Page 86 of Elas

“Violence for the sake of mindless killing, no, but nothing beats the adrenaline rush of a good brawl. My people take fighting very seriously, but we have fun with it too. Every year, in the mild months, a large community of Nu’vak would host Pihanth Niror.” He must sense my confusion, because he rubs his chin. “There’s no direct translation for it… basically, a tournament.”

“Wrestling?”

“Eh… no, not exactly, though hand to hand combat wasn’t out of the question. It was an elimination fight, and the winner was the last man standing. We were allowed weapons, but only those we could find from the ground. Sticks used as spears, or sharp pieces of slate. Rocks were most common, though.”

“Rocks?” I choke, and a huge, nostalgic grin spreads over his face.

“Yes, big rocks. Boulders. It was considered a great feat to use the largest one, and an even greater honor to strike your opponent with it.”

“Wait… you were running around chucking giant rocks at each other—”

“Boulders,” he corrects.

“—bouldersat each other, and that was sport? What happened when you hit someone?” His brows knit, confused by my question. “What if they were hurt?”

“Of course they got hurt, August. They were hit by a boulder.”

“How did you win?”

He shoots me another side-eye, like the answer should be obvious. “You don’t get hit by a boulder.”

Seven hells.

Elas chuckles and changes the subject, asking about my childhood and early years, then the conversation moves to cooking. I share my disasters in the kitchen and he shares his own, and it’s unilaterally decided we’ll live off simple foods. That suits us both just fine.

He said it perfectly in the past. In this ridiculously complex reality, we have the power to remain uncomplicated. We can be simple.

“ThisisLogan’s camp,” I confirm as we approach the tall wooden fence. Elas jumps out to open the gate, then drives us inside as I stare at the familiar buildings. “It’s the biggest community I’ve ever seen. Taryn’s was probably the next largest, but hers was half the size of this one. Every other camp I’ve visited was small—makeshift fences and tents. Logan was a good leader, but he was competitive. He wanted to be the best andhavethe best. They had so much stuff here they built secret rooms to stash extra supplies. I bet some are still here.” Elas perks up at this as he parks the SUV, glancing around like he might spot one.

“There isn’t enough daylight left to start searching tonight. Let’s get settled and put something together for dinner. I haven’t fed you enough today.”

I grin at the caretaker’s side of him and step out into the late evening sun. My muscles are stiff from sitting all day, and I groan in relief as I lift my arms over my head and arch my back. A hot breeze blows over us, the air dusty as the gusts roll over the desolate soil. “Want to check out my old quarters?”

“Do you use that line with all the boys?” he teases, absentmindedly grazing his fingertips over my exposed belly as I stretch. “We’ll need somewhere to sleep tonight, anyway, unless you’d rather camp in the vehicle.”

“I would not,” I answer immediately, and he chuckles.

“According to Khors, the water runs as long as the tower hasn’t dried out, and apparently someone recently repaired one of the solar panels.”

“You think that could’ve been Ronan?” I ask, and he snorts.

“I’ll tell you the same thing I told the commander—Ronan almost had an aneurism when our vehicle broke down once. There’s no way he fixed anything electric.”

“Could it have been Cameron?” I ask, and Elas considers this.

“Possibly. I only met him a few times, but he strikes me as the scrappy type.”

That’s putting it lightly.

Elas lets me lead the way, and we weave through the pathways until we’re in front of the familiar single-story building. “This was the clinic,” I say as I twist the knob.It sticks and shrieks in protest, and the hinges need some coaxing, but the roof hasn’t leaked and the windows are intact. Everything has held up well, despite the years of neglect.

Dust coats most of the surfaces inside, and I drag my fingertips over the metal countertop, leaving a trail through the inch of filth. A few modified twin beds sit behind makeshift curtains, with rails added to the sides for flailing patients and lights strung overhead. Cabinets line the back wall, and I open one to find it empty.

“Raiders have been here,” Elas says, searching through some drawers a few feet away. “That doesn’t surprise me.”

“They would’ve only found the stuff on the surface. Logan was paranoid… always worried others would raid the camp with the sole purpose of stealing everything he’d worked so hard to accumulate. Those rooms I told you about were loaded full of supplies.”

Elas looks amused and glances around, like he might magically locate a secret door. “They’re well hidden,” I say. “Some of them are impossible to find unless you know where to find them.”

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