Revelation

no idea. It only added to his mystery, his power. It was not just Rey who wore a clean suit — it was his men, also — these elites who were a reflection of their lord. Like the rest of the gangs, excepting the Dragons, the Kings carried no visible weapons. The New Angels and the Dragons were the only gangs to openly show their guns.

Rey walked up to the circle, flanked on each side by his men. Rey was clearly the most powerful of the gang lords. Not only had he made the biggest showing of everyone there, he seemed the most in control — of himself, and of the situation. The other gang leaders looked to him, expecting him to speak first. Boss Dragon on the other side of the circle could not mask the scowl that came to his lips.

“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” Rey said, looking pointedly at Boss Dragon. “And ladies. I first want to thank Elijah, Boss Dragon, for this gathering, because it was a long time in coming. It’s a pity that the Reds cannot be here today, but perhaps that’s because they’re the Reds.”

This elicited a chuckle from most of the gang members. It was an inside joke of some sort. I looked to Michael for direction, but he was focused on Rey.

“We have several matters of business to attend to, not the least of which is the presence of this new gang. First, we have the Raiders. Now, we have another group to deal with. As you all know, we have already spoken to Char, but with the arrival of these Angels, things have changed. So dealing with this should be the first thing on today’s agenda.”

The other gang members said nothing. I realized that Rey had, in a few sentences, managed to reframe the entire situation. Instead of Makara calling all them to deliberate on what to do about the Great Blight, it was now all about the Vegas gangs and what they were to do about this new nuisance called the New Angels.

Everyone waited a moment. Finally, Rey looked at Makara, with an expression that said that she was a little girl who was in trouble and needed to explain herself.

“You and I both know that’s not what this about,” Makara said, with venom, “so quit playing games, because I’m not in the mood for them. The New Angels are not the threat here.” Makara pointed eastward. “That is. That is why we are here. Let’s just make that clear, Rey.”

Rey looked bored. “So, you want shelter in our city? Get in line. We don’t have the room, or the food. But if you have the batts or anything else to offer, we’ll talk. In the meantime…”

“No,” Makara said, cutting him off. “We have no need of shelter. You do. You think these flimsy walls will protect you against the Great Blight?” Makara paused. “They won’t. And you know they won’t. They couldn’t protect Augustus. They won’t protect you, either.”

Rey looked at the other gang lords, and smiled. “A lot of bark, this one.”

Some of the gangsters chuckled, but most seemed to be taking Makara seriously. Noticing this, Rey’s expression darkened somewhat before he was able to recover.

“What do you know about Augustus?” he asked.

“More than you think,” Makara said. “And the same thing will happen here that happened to Raider Bluff and Nova Roma. It’s just a matter of time until crawlers are roaming the streets.”

Rey gave no reaction, waiting for Makara to say more. But Makara said nothing more. She was waiting for Rey to respond.

“She’s Dark Raine’s protege,” Jade said, from the Diamonds’ part of the circle. He snickered, his demeanor becoming even more like that of a weasel.

“Dark Raine was a powerful man,” Rey said. “But he is a ghost, now. The Angels are no more.”

Grudge’s face reddened, and he reached for his belt. Immediately, a dozen guns were pointed in this direction.

“Peace, Grudge,” Boss Dragon said.

“I’m sick of the way Rey thinks he runs things here,” Grudge said, withdrawing his hand from his weapons. “Like we’re some sheep to follow his every word. No. That’s not the way this works. Makara came here to say something, so let her say it, damn it. Quit acting like you’re the one who called this meeting. I want to hear what she has to say about the Great Blight.”

Grudge stepped back, having said his piece, but he was still fuming. I was starting to see why Michael said he was crazy. Rey arched an eyebrow, appearing bored, yet a bit more alert after Grudge’s intrusion.

“Very well,” Rey said. “We are not barbarians here. We are all here to ensure our mutual profit. And if there is a danger, like Makara of the Angels says…then it would be beneficial to listen.”

He looked to Makara, ceding the floor.

“First of all, it’s New Angels. Get the name right. As I was saying, there’s a threat on the way. Not just to Vegas, but the entire Wasteland. I will deal with these threats in the order they are most likely to happen. First, there is the Great Blight. It is expanding, and it is only a matter of time until it takes out the city, just as it did with Raider Bluff.”

“We will not fall,” Cain said. “We have fought these dragons before, and have pushed them back every time. We are not easy prey for the Blighters.”

“I didn’t say you were,” Makara said. “But you have not yet seen the whole strength of the Great Blight. They have legions of crawlers, howlers, flyers, and worse. There are the dragons, too, and then there is him. The giant dragon.”

Apparently, all the gang members knew what Makara was talking about. They had seen the dragon.

“We call that one the Dragon King,” Grudge said. “We have seen him, but have never fought him.”

Rey said nothing. The gang members began talking amongst themselves. Makara spoke again, the men’s voices fading at her words.

“Believe it or not, there are worse threats than this Dragon King. We have been into the heart of the Great Blight itself — to Bunker One. There, we discovered the cause behind the Blights. It is all controlled through something called the xenovirus. This xenovirus will take over the entire world, unless we do something to stop it.”

The gang lords looked at each other, wondering if Makara’s word was to be trusted.

“She’s right,” Char said, stepping in. “I outfitted them for their journey myself. They left Raider Bluff a little over two months ago, and this is the first I’ve seen of them since then.” Char gazed at all the gang members, commanding their attention. “I thought them dead. She’s already explained everything to me, about what they found out. I suggest you all listen. As soon as I heard, I pledged the Raiders to her cause.” Char paused. “And my brother, Marcus, has also offered her the Exiles’ services.”

Rey smiled, looking around at the other gang lords. “Well, if the Exiles are following this girl, where do I sign up?”

Cain laughed, and Jade snickered. Boss Dragon and Grudge gave no reaction.

“There is no cure?” Grudge asked. “To the xenovirus, I mean.”

It was hard to tell if Grudge was interested because he really was, or because caring was the opposite attitude to the one Rey was taking. The two men didn’t seem to like each other all that much.

“There is no cure, except to take out the thing that controls the xenovirus,” Makara said. “It’s called the Voice. The Voice makes the Blighters work together. It controls them like a general controls an army. It’s based in Ragnarok Crater, and using the Blighters, the Voice is trying to conquer the world.”

Jade giggled. “Why all this doom and gloom stuff, Angel?”

“Quiet,” Char growled.

Jade looked at Char contemptuously, a nervous giggle escaping his throat.

“Well, apparently, she has convinced Raider Bluff,” Grudge said. “The Raiders were strong, until the Blighters got them.”

“The same thing won’t happen to us,” Cain said. “We are too strong. We’ll kick those Blighters back to the Crater, where they belong.”

“The Great Blight isn’t the only problem,” Makara said. “The other issue is Emperor Augustus, of Nova Roma, and his ally, Carin Black, of the Reapers.”

For some reason, this had the gang leaders much more interested than the threat of the xenovirus. They leaned forward intently.

“What’s going on with Augustus?” Rey asked. “You act like you have seen him.”

“He and his army are on their way to the Wasteland,” Makara said. “We just came from there, and even got