by James McEwan
“I have your wives, I will give them back to you, unharmed and untouched I swear,” Yiska said more begging than negotiating.
“Yeah, I don't think so. My friends are rescuing them as we speak. So the only thing you have that I want is your life. You will pay for murdering my friend, and I intend to collect the debt in your blood,” Thad said as he started to walk forward.
Yiska pulled a cone pistol from the bag and leveled at Thad, “That’s quite close enough Mr. Hammer. Not another step or I will shoot you in the head this time.”
Thad didn’t stop advancing, “If you really think that is going to work you are welcome to try,” Thad said making the same gesture with his arms that Yiska had made earlier, clearly mocking him.
Yiska lifted the pistol up to his eye so he could aim, but Thad was shockingly fast and covered the distance between them before he could pull the trigger. Thad grabbed the pistol and, with one fast twist, wrenched the gun from Yiska’s grasp. Thad also broke two of Yiska’s fingers in the process. He then landed an elbow strike to the side of Yiska’s head.
That rang Yiska’s bell pretty good and he stumbled back and looked at Thad with terror in his eyes. Thad noticed the look.
“I see that you are finally experiencing what all of your victims had experienced. I just hope you last long enough for me to really enjoy this,” Thad said as he advanced again. Thad grabbed Yiska by the collar, lifted him off the ground and tossed him across the highly-polished gold inlaid floor. Yiska slid into one of the six pillars that made up the circular feature in the center of the room. When he slammed into the pillar the impact broke his right arm and two of his ribs.
Yiska rolled over and spit out a good mouth full of blood. Thad walked over to him and grabbed him again and lifted him off the ground, “You know what is wrong with people these days? No one beats their enemies to death with their bare hands anymore and drinks their blood from their skulls. A tradition that I think I’m going to bring back today!”
It was then that Thad heard something he didn’t expect to hear. The soft sound of urine hitting the floor and his boots. He looked down and Yiska had pissed himself. “Really?” Thad said in disgust. “I thought the great and evil terrorist and cult leader was tougher than this. But really, pissing yourself, well that is just down right…” Thad paused. He had been so angry that he didn’t know what to say.
Underneath his robes Yiska had a small dagger that they all carried as part of their faith. He used this distraction to unsheathe it and plunge it deep into Thad’s abdomen. Thad grunted from the pain, but it didn’t loosen his iron grip on Yiska. Yiska twisted the knife, yet again it didn’t stop Thad.
“Really don’t you learn?” Thad asked before he slammed Yiska into the pillar with enough force to crack it and dislodge it a little from the ceiling. More ribs broke and a few of his vertebra went with them. Yiska couldn’t do anything except cough up more blood this time. The force of being slammed into the pillar forced the blood out of Yiska’s mouth in a fine spray that covered Thad.
Thad dropped Yiska, who crumbled to the floor. With his back broken and the loss of feeling of his legs, Yiska flopped over onto his side and coughed up more blood. Thad paused to wipe the blood from his face. He then pulled the dagger free from his gut. Thad turned his head from side to side and rolled his shoulders as if to loosen them up.
Thad was done playing. He decided to end Yiska right here and now. He was going to use the man’s own ceremonial dagger to do it. He grabbed Yiska by the hair and lifted him up enough to expose his neck. Thad raised the dagger and was about to plunge it deep into the man’s neck when he felt a sudden stab of pain as he watched the dagger fly out of his hand.
He looked at the hole in his hand. He quickly realized that someone had just shot the dagger out of his hand. He also knew that whoever had done it was going to pay, and pay dearly.
Chapter 34
Lex had just made it to the cells when she spotted Freya. She was out of her cell and was lifting the bar to let Fiona out. “Freya,” she cried out happily.
“Lex,” Freya returned the happy cry. The two women quickly exchanged a hug and then Fiona opened her door and she too hugged Lex.
“We were worried when you didn’t come back,” Fiona said.
“I ran into a little trouble, but I’m okay now. Oh, by the way I met your husband,” Lex said excited to see her friends.
“Oh,” Freya said.
“And what did you think?” Fiona followed up.
“He is scary as Hell, but damn he’s hot,” she admitted.
The twins laughed in unison as they often did, “Yep that sounds like our Thad” Fiona said.
Freya was about to ask where he was, but didn’t get the chance. The big son of a bitch had seen Lex and followed her and now he was standing there with the large saber in his hand still wet with Rod’s blood.
“Good you are all together. She dies first then,” he pointed the sword tip at Lex. “Then I think, I will fuck you first, then you,” he moved the point of the sword towards Fiona and then to Freya.
Freya and Fiona pushed Lex behind them as they came together to form a shield in front of her. “The only thing that you are going to do today…” Fiona started the sentence.
“Is die, you big bastard!” Freya ended it.
He laughed, “What are you three little women going to do to me?” He then rushed forward. The sword in both hands he raised high above his head.
That was a mistake as Freya rushed him. At the last second, Freya dropped to the ground in a power slide. She slid right between his legs and, with one well aimed punch, she smashed one of his testicles.
Fiona grabbed Lex and side stepped out of the way. The heavy sword dropped from his hands and landed on the stone floor with a loud clang. His hands instinctively when to protect his injured groin on his way to his knees.
Fiona didn’t miss a beat. Once she and Lex were out of the way of the falling sword she sent a vicious kick with all the love she could muster. Her foot connected with the side of the big bastard’s head. His head rocked violently. She made him see spots she hit him so hard.
Freya was back on her feet in an instant. She turned just in time to see her sister’s kick rock the big son of a bitch.
Unfortunately, Fiona misjudged just how hard this asshole’s head was causing her to break her foot. The pain made her stop her attack and gave the big son of a bitch time to regain his feet. He swayed, obviously punch drunk, but was determined to fight on. He raised one of his massive fists and swung it at Fiona after she had fallen to the floor from breaking her foot.
Freya wasn’t about to let her sister get pummeled. She kicked the back of his right knee causing it to collapse. He dropped to one knee and missed Fiona’s head by mere inches.
Fiona was not too happy about breaking her foot on the side of his head and she didn’t take to kindly to almost getting a fist facial either. With her other foot, she kicked him flat on his nose smashing it in a brilliant splash of blood.
While Fiona kicked, Freya followed up with another kick to his head, this time being careful about where she landed it and how much force she used. She didn’t want to break her foot either since Lex couldn't carry both of them.
This kick knocked the big son of a bitch down to the ground, but he didn’t stay down. He pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. He shook his head back and forth trying to shake away the stars he was seeing. But before he could do anything else his head suddenly came off.
During the fight, Lex had picked up the sword and, in a strange twist of fate, or as some would call it, Karma, Lex used the same sword that the big son of a bitch had used to behead Rod Masters. Lex felt stronger because she now used it to end his life in the same manner he had done to Masters.
Fiona, who was scrambling on the ground to get out of the way, didn’t make it in time and was rewarded for her efforts with a blood shower.
Freya was shocked, but not unhappy with the results. “Gross,
but effective,” she said as she stepped next to Lex. Lex spit on the head as it lay there looking up at them.
“He cut off Rod’s head, I felt it was only fair that I return the favor,” Lex said with cool anger as she dropped the sword.
“Rod’s dead?” both twins asked in unison again.
“Sorry, but yes they killed your friend,” Lex said and put her head down in sign of respect for their loss.
“He was kind of an asshole. But you can be damn sure that he didn’t deserve to get his head cut off,” Freya said, feeling bad for him.
“I’m sorry that Rod’s dead, but I could use a little help here,” Fiona said as she was trying to wipe the blood from her face.
“I’m on it,” Lex said and ran for one of the water buckets. The next few minutes they listened to the combat outside in the courtyard below while they washed the blood from Fiona as best they could. They also tore strips from the bottom of their robes and used them to bind her foot. Freya had just tied off the knot.
“Ouch, could you tighten that anymore?” Fiona asked as she winced in pain.
“I’m sure I could, would you like me to redo it?” Freya said sarcastically.
“No, I’m good thanks, now help me up,” Fiona said. Freya helped her sister up and slung her arm over her shoulder taking her weight off the injured foot.
Lex picked up the sword and stood next to the top of the stairs, “Hush, someone is coming.” Lex waited in ambush sword above her head ready to strike. When the person got to the top of the stairs Lex let the sword fly. She brought it down with all the strength she had.
Eve saw the blade coming and she raised her force blade that cut through the harden steel as if it was made out nothing but paper.
“Oh, my God, Eve I’m so sorry I didn’t know it was you. All I saw was the force blade and I just reacted,” Lex said trying to apologize with what was left of the sword still in her hand.
“No harm done. Now you all need to come with me. We are heading for the courtyard. We are getting out of this shit hole,” Eve said.
The twins were stunned they had never heard Eve swear before “Shit hole? Eve did the sandstorm scramble your brain?” Freya asked.
“No, why do you ask?”
“No reason,” Freya answered back.
“Come on, we need to leave,” Eve said pointing to the stairs.
“Not without Cotton Paw we aren’t.” Lex said defiantly.
Freya looked at Eve, “I got her you go help Lex find Cotton Paw.”
Eve nodded, she wanted to argue, but she knew the twins well enough that she knew she would never win so there was no point in trying. “Alright I have notified the team that you are on your way. They have a medic standing by.”
“Thanks Eve, now go help her find her cat,” Freya said shoeing them away.
Horota, wounded and scared, ran from the courtyard and it wasn’t long before he found himself in the kitchens. He was scared for the first time in his life. He had always been in control of every situation he had ever been in, but this was the first time things were out of control. He wasn’t too worried about losing the hand. It wasn’t like it was the first one he had lost. Nektons were amphibians and had the power to regenerate new limps if they lost one.
He was scared because he had never seen anyone he had killed come back from the dead. This was something that was beyond his scope of understanding and he was still trying to process what he was seeing. Now if someone had just explained that Thad didn’t really die and was repaired by Nano proteins it would have all made sense to him, but Thad was not really in the mood to explain that and Horota really didn’t want to wait around for him calm down enough to do so.
He had run blindly. He stumbled onto the body of a fat woman laying on her back with her face slashed. Her throat had been clawed to the point it pretty much looked like raw hamburger.
On the counter top, just above her body, he saw the one bounty that had ever gotten away from him. “I thought you were dead,” he said as he started to think maybe this wouldn’t be such a loss after all. Cotton Paw was sitting on the counter top licking the blood from her paws when Horota wondered in.
“You! You will wish I was!” She said as she launched off the counter top. Horota drew one of his pistols with his good arm and fired.
Lex and Eve ran into no opposition as the fighting had pretty much died down. Everyone who had the will to fight was either dead or dying from their wounds. The rest of the population of the fortress was hiding, hoping to survive the attack, or had already fled.
Lex went straight for the kitchens. When she had been told that they were going to eat Cotton Paw, she figured the best place they would keep her, until the day she was to be killed and eaten. She was right and when they reached the kitchen they found Cotton Paw sitting on the chest of the Nekton bounty hunter. She was quite busy removing the vital tissues and blood vessels from around his neck.
Lex noticed a burn mark on her fur just above her left front shoulder blade. “Cat!” She screamed out and ran to her.
“Hello Lexie,” Cotton Paw said. “About time you showed up.”
“Who’s your friend? Or should I say your lunch by the look of him?” Eve asked.
“Unfinished business is what that was,” Cotton Paw answered with a smile.
“Was that the one? The guy that was hunting you?” Lex asked.
“He hunts no one now,” she replied then she started licking her paws again.
“Nice,” Lex said and hugged her cat. “You’re hurt?”
“Na, just a little singed, but not hurt. He missed.”
Chapter 35
Thad looked over at the armored man who was standing there with a smoking gun barrel in his hand. Thad recognized the armor instantly. It was the super advanced armor that was being developed for the Shadow Trooper program, another super-secret military program being run out of the Red Star mining company building on Nova Texas. Thad only knew about the armor and the program because he helped developed a lot of it and he had tested out a lot of the features. The armor’s active camo generator was the same one that he had been using for years on many missions. He realized his mother must have saved that little program after shutting down the one that created him. Although the history of the armor and how it came to be, was fascinating, he was more interested in who was wearing it and why they just shot him in the hand.
Thad dropped Yiska and stood up to his full height. The hole in his hand was quickly healing. He reached up and grabbed his force sword.
St. Claire’s cone rifle was attached to his armor with a three-point harness so he was able to let go of it and let it hang in front of his chest. He threw up his hands and yelled, “Thad wait!” He grabbed his helmet release and it hissed as he popped off his helmet.
Thad was relieved to see his friend, but he was still annoyed that he shot him in the hand and he was even more annoyed that he stopped him from killing Yiska. He lowered the sword and then walked up to his friend and hugged him.
“It’s good to see you, but damn it Dom, you fucking shot me!” Thad said adding a little indignation at the end.
St. Claire hugged his friend back, “Well if you had turned on your comm chip you would have heard me and Eve trying to tell you not to kill this asshole.”
“Okay, but you could have yelled at me to stop when you entered the room,” Thad thinking of the pain in his hand as it faded and healed.
“Hold on, wait. Are you saying that if I just ran in here and said, hey buddy could you not kill that scum bag piece of shit, you would have not plunged that dagger into his soft fleshy parts?” St. Claire said in a mocking tone.
“Well, when you put it like that, probably not. But you still shot me in the hand you asshole,” Thad said.
“What do you want a metal?” St. Claire said then he stopped and looked around, then yelled, “Hey, someone get him the golden tampon would ya?” St. Claire turned back to Thad and, while shaking his head in amazement, said “Quit your b
itching. Look, it’s already healed.”
Thad looked St. Claire straight in the eyes, “Eat a dick!”
St. Claire just laughed and padded Thad on the back, “Good to see you too.”
Kára, who had never seen St. Claire and Thad talk to each other like this before, and was a bit confused. She lowered her helmet and looked at the two men, “You two okay or are you going to do battle?”
Thad smiled, happy to see her, “No were good. It’s good to see you too,” He said as he gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. He turned back to St. Claire, “Care to explain why you felt justified in shooting me in the hand to save this load of crap?” Thad asked as he kicked Yiska in the leg.
St. Claire looked down at Yiska and, without missing a beat, explained “Orders. Apparently, he has intel the brass wants. Believe me, if it was up to me I would have let you taken his head off, like he did to Masters.”
“You know about that?” Thad asked.
“Yeah, we found his remains and recovered them so we can take him home.” St. Claire said the weight of loss heavy in his tone.
“I can’t imagine what Yiska could possibly know, but if mother wants him alive she will get him. I am curious though. Did she say she needed all of him?” Thad asked, still holding the force sword in his hand.
“No, she didn’t specify, why?” St. Claire asked wondering what his friend was up to this time.
“Good. I thought I would get me a souvenir. Maybe an ear or something,” Thad answered.
“What, what? Wait a fucking minute. You are not going all Universal Soldier on me, are you?” St. Claire asked dropping the early film reference to show his friend he had been watching the movies Thad had recommended for him. The movie had a character who was a soldier in war who liked killing so much that he made a neckless out of human ears that he cut from his kills.
Thad smiled, “You have been watching the list, I see.”
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” St. Claire answered, looking hurt that his friend would ever doubt him.