Scavenge

Chapter One

  Her narrow eyes scanned the interior wreck of a ship as she meandered through the twisting corridors. The rusted hull gave off the acrid smell of the oxidation that had been consuming the vehicle for centuries, making her nose twitch.

Slender fingers tapped against the beige cargo pants she wore, partnered with the worn, gray tank top on the upper. The small dunes of sand swished under bare feet, a light breeze caused some relief on the scalding day. The girl knelt down, pushing her long blonde hair back behind her petite ears. A small glimmer beneath the continuous mounds had caught her attention. A small silver buckle. To some, a small trinket, but it was more valuable than gold to her. She slipped it into her cargos' pocket as it rattled against the other various trinkets she had found in the waste of the ship.

Just then, a disheveled bunch of hair poked out from a door on the other side of the hall.

"Find anything, Cait?" The brunette slid out of the room. Her short hair was pinned in a bun, and her dark skin shined with sweat from digging. Stitched-up shorts and a black t-shirt were her attire.

Nia was her name, Cait's friend from childhood. They worked as a pair collecting since they were allowed at the age of eight. They could be hard at work and still be joking around with each other. "I only found a few pipe pieces and a copper wire." She held up the aforementioned materials.

"Some bolts and gears. And this." Cait held the shining buckle for Nia to see with a glowing smile. "We can split the tokens fifty-fifty, okay?" Nia simpered, bumping her friend with her shoulder "Yeah, thanks, Cait."

They started making their way back to the large opening they found near the bow of the ship. Trudging in the dark halls, Nia shivered. "It's too hot to be digging here." She complained loudly. Digging in her little blue pack, she pulled out two canteens. "Here's yours," She tossed it to Cait, who eagerly caught it and gulped it down to half the container. Nia chugged hers as well, as she smacked her lips together. "Nothing like some cool water after some treasure-hunting, huh Captain?" She winked and grinned at Cait.

They longed to find some valuable that could set them up for life in the Draft, where rich thrived with actual food and lavish homes. Nia compared them to pirates, who stole and pillaged to make a living. It was always a running joke when they didn't find anything good, to lift their spirits.

But Cait had found her buckle, which would get them enough for a week of relaxation. Cait shimmied up a high ledge that marked their entry. Nia clambered up when Cait offered her hand in help to her winded friend.

  Stepping up, she yelped and swore, "Fuck!" Her ankle had gotten caught on a piece of metal sticking out of the wall. "Got me good," She knelt to examine the wound. A medium sized cut dribbled blood, luckily drying quickly in the hot air. "Damn piece of shit..." She looked up at Cait. "You think it'll get infected?" Cait shrugged, "Probably won't stop you anyway." Nia snorted, wiping some of the blood off. "Nope. Now let's get back, we gotta sell this."

Squeezing through the entry, they started their journey back. They trekked past various condemned wrecks where others had left long before, leaving scraps.

Nia and Cait would trail off occasionally when there was a free pick someone had dropped and discretely shove it in their pockets.

"Damn, why is it so hot?" Nia complained again, yelling at the sun. "Go down faster you little shit!" Cait laughed, kneeling to grab a small gear from a half-buried car. "Yeah, hot as hell." Nia huffed, blowing a loose strand of hair out of her face, "Fucking heat..." She grumbled with a glimmer of humour.

Through the haze and wind, lights shone dimly, a welcome home. Ettan was no glorious city, but the small town was a happy sight for the two exhausted girls.

Making their way towards it, they decided what the maximum deal they'd get from the Draft vendor.

"I'm thinkin' I'll get fifteen with the shit I got." Nia jangled her pack, "Actually, maybe twenty-five with the wire." Cait felt her pocket, "Maybe twenty-five too."

Nia laughed at her small guess, "Nah, I'll say you're getting at least sixty, with that little beauty." She pointed to the buckle Cait had brought out. "We should go to that wreck again tomorrow, we'll probably find something else."

They passed the small stone tower that marked Ettan's borders from the Waste, the harsh desert where the residents searched for objects to sell.

Passing it, they came up to the very disgruntled looking vendor in his suit and tie.

Nia jumped up onto the ledge of his cart and sat down.
"Hey, Jack. Any good finds?" The vendor chuckled, he had known them since they started. Jack was the Draft vendor for Ettan, selling and collecting the materials the townsfolk brought. "No, nothing good yet, and that's my cart, not a seat for your ass." Nia stuck out her tounge, placing her wire and pipe pieces on the ledge.

"How much?" Jack knew of Nia's shenanigans and realized a long time ago she couldn't be budged. He looked at his pricing chart and then proceeded to hand her twenty-one tokens, just four under what she had guessed. "Not bad, now get off?" She stretched against the wall and put her hands behind her head. "Nope."

Cait came up to the window. She gave the man her her bolts, gears, and waited for him to tally up the price of those first. Twelve tokens. She then gave him the silver buckle, which he raised his eyebrow at, took, and then turned to the chart. Studying it for a minute, he turned back with an almost impressed look.

"A good find, indeed. Fifty-five tokens for this." Nia whistled, "Nice, Cait." She jumped off Jack's cart, to which he sighed. She pushed the blonde playfully, twirling and changing her tone to a haughty one. "Now you can live in the luxurious community of the Draft." She bowed and looked up mischievously at the two.

Jack cracked a smile, obviously tickled at her impression. "She's not quite there yet, the lowest costing house is over forty thousand."