After

[1]

The large, black storm clouds edged over the distant horizon, casting looming shadows across the orange desert landscape. The deafening crack of thunder broke the silence, and as it subsided, the faint sound of an engine took its place.

The armoured military vehicle crested a hill, and the driver stopped to look down in the valley at the small township below. Tin roofed huts surrounded a small well, and the unmistakeable forms of people moved around.
"This all good guys?" The driver asked into a radio.

After a moment, it crackled back at him. "Seems good, all clear to go."

The driver nodded. "Roger that." He hung up the radio, and continued down the hill.

Children screamed and people darted out of the way as the vehicle pulled up in the town centre, red dust billowing out behind its wheels. The driver lay across the soft padded chair in the front of the truck as he heard the doors of the truck slam open.

Three figures stepped out, their combat boots sinking into the sand. Riley Casman shielded his eyes from the harsh sunlight as his brother Nick stepped out beside him, handing him a pair of slightly cracked sunglasses. He slipped them on, and turned around to receive his bow from their cousin Nile, who then slammed the truck door shut behind them.

Nick reached into his pocket and pulled a faded, severely crumpled yellow envelope. "Ready?"

Riley nodded, hooking his bow over his shoulder, and adjusting the quiver strap on his chest. "Yep."

The three men approached the nearest building. A painted wooden sign read General Traders. Nike pushed open the door, and light flooded the front of the room. A short, stocky man stood behind a counter, small bits of metal and wood shavings were caught in his orange beard.

"Well." He grinned over them, his eyes lighting up. "We don't get many first generations around here."

Riley smiled. "What gave us away?"

The shopkeeper raised an eyebrow. "Ya mean other than the fancy trucks and weirdo matching outfits?"

Nick gritted his teeth. "They're uniforms. We were part of the Australian Special Ops." He opened the envelope and pulled out the printed photos concealed inside. He held them out to the man.
"Now, have you seen either of these people in the last year?"

The shopkeeper leant over the counter, looking down at the pictures. One showed a young woman in a uniform similar to the three men, a large gun across her back. The other showed a small girl, laughing at whoever was behind the camera as she sat in a small patch of green grass.
"Can't say I have mate. Any names to go by?"

"Charlotte." Riley said. "And Kath."

The shopkeeper shrugged. "Any photos from a first gen are hard to go off. Don't know how long they've been released for. Now are you blokes gonna buy something, or are ya done?"

Nile stepped forward. "Actually, we're here to offer a service. We're mutant hunters. We'd be happy to take care of any problems you've got, in exchange for some rations and fresh water of course."

The shopkeeper scratched at his beard.
"Well, if you're offering, there's been somethin' mighty strange going on out east. Weird, explosions or something on the horizons. It's keepin' away the regular Spring-Heels and Dires, but it's certainly upsetting the town. The whole lot of us would be grateful if you three'd check it out."
He ducked under the counter and re-emerged with a large sealed tub, and a then again with a smaller metal crate.
"This is all I can give you. Should be enough to last you's to the next town over at least."

Nile scooped up the tubs, stepping away from the counter. "We can certainly check it out for you mate."

The three turned to leave the store. Just before Riley opened the door, Nick spun around. He pulled a handgun from his belt and shot the shopkeeper, the sound echoing around the haphazardly constructed building.

"What was that for?" Riley asked.

Nick glanced down at the picture of the young girl. "He wasn't going to be any use to us either way."

The three left the building, and quickly moved back to the truck before the townsfolk could find the shopkeepers body.

***

Nick hunched over a tattered map of Australia as the truck bounced along the dirt road.

"Any clue where we are?" Nile asked from a bunk above him.

Nick sighed, running his hand over his face. He looked down at the route he'd been drawing on the map. It started at a the word Melbourne, which had been crossed out.
"No clue." He admitted. "If we can find our way to the sea, we may be able to make our way up the eastern coast and find any remnants of Sydney."
He threw himself back into a chair, staring over at the motorbike beside him.

Riley paced up and down the converted living space in the back of the truck. He moved over to the bulletproof window over the drivers cabin, giving those inside a view of the road ahead. He picked up the radio.

"We almost to there yet, mate?"

An explosion happened a few hundred metres ahead of them, just beyond the crest of a tall sand dune.
The radio crackled back. "Does that answer your question?"

Riley leant back, and tapped Nile on the shoulder.
"Get down and suit up. We don't know what we could be dealing with here."

Nick picked up his own bow, and slung his quiver of arrows over his shoulder.
"We've never faced anything like this before. Scaring off mutant kangaroos and dingos? And what kind of mutant could cause explosions?"

Riley shrugged, checking his motorbike. "Maybe some kind of spider or snake? Could be an extreme mutation to the venom glands?"

Nile aimed his gun at the door and loaded a fresh clip of ammunition. "Whatever it is, I can't wait to try and take it down."

* * * * * * *

Covella listened to the thunder in the distance, her green hood pulled low over her face, and her raven black hair whipping around her in the wind. Only the sound of her boots on the sand below her feet distracted her from what she was really looking for. There was an electronic whirring sound from her feet, not unlike a purring sound.

She looked down to see Cato, her animatronic cat. It's sleek outer panels and circular joints were scratched and rusted from the constant travelling in the harsh conditions.

"We're almost there buddy." Covella said aloud. "Although I'm not entirely sure where there is."
She slipped her hand into her pocket, and allowed her fingers to close around a small, slightly dented pocket watch.
"Almost there."
She continued through the seemingly endless red desert...