A Warrior's Death

A strong dusty wind howled through the canyons. A group of six people, wearing scarves across their faces and carrying bags of supplies and weapons, slowly moved their way through the rocks.

The leading person pointed towards a nearby cave, and the group made their way to it. One of them took out a flashlight, clicked it on, and scouted the area when they entered. Seeing that it's empty, the group set down their gear and removed their scarves.

John, the leader of the group, unscrewed his thermos and drank some water. "We'll wait it out until the winds die down, then we'll head back out."

Sarah groaned. "Why can we make camp and stay for the rest of the night here?"

"We got to get as much distance between the Raven Bloodz and us," John explained as he tossed the thermos to her. Mark huffed and pointed at Eric Aldren, who was wearing a hood and goggles. "We wouldn't have had them on us if Shooty McShootster hadn't killed their scout."

Eric glared at him. "That scout had been following us through the wastelands for the past three days. I wouldn't have had to shoot him if you hadn't screamed the way you did."

Just as Mark opened his mouth, John spoke. "This is getting us nowhere, guys. Sarah, Lucy, see if you can get a fire going. Mark, you're with me. Eric, you're on watch duty. Kari, check on the supplies."

The group split and began their tasks. Eric climbed several rocks to a small opening near the top and stood watch, Keeping his rifle tightly close to him. He reached into his coat and took out a heart-shaped locket. He pressed the small button, and the locket opened slightly.

Inside the locket was a photo of a woman with a warm smile. Ever since the Fall, he's been staring at the picture ritualistically, memorizing every detail of the woman. Her long dark hair, her green eyes, her rosy cheeks, all of it warmed Eric's heart, yet all the same, he felt pain from losing her.

A tear strolled down his cheek as he read the inscription, "Forever yours." Just then, a drop of blood splashed next to the photo. Eric released it was his and that it came from his nose. He wiped his nose before clearing the blood from the locket. He quickly shoved it back into his coat as Kari came behind him.

"You okay?" she asked. He gave a quick nod. "Just a nosebleed from the dust. I'm fine." Kari took a closer look at Eric's nose, but he shoved her away slightly. "I said I'm fine," he said sternly. Concerned, Kari tried looking again. But, again, Eric pushed her away. "Why do you not trust me?" Kari asked.

Eric took a deep breath. "It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that there's nothing you can do about it."

"I know you're suffering an illness. I want to help--" Kari began. Eric put his finger to her mouth. "You've helped out all you could. I also know why you've been trying to help me every chance you get. But, unfortunately, things will not work between us."

"Why is that?"

"There was only one person in my life I ever truly loved, but she's long gone now. However, I shall rejoin with her when the time comes."

Kari gave a sad smile. "I understand." she kissed his cheek before leaving. As the dust storm raged, the group gathered around the fire, eating. Mark glared at Eric as they ate. He then slammed his bowl down, startling the others except for Eric.

"Why is this one even here with us? Ever since he joined us, we've had nothing but trouble. First, there was that pack of wolves, then the cannibals at Dead Forest, and now the Raven Bloodz. So I say that he departs and spare us the trouble."

John stood up. "Mark, none of it was his fault. We faced worse. We're lucky to have Eric among us."

"Hmph, says you. If Eric had found a way to kill that scout without firing that blasted rifle and alerting the others, we wouldn't have to run for our lives."

Just as John went to speak, Eric intervened. "You know what, Mark? You're right. I could've found an alternative instead of shooting. I knew an alternative course I was going to take, but I resorted to shooting because you decided to scream."

"I was frightened," Mark complained. "And out of that fear, you alerted the rest of them. So it wouldn't have mattered whether I shot the scout or not. We would've been killed or worse because of you. So who is truly to blame here?"

Mark lowered his head, knowing that Eric is right. John sat back down. "We're going to have to work together, guys. Fighting among ourselves isn't going to help with anything. So when this storm dies down, we'll depart."

Soon enough, the dust storm died, and the group gathered their supplies and continued the journey. Eric checked the surroundings, keeping watch for any more scouts. "Stick together," John spoke in a low tone, "we're coming up on Bear Canyon."

They entered the canyon. There was rubble, trash, unknown rotting corpses, and buzzards feasting. They made their way until they spotted the exit. "There's the exit. WE'RE SAVED!" Mark exclaimed. Just then, they heard vehicles in the distance coming closer and louder.

"Raven Bloodz... they're coming." John said. Eric looked at the exit, then back to the approaching sounds. He knew what he had to do.

"Leave me a couple of guns and ammunition. I'll stay and hold them off while you guys leave." Kari's eyes widened. "Eric, no." she protested.

"Eric, there's no need to do this. We can make it out of here," John explained. Eric lowered his scarf, showing a bit of blood trickling down. "My time has come." Understanding this, John took the bag from Sarah and handed it to him. Eric went into the bag and dug in. He took out two double-barrel shotguns, a handgun, a couple of pistol magazines, and two handfuls of shotgun shells. "Now go," he said.

Kari's eyes began to tear up and she hugged him. Mark grabbed ahold of Kari and gently pried her apart. "Eric, I just want to say--" Mark began. "It's fine, Mark. Just get out of here." The group left. Kari wept as they fled and Mark felt horrible. Eric cocked his rifle after he armed himself. "I'm coming home, my beloved." he said.

Armored dune buggies sped down the canyon, banners of bloodied ravens waving rapidly, and people riding whooped and hollered. Eric aimed at one of the leading vehicles and fired, hitting the driver. The vehicle drifted to the side and crashed violently into a large rock.

Eric aimed at another vehicle and fired again, this time hitting a tire. Unfortunately, the dune buggy crashed into another one next to it, and the two collided into a wall and exploded, killing both the drivers and the riders.

Eric kept firing his rifle, killing as many Raven Bloodz as possible until he ran out of ammunition. Then, he tossed the rifle aside and took out his shotguns. The Raven Bloodz passed by him as he fired, killing the drivers at a close range. He spun when he fired at another before he took a metal bolt in the leg, causing him to drop to his knee.

He then stood as he reloaded while the Raven Bloodz began driving around him in a circle, and he fired. Each shot hit its mark, causing so much destruction with vehicles crashing, exploding, flinging bodies everywhere. Eric took a couple of bolts to the back and after removing them, he fired his last shot at an oncoming buggy, killing the rider. He picked up the crossbow, after dropping the shotguns, and spun around to a shirtless bald man jump off a burning vehicle with a spear, screaming maniacally at him. He shot the man in the head with the crossbow.

He took out his handgun and fired away. He hit a fuel tank on one of the vehicles, and the vehicle exploded. A tire flew and crushed another dune buggy, killing the driver. Eric took a few more hits in the legs and chest before loading his final magazine.

He carefully fired each shot before collapsing due to blood loss. Before he died, he reached into his pocket, took out his locket, opened it, and looked into the photo one last time. Finally, he closed the locket and died with a smile.

The Raven Bloodz cheered as they rushed towards his body. But before they can do anything, a single shot was fired into the air and they stopped. They parted as a man in a duster wearing an eye patch walked through. "Let me take a look at this one." he said as he knelt at Eric's body.

He briefly checked for any traps before he took notice of the locket. He pried it out of Eric's hand and opened it. He let out a small gasp as he recognized the woman in the photo. It was his sister. He closed the locket and stood up.

"This body is to be left intact. Bury him' for he's earned it." A tattooed bald man protested. "But Axon, he killed--" "And he died a warrior's death, Brisk," Axon interrupted, "therefore he shall be given a proper burial."

Angered, Brisk walked away. Axon looked at Eric's lifeless body. "Take care of her, my brother." he said before he walked away.