Wasteland Rules: Die Fighting (The World After Book 4) Read online

  They held cloths over their mouths and struggled to find a path out. Micah led them down into a ravine where a small creek ran through. The lower elevation was below the smoke and they had a few moments to catch their breath and rest for a moment. Standing in the water they were safe from the flames for a moment, but Derek knew that just the superheated air from the fire nearby could kill them.

  “Down the stream.” He urged them. “We have to get out of here. The fire is going to burn out of control and consume this whole area.”

  Micah and Rora did as he said and they all began slogging through the creek as they headed downstream. The smoke hung over their head like a ceiling and Derek could tell it was getting lower and lower. The air itself was starting to warm up and it wouldn’t be long before it became difficult to breathe. They needed to be out of the fire zone as quickly as possible, but the dried out forest was spreading quickly. Their best bet was to get out of the woods and into the open even though that would expose them to the gunships.

  He caught a flicker of movement from the hills above them just before the gunfire started. Derek knocked Rora down and yelled to Micah. All three splashed down into the creek as bullets chewed up the water in front of them. Black clad Faceless appeared in the woods above and behind them. All of them were wearing some sort of breathing mask enabling them to operate inside the smoke. More gunmen joined the first few and they kept a steady fire on their three targets. Amazingly none of the three were hit despite the high volume of fire.

  “How haven’t they hit us yet?” Micah yelled to Derek.

  “They aren’t trying to hit us. They want us alive.” Derek explained through gritted teeth. “They just need to keep us pinned down until we are overcome by the smoke and heat and then they can just drag us away without a fight.”

  “So what do we do?” Rora asked desperately, her face a sooty wet mess.

  “You run, I’m going to buy you some time.” Derek said grimly. “I think they want me and will let you go.”

  “But…” Micah started.

  “Just go!” Derek ordered urgently.

  Micah took one look into Derek’s eyes and nodded. Derek popped up and charged upstream into the hail of gunfire. As he ran he opened fire on the closest Faceless soldier. The quick burst hit the man’s breathing mask and shattered it. The gunmen crumpled to the ground. Derek didn’t pause after firing that burst and slowly turned to fire three more bursts. Each burst struck a black clad gunman and dropped him. The sudden action froze the Faceless troops and Derek took advantage to reload before continuing to fire.

  Caught off guard by the reckless and unexpected maneuver, the Faceless soldiers gave Rora and Micah the few precious seconds they needed to rush downstream and out of range. Derek continued to charge forward and exchange fire with their pursuers. The increasing smoke and the black uniforms gave them a ghost like quality as they flickered between trees trying to find cover from the surprise assault. They overcame their surprise after a moment and returned fire with a vengeance.

  Bullets struck Derek, but his armor deflected a few and the others were minor wounds that he shrugged off. Cinders fell on him and burned his flesh, but he ignored the pain. The smoke and super-heated seared his lungs but he simply pushed on. His adrenaline was pumping and he was totally in his element. He reloaded as he ran and then put on a burst of speed and exploded out of the creek. A few steps and he was amongst the gunmen. During the entire rush he never stopped firing and each burst dropped another Faceless. He was so focused and hyper alert that he just couldn’t miss.

  His clip ran dry and he dropped the carbine to pull out his machete. The carbine’s sling caught the gun as it fell and it dangled at his side as he slashed around him with the machete. The smoke was so thick that Derek couldn’t see what he was hitting, but he could feel impacts that he assumed were gunmen so he kept slashing. After a minute the adrenaline started to wear off and he realized he was hacking at a tree trunk.

  Then the pain hit and he began choking on the thick black smoke. Dropping to his knees he found a brief respite below the hanging smoke and sucked in huge lungfuls of fresh air. Looking along the ground level he spotted the remains of a fallen Faceless. The man had dissolved but his gear was still intact. Derek crawled and over to the remains and got lucky. The breathing mask was intact. He quickly pulled it on and immediately got more relief from the hot, smoky air.

  Tossing his own camouflage jacket he pulled the Faceless’ BDU jacket on, ignoring the slimy goo inside that had once been a man, and quickly slipped the body armor and helmet on. Hopefully he could pass for a Faceless long enough to get out of the fire zone and get to safety. The ruse seemed to work as he made his way through the burning woods. Thick smoke obscured his view, but he could see the shapes of Faceless troops moving nearby. None of them seemed to react to him, so he assumed he was safe.

  Based on the radio chatter from the radio in the helmet, Derek hadn’t killed as many as he thought in his mad rush. Many of the men he had shot or slashed were merely wounded or badly bruised, and they were back in the hunt. It was hard to tell, because they all sounded the same, but he counted at least fifteen different nicknames. They had been caught off guard by his sudden and ferocious charge, but now they were regrouping.

  It sounded as if Rora and Micah had escaped, and the Faceless were more determined than ever to catch Derek. That just reaffirmed his belief that he was the target all along. He was almost out of the woods when he heard an alarming order to change tactical frequencies. Unable to do so since he had no idea how their radios worked, he was suddenly cut off from the chatter. That probably meant that they had figured out he was wearing their gear. Time to make a run for it.

  Bursting out of the woods, Derek headed towards where the smoke started to thin out. He hoped he could get clear and find some better cover. Eventually Rora and Micah would be able to call for help and the C.C.A. would send some planes to drive off the choppers. All he had to do was survive until that happened.

  That proved to be a pipe dream as the smoke suddenly cleared away from around him, blown off by the prop wash of a descending gunship. Derek found himself almost face to face with the multiple barrels of a mini-gun. He turned to run, but black clad gunmen appeared from the smoke like wraiths and clubbed him unconscious with their rifle butts.

  Chapter 2

  Faceless Headquarters

  September 12, 2029

  It took Tom a minute to realize that the blinding light in his eyes was not the gateway to the afterlife, but a powerful arc light. He tried to move but found himself secured to what appeared to be an operating table. As his eyes adjusted and he looked around, he could see he was in an operating room surrounded by white clad people wearing surgical masks.

  The former Red beret captain had no idea where he was. The last thing he remembered was the razor sharp teeth and claws of the Drinkers ripping at his flesh, tearing him apart and eating him alive in the cave. That bastard Storm and the girl had left him to die so he could escape. Storm had given him a knife and uncuffed him, but they had known he had no chance of surviving. That act of supposed compassion had only been to make Storm feel better about himself.

  Deep down Tom knew he would have done the same, but that didn’t stop the uncontrolled rage he felt when thinking about Storm leaving him to die. Against all odds he had survived, that meant there was still a chance at revenge. Still a chance he could leave Storm broken and humbled. All he had to do was get free of these restraints and go after him.

  Tom tried to struggle free but his limbs didn’t respond. The attempt did trigger frantic beeping from the monitors nearby. Several of the masked doctors moved over to check on him. They whispered amongst themselves and then one left. Tom could move his head slightly but nothing else worked. Was it possible he was paralyzed? He desperately hoped not, that was one his deepest fears.

  He waited, helpless, to see what they were going to do to him. After a few minutes another person entered the room and appr
oached the table.

  “Glad to see you are still with us.” The man said in a sibilant voice.

  Tom’s eyes widened as he took in the speaker. The man didn’t wear a surgical mask or scrubs, but that wasn’t what stood out the most. It was the fact that he didn’t have a face. There was no mouth, even though the man was speaking, no ears, no nose, no eyes, it was totally blank. It was as if a mannequin head had been implanted on top of a man’s neck. Tom should have been more bothered, but the last six months had been so crazy that this really didn’t faze him.

  “What do you want?” Tom croaked.

  “It’s more a matter of what you want.” The faceless man informed him. “Do you want a chance to get even with Derek Storm?”

  “More than anything in the world.” Tom agreed vigorously.

  “You’re body was more or less destroyed by the Drinkers. “ The man explained. “We have a nerve block in your neck to prevent you from feeling the pain from your exposed nerves. We cannot fix you with conventional medicine. But…”

  “But what?” Tom asked desperately.

  “We have a serum we can use to alter your DNA. It will allow your body to regrow itself, but there are side effects.” The faceless man offered.

  “Like what?” Tom demanded.

  “Your body will undergo physical changes and you will not look like you used to. But you will be bigger and stronger and faster, and you will have the ability to heal from serious wounds.”

  “Something like what Storm has?” Tom asked eagerly.

  “Something like that.” The man agreed. “The process itself will be very painful. We will have to remove the nerve block and there will be no anesthesia. The pain alone may kill you.”

  “I can take it.” Tom insisted angrily. “Whatever it takes to get Storm!”

  “Hold onto that hatred. It might be the only thing you have to get you through it.” The faceless man said as he turned to leave.

  He nodded to one of the doctors and they moved towards Tom’s table. A rubber mouthpiece was shoved in his mouth and Tom felt a doctor at his neck remove something. Within a few minutes he began to feel the pain. It started as a few pinpricks, then it moved to thousands of stabbing needles, and then it became a white hot flame that seemed to burn along the nerves themselves. He screamed in agony as it reached a crescendo. He seemed to dissociate from his body as the pain became overwhelming. White light started to creep in from the edges of his vision and it wasn’t from the operating room lights.

  Alarms began beeping on the equipment, and Tom heard a doctor yell that they were losing him. That triggered something deep inside him, in the primordial part of his brain. He began to claw his way to reality, fighting the lights, focusing on his hatred for Storm and how much he wanted to live just to spite the man. The alarms slowly subsided and he could feel the pain begin to recede. It slowly faded to nothingness and he started to relax, trying to regain his breathing.

  “That was just the beginning.” He heard the faceless man murmur. “Now the true test begins.”

  New pain wracked Tom’s body. Adrenaline surged throughout him and he flexed against the restraints, his body bending awkwardly against them. He could literally feel the skin closing over and healing, and nerves and blood vessels rebuilding themselves. Then the true pain hit him as his bones themselves began to grow and stretch. He screamed as the pain touched every inch of his body, inside and out.

  The pain was so intense he began to black out, but Tom remained focused on his hate for Derek Storm and fought it back. The pain lasted for what seemed like an eternity before it began to be replaced with a sense of euphoria. Then he felt a sense of power and his body entered another stage of the process. Muscles bulged as they grew to obscene proportions, some in places he never had muscles before. The restraints snapped as he began to metamorphose and his body grew suddenly at an alarming rate.

  Tom burst free with a bestial roar. The doctors fled in terror, but one didn’t move fast enough and Tom grabbed him. In a fit of rage he tore the man apart and flung his wrecked body to the side. He was not sure why he was angry, but he was filled with uncontrolled rage. Panting like an animal, Tom looked for more victims, his bloodlust not sated. Finding no other victims he destroyed the operating room, smashing everything he could find. Finally, his rage subsided and he began to become aware of his surroundings.

  Spying his reflection in a metal tray, he moved in for a closer look. What he saw startled him. His handsome features had been replaced by bestial ones. He now had thick cheekbones and heavy brows. Fangs poked out from beneath his newly thick lips. Thick black hair, like fur, covered his head and parts of his face. His nose was much large and flattened against his face. His skin was leathery and had a slight brown tinge. He looked like a monster.

  “What did you do to me?” Tom growled.

  “I gave you what you wanted.” The faceless man said from behind him. “I made you a killing machine capable of taking out Derek Storm.”

  “I’m a monster.” Tom argued.

  “No. You are your true self.” The faceless man said smoothly. “This is what has lurked inside you for your entire life. Now the surface matches your personality.”

  Tom knew instinctively that what the man said was true. And did it matter what he looked like? He now had the ability to finally make Storm pay. He looked over his new body and flexed his muscles appreciatively. His new body stood over seven feet tall and was thickly muscled. His massive hands seemed capable of crushing anything. The thick cords of muscles up his neck gave him a hulking and intimidating appearance. His new appearance would strike terror into the hearts of any who saw him.

  “Tom is gone now.” The man explained. “You are reborn. Now you are Deimos, the living embodiment of terror.”

  That somehow felt right to him. He was no longer Tom, he was Deimos. And now people were going to pay for all the things they did that wronged him, starting with Storm and his little protégé.

  “Come with me.” The faceless man offered. “Let’s get you outfitted.”

  Deimos suddenly realized he was naked as the man with no face turned and walked out of the room. Shrugging, he followed behind. As they walked he noticed the faceless man was wearing a blue pinstripe suit with a white shirt and red tie. Just like almost every politician he had ever met. That didn’t bode particularly well. Those politicians had betrayed the former captain’s loyalty and thrown him to the wolves when it suited them.

  The man with no face led him into another room that looked like an armory. Weapons lined the walls and crates of weapons and ammo were stacked in the middle. Deimos smiled ferally as he saw the body armor and mask on a stand in the center of the room. A pair of katanas poked up from sheaths on the back of the armor.

  The body armor looked like it was made of cast steel painted shiny black with gold highlights over a black body suit. There was a metal chest and back plate, shoulder pads, gauntlets, and greaves which covered from ankle to knee. On the chest plate was a symbol in gold that looked like two stylized arrows pointing inward and touching at the tips. It was not a symbol that he had ever seen before. Wicked looking spikes jutted up from various points on the armor giving it a menacing look. The mask was also painted a flat black with gold highlights and only covered the eye and forehead area, leaving his fangs on display.

  “These are yours; they have been waiting for you.” The faceless man announced. “The armor is special composite plates over Kevlar. The plates can stop up to a 20mm cannon round and are resistant to armor piercing rounds. The Kevlar is heavier than the usual body armor and can stop up to a 12.7mm machine gun round.”

  The former Red Beret captain started pulling them on and found it all fit perfectly, as if it had been custom fit just for him. But how could they have known his size when he hadn’t even had the treatment when these were made? He pulled on the mask and it felt right. Instinctively he reached back and grasped the hilts of the katanas. He drew them with a flourish and took a few practice sw
ings.

  To his surprise he found them perfectly balanced for him and he executed a few attack moves. He had never had any sword training but somehow he knew exactly how to wield them. Like it was a muscle memory he didn’t know he had. Let Storm try to kill him with his machete now. Deimos would carve that bastard into ribbons. He chuckled to himself as he slashed at the air.

  Deimos whirled suddenly and brought his blades down towards the faceless man. They stopped a hairs breadth from either side of his throat, but the man didn’t even flinch. Deimos was impressed, despite his terrifying appearance and deadly threat, the man was perfectly calm and unafraid.

  “Carbide steel.” The man informed him calmly. “Virtually unbreakable and they will hold their edge forever. Beautiful work don’t you think?”

  “Who are you?” Deimos snarled. “And what do you want from me?”

  “I am the Faceless Man. The leader of an ancient secret society dedicated to the downfall of civilization.” The man explained. “And all I want from you is to do what you were born to do. Create terror and chaos wherever you go.”

  A week ago Deimos, then Tom, would have sneered at the man. The downfall of civilization? Tom had fought to regain it under the auspices of the U.S.T.G. But now he saw the folly in that. What had it gotten him? Nothing but pain and suffering, ingratitude, and ultimately betrayal. Now it was time to make the world pay, to make it burn, and to force everyone to watch.

  The Faceless Man watched Deimos accept his role, and even embrace it. “I have one more present for you.” He informed Deimos as he gestured to another part of the armory.

  Deimos smiled as he saw the gift. Oh yes, that would be perfect. He knew just what to do with it. Time to get started on his payback.

  “Grab that and then I have some friends I want you to meet.” The Faceless Man told him.