Change the Game

Here is a sample from a book I'm writing called The Arroyo. This is just one adventure Pick and Raven find themselves on traversing ruined landscapes and unpredictable oceans in search of a better life. Enjoy! 

-Paul   

In the morning the reading lessons began. She had me sounding out and writing letters. Given the circumstances, I have to say it felt a little ridiculous. Here we were out in the middle of nowhere and I was saying A, B, C, D, E, over and over and on and on. My lessons for her were more fun. I got her to cap off a few rounds from each gun and I knew pretty quick she’d be a good shot. Still, not knowing what may be on the way, I kept it to just a few rounds for each gun. We had a lot of ammo for two simple hoodlums just taking a nice, long walk. But Raven was already rubbing off on me. She also always gave a prayer of thanks to those who had lived there before. I always joined her. There were other things I needed to think about. I did not want something bad to come our way only to realize too late we were out of ammo. I made a mental note to keep an eye out for more. After an hour or so of ABC’s and another hour of guns, we headed out again. The days bled together. Walking, finding shelter, lessons and walking again. Raven was right about the people. There were none, just what they had left behind. Nature was quickly taking all of it back. I was truly beginning to think we were the last two people on Earth when we heard a strange sound in the sky.

“Hide, Pick!” Blue Raven darted off the highway down a small embankment. Startled, I followed her. She ran into a clump of trees and laid down on her stomach facing the highway. The sound was slowly getting louder coming from the same direction as us. A deep fast thump, thump, thump was coming our way.

“What’s that?” I asked in a hushed voice.

“A helicopter,” she replied.

“A what?”

“A flying machine. Stay still.”

Just then a large Chinook helicopter (that’s what Raven later called it) came lumbering noisily through the air following the highway. It was a long, dark, gray beast. After days of hearing nothing louder than Raven’s chatter, the noise was unreal and faded away very slowly. Neither of us had seen anything like it before. Raven had seen one but only in pictures.

“Stay here. Let’s see if it comes back.”

“I’m not afraid of it!” I said trying to bullshit myself.

“The helicopter is not the problem, Pick. What it represents worries me.”

“What do you mean?”

Raven never called me names but she did have a strong “you dumb ass” look that was unmistakable. She would point her face down a little with her strong gray eyes looking up at me.

“You don’t just find a Chinook helicopter, hop in and go for a joy ride. The people that fly it are called pilots and are highly trained. Then there is a small army that has to work on it. They too have to know a lot. They are usually in groups in three, five, ten or whatever. Others have to secure the whole operation and I doubt they are going to throw school books at anyone who gets too close.”

“So?”

“We don’t know who they are or what they want. We do know they are powerful and I don’t trust powerful. Do you?”

“No.”

“Good. So if we see more, we hide, agreed?”

“I agree.”

“I don’t care if they are trying to get the sun back, I want nothing to do with them.”

“Okay, so let’s lay low a little longer and then move on. We can hear them well before they get close.”

“Don’t bet on it, Pick. Some others are very quiet and can even see in the dark. The boomers had built some scary crap in their time. Some may be building more stuff.”

“We’ll walk on the shoulder of the road. Saving a few steps may make the difference.”

“Now you’re thinking, Pick! Keep your ears open too.”

We got up and started back down the highway. The lonely feeling had been replaced by one of quiet, unnerving dread in a matter of minutes. Raven was right, our guns felt puny in the face of the kind of power she had described. But I wanted to know more. I kept this feeling to myself.

We walked for several more uneventful days. Finding shelter was no problem but we did not get lucky enough to find one with a wood burning stove or fire place. Huddling together kept us alive and we were too cold to do anything else. In the mornings we traded reading and shooting lesions and moved on. It was not the world I had expected when I escaped from the mine but it was still better than being there slaving away for some useless, grand project. Raven liked to talk and I less so. We got along great. It was less than a week before I realized she was the first real friend I ever had. The scenery began to change as we approached our first large city, Nashville. The highway went from two lanes to many in the space of just a few miles.

“I don’t like cities, Pick. There is no way to know the dangers they have. Let’s camp here before we get too far in. I’m not sure how long it will take to get through if everything goes okay.”

“Yeah, sure. That’s fine. There are some buildings over there, want to check ‘em out?”

“Yeah, let’s get off the highway.”

They were nothing but some old large warehouses and getting in was easy. We came in through a collapsed bay door. The inside was largely empty and smelled of decay.

“I don’t like being in here, Pick. We cannot see what is around us. These walls are closing in already.”

“We should be able to hear anything moving around. All of this old scrap metal everywhere makes sneaking around difficult,” I was used to tight spaces.    

“Somebody had to run this. There has to be an office we can camp in,” Raven said.

The building was huge and eventually we came to the front and found a lobby and a large group of offices, conference rooms and a big break room with old snack and drink machines. They were empty. Several offices faced the front with large windows that were still intact. We found a metal barrel perfect for holding a small fire and had no problem finding a bunch old papers and rubbish for burning. Not knowing who or what was watching, we sat it up in the large warehouse space behind the offices. The room was huge with high ceilings, so we figured smoke was no problem.

“We have enough candles for tonight but we need to keep an eye out tomorrow for more.”

At night there was no light without at least one candle. Neither of us liked being a pitch-black room. We could stay warm by the fire but the offices quickly turned inky dark. We split a large can of beans and talked about the helicopter we had seen a few days before.

“There’s a big airport here I bet. It could be there along with it’s friends and guards.”

“Wanna check it out?”

“No and if you do, you’re on your own. I’ve got places to go.”

“You don’t want to know who they are or why they’re here?”

“No. I don’t like those kind of people.”

“You don’t know them. They may be okay.”

“You go right ahead. Maybe you can learn to fly the damn things but finish learning how to read first, Pick.”

Her words stung more than punches or beatings. Still, I did not get mad at Raven. I took a different approach.

“No. I’ll have to stick with you awhile longer. I doubt they got room for an illiterate.” I gave her a playful punch on the shoulder.

“Sorry man, that thing really bummed me out and scared me. Pick, they are up to no good.”

“I guess you’re right. We’ll try to stay clear of ‘em.”

“I’m tired let’s get some sleep.”

She blew out the candle and we got under our sleeping bags, too tired for any fooling around. I dozed off quickly into a nice sleep. A crashing sound from somewhere deep in the warehouse woke both of us up with a start. Raven put her finger to my lips. We sat there in the still darkness listening as best we could. No other sounds came from the warehouse. After awhile, Raven spoke in a whisper.

“Something is in there, Pick.”

“It’s not making anymore noise,” I whispered. “Wanna check it out?”

I pulled the .44 from her bag.

“Let’s just lay low for now. It could have been something falling from decay.”

“That was a big ass crash.”

We laid there in the dark and with each passing minute of silence, became more confident that there was no danger. I was just about to doze off when I heard the fire barrel we had used fall over and a terrible screech. I sprang to my feet pointing the .44 at the door. Raven grabbed the AK and pointed it at the door as well. We were not alone. There came a deep rapid clawing sound at the door. Something big and powerful was on the other side sounding hungry. We were on the menu. I let off a round and it was deafening in the small room. Raven ran over and opened the door. She fired a thundering few rounds into the darkness. She backed towards me keeping the gun aimed at the open door.

“Pick, let’s get our shit and get outta here. I don’t think we hit it. We may have scared it but if she’s hungry, she won’t be gone long.”

“Easy, Raven. It is easier to cover the door than all around us outside. Close it up and I’ll watch it until daylight. No too hasty decisions, right?”

She looked at me for a few moments processing what I was saying.

“Damn, Pick, you may live awhile yet! We’ll watch it.”

I closed it up and took a seat facing the door but Raven was too restless to sit still. She went to the font of the building and slowly turned the bolt to unlock the front door. I listened as she opened the door and peered out.

“Looks and sounds clear,” She said no longer whispering.

I got the message, sound loud and strong, “Lock it back just the same.”

We spent an uneasy hour listening but heard no more noises. I was glad to see the old familiar gray light. We got our stuff together and got ready to head out.

“Keep a pistol handy, Raven. You may be right that thing may still be close by.”

We skipped reading lessons and had already had our morning gun play. Raven gave a brief prayer of thanks. We stepped out into the cold morning moving faster than usual. We were carrying too much stuff to run or even jog. We walked fast, back down to the highway. Both of us knew we were being watched. But by what, and from where, we could only guess.

“Shit! The bridge is out!” Raven saw the problem first.

We looked up and down the river and saw an old railroad bridge still standing not to far down stream.

“Let’s have a look,” I said.

We made our way up onto the tracks and the crossing looked okay. We shuffled across as if a ghost train was giving chase. I looked up river just in time to see a monster of a bear crossing just around a bend. She was gone before I could even raise my pistol. She was crossing with us.

“Did you see it, Raven? The Bear!”

“No. What bear?”

Still walking, and almost across the river, I pointed to the bend, “Up there, crossing to the same side we are.”

“This is not good, Pick. She will not stop until we are both dead or she is.” This was the first time I heard Raven afraid.

“Then she’s gotta go. Let’s keep moving.”

We picked up the pace some moving quickly as we could on foot through the middle of the now empty and crumbling city. The tall buildings still stood over wide silent streets as they would for at least several hundred more years. Large black holes were already open from unrepaired storm damaged windows. Nature with her favorite tool, water, would reduce them to dust in the coming ages. But that was a long ways off. Raven seemed to know the right direction to take and I just followed her lead, not questioning turns she made. This was by far the largest former city either of us had been in. I could not really get a good picture of what it must have been like back in the times before the disasters, full of people, cars and noise. It must have been truly deafening. We did not see our new stalker but knew she was not far behind quietly shadowing our every move.

“We are playing the game wrong, Raven,” I said.

“What do you mean?”

“Right now, we are playing by her rules. I think we need to change the game.”

“Yeah? How so?”

“I don’t like being hunted. Once we get out in the clear, we need to double back and hunt her. The .44 or the 30.06 could easily do the job. The other two guns may be able to as well but with more shots.”

“I like it, Pick. If our people helped destroy the whole damn world, we oughta be able to take out one damn bear.”

“Rethink your shit, bear!” I shouted.

We had to stop to eat. Our canned food supply was getting low. I ate a can of string beans while Raven ate some pairs as fresh as only a can can keep. We looked around the whole time wondering where she was.

“Let’s leave her a present,” Raven suggested mischievously.

She took out one of the .40 rounds and wedged it under a rock with a sharp point on the primer. She left her almost empty can under the other end holding it up. I added a nice spoon full of beans for good measure.

“It will not hurt her but we’ll know when she gets here. Let’s go!” Raven said.

I put my empty can back in my roll and we headed out. We had not been walking ten minutes, when we herd the unmistakable sound of the .40 popping off and a deep guttural roar that sent a shiver down my back.

“Damn, she’s close!” I said.

“You want more? Come and get it!”

We walked on, not knowing if this slowed our pursuer or made her speed up. One thing I was certain of. Not all three of us would see the next sunrise. It was Raven’s idea and I did not like it from the start. We were not out of town yet and there was not more than an hour of daylight left.

Raven laid down in the street.

“What are you doing?”

“Making a bigger meal, then bang! I got the .44 Mag. When she comes in for dinner, boom, game over! But you gotta get the fuck outta here, Pick. Otherwise, she’ll know sonethin’s up.”

“Like hell I do! Get the fuck up. Let’s go!”

“No, you’re right. We gotta change the game, use our heads.”

“Not this way.”

I bent down to lift her up forcefully, and she kicked me in the nuts. I fell over hard.

“What was that for?” I barely could speak from the pain and surprise.

“You can lay there and be bait with me or go find a place to hide, preferably some place high, and cover me with the 30.06.”

There was no talking her out of it. The kick to the balls made that obvious. Slowly, the pain ebbed away and I was able to walk. There were old shops on either side of the street.

“I’ll get to the roof.”

“Pick?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t miss.”            

I climbed into the building through a large hole where a picture window had been. It was dark inside and smelled of mold. In the back I found steps leading up to the second floor. The steps creaked loudly under my weight. The windows were out up here too. Raven was laid out on the street below as still as death. I had a good view of the whole street. Unless the bear made her way through one of the buildings, I could cover Raven well. Bears are smart, what if she came for me first? I doubt the steps would support the massive bear and I was sure I’d hear her long before she got to this level. I was in a good place but I could not let her get Raven. I chambered a round and looked up the street through the powerful scope. I could clearly see new small cracks in the street I had not even noticed while walking it. The waiting game had begun. Raven was right. The bear was smart and cautious.

Ten minutes passed, twenty and thirty. There was no way she was that far behind us. The bear knew something was up. I was just about to eject the round and head back down stairs when I saw her cautiously coming down the street on the sidewalk next to the buildings. She was a massive, dirty, dark, brown bear. Large amounts of drool hung from the sides of her large mouth. I had no way to know if Raven knew if she was there or not. I had a clear shot, but wanted her closer for a better shot. There would be no second. The last thing we needed was a raging wounded bear driven by both hunger and revenge looking for us. This had to end here and now. I was back in the building a little, not right at the window. I could only hope I was obscured by the darkness. The bear approached Raven slowly, inch by inch. She suspected something, I thought. If Raven heard her, she gave no sign. Raven had not moved. I aimed right for the middle of her slowly swaying head with her nose carefully sniffing the air. My heart began to beat faster as the moment of truth approached. Raven quickly spun over onto her back and drew a bead on the giant. The bear made her fatal mistake and charged forward. Raven and I fired almost at the same instant. I missed my aim point hitting her in the shoulder instead. Raven’s shot hit her in the jaw. She lunged forward. Raven fired twice more, hitting her in a front arm and neck. I fired again getting the head shot I wanted falling the monster just a few yards short of Raven who was now firing from a sitting up position. She hit the animal four more times. The bear was dead.

“We did it, Pick!”

“Watch her. I’ll be right down.”

I moved as fast as I could through the building back down the creaky steps and out the way I came in. Raven was reloading when I got to her. She gave me a big hug and a deep tongue filled kiss!

“We kicked her ass, Pick!”

“Hell yeah!”

“And we are gonna eat good tonight!”

“Eat what?” I asked without thinking.

“Fresh bear meat! Come on. I’ll need your help.”

We walked up on the giant cautiously. I was sure she was dead but there was no room for error. Raven kicked her on the side. No response. She was dead.