Earthbound CH09 - Cutting it Close v1.1

Frank wasn't anything special. He was just a normal guy, one dressed up like he was from bad gangster movie, but normal none-the-less. It wasn't as if he were an alien like the Starman, which was good because I'd be screwed. So in the scheme of the things I decided I would be able to beat him with little effort at all. I mean c'mon I had superpowers, sort of.

The lipstick wearing freak smiled as I charged him. His hand moved so fast I almost didn't see him brandish the knife. My natural reflexes kicked in at the last second and I dug my feet in, but the grass was wet and skidded, and launched myself to the side to avoid the deadly swing. The momentum of my charge still carried me and despite my twisting I couldn't stop and ended up slamming into the fence.

Being able to recover would have been nice but that wasn't the way he played. Frank unleashed a string of curses and threats that stuck with me like a virus. One of which being he was going to gut me like a peacock. I'd never heard something so foul before, so much so that I was stunned. I hesitated enough for a knife to come straight for my face. I brought my bat up at the last possible moment and the two connected. Sparks flew and the knife ricocheted into the fence and stuck into the dirt.

On instinct I reached for the weapon, but the other knife whizzed through the air. I heard it like a whisper but I fell backward. The knife took my hat off by the bill and pinned it against the fence, I had just about become shishkabob. My heart pounded in my chest and pure terror hovered around me like a nightmarish cloud. I had to fight through it if I wanted to live, and at least he was out knives. It was my chance!

Bat in hand I charged again at Frank. He smiled with a mischievous air. I was going to call his bluff. Three steps cleared the distance between us. I swung a vertical chop but he sidestepped and shoved me hard. I stumbled past him, head first into the tree. A pang clattered in the center of my skull and I turned using the tree to hold me. I had to get him before he got his blades!

"Hypnosis!" I cried out as I thrust my hand forward.

I watched the energy zap at the sprinting gang leader. My breath was held. He was just about to the blades and hadn't noticed-I knew I had him, but Frank rolled away and the power crashed into the fence and fizzled. Meanwhile he kicked off the planks and the fence leaned under his weight. He kicked off and twisted grabbing both blades. I couldn't believe how quick he was moving. I didn't even have a chance to go at the psycho because he appeared right in front of me. My eyes a popped open wide and a yelp slipped out. I stepped back as two jabs came at me. I felt tiny pin pricks of pain in my forearm. Blood dripped down my arm, but I had to use the limb in defense! Again I took two more stabs.

I gritted my teeth against the pain, but it was eating through my last few drops of adrenalin. My feet moved beneath me and I took another step back. Frank howled with laughter and unleashed a barrage of knife jabs. Somehow I needed to go on the offensive. But to open up my defense would be to give a direct shot to my vitals. So I continued to hold up my arm and took two more painful attacks. I cried and stepped back again. Maybe if I could get a split second I could hit him with a hypnosis. At point blank range he wouldn't be able to dodge. He'd go down and then I could... What? I couldn't just kill him-I was no murderer!

"ARGGH!" I screamed in defiance and lashed out. Frank's arms went wide as I connected with both daggers. Steel on steel clanged and it was slow motion in my eyes. I brought my hand up and smiled. My palm was right in the jerk's face.

"Hypnosis!" I shouted.

I watched in glee as the waves blasted Frank point blank. It was over. Victory was mi- I barely felt it at first. Was it because of how deep it was? Blood gurgled through my lips and the tee ball bat dropped from my hands. My eyes locked onto Frank's glasses, searching for an explanation, there wasn' one. I couldn't see the evil eyes behind them but I felt their euphoria. One of his knives slipped out of my gut and gravity doubled it seemed, pulling me to my knees.

Why hadn't hypnosis worked? What was protecting the gang leader? I couldn't know and I was losing life blood fast. My hand found the wound and I gripped at it trying to hold in my blood. It was a futile attempt as the hot gore poured over me

I heard Frank laugh like a hyena. Loud and high pitched. He won, and was taking sick pleasure in the victory. Bastard...

Darkness edged in around my vision. I really was in disbelief. My life was at an end. Why the heck had I taken the stupid quest? Me save the world? What a cruel joke. My young life was over-I wasted it and I had plenty of regrets. Never having asked out Jenny at the library never having had a girlfriend... no love, no family of my own, no proof I ever existed. No-no-no-no!

Words left my lips, I heard them but they were muffled by thick sticky blood. The two syllables would save me...

"Life up..."

Yes, energy drained from me but my life force felt as if it were returning. I could feel the deep gash mend back together. My blood vanished as if it had never left my body. Almost like the attack had been an illusion, even though it had been very real. And I knew if I didn't act right then, the healing would be wasted. My fingertips touched the bat handle and grasped it, then I swung.

My attack was blind but still I heard the crack and felt it vibrate through me. The very force of my blow sent the Shark Leader off of his feet. The cry of his pain was a pleasure to my ears. Frank crumbled down on one knee, his head swaying like a bobble. The expensive-looking sun glasses hung off of his face, one lense shattered.

Excitement replaced despair. I won. I had beaten the leader of the street gang terrorizing my town. Mayne there was something to the prophecy after all. But that was it for miracles-my power had run out. My head ached but without pain, just a pressure behind my skull. There would be no more healing or hypnotism until I had time to rest.

I heard giggling. Then it became a chuckle and then a maniacal laughter. Frank was doubled over in some kind of hysterical fit.

"Fail-proof Frank can't be beaten," he said in between laughs, reaching into his jacket and drawing out a small rectangular block. It looked a remote control. He spoke into it, "and this is Frankystein Mark II."

The beaten gangster collapsed in a heap and the remote bounced past my feet and rolled next to the collapsed wooden shack. My eyes trailed after it. Was it a grenade!? But it didn't blow up, in fact it didn't do anything at all. After a few seconds I turned to look back at Frank. What was he getting at?

BEEP BEEP BEEP

An electronic beeping came from within the shack. I turned as the rumbling of an engine revved from behind the tree-no in the structure. I cocked my head in confusion.

"What the heck?" I whispered.

I walked around the back of the shack and found a wide pipe protruding out. A burst of steam blew and I felt the heat from several feet away. The searing temperature would have melted my skin had I been much closer. Then the wood began creaking as if under strain. At that point I made a strange observation, one that didn't really compute. On each side was of the structure was a long limb. Were they arms? They sure looked like it… The hands began twitching and the fingers stretched.

Chug. Chug. Chug.

KARACK.

The right arm snapped out and smashed into me. I left my feet and soared through the air. A great explosion of pain took my breath away as I crashed into a brick wall at the end of the fenced in yard. Oh how It hurt. It was as if my very existence was crushed. Like being punched in the womb. I was a rag doll as I fell and landed next to Frank's prone form.

Somehow still awake I looked up as tank treads emerged from underneath the construct. It could move. Holy hell it could move.

"You have got to be crapping me." I whispered.

What I had thought to be a collapsed in wooden structure had become a living weapon. It even had a barrel torso and a bucket head, with a creepy toothy grin as well as sunglasses painted on.

A burst of steam shot out of the pipe and it rolled forward. Where the heck had Frank gotten such a thing!? A freaking robot! I summoned every bit of energy that remained and dove away. The robot chopped its fists into the ground sending out shockwaves, catching me off balance. I stumbled and caught myself on the tree. The tank backed up beeping like a truck. What else could I do but watch? Run maybe? But then would it go on a killing spree through Onett?

"How can I fight something like this!?" I asked as it came at me again.

I dodged another swinging fist. This one hit the tree and tore it from its roots with a great SNAP. The tree teetered and fell back onto Frankystein Mark II. I spotted my opening. It was crazy but then what the heck wasn't anymore?

My legs pumped under me as I ran up the impromptu ramp of a tree. The robot knocked it away but I was already in the air swinging it down and into the bucket head which crushed in and rolled off.

The ringing of metal vibrated out and I fell back, landing on my tail bone. Pain shot up my spine but it was the least of which I had felt throughout the battle with the Sharks.

The robot, headless, went out of control. It's arms spun and flailed like the blades of a helicopter. They dug up the astroturf launching dirt everywhere. A constant stream of steam blew from its backend. The machine vibrated, it's nuts and bolts shaking loose. I backed up, frightened and right into the fence. There was nowhere else to run. Crap. I closed my eyes tight and heard electricity crackle, but when death didn't come I dared to pop a peep open.

The Frankystein Mark II was back in a pile of timber, with sparks flying from its neck like a sparkler. Thick black smoke replaced the steam, the insane machine had been defeated. It wouldn't be moving again. Just to make sure I walked over to the remote control and stomped it into the ground, cracking it apart, wires and spring sticking out.

I couldn't wrap my head around how a punk gangster was able to get his hands on such a death dealing contraption. It was so inhuman and powerful. A tank made out of wood of all things! The sheer thought of what it had taken to build such a thing hurt my head.

My ears began to ring like the night before, but this time there wasn't any pain. In fact I started feeling a bit better, more energetic, and refreshed, as if I could go on a little longer. I breathed deep and almost started to laugh. It was still sinking in that I had won. But then something moved off to the side.

I spun ready to fight once again. I found Frank on his knees again, conscious and rubbing his head where I had smacked him.

"This is my first defeat," he said sounding depressed, "Fail-Proof Frank is now just failure Frank."

I could've felt sorry for him, but then again, he had nearly killed me. He'd be lucky if I didn't actually beat him to a pulp.

"Frank!" I shouted, stomping toward him, "Just give up. Don't try anything. I don't want to fight you anymore."

He did that hyena laugh again.

"I know you've been asking around," he said catching me off guard, "so I'll tell you about Giant's Step."

How did he know? The lousy bastard had been keeping tan on me? Which meant someone else was pulling his strings. It had to be related to Giygas. More so then, why did he want to help me?

"It seems," he continued, "to be quite a powerful spot. Some kind of special power is stored there that allows certain people to perform wondrous feats."

"So I've heard," I said, lowering my bat, Frank was done, "Then you know why I had to come beat you up."

Frank looked at me and laughed again, "However a monster sucked up all the energy at that spot."

Monster? Had he said monster!?

"It's difficult to get to Giant's Step." He said.

"I know you made it that way." I told him, still contemplating the fact he said a monster was up there waiting for me.

"That's all I know," Frank muttered, "I suggest you collect more information on your own."

I turned to leave and I was quite satisfied, the Sharks were finished.

Frank stopped me, "The entrance to the path leading to Giant's Step is behind the touring entertainer's shack. Pirkle, the mayor of Onett has a key to the shack."

"And with your butt kicked he'll give it to me," I told him.

"Ness," he said my name in a low voice like someone was listening in, "You've become stronger than I. Your adventure is just beginning.

He knew my name and all about my quest, but wanted to help. Why did he try and stand in my way? I could have threatened him for more information but I had the feeling if he worked for Giygas that I wouldn't need to hurt him anymore, the alien overlord would do it for me.

As I walked away my energy was running at zero. I needed to sleep, and it just so happened a hotel was right around the corner and my home was all the way up the hill-I wouldn't make it. Pirkle and Giant's Step could wait till morning. I needed to rest my eyes, just a bit.

Thanks everyone!

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1. What did you like the most?

2. What was your least favorite part?

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