Nigel awoke to a lion’s roar. He had been in the habit of remembering his nocturnal visions since he was a child, and he had the most exceptional of all dreams. He was in the middle of Manhattan, straddling an armored grizzly bear. Eva and Blanka were shooting at bald raiders who were traveling on a rhinoceros. Vedrana was protecting Jet in some sort of wagon. Although the surrounding imagery was blurry, he thought he remembered buildings with vegetation growing through and around the structures. The vision reminded him of a movie he had seen involving dream leapers: people who could enter a person’s nightmare in order to observe and help them.

I had multiple dreams last night!

As Nigel removed the VR gear and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, Blanka and Vedrana slept beside him. He was covered in sweat. Eva was perched at a window overlooking the non-ruined half of the building. An icy breeze chilled Nigel more than it should have on the late spring morning.

“Did you hear that?” Eva said.

“Yeah, it sounds like a jungle out there,” Nigel replied.

“I saw animal riders outside with gas masks,” Eva said.

“Where?” Nigel asked.

Eva pointed beyond the encampment. Nigel shot up and joined her at the window. She handed him a pair of binoculars. It was a sight to behold. Rhinos, elephants, and lions, all with riders wearing protective masks, patrolled the streets.

“Come on, we need to get a better look,” Nigel said.

He hurried to the ground floor as quickly as possible without checking if his companions were following. Rubble and other debris were stacked around most of the building. Nigel climbed atop the rubble and lost his balance. Someone caught his hand. He looked to find a curious Aiko steadying him.

“What are you up to, Nigel?” she said.

“I saw some riders. They appeared to be coordinating outside your encampment. I wanted to get a better look.”

“I could have saved you the trouble.”

“Shh, you hear that?”

It was the nonsensical language that could only come from Doc Chop’s contaminated souls. Months ago, Nigel and his companions had fought their way out of the city. People who breathed in the gas got infected and lost control of their actions. They were vulnerable and the doctor’s men picked them up so he could experiment on them. Before, their behavior had been erratic. Now they were organized.

“What?” Aiko said.

“They seem to be organizing an attack. I can tell that something is up from the tone of their voices.”

“I think that’s a stretch, Nigel,” Aiko said.

“What’s going on?” Blanka asked.

Nigel was so intent on the sights and sounds on the other side of the wall he had not noticed his companions. They were standing behind Aiko.

“I’m hungry, Nigel,” Blanka said.

“I have rations in my tent. We can catch up and strategize on our next steps,” Aiko said.

The women took Aiko’s lead and headed to the center of the camp. When Nigel saw a mother and several skinny children, his heart sank. They turned a spit, roasting some kind of meat. One kid brought a two-liter soda bottle filled with murky water. They drank the liquid as if it were the last drink on earth. Nigel’s stomach tossed and turned like a washing machine with an unbalanced load when he glimpsed a long, segmented tail attached to the kebabs.

These people are starving.

Moments later, two guards parted the tent to allow entry. He followed Aiko and her group into the wide tent. It was larger than his apartment, and it reminded him of something one might find in a desert oasis. It was well supplied with rows of bottled liquid, packets of beef jerky, and piles of candy and energy bars. Aiko passed out bottles of water and other items. She cracked open a refrigerator and pulled out fresh strawberries and apples.

“Do you not have enough to share with the people starving outside?”

For a moment he thought he saw a look of shame on her face, but it was so fleeting he wasn’t sure.

“We keep the guards and camp leaders well rested and full. There are many hostile forces beyond these walls. We need to be prepared.”

Nigel couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease at Aiko’s response. He was aware of the necessity to be ready for any potential hazards, yet he couldn’t help feeling that their actions were self-centered. He watched his companions dig into the food, but he couldn’t bring himself to do the same. Instead, he kept his eyes fixed on Aiko, studying her every move.

“What’s the matter?” Blanka said to Nigel in a low voice.

“Something’s off,” he said.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

As they ate, the sound of the infected gibberish grew stronger. Nigel could tell that they were getting closer, and they needed to act fast. He stood up, ready to make a move, but Aiko’s hand on his shoulder stopped him.

“It’s fine, Nigel. We hear the same noises and see the same movements every day.”

“Sounds like they’re testing your defenses,” Eva said.

“And will strike when we least expect it,” Nigel said.

“We run a tight ship. No one comes in or out without me knowing,” Aiko said.

“Complacency doesn’t sound like the Aiko I fought with. What happened to you?” Nigel asked.

The young leader ignored Nigel.

“I was able to decrypt the flash drive, no thanks to you,” Aiko said.

“What was on it?” Vedrana asked.

“Just a dump of random information. I need your help in deciphering it, Nigel.”

“The malware I used was supposed to scrape everything within the government database for information regarding the members of the Cabal and Doc Chop,” Nigel said.

“But it seems like it didn’t work. All we have is unrecognizable text,” Aiko said, with a hint of disappointment in her voice.

Nigel nodded. “I’ll have to try the decryption again.”

“Good. We need all the information we can get,” Aiko said.

An explosion rocked the building. Everyone jumped to their feet, their eyes wide with fear. Aiko grabbed her katana and motioned for everyone to follow her.

“We have to get to the roof! Now!” she shouted.

Nigel and his companions followed her, their hearts pounding with adrenaline. They rushed outside the tent and headed toward a low building that was fortified. Their steps echoed through the building as they ascended the crumbling staircase. It was not until they reached the roof the gravity of the situation overcame them. A group of raiders were attacking the camp. Aiko took aim and fired, her shots ringing out through the air. Blanka and Vedrana joined in, their guns blazing.

Nigel watched in awe as his companions fought against the raiders. He knew they needed to work together if they were going to survive. A pair of drones rose above the encampment. He thought he could see something coming out of a canister.

“Shoot them down!” Nigel shouted.

“No! They’re ours,” Aiko said.

Nigel was taken aback by Aiko’s statement. He had never heard her sound so cold and calculating before. He watched as the drones flew over the raiders, dropping canisters filled with a thick green gas.

“What the hell is that?” Eva yelled.

“It’s the gas that turns people into the infected. But we’ve developed a cure,” Aiko said.

Nigel felt his stomach turn at the thought of using the gas as a weapon. He knew they needed to protect themselves, but this felt like a step too far.

“We can’t just use people as test subjects,” he said.

“We have no choice, Nigel. It’s the only way to protect ourselves,” Aiko said.

Nigel couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Aiko had always been a fierce fighter, but he had never seen her so ruthless. He watched as the gas engulfed the raiders, their screams echoing across the encampment. He felt sick to his stomach, but he knew that there was nothing he could do to stop Aiko. As the last of the raiders fell to the ground, Aiko turned to Nigel with a disdainful look in her eyes.

“We have to do what we can to survive, Nigel. You know that,” she said.

Nigel shook his head, unable to process what had just happened. He watched in horror as Aiko and her men began dragging the limp bodies of the raiders and stacking them on a table just inside the encampment. A man in a doctor’s scrubs strode toward the table. He looked to be in his forties. He smoked a cigarette as he examined the bodies.

“What is he doing?” Nigel asked, pointing to the man in the scrubs.

“That’s Nillhouser. He’s the closest we have to a doctor. I think he studied medicine, but I don’t know where,” Aiko said.

As the night wore on, Nigel couldn’t shake off the unease that settled deep in his gut. He knew that Aiko and her people were doing what they thought was necessary to survive, but at what cost? He couldn’t help but wonder if they had become any better than the infected that roamed the city streets.

A squealing noise emitted from Vedrana. It sounded like feedback and was faint. She adjusted the radio, and the signal came through more clearly.

“Karl—come in, it’s Paladin.”

Aiko moved with ferocious speed and, in the blink of an eye, she had her katana pressed against Vedrana’s throat. She stood there, muscles bulging beneath her skin, not wavering as she held the blade firm.

“Who is Karl and what’s Paladin?” Aiko demanded.

A sudden rush of fear and horror overcame Nigel. It was like he was drowning in a wave of sulfur and bloody black roses that permeated every organ in his body. This was not the Aiko he’d met all those months ago. She’d changed, and not for the better.

“There’s a lot to explain. Why don’t you let her go and we can talk this through?” Nigel said.

Aiko gave him a look of disgust.

“I should have known that you would bring a tracking device into our home. How many more raiders are on their way, led by Daddy?” she taunted.

Blanka and Eva had weapons trained on Aiko. Nigel risked a glance. At least twenty men surrounded them. If Aiko drew first blood, then they were all dead. He had to talk her down.

“Aiko, how’s Hiroto?” Nigel said.

Her demeanor changed, eyes glistening with tears. But her face was a mask of determination.

“Why do you care?”

“How can you question my loyalty after everything we’ve been through? Remember Luke? He nearly killed you. I carried you out of the subway.”

“We all did,” Vedrana said.

“Aiko, we’re on the same side,” Blanka said.

“That’s how I got this souvenir,” Eva said, uncovering her cybernetic arm.

A single drop of blood dripped from the blade. Nigel raised his hands and moved closer to Aiko.

“Don’t come any closer. I will chop her fucking head off!” Aiko said.

“Hey, I know you don’t want to hurt her. Did Paladin hurt you?”

Aiko trembled at the mention of the professor’s name. Tears rolled across her face.

How does Aiko know Paladin, and why is she acting this way?

Nigel described Vedrana using Karl as a human shield and taking his radio as a means to spy on the professor.

“If you must kill someone, then take me,” Nigel said.

Aiko shot him a wild look of bewilderment and relaxed the blade. It left a mark, and a drop of blood rolled across Vedrana’s otherwise flawless neck. Nigel had explored every part of her body. He flushed and felt shame at the lustful memory.

“Bring them to the room,” Aiko said to a short, balding man.

Nigel hadn’t seen the man before, but the man reminded Nigel of a gnome, with his waxed mustache and white hair. He readied a gigantic weapon that evoked images of an elephant gun.

“Hand over the evidence,” the bald man said.

Vedrana handed him the radio, and the man snapped it to his belt. Several armed men relieved Nigel’s companions of their weapons, and with a quick nod they were herded to a crumbling shack deep within the encampment.

“We’re wasting time. We need to work together to defeat Doc Chop,” Nigel said.

He received a smack from one of Aiko’s men for his trouble. If their presence was tenuous before, it was hostile now. Several dirty-looking people began to spit, throwing rocks and hurling disgusting objects they had available. Nigel estimated that the walk to their jail cells was three minutes, but it felt like hours. To his surprise, they were all put into the same cramped, damp, and chilly room. Nigel tried explaining further, but it was no use. The bald man slammed the door and locked it.