Welcome to Star Desert. Don't mind the often-quiet highways.
Out here, the shadows grow long, and hard...as do nights. The predators really love to have fun with this desert.
Here and there, on every other hill, a high-tech gadget stands, or moves automatically, or both. On this hill, there's a radar antenna, revolving like a barbed flyswatter. At its base, it bears the logo of Quackme. This antenna may be shaped like a flyswatter...but to its owner, flies are hardly worthy pickings. HIS eye is set on OTHER prizes; ones that taste better battered and fried...
Up the highway, a streak throws up dust. It's two legged, and streams a long tail.
Meet Routestroke the Accelerator. He's a roadrunner. He wears a pair of goggles; one of its lenses is orange, and the other is black. He's clad in body armor, and wears a harness that's stocked with knives, pistols, and grenades.
On his head, two plumes also stream. One's orange, and the other's black.
On his back, the harness bears the deadliest package of them all. They might not look like much now...but when the Accelerator is threatened, he leaves blood and carnage on whoever dares trespass him.
Onward, the Accelerator runs. As usual, he draws some unfriendly eyes...
On a hill, a telescope revolves from a swivel, and peers down, at the passing Accelerator. With an obsessive scope, he follows the Accelerator, as he passes on down the highway...
The lens on the telescope narrows. Just below its swivel, a green light blinks, sending an alert signal.
In a hole in the ground, there lives a coyote. This is not a dirty, nasty wet hole with worms, or anything just as revolting. It's the Arrow Den. Down here, an arsenal is at work, proliferating itself.
Down here, there are inactive androids, and exosuits. If they're not clad in green robes, they are mostly green.
Quivers hang from racks, by the dozen. Arrows are also organized, based on what tricks they can do. There's a workshop, where many wares forge themselves. The welding machines generate green sparks.
From the ceiling, an alarm horn hangs. Following the telescope's lead, it flashes black and orange lights, and blows.
In a wall, there's an arched way, into a very dark room. Beyond the shadowy veil, a pair of glowing green eyes open...and narrow.
This is the cave of the Green Boo-Yip. He lives for the purpose of saving his desert.
One of the androids becomes active. He takes up a recurve bow, and shoulders several quivers. He shoots an arrow out the door. A cable trails behind it, as it flies. The android grabs the cable, and is pulled out of the Den.
At a certain altitude above the den, the android releases the arrow, and does flips, while falling. Far away, a garage door opens, and a motorcycle speeds out. With perfect aim, the android lands right in the saddle. Several parts of the android's body merge with the motorcycle, causing him to become one with his transport.
With the power of a phalanx of horses, RoboHood rides out to the highway. The motorcycle's towers bounce off several rocks, as it rides along, leaving a trail of dust in its wake.
On the highway, Routestroke still races. Every now and then, he backfires twice, sounding like a pair of grenades as he does so.
On either side of him, twin canyon walls tower. For some reason, Routestroke isn't afraid of these...
Far ahead, RoboHood leaps over such a canyon, on his bike. In midair, he dismounts, falls, and fires arrows, all around him. Some stream cables, as they go along.
RoboHood shoots one at the cave wall. It's got a cable. Grabbing it, he swings down the canyon wall...and causes sparks to fly, as he has a hard landing.
While hanging, he turns around. Nanites in this android heal all the canyon wall-smashed parts.
Soon, the canyon is an array of tightrope cables, which suspend high over the highway. Routestroke doesn't know it, but he's in for one hell of a night...
Soon, he runs under these cables. He barely acknowledges them...
Suddenly, RoboHood falls from the sky, and lands smack dab in the center of the highway. Routestroke is tempted not to...but he screeches to a stop, nonetheless.
He stands at attention...like a warrior. The roadrunner is rather militaristically courteous, for wild game...RoboHood thinks.
RoboHood draws an arrow, and aims it right between the two lenses on Routestroke's two-toned goggles. In his own chest, a kryptonite power source glows bright green...
"Routestroke the Accelerator," he howls, throughout the canyon, "YOU HAVE FAILED THIS DESERT!"
From the pack on the bird's harness, a pair of tentacles emerge, armed with a pair of katanas. He backfires twice, as he draws them...
RoboHood narrows his eyes, with the prejudice of every coyote pack in all of Star Desert, and releases his arrow...