Nuclear Knights

Chapter Five

Chapter FiveJoppo made his way out of town and back to where he expected the others to be. Matt was sleeping on the trailer and Ryan was leaning against his bike. “No pack for Matt?” Joppo asked him. In all the things that just happened, he forgot all about it. “Uh, no, but we have a problem,” Ryan replied, held out his hand and showed the trackers. “What are those?” Joppo asked, these metal things didn't mean anything to him.

“Trackers, remember that person I told you about, they found me. Joppo, we're going to die out here,” Ryan said and had panic in his eyes. Joppo rubbed his chin and thought about it for a few seconds. “Here, I have an idea,” he said and continued. “Throw them on the ground,” he said and Ryan looked at him like he was crazy.

“You don't know these people, I don't know these people, but this lady, she shot me, then made me better with something,” Ryan said and was beginning to panic, he wasn't listening to Joppo as the panic inside him rose. “Ryan, put the trackers on the ground,” Joppo said again calmly. Ryan shook his head and dropped the two orbs onto the sand. Joppo took his blaster off of his side, pointed, and pulled the trigger. His green beam hit the metal and melted them instantly. Ryan jumped back in surprise.

“There, problem solved,” Joppo said and put his blaster back. Ryan looked around, he expected an assassin to jump out at any moment to kill them all. Nothing happened, however, Ryan didn't feel like he was safe at all, less than usual. “Come on, let's get going. Once we get to the city we get what need we can get back. This is just a milk run if anything. Let's not over complicate it,” Joppo said and Ryan was confused.

“You don't seem too worried about the crazy invincible assassin. If I didn't mention it, I shot her and nothing happened. Your blaster is about the same as mine and it did nothing,” Ryan said and Joppo just shrugged. “I guess if she shows up we'll have to go low tech, then. If blasters don't work, I'm sure this will,” he said and moved his vest just enough to reveal a black pistol in a holster under it. Ryan didn't know he had one of them. He'd heard stories but never saw one before.

“Just uh, keep this to yourself, alright?” Joppo said and smiled. Ryan was impressed, he wasn't convinced it would work. Ryan got on his hover bike and switched it on. “Is he going to fall off?” Joppo asked looking at Matt passed out in the trailer. “I guess we'll find out,” Ryan said and was relieved that the trackers were gone. He felt as If he was forgetting something, however.

Joppo took one last look at the village then turned back to the open road that pushed through the hills and started to move forward. Ryan quickly did the same thing and they were on their way. Hoverbikes were the main mode of transportation, but they were slow. Ryan looked at his speedometer and it was topping out at forty-five miles an hour already. “Can you believe the stories we used to hear as kids. Things that could go hundreds of miles an hour?” Joppo said and laughed.

“Yeah, I can, we could use some of that right now,” Ryan replied. He didn't like talking and driving at the same time or going on road trips. Ryan also was still worried that at any moment now someone was going to be standing in the road ready to kill them. “What we really need is to just get to where we are going. That crazy silver woman could still come back,” he said and Joppo shook his head.

“She won't be coming back. They always pull stuff like this. The outlanders and the knights have been, say, abrasive towards one another since the fall, they'll ignore and forget about you. I promise,” Joppo said and Ryan looked at him, taking his eyes off the road.

“Joppo. The knights haven't been seen in five years. Are you telling me the silver woman was a real outsider?” Ryan asked. Joppo nodded. “Yes, they aren't just stories you know. Just not talked about a lot or seen often,” Joppo replied to him. Ryan wasn't all that surprised. He'd never seen one before but now that he thought of it, the silver people, the description matched some of the stories he's heard in the past. Those stories were always the same. People see them in the distance, shiny clothes and only for a few seconds.

Joppo smiled. “Yeah, I guess so. I mean. The elders of the villages know about it. It's kind of a secret that we all share. We don't know much more than you do, but it's the main reason we haven't all been overrun by the beasts. The knights keep them in check like they always have since the fall. The outlanders, well, they are just weird,” Joppo said as much as he knew.

Then it occurred to him that Joppo was telling him all of this without hesitation. “And keep your eyes on the road,” Joppo added. Ryan realized that he was distracted and put his eyes back in front of him. Nothing was there, however, just miles of empty desert.

“Ryan, I'm thirty six years old. I'm not going to live forever. Today's attack made me realize that someone should be ready to be in charge. You've been the water man since you were fifteen years old. You're reliable and the people depend on you. So, why not you take over when I'm gone?” Joppo asked him and Ryan's eyes went wide. “What about Lisa?” he asked quickly.

“She hates it. She hates it that I'm the leader most of the time. She says constantly that when I get stepped on or sick and die that she's giving all of the stuff up. You're what, twenty-one now. I mean I don't plan on dying anytime soon but, you know, good to be prepared and all that,” Joppo said as they took a curve on the road. “I'll think about it. No promises,” Ryan replied. Joppo smiled.

“There never are any promised things in this world, but if you could keep what I told you to yourself, that'd be good. I don't plan on checking out yet,” Joppo said to him. Ryan nodded. “I understand. I'll think about it. Right now, we should just focus on getting to the city,” Ryan replied.

The two of them drove on the lonely road. Ryan was about to say something else but as soon as he started to open his mouth, there standing in the road was a silver figure. They were standing in the distance right in the middle of it.

“Oh, damn it, look. I told you she'd show up again. How did she find us, you melted the trackers,” Ryan said and began to slow down. “No idea, maybe we can talk some sense into her. She must have put a tracker on you while you were injured,” Joppo said and slowed down with him.

Ryan put his hand into his left pocket and sure enough was a tiny orb. He pulled it out and saw a similar tracker. “Damn it, why didn't I check?” he asked himself and tossed it off to the side in a hurry, feeling really disappointed himself for not knowing better, he was sure that he'd never figure out how that got there.

“Don't worry about it, just stay calm,” Joppo said as the two of them approached the silver figure and slowed down and came to a stop just before they met with the figure. To both of their surprise it was a man. Ryan didn't know what was going on. The man in the silver suit had his hands behind his back and began to walk forward.