Ok, nearly at the end of walking, thanks to all those who've had the patience to stick with me this far! And thanks for faves and follows and reviews :)
The grey light of dawn was creeping over the landscape by the time the light of Gastown resolved itself into a tiny burning flame, topped by a thin tendril of greasy black smoke. Nux had altered our course a little over the course of the night, bearing right so that we walked parallel to the light rather than straight into it. As we had these last few mornings, he started to look around, searching for a safe place to spend the day.
"I thought we weren't going to stop." I stated flatly, thirst making my voice hoarse and rasping.
He didn't answer until he'd found what he was looking for, a gully between two small hills, with a shallow cave in one side.
"Gastown boys catch us, they'll pike you in the spine, use you til you die." He explained without emotion, as if it was an everyday fact of life – which apparently it was, in his world. I recoiled in horror at his words, feeling the adrenaline of pure terror rise in me. He didn't see my reaction, concentrating as he was on descending into the gully.
"Really?!" I asked tremulously.
He turned and nodded, beckoning me over. "Really." He said.
"A…and the citadel? Will they do that to me there too?" I continued, climbing down after him. He shook his head, pulling me into the cave.
"Don't think so, not now Furiosa's taking over." He frowned. "At least, hope she's taking over – she was pretty hurt last time I saw her."
I crawled in beside him, feeling more apprehensive about the future than I had in days. I'd been so focused on making it to this Citadel, that I'd just assumed everything would be wonderful once we got there. And now it was looking less than positive. I curled up next to Nux, trying to press the ravenous hunger in my belly into submission with my knees. Without preamble, he wrapped his arms around me and buried his face in the hollow between my neck and my collarbone. Carefully I stepped my feet over his bent legs until my thighs rested on his, my hands stroking his arms.
"What about Capable?" I asked finally, after we'd been sitting this way for awhile. I was very conscious of his breath on my skin, his hand on my ribs.
He lifted his head drowsily. "Huh? Oh, she'll like you," he said, yawning, "you're shiny. And, you brought me back." He added matter of factly, before settling his head back in its resting place on my neck.
"That's not what I mean." I snorted, pinching his arm gently. His arm twitched, and I knew I was keeping him from sleeping. "Won't she be mad, like, that you're so cuddly with me and all?"
"Why?" his voice was muffled, and I could feel his lips moving against my skin. "I like her, I like you, what's the problem?"
I sighed, too tired to continue this baffling conversation. Maybe monogamy wasn't a thing in this world. The words 'pike you in the spine, use you til you die' floated back to me, making me shiver. Nux shifted a little in his sleep, one hand sliding over my ribs. I blinked, feeling sleep steal over me in spite of my worries, and tipped my head until it rested on top of his, feeling the stubble of his scalp rough under my cheek.
I woke first, the gnawing emptiness in my stomach impossible to ignore. My tongue was swollen from thirst and my skin felt taut over my bones. Hunger was making me dizzy and lightheaded as I shook Nux awake.
"How much longer will it take us?" I whispered, my dry throat making it hard to talk louder.
He rubbed sleep out of his eyes. I noticed the gauntness of his cheekbones, the startling glitter of his blue eyes, almost feverish.
"Should reach it before day." He muttered hoarsely.
I peered out into the darkness as he rose and brushed past me. Shakily I followed him out, accepting his helping hand to climb the gully. Surprisingly, walking was easier for me this night, probably because I knew we were so close to our destination, and that only there would I find food and water. We angled away from Gastown, and before long I noticed a flat river of asphalt, straight as an arrow, to the left of us. We walked parallel to this; he seemed somewhat on edge, and kept glancing around him, and especially behind, where the road led back to Gastown.
The moon was above us when I saw the first glimpse of it; a jutting mass that broke the line of the horizon.
"Is that it?" I asked in a choked whisper, pointing ahead.
Nux nodded, and I could see the faint gleam of his teeth as he turned his head and flashed me a smile. It was impossible to quicken our pace, but I felt a surge of energy fill me. So close, so close now.
As we travelled closer, the solid mass gained definition, and I could see that it was not one, but three objects, too tall and massive to be buildings. They looked more like mesas, those geological features so common to American deserts. They were festooned with tiny pinpricks of light. Foreboding and anticipation mixed within me at the sight of them.
It seemed like we were inching closer at a snail's pace, the only things moving in that empty desert, wrapped in night and silence. But imperceptibly we were drawing closer, and I began to understand how truly huge this Citadel was. Silhouettes of tiny structures, antenna towers, cranes and cables began to be clear, dark lines against the deep navy of the sky. Awestruck, I reached for Nux's hand.
"Lovely, isn't it." He said quietly, his eyes fixed ahead. I said nothing; for him this was a return home, but for me, who knew?
The moon was low and night old when we reached the base of this fantastical place; I'd expected some sort of outer fortifications, maybe a surrounding wall or something, but the desert simply continued until it hit the tumbled rocks around the mesas, the road vanishing into a dark maw at the base of one. The big difference was the quality of sound; from the desolate silence of the desert, suddenly there were muted scufflings and murmurs ahead of us. The small flickering tongues of fires dotted the ground. People, there were people ahead of us, and the realisation set my heart beating faster with fear.
We walked forward, and like a wave crashing on the beach, the sounds of life rose all around us, muted by sleep and darkness, but still overpowering after such long isolaton. Above us the mesas of the citadel towered, mountains in their own right. I saw the silhouettes of many people against the orange glow, surely more than five thousand, I thought abstractedly. They seemed bent and twisted, huddling here and there around their fires, or sleeping sprawled in the dust. This was my first sight of 'civilisation' in Nux's world, and it did not inspire confidence.
There were whispers rising all around us, and I could see the shadows of people breaking away from their groups, following us. Scared, I squeezed Nux's hand tighter, glancing around me like a hunted animals.
"Is this safe?" I whispered to him out of the corner of my mouth. He laughed lightly, a spring in his step which I hadn't seen since that first day when he was scavenging through the wreckage by the canyon's end.
"Yup, you're with me." He replied, and then looked around the gathering crowd. "Warboy, returning!" he yelled out without warning, making me jump.
This had an instantaneous effect on the following crowd, and I could hear the whispers gaining strength around us. "A Warboy!" "One of Joe's? One of ours?"
"Are you with us or against us?" yelled someone out of the crowd. "Furiosa or Joe?" cried another. The muttering and murmuring had an ambiguous note, as if it could flip between adulation or hostility in an instant.
"Furiosa!" yelled Nux, punching the air with his free hand. The murmurs grew louder, but now there was a tinge of welcome and relief in them. A ragged old man, all flying hair and dirty rags, like a white and brown dandelion, broke free of the surge of bodies. He clapped Nux on the back with his hand, toothless mouth grinning.
"Welcome back, lad. Come to join the Liberator, have you? Good on ya; we need fighters." He clasped Nux's hand in both of his, and then disappeared back into the crowd as quickly as he'd left it.
The crowd parted around us, letting us through until we stood in the shadow of the large rough cavern which seemed to be the entrance to one of the mesas. Its top was laced with girders and pipes, long cables hanging down. It seemed larger than the entrance to an aircraft hangar.
I was surprised by how old and decrepit the crowd all seemed, I couldn't see any young adults or children. Not, that is, until I looked into the darkness of the entrance, and saw a few men, younger and in better shape than any of those outside. They all wore the same black cargo pants and boots that Nux did, but with the addition of what looked like hangman's masks, and fingerless leather gloves. They carried long weapons, looking like a mixture between lances and scythes. They had the bored attitude that many nightwatch guards show.
But they straightened up quickly when they saw Nux, and barred his way. Behind them I could see a steel gate across the entrance of the cavern, and behind it what looked like vehicles and heavy machinery, huge wheels and cogs grinding in the subdued light.