“MAKE ONE MORE STEP AND THAT HEAD OF YOURS WILL MEET THE GROUND.” The guard raved. He didn’t have a red dot on me and I knew he couldn’t make the shot. The first two were warning shots were evident of his skill, no doubt. But to make such shots…in a minefield? He’s either brave or…

“ARE YOU DEAF YOU FOOL! ARE YOU TRYING TO SET OFF THE MINEFIELD?” Someone shouted. So much for my theory on duds embedded throughout the field.

I held firm, not moving, but felt as my slethe began to dwindle, the weight of my cybernetics began to shift to my right, nullifying my centre of gravity.

The way slethe worked, wasn’t that it made my cybernetic parts lighter. It allowed signals from my brain via my SMB to move and control my cybernetics.

So, in a case like this, where I can’t fully control either of them…I would easily become unbalanced because of my weight.

As frustrating as my situation was, nothing annoyed me more than someone stopping my progress.

Four beaming lights flashed on my face, covering me in light. I dimmed my contact lens and cybernetic eye to the point of pitch black, but the light’s beam was too strong and my natural eye began to water.

“EDARTH!…THE MAN’S PART OF THE SQUADRON THAT ARRIVED.” Someone just spat from above.

“THEN WHY THE HELL IS HE NOT WITH THEM.”

“I’ll EXPLAIN LATER!”

My left side sagged even more, and I couldn’t wait any longer. I skipped left and right, then hopped to the left, feeling as my spine screamed. Two Shots walked past me, but I figured as much. I’m gonna punch the living shit out of this bastard.

I leapt over three more rows of mines, then sprinted across a fine line, using the side of my feet, then finally leaping across six rows.

I skated across the sand, tumbling after the slethe dropped to 0%. I hit the side of the settlement wall, luckily it was my left side, unluckily I felt the graft stencils keeping my body attached to my cybernetics grind into my intestines making me heave.

As I lay on the ground staring at the sky, I noted how grey the skies were. The white dots across the black and dark blue background was like a splashed painted, intricately done, to light the night sky.

I would’ve enjoyed this scenery more, but the itchiness from the sand splashed across my face took me out of what little bliss I had taken in within The Carib Waste. Who knew the skies here were much clearer than Bridge City’s own? Or did I merely forget?

I scrapped the sand from my face and neck, hoping I’d get some form of reprieve. I didn’t and that was bullshit.

Unresponsive arm…cold fingers…fatigue and yes, itchy and worst of all I just got blown away and could feel every fibre in my pain in pain… a perfect night. I should’ve stayed home with Shin-Lee and Hannah-Lee I thought.

I pushed myself up against the craggy wall, feeling its rough surface scrape against my back. My back throbbed from the pain immediately, which made me bite my lip. I then fostered my dead cybernetic arm into my right hand and began slowly walking to the gates of the saunter’s settlement, hoping I wouldn’t get a bullet in the head.

I should’ve taken the firmware update from Mr Black’s goons I thought bitterly this would’ve solved the slethe problem. I might’ve even performed better at The Auction House and I wouldn’t have to here.

I breathed in heavily, feeling the salt of the wind trickle into my nose, whilst the acidic taste of the wind tingle my tongue DAMN IT!

Saunters Settlement was a few hundred meters long and about definitely a few thousand meters wide, made up of old iron and steel. The patches that made up the gate were coloured in rust and silver. It wasn’t a perfectly built gate, but it was good enough, by scavenger standards.

The gate split right down the middle, opening and giving light to my bleak surroundings. The groaning sound it made, whilst it lurched free, vibrated my air drum.

A gust of wind pushed through spraying dust, sand and grime onto me, whilst I held my hands up, covering myself as best as I could from the muck.

Four men trotted through the gate, guns shouldered and trained on me as they surrounded me in a semi-circle. Three more men followed through the gates, assault rifles cuddled across their shoulders.

Another man followed behind the four with clenched fists and anger painted onto his face, well that’s what I guessed anyway. The light of the settlement beamed around him as if he were some Saviour. He probably was, but not mine.

Naedon, Tryzer, Stelig and Rynord strolled into the armed semi-circle. I bit my lip, trying my best to hide my anger, but with the shock laced across their faces, only one thing came to mind.

“I thought you were dead,” Naedon said firmly, folding his hands across his chest. “I feel like death...” I answered, cuddling my dead arm.

“That was a badass move Cypher. It was suicidal…but it was badass non the less.” Rynord said with a grin.

“…try lobbing the damn grenade next time Cypher, you had Tryzer over here worried,” Stelig answered.

“Worried? I was the one who suggested we head back for him.” He said, eyeing Stelig disapprovingly.

“Enough!” Naedon snapped.

I eyed the captain of the Cobra Squad with jaded eyes, feeling as the fatigue fill up my body in its entirety. I need rest…damn it.

“It was my decision Cypher, I apologise for leaving you behind.”

“It’s all good Naedon,” I whispered.

“Is that your man?” The man standing behind snapped.

“Yes,” Naedon said, eyeing me. “He’s one of us.”

“Good…let’s get inside.”

The man turned, leading us inside. I followed the cobra squad with fatigue and pain laced into my entire body whilst I took in the sights of the settlement.

To the left and right, stairs climbed intricately in a zig-zag pattern, from the ground to the highest point of the wall. Below that, hundreds of small barrels were planted into the sand and roped along the wall.

The scent of oil flooded into my nose, making my tongue water. Ahh…so the walls are booby-trapped as well. Interesting.

At the level we were, I could see the remaining guard towers. Twelve in total, and evenly spaced. Hmmm…whoever’s running here, knows what they’re doing.

Saunters Settlement was bigger than I originally assumed. The buildings were perfectly aligned with the surface, and certain areas weren’t lit, to ensure it had that mysterious allure. No doubt, a flanking section if the walls were to go down.

The further we walked, the more I noticed the modern aesthetic of the settlement. The simple chattel houses had stone walls, at specific sections of each house. Why?

The design though wasn’t perfect, nor did I believe it was meant to be. However, the closeness of each house reminded me of The Gallows.

A throbbing sensation returned to my knee, making me grind my teeth. I held a wry face, ensuring my poker face didn’t show my pain.

“Here.” The man said, opening a door.

Cobra Squad disbursed, leaving me and the man alone. “What’s ‘here’?” I asked.

“Quarantine.”

“What…what the hell for?”

“You’re being quarantined, we have to ensure you don’t any diseases.” He said firmly.

“This is bullshi—“ I tried to say, but Naedon interrupted. “We went through it too Cypher, just do it. We haven’t started the briefing as yet.”

“Briefing?”

“Yeah…Stelyne has an update for us. It’s imperative”

“I see…fine. I’ll do it. Wait, where’s Colvolt and the ‘Bodyguard’?”

“They’re in the house waiting to be debriefed just like you.”

“I see. Fine…”

I walked past the ‘leader’ entering the door, he ushered me into. The room was completely dark and had a permanent acidic scent, which I couldn’t put my finger on. At least it wasn’t pungent I thought.

Above me and to my right, there was a sign. ‘Remove Clothes.’ It read. “Perfect…” I said bitterly. A loud clank groaned to my right, drawing my attention. A shoot, with the words “Clothes” written above it.

“…great,” I said, hearing the word echo whilst I disrobed. It took me five minutes to disrobe without the use of my arm. I need a slethe shot I said, after finishing. I knocked my dead arm three times, hoping that would wake it, but I knew better. So I pursed my lips and waited.

A subtle noise began grinding all around me. I squinted trying to see what was happening and saw nothing. Then, white pipes emerged all around me. A green gas began pouring from the pipes and slowly began to fill the room.

The scent smelt like salted sand dipped in acid and left to marinate over three days. My stomach rejected it, sending everything I ate the day in front all over the floor before and bringing me to my knees.

I tried to force myself back to my feet, but the paralysing agent woven into the gas wouldn’t have it. I fell flat on my face, and could only feel the anger within me rising with each second. “This is bullshit!” I whispered…” they could’ve at least given me a chair.”