Somewhere in Nevada, August 2020

[weetinyreese]

There was supposed to be a good reason for being in the desert in the middle of August. An important base was their target and it was around here somewhere. They hadn't located it yet though. Reese's team were out of their element. They were used to the urban wasteland of LA, not the great outdoors with no consistent cover

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[noearsyet]

George hated the desert. Wasn't worth complaining about, nothing could be done with it, but the heat and the grit and the total lack of people was just wrong. He didn't think there were enough people in the whole world anyway. For a kid who grew up in an overcrowded city where silence was just a myth, George couldn't get used to the oppressive silences here.

He picked his way over to Kyle once they were all settled. "You hungry or you already ate enough sand fer th'day?"

[weetinyreese]

Kyle grimaced. "I'm hungry. Everything's going to taste like sand though."

[noearsyet]

He tossed Kyle his canteen. "Drink some of mine, aye? Th'hardtack tastes bad enough wit'out bein' sandy."

[weetinyreese]

He grabbed the canteen and took a small swig, just enough to wash his mouth out and swallow it. It was gritty on the way down, but you didn't waste water out here. With the lid closed again, Kyle offered it back. His hands were starting to sting and ache again. His leg wasn't in great shape either, but it wasn't bad enough to warrant using any of the medical supplies they had. Those were for emergencies. Losing your footing and going for a tumble didn't count. "Regretting coming here?" Kyle asked. He always asked and now it was impossible to be serious while he did. Having George here meant having someone else to trust like he trusted Derek. Even Derek had grown to get used to the idea that George was someone who would watch their backs no matter what.