My story is based in the year 2045. It has been a bleak history since the twentieth century. In World War 3 (2031-2034), over 8.9 billion people were killed, with the use of nuclear wars and viruses. When the war was over only one tenth of the population remained. Seizing the opportunity, the Australian Government took over the Earth, forcing their beliefs on an already defeated world. So it was for nearly 2 years, before the television studios decided enough was enough. Crushing the Government beneath their vicious onslaught, the various stations gained control of the globe, allowing the Government to remain above the common man, but below any television crew - even the camera men.
The Doug Anthony Allstars were arrested in 2044, for crimes against humanity (I know they probably would've been dead by now but let's just say�um�a new drug was invented in 2023 that prolongs your life by a century, so most people live to be about 175�ish. Yeah, that's good enough), along with various other violent music acts - including Marilyn Manson.
Computers no longer exist, and neither do cars, telephones, airplanes, or anything else technical. Actual television has long since been forgotten, with only the names of the studios to recall it ever existed. Humanity has learned to live with only the basic of tools. Castles and huts have replaced apartments and flats.
Out of this desolate world a resistance has begun, an army who call themselves the DAAS Fictioners. The leader of the rebellion died tragically in one of the many battles they fought, and her place was taken by Quiescence, who was second in command at the time. The original leader's name is never spoken, nor mentioned, but her memory lives on and her sacrifice gives the group courage in hard times. The army grows with every passing day, as more and more common people join the resistance. They have been on the march for many days. They now face their first major battle - the assault on the Channel 10 studios.

Funk You glanced at Quiescence, who nodded in response. It was time. Climbing off her horse, and up on her little box, Quiescence turned to face the throng that had gathered from all over the world.
"Fellow DAAS fans," she began. "Our ways have been mocked for far too long. The time has come for us to take back that which is rightfully ours!"
A loud murmur of agreement rippled through the crowd. Quiescence smiled. This was going to be too easy.
"We must stand together to turn our fantasies into reality!" she cried, rising a clenched fist for emphasise.
The crowd cheered.
"I can't promise there won't be casualties, but for those of you who live, life will be so much sweeter. We will finally have what we've all dreamed of for so long! The Dougs will be ours!" she screamed this final statement, despite the fact she had a microphone.
The crowd went wild. A chant began - "Allstars! Allstars! Allstars!"
A grin spread across Quiescence's face as she stepped down from the podium. Turning, she was rewarded with identical grins from her true followers - the DAAS fans that weren't among the crowd.
"This will be fun," Silent Neville said, as though she were announcing they were going to the movies, instead of to war.
"Definitely," Fred's Angel replied, toying with the gun she had in the holster by her side. They nodded at each other, coming to a silent agreement.
"It is time," Quiescence said again. She climbed back on her little box, raised the microphone to her lips and screamed the order, pointing at the Channel Ten studios.
"CHARGE!!" The throng of DAAS fans raced towards the heavily guarded building, weapons out and ready, still chanting.
The DAAS fictioners stayed behind, watching with cold amusement as their army fought and died for them.
"Shall we?" Richie's Girl turned to the others, as the battle began to look in their favor.
"Indeed," Tiggs replied. Quiescence climbed back on her horse, and they began to trot down to join the battle, to insure their victory.

Kwasi looked around at the carnage surrounding her.
"The death toll is acceptable," was all she said in reply to the slaughtered bodies that littered the ground. The others nodded.
It had taken all morning to conquer the Channel Ten studios - they had prepared well for the battle. But now it is ours, Quiescence thought with an evil grin.
She glanced towards what remained of her troops. They were exhausted, and had fallen asleep where they had landed after the battle. Quiescence scowled at them, but said nothing. She needed those fools to fight her battles. And for that they needed to be strong.
She turned back to her true followers. "Fiction meet," she declared, before heading off to one of the towers where they could talk in private.
The others followed without question. They finally reached the tiny room at the top of the North tower of the studios, and slumped unceremoniously into the chairs provided.
Nigel locked the door behind them, then she too slumped into a seat. They were silent for a while, each recovering from the huge flight of stairs.
"First order of business," Nicole muttered, "is to get a fucking elevator installed!" A few of the others nodded in agreement.
"We'll get to that later," Quiescence replied impatiently, now that she had her breath back. "Who did we capture during the take-over?"
Sparky glanced at the list in her hand. "We captured Ted Robinson, Julie McCrossin, Bert Newton, that annoying brunette from Dawson's Creek, Sandra Sully, Glen Robbins, a few other writers and producers, Brooke Satchwell, and Jessie Spencer," Sparky finally finished, looking up from the list.
Quiescence rubbed her hands together in glee.
"An impressive haul," she commented. A few of the others laughed - but they all knew what came next. They had spoken of it many times.
"So who do we get rid of?" Quiescence asked, looking at each of her followers in turn. They only had a limited amount of food, so they could only afford to keep two or three of the prisoners.
Everyone immediately began to venture their opinions as to who should be killed off, and why.
"And so it begins," Paul Wang whispered under his breath before jumping into the fight, loudly proclaiming who he thought should live and die.

Finally Quiescence raised her hands, growing tired of the banter. Silence fell immediately.
"We must secure the studios properly, before killing off unwanted guests," she announced, turning to go back down the stairs. The others all followed without question.
When they reached the bottom of the stairs, the Fictioners spread out. They knew what they had to do - they had talked of their designated positions for many days now. Quiescence surveyed the sleeping soldiers, Sera - her second in command - by her side (see Sera? I put that in special for you, cos you've been bugging me so much about this story).
"They must be woken soon," Quiescence said, glancing at Sera. "Not now, but soon."
"It shall be done," Sera replied. Quiescence nodded her approval and began the routine check of the barracks.
She hated to admit it, but Channel Ten had been well prepared for their attack. It was only through sheer weight of numbers, and a few simple strategies that they had been able to win.
"We will use this to our advantage," Quiescence declared, rubbing her hands together in anticipation. "Their own defense used against them." She grinned. She liked the way that sounded.

Paul Wang and Iluv sat atop the wall above the main gate, which had been fixed since the battle. They looked out over the surrounding country, taking note of all useful hiding places and possible ambush terran. All seemed well, so they settled back against the wall to talk, being careful to still keep on eye out for any approaching people.
"Do you think we're doing this the right way?" Iluv asked uncertainly. PW studied the opposite wall, considering.
"Yes and no," he answered slowly. "Yes because World War 3, the Government have been the only people with any real power, besides the t.v stations. It's time we made the world notice us again. But no because, while this will probably work, I doubt the Dougs will come to us willingly."
Iluv frowned. She hadn't thought of that.
"But surely they'll be glad to escape from that hell-hole?" she ventured. PW shook his head slightly, but said, "That may be true, but they won't like the reasons. Don't expect them to welcome us as their saviors."
"I didn't expect them to," Iluv retorted, thinking that PW thought she was simple. "I just thought that they would be grateful we got them out of there. I know I'd be happy if someone busted me out of prison, no matter what the reason." She sulked.
PW smiled, and hugged her shoulder - the only thing he could from his position next to her.
"Don't get upset," he smiled. "I wasn't saying that you were stupid, I was just saying that I don't like the way things are headed." His eyes grew distant. "Quiescence isn't acting according to plan." He sighed, bringing himself back to reality. "But this is a war, and we all have to make sacrifices."
A single tear ran down Iluv's face.
"Some more than others," she whispered. PW frowned, wondering what she was talking about. Then he remembered. He mentally slapped himself on the head. How could he have been so stupid? Of course Iluv had lost more than any of the other Fictioners. They had lost a friend and fellow DAAS member - she had lost a sister and life-long companion.
"I'm sorry Iluv," he muttered, trying to comfort her. "I didn't mean it that way."
PW pulled Iluv into his comforting embrace, feeling his shirt growing wet with her tears as she sobbed silently. Staring out over the open terran, he wondered if the dead really did watch from above. He wondered if Iluv's sister could see the pain she was going through, or if she was watching out for them up high.

Funk You and Kwasi shifted uncomfortably on the east wall. Now that it was getting dark, they had the coldest position in the entire fort.
"Why do we always get stuck in the cold places?" Kwasi grumbled, trying to make herself more comfortable against the cold stones.
"Look, I'm freezing my butt off too, but do you hear me complaining?" Funk You snapped, pacing the small stretch of path along the wall. Kwasi eyed her with a wry smile.
"You just did," she grinned. FY turned to say something, but thought better of it and closed her mouth. Instead she stared out towards the nearby hills.
Kwasi watched her for a minute, then decided to break the silence. "Penny for your thoughts?"
FY grunted, "they're not worth a penny." (Sorry - I know someone else wrote that in one of their stories, but I can't remember who, and I like the sound of it. Thanks anyway!)
Kwasi chuckled. "Yes they are - even if it's just to stop me wondering." FY frowned. Not about what Kwasi had said, but about what she was thinking.
"I was wondering how many more we are going to loose," she said finally. She noticed the confused look on Kwasi's face. "Not the soldiers," she clarified. She stared out at the vanishing horizon again. "How many Fictioners."
Kwasi got up from her seat on the floor, and went over to FY. "You're thinking about the one we lost," she said quietly, placing a comforting arm around FY's shoulders. It wasn't a question, it was a fact.
FY nodded, fighting to keep the tears that threatened in her eyes to stay there. She sniffed.
"It could've been worse," she grated to herself more than to Kwasi.
"But it could've been better," Kwasi whispered. FY turned and buried her face in Kwasi's embrace, finally letting the tears flow.
"It should've been me," she kept repeating. "It should've been me."
Kwasi stroked FY's hair, making soothing noises. Momentarily she wondered how Iluv was doing. It had been her sister after all. But Funk You has the most reason to be upset, she amended. It was because of her that they were now down by one member.

Quiescence paced her room restlessly. Man, she was so tired.
"Can't sleep," she whispered aloud. She checked her watch. Nearly 2am. She closed her eyes. So tired�NO! Her jerked open her eyes.
Sleep meant dreams. Dreams meant memories. Memories were bad. Quiescence began pacing once more. It was nearly two hours later when she fell asleep, collapsing on the nearby couch.

QUISCENCE SAT AT HER COMPUTER, A SMILE ON HER FACE. IT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE CENTURY, BACK WHEN DAAS FICTION WAS JUST A WEBSITE - NOTHING MORE, NOTHING LESS.
SHE CHECKED HER EMAIL, BUT THERE WAS NOTHING NEW, SO SHE HEADED OVER TO THE DAAS FICTION BOARD. QUIESCENCE LIKED GOING THERE - THESE PEOPLE SHARED HER INTERESTS AND FEELINGS. THEY LIKED HER FOR WHO SHE WAS, NOT WHAT SHE KNEW.
SUDDENLY THE DOOR TO HER ROOM BURST OPEN, AND TWO LARGE MEN MARCHED UP TO HER. "COME PEACEFULLY AND YOU SHAN'T BE HARMED." ONE DECLARED, SEIZING HER WRIST. QUISCENCE SHIED AWAY FROM THE ROUGH TOUCH.
SCREW THIS, QUIESCENCE THOUGHT. HE WAS HURTING HER ALREADY.
TWISTING OUT OF THE GUY'S GRIP SHE MADE A BREAK FOR IT. TAKEN BY SURPRISE, THE TWO MEN TRIED TO FOLLOW, BUT SHE WAS FAR TOO QUICK. SHE WAS OUT OF THE HOUSE AND HALFWAY DOWN THE BLOCK BEFORE THEY HAD EVEN GOTTEN TO THE FRONT DOOR.

Quiescence awoke with a start, coated in sweat. She reached out and gingerly touched the edge of the couch on which she was lying, to reassure her that this wasn't part of her nightmare. It was blessingly real. Quiescence closed her eyes.
"Goddam it," she whispered. Slowly she opened them again. A quick glance out the window told her that she would have to start waking the soldiers soon, but for now she was alone.
Quiescence placed her head in her hands and began to weep, not caring who saw or heard her.

Sera knocked tentatively on Quiescence's door. When there was no answer, she opened the heavy wooden door and gingerly stepped into the room, searching for her leader and friend.
Her eyes trailed around the small room, and finally fell on a crumpled heap on the couch. Fear leapt into Sera's throat as she imagined assassination, suicide and more. She rushed over to the unmoving figure, and kneeled down in front of the couch.
Now that she was closer, Sera could see Quiescence wasn't dead. She was weeping. Startled, Sera gently placed a reassuring arm around Quiescence's shaking frame. Quiescence buried her face into Sera's shoulder, letting the tears that she had held back for so long finally go.
Sera noticed that her friend was shivering, and not just from the cold.
"Quiescence? What's wrong?" she asked, hugging Quiescence to her even tighter. Quiescence didn't answer, but she did stop sobbing. Sniffing, she tried to regain her composure.
"I have to go and wake the troops," she said, wiping the tears from her face. Ignoring Sera's worried look, she began to bustle about the room, collecting all the things she would need for the long day ahead of them. Sera watched silently.
Quiescence walked purposefully to the door, but paused in the frame. She glanced back at Sera. A questioning look in her eyes begged Sera not to tell anyone. Sera nodded, and got up to follow. Quiescence will tell me when she's ready, she told herself. She just needs time.

Breakfast was quiet for the Fictioners that morning. They all noticed their leader's unease about something, and Sera's worried glances did nothing to reassure them. Quiescence barely touched her food, preferring to stare at the floor instead.
The soldier's food hall was quiet too, but for totally different reasons. They were remembering the battle from yesterday, and the horrific images they had seen. It was into this eerie silence that the runner drove his horse.
PW and Iluv, sitting on top of the front wall saw him first. Scrambling to their feet, PW pulled a pair of binoculars from his utility belt, while Iluv pulled an arrow from her quiver on her back and shot it into the courtyard below. The two guards sitting inside the gate in the courtyard saw the arrow and scrambled to their feet, ready to sound the alarm bell if needed.
"It's alright," PW said, putting down his binoculars. "It's only a runner." Iluv nodded and shot two more arrows into the courtyard before settling back into her place on the wall.
PW glanced at her. "Don't you want to hear what he has to say?" he asked curiously. Iluv shook her head and wearily closed her eyes.
"If it's important someone will come and tell us anyway," she muttered. PW nodded slowly. This was true. He settled down again on the wall next to Iluv.

The two guards from the courtyard burst into the Fictioner's eating hall, out of breath from their fast run through the castle.
"My Lord," one of them gasped, looking at Quiescence. "A runner approaches." The two guards held their breath and waited for their leader's reaction. Quiescence nodded - she forgave the interruption. The two guards breathed a sigh of relief; they would live.
Quiescence climbed to her feet and marched out of the hall, the rest of the Fictioners close behind. An excited whisper raced through them. What news would the runner have for them?

Quiescence waited impatiently behind the front gate, wondering what news the runner would bring. The guards waited until the runner was right up to the gate before lowering opening it - if they opened it too early they would be vulnerable to attack.
The runner leapt off his horse the second he was inside, and turned to bow to Quiescence. She acknowledged him with a small nod.
"What news?" she asked, trying to seem as aloof as possible. Rank is a great deal more important now than it was in the twentieth century, she thought with an inward sigh.
The runner straightened, and looked her straight in the eye - a sign of respect and honesty.
"The Channel 7 crew have heard of our rebellion," he declared. "They march toward here as we speak." A nervous muttering sounded among the soldiers, who had ventured out of their food hall, but the Fictioners just smiled. They had expected this. Channel 7's army would waste valuable resources and lives to try and quell their forces. If they were prepared, then the oncoming army was a blessing.
Quiescence nodded for the runner to go on.
"The Dougs have been moved to the ABC stronghold, where they have been placed in a cell with Marilyn Manson," the runner rushed on, glancing at a notebook in his hand. "Mikey has been sighted at the Channel 9 studios, but word has it his wife, Laura, is negotiating a truce with ABC.
Wil Anderson is still at large - not even the t.v stations know where he is. Ross Noble is still in prison at the ABC for that stolen kiss with Paul back in 2000, and the Sandman and Flacco have not been moved from the interrogation room at the Channel 7 stronghold." The runner glanced up from his notepad, and added quietly, "And Rove McManus is being brought for negotiations with the Channel 7 army."
Quiescence stared at the runner, her expression amazed. Rove was coming? She turned around to face her stunned army.
"Move it people! We want to be ready for a war!" The soldiers quickly scuttled off to strengthen their defense, while the Fictioners waited for their separate orders.
Quiescence turned back to the runner. "How many day's march is the Channel 7 army?" she demanded. The runner shied away from the sudden onslaught and stammered, "about two days march from here." Quiescence nodded - that was plenty of time.

Iluv and PW watched curiously as the soldiers suddenly began running around. They glanced at each other.
"What do you think's happened?" PW asked, returning his gaze to the scene below. Iluv just shook her head.
"Don't know, but I'm guessing something big," she replied. She turned her gaze from the busy scene below to the surrounding countryside. Suddenly she froze. PW tried to see where her attention was riveted, but couldn't see anything of importance.
Slowly, Iluv pulled an arrow from her quiver and fitted it into her bow with practiced ease. She drew the string back to her ear and carefully aimed the shaft of the arrow. PW watched silently. Suddenly she loosed the arrow, and in one swift motion had pulled another from her quiver and shot it in rapid succession.
PW looked out through his binoculars to see what she had shot. He grinned and turned back to face her, noting the smug look on her face.
"Okay," he admitted. "The spy hiding in the tree was a fluke, but the rabbit you hit at the foot of the tree was a pretty good shot."
Iluv just grinned and shot four arrows into the ground in the courtyard, and watched coolly as one of the soldiers ran out to collect tonight's dinner, and to bury the body of the spy.

Quiescence paced the short distance her private chambers, gnawing on her thumb. Every time she passed her window, she paused to stare out into the midday heat. So Channel 7 had Rove, she mused. She sighed. They had something she wanted and they knew it. Negotiations could go for days. Quiescence glanced up momentarily as Sera slunk into the room, then resumed pacing. Sera watched silently for a while, then coughed uncertainly.
"What are we going to do?" she asked tentatively. Quiescence stopped her pacing and frowned, glaring at the opposite wall.
"I'm not sure," she replied. "We can't lodge a full-scale attack until we are sure Rove is safe and unharmed. No doubt they'll try to use him to get us to surrender," she added bitterly. She sighed again. "I can't see any other choice but to give up Rove. It's that or give up our fight."
Sera stared at Quiescence for a long minute. She knew how to salvage this battle, but she was reluctant to bring it up, fearing she would have to betray her sources. Finally after an inward struggle, she could see no alternative.
"There may be a way," she began, breaking off when Quiescence turned to study her intently. Quiescence noted her hesitation, and motioned for her to go on.
"I think I can find a way to rescue Rove," Sera said, studying the floor, refusing to meet Quiescence's gaze. Suddenly she glanced up.
"Don't ask me how, but expect Rove to be safe in our confines before the day is through," she blurted, and quickly rushed out of the room before Quiescence could say another word.

Nigel sat in the Main hall, her eyes closed. She knew what was coming - she had heard what the runner had to say.
A slight sound interrupted her thoughts. Opening first one eye then the other, Nigel discovered Sera standing over her.
"You want me to talk to Wil, don't you?" she whispered, lowering her gaze to the floor. Sera sat down beside her, but didn't say anything. Nigel closed her eyes again, trying to ignore the pain she was feeling. "You do know what you ask?" her voice was so quiet, Sera almost didn't hear it at all. She studied her hands.
"You know I would never ask if there was another way," she replied, trying to be as sympathetic as possible. Nigel frowned but nodded. She knew.
"I will do what you ask Sera, but please do not ask me to do it again," she said, quickly climbing to her feet, and hurrying out the door.

Iluv watched curiously as Nigel saddled her favourite mount and rode out of the main gate at a canter. She frowned slightly. Where was she going? Leaning over, she gently shook PW awake.
"Just resting my eyes!" he snorted as he awoke, scrambling to sit up. Iluv grinned but didn't say anything - instead she merely pointed in the direction where Nigel was fast disappearing.
PW raised his binoculars to his eyes.
"Where do you suppose she's going?" he asked as he studied Nigel's fast fleeing back. Iluv shrugged and resumed her place on the wall.
"Dunno," she said, her eyes trailing the vanishing cloud of dust. "Do you think it's got anything to do with the oncoming army?" she asked curiously. Kwasi had filled them in on the details from the runner not long after the group had departed.
"Maybe," was all PW said, as he lowered his binoculars. The two glanced at each other before settling down to wait.

Nigel drove her horse as fast as it would go, desperately trying to reach the designated spot before it was too late. Nigel glanced up at the sun as she rode. It looked to be about two in the afternoon - she had to hurry.
Finally she reached the thicket, and scrambled off her exhausted mount. Quickly giving her mare a brush-over and some water, she turned and headed for the heart of the thicket.
She found her pace quickening with every step, and tried not to think about the fact he could already have left.
"You seem in an awful hurry," a familiar voice behind her said. Nigel froze, and slowly turned around. Wil stood, leaning against a tree, a slight smile on his face. Nigel's heart welled to see him again. It had been far too long. She scanned his face to try and find if he felt the same, but his eyes were unreadable, and his expression gave away nothing.
Nigel opened her mouth to deliver the message, but found herself blurting instead, "I missed you so much." She held her breath. Did he feel the same? Oh God, she would be so embarrassed if he didn't. What if he hadn't even thought of her? But then why is he here�?
Wil studied the ground. "I missed you more than you can ever imagine," he whispered, glancing up again and gazing in to her eyes. "But you know it cannot be."
Nigel hung her head, tears welling up in her eyes. It hurt so much to be so close, yet not be able to touch him. She wiped her tears away angrily. She was on a mission! This was no time to get sentimental about her one true love�
"I suppose you've heard the situation?" she asked, putting on a strong face. Wil tilted his head slightly as he studied her.
"That depends," he replied. "What situation are you talking about?" Nigel gave him an agitated look - it didn't matter that she was in love with him, he sure could be irritating at times.
"Rove's situation," she answered, watching his reaction intently. Wil nodded. The unspoken question hung in the air.

"Do you think you would be able to free him?" Nigel asked hopefully. Wil stared at her for a minute, before his face broke out into a huge grin.
"Already been done, my little lady," he declared. He glanced over his shoulder. Rove hesitantly came out of the bushes, looking terrified. He eyed Nigel warily.
"Is this the girl you spoke of?" he asked Wil uncertainly, glancing at Nigel. Wil nodded, but Rove still looked dubious. "Do you think we can trust her?"
Wil never took his gaze off Nigel. "I trust her with my life and yours as well," he answered clearly. Nigel blushed, then pointed behind her. "My horse is just through there," she said. She was a little worried about the extra weight her already tired mount would have to carry, but her fears proved unfounded as Rove began to lead his own horse out of the bush and headed over to where she had pointed, leaving the two of them alone.
Nigel lingered, despite the urgency to return. She turned to face Wil.
"I still love you," she blurted, then quickly raced back to her horse. She dared to take one look back as she and Rove began to ride back to the studios. Wil hadn't moved from where he had stood during their conversation, but as she turned to face him he blew her a kiss, and placed both his hands over his heart. Nigel's vision was blurred with tears as she turned around once more to lead the way. She blinked them back angrily. There would be time for tears later. Right now, she had to get Rove back safe and sound.