“Sure,” Boothe agreed.
As Cliff poured his drink from a wooden keg nearby, Boothe heard a faint ringing sound, like a small bell being shaken relentlessly.
Interlude 4
Microwave
The ringing came from the phone sitting on my computer desk. I reached over and answered it, cutting off the clattering bells inside.
“Hello?”
“Hey kid.” It was Dad. “What are you up to?”
“Not much,” I said. “Just working on some stuff.”
“Homework?” Dad asked.
My backpack was still in the car, torn open, with my homework scattered over the floorboard.
“Yep,” I said. “Getting all of that done.”
“Good,” Dad said. “Look son, I’m going to be home pretty late tonight. We’re rolling out this new server, and they want me here to make sure everything goes as planned. It’ll probably be around two or three in the morning before I get home.”
I tried not to sound happy. Him being gone meant that I could play the game late without judgment or disapproval.
“Oh okay,” I said. “That’s fine.”
“There should be some burritos in the freezer for dinner, if you’re hungry.”
Burritos or pizza for dinner, sandwiches for lunch, Eggos for breakfast. This was my daily menu. Not that I was complaining - I should probably learn how to cook one of these days.
“Sure Dad,” I said. “I’ll go warm something up in a bit.”
I could hear somebody in the background asking for Dad’s help with something.
“I’ll be right there,” he said, away from the phone. Then he spoke to me again. “Alright Bran, I got to get back to work. I’ll see you tomorrow, alright?”
“Alright,” I replied.
“I’m proud of you, you know. Getting your homework done early like this. Good to get it out of the way, then you can play your game all you want.”
“Yeah,” I said, sighing. “That’s the idea.”
We said goodbye and hung up. I stared at the computer screen. Boothe sat at the bar inside The Depot, idly sipping a mug of beer. The Friends list on the side of the screen still showed Scarlett - Offline. It was nearly six and she still hadn’t logged on.
“Don’t be stupid,” I said to myself. I didn’t know why I was so disappointed to be playing without her. I didn’t even know her, not really. Anybody could be controlling that character. Some fat guy in his basement, probably, his keyboard stained with Cheeto dust.
I stood up and walked away from the computer. Hopefully Boothe would be okay inside The Depot for a few minutes. It seemed like a safe-zone - I didn’t think bandits could come inside. In the kitchen, light shone through the window above the sink, the sun gradually sliding behind the trees and houses across the street. My car sat out in the driveway - a reminder of the homework I should be doing. A reminder of the lie I had told my dad.
I’d get to my homework. I’d do it in the morning before classes or something. There’s wasn’t much to it, just a couple worksheets for Pre-Cal and reading some junk from the Government text book.
I sighed. I should just get it done, like Dad said. Then I wouldn’t feel guilty for playing the game. It took a few minutes to gather up the scattered papers inside my car. I bundled them in both hands and carried them into my room, dumping them all on the bed. I found my homework in the mess and put it on the computer desk.
Nothing had changed on the computer monitor. Boothe still sat, drinking. Cliff still wiped out an empty glass. Scarlett was still Offline.
Back in the kitchen, I opened the freezer. It was filled with Totinos pizzas, Nighthawk TV dinners, Eggos, and frozen burritos. I put two rock-hard burritos on a paper plate and slid them in the microwave, watching through the window as they spun, humming while they cooked.
When they were done, I returned to my room, sitting to eat at the computer while I solved the Pre-Cal problems on the worksheet. The burritos weren’t good. The tortilla outside was mushy and the meat within was either ice cold or molten hot, from bite to bite. It wasn’t food, it was fuel - and not the Premium stuff. Barely Unleaded.
By the time I had finished eating, my Pre-Cal homework was done. A notification window sat in the middle of the computer screen.
You have been idle for more than 15 minutes.
Automatically Logging off in 4:37
The timer was counting down, but I shook the mouse and the notification disappeared. With Pre-Cal done, I pulled out my Government book. I leaned back in the chair and read, my feet propped up on the desk. I didn’t take notes - I could usually remember things I read fairly easily. Besides, it was only a couple of chapters.
That’s the thing. School wasn’t really difficult, I just didn’t want to do it. Tests and studying were simple, the motivation was the hard part.
The phone rang again, pulling me out of a boring description of the Judiciary system.
“Hello?” I answered.
“Hey man, what’s up?”
It was Paul. It had been a couple of days since we last talked, which was kind of weird. Back in Austin we would hang out daily, usually for several hours at a time. I had tried to call him yesterday, but he didn’t pick up, or return my call.
“Hey, not much. Just doing some homework.”
“Surprised you’re not playing,” Paul said. “I finally figured out where I am and made it to a big city called New Wichita. Well, big for this game anyways.”
“New Wichita?” I asked. “Right now, I’m in Perry, Oklahoma.”
“Never heard of it,” Paul said.
“I hadn’t either, but I went to AskJeeves last night and found it. Perry is right off I-35, pretty close to Kansas. If New Wichita is in the same place as Wichita, KS, we’re not that far away from each other.”
“Cool,” he said. “You should head up here then. We could do some questing. I’m level five already.”
“I’m still four. Pretty close though.”
“It looks like I lucked out getting to be a mutant,” Paul said. “I’m wandering around this city and seeing mostly humans, a few robots, and almost no other…”
Paul continued talking, but I was no longer paying attention. I looked at the Friends list on my screen.
Scarlett - ONLINE
Then a message appeared at the bottom of the screen.
Scarlett: Hi, are you there? Do you want to group up?
I tossed my Government book over onto the bed and slid the chair up to the desk. Holding the phone to my ear with my shoulder, I typed.
Boothe: I’m here. Yeah cool, I’m in The Depot.
“Anyways, you should come to New Wichita,” Paul continued. “How about we meet at this bar I found called The Eagle’s Nest.”
“Sounds good,” I said, only half listening. Scarlett now entered The Depot and walked over to sit next to Boothe.
Scarlett has requested to join your group.
I clicked Yes to allow her to join.
“Okay man, I’ll talk to you later then,” Paul said.
“Cool, hopefully I’ll see you in a bit.”
“Cool.”
We hung up. I put my headset on. All thoughts of Pre-Cal and U.S. Government now gone. I typed.
Boothe: Hi. I was hoping you would show up tonight.
Scarlett: Yeah, sorry I’m late. Just life stuff.
Boothe: No problem. I understand.
Scarlett: Let’s go do something. I don’t care what.
Boothe: Ok.
Then we walked out of The Depot together and back into the wasteland.
3
Once outside The Depot, Scarlett walked over to the Falcon
“I guess I shouldn’t leave it out in the open like this,” Scarlett said. “I kind of thought it would just disappear when I logged off. I should have parked it in the garage.”
“Probably,” Boothe agreed. “It looks okay though.”
“Any idea where we should go?” she asked.
&n
bsp; Boothe thought about this for a moment. Part of him didn’t want to head to New Wichita immediately. He enjoyed being here with Scarlett, having her all to himself. What would happen if they ran into other players that she liked more? She might leave him and then he’d be back to playing solo again. Still, he had told Paul that he would try to meet him, and there wasn’t much else to do in Perry.
“I heard about this city up north called New Wichita,” Boothe said.
“Like Wichita, Kansas?”
“I think so. It’s supposed to be pretty big.”
“That sounds cool,” Scarlett said. “Big place means more people. There has to be other players out there, right?”
Boothe nodded.
“I have to get some gas first though,” she said. “Let’s head over to Caden’s. He probably knows more about New Wichita too. Are you ready now?”
“Sure,” he said.
“You’re shotgun this time,” she said, nodding towards the passenger seat of the car.
“Oh! Speaking of shotguns.” He held out the gun he had found in the mutmite caves. “Is this better than yours?”
Her eyes grew wide. She reached out for it, taking it into her hands and looking over it.
“Holy crap, man!” she said. “This thing is awesome! How did you get this?”
“Found it in some caves earlier,” Boothe said. He didn’t mention that he had pried it from the grips of another dead player.
“I mean, it’s a little beat up, but yeah it’s better than my shotgun.”
“Cool. You can have it. I’m going to stick with my pistol, or maybe get a rifle or something later.”
“Thanks Boothe,” she said. “If I ever find something that would be good for you to use, I promise I’ll pay you back.”
“No problem,” Boothe said.
They climbed into the car. Scarlett put her old shotgun into the back seat and slid the new one into the loop on her belt. Then she started the car and they drove west out of Perry.
“Car is still driving good, despite the damage,” Scarlett said. “Probably should get it fixed up somewhere, though. It says the HP is at 23 of 50.”
“The car has hit points?” Boothe asked. He didn’t see them displayed anywhere.
“Yeah, I guess you can’t see them because you’re not the owner.”
“I guess,” Boothe said.
A couple minutes later, Scarlett pulled the car into the parking lot at Caden’s Outpost. She drove up to the fuel pump and parked.
“Welcome back [BOOTHE] and [SCARLETT],” Robert said. “Would you like me to fill your car’s fuel tank?”
“Sure,” Scarlett said. “Fill it up.”
The robot, who seemed pleased to be performing this duty, walked over to the pump and dragged the hose to the back of the car. The opening for the gas tank was there, hidden under the battered Oklahoma license plate.
“You may pay inside,” Robert said.
“Thanks Rob,” Scarlett said.
“You are welcome [SCARLETT],” the robot replied with an LED smile.
Scarlett and Boothe walked inside to find Caden behind the counter, working on some machinery at the table. It looked to Boothe like he was making another drone of some sort, though he didn’t quite understand all the electronics involved. Caden was a master at this stuff, while Boothe was still learning about his own drone. Most of the time, he forgot it was even there, floating over his shoulder. It didn’t have a personality, like Robert did. It only floated, and responded to commands. It was a tool, no different than his goggles or the Falcon.
“Hey hey,” Caden said, spinning in his chair to face them as the bell above the door announced their entry. “How are you two doing?”
“Pretty good, ya old geezer,” Scarlett said. She walked around the counter and gave Caden a little punch in the shoulder. “How have you been?”
Boothe felt a little uncomfortable. It was weird to see two people he knew separately, interacting together like they were best friends.
“I’m hanging in there,” Caden said. “What brings you over to my neck of the woods? Ha! Like there’s any woods left out there. Just a bunch of dirt.”
“We’re about to head north,” Scarlett said. “I got a car, over in Perry, and Boothe heard of a place called New Wichita.”
“Ah yep, that’s the biggest free city in these parts. Straight up I-35. Can’t miss it.”
“About how far?” Boothe asked.
“Oh, a little over 25 miles. Here, I have a map around some place.” Caden rolled his chair over to a shelf near the workbench, pulled out a small, badly creased map, and handed it over to Boothe.
Boothe spread it out across the top of the counter. As he looked it over, his goggles highlighted the map in green and a progress bar appeared at the bottom of his vision.
Downloading Map…
After a few seconds, the bar filled up and the words were replaced with.
Map downloaded.
A small map appeared as a square in the bottom right of his vision. When he turned his head to look over at it, the map expanded, filling the area in front of him, translucent and green. He could zoom on the map using the magnification buttons on the side of his goggles, and when he was done with it, he just had to look away, and it would return to a small, non-intrusive square.
“Them goggles is handy, ain't they?” Caden said with a knowing smile. “You lucked out, finding them, you know.”
“It certainly seems that way,” Boothe replied.
Scarlett looked over at him, confused. He wondered if she could find a pair too. It almost didn’t seem fair.
“We need to give you some money,” Scarlett said. “For the gas.”
Caden rolled over and looked at a small terminal on top of the counter, then said. “It came up to $24.”
“I’ll take care of this,” Scarlett said to Boothe. “Since you gave me the shotgun and everything.”
“I can pay for half,” he replied.
“No, seriously,” she insisted. “I got this.”
She handed Caden the money and he slipped it into the side pocket of his blue jeans.
“You know any places I can get the Falcon repaired?” Scarlett asked. “We ran into some bandits last night and they shot the hell out of it.”
“There’s a garage in New Wichita,” Caden said. “A guy named Randy owns it. He’s a good mechanic. Just tell him I sent you and he’ll treat you right.”
The honk of a car horn came from outside, followed by a door slamming shut.
Caden looked over at his computer monitor and said “New customer. Haven’t seen this guy before.”
The windows of the place were completely covered in advertisement posters, blocking all sight, so Boothe opened the front door and saw that another car had pulled in across the pump from the Falcon. Boothe recognized the vehicle as a Ford Mustang, but didn’t know enough about cars to tell the year model. Sixties or Seventies probably. It was bright yellow with a black stripe going up the middle. Robert stood nearby, talking to a man that Boothe hadn’t seen before.
“Hello [HUMAN]. Welcome to [CADEN’S OUTPOST]. What can I do for you?”
“You can get the hell away from my car,” the man said, walking away from the robot and towards the station. He looked to be somewhere around twenty years old and wore a metal breastplate over a torn t-shirt and tight leather pants. His blond hair was styled up in a wave above his head, seemingly unaffected by gravity. Boothe wondered where he found hair product out here in the Wasteland.
“Hey!” the man said, seeing Boothe standing in the doorway. “Is this New Wichita? I expected it to be bigger.”
The familiar block of numbers and letters was tattooed on the man’s arm. Another player.
“This is Perry,” Boothe said. “New Wichita is twenty-five miles north.”
The man sighed. “I just drove from Oklahoma City,” he said. “Fifteen miles to the south. The whole area down there is controlled by bandits. I was told to head to
New Wichita.”
“That’s where we’re going too,” Boothe said.
The man turned and looked over the Falcon, then back to Boothe with a sneer.
“You driving that piece of junk?” he asked.
Scarlett pushed her way past Boothe, stepping outside the building.
“Yeah actually, we are,” she said.
The man looked her over as well, his eyes crawling up her legs and chest, then finally seeing her face.
“Hi,” he said with a smile. He reached out his hand and said. “I’m Lucas.”
Scarlett shook his hand quickly. When she released it, she wiped her palm on the side of her pants as if she had touched something filthy.
“Well, since we’re both going to the same place, how about we make it interesting?” Lucas said. “I got a hundred bucks that says I get to New Wichita before you.”
“That’s okay,” Boothe said. “We’re not really in a hurry.”
“Aw come on,” Lucas said. “I mean, I’ll even give you a bit of a head start, since you’re just driving a beat-up Falcon.”
Scarlett’s eyes widened. Boothe half-expected her to attack the man outright. Instead, she just said. “Fine. We’ll race.”
Boothe sighed.
“Well, that was easy,” Lucas said. “Okay, rules are - no ramming, no fighting, just a straight race. First person to make it to New Wichita gets $100.”
“You better have the money,” Scarlett said.
“Oh I have it, don’t worry,” Lucas said, then added, “I won’t need it, but I have it.”
“Then we’ll see you there,” Scarlett said.
Lucas walked back to his car, shoving Robert a bit as he passed. The robot’s LED smile straightened out to a perfectly horizontal line and its machine gun arms spun a bit, as if it were preparing to fire.
“Goodbye [HUMAN],” Robert said. “Please come back soon.”
“Why did you agree to this?” Boothe asked. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind a race, but we don’t know what is between here and Wichita, and we don’t know anything about how fast that car goes.”
Scarlett shook her head. “I don’t care. Look at him. He’s a douchebag. I just want to beat him.”
Apocalypse 2020: A Wasteland LitRPG Page 9