Book 3 Chapter 46: Escort

Book 3 Chapter 46: Escort

I stood there for a moment. The entombed, all ten of them that remained in modified power armor. Id seen them in action, tearing through Remnants like they were paper, leaping through the air, smashing drones I could take them if I needed to.

I nodded. Okay.

Nix relaxed, and I felt the tension go out of several of the entombed as well.

I held out my arms. Do you need to cuff me or anything? I asked.Updated from novelbIn.(c)om

Nix shook her head. We both know that would be pointless I would appreciate if youd surrender your weapons though.

That made me grit my teeth a bit, but I complied. I took off my pack, my holsters, and my sheath, handing them to one of the Entombed, his armor decorated with images of intertwining snakes.

I held out the sword last for him to take. Dont squeeze the handle. Easy to hurt yourself that way.

He nodded, deciding to hold it from the sheath. All of them had seen that sword cut through power-armored Remnants at this point.

Nix looked at me. That everything? She asked.

I nodded. All but my hands. You can cut them off, but theyll grow back. Probably quickly.

One of the Entombed laughed, his voice coming out with a bit of static.

I gave him a blank stare.

Oh He said.

We began to search for a place to camp for the night, my escort not having my endurance even encased in power armor. A dust storm was building, and I found myself retrieving my goggles and bandana from the depths of my bag. It had been quite some time since Id used them. I remembered when I would travel everywhere with my face as hidden as possible, avoiding the conflict that would come with my existence as a deadman. Things had changed since then. Now I welcomed that conflict, and those humans I encountered were the ones who went out of their way to avoid it.

Shortly after I got everything on, the dust storm hit. It was thick, and heavy and I considered slipping away from my captors, but that was more based on instinct than desire. We found the ruins of an old gas station to take shelter in, and Daisy, the Entombeds leader, prepared food for everyone. It smelled good, with what I could tell was a heavy amount of spices, and a lot of meat.

I sat in the center of the building, the entombed were watching me, but seemed unsure of how closely they should be doing so. Kind of milling about, not sure if they should really settle in, or remove their armor, or even take their eyes off of me. Nix was checking the perimeter, so wasnt there to give them any clarification.

Tea? asked Daisy, holding out a small mug, steam rising from it.

I shrugged, taking it. The mug was hot enough to burn my palms slightly, but I ignored it, blowing softly across the top of the mug until I judged it cool enough to drink. It was good, sweet, with a hint of mint, and something else I couldnt identify.

The rest of the Entombed relaxed a bit when I took the drink, as if a prisoner with a hot drink was less of a threat. It would be hard to call them green based on what Id already seen them do, but a bit naive, certainly. I heard Daisy order five of them to exit their power armor, and the other four to remain armored and focused on me, they would take turns eating. I noticed that she herself had kept hers on, only revealing her face to taste what she was cooking.

Eventually she came back over to me, this time holding four skewers of warm, spiced meat. I smelled it deeply, picking out the spices, and identifying the meat as something bovine, but only barely. I took them with a grateful nod and began tearing into the meat with gusto. It wasnt as if I hadnt eaten recently, but I was always hungry.

You know, a guilty person would never eat so easily. said one of the Entombed, out of his armor. A young deadman with pale yellow eyes. Theyd be too concerned with what could happen to them.

I laughed, surprising myself.

Whats funny? asked a deadwoman sitting next to him, placing one of her skewers onto the floor. I mean, all of us think youre probably innocent. Weve fought with you. We know youre not a bad guy.

I picked at my teeth for a moment with a skewer. Do you think the Remnants think they're the good guys or the bad guys? I asked. Do you think they think you're the good guys? Slaughtering them in black armor? I put the skewer down. I am guiltyguilty of doing what needs to be done. Same as anyone worth anything to Potts.

I drank more of Daisys tea, clearing my throat. It had gone cool, but still had a pleasant taste and aroma to it. The Entombed all looked distinctly less comfortable than they had before, the armored ones, whod been lax about watching me, brought their attention back to me in full.

I looked up at Daisy, a brief inhale and search of nearby scents answering my question before I asked it. Any food left over?