2065
| | Nov/Dec 2065 |
Brooke had never been in a nomad caravan before, even when nomad clans had come up to Criddle Hold, and she went up the metal stairs slowly, letting her eyes adjust to the gloom. First she checked the cockpit to her immediate right, but the leather seats and carved metal dashboard were empty of any sign of Slavers. Dazzling shafts of sunlight streamed through the windows on the left side of the Motorhome, illuminating a meager stretch of stone counter, just inside the door, that had served the owners as a kitchen. A ceramic water jug, painted in bright red and white, hunched over a metal washbasin, pots and pans stacked neatly under the tap. Everything was put away as neatly as any farmhold kitchen that Brooke had ever seen. The Slavers must not have stripped it yet. Good for the real owners. They'll have that much less work to do putting their lives in order after this day. As her eyes adjusted to the dim interior, she could pick out more homey touches. The sun and moon, both ringed with blue-green aurorae, that someone had painted on the doors of the cabinets over the counter. A note in the jagged script of the nomad tribes glued to the side of the pantry. The coils of wire and pieces of scrap metal strapped to the wall opposite the kitchen, above an accordion-folded table that probably did double duty as both dining table and workshop, judging from the tools tied to the corkboard on the forward bulkhead. Brooke could picture a nomad family in their dyed woolen clothes sitting down to a meal of goat cheese and smoked meat, or a nomad woman making small repairs to some scavenged trinket while her menfolk were out with the herd. A curtain separated the Motorhome's forward compartment from the rear, probably the family's sleeping chambers. She wondered whether the family that had owned this caravan was still alive as she stepped carefully down the central aisle, sweeping Daisy's barrels back and forth as she went. Her boots made only soft scuffing sounds on the woolen carpets. Behind her, she heard Roger come up the stairs behind her. "Clear so far?" "So far," Brooke said over her shoulder, then a noise to the rear caught her attention. Her eyes and her barrels locked onto the curtain, and her fingers tightened on Daisy's triggers. She took a step toward the curtain and yanked it open. The space beyond was dimmer than the forward compartment, for metal shutters had been dragged down over the windows on either side, leaving only narrow slits. The narrow bed against the far wall dominated the space, piled high with wool and leather clothes. Something shuffled in the gloom, and Brooke froze in the doorway. Her breath catching in her throat and her heart pounding in her ears. She touched Daisy's safety with her thumb, making sure it was ready to fire. She slid to the left, into the dubious shelter of the doorway. Roger stomped up behind her. "Brooke? Wha-" In the gloom, it looked like the bed exploded as a man leapt off it, scattering clothes everywhere as he charged at them. The light caught the sword in his hand as it came down toward Brooke's face. Brooke screamed and reflexively clenched her finger. Daisy roared and kicked her in the shoulder, hard as a ram's head, and a dazzling star burst from Daisy's barrel. When the sparks cleared from her eyes, Brooke could see that the shot had knocked the Slaver down on one knee and perforated his leather armor. But he was reaching for his dropped sword, snarling at her with pointed bloody teeth below wide yellow eyes. Brooke brought Daisy back up to her shoulder and pulled the other trigger, and the Slaver's head disappeared in a spray of blood and brains. The body fell over and twitched on the floor, the feet kicking spasmodically at the edge of the bed. Brooke inhaled shakily and broke Daisy open to reload. She wanted to cheer and scream and weep all at once, and instead settled for sliding two more shells into Daisy, closing the breech, and cocking back the hammers. That accomplished, she bent over and retched onto the floor. So much for the real owners. They'll have a hell of a mess to clean up. ### While her stomach was emptying itself, Roger had called a couple gangers to help drag the body out of the caravan. Then he covered her while she checked every single space on the Motorhome big enough to conceal a person, even the tiny water closet between the bedroom and the main room. Once she was satisfied that the caravan was clear, she marched out and down to the sands, with Roger trailing behind her, burbling, "That was amazing, how you took him down, bang-bang, so fast!" "Roger," she growled over her shoulder, "Shut up and point me at some water." Roger blinked at her, closed his mouth on something, and handed her his canteen. She took a heavy swig from the canteen, then spat mingled water and vomit at her feet. Two more swigs almost cleared the rancid taste from her mouth, but for a patch of roughness at the back of her throat. She wiped the mouth of the canteen with her sleeve and handed it back to Roger. He sealed it and strapped it to his belt, looking at her as if he'd never seen her before. "What next?" She asked. "Uhh... the next Motorhome, I guess. Oh wait." Roger pulled a white ribbon from his belt and tied it to the caravan's door. "Now they know that one's clear." ### After the searches were done, Roger had a quick muttered conversation with the radio, then frowned, and waved Brooke into Wolf's passenger seat. He drove Brooke over the ridge, back toward the basin where Lorna had met her death. Mellie was still kneeling in front of Lorna's shredded Phoenix when Roger parked behind her. She didn't look up or aside, or react at all. "I'd rather face Slavers than this," Roger muttered as he opened his door to take advantage of the breeze. Brooke glanced aside as she opened her door, unaccountably irritated by his words, but couldn't bring herself to disagree. At last she steeled herself and opened the door. Mellie didn't react as Brooke walked up behind her, though Brooke's boots crunched in the rocky sand of the basin. Brooke stood by Mellie's side for a long moment, trying to ignore the smell, focusing her attention on watching the shimmer of heat above the car's roof. A spurt of rifle fire broke out at the top of the ridge, then the chunky rattle of a heavier machine gun, and Brooke glanced up, her hand going to Daisy's stock. Mellie didn't even twitch. "They do that every couple minutes. The blood and smoke draws scavengers. The dead scavengers draw more scavengers. This kinda thing can get hairy out in the Badlands, but the local critters are weak." Mellie took a deep, gulping breath, and closed her eyes. Brooke put a hand on Mellie's shoulder, and her friend started, then looked up at her. Dried blood still covered her face, streaked with wet shining lines, though the cut on her forehead had long scabbed over. "Are you alright, kid? You caught some shrapnel there." "Yeah, I'm fine." Brooke touched the cuts on her face. "Doesn't even hurt. How are you?" "I'm..." Mellie laughed, her voice spiraling upward, before she gulped and closed her eyes. "I've been better. Oh, gods, I've been so much better." A shiver of fear crawled up Brooke's neck, and she dismissed it with a shrug. No reason to be afraid of Mellie, you idiot. "Come on, Mellie, let's get out of here. You need water." "Can't." Mellie shook her head slowly. "She's still in there. Not gonna leave her till she's out of there." "Want me to get the Gray Riders?" "Can't hurt. They sent a SUV for her partner. What was left of him. What about Orth?" "I don't know. Her car blew up pretty big, I don't know if there was enough left to gather," Brooke said, trying to sound tough and blasé like Mellie. She turned and walked back to Wolf. At the car, she slid in and grabbed a radio headset, then stopped. "Is it normal for the Gray Riders to take one of their dead, but not the other?" Roger ran a hand through his hair. "No. They're usually serious about retrieving their dead. They bury 'em in Elmsfield." He stopped and looked at Brooke with wide eyes. "You mean she's still in there?" Brooke nodded. "Yeah. Mellie won't move until Lorna's body is moved." "Oh no." Roger put a hand over his mouth and stared at Mellie. "I knew she broke their rules, but jeez..." Brooke's flash of anger crystallized into a plan of action. She glanced into the Phoenix's supply-packed back seat and slid out of the car. "Get the tent." "Brooke -" "Get. The. Tent," she growled at him. He slid out of his seat and out of the car. "You know I outrank you, right?" "I know I'll hurt you if you don't get the tent." Brooke snapped, and walked up behind Mellie. She didn't know if her plan was breaking some rule, or whether it would make problems with the Gray Riders. With the anger burning in her forebrain, she didn't care. It was what she had to do, and she couldn't stop until it was done.Ask for forgiveness later. Act now. She knelt down next to Mellie and put her arm around her friend. "Hey, Mel," she whispered gently. "Come on, let's get you out of here." Mellie tried to shrug off her hand, but Brooke held her tighter. "Lorna's still here. I won't leave her." "I know. We're taking her with us." Brooke slid her hand under Mellie's shoulder and pulled upward. Mellie sniffed, nodded, and tried to stand. She stumbled badly and went down on one knee, but Brooke caught her before she could fall, and started helping her toward Wolf. "Come on, big sister, you've been out in the heat too long. What would Lorna say if she saw you like this?" "She'd... she'd prob'ly kill me." Mellie sniffed, and twisted to look back at Lorna's car. "Oh, God, Lorna..." Brooke's heart twisted at the anguish in Mellie's voice. "I'm sorry, Mellie. She saved both of us." "I know." Mellie's voice, next to Brooke's ear, turned dark and hateful. "And I'm going to... to get that son-of-a-bitch if it's the last thing I do." Brooke helped Mellie into Wolf's shaded passenger seat. Mellie glanced up at her, muttered, "Thanks, li'l thinker," and curled up on the seat, closing her eyes. Brooke stared down at her friend for a moment, then returned to Lorna's car, where Roger was waiting with a bundle of blue plastic at his feet - a survival tent from Wolf's boot. "I thought this was for Mellie while she waited. What are you planning?" Brooke picked up the tent's blue plastic skin and shook out the metal poles. "We're getting her out and taking her back." "Us?" Roger paled. "She's a Gray Rider, are you sure?" "Yeah. She got left here when they went and got her partner. I don't want to leave her here." Brooke started circling the car. "She saved my life, Mellie's too. And then she died. I figure that makes her an honorary Legionnaire." Roger let out a deep sigh, and started to circle the Phoenix. "Alright, but if we get in trouble for this, I'm blaming you." "If anyone yells at us for this, let 'em argue with Daisy," Brooke said. "Now help me get her out."  Brent `Crackhead` Hinds of The Flying Circus died at Once Upon a Town. Ian `Highlander` Macleod of No Aiming Just Shooting died at Shantyville. `Scouter` Lillie Holman of Project 43 died at Shantyville. Victor Winters of KLINGON GIRL SCOUTS died at Northern Desert Circuit. Angel Jones of The Wolfhounds died at Road to Somerset. `Porn Star` Tammy Lux of King of Clubs died at Somerset Arena. Wayne `Devil` Fish of Fortune Hunters died at Barren Lands. George Washington of Department of Motor Vehicles died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Mary `McCannic` McHugh of Department of Motor Vehicles died at Telegraph Road. Robert Slaughter of Department of Motor Vehicles died at Telegraph Road. Travis Wilson of Nemesys died at Gates of Somerset. Clint `Make My Day` Eastwood of Coolerheads died at Scattered Grounds. Richard `The Maestro` Washington of The Tronophiles died at Never Plains: Sand Storm. William Sherman of war mongers died at Road to Somerset. Etta Burke of war mongers died at The Pit. James `Jimbo` Madison of Department of Motor Vehicles died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. `Blondie` Dawn Savage of Blood Roses died at Gateway Interstate Arena. `reverend` Marcia Barnes of war mongers died at Northern Farm Land. Walter `The Bash` Ashley of The Tronophiles died at Northern Farm Land. Javier Reed of Nightelves died at Road to Elmsfield. Renee Frazier of Nemesys died at Deadman`s Drop. Kenneth Davis of MADHAT died at Northern Farm Land. Roger Lyle of MADHAT died at Northern Farm Land. Jennifer Perez of Raging Death died at Road to Somerset. Edward Katz of Raging Death died at Road to Somerset. Noe Fontenot of MADHAT died at Road to Somerset. Bryan `not the strip` Garza of war mongers died at Gates of Somerset. Carolyn `Half Baked` Baker of finger3 died at Somerset`s Junkyard, Race Track 3. Michael `Stringfellow` Hawk of Blood and Iron died at Texan Rally. Allen `Money Man` Greenspan of finger3 died at Under a Bloody Red Sky. Eva Kersten of Nemesys died at Road to Somerset. David Bakos of Axis of Weevils died at Somerset`s Junkyard, Race Track 3. Barry Labelle of Road Wraiths died at Road to Somerset. Kevin `Gabel` Clark of Road Wraiths died at Road to Somerset. Armando `Lord of` Heck of Maxxed Out died at Road to Somerset. Edward Johnson of Maxxed Out died at Road to Somerset. Juan Jenkins of Garage Boyz died at Via Rupta. Kimberly `The Elk` Elkins of The F-Bombs died at Ring of Death Arena. `The Ice Queen` Marisol Dye of sunset samurai died at Once Upon a Town. Steven `JOhn` Holmes of sunset samurai died at Chaos Canyon. Debbie Salzman of Nemesys died at Road to Somerset. Nicholas Zook of The Ghosts died at Spooky Forest. William `Da` Kidd of Fortune Hunters died at Never Plains: Sand Storm. Mitchell Lighty of The Pikers died at Once Upon a Town. Luke Willard of war mongers died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. William Murray of war mongers died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Joshua Lindley of Nightelves died at Gates of Somerset. Robert Rasmussen of Clan Hammer died at Once Upon a Town. Cliff Hanger of Renshai died at Gates of Somerset. `The Snake` Mary Miller of Blood Roses died at Outback of Nowhere. Wendell `Crunch` Clark of The Wolfhounds died at Gates of Somerset. Susan Mentzer of Garage Boyz died at Broken Hill. Chester Arthur of Department of Motor Vehicles died at Elmsfield Lake Track. William `Good Friend` Martin of Produce_Vendors died at Road to Somerset. Julio Hundley of Produce_Vendors died at Road to Somerset. Christopher `Puffy` Whitchurch of Produce_Vendors died at Road to Somerset. Wesley `Crusher` Parrish of Produce_Vendors died at Road to Somerset. John Roberts of Raging Death died at Gates of Elmsfield. Millie `Millenium` Kuntz of SwordStroke Enterprises died at Blown With the Wind. Karen Snow of Project 43 died at Northern Farm Land. Quinn `Speedball` Clevenger of Loose Cannons died at Forever Yellow Skies. Amy Kavanaugh of Nemesys died at Gates of Somerset. Mercedez Benz of The Darkside died at Gates of Badlands Truckstop. Lucy Lawless of Pax Romana died at Northern Foothills Racetrack (at night). `The Outcast` Simon Graham of Blood Roses died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. `Mobster` Truman Capone of Frontline Assembly died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Gordon `Hang`em` Goldstein of Krashed and Burnt died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. `Ms.` Karen White of Krashed and Burnt died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Cory Beaulieu of Clan Hammer died at Gates of Gateway Truckstop. Lena Novak of Absent Presence died at Northern Foothills Racetrack (at night). Daniel Aultman of Raging Scavengers died at Northern Speedway. Susan `Letale` Johnson of Nemesys died at Ring of Death Arena. Julianna `Assange` Mastrangelo of Raging Scavengers died at Gates of Somerset. Queenie Hack of L.C.R. died at Somerset Arena. `Devoner` Rodney Walker of The Ansome Cousin Jacks died at Road to Somerset. Andrew Fugate of Paceys Raiders died at Scattered Grounds. Tina Johnson of Cestus Dei died at Gates of Somerset. Ernest Merrell of MADHAT died at Gates of Somerset. Mary `Chicken Lady` Cochran of finger3 died at Lost Oasis. Lydia Price of The Darkside died at Lost Trail: Dead River. Erwin `The Florist` Rose of Dukes of Hazardous Waste died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Michelle Hunt of MegaCityStreetJudges died at Somerset Arena. Benedict Arnold of Raging Death died at Never Plains: Sand Storm. Terry Rivera of Raging Death died at Never Plains: Sand Storm. Tommy Long of MADHAT died at Road to Somerset. Roger Martin of King of Clubs died at Gates of Morgan. Frank Dees of King of Clubs died at Gates of Morgan. Tanya `Harding` Zook of The Tronophiles died at Road to Gateway Truck Stop. Charles `Sure Shot` Snyder of Project 43 died at Northern Desert Circuit. Amber Campbell of L.C.R. died at Double Down Arena. Danny Bowling of MADHAT died at Somerset`s Junkyard, Race Track 3. Ulysses Clark of the mad mad crushers died at Gates of Somerset. Esther `The Snapper` Knapp of Scarzams Dragoons died at Salt Flats Canyon. Don Charles of The F-Bombs died at Northern Farm Land. Steve McQueen of Renshai died at Texan Rally. Paul `Headshot` Wells of Nemesys died at Somerset Arena. Myrtle `Gelly` Samaniego of The Ansome Cousin Jacks died at Lost Trail: Overland. `Fancy` Francine Selig of Produce_Vendors died at Outback of Nowhere. Martin Jamerson of Produce_Vendors died at Outback of Nowhere. Alfonso `Alo` Alexandre of Blood Roses died at Outback of Nowhere. Sharon Shankle of Produce_Vendors died at Outback of Nowhere. Jacob Frary of Produce_Vendors died at Outback of Nowhere. 1. San Jose Baggers (Somerset): $811. |
 The major leagues are nearly concluded, and with the title races hotting up, here are the current favourites: Evan Race Ladder - Axis of Weevils In addition, the leaders of the minor leagues are: Circuit of Evan Wilderness Rally I League - Joels Bastards Relationships between the slavers and the merchants has improved substantially, following the delivery of three hundred strong backed workers to the factories in Texan. |
