The Magic Pact [The Talisman War]

Chapter 3

Chapter 3French braiding Rada’s hair proved a soothing mid-afternoon activity for both of them. He took his time, careful to get all the little strands around her face. It wasn’t at all as complex or time-consuming as doing Ken’s hair, but Dakota thought his shaky hands would have trouble accomplishing that task, were his other daughter available to do it. The simplicity allowed him the luxury of bonding with his subject, just as he’d done with Kenna for years.

Rada sat quietly for the majority of the session, until he was nearly finished. “I have a problem.”

His fingers stopped for a moment. Resuming, “With Mahkah?”

“No, uh, we’re fine.”

“Then what? You know you can talk to me, hon.”

“I’m not feeling well,” she confessed. “My stomach hurts and I—I’m bleeding.” Rada shifted her weight out of discomfort.

He quickly finished the braid. “That’s part of being a young woman.”

“I know. It’s just…I guess I never thought it would happen to me. I spent ten minutes this morning crying because I got it all over my sheets.”

Dakota clipped her hair in place, moved in front of her, and gave her a big hug. “We’ll clean them or get you new ones. It’s not a big deal. It’s not even gross. It’s just something that happens. You’re getting the full experience, thanks to that crystal. I know it sucks, but it should only last about a week each time.” Raising Ken had completely desensitized him to menstruation. He was almost an expert on it now. “Did you get the proper supplies?”

She nodded. “The nurse had some.”

“Good.” He stood up, walked into the kitchen, and searched the medicine cabinet. After a little looking, he returned to the den and handed Rada a bottle of over-the-counter painkillers. “This should help, too. No reason you should suffer through it.”

She accepted the offer with a slight smile. “Thanks.” After taking the medicine, “I’m happy with the change, you know,” she said in a gentle voice. “I don’t want anyone to think I’m not grateful. There are so many people like me who would kill for the chance to use this stone. I kinda feel guilty that I’m the one who gets to.”

He smoothed down some stray hair on the right side of her head. “I don’t know about anyone else, but in my mind, there’s no one more deserving of it than you.”

“I’m not special.”

“I disagree. You’ve been through a lot, and you’re so strong. You’re every bit as important as anyone here.”

“What about Kennie? She saved all of us. I haven’t done anything like that.”

“Ken doesn’t need the talisman. You do. And anyway, you’re just as important to me as she is.” A bold claim, considering how much time and history he had with his elder daughter. But it was true. He adored Rada. He wanted to be a great father to her. He wanted to watch her grow up and protect her along the way.

Her eyes welled. “Really?”

“Really.” They shared another big hug. He got back to her hair and finished the braid. Lifting a mirror, he held it for her to see herself. “So, how’d I do?”

She beamed. “It’s perfect.”

* * * *

Terrell, Rada, and Dakota went on a trading mission together. It was a rare occurrence that both men left the town. They wanted to get out, if only for a day. And it meant spending quality time with Rada, who was overjoyed at sharing the journey with them. For most of the ride to the trading post, conversation remained light.

But eventually, Rada broached a serious subject. “There’s something different about you, right, Terrell?” She gulped. “I saw your arm the other day. I know you usually hide it, but I think you forgot.”

Dakota’s heart skipped a beat. They hadn’t discussed Terrell’s mutations with Rada. They didn’t think she would have a problem with it, considering how much she loved her dirt dog Mato, but the two men simply never found the right time to bring it up. Ever perceptive, it came as no surprise that she figured it out on her own.

Sighing, Terrell rolled up his sleeve and showed off the calloused holes in his skin. He flexed, and the spines came out. Rada breathed in sharply. “What are those?!”

“A long time ago, I met Moíra, and she altered me. I got the spines and some extra-long teeth.” He motioned toward the spaces in his mouth. “But I got rid of those.”

Dakota cringed as he remembered pulling them out with a dirty wrench.

Rada nodded, as though it all made perfect sense. “Do they hurt?”

Smiling, Terrell shook his head. “No.”

“That’s good.” She grew quiet for a moment. Then, her face lit up. “You know, there’s a dentist where we’re going. Maybe they can do something about your teeth. I mean, if you want them to.”

“I’ll check it out.”

* * * *

The suggestion added an hour to their trip. The dentist took a mold of Terrell’s mouth and promised to make him a retainer on which two false teeth would be located. Though his love acted nonchalant about the whole thing, Dakota could tell that he was excited about the prospect of looking more normal.

Unfortunately, the dentist would need time to make it for him. They would have to come back at a later date.

When they did, about two weeks later, Terrell was fitted for the retainer. The dentist told him that he would have to take it out to eat and brush his teeth, but otherwise he could have it in whenever he wanted. Terrell smiled brilliantly. “How do I look?” he asked.

“Gorgeous,” Dakota said.

Rada liked it, too.

* * * *

Kenna

It took a few more days, thankfully peaceful, for them to reach Kansas City. Fifteen, total, since leaving home. They made camp in an abandoned warehouse, where they could take the horses out of the cold. Since the ceiling was easily three stories up, they made a fire on the concrete. The wood was a combination of damp twigs and office furniture. When her fire starter didn’t work, Ken used her talisman to light it. Eventually, the flames dried out an armful of logs they collected, and the two could have a proper arrangement.

For extra warmth, they set up the tent and crawled into their sleeping bags.

A freezing rain blanketed them on the last hour or so of their trip. Once inside, they unceremoniously switched into dry clothes before doing anything else. The horses were brought as close to the fire as was safe and tied to a heavy piece of machinery. Some kind of giant engine or manufacturing apparatus. It was rusted out and hadn’t been touched in years.

They ate shoulder-to-shoulder. Under the guise of keeping warm, the two got intimate. Still feeling guilty about lying, Ken made absolutely certain that Yuuki had a fantastic orgasm. She deserved it.

When they settled into bed, Kenna once again found she couldn’t sleep. Like most of the nights on the trip, the voices wouldn’t shut up, and even when they quieted somewhat, her own thoughts got in the way. She groaned. “I would really like some rest.”

“You’re not talking to me, are you?” came from Yuuki, who Ken assumed was asleep.

She shook her head. “No.”

“The voices?”

“Yeah.”

Yuuki turned toward her and wrapped her arm around Ken’s stomach. “I take it they don’t shut up if you ask them to.”

“No.”

She kissed the back of her head. “I’m sorry.”

By the time Ken could think of something to reply to that, Yuuki had fallen into slumber. She sighed. In a whisper, “I just want to sleep next to her. Is that too much to ask?”

“You should be happy you escaped with your life,” said the Martyr. “You knew this would require sacrifice.”

“When do I get to see a positive outcome from this? Everything is still militias and gangs. My girlfriend is afraid. I need to be able to protect her.”

“No one promised you an easy solution, just the beginnings of a difficult one.”

The Augur intervened. “Even soldiers need rest.”

In agreement, the Healer added in a quiet voice: “It’s essential to human function.”

“Then please just let me sleep,” she practically begged. Across the entire trip, she’d had maybe thirty hours of sleep, averaging two per night. And her decreased eating also hurt her energy levels. She accomplished tasks lethargically, and she had trouble focusing on the mission. She even nodded off for a few seconds on top of her horse. She felt terrible.

Suddenly, the voices grew quiet, with just a little rumbling from the Martyr, her least favorite of the six. It took less than a minute for her to finally fall asleep.

* * * *

The next morning, they carefully ventured into the city, checking houses together for food and other supplies. Near the city center, they heard noises that sounded like a ton of people all in the same place. They decided to approach it with their guards up. Slowly, they made their way to the source of the sounds.

It was a small bazaar covered in people. They milled about like minnows, darting from stall to stall. The area seemed to be a trading station of some kind, where people from all over came to do business. There were soldiers stationed throughout the market, hands on automatic weapons. Whether this was a self-sufficient entity or part of a larger civilization, Ken couldn’t tell. But the men, who wore all black, didn’t interact with the shoppers. They just kept watch. They were there to ensure the business continued.

When Ken and Yuuki rode toward the crowd, a man with a gun stopped them. He smiled. “Sorry, ladies. You’ll have to walk the horses or leave them outside the market. We don’t want anyone getting trampled.”

Both women were surprised at the man’s cordiality. A far cry from Lawrence. “If we leave them, can you make sure no one steals them?” Worth a shot.

“Are you planning to buy things here?”

“Yeah,” the two answered almost simultaneously. They needed more horse feed and human food, and they had enough jewelry to buy a complete refill.

“Then I think I could do that. Just this once.” His smile grew bigger. He almost seemed bashful, as though he hadn’t interacted with any women in a while. He pointed toward an old metal railing to which they could tie their horses. “Come get them when you’re finished.”

Ken followed his direction. In secret, she emptied a bag of the gold and silver they’d stolen from houses and placed the contents in her jacket pocket.

The two wandered into the market and began gathering necessities. They skipped most of the fresh food unless it was really cheap. Cans and jars held more, and the stuff lasted longer without refrigeration.

Though, with the freezing temperatures, they could probably buy some meat and just strap it outside a bag to keep it cold.

And attract every hunting animal in the area, she thought.

They saved the feed grain for last, as it would be heavy. They bought twice as much as before, planning to divide the weight between the two mares. Yuuki threw the bags over her shoulder and hauled them back to their animals—which were thankfully still there. They carefully packed the new items before mounting their horses.

Before leaving, Ken pushed her luck with the nice guy with a machine gun. “Hey, do you have any idea who’s been spraying that weird graffiti? You know the stuff with circles and triangles.”

He laughed. “The U.S. government.”

“What, seriously?”

“Yeah, they’re trying to reclaim what land is left. By clearing the cities, they can start to rebuild there. The scribblings are messages to other soldiers.”

“How much area do you think they’ve gotten back, do you think? Last time I heard, they just had Richmond.” And they weren’t doing a great job of defending it or treating its people well.

“Oh, a few states-worth. Mostly the mid-Atlantic. But they’re sending folks out all over the place to establish new strongholds. I guess they think they can expand the borders until they’re all connected. To be honest, I’m surprised Canada is helping so much, since they could just take the land for themselves.”

Yuuki moved closer. “Do you know the letters each symbol stands for?” she asked, holding her notebook out for him to see.

He nodded. Taking the pen and paper from her, he started to fill in the empty spaces. “It’s really not that secretive. One of our guys figured it out in like a day.”

“And you aren’t with them?”

“Technically? No. We’re what’s left of the police force and firefighters here. We worked for the government once, but our loyalties are to the city. Luckily, they didn’t think we were a threat so they just skipped us for now. I’m sure they’ll be back, though.” He finished the last letter and passed the small book back to her. “Why are you so interested?”

Ken took over. “We’re looking for the person responsible for those mutated animals. A woman who goes by ‘Moíra.’ We’re trying to find her hideout.”

He tilted his head in curiosity and scratched his chin. “The army might know, and they’ll talk to you if you don’t ride in, guns blazin’. I’d ask them.”

They thanked him for the help and took off, hoping to get in a half-day’s ride east.

If the U.S. military was behind the graffiti, that meant that they’d made it at least as far west as Junction City. They were rapidly expanding their borders by creating outposts. Should they defend those places, they would certainly make more. Until they’d reclaimed much of the land lost to the war.

But just the parts belonging to no one. The army would be in for a fight if they tried to take some of the fortified towns, and they might even lose a battle against the Oceti Šakowiŋ, especially so far from Richmond. No, a smart general would start with the land left for the taking, the easy stuff. Once a stronghold was built in a given area, then they could do battle with some of the smaller opponents.

Like that awful gang.

As they rode out of Kansas City on the Missouri side, Ken couldn’t help but wonder if Cortez was still in charge. If so, they may be able to get in contact with her through the military and share information. Kenna might be willing to tell her why the talismans turned off if she got Moíra’s whereabouts in return.

“I think we should try and find the army,” she said eventually. “Follow the graffiti east until we see somebody. Hopefully, we’ll find them before the capital.”

The amount of time it would take to get to Richmond on horseback was daunting to say the least. Riding the most they could in a day, every day, while only stopping for short breaks and sleep, it would take more than a month. They’d already spent seventeen days on the road, and the two of them were exhausted. Even the trip to St. Louis, which would take a week, felt impossible.

Their horses weren’t much better. Ken tried to let them graze whenever they could, to boost their strength, but she felt the mares wearing down. They needed a few days rest and heavy feeding to be at one hundred percent. But the women couldn’t afford to do that.

“Can we even make it that far?” Yuuki said in a tired voice.

“We can do it one day at a time. But we need to take care of ourselves, first and foremost. Maybe we’ll get lucky with the military. Maybe they’re just down the highway.” She let out a small laugh. “Maybe they’ll be friendly.”

Yuuki gulped. “And if they’re not?”

“I’ll take care of it.”

“You’ll kill U.S. soldiers?”

“I’ll do whatever I have to do. Up to and including killing U.S. soldiers. They’re just people like everyone else.” She reached out and touched Yuuki’s arm with the tips of her fingers. “No one will hurt you. I promise.”

She paused to think it over. Then, “I trust you.”