“What is this guy made of?” grumbled the militiaman for the third time as he and Luise half carried half dragged Anan’s unconscious body towards the fortified tower and safety.

“You’ve never seen how much he can eat” said Luise through clenched teeth as she took another heavy step forwards. “I’m pretty sure it was him who ate the kebab stall, not Kopil.”

A few paces behind Mira trudged along wearily, head down, using her spear more as a crutch than a walking stick. Kopil ambled about next to her, stopping every now and then to let her catch up. Eventually with what sounded almost like a sigh he circled around behind Mira and darted forwards, driving his head between her legs and launching her upwards. Caught by surprise Mira yelled in alarm as she rose into the air.

Luise and the militiaman reacted instantly. Both spun around and raised their weapons. Anan thudded to the ground between them. After a second they lowered their arms and stared at the sight before them. Kopil had levered Mira up and over, leaving her perched nervously on his back. One hand held her spear, the other grasped the largest spike jutting out the back of Kopil’s neck. Luise holstered Anan’s borrowed pistol and sheathed her claw. “Not the time for fucking about you two” she said sternly as she helped pick Anan back off the ground.

Mira tried to reply but all that came out was a squeak. She could feel the muscles move under the scaled flesh each time Kopil took a step. The big lizard trotted forwards till they were level with Luise and the militiaman. Luise grunted as they staggered along

“I think you’ve made a friend Mira, should I be jealous?” Her lips twitched up as she attempted to smile, the effort of carrying Anan turning it into a grimace.

They waited at a junction as Carlton checked to see if it was safe. He waved a hand and they all set off once more. Gunfire and the sound of battle echoed in the distance but nothing leapt out at them. Neither did they see any more defenders. It took another ten minutes to reach the door at the base of the tower. Men and women had raised barricades outside and knelt behind them, weapons ready. When Mira’s small group rounded the corner and came into view a pair of runners dashed out carrying a stretcher. With some effort they heaved Anan into it and scurried back towards the tower.

Luise and the militiaman slumped down next to one of the barricades. Luise accepted a water bottle from a woman with pupil-less pearlescent eyes and onyx black skin. She muttered a thank you before gulping down a mouthful. Wordlessly she handed it to the militiaman next to her before getting back to her feet and walking over to Mira, who was still astride Kopil.

“You know,” she said as she looked the two up and down, “if we got you some proper armour you’d be a terror on the battlefield. Should I make you a saddle?” she giggled at Mira’s expression. “Don’t worry we’ll leave that till next time, come on now, hop down and let’s go see the big man.” She helped Mira off Kopil’s back and they made their way inside the tower. Mira looked back and saw Kopil rest his head affectionately on the pearl eyed woman’s shoulder. She buckled under the weight almost instantly.

The two headed through the door, inside the tower she caught sight of many huddled groups of survivors. Medics and militia wandered between knots of people, handing out water or giving first aid. The tower itself was sparsely furnished, circular and made of the local stone; it had been lit with several pale yellow lights mounted along the walls, a staircase spiralled along the wall, coming from the floor below and continuing up through the ceiling. Several doors next to the staircase led to smaller side rooms.

Luise collared one of the passing medics. “Where's Anan?” she asked. The young woman pointed at the ceiling.

“Next floor up, Dr Xuě has him with other wounded” she said before turning away and crouching down next to a group of children.

Luise headed for the stairs, waving for Mira to join her. The young woman wearily followed along. As they trudged up the stairs Luise spoke quietly to Mira. “If anyone asks, you're a baseline from the kingdoms. Maybe now’s not the best time to be an alien, yeah?”

Before Mira could reply they rounded the corner and entered the infirmary. A dozen beds clustered in the centre of the room, the smell of blood and antiseptic filled the air. Mira spotted Anan’s bulky form in one of the beds and made to walk over, only to be stopped by Luise.

“Clean up first” she said, motioning to a line of sinks mounted along one wall. “Maybe put the knife away too,” she added, “don’t need it here and strangers with weapons make people nervous.”

Carefully, Mira removed the knife from the head of her spear and tucked it in the sheath on her waist. The edge was smeared in blood and other fluids and she made a silent promise to clean it as soon as possible. After washing off as much of the grime as they could from their faces and hands Luise and Mira approached the knot of beds. One of the medics was monitoring Anan and looked up as they approached.

Tall, stick thin and cadaverous, the medic loomed over the two women. His corpse white flesh stretched tight as he smiled down at Luise.

“Miss Demerra, a pleasure as always. Are you here to see Mr Hobbes or are you going to try and stuff my patients full of metal like last time?'' His voice was surprisingly high pitched and the words came in a singsong cadence.

Luise returned the smile.

“Don’t worry Xuě, that was just a small misunderstanding. We’re here to see Anan, is he awake yet?” she asked.

Xuě’s lips twisted in a grimace., “Mr Hobbes is stable and should awaken anytime now. You can wait with him if you like so long as you promise not to pester any of my other patients.”

The two continued to bicker as Mira looked down at Anan. The medics had cleaned him up and laid him, fully clothed, on the bed. Other than a faint scar on his cheek there was no sign of the wound that had laid open his face. For the moment he lay silent and still, only the slow moving of his chest giving any evidence of life.

“What happened to him?” Mira asked, looking up at the pale doctor.

The cadaverous man smiled thinly “I take it then that you’ve never seen Mr Hobbes’s party trick then Miss…?” he said trailing off and arching an eyebrow slightly.

“Sands and no I’ve not. What happened to him?” Mira repeated.

Xuě sighed and leant back. “Mr Hobbes is the unfortunate inheritor of one of the ‘berzerker’ bloodlines. Specifically, a combination of the Germanic ‘gate breaker’ and a North African Coalition warrior archetype. Such a mixture would normally leave a child… incompatible with life. His enhancements, while useful, lack the secondary systems needed to control them. Mr Hobbes risks a heart attack or similar every time his enhancements are triggered.”

Anan stirred slightly at this point, Luise nudged Mira out the way as Xuě swooped in. He gently checked Anan’s pulse and listened to his breathing. “He seems to be waking up. Give him some space, he’ll be quite weak for a while” said the doctor as Anan slowly opened his eyes.

Anan muttered something and Xuě handed him a paper cup of water. He gulped it down greedily before looking up at Mira and Luise.

“Hope I didn't scare you” he said to Mira, his voice quiet and croaky. “Did I hurt anyone?” he asked, switching his gaze to Luise.

She shook her head. “Nothing that won’t heal but you probably owe Carlton a beer for breaking his nose again.”

Anan grinned and tried to get up only for the doctor to push him back down. “You’re still weak Mr Hobbes. You need fluids, food and rest in that order. You’re to stay in that bed until I say otherwise. Are you going to comply or do I need to glue you to it?” as he spoke he held out his hand towards Anan, palm down. Mira saw something move on Dr Xuě’s palm but couldn’t see it clearly.

Before they could speak further a messenger trotted up the stairs calling for the doctor and any senior militia members present to assemble downstairs for a briefing. After extracting a promise from Anan to stay in the bed Dr Xuě

excused himself and left. Luise found a chair and dragged it over to the bed – earning her a glare from the nurse due to the noise- and deposited Mira in it.

“I’ll go get the news. You two stay here and rest” she said as she turned and headed after the doctor. She left, leaving a slightly awkward silence. It dragged on just long enough to be uncomfortable before Anan spoke again.

“You want to talk about it?” he said quietly, indicating the dark blood staining Mira’s staff. She nodded and began to tell her tale, starting from when she first heard the voices outside her door. She spoke quietly at first but grew more animated at the scary parts. Anan sat back and closed his eyes as she talked.

“And then you turned up and did your…. thing” Mira finished lamely. Does it still hurt?” she asked, pointing at the mark on Anan’s cheek. He shook his head.

“Nah not now. But pain is one of the triggers,” he said, “got a bunch of glands that pump out this weird stuff that seals it all shut. Anything made of meat heals up in seconds. Gets really hot doing that. You see the steam?” Mira nodded and he continued. “That stings like all hell. Can feel my heart going mad too. Then the other stuff goes off,” he grimaced, “feel the power pour into you, power an’ the hate. Makes you wanna kill the world. Don’t like doing it. Especially ‘cos it might kill me.” He finished looking down at his hands. “I hope I didn’t scare you” he said again.

“You saved me,” said Mira softly, “I’ve been scared since I woke up in the tent. Don’t want to be. Don’t want to be helpless” she said, her voice growing louder and more confident as she blinked back tears. “Don’t want to be helpless. I don’t want to be hiding behind people. Teach me how to fight.”

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Anan blinked up at her, surprised by her shift in demeanour. He nodded, before adding “When we get out of here I’ll show you. You got any food? Not dying makes me hungry.”

_______________________________________________________________

Sometime later Luise ascended the stairs and approached the pair. Anan was slowly munching his way through a plate of sandwiches and looked up as she walked over. He nudged Mira who had dozed off in her chair, she sat up with a jolt. Luise grinned down at her.

“You’re kinda cute when you're asleep,” she said with a wink before turning to Anan, “briefings over, it’s not good.”

She picked a sandwich off the plate, sniffed at it then took a bite. “Simms, that’s the militia commander,” she said to Mira, who had a confused look on her face, “Simms managed to scrape together a scouting party. They went out in that buggy they’re so proud of. Radioed in ‘bout an hour ago, guess the jamming isn’t too bad today cos we could hear them pretty clear. There’s a swarm coming. The scouts reckon we have two days.”

Anan grunted and swallowed his latest bite. “So we fighting or moving?” he asked.

“Moving,” said Luise, “we’ve a day to prepare then setting off for Arack. Setting off the warning beacons on the way. Simms wants you leading one of the groups. In his exact words ‘if that big lump is done swooning tell him to start packing up group A.’”

Anan shrugged and finished his sandwich before sitting up straight and looking around for his boots. He pulled them on before picking up another sandwich.

“I’ll grab Kopil and get started. Take Mira and go get her some better clothes. Going to be a long trip and that stuff won’t cut it.” He turned to Mira. “Take your time and work on your accent. Foreign is one thing but you sound like you’re underwater half the time. When you get back we can see how your leg is and maybe get started on some drills.” That said he stood and strode off, carrying the half empty tray under one arm.

“Chatty isn’t he?” Luise said, raising an eyebrow. She took hold of Mira’s arm and dragged her to her feet. “Come on then, we’ve got our orders. It’s time to go shopping!” Mira wasn’t sure she liked the glint in the other woman’s eye as she let herself be ushered towards the stairs.

A few minutes later Mira found herself on a street lined with shopfronts and market stalls. People moved to and fro looking for all the world like a casual shopping trip. It took a few moments for Mira to notice the deliberate way some people tried to look more relaxed and at ease. Luise spotted her confusion and whispered quietly into her ear.

“No one wants to start a panic, just business as usual. Just play along ok?” Mira nodded and let the older woman guide her into a nearby shop. Soft lights illuminated racks of clothing and bags. A bell tinkled as they opened the door and a voice called out from somewhere in the back.

“I’ll be right there!” it trilled almost musically and they both heard someone shuffling around out of view. After a few seconds a head popped into view from behind a rack of coats. The head was followed by a long, graceful neck as it rose higher. The shoulders appeared as the owner of the voice stretched to almost its full height. It shuffled forwards, beaming at the two women. It came to a stop a few feet away and waited, back stooped to avoid the ceiling. Mira guessed it’d be nearly three metres tall if stood up straight.

A polite smile graced its face as it leaned down to look at them. The visible skin was grey with a faint pink blush, two vertical slits served for a nose and it had no visible ears. Its hair, one elaborately braided scalp lock that hung down to its waist wiggled like a snake as it looked back and forth between the two women. Mira goggled, this was definitely the tallest woman, tallest person she had ever seen.

“So,” the tall lady said, looking first at Luise then Mira, “what do we have here?” A hand bigger than Mira’s head took hold of her arm and pulled her forward, another hand reached out and rubbed the cloth of Mira’s shirt between her fingers. “Synthetics, cheap but reasonable quality. Very utilitarian but lacking a certain style don’t you think?”

Luise laid a hand on the arm holding Mira. “Samra, this is Mira. She needs the full works, I’d really appreciate your help if you have the time?”

Samra’s face split into broad toothy grin. “Oh that is just wonderful! Come along now little one, let’s get you set to face the world!” She turned and began to walk away, still holding Mira’s entire forearm in one massive hand. Mira followed along, struggling to keep up and casting mute looks of appeal at an obviously amused Luise.

“Now this one is a nice little number in synthetic silk, I only have it in pink but if we pair it with… this it should work quite nicely. Luise be a dear and pass me that green coat, not that one, the other one. Thank you. Hold your arms up please. Hmmm…. You don’t really suit the style.” What about.... Try this on for size…”

Dresses, suits, jackets and shorts seemed to circle Mira in blur as she tried on one outfit after another. Samra muttered to herself constantly as she shuttled about picking out various items of clothing. The discard pile grew over the course of an hour as she tried various pieces on and cast them aside at Samra’s instruction. Luise perched on a stool nearby and voiced the occasional comment.

Finally, after several more costume changes Samra stepped back and looked Mira up and down.

“There we go. I knew we’d find just the thing for you eventually. You like?”

Mira looked at herself in the mirror. Sturdy, black leather boots, dark green trousers covered in pockets, a faded brown button shirt and a long grey jacket of some strange material Mira couldn’t identify.

Samra continued talking as Mira admired herself in the mirror. “The coat is old scout surplus. Will keep you warm or cool depending on the weather and is good against teeth and claws. Won’t stop a bullet though so try not to get shot. There’s some extra socks and pants in the bag and I threw in a few spare shirts and another pair of trousers too. Now, how are you paying?”

Mira’s hands automatically went to her pocket looking for a credit stick before realising she had none. She smiled weakly up at Samra before saying “I don’t have any money” in a small voice.

Samra loomed over her, frowning. “You come into MY store and expect to walk away with MY merchandise, for free?” She raised a hand and reached out towards Mira who flinched away and closed her eyes. She felt the slightest pressure as Samra gently placed a broad brimmed hat on her head.

“The hat really goes with that jacket, gives you a wastelander look.”

Mira’s fingers tentatively brushed the smooth leather of the hat and looked up at Samra’s grinning face. “I don’t understand,” she said, lifting the hat off her head and examining it.

Samra gestured to racks of clothing around the shop. “We’re evacuating. I can’t take it with me so I might as well clothe those that need it before those ruffians in the guard come to burn it.”

Mira looked over to Luise who explained. “It's standard practice out here. Salvage everything we can but leave nothing the enemy -be they monsters or men- can use.”

They both looked back at Samra who was idly running her hand across a rack of shirts, her expression carefully calm. She gave them a sad smile. “It's not the end of all things. I can rebuild when we settle down. I should be able to get a compensation claim in. Perhaps I might visit my brother across the sea and meet my lovely little cousins. I might even go back to the life of a travelling merchant and join a caravan. Yourself?”

“Anan’s taking me home,” Mira said carefully. “After my… my airship went down he promised to escort me back. To the kingdoms.”

Samra gave her a calculating look before replying. “That certainly explains the accent. You simply must tell me all about it. But I suspect now is not the time. Do come and find me when we camp for the night and bring Anan too. He owes me for a bottle or two,” her brow furrowed slightly, “but tell him to leave that horrible little lizard behind!”

They left the shop after promising to meet for ‘tea and gossip’ later that day. Luise helped Mira put the backpack on and adjust the various straps.

“Good job with the story about the airship,” she said as she walked around Mira, checking straps, “close enough to the truth so it’ll be harder to catch you out in a lie. Be careful though. Wouldn’t be good if too many people found out who you are or that you’re a baseline.”

They set off walking back to the tower, all around them people were packing their belongings and loading them onto a variety of carts and wheelbarrows.

They walked on in silence for a little while before Mira spoke.

“Why would it be bad for others to know where I’m really from?” she said quietly.

Luise glanced back at her. “It’s complicated Mira. There’s a lot of groups who’d come after you and it wouldn’t end well for any of us.”

They entered another shop and Mira got to spend an entertaining hour watching Luise haggle/argue with a variety of vendors over various goods. The woman really knew how to get a good deal! After they sat on a low stone wall and nibbled at a pair of meat skewers Luise had bought. As they ate, Luise showed her the local currency.

“It’s pretty simple, ten pennies in a bit and ten bits in a pound. A pound is about a weeks pay for a labourer. That implant you have is about two hundred pounds”. She laughed when Mira nearly choked on her skewer. “Don’t freak out, I owed Anan a favour and it wouldn’t work on most people anyway. A lot of the old stuff only works on baselines. I managed to tinker with language files at least. Anyway, most city-states around the Med and the west use the same system, so ten Arrack pennies is worth one Roman bit which is one tenth of Hapnen pound and visa-versa,” She took a bite from her skewer before continuing. “There are bigger coins too; ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred pound coins. Never actually seen one of those but Anan says they’ve a diamond set in the middle.”

She held out the coins for Mira to examine. The penny was a small square coin made of brass or a similar metal. A complicated crest had been stamped on one side. The other featured a large embossed ‘1’ surrounded by a spiral design. The bit was also square but of a gold material. A different crest had been stamped on it and the other featured script in a language Mira couldn’t read. The pound was a slightly large octagonal coin in silver. A square hole had been stamped in the centre and around it had been written words in another language. She handed them back and gnawed at her skewer.

“Speaking of your implant,” Luise said as she took another bite, “no glitches or similar?”

Mira shook her head. “I don’t think so, it doesn’t hurt and between everything else that’s happened I kinda forgot it’s there. I’m just happy I can understand people and be understood. Is Old English common around here?”

Luise shot her a confused look. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“Well we’ve been out here for a few hours now and I get a few looks but mostly people understand what I’m saying. Anan said not many people speak Old English. I’m not complaining though.”

“Mira,” Luise said in a gentle tone, “you’ve been speaking Arshan this whole time. Your accent needs work but you’ve been speaking it fluently for the last few hours.”

Mira went pale and her hand flew to her implant. Her fingers stroked the etched metal merged with her flesh. She’d almost forgotten it was there. Almost forgot the pain and the smell of burning metal. The pain in her head and the sound of hands pounding on the door.

A hand encircled her shoulders and Mira let herself be pulled gently into a hug. Her face felt wet and she wiped away tears.

“It’s alright Mira” Luise whispered as she stroked her hair. “The implants just doing its job, means you can talk to me now, yeah? Quicker than I thought it would too. Supposed to take about a few days. You’ve been through a lot. Let a little bit out, you’ll feel better.”

The words tumbled out. Mira couldn’t stop if she wanted to. The wall she’d been building in her head started to crumble. The stream became a flood. She spoke of things she’d forgotten on purpose, like the ammonia reek of the sky hunter as it reached in through the open hatch or the moment she heard someone’s scream of fear and pain cut off back in the hotel room.

After a little while the flood drained to a trickle. Mira felt exhausted but better for having said everything. She let Luise guide her as they walked slowly along the street. Luise spoke quietly to her as they walked. Soothing words that Mira barely heard. They entered the tower a short while later. Luise led her to an available chair in a small room next to the main hall and the pair collapsed into it.

Luise stretched in that languid way only cats seem to manage before turning to Mira.

“Kick your boots off and get a nap. I reckon we’ve got an hour or two before Anan comes back, less if Snowy catches him. You’re still running on fumes so get your head down, I’ll get us some water.”

Mira made to protest but the chair seemed to envelop her, her eyelids seemed to be closing of their own accord…