Gyaros Book One: The Mice Eat Iron (YA 17+ Sci Fi Adventure) (22 page)

“
So one day Taggart comes running in the restaurant and tells me he was up on The Terra Ridge and saw a herd of cattle just roaming about six miles out west. We hopped in the pickup and sped out to see could we bring back some easy meat and sure enough there they were, must ‘a been five hundred head. We couldn’t believe our eyes, we wanted to take ‘em all, but all we had was this rusty ‘ol pickup. So I took aim and shot one through the head, it fell to the ground and we used the old winch to get it into the truck.” Gideon took another sip of beer this time finishing the bottle. He reached down to grab another and cracked it open taking a sip and emitting and satisfied ‘Ahh’.

“So we get the cow back to the shop
and I go ahead and start butchering the thing, when I notice its stomach. There was this zigzag pattern along its underside like nothin’ I’d ever seen before, and when I went to cut into it and gut the heifer the fuckin’ thing opened right up and screamed at me! No bullshit!”

Miles face contorted in disgust and confusion.

“What?! You’re joking right?” he asked incredulously.

“
This was no cow man, this thing had razor sharp teeth where its stomach should have been and it started snappin’ and chasing me all around the kitchen! I ran out into the restaurant and the damn thing followed me out, scrapin’ along the floor with its gangly legs. Our poor customers freaked the hell out and ran out the front door screaming,” Gideon continued laughing and gesticulating, “so Taggart hears the fuss and runs in with his shotgun. ‘What the fuck’s going on here,’ he yells and then he see the cow’s body sliding along the floor, its big belly open wide and snappin’ at chairs and tables, wood chips flying all over! Taggart screams, ‘what the hell is that thing!’ and starts taking pot shots pumping the ugly son of a bitch full ‘o lead until it stops movin.”

“What the hell was it?”
asked Miles as excited as he was disgusted by the story.

“Well we found out later that this
new breed of parasite was infecting the livestock. It used the cow’s body as a host and grew inside it. It tapped into the brain and nervous system of the animal and just kept on pretendin’ to act like a cow even though the original was long dead. Then when a person or wolf or other predator would try and attack the docile cow the parasite would spring into action surprisin’ the attacker with its razor sharp teeth hidden away in the belly. Word was that the farmers out west just let the infected cattle free to stop the spread and that’s how they ended up at The Dustbowl. Took us months to kill ‘em all. Eventually the parasite wiped out all the bovine livestock on Gyaros, that’s why it’s so damn hard to get our hands on fresh meat anymore.”

The three men enjoyed the rest of the evening and whiled away the hours chatting and drinking.

Miles had visited the local mechanic-slash-car dealership a few days ago to enquire about purchasing a car. The cheapest of which was a small roofless thing that was little more than a roll cage on wheels. Even that dinky little thing cost five thousand Talons. With the two grand Miles received for the raids, plus his weekly five hundred that put him at a total of three thousand Talons in savings. At this rate it would be months before he would have sufficient cash to buy a vehicle sturdy enough to survive the journey to New Fortune. Miles often spent his nights lying awake, thinking up ways to make more money. So far all he’d realistically come up with was robbing the restaurant’s register, but even after the busiest of days there was only ever a maximum of around six hundred Talons. Not nearly enough to justify the risk. And besides Miles was not in the mood for taking any risks beyond what was necessary. He had sworn to himself that this time he would do what he foolishly didn’t do when he had the chance at Le Cinema Magnifique. That is to say; work hard, lay low and let time pass. No quick fixes, no shortcuts. He owed his family more than that. Yes his work was unspeakably unethical and horrifyingly disturbing, but on Gyaros it was kill or be killed. This was how Miles justified his daily life, and with the image of his wife and child always in his mind he battled on, day after day.

Back in the present
Miles had calmed down somewhat, his breathing and heart rate returning to normal after the nightmare. He laid down again onto the hard floor of the scullery and pulled his sleeping bag over his shoulder. It had been three days since his last nightmare, and Miles knew only too well why he experienced one this night. Tomorrow it was time for another raid, another hunt. Meat was once again growing scarce and Miles dreaded to think what might await him the following day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 1
6

After sleeping for what felt like only minutes Miles was nudged awake by the boot of Gideon who stood above him grinning as usual.

“Rise and shine Miles, time to go huntin’.
I’ll be out in the diner, get dressed and meet me out there, I need to talk to ya about something.”

Gideon left the scullery, walking throug
h the steel door into the diner as Miles slipped out of the sleeping bag, rolled it up and placed in under the sink as he did every morning. He pulled on his trousers and a shirt, squeezed his feet into his worn out shoes and made his way into the eatery. Stretching and yawing he spotted Gideon sitting at a table at the far end of the room next to the window that faced into the street.

“Have a seat my boy,” said Gideon reaching over and slapping the seat opposite his. Miles complied and rested his bottom on the wooden chair.

“As you know you and Jasper will be taking another trip today. I’ve heard tell that yesterday another shuttle landed but the doors malfunctioned and whoever’s in there can’t get out.”

‘That’s exactly what happened to us
,’ Miles thought, ‘my God, were we that close to being burger meat ourselves?! Although I’d say Maxen would have had something to say about that’.

“So you want us to head to the landing zone, get the door open and um…extract the people,” said Miles with a gulp.

“You catch on quick,” said Gideon laughing, “yeah that’s about the gist of it. I’ve got an old industrial blowtorch that you boys can use to cut a hole in that door. Used to belong to Taggart before he took off for Titans Arena lookin’ for glory, haven’t heard from him in a year, stupid bastard probably got himself killed long ago. But I digress. Get to the landing zone, open the door, get the meat and bring it back. You got all that?”

“Got it,” n
odded Miles affirmatively. He wasn’t looking forward to yet another meat raid but he had now accepted that they were a part of surviving life on Gyaros for the moment and the foreseeable future. He focused on his family, his home and the one thousand talons that would be his at the end of the day. One step closer to getting out of this psychotic situation. Miles stood up to go and prepare for the trip but Gideon grabbed his arm and began to speak. Miles sat back down.

“Oh and Miles there’s something else I need to talk to you about.
Now we all know what happened last time, you froze up. I can’t afford to lose Jasper you understand? Not after what happened to Emmet.”

“I’m sorry Gideon, there was nothing I could do. I wanted to help but my hands just wouldn’t move!”

“I know you did boy, no one’s saying you did it on purpose, these thing happen until you learn to overcome it.”

‘Learn to overcome it? What does that mean?’ Miles thought to himself as his stomach contracted and he felt his skin tingle ominously.

“We’ve been plenty patient with you Miles, but unless you make your first kill you’re about as useful here as an umbrella in a dust storm.”

“But I clean, I
-I run the register sometimes, I run errands! Surely I earn my keep, I-I don’t eat much. I’m just not a killer, I-I don’t think I can even do it!” Miles stuttered with panic in his voice, ‘please don’t make me kill people Gideon!’

“Sure
, you do your share of the work round here Miles, I ain’t arguing with you there. But I can’t send my boy out with someone who’s gonna freeze every time the shit hits the fan. And besides I do believe the conditions of your employment included doing what you were told.”

‘Damn it, h
e’s right, keep my mouth shut and do what I’m told, those were the rules. That’s the reason I’m still here and not in a burger’

“Now you’re free to go Miles, anytime you like, ain’t no one keeping ya here but you. But I’m tellin’ you now that if you wanna stay
workin’ and livin’ here you’re gonna have to step it up. One of these days Miles it’s gonna be kill or be killed, whether you’re working here or not. And now wouldn’t it be easier to pop yer cherry with a nice docile Carthaginian straight off the shuttle than with the hardened folk up here? Way I see it, I’m doin’ you a favour here Miles.”

Miles knew Gideon had a point, a terrible, morbid
, sickening point but a valid point all the same. He had often spent his restless nights dwelling on the fact that at some stage he would most likely be forced to take the life of another on Gyaros. But having it sprung on him like this was such a shock, no amount of dwelling or pondering could have prepared him for the reality of actually murdering another human being.

“I know what you say is true Gideon but still, I honestly don’t know if I’m capable of killing someone
. Shooting straw men and targets at the range is very different to ending the life of a human being!” Miles argued hoping against hope that his humanitarian appeal would change Gideon’s mind.

“You don’t have a problem eating these human beings you’re so fond of, so what’s the big deal with killing one?” Gideon retorted
bluntly.

Miles was sickened by what he’d just heard, both by the reminder of his current diet and the fact that once again he was without any real argument.

“Miles listen, I can see you’re having trouble with this, but it gets easier with every kill,” Gideon said in a compassionate manner.

‘I don’t want it to get easier, I don’t want to kill anyone
!’ Miles thought.

“Today you’re taking point, you’re the kill man and Jasper will back you up,” Gideon said, now very serious
, “if you come back here today without a kill you won’t be welcome here no more you understand? We’ll make do without you until we find someone to replace ya, someone who can end another person’s life
and
wash dishes.” Gideon’s eyes pierced into Mile’s soul, an incredibly stern look on his face. But suddenly it changed to that big grin once more.

“Cheer up buddy, you’re gonna do just fine. Get it done and we’ll celebrate with a night at The Rusty Anchor!”
he said jovially. Miles hadn’t yet mentioned that he was banned from the bar, and this certainly wasn’t the best time to bring it up.

Miles nodded reluctantly feeling completely drained, he sauntered back into the sculler
y to wash up and prepare for the dark task that awaited him.

Miles and Jasper bounced along the rocky dirt road as they headed out from the southern entrance of The Dustbowl this time, out toward the landing zone. The pickup truck entered the narrow valley between the two vertical rock formations that Miles had walked with Landi and Maxen what felt like an eternity ago, though it could not have been more than four weeks at the most.

“So
, your first time huh Miles,” said Jasper looking over toward the sullen figure beside him. “Aww come on man, it ain’t so bad, shit I don’t even know how many I’ve killed and there ain’t nothin’ wrong with me!”

‘That’s a matter for debate
,’ thought Miles. Ever since his arrival he had held himself above the citizens of Gyaros, he was not like them, he was civilized, humane, caring, ethical and moral. “You are a good man Miles” were Candice’s words and Miles believed them. But the longer he stayed the more his old standards eroded, he had stood by as people were murdered before him, he had eaten human flesh and now he was being asked to kill another person, to end their life. Miles knew that if he was thrown out of Ransom’s Fresh Meat he would be once again at the mercy of the savage townsfolk of The Dustbowl. Without the protection of Gideon and Jasper he would soon have to kill in order to survive anyway. He had no choice, not if he wanted to get to New Fortune.

‘Maybe it does get easier. Oh G
od what am I thinking!’ Miles battled with his conscience during the trip, but in the end he reluctantly resolved to kill the new arrivals. On the plus side was that, once he had killed someone, his biggest fear would be over with, no longer would he dread the day when he must choose between taking another’s life and losing his own. It was a ghastly silver lining, but it was a silver lining nonetheless, and Miles was desperate for positives at this stage. And remember, these were criminals and undesirables deemed unfit to inhabit Carthage. That had to minimise Miles’ burden somewhat, surely. But could Miles have killed Maxen, or Landi? They too were shuttled but they were some of the most decent men Miles had met on Gyaros or anywhere else for that matter! There were simply no clear answers.

“Here we are,” said Jasper as he pulled the truck into the landing zone. The drive felt like only a few minutes, clearly the trip is much quicker in a vehicle than it is on foot. Miles took the revolver from unde
r his seat and exited the truck. Jasper turned off the engine, grabbed his gun and walked around to the back of the truck where he got the industrial blow torch, throwing it over his shoulder with the strap. Miles looked around at the familiar location, the place where he too had landed all those days ago. He looked at the husks of the thousands of Talos shuttles that littered the landscape all the way to the red horizon.