Phoenix walked over to his dresser and poured himself a glass of water. Knocking it back in one, he walked back to the centre of the room. "Really?"
"Yes. Why is that so hard for you to understand?"
"I don't even know your name," said Phoenix.
"Why spoil this night with things like names?"
"Why indeed?"
Phoenix moved his eyes slowly from left to right as he stretched his arms over his head.
"Why don't you come and join me?" she said, patting a spot next to her on the bed.
"What's the rush? Wouldn't it be nice to get to know each other first?"
"This isn't that sort of night."
"No, I guess it's not," Phoenix said, making his way towards the bed.
She stopped him with her foot, placing it on his stomach before he could get any closer. Trailing it up and down his stomach, she gave him a smile before flexing her finger in a "come here" motion.
Phoenix returned the smile and lowered himself slowly to the bed. "You're not going to tell me that you're not the type of girl who usually does this, are you?"
The only thing he got back was a smile as she brought herself up for a kiss. She tasted sweet, soft. She pulled back and looked at Phoenix with wide eyes, her nostrils flaring in anger.
"What's wrong, honey?" said Phoenix sweetly.
His right hand held her chin, while his left grabbed the hand that held a dagger to his throat. Blood trickled down his throat; it had nicked the skin.
"You know, the way your nostrils flare reminds me of someone very special. She is also beautiful, like you, although she would hate my saying so. Plus, she would never try a tactic as stupid as the one you just did."
"How did you know?"
"How did I know you were trying to kill me? I didn't, but meeting someone three times in one day was too much of a coincidence for me. Plus, I never told you the location of my room," said Phoenix.
He leapt off the bed as a blue hand swung for his face.
"I think you have some explaining to do," said Phoenix.
"Explain to the likes of you?" she spat.
"Now, come on, honey. That expression sure makes you look ugly. Where is the cute little darling that was lying on my bed a minute ago?"
She moved like a caged tiger finally free. Her motions flowed like water and were beautiful to watch, as she stretched her arms above her head. Phoenix couldn't take his eyes off her.
Well...her being naked also has a lot to do with that.
"Enjoying the view?" she said with a wink.
"Now you're going to tell me--"
A small black knife that had been hidden in the folds of her hair came towards Phoenix. He had no problem catching it with his right hand. Phoenix shook his head in her direction, and she smiled in return and blew him a kiss.
Phoenix saw the flashing red light on the knife handle too late.
Shit!
He threw it away from himself but the damage had already been done. A noise that sounded like a sonic boom caught him in the chest and threw him backwards. His body caved the door in two as he was propelled through it. The remaining breath from his lungs was forced out as he dented the corridor wall.
Lights danced in front of his eyes as he tried to focus. He saw two separate images that moved and shifted. They needed to come together. They needed to slot on top of each other to give him a clearer picture.
"It will be a shame to collect the bounty on your pretty head. You are my first client in a long time that I actually thought of sleeping with. Call me crazy, but it must be your rugged charm," said a voice in the distance. "The target is ready for extraction. Goodbye, Phoenix Jones. I do believe I shall retire after this. It's been nice."
Phoenix saw the image before him and almost chuckled. This wasn't the first time that a naked woman had held a weapon before him, and he doubted it would be the last.
"It is good to go to the afterlife with a smile on your face." The sound of the pistol going off echoed along the corridor.
16
Midnight-blue skin flashed before Phoenix's eyes. He heard a yell, then as his vision slowly cleared he saw jet-black hair flowing down a back he knew all too well.
"I had this handled," Phoenix groaned, lifting himself up from the floor.
"Really?"
"Yes, really," Phoenix said, coming to stand next to Saoirse.
"I can see how you handle things," Saoirse said with one eyebrow raised.
Phoenix's gaze drifted towards the naked woman standing in his room. Then his head tilted ever so slightly towards Saoirse. "Now, I know what this may look like, but..but...hear me out. This doesn't look like--"
"It doesn't look like what? That a naked woman, who I just stopped from killing you, is standing in your room?"
"Well, when you say it like that...I guess it looks exactly like that. By the way, where are you keeping all these weapons?" Phoenix asked his would-be assassin.
"Oh, you know...special places," she purred.
Saoirse rolled her eyes before stepping further into the room, with Phoenix close behind her. "What do you want?"
Phoenix said, "Oh, I know the answer to that one. She wants my head because there is a rather large bounty on it. Can't say that I am surprised though, with the amount of feathers we have been ruffling."
"Feathers...ruffling?" asked Saoirse.
"Earth saying. Anyway, we should have seen this coming. It was only a matter of time, I guess."
The blue assassin threw back her head and soft laughter escaped her lips. Shaking her head, she tapped her index finger against her lips. "Oh, this is delightful. You really have no idea, do you?"
"What are you talking about?" asked Phoenix.
"Its a pity that you will both die without finding out the truth."
Phoenix cocked his head back as he looked around the room. His eyebrows lifted towards the ceiling, and he gestured at the room. "Unless I am mistaken, you are naked, outnumbered, and if I know Saoirse--outgunned. You are the one in trouble, miss."
"Oh, on the contrary," she said, putting her hand to her ear. "I do believe that my backup has arrived."
Footsteps approached down the hallway and three men tore into the room. They were blue, like their female companion, but heavily muscled and scarred. Guns in firm grips swept the room. What appeared to be armour-plated vests covered their chests.
"Oh, please," said Phoenix, who had moved towards the three men with speed that surprised even him. Dodging the first rifle pointed his way, he punched the leader of the pack in the chest. The armour plate caved under the impact from Phoenix's right fist. The blow sent the man flying into his companions with such force it took all three of them off their feet.
They landed in a heap in the exact same position Phoenix had been in a moment earlier.
"I love this thing," Phoenix said, flexing his bionic hand. "Now, you were saying, sweetheart?"
The female assassin crossed her arms under her chest. Phoenix tried not to stare, but his vision seemed to be pulled in that direction, no matter where he looked.
"Had a good enough look?" Saoirse asked.
"Come on! That's hardly fair. I mean...forget it," Phoenix said, shaking his head.
"You will tell us everything you know, and if you do, we'll let you leave here alive," said Saoirse.
"I used to look up to you once. The demon pirate hunter. Now look how far you have fallen," said the assassin.
"As much as that warms my heart, knowing that someone like you," Saoirse said, looking the assassin up and down disdainfully, "respected anything that I did, I would rather you just gave me what I want."
"Why would I do that?"
"Like I told you, you are outnumbered!" said Phoenix. "Those fools ain't getting up any time soon. You sure don't listen too well, do you?"
A smile lingered on the female assassin's face, and she traced her finger along the outlines of her lips. "Mr Jones, you really didn't think that's all the backup I brought, did
you?"
More feet thundered along the corridor and another ten goons entered the room. A flashing light flicked across the windows as something moved outside them. Phoenix pulled back the curtain to reveal two small white flying bots. They were square, with round headlights, and they followed his movement wherever he went. The guns attached to their underbellies appeared small, but Phoenix didn't doubt that they packed a punch.
"Well, it appears you have all the bases covered," Phoenix said, bringing his attention back to the room.
"Better to be prepared than not." The assassin smiled.
"What do you think?" Phoenix asked Saoirse.
"Hmm--dealing with this many in such a confined space may prove problematic," said Saoirse.
"Well, we always have option two. Where are the kids?"
"Kai wanted to try his hand one more time at the VRG store, so L took everyone along for support."
"I guess option--"
"Hello! We are still here, you know. You people are unbelievable. If you weren't so cute I would have shot you already. Boys, round them up, we're done here."
Phoenix gave Saoirse a nod as the goons came their way. He grabbed her by the hand and threw her towards the window, but not before she scattered a handful of round marble-sized balls into the room. As Saoirse crashed through the window, Phoenix quickly followed through a hail of incoming bullets.
The flying bots fired their weapons into the room without regard for who or what they hit. It caused the perfect distraction, as everyone in the room dived for cover.
Phoenix jumped out of the window and latched onto one of the bots, just as the room behind him went up in flames. The shockwave from the explosion launched the bot into the air with him still attached to it.
The weapons bot twisted this way and that as it tried to shake Phoenix off. Phoenix held on as it spun round and round. It was the world's most unsafe rollercoaster ride, but he couldn't help but smile.
"Whee!" yelled Phoenix.
He held on tight as his legs trailed behind him and his hands tried to keep whatever grip they could. Phoenix should have been shot by now, but the way the guns on the bot were designed, they couldn't hit a target at such close range.
A bullet pinged off the bot he was holding, and he remembered that there were two of them. And one had as clear an aim at him as it could get.
"Phoenix! Hold on," said Saoirse.
"What the hell...do you think...I'm doing?" Phoenix said, spitting out bugs that had made their way into his mouth.
"I'll follow you from the ground and try and get a clean shot."
Trees, ground, trees, sky, trees; Phoenix saw one after the other until they all became a blur. He started to see white spots in front of his eyes as he sank his right hand deeper into the bot's metal casing. As his fingers wormed their way deeper, the bot gave off sparks and emitted bangs.
A spark from a bullet flashed in his face, missing his head by inches.
"Why haven't you taken out the other bot yet?"
"You keep getting in the way. It's harder than it looks."
"I thought you were meant to be a kick-ass--" Phoenix got a mouthful of leaves as the bot dragged him through a tree. "Just sort it!"
Phoenix swallowed the bile that rose in his throat and pulled a face as it went back down. The edges of his vision were starting to darken, and he knew what that meant. He couldn't keep this up any longer. His hand was dug so deep inside the weapons bot he was surprised it still worked. As sparks and components flew from the bot, it left a trail of smoke behind them.
"Let go!" said a voice in the distance.
"Are you crazy?"
The height he was at now was too high. He would surely die if he loosened his grip.
"Let go! Phoenix, trust me."
"You must be out of your mind if you think I'm going to let go!"
"You scared?"
The darkness had now crept in from the edges of his vision and was working its way towards the centre like oil. Phoenix released his grip without a second thought and felt weightless as he plummeted downwards.
Two explosions echoed through the air, and bits of metal flew in all directions like fireworks on Guy Fawkes Night. Phoenix watched the light display in awe. He felt like the private display was all for him. The explosions against an endless black night reminded him of home.
As Phoenix's back hit the water, he was swallowed whole. The events in the sky looked as if he was seeing them through a glass bottle. Deeper and deeper he sank, till the flashing light in the sky became dimmer and dimmer.
The face of an angel swam towards him. Locks of jet-black hair pooled around her head as she drew closer.
I know that face.
Lips pushed in a firm line told of her displeasure.
I know that face, thought Phoenix as the darkness finally took him.
17
Phoenix woke on his back to find an all-too-familiar face above his. Lashes flickered back and forth and dripped water onto his face. He stretched his arms above him and let out a jaw-shattering yawn.
"Well, ain't I glad to see you," Phoenix smiled.
Saoirse said nothing as she looked down at him. Her hair hung down and cast her face in shadow. Her wet clothes clung to the curves of her body.
"That was...a close call," Phoenix whispered.
She nodded her head and rested her hand against his chest. It felt warm against the cold fabric of his clothes. "Yes, it was... Thank you for saving me."
"Saving you? You mean throwing you out of a window? Don't mention it."
The wind from the ocean blew Saoirse's hair across her face. It raised goosebumps across Phoenix's skin as his wet clothes robbed heat from his body. He lifted up one hand and brushed her hair out of her eyes before resting his palm on her cheek.
"It would be a shame to...lose you. I've got used to having you around. I mean, who would save my ass in times of stress?" Phoenix asked.
"Who indeed?"
His hand lingered on her face, and as she leaned into it he felt something pull inside his chest. Her face lowered to his and hovered above it. Phoenix breathed in deeply, as her aroma was the only thing he could smell.
"I..." Phoenix's voice trailed off as his thoughts were lost in the depths of her eyes.
She said, "I didn't mean to block you out earlier, it's just my past... My past...haunts me. It follows me wherever I go. A chain around my neck that is forever weighing me down."
"Saoirse, our regrets, our failures, our pasts weigh heavily around all our necks. Only the very few know how to lift their head high and accept whatever weight may be added to it in the future."
Phoenix brushed the corner of her eye as a tear made its way down her cheek. Saoirse lowered her head closer to his, till all he could see was her eyes, which appeared like stars in the sky.
He closed his eyes and shook his head. We shouldn't do this, we shouldn't do this. It would complicate things, more than they already were.
"We should get going," he breathed.
She gave him a brief smile and a nod before offering him a hand up.
"Well, what happened here, then?" L asked, pointing towards the remains of Phoenix's room.
"Goons and beautiful female assassins," replied Phoenix.
Phoenix and Saoirse had made their way back to Phoenix's room to see what they could find. The rest of the crew approached the room at the same time and seemed lost for words.
"Beautiful assassins who happened to be naked," said Saoirse.
All faces turned to Phoenix, their expressions ranging from smugness and glee to disappointment and disapproval.
"Before any one of you cretins says anything, know that I would never judge you on what you get up to you in your spare time," he said.
Plowstow was indignant. "That ain't true. You always be commenting on what I do, who I see, and what I'm getting up to. There ain't a day that passes that you don't ask me some sort of question."
"That's because, Plowstow, you are a sne
aky underhanded dick that would sell his own sister to the highest bidder," said Phoenix.
"Plowstow, as much as I hate to admit it, has a point," said Freyan. "It may be lost in what he classes as speech, but Phoenix, you are constantly poking your nose into my lab, asking what this or that is. I can only explain the methods that go towards my scientific studies so many times before I watch you turn glassy-eyed."
"Look, I'm only doing that because--"
"He does that to you, too? He's always sticking his nose in the engine room, looking about, poking things. Like he has a clue what everything is," L said with an eye roll. "Does he also repeat the last words of a complicated sentence that you said and nod his head?"
"Oh, that little trick--"
"Hey! Can we get back to the task at hand--which isn't highlighting my imaginary faults! Someone just tried to kill me, a few hours ago. Maybe we should focus on that," said Phoenix.
The room was a mess. Burnt furniture crumbled under the slightest touch, the smoking embers still too hot to handle. Wind blew in through the shattered windows, kicking up ash into unprotected eyes. The floorboards creaked and groaned, protesting any weight placed on them.
Phoenix turned left and right, looking at the floorboards. His eyebrows formed a knot as he bent low.
"What are you looking for?" asked Saoirse.
"Bodies."
"You won't find any. Those balls I set off before I went through the window cause an explosion, but they also destroy any organic living matter. Makes sure that the job is done right," Saoirse said with a cunning smile any fox would be proud of.
Phoenix nodded his head, taking one more sweep of the room. "Well, this is pointless."
"I've found something!" said L. She pulled out a slim transparent chip no bigger than a finger from where it was buried in a space between two floorboards. Holding it up to the light, she turned it this way and that. "I think it still works."
"What is it?" asked Phoenix.
"Data chip. Holds information of any sort, but this one appears to have a password on it," L said, pushing a button on the chip.
"Phoenix, I do believe this is where your right hand would come in handy," said Freyan.
Revenge: (Space Outlaw 3) Page 6