the natural surroundings yet exudes an aura of defiance against the oppressive rule of the Church of the Eternal Remnant. The entrance to the stronghold is a massive gate, reinforced with ancient steel salvaged from pre-apocalyptic ruins. Guard towers flank the entrance, manned by sharp-eyed sentries equipped with advanced optics salvaged from old military installations. The gate itself is adorned with symbols of unity and resistance—a clenched fist holding a torch, symbolizing hope and the fight for freedom.

Mandisa and her team were finally home. After months in the wild looking for technology they could use, her team was tired. Most of the time there was nothing to find anyway, but they had to try. The Church was advancing quickly, and they were richer than them, so they obviously had the advantage. The Church could now make simple rifles; granted, they were not so good, but it was advancing, and any advancement of the Citadel spelled doom for the resistance. That's why the Council of Elders rarely gave them rest.

Mandisa was a Special Forces Commander, leading elite units or special operations teams within The Freehold, tasked with high-risk missions or critical objectives requiring specialized skills. Right now, The Freehold was in danger; they needed ancient knowledge to catch up with the Church. They could ally with other organizations like The Defiant temporarily, but The Freehold and The Defiant are usually at each other's necks.

The Defiant represent a more aggressive and radical faction within the resistance movement against the Church of the Eternal Remnant. Their ideology is centered around direct confrontation, guerrilla warfare, and dismantling the Church's authority by any means necessary, making them a formidable but controversial force in the ongoing struggle for freedom and autonomy. The Freehold and The Defiant don't agree on most things since The Defiant are willing to kill indiscriminately as long as they can fulfill their objectives.

Before Mandisa's team, The Emberfall Division, reached the gate, it was already opening. They were welcomed by their colleagues. Mandisa stood in front of Niko, a Division Commander.

"Welcome back, sister. It's nice to see you."

"A gate greeting? To what do I owe this honor?"

"Trouble," Niko said, satisfied with her sarcasm.

"I don't wanna." Mandisa tried to throw a tantrum. She knew the Elders had more work for her, but she had just come back and she looked forward to rest.

"A job is a job. And only you can do this one."

"Why did I have to be so good at my job? It's a curse being the best. Suffering from success."

Niko watched her being dramatic.

"You are special team number 2; you are not the best." Niko crushed Mandisa's party with a few words.

"You can't even let me have this." Mandisa was now annoyed. She walked towards the Elders' Hall for a briefing. Niko watched her leave with a satisfied smile. She liked messing with Mandisa; she was like an older sister to Mandisa, who was brilliant. She was proud of Mandisa, who has achieved this much in such a short period of time. Mandisa was good, but she could be naive; she always worried about her.

Mandisa entered the hall, the War Council chamber—a cavernous hall adorned with banners depicting victories won and losses suffered in the fight against the Church. Here, leaders of The Freehold gather to debate strategies, plan operations, and inspire their troops with speeches invoking the ideals of freedom and justice.

There were only three Elders sitting at a small table within the hall.

"Come sit, child, we have urgent business," the man who spoke was Zane, an old man in his 60s. He looked younger than his age, but his head full of white hair gave him away. He had a gentle face and a warm smile. His skin was very pale. You could identify green veins in his hands, but he didn't seem to mind them.

Mandisa sat and faced the elders. She was familiar with two of them. Fohan was to the left of Zane. He had light brown skin. His eyes were pitch black, almost unnatural for his look. He looked plain and bored. It was as if he was forced to be here.

The third Elder Mandisa was not familiar with. He had chocolate skin and a small white afro on his head. It was well combed and suited him, giving him dignity and an aura. The old man was smiling at her as one would at a child. Mandisa thought this was a little weird, but she was too tired to care; she just wanted to know what was going on.

"Intelligence has found out that a Sleeper from the old world has woken up, and the Church has deployed a Priest to hunt him down."

"What?" Mandisa was surprised. "Why would the Church send a Priest of Aegis to hunt down a sleeper? I know they are valuable and stuff, but they usually just die of ignorance, wild animals, or go crazy because of the state of the world."

"That's what we need you to find out. If the Church has pulled this much muscle to hunt one man, there has to be significance to him. Also, the Church calls him the Brown-eyed Demon, and he is rumored to have killed an Enforcer and taken his gun. We want you to find this man before the Church does and bring him to the stronghold. He might have what we need to fight the Church."

Mandisa didn't believe what she heard. "This man killed an Enforcer and stole his gun? He must be something indeed." Mandisa contemplated.

"Yes, find this Brown-eyed Demon and bring him to us. The news has spread. The Defiant will be looking for him, and even the Vanguard of Liberty will too, but be cautious. Don't get yourself killed; the sleepers are unstable."

"I will do as Elder says. When will my team be deployed?"

"Tomorrow. Rest today and set out tomorrow. We are closer to the last spotting of the sleeper; we should be able to find him before anyone else."

"Understood. Can I be excused?"

"Yes, Niko will bring the details of the mission to you after you have rested."

Mandisa left the hall and went to her living quarters. She was tired, but the mission made sense. If the Church wanted him dead, then The Freehold wanted him alive. Her team was not going to like the news of a new mission so soon. But she would worry about that after a long-deserved bath.

---

Sizwe stared at the new village, looking awkward in his new attire of cheap clothing. He honestly missed his old clothes, but he knew that the Church was on his tail, so he couldn't afford to stand out. He was wearing common village clothes, and God knew they were uncomfortable. His delicate skin was not used to this life. In his time, most people were wealthy; they just didn't realize it. Humanity had come far; many things were accessible to most people. Here, the common folk had a hard time.

Sizwe looked common, and it was the perfect disguise. The chief even gave him a bit of currency to survive. He had eaten fairly decent food at the previous village; at least there was salt and spices. The meat was not bland; it was quite good. The villagers could hunt rabbits and boars for meat, but hunting was a dangerous game. One could never know what they would meet in the wild. You could be hunting and meet an evolved boar, and as a normal human, you could die because of this encounter. Sizwe knew this quite well since he met that giant frog; he lost the shield he had stolen from the Guardian and had to run away from that monstrosity after blocking its tongue.

Although the meat he ate was good, what he was most happy to find was Pap. Pap is a traditional South African dish made from maize meal (cornmeal). It is a staple food similar to polenta or grits, known for its versatility and cultural significance. Pap is often enjoyed with meats, vegetables, and flavorful sauces. Pap is like what rice is to Asians; he couldn't live without it for long.

Although his morale was boosted by finding Pap, there was still no ice cream. Or the Church had kept it for themselves. Sizwe was thinking of breaking into the Grand Citadel and looking for ice cream. It was a wild thought, but he was not a madman. He walked into the village; no one looked at him funny. Everyone was busy with their own thing. He glanced at the fruit stalls; all the fruits were abnormally large. An apple could be the size of a cabbage. He wanted to try one but was poor. He only had enough to get himself a room at an inn.

Sizwe still had the gun with him, he just rapped it niced with cloth it looked like some kind luggage. He could hide his identity like this or he would be found immediately if he was dumb. Also, Gazali told him that there would be a few members of the Citadel in this village since it was a large village. They wouldn't be much of a threat to him but they could be infomants to a larger more threatening army.

This village was bigger than Gazali's village; it was well fortified. Many houses were still mud houses, but you could catch a glimpse of stone houses now and again. Sizwe went straight to the stone house; it was an inn and it was big. As he walked in, a whiff of good food aggressively hit his nostrils. He wanted some food. But first, he needed a room to strategize; he had a lot to think about.

He walked to the counter and saw the man behind it; he looked like the owner. He had on nicer clothes; it seemed like capitalism existed in this world as well. The inn seemed to be doing well.

"Room for one please." He laid a trade stone on the table.

The manager was surprised by this man. He looked very poor but he didn't bat an eye getting a room.

"The are cheaper inns in the village sir, did you check them out?"

Sizwe felt a little embarrassed.

"Is the stone not enough?" He said lying another stone on the table.

"No thats not what I meant." The manager didn't realise that Sizwe had this much money. Trade stones were not really rare but they were hard to engrave, one stone was not bad of an amount.

"What is it then? Is it enough for a room or not?" Sizwe didn't know much.

"It is sir, right this way, let me show you to your room." The manager led him to a room.

"I hope it is to your liking."

Sizwe looked at the room, it was not half bad, it was clean and it had a bed and a fire place.

"The wood for the fire is sold separately, you can get it at the reception. "

"I see, I will do that, thank you."

Sizwe walked into the room and closed the door. He was finally alone, it was time to make a plan. How was he going to survive the church.