Mutant 99 [Fanfic]

| Fire Making and Books Galore |

It was night time, stars twinkled brightly in the sky, a moon slightly past half full drifted through the air. Cross was in the forest. It was a different wood than the one he knew. His first clue was the sound of birdsong. Instead of the cawing and screeching he was accustomed to, it actually sounded pleasant. Not to mention the trees and foliage were a soft, vibrant green, not menacingly dark and dangerous.

He knew this was a dream, but it was far too vivid. He could feel the gentle breeze, he could smell the sweet flowers, he could taste the clean air... He knew this must be the world before.

Oddly, his body felt smaller, not as heavy as he was accustomed.

There was a man kneeling in front of him, a pile of dry wood set there as well. The man was showing him something, how to rub sticks together.

Any idiot could do that.

Suddenly, the sticks began smoking, and then whoosh! They burst into flames! The man went to look up at him but the scene ended and went black, changing to a new one before he could see his face.

A ringing of metal on Metal sounded. He was in a structure with open walls and just a roof. Inside, a thickset man with hard muscles swung a hammer onto a glowing piece of metal. He knew it was the same man as before, though his face was still hidden.

The man demanded that he watching the metal as he continued hammering it. The fire wasn't made of wood but of stone, a strange scent coming from the flames that told of the difference.

He watched as the orange glowing metal began to take on a knew shape...

Cross jerked up in the bed-nest. His hands twitched on his legs as he looked around. He knew what he'd just had was a memory, not just a dream.

His head was killing him, pounding and aching... He gripped it and leaned over, curling up to let the feeling pass.

When the Mutant opened his eyes again, he saw the boarded up hole full of webbings.

Cross narrowed his eyes. He decided today he'd clear that out.

He had a brand new idea how to do it, too.

Cross dragged himself out of the bed and pulled on some clothes. Now dressed in a black leather coat, red shirt, dark jeans, and the same hard leather boots, Mutant 99 pulled his makeshift barricade down from the front door and gripped his knife and hatchet.

A stray Wolf-Bear had wandered into his town, so he quickly dealt with it. He carved a slab of meat off and choked it down as he wandered towards the wood.

Cutting through the brush -- ignoring and avoiding the white fluff as he went, having seen what that shit does to living things -- he quickly found what he wanted.

A slightly thin stick only about one foot. Putting the knife away, Cross picked up the twig and used the hatchet to hack down a small branch, slightly thick, then cut off a three foot length. Heading back towards his base with these, finding a wooden board in the town, he got to work.

He began building a fire with boards, setting aside the stick that would be his torch. After about an hour of twisting the stick on the board, he had himself a nice looking fire.

One last thing... He found the first thing he could that would hold water and made a quick sprint to the lake, filling the rusted and slightly crushed bucket, and ran back to town with the liquid, setting it down by the fire.

He first took his jacket off, then his shirt, then pulled the jacket back on and zipped it closed. He tied the shirt around the torch and set it in the fire. The shirt burned easily, the wood didn't catch, still wet from a fresh cut. He grabbed the water bucket in his other hand.