Susan's Paradise

PART ONE: RECRUITMENT

She couldn't remember what she had just been doing or for a minute there, that her name was Susan Lancaster. Everything around her felt confusing, blurred and jumbled into each other. Her legs felt weak, her clothes felt heavy. She just wanted to sleep.

Moments later a woman stood before her. She seemed nice. She could trust this person. There's a thief about apparently. The kind lady offers to look after her stuff. It sounds like a good idea, especially if there's a thief about. The lady takes her emergency first aid kit, keys, her gun and spare ammunition and all her caps for safe keeping. Her clothes aren't safe either. Susan allows the stranger to take them to. Her old pre-war dress, shoes, even her bra and panties. If anything else it took all that weight off her. Completely naked now that thief would be unable to steel anything from her. She was safe.

There are other kind people who would like to meet her the kind lady tells her. She should wear the collar she's been offered. No, it's not a collar but a necklace. This will make her look good. Felt heavy, but then didn't everything right now. She placed it around her neck and clicked it closed.

The necklace felt tight. It was thick to for a necklace, seeming to cover her entire neck. Hard to breath or to turn her head. Felt like metal. Cold hard metal. What kind of fashion accessory was this. She tells the kind lady of her discomfort. Surly she'll help in taking it off.

The lady spoke again. She didn't sound so kind now. Three words stood out; 'Slave' and 'Paradise Falls.'

She's a slave now?

With that sobering thought everything came into focus. Everything became clear. Her name was Susan Lancaster. She was naked in front of a woman wearing gypsy clothing in a corridor of Tenpenny towers. She knew this woman, spoke to her earlier. The stranger who killed all the ghouls trying to get in. Trying to find her father or something. Shouldn't have been such a bitch to her earlier Susan thought.

Fear began to grip her. She's a slave now. That's karma biting her in the ass. But of all the places why Paradise Falls? Why couldn't she have been from Evergreen mills, the Pitt or be independent. That might have been bearable but Paradise Falls... well, it made sense. This woman wouldn't have risked enslaving just anyone in Tenpenny towers. There are safer places find fresh meat. No, Paradise Falls wanted her. There must have been a contract on her head. It was foolish to think she could hide forever or they would just forgive and forget.

Susan collected herself. She was never one to succumb to emotion for long. Feelings never did her any good in the past.

“They'll do this to you you know,” Susan told the pretty young thing in front of her, not unlike what she used to be like. “When you get to old for the wastes or your conscious finds you. One day you'll wake with a collar round your neck.”

Her advice fell on deaf ears.

“Better get running,” the girl said. “Paradise Falls is a long way away and I believe you know what will happen if you don't.”

Susan's hand reached for the collar, the part that held the explosives. A radio controlled bomb pressed against her jugular in case she misbehaves.

“Bitch.” Susan says with all the venom she could muster and she turned and began running for the stairs.

Heads turned as she ran past all the snooty men and women she just this morning mingled with. Susan thought of telling a guard who did this to her but what good would that do. Would probably get them killed and herself tortured more than she will otherwise when she arrives at Paradise falls. The slaver killed an entire colony of ghouls. She wouldn't break a sweet sacking Tenpenny towers should she have the need.

---

The wastes are not for the faint of heart. It's why when many find themselves a town or settlement that will take them in they spend the rest of their lives there. There are the traders who come well armed and in numbers, teenagers making the coming of age journey from little lamplight to big town, scavengers, mercenaries, slavers and the odd scavenger. If one is brave or stupid enough to go out into the harsh wasteland of what was once some kind of super settlement you wouldn't do so without plenty of armour, weapons and medical equipment.

Apart from Raiders and slavers there was a flurry of mutated creatures and people out there not to mention the Supermutants and Deathclaws. The odd nut-ball would claim to have seen an alien or two but Susan was pretty sure they were probably ghouls or something similar.

No one in there right mind would go for a run through the heartland of the wastes with no weapons, no medicine, no armour and not even any clothes. Not unless they had a bomb strapped to their throat that would detonate if they refused.

And so Susan ran, the cold winter air hitting every part of her as she left the doors of the luxurious Tenpenny towers which had been her home for the last twelve years and this was the first time she had left the comforts of its fortified outer wall for eight of those years. More residents watched as she ran through the open gates and into the wild, not turning back or looking left and right to see the faces of those who moments ago were her peers. She tried shutting her brain off and prayed she wouldn't be killed on the way.

Her rational mind was doing its best to calm her down. Other slavers wouldn't care over those who were already collared and most raiders leave them alone too. Most are to dumb to know how to defuse it and with not even the clothes on her back there was nothing for them to salvage. Most creatures avoided collars too. Survival instinct. They bite down on a fallen slave and the bomb goes off the animal would likely die along with its prey. Supermutants didn't care for that though and Deathclaws were tough enough to take the explosions on the chin. Deathclaws were mostly to the west of Tenpenny and can easily be avoided. Supermutants are sluggish and Susan was pretty sure she could outrun them if not dodge their bullets.

She hated Supermutants; the bain of her existence when she was active and even though they were mostly in the ruins there were plenty of hunting gangs in the wastes too. Susan had plenty of experience though and knew what to do. Avoid roads when possible, give abandoned looking structures and vehicles a wide birth and go close to settlements like Megaton and Big Town. Well, maybe not Big Town.

Things weren't like this in her day. Slaves were always escorted to Paradise falls or place of sale and at the very least they were permitted to wear rags or their underwear. All but those who really pissed her off. Or the odd friend or two.

---

Susan Lancaster was still a teenager when she turned to a life of ... well when her life changed for the first time. But having just turned sixteen she was an adult in the eyes of her peers at little lamplight and it meant only one thing. She was no longer welcome. Children weren't allowed and she had to leave her baby girl behind, in the hands of those who were shunning her now. She would be well looked after the teenage mum was told and she was welcome to bring any of her future children to be raised in the underground caves that she called home. Susan herself though was not welcome any more though.

Anna Fields was her name. Susan's overly cheery best friend. Even in Lamplight Susan's cynicism did not get her an awful many friends, but Anna was loyal through thick and thin. When it came to Susan's exile, Anna left with her despite having six months before turning sixteen herself. Susan told her not to, wanting to make the journey alone in her misery but mistaking the refusal for bravery Anna insisted.

The truth was Susan wasn't sure, and hadn't been for a while, that she wanted to go to Big town. More than once a former lamplight would return begging to be let in, describing Big town as hellish or a death sentence. That wasn't a place she particularly wanted to go to but what else was there? They were told nothing about the outside world. Nothing about slavers, mutants and gigantic killer ants. No one told them about Rivet city or Megaton let alone Tenpenny towers. On their sixteenth birthday they were given a rifle, spare clothes and a map showing where Big Town was.

The pair left together, the first time either had been out of the cave. Much to Anna's annoyance they did not leave the vicinity straight away but Susan explored the ruins of what was once a settlement. Susan was looking for clues for where to go. Markings for other towns or settlements. Big Town couldn't be the only place. But she found none and on the second day they left, Anna holding on to her riffle as if it was life itself.

Susan kept eyeing the sweet on Anna's skin as they trekked down the broken road of the old civilization. She was so afraid Susan thought. Truth was Susan was too but she controlled it better. Anna's blatant fear was a distraction to that control.

Again despite the frightful protests of her best friend the two broke of the path for Miss Lancaster to investigate a building. Alone on an intersecting road to what they travelled on it was all bordered up with nothing of interest around it except...

As they left a man approached. He was limping and blood was dripping from his right arm. A rifle, similar to theirs was hoisted on the guys back and strange metalic rings were hanging of a hook from the guys belt.

Anna wanted to run, leave before they were noticed. All Susan saw though was potential information. A possibility other than Big Town. Susan held Anna by her side by gripping tight around the girls wrist and slowly moved forward towards the stranger.

It was strange to see someone so old, big and muscular. Susan hadn't seen anyone older than sixteen before and wondered just how old to people grow up to be.

With only a few feet between them they stopped and for what seemed like an eternity there was silence. The stranger eyed both girls.

“Hi,” Susan said trying to hold back her nerves.

“Hey,” the man gruffed. “You going to kill me. 'cause if you are I'd rather you get it over with. Not really the talking type.”

“I'm not going to kill you,” Susan said feeling a new wave of confidence rush through her.

The stranger was more afraid of them than they of him. The wound probably had a lot to do with it. Susan loosened her grip on Anne's wrist.

“Name's Susan. My friend's called Anna. And you?”

“Jayne.”

Susan laughed. “Jane's a girls name.”

And the man looked at her with a scare that momentarily flushed all of Susan's confidence away. But it passed.

“Sorry,” she said softly and went to change the topic as nonchalantly as possible. “Where you're headed?”

“Paradise Falls. Heard of it?”

Anne shook her head, and seeing this, so did Susan. The stranger repressed a smile.

“Either of you guys have any medical supplies? Bandages, stimpacks?”

Susan saw this as an opportunity. A chance to escape fate but she knew Anna was set on heading to Big Town and wouldn't here otherwise.

“I do,” Susan spoke then turned to her companion. “Anna. Go wide. Aim your gun at him. If he tries to hurt me, shoot him.”

Jayne's eyes widened and watched Anne aim her riffle at him and straff round for a better angle, stepping back as she did. When she settled, the young girl was a good ten meters from her target and didn't flinch. With Anne in position Susan reached into her satchel and pulled out her stimpack. Travellers from Lamplight are always issued with a few for the journey just in case.

She gestured Jayne to sit down and crouched down next to him, facing away from Anna. She hovered the pack above his wound but not treat it and instead spoke softly to the stranger so Anne wouldn't see or hear.

“I have heard of Paradise Falls,” Susan said and it was true. One of those trying to get back into the caves spoke of it but she didn't know much. “You're not one of the good guys are you?”

“No,” Jayne admitted coldly and half expected his life to end there.

“What's it like? Paradise Falls I mean?”

“Great. If you're not a slave that is,” the man said.

Susan pretended to know what the word slave meant realizing just how sheltered life was in Little Lamplight. She knew it was something bad. Again returnees mentioned the word along with a few others.

“It'a well fortified. A safe place to sleep and have some fun. But it is a place of business. You're either a slaver or a slaver.”

“And what do you know of Big Town?”

The man smiled.

“A good place to 'recruit'. Residents either become slaves or food for the super mutants. Is that where you Gals are headed?”

“Anna wants to go there. I don't,” she told him. “So how do I get in to Paradise?”

“If you don't want to be a slave you have to be a slaver. Enslave someone.”

Susan nodded and Jayne could tell she was willing to do it. He decided to push his luck.

“Your friend Anna would make an excellent slave,” He told her and she did not protest. She did not attack him, insult him or even give him a dirty stare. He pressed on. “Bring her in with me, and I'll get you in.”

A moment of silence. Anna applied the syringe into his skin and the rapid healing process began.

“How?”

“The collars on my belt,” Jayne explained. “Get one round her neck, lock it in place and she'll be your slave.” Jayne subtly passed her a remote. “If she doesn't do as she's told you can punish her. An explosive will make her head blow up if she tries to fight or escape.”

“Okay,” Susan said. “Follow my lead and remember the word fashion.”

Susan got up and looked at Anna, loyal to the hilt and oblivious that she was about to be betrayed. She could picture the collar around her neck and smiled at the thought of not having to hear her annoying whining again. Anything she wanted, Susan thought surprised at herself that she didn't feel the least bit bad or guilty on what she was about to do.

Susan nodded to Anna to give her the all clear and Anna approached, still training her gun on her mark.

“He's alright,” Susan told her. “He's agreed to pay us for helping him.”

“Yeah,” Jayne said getting up himself. “But I really don't have much to trade on me.”

Susan could almost see how Anna's mind was working. Suspicious of the stranger she really didn't want to be lead anywhere where they might be ambushed. Anna eyed the metal rings hanging from the guys belt.

“What are those?”

Jayne looked at Susan and then back at Anna.

“Oh, nothing practical. Necklaces. All the fashion in these parts right now. All the girls in Paradise Falls are wearing them.”

Susan feigned to look at them closer.

“Yeah I've seen these,” Susan said and turned to Anna. “Remember I told you Isabella came back to the caves a few months back. She was wearing one of them.”

Susan took two necklaces from him and passed one to Anne.

“Try it on,” Susan told Anne and turned back to Jayne, still part of the act. “We might be able to do business after all.”

Jayne did his best to focus his attention on Susan, not paying attention to Anna who was in the process of putting on the collar. Little did poor fifteen year old Anna know as he clicked the lock into place that she had just signed her freedom away.

“How does it look?” she asked with wide eyed enthusiasm, any fears of being attacked from this stranger completely out of her mind. But just for a moment.

“Looking good,” Susan told her and looked at Jayne for confirmation. He gave the briefest of nods. “For a slave.”

“Slave?” Anna said.

“Yeah,” Susan smirked. “You're mine now. And you have to do as you're told.”

All colour from Anne's face left and after a brief state of shock she reached for the collar, tried to take it off.

“I wouldn't do that," Jayne said. "There's a bomb in there. Takes your head off if you attempt to tamper.”

“Why?!” Anna asked incredulously, looking at her now former best friend.

“I don't want to live the rest of my life in Big Town,” Susan told her. “and you. You're my exit price.”

“She's a little overdressed for a slave don't you think?” Jayne whispered to his new would be colleague.

Susan couldn't repress a smile at the idea.

“Take your clothes off.”

“What?” Anne asked in shock, still not understanding her new situation. The truth was Susan was only just learning too.

Miss Lancaster examined the remote Jayne had given her and pressed the button for shock. Almost instantly a small electrical discharge could be seen coming from the collar and Anne fell to the floor convulsing in agony, throwing up as she hit the floor. The pain only lasted an instant and as Anne lay in the floor crying in pain Susan wondered what would have happened if she had held it down. The sense of power Susan felt was almost enough to overwhelm her.

“Get up, slave,” Susan commanded, emphasising the word slave. It felt comfortable on her lips. She liked the sound of it. Slave.

Anna, desperate to avoid any more pain used all her strength to get up from the ground and stand up straight, leaving her riffle by her feet.

“Now take your clothes off. All of them,” She commanded, really enjoying this master thing. “I don't like repeating myself.”

Thoughts of disobeying or dignity didn't enter her mind now. Avoiding pain and obeying was all that she could think off. With no attempts to hide herself or to be sexy, Anna quickly removed each item of clothing and discarded them on the floor. There was some hesitation with her underwear but within half a minute of receiving the repeated order Anna stood in front of Susan with no clothes other than the bulky slave collar around her neck.

“I wonder how painful that shock was to get her to do that?” Susan said idly to Jayne.

“Care to try one on, see for yourself?” Jayne joked.

“No thanks,” Susan smiled.

“They say it's man's answer to women who claim there's no pain worse than child birth.”

Susan had experienced childbirth. No intention of experiencing the slave collar.

“So, what way to Paradise Falls?” Susan asked.

“It'll be dark soon,” the slaver told her. “And I'm still wounded. It's ill advised to travel the wastes at night, especially when wounded. There's an abandoned settlement just over that hill there,” and he pointed behind him. “We can hold out here for the night.”

Susan approached her newly acquired slave girl, ran a finger down her chest and said to Jayne with a malicious tint in her voice “But whatever shall we do to entertain ourselves ?”

The few tears leaking from Anna's eyes were the icing on the cake.

---

Naked, the grown up and collared Susan Lancaster was running for her life. Behind her was a pack of vicious dogs desperate for a taste of her flesh. Ordinarily a couple of bursts of fire from a Chinese assault riffle would be enough to deter them but that wasn't an option right now and obviously the slave collar around her neck was not acting as a good enough deterrent. So running was all she could do. She contemplated letting them have there way with her and pray for a quick death but she couldn't do it. While there was a chance of freedom.

She was already tired when she first saw them. It had been a long but blissfully undisturbed trek through the wastelands until that point. She paused for a moment to take a breather when she heard something behind her. Turning she only saw one at first. It was the skinniest creature Susan had ever seen, the bones visible through its feeble fur coat. But there was nothing unimpressive about its teeth as it gnarled at her hungrily. Susan thought through her options. A good kick in it's ribs should be enough to eliminate the beast as a threat but as the thought went through her mind she spotted the others. More than a dozen of them stood behind it, most as skinny and raggedy as the first though varied in size and age. Fighting would not be an option.

For five minutes Susan kept up a brake neck speed. She tried to outmanoeuvre them but most of the pack seemed just as agile as she was. She could see no strong trees or poles to climb and that wouldn't solve the issue of the bomb strapped to her neck should she stop heading to paradise falls.

On a clear stretch of ground Susan wondered how long the dogs would keep it up for and for how long she could keep running from when she tripped and fell to the ground. Almost immediately the pain of the fall at such a speed was negated by that of teeth digging into her leg. Another dog jumped onto her back and felt its claws digging into her skin and its warm breath against its skin, no doubt preparing to bite into her. Within seconds she was surrounded, felt more jaws biting into her legs and another into her arms.

Susan tried to shut of the pain, closed her mind comforted by the thought of it all being over soon. But things didn't happen that way.

It ended with a deafening sound above her and all the teeth digging into her skin retracted. A liquid sprayed on her back and the warm breath she felt over her ceased. Another of the deafening sounds followed by a splatter and more liquid spraying onto her. It took Susan a while to figure out what was happening.

Someone was shooting at them. A third shot from the old hunting rifle and a third dog which had been assaulting her was dead. The rest of the pack left their prey and began to run but that didn't stop the shooting. Six more times Susan heard gunfire before silence allowed her to believe it was safe to look up.

Three pairs of feet, all wearing the same boots stood infront of her. There was something familiar with them and as she looked up she realized why. Their armour had Talon company insignia's on them. Mercenaries.

Susan tried to get up. The men did not try to help.

“Well hello slave,” One said once Susan had gotten back to her feet, naked before these three strangers.

She had no humidity left though and she doubted being covered in bite marks and blood made her a pretty sight. Still she had to answer them. Talon company were not to be trifled with.

“Paradise Falls,” Susan said meekly, the first thing she had spoken out-loud in hours. “I have to get to Paradise Falls.”

The men smiled.

“New recruit aye?” the same man said. “Now we just saved your life,” the man continued. “And mercenaries don't work for free.”

She could see where this was going.

“I need to get to paradise falls,” Susan said with all the strength she had left and gestured to the collar. “Or this thing will explode.”

The leading Talon mercenary examined the collar for a moment.

“You're fine for now,” he told her. “As long as you don't start moving away from paradise falls. And you won't be doing much moving on your knees.”

“Please,” Susan begged. “Free me and I promise I'll be grateful.”

“You're a slave,” he responded. “Deal with it. And you've got plenty to be grateful for already.”

Susan was not one to cry and this wasn't enough to break her. Talon mercs were well known for being cold and heartless. No doubt should she refuse they would just use her for target practice. Obediently, the once proud Susan Lancaster dropped to her knees and looked up expectantly at the three men.

The man closest to her began taking of his leg armour.

---

As Susan began 'paying' her rescuers from the dogs her thoughts went back to that first night out of Little Lamplight. How, upon arriving at an old abandoned shop she ordered her former friends to get down on her hands and knees to await the abuse they were about to install on her.

The young Susan Lancaster lifted her long skirt over Anna's head and pulled down her underwear slightly for access. She thrust herself into the poor girls face and ordered her to lick. At the same time from behind, Jayne had also dropped his pants and underwear and without warning thrust himself into the slave girls vagina making her bleed. Jayne laughed, not expecting to be taking a virgin. Susan didn't once imagine what the poor girl must have gone through that night, her innocence stolen away from both sides. Not until now.

In a similar position to her old friend now, the first man positioned himself behind her, pushed her onto all fours and penetrated her ass. Though she had done some depraved things over the years this was the first time anyone had entered her back door so to speak and without lubrication, the pain would have been unbearable were it not for the pain she was already suffering from through the fall and the dogs. Similarly another of the mercenaries thrust his organ into her face and with no choice, Susan took it into her dry mouth.

“You better get used to this slave,” one of the Talon men said to her. She didn't care who.

She had said something similar to Anna as she desperately tried to please Susan with her mouth. Inexperience was defiantly not a plus point. Though new to slavery, experience with her mouth was not one of the adult Lancaster's weaknesses.

It was a long night of abuse and bondage for Anna the slave girl who was able to satisfy Jayne quite satisfactory if not Susan. In the end, Susan turned to her new friend to reach satisfaction.

As a slave herself, Susan lost count of the position changes as the three men took turns in having there way with her. Like a good little slave, remembering what Jayne told Anna that night, good girls spit, slave girls swallow, Susan had swallowed a lot that night. She was soar in all three places of abuse, as well as the breasts which they took turns in caressing when they heard a beeping sound. It was coming from her collar.

The two men on either side of her withdrew at the the same time at the start of the alarm. Susan remained there on her dirtied and bloodied hands and knees listening to the increasing beeping of the collar.

“Better get moving slave. Paradise falls is still a ways away.”

She began to get up when she felt a boot on her back holding her down. Panic began to set in as the pace of the beeps increased.

“Wait,” the voice of the boot owner said. “Can't be running into paradise falls like that. Full of blood and seamen. Need to be washed first.”

Susan knew where this was heading and made sure her eyes and mouth were closed tight as the boot withdrew from her back.

A jet of warm liquid hit her back and then moved up and down her body. To her surprise, despite the smell, it was quite soothing. It was warm and she could feel the blood washing away. She wondered if Anna felt the same way when Jayne felt the need to relive himself on her when they got up the next morning. Probably not. They were already inside when he did that to , by a fire they made. By contrast, Susan hadn't felt warm since leaving home. Jayne has woke Anne up with it almost choking her as he initially aimed at her slightly parted lips and even for Susan it seemed to last an incredibly long time.

Soon, two other jets of liquid hit Susan; the one aimed at her face less pleasant. She was ordered to open her mouth. Was told it needed 'cleaning' too. Reluctantly she obeyed and allowed some of his urine to enter her mouth.

The beeping was still increasing in pace by the time the three streams of piss stopped. This time Susan didn't swallow but allowed the liquid to vacate her mouth as it came in. Didn't help with the taste though.

“You're leaving it a little bit late slave.” the boot owning voice told her as she made a second attempt to get up from her hands and knees. “Best get running.”

---

Susan decided to allow Anna to wear some rags that morning if nothing else but to help cover up the stench of sex and urine she was stained in. They also used her as pack mule, carrying the bulk of both Susan's and Jayne's stuff as they made their way to Paradise falls. Susan kept reminding the overly burdened girl to keep up with them.

For the first time in a long time Susan felt good, powerful and free from the mundane destiny she had always seen in front of her. Life as a slaver, travelling the wastes and meeting new people, enslaving many of them, it sounded good; interesting which much of her life until then lacked.

As a slave herself many years later Susan was not given any rags to wear by her abusers and the stench of urine on her skin and the taste in her mouth was more evident as she began to run. It was hard to run after the half day or so of running and being raped but there was a small reward. Shortly, the the beeping began to slow down and eventually stopped and with it she began to calm down.

There was a river between her and paradise falls. Despite being slightly irradiated Susan began to swim through it rather than going over a bridge and drink from it to help recover her health. As she made her plans for the rest of the journey she resented her Talon abusers for not offering her rags or a stimpack or two to help her on her way. They just left her as they found her, naked and in pain. But the irony of what she had done to others in her youth had not escaped Miss Lancaster.

But the rest of the journey for Anna as a new slave to paradise was not always a pleasant one but it was relatively safe with two armed people to escort her to her new life. It was on that last stretch where Susan and Anne first encountered a Super mutant. Not one but three. There wasn't much Anne could do but crouch and hide in the weight of the things she had been ordered to carry. Jayne got out his Combat shotgun on first sight and started shooting away while Susan clambered for her hunting rifle and joined in franticly shooting in her first real combative encounter.

The battle did not last long. Jayne's custom made shotgun made short work of them and Lancaster was able to get of a finishing shot at one of the mutated peoples heads. Surprisingly it survived the first first two head shots which had just seemed to make it more angry. Jayne began scavenging from the battle after and Susan followed suit, pocketing empty shell casings, the few foodstuffs their opponents were carrying and their riffles.

At first Susan found it odd that their opponents had similar weapons to hers and on closer inspection she realised they were the same, down to the small Little Lamplight markings hers had. Picking two of them up she returned to Anna and showed them the guns.

“Look,” Susan said softly to Anna showing her the riffle. “They had lamplight riffles like the ones we were given.”

Anna was not in the mood for talking, especially to the one who betrayed her but she did look and saw Susan was right. They were like theirs.

“Big town's a death trap Anna,” She continued. “If we had gone there we'd quickly end up as dead as their owners. One day you'll thank me.”

Anna didn't say anything but her stare of rage said it all.

“Anyway,” Susan spoke now loudly now and with less warmth, within earshot of Jayne. “Got some new scraps for you to carry.”

---

Mirlurks. The adult Susan berated herself for not anticipating them but it had been so long since she had been in the wastes she didn't think about it. Mirlurks are vicious territorial creatures who often congregate near water and there were some in Susan's path. Six that they could see and plenty of eggs. Susan licked her lips.

She had made quite a lot of money from mirlurk meat back in the day. Not as much as the slaves but enough. People paid a lot for their meat and un-hatched eggs and no one cared about the rumours that they might have some intelligence. She had herself eaten the meet and knew why people were willing to pay so much for them. But they had tough shells and were lethal if disturbed. Fast on land and in the rivers Susan now had to be careful not to be seen and resist any temptations to steel some of the eggs to eat. It was a tense quarter of an hour of circumventing them and constantly checking over her shoulder as she swam through an unoccupied area of the lake. She stayed on the other side of the shore for as long as she could, rinsing her mouth and cleaning herself a few times before the beeping of her collar reminded her it was time to move on.