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Guest
Guest
The passing of time was nothing to the two travelers; they had their whole lives ahead of them, after all. Autumn came and went, fading into a bleak winter. It made traveling much more difficult. Snow blanketed the landscape, making the already vast wasteland seem endless. The mountains that were always at at the companion's right, had been lost under a shroud of grey. The only thing that remained to guid them was the highway, which was at least level in the snow.
Ward knew there were cities to the south and that kept him going. Black on the other hand, had never traveled this far south and had no hope that they would ever make it to another settlement.
The two still traveled at night to keep from freezing while idle in the darkness. The days were warm enough though and made sleeping in the snow comfortable enough. Ward was glad for their encounter in Cheyanne; the black leather jacket was very warm, especially in the sunlight. Black kept the tattered wool blanket folded in half and draped over his small body like a cloak and secured in the middle with a belt. They had to keep their food and water pressed against their bodies to keep it from freezing. When they stopped to rest, Ward produced a small can of JP-12, a slow-burning fuel. The can never seemed to run out, and even if it did, Ward had two more. The flame it gave off was very wark and kept the two from freezing on their long journey.
The trip started to look up when they reached some kind of wrecked car lot slightly off the highway. All of the vehicles were frozen hunks of metal, and had no fuel anyway. The single building provided a good shelter however. It had large openings in the side where windows would have been, but those were long since destroyed. The inside held a few frozen cars and not much else. They stayed for one night before moving on.
Further down the road, they came to a highway overpass. Ward brushed off a fallen sign that must have finally given way after years of corrosion. "Longmont 15 miles." Ward read. An arrow pointed towards the mountains, probably another road. Ward decided to check it out, since there probably wasn't much else down the highway they had always traveled.
What they found startled both of them. The snow was packed down along the other highway, obviously from frequent foot and vehicle traffic.
As they traveled the new highway, they passed several farms that had been abandoned for years. It hadn't snowed for a few days and the weather was beginning to warm up a little. Ward had decided that they would travel in the day along this road, in case anyone passed. It was a smart move on his part; Ward looked back and saw the headlights of a vehicle slowly approaching from the east. They moved off to the side of the road as the vehicle neared.
The driver slowed the Bradley to a stop when he saw the boys on the side of the road. A middle-aged man in a heavy, white jacket and pants that looked like military issue opened the top hatch of the armored vehicle and raised his hand in greeting. They could tell he had his hair cut in high and tight military fashion under his white kevlar helmet. "Howdy boys! What are you two doin' all the way out here alone if you don't mind me askin'?" Ward smiled as he examined the emblem on the side of the white armored personel carrier. It was a flag with two blue stripes with a white stripe in between and a large red C with a yellow circle in the center. They were fortunate, he'd heard rumors of the Republic of Colorado, but didn't take any of them seriously. Now he was in the presence of a ROC patrol unit.
"We've been traveling for over a year now, and we do just fine." Ward stated, planting the butt of his M-14 in the ground.
The man laughed, not in a mocking way; he was suprised to find two boys so young living in the wastes. The way they carried themselves indicated that they knew what they were doing. They moved confidently for boys their age. "Well, you ain't lyin', I can tell by your weapons. Where yall headed down from?"
"Cody." Ward said proudly.
"I'm impressed, youngster. Folks never survive the trip." Ward nodded, he'd heard that so many times before. The man hopped down off the side of the APC and walked toward the boys. "Well then, let me be the first to welcome you to the Republic of Colorado. I'm Captain Anderson. That's Perkins in the APC." A hand waved from the driver's hatch. "We just came back from droppin some of our boys out at Mead and we're headin' back to Longmont. You're welcome to tag along if you want." Captain Anderson said over his should as he opened the back of the APC, already knowing what the answer would be.
Neither of the boys had ever ridden in a vehicle before. The inside looked pretty nondescript. There was a bench on each wall of the APC and what looked to be a weapons rack at the front of the crew area. It was warm inside from the internal heater and it felt good on both of the boy's chilled bodies. The ride to Longmont was short and enjoyable. Ward and Black both liked Captain Andersen; he was the first adult they had met that didn't treat them like stupid kids. Anderson seemed to radiate an aura of calm control, much like Ward did.
Longmont was the largest city Ward had ever seen. Black was dumbstruck. They could tell it had expanded even after the war. The building they stopped at was just at the corner of the massive city. Ward could see that it had once been a Super 8 Motel but judging by the number of boxy military vehicles parked in front, it now served as a barracks. Captain Anderson and Perkins, who was short and skinny even with his winter uniform on, walked to the barracks, gesturing for the boys to follow.
The two-story barracks was the perfect model of military efficiency and cleanliness, an uncommon sight in the wasteland. The walls had unpeeled white paint and didn't have a single flaw. The floor was thin blue carpet, which was also a luxury. Ward was in awe of the perfect order of the building, not quite believing his eyes. Black's mouth hung open as he looked around. The lobby had a large ROC flag hanging high on the wall above the front desk and some paintings of stern looking men in dark blue uniforms.
Anderson shook Ward, chuckling at the boy's blank expression. "You'll have to check your weapons at the desk. By the way, what's your name?"
Ward shook his head and gave his M-14 and Baretta to Anderson. "I'm Ward, and this is Black." Black reluctantly gave up his sawed-off shotgun and PPK to Perkins.
Anderson smiled, "Black, eh? Hmm. Oh well, come on, I'll get you some food... and maybe a bath." The two followed him outside to the APC. The sky was overcast, but a lighter shade of grey than Ward was used to, probably from the city lights.
"I'd give you mess hall food, which isn't too bad if you like getting violently ill. But I'm not really in the mood for any gruel." Ward and Black got in the APC once again for a rip into the heart of the city.
Later that night, the two lay down in clean, white beds feeling clean, warm, full and strangely happy. Black was asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, but Ward stayed awake for a while. His mind was going a mile a minute, bringing back up memories of his spectacular evening in the city. He'd never known that cow could taste so good, or buildings could have so much glass and so many lights. He was dazed and still recovering from seeing so many things at once. Captain Anderson had given him shelter and food without having to be manipulated or bribed in any way at all. Ward felt a strange kind of affection for the man that he'd never felt for any other person. It wasn't the same with Black. Black was like a little brother that had to be cared for. The weak protect the strong... but why? What do the strong get out of it?
Ward brought back up the memory of when he first found the boy. He was curled up next to the body of a dead man who had apparently been robbed and shot. Ward looked the body over, checking for anything of value but found nothing. He was about to continue on, when the boy woke and saw Ward turning his back. He asked for a drink. Ward wasn't going to give it to him, that would lessen his own chances for survival, but a strange feeling crept over him, and what was left of his heart went out to the other boy.
Black had proven to be a most useful companion for over a year, his thieving skills were invaluable. But there wasn't anything more than that. He was a tool, one that had a very good use.
No. Ward reprimanded himself for thinking that. Black was his brother now, and he had to be cared for. He was a human, not an object that could be discarded.
The night that Ward had found Black, something inside him was brought back to life. Something that had died, that had been shattered with the skull of the first man he killed.
Ward then passed into the most comfortable sleep he ever had.
Sorry, I'm gonna cut this one short, I really need to sleep, I haven't done so in about 39 hours... No action this time, you bloodthirsty SOB's.
Call it a "To be Continued"
Mad Ass
Ward knew there were cities to the south and that kept him going. Black on the other hand, had never traveled this far south and had no hope that they would ever make it to another settlement.
The two still traveled at night to keep from freezing while idle in the darkness. The days were warm enough though and made sleeping in the snow comfortable enough. Ward was glad for their encounter in Cheyanne; the black leather jacket was very warm, especially in the sunlight. Black kept the tattered wool blanket folded in half and draped over his small body like a cloak and secured in the middle with a belt. They had to keep their food and water pressed against their bodies to keep it from freezing. When they stopped to rest, Ward produced a small can of JP-12, a slow-burning fuel. The can never seemed to run out, and even if it did, Ward had two more. The flame it gave off was very wark and kept the two from freezing on their long journey.
The trip started to look up when they reached some kind of wrecked car lot slightly off the highway. All of the vehicles were frozen hunks of metal, and had no fuel anyway. The single building provided a good shelter however. It had large openings in the side where windows would have been, but those were long since destroyed. The inside held a few frozen cars and not much else. They stayed for one night before moving on.
Further down the road, they came to a highway overpass. Ward brushed off a fallen sign that must have finally given way after years of corrosion. "Longmont 15 miles." Ward read. An arrow pointed towards the mountains, probably another road. Ward decided to check it out, since there probably wasn't much else down the highway they had always traveled.
What they found startled both of them. The snow was packed down along the other highway, obviously from frequent foot and vehicle traffic.
As they traveled the new highway, they passed several farms that had been abandoned for years. It hadn't snowed for a few days and the weather was beginning to warm up a little. Ward had decided that they would travel in the day along this road, in case anyone passed. It was a smart move on his part; Ward looked back and saw the headlights of a vehicle slowly approaching from the east. They moved off to the side of the road as the vehicle neared.
The driver slowed the Bradley to a stop when he saw the boys on the side of the road. A middle-aged man in a heavy, white jacket and pants that looked like military issue opened the top hatch of the armored vehicle and raised his hand in greeting. They could tell he had his hair cut in high and tight military fashion under his white kevlar helmet. "Howdy boys! What are you two doin' all the way out here alone if you don't mind me askin'?" Ward smiled as he examined the emblem on the side of the white armored personel carrier. It was a flag with two blue stripes with a white stripe in between and a large red C with a yellow circle in the center. They were fortunate, he'd heard rumors of the Republic of Colorado, but didn't take any of them seriously. Now he was in the presence of a ROC patrol unit.
"We've been traveling for over a year now, and we do just fine." Ward stated, planting the butt of his M-14 in the ground.
The man laughed, not in a mocking way; he was suprised to find two boys so young living in the wastes. The way they carried themselves indicated that they knew what they were doing. They moved confidently for boys their age. "Well, you ain't lyin', I can tell by your weapons. Where yall headed down from?"
"Cody." Ward said proudly.
"I'm impressed, youngster. Folks never survive the trip." Ward nodded, he'd heard that so many times before. The man hopped down off the side of the APC and walked toward the boys. "Well then, let me be the first to welcome you to the Republic of Colorado. I'm Captain Anderson. That's Perkins in the APC." A hand waved from the driver's hatch. "We just came back from droppin some of our boys out at Mead and we're headin' back to Longmont. You're welcome to tag along if you want." Captain Anderson said over his should as he opened the back of the APC, already knowing what the answer would be.
Neither of the boys had ever ridden in a vehicle before. The inside looked pretty nondescript. There was a bench on each wall of the APC and what looked to be a weapons rack at the front of the crew area. It was warm inside from the internal heater and it felt good on both of the boy's chilled bodies. The ride to Longmont was short and enjoyable. Ward and Black both liked Captain Andersen; he was the first adult they had met that didn't treat them like stupid kids. Anderson seemed to radiate an aura of calm control, much like Ward did.
Longmont was the largest city Ward had ever seen. Black was dumbstruck. They could tell it had expanded even after the war. The building they stopped at was just at the corner of the massive city. Ward could see that it had once been a Super 8 Motel but judging by the number of boxy military vehicles parked in front, it now served as a barracks. Captain Anderson and Perkins, who was short and skinny even with his winter uniform on, walked to the barracks, gesturing for the boys to follow.
The two-story barracks was the perfect model of military efficiency and cleanliness, an uncommon sight in the wasteland. The walls had unpeeled white paint and didn't have a single flaw. The floor was thin blue carpet, which was also a luxury. Ward was in awe of the perfect order of the building, not quite believing his eyes. Black's mouth hung open as he looked around. The lobby had a large ROC flag hanging high on the wall above the front desk and some paintings of stern looking men in dark blue uniforms.
Anderson shook Ward, chuckling at the boy's blank expression. "You'll have to check your weapons at the desk. By the way, what's your name?"
Ward shook his head and gave his M-14 and Baretta to Anderson. "I'm Ward, and this is Black." Black reluctantly gave up his sawed-off shotgun and PPK to Perkins.
Anderson smiled, "Black, eh? Hmm. Oh well, come on, I'll get you some food... and maybe a bath." The two followed him outside to the APC. The sky was overcast, but a lighter shade of grey than Ward was used to, probably from the city lights.
"I'd give you mess hall food, which isn't too bad if you like getting violently ill. But I'm not really in the mood for any gruel." Ward and Black got in the APC once again for a rip into the heart of the city.
Later that night, the two lay down in clean, white beds feeling clean, warm, full and strangely happy. Black was asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, but Ward stayed awake for a while. His mind was going a mile a minute, bringing back up memories of his spectacular evening in the city. He'd never known that cow could taste so good, or buildings could have so much glass and so many lights. He was dazed and still recovering from seeing so many things at once. Captain Anderson had given him shelter and food without having to be manipulated or bribed in any way at all. Ward felt a strange kind of affection for the man that he'd never felt for any other person. It wasn't the same with Black. Black was like a little brother that had to be cared for. The weak protect the strong... but why? What do the strong get out of it?
Ward brought back up the memory of when he first found the boy. He was curled up next to the body of a dead man who had apparently been robbed and shot. Ward looked the body over, checking for anything of value but found nothing. He was about to continue on, when the boy woke and saw Ward turning his back. He asked for a drink. Ward wasn't going to give it to him, that would lessen his own chances for survival, but a strange feeling crept over him, and what was left of his heart went out to the other boy.
Black had proven to be a most useful companion for over a year, his thieving skills were invaluable. But there wasn't anything more than that. He was a tool, one that had a very good use.
No. Ward reprimanded himself for thinking that. Black was his brother now, and he had to be cared for. He was a human, not an object that could be discarded.
The night that Ward had found Black, something inside him was brought back to life. Something that had died, that had been shattered with the skull of the first man he killed.
Ward then passed into the most comfortable sleep he ever had.
Sorry, I'm gonna cut this one short, I really need to sleep, I haven't done so in about 39 hours... No action this time, you bloodthirsty SOB's.
Call it a "To be Continued"
Mad Ass
