Taking one look at the disgraced pile of unconscious thugs, CJ knew that could take all day. Instead, the man came up with a better idea.
“How about I just tell you where Ulric went?”
“You know where he is?” Aster’s eyes lit up with excitement.
“I do,” said CJ. “I heard Ulric himself say where he was going. But before I tell you that, we have some other business to settle.”
“Oh?” said Aster. “What business is that?”
“I want to know what you plan on doing with the rest of his gang.”
“I don’t care about his gang. I’m only after Ulric.”
“Then you don’t mind if I collect their bounties?”
“Go right ahead.”
CJ smiled, then hopped down from his horse. “Alright, I’ll only be a few minutes,” he said. Aster watched the British man pull a long length of rope out of his supply bag. The man went about severing the rope into enough pieces to begin tying up the injured men’s arms and legs. When his lengths of rope were ready, he pulled a few pieces of paper out of his bag next.
The papers were more wanted posters, and CJ combed through his stack to see if any of these men had bounties. He found that three of them did. In total, he stood to make a nice chunk of money off the men.
“It’ll be a hundred dollars,” he said. “You sure you don’t want to split it? You did most of the work, after all.”
“I don’t need money,” Aster said. “You can keep it all.”
“You’re very generous, friend!” CJ said with a smile. He removed all the gang’s guns and most of their clothing as he tied them up. “Need a new gun? How about a new outfit, which you definitely do need.”
Aster took the man up on his offer. After stripping away most of the gang’s outfits, Aster changed into a combination of clothing that wasn’t as dirty, tattered, or stinking. As he changed shirts, CJ saw a plethora of bruises and scars engraved on his body. Some were even fresh and bleeding a little.
“So what’s your business with Ulric, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“He stole something from me,” said Aster. “I’m here to take it back.”
“That’s good,” CJ said as he finished tying up the last outlaw. “So you don’t care about his bounty then? Can I have it?”
“I’m afraid not,” said Aster. “I’ll be taking Ulric back home with me. I won’t budge on that detail either.”
CJ lifted the first of the three men, struggling under the weight of the fat man. Aster stepped forward and grabbed the guy with one hand, lifting him easily and setting him down on top of the horse. He picked up the last two guys at the same time, one in each hand, and tossed them atop the horse as well. CJ stood by shocked and speechless at the herculean display of strength.
“So where’s Ulric?” Aster asked, that bored look of agitation coming back to his face. “I want to get going as quickly as possible.”
“Hold your horses,” CJ said. He knew he had to figure out a way to convince Aster to stay with him, and he was an honest man. “I think we should consider partnering up.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” said Aster. “Ulric is seriously dangerous. I can’t guarantee you won’t die.” He tried to stay as vague as possible, since he couldn’t exactly tell him they were both devils from Hell.
“Who do you think I am? Some mere civilian?” CJ asked, offended. “I’m an assassin for hire! I live for killing! I could take on Ulric and all his men myself, except that I see the value in partnering up with you. You’re hard to kill! If you and me work together we’ll take down Ulric in no time! Not to mention you still need me to tell you where Ulric is. The only way I’m telling you is if you let me come along.”
“God you’re persistent,” Aster said with a sigh. “Fine. As long as I get Ulric, you can do whatever you want.”
“Okay, okay. I’m still going to make a killing off the rest of his men anyway. So it’s a deal then? We’re partners?”
CJ stuck out his hand.
“Partners,” Aster said, gripping the friendly assassin’s hand tightly.
The two started walking back to town, CJ’s horse trotting slowly next to them. They left behind the three thugs that weren’t worth anything. Stripped of their guns and clothing and all tied up, those men weren’t going anywhere. As the duo marched, CJ found that Aster was quite the mysterious man.
“So where are you from, Aster?” CJ asked.
“Far away. Much further than Britain,” said Aster.
“You won’t tell me where it is though?”
“You don’t need to know.”
“Fair enough,” said CJ, moderately deterred. “Tell me a little bit about Ulric then, so I know what I’m going up against.”
“Ulric served under me in the…army,” said Aster. “I never trusted him. But we needed more Captains, we were going through a bit of a recruitment drought. Ulric was certainly tough enough to be a Captain. But he was also a greedy, sly little bastard. He never wanted to be a Captain. All he wanted was to steal a gate key from me.”
“The key to what gate?”
“It doesn’t matter what the key opens,” said Aster. “What matters is that he’s here, and planning on messing things up here.”
“But he’s just one man,” CJ said. “Even if he gathers an army, so what? As long as I’ve got my gun, he’s no match for me. Gun fighting is my specialty, you see.”
“You’re quite confident in your tool, huh?” said Aster, eyeing the assassin’s gun.
“I’ve spent most my life working with this tool,” CJ said, drawing his gun and holding it close to his heart. “Spend enough time working with a tool and eventually you’ll master it. I can shoot anything I can see with 100% accuracy.”
Aster started to laugh.
“What is so funny?” CJ asked.
“I get why you’re so overconfident now,” said Aster. “You put all your faith in that gun. But I don’t think you’ve ever considered what you would do if your gun didn’t work on an enemy.”
The conversation fell flat as they heard something flop onto the dirt trail they walked on. Looking back, the duo watched one of the outlaws who’d regained consciousness fleeing for his life. It was a sad sight: a chubby man in his underwear, his hands tied behind his back and his legs tied together at his feet. He had to hop like a fool just to get away.
CJ drew his gun and fired once into the air. The man kept hopping. CJ lowered the gun, pointing it towards the outlaw.
“May I?” Aster asked.
“You’re interested now?” CJ said with a smirk, handing the gun over handle-first.
Aster took the weapon in his hand and examined it thoroughly. It didn’t look like any of the other guns he’d seen so far on Earth. This one had a barrel that was nearly a foot long, and it was solid black.
“I need him alive, so try to keep it non-lethal,” said CJ. “Think you can handle that?”
Aster held the gun out and looked down the barrel with one eye. He pointed it at the man’s leg. With a casual squeeze of his finger the gun fired. The fat man dropped to the ground shrieking in pain.
“You’re good,” CJ said with a proud smile. “I can tell you’ve put years of practice into your technique, just like me.”
Aster flipped the gun around and handed it back to CJ.
“Actually, that was my first time ever shooting a gun,” he said. Then he went to retrieve the injured outlaw, leaving CJ standing in awe.
Part Four: The Taking of Fort Luster
“They don’t have guns where you come from?” asked CJ, staring incredulously at Aster as they marched back to Granger.
“We’re aware of them,” Aster said. “We just have better methods of killing.”
“If a better method of killing exists, I’d like to see it.”
“Maybe you will,” said Aster.
The duo reached Granger by noon. With the threat of Ulric and his gang removed, the town was suddenly bustling with l
ife. Children ran up and down the dirty streets playing with crude toys. Women gathered around to watch a traveling merchant peddle his revolutionary cookware. The saloon was open again, and it sounded even livelier with Ulric and his men gone.
Despite Aster’s protests, he ended up standing outside the sheriff’s building waiting for CJ to return from turning in the wanted members of Ulric’s gang. The assassin left the tip that the remaining gang members were just outside of town, stripped and waiting to be picked up. The sheriff sent him off with a smile, then left to retrieve the other thugs.
CJ joined Aster’s side once more, counting the stack of bills the sheriff paid him. Aster looked like he was about to burst from all the boredom.
“You still haven’t told me where Ulric is,” he said.
“Ulric went to Fort Luster,” Cj said, tucking the money into his jacket pocket. “If we leave now we can be there by sundown.”
“Then let’s get going,” Aster said, growing even more impatient with every passing moment.
“Not just yet,” said CJ. “I need to stock up first. I think I may have also bought some bad bullets.”
CJ dragged Aster all over town. First they went to the general store to buy more ammunition. Aster tried to convince CJ that it wouldn’t matter, but CJ insisted on tossing out his existing bullets to buy a new package. The assassin interrogated the general store owner about the possibility of defective ammo, but the salesman assured them his bullets were made with care and would work without question.
After CJ replenished his ammo supply it was time to find Aster a horse. Aster continued to be adamant in his stance that a horse was unnecessary for him and that he could simply run alongside CJ. The assassin wouldn’t stand for the idea though, and even spared the extra money to rent a horse for Aster. With how stubborn his new partner was acting, CJ assumed the man didn’t know how to ride.
As soon as Aster jumped up on the horse he continued his streak of surprising the assassin. Aster rode like a pro, taking the reigns of his horse and steering it this way and that trying to get a feel for how the creature moved.
“Is this it?” Aster asked. “Compared to the beasts we ride back home this creature is docile.”
“Well, they’re bred in captivity, so they’re quite tame,” CJ said, his mind aflutter with wonder about the unruly beasts in Aster’s home country.
“Are we finally leaving now?” asked Aster. “Or would you like to spend one more day in Granger just for fun?”
“Now we ride!” CJ said. With a kick of his legs, the assassin sped off. Aster imitated him, giving a weak and gently kick that sent his horse into a speeding frenzy. Together they sped out the opposite end of Granger, following the dusty trail that would lead them to their enemy.
The pair rode for hours over prairies and valleys, canyons and catwalks, rivers and streams. When questioned about his horse riding skills, Aster revealed he’s spent a lot of time breaking in horses before he joined his army back home. The cover story about his past with Ulric that he invented wasn’t far from the actual truth.
Aster tried to keep conversation to a minimal. For that reason he tried staying as far ahead of CJ as possible. It was made difficult by CJ’s unexpectedly skillful display of commanding his horse. Aster knew how to push a horse to its limits, but was not used to the weakness of the Earth variety. CJ clearly shared a deep bond with his horse, because the two moved as one and easily kept up with Aster.
After an enjoyable afternoon spent riding, racing, and playing like children the two adults finally came into view of Fort Luster. The tall walls of the fort could be seen from miles off, giving the pair time to slow down and form a plan. Their horses slowed to a trot and the two chatted.
“We should abandon our horses,” said CJ. “They’ll spot us too easily if we ride up. Also, I’d rather not get my horse shot if you don’t mind.”
“Fine by me,” Aster replied. He lifted a leg and hopped down off the horse quickly, breaking into a slow jog right next to CJ’s horse.
CJ made his horse stop before jumping off and commanding it to “stay”. The duo ran onward toward the fort, CJ gripping his gun tightly. He looked over at his crazy partner, a man without a gun, and reviewed their crazy mission, to storm the hideout of a notorious gang. A small smirk crossed his face.
“So what’s the plan, Mr. Tough Guy?” he asked.
“I’m going to jump over the top of that wall,” replied Aster. “How will you be getting in?”
“Don’t be daft!” said CJ. “The Fort walls are five meters tall. No one can jump that.”
“I guess I can just open the door for you once I’m in,” said Aster, ignoring CJ’s previous comments.
“You can’t be serious! You’re really planning on jumping over the wall?”
“Or I could throw you over the wall…”
Gunshots echoed across the landscape. The pair had been spotted. Watchmen on top of the wall fired down upon them, turning up small clouds of dust as the bullets struck the ground.
“This is when a gun comes in handy,” said CJ. While running, the assassin managed to fire at a target that was nearly twenty meters away and hit it. One of the guards dropped over the side of the wall and CJ made a mental note to check everyone’s bounties when they were done.
Aster grinned. I could hit all these guys with fireballs before they even knew what happened, he thought. Of course, I can’t do that right now so I’ll have to get a little creative.
CJ zigged while Aster zagged, dodging bullets with great ease. The assassin fired several more shots that slowed or stopped at least three other watchmen. He saw Aster make some strange motions with his arms but couldn’t make sense of what the man was doing. When they reached spitting distance of the fort wall CJ saw one of the men that had fallen was not someone he hit with a bullet. Instead there was a playing card lodged in the man’s skull.
He couldn’t have… CJ thought. From all the way back there, with a playing card?
“Going up!” Aster shouted, scaring CJ back into attention.
The assassin thought that meant Aster was going to try and jump the wall after all. What he didn’t realize was that Aster had settled on his idea of throwing the man over the wall before he leapt it, since it’d save time. Therefore the assassin was not at all expecting Aster to scoop him up like a damsel in distress, lift him high above his head with no effort and simply toss him like a knapsack to the top of the wall.
With no time to react to any of this, CJ just went with it. His gun drawn as he landed on the wall, he turned to instinctively shoot one guard and save himself. He crawled forward on his hands and feet, still cautious. Not cautious enough, as a gun cocked behind him. A random gang member stood pointing his piece at the assassin, grinning like a coward.
That’s when Aster leapt clear over the wall, kicking the thug in his head and saving CJ’s keister. The guy went down at once, falling to the dusty ground below. CJ and Aster ducked behind the same crate and acted casual.
“Where do you think Ulric is?” asked Aster.
“I don’t know,” said CJ. “It’s hard to see with all these guys shooting at us!”
“I’ll just make them all stop then,” said Aster. Pulling a few more playing cards out of his sleeves, the crazy man stood up. Before any of the gang members could pop off a shot Aster moved his arm like a whip, launching the playing cards at hyper-speed. Each one struck a vital blow to a gang member, dropping three men to the ground with injuries and even killing one man.
“You make it look so easy,” said CJ in awe.
“It’s your turn now,” said Aster. “I’m out of playing cards.”
“Leave it to me.”
CJ dove out from their covered spot and rolled into the aisle. They were on top of a platform that surrounded the inside wall. There were still three more guys on the walkway with them, and even more inside the numerous small buildings in the fort below. Very carefully, CJ made his way to the nearest corner for a different vanta
ge point. As he was taking his time carefully selecting a target, a crate of all things went flying through the air.
The crate rolled across the ground, taking out several men as it went. It stopped when it ran into CJ’s intended target. The assassin turned around and saw Aster standing there with his arms still partially raised, staring at the chaos he created. There was a moment of doubt for CJ as he tried to cling to his beliefs that no one could do these things. Then he saw Aster turn to pick up another hundred kilogram crate, lifting it with as much ease as he had lifted the assassin during their infiltration.
Aster chucked the crate at another group of men that popped out of one of the buildings. He looked as casual as someone playing a game of horseshoes. CJ knew he was no ordinary man: the bullets, the wall, and now the crates. He longed to question him about it all, but now was not the time.
“I thought you said it was my turn,” said CJ.
“You were taking too long,” replied Aster.
More gunshots fired and the pair ducked for new cover. While CJ provided some cover fire, Aster dropped off the walkway and down to the ground. He lurked in the shadows of the fort, taking men by surprise as they returned fire with CJ. After disabling five more men, there was only one gang member left. Fortunately for the man, he was on the opposite side of the fort as Aster.
Realizing he was the only one left still firing at the mysterious invading assassin, the man panicked and turned yellow. He ran for the horse corral. The poor frightened creatures tied to the post there were all struggling to break free. One well-aimed shot from CJ destroyed the hitching post, letting the horses run free below. The startled gang member could do nothing to calm them. Now he was trapped in the fort.
Without much effort Aster snuck up behind the man. With a swift jab to his side, the guy dropped to his knees. Aster gripped his hair and pulled his head back, screaming into his ear.
“Where’s Ulric?”
“The train! The train!” the man said.
Cowboys & Devils (Devil Aster Days Book 3) Page 3