Nyx wandered into a side room. Nero followed to find that the back wall of this chamber had banks of mostly dead video screens, although a couple of them did seem to have some kind of power left and were flicking with digital static.
He looked over at Nyx from where he stood before the screens. She’d cut a piece of insulated cabling from a wall and was now absentmindedly tying it into her hair as she scanned the room.
Nero turned back to the flicking screens and looked down at the console before him. Holding his shotgun in his right hand, Nero lifted it and brought it down on the top of the console. There was a minor spark, and suddenly the screens before them burst into life.
‘Aaah, here we go,’ Nero said, amused that hitting the thing had actually worked.
‘You got it working?’ Nyx asked.
‘Seems that way,’ Nero said as he peered at the screens. They were static shots of parts of the inside of the ship, but they looked different to the state it was in now. The ship seemed cleaner and less damaged. Nero wondered if they were watching a recording rather than a live feed. As they watched the screens, they could see a view of the main room, but there were no zombies in there, no carnage or aftermath of their fight.
‘It’s a recording,’ Nero said.
‘This isn’t now?’ Nyx asked.
‘No, look, the main room is different, see?’
‘You’re right. I wonder when this was filmed?’
They could see a single figure in the main room, working away in there, A dark-haired man in black clothing that looked kind of odd. The fashion wasn’t like anything he’s seen before, either before or after the apocalypse.
‘Oooh, look,’ Nyx said and pointed to another of the screens. He could see two women walking down the corridor. One was blonde with chiselled cheekbones and the other had long bright red hair and was quite buxom. Both were slim, attractive and wearing form-fitting, catsuit-like clothing. The blonde was in some kind of black outfit while the redhead was in white.
They disappeared from view and the screens flickered. Another came online and showed a wide shot of the main room. The two women were fighting the man. Punches and kicks were thrown, but they seemed to have mostly invisible force-fields around them that flared occasionally. As they watched, the redhead blasted the man with lighting that flew from her hands while the blonde was throwing large bits of equipment with some kind of invisible force. Telekinesis, maybe?
They were winning, anyway, that much was clear.
‘What the hell is this?’ Nero asked.
‘Who are these people?’ Nyx joined in, as much at a loss as he was.
The screens flicked again to show the two women standing over the top of the lifeless body of the man in black before the monitors flickered once more and dissolved into digital static once again.
‘You know what?’ Nyx said. ‘I‘ve decided I don’t like it here. I think it’s time we left this weird shit behind and got back to the task at hand.’
Nero looked over at her and nodded. He was feeling very out of his depth. Cryptus seemed to be more comfortable around this stuff, but Nero certainly didn’t. Of the two of them, Nyx was the more mystically minded one, so if she didn’t like it, there was no hope really.
‘Let’s get out of here,’ Nero said and moved out of the room. Making their way back through the empty ship, they found Cryptus and Runt at the entrance, starting to haul broken bits of panelling around and assembling some kind of barrier. There were a handful of fresh zombie bodies out here as well.
‘Been busy?’ Nero asked.
‘Runt busy, yes. Smash bang more zeddies Runt did.’
Nero smiled at him, finding his upbeat tone amusing.
‘We’re just settling in for the night,’ Cryptus said. ‘Did you find anything interesting?’
‘Maybe. There was a security station back there showing a recording of some kind of fight that happened here some time ago. Maybe go check it out?’
‘I will,’ Cryptus said.
‘Well, we’re going to make a move, we’ll see you around sometime,’ Nero said.
‘Yes, and thank you for the map,’ Nyx said.
‘Anytime. I’m always true to my word,’ Cryptus said. ‘Happy travels.’
Walking outside, they climbed into Nero’s charger. ‘Let’s get moving, shall we?’ he asked.
‘Fuck yeah,’ Nyx said.
Chapter 10
Nero
It wasn’t often that Nero got to open the charger up and really let it fly. The landscape of the wasteland, even on the well-travelled tracks, was hard going. There were always obstacles and rocks and things everywhere, and unless you wanted to smash your car up or break an axel by hitting a pothole or raider trap, you took your time and drove carefully.
Nero considered himself a reasonably skilled mechanic, but it wasn’t as if there were well-stocked car garages all over the landscape, so even with the supplies he had in the vehicle, it just made sense to drive cautiously.
As a result, they’d been travelling for a little over a week, heading east and just yesterday had made it out onto the highway after travelling through what had once been a city with a port for ships to dock at. Now those ships, or what little remained of them, littered the ground just outside the port and were used as homes for those who could hold onto them.
They’d made it through the ruined town with relatively little trouble and were now on the main highway that led to Midway City in the east. No longer on the bottom of the former seabed, the land here was flatter, and the remains of civilisation could be seen scattered about through the ever-present ochre desert sands. It seemed that this main highway had a lot of traffic passing along it as most of the debris had been cleared to the sides, but the road was in a terrible state of disrepair. There were times when Nero felt confident in reaching higher speeds, but even here, Nero found he had to be a little careful and dodge some of the monster-sized potholes they found.
‘Yeah, I know we keep talking about it, but I really do think I misjudged him. He was as good as his word,’ Nyx said, sitting next to him and looking at the map she held out in front of her. ‘This has been a really useful map so far. I think we have maybe two more days’ drive to get to the city.’
Nero smiled. She’d been talking about Cryptus quite a bit since leaving him at that strange ruined craft. She’d gone from feeling distrustful of him and wondering what his motives were, to singing his praises every chance she got. She still found him strange, or so she kept saying, but it seemed like she no longer distrusted him. Which was something, he supposed.
The sun was setting and darkness was creeping over the landscape, so, Nero kept an eye out for a suitable place to stop. He found one before long and pulled off the highway to park behind a rocky outcrop that would hide the car from any other vehicles passing along the road. Pulling in, he discovered that they hadn’t been the first to use this place, finding the remains of a campfire, some empty tin cans, discarded fabric, and other detrious scattered about the area.
‘Perfect,’ Nero said to himself as they tucked the car in tight before they set about starting a fire and cooking some food.
They combined two identical MRE’s and heated them up in their pot over the fire to enjoy a much needed hot meal. They’d picked up a few supplies in the port town as they passed through, so they were well stocked for the time being.
A little later, Nyx jumped on him and seemed keen on enjoying a little personal time. Nero could never resist her advances and soon lay her down in the dirt, pressing himself into her once again, much to her delight.
He never grew tired of seeing her enjoying his touch and how she moved about beneath or on top of him. She was slim and toned, and seeing that stunning body undulate, tensing and relaxing, was fascinating to him. Not to mention being incredibly arousing, too.
He loved watching her perfect little ass bouncing away on top of him as she moaned with ecstasy. It was like heaven for him, and she seemed to enjoy it as much as
he did.
Before long, they had moved to the cramped but cosy secure sleeping compartment behind the rear seat of the charger that Nero had installed a long time ago. In here, they were completely hidden and safe from any zombies that might wander into their camp during the night looking for a tasty snack.
The next day, they hit the road again early, wanting to make good time and were soon moving through the wasteland at a relatively steady speed. They didn’t see many other travellers, but the ones they did pass, or who came the other way, paid them no mind. As they travelled, Nero’s mind wandered, and as his gaze passed over Nyx’s long, lithe legs, his mind went to the more intimate side of their relationship.
Nero liked to think of himself as quite a giving lover, and whenever they did have sex, he always preferred to make sure that Nyx was as satisfied as she wanted to be, aiming to be the last one to climax as much as possible. But Nyx seemed to have similar thoughts as one thing she did do, from time to time, was to give him some oral sex while they were driving. He always felt a little guilty when she did this as there was little he could do in return, but she’d reassured him several times that she enjoyed it and got a kick out of knowing she’d given him some pleasure.
The highway was long, smooth, and flat, meaning there were fewer bumps to interrupt them, so Nyx had soon reached over and had used her hand to arouse him before leaning over and taking him in her mouth.
Nero merely sat back and enjoyed the feeling of her sucking on him, moving her head up and down while using her hand to pump away at the same time. She was a skilled lover, never using her teeth, which he always hated, and knew just what to do to bring him to orgasm.
Sure enough, she soon brought him right up to the heights of pleasure once more before he released into her mouth with a grunt and moan.
‘Oh, my God, you’re good; that was amazing,’ he said as she sat up again.
She swallowed. ‘Thanks, as long as you enjoyed it, I’m happy. You can repay the favour later,’ she said, picking up the canteen of water and taking a sip.
‘Next chance I get,’ he said, feeling aroused by the thought of burying his face between her legs once again.
Later on that morning, Nero spotted a small group of zombies on the road up ahead. ‘Oooh, look. Want to practice that swing of yours?’ he asked.
Nyx looked up and saw the undead in the road. With a smile, she placed the map in the glove box, unlocked and opened the hatch above her and withdrew her sword from its holder. Nero had slowed right down to give Nyx time to get in position. She was up and standing on her seat now, as ready as she’d ever be, holding her sword high.
‘Let’s do it,’ she called out.
Nero didn’t need telling twice and accelerated towards the waiting undead. Nero rose through the gears, pressing down on the pedal before dropping the clutch, shifting gears, and giving it some more power.
Nero aimed to the left of the left-most zombie, looking to bring the first one down the right side of the car for Nyx to smash with her sword. He aimed it just right, he felt, and with a thunk and a shout of joy from Nyx, he knew she’d been successful. Nero smiled and looked down the road again in time to see an approaching car. Nero was slowing anyway to go back for another pass at the zombie group as the first of what turned out to be two cars sped past them.
There were several people in the lead car, and one of them seemed to be being restrained by three others. He was a big man, well fed, and looked terrified. He reached out to Nero’s car as they passed.
‘Heeeeeelp,’ he called out as he went by, the Doppler effect causing his cry to rise and fall in pitch and volume.
Nero slammed the brakes on hard, bringing the charger to a halt with a squeal of tyres. Nero looked up at Nyx, asking the question without needing to actually voice it.
Nyx looked back down, smiled, and shrugged. ‘Sure, why not. Let’s go get him,’ she said.
Nero smiled, threw the car into gear, and released the clutch. Wheels spun, dirt flew, and the charger rotated around to face the way they’d come before shooting off down the highway after the feeling cars.
Nyx dropped into her seat and punched the air. ‘Whoop! The Road Knights ride again,’ she hollered.
Chapter 11
Nero
The raiders’ cars were fast but not as fast as Nero’s charger. With Nyx’s hatch now shut to reduce drag, they were swiftly closing in on the convoy of two. The captive seemed to be in the front car, and as Nero came up behind them, the three passengers in the rear vehicle watched him with interest. They were probably trying to work out if he was interested in them or not.
Nero shook his head slightly at their error in judgement and yanked the wheel to the left, at just the right moment. The charger slammed into the side of the raiders’ car, sending it careening off the highway, straight into the next grouping of rock with a sudden and bone breaking crunch.
The charger wobbled back and forth a bit behind the lead car, but Nero soon brought it back under his control with a modicum of effort.
‘Crap,’ Nyx grunted as she held on tight.
Nero looked up to see one of the raiders on the lead car stop trying to subdue their prisoner, who was stilling giving them trouble. The raider held a keen looking machete in his hand and made the daring leap to the hood of their car.
With a thud, the topless man with ritual scarring steadied himself on the engine block with his other hand as he looked up into the faces of Nero and Nyx. Nero glanced at Nyx, who smiled back before suddenly standing up and holding her sword aloft.
The raider visibly panicked, and held his machete up, which now looked rather pathetic compared to Nyx’s colossal blade. Nyx had been winding up her swing since before she’d fully stood up and brought her sword slamming down on the man, hitting his machete first. The raider’s blade deflected the blow slightly, keeping it from smashing into his face. Instead, Nyx cleaved the man’s other arm off at the elbow. With the hand that was holding him on the car no longer attached to his body, and his machete now bent out of shape, the raider fell from the vehicle backwards with a look of horror. Nero felt the ba-bump of the wheels as they rolled over the top of him and left him in the dust.
Nero was concentrating on the car ahead, though, and moved up towards it. One of the two remaining men who were still wrestling with the fat man seemed pissed off with Nero now. He chose to let go of their captive and reached for something in the back of the pickup they were riding in.
Nero didn’t want to find out what it was, though, and raised the pistol he’d been holding in his lap and took aim.
The raider lifted a shotgun from the rear of the truck. Nero squeezed the trigger, firing off a few shots at the kidnapper. The first went wide, the second one clipped the man's shoulder, knocking back against the cab of the truck while the third slammed right into the middle of his chest, making his arms go limp as blood poured out of his chest like it would from a bottle.
Nero adjusted his aim and shot out the wheel in two more squeezes of the trigger. With the tyre gone, the driver lost some control over the vehicle as it started to fishtail all over the road. Nero slowed, backing off from the raider truck as the driver braked to bring it to a halt.
‘Get over there,’ Nero shouted up at Nyx as he approached the truck. She didn’t answer, she simply vaulted over the windscreen, and as Nero rolled his car past the truck, Nyx leapt from the charger’s hood and into the back of the practically stationary truck. Nero yanked the wheel left and pulled on the handbrake, bringing the charger to a skidding halt. He’d opened the door before the car had stopped and dropped to the floor, shotgun in hand as the driver opened his door and stood up out the side of the truck, raising his own gun.
Nero fired first, the blast from the gun hitting a lot harder than it used to, putting a massive hole in the door of the truck and ripping the raider’s torso to shreds. He dropped to the floor, dead before he landed.
Seeing the power his shotgun had now was incredible, but he could
still be taken out by a stray bullet. Nyx struggled against the final raider in the back of the truck, but with a kick, knocked him off her before plunging her sword into his belly. Nero saw the end of the blade slide out the man’s back before she kicked him again and sent him toppling over the side of the truck to land in the dirt.
Nero walked over to the last raider. He was still alive.
‘Thank you, kind sir, lady. Thank you, you will be handsomely rewarded…’ the captive was saying, his words stumbling out of him. He couldn’t get the words out quick enough.
Nero raised a finger to the man without looking at him, urging him to be quiet as he looked down at the raider Nyx had stabbed.
He coughed and struggled to breathe as blood erupted from his throat. His eyes were swinging around wildly before focusing on Nero. ‘You… You don’t understand…’ he muttered.
‘I think we do,’ Nero said, and pointed his shotgun at the man’s head before pulling the trigger, obliterating it.
Nero stepped back and looked up. The captive man looked down at the body of the raider he’d just killed and visibly gulped before looking up at Nero again.
‘Um, thank you, so much… I’m a member of the queen's court, a family member, actually, back in Midway City. You will be handsomely rewarded if you were to return me to my queen,’ he said hopefully.
‘Midway City?’ Nyx asked.
The man turned to face her. ‘That’s right, were you going there?’
‘Yes, we were,’ Nyx said, smiling. ‘I’m looking for—’
‘Nyx!’ Nero interrupted.
Nyx looked down at him, surprised by his outburst. Nero gave her a look that hopefully reminded her to be careful what she said. Nyx nodded and seemed to understand. ‘Something, we’re looking for something,’ she finished.
‘Isn’t everybody?’ the fat man said. ‘I’m sure you’ll find what you’re looking for in Midway. I can introduce you to the queen; she might be able to help you.’
Nero frowned. There was something about this man, now that he’d met him, that he really didn’t like. Maybe it was because he’d come across a hundred other people just like him during his time, and they always seemed to have an ulterior motive. Still, he might be the ticket into the city that they needed, he thought.
Wasteland Road Knights Trilogy Page 23
