THIS IS CHAPTER ONE SPLIT IN HALF!! There is no difference.
(aside from a few mistakes that were corrected due to PeopleFearTheUnknown editing) 
It was over 6,500 words when combined in just chapter one. 

O.o.O.o

Monday March, 2029

Ella kept her gun held steady in front of her. Watching the blond in front of her for any suspicious movements. "What are you doing here?" She bit out as her eyes flicked up and down his figure. He stood no more than two inches taller than Ella but what he lacked in stature he made up for in strength, his broad shoulders flexing with every shift his arms made.

"I didn't kill these people, I was trying to see if I could find who did." He confessed, his voice low and gruff. "What are you doing here?" 

The sun came out from behind the clouds, glaring in through the window behind him and reflected off his short, blond hair.

Still holding her gun on him, she sidestepped to avoid the sudden sun glare, winking one eye closed until she was clear. "I was visiting." Her left shoulder faced the door so she could keep an eye on both him and the entrance.

"Visiting?" He stuck out his bottom lip and nodded his head in mock understanding, "That was helpfully vague."

"Yes, visiting, I knew these people."

"I'm sorry." He relaxed his stance only slightly, his extended arms sagging at the elbow. "I say it was Raiders..."

"No, not Raiders."

"What makes you say that?"

"Did you not see the banner?"

"Yeah, yeah I saw it." his brows furrowed and lips pulled thin, turned upward into a grimacing grin. "So?"

"Raiders don't promote the Ousia, the Huijari does."

"The-the what?!" He half laughed.

"What?"

"What did you just say, what the hell are the hoo-jar-ee... hugh-har-jar... whatever-the-hell!?" he emphasized his impatience for her jargon with wild arm movements in her direction.

"The hugh-yar-ee," she corrected dubiously.

"What does that even mean?" He scratched at the days of stubble growth, white flecks seasoned the otherwise blond facial hair. "They a part of the Ousia? Is this a regional thing?"

"Yes, Huijari." She waited, expecting him to know what she meant, when he remained stoic to the word she elaborated. "it means, 'not real'. - how have you not heard of them?"

He leaned forward and nodded in mock understanding, "Not real- so imaginary things" he gestured wildly with his free hand, his pistol still aimed at her heart. "... killed over a hundred people."

"They're not 'imaginary! They are as real as you and-"

"You just said, 'not real'-"

"Yes, as in imposters! Not real people! How do you not know the Huijari? We've been fighting them since the war started."

"'We', who's 'we'?"

She jolted her head, unsure if he really just questioned the statement, "Syndicate?"

"You- what?... a syndicate of what?" he looked at her incredulously, his naturally heavyset brows sinking further over his eyes.

"Not a syndicate, Syndicate." She corrected contemptuously, slackening her formerly tight grip on her Ruger.

He peered at her, narrowing the permanent creases at the corners of his eyes from decades of squinting. "Oh, when you put it like that... I totally know what you're talking ab- oh, wait. No, I don't. I don't think we're even speaking the same language!" he continued by gesturing between them in a fluid motion. "Do you mind getting that out of my face, I think it's safe to assume we're on the same side, here." He motioned his free hand between them, "-and my arm's getting tired."

"I might still shoot you." Ella replied, twisting her lips to one side. 

"For what?!" he sighed and ran a calloused hand down the side of his rectangular face. "Alright? I didn't kill anyone! If you think it's..." he motioned his free hand in a circular motion as a visual to the turning gears in his head, "... the Huijari, or whatever, you'd be wrong but that's fine. But I really need to get going..." His hand gestured faster than his lips could move.

"Who do you think did it?"

"Raiders."

"I already told you, Raiders wouldn't write that banner."

"Maybe the people felt that way when Raiders, humans, started slaughtering them for no real motivation other than to create chaos and misery."

"You think that, while people were dying, the waystationers took the time to write a banner that spoke out against humanity- while they were being attacked?"

He pushed his tongue up over his teeth and pressed it against the wall of his cheek, "Well- you- I don't know, why would it be the Huijari?"

"The Huijari are a collection of Ousia supporters, they are a group of terrorists. This is what they do."

"This is what Raiders do!"

"What are you doing here?!" She shouted impatiently, digressing, her eyes lighting with irritation as she shook her weapon at him.

"I thought we went over this already,"

"No, you said that you 'didn't kill anyone' but I'm finding that hard to believe considering how hard you're trying to convince me it was Raiders- are you a Raider?"

He scoffed and rolled his head back. "No, no, I'm not a Raider. I'm... just passing through."

Ella arched her brow and gave him a stony glare. "'Passing through'," She echoed.

"I'm tracking someone, and I stopped for supplies but found this massacre instead."

"So you were looting." She accused.

"Now you're being ridiculous."

"Who are you looking for?"

"Aren't you getting tired of holding that?" he asked again. 

"Nope." 

"Alright, what's your plan right now? Because, to be completely honest, I'm getting pretty sick of looking at a barrel of a gun, and I have places to be."

"Who just walks over hundreds of bodies to come upstairs?" she continued her line of questioning.

"I thought I heard someone- maybe a survivor or the guy who did this. I didn't know, I came up to investigate." 

"You thought you knew who it was- the person you're looking for? Who is he?"

He ran his hand down his face, rolling his eyes. "His name is Carver."

Ella diverted her gaze as she considered what he'd just said, how dramatically he'd said it, "What's he to you?"

"You know him?" His eyes lifted and an indiscernible expression passed through his eyes.

"No, I'm asking, 'what's he to you'?"

"Carver is a sonofa-" from downstairs, the sound of the large front doors opening and slamming shut cut their hostile conversation short and they both turned towards the door to the hall, their guns now aimed at the door together. "You expecting anyone, Sweetheart?"

"No."

They shared a glance before they wordlessly decided that together they would investigate, moving in compatible action towards the balcony railing that overlooked the chapel, crouching to hide their bodies and she could only hope that peering over the half-wall was enough to identify the three newcomers.

"Do you recognize them?" He whispered and adjusted the position of his sword awkwardly as it brushed against his jeans.

Ella shook her head and pulled off her green hat in the process, revealing her messy, boy cut hair before shoving it in her jacket pocket.

"Alright then- then what are they doing here, because it doesn't look like they're 'just passing through'." He stated, referring to their heavy weaponry, body armor and their lack of surprise to the way-stations down fall.

She knew he was right but refused to answer, not wanting to be found by talking and instead watched on in curiosity.

One of the thugs, dressed in red cargo pants and a black donkey jacket, spoke up- his voice echoing within the massive room. "So I says to her, I says, 'The world's gun' end if we don't have sex, like, right now!' and she believed me!" He laughed obnoxiously and, snorting, he continued. "So, right there, we just have the best sex of my life... but then the world actually did end!"

Ella shared a look with the blond beside her and he rolled his eyes.

"I swear to god, Lucas, you are the dumbest piece of shit I know." An older man barked, dropping his jacket hood to reveal receding, gray hair.

"Hey, mayn, you don't know me." Lucas, the man in red pants, argued and shrugged his assault rifle higher on his shoulder.

Ella narrowed her eyes at the gun now resting at Lucas' back. "Where did he get that kind of weapon?" she whispered.

"Probably the same place you did." The man beside her whispered his response bitterly, nodding his head to the P90 in her hands.

The older man continued the heated exchange with the younger ruffian, "I know that you haven't stopped talking since we left base... and your voice- your voice is pissing me off."

"Nick, will ya lay off the kid?" The third trespasser revealed themselves as a woman, as she spoke and dropped her own hood, revealing bright red hair on one side of her head while the other was shaved closely and revealed her true hair color, a dark brown. She shook fresh snow off of her sniper rifle, held in both hands.

"Thank you, B!" The kid drawled spitefully at Nick who walked faster to avoid direct contact with Lucas.

"Can we just do the job, goddammit?!" Nick shouted out, looking around the death filled room. "It stinks and I want to go home!"

"Gee, did someone forget to take their chill pill this morning?" Lucas questioned in an attempt to be comical.

B turned to face the left side of the chapel, looking at the bodies impassively, her posture relaxed as she leaned back on her heels and crossed her arms. "Just ignore him, Luke... yo, that guy wasn't kidding about this place." She digressed, "He said all the supplies would be in the basement,"

At her last comment, Ella turned when the man beside her made a small sound in the back of his throat. "What?" She whispered, her face precariously close to his as she spoke, in order to keep the sound of her voice as quiet as possible.

"I know who these guys are." He replied just as quietly, his eyes rolling as he blinked slowly in displeasure.

Nick spoke up, grabbing their attention once more. "Can we make this fast, he didn't give us a lot of time to get into Mass."

"Yeah, yeah... we'll make it quick. Just take your chill pills." Lucas responded.

"Who are they?" Ella pressed for an answer and poked her head back up to check on their positions before ducking back to continue talking with him.

"Carver's recruits... For his Institute."

"Institute?"

He laughed breathily, "Now who's clueless?" She glared and he continued, "Institute is what Carver calls his... well Militia if you will."

"Is he dangerous? What does he want?" Ella concluded and he nodded solemnly before peeking out to the three Institute members.

"He wants Ataxia for himself." He dropped back down into view, looking her in the eye.

"So, is he a Raider?"

"No."

"Do you think he did this?" She asked and watched as the three recruits walked to the back of the chapel, looking for the stairs to the basement.

"Absolutely." He confirmed.

She scrunched her nose and drew her lips thin, "Why'd he send them here?"

"It's how he gets loyal people, he offers them free supplies, promises whatever they want and then as a rite of passage has them cover up something he did."

Ella exhaled sharply through her nose, "A cover up? But nobody even knows about Institute, most people would have assumed Huijari or Raiders- like we did."

"You don't know about them here... yet. But you will." He diverted his gaze, swallowing thickly.

"'Here'?" she echoed, "Where are you from?"

"Northern Plains."

"Are you saying he's known out there?"

"He controls it."

Ella shook her head, her hair bouncing with the movement, "What about Governor Perry?"

"Takes orders from Carver."

"How have we not heard of this?"

"Well, how far does your Syndicate go?"

"We're all over Ataxia,"

"Looks like Carver got to them too."

The door re-opened and slammed loudly, they both looked over the wall to watch as the three initiates walked back across the church, stepping over body's and limbs as they did, their arms wrapped around boxes of supplies.

"If we don't do something now... they'll burn the place down." Ella looked over to the man as he spoke in his normal voice.

Ella motioned for him to follow her, leading the way back down the stairs- knowing it would keep their cover while mobilizing to hit the ground and stop Institute from cleaning up the massacre, the act of war against Syndicate. Against humanity.

They descended the stairs effortlessly, Ella could feel the closeness of the man behind her, his body warmth palpable.

Nick flicked a lighter open and closed and watched as B and Lucas poured accelerant over the piles of bodies and trailing it back to the door, their exit strategy.

Hiding behind the curtain that hid the backstage stairs and music tech, Ella explained in a few hand gestures her expectations. The blond nodded his understanding and acceptance as he flicked the safety off of his pistol. As they'd physically discussed, he moved back around the wall partition behind the podium and, unseen, to the other side so they'd have Institute surrounded.

Ella's eyes darted between the thugs and to the empty space she anticipated her reluctant partner to appear. When he didn't show as quickly as she expected, a thought flicked through her mind that she'd been duped. That he was part of Institute who was covering his own ass. Paranoia swept through her and she felt her heart beat faster in her chest, slamming against her ribs. She looked back over her shoulder, watching for him to re-appear behind her with a gun pointed to her head. He didn't show and she glanced back across stage to see him waiting, looking at her expectantly with wide eyes and a slack jaw in his impatience.

She nodded her head, dismissing her initial thoughts in a matter of seconds, and indicated to the front of the church. They both stepped out, in sync, into view of Institute. "Drop your weapon!" they yelled in unison.

"Get on your knees, cross your legs!" Ella demanded as she stepped closer, her P90 aimed at Nick, who still had the lighter open- the flame flickering.

"I want your hands where I can see them, now!"

Nick smirked at him, staring directly at Ella but addressed the man, "On my head, no problem..." his grasp on the Zippo slackened.

"No!" They both shouted and moved forward but in their distraction with Nick, though they'd had B and Lucas at gunpoint, the two thugs moved for their weapons and forced a shootout. Gunfire erupted and Nick was the first to drop, the lighter falling from his hand and landed harmlessly to the tile flooring, away from the accelerate.

Ella ducked behind the podium as the others shot at her, she could only assume that the man helping her also found cover because there was return gunfire. She leaned out of cover long enough to aim at B and managed a few shots center mass, the woman cried out and fell back, flailing as she dropped to the ground. Lucas cried her name out, turning to face her when he received a single shot to the head. Ella turned to find the blond had taken the shot.

They both came out from behind their cover, him from behind a toppled long table, and walked up to the bodies sprawled out in the center of the room. Nick suddenly moved and gasped loudly which sent the two of them running to his side. Ella moved to disarm the gray haired man, taking his side arm and grabbing the Zippo from the floor. Her blond companion jumped on Nick and grabbed the front of his jacket, holding his upper body up. The dying Institute member let his head drop as he laughed bitterly, blood spilling from his lips.

"You think this is funny, pal, huh? Hey-hey-hey, look at me, huh? Look at me, there you go- hey, where is Carver, huh? Is he here- huh? Hey!" The blond demanded.

Ella watched intently, wanting the answer just as much as he did.

Nick lifted his head only to smile at them devilishly, baring his blood stained teeth. His eyes glazed over as he went limp in the hands of the one who'd killed him.

"Dammit!" her acquaintance dropped the body contemptuously to the ground- an audible thud resulting. He ran his hand through his thick, flipped hair- musing it further.

"Tell me what you know." she demanded, fully aware of how vague and ominous she sounded.

"Tell you what? About what, penguins? Okay, but I'm a bit rusty on my penguin trivia..." He replied snarkily, "Did you know, that they are flightless birds?"

"About Carver." Ella ground out.

"You're really big on the whole... being vague thing, aren't you?" he pushed out his bottom lip as he flicked a scrutinizing glare up and down her body. 

"What do you know about Carver?" she said through gritted teeth.

"Do you have a few years? Carver's involvement goes quite a bit back, Sweetheart."

"Stop calling me that." She demanded, though her tone remained mild.

His eyes flashed in annoyance, "I will if you'd give me a name to call you."

"Bishop."

He leaned forward in exaggerated compliance, his brows high on his creased forehead. "Bishop?" He paused and when she nodded her confirmation he continued on to introduce himself, "Daniel."

"So, Daniel, how do you know Carver?"