by Han Yang
It had been seven days since the first wave and this variation could very well have a birthing cycle that short. This was what brought about the downfall of humanity in my opinion. While good people defended their home, the prog’narock established their nests.
“We haven’t seen any of them digging under the walls. They never needed to with those claws they can climb with. What are you thinking?” Zed asked.
I tossed my vest on, checking the buttons. “Is there a mine nearby?” I asked.
“Uh, you were in Lornsto. It's the only mine around. The entrance isn’t far from the town,” Zed said. “Whatcha thinking?”
“That we steal some horses, race for a boat, sail downriver to Lornsto, and occupy that mine. I left a whole wagon full of canned food behind due to a lack of horses,” I said. “Figured the fancy stuff would sell better.”
“There’s good people dying up there,” Zed said. “A steady gun hand could turn the tide and set some wrongs to right.”
I had a feeling a new quest just appeared in my log. A quest that I didn’t actually care about. Roma and Yilissa relied on me and getting them to safety seemed to matter more than fixing the political upheaval of Laro.
“I - I - I,” I stammered.
Roma interjected. “They cast aspersions upon Theo regarding his origins and used his uniqueness to kill my parents. I know they’re not all responsible, but they need to look after themselves first. No one is coming from Bisben to save them, and Theo shouldn’t feel the burden of protecting the whole town.”
“They’ll shoot you in the back the second you save them,” Yilissa said, finishing lacing her knee-high boots. “You want to go to this mine?”
“I do. It’ll have a lot more space and eventually, the narocks shift. They’ll be like locusts cleansing the land and establishing nests further and further inland. If you hunker down, and give it a few years, you can start to cleanse the area,” I said.
“And what, we become farmers?” Roma asked.
“Right now, I don’t know. But yeah, establishing a home sounds nice. A base we can call our own. I’d like to live, kinda partial to not dying,” I said. “How come no one uses boats to go upriver?”
“Well, we do. Steamboats are the main mode. The current on the Bewu River is fierce. We don’t even let our youth get in deep because it will rip them downriver. Crews without a strong, favorable-wind normally have to take wagon winches or a full rowing crew,” Yilissa said. “Basically, only the foolish try to go upstream via river without an engine.”
I continued getting ready and asked, “But are there boats to use downriver?”
“Uh, there should be. Because of the current, most of the fishing boats drop anchor nearby. The barges go down stream to Opo Harbor. After they offload, their barges are wagoned back to here.
“Basically, with all the death starting in Opo, and spreading to Lornsto, no one will want to take a barge downriver toward the danger. While I’m fine with hunkering down, the aquatic webo’narocks seem like they’ll eat us all on the two-day barge ride,” Yilissa said.
“If we take the boat, we only need to fight one type of narock, and if we get creative with the defenses, they may struggle to climb up the sides. How far is the river?” I asked.
“Like on foot?” Roma asked, and I nodded. “Close, we use the water for everything.”
“How far?” I repeated.
“With me, twenty minutes. Without me, ten at a good run. You won’t want horses, there's a firefight at the barns right now,” Zed said sadly. “You better believe whichever side wins will be defending them.”
“Start packing the cans and fill the canteens,” I ordered Yilissa while lacing up my boots. “Are you coming or going?” I asked Zed.
“Again, I’m staying. And before you go on some long tangent about how I should go, stop. I’m old and will slow you down. More importantly this is my home and I’m going to stay down here. Also, leave these cans. Steal more from the store. I may need something to eat and getting up and down to restock this place is hard for an old man,” Zed said.
“Want me to do a few runs to toss some down?” I asked.
“If you're leaving now, no. The fighting is still thick, but humans are winning against the monsters and Tarak’s men ain’t taking any losses. I play on no side, but by this time tomorrow, I’ll go up top and expect to not get shot by whomever the winner is. You, yeah, you’d get shot,” Zed said.
“Can I buy items and leave crowns?” I asked. “I’d rather not steal from you.”
“Not much I can do if you take what you want. I bet the store is being looted or will be. But yes, just leave some crowns down here,” Zed said.
Roma replied, “Yes. Here’s half the coin weight, mostly small coins. We have a few hundred crowns left. Enough to buy basic stuff should the opportunity arise.”
I stood and placed a hand on Zed’s shoulder. “Thanks for keeping us hidden for the week. If things get settled and you need a place to run to, come visit us in the mine.”
“The mine sure does have more space than this. I wish y’all luck,” Zed said and hugged the girls.
Roma handed me my bag which felt surprisingly light. The ladies had shifted supplies to other bags and we each were laden down. I connected the bag to the ascension rope.
“I said to make mine heavier,” I said, grabbing the ladder.
“Well, yours was supposed to have the food,” Yilissa said with a smidge of sass.
Both ladies stared at me while waiting. We prepared for this moment, rehearsed our exit, and talked about being ready for anything. I smiled at them both proudly, hoping we could make this work.
I hurried up the ladder, slowing when I neared the double hatches. I needed both hands, no matter how badly I wanted to keep one of my revolvers ready. When the false bottom popped open, I quickly raised the main hatch.
The soft pops of gunfire seeped through the warehouse walls. Whoever cried for help earlier, stopped, and as far as I could tell, nothing lurked nearby. I rushed out of the hatch taking the risk.
Nothing attacked me or stirred in the warehouse, letting me relax a bit. The early morning sun cast into the building through parts of the structure that needed patchwork. The main door’s locking beam was firmly in place and a second scan revealed no threats.
I hauled up my bag, dropping the rope as soon as I could. I tried to uphold one of my father’s mottos - ‘Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast.’ I never understood the saying until I had to do something I’d mess up easily by trying to be too quick.
After each of the three bags rested on the piled tents, the girls attached the rifles. That was the final haul up, leaving me less nervous. Yilissa and Roma ascended the ladder and I helped them out with a free hand near a pistol.
“Seven days,” Roma said, shutting the hatch.
“I thought it was nice, minus the poop pit,” Yilissa said quietly. “At least I got to heal somewhat.”
Roma nodded, “Being trapped with a gentleman has its perks. So serious though. Would be nice to get to know him better.”
I ignored her comments and helped tighten the bag straps on both their backs. Once that was done, each of the ladies carried one of the unicorns at the ready. I strapped my pack on and carefully stepped to the door.
Roma lifted the lock bar and Yilissa slowly slid the door open. The sound of sporadic gunfire popped louder. We paused while I listened for footsteps, growls, or snarls.
Taking a few cautious steps, I walked into the empty alley.
Roma hurried to lead the way to Zed’s shop and Yilissa locked the door behind us. I left Henry slung across my back and had one of the dragons at the ready.
“I need help getting a survivor out of this room,” a voice shouted.
Roma paused, clearly wanting to help.
I slapped her butt, pushing her forward. She scowled but continued. “We have to keep ourselves alive. If I’m uncovering a door to save a woman and a bad guy finds me, I’m dead.”
A roar from a few streets over reverberated through my bones.
“Got one over here, come on lads!” a voice shouted.
“That’s my brother,” Yilissa hissed. “I want to get revenge.”
I didn’t try to deter her, but I also didn’t encourage her, and we kept hustling for Zed’s store.
When her footsteps never deviated, Roma huffed in relief. We both listened to see if she stuck with us or altered her course. I wouldn’t be following her on that mission.
A primal scream from a dying man told me they found the narock. The continuous fire of pistols covered our approach to the back of Zed’s shop.
The door was thrown wide open, and I heard rummaging inside. When I pressed up against the wall, I just about said we should turn for the river. But there just so happened to be a perfect sized hand cart waiting by the back door.
I cursed myself for at least not taking a few days of food. At least we had water.
Whoever came to rob the place, well, at least they conveniently left me something I needed. The question was - did I fight them for what was inside? Or did I just take the cart, earn a small win and head for Lornsto?
The constant gunfire nearby gave me all the cover I needed to ace whoever was inside. Killing humans for supplies. I sighed it had come to this.
I tossed my bag onto the cart and strode in with the hammer back on my .45. I didn’t tiptoe, there wasn’t a need with the barrage of bangs nearby.
When I left the back room, I slowed at the doorway to the main storefront. Morning sunlight illuminated the aisles and the flecks of dust hung heavy in the air.
I found Keb opening bags, digging inside to figure out what held what.
“This dipshit was never organized,” Keb grumbled.
He clearly wasn’t talking to me, so I waited.
“Yeah, so what, we need most of this,” a female voice said from the other side of the store. “Found a bag of bones. What the hell was wrong with Zed?”
“Wait, you can’t shut down my complaint then bitch about bones,” Keb said.
“Little brother, just get to work. If not, you’ll be pissing yourself while you face down the narocks,” the sister teased.
“I’m no coward,” Keb protested. I waited, seeing the duo had been stacking supplies and valuables near this doorway. “How is hunting for knives going?”
“Well, I got a bag so far tossed on the pile. I just found some .22 rounds. Ma will want those. We should get going before Tarak’s men ambush us,” the sister said. “This is a full load anyway.”
“Yes, found some and fine,” Keb said, grunting as he lifted something heavy. “I guess we will bring two bags of knives.”
They both approached the piled goods at the same time with arms laden. I winced at what I was about to do.
I spun out of the doorway with the revolver braced and ready. They both froze, dumping their burdens to race for weapons.
“You -”
I lined up the sister first.
Boom!
A quick shift to Keb gave him time to dive to the ground. He flung hands up as if that would save him.
Boom!
The back of their heads burst like melons and the bodies collapsed. I ran over the piled supplies and into the store. I grabbed a big crate of canned food from a random shelf. I stacked a few .22 repeaters on top of the food since they found the ammo.
Roma came to help but vomited at the sight of the dead bodies.
“Damn, ruthless,” Yilissa said, hefting a bag of knives.
“They killed Roma’s parents and while this is savage, it was needed,” I said. “They saw my face. Even if I bound them and gagged them, which would have taken time, they’d have told on us for sure and I’d rather live.”
“I liked Joana,” Roma said.
I grunted and said, “Joana is in Kimi’s inner circle. No way she didn’t know, and we needed the supplies. If they saw us taking off with their cart, same issue - I’d have to shoot them.”
Roma recovered and started removing the items from the store and onto the cart.
Three distinct shrieks erupted in the city, and the brigade handling the beast would have their hands full. I stopped looting, providing cover while the ladies loaded up the cart. I provided overwatch, hearing the fighting against two narocks intensify in the distance.
The city most certainly was not secure. Evident when a narock crested over the wall in retreat while another attacked snatched a lad who chased the first one.
I shifted my fully loaded dragon to my right hip while reloading two rounds quickly. This way if danger came and I had the revolver opened, I’d drop the weapon in my hand and pull from my holster.
Roma heaved a final crate of food on top of the bags, and I couldn’t help but feel we over packed.
Yilissa said, “There is a guard gate on the northwest side that connects to the docks. It's meant for shaking down the workers in case they try to sneak in gains to avoid taxes. Should be empty with no one coming into town. It’s just two doors with a room to store supplies and for guards to take notes of who comes in and out. We’ll use that. We have to go that way to reach the docks.”
She pointed toward the slums and away from the fighting. That would be closer to Tarak’s men though. In a city filled with violence, it was still a decent option.
Roma tried to lift the cart and failed. “I’ll help,” Yilissa said.
“No, we can’t have you tearing your stitches,” I said. “Aim, exhale, confidently squeeze.”
I said and placed my revolver at the front of the hand cart so I could easily reach it in case of an emergency.
With a grunt I hefted the cart off its brakes and pushed it forward. The axle creaked and the device sounded incredibly loud up close. I was certain I was just overly concerned because gunfire still ripped through the town.
Yilissa led the way with Roma covering my back. We left the commerce district in a hurry, sacrificing caution for speed. I watched Yilissa moving with a slight limp, but she seemed fluid.
She paused at every intersection keeping us to the alleys if she could. A group of humans chased a narock who was hopping roofs a few streets over, and for a second, I thought our escape was ruined.
The sound of the hunt faded, and every second that ticked by, we neared the wall.
I could see the wall not far away when we darted across a main road. People hesitantly peeked out of homes, hoping the danger had passed. In the far distance, the barricades that Tarak’s men established created a large defensive position.
When we reached the next alleyway, Yilissa shrieked at the next juncture. She stumbled back and raised her pistol at the ready with a shaky hand.
A horse nickered from around the corner, sniffing the air. When the head crept forward, I recognized Binky. This was the asshole horse who was an escape artist.
“I almost shot the stupid thing,” Yilissa said with an exacerbated breath.
I set the brakes on the handcart and strode towards Binky. A saddle rested on his back, firmly in place, and he even had his bridle on. When I snatched his lead, he nipped at my fingers.
I playfully flicked his nose and he whinnied in complaint.
“Stupid horse indeed. He’ll follow your lead,” I said to Yilissa, handing her the leather straps.
She pressed on and Binky neighed happily, eager to be led toward the city’s exit.
Roma hissed, “Hurry up, some men are running from the barricades.”
Instead of lifting the cart and fleeing, I leaped onto the supplies. The jars of food threatened to tip but I vaulted onto the nearest roof before they could topple. While Roma rushed to stabilize our goods, I crept along the home.
Atop the wall, a few hundred yards away, Tarak’s men positioned themselves to defend the gate. I couldn’t see the men coming our way yet due to my angle, so I ra
n toward the main street. I had to leap from one house to the next and I slowed once I knew I’d have a bead on our pursuers.
Four men hustled down the road, hurrying to catch us. I saw them peeking into alleyways, not watching the roofs too well as they tried to figure out which alley we ducked down.
I popped out, sighted the lead man with his head turned to the side, and fired.
Boom!
The round glanced off his shoulder before diving into the thigh of his buddy. They both tumbled down, roaring in pain. The other two goons quickly sought cover to avoid my line of sight.
I jumped off the roof and into an alley. It happened so fast that the long rifles that turned to find me only saw empty rooftops.
I raced to the handcart and yanked the brakes up. In a flash I started barreling toward the thin raven-haired Yilissa.
“Eek,” Yilissa said, hurrying forward.
“They’ll take their time coming forward now. Those two will need someone to help them back to safety as well. We’re on a timer, though,” I warned.
“Got it. Abandoning caution,” Yilissa said.
We wound through the slums and as the homes shrank in size, I could see more and more of the looming wooden wall.
I panted and Yilissa grunted from her hobble but we both pushed on, worried about the enemy catching us before we could escape.
After a final turn, we arrived at the wall.
A big boxy room jutted inward into the city. The door was flung wide open and Yilissa crossed the threshold with her weapon at the ready with Binky shoving to get in.
A woman shrieked in shock and a man pleadingly said, “Please don’t shoot us. Please, Yilissa.”
“Gregory?” she said in confusion.
“Keep running, Yilissa,” I ordered.
“Can we take Gregory, he worked on Pa’s estate. His three kids are innocent, as are he and his missus,” Yilissa said with an edge of sadness.
I didn’t pause, driving the cart into the cramped space and forcing Binky outside. The door to the rough exterior terrain was only a few steps away and I could all but taste the freedom it offered.