Another day has passed and already things were already starting to get better at Prosperity. Even though only one day has passed since the Captain rescued Thomas Rush, Rush has already improved many of the facilities at the community. With the resources Marcus and the Teens stole from the Train yard some time ago upgrading the facilities didn't take much. Morale at Prosperity was reaching a higher level than before.
The newly liberated Rush sat with Marcus and Carmina at the dinner table of the house, they were getting him up to speed on everything that's been happening in the valley, Marcus discussed with Rush the allies that they've made in the past month, the outposts they've liberated, and the prisoners they've rescued. When Marcus was done filling Rush in on the important details, Carmina discussed with Rush about Hunter's disappearance and her attempts to find him.
"Seems like you've all been busy." Rush guessed.
Marcus nodded. "We have, the Highwaymen have been on the defensive for awhile, but now that you're free, Mickey and Lou will likely retaliate."
"That's why we need to fortify this place as fast as we can." Rush stated, then turned to look at Carmina.
"I'm sorry to hear about your friend going missing Carmina, but I promise we'll find him." Rush reassured the young Rye.
"Yeah, now that Rush is out of their hands, we can continue in our search for him, we'll continue our search in the morning. Right now, we all must focus on improving our defenses here." Marcus informed her.
"Alright," Carmina nodded, she got up and walked off.
Marcus then turned back to Rush in his chair. "As I said before, The Twins aren't gonna be happy with you escaping the mine."
"I know, we need to continue improving the facilities here, It probably won't be long before Mickey and Lou come here to kill us all for their operations being repeatedly disrupted." Rush stated. "Those two are on a short fuse now."
Rush attempted to get up from his chair but he let out a groan of pain, making him sit back down. Marcus got up from his seat and ran over to Rush.
"You should be taking it easy, Rush, the Highwaymen have really done a number on you. So you can't keep pushing yourself. " Marcus suggested.
Rush just waved the Captain off in response. "I said I would be fine in a day or two, don't worry about me cap worry about yourself."
"Just... take it easy OK, Rush." Marcus requested.
A few miles north, the Judge walked through the forest, it was somewhere around 11:00 AM. The Judge had his bow out and an arrow was readied in case any animal wanted to make them their next meal, Hunter followed right behind him with his only remaining weapon, his revolver in his hand. Hunter spent about a day resting up inside the Bunker and when he recovered enough to walk without collapsing every few minutes, the Judge believed he was able enough for the Journey, so they left the Bunker so he could lead Hunter back to his Community.
The Judge was helping Hunter get home, despite much of Hunter's strength having returned he still won't be able to handle himself against any wildlife or any Highwaymen he may encounter, so he'll need someone to watch his back. They were staying off the roads in order to avoid any Highwaymen, making it easier to travel, but running into wildlife was still a possibility so they needed to be alert.
Neither of them have said anything since they left the Bunker, the main reasons were the Judge didn't talk much and they were trying to keep quiet to avoid any wildlife. After another moment of silence, Hunter spoke. "So, how far are we from Prosperity?"
The Judge just shrugged, not facing him, and still walking.
"But, you know where we are going right?" Hunter asked for confirmation.
The Judge let out a grunt, and nodded, still not turning to look at Hunter.
"OK... hey if I may ask... Why-why did you save me?" Hunter asked, curiously.
Hunter's question made the Judge stop immediately, he stood still for a second then he turned to face Hunter and slightly tilted his head at him.
"I know it's a weird question to ask you, but the New Edeners haven't really been sticking their necks out for the people suffering under the Highwaymen, and when you saved me it was honestly a surprise. So...why did you save me?"
The Judge wasn't sure how to answer a question like that, he honestly didn't know why he saved the kid. Ethan told him not to get involved with the Sinners unless it was absolutely necessary, but when he saw Hunter getting attacked by that bear something inside him broke through telling him to help him, someone he tried so hard to bury deep inside him broke free and pushed him to save him. That part of him rarely ever broke through and when it did it was only for a moment or so, but with this kid it's breaking free a lot. The Judge looked at Hunter for a second then gave a low grunt, turned around and continued walking.
"Geez." Hunter sighed in annoyance and continued following the Judge.
After about 10 minutes of walking the Judge raised an arm at Hunter telling him to stop, Hunter obeyed and sat down on the root of a tree. The Judge turned around and began scouting the area leaving Hunter alone, he looked for any signs of danger, he's been attacked by many things out here: Predators, Locust, and a mysterious woman. In this forest he always had to be cautious for danger, when he concluded that the area was safe he turned around to look at Hunter, he was sitting on a large root taking a few deep breaths. The Judge walked over to him and when he was about a foot away from him, he looked at him, tilting his head slightly with concern in his eyes.
Hunter quickly raised up his hand at the Judge to stop him from getting any closer to him. "Hey...don't-don't...worry...man...I'm...fine...just...out of breath." Hunter said between breaths. They only left the Bunker only 12 minutes ago and already Hunter was getting tired from walking.
"I guess blood-loss can really take a lot out of you." Hunter guessed taking a few more breaths.
The Judge looked at Hunter, then gave a low grunt, and gestured going back to the Bunker, Hunter shook his head in refusal. "No, I just need a second, and I'll be good." Hunter said, then gave out a grunt of pain, he brought a hand up to his chest. "God, I wish I had some painkillers right now." Hunter groaned as the wound on his chest began pulsing again.
The Judge got up and walked off from Hunter, but not far from him, he readied his bow again in case there were any surprise attacks from any animals or locust.
Hunter's wound was throbbing, it was hurting like hell. After a moment the pain stopped, Hunter got up and walked over to the Judge. "Alright, let's get going."
They carried on their way, as they were walking Hunter noticed something about the Judge, he was the only New Edener that he's seen that has ever worn a mask and the only one that he's ever seen that completely covered himself. "Hey can I ask you a question?"
The Judge let out a grunt, and nodded, still walking.
"Why do you wear that mask?" Hunter asked curiously.
The Judge immediately stopped and paused, he slowly raised his covered arm and lightly touched the wood of his mask. It wasn't really a mask to the Judge, it was more like a new face that he wore so he could block out the pain and guilt he used to feel every day, long ago, he rarely ever took the mask off, but when he did it was only for a minute or a few seconds, he hasn't even seen his real face in years. The Judge looked at the boy, he let out a sigh and continued on.
Hunter raised his arms up and shot them back down. "Damn, you could've just said it was a personal reason or something." The Judge ignored him and just kept walking, he just let out a sigh and continued following the Judge.
As they continued on, Hunter felt some weird connection to this man, he's only seen this person a few times in his life, and he didn't understand this weird connection that he had to him, but maybe it is all just his imagination.
Hunter and the Judge walked through the forest for about an hour, in their journey they didn't come across many dangers, only a few wild wolverines that were easy to kill, but not much else, they've successfully managed to avoid Highwaymen Patrols. Most of the Journey was filled with silence, Hunter tried to fill the silence for the remainder with small talk, but the Judge wasn't letting out a single word. Hunter still had some trouble walking given his current condition, but he still managed, even when he was weak he still had much strength.
The two finally made it out of the forest, after about an hour of walking they finally made it. The Judge looked around and saw that Prosperity was in sight, it was about one or maybe two miles away, he turned to Hunter who just made it out, and pointed forward. Hunter looked to where the Judge was pointing and saw his home in sight.
"Oh thank god." Hunter sighed in relief, after so much walking he was almost home, and in good timing his legs were killing him.
The Judge turned to face Hunter and raised his arm back to Prosperity, he stood silent for a second before he spoke quietly. "Our...journey...ends...we...part...ways...here."
"Are you sure?" Hunter questioned.
The Judge nodded and walked closer to Hunter. "New...Eden...needs...Judge...friends...need...you."
"Will...we ever see each other again, cuz you're alright in my book, and I hope to see you soon." Hunter asked.
"If...god...decides." The Judge answers him.
Hunter smiled and hugged the Judge, wrapping his arms around him. "Thank you man, I'll never forget what you've done for me."
The Judge was stunned to receive a hug, it was something he hasn't received in a very very long time, such a thing felt weird to him. He didn't even fight it; he just slowly wrapped his arms around the 16 year old boy. The two hugged for a moment before Hunter broke the hug. "See ya around, man." Hunter slid down the hill and began running back to his home in prosperity, it was like he had a short burst of adrenaline.
When Hunter was out of his sight the Judge went in another direction to head back to New Eden, Ethan won't be pleased he was gone for so long, who knows what he'll do to him for this. But, it felt good to heal and guide a wayward soul back to his home, that was something he hasn't done in a very long time.
It was currently the afternoon and everyone was still working hard to upgrade their community, Rush was really making everybody work hard despite himself being injured, but it will all pay off in the end. The walls were becoming more reinforced, the facilities were growing larger, and things were becoming a bit more organized. But there is still much more work to be done, it will be days before all of the upgrades are complete and there is still a long road ahead.
Carmina was sitting down on the grass with her Mom and Dad in the courtyard. The Rye family was taking a break from all the hard work and talking amongst themselves. It always felt good to take a break and talk every once in a while.
"Things are really getting better here in such a short time." Nick commented looking around.
"Yeah, with Rush here we can finally start to take a real stand against Mickey and Lou." Kim said.
"We may actually be able to take a real stand now." Carmina stated. "But, a part of me still doesn't want to do this without Hunter."
Nick and Kim looked at their Daughter and both of them frowned, Carmina was always strong, stubborn, and brave. Looking at her now she was just quiet and sad, it's been like this ever since Hunter has disappeared and with that they've found it was likely to assume that he was dead, but Carmina refused to believe that he was.
"We know kiddo, you and Hunter are a really good team." Nick said.
"And he means a lot to us too, Carmina, we all want him back here, and none of us are gonna stop until we find him, but we need to have faith that he's alive out there somewhere and doing his best to make his way home." Kim added.
Carmina smiled a little."Thanks, I appreciate that a lot mom and dad...
"HOLY SHIT!" A guard shouted on the walls of the Gates interrupting Carmina, they all turned to look at the guard and he barked something else. "OPEN THE GATE!"
They all got up and ran up to the gates, followed by Marcus, Jerome, Nana, Timber and a few other people of Prosperity. The Gates opened and one person stood on the other side, with a hand on his chest. Everybody had a surprised look on his face at who was coming through the front gates, it was Hunter. Carmina's eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Hunter wearing a shirt and hoodie both completely covered in what she could assume was his own dried up blood, he'd been gone for days and he was back home with her, tears of relief began pouring down her eyes, without another second she ran up to her boyfriend and threw her arm around him, locking him in a tight hug. "Hunter, oh my god, it's you, I'm so glad to see you alive." Carmina said as she buried her head in his chest, sobbing.
Marcus walked in front of the group facing Hunter. "Hunter, oh my god you are a sight for sore eyes."
"Sorry, Cap I would've called, but I lost my radio." Hunter said then chuckled, Carmina however wasn't humored at all, she broke the hug and punched him in his chest. "Ow, fuck not the chest please." Hunter groaned then brought his hands up his chest and clasped the spot where she punched him.
Jerome followed behind her, he ran up to Hunter, quickly placing his hands on his shoulders with a relieved/worried look. "Hunter are you OK?"
"No, I'm in a lot of pain right now, could really use some painkillers, and I feel like I need to sit down." Hunter said simply, he collapsed on his knees in exhaustion feeling his adrenaline burst wearing off.
"Come on kiddo, we need to get you to the infirmary." Nana stated.
Marcus agreed. "Yeah, I agree. Jerome, Carmina each of you grab an arm and help him to the Infirmary, have Selene take a look at him."
Jerome and Carmina each grabbed one of Hunter's arms, helped him up and took him to get checked out. "Don't worry Hunter, you'll be fine." Carmina reassured her boyfriend. "Thanks." Hunter replied.
Everyone else followed right behind them, mainly Hunter's friends.
The Judge arrived at the New Eden Compound, he knocked at the door, a second later the hatch opened the New Edener looked at the Judge then closed the hatch and opened the Gate.
"Judge,it's good to see you, you've been gone for days. You should go see Ethan, you haven't been seen in days and he's pissed with you right now." The Edener informed him.
He nodded and made his way inside the compound,when he made it halfway to Ethan's tent in the Compound he was stopped by a familiar voice. "Judge, oh my god." He turned around and saw the young female chosen that was incapacitated the last time he was her making her way over to him. "You've been gone for days, people here were starting to get worried. Some were even beginning to wonder if you were dead, but I had faith that you were OK, and here you are."
The Judge looked at the girl and nodded, she gave the Judge a quick hug and then frowned. "Ethan however isn't happy that you've been gone for this long, he is very mad right now, he said that if any of us were to see you to tell you to go see him straight away, but you already know that do you?"
The Judge nodded then walked off, he entered the main tent, Ethan stood in the middle looking at the picture of Joseph Seed. Ethan turned around and saw the Judge standing right in front of him, anger quickly took over his face.
"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?!" Ethan shouted at the Judge. "You haven't been here in days, where the hell were you?!"
The Judge remained silent, looking at Ethan as still as a statue. "You have nothing to say to me? You disappear for days without telling me where and now you stand before me like nothing has happened." Ethan spat angrily, he quickly turned around, went over to a shelf and grabbed Jacob's music box then went back to the Judge.
The Judge took a few steps back and slowly raised his hands in fear at the sight of the box.
"This cannot go unpunished Judge, you left me alone for days and you're not even telling me what happened, you must pay for your actions." Ethan opened the box playing the song 'ONLY YOU' causing the Judge's body to do haywire, he tried to block out the music, but it was useless.
Ethan closed the box after a moment, the Judges felt the effects of that music fading away, he took a few heavy breaths of relief. Every time he heard that fuckin' song it felt like torture, and every time he heard it, it felt like it destroyed a part of his soul, the music was slowly turning him into a monster with every second he listened to it.
The Judge got up and looked at Ethan with an angry face, letting out a growl.
"You have one last chance Judge. If you ever disobey me again, then I'll use your conditioning and have you kill your old friends and after that you'll lose so much more." Ethan threatened.
The Judge let out a sigh and nodded.
"Good... I'm calling off any recon on the sinners, you are to stay here in the Compound until I say otherwise. Now get out!" Ethan spat.
The Judge complied and left the tent, Ethan was really growing desperate for power over New Eden, one way he could take control is with the Judge he's the most skilled fighter of New Eden and the most devoted to Joseph Seed, and if he continued to disobey Ethan he'll use him to just establish his power base. If he didn't help the boy he wouldn't be on his second strike with Ethan. However there wasn't a single part of him that regretted saving that boy at all, despite the pain Ethan just delivered to him, it was good to help guide a wounded child home to his family.
Hunter was in the infirmary of Prosperity, being checked out by Selene. She was examining the wounds on his chest and looking at the stitch job on his biceps and chest. The Captain, and former resistance members were outside patiently waiting for Selene's diagnosis. Everyone was relieved that Hunter was back, it really took a load of a lot of people's minds, some more than others.
Hunter sat on one of the beds shirtless, with an IV tube hooked into his right arm pumping nutrients into his body, Selene gave him some pain-killers to numb the pain in his chest that only took a few minutes to come into effect.
"It's good to have you back, man, I was certain something awful happened to you." Selene said to Hunter.
"Well, something did." Hunter replied.
Selene did a few more examinations on Hunter then after a moment of silence, Hunter spoke up filling the silence.
"So, am I gonna be OK, Selene?" Hunter asked the doctor who was as high as a kite, as usual.
"Well man, I'm gonna be like- very serious with you." Selene then said. "To answer your question 'Yes' you're gonna be OK. But,you lost like... a-lot of your blood, so I don't think you'll be able to do anything dangerous for at least a few days or so. Also your cuts will need more time to heal, so I'm gonna guess at least five days or longer."
"I expected as much." Hunter sighed, it sucked that he was on the bench, but he could use a few days away from fighting. "Is there anything I can still do here?"
"Yeah, you can still do some work around here, there's like... a lot of work now." Selene explained.
Hunter glanced down at his stitches and sighed. "I can't believe I was almost killed by a bear."
"It's suck, I agree. But, look on the bright side bro, at least you'll have a few gnarly scars when those stitches heal up." Selene said in an attempt to raise Hunter's spirit.
"Heh, I guess." Hunter let out a single laugh, then looked down at the stitch job on his biceps and chest, the stitches were holding up nicely, the Judge certainly knew what he was doing, it would take time for the cuts to heal, meaning he needed to take it easy.
"So I heard you and Carmina have started dating." Selene said, smirking at the Teenager.
"What? Where the hell did you hear that?" Hunter asked incredulously, he and Carmina were keeping their relationship a secret, but Selene knew about their relationship. This felt embarrassing as shit, Hunter's cheeks began to blush.
"I heard about it from Nick and Kim, in fact, they knew about you two from the beginning." Selene told Hunter.
Hunter was surprised that Carmina's parents knew about their relationship all along. If they knew then why didn't they say anything? Hunter wondered.
After Selene was done examining Hunter, she replaced his bandages with fresh ones, then went out to the people gathered outside, telling them that he was going to be just fine but he needed to rest up for a few days. She allowed them to come inside and see him, Jerome, Nana, Carmina, Nick and Kim entered to see Hunter, the others went back to work.
Jerome entered and saw Hunter calmly sitting on the bed, he walked over to the stool beside the bed and took a seat by the young Rook, Carmina took a seat by the one on the other side of the bed. Everyone else gathered around them. "It's good to see that you're doing better, Hunter. We were all really worried about you." Jerome said, relieved.
"I know, I actually thought that bear was gonna do me in, but I got lucky." Hunter told them.
"I knew you were OK from the start kid, you're a very strong willed person." Nick stated. "Thank's Nick."
"What happened to you Hunter? Who saved you?" Carmina asked Hunter.
"Well-" Hunter wasn't sure if he should tell them about the New Edener, given their past with the peggies they probably won't believe him, so he just decided to stretch the truth a little. "- I don't know, I remember being carried through the woods bleeding badly, entering a bunker, but, the next thing I knew I woke up alone in a bed with my wounds cleaned, stitched, and bandaged." Hunter explained. "I tried to leave, but I was too weak so I decided to rest up till I was able enough to walk, and when I was strong enough, I left the Bunker and made my way back here."
Kim kneeled down to Hunter looking at him. "Hunter, did you see the person who saved you?"
Hunter shook his head at Kim. "No, everything after the Bear was a blur, I was barely conscious, so I didn't get a good look at the person, but one thing I know is that whoever saved me was a good person, and if I ever run into that same person again I hope to return the favor."
Hunter decided to change the subject. "So... you and Nick knew about our... relationship?"
"We knew about you two from the beginning." Nick explained.
"Then why didn't y'all say anything?" Carmina asked
"Because we didn't say any point in discussing it with either of you, besides, you both were still working as a team and working hard so we just decided to let it slide." Kim explained to them.
"Also you two are so happy together." Nick added, causing both Hunter and Carmina to chuckle. "And when you went missing she used every opportunity she got to try and find you." Nick finished.
Hunter turned his head to Carmina and smiled."Thanks, I appreciate that."
"You'd do the same thing if I was the one missing." Hunter nodded at Carmina's statement then turned his head back to Jerome.
"Hey what happened to my equipment by the way, Jerome?" Hunter asked, changing the subject and wanting to know if his weapons were OK. Those weapons meant a lot to him, his knife belonged to his mom and it was one of the only few things he had that belonged to his birth parents. And his Bow was a gift from Jerome, one that he cherished, he gave him that bow when he completed his bow training.
"Did you find them when I disappeared?" Hunter repeated.
Jerome sighed then said."Yeah we did Hunter, we recovered your knife when we were searching for you." Jerome reached into a sheath on his waist and pulled out Hunter's knife, and handed it to him. Hunter quickly took it from Jerome's hand and looked at it for a second. It was a little dented from the bear, but nothing that couldn't be fixed."Thank god, it's OK" Hunter said relieved then gave it back to Jerome.
"Hold on to it for me until I recover?" Hunter requested, Jerome nodded and took the knife back, placing it back in its sheath. "What about my bow?"
"We also found your bow, but I'm afraid it was destroyed by the bear." Jerome told him.
"Dammit! I'm sorry Jerome, I know that was a gift from you. One that I used almost every day." Hunter apologized.
"It's OK Hunter, you're more important to me than a bow." Jerome stated, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Hunter smiled then looked at the crowd, most of his friends were here, but the Captain was nowhere in sight. "Where's the captain, is he around here?"
"He's in the house talking with Thomas Rush, he was with us waiting for Selene to finish examining you so we could check in on you, but -." Kim said but Hunter interrupted her before she could finish. "Wait Rush?! Thomas Rush?!"
Carmina nodded, "Marcus managed to rescue Rush from the mine, now they're both working on upgrading our community."
"Geez, how much did I miss?" Hunter muttered.
"Not much, Hunter." Jerome said.
Hunter then let out a yawn, he was starting to feel a little tired. The stoned doctor then walked in front of the group.
"Yo dudes, y'all should probably leave now." Selene suggested. "Hunter here, needs to rest. Y'all can come back tomorrow morning."
Everyone agreed, they all got up and left the infirmary to allow Hunter to get some sleep. "Hey Selene, can I stay with Hunter."
"OK girlfriend, but just don't disturb him." Selene accepted then left the infirmary with everyone else. When they were all gone Hunter turned his head back to Carmina and smiled at her again."Thanks, I actually would've hated being here alone."
"You think after what happened I'm just gonna let you out of my sight?" Carmina said, then Hunter let out a few chuckles. "Heh heh. I guess not, but we already spend a lot of time together, so what the heck." He replied.
"I was really worried about you Hunter, I was actually beginning to think that you were actually dead."
"Believe me, I thought I actually was gonna be." Hunter said as he laid down on the bed. "But, I guess I got lucky.'
"Thank god you did, I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."
"I think you could move forward, you're a strong and stubborn girl, that's what I like about you." Hunter complimented, he raised his arm, placed his hand on Carmina's cheek and gently stroked her cheek.
Carmina laughed, she smiled at Hunter and placed her hand on the hand Hunter was stroking her cheek with. "Thanks, that's sweet."
"So are you." Hunter flirted, Carmina laughed and placed a kiss on his lips.
"Don't think you're flattery is gonna work on me all the time, I'm not letting you outside of Prosperity until you heal up." Carmina said sternly pointing a finger at him, he raised his hands up in fear, there were moments where Carmina was scary and this was one of them. "OK OK OK, I won't leave until I heal enough to." Hunter complied with Carmina.
"And if you ever scare me like that again, I will hurt you." Carmina warned her boyfriend. "Noted, well I should get some rest."
Carmina nodded, "Yeah, you really should."
Hunter laid down on the bed, getting comfy to drift off. "Hey Carmina."
"Yeah." She responded.
"Remember those months that we spent on our own, searching for Thomas Rush and his people?" Hunter asked with exhaustion in his voice.
"Of course I do."
"You know what I liked about those months?" Hunter asked as he was closing his eyes.
"No what?" Carmina asked curiously.
Hunter turned his head back to Carmina, slightly opening his eyes to look at her. "What I liked about those months is that it was just us, we were exploring the U.S., hunting and fighting together, it was just us against the world. I wish we could do that again."
"Those months were really special to me too." Carmina commented then said. "Maybe one day we could explore the world without having to worry about Hope County."
"I hope so, good night." Hunter closed his eyes back and continued to drift off into sleep. "Good night."
A minute later Hunter was fast asleep, Carmina kept a close eye on him watching as he slept. After a few more moments she fell asleep in her chair, Selene came in and saw the Rye kid sleeping on the stool, she went over to the sleeping Rye picked her up and carried her to the couch, she went over to the other bed, grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Carmina to keep her warm.
Tomorrow was gonna be a long day, there would be much work to do. Hunter won't be able to leave Prosperity, but there was still much he could do here. Rush was really gonna help make a difference in the next few days.
Hunter is finally back home where he belongs, and now everyone can now focus their attention on the Highwayman.
Stay tuned for the next chapter of the New Dawn.
Please, leave a review and if you have any ideas, tell me.