HROT: Spawn of War

Chapter 6: The Rally

Scott, Tony, Alex, Leon, Kieran, and Kiah wandered through the endless sea of sand. They had been traveling through the Rotten Desert for two days. They were low on water and had just run out of food. The sun bore down on them like an ever-present fire. They didn't know how much further they could go.

"Where is he?" Kieran asked wearily. "I don't know if I can last another day."

"He's here somewhere," Tony assured them. "We just don't remember his exact location."

Scott was silent. He had barely talked for the past two days. His father's death was bearing down on him heavily. No matter how hard Tony tried to console him, he couldn't get through the shell of sorrow enveloping his friend.

"I'm so thirsty," Leon moaned.

"Drink your own piss," Tony remarked. "We need to conserve our water."

The sun was going down. It would be cold and dark soon. The group set up camp at the top of a dune. No matter where they looked in any direction, they could see nothing but sand.

After the group set up camp, Scott wandered to the foot of the dune and sat by himself. As the others gathered around the fire, they pondered what their next course of action should be. "Maybe we should head back," Leon said. "How do we even know that David is still out here?"

"He's out here," Tony replied resolutely. "We'll find him. We didn't make this trip for nothing. Plus, this is the only location where we know for sure that he's been."

Kiah sat right next to Tony, uncomfortably within his personal space, staring at him. Tony couldn't understand it, but every time he looked at Kiah, he felt an overwhelming intensity of emotion. The more undressed she was, the more severe the effects were. Thankfully, she was fully clothed at the moment.

"I feel really bad for Scott," Alex commented. "It must be horrible to lose a father like that."

"Yeah, I know that feeling," Tony replied hollowly.

"I didn't even meet my father," Alex explained. "He and my mother died before Kyle took me to find them. My sister's still around, though. I hope she's doing well."

The conversation droned on and on. All Tony could think about was how Scott must be doing, and that they were both without parents. Tony departed from the campfire, despite the insistence from Kiah that he stay, and slid to the bottom of the dune to join Scott.

Scott was crestfallen, hanging his head between his knees. It seemed to Tony that all the life had been drained out of him. "Are you ready to talk yet?" Tony asked.

Scott inhaled deeply. "He's gone, Tony—the man who raised me, gave me my abilities, and showed me how to be a good man." He grunted. "I guess I can't say you don't know how I feel. You lost your father before I did."

Tony nodded somberly. "It's rough. Really rough. But it's given me a motivation to continue this fight after we get Kyle back. With him and us, we can prove a real challenge to the Warnger and help Blazing A. That's what keeps me going. I will avenge my father at any cost."

"That Warnger will die no matter what," Scott concurred. "I don't care if it costs me my life."

"That's the spirit. Do you want to go back to the group now?"

Scott nodded and followed Tony up the hill.

The next morning, the group packed their things and continued their desert trek. Tony unzipped his backpack and said, "Alright, you guys have been in here long enough." Alex screamed in surprise as two gray tabbies jumped out of Tony's backpack and landed on the ground. Ass Cat was the larger and older of the two, while Cuntessa von Clittycat was the smaller, more agile one. "They've been in your backpack the whole time?" Alex asked.