Midwest Earth Ch. 01

Note to reader: This is a fantasy series and the next chapter is currently work in progress. I hope to have it ready soon. Many thanks!

*

A road trip was something Tom wanted to do and after he was given the keys to a new car on his 18th birthday, he packed the trunk with supplies and picked up his girlfriend, Peyton, and hit the road. They started off at California and meant to cut through all the states in a line till they reached New Hampshire. Then they would take a long reverse L route back by driving along the coasts in a straight line and turning on a right angle of sorts. Peyton looked at the map and said the outline resembled the shape of a whale. Probably a male because of the bit sticking out at the bottom. It seemed quite a daunting task.

"We can do this. Don't panic." Tom assured her placing her fallen strap back on her shoulder. She was a cheerleader and not the brightest blond but she was good with crosswords. He assumed she was the type that was ashamed to reveal the inner geek and so just papered over it by acting dumb. Tom didn't care, he just wanted to see America and he couldn't think of anyone better to see it with. Well, he did originally plan to go with his older sister, Carla, last year before the accident. They were quite close and loved to do a lot of outdoor activities like climbing and cycling. He kept a photo of her in his wallet and Peyton didn't mind. She knew that she would always be in her shadow; some sort of substitute. She laughed about it sometimes, having to compete with a dead person, and the way he had to bring her up in conversation all the time made her think he had developed a bad case of necrophilia. She created a new term for it by combining it with incest (Necrocest). She felt an obvious guilt about the way she was thinking, but over time, he chipped away at her sensibilities through his stories of his amazing sister.

Peyton and Carla hated each other and Peyton was secretly pleased she was dead. But felt like she was reaching from the grave or something.

"Are we missing anything?" Tom asked with his eyes on the road. He was a good driver and did not get a thrill out of driving fast like most guys. He was a regular steady Eddie.

"Moneys all that we need." Peyton said.

"So you're a gold digger?" Tom quipped.

she lowered her shades and he offered he a quick glance, her hair being tossed to one side.

"Do you wanna smell my shoe?" She threatened.

He laughed and begged her to keep them on. Secretly, he considered Peyton's feet to be the best thing about her, but he grew up pretending to hate the things he loved. If she ever realized this, he would have to revise his personality or find another girlfriend. He wouldn't cry if she left, as he was quite adept with the female of the species. It was easy because none had ever been on the same scale as Carla, he really looked up to her. She really was on another level, even compared to his mother. Losing her was devastating. Peyton only filled a small void but she was a nice girl. He knew she hated her deceased sister, which is why he kept talking about her. It was a kind of test to see if she could step up and admit openly that she was nothing compared to his dead sister, but he knew that was a strange thing to want from anyone. Perhaps he had been reading too much Edgar Allen Poe.

They traveled for a few weeks and saw and did many things. Everything was running smoothly until the car broke down in the middle of nowhere. Even the road seemed to disappear and was replaced by sand. Peyton opened out a parasol and we huddled together till even when it got cold and they had to put on their windbreakers.

"What happened to the road?" She asked.

"Just remember the way the car is facing -- thats where the road was." He checked his compass and created an arrow with his hand pointing where the car was facing.

"Our route was direct West."

"Not all roads are straight. The angle can change by an inch every couple of miles."

"Well, I need an expert in cars, not navigation." He said rather rudely.

"Fuck you." She said softly. Tossing the map out of the car.

"Nice one Peyton."

She wanted him to tell him to go fuck a dead corpse, namely Carla. Maybe he could see it in her eyes. He jumped out and chased the map down before the wind carried it out of reach. He walked around the car and opened the bonnet. Everything looked fine. The tyres weren't cut. His girlfriend was pissed off. Things couldn't get any better. This was exactly the kind of adventure he wanted to tell the truth; lost in the middle of nowhere with a good chance of dying. Anything that brought him closer to his sister was worth dabbling in.

When Peyton calmed down, she fell asleep on his shoulder and the sky cleared up. He gazed at the stars and tried to identify the signs of the zodiac. Using those you could orientate your position on the ground. He took out a photo of Carla and looked at it. She used to let him sit in the closet of her room when she had girls night with her friends. He would sit patiently and watch them gossip, groom one another, have pillow fights, and in the end, even have sex. They would get naked and perform 69's on the same bed. They didn't moan or talk dirty like in a porno but he could hear them licking away like cats lapping up milk from a bowl. It was a lick fest. He trained his eyes on Carla. She often came up to the closet and wiggled her bum at him just to let him him know she had not forgotten him. She was always found a way to integrate him into her everyday life, and never got irritated by the way he was always following her around. Her girlfriends thought he was a nuisance so she told them fuck off. The next day she made new friends, she was good at that.

***

The next morning they woke to an upheaval. Outside a thunderous clap was followed by guttural sounds from the sky. It was a sandstorm. The car was shaking and sand rain was pelting the vehicle relentlessly. Tom turned the door handle and pushed out, but it was pretty much stuck. Peyton tried her side and had the same result. It didn't make sense to get out of the car anyhow but the car itself appeared to be tipping. Tom reached out and grabbed his girlfriend's hand.

"Hold on tight." He warned.

It wasn't clear how the car had shifted from a flat surface to the edge of a sandy bank, but there wasn't much time to think about that or anything else. The car jerked and let out a frightening moan as it leaned down. Peyton closed her eyes but Tom wanted to see. He felt her nails digging in deep as the face of the bonnet changed shape, veering downwards, and then rising back up again. The car was level again and dust jumped off the hood allowing Peyton to sigh in relief. The storm had ended as quickly as it had begun, changing the face of the land in an instant.

"That was lucky." She sighed.

Tom turned on the ignition and revved up the car, but it wouldn't get going. As the wheels skid to a halt, he looked through the scratched and scarred windscreen. Nothing ahead but dunes. A single grain of sand landed on the bonnet, the last one to leave the hurricane. There was a terrible yawn as the car leaned down and faced a vertical drop.

"FUUUUUCK!!!" They cried.

There was a deathly silence as they dropped down in to the abyss. All they could hear was the sound of rushing air, a long pause and a loud THUD! The car slammed head on, into the an underlying slope landed the vehicle in an upright heap, with bodies pressed against the windscreens. Tom spat out blood from his mouth as he tried to regulate his breathing while Peyton was silent, but he could not see her with his face positioned in the other direction.

"P-pey ... Pey." He muttered, trying to call to her. His neck was aching. He attempted to push himself up but it was hard to muster any strength. The car creaked and groaned and portions of sand fell down from perched areas above and through gaps, decorating the windscreen somewhat. He felt like the glass was going to peel his face off it was so hot. instead, he glazed it with his sweat.

It was hard to see what was happening outside but he felt the car was still moving. Sinking.

He tried to get out but the door was still stuck. He did not want to die like this and dreamed of his dead sister, hoping she would unwind the window and carry him to safety. he wanted to be in her arms, he wanted to be cradled. Then he would know he was safe.

He saw her sometimes in his dreams. She was in this one too. she was standing in the sand in only her raciest panties. The thin and flimsy laced hip panties. There was a subtle breeze affecting the light cotton, making it flap outwards, and creating a gap between her vaginal area and her panties. It was big enough for a finger to slip inside unnoticed, or his eyes to peer in and get a good glimpse of that vertical line with the cute butterfly flaps. She had small butterfly flaps that were equally sized on each side. He wanted to peel them back to see what was inside.

Tom trudged towards her, but as he did so, she became more distant. Eventually he lunged out in desperation and fell over. Something jerked him back to reality. The car had begun to move again, and not slowly.

The car raced down the slope, picking up speed as it flew towards it's destination, carrying both passengers out of their seats and once again into the windscreen. It hurtled and sped like a demonic machine descending into hell, jumping into divots and lurching upwards and down again in a very uncomfortable ride.

But it slowed as the sands became thicker and got into the tyres. The slope itself was a deep arc which leveled out. The car stopped finally and Tom was hurled back on to his seat. He quickly checked Peyton, who seemed dazed but otherwise fine.

"Are you ok, Tom?"

"Neck might not move for a while." He said rubbing the back of it.

He took out the keys and checked the door. It opened with a bit of a push and he stumbled out onto the ground. Sand poured out from the seat and scattered off other grooves and holes along the side of the door. He gasped at the change in light around him, it took a while to adjust and recover from his disorientation. It was actually cooler outside thanks to a shadow created by the slope facing away from the sun. Tom dusted himself down and got to his feet. Peyton was a bit slower and joined him moments later.

"I guess we better start walking." He advised.

There were two paths forking out in front of them, unless they wanted to climb up, but that was just a death wish. They had run out of water, and Tom had given Peyton his flask, which was half full when he passed it over, and empty when she returned it. He wished she would learn to show consideration for a change, but he was asking for a miracle.

He assumed command and they took the left path in the end. If they stayed with the car they would eventually end up buried alongside it. It was hot and mini avalanches were a regular occurrence. Large segments of top sand broke off and caked the path ahead, but not enough to alter it. Peyton held his hand as he tried to stay in the center of the path. As they walked for what seemed hours and started to visibly tire, the path began to widen.

Eventually it opened up and they came across a sign post in the ground.

It read:

North to Opug

South to Erhat

West to Joshua

East to Manitee

"What do you think?" Tom asked Peyton.

"We came from that Erhat direction, so we can't go that way for a start."

"Technically, we just came from the East, but I know what you mean. So North? Or West?"

"Well, you got to choose left or right, so now it's my turn hon. I choose ... West."

They settled on that and took to continue in the direction they originally headed. After a bit they encountered an object in the distance. As they got closer, it grew. Once close enough, Tom identified it as a motel half buried in sand. A figure appeared from behind it and approached them.

"Main entrance is buried. Follow me round." He told them.

They looked at one another and then followed the figure. He leaped over a rest and landed on what looked like a balcony. They followed him inside, and down the stairs to his bar. He took off his jacket and smiled. He seemed please to see them.

"Call me Joshua." He said greeting them. "Welcome to the my service station."

They sat down on a nearby square wooden table. One neon sign indicated the gents at the back. It was a big room with a low ceiling. Mostly wooden décor and flooring. Joshua wore an eye patch, a vest and pirate themed pants. The beer was a beautiful amber, chilled and tasted smooth, but Peyton wasn't too keen.

"Did you notice the pattern in the cosmos?" He asked them.

"No."

"Zodiacs were not there." He said. "Here you must be thirsty."

He said fixing them a few more drinks on the rocks. Tom did not hesitate to down them all quickly. He wasn't going to wait for Peyton to take his share too. The bartender was probably keeping a tab somewhere he was sure.

"When you enter the Pathless Dunes, the orientation in the sky changes."

Peyton kicked Tom's shin. It was an indication that Joshua was freaking her out. He recognized that Joshua was a bit strange but liked him, so he kicked Peyton back and she grimaced in pain.

"Are you ok miss?" Asked Joshua.

"Uh-huh." She replied stiffly.

"She's just tired that's all."

He noticed her eyes were beginning to gleam, and not for the first time. It was better to leave her alone when she was upset, rather then see how she was.

"Well, I'm sorry for any confusion. When people come in from the places that are mapped I get these kinds of reactions."

"Where are we? How do we find the road."

"This is an eye inside a storm. Your plane lies outside. I came from there as a child. Settled here."

He was sure it was on the map -- everything had to be on the map, unless a map only revealed what it wanted to.

"We have a car that needs fixing, can you help?" Tom asked.

"I'm no expert I'm afraid. Better you speak to Manitee. He lives in a tower to the East."

"Ok."

"Whatever you do, don't head North." He warned.

"Why?" Peyton asked.

"Ghost town called Opug. Folk are a bit strange."

"But theres people there right?"

"Yes."

Tom figured he was talking cryptic or something and maybe wanted them to stay at his bar rather than go to another. He would check out the ghost town first. Tom paid for the drinks with his watch as money wasn't recognized by Joshua. He had been getting a good look at his girlfriend too, which might have made him angry had he not been so thirsty. Joshua filled up Tom's flask and they bid farewell.

"We should have stayed."

"He was freaking you out remember?"

"I know, but we could die out here."

She was right but he felt that Opug wasn't too far north for some reason. There was enough water to last a day. So, he planned on trekking for several hours in one direction, opting to turn around if they found no settlement.

On the way they saw some ponds of bubbling black tar. Nothing would live in that. The odd black tree was scattered around. Small baby black trees that had no leaves, just branches.

The landscape appeared to be more frequently littered with dark roots connecting from one pond to th next. Tom reckoned it was the remains of an ancient forest, though to have one in the middle of a desert made no sense at all.

Once they cleared the area, they climbed over a precariously steep dune to get a view of the path ahead. Dotted ahead of them by a good few miles was a black dot. As they advanced towards it, it became clear that it was a town. Peyton squeezed Tom's hand and he kissed the side of her head. It was too hot to be too close but even then he imagined licking Peyton's pussy. Hopefully he would get a chance to shake off the days stress with a good old fashioned fuck.

About half an hour later, they arrived at the entrance of the ghost town, which had no welcome sign or any activity of note taking place. The ghost town was precisely that. It was an old western design. Tom was half expecting Tuco to appear from one of the saloons being chased by Blondie, from the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. As they walked along one side, they stopped by the dusty window of one store.

Peyton scrubbed the pane of glass up and down until it was ready to peer into. She curved her hands to block out external light over her brow and looked in.

"What do you see?"

"Nothing."

As they continued along, a sign lit up ahead. It was a saloon and it's flickering name was 'The High Saddle'.

A man stood with his arms on the door, casually smoking a cigar. He was an Indian with long black hair and a hat.

"Welcome to opug." He puffed.

"Hey." Tom replied.

"We need about two more players. Can I deal you in?" He asked.

Tom looked at Peyton and she shrugged her shoulders. In times like this, Peyton was more of a problem than the scenario itself. He sighed and nodded to the Indian, who opened the bat wing styled doors for them to enter. Inside, there was only one corner that was occupied by activity. Two women and an old balding man.

"Bring em over here Ringo! The more the merrier!" The old man hollered. He was happily downing a bottle of whiskey and dropping his cards all of the place. They came and sat down on the seats pulled out by Ringo. A small glass landed in front of Tom and was quickly filled with a shot.

"This will help." Old man chuckled.

Tom brought out his hand "I'm Tom." He said. The old man smiled and showed his missing teeth.

"No, we don't do any of that around here my boy."

"Oh ok."

"But, we kan do intro duckt shuns. I'm Old man." He said putting his cards face down. He swept back a few strands of hair and cleared his throat. He wore a vest under his federation militia coat and a pair of long johns but that did not stop him being the star attraction.

He adjusted his coat sleeve with a flick of the elbow and pointed to one of the two girls.

"Now this is our resident slap and tickle, Sabrina. She's about 18 and the lady next to her is her mother, Melina, who is the Governor of Opug."

They both waved and then giggled at the same time. Both of them had features he could remember them by; Sabrina by her long red silk gloves and Melina by her dungarees. She seemed to be naked underneath, but Tom tried not to pay attention to bits that were wobbling out from her sides.

"n you already met Ringo. He's a chain smoking cowboy. Bit of Indian in him too."

Ringo tipped his hat and refilled everyones glasses.

"He's a good kid. As long the whiskeys running that is. We don't let him near it cuz he tries to fuck the governor of Opug, who also happens to be his adopted mother."

"Well, as I said, I'm Tom and this is my girlfriend Peyton."

"It's a good thing you didn't go to Manitee."

"How do you know ... about us?"

"Well, lets just say you don't look like the type who came here to admire the passementarie. The Ghost town expression is an idiom, we ain't dead if you gather. I mean there ain't no whiskey accumulating in a pool on my seat, I'm as real as you and your girl. See, I know you don't come from round here. Joshua ... he sends all visitors to Manitee and anyone who visits Manitee, stays with Manitee."

"What is he?" Peyton asked.

Ringo reversed a seat and sat so he could lean his arms on the head. "He is a time collecter. He is not a good bohiti."

"Bohiti?" Peyton asked.

"Like a shamen. A time shamen." Old man translated.

"Well, you are quite a wise man." Tom observed, impressed.

Old man turned over one of his cards. It was a picture of a baby in a womb.

"They say that the wisest souls are the ones that die before they are even born." He surmised, leaning back.

Ringo scratched his head and stubbed out his cigar on a coaster. All of these stories were making the saloon appear smaller, like the world was centralized around one table. Melina was a talker too, but she always listened first before weighing in with her thoughts. She had Ringo pry the bottle from Old mans hands just before he collapsed and passed out. It was quite comical and even Peyton managed a smile. He was pretty much out for the count, the Old man.