Gu Ning reached for the water bottle to give to Cook, but Vine stopped her hand. He grabbed a bottle of water from by his feet and passed it back.
Cook had thrown up everything he’d just eaten. After chugging the entire bottle of water, he leaned halfway out the window, mouth open, happily enjoying the breeze.
Seeing that his spirits had lifted considerably, Gu Ning breathed a sigh of relief.
’I guess I can’t let him stay cooped up like this.’
"He’s out of shape," Vine said.
The commotion from Cook woke Barto. He kicked Cook’s butt and grumbled, "How can you be so restless in a car?"
Despite his words, he couldn’t resist sticking his own head out for a breath of fresh air.
Vine glanced at the listless Barto in the rearview mirror. "This one’s out of shape, too."
Finally, his gaze landed on Gu Ning.
Gu Ning immediately sat bolt upright, her eyes wide.
Vine’s tone softened slightly. "You need to exercise more, too."
’I get plenty of exercise,’ Gu Ning thought. ’I even got abs during these past two or three months in Zone 19.’
Barto piped up, "Who could feel good on a road this bad?"
He tugged Cook back into the car by the scruff of his collar. "Close the window."
As Vine was about to close the window, Gu Ning stopped him. "Don’t."
’We’re almost at the supply station anyway,’ she thought. ’A little cold air won’t hurt. I feel really stuffy, too. The heat in this car is cranked way too high. Isn’t there any temperature control?’
Staring ahead, Vine said, "We’ll be at the supply station in about ten minutes."
Barto gazed out at the snow-white wasteland. "Why didn’t we take the military zone road?"
"This road is faster," Vine replied. "If we took the other one, we wouldn’t reach the supply station before nightfall."
Hearing this, Gu Ning took out her map to check the route, making a mark on it.
The terminal had a map navigation system, but it didn’t seem very accurate.
"The other roads aren’t much better than this one," Vine said when he saw her looking at the map. "The highways have all been destroyed by the Mutant Species, so we might as well take the most direct path."
’Oh, so that’s why.’
As they spoke, dark specks appeared on the horizon. They were about to reach the supply station.
A few minutes later, the convoy entered the supply station, parking one by one in an open clearing.
Gu Ning pressed her face to the window, observing the scene outside. The architecture was similar to Zone 19’s, but the buildings were much shorter and more uniform. Everything had suffered some sort of catastrophic damage; there was hardly an intact structure in sight.
Gu Ning put on her face mask and windproof goggles, ready to get out.
Vine had parked the car a little bit away from the others. He killed the engine, and seeing that Gu Ning had her protective gear on, he unlocked the doors.
Barto impatiently threw open the door and jumped out, the fox disappearing completely into the snow.
Barto: ’...’ ’I’m still groggy. I forgot I was in my beast form.’
Cook jumped out right after him and began rolling around wildly in the snow.
"You damn dog, you stepped on me!" Cook had stomped squarely on Barto, who, furious, leaped out of the snow and onto Cook’s back, pummeling him with a few quick punches.
Gu Ning smiled as she watched them roughhousing. She patted herself down, checking that her gear was in order, then pushed open her door to get out.
She placed one foot on the soft snow, only to be hit with the sudden sensation of empty space beneath her.
The tires on this snow-terrain SUV were high, built to handle the winter snowpack of any region, but Gu Ning hadn’t anticipated the depth. Before she could react, her entire body plunged downward.
A powerful arm snagged her just in time.
Vine wrapped an arm around Gu Ning’s waist, lifting her into his arms. "The snow’s too deep. Do you need the restroom?"
Gu Ning really did have to pee, and Vine’s tight grip around her waist only made the urge more intense.
She pushed against Vine’s chest and turned her head to call for Cook.
Without a word, Vine carried her toward a building up ahead.
"Cook can help me," Gu Ning said quickly. "I don’t want to trouble you, Captain."
"He can’t even take care of himself," Vine said. "If you want the rest of this trip to go smoothly, don’t rely on him. I’ll take care of you."
Seeing Cook and Barto trailing behind them, Gu Ning stopped arguing. The most important thing was to solve her current predicament.
’Vine seems like the type who does what he says he’ll do. Arguing with him is pointless.’
Inside the dilapidated building, Vine found a room that was still in decent shape. He pushed open the bathroom door, gave the interior a quick scan to ensure it was safe, then set Gu Ning down. He closed the door, standing guard in front of it to block Cook and Barto from following.
"Stay put," Vine said, looking sternly at the two Mixed Breeds. "You are Mixed Breeds, but you are also males. Being all over her every day is one thing, but do you really have to follow her into the bathroom when she’s washing up or using the toilet?"
Barto, perched on Cook’s shoulder, sneered and poked Cook on the head. "Open your eyes and take a good look. He... is just a dog."
"And me," Barto said, pointing to himself. "A throwback fox."
"And you," Barto said, poking Vine in the chest. "A dog who reeks of mating pheromones. You have no right to lecture us, got it?"
Vine glanced down at Barto’s hostile gesture, his expression turning grim. "As long as you haven’t become one of the Mutant Species, you’re a Beastman. If you don’t see yourself as a person, who will?"
"Or do you just think acting this way is a better way to get close to her?"
Provoked, Barto snarled, baring his sharp teeth. "You don’t know a damn thing! Do you have any idea what kind of protection she needs? Don’t think you can just... just because Alex isn’t here!"
"Shut up," Vine snapped.
Barto bit his words back. He glanced at the slightly ajar bathroom door, then lowered his voice. "Stay out of my business. Don’t act like you know everything about us. Just do your job."
’If I wasn’t sure Alex wasn’t with us, I would never put up with this wolf.’
After Gu Ning relieved herself, she pressed the flush lever on the tank.
’Good, there’s water in the tank.’
Out of habit, she wanted to flush it again, but the tank refilled very slowly. After the first flush, she waited for what felt like an eternity, but the lever wouldn’t work. Hearing what sounded like Barto and Vine arguing outside, she worried they were about to fight and decided she’d better go out.
When she came out, Vine was about to enter with a can of deodorizer.
Barto said, "You muscle-bound moron. Even Cook knows a little piss is enough to cover her scent. That stuff is useless."
WOOF. Cook rushed into the bathroom without a second thought.
Masking Gu Ning’s scent had become his instinct.
Barto added, "Captain, when you’re done, remember not to flush. You might have been playing human for a while, but don’t forget what it was like to be a dog and mark your territory."
Hearing Barto’s cutting remarks, Gu Ning looked at Vine, embarrassed. "No, no, it’s fine! Cook can handle it."
Vine didn’t say a word. After the others came out, he took the deodorizer and went into the bathroom anyway.
Gu Ning didn’t want to think about how Vine was masking her scent.
’I’d much rather Alex were the one doing this.’
While Vine was in the bathroom, Gu Ning pulled Barto to one side. "Don’t you..."
"Don’t what?" Barto said. "Don’t be embarrassed. He’s a wolf. He’s the best one for masking your scent. You have no idea what your scent..." Barto paused. "We’ll probably be using the great outdoors as a toilet for the next couple of days. You should prepare yourself for that."
This supply station was relatively close to Zone 19, and the route so far had been manageable. But after this stop, they’d have to camp out in the wilds.
Gu Ning patted the fox’s head. "I’m telling you, don’t talk like that."
’Vine doesn’t have Alex’s good temper. If he really gets angry, I won’t be able to break them up. I really don’t think Barto could win a fight against someone as big as Vine, and I don’t want to see them fighting during the trip.’