We all clamber out of the room. Mia and I wander after Ruko into the next doorway. He walks into a room with a bunch of displays and a few tables of random tech I have never seen before. I know I have to select something new to add. We already have shelter and the essentials covered.


I walk around the room and can't help but notice a lot of the gadgets here are spherical or cylindrical. Mia walks around the room. I assume she may be interested in something as well. I pick up a disk with a green light-up push button.


"What's this?" I ask Ruko.


"Deployable cover. Don't activate it indoors. You may just seal each other apart, or together, situation depending," Ruko says with a smirk.


"I think this is going to be my gear," I say.


"Get another." Mia instructs as she holds onto what seems to be a dagger. "I'll also take this." She waves it so that Ruko can see it as well.


It seems like shopping for this stuff with Mia is natural, comfortable even. A sense of security is there when she is calm. If she’s scared, I know I have reason to be. She is someone who has no reason to fear, so if she is afraid, it has to be a damn good reason. At least to me, it seems this way.


"Alright." I nod as I walk around and take another look.


"So, anything in particular in mind?" Ruko asks.


"Got something that can capture creatures that are out there in the badlands?" I ask, the idea finally forming into words.


Mia shoots me a look. "Etha, what are you thinking?"


"I may have a crazy idea." I say, my mind racing.


"Kid, you’re asking for a miracle in a place where people barely survive the night," Ruko scoffs. "Ain’t nobody that crazy—except maybe you."


"Nor has anyone found Old Boston before us." Mia sticks up for me, her voice edged with confidence.


This moment feels like something I would take great pride in. She is genuinely seeing herself and me as equals. This makes my chest fill with warmth as if I were melting from the inside.


"Well, I don't have anything strong enough," Ruko admits.


"What if it was stunned first?" I press.


"Maybe if you could find a place that's stronger than the cage," Ruko replies, shaking his head.


"Etha, he's no help for this endeavor. I know other shops in town here." Mia pipes up.


"Fair." I nod.


"Sorry, but I doubt anyone here has what you’re looking for." Ruko sighs.


I look down at the tables again. A deck of cards is in the pile of gadgets. I read the label to be quite surprised.


"Ark Tech: Project Aegis?" I read aloud, lifting the cards closer to my eyes.


"That's odd. An Ark Tech gadget still labeled as a project. It must be from the war," Mia says, intrigued.


"They seem to me like playing cards. I'll take 'em, for when we make camp." I say to Mia.


"Sure, we can test them out at our next camp out," Mia says with a light-hearted laugh.


We walk about together and she grabs a spherical device. On it is a label which reads 'developed by the Aztec Company'. I look at Mia, confused. I thought Ark Tech was the main provider of tech to the Old World.


"The Aztec Company?" Mia says puzzled.


"Seems to be a knockoff of what Ark Tech would make," Ruko says, squinting at it.


Mia walks out to the counter where Ruko stood when we took our way in. I smirk as she waits. Ruko goes and inserts the chip and pays for the goods. I can't help but notice now the shop reeks of rust. Then something dawns on me.


"What are we going to call the giant wyrm?" I ask.


"I dunno, what do you think?" Mia asks as she accepts the chips back from Ruko.


"Well, Sumerians from the Old World called things like that by their appearance. It looked like a big piece of sandstone, so why not use the Sumerian name, Asag?" I suggest.


"Asag?" Mia darts me with a weird look.


"In Sumerian myths, an Asag was a rock demon." I explain.


"I see, and it kinda looked like it was made of rocks." Mia laughs.


"Well, I guess that settles it," Ruko interjects.


We both look at Ruko as he slides the gear to us. I set the holster to the pistol on my waist. The rifle I let hang on my back as the assault rifle lays diagonally across the sniper. Mia gets her new stuff on her person. I grab my electric whip and smirk lightly. I can't help but feel empowered as I hold it in my hand. I slip it onto my holster's belt. I want that to stay near my hand’s reach.


We walk out into the market of New Boston. The hustle of the area is a bit overwhelming. For once, the dirt streets filled with bodies of people gathering for supplies of various sorts. I scan the crowd, half-expecting to see those figures from earlier, but they’re gone. That doesn’t mean they’re not watching. I sigh.


She seems to be rather relaxed in these situations. Large groups were never my kind of thing. Maybe that's why I'm single after all this time. Most get together at age fifteen in the recent years because of ever-shortening life spans. I shudder just thinking of how quickly some died back home.


Mia tilts her head toward the north gateway of the town. I know we have supplies for surviving out there, but even with that assurance, I find myself still worrying. What if we encounter another Asag? That’s just one thought clawing through my mind.


"You okay?" Mia pipes up.


My expression must have given away my thoughts. The St. Lawrence Canyon is our next destination, but it’s farther than I want to admit. What waits for us beyond New Boston? What if we’re not ready?


The sheer distance alone is daunting. It’s not just the miles—it’s the uncertainty between here and there. We could run out of water before finding more. We could stumble into a den of something worse than an Asag. The heat, the exhaustion, the unrelenting exposure to the elements—any of it could kill us before we even reach the canyon. I grip my whip tighter. We have to make it. There’s no turning back now.


"Honestly… what if we see another Asag?" I ask.


"We hide and play it safe. We fight only if we have to." Mia answers without hesitation.


We pass through the gate and stop for a moment. I glance back at the town, a weight settling on me. Ruko will be someone I hope to see again—if I can manage to stay alive with Mia.


"Fair. Also, it's good to know we have a friend here, too." I say.


"Agreed." Mia nods.


We head toward the path we’ve chosen, into the shifting sands of the Badlands. Every step away from New Boston feels like a step toward something waiting in the sand. The air hums with silence, the kind that makes your skin itch like something unseen is watching. My hand tightens around the whip—I might need it sooner than I think.