THE WASTELAND

JULY 25

15:03

The walk was blissful, even with the ballast packs dragging along behind her. Leaving the Nellis Air Force Base had lifted a heavy weight from Brianna's shoulders, clearing away the hazy cloud of self-doubt that had clung to her like an impenetrable fog. The golden Mojave sun washed away the dark pallet of her thoughts, leaving nothing ahead of her but the road, and the promise of a lake somewhere in the distance. A flowing wave of heat blurred the horizon as crows circled overhead. As always, the Mojave Desert gave her courage. An upbeat Rad Pack rendition of an Elvis song was blaring from her Pip-Boy's speakers, bringing a much-needed smile to her face. She knew the words by heart.

"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread," Sunny sang.

"And so I come to you, my love," she replied, "with my heart above my head!"

"Though I see there's danger here!" Cass belted.

"If there's a chance for me," Veronica sang, inviting the rest of them to chorus with her.

"Then I don't care!"

"Fools rush in where wise men never go," Brianna continued.

"But wise men," Sunny trilled, "never fall in love!"

With a mischievous smirk, Brianna took Sunny by the hand. The shorter woman fell gracefully into the movement, twirling elegantly with her fingers locked in the courier's own. They were quick to work around her missing hand, finding themselves in a waltzing position with Sunny's arm around Brianna's waist. "So how are they to know?"

"When we met, I felt my life begin!" The group sang, as Brianna and Sunny began a hashed imitation of a waltz, spinning around in wide circles.

"So open up your heart and let this fool rush in!"

"Quiet!" Cass hissed as the music trumpeted to an end. Brianna frowned and turned off the radio. "Keep still and shut the fuck up."

Brianna was quick to detect the urgency in her tone and just as quick to react. With hands still tightly wrapped, she hastily undid the leather straps securing her axe to her leg. Veronica assumed a defensive position next to her, Power Fist raised. Sunny drew her pistol while Cass readied her shotgun.

At first, Brianna couldn't see the danger. Then she spotted that wicked flash of orange in the sunlight, distinguishing the predator immediately. Her blood turned to ice. She hadn't even thought. Hadn't even taken a moment away from her own thoughts to even consider what might be out here waiting for them. And she'd known, she'd known from the beginning that there were nests here, of course she had. She'd dealt with these things before, she knew how fast they were, how deadly. They matched the size of a grown mole rat, with four ragged orange wings and sharply pointed stingers. She'd watched people die from their sting, watched them thrash and scream as the poison ate up their insides and ran like fire through their veins.

"We have to go," Sunny whispered, as if a hushed voice would save their lives.

"There's no other way around."

"We can find another way."

"Sunny-"

"I think it's a little late for that," Veronica said. And she was right.

The cazadors were on them.

Brianna threw Sunny aside as the first insect attacked. She threw it back with the handle of her axe, stepping back and swinging upwards. The cazador shot above her, dodging the blow and aligning its stinger with her throat. She sidestepped the lunge before it could skewer her throat, ready to slice through its abdomen before a glint of orange invaded her peripheral vision. There was another coming at her from behind. Spitting a curse, she cut through the first cazador's wing with a swift diagonal motion before turning on her heels. The second was on her in a flash of red and orange. She ducked low beneath the dart of its stinger, missing the fatal blow by inches. Its buzzing increased in frequency, its wings beating with fierce intensity as its chitinous arms reached for her head. She struggled wildly to escape its grasp, but she was frozen in place. That wicked point was aligned perfectly with her stomach. She had seconds. With a scream of anger and terror, she forced the insect back with all her strength. Where was her axe? Where were her friends? It shuddered against her grip, almost wriggling free before she thought of the most ridiculous plan.

Brianna opened her mouth wide and bit down hard on the cazador's head. Her mouth filled with blood and chitin. Her stomach lurched. She bit down harder, forcing the flailing creature back as a piercing shriek swelled in her ears. The cazador grew limp, letting its stinger fall uselessly away from her torso. Brianna grabbed for its upper wings and pulled hard, hearing a satisfying rip as the dead bug dropped to the ground.

"Holy shit!" Cass exclaimed, blasting a hole through the nearest attacker as Brianna retrieved her axe. When the cazador insisted on living, she aimed a little more carefully and blew right through its face. Veronica finished off another with a few well-placed blows, deflecting an oncoming lunge with her gauntlet before finally going in for the kill. The swift uppercut knocked the cazador's head upwards, allowing her precious seconds to slam both fists down on its dying body. Cass and Sunny tore the final few apart with a hail of bullets before the gunfire ceased at last.

"I thought that was supposed to be hard?" Sunny asked, tossing her weapon to Cass for reloading. "There's no way we just did that, right?"

"Sure feels like we did," Brianna said, spitting bits of cazador onto the sand. "Were we the only ones who got to see that? Seriously?"

Cass swung her rifle over her shoulder. "It'll be a story for the grandkids."