The Lantern Bearers

Chapter 19: branding out of love

Before deciding to head out, i would converse with the group.

"Alright so....melody, that lady that came to camp, has a stash location for us. She's gonna lead us to it." I said.

Yui shook her head.

"Master, i do not trust her. I can not detect her facial construct, her voice is obscured, and my scans malfunction when i try to do a rough biometric scan. Something is off with her, master." She insisted.

"I warned her that if this is a trap, she will be gunned down in a heartbeat." I said.

"Master...." yui said solemnly.

"I heard some stashes contain the original illuminated charts. The one Aiden Marker made during the early years of the fall." Willow said.

"Aren't they redundant now though?" Zeus said, reclining in his chair carelessly.

"Actually, they're both useful and fetch a high price. They're highly sought after by historians and others alike. Its basically paper gold." I remarked.

"How are they of use? They're old!" Zeus exclaimed.

"If your PDA goes out, you essentially have a map. If you can read a map and can determine where you are, then you can find your way back to camp, easily. Not only that, the world hasn't changed and the anomaly zones don't move during flux waves, only anomalies that are scattered around. For some odd reason, the zones remain the same. So if you want a map that shows anomaly zones, points of interests, and so on, they're worth holding onto for that reason." I said, lighting a cigarette.

"Speaking of anomalies, why haven't we done any artifact hunting in a while?" Zeus asked.

"Because one, you fucked up your arm last time. Two, karma happened. Three, Willow's pregnant and has to take it easy." I said plainly as i puffed on my cigarette.

"Hey, I'm not big yet! I want to kill the static for butchering my friends and to find the hive strider and kill his ass too!" She protested.

"You're putting two lives on the line." I retorted.

"No I'm not! Don't discount me because I'm pregnant! I'm a survivor like the rest of you and a lantern bearer!" She exclaimed.

There was a silence around the fire.

I took a long hit on my cigarette, puffed it in the air, and flicked it in the fire.

"You strongly feel that way, huh?" I said.

"Yes! I do!" Willow said.

"Can you be a bearer and a mother at the same time?"

"Yes!"

"So you'll have our backs, take care of your unborn child, and yourself?"

"I'll do everything it takes to not drag us down!"

I looked at her, seeing determination in her eyes.

"Zeus?" I said.

"Yes?"

"Do you have our backs as well as your own?"

"Heh! You know it!" He said, doing a finger pistol at me.

"Yui-"

"You need not ask me, master. For i will protect us all and will maintain functionality." Yui said with a smile.

"Alright.....then I'm gonna do something that will protect you from any slave merchants and bandits wanting to kidnap and sell you off..." i said as i got up and went to my shed.