The Legendary Junkmaster

Chapter 2: Mutation (2)

Jason followed his gramps out onto the street, cursing his bad luck. He had never crossed the river before, but he had heard stories about it. The wildlife over there was far worse than this side. Many creatures had made their nests in the dilapidated buildings, which was why most scavengers did not dare attempt to go there.

Jason even had a sneaking suspicion that the Banka had come from that side. It had probably been chased out of its own territory by something stronger. 'Out of the frying pan and into the fire' Jason sighed. 'Still, it could be worse.'

His eyes stared curiously at those that were down on their luck. People covered in dirt sat hunched up together in the alleyways between the buildings. Their clothes were in an even worse state than his own. Jason cursed at the cruelty of the local Lord. There were plenty of empty apartments in the high-rise flats, but they had to pay 'taxes' to the Lord if they did not want to get evicted.

They could always try their luck with the buildings outside of the safety of the walls. However, everyone knew what fate would await them if they tried that idea out. Most folks that took the risk could be seen for a few days before they disappeared. Most likely becoming a fine meal for something higher on the food chain.

They reached the end of their street and stood in the area commonly known as the Circle. In actuality, it was a typical roundabout in the Old World. A large tree grew tall and thick in the centre of it. Even as weeds forced their way through the decaying tarmac that made up the old roads and pavements.

The Circle was a common gathering place of sorts for scavengers. From here, they would leave the town together. There was safety in numbers, after all. Along the way, they would split up, heading for wherever they thought they get the most gains out of their day.

"Yo! Harry!" A man wearing a dirty navy jumper and ripped jeans called out to them. All four of his arms were waving energetically in the air towards them.

"Raymond! Haven't seen you in a while! You been living the good life, eh?" Jason's grandfather nudged the man with his elbow as they got close in a friendly greeting.

Raymond returned Harry's beaming smile with a crooked grin, "Yeah, I wish! It's even harder now with another mouth to feed!"

"Hah! I bet it is! Still, tell Laura I'm asking how she and the little ones are doing!" Harry let out another broad smile.

"Will do. Say, where are you headed today? Got any tips? I need to cash in big if we want to survive for a few months." Raymond asked without holding back.

"Hm, it's not exactly a tip, but." Harry clearly tried to provoke his friend's curiosity with his tone as he rubbed a meaty hand through his beard.

Jason sighed as he stood to the side. He knew exactly what his grandfather was up to. He was going to attempt to dupe the poor sucker into joining them. Promising him that there would be a wealth of untapped treasures where they were headed.

It was quite a common tactic amongst scavengers. Since they would have to add Raymond's name to their group's list when they left the city. This meant that Raymond would have to pay his grandfather a generous percentage of anything he uncovered while working together. Since he would have gotten those gains from working alongside Harry. It was sort of like temporary hired help.

Jason waited for them to hash out the details between them. He could even tell that Raymond himself was worried about his grandfather's ambitious plan to raid the industrial factories. However, a mixture of greed and necessity seemed to win him over.

"Alright! You have a deal, Harry. You better not screw me over on this one!" Raymond laughed as he slapped Harry on the back with both of his right hands.

"Please," Harry snorted in fake indignation, "When have I ever screwed you over?"

"How about that time when"

"Ok, enough!" Harry quickly cut Raymond off from telling stories about their past. He didn't want his grandson gaining a negative impression of him. Harry snorted as he led the way towards the front gates.

Raymond shrugged as he followed after him, "Keep an eye on your gramps, boy! You never know what schemes he's got going on."

Jason smiled politely in response. He already knew what kind of man his grandfather was. Even if he pretended otherwise. He did not want to crush the geezer's efforts to make himself appear to be a respectable person.

The streets were becoming packed by this point as people rushed from their homes. Some of them were farmers that worked the fields just outside of the walls. These were the people that were responsible for the most stable food supply for the entire town. They could lose their job in an instant if they were ever late. Which explained their panicked faces.

Jason shook his head as he followed the two older men into a metal shed. A woman sat behind some stiff metal wire. There was a square opening in the wall beside her. His grandfather went through the details of registering Raymond as a temporary helper. Paying the fee of five copper credits in the process for doing so. This also included the rental fee for the large scavenger bags.

The woman picked up the five small copper squares that Harry had tossed into the tray on the other side of the whole. She eyed them carefully to make sure they had all of the markings they were supposed to have. There had been a few issues with counterfeits recently, so they were not surprised. Once she confirmed their authenticity, another woman came from the back. Carrying three large rucksacks that had straps to buckle around your waist and chest.

When they returned, the contents of the bag would be checked for any restricted items. This meant things that the Lord was specifically looking for. They would be seized, and the scavenger that brought them in would only receive around half of what they were actually worth. The generally accepted excuse for this was that it was supposed to be for the entire town's benefit.

Jason doubted those intentions, though. He thought that the Lord was just seizing items that were in high demand. Probably selling them to the junk stores at an inflated price to line his own pockets. It was not like they could do anything about it, though. They slipped out of the makeshift building with their bags in hand, letting the next person in the queue inside.

Their eyes turned to the massive walls. Thirty rusted cars had been stacked on top of each other to create the defensive structure's interior. The other side of these cars had strips of thick metal welded to them. While pieces of wood had been nailed together and stuck to the metal sheets to cover any gaps.

"Well, let's get going. Shall we?" Harry grinned as he walked towards the guards that operated the gate