Hope {z nation - 10k}

2x11

Previously

A small smile came to my face as I looked at Lana. "She said she loved me. "

" No. I went to art school." Warren then looks at me, waiting for my answer. "I was just a kid." They leave us behind to figure this out and contact Citizen Z.

...

The Z's were coming at us from all angles. It was too difficult to see with all the smoke in the air. I jump on top of a boulder and aim for the four Z's running at Doc. I hit three perfectly, but in the last one... my bullet bounced off his necklace and hit the Z dead on. As we walk out of the woods, we see a hotel. We cough up a storm as we approach the building. A man pries the door open, but as soon as Warren says 'thank you,' a group of people aim at us. "Welcome."

We force our way inside, all of us pointing our weapons at the group already in the hotel. "Turn around and go back the way we came."

"Make me bitch," Lana exclaimed, already pissed off. She hasn't eaten in a few days, and her behavior is starting to show that. Warren rolls her eyes, "Look! We don't want to hurt you. But we cannot turn around. There are way too many Z's out there." Z's hand slams against the doors we entered to prove her point. "Who's in charge?"

A man with a giant stick introduces himself as Gideon. Warren then asks for us to stay awhile. "Okay. Well, in order for us to put together a mutually beneficial agreement, we're gonna have to create a little framework of trust here."

"What do you have in mind, wizard man?" I look down at the brunette beside me. Looking at Gideon, I can see how Lana thinks he looks like a wizard. A woman then grabs the stick from Gideon, telling us it's a talking stick. He then goes around and gives him his first impressions of all of us. First up was Warren.

"You are the leader. You're a natural. And you have wisdom. But it's born of loss." Next up is Vasquez.

" You are the enforcer, brother. You're tough. But your scars can cloud your judgment." Then Addy.

...

"You are the strong one. But there is a lot of loss in those eyes. I think it's more loss than you can handle." He looks at Warren, seeing her look at Addy. "She relies on you." Then, going to Doc, he starts.

" Brother, sir. You've got a face that's etched with sadness. And yet... somehow... you've managed to keep your sense of humor. Man, I need a hug." He then hugs Doc and walks over to Lana.

You are the sunshine. You have seen a lot and hide behind your humor and sarcasm." He looks down at us, holding hands. "The both of you have known each other for a while. You care for him..." He then points to Murphy. "And him. But not in the same way." Then me.

Son. You have a good heart. You care for this girl. But you're a little bit angry. You don't like him. And you don't like that she cares so much for him. Hmmm."

We then all separated within the building. Lana went with Murphy and Vasquez. I went with Doc and someone else to get food. And Warren and Addy negotiated.

A gunshot then goes off. We kick in the door of the kitchen to see three bodies on the ground. One being Murphy, someone else from the other group, and...

We put Murphy and the other guy, Greg, on the bar. Looking at the third body more closely, I notice that one of them has my bandana around its wrist. Holy shit, it's Lana.

...

I watch at the bar's doors as Warren and Vasquez talk. That is until Gideon decided to start talking and bang the talking stick. "Hey, guys? Okay, everybody. Could I ask you to come in here and join us in the trust circle? We're going to resolve this conflict peacefully. Without violence."

"Well, that's not gonna be easy. Considering that one of you just shot two of us."

" Okay, listen. Everyone. Violence can spread like wildfire. It just takes one spark to burn down the bridges of trust between all of our fellow human beings. And once it's started, a fire doesn't care who it burns. I know that we can resolve the issues between us."

"The issue between us is that one of you shot both Murphy and Lana." So we all sit down to get this "trust circle" over and done with. Two men then come forward and try to blame me for the shootings.

"So clearly there is some unresolved conflict between you, Murphy, and the girl."

"10k doesn't miss." The talking stick is then handed to Addy. "If 10k wants something dead, it's dead. And he would never try to kill Murphy, especially Lana. Kick Murphy in the nuts a few times, maybe. But... he would never try to kill him." She hands the talking stick back to Gideon.

"Do you care to defend yourself?" He then hands the stick to me. "Murphy's not my friend. He never will be. I have more than enough reasons to want to kill him. And when the time comes, I will kill him. Happily. But it's not the time."

...

"As for the girl?"

" The girl has a name. It's Lana. She is the kindest and most trusting person in the world. We have known each other from the start. I would do anything for her. And I love her."

...

After banishing Iggy, he came back covered in blood. He then took the talking stick and smashed it over Gideon's head. Murphy then decides to wake up with a moan. "What did I miss?" The Z's, trying to break into the hotel, started to leave. "I had the craziest dreams." A gasp interrupted him as Lana shot up on the table. "What day is it?"

I sat in the driver's seat as Warren and Addy thanked the people for their help. Warren gets into the passenger seat. "How are you feeling, princess?" Murphy then moans in pain. "I have an apocalyptic headache." Warren then laughs in return. I look in the rearview mirror at a sleeping Lana with her head on the window. I watch her chest fall up and down to ensure she's still breathing. Then, I look back over at Warren. That's looking at me.

"What?"

"You really do love her, don't you?" Addy then walks over to the van after finishing talking to Dana. "I'm glad I never had an office job. Those people were messed up."

"It's the corporation's man."

"Yeah." Addy then opens the door, and we all look at her with knowing looks on our faces. Well, except for the sleeping girl in the back. We then pull out of the driveway, never to see those people again.