Blood splattered up from the crushed zombies, spraying his legs in a dark red splatter as the truck motored past and turned to roll past the other side of Nero’s Charger.
“Hah, fuck you,” Nero yelled at the mess of crushed zombies that lay before him. Some of them still moved, so Nero let off a few more shots from his gun to take them out.
Glancing over his shoulder, Nero watched the monster truck roll past the girls, who ducked out of the way, allowing the tyres to crush the walking corpses that side as well.
“You okay?” Nero yelled.
Nyx looked back with a smile. “Awesome,” she answered and jumped up on the Charger’s hood and dropped down beside Nero. Kat followed.
Nero could see that the main force of Kero’s small army was now crashing into the hoard of undead off to Nero’s left, and was making short work of the remaining zombies. The vanguard of vehicles, which Nero’s Charger and Cryptus’ Monster Truck had been a part of, had stopped moving for the most part, having done their job. Around them, warriors of the wasteland were blasting and hacking their way through the creatures around the Daemon Rig. It was utter chaos, but many of the people Nero could see seemed to actually be enjoying the frenzy.
Nero could sympathise. Letting loose and just letting that animal part of your brain go wild could be intoxicating.
“What now?” Nyx asked.
Nero looked over at the rig and spotted a rusted set of metal stairs snaking its way up the side of the enormous edifice of the refinery under the rig itself. Looks as good a choice as anything else, he thought.
“Let’s get to those stairs over there and see where it takes us. I can’t see a garage or anything, so, let’s go hunting.”
“Sounds good,” Nyx answered and started to walk forward, twirling her sword.
Kat did the same and Nero followed after them both.
In the few seconds that followed, watching the two young women stride confidently forward, swords at the ready as the closest undead staggered towards them, Nero couldn’t help but forget where he was and what he was doing and just admire these two deadly Valkyries wading into battle.
He couldn’t help letting his eyes stray to their butts and rippling thighs as they moved, their flesh tensing and releasing in a hypnotic rhythm that caused a stirring in his loins.
It felt like he was watching them in slow motion, and that made it all the more epic.
Nyx closed on the first undead and dropped into a wider stance, winding up her sword before swinging it in towards the zombie. Her sword’s keen blade cut deep, dispatching the first attacker with ease, and then Kat joined the fight, and suddenly, they were a blur of movement, slashing at the knot of undead before them.
A roar from Cryptus’ monster truck snapped him out of his reverie and he looked up at the mystic as he leant out the window of his vehicle.
“What’s the plan?” he yelled as Runt, Chain, and Slick fired on the closer shambling horrors.
“We’re heading for the rig—for those stairs over there—and then we go up,” Nero yelled over the din of battle.
“I’ll help clear the way,” Cryptus answered, and disappeared inside the cab with a roar of the engine. The monster truck shot forward and banked around the girls and into the waiting monsters, crushing them with ease.
Striding forward, Nero reached Nyx’s side and blasted a nearby zombie with his shotgun while Nyx skewered another one.
“Having fun?” Nyx asked.
“Always,” Nero answered as they continued on.
Fighting alongside Nyx was always enjoyable. Partly, it was the obvious stuff, like watching her move and enjoying the view, but he also admired her skill with the sword. She’d been well trained and was honestly one of the most formidable fighters he’d ever seen. He’d spared against her before now with a makeshift sword, and she’d beaten him every time.
But there was also the connection he felt with her. They seemed to feel or sense what the other was going to do next and were able to fight as a well-oiled pair, helping each other out when needed.
He loved feeling that connection to her and relished every moment of it.
Over the next few minutes, the three of them cut and shot their way through the remains of the undead that Cryptus had not run over between them and the rig until they were making their way through several outbuildings and barriers where Cryptus’ truck could not follow. There were far fewer undead here, though, and Cryptus, Runt, Chain, and Slick joined them in their run to the stairs. At the very least, they’d be able to get a better view of the surrounding area and maybe get an idea of where they needed to go.
Turning a corner, the bottom of the stairwell came into view, but it was blocked by a group of deformed looking men and women. Mutants. Mutated humans who’d been consumed by the dark forces of the cataclysm and warped, both physically and mentally.
They carried clubs, metal poles, and other implements of death, which they held menacingly.
One of them was holding a pair of mismatched blades. He was at the front and screamed something unintelligible at them before it swung the swords around itself in a display of chaotic violence while it continued to screech.
Its threat finished, it stopped moving and muttered something before staring at them with fury in its eyes.
Nero raised his gun and shot it.
BOOM!
The Mutie took the hit in the centre of its chest and dropped rigidly back to the arid floor, dead before it hit the ground.
There was stunned silence for a couple of seconds as the other Muties stared at their compatriot in disbelief before they all screamed as one and charged at them with murderous intent.
Nero rushed forward and aimed his gun, blasting one in the face, making him flip over backwards from the impact, blood fountaining from the massive wound in the mutant’s head.
Beside him, Nyx, Kat, and the others attacked them as well. The girl’s swords cutting them to ribbons while Cryptus’ high-powered revolver made short work of those who approached him.
Nero dispatched two more with his shotgun, leaving just one, who was on him before he could bring his gun to bear. Twisting, Nero knocked the Mutie’s improvised weapon sideways. Seeing an opening, Nero rammed his elbow into the attacker’s face with a crunch, making the man stagger back in shock as he spat blood.
It was just the opening he needed. Half a second later, Nero’s shotgun barked again, hitting the Mutie in the stomach like a wreaking ball.
He didn’t get back up.
Looking up, the ground around them was littered with bodies and his friends stood victorious.
“Come on,” Nero said, and strode for the stairs and started to make his way up, sometimes taking two steps at once.
“Look,” Kat called out from behind him a few short moments after they’d climbed above the rooftops of the surrounding buildings.
Nero stopped and looked back. She was pointing off into the distance to their right. Nero turned and peered out into the desert and caught sight of what Kat was pointing at.
“Dust trail,” Cryptus said. “Looks like it’s headed away from here.”
“That’s them,” Slick added. “That’s the convoy. They’re running for it.”
Nero squinted at the dust trail and could make out the tiny vehicles— including one long one that looked like a rig—speeding off into the desert, back towards Midway City where they had come from.
“Damn it,” Nero cursed under his breath, feeling frustrated that he’d been outmanoeuvred.
He looked down at Nyx, who was clearly itching to run back to the car and follow. “We follow right?” she asked.
Nero nodded. There was no thinking required to reach that choice. They needed to find the Whisperer, and their lead was making a run for it.
“Let’s go, back to the cars,” he yelled.
“We’re staying,” Slick said.
“You’re sure?” Nero asked.
Slick nodded, and so did Chain. “Thank you, thoug
h, we appreciate everything you’ve done.”
“Yeah, thanks,” Chain added. “And sorry for what Latrix did to you; you didn’t deserve that.”
Nero nodded while Nyx smiled. “Thanks.”
“Go on, get out of here. There’s no time to waste.”
“Thanks, we’ll see you again sometime,” Nyx said and shooed Cryptus, Runt, and Kat down the stairs. Nero followed, leaving Chain and Slick behind.
Chapter 7
Nero
Nero drove the Charger, with Nyx beside him and Kat in the back, as fast as he dared through the rocky arid desert landscape with Cryptus in his monster truck not too far behind.
The convoy had a significant lead on them, but the dust cloud had still been visible when they had first sped away from the Daemon Rig. Nero knew that if the convoy consisted of, at least, one large tractor-trailer big rig, even if it were supercharged, it would be noticeably slower than his Charger, or even the monster truck, for that matter. Meaning they’d be able to catch them up.
With both hands on the wheel, Nero concentrated hard on the road ahead. They were travelling at speed, and it would only take one missed rock that he failed to spot to bring an end to this chase.
Nyx must have realised the potential risk because she kept quiet and watched the road as well, even pointing out a few things as they went.
It took them over an hour of intense driving before they started to get a better look at the convoy of vehicles they were chasing. They were still a long way off, but even here, the remains of the dust cloud they were kicking up started to make the going harder.
There was nothing for it, Nero concluded, they would need to swing out wide and come up their flank.
Moving left, Nero cleared the tailing dust cloud and drove into clear air, all the while gaining on the Whisperer’s convoy.
“How many are there?” Nero asked. They were a good way off to one side of the convoy, but much closer now, giving them a clearer look at the force and number of vehicles. Nero guessed that the convoy must have seen them. They would be clearly visible in the otherwise featureless desert as they approached, which was the main reason that Nero kept his distance from them for the time being.
“I count one big rig, eight escort vehicles, and maybe ten or more outriders on motorbikes. They’re well defended. I can’t see how you’d take them.”
“I don’t think we could; they’d pick us off before we got close,” Nero answered. He didn’t like it. They needed to be careful here. The leadership in that convoy would probably have valuable information about where the Whisperer was located, but how could they find it out? The obvious way would be to just follow them, but if they suspected they had a tail, it made sense to Nero that they would either divert or look for somewhere they could lose him.
He didn’t like either option.
“Alright, we need to find out where they’re going, and I don’t fancy attacking them,” Nero explained.
“Why not?” Kat asked.
“Too risky?” Nyx added.
“Yes, but we also don’t know who in that convoy knows the info we need, and there’s always the chance of killing that person in such an attack.”
“So, we follow them?” Nyx asked.
“I think that’s sensible for now, yes. I think we should slow down, hang back, and try to keep out of sight.”
“Don’t want to spook them,” Nyx said, understanding what Nero had inferred.
“Exactly,” he said, and let the Charger roll to a stop. Moments later, the monster truck pulled up alongside him.
“Something wrong?” Cryptus asked, hanging out of the window above them.
“We’ll never get close to them like this without them being able to shoot us,” Nero explained. “We’ll hang back, follow at a distance and see where they go.”
“You’re the boss,” Cryptus answered. Nero waved in acknowledgement and sat back in his car, watching the dust cloud from the convoy recede off into the distance. They would follow soon enough.
Beside him, Nyx looked nervous and uncomfortable. He understood why. They were sitting here, watching the convoy pull away, and that collection of vehicles represented her one link to her mother. He knew it would be hard for her, but Nero also knew that she would understand. They needed to do this to make sure that convoy continued to lead them in the right direction.
Time passed, and before long, they were setting off again, moving to follow the now distant convoy once more as it drove west. This time, Nero didn’t aim to catch up, and the driving became much easier.
They reached the former coastline again that evening and drove up to where they had stayed the night on the beach on the way out. Off in the far distance, as the night drew in, the convoy stopped and made camp for the night. Nero also brought his Charger to a stop and got out, peering off into the distance at the slowly forming campsite.
It was clear they had done this before as they set up a defensive perimeter and begin to patrol it.
Nyx stepped up beside him and watched as well. Nero looked over at her and reached out, pulling her in close.
“We’ll find her,” he whispered. “I promise.”
Nyx nodded. “I know,” she said.
***
Setting off the next morning, it became clear that, as they had suspected, the convoy was heading towards Midway City. The ruined buildings grew on the horizon, and the group of vehicles moved ever closer, speeding along one of the ruined highways that led deep into the urban area.
Nero veered left. He had no desire to follow them into the city. They would need to get a lot closer to follow them, and it would get a lot more dangerous, but he needed to discuss it with everyone first.
Nero brought the Charger to a stop atop a low rise in the landscape, giving them a great view of the city in the distance and the convoy driving into it.
Getting out of the car, Nero watched Cryptus roll up and clamber out of the truck.
“What’s up?” he asked Nero.
“Alright, everyone. We need to discuss next moves. You can see they’re driving into the city, probably with the aim of meeting Latrix, but we know she’s gone. They don’t. So, what do we do?”
“We need to follow them,” Nyx said.
“It’s dangerous in the city. You know it as well as I do, and that convoy will not stay in that city. Latrix is gone, and when they discover that, they will be on their guard. Now, what did Slick and Chain say about where the convoy goes after visiting Midway City?”
“They head south,” Cryptus offered.
“Exactly, so I say, we find somewhere south of the city and wait for them to come out.”
“That sounds risky,” Nyx said. “What if they go north this time?”
“They won’t,” Cryptus objected. “We’re at the northern edge of the Whisperer’s territory here. Latrix was as far as his influence went. The rig out east has probably fallen to Kero and the Trinity. The Watchtower to the west is no longer under his control. Trust me, they will head south.”
“If you’re certain…” Nyx said, sounding very unsure.
“In fact, I’ll go one better. I say we head south now. The convoy will head for the channel tunnel.”
“Channel tunnel?” Nero asked.
“South of here is a settlement based around the northern entrance to a tunnel that used to run under the sea to the next country to the south. The sea might be gone, but the tunnel is still there, and is controlled by the Whisperer.”
“And that’s where the convoy will go?”
“I’m certain of it, it’s their only choice now. They have literally nowhere else to go.”
“We can beat them there. They’ll never suspect us that way.”
Cryptus nodded.
Nero narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at the mystic. “How do you know all this?” Nero asked. It was a valid question, he thought, given that he seemed to know a fair amount of the Whisperer and its territory.
“You don’t travel these wa
stes for two decades and not learn where the territories of the Night Lords are,” Cryptus answered.
Nero nodded. It made sense. Knowledge was power, after all.
Nero had to admit, he liked the plan. They could follow this convoy around for days, but they would be on their guard and suspect treachery if they tried to approach them, but by doing this, by moving ahead, they could remove that suspicion and get close to them and assess their chances properly.
It was risky, though. there was no doubt that this could backfire if the convoy did choose to head in a different direction.
Cryptus seemed confident of his prediction, however, and certain that he was right. This mission meant more to Nyx then it did to Nero, though. There were some very personal stakes involved in it for her, and it felt only right that it should be her choice how they go about this.
Nero turned to her where she leant against the side of the car. “What do you think?” Nero asked.
She looked unsure and seemed to be thinking it through for a moment until she looked up. She glanced at Nero and then over at Cryptus.
“You’re sure of this?” she asked.
Cryptus sighed. “Can I be one hundred percent sure, without a shadow of a doubt that this will be what they do? Well, no, of course not. But I am ninety-nine-point-five percent sure, and I’d bet everything I own that this is what they will do.”
“That sounds like you’re pretty certain.”
“I’m positive that I’m right.”
Nyx sighed again, and then looked over at Nero. “Okay, let’s do it; let’s go to this tunnel.”
“The tunnel might be the perfect place to attack them as well, if that’s what you still want to do?” Cryptus suggested.
“Is it a long tunnel?” Nero asked.
“It’s over an hour’s drive to get through it,” he said. “I’ve been through it a few times. It’s a wide road in a dark tunnel. When you’re halfway through, underground, no one is going to get there quick enough should something happen, and there’s no undead down there, either.”
Wasteland Road Knights Trilogy Page 38