Flash watched the shuttle depart, his stealth field belt giving off an almost unobservable hum. He turned his head to look at Marlene, whose own belt was vibrating on the same wavelength, allowing them to see one another. The duo had a reputation for their dry and often dark humor, which accounted for Flash's label within the organization. His real name was Edgar Cuttler, an unassuming name for a man who, by all standards, could melt into just about any human crowd. He was wholly unremarkable, a fact he had used in good favor when arguing with Beaker about not getting the traditional anchor-and-blade tattoo of the organization. He never dressed extravagantly, but neither did he dumb himself down for any reason. The turaki unit leader remarked one day that Edgar had no flash, and seeing an opportunity to make a subtle joke, Marlene began calling him just that- Flash.
Marlene, however, could draw attention during a full-scale riot, her hair fashioned in two spike wheels along the sides of her head, the left spikes neon blue, the right spikes dark crimson. She had several shining piercings in her lips, her nose, and her eyebrows, and to top it all off, she donned highly polished metal armor whenever she was in the field. But while she was outwardly loud in appearance, she, like her partner, kept her head down and nose clean when necessary.
"Aran's brat's inside with the old man now," Flash said, looking back at Heph's compound through a farsight viewer.
"Remember Beaker's orders," she replied softly. "We don't hurt the girl."
"I still think it's a bad idea sending Zeke alone," Flash said, pulling the viewer down. "He's not made for delay tactics. He's going after Aran, he's going to go balls-to-the-wall. It's going to be a kill-or-be-killed fight, and I'm not sure Zeke can take him." He pulled out his pulse pistol, checked the energy cell, and holstered it again. Too much exposed energy so close to the belt would negate its chameleon effect. "Even if Zeke manages to kill Aran, what do we do with the girl at that point? We're not exactly a happy healthy family."
"Not our problem," said Marlene, checking her own weapon. "Beaker'll figure that out." The pair moved out from around the rock outcropping, walking slowly down the slope toward the compound. "Just remember, don't hurt the girl, but the guardian's expendable."
"Roger that," Flash said softly, preparing himself mentally for the task at hand.
Billy walked along the narrow downtown market streets, looking around only with his eyes, careful not to make it obvious that he knew he was marked. He couldn't help the armor, which would stick out anywhere he went planetside; however, as a bounty hunter, he could easily explain it. In any event, it would be better to have the armor and not need it, than to need it, and be exposed.
He expected an attack, yes. What he didn't expect, however, was the sheer recklessness of what transpired moments after he turned a corner by a crowded bistro. No sooner had he come around said corner than a burly man in black impact fibre armor came stalking out of a pharmacy kitter-corner to his position, a laser pistol in each hand, firing in steady succession at Billy. The first two shots went just wide, killing two defenseless people seated on the bistro's outdoor patio and kicking off mindless panic in the market. The third and fourth shots hit Billy in his leg and chest respectively, his armor holding up but the impact knocking him back through the wooden railing separating the patio from the street.
His own laser pistol came out as he flailed to maintain his balance, taking careful aim as four more shots came at him, each landing on his armor's leg plating, heating the plates to an unbearable level. He managed to squeeze off one good shot as he fell down, and saw the Space Pirate spin back and left as the shot clipped his shoulder. The outlaw's armor held up, though, causing no permanent damage.
Billy groaned as he tried to get up, his left hand slipping on something slick. He took a peek, saw that it was blood from one of the bystanders who'd been killed in the initial attack, and immediately felt his own anger surge to the surface. Someone had just been sitting there, enjoying a meal with his companion, who had also been slain by this outlaw, harming no one. The man and woman in question could have lived a quiet, unassuming life for many years yet, if not for the psychotic barbarian who'd decided a crowded public place would be the ideal place to host a fight with one of the galaxy's best bounty hunters.
In the seconds it took him to get from his ass to his feet, Billy's anger took a back seat. He had to admit to himself that whoever this thug was, he was cunning. The outlaw knew Billy couldn't risk a stray shot hitting a civilian, so he opened the engagement with projectile weaponry. He struck first, and he struck fast. And with the expectation that Billy would try to close the gap for a melee fight, he'd worn lighter, more maneuverable armor than Billy, giving him the edge at such range. In short, the outlaw had done his homework, and come prepared.
Which is usually how I do things, Billy thought as he holstered his pistol and drew out his shock baton. He started toward the outlaw, civilians running, screaming north and south between the two men, obscuring his view, bumping into him. He saw the outlaw raise his pistols once again, heedless of the rushing crowds between them. Billy ducked as four more bolts flew from the laser pistols, three of the shots wounding passersby and one killing a man as he tried to zig-zag through the fight.
In the gap of civilians, Billy closed up, bringing his baton around in a vicious arc at the outlaw's head, easily blocked by the other man bringing his arms up and using the pistols' barrels as buffers. Against a standard baton, this would have been the right move, but with the voltage running through the baton by Billy holding down a red button with his thumb, it resulted in the outlaw twitching and flying back several yards, the pistols falling from momentarily numbed hands.
To the bigger man's credit, however, he was up with a deadly serrated combat knife in hand before Billy could get close enough for a follow-through strike. Billy flicked the baton at him once, twice, three times, gauging the bigger man's responses. With each flick, the outlaw hopped back, blade brought up next to a flat, open palm for a wider blocking surface. The handle of his blade was rubberized, but his bare hand would cause him trouble if any of the flicks had connected.
But Billy couldn't just keep the electrical charge going, as the power pack in the butt of his weapon wouldn't hold out. He adjusted his grip, the faint yellow glow snapping off as his thumb came off the shock button. The outlaw took a few lunging swipes and stabs at Billy, landing none of his strikes. Another quick swipe scraped faintly by the tip on Billy's belly plate, but the bounty hunter spotted a brief opening after the blow, whipping the end of his baton up under the big man's chin. He heard teeth clack together, followed by the pained grunt of his foe. The big man spat out some blood and a portion of a cracked tooth, grinned, and came at Billy again with a hard stab.
Billy managed to use a 'stir-the-pot' motion with his baton which, against an average fighter, would have given him a clear shot at the man's face. But Zeke was no average fighter, and he took the momentum to spin around and crouch, stabbing Billy in the back of the leg as the bounty hunter stumbled past him. Billy howled in pain, but the knife came with him, leaving his opponent temporarily unarmed. Billy turned back toward the other man, limping as he followed him back toward the broken patio railing he'd started against.
The outlaw grabbed a length of busted rail, bringing it up over his head just as Billy crashed down on him with an overhand swing. A boot thrust pushed Billy back, and a follow-up swing caught the bounty hunter in the shoulder, knocking him aside. If he wanted to win this fight, he would have to do it soon, and with one definitive strike. Hope this works, he thought as he stumbled back, blocking another swing from the outlaw.
Billy shouted and fell backward, reaching down as if to clutch at the knife sticking out of the back of his leg. The big outlaw, sensing his opportunity, came forward howling, leaping through the air with his makeshift club in hand, ready to crush Billy's skull.
The bounty hunter aimed his holdout pistol, pulled from his ankle holster, and shot the big man square between the eyes. The outlaw fell limp atop him in a heap, and for a moment, Billy Aran just let himself be pinned by the corpse in the middle of the street, waiting for the local law or some nearby civilian to come help get the dead weight off of him.
"They seem to think they're still hidden," Samus said to the old engineer, her expression flat, fingers flying over the keyboard as she commanded his compound's defense system. Heph just grinned and nodded.
"They do at that," he said. "Let's give them a little thrill, what say you," he asked playfully. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Access security drone 5," he said. She did so with a few clicks and clacks, bringing up a heads-up-display from the viewpoint of the man-shaped drone currently standing next to one of the outbuildings. It had a line of sight on the main compound's front doors, but it didn't see the cloaked Space Pirates in its current vision mode. "Switch to infrared," said Heph. Samus did so, and immediately she saw what she had been looking at on the outer command screen, except from the drone's angle.
"Shall I set the drone on them," she asked.
"No, no, just have it march toward the front door," said Heph. Samus brought up a new set of controls, and began piloting the drone from her console, marching it toward the front porch. She watched as the pair on the porch turned toward the drone, slowly backing away from the front door, trying not to bump into one another. She turned the drone toward the steps up to the porch, but Heph put his hand softly over hers. "Now," he said with a mishievous smile, "have it make this announcement," he said, typing in the words for the drone to speak in its automated voice.
"Oh," Samus said, finally cracking a smile of her own. "This is going to be amusing."
Flash watched as the drone squared itself to the front door. It raised its arms over its head and announced in a clunky, mechanical voice, "Now collecting cattle manure specimens for examination." It then turned and hustled away to one side of the compound, leaving the pair of Space Pirates motionless on the porch.
"We should move now," Marlene said. Flash put a hand on her shoulder to stay her, though.
"No, we don't know how quickly that thing will come back," he whispered. "And lower your voice. They might have audio surveillance this close." She nodded, keeping still afterward. Moments later, the drone came hoofing back, a pile of dung in its hands. It walked right to the edge of the steps.
"Depositing sample for analysis," it proclaimed, flinging its arms up, hand units spinning. A spray of what they could only hope was simply cow shit flew out, splattering the front door and the outlaws standing nearby. A different voice then came from the robot's head unit.
"Maintenance drone 3 report to main front porch, worker drone 5 appears to be malfunctioning," said an older man's voice loudly. "Repeat, maintenance drone 3 to main front porch. Fill up your water tank if it isn't already full." Speckled with fecal matter, the outlaws remained still, both hoping that the machines and, more importantly, the old man inside wouldn't notice fine particles of shit suspended in midair just a few feet from the front door on the porch. Shortly, a tread-mounted robot with a clear hose tube attached to its left armature came rolling around the side of the main compound, rolling right up to the other drone. "Maintenance drone, please clean off the affected drone and the porch, if you would."
The maintenance robot did as bid immediately, spraying down the other robot first, then sweeping the porch. The moment the water struck the outlaws, their stealth field generators shorted, giving them brief electrical shocks, dropping them to the floorboards. As they tried getting up, both groaning, three laser cannon barrels lowered into their collective fields of vision, each held by a shining steel sentry.
One of the robot guards lowered its face toward them, and the old man's voice chimed in once more. "I would recommend disarming yourselves," he said
Flash and Marlene stood clutching the bars of their lockdown cell in the security hut, a small outbuilding kept fifty yards from the main compound. They had locked gazes with the old man and little girl, and while Marlene still held her own against the old man, Flash couldn't keep his eyes locked with the Svestri girl's; there was just something there he couldn't match.
"There are a few ways we can go about handling this situation," Heph said, arms folded over his chest. "The first way is simple, but far too brutal for my liking- we kill you, and deal with karmic retribution later." Marlene finally looked away, still holding onto the bars. "The second way, wherein we contact the local law enforcement authorities to come collect you. Being Space Pirates, you will likely be taken to the command center by the spaceport, and then suffer summary execution. And finally, there's a third option, which is to wait here until William Aran returns, transfer you to his custody, and then let him take you to the local bounty office. Which sounds best to you two?"
Neither outlaw answered, both ducking away to the back of their cell to confer in hushed voices. Samus didn't move, but when the two outlaws were still whispering, she walked over calmly to a control panel against one wall and pressed several buttons. As soon as she finished her input, a blast shutter came down behind the bars, and the sound of hissing filled the room. Heph looked over at Samus and gaped at her.
"What did you do," he barked.
"I closed them in and activated the knock-out gas," Samus replied evenly. "They both still had a concealed sonic disruptor tucked at the small of their backs. I heard them talking about activating them." Heph blinked at her, then looked at the cell as the shutter and bars raised out of the way, revealing two very unconscious Space Pirates. Samus ducked into the cell, rolled the pair over, and returned to Heph with two small blue devices. She then lowered the bars again and tapped another command input, which sent a brief jolt of electricity through the floor of the cell, awakening the outlaws with a harmonious yelp. Both felt at the small of their backs, and narrowed their eyes as Heph dropped their disruptors on the floor for them to see.
"She's very observant," he said, pointing at Samus with one crossed hand.
"She's a freak, more like," the female outlaw spat. Samus took two steps toward the cell, careful to stay out of their reach if they should approach the bars.
"Will you attempt to resist arrest if law enforcement is summoned," she asked. The outlaws snickered, slowly getting up to their feet.
"Space Pirates don't get arrested," said the man. "So yeah, we will."
"Will you attempt escape if you are turned over to William Aran," she asked, using the same flat, even tone as her previous inquiry.
"Only after we've killed him," said the woman snidely, flipping off the old man and young girl. Samus turned her head to look Heph in the eyes, and all too late, the old engineer saw there what Flash had seen only a couple of minutes before.
"That leaves only one option," she said. Samus then drew the laser pistol her father had given her, and with two rapid shots, put a laser bolt through the chest of both Space Pirates.
Billy landed the shuttle outside of his house and raced inside, scanning the area with his eyes for signs of a trap. Seeing nothing, he swept the entire house both visually and with his wrist-mounted computer, just to be sure. When he finally felt ready to take a breath he did so, then ambled into the living room and brought up his main console. There was a flashing green light telling him he had an audio message, which he played. "William, it's Heph," said the old man, sounding weary and, truth be told, a little frightened. "You need to call me, as soon as you can. I pray to all the gods that you get this and you're all right." Fearing that the old engineer and his daughter were in a panic room under siege, Billy put through a video call immediately. It connected, showing Heph in his private office at his desk, looking haunted.
"Heph, what's happened? Where's Samus," Billy barked. Heph moistened his lips, rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands, and slumped forward.
"She's in the living room, watching some cartoons," he replied. "William, we were set upon by two Space Pirates, a man and a woman. They are dead now."
"So your drones worked? That's a good thing," Billy said.
"No, William, the drones didn't kill them. The drones captured them. William, your daughter killed them," Heph said, his voice cracking, tears rolling down his cheeks. He told Billy the entire story, pausing only once to gather his composure. When he was finished, he shook his head, hands folded together in front of him on his desk. "She isn't human, William. I knew that already, but I had no idea what that might imply in situations like this. She didn't hesitate."
"As well she shouldn't, not with people like this," Billy snapped, surprising even himself with his vehemence. "Heph, look, these are Space Pirates. And frankly, considering that they had just threatened to kill me if given the chance, I'd say she responded perfectly. She relies on me, and if something were to happen to me, she has no idea what would happen to her. Rather than risk that unknown, she took the only option you offered them that they hadn't already shot down." Heph nodded, but the deep sadness didn't leave his face for a moment.
"I suppose, viewed through that filter, you are absolutely correct," the old engineer said. "But knowing that such is how she views the world, I have to ask you to come and have a long talk at her. I cannot have that happen again in my home, William. If you want me to be able to host her here as my ward for any period of time, she must know that she cannot just execute prisoners if they are in custody, no matter how heinous their words or deeds." Billy grunted, but he wasn't about to argue with the old goat.
"I'll have a discussion with her when I swing by," he said. "But Heph? If you took down two, and I only got one, then you know there's anywhere from three to five more of them left planetside with us." The old engineer just nodded, then cut the comms link, Billy's screen going blank. He had hoped it wouldn't come to killing so quickly for the girl, but he was at least relieved that she had taken what little training and warnings he'd given her to heart, using them to their utmost efficiency.
Billy Aran grabbed a few extra supplies and hopped back in his planetside shuttle, heading for Heph's compound.