The Rider (Complete)

Chapter Thirty-One

Drenched in sweat, Kade's shuffling feet barely left the ground. His heavy eyes fought to stay open as his bone-dry mouth hung agape. With every ounce of strength and will, he continued putting one foot in front of the other. He knew it was a fool's errand since his oxygen supply would run out within the next ten minutes, and he was at least a day's walk away from reaching civilization, yet he persisted.

Depleted, Kade eventually collapsed face first into the sand. His last moments on this insufferable planet were near. As the last gasps of oxygen entered his lungs, alarms and buzzers began going off. He slapped the side of his helmet to silence the sounds. With his eyes closed, he baked under the hot desert sun.

In his final moments of despair, a glimmer of hope emerged in the distance. A traveller. Perhaps a mirage. He wondered if his mind was playing tricks on him. A black spec barreled toward him, growing larger by the second until he could almost reach out and touch it. He stretched his arm out and held it for a second before it too collapsed in the sand.

His brain was experiencing hypoxia — delusions brought on from a lack of oxygen. He would be dead within the minute.

A tire pulled up, the thick thread stopping mere inches from his face. A boot planted on ground, then another. Hands placed on his shoulder, rolled him over. A figure stood over him, blocking out the sun. A fresh oxygen canister placed in his helmet. Shallow breaths kept him alive. Then a voice entered his helmet. Delirium? He wondered if this was what death feels like? He could feel his consciousness slipping away. Too tired to move. Too exhausted to care. He was ready to be released from this harsh world.

"Kade?" the voice said. "Kade!" It grew louder. "Can you hear me? Kade, wake up!"

A tube was connected to his helmet. "Drink!" the voice said with urgency. A flicker of light kept him alive — a spark in his soul telling him to hang on and fight for a moment longer. He sucked back the cold liquid and could feel it all the way down.

"Hang on, Kade," the voice said again, this time it entered his brain with a little more coherence.

Kade's near lifeless body was becoming more lucid. Just then, he felt a small prick in his leg. An injection of some kind. Like a dimmer switch being turned on, he slowly began to regain a foothold on reality. His eyes opened, and his field of vision narrowed. Cali. What is she doing here? Is this really happening? He tried to speak, but only slurs came out at first. His frustration grew as he fought the biological constraints that bound him. "Ca...li," he mumbled softly.

"Kade!" Cali said. "I'm here. I'm here to save you. Don't worry, I won't let you die."

"You... left me."

"I'm here now."

There was an inaudible moan.

"Come, on, let's get you home."

Kade was assisted to his feet and then helped climb onto the back of his bike — the bike in which Cali had taken from him.

"My bike," he said.

"Was your bike. I stole it, remember?" Cali said, mounting the large bike.

"Why did you leave me?" Kade said.

"You really want to do this now?"

"Later may not come for me."

"Fine. I did what was best for both of us. I trust the monks took care of you well — fed you, provided you with shelter, got you off drugs, centered your being... or whatever. They did the same for me. I knew you were in good hands."

"What about you? Where did you go?"

"To take care of some unfinished business. Look, I'd love to catch up with you, but we don't have much time. We need to leave now. Can you hold on?"

"Yeah."

"Then let's get you home."

Cali accelerated, causing Kade to grip tighter around her waist. The back tire sunk into the ground and within seconds they were speeding toward Endocrine. Kade could hardly believe it.

"Ironic, right?" she said, communicating through their helmets.

"What's that?"

"When you found me, I was stranded in a desert with nothing. Then through serendipitous events, I ended up saving you in the same desert, but this time you were stranded with nothing."

"Some would call that fate," Kade said.

"Just goes to show you, it pays to be kind. You're welcome."

"Was that a compliment for me, or you?"

"Both."