The Face of Your Father [BWNN]

[Eighteen]

Many would have said that Caret was an impatient girl. It was especially apparent when it came to the things she was capable of. Such attitude was liken to the excitement of a toddler showing off their most prized piece of art. In this case, it was the large truck the bandit had nearly driven into destruction. The youth all but danced when she pulled open the garage doors. Inside the darkness was all but snuffed out by the myriad of screens filling the center of the large building. The core of her base was full of tech, most of it pilfered from Empire soldiers having toured the desert.

“This is...” the bandit began.

“Amazing, right?” said the red head, thinking that the woman was referring to her ride. She ran up to the truck and motioned vigorously. “See, I fixed the bullet holes that were here,” she said as she smoothed a gloved hand over the exterior. It was new, shiny, as if it had never been damaged at all.

The bandit's vehicle, as a whole, was nearly the same. It was made almost new, and when Caret started the engine, it purred like a tiger. She gestured toward the back, her eyes alight with eagerness. “I built this though, I think this will help a lot.”

Rigged to the back of the truck was the most high tech gatling gun the bandit had scarce seen. It was large, and seemingly powerful, but it also posed a question. “Why?”

“For shooting,” said Caret, standing behind the device with confusion in her eyes.

“But I can't drive and shoot,” said the bandit, deadpan.

Caret rubbed the back of her pig tailed head and laughed slightly. “Oh yeah, I'm going with you.”

A silence filled the garage, except for that of the engine rumbling so nicely in it the truck's bosom. A sound that the tech loved to hear. However, the look on the ebony woman's face spoke volumes, where she said little.

“You didn't know? Huh, well, I guess not.”

“Is this his idea?” the bandit all but scowled, jabbing a thumb in the direction of the house. Shepherd, of course, was to whom she referred.

“Um, no, he has no idea about this,” said the youth as she jumped out of the van. One by one she pulled the fingers of her gloves off. “Look, it's like, this desert is pretty big...and I go out there a lot,” she began, flipping a pigtail over her shoulder. “But, well, you know, some places are too far, or too dangerous, and stuff.”

Her voice trailed off, and she look at the bandit, “All I'm here for is this.” Her gaze swept over the beaming computer screens, humming towers, and jumbled cables. “I don't know why I do it, but I need to build, explore, create and change. Lately it's been getting harder to find this stuff...and so I need to go further. That's where you come in.”

“What makes you think I'll take you along?”

Caret's somber features brightened, and she chuckled softly with a smile. “You mean besides saving your life? If you saw how powerful this gun is, I think you'd realize why you need me. Especially after the way that guy kicked your ass. I mean, you do want revenge, don't you?” she tilted her head to one side, and as if by magic, she blew a bubble of gum from her mouth. It was as if she'd been chewing it all along.