Reddened Wasteland

by Kyle Perkins

  “Your problem is with me. I’m the one working with them, she has nothing to do with it. You could just talk to me instead of picking on her,” Alerik bellowed as he stepped closer to the group of women with his pickaxe in hand.

  The three girls turned in surprise at the sound of Alerik’s voice. As soon as they were distracted, Velar sprung forward and looped her arm around one of the girls’ neck to put her in a headlock.

  “Easy now ladies, you’re already in enough trouble, don’t make this worse…” Alerik pleaded, hoping they would calm down. He really didn’t want to fight a bunch of women or hurt anyone, but he was prepared to act if necessary.

  The two women who weren’t preoccupied with Velar charged him, wildly slashing the air with their shivs. As the first woman made it to him, he side-stepped her and stuck his leg out which made her trip onto the hard floor. Simultaneously, he gripped his pickaxe with both hands and thrust it into the second girl’s face before her slashing weapon could connect with him. There was a loud crack as the pickaxe made contact and the girl fell backwards just as the other one was getting up off the ground. He shoved his boot into her chest, making her fall backwards against the stone wall. A quick check on Velar showed that the girl she had sparred with was unconscious in her headlock.

  “You can let her go now,” Alerik said as he walked over and put his hand on her shoulder. “Search them, see if they have anything that can lead us to Liberty’s Hammer. I’ll go find a guard.” He turned and walked a short way to locate a guard. He found one standing nearby in the tunnel, smoking a pipe.

  “Huh? What do you need sir?” The guard asked, seemingly annoyed that his break had been interrupted.

  “My friend and I were just attacked,” Alerik said as he started walking back towards the scene.

  “Are the attackers still here?” the guard seemed more attentive now that he knew the situation was serious.

  “Yes. We incapacitated them, and one is badly injured. We believe they may be affiliated with Liberty’s Hammer. Some people may not like us here, but none would openly attack us. This seemed personal,” Alerik said as they both reached the spot where it had happened. The guard radioed up and within a few minutes, the place was swarmed with Union personnel.

  “You are both free to head home, we will take it from here,” the guard dismissed them after searching the attackers and cuffing their hands.

  Alerik nodded and grabbed Velar’s hand, leading her back up towards the surface where their driver was waiting for them. He was ready to get the hell away from there.

  Once they were both in the car, Velar put her head on Alerik’s shoulder and let out a shaky sigh.

  “Do you think it will be like this from now on?” She stared out the front window.

  “Probably for a little while, but people have a very short attention span. Hopefully they will drop it soon enough, they have to eventually realize that we are trying to help the people. We aren’t the bad guys,” he put his hand on her leg and squeezed. “You were pretty amazing today. Very quick thinking. But next time, if there’s a next time… I’d prefer if you just got out of there. I can’t risk losing you,”

  “I’m not as fragile as you think. I can take care of myself. Though, I have to admit I was pretty happy to see you at that moment. I don’t think I could take three of them.”

  “So, you’re only happy to see me when you’re in mortal danger? I see how it is,” he said feigning hurt.

  “Oh, shut up!” she giggled and nudged his arm before giving him a peck on the cheek. “I’m always happy to see you. Especially when you’re being my hero. And good news! Today wasn’t a total bust…”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, one of the girls was carrying a metal flask with a weird symbol on it, I thought it might be important so I grabbed it,” a proud smile spread across her face as she pulled the flask out of her book bag and presented it to him.

  He grabbed the flask and turned it over in his palm. He stilled when he looked at the bottom. Etched into the metal was that same symbol from before – the Liberty’s Hammer symbol. This one was different however, it also had a circle and inside the circle was another symbol or drawing, one which Alerik had never seen.

  “Well, this is Liberty’s Hammer for sure, but the other symbol, I have no idea what it means. It was purposely done, so this symbol means something to somebody,” he frowned in silence for a moment. He brightened with a thought, “I think I may have an idea of who can help us…” he said as he leaned forward and tapped the driver on the shoulder, “Take us to our old district, I need to see an old friend.”

  ***

  The vehicle pulled up to a small shack on the edge of the mining district. The home had sheet metal bolted onto the sides to form an arch over the dwelling. The area was the poorest of the district, it was where old timers went to die when they could no longer work or serve any real purpose. The Union didn’t waste resources on these people and it was a sad sight, but a necessary evil. The people in this district had no help and had to create their own luck.

  Alerik stepped out of the vehicle and clutched Velar’s hand before walking over to the sliding metal door that blocked the entrance to the home. He hoped the guy was still alive, he hadn’t seen him in some time. Activity was at a standstill in this part of the district, it was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. He knocked three times on the door, the sound rang especially loud in the solemn alley.

  “He-Hello?” A voice was heard from inside the shack.

  “It’s Alerik. I’m here to speak to you about something I found,” he was sure to talk loud so the man could hear.

  A withered old man opened the door. He appeared to be around eighty years old, with wrinkled skin and white hair. He wore an old miner’s outfit, a relic of where he had spent the prime of his life. The same place almost everybody did – the mines. The overalls looked weathered and the right button had broken, so the strap was hanging down the front of his pants.

  “Alerik! I haven’t seen you in ages! How old are you now? Forty? You’re getting big. Is this your wife? My my, you caught yourself a looker!”

  “I’m thirty now. And uh, no. She isn’t my wife. This is my…” he hesitated, unsure of what to call her, “This is Velar. Mind if we come in? I found a symbol on something and I thought you might be able to decipher it.”

  “Where are my manners? Please, please… Come in quickly,” the man ushered them inside.

  The interior of the shack was bleak, not many common necessities were around. The man had only a few Life Bar wrappers scattered around on the floor, and a canteen of water. What had he been doing all this time? Alerik wondered if the solitude had driven the man mad. He decided to keep his guard up.

  Alerik and Velar found a place to sit on the floor next to what appeared to be a homemade stove patched together out of metal signs.

  “So, you have a symbol to show me?” The man said joining them on the floor.

  “Yes, we know the one symbol means Liberty’s Hammer, but the other, we haven’t the slightest clue,” Alerik handed the flask to the man. “Soran, if you have anything that can help us, we would be eternally in your debt. This is important.”

  The old man nodded as he examined the flask, “I have seen this symbol before. Used to mean something around these parts, but today, not so much.”

  Alerik looked over at Velar then back to the man, “What do you mean?”

  “Well…” He said, pausing as he inspected it further, “This is the mark of the Children of Old. They live underground just past the mining district.

  “You see, a long time ago, when this colony was first constructed, they built the base of the dome to fit deep into the surface of Mars. That way, if there was ever an asteroid impact or some other catastrophic event, we could all live underground for a while until we could get back on our feet. The place was intended to be off-limits barring a disaster on Mars. But, over time, people kept pouring down into the bowels of the sett
lement. These people were known as the Children of Old. They are a religious bunch. Complete nut cases if you ask me. They believe the Earth is a god, along with Mars.”

  “Wasn’t religion abolished because of all the conflict it brought from Earth?” Alerik frowned in confusion.

  “It was, but these people didn’t take notice and just kept right on with their beliefs, far away from the eyes of the world. Down there, they were free to do as they wished, and once their numbers were high enough, they were too much of a risk for The Union to get involved. Plus, it’s not like they were harming anyone down there or using up surface resources,” Soran shrugged as he handed he flask back. “It’s truly puzzling to find their symbol up here on the surface, I assumed they had all died out.”

  “Well, this could mean they are very much alive, and somehow mixed up in all this,” Alerik rose to his feet.

  “Can you tell us how to get to where they were… or are?” Velar asked Soran as she brushed off her jeans.

  “Well sure, I can even etch you a map. But I will ask for one thing in exchange for the favor,” he replied.

  Alerik nodded. “Anything.”

  “As you can see, my living conditions are not the best. I want you to take me there with you. Last I heard, they were very welcoming, well protected, and cared for their people,” he said with a smile.

  Alerik contemplated for a moment but realized he didn’t have much of a choice. He needed to find these Children of Old. Why Soran wanted to live with some religious nut-jobs was his own business. And considering the man’s current situation, he could understand how a few preachy roommates might not seem so bad in comparison. He nodded.

  “Well, we’d better get going before the curfew hits and we all end up in prison,” he said as he walked towards the door with Velar following alongside him. “We will be outside with our driver, gather your things quickly.”

  “Eh, just need a few moments…” Soran scrambled around collecting his things as quick as his rickety bones could carry him, a huge grin spread across his face.

  ***

  The trip was remarkably short. These people had been hiding in plain sight for years. The vehicle pulled up slowly to the spot that Soran had sketched out onto the back of a Life Bar wrapper. The area was open and dusty, with heaps of metal and other refuse scattered about.

  “Is this your idea of a joke?” Alerik snorted in an annoyed tone.

  “No, no. You’ll see… Just follow me,” Soran reassured them as he opened the door and hopped out.

  Alerik sighed loudly and glanced over his shoulder to see Velar wearing a big grin. At least somebody was amused.

  The driver stayed behind with the vehicle as the group walked through narrow paths marked only by paint and totems. Soran seemed to know where he was headed at all times. His confidence in gave Alerik a tiny bit of relief. This was their only lead and if the trail grew cold, it would likely never thaw again. Their group hiked for what must’ve been twenty minutes before Soren finally stopped on the inside of a cove made entirely out of trash.

  “This is it!” the old man hissed excitedly as he knelt on the ground and began sweeping dust away to reveal a hatch. He knocked on it a few times but there was no response. “No promises, but this was the old entrance they used. I suppose they really could all be dead by now… It has been…” He trailed off as he began counting the years on his fingers.

  “Well, let’s just check it out. We didn’t come all this way for nothing,” Alerik was impatient. He began turning the handle. It was interesting that the hatch wasn’t guarded at all. Usually, people that have had unpleasant run-ins with The Union had a reason to be behind locked doors. Maybe they were all dead.

  The door popped open without too much effort to reveal a dark nothingness within.

  “Well when you two are done standing around, I’ll be inside,” Velar said with a giggle as she began climbing down into the darkness. Alerik admired her bravery, but it also concerned him. He wanted to tell her to be more cautious, but that would do no good. She’d likely just start taking more risks just to prove him wrong and get herself into trouble.

  Alerik and Soran quickly followed after and were immediately engulfed by darkness as they descended. Velar knelt down by the two men who were stumbling and bumping into things like fools. She scoffed and pulled out a couple of lights from her backpack.

  “I can’t believe I’m the only miner here prepared to crawl through dark tunnels. You two should be ashamed,” the glow from the lights illuminated her cocky smile.

  “You saved the day,” Alerik’s response was sarcastic. He reached for her book bag jokingly, “What else you got in there?”

  “A girl has her secrets,” she snapped as she quickly zipped it up in defiance.

  Now that they had light, it was much easier to navigate the tunnels, though the paths were far different than the mine. These were built to be a comfortable living space, not tunnels carved into rock from digging around with primitive tools. There were signs on the walls indicating what was where, from the kitchen to the bunkrooms. Alerik found it very odd that The Union wouldn’t want this place for themselves. Why hadn’t they occupied this place? Surely they had to know about it. They normally had no problem taking whatever they wanted.

  “I think we should start walking towards the administration office if anything, or possibly the cafeteria,” Alerik said as he walked.

  “The cafeteria sounds great, plus if no one is down here anymore, we can always try to salvage some supplies,” Velar suggested, walking ahead a few paces.

  As the group entered the cafeteria, a light turned on in the center of the room, illuminating the area to reveal a nicely kept cafeteria. Nothing was out of place and everything had been wiped down as if people had recently been there. Everything in the room was modern and sleek, except for odds and ends here and there that were obviously collected from the surface and repurposed. Someone was living there, or using the facilities… that much was certain.

  Alerik started investigating the room, mentally noting everything from the foundation to the walls. Everything was made out of aluminum or iron. It was bizarre to him and suggested that the mines had been open since the beginning. He wondered what brave souls ventured here in the early days and made life possible.

  Velar started grabbing things that seemed useful and stuffing them into her backpack. Mainly just some toys and eating utensils that were lying around. The room had many common commodities that the surface lacked. Things that would fetch a good price if put into the right hands. And many on the surface were collectors of things from the old world. It gave a lot of people comfort to actually hold something that was once on Earth.

  “Alerik… Velar… We have a problem,” Soren’s worried voice pierced the silence. They looked up from their observing and scavenging to see a very pale man with a knife to Soren’s throat.

  “Hey, we don’t want any problems. We just came here to talk. We mean you no harm,” Alerik said cautiously as he raised both hands to show he had no hostile intentions.

  Several men and women with brightly painted faces began pouring into the room, they were clad in makeshift armor and weaponry. It was peculiar, their armor design. Scrap metal bolted together to form armor sets, and many curved swords along with giant bludgeoning weapons. Unlike anything found on the surface. Alerik was at a disadvantage, he felt naked without his trusty pickaxe.

  The man pushed Soran out into the middle of the room to join his companions that were now surrounded by these unknown people.

  The man with the knife walked forward, introducing himself, “My name is Valek, and you are intruders. What is the meaning of this disruption?” he demanded, his tone menacing and cold.

  Velar reached into her backpack and retrieved the flask, pulling it out and thrusting it forward.

  “This is why we are here!” she nearly shouted. The man called Valek snatched the flask from her hand.

  Alerik flinched. She was bold to a fault, and lucky
these people hadn’t thought she was drawing a weapon. He’d need to have a talk with her, she was wreaking havoc on his nerves.

  “Why do you carry our symbol?” Valek asked as he slowly lowered his knife, gesturing for the others to take a step back until he had more information.

  “We are investigating Liberty’s Hammer. One of their assassins had this on her when she attacked my friend there,” Alerik gestured towards Velar.

  The man contemplated for a moment before nodding to the others that were with him, “You will follow me. The great mother will want to speak to you,” he said as he strode towards the doorway. “It’s a short walk, I trust that you will not try to harm anyone down here. Otherwise, your skull will serve as a reminder to those on the surface to avoid this sacred place.”

  “Message received,” Alerik mumbled as he began walking with the man, careful not to make any sudden movements or spook the guy. They all seemed tightly wound, and he didn’t want to see them come undone.

  The group passed through a few doorways with the rest of the tribe in tow, until they finally found a room where the wall opposite the door was knocked completely down. He wondered why, but assumed they had run out of space in the vault and decided to burrow into the Martian crust. It was not an exterior room, though, so the placement was odd. As if there had been empty space between the rooms, or some rooms had been destroyed to create the spot.

  As they moved deeper into the cavernous room, there were numerous artificial lights guiding them down a path to a throne made entirely out of bits and pieces of junk that had been piled and welded together. On the throne, an ancient-looking woman with pale skin was perched. She was adorned with what appeared to be a lightweight sort of armor. Her hair was stark white, and she had bright blue eyes like Alerik. Scars covered her body, showing that she had seen her share of battle.

  “Welcome to The Den, traveler. Why have you sought us out?” the woman cocked her head. Her voice was scratchy like sandpaper, but kind.