Nero holstered his gun and moved away from Chain and Slick. “Gather your things; we leave in an hour,” Nero called back to them. “Let’s give this place a once over and see if there’s anything useful left, then we’ll be on our way,” he added, speaking to Nyx, Kat, Cryptus, and Runt.
“Thank you, friend Nero. Runt is keen to loot,” the little mutant said and rushed off.
***
Stepping up to his car just at the edge of the campfire’s light, Nero pulled an old blanket from the back of his Charger and turned to walk back to the little campfire they’d created in the middle of a deserted warehouse on the edge of the city.
The fire was flanked on either side by their two vehicles, and well hidden from casual view. So far, no zombie had turned up, having been drawn to the light.
Nero jumped as he turned and saw Runt standing right next to him.
“Shit, you scared the crap out of me,” Nero said.
“Sorry, friend Nero. Runt just want to show you latest project,” he said and held something up for Nero to have a look at.
It was clearly part of an old rifle, with the handle and trigger intact. But there was no way it would work as it was.
“That’s… nice, I guess.”
“It is just the start. Runt is making new boomstick for Nero. Long boomstick. Shoot zombies from long way away, yes?”
“Oh, I see,” Nero said, understanding that Runt was making for him now. His shotgun was great, especially now it was enchanted, but it was a short-range weapon and no good for distance work. A long rifle, however, would be a perfect addition to this arsenal. “That would be great, thank you.”
Runt nodded and smiled. “Yes, great. Runt keep going, yes?”
“Yes, please,” Nero smiled and wandered back over to the camp as Runt trotted off back to where he’d been sitting and tinkering.
Nero walked over to Nyx and placed the blanket around her shoulders. She thanked him and pulled it close to her to keep the chill evening air off her as Nero retook his seat.
“So, what were you doing in the mansion?” Nero asked Chain, who was sitting off to his left.
“Surviving,” Slick answered before Chain could.
“Getting ready to leave. Gathering what we could find before we looked for a way to get to the Trinity.” Chain explained further.
“You weren’t going to stay at the mansion?” Nero asked.
“What for? There’s nothing for us there anymore. Besides, it was getting too dangerous with the daemon dogs and zombies.”
“Well, you got your ride,” Nero quipped.
“Yeah…” Chain agreed. A few moments of silence passed as they let the food they’d eaten a short time ago digest before Chain spoke again. “You must be mad, you know. Going after the Whisperer. Do you really think you can beat him?”
“I think we stand a chance, yes,” Nero answered.
“You think? I’d want more than just think. I’d want know.”
“We’re confident, but there’s a lot of variables, too, of course.”
“Of course,” Chain agreed.
“You don’t think we can do it?”
“I like your enthusiasm, I really do, but I have my doubts.”
Nyx leaned in on the other side of Nero. “And that’s why you’d fail,” she said, her eyes twinkling in the firelight.
Chain sat back and shrugged.
They sat there in silence for a little while longer, listening to the sounds of the ruined city around them before Nero felt that he really needed to walk the perimeter one more time—something he did several times each night when they camped out. It just made good sense to be sure there was nothing in the darkness sneaking up on them.
“Gonna take a walk again,” he said to nods of acknowledgement from the others before he got up and walked away from the fire.
He picked his way through the debris in the warehouse, checking all around him, peering into the shadows, through the holes in the wall and roof before he finally reached the wall and one of the huge, open doors that led out to the remains of some sort of commercial or industrial park with other, similar buildings. The dark streets out here were quiet, and there were just a few fresh corpses of zombies they’d killed on arrival.
They’d killed them quickly and quietly before making camp, but had been left them alone since.
Nero turned right and walked slowly, his gun and dagger ready, moving around the outside of the building. He did a complete circuit and turned back to the side he’d initially set out on and nearly walked into the back of someone standing out in the darkness. Nero stumbled back as the figure turned, revealing its rotten face with exposed teeth and gums. It hissed once, only for there to be a momentary flash of steel and its head fell from its shoulders, revealing Kat standing on the other side of it.
The body dropped and Kat stepped forward, offering her hand.
“Hope I didn’t scare you,” she said.
Nero took her hand and got back to his feet. “Thanks for the save.”
She shrugged. “It’s the least I can do.”
Nero looked around them, checking the area for any more stragglers. “What are you doing out here?”
“I wanted to speak to you,” she said.
Nero turned back to her. “To me? What about?”
“I just wanted to say thank you properly for everything you’ve done for me.”
“Oh,” he answered her. “That’s okay. I’m just sorry I couldn’t do more,” he said, thinking about Kat’s sister, and getting a flash of memory of Latrix slashing her throat. The image made him shudder.
“You did everything you could,” she said, and he realised she’d stepped quite close to him.
He looked down at her and shrugged, not feeling comfortable with the praise she was heaping on him, and suddenly she was kissing him.
It took him a second to realise what was happening, but the moment his mind got a grip, he stepped back and pulled away from her.
“Whoa, what was that?”
“Just expressing my thanks…” she said, sounding slightly affronted.
“You know I’m with Nyx, though, right?”
“I know,” she answered him.
“Good. Well, let’s forget this ever happened.”
“Why are you keeping secrets from Cryptus?” she asked.
Her comment gave Nero pause as he considered her words. It was a question from out of nowhere, and it took him a moment to think through what she was doing. Why would she ask him such a question? He knew she was referring to Dani, Nyx’s mother, but the timing of her question sounded kind of like blackmail. Several possible responses ran through his head, but ultimately, he settled on truth being the right way to go.
“I don’t fully trust him, yet,” he said at last.
“Oh, I see,” Kat answered. “Okay.”
Nero peered at her, wondering what was going on in her head, but figured he’d never really know for sure. She had been through a lot, that was for sure. Having her only family, her sister, kidnapped and raped by Latrix, who forced Kat to fight and kill for her, had probably left a significant scar on her psyche. It might be that she really didn’t know how to thank them properly, or maybe she didn’t really know how relationships worked and had a warped idea of that. Who knew, but he figured it was best not to hold her actions against her too much just yet.
“Come on, let’s get back to the camp,” he said and led the way back inside to warehouse.
Chapter 4
Nyx
“Looks recently abandoned,” Nyx said, eyeing the partially fortified building before her. The main wall had a huge hole ripped in it, leaving the camp defenceless against the creatures of the wastes. Semi-fresh bodies lay scattered on the ground, and it was difficult to tell if some of them had been zombies or not.
“And not out of choice,” Nero agreed with her. “I want to check it out, there could be some useful supplies in here.”
Nyx nodded. Nero had said it was a shop, a superstore of som
e kind where they used to sell things before the cataclysm.
That was a long time ago, though, so, she wasn’t sure what they would find in here now from back then. Still, it had been a camp until very recently, so there might be something useful.
“Stay frosty,” Nero said, keeping his gun up as he walked forward. Nyx fell into step beside him, her sword out and ready as they crossed the threshold with Kat, Cryptus, and the others behind her.
The courtyard outside showed signs of a fight, including large claw marks in some of the wrecked vehicles. Nero walked over to one of the closer cars and popped open the petrol cap, giving it a sniff.
“We might have some gas in here,” he said.
“Runt smell some in this one, yes?” Runt called out from another vehicle.
“Let’s do a sweep of the place first,” Nyx said. “We can loot if it’s safe later.”
“Nyx!” Nero called out as he looked over at her.
She spun in time to see a Zombie stumble and lunge out from behind a nearby outbuilding, whipping her sword around in a deadly arc. The blade slammed into the walking corpse and tore its chest open, sending it to the floor. Nyx wasted no time and stepped up to it, slamming the pointy end of her blade into the thing’s skull, ending it for good.
Satisfied, she turned back to the others. “See,” she said with a grin and was reassured to see them all set their faces into more determined expressions as they moved through the courtyard to the doors.
Nyx joined them, and over the next fifteen minutes, they swept the main part of the building where the camp’s residents had clearly been living, destroying two more undead in the process.
With the sweep of the building complete, they started to hunt through the remains of the encampment, looking for anything of use. Nyx wandered through the cots that had been set up where the camps residents had once slept, finding various personal belongings and no doubt items that were once treasured possessions.
She mused on how cruel this world was; how dangerous it was. Raising children now was no easy task, and yet, here, scattered amidst the debris, were a few toys.
How many children died here? she wondered.
They’d found another courtyard outside to the side of the building with a wall that had surrounded an area of earth with the usual makeshift water condensers and irrigation. There was a mushroom farm in one of the inside rooms of the building as well. Walking back through the building, she found Runt picking over gun parts in what had clearly once been some kind of armoury.
“Find what you need?” she asked him.
“Oh, yes, Runt find lots of useful parts. Runt very happy, yes. This will be great gun.”
Nyx smiled at him. “Nero will be thrilled, I’m sure.”
“Runt still need lots more parts though, yes? Not finished yet, oh, no.”
“Keep looking,” she answered and patted him on the shoulder before leaving him to his self-appointed task.
Moving towards the front of the building, she peered out the window to see Nero outside, draining the tanks of the vehicles out there into jerry cans.
As she watched, Kat walked up to him, talked to him, touching his arm and being friendly. Nyx narrowed her eyes, wondering if she was trying it on with Nero as well as her.
~She’s dangerous,~ hissed the voice of the Whisperer in her mind. The sound made her jump. It was the first time she’d heard it since their initial conversation.
Nyx looked around and saw Cryptus not too far away. She wanted to reply, but didn’t want to speak out loud, so she wondered if she could answer the creature with her mind. She concentrated and projected a sentence back to the Whisperer.
~You’re back, I see,~ Nyx replied mentally, hoping the answer would get through.
~I’m never far away,~ the daemon replied.
It worked, she thought to herself, surprised that she’d managed to do it, and then took a breath, remembering exactly who she was speaking to and the situation she found herself in. Having a Night Lord, a daemon, taking a personal interest in her and communicating telepathically with her was not cause for celebration, even if she was discovering new abilities in the process.
Nyx cleared her mind and concentrated on giving her answer.
~Excellent,~ Nyx answered dryly, hoping her sarcasm could be heard by the daemon.
~Are you sure you want her travelling with you? She could be trouble.~
~That’s rich, coming from a daemon.~ Nyx answered, making sure to put the appropriate amount of sarcasm into her reply.
~Daemon or not, you have to admit, she’s a threat to you and Nero.~
Hmmm, she thought to herself and watched Kat press in close to Nero. She seemed to be trying to get in close enough to kiss him, and as she watched, she felt her emotions rise. She wanted to get out there and slap her.
What was she playing at? she wondered. Just the other day, Kat did the same to her and kissed her in a way that was clearly passionate.
~I’ll be the judge of who’s a threat,~ Nyx answered.
~Threats need to be eliminated,~ the Whisperer pressed.
Nyx frowned as she saw Nero hesitate as Kat rose up on her toes to kiss him. She felt anger rise within her, only for Nero to take Kat by her arms and push her away, shaking his head as she spoke to her.
Nyx smiled to herself.
~She’s no threat to us,~ Nyx replied to the daemon.
~I wouldn’t be so qu…—~
~Shut up you piece of shit,~ Nyx cut in, getting more than a little fed up with the daemon’s voice in her head.
She waited for a reply as she watched Kat back off from Nero, her body language suggesting she was a little embarrassed by what had just occurred. As Nyx watched, Kat caught sight of her in the window and paused before casting her eyes down and turning away from Nero.
What are you up to? Nyx mused to herself.
“Find anything useful?”
Nyx jumped, surprised by the voice that was right next to her. She turned to see Cryptus looking at her expectantly.
“Um, no, sorry. You surprised me.”
“Apologies, I didn’t mean to scare you,” Cryptus answered.
“That’s okay. How about you?”
“A few trinkets, some ammunition, a bit of food. There’re a few useful things in here, but not much that we don’t already own. The most useful stuff will be the gas in those cars out there.”
Nyx nodded, agreeing with him.
“Is he okay?” Cryptus asked.
“Who? Nero?”
Cryptus nodded. “He’s been, off with me recently, if that’s the right word?”
“He’s fine. We both are. We just have a lot on our minds at the moment,” Nyx answered.
“Okay, if you’re sure…”
Nyx felt that he didn’t seem convinced by her explanation as she watched Cryptus look out the window towards Nero.
~He’s dangerous,~ the Whisperer commented in her mind.
~Again, that’s rich coming from you,~ Nyx answered, before returning her attention to Cryptus. “Trust me, everything’s fine, we’re just keen to find the Whisperer.”
~You’ll never find me.~
~Keep telling yourself that,~ Nyx replied as she watched Nero finish up on the last of the vehicles outside. She pressed the thoughts and presence of the Whisperer to the back of her mind and turned to face Cryptus. “Looks like we’re done here.”
“So it does,” Cryptus replied and called out to Runt that they were about to leave. He turned back to her and smiled. “Thanks,” he said.
“Any time.”
***
~Your chances of finding me are slim, you know,~ the Whisperer hissed into her mind as the car bumped along the road heading northeast. Midway City was far behind them now, and they were well on their way towards the rigs. They hadn’t reached where the coast had once been, and the ocean had started yet, but their guide, Slick, assured them they were close. Nero drove the Charger, as usual—It was his pride and joy, after all—while K
at sat in the back with Slick.
Chain was in the back of Cryptus’ monster truck, as it had been decided it was best to keep the two of them separate. They were more of an unknown risk than Cryptus was, and could potentially turn on them at any point, so, keeping them apart seemed like the logical thing to do. Kat was keeping an eye on him as well.
So far, he’d been helpful, and had directed them out through the roads towards the rigs. It was where Chain and Slick wanted to go anyway, of course, so she guessed he wouldn’t take them far wrong.
Always best to be careful with these kinds of things, though.
She’d been enjoying a moment of silence in the car when the Whisperer had intruded into her mind once more with his little proclamation.
~What makes you so sure?~ Nyx asked. She was both annoyed by the daemon’s intrusion, but also curious as to why he was contacting her, and how much he knew.
~You might as well give up, you know. This is a deadly mission you’re going on. I might enjoy these little talks between you and me, but don’t think I won’t flay the flesh from your bones at a moment’s notice.~
~You say the sweetest things,~ Nyx needled him. She was not going to succumb to his bullshit.
~If I sense you getting closer, if I see you getting nearer, I won’t hesitate to kill your mother.~
Nyx didn’t answer. She wasn’t sure what the right response to that was, really. But, despite the Whisperer’s threat, it was even more of a confirmation that her mother was both alive and in the Whisperer’s custody, and that gave Nyx hope if nothing else.
The Charger, driven skilfully by Nero, threaded through the ruins of an old settlement and skidded to a stop. Before them, the ground sloped away, becoming sandy and loose, before it dropped steeply away to an arid, dry desert landscape below. Nyx had seen an area like this before in her travels with Nero. They were at what had once been the coast, complete with a sandy beach.
She wondered what this place had been like before the cataclysm had ravaged the Urth.
Had people come here to relax by the ocean, as she had been told they once did? Was this a popular spot for people to come to before the world changed?
Wasteland Road Knights Trilogy Page 35
