Our Road to Redemption

Chapter 1

"Okay so make a circle in one of the boxes. You can't put it in this one because I've already put my X there," I explained.
Furiosa sat in the dirt with me as I taught her to play tic tac toe. It was a lazy day, most of the chores had already been taken care of earlier in the week. Cheedo was sitting in the corner, reading her favorite book again. Dag and Able - which is the nickname I'd given Capable long ago - were preparing for the Dag's baby and decorating a room with found art and baby items.
    The Citadel had changed a lot since Joe died. Within the first week we had found a successful way to store and supply water for all the people in the valley. By the first month we had gotten crops to take down in the valley. We continued to rebuild the Citadel into a more modern and functioning place instead of the prison Joe prefered. By the second month we had cleared out the vault where the girls and I had been held captive had been cleared out and used as a vital storage room for only the most prized possession. Meaning, there was nothing of importance in the vault except for a few crops Dag refused to try and plant until the soil was perfect.
    Furiosa made a circle in one of the tic tac toe boxes after a few seconds of planning her strategy. I quickly marked an X in the upper left corner.
    "What are you doing?" Toast asked. "Are those battle plans?"
    "No, it's a game. After this game I can teach you, if you'd like," I offered.
    "Really?" She asked before sliding down to the ground to watch Furiosa and I play.
    "Sure."
    Cheedo's interest was piqued by Toast's entry. Soon, the four of us were on the ground and Furiosa and I were tied on the game board.
    "Now what? Neither of us won?" Furiosa asked.
    "Yeah we tied. So we have to play again."
    I wiped the dirt around, erasing the game board. The area we were playing in was the indoor garden area, which the girls and I generally gathered in when it became hot outside. The occasional misting of the plants inside the dome allowed us to be misted with the cool mist as well. We sat beside the plants in the dirt and did whatever we could do to keep our brains busy.
    I started to draw another tic tac toe board when the stomping of feet broke my focus. Furiosa and I both went for our guns and were ready to draw. Former War Boys, who we now just refer to by their names or "the boys", barged into the room. Seeing how Furiosa and I were both running the Citadel together to assure everyone there would be a good power balance, whenever there was a problem we were always supposed to be the first to know.
    "Our watchers have spotted someone wandering towards the Citadel. He looks very disorganized, beaten very badly."
    "Send patrols. Pick them up," Furiosa explained.
    I got up from the ground and wiped the dirt off my pants. "I'll go. Analyze the situation," I said.
    "Okay."

    It didn't take long for us to intercept the man. He could barely stand up straight let alone walk properly. I wondered how long he had been out here in the Wasteland. Scar, 7, A, and I all got out of the car.
    "Hey. Hey! You alright?" A yelled at the man.
    The man raised his hands once he saw how close we had gotten.
    "We don't want to hurt you," 7 insisted.
    Scar stayed back by the car with me, gun trained on the man in case he tried anything. 7 and A got close to the man and ended up catching him as he collapsed to his knees. The man had dust and clothing covering most of his body- his face was almost entirely covered by a long beard and about a foot of hair.
    "It's alright," 7 told the man. "We're gonna get you some help."
    The man suddenly shoved 7 away from him, causing A to jump away from him and pull out his gun. I pulled out my gun and walked up to the man. He appeared to be unarmed and I thought it was safe to assume that he would've tried to shoot us if he had a gun on him.
    "You want help? Better quit the shit or I'll kill you right now."
    The man fell to his hands before rolling onto his back. He had a broken nose, two black eyes, and split lip, and his face was stained with his blood. Once his hair fell away from his face, leaving his eyes exposed so I could see the pain he was in I held my breath.
    "Max."
    I tucked my gun away and told Scar to get me some water. I dropped to the ground and grabbed Max's shoulder.
    "Max it's me. It's me."
    Max was trying to keep his eyes open. He suddenly got more awake when I dribbled water into his mouth.
    "Do you know who I am?"
    "Mm. Yes." Was all Max could say.
    I made the boys help me load Max into the car and we drove back to the Citadel at full speed.
    "Who did this to you?" I asked, not knowing if he could even hear me. "Why didn't they kill you?"
    Max looked around the car and panicked. I assumed he had forgotten where he was like I had so many times before.
    "Max, it's okay. You're okay," I told him.
    He stared at me.
    "They wanted to send you a message."
    "To who? To us? The Citadel?"
    "To you and Furiosa. They're gonna take the Citadel."
    I looked out of the window at the approaching valley and the Citadel. Why did they choose to send Max? Why would they send a message instead of just trying to attack us by surprise?
    "When we get to the Citadel, take him to The Medic. I want A to come with me to talk to Furiosa."
    "No problem. Should I start talking to the boys about defense strategies?" 7 asked.
    "Sure. And don't worry the kids," I emphasized.
    The boys nodded their heads and I turned back to Max who had his head in my lap. I took the hair out of his face and continued to give him water.
    Every now and then I had wished, late at night, for Max to come back. I didn't wish for him to come back just so he could die in my arms.