Zillow Stone and the Unholy One Page 5

  With an expression of casualness, the boy fanned at the air. “Hey, don’t sweat it. You getting here on your first day? That’s a big accomplishment! You’re gonna do great out here! Although, I suppose you also kind of shot yourself in the foot. By the time most people make it to a waystation, they’ve already saved up enough safe points to restock, but I’m guessing you weren’t able to earn many before getting here.”

  It was all true. This boy was quite adept at evaluating my situation. I didn’t know yet if his intuition was annoying or endearing, but I was leaning toward annoying.

  “Hmmm.” The boy held his chin in his hand and walked a half circle around me, eyeing me up and down in a way that made me want to lash out at him. However, I held myself back. Clearly, he was experienced in the ways of the wastelands. I needed his intel. “I’m not gonna say that you’re vulnerable, but you totally are,” he said when he was finished. “And SO I’m gonna offer you a deal. Obviously, you’ve gotta be hella fast to be all the way out here already. And you’re strong, I can tell just by looking at you. Those are some pipes you’re sporting. Me? I’m not the fastest and I’m not the strongest, but I am a decent fighter, and I know my way around. So . . . team up with me!” Gaging my expression, he added, “J-just to take on one of the missions!”

  “Missions?”

  “On the bulletin screens, there are missions you can take on to earn safe points.”

  Oh, he was referring to those missions. I didn’t want to do that based on principle alone.

  “I’m planning on undertaking a biggish one, and I’ll need help,” the boy went on, pacing. “You come with me, and I’ll tell you what I know, plus share my supplies with you. It’ll be a good way to earn SPs, too.”

  The gain of intel was tempting, as was the offer to share resources, but he’d just admitted he wasn’t the fastest. Why would I partner with someone that would only slow me down? I needed to be faster than the fastest if I hoped to survive.

  Again, the boy sensed my impending answer. “B-before you say no,” he rushed, “think about this: Traveling in pairs has its advantages. We can take turns sleeping. Whoever’s awake can watch for one of the trackers to go off. PLUS, if one of our Markers finds us, we’ll have a better chance of beating them two-on-one. I’ll show you where to get water and food, and the locations of the other waystations. All you have to do is help me with this one eeeensy little thing. What do you say?”

  I weighed his offer carefully in my mind. I wanted to say no, and I almost did, but if I turned him down, what other options would I have?

  I scanned the neat row of boxy machines in the room. Climbing gloves, gambits, vitamins – I’d need all of those things if I hoped to survive. I’d need even more if I hoped to win.

  “Very well,” I told the boy, deciding. “I’ll go with you.”

  His face lit into a toothy grin. “Helllls yeah! You won’t regret it. Going with me’s the best way for you to learn your way around the outlands quickly. You won’t find an offer like this anywhere else, and I mean anywhere.” Then, he stuck out his hand. “I’m Theodorius Biggsburg, by the way, but you can call me Theo.”

  With a stalling moment, I studied him. Though his body was hard, his demeanor was soft. He was soft. No, that was a lie. Maybe I was just harder than the average person. I drew in a breath, set my jaw steady, and took his glowing blue hand. “I’m Zillow,” I said. “Zillow Stone. Try to keep up.”

  Chapter 9: Crawling Remnants

  “So what, exactly, is the nature of this mission we’re taking on?” I asked.

  “Just a little fetch quest. You’ll see.”

  It was the same thing he’d said at the bulletin screen. Before I knew what was happening, he’d grabbed my hand and scanned it into the system, without giving me time to see what I’d just agreed to before shuffling me away.

  The dawn had come, and the sky was lighter now, somewhere between black and blue. Fully hydrated, we tromped through the wilderness surrounding blaring Waystation Zelpha. Theodorius had cleaned the coated dirt from his face and hair, and now I could see that his strands were naturally that dark.

  Now that we were out of the waystation, our marks had turned from blue to green. I wasn’t keen on the idea of having someone else to worry about, but in this situation, I was the one in need – in need of direction, in need of SPs, in need of food. I realized I should be grateful to have a partner, but I didn’t see Theodorius as a partner. I saw him as a hindrance.

  We raced away from the waystation with mismatched strides. My pace was controlled, though his faltered.

  “You don’t need to run all the time, Zillster,” he called to me, before slowing from sprint to trot.

  With a grunt, I slowed to meet his pace. “We have to remain on the move if we hope to survive,” I said.

  “Yeah, yeah, and all that jazziness, but it’s not like our Markers are constantly running after us. Not to mention they have no idea where we are right now. You’ll run out of steam way fast if you keep that up.”

  I felt the side of my jaw spasm with annoyance. I wouldn’t run out of steam, because I was in great shape. Theodorius, on the other hand . . .

  “Man, I’m already hungry.”

  I shot him a glance from the corner of my eye. “You’re very leisurely for someone on the run. I’m surprised your Marker hasn’t caught you yet.”

  “Gee, thanks, Zillmeister.” Theodorius rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

  Well, it’s true, I thought.

  There was a spell of silence, and then–

  “Chloe,” Theodorius muttered, yet sheepish.

  “Hm?” I shot him a second glance.

  “That’s my Marker’s name, and she’s caught me a few times.”

  I halted. “Then why are you still alive?”

  Theodorius began counting on his fingers: “The first time, it was luck. She wasn’t on her game. Some of them have to work up the courage to actually make the kill, I guess. She wasn’t sure of herself, and her fighting was sloppy. I got away. The second time, we practically beat each other to a pulp. She retreated; otherwise I’d definitely have killed her. And the third time . . .” His voice trailed off.

  “The third time?” I pressed.

  “It’s weird how they do it, isn’t it? Sending the guys to chase the girls and the girls to chase the guys?”

  “Not really,” I said. “I suppose animal instinct kicks in if you’re chasing after someone of the opposite sex. I always assumed it was either that, or because the unholy ones found it more enjoyable that way.”

  “Could be.” Theodorius nodded. “You’re pretty smart, Zilliferous.”

  “Stop calling me weird things. They’re getting outlandish.”

  “You know you loooove it, Zillustrious.” It was another unnecessary outburst, so my only response was to roll my eyes. Afterwards, Theodorius was quiet a moment, studying me in an intrusive way. I ignored him. “You know, I don’t remember seeing you around ever. Not even when we were younger,” he said at last.

  “Eastern City is a big place,” I responded.

  “Yeah, that’s true. But chances are we crossed paths at one point. I just feel like I would’ve remembered someone like you. Let’s see . . . who did I hang out with when I was younger? Do you know Dressa Ulmrick?”

  “No.”

  “Carpathia Tate?”

  “No.”

  “Amandar Cristophson?”

  “I have met her. She’s in class R,” I said.

  “Your class?”

  I shook my head. “I was in J.” It was my turn for questions. “How long have you been out here?” I asked. “You still haven’t told me.”

  Unexpectedly, my question made the perky boy undergo a change. His voice became quiet, subdued, and a little off. “Four months,” he said, and a sad look passed over the brown of his eyes. I checked to make sure I wasn’t imagining it. No, it was definite sadness.

  But in my opinion, he should have been happy or grateful
. That someone like him had lasted that long was astounding.

  From there, we walked on in silence, over the barren fields, as dawn transformed to day. Sometimes, he allowed us to run, but mostly our pace was half-speed, at best. If that was how it was going to be, I figured I’d use the time to badger him for information as we traveled, and indeed I tried, but the bits he gave me weren’t much. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know after we finish the mission,” he said with a wink. “Can’t have you abandoning me.”

  I wouldn’t do that.

  No, that was a lie. I probably would do that, if I grew frustrated enough.

  The day was cloudy and gray, and even into the afternoon, there was still no sign of rain. It was something I found unusual, considering how often it rained within the limits of Eastern City. I made no note of it to Theodorius. If he wasn’t going to tell me anything useful, then I preferred the silence.

  We went on that way, moving at little more than a crawl, until eventually, we came to a place where the remains of some great dead machine lay. The base was upturned and halfway buried into the earth. Three towering legs, each pointed like a spider’s, burst up through the dusty ground.

  I gaped up at the dirt-corroded thing.

  Meanwhile, Theodorius didn’t pay it any attention, treating it as though it were another rock in the dust. “Lunch?” he said.

  “Is this one of the beasts of the wilds?” I countered.

  “Huh?” Theodorius seemed surprised that I’d ask.

  “A meld between animal and machine?” I went on.

  The grungy boy plopped his pack onto the ground under one of the limbs and shook his head. “Naw, this was just a regular crawler. They were used to transport goods between the nine great cities.”

  I’d heard of that system. At one point, each city had specialized in the production of a certain resource. We’d traded the resources between cities, and the nine metropolises had thrived. But that was back when the world was still alive. Things were different now.

  “But they do exist?” I furthered. “Those beasts? The relics of war?”

  Face in his bag, Theodorius nodded. “But they hardly roam in this far,” he said. “They like it out in the beyond.”

  “You’ve seen them, though?” I pressed.

  “From afar.”

  “Are they terrifying?” I asked.

  “When you seen one for yourself, you’ll know.” From his bag, Theodorius pulled out two small packets that were squishy and silver. He tore off the top of one of them. “Since I’m sharing my food with you, it’s official. We’re in this together until we complete the mission. No bailing out on me, right, Zillonzo? We’re partners.”

  “Sure,” I said through my teeth, as I wasn’t fond of yet another ridiculous nickname.

  “Phooo.” Theodorius shook his head at me. “You’re wound too tight. We need to get you drunk. Anyway, here.” He tossed me the second metallic packet. “Tear the top off and squeeze the goop into your mouth. It’s not so bad. It’s got everything you need, too. You should stock up on those puppies. They’re light, don’t take up much space, and will keep you from starving.”

  I did as he said. The first intake fell out of my mouth because the taste was too much to handle without proper warning. My tongue rejected the putrid slop by pushing it onto my lip. I recovered, forcing it in place with my finger, and attempted to hold it in.

  Theodorius let out a laugh. “Chase it with this.” He handed me a tiny blue tablet. “But make sure you eat the rest of it first.”

  I covered my mouth with my hand, swallowed, gagged, repeated the process, and when the packet was finally empty, I set the tablet onto my tongue. My mouth exploded with a sweet, fruity taste.

  “Better?” Theodorius said, carefully watching my expression.

  “Much.” I swirled the tablet around in my mouth to remove all lingering taste of the slop. “Thank you.”

  “I know they’re gross, but seriously, that stuff’s got all the nutrients you need, and you get used to it after a while.”

  He caught my eye, locking his stare with mine, and even when I tried to release it, his eyes lingered on my strangely. I ignored his awkward behavior, figuring he was watching for further signs of gratitude, as I let the last of the fruity tablet dissolve in my mouth. That was when I realized just how intense his gaze was, enough so to be off-putting.

  “What?” I said, tucking my hair behind my ear with discomfort.

  “How are you feeling now?” he asked. His chin rested on his fist and his elbow rested on his knee, and he was batting his eyelashes at me suspiciously.

  “Why do you look like that?” I said.

  “I don’t look like anything,” he said innocently. His eyes were large and shining, and quite pretty for a boy’s. For some reason, I had a sudden desire to poke one.

  With a laugh, Theodorius waved his hand in front of my face. There was a wispy tail attached to each of his fingers. Something was wrong.

  I scampered away from him and demanded, “What did you do to me?”

  He put his hands up delicately. “Easy, Zillowillow. I told you you’re too uptight, probably in shock. If you don’t loosen up, you’ll stress yourself out, and I need you in tiptop shape for what we’re going to attempt.”

  “You . . .” I was foolish. Teaming up with a stranger, taking food he offered me . . . I’d been desperate. “You drugged me!” I exclaimed, but my tongue felt fat, and it forced my words to come out muddled.

  “Okay, yes, I did, but–”

  “Get away from me.” I reached for my katar. “What are you planning to do to me?”

  Theodorius put his hands up in surrender. “Whoa! I’m not going to do anything to you! I was trying to help you. I just gave you something to mellow you out. You’re new at this, so you don’t understand how it works yet, but the ones that are constantly on edge, those are the ones that lose it first. This is your life now, so live a little. You don’t always have to be ready for battle.”

  It went against everything I’d learned in training. My hand fingered the sheath of my weapon.

  “Geez, guess that wasn’t such a good idea after all.” Theodorius rubbed the back of his head with regret.

  I held onto the ground to steady myself. This was bad. I’d been vulnerable before, but now was even worse. My so-called partner saw my anguish and let out a sigh. “Fuck. Well, now that it’s in there, you might as well enjoy it. Don’t worry; I’ll take care of you. Here–” He offered me his arm. I wasn’t about to take it, though. I shunned him and felt up the crawler’s upside-down leg for support.

  “How long will it last?” I said.

  “Depends.”

  I gritted my teeth at him, but it wasn’t easy to maintain for long. My cheeks felt as though they wanted to melt. I took them with my hands to hold them up, in the process, releasing the crawler’s leg. I teetered and fell. Theodorius caught me. “Whoa, Zillinstein. Eeeeeasy.” He let me down slowly.

  I slid onto the ground in a droopy pile. “Your names are dumb, Theodorius. Just call me Zill like everyone else.”

  “Zill? That’s cute. Okay, then, Zill. And I told you before, you can call me Theo. It’s not so much of a mouthful, you know?”

  “I’ll give you a mouthful,” I shot back.

  Theo snorted. “Will you, now? Ah, I see. You get a little cheeky when you’re high.”

  It wasn’t like me. I knew it even after I said it, but my mouth was acting on its own for some really . . . strangely . . . ridiculously . . . disconnected . . . what? What was I thinking about? My thoughts trailed, and somewhere in the space between sense and non, I let out a very minute giggle.

  “That’s better,” said Theo, smirking. “Still hate me?”

  “Haven’t decided.”

  “Ouch.”

  Yet a sloppy pile on the ground, too much of one to do anything on my own, I struggled to keep my neck steady. Theo inched over and patted first his thigh and then his shoulder. “Your pick. You
can rest your head here or here. Pick a spot and just relaaaax awhile. I’ll keep an eye out. Your mind needs some rest.”

  But was that really okay? Were marked ones allowed to rest? The unholy one was out there looking for me, and a second was looking for Theo. I imagined two icy stares cutting through the wilds. They pierced through the sand from some unknown position, blue and cold, just like ice. But after a moment, the ice exploded into crystals that went flying off into everywhere. “Wow,” I said, grabbing at them.

  “There’s nothing there,” Theo whispered.

  “Oh.”

  His doeish eyes bore into mine. “Pick a spot, Zill, and relax.”

  I chose his shoulder, and he wrapped his arm around me to hold me in place.

  As I nuzzled my head into his warm neck, I heard him swallow strangely. I considered that this was the first time I’d ever been this close to a boy neither child nor man, but the thought was fleeting. My head slipped, for it was too heavy for me to hold. It was hard to make it stay there, so I shifted, placing it upon Theo’s thigh and staring up at the foggy sky. He glanced down at me once before setting his gaze on the horizon. The clouds over his head were too connected to be shapely. Mostly, they were melted together into one big mess, allowing for only a few peeks of distortion. If I crossed my eyes, I could smoosh them together even further. They rebelled, bouncing back into place like elastic.

  “Things have changed since yesterday,” I admitted to them.

  “I’m sure,” they said back.

  I placed my hand on my stomach and breathed in deeply. “This is my life now.”

  “It is,” they responded.

  “Do you think I’ll be okay?”

  “Oh sure. If you don’t frazzle yourself out first, that is,” the clouds said listlessly. “I can help with that, if you’ll let me. In return, you can do what I couldn’t. You can . . .” But the clouds didn’t finish.

  “Hmph. I won’t get far with this stoner holding me back,” I told them, in confidence.

  “H-hey!” the clouds cried out in offense.

  I punished them by squishing them together. I pressed and I forced until distantly, I heard them proclaim, “Fuck!” But those weren’t the clouds after all. That was Theo’s voice.