Jeurridam Ch. 07: Henderson (Mid)

"This boy..." Galveston sighed, following. Everyone climbed up the crude structure reaching the top. The sight was utterly horrifying.

Every plate mech within the Acid Swamps had been slaughtered, drained of their circulatory fluid. It was one of the biggest mech massacres to strike this region in several decades. Considering how advanced the plate mechs were, how they managed to survive peaceful on their own for so long, this was so sad!

"This will become a problem. Who ever is running the hive will be back for more and the only things left are my turrets..." Galveston sighed.

"And the only thing that can stop those manticores is a high velocity armor piercing round. Cannon fodder just bounces off of them like it's nothing." June shrugged.

"I'll think of something." I said, "We can go back to Sloan and I can find the hive leader... I can shut them all down..." Everyone looked at me. The drear in my tone made it clear I was taking this quite bad.

"No," Galveston said, "I say we wait for them to come back here then we sweep them offline."

"That could work..." I sighed. Beth placed a hand on my shoulder.

"You okay bro?" She asked. I nodded.

"I'm good." I said.

We returned to the garage, everything returning back to normal. Galveston and I made slight tweaks to all the mechs, even the highly damaged manticore mech. Beth, June and Julio stood on the upper platform watching as Swish and Heaven sat on the hood of his buggy, playing a holographic game on a three dimensional console. Julio simply shook his head.

"Disgusting..." He said. It caused Beth to slowly look at him.

"What?" She growled.

"I meant Swish..." He responded in his defense with both hands up. Beth slowly returned to watching her brother and his new found friend have a fun.

June punched Julio's arm, laughing. Julio looked at his friend, eyes wide with shock. He pointed at Beth.

"She's crazy..." He mouthed causing June to laugh even harder.

"That's mine..." June whispered back staring lovingly at Beth.

"You can have it." Julio said back, not bothering to whisper. He went down to his buggy, ready to start tuning it. Beth was so lost.

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing..." June laughed, wrapping her up in his arms. The girl laughed, obviously glad to have someone as crazy as she was to call her own.

Galveston and I watched silently, laughing to ourselves.

"Seems like everyone's hitching up..." Galveston noted, "Except Julio... He's the odd man out." I stared at the boy as he frustratedly tuned his suspension.

"Is he gay?" I asked. Galveston laughed, looking up from his computer.

"Red flags...?" He asked me.

"Maybe but he has the same frustrations as Heaven just better at hiding it. That whole thing with Beth just proves it. I don't think he likes the fact that June and Beth are a thing... Beth may be the wedge in the bond the two boys share but I can't help but feel the bond is much deeper with Julio than it is with June... Even he'll reach his limit one day. Think we should do something?" I asked, unsure if Galveston was game for this.

"No... He's not like Heaven. Julio will lash out and get destructive if we prod. I don't think he'll ever be okay with his sexuality," Galveston sighed, "He's at war with himself..."

"I just can't stand by..." I said, not liking this one bit. Galveston placed a hand on my shoulder, shaking his head.

"You can't save em all, babe..." He sighed. It was clear Galveston wanted to help but it'd be hard to find a solution with someone as guarded and difficult as Julio. I couldn't think of anything either but like Galveston, I'd have to sit and watch, observe until a glimpse of something wonderful was worth pulling out of Julio.

Friday went smoothly, everyone preparing for the weekend out in the Corridor. There was no sign of any more manticore activity within the city but Galveston and I set up a wide sweeping network that would detect the unique signature of the manticores. Upon doing so, the mainframe back at the garage would hack into the machines, deactivate them and notify us.

With that done, Saturday rolled in like freight train. We loaded the six hundred pound, elk-sized cyberlope onto a trolley. We rolled out early in the morning, heading north out of Jeurridam to the wasteland.

"I wonder how this city got it's name..." Heaven wondered, sitting in the back with Swish.

"This ship that crashed into the ancient city was known as the Jeurridam. It was named after a star cluster on the other side of the galaxy. I remember reading something quite special about it, about there being a tesseract outside of our solar system, inside a wormhole." I said.

"Really?" Swish asked.

"Yes really. Supposedly, a much more advanced race than our own opened it with the help of a black hole but that's all I know..." I sighed, "I got a feeling that war seven hundred years ago was caused by this..."

"What the hell is a tesseract?" Heaven asked.

"It is a fourth dimensional space where physics of a three dimensional space such as this universe, the ground we live on, don't really apply much. It is a place beyond the existence regular spacetime." I explained.

"That didn't help much." Heaven laughed.

"Zanir..." Galveston said.

"Yeah?"

"You think it was wise to leave the mechs at home? What if something like... goes wrong?" Zanir asked.

"I don't think anything will go wrong." I said.

"Okay..." Galveston said, still feeling it wasn't a wise decision.

We arrived at the wide and open wasteland, the western plateau beside the Corridor. Everyone stood around the bed of the trolley as I began the first boot sequences for the Leer. The diodes in the optics flickered, everyone jumping in anticipation. The machine suddenly stood up, bugling loudly. It stepped off the the trolley, heading towards the beacon source located on my watch. It looked at Galveston and I, inhaling our scent with it's wind bladder.

The two of us looked at each other, mesmerized. This mech turned out much better than we anticipated.

"Beth, how are vitals?" I asked.

"Surprisingly," She said looking down at the computer, "Well..."

"Really? So the little guy ain't showin' no trouble." I asked utterly shocked.

"Nope..." She responded.

"Okay, we go ahead with all routine protocols." I shrugged. Beth punched in commands and the Leer took off into an insane sprint. The machine had unmatched sprint speed, not even the manticores insane abilities could match it. It was designed this way so nothing on the ground or in the air for that matter could catch it. It was built to be the ultimate evasion machine.

Not only that but the machine could cloak itself, completely erasing its signature. The only clue one would have to the presence of the Leer would be the trail of dust it left behind. It wasn't the only protocol. On its back was a thirty millimeter cannon as well as a micro rocket array. However, with the machine's insane speed, the small turret on it's back couldn't move without seriously sacrificing aerodynamic efficiency. As a result, the gun and the rocket array would recess deep into the chassis, becoming fixed in position. When the mech became stationary or was traveling at a low speed, it could move the turret. Since this was the very first test run, there was no ammunition in it.

With everything going so well, we just let the Leer roam around and explore. We set up camp and relaxed, doing nothing but sitting out in the desert, here for each other's company. June brought his grill, a ton of booze and a huge fire starter kit. Swish brought his game console, him and Heaven in an intense match. Beth simply brought books to enjoy as well as a bikini. It wasn't like the girl needed to tan being half Olmec and all but hey, I was in nothing but a sun hat, some swimming trunks and a kimono.

Maybe we should have went to the Lake considering everyone had water attire? Lake Mead was literally thirty minutes to the East. But I didn't really want to see people I didn't know so this was more than good enough. I sat in a beach chair just listening to the pounding music Heaven had playing.

"Zanir..." Galveston called out.

"Yeah?" I responded.

"The Leer keeps going into alert mode and staring off to the north." He said. I looked at the Cyberlope. It was indeed standing incredibly alert with ears and eyes turned to something in the north. It's tail was completely erect, a sign of imminent danger.

Galveston picked up his scope, scanning the horizon for anything. There was nothing there.

"Huh, strange..." He shrugged, returning to watching June grill.

"Beth, log in and see why the Leer's at attention." I asked.

"Sure." She said, quick to boot up the laptop. She synched with the feed from the Leer, seeing nothing in particular. The Leer then returned to sniffing around and exploring the plateau.

Julio sat on the outskirts of the camp, watching Heaven and Swish interact. Something was definitely wrong with that picture. The sheer amount of disgust on his face spoke volumes about his true feelings! He didn't share the same sentiments about Galveston and my relationship yet for Heaven and Swish, there was anguish. He had feelings for one of them but didn't know how to express it. I wondered which boy... I had a feeling it was Swish. The two had quite the history and with Swish's unexpected changes and new found assertiveness, it probably left Julio hanging... Who know's though.

I could only imagine how Heaven and Swish's exchange of googly eyes was upsetting to Julio. Suddenly, something happened. Swish slowly leaned across the hood of the buggy. He kissed Heaven, the two sharing their first truly passionate moment. Everyone's jaw fell open at the sight. The burgers June was flipping fell off the spatula, back to the grill. Beth was left stunned as well.

"Well Damn..." She chuckled before returningd to reading her book.

Julio couldn't take it. He got up, walking back to the buggy.

"Poor kid..." I sighed.

My hands were tied behind my back and I was sitting on very, very hot sand! The hood came from over my head. Before me was an incredibly excited Rion, too close for comfort. I leaned back, stared at him with cold indifference.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked.

"You know why I'm doing this." He retaliated, polishing a bright silver revolver.

"It was over with when I left Paradise! I really don't know why you're doing this." I said shaking my head. He leaned down, planting a kiss on my lips, causing me to cringe. He then grabbed my head pointing down the valley.
"Do you see that?" He asked. I looked but saw nothing but endless, endless plateau!

"No." I shrugged.

"Look closely." He smiled. I stared and stared, seeing smoke faintly rise on the horizon.

"Smoke?" I asked.

"Yes!" He said, very glad I finally noticed it, "And you won't believe who it is!" He placed a scope up to my eye. Horror hit my stomach like a sickness.

"NO!!!!!!!!!" I screamed, "Rion man... What the fuck are you doing? Why are you doing this?"

"You want to go pay them a visit?" He asked.

"YOU KEEP THEM OUT OF THIS!!! THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!!!!" I said, struggling against my restraints.

One of his goons kicked me so hard, I fell over.

"Load him up boys... We're gonna pay everyone he loves a visit." Rion said. I was hoisted up and thrown into the back of the buggy. The next thing I remembered was being thrown to the baking hot sand. When I looked up, a terrified Beth, Heaven, Zanir, Galveston and two other guys were being thrown to the ground by Da Lagon goons. Guns were pointed to each one of their heads. Beth's eyes fell upon me.

"Zeek?" She called out.

"Guys... I'm so sorry!" I pleaded but it was too late. Rion climbed out his buggy, looking at them all in delight.

"You're fucking with him again?" Beth asked, irate. She eyed Rion with the most caustic gaze. The rays rising off the desert sand could have been her own.

"Yes... whether he likes it or not." Rion said, prowling around.

"I told you..." Beth said clenching her eyes shut with rage, "Not to go back to Paradise... I fucking told you..."

"Beth, you gotta believe me! It wasn't my intentions on going back! When you left again, dad put me out and I had no choice! I didn't even go back to Rion... He..."
"SHUTUP!!!!!" Rion screamed, cutting me off, "You think you could have just walked away from me, walk away from what we've made... That this life was something you could just simply not deal with anymore? No... you're in this for life... You'll forever... Be... Mine!"

"Rion..." Galveston called out, causing the boy to turn to him. A look of sheer hatred came across Rion's face. He despised Galveston! Galveston was just too strong to succumb to Rion's powers and Rion feared this!

"What?" Rion snarled, prowling over to the boy.

"You don't have to do this. I know this isn't your doing! You wouldn't dare come for us all unless it was an order given to you! This is your boss's command!" Galveston said. It struck a nerve with Rion.

"What do you know about me?" Rion snarled, edging frighteningly close the boy, "This is why I don't fucking like you, Galveston! You think you know everyone better than they know themselves! My boss has NOTHING to do with this!" I had a feeling this was what Galveston wanted. He and Zanir exchanged glimpses and brief nods. I noticed Zanir slip into one of those mysterious metal gloves.

"No," Galveston fired back, "You don't like me because you couldn't manipulate me! You couldn't get your fingers in my head and control me! That's all you want is control because you're a scared little boy..."

"SHUTUP!!!!" Rion screamed, finally coming face to face with Galveston.

Suddenly, Galveston swept his feet under Rion's legs, causing the boy to fall. He slammed his foot into Rion's chest before attempting to kick him in the head. Rion caught the other foot, pushing it away. He was quick to get to his feet, taking aim with his gun.

"YOU LITTLE SHIT!!!!!" He screamed, unloading his entire gun on Galveston. The boy fell back, his blood pooling on the ground.

"NOOOOOO!!!!!!" Swish screamed, losing his closest friend. He couldn't take it! He reach under his shirt, grabbing his very own gun. Just as he took aim at Rion, several goons riddled the boy with bullet holes. He fell to the ground, the boy starting to choke on his own blood. The thick red fluid ran down his cheeks as he gave one last cough. Swish was gone... Heaven sat there utterly destroyed.

Zanir too was shocked, shocked beyond belief. He trembled in rage as tears rolled down his cheeks. As soon as Rion's eyes fell upon him, I knew this was going to be the grimmest day of my life... Rion reloaded his revolver, smiling, everyone looking around in horror.

"This must be the infamous Tanzanir you've told me so much about, Zeeky?" Rion said.

"Rion, don't you dare..." I said through the grit of my teeth.

"But you said he's caused you so much suffering, that he was the reason your dad treated you like shit, the reason you ran away! I can take him out for you!" Rion said, only prying for a reaction.

"No... Please don't..." Beth cried. Zanir just sat motionless, staring at the Rion with a level of anger I've never seen before. He slipped on the second glove while Rion's head was turned.

"Rion, I swear if you dare... I'll kill you myself." I threatened through the grit of my teeth. Rion looked at me shocked, steadily aiming at Zanir. Then the unthinkable happened... Rion nearly unloaded his gun on Zanir. Beth screamed out in horror as bullets pierced through her best friend's flesh! Zanir's hand extended out, seemingly pleading for his life. It made Rion smile with sickening joy, having someone beg him for their life.

Surprisingly, the boy wasn't dead... His blood pooled on the ground yet he still was on his hands and knees! Zanir's fist clinched closed. Suddenly, a four foot long blade came screeching out of the rear of an analog buggy. It pierced through Rion, embedding itself into the ground. The solenoids locked into place, keeping Rion from sliding down the blade. Then another massive blade penetrated Rion. Rion looked up at Zanir, angered by this surprise retaliation. He aimed his gun at the boy's head, everyone's breath ceasing as we were faced with the unthinkable. Before Rion could fire the last bullet in the chamber, his hand was severed off blade. He screamed at the sight as his severed arm, blood squirting everywhere! More and more blades began to embed themselves deep into Rion's body. The blades then flew in every direction, leaving gaping holes in the boy. Rion collapsed to the ground, dead...

The blades each found a Da Lagon goon to stab repeatedly... This was just a bloodbath! The blades then fell to the ground as Zanir crawled over to Galveston. His heart shattered to pieces as he frantically shook the boy. He cried and cried, getting no response from Galveston. He shook him again, tears steadily rolling down his cheek.

"Galveston..." He cried, trembling. Everything around him grew darker as blood poured from his wounds. He swayed back and forth before collapsing back into the pool of blood. Zanir was dying, too!