[8] The Survivors

[Kappa]

Following the directions that Jackson had given him, Wizard trekked through the forested road to the mountain. The wheels of the jeep whipped up sand and leaves as it spun around sharp corners, laughing at the fact that once upon a time these roads might’ve had speed limits. Oliver was determined as ever to find the ‘x’ on his map … he had to find Kai, and unlock the truths about Friend or Foe.

The old man was whistling a timeless gem from the war when he let out a—“Gaw’dammit!”—followed by the howling of his tires as they came to an abrupt stop, not ten feet from the mountainside entrance which seemed to materialize out of nowhere. There, about a foot from his bumper was a glowing podium and not far from that: the open gates to the underground city. It seemed the others had gotten there first.

He jogged into the cavernous world, trying to make up for lost time, when he heard a very familiar noise from behind him. “Bark! Bark!”

The old man’s eyes lit up with awe and he turned around to find none other than Champ, the dog. “Ye got t’be kidding me, boy. How the Hell—,” but it was of no use. There was no explaining the miraculous survival of the quintessential quadruped, and it sufficed to say that it just did. He lightly whapped the dog on the head, and flashed a genuine show of happiness; one that had not existed since she was alive. Oliver chuckled, and waved the dog to follow as he made his way deeper into the city.

The underground metropolis was oddly comfortable and the people there were totally clueless as to what was happening on the surface (inspiring a myriad of new questions, but he would have to address them later). All these citizens knew was that they were to service the surviving six; which appeared to be Sage, Ashe, Kaden, Piper, Sophia, and himself. The Wizard was surprised by the rag-tag group and impressed that the compound of misfits had gotten as far as they did. Having taken a protective role over Sage earlier in the game, it would not be a stretch to say he was proud.

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Oliver’s first stop was, to no one’s surprise, the bar. He stepped in and absorbed a pint of lager within a minute of sitting down; and was bound to put himself in the barrel if only to give him a decent night’s rest. Memories of rosemary’s game still haunted him, and he felt it best to black them out for now.

And so, he took another swig. And another. One more, until…

“Mr. Nash?”

A voice, from behind him. There was a creek from the bar-stool as the Wizard turned around…

“You.”

There he was … the epitome of the former detective’s unending enigmas: Kai Demolic.