Wasteland

Chapter 1

Note:  In previous stories I wrote, I incorporated my reader's OCs into my stories. I would be interested in doing so in this story as well. If you are interested in creating an OC for this setting, please stay tuned :)) 

"Wretched Khal'sids," Ameira grimaced while pulling out a dagger out of a giant centipede-like critter. "I didn't realize that will be this many."

"It was breeding season," Calvin kneeled next to the lifeless, oversized creature. The creature was belly up as all Khal'sid would scrunch up into as they die. The soft belly was oozing out a dark green liquid where Ameira left a wound. "We must have missed a destroying a nesting ground." He took out a cylindrical bottle and pressed it against the belly to collect the liquid. "That's why there is so many of these this year."

"Ugh," Ameira turned her head to look to the side. Despite having her eyes obscured by her dusty goggles and her mouth hidden underneath a thick, faded scarf, Calvin could tell that she was sneering at him. "It grosses me out whenever you do that...thing." She twirled her finger to gesture at the bug.

"Aren't you the one who usually goes out to kill these things?" Calvin wiped the slime off the neck of the bottle. "You should be use to this."

"Okay, I'm okay with squashing a bug. That's different than playing around with its remains." Either he didn't hear her statement or chose to ignore it, Calvin carefully placed the bottle in backpack of his collection of junk.

"I can finish the rest of it tomorrow," Calvin said while swinging his backpack over his shoulder looking up at Ameira who was at least a head taller than him. With her gears covering nearly all her body, she was barely recognizable underneath all knick-knacks. Contrastly, Calvin was careful not to take too much garment in order to have enough energy and strength to carry his three bags. He is practically asking to be a target, but thankfully, Ameira is able to ward off any bandits and sand creatures who tries to approach the two. "We should get back before another dust storm hits." Ameira nodded, wiping off the gunk off her dagger.

"Alright, but I'm driving this time," Ameira said, swinging her leg over the motorcycle that hovered above the sand.

"It's not as if I had a choice," Calvin muttered to himself, quiet enough so Ameira couldn't hear and retort. "But just so we're clear, the bike is still my find."

...

The Underdome has been the primary dwelling spot for any scavengers roaming around the Wastelands for the past 21 years. The Underdome use to be a large electronic warehouse before the dust storms buried it underneath the sand. Now, it turned into a trading and temporarily lodging spots for travelers.

"That'll be 200 e-Credits for one night," the pale woman smiled, handing a digital card back to a burly man who curled the corner of his lips into a scowl.

"I was told one night is 100 e-Credits by Jahrad," he said with a hint of thread under the tone of his voice.

"The price has been bumped up a month ago," Poppy smiled. Despite her frail appearance, she dealt with plenty of difficult customers before. "One of the travelers here overstayed her welcome. When we tried to escort her out, I'm afraid she reacted with a violent outburst. I hope you understand, but we are still in the process of trying to rebuild the mess she left behind."

"With the price you are charging, I'm not surprised your customers are acting out," he scoffed, clearly annoyed. "I'm no Pash'slat like her." Poppy tried to hold back a grimace from the derogatory term. Although the insult was not directed at her, the termed roughly translated to "crazy bitch" and compares woman to a drooling female Sandbeast in heat.

"You are still 100 e-Credits short. I'll ask you again, 'That'll be 200 e-Credits please.'"

"Pash'slat," he murmured again. This time, the insult was directed towards her. The line behind him began talking among themselves, but she wasn't able to make out whether they were agreeing with him or trying to discourage him. Before anyone could interfere, Poppy's hand swiftly touched silver button on the inside of her table. As soon as the button clicked, two drones that resembled a Roomba began hover over her head. The man looked down at the red dots that were directed at the center of his chest and shook his head. "This place is a shithole anyways," he spat, "You just lost a valuable customer."

The line quickly moved aside for the large man to take his exit. A few other customers followed him out the door while the other customers in line looked either unsure or intimidated by the altercation.

"I'm so sorry for that misunderstanding..." Poppy said, trying to salvage the few customers she had left. The drones began to power down after it confirming the threat has left. "There's a 20% discount that I can give to compensate for the trouble..." the five or so people who were left began to settle down. A worn-out, middle-aged woman sheepishly walked up to the desk. "That'll be 160 e-Credits for one night. How long are you planning on staying with us today?"

...

There's an extra level that lies hidden away from the travelers were staying at the warehouse a floor above the ground. Here, the permanent residence made their home at this floor. They were careful not to let the public discover the hidden rooms beneath them. If they were to discover the extra rooms, the temporary residence were sure to fight for to stay in the better living spaces below them. The room was hidden by two-part authentication process that only seven people were able to have access to. One of the people who was granted access to this spot was a willowy woman named Keara, one of the founders of the extra room. Despite the fact that they were able to power their room with advanced technology, Keara quietly took Poppy aside to confide her fears.

"I don't know how much longer we can stay here..." Keara admitted once she was able to confirm they were the only two below ground. "The power will eventually run out and water is becoming scarce." Out of the seven people she lived with, Poppy was the only one she could truly consider to be her friend.

"We've been doing alright so far. Calvin and Ameira is coming back soon to trade in for water and we still have enough energy to last the next year," Poppy replied, trying not to glance down at her friend's fidgeting hands. "What brought this on? Is everything alright?"

"No, it's nothing...I'm just...how long do we have to live this way?" Keara pinched the tip of her long fingernails. Poppy tried to smile reassuringly to her friend. They knew each other before the Duststorms buried the surface under the sand. Before this life, Poppy knew that Keara lived a luxurious life on the surface. After being forced to sleep without a bed have been a drastic transition for her. Well, it was a sudden change for everyone.

"We may have to hang on for a little longer," Poppy assured, brushing a strand of her orange hair behind to ear. Hoping to distract her friend from her environment, she asked, "Have you eaten anything yet?"

"No...I'm not that hungry..." Keara averted her eyes away from Poppy. It's too easy to catch her in a lie.

"Why don't we have dinner together then?" Poppy offered, gesturing to their pantry. She hoped that by inviting her friend to eat together, it would encourage her to eat.

"Yeah...I'll like that," Keara gratefully bobbed her head, "Thank you. Let me just find my gloves."

Poppy watched her friend scurry away to fetch her gloves. Silently, Poppy wrapped her fingers together and rested it above her chest to mutter a silent prayer to herself. The rest of the group has already been talking about how Keara was a weak link and a drain of resources for the group. Poppy included, the rest of the group was able to adapt to their environment and won't hesitate to cut Keara off if they need to. Furthermore, the situation earlier with the burly man reminded her how delicate she was compared to the others. If Keara was kicked out, she would be the next weakest link. She shuddered at the thought of being out in the Wastelands.

"Please stay strong for a little longer...I don't know what I'll do without you."