It was a cold night during their evening walk. The sky grew from a dull overcast to an ominous dark grey. The wind blew with a sinister lack of care; not quite howling but certainly not breezing.

“It’s a lot colder here than it was at home.” KC said, her hands crossed and tucked under her arms.

“You’ll get used to it. It’s really not that bad out.” Emmanuel says as he began removing his black felt coat.

“What are you doing?” KC asked.

“You said you were cold.” Emmanuel said as he handed her his jacket.

“I didn’t say that. I said it was colder here than in Beauland.” KC said. Emmanuel smiled.

“Just take the jacket.” He said warmly. She took it and put it on, her body relaxing in the warm felt.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.” Emmanuel said. “I’ve been thinking, once this baby comes out we’re going to need some toys. A nursery of sorts, I’d read about those in an old book.”

“A nursery?” KC asked

“It’s sort of like a room especially made to care for a baby. Not like those automated bathing rooms that you talk about, but a place where we know we can keep the baby and they will be safe.” Emmanuel said in his standard posh tone.

“That sounds like a great idea, Emmanuel.” KC said, smiling.

“Thank you.” Emmanuel said returning with a warm grin. “I’m going to start gathering supplies, maybe build a few toys and maybe a crib, that’s sort of like a baby bed.”

“So we need a nursery and a crib?” KC asked as she rubbed her belly.

“Exactly; and I’m sure it won’t be too hard.” He said.

The two walked a few more feet until KC groaned as she set her foot down. Emmanuel immediately jumped to her aid.

“Is it time?” He asked in full delirium, grabbing a hold of her arm.

“No, it’s just a cramp.” She said as she set herself down. “I need a break.”

Emmanuel sat down next to her, pulling out an old corn cob pipe he’d found in a half demolished mall. He took a hearty puff and looked at the pipe, examining it, before coughing up a storm. KC chuckled weakly.

“It should be any day now.” She said as his coughing fit had calmed down.

“Are you scared?” Emmanuel asked.

“Of course I am. I could die, but you were right, you know. I do need to be there for my child, whatever the case. I can’t die now, or this would have all been for nothing. I’m sure I could have gotten rid of this baby somehow, but I didn’t. I chose to leave that place, I chose to come here. I couldn’t have gotten here without Raine Poplin or The Angels, but it was ultimately my own choice to leave where I had come from. And it’s my choice whether I live or die. I think we’re prepared enough that we can do this.” She said, having to catch her breath momentarily between sentences.

“You’re going to be a great mother.” Emmanuel said.

“Thank you.”

After a few more minutes of catching her breath, Emmanuel helped KC off of her feet, and there they began to return towards their campsite.

“You know what, I’ll make breakfast tomorrow. What are you thinking? Bacon and eggs?” Emmanuel asked, KC laughed.

“Right, like cooked meat has any appeal to me. You should know better.” She said, pushing Emmanuel on his shoulder playfully.

“Fruit and Granola it is.” He said.

They continued down the trail, examining the weak life surrounding them.

“You were born here, you said.”

“Yes.” Emmanuel said.

“What was life like as a child?” She asked him. Emmanuel smiled warmly.

“Not as bad as you would imagine. We lived in this small community, maybe six people or so. The only kids there were me and this girl named Polly. We spent a lot of time together, playing pretend and making dirt pies in the ground.”

“Did you love her?” KC asked.

“No, she was a total pain to be around. I only spent time with her because she was the only other kid. Adults in The Forsaken America are not all that fun to be around.” He said.

“Isn’t that right.” KC agreed.

“That’s why I feel bad for your child. They won’t have any friends. They’ll have you, sure, but you can’t trust everybody out there. They will be all alone.” Emmanuel said.

“But aren’t we already all alone?” KC asked.

“Sure we are, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to prevent others from realizing that.”

For a second it sounded like a twig snapped behind them, but they paid no attention.

“This is only the easy part, isn’t it?” KC asked.

“I wouldn’t know.” Emmanuel said, giving a weak smile.

It had gotten significantly darker and colder, yet they were only halfway to camp. They looked over to their left to examine the dried up crater that had once been a lake.

“Do you think it will ever come back?” KC asked.

“Once we’re all gone, maybe life will finally have a chance to rest and settle itself.”

And with that the deafening blast of a rifle went off behind them. KC watched from a front row seat the annihilation of Emmanuel Stevenson’s skull. The bullet went through the back of his head and out just above his right eye, sending chunks of skull and brain matter flying with it. Blood sprayed onto KC’s face. She was so scared she couldn’t scream. In the heat of it all she could have sworn she heard a second gun go off from a distance, but she wasn’t sure.

“Holy shit, I got him!” Someone cheered from behind a tree. Stepping out of the wide dead pricks in the dirt were two pricks of their own sort, two goons, both wielding rifles. KC turned around and began to run, she could hear the sounds of one of them running up from behind her, and they were catching up fast. A second later, KC was being man handled by a foul smelling raider with missing teeth.

“Well hello there, missy.” The squirrely raider said, pushing KC to the ground below. She looked up, horrified and defenseless. The two goons surrounded KC, rifles pointed at her.

“So, Jeremiah, what shall we do with her?” One of the goons said as he began frothing from the mouth.

“I’m not sure…” Jeremiah, the other goon, said, confused. “Why is your belly so big?” He asked KC.

“I’m p…p…pregnant.” She muttered, holding herself up.

“Pergnant?” asked the other goon.

“I have a baby.” She said.

“Inside of you?” Jeremiah asked.

Suddenly, the other goon was thrown to the floor by a crazed man in a coat identical to KC’s. He had long red hair and a scraggly ginger beard. His eyes were bright amber, and all that were in them was red.

The man began grunting violently as he wrestled the gun from the goon’s hands. Jeremiah stood, holding his gun at the crazed man and his friend, unsure of how to get one without shooting the other.

In this time, KC used all of her remaining strength to ascend off the dirt ground and lunge at Jeremiah. She grabbed him by his legs, throwing him down. He pulled on her hair and scratched her face as she gripped onto his grimy pant leg. Tied to his leg with a belt was a hunting knife, in a moment’s struggle she managed to pry it free from its sheath, plunging it into the Jeremiah’s groin.

Meanwhile, the crazed man began repeatedly head butting the other goon, finally yanking the gun from his aching hands. Without a single second to hesitate the crazed man jumped off the other goon, pointed the rifle at his skull, and pulled the trigger. KC jumped backwards. Jeremiah wouldn’t stop screaming.

The crazed man, rifle in hand, began to approach Jeremiah. He knelt down next to him, moving his rifle out of his reach. He finally pulled the knife out from the poor man’s junk, causing him to howl in pain even louder than before.

The crazed man took his hand and shoved it over Jeremiah’s mouth. Jeremiah calmed his voice down until he locked eyes with the crazed man, prompting him to remove his hand.

“It’s you! It’s you!” He began screaming.

“That’s right. I told you if I ever saw you again I’d kill you all. I’m a man of my word.” The crazed man said.

“Please no! Please!” He pleaded.

“Apologize to the lady.” The crazed man demanded. Jeremiah seemed confused.

“What?” He said in agonizing pain.

“I said apologize.” He repeated.

Wincing, Jeremiah looked over at KC. She was staring at him with full fury.

“I’m sorry.” He said. The crazed man nodded and looked over to KC.

“Should I kill him?” The crazed man asked.

“Yes. I mean, no… No. We can’t be like him. Let him go.” KC said. Jeremiah smiled. The crazed man shrugged.

“Suit yourself. Alright, you lucky bastard, here’s your gun back.” He said as he threw Jeremiah’s rifle back at him. “Now get yourself up and take you and your newly circumcised cock and get out of here.” He said, rifle pointed.

Jeremiah looked at his rifle, then he looked at KC, then he looked at the crazed man, then back at his gun. In a flash, Jeremiah spun the gun around, pointed at the crazed man, and pulled the trigger. A bullet blasted out of the rifle and piercing the crazed man’s foot, and before another shot could be fired from Jeremiah’s rifle, a bullet goes blasting through his head. He died before his body stopped moving.

Groaning in pain, the crazed man sat down next to KC, he laid the rifle next to him and began taking off his boot.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know he was going to…” KC said.

“Its fine, I didn’t at first, either. I trusted your instincts, and I don’t blame them for being wrong.” He said as he examined his rather minor bullet wound.

“Do you understand how stupid it was to get pregnant?” The crazed man asked.

“I’m well aware of that, thank you. But understanding doesn’t help my situation right now.”

“It would have before you decided to get yourself knocked up.” He said.

“Hey, fuck you, man. You don’t know me.” She hissed. “How old are you anyways? 29? 30?”

“I’m 987. I’ve been around before the war. I’ve been around before Europe was turned into the tyrannical shithole Beauland. I’ve been around before Xenopram had even been invented. How old are you?” He asked.

“32…” She said.

“You’ve got a lot to learn. So what do you want? Do you want help?” He said.

“I don’t want help, asshole. I’m due any day now and the only other person I had around is lying dead on the ground over there!” She said, pointing at Emmanuel’s corpse.

“Oh my god…” The crazed man said, rising up and limping towards the jolly chap’s dead body.

“Emmanuel…” He said.

“You knew him?” She asked, bewildered.

“Yeah, I knew him. He and I spent months together. He’s the one who gave me these clothes I’m wearing.” The man said solemnly. “I’m sorry that he’s gone. He was a great man.”

“He was.” KC said. “Listen, could you…”

“Of course.” The crazed man said, helping KC up.

“Do you have a camp near here?” He asked.

“Yeah, it’s just down this trail some ways.” She said, picking up the remaining rifle.

“I can escort you there if you’d like.” He suggested. KC smiled feebly.

“Sure, that would be nice.” She said. “My name is KC; it’s short for Katherine Christian. What’s your name?” She asked

“I don’t have one.” He said.

“You don’t have one?” She repeated.

“No, but an old friend of mine called me The Mechanic.”