Machine God: A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller (Final Draft)

Dust desires

The sun caked the victim's blood.

The armor and flesh were torn apart, probably by debris projectiles in the sandstorm.

But even with the two limbs cut off and the armor penetrated, I could identify the superior's corpse.

The man's face was nothing but a scratched meat salad.

Ann-Lyze looked ready to puke.

"Was it a Technoid?"

I checked the corpse up close. Couldn't detect a single impact wound, not even a graze shot from a pulsar beam. Only shreds of rubble. Steel. And concrete.

"No. I think the storm got to him."

The soldier stepped in.

"Then who took the APC?"

"One of the remaining guards? My guess is as good as yours."

Hopelessness spread through the group again.

Ann-Lyze turned away her glance and treated her father again.

The soldier started to annoy me.

"What now? Without the APC, we'll never make it back to the cluster."

"We have to think of something else."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Yet."

The diggers shrugged as well. Our last ticket out of here was nowhere to be seen.

Up in the sky, the sun dug behind the horizon.

"It's going to be dark soon. We better find a place to stay, in case another storm shows up."

No one wanted to go back to the tunnels, although they were safer than the ruins. I carefully weighed our options when the soldier added his wisdom.

"I know this sector pretty well. There's a nearby 'scraper with a lobby and intact rooms. It's a good hiding spot, at least for now."

The rest of the group nodded.

Near was good, because no one wanted to stroll through this abandoned city in perfect darkness. Besides, we had walked for hours today. Everyone but me looked like they needed a rest, but something still bugged me. I looked at the tracks of the APC and followed it a few meters.

"Listen, we see where these tracks end up. Maybe the APC has relocated to another area. Maybe they're still waiting for us."

"You're hopelessly naïve," the soldier said.

So much for his trust in the cluster society.

Looked like the Bulwark's patriotism was only a dust layer thin.

Couldn't judge the guy—even the soldiers were cogs in the cluster.

Little drones tossed out like trash once they outlived their purpose.

I said,

"Please. Give me half an hour. It's better to find the APC than to rest a single night in this sector. Or do any of you guys want to meet-up with the Technoids?"

Of course no one did.

So they followed my suggestion.

Good.

It was my goal to keep them safe.

And with the sun diving down, the pressure increased.

Unfortunately, my desires didn't materialize.