star chasers

iv.

"What's the plan?" Lefty yelled to Chu over the sound of the engine, dropping the cloth covering his face. His voice was so high and quiet that it fought the wind whipping the back of the truckbed. He was inspecting his knife, mocking a swing. With enough force and an experienced user, it could be lethal.

"They have high security at water breaks, yeah?"

"If you run, you get shot."

Chu grinned. "We've got someone on the inside. If it goes as planned, they'll be there."

"How do we get there?"

The truck rolled to a stop amid asphalt shards and dust clouds, in front of a mud covered, large vehicle. A pair of windows sat on the front and back of it, larger than the truck, smaller than the massive vehicles that Remus used for capture.

"A caravan," Lefty confirmed.

Chu smiled in agreement as they walked toward the vehicle. "Remus boys love caravans more than caravans love caravans," he said, opening the door of the vehicle, "and most caravan merchants are star chasers. It's funny."

The truck driver, silent, gestured to the back of the caravan, full of trinkets and wares. He lifted the large blanket on the floor to reveal two guns.

Lefty hesitated as Chu grabbed his and placed it in his belt, frowning at Lefty's lack of action.

"Take it," the truck driver, Cass, said, walking to the passenger's seat, "You're gonna need it one day."

The caravan rumbled as the ex-fighter reluctantly grabbed his gun, examining the heavy, cool metal in his hand. He'd been threatened with one plenty of times, but never used one before. To him, they were a symbol of Remus. Every guard had a gun, of course, held close to their bodies and shown off like jewelry. Lefty had to work hard to kill someone, watch and feel them die. And if he didn't, if he refused, the guards would finish the job in a few seconds.

An empty stretch of land was where the van stopped, patches of clumped, brown grass trying desperately to grow despite the scorching sun. It was a first degree burn kind of day, if you stayed out too long.

The first time Lefty stepped out of a Remus truck, he noticed the smell. The waft of grass and sky felt so separate from the smell inside: piss, vomit, tears. No more sobs and screams, people thrashing their bodies against the constraints, children calling for their mothers. All he did was think about what happened, replay the scene over and over, what he could have changed, if his mother was alive, if his father was around. If his body wasn't smaller than the other boys.

He pushed the thoughts away as Chu stopped the car, engine dying and filling the void with silence. Lefty lifted himself to look out the windows. He could feel the fire in his chest, fluttering in his stomach. The fear of being too close to a memory.

Chu opened the door, a smile on his face, wider than Lefty had ever seen. Joy.

"Hello, citizens of Remus!" he boomed, a new energy possessing him, "Is there a need for wares?"

"Who the hell are you?" a guard asked, grabbing his gun. There were four guards in all, Chu studied; one woman, three men. The captees, soaked in sweat and other liquids, were served cups of water by the woman. Fear and confusion filled their gaze.

"We're the Trio," Chu stated matter-of-factly, "Only the greatest caravan in America."

"America?"

"A grand land, it is," Cass spoke, hopping out of the van himself.

Lefty hopped out to bright sunlight and puzzled guards. He nodded in agreement, eyes adjusting to the light, until his stomach dropped.

He knew one of the guards.