Neo's veins filled with excitement as the desert rushed past. Her deep-blue eyes could see their prize gleaming in the sun and waving in the wind. It was practically calling out to her to take it.
"This isn't a good idea," a voice hollered behind her.
Neo ignored him. Tiyes didn't see the prize, he saw the six flagstaffs with a black spiked hexagon surrounding it, marking the site as already claimed by the Black Steel Corporation. To Neo, that only made taking it more worthwhile.
The motor sled beneath her buzzed like a giant insect as she worked her way along the dunes. This far east they were fairly short but one still had to be careful. The dunes hid more than treasure.
Neo pulled up next to the pile of scrap and turned off the engine. With the engine no longer buzzing, all she could hear was the wind and the sand sweeping across the barren landscape of the Splatlands.
Neo pried her companion's hands off her waist and disembarked, taking a moment to stretch and adjust the goggles over her eyes before grabbing a shovel from the trailer.
"Quit sittin' there and give me a hand," she said.
Before Tiyes even moved, a small grey shape popped out of her backpack on the motor sled's pannier. It landed with a tiny cloud of dust and surveyed its surroundings with bulging yellow eyes before scurrying to the scrap pile.
Neo couldn't help but giggle, watching her little salmonid companion's excitement at another new find. Lil' Buddy didn't care about corporate logos any more than she did.
Tiyes finally lifted himself off the vehicle but instead of grabbing a shovel he went to the nearest flagstaff, pulling it out of the sand and tossing it onto the ground.
Frowning, Neo put a hand on her hip. "What are you doing?"
He looked back at her, the sun reflecting off his spectacles so that she couldn't quite see the look in his brown eyes.
"If we didn't see the flags then we have plausible deniability if we get caught." He hurried to the next one and repeated the same process.
Neo's mantle flashed burgundy, expressing her irritation, then went to the nearest piece of scrap metal to dig it up.
For Outlanders like them, salvage was vital. It gave them materials and resources they wouldn't normally have access to and by selling it they could make a living. For decades the scrappers of the Outlands had journeyed across thousands of square kilometres of the Splatlands and knew it better than anyone, its treasures as well as its dangers.
In recent decades, however, foreign groups known as the Scrap Corporations or simply the Corporations or Corpos, had started competing with the Scrappers for those treasures. From rarer material like aluminum and titanium, to valuable Precursor artifacts, corporations like Black Steel were trying to take it all for themselves, making life more difficult for the Scrappers and forcing many to abandon the Outlands to scrape out a small living in the city.
Neo and Tiyes were both from Scrapper families. Their fathers were gone for sometimes weeks at a time looking for scrap to sell and support their families. If they came back empty handed, it would mean several weeks more of going hungry. Neo was determined to do her part to prevent that.
Tiyes finally stopped messing with the flagstaffs and grabbed another shovel, helping her dig up the large sheet of aluminum she'd found. Like most of the other pieces, it was thin. Collectively, the lot resembled sheddings of lizard skin.
Lil' Buddy also helped, sweeping away the sand with his fins. Despite being so fish-like, the sand and scorching sun didn't seem to bother him all that much.
Slowly but surely they piled the scrap on their trailer, filling it up. They had gotten most of what lay exposed. There was more beneath the surface but they wouldn't be able to bring it. If she loaded the trailer up too much the motor sled would get bogged down in the soft sand.
"Hey, look at this."
Tiyes squatted and stuck his hand in the sand, pulling out a sphere the size of a small melon. He brushed it off, revealing the dull-red colour beneath. A curious symbol appeared on the surface in white, a hollow circle with an arrow coming out of it at forty-five degrees.
Neo peered at it, curiously. "Could this be an artifact?"
"I don't know. The symbol is familiar but I can't remember what it means. It's definitely Precursor though, and we did find it in an aluminum scrap pile."
Neo grinned broadly. "You hold onto it then."
Tiyes flashed his mantle green mixed with yellow, struggling to contain his excitement. He loved studying Precursor history and artifacts and probably knew more about them than anyone they knew. If it really was an artifact then it was a rare and valuable find.
He walked to his bag on the other side of the pannier and deposited the sphere inside. He stood up straight again then his mantle went bright orange then red in alarm, his wide eyes staring south.
Neo jerked her head around to see what had caught his eye and a knot formed in her gut as she too noticed the dust cloud in the distance, a huge shape at the head of it, coming closer. A Black Steel Corporation landship.
"Let's get out of here!" Tiyes shrilled. He grabbed a tie-down strap and immediately started securing their load on the trailer. Neo did the same. They used their shovels to help restrain the load then Neo rushed to the motor sled, praying it would start without trouble.
It took a few cranks of the kick start but eventually the machine sputtered to life, becoming a consistent drone in seconds. Tiyes was sitting behind her, holding onto her waist with a death grip. She spared a glance to make sure Lil' Buddy was in her bag then started off.
She grimaced as she felt the extra weight slowing them down. She would have to drive carefully and take a slightly longer route off the dunes and back to the Outlands, all of which would take precious time.
Minutes later, they made it off the dunes but the sand remained relatively soft. Ahead was a small defile carved through a rock formation. It acted as a barrier between the dunes and Outlands. If they could get through it before getting spotted then they would be safe.
She glanced over her shoulder. Less than a kilometre away the corporation landship parked itself near the scrap pile they had been working at. Even as she looked, it deposited two motor sleds of its own, and they gave chase.
Neo cursed and increased the throttle. The old machine didn't like running at such high revs but she had no choice if she wanted even a chance at getting away.
"I told you this wasn't a good idea!" Tiyes yelled.
"Awww, come on, haven't you always wanted to have bad guys chase you just like in our books?"
"No!"
She laughed. Honestly, she was scared too, but she also couldn't help but feel thrilled. She was getting her own chase scene just like in the stories she'd grown up with. That made her and Tiyes the heroes, and that put a huge smile on her face.
Despite Neo's best efforts, their old motor sled couldn't outpace the Corpo's unburdened mounts. At this rate they would catch her in the defile.
But maybe if I give them enough trouble they won't think its worth it.
Images of heroes forcing pursuing enemies to crash into rocks or lose control of their vehicles flashed through her mind. The defile could be tricky if you didn't pay attention. Maybe she could manage it. She couldn't outrun them so her only choice was to fight.
She could hear the buzzing of the pursuing sleds now. They were close. She already had the throttle wide open; she couldn't go any faster.
Tiyes squeezed her tighter. She could hear the sound of the hostile sleds change slightly as they moved to try and get alongside her. She hoped they would stay there for just a few seconds more.
Abruptly, the pursuing sleds braked hard, she heard them fall well behind her before their engines revved up again, just as Neo and Tiyes entered the defile.
Neo was forced to slow down as they came to a sharp bend. Even so, their load leaned dangerously as they turned. They landed, and Neo pushed the throttle again, trying to maintain as much speed as she could, hoping to convince their pursuers to leave them alone or cause them to crash into one of the many rocks in their path.
Their pursuers did neither. They hung back, keeping pace but no longer totally focused on Neo, avoiding the various rocks as easily as Neo did herself. It took Neo only a moment to figure out that they were simply waiting for them to exit the defile. It was less than a kilometre long and they knew they could easily catch her in the straight, even without her load. They could afford to bide their time.
Neo's mind whirled, searching for a solution.
Perhaps some aggressive action would discourage them. Could she ram them with their extra weight? No, that probably wouldn't go well, and she would rather die than face her father after getting his precious sled damaged.
The last bend appeared. Neo took it as fast as she dared, causing their sled and load to lean together, skis biting into the sand, her and Tiyes' heads nearly kissing the wall of the defile.
Neo exhaled with relief when they landed back level and pushed the throttle wide open once again. Her motor sled screamed but little actually happened. They were already near what top speed they could manage with their burden.
They burst out of the defile and Neo looked behind them just as their pursuers began to accelerate again, confirming her worst fears. Suddenly, something leaped up from the sand in front of them, getting hooked in their skis. The machines flipped over their noses, catapulting their riders into the air.
Neo winced as she watched them land. The ground on this side of the rocks was much harder. They hit the ground, tumbling and bouncing for almost a dozen metres before they stopped. She didn't see them get up.
Neo relaxed the throttle, bringing the sled down to a more comfortable cruising level then looked behind them again, wondering what had caused the sleds to flip like that.
Atop a boulder near the defile's exit, she spotted a small silhouette, cape flapping in the wind, a long pole with a bulbous end standing straight and tall. The figure seemed to look at them then vanished as a rock passed in front of her vision, like a ghost.
"What was that?" Neo asked.
"A cable, I think." Relief was evident in Tiyes' voice. "Someone must have laid a cable down in front of the exit. I wonder who."
Who indeed. Neo had no idea. The silhouette wasn't anyone she knew, the stance just wasn't right. Someone from the city? The river? An inkling from one of the tribes that lived deep in the Splatlands? All possibilities seemed equally unlikely but that just made the mystery more compelling.
Tiyes said, "we are not doing that again."
Neo smirked. "That's what you say every time."
"But this time I mean it."
She chuckled. He said that every time too. She said nothing though. She just pointed them towards home where a large formation of rock and earth loomed in the distance.
It looked like a plateau from where they were but it was actually an enormous crater. Stories varied wildly as to its origins, some saying it was a meteor while others claimed it was a remnant of a war among the Precursors. Still others said it was a scar left from the Day of Judgment.
Water from underground and the rare rains collected in the basin of the deep crater, creating an oasis in the Outlands. Sheltered from the prevailing winds on the north-east side of the crater, was the town of Crater's Edge.
The water treatment plant sat on the crater's lip from where gravity fed water down to the rest of the town. The outside slope of the crater was pimpled by the domed roofs of homes built mostly underground.
Larger buildings skirted the edge of the crater from the east to the north side. These mostly consisted of shops, garages, and the town hall where the elders met to discuss the town's affairs.
A rail line kissed the east side of the town, going through a simple train platform, connecting Crater's Edge to the city of Splatsville to the south and the mining town of Iron End in the north. A road ran parallel to the rails but it was so rough that almost nobody used it. The train was faster and smoother.
On the north side of town was the land port where the Scrapper's landships were berthed. It had been carved into the slope of the crater itself and was home to a dozen landships, no two of which were alike. They ranged from squat, round, wheeled machines like Sand Hound, to large, box-like crawlers such as Patriarch, to even rhomboid leviathans like Dunewalker.
Neo's motor sled began to sputter as they entered the land port. To avoid drawing too much sludge from the bottom of the fuel tank, she was forced to cut the engine.
"You really want to push this thing all the way home?" He asked.
Neo gave him a mild glare. "You want your half, don't you?"
Tiyes scowled at her but got off and into position to help push. He grunted and strained but even with Neo's help the thing hardly budged.
After they'd managed to push the machine a dozen metres they stopped and a panting Tiyes suggested, "we should just get more fuel. It would be faster and easier."
Neo flashed red. "Can't, no fuel until Dad gets back."
She didn't have to explain that they didn't have the money for it. Getting back with the scrap she would be able to justify the expense but not before they managed to sell it.
Tiyes groaned again and scratched at his head. "There has to be an easier way to do this."
Neo grunted, her mantle turning maroon. "You can think while you're pushing. Come on, we're blocking traffic." But Tiyes didn't move.
"Neo, there's no way we're going to get this thing up the hill to your place with just two of us."
"Could if you had any muscles, shrivling."
Neo and Tiyes turned toward the new voice. Four boys around their age and wearing overalls approached them. They regarded Tiyes with disdain then their leader looked at Neo with a pleasant smile.
"Why not let some real inkyar help you get that thing home."
Tiyes' mantle paled and he seemed to shrink under their gazes. Neo couldn't help but share some of their disdain. Tiyes wasn't acting like a proper boy should and he made himself an easy target for scorn.
Ignoring him for the moment she faced the boys with a bright smile and gratitude in her mantle. "I would appreciate the help."
They flashed green and got on both sides of the sled and trailer then began to push. Neo remained where she was, making sure she helped. Her personal pride didn't allow them to do all the work for her.
Tiyes dragged his feet along behind them, chin down to his chest, staring at the ground.
"Tiyes, push!" She snapped. Where's your pride?
He jumped then scampered to the back of the trailer where he began to push.
Neo clicked her tongue. Tiyes was a good friend, most of the time, but all to often she felt embarrassed for him.
As a boy, he was expected to follow the same career as his father, attract a girl, and raise a family. The main problem was that he couldn't even manage the first of those.
His poor eyesight and weak build made him totally unsuitable as either a hunter or a scrapper and he lacked the passion and knowledge of mechanics that would get him a job in one of the workshops. In a town like Crater's Edge, his prospects were abysmal. He would be lucky if he could look after himself never mind find a girl to take as his wife.
Speaking of which.
Neo glanced up at the large rock formation jutting out from the crater's outer slope between the land port and the rest of the town. It was called Beacon Rock because the radio beacon that helped the landships find their way home sat on its highest point.
She could see at least a dozen figures standing or sitting in small clusters. They were all girls around her age, and many of them were looking in their direction.
They were the real reason the boys had offered to help her. It hadn't been for her benefit; no boy in Crater's Edge was interested in her. But if the other girls saw how the boys were willing and able to treat her, it wasn't hard for them to imagine how much better they might treat their girlfriend or wife.
And being around Tiyes makes every guy here look that much better. It was not a kind thought but that didn't make it any less true. She really did feel sorry for Tiyes. She liked him as a friend, he loved many of the same stories she did, and he was one of the smartest people she knew, but she just couldn't see any potential in him as a mate. Of course, a lot of people saw her the same way.
It took some time but eventually they managed to get the motor sled and its load home.
"Thanks for your help."
"Yeah, sure."
The guys all left, power walking to get back to the docks, no doubt hoping some of those girls would interview them on the way. Whatever, it was no skin off her back.
She and Tiyes disconnected the trailer from the motor sled, putting both into the small garage next to her home.
"I'll let you know when Dad get back and what price we get," she said.
"Sure," he muttered. "Assuming Mom doesn't kill me first for going with you again."
"You'll be fine. Just say you went out to protect me or something."
He gave her a look of intense skepticism. "I'll tell her I went to try and keep you out of trouble. I won't mention the fact we almost became corpo prisoners."
She grimaced, shivering at the thought of what his mom would do to her if she learned that. "Y-yeah, good idea."
Tiyes went off, leaving Neo to lock up the shed. Dread started to well up inside her. For as much as Tiyes wanted to stay at home, she wanted to stay away.
Neo looked at Lil' Buddy as he poked his head out of her bag.
"Brace yourself, 'Buddy, it's not gonna' be pretty."
The salmonid ducked back inside like a lizard scampering back into its hole. He was all too familiar with this scenario.
Neo opened the door to their home. Stairs led straight down where shadow waited for her. She adjusted her goggles to sit atop her head and gulped air before she made her way down.
She stepped lightly. Her weathered boots hardly made a sound, she was sure, yet before she was even halfway down her mother's cross voice shouted up the stairwell.
"Neopolita Andria Onagle, that better be you."
Neo grimaced. All three names was not a promising start. Tentatively she continued down.
Their house was of a fairly standard layout. The stairs pointed directly to the centre of their circular home. A main living area and kitchen occupied the middle of the home with the bathroom and bedrooms arrayed in a circle around it, their doorways blocked off by curtains. The space directly under the stairs had been walled in to create a storage space.
Left of the stairs was the kitchen where her mother currently stood cleaning dishes with a damp cloth. Water usage was at a premium for everyone in Crater's Edge. A small bundle of vegetables sat on a rack next to the small sink, waiting to be chopped for dinner.
Her mother didn't turn around. Neo had learned years ago that mothers had mystical abilities that enabled them to see as if they had another pair of eyes on the back of their heads. She was confident her mother had sharper senses than the town's finest hunters.
"Where have you been?" She demanded.
Neo swallowed. "Just out with Tiyes."
"Mhmm, dragging him into your trouble again?"
"We didn't get in trouble," Neo protested. It technically wasn't a lie. They didn't get caught so there was no trouble, not really. "We just found some valuable scrap and wanted to pick it up while we were there. Stop treating him like he's helpless."
"Don't even try it with me," her mother snapped. "You didn't go out there for his sake, you were just trying to avoid your chores again."
Neo winced and glanced disparagingly at the stack of clothing on the dinner table waiting to be patched and resewn. She hated sewing. It was such a finicky and tedious thing to have to do, but it was one of the skills all girls were expected to learn.
Neo's hands balled into fists at her side. "All these chores do is keep me stuck inside."
"Keep you out of trouble, you mean."
Her mother finally turned from the sink to look at her with eyes identical to her own. They were stern and not at all sympathetic.
"You're fifteen years old; it's time you stopped acting like a child and learn how to be a proper inkyora."
"What, so I can be stuck down in a hole for the rest of my life, like you? All you do is stay down here cleaning, sewing, and cooking. What kind of life is that?"
"You watch your mouth, young lady! Now take those clothes into your room and don't come out until they're mended. There will be no dinner for you until you're done."
Neo scowled, mantle turning red. She had to fight the urge to rebel. Her stomach was already gnawing at her. She couldn't afford to skip a meal.
Sharply she turned away, grabbed the pile of clothes and stomped through the curtain into her room.
She deposited the clothes onto her bed and gently set down her bag. Lil' Buddy peeked out nervously, his bulging yellow eyes searching.
Neo grabbed the sewing kit from under the small table at the end of the room and put it on her bed but she didn't set to her task immediately. She was angry. She would only make a mess of the job if she went to it now.
Across the narrow isle between her bed and the other side of the room was a shelf containing a dozen worn books. She picked one and sat on the bed to read.
It was one of her favourite adventure books. The protagonist was male but he had a female companion whom he convinced to leave the safe life of home to join him adventuring around the world, fighting bad guys wherever they found it and finding magnificent treasures that made them rich.
That girl didn't have to spend her life stuck in a hole in the ground, doing nothing but keeping house until her husband got home. It wasn't as if her mother was forced to stay in the house, she did it by choice, and many other wives in town did the same. It was as if they got married purely so they could escape the outside world.
Neo wasn't like that. The outside world was what she had wanted to see most. She could count on one hand the number of times she'd visited another place, including Splatsville.
It wasn't that Neo was opposed to getting married; she wanted to see more in her life than just some hole and when she did eventually get married, wanted a husband who didn't want her to stay in one, who wanted a companion to share in their adventures, in their life. Was that so much to ask?
Lil' Buddy hopped onto her lap and curled into a sleeping position. Neo's free hand gently stroked his scaly back while she read and dreamed of what the world was like outside her tiny corner of it.
Author's Notes:
Hooray, it's back, the next story in the Blooming White Lilies series. We're taking a very different direction with this one, but this will more or less be covering the world of Splatoon 3. Obviously, from all that has been established in previous stories in the series, the events of Splatoon 3 can't really happen the same way, so I took that as free license to do whatever I wanted ;). I hope you like it.