A/N: So, I tried to get this idea out of my head, I really did. It was very persistent. Annoyingly so, really. Therefore, I present... this story. Yes, some parts of it are cliché, but how can you have a dystopian futuristic world WITHOUT the bad guys being called The Alliance? I mean, seriously. Anyway, let me know what you think, ok? For real, I'm not omniscient, I don't know if you like it or not if you only read and don't review :P.

A Prologue

For lack of better words, the Earth was a disaster. Hardly anything was left; broken bits of machinery here, some barely useable technology there, exactly what was expected after a nuclear fallout, especially that of World War IV. The remaining humans tried to band together and rebuild what was left of their lives, but everyone struggled. In the midst of all the chaos, destruction, and terror, an organization called The Alliance gained authoritative power, promising safety and peace to a broken world. It would be the New World, they said, a better world, a fairer world...

The dream didn't last very long. After only months, The Alliance began asserting its power, pushing its tightly regimented affairs onto others. Anyone and everyone who opposed were severely punished and never seen again.

For the past twenty years, a secret society differing from the Alliance has been forming ranks, planting spies, training agents, and running covert operations. Their mission is to assassinate the dictators of the Alliance and begin life anew, as free citizens. Close to nothing is known about this secret society. The only information revealed is that they call themselves The Outlaws, and they are not to be underestimated...

x*x*x*x

Chapter 1: And A Beginning

You would never expect it, but God, he hated Mondays.

Benjamin Lightyear trudged into work early that grey, rainy morning, faking a smile to his arrived co-workers, only to slump into his chair once he reached his office. Benjamin had been in the Regime for twelve years, and even though he was one of the younger officers, he was indeed experienced and respected. Sometimes, he missed the days when he was a bright-eyed teen of the Academy, eager to do anything and everything for the Alliance. Life was easier then. There were no questions, no uncertainties; only faith in the brightness of the future.

Oh, to be young and naive once again.

Things had changed when he was assigned control of tracking and hunting down The Outlaws. Ben had been on this case two years, and every day, his job became tougher. He'd come in on Tuesday with no information about anything, then walk in Wednesday with three newfound prisoners to interrogate. It was a strenuous job in general, but to add that kind of stress to a man whose life was strictly in order from day one... that would wear anyone down after a while.

Heaving a sigh, Benjamin opened a drawer and pulled out a thick, rather messily pieced-together folder. He flipped it open on his desk and spread out the paper and pictures. Just the other day, he had gotten a lead that actually looked promising, but it ended in failure.

There was a knock on the door, and Ben looked up to see the familiar, and rather annoyingly enthusiastic, grin of Kenneth Dolle.

"Good morning, Kenneth," Ben greeted with a small salute. He was slightly surprised that Ken was in the building as early as he was.

"Morning, Buzz!" was the reply. "When are you going to start calling me Ken, huh? Huh?"

He bit his tongue and forced another smile. "When you stop calling me Buzz, perhaps?"

Ken let out an amused laugh and shook his index finger at Ben. "Ah, there you go with the jokes, Buzz! You always make my day brighter!"

Swell.

Ken had been in the AER shortly after Project Outlaws was established. Every day, he'd come into work wearing the most absurd outfits, bragging about his wife, taking a lengthy amount of time getting to the point in any story he told, and, all in all, being too damn happy.

"Do you have anything for me, Kenneth?"

Ken looked quite impressed with himself when he revealed he had found a new piece of information. Purely because he was obligated to, Benjamin put up with Ken's daily monologue, finally cuing in at the end when the name Bazooka Jane was mentioned.

"Bazooka Jane?" Ben clarified, recognizing the name and typing it into his computer.

"Weird, huh? From what I hear, this girl is crazy, right? I mean crazy! I'm talking like lassos, rides a horse around, talks to animals crazy."

"What is this, the Wild West?" Ben mumbled, unimpressed. He scanned through the few newspaper articles of her, then looked in his file till he found her picture. "Do we know anything else?"

"Oh, we know something else."

It was in that smug tone that made Ben's head snap up. Whenever Ken used that tone, the information he had was reliable and true for a change. "What do we know?"

A smirk, then a dramatic pause. "We think we found her."

Ben raised his eyebrows in both disbelief and intrigue. "Are we talking legitimately found her this time?"

Ken nodded, then grew serious for a moment. "But its real shady, Buzz. You've got to go out west, to the Wastes in the middle of the desert. Lay low, and steak out for a few days. If you do anything bold or rash, you'll spook everyone, you know?"

Ben nodded. "Thank you, Kenneth. Give me coordinates, town names, hotels, anything you have."

Ken saluted. "Yes, sir, Buzz!"

"Also, pull your strings and get me a flight out tonight."

Ken immediately deflated. "Aw, man. I hate pulling strings. It takes forever." A glare from Benjamin, and Ken straightened. "Which is why I'll get right on it, Buzz!"

The two exchanged salutes, and Ken was off to his cubicle to do his work, leaving Ben to investigate what little information he had on Jane.

Only a handful of reports were written on her. Female, approximately 5'10", about 120 lbs, around 27 years of age, long red hair, green eyes, and a knack for dressing in dark cowboy wear. A number of years ago, she committed armed robbery and held a bank at gunpoint. A journalist managed to snap a quick photo before she disappeared. A few years later, she was caught with Breaking and Entering and Grand Theft. However, just before they took her fingerprints at the local jail, she assaulted the guards and broke free. She was stronger than her size suggested, and cunning enough to outsmart the law for this long. Some of the officers believed she was one of the higher ups of The Outlaws, but nothing was certain.

Benjamin looked at her pictures, sipping his coffee. He had seen her picture before, every time he opened up the folder as a matter of fact. As strange as it was, Ben felt like he knew Bazooka Jane, and not just from AER reports. He didn't like how he couldn't put his finger on it, and he also didn't like that, for some reason, this particular Outlaw reminded him of his old partner. Ben ran a hand through his short hair, forcing the thought away.

Outside his office, he heard the cheery voices of Ryan and Trixie as the two officers entered the building. Unlike Ken and himself, Ryan and Trixie were not field agents, but worked extensively in the office part of his Project. Ryan was good with people and interrogation methods, whereas Trixie was a master with computers and electronics. They were two teammates he did not have any qualms with. Ben called out to them, beckoning them into his office.

"Morning, Buzz," They greeted with wide grins and obligatory salutes.

"Good morning, Trixie, Rex," Ben said, nodding to them both and using Ryan's nickname. "We have a lead on Bazooka Jane."

"Wow, really?" Rex burst, perking up. Because of his ridiculous height, the young man nearly hit his head on Ben's doorframe. "This is so exciting! Oo! What can I do to help?"

"I'm leaving for the Wastes tonight," Ben explained. "But it's complicated. I need to be, for the most part, undercover."

"We'll scrounge up a fake ID and a quick Bio for you!" Trixie said, eyes sparkling at her chance for what she deemed action. "I can get you a flight out too!"

"Thanks, but I already charged Kenneth with getting me a flight out."

Rex looked confused. "Why? We could do that in, like, five minutes."

Ben smirked. "I know."