Judgment

By Chris Van Deelen

“So is it a deal then?”

            Maverick stood back and regarded the oil baron before him.  “Yeah, seems like a fair trade.  Six hundred gallons for six blasters and fifty rounds each.”

            The baron smiled, showing oddly perfect teeth.  “Excellent my friend. We will start transferring the fuel to your wags.”

            It had been just over a week since the companions had left the redoubt after the double disaster with the mat trans. Montague and Chance had argued that they should stay behind and get the gateway functioning again but the scarred warrior wouldn’t hear it.  There was no way that he was going to stay in that redoubt a single hour longer, let alone the several days of intense repair work that it would require to get the gateway locking comp functioning once again.  They had spent two hours shouting back and forth before Maverick finally slammed his hand down on the table and told them in no uncertain terms that they could either follow his command or stay the fuck behind.

            Maverick didn’t care for that one bit.  He wanted to work side by side with his companions and friends, not order them around.  But the two from the past needed to learn their place until they could survive on their own in the Deathlands.

            Reluctantly they agreed to his demands rather than face the possibility of being left behind to fend on their own. They quickly left the redoubt and began what was to be a very long journey across the hellish landscape that is the Deathlands.

            A week later they found themselves in the foothills of Montana, just a few hours away from the ranch that Maverick had grown up on. And to top it off they found themselves low on fuel. The high quality juice they had brought with them from the redoubt was almost gone. They had no choice but to make contact with the Oil barons that controlled a huge section of land covering almost all of the former province of Alberta, the southern half of Saskatchewan and part of northern British Columbia.

            During his travels with the Trader, they had dealt with the barons several times in the past.  The quality of the fuel wasn’t as good as it was before the Skydark but it was either trade with them and hope that they could reach the next redoubt listed on the data disk Maverick had been given.  There they would be able to fuel up once again.

            The baron turned and whistled sharply from between two of his fingers.  Several sec men jumped off the predark oil tanker and unhooked a long battered hose.  “Move your mutie behinds!”  He roared.  The baron was not really a baron, technically he was one of the true baron’s cronies.  But he fit the bill perfectly. A fat disgusting slob of a man dressed in a suit of dubious origin.

            The sec men raced with the hose over to the first of the two APC’s and hooked it up to the fuel intake.  Montague stood at the ready beside Feral at the first APC, while Chance and Gedoena waited by the other.  It took only a few minutes to top off the tanks of both APC’s.

            Maverick narrowed his eyes as the baron walked around the APC’s and ran his hands over the nearly perfect hulls. He could almost hear the other man’s mind clicking over trying to figure out a way to take the wags for himself.

            With a smile firmly planted on his face the baron turned around and raised his hand, and was about to speak.

            “Forget it.”  Maverick cut him off before the words left the baron’s mouth.

            “No?”  He raised his eyes in surprise. “But you haven’t even heard what I was going to ask you Maverick.”

            Maverick crossed his arms under his muscular chest and set his jaw. “Forget it. I am not going to tell you where we got the wags.”

            With a huff the baron strode up to the other man and put on his friendliest smile.  “But surely Maverick you could at least trade us for a arma wag or three. We are powerful and can give you pretty much anything you want.  In fact I’d be willing to trade you that tanker and the men and the full load of fuel for one right now.”

            With a firm shake of his head Maverick stated flatly. “No.  When I rode with the Trader it was the same thing. He never gave up the locations of where we got the goods or the wags and I ain’t gonna do it either.”

            But it was clear the baron was not going to be discouraged. “Name your price then Maverick. What do you want? Land? How about your own Barony?  Slaves or women?”

            At the word slaves both Gitana and Joe glanced sharply at the fat baron.  Maverick caught their eyes and shook his head almost imperceptibly. The baron was too wrapped up in his sales pitch to notice it.

            “We will give you what ever you want in exchange for the location of where you found these magnificent wags.”

            Quite deliberately Maverick turned his back on the fat baron wannabe and strode over to the fuel drums that the sec men were filling one at a time. “How’s the transfer coming?” He asked quickly.

            One of the men nodded to him and pointed at the nearly filled barrel. “Two more to go and that’s all of them.  Another three minutes at the outset.”

            Never one to give up, the baron marched over to the scarred warrior and clasped his shoulder.  “Come now Maverick, name your price.  You surely want something that we could provide.”

            Maverick looked down at the hand resting on his shoulder and at the baron.  The fat baron could clearly see that if he didn’t remove it and fast that he might end up pulling back a stump.  “I said no.  What part of no do you not understand trader?”  He carefully emphasized the word trader.

            Around the two groups the air suddenly turned tense.  Maverick had two fully armed and functional military APC’s while the Baron had a heavily armored fuel tanker as well as a dozen rebuilt cars and trucks that acted as escorts. The baron had almost thirty men and women with him, some were sec men, while others were techs.  If it came down to a fight, there is a good chance that the baron could kill several of Maverick’s crew, but not before Gitana and Joe destroyed the fuel truck. Both people were inside the turrets of the arma wags, their hands on the firing mechanisms, just waiting for the signal to fire.

            “Alright Maverick, no need to get your girdle in a bunch.”  The baron said amiably as he backed off.  He wore a friendly smile on his face but his eyes were clearly angered.  He wasn’t used to being treated like a common scavenger and didn’t like it in the slightest. “If you change your mind Maverick, just contact us on the same frequency.  And name your price.”

            The scarred warrior didn’t bother to reply as he opened the hatch on the nearest APC.  Inside he pulled out a box containing six assault rifles and passed it to the nearest sec man, then he removed another box, this one still stamped with ‘Property of US army’ on the outside.  A second sec man took the other box and walked over to the baron and held it out for his inspection.

            Using a gold encrusted chubby hand the baron carefully opened the box and removed several bullets at random.  The first sec man who Maverick had handed the weapons to removed two of the M-16A2 blasters and brought them over to the baron.

            Despite his appearance the Baron was clearly familiar with weapons and knew how to use them. He removed the magazine from both and loaded the rounds into each.  The fat man barked an order to another one of the sec men who ran back to one of the pickups and brought over a mock up of a man made out of plywood.  He carried the standup figure fifty yards away from the two groups and set it up.

            The baron took careful aim with the first blaster and fired.  The Standup was neatly blown over by the shot. The sec man quickly set it up again and the baron fired a burst from the rifle.  The head of the mock up shattered in a shower of wooden splinters.

            “Satisfied?” Maverick asked.

            With a nod the baron handed the smoking weapon to one of his cronies. “Excellent weapons.  No sign of having been fried.  I could still smell the cosmolime they were packed in.”

            “Good. Trades done, that’s that.”

            “Would you and your crew care to come back to the ville with us? It’s only a three-hour drive from here.  We will treat you to the best meal you could imagine and a nice soft bed for a few days if you want.  Your people are looking triple tired.”

            “No thanks.” Maverick shook his head.  “Much obliged at the offer of hospitality but we have to decline. I have a lot of miles to put between us over the next few days and don’t want to waste any time.”

            “Alright Brett, but you have our frequency if you need anything at all.”

            The scarred warrior just nodded and walked away.

*           *            *

            Gitana was busy checking the ammo stores when she felt a presence behind her.  Normally she would have shot first and asked questions later but she was quite familiar with the presence.  “Chica, what do you want?”

            The mutant girl placed her taloned hand on the other woman’s shoulder.  “Gitana, I am worried about Daddy Brett.”

            “I know you are Chica. I’ve noticed it as well.”  The Spanish woman patted the talon on her shoulder.  “Come, sit and lets talk.”

            Carefully the mutant girl slid into the co pilots seat, taking care not to catch her prehensile tail on anything sharp. “Daddy seems to be really tired lately.  Ever since we made that jump back from newyork. And since you sleep with him all the time maybe you know what is wrong.  He just looks worse and worse every day. And I thought his temper was bad but it’s getting really bad now.”

            “Something happened to him when we jumped back from the past. He wouldn’t tell the others, or you totally what it was but…”  The older woman said quietly, closing her eyes and leaning back against the hull of the APC.

            Gedoena prodded gently. “But what Gitana?”

            The older woman opened her eyes and stared at the mutant girl who is rapidly becoming a daughter to her as she had to Maverick. “Promise me that you will never, ever breath a word to anyone, including Brett. I am breaking his trust by telling you.”

            “Alright” Gedoena nodded.  “I promise I won’t tell him. Is it serious?”

            “Chica, when we jumped from the past, he was pulled into the future.  He told me about it.  The story was totally unbelievable, would have been if we hadn’t been in the past ourselves.”  She quickly related his brief visit to the future, the possible future of the Deathlands, relating what he had seen and encountered.

            “Wow.” Was all the girl could say when Gitana finished the story. “But a simple jump like that shouldn’t cause him to lose sleep.”

            “He wakes up every night.  Sometimes I wake up before he does.  His body is always covered in sweat and I can almost smell his fear.”

            Gedoena shivered despite the warmth of the interior of the arma wag.  “He was afraid? What could cause him to be afraid?”

            Gitana smiled at the girl. “Chica, Brett is only human. He has his weakness and fears, just like the rest of us.”

            The young woman clearly wanted to argue with Gitana, but she held her thoughts in check. “Do you know what it was?”

            “No. He refuses to talk about it. Just gets up and gets a drink or relives himself them comes back to bed.”

            “I want to talk to him about this Gitana.”

            “No. You won’t. He is going to tell me eventually.  She snapped more harshly than she had intended to. “I’m sorry Chica,” She said calmly.  “You are worried about him as am I.”

            Gedoena nodded and stroked her tail, a clear sign she was agitated. “Is he going to die?”

            The absurdity of her question caught Gitana totally off guard. The small Spanish woman couldn’t help but burst out laughing.  She quickly regained control of herself. “What sort of triple stupe question is that Chica? Of course he isn’t going to die. He just needs to get his rest.”

            “Then lets stop and get the rest he needs.”  She wasn’t angry at the laughter, and her young but brilliant mind went for the most logical solution she could think of.

            “I believe he has already decided on that course of action Chica.”

            Just then the scarred survivalist stuck his head in the APC and glanced at the two women. “Gitana, Geddy, what are you two up ta?”

            “Just talking Amante.  Nothing more.”

            He chuckled. “Get two women together and the plotting starts.”

            Gitana placed her hand on the girl’s knee and squeezed it gently, silently telling her to keep her thoughts to herself. “Of course not Amante, it wouldn’t interest you anyhow.”

            Maverick leaned against the door and crossed his arms.  “Try me.”

            “If you insist Brett.”  Gitana chuckled and winked. “It’s that time of the month for her.”

            The scarred warrior took one look at the two women and did a fast about face and closed the door.  Neither woman could hold back the laughter at the look on his face.

            “I will talk to him chica.  He listens to me after all.” Gitana reassured the young mutant.

            Gedoena hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek. “Thank you Gitana.”

            “No need to thank me. He’s important to me as well. After all, he is going to be the father of my baby.”  She stood up in the cramped confines of the APC as she spoke and opened the door.

            Outside she spotted her lover helping Joe, Mitch and Chance secure the fuel drums to the back of the APC.  The small convoy was already quickly disappearing in the late afternoon sun, heading north back to their port of call. Both Joe and Maverick worked without words, knowing what the other needed, like a well-oiled machine. The only time they spoke was to let the other two members of his band know what needed to be done.  It took only a handful of minutes before the barrels were secured. Chance noticed her watching and waved in a friendly manner.

            Waving back, she walked up to the four men. “That was fast.” She said cheerfully.

            Joe smiled in his usual manner. “We don’t screw around. Job needs doing gets done.”

            She smiled at him and wrapped her arm around her lover’s waist. “I know that Joe.” She reached up and kissed Maverick’s stubbled chin. “Are we going to make camp here tonight?”

            “No, I want to put as much distance as I can between us and the gas baron.”  He answered her as he wiped his brow free of sweat.

            “Amante, I am tired. Let’s just stay here.” 

            Mitch looked at chance and motioned with his head to the APC, Joe joined them.

            Maverick sighed and threw his hands up. “Listen Gitana, you don’t know those oil barons. They have a huge barony, hundreds of sec men and dozens of wags.  They get what they want, and the only way to deal with them is to show force or to beat a hasty retreat.”

            “Then how did the Trader handle them?”  She pressed.

            “Trader was the baddest dog on the block. The baron knew that if he tried anything, trader would wipe his little convoy out.  We’ve got the wags, but I am triple worried that the stupe’s are carrying wag chillers.”

            She nodded, knowing that he was right.  He was the warrior.  “How far are we going to go?”

            He pointed towards the rolling hills in the distance. Just past could be seen the white-capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains. “We’ll head there.  I used to live around here so I know the land pretty good. We can find a place to make camp in about an hour or so.”

            “Alright Brett.”

*           *            *

            The roads in this part of the country were in particularly bad condition. Almost one hundred years of brutal winters, combined with the earth-shaker bombs used by the soviets during the holocaust had taken their toll on the roads.  Some were perfectly clear and passable while others were so badly damaged that it was easier to travel in the ditches alongside the predark continental lifelines.

            Just as the sun was starting to set they found themselves in the foothills of the Darks, several hundred miles away from where they had left Ryan and the others.  Maverick was piloting the first APC and they pulled off the road into a large clearing near a mountain stream.  He parked it next to the stream and killed the engine.

“We’ll make camp here.”  He told Gitana, Feral and Gedoena as he unbuckled the seatbelt and climbed out of the drivers seat.  Already the three female members of the band were doing the same.

            “I’ll get a fire started Daddy.”  Gedoena told him.

            He nodded and opened the hatch in the turret, letting the cool evening air wash over him. As soon as the door was opened, Feral’s life long companion, the mutant cougar slipped out and ran straight for the trees that surrounded them.  He figured the cougar was going hunting.  The other APC pulled up a dozen yards to the right and parked.  Joe was the first one out, followed my Mitch and Matt.

            “What’s the plan Brett? “  Montague asked, stretching the travel kinks out of his back as he walked over to the APC.

            “You and Chance, head with Joe and get some firewood.  Watch out for Scream-wings and keep your blasters ready. Stay on orange.”

            Mitch raised his eyebrow. “Scream-wings?”

            “Yup, triple nasty little mutie fuckers.  Ask Joe about them. He’ll fill ya in on the details. They’re quite common up in these parts.”

            “Eyah.  Will do Brett.”  He threw the other man one last look before he caught up with the other two men.

            Working quickly Brett pulled out enough self-heats for the group.  Over the past few days he quickly caught on to what the others ate and how much.  Personally he loved the predark packaged food even if the others didn’t.  But he knew that they would soon grow tired of the same food day in and day out and would want a change.

            A sudden shriek caused him to drop the packages and the Desert Eagle was in his hand and aimed in the direction of the sound before the last of the self-heats hit the ground.  His eyes caught the sight of Feral leaping in the river; naked as the day she was born.  With a growl he holstered the weapon and gathered up the packages.  The scream she made was not unlike that of the Scream wings he warned Montague about.

            Gedoena had a fire already going and he handed his adopted daughter one of the self-heats. She had grown quite partial to the chicken ala king self-heats and he made sure that they stocked quite a few of them.  With a smile she took the meal and opened it, triggering the chemical reaction that heated the meal up almost instantly.

            As his lover joined him he handed the other meals to her and went back to the APC.  He quickly checked the fuel and oil levels to make sure that there were no problems.  They had burned more fuel that he had expected but that was due to the poor quality of the crude the barons produced.  Once they reached the next redoubt he would have to take the time to change the filters and give the wags an overhaul.

            Before he knew it Gitana was knocking lightly on the metallic skin of the APC.  “Amante, your supper is getting cold.”

            “What?” He had lost total track of time. “Oh, shit. Sorry babe.”

            She entered the APC and closed the door behind her.  “Brett, we have to talk.”

            “Sure.” He answered her as he wiped his hands on the thighs of his pants.  He knew that what ever she had to say it was going to be serious as she rarely ever used his first name.

            “Amante, we’re all worried about you.”  She placed her warm hand on his arm and squeezed the muscle gently.  “You have been losing too much sleep and you need your rest.”

            He waved her concern off. “Been worse babe.  Went days without sleep at times while riding with Trader.”

            “I know that Amante, but I want you to spend a little time resting up here for a couple of days. We have plenty of food, there is fresh water and we’re about one hundred miles from the nearest settlement.”  She stood behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders. The muscles there were usually hard, but they felt like they had been carved out of granite. She began to dig in with her fingers, trying to relax them.

            Sighing with relief, the man slumped his shoulders and let his arms go loose.  “I want us to reach that redoubt in the next 3 days. We can stock up on fuel and I can run maintenance on the wags.”

            Her fingers continued to work the hard muscle as she spoke. “Brett, the redoubt has been their since before the Skydark. It will be there for years to come.  The trip can wait.”

            “Fireblast Gitana, why the hell is this so fucking important to you? I’m fine.”  He snapped harshly, wrenching his shoulders out of the woman’s hands.

            “See Amante, that is exactly why I am concerned about you.”  The outburst didn’t upset her in the slightest and she took his shoulders in her hands once again.  “You are suffering from the lack of rest, and your mood swings have been getting worse and worse.  And do you know what the worst thing is?”

            “Do I want to know?”  He asked as he forced his unreasoning anger down.

            “Amante, you haven’t even tried to make love to me since we left the redoubt.”

            “No,” He said as he rubbed his temples with the tips of his fingers, closing his eyes as the stress seemed to intensify. “No, I haven’t. And I’m sorry.”

            “I want to know your dreams.  Something is preventing you from getting the sleep you need and if you talk about it, that might help.”

            “No.”

            “Brett, tell me and I am not going to let up until you do. If you don’t I will get the others to help me tie you up and we’ll stay here until you get the rest you need.”

            Resigned to his fate, Maverick told her about meeting the Archon when he had been pulled into the future. He told her about the gut wrenching horror that overwhelmed him as the creature reached out and caressed his mind with the inhuman thoughts.

            “The worst thing was his eyes. Those huge, inhuman orbs. When he stared at me it was like he was staring right into my soul.”  Just telling the woman seemed to lift a great weight off his heart.

            She shivered despite the warm temperatures inside the APC.  “That gave me the horrors Amante. From the way you described it, I’ve never seen a mutie like that, hell, never heard of a mutie like that before.”

            “Believe me babe, if you would have seen it, you’d be losing sleep as well.”

            Gitana smiled down at her lover as she continued to massage his neck and shoulders. “Brett, we are going to stay here for a few days and rest up.”  She said, not asked.  The tone of her voice hinted that there was no room for arguing.

            He opened his mouth to protest but she interrupted him.

            “And tonight, you’re going to fuck me till you can’t get it up anymore. Is that understood Maverick?”

            “Sure Gitana.  I got it.”

            “That’s my Amante.”  She laughed as she kissed him the stubbled cheek. “I want you to shave tonight before we go to bed ok?”

            “You got it.”

            “C’mon Amante, your food is probably as cold as the grave now.”  She grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet. Together they walked out and joined the others at the fire.

            The other five members of the small group were already seated on logs that Chance and Montague had dragged in from the surrounding forest.  Feral was once again fully dressed and was seated only a few feet away from Joe, watching him as he ate.  Gedoena was with her carefully helping the wild woman comb the tangles out of her unruly mop of hair. The huge mutant cougar had her head on her paws and opened one eye ever so slightly as they approached the group.

            He sat down on the dirt before the fire and grabbed a self-heat that Gitana had already opened for him. Without fanfare he dug into the meal.  “Good work Mitch, Matt.” He said between mouthfuls.

            Montague merely nodded and silently worked on his meal. Mitch grinned. “Thanks Maverick. But wasn’t anything. Plenty of dead wood lying about.  Doubt anyone has used this spot in years.

            Joe glanced over at Feral as Gedoena continued to work on her hair.  In some ways he found her near constant staring at him enduring as well as infuriating.  “What?”  He asked.

            “You eat like wood pig.”  She answered him.

            Joe put his now finished meal down on the ground and wiped his mouth clean, grinning from ear to ear. “Your point?”

            “You pig. That point.”

            Maverick started to chuckle quietly under his breath, earning an evil eyed glare from the woman.

            “Daddy Brett?”  The young mutant interjected before a shouting match started between her adopted father and her friend.

            “Yeah Ged. What’s on your mind?”

            She bit her lip, afraid that she might give away something that she shouldn’t. The young woman put the comb down and flicked her long tail from side to side. “When are we going to leave? First thing tomorrow?”

            He took another bite of the self-heat and shook his head. “Nah, figure we’d stay here for a few days.  Seems like a nice and quiet place, pretty peaceful. Considering the shit we’ve been through over the past few weeks, we need a good long vacation.”

            The girl didn’t hide her surprise very well it was clear that the news was exactly what she wanted to hear. “Oh, that’s good.”

            “Usual watches Maverick?” Montague queried and stood up, picking up his rifle.  They had been together for quite some time and he still was quite distant.

            “The usual, unless you want to switch off with someone.”

            With a shake of his head the soldier from the predark days slung the rifle over his shoulder. “No, that’s good for me.”  He turned.

            “Watch your six Mitch, stay on orange.”

            “Roger that.”  He tossed over his shoulder as he walked out of the circle of light and headed into the woods near the stream.

            Maverick clapped his thighs. “So, who’s up for some hooch?”

            Joe’s head shot up and he laughed. “I hear that. Fuckin A!”

            “Count me in Brett.”  Matt replied as well.

            With a grin the scarred survivalist stood and went to the APC.  A moment later he returned with several bottles of predark beer and a bottle of Jack Daniels. After passing the beer around and putting one aside for Mitch when he returned Brett sat down and relaxed slightly.

            “Wish we had some Canadian beer.”  Matt commented as he opened his bottle and took a swig.

            Gitana slid down behind Maverick and wrapped her hands around his waist, holding her beer in her right hand and she twined her fingers in his left hand. “Why’s that Matt?  I’ve drank better but this predark stuff ain’t bad.”

            “American beer just doesn’t have the kick that the Canadian stuff does.”  He answered her.

            Joe had just finished draining half the bottle when he looked at his new companion and chuckled. “Not enough kick?  Shit man, you want kick should give you some joltski or mebbe when we hit the next ville, get you some of the local gut rot.”

            “I’ll take you up on that offer Joe.”  Said Matt as he held his beer up in a mock salute.  “Christ this beer is like making love in a Canoe.”

            Her tail swished somewhat as Gedoena spoke to Matt. “How’s that?”

            Joe was already chuckling, knowing exactly what the predark med tech was going to say.

            “American beer is like making love in a canoe.  They’re both fucking close to water.”

            Gitana and Brett both groaned at the punch line, Gedoena giggled and Feral just stared at the man, uncomprehending the meaning of the joke.   Matt didn’t bother to explain it to the woman, as the blood between them was still bad.

            Despite himself Matt grinned. “Brett, tell us a few stories about what it was like when you grew up.”

            Gitana tensed up, ready to calm her lover down. She knew that he didn’t like to talk about his past and got very angry when someone asked.  To her surprise, he did tense but relaxed almost instantly.

            “Sure Matt. What ya wanna know?”  His voice was steady and calm, no hint of the usual anger that accompanied the question.

            Matt shrugged and rubbed his eyes. “Where did you grow up?”

            “As I said earlier today, I actually grew up in these parts. My family, we were part of a large ranch, more like a fortress.  There were nine families in total, almost eighty people.”

            Everyone relaxed and listened to Brett’s narration, even Feral.  She lay down on her stomach and curled into her cougar companion.

            The scarred survivalist continued with his story. “We raised cattle and did a little farming and hunting. Traded a lot of the cattle to some of the local Amarinds and even some of the Oil Barons like the ones we made the deal with. Never had too much trouble with muties, except the triple deadly scream wings. Seemed to concentrate in this area somehow. Never did understand that.”

            “So what did you do then daddy Brett?”  Gedoena asked him as she sidled a little closer to Matt. The predark whitecoat was so intent on his beer and the survivalist’s narration that he didn’t notice it.

            “I was mainly a wrangler. I spent most of my time alone or with a couple of my friends.  I was away from the ranch most of the time, tending the herds, making sure we didn’t lose too many to the muties and ghouls.”

             Feral’s eyes opened a little.  “Ghouls?  Cannie muties?”

            He nodded. “Yeah, the same.”

            Gitana hugged him tightly. “Go on Amante.”

            “We used to have a problem with some of the natives going after our cattle. Got into some triple chilling fights with them. But a few years back, before I joined Trader, the heads of my home, including my dad, and the tribal elders finally met and put an end to the hostilities. Did some trading and we’ve been uneasy allies since.”

            Joe drained his beer and stood up. ”Sounds reasonable. The Amarinds are triple good folks once you get on their good side.  But they’ve never been too trusting of Outlanders so getting on their good side is damn near impossible at times.  Black Dust, they think that the holocaust was a good thing.”

            With a nod the survivalist agreed. “Yeah, that they are. Lost my cherry to one of the Amerind girls.”  He chuckled slightly as he felt Gitana’s arms tighten around him ever so slightly.

            “What was her name?”  Asked the small Spanish woman.

            “Prairie Fire.  Trust me, that name fit the girl.”

            “What was your native name Bro?”  Joe asked as he returned with several more bottles of the predark beer.

            “Never got one.”

            “Bullshit!”  Joe laughed and sat down.  “You spend enough time with the Amerinds and earn their respect, they’ll stick you with one.”

            “I never got one.”  Maverick Insisted.

            The large barrel chested man refused to give up. “Wrong Brett. You shagged a native girl.  At the very least if she’s gonna let you in her doe skin skirt you must have meant something to her.  And there is no way she would have let you have your way if she didn’t like you.

            “Fireblast Joe, how the fuck do you know?”

            Joe lifted the small leather bag that was constantly hung around his neck. “Because I spent time with the Amerinds as well.”

            “I’ll tell you mine IF you tell me yours then.”  Maverick made that perfectly clear.

            “Sure. They called me Spirit of the bear in white man’s body.”

            Maverick chuckled slightly. “Ya know, that suits you.  Ace on the line, that suits ya perfect!”

            “Spirit of the bear in white man’s body.”  Feral repeated, almost as if she was testing or t tasting the name. “I like. Better than Joe.”

            “It’s a pretty long name though.”  Gedoena commented, now sitting hip to hip with Matt Chance.

            Matt noticed it but didn’t try to pull away. “Your turn Brett.”

            Brett mumbled quietly under his breath.

            “What was that Amante?” His lover asked him as she leaned in close. “Didn’t quite make that out.”

            The survivalist sighed. “I said, they called me Heart of Stone, Head of Air.”

            The only sound to reach the companions was the steady crackle and pop from the fire.  Then Feral started to giggle.  Like a wild fire the laughter quickly infected the other members of the group, even Maverick.

            The mutant girl wiped tears of laughter out of her eyes and fought to regain composure. “I’m sorry Daddy Brett, but that is so funny!”

            Despite himself, he was chuckling along as well. “Don’t get yer panties in a bunch over it Gedoena.  It’s ok.  It really did fit me.”

            Gitana tipped the bottle of Jack Daniels and poured a little into her now empty beer bottle and drained it.  “Why did you deserve it Amante?”

            “Yeah, why Amante?”  Feral Echoed.

            “You all know me. I’m a fighter. Nothin scares me.  Heart of Stone, make sense?”

            No one made any motion to argue with the man. Not even the wild mutant.

            “And you also know that I tend to do a lot of things without thinking them out. Well used to anyway.  So, that’s how I got head of air.”

            They shared another quiet round of laughter.  It was true, the huge survivalist did have a bad habit of not thinking before he acted. But as the time passed that habit was slowly disappearing.

            The small group of companions spent several hours talking and reminiscing about their travels and encounters.  It took a while for Matt to warm up to them but once he had he was a fountain of predark information and quite amiable.  Much to his surprise, Gedoena curled her arm around his and leaned into him, listening.  Within a few minutes the strange mutated girl was sound asleep.

            After that, the level of noise dropped considerably, even though the level of alcohol consumed went up.

            “I’m gonna take my watch now.”  Joe announced out of the blue as he stood up and picked up his shotgun.  Even though he consumed almost twice the amount of predark beer that Maverick had, the man was as steady as an oak tree.

            Maverick nodded.  “Sure thing bro. Wake me in two and I’ll take over ok?”  With a yawn he stretched, suddenly feeling more tired than he had been all week.  “Fireblast, I think I’m gonna go let the sandman beat me to death.”

            “You wish Amante.”  The small Spanish woman whispered in his ear, letting her tongue slide along the flesh of his lobe.

            He chuckled despite the exhaustion that he felt consuming him. “A promise is a promise Git.”

            “Ooo! Amante and Gitana gonna mate like wild animals.”  Feral chortled as she stroked the fur of her cougar companion.

            The lovers stood together. Gitana opened the APC and grabbed the bedroll and sleeping bags out and laid them near the fire.  Maverick helped her as she worked.  The equipment was in pristine condition and very comfortable. They could sleep in the dead of winter in the bedrolls and bags without fear of hypothermia.

            They watched as Joe walked away from the group, humming a tune to himself and carrying his shotgun at the ready but loosely in his hand.  Only a few minutes after he left Feral quietly stood up and slinked her way out of the camp. Her cougar looked up once and actually shook her head before climbing under the APC near the engine cowling to soak up the radiating heat that was still present.

            Matt gently shook the mutant girl awake. She rubbed her eyes sleepily and stood up.  “Goodnight Daddy Brett.”  Gedoena said as she kissed her guardian on the cheek and hugged him tightly.  “I hope you sleep good.  You need it.”

            “Thanks Geddy. I want you to get your rest as well.”  She smiled and with a flick of her tail disappeared into the APC that Matt had only moments before entered.

            Gitana smiled and took her lovers hand.  “Seems your little girl is growing up triple fast Brett.”

            The scarred survivalist nodded and squeezed her hand in return, running his free hand through her silky tresses. “Yeah, that she is.  I have a feeling that we’re not the only ones who’re gonna be doing anything but sleeping.”

            “How does that make you feel Amante?  I’ve seen the look you’ve given Chance a few times when Gedoena was getting a little too close for your liking.”

            “Makes me feel triple old.”  He shrugged and cracked his knuckles then started to unlace his combat boots.

            Gitana laughed as she pulled off her jacket and top, the nipples on her small breasts becoming erect almost instantly as the cold night air caresses her tanned flesh.  “I meant how does that make you feel knowing that Gedoena is getting intimate with Matt.”

            “I don’t like it at all to be triple straight.”  He answered as he sat down and pulled off his shirt, opening up the bedrolls. “But…” He paused and looked up at his lover. “She’s got an adults body and it is so clear that she is in love with him. Even if he has been blind to see it.  So if she’s happy I will just have to accept it.”

            She wrapped her arms around his chest and pressed her breasts into his back, gently caressing his stomach. “You’ve changed so much Brett. I am proud of you.”  She whispered as she gently kissed his neck.

            Maverick pulled off his fatigues and laid down, pulling her onto his chest.  “Thanks Gitana. I’ve had good reasons to do so.”  He glanced at his watch.  “Fireblast, two hours till I relieve Joe.”

            “That’s plenty of time.”  She purred and spread her legs as she slid down his body.  “Plenty of time.”

            And they made good use of it.

*           *            *

            Maverick shot up from his bedroll, clutching his head.  The echoes of the familiar dream still ghosted through his mind, but they seemed to have lessened slightly. The cold night air washed over his sweat soaked torso and he shivered, reaching for his jacket.  He was surprised to see his Desert Eagle in the hand he was using to grab his clothing.

            A soft warm hand touched his back. “You had the dream again didn’t you Amante?”

            He nodded and slipped his jacket on. “Yeah, but fireblast, if talking about it to you didn’t help me.  Seemed somehow, well less frightening.”

            “Don’t bottle things in.”  She said as she sat up, letting the blankets and sleeping bag fall down around her waist.  Her dark flesh positively glowed in the dying firelight.  “See, when you told me about what was happening, you opened up the floodgates and the pressure that was building up had a chance to escape.”

            “Yeah, triple ace on the line Gitana. You’re right.”  He kissed her as he reached into the sleeping bag and pulled out his pants and slipped them on.

            She stared him in the eye and stroked his inner thigh as he slid his pants on. “Where do you think you’re going Amante.”

            “Rad blasted hell Gitana, don’t you get enough?”  He chuckled and stood up doing up his pants.

            “From you?” She said huskily, cupping her firm breasts for him.  “Never Amante, ever.”

            It took a moment for him to get his boots laced up and he holstered his handgun.  “I won’t be long Git. I just gotta go water the plants.”  He made his way out of the firelight and stood behind the APC and let nature run it’s course.

            As he was apt to do, the survivalist let his eyes wander around the edge of the camp.  He scanned the tree line, taking in whatever the dying firelight revealed.  The soft steady sound of someone walking reached him.

            “Hey Brett, you’re not due to relieve me for another hour.”  Joe’s quiet voice reached him.  The survivalist looked down at his watch.  He was supposed to have relieved the other man almost two hours ago.

            “Shit, I should have relieved you a couple hours back bro.  Triple sorry about that.”  Maverick apologized.

            Joe waved it off with a friendly grin and a shrug.  “Brett, you go spend time with Gitana.  You both need it.  I’ll just sleep in tomorrow.  ‘Sides, you said we’re staying a few days so I can get all the rest I want to then.”

            Maverick nodded and continued to scan the trees as he did up his pants. He reached for his pistol and drew it in a flash.

The survivalist stabbed the barrel of the pistol to a small gap in the trees. “There, say something, two eyes shining in the light. We’re being watched.”

            Gitana joined them. She was wearing his shirt and had the CAR 15 carbine in one hand, a burning chunk of wood from the fire in the other. She handed the torch to her lover and he took the point.  She stayed a little to his left and a few yards behind and Joe went to the right.

            Using the barrel of his handgun Maverick pushed aside the leaves where he had seen the flash of reflected firelight.  There was nothing there but he could see clearly that there had indeed been someone watching them.  A small footprint, exactly the same size and shape of Gitana’s was clearly visible in the soft earth.

            “Joe, wake up Mitch and Matt. Grab a couple of the claymores and set them around the perimeter of the camp. We’ve got visitors.”  He pulled back from the spot and strode purposely into the camp. The barrel chested man did as he was asked, knocking lightly on the door to each APC and spoke quietly to both me.

            Maverick spent little time getting his clothing back and he slipped his ever present body armor on under his jacket.  By the time he was fully dressed Matt, Mitch, Gedoena, and Feral joined them.  Joe took Mitch and they set up a pair of claymore anti personnel mines on the east and north side of the small Camp. Maverick took Chance with him and showed him were to set up his mine.  They covered the south and east part of the camp while Gedoena, Feral and Gitana stood guard.

            The fact that the visitors didn’t attack was not necessarily a good sign. Typically if it were a lone mutie or a small number of muties they would attack without hesitation. Radiation not only twisted the bodies but the minds as well.  The fact that they were not attacked, only watched meant that the visitor had the ability to reason. It might have been a lone scout for one of the native tribes that made this part of the state their home. It could have been a loner, someone who traveled exclusively at night checking out the neighbors. Or it could have been an advance scout doing a recce before the initial attack.

            One of the most common times for an attack to take place was just before Dawn. It was already four thirty in the morning and the sun would be coming up soon.

            After having placed the anti personnel mines the four men slipped back to the APC’s.  Maverick ordered Gitana and Gedoena into the vehicles to man the 20 mm auto cannons.  Feral and her cougar companion disappeared into the forest.  None of the companions could move as quickly or as silently as they were able to.  And the telepathic link that the mutant shared with her cougar proved to be invaluable when it came to a recce.  Maverick grabbed his MP 5 and walked over to the river and carefully scanned the surface of the water as he walked a quick patrol.

            The dawn broke brilliantly over the horizon.  The purple and orange chem. clouds seemed to burst into a firestorm of light and brilliant colors. Despite the numerous sunrises he had witnessed over the years, the breathtaking sight caused him to pause for a moment.

            Fortunately, the expected attack never came.

            Maverick spotted Feral and crossed over to her and slung his submachine gun. “Anything?”  He asked.

            “Smell. Friend pick up.”  She threw her thumb in the direction of the still unseen cougar.

            “Mutie?”  He pressed.

            Feral nodded. “Mutie. Mebbe ghoul.  Not sure. Not smell bad like Ghoul.  But smell like Ghoul.”

            The survivalist cupped his chin and took in the information. He looked over at his companions. “We’re being watched by Ghouls according to Feral.”

            Gedoena rolled her eyes.  “Those creatures are horribly disgusting. They eat the flesh of the dead, no matter what it is.  Human, mutie or animal. The longer its been dead the better they like it.

            Every one of the companions with the exception of Matt and Mitch had encountered the mutants known as ghouls at least once in their journeys. Like several of the other mutant races that roamed the Deathlands, there were variations in that particular genotype. Some were filthy beasts, nothing more than human shaped animals that lived around the rad blasted cesspools near some of the larger villes.  Many made the nuked metropolises their homes as well. Some were intelligent and stayed away from people; some were hunted down and destroyed due to the threat they posed.

            Maverick himself had seen Ghouls several times over the years while he was wrangling. Most of the time the creatures stayed well away from the cattle, usually content to live off the few that died or were killed. He’d only caught the occasional glimpse of the mutants that made Montana their home.

            “Actually, I believe we don’t have to worry about the ghouls here.”

            As one, his companions turned and stared at him. “What the nuking hell you talking about Maverick?” Spat Gitana, not believing what she just heard.

            “Am I not speaking English here?”  He barked back, throwing his hands up in disgust. “I said, we don’t have to worry bout them. The Ghouls here are timid, and they stay away from people. Occasionally we’d trade in secret with them, they would leave some pre nuke goods for us and we’d leave them rotted food, clothing and stuff that they found useful.”

            Hefting his assault rifle, Mitch chambered a round and sighted in a tree near by. “How do ya know that our visitor was one of these friendlies then?”

            “I just do Mitch.  Trust me on this.”  And deep down inside the scarred warrior did indeed know.  Instinctively he realized that the watcher never meant the group any harm.  How he knew this he wasn’t sure. But he was always the type to follow his gut instinct.

            “The big question is this then.”  Joe murmured as he leaned against the hull of the APC. “Are we gonna stay here or are we gonna put a few more miles between us and the oil barons?”

            After the near disaster with the last jump that brought the companions into the bowels of Newyork city, Maverick swore that he would change his way of leading the group. It was now time for him to put his promise to the test.  “I say we stay put. Lets rest up. We could all use it.”

            “You telling or asking us Brett?”  Asked Matt who was crouched, and was playing with a few blades of grass between his fingers.”

            “I’m askin.  Simple as that. I’m askin you to trust me on this. The Ghouls, these muties, they won’t cause us any problems.”  He crossed his muscular arms and waited for the others to sound off.  “What’s your thoughts?”

            “I say we go.” Answered Matt. “After the fucks we encountered back in New York, I don’t want to meet these Ghouls that you mentioned.”

            The survivalist nodded.

            Gedoena looked torn between her adopted father and the predark scientist. She bit her lip, the sharp canines showing clearly as she thought. “I say we stay.  I trust you daddy Brett.”

            Two for, one against Maverick mentally tallied. “Mitch?”

            “Lets go.”  The soldier wasn’t one to use three words when two would suffice. He reminded Maverick a lot of Dix.

            “We stay.”  Gitana added her own opinion.

            He looked at Joe.  The big man put on his usual grin and didn’t say anything for a moment.  Just when Maverick’s patients had almost run out he chuckled. “Let’s stick around. I haven’t had a chance to do any fishing in a few months.”

            “Ok, that’s four to stay, two to leave. Even if Feral votes against it, the Stay’s have it.”  He looked at the before mentioned girl. “I still want to hear what you say Feral.”

            With a shrug she answered. “No difference. Not care.”

            Maverick nodded.  Deep down he was pleased that things went his way. He could have told the others that they were going to stay no matter what.  But the fact that they voted on it really made a difference in his mind.  He couldn’t help but grin. “Ok.  Lets do a little brush clearing then, and get a shitload of wood for the fire.  We’re gonna stay for a few days.  All I ask is that from here on in, no one goes into the woods alone. If ya gotta take a dump, I’ll dig a small pit and we can put a few blankets up around it. Give a little privacy that way.”  He stared at his companions. ”Fair enough?”

            No one disagreed with him. “Ok! Lets enjoy a little R and R, away from the runnin and chillin.”

*           *            *

            Four days had passed. The group spent almost every waking hour just relaxing and enjoying the peace and quiet. Joe spent a huge portion of the time just laying back on the shoreline dozing while he held a fishing rod in his hands. The group feasted on fresh fish almost every night they were there.   Strangely enough, Feral stayed near him, even occasionally bathed while he was watching. Her interest in the man seemed to be more than just a passing fancy even though she never came out and mentioned anything to him.

            Gedoena and Matt were becoming more and more inseparable as the days passed. The hungry mind of the girl devoured every word he said to her.  Maverick was quite pleased when he had discovered that the man had decided to work as a tutor for the woman, even though she was far more intelligent that he was.  The medical skills Matt Possessed were invaluable to the group and if one more person could assist, all the better.

            Maverick couldn’t believe how much he allowed himself to sleep. Every day he slept ten to twelve hours, not consecutively but damned close.  He shared the hunting duties with the rest of his companions, took his fair share of the guard shifts and did a lot of preventative maintenance on the arma wags.

            And he more than made up for the week that he wasn’t intimate with his lover.

            Only once during the four days that they were camping did their unexpected visitor show up. As with the first night, the mutant approached the camp and stayed out of the firelight. It didn’t make any threatening moves towards them, only seemed to be content to just watch unseen.

            Just after sunrise on the fifth day they broke camp and carefully packed all the gear away.  Everyone piled into the APC’s and settled in, ready and refreshed, eager to continue on their journey.

            Maverick was behind the wheel of the first APC and he took the lead, traveling slowly down the damaged predark highway. Gitana took her position in the gunners seat and scanned the horizon as they traveled.

            His thoughts were lost in his memory as the two predark arma wags.  It amazed him how much of the territory he recognized even though they we’re still several hundred miles away from the ranch he grew up on.

            The weather surprised him.  Usually at this time of the year it was pretty cool and rained a great deal, sometimes it even snowed at night. But so far they had been enjoying warm sunny days with nary a cloud in the sky, and only occasionally saw the tell tail sign of a chem. storm off in the distance.

            On a whim he picked up the headphones and put them on, switching on the military band radio. “This is war wag one calling war wag two, do you copy?”

            “Yeah Brett.” Joes deep voice flowed out of the headphones. “What’s up bro?”

            “You up for a quick pit stop?”

            “Where?   You know of someplace near here?  Thought we were still quite a ways off from the next redoubt.”  Joe’s voice asked.

            “We’re about an hour’s travel out of a trading post. Visited it several times when I used to live in these parts. Was still there a few months back, figured what the hell.”

            “Then lead on oh fearless leader.”

            Forty-five minutes later Maverick could see the outline of several buildings.  The trading post had been built on the ruins of a predark truck stop about thirty years back. The original owner had fortified the site using wood and building materials that he had scavenged from the ruined towns and farms that dotted the landscape. Over the decades the trading post had grown into a small ville.  They traded with the Barons to the north for fuel and had the ville wired for electricity tha