“Ugh… Cyborgs… Y’know they used to be Human slaves by the American Empire, right?” asked Gerard, riding Bite. “Honestly gross that you ate them…”
She just growled, making a scoff.
“Shit...” said Gerard, reaching the Twain Forest.
The Twain Forest, basically an Ice Age oasis, is absolutely stunning, with warmth due to the Mutant Trees inside. He entered, and there, he smiled and immediately went to hunting.
Bite charges into the forest, where Bite bites the neck of a Bison as Gerard decapitates it, leading to it falling to the ground.
Gerard smiles, proceeding to cut the meat and turn it again, into pemmican. The huge portion, however, like half the bison meat, was turned into steak for them to eat, along with some Risotto he acquired from Shikakow.
He smiled, making a puree as the pup, Fred, smiled and waddled on two legs toward Gerard. Gerard smiles gently and feeds the pup, silently, and the pup happily eats.
Evening came, and Bite slept near the fire, wrapping her tail around Gerard and Fred. Bite is revealed to have made a nest for Fred to sleep in, as she sighs and roosts above them both.
The trio slept the night, but that evening, little Fred heard something in the forest. He smiles and waddles out of Bite’s tail, falling face-first, but rolling over to take a look around. His fluffy fur and his two adorable eyes looked around, and he wandered.
He smiled, waddling around, only for a giant, strange statue to just stare down at him, standing fully still.
The pup stepped forward, and its eyes glowed red. The pup smiled with wonder, only for Gerard to immediately grab him and slap a blast away with his katana, only to be brutally burned in the arm regardless.
The statue, with moss and vines all over, began moving, whirring, with a creaking sound of old rusted metal. The giant robot the size of three grizzlies whirred and roared before charging toward Gerard.
Gerard zooms around the giant and cuts its heel, but the giant metallic statue just keeps roaring and stomping. “Taloses… One of the Old gods of the forest…”
“In service of the United States Government, vested in us the power of authority. Stand down. Genetically-engineered hybrid detected,” it spoke in a deep voice so loud that it vibrated their hearts. On his chest said, “T.A.L.O.S.” Which stood for, according to it. “Technological American Lure Obtain and Salvage Unirt. Reporting for duty! President Doughnut Trumpet w-w-w-will surely be pleased! Oh me oh my! Eliminating threat to the good American people!” He kept on blasting at them. “Eliminat-nat-nating the threat of the good American people!!!”
One of the blasts manages to shoot and burn the face of Bite, angering Gerard. “Geneteically-engineered threat, neutralized! Beginning Extraction!”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Gerard roars and begins beating his chest, charging and scaling the creature’s leg, chewing the metal off.
Suddenly, Gerard crashes into a tree as the TALOS Unit prepares to blast him.
“Obtaining Genome!” spoke the Talos, only for a strange Cyborg to grab Gerard and his pup, blitzing away.
Bite roars, as several other cyborgs grab her and pull her away. The Talos recognized these Cyborgs.
“Ah! True Americans!” The Talos immediately saluted them. “Thank you for your-your-your arrival! Deactiv-...” He shuts down and collapses, leading to a loud, distant thud.
Gerard wakes up, with Bite beside him, being tended due to her latest injuries. Gerard immediately stood and rubbed her belly, causing her to purr. “Who… Who are you people?”
“We are the Salvaged…” spoke a Cyborg designated as 69. “I know. Name’s 69. Haha. Very funny.”
Gerard smiles. “Not at all!”
“Uh… Okay? You’re weird. Um… Yeah. I’m like… The leader of the Salvaged. We’re like… a bunch of Americans turned into these Cyborgs to blend in and not get killed by Taloses.”
“Wait… I thought Taloses only killed Non-Sapiens…” said Gerard.
“Untrue. Taloses are very powerful. Reason why no one except us resides here. Place is rich with resources, oil, whatever… And like… No one goes here. This place is swarming with those guys. The Taloses were like… overridden with this digital virus that turned them into like… machines that kill any known organism and stuff… So… Huge bummer, man…” said 69. “Now, we just survive with Splooge Cores. We’re… kinda immortal and eternally suffering so we just help around some guys who end up stumbling in this forest and stuff…
“Oh… Can I go to Akteon now?” smiled Gerard.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa… For your own safety dude… DO NOT go there… I’m the leader since I’m the only one with a proper radio and speaker around here… right 32?”
32 gives a thumbs up while applying medicine to Bite, who purrs.
“Anywho… yeah… There was this other faction from us who were like… banished due to violence and stuff… Anywho… Um, like… Bro… Why do you wanna go there?”
“To buy bread.”
“Dude… That’s like… totally stupid, man…”
“No! My uh… Dad… told me to go there. Bluford Ninjaheim. Well, he isn’t my REAL Dad… He’s-...”
“Wait… You’re the lost child…”
“Wait, wait what?” asked Gerard, as the pup hugged him out of fear from these strange-looking cyborgs with meat hanging from their metallic bones.
“You’re like… the rightful heir to that Kingdom and stuff… And like… You can be King…”
“Whoa… So… the bread’s free, then?”
“No, dude. The bread was a lie. You’re like, going there to reclaim your throne and stuff.”
“Um… That, my friend, is quite indeed bogus, since my father said I get to live my own life when I buy that bread. I’ll go back to Nueva Yorca, or maybe another country! Set up a tea shop! As I always wanted!”
“Dude… You’re kinda civilzed for a Neanderthalensis Clone.”
“Thanks! I don’t understand your words, but quite fucking indeed!” smiled Gerard.
“Fine. Go. I mean, it IS your birthright,” said the Cyborg 69.
“Um… Thanks! How?”
“I’ll bring you across the forest, man… no worries… just… uh… I dunno… Uh… C’mon, bro…” He walked with a couple guards and Gerard and his steed followed out of the cave they were in, and into the forest…