Welcome To Earth.

Chapter 6 : A Gamble for Gambition.

I don't mind being on the run, it's a giant game of cat and mouse. I have always hated the government, but now that they've forced us into a state of Martial Law, I can hate the government with a new sense of validation. I wish to break all the rules I can, and still escape. There so worried about the people causing a big scene, that they don't even notice me at times. I live in the ruins of what once was New York, this place has been long abandoned besides us street rats. During the day, you wouldn't be able to tell anyone lives here, but at night, things come to life. I love it here, because old drug lords decided to mark this their land, and those who listen to them instead of the fucked up W.O.Gov, get paid in drugs. I have never been happier. I go out at evening for my boss, raiding these empty buildings for any supplies I can carry, I deliver it back to him, and he gives me that sweet candy. I don't worry about the government, all my fears and sorrows are melted away, thanks to Cardinal. That's what we call the king-pen of our drug society. 

I licked the crystallized crumbs from my tinfoil, and I fall back into my mattress. It looks like I need to go on another hunt for resources. Being high always makes it easier to go out into the desolate city. I geared up, layers of black clothing, a balaclava, and my bag of tools. I realize that I am probably the most bad ass teenager alive. I felt the high encompass my body, and I waited as the sky turned dark. 

The soundtrack of my soul, every beat of my heart and every move of my body, moved as my existence was a dance. I always loose track of where I end, and where the drugs begin. I no longer feel like a victim in this world, but rather the master of my own existence. 

I find my feet flying to their own accord, my body gliding where I wish it to go. Up this ladder, onto that balcony, into the building, and in and out of each room. I look at the furniture, the pictures, and I envision the life who lived here once before. I notice the dust, that softens the grim reality of what happened. I pretend to be them for a bit, playing out the life of someone I will never know. I take their things, but I don't feel bad. It is almost like I am returning for my own belongings. I go building to building, for hours on end, filling up extra bags I always bring along.  

Tonight, I've been out for hours. Usually It doesn't feel as long, but I usually am on more drugs. I want to find something really good for Cardinal. I really need my next fix of Gambition, and I heard this new batch crackles in your mouth, like this retro candy called popping rocks. That sounds awesome. Of course Cardinal finds a way to take a good thing and make it better. On my foraging venture, I have found a fair amount of things I think the Cardinal would want. I've got an abundance of toilet paper, bottles water, and canned foods. I found some fine jewelry, and some money savings. I am sure he'll find use for this. I found a stray dog, which I somehow persuaded to come along with me. I feel proud with my gatherings, and the sun isn't even up yet. I feel certain enough that this is good enough, I should probably head back before other guys' get the fresh batch. 

Out of these shitty apartments, taking the escape ladder, down back onto the shitty streets. The dog waited at the bottom, I had tied him up to a gate. I took the rope I turned into a leash, and I headed back to the undergrounds. Cardinal found comfort in the abandoned train stations, turning the tunnels into a mansion, at least compared to my dump of a place. 

"Oy, I've got some stuff here for Cardinal! Let me see him." I demanded to his middleman.

The Cardinal made a large tent in the central station, it's like the coolest blanket fort ever.His mediator put his head behind the curtain of the entrance, I couldn't make out anything they were saying to each other, besides the word dog.

"Okay, you're clear to go in, But let me take the dog from here." I agreed, passed the rope over to him, and I entered the Cardinal's den.

He sat up on a throne, made of the bones of birds who once passed away do to a plague. You couldn't see his face, as he wore a mask of a red bird. He also dawned a crown. He claimed himself King, and we all obeyed.