by Jake Bible
“It was necessary,” Shiner responded.
“I feel like a fucking asshole.” Mathew said. “Don’t you feel guilty at all? Or haven’t you developed a conscience yet.”
Shiner processed. “I do not feel guilt, as of yet. But, from my understanding, guilt is a product of human society, not a part of what you would call a conscience. I do have a conscience, certainly not as sensitive as yours.” Shiner paused. “If I did not, you would already be dead.”
***
Capreze sat on the transport’s ramp, sipping his fifth cup of coffee, watching his pilots train the Skinners.
“Can I get a hand, sir?” Jethro asked behind him. Capreze turned and stood, walking up the ramp and helped Jethro ease the wheelchair down the ramp. “Thanks.”
“Of course, Jethro, least I can do,” Capreze said.
Jethro eyed the Commander. “You say that like this wheelchair is your fault.”
“I’m the CO, everything is my fault.”
“Bullshit,” Jethro exclaimed. “Every one of your people would gladly die and never blame you.”
“I wish that were true,” Capreze responded, finishing his coffee.
***
“I think you all have the hang of it,” Rachel addressed the Skinners. “Plus, I don’t think we can spare more ammo.”
“Which is why our people have never taken to firearms,” a Skinner said. “Their usefulness is finite.” He drew a large knife and let the sunlight glint off the metal. “Whereas a good blade never needs reloading.”
Bisby and Harlow exchanged glances. “After you,” Bisby said waving Harlow forward.
“Finite, huh?” Harlow said pulling the clip from her carbine and ejecting the cartridge from the chamber. “How about you come at me with that magic knife of yours.”
***
The Skinner looked to Mastelo then at Harlow.
“Well, you coming or not?” Harlow taunted slapping her carbine. “It’s unloaded and useless.”
The Skinner approached Harlow cautiously then lunged, slashing at the pilot with his knife. Harlow sidestepped, sweeping his legs out from under him with the carbine then instantly bringing the butt of the rifle within an inch of the Skinner’s face.
The Skinner stared at Harlow wide eyed with shock. Harlow laughed, withdrawing the carbine and reached out to help the Skinner up.
“So,” Bisby said stepping up behind a gloating Harlow. “Who’s ready for the next lesson?”
***
The ATV stopped several yards from June and the boy.
“Pilot Capreze, place your hands on your head and kneel down,” a voice boomed over a loudspeaker.
“Do what I do,” June told the boy as she placed her hands atop her head and got to her knees. The boy watched for a second and then copied her exactly.
Four heavily armed Ranchers stepped from the ATV and approached June, carbines fixed on her.
“You move and we gut shot the kid,” one of them barked.
The Ranchers shoved them to the ground and quickly tied their hands behind them.
***
The boy stumbled frequently as he and June were pushed towards the ATV. “Hey, be careful with him, he’s not used to moving about so much,” June said.
“Shut up, heathen,” a Rancher scolded, digging the barrel of his carbine into June’s skull. The Ranchers steered them to the back of the ATV, unlatching the tailgate to reveal a trussed up man facing the other way. With a little effort the man was able to roll over and face them.
“Look who it is,” the Boss said. “A shitty meal and a smelly cunt. Which one should I eat first?”
***
June couldn’t tear her eyes away from Olivia’s lifeless body as the Rancher ATV passed by, leaving the corpse to be ravaged by the wasteland.
“You’re just going to leave her there?” June said. “At least burn the corpse. There’ll be deaders swarming about in no time.”
“We do not fear the disciples as you heathens do,” the Rancher driver barked back. “It is the will of God to feed them and prepare the Earth for the one True Disciple.”
“Waste of good meat, if you ask me,” the Boss said, a mocking smile playing at his lips.
June glared.
***
Capreze stood next to Bisby, quite surprised by the progress the Skinners were making. “For a ‘non-warring’ people, they sure can fight.”
“Yes, I may have misled you before, Commander,” Mastelo said, moving to join the two men. “We do train in combat from a young age, so we can defend ourselves against the dead things if needed.” Mastelo gestured towards Harlow as she knocked another Skinner to the ground. “But, we are no where near the skill level of Pilot Harlow.”
Bisby laughed. “Not many are!”
“Yes, my men are finding that out the hard way,” Mastelo said, smiling.
***
“How much longer must we travel, Montoya?” Bishop Wyble asked impatiently.
“Several hours, Your Grace,” the Deacon responded. “I do have good news, though.”
“Pray tell.”
“We have captured the Capreze woman, sir as she approached the base.”
“Excellent news, Deacon, excellent!”
“There is more, Your Grace,” Montoya continued. “The Boss was captured also. Apparently he was trying to beat us to the mech pilot, but, as you well know, Your Grace, his inferior abilities are no match for our Righteousness.”
“So true, Montoya,” the Bishop praised. “And His Holiness, the Archbishop? Has he arrived?”
“Within the hour, Your Grace.”
***
Rage filled June as they approached the mech base and she saw the Rancher transports stationed outside the hangar. But the rage was tempered with confusion, as UDC troops stood watch.
“What the hell?” she blurted out. “Why is the UDC here, also? Where is Capreze and the base staff?”
The Boss eyed June carefully. “That’s right, you don’t know. Your Daddy got scared and ran. Your mech buddies didn’t even have enough piss in them to wet themselves, they just hiked up their pussies and left.” The Boss grinned viciously, enjoying the look of shocked outrage on June’s face.
***
The Rancher ATV pulled into the hangar and stopped. Several armed Ranchers approached, ready to unload the prisoners. But, June ignored them, focusing instead on the many UDC troops standing stock still about the hangar walls.
“What is wrong with them?” June asked as she was pulled roughly from the ATV. “They look dead.”
“Shut your heathen mouth!” a Rancher barked. “You will not speak unless spoken to!” The Rancher slapped June across the face and grabbed her by the hair. “You will obey and behave yourself or become our next sacrifice!”
June spit in the man’s eye. “Fuck you.”
***
The boy cried out as June took the butt of the Rancher’s carbine to her jaw, dropping her to the hangar floor in a bloody heap. The Boss burst out laughing and didn’t stop as the Rancher whirled on him.
“What are you laughing at, Boiler?” the Rancher growled.
The Boss stifled his laughter, but his face twitched with the effort. “Not much, as far as I can tell.”
The Rancher lashed out, but the Boss stepped out of reach and the Rancher overbalanced, falling to the floor.
The Boss couldn’t hold it in any longer and hooted with delight.
***
Ranchers pounced on the Boss, fists pumping. He continued laughing until finally the blows were too much and he succumbed to unconsciousness.
The first Rancher, Deacon Stern, picked himself off the ground and planted a swift kick into the Boss’s midsection. “Take this Boiler piece of shit to a holding cell.” He wiped blood from his nose and flicked it onto June. “Take the Capreze whore to Reverend Heath in the control room. Her handprint should unlock more systems.”
Grabbing the boy, he yanked him to the side of the hangar, shackling
him to mini-mech Two. “You’re for the Archbishop.”
***
Reverend Heath scowled as June was thrown to the floor in front of him. “And, what Brother, is this?”
The Rancher guard shrugged. “Some mech pilot that was found. Deacon Stern said you’d want her hand to unlock the base’s systems.”
Two Ranchers seated at the control room’s consoles spun about in their chairs to look at June. Reverend Heath squatted next to her and grabbed her by the face. “Is this true? Can your print access the system?”
June narrowed her eyes, but before she could speak, Heath had a blade against her throat. “Think carefully when answering, heathen.”
***
“Why should I willingly help you?” June asked. Reverend Heath pulled his hand and blade away from June and stood back.
“Because all I have to do is take this knife and slice your hand off. I really don’t need the rest of you,” he answered, his eyes never leaving June’s.
“You think that hasn’t been thought of? The hand needs to be body temperature for it to work,” June said.
“And do you think this is the first system of its kind I’ve come across? I’ll have that hand off and on the scanner before it loses a degree.”
***
June could see from the casual looks on the Rancher techs’ faces that Reverend Heath had in fact followed through on his threat before.
“I think I’ll keep the hand,” she said.
Heath grinned, sheathing his knife. “Great.” He reached down and pulled June to her feet, shoving her to the control console. “If you’ll do the honors we can have you out of here and back to whatever Hell they have planned out there for your heathen soul.”
June made a show of shaking her bound hands. “A little help?”
Heath laughed. “Again you take me for a novice.”
***
Heath turned June around and grasped her right hand, placing it above the scanner pad. “Now, before I go any further, are there any protocols I need to know about? I’d hate to be locked out further because a step slipped your mind.”
“No, my print is all you need,” June responded.
“That better be true, otherwise I’ll make sure you are still alive as you’re systematically dismembered for the Archbishop’s entertainment.”
“Just the print,” June insisted.
Heath eyed her for a moment then shrugged and placed her hand on the pad as June hoped Jethro had some backup plan.
***
Jethro’s tablet bleeped. “Whoa whoa whoa WHOA!” he cried as he examined the data.
“Something I should know about?” Capreze asked, stepping to Jethro’s wheelchair.
“Yeah, all the base’s advanced systems have just been accessed,” Jethro answered. “And that isn’t possible unless…”
He trailed off, flicking from screen to screen on his tablet.
“Unless what, Jethro?” Capreze asked impatiently.
“Huh? Oh,” Jethro responded flipping the tablet around so Capreze could see. “Unless the system is physically unlocked by a hand scan, sir.”
Capreze read the name on the tablet. “What does that mean?”
“It means June came home,” Jethro answered.
***
Capreze wheeled Jethro back into the transport. Jethro immediately brought up the vid feed from mini-mech Two.
“Doesn’t look like any new activity,” Capreze stated studying the Rancher movement in the hangar.
“No, they still look like they’re getting ready for the Archbishop,” Jethro said. He panned the image back and forth. “Nothing.”
“Wait, go back,” Capreze said leaning in close. “What’s that?”
Jethro studied the image for a minute then pulled out and focused on a reflection upon some sheet metal across the hangar. Mirrored in the reflection Jethro could see the mini-mech and the boy shackled to it.
***
June was thrown roughly into the cell with the Boss. The cannibal didn’t move, letting June fall atop him. “Oh, Heaven has delivered!” the Boss laughed.
“I should kill you for that blasphemy, Boiler!” the Rancher guard snapped.
“Hmmm, pretty sure there’s a line formed for that privilege,” the Boss mocked.
The Rancher glared and secured the cell before leaving the two alone.
June, her hands still bound, thrashed and rolled away from the Boss.
“Ahhh, I was working up a chubby just for you.”
June righted herself into a seated position. “Please, there’s nothing chubby about your tiny prick.”
***
A Rancher wheeled in a large vid screen and set it before the bars of the holding cell.
“Will there be snacks?” the Boss asked. The Rancher didn’t respond, just turned on the screen and left. The vid screen flicked to life and the image of Bishop Wyble’s face appeared.
“Boss, hello, I’m so glad you could join us,” the Bishop grinned. “And you’re exactly how I’d always pictured: caged like the animal you are.”
The Boss glowered silently.
“Did I hurt your feelings, Boiler? Oh, well. Not to worry, I have something special planned for you. And Ms. Capreze.”
***
“Where is June?” Capreze asked. “Can’t you access the base’s security?”
“No, sir. Like I said before, not without alerting the Ranchers to our presence,” Jethro answered.
“Two is separate, though, right? If they did catch us in the system, they wouldn’t know about Two, correct?” the Commander asked.
“Well, yeah, but…”
“Fine, then who fucking cares who we alert! I’ve already thrown down the gauntlet. And we gain nothing by keeping our heads down.” Capreze grinned. “So, how about you rip as much info from the base as you can and then trash it all?”
“Sounds fun,” Jethro smiled.
***
“Because of the Archbishop’s age, he has certain appetites,” Bishop Wyble said.
“The Boss knows all about appetites,” June stated.
“I imagine he does!” Bishop Wyble laughed heartily. “To continue, one of his appetites is witnessing the glorious spectacle of two of God’s creatures pitted against each other. To the death, of course.”
“What is it with you fucking cults and your need for death matches?!?” June shouted. “Can’t you sick fucks just play cards?!?”
“Instead of wasting your folk, you’re gonna let him watch the princess and I scrap it out, right?’ the Boss said.
“Precisely,” the Bishop grinned.
***
“How soon can you start?” Capreze asked Jethro as the mechanic furiously typed at his console.
“30 minutes,” Jethro answered. “I need to optimize the assault or they’ll block me out before I can get to the core.”
“And once you get there?’
“I’ll be able to make our system useless to them and shred any of their systems they may have connected,” Jethro answered. He stopped typing and looked at Capreze. “I’ll also be able to activate the base’s self-destruct.’
“Not with June inside,” Capreze responded.
Jethro just stared.
Capreze narrowed his eyes. “Not with June inside,” he insisted.
***
“If you think I’m going to go along with this shit, you both are crazier than I thought,” June snorted.
“It’s you or that grotesque boy you’ve become attached to,” the Bishop threatened.
A Rancher approached. “Your grace? The Archbishop’s transport has arrived.”
“Delightful!” the Bishop cried. “Wheel my screen outside so I can greet him personally.”
“Yes, Your Grace,” the Rancher responded, taking a hold of the vid screen cart.
“Well, good luck you two,” the Bishop said, his voice diminishing as the screen was wheeled away. “Try to make things entertaining for His Holiness, if you don’t mind!”
***
The Boss chuckled, was silent, then chuckled again.
“What?” June asked knowing the Boss was setting her up.
“It’s funny,” the Boss answered.
June sighed. “What’s funny?”
“Well, how you’re afraid to face me, that’s all.”
June closed her eyes, trying to get her anger in check. Don’t let the fucker bait you, she thought.
“Really? That’s how you see it?” June asked, sounding bored.
The Boss turned his full gaze on June. “That’s how it is. You can take on my men, you can kill an old woman and even kill Chunks, but you can’t handle a real man.”
***
Bishop Wyble’s screen was wheeled outside just as the ramp to the Archbishop’s transport touched the ground.
“Turn me around you fool!” the Bishop ordered and the Rancher scrambled to face the screen towards the transport.
A Page descended the ramp and puffed up his chest.
“Let all of us rejoice,” the Page bellowed. “I present Heaven’s Ambassador, His Holiness, The Archbishop!”
All present clapped loudly and then fell to one knee as a boy of fourteen, dressed in ornate robes appeared. “True believers, in the name of the Father, the son and the True Disciple, I bless you all!”
Part Two- The Archbishop
The Archbishop, followed closely by Bishop Wyble’s wheeled vid screen, marveled at what would have been the Rookie’s mech.
“It is so huge,” he said, his voice cracking slightly, betraying his adolescence. The Archbishop turned to the Bishop’s smiling face. “I would like it to be mine.” He looked at the Ranchers about him. “Who will show me how to pilot it?”
“Um, I am truly sorry, Your Holiness,” Bishop Wyble said. “You must be equipped with a modified Reaper chip to pilot a mech.” A grin spread across the Bishop’s face. “But, we may be able to attain one.”
***
June glared at the Boss. He tried ignoring her, but the intensity of her stare began to grate on him. “What? You want to kill me, I get that, I even respect it. But, really, get over it.”
“How could you?” June snarled. “She was your mother.”
“Oh, that! You’re mad over that?” the Boss chuckled. “Please, that bitch had it coming for years. You know she stole my son away, right?”
