Freedom

Chapter 21

At first I thought he was a boulder; it wasn't until he moved that I realized otherwise. Velvet didn't show any surprise, and neither did the Biker. Purple and her sister, in shock or not, were visibly intimidated. Even Sagaris swallowed.

The Merc had been sitting with his back to us, watching the sunset. As we approached, he got up. And kept going up. I had to really look up to see this guy. Even without heavy boots, he had to be pushing seven feet. I didn't even want to guess his weight, but it was all muscle. He had on muddy camouflage, probably over some kind of armor. A matte-black AWM sniper rifle was slung over his shoulder, and an H&K UMP45 hung on a harness similar to the one I used with my carbine. I guess that was his idea of a sidearm. This guy could have carried a lot more without a problem, I was sure.

He was square-jawed, and his blue eyes looked out with a vaguely hostile flatness that I doubted anyone could meet for long. A change came over his face when he saw Velvet. I don't know what it changed from or to, only that it did change. If anything, now he looked even more dangerous.

We'd been crossing the rocks all day, and compared to the excitement earlier, it had been pretty sedate. Suddenly it wasn't. This guy scared me at least as much as the dead Blood Demon. Possibly more. But he had to be the guy we were here to meet, which at least suggested he wasn't the enemy.

He stared at Velvet. Velvet stared back. Everybody stared at him. The older sister had somehow gotten behind Purple, and was peering at the Merc over her shoulder.

"You look surprised."

"I am surprised." The Merc's English was good, but his Russian accent was noticeable. I often found Sagaris' accent comical in contrast with the things he said – but I had a feeling I wouldn't be finding much of what this giant said humorous.

"It's really me."

"I can see that."

"I have work."

"Obviously."

"I know you don't pledge – but I need you for a couple of days at least."

"I'll pledge."

It was difficult to tell if Velvet or the Biker was more shocked by this statement. The whole exchange struck me as pretty bizarre, but that was because I had no context for any of it. Velvet opened her mouth as though to make inquiries – but she evidently decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth. She collected herself quickly, shrugging. "Okay – uh, obviously I'm glad to hear that." Eyes still locked on the giant – and with an expression I didn't know what to make of – she spoke to the Biker without turning to him. "Run the plan by him," she said.

"Right." Biker took out his PDA, and Velvet turned and started away, looking truly thrown. I wanted to laugh – I'd never seen her like this before.

"Why would he pledge?" she wondered aloud, though quietly enough that only I could hear. She paused beside me.

"Why wouldn't he?" I glanced over at the Merc and the Biker.

"Because he doesn't. You think something happened? Maybe he has an axe to grind with Duty," she mused.

"Velvet," the Biker said, and she hurried over. I watched the three of them convening over the PDA. Well – I couldn't complain. Having this big scary Merc with us couldn't worsen our situation, could it? I figured he had to be worth at least ten normal stalkers. With that in mind, Freedom's ranks were growing pretty fast. Sagaris and the Merc on the team, the Biker and myself on the payroll – Velvet was building quite a little force.

Moving around with seven people – that had to be pretty safe, right? Even the bravest blood drinker won't jump such a large group. Things were looking up. Sagaris, me, and the rest of the B-list waited while the cool kids figured out what to do, and then we were on the move. We had come here to meet the Merc – I knew that now. Velvet must have called him out, and doubting, but hopeful that it was really her, the Merc had showed up.

I had only a vague idea of where we were going, but now we were heading east instead of south. That meant we were heading into the Zone itself, rather than just passing through the outskirts. So far I'd been spoiled by the frontier – most of my time had been spent where things were mild and friendly. Not anymore. But for the moment we were still on the bluffs, and there was nothing to fear up here. The only thing that bothered me was that we were running out of daylight.

Getting down from the bluffs was surprisingly humane; the eastern face was much friendlier, and it was less a climb than a hike. I was curious about why the Merc had chosen the bluffs as a place to meet, but I wasn't going to ask.

Soon we were back on the ground, and things were noticeably different. The Zone was like a miasma, and being on the bluffs kept us above it – but now we were in the thick of it.

Velvet turned to me, her hand on her earpiece. "Take care of the channel. I want to listen to music." Without waiting for a reply, she took off her earpiece and pulled on a pair of headphones. Well, I didn't really mind. I tuned my PDA and switched on my own earpiece. There wasn't much of a signal until we got farther from the bluffs – but once we were in the tall grass, the broadcast was crystal clear. I listened to the stalkers on the air gossiping with interest. The major topic of discussion was the crudely-carved statuettes that people were finding all over the Zone. Apparently someone had left one in the Bar at Rostov, and that was causing some anxiety.

Northeast the lightning had started up again. Periodic flashes lit the horizon white and pink. I wanted to see it up close. If a storm could be this spectacular from this far away, what would it look like if I was actually there? No – that wasn't it, though. The draw I felt wasn't just the curiosity of an idle tourist. I glanced at the people around me. I wondered if anyone else could feel the pull. It had been weak on the frontier, but now it was getting stronger with every step.

I looked at Velvet, who was walking out front, framed against the storm. This was all business as usual to her.

It was a peculiar sensation to walk with a storm ahead and the sunset behind, all in perfect silence. For just a moment, I had a vision of a thousand stalkers walking with us, a ghostly army marching through the grass as lightning streaked the sky ahead. Then it was gone. I shook my head to clear it. Sagaris' hand was on my shoulder. I brushed him off. My right hand was tingling where I'd grasped the anomalous vine earlier.

"I'm fine." I turned up the audio and listened to the stalkers. A pair of lookouts somewhere were arguing about something they might or might not have seen in the channel. Someone else was putting out a regular broadcast, trying to reach someone in Pripyat. No one ever replied. A trader in the rookie village down south was offering a job to anyone who happened to be in the area, and a handful of mercs had an automated message advertising their services. Maybe that was why the Merc had joined Velvet so readily. There was next to no work for men who didn't want to go to Duty these days. Maybe he was on hard times.

I looked back at the giant. It didn't look like he was. He looked well-fed, and exceptionally well-equipped. No, something told me this man did not lack for money. I followed his gaze, which was fixed squarely on Velvet's back. I didn't have the whole picture here. You'd think I'd be used to that by now, but I just felt left out.

No one on the channel was saying anything. I could hear the Merc and the Biker talking.

"Where is Stranger?" the giant asked.

The Biker stopped walking. Velvet took off her headphones, looking at them questioningly. "She's dead," he said finally.

The giant absorbed that. "She?"

The Biker looked away, shrugging. Velvet's expression was grim. Reading between the lines, I guess they'd lost a friend or ally. I was a little surprised to hear about yet another woman in the Zone, but hey – it had to happen from time to time.

Sagaris, the sisters, and I watched the three of them. No one said anything. Welcome to the Zone. Ask about a friend, get a reminder of loss and mortality. The place where somber moments spark like powder and fade like smoke. I didn't want to be the one to break the silence, but I didn't have a choice.

I switched off my earpiece and caught Velvet's eye. "Blowout."