by Misty Vixen
“For real? You don’t think I was being...petulant? Or stupid? Arrogant?”
“Fuck no. And not just because I hate his guts. That was brave. Stupid, maybe. Risky is more like it. But I think Lara agreed to do what she agreed to do only because you stood up to him. I think she was on the fence, and that decided her. Helping us out is very risky. She knows me and Cait, but doing something like this...Stern could exile or even execute her for this. She had to feel like it was a risk worth taking. Lara’s a good person. She cares about people. If I thought she’d do it, I’d ask her to sign up with our group.”
“It’s too bad she won’t,” he murmured.
Ellie laughed. “You just say that because you want to fuck her.”
“That’s not the only reason I say that,” David replied.
“It’s all right. I want to fuck her, too. So does Cait. I’m still not sure if she does girls. Maybe we’ll find out someday. Speaking of which, Jennifer is really into you. I mean, I figured she’d like you after you slept together, but I’ve never seen her like this before. She’s so...jubilant. So excited. I think you might have another inhuman lady on your hands. I wouldn’t be surprised if we could talk her into moving in with us.”
“Really? She seemed to like her house...”
“She does, but I think you reminded her of what it’s like to be around people that are nice to her. She’s obviously come back out of her shell a lot around the doctors, and I’m pretty sure she connects that to you. She would never have even gone to them if we didn’t come ask for her help, and you left the biggest impression on her of all of us, so...yeah, I think she associates her recent social resurgence with you strongly, and that makes her like you even more powerfully than she would have otherwise. How do you feel about her?”
“I like her,” he replied. “I’d like to spend more time with her, get to know her better, but I like her. She’s...sweet. She reminds me a little of April.”
“Yeah, I can see that. Less timid, but yeah,” Ellie said. She paused. “Okay, hush. We’re going to have to head back into the woods now.”
David nodded and clammed up. She led him to a path that led back into the woodlands. They’d managed to make it a decent distance up the river, ideally bypassing a lot of stalker territory, but it was genuinely hard to tell what belonged to the stalkers and what didn’t at this point. And now they had the vipers to worry about, apparently. He wanted to believe that it was a fluke, and that was possible, but it seemed unlikely.
Maybe those were the threats that Stern was referring to.
Or perhaps there was something else that he wasn’t seeing. David thought about it for the first few minutes as they made their way through the stands of dead trees, but ultimately shook the thoughts off. Now was the time to pay attention. If they were very lucky, they could scout out the jerks, make some notes, get back to the hospital, escort Elias back home, and then get back home all before the sun had gone down. It seemed unlikely, but not impossible.
He followed Ellie through the woods, trusting her. She seemed to know exactly where they were going and what she was doing, and he was careful to make as little noise as possible. Minutes went by in the frigid air as they pressed on. David studied his surroundings. He saw dead trees and snow, mostly, but occasionally he caught sight of a distant zombie, or, a few times, some animals. A deer here, a rabbit there, several big black birds staring down on them from above, and that made him think of the other kind of undead that he had yet to encounter, thankfully. The hunters. They were the only ones that flew, as they were mutated AVs.
He hoped never to see one.
They walked until they reached a hilly part of the land, where the landscape went off in unexpected dips and rises, and Ellie warned him softly to watch his step. He kept close to her as the trees seemed to press in. He wondered where they were going first, what he would see. He had never been to this part of the region. He knew there were still places unexplored to him, still things to discover and experience. Exploration had always been something he had a particular love of. Buildings, places, old vehicles, unique and beautiful locations in the landscape. Finding them was always a joy, and even searching a new building was its own joy.
Abruptly, the trees fell away, and suddenly he was given a fantastic view, perhaps the best he’d had since coming to this region, of a vast valley that spread out below him. It was a few hundred feet deep and a few miles long, stretching off to the north, away from where they stood at its head, atop a cliff sheer that served as its southern end.
“Holy shit,” he whispered.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Ellie murmured.
“Uh-huh.”
“It’s roughly a thousand times more beautiful in the spring and summer.”
She crouched and retrieved the binoculars, then began studying the valley floor. David did the same, without the added benefit. Mostly he saw trees and flat land, but two things stuck out. They were both about a quarter ways down the valley ahead of them. The first was a half-constructed building. It was surrounded by the rusted-out hulks of huge vehicles and machinery. He saw an old bulldozer, a few pickup trucks, and a crane that might have been covered in dead vines. The other curiosity was a hole that at first looked like a cave in the valley wall directly west of the half-constructed building, but he then realized it was manmade. It was framed by rusted girders, bracing the rock and earth. All of it looked long abandoned.
“Well, I don’t think they’re here,” Ellie said finally. “I see zero activity around the building or the mine.”
“What is this place?” David asked.
“A mining operation, an old one, back from when the world wasn’t overrun by undead. Not sure what the building was going to be, maybe an HQ for the mining op, but obviously they never got a chance to finish it.”
“Anyone ever check it out? The mine?” he asked.
She replaced the binoculars. “Yes.”
“And?”
“They don’t come back.”
“Oh.”
“Yep. Something bad’s down there. Come on. This place is dead. I figured it would be a long shot anyway that even they would be stupid enough to establish camp down in that valley. The next place is the most likely.”
“What is it?” he asked as they resumed walking.
“Hunting grounds.”
He fell silent as they trudged on through the snow and dead plants. They skirted the top edge of the valley until they had passed it, then plunged back into the dead forest. The minutes again ticked by with an annoying slowness. They walked and walked, then walked some more, pausing occasionally as Ellie heard something or thought she saw something, but ultimately, they remained undisturbed all the way to the hunting grounds.
“Okay,” Ellie whispered, “stop.” He froze, and she stood frozen beside him, waiting, listening. Suddenly, a grin split her face, a dark one. “Hear that?”
“Yes,” he replied softly. Voices. Several voices.
“Come on. Slowly, quietly.”
They crept forward until they reached an incline in the land, and soon they got down onto their bellies and crawled through the snow. Finally, they crested it, and that’s when David saw them. Ahead of them, perhaps three hundred feet away, was an encampment. Essentially it was a collection of cabins built around a structure maybe half the size of the main office he now called home back at the campgrounds. The place was definitely well-populated. He saw a few dozen people moving around. Some guarded the perimeter, some sat at fires in the middle of the area, some were dragging in fresh game kills, some were gutting and skinning them. He could see more through what windows he could view from his position.
“Is it them?” he whispered.
“It’s them,” Ellie murmured.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes. Look at the guy near the biggest fire.”
She passed him the binoculars and he studied the man in question. There were several sitting there, drinking from mugs, cheering and jeering
in equal measure as they talked, and he recognized the man who had led the assault on his home two weeks ago.
“Yeah, I see the fucker,” he growled, passing them back.
“Good. Let’s study up for another few minutes, then get the fuck back to the hospital. We’re gonna nail these fuckers,” Ellie replied.
CHAPTER NINE
They made it back to the hospital without a problem and in good time.
By then, Elias was just about ready to go.
“So?” Vanessa asked as they came into the side room with the stairs. “You find them?”
“Fuck yes, we did. They’re at the hunting grounds. Dozens of them. It’s definitely them. I think we can make this work if we go hard and fast,” Ellie replied.
“Good. Count me in. When are we doing this?” Vanessa replied.
“Tomorrow night. Be ready for a full goddamned assault.”
“Oh, I’ll be ready.You can fucking believe that. Think I’ll take the time to pull the Widowmaker out of storage and clean her up.”
“Widowmaker?” David asked.
Vanessa just grinned savagely. “You’ll see.”
Cait appeared in the doorway. “Elias is ready.”
“All right. Remember, tomorrow night. We’ll probably be here around sundown.”
“I’ll be ready,” Vanessa replied.
They gathered Jennifer and Elias, and then they left. Once again, they trekked as quickly as they could through the snow and the trees. Conversation was minimal and their pace was as fast as Ellie could make it. Elias seemed a little out of it, and David wondered how much blood they’d taken. No wondered he needed an escort. This time, they did run into a pair of stalkers and a few zombies. They dispatched them handily though, and by the time they got back to the fishing village, the place was bustling with activity, and the number of people had again doubled. He thought that everyone in the village had returned by now.
They tracked down Murray, who was overseeing some repairs.
“Ah, I see you’ve held up your end of the bargain,” he said upon seeing them and Elias.
“Can I go lay down now?” Elias murmured.
“Yeah, go on.”
“Thanks,” he said quietly, and drifted away.
“Well, Murray? We held up our end of the bargain,” Ellie said.
“Yes, yes. Don’t worry, so will I. Ruby!” he called. A moment later a jag woman with vividly red fur approached from among the shacks. She really stood out among the group, not only because of her fur, but also because of how tall and lean she was. She was probably six four or six five, and very skinny, though he could see that her frame was packed with small but well-defined muscles. She had brilliantly green eyes.
“Yes?” she asked.
“They did the job, so you’re with them for their operation. Don’t get yourself killed out there,” Murray said.
“Yeah, sure,” she replied, and turned to face them. “Ellie. Cait. Good to see you.” She spoke with a clipped professionalism that he thought might be coldness, but then realized was more just how she was.
“Ruby,” Ellie replied. “This is David, and this is Jennifer.”
“Good to meet you,” she said, nodding tightly to them. They both responded in kind. “So, what’s this about? Murray was not very forthcoming with details.”
“You know the group that attacked River View and burned it to the ground?” Cait asked. Ruby nodded again. “We’re going to murder them.”
“Ah. Then I stand ready to assist you in full. I trust you’ll be wanting to put me to use as a sniper,” she replied.
“Yes, we were hoping to do that,” Ellie replied. “They’re at the hunting lodge. Would you like to come with us, back to the campgrounds?”
Ruby hesitated. She looked around at the other villagers. “I would like to, but I can’t. Not right now. There’s too much to do here. When is this happening?” she asked.
“Tomorrow night.”
“Okay. Where would it be best that I met you?”
“The hospital,” Ellie replied. “Be there at sundown.”
“Understood. I’ll be there. It was good seeing you all, I have to get back to work now.”
“Okay, goodbye, Ruby.”
“Goodbye.”
She turned and left.
“Well...is there anything else we have to do before we go home?” David asked, looking at the skies. It had gotten colder since leaving the hospital, and clouds were blowing in. He had the distinct impression that a storm was on the way.
“Nope. Let’s go home,” Cait replied merrily.
“Thank fucking God,” Ellie muttered.
They left the fishing village and began to head towards their home.
…
Sure enough, it began to snow as they started their long trek home.
David shivered and complained occasionally as they walked alongside the river. He kept a close eye on the frigid waters, watching snowflakes hit it and disappear in an instant, and wondered if it would freeze over.
“So what’s up with Ruby?” Jennifer asked as they walked. “She seems kinda...”
“Cold? Distant? Weird?” Cait asked.
“Yeah. I mean, I don’t want to be rude, I don’t have a problem with her, I’m just...curious.”
“No, I get it. She’s always been like that, at least as long as I’ve known her. I think she’s just a really...pragmatic person. She seems to value logic and efficiency over emotions. She kind of cuts to the chase in everything she does, you know?”
“Is it by choice or just the way she is?” David asked.
“You know, I’m not sure. She’s a very effective person. We’ve gone on a few jobs together,” Ellie said. “She’s killer with her sniper rifle. Like, brutally effective. I saw her take down a dozen guys in maybe half a minute.”
“Why’s she with the fishermen?” Jennifer asked.
“I’m not really sure. I think her family member or friend or...lover? Not sure, they were with the fisherman? Actually, fuck, I have no idea,” Ellie replied.
“Think she’d fuck us? Has she ever fucked you?” Cait asked.
“No. Sex has never come up, and I’ve never seen her fuck, or heard her fuck, or spoke to anyone that fucked her. Maybe she doesn’t care about sex,” Ellie replied.
“Wouldn’t that be nice,” Jennifer murmured.
“You think?” David asked.
“I mean, yeah. If I didn’t care that I never got laid after I became a wraith, it would have made my life a lot happier. Well...a lot less miserable at least. You were talking about sexual isolation. I know what you mean, probably better than you do. I mean, not to take away from whatever you went through, but...”
“No, I get it. I’d have it way worse if I was a wraith.” He stepped closer to her and slipped an arm around her waist, holding her to him, and she immediately pressed herself against him. She was very cold, but he didn’t let it bother him.
“Being a wraith sucks, but it sucks a lot less if you have the right people in your life, I’m remembering,” she murmured.
“You can have us in your life, you know,” Ellie said. “I mean, more than we are now. This doesn’t have to stop.”
“I guess not,” Jennifer replied. She was silent for a few moments, then she sighed. “I don’t know. I’m...not the most stable person. Becoming a wraith fucked me up, and I wasn’t all that great before. So...I’m happy with where this is going for now.”
“Okay. Don’t feel pressured to do anything,” David said, and kissed the side of her head. She smiled and hugged him to her as they walked.
“You’re so warm,” she murmured.
“I don’t feel warm out here,” he replied.
“Oh...God, I must be freezing. I’m sorry,” she said, and began to let go of him.
“No, it’s fine. Stay, if you want. I want you to,” he replied, and, after a few seconds, she stepped closer to him again and let him hold her as they walked along the path. Cait glanced back at
them with a smile on her face and a surprisingly powerful look of...adoration? Affection? He just smiled back at her, unsure of what else to do. He was used to her looking at him like that sometimes, but it was the intensity of it that caught him off guard. He began wondering again what was up with her, but shut it down. He was too tired to play this mental game again.
Instead, they walked on.
…
David’s heart nearly burst out of his chest when he heard the first spray of automatic gunfire coming from ahead of them. They were maybe three hundred feet shy of the campgrounds. It had begun to snow during the last quarter mile, and he knew it was going to get worse. But apparently everything had just gotten worse in a far different manner.
Letting go of Jennifer, he pulled out his pistol and began hurrying forward. Ellie and Cait had already dashed ahead, disappearing into the trees. None of them spoke as they listened to more guns open up, mostly pistols, but he heard a shotgun in there, and maybe two automatic weapons. One he recognized as the rattle of the submachine gun he’d found a few weeks ago. Thank fucking God he’d left it behind, apparently.
Pistol in hand, fearing the worst, listening to shouts and gunfire, David joined Cait at the treeline surrounding the campgrounds. Ellie was somewhere off to the left, a blue blur. They crouched by the trees as Jennifer joined them. Over a dozen men in grubby winter gear were mounting an assault on the front entrance.
“We have to kill them fast,” Cait said, taking aim. “There’s too many people in there that could get caught in the crossfire.”
“Yep,” David agreed as he also took aim.
He, Cait, and Jennifer opened fire. They hit the group from the side, but only about half of them were out in the open. The rest were among the trees north of the camp, peppering it with gunfire. David shot one of the attackers in the side of the head and he dropped to the snow in an instant, his pistol falling from his hands, hitting the ground and going off. It hit another man in the leg, making him scream and drop to his knees. Cait shot him in the throat and he went down in a spray of blood. Three of the men in the clearing returned fire, one of them holding an assault rifle. David shouted as several bullets seared by him.