The DOOM Chronicles

Chapter 03: Outskirts

So they drove until they were out of farmlands, heading northbound.

"What'd you grab?" Jennifer asked.

"What?" Jack asked, startled. They'd been on the road for almost fifteen minutes without a word passed between them as they kept a sharp eye out for hostiles. They'd already passed some zombies and Imps on the way, but save for the occasional fireball thrown their way, nothing had actually responded meaningfully to their presence yet.

"Before we left, I saw you in the dining room. You grabbed something from off that dresser thing in the corner that had a bunch of stuff on it. I was just curious," she said.

"Oh." He chuckled, feeling a little embarrassed, but if there was anyone he wouldn't mind sharing with, it was Jennifer. Without taking his eyes off the road, he reached into one of the more unused, armored pockets on his armor and passed what was inside to her.

She took it and studied it. "Oh, wow. That's...surprisingly cute, Jack."

"Come on, don't make it weird," he muttered.

"No, really! It is." She paused. "I'm sorry, I'm not making fun of you or anything. It just seems...odd, an odd thing to take."

He glanced over at her. She held one armored hand out in front of her, palm up and flat, the small token he'd taken perched there. It was a duck. A little carved and painted wooden, white duck, with a vibrantly yellow bill, its wings smooth and tucked up against its back, feet tucked up beneath it. It was maybe an inch tall.

"It just felt right," he replied. "Probably stupid, but after everything that happened...I don't know. I still think ducks are awesome, and it just felt like...a good luck charm, I guess."

"Especially after last night," Jennifer murmured with a smile. She passed the duck back to him and he replaced it securely in his pocket.

"Yeah," he said. "You're...still good about that?"

"Yes, Jack," she replied. "You don't have to worry about me freaking out or secretly being pissed off and resenting you or anything. I had fun too, if you'll remember."

He chuckled. "Yeah, you did."

"I'm okay with sharing every now and then, provided it's the right person. And last night was a lot of fun. And I feel like we needed some fun after...everything."

"Definitely."

"Besides," Jennifer said, smiling again. "Kyra's a redhead, and I love redheads."

"Who doesn't?"

They drove on.

* * *

Kyra's northbound city turned out to be the real deal, and they saw it long before they reached it. Getting to it began to turn into a nightmare, as Jack kept having to find alternate routes. The streets soon became clogged with abandoned or burned-out vehicles, and soon even side or practically hidden roads became congested with a metal snarl of cars.

The closer they got to the city, the more cars had bodies. Some were bullet-riddled, others were burned beyond recognition. Some cars had had their windows smashed in and all that remained of the occupants were shreds of bloody flesh caught on the ring of glass teeth.

Eventually, there didn't seem to be anywhere to go in the vehicle, and they were forced to go on foot. As it was, they were just into the outskirts of what seemed to be a vast metropolis.

"Where do you think we are?" Jennifer asked quietly.

"I'm pretty sure we're in Kansas. I think this is Hayden. Don't know how the fuck I missed that when we were coming down," Jack replied.