Chapter 6

I look around to see that everyone in our small group is watching Saul and me. And we have been joined by a beautiful blond lady, who at the moment is frowning. But if she smiled, she would be stunning. I put her at in her mid twenties, like the hunters and Saul. The same age I would be. Or maybe I am. This whole time travel thing is confusing.

"Are you guys going to continue to badger our guest or will you let her go, so I can find some real clothes for her?" she asks with sass to the group of men, but her eyes go to the giant, Saber.

"I guess a person can only have so many shocks in one day," Melville nods. He sums up nicely what we have all been through.

"She can come with me then?"

She doesn't even wait for one of the men to answer her, she just reaches over and grabs my hand and pulls me out of the circle.

"I am Gwen, by the way," she helps to cut the tension with her name and friendly smile. I am right, she is stunning.

"That would be short for," I prompt.

"You're quick," she gives a short smile again. "Guinevere. The queen of Camelot."

"Yes, yes, Arthur's Queen and in most stories the real reason for the downfall of the kingdom," I say pulling this ancient knowledge out of my memory.

"I see you know the story," her eyes gleam with amusement. "I may be queen, but I will never look beyond my one love."

"And who is that?" I have to know who this blond bombshell is in love with.

"Saber. I could never love anyone but him," she says with the confidence of true love.

"Ah, and you wished to tell me off before I turn my grand designs on him," I say sarcastically. I really do have a way with putting my foot in my mouth today.

"Well, maybe a little, but mostly because it is true," she says in all honesty.

Universe guide me, have I found the most honest group of survivalists in the world?

"Wow, I hope he knows that," I say back to her in order to check.

"Of course and he loves me," she doesn't even hesitate over saying that.

I grin to myself. They really are a honest group.

I change the subject back to the question that is bothering me. "Why does everyone have an unusual name?"

"We get to choose them," Gwen answers.

She has lead me down a couple of tight passageways, till finally we come to a small storage room where she stops and turns into the room.

"Take a look in this trunk," she gestures to an old battered piece of luggage. "There is some odd stuff, but mostly wearable."

"Thanks," I give her a quick smile as I open the trunk and start to paw through the contents.

"We get to take a new name on our 16th birthday. It was a tradition our founders came up with, to give each of us a sense of self worth."

"Who were your founders?" I figure if she is in a talkative mood, I am going to take advantage of that.

She rattles off a few names, all just as odd sounding as the group I have just left. I am getting the idea that the founders were a little kooky.

"Do not know them," I shake my head.

"They were members of an historical society before the big blast" The big blast. How quaint and yet how right.

"They got together with some investors and bought this land and set up the compound, recruited people of like minds to be the founding members."