Chapter 1

One té two té THREE...

It was all bad.

With a strangled cry of frustration and a quick flex of a twitching hand, the freshly inked sheet music was converted into a crumpled mess.

The plug.

The man stood from his abused chair and shuffled to the balcony window to do what he knew best for these kind of situations. The kind of situations where the word 'failure' personified his work. If that's what he wanted to call it. His 'work'. The small time solos that fell into the hands of monstrous publishing companies. The work he knew that would be played by children just clutching their instruments for their first time. He struggled with these thoughts because he imagined his work blossoming into something much more, something he would be renowned for.

He needed to do the 'thing', and badly.

He shoved one shaky hand into the creased front pocket of his gentleman's shirt. Withdrawing a cigarette from it's carton, he stuck the bitter filter in his lips and fumbled around his pants pockets for his lighter. Where the hell was it?

"You know that will kill you."

He spun on his heels, surprised to find his mother standing shakily in his hallway. Her white-knuckled fists were chipping more paint off the old door-frame and her face was much paler than normal. Where was the lavish blonde he knew his mother to be? The boisterous woman who used to take him on her expensive shopping trips in her expensive car at only the most expensive shops that were offered in all of France. Why was she here in his dingy little country home?

He stared open mouthed for a moment, almost letting the prize fall. With a quick pinch of his lips, he saved his cigarette and gave the most charming smile he could afford without actually losing it this time.

"Why, mother!" He made a grand sweeping gesture with his arms, "What brings you to my humble cottage way out here?"

His mother puckered her lips and tilted her head slightly to the right.

Not a good sign.

"It's your father."

I just wanted to give credit to McKenzieDon'tEatThat for helping me with the thought process. I really appreciate it, and it got me to really think deeply about just where this story is going. Thank you.

I also changed the description. This is because I thought people would be more interested if they knew Rainier was going to have to deal with being captured. I was right though, huh?

Original description: World War III and the world is divided by the question of nuclear energy consumption and blackmail. Everyone turns a blind eye to the consequential zombie problem, but sometimes problems can become the answers.