Wasteland Rules: Kill or Be Killed (The World After Book 1) (12 page)

 “Ye-Ti! Ye-Ti!Ye-Ti!”

  The chant swelled in volume as every inmate took
up the chant. Derek looked around in confusion. What the hell was yeti? That
question was answered as the inmates to his right parted to reveal the open
door of a cell. The light in the cell appeared to blink out as something in the
doorway blocked it. A man emerged, so large he had to turn sideways AND duck
his head to get out. He stood up revealing himself to be a massive human being
over seven feet tall. He had a slight thickening of the midsection, but was
overall in good shape.

 Derek considered the man, although man might not be
accurate. The behemoth had an outthrust jaw and long arms that gave him an
apelike appearance. He was covered in thick hair and had a wild unkempt beard.
As the man-beast cracked his knuckles, Derek could see where he had gotten the
nickname Yeti. It was amazing the number of giants Derek had to face. But, it made
sense that the biggest men would have the best chance of survival and even
success in world now based on physical prowess.

  He sighed to himself. He should have kept his
mouth shut, his arrogance and smart ass attitude might have done him in this
time. He couldn’t get away from the man, the inmates had encircled them, and
the guards wouldn’t be any help. So Derek did the only thing he could think of.
He attacked. He ran towards the lumbering giant and leaped on top of a table.
Keeping his forward momentum he jumped off at the big man throwing a superman
punch as he arrived.

  The punch never landed as the hairy giant reached
out and caught him in midair. The crowd of inmates cheered as their champion
slung Derek around and sent him crashing against the wall. He landed with a
sickening thud and knew he had broken a rib and maybe worse. His head throbbed
from crashing into the concrete wall and he saw double when he opened his eyes.
Derek struggled to his feet and circled away from the monster as he tried to
clear his head.

  The massive man smiled a surprisingly intelligent
smile at Derek and closed in for the kill, dropping into a grappler’s stance as
he approached. That was concerning, the beast didn’t just rely on his strength
and size to win, he had skills. Who gave a giant like this combat training?
Derek didn’t have much time to ponder as the man shot forward trying to grab
him. Derek spun away and tried to create space but the wall of inmates closed
in and shoved him back.

  They played a game of cat and mouse for a while.
With the larger inmate closing on the much smaller Derek, who struck quick
blows and dodged away. The blows were having no effect except making the giant
angry. Derek had thought maybe he could tire the big man out but he showed no
signs of slowing. It was taking every ounce of speed and strength he had to
avoid the behemoth. The other inmates had gotten anxious and enflamed with
blood lust and were no longer content to just shove Derek back. They were
punching and kicking him now as well like a prison lumberjack match.

  Derek needed to end this soon. Either one of the
other inmates would stun him and leave him defenseless or the monster would
grab hold of him. So he tried what he had seen in an old movie where a smaller
man had managed to bring down a giant. He ducked down and slid between the
behemoth’s legs as the man lunged for him. Jumping up, Derek leapt onto the
massive back of the inmate. He wrapped his legs around the man-beast’s waist
for leverage and locked in a rear naked choke.

  At first it went just like the movie. The giant
tried to dislodge him by smashing backwards against the wall. Pain lanced
through Derek from his broken rib but he responded by tightening the hold. He
could see the giant’s head grow red and his breathing labored. But then the
monster did something that the giant in the movie didn’t do. He suddenly bent
forward at the waist and grabbed hold of Derek’s head with one hand and Derek’s
foot with the other. In one fluid move he peeled Derek loose and flipped him
over his head.

  Derek landed hard but rolled to his feet. He spun
around quickly anticipating that the giant would be coming for him. But the
monster was standing where he tossed Derek shaking his head. While he hadn’t
succumbed to the choke hold it had weakened him and he was trying to shake
loose the cobwebs. Derek took one last chance to end the fight and launched off
the top of another table and tried to land the superman punch again. This time
the giant didn’t catch him and his fist smashed into the monster’s face. Pain
shot up Derek’s arm as he connected with the behemoth’s granite chin. His
momentum carried him into the giant.

  The monster instinctively grabbed him but their
momentum carried them over backward. The giant broke their fall crashing hard
onto the floor. The whole prison actually shook at their impact on the floor.
Derek grabbed the thick hair of the man-beast and slammed his head repeatedly
into the floor until he stopped moving. Silence fell as Derek climbed off the
unmoving body of the inmate’s fallen champion. He was there resting on his
knees, too tired to fight any more inmates, as sirens sounded and armed guards
rushed into the courtyard.

June 11, 2029

Brotherhood of Justice Station House Nevada, MO

    Derek was shackled again and dragged out of the
cell area as the other inmates watched in shocked silence. Stunned by the
defeat of their champion they were easily herded back into their cells by the
riot gear clad guards. As he rode the elevator back up, Derek could see medical
staff checking on his downed opponents. He saw them shake their head at the
guards when they checked the fallen giant. Derek must have killed him when he
smashed his head into the floor. That part was kind of a blur, so he wasn’t
sure how many times he had slammed the hairy giant’s head into the floor.

  The next couple of hours were a blur also as he
recovered from what was probably a concussion he had received when he hit the
wall. The guards had moved him to an isolation area and medics had given him
some treatment. His head and ribs were bandaged and they had given him a shot
for the pain. He had passed out for a while and awoken when he heard Tex
outside the isolation cell arguing with someone. That argument had lasted for a
while and then Derek had slipped back into unconsciousness.

  He came round to find Tex shaking him. Derek
slapped Tex’s hands away and sat up suddenly. He was surprised to find his
shackles had been removed and the door to the cell was open. In his hands, Tex
had a large plastic bag with Derek’s clothes and gear. When he saw Derek was
awake, Tex smiled.

  “C’mon old buddy. Time to go.”

  “Why in the hell did they lock me up and what was
the deal with the attack in lockup?” Derek demanded still slightly confused.

  Tex chuckled nervously. “Best we don’t stick
around here too long answering questions. I convinced the Captain that you were
acting in self-defense when you killed the Yeti and practically crippled the
others. It was harder to convince them that the video was a fake. The Captain
bought my argument that you were too dangerous to keep locked up here and we
didn’t have enough evidence to execute you. So he is releasing you into my
custody to escort you far, far away where you cannot do any more damage.”

   “What video?” Derek asked nonplussed.

   “The one of you murdering the Express Station
manager. The video was grainy and facial recognition came back at 80% so I told
them it wasn’t you. Good thing you cleaned up before going to the Station.”

  “He was a raider in disguise. They had taken the
station and were waiting to ambush me.”

  “We can debate that later. We need to go before the
Captain changes his mind. Change quickly and let’s get the hell out of here. Rora
is waiting in my truck with your weapons. I already got all your supplies and I
collected on your bounties. I am keeping a finder’s fee…”

  That drew a laugh from Derek. “Good old Tex,
always looking out for me.”

  “You know it buddy.” Tex smiled. ”C’mon killer,
let’s go!”

 Derek quickly changed into his clothes and grabbed
his belongings. They rushed past armed guards standing nervously nearby. None
of them raised their weapons at Derek but they all looked ready to shoot him if
he looked at them funny. Tex lead them back out the way Derek had come in using
the blue line until they merged and then out the door where the red line
exited. It did open into the garage as Derek had suspected.

   It was a large open area broken only by concrete
support pillars. The ceiling was two stories high to give clearance for larger
vehicles and allow fumes and exhaust to rise up. Large exhaust fans churned
sucking the bad air out as best they could. A large steel gate at the end of a
steep ramp blocked the exit straight ahead. Retractable steel and concrete
pylons also blocked the way inside and out.

  Several heavily armored Regulator technicals were
parked against the wall on the right. Built on what looked like Ford F-350
chassis’ they had heavy machine guns mounted on the top and thick steel plating
covering everything but the windshield. The side doors had gun ports and the
windshield had heavy steel grating covering what must be bulletproof glass. The
metal monstrosity was supported on oversize solid rubber tires and a heavy duty
suspension system. They also had a large steel grate welded to the front of the
truck designed to crash through barriers or total cars. The whole thing was
painted dark blue and had a silver Regulator star painted on the doors and
hood.

  Derek almost drooled as he thought about the
damage he could do with that ugly bastard in the wasteland. Unfortunately Tex
led him to the other side where much smaller Regulator patrol vehicles were
parked. It was a mishmash of lightly armored SUVs and small pickup trucks. All
painted in the same color scheme as the technicals. They had the same grating
on the windshield and windows but no armament and the steel plating was much
lighter. He could see Rora in the beat up looking two door SUV on the end.

  “Get in.” Tex urged him.

  “Wait. What about my ride?”

  “It’s still impounded. The fact that it looked
like a raider vehicle didn’t help your case. Plus all the explosives you had
inside.”

  “It was a raider vehicle and I need those
explosives for the job.”

  “Don’t worry; I have dynamite we use to clear
roadblocks. We can use that. Get in! We need to go.”

  Tex rushed around to the driver side and hopped
in. Derek tossed his gear in the back and got in. Rora slid over into the
middle so he could fit. She gave him a small relieved hug and looked happy to
see him. Unsure how to react to that he just grunted. Tex started the vehicle
and it roared to life and settled into a steady thrum.

  He smiled at Derek’s reaction. “Don’t let the
exterior fool you, this baby is the real deal under the hood. I can hit 100
miles an hour no problem! Did most of the work myself.” Tex bragged. “Keep your
head down, we don’t want to attract attention.”

  They rolled up to the gate and the pylons lowered
automatically and the gate rose slowly. Tex accelerated up the ramp and they
popped out into the fading daylight with a squeal of tires. Bouncing as they
landed Tex quickly threw the truck in gear and headed towards a gate on the
opposite end of town from which Derek and Rora had entered. They drove through
what was clearly the back gate without any trouble. Tex waved at the six guards
manning the sandbagged machine gun nests resting on either side of the gate. As
they exited the town, Tex breathed a slight sigh of relief.

  “What has got you so worked up?” Derek asked him.

  “The Yeti worked for the Mayor as his enforcer. I
was worried that his guys would be looking for revenge and try to kill you
before we could leave. But I think we got out before they found out he was
dead. I had him sent to the infirmary and we told the other inmates he was
unconscious, but that won’t last long.”

  “I thought the Regulators must have had some
serious pull with the major presence and how you ran off the bouncers at the
saloon?”

  “We do, but the Mayor runs the town pretty
strictly and we only operate here with his blessing. We pay a premium for
supplies, electricity, and water; plus he gets a monthly stipend for having the
prison here. In addition we provide extra security and patrol the surrounding
area. So he makes out pretty well.” Tex explained. “Also, every citizen pays
taxes and the businesses pay a “security fee” to maintain the town. The Yeti
was his personal enforcer and tax collector. They have a strict dress code and
set of laws, and he keeps most of the citizens sealed off behind that wall. All
the guards work for him directly and they almost outnumber the Regulators here,
some of whom are originally townies and probably work for him also. So we
cannot just do whatever we want. Once he finds out we let you go, there will
probably be some trouble. But without you there to remind them, we can probably
make them forget about it with a payoff.”

  “If he is the Mayor’s enforcer what was he doing
in prison?”

  “The Mayor applies the law to everyone. He says it
only works if every follows the law, no exceptions. The Yeti was drunk in
public so we arrested him. It took eight guys and multiple Tasers to subdue
him. He is one huge strong guy.”

  “I noticed.” Derek replied sarcastically. “He almost
kicked my ass.”

  “Yeah, he used to be a pro wrestler and a
pitfighter. He wasn’t just a big dumb beast.”

  “I have the headache to prove it.”

  “I’m just glad you are ok. I was worried when you
didn’t come back.” Rora said.

  “Me too kid. Last time I was arrested they
sentenced me to death…Didn’t stick then either though.”

  “After he said you were arrested for murdering a
store clerk I tried to explain to Tex what happened, but he said it didn’t
matter because of the video.”

  “I wonder where they got that from?” Derek asked
Tex.

  “Don’t know buddy. It just showed up on the server
along with the arrest warrant. Came from another Station I guess.” Tex replied
dismissively. “So tell me about this job. Where are we heading?”

  Derek gave him a look, but decided to let it go.
He needed Tex’s help to get there so he told him, “We need to pick up a device
her Dad made and deliver her to NASA. It’s in a bank in a small town in the
mountains.”

  Tex didn’t need to know the details so Derek left
out who the employer was and how much money he was getting paid. Let Tex think
it was for Rora’s father or NASA. He showed Tex the GPS coordinates on his
phone.

  “Nice phone, where did you get that?” Tex quizzed
him.

  Derek gave Rora a warning look before he answered.
“Rora’s dad had some cool gadgets.”

  Fortunately Rora kept quiet and looked out the
window. Tex punched the coordinates into a tablet computer mounted on the
dashboard. The computer calculated the route and displayed the route and destination.
Unlike the other satellites, the GPS system had continued to function during
and after the Collapse. The prevailing theory was that whoever had knocked out
the communications and spy satellites needed it to function for themselves and
had left it alone.

  Tex whistled. “No wonder you needed me. That’s
inside the no man’s land. You needed my transponder to get you through the
sensors. This place is out there, the roads might not even exist anymore. How
much are you getting paid?”

  “$50,000 New Republic dollars to take it to NASA.”
Derek lied. “I’ll give you $20,000 if you help me get the device and another
ride.”

  “Come on man, we’re friends. How much are you
really getting?”

  Derek sighed. “OK, fine. I’m getting $100,000.
I’ll give you forty. Deal?”

  “That’s more like it. Once we get the device I’ll
take you to a friend of mine with an Express Station nearby. He can sell you a
ride.”

  “Great.” Derek replied simply.

  Rora looked at him questioningly but he ignored
her and looked out the window and watched the dusty plains roll by. It was all
just shades of brown. After a while they started into the foothills of the
Ozarks. Scrub pines and large weeds started to dot the landscape. The mutated
crop virus had wiped out about ninety five percent of the world’s plant
species, but some had survived. A few had a natural immunity or their
resistance to pesticides may have contributed. Higher elevations also had
higher survival rates than the lowlands. Most of the surviving plants were
weeds or very invasive species like kudzu. A few evergreens had survived but
almost every single deciduous tree had been wiped out. Even the surviving
plants were altered. Instead of green they all had a reddish brown tinge. It
made for a very bleak landscape.

   During the long trip Derek and Tex swapped
stories, with Rora listening and not saying much. Derek filled Tex in on most
of their journey, but left out certain details about how he got the mission.
They pulled over briefly for Tex to add more gas from the extra gas cans he
carried in the back. Derek and Tex switched places several times to avoid
falling asleep at the wheel as they traveled through the night. The trip went
by quietly, Rora eventually fell asleep and they rode in silence. The Regulator
colors on the truck assuring that no one would bother them.

  They paused one more time as they reached the
border of No Man’s Land. They couldn’t see the sensors but the computer in the
truck started flashing red and beeping. Even with the transponder in the truck,
Tex still had to enter a passcode verifying his identity. He looked at Derek
and Rora to make sure they weren’t watching and then tapped in the sequence.
The screen stopped flashing and displayed the message “Access Granted”. Tex
stepped on the accelerator and they headed into the empty border lands.

  Once they entered Arkansas, the trip got a little
rougher. The roads were smaller highways and state roads and had not held up as
well in the years following the Collapse. Despite the heavy duty shocks on the
SUV, they could all feel the constant battering the truck’s suspension was
taking. It felt like riding in a vibrating chair. After what seemed like
forever, they reached a surprisingly well maintained double lane road that led
up into the mountains. On the map it was labeled Zinc Highway and it was
blocked by a sturdy steel gate covered in No Trespassing signs. It was the
final leg of their route.