Chapter 5

“How much farther is it…?” The disgruntled girl voiced her concerns.

“Tir’d already, missy? Where’s the resolution from just a moment ago?”

Anya and Boone had been walking for half an hour in the ancient metropolis ruins. That, however, was not what drained Anya’s stamina. They had previously descended from fourteen flights of stairs to reach ground level. It amazed Anya to know that Boone carried her and his supplies all the way up to the tower ruins.

“Are you sure… you’re not… a machine... built by the Ancients?” Anya couldn’t help but pant in between her words. She regretted her offer to carry the luggage as her already insufficient stamina drained to dangerous levels because of it. It did not help that even with the delicious food that she had consumed earlier, Anya still felt hungry.

“Ha! If only.”

The two strolled in almost pure darkness, only able to see the black outlines of objects or what Boone’s lantern lit up. Sheets of reflective metal were placed into the lantern, allowing Boone to redirect the light and magnify its effect in one direction. The road they walked was littered with shattered glass and dysfunctional iron carriages that had not yet been salvaged. To their left and right stood crumbling stone structures of various sizes. Anya was mesmerized by a few of which that stretched to unimaginable heights. She felt that she would appreciate the sights more if not for the accumulating fatigue.

“Can... we… take a break…?”

The man sighed.

“Sure...” Boone felt discontent in knowing that they hadn’t made much progress. Even so, he led Anya to one of the nearby buildings. After ensuring that the structure would not collapse easily, the two entered. Immediately, after the partially intact door closed, Anya dropped the rucksack and fell to the floor, letting out a large breath of air.

“The floor feels so good.” She stretched out her arms to capture the coolness of the ground.

“That better broke nothin’, missy.” Boone opened his rucksack to check the contents. He then pulled out a patchy cloth sheet and placed it on the floor before laying on it. Anya, realizing that she may have dirtied the clothing she borrowed, quickly sat up and patted herself down while apologizing.

“Sorry.”

“Well, ain’t nothin’ broken.” Boone pulled out a bag of roasted roaches from his pocket and began snacking. He noticed Anya’s ravenous gaze and decided to offer some. The girl accepted hastily, devouring the contents until only a few remained before handing the bag back to Boone.

He stared blankly at Anya as he received the deflated bag. He had only meant to share some. While consuming the remnants of his snack, Boone attempted to break the silence.

“What were you doin’ in the ruin’? Ain’t your parents worried?” Anya’s expression darkened, for she had been trying to ignore the woeful memories.

“You ain’t gotta tell me if you don’t want to. Barely find people out here, much less kids.”

Anya remained silent in her moment of thought. Boone crunched on a piece of roasted roach. The atmosphere suggested that he wouldn’t get a response.

“They’re dead...”

The girl’s reply caught Boone by surprise. However, he could not say he didn’t expect such a tragedy. He knew that for a girl to be alone in the ruins, either she had been sold or her parents were dead. Either way, only the desperate or the experienced would tread these unmarked ruins.

“I ain’t mind if you need’a cry. Better out than in, I say.”

Anya shook her head.

“I’ve already done enough crying, more wouldn’t change anything.”

Silence ensued.

Boone became a little taken aback by the girl’s maturity. He felt guilty for creating the solemn mood, and thus attempted to change the topic.

“Saw you starin’ at the lantern. They don’t have this in your town or somethin’?”

“They do, but the light isn’t white.” Anya’s gloomy expression did not change.

“So, them outskirt towns don’t have these light bulbs? Flo…Flo… somethin’ they’re called. Luminus’s filled with them. I grabbed mine from an unmarked ruin’.”

“Light bulbs? Unmarked ruins?” Anya had never heard of these things before, causing her face to fill with curiosity.

Boone reached inside of his rucksack and withdrew an item that was wrapped tightly with a thick cloth. He unraveled it to reveal a twisted white crystal attached to a plastic base. The two tubes of the crystal curved into the shape of a cylinder and connected together at the top.

The crystal before her caused Anya to open her mouth in awe.

“You see here, this is a light bulb, the flo… kind, can be found in the old ruin’. Anywhere in the old ruin’ where it ain’t secure is called the unmark ruin’. All sorta goodies can be found there, and that’s what I do for a livin’.”

“So, you’re a scavenger?”

“Explorer, you see, I discover thangs and I sell ‘em to any collectors wantin’ to get their hands on them. These light bulbs, they use less power and last much longer. Shine brighter too. Pretty useful.”

“Does that mean the machines have to eat more?” Anya became confused, she did not understand how the crystal could be brighter, last longer, and use less of the machine’s power at the same time.

“Eat? Machines don’t eat. Sure, most of them use some sorta fuel, but I wouldn’t call that eatin’.”

“So, they won’t work harder with tastier food?”

Boon assumed that the girl was joking at first, but not until he saw the genuine expression on her face did he realize she was completely serious.

“No, what gave you that idea?”

Anya gazed at the ground meanwhile poking her fingertips together.

“Because their food tasted bad…”

“…”

Boone contemplated what he had just heard.

“You… wanna talk about it?”

Anya, still facing the ground, shook her head and blushed.

“No…”

...

After half an hour of rest and unbearable silence, the two proceeded on their voyage. Now Boone carried the rucksack while Anya held the lantern in the front.

“Hey, face the lantern toward the front so we don’t trip on nothin’.”

Anya quickly reoriented the lantern.

“S-sorry.”

They continued walking for another thirty minutes. Even though this was the first time Anya journeyed outside the town, the same gray ruins had begun to bore her. To cope with the encroaching monotony, Anya decided to learn more about Boone.

“So… Where’s your family?”

“What? Where that come from?” Boone glanced at the back of the little girl as he asked his question.

“Just thought I’d learn more about you,” Anya replied without turning around.

“Hmm…” The man scratched his beard.

Anya then attempted to mocked Boone with an embellished accent.

“You ain’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“Very funny, missy.” Not even a slight chuckle could be heard.

“…”

The resulting silence caused Anya to feel extremely embarrassed and ashamed. She wanted to take everything she had just said back.

“I used to have a wife.”

“Huh?” Anya broke from her haze. “Used… to?”

“She divorced me.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m impotent.”

“Im-pu-dent?”

“No, Im-po-tent.”

“What does that mean?” Confusion struck Anya as this was another word she had never heard before.

Boone’s mood soured as this was not a topic he enjoyed delving into.

“What does it mean?”

“Means I can’t have kids.”

“Why?”

“Don’t worry ‘bout it.”

“But I want to know.” Anya’s persistence tipped the balance.

“Ain’t your parents ever taught you manners?!”

“…” Anya did not respond.

Boone became remorseful for yelling at the young girl. He knew she didn’t know any better.

“Missy… Sorry, it ain’t somethin’ I like to talk ‘bout.”

Anya stopped dead in her tracks and then she turned around to apologize with her head facing downwards.

“I’m sorry!”

Boone let out a faint smile and patted Anya’s head.

“Ain’t no harm.”

***

Anya and Boone finally arrived at their destination. Not a trace of the flimsy fire from before remained. The stench of decaying flesh filled the air, making Anya sick to her stomach. As both of them approached the site, the lantern shined on a desecrated skeletal remain. Anya walked to it and stared with sorrowful eyes.

“Is that…?”

“Yes…” Anya did not want to turn around, for she was afraid the tears would fall once more. The crawlers picked her father’s remains nearly completely clean. Small bits of tendons and muscles still stuck to the intact bone. The creatures even hollowed out the skull. She touched the bite wound on her arm and felt a small tingle along with a chill down her spine.

“I could have ended up like that.” Anya muttered.

“But you didn’t, and nothin’ else matters.”

She glanced at the pillaged iron carriage which she had hidden under and spotted a large dent on its roof. Her situation felt unreal. Just hours prior, she was living a comfortable life in Black-Rock. Now, her father was dead and her uncle was the culprit.

Even with all her might, she could not hold back the impending sniffles.

“It’s all my fault…”

Boone lowered himself to one knee. He then grabbed Anya, turning her around and embracing her.

Anya became bewildered, this act brought back a familiar feeling she had nearly forgotten.

“Did you kill him?”

“What?” Anya was stunned by Boone’s question.

“Were you the one to kill him?”

After a moment of stillness, Anya responded.

“No…”

“Then it ain’t your fault.” Boone released his embrace. “Let’s get the stuff and get goin’. The stench is killin’ me.”

Anya nodded and crawled under the truck with haste to obtain her journal. The revolver, covered in her dried blood, still laid nearby. She snatched it and tucked it into the large pocket of her pants.

“Got ev’rthan’?” Boone inquired as he watched Anya crawl out from under the carriage.

“Not yet.” She went around the carriage and grabbed her mother’s rifle. With the straps pressing against her left shoulder, she wore the rifle on her back.

“M1 Garand, not a bad choice, missy.” Boone approached Anya and offered a dark green satchel. A few stitches and scratches suggested prior use, however, it was still in functional condition. “Put your journal in here, you ain't wanna lose it again.”

Anya graciously accepted it. She then stuffed her journal into the satchel and wore it diagonally under the rifle’s strap.

“Let’s get goi-.”

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

A shriek that Anya was unpleasantly acquainted with vibrated throughout the air. Anya’s body tensed up and she began to quiver.

Boone immediately grabbed the pistol from his back pocket and pulled Anya behind him. Afterward, he removed the metal covering of the lantern to allow the light to spread in all directions. The awful noise came from nearby, yet he could not spot any figures in the darkness. He knew that he did not have enough rounds to take down a crawler since he had spent most of his ammo driving the creatures off and away from the unconscious Anya. A bead of sweat flowed down his forehead as he considered his options.

“Anya, get ready, we goin’ run for it.”