Red Waters

by Charles Rye

  "While I am also thankful for the rescue, I do have to agree. It is a bit odd of how you just showed up out of nowhere; almost like you knew the pack was going to be here." Caliphar added, trying his best not to stare at Soraf's chest.

  "I was tracking them," Soraf responded, cocking an eyebrow.

  "Tracking them?" Aurelia repeated.

  "This particular pack has a place on the other side of the city. When I first discovered them, I thought I would observe them for a while. After about a week or so, this second pack showed up. But rather than fighting the others for the territory, they formed a larger pack." Soraf explained.

  "This morning they all began whimpering and howling, making all kinds of noises. The smaller pack we just killed were the ones that had run off together as if they had picked up the scent of something. I followed them, and that is how I ended up here. It's a good thing I did, too. Otherwise they'd be gnawing on your remains." Soraf explained.

  "We were in the city this morning. It was our scent they must've picked up," Aurelia said, glancing at Caliphar.

  "That's probably why they were sniffing the bus. They knew we were here." He replied.

  "As I said, this was just a small portion of the pack I'd had been keeping an eye on. We should get inside that bus in case more decide to come looking for us." Soraf gestured toward the bus.

  "Yeah, sure come on in," Caliphar invited.

  Aurelia led them into the bus and took her place in the driver's seat.

  Caliphar followed Soraf, staring down at his feet to avoid staring at her backside.

  "How did you two run into each other?" Soraf asked, taking a seat in the first passenger seat on the right of the bus.

  "I went to the city this morning to hunt, but before I could find any of the creatures, Caliphar here scared the crap out of me and we both nearly shot each other," Aurelia filled her in.

  "We can discuss all that later, right now I want to know your story," interrupted Calliqrus.

  She gave him a rather rude look, but decided to answer all the same.

  "After running out of food supplies, I decided to explore beyond the areas I'd become familiar with. By doing that, I came across a large area that had been claimed by the creatures. They were starving and desperate for any source of food. I got the attention of one of the weaker members and, despite it having put up a struggle, I managed to kill it," Soraf explained.

  "I took the thing back with me so its pack mates wouldn't pick up my scent and ambush me. Before skinning it and all to cook it, I examined it and found out it had a rather nasty trick hidden up its sleeve. It and the ones we just killed, carried venom in their teeth very similar to that of a snake's but far more potent." She unsheathed her dagger and held it up for the others to see.

  They noticed the blade was twisted together, giving it three distinct serrated edges that joined at the tip that seemed to have an almost microscopic opening.

  "See that, at the very tip? That opening?" She indicated the point of the dagger.

  Caliphar and Aurelia nodded, both staring intently at the dagger.

  "I found a way to get the venom from that creature's canines; gathered some surgical tubing I'd discovered while rummaging the remains of a medical center, and drilled an opening just wide enough to insert the tubing into the middle of the dagger. Then I added the needle from a syringe and created the perfect weapon!" she declared rather triumphantly.

  "Of course, mind you, I had to find a way to make it where the venom could be used against them since it didn't seem to affect them when they fought and bit each other. So I turned it into a sort of anti-venom, harmless to us but extremely harmful to them."

  "I've never seen a dagger like this before, and before the damned apocalypse I had quite a collection myself," Caliphar boasted.

  "Jagdkommando; I didn't name it, but that's what's etched into the handle." Soraf replied, handing him the dagger.

  Caliphar took it carefully and examined the handle and the engraving.

  "That raises a question: exactly what are those creatures called?" Aurelia asked when Caliphar returned the dagger to Soraf.

  "They obviously don't have an official name, considering we've been the only ones to have encountered them," Soraf replied, looking at her.

  "We can't just keep calling them creatures so they should be named based on their looks.

  And they aren't exactly friendly looking so it needs to be fierce," Caliphar added.

  "The pack that we just killed from the larger group I observed seemed to have a distinctive way of attacking and killing their prey, it was very violent," Soraf explained.

  "They would grab their prey by its leg or some other body part and shake their heads side to side; it was like watching a shark attack. It was a thrashing motion."

  "That's what we should call them. Destroyers," Aurelia announced, glancing between Caliphar and Soraf.

  "Sounds fitting to me," Soraf said in agreement.

  "Now we just have to get this bus in working condition to get through the city, all while avoiding attracting attention from other Destroyers." She added.

  Caliphar and Aurelia shared a look of concern.

  "That's going to be a much bigger challenge knowing there are more Destroyers out there that will eventually come looking for their missing pack mates." Caliphar said solemnly.

  Junkyard ambush

  "Exactly how far did you say this junkyard was again?" Soraf asked for the third time since they had begun their walk from the bus.

  "For the last time, it is somewhere near the city. We should be able to find everything we'll need to fix the bus there," Aurelia replied shortly, adjusting her gun strap on her shoulder.

  "What all do you need to fix the bus?" Soraf questioned.

  She glanced at Caliphar, who was walking several feet ahead of her and Aurelia, holding his Remington in front of him.

  "Exhaust manifold, muffler, fan belt, some spark plugs. I'll get what I need; you two just watch my back." He responded, glancing over his shoulder at Soraf.

  Suddenly, Aurelia stopped in her tracks, her ears twitching rapidly back and forth.

  "Guys‚ We've got company!" She hollered, swinging her gun off her shoulder and cocking it.

  Caliphar cocked his own gun and surveyed their surroundings while Soraf unsheathed her Jagdkommando and positioned herself near Aurelia.

  Out of nowhere, a large Destroyer leaped clear over Aurelia and Soraf.

  It came to land in front of Caliphar, baring its unnaturally sharp, jagged fangs and digging its razor-like claws into the burning sand.

  Without hesitation, Caliphar took aim and pulled the trigger, hitting the creature directly in its ugly face; killing it instantly.

  A second and third Destroyer came running toward Aurelia and Soraf.

  Soraf braced herself as she jabbed her dagger hilt-deep in the creature's chest. It fell on its side and lay dying, whimpering in pain.

  Aurelia fired a warning shot at the second Destroyer, but it was undeterred. She cocked her gun again, this time firing a bullet into its eye. The creature died instantly as the bullet pierced its brain.

  Caliphar turned on his heel and aimed his gun above the others' heads, just in time to fire a round into the head of the Destroyer leaping over them.

  The impact of the bullet caused blood to spray over the women, who jumped back in time to avoid being crushed by the body.

  "Now that was impressive," Soraf remarked, giving Caliphar an approving grin.

  "You certainly know how to handle a gun," She added with a wink.

  "That's not all I can handle," He replied with a sly grin.

  "You two can flirt later, there are more of those ugly fuckers out there and we need to get to that junkyard before they catch up to us," Aurelia said in a deadpan voice.

  They glanced at her and nodded in agreement, keeping an eye out for any nearby Destroyers.

  "Crap‚" Aurelia growled, noticing a pair of Destroyers not far behind them.
r />   "Run!"

  She took off across the sand, her tail swaying back and forth behind her as she ran.

  The others quickly followed, doing their best to keep up with her.

  They glanced back now and then to keep an eye on the pair of Destroyers that were in hot pursuit.

  "Where the fuck did they come from? I didn't see any others after we killed the ones that ambushed us!"

  "Did either of you?"Aurelia shouted back at the others, she picked up speed until she was at a full run.

  "I never saw them. It's like they just appeared out of nowhere," Soraf replied, checking over her shoulder.

  The Destroyers seemed more than capable of keeping pace with them, which was not a good thing.

  Despite their excellent marksmanship, they were unable to fire behind them without hitting each other.

  "Motherfuckers are fast‚" Aurelia hissed, her heels kicking up sand as she picked up speed.

  Soraf easily kept pace with Aurelia, while Caliphar stayed a short distance behind them.

  Far off into the distance ahead of them was the shadowy outline of the junkyard, towering above them like a mountain.

  "There's the junkyard!"

  "I got a plan!" Soraf shouted to the others, racing past Aurelia towards the junkyard gates.

  Caliphar and Aurelia followed, leaping over them after Soraf.

  They turned around in time to see the Destroyers skid to a halt to avoid crashing into the chain link gate surrounding the junkyard.

  "How come they aren't trying to get over the gate?" Caliphar questioned, glancing at Aurelia.

  Soraf darted past the others, holding what looked like a remote control.

  "This!" she exclaimed.

  She waved it excitedly around before pressing a button.

  A bright blue tinted light suddenly surged throughout the chain link gate surrounding them.

  A very faint humming sound began to emanate from it.

  "Electric gate; those Destroyers wouldn't dare try to cross it." Soraf grinned proudly, turning to face the others.

  "How'd you know about the gates and that control?" Aurelia asked, giving Soraf a weary look.

  "Destroyers used this place as hunting grounds up until they killed off their food source here. While I was tracking them, I came across what used to be a maintenance booth. Inside the booth was this remote control," Soraf explained simply.

  "I'm starting to like you more and more." Aurelia grinned, and then added, "Let's find what we came for before those Destroyers find a way past that gate."

  "Agreed. Shouldn't take too long to find the proper parts,"

  "You two try and find a fan belt and spark plugs, I'll find a muffler and exhaust manifold." He instructed before they went in opposite directions.

  Soraf and Aurelia began scanning the piles of junk and trash for what Caliphar had told them to find.

  "I hope we find what we need for the bus quickly. It's going to get dark pretty soon. I don't know about you, but I'm not exactly eager to fend off a Destroyer in the dark," Aurelia remarked as she dug through a pile of assorted car parts.

  "Why do you think I wear these goggles, for the hell of it?" chuckled Soraf, who was rummaging in a nearby pile of junk and crushed car chassis.

  "Night vision goggles. I never would've guessed,"

  "Yeah, I got spare pairs if you and Caliphar want 'em,"

  "We could definitely use them, thanks!" Aurelia enthused.

  Soraf tossed her a pair of goggles.

  She took off her own, regular goggles and tucked them into the pocket of her jumpsuit before putting on the new pair and adjusting them on her head.

  "I think I just found some spark plugs!" Soraf called to Caliphar.

  He poked his head up from a pile of car parts.

  "Are they the right kind?"

  "I guess."

  "They are!" He replied after closer examination.

  He returned to the pile of car parts to continue his search for a muffler and exhaust manifold.

  "Found a fan belt!" Aurelia shouted after a while, waving it above her head for Caliphar to see.

  "Perfect! And I just got our muffler and exhaust manifold. Let's get the hell outta here before the sun sets," He responded, cradling the parts in his arms.

  Soraf stuffed the spark plugs into her jean pockets and grabbed the remote for the gate as Aurelia and Caliphar joined her.

  Then she killed the electricity so they could safely open the gates.

  "Wait a second, guys. Something doesn't feel right," Aurelia spoke as they reached the gates.

  "What do you mean?" Caliphar asked.

  "Where are the Destroyers that were on our tail? They were pacing around outside the gate for a while. I didn't notice them leave."

  "She's right, they wouldn't just give up easily on their prey," Soraf added.

  Caliphar peered around at the piles of junk.

  Spotting movement from the corner of his eye, he looked up at the top of a particularly large pile.

  One of the Destroyers was crouched atop it, glaring down at them viciously.

  "Keep an eye out for the other one. This sucker is mine." He grinned mischievously and dropped the exhaust manifold beside him and gripped the muffler tightly with both hands.

  Soraf and Aurelia slowly backed away from Caliphar, looking around for the second Destroyer.

  "You want me?" Caliphar shouted up at the Destroyer.

  "Come get me, you ugly ass son of a bitch!"

  The Destroyer snarled loudly, snapping its jaws as it suddenly leaped down from the junk pile towards Caliphar.

  Without missing a beat, Caliphar swung the muffler with all his strength. It struck the Destroyer's jaw as it came to land before him, causing the creature to lose its balance.

  Caliphar took a step back, still keeping a firm grip on the muffler.

  The Destroyer regained its feet and charged at him. It was taken by surprise when Caliphar sideswiped the creature.

  A dull crack rang out as the blow dislocated the Destroyer's jaw.

  Hesitant to attack a third time, the Destroyer held its ground and stared Caliphar down.

  Without warning, Caliphar struck the Destroyer with a perfect roundhouse kick, knocking the Destroyer onto its side.

  It lay stunned and unable to move.

  Caliphar took the opportunity to thrust the muffler pipe into the creature's throat, crushing its windpipe.

  "Well, that's certainly a new one. Death by muffler," Aurelia remarked, stifling a laugh.

  She and Soraf looked on as Caliphar remove the bloodied muffler from the Destroyer's throat.

  All of a sudden, the second Destroyer appeared behind Soraf.

  It was growling and drooling. Its eyes, gleaming in the bright sunlight, met with hers.

  Soraf made to grab her Jagdkommando, keeping her gaze locked with the Destroyer's.

  It slid successfully it from its sheath, and she raised it above her head to show the creature she was armed and unafraid.

  The Destroyer flicked its bony tail back and forth, digging its jagged claws deep into the burning sand. It snarled loudly when it noticed the weapon in Soraf's hand, taking a step forward to show it was not backing down.

  "Bring it on, you little bitch," Soraf taunted, beckoning the creature to approach.

  The Destroyer narrowed its eyes as it darted toward her.

  Pushing itself up into the air with its hind legs, it leaped over her; giving Soraf the perfect opportunity to thrust her dagger upwards and slice through the creature's stomach.

  When the Destroyer landed on the other side of Soraf, it collapsed; its intestines spilled out in a bloody mess.

  "Holy crap‚" Caliphar looked bewildered as he came to stand beside Soraf.

  She merely appeared nonchalant as she cleaned the dagger's blade with her rag.

  "You have your ways of killing a Destroyer. I have mine." She gave him a playful smirk.

  "Can we please go now? I would very much like t
o get back to my bus so we can work on it before dark," Aurelia interrupted, clearing her throat as she glanced at Caliphar.

  "Yeah, let's go. We don't want to be caught by any more Destroyers," Caliphar agreed.

  He retrieved the exhaust manifold from the sand, and they began their journey back to the bus.