Wasteland Warlords Omnibus (Books 1 - 3): A Post-Apocalyptic LitRPG Adventure by James Hunter & eden Hudson

Author:James Hunter & eden Hudson [Hunter, James & Hudson, eden]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Shadow Alley Press
Published: 2024-02-11T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

Welcome to the Carnival

In the dune buggy, the last ten miles to Soledad Canyon flew by. They weren’t going to win any stealth achievements the way that beast was growling, but they were covering a lot of ground. Not walking for once was great, but Clay hadn’t realized how much he’d missed cruising along at highway speed with the wind whipping through his hair. Even with the bouncing suspension and dust blowing in his face, there was nothing like it. Everybody was in high spirits, hoopin’ and hollerin’ as Joe did donuts and ramped dunes. Even Bacon Bits was enjoying the ride.

“It is almost as pleasant as flying!” the teacup pig oinked, ears flapping in the breeze. “Of course, as a Great Blue Wyrm, I serpentine through the air, but you humans have certainly created an adequate substitute if one does not mind linear motion!”

“The map shows an old fire road up ahead,” Alex yelled at Joe over the engine. “It’ll take us right into the canyon.”

Joe shot her a thumbs-up, then floored it over a scrub-covered dune. They got a solid second’s air on that one. Clay laughed and Joe whooped. In the tiny child’s harness next to Joe, Chonk raised his paw and hedge trimmer and trilled like a kid on a roller coaster. All in all, the machine-shed layover was working out better for morale than the GameStop had.

At least until they drove into the canyon.

Then the brilliant midday sunlight dimmed to an eerie twilight half a day ahead of schedule, and the walls seemed to close in behind them. No clouds had appeared overhead, just an unnatural murk that darkened the world around them, like a movie scene that had been shot during the day and artificially filtered to look like night.

Clay got a prickly feeling down the back of his neck, like they were being watched from every angle. He released his harness and stood up in the shallow bed of the buggy, back against the roll cage to steady himself. He adjusted his grip on the M4 and watched for threats. Up front, Alex stopped calling out the directions and silently pointed the way. Joe hunkered down behind the wheel, brows furrowed and eyes constantly on the move. Chonk scooted as close to Joe as his little five-point harness would allow.

Only Bacon Bits seemed immune to the sudden weird gloom. The little pig was still laughing into the wind, ears flapping and tail wiggling.

“Feel that cool canyon air!” she squealed. “When I’ve been returned to power, perhaps I will set up a summer dungeon for myself here! You cannot deny it’s an excellent location. A little out of the way, but perfect for funneling unsuspecting prey into your trap.”

That was what Clay was afraid of.

They followed the canyon down, and in minutes the fairgrounds sprawled out in front of them.

Sun-bleached lights blinked and chased each other around rust-bleeding signs. Even from a distance, they could hear warped carnival music crawling out of some hidden sound system, none of the notes quite right, but none of them completely out of tune, either.

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