The Weird Wild West (The Weird and Wild Series)

by Faith Hunter

  Sarah was there in an instant, snatching the boy away while Jake and Wyatt helped with Andy.

  “Get them away from the fire!” Doc Harper rushed past Wyatt and helped Jake move Andy across the street.

  Wyatt draped Moli’s arm over his shoulder and helped him to stand. Up close, Wyatt saw several burnt patches of fur and ugly black streaks across Moli’s skin. “Come on, let’s get you away from here.”

  Moli coughed and nodded. He limped and Wyatt nearly stumbled under the weight of him. When they reached the jail porch, Moli sat with a groan and shook his head, eyes downcast. “I am so sorry for bringing—”

  “Don’t you dare apologize for saving my boy.” Sarah walked to the porch, knelt, and hugged him tightly. “Thank you. Thank you so much.” Moli moaned and she rocked back in alarm inspecting his burns.

  “Good Lord in Heaven!”

  “I will be well,” Moli said. “How is Andy?”

  “Thanks to you, he’ll be alright.” Doc Harper walked to the porch. His hands shook and there was a tremor in his voice. He looked at Sarah. “Little Wyatt?”

  “He’s inside. Not a mark on him.”

  Doc nodded. He glanced at Moli and quickly turned away.

  “Doc?” Wyatt asked

  Doc stopped, but never turned. “I’ve got some more burn salve at my place. You can pick it up there.” He started walking again.

  “Doc!” Wyatt stood.

  “I can’t, Wyatt. I’m sorry.”

  “Damn it, Doc. I thought better of you.” Wyatt stepped off the porch, but Sarah laid a hand on his arm. “I’ll get it.” She and Wyatt helped Moli to stand. “Come on. Let’s get you fixed up. Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day.”

  ~*~

  The next day, when they got to the jail, Jake was already there, loading rifles. Wyatt hefted one, intending to show Moli how to load it when there was a knock on the door. Jesse stood on the porch.

  “I’ll probably catch hell from my Pa.” Jesse met Wyatt’s gaze. “But I’m here to help if you’ll have me.”

  Wyatt smiled. “Thank you, son.”

  As it neared noon, Wyatt started to feel fidgety. If the Mor-Dalgar intended to cause a ruckus, Wyatt would put an end to it.

  Moli had told them what he could about the Mor-Dalgar. What their weapons—Moli called them blasters—could do, and where they were vulnerable to Wyatt’s guns. If Wyatt’s aim had been lower, he’d have likely killed the alien he shot yesterday.

  Wyatt shivered. If he had to shoot a man, he preferred a quick end to it. It could take days for a man to die from a gut shot, even with help, but it wasn’t men that were threatening his town. Sak-Ratam would make good on his promise to burn Haven to the ground if Wyatt couldn’t stop him.

  Doc Harper opened the door and stepped inside. All four of them stopped to look at him. He paused, then shut the door behind him.

  Doc removed his hat. “You have a moment, Sheriff?”

  Wyatt nodded. “Jake, Jesse, keep an eye on the street. Moli, you can—”

  Doc cleared his throat. “I’ve actually got something I’d like to say to him as well.”

  Wyatt cocked his head, but waited until Jake and Jesse had left.

  Doc put his bag on the desk and looked from one of them to the other. “I want to apologize for my behavior last night. I was wrong.” He looked at Moli. “You scare the hell out of me.” He fidgeted with his hat. “But you risked your life for my best friend’s son and I repaid that with cowardice. You are a better man than I will ever be.” He swallowed, then reached out his hand. It shook, but he kept it out there. “I’m sorry.”

  “You are a brave man, Doc.” Moli took his hand and shook it. He bowed his head. “And a skilled physician. I accept your apology.”

  Wyatt clapped a hand on their shoulders. “There’s something I didn’t think I’d see. Now—”

  “Sheriff!” Jesse opened the door. “The Anderson place is burning.”

  ~*~

  Wyatt stepped outside, looking in the direction of the Anderson farm. Thick smoke rose into the sky. He scowled. The Mor-Dalgar were coming. He stepped off the porch and walked out into the center of the street, followed by Jake, Jesse, Moli, and Doc.

  They rode...something. Not horses, but two-wheeled contraptions of some kind. They made a hell of a racket.

  Moli snarled.

  On Wyatt’s left, Jesse took a step backward, his hands tightening on the rifle.

  “Easy, son. I still intend to end this peaceable.” Wyatt nodded toward the approaching trio. “But no one would think less of you if you’d had a change of heart.”

  “I would.” Jesse stepped forward. “These are my folk too.”

  Wyatt watched him for a moment. If they got out of this all right, he was going to make Jesse an official deputy. “Just be sure and remember that if it comes to shooting, you move and keep moving, hear?”

  Sak-Ratam and his Mor-Dalgar stopped some distance from Wyatt and his men, the roar of the machines lowering to a rumble.

  Off in the distance, Haven’s church bell began to ring.

  Wyatt nodded. “Sak-Ratam.”

  The alien nodded. “Wyatt Porter. I take it that you are unwilling to hand the Taareki over to us?”

  “That’s right.”

  Sak-Ratam tossed a burnt tangle of wires at Wyatt’s feet.

  “Taareki, this is all that’s left of your ship. Come with us or this place will share the fate of that primitive hovel you left behind.”

  Moli growled. “They had no part in this.”

  Wyatt stepped forward. “Sak-Ratam, you are under arrest for the destruction of John Anderson’s property. You and your men lay down your arms and be bound.”

  Sak-Ratam laughed and raised his blaster, but Jesse was faster. His rifle thundered and the front of the machine erupted in a shower of sparks.

  All hell broke loose.

  Wyatt crouched and ran to his left. Behind him, the ground exploded. Sak-Ratam cursed and tracked Wyatt with his weapon. Wyatt shot the Mor-Dalgar, knocking him off his machine.

  Jake opened fire on the alien closest to him. His shot blew out the machine’s front wheel and it toppled to the side. The Mor-Dalgar hopped clear and Jake’s second shot took him in the chest, spinning him to the ground.

  Moli leaped right at the third Mor-Dalgar. The alien raised his blaster, but Doc shot him in the leg. He screeched and dropped his weapon. Moli tackled him and the two of them rolled across the street in a snarling cloud of dust.

  Jesse levered another round and fired, moving to the right—directly into Wyatt’s line of fire. Wyatt cursed and just barely avoided blowing a hole in the boy.

  The Mor-Dalgar that Jake shot staggered to its feet. It fired at Jesse, who was heading for the shelter of a wagon. The shot went wide, tearing through the wagon. Jesse yelped, finding himself in a cloud of burning, splintered wood. He dropped his rifle and covered his face with his arms.

  Wyatt cursed the unnaturalness of it all and aimed for the alien shooting at Jesse. The shot went low and buried itself in the creature’s middle. The Mor-Dalgar let out a gurgling screech. It clutched at the wound and collapsed. It didn’t move.

  Sak-Ratam bellowed and fired, catching Jake head on. Jake didn’t even have a chance to scream as the blast threw his blackened, twisted corpse up the street.

  Sak-Ratam whirled to Jesse. Wyatt sprinted across the street, tackling Jesse as a blast ripped up the ground where the boy had been standing a moment ago.

  Shaking the dirt out of his eyes, Wyatt was already moving. He emptied his pistol at Sak-Ratam. Some of the bullets found their mark, but none hit the Mor-Dalgar’s vulnerable middle. Sak-Ratam staggered, but didn’t fall. He raised his blaster.

  A horrible shriek cut through the air. Wyatt and Sak-Ratam turned to find Moli standing over the torn body of the third alien.

  Finding himself outnumbered, Sak-Ratam cursed and shot the fallen machine by Wyatt. It exploded in a brilliant ball of green fire. The blast kno
cked him onto his back. Wyatt covered his head. Pieces of metal rained down all around him. One of the machines roared and, when he looked up, Sak-Ratam was racing away.

  Wyatt took a couple of staggering steps after him. “And stay the hell out of my town!” He turned to Jesse who hadn’t moved from the spot where Wyatt tackled him. “You all right?” Jesse nodded.

  “Wyatt!” Moli limped to the last machine and lifted it upright. He started the machine and climbed on. “Sak-Ratam will return with an army if he doesn’t simply decide to turn Haven into a smoking crater from space. We must stop him.”

  Wyatt stared at the machine. It was nearly as tall as a horse and it had a saddle like he’d never seen before, but there was room enough for two.

  “Put your feet there.” Moli folded down pegs that jutted out from either side of the machine.

  Wyatt climbed on. He could feel the rumbling of the engine through his entire body.

  “Hang on.” Moli shouted and the machine began to roll.

  ~*~

  Wyatt wrapped his arms around Moli as the machine shot out of town. It was terrifying. They raced over the countryside. The wind howled past his face so fast that he had to squint his eyes nearly shut.

  Wyatt dared a glance at the ground and instantly regretted it. Hard-packed dirt and scrub blurred past just inches from his boots and he knew that if he fell off, he’d never get up again.

  “There.” Moli shouted.

  In the distance, Sak-Ratam streaked over the land, heading toward the ruin of the Anderson farm.

  In the center of a burnt and ruined field was another ship. All hard angles and sharp edges, it squatted in the middle of the destruction like a spider at the center of its web.

  Sak-Ratam slid to a halt at the base of the ship. Already a door was lowering in the side. He pointed his weapon at them.

  Moli cursed and the machine jerked to the side. Wyatt nearly lost his grip and tumbled off. He shrieked and scrabbled to stay on as a blistering red flash passed by them. When Wyatt looked again, Sak-Ratam was scrambling up the ramp and into the ship. Almost immediately, the ramp began to rise.

  Moli brought the machine to a skidding stop at the foot of the ship. He lifted Wyatt like he was no heavier than a sack of grain and tossed him through the door. Moli followed after, dropping over the edge a bare instant before the door clanged shut.

  Wyatt expected Sak-Ratam to be waiting for them, but the room was empty. He stood on shaky legs inside something that had been built on another planet. Blue-green lights glowed on the walls and the floor was made of metal that stretched out in a tight lattice. Across the room, stairs led up to another level. The ship had an odd smell about it. Something musty and oily at the same time.

  “Wyatt!” Moli hissed in his ear.

  He jumped. Moli had been whispering to him and he hadn’t heard.

  “Are you well?”

  Through the bottoms of his boots, he felt the floor vibrate. “What’s happening?”

  “We’re taking off.” Moli hefted one of the Mor-Dalgar blasters. “Once he’s off the ground, Sak-Ratam can program the ship to leave the planet and join the rest of his fleet.”

  The vibration in the floor increased, then the entire room swayed under Wyatt’s feet. He grabbed at the wall to steady himself.

  “We’ve lifted off.” Moli crept across the room and went up the stairs.

  Wyatt followed, but the floor was unsteady beneath him even as it pressed up against his boots. He couldn’t imagine how fast they were going. At the top of the stairs, Moli started forward, hugging one side of the wall. Wyatt followed behind, gun pointed at the floor.

  The corridor was short and ended in a closed metal door. Moli wrapped his hand around the handle and looked back at Wyatt for confirmation.

  Wyatt drew a breath to calm himself, then nodded. Moli threw open the door and burst into the room.

  It was empty. Moli raced from one end of the bridge to the other, looking for Sak-Ratam. Wyatt stood in the doorway unable to do anything but stare out the window.

  Instead of the Anderson farm or even the deep blue of the sky, Wyatt stared out into empty space. His pistol fell from his fingers and clattered on the floor. A wave of dizziness passed over him and he grabbed the doorframe.

  “That’s...” He couldn’t get the word out. Taking up the bottom part of the window was what could only be the gentle curve of the Earth. His fingers tightened. Were they falling? How could they not be—

  Moli turned, snarling. His eyes widened and he raised his blaster when something hit Wyatt in the back. He flew across the room before crashing and tumbling into a console. A flare of pain streaked up his spine.

  Sak-Ratam struck Moli with the butt end of a blaster. He crashed into the wall, his own weapon dropping to the floor. Sak-Ratam rushed him, driving the barrel into his throat.

  As the two thrashed and fought, Wyatt crawled forward and grabbed the blaster. He staggered to his feet, the muscles in his back stiffening. He edged around to get a shot at Sak-Ratam, but the alien noticed him and lashed out with a foot that caught Wyatt in the chest. The kick sent him backward, his head bouncing off the metal wall. Wyatt dropped to his knees, gasping for air.

  Moli used the distraction to force the barrel from his throat. He bit down into Sak-Ratam’s wrist. The Mor-Dalgar screamed and drove a fist into Moli’s nose.

  Moli shrieked and lost his grip. Sak-Ratam smashed his head into Moli’s, then hurled the dazed Taareki across the bridge. Moli crashed into a control panel that erupted in a shower of sparks and the ship lurched.

  The sudden movement nearly threw Wyatt to the floor, but he caught the doorframe and stood. He pointed his blaster at Sak-Ratam.

  “Moli, down!”

  Moli dropped to the floor. Wyatt pulled the trigger.

  In the small room, the shot was deafening. Wyatt found himself blinking away spots of light as his vision cleared. He was on his back out in the corridor and his shoulder hurt like hell. He lifted his head and groaned, dropping his head back. A few feet away, the blaster lay on the floor. It shook, then slid away from him and Wyatt felt the floor tilt. Gritting his teeth, he rolled over and climbed to his feet. His entire upper body was one big knot of pain as he staggered back to the bridge.

  Moli was in one of the seats, throwing switch after switch and struggling with the controls. Sak-Ratam’s body lay on the floor.

  Alarms tore through Wyatt’s head. Everywhere he looked, purple and red lights flashed. The Earth grew larger until it took up the entire window.

  Moli cursed and hauled on the controls. The Earth tilted and an orange haze covered everything outside.

  Wyatt stumbled forward as the ship starting shaking.

  “Reentry,” Moli said between clenched teeth. He looked over his shoulder to Wyatt. “Strap in!”

  Wyatt lurched toward the empty seat. The ship bucked. Wyatt smashed into a panel, his shoulder erupting in a white fire of pain that nearly dropped him.

  The ship rocked. Wyatt was thrown sideways into the seat. He clutched at the straps with his good arm and tried to tie himself down. Outside, the orange haze disappeared to be replaced with familiar blue sky.

  “Hang on,” Moli warned and the ship spun. A patchwork of dark and light green took up the entire window. It was getting closer.

  Wyatt struggled to secure himself. He could see Haven and the Anderson farm and his own place. They were so small.

  Moli snarled, wrestling with the controls. They were so close now that Wyatt could see individual people scattering from Haven’s main street.

  A roar split through his head and dust completely obscured the view outside. Wyatt closed his eyes as the ship tilted sharply. There was a horrible jolt and he was thrown from his seat, his hand ripped from the straps despite the death-grip he had on them. His last sight was the floor rushing up to meet him, then everything went black.

  ~*~

  “Wyatt?”

  The voice was a crack in the dark. Pain leaked
in. Wyatt groaned and tried to go away again.

  “Here.”

  Clawed fingers lifted his head and touched wonderfully cool liquid to his lips. Wyatt drank. Even his throat hurt. Warmth flowed across his entire body. It touched every source of pain. In most places, the pain vanished. In others, the pain faded into an uncomfortable tingling. Wyatt opened his eyes.

  Moli smiled down at him. “Welcome home.” He helped Wyatt sit and pressed a cloth against his head.

  “Your shoulder is broken.” Moli helped him into a seat. “So are some ribs. The nanobots are repairing the damage.”

  Wyatt reached up and took the cloth from his head. It came back bloody. Moli pressed it back against his head.

  “Be still. You’ve got a powerful anesthetic in you as well. You could further damage yourself and not know it.”

  Wyatt looked out the window. He could see the top half of the Creaky Wheel. “We’re back?”

  Moli smiled. “Oh yes.”

  “In Haven?”

  “In the middle of Main Street.”

  Wyatt closed his eyes. He pictured the ship landing in the middle of town and the uproar it would have caused. His chuckle turned into a cough.

  “Do you think you can stand?”

  Walking was tricky for the first few steps, but Wyatt got the hang of it again by the time they got to the stairs.

  Moli opened the bay door, letting the dust and the smells of Haven into the ship. That, more than anything, kept Wyatt steady on his feet as he walked out into the sunshine.

  The ship stood right in the middle of Main Street. A blackened circle stretched from one side of the street to the other. Buildings on either side had damage from the ship’s protrusions and some bore scorch marks. Everything was covered by a thin layer of dust.

  Townsfolk crowded around, their voices tinged with fear. He tried to focus, but it was nearly too much for him to bear.