The Burn Act 3 BY Zachariah Van Sluyters/Edited by Mark Bell

Only slightly before...

"Hell yeah!" Banc yelled as he opened up the Injector's supercharger and kicked up the dirt.

"Careful boss, rocks can come out of nowhere out here." Sten warned and Banc frowned at him.

"So you think this is smart to deal with Queen D?" Sten asked after a moment of silence, "We don't want any of them declaring Gropa on us."

Banc chuckled, "Their silly vengeance quests? I'm not worried about it, as long as we are up front about our deals there is no reason for it."

Sten shrugged, "I suppose you are right."

"You suppose?" Banc scowled at him, "did you forget who calls the shots?"

Sten remembered his place and got sullen, "No boss, sorry."

They had put JaJa in an old torn dress and stuck her into the trunk of the Interceptor. She would be a good addition to any deals made with Queen D. She liked to keep her men happy.

Queen D was a migrant Bandit warlord and hijacker. She survived by traveling within an army of loyal and indentured warriors on scavenged and modified Vehicles. She was in the area every 6th month and Banc had traded with her last time. Banc bartered with the citizens that could not pay for valuable objects after he had their wives of course.

Sten was concerned because Queen D had an army at her disposal whereas Banc had just his six deputies. With the injector they had two Scarabs and one Scav Duster. If Queen D gave the word, it would be hardly a fight.

Banc was not worried. He had dealt with her before as long as you where respectful and gave good prices she was reasonable.

The group began to slow as they saw Queen D's Camp ahead of them. There were Devils and Big Rigg's everywhere, makeshift tents using the sides of the Vehicles as supports like a small impromptu village in the middle of the rocky sand.

****

Still just before...

Banc thought he had broken JaJa. Why would he have any reason to think otherwise? After what they had done to her, what they had taken from her, who would have any fight left?

JaJa did.

She had been stuffed in the trunk like the goods that Banc and his crew believed her to be. She had heard Banc and Sten's entire conversation on her way over hear and had come to a conclusion.

The trunk opened and Bevle's meaty arm reached in grabbing JaJa and dragging her out roughly. JaJa did not fight this time. She allowed him the complete control over her. Her bare feet hit the sand and it burned slightly. Bevle then dragged her past the car her father and her had built from scratch towards a group of people.

Banc and his deputies on one side, a small older looking Prairie dog with silver hair and a scar over her left eye on the other. JaJa guessed this was the queen she had heard about. Banc was saying something about 'throwing her in, entertainment for her bandits' she was not listening. She was waiting.

Queen D eyed her hard as she stood there looking broken. Their eyes met and JaJa found a strange kinship there, of a woman not ready to quit. In that second JaJa was worried she had given too much away, that Queen D had somehow gleaned her intentions and would give her away to her captors.

"I will take the Girl," Queen D said finally apparently not deciding to show her hand, "We have a deal."

Queen D turned to a Short evil looking Serpent and said, "Sharky, pay them."

Sharky nodded pulled out a wad of cash, counted out the agreed upon Gen and handed it to Banc.

Banc smiled, "Pleasure as always, Queen. Boys, let’s get out of here"

Banc and his agents moved back to their cars started them up and pulled away, Banc behind the wheel of the interceptor again.

"Entitled prick." Queen D muttered as they drove away.

Sharky laughed in a high pitched shrill voice then asked, "I'll get the Arma's to more this stuff to the camp, what do you want me to do with her?"

Before she could answer, JaJa seized the moment, "Gropa."

Sharky frowned, "What?"

"I want vengeance, you people call it Gropa," She said evenly, without emotion, "I'm yours now but I want my Gropa."

"Bitch, you don't get nothing. You are just meat, you hear me?" Sharky said stepping forward to put her in her place.

"Sharky hold, " Queen D's words froze the Serpent in place. She walked over to JaJa and looked deep into her eyes, "You have the burn inside you, don't you girl?"

JaJa did not look away waiting, challenging her to refuse. Queen D instead said, "Sharky get this girl keys to a Furie Coup and a shotgun."

Sharky looked blown away, "We are really going to let her invoke Gropa after three minutes of being in the gang?"

Queen D seemed to consider, "Something tells me she needs it, something tells me that if she gets it she will be coming back."

JaJa smiled then grabbed her double barreled shotgun from the pile of junk that Banc had off loaded to Queen D, then the six shells from the pile.

Sharky tossed her a set of keys and JaJa, still only wearing the torn dress, cranked the engine and shifted into gear, violently taking off after Banc and his agents.

****

Finally back to now (just after Cod gets run over)...

JaJa left the Bike and its broken driver behind her as she gunned the engine to catch up to the Interceptor and its two Scarab escorts. The Scarab to the right dropped back as another of Banc's deputies slid out of the window, Sub-machine gun in hand.

His name was Farris she thought. Fannis? Something like that.

As he pulled up the gun to fire she cut right hard pulling out to the scarab’s passenger side, she brought up the shotgun and fire once out the driver's side window. The shells hit the Man's torso rocking him backwards.

JaJa took no chances and unloaded with the other shell and the man's throat exploded outwards before he fell over the edge and into the sand below.

JaJa let off the gas slightly as she propped the gun between her thighs. The hot barrels burned her skin but she felt nothing. Instead she popped the breach open and pulled the shells out tossing them out the window, before putting in her second two shells and choking the gun closed.

Jamming the acceleration again, she noticed Bevle was driving the other Scarab, He had moved off to left, while the other driver she had just tangled with had moved to the right. She saw the opening to the interceptor and gunned the Engine shifting into high gear.

Her hate blinded her to the obvious Trap, Bevle quickly cut the heavy Scarab back towards her, at the same time driver of the other Scarab followed his lead. The heavy Devil's crashed into the smaller faster vehicle and trapped it between the two of them.

JaJa Swore under her breath and ducked down onto the seat as Bevle's passenger slid out of the window and began to pepper the coup with Shotgun Shells. The windshield shattered and the glass rained down on JaJa cutting her exposed arm and leg skin.

Buckshot tore at her back and shoulders. Nothing was big enough to kill or maim her but enough to hurt. She wrapped her right hand around the shotgun's handle. She had to hold on just until he needed to reload.

Finally the shells stopped and she knew it was now or never, she raised up bringing the shotgun across her body and pointing it at the Scarab's Nex Paneling. She fired and the shotgun at close range caused the desired overload reaction.

The Paneling burst into flames, the fire rolled over both JaJa and the Passenger. The fire caught his shirt arm. JaJa's hair burned and her skin scorched but Bevle swerved reacting to the explosion giving JaJa room to work again.

The Passenger began to bang around trying to put the fire out while Bevle yelled at him. JaJa aimed the shotgun a put her second round into his chest. He died falling catching his burning clothes on the edge of the Scarab Bevle cut the wheel having to stop to deal with the flaming dead man.

JaJa quickly cut the wheel sending the Furie into the other scarab. The Sideswipe was hard and effective and the Scarab's course adjusted, slamming head on with a small rock formation jutting out of the sand. The Impact ripped the front end to shreds and set the vehicle into a hard front roll. Parts few off of it as it burst into flames.

JaJa Gunned it, Only the Interceptor remained. She opened the breach and disposed of the used shells. As she closed she watch Banc switch places with Sten giving him the wheel as He then slid out of the Passenger window.

JaJa slid the last two Shells into her gun and raised it the windshield no longer blocking her from taking a shot as Banc pulled out his ridiculous one shot pistol. She centered the gun on him and had the shot.

Before she could take it she was rammed from behind the Furie shuttering and fishtailing. Bevle had cleared the body and come up from behind her, looking to beat her car to death.

It was all she could do to keep the car from spinning. Banc took his opening and his pistol reported a single shot, The Bullet slammed into her right should and shredded it. She screamed in pain and felt her arm numb as she dropped the Shotgun onto the passenger side seat.

Banc began to reload the powerful handgun and JaJa's mind began to panic as the blood ran down her arm like a mud slide of crimson. How was she supposed to drive with one arm much less shoot?

The Scarab slammed into the Furie's backside a second time and Banc fired the hand cannon this time barley missing her head. The coup shuttered from the damage. What was left to do?

"Close your eyes." She heard her father's voice in her head and she obeyed. The world faded away for that split second as she cleared her mind.

"Feel the Devil under you" His father’s voice continued.

Banc had loaded his next round, and Bevle gunned the gas pushing the Scarab again towards her.

"Now open your eyes, and make Magic." His voice finished and she opened her eyes, ducking to the right as Banc fired again, missing. She grabbed the shifter with her only working hand, the left, and put the car in neutral.

She rose up and cut the Steering wheel extremely hard to the left and pinned it with her knee. The car was turning as Bevle's car connected again with her back end. She leaned back over the Stick jamming it into reverse as she simultaneously released pressure on the wheel, The Car spun, and she halted the spin by catching the wheel again with her leg. Her other leg jammed the gas.

She grabbed the shotgun with her left and rose back up. Her car was now face to face with Bevle's and going backwards. She pointed the shotgun at him and fired.

Bevle’s chest blew out and he lurched forward.

The propulsion from the blow and her foot on the gas had pushed the Furie backwards another the driver's side of the Interceptor just close enough to hang the shotgun out the window and with her last shot, make Sten's face disintegrate.

His body snapped away from the shot and JaJa dropped the gun and used her free hand to regain control of her own vehicle. Banc saw it all and scrambled back into the cab of the car as it swerved towards a large rock formation, He quickly threw his weight into the dead Sten while reaching out and catching the door handle. The door opened and Sten was thrown out while Banc slid into the driver’s seat. He cut the wheel to the left and jammed the brakes and the Interceptor cut the sand and kicked it up bringing the car to a halt inches from the rocks.

He took a deep breath and turned seeing some twenty yards away JaJa, bloody and damaged staring at him from the driver’s seat of her now battered coup. She mouthed the words, "Take your medicine."

Banc was confused for only a second before he heard the engine, he swiveled his head and saw the Scarab, Bevle had died and the fell forward his great weight pinning the gas pedal to the floor and the steering wheel in place.

Banc had time to begin to scream before the chariot of the dead slammed into the interceptor sandwiching it between the rocks. Both vehicles ceased to exist in a plum of fire and scrap metal.

She watched it burn for a second and realized she had finally gotten around to scrapping the interceptor after all.

For a second she sat there in the heat. She let the pain wash over her, decided to embrace it for the first time. She thought of the old saying that revenge left you empty. While JaJa could not say it made her feel better, she did feel a certain satisfaction that she no longer occupied a plane of existence with Banc and his men.

For a second she thought about just leaning back and letting the damage overtake her. Just closing her eyes and slipping away in the desert heat. Unsure what made her open her eyes, she did so. Then she forced her damaged arm to slowly reach not and put the coup into 1^st gear. The car lurched to life, and JaJa headed back to Queen D’s camp.

She could have gone back to the city, or even in a random direction but she felt the need to return to the bandits. It could have been because she felt the need to repay her promise, but she suspected it was something else. She suspected it was the fire in her gut that touched her being. The anger that continued after her enemies had been slain.

 A need to sow chaos, and she could think of no place better. 

The Burn Act 2 by Zachariah Van Sluyters/ Edited by Mark Bell

Act 2

A little less before...

To say that Banc hated his posting was an understatement.

Banc had grown up in Tark, the capital city, the son of a great and famous Templar agent, it had been his birthright to become the greatest law keeper the world had ever seen. He had of course joined the academy and received high marks, top of his class in fact. Finishing school he was on the road to a Templar posting himself one day.

The he joined the order.

They showed him no preferential treatment; in fact, Banc had the belief they had decided to make things harder for him in the long run. While he had received a peacemaker posting, it was in the badlands of District 3.

The heat never stopped here and the sand and rocks stretched out as far as the eye could see. Settlement 952, his charge was a small pathetic little Chorta mining village. There was almost nothing in it, a gun shop, a bar, a mechanic shop and started living quarters. This posting was an insult to his lineage and his family.

So if they were not going to take them serious then Banc would not take the job seriously.

With that in mind over the last year Banc had deputized anyone unemployed by the mine, his little group was up to six, they were hard people all fired for a violation or two. Their flexible morality and anger towards the working people of the settlement made them open to any suggestion Banc made.

The people of the settlement were not fighters, and before long he was running there small city like his own little piggy bank. Extortion and blackmail was the name of the game. Banc would line his pockets on this posting and then when they finally transferred him he'd leave this whole of a town destitute.

Banc was a tall thin normal human who still dressed in nice clothes of the Capital city. The heat was no excuse to dress like a peasant. He had sharp blue eyes and short cropped blond hair. He had a Holt Contender strap to his belt, a powerful one short pistol with a breach loud and a long barrel.

He could not remember a time when he needed more than one shot.

Watching the sandy city from a rocking chair on the Templar Agents office porch with his feet up trying not to move and adjust the sweat into more uncomfortable spots. He saw his right hand walking towards him with a heavy duffle, full of this month’s collections.

Bevle was a Large Arma, the brutish Armor covered man was a warrior, strong with his fists but not his head. He was as loyal as a dog. Bevle dropped the bag on the Porch, "It was a good take."

The guttural and hard accent of the Bad lander's assaulted Banc's ears and made him frown every time, "Is that everyone?"

Bevle shook his head, "JaJa, She still hasn't paid this month."

Banc smiled at this. He had a trade arrangement he made when the men did not pay, they could barter with their woman, if they were quality enough. Banc had sampled most of the wares in the city, the only treat he had yet to partake of was the Fiery Black thumb JaJa.

JaJa had been somewhat of a thorn in Banc's side since he had arrived. The short little red head was the daughter of some long dead Mechanic who kept the town working, he had apparently died of Nickels three years ago, leaving the sixteen year old daughter JaJa in charge of the shop. Now she was nineteen and had been reluctant to pay into the Banc protection rates.

Now the bitch was refusing. He was going to make the street rat pay her fair share. Her time had come in this settlement.

****

JaJa had the hood up on the Interceptor.

Part of her had wanted to scrap the vehicle when her father had keeled over three years ago on one of their routine joyrides, but she could not bring herself to the act. Even after she found out he had been sick for some time and kept the information from JaJa. That had angered her, how could he have justified it? She had been blindsided her only living relatives suddenly and violent death. At sixteen she had been left in charge of all the mechanics duties in the settlement.

She had done her best, her father had taught her much but she defiantly was not him, did not have his skill. The city had been generous and patient, though none of that really mattered now.

Her care for her neighbors had turned to hatred, as they continued to take the crap of the Templar Agents lead by Banc. She had enough of him and his dictatorship. She had spoken out more than once, that as a village they were stronger then the six men who ruled over them but no one acted they just took it.

Jaja was done.

The Knock at the front door was loud and brought JaJa's eyes up, "What?"

"Open up girl, Templar Agent orders!" The voice was of the idiot henchmen Bevle.

"Fuck you!" JaJa yelled back, "You and Banc can put your heads up each other’s asses and jump off a cliff!"

She was about to go back to her work with the crashing noise alerted her to Bevle's presence, He had put his massive weight into the door and it had given in snapping open. Bevle's eyes scanned the Garage looking for JaJa. The Arma was massive eight feet tall over 300 lbs. and naturally armored.

"Mother fucker!" She yelled as he rushed her. She wound up and hurled her ratchet with perfect accuracy, connecting with Bevle's eye. He howled and took a header over a table of tools.

Sten, another lackey, charged in behind the massive Arma and JaJa was already moving towards her hidden Double barreled shotgun. Sten was faster and struck her across the face. The blow was hard but open handed, Sten had misjudged his opponent. JaJa was more or less un-phased by the blow and Came back with a right hook of surprising force from the small boxy woman.

Sten staggered falling onto the Interceptors engine block. JaJa turned and kicked the hood stand out dropping the metal cover onto Sten with a crash. JaJa Turn back towards the shotgun on the shelf and in two steps she had a hold of Handle with a smile.

Then he hit her, Bevle's Massive fist caught her above the temple. He had not underestimated and the force of the blow sent her Toppling end over end into the bumper of a half built Injector JaJa had been working on. The Shotgun skittered across the smooth cement floor under the vehicle and out the back.

Before she could shake off the punch he was on her his big hands wrapping around her through and with almost no effort he lifted her into the air. Her lungs felt the air stop, and for a half second she panicked. That's how long it took her hand to find the utility knife sitting on the hood from when she was cutting tubing.

She raised it, extended the full blade with her thumb and then drove it into the top of Bevle's right hand.

"God damnit!" He yelled and dropped her.

Still gasping for breath she scrambled up and over the injector. Sten had pulled himself free and went after her tackling her over the cad the two rolled off the back end and crashed the concrete with a hard thud. Sten grabbed her hair to drag her up but she turned the shotgun in her hand and put the double barrel to his nose.

Sten froze as did Bevle who had freed the knife from his hand, "Let go."

Sten let go of her hair and back away a couple of steps slowly raising his hands.

"Come on girl," Banc had moved in and been watching the chaos on the outside, she turned the gun on him, "You are not going to do it."

He stood there with a malicious grin, hands in his pockets as if she didn't have any power, as if she didn't have a gun on him. The smugness made her want to pull the triggers and watch his head disintegrate.

"Don't get me wrong," He continued slowly stepping towards her, "You want to, and you would if it was just me, but you have no exit strategy here, no way out. You pull that trigger and you are dead no way around it."

Her finger was being called by the trigger as the logical wrestled with her rage, "I mean, either way we are going to do some terrible things to you, just despicable things but you know that as bad as it is going to be you can survive it. Whereas you pull that trigger, there is no way you walk out of here."

His chest now touched the barrel ends as he look down on her, "So you are not going to pull the trigger, Instead you are going to take your medicine aren't you?"

He gentle touched the barrel and pulled the shotgun from her hand, "That's a good girl."

****

Banc fulfilled his promise. What came next was pain the likes she had never felt. They passed her around like a bottle of beer at a party, minutes, hours, days? She had no way of telling how much time passed, but she knew that two things inside her had died, she felt it - any part of her that cared for others, and her fear.

Nothing would scar her after this. Nothing would scare her after this.

When they finished Banc pulled his pants up and eyed the Interceptor, "I think I'm going to keep this bad boy."

Bevle nodded, "Suits you, boss. What do we do with her?"

He point at the naked, bruised and bloodied JaJa on the cold floor of the garage that was once a sacred place for her, now forever defiled. Sten, the last to get a turn had just stood and was zipping up.

Banc considered, "Queen D's gang is passing through today, right?"

Banc had sold women and some Arma's into the migratory Bandit gang’s service, they usually gave a fair price and Banc wanted her out of his town. Not because he found her to be a threat, but because now he found her to be disgusting in the way someone would be disgusted by used tissue paper.

Bevle nodded and Banc continued rubbing the hood of the Devil, "Round the boys up, get the Scarabs and I'll take this little baby for a test drive."

"Put her in a dress, we'll sell her as entertainment for Queen D's boys." Banc finished then opened his new interceptor's door and got in.

TO BE CONCLUDED...VIOLENTLY.

The Burn Act 1 By Zachariah Van Sluyters/ Edited by Mark Bell

Present...

Banc opened up the throttle on his new Interceptor with a grin on his face. Sten sat next to him relaxing. Soon he would be back to the Settlement, his personal kingdom, with another hundred Gen in his pocket and that stupid girl out of his life for good.

He then noticed the Bandit Coup coming on fast through the sand and he was confused, "Did we forget something?"

Sten perked up and noticed the car, "I don't think so boss, what do you think that's about?"

Banc was suspicious but he had a good relationship with Queen D and did not want to ruin it over a misunderstanding, "Signal everyone to slow down we are going figure out what this is about.

Sten made some arm gestures and the two Scarab Devils and the Scav Duster escorts to slow.

Their slowly had no effect on the Coup, which actually seemed to increase its speed and then it's front window was no longer blocked by the sun's reflection and Banc could see the driver.

"It's fucking her!" He yelled at Sten.

Sten took a half second to react and that half second was one to many for Cud on the Duster.

The Coup slammed into the back wheel of the Duster kicking the bike's front end straight up and hurling Cud backwards into the hood of the Coup. The velocity of the impact broke his neck and sent his lifeless body rag dolling into the sand behind the Devil.

The driver downshifted and jerked the wheel pulling around the Duster before it could get trapped under the vehicle's wheels. She then shifted again and the exhaust on the vehicle flared as it shred the sand behind them coming fast.

Banc could see her eyes now, the fiery madness in them, and behind that even deeper the face of the devil itself.

****

Before...

 

"Close your eyes," The hard guttural accent of the man's voice did not affect the sixteen year old JaJa, because all of the bad lander's spoke that way. No one was quite sure were the accent had come from it had always just been there.

JaJa did as her father DaDa said and shut her eyes. She sat in the driver’s seat of the partially restored Cord Interceptor and smile as she felt the Devil under her. The engines hummed with and energy that took on sentience and begged to be used. The vehicle was like a great beast asking to be released.

"That's it girl, Feel the car," He continued his voice was soft, leading her to a conclusion she had already made on her own.

"Now," He said finally, "Open your eyes, and make magic!"

Her eye's popped open and she instantly through the car into first jamming the gas. The powerful vehicle leapt into motion Dirt kicking up behind it as it burned through the sand. Father and Daughter screaming loudly the battle cry of the two who looked out for each other and no one else.

The Badlands were a hundred mile rocky desert were on Genisis, it was not prime real estate by any stretch of the imagination. There were towns and settlements in the harsh unforgiving land, but they were few and in between and usually6 sprung up around Chota Mines. The Chota was a special conductive material which was used for the conversion of the Nex energy that everything on the planet used for power.

JaJa and DaDa's home was one such mining town, not big enough for a name, just known as settlement 952. DaDa was a skilled mechanic and had been borne into the trade. He was valuable in the town to keep the gadgets, equipment, and vehicles running. It helped that this skill was one he happened to love and his free time was spent with his only daughter, restoring and building the finest Devils and Duster's that Genisis had ever known.

The Interceptor was their latest conquest, Cord had always been known for the most advanced Vehicles. Add in DaDa's superior building abilities and you got one of the most powerful machines on the planet.

DaDa watched his short red headed daughter howl at the wind. He knew that she had, and would be, more about the driving. This did not bother DaDa, she had a natural ability that made him proud. She could feel the car, she instinctively knew its abilities and limits. After his wife had died he had done the best he could but the ways of the woman were not known to him.

JaJa was strong though, the Devil was in her eyes. Maybe she would have a hard time with the facts of being a lady but she would live, she was a survivor and for that he was proud.

DaDa began to cough, small at first, but then the cough became rolling overtaking him, Blood leaked from his mouth and he doubled over. That was when JaJa noticed and slammed on the brakes, "DA?! DADA?!"

Concludes act 1