“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Natalie mused, and then we lapsed into silence again as the blonde continued to drive us toward our destination. “I’ve been burned before, you know…”
We drove for about another thirty minutes until we came up to a large line of trees. The beach narrowed down to a small width that looked like it was too small for even a child to walk on, and the rest of the landscape morphed into a thicketed forest.
Natalie put the vehicle into park, reached down, and yanked the two wires apart.
“This is it,” she noted as she swung her leg out of the dune buggy and hopped onto the ground. “The Forest of Fallout.”
As I exited the vehicle, I couldn’t help but marvel at the strange forest before me.
The trees were large maples, with sprawling networks of branches that connected together to form a large canopy. Their bark was white and peeled back from their trunks, while their leaves were a sickly pale green.
Strangest of all, however, was the fact I could feel their warmth all the way from over here. Then there was the fact their trunks faintly illuminated their surroundings with a soft white light.
“Are—Are the trees producing heat?” I gasped. “And… glowing?”
“That’s Radon Roots for you,” Natalie explained. “They’re radiation is perfectly harmless to humans, but it’s warmth attracts all sorts of unwanted creatures to its forests. Keep your gun at the ready, and look alive as we move through it.”
“What about the dune buggy?” I asked. “Are we just going to leave it here?”
“We have no other choice,” she said as she checked out the sight on her AK-47. “Trying to take it through the forest wouldn’t work. It’s too large to fit between the trees, and it’s waaaaay too loud. We’d be drawing the attention of every creature within a mile of here.”
“Okay, so we move on foot.” I nodded. “Let’s get a move on, then… The sooner we can get through this creepy place, the better.”
“You’ll get no argument from me on that one,” Natalie admitted.
The Scavenger held her rifle tightly as she inched toward the Forest of Fallout with me right on her tail.
We passed through the tree line, and I instantly felt a hot wave of air wash over me. Sweat began to pool on my forehead, and my skin was screaming beneath the pure cotton of my shirt.
Cotton breathes, my ass.
“Damn, it’s hot in here,” I whispered as I wiped off my brow.
“Now you see why I wore these shorts and cutoffs,” Natalie chuckled. “They’re not just for show. I’d suggest you make some adjustments to your outfit, or else I’m gonna be carrying your heat-stroked body out of this place.”
I quickly stopped, tore off my sleeves to make my shirt into a tank top of sorts, and let out a sigh of relief. Even such a small modification made all the difference. That just left my pants.
I pulled Natalie’s pocket knife from my pocket, unfolded the blade, and then got to work on my long cargo-style pants. I sliced away the fabric all the way up to my knee as the hot air was released from my lower half.
“Oh, my god,” I huffed with relief. “It felt like I was about to die.”
“All the more reason to not stay the night here,” Natalie chuckled. “Now, come on.”
We wandered through the forest for another ten minutes before we took a break. Natalie halted in place, lowered her gun, and rubbed her brow in frustration.
“I think I may have gotten us lost,” she sighed. “I thought we were headed north, but this whole damned forest looks exactly the same.”
“I would have snagged a compass,” I explained, “but I couldn’t find one.”
“That’s because they don’t work in our dimension.” Natalie shook her head. “When the nuclear bombs went off, it completely messed with the Earth’s magnetic poles. Even if you had one of those things, it would just be spinning endlessly for eternity.”
“Damn,” I sighed. “Are there any landmarks we could use?”
“The power plant.” Natalie shrugged. “But the canopy is too thick to see it.”
Hmmm.
“Karla, could you help us out?” I asked aloud. “Which way do we need to go?”
I think I can help, the voice responded. From your position… turn to your left… a little more… there. Now, head forward. If you run into any obstacles, like a ravine, let me know and I’ll recalculate.
“Thanks, Karla,” I said before I turned to Natalie. “This way.”
“Lead the way,” she replied.
The two of us ventured further into the Forest of Fallout, and we made sure to touch each tree as we went. We pushed forward for almost thirty more minutes before I finally asked to stop.
The damn heat was still getting to me, so I plopped down on a fallen log and tried to catch my breath.
“As if the backpacks and guns weren’t bad enough,” I sighed, “this heat is something else.”
“Here,” Natalie offered. “Let me help.”
The Scavenger walked over to me, pulled out a knife, and sliced the sleeves off my shirt at the shoulder. Then she cut the front of the garment to create a plunging neckline that exposed most of my chest.
Natalie’s eyes went wide when she saw my pectoral muscles for the first time, but she quickly shook it off.
“Thanks.” I smiled at the woman. “I feel better already.”
“Don’t mention it,” she retorted as she dropped her eyes sheepishly. “I promise the heat will die down eventually.”
Natalie stuck out her hand to help me up, and I gratefully took it.
However, as I stood, I heard a strange droning noise off in the distance.
“Uh… Is that part of the Radon Roots, too?” I questioned.
“I don’t think so.” The Scavenger frowned then went utterly still. “Hunter, get your weapons ready.”
“Weapons?” I demanded. “Why do we need—”
“Get your weapons out and get up to me, back to back!” Natalie demanded.
I pulled the pistol out of its holster and then firmly pressed my back against Natalie’s. I should have probably grabbed the shotgun, but it was just my gut instinct to go with the pistol.
The droning sound got louder and louder until it was eventually accompanied by the sound of scuttling legs and rustling leaves.
I recognized the noise instantly, and my stomach hit the floor.
“Oh no,” I grumbled.
“What is it?” Natalie asked. “Are you familiar with these beasts?”
“Way too familiar,” I sighed. “Cockroaches. And, judging by the sound of it… there’s a bunch of them.”
Suddenly, they came into view.
A small swarm of roaches was headed our way, but these weren’t any sort of roaches I’d ever encountered before. These things were almost two feet tall and equally as wide, carried by wings nearly three feet long.
They weren’t alone, either.
Just behind the roaches were five massive insects with black and yellow stripes and with stingers the size of a kitchen knife.
Bees.
Roaches and bees.
Oh, the cruel irony.
Chapter 11
“You have got to be kidding me!” I groaned. “Roaches and bees? This has got to be the laws of time and space playing a joke on me.”
“Are these the sorts of creatures you try to control back in your world?” Natalie questioned as she readied her AK-47. “Because if so, I have a newfound respect for what you do.”
“They’re nothing like this,” I noted as I fumbled to turn off the safety on my weapon. “In my world, they’re only an inch or two long.”