Brand new world (OOC) open to all

[Tigerjaw]

In a not so distant future the civilization as we know it no longer exists. The last great war and the collaps of the economi have left USA crippled. Chaos erupted and the US military forces was all but annihilated. Local crimelords took the power in the cities where they rule with an ironfist. On the countryside and the roads the gangs are in control and spread terror and fear into all they encounter. It is a time of survival of the fittest. Or maybe it is just the lucky that survive. The resources that was in abundant in the past is now very hard to come by. Even so there are a few survivors, struggling to get by each day. Plenty more join the gangs and the crime syndicates that spread like a plague. Two of the most renowned gangs are The Leather Knights and The Raiders. Both gangs get new followers on a daily basis. They have reached the level of frightening even the powerful crimelords. It is a time of struggle and survival. The war is desperately fought by all and it is the poor bastards that have no gang or syndicate backing them up that is paying the ultimate price.

This thread is open to anyone interrested in writing in a Mad Max like environment. If interrested post your bio or any questions you have in this thread.

 

[sharingfantasies]

Sheila Jones pulled her tattered army coat around her shoulders as she shivered in the evening air. Standing in the opening of a maze of caves, she looked out over the valley where there were open fires burning here and there across the floor. She envied them their large bonfires while she feared their presence. Leather Knight fires to the south and Raiders to the north, both of them fighting each other and the Others so they can be the last ones standing. "Fools, the lot of them," she thought. "So stupid they can't see past their noses. What do they think will become of them when there are no more Others for them to pillage and rape? They are too lazy to work for food, and too mean for any woman to stay there long. Bah! Fools!"

Irritably brushing back the black bangs that were growing down into her green eyes , she turned her back to the valley and moved deeper into the caves. Sheila was an Other, a refugee of life. She and a handful of Others had prepared the caves when the gangs had become stronger and stronger. Mapping the vast system of tunnels in their heads, they had buried caches of food and water. Gathering up whatever weapons they had or had stolen after the collapse of the military, they had laid a system of land mines around the base of the mountain which housed the old diamond mines. The gangs knew the Others were on the mountain, although the Others took care to avoid the valley side of the mountain during the days and never lit fires near the mouths of any of the caves. The gangs had been trying for months to scale the front of the mountain to get to the Others. But plans had been well laid out.

Besides the landmines around the base, Sheila and her group had also strung barbed wire at ankle height. Tied to the wire at seemingly random places were grenades. A tug of the wire, the pin was pulled, and one or two less gang members existed. From holes cut into the side of the mountain, Sheila and her group could shoot downhill, picking off anyone that managed to make it past the landmines, wire and grenades. They had had a lot of practice and had become very good at judging the slope of their bullets. Homemade bullets made from the iron ore that riddled the caves gave them an endless supply, but the powder needed to force the bullet out of the rifles was harder to get. So every few weeks, the Others were forced into the valley to steal what they needed.

Lately, the food had been supplemented by small gardens planted on the far side of the mountain, unaccessible to the gangs because of the sheer cliffs below. With the small gardens and the stored food, they could probably hold out forever, provided the small natural spring in one of the caves didn't run out. There was fear that the gangs would eventually overwhelm them or capture them on one of the early morning raids, but so far they had been lucky.

Sheila, at 28, was tired though. Tired of the constant struggle to survive, tired of the constant stress of trying to keep the small band together, tired of being alone. Even though she wasn't alone in reality, she missed being held. Missed sharing in the night small secrets or commenting on funny things that happened. Nothing much funny happened any more. Sheila couldn't remember the last time she had laughed. She just knew it had been before her husband James had been killed on a raid.

Shrugging off her loneliness, Sheila moved back into the mountain, following the turns and choosing different branches by menory. Her hand ran along the wall, keeping her confident in the pitch black of the tunnels. Hearing voices, she turned a corner and blinked her eyes. Here way back in the mountain where small openings had been dug to let in oxygen, the Others were safe building their fire, heating their food, and bathing. Bending over the fire, she spooned some lentil soup into a bowl, then took it to a shelf cut out of the wall and sat eating hungrily. The others had paused in their talking when she walked in, but now, as she ate, returned to their talk of days gone by when they had lived in the valley as farmers. Here they felt safe at night, knowing the gangs could not transverse the booby-trapped mountainside at night. But come the dawn the fight would go on, because the gangs below just could not leave the Others to peacefully live in the mountain. Sheila was tired of it all.

 

[Tigerjaw]

Eric

It had been a tough week. Hell, it was tough now. Eric Campero did not like this situation at all. He scanned the campfires in the distance. He could not tell if it was a Leather Knight or Raider camp. Either way they would kill him if they found him. After some torture of course. After civilization was gone peaple just lost their ways. Many just gave in to the urge to plunder and rape. Many just lost their humanity.

At 31 years old, 8 of those in the military Eric had no illusions what they would do with him if he was captured. There even was a rumor of cannibalism among The Raiders. If he faced one or two adversaries he was pretty sure he could handle himself. He was 6´1" tall and in good shape. Even as he had lost some weight since all this mess started his muscles was well tuned. He was well confident in his abilities and the Colt Python he held in his right hand added some courage.

The problem was that he only had 3 bullets left for the revolver. Counting the bullets again he sighs and reload the gun. Here goes nothing he thinks to himself as he make a short sprint towards the caves. He trips on a rock and almost land on the unmisstakingly sign of a landmine. "Oh christ!" He whispers to himself. He slowly crawls away from the danger. Keeping his eyes on the ground to avoid more traps. He never imagined this rock was inhabited. He wondered if it was friendly or hostile occupants living there. Just then he feel a burning sensation touch his left shoulder, just to be followed by a loud bang. Lying in the open he sees no other choice. He wipes hisd black hair from his eyes before reaching up us hands.

"I am a friendly, don´t shoot." His voice echoes in the night.

 

[Kathos]

Maddy

Oh hell, Sheila had warned her this would happen...and warned her, and warned her, but did she listen? Not Maddy. She was the best scout any of the Others knew, and she'd been making herself useful since she was big enough to walk silent. She'd made little raids on the camps most days since, gathering things that had more use to her and hers than to the gangs, in her mind anyway. Sheila told her it was dangerous, but that was kind of the point, it wasn't fun if it wasn't dangerous. She moved light, and fast, and alone - so far she hadn't found a partner who could keep up with her. She'd grown up like this, finding what fun she could in this dark world, its all a game, right? Even now a grin crossed her features, if anyone could find a way out of this, it was Madeleine Marie.

She'd never been caught before, not until now. Thank sun and stars it was on her way into the camp,rather than out, her pack was empty rather than bulging with liberated property. The big one craned her neck back, his fist still clenched around a handful of her pale blonde braids. "Lookee what we got here, boys..think she wants to join up? There's an initiation, sweetheart, don't know if you look tough enough to stand it..." He grinned evily and stroked her cheek with a hard hand.

Shit. Sheila'd notice she was missing soon, right? She had to. but what could she do then? Maddy shivered, what was she going to do in the meantime?

 

[Finadien]

Fate

The Others only knew him as Fate because that was all he had ever told them about himself. He had come to them without any weapons but with seeds and knowledge about growing things and so he had been accepted. Reluctantly at first but after 6 months he now was accepted into the community, at least formaly. In truth he kept himself apart. Even though the Others wheren't as violent as the Raiders or the Leather Knights they still saw violence as the primary answer to most problems. He couldn't really blam them though, after the collaps of nearly everthing violence was the only thing left most people understood. He had tried to rebuild some sense of community elsewhere but this had nearly cost him his life and so he had fled. Now he tended the garden and scraped together every reminder of the past civilisation. He had a small library in his cave right above the gardens and he was allways eager for more.

One time Maddy had brought back an old laptop and he even had managed to get it running again with a generator he had cobbled together, but most of the time the fuel to run the generate was to valuable to use for such things.

He kept to himself not only because he abored violence, but also because he thought himself a freak of some kind because of the white hair he had. He was not that old (around 40 he guessed, he didn't knew exactly) but the white hair paired with a youthfull face made it very hard to judge his age.

He got up from his pearch just outside his cave and started to wander down to one of the ventral caves where the meals where prepared. He fetched a bowl and poured himself some soup.

 

[clan_destine]

Dingo

Mankind had been enslaved to an irrational fear from the dawn of time. It was a purely psychological effect, a reaction to the most reptilian aspect of the neural hierarchy. As long as Man could see a threat, could identify it, fear could be controlled. But when one's senses were smothered, or warped, then the dark nightmares could take hold, and remove much of what made Man a human. During the Great Days, there had been regular lights at night, regular authorities that dealt with the unknown, as well as communications systems that kept everyone in touch.

No longer. Now mankind had to rely upon doing as much as possible during the day, then finding safety for the night. Caves, shelters, even simple fires, all kept the demons at bay. Supposedly.

Of course, if one was prepared, one could use this to their advantage. Like Dingo had done. Was doing. Would continue doing as necessary.

Two weeks ago he'd been slipping through the arid steppes, bypassing the threats as best he could, working with those that didn't pose a threat, bartering as he could, stealing when he had to. A pack full of dried meats and assorted canned goods had been traded for a mule at one point. Ugly and short tempered, it had gotten him through the desolate parts where he needed to make distance, then it was traded to a farm community for bread and dried fish, as well as a handful of shotshells of questionable condition.

Running into not one, but two gangs, had been bad luck. Nomadic gangs of raiders were never anything to cross, especially in areas of limited resources, and two of them would be an affair that he really didn't want to get entered into.

He was capable. His body sporting the form and lines of a man comfortable with life in the wild, his clothing a mix of old uniform parts and desert attire, complete with a turban and flowing cloak. He sported numerous weapons, both visible and otherwise, including a riotgun, a machete, and numerous blades of varying lengths hidden about him. His life had been saved on a couple of occasions by a weapon no longer than his smallest finger, it's tip sharpened to a point that would easily slip past bone, if necessary.

Of course, he'd survived in the world for some time now, and he knew a bit about human nature. He had been lucky in the fact that these gangs tended to take on a look or a theme among themselves, and their members only looked for someone not wearing their colors. One of the groups went for tribal fashion, including ridiculous masks and body paints. He'd slipped up on one of their pickets one night, neatly knifed the man from behind, and worn the man's clothing after dumping the body into a ditch where the packs of roving scavengers were most likely to deal with the remains before dawn. It had taken some time, but with cautious appearances during daylight hours, he'd slowly worked his way across the entirety of the camp, heading for the area that they were quietly watching. Hiding his weapons had been a bit of a problem, but a spare bedroll had been "acquired", and converted over to a shroud for those items that would arouse extra attention. He had to make due with the crossbow that his benefactor had been carrying, although he decided not to rely upon it in a tight situation.

He'd managed enough of an idea about the trapped area beyond the camp edge to plot out a nice escape route, but his plans were dashed by a sudden noise. He almost didn't recognize the noise as an exposive charge going off, but the next noice was obvious.

Someone was out there, pleading for understanding, announcing their presence to whoever was listening. Of course, this meant that the camp near him was going to start turning out to check into it. If he wasn't watching out, he'd be noticed, if for not responding, more than anything.

Snarling to himself, Dingo grabbed a specially prepared torch, a large legbone from something, wrapped in some form of fatty substance. With a quick flourish, he dipped the torch into a nearby fire, then tossed the torch out ahead of him, looking to see what he could see out in the darkness.

 

[Tigerjaw]

Eric

Eric divided his attention both towards the caves and the camp lying below him. It would not be good if the bastards in the camp went up to investigate what just happened. Neither was he sure that those protecting the caves was overly friendly. They just shot him. He touched the wound on his left shoulder. Thankfully it seemed to have missed the bone and the bullet went right through the fleshy part. His leather jacket was ruined. His eyes wandered over the caves. What he saw frightened him. Two men holding M16A4 pointed right at him.

This was not good but nevertheless he slowly stood up with his hands away from his body. His Python was safely holstered. Eric started to walk towards the men but was halted by their words. "Stay where you are stranger. You may step on a mine. Not all are easily detected. We come and get you."

The man who spoke kept the rifle pointed at Eric while his companion carefully paced his way over to Eric. Every step the man took was calculated. The man stopped just in front of Eric and unarmed him without a word. Then he turned to walk back the same way he came down. He looked over his shoulder. "Follow me. Make sure you follow in my footsteps."

After some minutes they where safely at the cave opening. There Eric was bound with his arms behind his back with a strong rope. "Move it." One of the men said, obviously the leader of the two. They then led Eric through a confusing mace of caves.

 

[sharingfantasies]

Everyone came running into the cave when two of the men brought in a stranger handcuffed. Sheila glanced around the cave, wondering if bringing him into this part of the caves was a smart idea. This was one of the larger areas deep in the mountain and gave the stranger a good idea of how to move through the caves if he should escape.

Everyone was talking at the same time and making little sense, but eventually the story came out. Apparently, the man, calling himself Eric, claimed to be a friendly that just happened to be walking along the perimeter of the mountain and just happened to trip in front of a land mine at just the moment when Sharder and Thower were coming back from a surveillance trip near the Raiders' camp. Having less sense than a rock, the two had shot the man, which meant the gunshot sound would be bringing members from both gangs running to see what was going on.

Apparently the others figured this out as all of the sudden there was a hush in the cave. Then a scramble of bodies, all heading for their posts. Throughout the ridge of the mountain top, bunkers had been dug in such away that is almost impossible to see them from below. Weapons ranging for shotguns to walthers to Sheila's favorite, the silent crossbow were stored in the bunkers.

The prisoner was given over to Fate, who acted as their medical person, using some of the herbs he grew in his garden to help heal their basic wounds and ailments. The prisoner had been hit in the shoulder but it looked like it had just taken a chunk of flesh out of this arm, and not actually entered it. As Sheila headed for her bunker, it suddenly dawned on her that in the chaos she hadn't seen Maddie, who was usually at the front of the line when it came to curiousity.

"If that girl has gone out to the camps, I think I will feed her to the lions," thought Sheila as she hurried off to check Maddie's post. Not that there were any lions anywhere around but it was a threat the Sheila had often heard as a child. And Maddie was still mostly a child. On that verge of teenage and womanhood, thinking she knew what was best and having no clue. Sheila did have to admit that Maddie had the quickest hands of all of them, but her penchant for the thrill of an adrenalin rush often put Maddie close to danger.

Sheila rounded the corner and stepped in the back of the small, extremely empty bunker. With a low utterance of frustration and fear, Sheila headed for her own bunker. Everyone was being completely silent, their night goggles aiming in the direction of the camps, watching for the enemy to approach the base of the mountain. Sheila grabbed her own pair of goggles and her crossbow, then ran back deeper into the caves. If she was careful, she could circle around and down the old goat path, and while the others kept wary eye on the gang members and prevented them from crossing the wires, Sheila would take advantage of their occupation and go find that disobedient chit

Passing through the cooking cave, she noticed the prisoner and Fate talking quietly. Fate didn't talk much and he was opposed to the weapons they used to protect themselves, but he was one of the few men in the group that Sheila trusted. Nodding in his direction, she mouthed Maddie's name, then motioned with her hand that she was taking the back path. Fate nodded, shaking his head at Maddie's absence, then continued to wrap the prisoner's shoulder.

Although the prisoner turned at Sheila's entrance, she wasn't worried that she was giving anything away. Mouthing a name and making a circle with her finger wasn't giving lots of clues. As she disappeared out the back of the cave, the thought passed through her mind that the prisoner seemed to be strong, military, and not very upset about having been captured. She sort of hoped he would turn out to be all right and might join up with them. The Others could use someone with his background, and lord knew, despite almost blowing himself up, he had to be more intelligent than Sharder and Thower.

As she soundlessly moved down the path as quickly as she could, she could here the loud rustling and voices of some of the gang members standing around the base of the mountain speculating on the noise. She knew they probably wouldn't try to go up the mountain in the dark but there was always a possibility that they would waste some bullets firing up the mountainside. The Others knew not to return fire unless the gang members crossed the wire, but with grenades and landmines, they were pretty safe. Hopefully, the gang members would mill around for a bit giving her time to locate Maddie and get them both back to safety.

As Sheila paused behind a cluster of boulders, she almost gasped aloud when deep voices came from the other side of the rocks. Squeezing into a large crevice, she made herself as small as possible. With luck, they would move on their wave, if she wasn't lucky, then she was in a position that would hinder her movements. Waiting quietly, regulating her breath so that it barely audible, she heard the men talking about a new prisoner captured earlier. That got Sheila's attention. If she could figure out whether these guys were Knights or Raiders, she might be able to free the prisoner while she searched for Maddie. If she didn't free him, then he would be dead by morning anyway, his tortured body left for the vultures.

Her entire body tensed when the men started talking about the prisoner in crude, lacivious terms. "Blast that girl," Sheila thought, "she's gotten herself captured." If Sheila could get to her soon, she might be able to get to Maddie before the raping and torture began. If she didn't get to her, Sheila set her jaw. There was no if, she would just have to do what was needed. A shout from further down the line, sounding like to of the gangmembers had started fighting among themselves, pulled the attention of the men near her. As they hurried off, she saw the backs of the jackets in the moonlight. "Raiders," Sheila muttered.

Taking off down the hill, she slithered from bush to rock to bush, until she was on the canyon floor. Wiggling between some bushes, she followed the sandy wash trying to step on rocks where she could to avoid footprints. She wanted to run but she knew if she was seen, she wouldn't be any good to Maddie. Crossbow slung over her shoulder she seemed to glide across the sand, until she was at the edge of the Raiders' camp. Moving around the periphery, she searched for Maddie, finding her bound spreadeagled to a large tractor tire. There didn't seem to be any guards but Sheila knew they had to somewhere close by.

Working her way from tent to boulder, she moved closer and closer to Maddie. On her stomach, she slithered up behind the tire near Maddie's head. Reaching up she clamped her hand over Maddie's mouth, tight enough that she wouldn't be bit. With a soft whisper in the girl's ear, she asked about the guards. When Maddie recognized the sound of Sheila's voice her body relaxed and Sheila lifted her hand so that Maddie could whisper that they were over on the edge of the camp with night goggles watching the others at the base of the mountain. Sheila slid back and down and slowly cut Maddie free, then the two of them moved back away from the camp.

Circling around, the two women retraced Sheila's journey along the wash. It was too dangerous to talk, but Sheila knew that Maddie had been frightened by her body languaged. Instead of flitting around, she was hunched over low, moving effortlessly through the brush. Sheila wanted to alternately hug and kill the girl, but first she had to get them both back up that goat trail without being seen.

 

[Kathos]

Maddy

She winced in unfeigned pain when the man crushed her breast, the others in the team who had picked her up encouraging him. She concentrated on looking small and delicate...and on the Bowie knife hidden in her sleeve. He finally released her arm, his hand moving lower but not reaching its objective. Maddy dropped the blade into her hand with a flick of her wrist, slashed the big man across the face and took off. She ducked the retalitory blow and grinned, but for beging big and angry, the man could move. He caught her again, wresting the knife away from her with a roughness that made her worry for her wrists. He pulled her to face him, blood from the cut dripping down his cheek and backhanded her with a closed fist, making her brains spin.

"Little bitch, you smile now, but everybody's gonna have some fun with you tonight. I should cut that smile right off your face." They tied her hands for the walk to where they kept prisoners. Before they tied her down to the big tire, then man wrapped his finger into her braids again, lifting her off the ground, her head aching so much she whimpered. "That's a good sound. Before long, I'm gonna hear you scream." he whispered into her ear before biting her, hard, like he was trying to break skin. He dropped her. "Okay, tie her down, we'll finish our patrol and come back for a bit of a party. You and you, guard the bitch."

Maddy focused on the pains, the developing bruises, the tightness of the bonds, keeping her mind on the task, keeping sharp. She tugged against the ropes, but with her body spread eagled and pulled taut, she couldn't get any force to get out of them. This wasn't looking good. Sheila's gonna kill me, she though ruefully... if the Raider's didn't get to it first. One of the guards stroked up the inside of her thigh with his rifle, making her shudder. He didn't get any further as a gunshot rang out from the mountain and most of the men took off to go see the action. She craned her neck, trying to get a view of something other than sky.

Then a warm hand perssed over her mouth, hard, she struggled against it until Sheila's voice murmured into her ear. She pointed out where the guards had gone and soon, blissfully soon she felt the rope around her wrists go slack and they made short work of the ties on her ankles, slipping quietly away while Maddy thought about what had happened and rubbed circulation back into her hands.

The gunshot had come from the camp...Sheila had come to get her while there was the possibilty of an attack. Maybe she was better off with the Raiders...and then she remembered the big guy's face and shivered. However angry Sheila was, it would be worth it.

They made their way back up the mountain, Maddy didn't start shaking until they'd safely reached the caves.

"Sheila...I'm sorry."

 

[Finadien]

They brought the prisoner and as allways he cursed the eweapons and the violence but he cared for the wound as he would have done for everyone. The shot had gone cleanly through and it seemed that the bone hadn't been hurt and so he hadn't much to do besides cleaning the wound and putting some herbs on it, so it would get infected.

Then Sheila passed him and told him in her efficient sign language that Maddy was missing and she was searching for her. Sheila was one of the few people around here that seemed to get along with him, even though she still thought that weapons where necessary. She also trusted him, which was more then could be said about most people in this mountain. Even though they where not as babaric as the Raiders or the Knight, the Other mostly didn't trust each other. Trust was something belonging in the old world of Computers, TV, Malls and cinemas.
As Sheila left to search for Maddy he hoped that she would find her and that the scout would be safe. He hadn't much talked with Maddy but she seemd to at least respect him, since she nearly allways brought him something from her forraging runs, be it a book some electronic gadget or some rare plant she had found.

He finished wrapping the wound of the prisoner, mad sure that the bandage would hold at least for some hours, told him to clean it at least each day and then let the guards take him away.

 

[musicankane]

Jack

Jack Lionstar was not his real name. It was a name he gave himself long ago to pull his weight with the Raiders. He worked his way up the chain of command until he was practially the leader. Technically Sars, was the boss, but everyone came to him for advice and followed his leadership.
He was a big man at well over six feet tall, he was muscular and strong and down right mean. When one of the men informed him of an Other captured he stood and told the man to lead him to her. However the escape had been pulled well before he got there.
A flash of his knife and the men had more meat that evening. He stormed off to the edge of the camp and scanned the night for the Others hideout. It was dark and he could see nothing but desert and mountains. They were out there, he could see fires to the distant south. Leather knights, what total scum. He spat on the ground and turned to the nearest man he could find.
"Bring me a servant girl to my tent." He ordered. "Then tell the men to rest, we have Others to slaughter in the morning."

 

[sharingfantasies]

The journey back to the caves took much longer as many of the Raiders had lost interest in standing around the base of the mountain and had begun to wander around. Twice they were almost caught but were able to hide practically in sight of the gang members because it never occurred to them that an Other would be roaming around at a time like this. By the time they had slipped into the caves, Sheila was more concerned that the Raiders were still hanging around, than she was about Maddie's adventure. She was pretty sure the girl had learned a lesson the hard way, or at least her face sure had.

It was in Maddie's favor that the minute they could speak, she apologized. When they were back by the fire, Sheila turned to Maddie and questioned her about what happened that she got caught and what happened afterwards. Sheila felt a tremendous load come off her shoulders when she realized the Maddie was relatively unharmed. While her face looked bad, considering the alternative ways it could have looked, Maddie had gotten off very lucky. She just hoped Maddie realized how lucky.

By the time Sheila had finished questioning Maddie, the girl was a little calmer. Just before she sent Maddie to check in with Fate, she gave the girl a hug, which surprised both of them. The Others were not a trusting bunch nor were they particularly emotionally tied together. Sheila wasn't the girl's relative or guardian and the reality was that Maddie was an orphan of the unrest like most of them, and should she choose to go out again, it wasn't anyone's right to stop her. However, Sheila hoped Maddie would understand that she had endangered others with her actions.

While Sheila very much wanted to get Fate's feeling about the prisoner, there was still the very real problem of the Raider's milling about. Should they decide to get suddenly brave and try an attack, then Sheila needed to be in her bunker. When she got to her bunker and took a look down the mountainside, the Raiders seemed to have disappeared. Ducking out of her bunker and into that of the next person, Sheila asked what had happened to the Raiders.

As they stored their weapons, she learned that a few minutes ago a messenger had shown up, talked a few minutes and the whole group had left. It seemed as if the night was safe once more. As the group walked back through the caves, Sheila told them that Maddie was safe, and asked what they thought about the prisoner. The consensus of the group was that the man wasn't a Raider for sure, and probably not a Knight, but didn't have a clue if he was really a friendly as he claimed or if they had just brought a different enemy into the camp. A couple of people went to relief the guards, and maybe, thought Sheila do their own interrogating. She would see him later, but first she wanted Fate's opinion.

The main cave was empty so Sheila went back to Fate's personal hideaway. Learning that Maddie was all right but, having drunk a tisane to numb some of the pain, was asleep in her bed. Settling down on the ground near Fate, Sheila sighed, it had been a long day and even longer night. The adrenalin that had gotten her to Maddie and back safely, was gone and now only exhaustion filled her. She felt decades older than twenty-eight.

"I am worried. We will never find a better stronghold than this mountain, but so many of the Others are leaving without telling people, doing their own things. I know they are tired of being cooped up in the caves, but the valley floor is definitely not safe. I suppose we could try to get to the coast, but I fear that either the Knights or the Raiders will successfully stop us. We might try going down the sheer cliffs in back but I have no idea what lies in that direction. So many cities have been destroyed, so many people killed, that anywhere we go, could be worse than we have it here. Yet, I can't force the Others to stay, just because I am afraid of what MIGHT happen.

Fate, what do you think of the prisoner? Is he telling the truth? We could use a strong male especially if he has any brains. He looked military to me, but...," she shrugged and went silent. Hoping Fate would have some answers or ideas.

 

[Tigerjaw]

Eric

Eric and the whitehaired man did not share much conversation. It was just as well. He knew these peaple didn´t trust him. Hell, he didn´t trust them. Unarmed and vulnerable he did not feel at ease. Being among other peaple did not work for him. He hadn´t been in such a crowded space in months.

Finally the man finished treating Erics wound. From what he heard from the guards his name was Fate. Strange name but he had heard worse. His shoulder ached but that was expected. The two guards helped Eric to his feet and led him away. They took him to a secluded cave to keep him away from the peaple. Eric did not care much. At least théy was not planning to kill him immediately. Why would they treat his wound if that was their plan. They sat him down in a corner and tied his hands and legs with ropes. Without a word they left him alone with his thoughts.

 

[Screech]

Janice Swinton had always figued that she had good luck. No matter what she had tried to do, she had always managed to succede either with a huge margin for error, or by the skin of her teeth. It's how she had got into trading. She seemed to have the knack of finding rare pieces of merchandise scattered around.

One piece that she would absolutly not part with, however, was her motortrike. Leftover from a readfight, it was still in working order with half a tank of gas when she found it. It's original diver wansn't though. Since then, she had managed to hook up a trailer to the trike and load it up with all her gains.

That discovery was two years ago.

Brushing her deep red curls from her face as she leaned against the trike, she gazed off down the old highway, her leather jacket undone to let the wind cool her from the heat of the day, she absently thaught about what the future would hold for her. At 32, she was relativly safe from slavers, but her curves wern't exactly hidden, and that often made her a target of road scum. Her trusty 45 often made those who didn't want to trade leave in search of easier pickings.

Janice sighed as she straddled her trike and gunned the engine again. Only another 20 miles to the next town. She accellerated off down the old highway.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Rev. Archibald Thomas

Rev. Archibald Thomas thundered a sermon to his followers in the old church, in the remnants of his small town. He went on about how God had plans to use this crises for the rebirth of the world in a great New Jerusalem. When he was done, he asked for the prettiest two girls in the congregation to speak to him in private.

"God has a special purpose for you, my dear ladies. You can serve God best by bringing in a new generation, one not corrupted by the wickedness of the past. God has told me that I need to help create a New Jerusalem and a new Kingdom here on Earth. I will do it as the old Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, and Solomon did. I will take wives. You will be my first new wives, since my late wife was killed by the fallout in Manhattan."

He didn't mention that he no longer believed in God. God was a joke. This situation proved it. At least, however, he would have a means of using to rebuild the world from the rubble. Polygamy was just the start.

He also didn't say what he suspected about his wife at the time that she died. She had been screwing another man, after 3 decades of marriage during which he had always a good, loving, faithful husband, as his former faith taught him to be. Well, what had THAT gotten him? Nothing. That's how he knew God was a myth. So be it. He wouldn't let his seminary education and career as a minister go to waste.

 

[Screech]

The ride had been about 10 minutes long. With no highway patrol, Janice could go as fast as she wanted to on the open road. Towns were another matter. Need to go slow to avoid hitting people. And in her line of business that wasn't a good thing.

The throaghty roar of her engine signalled her arrival to the townsfolk. Of course, there did not seem to be many of them around. Not supprising given the condition of the town. Some buildings were quite ramshakle and falling down.

Janice spotted a precession of people walking out of the one building to be in a relativly good state of repair - the church. Amazing. Even after the bombs dropped, and the whole world went to hell, people still turned to God.

She pulled up outside and shut off her trike's engine. Climbing off, Janice pushed open the door and stepped inside. "Hello? Anyone here? Reverend?"

 

[Kathos]

Maddy

She abashedly reported to Sheila what had transpired. She had gotten too cocky and her luck had finally run out. She wouldn't let it happen again, though she did stop short of promising not to go out alone again. Of course she'd go out alone, how else would people get the things they needed? Everyone knew she was the best, and everyone knew that forcing a partner on her only made her trips riskier.

Finally, Sheila sent her to Fate to be checked over, even though she insisted she had just been knocked around a little. She went to Fate's and watched him finish with the prisoner, taking the time to watch the unfamiliar man carefully. He looked strong, but not mean, and he was very calm about everything. He wasn't bad looking either, she held his eyes until she started to blush when he caught her checking out his muscled chest, her pale blue eyes flicking away.

Its no matter...she looked a mess, she was sure, the developing bruise across her eye and cheek was going to ed up every color of the rainbow, but it certainly wasn't the only thing. Well, how hurt could she possibly be if she was checking someone out? Nothing happened that wouldn't heal, she'd just wear her leather wrist guards and boots to hide the rope abrasions and... um... okay, the face was going to stick around for a bit.

The prisoner was led away and she let Fate turn his attention to her, apologizing for not bringing him back anything fun - she usually tried to find something interesting for him, he was one of the few who, like her, appreciated finds other than food, fuel, and booze. He liked tech, she liked...pretty things.

His questioning was easier than Sheila's, but made her feel worse in a way. Her head was pounding by the time he gave her something to drink to kill the pain, and she was grateful to take it - without admitting how much her face was throbbing.

She padded back to her little cave, getting more relaxed with every step. She made it to her own nest of blankets in a hammock and was soon fast asleep.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Rev. Archibald Thomas

He had just finished thinking and speaking to the young women, when he heard another distinctly feminine voice asking, "Hello? Anyone there? Reverend?"

It was a rather attractive woman, as far as he was concerned. Hmmm....wife number 3, perhaps? He would find out soon enough.

"Yes, my child. I am Reverend Archibald Thomas, Prophet of the Church of Heaven. How may I help you?" he replied, tugging at the full beard he was deliberately growing. It was well-worth giving up his handsome look to resemble an Old Testament Patriarch. That was precisely the look he was going for here. To be a credible prophet, he had to look the part.

 

[Screech]

Janice breathed a sigh of releif. The church did have a reverend, and you could nearly always trust a man of the cloth. This one did seem rather... rugged. Not that she was complaining, of course, but he was the first clergyman she's come across as of late with a full beard.

She walked down the isle toward him, and hald out her hand, smiling, as a lock of red hair fell down infront of her face. "Janice. Janice Swinton. I'm a traveling merchant, and I was wandering if there were any places in this town where I might be able to rent out a room for a couple of days"

She hoped that there would be, as she didn't look forward to another night of sleeping on her trike. It sorta gets uncomfortable...

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

"There aren't that many buildings standing. However, there is a tent city nearby. Since you're an outsider, and look like you've had it rough, however, I'd recommend simply spending the night in the parsonage. I can put you up in the master bedroom for now. I'll simply sleep on the couch. I haven't remarried yet, though I have been talking to these women about becoming my wives. Perhaps we can find a husband for you?"

 

[Screech]

Well this was a turn up for the books! A clergyman who was getting married. Wasn't that supposed to be sacralige or something? Janice couldn't remember. She had never been much of a church-goer. But the strangest thing was that he was offering to get her hitched!

Janice chuckled. "Me? Married? Heh. It's a flattering offer, reverend, but I'm the travelling type. A husband would only.. tie me down"

She brushed the lock of hair back out of her face. "But I'd gladly take you up on the offer of staying in the personage. It feels like weeks since I've slept in a proper bed..."

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

"Well, as you wish. My late wife loved that bedroom. I think that you will enjoy it. I happen to believe strongly in hospitality. You seemed stunned to see a minister discussing his wives. Catholic, by any chance? My denomination encourages clergy to wed."

What he didn't mention was that his denomination was much different from what it used to be. He used to be an Episcopal minister. Now he was a "Prophet" of a religion that wasn't far removed from Mormonism...in some aspects, at least.

 

[Screech]

"Me? Well, I used to be Baptist, but after the bombs fell, I kinda lost my faith. I... I'm sorry if that sounds terrable, reverand. I should probably say some Hail Mary's for that". She smiled and chuckled for a second.

She put her hands on her hips and shifted to the left slightly. "Tomorrow morning I would like to be able to set up a stall to display my wares. Would it be rude to ask for a wake-up call?" She hoped that she wasn't putting Reverand Archibald out too much. After all, he was a man of the cloth, and she a simple merchant. Traditionally, the two occupations didn't often get on well

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

The Reverend chuckled, "No need for penance if you don't believe in God. It's an understandable, human reaction to this post-atomic world. It is the End of Days, I am sure. In any case, by all means, I will wake you up for your work. We all have to live. I must warn you that people here don't have much money, though. The important thing to remember is that God believes in you."

That last bit was his favorite cliche line to use on atheists and agnostics. It just sounded clever and friendly. Going through the motions could be inconvenient these days, but he had invested too much time and money in his life to being a clergyman. He wasn't going to stop just because God had let him down. He personally no longer cared about whom was right. What hell could be worse than this? He was just living his life and enjoying it as best as he could, as well as holding onto the last remnants
of his moral code.

 

[Screech]

"The important thing to remember is that God believes in you."

Janice smiled and half-bowed slightly. "Thank you again Reverand" Truly, even in a time like this, men of faith can still suprise with their kindness and generosity. She would have to sort out some sort of trinket for him once her time in the town was done.

"If you will excuse me one moment, I just want to check on my wares and gather my things. "

Smiling and giving a quick nod, she turned and walked back down the isle to the large double doors that were still ajar. Stepping outside, she cast a quick glace over her trailer. Everything still seemed to be in order. Seemed that the reverend wasn't the only honest man in town.

Grabbing her saddlebags, she casually slung them over one shoulder and walked back inside. "Reverend. If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to see where I'll be sleeping tonight. It's getting dark outside"