Ice Lands, The: Frozen in a perpetual blanket of ice and snow, the northern and southern latitudes of the planet are completely unlivable. In the Wasteland at least, they are referred to as the Ice Lands. Under a blanket of meteor fallout, global cooling sent temperatures on Earth plummeting. While glaciers are only now experiencing rapid regrowth, they will advance for centuries, and perhaps millenniums, to come, until the fallout has dissipated enough to produce a warmer climate. In the Wasteland, 45 degrees north marks the beginning of what is considered the Ice Lands.
L.A. Gangland: L.A. Gangland means a much different thing than it did Pre-Ragnarok. In the ruins of Los Angeles, there are dozens of gangs vying for control, but by 2060, the most powerful is Black Reapers, who usurped that title from the Lost Angels.
Lost Angels, The: The Lost Angels were post-apocalyptic L.A.’s first super gang. From the year 2050 until 2055, they reigned supreme in the city, led by a charismatic figure named Dark Raine. The Angels were different from other gangs – they valued individual freedom and abhorred slavery. Under the Angels’ rule, Los Angeles prospered. The Angels were eventually usurped in 2056 by a gang called the Black Reapers, led by a man named Carin Black.
Oasis: Oasis is a settlement located in the Wasteland, about halfway between Los Angeles and Raider Bluff. It has a population of one thousand, and is built around the banks of the oasis for which it is named. The oasis did not exist Pre-Ragnarok, but was formed by tapping an underground aquifer.
Raider Bluff: Raider Bluff is the only known settlement of the raiders. It is built northeast of what used to be Needles, California, across the Colorado River, on top of a three-tiered mesa. Though the raiders are mobile group, even they need a place to rest during the harsh, Wasteland winter. Merchants, women, and servants followed the raider men, setting up shop on the mesa, giving birth to Raider Bluff sometime in the early 2040’s. From the top of the Bluff rules the Alpha, the strongest recognized leader of the raiders. A new Alpha rises only when he is able to wrest control from the old one.
Ragnarok: Ragnarok was the given name of the meteor the crashed into Earth on December 3, 2030. It was discovered by astronomer Neil Weinstein in 2019. Ragnarok was about three miles long, and two miles wide. It is not known how it eluded detection for so long.
Recon: A Recon is an all-terrain rover that is powered by hydrogen. It is designed for speedy recon missions across the Wastes, and was developed by the United States military during the Dark Decade. It is composed of a cab, in front, and a large cargo bay in the back. Mounted on top of the cargo bay is a turret with 360 degree rotation, accessible by a ladder and a porthole. The turret can be manned and fired while the Recon is on the go.
Wasteland, The: The Wasteland is a large tract of land comprising of Southern California and the Western United States. It extends from the San Bernardino Mountains in the west, to the Rockies in the east, and from the northern border of Mexico to the south, to the Ice Lands to the north (which is about the same latitude as Sacramento, California). The Wasteland is characterized by a cold, extremely dry climate. Rainfall each year is little to none, two to four inches being about average. Little can survive the Wasteland, meaning that all life has clung to limited water supplies. Major population centers include Raider Bluff, along the Colorado River, the settlement of Oasis, supplied by a body of water of the same name, and Last Town, a trading post that sprung up along I-10 between Los Angeles and the Mojave. Lost Angeles flanks the Wasteland’s western extreme, while Las Vegas flanks its eastern extreme.
Wastelanders: Wastelanders are surface dwellers, specifically ones that live in the southwestern United States. The term is broad – but generally it means a surface dweller who is forced to wander, scavenge, or raid for sustenance. Wastelanders are feared by Bunker dwellers, as they have been the number one reason for Bunkers failing.
Xenofungus: Xenofungus is a slimy, sticky fungus that is colored pink, orange, or purple (and sometimes all three). Whether benign or hostile, no one knows – and that is part of the focus of Dr. Steven Keener’s research.
Xenovirus: The xenovirus is an agent that attaches itself to DNA, acquires it, and mixes and matches it with the DNA it has already collected. It mostly affects microbes, and more recently, plants, but it is thought to be benign.
Also by Kyle West
The Wasteland Chronicles
Apocalypse
Origins
Evolution
Watch for more at Kyle West’s site.
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
APOCALYPSE
First edition. December 5, 2012.
Copyright © 2012 Kyle West.
Written by Kyle West.