the golden green of wheat nearly ripened. Maxine slowed the wagon and turned left to keep from going through a viable crop. "Track ahead of us." Remy said through the speaker. Maxine pulled on the steering wheel to stand up from her seat a moment, nodding when she spotted the stone littered line her father had been referring to. She aimed for it, heading for a strip of darker greenery that ran parallel.
They reached the deep green strip, and the wagon tipped forward. Suddenly, the foliage was as high as the windscreen. Chloe's hand slapped the console in front of her as she stopped herself being thrown forward. Remy shouted some words she didn't recognise, and could only presume were curses.
Just as suddenly as they had dropped into the gulley, they hit the bottom, splashing into shallow water. Maxine twisted a control on the steering column, sending more power to the motor driving the front wheels, and they soon regained their lost momentum. The grass and reeds were denser and taller in the stream bed, but they gave way to the mass of the wagon. They started climbing the opposite bank.
As the wagon left the channel, its nose reared up, front wheels off the ground. Maxine twisted the power controller again, transferring drive to the rear pair of axles. They passed the point of balance, and the front end came back down again, bouncing once before Maxine had the power back to all six wheels equally and they were accelerating away from the obstacle.
Now they were raising dust, rather than hay, as they raced along the track. A spur from the gravel covered road turned sharply around the end of the farm house. Maxine scrubbed off speed as they approached, then turned in sharply. They stopped sharply on the cobbled yard, and Maxine was out of her seat almost immediately, pausing only to grab her 9mm from the middle console.
The nearest door out of the wagon was behind the ladder to the roof. Maxine swung through the gap between it and the third seat, shouldered the door open and dropped out of the vehicle. Chloe found herself reaching out to the disappeared girl, just holding in a little call to her to stop. No, she wasn't going to fall in love with her at all.
Wagon two skidded to a stop on the opposite side of the yard. Veronique and Tony were already moving from their seats. The fire was in a corner of the yard, about as far from the buildings as possible without going into the fields. It had the look of a bonfire, but the shape at the heart of it could have been a small van.
Chloe had lost her catapult in the violent manoeuvres across the field. After a moment, she found it on the floor. She slung the bag of darts over her shoulder and headed for the door. When she clambered down from the wagon, she found the family between the big vehicles, attentive, but not too tense. "It looks like a false alarm." Maxine told her.
Chloe pointed at the fire. "But, this...?"
Remy pointed to a cluster of bottles, scattered around the fire. Some of them had yet to crack or start melting. "Sunlight through one of those may have started it."
"The doors and window shutters are all open, and it looks like the buildings have been emptied with some care." Tony said. "We're going to do a quick search through them, but it looks like someone just packed up and moved away."
"It looks like a false alarm." Maxine said again. "I wonder where they went? And why they left?"
Remy shrugged. "It's not the first Celeste of a farm we've found, and it won't be the last. If there is no-one here to help or trade with, we'll just have a quick look around, then carry on." Veronique and Tony were already heading for the farm house. Remy surveyed the yard, then shouldered his rifle and walked toward the barn.
"Does this happen often? Rushing into abandoned settlements?" Chloe asked Maxine.
"Occasionally. We have rolled up just as raiders were attacking, on occasion. And last year, something like this happened and we were able to stop a family losing a year's
They reached the deep green strip, and the wagon tipped forward. Suddenly, the foliage was as high as the windscreen. Chloe's hand slapped the console in front of her as she stopped herself being thrown forward. Remy shouted some words she didn't recognise, and could only presume were curses.
Just as suddenly as they had dropped into the gulley, they hit the bottom, splashing into shallow water. Maxine twisted a control on the steering column, sending more power to the motor driving the front wheels, and they soon regained their lost momentum. The grass and reeds were denser and taller in the stream bed, but they gave way to the mass of the wagon. They started climbing the opposite bank.
As the wagon left the channel, its nose reared up, front wheels off the ground. Maxine twisted the power controller again, transferring drive to the rear pair of axles. They passed the point of balance, and the front end came back down again, bouncing once before Maxine had the power back to all six wheels equally and they were accelerating away from the obstacle.
Now they were raising dust, rather than hay, as they raced along the track. A spur from the gravel covered road turned sharply around the end of the farm house. Maxine scrubbed off speed as they approached, then turned in sharply. They stopped sharply on the cobbled yard, and Maxine was out of her seat almost immediately, pausing only to grab her 9mm from the middle console.
The nearest door out of the wagon was behind the ladder to the roof. Maxine swung through the gap between it and the third seat, shouldered the door open and dropped out of the vehicle. Chloe found herself reaching out to the disappeared girl, just holding in a little call to her to stop. No, she wasn't going to fall in love with her at all.
Wagon two skidded to a stop on the opposite side of the yard. Veronique and Tony were already moving from their seats. The fire was in a corner of the yard, about as far from the buildings as possible without going into the fields. It had the look of a bonfire, but the shape at the heart of it could have been a small van.
Chloe had lost her catapult in the violent manoeuvres across the field. After a moment, she found it on the floor. She slung the bag of darts over her shoulder and headed for the door. When she clambered down from the wagon, she found the family between the big vehicles, attentive, but not too tense. "It looks like a false alarm." Maxine told her.
Chloe pointed at the fire. "But, this...?"
Remy pointed to a cluster of bottles, scattered around the fire. Some of them had yet to crack or start melting. "Sunlight through one of those may have started it."
"The doors and window shutters are all open, and it looks like the buildings have been emptied with some care." Tony said. "We're going to do a quick search through them, but it looks like someone just packed up and moved away."
"It looks like a false alarm." Maxine said again. "I wonder where they went? And why they left?"
Remy shrugged. "It's not the first Celeste of a farm we've found, and it won't be the last. If there is no-one here to help or trade with, we'll just have a quick look around, then carry on." Veronique and Tony were already heading for the farm house. Remy surveyed the yard, then shouldered his rifle and walked toward the barn.
"Does this happen often? Rushing into abandoned settlements?" Chloe asked Maxine.
"Occasionally. We have rolled up just as raiders were attacking, on occasion. And last year, something like this happened and we were able to stop a family losing a year's
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