The sound of the engine reverberated across the open field. A woman dressed in black was driving the vehicle through the arid terrain, while the wind made her short hair dance in the air. Her glasses protected her Asian eyes from the sand.
Attached to the motorcycle, a sidecar—nothing more than an iron barrel adapted for a passenger—rattled whenever its tire hit a stone or a pothole, causing the passenger to curse. The man trying to settle inside it was clearly uncomfortable, chewing on a piece of grass. Like the vehicle's driver, he was also dressed in black and squinted his dark eyes against the wind.
" I told you, Gabriel," said the woman without taking her eyes off the dirt road. " You should have worn glasses! But you're stubborn."
Shifting in his small iron cubicle, the man dodged a branch that brushed against his cheek. They were both riding on a well-worn path, distinct from the surrounding terrain of grass and trees, as this one was packed dirt, like the trails ants carve into the vegetation.
"Naomi," responded the man, rubbing where the branch had struck him. " I don't disagree at all."
"Just like the idea of using this barrel instead of another motorcycle."
"I have no regrets about that" — Gabriel lied.
Some birds flew in the background, and occasional rabbits could be seen running from one bush to another, squirrels in some trees, and even wild rats. Gabriel spotted a water spring through the leaves of some trees.
"It's a nice place, " he remarked to his companion.
She merely nodded in agreement as they followed the road into a sharp right turn. They had been traveling for only a few hours, and the change from the start of their journey was stark and much more pleasant—from desert to forest—but she shivered as she remembered something crucial and turned to the passenger.
However, before she could ask what she wanted, she realized Gabriel had thought the same and had already pulled out the Geiger counter, which, to their relief, did not emit the ominous sound of radiation.
" It's clean, " Gabriel said, his voice filled with relief. "But if I'm not mistaken, there's no Blight in this area."
Naomi didn't recall any Blights in this region either. They had passed one a few hours ago, a large area with alarming levels of radiation where no living thing could survive. These were literally places where nothing grew, vast empty spaces, a stain on the Earth, hence the name.
That was a remnant of the Third War of the Ancients, as everyone knew; a war that had destroyed much of humanity. The Blights remained as a warning to those who were left not to repeat the same mistakes.
" Yeah," Naomi said, shaken from her thoughts by a jolt from the bike. " No warning signs or anything. It really is a good place to live."
But both knew they weren't here for a leisure trip, and the reason for their journey was grim.
"We've been tracking them for almost a month," said the man. "It's likely that it all ends today."
Naomi just nodded.
They had spent days following clues and witnesses of slave traffickers, who had been careless. The pair had multiple opportunities to take them down, but decided to wait for all of them to gather to wipe them out in one go. This was their job as members of an armed organization, which was divided into three circles: the Vanguard, specializing in close combat; the Infiltrators, trained in base infiltration and ranged combat; and finally, the Shadow, a group that dealt with assassination using poison or hidden blades. They wore black rings on their thumbs to inform anyone unaware of their role in this world.
"Stop at the next curve," Gabriel said, adjusting in his limited space.
" Why?"
" The tracks seem to increase up ahead."
She looked again at the road, following the trail of cars that had passed through earlier, and saw that something was indeed different, not just on the road, but in the vegetation as well. She followed his suggestion, stopping just before the curve.
With agile movements, Gabriel leaped from the sidecar to the ground and stretched his back with pleasure, audible pops coming from his joints. Naomi dismounted the motorcycle with some difficulty—after all, her legs were stiff from sitting for so long—and massaged her rear to ease the pain.
Now, without the engine's roar, the sound of life could be heard in all directions, and the scent of fresh water filled the air. Behind a bush, not yet trampled by whatever had passed through, there was another spring.
"This region is full of springs," Naomi said more to herself than to her companion.
Gabriel was inspecting the tracks on the ground and the grass destroyed by the wheels that veered off into the forest. Crouching, he placed his hand on the marks that followed the road, the new trail coming from the forest, and headed toward the crushed plants. The vehicle's path was obvious even to an amateur; after all, broken branches and flattened plants marked the way.
"So?" Naomi asked.
"Well, judging by how deep the tracks are in the road, they stopped here for a while, waiting, — he said, pointing to the trail through the vegetation." And whatever met them here was carrying something heavy, much heavier than their cargo.
"More people"?
" Maybe, but that wouldn't make sense given this path." Gabriel looked around a bit longer, analyzing everything. "Standing around here won't solve anything."
"That's unexpected," Naomi said, watching her companion nod in agreement. "They've been pretty predictable up until now. Strange".
Gabriel rummaged through the bottom of the barrel and soon after pulled out their equipment.
"We're not too far now," he said, as he continued retrieving items from the sidecar, hands full.
He tossed Naomi her waist pouch, where she kept her poisons, ointments, and some glass balls filled with gunpowder. She went to the side of the barrel where he was pulling things out, grabbed her knife, and strapped it to her right thigh. She secured the pouch to her belt, hidden behind her back. Without wasting time, she fastened another small belt with six throwing knives and then a final one with three more throwing knives, which she strapped to her left ankle. Lastly, she fastened her katana—a long black blade inherited from her master. The weapon was different from the classic katanas; hers didn't have a curved blade but a straight one, resting on her back.
She was finally ready. She checked everything once more to make sure her gear was secured properly, and satisfied, she turned to her companion, who was similarly prepared.
Gabriel carried a knife on his right thigh and a belt with poisons and ointments, similar to his companion's. On his back were eight hidden throwing knives attached to his belt, along with two more on each ankle. On his left thigh, a 40-centimeter knife, and the heirloom he had received from his master was hidden behind the pouch on his back.
"Let's go over it," Naomi said to her companion, who made a bored face. "Gabriel, I'm serious".
"Okay, okay," he replied, sitting beside the barrel and leaning on it. He put another blade of grass in his mouth.
Naomi walked over to a tree and leaned against it, facing her companion. With a nod, she encouraged him to speak.
"Well, according to our intel, we're after six people".
"But with this new vehicle, we can assume there are at least eight now".
"Yes, nothing we can't handle".
"I added two because I'm being optimistic. It could easily be ten or more".
Gabriel looked up at the sky, which was starting to darken with an orange hue. Birds flew back and forth above them, searching for a place to sleep.
"We still have the element of surprise," Gabriel said, turning back to Naomi.
"Yes, but it's good to be prepared".
They both lingered a bit longer, enjoying the silence that came with the night, knowing that chaos would soon follow. Finally, Naomi stood up and took a few steps to the motorcycle. With the tip of her boot, she nudged Gabriel to get up.
Somewhat lazily, he complied and started moving.
"We'd better continue on foot," Naomi began. "It's already getting dark, so they've likely set up camp. Riding the motorcycle would draw attention.
With a nod, the man followed her, positioning himself right behind the barrel, as the woman was already gripping the handlebars. The vehicle made a loud noise, like most vehicles, as there were no more factories after the Third War of the Ancients, leaving only old carcasses.
They moved the motorcycle into the tall vegetation, hiding it perfectly. It would only be found if someone knew exactly where to look.
"We'd better get going then," Gabriel said as he returned to the road. "It's time to hunt"!
"You know I don't like it when you say it like that," the young woman grumbled.
"Correction", he said, turning to her with a mischievous smile. "It's time to work".
And so, both followed the dirt road as they were swallowed by the night.