“No, I’m going after the bitter. You said it was coming back.”
“Eleanor,” Riot was pale. “Please don’t do this.”
“I have to.”
I turned and started away, singing ‘Starman’ by David Bowie.
Soon enough, the howl of the bitter came through the tunnel. I raised my gun and sang louder.
I saw it.
I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this.
This beast was hairy, and four times my size, but it was definitely a spider bat.
I shrunk down as it dropped to the ground and glared its glowing red eyes at me. My arms shook as I tried to keep the gun still. I had eight bullets, I had to make them count.
It had the head of a bat with the eyes of a spider. Its body was furry and the legs winged, but there were eight of them. How could such a beast even come to be created?
I knew the answer.
A bunker.
A bunker had created this monstrosity and launched it into the world. I backed away, slowly leading it back to the tunnel where Riot lay. It wasn’t my intention, but my legs refused to move toward the beast.
“Eleanor, Atlas fucking Adam, what have you done?” Riot groaned.
And as if his voice was my cue, I pulled the trigger. The bitter squealed and fell against the wall, causing a mini earthquake.
It rolled onto its back and I rushed forward. Tackling my biggest fears head on, I climbed onto the beast and pointed mygun directly at his chest. The bullets compared to the beast were so small, I needed to make sure I hit my mark.
I shot into its chest and was instantly bucked off. It rolled on top of me and I shot again, shocked to find that I’d hit it.
“Eleanor, get up!” Riot screamed. I rolled and crawled out from under it just in time. The bitter collapsed to the ground. If I’d been a second later, I would have been crushed. I shot again and watched the glowing red of its eyes dim and then go out altogether. I waited until it stopped breathing and turned to Riot.
He was staring with his mouth open, in shock. I grinned, triumphant. I’d saved him.
“Care to tell me I can’t survive in the wastelands again?”
Chapter 62 - Callahan
Keep your cool.
“This is how it has to be.”
I opened my eyes and the room around me spun. My vision was dark, and I couldn’t see clearly. Where was I?
Fred Astaire played on a record player, and the room looked like…
Was I back in the bunker?
I bolted up and tried to stand but found my hands bound behind my back. I fell forward with a thud. So were my ankles.
“Oh, you’re awake. I was hoping you wouldn’t have to see this.”
I recognized Myrtle’s voice, and slowly things began to return to me.
We’d made it to the TEST headquarters. We’d found Eleanor’s ageless mother, and she’d gone berserk after we asked too many questions.
