Forager - the Complete Trilogy (A Post Apocalyptic/Dystopian Trilogy)

by Peter R Stone

  "Now that we are here, and have had a good look around, how about we give the Skel a taste of their own medicine?" Madison said between bites of roasted carrot.

  "And what does that mean, exactly?" David asked.

  "Blow up their factories and warehouses, destroy their phone chargers, sabotage their trucks, do to them what they've been doing to Newhome."

  "No way, that'll stir up the Skel like a hornets’ nest and alert that we’re here," David replied a little too strongly, almost like he’d been offended by the suggestion. He really didn’t like Madison.

  "Actually, I like the idea, if we can pull it off." I glanced at Nanako to see her reaction. Which, going by the horrified way she was staring back at me, wasn’t a particularly good one.

  "We’re supposed to be lying low, remember, Jones?" Leigh asked, concerned.

  "I say we go out tonight and blow their munitions warehouse sky high," Madison said, staring at me meaningfully. "Think of how much safer the world will be when the Skel can’t make booby-trapped bombs anymore."

  "As much as I’d like to see that, it’s not an option, not with the slaves living next door," I said.

  "Then we kick them out and then blow the place." Madison stood, her pale face alive with emotion. "This is an opportunity too good to pass up – you can see that, right?"

  "It’s not gonna work." I shook my head. "What do you reckon the first thing the Skel will do when they see the slaves have survived? They’re gonna ask ‘em who let ‘em out, and then the Skel will be out in full force, looking for us."

  "But Jones," Madison protested.

  "Not happening," I replied firmly.

  "We have to do something! We can’t just sit here, waiting for the Rangers to turn up."

  "Yes, we can," Leigh said, his eyes darting worriedly between Madison and me.

  "Hey, I’ve got an idea. Why don't we torch their still?" Shorty asked. "That’ll cramp their style."

  "That's gonna make 'em even angrier than the previously mentioned hornets' nest," David said.

  I looked at Shorty, then David, and Madison. "That may be the case, but I reckon it'll never occur to them that the perpetrators of the crimes are staying right here in their midst. They'll put out more patrols and set more guards, but they won't think of looking under their noses."

  "You can’t seriously be contemplating this, Jones," Leigh whined.

  "Oh come on!" Shorty gave a broad smile, and looked to Madison for support. Or was it to back her up? "It’ll be fun. Just think of their dumb ol’ expressions the next time they try to have one of them parties, and, ‘Oh no, we ain’t got no liquor no more.'"

  "Shorty’s on-board with the idea, who else?"Madison asked keenly.

  "You’re okay with blowing their still?" I asked, amazed.

  "It is a start," she said. "Come on, let us do it. Tonight."

  "Okay, tonight it is then."

  "Wait, what if we get spotted?" Nanako asked, touching me on the wrist.

  "We were able to walk freely in their midst last night, and they were none the wiser. Besides, I’m keen to give them a taste of their own medicine,” I said.

  "I’ll go ahead with this foolhardy plan, but on one condition," Nanako continued.

  "Yeah?"

  "That we abort unless we are sure that every single Skel in that intersection is stoned or asleep."

  "Agreed."

  "I can’t believe you’re gonna do this," Leigh complained.

  "Don’t worry, we’ll be careful," I promised.

  "You know what, Jones?" Leigh said. "One of these days your 'we’ll be careful' phrase is gonna come back and bite you in the butt."

  "And ours at the same time," David added.

  "How are we going to blow the still, any ideas?" Madison asked, ignoring David and Leigh’s protestations.

  "David?" I prompted.

  "Let’s drop past the munitions warehouse on the way and I’ll grab a detonator and one of the Skel bombs," he answered reluctantly.

  "And while we’re at it, we can get more food from the stores warehouse and deliver it to Jack, Beth and the others next door," Nanako suggested.

  "Sounds like a plan," I agreed, happy to help the slaves in any way we could, although in the long run, I knew it wouldn’t amount to anything. If only the Rangers weren’t corrupt and allied to the Skel. They were the only pseudo-military organisation who had the ability to rescue the slaves.

  * * *

  We set out not long after midnight and followed the same route we took the previous night, making a quick visit to the munitions warehouse. And just as planned, while David picked out a bomb and a detonator, the rest of us broke into the warehouse with the food, ate our fill, and then delivered more to the slaves next door. Some, like Jack, were appreciative, but the others begged us nonstop to get them out of there. Having to turn them down – again – broke my heart. I wished they could see that there was nothing we could do apart from making their plight known to the Hamamachi and Inverloch councils.

  Bomb and detonator selected, we locked up the warehouses and then slipped quietly up Princes Highway, having to go to ground only once to avoid a Skel patrol. The night was mostly cloudless and the moonlight strong, so the others could see relatively well. As we drew closer to the three-road intersection, we could not see any Skel activity. Hopefully, they were all asleep or stoned by now, just as they had been last night. The bonfire that dominated the middle of the intersection had died down somewhat, and the smaller campfires had burnt themselves out.

  We passed behind the ruined fast-food joint we'd hidden in front of yesterday, darted over Police Road, and made our way quickly to a house situated on the northeastern corner of the intersection. We crept into the overgrown front yard of the house, and were glad to see that it gave us a commanding view of the intersection and the Skel revellers who filled it.

  And there, set some way back from the road, was the still, the clumsily built yet functional apparatus that the Skel used to brew their potent liquor. In fact, we could smell the fumes from there. Several dozen iron-ring liquor barrels were stacked around the still, probably their store of excess brewed liquor.

  As I considered what we were about to do – actually creeping out into full view of any Skel who might still be awake – my heart began to hammer mercilessly and I questioned the wisdom of this mission.

  "We really gonna do this?" David asked as he carefully removed his backpack with the Skel bomb and detonator.

  "Yes, we are," Madison replied emphatically.

  "I'll come out with you." I tried to sound braver than I felt. "The rest of you have your bows and arrows ready, but don't show yourselves unless you absolutely must."

  "I'm coming out too," Nanako said, daring me to disagree.

  "Okay," I replied as I met her fierce gaze.

  "Can you see anyone moving?" David asked.

  "Not a soul," I replied. Apart from the flames licking around the bonfire and the deep snores of many Skel, there was no sound or movement in the intersection. In fact, as I used flash sonar to study the scores of Skel sprawled in ungainly poses throughout the place, I got the impression there'd been a massive battle and the Skel were all dead. If only that were true.

  "Okay, let's go," I said, tapping David on the shoulder.

  Almost as one, David, Nanako and I rose and stole quietly from our hiding place and padded across the open, grassy area that led to the still. I echolocated like crazy as we went, checking on every prone Skel I could see. Nanako had her bow out and an arrow fitted to the string, but my bow was still on my back, as I was sure I wouldn't need it.

  None of them moved or reacted to our presence, so David removed his pack and quickly set up the bomb and the detonator. The speed with which he handled the explosives sent my heart fluttering. I wished he'd handle them with a touch more respect. But, he knew what he was doing.

  "Done," he said after he'd set the timer to 90 seconds.

  "Hey! Slaves! What do you think you're doing
?" bellowed a coarse voice.

  I turned and saw that a Skel to our left had lifted his head and was watching us with stunned disbelief.

  "Run!" I whispered, and we sprinted back towards the others with all haste.

  "Come back here, you bleedin' varmints!" the Skel shouted as he leaped to his feet and came barrelling after us.

  And oh my, could this guy run, now that he wasn't wearing his suit of armour. A quick glance behind showed he'd catch up to us long before we reached the others. I could run faster, but only at the cost of leaving Nanako behind.

  So I did the only thing I could, I turned around and charged him, whipping out my combat knife as I did.

  "Ethan, no!" Nanako cried out in alarm

  Just before we slammed into each other, I jumped to the left and lashed out with the knife. But to my surprise, the obese Skel twisted aside so that my blade sailed through thin air, and then he jumped forward and delivered a left cross straight to my jaw.

  I saw the punch coming and twisted away in an attempt to reduce its impact, but all the same, it landed like a hammer and rattled all my teeth, making me taste blood. I stumbled back from the Skel and slashed clumsily at him with the knife, which he avoided by stepping back. It was so much harder fighting these brutes when they weren't encumbered by their armour!

  The Skel prepared to charge me again, but I feinted to the left, and then when he jumped towards me, I dodged right and slashed his right upper arm, inflicting a deep, painful wound that caused blood to pour forth. All the same, the Skel charged back in, trying to catch me with arms twice the size of mine.

  But an arrow flew past and hit the Skel in the heart, and the guy collapsed with a strangled cry. I jumped forwards, plucked out the arrow, and rushed back towards Nanako.

  However, the sound of several other Skel shouting caused fear to explode in my gut – more Skel were awake! I glanced over my shoulder and saw that seven more of the brutish warriors had been woken by my scuffle with the first Skel and were tearing towards us.

  "Come on, Ethan!" Nanako shouted.

  Chapter Nineteen

  "Just go!" I shouted as I sprinted towards Nanako, handing her the arrow I’d retrieved.

  She lowered the bow and ran after David, who was already disappearing into the bushes in front of the house we'd been hiding in.

  "They're in the bushes over there – get them!" one of the Skel shouted.

  I risked a glance behind when Nanako and I reached the bushes, and freaked big time when I saw that many other Skel had roused from their drunken stupor or sleep. They too charged in our direction. Added to the other seven who were already sprinting full bore at us, this situation wasn't panning out well.

  "Come on, Ethan!" Nanako grabbed me by the arm in an attempt to pull me after her.

  But before I could move, there was an almighty BANG as the still went up in a yellow and orange fireball. A moment later, pieces of copper, tubing and pipes came raining down from the sky. The half-dozen Skel who'd been closest to the still were shredded by shrapnel. Others further away were knocked clear off their feet. The seven Skel who'd been closest to us skidded to a stop and turned around. For a moment they simply stood there, unable to believe that someone had blown their beloved still sky high. And then, almost as one, they turned and came at us again, this time cursing us with obscenities so foul I wished I didn't have enhanced hearing.

  Realising my folly in standing there gawking at them, I let Nanako pull me through the bushes towards the house, where the others stood waiting anxiously, fidgeting with their weapons.

  "Quickly, follow me! There's a half-dozen Skel on my heels and I don't think they're looking to chat," I said as I hurried around the house, and then over the rotten wooden fence into the neighbouring front yard. Aware of the furious sounds of pursuit behind, I led us through this yard, and the next, and would have kept going except for Madison.

  "If you are going to keep climbing fences, Jones, I will not be able to keep up – my arm is killing me," she called out from the rear.

  "Blast! Okay, everyone, direction change. And try not to make a sound!" I quickly led us around the side of the next house and into the back yard. From there we crept past a rusting metal swing and a broken plastic play gym. There was a massive hole in the back fence, and we were about to slip through when a Skel came running into the yard.

  "Found the blighters!" he – no – she, yelled, before charging us recklessly.

  "Go!" I whispered, shoving Nanako through the gap in the fence while I darted back into the yard. I circled around a tree and attacked the Skel from the rear as she ran towards Madison.

  The Skel female was tall and muscle-bound, and shaved except for a braid at the back of her head. And although she towered above Madison, the specialist drove her back with a series of well-executed kicks. That she could not use her right arm was a disadvantage, however, allowing the Skel to catch and redirected one of her kicks. The Skel pounced on her and tried to crush her with a bear hug.

  But that was all the time I needed to get behind the Skel and punch her once, twice in the kidneys. She let go of Madison but drove her elbow into my stomach, knocking me back. After that, she turned, placed a hand on my face, and tried to shove me over. But I grabbed onto her outstretched arm with both hands, tore it from my face, and used a handhold to twist her arm.

  I was about to kick her in the side of the knee to knock her down, when Madison executed a jumping kick to the Skel's neck. There was a sickening crunch, and the Skel collapsed with her head lolling over at a most unnatural angle.

  Not wanting to bump into the Skel's companions, I quickly grabbed Madison – who looked most satisfied at having just killed her first Skel – and bundled her through the hole in the fence, where the others were waiting anxiously.

  We were in the backyard of another house, well, what was left of it. Most of the back wall and tiled roof had collapsed. The carport had partly fallen down too, right on top of the rusted-out station wagon.

  "Back towards Police Road," I said as guided us into a gap beneath the collapsed roof of the carport, which was just large enough for us to crawl through. As we went, I heard Skel enter the yard we'd just vacated. They found their slain companion and a chorus of enraged cursing broke out.

  "Why are we going back towards Police Road?" Nanako whispered.

  "They'll never expect us to double back," I replied as I emerged from the carport and ran down the driveway to enter the street beyond. From there we stayed close to the houses as we moved quietly but quickly to Police Road, and finally, our lodgings.

  "All things told, that went pretty well, I would say," Madison whispered when we were almost back to our hideout.

  "Are you nuts?" Nanako shot back angrily, "They almost caught us. There ain't no way we're ever doing anything like that again!"

  "Jones?" Madison complained.

  We reached our house and I ushered everyone in through the front door and into the grime covered lounge room.

  "Nanako's right," I said as I sagged on the sofa and explored my aching jaw with my fingers. "That was too close."

  "But..." Madison began.

  "He said no, okay?" David said as he slumped onto the floor, his chest heaving in and out as he fought to regain his breath.

  "You okay?" Nanako asked with concern as she checked my jaw.

  "Nothing's broken," I said.

  "You realise the cat's out of the bag now, right?" David asked, looking at me meaningfully. "They saw us – they know we're here."

  "Oh, that's great! Now they're gonna come looking for us!" Leigh moaned.

  "It was dark and they were drunk or stoned, they probably didn't see much of us at all," I said.

  "Actually, they saw something, and what they thought they saw is gonna cause big problems," Nanako said softly.

  "Why's that?" I already knew I wouldn't like her answer, whatever it was.

  "They thought we were slaves," she replied.

  "So? So what?" Madison snappe
d.

  "Yeah, why's that so bad?" Shorty said, backing up Madison again. "That means they won't come looking for us, right?"

  A terrible, sickening sense of dread spawned in the depths of my stomach as I realised the possible extent of our mistake. But before I could answer Shorty, a complex partial seizure triggered and tore through me. It was accompanied by a vision-strength glimpse of myself sitting on a crumbling red brick fence. I was pulling out my Smartphone to call someone to inform them I'd just shot my own Ranger team.

  I tried to ignore the seizure as it tore through me and answered Shorty. "If the Skel think slaves blew the still, how do ya reckon they're gonna react?" I asked.

  "Oh, shoot!" Shorty finally caught my meaning.

  "What can we do?" David asked.

  "There's nothing we can do, except hope the Skel have more brains than we give 'em credit for," I said, desperately hoping they'd put the puzzle pieces together and realise this wasn't the work of slaves. "I mean, I used a combat knife, Nanako an arrow, and Madison and I took out another Skel."

  "Skel – brains?" Leigh scoffed.

  "They're cleverer than we give 'em credit for," I said, trying to convince myself they wouldn't blame the slaves for what we did. If the Skel exacted revenge or some form of punishment on the slaves for our work tonight, I'd never forgive myself. Never.

  * * *

  Madison, who'd been on watch, woke Nanako and me just after dawn. Well, I'd heard her enter the bedroom and woke from a nightmare-troubled sleep just in time to see the look of disgust on her face as she looked at Nanako and me together in bed.

  "Something's going on up the road near the community centre," she said.

  "Rangers?" I asked hopefully, but even as I asked I realised I could hear shouting, screaming, and crying.

  Nanako woke now and quickly rolled off me. Hearing my question, she grabbed the Smartphone she'd stolen from the Skel so she could take photos if need be.