Chapter 3

The group stopped at a gas station to grab extra fuel rather than waste any more fuel from the depot’s at Requiem. Mason waited while Rust, Sampson, and Wayne were siphoning gas from a gasoline cargo truck. Which was a lucky find due to most gasoline trucks being destroyed by being used to blow up large cluttered herds of irons in order to win larger scale fights when supplies are low. One mechanic will gain all the agro through running and gunning, getting those bugs right where they need to be before BTOOOM! All dead via massive explosion.

Simple tactics like that were easy to employ against irons when they are riled up. Just like humans they start losing their senses in fights and are easily tricked. At times they are clever, and at times they are cautious creatures. But in a big battle then all of that is thrown out of the window. They fall short. The creatures lose the little bit of reasoning power they had, and charge blindly. Mason sitting down in front of Dean’s mechanic, with Dean sitting close to him, Mason tried holding up a conversation with Dean having absolutely no success.

“Why don’t you talk so much anyway?” Dean just stared at him blankly.

“I guess only if you talked you would be able to answer me huh?” Dean gave him a nod.

“Well Dean you are a wonderful person.” Mason then patted him on the back.

Mason spotted a convenience store across the street. In his mind he may find some Spam. Some meat to eat. Of course most humans will lose sight of reason when hunger sets in. And with Mason he has slept for 67 years so he is hungrier than a beggar. Needing his food fix.

“You won’t tell Rust or Wayne I went off on my own will you?” Dean nodded yes, and Mason smiled.

Mason stood up then Dean grabbed his pant leg.

“B-but y-ya should n-not go a-alone!”

Dean stuttered the whole way through. Mason looked at him and smiled. Mason then slowly jerked his leg out of Dean’s grasp.

“You are a great soldier because you are a great listener not talker. Besides it seems my skills in the listening department have dropped.”

Mason made his way toward the door but it was locked. Didn’t matter though he wasn’t going to pass up the chance to see what it was like inside. He stepped through a space that used be a large window in the store. Mason spotted plenty of dry foods that had already been chewed through by rats as well as other crawling critters. As his foot entered and crackled pieces of glass the critters ran away.

“There has to be some food in here somewhere I could eat.”

He then spots a few boxes of cream puffs. Twinkie type foods and the like. He pulled one out of the box and stuffed it in his pocket. Mason didn’t grab a lot, he suspects better food at requiem and didn’t really want all that crap. He was searching for something in particular. A man with a plan.

A can fell from behind him startling him. He turns immediately as he walks over to the isle were the can fell. He looks down to see a convenient store brand of sloppy joe. Then a man from right around the corner comes a swinging bat. Mason ketches the bat in his hand whilst flinching. Pulling the bat back right away caused a fat, bearded man to fall to the ground. Mason’s hand which was in immense pain even caused him to fall in the opposite direction. Mason crawling away in a frantic frenzy looking for his pistol before remembering he gave it back to Rust. The sting left in his hand was remarkably painful giving him a numbing sensation.

The man was up behind Mason, Mason then heard the click a metal pistol hammer click back. His eyes were never so shaken. He thought wondering would this be it. Fought and also survived against giant monsters, and a practically sixty-seven year comma to end up with his brains splattered all over the floor of a random convenience store with no meaning from random fat asshole 1. Turns out that bearded black man was thinking the same thing as Mason. As a man with a gun pointed it at the back of the crazy man’s head.

“Put the bat down punk ass.”

The man then got scared, and dropped the bat. Mason focused his senses on the falling bat’s clanking. In that moment Mason turned around and jumped away. It was Romeo with his Magnum now pressed against the back of the man’s head. Romeo held complete control over the man’s life.

“Now even if this is your place, there is no way we could’ve even known. You wrongly attacked an innocent man scavenging from a store he thought was abandoned!” Romeo shouted.

Romeo reaches into his pocket, and clinches his fist. He pulled his hand out of his pocket, the opens his hand to reveal a quarter a quarter. Which are now valuable coins if from before the time of irons. His quarter was from 1996.

“Now I’m Dirty Dan, and we are going to do some gambling. Sound fun? If you are lucky then this coin I flip will land right and you can go free. If not then well, you know what I am going to do. Pow!” when that last word was uttered the man flinched.

The man was shaking his head no repeatedly. He flips, and while the coin is spiraling through the air. He sees the heads then the tails, and then heads again. And the man had no idea which was going to decide his fate. After all Romeo never said what would be the side that killed or saved him.

“Either way this town can only hold one of us!”

The coin lands back in Romeo’s hand. Romeo opens up his hand to reveal which side it landed on. It was revealed to be heads as Romeo smiled and looked at the man. The man crying will be relieved to hear what Romeo has to say.

“Well you got heads, congrats. You may exit.” with the man running straight from the building upon hearing that.

The frightened first words of Mason were both selfless, and selfish “Don’t tell Rust!” he said.

Romeo nodded, “No problem man.” Romeo felt no need to add humor to the moment. He knew how serious Mason was.

“You are lucky that Dean pointed out where you were to me, if he promised he wouldn’t tell then he didn’t. He didn’t say a word.”

“Well I just said not to tell Rust or Wayne… He did well.” Mason said as he then grunted pain as his hand was shaking.

Luckily for Mason his hand wasn’t broken or sprained. His hand still hurt like hell though. On his way across the road he nodded in approval to Dean, and Dean nodded back. Mason looked at his shaking hand, then looking at the blue sky. No longer dusk, it was now broad daylight. Glistening mirages in the distance on the paved roads, giving the illusion of water swishing back and forth. With the DB back on the road, Wayne has allowed Romeo to drive.

Wayne on the other hand was sleeping in the co-pilots seat. 2 hours of nothing but road with only the occasional two or three irons off in the distance. It seemed peaceful. Even Rust sleeping peacefully in the back. Peace however, has now made different plans. With over the horizon a stampede of irons trudged running toward the DB and a dozen or so sneaking up on Dean, and Sampson’s mechanics.

Once they saw the irons the two mechanics split between left and right. Both firing off rounds at the closest irons to their position. Wayne now awake has manned the main machine gun, as the gun repeatedly recoiled atop the armored vehicle, and giant bullets the size of a babies arm made exodus from the chamber. One after one to even two at a time irons fell splattered, and destroyed by the enormous weaponry. With Romeo having armed the missile he slams the button. The missile ejects slightly to the mid left of the vehicle. Obliterating nine plus irons as dust and ash erodes away. Though it didn’t seem to stop the irons from surrounding the DB.

“Mason!” yelled Rust.

“What!?”

“On the left side of the back is a button, press it!” Mason searched slapping around a flat surface with his hand then pressed the button.

Rust pressed the one on the opposite side. Both popping out a light machine gun that was cleverly fixed to the Armored DB with very in depth maneuverability. They both open the back hatch of the DB and fire away. Rounds piercing arms, stomachs, necks and so on. Wayne opened the door of the cockpit to warn Rust.

“Rust! Frog Leap!”

Mason was confused, and didn’t understand what the frog leap was. Rust quickly directed him to pull the gun back inside and then open the top hatch, and close the back hatch. Now they were standing in the top of the Armored DB, “Hold on!” Wayne instructed. Romeo then pulled open a box glass case. The case harbored a lever, Romeo grabbed the lever, then pulled it back real tight. Steam then piled from under the Armored DB. As Romeo pushed the lever forward as hard as he could the steam exploded as four symmetrical steel pipes with rubber tips shot the Armored DB into the air, up and over the irons as Mason, and Rust continued shooting.

The large rounds flew through the air. It reminded them of their final stand by Lake Erie. The two of them blasting together, unloading round after round into the irons. With the next chamber for the rail gun being fitted with another missile. After making a 180 degree angle the missile was launched blasting forth decimating an entire crowd of irons. With a quick shower of blood that would stain spots on the Armored DB. Dean, and Sampson fought the last few.

Sam then wiped the sweat off his brow as the mood settled. When all the smoke cleared the group now stood in a large pasture in Virginia. Streaks of blood stained the grass. An absolute blood bath. The real surprise was that that much blood could even be produced let alone be shed.

“Apart from the blood, a few explosions, and corpses strewn all over the damn place it seems pretty nice… especially the horizon.” Wayne said.

“Hey Rust, you and Mason go take a canteen to Dean, and Sam. They could probably use it.” Rust ran down the pasture to get to Dean, and Mason went to Sam.

Wayne took a deep breath. He took a breath in, than out.

“Eh Romeo! Let’s trade seats, I hate not having the wheel! And that better not be alcohol you are drinking from that flask!”

“It’s just fruit juice sir! I swear!”

After just a few seconds of rest, and deep breaths something compelled Wayne to open his eyes. “Oh shit!” Romeo opens up his eyes as they immediately widen.

“You mean horseshit right sir!? Man we are going to need a bigger flyswatter sir!”

Wayne nodded as over the peak of the horizon, across the pasture was a devilish looking creature. It had exaggerated features of the irons, and it scaled three times the size of the Armored DB. The average iron was about the size of the DB. Wayne snaps in his seatbelt with Romeo following immediately after. Wayne puts his hand on the wheel, and braces himself.

“Gear up! Something big is coming!”

The creature is moving fast. Wayne contacts the mechanics as soon as he could pick up the talkie. Dean and Sam both reload and both have Rust and Mason sitting on their mechanics arms. Both mechanics begin unloading unto the colossal creature. The grenade rounds, a myriad of Machine gun fire are simply a breeze to the beast. Wayne was operating the front blades while waiting for the rail gun to load another missile. Mason, Rust, Dean, Sampson, and the two crazy kamikaze pilots rushing toward that thing in the DB feel the exact same emotions.

Fear, exhaustion, pain, and awe, awe inspiring awe. They stare at that beast acknowledging the fact that they probably will die today. There are no words to describe it. As the DB gets up on the beast the heavy gun on top seems to be somewhat subduing the creature. Then the creature utilizes most of its arms to hold the vehicle in midair. It took two of the arms it had available and held them up in front of the armored vehicle that’s suspended in air, both Wayne, and Romeo’s eyes are dead set on those arms. The arms then begin twitching, then the twitching seems to be losing control. The furry arms then showed massive veins popping out. Two massive horns were squeezing out of the creatures wrists.

“Shit!” Wayne said swaying his body out of the way.

The creature swung both into the DB’s windshield. Wayne who was able to snap back to reality in time was able to duck. Romeo however… was stabbed in the shoulder. He began puking up blood on the claw that was stuck in his shoulder as blood from his shoulder hit the inside of the windshield. Then puking it up on the seat of the DB. The missile from the rail gun was ready to fire, and the moment Wayne pushed the button the creature leaped feet, and meters into the air. Ripping the rail gun out as a result with its free hands. The missile however flew straight out into the pasture, exploding over the horizon, leaving a large chunk of a grassy pasture now a small patch of dusty wasteland.

Wayne slammed his arms at the controls with rage. The creature now making its way to the mechanics was never punctured by the blades that were in the front of the DB. All felt fear except for one. It was Dean. Dean threw Rust off the mechanic then drove straight for the beast firing off hundreds of machine gun rounds before running out. The chain spun for about a second before Dean realizing that it was empty. He ditched the gun then replaced it with a right arm.

Now using the arm to unsheathe the mechanics combat knife as the both were going to collide, Dean switched into walk mode then thrusting the blade into the creature’s stomach while giving off a loud battle cry, screaming at the top of his lungs. The creature let out a scream that scared every bird away in the nearby area.

Looking at the rear side of Dean’s mechanic from afar was a nightmare. All you could see was dripping blood, and that a pair of deadly thorns had torn it to pieces. The DB flying with slicing blades back and forth, and Romeo barely hanging on but still throwing down suppressive fire. Then Wayne pulling back, then pushing forward the lever shoots mass steam from underneath. The creature jumps up which then so does the DB. They star flying towards each other as Wayne lets loose his own Battle cry. The armored DB’s front blades rip right through the iron as chunks of the beasts flesh get tossed like salad through the air. The massive iron was then sliced in half, with bits, and chunks of the creature strewn out through the air. The DB smacked to the ground. Wayne was in shock, though he quickly gained his composure.

“We did it! We won!”

Wayne covered Romeo’s mouth with his hand. “Don’t waste your breath Romeo it’s not over. Just try to relax okay?” In which Romeo nodded and laid back.

The creatures upper half was on the prowl before Wayne could even get the DB’s systems a go. “No!” screamed Wayne. The creature ready to rip into the vehicle like tin foil was interrupted by the screaming anger, and pain of another. A Screaming Sampson in his mechanic abandoned Mason with Rust, then jetted off toward the wounded, giant beast. Yelling he rammed the side of the bloody mess of a beast. He punches the creature with the left hand of the armored suit. The punch made a hole in the creature’s chest. Sam then slid the grenade launcher into the hole.

“This one is for my partner!”

Samson then squeezed the lever launching a grenade round into the beast’s chest. After the explosion the beast screamed. With a knee jerk reaction the beast smacked the mechanic away, forcing Sampson to abruptly bump his head smack into the windshield. A huge bruise on Sam’s head. The creature lay dying. Rust and Mason were able to catch up. Wayne stepping forth from the DB carry a coughing Romeo puts him in the back of the DB.

“Rust!”

“Yes sir!” Rust replies to Wayne with a halfhearted salute.

“Go check on Sam!” Rust nods then runs to the battered mechanic.

Mason walks up to the beast. “What are you?” Mason takes a deep breath.

“Where did you come from? Did Miles Make you too my large beast?”

Wayne put his hand on Mason’s shoulder. “I don’t know what it is Mason. Let’s just leave it.”

This scares Mason. There are more and more things that can’t be understood. This on top of the others leaves a twisted feeling in his stomach. Mason felt his mind was about to drift somewhere else as his vision blurred but he was interrupted.

“We have to go Mason, we are in Virginia now. Were close to Requiem, and Romeo is dying so let’s move fast!”

Rust carrying an unconscious Sam hands him to Wayne.

“The mechanic is still in working order. I will drive it back.”

Wayne gave Rust his approval then slid Sam in the back with the tweaking Romeo. Mason also went in the back while Wayne got in the driver’s seat. Wayne started up the engine, then drove off with Rust following up behind him at top speed in the remaining mechanic. Wayne going faster than the mechanic walkie talkied to Rust that he was going to go as fast as he could. Rust agreed that he should. Mason sitting back with Romeo was examining his skin. He saw streaks of thick blue lines, he had been poisoned by the thorn resembling a spider’s venom.

“Am I going to die?” said Romeo softly.

Mason leaned forward to listen as Romeo grabbed Mason’s shoulder.

“Am I Mason?” Mason put his hand on Romeo’s forehead.

“Yeah Romeo… in a few minutes probably.”

Romeo let go of Mason’s shoulder. Romeo laid back then stared at the ceiling of the DB a bit. After laying there a second Romeo started chuckling. He then opened up Mason’s hand then put something in it, and closed his fingers.

“It is kind of funny that you didn’t lie to me.” Romeo said, then coughed a bit of blood.

“Thank you for not lying to me. You know Mason, I am engaged to be married soon?”

Mason opened his hand and there sat a sparkling silver ring. Mason looked at Romeo with a crushed look on his face.

“But I thought you!?”

“Thought what Mason, that I was a player?” Romeo then laughed but then stopped as he was coughing up blood.

“This moment would be easier if that was the case. You know Mason, Romeo isn’t even my real name.”

“What?!”

“I went to court to get it changed, my friends dared me since I was such a player to get my name changed to Romeo so I did, all as a joke!”

“You know who the judge was, of course you wouldn’t, what was I thinking?”

Mason held onto his hand.

“The Judge was the father of my future love, she approached me after my name was changed and joked around with me the whole time. She was as sweet as an angel.”

Romeo no longer laughing had a light smile.

“So then you guys hit it off?” asked Mason

“No actually we did not. I asked her out and she said no.” Romeo swallowed.

“I went back to court to get my named changed and she approached me again. She told to me that my changing my name should be a life commitment, that I shouldn’t change it back. So I told her that if she went out on one date with me that I would keep the name Romeo.”

“You see Mason, that girl was the love of my life!” Mason kept holding Romeo’s hand.

“We were going to spend the rest of our lives together. And it may sound selfish but… at least I got to spend the rest of my life with her.”

Mason couldn’t cry even though he wanted to. He just hasn’t known Romeo long enough “Romeo!?” Romeo opened his eyes

“I am here Mason.” Mason looked at the floor of the Armored DB avoiding eye contact, but the floor was harder to look at due to the puddles of blood.

“I just wanted to thank you Romeo, for saving me in that convenience store, but when you did that little coin flip, were you really going to kill that guy?”

He looked at Romeo. Romeo was crying.

“I am scared of death Mason! I just want my Sarah!”

Romeo was throwing up blood, and was choking on it. Mason sat shocked, incapable of doing anything for him Mason felt torn.

“Go Mason! Go with God!” Romeo calmed himself “The real player is God Mason. Would God want me to kill that man?”

Romeo’s breath fell short as he started wheezing a bit. After a short few second long struggle Romeo fell silent, and lay with his jaw dropped, and his eyes wide open. In the back of an armored vehicle that night… Romeo died.

Mason felt Romeo’s wrist for a pulse. There wasn’t one. Mason couldn’t cry, and he felt terrible that he couldn’t. He just sat silently. There was so much racing through Mason’s head right now. So much he didn’t understand. But what he hated understanding was why he couldn’t cry for Romeo. And it was because he didn’t care. He had only known Romeo a short period. He could barely call him an acquaintance. Out of respect Mason put his hands over Romeo’s eyes and slowly, gently slid his hand down closing them.

“Go with God. Where exactly would he take me?” Mason said with a snarl.

Hours later Wayne waited on the edge of a huge gap filled with salt water. He then received a walkie talkie call from Rust that she was nearby then he shot a green flare up at an enormous, powerful looking structure that stretched for miles in both directions. A giant draw bridge then started pumping towards the ground. Wayne looked off in the distance to see Rust speeding toward him. He then looked up at the sky.

“Anything else before we are safely tucked away! No!”

Wayne looked around for any oncoming irons of which there were none. “Good.” Wayne then whispered.

Wayne walked back behind the Armored DB. He went to open it but then stopped. “Oh Jesus. I already know what I’m going to find.” He knew Romeo was going to be dead. But he figured since Mason hadn’t alerted him yet that there was hope. “Oh no!” said Wayne as the door was partly swung open. The commander himself had confirmed it. Romeo had died.