Chapter 14: Gecko Are Friends, Not Food

The air was still as radiation leaked through the town. I stood in the watchtower of the airport in Searchlight. That young recruit was so desperate to please Caesar. They just got dumber every year.

The town was shrouded with a green cloud of death. The ghouls scratched at their bleeding eyes. Men lay on the ground, skin giving away to isotopes and slowly melting off the bones. I sipped at my Nuka Cola at the sight of a successful mission.

The airport had been cluttered all to shit and was occupied by families of radroaches. They had bit at my ankles as I made my way to the tower. They had crunched as I brought my foot down on them. The sound was purely disgusting, yet satisfying.

I took a last look at the town in front of me and turned around. I made my way out of the airport with ease. I crawled over the rubble and out into the town outskirts. I could feel the radiation seeping into me. I felt prickles all throughout my body. I had to get out of here fast.

I ran to the road with what strength the radiation would leave me with. I felt myself slowing down as I got to the steep slope to Cottonwood Cove. I doubled over and expelled the contents of my stomach onto the ground. I could hear loud footsteps behind me.

A feral growled before throwing me to the ground. I pushed it away from my face as it snapped its teeth at my neck. My hands found its throat and lifted its body above me. Its thin fingers clawed at my arms. I grabbed my knife from under my tunic and thrust it into its forehead. I twisted the knife in its skull with a sickening crack.

Its eye socket was pushed forward and dark red blood oozed onto my neck and down my arm. It went limp in my hand and I tossed it to the side. I stood up slowly and stumbled down the road a little more.

As I was walking, Cottonwood Cove came into sight. And what appeared to be a sniper's nest.

Those ignoramuses. They let a sniper set up a fucking shot spot.

I crawled into the nest and disarmed the bear trap near the footlocker. I sat in front of the locker and pulled out a bobby pin. After several minutes of fussing with the lock, it opened to reveal a golden painted rifles. It was gorgeous. I wasn't much of a big guns person, but I could still admire the beauty of the weapon. I could always find a use for it.

I moved to the mattress for a rest. No one would be coming through Searchlight anytime soon and anyone coming from Cottonwood Cove should have the good sense to not disturb me. I laid down on the creaky mattress and closed my eyes.

I awoke several hours later to find a very young gecko at the foot of my mattress. I sat up quickly, but it stood its ground. It looked at me with its large, bulbous eyes and stuck its tongue out.

I moved my hand to my knife. Wild animals are very unpredictable. It seemed too young to do any harm though. It could fit in my hand. I pulled out a strip of dried gecko meat and quickly stuffed it back in my bag. Cannibalism was a disgusting crime against nature. I fished around to find something else and my hand wrapped around an apple.

The gecko had jumped up onto the mattress and crawled into my lap. It was harmless. I bit off a piece of the apple and pulled it out from between my teeth. The gecko had perked up and made a grunting noise. I held the apple piece up to its mouth and its jaws unhinged like a snake and devoured the apple in a matter of seconds.

"Hungry little shit, aren't you?"

The gecko crawled up my tunic and onto my shoulder to get to the apple. I bit off another piece and gave it to the gecko. It licked at my face and I couldn't help but smile. I lifted it off my shoulders and held it up in front of my face at a safe distance. It wrapped its little claws around my finger and wagged its tail like a dog.

I placed it down and stood up to get back to the Fort. I walked down the hill and almost tripped on the gecko.

"I don't think you can come with me, gecko."

It jumped up at my leg in response. I picked it up and placed it in my bag. I looked around to see to it that we were alone. It must have been orphaned. I continued down the road to the camp.

I saw Lucullus at the docks and headed towards him.

"Vale, Vulpes."

:Vale. Do you think you could do me a favor?"

"Depends."

I opened my bag to reveal the tiny gecko sitting patiently with another apple in its mouth. "I need you to hide it. I know Caesar would just have it killed if I brought it to the Fort. Do you know where I could keep it for now until the war is over and I can bring it with Sennia and I to Flagstaff?"

Lucullus regarded the gecko for a moment. "It is kind of cute. I guess I could make arrangements. I can keep it at my cabin."

"Thank you so much. I know Sennia would love to see it, but I fear Caesar would find out."

"Understandable. How is she anyway? I haven't seen her in awhile." He said as he stepped onto the raft.

"Well, she could be doing much better. I fear her cuts are going to leave scars that will prevent her from doing things she could do before the flogging. And I believe she is sick. She was throwing up before I left." I stood onto the raft and took a seat with the gecko.

"I heard about that. How are you doing after all that?"

"I don't want to think about it. I need to find out what is wrong with her though. She worries me."

"Well, what all is going on?"

"Before she had stomach troubles, she was very irritable. I am to blame though, I said something incredibly stupid and she started crying and kicked me out again."

"Anything else?"

I paused to think of anything I could remember that was out of the ordinary. "She's been acting weird lately. Asking strange questions."

"Like?"

"She keeps asking if I sill love her or if I'm getting bored. She also asked what would happen if she were pregnant." I pulled out a bottle of water and took a sip.

"What did you tell her?" Lucullus had started to get a suspicious look.

"I told her I would kill myself before I stopped loving her and I didn't know what would happen if she were pregnant. I told her if she was free, they wouldn't dare take it."

"She's pregnant."

I spit out my water. "No fucking way. She can't be."

"I also heard you guys have been getting pretty physical lately. It is completely possible."

"Who the fuck told you?"

"Legion is a pool of gossip. The signs are all there. I'm telling, she's pregnant."

I was silent on the water. Pregnant? I can't be a father yet. They'll take away the child. God forbid I have a daughter.

"Are you okay?" Lucullus eyed me from the opposite side of the raft with caution.

"I'm just trying to think of something else. I'll have to talk to her when I get back." The gecko licked at my fingers in my lap. I rubbed its head and it hissed. I retracted my hand quickly.

"Looks like you got feisty girl and gecko."

The raft hit the shore several long hours later and I was off and on the way to the tent in a flash.

The walk to the tent seemed like an eternity. I needed to find out as soon as possible if she was really pregnant like Lucullus had said.

The gecko was on the raft with Lucullus on their way back to Cottonwood Cove by the time I reached the tent. I flung the tent flap open to see Sennia on the cot with the bucket by her.

She turned to look at me over her shoulder. "Vulpes, we need to talk."