Dust: Before and After (3 page)

What is he?

Dust stared at the two figures walking ahead of him. He glanced down and kicked at a stone in the road when Sammy looked over her shoulder at him again. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. She had been glaring at him for the past two hours. At first, she had backed away from him. When it became obvious that he wasn’t going to attack her and Todd, she had tried ignoring him. They had worked quietly gathering as much food as they could and placing it in stacks.

He found some more shirts on one of the aisles and quickly changed out of his torn and bloody one. He had also snacked on anything he could find and felt better than he had in ages. He paused when she stopped to stare inside one of the small cars left in the middle of the road. Curious, she opened the door and slid into the driver's seat. He jumped when he heard the clicking of the engine. His expression softened when Sammy leaned her forehead against the steering wheel.

“Pop the hood,” he called out.

Sammy slowly lifted her head and stared at him in silence before she bent down and pulled the lever. Dust stepped forward and felt under the hood until he found the latch. Pulling it, he lifted the hood and pulled the thin bar down to hold it up. He glanced around the engine, looking for anything obvious.

“Can you fix it?” Todd asked, coming up to stand next to Dust.

“Maybe,” Dust replied, touching some of the wires and hoses, before checking the battery. “Does it have any gas?”

Sammy stepped up to look up under the hood. “I don’t know,” she said with a shrug. “The battery is dead.”

Dust grinned. “I might be able to help with that,” he commented, looking around. “Wait here.”

*.*.*

“Where else are we going to go?” Sammy muttered under her breath as she turned to watch him jog across the street. “Shit!”

“Sammy!” Todd exclaimed, watching Dust with wide eyes.

“Sorry,” she muttered, staring at the spot where Dust had just disappeared – literally. “He just went through that door without opening it!”

“I know,” Todd whispered in awe. “I wish I could do that!”

Sammy didn’t say anything. Instead, she watched as the door opened this time and Dust walked out. He had disappeared inside what looked like a discount auto store. He had several things in a dark red basket. He stopped in front of the car and set the basket down before rubbing his hands nervously down the front of his pants.

“I used to help my dad in his shop,” Dust admitted. “It may take a little while, but all we’ve got is time, right?” He joked, looking at Sammy with a slightly pleading look.

“Why are you doing this?” Sammy asked, swallowing over the lump in her throat. “What happened to you?”

Dust bent his head and shook it. “I don’t want you to go without me,” he said softly. Clearing his throat, he bent and picked up the tools he had picked out and set them on the edge of the radiator. “You two are the first humans that I’ve seen in over a year. The only other thing I’ve seen are a few animals and….”

“And?” Sammy asked, motioning for Todd to take the pack in her hands. “Can you put this in the car.”

“Okay. Can I help you, Dust?” Todd asked with a hopeful smile.

Dust nodded. “Sure,” he said. “Can you make sure everything is cleaned out as much as possible so we can load the car up when we get it going?”

Todd’s face fell, but he nodded his head and kicked at a loose rock. “Yeah, I guess,” he mumbled.

“If I need more help, I’ll call you,” Dust promised. “This is important, though. We’ve got to have supplies.”

“That’s okay,” Todd replied with a hesitant smile. “Can you teach me how to go through doors like you did?”

Dust’s smile faded and he bowed his head again. Sammy shook her head at Todd, who released a loud sigh and turned away. Sammy’s gaze followed her little brother with a look of worry.

“I won’t hurt him… or you,” Dust muttered. “You asked me what happened to me. I don’t know,” he said, bending forward and beginning to pull the spark plugs. Both the plugs and wires were scorched. He quickly removed them and tossed them to the side. “I don’t remember much after the initial blast. I was in the house alone. My mom and dad were in the barn, trying to bring the cows inside.”

“What… What happened to them?” Sammy asked, watching as Dust worked.

Dust glanced at her before bending to pick up some new spark plugs he had taken from the auto store. Sammy wished she could take back the question, but it was too late. Dust turned away from her and worked in silence for several minutes before he spoke again.

“They were gone and so was the barn. There wasn’t much left of the house,” he said in a low voice. “I woke up buried in the cellar. I could see through the roof. I remember a strange light in the sky, bolts of lightning striking all around me and a strange dust. It all mixed together and everything began to glow. The next time I woke, I was….”

“You were…,” Sammy prompted, placing her hand lightly on his arm before jerking it away.

Dust’s head slowly turned and he looked at her with piercing brown eyes. “I was there, but I wasn’t.”

Sammy stared at him for a long time before she nodded, as if she had made up her mind about something. Biting her lip, she looked at where Todd was playing. Her heart hurt for both Todd and Dust. Life shouldn’t be like this. Blinking back the tears, she looked back at Dust and blushed a little when she saw he was watching her.

“Todd can stay here and help you,” she said suddenly. “I’ll start bringing stuff from the store and packing it into the car. This way we can get out of here as soon as you get it started.”

“Okay,” Dust replied, glancing back down the street with a frown. “Be careful. We don’t know what happened to that one devil dog and we don’t know if there are more.”

“I will be,” Sammy said, stepping back. “Just… Promise me that you’ll keep Todd safe.”

Dust straightened. “I promise,” he replied. “I’ll keep you both safe – or die trying.”

“Let’s hope that won’t be necessary,” Sammy retorted with an unsteady laugh, pushing her hair back behind her ear.

“Take your bow,” Dust advised.

Sammy shook her head. “I only have one arrow left. I’ll borrow your pipe,” she said, reaching for the long piece of metal leaning up against the front of the car. “Just get the car going.”

Sammy didn’t wait for Dust to reply. Instead, she focused on the task she had assigned herself. If Dust was successful, she wanted to get out of here. Her gut was telling her that they didn’t want to be here after dark tonight.

A Way Out:

Dust listened to Todd as he ran around the car. Glancing at the boy, he made sure that he couldn’t see what he was about to do. The battery was dead and there was no way to jump it.

Checking on Todd once more, he held his hands above the battery where the cables connected. A burst of energy shot out from the palm of his hand. He kept it that way for a moment before he pulled his hand back.

He wiped his hands on the cloth he had found in the store and walked around to the driver’s side. Sliding in, he turned the key. The engine tried to turn over, but couldn’t quite make it. Fortunately, the gauges were now working and he could see that the car had an almost full tank of gas. Turning the key off, he slid back out of the car and looked for Todd.

“Todd, I need your help, dude,” Dust called.

Todd’s head whipped around and a huge smile lit his face. He dropped the stick he was playing with and ran over to Dust. Dust couldn’t help but grin at the boy’s enthusiasm.

“What’cha need help with?” Todd asked excitedly.

Dust nodded to the driver’s seat. “I need you to turn the key when I tell you to,” he said. “Do you know how?”

“Sure, my dad would let me start the truck if it was cold out so it could warm up,” Todd replied, sliding into the seat. “Do you need me to give it gas?”

“Not unless I tell you,” Dust replied. “I don’t want to take a chance of flooding it. I’m not sure how good the gas is, hopefully it isn’t too bad.”

“Okay, just tell me when,” Todd answered with a grin.

Dust walked back around to the front and bent over the battery again. This time, he sent a stronger charge into it and yelled for Todd to try to start it. It took three tries before the car started. It idled roughly at first, but soon smoothed out.

“Just let it idle for a while to give the battery a chance to charge,” Dust instructed, turning when he heard the sound of wheels on concrete.

“Wow! That’s a great idea, Sammy,” Todd said, watching as his sister pushed one shopping cart full of food and items they had salvaged and pulled another one. “Do you want some help?”

Sammy nodded, pushing her hair back from her flushed cheeks. “If you can start packing this in the car, I’ll go back for more. There isn’t much, but maybe we can find more in another town,” she said, turning to look at Dust with delight. “You got it running!”

Dust grinned and polished his fingernails on the front of his shirt. “Of course,” he replied with a grin. “I’d like to see if I can find extra gas to take with us, just in case.”

“Okay, but that means less for us to pack in the car,” Sammy said, looking at the shopping carts.

“No, I’ll tie them to the luggage rack,” Dust said with a shake of his head. “We can’t put the gas in the car. It wouldn’t be safe.”

“Oh, right,” Sammy said with a slight blush. “I knew that.”

“I helped Dust start the car, Sammy,” Todd boasted. “I’ll take care of this stuff while you and Dust get the other stuff.”

“Thanks, Todd,” Sammy said with an affectionate smile. “One more trip should do it.”

“I saw some gas cans in the auto supply store. I’ll grab them and anything else I think we could use and meet you back here. I’ve got to change a couple of the tires, too,” Dust explained. He decided he’d better test the engine by turning it off and back on before he left it. He grinned when it started again. Deciding not to waste any more gas than necessary, he shut it back off. “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Todd, will you be alright?”

“Sure! If anything comes at me, I’ll jump in the car and close the doors,” Todd said. “I’ve done that before.”

Dust paused and stared at Todd. “When?” He asked in a tight voice.

“Once on the way here,” she said, looking to stare down the road. “There were some other creatures, not as big as the devil dogs, but just like them.”

“We saw them attack a stray cow,” Todd said in a somber voice. “Sammy and I hid in the car until they were gone. When we finally got out, there wasn’t nothing left of the cow, but a few bones.”

“They were near the town where we used to live,” Sammy said, looking back at Dust. “That’s why we came north. We were hoping that they wouldn’t be here.”

“But they were, just not as many,” Todd added.

“How many were there where you were at?” Dust asked, looking at Sammy.

She shrugged and looked down, was silent for a minute before she looked up at him and bit her lip at the dark memory. “I don’t know, a dozen or more,” she finally said. “It was hard to look and count. They were everywhere and I was afraid they would see us.”

Dust’s eyes narrowed and he pressed his lips together. A dozen was more than he’d seen at any time. Four, maybe five, but more than a dozen wasn’t good. He had noticed back in his home town that they worked together as a pack. It had been difficult, but he had eventually killed the last one. Unfortunately, like him, they needed food, a lot of it to survive and had cleaned out the town fairly quickly. He was surprised that they hadn’t done that here. The only reason he could think of was because they hadn’t been here for long.

“We’ll keep an eye out,” he said with a sharp nod. “Todd, pack the car. Sammy, get all the food and supplies that you can. I’ll find more gas and anything else I think we might need. How far away is your town from here?”

“Twenty, maybe twenty-five miles or so,” Sammy said, pushing her hair behind her ear.

“We need to get out of here,” Dust said, turning away. “Something tells me with that many, they are going to be looking for food and traveling fast.”

The Beginning of the Pack:

"That's it," Dust said, pulling on the straps he had found in the auto parts store.

"Dust," Sammy called out suddenly from the other side of the car.

"Yeah?" Dust said, jumping down from where he had been standing on the edge of the open door.

"Look," she murmured, nodding her head. "It's that devil dog I shot with an arrow."

Dust looked at Sammy before turning to see where she was looking. Further down the road, between two abandon vehicles, a dark shadow emerged. He stared at the black beast as it stepped out into the road. He could see the broken shaft of the arrow sticking out of its front shoulder. It looked like it had bitten off the end in an attempt to get it out. Swallowing, he continued to stare at it as he slowly opened the front passenger door.

"Todd, get in the back seat. Sammy, do you know how to drive?" Dust asked, keeping the beast in his view.

"Yes. Well, sort of," she admitted. "My dad used to let me drive the truck on the farm."

"I think now would be a good time to use that skill," Dust said, slamming the back door shut before sliding into the passenger seat. "Go!"

"Sammy, there's more of them!" Todd cried out, looking around as more devil dogs suddenly began to appear.

Dust glanced at Sammy as she slid behind the wheel and slammed the driver's door. Her hand shook as she reached for the key and turned it. He breathed out a sigh of relief when the car started again.

Sammy slammed the gear shift down and pressed her foot on the gas. The car fishtailed as it slipped on the loose gravel in the road and the force of the acceleration. Dust glanced at her face. It was tense, but he saw a focused determination which showed that she was in control. She was leaning forward, staring at the gathering crowd of devil dogs. It would appear that the pack from her and Todd's town had arrived.

"Todd, put your seat belt on," Sammy ordered as the car picked up speed.

Dust braced his hand against the dashboard as Sammy struck the first several creatures. Their massive bodies flew up, shattering the windshield before rolling over the top of the car. He glanced behind them and grimaced when he saw one of the gas cans he had just secured rolling along the road.

"Todd, duck!" Dust ordered, throwing his palm up and sending a bolt of electricity out.

A tiny hole appeared in the back window as the bolt melted the glass. The silvery-white thread struck the gas can. A huge, fiery explosion erupted, sending a shower of burning gas over a number of the creatures that had turned to follow them.

Dust's gaze locked on the lone figure that calmly stepped through the remaining group. It didn't chase them, it just watched with red, glowing eyes. Another creature came up to it and bit down on the broken shaft embedded in its shoulder. With a savage pull, the remains of the arrow were ripped from its body. Within seconds, the creature turned and attacked the one that had helped it.

Dust turned back around in his seat. He pulled the seat belt free and secured it around him. His gaze moved to Sammy. Her lips were pressed into a tight, straight line. He could see her gaze flickering to the rear view mirror before they moved back to the road.

After several long minutes, she finally relaxed a little. Dust watched as she pulled her seat belt over her shoulder and hooked it. He waited, knowing that she wouldn't let go of what had happened.

"When we find a place where it is safe to stop, you have some explaining to do," Sammy finally said.

Dust released a tired breath and nodded. "I figured you'd say that," he mumbled.

Hungry, he reached for a can of peaches in the bag at his feet. Sitting back, he popped the lid and drank the syrup before using his fingers to pull them out. From the look on Sammy's face there was going to be a lot of talking done, primarily by him. He turned when he felt a light tap on his shoulder.

"I thought that was pretty cool," Todd said, glancing at Sammy. "I guess you can't teach me that either, can you?"

Dust chuckled and shook his head. "Probably not," he admitted.

"Ah, well," Todd replied as he sat back in his seat. "It was still cool."

"Thanks," Dust responded with a crooked grin before he glanced at Sammy. "Where to now?"

Sammy frowned and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know," she said. "See if there are any maps in the glove box. We need to make a plan. Obviously we can't go back the way we came."

Dust licked his fingers and placed the empty can back in the bag before opening the glove box. There were tons of napkins from various fast food restaurants, the car registration, some plastic utensils that he could have used a minute ago, and three straws. Closing it, he sighed. He hadn't thought to check to see if there were any maps in the grocery store or the auto parts place.

"Nothing," he said.

Sammy sighed. "Hopefully the next town we come to won't have those creatures in them and we can find a store that has a map," she replied, glancing at him with unease when she said the word 'creature'.

Dust nodded, trying to ignore the pain caused by her suspicion that he was anything like the devil dogs. Sure, they could do some of the same things, like dissolve. The only difference was he could dissolve all the way and they could only do it a little and for a lot less time. It took a lot of energy to fade, as he thought of the process. Frowning, the only other thing that he knew they could do as well was heal fast, but again, it took a lot of energy to do that which meant they needed food.

He reached for another can of peaches. Opening the can, he drank the juice again, but this time he used one of the plastic forks from the glove box to eat it. Resting his head back against the headrest, he chewed the fruit and wondered what else would happen today.

*.*.*

The creature did not understand what was happening to it at first. It had woken with its litter mates under the remains of the house where its mother had given birth to ten puppies. It had staggered out when the rush of ash had fallen and the ground had shaken on trembling legs.

At barely eight weeks old, it was the runt of the litter, but also the most adventuresome. Its mother had tried more than once to keep it hidden from the large, two-legged creatures that walked the ground. That first day, it had fallen, shivering and confused, as strange, green flashes of light mixed with the glowing ash that coated its tiny body.

Its eyes had closed as a strange feeling swept over it. Pain burst through its small body as it grew, twisting and pulling on the bones and tissue until low, whimpering cries were ripped from its throat. When it finally woke several days later, it was hungry. Its mother had come out several times to check on it after the first day, but assumed that it was dead. She returned to the rest of her litter and waited for the world to stop shaking.

It had smelled its mother and siblings hiding under the house. The mother tried to protect her pups, but it had devoured each one before turning its attention to the larger female that it had wounded.

The creature had learned quickly that food gave it the energy it craved. It had learned over the next year how to stalk and kill its prey. There had been other creatures like it, but they had not been as smart.

It recognized that it was different. It was the alpha bitch. She would rule those under her. Only three others had recognized her power and submitted to her dominance. She had allowed them to live, to serve her.

Licking her muzzle clean from the dripping black blood of the beast that ripped the arrow out of her shoulder, she tilted her head and stared at the remaining creatures around her. There were ten of them counting her. Her gaze moved to the ones that were dead or dying. Her pack would need food.

With a low snarl, the others attacked the remains. She bent and ripped another section of black flesh from the beast she had killed. A strange consciousness emerged in her mind. She wanted the powers of the strange two-legged creature and she wanted to kill the female who had challenged her.

But first, first I need food, she thought.