He woke up startled, the thumping of drums and the loud blare of brass throwing him from his sleep -and almost off the ledge he slept on, he yawned and smacked his lips, leaning forward he looked through the window to see a large military procession. Troops marched in single file, the brass of their steamrifles glinting in the headlights of the giant steel walkers of the mechanized cavalry, Peirrot stared at them indifferently, he knew they were bad but what could he do to stop the war? He jumper down from his perch onto some sacfold and climbed his way down, retrieving his satchel from a peg by the large gates.
"let's go for a walk shall we?" he mumbled to himself, pushing past the wrought iron gates into the cobbled streets of Viel, he followed behind the parade, however at some distance -he didn't want a face full of scalding steam from one of the walker's exhaust ports. 
They neared the center of town when the procession slowed, as they neared the square of the city a walker at the edge of the formation smacked a woman who was in the way and sent her end over end through the air, like throwing a rag doll. He rushed to where the woman lay, in a crumpled head leaning on a wall and kneeled next to her. She was a young lady possibly in her twenties, her face was covered in small circular burns, 'she must have worked at a lead smeltery' he thought to himself, the small burn marks evidence that the metal spat at her, Pierrot shook his head and checked her nose to see if she was breathing. It was shallow, and it was ragged but it was a breath none the less, he was going to pick her up and find her a clinic when a voice called out behind him.
"Boy! Don't touch that woman!", Peirrot turned around to see a masked officer, "Move child!" he barked, pushing Pierrot aside, he bent down and pushed the woman's ribs, she shrieked in pain and started to sob hysterically.
"How will I work?!" she cried to know one in particular, "How can I look after momma?! How?! How?! Ho-."
BANG.
Peirrot found himself coated in blood, the lead factor woman's blood, he started to quake and turned to face the officer his eyes wide in shock. The officer was already walking away, blowing the steam from his pistol and reholstered it, the man couldn't have been calmer strolling away, 'cruel bast- idiot', he leaned over the woman's corpse and with a shaky hands closed her eye lids, wiping her tear stained cheek dry as he retracted his hand, he was going to shout at the comissar bit something else took his attention. Gun shots echoed through the streets ahead of him, Pierrot's head snap to the side to see what was going on, a boy, slightly older than him was running away from a group of armed soldiers that were firing at him, sending wafts of steam into the air as their lead tried to hit the child. Pierrot went flying down the road as the soldiers chased the other urchin, he elbowed his way through the crowd and into the back streets, keeping the military men in view. He was panting heavily and wheezing with every breath, the years of working in the quarry and inhaling dust and furnace fumes showing their consequence when he ran.
The soldiers had gotten ahead of him and by the time he reached them they were standing around and scratching their heads -which was strange because they were wearing helmets.
"Fan out!" called the one that looked to be in charge, "we'll find 'im yet." and they did, filtering through the streets. Pierrot saw the child duck into a crumbling house and shut the door behind him, loud enough for one of the soldiers to hear. The masked troop crept towards the door, his steps noiseless as he approached the house. 'No.' Pierrot told himself. He bolted past the man and stood infront of the door, his arms out stretched to stop the soldier reaching around him, then he felt the cool metal barrel of his gun pressed against his head. He turned to look at the man holding the gun to his skull.
"If you kill me," Pierrot began, staring the man down, "I will be in heaven. And when you die and you will. You will burn in Hell.