Isabel and Helen held hands as they followed the Vipers through a secluded region of the desert, unsure of what to expect next. Thane remained close by their side, eyeing the Vipers, expecting them to attack at any moment, but Helen had her doubts that was their intention. Firstly, they knew about Isabel's abilities and that she was more than capable of fighting them off. Secondly, they went through the trouble of helping them escape from Angelique's clutches. Whatever they wanted them for, it was something important to them. Helen's stomach dropped, thinking about what their intentions were for her daughter.
''Can you at least tell us what is about to happen?'' she asked the leader, who was unusually quiet throughout their journey.
He glanced back at them. ''I'm going to leave that for Cruise to explain. He's a better speaker than me.''
Isabel pursed her lips. ''I assumed you were the leader of this group.''
''Ha, only on the day when Cruise sleeps with the fishes. I'm a scout. Think of me as the eyes of this bunch.''
''And this Cruise is the grains?'' Helen asked.
''The brains, the mouth, the heart, the style.''
They continued on their way before the Vipers brought them to a deep cavern, connected by rusted scaffolding and old construction cranes that lay in ruin. The Vipers travelled down the machines with no fear of falling, showing that they had done this many times before. Isabel looked down to see the trek led them deep into an underground grotto where more Vipers stood on guard, watching the area. Each of them was armed and ready for combat. Isabel hesitated, fearing that if they travelled too deep, she would have less chance of helping her mother and Thane escape if things didn't go well.
She felt her mother's hold on her hand tighten. They locked eyes, sharing a look of encouragement with each other. Isabel always felt inspired with her mother by her side. Taking a deep breath, they followed the Vipers. Thane needed some help from Isabel to climb down the ladders and slopes because of his injuries. Isabel could hear his frustrated groans under his breath. She kept her mouth shut, not wanting to start an argument in the heart of the Viper base.
When they finally touched down on the lowest point of the cavern, the lead scout showed them a way through a metallic hallway. Rotting on the wall was a calendar marked 2020. Helen brushed her fingers against it, and it crumbled to pieces with just the slightest bit of contact. She wished that she had time to look around at this place that had a history to it, but the last thing they needed was to keep their host waiting, so she ventured forward with Isabel by her side. Before long, the scouts brought them to a room at the end of the hallway. It was a fairly large room, able to contain half a dozen armed Vipers. They all eyed their guests, particularly Isabel, as if waiting for her to make the first move.
At the far end of the room, sitting upon a wooden chair like it was his throne was the man that Isabel and Helen assumed was Cruise.
Even slouched on his chair, he appeared tall, helped by the flamboyant and stylish jacket atop his slender frame. Hanging from his sleeves were multiple charms carved in symbols from the old world. Stitched on his jacket, Helen recognized letters belonging to different languages from the old world. There was an aura of confidence surrounding him that never left, even as Isabel and the others entered the room.
He stroked his chin and turned to the lead scout. ''Pitt, when you reported back to me that you and your scouts received a severe ass-kicking from a girl half your size…I wasn't expecting her to literally be half your size.''
The lead scout, Pitt, snickered. ''There's more to her than meets the eye.''
Cruise smirked at him and then turned his gaze back towards Isabel. ''Well, considering you risked your life saving them from slave-traders owned by a Drake, I am expecting to be dazzled by what they have to offer.''
Isabel held her head high. ''I don't have to offer you anything. I don't even know why we're here. The other night your scouts attacked us. They tried to take us prisoner, or kill us.''
''That don't make much sense to me. Dead prisoners ain't much use, are they?''
His mocking tone touched a nerve with Isabel. She opened her mouth to respond, only to be stopped by her mother calming her by grabbing her arm and holding her back. All it took was one firm look from Helen to silence Isabel and she didn't argue. Watching on, Cruise noticed the way Isabel didn't retaliate despite her being the one he was told has the power. He shifted his focus towards Helen, now interested to know more about her.
''I wish to start by thanking you for saving us. I don't know where we'd be if your scouts hadn't arrived…''
''Dead.'' Cruise interrupted. ''I don't got to be much of a scholar to know that.''
Helen cleared her throat, holding out her hand to stop Isabel who didn't take kindly to her mother being rudely cut off like that. ''My daughter and your scout spoke, saying that you wished to see us to return a favor for saving our lives. While we appreciate what you have done for us, I want you to know that if you have any cruel intentions regarding my daughter, I will not stand for it. I will not let her be a pawn in your war.''
''Our war?''
Helen nodded. ''That's why you want her. I'm sure that you must get into territorial wars with other Viper groups for supplies and land. You also have the slave-traders working for Drakes to deal with. Your scout has told you what my daughter can do, and now you think you can use her to show your enemies the power you wield. I would rather die than let you use my babygirl as a weapon.''
''Mom…'' Isabel said bashfully, trying to hide her blushes. At this point, she didn't know if she was blushing because her mother called her babygirl in front of potential enemies, or because her mother called her babygirl and she found it arousing.
With a blank expression, Cruise looked around the room at the Vipers before locking eyes with Helen again and then bursting into a fit of laughter. The others followed his example, laughing like they were in on the joke while Isabel, Helen and Thane stood bewildered.
''Oh, you were so close to the apple pie, my lady.'' Cruise said. He had stopped laughing, but was still grinning with child-like glee. ''I don't care about turf wars. The Drakes are a problem, I will admit that. Hell, I've lost many of the Crew to those slave-traders already. Dead or taken.''
Thane flinched hearing this. ''You've had people taken? And the Drakes never found where the rest of you were? Didn't they say anything?''
''Ain't no rats in the Crew. What kind of person gives up his home without a fight?''
Clenching his fist hearing the taunt directed back at him, Thane was ready to bite back when Helen held out her other arm to stop him. He stared back at her. Unlike Isabel, he wasn't afraid of her. However, when he saw that Isabel was glaring at him, that's when he decided to back down. He grumbled to himself, finding it difficult to believe he was now the one being told what to do by Isabel.
Isabel turned back to Cruise. ''So, if you don't want me to fight other Vipers or Slave-Traders, what do you want from me? And what's going to stop me from fighting my way out of here if we don't like what we hear?''
''I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse.'' Cruise smiled
Helen's forehead creased in confusion. ''Godfather?''
''Pardon?''
''You're quoting The Godfather.''
Cruise's smile widened before he jumped out of his chair and clapped loudly. The echo passed through the whole room, making everyone jump. ''Ladies, gentleman, those in between and beyond, we have found ourselves a genuine diamond in the rough. I didn't expect to come across someone else who knew the legends of old.''
''Legends?'' Helen questioned.
''Tales of great heroes that lived in the old world before the Dragons descended to turn this place into a shitshow. Wizards who could create swords from beams of light. People who could crawl up walls and call on thunder and lightning to smite their foes. I'd heard of recordings of their adventures. Fragmented and only in pieces, but just enough to know that heroes lived once before and shall live again. I even took the name of a great hero who was known for doing the impossible.''
After a few moments to comprehend what she was hearing, Helen gazed back at Cruise. ''You're talking about stories from movies.''
''Movies?'' Cruise looked around at the other Vipers, perplexed by the word. Everyone else looked just as puzzled as he did. ''Anyway, I'm getting off topic. See, I'm expecting you to stay and listen to me because without us, you can't find your way back home.''
Isabel folded her arms. ''We can just go back the way we came. We know the way.''
''Not after that sandstorm comes through.''
''What sandstorm?''
Cruise pointed to the ceiling ''The one passing over us right now. My scouts warned me about it beforehand, so I brought you down here for safety. If you decided to return to the surface yourself, you would have no hope of finding you way back and the face of the earth will have changed more than someone going through their teen years. My Crew know this area inside and out. We can get you back home if you help us with one little thing.''
''You tricked us.'' Isabel snapped.
''That's a funny way of saying I saved your life. Even with your freakish abilities, you would never have found your way through that safe. And your companions would have had their skin ripped right off their bones.''
Helen stepped in front of her daughter before the argument could continue. ''Just tell us what you're planning.''
As dramatically as possible, Cruise spun around and returned to his seat. ''We like to collect maps. It helps us keep one step ahead of the curve. Not long ago, we discovered a very interesting map, one that leads to a weapon crafted in the old world. A powerful weapon. One unlike anything you can imagine.''
''I thought you didn't want my daughter to fight anyone?''
''I didn't want her to fight Vipers or slave-traders.''
There was a moment of complete silence as Isabel and Helen thought about what Cruise was implying. They shared an apprehensive glance between themselves. It soon became apparent that Cruise's ambitions were much bigger than anticipated. If what he was telling them was true, then they had stumbled upon something that was potentially world-changing. And the man involved wanted Isabel to fight for him. The young woman didn't know what to feel.
Cruise laughed, breaking the silence. ''You know what? You must all be tired. We have free bunkers. Sleep on my offer. It's simple enough. We take you home, and you take me to the weapon I seek.''
They hated to admit it, but they were tired, and if the part about the sandstorm was true, they wouldn't be going anywhere. Isabel, Helen and Thane turned to leave, following a few members of Cruise's Crew to their bunkers. However, before they left, Helen stopped and turned to Cruise one last time.
''I hope I'm understanding this correctly,'' she said. ''You've really discovered a weapon with the capability of killing a Drake?''
''No,'' Cruise said, leaning forward on his chair with a wide grin plastered on his face. ''I've discovered a weapon with the capability of killing a Dragon!''
XXX
HELLO THERE MY SWEET SUPERSTARS! I AM REALLY SORRY FOR THE DELAY WITH THIS CHAPTER. I HAVE BEEN HAVING SOME WI-FI PROBLEMS THAT MADE IT IMPOSSIBLE TO POST ANYTHING. THANKFULLY, IT SEEMS THINGS ARE GOOD NOW AND I CAN POST THIS NEW CHAPTER. WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THIS ONE? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON CRUISE? DO YOU TRUST HIM? CAN THIS MYSTERIOUS WEAPON WORK, IF IT'S TRUE? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT? I LOVE HEARING YOUR OPINIONS AND COMMENTS. I CAN'T WAIT FOR YOU TO SEE WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN. I WILL GIVE YOU ALL A HEADS UP THAT THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL HAVE ANOTHER SMUTTY MOMENT BETWEEN ISABEL AND HELEN. I'M CURIOUS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE MORE HOT MOMENTS BETWEEN THEM? OR DO YOU PREFER IT BEING SPREAD OUT AND KEPT SPARINGLY?
THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE BEST READERS EVER. STAY SAFE AND TA-TA FOR NOW.
