Jamie helped the old man dump the lifeless body out of the carriage, but the smell remained. The sky was darkening.

“What time is it? It seems to be getting dark earlier than normal for this time of year,” Jamie said.

“We are nearing the witching pine forest; it’s dark here year round,” the old man said.

A cold breezed whipped through the carriage. Jamie looked out the window. The road narrowed. The raiders weren’t anywhere to be found.

“Why aren’t the raiders attacking, or at least following?”

“This is Shadow Shrew territory. The raiders won’t dare come in here. Parnis Brothers have an understanding with the Shrew. We may pass, so long as we don’t break the rules.”

“Like what?”

“Well, for starters, they don’t like it when any unwanted visitor stops or explores without the permission of the Matriarch.”

“So, based on the information I’m hearing, we are entering a territory of a bunch of women who hate men?”

The guard laughed.

“Something like that, but these women are special. They allow men, but the men need to be invited first.”

The carriage slowed as they ventured deeper into these haunted woods. Many of the trees were bare, the leaves stripped away. Gnarled branches protruded from menacing husks. Jamie felt exposed, like someone was watching the carriage. The driver slowed to almost a crawl before finally stopping.

“What’s going on?” Jamie asked.

“I don’t know; they rarely stop me.”

The old man took off his jacket and loosened the button near the wrist of his long-sleeve shirt. As he peeled back the clothing, Jamie noticed something strange. The old man’s arm was hairless. The guard grabbed his hairless right hand and twisted it. His hand fell off and bounced on the floor. Jamie squirmed as the hand writhed and twitched. It reminded Jamie of a hurt animal trying to scamper away.

“Do you mind fetching my hand?” the old man said.

“What the fuck?” Jamie said.

“It’s hard to believe that you’ve never seen a cyborg before. Especially since you are from the big city and all.”

“I have… but I’ve never seen one up close.”

The carriage stopped.

“I need my hand, boy!”

As Jamie reached for the old guard’s hand, it twitched and grasped Jamie’s hand.

“Argh, gross,” Jamie said as he tossed the mechanical hand in the old man’s lap.

The man set it aside, then unfolded the washcloth, which contained the glowing blue crystal.

“Put it in the hole, quick,” the old man said, waving his stump in Jamie’s face.

This is bizarre.

A small round slot opened just before Jamie inserted the crystal in the old man’s arm. He heard a sucking sound, and it disappeared into the arm. Jamie felt a little uneasy at the sight of it all. The old man reattached his hand, then buttoned his shirt.

“Thanks for your help, son,” the old man said. “Now that we have shared a tender moment, it’s time we are properly introduced. I’m Mav, short for Maverick,” the old man said as he put his coat back on.

“I’m Jamie, but something tells me you already know that.”

“Yup, it’s on the manifest.”

Jamie heard voices in the distance. It sounded like the driver’s and at least two female voices.

“What’s going on? Why did you hide that crystal, anyway?”

Maverick shushed Jamie. “Be quiet, boy!”

Jamie saw a flash of something outside the carriage. It zipped by so fast that it looked like a blur. Moments later, he saw the same blur on the other side of the carriage. Then, before he could process the information, the faces of at least four women appeared on either side of the vehicle.

“Hands up,” one of the women said.

Maverick raised his hands. Jamie didn’t.

“I said, hands up!” the woman said as she shoved something metal into Jamie’s chest. An electric shock of pain shot into his chest. He screamed. It felt like someone had set all of his nerve endings on fire, not only in his chest, but everywhere. He convulsed for a very long time.

“You should have listened to me, kid,” the old man said as Jamie’s vision blurred.

Jamie faded in and out of consciousness. His eyes would open, revealing brief glimpses of faces. One woman, the one that cattle prodded him, was middle aged and had a weathered appearance. Jamie suspected she was Native American. The other women that accompanied her were much younger. At least two appeared to be in their late twenties, probably a little older than him. The fourth was a teen. Around fifteen, but he wasn’t sure.

Jamie opened his eyes. He was in the carriage and couldn’t see anything.

Did the sun set? How long have I been out?

He ached all over. No one else was in the carriage. He tried to open the door, but it was jammed.

“You are our guest and are not allowed to leave until we get the Matriarch’s or Crone’s permission,” a woman’s voice said.

“Where is Maverick?”

“Who?” Jamie rubbed his head. “Oh, my traveling companion.”

“He is pleading for his life. If he pleases the Crone, then we will join you.”

“Why did you stop us?” Jamie asked.

“You’re not in any position to demand anything from us, and I’m not at liberty to say anything to you, Himbo.”

“Himbo? What is that?”

Jamie received another electric shock. This time from behind. All the muscles in his back clenched spasmodically.

“Only speak when spoken to, Himbo,” a woman’s voice said.

Jamie fell to the carriage floor. As he writhed in the putrid, gooey remains of the raider, he thought he saw Alice.

It can’t be her, could it?

The newcomers dragged Jamie from the carriage. He hit his head on the way out.

“Hey, what you are doing?” Jamie demanded.

The mob said nothing as they pushed him to the ground.

All of this to find my ex-girlfriend? I’m glad Elias is paying me well.

He saw eight women dressed in feathers. The group resembled large birds. Under different circumstances, it would have been comical. A wave of uncertainty crept into him, and he observed the women. Some had spears, others had bows, and some just had knives. Nobody appeared to have weapons, but he knew they had them. Jamie raised his hands.

“I don’t want any trouble.”

A teenaged girl poked her head from behind the other women. Her expression suggested that she had never seen a man before.

Who are these women? They seem so tribal, almost primitive.

“We should take him to the Crone,” one of the women said.

A woman who appeared to be in her mid-sixties poked a staff at Jamie.

“Walk?”

“Yes, I can walk,” Jamie said.

“Chee, move ahead and tell the Crone that we have a prisoner,” the eldest woman said.

A woman nodded, then did something that Jamie could not fathom. She turned, twisted her bracelet, then vanished.

“Where did she go?”

“She’s gone, like a ghost in the night. So will you if you don’t get moving.”

“What’s your name?”

The woman looked confused.

“What should I call you?”

The woman didn’t respond; she just poked him with the staff.

“My name is Jamie, in case you were wondering.”

“Jay… me?” the woman said, sounding out each syllable of his name.

“My name is Goeh,” the woman finally said.

“I’m August,” a younger woman said.

She is beautiful, but crazy.

“Nice to meet you, ladies,” Jamie said.

The women didn’t respond. They herded him along like he was the prize sow at a county fair.

These people act like they came from the eighteenth century or something.

After walking through a river and plowing through thick brush, Jamie heard music in the distance. As he got closer, it was—drums followed by claps. There was a steady rhythm to it all. It wasn’t like anything he’d heard before. Several moments later, his women captors led him down a rough path that appeared to be hand carved from the thicket of brush. They made their way around the larger trees that blocked the path.

They probably could not cut the trees. I wonder if there are any men at the encampment.

Jamie didn’t know how long they had been walking, but his feet ached. Soon they were at an enormous gate made from chain-link fencing, tires, and wooden logs wrapped with barbed wire. One of the women cried; it sounded tribal to Jamie.

How long have these women lived like this?

Part of the gate opened, and the women shoved Jamie through the gap. A chilly breeze seemed to pass through him, and his breath was visible in the icy night air.

It’s freezing.

The music stopped when he entered the compound. He didn’t see anyone. The inside of the compound was made of many types of materials. Makeshift benches made from construction materials like discarded wire spools could be seen. Other, more conventional folding chairs were also present. Off to one side, a wide area opened up. A metal fence was fashioned into a circle; in the center was a metal tower with a metal sphere atop it. Rows of bleachers surrounded the makeshift gate.

What’s that tower for? I’ve never seen anything like it.

The music began as Jamie’s captors pushed him toward the circle. Two or three women opened the gate. A giant metal ‘X’ stood at the base of the tower. Some firewood and dry brush were stuffed underneath.

I don’t like the looks of this. Who are these crazy women?

The intensity of the music increased as Jamie stepped closer to the circle. They illuminated the encampment with torches. Jamie didn’t notice any signs of man-made lighting or anything else that suggested the camp had electricity, but he felt its presence. It was like a transformer was humming nearby. Jamie’s eyes followed the rhythmic beat as he entered the center of the camp. Several women and girls beat on drums that appeared to be handmade. He thought he could make out the stitching on the edge of the drumhead. As he was led to an enormous wooden ‘X’, an instrument that sounded like a rattle joined the drums. Several torches cast mysterious shadows throughout the camp. The women left him standing at the base of the tower. It reminded him of some sort of torture device.

“Do you speak common?” an older female voice asked.

What is she asking? What is “common”?

“I don’t know what that is,” Jamie said.

“Your common tongue is different, where you from, stranger?”

“New York.”

Several murmurs reverberated throughout the circle. It sounded like a hundred women were whispering at the same time, giving an eerie effect in the torchlight. Jamie looked around for Maverick, but didn’t see him, just shadows.

“Send in Peregrine, she’s the first to be accepted into the tribe from the wilds, Goeh said.”

Jamie heard the sounds of many feet stomping on the ground, followed by claps. A tall shadow approached the edge of the circle. Jamie could barely make out some of her features in the dark. Despite the coolness of the evening, he was burning with trepidation.

Jamie’s heart pounded as the sounds of trial stomping and clapping continued. The roar of the activity was deafening, his eyes darted everywhere at once. He couldn’t find an easy escape route. The only light emanated from the pyre that blazed in the middle of the encampment. He could see the approaching woman; she was dressed in a robe made from animal pelts. She strode toward Jamie, but stopped about twenty feet from him, just to the right of the tribal leader. Strange shadows gave the encampment a phantasmal feeling that put Jamie on edge.

“Peregrine, what say ye,” Goeh said.

The woman dressed in the animal pelts cocked her head as she considered Goeh’s words. Then, without warning, she strode to Jamie’s position. A hood concealed Peregrine’s face, but her jet-black hair reminded him of Alice. He realized it was the woman he’d mistaken for Alice earlier. A low chanting began. Jamie couldn’t make out the words, but it had a compelling rhythm. The woman known as Peregrine closed the distance between them. She untied Jamie’s bindings, then removed her robe. Jamie’s breath caught as he noticed the number of scars that crisscrossed the woman’s body, many of which looked fresh and had a raw quality. Jamie’s heart sank into the pit of his stomach.

Is she a warrior?

Jamie froze as she removed other garments. Soon just her underwear and hood remained. She sat on the ground, facing him.

“Assume the position, outsider,” the older woman said.

When Jamie didn’t make any move, someone kicked his feet from under him. He landed hard at Peregrine’s feet. For a moment, he saw her face.

That’s her. I can feel it in my bones.

“Alice?”

“Give me your hands, outsider,” Peregrine said.

I recognize that voice. It is Alice!

Jamie obeyed. A tingling sensation jolted through his hands as Peregrine took his hands in hers. Her touch was firm but gentle.

“You will answer my questions. I will know if I’m being deceived,” Peregrine said.

“Sure,” Jamie said.

“From where do you hail, stranger?”

“I’m from New York,” Jamie said.

Peregrine’s hands stiffened.

“Have you ever been unfaithful to your beloved?”

Jamie broke her impenetrable gaze. His eyes darted about, trying to think of a response.

Why is she asking that?

“No!”

Her hands gripped his like a vise. Her touch was painful.

“He’s lying,” Peregrin said.

Jamie’s ears perked to the sound of various murmurs and whispers.

“You have one more chance to answer truthfully; otherwise your head gets removed,” Goeh said.

Cold steel pressed against his throat. His mouth went dry. He tried licking his lips, but his mouth was too dry. He held his breath as the blade retracted. He shot a look to the bearer, it was the teenage girl.

“Yes, only once. And I regretted it.”

“Have you ever killed another human being?”

“No—only in defense. What kind of person do you think I am?” Jamie protested.

“Quiet, you will only speak when spoken to, outsider,” Goeh said.

“Whom do you seek on your quest?” Peregrin asked.

“Alice! She’s a friend of mine. She’s lost and I’m to guide her to safety.”

“Are you in league with the Alpha clan?”

“I don’t know who that is.”

Peregrine removed her hood. Her piercing blue eyes met his. Her stare was unlike anything he was expecting.

“You are Alice. I’m so glad I found you. It’s me, Jamie,” he said, in a pleading tone.

Peregrine’s piercing stare was both alarming and striking. Jamie felt lightheaded.

“I’m afraid that I’ve never seen you before in my life,” Peregrine said.

“Alice Parsons; that is your name. I don’t know what these she-beasts have done with you. But I’m positive you have a birthmark at the base of your neck. It looks like a butterfly.”

Jamie gave Peregrine a hug while he tried looking for the birthmark. The teenage girl forced Jamie back, a blade pressed into his spine.

“Alright. I mean her no harm,” he said.

“Peregrine was born an outsider, but she is part of our clan. We will not let any harm come to anyone,” Goeh said.

“Sit. I need information,” Peregrine said.

Jamie was pushed to the ground. Peregrin took his hands with both of hers and maintained a firm grip.

“Who sent you into the wasteland to find… your friend?”

“Alice’s friend Lindsey.”

Peregrine’s vise grip clamped down so hard, Jamie cried out.

“And Elias,” he said.

Her grip eased.

“What is Elias’s intent with the person you seek?”

“He wants me to observe Alice and report what she does. And—guide her to safety. He’s also interested in some kind of AI.”

The woman that Jamie knew as Alice gazed into his eyes. She seemed to read his soul, the tense exchange seemed to last an eternity.

“That is all the questions I have,” Peregrine said.

She stood for a moment, then began to dress.

“He will be useful in the coming battle.”

Several armed women took him away.