Rebel's Mum

Chauncey Ekelberg was considered by his Brothers as one of their best Parkour trained Operatives around. He could sneak past most Security officers, hack through almost all technological defenses and firewalls, and had been instrumental in the rescue of their only trained pilot that would fly them off of the floating coffin known as the Ark.

Despite all of this…he still could not sneak past his mother when returning from a raid with his Brothers. The woman was old and sickly; the Sickness forcing her to remain bedridden for the rest of her life. She was kept propped up in a sitting up position by a small pile of pillows pressed up against her back and the warped door that led to her bedroom was kept open, allowing her to at least see what was going on for the most part.

Chauncey was trying his best to sneak into the shack they called home in the middle of the night. He had taken part in a raid on a small Security guarded stockroom and although they had lost a good Engineer in the fight; the Rebels had come away with a good amount of fresh water and food for the people of the City, making them heroes.

They were heroes and he was sneaking into his own shack, struggling not to make the weak floorboards creak under his feet as he tried to sneak into his room. "Chaunceeeeyyyy? Is tha' you, boy?! What da fuck are ya doin' comin' 'ome this late, boy?!"

The young man in his mid-twenties winced at the shrieking voice that was his mother and he rolled his amber colored eyes, taking the time to adjust the filthy bandanna he wore over his bald head before stepping into his mother's bedroom, smiling weakly, the Glasgow scar spreading wider as he did so. "Mum…"

"What was you doin' out so fuckin' late, boy?! Was you doin' those stoopid bloody tricks on the rooftops again?" his mother demanded.

As a matter of fact; Chauncey had been using his Parkour skills again…to avoid being shot by Security officers during the raid, but he doubted that his mother would want to hear this and so he laughed the question off softly, shaking his head as he walked to her side, sitting down on the edge of her bed.

"You should be asleep, Mum," he reminded her gently.

"An' so should you! You got work in the mornin aintcha!? Yer gonna git fired at this rate…workin' for Security is a good job!"

"I know it is, Mum."

"It does more for us than those Rebels ever do! Runnin' 'round…causin' problems for everyone else in this city! Idgits…" Chauncey wisely bit his tongue and he sighed and shook his head as he fixed his mother's blankets, chiding her gently.

"Mum, go ta sleep," he whispered and despite the fact that the old woman wished to continue berating her son; her weakened body refused to let her and she was soon falling back asleep, her body going limp as her eyes fluttered closed. Leaning forward, Chauncey kissed his mother on the forehead and with a sigh he stood up, looking down at her.

He lied to his mother about what he was doing outside of their shack. He told her that he worked for Security; helping to distribute fresh water to the Guests of the City. It was a respectable job, the job of someone who didn't cause problems, a job for someone smart, and it was a job that he would never be able to actually get if he tried. Chuckling to himself at the very idea of working for Security, Chauncey slipped into his own bedroom to get some sleep.

His Brothers often wondered why he refused to give them his name; he always insisted on being called simply Rebel during this missions. His mother was the reason for this; stories had begun to circulate about what Security forces did to the families of those caught helping the Rebellion and although his one friend in Security insisted that this was not true; the cruel smile that had been carved into his face by an officer said differently and he refused to take his chances with his mother's life.

"We'll be fine once we git off this bloody ruin," he muttered to himself, removing his bandanna and torn up t-shirt before flopping onto the old mattress that served as his own bed. "We jus' gotta git off this ruin…everyfing will be fine then."