Chapter 9: Poison
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…River's POV…
She doesn't wait for him…she doesn't need to. He knows what needs to be done. They walk along the embankment silently, only the crunch of their boots on the dried mud echo in their ears. It's only when she reaches the slope the war rig came up that she slows her steps as she descends and waits for him to crouch behind the overturned tree.
He doesn't say anything to her, but lightly brushes her arm as he crouches down. The Bullet Farmer's tank is no more than 20 meters in front of them. There is smoke and steam billowing from the front, and two of the war boys try and resuscitate the sputtering engine as the Bullet Farmer barks commands.
"Faster you imbeciles, faster!" The Bullet Farmer's voice echoes around in her brain-pan and she grits her teeth in disgust.
She feels the raggedy man lean towards her to whisper into her ear. "Got a plan?" He asks in a low voice that would have sent shivers down her spine in another setting. But she needs to focus.
She tilts her head to the side and briefly closes her eyes. Every outcome and scenario flashing before her eyes as she does the math. When she finally settles on the best one, the one with the least amount of blood loss, her eyes snap open and she takes the carpet bag off her shoulder and hands him the small pistol. He look at her skeptically as he takes both.
She quietly motions for the machete, which he hands over quickly. She begins to slid it down the back of her dress to hide it, and she feels comprehension slip into his thoughts. As she makes a move to raise up from behind their hiding spot he yanks her arm and her back down tot he ground.
His touch is electric and she bites the inside of her lip to keep the onslaught of thoughts from invading her brain. The look that he sends her tells her she is crazy… but it's nothing she doesn't already know. So the girl shakes her arm free and leans over to whisper to him.
"Wait for an opening." And she raises up and begins to creep around to the back of the tank.
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Max's POV
I'm fighting every instinct I have as I watch her creep towards them. Watching and waiting for one of them to see her, hear her, anything. But they don't. She makes it all the way around to get behind the tank and disappears from my view.
My adrenaline hits overdrive now, and I try and move to see where the ghost disappeared to. But my question is answered just moments later as I see her standing on the back of the tank, behind the war boy trying to tend to and calm the old man barking orders.
And I watch as she pulls the machete from behind her and slices the neck of the war boy. As his blood curdled cries hit the ears of the others I take my opening and stand to fire at the two who were trying to fix the engine. I hit the first one in the side of the neck, but miss the other.
By this time, the old man is firing blindly around him, and I duck back down behind the tree. There is a hail of bullets all around me and once again my adrenaline spikes. I don't know where the ghost is, and I can't fire blindly without worrying about hitting her.
And as if she read my thoughts I hear a whistle to the left of the tank. The bullets stop almost instantly and begin to rain down around what I can assume is her location. I chance a glance up and I still don't see her.
But then a small amount of movement catches my eye and I see her, see the ghost lying on the ground underneath the tank. I watch as the war boy I missed circles around to the other side, thinking he's going to find someone there, only to have what I assume as both of his achilles tendons sliced clean as he falls to the ground with a cry of anguish.
The old man begins to fire in the direction of the screams now, and they make quick work of the war boy writhing in pain. He empties the remain bullets from his guns in the process, and I hear loud cursing as he fumbles to try and find his extra clips.
It's time to end this I think as I stand and walk towards the tank.
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River's POV
Her hands twitch on the handle of the machete. Being this close to the feckless old man makes her skin crawl. He's one head of a three headed hydra, viciously snapping it's teeth and tearing into any flesh within reach.
She's already drenched in mud and blood from the first two war boys she sliced open, and normally she would hate to see the physical manifestation of her mental reality, but for once… she's going to make an exception.
She creeps up the back of the tank again, silently edging her way behind the spitting mad man in front of her. It's only when he feels the cool, wet blade against his neck does his angry ranting stop.
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Max's POV
I can't hear what she's telling the old man as I draw closer, she's bending in close to his ear to whisper. She doesn't give him a chance to answer her or respond, because the next thing I do hear is the gurgle of blood from his throat as she slices it all the way down to his spinal cord. I watch as she holds the body until the old man's twitching fingers stop trying to pry her arm from around his neck.
She lets the body slump forward in the seat, and bends down to pick up the two guns he had dropped. I don't wait for her to ask me to help, I don't need to. I know what we need to do. Ammo and guns.
We make short work of anything we can find, like vultures eating the flesh of the dead. Before she jumps down from the top of the tank she turns and disconnects the steering wheel. I give her a silent nod, and turn to start making our way back to the rig. But as I pass one of the dead war boys, I bend down and grab one of their boots… to give to the other war boy back at the rig.
We walk in silence next to each other for the first 50 yards or so, but then the ghost stops suddenly and turns back towards the tank. I watch as she extracts one of the salvaged grenades from the bag I'm carrying, and tosses it back towards the tank.
But before I hear it clatter on to the metal surface, she pulls the small pistol she's carrying and shoots it…producing a fiery explosion that quickly engulfs the tank and sends a wave of heat over my skin.
"Let's go." Is all she says as she turns back towards the way we came.
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They heard the explosion back at the rig. Saw the fiery billows of smoke and debris light up the sky. The wives had feared the worst, and even Furiosa had paused and held her breath. But just as they are getting ready to pile back into the rig once it has cooled, Capable spots two figures walking up behind the rig.
"Look!" She says as she points and the others turn to look.
Walking up side by side are River and Max. Each loaded up with as many guns and ammo belts as they could carry. The only difference between the two is that she's splattered with mud and blood from the tip of her nose to her toes.
River hands the steering wheel she's holding to Furiosa before moving over to the water hose of the rig.
"Are you hurt?" Cheedo asks as they all watch in mild confusion.
"Huh?" The girl asks as she takes a sip of water from the hose.
Capable draws closer to River, trying to see where the injuries were. "You're bleeding."
"That's not her blood." Max says as he hands the boot to Nux. Capable turns to question him, but he just proceeds to walk past them all and climb up into the rig. When she turns around, River has drenched herself in the water, and standing in a pool of blood and muddy water.
"Two heads left." Is all she says as she walks towards the front of the rig to climb in.
The wives, Furiosa, and Nux share a few confused glances amongst them before they also retreat back into the rig to get on their way.
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Max's POV
Normally, the voices… the ghosts… would startle me from my sleep and I would jolt awake. Except tonight they don't come. No, instead what I feel when I wakes up is the weight of something to my left. Something warm and almost soft.
I opens my eyes to see the ghost leaning into my side, her arms pulled up close to her chest, and her lips mumbling something in her sleep. I doesn't know how it happened, but I've got an arm draped over her shoulders, and I slowly lift it trying not to move her, unsure of what to do.
"Shh..It's okay. Try not to move her." A voice grabs my attention. It's the one armed woman, who's on the other side of the girl driving the rig.
"Sleep. Get some rest." She says as she continues to stare out into the horizon which shows the rising sun.
I settle my arm back down and try not to move, but I know sleep won't come again for me.
"How do you know this place even exists?" I ask in a whisper over the ghost's head.
The woman doesn't look at me when she answers solemnly. "I was born there."
It's an answer I wasn't expecting to hear. "So why'd you leave?" I ask with mild confusion, but the look on her face tells me the answer before she can verbally respond.
"I didn't."
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River's POV
She's neither awake or asleep, she's stuck in between. Like a leaf on the wind, floating where the next gust takes her. She hears voices… bits and pieces of the others… and the ghosts.
"I was taken as a child…Stolen."
"Our bones are poison."
"Help us…"
"Half-life."
She wants to shake herself awake. Wants to claw at her ears and make the voice stop. It's too crowded. Too many secrets. Too many things left unsaid.
"Now that I drive a War Rig...this is the best shot I'll ever have."
"Dust to dust."
"And them?"
They were getting close though. She could feel it. Soon there would be a few less secrets. But not any less guilt.
"No turning back."
"They're looking for hope."
"No water."
"What about her?"
She knows the raggedy man means her. It's the thought that has burned through her brain from all of them. "Who is she. How would she know this… or that." Why is a raven like a writing desk?
"Absolution." She says quietly as she opens her eyes and sits up, no longer intruding into his space, although she misses the warmth of him.
The air is heavy with their unasked questions, "What could she mean… What would she have to seek forgiveness for?" But she can't tell them all her sins. They wouldn't believe her. But soon enough they would understand how she had failed them.
"We're here." She says as she spies the tower in the distance and motions up ahead.
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"I remember something like that." Furiosa says as she brings the rig up towards the tower. A voice can be heard calling out from the top.
"Help me…Help me!"
The rig comes to a halt and Max takes the binoculars and stares at the tower. A lone female sits at the top, appearing to be chained…like bait.
"Uh, uh. That's bait." He says as he hands the binoculars to Capable behind him.
"Stay in the Rig." Furiosa tells the others as she opens the door and climbs down.
The female on the tower calls out to Furiosa. "Hurry! Please, hurry! They'll be back!"
Furiosa walks out and raises her arms into the air. "I am one of...the Vuvalini!" She calls out into the hills as loud as she can. "Of the Many Mothers! My Initiate Mother was K.T. Concannon! I am the daughter of Mary Jabassa. My clan was Swaddle Dog!"
The woman on the tower stands abruptly, and gives a shrill cry out into the desert. The cry is returned with several of the same, right before half a dozen figures begin to pop up from the sand… from their hiding spots.
Furiosa, the wives, Max, Nux, and River watch as the figures descend down the sandy hills around them on motorbikes.
The woman on the tower quickly throws on some type of covering before tossing down a rope so she can descend. She quickly runs towards Furiosa, and pulls her into a tight embrace.
"It's me." Furiosa says as the the woman pulls back momentarily, before pulling her into another hug.
The other group of figures park their bikes and approach cautiously. "There's something in the eyes." One of the old women says as she stares at Furiosa.
"Perhaps it is Jabassa's child." Another one questions.
The woman from the tower shakes her head furiously in the affirmative. "This is our Furiosa."
"How long has it been?" A woman with a rifle on her back asks.
"Seven thousand days. Plus the ones I don't remember." Furiosa replies quietly.
"Furiosa. What happened to your mother?"
"She died. On the third day."
The women all make motions with their hands, all grabbing at bits of the air and placing them over their heart. A sign of sorrow and mourning. Furiosa does the same.
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River's POV
She watches as the wives begin to edge out of the rig, Nux follows closely behind Capable. They are all eager, eager for information, for a home… a place to belong. A place without fear.
"Poisoned." The word escapes in a whisper before she can bite her tongue. She's barely holding it together, her fingers twitch and her body shivers as she tries the best she can to keep the voice at bay. Keep the secrets locked away.
She feels the raggedy man's eyes on her and again she can barely contain the words in her head. "It's too crowded." She says as she scrambles out of the rig.
She doesn't hear what the woman asked Furiosa, but she sees her wave the wives over… Feels the raggedy man's hand on hers, and his ghosts begin to invade her mind. Her head swims with all the voices.
"Help us Max."
"Why did you leave us Max?"
"The men. Who are they?"
"It's too crowded." She says as she shuts her eyes and tries to cover her ears. She can't tell which voices are real and which are in her brain now.
"They're reliable. They helped us get here."
"Where did you find such creatures? So soft."
"I can't wait for them to see it."
"See?"
"Help us Max."
"We're poisoned."
"Half-life."
"See what?"
"Home."
"Water wars… guzzoline."
"The Green Place."
"But if you came from the West...you passed it."
A scream rips through her lips as the voice continue their assault. Her head is spinning and she can't concentrate. Can't keep them out. "Make them stop, they're everywhere… they're all inside me, I can hear them all! The soil…We had to get out…We're half-life. No water. The water was filth."
It's dizzy. Like spinning round in circles and even after you stop the world keeps spinning before your eyes. She can't tell what's real and what's in her head. She feels the sand underneath her body, but still the words spill out. "It was poisoned. It was sour."
Feels a weight on top of her. Feels the back of a hand slap her face. "And then the crows came. Couldn't grow anything. There's nothing left." Her eyes snap open when the cool metallic touch and a hand circles around her neck and she feels the air sucked from her lungs.
"Furiosa!" Someone is yelling somewhere. hands are grabbing at the woman with fury in her eyes and hauling her off of the girl. And the air returns to her lungs and she begins to cough.
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Max's POV
It takes me, the war boy, and two of the other women from the desert to pull the one armed woman off the ghost. And when we do she collapses in a heap not far from the girl and lets out an agonizing scream. It's as if every last sliver of her hope dies with that scream.
No one knows what to do. There's nothing we can do in this moment. There is no Green Place, no where left to go.
"She's sorry… I'm sorry." The ghost says between coughs and tears. The red headed wife leans down next to her and pulls her into a tight embrace. "She couldn't tell. Couldn't kill her hope."
"Shh. It's not your fault." The red head whispers to the ghost.
I watch as two of the older women scoop up the warrior woman and begin to bring her towards one of the motorbikes with a side car. "She needs to rest." One of the others say as they walk past. "Our camp isn't far, you can follow in the rig and stay the night there."
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AN: I know it has been forever since I updated. And I am really sorry about that. Hopefully this chapter made it up to you guys. Till the next time ;)