#kermapippurisaatana

Meanwhile, somewhere far in the outskirts of Old Haven, the mysterious stranger laid unconscious under the scorching sun. Rakks flew in circles above him waiting for the best moment to finally claim their soon-to-be meal. A few had already landed on top of the stranger’s body, pressing their snouts and tugging on his clothes eager to start sinking their razor sharp teeth into his flesh.

He had been out nearly an hour or more since he landed face first into the rough dirt when he finally began to regain consciousness, waking up by the overwhelming sensation of his body being nipped and scratched by what it felt like sharp needles. His eyes snapped wide open and he began to flail his arms and legs.

“AAIEEGH!! I’M NOT DEAD YET, FOCK OFF!”

From a distance, a loud bang rustled the rakks to fly off startled by the noise, leaving the stranger curled in a ball with his tail tucked between his legs and his hands shielding his face from the pointy wings that batted him as the flying beasts took off.

The stranger peeked through his fingers and relaxed his body upon recognizing the person coming to his rescue.

“Ah...Amber, it’s good to see ya.” He huffed.

« “Seriously, Pip, what would you do without me?” » The lady signed aggressively, pulling her sand goggles up to her head. « “Do you have any idea how long I have been looking for you?” »

Pip remained on the ground taking deep breaths, his hand lifted over to his face to cover the blinding sunlight from his eyes. “I underestimated my chances on grabbin’ that bloody drive… and that idiot installed it in his goddamn brain.”

« ”Now, now, let us get you back up.” » Amber crouched patting on Pip’s shoulder.

Pip whined, struggling to sit up. “Agh shit. That darned Loaderbot twisted me tail pretty bad…”

Amber shook her head. «” Yeah, that was one heck of a throw. It would have killed anyone.”

“Aside from havin’ a couple of cracked ribs and me head split open, what hurts more right now is me dignity.” Pip sighed and cringed holding his side. “At least me ribs will heal in a minute. Thankfully. Cus it hurts to breathe.”

Amber pursed her lips, lifting her sight to look around. Far away she could see a bandit three wheeled caravan driving its way inside of Old Haven, where now a large Atlas building stood imposingly in place of the abandoned town. Behind the caravan, a red car followed a few miles away. Taking her rifle, she looked through the scope to take a closer look to the driver. A familiar face caught her eye. It was the bearded Hyperion corporate they had encountered a few hours back.

« “We should probably leave.” » Amber signed at Pip, who had his eyes closed as if focusing on channeling the pain away.

“N...no I can’t lose them now that I’m so clo- ACK! ” Pip coughed and wheezed harshly. He looked at Amber and saw her pouting at him. “Okay, okay, I think...I think I need to step away for a moment… We’ll get to them later.” He exhaled slowly. “We know what they look like and what they’re looking for…”

« “While the one with the glasses was out, I took the liberty to attach a tracker to his belt.” » Amber signed with a hint of pride. « “It will be easier to find them rather than using that thingamajig you got there.” »

Pip nodded and smiled. “Ah, yer brilliant as always. What would I do without ya?”