Smoke billowed behind us, illuminated by the orange and blue light from the raging fires I had started. Otherwise, the smoke was completely invisible in the night sky. We hadn’t been driving long, but my eyes had barely left the back window. I kept expecting the wendigo to come barreling around a corner, its eyes ablaze with hatred. There wasn’t any way it had survived the explosion at the school, though. I knew monsters, especially big ones, were capable of regeneration, but nothing came back from being vaporized. But what if it did escape? I shook my head, glancing out the windshield, a dirt road blurring underneath the car. It couldn’t have. You saw the explosion. It took out half the school. Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t convince myself. Its eyes staring into mine, the pure loathing, the way the back of my neck had been tingling the entire journey… the strip mall flashed into my mind, and I tried to shut it out, to no avail.
Your breath is ragged as you limp through the mall, trying to find a place to hide. Your leg burns with every step as if someone had jabbed red-hot rebar through it. There’s something in the building with you. You think you heard voices. You know you heard voices. They were human. Almost. You find a small restaurant, and crawl over the counter, breathing heavily. You tried to tell yourself it was just the wind. Maybe even a small patrol of soldiers. Your hands shake as you find a small cache of propane canisters, checking the manufacturing date, an idea bolting through your panicked brain. 2102. Fifty-one years old. The gas might be gone already. Despite your attempts to reassure yourself, you know there’s something else in the building.
You open the valve on the first canister. It hisses as gas escapes and the back of your neck tingles.
You open the valve on the second. The hissing grows louder. Your hands tremble harder.
The third. The fourth. It’s getting hard to breathe. Your vision is blurry. You can’t tell if it’s from the gas or the overwhelming presence behind you. Watching you. Waiting for you to turn around, so it can see fear in your eyes one last time.
You open the last canister, your heart pounding, and whip around, expecting death itself to be standing there. But there’s nothing. You stand, and stagger out of the back room, grabbing a broken chair leg off the ground. It’s brittle and dry. You continue to stumble away from the restaurant, a small flame sparking from your fingertips, igniting the wood. You watch it burn for the briefest of moments. You throw the stick behind you, and hurry away, lest you get caught in the blast.
The entire time, you know someone is there. Something. Watching. Waiting. Hating. Patiently biding it's time to strike. Why it doesn’t strike now, you’re unsure. But you know.
Death is waiting for you.
I broke myself out of the memory, pinching myself harshly, my scales crying out in pain. My heart pounded, and it felt like I had an anvil sitting on my chest, making it hard to breathe. It’s okay. It’s okay. You’re going to be okay. It’s okay. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to get my emotions back in control. I felt like I was going to cry. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t let Ava know. She already worries about me so much. I glanced over at her, and she was staring out the window, her stolen Aquarite weapon tucked between her legs. At some point, she had swapped places with Isabelle, but I couldn’t remember when. I tried to take deep breaths and distract myself, but I couldn’t. Maybe talking will help.
I looked up, catching a dim glimpse of Sarillim in the rearview mirror. His brows were furrowed, and his blue eyes were locked onto the road. “Why…” my voice was barely louder than a whisper. I cleared my throat, prompting his eyes to flick up to me. “Why d-did you help us?”
“Why should I answer you?” He countered, before going silent. I didn’t know what I was expecting, but his response was disheartening. As I started to slump back in my seat, Ava spoke up.
“Yeah, what’s the deal with that?” She leaned forward, resting an arm on the back of Isabelle’s seat. “Weren’t exactly under orders to help us, so lo que da?”
“What?” The Aquarite muttered.
“¿Lo que da? What gives?”
He grumbled quietly, a faint metallic tapping emanating from the steering wheel. “She made me help you. I would have left you in that cell if she had not said anything.”
“That’s reassuring,” she muttered, leaning back into her seat.
At least he’s honest, I thought dryly. That eliminated any hopes I had that he was doing this out of the kindness of his heart. I should’ve figured from the beginning, but I had been hoping it was thanks to the stress he was under. In hindsight, it was naive to think that way. On the bright side, he can’t do anything to us without making Isabelle upset, and she seems to like us, somewhat. It wasn’t much reassurance, but it was something.
Isabelle turned to face Sarillim. “I just don’t understand why we have to go to San Francisco. Couldn’t you have just brought us back to the border?” Sarillim shot her a glare, and she blinked innocently.
“What?!” I cried, feeling like I’d just been electrocuted.
“The fuck are we going to San Francisco for?” Ava demanded furiously. “Nothing good happens there. Especially since you buncha palitos de pescado are there.”
“You are all in the custody of the California Provisional Government,” the soldier said as if he was reading off a script. “The individuals in San Francisco will be able to help you. The city is not unsafe, anyway.”
“How will they help us?” I leaned forward slightly. The only sound was the rattle of dirt hitting the underside of the truck, and Ava muttering angrily to herself. To say I was worried was an understatement. Sarillim clearly wasn’t giving us the entire truth—his cold, recited answer was enough indication of that. San Francisco was at the heart of the CPG, and whatever his goals were, he felt the need to take us to the very top of the CPG’s leadership. Nothing good came out of that city. Not for the past seventy-two years, and I doubted it was much better before then. Earthquakes, floods, wildfires, Aquarite invasions… I shook my head. Point is that San Francisco is a death sentence for me and Ava. They have no interest in nobodies. I glanced up at Isabelle, wondering what was going through her head. She had saved our lives this time, but I feared she had only prolonged the inevitable.
Isabelle.
Things clicked together suddenly, a blurry image focusing on crystal clear clarity. Sarillim has no use for us. Isabelle’s the one he’s interested in—we’re still alive to keep her complacent. Isabelle was a politician’s daughter. Maybe a smaller, less powerful politician, but a politician all the same. Ava had talked to me about the CPG’s intentions, saying they were looking for leverage to mitigate the amount of fighting they’d have to do to take Utah, citing her sources on the dark web. Isabelle was the perfect candidate for a hostage. Sarillim knew full well what he was doing, and had played his cards almost perfectly. Unfortunately for him, a pair of wild cards had thrown his entire plan out the window. I doubted he’d be in good standing with the CPG after being seen helping several prisoners escape. But if he delivers Isabelle straight to the top brass, he’ll most likely get a pardon. Even be seen as a hero. As much as I despised that theory, I knew it was entirely possible, and couldn’t help but respect Sarillim for such a ballsy move.
“So…” Isabelle started, patting her legs absentmindedly. Sarillim glanced down at her inquisitively. “Why’re you here? Like, on border duty? You got family or something?”
“Hell’s sake, rich girl, why do you wanna get friendly with the enemy?” Ava demanded angrily.
“He’s not the enemy. He’s a person like you and me, and I’m sure he would appreciate it if you quit demonizing him,” she turned around to glare at the human. “Besides, aren’t you curious? We all heard that conversation near the toilets.”
“Christ, why don’t you just suck h-”
“Quiet,” Sarillim barked with sudden intensity, making everyone in the car flinch. Despite the scare, I was grateful for his intervention. I couldn’t handle another hissyfit between the two. It was silent for a moment before the soldier began speaking. “I have a family. They are still underwater. I was deemed unfit for service.”
“Do you miss them? Was it because of your arm?” Isabelle tilted her head.
There was a pause. “My arm had a role, yes.”
“What happened?” She angled her body toward him, looking fully invested.
Once again, the truck went silent. The dirt road slowly transitioned to an asphalt one. I wondered why Isabelle was trying to be so friendly with the Aquarite. Maybe she’s just trying to soften him up, so he’s less likely to turn us in or something, I theorized. I wasn’t going to complain, though; my curiosity about Sarillim far outweighed everything else. He had only helped us because he was forced to, and likely had plans to get rid of us as soon as we weren’t useful anymore. The more we knew about him, the better. My mind wandered to Isabelle’s question about his arm. I began imagining crazier scenarios one after another. A mechanical failure, an explosion, self-amputation, even a sea monster biting it off.
“Why were you trying to enter the California Provisional Government?” Sarillim asked out of the blue. The question caught me off guard, although I should’ve known it was coming. “How would it serve you?”
“And why should we tell you?” Ava sniped.
“Because we’re all on the same page, aren’t we?” Isabelle butted in.
“He has no intention of helping us! He’s only helping us because you forced him to.”
“Maybe he’ll come around,” she remarked. “Besides, I doubt his government's very happy about his actions, regardless of his intentions. So we may as well get to know each other.”
She has a point. There wasn’t any point acting extra hostile towards the soldier. Especially if our lives were on the line. Either way, I was curious, too. Isabelle hadn’t shared any details about her goals whatsoever, so Ava and I were flying completely blind. In hindsight, it was stupid to have come so far without knowing what we were doing, but it was either that or get reduced to mulch by the Contractor. I hoped she’d spill her secrets, but I doubted it’d happen. She grew up in a society full of whispers and tight lips, after all.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
“Well,” Isabelle cleared her throat, “I am here because I’m investigating a super weapon.”
I stared at her like she had just had an alien pop out of her chest. A super weapon? That’s what we’re after? All this is for a… I couldn’t comprehend what she had said, nor could I believe how quick she was to answer. Super weapons didn’t exist. They were all either myths, long-gone artifacts from millennia ago, or had been destroyed. We’ve been on a massive goose chase.
“A fucking super weapon?!” Ava squawked, her voice going up several octaves. “Rich girl, I swear to god, te voy a destripar como a un pez, you lying, deceitful, manipulative-”
A booming laugh escaped Sarillim’s mouth, cutting Ava’s tirade short as the soldier’s laughter drowned her out. It was a surprisingly warm, familiar sound, sorta like an uncle who’d just heard a hilarious joke. His laughter died down almost immediately, and he stared at Isabelle.
His face was a mask of disbelief. “Wait, are you serious? By the currents…” he rubbed the bridge of his snout. “If we had a so-called super weapon-” the scales around his eyes lit up slightly with each word “-we would have finished fighting ten years ago.”
“Rich girl, you’d better explain yourself right this fucking moment, or I’m gonna throw you outta the car!” Ava shouted.
Isabelle cringed away, covering her ears. “I thought I told you!” She protested. “In the garage, right? When you threatened to shoot me? I told you there!”
I tried to wrack my brain, but the past week or so had been such a blur that I couldn’t remember the exact details. She might’ve told you, but you can’t remember because of all the stress and adrenaline, maybe?
“Pretty sure I’d remember that,” my friend growled.
“You were also pretty angry with me,” the Dragonborn countered. “I doubt you were listening very well. You might’ve missed it.”
Ava crossed her arms skeptically, and leaned back, her knee bouncing erratically. I hated that I agreed with both of them. On one hand, Isabelle telling us that seemed like too important a detail to forget, but at the same time everyone had been high on emotions, and not thinking very straight. Except for me, so I’m not sure how I missed it. I doubted Isabelle would lie to us so severely, though. Trust was the key to success in this game, and I couldn’t start doubting her because of a faulty memory.
“Regardless of memories,” Sarillim muttered, “I want you to tell me the truth, fluffy dragon, or I will help the human with her goals.”
“I am telling the truth,” Isabelle protested. “Dad was in a meeting, and I heard him and his, er, associates talking about some sorta artifact that had been stolen from the… the Water Devils. I decided I was gonna go and get it, because all his hand wringing and whinging was annoying me.”
“The Water Devils…?” The soldier’s knuckles tightened on the steering wheel.
“What’re the Water Devils?” I asked.
“They are traitors,” Sarillim growled. “A group of former Provisional Marines, corrupted by surface dwellers’ ideals. They are a stain on my country and my people.”
“If you mean heroes, ‘traitors’ is exactly right,” Ava straightened her spine. “Your country isn’t worth defending.”
“Ironic. You suck up to your evil leaders, your own morally bankrupt government, and yet you look down on me.”
“I don’t do any sucking up,” she grumbled. “I understand that the People’s Republic of America is evil. And I understand that your government is evil, too, with its imperialist policies.”
The soldier fell silent, the air thick with tension. I felt uncomfortable, and Isabelle surely felt the same. I never liked hearing Ava’s rants about the PRA’s wrongdoings, as I felt like hearing such things from her was a crime in itself. I tended to tune her out and let her tire herself out, but now… it felt like her words had weight to them. I had convinced myself the town we had lived in was a one-off occurrence, that the Utahn government’s policies weren’t all that bad. But ever since getting hunted relentlessly, seeing the tent cities of St. Gogron, the Bastion City, walled off to protect from raiders, and the brutality they operated with, my mind’s eye was beginning to become aware of exactly what I didn’t want to see.
“Why did you bring them?” Sarillim asked, breaking the silence. “Why not your father’s men?”
“He wouldn’t support me,” Isabelle answered simply.
With that, the car went silent once more. My mind felt like it was caught in a whirlwind, unsure of what to focus on. Sarillim’s intentions, Isabelle’s desire to complete an unachievable goal, Ava’s words opening my eyes to the world, and the ever-present fear of the wendigo. It was all so much. I stared out the window, watching desert hills speed by in the dark. The night sky was overcast, but the edges of the clouds were painted silver as moonlight peeked through. I wished I could fall back asleep, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to get any rest. Maybe I should pray, I thought, staring at a sliver of the moon. Before I could come to a decision, Ava tapped me on the shoulder.
“I don’t trust them,” Ava whispered to me, her expression stone cold.
I turned to face her. “I know.”
“No, you don’t. Politicians are all no-good, dirty, cheating, backstabbing liars. Isabelle is no different. There’s no way she’s telling us the truth—especially not about the ‘super weapon.’ Doesn’t that seem like something too important to forget?”
“Yeah, I g-”
“And Sarillim? Don’t get me started. He’d stomp on a puppy if it meant furthering the CPG’s agenda.”
“Doesn’t he have a family?”
“As if a family’s gonna prevent him from being an imperialist bootlicker. Do you hear yourself, hermano?” She smacked me upside the head lightly. “You’ve lived with your head in the sand for so long, you can’t help but see only the best in people, when there is none.”
I rubbed my temple, staring at the worn-down seat underneath me. I couldn’t believe Isabelle had been lying to us this entire time, but I truly wasn’t completely sure. She’d done things to help us, and judging her because she was cut from the same cloth as her dad didn’t sit right with me—same as judging Sarillim for his country’s actions. But at the same time, I knew there was truth to her words. Governor Snyder surely hadn’t been a positive influence on her, and Sarillim seemed to be fully engrossed in the propaganda his country spewed. Regardless, I didn’t know what to do or to think. In a way, I saw a little bit of myself in both of them. Isabelle was naive, young, and impressionable. Sarillim was looking for something more but was stuck in a system that disallowed him. All my gigs with the Contractor were to improve my quality of life, after all. I didn’t know what to think, so I decided not to.
“What about the superweapon?” I asked, trying to change the topic. “You think that has any truth?”
She was silent for a moment. “Maybe. The day before we took the jet contract, I had read that something had been stolen from the CPG. Whether or not it was just a weapons cache, intelligence, or a super weapon, it didn’t say. I doubt it’s the latter, though.”
“So Isabelle could be lying?”
“You even listening? God, what am I gonna do with you, niño?” She sighed. “Yeah, she could be lying, in some way. Could be lying about the Water Devils, exaggerating about what she’s trying to find, her plans to pay us. The list goes on. Either way, we need to leave. Disappear, somehow. I don’t know how, though.”
“I agree,” I muttered, staring out the windshield. The sky was yellowish, a telltale sign of heavy light pollution. We were approaching a city, most likely. My thoughts turned to Ava’s words about the stolen object. Despite her speculation, my gut told me Isabelle was telling the truth about her intentions. Though the fact that Isabelle thought super weapons were real was concerning in itself. Well, we’ve come this far. We either find a place to bail, or full send it, regardless of the danger.
“Hey, Kéron, can I ask you something?” Ava tapped my knee.
“You just did,” I joked.
“You know what I mean,” she rolled her eyes. Her eyes narrowed, and she stared directly into mine. “Are you okay?”
The question short-circuited my brain. I had no idea what to say. I was acutely aware of the bruises on my face, the bullet wound in my leg, and the constant fear I felt, not to mention the new doubts dropping up in my mind. I can’t tell her about anything. I can’t tell her about the wendigo, the pain, the doubts—any of it. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
“Cut the shit,” she grumbled. “You haven’t been the same since the school. Don’t think I haven’t noticed. What happened in there?”
“I…”
Thankfully, Isabelle came to the rescue. “Woah!” She exclaimed, pointing ahead of us. “There’s Vegas!” I glanced out the windshield and gasped, my mind almost unable to comprehend what I was looking at. Massive skyscrapers loomed in the darkness, lit up with massive holographic advertisements for casinos, cyberware, spells, and more that flickered and moved. The buildings were tallest in the middle, slowly falling in height the further from the center they were. At the bottom were slums, farms—solar and agricultural—and industrial plants. Beyond the city, the clouds were a distinct shade of turquoise. The city reminded me of a mountain, almost. Hundreds of thousands of tons of glass, concrete, and steel, stretching into the night sky. Somehow, I already knew we were going to enter that city. Part of me feared we would never leave.
—/—|—\—
After a short while more of driving, Sarillim pulled up to a seedy-looking motel. It looked similar to the No-Tell Motel we had visited before. I shuddered at the thought. Hope this time we have a different experience. The cracked pavement crunched as my boots met the ground. Sarillim muttered a few incantations before pressing his palm on the lock of the truck door, and the vehicle shimmered slightly for a second. With that, we found a vacant room, paid at the door, and entered. All the more, it reminded me of the motel back in Richfield. We made quick work of assigning sleeping spots. Sarillim and Isabelle both took a bed, Ava took the chair in the corner, and I took the floor, using my coat as a pillow. Ava had protested, but she was so exhausted she decided to listen. I laid on the floor for a while, staring at the fluttering images of New Vegas’s advertisements through the slits in the blinds, before finally falling asleep.
—/—|—\—
I was standing in front of a massive turquoise lake, stretching as far as the eye could see. There were entire buildings submerged in the lake, and objects were floating in the… I assumed it was water, but its blue hue and glow made me unsure. The objects were cars, household appliances, and even bodies. The sight made me feel sick. But the most important part was that Isabelle, Ava, and Sarillim were all tied to stakes, sticking out of the liquid. They were all unconscious. I glanced behind me, and there was nothing but gray brushland. I had no idea what to do. I couldn’t scale the cliff below me, and even then, I couldn’t cross the lake or bring them down.
A ripple moved through the lake, bouncing off of buildings and floating debris. I watched in horror as it grew stronger, and the ground beneath my feet began to tremble. Giant horns rounded the corner of a darkened casino, and I was paralyzed as a massive wendigo turned and locked its eyes on me. It was so big that I could see the tattoo on its shoulder, displaying an old American flag, and the name O. L. Wendy. I could feel the hatred emanating from it, buildings and objects smoldering as it stared at me. Wisps of smoke rose from my clothes, and I glanced down in panic, flames rising from my palms. I choked as I tried to fling it away from me, but it stuck, like napalm—until it didn’t. One drop of fire went flying from my fingertips, and down, down, down, down.
Into the lake.
I watched in terror as the turquoise lake erupted into flame, fire already raging its way up buildings, melting down vehicles. And worst of all, it was climbing up the stakes holding my friends. I wanted to scream at them to wake up, but my vocal cords were tied up in a knot. My feet were frozen and I could only watch as my friends were enveloped in a blue inferno, waking up in agony, screaming their lungs out as they writhed helplessly. I wanted to help them. I wanted it to stop. But their screams tore at my ears no matter how much I tried to block them out. And the wendigo watched. It watched them burn. It watched me suffer.
And I knew it enjoyed every second.